I am new here. I was posting on an atheism forum on f/b and there was nothing but trolls. Every single thread was a troll. I tried posting a few threads and the serious threads had no responses, the troll threads were pages and pages long. That led me to go on the hunt for a good atheism forum.
I used to post on About.com, I posted there for many years off and on and eventually, About.com closed. It was very disappointing. Clearly, I was happy when I looked through this forum, it appears well run, intelligent people posting, it's exciting!! ;o)
I was born in Des Moines, then lived in AZ after school, and now I live in Mexico doing medical tourism. I have lived here for almost 7 years and I love it! I really thought this was a mega religious country and it is not. I do not know a single person that goes to church. Not even on Christmas, they wouldn't dare miss the fiestas and let me tell you, Mexican have the *best* parties!! They can go on for days. It's a lot of fun. I love the culture here, I have yet to master the language but I have learned that they will suffer through my Spanish as long as they know I really am trying.
Everything here is about bartering. I wanted to find someone great to cut my hair so each lady I see who has great hair I ask her who does her hair. I have yet to find a shop, everyone has a sister or mom or neighbor who does it. But I love the bartering and trading. My neighbors are elderly and clearly on a fixed income and I know they were eating a lot of beans and rice. But when they have food to cook, it's a feast! I have the money for food but no cooking skills. When I moved into this house I didn't even bother buying an oven, in my last home when I was cleaning the house to move I had to "dust" out my oven. I did not know ovens could collect dust. My kitchen in small so there was no need to waste the space on an oven.
Point being, I buy the food, my neighbors cook, we eat family style and we ALL eat better. I love it! It works out well, my neighbors also have keys to my gate and house and when I am at the hospital on especially long days they come over and let my dogs out (I live in the desert, no way do I leave my dogs out in the heat.) They feed them and take care of them while I am gone. On those days I bring home tacos from their fav taco stand and they are thrilled.
Anything with an electrical cord is *very* expensive in Mexico. Overall living is very cheap but items with an electrical cord are ridiculously expensive. I live in a border city so I cross the border into the US all the time. Each spring I make many trips for fans and other items that are cheaper vs. Mexico. Most of my neighbors can't cross the border so I get items for them. In exchange, they do a ton of things for me. If my internet is down they go to the cable/internet company and translate for me. My neighbors understand MY Spanish, they know me. But strangers just cock their head and have no idea what I am saying. So my neighbors translate my Spanish into real Spanish. They help me so I don't get the white girl price. If I have to find a new vet for my dogs for example, they go in first and ask the cost for an office call THEN I come in and I don't get the white girl price. They are amazingly good to me and I try to return the favor.
Just for examples, my rent for a small 1 bedroom house with locked gates, etc., is $1100 pesos, or depending on the exchange rate around $65 USD. Tap water is about $4/$5 a month and that includes garbage pick up x2 weekly. Drinking water delivered to my home is $0.75/5 gallons USD and that includes a 15% tip and really, only the Americans tip here. If I went to pick it up myself vs. having it delivered it would be 10 pesos or $0.59/5 gallons with no tip. I live in the desert so during the summer months I keep my A/C on 24/7, even when I am not home due to my dogs. My bill is usually around $750 pesos or $45 USD/month. Phone service here used to be the most expensive in the world. Just calling my neighbor was about $1 USD/minute. Today there is more competition and without a contract it is still that expensive but with a contract I have unlimited calling to Mexico, the US, and Canada for $150 pesos a month or $8.82 USD. I was waiting for the shock, surprise, fine print and so far.... nothing. It really is less than $9 USD. My unlimited internet is $320 pesos a month or $18.83/month. That has also drastically dropped in price in the 7 years I have lived here.
Recently my dog was ill on a Sunday. They don't really have emergency clinics here like in Phoenix. For the vet to come in on a Sunday, open the clinic, examine my dog, give an injection and two Rxs to take home it was $35 USD. One time the vet came to my home and vaccinated my three dogs and 2 neighbor dogs and it was $40 USD for all vaccines, rabies, and worming as well as a home visit. My neighbors can't really afford to vaccinate their dogs and it is all the better for my dogs if the neighbor dogs are vaccinated as well. Same with spraying for ticks/fleas. It is cheap to have the exterminator spray my house as well as my neighbors on both sides and I have zero problems with ticks/fleas when their homes and yards are sprayed, too. That is $35/house but I know the exterminator and he does a heck of a job, I only have to do it once a year.
I used to live in the high rent district. ;o) I had a beautiful 3 bedroom/2 bath house with 2 stories, minisplits in each room, an amazing Mexican tile patio that was beyond beautiful but due to medical problems the steps were getting to be a chore and it was just too far away from my American friends, the hospitals we use, and the border. The rent there was $250. All other basic living costs were the same. So I moved and while my last house was too big, this one is too small but don't really want to move due to great neighbors. I depend on them quite a bit. I could actually build a room on to this house for about $1200. Not sure I want to do that for a rental.
Friends and neighbors used to have to read my mail to me but I have come a long way in 7 years! I can read it all by myself now. ;o) Every now and again I gt something I don't understand but they take care of it for me, whatever it is.
If you are thinking about a place to retire, or if you can work from your home via internet/phone, this is your country! The people are great, the culture is warm, there is little judgement, it's a great place to live.
