Changes

Today I went to Manzanillo to pick up my FM3. I picked up Norma and her sister, Rosa a little after 8 AM at Norma’s house in the Valle de Sol colonia. My idea in leaving this early was to get to the immigration offices around 9 AM when they open, thinking I would get a good place in line and not have to wait very long. Well, others seemed to have had this idea and the wait was about an hour and a half. I provided the January bank statement immigration had requested and shortly thereafter got the FM3. The FM3 booklet almost looks like a passport.

I have had a problem with my son, Marc and as a result will be leaving his house, Casa de Schroeder in Armeria. I am a little sad about this turn of events because I will miss out watching the plants grow that Norma and I planted and I enjoyed using the swimming pool. However, I probably would have suffered during the hot summer even with the swimming pool to cool off in. The major problem would have been trying to sleep nights when it is 95 degrees and humid for weeks at a time.

Of course, air conditioning could be installed but then you have to pay to use it. A major reason I was moved to sell my house in Truckee near Lake Tahoe is that I couldn’t afford to keep it warm during the winter. And of the two situations, I would rather pay to keep warm than pay to stay cool. This turn of events has me again in search of the perfect climate, not too cold in the winter or too hot in the summer.

Another thing that I realize after this time in Armeria is that I would not be happy living as the only gringo in a Mexican community. Not that I miss the company of gringos that much but because in areas where they live, there are more services which cater to them. Mainly I miss a variety of foods that are not available here. As I have said before, I’m bored with eating just Mexican food every day.

I am now planning on returning to the Lake Chapala area. The climate is almost perfect and you have access to different kinds of foods. I checked with a friend and I think that the spot I parked my RV in before is available. If so, I will park there for awhile and wait for the sale of my house to be completed. I will check around for a nice place to rent or buy.

My relationship with Norma will now be strained with me living at Lake Chapala and Norma living in Armeria. We have talked about this (with the help of an interpreter) and I think that if I can come up with a nice place to live that she may want to join me.