I set my alarm for 6:30AM this morning so that I could arrive at the gym by 7AM. I haven't been going because (1) I was sick for over two weeks and (2) I became a sloth in that period of time. Anyway, after noticing that my uniforms had "shrunk" in the last month or so, I decided to get back into my workout routine. Since it is so "cold" here in the mornings, I figured I could stay warmer by wearing a hat. I grabbed my favourite ball cap (the one that says "Canadian Girls Kick Ass") and prepared to head out. Imagine my surprise to find a nice hole, the size of a quarter, chewed in the middle of it!
I know I've mentioned a lot of the wildlife I deal with here on a regular basis but I have failed to tell you about the termites! They are everywhere. Everything that is wood here is likely to succumb to their voracious appetites. In my room alone, the dressers, the night tables, the doorframes and the wooden screen that hides the laundryroom, are all tasty morsels for these pesky creatures. I never realized that they wanted variety in their diet (ie. cotton!) or I would have bought them a stick of dynamite to chew on! Grrr ... anyway, after I returned from the gym, I dumped the entire content of my drawers on the floor and sprayed them all inside with bug spray. With my luck, they will probably inhale the stuff and mutate into something that eats hair! LOL
So Christmas is finally over. Thank the Goddess! I used to have fabulous Christmases when I was a kid but the ones in my adult life have never quite measured up. The frenzy experienced NOTB is somewhat muted here but working in retail allows me to see the best and worst of people when they are shopping. December 23 was a great day in the store -- we were incredibly busy and everyone was in a generous mood. By December 25 (one day before the full moon), people were definitely in a different frame of mind and it was hard to maintain my enthusiasm while working. I spent Christmas Eve at a friend's house, enjoying her hospitality and a wonderful homecooked meal. Dinner on Christmas Day proved to be somewhat of a disaster since the restaurant I chose was overbooked and understaffed. I would have been happier at home with a bag of cheesies.
Next comes New Year's and this is a much happier "holiday" for me. I never feel the pressure to have a date for New Year's Eve, either here or in Canada. December 31, 1999 saw me celebrating the millenium with two girlfriends, drinking champagne in one of the unfinished penthouse suites in my brand new condo building. I think I stayed home alone the next year and it was wonderful. Last year, I spent New Year's Eve on Los Muertos beach, drinking margaritas, watching fireworks with the ocean and palm trees as a back drop and then dancing the night away on Olas Altas. I swear every gay guy in town was out that night. What a blast! Some old friends will be missing this year (and yes Medina, I'm talking about YOU!) but there are always new friends to fill the void.
I don't expect this December 31st to be the same as last year but I am hoping for a few giggles anyway. Then I have a two day weekend afterwards. I can hardly bear to think of what I'm going to do with myself! LOL It will probably take one whole day to recover from my hangover. Whatever you do on December 31st, and with whomever you do it, please be careful and mindful of those around you. The world is a fragile place and we must look out for one another. All the best to you and yours for 2005. I'll be here for a while yet.
Monday, December 27, 2004
Sunday, December 26, 2004
The Battle of the Sexes
I had a psychology professor in university who felt that women were definitely the stronger sex. I was in my late teens or early 20's at the time and I didn't really believe him. But his "philosphy" must have registered somewhere in the back of my brain. I can always remember his telling us that women were tough and that's why they had babies. Or maybe having babies made them tough. Hell, I can't remember his exact words but I took his Psych 101 class once a week for a year and he hardly ever neglected to comment on his favourite subject.
My roommate Colleen and I just finished watching three back-to-back episodes of the "Sex and The City" on DVD tonight. In one of the episodes, Carrie (the character played by Sarah Jessica Parker) asks, "Are we the new bachelors?". Colleen and I howled at this one because we think it's true! Lately the men we've been meeting are all about relationships and commitments and "making love" and we just want sex! Is there ever a point in our lives when men and women are on the same wave length?
