El Ojo del Lago - May 2016

Saw you in the Ojo

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El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

Saw you in the Ojo

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PUBLISHER

Richard Tingen

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Alejandro Grattan-DomĂ­nguez Tel: (01376) 765 3676, 765 2877 Fax: (01376) 765 3528 Associate Publisher David Tingen Graphic Design Roberto C. Rojas Sandra Hernandez Special Events Editor Sandy Olson Associate Editor Jim Tipton Contributing Editor Mark Sconce Theater Critic Michael Warren Book Review Panel Margaret Van Every Margaret Porter Clare Gearhart Roving Correspondent Dr. Lorin Swinehart Art Critic Rob Mohr Sales Manager Bruce Fraser 2IÂżFH 6HFUHWDU\ Rocio Madrigal ADVERTISING OFFICE Av. Hidalgo # 223, Chapala Mon. thru Fri. 9am - 5pm Sat. 9am - 1pm Tel. 01 (376) 765 2877, 765 3676 Fax 01 (376) 765 3528 Send all correspondence, subscriptions or advertising to: El Ojo del Lago http://www.chapala.com ojodellago@prodigy.net.mx Ave. Hidalgo 223 (or Apartado 279), 45900 Chapala, Jalisco Tels.: (376) 765 3676, Fax 765 3528

Index...

FEATURE ARTICLES

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14 HISTORICAL PROFILE Jim Tipton writes about Zane Grey, one of the most successful American writers of all-time, even eclipsing the legendary Mark Twain.

18 MEXICAN HISTORY Greg Custer has a fascinating take on the Spanish conquest of Mexico, a version that brings to mind the old saying “But for a nail, the kingdom was lost.�

20 MENTAL MUSING John Thomas Dodds writes that while our bodies slowly wither, the PLQG KHDUW DQG VRXO RIWHQ ÀRXULVK with age, making the later years some of the richest of our entire lives.

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Editor’s Page

10 Front Row Center 12 Imprints 30 Profiling Tepehua 32 Lakeside Living 36 Child of the Month

22 LOCAL PROFILE Margaret Ann Porter writes a twopart series about Mark Sconce, one of Lakeside’s more intriguing UHVLGHQWV LQ DQ DUHD ¿OOHG ZLWK IDVFLnating former super-achievers.

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40 Welcome to Mexico 44 Anita’s Animals

28 POETRY Gabrielle Blair’s lovely poem about RQH RI QDWXUHœV PRVW PDJQL¿FHQW FUHDWLRQV²WKH EXWWHUÀ\

PRINTING: El Debate El Ojo del Lago aparece los primeros cinco dĂ­as de cada mes. (Distributed over WKH ÂżUVW ÂżYH GD\V RI HDFK PRQWK) &HUWLÂżFDGR GH /LFLWXG GH 7tWXOR &HUWLÂżFDGR GH /LFLWXG GH &RQWHQLGR Reserva al TĂ­tulo de Derechos de Autor 04-2011-103110024300-102 Control 14301.

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DistribuciĂłn: Hidalgo 223 Chapala, Jalisco, MĂŠxico.

All contents are fully protected by copyright and may not be reproduced without the written consent of El Ojo del Lago. Opinions expressed E\ WKH DXWKRUV GR QRW QHFHVVDULO\ UHĂ€HFW WKH views of the Publisher or the Editor, nor are we responsible for the claims made by our advertisers. We welcome letters, which should include name, address and telephone number.

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COVER STORY

COVER STORY

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LAKESIDE LIVING

VOLUME 32 NUMBER 9

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Reversing The Trend nd

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ver the past few fe ew w years, migration from ro rom om Mexico to the United itted d States has been drastically reeduced. Today, it sits at a net minus. The reasons are many, and include the still-struggling in ng g jobs market in the US, and the fact fac act that despite its humane attitude ude d toward immigration, the Obama Administration has deported a very sizable number of undocumented workers, as well as substantially beefed up the security on the border.

There is, however, another trend, this one much more heart-warming. It involves Mexicans who have come back willingly, some after spending many years in the US. We recently spoke with two such Mexicans.

Miguel Roman is a husky, middleaged man who today is a prominent real estate agent here at Lakeside. Born in Zacatecas, he was only two years old when his parents migrated to the US in search of work. When Miguel was still a child, his parents were killed in an accident and he was left in the care of poor relatives who raised him as best they could. They were migrant workers, and the boy toiled right alongside them in the vineyards in Central California. Later, becoming rebellious, as most teenagers are prone to be, he was in and out of trouble with the law, until finally—with few other paths open to him—he joined the Marine Corps.

For some fifty thousand young Americans, Vietnam was the end of the line; for Miguel, it was the beginning of a new life. Learning to handle heavy equipment in the war, he returned to the United States with a skill and a confidence that would in time earn him a BA degree from Arizona State in Business Administration. Going from one management job to another, he got married, had children and decided he would stay in the US until he had built up a saving account that would support his family anywhere in the world. When that day finally arrived, he checked out Spain and Costa Rica—before coming across an AARP article about Lakeside.

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El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

Soon thereafter, he had not been here more than a few days before buying a magnificent house (I have seen it!) in La Floresta, and there he has lived happily since then.

Ricardo Carranza was born and bred in Guadalajara, and after graduating with a degree in engineering from the University of Guadalajara went to work for IBM here in Mexico. However, as the market shifted to China, the local work force was cut by three-fourths and Ricardo moved to the United States, eventually ending up in the San Jose area of California, still working for IBM. But as his two children entered their teen years, he began to see that they were missing out on the richness of their Mexican heritage; indeed, his daughter could barely speak Spanish. Moreover the entire family had begun to greatly miss their relatives back in Guadalajara.

So a few years ago, they moved back but by then Ricardo had had enough of big city life, and so rather than resettle in Guadalajara, he brought his family to Lakeside. He still works for IBM, though he had to take a 30% cut in pay. However, he thinks it works out about even, as it costs so much less to live here—even in Ajijic! There is one thing he laments: he says his two children used to have to read much more in schools up in the States—and says that this is something he and his wife will soon resolve in one way or another!

What’s clear is that the magical allure of Lake Chapala affects not only expats, but Mexicans, as well!

Alejandro GrattanDominguez

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f one reads Middle Eastern and European Medieval history, it is easy to fall into the trap of oversimplifying present events with an overlay of the past. But shortly after the events of September 11, 2001 the President of the United States himself lamentably introduced the term Crusade to define his War against Terrorism. He then launched an invasion of Iraq on the trumped up pretext of Saddam’s possession of weapons of mass destruction, and when the sham was exposed shifted his cant to a different refrain: bringing Democracy (our secular religion) to a benighted Muslim culture.

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The great Crusades of a millennium ago were driven by greed and conquest. The same could be said of the earlier expansion of Islam. Temporal princes cloaked their machinations in religious fervor in order to acquire greater power and wealth for themselves. Enforced religious orthodoxy, Islam’s Sharia and the Roman church’s Inquisition, imposed conformity upon those who lived under the aegis of religiously legitimized princes.

The modern world still struggles with the conflict of religious orthodoxy and secular freedom of thought.

Muslim radicals demonize Christianity, and Christian radicals demonize

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Islam.

Perhaps, the analogy is overdrawn. But on the other hand the methods are thoroughly time-tested. Witness the recent history of the Third Reich and the demonization of the Jews. Could it be that in 1933 the Germans suddenly found themselves in a Germany that they never suspected would be possible until it was too late? Should the rise of the Third Reich be attributed to the germanness of the people? The flaw is a proven potential in all humanity.

Christianity at its best provides its parishioners with comfort, fellowship and enlightenment, and it expresses itself in kindness and charity to others, likewise Judaism. Islam at its best provides its believers with comfort, fellowship and enlightenment, and it expresses itself in kindness and charity to others. Yes, for what it’s worth, it does. But while Democracy is an extension of Christian culture, it is an alien overlay on Islamic culture.

Are all Muslims bad? Are all Christians good? There are Evangelists and Imams, and politicians on both sides preaching Jihad and Crusade, hatred and contempt! And good people are blinded or at least silenced by it.

Have our actions mobilized a World or even a part of the World against us? Aside from the economic motivations of Japan’s Greater East Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere, did the Japanese expect to be welcomed and not vilified when they invaded a benighted China, and the Southeast Asian colonial empires of the British, French, Dutch, . . . and the US (Philippines)? Did they see their role as a force for liberation and enlightenment? Contrary to the World view, the Japanese to this day see themselves in that war with a far more noble purpose than that which we attribute to them. Analogies can be carried too far, but events playing out in the streets of Baghdad, or for that matter in the mountains of Afghanistan and Pakistan certainly don’t smack of local gratitude for the gifts of Liberty, Democracy and God forbid, Christianity!

The aftermath of 9/11, the attack on Afghanistan and the orchestrated buildup to invasion of Iraq have served to obfuscate the growing concentration of arbitrary power in the hands of our Federal Government: a setback to many hard won liberties.

Two watershed events have occurred in the lifetimes of those of us who were born in the Nineteen-Thirties.

First the human population of this planet has tripled to nearly seven billion, and doubled in the United States to about 380 million. Once smog was a phenomenon peculiar to Los Ange-

les, now it’s a planetary problem. We are now plundering the Earth’s resources at a rate undreamed of a few years ago. We are at war over energy supplies. We may find new energy alternatives, but what is the substitute for uncontaminated water? We are depleting our fisheries and our forests far more rapidly that they can replenish themselves. We introduce chemicals into our soils and oceans, into our domesticated animals, so that we can continue to produce food and fiber at a rate consistent with expanding human demand. Those same chemicals may be altering our bodies in ways that we can only guess. We in the developed world, and even around the planet where poverty dominates, produce more, consume more, contaminate more and encroach and lay barren more productive land every day. We argue about it. We accuse others. We excuse ourselves. In any case we can’t seem to stop ourselves!

In many parts of the United States fish and game control authorities make wildlife counts in wilderness areas. Annual hunting and fishing licenses are issued for deer and other animals with a view to thinning the herds to survival levels. In other words, kill some or too many animals would survive, exhaust their food sources and then all would die!

Will the human race ravage our environment to the point of threatened extinction, and then thin the herd? It has happened in historical times on a smaller, local scale. Depending on the pretexts we often refer to it as genocide. When we slammed the door on the Kyoto Treaty on the Environment, many observers of our actions must have given a thought to who would be the thinnees and who would be the thinners.

Or will we simply consume ourselves into extinction, like other animals have through the millennia. Where then our concepts of God, Allah and Yahweh?

The second event began with the Age of Weapons of Mass Destruction.

The threats to our existence in modern times have altered the articulation of power in the government of the United States. Congress nominally still retains the power to declare war. But the potential pace of events in modern war is such that there is no time for debate. Retaliation during the years of mutually assured destruction made it imperative that response be instantaneous or the threat of retaliation would be empty.

Since World War II we have fought two major undeclared wars, Korea and Vietnam, we have invaded Grenada, Panama and Iraq (twice) and intervened by force in countless other

places. With events leading where they seem, and the United States isolating itself more and more from the rest of the world, it may be impossible to retain our valued civil liberties and still survive. But if we don’t somehow retain them, do we deserve to survive?

Germany’s inter-war Weimar Republic had civil liberties. The attenuation and corruption of those rights morphed into the Third Reich. None of the things occurring under the aegis of the War on Terror by themselves seem too onerous. Secret trials or denial of habeas corpus for aliens, or more explicitly Muslims accused of terrorist acts inside and outside of this country, don’t seem unreasonable.

Monitoring e-mail, telephone conversations, bank and commercial transactions, all without warrants may have prevented a reprise of 9/11.

None of the private activities of most law-abiding citizens should excite government concern. If the chiefs of Hitler’s Gestapo could see us now, would they be laughing?

Why shouldn’t we have a national Department of Homeland Security?

Germany had one. It was called the Reichsicherheitshauptamt- Main Office for National Security. It was headed by Reinhard Hedrich, and later by

Ernst Kaltenbrünner. The latter was hanged at Nuremberg. Both of them reported to Heinrich Himmler.

Is there a reasonable equilibrium for what we exchange of our civil liberties for a sense of security? Should we err to the side of the liberties and accept greater risks? Should we err to the side of security and believe in the social contract; that those to whom we entrust our freedoms will in fact never abuse the power we have given them? If they were to abuse that power, are we capable of taking it back from them? In the 1940’s without the intervention of the United States, is it likely that the Third Reich and Japan’s Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere would have been brought down?

