Now being Mrs. Walten, I was officially hen of the house. There are some day to day challenges we faced early in the days of life in Mexico. After a day hustling divers, hauling tanks and counting heads to make sure we had everyone, there were the everyday chores that every housewife has.
Grocery shopping: It was not until recent years that there were shopping options in Playa del Carmen.
Coming off a long day of diving it was not uncommon for my friend, Shelley Baker, and I to leave Akumal at about 6:00 p.m. with two or three coolers in the bed of the truck for perishables to go grocery shopping in Cancun.
Back then, the drive was about 60 minutes.
Of course there was not one store that would have everything you needed. So the plan usually entailed stopping at two, three or four stores. Commercial Mexican was the big grocery located on Tulum Avenue in the heart of the City of Cancun. Stop there. San Francisco, stop there. Esstes de Assi, which I was always told was a government-run store, had cheap prices and smelled like rotting meat inside. Stop there. We bought Mexican brands of cereal, sugar, coffee, boxed milk (Ultra High Temperature (UHT) pasteurization milk that will keep almost forever un-refridgerated), mac & cheese, bread - all the staples.
Then came Super Deli! This store was a treasure trove of imported goods like Danish butter in the blue can, Oscar Meyer products, Peter Pan peanut butter, Kraft parmesan cheese. They had the first espresso machine that I knew of in the area. Around midnight, Super Deli would be the last stop Shelley and I would make on our grocery expeditions as they were open until 1 am. We would browse the isles dreaming of buying every fancy imported good, toss back an espresso like it was tequila and head south on the old highway home. There was one special night I had with Shelley at Super Deli that I will never forget. While in line waiting to check out with the few items we could not live without we spotted on the shelf THE FIRST HERSHEY KISS we had ever seen in Mexico. Candy from home! We both grabbed a bag of these delectable treats from Hershey, Pennsylvania.
The highway through Puerto Morelos has changed only slightly, the same gas station and pharmacy are still open today. There was nothing but darkness to the south. You knew you were coming into Playa because you could see a red light on top of a radio tower. Once we reached Akumal Shelley and I helped each other unload groceries and each retreated to our designated casas for a few hours of sleep.
Laundry: The only laundry service at that time and still operating today, was Mulgrews - a family run operation.
Gary and I would gather up all our sheets, towels and clothes that were covered in seawater, sand, jungle dust, or cave mud and haul it all down to Mulgrews. Nice thing about taking your clothes to a laundry service is that sometimes you get new clothes! I have gained some very nice t-shirts. Occasionally, a semi-new pair of underwear would show up. Funny, I also lost a few of my favorite shirts or a pair of shorts every now and again.
Housecleaning: After working 6 days a week 8-10 hours a day and trying to get cave exploration in, a girl hardly has time to keep a tidy house. Funds were tight but we budgeted for a housekeeper to come in a couple times a week.
A housekeeper. A concept that so many housewives dream about and envy. Well, in reality there can be few caveats.
If in a developing country, do not assume she can read. This is a sad but true reality. So I have learned leaving a note on the kitchen counter is not helpful.
If you think that speaking English in a louder voice will help the Spanish speaking person understand you better, it does not.
If you have an item in your dwelling that you like, cherish, is a handy item to have, or something you cannot find a replacement for in Cancun, it will be broken.
If you have appliances you believe surely everyone in the entire world knows how to run, even if you explain it thoroughly, it will be broken eventually.
If the housekeeper does your laundry, there will be bleach stains on your darks* and she will most likely at some point break the washing machine.
If anything you have can, CRASH, BOOM, or BAM, the housekeeper will do it.
Quincena, payday, is every two weeks, the 15th and the last day of the month, but you will eventually be approached for a "prestimo" - a loan.
If your housekeeper or gardener gets sick and needs to go to the doctor, you will be asked for a loan to pay for the doctor and time off to go to the doctor. Do not assume she will be back afterwards or even possibly the next day. She most likely will not contact you to let you know. In those days we did not have phones.
If there is a "fiesta" in their hometown or "pueblo" over the weekend, you will be asked for money for bus fare to attend the party with their extended family, and most likely they will not show up for work on Monday and possibly Tuesday of the following week. This is still common today. Kantunil and Sotuta in Yucatan have big fiestas in October. Locals in Akumal head West, and some do not return until later the following week.
If the housekeeper or gardener has a child, you could be asked to be a godparent which basically means you get to help pay for the child's life along the way.
If you have one sweet old gardener who has long retired, which I do, he may every year or two show up to borrow money that will never be repaid. And you know what? It is ok.
Now, since you are the banker in this game, and unless you keep really good records of the 193 times you were asked for money, you just let your housekeeper or gardener pass go, collect $200 USD and eventually you find other domestic help.
A good housekeeper is a prize to have. A good housekeeper keeps a clean house, shows respect to your possessions, treats your family like her own, is trustworthy, and does not gossip about you behind your back. If your neighbor has a good housekeeper or gardener, you start to covet them. Coveting leads one to want to steal. Stealing another person's housekeeper, gardener or really any employee to come work for you is a no-no. It is a sign of disrespect.
*Note: It took me years before I understood how these Mayan women could keep their huipiles so white, when my white t-shirts always had rust stains on them. The key is put lime juice on it and lay it in the sun!