When we're young girls and women, we dream of getting married and having babies. I never actually "dreamed" of getting married but I did it 'cause everyone else was doing it. I feel it was a relationship that "went too far". In retrospect, we should have never gotten married. Then, in my early 30's and after my divorce, when most of my school chums were raising their families, I was single and still trying to have relationships with guys my own age. For the most part, they hadn't been married yet or, like me, had been married for a short period of time with little or no prodigy. We went to "meat" markets, partied a lot and tried to form relationships with people we barely knew. It was a sad, lonely time for many of us and I never want to repeat that decade.
Once I turned 40, I was well entrenched in a successful career, was close to buying my first home and living a somewhat sophisticated lifestyle downtown Toronto. Most of my friends were female, in their 40's, divorced with no kids, single and professional. We ran around in packs and had fabulous, boozy dinner parties in each other's homes or went to the theatre or out for dinner to the newest, hottest clubs and restaurants. Once in a while, one of us would get tangled up with some guy but it never lasted, especially if the "girls" didn't like him. They were my barometer against which I measured all my men. And not many measured up.
It was in my late 30's and early 40's that I discovered the unique experience of dating younger men (Dad, if you're reading this, you might want to go get a drink of water or something!). The first one was nine years younger than me and he was SO sexy, with his tattooes, multiple piercings and Harley. When he came to the office one day to show me his newly pierced nipple, the girls I worked with went crazy! He was lean and handsome in a rakish kind of way, with long black curly hair. We had absolutely NOTHING in common yet I dated him for almost a year and we stayed friends for a long, long time after that. I think I passed him on to one of my girlfriends.
Since then I've dated guys of all ages but lately, just those much older or much younger than me. Guys my own age seem to be in short supply. Most of them are gay. The rest are married to my girlfriends and therefore, become great friends to me but nothing more. Ideally, these would be the guys with whom I have the most in common but there are none available. The older guys I meet might be financially stable but they can be quite boring. The younger guys I know provide fun and excitement but they are often starting to think about having a family and I'm not!
I've decided I'm not cut out for a long term relationship. I like to sleep alone too much! And the older I get, the harder it is for me to meet someone who can stimulate me on all levels. I need about four different men to keep me interested -- someone intellectual, someone to confide in, someone to get zany with and one muscle-bound sex machine. But if I had to choose any one of the above, I would choose the last one. Less complications that way and my girlfriends can fill in for all the others! :)
My roommate Colleen and I just finished watching three back-to-back episodes of the "Sex and The City" on DVD tonight. In one of the episodes, Carrie (the character played by Sarah Jessica Parker) asks, "Are we the new bachelors?". Colleen and I howled at this one because we think it's true! Lately the men we've been meeting are all about relationships and commitments and "making love" and we just want sex! Is there ever a point in our lives when men and women are on the same wave length?
When we're young girls and women, we dream of getting married and having babies. I never actually "dreamed" of getting married but I did it 'cause everyone else was doing it. I feel it was a relationship that "went too far". In retrospect, we should have never gotten married. Then, in my early 30's and after my divorce, when most of my school chums were raising their families, I was single and still trying to have relationships with guys my own age. For the most part, they hadn't been married yet or, like me, had been married for a short period of time with little or no prodigy. We went to "meat" markets, partied a lot and tried to form relationships with people we barely knew. It was a sad, lonely time for many of us and I never want to repeat that decade.
Once I turned 40, I was well entrenched in a successful career, was close to buying my first home and living a somewhat sophisticated lifestyle downtown Toronto. Most of my friends were female, in their 40's, divorced with no kids, single and professional. We ran around in packs and had fabulous, boozy dinner parties in each other's homes or went to the theatre or out for dinner to the newest, hottest clubs and restaurants. Once in a while, one of us would get tangled up with some guy but it never lasted, especially if the "girls" didn't like him. They were my barometer against which I measured all my men. And not many measured up.
