Another week another fucking adventure. This time it’s much more of a misadventure. Tijuana is where I have resided for the past 2 years. Previous to that I lived in Los Angeles and before that Toronto (and before that a whole lot of other places). Tijuana bar none is the most difficult place I have ever lived in my life. Today we’re going to talk about why and…
1. How to deal with water scarcity
2. How to live for 4 days without water
3. 4 positives to living in Tijuana & 4 negatives
Let’s start with the positives before I rip this city to shreds shall we? I did move here for a reason and on my own accord. There are still reasons why I chose to still live here now. For now but not forever.
4 Positives to Living in Tijuana
1. Organic meat is cheap
2. Designer clothes shopping is ridiculously cheap here (It’s why I started this blog!)
3. The proximity to the USA border is very efficient for international travel
4. The housing prices are much more affordable than that of the USA & Canada
The reason why I do the “Style Breakdown” on every outfit I wear is to show people that you don’t have to spend top dollar to look like a million. It all comes down the the quality of clothes you pick and how you put it together with your own personal style. You can see some of my top picks from last week’s fashion haul below along with my grocery shopping look.
Multi color pattern pant WAYF Retail $100 Me $4
Style Breakdown
Vintage Head Scarf Creations of Lily : $1
White Button Up TJ Flea Market: $2
A New Day Pants TJ Street Shop: (Retail $30) $4
Grocery Bag TJ Street Shop – $2
Flats Agaci – (Retail $20) $5
Shades Agaci – $5
Total Look Cost: $19
Left off the list is that Tijuana has the most unique independently owned coffee shops per capita I’ve ever seen. Starbucks are very few and far between out here. Instead you can find an independently owned cafe on every corner. All unique from one another and all self made. Built with recycled materials while hosting a friendly staff. They all have optimal seating with both indoor/outdoor spaces. I must share Lumina Foto Cafe around the corner from my home with you today. In the future I’ll be doing a Tijuana coffee shop tour to show you the best of the Baja west.
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| Paseo Ensenada #2272 Tijuana, Baja California 22505 |
My personal favorite weekly sugar cheat treat is their Oreo Frappe and their Oreo chocolate chip cookie. Without one there cannot be the other. Get both! Totals 79 Pesos ($4).
Now it’s time for the shit show!
Water scarcity is becoming a huge issue for countries like Mexico and beyond. However, in this region of Baja California Norte the water scarcity issue is not because there is no/low water yet. It’s because the Governments here is so corrupt (due to all the money going to fuel the never ending drug war) they put very little money into infrastructure to ensure the cities pipelines and sewage systems are in working order. This leads to a ton of endless leaks of water all around the city of Tijuana on a daily basis. Not to mention a massive amount of water waste in an already dry climate. This also leads into the fact all the waste water/sewage from the city is not being treated in a separate plant and is sent out directly into the ocean. This has the beaches of Playas de Tijuana at toxic levels for pollution/bacteria which has in recent years started to also impact San Diego. I see water seeping through cement streets here on a daily basis. This is why the water is currently constantly being shut off in the city. They shut off the water so they can break through the cement to repair the endless leaks throughout the city.
This past weekend was absolute hell for me due to yet another leak. The water was shut off for a total of 4 days in my area. It was supposed to be shut off from Fri-Sunday. We all got less than 24 hours notice of this via their site online. In reality they turned off the water in my area a day early without warning. They being the worst water resource company CESPT. Also, the bane of my existence since moving to Tijuana. You can see in the screenshots from their Facebook page below just how often in this month of August they have shut off the water to the city to repair leaks.
How do you live 4 days without water?
1. Always have 4 days worth of tap water stored in jugs for cleaning, bathing & toilet flushing (in case of the unknown)
2. Fill up at least 4 large sized jugs of filtered water for drinking/cooking
3. Switch to paper plates/bowls, & plastic bowls & cutlery to save water by not using dishes for the short term
4. Take a bucket bath once a day to stay clean
Due to the lack of warning the city received from CESPT that the water would be shut off for 3 days (in my case 4) Tijuana ran out of water refill reserve services quick! With little time to prepare for the shut down all the water reserves in my community where closed by Day 2 due to lack of supply. It felt like Dystopia (Then again Tijuana always feels like Dystopia). This is also why I don’t feel the need to ever attend a Burning Man festival after living in Mexico for 2 years. I got the last of the water supply in Playas de Tijuana Saturday at Emilia Mercado (also where I get my meat). An hour after I left they also ran out of their reserve. I did have enough drinking water but was running low on water to bath with due to my water getting cut off a day early. Thanks to that jug I was able to wash my hair & stay clean the entire weekend. You can see the struggle it took to get there on Saturday morning in the video below.
How do you live with water scarcity in uncertain times?
Move to a water rich region of the world!
This is something no one wants to admit to themselves but Mother Nature is changing. Drastically and rapidly. Landscapes are changing and with that the Earths geography is changing. That means the people must also change. Location, Location…Location around places rich in resources is where your going to want to be situated in the long term. We are merely renting our time on this planet as humans. The planet will live on as it has before us and will continue to live on after us. There will be a point where we are not able to exist anymore. Period. Yes, I’m a nihilist but I’m an optimistic one. We’ve gone too far for too long down the wrong road. Now we must adapt and enjoy what little time we have left!
After living through Tijuana’s constant water/social issues it has shown me that these are also the worlds problems. Tijuana is basically an example of all the worlds problems magnified. Every country is facing similar water/natural resource issues but on different scales. Whether or not Tijuana ever gets a hold on it’s crumbling infrastructure the issue will soon become that there is simply not enough water to supply everyone in this region. Things are going to change Things already are changing. I almost wonder if companies like CESPT are shutting off the water more and more often to force the locals to start buying their own water reserves. So as not to rely on the water company to provide them with their basic needs. Which will drive the cost of living up dramatically in this region. The price of living may not be worth the proximity to the border for a lot of locals moving forward.
Now is as good a time as any to list off the negatives to living in this area.
4 Negatives To Living In Tijuana
1. The ever increasing bloody drug war averaging a total of 5-10 murders a day
2. The crumbling infrastructure
3. The lack of water reserves & adequate water treatment
4. The increasing rate of violence/harassment towards women
Despite all the negative the one thing I’ve learned from living here is how to turn negative into positive every god damn day of my life. I learned through all of this how to truly put my best foot forward. Each day dressing how I feel and allowing how I feel about myself to come from a place of happiness. Water or no water, I’ve learned how to make the best out of the craziest of scenarios. Acknowledging the reality of my surrounding but not letting that keep me down. Hell, I’m still learning!
Here is my last look from the weekend on Day 2 without water so we can end on a positive.
Style Breakdown:
Dress Who What Wear TJ Street Shop: (Retail $30) $5
Hat Nine West DTLA: (Retail $50) $10
Shades Plaza Coronado TJ: $5
Boots Nine West Creations of Lily: (Retail $200) $4
Backpack Creations of Lily: $3
Total Look Cost: $27
About Me: My name is Tiffini Truth and I’m a Power Tool Performer!
My album “Screw You” Is out Now Streaming Everywhere!
Track 1 – Socket Screw You
I love style and this blog is my way to share my personal style experience with you when I’m not performing my live show in my home studio. I have a weekly Podcast “The Metal Mindset” where you can learn how to have a mindset as strong as steel. “This Week In Metal” is my Metal Art Youtube series, Season 1 is streaming now. Season 2 is coming in 2020.
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