Barry Griefer's Mental Ramblings Mexico

Holy Mole and other expenses.

2011-11-25T19:47:00.000-08:00

We had to go downtown anyhow after the morning's purchases at the tianguis. We needed to get a couple of prescriptions filled and Cristy decided she wanted make a special kind of mole that's not based on lard or lots of grease. Mole is a traditional sauce that has a lot of ingredients that produce a mix of flavors that is unique to Mexico.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mole_(sauce)

Note the comment about mole poblano traditionally being served with turkey. We'll be doing a post-Thanksgiving turkey on Monday or Tuesday.

The reason for trying Cristy's recipe is that it can be kept low fat, low salt and low sugar, meeting all the goals of my post bypass diet.

The ingredients are:
Chile ancho
Chile nopalero

Garlic
Mexican chocolate which contains raw sugar and cinnamon
Pepper
Bay leaves
Cloves
Sesame seeds
Saltines
Almonds
Sugar
Salt
Just enough oil to fry the chiles and sesame seeds

If you would like to try mole just Google "recipe mexican mole" without the quotes.

Besides the mole ingredients, we also picked up some strawberries at about 96 cents/lb, peanuts and raisins I use for snacks.

The mole ingredients and snacks plus a taxi ride back up the hill came out at about $17. Mole is not an everyday delicacy unless you buy a small jar of commercial mole in the supermarket, the same brand as found in the Mexican Foods section of US supermarkets, good but not as good as homemade.

It was

Today Was Tianguis Day

2011-11-25T12:58:00.000-08:00

Today was tianguis day which I blogged about last week:
http://gudgrief-mentalramblingsmexico.blogspot.com/2011/10/when-we-first-moved-to-new-apartment.html

Cristy and I went again today to avoid having to go downtown or even Walmart if we could .

We ended up buying a bunch of stuff that may meet out fruit end vegetable needs for 5 days to a week. The list includes:

Bananas (6)

Oranges (6)
Mandarin Oranges (12)

A cantaloupe

Red Tomatoes (2lb.)

Green Tomatoes (2lb.)

Guavas (1lb.)

Onions (2 large)

Cucumber (1)

Little Green Lemons/Limes [Limones] (12)

The total bill was 52.5 pesos or around $4.00 using the rate the last time I bought pesos.

Rice, beans and tortillas are equally low priced which explains how the poor can eat healthily on a meager income.

2011-10-28T11:43:00.001-07:00

When we first moved to the new apartment, the landlady told us there was a "tianguis" every Friday the next street over. I got out early enough this morning to have a look for the first time.

A tianguis is an open air market or bazaar that is traditionally held on certain market days in a town or city neighborhood in Mexico. This bazaar tradition has its roots well into the pre-Hispanic period and continues in many cases essentially unchanged into the present day. The word tianguis comes from Nahuatl, the language of the Aztec Empire.

You can have a breakfast of fresh made, hand made gorditas with a wide variety of fillings washed down with atole:

You'll find a selection of clothing and personal odds and ends:

Household items:

A nice mix of fresh fruits and vegetables, a convenient way to avoid an extra trip to WalMart or the market downtown.

There are two "corner stores" within a block of the house.

They are almost literally "holes in the wall."

The sign over this one is actually for a law office which takes up most of the building.

This is the "little store" which is an alcove off the entrance and no more than 20 sq. ft. big.

There's a bakery in the same block,

And a unisex salon. The sign says "about hair."

There's also a tortilleria a block over and a block up the hill. Fresh and hot out of the machine and they reheat soft and chewy instead of dry and hard like most of the prepackaged ones do. Sorry, no photo, got plenty of tortillas in the house and am going to be in Mcallen most of next week.

I have to admit that I have back slid because thare isn't a whole lot of incentive to get roam any significant distance from home. My appetite has come back in spades. If I'm awake, I'm hungry and have gained around 10lbs. since getting out of the hospital. I'm going to have to find filling snacks that are low cal, low sugar, fat free and salt free. Is that even possible?

I'm about to become a Neo-Luddite

2011-06-18T17:44:00.000-07:00

Here's what happened.

It started with my desktop going belly up and going to cost more to repair than a new one.

I don't want to think of buying a new computer now, so I had to come up with a cheaper alternative.

I already had two USB hard drives for photos, back ups and other old stuff I wanted to keep. I use a USB keyboard on the laptop when I'm at home and a USB marble mouse. They already use two of the three USB ports on the laptop.

The desktop had two hard drives and was connected to my Home Network.

What I did was order USB two cases, took the drives out of the desktop and mounted them in the cases. Just to have the luxury of having them all online at the same time, I got a 10-port powered USB hub "thinking" that with 6 USB devices plugged into the laptop, the hub would need power. Duh, I forgot that the keyboard and mouse don't need power and the hard drives are self-powered.

I got everything cobbled together and it was working fine until the next set of Microsoft updates came down. Instead of rebooting, the laptop shutdown. Using an old trick, I disconnected everything including the 120V, took out the battery, held down the power button for 10 sec., re-installed the battery and tried to power up on battery only. It worked fine.

I connected everything up and rebooted on AC power. Worked fine.

Tried to put it to sleep. Shutdown completely. Wouldn't start up again. Went through the ritual to get it started again. Connected everything back up except the AC and tried to put it to sleep. It slept. Took it out of sleep and tried to get it to hibernate. Hibernated and woke up no problem.

I called tech support with the details. He had me disconnect everything and reproduce the failure without any USB devices connected. Then he did a search through his and HP's knowledge base and came back with the suggestion that if there was a BIOS update, which there was, I should download and install it. I did that and we went through the steps to recreate the failure and it sure looked like the BIOS update did the trick. So, the Microsoft Windows updates caused me to need to update the BIOS. It's getting so complex, anything's possible.

After thanking the guy for sticking with me for over an hour, I hung up and reconnected everything USB hub and all. Duh! Bigtime! The failure came back.

OK, with no USB devices plugged in, everything works fine. I started with plugging the AC in and the mouse and keyboard directly into the laptop instead of the hub. Everything worked fine. I plugged one hard drive into the hub and connected it to the laptop. WA-LA! The problem came back!

With that, I lost it! I had to go off and calm down. Once I got myself together again, "a light bulb" went on. Stuff connected through the powered hub causes the problem! After a bit, it hit me, "What if I unplugged the power cord from the hub, would the hub still work?" Worth a try, no? That did it! My system don't need no powered USB.

Sweet, Sour, Spicy and Mouthwatering

2011-06-04T09:20:00.000-07:00

Years ago while visiting relatives in Tennessee, it blew me away that they sprinkled salt on watermelon and cantaloupe. Till I tried it.

Years later, I saw Southerners putting hot sauce on fried eggs. It didn't blow me away, I tried it and could appreciate the attraction but never made it a habit.

The kids used to love Mexican chile candy. Just like the powdered sweet sour candy in the US but with a dash of chile thrown in. Or a jam-like concoction based on fruit pulp laced with chile. Not bad.

Then Cristy came up with something else a few days ago.

She cut up some cantaloupe and watermelon in bite-sized cubes and sliced some jicama in thick strips. Next she sprinkled lemon juice over all three arranged on a plate. This was followed by ground black pepper and a secret mixture of ground chile she bought at the market in Zamora. To die for!

If you can find ground chile (not chili powder) it's worth a try. It should be good on almost any fruit you can serve sliced. It might take some experimenting, especially the ground chile, to get the right balance of flavors.

Here’s a good article on the price of gas.

2011-02-10T14:28:00.000-08:00

http://money.cnn.com/2008/03/13/news/economy/gas_gallon/index.htm

It took me a long time to understand the Law of Supply and Demand. We covered it in high school and the most important point was missed. Even in college Economics, the point was glossed over. It wasn’t until many years later I heard Milton Friedman explain it with the proper emphasis.

First, let me give an example I run into on almost a daily basis. The taxis around here do have meters but almost all of the drivers claim they are busted. When I take a taxi from the bus station to home and the meter does work, the fare comes to about 35 pesos ($2.88.) With a broken meter, they usually ask for 30 pesos ($2.47.) Sometimes, one will ask for 45 pesos ($3.70.) That’s almost 30% over the going rate and although I can afford the 82 cent difference, does it make sense to get taken? So, I go, “¡A poco! íMe cobran 30! (WTF! They usually charge me 30!) Right away, we settle for 30 or 35.

The missing point is that price settles where the seller is WILLING to sell and the buyer is WILLING to buy.

Just for drill, a barrel of oil that’s used to make gasoline yields about 42 gallons of gasoline. I can’t find a good figure on what percentage of oil produced is used to make gasoline. Let’s say half.

The average price of a gallon of gas is around $3.15.

A monthly Metrocard for the NY Transit System costs $104.

The average tax on a gallon of gas is $.41 or 13%.

Any monopoly other than OPEC would be loudly condemned by progressives, liberals and Democrats. They split up Ma Bell, didn’t they? OPEC can and does fiddle with supply to get the best price it can for a barrel of oil.

Speculators bet on the change in the future price. Thanks to several factors in addition to holding their oil till the “right time”, they make large profits. Is that their fault? Are they any eviler than anyone who buys stock in a company expecting to rake in big profits for retirement? Judging what effect speculators have on the price of oil is clouded by OPEC, state and local taxes and other government actions.

Now, a quick look at oil company profits. The billions of profits look obscenely large. Put it in a perspective that maps to a simpler concept. Sell off all the oil companies’ assets and let them invest the proceeds in US Treasury Bonds. The income from those bonds would be very close to the profits they make by being oil companies. What! Yes, it’s true. Along the way, millions of people would lose their jobs. Businesses that depend on the oil companies would disappear. There would be negative effects throughout the world economy. So, these “evil greedy bastards” must be staying in business for some other reason than just being evil and greedy.

How about a look at the demand side? When I lived in Las Vegas, I used a gallon of gas a day on average. 250 workdays a year at $3.15 a gallon cost me a little over $65/mo. to go back and forth to work. That guy in Queens or Brooklyn who owns a car anyway and commutes by subway for $104/mo, how is he better off? Given that that $104 fare is already heavily subsidized by taxes, his real cost is a good bit higher. What does that do to all the hype about mass transit?

Looking further, how many people spend $1000 or more on a big screen TV, pay over $150/mo. for cable TV, over $100/mo. for cell phone service, $25 or more for two people to go to the movies once a week. Am I dreaming or can the vast majority cut back on something they can absolutely do without and not lower their quality of life?

You really want to lower the price of gas or its future equivalent (biodiesel, hydrogen, wind, etc.?) Can you find anything quicker and cheaper than allowing the development of all the energy resources in the US without government interference or prohibition or subsidies?

Security Renewing US Passport in Mexico

2011-01-11T23:28:00.000-08:00

It was a seven hour bus ride Monday night to Monterrey to renew my US passport, arriving a 6AM. I wanted to do it in San Luis Potosi where there's a Consular Office and is two hours closer. The Consul General was in Zacatecas a few weeks ago and I asked him specifically if you could pay with a credit card in San Luis. He answered with an unequivocal yes. When I called San Luis to make an appointment, I was told that if I wanted to pay with a credit card, it had to be Monterrey and that I needed to take my old passport, two copies of the page the picture's on, my original birth certificate and two copies, another form of picture ID and two copies and two passport photos. Nothing was said about security and nothing about printed on the appointment slip.

I made my appointment for Monterrey.

I arrive at the consulate, walk up to the bullet-proof teller-type window and show my ID and he asks me if I have a cell phone. "You have to turn the cell phone off," he says. I do so. The he asks if I have any other electronic equipment. "Well sure, I have my laptop in my backpack." "Oh, you can't bring it into the consulate." Pause. . . "You'll have to find some place to store it." Pause. . . I turn and walk a few yards down the street and a Mexican says good morning in English as he passes. I notice he has a security badge, turn, say excuse me and explain my problem and ask if anything can be done. He asks me to wait and goes into the consulate. He comes back out saying that the guard knows where I can check my backpack. Back to the window and the guard tells me where to go. It's a block down and is a business that makes copies and helps people fill out US Consulate forms. 20 pesos ($1.60) for the checkroom service.

