My life has been entirely consumed by trying to find a house to live in for the past week and I have not been able to do much else. I have been making phone calls, more phone calls, going to look at houses, apartments, reading classifieds, etc. Have I mentioned how hard it is to understand the Spanish language on the phone?
At any rate, my good friend Renee had called in the midst of all this and mentioned one of our mutual friends, a local dentist in town, rents a fabulous house and I have to go see it as the house would be ideal for both me and the dogs. I went and looked at it the other evening and it was pretty amazing. It is a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom house in a very nice neighborhood and the best part is the HUGE fenced yard. It would be paradise for the dogs - they would absolutely love it. Even better, the rent is CHEAPER than I am paying here! The place will be available in early June and I should find out by the end of the weekend if I can take it.
The only catch is that the house is not furnished and I would have to spend a fair chunk of cash to do so since I currently live in a furnished place. But I know that after looking at many places, this is far too good of an opportunity to pass up. As you know, I brought very little with me from Canada - just my dog, some of my clothes, and a few household items (5 large totes in total). This has been causing me a fair bit of stress as I am nervous to invest in furniture and things when I do not know when and how much work I can find work here. I had given myself a year (and budgeted accordingly) to focus on learning the language and immersing myself before looking for work. The scary part is, the end of the year is fast approaching. After talking with one of my girlfriends the other night, I realized that purchasing furniture, having my own things, making a home, etc. are making my decision to stay very real. It is putting money where my mouth is, so to speak. Before looking at this house, I was only searching for furnished places and never really gave it a second thought as to why. Now, I realize that even though I have made a conscious decision to stay, I have not started to lay down roots or commit to anything - other than building and nurturing friendships/relationships.
At the end of the day, I do want to stay and give it a go here on my own. This much I know. I love Manzanillo with all my heart and hope that I can find work here to support myself. What is really comes down to is fear and the reality that I am taking another risk to achieve my dream of being here.
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8 comments:
Good for you! hey, maybe you can go to work for the Dentist. You can start a website that would drive Dental Tourist to his practice, maybe set up the appointments and answer patient questions. Just a thought. Maybe work a deal with him that you buy furniture but take 1/2 the amount of the costs off the rent if he wants you to leave it.
the place sounds terrific. it's not always easy to find a place with a fenced yard. just buy the minimum in furniture and then add to it a little at a time. how much furniture does one really need? a bed and chest of drawers, perhaps a chifferobe (sp?)if the place doesn't have a closet and a table and chairs for your eating pleasure. big throw cusions or even patio furniture would probably suffice in the living room. i hope you get the place. gosh, i can't wait to go to mexico again. not sure when that will be but i will visit you and steve cotton since you'll be living relatively close to each other.
have a great weekend and good luck getting the place.
oh, i like the previous comment about making a deal with the dentist where you would bring in tourists. as you probably already know, a lot of people go down to have dental work done.
take care,
teresa
Furniture can easily be sold to others if and when you decide you don't need it, so don't let that be a worry.
Let your heart guide you. I have stopped trusting my head.
You will need to bring the dogs over to Melaque one of these days. Jiggs would love to meet Bobo's Mom's friend.
Chrissy - thanks for the great advice. Unfortunately he is leaving for Australia and has already sold all his stuff.
Teresa - yes, you are right about the yard situation. I have looked at many places and the yards are usually tiny and rarely fenced. It certainly is idea. As for the furniture, a friend of mine has offered to take me to do some shopping and she knows of some super cheap places.
Canexicana - you are absolutely right. I kind of got stuck in the stress of it all and lost perspective
Steve - I hear you about listening to your heart. Life is far too short. Aboslutely - we must get the dogs together! It is a little difficult since I do not have a car (and dogs are not allowed on the bus) but maybe we could meet in La Manzanilla. I have friends that drive there for work (and I could snag a ride).
ah, arranging for puppy play dates. How sweet.
Ah that Steve is a romantic guy advising you to go the heart route - that's what got you here in the first place - no? ;-)
Get the furniture and live a little - even if you use your head to figure that out. ;-)
Checkout bamboo furniture - inexpensive, light weight, nice and easy to resell if ever need be.
I know that feeling all too well. I too started out like you with just my clothes in tow and a furnished apartment. Then I slowly starting purchasing things and finally realized that it was ok to buy whatever, that nothing was forcing me to stay in Mexico and if I wanted to go one day, all I had to do is sell my stuff.
I started off with a bed and a t.v. because honestly that's all you really need. Do what you can and remember, people are always willing to buy your stuff should you need to sell it.
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