It was in my late 30's and early 40's that I discovered the unique experience of dating younger men (Dad, if you're reading this, you might want to go get a drink of water or something!). The first one was nine years younger than me and he was SO sexy, with his tattooes, multiple piercings and Harley. When he came to the office one day to show me his newly pierced nipple, the girls I worked with went crazy! He was lean and handsome in a rakish kind of way, with long black curly hair. We had absolutely NOTHING in common yet I dated him for almost a year and we stayed friends for a long, long time after that. I think I passed him on to one of my girlfriends.
Since then I've dated guys of all ages but lately, just those much older or much younger than me. Guys my own age seem to be in short supply. Most of them are gay. The rest are married to my girlfriends and therefore, become great friends to me but nothing more. Ideally, these would be the guys with whom I have the most in common but there are none available. The older guys I meet might be financially stable but they can be quite boring. The younger guys I know provide fun and excitement but they are often starting to think about having a family and I'm not!
I've decided I'm not cut out for a long term relationship. I like to sleep alone too much! And the older I get, the harder it is for me to meet someone who can stimulate me on all levels. I need about four different men to keep me interested -- someone intellectual, someone to confide in, someone to get zany with and one muscle-bound sex machine. But if I had to choose any one of the above, I would choose the last one. Less complications that way and my girlfriends can fill in for all the others! :)
Monday, December 20, 2004
A Week of Wonders
Last weekend (Dec. 11 and 12) marked the end of the feast of the Virgin and the final processions in her honour throughout the City. It is a week filled traffic chaos, religious devotion and food. The processions wind their way through town, causing major headaches for drivers as one of the main arteries in Centro is completely closed off to vehicular traffic and food stands sprout up everywhere. The processions themselves are beautiful with their costumed performers, ancient pagan rituals, familiar, haunting music and drum beats. The processions at night are especially beautiful, lit with candlelight. There is something very moving to see young and old, Nationals and ex-pats, mingling together to celebrate one of Mexico's oldest traditions. It is truly a powerful expression of faith.
On Saturday afternoon in the store, Luis manhandled two huge pinatas up the stairs. I had no idea what they were for until around 5PM when Ana Margarita yelled for me to come downstairs to see the children. The tunnel to the store was filled with small children, all dressed in costume, two representing Mary and Joseph. Apparently, they go from one stop to the next, on their journey looking for food and a resting spot for the pregnant Mother of God. These kids were so small ... I can never get over the difference in size between Mexican children and the kids in Canada. Most of them didn't appear much older than 3 or 4 as they looked at me with huge shining eyes and big toothy grins. It was amazing.
One night on my way home from work, as I walked by Cafe de Olla, the man who cooks on the barbeque outside the restaurant greeted me with his usual smile. As I reached out my hand to shake his in our regular form of greeting, for some inexplicable reason, he enveloped me in a warm hug much like I would expect from my father. I don't know his name and he doesn't speak a word of English but it made feel fuzzy all over just the same.
On Wednesday night, it started to rain around 12:30AM. I lay cuddling my teddy bears in bed, listening to the sound of the rain on the leaves and the thunder rolling in the distance out over the Bay and I thought I had never been more content than right at that exact moment.
On Thursday night, I shared a romantic dinner on the beach with a friend before we headed down south to Dreams (the former Camino Real resort) for an outdoor concert. Paco Renteria was playing to a small crowd outdoors. I had seen him last year at Los Arcos, a huge venue with thousands of people. We were maybe 100 people on Thursday night and as he strummed the first few notes on his guitar, with the quarter moon floating above us and the palm trees waving in the cool night breeze, I felt tears roll down my face. There is something about his music that reaches me like no other ... maybe because wherever and whenever I play it, I am always taken back to Puerto Vallarta.
On Saturday afternoon in the store, Luis manhandled two huge pinatas up the stairs. I had no idea what they were for until around 5PM when Ana Margarita yelled for me to come downstairs to see the children. The tunnel to the store was filled with small children, all dressed in costume, two representing Mary and Joseph. Apparently, they go from one stop to the next, on their journey looking for food and a resting spot for the pregnant Mother of God. These kids were so small ... I can never get over the difference in size between Mexican children and the kids in Canada. Most of them didn't appear much older than 3 or 4 as they looked at me with huge shining eyes and big toothy grins. It was amazing.
