I've been overthinking my blog. However, I'm finding that everything I think I "should" write about changes when I actually start writing.

Today is my father's birthday - Don Carlos Ambrose. He was a career Army officer; never the same after he retired. He loved army life and without it, he was a fish out of water. We loved it too and I think that's where I got my love of travel. We lived all over the world and never forgave our parents for planting us in Gilroy, California after he retired. Looking back, it wasn't so bad. After all that's where I attended high school, but come on it smelled like garlic. I hated garlic for years. Now I use it ever single day without fail and I went to a big combined Gilroy High School reunion a couple of years ago and I had a great time; reconnected with old friends from my high school years (but that's another story). I think about my father a lot. He died in 1986, a month after Bruce and I got married. He was only 64, but he had battled alcoholism all of his adult life and it took a toll on him. I think he must have been depressed most of his life and if he had been able to get help for that (or even admit to it) his life would have been different and he might possibly still be here. We all loved him a lot. He had a powerful presence and he did help me through some hard times in my adult life. He wasn't a mean drunk ever. In fact we never saw him drunk. He would simply go away for a while. That's a problem in the army. He was a very funny man; outrageously funny. He had a wacky sense of humor and he passed that on to his four daughters. God forbid any of us should ever say the first thing that pops into our head. Some people would say it's inappropriate; black humor, but if I'm honest it makes me laugh out loud, sometimes that hysterical kind of laughter that nearly gets out of control. My sister Laurie says he channels through me sometimes (actually a psychic I saw a few years ago at Rio Caliente told me the same thing). I think we all have good hearts too. Our father was generous to a fault and would literally give you the shirt off of his back if he could. I think I learned how to really care about people from him. My parents were complete opposites and I don't think my mother ever got over him although she would never admit it. She was a really strong and smart woman and a great person but our father's alcoholism took its toll on her. Sadly, I don't think she allowed herself to be really happy after she divorced him though it was always hard to tell because she never learned how to share her feelings.

Laurie and I have the same mother; Kelly and Lisa's mother was Terry. They are 18+ years younger than we are. We didn't meet each other until the early 70's, when we were grown and they were little girls. We didn't see them again until 1984 when my father was very ill. Then years passed again and it wasn't until about five years ago that we really reconnected and will stay reconnected. We've all realized how important it is to be connected to each other. Kelly and Lisa are in their early 40's and have their own families. There is no question we are all sisters. We are very much alike. Laurie and Lisa have dark hair and flawless complexions while Kelly and I are freckle faced girls. Kelly came to visit me at Playa Las Tortugas with her son, Jack, about five years ago and I hadn't seen her since 1985, but when she came through immigration I could tell who she was because she looked a lot like me! It was shocking. During that first visit we discovered that we even used the same shampoo and conditioner...now that's just crazy. The next year Kelly and Lisa came down to Puerto Vallarta together and we had an incredible week together. Laurie and I spend a lot of time together; in fact every chance we get. We are almost more like emotional twins. Our voices are so similar that we've been able to fool people over the years, even our husbands. We talk to each other every day. She's in Oregon and I'm here in Mexico. Next week Bruce and I are going to Chicago (I've never been there!) and I'm driving up to Lisa's town, Madison, Wisconsin, for her son Nick's graduation from high school. I don't know Nick or Erik (Lisa's oldest) at all and I can't wait to meet them. It's also Lisa's birthday on the 13th so I'll be there for that; the first time ever. I love having sisters. It's really special. I love them so much and no matter what, we would do anything for each other (and have). It's a great feeling.

Well now this is a mini novel, but I want to write about what's happening in the present too. Life in San Carlos continues to be good and I'm happier here than I was in Sayulita. Part of that is environmental. I'm really affected by my physical surroundings. When I was younger and apartment hunting I could tell immediately what the vibe was in the apartment and whether or not I could live there. In our former home, Sayulita, we lived in a neighborhood with roosters, dirt roads and lots of boom boxes turned up to nose bleed at any given hour of the day or night. It's a cool town but, for whatever reason, I never really bonded with it. It's quiet here on the Caracol. We didn't have sunsets at our house in Sayulita because we had no view. We have a wonderful house there (it's for sale!) but here we have the view and the sunset. It is gorgeous. It just makes life seem easier with all of this right here. I love being close to what's going on outdoors. If I had it all to do again, I would be a weather person. Bruce and I lived on our boat in Seattle for several years just before we moved to Mexico and we loved it partly because we were right there on the water and in the weather. I like the people I've met here in San Carlos. Even dealing with the Homeowners Association Architectural Committee has been good and I'm really excited about building our house. The house also bring us closer to the environment because we're going to have as many solar panels as we can afford and we're going to collect rainwater and have a gray water system. It's going to be as green as we can make it. Bruce has put his heart and soul into the design.

So now I'm going to make a small amount of strawberry freezer jam with the strawberries I bought at Tony's truck. I love Tony's truck. It is my way to shop. For those of you who don't know (which is everyone but Bliss), Tony sells just about everything you could possibly need from his truck and outdoor market on the main street of San Carlos. He is an entrepreneur who even has whipping cream which I like to put in my coffee. I think he has the best fresh fruits and vegetables in town. He even has fish, chicken, meat and every staple you can think of. He's also a really nice man. I just feel good when I shop there...just another reason I love it here.