Jean's health and other happenings

Hola a todos. Espero que esto los encuentre a todos en el rosa como siempre..............

Well, for those of you who we have not emailed previously about Jean's brush with a serious health issue, we apologise, but the gory details are all on the website - www.tiaretaporo3.blogspot.com - should you be so inclined!

Suffice it to say that after our arrival at the Sura A&E at Clinica Las Vegas on the 13/02 when her blood oxygen level was down to 49%SpO2 (normal level is near 100%), she has bounced back and is almost back to her old self, thanks to the staff at Sura and the home visits from nurses and doctors and the provision of oxygen in our apartment which she now only uses when asleep. She still has a pain/discomfort in her lower chest which she has had for the last 30 years or so and she has an appointment for a CT Scan on March 9th. and then an appointment with a Pneumologist specialist on the 24th. We are hopeful that at long last we may finally discover the cause of the pain and hopefully can do something about it. But it's all on an upward path at the moment. This situation was a result of the Pneumonia which we discovered in Miami in November last year, but that may have been a development of a  long-standing infection from some time before that. At least it's not Novel Coronavirus - touch wood!! Perry suggested that Jean has been the world-wide carrier and promulgator of the virus - probably for the last 20 years!!

Apart from that, life has been fairly quiet!! 

However, we have been becoming concerned of late at the level of vehicle pollution here in the city. This is a seasonal thing but the last 3 months or so has been particularly bad with fairly dry weather. And with Jean's susceptibility to respiratory complications, we feel the time has come to do something about it. Accordingly we are getting serious about investigating living at a higher altitude on the eastern outskirts of the city. Admittedly it's a trade-off because of the lower oxygen at a higher altitude, but the doctor has said that there really is no material difference between 5,000 feet (where we are now) and another 1,000 feet somewhere within 20 kms or so of the international airport. There are a number of beautiful locations up there - El Retiro, La Ceja, Llanogrande, and Rio Negro to name just a few. It rains more ( the country is lush and green) and of course the pollution is noticeably less. And it's cooler. The air always feels fresher by far. But another trade-off could be the occasional necessity for some heating, although we are using a fan at night now, and we would not need to continue with that. So, we are putting our apartment in Envigado on the market which will be a bit of a wrench as we have always enjoyed living here with the friends we have made and the surroundings generally. Still, it is a long-term decision which may take months to implement, but we are looking at the rest of our lives and of course any time we need a city fix, we can drive the hour or so into town. And there are all facilities up the hill - great hospital, supermarkets, etc. etc. And friends survive the separation. 

The city authorities are well aware of the pollution issues in Medellin, situated as it is in a deep valley, and to that end they have a system of "Pico y Placa" which means that for 2 days a week you cannot use a motor vehicle between the hours of 0700 to 0830 and 1700 to 1930. It depends on the final digit of your number plate. Ours is 8 so that means Monday and Wednesday are our restrictive days at present. This measure is however, only of very limited effect, but we suppose it is better than nothing. However, the hours have just recently been extended which creates further inconvenience - up the hill is starting to sound better and better.

We are still looking forward to the rainy season which is supposed to start about now, but not much rain of any note so far. The rain does suppress the pollution.

The other issue which we are grappling with is the fact that the steering rack in the car either needs replacing or re-building. The car is quite safe and driveable in the meantime.  At only 74,000 kms this is an unwelcome surprise, but many of the roads around Medellin are sub standard inasmuch as there are many potholes and manhole covers which are for the most part 10-20 mm below the road surface and all these produce some jarring bumps. One tries to avoid them but with the traffic that's not always possible. One of the motor garages we have spoken to said that steering rack issues are not uncommon due to the road conditions - and not just with Mercedes Benz! The MB agents here quoted us a price of 12 million Pesos which is about one third of the price of the car (!), which is ridiculous, so we investigated a MB parts supplier in Miami who quoted us USD665 which is COP 2.4 miilion and much more reasonable. However, before we could verify the part number beyond doubt, it had sold and there are no others from that source. That was disappointing. However, we have 2 repair shops in Medellin which have been recommended to us and we are looking at re-building the original at somewhere less than 2 million pesos.. Problem is that nothing these days is designed to be dismantled and re-conditioned as was the case in days of yore. The whole part connects both front wheels and is 1.5 metres long and most of it is all ok, but they just want you to throw the whole thing away and pay through the nose. Not us with our Scottish ancestry!!!

POLITICS!!! -

Nigel Farage deserves a knighthood because entirely due to his efforts over years, the UK is finally out of the clutches of the EU - almost. However, the final implementation of the Withdrawal Agreement looks like being bogged down indefinitely by the determined and bureaucratic machinations of the EU hierarchy who will do their utmost to cause unreasonable delays and ultimately try to scupper the UK's withdrawal. Same tactics they employed before with Theresa May. There are 10 more months to go before the withdrawal deadline of the end of 2020, but we feel sure that with the intractable and obstructive negotiating positions of the EU, the more determined (and majority) Johnson Government will in the end realise that nothing will happen and they will just leave with No Deal on WTO terms. Exactly what should have happened nearly 4 years ago. An example of the EU's intractability is their insistence that nothing should change as far as fishing in UK waters is concerned. It's obvious that that would constitute a serious breach of UK sovereignty and the Royal Navy would find itself busy with stop and seize operations. One way to build up the UK fishing fleet again after its virtual destruction from years of unfettered foreign fishing!! The EU will finish up shooting itself in the foot. Couldn't happen to nicer people!!!

