Día de los Muertos in Cancun

Day of the Dead is known for its bright colors, sugar skulls, and some pretty incredible face painting. I’ve heard people often refer to it as “Mexican Halloween” but let me tell you it’s far different. While we run around on Halloween dressed as ghosts, telling horror stories, and collecting candies, another group of people are getting ready to welcome guests from beyond the grave.

Photo courtesy of Puelosmexico.com.mx

I never knew that Día de los Muertos is actually 2-3 days long.  Many family and friends head out after dark on October 31st for a vigil at their cemetery.  November 1st is dedicated to remembering children and is known as “Día de los Angelitos” while November 2nd is to remember the adults, “Día de los Difuntos”.

Photo courtesy of Pinterest

Did you know that there is a specific flower and even specific food dedicated to this holiday? Marigolds are the official flower of Día de los Muertos and it is said to attract the souls.  You’ll often here “Ya huele a muertos” which means it’s starting to smell like death because the flowers are placed almost everywhere. Dead bread, or Pan de Muerto, is a rich sweet bread with “bones” crossed over the top, a hint of citrus, and is covered in sugar.  And while it’s the official food of the celebration it also shared with the spirits and typically placed on altars.

Photo courtesy of Festival Vida Y Muerte

The one thing I have really taken away from this holiday is that it really is a celebration.  A celebration of life and death.  The guests from beyond the grave aren’t scary, they are our loved ones who walk amongst us again as we remember them fondly with stories and celebrate the lives that they lived.

Photo courtesy of grupoexperienciasxcaret.com

The best place to celebrate Día de los Muertos, in our opinion, is Xcaret Park.  Each year they have Festival Vida Y Muerte.  For 4 days this park transforms at night and comes alive.  Walking through the park and taking part in everything it has to offer is like being a part of something bigger, it is like a rhythm, a pulse if you will, that you become a part of.

Have you ever celebrated Día de los Muertos before?  What traditions do you have? Share with us in the comments below!

Esquites, Salbutes, and Tacos! Oh My!

One of the best things about going to a new place is getting to try new food and finding new favorites that you never even knew existed.  I remember I couldn’t wait to move here and eat fresh fish tacos on the beach and listen to the waves.  I didn’t really realize that there would be a whole new world of food for me to fall in love with.

Local food

Panuchos from El Faisan Y El Venado (one of the best places for Panuchos de Cochinita Pibil)

Salbutes, Panuchos, and Cochinita Pibil, these are some the most important words in my vocabulary right now.  The Yucatán Peninsula, where Cancun is located, is filled with rich culture complete with delicious food. Salbutes are my current favorite and I’m always trying to find a way to eat them as often as possible.  Masa is fried then topped with your choice of meat, Oaxaca cheese, hard boiled eggs and then you can add all the toppings and salsas you like.  Panuchos are essentially the same thing but the masa is filled with refried beans before fried.  Cochinita Pibil is pork that has been seasoned with achiote and other seasonings before being wrapped in a banana leaf and cooked underground. The meat is so tender it falls apart easily after it’s cooked and is usually eaten with pickled red onions, rice, and refried beans. Yum!

Street food

My first time trying an elote

The night time atmosphere here is unlike anything I have ever seen before.  There is always a smell of food in the air and people out and about, even families.  Being out at night is still one of my favorite things to do here.  Night time snacks include a variety of savory and sweet foods all easily edible on the go.  Esquites and elotes can be found all over town.  Corn on the cob (elote) or cut off the cob (esquites) are covered with a combination of lime juice, mayonaise, cheese, and chile. Marquesitas are another favorite for adults and kids alike.  Think of a crepe that has been cooked until crispy then filled with either Nutella, fruit, cheese, jam, or many more options. Raspados are another popular favorite in our family and perfect for a hot day in Cancun.  Shaved ice is topped with sweet flavored syrups or something spicier such as chamoy, a chile syrup popularly used on fruits, in beers, and of course, on food.

Tacos

Photo courtesy of Máspormás

How could we talk about food and not talk about tacos?! Al Pastor, chorizo con papa, carne, tinga, chuleta, suadero, tripa, cecina, chorizo, de guisado, de canasta, and even “gringas”. Tacos can be found at all hours of the night on most corners around town.  They can be made on the spot fresh with soft corn tortillas, previously made and stored in a basket (canasta) or with cheese on a flour tortilla (gringa).  You can choose from many fillings, toppings, and salsas but a good rule of thumb is: Go where the locals go and eat what the locals eat.

