Saturday, January 12, 2013

Saturday January 12, 2013


Saturday January 12/13  update #340
I actually stayed in bed for almost 9 hours and didn’t even hear Bella leave for her bridge classes.  I got all freshened up, did the usual chores and tackled a few more Pase del Nino photos which you will see, probably tomorrow.
I sent off a note last night to a camera store in NYC where I hope to purchase my new camera but was really disappointed in not receiving a response yet today.  People sure don’t seem very anxious to sell things these days as customer service really sucks, in all 3 countries.
I left early and padded my wallet to go get a few extra gifts to take back home.   It is a good thing I did add some cash because I came home with only $4… but I did get a good haul.
Then I made it over to Joe’s for a delicious meal of Osso Bucco, which is a veal stew, followed by Tiramisu.  The meal was wonderful and was enjoyed by many, many new patrons tonight, their first time at Joe’s.  The company was great and Joe even got to the piano as I was leaving.   I got part way home and realized I had left my camera in Joseph’s office so I had to go all the way back.
That was today’s excitement.   Hugs to all.   Please see all photos at http://souvenircuenca.blogspot.com/

Friday, January 11, 2013

Friday January 11, 2013


Friday January 11/13  update #339
I did my photographic chores while Bella went to do her charity work at the weaving store.  I had offered to stay home today for Rosa’s arrival for cleaning so Bella could join her regular Friday bridge club but she begged off.  I never thought I would hear her say that it is just “too much bridge” at the moment, taking into account her lessons have re-started for another group too.
Lots of details to nail down for my trip next Thursday to North America, airlines, transportation, hotels, what to bring, what to buy, digging up addresses and phone numbers, on and on….  This is all going on paper because I can’t rely on my old brain to retain all this.   I had no idea it would take me most of the day to organize this alone.
I spoke to my Mom only to find out that one of my Montreal Uncles passed away a while back then his son also expired later.   It is strange that nobody informed us about this at all so I am trying to get the details to pass this on to my email list of interested family members.
I only had time to work on 3 more Pase del Nino photos before rushing to catch a bus for supper.   Bella made reservations at California Kitchen for baby back ribs, her favourite, and we were joined by Oswaldo and Cathy.  Oswaldo speaks excellent English as he lived in Toronto for 16 years.  Cathy speaks little English but is an avid bridge player that seems to be a good fit with Bella.  They needed to get settled on a convention to follow for their bidding so they can be a deadly combination.  Cathy may return to the Cuenca bridge Club with Bella and try to kick the butts of the presently male-only establishment.
They had some nice soft jazz playing right next to us so it was a trifle loud for us to converse but we managed to have a lot of laughs.   Oswaldo is looking for help with Canada pension questions so Bella has promised to help him with that.  They drove us home and came in for a tour of our mansion.
That was today’s excitement.   Hugs to all.   Please see all photos at http://souvenircuenca.blogspot.com/

Thursday, January 10, 2013

Thursday January 10, 2013


Thursday January 10/13  update #338
We slipped out a few minutes earlier today because we wanted to investigate getting a shelf  for the front area in side the gate.   I had made many measurements and had fancy diagrams but ended up going for a custom-made metal shelving unit with 3 moveable shelves up to 2 metres high, on wheels, and the left side 1” lower due to the floor slope.  This is painted white and ready to go on Monday for $45!
We had an appointment for Oswaldo to pick us up in his lovely old 1970 Ford LTD and head out to their place.  The ladies, Cathy, Bella, Karen and Manon played bridge while the men, Oswaldo, Mark and myself stayed on the patio and yakked for 4 hours.  The time passed very quickly.   I had understood that Oswaldo played billiards and had got the impression that he had his own pool room but I was horribly mistaken.
Their home is delightfully decorated with many antiques, including many old cameras, some models of which I or Mark have also owned at one time.  They also have two dogs, one lovely small pug and a huge one reminiscent of Pot Roast in the Super Dogs competition.  This big dog stays in “jail” most of the time because he has no manners at all and bowls over people when he is not eating everything in sight.
We made a brief stop at Joe’s to pick up some spare ribs they owed us before heading to this delightful restaurant across from The Palermo, right of the Oro Verde Hotel.  Like usual, we were the only couple there this early in the evening, and also because this restaurant is a huge secret.  It has no signs and is hidden in a “plus-15” over a parking lot so most people don’t even know it exists, but the food is great as are the prices.
Bella informs me my flights have changed slightly for my trip and we struggled to make decisions on how many trade shows to do selling our Eleggant Hooks.
That was today’s excitement.   Hugs to all.   Please see all photos at http://souvenircuenca.blogspot.com/

