Christmas 2022: A Look Forward and Back

2022 is almost over. But before I bid this year farewell, I wanted to share what our Christmas was like.

We usually go all out for Christmas, but since we threw a nice bash for our Christmas in June, we didn't really get too crazy for the real thing.

For starters, it was just the two of us this year. Also, the weeks leading up to Christmas haven't been that great. For those of you who don't know, my husband suffers from a hereditary skin disorder. There's no cure for it as of yet, but there are pills that he takes to manage some of the symptoms. Now, generally, he's able to cope with the discomfort, but the Argentine summer has been particularly cruel to him this year. So, the extreme heat aggravated his condition and left him in a terrible state. There were days where he didn't even want to get out of bed. So, as you can imagine, celebrating Christmas wasn't really a top priority for us.

Luckily, the temperature leading up to Christmas started to drop just enough to allow the hub's skin to heal a bit. He was still in some pain, but it was manageable enough that we were able to work together to make some holiday treats and a homemade pizza.

Homemade Pizza

Panettone - Think of it as a fruit cake. This was store bought.

Jell-O X-Mas Tree. Homemade and loaded with alcohol.

The hubs made Christmas themed white chocolate candies. I made the fruit salad.

These cookies were store bought.

These cupcakes were store bought.

I also bought a few extra decorations with the help of a friend, including a new star for our tree at Ma & C Distribuidora in Nueva Cordoba. If you're living here and are looking for decorations or Oriental food products, this is the place to go. It's actually in the same place where Clayton, the buffet that gave me the runs in 2018, was located.

Well, now that I've shared what we did for the holidays, I'm going to share what's ahead for me in 2023. 

With regards to my career path, let me start out by saying that I've enjoyed teaching English... A LOT! Not only have I helped my students improve their conversational skills, but I've also been teaching them about current events, science, and more. However, I'm looking for something more challenging, so I'm exploring a new job opportunity that has presented itself recently. It's too early to talk about what this new job is about, but I'll share more next year.

There are a couple of other things that I do want to mention. 

This year, people around the world seem to have forgotten that Covid 19 happened. Argentina is no different. Most people have stopped wearing masks and started congregating in large groups as though the pandemic was over. It isn't. This has become evident in recent weeks as the number of Covid cases have continued to rise in Argentina. In Cordoba, some of the people that went to get their booster shots discovered that they were infected. Still, this hasn't scared anyone into wearing their masks when they go out. You don't have to take my word for it. Just click on this article and you'll see the photos of what happened after the Argentines won the World Cup in 2022. Spoiler alert! The crowds were massive and there wasn't a single mask in sight. Is it any wonder that the Argentine capital has the highest number of Covid cases? 

Look! I get it! We all want this situation to be over. I'll even admit that I went out with a friend a few weeks ago and didn't wear my mask for the first time in nearly three years. It felt soooo liberating! Then I kicked myself for being so careless. 

Luckily, I didn't catch anything.

I did get my fifth shot in December and the hubs received his fourth shot as well. He's one shot behind me, but I'll make sure he catches up in early 2023.

Besides the pandemic's resurgence, there were a couple of other reasons why I've been so sad. 

Celebrity deaths are not uncommon, but 2022 really took some of my favorites.

Rest in peace Leslie Jordan. This guy was funny as hell. I've seen him guest star on shows like "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman," and "Will & Grace." I loved him in the film "Sordid Lives." He also starred on the sitcom "Call Me Kat."

Rest in peace Nicki Aycox. For those of you who don't know her, she was the first actress to play the demon Meg on the long-running series, "Supernatural." She was also in the film "Joy Ride 2."

Rest in peace Jason David Frank. He played the original Green Power Ranger, but went on to play other colors as well. This one hit me hard. I followed Jason's work for years. He was an inspiration to me. Learning that he had died at 49 by his own hands was devastating, but I think the reason his death affected me so much is because I've dealt with suicidal thoughts on and off over the years.

Life isn't always puppies and rainbows. I get that. But sometimes life can get to be too much, especially when you're an expat. Those of you who have read my blog posts over the years know that living in Argentina hasn't been easy for me. The hubs and I have been through some sticky times both in our marriage and financially over the years. To top that, I've been dealing with neighbors who are constantly vandalizing our home. There's also the culture shock which has never gone away and in some cases has been unbearable. So, there have been moments when the thought of ending it all has crossed my mind. 