If we fail ourselves, who will come to our rescue?

Or have the times changed so much, has so much power been concentrated in the United States and entrusted to the hands of our leaders, that the United States is destined become the tyrant of the planet, the allocator of its resources and the thinner of its herds?

Robert Drynan

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his play is set in 2004 during the Bush-era Iraq war, and was first produced on Broadway in 2011. The theme of family love in spite of personal and political divisions is even more appropriate today, as this dysfunctional family becomes a mirror for the polarized United States. The parents “Lyman and Polly Wyeth” are old-fashioned Reaganites, while daughter “Brooke” is a rebellious Democrat.

Also home for Christmas is younger son “Trip” who makes his living in Hollywood producing a corny fake trial show, and Polly’s sister “Silda” who is a recovering alcoholic with a bitter tongue. Can they get through Christmas without killing each other? Probably not. There’s a ghost at the table,

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that of Brooke’s brother “Henry” who evidently committed suicide after joining a radical left-wing group, which was then involved in a bomb attack on an army recruiting station. This terrible family secret is about to be revealed, discussed and analyzed in public because Brooke has written a family memoir, which will be published very soon. She’d like them all to read it, and tell her what they think. It’s going to be an extremely painful holiday.

The actors all lived their parts in this cleverly written play. Candace

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Luciano was excellent as the controlled (and controlling) matriarch “Polly” who models herself on her friend Nancy Reagan. She was entirely believable and commanded the stage from her first entrance. Peter Luciano played husband Lyman with skill as an ex-movie actor who was appointed an Ambassador by Ronnie Reagan.

His was a more sympathetic character and we felt his pain. Debra Bowers was wonderful as the conflicted daughter, while Damyn Young came across well as “Trip” the peacemaker in the family.

Finally Collette Clavadetscher had a lot of fun – and some of the best lines – as “Aunt Silda” who’s washed up and trying not to fall off the wagon. These were all real people, and director Russell Mack deserves a lot of credit for his sensitive handling of the intense and complicated character interplay.

The set was airy and spacious, and we felt we were in a Palm Springs ranch-style home. I particularly appreciated the use of the downstage apron, which enlarged the stage and brought the actors closer to the audience. Also worthy of mention was the use of a rear projector with time lapse photography for the desert sky, seen through the window at the back of the stage. Set design was by Russell Mack, and credit for the sky goes to J.E. Jack.

It’s these little extra touches that make a play a pleasure to watch. Congratulations also to Stage Manager Leslie DeCarl, Assistant Stage Manager Rob Stupple, and Producer Patteye Simpson and all the hardworking backstage crew.

So ends an interesting and wellbalanced Season 51, with two dramas, a step-dance play, a farce, a murder mystery, and a musical with singing and dancing nuns. See you next fall!

Michael Warren

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Channeling Venice

velopment of the city’s culture, or their influence on making Venice a maritime powerhouse and quite arguably the navel of the civilized world for half a millennium.

The roots of Venice’s future greatness, though, would have been hard to discern in its inauspicious beginnings.

As the Roman Empire faltered under successive waves of barbarian invasions, fishermen who lived on the islands of the  lagoon were joined by refugees from nearby Roman cities and farms, seeking refuge in the inaccessibility of its marshes.

The city’s founding is traditionally pegged to the dedication of the Church of San Giacomo in 421.

When the Lombards conquered most of Italy more than a century later, insulated Venice and the adjacent coast were all that remained of Byzantine Italy.

Despite a 726 AD rebellion in which the city’s inhabitants took the side of Pope Gregory II in the schism between the Roman and Orthodox Catholic churches, Venice maintained good close relations with Constantinople through most of its his-

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here’s little that words can do to embellish the iconic images of Venice’s canals which have enchanted visitors for centuries.

Paintings of these waterways by English Romanticist J.M. Turner, French Impressionist Claude Monet, and American John Singer Sargent are widely published and well known.

In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, their unique charm helped to make Venice a must-see on “Grand Tours� by both European nobility and global celebrities.

Venice’s appeal is so powerful that its name has been borrowed – or its urban waterways mimicked – in American cities from Venice, California to Coral Gables, Florida.

Every year, almost half a million visitors wander the waterways and piazzas of Las Vegas’s Venetian Hotel.

But it’s easy to lose in Venice’s seductive images the role of its canals on the de-

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tory.

A fortuitous consequence of the rebellion, though, was that Venetians elected their own leader – the doge – for the first time, paving the way to a Venetian Republic that would last for more than ten centuries.

When the Lombards conquered the last of the Italian mainland in 751, Venice remained tethered to the Byzantine Empire only by sea routes.

The city’s isolation bred autonomy, and over the next 300 years Venice developed into a self-governed city state.

Venice’s protected geography made it virtually invulnerable to attack, and the city became a flourishing trade link between Western Europe and all points east. At its peak, the Venetian fleet numbered more %ULGH DQG JURRP RQ JRQGROD 9HQLFH than 3,000 ships and nearly 40,000 sailors.

By 1200 AD, the Venetian Republic had seized land on the eastern shores of the Adriatic. Its possessions on the Italian mainland eventually extended east beyond Lake Garda to Bergamo.

They served as a buffer against belligerent neighbors, guaranteed Venetian control of Alpine trade routes, and ensured the supply of wheat upon which the city depended.

When the Fourth Crusade went rogue and instead sacked Constantinople in 1204, much of the plunder was brought back to Venice.

Classic wooden boat, Venice Partitioning of the fallen empire gave the Venetians control of Cyprus, Crete, and most of the Aegean.

By the late 13th century, Venice was the most prosperous city in all of Europe and a major power-broker in the Near East, but its decline began in the 15th century with a series of precipitous events.

Unable to prevent the Ottomans from occupying Greece or to defend Constantinople against siege, Venice suffered retribution at the hands of the victorious Turkish sultan, whose thirty year war against the Venetians cost them most of their possessions in the eastern Mediterranean.  When Columbus discovered the New World and Portugal found a sea route to India, Venice’s land monopoly was destroyed, and its oared galleys were unsuited to travel on the great oceans.

The Venetian fleet last appeared on the world stage in 1571, when it was instrumental in defeating the Turkish navy at the Battle of Lepanto, permanently blocking Ottoman expansion westward.

7ULEXWDU\ FDQDO DQG ERDWV 9HQLFH Today, the only legacy of this magnificent maritime tradition is the gondoliers and classic wooden boats that ply its storied canals.

Antonio RamblÊs Next, it’s on to Venice’s famous Piazza San Marco.

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little over one-hundred years ago a young baseball-player-turned-dentist borrowed $600 from his fiancée to self-publish his first novel.

That was in 1903. A few years later that author, Pearl Gray—now writing under the name Zane Grey—was earning $100,000 a year with his best-seller Western novels.

Born in Zanesville, Ohio, in 1872, Pearl Gray was the son of an Irish preacher-turned-dentist and a mother who was a descendent of a famous pioneer, Colonel Ebenezer Zane, a Quaker who had come to America in 1683 with William Penn. Young Pearl, fascinated by baseball and fishing and “dime novels” about the west, did not seem to be destined to become the most popular American author in the first half of the twentieth century.

As a master of the curve ball, Pearl

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Zane Grey Gray did, though, seem destined to excel in sports. Although it was his brother, Romer, who became a majorleague star, Pearl received a baseball scholarship to attend the University of Pennsylvania.

In high school, his strength—although at maturity he stood only 5’9” and never weighed more than 150

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pounds—stood him well in local fights and also, on Saturday mornings, in assisting his dentist father. Pearl’s job, because of his unusual strength, was to extract teeth, for which he received seventy-five cents a week. When a state licensing official objected to Pearl traveling to other small towns to extract teeth on weekends, his father decided young Pearl should become a dentist.

After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania in 1896, Pearl Gray moved to New York and set up a dental practice under the name P. Zane Grey, D.D.S. Indifferent to dentistry and encouraged by his wife, he began writing novels.

His wife, Lina Elise Roth, who became his beloved “Dolly,” paid the cost of printing of his first novel, Betty Zane, a story about his famous pioneer ancestor who, when the fort at Wheeling, West Virginia was under attack by the British in the Revolution, saved the day by running to the fort with powder in her apron…a story once popular in elementary school readers.

That book, though, was not successful. Nor the next. Or the next. Or the next. Frustrated, living on the dwindling inheritance of his wife, and now thirty-five years old, Grey met, on a New York lecture tour, an old hunter, Buffalo Jones, and Grey traveled west with him for several weeks. This trip marked the turning point. Thrilled by his Western experience, Grey returned to write The Last of the Plainsmen, only to be told by a Harper’s editor that he had no writing ability whatsoever… the same firm that published his next Western novel and that thereafter published virtually everything he wrote.

The turning year in terms of publishing was 1910 when Harper’s published Heritage of the Desert. The first big year was 1912—with the publication of Riders of the Purple Sage, which some say is the best Western novel ever written, and still one of the most popular. That novel established Grey financially and as a writer.

The years that followed brought forth the novels that America loved: The Light of the Western Stars, The Vanishing American, The Rainbow Trail, West of the Pecos…dozens of them.

By the 1920s his income was over $300,000 a year, and in one year he made $575,000. (Keep in mind you could buy a new Model-T Ford in 1925 for $290.)

Now that Grey was able to support his wildest ideas he became dedicated to a sport he had always loved—fishing. Although while growing up in Zanesville, his mother had told him “a fisherman is a lazy boy grown up,” Zane Grey became America’s best known fisherman, holding many world

records—bluefin tuna, yellowtail, striped marlin, dolphin, silver marlin, tiger shark, Allison’s tuna, Pacific sailfish, broadbill sailfish. And, Zane Grey was the first man to catch a fish weighing more than 1,000 pounds using only rod and reel.

While he was enjoying his international reputation as a fisherman, Zane Grey’s novels were establishing a worldwide reputation for him that would outlive his skill with rod and reel. His novels were translated into numerous languages. He was and still is popular in the Scandinavian countries, in France, Germany, Holland, Spain, Russia, South America, and even in Hebrew translation in Israel.

Incredibly prolific, Grey produced 56 Western novels, 3 novels set along the Ohio River, many short stories and articles, two baseball books (The RedHeaded Outfield and Other Stories and The Short Stop) and eight books on his passion—fishing.

Most of his novels, at least until the Depression, were serialized in the most popular magazines of the day, earning him $60,000 per novel in addition to the book sales.

Movie rights brought him additional income, usually bringing in $25,000 per book, a record figure for those days. Over one-hundred movies (including remakes) were based on his books and many famous actors got their start in his pictures: Gary Cooper, Randolph Scott, Wallace Berry, William Powell, Buster Crabbe, and even Shirley Temple.

After his death in 1937, the phenomenon continued. The Zane Grey Library, founded in 1950, many years after his death, has sold well over 10,000,000 of his books. The Zane Grey Theatre, beginning in 1956, ran on television for five years and 143 episodes. Dell for many years published a magazine, Zane Grey Western Stories.

And some Zane Grey titles are still being republished.

A crusader for conservation interests, Zane Grey was one of the early environmental activists, warning against careless timber-cutting practices, against careless grazing practices, and against careless commercial fishing practices. He is also remembered for his “catch and release” philosophy … for fish caught but not needed.

Shy, warm, dedicated to simple virtues and to a natural world that he felt was spiritual, Zane Grey came closer, perhaps, than any other American, to producing a folk epic, a saga of American soil and American values.

Jim Tipton

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any people in the United States and, indeed, throughout the world, have become alarmed at the persistent popularity of Donald Trump. Political pundits immediately dismissed him as a serious candidate as soon as he announced his intentions to run for president, and they have been struggling to explain his success.

Some have even made comparisons to Adolph Hitler. Whether you agree with such a characterization or not, it is clear that there are some parallels between Trump and some fascist leaders throughout history. In fact, there are similari-

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ties between Trump and a number of right-wing nationalist leaders in Europe today.

Fascism in Europe during the mid-twentieth century arose from a number of conditions which exist, to some extent, today. Traditionally, fascism appeals to people when there is a great desire for order, there is widespread fear of outsiders, and significant economic disruption. When people are afraid and discouraged with their circum-

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stances, they frequently look for a strong leader to make their conditions better. Sometimes the leaders are liberal democrats, like FDR. But sometimes they are strong authoritarian figures like Hitler, Mussolini, and Putin.

If we take the long view, the rise of Donald Trump may be seen more as a symptom than a phenomenon all its own. I think one might make the case that the United States has been moving in an authoritarian direction since September 11, 2001.