Back at the consulate, the guard buzzes me in to a security area. Stuff on the belt, walk through the arch, pat down which didn't even come close to my "package.' Another teller-type window to get a visitors badge and I'm allowed to enter the waiting room and take a number. There is only one person ahead of me and I get my turn in about 5 minutes. Another teller-type window where the lady wants only my old passport, application and photos. Then she runs my credit card for the $110 fee. So far, everyone has been Mexican and except for the minor ommission by the first guard, all have been professional, helpful and courteous. She askes me to take a seat while my documents are being checked. In about 5 minutes I'm called up to another window. Everything is fine and all I have to do is to take a form and my receipt to the courier service a block down to arrange to have my new passport delivered when it comes in. The only hitch there is that in Zacatecas, they don't deliver to your door; you have to pick it up at their office. That's not big deal either. Maybe six bucks in cab fare and it's close to where we do our main shopping so we can kill two birds with one stone. The new passport should arrive in about two weeks.

It would have been nice though if the appointment form that I printed off on my computer had included a complete and current list of security procedures and what the provess consisted of.

Actually, things went so quick, I caught an 11:30AM bus back to Zacatecas after arriving at the consulate around 9-9:30.

Altitude

2010-12-08T00:16:00.000-08:00

A friend asked if it's difficult living at 8000-8500 ft. above sea level.

Well, backpackers, hikers, athletes acclimatize in just a few days.

Couch potatoes like me take a bit longer.

After 3 to 5 days I stopped feeling discomfort walking up and down 3 flights of stairs.

I needed to stop and rest walking up a 200 ft. long 20 degree slope.

After month, that wasn't a problem anymore,

There's a quarter mile 30-40 degree hill leading from downtown to a park we go to frequently.

The first time I tried it, I had to stop twice.

That's not a problem now.

From there to the house is about another half mile uphill with grades as steep as 60 degrees.

The few times we've done it, it was very slowly and we stopped to catch our breath about halfway.

Not feeling we need to be heroes, we walk downhill to the park, nearby restaurants and shops or downtown and take a taxi back home.

New York 10-25 to 10-30

2010-11-03T16:39:00.001-07:00

Where to start? The photo above is as good as any.

Pizza at Lombardi's, first pizzeria in the US. Like nothing in Mexico or available at any of the "white bread" chains in the US. Fairly thin, crisp crust, black on the bottom but not burnt, exploding with flavor. Add Jewish deli, the whole schmear, corned beef, pastrami, knishes. We had to have pizza and deli twice each. Real danish, tender, flaky and just a hint of crispness. Then there was Pad Thai, hot dog from a pushcart. Even the Ruby Tuesday's on 42nd St. was good for a change of pace.

We stayed at an old, cramped hotel for a reasonable price. Great location, right on Riverside Drive with a great view of the Hudson and park. Good, safe neighborhood with easy access to subway and lot's of markets and restaurants.

Cristy was blown away by the architecture, from the brownstones to the apartment houses to the skyscrapers as far as the eye could see, making even boulevards dissolve into alleys in the distance.

The size and scope of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, just the size of the building was eye-popping for her. She remarked on so many people walking the streets at any hour day and night more than once.

We were lucky to have a good bit of fall color and that added another point of wonder for someone who hadn't been in the Northeast before.

"West Side Story" was extremely well done and this updated version included a lot of Spanish seemingly done just for Christy.

We hit Grand Central Station around rush hour. Cristy was surprised at the crush of hurrying humanity, the vastness of the building and that there was a market selling just about any kind of food right in the station

We wandered by Rockefeller Center at night just after they opened the ice skating rink for the season and were treated to a live concert while watching the skaters.

The weather was strange the night we went to the Empire State Building. They said there was 10 miles visibility when we bought our tickets. It was completely socked in as we got out of the elevator producing some weird effects on the nearby buildings. In a few minutes the fog/clouds blew away giving a clear view for 360 degrees. The fog kept blowing in and out while we were there creating something special. Videos coming with the rest of what I shot in NY. It may take a few days/weeks to wade through it all.

We also spent a good bit of time wandering through Central Park enjoying the weather, fall color and people watching.

Can't forget 5th Av. by day and by night. Ditto times Square and the Theater District and Macy's 34th St. A whole block, 8 stories; nothing like it in Mexico. Took the opportunity to buy a much needed down coat for Christy. Zacatecas is not Cancun or Zamora, for that matter, weather-wise!

Can't forget the Circle Line Cruise around Manhattan for great views of the city.

An unforgettable trip. Lot's of photos and some video coming. Stay tuned.

Party at the Landlords

2010-09-18T13:12:00.000-07:00

Independence Day was Thursday, but a lot of people only worked a half-day to get ready for the festivities that night. abd lot of them don't go back to work till Monday. Party time!!!!

Our landlord threw a party last night that actually started around 4 PM, but we didn't show up till about 11 because we had another event to go to. No particular reason for the party except some friends we in from out of town.

Just drinks and snacks but there was a professional guitarist and the wife of one of the guests is an accomplished singer, so it was a sing-along till 4AM.

More photos here:

http://picasaweb.google.com/gudgrief01/LICFIESTA#5518335991138881762

Independence Eve 2010

2010-09-16T15:36:00.000-07:00

Lazy day today, Mexican Independence Day. Watched the festivities from Mexico City after sleeping in till late.

Last night we went to a restaurant overlooking the main plaza in Zacatecas. Dinner was green pozole loaded with hominy and shredded chicken in a spicy broth over which you pile in lots of shredded lettuce, sliced radishes, and chopped onion. Along with lots of tostadas and beer we were too full for the tamales that went with the meal. they were nice enough to pack us a bunch to make a quick breakfast this morning.

We had a good view fo the ringing of the Mexican version of the liberty bell and the shout of independence which includes recalling the names of the heroes that won Mexico's independence from Spain in the revolution of 1810. This being also the centennial of the 1910 Revolution, the names of those leaders were included. Ground and aerial fireworks followed, topped of by a singing star, Lucero, performing songs from both eras.

Nowness

2010-08-30T11:04:00.000-07:00

My mind got to pondering some things that just popped up randomly. That's a dangerous thing at my age. There's not telling down what labyrinthine paths it will wander. The result could just as well be senile silliness as some minor insight.

I'd appreciate if any native Spanish speaker from any country would confirm, clarify or contradict the following.

I think we understand that the concept of time and timeframes in Mexico and other parts of Latin America is very elastic almost to the point of being amorphous.

We usually translate now as ahora. Strangely, the dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy defines it as "in the present" and "within a short time." Well, it seems that both of those timeframes can extend into anywhere within the forseeable future.

Ahorita and ahora mismo which are supposed to mean "right now" don't add much of a sense of urgency or immediacy in most cases. Suppose I call my landlord to come open the patio so they can fill the gas tank. He might answer "ahorita" and take 20min. to an hour to arrive. In reality, all it means is, "right now you're at the top of my list. It's possible, even likely, something will distract me, or seem more interesting or urgent and that will be reason enough to delay me. If he had just said "ahora" it would have meant as soon as I clear my agenda and if nothing else interferes. Response times in both cases could very well be the same.

Then there is ya which is usually translated as already, but already in the Jewish or Yiddish sense which conveys a sense of immediacy or urgency as in "eat already!" meaning "dig in right now!"

In Mexico, there may be no difference if the landloerd had said Ya voy "I'm coming right now." All the above disclaimers apply.

If you get insistent and call back, you might get ya casi "almost right now" as a reply. If you call again out of desperation, ya mero "within a hair's breadth of right now" is a likely response. All these qualifiers do is mimic your own sense of urgency and probably don't have any positive effect on response time.

Rainy Sundays Never Get Us Down

2010-08-08T19:39:00.000-07:00

Sunday evenings, we've gotten into the habit of taking a stroll in the park, then going for dinner at a modest little restaurant that has excellent steaks and a variety of Mexican dishes. Afterwards, we go to a little hole in the wall that does a great job on crepes with Nutella and fresh strawberries. As soon as we walked out the door, it started to drizzle. We hesitated a minute but decided to chance it but limit it to the restaurant and crepes. We were only slightly damp after the 10min. walk to the restaurant. Tonight we both chose tacos, more on that later. And the crepes were cream cheese with blackberries just to be different. We stopped by the neighborhood supermarket before heading home. The rain, which had stopped while we were eating, began again, now something more than a drizzle. On leaving the market, it took a while to flag a cab and in spite of umbrellas we were beginning to feel wet. As soon as we got home, a downpour started in earnest, lightning, thunder and strong wind. This was the first rain in almost 3 weeks. I guess the rainy season isn't quite over!

At the risk of repetition, I feel compelled to describe how they serve tacos in sit down restaurants everywhere I've been in Mexico. They lay out 4 or 5 warm, freshly baked 3.5" soft tortillas on a plate that's too small so they overlap by 50% and Dump the meat or meat and cheese mix on top. The meat is hand chopped much like they do in Japanese restaurants so it's small chunks rather than the ground mush at Taco Bell. Add some grilled onion and a hefty helping of pico de gallo and there's no way there isn't going to be a whole lot left over. No problem, just ask for more tortillas. Tonight they brought 5" tortillas instead of the smaller ones they served to begin with. I easily got 2 well filled tacos with those. If you remember your formula for the area of a circle, you'll be able to verify that a 5" circle has over twice the area of a 3.5" one. So those two additional tacos equalled 4 of the smaller ones meaning the 5 taco order actually yielded 9. Not only good eating, great value.

Routine, well not too

2010-08-05T15:02:00.000-07:00

We haven't had any rain for the last ten days! The rainy season is over, I hope. The weather has been gorgeous, high 70s to low 80s during the day, 60s at night. Lot's of things have come together all at once. Time to renew my residency papers. The process is much more efficient than last year and everything went smooth when I went to pay the fee today. I'll get the new papers in 6 days. Time also to get new ATM and credit cards from one bank and credit card from another. I didn't want to have them sent to McAllen or trust the Mexican mails so I asked to have them FEDEXed to me here in Mexico. Both banks were happy to comply. The only hitch was that the ATM cards that were already sent to McAllen went astray and the bank and VISA blocked the unexpired card too. My rent was due today and I needed cash for that. It took a little struggle but the bank arranged for me to receive cash down here. All the cards arrived today and everything is back to normal. Normal for Mexico that is!

Tomatoes Tomahtos, etc.

2010-07-30T22:45:00.000-07:00

Tomatoes come in three styles in Mexico:
Tomates

Jitomates

Tomatillos (also known as tomates verdes)

In some parts of Mexico the red ones are called tomates, the green ones jitomates. In other parts of Mexico it is just the opposite.

Tomatillos (or green tomatoes / tomates verdes) are small, green, round and have a kind of a husk.

A Tale of 2 Prescriptions and Incipient Senility

2010-07-06T20:14:00.000-07:00

Back in the US, my doc prescribed Lotrel which contains two ingredients. It was costing about $100/mo. Then they came out with a generic at about $65/mo. That still seemed high so I searched the Internet and found a Canadian mail order pharmacy that would supply 100 of one ingredient and 90 of the other for $75. Doc was happy to write new prescriptions. While in Mexico, I ordered a year's worth of each. My doc down here reduced the dosage and I ran out of one of the ingredients two weeks ago. I made the rounds of a dozen drugstores to see if they had a Lotrel equivalent without success, so I bought 20 of the one ingredient for $41 which would come out to $180 for a 3mo. supply without the second ingredient. I did an Internet search and found Novartis has a Lotrel equivalent, but none of the pharmacies said they could get it. Just today I remembered a pharmacy that filled a prescription for Xanax which I was directed to because that handle most all brand name drugs. Success, I think, because they said they can get it by, maybe tomorrow, for $85 for a 3 mo. supply. Duh! Why didn't I think of them first! Incipient senility. Just wish me luck that they come through before I run out again because next time I'll be out of both ingredients.

Well, here's an update!

After 3 tries, the pharmacy didn't come through! I emailed the company and found out they don't sell it anymore in Mexico.

The Rainy Season Starts

2010-06-10T10:43:00.000-07:00

Earlier this week, we had clouds and a few drops of rain around 7PM. Last night it started to rain for real and lasted about 30 min. The nice thing about it was that at the end a beautiful double rainbow appeared which these photos don't even begin to do justice to.

We've been adopted, sorta

2010-06-04T06:40:00.000-07:00

His owners don’t seem to give him much attention and sometime in the past someone must have treated him badly because the first time I approached him, he reacted as if he was afraid I’d hit or kick him. Physically, he obviously well cared for, well nourished and wears a collar.

Ever since our next-door neighbors moved in, the gate to our cul-de-sac is left open for periods when people are coming and going. That’ll end in July after the elections. One day I saw the two girls next-door playing with an unusual looking multicolored dog and asked about him.

He actually belongs to another neighbor and runs loose a lot of the time. Yeah, it’s allowed down here. His name is Morgan and after I made friends with him, he comes by the house most days looking for affection. Except for being insistent about being petted in specific places, he’s well behaved and gentle.

