The Storm

We had a big thunderstorm come through.

We were floating away.  The door to roof had water coming under and over the door jam, then the water ran down both sets of stairs to create a big puddle in the hall.  Rain was coming in all over.

Tom said the house is all concrete and brick, so can't do a lot of damage.  But there wasn't very many spots that didn't have water.

We are expected to receive another storm on Tues.  Martin has been working on the roof drains to make the water flow better, into the drains instead of thru the door.  Hopefully we won't be sitting in big puddles again 

Front Door

Dining Room door.

Laundry room.  It got water from the back door and from the hall.

Hallway.  This was totally flooded by the time the storm quite.

Stairs just as it started to come down.  It was actually like a waterfall by the time the storm was over.

House Issues

We have several issues that will have to be fixed with the house.  ALL the doors and windows leak.  Here the stain that was used on the windows ran.  We will have to check all the windows to see if they caulked.








The exterior of all the windows and doors need to be redone.  The stain and shellac didn't hold up to the summer rains.

The frames for these windows were done piece meal and were falling off.  We are trying to find a new carpenter to help with all the issues.

AND then there are the stairs that have to be redone.

Think we will be living in a dust zone for a while yet.

On our way

We drove to Nogales the same way we did last year, so there really isn't too much to post.






These are just some scenes taken thru the windows of the van while we were driving.

 This is a crossing with no road.  Later we saw some cattle crossing over another one of these crossing.  So think perhaps it is for the ranchers to get their cattle from one side of the highway to the other.

This is the border fence in Nogales.  We missed the truck route this year and had to drive thru some of the city streets. 

A few Changes

We have a few changes over the summer.  We sold the motor home and got this 21 ft conversion van.  It has 2 jack knife couches in the back that fold to make a queen size bed.  It does have a very small bathroom which includes a shower.  However, don't think we will use the shower unless we are in desperate need.  You would have to sit on the toilet and shower.  It has a very small refrigerator and a two burner stove and a very small sink.  You get the idea:  SMALL   We thought since we have the house in Mexico we only needed something to get us between the two homes and to use for maybe a week long trip.

The van gets 20 mpg vs the motor home we got 6 mpg.  Also the toll roads are based on our axles, so it's cheaper to get to Perula.    It does 70 mph without a problem, thus our time to reach Perula is cut down also. 

It's not something we'd want to spend a whole lot of time in.  If we hadn't gotten to Perula in 7 days we would have been stopping for a few days to relax. The tight quarters makes one of us constantly having to move to get around the other one.

Tom did all sorts of fix ups before we started out.  The fresh water tank didn't have a drain, so it had all sorts of sludge in it.  A modification for a drain was in order and several flushes with Clorox.  Also the old drain of gray and black water was replaced with a master cater pump.We did find out that we can only go max 3 days before we have to pump.  But it fits with the refrigerator that is small so have to stop for supplies every couple of days.  He installed a GPS with back up camera.  We also have a Sirius radio which we can remove and use in the house.

In San Carlos, Mx we were getting ready to leave but the sliding door wouldn't close!  So we did a Mexican fix, closed the door as much as possible and tied a bungy cord to the handle and then used duct tape to seal the openings for the dust.  When we got to Perula Tom had to take the inside panel off and make some adjustments to the latch.  That didn't quite get it and he had to readjust the door.  It still isn't right, not sure if he will continue to work on it or wait until we get back to the US.

We crossed the border in Nogales and did the paperwork at KM21.  It was quick and easy, no inspection! 

So this is our new Puppy, Dusty, 6 months old.  We lost Cody in Feb and Sadie last spring.  It was strange not to have a dog, I figured we wouldn't get another one.  Tom had other ideas.  One day he said lets go look at these puppies and of coarse we came away with one.  He is a hand full.  A mind of his own and not as easy to train as our other dogs have been.  Hopefully he will get better at coming when called.