We are always discovering new food, new places to try new food, and new things about the foods we already love.  We even recently realized that many types of food here are essentially exactly the same (except for their shape) and have totally different names. Clearly we didn’t mention all of the wonderful food that Mexico, and Cancun have to offer. Do you have any favorites that we missed?  Share with us in the comments!

Adjusting to my Cancun Life

When I moved to a different country I knew that it would take a while to adapt. I knew that there would be many differences that I would encounter. However, I never really thought I would actually enjoy many of them as much as I do.

Photo courtesy of sipse.com

Some of the things that I have seen or experienced here are intriguing to me. Living back home, I absolutely hated to do my laundry. I would wait until everything I owned was dirty and truly had to be done. I always had to do it on a day off because of how much time it took. Here, I have not done one piece of laundry and couldn’t be happier about it. The lavanderias have you drop off your clothes, and they will wash, dry and FOLD all of it for you at a much cheaper price than I was paying at a laundry mat to do my own dirty work.

Photo: riviera-maya-news.com

Pumping gas always made me feel uneasy. There is always someone watching you at the pump, or the attendant is yelling at you because he thinks you won’t get off your phone before you start to pump gas. Here, I can sit in the comfort of my own car and have someone pump it for me AND wash the windows.

I hate parking, trying to find a spot, and parallel parking by myself. Here, it’s not as much of a problem. Men with whistles and towels will show you where all of the available parking spots are and will also help you while you parallel park. This next one is rare, and I have only experienced it once, but after we parked at a restaurant for lunch, the gentleman asked if he could wash our car… inside and out, while we ate. This to me was too much: were we the 1,000th customer that was receiving a car wash as some sort of prize while we had lunch?? It was so nice to know that after lunch we had one less errand to run because of this service. Similarly, these men will also cover your car for you while you go in somewhere to shop or eat. After leaving Market 28 one day, I noticed that someone had placed a huge piece of cardboard on our car and my first thought was, “Um…. someone left their garbage on our car,” but I was of course wrong, as a man walked over to remove it and then helped stop traffic to get us out of our spot.

Photo: anodeforthecamotetruck.blogspot.com

As great as it is going out and having these things done for you, I couldn’t imagine all of the services that would be offered right at my door! The first time I saw something like this, it was a man selling coconuts, riding on a cart up and down our street, The next time, it was an ice cream man, and after that, a man selling sweet potatoes that were being cooked on a wood-burning stove that he was carrying on his cart. I started asking questions about how we were supposed to know who did what. Some of them clap or ring a bell, while others will yell out what they are selling, but each has a specific noise that coincides with what they are offering (all of which is common knowledge to locals). Water will be delivered to your door, and they will take away the empty five-gallon container; a shoe-repair man will fix any shoe; a man will sharpen all of your knives; and the list goes on. I noticed that there are so many more jobs here and that almost everything is done for you (of course, all come at a cost, and usually, most of the services require at least a tip).

Photo: wixoo.fr

The culture here is so rich and deep in customs too. We were eating lunch one day when a family from a table next to us got up to leave and said, “Provecho,” to which my boyfriend replied, “Gracias.” I felt so bad that I didn’t introduce myself, since obviously he had known them, or so I thought. Brian told me that it is customary to tell other diners as you are leaving a restaurant to enjoy their meal. Another thing I didn’t understand was that Brian would call women “Madre” when they were clearly not his mother. This is another deeply rooted sign of respect.

Photo: youtube

Lastly, to conclude each day, and this segment, the Mexican national anthem is played each night at 12:00 and every morning at 6:00 am, followed by the Mayan national anthem (only here in Cancun is the Mayan national anthem played). Overall, I have enjoyed experiencing these events and learning about the culture and customs. I never expected to fall so deeply in love with another country that as far as I have seen, has accepted me with such open arms.

A Letter From Mexico

After living here for a few months I wrote a letter home to my mom that I recently re-discovered.  Reading it again reminded me how amazed I was by everything that I experienced and everyone that I met.  It’s pretty clear that I was loving my new life and discovering all of the amazing things that my new country had to offer. Missing home and family is a big part of moving away but so is experiencing new things and learning to love life in a whole new way.