I could have reached out to some of my friends in the States, but they're all going through so much right now that I feel guilty dumping my problems on them. Besides, the main reason I haven't taken my life is because of the love I have for my husband. There's no way I would ever willingly leave him alone in this world to fend for himself, especially in a foreign country. Also, the logical side of my brain tells me that we're all going to take that big dirt nap eventually. So, why rush it? Still, I was glad to learn that Argentina has a suicide hotline that can be reached by dialing 135 or 0800-345-1435. The call is free, and it's literally a lifeline if you find yourself needing to talk to someone. They don't care who you are. They just want to help.

I hope I don't worry anyone who reads this. I'm actually hanging in there. I have things to live for, and as I mentioned earlier, I plan to be busier in 2023 than I was this year. Plus, I can't leave this world without finding out what happens to some of my favorite characters on shows like "Grey's Anatomy," "The Winchesters," and the insane number of new "Star Trek" shows on Paramount Plus. 

But before I go, there is one final death I want to mention. Our family dog Chewie passed away a couple of months ago. 

She wasn't technically mine or my husbands. She belonged to the hub's aunt, uncle and cousin, but we loved Chewie as if she were our own. 

We spent a lot of time with her when we were living in New York and called her our granddaughter for a big reason. Her father, Joxer, was our dog and we considered him our child. Sadly, he's no longer with us either. 

Well, hopefully, I didn't bum anyone out. That certainly wasn't my intention. I'm actually very excited to share something with you, but you'll have to wait a week or two.

Oh! Before I forget. Two Christmas movies I highly recommend are "Violent Night" and "A Christmas Story Christmas," which is the sequel to the classic "A Christmas Story."

Until next time, I hope everyone has an amazing New Year celebration. 

Keep on fighting! 

Keep on living!

Thanksgiving 2022 With a Side of Family

Thanksgiving. 

To most Americans it's a time to get together with family and enjoy a good meal. But it's tough celebrating this holiday when you're living in a country that doesn't understand the notion of Thanksgiving. And yet, we consider ourselves pretty lucky, especially this year, because we were able to celebrate this holiday with friends. Scratch that. Family.

The company was amazing but making the meal was an ordeal for a huge reason. In the States, Thanksgiving takes place in the fall, but it's springtime in Argentina. So, cooking a turkey in 100-degree weather with no A/C was A NIGHTMARE!

Despite the heat, the turkey and the sides--which included stuffing, mashed potatoes, biscuits, a macaroni salad and regular salad--were delicious. Don't ask me about the green bean casserole. I mentioned this last year. Green bean casseroles are dreadful and have no place in our home.

As far as desserts go, things didn't go as planned. We wanted to make an apple pie, which is a signature dessert during the holidays. But by the time we were done cooking the turkey, our house felt like the heart of the sun. So, we made the executive decision to turn the oven off for the night. 

Although we didn't bake a pie, we did cool off with some ice cream and a coconut cake we had baked the day before.

Over the course of the night, we talked, laughed and enjoyed a hearty meal. In other words, our Thanksgiving was... MAGICAL! It also made me realize something. 

We had celebrated with extended family members when we were back home for many years. I'm talking about lavish parties with over 50 guests and all kinds of food that honored traditional American and Puerto Rican dishes. (Just to clarify, my husband is of Puerto Rican descent.) But we always felt like outcasts at these family gatherings and failed to make genuine connections with anyone. So, even though we miss the States, our friends, and certain family members, we realized that the connection we longed for during the Thanksgiving holiday wasn't 5,000 miles away, but right under our roof.

And if you're wondering how much the turkey cost us in Argentina this year, it set us back about $6,700 Argentine pesos for an eight pounder. That would be about $39.95 USD.

But don't expect my upcoming Christmas post to include any elaborate meals this year. We have NO INTENTION of turning our oven on. We will, however, have refreshing alternatives like fruit, salad, some sandwiches, and lots and lots of cold drinks.

Celebrating a Milestone Birthday and a Spooky Halloween With Old Friends

For most of you, the start of the holiday season is in December. If you’re from the States, it probably starts in November around Thanksgiving. But if you’re horror enthusiasts like we are, then the holiday season starts in October to celebrate Halloween.

This year was extra special because my husband celebrated the BIG 4-0 a day before the spooktacular holiday. It’s also the first time we’ve invited more than one person to our home since the pandemic started in 2019.

Since the rate of infection has decreased significantly in Argentina, we decided to throw caution to the wind and open our doors.

So, in mid-October, we invited two dear friends over for an early Halloween/birthday celebration. Although Zach has met up with our friend, Melisa, a few times over the last two years, this was my first time seeing her and her boyfriend, Javier, since 2019.

Then we had our friend Franco over for the hub’s 40^th birthday and had a blast!

In fact, we had so much fun that Franco graced us with his presence the following day.

