Matt needed a project....and he found one. We cleared out some dead bouganvillas from our terrace when we first moved into this house - and this left a large space of garden wall very exposed and very empty. We planted some young bouganvillas but it will take a while for them to come of age. What to do about this wall? We talked about buying some wall art that would do well outside, or a tile mosaic, or possibly having a local artist paint a mural. Whatever we did, it needed to be fairly inexpensive as we are renting and not sure where we'll go after the year's lease expires.
Then Matt came up with a solution - he would paint a mural. Now everyone says upon hearing this "I didn't know Matt is an artist!" And I say - "he's not". But he planned a geometrical design, plotted it out on paper, ran plumb lines on the wall so everything would be in order, cut templates, and then got to work. I've got to say he did an amazing job. I soon found out that he wanted very little input from me. This was his project and he took full ownership of it. When the design was all plotted out on the wall and we went to buy paints, I thought he'd really need my help then. Not so much! He had a clear idea of what he wanted and he found it. We came to one major disagreement about the design - he wanted to outline all the shapes with blue and I thought it was better to leave just the wall color peaking through each shape. Well, we compromised; he outlined one area in blue to make a circle and left the rest as is for me. Well, here is his completed design. I think it looks really nice! We had this crazy vine pop up on the side of the mural and over the last three weeks it's grown from nothing to about 12 feet long. Matt's training it so it will circle around his mural. And this turned out so well, he's already got two other designs plotted out. Updates to follow!
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| Matt's first mural |
Seems like since we've been back in Ajijic we've done catch up with our health care needs. I've seen a GP and a opthamologist. Matt has seen an orthopedist for his sore knee. We've been very happy with the health care available here, and the affordability. The one thing our friends and family usually wonder about is the quality of health care here and affordability. We continue to just pay out of pocket for what we need (doctor visits ad prescriptions) and have a high deductible health insurance plan with very reasonable rates in the US. When Matt was dealing with a lot of knee pain, we felt this might be the first tough call we needed to make. Should he have it repaired here and we foot the entire bill or go back NOB and have it done with our insurance? Luckily the knee is doing much better right how, so no need to make a decision, One thing we especially like about doctors here is that they tend to be much more holistic. Before offering a prescription, they'll have a serious talk with you about diet and exercise.
Part of the charm of living in a village is that almost everything is within walking distance. The medical doctors we chose to use are a bit too far to walk, but there are a couple options for health care within a 15 minute walk. There is a dentist across the street from us that does an amazing job of cleaning your teeth for only $150 pesos. And all work is done by the dentist. At her clinic, extractions are $350 pesos, fillings $400 peso and crowns $2500 pesos. And there is a vet for Hermann and Lola that is only a five minute walk away. So lots of good options for all of our family very near our house.
For the past week I've been wearing my Nurse Syd hat. A four month old pup was brought to the ranch with two broken rear legs. Gudrun and I took him to a vet in Guadalajara and Drl Barron felt he could repair his legs but it would be two tough surgeries. Since this little guy was so loving and friendly, despite all the pain, we decided to give him a shot at recovery. He was at Dr. Barron's for 10 days recovering from the surgery. Last Saturday we picked him up and he obviously needed a lot of special care so he's at our house for a bit. I can't say Matt, Hermann or Lola are especially happy about this development. He's not doing as well as I had hoped, and seems he has some nerve damage in his right leg and he won't use it at all. I'm taking him to the vet twice a week for a vitamin B12 shot which may help repair this damage. He's also still in a lot of pain at times as well. So the jury is still out; not sure if he'll recover enough usage of this leg that he'll be OK, or if we'll need to consider another very sad option. Have my fingers crossed for sweet little Buster. Matt calls him thumper because he's always wagging his tail...despite all his troubles.
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| Sweet Buster |
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| Buster Giving Herm some Loving - Herm is not Happy! |
One of these was Pedro Loco. Matt and I never met him, he passed away just before Matt and I first came to Ajijic in May 2013. From what I under stand, Pedro (formerly known as Peter) was a retired Canadian attorney. He loved to dress in colorful Mexican garb, and adorn the outfit with a flowered straw hat. Legend has it that Pedro loved to drink, and sometimes it was a long trip home from whatever bar he was at that night. But luckily Pedro had a great little donkey named Vino Blanco that he took almost everywhere he went. Vino Blanco always knew her way home, even when Pedro didn't, so he could just climb on and she'd deliver him to his doorstep.
We met Vino Blanco when we arrived in May 2013 as she was being cared for by Yve, the owner of a local restaurant. The old Yves restaurant was lakeside and one of our favorite places for dinner, and an easy walk from our village house. Yve kept Vino Blanco in front of his restaurant and she attracted her fair share of attention, not that she really cared. She roamed the beach area, but it was eroded and not much to munch on, but Yve always tried to find her a bit of green grass to munch on.
So here we are a year later and back in Ajijic. This time we rented a house just west of the village. It's still within walking distance, but a longer walk. I usually walk the dogs around the neighboring housing developments rather than through the village. So I do miss seeing the village every day. But one thing I do get to see everyday is Vino Blanco! Last winter Yve moved his restaurant from the old lakeside location to the west end of town. It's in a beautiful property, an older home and the outside tables surround a swimming pool. And it's directly across the careterra from our new house! We love walking across the street for breakfast, lunch and dinner at Yve's. And every day we can see Vino Blanco munching grass around her beautiful new home. We can even here her bray when the mood takes her. So, we have a piece of the village right her on the west side!