The serious terrorist attacks on the United States created such fear and instability that the US Government (and other governments around the world) began to enact laws and policies which compromised individual rights in the interest of creating stability and protecting the homeland.

In particular, the US Patriot Act allowed the government to monitor US citizens and non-citizens by viewing phone and computer records, library records, and using unprecedented wiretapping. The public was afraid of another terrorist attack and went along with these measures. Even with the disclosure of more severe domestic surveillance, many people were silent and did not see the issue as alarming.

Amanda Taub, of Vox.com, published a piece documenting the rise of American authoritarianism in March. She cited the PhD dissertation of Matthew MacWilliams, at the University of Massachusetts, which documented how the tendency of people to support some degree of authoritarianism has been gradually increasing during the beginning of this century. I think several developments, besides terrorism, have led to this desire for strong authoritarian leadership.

The election of an African American president, combined with the demographic changes which are inevitably leading to a white-minority population, has alarmed many

white Americans, especially those with less education and economic privilege. The persistent racial tensions in the country are still evident more than 50 years after the Civil Rights Act. The large number of undocumented aliens working in the United States have been unfairly blamed for taking American jobs.

In fact, many of the jobs lost have been the result of economic globalization and trade pacts which have left many people, especially men without much education, without a job and without much hope.

The world-wide Diaspora of Muslims from Africa and the Middle East, and the conflation of radical Islam with law-abiding Muslims has led to widespread fear of terrorism at home. Whenever people are faced with outsiders coming into their space, there is the tendency to react with fear. Social changes in the United States, particularly the blurring of traditional gender roles and the increasing acceptance of gay, lesbian and transgender lifestyles, have accelerated a sense of disorientation and fear among some people.

It is not surprising, then, that people respond to a leader that wants to secure the borders, kick out the outsiders, bomb the families of terrorists, and generally “kick some ass.” Trump is popular because he speaks to people’s fear and frustrations. Authoritarianism is sneaking up on us. Trump is a symptom of this tendency. We must condemn his message, of course.

But we must also create a society of economic opportunity, accessible education, and racial tolerance.

Perhaps the first step should be to urge the media to stop stirring up fear to enhance their ratings and, instead, hold public candidates and government officials accountable for their irresponsible and harmful pronouncements.

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he next time you look seaward from your Cancun resort, scan the Caribbean horizon and imagine a small flotilla of 16th century Spanish ships heading south to north (that’s right to left for the directionally challenged). Suddenly the ships stop, reverse course and disappear to the south. At the helm of these ships is none other than Hernán Cortés. It is March of 1519 and the great Conquistador faces an unexpected deviation that will recast the history of the Americas.

Departing from Cuba on February 18, 1519 with 500 men, 16 horses, lust for gold, and a burning zeal to save heathen souls, the Cortés expedition is scattered by a storm at sea but eventually arrives at Cozumel. After scaring the daylights out of the Maya inhabitants, Cortés attempts a form of crude communication, but without an interpreter the exchange is meaningless. Learning little, the Spaniards leave Cozumel and sail north past what is today Cancun, only to be stopped just off Isla Mujeres by a leaking ship in need of repair. The epic journey that would forever change the world then does an about face and returns to Cozumel, laying anchor along the very beaches later used for Corona beer commercials (really!).

Ship repaired, the Spaniards were about to depart Cozumel for a second time. On the horizon a lone canoe appeared, crossing from the mainland from what is today Playacar. Cortés sends a small band up the beach with swords drawn. As they approach, a man rises from the canoe and asks “¿Caballeros, son mis hermanos Cristianos?” (“Gentlemen, are you my Christian brothers?”).

Aboard the canoe is a man who would become perhaps the most valued member in Cortés’ epic journey and linchpin in the devastation of the America’s most powerful civilization.

His name was Geronimo de Aguilar, a Spanish priest and shipwreck survivor.

He had endured eight years as a Mayan slave after his 1511 trip from Panama to Santo Domingo was blown off course and the ship scuttled off the coast of

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El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

Jamaica. A desperate band of surviving Spaniards regrouped and departed the Jamaican coast, only to be again marooned along Mexico’s Caribbean shore.

The battered foreigners were quickly captured by Mayan tribes, some of them immediately stripped, roasted alive and eaten. Others (including a companion Gonzalo Guerrero) were caged for fattening, but manage to escape and spend the next eight years in and out of capture. Enduring excruciating hardship, they survive and learn to speak Mayan. Gonzalo Guerrero marries, has children, launches the Mestizo race, and goes native. Aguilar however was anxious to return to his Spanish brethren.

Hearing of the strange flotilla’s arrival on nearby Cozumel, he darts across the channel, surprising Cortés during his fortuitous return to Cozumel for ship repairs.

During the next two years Aguilar will never leave Cortés’ side. Weeks later, along the Gulf Coast of what is today Tabasco State, a slave woman is given to Cortés. History knows her as La Malinche, fluent in both Mayan and Nahuatl (the language of Central Mexico, the Aztecs and their vassal tribes). With the Mayan-Spanish fluent Aguilar and the Mayan-Nahuatl La Malinche at his side, the ever-cunning Cortés has the linguistic effervescence to understand, prod and manipulate mainland Mexico’s political realities.

Had the flotilla not returned to Cozumel for repairs, Cortés would have been deprived of his greatest tactical advantage: communication. Had Cortés failed in his manipulation of Mesoamerican political rivalries, we can only wonder if Mexico’s indigenous people might have avoided, or at least delayed European domination, disease, and devastation.

Given the Aztec’s near absolute power and prosperity, might Mexico have become the Americas’ dominant civilization? But for a leaky ship and a bizarre twist of fate, the Americas instead became vassals of a backward European power whose influence forever colors the Mexico and Latin America we visit today.

Saw you in the Ojo 19

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f there is one thing ex-pats have in common its having travelled far and wide, and one of the things we might have noticed is the human penchant for seeking the high ground. It is the domain of the wealthy and the spiritual, the adventurous and the driven, it is home for castles and monasteries and for the life of us we dig our way out of holes, climb ladders of success, reach for diamonds in the sky.

Like the Jefferson’s, “Moving on up” from the basement apartment to the penthouse is what most, not all, seem to strive for. If you’re on top of the world, you’re haute-monde, carriage trade, opulent, majestic, gated, upper crust sitting pretty with an exquisite view of the digs, shanties, hovels of the lower class. It’s all in the words of course, but the reality is some words are dressed in linen, some in burlap, some are birds perched on the topmost tip of a tree, others potted plants on a window sill thirsting for a patch of sky. Like Flannery O’Connor’s Everything That Rises Must Converge, we all want the same things out of life—to rise above the darkness and share the light.

Light, like a rodent scavenging the recesses of darkened rooms, seldom reaches the impoverished eye, where portals for air called windows, open to shadows. As far as one can see in the tenements of light, a mirror image of distance beyond reach. No wonder

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El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

we seek the highest landing, for to see as far as one can see, through a wall of glass, from where only clouds and inner sanctums of the mind effects the quality of light, is where butterflies stay warm and we’re all meant to be.

My neighbor, just a measure below me, has an unobstructed view of Lake Chapala and a sierra of mountain on the southern shore. My view, although not as expansive—cluttered with Bougainvillea and palm trees—is equally rewarding to the senses. There the commonality becomes a metaphor for the beauty of the moment. He sits under a weather beaten plastic tarp, I sit on a shaded deck, both of us knowing height, for the most part, is a barrier between owning the heavens and hugging the earth.

There are mountains in the sky that no one can climb, rooted to this planet as we are. There are such things unheard of, out of grasp, hidden still to the yet unborn, privy only to another lifetime, yet, like a silhouetted mistress, taunting, inviting one into the realm of unimaginable secrets, the sense of being demands attention to the possibilities, each breath taking in all the dreams and wishes, all the fears and failures of those who have tried to shed the skin of mortality and reach a higher plane.

Late in life I am able to see farther than I have ever been able to, not for a distance diminished by the light in my eyes, but by the knowing beyond the wall of the visible, the endless beauty of creation is all in my imagination, it is all in the wonder of what, in the moment of perception, for the life of me, I experience.

There are mountains of cloud billowing in the sky that beckon us to climb out of the dark matter of our minds, scale the imagination, leaving doubt behind, to finally achieve, in the heights of mystical possibility, a John Thomas glimpse of unDodds derstanding.

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MARK SCONCE: Poet And Prince Among Men %\ 0DUJDUHW $QQ 3RUWHU

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iterary scholars agree that the seminal literary work of Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin (1799-1837) is his poetic novel Eugene Onegin. In it, Pushkin delves into the inhumanity of social convention and its tendency to crush souls and murder love, yet Pushkin somehow renders the selfish, irredeemable protagonist as sympathetic and unforgettable. The layered dichotomy found Alexander Pushkin in such high

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drama speaks to the genius of Pushkin, who is often called ‘the father of Russian literature.’

“He was to Russia what Shakespeare was to England, what Goethe was to Germany, what Dante was to Italy,” says Mark Sconce, Ajijic resident, writer and poet. “He was the bridge between the old Russian ways in both sentiment and language and the new paradigm that helped produce important transitions in Russian society, even how people talked to each other. He in-

El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

vented a Russian literary language in a society where the power-elite spoke French.”

Mark continues, his face serious, “Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky, Turgenev and many others – like Nabokov – acknowledged their debt to Pushkin, without whom there might not have been a Golden Age of Russian literature.”

I am sitting in the study of the comfortable mountainside home of Mark and his wife Lell. She’s out in the kitchen brewing coffee; he’s quiet in this moment, but I can see a storm of love gathering in his eyes – for Pushkin, for poetry, for Lell, for the entirety of life as it dances among the rhymes and rhythms of the heart.

Tall and lean, Mark has an intense and attractive face, at once inscrutable and generously open.

As he regales you with his tales of a life well-loved, it flashes expressions of hope that you will guess some of his secrets.

Until recently, Mark wrote The Poets’ Niche, a monthly column for the Ojo del Lago, where he remains a contributing editor. Poetry became his passion in the early 90s when a tour of Russia introduced him to the work of Alexander Pushkin.

“Our group had a personal guide who was a Pushkin scholar. She recited and translated for us. It was meant to be; I fell for Pushkin and his poetry in a matter of minutes.”

Inspired, he returned home, read every book he could about and by Pushkin and was then moved to create The Pushkin Project, whose mission was and is to disseminate information about this Russian genius to English speakers. He contacted Pushkin scholars in Ivy League schools and beyond and asked for permission to include their names on his letterhead as consultants for The Pushkin Prize, a poetry contest for teenagers. Not one of them said no.

One of the judges for such a contest turned out to be the foremost translator of Pushkin into English, Jim Falen, Professor Emeritus, Russian Language and Literature, University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He has been a mentor and close friend of Mark’s since the mid-nineties, and Professor Falen has even addressed the Ajijic Writers’ Group.

Marveling how a dead Russian poet could open doors, Mark tells the story of being invited to the 200th Pushkin birthday dinner party at St. James Palace in London with HRH Prince Charles – a longtime admirer of Pushkin – acting as host.

“About 200 people attended,” he recalls, “including the grandson of Winston Churchill, many Pushkin scholars, but only three Americans.” Then, in 2003, he and Professor Falen were invited to the Russian Embassy in Washington to breakfast with the ambassador and to receive awards for their work in highlighting a Russian hero.

Mark and Lell have been together for 13 years after meeting in Mesa, Arizona, where he approached “… a stunningly beautiful mortgage loan officer” to help his 87-year-old mother Elizabeth with a refinancing matter. He was swept away by Lell’s grace and tender sensibilities – she loved poetry, too, both his own and, after many recitations, Pushkin’s.

They were married a year later.

Embracing you with all my heart Is what I want to do And be your faithful counterpart From here to Khatmandu.

Once again be mine You sultry Valentine.

Next month: Scone Profile— Part Two Margaret Ann Porter

Saw you in the Ojo 23

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I

am grateful for so much; grateful for many things, big and small.

I am grateful for my health and the good health of my husband and my family. That’s a big thing. I am grateful for our life here in this beautiful place that happened to come with a cornucopia of wonderful people and experiences in a beautiful culture. That’s a big thing.

I am grateful for containers of fresh, perfect, raspberries from the little rustic berry stand in Tepehuaje, on the south side of the lake near where we live. That’s a small thing.

I am grateful for the unconditional love in my rescue dogs’ eyes.

I’m not sure if that is a big thing or small.