He’s a handsome, “funny looking” animal. I say funny looking because he’s salt and pepper gray, white, black and orange-brown.

Political Chum

2010-05-27T14:38:00.001-07:00

A month ago or so, some people moved into the house next-door, a couple with two daughters. A couple of days later, their car was turned into a rolling campaign poster for Doris Vega. She's running for the Zacatecas state senate. My neighbor is her campaign manager. I've been watching campaign workers come and go and one time let fill several tubs with water when their cistern ran dry.

Well, I was out front today enjoying the beautiful weather and he comes over with this USB self-warming coffee cup, I guess, to say thank you. I'm not sure the thing works, but it looks like something cute and unique to give out as chum to workers, supporters and contributors.

Sacred and Profane

2010-03-30T13:11:00.000-07:00

I started this post to describe some of the contradictions between the religious and secular in Mexico. Then a friend asked about Holy week customs in Mexico and I found this link which describes the most significant observance in Mexico:
Semana Santa in Iztapalapa
Clearly this takes things to an extreme, but similar, less real, less bloody observances are found all over Mexico.

My original article continues below.

Holy Week is a time of fasting, prayer and charity according to a banner in the church where we attended a secular chamber music concert today. Zacatecas schedules it's Cultural Festival at this time every year. It's a great showcase for local, national and international talent which attracts visitors from all over Mexico and around the world partly because kids are out of school and parents are on holiday from work. There's everything from heavy metal to ballet and beyond including a street fair with music and dancing surrounded by endless lines of booths selling trinkets and every class of edible goodies imaginable.

There's a sharp contrast between Mexico today and Spain of the 1960s where you awoke to somber music blaring from loudspeakers at dawn, all secular events were prohibited and nightly processions of penitents blocked the streets carrying heavy religious figures on their backs and shoulders. In cities like Seville and Jerez, Spain, several cofradias hold processions from their parishes each night during Holy Week. In Mexico, for the most part, the processions are limited to Holy Thursday.

I'm wondering if this dichotomy doesn't have its roots in Benito Juarez' nationalizing Church property and turning churches, convents and monasteries into museums, hotels and theaters to eliminate the Church's participation in government.

The Catholic Church enjoys complete religious freedom and other religions are not discriminated against in any way. Even though there are lots of Catholic symbols in public everywhere and all Catholic holidays are national holidays, non Catholics don't seem to be offended. Perhaps this is what the framers of the US Constitution had in mind. No national church, no politicization of religion, religious freedom for all.

In cities and beaches all over Mexico, people are partying. In the South, there are areas that look more like Mardi Gras or Carnaval than Holy Week.

Complicated Day

2010-03-06T17:52:00.000-08:00

Decisions, decisions! Cristy wanted to walk downtown to a specific drugstore. OK, we needed to get out of the house anyway. We noticed that there's a small "gourmet" bakery with a tuna pie sign out front about a block and a half from the house. so we went in. Every thing looked good, but we decided to wait for another day because we didn't want to carry it with us. We chatted with the salesgirl a bit, said thank you and walked out. "Hey, would you like to try a tuna turnover?" We turned around and sampled one. Excellent, we'll definitely go back. On the way to the drugstore, we passed one of the tamale vendors we buy from regularly. Should we get some for breakfast tomorrow? Why not? Let's do it on the way home. What makes you think we're coming back this way? We're walking home, no? All the way uphill, unh unh, and better the Oaxacan tamales around the corner. Well, we got the stuff Cristy wanted from the drugstore and wandered into the center of town. There were a couple of people standing across from the cathedral dressed in 16th Century costumes. They are promoting a nighttime "Legends of Zacatecas" tour. Maybe some other time, it looks like it may rain. Sure enough, it started to rain at about the time the tour was scheduled to start. Hey, Santa Cruz Bakery is right around the corner, why not get some bolillos? (photo) They're something like French or Italian bread used to be, crusty on the outside, tender on the inside only more crusty, about 6" long and make great sandwiches. We went and while waiting to pay, Cristy noticed the big pot on the stove. They have tamales and they're good, we had them before. "Add a half dozen tamales, please." A decision that made itself. When we got to the taxi stand, I said, "Let's cross the street to see if we can catch one going in the other direction and avoid the downtown traffic jam which was very evident. We did so, got a taxi in 2 minutes and got home in 5 minutes instead of 20, just seconds before it started to rain. A complicated day featuring good decisions.

Expat Chagrin

2010-01-20T16:12:00.000-08:00

I wimped out and left the US for several reasons.
  High cost of living
  Direct interference by government at all levels
  in the peaceful pursuit of my private life in:
    Metairie, Louisiana
    New Orleans, Louisiana
    Kennesaw, Georgia
    Jacksonville, Florida
    Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina
    Tampa, Florida
    Durham, North Carolina
    Las Vegas, Nevada
  Not one elected official at any level would respond to
  any of my concerns
  In other words, I was and am being taxed without
  representation.

In Mexico I can live a lifestyle where I don’t have to
interact with government more than once a year
and then under a set of rules I choose to accept.

Still, the political circus and its stupidities affect
me directly because much of my income is dependent
on Social Security and how it deals with private pensions.

Being a client of the US government gives me a license
to express my concerns.

I’m concerned about the fickleness of the voters.

They voted for change last year.

This year it appears that those voters are not satisfied
with the flavor, quantity or direction of the change.

Well, duh?
Why didn’t you listen to the words that were being said?
Why didn’t you take note of the candidate’s associates
and their backgrounds?
Why didn’t you look into the pedigrees of his closest
advisors and contributors.

Democrat and Republican ideologues can be excused
because they are the way they are and are not
susceptible to reason.

But you so-called independents, the ones who actually
elected the president, were you seduced by the sweet
words and empty promises of goodies that you could
expect from government? Will you now be seduced by
different sweet words and emptier promises from a
different glib con artist?

Is a bidding war to see who will give you more, the
only basis for deciding who you will vote for?

Is that what democracy is all about?

COWS, THE CONSTITUTION, AND THE 10 COMMANDMENTS

2010-01-20T13:03:00.000-08:00

This in from a friend. It's supposed to be a joke. There's a lot of truth in it though.

Think about this:
1. Cows
2. The Constitution
3. The Ten Commandments
----------------------------------------------------- COWS

Is it just me, or does anyone else find it
amazing that during the mad cow epidemic our
government could track a single cow, born in Canada
almost three years ago, right to the stall where she
slept in the state of Washington? And, they tracked
her calves to their stalls. But they are unable to
locate 11 million illegal aliens wandering around
our country. Maybe we should give each of them a
cow.
------------------------------------------- THE CONSTITUTION

They keep talking about drafting a
Constitution for Iraq ... Why don't we just give
them ours? It was written by a lot of really smart
guys, it has worked for over 200 years, and we're
not using it anymore.
--------------------- ------------------- THE 10 COMMANDMENTS

The real reason that we can't have the Ten
Commandments posted in a courthouse or Congress is
this --you cannot post 'Thou Shalt Not Steal' 'Thou
Shalt Not Commit Adultery' and 'Thou Shall Not Lie'
in a building full of lawyers, judges and
politicians .... it creates a hostile work
environment.
-----------------------------------------------------

Haiti and the MA Senate Race

2010-01-19T20:56:00.000-08:00

How can these two subjects be connected?

Not surprisingly, they are connected by the news coverage on CBS, CNN and FOXNews. Rather the tone and emphasis of the coverage.

What little coverage of the MA Senate there was on CBS and CNN was limited to bemoaning the effect of the Tea Party Movement and the Haiti coverage concentrated on bewailing the slowness and insufficiency of the American response while praising the peacefulness of the Haitians response to the tragedy.

On the other hand FOX's coverage of the MA Senate race examined the issues behind the polls giving spokesmen for both sides ample opportunity to express their views without being shouted down by the likes of Al Sharpton or Barney Frank. Similarly, FOX had reports covering the range of political and logistic problems that got in the way of moving faster to get aid to the Haitians. It also pointed out and showed videos of areas where people were on the point of looting in a state of utter lawlessness.

OK, deny that FOX is a legitimate news source if you insist. But do it after you have watched the FOX NEWS hour for a month or even a week. Just watch and listen, you don't have to like and agree. Then go back to CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN and see how slanted, superficial and "politically correct" they are.

Sunday Jan 17, 2010

2010-01-17T15:57:00.000-08:00

Another CRISP Zacatecan day without a cloud in the sky. We walked down to our favorite park where the dancing fountain was playing a medley of Beatles hits.

Just goes to show how timeless their music is.

After the park, we walked home, about a mile uphill all the way.

Snow in Zacatecas - Nevada en Zacatecas

2010-01-15T11:26:00.000-08:00

We woke up this morning at 9:30AM, looked out the window and surprise, it was snowing.
Nos despartamos hoy a las 9:30AM, nos asomamos por la ventana y sorpresa, estaba nevando.

The last time it snowed here was 8 years ago.
La ultima vez que nevo aqui fue hace 8 años.

According to the News, all schools and most businesses are closed.
Segun el periodico, se suspendieron todas actividades escolares y laborales.

Not much sense trying to go out. Getting into town means walking down some uneven steep sidewalks and no telling how slippery they're going to be. There's a convenience store nearby in case we really need something. Lucky we have plenty of food in the house.

No hace mucho sentido salir. Llegar al centro require bajar por banquetas irregulares y no se sabe que tan resbalosas estan. Hay una tienda Oxxo si acaso no urge algo. Suerte que tenemos comida suficiente en casa.

Zacatecas - Settling in, Trials and Tribulations

2010-01-14T15:59:00.001-08:00

For those who are reading me for the first time, I better give a lot of background.

When I moved down here in Sept 2008, it was to a small house, the third floor of which was part of the hostel I had stayed in during my look see trip.

It was fine for one person and centrally located within an easy walk to anything that interested me. All utilities and maid and maintenance service were included at a very low (compared to the US) rent. The drawback was that during holidays and weekends it got pretty noisy and stayed noisy till very late.

Well, when Cristy agreed to move to Zacatecas, it was obvious my little place wouldn't do. Off and on over 3 months we looked for a place. Everything was either way too expensive or way too grubby or just too small. Then we saw the place we're in now.

My future landlord had built a small house over an arcade at the back of his patio and planned on renting it as an executive apartment. That really wasn't working; it had been occupied only 2 weeks out of 3 months. We talked and came to an agreement on rent and details that needed to be taken care of. He has been very cooperative about fixing things that aren't working quite right and making enhancements to suit our needs. Really, we're in a sort of rough luxury at about a third to a quarter of what it would cost in the US. It's comfortable, new and modern, but it's still Mexico.
No central heat. I have a couple of gas space heaters I bought last year.
Gas has to be delivered by pulling a hose 50ft. from the truck into his patio.

Drinking water is delivered in 20 liter jugs.

Shortly before leaving for vacation in December, I canceled the cable and internet because they had taken 31 days to get me installed and had screwed up my account royally. Two days before vacation, I signed up for phone and Internet with the phone company, bad move, you have to be around when they want to come. And, I signed up with the equivalent of Dish Network for TV.

Yesterday, they finally got my dish TV working.

Today, I got online and found out that the phone company's records show our phone and Internet being installed on Jan 4. Hell, there aren't even any phone wires coming into the house.

I turned around, smiled at Cristy, she smiled back and we broke out laughing.

It had to happen!

Part of the problem is we're well hidden. We only have cell phones. Companies:

A) Won't call ahead of time.

B) Won't call cell phones.

C) both of the above

Maybe I'm getting acclimatized.

Flat Tire

2010-01-14T08:53:00.000-08:00

You are parked on the side of the road with a flat tire. You don't even get out of the car because you know you don't have a tire iron.

A guy pulls up and offers to use his jack and tire iron. First he asks for the keys to get the spare out of the trunk.

Flat fixed and car ready to go, you thank him and hold your hand out for the keys.

"By the way, you owe me $250 for changing the tire," he says while keeping the keys out of reach.

Would that be fraud? Would that be theft?

That's exactly what Obama'a new bank fee/tax is.

Big Day 1/10/10

2010-01-10T21:26:00.000-08:00

High today was was 60F, low (right now) 45F. higher than some places in Florida, nyaaaaaah!

Early movie Sherlock Holmes (dubbed in Spanish), enjoyed it immensely even if it isn't at all faithful to Conan-Doyle. I do recommend that everyone see the old Basil Rathbone Sherlock Holmes flicks made in the 40s to get a baseline for Hollywood's progression in the development of the character.

