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El Ojo del Lago / August 2010
Saw you in the Ojo
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Richard Tingen
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Alejandro Grattan-Domínguez Tel: (01376) 765 3676, 765 2877 Fax: (01376) 765 3528 Associate Publisher David Tingen Graphic Design Roberto C. Rojas Jazmin Eliosa Special Events Editor Kay Davis Associate Editor Jim Tipton Contributing Editors Paul Jackson Henri Loridans Feature Editor Jim Tuck (Honorary) Staff Photographer Xill Fessenden Staff Writers Mildred Boyd Ilse Hoffmann Floyd Dalton Sales Manager Tania Medina (045) 33 1140 3570 ojodelago@gmail.com Office Secretary Iliana Oregel ADVERTISING OFFICE Av. Hidalgo # 223, Chapala Mon. thru Fri. 9am - 5pm Sat. 9am - 1pm Tel. 01 (376) 765 2877, 765 3676 Fax 01 (376) 765 3528 Send all correspondence, subscriptions or advertising to: El Ojo del Lago http://www.chapala.com ojodellago@prodigy.net.mx Ave. Hidalgo 223 (or Apartado 279), 45900 Chapala, Jalisco Tels.: (376) 765 3676, Fax 765 3528 PRINTING: El Debate El Ojo del Lago aparece los primeros cinco días de cada mes. (Out over the first five days of each month) Certificado de Licitud de Título 3693 Certificado de Licitud de Contenido 3117.
FEATURE ARTICLES
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COVER STORY
Dr. Richard Rhoda takes an in-depth look at Mexico and finds that in many major categories it is among the most outstanding countries in the world.
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14 BOOK REVIEW Harriet Hart reviews Die Laughing by local author Rob Krakoff and believes that by any measure it is a superb novel.
24 FICTION Scott Richards spins a tale set in a South Seas village which has only thirty-five houses but five different churches and a native population that is pious to the max. Naturally, the two foreigners on the island don’t fit in.
32 POETRY Mark Scone, who gave us the marvelous poem about that local celebrity known as “Pedro Loco” has scored again with a poem about Ajijic itself.
50 MORE FICTION Jim Tipton sets his story in Chapala, where his main character meets a lovely young female barber and thereafter loses more than just a few locks of his white hair.
61 GRINGO ODDITIES Tommy Clarkson dwells on “the twisted way we gringos speak” and wonders what in the world the Mexicans must think of it.
Reserva al Título de Derechos de Autor 04-2007-111412131300-102 Control 14301. Permisos otorgados por la Secretaría de Gobernación (EXP. 1/432 “88”/5651 de 2 de junio de 1993) y SEP (Reserva 171.94 control 14301) del 15 de enero de 1994. Distribución: Hidalgo 223 Chapala, Jalisco, México. All contents are fully protected by copyright and may not be reproduced without the written consent of El Ojo del Lago. Opinions expressed by the authors do not necessarily reflect the views of the Publisher or the Editor, nor are we responsible for the claims made by our advertisers. We welcome letters, which should include name, address and telephone number.
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COVER STORY
PUBLISHER
Index...
El Ojo del Lago / August 2010
COLUMNS THIS MONTH
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Editor’s Page Balloon in Cactus Bridge by Lake About Environment Uncommon Sense Joyful Musings World of Ours Thunder on Right Wondrous Wildlife Faith and Fables Anita’s Animals Stay Healthy Feathered Friends Hearts at Work Lakeside Living Magnificent Mexico Anyone Train Dog Gringas & Guacamole New Lease on Life Child of Month Welcome to Mexico LCS Newsletter
LAKESIDE LIVING
DIRE C TOR Y
34 MAGNIFICENT MEXICO
VOLUME 26 NUMBER 12
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By Alejandro Grattan
MARK TWAIN —The Compassionate Cynic
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he world recently commemorated the 100th anniversary of Mark Twain’s death. Unlike the reputation of other once-celebrated American writers, the passage of time has only added luster to his place in history—both as a writer as well as a man. During a period when even very good writers like O. Henry died broke and forgotten, Twain once had the world at his feet, having acquired substantial wealth, honorary degrees from prestigious universities and the acclaim of millions of readers—and that of other famous writers. Hemingway once called Twain’s Huckleberry Finn the finest novel ever written by an American. Time Magazine years later would dub him “America’s first superstar.” He was lucky in another way, as well. Unlike many writers who dazzle readers but only bore friends, acquaintances and audiences, the handsome Twain was as scintillating in person as he was on the page. His wit was legendary. On religious belief, he said that he preferred Heaven for its weather but Hell for its company. When people found him grumpy, he would answer, “Well, I am only human, though I regret it.” As for travel, he was once asked by a ship’s steward if he could get him anything for his seasickness. “Yes, get me a little island.” Back on dry land, and after his house was burglarized, Twain left a note “To the Next Burglar” asking among other things to “please close the door on your way out.” As he succumbed to middle-age, his wit took on a sharper edge as he grew more cynical about the human race. But unlike Mencken and Shaw, Twain’s deeply-engrained kindness never let his cutting remarks go too deep. He had never been the same after the death of his beloved wife, his infant son and his daughter Lucy. Thereafter, Twain vowed that he would never wear black again and from that time on dressed only in white. But personal tragedy was impervious to his mode of dress and in short order, he broke irreparably with
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one of his two remaining daughters, with another crushing blow coming as his favorite daughter died. Inevitably, personal loss affected his professional life and toward the end he penned one of the darkest books ever written by an American. For a man who had first made his reputation with the wonderfully whimsical The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County, his Letters From the Earth signaled a turn inward toward the nether regions of his personality. No two writings by the same author could have been less alike. But then came his crowning moment, not as a writer but as a man. This model to millions had an idol of his own—Ulysses S. Grant, the hero of the Civil War and later president of the United States. Now in fading health, he had laboriously completed his memoirs and was looking for a publisher—but the best terms he could get were the standard 90/10 profit-sharing arrangement favoring the publisher. Twain, stunned that a national icon should be treated in such shabby fashion, vowed to publish Grant’s memoirs himself (he had earlier brought a complicated new printing process), and gave Grant ninety percent, keeping only ten for himself. President Grant would die before the book was released but his widow would receive royalties of more than two million dollars—imagine that in current dollars! The book was a huge success—for everyone but Mark Twain, who went broke as a result of the endeavor. Yet I think it was his finest moment. Would that we should all go broke in such glorious fashion. Alejandro Grattan
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A BALLOON IN CACTUS By Maggie Van Ostrand
Bosom Buddies
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t doesn’t matter whether you’re a working woman toiling amidst the trauma and traffic of the U.S.A., or a retired woman living amidst the smiles and sunsets of Mexico, you need a bosom buddy. Qualified to fill this time-honored category would be other women, one’s mother and/or mother-inlaw, one’s husband and/or someone else’s husband, even one’s adult children. For me, there’s no doubt about #1 in the bosom buddy category: that would be my brassiere. The reverse is also true: I qualify as bosom buddy to their manufacturers which is easy; there’s only one requisite. Gravity. Here’s information ex-pat retirees probably never wanted to know: The bosom comes in many sizes, A to I, and can be shaped like knolls, eggplants, cones, and thin old women frequently appear to be adorned with a pair of blackjacks. According to a new book about the history of the brassiere, Uplift, women have gone from boyish flatness to torpedo to plunge to watergel brassieres in a mere century and a half. The history of the brassiere was summed up by actress Tallulah Bankhead, who once said of a play she disliked: “There’s less here than meets the eye.” After 140 years of attempts to design the ideal breast supporter using materials from feather-bones to spandex, some patents are just plain quirky, ranging from a fur-lined bra to one with an electric heating system. That might be a very friendly thing if you’re married to an Eskimo, though a micro fan hidden in a bra to cool yourself might be more beneficial if you live in Mexico. No less than 100% of the men I interviewed don’t give a flying fig whether a woman was born amply endowed like Mae West, Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell, or medically endowed like Dolly Parton, Pamela Anderson and Demi Moore. I guess the bosom’s origin is the one exception to their rule about how they hate it when women lie to them. Back in 1932, actress Maureen
O’Sullivan (future mother of Mia Farrow) was photographed in a perky-bosomed pose, urging Sears’ customers to “Be sure to measure” before ordering any foundation garment. Those were the days before brassieres were mass produced, when women actually had personal fittings. None of these hangingfrom-a-hook-at-Walmart bras for them. Brassieres presented myriad possibilities for shaping, from early 1900s mono-bosoms to the torpedoes of the late 1940s and early 1950s. Speaking of torpedoes, in World War II, Maiden Form was commissioned by the U.S. Government to fashion a type of support for the army’s carrier pigeons, when radio silence was being observed immediately before D-Day. Talk about a hooter holster! Steven Spielberg should make a movie and call it “Saving Private Pigeon.” Brassiere manufacturers also supplied the military with everything from pup tents to parachutes. Notice any similarities? Women have gone from training bras to sports bras to burning bras and today, the brassiere is often worn on the outside of a garment. Bras no longer are considered “under” wear. Even Elizabeth, Queen of England, wears a brassiere; not just any old bra, of course, but one designed by Rigby & Peller, to whom she granted her Royal Warrant as Official Corsetieres in 1960. I wonder if they also design her hats. Now, we’re dealing with the syndrome of looking as though we’re not wearing a bra at all. “Sex and the City” has introduced the Nipple Enhancer, a “bodyperk,” which gives people everywhere the illusion that the wearer is constantly standing on a drafty iceberg. We’ve come a long way, baby. Or have we? Not to worry, dear reader. The world may suffer economic disarray but it will survive as long as women continue to have what it takes and a place to put them.
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Mexico Gets No Respect!
By Dr. Richard Rhoda rhodarick@yahoo.com
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hat images or thoughts come to mind when people hear the word Mexico?” To most gringos, Mexico is associated with illegal immigrants, drug wars, fabulous beach resorts, tacos & tequila, deserts & cactus, bargain prices, third world poverty, Carlos Slim (the world’s richest person), swine flu, and pre-Columbian ruins. These views are essentially true, but they do not begin to capture the real importance or significance of Mexico. Furthermore, they suggest that gringos do not have much respect for Mexico, perhaps because it is overshadowed by its very large, very wealthy and very loud northern neighbor. Is Mexico important? To answer this question, we can look at Mexico’s place in the world in terms of demographic, economic, and geographic size as well as its diversity
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and recent reforms. How many Mexicans are there? Mexico’s population is about 108 million, ranking it 11th in the world. In the 1970’s overpopulation was a serious concern, but an aggressive family planning program has reduced the total fertility rate to about 2.3 children per woman, nearly equal to that in the US. Counting Mexicanborn residents of the US, there are about 120 million Mexicans. If we also count Mexicans born in the US
El Ojo del Lago / August 2010
the total is perhaps 140 million. The Mexican population is expected to peak at about 130 – 140 million in 2045. This is a big spread, because accurately estimating immigration to the US is difficult. Immigration has exploded since 1970 when there were less than one million Mexican-born residents of the US. Now there are over 12 million. About 85% are of working age. Most are employed in construction, manufacturing, food processing, cleaning and maintenance, home care, and agriculture. A surprising 44% live in owner-occupied dwellings. The net flow of migrants peaked at about 550,000 in 2006. That year over one million Mexicans entered the US and just under 500,000 returned to Mexico. Net flow in 2009 was only about 200,000. There is a very close negative correlation between net immigration and US unemployment rates. When this recession ends and jobs are again plentiful in the US, net immigration will probably jump back up to about half a million. Mexico has incredible indigenous diversity. Sixty indigenous languages are spoken every day in Mexican communities, placing it fourth in the world behind Papua New Guinea, India, and Indonesia. A total of six million people speak these languages including a million that cannot speak Spanish. This year Google added two Mexican indigenous languages to its search protocol: Maya and Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs. Each language has about 1.5 million speakers. In conclusion, Mexico is among the world leaders in population and indigenous diversity. How big is the Mexican economy? Mexico’s GDP in 2009 was about $1.5 trillion, ranking it 11th in the world. This is based on Purchasing Power Parity, which compiles the total amount of goods and services produced in an economy, independent of exchange rates and differences in cost of living. For example, if the same quality haircut costs $20 in the US, $5 in Mexico and $2 in China, the haircut is assumed to contribute $20 to the GDP of each country. Mexico’s economy is somewhat smaller than that of Brazil or Italy, but larger than that of Spain, Canada or South Korea. On a per person basis, it is about $14,000 per year, about a third that of the US but over twice that of China and four times that of India. In the late 20th century Mexico lurched from one financial crisis to
the next. These were characterized by hyper-inflation and massive devaluations. To avoid big risks, many foreign investors stayed away from Mexico and wealthy Mexicans often kept their assets offshore. In the 1990s, President Ernesto Zedillo took steps to stabilize the economy by ensuring that the Central Bank was more independent from politics, making the peso a free floating currency, and controlling foreign debt. These steps gave the economy much needed stability and helped attract foreign investment. Zedillo also implemented impressive and surprising political reforms that significantly reduced the power of his office, the Presidency, and his own political party, PRI. These moved Mexico from what previously had been largely a one party state, tightly controlled by the President, to an open multiparty democracy with real separation of powers. Everyone living in Mexico today is benefiting greatly from the reforms of the Zedillo administration. Mexico has many world class multinational corporations. CEMEX based in Monterrey is the world’s third largest cement maker. In 2004 it received a prestigious international award from the Wharton Business School for its advanced information technology applications. Bimbo is the largest bread maker in the Americas and the fifth largest food company on the planet behind only Nestle, Kraft, Sara Lee and Unilever. American Movil is the largest cell phone operator in Latin America with over 200 million subscribers. Grupo Mexico is the world’s third largest copper company. Mexico has serious income distribution issues; Carlos Slim and other billionaires get far more than the average. The standard of living of the top 20% of Mexicans, that’s 22 million people, is higher than the vast majority (the middle 60%) of those in the US or Canada. Mexico has a large and growing middle class. However, poverty remains a serious problem, particularly during this deep recession. About 18% are below the food based Mexican national poverty line. Income distribution in Mexico is even more unequal than it is in the US. The only major world countries with greater inequality are South Africa, Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, Peru and Argentina. Despite its distribution issues, Mexico is important in world economics. How big is Mexico? It is the world’s 14th largest country in area, stretching almost 2,000 miles from east to west. Did you realize that
Tijuana is closer to Juneau, Alaska than it is to Cancún? By the same token, Cancún is closer to Nova Scotia than it is to Tijuana. Size is important because it is an indicator of a country’s natural resources. Everyone knows that Mexico has lots of oil; in 2008 it was the world’s seventh largest oil producer. But Mexico is running out of oil; it currently accounts for less than 5% of its total economy. Mexico’s climate is arguably its most important natural resource. While most gringos think of Mexico as sunny and arid, it has an incredible diversity of climates from deserts in the north, ideal living conditions in the central highlands, and tropical rainforests in the south. Interestingly, Mexico actually gets more annual rainfall than either the US or Canada. Climate diversity gives rise to biological diversity. How much biological diversity is there in Mexico? Most Mexicans and gringos are astonished to learn that Mexico is one of the most biologically diverse countries in the world. Mexico has 30,000 different types of flowering plants, compared to only 18,000 in the US and 12,000 in all of Europe. It has more species of pine trees and oak trees than any other country; however with deforestation some of these species may be endangered. Given its deserts, it is not surprising that Mexico ranks first in the world in number of cactus and reptile species. It ranks fourth in number of amphibian species. I was amazed to learn that it ranks second in number of mammal species, behind only Brazil. Some Mexican mammals are majestic, like the jaguar, but most small and unimpressive like bats, shrews and rodents. Over half of Mexico’s species are endemic; they exist only in Mexico. In terms of overall biological diversity, Mexico is perhaps only surpassed by India, Indonesia and Brazil. In summary, Mexico is
one of the world’s larger countries and a clear leader in biological diversity. Is Mexico important? As discussed above, Mexico ranks 11th in population, 11th in economic production, and 14th in geographic size. Where does this place Mexico on the world stage? It is one of only six countries that rank in the top 15 in all three. The other five are the US, China, India, Russia, and Brazil. Mexico may not be as important as these other five or as Japan, Germany, Britain, or France; however, a strong case can be made that Mexico is among the top ten countries in the world. In short, it is far more important than most people realize. Mexico deserves more respect. Note: Taken from Geo-Mexico: the Geography and Dynamics of Modern Mexico, Richard Rhoda and Tony Burton, 2010, Sombrero Books, Ladysmith, British Columbia, http://geo-mexico.com. Available in Ajijic: La Nueva Posada, LCS Patio, Diane Pearl Collection, Lois Cugini Opus Boutique, Bugambilias Newsstand; in Guadalajara: Sandi’s; in Puerto Vallarta: International Friendship Club, Page in the Sun, Gutierrez Rizo Supermarket, Farmacia Olas Altas; also at geomexico.com and amazon.com.
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BRIDGE BY THE LAKE By Ken Masson
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efense is justifiably considered to be the most difficult part of bridge. Whereas declarers have the benefit of seeing all their side’s assets as they attempt to make their contracts, defenders must struggle with only certain knowledge of half their combined holdings. It would definitely make life easier if each defender could tell the other what cards they held but unfortunately that is against the rules! However, there is a perfectly legal way to talk to your partner when the two of you are defending a hand. It involves using the cards that you have to convey a message by playing a high card or a low card in specific situations. Generally speaking, when a defender is unable to follow suit and must discard in another suit, the play of a high card will suggest an interest in that suit while a low card carries the opposite meaning. Nevertheless, it is important that the defenders learn to use this tool judiciously. In this month’s deal, South opened the bidding with 1 Heart and North responded 1 NT, which in their system was forcing for one round. South rebid 2 Hearts to show a six card suit, North invited game with a bid of 3 Hearts and South accepted. West led the Spade 10 which declarer won on the board with the Ace. Declarer now cashed the Ace and King of hearts to discover that there was a sure trump loser. As there was also a loser in the Spade suit, it was important that declarer should restrict losers in Diamonds to one. But there was an interesting development when the second high Heart was played–East discarded
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the Diamond 4 showing a dislike for that suit. As East had shown only one Heart card, the odds were that East would hold more Diamonds than West and therefore be more likely to hold the outstanding honour cards, the Ace and the Jack. Left to his own devices, declarer would likely have started on the Diamond suit by leading a low card from the dummy to his 9. This would have lost to the Jack and later West would have won the Ace to set the contract one trick. But the astute declarer took advantage of the information at his disposal by leading a low Diamond from the South hand towards the dummy. When West followed low, declarer successfully finessed the 10 and all he lost was one trick to the Ace in that suit to make his game. The lesson from this hand was that East should not have been too eager to let his partner know that he was bereft in Diamond values, as the declarer was also in on the message and was able to take advantage of it. It would have been far safer for East to have discarded a small spade on the second round of trumps and let declarer try to figure out how to play the Diamond suit for himself. Questions or comments: email: masson.ken@gmail.com
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A LL A B OU UT T THE TH HE E ENVIRONMENT ENVIIR RONMENT ALL ABOUT By Dr. Todd Stong
Worldwide Domestic Water
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cross the world, half of the available “fresh water” is being consumed, that’s 1% of the world’s total water not in the ocean or in ice masses. The challenge at this time is that major populations are no longer developing where the fresh water exists naturally. In ages past times people only settled near to fresh water. That is yet the case most often in the Developing World. There you only find people in waterless areas in general when some other group has pushed them into a desert or on to a rock region in hopes these people will expire (genocide). The unused 50% of the world’s fresh water exists in lands like Canada, Indonesia, Brazil, Peru, Iceland, Zaire-Congo and Suriname. Today’s challenge for many is water transport, pipelines, towed ice bergs, ocean going water tankers, etc. Note that the world does not hesitate to transport oil, electric and gas 1000s of miles to anywhere people will pay the delivery charge. For example in the US electric costs about $0.05/kwh to produce but by the time it is transported to the home the cost is about $0.12/kwh. Thus the production cost is only 42% of the delivered cost. The First World will soon see more pipeline transport of water to augment existing local supplies. For major cities within 20 miles of the ocean that have water needs the move will be to desalinated water from the ocean. That became economical about 5 yrs ago as seen in FL and CA. The key was recovery of the significant level of energy demanded by the high pressure (600-800 phi) reverse osmosis process. Once engineers elected to have the out flush water turn a turbine the recovered energy lowered the price to where it could compete with water pumped from 20 miles inland to a coastal city, In general we can purify lake and river water to drinking quality for a cost of 1/5th of a penny per gallon. If we need to pump puri-
Dr. Todd Stong
fied fresh water 1000 miles the cost may go up to perhaps 1/3rd to 1/2th of a penny per gallon. Desalinated sea water may at this time cost about 1/3rd of a penny per gallon. In the Developing World for very small populations one can purify and pipe local drinking water for about 1/2th of a penny per gallon. If such water is sold for one gallon for a penny there is then enough profit for a family in the community to operate such a village system. Long experience suggests that “Profit” is the ONLY way to sustain water supply in the Developing World. In Mexico the government for more than 50 years has subsidized about 60-70% of the real cost for the water. The same was true of electric 10 years ago but now the full cost of electric is paid by the consumers and it is about 60% higher than in the USA. The cost of water in Mexico could increase by a factor of 3-5 if the real cost was to be paid by the consumers. Many in the US/CA annually pay about $300-400 for water, $700900 for sewer and $250-300 for trash, a total of $1250-1600. In Mexico these services come as a package for about $130/year.