I am grateful for my two sons.

That is a big thing and a small

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thing. Small in the way they tell goofy jokes; small in the way they say “I love you very much, Mom.” Big in the way they are healthy; big in the way they are happy; and big in the way they have grown to be loving and respectful men.

I want to tell you about one small thing, when my oldest son was an only child, that happened to him and, I like to think, contributed to shaping his view of the world, its people and cultures. *** I was a young, single mom working in the parts department of a local Ford dealership. My job was

El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

to gather parts requested for mechanics’ work orders. It was a busy shop and the work was tough and fast paced. My son’s dad dropped our boy off at the end of one of their visits, close to the end of my work day.

Scotty was an adorable kid with white, corn-silk hair, big, blue eyes and a bright, blue ball cap that he insisted on wearing everywhere.

He was a kind child with a big heart.

That day in the shop I asked him to stay close and out of trouble while I finished up my day. My last harried task was to gather parts for one of our most respected mechanics. Doug was a delightful man and well loved by everyone he came in contact with, co-workers and customers alike. Doug was also Jamaican, the color of dark roast coffee. He had a proud, tall swagger; a kind, gentle manner and the biggest grin I had ever seen. His mouth stretched across his mass of gleaming white teeth in a smile that could warm the polar caps. Jamaican people were a rarity in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, especially 30 years ago. I rarely gave it any thought, though, until he walked through the door into the parts department and my son

looked up at him.

Scotty had never seen a black person before that day. I guess we were coddled in our small world; between Saskatoon and the farm, a three hour drive north, in Birch Hills. We vacationed at my parents’ home in a small town on the west coast of Canada. There were not many people of different ancestry that stuck out in any of those places. Scotty didn’t say a word. It never occurred to me to tell him about Doug being different or ask him to be polite and not stare should Doug come into the back counter.

He just stood there, all three and a half feet of him, and stared.

When I saw the look on his face, I knew he was trying to reconcile, in his little mind, what he was seeing.

His blue eyes were as big as dinner plates. I tried to get his attention without Doug noticing.

When Doug looked down at this starkly white little boy, I wasn’t prepared for what he would say. I wasn’t prepared for any reaction from either my son or me. Doug’s face broke into one of those big, warm smiles and he said; “I bet you’ve never seen anything like me before.” My little boy smiled back and shook his head no. With a low chuckle, Doug lifted him up and sat him on the counter with one dark arm around his body and talked to him in his deep, honeyed voice with his rhythmic accent.

I didn’t ask what they talked about after I gathered Doug’s parts. I was too stunned to react with anything meaningful. They just talked and smiled with an occasional giggle.

And my son was given a big gift; the gift of love and acceptance that to this day, I am truly grateful for.

Carol D. Bradley

Saw you in the Ojo 25

WISE E MEN SPEAK &RXUWHV\ RI &DO &UHQVKDZ

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f God wanted us to vote, he he would have given us candididates. ~Jay Leno~ The problem with political jokess is is they get elected. ~Henry Cate, VII~ We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to public office. ~Aesop~ If we got one-tenth of what was promised to us in these State of the Union speeches, there wouldn’t be any inducement to go to Heaven. ~Will Rogers~ When I was a boy I was told that anybody could become President; I’m beginning to believe it. ~Clarence Darrow~ Why pay money to have your family tree traced; go into politics and your opponents will do it for you. ~Author unknown~ Politicians are people who, when they see light at the end of the tunnel, go out and buy some more tunnel. ~John Quinton~ Politics is the gentle art of getting

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El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

votes from the poor and campaign funds from the rich, by promising to protect each from the other. ~Oscar Ameringer~ I offer my opponents a bargain: if they will stop telling lies about us, I will stop telling the truth about them. ~Adlai Stevenson, campaign speech, 1952 A politician is a fellow who will lay down your life for his country. ~ Tex Guinan~ I have come to the conclusion that politics is too serious a matter to be left to the politicians. ~Charles de Gaulle~ Instead of giving a politician the keys to the city, it might be better to change the locks. ~Doug Larson~

Saw you in the Ojo 27

“I love it here� the caterpillar said, Cozy - in woven, silken thread. “Within my tent, I’m wrapped and warm, Safely cocooned away from harm.�

Slowly transformed, soft flesh left no trace, A chrysalis grew in chestnut-like case.

Then wings began sprouting and as they unfurled This embryo creature emerged to the world.

She longed to return, our fledgling young flier, She yearned for her past away from the mire. “Don’t make me grow up! I don’t want to be free!

If I’m forced to observe, what might I see?�

Her fragile wings trembled, her feelers grew long. “I’ll return to the womb until I am strong.�

But the chrysalis had changed, a winged insect was born, Looked to the sky, whence she was drawn.

Up, up she flew, dazzling wings caught air’s current, The further she went, what she saw was not pleasant: Displaced, drifting people, wrenched from their lands; Their suffering dismayed her - she averted her glance.

She wished not to see, and in spite of resistance, Earth’s canvas rolled out with steady persistence.

She witnessed the pain, she felt with her feelers, Battered by winds, she searched for the healers.

Weary, disheartened, aching of wing, She spied a caged bird, with plumes startling.

She took in its beauty, gazed at its splendor, Green-blue, red-gold, iridescent – such grandeur! “Of the state of the world, what do you think?�

She asked of the bird, who gave her a wink. “I don’t!� squawked the parrot, “I repeat what I’ve heard: Besides nothing makes sense. The whole lot is absurd!�

Sad, dis-spirited, without any purpose, She fell to earth, soul troubled and restless.

While lying forlorn, death-like and still, A child stood close by who saw she was ill.

Her wings to the sun, their colours so radiant, He’d never beheld a creature more brilliant.

Transfixed, the boy felt wonder and pleasure, He stretched out his hand to take hold of this treasure.

She, on her guard, moved back to stay calm, Watched the boy - saw - he meant her no harm.

That instant her mission became crystal clear, She had not left home to succumb to her fear; Nor to mourn and despair, nor to struggle and fight, Her duty was other, not to fix the world’s plight.

She was lovely, exquisite, short-lived, this she knew, And she owed it to nature to simply be true.

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El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

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COLUMNIST

PROFILING TEPEHUA %\ 0RRQ\HHQ .LQJ President of the Board for Tepehua

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he Maternal Health Unit at Tepehua Community Center sits on a Tepehua playground waiting to open its doors to the Maternal Health program that will serve every barrio woman Lakeside. The anonymous donors who built it are helping to bring care to women who otherwise cannot afford it. The purpose is to lower the maternal and infant mortality rates in the barrios. When Rotary International, spear-headed

by Rotary Ajijic, finish the interior and the equipment for prenatal and postnatal care are installed, Lake-

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side women will no longer have to suffer the indignity of pregnancies with no medical help.

Prior to this year there were no sonogram machines in clinics for the poor. All scanning, blood tests, cancer and STD diagnoses, etc. had to be done in Guadalajara “Free” hospitals. Even the Jocotepec Hospital that has a birthing unit does not have a sonogram, which is so essential to the health of Mother and Child.

A special program in Guadalajara that had cheaper rates for sonograms on Sunday, will finish at

El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

the end of this year as it was only intended to be a two year program.

Sonograms will once again cost between 450 to 650 pesos each time.

Not only is this cost out of reach for barrio women, so is the bus fare.

The Tepehua clinic will change how Mexico looks at women’s health care. With help from H.O.W (Health Outreach for Women), the Mobile Maternity Unit will work with the Tepehua Clinic to bring pregnant women to the Tepehua Center for all their blood, cancer, pregnancy, sonograms and STD checks with special emphasis on prenatal and postnatal care through scanning.

In 2012, Cath Anderson, a professor of Mexican history appertaining to women wrote: “One in three women who die during pregnancy cannot access state health services. The Indigenous are less likely to receive family planning or access to contraceptives. Teen age pregnancy is abundant starting at the age of ten.”

Anderson also states that 20 to 30% of maternal deaths occur among teenagers. These deaths occur because of lack of prenatal care, postnatal care, and their youth - young bodies not completely grown themselves.

The World Health Organization states that abortion deaths are usually classified as hemorrhages or infections. This happens because most of Mexico does not accept abortion. None of the above figures have changed much today.

The Ministry of Health for Mexico stated “Maternal mortality is a fundamental indicator of social development and health in any country....” also stating “Maternal Mortality has an Indigenous face...”

A maternal health clinic locally in Tepehua will be able to give family planning education and teenage sexuality and pregnancy classes.

The value of all this is to prevent unwanted pregnancies or the need for abortion. Sexuality in teens is not solved by “just saying no”, it is solved by educating them to make choices. A woman’s right to choose is a fundamental right, especially for the young who have their lives and ambitions ahead of them. The Indigenous adolescent is three times less likely to have heard of contraceptives than her counterpart.

The Free Tepehua Maternal Health Clinic will be able to teach the young that there is a better way.

We can make sure the expectant Mothers get the prenatal care they need, and when the time comes, get them to a safe place to have their babies, and a Tepehua follow up with post natal care, and education for first time Mothers on how to care for the infant.

Most maternal and infant deaths are preventable...unwanted pregnancies are preventable...teenage pregnancies and abortion are preventable...all it takes is education, which gives women the ability to make an educated choice.

We are not forgetting one of the most important components of a healthy society, the young men. The Peer Pressure has to be overcome. It is a waiting game, but we are positive there will be a break through.

Support for this incredible program and the Dentistry part of it will be needed. It will not be a 24/7 operation, just a few hours a week as needed, so volunteer professionals and consultants will not have to give up their leisure time, but will be able to contribute their talents at their own pace. Students in the medical and dental field are welcome, as are retired professionals who will be welcome as consultants even if they do not have a license to practice. Their wisdom is priceless.

If you feel you have advice to give, or time to spare....contact moonie1935@yahoo.com.

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Sandy Olson

Phone: 331-283-8529 Email: sandyzihua@hotmail.com

THE BUDDHIST AND HER BOOKS Karin J. Miles has been a dharma student and guiding teacher of Buddhism for over 30 years. She even, with her husband David Yett, spent two years in Nepal.

Over time Karin accumulated over 150 books, and dozens of video and audio teachings. She recently donated her collection to The Heart of Awareness Sangha, which was established in April, 2011 with Karin as teacher. She was recently honored for her contribution to the library and also for her five years of service. She recently retired from active teaching but remains as advisor to the sangha.

A member says, “Her generosities of wisdom, teachings, and materials have been a source of inspiration for practitioners, and are the foundation for whatever benefits may be derived.”

Karin Miles

Sunday morning finds many Lakeside residents at the Lake Chapala Society and Open Circle, a forum on a variety of stimulating topics. A social hour with coffee and snacks at 10:00 a.m. is followed by an interesting lecture and discussion at 10:30.

May 8 Palliative Care in Jalisco Presented by Dra. Susana Lua Nava Dra. Susana will describe what palliative care is, why it is needed, and the status of palliative care in Jalisco. She is dedicated to creating a palliative care and hospice model for Mexico that addresses needs of patients and their families.

Dra. Susana is the founder of Juntos Contra el Dolor [United Against Pain], the only 24/7 palliative care hospital in Jalisco. She is a graduate of Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara and spent three years obtaining a palliative care specialty in the Canary Islands with Dr. Marcos Gomez Sancho, the most highly regarded exponent of palliative care in the Spanish-speaking world. Dra. Susana is also a nun and an author. Aside from serving hospital patients, 65 patients at home, and consulting, she teaches seminars on palliative care for professionals and the public. Juntos Contra el Dolor serves all regardless of socio-economic status, age, race, or religion. www.JuntosContraElDolor.com.

May 15 Fateful Chance Encounters Presented by Alejandro Grattan This award-winning novelist and screenwriter/director talked to us a year ago about his career in the film industry. Today his personal story resumes in 1987, when he retired to Ajijic. He’ll drop names, describe the Lakeside life then, the founding of the Ajijic Writers Group, and his role in shaping the Ojo del Lago we know today. He says his favorite theme in fiction is how, if we’re lucky, we may get not what we so desperately craved but rather what we truly need. It’s fateful chance encounters that brought him here and gave him the rich life he had searched for elsewhere.

Alejandro Grattan wrote and directed the first movie about Mexican-Americans, Only Once in a Lifetime, which was recently purchased with another film of his, No Return Address, by Turner Classic Movies. He has been Editor-in-Chief of El Ojo del Lago for the past 21 years and established the Ajijic Writers Group in 1988. His seven novels are available on amazon.com.