As usual, the celebration was full of homemade Halloween themed food, treats and store-bought candies.

We actually made this pizza a couple of days before Halloween. We used food coloring to make the cheese bright orange. Before you ask: It's tough finding shredded cheddar cheese in Argentina. Unfortunately, the spooky shaped cheese melted into unrecognizable blobs in the oven, so we couldn't use this idea for Halloween.

BBQ chicken with Jack O' Lantern bread

We were pleasantly surprised that the candy stores here in Cordoba, Argentina, had more Halloween themed candies than last year.

Don't buy these! They have regular candy inside instead of Halloween candy.

Skull candies!

Gummy brain candies!

Eyeball candies

We made witch hats out of Rice Krispy Treats. On the right was our attempt to make the book from Hocus Pocus. We'll do better next year. I promise.

We ordered some powdered donuts, placed vampire teeth in the middle and glazed them with fake blood.

We used a Sharpie to draw the face on the glass. Then we made a float using Sunkist (Fanta works too) and vanilla ice cream.

Over the last ten years, we’ve made it a habit of buying new masks to celebrate Halloween. The masks from the previous year were added to our Halloween tree.

This year, we wore the masks seen in last year’s hit South Korean drama “Squid Game.” If you haven’t seen that show, I strongly recommend it.

Unfortunately, there was one Halloween tradition that we’ve only been able to do once over the last ten years.

Carving a Jack O’ Lantern!

Finding a decent pumpkin in Argentina during this time of year is tough. So, we came up with a wacky idea. Instead of carving pumpkins, we decided to carve peppers. Now, let me be honest, the carvings you’re about to see didn’t happen on Halloween. We actually did these on November 9^th.

If you're thinking, "Oh geez! That will never work," check this out!

Once we were done with our pepper Jack O’ Lanterns, we chopped them up and used them to make a veggie lasagna.

I don't even like vegetables, but it was really tasty.

So, the takeaway here is that if you’re living abroad and don’t have what you need for Halloween, compromise!

Now, before I end this entry, I want to share my Halloween movie list for 2022. Many of them were new to us, but there were a few horror favorites from previous years. Hopefully, you’ll find one or two that you haven’t seen.

Enjoy!

1. Rob Zombie’s 31 – This one was a surprise hit!
2. Barbarian – It was alright, but you’re going to hate Justin Long’s character so much!
3. Insidious Chapter 3 – Better the second time around!
4. Insidious The Lost Key – Also better the second time around!
5. Halloween 2018 – Decent!
6. Halloween Kills – It was alright!
7. Halloween Ends – It sucked! Don’t waste your time!
8. Jeepers Creepers Reborn – Seriously! WTF! Horrible!
9. Hocus Pocus 2 – Predictable but entertaining.
10. Old People – Scary enough to make you respect your elders.
11. Hush – You’ll never want to live in the woods… like ever!
12. The Haunted Mansion – Great for kids. Kinda boring for adults.
13. Hellraiser 2022 – I only saw this because of Jamie Clayton, but the movie was boring AF!
14. The Curse of Bridge Hollow – This was a surprisingly cool movie!
15. The Visitor – Meh.
16. When a Stranger Calls Back – The sequel to the classic When a Stranger Calls (Not the reboot)
17. All Hallows’ Eve 2 – Some scenes are scary.
18. Spirit Halloween – A haunted party store? Yes please!
19. The Inhabitant – It was okay.
20. Rise of the Zombies – Another surprising good horror flick. A bit low budget, but decent.
21. Terrifier – Low budget but scary and gory. Don’t watch if you’re afraid of clowns.
22. Terrifier 2 – Not as great as the first one but scary and gory enough.
23. Friday the 13^th Jason Lives – A classic.
24. Hostile – It was supposed to be Mad Max meets Resident Evil, but it was a disappointment.
25. The Accursed – Scary enough for Halloween.
26. The Scariest Story Ever – A Mickey Mouse Halloween Spooktacular – Short but okay.
27. Disney’s Trick or Treat – It was short but entertaining.
28. The School for Good and Evil – Surprisingly good. I hope they do a part 2.
29. Aftershock – You’ll never want to travel abroad again.

Argentine Walmart Stores Have Morphed Into ChangoMas! But What's Changed?

In late 2020, I mentioned on my blog that Walmart had sold their stores to a Latin American retail company called Grupo de Narvaez. I initially assumed that the Walmart I knew and loved was going to vanish from the face of Argentina forever.

It did not.

The supermarket chain morphed into ChangoMas. Relax! It’s not as exciting as it sounds. For starters, there were ChangoMas in Argentina long before Walmart was sold in 2020. The only thing ChangoMas did was incorporate all of the former Walmart stores into their business chain.

