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Building homes in San Miguel-updated 11/12 - 11/8/2012 12:36:04 PM
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crunch
Posts: 25875
Joined: 2/23/2005
From: Dreaming of my next vacation to paradise......
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My wonderful brother decided to spend 2 weeks volunteering to build homes in mexico. I thought you might enjoy this recent installment:
One quick funny before I get down to the good stuff. Turns out, San Miguel has very strict building regulations, this means, no messing with the streets - if they don't knock your fillings loose they don't have enough pot holes and ruts - and if there is a historic artifact on the property - you may not be able to build at all - case in point - a gringo bought a piece of prime property for over $1Million in downtown San Miguel with expectations of turning it into who knows what - but didn't do his homework. Turns out - there's a horse watering trough of some significance on the property - maybe poncho via took a header in there - anyway - it's now found it's maximal use as a parking lot with a horse watering trough :=)
Well, when it comes to being a volunteeria - it's a good idea to take these things on with no expectations...
In a 4x4 we barely navigated a set of ruts called Calle Alamo that was actually wide enough to be a road - but had few of the familiar characteristics (like lights, sidewalks, asphalt) and we ended up in the hood - and were greeted by a pack of feral dogs.
They are actually very nice and really appreciate that we share our lunch with them.
The owners of the house we are building live on the property - in fact they live in the little tin shed (currentCasa).
I got a tour of the interior and it is every bit as depressing as you might not be able to imagine. There's no power, or water, insulation, windows - just a bed and a dirt floor, a table, and a young man, his wife, and two girls live there. Fortunately it's almost always nice weather in San Miguel so the girls can play with the feral dogs.
My "handler" dropped me off at the job site and intro'd me to the bossman - Manuel. Fortunately he and the crew are all very nice hombres - but speak no english - or at least claim not to.
The pictura "sandPile" was my office for the morning - got to screen rocks from a pile of dirt so that it could be used to make mortar. It wasn't too much but definitely hard on the back (espalda).
Things got tougher after that when a truck showed up with mucho cement on board. Unlike the wimpy little sacks of concrete you get at Home Depot weighing 60-70lbs, these were the industrial sized bags weighing 50 kilos (110lbs I think) - and they did not levitate themselves - we're busting a sweat now!
Fortunately it was time for desayuna (lunch) and the crew (workCrew) invited me to join them on a bucket.
I was starving and dove right into a persimmon I had scavenged - but they were all sitting patiently around a cement plastered piece of plywood patiently waiting for what I did not know. Had I chewed right through their noon prayers - I did not know. A few minutes later there was a young voice beckoning through a huge pile of detritus and debris with a brown paper-wrapped package. They reclaimed it and brought it to the table - turns out to be a huge stack of corn tortillas hot off the grill. Each person on the crew brought a tupperware container with some munchies and they all shared and wrapped in tortillas. They generously offered me some as well and I had a tortilla and beans followed by a handful of charcoal tablets, just in case...
The crew never misses a break and takes a pretty long lunch so I rebuilt the family clothes line
and walked the hood, discovering a turkey and 2 huge geese out for a stroll, and another one of the houses Casita Linda built right around the corner. I was able to chain together something like 8 words in Spanish and got permission to take a picture of their completed (yellowCasa). The casitas have this cool arched roof design but it takes a long time to build because of many layers of cement that must cure and be applied. The current design takes 27 days and $8500US to build start to finish but the house I'm helping on is a new flat-roof design that they think they can build in only 23 days.
Since there's no gas or electric in the neighborhoods - the natural gas guy comes by every day and you can buy an exchange a tank for cooking. Similarly, since there's no water, the city comes by once a week or so and delivers water. Think you get up to 5 barrels of water filled gratas.
Turns out sifting dirt and schlepping cement was just a warm-up for the main attraction - see the chalk line on (oCrap)? Yeah, well, that's my new officina:
Since I was so good with a shovel they gave me the most important and skilled project on the job - digging the el bano - that's pit toilet to you and me. It's not just some hole in the ground though - no it's got very tight tolerances to stay within property lines and avoid puncturing the neighbors pooper, and super smooth, straight walls so that it can be lined with brick of a specific dimension.