In the US the primaries for various states are underway and we have the spectre of the rabid Socialist, Bernie Sanders, doing relatively well in the earlier contests. However, the Democrat Party must realise that he is unelectable against President Trump and they will be pulling out all the stops to prevent him (again) from becoming the Democrat Presidential Nominee. Still, the hopeful Democrat would-be nominees are so uninspiring with their unintelligent outlandish policies, that President Trump looks like a shoe-in, but we cannot be complacent. Forget about whether you like the man or not; he is doing an excellent job and keeps his promises. If he is not re-elected it would be an absolute disaster for  America and the free world.

Coronavirus - it is impossible at this stage to know just how serious a threat to the world it is. American markets have jumped today (02/03) by 3.5% to 4.0% which is a healthy recovery, but there's still about 8% to go to get back to pre virus levels. There have been a number of deaths but the vast majority in China. President Trump has acted decisively in closing US borders to travellers from Iran and Italy - the 2 worst affected countries apart from China itself.

In fact he started taking action back in January when all the Democrats could do was continue their disgraceful impeachment efforts. Even now when the President takes further action, he is criticised. Instead of that, the Democrats should be joining together to fight this serious external threat in a non partisan cooperative manner, but it's obvious that they have no concern for America or its people's welfare short or long term, and are only interested in bringing down President Trump by whatever means - fair or foul. Trump Derangement Syndrome. Perry, Jean's son, reckons that she has been spreading Coronavirus around for years - and now all the chickens are coming home to roost!!

Officially there is no Coronavirus in Colombia - only one case in Brazil. And certainly no empty supermarket shelves anywhere. But we'll see as time progresses. As far as Colombian politics goes - the country bumbles along as usual. The UN officially declared that Colombia was corrupt - surprise, surprise - and had not followed the UN brokered peace process. The President (Duque) said it was an "unwarranted invasion of Colombia's sovereignty"!! His popularity continues to slide and is now in the low 30% area. In the meantime all the economic indicators are reasonable - 3% inflation but stagnant or declining exports. So sad, this country has so many opportunities now that China has lost favour everywhere, but it seems to be in the grip of paralysis. Still, at least the investment climate seems stable and returns are way better than one can get in most "western" countries. And the COP/NZD cross rate is stable. Both country's exchange rates are in decline in tandem!!  

This leads us to our final observation. We strongly believe that the Chinese have deliberately released this virus - probably as early as December last year - in order to firstly mortally damage Trump's administration and secondly in the hope that it will bring America to her knees. They cannot accept or stomach another 4 years of a Trump Administration due to the hard-line America First policies undertaken against the Chinese to stop them from stealing US intellectual property and undermining the whole US economy. 

But we can hear the protests - "they would never allow a number of their own people to die". RUBBISH!! Mao Tse-tung is credited (if that's the right word) with causing directly and indirectly the deaths of 70 MILLION of his own people during his brutal regime. Good luck to the Socialists/Communists!! And the Chinese are at it again with the Moslem Uighur people. Companies such as Nike are using Uighur slave labour in China right now. And they aren't the only ones.

The Chinese Communist Party has absolutely no scruples or concern for anyone's welfare except their own and the inexorable advance of the Party's interests. NZ and Australia would do very well to remember this in their on-going trade relationships with China.

One good thing that will probably come out of this debacle is that US and European companies, facing sudden unacceptable and protracted delays to their supply chains, which in most cases originate in China, will be re-thinking the risk profile in being so reliant on China and will be bringing even more jobs and operations back to the US and to a lesser extent, Europe. Even with the certain consequence of increased costs. At least, thanks again to Trump, the US is now self-sufficient in oil. 

Make no mistake - we are AT WAR WITH CHINA and that war has just become more vicious and protracted with the release of this latest Coronavirus. New Zealand and other countries need to realise this and actively pursue alternative FTA's with the USA, the U.K. and Europe. NZ is in for a rough ride. It may not be a shooting war - yet - but a war nonetheless. The only concern following from that is if China is pushed too far a shooting war will result a la Japan in the 1930's when they were starved of raw materials. There is nothing new under the sun, but none of this is any reason to soft-pedal on China.

When we were living in Malaysia/Thailand on "Tiare Taporo III" for 4 years, we often wondered why China seemed to get away scot-free with building their military bases in the South China Sea on islands which they had stolen at the point of a gun from Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Cambodia.. Now it is obvious. The office of the totally corrupt US Vice President under Barack Obama - Joe Biden -  was allowing this in return for the billions paid to his son and himself in their corrupt business relationships with China. The VP's office was bought lock, stock and barrel by China and so allowed the military expansion with no questions asked. The Democrats are traitorous lying crooks and for anyone to contemplate voting for them is beyond our comprehension.  

With that last broadside, we trust that all is well in your necks of the woods and we look forward to your wise words in reply and with your latest news.

With lotsaluv from us in Medellin........................

Jim and Jean xoxoxoxooxoxoxx