Lunch followed at a new burger joint, styled after Johnny Rockets in the US. A single half pounder mushroom burger was about $3.20 and a double bacon cheese about $8.00. These prices are outrageously high for Mexico though there's nothing else like it in Zacatecas. A street corner burger with cheese, lettuce, tomato, cream, mayo, ketchup and mustard is about $1.60, still high for the working class. I'd say the quality of the food beats Johnny Rockets.

Then there was 4 hours in Wal-Mart buying, hopefully, a month's worth of groceries and supplies for 2 people, $130. No heat there, by the way. Cold.

Cold Front #22

2010-01-07T23:41:00.000-08:00

Yup, they number them down here and it's going to park over Zacatecas the next couple of days.

The local TV predicts lows of 23 degrees F. Close to the lowest on record.

So, tell me about global warming.

Something more on Bus Travel in Mexico

2010-01-03T16:38:00.000-08:00

Between Dec 18 and Dec 29, 2009 we took busses in Mexico between:
Zacatecas and Mexico City
Mexico City and Oaxaca
Oaxaca and Huatulco
Huatulco and Mexico City
Mexico City and Zacatecas

Overall, travel was comfortable (we were able to sleep when we wanted,) but even though all buses were described as First Class, we encountered 3 different categories of service.

One, used a bus with only 24 seats and included a "lunch/snack" plus soft drink and you could ask for Nescafe packets to make your own coffee from the hot and cold drinking water aboard. Tea bags (lemon) and sugar were available.

Another, used 32 passenger busses and only provided a soft drink. There was hot and cold drinking water and tea bags.

The last, used 44 passenger busses (only 3 less than Greyhound) and there was no drinking water on board.

Legroom and in one case seat width varied from ample too slightly better than Greyhound. All were considerably more comfortable than Greyhound. On time performance is better than the airlines and bus travel is a good first choice if your not in so much of a hurry you have to fly.

I have read where it is not really necessary to buy tickets in advance. That's true with significant exceptions. If you need to be in a certain city on a certain day and are travelling during peak periods, it's best to buy tickets at the time you make hotel reservations. The hotel can probably guide you to the websites for the bus companies that can take you all the way from the US border to your destination. Unfortunately, there is not one stop shopping site for all bus lines.

OAXACA-HUATULCO

2009-12-23T09:51:00.000-08:00

We arrived at the Oaxaca bus station at around 10PM last night 12/22 and the place was jammed. Different from other bus stations in Mexico, this one was exclusively for the bus line we take in the Southern part of Mexico, ADO. Brand new, modern and clean. (Photos and videos forthcoming; I'm too tired and lazy to review the 100s I've taken of Oaxaca).

There was no place to sit so we waited outside in cool, comfortable weather for our 11:30PM departure. Because of timing, most people travel by night, getting a decent amount of sleep, and arrive refreshed early in the morning. We arrived in Huatulco at about 8AM, way too early to check in, so I upgraded to Club Premier which gives us access to a special lounge where snacks (smoked salmon, etc. and open bar with international beverages are available from 7AM to 11PM and all the extra charge restaurants are included instead of just the buffet. As you can see, there's Internet too, which would have cost $12/day anyhow.

The hotel, Barcel0 Hustulco appears to be a tropical paradise, the weather is sunny and warm and we're the only two guests running around in longsleeve shirts. That will be fixed once our room is ready at about 2PM. Spritz with sunblock, change to swimsuits and hit the beach. Cristy's got a Bailey's Cream in Hand and I'm about to go for a screwdriver with fresh orange juice and Absolut.

See you later.

Oaxaca - Huatulco Trip Chapter 1 - 12/19

2009-12-19T21:10:00.000-08:00

The bus left for Mexico City a 10:50PM last night and arrived at 6:30AM this morning. We slept through just about all of the trip, so no sweat.

The mass of humanity passing through or just waiting in place in the humongous Mexico Norte (one of 4 terminals) Central de Autobuses was a 50 minute obstacle course getting to the departure gate. We made the 7:30AM departure with ten minutes to spare.

Again, we slept through just about all of the 7 hour run, arriving in Oaxaca pretty well refreshed at 2:30PM

After dropping our stuff at the hotel, we wandered the Zocalo and Alameda dressed in it Christmas finery. Supper at an excellent restaurant overlooking the Alameda was followed by another stroll enjoying music and other manifestations of the season.

Dia de la Virgen de Guadalupe, Guadalupe, Mexico

2009-12-13T01:10:00.000-08:00

Saturday December 12, 2009, the Virgin of Guadalupe Day, was a beautiful sunshiny day and we took advantage of the fine weather to take the half-hour bus ride to the fair and festivities in Zacatecas' neighbor city of Guadalupe.

It was the first time for both of us and the first surprise was that the 3 mile stretch of boulevard that connects the two cities has a fairly long strip of modern upscale shops, restaurants and hotels, a sharp contrast to the colonial atmosphere of center city Zacatecas. We'll need to go back and explore.

We got off the bus where most people got off and followed the crowd that led to a large church. Monks in front of the church were blessing passing cars and charros on horseback with holy water. On the plaza in front of the church a group dressed in Huichol Indian costumes were doing a traditional dance in honor of the Virgen of Guadalupe. On a corner near the plaza, we passed a stand selling what look like iced tea. It was tepache made from pineapple, brown sugar and cinnamon left to ferment for 3 days. The way it is served is you sprinkle some powdered chile in the bottom of a glass, throw in some ice, pour in the tepache and finally squeeze half a limon over it. Very sweet, spicy and lemony all at the same time; quite refreshing. Even Cristy had never heard of it.

Tepache in hand, we meandered over to a stage where they were doing tranditional Mexican dances, after which we strolled through the alameda just taking it easy.

After that, we wandered over to the fair just to enjoy watching the kids and parents have fun on the rides. Dodge 'em cars were the big draw.

The whole atmosphere reminded me of the holiday outings, parades and carnivals we had in the 1950s in Huntington, NY.

On the way back to the bus stop, we picked up some tangerines because we hadn't seen any nice ones in Zacatecas and just had to stop for another glass of tepache. Then a block from the bus stop, we came upon a stall selling cheese and chile tamales. "Oh! I just love them!" went Cristy, "Let's get some to take home for supper." And we did. They were delicious and were a great finish to an enjoyable day.

Virgin of Guadalupe Day

2009-12-11T22:29:00.000-08:00

http://vivasancarlos.com/virgin.html

There’s something special about the way Mexicans venerate Mary.
Before the midnight Mass, they sing and talk to her as if it were her birthday and she were a favorite friend, sister, aunt. It’s poignantly personal and eloquent in its simplicity. The music and lyrics could be compared to gospel music but with a much more contained and uniquely Mexucan style.

Mexican Construction Techniques

2009-12-03T15:10:00.000-08:00

"Catcher" is a carpenter/cabinetmaker

by profession and is the landlord's

foreman dealing with other workers

doing maintenance on his properties.

It turns out he's also a contractor for

doing finish work on new construction.

After dropping Cristy off at the bus

station, he took me to a house his crew

is working on. Surprise! All the

moulding and detail work on the walls

and ceilings is plaster. Some of it is

precast and a lot of it is done in place.

He explained that even though the

house settles and cracks develop, it's

easy to repair the plaster.

Doors with details and carving like those

in my house are built up from solid

pieces of wood.

Sure blows common stereotypes out of

the water.

Adventures in Showering

2009-11-28T13:38:00.000-08:00

By any standard, our little house is luxurious.
In Mexico, the word has a slightly different meaning.

Even here, showering can be challenge or adventure.

First some background.

We have an 1100 liter water tank on the roof fed by a 15,000 liter cistern underground. Why all that plumbing?

The city doesn’t pump water 24/7 making the rooftop water tanks called tinacos a standard fixture in most Mexican homes. The 15,000 liter cistern is the added luxury assuring we won’t run out of water if the city fails to pump for an extended period; a pump fills the tinaco from the cistern.

Even in a city where nighttime temperatures can get down to freezing and below, central heating it's almost unheard of. Gas for the stove comes from a 500 liter stationary tank and there’s another gas connection in living room but nothing in the bedroom. The landlord is going to have a pipe run to the bedroom soon.

Right now, I have two roll around gas heaters with 20 liter portable tanks. The
downside is that the tanks have to be taken to an LP station to be filled. Soon
we’ll be able to connect the heaters with hoses in the living and bedrooms.

The water heater is an on demand tankless type. Being outside in the cold, it takes a little while to send hot water to the faucets. Originally, the water came out nearly boiling but an adjustment a couple of days ago fixed that so the water is just right for showering. This technology is so new to the area, plumbers aren’t really up to speed and it may take a while longer to get things set correctly. If you attempt to add just a little cold water to the mix, the heater shuts down and all you get is cold. Clearly, further tuning is needed.

Want to take a shower? It’s not so simple as just turning on the water and jumping in. First, you turn on the heater in the bedroom. Second, roll the other heater into the bathroom and turn it on. Now, wait a half hour till both rooms get warm.

OK, they’re warm. Now turn on the shower and wait till the water begins to get warm. Undress quickly and jump in. Shampoo, soap and rinse in a hurry before the water turns boiling. If you miss the window, turn the water off, jump out and wait till the system resets. Turn the water on again and finishing rinsing.

On leaving the shower, towel off and enjoy the heat till you’re completely dry.
Now, run to the bedroom before freezing. Luckily, it’s only 6ft.

You’ve left your clean clothes in front of the heater. Dress and lay back to enjoy the warmth. There were times we had to go through resetting the system 3 times before we were completely showered and rinsed.

SHEESH, it's a holiday!

2009-11-16T10:24:00.000-08:00

Cristy and I had big plans today for going downtown and getting lots of stuff done at government offices and other bureaucracies like the cable and phone companies.

Ten minutes ago, I realized there weren't any kids at the kindergarten next-door. Hey Cris, is it a "bridge" today?

Oooh, it's the November 20 holiday! We're going to have to take it easy today, everything is closed.

November 20 is the anniversary of the 1910 Revolution. When a holiday falls on a weekday, Mexico celebrates it on the Monday preceeding and they call the extra day off "making bridge."

Tough luck, NOT! I was feeling lazy anyhow, something very unusual for me.

67 Down, ?? to go

2009-11-11T23:15:00.000-08:00

Yes, Nov 11 was my birthday and we went to the same restaurant we went to to celebrate Cristy's on the 9th.

The hostess and our waitress claimed their birthdays were on the 10th and we promised to all get together next year to celebrate together.

As nice as the restaurant looks, there was no heat. Temp outside was around 45 degrees. People thought nothing of dining in their coats. Pretty normal even for affluent people.

The restaurant chain is owned by Wal-Mart and at around $15-20 per person without cocktails is well beyond a working class salary except for really special events.

The food is quite good and, in general Wal-Mart seems to provide higher quality fresh produce, poultry and meat than it does in its US stores. Wal-Mart in Mexico targets middle and upper class customers with a wider selection and lower prices on better quality merchandise as opposed to rock bottom prices on mediocre products. There is some real competition from other chains and that may be the reason that they have diversified into restaurants and have bought out at least one competitor.

By the way, the birthday cake is what they call Tres Leches (three milks) and is to die for. Try Google for a recipe or restaurant in the US that offers it.

Regards to all.

BIRTHDAY GIRL

2009-11-09T21:55:00.000-08:00

Today was Cristy's birthday.

Tonight we went out and had a nice dinner. The writing on the cake says congratulations.

This morning I woke her up with a serenade. Even so, she insisted on making breakfast.

Something special. Fried eggs covered in a thick sauce made from onions, chile, cream and mustard. Lemme tell you it was to die for.

Come to think of it, it was probably so loaded with cholesterol, it probably takes a year off your life. Well, once a year. . .

Hora Mexicana - Mexican Time

2009-11-07T18:57:00.000-08:00

A couple of good examples of Mexican Time ocurred today.

We were invited to a birthday party at 4PM. We stopped downtown to buy a gift and didn't arrive till after 5.

Several guests were already there and eating dinner, but our arrival was taken completely in stride and we were welcomed warmly. We weren't the last to arrive. People came and went for another hour and a half.

When things settled down there was the traditional piñata and birthday cake.

Earlier in the day they were doing some fixing on the gas pipes and they said to leave the gas off till 4PM and they would tell the landlord to turn it back on at that time.

When we got back home at 8PM, no gas.

The gas valve is in a patio frequented by a watchdog and under lock and key. I tried calling the landlord, no answer. One of the other tenants was pulling into the driveway and I asked if he could get into the patio and turn the gas on. No, but he could locate him and let him know. 15 min. later, the landlord shouted out under my window that the gas was back on.