Wednesday, January 09, 2013

Wednesday January 9, 2013


Wednesday January 9/13  update #337
It was a lazy day mostly for the two of us.  I did multiple uploads to my photo sites then had a quick lunch to try to make it downtown by 12:30.  I didn’t want to catch the photo stores closed for siesta.  The #50 took forever to come and then to make its way through downtown.  
Luckily the Fuji store was open so I went in with my memory stick to get two 5” x 7” photos done.  I approached the self-service machine and had assistance from the young PhotoShop expert but could only get the JPG to show and not the PNG.  So the young lady patiently took the stick upstairs and processed something then sent the photos back down to the self-service machine.  Then she calmly printed the one and I didn’t even see her process the second one at all but kept my mouth shot.   Then she handed me a tag to pay at the counter which she then came to serve me at.  I was expecting $3 each because of samples on the wall but the total bill was a whopping 70 cents, I almost fell over and asked her if it was for both photos and she said yes.  When I got the package I double-checked and there they both were, in vivid Fuji colour.   They are just an awesome place to deal with.
As I stepped out I looked up at Michael & Susan’s place above the Konica store across the street just as the balcony doors opened.   So Michael and I had a little conversation above the traffic noise and I headed down the street.
I stopped at one of the many Video stores and picked up 4 more movies, one being a duplicate as I couldn’t remember all of the 200+ movies we own down here.   I was asking for “Absolutamente Amor”, for “Love, Actually” but they didn’t have it.  They wanted to close for lunch so I was rushed and only took the 4, including Chicago, Josey Wales, Cool Hand Luke, and the duplicate of You Only Live Twice.  They had such a phenomenal selection I could have walked out with armloads of movies.
I got off the bus early and got a key cut for the inside door (60c) and tried to see the metal fabricators to talk about getting a rolling shelf unit for inside the gate, now that the bike is no longer hogging that space, but they were closed for lunch.
When I got home I cleaned up the new picture frames and installed the new Fuji photos and they look awesome.  I hope our hosts tomorrow like them.
I went back to the metal fabricators again and the boss still wasn;t around, but the hired hand remembered me as the man with the two cats on Popayan.  I asked for him to ask his boss to come over and take some measurements but he never did show up.
Mmmmm, nachos for supper, a very welcome treat.
And I got to work on a few more photos from the Pase Del Nino.
Now time to watch a movie.
That was today’s excitement.   Hugs to all.   Please see all photos at http://souvenircuenca.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, January 08, 2013

