Plastics in Brazil.

I can't find a decent squeeze bottle for my walks. I have always had this little pet peeve about plastics in Brazil. If you want cheap plastic (almost unheard of) you have to buy Brazilian made plastic and for some reason the plastic made here has this terrible smell. So, you either have to get used to water that smells and tastes like chemicals, or you spend a ridiculous amount of money on imported plastic.

When I arrived here, I went shopping for stuff to furnish my little place with and I was disheartened  to find that a small plastic garbage can was going to cost me about 45 bucks. I ended up using a small bucket for that end, I found the bucket at a small local grocer for about 5 bucks. The smell can be nauseating sometimes, especially the cheap plastic bags used at some of the small mom and pop shops.

The list of alternative uses for things has become very large in my house. If I purchase tomato sauce, I look for sauce sold in a cup or a container that can be reused for another purpose. Everything from Ice Cream tubs to yogurt cups gets a second life in my house. This is the only way I have been able to overcome the lack of plastic containers for storage in my home.

So that brings me back to today, I looked at two stores to find a squeeze water bottle to take on my walks. The imported ones were 35 bucks and up, the ones made here were about 2 bucks but they had a very strong chemical plastic smell. I guess it is time for me to start an internet search for some ideas about how to remove the smell from plastic.

I walk...

I went walking with some old folks today. If you know me, then you know that I prefer walking with the seniors than I do walking with a bunch of teenagers. I don't know what it is about these silver haired people that I love, but even as a kid I loved working at the senior citizen center. I guess I can thank my Grandparents (who ran the senior center) for getting me involved and making me feel comfortable around the older folks. I loved being around my Grandma and she was always at the "center" so, if I wanted to visit with her, the best thing to do was volunteer and work along side her. Anyway, so walking with the old folks, was a treat.

I am walking with a group from my health insurance company. My insurance company (Unimed) has a preventative medicine sector and I was given a referral by my cardiologist to take part in the programs they offer. After my evaluation by the physical therapist, I was invited to join the walking program at the park. The group of walkers meet every day at 7:30 in the morning, to go for a walk. There is also a program for physical therapy once a week (I am sure this is going to help build up my hip strength that I desperately need). I don't know why more insurance companies don't invest in things like this. I really hope the next step is them getting a giant swimming pool so I can take advantage of that on a hot day :)

So, I arrived at the park yesterday and was a bit shy at first. I tend to be painfully shy when I first meet people, until someone starts talking to me. The shyness soon fades with seniors because they are so funny and talkative that I get pulled right in. Anyway, I started my warm up with all of them and I was standing next to a lady who looked to be about 75 years old. The young trainer starts showing us what stretches to do. Arms above head, arms behind back... leg up on rail... my heart skipped a beat. Dread! How am I going to put my leg up on that rail? I looked to my left and Mariana (my friend who decided to walk with me) was struggling to put her foot half way up the fence because she could not reach the top rail. I looked to my right and the 75 year old had her leg up on the rail and nearly above her head. My jaw dropped! I could not believe it. I can't tell you how long it took me to wiggle my leg up half the way she had it. I can't believe I was showed up by a little old lady. I laughed about it several times yesterday, and my cardiologist was totally right when he said "you could really use some exercise."

Cleaning Up.

One thing I am totally grateful for, is that having a maid in Brazil is a relatively inexpensive treat. For about R$50.00 we have a maid come and clean the entire place. She spends close to 8 hours cleaning this house, and it works out to be about US$25.00 or slightly more. Another treat I have come to love is the Ironing Lady. She comes once a week and irons all the clothes for R$20.00 or about US$10.00.

The price for house cleaning is reasonable enough that even low income families can afford to create an extra job for someone in need. I am really grateful we are able to afford these treats. I know it has saved me money on pain medication already. Lets be honest though, even if my hips were normal and pain wasn't a factor, I would still not pass up the opportunity to have it done for me.

Back ...again

A whole lot has happened since I last updated this blog. Including but not limited to, a death, a birth, change of address, a few serious illnesses and lots of personal changes.

I can't even begin to start talking about all the stuff that has happened, so lets just make a deal and say we start again from now.

I am going to be making this blog a bit more personal and not just about Brazil, but also about me and the things I like. Or whatever in the world I think is interesting at the time I post. So, lets see what happens.