OXXO for water, change and a whole lot more
Crossing the border, left our navigation system blind. I had made a mental note of the TelCel store located near the border, but in seconds, I was lost. Writing the address does not help at all, because streets are hardly ever visibly named. I kept asking “Donde queda la oficina de TelCel” No one knew. Finally, I stopped in an OXXO store and asked the young man on the counter. He replied, “why don’t you Google it?”. Wouldn’t you know it? I said, that this was the very reason why I was looking for TelCel, to buy a SIM card! If you have ever been to Mexico for a while, you know the end of this story. “We sell those SIM cards, man!” He said. Not only did they sell them, but they also installed them. In seconds we were going to Hermosillo.
OXXO was several times our salvation in Mexico. They sold me and installed that SIM card faster than if I had stopped to buy a Coke. Exactly the opposite of how is done in Spain (more later). On another occasion, I was alerted that my license plate was about to fall off, the consequence of one of those famous and ubiquitous traffic “Topes” or speed bumps. I had a safety box in my trunk and it contained a screwdriver, but this was a flathead and I needed a Phillips. I walked into an OXXO, and the lady at the counter told me they did not have any. Then she called a guy, ostensively her husband, and asked if he could help. He took my flathead screwdriver my the head and pulled it. Wouldn’t you know it, a Phillip’s head was hidden in the handle. I felt equally stupid and grateful.
OXXO would come to my rescue a couple of times more. Once or twice as the only source of edible food in miles (if only in the form of chips and drinks), but also as a source of change for my dollars to pesos, to pay the tolls on the road. By the way, not every OXXO is going to change your dollars, but they might do it if you purchase something, anything. Then they will give you your change in pesos. Much has been said about the dangers of visiting Mexico, but I have never seen such helpful and generous people anywhere else. Their motto is “we can do it together”, and they do seem to stick together for the common good. Even if you are a foreigner, they still try to be helpful. As a Venezuelan, I recognize that character, long gone from my fellow countrymen.
One time I was buying water to get some pesos, but the cashier refused to give them to me due to store policy. One customer next to me, ostensively a blue-collar worker, offered me pesos to pay for the water. I told him I wanted the change in pesos more than the water. Then, I returned the water to the fridge, and then the security guard offered to buy the water for me too. In just a few seconds I had two regular guys showing their generosity to a stranger, which I would think they noticed was in a better financial position than they were. I encounter this attitude several times in Mexico, but that day I had to humbly recognize that we have given a bad reputation to Mexicans by not resisting innuendo about them. There are more stories but this one makes the point.
Genie’s tranquilizer
Genie is not a young dog, anymore, she is 13. Since her puppy years, she reacted to car rides with uncontrollable panting, no matter how short or long the trip was. This is what terrorizes us the most about bringing her in the cabin with us on the plane to Spain. Our first day through California was no different. She panted and panted all the way. As veterinarians, my wife and I decided to give her a dose of tranquilizer for the second day. She slept all the way through. After the long trip, she continued to dope. By the end of that day, we had a worrisome challenge. The normal dose of tranquilizer might have been too much for a 13-year-old dog. To take Genie in the cabin, we had to find a lower but effective dose. We still have days or weeks to figure that out.
Keeping Genie healthy and happy turned out to be one of our main concerns during the whole Odyssey. But Genie was a trooper through and through. She learned to go to the bathroom in the most unusual places, she learned to eat less frequently (OMAD?), and lost weight. Ironic, because we were concerned that she was going to be too heavy for the airplane cabin. Within days, she seemed happy just to be with us and travel in the back of our car within a pet carrier firmer and larger than the one we had to use for airline travel. We began by testing a dose 1/3 of the normal dose, and that seemed to keep her sleepy for 6 or more hours of traveling, which was the usual duration of our one-day trips. One of our constant worries was to find accommodations that would accept pets.
Genie’s Odyssey was our Odyssey. Much more was to happen before we could take Genie to Spain with us. Both Ulla and I were vaccinated against Covid-19, but Genie was a more complete vaccination record, especially rabies which requires frequent boosters. But before we were to go to Spain we would face the real possibility we could not take Genie with us. Our determination was to be tested. In the end, we learned a lesson about our personal power, our knowledge, and our will to challenge the rules with what is right. The story is long, but I feel it must be told, and I will tell it, in the coming portions of this article series to come.