Here it is.
I had the most amazing day today! So we went to the beach today and had an amazing time just playing in the water with all the kids on the beach and pretty much anyone else because Canelo (our Boxer puppy) was so cute. We had the best time at the beach. We were in the shade and had mango with chile and beers… it was perfect. And it rained! So then we came home and showered and got ready for dinner at the famous ‘divers’ house. Brian (my husband) has told me a lot about him and the fish that he cooks. I didn’t really know what to expect…

Canelo chasing me at the beach

We got to his house and he has 2 dogs, 2 cats, a turkey, a rooster, a ton of chickens, a parrot, and a Coati which is like a raccoon and a monkey and a cat all mixed together! He has a coconut tree and a banana tree. Their bathroom and shower are outside as well as their sink. And!! He has Conches everywhere! They are huge. And turtle eggs!!!! Oh my gosh mom I can’t even tell you how amazing it was.

I never got a picture of their pet Coati but here are some that we got to see at Xel Ha

He made some amazing salsa one the spot mostly using stuff from his potted plants. Have you ever seen those commercials for XX beer with the most interesting man in the world?? Well news flash! It’s not the man in the commercials.. it’s Carlos!!! Mom, it was so crazy and so much to take in all at once.

The most interesting man in the world (in the yellow hat)

When we walked in he was deep frying fish in some deep fryer that I’ve never seen before. The fishes were all different and he had caught all of them this morning 🙂 He had some marinade on them and then fried them…. Best.Fish.Ever. Super crispy and sticky and hot and fresh and umm I don’t eve know how to tell you. The whole time I was just wishing I had a video camera so that I could show you all of this so you could experience it (this message will not do it justice!) So we had amazing fish and they had huge teeth!! Like human teeth. (I’ll send you pictures)

These were some of the fish that he had grilled

Brian was so happy that I liked the fish (I don’t care for fish or Seafood)  Adriana made guacamole and Carlos and his wife Sofi made 2 salsas, one spicy and one like a pico de gallo but better with avocado. Then we had meat, I think it was like steak of some sort I don’t know the name in English. He cooked it on cinder blocks.. It was amazing also! He marinaded it with a bunch of stuff and tasted it before he grilled it, he decided it was missing something and added orange soda! What?? Amazing!

Brian getting ready to eat fried lobster tail

Yum!

I wish that you could experience all of this mom. His wife is probably the nicest woman I have ever met. You can just feel her energy. She is so sweet with such a big heart. Brian described them as people who may not have much but will still give you everything that they have. We ate tacos, drank beer, and laughed at everything but especially the fact that Chris somehow split his pants down the back and Adriana told their daughter, Xiomara, that he farted and thats why they broke and she believed him. At the end Carlos let Xiomara and her cousin Nico pick out Conches and take them home. Xiomara was crying and tired so Carlos pulled out some shells that you only find at the bottom of the ocean and fixed everything.. and then! (as if things couldn’t get any better) he pulls out another one and gives it to me! I’m tan, I’m full, I’m amazed and I’m so happy I could cry. I miss you but I had to tell you everything while it was still fresh in my mind! I love you so much and will call you tomorrow.

JJ

When my mom and brother came to visit I took them to Carlos and Sofi’s house and we had just as much fun, maybe even more, than the first time I went there. Here’s the proof!

Cultural Bloopers

Expat life and learning a second language means that “lost in translation” can be a nearly every day experience. Between us we have built up a pretty solid linguistic blooper collection and we thought you might get a laugh out of a few of them!

Hello! Goodbye!

Me and a fellow concierge, back in the day!

Before kids I used to work as a concierge in a resort. During the summer the resort was packed to the gills with Mexican families. Part of my job was to call each villa in the morning and check in. My first query was always “Como estan?” (How are you?) to which 9 times out of 10 the Mexican on the other end would reply “Muy bien, gracias, adios” (Very well, thank you, goodbye or was least that’s what I heard). Naturally I would apologize profusely for interrupting and hang up. A week into Mexican season a guest complained about their flighty concierge who didn’t stay on the phone long enough to take a reservation. That’s when I found out that they were actually saying “Gracias, a dios” (Thank  God, not goodbye). I still haven’t lived it down.