The moral of the story. Get used to the fact that living in Mexico means viewing time as a flexible fluid thing. Don't get upset, it all works out.

RE: Pelosi Intensifies Pressure for Public Health Plan

2009-10-24T09:44:00.000-07:00

Here's another article on the public option, theis one from the Wall Street Journal, not considered by some a traditional news organization.

Notice how its language is quite neutral. There's no implied characterization of liberals, conservatives, Republicans or Democrats as good or bad. The hospitals in the Midwest are not characterized as obstructionist; the point is not even mentioned. There's no mention of price-gouging either.

The article just lays out the points of contention and who backs which.

OCTOBER 24, 2009

By GREG HITT

WASHINGTON -- House Democratic leaders signaled flexibility Friday on how a proposed government-run health insurance plan would operate in the private market, in an overture to centrist lawmakers who want to limit the government's impact on the market.

The issue is at the heart of evolving House legislation that would overhaul the nation's health system, making good on President Barack Obama's call to expand insurance coverage to tens of millions of Americans.

For months, senior House Democrats, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California, have pushed proposals that would give a government plan big leverage in the marketplace. They would tie payments to doctors and hospitals to the low rates paid by Medicare, the government health program for the elderly.

House Majority Whip James Clyburn, left, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, center, and AARP's Nancy LeaMond leave a news conference Friday in Washington.

Many liberals argue that such a plan has the best chance of forcing private insurers to lower premiums and out-of-pocket costs for consumers, while also lowering the cost of the health overhaul.

But the speaker and House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D., S.C.) suggested they were open to other ideas, including a proposal that would require the government plan to negotiate payment rates directly with health providers.

Meeting with reporters, Ms. Pelosi said, "There's no philosophical difference" between the more "robust" proposal she favors, and the competing proposal calling for negotiated rates. Requiring the public insurance plan to negotiate with providers would likely result in more generous payouts than under Medicare, and is preferred by many moderate Democrats.

Mr. Clyburn said no decisions have been made. "We are still in the process of determining which public option best suits the majority of our caucus," he said, noting that Democrats were debating four versions of the government plan.

Republicans say any form of the public plan is likely to drive private insurers out of the market and lead to excessive government control. Rep. Tom Price (R., Ga.) said a "remarkable lack of leadership" is resulting in a "hyperpartisan" House. He said the most liberal members of the Democratic Party are writing a health bill that many Democrats don't support.

In the Senate, Democratic leaders are putting their weight behind a proposal that would create a national health plan, but allow states to decide not to participate.

The House speaker suggested she is more flexible in part because prospects are growing that the Senate will embrace some version of a public plan.

"The atmosphere has changed. When we were dealing with the idea that the Senate had nothing, it was really important, again, to go in with the most muscle for the middle class with a robust public option," she said.

Ms. Pelosi also said she is open to giving states the right to opt out of a national plan. "I don't think there's much problem with that," she said. Mr. Clyburn raised doubts that any state would back out. "I can't imagine any state saying to its citizens, 'We're going to expose you to less competition or no competition,'" he said.

The public option is the last major undecided piece of the House's revised health legislation, which could be unveiled next week. Among other things, the bill will be financed by a new surtax on the wealthy, and would expand coverage by widening eligibility for Medicaid, the federal-state health program for the poor. It would set up tax subsidies to help low- and middle-income individuals and families purchase insurance.

Even after that bill is unveiled, further changes are likely, as party leaders work to ensure the measure has the 218 votes needed for passage on the House floor.

"People are where they are, and obviously that's a little short of 218, or we wouldn't be in this process right now," said Rep. Earl Pomeroy, a North Dakota Democrat who voted against the health bill in committee.

—Naftali Bendavid contributed to this article.

Write to Greg Hitt at greg.hitt@wsj.com

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page A5

RE: Pelosi Intensifies Pressure for Public Health Plan - NYTimes_com.htm

2009-10-24T02:31:00.001-07:00

I am LMAO over the White House’s efforts to exclude FOXNews from appearances by administration officials and participation in news events run by the White House.

The main accusations are that FOXNews is not a traditional news organization and has a conservative bias.

Well, gee whiz, golly wow, the New York Times is about as traditional a news organization as there is and it is certainly unbiased, or is it?

The article below characterizes “robust” as “liberal”, supporters of the public option as progressive and casts Democrats from rural areas as obstructionist.

You may think it’s mild, but it is exactly the kind of thing I was taught to look for when trying to determine bias in the news. They did cover this in high school back in the 50s.

It’s clearly a case of the “pot calling the kettle black.” Either they don’t know or don’t care. Where’s the transparency and openness the Obama administration trumpets so loudly? It really is laughable.

I am old enough to remember the Nixon administration’s running battle with the press. They couldn’t single out one organization for special treatment because they were all pretty much alike in their editorial policies. Nixon was in office just before CNN and superstations came on the scene and before conservative talk radio took hold. I was just as much against Nixon’s efforts to silence opposition as I am against Obama’s.

Freedom of the press means they can print anything they like as long as it is factually verifiable no matter how biased.

The administration’s actions only lend credence to accusations that it is trying to find “legal” ways to silence opposition, especially conservative talk show hosts.

That would be a sad day for the country.

October 24, 2009

Pelosi Intensifies Pressure for Public Health Plan

By ROBERT PEAR and DAVID M. HERSZENHORN

WASHINGTON — Speaker Nancy Pelosi stepped up the pressure on House Democrats on Friday to support her preferred version of legislation that would require the federal government to sell health insurance in competition with private insurers.

Her action came amid indications that Ms. Pelosi had not locked down the votes for the proposal, the most contentious element in a bill that would provide health insurance to more than 35 million people, at cost of nearly $900 billion over 10 years.

Other provisions of the bill, including enhanced Medicare benefits, could take the total cost over $1 trillion, Democrats said. But they promised to offset the cost and avoid any increase in federal budget deficits.

At a meeting Friday, the chairman of the House Democratic caucus, Representative John B. Larson of Connecticut, called the roll and asked lawmakers to say whether they would vote for a bill including the most liberal, “robust” version of a government insurance plan, similar to Medicare. The results were not definitive because many members were missing and some supported the bill but called for changes. Ms. Pelosi finds herself once again caught between two wings of her caucus: the progressives, who demand a Medicare-like public option, and moderate-to-conservative Democrats, including many from rural areas, where hospitals say they could not survive on Medicare payment rates.

At a meeting with Ms. Pelosi on Thursday, liberal Democrats like Representatives Yvette D. Clarke of New York and Jan Schakowsky of Illinois spoke forcefully for a robust public option.

Ms. Pelosi told them that she had well over 200 votes, but that it was proving difficult to reach the goal of 218.

The House Democratic whip, Representative James E. Clyburn of South Carolina, said Friday that party leaders were considering four variations of the public insurance plan.

“We are trying to find out which one of these approaches will best suit the most people in our caucus,” Mr. Clyburn said.

The Senate majority leader, Harry Reid, Democrat of Nevada, is going through a similar exercise, polling his caucus.

In a shift, Mr. Reid told colleagues on Thursday that he was inclined to include a government-run insurance program in the bill that he would take soon to the Senate floor. States would be allowed to opt out if they wanted.

Asked about Mr. Reid’s idea, Ms. Pelosi said, “I don’t think there’s much problem with that.”

Ms. Pelosi said that in shaping the House bill, she was already thinking about “the endgame.” If the two chambers pass disparate bills, as Democrats expect, negotiators from the House and the Senate would try to reconcile the differences.

When it appeared that the Senate bill might not have any government insurance plan, Ms. Pelosi said, it was essential for the House to pass a strong public option, as a counterweight to the Senate. Now, she said, she will consider an alternative favored by some centrist Democrats, who contend that the government plan should not set prices but negotiate payment rates with doctors and hospitals, as private insurers do.

Ms. Pelosi set the health care legislation in its historical context, saying it “sits very comfortably in the path of Social Security and Medicare,” created in 1935 and 1965, respectively.

Mr. Clyburn said the squabbles among Democrats on health care were like the disagreements in the 1960s among civil rights leaders, who had the same goals but sometimes differed on legislative strategy.

The House majority leader, Representative Steny H. Hoyer, Democrat of Maryland, said Friday that the House could take up the health care legislation as soon as Nov. 6 and might meet on Saturday, Nov. 7, to continue work on it.

But Democrats in both chambers have missed many self-imposed deadlines. And many hurdles remain.

House Democratic leaders are still trying to figure out exactly how to limit the use of federal money for abortions. In addition, before taking their bill to the House floor, Democrats need to get a cost estimate from the Congressional Budget Office.

Ms. Pelosi said she had not decided whether lawmakers would be allowed to offer amendments on the House floor.

In the Senate, Mr. Reid is considering several alternatives to his proposal for a national public insurance plan. Under one alternative, the public plan would be established, or triggered, only in states that failed to meet certain goals for insurance coverage.

Senator John D. Rockefeller IV, Democrat of West Virginia, said this approach would allow health insurance companies to continue price-gouging for several years.

“A trigger simply delays price competition,” Mr. Rockefeller said. “It is not a substitute for a strong public health insurance option.”

Mr. Reid talked Friday with several moderate Democrats, including Senator Mary L. Landrieu of Louisiana. Ms. Landrieu has said she strenuously opposes “a government-run, taxpayer-supported public option,” but Mr. Reid hopes to change her mind.

I wonder . . . after a year in Zacatecas

2009-10-16T21:27:00.000-07:00

When I walk down the street, people must think I'm drunk or on drugs.

The sidewalks are so uneven and there are so many obstacles (driveways 6 in. above or below sidewalk level, steps going up or down at odd intervals,) I'm constantly stumbling.

Then there are trees that are so wide or so low you either bob and weave or get off the curb and walk in traffic.

Walking in the street isn't much better. The streets are paved with stone, nothing level about the surface.

I wonder if I'll ever get used to it like the locals.

On a totally unrelated note:

The housekeeper has got me eating things I never would have touched before. Nothing exotic. Just zucchini, baby briccoli, and baby cauliflower. She makes a chicken soup with a really rich stock and lot's of chicken meat in which I don't even taste the veggies.

Which reminds me. The refrigerator in the new apartment was only home office size. As a condition of the lease, the landlord promised verbally to replace it with a bigger one. Last week, I asked when they'd bring it. He sent his handyman around with the message the they were sending it out to be tested. Some kind of stall? The landlord is a lawyer after all.

Nope, the handyman brought the bigger one today. More than twice the size of the original, frost free and works like a charm. All-in-all, the landlord has bent over backwards to make sure everything is right in the apartment. That's saying a lot for a lawyer.

My housekeeper has been cooking in her home and had been bringing a week's worth of food each week. With the baby fridge, only 3-4 days would fit so she was cooking and bringing food twice a week. This will be easier on her and on Cristy and me. Once Cristy gets here, she'll take over the menu planning. Introducing some dishes from Michoacan will be a treat.

Have fun!

Getting Started

2009-10-08T17:55:00.000-07:00

Alicia, my housekeeper and her husband, after helping me move over the weekend, came yesterday to start getting me organized. we got a good start but there's still a long way to go. There's not enough closet space, which I knew going and I have an idea to fix that. I can move the armoire in the bedroom and have a pipe hung which will give us plenty of room to hang clothes. I checked with the owner's handyman and he's going to check prices, but doesn't think it'll be more that $15 for materials and I guess somewhere between $5 and $15 will do for labor.

That's just an interim solution. I know a carpenter who can probably build me a moveable closet to fit in the alcove the armoire is in now. That'll give us more than twice the storage space we have now and we'll be able to take it with us if we leave.

There's not much food in the house yet, some Maruchan and a dozen eggs. Alicia's cooking at her home today and will bring it tomorrow.
I don't know if I mentioned it before, stoves are a bit different in Mexico. That black piece in the center is a comal. The traditional Mexican comal refers to any simple, round, or oval, shallow cooking pan used primarily for dry baking and roasting.They come in all sizes and can be made from cast iron, stainless steel, aluminum. Most comales are raw, uncoated or untreated and require seasoning prior to use. The principal use in the home is for heating tortillas and making quesadillas. This particular one is removable and there are two regular burners underneath.

We can have six pots going at once, neat?

Good Breakfast

2009-10-07T11:59:00.000-07:00

The apartment is still in no shape to do any cooking, stuff is in bags strewn all over the place. So, I went out for an “American” breakfast to VIP’s this morning.

