I was busy

I just wrote out a bill and figured out why I felt like I was dealing with a client every time I turned around.

It was because I was!

The check will be nice.

Rescue Missions

I don't know if I should be running a fools errand, but someone wants to be rescued from a situation he doesn't like.

OK, I probably would not want to live in Angleton, TX carless as public transport to civilization (Houston) is nonexistent.  I get that.

He also did not want to leave San Diego.  Everyone who knew him said, "figure something out."

Did he?  No.

So, he is almost two years living there.  I'm pretty sure he didn't do anything to try to make it work, and that has set off alarm bells in my head.  I suspect he wants me to rescue and support him and that is something that cannot happen due to my precarious financial state.

I'll put it bluntly, after it blew up in the desert, I was glad to have Tijuana to come back to.  People know me here and I still am enamored with living in a neighborhood with a high walk score.  The fact that it is inexpensive to live here is incidental, but it does come in handy if you get hit with big expenses.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand.

I ask him how preparations for a return to San Diego are going?

I hear crickets.

Not good.

Let's see where we go from here.

Instant Gratification

Yes, I do understand why people want someone to wave a magic wand and rescue them.  I'm dating someone who is seeking just that so he can come back to San Diego.

I look at that through an intersting prism in that it took me 15 years from the time I decided I wanted to give SoCal a try until I wound up here.  During that time I did a lot of homework and planning.

As you may suspect, the original plan and what ended up happening were two different things.  Which means I am now in an agreeable neighborhood in Tijuana plotting my next move.

So patience may be a virtue after all.

Step One

In Alcoholics Anonymous, the first step is to admit,  "we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable." (The Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous, https://www.aa.org/assets/en_US/smf-121_en.pdf, viewed July 21, 2019.)

Today is a Facebook friend's second anniversary of taking that first step.  He showed a picture of the chip he got from AA celebrating two years.  More importantly he showed a pic of his mug shot which I presume was taken the day he took that first step.

Couple of things come to mind.

First, when I walk past AA meetings, it is not a rare sighting to see someone who could use help in dealing with their addictions outside looking in as the participants discuss their lives before and after they took Step One.  I suspect they know they have an issue, but are not for whatever reason ready to deal with it.

Which brings me to my next point, which I was reminded about the hard way.  I believe that no one can do Step One for someone else.  I may be fully cognizant that someone else has a problem even though they may not be a danger to themselves or others (that is another story,) but I cant fix things for them.

Of course, that brings a new challenge that I have to figure out how to deal with.  Again, that is another story for another time.

The last thing I was reminded of was the time I had to do Step One about something in December 1987.  I woke up after a three day drinking binge I engaged in after being thrown out by my parents in a stranger's bed.  I realized, that if I stayed in Houston, I would die a quick death.  I knew I had to leave in order to live and ended up starting a new life in Denver.

It was one of the best decisions I ever made.

Not another screw up.

Well, yes and no.

I thought Comic Con was last weekend and dovetailed with Pride.

It's really this weekend.

Fortunately, I'm back in Tijuana while the sellout weekend continues apace.

I also spent two days in Vegas.

And I am going to make all of you jealous.

I won.

And I spent my ill gotten gains on adult slushie treats.

Calling it an early evening.

Will churn, burn and do laundry tomorrow.

And figure out the next trip.

Four Years Later

Four years ago, about when I am writing this (11.22 PM) I thanked a nurse who came to the apartment, declared Rick dead, arranged for the coroner to release the remains to me and verified that I faxed the paperwork for his cremation so that the ball got rolling on that.

So, I've been a widower for four years.  It's been an amazing journey.

So let's look at what went wrong first over the past four years.

• I could have planned my San Francisco exit better.  Although I got what I wanted and then some out of my landlady, I should have not waited until the deal was inked to get rid of stuff.  The reason why I waited was just as the deal was about to be inked, she had an, "emergency," and needed to go to LA.  I didn't trust the woman to go through with it and was ready for a fight.  Should have not worried about her and just gotten my act together and gotten out.
  
• I was in and out of a roommate situation for four years that I really didn't want to continue.  It was an interesting ride, but I should have gotten out sooner.
  
• I haven't done as good a job as I should have regarding the health issues that cropped up after five years of caregiving.  Part of it was being aimless, but a few things have cropped up and I have to get to work on getting back into reasonable shape.
  
• I have not gone to Guatemala to give the Amate the good bye he deserved.  Especially over the past three weeks, he has popped up in my dreams.  I miss him very much.
  
  

Now, let's look at what went right.

• I got out of San Francisco.  I had wanted to for years and finally did it.  The uprooting was good for me and I don't have to deal with the effects of the economic cleansing of San Francisco.  I don't whine about being displaced in the least.  I'm happy I left for bigger and better things.
  
• I found a place that feels like home.  That place is Tijuana.  To an extent, I fell down when I quit the above mentioned roommate situation and this is the place that said, "Welcome home.  Glad you're back."  So I'm here.  I've picked myself up.  I've dusted myself off and it's on to the next round.  I've also revised my kitchen budget (Now MXN 12,500) and Washer / Dryer budget (MXN 20,000)
  
• I am catching up on the travel front.  Six trips to Texas, three to Las Vegas, Phoenix, Monterrey, Mazatlan, Mexico City (three times) and San Miguel de Allende (also three times)
  
• My new annual tradition is going to the LA Auto Show.  I might even do it on Thanksgiving Weekend.
  
• I've found I can date.  Kissed some frogs, but there may be a prince that came out of it all.  Stay tuned.

So, the adventure continues.  Let's see what life has in store for us.