Monday June 11, 2012

Monday June 11/12 update

Just in case, again:

Our sincere apologies to all the readers of GringoTree!  
Please, the blog you should be looking at is

cuencaresidency.blogspot.com

It is a gorgeous sunny morning and it feels great to be alive.  The sunlight is phenomenal but Tom Thumb is not cooperating this morning, again.  I am sure he saw Pancho on the bed behind me so he beat a hasty retreat.

Bella is doing groceries today while I head off to the Madrigal Spanish class.  

I decided to leave an hour early and walk all the way downtown, taking me about 55 minutes.  At the end of our block I was surprised to see so many vendors set up on a Monday morning!  Even our fruit cocktail lady was there.  Just past El Vergel church I was skirting this huge tree overgrown right across the sidewalk and only partially ducking when a bus screamed by my left side, missing me by maybe 2 inches.  I had been thinking of leaning further out to avoid scraping my hat on the branches but I am glad I didn’t.   I didn’t even hear him above the other traffic noise until it was already too late.  That was close call number one today.

The Spanish class, the teacher, and the course are great, but it is my retention that is a problem.  It probably would be better if my sleep patterns returned to normal.

After class I climbed the escalinata and saw this fellow, Greg I think?, washing the front of the Windhorse Café/Book Exchange.   Apparently they are going to be doing a low-key opening in conjunction with the book exchange tomorrow.  I then crossed the street and and waited ½ hour for the incoming jet to fly overhead and decided to video the approach rather than take 10 burst shots over 2 seconds..  It is not the greatest video, kinda shaky at the beginning as I try to track it but, overall, not bad.  This jet comes from Quito and it is about a 45 minute flight.   http://youtu.be/p1kxNTw4T9w

Then I went to find this gargoyle-type thing I could see on a rooftop when we went by in a vehicle or bus past the western end of Calle Larga, don’t know the name of this street but there are many photo opportunities in this area.  I found a lot more than I was looking for. 

I was then cutting across stopped traffic and passing in front of a bus, about to extend my leg on to the sidewalk and I just heard a sound at the last second that made me freeze.  I almost became a fender ornament for a dirt bike speeding up the gap.  That was close call number two today, …and the last, because I am not venturing out any more today.

I avoided going around Parque Calderon because I did not trust my willpower, or lack thereof, in the vicinity of all those sweets again.  Why ruin all those calories I was burning today?

Next I headed over to the Fuji store to see if I could get them to discount the $53 tripod they had in their window.  The best they would do was a 5% discount so I caught the #50 two blocks away and got off at Coral.  I went in to double check on this tripod they had and decided to spring all my available cash to get it just under $40.  

Now I am totally broke again for another week.  It still beats working!!!

Bella made a feast tonight like she does when we are having company, ummmmmmmm GOOD!

Hearty congratulations to Leah Rankin and proud Grandma Bea Rankin on the arrival of  Jenaya,  on Thursday, June 7, 2012 12:53 p.m.  She weighed in at 6lbs 6ozs and measured 19 3/4 inches long.

Enjoy the pics and videos.    That was today’s excitement.    Hugs to all.

120611 Early morning vendors in our neighbourhood

120611 Agaves and Pampas grass

120611 Lots of workers on this neighbourhood police station

120611 Nobody home

120611 Gum loses bark

120611 Pumapungo Inca ruins

120611 Even here we have telecom blight on the landscape

120611 El Vergel Bells 1

120611 El Vergel Bells 2

120611 El Vergel Bells 3

120611 Family washing day at the river

120611 Street scene including Todos Santos church

120611 We have watched this from the ground up

120611 El Centro Hummer

120611 Panama hat maker

120611 Great sculpture of family cooperation

120611 The gargoyle I was seeking

120611 A kinky cabaret under reno

120611 Rooftop angel

120611 More rooftop denizens

120611 Sculpted right onto the wall

120611 Santo Domingo 1

120611 Santo Domingo 2

120611 Tom Thumb 1

120611 Tom Thumb 2

120611 Tom Thumb 3

120611 A $40 tripod that works

Sunday June 10, 2012

Sunday June 10/12 update

Yesterday I am sure you all noted that GringoTree again put up the wrong blog address so we got a flood of views from a few of their 4,000 subscribers for 24 hours.  Only a few of those bothered to look at the right blog that was meant to be on the GringoTree list.  I had sent a correction to GringoTree but I guess they were too busy to make the adjustment.   What I did find interesting is the Google tracker of where these views come from.  I am enclosing a small map from yesterday and the green represents views, while more views are a darker green meaning we have views from England, Germany, Arabia, Latvia, Russia, Australia, Brazil, Ecuador, USA and Canada.  This truly is getting to be a much smaller world.