May 22 Stories from 30 Years of Providing Sex Ed and Medical Services to Women in Marginalized Lakeside Communities Presented by Sylvia Flores Sylvia will share stories about her efforts to help women and families of the most marginalized Lakeside communities. In the 80s she created a team of leaders who worked to empower these communities. She will tell us how her institution addresses the most important problems like breast and cervical cancer, sexually transmitted diseases, unplanned pregnancy and domestic violence.

Sylvia Flores is a registered nurse and midwife, founder of Centro de Desarollo Jocotepec A.C (www.cedejo.ORG), a non-profit organization whose mission is to improve

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the quality of life for Lake Chapala families with limited resources through promoting the health and well-being of the family.

May 29 Senior Care Models in Mexico Presented

by Wendy Jane Carrel, M.A. Wendy, a Spanish-speaking senior care specialist, will review continuing care options in Jalisco and Mexico, describing current models and what one might expect.

She has researched senior health care, housing, and hospice in Chile, Ecuador, and Mexico for over four years. She negotiates Ecuadorian and Mexican health systems for clients and serves as an advisor and liaison for senior care, end-of-life care, and disposition of remains. She is presently assisting Wendy Jane Carrel with the implementation of a palliative care/hospice model for Mexico created by Juntos Contra el Dolor.

See www.WellnessShepherd.com.

June 5 Senderos y Caminos de México—Lakeside’s New System for Friendly Hiking Presented by Luis Enrique Ramos He is a local attorney at law and notary public, and also is a passionate hiker and founder of Senderos y Caminos de México. This not-for-profit organization promotes the conservation and recovery of ancient indigenous paths known as “caminos reales,” as a means to preserve cultural identity. Use of this trail system will educate both locals and visitors about the natural flora and fauna and at the same time offer new job opportunities for economic development. Activities of the organization include defining and implementing standards for marking the trails and offering options for safety and accident prevention while hiking. The organization has also designed a platform via their web site through which hikers can share information.

NOW WE CAN BREATHE We love our snowbirds and Mexican citizens here for vacation, but isn’t it nice to have peace and quiet restored after high season and Easter festivities? It’s hard on local business people and we’re sorry about that (let’s dine out a lot) but when traffic stretches from Ajijic to Chapala we all welcome the respite.

What’s ahead of us are lazy summer days and looking forward to the rainy season with its spectacular thunder and lightning. What a great life!

GROW YOUR OWN….. ……..vegetables, that is. The Ajijic Organic Vegetable Growers meet on the second Wednesday of the month at 10:00 in the gazebo at Tabarka Restaurant, Rio Zula #7.

The next meeting will be on May 11. For information, email John McWilliams at mcwilliamsmx@gmail.com or by phone at 376.766.0620.

There are two websites that gardeners will find very informative: growingyourgreens.com and smilinggardener.com/introductions/why-grow-a-garden.

PLAYS! OPERA! BALLET! After a fine start last season through its collaboration with London’s National Theatre Live, Lakeside Little Theatre has broadened its Playhouse Series to be a key offering throughout the year.

Reserved seat tickets for each performance are 200 pesos each. Show times are Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m.

Here are scheduled performances through August.

Everyman by Carol Ann Duffy, with Chiwetel Ejiofor, May 14-15 Giselle by Marius Petipa, May 28-29 As You Like It by William Shakespeare with Rosalie Craig, June 18-19 Lucia di Lammermoor by Gaetano Donizetti, July 16-17 Cavalliera Rusticana/Pagliacci, Pietro Mascagni/Ruggero Leoncavallo, August 13-14 Choose and reserve your seat at the time you purchase and pick up your tickets at the LLT Box Office on a first come, first served basis. Reserved seat tickets for each performance are 200 pesos each. Performances are Saturday Award Winner Chiwetel Ejiofor

continued on page 34

El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

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evenings at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday matinees at 3:00 p.m.

LLT Box Office Hours: Tickets are available for upcoming two shows at a time at LLT Box Office every Wednesday and Thursday from 10 a.m. to noon and one hour before curtain. Also reserve tickets at tickets@lakesidelittletheatre.com or call (376)766.0954.

ALL KINDS OF GOOD THINGS… You won’t want to miss the Lake Chapala Society doings on May 18, starting at 12:30 pm. First, there’s a fashion show, then a surprise raffle. Roberto’s restaurant will cater one of his outstanding lunches. LCS children’s art will be on display and for sale. The event will be coordinated by Alma Gutierrez.

Tickets are 200 pesos and are on sale at Diane Pearl Colecciones and at LCS. ARTIST AT WORK Artist Nancy Gray has created a poster printed on art paper from her original painting. The work depicts some of Ajijic’s wonderful older buildings, a back strap weaver at work, and the trees and flowers that make the village an interesting and beautiful place to live or visit.

The poster comes framed or unframed.

There are also available note cards, magnets and t-shirts printed with the poster’s design. All of From left: Lorraine Farrow, owner of Sol Mexithese are available at cano, and Artist Nancy Gray Sol Mexicano Gallery, Colon 13, Ajijic. A percentage of the profit will benefit the LCS Children’s Art Program LEARN ABOUT THE WAY TO FREEDOM A retreat with Pema Chödrön will be held May 20 – 22, streamed live from the Omega Institute in New York. The title: “The Way to Freedom - 37 Practices of the Bodhisattva.” The retreat is sponsored by The Heart of Awareness Buddhist Sangha.

Join the group for this weekend of teachings from Pema Chödrön and explore how to achieve true freedom: “aspiring to awaken from self-imposed delusions about the nature of life.” The weekend includes talks, guided meditations and question and answer sessions.

Cost of the retreat is 350 pesos for sangha members and 450 pesos for non-members. A Sunday brunch is included in the registration fee. The deadline for registration is May 18.

To register, please email retreatshoa@gmail.com. The retreat will be held at the sangha, Guadalupe Victoria #101.

SCONES AND JAM--AND TEA, OF COURSE Join new and old friends at the Seniors’ High Tea at LCS on the third Friday of each month, starting at 2:30 p.m. Enjoy conversation and company with sandwiches and scones and strawberry jam. The next event will be on May 20. (We don’t think they’ll ask for proof of age so if you’re a kid of 45 you can probably sneak in anyway).

Reservations are limited to 32. If you want to be on the list, please call 766-1140 between 10:00 am and 2:00 pm Monday to Saturday to reserve your place. Cost is 50 pesos. There is easy, level access at the side gate at LCS. THEY JUST KEEP ON COOKIN’ Members of the Culinary Arts Society of Ajijic meet monthly to enjoy cooking—and eating! There is friendly competition and points are awarded on food and presentation. Members prepare one dish corresponding to one of the two categories assigned for that particular month.

CASA meets the third Monday of each month at La Mision Restaurant on Rio Bravo, with social time beginning at 3:30 pm (unless otherwise notified). The next CASA meeting will be on May 28.

To inquire about CASA membership, contact their membership chairman, Rick

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El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

Feldman, or use the website: casalakeside@yahoo. com.

WATCH OUT FOR THOSE DANGEROUS CORNERS The next Naked Stage production will be Dangerous Corner,

by J.B. Priestley. It’s directRecent Winners. From left, Roberta Hilleman, Michele ed by Michael Lococo, Jose Fernandez and Leslie Yanko Warren.

The truth is often as healthy as speeding too fast around a corner. “And,” a character in the play declares, “life’s got a lot of dangerous corners.” A small chance revelation can trigger disastrous consequences. The author furnishes us with an ingenious situation, a clever resolution, and an unexpected twist at the play’s climax. We don’t want to miss this one!

The Naked Stage is now located at Hidalgo (the carretera) #261, across from the Catholic Church in Riberas de Pilar, just east of the LTH sign on the mountain side.

For more information and reservations, email nakedstagereservations@gmail.

From left to right: Douglas Pinkerton, Paul Moreau, Rosann Balbontin, Jim Tipton, Avril Stephenson, Patricia Eyre, Florette Schnelle and Director Michael Warren com, for those who use Facebook, look for The Naked Stage for breaking news and updates.

LET’S PLAN AHEAD There’s an exciting 2016-17 season at the Lakeside Little Theatre. First, there’s a special summer show: Mark Twain, Uncensored, written by Ed Tasca and directed by Barbara Clippinger. You won’t want to miss the wit of these two talented people.

The show runs August 23-28.

The 2016-17 season looks like this: Painting Churches, September 23-October 2 Outside Mullingar, October 21-30 Chapter 2, December 2-11 Death and the Maiden, January 13-22, 2017 Chicago, February 11-28 Second Summer, March 24-April 2 For information on ticket sales, call 376.766.0954 (messages are okay), or email tickets@lakesidelittletheatre.com.

Saw you in the Ojo 35

CHILD

of the month

%\ %DUE &RURO

Oscar Roman

O

scar is the youngest of five children and lives with his family in Jocotopec. Oscar was diagnosed with Sindrome Cornelia de Lange often termed as Bushy Syndrome and more commonly referred to as Amsterdam Dwarfism.

Sindrome Cornelia de Lange is a genetic disorder that can lead to severe developmental anomalies.

It affects both the physical and intellectual development of a child.

Although the exact incidence is unknown, Cornelia de Lange likely affects 1 in 10,000 to 30,000 newborns.

Statistically is affects both males and females alike.

Cornelia de Lange syndrome is a developmental disorder that affects many parts of the body. The features of this disorder vary widely among affected individuals and range from relatively mild to severe.

This syndrome is characterized by slow growth before and after birth, intellectual disability that is usually severe to profound, skeletal abnormalities involving the arms and hands as well as distinctive facial features. The facial features include arched eyebrows that often grow together in the middle, long eyelashes, low ears, small, widely spaced teeth and a small upturned nose. Many affected individuals also have behavior problems similar to autism.

Additional signs and symptoms can include excessive body hair, an unusually small head, hearing loss, short stature as well as problems with their digestive tract.

In the past many children with Sindrome Cornelia de Lange did not live past childhood as their medical needs were not known. However therapeutic interventions, such as speech therapy, occupational therapy and physical therapy can help the child with this syndrome reach his or her full potential.

Oscar is five years old and has been with Niños Incapacitados since May 2012. He attends the School for

36

El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

Special Needs Children in Jocotopec where it was suspected that Oscar was having hearing problems. He has since been outfitted with hearing aids. His teacher also realized that Oscar was complaining of pain in his head. Follow up tests confirmed his head pain was caused by poor eye sight. He now wears glasses.

As Oscar develops it will become more evident as to the degree of his physical/developmental manifestations and whether or not he will fall in the range of mild to severe.

For the time being Oscar appears to be doing fine. He is very active at school and at home with his siblings.

Now that he has the hearing aids, he is learning to speak and can say a few words.

Niños Incapacitados have helped the family with transportation, hearing aids, eye glasses, hormone therapy, medications and tests. To date we have reimbursed approximately $55,000 pesos.

As Director of the Jocotopec Clinic, I’m delighted to have the opportunity to introduce you to some of our children. If you would like to see firsthand what we do, please do not hesitate to contact me, Barb Corol (376-766-5452) or Nicole Sergent (376-766-4375) to arrange a visit to one of our clinics.

You can also visit our website (www.programaninos.com) to learn more about Niños Incapacitados.

Saw you in the Ojo 37

D

ear Sir: I was deeply offended by Christy Wiseman”s hurtful article, “Life Ongoing--Just a Cup of Coffee”. Her brother’s list of people she should avoid included “no friggin’ deviates: LGBT, pedophiles, etc.” As a gay man who has been in a monogamous relationship for more than 50 years, I resent being lumped together with pedophiles and I am certainly not a “friggin deviant.” Since Christy included this without comment, I assume that she approves of her brother’s bigoted sentiments. While this may have been a lame attempt at humor, I am not amused. I am also what her brother calls “a liberal shit-head.”

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El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

What is next for her brother to warn her against? Jews, African American, Muslims—or perhaps Christy should just see white, Protestant, Tea Party members?

I am dismayed that the Ojo del Lago would print garbage like this.

Jerry Wolfe Our Editor Responds: Dear Mr. Wolfe, I believe that Ms. Wiseman has sent you her heartfelt personal apology. To that, I want to add that on behalf of El Ojo del Lago, we wish to apologize for the article. We should have caught the fact that this particular assertion contained no “rebuttal” and hence would seem to have gone uncontested. I also know that Ms. Wiseman is a very fine woman who is deeply upset that she did not pay closer attention to the implications of the words she used. I and our proof readers must plead guilty to the same charge.

