Windsor, Ont. and back

I had to make some arrangements regarding my father’s financial affairs and made a short trip to Windsor, Ont., July 8-12. Because Barb can’t drive in Mexico until we get the car ownership changed to joint ownership (only spouses and children of an owner are allowed to drive the car in Mexico; Barb does not qualify in Mexico), I have to take a taxi to and from the airport in Guadalajara. Getting the car ownership changed to joint in December when we are in Nova Scotia is easier than getting married in Mexico!

The trip was completed without incident and on schedule. I thought for a time that I would not make the connection in Houston as the plane was late getting into Detroit. However, the crew was able to make up enough time that I was able to make the connection to Guadalajara. The flight from Houston was interesting because there was excellent visibility. What struck me was how many mountain ranges there are between the border and Guadalajara.

In Windsor, we had a get together (about 25 people) to recognize my Dad's 92nd birthday on July 9th; it was more sad than a celebration because my Dad hardly recognizes anyone. He decided that he wouldn't eat anything and didn't. It was certainly driven home that the proper place for him at this stage is in the nursing home. I did get to see quite a few relatives and friends even in the short period of 4 days. Nevertheless, it was very good to get home. Barb and Bijou were waiting at the front gate as the taxi brought me home!

While I was gone, there was very heavy rain. The Guadalajara English weekly has several stories of the flooding and damage caused by the unusually heavy rain. It seems to be more normal now--sun in the day with some showers at night. Barb said that most north/south streets (coming down the mountain) were more rivers than streets. That certainly included the one that comes down to the corner of our house. While we had several indoor leaks during the deluge, we did not suffer any damage.

The speaker at Open Circle today was a woman who practices healing through sound. She had a number of bells, tuning forks, etc. She combines it with acupuncture. The topic was quite interesting, but unfortunately, she was not very well organized as a speaker. After, we tried another new-to-us restaurant on the Carreterra (main highway) beside the El Torrito supermarket. They have a Sunday brunch buffet for 70 pesos. However, we chose from the menu--eggs for Barb and a Mexican dish for me. Even with large glasses of fresh squeezed orange juice, the total was 93 pesos ($9.40 or so). There are so many restaurants and we like trying new ones; we haven’t hit a bad one yet.