I hope to meet you all! I am really looking forward to some good topics and discussions. Thanks for letting me join!
I used to post on About.com, I posted there for many years off and on and eventually, About.com closed. It was very disappointing. Clearly, I was happy when I looked through this forum, it appears well run, intelligent people posting, it's exciting!! ;o)
I was born in Des Moines, then lived in AZ after school, and now I live in Mexico doing medical tourism. I have lived here for almost 7 years and I love it! I really thought this was a mega religious country and it is not. I do not know a single person that goes to church. Not even on Christmas, they wouldn't dare miss the fiestas and let me tell you, Mexican have the *best* parties!! They can go on for days. It's a lot of fun. I love the culture here, I have yet to master the language but I have learned that they will suffer through my Spanish as long as they know I really am trying.
Everything here is about bartering. I wanted to find someone great to cut my hair so each lady I see who has great hair I ask her who does her hair. I have yet to find a shop, everyone has a sister or mom or neighbor who does it. But I love the bartering and trading. My neighbors are elderly and clearly on a fixed income and I know they were eating a lot of beans and rice. But when they have food to cook, it's a feast! I have the money for food but no cooking skills. When I moved into this house I didn't even bother buying an oven, in my last home when I was cleaning the house to move I had to "dust" out my oven. I did not know ovens could collect dust. My kitchen in small so there was no need to waste the space on an oven.
Point being, I buy the food, my neighbors cook, we eat family style and we ALL eat better. I love it! It works out well, my neighbors also have keys to my gate and house and when I am at the hospital on especially long days they come over and let my dogs out (I live in the desert, no way do I leave my dogs out in the heat.) They feed them and take care of them while I am gone. On those days I bring home tacos from their fav taco stand and they are thrilled.
Anything with an electrical cord is *very* expensive in Mexico. Overall living is very cheap but items with an electrical cord are ridiculously expensive. I live in a border city so I cross the border into the US all the time. Each spring I make many trips for fans and other items that are cheaper vs. Mexico. Most of my neighbors can't cross the border so I get items for them. In exchange, they do a ton of things for me. If my internet is down they go to the cable/internet company and translate for me. My neighbors understand MY Spanish, they know me. But strangers just cock their head and have no idea what I am saying. So my neighbors translate my Spanish into real Spanish. They help me so I don't get the white girl price. If I have to find a new vet for my dogs for example, they go in first and ask the cost for an office call THEN I come in and I don't get the white girl price. They are amazingly good to me and I try to return the favor.
Just for examples, my rent for a small 1 bedroom house with locked gates, etc., is $1100 pesos, or depending on the exchange rate around $65 USD. Tap water is about $4/$5 a month and that includes garbage pick up x2 weekly. Drinking water delivered to my home is $0.75/5 gallons USD and that includes a 15% tip and really, only the Americans tip here. If I went to pick it up myself vs. having it delivered it would be 10 pesos or $0.59/5 gallons with no tip. I live in the desert so during the summer months I keep my A/C on 24/7, even when I am not home due to my dogs. My bill is usually around $750 pesos or $45 USD/month. Phone service here used to be the most expensive in the world. Just calling my neighbor was about $1 USD/minute. Today there is more competition and without a contract it is still that expensive but with a contract I have unlimited calling to Mexico, the US, and Canada for $150 pesos a month or $8.82 USD. I was waiting for the shock, surprise, fine print and so far.... nothing. It really is less than $9 USD. My unlimited internet is $320 pesos a month or $18.83/month. That has also drastically dropped in price in the 7 years I have lived here.
Recently my dog was ill on a Sunday. They don't really have emergency clinics here like in Phoenix. For the vet to come in on a Sunday, open the clinic, examine my dog, give an injection and two Rxs to take home it was $35 USD. One time the vet came to my home and vaccinated my three dogs and 2 neighbor dogs and it was $40 USD for all vaccines, rabies, and worming as well as a home visit. My neighbors can't really afford to vaccinate their dogs and it is all the better for my dogs if the neighbor dogs are vaccinated as well. Same with spraying for ticks/fleas. It is cheap to have the exterminator spray my house as well as my neighbors on both sides and I have zero problems with ticks/fleas when their homes and yards are sprayed, too. That is $35/house but I know the exterminator and he does a heck of a job, I only have to do it once a year.
I used to live in the high rent district. ;o) I had a beautiful 3 bedroom/2 bath house with 2 stories, minisplits in each room, an amazing Mexican tile patio that was beyond beautiful but due to medical problems the steps were getting to be a chore and it was just too far away from my American friends, the hospitals we use, and the border. The rent there was $250. All other basic living costs were the same. So I moved and while my last house was too big, this one is too small but don't really want to move due to great neighbors. I depend on them quite a bit. I could actually build a room on to this house for about $1200. Not sure I want to do that for a rental.
Friends and neighbors used to have to read my mail to me but I have come a long way in 7 years! I can read it all by myself now. ;o) Every now and again I gt something I don't understand but they take care of it for me, whatever it is.
If you are thinking about a place to retire, or if you can work from your home via internet/phone, this is your country! The people are great, the culture is warm, there is little judgement, it's a great place to live.
I hope to meet you all! I am really looking forward to some good topics and discussions. Thanks for letting me join!