This morning I decided to take a crack at combining 3 small videos of Tom taken over the last 3 days using my Nero Express program.   I am still waiting to get a better early morning video in the sunshine to show off Tom’s colours but neither Tom nor the weatherman is cooperating.

http://youtu.be/7-ZZFp4o9NM

The weather wasn’t bad today, it just never broke into any nice stretch of sunshine so I stayed home and finished this book I’ve been painfully reading for about 2 months.  I could never get into the ridiculous ways the bad guy kept showing up with the upper hand.

I took three more videos of Tom but they were crap so I won’t bore you with them.

We potted the three trees we bought yesterday.  They look rather good on the terrace so hopefully we’ll be making our own lemon-lime drinks soon.

The boys seem to be getting into long-term habits, peso bunking with Bella and noisy Pancho with me.  Pancho can be an early riser when he is hungry and he doesn’t care who he wakes up to satisfy those hunger pangs.  Of course Bella could sleep through a tornado so I get the early morning call.  Peso used to come down as soon as he would hear me in the kitchen but not any more.  He is getting into Bella’s sleeping rhythm.   Peso stays as skinny as ever but Pancho is getting so bottom heavy we can hardly lift him.

There was this beautiful red bird outside yesterday and today but I haven’t managed to get a clean shot or video.  Birds generally don’t sit still for long.

RIP to our cousin Joe Laliberte, passed away June 5.

Enjoy the pics and videos.    That was today’s excitement.    Hugs to all.

120609 Views from everywhere

120610 Lemon tree, very pretty, .... keep singing

120610 Chubby little Pancho

120610 Our hunter/stalker Peso

Saturday June 9, 2012

Saturday June 9/12 update

Believe it or not, I was up again at 3:30 and decided to use this time to do my Spanish class homework and try to retain some words in my tired old brain.   The homework is done but the retention is definitely iffy.

I tried to get Tom Thumb to come by while I had the morning sunlight on my windowsill but he wouldn’t cooperate.  I got a few videos of him on the wire at the end of the block and seemingly watched him crap about 30 times.   How something that small could crap so often is beyond me!  About 9am I gave up and caught some more shuteye until noon.

I had talked Bella into joining me to see a seven day festival downtown where Parque Calderon is ringed with booths and vendors, as well as along the side of Immaculate Conception.  They are all selling sweets to represent the sweet body of Christ.  We tried two huge sugar coated coconut cookies and yes, Virginia, they were very sweet.   On a beautiful sunny day such as this Immaculate Conception, and the Old Cathedral, and San Francisco church, just beg to be photographed and I cannot refuse.

We wandered the flower market as well and the roses are just so spectacular they defy description.  Bella found a lemon tree she had been dying to get.  At home a lemon tree is probably $50 - $70.  We got a lemon tree and 2 other plants for $10.  Now she has to get some pots and dirt for these acquisitions which will go up on the terrace to get air and sunshine.   She has a black thumb so it ends up my responsibility to keep them alive.

Around the corner we circled the San Francisco market too.  I have been trying to save some money to buy a tripod but it is a losing battle.  For many months I had been hankering to get a wool poncho to wear on the cool nights, rather than wrapping up in a blanket which drags on the floor and gets under the wheels of my chair.  I spotted this nice poncho but did not stop.  We went all the way around before I decided to have a closer look and to check the price.  The lady wanted $25 and was offering in different colors.  I himmed and hawwed for a bit and offered $15.  She accepted without question or further haggling.

The pan flute guy was entertaining at the flower market since his usual spot across the street was covered in food booths.  We could listen to him forever, his sound is just so pure.  They sell CD’s for $5 of his music but we don’t own a stereo.   http://youtu.be/AJHvbffHSEQ

We returned to get the plants, which were very heavy so we just caught a quick cab home.

As we were walking up to the door we saw Tom Thumb come to the wire in front of the house the fly up to my window and chatter for it to open.  I called up to him that I was on my way up and to just be patient.   As soon as I got upstairs and opened the window he was right there and had a good drink.

I have reviewed all the videos I have of Tom Thumb and they are no better than those I have already uploaded so I won’t bore you with those.

Enjoy the pics and videos.    That was today’s excitement.    Hugs to all.

120609 Al's $15 poncho

120609 Flower market, Sweets market, Immaculate Conception

120609  Sweets market, Immaculate Conception   

120609 Domes in the sun

120609 Lovely blue domes

120609 Sun glinting off this dome

120609 The middle dome

120609 The morning fog is lifting as the sun rises

120609 Sweets market in front of the old cathedral

120609 Old cathedral bells

120609 Carriage rides at Parque Calderon

120609 A dozen of the most beautiful roses for under $2

120609 San Francisco church

120609 San Fran clothing market

120609 San Fran belfry

120609 Sweets market 1

120609 Sweets market 2

120609 Sweets market 3

Friday June 8, 2012 Apologies again

Our sincere apologies to all the readers of GringoTree!  This is embarrassing!


Please, the blog you should be looking at is

cuencaresidency.blogspot.com

This blog was not meant for the general populace and would be most boring to those folks that don't know us personally.
Cheers, Al & Bella