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UUNCOMMON NCOMMON CCOMMON OMMON SSENSE ENSE By Bill Frayer billfrayer@gmail.com
Ethical Thinking in the Real World
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f you’ve been reading this column, you will recall that I have been examining various frameworks of ethical thinking by looking at how we might respond to hypothetical ethical dilemmas. Dilemmas are good for discussing ethics because they give us very limited examples to discuss. The problem with ethical dilemmas is that they are not always of the real world. In practice, our application of ethics is a good deal messier. The most prominent enemy of ethics is always self-interest. We are always tempted to behave in ways which may be good for us, even if our actions might be considered unethical. People cheat on their taxes, conduct illicit affairs, lie to their friends, cheat on exams, and go along with policies they may consider unethical to preserve their jobs. When I presented an ethical dilemma in my class one day, I asked what the correct decision should be. An honest student raised his hand,” Mr. Frayer, do you want to know what is the ethical choice, or do you want to know what we would really do?” I thought they ought to be the same, but he was honest enough to point out the obvious. Is it an unrealistic ideal to expect people to consider their choices from an ethical perspective, even if it conflicts with their self-interest? We can make a case that self-interest often trumps ethics, yet having a code of ethics is considered important in many professions. Medicine, law, education, psychotherapy, and business all have published codes of
Bill Frayer
ethics. Some believe that the primary institutions which promote ethics are our churches. After all, the Ten Commandments were one of the earliest codes of conduct. For centuries, people have looked to religion as a basis for moral conduct. I’m not sure this has ever been true, but it certainly does not seem so today. The Catholic Church has been protecting pedophiles for decades. Some evangelical Protestant pastors preach intolerance and hate towards gay and lesbian people. Radical Muslims condone the killing of innocents in the name of Allah. This list goes on. Yet, religious organizations also feed the hungry, build houses for the poor, give shelter to the homeless, and fund welfare organizations, all in the pursuit of a more ethical world. Many people see the problems we face today as a basic deterioration of common ethical standards. This has been attributed to the rise of modernity itself with its heavy reliance on technology, the emergence of wealth as a strong moral value, the increased ethnic diversity in all areas of civilization, and the increasing gap between the rich and the poor. It often seems as if self-interest is our primary motivation. Yet, most of us value ethics on a personal level. We try to behave following an ethical framework. Colleges, universities, and professional schools teach courses in ethics. As a society, we value ethical thinking. Many are critical of “ethical relativism” or “situational ethics” which, many think, undermine a strong ethical framework. So where does this leave us? We can’t always agree on which ethical principles are the most important. Is individual autonomy more important than compassion? Is following the law more important than following higher humanitarian principles? It’s important, for us and for future generations, to continue the conversation. If we don’t insist on ethical behavior, then we are devaluing ourselves as a civilization.
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Joyful Musings By Joy Birnbach Dunstan, MA, LPC, MAC
Shopping and the Pursuit of Happiness
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am writing this month’s column during my annual family visit in Oregon. During the weeks I’ve been here, I’ve repeatedly felt overwhelmed by the quantities of “stuff” I see everywhere. Warehouse stores, malls, aisle after aisle of floor-to-ceiling shelves stocked with anything you can imagine, and many things I never could. Thrift stores are filled to overflowing with donated castoffs. The Sunday paper is a twoinch stack of a store flyers wrapped in a few pages of news and the daily mail brings dozens more. To some, I’m sure this is a shopper’s dream—finding not only the item you were looking for, but a dazzling array of brands, colors, styles, and features. For me, it can be a bit too much. I’ve even left the store a couple of times without purchasing anything because the abundance of options for a seemingly simple item was so great I couldn’t decide which to get. Shopping in our Lakeside stores and markets, I’ve grown accustomed to small inventories. When I need dish soap at SuperLake, I buy one of the two or three kinds they have for sale. In the supermegamarket here in Oregon, I was faced with an eightfoot wide, four-shelf high array of various concoctions promising to give me sparkling dishes and softer hands. I’m just not sure I need that many choices. The new iPhone was introduced yesterday. One and a half million of these things were sold in just the first day. People camped out in the street all night to be assured of getting one before they sold out. The media has done a superb job of creating perceived needs and turning people into perpetual consumers. The bumper on a sporty little car in front of me the other day proclaimed, “He who dies with the most toys wins.” Television commercials and print advertising generate a sense of need and inadequacy if we don’t get the latest greatest new gadget or product. Happiness appears to be only a purchase away. But having all this stuff doesn’t seem to be making people up here very happy. They’re all in a hurry, faces looked stressed, and I hear frequent complaints about the pressure of juggling their ever-mounting bills. A study by the National Sleep
Foundation reports that nearly 40% of employed Americans put in more than 50 hours each week. These hard workers average only about six hours of sleep a night. Long hours and inadequate sleep combined with the pressures of a struggling economy can leave people feeling empty inside. Trying to fill this emptiness with stuff just doesn’t work. No matter how much stuff one gets, because of adaptation, a new treasure soon loses its thrill, and we need to get something more to re-ignite that elusive feeling of happiness. The Dalai Lama says, “I believe that the very purpose of life is to be happy. In my own limited experience I have found that the more we care for the happiness of others, the greater our own sense of well-being. It helps remove whatever fears or insecurities we may have and gives us strength to cope with any obstacles we encounter…Since we are not solely material creatures, it is a mistake to place all our hopes for happiness on external development alone. The key is to develop inner peace.” It has been said that one’s riches consist not in the extent of your possessions, but in how few your wants are. Practice increasing your wealth by treasuring your relationships, not your possessions. Remember that the Dalai Lama also wisely advises that “not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.” Editor’s Note: Joy is a practicing psychotherapist in Riberas. She can be contacted at joy@dunstan.org or 765-4988.
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GETTING AWAY WITH MURDER A Book Review of Robert Krakoff’s Die Laughing By Harriet Hart 200 Pesos at Diane Pearl Colleciones
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y day Ajijic resident Rob Krakoff is an entrepreneur, but by night he indulges his secret passion – writing fiction. Die Laughing, his debut novel, poses the burning question: “Can a lonesome loser achieve his career goal of becoming a stand-up comic, plus get the girl of his dreams, survive a brush with gangsters in Las Vegas and get away with murder?” Krakoff takes protagonist Alex Zachery from North Hollywood High to two-bit comedy clubs in L.A. then on to Vegas where he runs money for the mob. Fleeing crime scenes and shady employers, we follow Alex to small town Mississippi and beyond; the plot is far-fetched but totally enjoyable as Alex changes his identity, his direction and his occupation. Our hero is a fugitive from justice and quite possibly a sociopath, yet the author succeeds in making him likeable. I kept rooting for this guy in spite of myself. Character depiction is one of Krakoff’s strengths. He creates a motley crew beginning with Johnny Shotlan (Shitland to Alex), the school bully who later re-appears as a police detective on Alex’s trail; Sarah, a waitress at Denny’s, Alex’s muse and first true love; agent Bernie Padgent Jr.; Vegas boss Big Eddie Julian; savior and small town pharmacist Doc Benton, and many more. Here’s our introduction to Eddie: “Now, I have reasonably large mitts, but his paw swallowed my hand. This wasn’t a hand – it was a suitcase.” And to Sarah: “This was in 1963 and Sarah was the first woman I ever saw bearing a tattoo. It was a black rose, just below
her right shoulder. Her uniform covered all but the bottom of the tattoo and until we got to know each other better months later, I thought she had some deformity or birthmark.” Krakoff pays close attention to setting. He depicts Vegas in 1975: “It amazed me that for a town that was no more than twenty years old, everything outside the strip looked to be pre-World War II. It was all built on slab; it was all pre-fab, cheap plywood and particleboard….” He conjures up equally well the underbelly of Vegas, an office tower in Manhattan, a small town pharmacy in Mississippi and even the city of Minneapolis. What I like best about Die Laughing is the style. Krakoff writes in the first person and his protagonist’s voice is 100% believable. “How did a nice guy like me wind up killing another human being in their own home? Why would I allow myself such a string of misguided judgements? My life up to that night had been a constant string of bad jokes and this was the punch line from hell….” The tone is conversational and confessional throughout. Finally, the author sets a swift pace – while we’re never quite sure where Alex will find himself next– but we’re happy to go along for the carnival ride that is his life. This is one helluva first novel. Just don’t buy this book looking for a social message because there isn’t one. It’s written in the spirit of fun which is perfect for the life of a stand-up comic and you’ll be reading from start to finish with a big smile on your face. Serial killers can actually be fun...and maybe even get away with murder.
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A PENNY CHANGED THE WORLD By C Jordan English
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et a buzz-cut, and move to Dodge! I experienced an earth shattering epiphany during the wee hours of Sunday after a restless night. I keep my TV clicker by the bed so I can flick the tube on if I prefer alien-world input. For once, I can give some credit to CNN. They ran a news capsule about the turnaround of Dodge City, Kansas. Why CNN picks a time-slot for this story hours before the sun shows is curious, but the luck of English was with me since I was able to digest this message before sunrise. How can a penny change the world? And, who in their right mind would ever want to move to Dodge? Without really thinking it through, I was already contemplating the necessities of a big move. I sensed a buzz-cut might pave the way, plus the kick of some nice black Texas boots, an elegant “W” cowboy hat, along with marshalling my internal talents to help me pose as a successful “beef speculator.” Heck, I could do that. Why not encourage border promotions going both ways? I’ve seen plenty of speculative bull during my heady days. I would love to ride into Dodge on something like the iconic Wall Street Bull, but I might have to settle for my brother’s second-hand Mustang. But Dodge, is that a sane choice? Why Dodge? You probably missed the comeback story because, if you are a normal human, you should have been sleeping. What nerve! Those folks up in Dodge mandated a penny tax across the board, and the effects transformed the entire town. Now, they say, it’s tough to find enough people to fill all the jobs in Dodge because that penny tax funded a casino, a sports center, and other
shock wave from this event could be contagious, and lead to the demise of dysfunctional America. Oh well, I can always rollover, and speculate about the potential Armageddon event rearing its fiery mane up on the slopes of Iceland. I feel somewhat entertained by the minister who claims the volcano in Iceland is pumping with rage because, “The world has had far too much sex.” I sure hope he isn’t the lone voice of gloom in Dodge. That might imply dicey karma on my part. How about just a penny toward redemption?
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vital concerns of community interest. From a sinkhole of economic despair, the whole town kicked into overdrive because of that one-penny tax. Of course, we might be able to locate one person who will disagree. CNN interviewed a happy herd of local politicians, all distinguished leaders who were smiling in unison as they shared stories about willful cooperation. Maybe it takes the stark face of prairie living to instill a mature sense of cooperation. They behaved like a group of cozy Holy Rollers strung out on the love-drug, ecstasy, and it came across as genuine. Those smart frontier people up in Dodge figured out how to take stress out of living, and turn an economic struggle into a flourishing enterprise. I imagine some wise guy will crack that the casino caused a spike in pick-pockets, but I trust these downto-earth Dodge folks can manage their pockets. It wasn’t long before I was throwing pillows at the TV, and exhorting the media to run more stories like this, with the hope of waking-up other small-town folks across America. I felt fortunate to get the news since I was close to functionally asleep in Mexico. Cultivating an independent middle-American lifestyle like these Kansans did, has potential. The
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THIS WORLD of OURS By Bob Harwood bharwoodb@hotmail.com
G8 And G20—Summits In Transition
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8 vs G20: The G8 and G20 bring world leaders together on issues calling for their coordinated action. In more intimate settings new leaders get to know their peers and established relationships are renewed. But what was actually accomplished at this June’s Summits? G8 leaders committed to a substantial fund, augmented by a generous donation from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, to address Third World family and maternal health. The G8 in Huntsville’s quiet cottage country experienced minimal disruption from well behaved protestors espousing their causes. The wisdom of staging the G20 in the heart of Toronto is now being questioned. Security costs exceeding one billion dollars failed to prevent violence and rampant property damage led by hooded anarchists deliberately mingling with peaceful protestors. Riot police made 1000 arrests. The many held in jail overnight inevitably included non violent protestors caught up in the confusion. Continuing media debate risks obscuring the real work of the Summit. The Global Economy: Leaders brought different priorities to the G20, now the premium forum for economic cooperation. Canada had added credibility as the country least impacted by the recession because of its stronger financial system. European powers mired in debt are making drastic cuts in social programs and budgets and championed a universal bank tax to hedge against future public bail outs. America with a still fragile economy leaves the door open to further stimulus before committing to major deficit reduction but is moving forward with major reforms of its financial sector. Canada predictably opposed a universal bank tax. The G20 did reach general agreement on a goal to halve deficits by 2013 and stop increasing total debt as a percentage of GDP by 2016. But each country will determine how best to do so in its own circumstances. Enhancing financial regulation was
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also left for to individual approaches but in due course some international standard will be essential in our now interdependent world. To break the logjam on the Doha Round of international trade negotiations there was agreement on placing more items on the agenda of the November follow up meeting to facilitate compromises and eliminate restrictions to free trade. Climate Change: Host Canada had been reluctant to debate this topic in June after being stigmatized at the recent Copenhagen Climate Conference for its tar sands image and for per capita emissions among the highest in the world. And BP tar balls accumulating on Gulf of Mexico beaches have only added to the heat. But, pressed by the UN Secretary General and President Calderon of Mexico who will be hosting a Climate Change Conference in November, there was a renewed pledge for G20 countries to phase out “inefficient fossil fuel subsidies in the medium term.” Tax breaks to oil and coal companies and fuel subsidies for consumers must also be eliminated by 2020. Grading the Summits: I will reserve judgment until we see if the second session of the G20 in Korea in November turns these generalities into measurable, time tabled commitments. This may be facilitated if present economic jitters settle down by that time. But some progress has been made. And the more broadly representative G20 is clearly and correctly replacing the exclusive Club of Eight. New voices are being heard and a new dynamic is emerging as China’s influence gains parity with that of America. Living as we do in an interdependent world we must act Bob Harwood accordingly.
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THUNDER ON THE RIGHT By Paul Jackson
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K, OK, I now admit it - President Barack Obama has had one hugely positive influence on my life. The annointed one - as Fox News’ Sean Hannity calls Obama - has made me into a devotee of Glenn Beck. Now, I used to glance at Beck on occasion but concluded he was a bit of a comedian. Entertaining, but not to be taken seriously. Also used to have a pretty objective wait and see attitude towards Obama, but the Bill Ayers charade, the Jeremiah Wright fiasco, the Van Jones scandal, the unabashed lurch to the Radical Left, the fawning overtures towards America’s enemies, and the slurring of America’s friends, have made me finally take sides. So, these days because of Obama and his coterie I take Beck very, very seriously.Yup, Glenn is still a bit theatrical, but America itself is a theatrical nation. Anyway, increasingly I see the common sense Beck exhibits day-by-day. As an aside, am now convinced the Democrats and the American people should have elected Hillary Clinton rather than Obama. Everything Clinton seems to do is right, every word she utters is thoughtful. Am now even feeling a touch of warmth for Joe Biden. It was by chance one day that I tuned to Beck’s show which featured a one-hour documentary on the similarities between Soviet Communism and German Nazism and how both were based on a mix and mesh of socialism and nationalism gone mad. It was an authoritative documentary, and since my library is lined with scholarly works on this very sub-
Paul Jackson
ject it drew my attention. With that, I started to look at Beck more frequently and for longer periods. His research is impeccable - he clearly demonstrates what is going wrong with the Obama administration and what has gone wrong with previous Democratic administrations. So much so that Beck has destroyed my long-term admiration for President Woodrow Wilson, a fellow I now view as an out and out elitist who figured he knew what was better for the average guy and gal than they knew themselves. Beck also sees the average American as being manipulated by an arrogant establishment that looks down on them with contempt as ‘little people’ not really knowing themselves what is best for them. The noble William F. Buckley had the same thoughts when he said he would rather entrust the government of the USA to the first 400 names listed in the Boston telephone directory than the faculty of Harvard University. Having met many a pontificating university professor with hardly the guile to tie their own shoes - I have to agree. Beck hits the nail on the head so often: The connection between the Obama administration and Big Business, coupled with the cooperation between the administration and Big Labor. Careless use of the taxpayers’ money. Catering to vested interests. Beck frequently pulls together
that growing elitism of the so-called Liberal-Left from the days of Wilson and how the nation has strayed from the original concepts of the Founding Fathers. Indeed, Obama himself has publicly suggested the Framers of the Constitution got it all wrong - didn’t know what they were doing. What arrogance. So Beck paints an unsettling scenario of what is happening in the USA today but sometimes what is unsettling is essential to know. So I’ve gone from amusement over Beck to admiration for Beck. Perhaps you will too.
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Wondrous Wildlife By Vern and Lori Gieger
wildlifemexico@wildtravellers.org 765-4916
Fine Swine
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nown by various names, peccaries, wild boars, and javelinas, or Chuleta (Pork chop) as ours is affectionately known, they look similar to pigs, but there are major differences. In Mexico they are known as javelinas (Spanish for javelin or spear) because of their sharp tusks. Javelinas are social animals usually traveling in bands from 6 to 12. They are most active during early morning and evening hours when it is cooler. They eat, sleep, and forage together. Like most group animals they have a dominance hierarchy, wherein a male is dominant; the remainder of the order is largely determined by size. They are quite vocal; communication within the
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group consists of various grunts and squeals signifying, aggression, submission, or alert. Javelinas have large heads and long snouts with thick coarse coats of dark gray to blackish brown mix, and band of lighter hair around the neck. A long, stiff mane runs down the back from head to rump. The adult male is up to 60 inches in length and is 20 to 24 inches in height, and
weighing 40 to 60 pounds. Females are slightly smaller. Although they are not a small animal you would definitely smell them before you see them. They have a very powerful musk gland. The odor is always apparent, more so when they are excited. They are territorial, defining their area by the rubbing of the rump oil gland against rocks, tree trunks etc., and people as Chuleta has demonstrated on more than one occasion. Javelinas fend off intruders by squaring off, laying back their ears, and clattering their tusks. When fighting, they charge head on, bite, and occasionally lock jaws. Territory size varies greatly depending upon herd size, and habitat. Javelinas are found in various habitats, from tropical rainforests to semi arid regions. They do tend to stay near a constant water supply. They are primarily herbivores, and have complex stomachs for digesting coarsely chewed food, which includes roots, fruits, insects, worms, reptiles, beans, nuts, berries, agaves cacti, and prickly pears, and in Chuleta’s case figs and carrots. Breeding occurs throughout the year, depending on climate. When food supplies are abundant more
young are raised. Females usually give birth to two young. Mothers den in hollow logs or hollows in the ground, retreating from the herd to prevent the newborns from being killed by other group members, rejoining the herd one day after giving birth. Only the older sisters of the newborn are tolerated near the young, often becoming nursemaids for the new mother. Despite the high mortality rate in this species, members have a life span of up to 24 years in captivity. Predators include humans, bobcats, pumas, jaguars, and coyotes. For centuries, they have been a source of economic income due to their skins, food supply and as hunting trophies. The young are often captured and serve as domestic farm animals. When fed by humans they lose fear of man. They have been known to rummage around campsites like raccoons and become a nuisance; they are not dangerous when left alone; under most circumstances they will run from humans. Speedy and agile, social and vocal, cute and cuddly, Chuleta loves to nap on Vern’s lap. Javelinas are actually quite appealing, once you get past the smell.
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OF O F FAITH FAITH A AND ND F FABLES ABLES By Bob Haynes bzhaynes@gmail.com
You Have A Choice –Better Or Bitter
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wonderful musician came into my life some 15 years ago. His name was Dennis Jernigan. I went to a number of his concerts in Edmond, Oklahoma and I also purchased his songbooks. Thru them, Dennis spoke to my soul. That’s why, at this time in my struggle against cancer, I turned once again to Dennis and to his music. I hope you will agree, even without hearing the melody, the strength and message of truth in his music. One of my favorites and one we sing a lot on Emmaus Walks is “You Are My All in All.” The words leaped out to me today as I write this column. “You are my strength when I am weak, You are the treasure that I seek; You are my all in all. Seeking you as a precious jewel, Lord to give up, I’d be a fool; You are my all in all. When I fall down You pick me up, when I am dry you fill my cup; You are my All in All.” That has been my prayer each day as I look toward Him for strength. Even in the days when my cup is dry, I know it will be filled. As some of you have experienced and others watched the process, chemo and radiation not only strive to destroy the cancer cells; they also destroy some of the good cells along the way. I now have experienced the first segment of a roller coaster ride that is designed to bring me to my knees and back again. I’m reminded of a book written by James W. Moore, another
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great author favorite of mine. The book’s title is You can get better or bitter. Maybe you’ve read some of his works: I loved the book entitled “God Was Here and I Was Out To Lunch and another one of my favorites is Yes Lord I have Sinned, But I Have Several Excellent Excuses. The message the author wanted to impart was this: “In the midst of loss – no matter what the loss is that has brought you to your knees, you do have a choice. Even when it seems like everything you had nailed down has come loose. Even in the midst of grief over the loss of a loved one. Even when family turns against family, even when economic losses have knocked our world upside down…we still have a choice.” The book publisher wrote on the back cover these poignant words: “All of us, at one time or another, face sorrow, grief or loss – these challenges spare no one. The question is: How will we respond to these challenges.” While I cannot say I’m doing “great,” I can tell you that you have lifted me up in your prayers and that I can feel each one and thank God for you and for your families. I also want you to know that I have met some of the most wonderful people – those who care for cancer patients – their dedication and their strength of character would make anyone stand and shout “God is Good, All the Time.” Shalom!