As you might know from the hundreds of editorials I have written as the magazine’s editor, I am also one of those “liberal ****-heads,” which only makes my mistake more regrettable.

Most sincerely, Alejandro Grattan-Dominguez Editor-in-Chief

Saw you in the Ojo 39

COLUMNIST

%\ 9LFWRULD 6FKPLGW 5HSXEOLVKHG %\ 3RSXODU 5HTXHVW ¿Donde Esta?

I

t seems to me I spend most of my time looking for things. Big things, little things, it doesn’t seem to matter. This is difficult to admit for a person as organized as I am.

We’ve had a lot of changes in our home this year. Construction above us, and next door to us, and in our back yard has us constantly shifting things around.

We cleaned out our bodega and stored everything in our garage under tarps.

When that part of construction was completed, we had to re-organize our garage. Have you ever put something where you just knew you would find it? Then when you need it you have no idea where it is?

We’ve lost power cords, pet food tops, trays, mixer blades, measuring spoons, car keys, a power drill, odd socks, file folders. Well, you get the idea. Now some of this can be explained. Reorganizing has its pros and cons. My husband has a little trouble with his memory, so we have a morning ritual of looking for things like shoes, wallet, glasses and cell phone.

I keep telling him that a uterus is not a tracking device, but I am usually the one who finds things. In fact, I don’t even have to look to be able to tell him where he left the item he is searching for. He thinks it is a secret talent. Maybe it is just that I know his habits, or I used to.

We play hide and seek with our maid all the time. She has definite ideas about where things go, and frankly, we still haven’t figured out her “system”.

I really try to put everything where it should be before she arrives, but we all know about good intentions…

And the construction has made her job more difficult. More dust, shifting things from one location to the other, well, frankly, she’s just not happy about it at all. Her comments remind me of the movie The Agony and the Ecstasy. When Michael Angelo and the Pope were working in the Sistine Chapel, the Pope would walk through screaming up to Michael Angelo “When will you make an end!?” “When it is finished!”

Angelo would retort.

We couldn’t ask for a better maid.

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El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

She works hard. But I’d really like to figure out how her mind works. An example would be my crockpot. The heating section was found in the food pantry, the ceramic portion was found in one cupboard, and the lid in another cupboard. I look at and simply shake my head. How?? Why?? There is also the war of the “directions.” She likes everything all lined up in a straight row or in a stack. I like things on the diagonal. But it wasn’t her fault we couldn’t find the serving tray. It took us a year to find that I had taken it to an open house at a friend’s and left it there.

Some of the tools were found after the reorganizing of the garage. Tonight I found the missing beater for the mixer.

Of course, I wasn’t looking for it. I find that the real trick to finding something that has been misplaced, is to look for something else.

When things are lost, we don’t automatically think someone took them.

We ask people if they have seen the item. Ever loan a book to a friend, and forget you loaned it out? And some days our home feels like grand central station with so many people coming in and out. This morning, for example we had six different people here by 10:00 a.m. Sometimes it isn’t much of mystery how things get misplaced.

I’ve had people warn me about having Mexicans in my home. “Oh, maids are OK, but not to be trusted” they say, “and be cautious about repair people” etc. But frankly, these are our friends who have become family. And in all the time we’ve lived here, the only time we have caught someone stealing from us it was an American!

Victoria Schmidt

Saw you in the Ojo 41

6KRUW 6WRULHV DQG (VVD\V E\ 0H[LFR :ULWHUV (GLWHG E\ 0LNHO 0LOOHU ZLWK 0LFKDHO +RJDQ DQG /LQWRQ Robinson %RRN 5HYLHZ E\ &ODUH Gearhart

T

his book is an excellent compendium of short works by 22 authors, all associated with the Mexico Writers Group. The tales come from all over this nation from Tijuana and the Baja to the steamy flatlands just up the coast from Chetumal, and they reflect the various sensibilities and insights of accomplished writers as they expose both the light, and occasionally the darker side of their Mexican experience.

For those who live in Mexico, an essay like “Where we Learn to Love Imperfection” by Carol Merchasin is bound to bring up bitter-sweet memories of breathing through a

42

Mexico moment, when the one’s natal culture clashes painfully with dominant culture and the resulting cognitive dissonance fries the brain. The pervasiveness of magical realism, not as a literary device, but as part of the warp and weft of the

El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

Mexican culture has clearly influenced such authors as Robert Richter in his tale taken from “Something like a Dream.” Fact, fiction and magic are deftly woven together in evocative, poetic prose.

For us in the Chapala area, there is the fun of reading works by friends in town. Judy King’s article “Mariachi is Mexico’s Music” reflects the amazing depth of her knowledge of Mexican history and culture, combined with her deep appreciation of her adopted homeland and her delightful humor. Antonio Rambles’ tale of a brother coming to close the estate of his deceased sibling has a haunting poignancy for those who may be estranged from their families in the north. Jim Tipton treats us to a story of love, passion and cultural fusion, while Janice Kimball offers whimsy with a tale of a golf cart driver from hell.

On the shadow side there is a chilling tale of sexual exploitation by David Lida. I was not sure where the author of “Acapulco Gold” was going until the last paragraphs focused on the tawdry scene. Though it could have taken place anywhere, the details of life of a Mexican street child, whose face is familiar to all, give the story a vivid and graphic quality.

Two authors created a piece called “Faith, Aphrodisiacs and FreezeDried Blood.” While not actually dark it explores the confluence of religion, faith and medicine and superstition, and the murky world of Voodoo.

My personal favorite is a story

by Daniel Reveles, titled simply “The Doughnut Man.” Daniel is an accomplished Mexican-American author who has retained his quintessential appreciation of those aspects of love, faith and magic which are the very essence of the Mexican ethos. The doughnut man crafts his own wares, markets them daily to a sellout crowd, who are alerted by his tenor voice announcing his presence. The doughnuts are beautiful, smell even

better, and taste like “dirty gym sox covered with cinnamon and sugar.”

Only in small town Mexico would he enjoy such success, and how he does it will intrigue and delight you.

Shifting from the delightful contents of the book, I was less than pleased with the format. It would be a much more coherent read had the works been organized by area of origin or theme. Sadly, they are presented in alphabetical order by author’s last name, jolting the reader from one corner of this vast and varied country to another. It’s rather as if some beautiful stones were gathered to create an artistic necklace, only to be strung in order of size. As a book aficionado for years, I have come to expect to find the table of contents directly following the title page, on the right hand side. Not so here. Curiously the editorial reviews are located there, and the contents are tucked behind them.

Once you locate the contents, you find in close sequence a list of contributors, which is more or less a restatement of the hidden table of contents, but lacking in page references. More than 20 pages at the end of the book are ads for the various contributors’ books. If only there had been more contributors! One wonders if the editors mistrust the reading public to be able to locate Amazon or Google on the internet.

Let’s return once more to the amazing contents of this work. The stories and essays are well chosen and insightful and well worth the read. Whether you have lived in Mexico, do so now, or simply dream of a time when you might, this collection is one that you will treasure.

Enjoy the sunlight, explore the shadows, and revel in the magnificent mystery of these vignettes of Mexico.

And not-so-incidentally, the anthology won the Gold Digital Award given out yearly by the Independent Book Publishers Association.

Saw you in the Ojo 43

COLUMNIST

%\ -DFNLH .HOOXP

O

ur pets can teach us a lot about life. You do not have to own a cat or a dog to learn from their life skill lessons. However, you have to be willing to be an observer of their life, sort of like being a “people watcher” which we all do to some extent. Animals probably are more honest than many humans in their outward conduct and not as refined in their behavior. They have a wealth of patience, wisdom and defined social boundaries within their family unit. Pets value the success of the whole social family unit above temporary individual desires. Unless a perceived threat is presented to an animal, they tend to follow the “golden rule” in their relationships with humans and other animals that are not their natural enemies. Unlike many humans, an animal will give you some kind of warning, like a growl or snarl before they bite you.

Pets have patience, perseverance and independence. Cats always get what they want, even if they have to get it themselves, and not rely on another to obtain their goal. Likewise, they also know how to “sweet talk” their person if they really want something. They know the limits of what they will do to get what they want or need, and get it they do. All those who had a boss at one time know this technique and no doubt enlisted this maneuver. You just have to determine your level of sweet-talk tolerance, like complimenting someone but not cross the line of totally humiliating yourself, or being so obviously insincere.

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El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

Another good valuable life lesson is listening to your inner instincts. As humans, we sometimes over-analyze things and make ourselves a bit nuts.

Animals listen, and go cautiously when they get some kind of internal warning signal when approaching a person or situation that may prove harmful to them. The only possible exception is when they repeatedly trust a human who has done them harm, but they keep hoping that this trusted person will not repeat this hurtful action. Animals, like humans in this case, sometimes stay in abusive relationships, until they realize they need to get out of it for their own safety and good health of mind and body.

Cats and dogs take life one moment at a time. They relish the sheer joy of that moment. There is no brooding or holding a grudge about perceived infringements or insults that they feel were sent in their direction – like feeling unappreciated for all that they have done for that other person, etc. Life is a wonderful thing. It comes with feelings of taking great pleasure in play time and being a bit child-like.

Pets treasure having joy in their hearts and in their lives. Hopefully as humans we do not view these emotions in the rearview mirror of our lives. Cats and dogs also know the value of taking a nap. They know how to relax with no worries about anything: another life lesson to learn.

Our pets can teach us about caring and empathy. I am sure we have all seen those “cute” stories where a dog has become a surrogate mother to a baby pig or rabbit. Although as an adult they might not have been best of friends, they recognize a creature in need. They put those other feelings aside offering and providing loving care and attention in a time of need.

Can we say that much about our human friends? Lastly and the foremost life lesson is that each of us, at least once a day needs a hug and an Attaboy! www.anitasanimals.com

Saw you in the Ojo 45

Livin ng L arge In Lim mbo: Jo oyce Carrol Oate es on Writtin ng about Grrie ef and Losss %\ .HOO\ +D\HV 5DLWW

“

J

oyce!” I exclaimed in the empty lobby of the Mexican hotel. “My dad was in high school with you!”

The startled Joyce Carol Oates sized me up: “Oh, who was your dad?”

This could cut either way, I calculated. “Bob Kruger.”

Luckily, America’s most prolific author brightened a moment before descending into her previous discomfort. Clutching her credit card, a jet-lagged Joyce recounted a disastrous travel day flying from Berkeley, where she was guest teaching, to San Miguel de Allende, where she was the annual writers’ conference keynote speaker.

46

The Mexican waiter standing beside her asked me if I spoke Spanish.

Turned out, he couldn’t accept Joyce’s credit card as payment for her room service meal.

“Well, let’s get you taken care of!” I led Joyce to the restaurant’s cash register, where her credit card could be processed.

Following her keynote address the next afternoon, I asked Joyce if she’d allow me 15 minutes to interview her for a column I write. She didn’t hesitate. “I’ll meet you in the lobby at 2:00 tomorrow.”

Promptly at 2:00, we spent 30 minutes discussing her work, my work, my dad, and Williamsville, NY, where

El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

they had both come of age.

I’m writing a book about my experiences in the Middle East with Iraqi and Syrian refugees, so I write about grief and loss. [In “A Widow’s Story,” Oates’ memoir about the sudden death of her husband of 47 years], you seem to look at that period of your life as a journalist would and distance yourself from your profound loss, yet you still have that piercing loss on the page. How did you do that?

[At that moment, a fan interrupts to ask Joyce to autograph one of her books. Oates has written so many books, it’s hard to get an accurate count.]

“I couldn’t write anything new.

When my husband was in the hospital and afterward, all I was writing was a journal. Anybody can keep a journal anytime. Even if you can barely hold a pencil, you can write in your journal.

I amassed months of this journal. A year later or so, I looked at that material and transformed it into a memoir.

I would look at something like the day I drove Ray to the hospital, and how I felt, and then have little footnotes, like ‘the widow has no idea that she’s driving her husband to a place from where he’ll never come home.’ I think of how naïve we are sometimes.

We stride off to do this thing that we think is going to work and then when we look back on it, we think how wrong, how naïve and how sad because it didn’t turn out that way.”

You not only wrote the book, you rewrote it several times. It’s beautifully structured.

“I could’ve put more in. I left some things out and I’m sorry now I left them out. I wasn’t really thinking that clearly. After you’ve had a grief like that, you don’t think clearly.”

What did you leave out?