 

The Sister Bowl

Photo by: 1stdibs.com

While on holiday in Spain and well before I had a clue about Spanish, a friend and I explored a local market. My friend spotted a painted bowl and wanted to know if the paint contained lead. In broken Spanish she asked the merchant if the bowl was microwavable. The merchant looked puzzled and to fill the gap of confused silence my friend began to praise the bowl. Trouble was, she confused hermosa (beautiful) with hermana (sister). She repeatedly told the merchant “What a sister bowl! Sister, sister, so many sister colours… Does the sister microwave??” Imagine our horror an hour later when, “sister bowl” in hand, we realized her mistake.

 

The “Sugar”

Photo: tbo.com

One night in my apartment with nothing better to do I decided to attempt homemade marinara sauce.   I had bought all of the ingredients assuming that my boyfriend had simple necessities such as salt, pepper, etc. at home.  I was so proud of myself for turning into such a housewife and making something from scratch.  I decided that the sauce needed some sugar and found a bag that had a substance that looked like sugar.  As I added it to the sauce it started to thicken.  As I continued to taste it and add more water it was thickening even more and eventually took on the consistency of jello.  When my boyfriend came home he was able to tell me that the bag of “sugar” was actually laxatives.  The next few days I spent a lot of time in our bathroom.

Nice to meet you

Photo by: lifehack.org

I had a friend staying with me from back home and wanted her to meet all of my new friends and “Cancun family”.  I told her that each time she meets someone she should say “mucho gusto” (nice to meet you).  I was so proud of her until I realized that after seeing the same friends multiple times she was still saying “mucho gusto” to which they would look very confused since they had already met her.  I decided to spare her the embarrassment and tell her what she had said after she got back home.  Maybe I should have said it sooner but it was quite entertaining.

Stay tuned because we aren’t out of the woods yet! Nothing is for certain but I would say more “oops” moments like these are in our future. What are your lost in translation tales? Tell us in the comments!

5 Reasons Not to Visit Cancun

Many people travel to Cancun, Mexico each year. While it may seem like a great place to take a vacation we are here to give you some reasons that will convince you to never come here, ever.

5. There are beaches everywhere

Tulum

Cozumel

Holbox

Akumal

Looking to have a nice family vacation? Good luck trying to stay away from the white sand beaches with pristine turquoise waters of the Mexican Caribbean.  The whole family will be so busy playing in the sand, jumping in the waves, and soaking up the sun that you won’t have anytime to just sit quietly as a family and stare at each other like you do back home. Plus our kids always get so warn out from the beach that they sleep really well all night and who needs that?

4. It’s always sunny

A cold beer to beat the heat

Who needs to go on a warm and sunny family vacation? The weather in Cancun will force you to be outside everyday and do something fun that you’ll enjoy.  Whether it’s visiting the famous parks in the Riviera Maya or just swimming at the pool, it’s impossible to get away from the sun and the fun.  We face this problem on a daily basis and let us tell you that it’s not easy always having fun.

3. There’s too much to do

Snorkelling underground at Xcaret

Beach, swimming, zip lining, snorkeling, scuba diving, sun bathing, visiting an adventure park, spending the day on a yacht, visiting an Island, shopping, trying new foods, swimming in cenotes, kayaking, riding on a hobie cat, paddle boarding, HOW CAN ONE DECIDE??

2. You will eat some of the best food of your life

Torta de milenesa

This may not seem like a problem until you return back home and find yourself craving fresh fish tacos on the beach with ceviche and a cold Mexican beer.  Cancun can ruin your palate and make you realize just how much you wish you lived here.  This is a problem even for us.  We still eat at home most of the time but crave the occasional night out with fresh seafood, steak, tacos, or tortas.

1. No other vacation will compare

Simply paradise

All other family vacations may fail in comparison which means that you’ll just have to come back for every summer vacation; Or just never return home and stay in Cancun forever.

We may be a bit biased but we’re pretty sure that what we call home will make for the best family vacation that you could ever have.  If you are looking for suggestions on what to do during your Cancun vacation then leave us a comment below and we’ll do our best to steer you in the right direction!

A Taste of Home

When I moved here 3 and a half years ago I was so excited to see and try everything that I didn’t miss much from back home.  Except the food.  I could dream about a #2 animal style with animal style fries from In N Out for a few good hours or even how many things I could finish from Taco Bell in one sitting.  That being said there is one thing that I miss that can only be found in one spot of my home town. Orange Sauce.