I couldn’t stop wondering how much had changed about the store. Unfortunately, the world was right smack in the middle of the pandemic, so I couldn’t check the store out until 2022.

The company retained Walmart’s signature blue color and yellow star symbol on their logo, but the name of the store had obviously changed.

I’ll admit that seeing the name changed to ChangoMas felt like a punch in the gut.

Once I recovered, I grabbed a cart and went to see if anything had changed on the inside. Surprisingly, the store’s layout had remained the same. 

ChangoMas doesn't use Walmart's "rollback prices" slogan, but they do claim to offer low prices. This is pretty ironic since the prices I saw were relatively the same as those in other Argentine markets.

As far as the products, you can forget about the international section. In retrospect, that section was gone years before the name change.

They do have one or two items you won’t generally find in Argentine supermarkets such as Philadelphia Cheese Spread and Ginger Ale.  

One thing that upset me was an exchange between an employee and a foreign customer. The customer had asked for an item that I assumed was specific to his country of origin. The employee, who was stocking shelves at the time, responded by shouting: “volvete a tu pais,” which translates to “go back to your country.” The statement was followed by expletive language and cheering by the employee’s fellow co-workers.

The customer was obviously upset, but when I approached him, he said he preferred to leave the store rather than complain. So, I took matters into my own hands and speak with the manager myself. Unfortunately, he was unavailable. But when they asked me why I wanted to see him, I explained what had happened.

The ChangoMas employee could have cared less about my complaint, and it showed.

Over the last ten years, people have shouted similar statements, so it was a bit of a trigger for me to hear these employees say what they did to that customer. It was even more infuriating knowing that no one cared.

Sadly, that’s Argentina for you.

Will I go back to ChangoMas? Maybe, but I’m definitely not going to the store where this incident happened. 

Here’s How Argentina’s Import Restrictions are Affecting Businesses

A couple of months back, a power surge damaged my PC, so I called the nearest electronic repair shop. That’s when I realized my problems were a lot bigger than I thought.

The company that I had taken my PC and other gadgets in for repair for nearly 10 years told me that they couldn’t help me anymore.

It’s not that they didn’t want to. It’s that they couldn’t. They claimed that there were import restrictions in Argentina making life impossible for business owners. As a result, they didn’t have the spare parts required to replace the damaged components in my PC.

These import restrictions were news to me! I've been to the mall. I've seen electronic stores selling flatscreen TVs and laptops. I had no idea there was a shortage in anything. 

So, I asked them if it was possible to order the parts from Buenos Aires, since they usually have more of everything. They clarified that the entire country was facing a shortage in electronic supplies and had no way of replenishing their stocks beyond their own borders.

I knew things had gotten pretty bad in Argentina, but I never imagined they had gotten this bad.  Regardless, I needed my PC repaired because of work and for entertainment purposes. So, I took my PC to another repair shop. The technician there claimed he could get my PC up and running.

I figured that as long as I was there that I would get him to upgrade my PC. Adding a DVD ROM, some extra RAM, a better processor and a video game card was on the top of my list. But that’s when the tech guy told me the same thing the other electronic repair shop had.

He said he tried ordering the parts online. He even attempted to order from Argentina’s neighboring country of Chile, but couldn’t get the parts delivered either.

As it turns out, spare parts for PCs aren’t the only thing these import restrictions are affecting.

The hubs and I have been trying to buy games for our Nintendo Switch. Since it’s a legit device and not the hacked bootleg versions sold in Argentine stores, the console requires a legit game cartridge. Argentine bootleg games won’t work on our device. So, we started looking everywhere for legit games, which they once had down here.

Nothing!

Again, I asked around and was told that they can’t get anything legit because of the import restrictions. Luckily, we can still buy the digital games from the Nintendo store. But it doesn’t end there.

An acquaintance of mine told me that mechanics in Argentina are having a tough time getting the necessary supplies to repair cars, especially parts for foreign vehicles.

I have no idea how this situation is going to pan out, but I’m hoping things will change for the better at some point. In the meantime, I’m keeping my fingers crossed that none of my other devices will blow a fuse. Otherwise, I might not be able to repair or replace them.

Here’s How Argentine Grocery Prices Look Like in 2022

It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that the world economy isn’t doing so hot, but some countries are faring better than others.

 

Sadly, Argentina is in pretty bad shape. With their inflation at an all time high, the country’s currency is virtually worthless beyond its borders. In fact, if you visit Barcelona, Spain, you’ll find that they sell Argentine pesos as souvenirs, once again proving that the inflation in Argentina has reached critical levels.