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ANITA’S ANIMALS By Jean Sutherland
Pet Stabbings
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e sure to see the latest in doggie products at the end of the article. Imagine if your doctor told you that every year of your life you had to get all your vaccine shots redone. That’s what has been happening to our pets since day one of their life. Now vets worldwide are changing their opinion on this practice. In fact, some vets now believe that pets can go for 7 to 10 years before needing to get booster shots. Many vets believe that Parvo virus shots give the animal lifelong immunity and distemper shots can last 5 to 7 years. Add to this the fact that most pets are indoor pets, only go out occasionally, are rarely exposed to other animals and the need for any shots at all can be very low. For some pets these annual vaccines can be harmful. Some pets can end up with chronic diseases from exposure to these vaccines. Many pets have reactions from the vaccines that show up months or years later. Immune system diseases, joint problems and ear infections can in many cases be traced back to vaccines. Many dogs end up with chronic skin problems from the assault on their immune systems. The American Veterinary Medical Association says, “There is no scientific data to support a recommendation for annual administration of vaccines. Furthermore, re-
peated administration of vaccines may be associated with a higher risk of anaphylaxis and autoimmune diseases”. Make sure your pet leads a healthy life. Good nutritional food and treats as well as exercise can go a long way to help keep their immune system healthy. Flea and tick medicine is also another questionable treatment. Many pet owners no longer use the over the counter flea and tick medicines. With weekly combing and watching for fleas, many can now go years without having to use these medications. Mixing a small amount of yeast and garlic into your pet’s food will go a long way to discouraging fleas. Best of all it’s a natural treatment. Disclaimer: This is not to be used with cats. Having our yards sprayed every few months adds another layer of protection from fleas and mosquitoes. Unfortunately this is not always 100% effective. If you mix in a blender garlic juice with 5 parts of water and then strain, you’ll have an effective treatment that you can spray on your dog. This will protect the dog for 5 to 6 hours. During tick season make sure to rub your hands down your dog’s body daily to ensure they have not picked one up. It’s important to do your own research on vaccines before proceeding. There are many informative websites online that will give you more information and allow you to make an informed decision. It may be wise for you to print out any information that is pertinent and take it with you for your pet’s next checkup. If a vet is trying to push these shots you’ll have the information for backup. This month’s fun product for pets is the “Doggie Fountain”. It provides pets with anytime access to clean and fresh water. http:// www.doggiefountain.com/
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TROPICAL GUILT By Scott Richards
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t was a moonless night with only the stars to guide us. The uneven path was fraught with peril at every turn. Mangy dogs half wild from hunger and dangerously insane from the three hundred years of inbreeding prowled the underbrush growling and snapping at the wind. Thankfully we only dared such a risky undertaking into the village once a week, our nerves couldn’t take more. Anxiety dripped off our brows like a monsoon rain and our hearts beat faster as we neared the clearing. All was dead quiet now save the cicadas and the pounding of the blood in our ears. A few more paces and our objective was in sight, silhouetted against the blue-black sky, dark, huge and silent. But with no cover, we had to approach with the silence of a cat stalking its prey. Under no circumstances could we be caught.
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The social and religious implications would be drastic for our continued presence in the community. From the relative safety of the palms, we waited for the clouds to cloak the brilliant stars that illuminated our tiny South Pacific Island. Everyone in the village of Toula knew everyone else’s business so discretion was paramount. In our typical Tongan village consisting of about thirty-five homes and five churches of different denominations, the inhabitants, were, needless to say, pious to the max. Save for a handful of other lost ex-pats blown off-course, my wife’s long blond hair and our European features invited sufficient scrutiny as it was.
El Ojo del Lago / August 2010
Identification would be simple. We had to strike fast, in and out, guerilla style. In the darkness of our momentary cloud cover, we made our move. The heavy plastic lid creaked louder than anticipated on its jungle-rotted hinges causing us to hesitate, freeze up in fear of discovery. Too late, the trashcan lid was off, no time to rethink the mission, dump the empty bottles of Fosters beer, dark rum and wine and sneak back through the under brush to the safety of our home on the hill. Giggling like kids that had gotten away with something naughty, we finally slowed our pace and heart rate as we gained distance and innocence from the crime scene. The truth was we didn’t have a “wheelie bin” of our own, as our house was too high up the face of the jungle-covered hill. The one, local trash truck could not make it up the dirt path that wound a quarter mile through the bush to service us forcing us to become covert trash depositors. We always burned what paper products accumulated in true island fashion in a rusted, cut down oil drum. But due to our unflagging, California-style devotion to recycling, we were forced to properly
deal with our empties. At first, we began dumping our breakable waste down the hill in the closest can, but then figured the village elders might suspect our immediate neighbors of alcoholism as the clanking and crashing of bottles embarrassingly came tumbling out on collection day. This fear of injustice caused us to devise a new nocturnal strategy for dispersion of our heathen refuse. We would share with the whole village dropping a few empties in all the cans, thereby diluting the evidence of our sinful ways in this extremely religious community. Our sanctimonious diversion had all the ear-marks of genius till one Sunday morning after the daily five am beating of the log drum to waken the village, all hell broke loose down in the churches. Our home, over a thousand yards away, was filled with fire and brimstone from the palm frond pulpits. Could this be about us? The nine Wesleyans in their church were attempting to out preach the eleven Mormons in their place of worship, who were vying for top volume with the handful of Catholics. Not understanding Tongan, or for that matter, the divine message in any language, we feared the
Trinity alarm had gone off and each minister was ferociously barking reminders of his flock’s covenants as he chastised the wicked. Our worst fears had materialized. The evidence of our debauchery was no longer guiltless. Innocent devotees were now under the lash. It was then that it dawned on us that the unusual abundance of glass products, so uncharacteristic of the natural village waste, might cause a town meeting to address the almost over night, widespread drinking problem this poor, fanatically religious community was obviously
under going. Even at just a couple of bucks, beer was still a luxury that most could not afford, nor desired, as Jesus was their rock and salvation. My wife and I, on the other hand, found little comfort in prayer preferring island rum for our sacrament and in amounts that we found refreshing. So to stem any possible recriminations to innocent parties, we planned on extending our nightly deposits to include several distant, but walk able villages to minimize any real local damage our western, Godless appetites might incur.
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STAY HEALTHY! By J. Manuel Cordova, M. D.t mdjmcordova1204@yahoo.com mdjmcordova1204@yahoo.co m www.mdjmcordova.com www.mdjmcordova.co m 376-766-2777
Medicine Of Tomorrow Is Here Today
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ankind has searched for hundreds of years to find cures for diseases. Herbs, animal parts, rituals, manual therapies and faith are all remedies. Fortunately, the focus on New Medicine concepts and Alternative Medicine is opening new doors to join healers and physicians around the world. A sharing of information is occurring like never before in history. Mainstream traditional medicine practiced in the U.S. is becoming passĂŠ. Modern traditional medicine (allopathic medicine) has relied too much on treating diseases after the fact instead of preventing them. If the diagnostic test result does not show something abnormal, many doctors go no further to figure out what is wrong. Medications are used to treat symptoms, but do not always address the cause. Traditional Chinese medicine always takes into consideration the individual patient and designs a special formula to deal with the patient needs; whereas, the majority of Americans are prescribed ‘cook book style’ medications. Unfortunately, the side effects of the medications can result in requiring more medications or even lead to more serious health problems. Taking medications on top of medications is not the answer. In fact, certain medications should never be taken with certain other
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medications. A qualified physician will always examine all of your current medications before prescribing something new. Medicine of the Future will be more of a partnership between the doctor and the patient. The patient will have choices. The biochemistry of the patient will be of primary importance in finding the root cause of the problem. It will focus on repairing tissues and organs with specific nutrients that the body needs instead of using drugs or (often times) surgery. Laser Therapies such as Low Level Laser can be used to stimulate the tissues to regenerate themselves, stimulate circulation and control pain due to trauma or chronic disease such as arthritis. The health practitioner of the future will put special effort on education. The patient must learn to eat healthier and know the principles of good nutrition, as well as the importance of proper pH balance. This will all help to prevent illness and delay the aging process. The Medicine of the Future needs to consider all new technology being used from around the world and provide therapies that are supported by proper research and evidence of suc-
cess. Certain Intravenous Therapies such as Chelation are tools used to clean veins and arteries instead of other invasive procedures. The Medicine of the Future will not discriminate against therapies just because they are not “FDA approved.� The Medicine of the Future will consider the best and most honest option for the Patient, and use whatever is most applicable to regain and maintain physical and mental health. The doctor of the future will have the option of using many functional tests to deal with chronic diseases.
More emphasis will be placed on nutrient testing to see if the body has the needed vitamins, minerals and amino acids which produce enzymes, neurotransmitters, repair cells, etc. All these tools are available today. Only you can make the decision for better health. Find the right person to help you and be diligent with the process. Recovering and maintaining your health requires a commitment, but the rewards are well worth it. STAY HEALTHY!
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Feathered Friends By John Keeling
Golden-fronted Woodpecker
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he golden-fronted woodpecker is the commonest of the woodpeckers we see on the lakeshore. If you visit the LCS gardens, or walk along the beach you are likely to hear the cheerily trilled ‘chirrrr, chirrrr’ above you. Look up and you may see the bird hanging on to the side of the trunk of a tree, working its way upward, all the while seeking insects in the crevices of the bark. They are not shy birds. You will sometimes even see one clinging to the top of a concrete telephone pole, where it will have a good view and perhaps find some insects if it is lucky. This species is found from Texas as far south as Nicaragua, and are year-round residents. At nine inches long they are regarded as mediumsized woodpeckers. To identify the bird, look at the head. The face is buff colored, and in our part of the range the male has the “gold-redorange” sequence of patches at the bill, the cap and the nape, as you can see in the photo above. The wings are barred black and white, while the breast is buff. The female is almost the same, but lacks the red cap, showing only the gold and orange patches. It is not clear whether the ‘golden-fronted’ name refers to the gold around the bill, or the scarcely-seen lemon yellow coloring on the lower belly. In the spring time the male will choose a nesting territory of several acres which it will defend for the duration of the nesting period. It will
mate with a chosen female, and will chip out a nest hole in a living or dead tree some 10 to 20 feet above the ground. The relationship is usually monogamous. The female lays about five eggs which are incubated by the male at night and by the female during the day. After 13 days the eggs hatch and both parents share in the responsibility of feeding the young for the 25 days before they fly, and for a few weeks after that. Sometimes the male will choose to nest in a tall cactus, fence post or a telephone pole. A hundred years ago in the early days of the telephone, it was encouraged in the US to shoot these woodpeckers because their nesting holes seriously damaged the telephone poles that were being erected across the nation. Their diet changes with the season, as occurs with many bird species. In the summer they feed on insects such as ants, flies, beetles, and grasshoppers, supplemented by the occasional small frog or lizard. In the fall, when the young no longer need feeding, the birds may wander extensively to find other food sources such as fruits, berries, nuts and seeds. Woodpeckers have unusually long, barbed tongues designed to retrieve insects that the bird may see or hear deep inside crevices. This tongue is so long that when it is retracted it curls in a circle inside the skull round the right eye. John Keeling and his wife Rosemary lead the ‘Lake Chapala Birding Club’ which is a group of people interested in birds. To receive notices of bird walks etc., write to avesajijic@yahoo.com.
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Hearts at Work —A Column by Jim Tipton
“Living (and Loving) to Age 100”
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ccording to The Centenarian (www.thecentenarian.co.uk) the fastest growing part of the world population is people 100 and older. They now number around 450,000. Currently the US with 72,000 holds the largest number, but Japan at 30,000 is number two and a serious challenger because it has the highest centenarian growth rate in the world—the population of Japanese people over 100 has quadrupled in the past ten years. China, with a much larger population than the United States and Japan combined, has only 7,000 centenarians. Based on her 1888 birth certificate, perhaps the oldest person in the world is Mariam Amash, a Palestinian woman living in northern Israel and now 122 years old. That’s a lot of candles to blow out on that festooned honey cake. Mariam—although it
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es those of us who favor zero makes zeropopulation growth tear out our remaining hair—has given birth to 10 children, and she now has 120 grandchildren, 250 great-grandchildren, and more than 30 great-great-grandchildren. Mariam’s secret to long life? Lots of vegetables and lots of olive oil: “I drink it by the glass.” Mexico has a sizable number of centenarians. One of them, Juan Carlos Caballero, passed away at age 109 only last April in a home for old people in Monterrey, Mexico. The young Juan was a driver for Pancho Villa during the Revolution. Until
shortly before his death Juan walked several kilometers a day. In recent years, Juan has assured them that should social injustice rear its ugly head and should there be another uprising he would “once again take up arms….” Like Juan, most centenarians live physically active lives. Many are still working well into their 80s and 90s. Most are lean; most have never smoked heavily or abused alcohol; most have at least one other longlived close relative; most deal well with stress; most live in non-toxic environments; most have a spiritual focus in their lives; and, I have been convinced by a lovely young lady, most of them read several poems each day. Here at Lakeside more and more people are living into their 90s, some to 100. There is no doubt many of us will become centenarians. But back in the States, those middle-aged and younger are increasingly more likely to live shorter lives. Robin McKie, Science Editor for The Observer, says that “Twenty years ago, the US, the richest nation on the planet, led the world’s longevity league. Today, American women rank only 19th, while males can manage only 28th place, alongside men from Brunei.” Regardless, I live at Lakeside and
intend to live at least to 100. How do I know? Last summer I visited Doña Sofia de Garza, a famous curandera who lives near Colima, to ask her how to do this. I was fascinated by Doña Sofia’s gold bangles, both on her ears and on her wrists, and by her full (and fabled) bosom ready to burst out of her gauzy Mexican blouse, and by her skirt, a deep and sultry red, and by her eyes, so deliciously dark with tiny flecks of gold, and yes, by her mouth--which at age seventy was still remarkably desirable. Incredibly, she looked like only a slightly older version of the gypsy girl played by Salma Hayek in The Hunchback. In less than thirty minutes of consultation, Doña Sofia divined the solution and assured me that indeed I could live to be more than onehundred. The secret, she whispered to me, through that delectable mouth that would remain with me in imagination for many months, was to love women of all ages, to kiss them on their lips as often as possible and as passionately as each situation permitted…and to pay her only $400 pesos for everything she had just revealed Jim Tipton to me.
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In Ajijic Where everyone’s from South Dakota Except my neighbors, Jim and Rhoda. Where anytime you hear a WOOF! You cast your gaze upon a roof. Where gringos mangle Spanish I-No tengo dance—forgive the pun. Where burros saben mas que tu, And several even sound like you. Where anytime you might request a Rain check from the next fiesta. Where prior to shopping please arrange To have a pocketful of change.
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Where Señor Tope reigns supreme. “Slow down,” he says. “Enjoy the dream.” Where tethered horses congregate And make the hapless autos wait. Where roosters, egrets, hummingbirds Can leave you at a loss for words.
Where sidewalks, curbs, and cobblestones Conspire to break your footsy bones.
Where Shakespeare names like Flavio, Aurora, and Octavio Are pleasantly simpatico.
Where breezes blowing off the lake Invite retirement for their sake.
Mark Sconce In Ajijic
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Phone: (376) 766-4774 or 765-3676 to leave messages Email: kdavis987@gmail.com PAST EVENTS: Throughout July, the old Train Station in Chapala (Centro Cultural Gonzalez Gallo) has displayed trains of World War II. The display included photos and models, some familiar in appearance and some European models that reflected the Art Deco era, sleek and sexy in their styling. Uniforms were also displayed, and the feeling of Nazi domination of that time, though subtle, was One of model WWII trains on display at evident. The story about the the Old Train Station train station goes back to the beginning of the last century. An abundance of wealthy people began developing several projects. The station was built by a civil engineer in the 1920s. The ChapalaGuadalajara train ran a busy route daily–an engine, five red wagons with red velvet seats–carrying passengers morning and afternoon to and from Chapala and La Capilla where connections could be made to Mexico City. Then, in 1925 Lake Chapala rose a full meter and flooded the station. The train operated for only a short time, not only because of the flood, but because a paved road was built from Guadalajara to Chapala through Ixtlahuacán de Membrillos. In 1926 railroad operations ceased. Today it is a museum, offering shows of art, music, anthropology and history. In July there was a Garden Seed Party held in Chapala, along with a Veggie Potluck and a movie on the topic. Following a Seed and Stuff Swap using garden tools, discussion focused on Bio-dynamic Gardening: problems, needs and resources. If natural gardening is something you know, or want to know, contact Lea Ament at 7654779 or ladyofthelake1111@ hotmail.com. CASA (Culinary Arts Society of Ajijic) awarded an early BING to Mary Ann Waite, celebrating her 1st place dish, Mustard Roasted Beef & Vegetables with Horseradish Sauce. A BING award requires winning first place three times within a year. The theme at this meeting was French food with two categories, a French main dish or a French dessert. Mary Ann Waite won 1st place in the main dish category, followed by Cheryl Davis for her ShorCASA winners: Mary Ann Waite, tribs of Beef Bourguinon with Cheryl Davis, Monica Malloy Lentils while third place was won by Monica Malloy for her Stuffed Sea Bass in Puff Pastry. Karen Rowell won People’s Choice for her Cuisses de Volaille aux Cerises, Olives Verts Sauce Porto. After these scrumptious entrees, French desserts wowed the crowd and the judges who awarded Lydia Cortez 1st place for her Delice Aux Mangues et aux Bananes. Crepes Cerese with Cherry Rum Sauce won second place for Phil Posner while third place went to first time presenter Nancy Webb for her Espresso Glazed Profiteroles. People’s Choice went to Christine L’Ecluse for her Strawberry Croquembouche. Hugues Coude du Foresto, a French citizen who lives with his family in Ajijic, shared his knowledge of French wines and their histories. Known as Hugo, he was
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a consultant for the Pernod Ricard Group before starting his own wine and liquor distribution company. All who would like to join in learning about, preparing and enjoying good food are encouraged to call Patrick Winn at 766-4842. He can also be reached by email at patriciowinn@ hotmail.com. He would be delighted to invite those interested to come as his guest to the next monthly meeting. EVENTS TO COME: August 5 at 3 p.m. the Cruz Roja BBQ will begin at the Country Club de Chapala. There will be great food, music, dancing and plenty of fun. Raffle tickets will be drawn at 5 Cruz Roja BBQ and p.m. for big winnings, and you do not have to be there to win: 1st place is $15,000 pesos; Lottery – Be a Winner! 2nd place is $7,000 pesos; and 3rd place is $3,000 pesos. Raffle tickets are still available for $100 pesos each from Cruz Roja representatives at their table at the Lake Chapala Society, at Trattoria Axixic Restaurant or from any Cruz Roja volunteer. November 12 – 14 the Feria Maestros del Lago (Artisan Fair) will return to the Chapala Yacht Club (Club de Yates) in Chapala. More details later. Just keep it in mind and maybe mark your calendar. Multiple Events: The American Legion post #7 schedule for August: Sundays: 12 – 3 p.m. Legion grill burgers Aug 4 – No US Consulate Aug 6 – 8 a.m. – 1 p.m. Yard Sale Aug 12 – 5 p.m. – Auxiliary event: Smarter than a 5th Grader Aug 14 – 3 p.m. Maple Leaf At the Feria, Prison Dolls, Club: bring botanas Aug 21 – 5 p.m. Candlelight each unique, Dinner Down home good will make Aug 26 – 3 p.m. Lone Star and service with a Aug 27 – 5 p.m. Facility event: their first smile Night appearance Sausage For information, call 765-2259 or www.americanlegionchapalapost7.org In early July the Lake Chapala Society hosted a Book Fair and Bake Sale. The bake sale table offered such treats as homemade ice cream, pies, muffins and cakes. Tables were also set up on the patio and around the coffee bar, covered with books – an appealing and accessible arrangement for authors and buyers to talk with each other. Videos and DVDs were on sale, as well as books from the library. Rain may have discouraged some potential visitors, but those who turned out had a chance to find excellent reading material by local authors. Mayita Levy proudly offers the In the photo of Mayita Levy, notice cookbook A La Mesa there are brochures on that table from HumanaMente, the voice for mental health in Jalisco, a worthy cause. For more information on LCS, check www. lakechapalasociety.org. Lakeside Little Theatre news: The Lakeside Little Theatre thanks facilitator Graham Miller and all those involved in the Summer Studio 2010 “Developing Your Imagination & Creativity” Acting Workshop and presentation. Many new and past performers showed their talent to enthusiastic audiences. Audition announcement for LLT’s second show of Season 46: Blithe Spirit, written by Noel Coward and directed by Shirley Appelbaum. Auditions for this classic, supernatural comedy are scheduled for August 20-21. Five women and five men are
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The
Spanish were amazed to find that Moctezuma’s palace amenities included a fairly comprehensive zoo. It should not have been surprising. Animals played several important roles in the lives of early Mesoamericans; as food, objects of fear and worship, even as pets. Game animals were lured and conciliated by the sympathetic hunting magic of such rituals as the Yaqui Deer Dance. Predators were propitiated and kept at bay by similar rites. Many gods took on animal aspects. Ce Atl Topiltzin, as Feathered Serpent, Dog God and Monkey God, was a small menagerie in himself. There was often a personal association as well. Since many calendrical day names were animals and every person bore the name of his birthday, most people had animal names like 8-Deer, 13-Rabbit etc.. Furthermore, everyone was believed to be born with an invisible and mysterious ‘other,’ an alter-ego which frequently took animal form. There is little wonder, then, that animals were a favorite subject of artists. We find them everywhere, painted on walls
and dishes, carved in stone, wood or bone, cast in precious metals, woven in textiles and molded in clay. They took the form of monumental statues, ritual vessels, incense burners, masks and even wheeled pull-toys. Tiny figurines found in graves at Tlatilco and dating from 800-500 BC show women cuddling pets.