I should have had a chapter “Just Say ‘Yes’.” After Ray died, I wanted to stay home in my bed and not go out.

[Instead], I said “yes” to all these invitations. I didn’t want to fall into a stupor of depression. So someone would

invite me to see a movie that I would never see in a million years. I said “yes,” [although] I didn’t really want to go. I think it’s important for the widow to say “yes” to these invitations. I remember once I was watching television with some dear friends, and I thought it was so stupid and I didn’t know why I was watching it. And I thought, “My life has come to this. I am so lonely and desperate that I’m watching this ridiculous thing.” But I couldn’t write that because all my friends would see it.

“Just say yes”… That has really [become] my philosophy. To stay home and be depressed is comfortable. Some people sort of enjoy depression. “I’m just going to stay in bed and watch television with my cat.” It’s much easier than getting dressed up and going out – or flying to the Middle East. I didn’t want to give in to that.

I’m sure with the kind of work that you’ve done, there were days when you wanted to be somewhere else, but people depended on you so you’re out there.

With the book I’m writing, I constantly get “We want more of you, Kelly.” (Joyce laughs in recognition).

How do you deal with people who want more of you?

I don’t really think too much about it.

Do people come up and tell you their widowhood stories?

They write emails… They are very touching. Very, very, very touching [emails from] people who have had the same kind of experience. They’re from the heart. Many fan letters don’t call for an answer, but these are more poignant, so I definitely answer them.

That’s a lot to take on….

Well, there are variants on it.

Sometimes the husband doesn’t die and the wife becomes the caretaker and there’s a whole new chapter that can be very unpleasant. Some point out that they wished their husbands had died, they lost everything they had or he [became] so awful. She’s pointing out my husband had died at the right time after all…and that’s an interesting idea.

(When not stalking famous authors, Kelly Hayes-Raitt completes her book about refugees, Living Large In Limbo: How I Found Myself Among the World’s Forgotten. She blogs at www.LivingLargeInLimbo.com.

Ed Note: This column originally appeared in The Argonaut newspaper in Los Angeles, CA. Kelly Hayes-Raitt

Saw you in the Ojo 47

FARENHEIT T 451: Harbin nger of th he Future %\ 'U /RULQ 6ZLQHKDUW

A

mong the intelligentsia of the late Nineteenth Century were those who believed that science and technology would create utopia, heaven on earth, in the future. The devastation caused by tanks, poison gas, and the development of more efficient automatic weapons and artillery pieces during World War I, followed by World War II, the horrors of Zyklon B and the arrival of the Atomic Age, diminished that view. Science and technology could as readily foster hell on earth.

Among the various dystopias envisioned by science fiction writers are Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, George Orwell’s 1984 and Ray Bradbury’s 1951 novel Fahrenheit 451.

In Bradbury’s nightmare world, the citizenry has mortgaged its collective soul to a bogus definition of happi-

48

ness, consisting of mindlessness and cheap thrills. The characters waste their lives mesmerized by wall-sized interactive TV screens that blast nonstop bloody violence in the form of clowns chopping off one another’s arms and legs and demolition derbies with multiple casualties.

This population of vapid automatons is personified by “Mildred,” the

El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

wife of “Guy Montag,” himself one of the “firemen” whose duty it is to seek out any remaining books and burn them. Each community has a fire station, complete with a staff that sets fires and a mechanical hound that can sniff out radicals, dissidents, the literate and inject them with poison. The novel is the story of Montag’s transformation from book burner to book rescuer. Montag’s spiritual metamorphosis is as radical as was that of St. Paul’s on the road to Damascus.

One fine day, Montag encounters “Clarisse,” a teenage neighbor, who has been branded as “different” and antisocial by school authorities because of her habit of walking in the forest, watching birds and butterflies, loving the rain.

Despite himself, Montag is captivated by Clarisse’s openness and spontaneity. He is ripe for transformation, having been traumatized by an elderly lady’s self-immolation before his horrified eyes, as she chose fiery death rather than stand by and watch her precious books be tossed to the flames.

In the world of Fahrenheit 451, all too accurately approximating the contemporary United States of America, conversation consists of word patterns, jargon, pretty sounds. Citizens go about day and night with seashells, thimble sized radios, buzzing away in their ears, frittering away empty lives with meaningless prattle, with fun.

Education consists of sports and rote memorization, and children, forced to spend nine out of every ten days in school, are never permitted to ask questions. After school activities consist of shouting, frenzied dancing and bullying. Clarisse reminisces that there was once a time when children did not kill one another. It is illegal to possess or read books, and history has been rewritten, turning wise Ben Franklin into a book burner.

Clarisse laments, “People don’t talk about anything.” Instead, they prattle on endlessly about trifles and trivia.

Bradbury compares the populace to “A gibbering pack of tree apes that say nothing and say it loudly.” Music pounds people into submission. Driving 95 MPH, running down rabbits, dogs, even people, is a socially acceptable form of catharsis. Special technicians prowl neighborhoods, pumping the stomachs and recycling the poisoned blood of nine to ten attempted suicides a night.

As the novel opens, Montag finds Mildred passed out and near death from an overdose of medications. After being drained and refilled by the technicians, she giggles the entire incident off next morning. “Why would I do a thing like that?” Beattie, Montag’s supervisor and mentor, senses his diminishing commitment and drums a pep talk into him, laden with totalitarian gibberish.

The noise level, the continual electronic bombardment, the obsessive shielding of the inhabitants of Bradbury’s world from any semblance of reality are reminiscent of Pandemonium, the city of all demons in Milton’s Paradise Lost, where constant uproar renders the completion of any thought on the part of its reptilian dwellers impossible.

As his inner self rejects the artificial society that he is less and less a part of, Montag saves a Bible from the flames. Riding on the subway, he attempts in vain to read and understand the words of Matthew VI, “Consider the lilies of the field,” all the while bombarded by a PA blasting musical ads for Denham’s Dentifrice that lulls his fellow passengers into a hypnotic ecstasy of toe tapping and finger snapping.

In the end, Montag’s redemption is completed when, after turning his flame-thrower upon Beattie in a hideous form of suicide by cop (or by fireman) and obliterating the mechanical hound as it injects its toxic needle into his calf, he escapes across the river to join a group of rebels in the wilderness. Each member devotes his life to

the memorization of a single book, in order to preserve it, hoping for a future renaissance.

Nuclear war breaks out, and from their wilderness sanctuary, the rebels witness the obliteration of the society they have fled.

When one views the contemporary scene in the light of Bradbury’s novel, it is easy to see parallels: TV, movies and video games dominated by vivid portrayals of violence; a national obsession with spectator sports; network news focused upon the antics of celebrities and athletes; public education that has down played critical

thinking skills in favor of rote memorization; legions who seek escape into a drug-induced haze.

Today, books are burned by indifference, lassitude and stubborn, selfinduced ignorance. Fahrenheit 451 is a parable for our times. Bradbury thunders with the voice of an Old Testament prophet. Alas, few societies heed the voices of their prophets. And, yes, children now kill one another.

Lorin Swinehart

Saw you in the Ojo 49

The Ojo Crossword

ACROSS 1 Hindu teacher 6 6th month (Jewish calendar) 10 First Print (Of Film) 14 Cunnings 15 Guinean Currency 16 Island 17 Puffs 18 Seaweed 19 Scent 20 Visit 21 Avails 23 Interruption of power 25 Spoken 26 South southeast 27 Produces eggs 30 Canadian province 34 Doctor 35 Tried and __ 36 Music Network 38 Utilization 39 Derby 40 Excite 42 Summit 43 Winnows 44 African country 45 Throwing rocks 48 Sop up 49 North by east 50 Unsuccessful 51 Rock group instrument 54 Two

50

El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

55 Killed in action 1HJDWLYH SUHÂż[

59 Jail room 61 Open areas 63 Tuber 64 Flightless birds 65 Anesthetic 66 __ schooled, place 67 Tactic 68 Swell DOWN 1 Compass point 2 Deceit 3 Healing plant 4 Kitten’s cry 5 Issue 6 Begged 7 Colors 8 Brand of laundry detergent 9 Fencer’s move 10 Mischief-maker 11 U.S. Department of Agriculture 12 Plod 13 Not there 22 Bro.’s sibling 24 America 25 Culp 27 Indecent language 28 Spanish coins 29 Accommodate 30 __ Utan 31 Insane 32 Adult insect 33 Swimming mammal 35 Other __ 37 Action word 40 Sanctioned 41 What children talk with 43 Wilder 46 Timely (2 wds.)

47 BB association 48 Boxer Muhammad 50 Test answer 51 Cut 52 Preposition 53 Detail 54 Not minus 55 Genghis __ 56 Type of tea 57 Airy 60 Flightless bird 62 School group

Saw you in the Ojo 51

60 years of “People Helping People”

The

Lൺ඄ൾ Cඁൺඉൺඅൺ Sඈർංൾඍඒ

News

www.lakechapalasociety.com

Report on the Sustainability of the Lake Chapala Society Since our 60th Anniversary celebration, I have been thinking about how we, the LCS Board of Directors, should lay the foundation to sustain the LCS into the next sixty years. The key will be sustainability. Sustainability, in general terms, is the endurance of systems and processes.

The organizing principle for sustainability is sustainable development. Sustainability may take many forms including: economic, political, environmental, and cultural factors, to name a few. Sustainability may be achieved by implementing both large scale projects and with very small practices: we can participate by constructing green buildings to save energy and buying recycled paper.

Sustainability does not usually happen by accident; it requires intentional acts, driven by our mission statement, to improve the quality of life for everyone living at Lakeside. I believe the sustainability of our mission to the community involves our approach to these overarching factors: Relevance –always thinking about how we maintain and enhance our relevance to the ex-patriate and Mexican communities we serve.

Resources – considering the resources required to ensure future growth and development of programs and services.

Relationships – nurturing relationships with our members and the greater community (both expatriate and Mexican) to facilitate communication, understanding, and ultimately successful implementation of actions that support our mission.

Revenue – developing multiple revenue streams to support our mission to the community.

As the board identifies and defines its strategic initiatives for 2016-2017, these factors will guide its deliberations and decisions. Specific achievable initiatives that align with our mission will be assigned to standing committees to flesh out the details and prepare recommendations. These initiatives will be announced in the next newsletter. If you are interested in serving on a committee, or if you have any questions regarding how you can help, feel free to contact me.

-- Ben White, President

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El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

May 2016

LCS Annual Giving Campaign In Late March the LCS kicked off its Annual Giving Campaign to help us achieve our mission by improving the quality of life for everyone living at Lakeside. Our membership dues are not sufficient to cover the costs for all of these programs, so we are reaching out to you for help. Donation envelopes were included with the recent LCS Directory and are also available at the office. If each member donates 250 pesos we would more than reach our goal of 400,000 pesos. Every gift, no matter how small, will make a big difference to our community.

Many of you are aware of the free medical services we provide to the community: blood pressure and skin cancer screening; and eye and hearing exams. We also offer access to insurance, legal, and immigration service providers. LCS sponsors monthly visits from the U.S. consulate and the Talking Books library, a program for the visually impaired citizens Behind the scenes, LCS has been nurturing relationships with local and state government advocating for improved community security, addressing future infrastructure needs and preservating of Lake Chapala.

Our volunteers are making substantial contributions to improving and enriching lives in the Mexican community. Our Children’s Art Program serves 60 to 80 local children with art and craft instruction provided local legacy artists and members of the Ajijic Society of the Arts.

English as a Second Language classes are offered to over 300 students each week at the Neill James Biblioteca – which also offers more than 4,000 books in Spanish. The Needlepushers sew dresses and vests for school children, and the LCS-sponsored Career Day at the Chapala High School is designed to encourage older students to stay in school by exposing them to a variety of possible future careers.

Our Financial Aid Program helps talented students with demonstrated financial need to attend university or technical school.

We’re proud to announce that by late April we have reached 25% of our goal. We want to thank those who have given and recognized this important need. We’re not there yet. Please consider giving generously to help us continue and improve our services into the future.

ESL Student Recognition Day

Viva Vino!

A day of celebration signifying the end of another successful year of Lake Chapala Society’s English as a Second Language Program at Wilkes Education Center is close at hand.

On Saturday, May 14, from 5 to 7p.m. approximately 180 adult students will gather on the Back Patio of the LCS campus to receive their certificates of attendance and achievement as proud family members look on.

Inez Dayer, ESL Director of this important component LCS’ community programs, will oversee the event and assist volunteer teachers honoring these dedicated students. LCS members are welcome to attend this inspiring program..