 

The Value of the USD in Argentine Pesos Over the Years

I wanted to share this updated list of what one USD is worth per Argentine pesos since we moved here in 2012.

• On December 31st, 2012, the cost of one US Dollar in Argentine pesos was: 4.90
• On December 31st, 2013, the cost of one US Dollar in Argentine pesos was: 6.51
• On July 29th, 2014, the cost of one US dollar in Argentine pesos was: 8.19
• On December 24th, 2015, the cost of one US Dollar in Argentine pesos was: 12.97
• On June 19th, 2016, the cost of one US Dollar in Argentine pesos was: 13.89
• On June 13th, 2017, the cost of one US Dollar in Argentine pesos was 15.90
• On September 26, 2017, the cost of one US Dollar in Argentine pesos was 17.90
• On May 13, 2019, the cost of one US Dollar in Argentine pesos was 45.52
• On September 26, 2019, the cost of one US Dollar in Argentine pesos is 57.17
• As of October 5, 2022, the cost of one US dollar in Argentine pesos is 148.50. 

The dollar blue as of October 5, 2022 is $285. If you’re not familiar with the term, it’s the price of the US dollar in the unofficial Argentine market. Most foreigners prefer using the dollar blue in their transactions because its price is higher than that of the official dollar.

 

Do you want to know why this is good news if you’re a tourist or an expat? Well, think about it. If you spend $10,000 Argentine pesos on a fancy meal for two, you’ll really be spending $67.31 USD. So, while an Argentine might balk when they look at their bill, a tourist with USD won’t bat an eyelash.

 

If you’re an expat or a potential expat, you’ll find that the cost of living is cheaper. Take my light bill, for instance. I was charged 3,600 Argentine pesos this month. AHHH!!! I know. But in reality, it’s about $24 USD. I remember my monthly light bill in New York being over $100 USD.

 

So, if you plan to live here and you have USD, you’ll be okay. If you’ve been relying strictly on a freelance salary paid for by Argentines, you might find yourself struggling financially.

 

It all depends on the kind of job you have. I recommend getting a job in information technology (IT) as these positions pay a lot (for Argentine standards, not US standards). You can even make over $100,000 Argentine pesos as a Quality Assurance Rep. That’s about 671 USD a month, which is PATHETIC, but semi-decent if you want to survive in Argentina long-term.

 

Now, during my ten-year stay in this country, I’ve been posting prices of a select number of grocery items on my blog to monitor the rising cost of items. So, here’s my short pricing comparison list for 2022. 

In 2013, a 330-gram Trix Cereal box was 26.75 Argentine Pesos.

In 2022, a 230-gram (THAT'S 100 grams less than the 2013 image) Trix Cereal box costs 652.49 Argentine pesos ($4.38 USD)

In 2013, a 500-gram box of Quaker Oatmeal cost 12.99 Argentine pesos. 

In 2022, a 280-gram box of Quaker Oatmeal (That's 220g's less than the 2013 image), costs 209.99 Argentine pesos ($1.41 USD)

If you're wondering why I didn't just take a photo of a 500-gram box in 2022, it's because I couldn't find one at the store. But if the price of the 280-gram box is this high, imagine how much a 500-gram box is in 2022.

In 2013, a 1-liter bottle of Heineken was worth 21.85 Argentine pesos.

In 2022, a 1-liter bottle of Heineken is 422.99 Argentine pesos ($2.84 USD)

In 2013, a 475-gram package of Hellmann's Mayonnaise cost 10.59 Argentine pesos.

In 2022, a 475-gram package of Hellmann's Mayonnaise costs 209.49 Argentine pesos ($1.41 USD)

In 2013, a 150g bag of Doritos cost 20.19 Argentine pesos.

In 2022, a 140-gram bag of Doritos (which is 10 grams less than the 2013 photo) costs 425.99 Argentine pesos ($2.86 USD)

In 2013, a 118-gram roll of Oreos was $5.49 Argentine Pesos.

In 2022, a 118g roll of Oreos is 204.99 Argentine pesos ($1.38 USD).

In 2019, (Sorry! I didn't have a price for 2013) a 1.5 liter bottle of Pepsi was 54 Argentine pesos.

In 2022, a 1.5-liter bottle of Pepsi is 174.95 Argentine pesos ($1.17 USD)

And last but not least!

In 2013, a baby stroller cost anywhere from 1,000 to 3,000 Argentinian pesos, depending on the quality. (Sorry! I couldn't find the photo I took from 2013)

In 2022, this baby stroller costs 16,459 Argentine pesos ($110.54 USD) (though prices will vary by quality and brand name).