Jaguar
This big cat, as the most fearsome of predators, was a symbol of power. Princes ruled from jaguar thrones and elite warrior/knights proudly bore the name and wore jaguar skins into battle. The fourth world in the Maya creation myths was known as the Jaguar Sun and as the Zapotec god, Tepeyollotl, he was believed to control earthquakes. Naturally, his image is everywhere and this polychrome clay statue from Oaxaca is only one exam pie.
Monkey
The Mayan Popol Vuh (Book of Creation) often mentions monkeys and it was considered a guarantee of good luck and prosperity to be born under his day sign, Ozomatli. As the Wind God aspect of Quetzalcoatl, he was worshipped throughout Central America. This example, about two feet tall, was unearthed during construction of the Mexico city Metro and has attributes of both. The coiled platform and the long, sinuous tail represent the Plumed Serpent while the bird beak, with which he creates the wind, identifies him as Ehecatl.
Dog
The hairless dog was
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bred as a table delicacy but the little animals also guided the dead on their underworld journey. Though the Dog God, Xolotl, was yet another aspect of Quetzalcoatl the most common representations come from tombs. Of these, the most charming are the lifesized specimens produced in Colima (300 BC-300 AD). Modeled in clay in very lifelike poses and finished with polished red slip, they often doubled
of his cargo.
Pine Martin
The martin played no significant role in mythology and was not an important food source
as containers for offerings of food or drink.
Coyote
Oddly enough, the coyote was associated by the Aztecs with human sexuality and fertility. This small statue is 15 inches in height and comes from Tenochtitlan (AD 1428-1521). With his thickly layered fur, perky ears and lolling tongue, he is lovingly and realistically executed. Judging from his expression, he appears to find the whole idea of human worship highly amusing.
Rabbit
For most Mesoamericans the rabbit was associated with lunar worship because that was what they saw in the markings on the moon. The Aztecs, however, identified him with the gods of pulque, whose Nahua name translates as “400 Rabbits.” This playful bunny from Tenochtitlan probably served as a capacious container for the potent brew and looks as if he just might have imbibed a little too much Continued on page 41
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co south of Veracruz and dates from pre-Totonac times (AD 400-700). The angry pose, teeth bared and back arched, is quite typical of these tiny, but fiercely territorial, animals.
Mouse
The talented potters of Western Mexico seemed fascinated by all life forms. Even a tiny mouse, like this but t h i s little creature is irresistible. Very little is known about him except that he was found near the Rio Blan-
Bat
Birds, especially the domesticated turkey, were important food sources and many were either associated with gods or worshipped in their own right. The eagle was the totem of one sect of warrior knights, the Aztec War God’s name translates as “Hummingbird on the Left” and the owl, who often accompanied him, was also thought to be a harbinger of the Death God’s approach. This urn from a burial in Monte Alban (AD 600-900) represents the Bat God. Such effigies were commonly placed
one found in a proto-classic (300 BC300 AD) shaft tomb in Colima, was modeled with consumate skill and fidelity. He is about six inches long with the polished red slip finish typical of that area. Despite the strange anomaly of the spout on his back, one can almost see him scurrying furtively about in search of crumbs.
Grasshopper
No form of life seemed too insignificant to inspire the artist; even
the lowly insect was well represented. The butterfly seems to have been associated with the Feathered Serpent cult and the walls of one temple in Teotihuacan are covered with them. Beetles and spiders, even cockroaches, were also popular, usually as painted decorations on walls or dishes but sometimes actually modelled in clay. This magnificent red stone grasshopper was reputedly found in 1875 during the construction of Chapultepec Castle. Chapultepec is the Nahua word for “Grasshopper Hill.”
Opossum
One of the few species actually domesticated, the tlacuache was, and still is, a popular Mesoamerican pet. In Post Classic times he, like the rabbit, came to be associated with the Pulque cult. This anthropomorphic
above tomb entries and seem to have served as guardians.
Crab
Marine life has always been an important food source and was certainly not neglected in pre-Columbian art. Fish, squid, shellfish, turtles and frogs abound in paintings, carvings ceramics and jewelry. Moctezuma’s welcoming gift to Cortez was a magnificent necklace of golden shrimp. Surprisingly, this menacing looking crab comes from the inland valley of Oaxaca and dates from the Mixtec era of domination (AD 1250-1521). figure is hollow with a large opening at the top and one arm serving as a spout. It comes from a Huastec burial (AD 1200-1521) and probably held a funeral offering of pulque to ease the journey to the underworld.
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needed for this play. Performances are November 6-14. For scripts and information, contact Shirley Appelbaum at sandyappelbaum@yahoo.com. If you would like to volunteer behind the scenes, the LLT is always looking for people to train in lighting, sound, wardrobe, props, make-up, stage managing and other positions. Contact Don Chaloner at 7661975 or email at 77dondo@ gmail.com. Lakeside Little Theatre’s Season Ticket Renewals and New Sales Event for At the back patio Angel Bar prior to the Season 46, 2010-2011 is performance July 9th on Tuesday & Wednesday, September 7-8 in the LLT Lobby from 10-1. The Season Ticket price is $800 pesos for six shows. Individual tickets are $150 pesos. Season ticket holders who DO NOT WISH TO RENEW, please notify Paula McTavish at mctavish@prodigy.net.mx or 766-0954 (leave message) as soon as possible. Season Ticket Holders are invited to the LLT Members’ Kickoff Party September 18 from 5-7 p.m. The Lakeside Little Theatre encourages and welcomes everyone interested in acting, new or experienced, to attend auditions for any of this season’s plays. Love in Action Center has reported that two vegetable gardens were planted, thanks to a visiting team of dedicated volunteers, young people and parents from a United Church in Wilsonville, Oregon. Work was done under the supervision of Joe deLeon, project coordinator for LIA. Joe stated, “I am very proud of the project. The Oregon group did a terrific job on the gardens and irrigation system, and they also donated 10 soccer balls for the kids.” One of the children from LIA has become director of a rehab center to help addicted people get their lives back. Having grown up in a barrio where drugs were too readily available and wasted too many lives, this young man decided to make help just as available to his friends and neighbors. Love in Action is a home for orphaned young children. They started in Tepehua, the barrio on top of the mountain in central Chapala. Now they have a facility, also in central Chapala, where there is room for the gardens that were just planted and, more especially, room for children to learn, play and grow. You can read more about this facility at www.loveinactioncenter.org. MAS MUSICA (Music Appreciation Society) gets the 2010-2011 concert season off to an exciting start with a gratis Gala Kick-off Party for Season Ticket holders on October 15 at La Nueva Posada. The soprano, Jillian Cox, from San Antonio, Texas, will perform opera arias and popular songs as patrons enjoy wine and botanas on the lovely garden terrace of the hotel’s lakeside restaurant, starting at 4:30 p.m. Season tickets will be sold September 7 – October 15 at the Tickets booth at LCS. Prices remain the same as last year at $1500 pesos, $1200 pesos and $1000 pesos. All performances will be at the Auditorio de la Ribera in La Floresta. The scheduled season is: Oct. 26 – Flamenco Dance Gala with Spanish dancer Antonio Jimenez and his talented ensemble of three dancers and four musicians who enthralled the audience last year. Nov. 16 – Jalisco Classical Ballet Company presents a Suite from the “Nutcracker” and several “Pas de Dix o Quatra” a Stunning evening of dance Dec. 14 – Chris Wilshire and Jim Collums with a guest his 18 piece Chamber Orchestra delight guests with unforgetat Open Circle
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table performances of the works of Corelli, Grieg, Holst, and Copeland Jan. 13 – Jalisco Philharmonic Orchestra, Guadalajara’s world-class symphony with an “Enchanted Evening in Paris – 1910” Feb. 15 – Bob Milne, Ragtime and Jazz piano virtuoso and historian, is sure to hold us spellbound during this final exciting event of the concert season MAS MUSICA is always happy to welcome new volunteers to help with ticket sales, hospitality and other concert related duties. Please contact Beverly at 7656409, bjely49@hotmail.com. Also, refer to web site MASajijic.com. Open Circle meets on the LCS back patio each Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Coffee and tea are offered at 10 a.m. along with little sandwiches. The guest speaker on June 4 was Jim Collums who read some of his short stories. The schedule for August is: Aug. 8 Dr. Corbova – chelation water therapy Aug. 15 Chuck Giles – story telling for caregivers Aug. 22 Robert Krakoff – computer games and the brain Aug. 29 David Truly VIVA! La Musica Season tickets (auditorium, 7:30 p.m.) are still for sale at LCS (10 – 12): Single tickets are $250 pesos for members and $300 pesos for non-members. Add $50 pesos for the opera. Aug. 19 Issac Ramirez, cello; Andres Sarre, piano Sep. 14 Ensemble Filarmonica: Luciano Perez; soprano, Dolores Moreno Note: this is a Tuesday. Oct. 21 Rigoletto, a fully staged opera, conducted by Luís Rodriquez VIVA will hold auditions for promising music students seeking Viva educational grants on August 24 at St. Andrews Church. Members are welcome to attend and listen. For information, please call Rosemary at 766-1801, rosemarykeeling@gmail.com. Sometimes we see signs in Spanish that make us smile or relate to something back home. Here is one found along the edge of the lake. “Please do not disturb the plants, the gardeners or the rocks. Thank you.” Every so often someone asks me if I feel Opera Rigoletto safe in Mexico. They are, of course, concerned about cartel wars and the government’s ongoing battle to break them up. Besides knowing that the vast majority of those battles are near the border, I feel at least as safe in Mexico as I did when I lived in the USA or in Canada. In California there was a battle taking place in Los Angles between blacks and another minority group, and police were turning cars around to keep them out of dangerous neighborhoods. That happened more than once. And in New York while I was crossing Manhattan, young men attempted to open my car doors when I stopped for a red light. I hit the master lock and the gas pedal. I got away. In British Columbia there was one neighborhood I refused to drive through at night when I was alone, but there were safe alternative routes where I had no qualms. The problem was rapid immigration and people without the language skills needed to work. They formed gangs, but in time they adapted. Here, in Mexico, I have been advised to keep moving when there are federal troops dealing with hostiles. I felt protected. Some people think I am naïve – at my age, naïve does not apply. But I do think this is a rapidly developing country with a promising future. There are always problems that go with change. Lakeside, are we safe? If we pay attention, we should be. I believe that applies everywhere. I like it here, and I’m staying. There are many organizations here that help people. Why not get involved and share your skills and your warmth?
A miniature garden
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HOW RUGS GET SOLD By Margaret Van Every vanevery@comcast.nett José the rug vendor by the side of the road will tell you he comes from Oaxaca where his family raises the sheep, dyes the wool, and weaves the rugs. Pick your favorite, says he, gesturing at myriad rugs of clashing hues, stacked and hanging, clamoring for adoption. Take them home and try them out; exchange them if you will. He studies you intently, sidles close and murmurs guapa in your ear, then gauges whether flattery has enhanced his rug’s appeal. If not, he offers a discount specially for you, 10 percent off in exchange for... a beso. You wonder if your Spanish or your hearing is amiss. You ponder if he’ll offer next the whole-rug discount, but instead you present your cheek and then to your surprise he finds your lips. And now you exit this bizarre stage, giddy, with a rolled-up rug beneath your wing as over and again you replay the scene, savoring a phantom impression on the mouth that lingers like Oaxaca heat.
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Anyone A nyone C Can an Train Train n Their Their r Dog Dog By Art Hess
I
’m often asked when you should start training your dog and I always answer “the day you bring your dog home.” Now before someone gets all bent out of shape, let’s talk about training. Webster’s simplest definition says “to rear and instruct” and if we accept this concept then we have to start as soon as possible. Obviously some pups arrive as young as six to eight weeks and older dogs can be a year or somewhat older. Either way if we are “to rear and instruct” it’s never too early. There’s more to training than the standard sit, come, down, heel, stay routine. Teaching all of the things that are required in order to create a well mannered dog that is going to be a pleasure to be around, requires as much or more structured effort than just teaching the so called basic obedience. The entire process of exposing our puppy to all of these additional experiences is known as socializing. The experts that study these things have determined that the first 18 to 20 weeks (4 to 5 months) form the most critical period. This is the time when the puppy learns how to meet people plus all the wonderful and sometime scary things that go along with them. It may be a hair dryer, a leaf blower or all the way up to motorcycles and big trucks and busses. Oh yes let’s not forget those pesky cohetes. This is when your puppy learns how to ride in the car without going ballistic and how to walk on a loose leash and walk past dogs and kids playing with balls and to sit and wait when horses are passing and to not bark rudely when company comes and all those countless
other lifetime experiences. It is suggested that during this time our puppy should meet 100 different people. At best this is a big challenge and probably the easiest way is to take the puppy to public places where you can have him meet people. Sometimes we have to explain to strangers that we are schooling a puppy and would appreciate if they would quietly meet and greet our dog. Our vet will discourage taking the puppy into a public place until he has had his second multi shot but common sense can prevail. Obviously you’ll avoid the puppy on the street that has a runny nose and crusty eyes. And mange and most of those types of problems are pretty obvious. These are situations that you’ll simply avoid. This also is not the time for puppy to meet the really aggressive and pushy types at the play park but again I work on the premise that most people have enough common sense to be a pack leader and not a bubble head. If puppy isn’t exposed to these things in a calm and confidence building manner during the socializing period you can be assured that problems will jump up and bite you in the backside as you struggle through your first year with these challenges. The socializing process isn’t all that mystical but it requires time. In fact it’s quite simple because all you have to do is make sure your puppy gets a couple of hours a day experiencing life and when something new pops up he’s encouraged through the experience with a calmly assertive attitude so you build his confidence and discourage unfavorable actions. Remember if you hit a tope or just have a question email me at arthedogguy@yahoo.com LOOSE LEASHES HAPPY TAILS.
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Art Hess
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LETTER TO THE EDITOR
D
ear Sir: No one has done more for the local cats than Barb Hess. She is an exceptional person and truly a cat lover. I am thankful that all the shelter cats are tested for Leukemia and I wish that others did this too. Maybe they do, I haven’t inquired. However I must speak out and say that Feline Leukemia can be cured. I have done it. You can too. Three of my cats tested positive; fourteen months later they were negative. The cure can be tedious and time consuming but it is not especially expensive or difficult. It does not involve drugs or even a trip to the vet. There are several places on the web providing information but I used a diet prescribed by a vet in Mpls. I never even met the man. He explained it all in a phone call. I am good at following directions so it worked. He had several positive cats. He promised me that my cats would be fine and he was correct.
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Not everyone wants to make the necessary changes but I believe that cat owners should at least be informed that they have options. The shelter that I worked with in MN was reluctant to acknowledge my results altho they were the ones that test my cats positive and later tested them negative. They saw the proof but seemed resistant to the necessary information. I have often wondered why. Alicia Macnamara 766-4882
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Heart’s Desire A short story by Jim Tipton
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t age seventy-five, Peter Larson gave away or threw out most of his old life, packed up what was left into a few boxes, got into his old red Pontiac and drove south, to Mexico, to begin a new life. It was in late spring, toward the end of the dry season in the tropical mountains of central Mexico, when he discovered Chapala, a little town on the shores of a large lake. He loved Chapala. He loved his tiny Mexican house on Zaragoza Street, only three blocks behind the plaza. He loved having enough money to live on. Since his rent was only $300 each month, his Social Security allowed him to live in satisfactory comfort. He was even able to hire a middleaged Mexican woman living on his block to clean for him two mornings a week for a total of $20 a week. He had little to clean but nevertheless he liked the thought of having a cleaning lady. One summer morning, after the season of rain had begun in earnest, Peter woke up early feeling thoroughly refreshed. He breathed in the moist air, he listened to the drops hitting the red tile roof, he stretched, he patted the still taut muscles on his tummy, he smiled. After a long shower, he stood before his mirror and stared, suddenly shocked at how shaggy his white hair and beard had become. He had not had them cut since he had come to Mexico. He had noticed, though, in his morning walks to the plaza where he bought what food he needed at the Mercado, that there were lots of little shops on Juarez, the street that ran behind the plaza; and so this particular morning, searching on that same street, he discovered Estética Pelo Feliz, where through the open door he saw a young señorita seated in her chair, watching a television mounted high in the corner. “Disponible?” he said, in his best beginning Spanish. “Si, Señor, pase.” She stood up and waved him to her chair. He liked the warm seat. That morning as she cut both his hair and his beard, he studied her soft lips, which were heart-shaped, or at least like a flattened-out heart, rounded nicely at the bottom.
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On her fresh white shirt, embroidered in dark red, was her name: Jazmín. Jazmín bent directly in front of him to shave off much of his beard and then to shape it with scissors. His face in the mirror looked younger and younger. It was difficult for Peter not to look into Jazmín’s brown eyes. She was, at the most, twenty years old. Jazmín’s breasts accidentally brushed against his bare arm as she leaned over him, comb in one hand, scissors in the other. Peter realized he had not been touched since he had come to Mexico. Or maybe much longer than that. He felt his heart leap. Peter… and Jazmín… what a pair, he thought. He had read that Mexican girls liked older men. The following week Peter returned, wanting the beard still shorter. He showed her how much by holding his thumb and forefinger slightly apart. Smiling, Jazmín accommodated Peter. He liked everything about her estética, her salon, except the name, Pelo Feliz, “Happy Hair.” Peter thought that because of those heartshaped lips on the face of the lovely Jazmín he would re-name it Estética Heart’s Desire. A few more days passed and Peter returned, again demonstrating with his fingers that he wanted the beard still shorter. Jazmín laughed and led him to her chair, taking a lot of time to trim what little was left but still leaving the pretense of a beard. Jazmín realized the old man was lonely. “Muy guapo,” she said. Handsome? Peter hadn’t been
touched in a long time but it was years since a woman had said he was handsome. This time when he tried to pay her and leave her a big tip, Jazmín waved his hand away. “Está bien,” she said. He walked over to the plaza feeling his almost bare face. It was beginning to rain. He sat down on a wet iron bench and looked up to the sky. It felt good, the rain falling on his face. He remembered how much he loved to watch the rain falling on the windshield when he was with a girl at the Starlight Drive-In Theater in the 1950s. He imagined watching Creature from the Black Lagoon with Jazmín. As the huge creature… half human, half monster…rose out of the Amazon, Peter would turn the speaker box down low and pull Jazmín closer. “It’s so big,” Jazmín would squeal. Frightened, she would turn her face up toward his, run her hands expertly over his freshly shaved skin, and then Peter would see those heart-shaped lips slightly open, and kiss them. It was raining harder in the plaza now, but still Peter could hear the sucking sound of those thick wind-
shield wipers on that 1948 Buick Roadster V-8: Thaw-whump, thawwhump, thaw-whump. Or was that his own heart beating…thaw-whump, thaw-whump, thaw-whump…? Well, he thought, one pump is about the same as another. Peter closed his eyes, opened his mouth wide, and tipped his head back to catch the rain. The drops were large, like milk. There would be time enough when the rain stopped to go find shelter. Then he would buy one of those hard rolls with the chewy centers that the Mexicans call bolillos and eat it slowly along with a cup of coffee laced with cream and sugar and cinnamon. Satisfied, he would walk back to his clean house on Zaragosa Street. Everything was so green. Everything grew so fast in the rainy season. He would check his beard in the mirror to see whether it had grown since he had left Yazmín. In the afternoon he would walk over to Heart’s Desire for another trim. Maybe all of it should come off this time. Life had never been so good.
