Last Sunday was a busy day preparing for almost 70 of my friends to arrive for a fiesta hosted by Dianne and Colin to celebrate my 90th birthday.
The beer and wine for the party were delivered early Sunday morning and popped,what would fit, into the beer fridge to chill.
The balloon man arrived at noon with his ladder to festoon the casa with huge, colourful balloon displays in the casa and out.
The singer, Paradise, and her keyboard-playing brother who also has a fine voice, arrived at 4, ready to perform for four hours.
Victor, our barman for the occasion and Ana, who oversaw the food and cleaned up at the end of the event, also arrived on schedule.
Chairs, tables and lounges were strategically placed around the lawns.
The casa and the grounds looked great. Everything was ready as the guests began to arrive.
As the late afternoon waned and the sun began to set, the awesome voice of Paradise continued to fill the beautiful evening with favourite songs of everyone there.
When she sang Don's favourite, "I Did It My Way", and mine, "La Vie En Rose", the music filled my heart with love and wonderful memories. This incredible party is one more of many remembrances from Mexico that I will treasure forever.
For two weeks, I savoured every moment I spent with Di and Colin. We shared lunches and dinners at restaurants and at home. Their house guests who spent one week with them joined us. We shopped at an "everything glitzy" boutique, and a Mexican flea market. Enjoyed a sunset cruise, and swims in the ocean, (I didn;t do the swim). We had engaging conversations at happy hours and, finally, a last-morning breakfast with Di and Col at Oasis yesterday. (their guests had left on Wednesday). It was a beautiful way to say "Hasta Luego" to my kids who left from there to the airport. I'll see them in three months when I return this summer to Collingwood.
Only two incidents occurred that weren't much fun in the two weeks they were here.
First, the day after the fiesta, I suddenly felt ill in the afternoon and proceeded to feel worse as the hours ticked by.
Calling Di that night, she rushed over with a thermometer that worked (mine had given up the ghost), borrowed a blood prssure cuff from my neighbour, and kept Dr Hugo updated on those vitals for the next couple of hours. The Advil he had me take began to have an effect. My temperature started lowering and my blood pressure reached normal. I felt much better.
Dr Hugo wasn't needed that night, but the next day he tracked me down to Casa Grande, where he came to follow up on me and declared me healthy. My illness was caused by lactic acid my body produced from the hours of standing and dancing at the party. My body wanted to help my muscles recover but went too far. I had never heard of this, so I learned something that day. As he left, he told us he would come back the following evening with his girlfriend and bring pizzas for dinner!! Unfortunately, we had plans for that evening and the next, so we had to turn his offer down.
The second scary incident happened to Di when she and Colin went for a sunset swim in the ocean Thursday. As they walked up to their hips in the water, Di let out a scream - something bit her on the foot - a Stingray!! Immediately, the pain from this bite became intense. It is said to be worse than the pain of childbirth!!
Colin got her out of the ocean, called Dr Hugo who said he was coming to the casa with a prescription for strong antibiotics to prevent infection. Meanwhile Di should take Tylenol and soak her foot in water as hot as she could bear it.
Dr. Hugo arrived with the prescription, and our driver sped to the 24-hour pharmacy to get it filled, as Dr Hugo examined her toe for any barbs that might be left.
After several hours of more hot water treatment and the effect of the meds, her pain began to subside. By morning her toe was still swollen but she felt fine.
Di said she will never again go in an ocean. A swimming pool will be her choice instead - she can see whats in the water!
After Di and Colin left for the airport, I made a quick trip to the glitzy shop where i bought a new outfit on sale and where I'd left it for alterations. I wanted to wear it to the charity dinner dance last night that was held at the Hacienda Jualapan - the beautiful property where we held the charity event for the orphans last January.
A delicious beef dinner, cheesecake for dessert and two bottles of wine for our table of ten, complete with dancing to the music of Paradise and her husband, all for 600 pesos each - $45 Canadian - with the proceeds going to charity! Will Mexico never stop amazing me? What a wonderful evening!
Azucena brought the chef out to meet me after my gluten free dinner. He has a sushi restaurant in town that I intend to arrange with some friends to visit for dinner soon.
And the beat goes on!