VIP’s is a semi upscale restaurant chain owned by Wal-Mart. It’s similar to Denny’s or IHOP with a mix of Mexican and "American/International” items. I had OJ, two smallish hot cakes, a slice of ham, four rashers of really lean bacon, two scrambled eggs, a sweet roll and coffee for 108 pesos including tip. That’ll be about $8.00 by the time the transaction hits my credit card. It’s only a bit more than double what you would pay for a typical Mexican breakfast in a “working class” place.

Then I had to go out an buy a broom, dustpan, mop, toilet paper and paper towels, all of which were supplied at my old place.

The downhill walk to VIP’s was 15 minutes, 5 more to the ATM and 2 minutes to the supermarket. The taxi back was 10 min and about $1.85. It’s a beautiful, clear, sunshiny day, temp about 81º with a nice breeze. Sunblock doesn’t last long around here. But, I enjoy the walks and would try the uphill except for shlepping all that stuff.

Credit Cards Come to the Convenience Store

2009-10-04T20:01:00.000-07:00

Oxxo is about the largest chain of convenience stores in Mexico. It's large by any standard, there seems to be one in every block, in every neighborhood.

This week, I noticed that they started accepting Visa and Mastercard.

The thing is, if you make lots of purchases of less than 100 pesos, you end up with a pocketful of change 4 or 5 times the weight of US coins. There's so much, it's hard to get rid of.

Being able to use a credit card will protect my pockets from wearing out too soon.

Register your cell Phone

2009-10-04T19:48:00.000-07:00

Last Spring, the Mexican government passed a law requiring everyone to register their cell phones. If not done on time, phones will be blocked.

All they ask for is full name and date of birth. Well, for citizens, that's all that's needed because adults are identified that way in the database of registered voters which requires about the same proof of identity as getting a passport. My name and date of birth is supposed to be in the National Registry of Foreigners, so they ought to be able to keep track of me. Why they passed the law, I don't know, I'll have to ask around or do a little Googling.

So, you think the NSA and CIA are intrusive?

The prying into citizens lives aside, it wouldn't be a bad idea to have a national voter registration jn the US. Privacy is dead anyhow. The way they do it in Mexico is to send trucks to every neighborhood. No one has to walk more than about 100 ft. to register. Provisions are even made so the handicapped don't have to walk. Would reduce vote fraud.

Where's the Maternity Clothes?

2009-09-09T11:18:00.000-07:00

I've been here a little over a year now and I just noticed something. There are a fair number of pregnant women on the streets, on the busses, in the restaurants. None of them are wearing anything that could be remotely called maternity clothes?

Is it the same now in the US and other countries?

Normal dress is jeans hanging as low on the hips/tush as possible without falling down with a T-shirt, blouse, sweatshirt. The same jeans with a looser top work.

Usually, I'm not out and about when people are going to and from work. Maybe women who work in stores and offices where a more professional style is in order have a different kind of wardrobe.

Mexico is more modern than you might think

2009-09-08T12:32:00.000-07:00

I had passed by this booth several times in the past, but today is the first time I ever saw a long line. It had me going for a moment and then I remembered the water bill came yesterday.

You see, this is one of several kiosks around the city where Zacatecans can pay their state taxes and water bills. They can also order certified copies of birth certificates and marriage licenses plus make payments on government issued loans.

I've seen the same kind of kiosk in

other cities and other states in Mexico.

Sure blows those old Taco Bell commercials and Speedy Gonzalez cartoons out of the water

Excellent Videos on the Obama Administration

2009-08-29T01:36:00.000-07:00

http://www.glennbeck.com/content/articles/article/198/29831/?ck=1

Renewing my Mexican Residency Permit.doc

2009-08-28T16:54:00.000-07:00

Renewing my Mexican Residency Permit (FM3) August 2009

I have been living in Zacatecas, Mexico since September 2, 2008.

Before arrival, I had to go through a lengthy process with the Mexican Consulate in Las Vegas to get my original FM3 issued and the required Visa placed in my US passport. Upon arrival, I had to go through another process with the local office of the Secretaria de Gobernación to register my arrival, local address and get recorded in the “National Foreigners Archive” (my liberal translation.)

The local process included making copies of every page, even blank ones, of my passport and FM3, rental agreement, utility bills, and bank statements. I also had to provide 3 front and 3 side view black and white photos of a special size. By the time I got done, I had a stack of paper ¾” thick. It took 4 trips to get it done. One to get a list of requirements, a second to deliver the stack of paper, a third because I had overlooked a detail and a fourth to pick up the FM3 duly endorsed as having met the requirements. On the final visit, I was also given a list of requirements for renewing my FM3 before September 2, 2009 and a blank application form.

The beginning of August I figured it was time to get ready for the renewal process, so I pulled out the list. It included:

Original and copy of completed application

Original FM3 and a copy of each page, including blank ones.

Original and copy of my passport, only the page with my photo, issue and expiration dates.

Proof of income

A letter in Spanish requesting renewal along with the reason I wanted the renewal.

I did what research I could on the Internet and found only one completely useful piece of information, the letter in Spanish. All I had to do was fill in the date and sign it.

Date

Instituto Nacional de Migración
Secretaria de Gobernación
PRESENTE

Re: Prorrogación de FM-3

Solicito prorroga de mi documento migratorio FM-3 y manifiesto que soy NO INMIGRANTE VISITANTE RENTISTA, para lo cual acredito mi solvencia económica.

Gracias por su atención.

Atentamente,

signature_________________
your name

from Living in México

The other sources:

Mexico’s National Migration Institute

AllExperts.com

Living in México

Legalservicesinmexico.com

Guide to San Carlos

were somewhat confusing in that they didn’t agree with each other or with the list from the local office. My mistake was that I didn’t call the local office to find out if there had been any change.

I went for overkill copying every page of my passport and FM3.

I went to the immigration on Aug 10 with my half inch stack of papers. Yup, all they wanted was the inside cover of my passport and the equivalent 2 pages of my FM3 plus the 2 pages of my FM3 showing the dates that I had entered or left Mexico. Everything else was in order and they gave me a form to take to the bank to pay the fee. I paid the fee, returned with the receipt, and was given a receipt for my documents indicating I should return on August 17 at 10 AM to pick up my renewed FM3.

On August 17, I picked up my FM3 in a trip that took only 5 minutes.

I learned two things from this experience and a previous stay in Mexico 25 years ago. The first thing is that the Mexican government is doing a much better job of customer service in terms of the amount of paperwork and bureaucratic delays, but planning on 3 trips to a government office to complete a transaction is quite common. The second thing is not to depend on anyone else’s advice. Call, better yet go to, the local office of the agency and find out what the current requirements are. Rules do change and local offices have a lot of discretion on how to implement them. Above all, courtesy and more courtesy; and patience and more patience.

Holy Posoly, runner-up Soapies

2009-08-16T19:25:00.000-07:00

In my 11 months in Zacatecas, I've come to enjoy two dishes more than any others.

Number 1 is Pork and Hominy Stew with Red Chiles (Pozole Rojo) pronounced po-so'-lay row-cho with the ch like in the German ach. Sample recipe at http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Pork-and-Hominy-Stew-with-Red-Chiles-Pozole-Rojo-101285.

The thing that makes it for me is the chewiness of the hominy and pork (shredded here in Mexico), the crispiness of the onions, lettuce and radishes seasoned with the tanginess of the lemon juice.

Number 2 is Sopes pronounced so'-pays or little round masa patties with a ridge around the edge. They're a lot thicker than tortillas and only semi rigid. My favorite taqueria serves them with Picadillo (a ground meat, potato and onion mix) topped with lettuce, tomato, onions, cream (not sour) and cheese (never yellow in Mexico). http://mexicanfood.about.com/od/fiestaappetizers/r/SavorySopes.htm

Both pozole and sopes can be found in an almost endless number of variations and are all good as long as fresh ingredients are used. I've never been disappointed.

Enjoy!

White House Inclusiveness NOT!

2009-07-29T17:23:00.000-07:00

I logged onto the White House website to comment on the Healthcare Bill.

There were only the following categories Compliment, Suggestion, other.

Apparently, to the Obama Administration, the American people aren't competent to register an opposing opinion.

I suggest everyone read the full text of the House Bill here:
http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=111_cong_bills&docid=f:h3200ih.pdf

Pay particular to these points:

• Page 16: States that if you have insurance at the time of the bill becoming law and change, you will be required to take a similar plan. If that is not available, you will be required to take the gov option!
• Page 22: Mandates audits of all employers that self-insure!
• Page 29: Admission: your health care will be rationed!
• Page 30: A government committee will decide what treatments and benefits you get (and, unlike an insurer, there will be no appeals process)
• Page 42: The "Health Choices Commissioner" will decide health benefits for you. You will have no choice. None.
• Page 50: All non-US citizens, illegal or not, will be provided with free healthcare services.
• Page 58: Every person will be issued a National ID Healthcard.
• Page 59: The federal government will have direct, real-time access to all individual bank accounts for electronic funds transfer.
• Page 65: Taxpayers will subsidize all union retiree and community organizer health plans (example: SEIU, UAW and ACORN)
• Page 72: All private healthcare plans must conform to government rules to participate in a Healthcare Exchange.
• Page 84: All private healthcare plans must participate in the Healthcare Exchange (i.e., total government control of private plans)
• Page 91: Government mandates linguistic infrastructure for services; translation: illegal aliens
• Page 95: The Government will pay ACORN and Americorps to sign up individuals for Government-run Health Care plan.
• Page 102: Those eligible for Medicaid will be automatically enrolled: you have no choice in the matter.
• Page 124: No company can sue the government for price-fixing. No "judicial review" is permitted against the government monopoly. Put simply, private insurers will be crushed.
• Page 127: The AMA sold doctors out: the government will set wages.
• Page 145: An employer MUST auto-enroll employees into the government-run public plan. No alternatives.
• Page 126: Employers MUST pay healthcare bills for part -time employees AND their families.
• Page 149: Any employer with a payroll of $400K or more, who does not offer the public option, pays an 8% tax on payroll.
• Page 150: Any employer with a payroll of $250K-400K or more, who does not offer the public option, pays a 2 to 6% tax on payroll
• Page 167: Any individual who doesnt' have acceptable healthcare (according to the government) will be taxed 2.5% of income.
• Page 170: Any NON-RESIDENT alien is exempt from individual taxes (Americans will pay for them).
• Page 195: Officers and employees of Government Healthcare Bureaucracy will have access to ALL American financial and personal records.
• Page 203: "The tax imposed under this section shall not be treated as tax." Yes, it really says that.
• Page 239: Bill will reduce physician services for Medicaid. Seniors and the poor most affected."
• Page 241: Doctors: no matter what speciality you have, you'll all be paid the same (thanks, AMA!)
• Page 253: Government sets value of doctors' time, their professional judgment, etc.
• Page 265: Government mandates and controls productivity for private healthcare industries.
• Page 268: Government regulates rental and purchase of power-driven wheelchairs.
• Page 272: Cancer patients: welcome to the wonderful world of rationing!
• Page 280: Hospitals will be penalized for what the government deems preventable re-admissions.
• Page 298: Doctors: if you treat a patient during an initial admission that results in a readmission, you will be penalized by the government.
• Page 317: Doctors: you are now prohibited for owning and investing in healthcare companies!
• Page 318: Prohibition on hospital expansion. Hospitals cannot expand without government approval.
• Page 321: Hospital expansion hinges on "community" input: in other words, yet another payoff for ACORN.
• Page 335: Government mandates establishment of outcome-based measures: i.e., rationing.
• Page 341: Government has authority to disqualify Medicare Advantage Plans, HMOs, etc.
• Page 354: Government will restrict enrollment of SPECIAL NEEDS individuals.
• Page 379: More bureaucracy: Telehealth Advisory Committee (healthcare by phone).
• Page 425: More bureaucracy: Advance Care Planning Consult: Senior Citizens, assisted suicide, euthanasia?
• Page 425: Government will instruct and consult regarding living wills, durable powers of attorney, etc. Mandatory. Appears to lock in estate taxes ahead of time.
• Page 425:=2 0Goverment provides approved list of end-of-life resources, guiding you in death.
• Page 427: Government mandates program that orders end-of-life treatment; government dictates how your life ends.
• Page 429: Advance Care Planning Consult will be used to dictate treatment as patient's health deteriorates. This can include an ORDER for end-of-life plans. An ORDER from the GOVERNMENT.
• Page 430: Government will decide what level of treatments you may have at end-of-life.
• Page 469: Community-based Home Medical Services: more payoffs for ACORN.
• Page 472: Payments to Community-based organizations: more payoffs for ACORN.
• Page 489: Government will cover marriage and family therapy. Government intervenes in your marriage.
• Page 494: Government will cover mental health services: defining, creating and rationing those services.