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Jim Tipton
Saw you in the Ojo 51
A MONTH IN PERU Part One
By Mel Goldberg
Arequipa and Colca Canyon
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e flew from Lima on a Lan Peru flight to Arequipa sometimes called the White City because so many buildings are constructed of white, volcanic stone. Central to the city is the Plaza de Armas, the main square, dominated by the nineteenth century La Catedral, the only cathedral in Peru to stretch the entire length of a plaza. Around the square are also two-story buildings housing shops, many with restaurants above. After shopping and taking photographs, we lunched on a balcony overlooking the square. After lunch we visited the San-
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ta Catalina Convent, a Cloister built in the seventeenth Century, and still home to about 20 nuns (there were 500 in centuries past). We went back in time as we entered and saw the patios and gardens. The nuns live in a section of the Convent which is their entire physical world. We had dinner at a local restaurant and my son Michael tried a Peruvian delicacy called cuy (guinea pig). It was served whole, splayed and breaded on a plate. I tried a taste, but there is not much meat on this small rodent, although is has been revered for centuries
by native Peruvians. My meal of choice was alpaca steak, similar to arrechera but not quite as tender. No visit to Arequipa would be complete without seeing the museum of the ice maiden mummy. Momia Juanita is not a mummy in the Egyptian sense. She is the frozen body of a 12–14 year old Inca girl who died between 1450 and 1480 and is preserved in her frozen state in the museum. She was discovered in 1995 near the top of Mount Ampato by anthropologist Johan Reinhard and his Peruvian climbing partner Miguel Zarate. When they climbed Ampato to take pictures of the eruption of nearby volcano Sabancaya, they discovered an Inca burial site unearthed by the eruption. Juanita was thought to be an offering to the mountain deity of Ampato, in the belief her spirit would become deified and worshiped by local indigenous peoples. After a day viewing the ice maiden, we ate dinner on a balcony restaurant overlooking the Plaza and listened to Peruvian music sung in Aymara, a local language. We opted for something more filling than cuy. We ate Papa a la Huancaina, potatoes covered in a cheesy, slightly spicy yellow turmeric sauce served on top of lettuce and Lomo Saltado, strips of steak sautéed in soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, chilies, onions and tomatoes, served over a bed of rice. We retired early since we had an 8 AM start the next morning to visit Canyon de Colca. TOCOLCA CANYON Our private guide met us early at our hotel and we departed on the four hour drive to the Colca Canyon, one of the deepest canyons in the world at 3180 meters (10,433 feet). As we left the city along narrow cobblestone streets, we marveled at the magnificent views of the three volcanoes, Misti, Chachani and Pichu Pichu, which overlook the city. The narrow, winding road climbed high into the Andes, crossing Pampa Cañahuas in the Aguada Blanca National Reserve. Herds of vicuñas and alpacas, prized for their soft wool coats, wander throughout the reserve. The highest point of the road, 4350 meters (14,272 feet), afforded unparalleled views of pre-Columbian terraces, still being cultivated by
descendants of the Aymara, whose life has changed little since Inca times. When we arrived at Colca Valley, we were told to rest, chew coca leaves, and drink coca tea to acclimate us to the altitude. The scenery at this 14,000 foot altitude was magnificent and we experienced the breathlessness of the high altitude. We left early in the morning for the Cruz del Condor, Condor’s Cross, considered the best viewpoint to watch these biggest flying birds in the world can soaring over the peaks, ascending from the valley on early-morning thermals. We were not alone. Hundreds had gathered, hoping to view the huge birds as they circle, looking for carrion. Unfortunately, after a wait of several hours, our condor-viewing experience was limited to one lone condor above us at a height almost too great for our telephoto lenses. We left Cruz del Condor, ate lunch in the village of Sumbay and started the three hour bus ride across the highlands to the town of Puno on Lake Titicaca. www.authormelgoldberg.com
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Saw you in the Ojo 53
A Cold Killing By Mel Goldberg Rolemi Publishers, 2010, 118 Pages Available locally at Diane Pearl Colecciones and at Coffee y Bagels Reviewed by James Tipton
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akeside author Mel Goldberg has penned and now published a collection of eight murder mysteries done in classic style, usually opening with the discovery of a body (“Something terrible has happened in compartment 35”), followed by clues that too obviously lead to a particular suspect, followed by clues which themselves become suspect, until the careful protagonist uncovers overlooked clues that suddenly establish beyond doubt the villain. Classic murder mysteries follow this formula, and it is a formula that has appealed to sophisticated readers for almost two hundred years. With good reason. In addition to the basic elements of a good story—situation, complication, resolution—the mystery novel tickles at the intellect, drawing us into “figuring it out” on our own. The genre was propelled into high popularity by Arthur Conan Doyle with his creation of the Sherlock Holmes stories (56 short stories and four novelettes between 1887 and 1927). Mel Goldberg’s protagonist, Aaron Guerevich, attended the Schechter Jewish Day School in Chicago, studied Hebrew, considered the Yeshiva (advanced studies in Jewish thought), and is familiar with books like Maimonides Guide of the Perplexed. As a young man, he decided “I could honor my mitzvot [Mosaic law] better as a cop than as a student.” In the eight stories in A Cold Killing, Guerevich is a detective working for the police department in
Scottsdale, Arizona. Guerevich’s S d l A i G i h’ attention to details, particularly details that others pass by, has made him the man to call. Detective heroes who go it alone, though, are usually less interesting to us than detective heroes who have companions…who come to their aid with new ideas, who are sounding boards, and sometimes a lot more. The detective-and-the-companion allows the author to develop the story through dialogue…and then we as readers listen in. Thus, Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes has his Dr. John Hamish Watson (“Watson,” with whom he shares a flat); John D. MacDonald’s Travis McGee has his analytical Dr. Meyer (“Just ‘Meyer,’ please”); Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot has his easily fooled (but lovable) companion Arthur Hasting; and Mel Goldberg’s Detective Aaron Guerevich has his (not so easily fooled, but very lovable), fiancée, Ann Berendt, “a forensic scientist who studied in Edinborough and London. Ann is able to dig up information and perform laboratory tests, but she is also able to point out to Guerevich, after a pleasurable time in bed, that he has whipped cream in his ear. Like all fine mystery writers who follow “the formula,” Goldberg wisely offers us lots of “variations on a theme,” so that rather than tire of one similar story after another we are instead eager to plunge into the next story, not at all similar to the preceding one.
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Saw you in the Ojo 55
Raging Against Old Age By Bill Franklin
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aging against old age is stupid but I can’t help it. Old age won’t leave me alone so why should I let it alone. Not only do I feel like a corpse (and am mad about it) I have mirror issues. When I look in the mirror I’m not there. Some old guy is standing in for me, some white haired guy I don’t recognize. This can’t be me. But if it is, what have I done to myself? What did I do to my inner child? Some impostor has dressed him up in old man clothes. I have disappeared. I am nowhere to be found. I’m like that TV show “Topper.” Except Topper is alive and these young, handsome ghosts are bugging him. You can’t find me in a mirror but there are still plenty of young people around. Lousy young people are bopping about having the time of their lives. And they get to look like
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they think they do. And They can walk fast. And They can laugh out loud and They do it just about all the time. And They seem to be in a perpetual state of giddy. If I didn’t know any better I would assume the natural state of man is giddy. So let me define life according to how I see it. There are young people who are giddy, and then there are old people who think mirrors aren’t doing their job. This is not a fine state of affairs. Don’t young people know that giddy is just rubbing it in. And
walking fast is rubbing it in. And any bouts of joy, that’s rubbing it in too. I find myself secretly glad that we are leaving them this huge deficit. So what if we screw with the earth a little and toss some oil in gulfs. Let young giddy people giddy up and fix it. I’m busy having issues with my mirror. And I don’t think my generation is getting enough credit for the sexual revolution. We upped and flaunted it all and came up with sexual liberation. We got our hands on The Pill and we have had the wind at our backs (sometimes literally) ever since. But do you think young people care we blazed a trail so they can act like rabbits? Do young people come up to me and say, Hey we got it on last night big time, Thanks. No, not once. Not once has some beautiful couple who spent the night mating come up to anybody from my generation and tipped their hat. When I was a kid they taught us about Ponce de Leon. We laughed at him for thinking Florida water could help. Nothing helps. Priests and ministers die at the same age as their sinful flocks. Nothing, not purity, not ignorance of the law, nothing works. Defining being six-
ty-one as middle age doesn’t help-61 plus 61 is 122. I’m doomed. It doesn’t help to know that the universe is going to get old someday too. The outlook for our Sun is bleak. It’s going to fizzle out. Darkness at the break of noon, a shadow evens a silver spoon... it’s bleak. So I joined a gym. I have money taken out of my account every month so I can spin on a bike going nowhere. Which is how I slow down time. I can’t stop time but 20 minutes on the bike to nowhere feels like a small lifetime.
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Saw you in the Ojo 57
GRINGAS & GUACAMOLE By Gail Nott
Baja Fruit Flies
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wo of the post-pubescent Federales approached the car, motioning with their guns for me to pull to the left. As I checked the rear and side mirrors, I noticed there were no other cars, either stopped or entering the checkpoint. A pile of sandbags to my right housed the usual youngster with a machine gun. When I drove along side a stone hut, two men wearing masks appeared in the doorway. I couldn’t discern if what they held in their hands were guns or not. As my adrenalin started to pump, I considered putting the gas pedal to the floor and taking my chances on being shot. I had driven over 500 miles down the Baja without incident; being robbed or perhaps killed was not on my agenda. One of the guards leaned toward me asking
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that I open the trunk. My foot was still tickling the gas pedal when I queried why I had been stopped. Out of the corner of my eye I caught two masked men moving toward the car. “Senora, we must check your car for contraband and then spray it.” Spray it seemed a hellava way to describe riddling my car with bullets. “Spray it for what,” I demanded to know. “Fruit flies, Senora.” Suddenly the masked men began priming their five gallon spray cans, nozzles skyward in readiness. How naïve I had been to think I could drive my new red, convertible sports car down the Baja without incident. Departing from Rosarito Beach by 8 a.m., I had been told I could
El Ojo del Lago / August 2010
reach Guerrero Negro, on the eastern coast of Mexico, for whale watching within five to six hours. No one had prepared me for the hairpin turns and sheer majesty of the Sierra Madres. With two hands gripping the steering wheel, I pushed the Spyder a little faster around each new set of curves. The three-foot guard rail seemed more like a sick joke than a safety aid as the canyon floor lay thousands of feet below on the left. There wasn’t any margin for error; sheer walls of rock rose on the right. There were no shoulders and frequent signs announcing falling rock heightened the thrill. Multitudes of scraggly cactus and a few stretches of level road announced the entrance to the High Plains. “The “Big Guy” must have enjoyed creating this wonderland of cactus and bizarre rock formations. Behemoth orbs of rock, scoops of ice cream, some hollowed by erosion, littered the landscape. As we passed these granite sundaes, I fantasized a scene from the High Plains Drifter. “Hey, Clint.” “Yeah?” “Wanna kill ‘em when they come past the rocks?” Night dropped to earth like a widow’s veil. After driving nine hours, the cattle standing in the road became frightening aberrations of floating glowing eyes. I kept eyeing the horizon for light, extra terrestrial and otherwise. I should have heeded the warning not to drive on the High Plains at night. Free ranging cattle, no signs of civilization, the absence of traffic and roadway lights, the feelings of isolation and anxiety were overwhelming. Tourist season had ended in Guerrero Negro and when I spotted what appeared to be a motel, I pulled in. The owner was excited by our appearance; he would make a few pesos this evening. When I questioned if there were any whales left to be spotted in the inlet, he was empathic I would not be disappointed. Having paid eighty pesos to ride ten kilometers across salt flats in a broken down Jeep, I felt my enthusiasm waning. The whales probably weren’t too excited about my coming either. North of the border, five giant hotels, twenty restaurants and a McDonalds would have circled this inlet. We retrieved our life jackets from the only building on the beach, a small wooden shack. As I stood at the waters’ edge waiting for the small wooden boats to be brought to us, our guide instructed us to take off our shoes, roll up our
pant legs and wade out to them. Hey, this would never happen at Disneyland! There must be an art to whale-watching I wasn’t informed of. I saw noses, mid sections, tails and waterspouts. OK, the joke is on me. This is a multi-sectioned, mechanical mock-up they drag through the water, right? I guess the French family, who took rolls of film of whale body parts, plan to tape them together before they show their friends. After sweeping back and forth across the inlet for two hours, our guide turned the boat to shore. It was late March and the whales had begun their migration north. We were fortunate to have glimpsed the procrastinators. Throughout Mexico, being pulled over by Federales to inspect your car for contraband is the norm. Being confronted by the “Bug Squad” as I tried to leave Guerrero Negro was a first. The masked exterminators informed me I had to pay them ten pesos. What a bargain, for ten pesos I could have the paint job on my car destroyed by insecticides. I tried to reassure them that the only fruit I had in my car was a single Georgia peach, my friend, Hank. Mordida is such a wonderful Mexican tradition. When I asked if they would consider not spraying the car for twenty pesos, they both smiled and nodded yes. I quickly handed them the money and pulled away from the checkpoint. Crossing the Baja from West to East, to reach Santa Rosalie, was a continuation of mountains and high plains. Tiny coved beaches of white sand and clear blue water, nestled below jagged cliffs, were a welcome addition. Santa Rosalie, once an active copper mining town, sported an oddity - wooden houses. The Rothschild’s dynasty shipped the ore to California and Mexican lumber made the return voyage. While the shipyard is a graveyard of rusting cranes and warehouses, the mountain is dotted with wooden houses sporting crimped tin roofing. Winding up the mountain on smoothly paved streets, we discovered the St. Francis Hotel, built in 1886 to house engineers and visiting businessmen. Constructed totally of wood, the lattice railings, shuttered windows and porch rockers welcomed us to another century. Excited, Hank and I accepted a room on the second floor for a better view of the bay and village. We waited calmly for assistance to move our luggage upstairs. The Senora queried if there was a problem. With an engaging smile she advised
us she was the manager, cook, waiter and bartender, but clearly, she did not do luggage. On the first landing, I shifted my grasp on the two suitcases and leaned against the railing for a brief rest. Gently, quietly, the railing began to move outward. I dropped the suitcases and threw myself toward the wall. The railing remained hanging over the sidewalk. Our room was papered in padded fabric, the random width wooden floor rolled up and down. The windows were nailed shut and the controls for the air conditioner were wall decorations; there wasn’t one. The soothing sounds of the creaking porch rockers transported us as we watched the sunset. One forgot the lack of 21st century amenities. We were enveloped in the 1900s. Hank and I had left Rosarito Beach four days ago and we were anxious to reach La Paz to catch the ferry. A pile of rocks on the edge of the road wasn’t unusual; the Federale that appeared from behind it was. Once again we were motioned to pull over and told they wanted to search the car. My Hanes Her Way were to be tossed this way and that one more time. More men had put their hands on my underwear these last few days then in all my years of dating! It wasn’t a conscious thought, I simply said No; they could not search the car. The young soldier stared at me, stepped back and conferred with his buddy. He motioned for two other soldiers to come forward. I was just too tired to imagine the worst. Politely they asked if I would transport two of the soldiers to their home in the next village. It was likely the topic of conversation for quite awhile in this remote mountain village. We roared through the streets toward the plaza with the two young Federales wedged in the tiny back seat, radio blaring salsa and a loco gringa driving.
After two days of haggling with the Mexican bureaucracy about permits for the car, we finally scheduled the ferry trip from La Paz to Mazatlan. Once the car was safely stowed in the bowels of the boat, we wandered around the shipyard unclear as to when and where to board. Intuitively I suggested we follow the endless stream of Mexican suitcases. As in Santa Rosalie, we were once again transported to the 19th century; perhaps Liverpool or Dublin, hundreds of immigrants boarding a ship to America. Crowing roosters tied in cardboard boxes, bags and baskets of bedding and clothing, tiny children crying in the arms of their mothers. Tears and hugs from family members as the line moved slowly toward the gangplank. I kept wondering where this mass of humanity disappeared to as we were shown to our “Especial” stateroom on the top deck of the ship. Having seen Titanic too many times, I envisioned the elegance of chandeliers, silver and polished wood. A worn-out sofa bed completed the living room, the bedroom consisted of two futons. The bathroom, however, sported a roomy shower, a vanity for m’lady and toilet paper! The ferry had an outdoor bar on the upper level, complete with deafening bandas music. As we watched the sun go down, more and more people joined the festivities. This became the Mexico I know; the families jammed together in the lower decks joining the fiesta. Babies and bottles of tequila were passed around, young lovers crept off to the shadows and the gnarled hands of not-so young lovers joined. Driving the Baja was an experience of a lifetime, memories I shall always have. Here is a suggestion for you: Once a year, go someplace you’ve never been before.
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The Ojo Crossword
ACROOSS 1 Resources 6 Can 10 Wading bird 14 Sheer, triangular scarf 15 Long time 16 Leaf bud 17 Above 18 Information 19 Welfare 20 Tiff 21 Aborts 23 Sounds 25 Shine 26 August (abbr.) 27 Tumult 30 Constricts 34 Stick 35 Security 36 Note of debt 38 Hurl 39 Fellow 40 Pull ___(sweaters) 42 American Cancer Society (abbr.) 43 Clique 44 Heaped 45 Hot Dog topper 48 Arctic climate 49 To be in debt 50 Cabbage cousin 51 Tall tree 54 Heal 55 Acquire
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58 Voiced 59 Type of tea 61 Wants 63 Shriveled 64 Dry sherry 65 Dance 66 Has toed 67 Oils 68 Organic compound DOWN 1 Far away 2 Farm building 3 Large flat-bottomed boat 4 Extremely high frequency (abbr.) 5 Instruction 6 Root beer brand (3 wds.) 7 Honey makers 8 Down 9 Draw into a tangle 10 Very dark blue 11 Hisses 12 Loaf 13 Meets 22 Neither’s partner 24 Possessive pronoun 25 Chinese chime 27 Ca. University 28 Tug on stringed instrument 29 Wash off 30 Colored People’s association 31 Nearly horizontal entrance 32 Handle 33 More angry 35 Type of cheese 37 U.S. Department of Agriculture 40 Luxury 41 Plant 43 Chief law officers 46 Sounded the bell 47 Communication Workers of America (abr.) 48 Sticky black substance 50 Reinforcement 51 Sentry’s station 52 Brand of sandwich cookie 53 Skin 54 Penny 55 Male 56 Bezel 57 Despot 60 Central Intelligence Agency 62 Goddess
The Twisted Way We Gringos Speak
By Tommy Clarkson
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y way of explaining this layperson’s autopsy of “Gringo Speak” please allow the following brief explanation to, hopefully, set up what put this all in motion. Like most folks, both my wife and I extensively use, and are highly dependent upon, our land line and cellular telephones and computers. In that regard, recently, we experienced a problem not unfamiliar to other ex-pats...communications equipment problems and all that is entailed in correcting same in environs slightly different, shall we say, than Oklahoma City, Portland or Philadelphia. So, in response to our dilemma d’jour, our local electronics professional, David (nearly a family member as much time as he spends here), responsively raced up to our rescue. After diagnosing our difficulties, he informed us that he would have to re-install the modem. OK, that seemed to be a logical prognosis for our computer problem but it set in motion my convoluted way of thinking. Upon setting up our household we had “installed” a modem and now, this one being on the fritz, we needed to “re-install” another. We were “repeating” an original process. That made sense. But given the complicated manner in which my mind seems to work – or others might observe, “doesn’t work” - that initiated a somewhat convoluted thought process. By definition, “re” means to “restore to a previous condition.” Thus by employing that semantic rationale, if we first “installed,” then we “re-installed”, did we then “peat” before we could “repeat” the process. In fact, in that I am now “recounting” this incident, did I previously “count” it? In thinking this through, if we wish to not “refuse” something, choosing to accept it, must we then “fuse” it? Likewise, is it imperative that we be “tired” before we can “retire”? Or must we “turn” before “returning”? “Tort” before “retorting”? “Tract” before “retracting”? “Vive” before “reviv-
ing”? “Pent” before “repenting”? The mind boggles. By further striving to incorporate some sort of consistent rationale in the way we speak and write, I know that while “renumbering” is merely “numbering” again, should it not then follow that we must “spect” someone before we can “respect” them? Yes, we generally “view” before “reviewing” but for the life of me I can not recall “verting” anything before “reverting.” Bogged in a veritable quagmire of word confusion I turned to that which should explain. My faithful, well worn and dog eared dictionary defines “retry” as “To try again.” Brevity, directness and simplicity - that’s a good and simple explanation. I like it! However, is to “duce” a mandatory precursor before “reducing”? Or must first we “vere” before “revering” or “veal” before “revealing”? As I “reflect” on this – I can but only question if I was earlier “flecting” first on it. And, I worriedly wonder if I am missing something or am merely linguistically “retarded.” But, then again, I don’t remember ever first being previously “tarded!” I surrender and “spect” we merely must “respect” this amalgamated language of ours for what it confusingly is. (But, honestly, I still have difficulty understanding the need to “pose” prior to “reposing” in thoughtful contemplation of how it somehow works.) Admittedly, it bothers me a bit to think that while Patty and I now reside in Mexico full-time we, apparently, must, then, have previously “sided” in Iraq, Hawaii, Kwajalein and various points north of here across the border. That
simply somehow sounds semantically askew of something. But, then again, critical thinker that I strive to be, I “reserve” the right to so wonder and, apparently have “served” so for some time. (Which begs, to a degree, the question of how one might “serve” in the Army “Reserve?”) So, while some may “resent” my sometimes ponderous – if not outright strange - critical dissection of our native tongue, I can only wonder if, beyond that, they previously may have simply “sent” (or wished to) all manner of my convoluted ponderings! If so, dare I deign to ask, where? I worry not. I’m “resilient” and, apparently – though, maybe, unknowingly, have long prided myself in my “saliency!” Those who know me well will attest, I am not one to become depressed over unrequited appreciation for my “word concerns”. So if I’ve put anyone out by my word worries, I hope that we can properly “requite” each other. Oh dear, now that introduces two more cans of semantic worms - those regarding “de” and “un.”... another day, another day!
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Saw you in the Ojo 61
A NEW LEASE—on Life! By Judit Rajhathy, B.A., RNCP, D.Ac.
Sick Because Of My Teeth?
