Hola! It is a beautiful sunny day here in Mexico. Friday and part of Sunday were gloomy, but that is the first spell of not-great weather we’ve had since I arrived. I’d hoped to get some writing done last week, but that didn’t happen. Instead, I’ve spent hours searching for literary journals and magazines that are currently accepting submissions. I do have more than a dozen possible essay subjects written down, so that’s something. I have to keep reminding myself that I am not on any sort of timetable. The writing will happen when it happens. I don’t want to leave here disappointed in myself for not being as productive as I’d hoped to be. Speaking of writing…

At long last, I have a book update! The second set of proofs arrived from my publisher on Friday. I spent the weekend proofreading AGAIN. I’ve read this book so many times, I’m kinda getting sick of myself. Even so, I still managed to find a few mistakes. I’ve enlisted the help of a friend/coworker to be a fresh set of eyes, so once she’s finished reading the manuscript I’ll make one final sweep before sending it back. Making some corrections means I’ll probably have to play the waiting game again, while the publisher takes a couple of months to amend the manuscript. Then they’ll send it back to me for approval. The publishing process is SO frustrating! But, this time last year, I’d almost convinced myself that a book deal would never happen. I must be grateful I’m going through this process at all and try to focus on the end goal. 

I’m pretty proud of my progress with the bike. I’m not riding every day, but I do go out a few days a week. Last year, I could barely make the two-mile trek to the market without stopping for a break, and then I’d have to stop a couple of times on the ride back to the condo. With the exception of the time I spend walking around the market, I’ve managed to make the trip without any additional breaks along the way. 

I’ve only had a couple of complications. Our washer developed a leak, so I had to call in a repair guy. He determined that I had a couple of parts that needed to be replaced and since it was a Friday, he couldn’t get said parts until the following Monday. I was without a washer for 3 days and spent 3000 pesos on repairs (about $160 US). I cooked dinner on our gas stove last night. I kept getting a whiff of gas this morning but couldn’t find anything amiss with the stove. I thought maybe it was my overly sensitive sense of smell. I left for the farmer’s market. When I got back, I could smell the gas before I even got to my front door. I heard hissing and discovered it was coming from the cabinet beside the stove. I ran downstairs to find our building caretaker. He shut off the gas and assessed the situation. The hose was hanging together by a thread. Lucio replaced the hose and the repair only cost me 60 pesos. So besides nearly blowing myself up, everything is fine here. LOL

This post seems really disjointed, but I’m a little burned out on proofreading so it is what it is. I’ll leave you with a few pictures of flowers and sunsets. Hasta luego!