Tuesday January 8, 2013


Tuesday January 8/13  update #336
Last night I was treated to a home-cooked birthday supper by Karen and Mark and we enjoyed some fun and lively conversation.   We were trying to decide on gifts for some Ecuadorian friends and it was suggested that I bring some of my photographic work and that seemed like a reasonable idea so I started work on that this morning.  The lady, Cathy, like flowers so I have done up a few options for Bella to choose as well as a few people and children favorites.  The husband, Oswaldo, is very much into billiards so I went online to find a “Dogs Playing Pool” print for his billiard room.  I will have to go to the Fuji store to get them printed tomorrow.
My other task today was to put together some photos for Mom who wants to see our house, etc.   At the same time I wanted to have some interesting shots to show other family and friends.  Going through some 10,000 or so photos takes a little doing, especially when you only have 4Gb to save them on.  I somehow managed to keep it down to about 250.
Bella was off to the Book Exchange and for another grocery pickup which doesn’t take her very long.
I was working away and all-of-a-sudden the power goes off, and it was not returning right away.  I looked out my window to see if there is an obvious problem and spotted it right away.  In front of the house on the opposite corner there was an electrical crew moving a concrete light standard.  I took a few shots because I thought for sure they were going to drop the pole and the electrician on the ladder right onto the newly built house.  They may work very rudimently, but the little devils do get the job done with hand and ropes.  Truly amazing!
I walked over to see when they expected to restore our power and they said one hour, so I went over to Coral and picked up 2 picture frames and a new shelf and brackets to install above the washing machine, total cost $16. 
Bella was toying with the idea of changing washing machines because this machine did not seem to get our clothes as clean as we are accustomed to.  But, smart lady that she is, she decided to compare some real Tide with the local soap and the difference was immediate.  The local liquid soap, supposedly extra strength etc etc just doesn’t cut it.  This saved us another few hundred dollars again, now that we haven’t had to replace our washer nor our stove.
I took a break from my photos and went and installed the shelf in the lavanderia.  I got the first bracket up but needed Bella’s help to get the shelf level while I marked the wall for the second bracket.  Again, the walls are concrete so you have to make sure you get it right the first time with the wall anchors.  Sonuvagun we ended up with a pretty level shelf that won’t fall down.   I am sure my Dad would be proud of me as he was a pretty darn good carpenter.
That was today’s excitement.   Hugs to all.   Please see all photos at http://souvenircuenca.blogspot.com/

Monday, January 07, 2013

Monday January 7, 2013


Monday January 7/13  update #335
I can’t believe I stayed up until 3am because I wouldn’t quit on one photo that took me 4 hours to process.
See below to see the results that I am extremely pleased with.   These are 3 photos from the parade yesterday that I really love.  Hope you like them too.
So I then forced myself to stay in bed until noon then did my chores.   Then it was back to working on a few photos.  This is no longer a 10 or 20 minute operation.  Some photos take hours to get to where a professional photographer might deem them acceptable.   It is a lot of work but I am generally happy with the results, much better than my previous attempts.
Bella went to do banking and grocery shopping.
Tonight we are out visiting.   More on that later.
That was today’s excitement.   Hugs to all.   Please see all photos at http://souvenircuenca.blogspot.com/




Sunday, January 06, 2013

Sunday January 6, 2013


Sunday January 6/13  update #334
I started the day by working on photos again, so many to get through yet….
Bella was having a few gals over to play bridge so Mark Anderson and I worked on a few more pictures until we slipped out to capture the Parade Of The Innocent Children on Huayna Capac.  The parade apparently commemorates the day King Herod had all the male babies in Judea killed.  It seems every type of costume is allowed, and there were some great ones.  Our favourites were the ones all painted blue depicting the Avatar characters.  They had bows and arrows and even had the hissing action perfected.
The parade was supposed to start at 4pm, but on Ecuador time.  We arrived about 5pm and it hadn’t started yet.  The crowd of about 30,000 surged onto the street only allowing one lane for the parade so motorcycle cops would move them back to allow for 2 lanes but the crowd would just surge back as soon as they went by.
We found a spot atop a planter but would continuously get Ecuadorians jump up and stand in front of us, ruining whatever little angle we had to shoot.  Oh well, the parade was going at a snail’s pace so we got many great shots of folks passing behind us.   Most regular Ecuadorians are hams at heart and love to have their photos taken.
The girls met us at the parade and we gave up shortly after 6pm as it started to get dark.   We fought our way to Big Kabudas for our burger fix and were greeted by Jesus in costume.   He says it has been crazy there for the last 3 days and he has to close up when he runs out of supplies.  He was going through 500 buns per day! 
That was today’s excitement.   Hugs to all.   Please see all photos at http://souvenircuenca.blogspot.com/