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id you know that gum disease is linked to heart disease and stroke? Research also suggests that there may be a link between periodontal (gum) disease and other health conditions such as chronic inflammation, diabetes, respiratory disease, pregnancy problems, premature low birth weight babies and even osteoporosis. The American Academy of Periodontology (AAP) reports that people with gum disease are almost twice as likely to have heart disease compared to those without gum disease. How does it all work? When plaque becomes built up around the teeth, bacteria forms and irritates the tissues that surround the teeth which is what is known as gingivitis. However once the bacteria goes beneath the gum line it eventually attacks the tissues and even the bone around the teeth which often leads to tooth loss. According to the American Dental Association (ADA) nearly 75% of American adults have some form of periodontal disease. Eventually this periodontal bacteria can enter the bloodstream creating havoc with the rest of the body. In the case of the connection between periodontal disease and heart disease several theories abound. One is that oral bacteria enters the bloodstream attaching to fatty plaques in the blood vessels thereby contributing to clot formation which in turn obstructs normal blood flow restricting nutrients and oxygen re-
quired for the heart to function adequately. Another theory is that “the inflammation caused by periodontal disease increases plaque build up, which may contribute to swelling of the arteries” (Perio. org). In addition, it is well known that periodontal disease can worsen existing heart conditions and that these folks need to take antibiotics prior to any dental procedures for safety. Diabetics are twice as likely to develop gum disease. Inflammation affects blood sugar levels by impairing the body’s ability to process and/or use insulin. So...if you have gums that bleed easily; red, swollen tender gums; gums that are pulling away from your teeth; bad breath or bad taste in your mouth; loose teeth; changes in the way your teeth fit together when you bite or changes in the fit of partial dentures, it is time to visit the dentist. “When you have a chronic infection in your mouth it can put you at a much higher risk for infections elsewhere in your body,” says Sally Cram DDS (ADA). Just like your dentist has been pleading with you for years, flossing your teeth is one of the most effective ways to prevent periodontal disease. Studies have shown that even after just two weeks of regular flossing can significantly reduce the amount of periodontal disease causing bacteria - and remember that this bacteria can wreak havoc with your entire system. Brushing twice a day, regular dental cleanings and checkups are also essential. Now that you have taken care of your oral health so that the rest of you can be disease free, add some regular exercise to the mix. See you at the gym! Judit is the owner of Change of Pace Fitness Center, central Ajijic. She can be reached at 766-5800.
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Judit Rajhathy
CHILD
of the month
By Rich Petersen
Irma Janet Rivera Puga
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his young lady with the beautiful smile is 13-year old Irma Janet Rivera Puga, known at home as “Janet.” Janet lives with her parents, Irma and José, in San Antonio Tlayacapan; she is the youngest of four children all of whom still live at home. About three years ago and out-ofthe-blue, Janet awoke one morning to discover she no longer had any feeling in or control of her lower extremities. She had been previously healthy with no signs or symptoms of anything wrong. Doctors at the Hospital Civil in Guadalajara were able to give this “mystery” a name, however----transverse myelitis. This is a viral or bacterial infection of the spinal cord which causes inflammation of the nerves in the spinal column. Inflamed nerves are no longer capable of sending their “messages” to the brain, and thus a patient has limb weakness, back pain, sensory disturbance, and incontinence. In Janet’s case the doctors diagnosed a viral infection and as true with all viruses, there is no medicine or other agent that can cure the inflammation. Physical therapy is thought to be the only method of reversing or ameliorating the virus’s effect on the spinal cord. Janet’s father came to Niños Incapacitados after about six months of taking her to twice weekly therapy sessions. The therapists and doctors had recommended more intense therapy with specialists, and in addition the fitting of a special hip brace and leg supports so she could gradually learn to bear weight and hopefully strengthen her muscles and stimulate the damaged nerves. Such an appliance would cost 15.000 pesos, much more than the family could afford. Sr. Rivera is fortunate to have a job with SIMAPA (the water company) but notwithstanding, and with three other children, the cost of ongoing therapy and the brace was too much. SIMAPA has been good enough to allow him to take off work in order to get Janet to her therapy sessions (although he must make up the time), and they offered to pay for half of the brace and leg supports.
Niños IIncapacitados the Niñ it d hhas paid id th other half and continues to pay for her twice-weekly physical therapy. Dad and Mom have to do everything for their daughter at this point. Janet is in school, however, and a very good student. Her favorite subject is Science and she is thinking about a career as a veterinarian. One might think that her demeanor and outlook would be pessimistic and negative, but when she and her family attended our meeting, Janet’s smile and positive attitude showed that this was not the case. Janet and her father demonstrated how she is learning to stand on her own and bear some weight on her legs, albeit with her Dad right behind her and holding on. She has had the brace and leg supports for only about a month and the process will take time to achieve any amount of rehabilitation. We of course wish her and the family great success in the future. Janet is now 15 years old and has just graduated from high school with very good grades and will attend the “Prepa” in the fall. She continues with her weekly therapy at the Ajijic Clinic, and while she still cannot walk on her own, she is showing significant progress. Niños Incapacitados is “taking the summer off” in the sense that there will be no monthly meetings until September, Thursday the 9th to be exact. We will of course continue our support of our children during the summer months and will bring you other stories during this hiatus. Please join us in September at 10:15 at the Hotel Real de Chapala (La Floresta) to learn more about our organization and the children we assist.
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By Victoria Schmidt
Maid Self-Defense
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here is nothing more individualistic than one’s home. Even while renting a furnished home, the occupants imprint their own environment. I’m a person who prefers angles to straight lines. I like my book shelves organized with the books lined up, and stacked one upon the other, depending on space. The photographs on our display tables are angled. Our maid, however, likes everything lined up. We’ve had several maids, since moving to Mexico. While this in no way makes me an expert on maids, it does give me insight into their behavior. I have liked all our maids, and have trusted them all. I feel guilty when I pay them what I consider to be a pittance for their hard work. Our maid gets paid less for cleaning our home twice a week for a month than what we paid our cleaning lady for a half-day’s work
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in n the USA. USA I appreciate our maids, maids and for the most part, they have all done a good job. Some of them even clean behind and under the furniture. With maids, there were degrees of them teaching me, and me teaching them. It often doesn’t work well for either of us. So, like many people here in Mexico, I have learned what I call, Maid Self-Defense. I have often had to search throughout the house after a maid has cleaned trying to find things. I
El Ojo del Lago / August 2010
have learned to never expect that our maid will put things where I would put them. My photos have been rearranged, bedspreads changed, and I rarely find things in my kitchen when I need them. Often after a cleaning, my husband and I will make the rounds of the house trying to put things back where they belong. Our current maid is on maternity leave, so we are breaking in a new maid. WE put empty hangers back into the laundry room so they are near the dryer. SHE puts them back in the closet. WE keep the dish soap on the sink. SHE puts it under the sink. And I’m not even going to try to describe what she does with the flatware! Once we couldn’t find our towels. The towels had been in the dirty laundry basket when we left, but the basket was now empty. Our laundry sorter didn’t contain the towels. So I looked in the linen closet, and there they were, folded neatly. Not washed mind you, but folded very nicely. Shoes and slippers are really fun at our house. For some reason unknown to me, my husband must have at least three pairs of shoes
out at all times. Don’t ask. Anyway, when he’s running around the house looking for his shoes we know the maid has put them away again. We’ve found them in the closet, on chairs, and on shelves. Perhaps she really hasn’t decided where she thinks all these shoes should go. So before each cleaning day, I go throughout our home performing Maid Self-Defense. First I put away all the dishes. Then I tour through the rooms looking for any clothes that need to be hung up, put away, or placed in the laundry; collect stray books and put them away; pick up business papers, and make sure they are filed away; hide the dog toys, (our maid keeps throwing away the dog’s bone;) and generally “clean” before the maid comes. Maid Self-Defense has helped to shorten the time I spend going around the house putting my photos back at angles, reorganizing my books, and searching for my husband’s shoes. Now if I could only find my raincoat!
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Victoria Schmidt
AA- Meets daily at 10:00 am. Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday at 4 pm. Marcos Castellanos 51-A. 766-5961. ACÁ- Teaches youths, families sustainable agriculture, Joco and Jaltepec. Meet 14th of month. For more Information 387 763-1568. A COURSE IN MIRACLES- Saturday 2:00 pm 16 Sept #34, Unit 6, 766-4882 No charge. Ongoing. AIR FORCE ASSOCIATION OF CANADA 904 WING- Meeting 2nd Friday of every month in May, June, July & August. From September to April we meet the 2nd and 4th Friday. Contact Don Slimman 765 4141. AJIJIC QUILT GUILD - Meets second Tuesday monthly at 12 noon. Guests & New Members Welcome. ajijicguild@gmail.com AJIJIC SCRABBLE CLUB- Tuesdays and Thursdays noon-3 pm at LCS Ken Gosh Pavilion. Dan Stark 766-0411. AJIJIC WRITERS’ GROUP- Meets 1st and 3rd Fridays at 10 am. New Posada. Coffee. Meeting followed by lunch at the New Posada. AXIXIC MASONIC LODGE #31- Meets 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month at 5:00 pm. Contact the secretary at 763-5346 for details. AL-ANON- Step study, Monday 6 pm, Lake Chapala Society, 16 de Septiembre & Marcos Castellanos Ajijic, Rear Gate. Contact (376)7665975 AL-ANON- Sat. 10 am, Club 12, Marcos Castellanos 51-A, Ajijic Contact (376) 766-5975. AMERICAN LEGION OF CHAPALA POST- #7 General Membership meets 11 am 2nd Thursday. Tel: 765-2259. AMIGOS INTERNACIONALES- Every Wednesday 6 to 8 pm, Nueva Posada; informal friendly group meet to make new friends. AMIGOS DEL LAGO A.C.- Working to improve the ecology. See www.amigosdelago.org or contact us at info@amigosdelago.org. AMITIES FRANCOPHONES- Meets every 3rd Saturday at 1 pm contact: Roland and Camille at 766-0149. rvanhoudt@prodigy.net.mx. ANIMAL SHELTER- Provide shelter and new homes for dogs and cats. Tel: 765-5514. ANITA’S ANIMALS- Free loving dogs and cats. call (01 387) 761-0500. www.anitasanimals.com. ASA- Ajijic Society of the Arts. Meets every 1st Monday of the month at Nueva Posada, 10 am. BRIDGE AT OLD POSADA- Monday 1:15 check in. Mary Andrews 766-2489. BRITISH SOCIETY- Lunch meeting the 1st Saturday of each month, 1pm at Manix Rest. 765-4786, chapalainn@prodigy.net.mx. CARD & DOMINO CLUB- Wednesday, Friday & Sunday. Call for times. We will teach; make friends! Tel. 766-4253, Cell: (045) 33-1295-6485. CANADIAN CLUB OF LAKE CHAPALA- Meets on the 2nd Wednesday of the month, September through April. Social hour: 3:00 pm, program 4:00 pm. Visit www.canadianclubmx.com. CASA DE ANCIANOS- Provides support for elderly citizens, 765-2497. CENTRO DE DESARROLLO AJIJIC- Provides family planning and reproductive health education. 766-1679. CHILI COOK OFF- Providing a carnival for residents raising charitable funds, 763-5038. DAR- (Guadalajara)- Daughters of the American Revolution, meets monthly Sep. through June. Cell:333-897-0660 or Tel: (376) 766-2284. DAR- (At Lakeside)- THOMAS PAINE CHAPTER meets every 3 Wednesday at 12:30 noon, September thru June. Tel: 766-2981 or 762-0834. EASTERN STAR ESTRELLA DEL LAGO CHAPTER #10- 1st Wed. at 1:00 pm at Hotel Monte Carlo. 766-3785, www.oesestrelladellago.org. E.R.I.C.- Provides support for the construction and renovation of educational buildings. 766-2866. GAMBLERS ANONYMOUS- GA Meeting held every Wednesday afternoon at 3:00 PM in the Doctor’s office at the Lake Chapala Society Charlie K. at cell: 331-445-2136. GARDEN GUILD- promoting the interest in the development of local gardens with an accent on the exotic species available in central Mexico. GERMAN MEETING- 2nd Thursday, 1:00 pm. La Nueva Posada. Call Thea 765-2442 or Werner 763-5446. GOLDEN STRINGS OF LAKE CHAPALA, A.C.- Rehearsals at auditorio de la Floresta. Tuesday & Friday, 3-6 pm. HASH HOUSE HARRIERS- Every Saturday at 8:30 am at La Nueva Posada. JUNIOR LEAGUE DE GUADALAJARA A.C.- Av. San Francisco #3332. ligagdl2@prodigy.net.mx, Guadalajara, Jal. Tel. (33) 3121-0887. LAKE CHAPALA DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB- Meets every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday at 1:15 p.m.. www.chapalabridge.com. LAKE CHAPALA GARDEN CLUB- Gardening at Lakeside with garden tours and meeting 3rd Wed of every month at Nueva Posada for noon lunch and program. Contact sandy_feldmann@yahoo.com. LAKE CHAPALA SHRINE CLUB.- Meets the 3rd Tuesday of every month at 1 pm in the Nueva Posada. Perry King at (376) 763-5126. LAKE CHAPALA SOCIETY - LCS- 16 de Sep. # 16-A Ajijic, Open Monday - Saturday, 10 am to 2 pm. www.lakechapalasociety.org. 766-1140. LAKESIDE COMMUNITY AWARDS- We benefit all the community by honoring lakeside’s most talented. 766-3232. LAKESIDE FRIENDS OF THE ANIMALS - Board meets 3rd Thursday at 2:15 every month. info@lakesideanimalfriends.org. LAKESIDE LAUGHTER CLUB- Will meet again in October. For information call Charlene 766-0884. LAKESIDE LITTLE THEATRE A.C.- Balanced theatrical entertainment, English-speaking, 765-5942. LAKESIDE SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF- The 4th of each month. Nueva Posada 10:30 am. Call 766-2280, www.lakesideschoolforthedeaf.org. LAKESIDE WILDLIFE RESCUE & REHABILITATION- Rescue & rehabilitation of wild animals. 765-4916. LAKE SPAY AND NEUTER CENTR A.C.- Provides shelter and helps curtail the over-population of animals. 766-3813. LCS EDUCATION CENTER- Provides classes in language and other topics for both Anglo and Mexican community. 766-0499. LCS STUDENT AID FUND- Provides financial support to area students to enroll in university, vocational and high school program. 766-0716. LINK- Assisting foreign community. Desk at Lake Chapala Society-Monday, 10 am-noon. LITTLE BLUE SCHOOLHOUSE- Provides financial assistance for students at school for disabled children in Chapala 766-1552. LOS NINOS DE CHAPALA Y AJIJIC, AC Providing educational scholarships to Lakeside children 376-765-7032, www.lakesideninos.org. LOVE IN ACTION- Shelter for abused and abandoned children. For volunteers and donations. Anabel Frutos 765-7409, cell: 331-351 7826. MAS- Music Appreciation Society. Concerts from fall to spring. Classical music and dance concerts. For info call Beverly Denton, 765-6409. MISION SAN PABLO- Helping 60 orphaned children ages 2-14 yrs, Bonnie Shrall - Bonnie@shrall.com #766-0009. www.misionsanpablo.org. NAVY LEAGUE, LAKE CHAPALA COUNCIL- Meets the third Saturday for lunch at 1 pm, Manix Rest. 766 4750 or 766-1848. NEEDLE PUSHERS- Sew dresses, knit or chet sweaters for local kids. Every Tues. 10 am at LCS. Call Gay at 766-2902. NIÑOS Y JOVENES CARAVAN- Delivers foodstuffs and used clothing to orphanage in San Juan. Call Reuben Varela, 01-387-761-0828. OPEN CIRCLE- Fostering body, mind & spirit, every Sunday at the LCS from 10 am to 12 noon. 765-3402 or frankdburton@yahoo.com. OVEREATERS ANONYMOUS- Every Tuesday & Friday 12 pm at Marcos Castellanos 51-A, in Upper Ajijic. Tel: 766-2575 or 766-1626. PROGRAMA PRO NIÑOS INCAPACITADOS DEL LAGO AC.- Assisting Lakeside disabled children www.programaninos.org , 763-5010. PASOS MILAGROSOS (MIRACULOUS STEPS.)- Helping Handicapped Children Through the Magic of Horses. Saturdays 8-2. www. pasosmilagrosos.com RED CROSS VOLUNTEERS- Meets 1st Wednesday at 2:00 pm at the Sala LCS. New members welcome. ROTARY CLUB OF AJIJIC- Meets every Tuesday at 1:00 pm at Hotel Real de Chapala. Contact at 766-3302. SCIENCE OF MIND STUDY GROUP- Discussion group every Tuesday at 10 AM Lake Chapala Center for Spiritual Living at Nicolas Bravo #17 Ajijic; contact Rev. Tim at 766-0920 or tim@revdoctim.com. THE GENEALOGY FORUM- Meets monthly on the fourth Monday in the Sala at LCS, from 2:00 to 3:45. UVA - University/Vocational Assistance (Little Chapel by the Lake a.c.)- Sue Torres, 766-2932 or Lynn Hanson 766-2660. VILLA INFANTIL ORPHANAGE- Provides financial support for children. ravenblackhorse@hotmail.com. www.friendsofvillainfantil.org. (387) 761-0176. VIVA LA MUSICA - Bus trips to the symphony, summer concert series, call Rosemay Keeling 766-1801. www.ajijicviva.org. VOLLEYBALL IN CHAPALA- At Cristiania park Tues., Thurs., Sat. mornings at 10, 333-502-1264. VOLUNTEER HEALTH RESOURCE GROUP- Meeting last Saturday of each month at LCS in sala, 10:30. VOLUNTEERS OF THE CRUZ ROJA- Sponsors fund raising events and provides administrative and support services to the Delegation.
All Saints Lutheran Church Worship Service 11:00 am 4600 Avenida Tepeyac, Guad. Tel. (01 333) 121-6741. Abundant Life Assembly of God Carr. 140 next to Mail Boxes etc, Tel: 766-5615. Center For Spiritual Living Celebration Service, 5pm Fridays, Nicolas Bravo #17 Ajijic. 766-9020 or tim@revdoctim.com. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Services in English and Spanish, 10 am, Riberas del Pilar Bishop Wyvell Tel. (376) 765-7067, Bishop’s residence (376) 766-1532. Church of the Holy Spirit Services Sun. 10 am, Albaro Obregon #119, Chapala Tel. (376) 765-4210. Grace Baptist Church 5th Sun. Evening service 6 pm, Pedro Buzeta No. 970, Guad. Tel. (013) 641-1685. Lake Chapala Baptist Church Mid-week service, 9:30 am, worship service, 10:45 am. Santa Margarita #147, Riberas del Pilar, Tel. (376) 765-2925, 765-3329. www.lakechapalabaptist.com. 7th Day Adventist meet at Madeira 12 in Rancho del Oro, 9:15 am to Noon. Potluck follows. 765-2165. Little Chapel by the Lake Sun. services 11 am, Chula Vista,. Jal, Tel. (376) 763-1551. Lake Chapala Jewish Congregation Santa Margarita 113, Riberas del Pilar, Tel: 765-6968. For information and service times, please call Pres. Elliot Gould. contact us@lakechapalajews.com. Web site: www. lakechapalajews.com. Lakeside Fellowship Sun. worship 11 am, Javier Mina #49 Ajijic, Tel. (376) 766-0795. Lakeside Presbyterian Church Worship-Sunday 10 am; Bible StudyFriday 10 am; Hidalgo 231A, Carr. Chapala/Joco; Riberas del Pilar Tel. Pastor Ross Arnold at 376-7661238, or Norm Pifer at 376-766-0616 Website at www.chapalalakesidepresbyterian.org Saint Andrew´s Anglican Church Calle San. Lucas 19, Riberas del Pilar, Sunday 1 service, 10 am. www.standrewsriberas.com San Andres Catholic Church Services 9:00 am. Ajijic, 766-0922. St. John’s Catholic Church Between Av. Vallarta & Av. Lazaro Cardenas, Guad. Sun. 11am. (013) 121-8131. The Lake Chapala Unitarian Universalist Fellowship meets Sundays at 10:30 a.m. at the Jewish Community Center behind Mateos in Riberas del Pilar (Santa Margarita 113). For additional information call Steve at 766-5507 or email: trudycrippen@gmail.com. Check out our website at www.lcuuf.org.