The ground is black clay, and not a single shovel full comes out without benefit of pick and steel bar. Despite being a "workout junkie" there's nothing like 8 hours in a hole with a picko and shovel to show you what a flabby gringo you are. My back hurts so bad by mid afternoon that I want to take a siesta and tequilla break. I can't stand to be the gringo-wimp so I soldier on until quitting time. My greatest satisfaction is that there's so much dirt coming out of this hole that I'm covering the trash in the aroyo and should be able to create a small level yard for the kids to play in:
I am making slow but steady progress on "the hole" (holeProgress) and it's giving me plenty of time to ponder my sins and blessings...
Hope you all are well and having fun. I'm going to go take a shower and eat a vaca (cow)
Adios ;-)
Day 3:
Ah, another day in the hole,
Real men don't drink diet coke - at least when you're on a construction site - so every day I buy the crew a big bottle of high octane regular coke. Oh, By the way, the stuff they sell here in the silver can is the same coke-light poison they sell in Europe. It's enough to gag even the most diet-coke addicted among us. Funny aside - they love their Fritos here - but in a health conscious gesture the Mexican Fritos have lemon added so you get your vitamin c at the same time ;-)
It's day two in purgatory and no sign of my handler. It's a bunch of retired Americanos that run Casita Linda - and it's kind of like that volunteer fire department deal in the desert where there's absolutely no chance of a fire but the Board members always have a vitally important reason to get out of the house every morning to inspect and direct without ever turning a spade of dirt themselves. I say this tongue in cheeko but truly, they are incredibly resourceful and well intentioned people that don't need to do this, but want to contribute - and they are in a huge way - I'm working on Casita #56 - they are now cranking these houses out every 27 days or so and running two simultaneously
It's so amazing the truth to the old adage "what goes around comes around" my mexican mesaro (waiter) at a Thai restaurant (big mistake) turned out to have spent 3 months working with Habitat for Humanity while a student. I gave him the 10 second version of why I was in San Miguel and that was the end of it I thought. Two nights after that most unusual of pad Thai I was walking by his restaurant and again encountered him. Turns out he too had grown up in little more than a mud hovel, was interested in Casita Linda and its mission and wanted to contribute his time to help in construction of their casitas and gave me his card with local phone and email.
This job is the ultimate kids fantasy. I get to wear the same filthy clothes every day and no one knows or cares whether I showered or not (I did of course - in fact it usually takes 3-4 separate scrub downs to get back to my own wrinkled skin). Here's a picture of my break room (breakRoom) - tomorrow I might wear a clean shirt - but it's totally optional.
Yeah it's lacking for some of the modern ecoutrements but perfectly comfortable and welcoming compared to the confines of "the hole".
I did want to mention that when I found out I had to "use it or lose it" (my vacation) I tried to find a gig anywhere in the US with Habitat for Humanity and unfortunately they didn't have much going on - ergo Google found me this experiential alternative gig in Mexico.
The people of San Miguel are incredible. They live in an ex-pat Mecca that has driven the price of homes and services to the stratosphere - yet they are as friendly to me as they are to each other. I ride the bus with them in the morning and while I don't think they really want me talking to their kids - they put up with it - and at our job site neighborhood which looks to be little more than bombed out encampment with no water, sewer, or electricity (unless boot-legged in) - they turn out these little well-scrubbed kids ready for another day at school, as happy and enthusiastic about life as any you have ever seen. Everywhere you go there's a continuous stream of Buenos Dias/Tardes/Noches to all.
I finally got a little smarter and come back to the hotel each night (I'm the only guest during the week) and hit google translate so that I can amaze and astound my companions the next day. They are still English shy and though they understand a lot - they will speak none of the evil tongue.
I like it because I get to thoroughly confound them practicing my Espanol. And by the way - I have a brilliant future here as a comedian. When I speak Spanish, if I say 3-4 words I get a smile; 5 or 6 words yields a smirk; chaining together 7 or more begets a serious belly laugh!
Still they put up with my podcast-learned Spanish and I've only had a couple of people to speak English to - and whatever I have learned has been enough for me to get around and not get smacked.
Today my back hurt so much that I was seriously considering impaling myself on the digging spear
so as not to have to dig any more. About that time the job foreman (Manuel) came by to inspect my work. He said the hole *Agujero" was preciso, exacto, perfecto - that got me through until lunch time. The hole has pretty simple requirements - it can only be 60 inches by 60 inches but has to be deep enough to accommodate 10 years of the family's contributions.
