LOS EQUIPAULIS

When I first thought about furnishing my apartment, I thought of equipaulis.  I wanted to have a Mexican look and nothing says Mexican like equipaulis.  No one seems to know where the name comes from (it might be a Mexican Indian word).   It is a line of crude furniture made of sticks of wood with pigskin stretched over twigs.  The pigskin is cured in horse urine, so you have to let it air awhile before you want to bring it inside.

First I bought two chairs and three small end tables for my very first apartment.  When I moved to one with a large deck, I added two more chairs and a large dining table.   Then when I moved to my present place, I wanted two larger chairs and a lamp table for the living room to create a little reading area.  That was my first big problem  with the equipauli people.   Of course each delivery was never on time.  They never called before arriving, but that is just Mexico.  One day when I came home from the gym, I found them sitting in front of my door, just waiting.  Wouldn't a call have been easier?

The other problem is that there is only one place that makes the furniture and there are no regular hours.  You just have to keep going back until you find them there (they also don't answer their phone).   Also not one of them speaks a word of English.  So maybe they are embarrassed for not being able to speak English.  I am the one who should be embarrassed, for after all, it is their country
So each time I stopped there, I had someone with me who spoke Spanish.  I had seen some high backed equipauli chairs and wanted that look for my little reading area.  I could tell by the expression on their faces, that doing something a little different was not to their liking.  They charged more for the chairs, but after giving them a deposit they agreed to make them.  (in a week, I think they said).  Well it took many stops over almost two months to learn that they could not or did not want to make them. As it was translated to me, the higher back would require a larger pig hide and they couldn't find one.  Now the dinning tables use a much larger piece of leather, but never mind, that was their story.

I heard of a sort of antique place in Bucerios (about one hour away) that did carry some equipaulis.  So I went there.  No high backed chairs and they were not interested in making any.  They did have two old chairs that were heavily padded, but I thought would be okay.  The leather was in awful condition, but I was told that it would be cleaned up like new before delivery.  NOT TRUE !!  But when I got them, I was too tired fighting and just accepted them.  I went back to the first place and had them make the lamp table for the amount of my original deposit, so I was set.

Two years later, one of the original chairs (now four years old)  that seem to get the most rain began to rot.   Termites attack them, but I had already taken care of that problem with a strong smelling liquid that is applied with a paint brush.  In fact I had recently had to repaint my lamp table (the termites love the stuff).   No, this was just rot.  The bottom wood turned to mush.  By using several kinds and tubes of glue I tried to stabilize it, but to no avail.  It continued to deteriorate.  Then I had some friends over for cocktails.  I warned them not to sit in the bad one, but one guy kept leaning back and rocking in his chair.  The next day I discovered that it too was rotting and the extra weight broke the bottom part.  It took many trips to their shop to find them in, but a Mexican friend of mine told them of my problem and the agreed to take a look at them.

They were to call him first, but did not.  They just appeared one day.  He gave me a price on the two chairs and a small table where the leather had split  (due to the sun on my balcony).  Just 5 days later, I happened to to peering over my terrace and on the street below was his car that obviously had equipaulis in the back seat.  I ran down stairs to catch him.  While he brought the furniture up, I went into my bedroom to count out the exact amount of money (they never have change).  At the top of the stairs was one chair that looked brand new and the small table with a new leather top.  I assumed the other chair had been carried up to the deck.  After I paid him for the two chairs, then I realized that there was only the one chair.

Next day I had my Mexican friend stop there to find out what happened to the other chair.  The guy said that it was just too far gone to repair.  But I paid for the two chairs!.  He claimed not to have noticed how much money I gave him and then said he would have it ready in a week.  None of this makes any sense, but "it is Mexico".  He also said he would do it "for the same price"  (does that mean what I already paid him or did he want another 300 pesos?)

Two weeks later I had my Mexican friend stop by and ask how it was going.  The guy said the chair would be ready next week and he would deliver it at 5:00 Monday.  Of course he never showed up and he never called.  As it happened, my friend was passing their shop the next day and stopped.  They told him that the chair was already on the truck and would be delivered to me withing the hour.  It was over five hours later that they arrived, but again the chair looked brand new.  I thanked him and told him how happy I was and he left.  No money asked for.  They are not dependable about time, but I must admit that most Mexicans I have dealt with are basically honest.  You just have to have a lot of patience.