Pizza, hamburgers, quesadillas, burritos, pretty much anything could be made infinitely better by adding this spicy sauce to it.  I’ve only been back to California once since moving here and wasn’t able to fit the beloved sauce into my trip *gasp*. Then my brother sent me a copy cat recipe a few months ago and I’ve been dying to make it since I got it.

Once I got all the ingredients it was time to put on some good music, dance to keep Chamaca entertained, and start cooking!

I began by browning/charring the tomatoes and onion in one pan until they looked like this.

And then slowly browning chiles and garlic over hot oil in another pan.

Then I added water and apple cider vinegar to a blender along with the chiles and garlic and let it sit.  Then blend away!

Finally I added the tomato, onion, salt, and the rest of the oil required and blended until smooth.

I won’t lie, I was so excited to eat this sauce that I made something special for dinner just so I could put the sauce all over it.  (Photo not shown because I was so excited to eat my creation!)

While it’s not exactly the same, it’s really close and I’ve pretty much eaten it everyday since making it. You can find the link to the recipe here.

Do you have any foods that you can’t live without? Share them with us in the comments.

How to Beat the Heat

Cancun is a beautiful tropical paradise with over 200 sunny days a year. And while summer may just be a season back home, it’s our year round life here.  Add in the humidity and things start to get sticky, literally.  Since we have 2 small children in such a warm climate  year round we want to share our tricks on how to beat the heat during your summer.

Snacks

Photo: onlyglutenfreerecipes.com

Waking up from a nap covered in sweat is the perfect way to ruin a nice afternoon. I’ve found that freezing some fruits is a great way to cool Chamaca down and also gives her a nice boost of sugar that puts her in a good mood for a few hours. I love freezing grapes, cubed mango, frozen berries, and even corn or peas.
Moms note: frozen green grapes work great to chill a white wine.

Freeze it!

I found some really great ice packs for kids and cheap teethers at the dollar store in the states that I always keep in the freezer.  They are fun to play with and can be gnawed on to help cool down an overheated toddler.  Our neighbor even asked to take an ice pack home one time to play with and brought it to the pool the next day!

Get the hose

Let kids be kids.  Chamaco loves coming over to our house for playdates and just walking around with the hose while it’s on and watering everything in sight.  My dog is not a fan but my grass always looks better the next day.

Water Table

These seem to be pretty popular this year and I didn’t know why until I had one.  It’s interactive, teaches kids how water works, and is fun for hours. They have plenty of different models for you to choose from and are super easy to empty.

Staples

We of course can’t forget to take the kids to the beach and pool and let them cool off and play to their hearts content. Everyone always has a great time and the kids sleep like logs that night.  We are so lucky to have plenty of beaches and pools to choose from that are close by; If you don’t have one you can always invest in a kiddie pool for the yard with plenty of pool toys to keep them busy.

Hopefully your summer is full of fun memories and not meltdowns. Do you have any secret tips that we don’t know about? Tell us all about them in the comments!

Top tips for traveling with kids

Life is a journey and parents of young children know that journey is more about damage control than the destination. Fortunately Jessica and I are able to make frequent trips home and are not only travel veterans but professionals. Due to our husbands work schedules we usually travel as just mom and baby, which can cause major mishaps. Together we’ve come up with our top 10 travel tips in hopes that others will fare better than we have in the past.

1. Looking cute in yoga pants or sweats is totally doable. 

Ok, I don’t want to be crude but let’s be realistic, airplane bathrooms are gross and with a toddler who touches  everythiiiing they’re worse. To make those bathroom breaks lightening fast, and doable with one hand (because if yours is anything like my chamaco they’re probably trying to open  the door) then be sure to avoid:

• any clothing that needs finicky buttoning
• zippers
• anything that needs adjusting.

Easy on,easy off and vamanos (you need to catch that kid who is already halfway down the aisle).

Photo by: themermaidinstilettos.com

2. Cinderella is a fun fairy tale but hunting for a lost shoe in an airport is NOT
A dear friend gave me this piece of advice and I think it is one of the best I have ever heard. Rushing to make a tight connection in a big airport she looked down and  realized that her daughter only had one shoe! She had to retrace her steps  through a busy airport and then bolt to make her flight (both glass slippers in tow) Lesson learned: be sure shoes and all accessories, are securely fastened  before continuing  your journey!