I have to also give major credit to the owner of the Hotel I am staying at. She's probably 65 and from the US and apparently of some means. She bought this old bordelo and turned it into a thriving hotel/guest house. It's beautiful and staffed by super nice and helpful locals. She has a continuous stream of American ex-pat suitors calling on her nightly :-;
The Hotel makes me breakfast and snacks and leaves them in the fridge for me since they all come in later. Not only does the altitude sap some of your strength - but it makes it really hard to boil eggs as well. Well at least if you want them hard-boiled. But their perfect if you like something that looks hard boiled but still explodes with runny yolk when you bite into it.
The Hotel staff also took pity on me and has provided me with some of their private stash of Costco aspirinas. I found that if I take them every 3 hours with a swig of warm Coke (yechh!) throughout the day I can take most anything the hole can dish out.
This is the most amazing construction crew. Can you imagine a construction site in the US where no one drinks, smokes, swears, yells at the girls, or resorts to the typical male-oriented displays of gastro-intestinal superiority...
I had read that many products in Mexico are as or more expensive as they are in the US and its true. With the exception of Coke and tortillas most other products are at US prices or higher. I needed a pair of cortaunas (nail clippers) while here and bought some at the neighborhood farmacia for about $1.50. Well, they got me through about 2 thumbs and 4 fingers before giving it up. Note to self and others: risk getting them taken by TSA, or upgrade to the local version that looks like a Swiss Army Knife - that's the only way you will get a full mani/pedi out of them.
There's a great little grocery store in town (they have dark chocolate) and strangely enough their next door neighbor is a casket shop (casketShop) with a sign that reads "Inhumaciones" - I thought really - you only take care of Aliens? I'll save you looking it up - turns out it means burials.
You may have heard about a new high-rise in Asia where owners have a private elevator that will deposit their car in their home - pretty convenient for sure. Well. This Mexican doctor has them beat at a fraction of the cost. The picture is really dark unfortunately but this obstetrician is able to park his Audi in his office.
The crew uses this great metal window frame (windowFrame) - you just plop it in the hole, stack more bricks on it, slather liberally with mortar and you can make perfect little radiused openings.
More fun stuff manana - be well!
From Mexi-Ken.
________________________________________
11/12 update:
I'm riding the bus to work and admiring the buildings where they've gouged out a rut in the masonry to string an electrical wire to homes or businesses. Probably no alternative but let me tell you the level of workmanship definitely runs a continuum from really bad to horrible. Came across this dapper dude left over from their Day of the Dead celebration.
The only bargains in San Miguel are maybe tortillas at about a buck for a 3 inch stack of steaming handmade goodness. Or electricity, where if you've got the cajoles to run the wire from an available pole it's not clear that you ever rea lly need to pay for it. If they pull it down you just restring it again. About every other street has a tortilleria - some are handmade, others come off these high speed machines - either way they are a bargain and smell muy bueno.
I'm chest deep in the hole now, it used to be that shoveling the broken clay was a welcome treat compared to swinging a pick or stabbing with a bar, now getting the dirt out of the hole is equally painful. Manuel came by with a bit of advice for me. He said trabahar pocquito y resto pocquito - work a little and rest a little. - pretty good advice.
Part of the charm of San Miguel is the blend of old and new. Here you can get gigabit Internet, but the real work is still done the traditional way with a broom of bundled branches.
The hole has multiple personalities. One side is dark and dank, and the clay comes out like dried out play doh. Another side is dry and gritty and every pick stroke results in a shower of sand and grit. My bête noir is this one corner that is pure caliche (cement)!
I have some great gloves, they fit well and have zillions of little bumps like a star fish that help you to grip a pick or bar. My hands are completely raw and blistered but the pain has the upside of helping me to forget how much my back hurts.
Wow - don't even think about parking your keister here!
I get a lot of time to ponder things and realized that you would never work this hard at home, you'd hire someone with a backhoe. Or if your friends wanted you to help them dig a hole like this you'd probably demure no matter how much beer and pizza was involved. But when you get to watch how a family lives in a tin shed with no heat, light, or water - it all of a sudden feels like a perfectly reasonable use of your vacation.
Even in the best neighborhoods, the city is littered with the reminders of good intentions. The idea is - we can build to 28 feet so plan ahead and embed the extra rebar even if you're only going to complete ten. Bricks, cement and labor are cheap and somewhere along the line, even 10
feet doesn't happen, the scorched earth remains.