(NOTE: If there is any change in the above, please advise us so that corrections may be made. Call: 765-2877)
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The 16 DE SEPTIEMBRE #16-A AJIJIC, JAL, MX WWW.LAKECHAPALASOCIETY.ORG
LAKE CHAPALA SOCIETY
News
FROM THE DIRECTOR’S DESK I would like to thank everyone who volunteered for the July “Bizaar, Bargains & Bar B-Q” on the 2nd and 3rd. Your work helped to raise over $77,000 MXN pesos. I’d also like to thank everyone else who participated in this fundraiser, the buyers, local authors and cowboy singer Virgil Stortroen. Despite a wash-out mid-Friday the event was successful. Over $44,000 pesos will go directly to LCS and our different programs, including the library, video, student aid and the Wilkes Education Center. Fundraising for our programs allows us to divert general operating funds to other purposes. The Bazaar will not be an annual event, it was meant to bring attention to the Casi Nuevo Thrift Shop and the budding partnership between LCS, the School for the Deaf in Jocotepec, and Have Hammers…Will Travel. The partnership is sound and the Thrift Shop has been very busy as a result. We couldn’t ask for more…except more volunteers. If you have experience or desire to help, please introduce yourself at the shop Monday through Friday between 10:30 A.M. and 3:00 P.M. Fundraising for the year has just begun. We will be planning several new events over the remainder of the year. Our events coordinator, Pat Doran, is overflowing with great and fun ideas. You’ll be receiving announcements soon. Please participate if you can. As I stated in the last newsletter, this year we are trying to address the eroding infrastructure of our properties, with septic and roofs being the top priorities. In June the roof of the Neill James (NJ) Library was repaired. In July the roof of the Wilkes Education Center was repaired, and now as the rainy season peaks, all is dry. The NJ House and the office are next in line, as long as funding is available. That’s why your support at LCS events is critical. Speaking of funding, LCS is in strong financial condition. Our programs are well supported. Membership has climbed to 2650 and new members are joining daily. Check out the new programs featured this month. There is so much positive energy at LCS this summer. Please come down and be part of it! Terry Vidal, Executive Director
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El Ojo del Lago / August 2010
August 2010 FROM THE PRESIDENT LCS GOVERNING DOCUMENTS
Some may consider this a controversial subject. Many will agree that it is time to face this issue again and resolve it once and for all. Through a series of constitutions, bylaws and amendments thereof, we are currently governed by four, count them, four active governing documents that are confusing and often contradictory. Most of you will remember that last year a very dedicated work group of LCS members drafted a comprehensive new constitution that required a supermajority to pass, fell short of passage by about 20 votes. The board has recently formed a committee to review that proposed constitution and consider many of the valid comments made during last year’s election debate. The committee will recommend to the board a final version of this constitution and it will then be presented to a vote of the members at the Annual General Meeting in December. During the coming months we will cover specific articles of the proposed constitution in the monthly newsletter and attempt to compare them with the current documents. We will show that the governing of LCS will be more clearly defined and allow for appropriate growth and adaptation to future needs of our members and the community in which we live. Your comments, as always, are welcome. Howard Feldstein
PLEASE NOTE: **CRIME PREVENTION SEMINARS ** The Crime Prevention seminars for the balance of 2010 are being redesigned. The subject of crime prevention and related topics will be addressed in other formats in the near future. We know that for many people these are important topics and we want you to be prepared.
www.lakechapalasociety.org
LCS News NEILL JAMES LIBRARY UPDATE There will be an inventory in the month of September. Please look around for any LCS books you or your maid may have stashed in an unusual place. An anmesty will be announced prior to the inventory as to when you can return them before we close the doors for a few days while we are counting.
WILKES LIBRARY UPDATE Over 125 new books in Spanish have recently been added to the Wilkes Library. An evaluation is being made as to the best types of resources to be made available to our local school children and their parents. Meetings with the Chapala Director of Education, school administrators, and teachers have been taking place so that the learning resources at Wilkes can be brought up to date. We are also studying other school and public libraries. The book lending system is currently being computerized, books on the shelves are being repaired and labeled, and new shelves added. We look forward to telling you more about our exciting progress in future newsletters.
JULY HEALTH WEEK - FOLLOW-UP Our July 2010 Health Care Week was a great success. The Skin Cancer Screening Clinic screened 60 people; we gave 50 typhoid inoculations, performed 30 cholesterol screening panels, and did 20 diabetic tests. A number of problem areas were identified for our members & we encouraged them to consult their physicians for follow-ups. 52 blood pressure readings were taken. We had a full house in the sala for Maryann Molinari’s most interesting lecture on End of Life Health Care & Mexican Law. Our next Health Care Week is scheduled for the 2nd full week in November (8 – 13). We will be offering skin cancer screening, flu shots (advanced sign up required), a choice of 2 different cholesterol panels, and an interesting health related educational topic (to be determined).
The Bizaar may be over
, but the need for your donations to the Casi Nuevo Thrift Shop is not. Remember there is a drop box at LCS, or take your goodies straight to the thrift shop, on the carretera across the street from 7-Eleven in Riberas.
August 2010 VIDEO UPDATE We are still working on the new “user friendly” video catalogs and will have them finished soon. Notices will be posted on the board, with the video jackets, to familiarize the members with the revised format. CURRENT RELEASES GREEN ZONE Discovering covert and faulty intelligence causes a U.S. Army officer to go rogue as he hunts for Weapons of Mass Destruction in an unstable region. Matt Damon 7.1 on a scale of 10 A SINGLE MAN A story that centers’ on an English professor who, after the sudden death of his partner, tries to go about his typical day in Los Angeles. Colin Firth - 7.7 on a scale of 10 OLDY BUT GOODY EDUCATING RITA A young wife decides to complete her education and take her exams. She meets a professor who teaches her to value her own insights while still being able to beat the exams. Michael Caine and Julie Walters - 7.2 on a scale of 10 ON-GOING NEEDS Donations and couriers are greatly appreciated. If you can, please help us and your fellow members by keeping the Video Library a place of interest. Thank you. TRANSFER your old VHS to DVD A service offered in the Video Library ONLY 50 pesos each!
REMINDER The U.S. Consulate will not be here in August. Their next visit will be September 1st. U.S. Passport fees have increased. Passport Fees Passport Book – adult $135.00 Passport Book – minor $105.00 Passport Book Renewal – Adult $110.00 Passport Card – Adult $55.00 Passport Card – Child $40.00
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LCS News AUGUST EVENTS LIBRARIES Book & Video M-SAT 10-2:00 Talking Book TH 10-12:00 MEDICAL/HEALTH INSURANCE Blood Pressure M+F 10-12:00 Cruz Roja Sales Table M –F 10-12:30 Cruz Roja Monthly Meeting 1st W 2-4:00 Hearing Aids M & 2nd & 4th SAT 11-3:00 Sign-up IMSS M+T 10-1:00 NYLife/Seguros Monterrey Insurance T+TH 11-2:00 Optometrist TH 9-5:30 Sign-up Safe Insurance W 11-2:00 Skin Cancer 2nd & 4th W 10-12:00 Sign –up TioCorp Bupa & Plan Seguros M 10_1:00 INFORMATION Ajijic Rotary Club M 10-12:00 Becerra Immigration F 10-1:00 Information Desk M-SAT 10-2:00 Lecture: New Immigration Procedures 6 Aug. 122:00 Loridan Legal T 10-12:00 Los Niño’s de Chapala /Ajijic F 10:00-2:00 LESSONS Children’s Art SAT 9:30-12:00 Country Line Dancing T+TH 10-11:30,Members Only Exercise M+W+F 9-10:00 Have Hammers Workshop M 10-12:15, F 2:30-4:30 Intermediate Hatha Yoga T+TH+SAT 2-3:30 Primitive Pottery M 10-1:00, SAT 12:00-3:00 Spanish Conversation T 10:30-12:00 Tai Chi Chuan Exercise M 10-11:00 SOCIAL ACTIVITIES AA M+TH 4-6:00 AA Women TH 10:30-12:00 AL-Anon/Al-aTeen 6-7:00 M Beginner’s Camera W 12-1:00 Computer Linux Class F 9:30-10:30 Computer Windows Club F 10:30-11:45 Creative Writer’s Group M 2-4:00 (Closed group) Digital Camera Club W 10:30-12:00 Dimitar Lecture “Art Thru the Ages” 26 August 122:00 Discussion Group W 12-1:30 Gamblers Anonymous W 12-1:00 Great Books 1st & 3rd TH 2-4:15 (Closed group) Green Group 1st T 3-4:30 Individual Counseling M-TH 3-4:00 Lakeside Friends of Animals 3rd TH 2-3:30 Mac OS 1st M 12-1:30 Mac User 3rd W 3-4:30 Mah Jonng F 10-3:00 Masonic Lodge #31 2nd & 4th W 4:30-8, 4th T 3-4:30 Needle Pushers T 10-12:00 Open Circle SUN 10:00-12:15 Scrabble M+F 12-2:00 Tournament Scrabble T+TH 12-3:00 TICKET SALES Tickets sold M-F 10-12:30
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August 2010 PROFILE OF THE MONTH Fred Harland, Vice President, Board of Directors I thoroughly enjoyed my interview with Fred as I found him to be very articulate, pleasant and a good conversationalist who has lived a full and interesting life. Fred and his wife, Mardele, have travelled extensively and lived for a time in several different countries while working for the Canadian Government’s Canada Union Services Overseas, similar to the Peace Corps, doing international educational development in Africa and the South Pacific. Fred has spent most of his life in the educational field as a teacher, facilitator, lecturer, and organizer. Fortunately for us, he has had many years of experience in the non-profit field. Fred and his wife were part-timers at Lakeside for nine years before moving here permanently three years ago. He has been a very active member at LCS for twelve years, and also in other areas at Lakeside. Fred was part of a Lakeside group that started The Lake Chapala Unitarian Universalist Fellowship. He and Bob Miller co-coordinate the LCS Learning Seminars and he is part of the Great Books discussion group which he founded ten years ago. Fred is a life-long learner of virtually everything and keeps fit by playing ball and running. On a more personal level, his son Chris is a lawyer and lives in India at the present, and his daughter Renata is a neuropsychologist who lives in the States, but has lived and taught in Japan. They are a very international family. Also, I asked Fred what is his favorite country, other than Mexico, and it’s Fiji, where they lived for a while in the 70’s.
NEW IMMIGRATION PROCEDURES Lecture with Q & A on new immigration procedures since June 1st Presenter: Alvaro Becerra, Becerra Immigration Friday, 6th in Sala, 12-2:00 pm ------------------------------------------
NEW!!! SPANISH CONVERSATION Tuesdays - 10:30-12:00 pm from August 10th thru Dec. 14th To be held in the Ken Gosh Pavilion Sponsor: Karl Homann **Basic knowledge required in grammar, speaking, listening.
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ART APPRECIATION LECTURE SERIES Dimitar Krustev’s Series: “Art thru the Ages” Includes: Egypt, Greece, Renaissance & Modern Art To be held on Thursdays 12-2:00 pm in Sala 26 AUGUST - “The Artist & His Travels to Paint & Photograph a Vanishing World” 9 SEPTEMBER - Topic to be announced 7 OCTOBER - Topic to be announced
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MEDICAL EMERGENCY - RED CROSS The medical-emergency number 065 goes to Guadalajara and is then forwarded to Chapala. The direct emergency number at the Chapala Red Cross is 765-2308 and will get you more immediate emergency attention. The 765-2553 is the business office number which is not always open.
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FILM AFICIONADOS Films and discussion 2nd & 4th Thursday in the Sala at 2 pm THERE WILL BE ONLY ONE FILM THIS MONTH ON THE BIG SCREEN 26 AUGUST – The film to be shown is yet to be determined. Come and be surprised! For LCS members to get on the Film Aficionado email list to receive notices and reviews of upcoming showings you can email me at: mak1939@gmail.com LAKE CHAPALA SOCIETY 16 de Septiembre #16-A, Ajijic, Jalisco LCS Main Office: 766-1140 Office, Information and other services open Monday – Friday, 10 to 2 and Saturday 10 to 2. Grounds are open until 5
LCS BOARD OF DIRECTORS President - Howard Feldstein Vice-President - Fred Harland Secretary - Lynn Bishop Sr. Director 1 - Tod Jonson Sr. Director 2 - Jack Shanks Sr. Director 3 - Wendee Hill LCS Education Director - Mary Alice Sargent Executive Director - Terry Vidal ◊ THE LCS NEWSLETTER IS PUBLISHED MONTHLY. ◊ DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS THE 15TH OF THE MONTH PRECEDING PUBLICATION. ◊ NEWS ITEMS CAN BE EMAILED TO EVE REID, EEREID39@YAHOO.COM NOTE: THE EDITORIAL STAFF RESERVES THE RIGHT TO COMPLETE EDITING PRIVILEGES. ARTICLES AND/OR CALENDAR EVENTS WILL BE INCLUDED ACCORDING TO TIME, SPACE AVAILABILITY AND EDITORIAL DECISION ON THE APPROPRIATENESS OF THE INFORMATION FOR INCLUSION.
Saw you in the Ojo 69
Service
EMERGENCY NUMBERS
www.tel.chapala.com
DIRECTORY Tel: 766-5493 - CASA DEL SOL Tel: 766-0050 - CASA TRES LEONES Cell: (045) 331-350-6764
* ADVERTISING - EL OJO DEL LAGO Tel. 765-3676
* ANIMAL CLINICS/PET SHOP - ANIMAL CARE Tel: 766-3062 Pag: 57 - DEE’S PET CARE Tel: 762-1646 Pag: 66 - LAKESIDE SPAY & NEUTER CENTER, A.C. Tel: 766-3813 Pag: 53 - PET SHOP Pag: 57 - SALUD ANIMAL Tel: 766-1009 Pag: 68
* ART GALLERIES/HANDCRAFTS - CATHY CHALVIGNAC Tel: 766-1153 - DIANE PEARL COLECCIONES Tel: 766-5683 - EL PALOMAR Tel: 01 (33) 3635-5247 - THE AJIJIC ART HOUSE Tel: 765-5097
Pag: 51 Pag: 53 Pag: 54 Pag: 74
* BLINDS AND CURTAINS - HUNTER DOUGLAS Tel: 766-0026
Pag: 21
* BOUTIQUE / CLOTHING STORES - ARATI Tel. 766-0130 - CUGINIS OPUS BOUTIQUE Tel/Fax: 766-1790 - FIAGA BOUTIQUE Tel: 766-1816 - LEATHER GALLERY Tel: 766-2845
Pag: 50 Pag: 03 Pag: 28, 68
Pag: 60
- QUINTA DON JOSE Tel: 01-800-700-2223
- DEL MAR Tel: 766-4278
Pag: 30
* HEARING AIDS Pag: 17 Pag: 15 Pag: 12
Pag: 07 Pag: 26 Pag: 18 Pag: 10
Pag: 63
- LAKE CHAPALA BAPTIST CHURCH Tel: 765-2925 Pag: 11, 59
- INTERCAM Tel: 766-5978 Pag: 21 - LAKESIDE FINANCIAL ADVISOR DAVID LESNICK CFP CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER Fax: 001(623) 327-1277 Pag: 12 - LAKESIDE MORTGAGE CONSULTANTS Tel: 766-2914 Pag: 25
* COMMUNICATIONS
* FLOWER SHOP
- VENTILADORES DEL OCCIDENTE Tel/Fax: (33) 3631-6619, 3634-9982
Pag: 06
* CHURCHES
- LAKESIDE HEARING SERVICES Cell. (045) 33-1511-4088
Pag: 66
* HOME APPLIANCES - TECNICOS UNIDOS Tel: (376) 765-4266
Pag: 14
* HOTELS / SUITES - HOTEL CIELO ROJO Tel. 311-258-4155 - LA NUEVA POSADA Tel: 766-1444, Fax: 766-2049 - MIS AMORES Tels: 766-4640, 4641, 4642 - QUINTA DON JOSE Tel: 01-800-700-2223 - VILLAS DEL SOL Tel: 766-1152
Pag: 55 Pag: 03 Pag: 50 Pag: 16 Pag: 30
- AJIJICNEWS.COM Tel: 766-6024 - CENTRICSOURCE - EASYCALL MEXICO Tel: 766-4980 - MAILBOXES, ETC. Tel: 766-0647, Fax: 766-0775 761-0363, Fax: 761-0364
Pag: 12 Pag: 57
Pag: 21
* COMPUTING SERVICES
Pag: 54
* BEAUTY
- SUZY’S CONSIGNMENT SHOP Tel: 766-5458
* FUMIGATION/PESTS - FUMIGA Tel: 762-0078, (045) 33-1155-7059 - FUMI-TECH Tel: 766-1946, Cell. (045) 333-369-3737 - MOSQUITO TRAP Tel: (376) 765 5973
Pag: 54 Pag: 69 Pag: 68
Pag: 13
- ARDEN MEXICO Tel: 765-3540 Pag: 37 - ENLACE ARTESANAL Tel: 01 33 3641-7579, 3641-7597 Pag: 35 - INTERIOR & FURNITURE -RICARDO FERNANDEZ Tel: 766-4331 Pag: 27 - TEMPUR Tel: (52) 333-629-5919, 333-629-5961 Pag: 52
Pag: 49
* CONSTRUCTION Pag: 66 Pag: 15
- ARELLANO Tel: 766-4696 Pag: 38, 39 - CABO DO MUNDO- INTERIOR DESIGN Tel: 766-0026 Pag: 21 - CONSTRUCTION & REMODELING Tel: 766-3626 Pag: 13
El Ojo del Lago / August 2010
* GARDENING - L & R WATER GARDENS Tel. 766-4386
* INTERIOR DESIGN Pag: 25
LEGAL SERVICES Pag: 10
* LIGHTING & DECORATION - LIGHTING & DESIGN CENTER Tel. 766-3506
Pag: 27
* MEAT/POULTRY/CHEESE
* FURNITURE
Pag: 51
- EDGAR CEDEÑO - MEXICO PROTECT Cell: (045) 33-3106-6982 Pag: 46 - LLOYD Tel: 766-0152, 766-3508 Pag: 24
- MAGO’S OFFICE Tel: 765-3640
Pag: 67
* CONSIGNMENT SHOP/ANTIQUES Pag: 55
Pag: 31
Pag: 54
Pag: 43
- AJIJIC COMPUTING Tel: 765-4156 - CAFE INTERNET AJIJIC Tel: 766-3626
- CRISANTEMO ROJO Tel: 766-4030
* INSURANCE
- ELEMENTS Tel: 766-5826
Pag: 61
* BAKERY
70
Pag: 20
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Pag: 73
Pag: 24
- CASA DE LAS FLORES
- HYPNOTHERAPY - AUDA HAMMETT Tel: 766-4185 - VIDACELL Cell: (045) 33-1335-2660
Pag: 46
Pag: 09
Pag: 23
* BED & BREAKFAST
* HEALTH Pag: 62
* FINANCIAL SERVICES
* BANK INVESTMENT
- ANGEL ESTRADA Tel: 766-4666 - JAMES DON SALON Tel: (387) 763 1933 - MARY KAY Tel: 765 7654 - SARA’S BEAUTY SALON Tel: 766-3518
- AJIJIC DENTAL Tel: 766-3682 - C.D. MARÍA LUISA LUIS VILLA Tel/Fax: 766-2428 - C.D. SANDRA ANAYA MORA Tel: 765-3502, 765-5444 - DRA. ANGELICA ALDANA LEMA DDS Tel. 765-5364 - DRA. DOLORES RUSSELL D.D.S. Tel: 766-2881, 766-0075 Cell: (045) 333-108-7727 - DR. ALBERTO DON OLIVERA Tels: 765-4838, 765-4805 - DR. FRANCISCO CONTRERAS Tel: 765-5757 - DR. HECTOR HARO, DDS. Tel: 765-3193, 765-6974
- FERRETERIA Y TLAPALERIA GALVEZ Tel: 766-0880, Fax: 766-2440 Pag: 64
* CEILING FANS
BAGS
- BRENDA’S BAKERY BOUTIQUE Tel: 765-2987
Pag: 63
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766-1760 765-4444 766-5555
* HARDWARE STORES
* DENTISTS
- BETO’S WINE & LIQUOR Tel: 766-5420, Cell (045) 333-507-3024 - MODELORAMA Tel: 766-2678, 765-2055
066 765-2308, 765-2553 766-3615
Pag: 28
* CASINO
* AUTOMOTIVE
- ACTINVER Tel. 766-3110 -O&A Tel: 766-4481 - MULTIVA Tel: 766-2499
Pag: 25
- GUGAM - ARCHITECTURE Tel: (01) 33 3838 5283 - INSTALA Cell: (045) 33 1440 6905 - WARWICK CONSTRUCTION Tel: 765-2224 Cell. (045) 331-135-0763
* DRY CLEANING/LAUNDRY
- AUTOMATIC GARAGE DOOR OPENERS Tel: 766 - 4973, Cell: (045) 33-3157- 6536 Pag: 50
- PRINTED CANVAS BAGS Tel: (33) 1562 0744 & 45
Pag: 55
* BEER & LIQUOR STORES
* AUTOMATIC DOORS
- GRUPO OLMESA Cell: (045) 33-3806-9231 - LINEA PROFESIONAL Tel. 766-2555, Fax. 766-0066 - RON YOUNG-MECHANIC Tel: 765-6387
Pag: 49
EMERGENCY HOTLINE AMBULANCE - CRUZ ROJA FIRE DEPARTMENT POLICE Ajijic Chapala La Floresta
Pag: 13
- TONY’S Tel: 766-1614, 766-4069
Pag: 61
* MEDICAL SERVICES - DERMATOLOGIST Tel: 766-1198, 765-2400 Pag: 58 - DERMIKA Dermatologic Center Dra. Monica Ramos Tel: 766-2500 Pag: 27 - DR. MARIO AVILA MORENO Tel: 766-3379 Pag: 44 - DRA. MARTHA R. BALLESTEROS FRANCO Cell: (045) 333-408-0951 Pag: 19 - HOSPITAL ANGELES DEL CARMEN Tel: (01) 3813-0042 Pag: 18
- HOSPITAL BERNARDETTE Tel: 01 (33) 3825-4365 Pag: 33 - INTERNAL MEDICINE SPECIALIST & GERIATRICS Dr. J. Manuel Cordova Tel: 766-2777 Pag: 15 - ISILAB Tel: 766-1164 Pag: 30 - PINTO OPTICAS Tel: 765-7793 Pag: 18 - PLASTIC SURGERY Tel: 766-2500 Pag: 51 - PLAZA LA MONTAÑA Tel: 766-5513 Pag: 47 - RED CROSS Tel: 765-2308 - SURGERY HOST Tel: 766-3145 Pag: 52
* MALL - CENTRO LAGUNA Tel: 01 (33) 3560-2670
Pag: 75
* MOVERS - BALDERAS Tel: 01 (33) 3810-4859 - LAKE CHAPALA MOVING Tel: 766-5008 - SEYMI Tel: 01 (33) 3603-0000, 3603-0256 - STROM- WHITE MOVERS Tel: 766-4049
Pag: 08 Pag: 14
Pag: 02 Pag: 47 Pag: 22 Pag: 50 Pag: 59 Pag: 13 Pag: 44 Pag: 29 Pag: 26
* PHARMACIES Pag: 67 Pag: 16
Pag: 22
Pag: 62
* POOL MAINTENANCE - EQUIPMENT AND POOL MAINTENANCE Tel: 766-1617 Pag: 28 - TECNO AQUA Tel: 766-3730, 766-3731 Pag: 59
* REAL ESTATE - AJIJIC HOME INSPECTIONS Tel: 766-2836 Pag: 11 - AJIJIC REAL ESTATE Tel: 766-2077, Fax: 766-2331 Pag: 03 - ALL IN ONE REAL ESTATE SERVICE Tel: 766-1161 Pag: 05 - ARELLANO Tel: 766-4696 Pag: 36, 37 - BEV. & JEAN COFELL Home Tel. 766-5332 Office Tel. 765-3676 Pag: 46 - COLDWELL BANKER CHAPALA REALTY Tel: 766-1152, 766-3369 Fax: 766-2124, Tels: 765-2877 Fax: 765-3528 Pag: 76
Pag: 52 Pag: 43 Pag: 47 Pag: 61 Pag: 26 Pag: 22
* RETIREMENT/REST/NURSING HOMES - LA CASA NOSTRA Tel: 765-4187, Fax: 765-5815 - PRIVATE ELDER CARE Tel: 765-5723 - THE BLUE HOUSE Tel: 766-1256
Pag: 06 Pag: 57 Pag: 48
- AJIJIC ELECTRONICS S.A. DE C.V. Tel/Fax: 766-1117, 766-3371
Pag: 09
* SCHOOLS
- GOLDEN AGE Tel: 766-3989 - HYDROPOOL Tel: 766-4030 - MONTE COXALA Tel: (387) 761-0111, 761-0326 - RESPIRO SPA Tel: (045) 33-3157-7790 - TOTAL BODY CARE Tel: 766 3379
Pag: 53 Pag: 31 Pag: 40 Pag: 25 Pag: 19
* THERAPISTS - PROFESSIONAL REHABILITATION Tel: 766-5563
Pag: 19
* TOURS - CHARTER CLUB TOURS Tel: 766-1777 Pag: 09 - GRUPO TURQUESA TOURS Tel: 766-5435 Pag: 67 - TOURS - NOE RAYGOZA Tel: (045) 33-1265-6696 Pag: 32 - VOLUNTEER ADVENTURES MÉXICO Mex (228) 816-4055, US (858) 622-1402 Pag: 54
* TREE SERVICE
- IMAC Tel: 33-3613-1080 - INSTITUTO TERRANOVA Tel: 766 2401, 766 399 - ITTO Tel: 33-3658-3224
Pag: 55 Pag: 32 Pag: 27
* SECURITY SYSTEMS - S.O.S.E Tel: 765-4921
* SPA / MASSAGE
- CHAPALA TREE SERVICE Tel: 762-0602
Pag: 69
* WATER - TECNO AQUA Tel: 766-3730, 766-3731
Pag: 59
Pag: 69
* SELF STORAGE - SELF STORAGE-BODEGAS CHAPALA Tel: 766-0661, Tel/Fax: 766-1045 Pag: 31
* REPAIRS/ MAINTENANCE * SOCIAL ORGANIZATIONS - SERVICIO BELTRÁN Tel: 765-3949 - WATCH & CLOCKS Tel: 765 5190, Cell: (045) 33-1331-9226
Pag: 68
Pag: 68
* RESTAURANTS/CAFES/CLUBS
* PODIATRIST
Pag: 19
* SATELLITES/ T.V.