One night on my way home from work, as I walked by Cafe de Olla, the man who cooks on the barbeque outside the restaurant greeted me with his usual smile. As I reached out my hand to shake his in our regular form of greeting, for some inexplicable reason, he enveloped me in a warm hug much like I would expect from my father. I don't know his name and he doesn't speak a word of English but it made feel fuzzy all over just the same.
On Wednesday night, it started to rain around 12:30AM. I lay cuddling my teddy bears in bed, listening to the sound of the rain on the leaves and the thunder rolling in the distance out over the Bay and I thought I had never been more content than right at that exact moment.
On Thursday night, I shared a romantic dinner on the beach with a friend before we headed down south to Dreams (the former Camino Real resort) for an outdoor concert. Paco Renteria was playing to a small crowd outdoors. I had seen him last year at Los Arcos, a huge venue with thousands of people. We were maybe 100 people on Thursday night and as he strummed the first few notes on his guitar, with the quarter moon floating above us and the palm trees waving in the cool night breeze, I felt tears roll down my face. There is something about his music that reaches me like no other ... maybe because wherever and whenever I play it, I am always taken back to Puerto Vallarta.
Wednesday, December 15, 2004
Back Online
Our computer has been down since last Friday with a blown out video card. We got a new one installed but things are still looking a little bit wonky. At least it's working! I haven't been able to check my emails, read the Board (http://vallartascene.com/forum/phpBB2/) or blog anything. Funny how you get so used to having a computer every day, it seems strange when it is gone. After being offline a week, I was started to get used to having a bit more free time. LOL
Not much new around here other than the weather which was unseasonably warm and humid today. As I walked home from work just after sunset, I noticed some dark clouds and thought that it looked like it might rain. We did get a few drops about an hour later and I've been hearing thunder but nothing major is happening right now. A good downpour would give some welcome relief although I'm still finding it pleasantly cool.
The town is relatively quiet this week, no doubt in preparation for all hell to break loose next week when the Christmas crowd arrives. It is always difficult for me to get excited about Xmas (as I call it). I find it to be overly commercial (she said, working full-time in retail) and far too frantic. Everyone is rushing around, looking for gifts for people who don't really need anything. I prefer a quiet evening of sharing good food and good wine with good friends.
I'll keep this short as I have a TON of emails to answer. I hope you aren't stressing too much about the coming "season" and find the time to be thankful for all the blessings in your life.
Not much new around here other than the weather which was unseasonably warm and humid today. As I walked home from work just after sunset, I noticed some dark clouds and thought that it looked like it might rain. We did get a few drops about an hour later and I've been hearing thunder but nothing major is happening right now. A good downpour would give some welcome relief although I'm still finding it pleasantly cool.
The town is relatively quiet this week, no doubt in preparation for all hell to break loose next week when the Christmas crowd arrives. It is always difficult for me to get excited about Xmas (as I call it). I find it to be overly commercial (she said, working full-time in retail) and far too frantic. Everyone is rushing around, looking for gifts for people who don't really need anything. I prefer a quiet evening of sharing good food and good wine with good friends.
I'll keep this short as I have a TON of emails to answer. I hope you aren't stressing too much about the coming "season" and find the time to be thankful for all the blessings in your life.
Wednesday, December 08, 2004
Mid Week Blog
Thanks to everyone who called, sent an email or pushed wishes of good health out into the stratosphere -- I am on the mend! I tried to go back to work yesterday but my boss insisted that I go home after our one hour staff meeting. She didn't want me having a relapse. I guess she didn't think an unconscious employee lying on the floor in the middle of the store would be good for business! Actually, I thought it was very sweet of her to be so concerned. So I came home, tried to sleep but couldn't even though I was operating with only 3.5 hours from the night before (frickin' insomnia). I went out for a quick, light dinner at Mama Dolores around the corner. I never met Dolores but the new owner, Grant from Toronto, makes a mean margarita! :) Everyone down here keeps telling me that tequila is the cure for my cold.
