Month: August 2026

…..on July 26th, we moved to a different apartment in the same building and I tripped over a box and had a very hard fall. I stunned myself. But as I always do, I kept pushing myself – after all we were in the midst of a move and had no choice but to push through the pain. Finally on Tuesday the 28th ( I had the wrong date in my last post ) we saw our chiropractor who strongly insisted that I get xrays done. Just this list wore me out, so It took me until Thursday afternoon ( the 30th ) to get them done. I clearly had fractured a bone in my pelvis. the pain was off the charts. Thank goodness Colin is able to help me as I could not even lift my leg into bed.

I have been mostly on bedrest since July 31st, spending at least 12 hours per day in bed. Then I try and sit at the computer for a few hours. Money needs to be transferred and bills need to be paid. Most importantly food and wine need to be ordered. At this point we get most of our food from Walmart. Things like butter, bread, eggs, juice, soap and some basic fruits and veggies. It is too hot for Colin to go two blocks to the local mercardo and it is a difficult walk for him. Last week I found two places that will deliver wine. Many other things come from Amazon.com.mx

But even that is a challenge. Walmart won’t deliver alcohol and for some reason Sam’s Club does not have what I like. In early July, I was finally able to get a credit card with Liverpool.  Not all stores will take my USD or CAD Visa cards. Mexican banks will not issue a credit card until you have built up a credit rating here in Mexico. I honestly should have started to build a credit line when we arrived back in 2024. Life on the Isla is very different than here in the city of Mazatlan. They each have their unique special areas, but this is where we currently need to be. Who knows what the future holds?

The rest of the day I sit in my recliner. The girls have stools to jump up on to sit with me. I would love to say that I spend the day reading. Sadly my right eye definitely needs to have a  corrected lenses in my eyeglasses. After a few hours it begins to ache and burn. I have tried to watch a few You Tube videos as well to help pass the time. Fortunately we have a perfect panoramic view which is constantly changing. The sunsets are stunning.

I have lunch and dinner in the recliner and we try and watch 60 – 90 minutes of TV with dinner. Then it’s back to bed for another 12 hours. The commode had made my life easier as has the walker. Colin is totally responsible for feeding me, even bringing me water or a Kleenex. I am almost able to get out of the chair on my own but tend to rely on him so I don’t fall. Actually Colin is entirely accountable for everything in our home. Besides looking after me he also has to care for the girls. Except I have arranged for the laundry to be picked up and delivered. Maybe next week I will have the strength to stand long enough to use our own machines. We do have a husband / wife team that clean for us on a weekly basis but I did cancel them last week as I find it unsettling to have anyone around me ( other than Colin ) at the moment.

So after three weeks of bedrest I am officially bored. But happy to say that the pain is decreasing. I am on a great deal of expensive medications. Yet I have another 3 to 5 weeks to go. I try not to think about it. Instead I think of all the yummy gourmet meals that get delivered to us every week.  We certainly are eating well. Thanks to “Sunshine Catering” and “Ana’s Fresh Kitchen”. They are both going out of their way to adapt to our no meat diet. Looking forward to ‘Thai shrimp and Vegetable Curry’ for dinner tomorrow.

Colin started to make some changes to his medical program last week and so far so good. Some new treatments and some new exercises. I suddenly noticed how much taller he is. It is very tiring for him, having to look after me as well as work so hard with his exercises. I feel like I am holding him back a bit. Oh, good place to mention that I of course have done no exercises at all since the move. I worked so hard to get to where I was before the fall. I might even be missing the pool a bit 😯 but don’t tell anyone.

I have been working on this for over four hours and I need to stop and rest….sitting this long is very difficult.  But I did get many photos in order, so perhaps I can do mini posts in the weeks to come.  When I can’t sleep at night I compose new blog posts  in my mind and soon fall asleep 😎

Phew this post wore me out….not sure when I will be back…sooner than later I hope. It inspired me to be able to write but certainly made me tired.

 

 

Two weeks ago today we moved 😯  It wasn’t a big move in the sense that it was in the same building and only three floors up. But of course we still had to pack things in order to move them. I packed until 1:00 AM Sunday, July 26th and started packing again at 7:00AM. The packing was somewhat overwhelming for Colin and I pushed myself. I had hired six people to help with the move. They were to start at 9AM and finally someone showed up at 9:25AM. We had two dollies to help and they were used a few times but the guys simply picked things up no matter the weight.

The girls quickly learned how to stay out of the way during the move and to not leave the apartment as it was easier to leave the door open. Soon the hallway was lined with items to be loaded into one of the two elevators. And teams began working in sync. Pilar started unloading and putting things into the kitchen cabinets. My plan was to unload fragile itmes, etc. However things went super smoothly and very quickly. Within two hours what had been packed was moved. So I started to get some of the fellows to move our clothing and anything else.

