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/

Monday Jan 9/12

Monday Jan 9/12 update

Well I was up early to walk to the new house to meet Jorge and contractors at 9:00.  It had rained but I was a little early so I walked the rest of the neighborhood to the south and east to see what is around.  Within 3 blocks we have a small park in all four directions.  Right in front of us we have the double walkway which has a grassy slope down to our alley/street and we often see people reclining in the shade of the trees there.

3 blocks south is the “autopista” or ring road which will also zip us over to the big Mall De Rio on the west side of Cuenca.   2 blocks east is the hospital, we think it is for government employees, and a small creek.   And of course, 1 block north is the mighty Rio Tomebamba which we cross to get to the Monay Mall and the Coral store.

Jorge showed up on time soon followed by the cabinet guy and Michael Berger so we went over our desires for the pantry and island.   Bella will be so excited to see that finished.

Then the electrical/plumbing fellow came and we went over some of our wants before starting on putting up light fixtures in the living room.  I decided to get him to keep going and do all the fixtures but we only had enough toggle anchors that Jorge brought for 1 fixture so I ran to Coral, then 2 other ferreterias but nobody had any.  So Jorge jumped in his truck to get them, and it turned out that he got them at the hardware store where we bought a few fixtures on Saturday, just above our present house.

I really don’t understand how experienced workmen show up a jobsite with no tools, none….   They expect that I am going to have the tools for them to do the job.  Hello……  I did bring a lot of tools with me and have purchased more so we are in pretty good shape but it still ticks me off that I am paying these guys almost double the daily rate AND they need to use my tools.   I told Michael that I am going to charge them rent for the tools.

Once we got the first fixture up we learned to ignore most of the usual mounting hardware because they don’t work in these thin plaster ceilings with no mounting boxes.  Basically we would take the ceiling bezel and mark our holes and use a large drill bit to make a hole big enough to accept toggle anchor bolts.  I had Jorge get 50 toggle bolts and matching washers and that is what we used throughout.  He brought two larger toggle bolts that we used for the heavier dining room fixture.  They hook up wires really long and use electrical tape mostly instead of the plastic joiners.   This fellow and I worked all day, side by side, not understanding one another at all except by signs and pantomime but between the two of us we overcame a lot of adverse situations presented to us by the products we had bought.   Can anyone explain to me how I can get 3 supposedly brand new identical fixtures from one store and two of them be missing many key components???  I bought 3 cute hanging flowery fixtures for the bedrooms and only one was complete, of which Bella is the lucky recipient.   The next best is in the guest bedroom but mine is a composite of spare parts and pieces.  All in all, it came out pretty good, mostly thanks to my own ingenuity.   I think the other guy would still be there if he had tried to do all this on his own.  

I have no idea what they would have done if I had had no tools at all.  The cabinet guy better not come to mee looking for tools.   I have no saws for wood yet, just a little hand saw.  I have heard that cable installers have borrowed a homeowners screwdriver and pounded a hole through the concrete wall with a rock to install their wire.   It was almost the same experience here, except I had a hammer too!   Welcome to Ecuador.

Bella is looking to take a weaving course and get a loom.  She is looking at making our own rugs for the house!  You just can't keep a good crafter down!

I hope you enjoy today’s photos.

That was today’s excitement.   Hugs to all.

120109 Wet Wildflower

120109 Autopista

120109 Central Park

120109 Our new home- yellow on left

120109 Our creek and hospital

120109 Installing Fixtures

120109 Jorge Beltran in front of house

120109 We are behind right of center

120109 Our Creek

120109 Top Dog

120109 Our dual walkway