If this passes we need to replace all 435 of them!

Not so "Green" grocery bags and compact flourescent bulbs

2009-07-23T14:25:00.000-07:00

I bought a reusable grocery bag in Sam’s Club yesterday. It was only about a dollar. As soon as I wheeled the cart out the door, I loaded it up. Wow, the handles are so long, you have to be about 6’5” tall to hold it comfortably. Then too, the handles are so thin they’ll start cutting into your hand if you carry it for any distance.

This object is called “The Green Bag” alluding to its environmental friendliness.

Once I got home I read the labels. It’s 100% polyethylene. Huh? That’s a plastic, isn’t it? That’s made from petroleum with dirty energy, isn’t it? How many times do I have to use it for there to be a net environmental savings?

Is this how Sam’s and Wal-Mart go “Green?”

There’s more. The bag is rated at a 9kg capacity. Folks, that’s almost 20lbs. Try carrying that for a mile; something I do frequently when I go grocery shopping.

I also noticed that compact fluorescent bulbs have come down to less than $1.00 each. Big deal? The kicker is they are only guaranteed for 3 months, not the 5 year life advertised on the package. Is this another form of rip off?

Electrical Wiring

2009-07-20T17:07:00.000-07:00

This is the fuse box in my little place.Two, count them two, 30 amp fuses. But that's not all, they appear to be wired in series.

Shortly after I moved in, one blew and everything in the house went out. So, they brought a new fuse, replaced it, and NOTHING. Apparently the fuse wasn't making contact. Pulled the other fuse and what did they find? There was a copper coin under the fuse. OK, so they put a coin under the other one. No trouble since.

On top of that there are only two electric outlets in my living/dining room.That's where I have:

2 computers

2 external hard drives

1 monitor

1 printer

computer speakers

cable modem

cable box

plasma tv

paper shredder

fan

heater

all plugged into two daisy-chained 8 socket voltage regulators.

I wonder how many amps I'm drawing in just this room.

In the kitchen, I have refrigerator, toaster oven, coffemaker, blender, juicer, coffee grinder all plugged into one socket with a surge protector. Well, I don't use them all at once.

Smoke detector? What's a smoke detector?

Well, there's nothing flammable in the structure of the building only a bit of furniture. Worst case, I'm only 5 ft. from the balcony and can let myself down from the second floor without breaking a leg.

How to Heat a Mean Tortilla

2009-07-07T14:50:00.000-07:00

Tortillas made in a tortilla bakery aren't really baked. They are heated just enough to hold together. You have to heat them at home so they don't taste raw and are pliable enough to make tacos out of them.

If you are in a hurry, the quickest way to heat your tortillas is to drop them right over the gas flame on your stove. Give them about 15 to 30 seconds per side. the result is they don't taste raw and they're pliable enough to roll into tacos around your favorite filling.

The crunchy pre-fried Taco Bell type taco is something I've never seen in Mexico. Crunchy (dorado) tacos are made in one of two ways. One, is to fill the tortilla, like a burrito sealed at both ends, and deep fry it that way. The other way is to fold the tortilla more or less flat and deep fry it. The filling is piled on top of the crunchy tortilla and you break it up to use the pieces to shovel the filling by hand.

The more sophisticated way is to use a comal (picture below) which is kind of like griddle that covers from one to four burners on the stove. Mine takes about 5 minutes for 3 tortillas.

All you need to keep tortillas warm is to wrap them in a cloth and put them in a basket.

Danger buying fruit and pastries

2009-07-04T10:33:00.000-07:00

Summer is in full swing and bees are out in force.
Street stalls, the public market and many small shops are wide open to the street.
The other day, I went into the local bakery to buy fresh rolls (bolillos.)
There were 30 or so bees hovering over the pasteries which are all on open serve-yourself racks and flitting around the cafe area where people were enjoying their coffee and cake.
When I took my purchase up to the register I asked, "Doesn't anyone ever get stung?"
The girl answered, "No, they're all old friends, when one of them dies, we have a funeral mass," with a big smile on her face.

I guess they're so fat, satisfied and feel so unthreatened they don't care.

When is later right away?

2009-06-20T10:06:00.000-07:00

There's an odd contradiction in the definition of the Spanish word luego which is usually translated as later or afterwards and these are probably the most common usage you'd find in written Spanish.

Oddly enough that's only the secondary definition of the word. It's primary definition is just the opposite soon.

Odd also because in spoken Spanish you hear the expression luego luego very frequently when some is giving directions and that sounded strange to my ears.

For instance, "Go two blocks, turn right and it's luego luego the second door on the left." That is, "Go two blocks, turn right and it's right there the second door on the left."

Or "You get there luego luego going down 1st Ave and then turning left." That is, "You get there right away going down 1st Ave and then turning left."

Go figure!

South Park in Mexico

2009-06-19T12:00:00.000-07:00

This is a First Communion invitation. First Communions and the parties afterwards are major events in childrens' lives and printed invitations are pretty much a requirement.

The personage here is St. Jude, but doesn't he look an awful lot like the Jesus character in South Park?

Comic or religious invitations are also used for baptisms and 15th birthdays (for girls.)

Update on New Credit Card Trick

2009-06-04T11:58:00.000-07:00

Well, it wasn't a trick. It was just the "Skip a Payment" option.
It's there on the statement, but you have to look hard to find it.
That's a point that was missed in the new law.
That all terms, conditions should be highlighted when they are not part of routine account handling.

I'm not all that happy with the new credit card law because I'm probably going to end up a loser with higher interest rates and a shorter grace period. We'll see.

New Credit Card Trick? ? ? ?

2009-05-24T06:29:00.000-07:00

My Chase credit card statement date is the 22nd of the month. The online statement appears long before the printed one arrives in the mail usually the 24th, that's today. I logged in and there it was. Balance around $400 as I expected. Minimum payment was $0? Huh? Can't be! Or, is this a new trick by the credit card companies to lull people into not making a payment and paying interest on amounts they could easily avoid?

Could be it was only a software error and will be corrected. I'll find out.

Mexico Expat Blogs

2009-05-18T12:09:00.000-07:00

It's a Bich, Oh (bee-cho)

2009-05-18T08:50:00.000-07:00

Many long years ago, I learned that Spanish for fly was mosca, mosquito was mosquito, bug was bicho and insect was insecto.

So here I am in Zacatecas after 2 years in Spain, 4 years in another part of Mexico and several vacation trips to other Spanish speaking countries.

And, the other night the lady who cooks and cleans for me was telling me not to let the blankets on my bed fall on the floor or the "sancudos" would crawl up them and they bite. Sancudo? Never heard it before! It's an animalito that flies and bites. "Animalito?" Little animal?

A little bit of research on the web:

Mosca = fly

Mosco = Mosquito = zancudo (z and s sound the same in Spanish)

Bicho = bug = any insect = animalito (can't find it in any dictionary, I'm just guessing.)

Insecto is indeed the precise term for insect and zancudo is an obsolete word for mosquito, but it's obviously not obsolete in Zacatecas.

Maybe it would have been better to come down to Zacatecas with only a basic vocabulary. At least the slate would have been blank, more or less, and picking up new vocabulary not so confusing.

On the other hand, it's kind of fun getting explanations and talking to the locals about what different words mean and when to use them.

2009-05-14T08:17:00.000-07:00

I ran out of fruit last night and also wanted to get some chorizo to go in an omelette with some Mennonite cheese I bought yesterday. (Mennonite cheese comes from a colony in Chihuahua that was founded in the mid 1800s when they were invited by Benito Juarez to escape persecution in the US.) It has a consistency like mozzerella but has a definite flavor. Absolute great on pizza and quesadillas, naturally.

At 9AM there was almost nobody on the streets until I got within a block of the market. Then it was still mostly vendors setting up or already open.

It was nice doing my shopping without having to climb over a bunch of pushing and shoving housewives to make my purchases. At any rate, six apples, six bananas, a pineapple and a half pound of chorizo was 60 pesos ($4.50), a good deal, I think.

The downside is that, unlike years ago, they use plastic bags now and if you are going to carry 10lbs. of stuff home, best bring a heavy duty sack or backpack. I've seen people carrying canvas sacks, but haven't seen them on sale anywhere. I guess I better ask.

In the Spirit of Making Lemonade

2009-03-21T13:07:00.000-07:00

A few blocks from Cristy's house in Zamora, behind a small shopping center, there's a car wash.

Right nextdoor, some "entrepreneurs" have set up to wash and detail cars by hand. Illegal yes, but a small payoff to the local cops avoids problems.

So what's so terrible about that? People come by Cristy's house offering to sharpen knives, mow the lawn, take care of the flower beds, sell delicacies of one sort or another. Just like it was for me growing up in Brooklyn in the late 40's.

Corrupt? Which is worse, corruption in the billions and no access to government on an individual basis to solve your problems like in the States or corruption in pennies and personal access to a government that is flexible enough to bend the rules where it does no harm?

How come, never in Las Vegas or New Olreans or Raleigh or Atlanta did anyone come by offering any kind of personal service. Was it because it was too easy to let the government take of you and just sit back and cry about how life had handed you lemons?

2009-03-20T18:37:00.000-07:00

Just before sundown today, while sitting at a cafe where I could access the Internet, I heard music and shouting. It seems a "Welcome Spring" with kids from Kindergarten and primary school was passing. Grabbed a few shots. I guess they do it every year. any excuse to celebrate.

Spanish - Spanglish - English

2009-03-18T19:00:00.000-07:00

I guess I just get a kick out of the idiosyncracies I find in the different dialects of spanish I run into in different countries. Mexico is especially interesting to me because I'm here.

I spent most of Sunday and Monday traveling from Zacatecas to McAllen, TX and from McAllen to Zamora. Along the way, I saw several signs with English words used in their normal context as if they were part of Spanish, which they are. I was also reminded of some words that I saw or heard on TV. Here are some of them:

Party - parties are a big business in Mexico - baptisms, first communions, 15th birthday for girls and of course weddings. A business in Zamora is named the Party Place.

There are are several businesses this far into the country that dear in parts and service.

A commercial for Epson printers uses the phrase, "Sorry Hewlett Packard."

But watch out for pronunciation.

Heinz is pronounced like Hanes.
Buffet is pronounced boo-fet.

Of course OK (okay) and trailer (trayler - pronounced try-lair and yonke (yawn-key for junk) have been around for a long time. Which of the above is Spanglish and which is just a matter of "natural" spanish pronunciation, I'm not sure.

Driving in Mexico

2009-03-11T04:19:00.000-07:00

I rented a car recently, figuring we'd be traveling to some out of the way places.
The route was Zacatecas to Zamora, Zamora to Morelia, Morelia to Uruapan and from Uruapan to Paricutin, Zirahuen, Patzcuaro, and Tzaracua, all 4 places within an hour's drive from Uruapan.

First, the toll roads cut driving time by as much as 75%.
Second, tolls are high; I spent about $75 on tolls on this jaunt, plus the same amount on gas.
I could have saved about 75% of the expense by renting the car in Morelia and taking the bus from Zacatecas to Zamora and then Morelia and then dropping the car off in Morelia on the return trip. It would have cost me about 8 hours additional travel time, but I have lots of that.

The road signs are pretty good from city to city, but watch out, once you get into the city, signage may be missing, hidden, or point to intermediate locations. I found it pretty reliable to ask at the toll booths for directions to the next turn. Also, read every sign, even the ones that face cross streets. And in one case, the sign was 100 feet past the turnoff.

So, if you are adventurous enough to explore Mexico by car. List all the towns you are going to pass through because they may be the only signs you see for a long time. Get directions from someone who knows the route including landmarks. If you think you are lost, you probably are. Stop and get directions using a detailed map and sign language if necessary.

Money - Cash, Efectivo

2009-02-07T13:47:00.000-08:00

Go to the ATM in the US and you get a pile of $20's. Boring.

Down here, go to the ATM for 5,000 pesos and you get:
6-500's - pink banknote stock
6-200's - green
5-100's - red banknote stock
6-50's - purple

Now, ain't that fun! The 200's and 50's come in 2 sizes, new smaller plastic sheet, old larger banknote stock. There's also a blue 20 peso bill that comes in the same two forms as the 50. There is a mix of 5 different sizes of bill.