Pag: 14 Pag: 60
Pag: 25
Pag: 47
- COLDWELLBANKER CHAPALA REALTY Tel: 766-1152, movile: (045) 33-1175-9632 Pag: 60 - FOR RENT Tel: (33) 3825-8332 Pag: 66 - FOR RENT Tel: 765-6462 Pag: 22 - RENTAL LOCATERS Tel: 766-5202 Pag: 32 - ROMA Tel: 766-3163 Pag: 16 - SANTANA RENTALS Cell: 315-104-3283, Pag: 09 - VILLAS DEL SOL Tel: 766-1152 Pag: 30
Pag: 45
Tel: 766-1360 - PANINO Tel: 766-3822 - SIMPLY THAI Tel: 766-5665 - SUBWAY - TOMAS Tel: 765-3897 - TONY’S Tel: 766-1614, 766-4069 - TRATORIA DI AURORA Tel. 766-4013Cell. (044) 33 1265 7900 - YVES’ Tel: 766-1851
Pag: 24
Pag: 17
- JUSTUS HAUSER Tel: 763-5333, Fax: 763-5335 Emergencies: 01 (33) 3441-8223 Pag: 05 - NEWCOMERS ILSE HOFFMANN Cell: 33-3157-2541, Ilse40@megared.net.mx www.mexicoadventure.com/chapala/guadalajara.htm Tel: 01 (33) 3647-3912
- LAKE MED CENTER Tel: 766-0068
Pag: 14
* RENTALS/PROPERTY MANAGEMENT
* PERSONAL ASSISTANCE
- FARMACIA CRISTINA Tel: 766-1501 - FARMACIA EXPRESS II - FARMACIA MASKARAS Tel/Fax: 765-5827 - FARMACIA MORELOS Tel: 765-4002
Pag: 49
Pag: 12
* MUSIC/THEATRE - BALLET FOLCLÓRICO DE LA UdeG Tel: 01 (33) 3818-3800
- CHULA VISTA NORTE Tel: 766-2177 Cell: (045) 33-3841-8867 - CONTINENTAL REALTY Cel: 33-1443-2143 - EL DORADO Tel: 766-0040 - FOR SALE BY OWNER Tel: 766-5458 - FOR SALE BY OWNER Tel: (387) 763-1974 - FOR SALE BY OWNER Tel: 766-5124 - FOR SALE BY OWNER - GEORGETTE RICHMOND Tel: 766-2129, 766-2077 - INVERHABITA Cell: (044) 33 3477 1066 - LAGUNA VISTA Tel: 766-5740 - LAS CATARINAS Tel: 766-3592 - LLOYD REAL ESTATE AJIJIC Tel: 766-3508 - RAUL GONZALEZ Cell: 33-1437-0925 - RE/MAX AJIJIC Cell: 331-249-2156 English
- AJIJIC TANGO Tel: 766-2458 Pag: 56 - ALFREDO’S CALIFORNIA Tel: 765-2245 Pag: 68 - CAFÉ ADELITA Tel: 766-0097 Pag: 28 - CASA DEL WAFFLE Tel: 766-1946 Pag: 03 - CHAC-LAN Tel: (387) 761-0111, 761-0326 Pag: 40 - DAVID’S CAFE Tel: 766-2341 Pag: 20 - EL JARDIN DE NINETTE Tel. 766-4905 Pag: 55 - GO LE CLUB Cell: (045) 33-3502-6555 Pag: 53 - JOLANDAS Tel: 315-351-5449 Pag: 28 - LA NUEVA POSADA Tel: 766-1444, 766-2049 Pag: 03 - “LA TAVERNA” DEI QUATTRO MORI Tel: 766 2848 Pag: 31 - LA VITA BELLA Cell: 33-3476-6577 Pag: 40 - LAS CABALLERIZAS COXALA Tel: 766-0744 Pag: 40 - LOS TELARES Tel: 766-0428 Pag: 49 - MOM´S DELI & RESTAURANT Tel: 765-5719 Pag: 11, 62 - NUMBER FOUR
- ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS Tel: 766-5961 - EL BAZAR DE LOS NIÑOS Tel: 765-3147 - LAKE CHAPALA SOCIETY Tel: 766-1140
Pag: 69 Pag: 66 Pag: 66-69
SAW YOUIN T HE OJO
The Ojo Crossword
Saw you in the Ojo 71
CARS (8) FOR SALE: 2001 Mercedez / Benz CLK 430, 2 doors. good condition, price $9,800. USD call: J P Landry @ (044) 333-720-3209. FOR SALE: 2009 Smart Passion, spare tire and wheel, 15,000 km. $12,500 USD. Call Karen Nichols at (387) 763-0233 FOR SALE: Manufactured in the US but now has Mx plates, Buick Le Sabre 1998, 6 cylinders, AC, all electric, autotrans, good condition. $60,000.pesos. Call Armando (376) 766 0779 WANTED: Need to rent until mid Sept or will consider purchase of a used golf cart to be used in Ajijic by mobility challenged lady. 766-2381 FOR SALE: 2002 Mazda Millenia. Excellent Condition. Full leather package. New tires, new suspension, body and paint in perfect condition. Check out Blue Book, Private Seller....this is a steal! Call Linda 766-0303 or 766-1776 FOR SALE: 1995 Mazda Protege in good condition. Only drove it three times; I am willing to negotiate the price. Call: Maha Maha at 3311930908 Mexico, 619 753-9649 USA, mahasina@yahoo.com
FOR SALE: 2006 CHEVROLET EQUINOX V6 motor. Car is in excellent condition; purchased in Canada last year; has Ontario plates. Only two owners. $120,000 pesos. Call (376)7661127 FOR SALE: 1983 CLASSIC MERCEDES 4 DOOR. Air Conditioner, AM/ FM Stereo, Automatic Transmission, Leather Interior, Sun Roof, Power Windows, Steering, Locks, good condition, $3,000. USD Call: Heinz Stapff at 7653587
COMPUTERS (10) FOR SALE: Easy Cap unit, patch cords and OEM software. Transfer your VHS to your hard drive and then burn to a DVD (if you want). $250 Call: David @ (376) 763-5248 FOR SALE: 4 in 1 Fax/Scanner/ Printer/Copier. Almost new. $1,500 pesos. Perfect Condition. Contact: Rafael Terracino FOR SALE: canon power shot sd 500 elph, camera, cables, recharger and two batteries, used, but still good pic quality. $25. USD. Call: (387)763-1725 FOR SALE: Desktop computer with
keyboard. Very good...lightly used with Windows XP Home Edition upgrade (with certificate of authenticity). Hard drive cleaned by professional, guaranteed. $200 US. Call: Dennis at 766-5322 FOR SALE: Magicjack, call unlimited to the United States and Canada. Price $60.00 includes one full year of service, renewal for the next year is only $19.95 for as long as you own the magicjack. Call: (376)765-2326 BEST OFFER FOR: External Floppy Drive. See: http://go.iomega.com/enus/products/removable-storage/floppydrives/?partner=4760 Includes an unopened 10-pack of IBM formatted 2HD Floppy Disks (3.5”). Contact: Donald Williams FOR SALE: Older computer, works good. Comes with Windows XP PRO, Microsoft Office,CD Player & CD burner. Has 13” Monitor, Keyboard and two speakers, mouse and other extras. $250 USD. 765-5773 FOR SALE: Cd Burner, good working order, with spare recordable cd’s and manual, $49USD. Call 765-3824 FOR SALE: Well constructed laptop travel bag. Has wheels and an extension handle for pulling. Excellent condition. Large enough for a full size laptop. Price $250 pesos. Contact: Wayne Gardi
PETS & SUPPLIES (3) FOR SALE: good saddle horse. Fine gelding, has brio, been to high school and can dance, good trail horse - proud cut. Beautiful, intelligent, to good home. $20,000 pesos. Contact: Kerrie Stepnick FOR SALE: Training your puppy or dog? I have two books that might help: PUPPY TRAINING, by Charlotte Schwartz; and NEW COMPLETE DOG TRAINING MANUAL, by Bruce Fogle. $100 Pesos for both. Call: James Tipton, 765-7689. POSITION DESIRED: Beautiful, loyal and lovable little girl needs new home- have too many, no time. She is purebred, healthy, very athletic; can do incredible twisting leaps to catch a ball, amazing 99% accuracy. Contact: Sherry Hudson
GENERAL MERCHANDISE FOR SALE: Good condition 5,300kms. Custum Dinamo 2009 Chopper 150CC white & red, $18,000 pesos. Call: 333-952-8531 FOR SALE: BRAND NEW American made queen size bed. For details see bragada.com, model Vellaggio. Used one night, shipping charges to Mexico not included for mattresses, springs, frame. Sell $13,000 pesos. (376) 7664365 FOR SALE: Dark brown leather futon double $4,000p OBO, learn Spanish CD’s Berlitz $100p, behind the wheel Spanish, $100p, Berlitz German CD’s
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El Ojo del Lago / August 2010
$100p, local artisan sun design lamp and shade,$350pesos. Call: (376)765-7373 FOR SALE: dark wood chair $100p, orange couch $800p, decorative pottery $50p, large red planter pots $200each books 10p/2, audio books 8 on a spindle misc. authors $250p. Misc. “stuff”. Call: (376)765-7373 FOR SALE: Level 1 and Spanish Now! Level 2. These are the popular Barron’s Textbook/Workbook in like new condition. List at $37.94US for both. My price $150 pesos or $12USD for both. James Tipton 765-7689 FOR SALE: The Appeal by John Grisham, list $27.95US; Double Cross by James Patterson, list $27.99US; 4th of July by James Patterson, list $27.95US; Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, list $29.99US. These are all Hardcover First Editions. Will sell each for $120 Pesos or $10US. James Tipton, 765-7689 FOR SALE: k Stein Piano, good condition.3 notes need to be tuned. Comes complete with nice black leather adjustable stool. $8950 pesos. Call Stephen Stokes (376) 765-5523 FOR SALE: Complete VW Passat roof luggage rack. Should fit other cars. Approx. 40”x 40”,102cm x 102cm. Make offer. Call: Jerry at (376)765-4353 FOR SALE: Dark brown leather recliner in perfect condition, purchased new from Arden 2 years ago for 6,500 pesos, today only $4,000pesos. Call: Jack 766-6099 WANTED: Need a used 8 foot fiberglass Satellite Dish w/base & LNB bracket. Contact: Jim Watkins FOR SALE: Brand new in the box, never activated 505 Star Choice Satellite Receiver. High definition, 4-year product warranty from Future Shop in Canada optional $49.00 USD. Call 766-2551 WANTED: I would like to buy a Star Choice system, either the dish or the receiver or both. Contact: Dennis James. WANTED: Looking for someone to share our Sol Y Luna Mailbox. Our contract expires 2/11. If you join us and pay half (approx $150 u.s.) of the yearly fee for 2/11 - 3/12 year, come aboard now and enjoy 6 additional months free. Contact: Dale Wilson HOMEEXCHANGE. Looking for a home-exchange in Ottawa, Canada, for 6 months (Nov 2010-Apr 2011). Offering secure 2BR/2BA house, garden, pool. Centrally located in Ajijic. Looking for 2BR/2BA apartment, townhouse, home. Pet-friendly (2 small dogs) Contact: Barbara Magnus WANTED: Looking for Breville (juice fountain plus) Lightly used or excellent cond. Please contact me at 331-0170323 leave message or text. FOR SALE: RCA, 6 speaker Home Theatre system with DVD player. $160.00 USD or best offer. Contact: Fred Habacht FOR SALE: White stoneware; 32 piece service for 8. Never used...still in unopened boxes. $60.00 USD or best
offer. Contact: Fred Habacht FOR SALE: Never used disk VIP 222K receiver & 1000 HD HDMI. Cablereceiver is 2 tuners. Price is $250.00USD or best offer. Contact: Fred Habacht WANTED: Need auto upholster to replace headliner in car. Contact: Frank Raimo FOR SALE: DeLonghi W0507 Portable Electric oil heater. 1500W in near new condition. $350 pesos. Contact: Rafael Terracino WANTED: Used golf cart to rent or buy needed until mid September. Have garage to house cart, need it to go a few blocks to LCS and physical therapy and shopping. 677-3281 FOR SALE: IEM Refrigerator used excellent condition. $2,100 pesos. For more info call: 33-1005-3109 FOR SALE: Heavy duty paper shredder. Cross cut style. Also shreds plastic credit cards, etc. 750 pesos. Contact: Kiko Kiko FOR SALE: Go to the virtual garage sale at: http://www.colonos-vista-dellago.com Lots of stuff and more being added. Call: David @ (376)763-5248 WANTED: Will need sofa/loveseat, or sectional, set, prefer leather/suede, neutral color. Also, recliner. 766-5734 FOR SALE: Near new US Dish dual receiver & LNB. Great for anyone moving back Stateside. Will sell the 4-5’ antennae separately, can be used down here for Star Choice, dish or whatever. $400 USD. Call: 766-5734 FOR SALE: Entertainment Center. Will hold 42” WideScreen T.V. 26” Deep, 84” Wide 87” High 2 Large Drawers, 2 cabinets. Natural Finish. $4,000 pesos. Contact: Rafael Terracino FOR SALE: Kodak Carousel 850H Auto-Focus 35mm Slide Projector. Very good condition. Includes 2 spare bulbs. 4-6 inch Kodak Ektanar zoom lens. Kodak carry case. Wired r/c. No tray. Contact: Ronnie WANTED: Starchoice receiver complete with remote control, etc. Call: Mike 766-2829, email: Mikenan@prodigy.net. mx FOR SALE: 9-Volt Batteries Package of 12. $ 250 pesos. Expiration is 2013. Call: Julie Hensley at 765-4590 FOR SALE: Free boxes and lots of white paper for moving or storage. Call: 766-3065 FOR SALE: Cutty Sark replica, 36” long, 28” high, 15” wide to scale model of the Cutty Sark mounted on stand. Detailed hand crafted workmanship. Beautiful replica! $3000 pesos. Contact: Dave Fields FOR SALE: Very lightly used Eureka Whirlwing Big Gulp vacuum machine. This is state of the art bagless cyclonic with Hepa filtration system. Manual included. $150 U.S. Call: Dennis McCann at 766-5322 FOR SALE: Dish Satellite Receiver. Must sacrifice. Excellent condition. Make offer. Call Alex at 765-3634
FOR SALE: Canon MP20DH111 with 2 color illuminated display. Used 1 time. All instructions and the machine is packed in the box it came in. $500 pesos. Contact: Ann Heath WANTED: I would like to beg, borrow, or rent a turntable that will play 45 rpm records. It must have audio out jack(s) (RCA style). I want to transfer a few of my old 45s to a CD. Call David at (376)763-5248 FOR SALE: Brand Arbruder, 7mp 14mpmax, 6.6L/ min., 2900PSI, asking $900 pesos. Contact: Diane Ward FOR SALE: Yamaha piano- organ, model ypr-50 in excellent condition, with manual and adjustable chair. $275 USD. Call: 765-3824 FOR SALE: Sony camcorder, good working condition, with carrying case and manual. $75 USD Call: John Whiley at 765-3824 FOR SALE: Want to lose weight? I have for sale (very slightly used) a hardcover edition of Fred Pescatore, M.D., THE HAMPTONS DIET. $100 Pesos. Call: James Tipton, 765-7689. FOR SALE: Surpassing The Love Of Men: Romantic Friendship And Love Between Women; Sex In History; The Art Of Sexual Ecstasy/The Art Of Sexual Magic; and Best Women’s Erotica 2010. All for only $250 pesos. Call: James Tipton 765-7689. FOR SALE: Attention Cormac McCarthy Fans: I have, for sale, in fine condition, the three novels in his Border Trilogy for only $350 Pesos. Almost impossible to find here locally. Call: James Tipton at 765-7689. FOR SALE: Complete set of seven videos (VHS), these are the “Total Body Sculpting”, “Winsor Pilates” and the “Sculpt Your Body Slim” series. Price $600 Pesos. Call: James Tipton at 7657689. FOR SALE: New Alto Saxophone (Cecilia), never used. Bought in the States a year ago for $4000 pesos. Will sacrifice for $3000 pesos. Call: James Tipton at 765-7689. FOR SALE: Iron Window and Protection, approx. 73” wide by 39” height 4-panel window, with the middle two panels that open with screening, and attached wrought iron protection with scrollwork detail. $1500 pesos. Call Janet at 766-0777. WANTED: Looking for a TV/VCR combo. Reasonable price. Bigger screen is better, but will take anything available. Must be in good working condition. Call Jill Flyer at 766-3025. FOR SALE: Double espresso and steam outputs comes complete with manuals and electric coffee grinder, restaurant quality, $2,500 USD. Call: Heinz Stapff at 765-3587
can stamps, both new and used, for sale. (Also lots of Peru and Chile). Call: James Tipton at 765-7689. FOR SALE: Cormac McCarthy, three novels in his Border Trilogy, as well as Blood Meridian, AND, with a two cassette cd of Brad Pitt reading Cities of the Plain. Price $350 Pesos. Call: James
Tipton at 765-7689. FOR SALE: Original bold signature of Andrew Jackson on Land Grant, probably 1829, co-signed by George Graham, Commissioner of the General Land Office. Price $4000US. Call: James Tipton at 765-7689
COLLECTABLES (3) FOR SALE: I have hundreds of duplicates of 19th and 20th century Mexi-
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