I had read that shoes are really expensive here and this was borne out when I visited a shoe store. Boots just like the ones I bought for this trip were the same as US prices. Workers here earn about $1-3 an hour depending on the job. I gave my boots to the crew foreman and he's going to give them to which ever of the guys on his crew needs a new pair most.
The other funny thing about their shoe stores is that they don't sell socks. I have to throw mine away every night because they are destroyed, and still have not found a store to buy any more at. Is it just me or does this seem like a missed cross sell opportunity?
Finally hit the 7 foot mark today - mission-completo. Good thing too because its at the point that it was going to take a bucket brigade and a real Mexican laborer to get anymore dirt out. This gringo is beat.
Had another funny Spanish experience today. The work crew was dropping me off on the edge of town about a half mile from my hotel and asked me if I wanted a ride the rest of the way. In Spanish I said "no thank you the traffic is terrible and I like walking". Or at least that's what I tried to say. But I might have also said, " I like my feet" - I'm guessing from their laughs that it was the latter.
On returning to my hotel I found a present from the friendly staff.
Final update Mañana,
Bueno Vida!
< Message edited by crunch -- 11/12/2012 8:32:07 AM >
_____________________________
Nothing wrong with me that a margarita on the beach wouldn't fix.......................
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RE: Building homes in San Miguel - 11/9/2012 6:24:01 AM
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MM
Posts: 933
Joined: 8/11/2004
From: Utah
Status: offline
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Great post! more please...
_____________________________
Enjoy!
Mike
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RE: Building homes in San Miguel - 11/9/2012 8:32:28 AM
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KAFOKA
Posts: 4666
Joined: 4/1/2005
From: MASS
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really interesting - i'd love to hear more !
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RE: Building homes in San Miguel - 11/9/2012 11:03:44 AM
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rucruizin
Posts: 1968
Joined: 1/7/2010
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Oh My Gosh! This is wonderful, all of it. Thank you so much for sharing.
My first husband was from Zacatecas, Mexico. We went to visit his family once, way down in a very rural location. It was 3rd world culture shock for me, but so humbling, and beautiful. Much like is described in this, the family lived on ranch land, had no actual money, but traded items at the " store" (shack) for whatever they needed. An adobe hut, with a dirt floor, no door, but a blanket hung across it. Perfectly spotless, and tidy, even though there were a bunch of little kids running in and out, as well as chickens.
I have never felt more loved, or cherished in all my life, as those humble people who had nothing, welcomed us like royalty. They prepared a simple meal, but a feast to them of beans, rice, fried eggs, and tortillas, and I felt terribly guilty, to the point of tears, that they had sacrificed their meal, to feed to us. My husband told me to "stop crying, and eat, you're insulting them if you don't." It was pure torture to eat in front of hungry little children, who watched every bite.
My youngest daughter was in Africa on a medical mission, while I was in Akumal. While she feels that she has to go to far off places like Bolivia, and Kenya to make a difference, I wish she would spend some time in Mexico. Those are her people, she is one generation away from living just like tham, and I know she would fall in love with them, the way I have. I know she could connect with them, and her heart would be forever tied. In fact, I suspect she might not ever come back. I'm ok with that. Mexico is a lot closer than Africa.
Thank you to your brother for all his hard work, and sacrifice. Thank you for the report, it's just what I needed this morning 
_____________________________
It is, what it is.
It becomes, what you make it.
Make it spectacular!
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RE: Building homes in San Miguel - 11/10/2012 11:33:51 AM
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lindyloo646
Posts: 34
Joined: 10/18/2011
Status: offline
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What a wonderful report., I look forward to more. A great snapshot of life in small town Mexico.
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RE: Building homes in San Miguel - 11/10/2012 9:04:14 PM
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CallMeFrank
Posts: 3186
Joined: 10/11/2009
From: St. Charles, Mo.
Status: offline
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He's a good man. Your family is very fortunate and have every right to brag and be proud of him!
P.S. Try to talk him into going to Washington DC to fix things there! And I'm not talking about Sandy!
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RE: Building homes in San Miguel - 11/11/2012 6:57:42 AM
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MM
Posts: 933
Joined: 8/11/2004
From: Utah
Status: offline
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Good stuff again!
_____________________________
Enjoy!
Mike
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