Using the ATM's is no different from the US, there's even an option to get your prompts in English. I have been getting my cash from the ATM's because one bank has a business relationship with my bank in the US and I get a better rate than other banks or money exchanges. It might be a good idea to check with your bank before you travel overseas to see if you can save by using a certain bank at your destination.

BTW, 5000 pesos cost me $352.66 today. Using another bank or money exchange might have cost 10 to 20 dollars more. Well, that's a meal in a good to fine restaurant.

The H2 Project

2009-02-07T13:22:00.000-08:00

This little old white bug pulled up in front of the hostel a couple of days ago. It looked like it might have an interesting story. I checked it out at http://www.theh2project.com. Check it out for yourself.

Mandlen - Mexican Style

2009-02-06T18:55:00.000-08:00

Background: Commonly referred to as soup nuts, mandlen is a tasty cracker bread that is often served with soups. Considered part of traditional Jewish cuisine, mandlen is also a favorite on special occasions and religious holidays. The serving of mandlen during the Passover season has earned it the nickname of Passover crackers.

Along with being an excellent cracker to serve with soups, mandlen is also considered to be an excellent addition to party trays, or even as a quick snack to tide one over until mealtime. The ingredients for mandlen are common elements found in many kitchens. A basic recipe for mandlen includes wheat flour, eggs, vegetable shortening, and potato starch. Salt and pepper to taste are added to the dough. Once the dough is thoroughly blended, it is rolled into small round balls and placed on a baking sheet. The mandlen is baked until the exterior is golden brown in color.

The basic recipe for mandlen is sometimes enhanced with various blends of herbs and spices. Persons who are attempting to limit salt intake may choose to utilize garlic powder or cayenne as a means of giving the mandlen a little extra flavor. The addition of other herbs and spices in the mandlen recipe can provide a little extra flavor, which may be especially advantageous when the crackers are consumed as a snack.

Mandlen is actually a Yiddish word that means almond. While the mandlen cracker does not actually contain almonds, the final product does bear a resemblance in both color and shape to an almond. As a popular element of a matzo meal, the mandlen is considered an ideal addition or garnish.

While many families prefer to prepare mandlen from scratch, there are currently pre-measured mixes available that can cut the preparation time significantly. In addition, packaged versions of mandlen are available in many supermarkets and boutique grocery stores that carry ethnic cuisine. As packaged brands of mandlen have become more readily available, the cracker has gained popularity with a number of soup lovers.

Variation: My grandmother used to make a kind of mandlen that was square and flat and fried and very crunchy. I don’t know if it was a very common recipe, it certainly didn’t produce the puffy round ones they sell in the supermarkets.

Mexico: Just like in the US, lots of restaurants lay a basket of tortilla chips on the table along with two or three salsas. Unlike the US, these chips are dense and hard, often fried rather than baked.

The last time I had chicken soup down here, the tortilla chips were especially crunchy. Remembering my grandmother’s mandlen, I crumbled a handful into the soup. Extremely good, added a nutlike flavor. Try it if you get a chance

Chicken Soup, It's Not Just Jewish Penicillin

2009-02-05T18:36:00.000-08:00

I went to La Cabaña Taqueria for supper tonight. It was kind of cold and windy and they had chicken soup on the menu. I figured, why not? Surprise, surprise, it was just like grandma used to make. Well, not quite. Yeah, there were whole pieces of chicken, carrots and onions in a rich broth. But, there was a strange looking pale green vegetable shaped like a slice of a very small honeydew mellon and since they had all the acoutrements for tacos already on the table, after sampling the soup (excellent), I spritzed a little bit of lemon juice in it. It really brought out the chicken flavor. And, to add to the adventure, I went ahead and scraped some chopped onion and a few leaves of cilantro on top.

That pale green vegetable was chayote. Has a texture a good bit firmer than a cucumber and a delicate flavor that just added an undertone to the symphony of flavors.

And you know? It did wonders for my sense of well being. So we can add Penicilina Mexicana to the Granny's Pharmacopia.

It's Hot!, It's not!, Why not?

2009-02-03T19:43:00.000-08:00

Tacos for breakfast. Overdid the hot sauce. My mouth did not burn.
Gorditas for supper. At a place known for its fiery food. Just a pleasant tingle.

Maybe I've been here long enough that my tongue is building up some scar tissue. I'm not about to start scarfing down handfuls of Habaneros. I guess I'll just be a little bit bolder when I order in a restaurant.

Gorditas, BTW, don't look anything like Taco Bell's. They have a machine that punches out circles of fairly thick dough. A lady then shapes them by hand and throws them on a grill. When they're done, she slits them along the edge with a sharp knife and stuffs with the filling ordered.

I had egg, sorta like scrambled eggs with Spanish Omelette sauce. Three months ago, the chile nearly took the roof of my mouth off. Tonight, it just went down smooth.

I also had Rice and Mole, a chile and chocolate laden sauce. Only a week ago, my tongue was smarting for a half hour. Today, just a little bit of heat.

Then again, maybe they ran short of chiles today. Who knows?

Zig Zag

2009-02-03T14:41:00.000-08:00

People walking down the street in Zacatecas and small towns in mexico tend to walk to the left, down the middle or even to the right. Some times a group will wander along moving left and right randomly. They'll even stop in the middle of the sidewalk for a protracted gab fest. This kind of street may be the reason. You can see at least three different sidewalk widths in the picture. I suppose it is because the sidewalks long after the buildings went up in the absence of zoning laws. I don't think there zoning laws yet.

Anyway, a leisurely stroll can be an exercise in broken field running. You try to predict where the oncoming traffic is NOT going to be. sometimes that means getting into the gutter.

IM - Instant Messaging

2009-01-31T13:08:00.000-08:00

My friend is Mexican with a Spanish keyboard. I only have English. Yeah, you can configure Windows for both, but what about the keytops or memorizing the new layout. Hell, I never learned to touch-type.

We IM almost constantly. We wander back and forth between English and Spanish. That’s no problem with a Spanish keyboard, all the letters, numbers. accents, punctuations, and special characters except @ = ALT+064 for both languages are on it. Anyone who has been to an Internet café in Hispano America learns that right off.

What to do? What to do?

The only real sticky one is ñ. Without it, year (año) becomes anus (ano). You can get around it by typing anio which would be pronounced almost like año. So, I hunted through MS Word’s symbol table and found that ALT-0241 makes ñ.

Leaving all the other accents off may look uneducated but nowhere near as silly as Have a Happy New Anus.

One clumsy character per language is a fair trade, I guess.

There’s a more pernicious side effect. The more I IM, the more cigarettes I light, sometimes having two going at once. The doc gave me some new pills to help quit. After two weeks, not a dent! I guess that shows that the Smoking Nazis and their pet shrinks don’t know what they’re talking about. The addiction is more habit than chemical dependence.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, smokes are less than twenty bucks a carton for Marlboros, less than ten for a couple of similar Mexican brands.

Where’s the will power?

Internet Idiosyncrasy #1

2009-01-31T01:05:00.000-08:00

When I first got down here, I was initially surprised that all the major web pages – MSN, Yahoo, Google were in Spanish!!!! Wait a minute! I’m in Mexico. The “Internet” knows I’m in Mexico. No, it’s not big brother watching me. It’s those funny numbers like 123.456.789.012 that do it. Every computer connected to the Internet has at least one of those strings of numbers that identify it. It just so happens that the first part of the number identifies the country the computer is in and a lot of the programmers who build websites use it to decide which language to use. There are ways to find the English language page that you were used to and making it a favorite or bookmark so you can always get English. Usually there’s a link at the bottom of the Spanish page that will to English. Most of you probably know that stuff; I thought I’d mention it just in case. BTW, this website comes up in Spanish till I log in. Once I do, it’s in English because my account specifies I use English.

Time, Place, Travel

2009-01-31T01:03:00.000-08:00

Life is good. At certain points in my life, I had my doubts. Retired now, there’s enough money to live where I want, enjoy what I want, go where I want. Rich might have been better, but. . . Looking back, I see I made some choices between goals and the price that had to be paid for them. I ended up OK. FWIW for all you younger people out there, think hard about your life decisions, weigh the costs in time, effort, money against your goals for your retirement. Try to set goals that you can reach while you still have the time to enjoy life along the way. That is, don’t just live for tomorrow, but don’t just forget about it either. Tomorrow comes a hell of a lot sooner than you might believe. Sermon over!

Beggars

2009-01-30T13:47:00.000-08:00

Yeah, there are more than I saw at first. The worst are the ones that use their small children as shills. If they’re begging, they are not going to school, so don’t encourage it by giving. They wouldn’t be doing it if it weren’t good business. On the other hand, there the old people who may not have any other means of support. To those you give.

Some people, not content to accept the status of beggar, are the entrepreneurs who buy crates of fruit, bag up 3 or 4 assorted pieces and sell on the corners or in the street. Gotta hand it to them!

Junk Mail

2009-01-30T13:46:00.000-08:00

Every once in a while, a flyer gets pushed through the crack in the door. These are distributed by individuals hired by the companies, NOT the Post Office. Is there an idea there? Today, the flyer is about carpet-upholstery-car cleaning on one side, general help around the house or business on the other. Including distribution of advertising.

Business Hours

2009-01-30T13:42:00.000-08:00

I leisurely extract myself from bed between 7:30 and 8:30 AM.

I may wander out for breakfast as early as 9AM, at which time about the only things open are the corner grocery store “hole-in-the-wall” and the public market. It’s not until 10 that the other eateries that serve the breakfast crowd open. Remember, Zacatecas is no major metropolis.

With some exceptions, businesses don’t open till 11AM making 10-10:30 the right time to grab some breakfast before work. Then, they close at between 1 and 3 PM for a big lunch plus siesta, opening again from around 5 till somewhere between 8 and 9.

9PM is when the restaurants’ supper business picks up. I use the term restaurant loosely. It could be anything from a lady on the corner with a basket of tamales or a pot of corn on the cob to the fanciest place in town.

I have to admit I’m still not certain who is open when, but it is clear that there are few, if any, worms for the early bird to catch.

Change, money or coins, that is

2009-01-30T13:35:00.000-08:00

Nobody ever has any. Banks like to hand out big bills. Small businesses can’t afford to keep enough change on hand to break large bills. Typically, if you present a 100 peso bill at the wrong moment, someone will have to run out to a larger business and get change. The flip side is that they do have change but it’s all in 1 to 5 peso coins. The weight ends up wearing a whole in your pocket. You get a restaurant check for 65 pesos (tip s/b 6 or 7 pesos.) You don’t have any small change and give the waitress a 100 peso note. She comes back with 3 – 10 peso coins and 1 – 5 peso coin. The service was no more than acceptable. You have a choice, leave 5 pesos or 10 pesos. I’ll leave the decision to you.

But what happened:
- She did it on purpose hoping you’d leave 10.
- The restaurant didn’t have any 1 peso coins.
- She wasn’t thinking about her tip.

In the US, I’d have guessed the first.
In Mexico, especially here in the Provinces, any of the 3 is an equal possibility.

Obama

2009-01-30T13:33:00.000-08:00

I read about the Equal Pay Act being the first one Obama signed. How do you substantiate equal work? Every job I’ve ever had, I’ve work in a group where, nominally several people had the same job description, yet there was a wide range in how much each contributed to the output of the group or the company’s goals. I’m willing to bet that in a group of 30 to 200 people no two individuals contributions were equal in quantity or quality. Nice idea, just a pipedream.

Small Business

2009-01-30T13:31:00.000-08:00

Excoriate evil greedy capitalism as much a you like, struggling to start and run a small business is the entry to the middle class for many Mexicans. It’s a way of life handed down from generation to generation. These business owners are no where near as affluent as most of the US middle class, but they do own somewhat nicer houses, cars, maybe a maid to come in from 1 to 3 days a week. These people exploit the poor? They make jobs that would not have existed otherwise.

Identification

2009-01-30T13:27:00.000-08:00

For a Mexican adult, a driver’s license is of only secondary importance for ID. It’s the voter’s credential which is the primary proof of identity and age. Hmmm. . . ., there was a big flap over photo ID’s for voting and how it would discriminate against the disadvantaged to make them have to go get ID’s. Well, in Mexico where a far greater percentage of the population is poor, the people don’t think it’s a burden to prove they have the right to vote. The credentials are issued at no cost and are good for 8 years if you don’t move. Oh, you live way out in the boondocks or it would be a hassle to go downtown? No worry, mobile units canvas the whole area during sign up season. It seems clear that the Democrats’ refusal to approve this type of voter registration had nothing to do with fairness and justice.