But after being in bed since Saturday, I was bored, lonely and checking for bed sores. So I went into work today for my first full shift. It was an extra zany day for some reason. Wednesdays are always a little crazy because the Viva models do a show out at Paradise Village in Nuevo at 2PM. That means four or five young beauties, running around, getting dressed, donning jewellery and blasting out of the store for the 45 minute drive up there, so they can walk around on the hot beach promoting the store, all the while looking cool and chic. What a job!
We are also promoting the store with a local modelling agency at different venues around town which means organizing pareos (sarongs), hats, shoes, sunglasses and jewellery for TEN more models (8 women and two men). This takes HOURS of prep work, including writing down a list of everything sent out in the hopes that we get it back. Fortunately, none of these jobs fall within my list of duties (thank the Goddess!) but I get to watch everyone else run around like headless chickens.
BTW, we had a group photo taken of the new staff at Viva (finally) and it up on the website. Check us out at www.vivacollection.com. Or better yet, drop into the store and see us "live"! The person recently responsible for our marketing "department" (I say that facetiously because the department consists of one person -- Nathan) is leaving to go back to school so we had chocolate cake at the meeting yesterday morning and then went to Burger King tonight after work as sort of a farewell. You might think this sounds a bit odd but Nathan is, without a doubt, the biggest junk food junkie I've ever met! So his going away "bash" was appropriate.
Nathan's replacement, Scott, is turning out to be a good friend. Actually, we are discovering that we are a lot alike and I call him my "alter ego" at work. We like the same kind of jewellery -- when something new comes in, I ask Scott, "Do we love it or hate it?" Invariably, we agree close to 100% of the time. Other than the fact that he is (1) a man (2) gay and (3) blonde, we are identical twins! LOL We joke about it all the time. We keep each other "sane" at work on the days when everyone else is driving us nuts! And he missed me terribly when I was off sick. It is nice to be needed ... BTW, I have a sign in the back room where I work. It says, "Welcome to the Marking Department" and then below that a big circle with the words "BANG HEAD HERE" typed inside. I've been told to move to a location with easier access for all employees. Haha!
After the junk food festival at Burger King, I walked home along the new bridge so I could look at the ocean. The water was wild tonight! There was a huge bank of black clouds in the south end of the Bay and I could swear it was raining south of Mismaloya. The ocean was churning out huge, angry waves and the wind was whipping the crap out of the palapas along the beach. So far it hasn't rained here but it seems to be pending. Weird weather for December. It's been really cool lately. So much so that this acclimated Canadian actually took her jean jacket out with her last night to ward off the chill! Oh that reminds me, it's snowing in Toronto. [insert evil laugh here]
I hope you are happy and healthy wherever you are. And remember, if you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with!
But after being in bed since Saturday, I was bored, lonely and checking for bed sores. So I went into work today for my first full shift. It was an extra zany day for some reason. Wednesdays are always a little crazy because the Viva models do a show out at Paradise Village in Nuevo at 2PM. That means four or five young beauties, running around, getting dressed, donning jewellery and blasting out of the store for the 45 minute drive up there, so they can walk around on the hot beach promoting the store, all the while looking cool and chic. What a job!
We are also promoting the store with a local modelling agency at different venues around town which means organizing pareos (sarongs), hats, shoes, sunglasses and jewellery for TEN more models (8 women and two men). This takes HOURS of prep work, including writing down a list of everything sent out in the hopes that we get it back. Fortunately, none of these jobs fall within my list of duties (thank the Goddess!) but I get to watch everyone else run around like headless chickens.
