Competition

A short walk through nearby neighborhoods.

Apparently this was going to be a Walmart and movie theater. Got approved by one city government, and cancelled by the next. It’s not been missed.

Ouest joined a swim team when we got to San Miguel, practices three times a week, and finally had her first competition. Learning proper technique and feeling the difference it makes has been fun for her, so it was good to put it all to use.

She cleaned up, handily winning the freestyle, backstroke, and breaststroke. I think I was more excited than she was. Who taught her to be so humble? Sheesh.

I mean, how beautiful is that?

As soon as Ali started scratching the surface, Zazu was in there to help.

Yet another taco stand. This one is on the kids’ walk home from Spanish class, and has become a common stop. Crazy fresh salsa and each tortilla hot off the grill.

He was looking back at a dog, not ducking away from the camera.

We pay a guy 100 pesos a day during the week to take Zazu on a nice hour-long walk. Don’t judge; I don’t have the time or desire, the kids are at school, and Ali isn’t comfortable on her own owing to the amount of street dog aggression out there. Anyway, apparently they walk past the same butcher shop each day and the butcher has taken a liking to Za. So now, every few days when Za gets returned to us, she also comes with a huge bag of random bloody butcher parts.

After a couple of months we got the call and went in to pick up the title of the house. Last time we had been handed the title to a house we had just survived the Y2K scare.