Hanging out at the gate, note the velco shoes!

3. You’re going to make a mess (and that’s ok!)

Photo: dailymail.co.uk

 

We know that kids and mess go hand in hand. You will make extra brownie points with the stewards and your seatmate if you try to keep that mess under wraps.

• bring along an old grocery bag or  two to clean up old snacks or dirty clothes.
• use disposable containers for any snack food.  Note: keep in mind that that  as your belongings become unravelled enroute you’ll be freeing up space in your bag

4. Sharing is caring! You’ll need two pens.

Photo: seeknewtravel.com

 

I learned this during the airline version of the Hunger Games last Easter while trying to fill out immigration forms next to a demanding toddler.  I made Chamaco his own ink free pen (shhhh, he doesn’t know!) that looks like mine. Now he can scratch away at a piece of paper, the back of the seat, his pants for all I care!  I am free to fill out  those picky forms.

5. Toys with multiparts? Not unless you want to get reeeally cozy with your seat mate.

Photo: thetomatos.com

 

Last Christmas I made the fatal mistake of bringing a Mr Potato Head with us.  Fantasies of constructing new faces and stretching my child’s creativity quickly  crumbled as Mr Potato’s ear was hurled into the back of 9A’s head…. Somewhere over Ohio I was pawing through the 11B’s carry-on hunting for the hat while the Chamaco sprayed apple juice at my (saint-like) seatmate. Lesson learned: if it comes apart, forget it. If you can’t afford to loose it,  leave it at home. And lastly if it hurts when  thrown, don’t bring it.

6.Ooooh, shiny! New toys are a game changer

Speaking of toys, new (compact, unbreakable) toys will be a godsend when travelling. I  find that the new toys Chamaco takes a liking to are ones that are closely related to what  he is playing with at the moment. The golden rule: don’t show your cards too soon. Wait until an almost meltdown or at least midflight to reveal this little tactic. 

Getting bored!!

7. Crafts are fun, clean up is not.

Photo: Blitsy Crafts

 

One thing I love to do with Chamaco is drawing. It keeps him still and helps him relax. One thing I despise is clean up. Luckily those toy geniuses have  solved the problem for us. Chamaco has 2 things we always travel with.

• The first is a Mess Free Activity Pad (pictured) which is basically a layer of gel against a light up background that also plays music. You and yours can doodle to your hearts’ content without risking unsolicited redecoration of your seatback.
• The second is a Water Wow by Melissa and Doug. This is a small colouring book that  comes with a paint brush (don’t recoil! I promise, it is parent friendly). All you need to do is fill the paint brush with water and hand it over. As your child dampens the page colour will appear  along with unseen details! Even for me it is mesmerizing.

8.Ice, ice baby! Layer layer layer

Sometimes planes are cold, sometimes planes are hot. Best to be prepared for anything. Bonus points if your layers are easily compactable and don’t take up a lot of room in your carryon. Those layers can also become helpful between that dirty airplane seat and your baby’s face if they nap midflight. 

Nap time!

Thank goodness for blankets

9.Snacks upon snacks upon snacks.

Photo: travelsort.com

 

Airpoint/airplane food is expensive, unhealthy, and full of fat and sugar. Set yourself up for success and bring along healthy snacks from home. Plus,  when your kid upends that bowl of cheerios onto the floor you won’t be out $8-10. My favourite snacks for the Chamaco are cheerios, corn, dried fruit and  homemade sandwiches. Avoid bringing sticky or bulky items and juice.  If I need to deal with a  spill (and chances are I will) I way rather water.

10. Don’t forget, almost everyone on the plane has gone through what you’re going through, or they wish they had. 

My second flight with Chamaco was on the heels of our first one (which was 6 hours long). He was 6 months old and  we were exhausted. It was late, it was dark and he had a meltdown on a packed, delayed plane. I tried hush him while near tears myself. A  passenger told me, “Look, most of the people here are parents. We’ve all been there, we get it. Don’t worry and just do what you can. It’s ok.”

The best part is always the snuggle time

Lesson learned: Probably you’re the only one freaking out. It is ok if at some point you’re a mess because we have all been there. Remember, you’re doing a great job and you’ll laugh later. But hey, misery loves company so if you have a truly toe curling story and remedying tip leave it in the comments! Bon voyage!