There was cold water, juice, coke and limonada at each apartment for those who wanted to quench their thirst. Of course the building has A/C but the heat here in Mazatlan is so hot that the hallways and elevators can’t keep those areas very cool. I had planned to serve a lunch at 1:30PM. Shortly after noon 80% of the move was done. I invited everyone to sit and relax bit of course Pilar and I kept working. That is when it happened. I had a heavy nasty fall – as I moved forward I tripped on a box sticking out from under the dining room table. I fell onto unforgiving hard ceramic flooring on my right hip. I was lucky enough to use my right hand to stop myself from hitting my head on the floor. I was dazed and could not move and was in massive pain. Colin was out peeing the dogs. I told everyone else to move away and to let me be. After at least five minute with the help of a dining room chair ( and Pilar holding it still ) I was able to crawl onto my knees and ever so slowly stand up.

I knew that something was very wrong. I ignored the panic and the pain and refused to give into tears. But I needed to alone. I told them all to stay and somehow I got to the elevator and down to where we had lived for the past 3 months. I sat at the table there with my head in my hands. It was almost 1PM and I had a luncheon to prepare. All pain meds were packed and I had no idea where they were. So I hobbled to the kitchen and poured myself wine. I sipped as I prepared my meal. A variety of appetizers, coleslaw, tomato and spinach quiche and finally the freshly made just delivered XL pizza. Dessert was homemade brownies. I set it all up and then sat at the table. Somehow I got through lunch. I barely ate anything but the wine was helpful. Colin and I found two minutes to chat privately. The move was over. After the meal and paying them all I went to bed. I have no idea what Colin did.

Monday Colin said the we were moving upstairs “now”! I was in no position to do anything. Tuesday we moved upstairs permanently and over the next few days things were moved via the dog carriage. Colin would brings things upstairs and I simply unloaded them onto open surfaces.

Also on Thursday the 28th we saw the chiropractor who proclaimed me to be very broken. Neck, ribs, back, hip area and so on. He strongly insisted on my getting xrays ASAP.  The pain grew worse every day. Finally on Thursday the 30th we arranged two get them down.  No need to go into the details of the first place we went to that said it would take 5 days for the results 😥 They gave us our money back and we went to another place to get the xrays done. We just had to leave the girls alone, at this point neither of us cared if they barked or not. Part of the delay on my part was that we had to turn over the keys to the downstairs place by end of day July 31st in order to get our deposit back. Thanks to our cleaning people it was immaculate and we got the money back.

Three hours later I got a call from Dr.. Alan. I had a fractured pelvis. It was the ischium in the lower and back part of the hip bone. It is often referred to as the “sit bone” because it supports your weight when you sit down. It forms a key part of the pelvis and connects to the other hip bones.

 

Good thing I have had both my hips replaced or I would have for certain have broken my hip.  Dr. Alan was concerned that the fall may have cause a movement of my hip prosthetic or another fracture. He thinks I should get a CT scan. So I now have a traumatologist who only speaks Spanish. I have yet to see him but he has read the report and seen the x-rays. And he returns my texts immediately with my multiple questions. So I am on bedrest for at least 6 weeks. The pain is somewhat better but it is still there.  I am not sleeping well at night. I should see Dr. Gustavo around the 17th. Hopefully I won’t need a CT scan. It has only been two weeks and I am so bored.

The first thing Colin did was gather up all the very expensive medications – it took four farmacia visits to find it all. I also purchased online ( cheaper than renting ) a walker with no wheels as requested by Dr. G. Also a commode which has been a life saver. I am only allowing myself limited hours at the computer as I should not be sitting directing on my pelvis. Usually I am in bed or the recliner. Colin is now my official caregiver. What a switch that has been. Rather difficult for him as walking too much ( at my beck and call ) is not easy for him. We have weekly house cleaners and I have two different people available to make us food as we ask. And of course Walmart and Amazon for deliveries.

Colin has done the best he can with unpacking our new home.  The details can wait. I am mostly tired and sleep off and on. I have little to no vitality. The girls have adapted perfectly. They mostly use their outdoor fake green area on the deck. We have internet via Megacable but no TV set yet. Both Amazon Prime & Disney Plus are included but we have not had time to figure out to make it work.

It has been on my mind to let you all know ( including family ) as to what has happened. I don’t plan to be on the computer too much and that includes the blog.  But I promise to post when I can.

I should give you an update on my eye laser thingy. I was to see the eye doctor on the 29th for a follow up, but there was no way I was going to go out again ( and that was before I knew I had a fractured pelvis ).  I hope to see him the 3rd week of August if I can. I have noticed that my right eye now burns when reading my iPad. I believe that I need a new eye glass prescription. Right now I can’t even walk to the toilet so poco a poco.

I would have to add that the Universe has set me down big time 🙄 I have been going non stop since April 28, 2025, when Colin had his stroke. I found this apartment for us based on his having to be possibly immobile. And now it is me who is forced to sit still and do nothing. We both love it here and are so very fortunate to have this as our home for as long as we want it. Mazatlan is a lovely city with so much to offer. I know that I will never be bored here even if confined to the house for two months.