BTW, we had a group photo taken of the new staff at Viva (finally) and it up on the website. Check us out at www.vivacollection.com. Or better yet, drop into the store and see us "live"! The person recently responsible for our marketing "department" (I say that facetiously because the department consists of one person -- Nathan) is leaving to go back to school so we had chocolate cake at the meeting yesterday morning and then went to Burger King tonight after work as sort of a farewell. You might think this sounds a bit odd but Nathan is, without a doubt, the biggest junk food junkie I've ever met! So his going away "bash" was appropriate.
Nathan's replacement, Scott, is turning out to be a good friend. Actually, we are discovering that we are a lot alike and I call him my "alter ego" at work. We like the same kind of jewellery -- when something new comes in, I ask Scott, "Do we love it or hate it?" Invariably, we agree close to 100% of the time. Other than the fact that he is (1) a man (2) gay and (3) blonde, we are identical twins! LOL We joke about it all the time. We keep each other "sane" at work on the days when everyone else is driving us nuts! And he missed me terribly when I was off sick. It is nice to be needed ... BTW, I have a sign in the back room where I work. It says, "Welcome to the Marking Department" and then below that a big circle with the words "BANG HEAD HERE" typed inside. I've been told to move to a location with easier access for all employees. Haha!
After the junk food festival at Burger King, I walked home along the new bridge so I could look at the ocean. The water was wild tonight! There was a huge bank of black clouds in the south end of the Bay and I could swear it was raining south of Mismaloya. The ocean was churning out huge, angry waves and the wind was whipping the crap out of the palapas along the beach. So far it hasn't rained here but it seems to be pending. Weird weather for December. It's been really cool lately. So much so that this acclimated Canadian actually took her jean jacket out with her last night to ward off the chill! Oh that reminds me, it's snowing in Toronto. [insert evil laugh here]
I hope you are happy and healthy wherever you are. And remember, if you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with!
Sunday, December 05, 2004
"Sick As A Dog" Blog
Tengo la gripa. That means I have the flu. Some of the people at work insisted on coming in, even though they were deathly ill. So now I'm sick. Really sick. I have a philosophy about being sick and work. Whether or not you get sick days, DON'T GO INTO TO WORK, for three reasons: (1) Obviously, you will infect everyone else around you and, in our case, even our customers. "Thank you for shopping at Viva ma'am ... cough, cough." (2) You need rest when you're sick in order to mend. Go home. Sleep. (3) The work you are doing is probably well below standard. Mistakes happen regardless but when you're sick, MORE mistakes happen.
Thank goodness for Colleen, my roommate, and my friend Bill, who have been nursing me with food and drugs since Friday. I am very grateful not to be living alone right now. Yesterday I was too weak to even make myself a bowl of soup and I couldn't sleep either. So combine insomnia with the flu and you've got a good idea of how I'm feeling. To add insult to injury, I got severely bit by something last night and have two huge welts on the side of my neck. If it was a vampire, I'll let you know.
Right now I'm drinking some tea while thinking about having a shower and washing my hair. Something tells me my energy level for the day is at its highest right now and I should take advantage of it while I can. So this blog is going to be short today. Sorry about that. Please send your wishes for my speedy recovery up into the air and direct them south to Puerto Vallarta where, hopefully, I will receive them. And if I'm still sick tomorrow, you can bet I won't be going into work ... :)
Thank goodness for Colleen, my roommate, and my friend Bill, who have been nursing me with food and drugs since Friday. I am very grateful not to be living alone right now. Yesterday I was too weak to even make myself a bowl of soup and I couldn't sleep either. So combine insomnia with the flu and you've got a good idea of how I'm feeling. To add insult to injury, I got severely bit by something last night and have two huge welts on the side of my neck. If it was a vampire, I'll let you know.
Right now I'm drinking some tea while thinking about having a shower and washing my hair. Something tells me my energy level for the day is at its highest right now and I should take advantage of it while I can. So this blog is going to be short today. Sorry about that. Please send your wishes for my speedy recovery up into the air and direct them south to Puerto Vallarta where, hopefully, I will receive them. And if I'm still sick tomorrow, you can bet I won't be going into work ... :)
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