At LCS’ very successful Wine Tasting Event, a convivial group of wine enthusiasts and aficionados gathered at our beautifully decorated grounds to sample a varied selection of offerings from Argentina, Chile, Mexico and Spain.

Guests paired a selection of tasty hors d’oeuvres provided by Roberto’s Restaurant with wines of their choice.

Attention Bibliophies!

For all of you long-time and new members, here is some helpful information about the multi-component LCS libraries, and their services, programs and features: The LCS English Language Library started out as a onebookcase book exchange program in 1955. Now a fullfledged library, it’s considered the largest English language library in Latin America comprising over 26,000 volumes which includes an impressive collection of fiction, non-fiction and reference books.

Titles are available in nearly every genre imaginable. Don’t forget to check out our recently purchased volumes and the new books donated nearly everyday.

Visit the library on the campus or find your selections via the LCS electronic database: all titles are now available online. Select from the Mexico collection that includes all things pertaining to Mexican history, art, culture, and language. Peruse our extensive biography section and the collection of books written by local authors.

Our Reading Room has magazines on such diverse subjects as science, art, design, culinary arts, crafts, history and economics, and more than 300 large print books, including The Reader’s Digest. For puzzle enthusiasts, a fine selection of challenging jigsaw puzzles are housed here too.

Regarding loan periods and fines: there is a two-week loan period for books; two renewals are allowed. The fine for an overdue book is two pesos per day. The fee for replacing a lost or damaged hard cover book is 350 pesos. Replacing a lost trade paperback will cost 250 pesos and the fee for replacing a standard paperback is 150 pesos. Books may be renewed on-line; check the web site for more information.

The Talking Books Library has several hundred recordings of books, including those available to visually impaired US citizens through a special arrangement with the US Library of Congress.

Remember, our libraries are supported primarily through donations. To donate, books, magazines or pesos, speak with a librarian or e-mail: library@lakechapalasociety.com.

US Consular Visit Change of Date Representatives from the United States Consulate in Guadalajara will be at LCS on Wednesday, May 11 from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Sign up is required.

Summer Ted Talks - Tuesdays 12 - 1:15 May 2 Break May 9 Should You Be Able to Patent the Human Gene?

Tania Simoncelli is now serving as the Assistant Director for Forensic Science in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). From 2003-2010, Simoncelli worked as the Science Advisor to the American Civil Liberties Union, where she guided the organization’s responses to cutting-edge developments in science and technology that pose challenges for civil liberties. In this capacity, she spearheaded the development of ACLU’s successful Supreme Court challenge to the patenting of human genes. In 2013, Simoncelli was named by the journal Nature as one of “ten people who mattered this year” for her work with the ACLU in overturning gene patents.

May 16 What Does It Mean to Be a Citizen of the World?

Hugh Evans, by age 14, was already a dedicated humanitarian.

Selected by his school for a free trip to the Philippines, he spent a night in a Manila slum. The harsh realities of his hosts’ impoverishment motivated Evans to challenge the status quo of extreme poverty. It has become his lifelong passion. “If there is such a thing as a prodigy in the world of philanthropy, Hugh Evans fits the bill.” — New York Times, August 22, 2012

May 23 Our Refugee System Is Failing and Here Is How We Can Fix It. Alexander Betts is the director of the Refugee Studies Centre, University of Oxford, where he spearheads research on refugee and other forced migrant populations. In this talk, delivered in February, 2016, he explores ways in which societies might empower refugees rather than pushing them to the margins.

May 30 The Hidden Reason for Poverty the World Needs to Address Now Gary Haugen is a civil rights attorney. As a member of the 1994 United Nations team investigating crimes in Rwanda, his eyes were opened to the appalling extent of violence in the developing world.

He became quickly aware of how rampant violence undermines efforts to alleviate poverty. Upon his return to the U.S., he founded International Justice Mission, an organization devoted to rescuing victims of global violence including trafficking and slavery.

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Video Library News May

*OPEN TO PUBLIC ** US CITIZENS &58= 52-$ CRIVC (Cruz Roja) Sales Table CRIVC (Cruz Roja) Monthly Meeting

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+($/7+ /(*$/ 6(59,&(6 Becerra & Galindo Services TH 10:30-12:30 Blood Pressure F 10-12 Drug & Herb Consultation 4th M 10-12 Hearing Aid Services M & 2nd+ 4th Sat 11-4 Sign-up Ministerio Publico W May 4+25 10-2 Optometrist Claravision TH 9-4 Sign-up Skin Cancer Screening 2nd +4th W 10-12:30 Sign-up US Consulate W May 18 10:30-12:30 Sign up LESSONS (C) Chair Yoga TH 10-12 Book & Video M-Sat 10-2 US Library of Congress Books**/ Talking Books TH 10-12 Neill.James Biblioteca Publica (WEC) M-F 9:30-7, SAT 9:30-1* SOCIAL ACTIVITIES (C) All Things Tech F 9:30-11:30 Bridge 4 Fun T +TH 1-5 Discussion Group W 12-1:30 Everyday Mindfulness M 10:15-11:45 )LOP $¿FLRQDGRV 7+ Needle Pushers T 10-12 Open Gaming M 1-4 Open to public 2-4* Scrabble M +F 11:30-1:30 Spanish/English Conversation Sat 11-12 TED Talks Learning Seminars T 12-1:15 6(59,&( 6833257 *52836 Caregiver Support Group 2nd+4th W 10:30-12:30 Have Hammer Workshop Demo 1st & 3rd M 10-12 Information Desk M-Sat 10-2 Lakeside AA M +TH 4:30-5:30 Open Circle Sun 10-11:30 Toastmasters M 7-8:30 7,&.(7 6$/(6 0 )

Congratulations Luz! 20 Years at LCS Congratulations to our optometrist Luz Zepeda, who celebrated her twentieth anniversary here at LCS. The LCS Board of Directors cited her impressive record at the Annual General Meeting earlier this year.

Luz, who specializes in difficult prescriptions, provides free, open-to-the-public eye exams and a full line of optometric services. Her offices hours are 9 to 3 p.m. Thursday. Sign up at the Neill James Patio outside her office.

54

El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

You may have noticed, we have a new, very sophisticated, web page. Check it out. As with many new things, there are still a couple of things to be worked out. Just stay tuned; it will be totally debugged very soon.

There are five Hollywoodized “biographies” for May. Black Mass #7257 Johhny Depp as the FBI’s most wanted criminal, Whitey Bulger.

Truth #7258 Robert Redford as Dan Rather and the destruction of his career.

Trumbo #7259 Hollywood’s top screen writer blacklisted by McCarthy in 1947.

The Big Short #7263 Four denizens of the world of highfinance predict the housing bubble collapse in the mid-2000s.

Spotlight #7269 The Boston Globe uncovers the scandal of the Catholic church. Mark Ruffalo and Michael Keaton Two oldies but goodies Double Indemnity #7255 with Fred McMurray and Barbara Stanwyck and The President’s Analyst #7267 WITH James Coburn.

A recent thriller with Tom Hanks, Bridge of Spies #7254. The Lives of Others #7268 a foreign drama about an East Berlin agent becoming involved in the lives of a writer and his lover upon whom he is spying.

Democrats Abroad at LCS Democrats Abroad will be here at the Blue Umbrella Patio to assist US citizens in filling out applications for absentee ballots on Tuesday, May 3 between 10-12 p.m.

In The Service Office The Warren Hardy Spanish books for registered class members are available in the Service Office. Don’t forget to ask about our wonderful Children’s Art Cards.

Donations to the Kitty Fund for the care and feeding of our feline friends may be made in the office, too. Meow, meow (muchas gracias)!

History matters!

LCS is looking for historic photographs of LCS. We are especially looking for photos from the 1970’s when the LCS would have been in Chapala.

Were looking for historic photos of Neill James as well. We have a significant archive of hers and are in the process of reviewing and cataloging it. We’ll be sharing some of the gems we are finding from time to time.

If you have a photograph of a significant event happening prior to 2010, and know the names of the people in the photo we are very interested in what you have.

Please contact executivedirector@lakechapalasociety.com.

We Still Need You Contact the LCS Volunteer Coordinator Rachel McMillen at volunteer@lakechapalasociety.com for more information about possible vounteer positions.

The IT Department needs volunteers with experience in building computers, installing software, and working with networks, including overall troubleshooting. Position involves climbing stairs several times a day.

The Garden always needs volunteers to plant, trim, weed and maintain our beautiful gardens.

Seniors’ High Tea Project, You’ll assist with both set-up and with serving. Set-up starts at 12 noon and ends at 2:30 p.m. Volunteers will place the tables and chairs, set the tables, and put out milk, sugar etc. then serve plates of sandwiches and scones, pour the tea, and clear the tables. Serving starts from 2:15 p.m. noon and ends at 4:30 p.m.

We need three people for each shift.

If you can spare a couple of hours once a month, and would like to participate in this enjoyable venue, engage in pleasant conversation, and make new friends.

Costco Returns to LCS Costco will be here Monday, May 23 and Tuesday, May 24 from 1-1:30 in the Blue Umbrella Patio with information on special sales and offers available to members and to open or renew memberships.

Shopping Trip to McAllen, Texas* Departing Sunday 22-May and Returning Thursday 26-May We need a minimum of 30 persons to run the trip.

3 full days, 4 nights of hotel, Hampton Inn w/Breakfast. $600 USD to share a room/person $750 USD for your own room/person Above prices for LCS members only.

Non-members add $50 USD to above prices. $100 USD Non-refundable (unless we cancel) deposit required at sign-up. Sign-up ASAP final day to sign up will be by April 29. Final payment needs to be made no later than May 6.

Due to the fact that all prices are being offered to LCS in USD only, and the volatility of the U.S. dollar, we will calculate your payment using the exchange rate of the day your deposit/payment is made.

Contact June Cooper for details: junecooper39@yahoo.com *U.S. and Canadian citizens need valid passports; citizens of other countries need valid passports with a valid U.S. visa.

Thursday Film Aficionados LCS members only. Bring your card. Films shown in the Sala from 2-4 p.m. No food. No pets.

All showings subject to change.

May 5 The Singing Revolution 2006 Estonia A moving documentary recounting Estonia’s fight for independence from Soviet occupation, telling the remarkable story of the hundreds of thousands of protesters who gathered in public to voice their dissent through song. 97 minutes.

May 12 Son of Saul 2015 Hungary Academy Award winner for Best Foreign Language Film. In the horror of Auschwitz in 1944, a prisoner, forced to burn the corpses of his own people, finds moral survival by trying to salvage from the flames the body of a boy he takes for his son. 104 minutes. Please note: this program will start at 1:50. No admission after this time.

May 19 Sriracha 2016 USA and Gizmo 1977 USA Sriracha is a 33 minute documentary on a condiment. Gizmo is an irresistible collection of newsreel footage chronicling the inventive spirit in America.

May 26 War Games 1983 USA A young man finds a back door into a military computer in the Pentagon in which reality is confused with game-playing- possibly starting WWIII. This film caused President Reagan and the Pentagon to change military protocol. 110 minutes.

All films in the Sala at 2 except May 12.

May Bus Trips Wednesday, May 4 Tonala and Tlaquepaque Shop Tonala for home decor and handicrafts. In Tlaquepaque find upscale retailers and fine dining in a historic, architecturally significant, pedestrian-only zone. Cost is 300 pesos for members and 350 for nonmembers. Bus departs promptly at 9 a.m. from the sculpture in La Floresta.

Wednesday, May 19 Galerias Mall Our popular regular shopping trip features major retailers like Best Buy and Sears, and well-known restaurants like The Cheesecake Factory, PF Chang and many more. Shop nearby Costco, Sam’s and Super Walmart. Cost is 300 pesos for members and 350 pesos for non-members. Bus departs promptly at 9:30 a.m from the sculpture in La Floresta.

THE LAKE CHAPALA SOCIETY, A.C. 16 de Septiembre #16-A, Ajijic, Jalisco LCS Main Office: (376) 766-1140 Office, information and other services - Monday-Saturday, 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Grounds open until 5:00 p.m.

LCS BOARD OF DIRECTORS. President - Ben White (2018); Vice-President - Cate Howell (2017); Treasurer - Michael Searles (2017); Secretary - Carole Wolff (2018); Directors: Matthew Butler (2018); Lois Cugini (2017); Fred Harland (2017); Barbara Hildt (2017); Geoffrey Kaye (2018) Yoli Martinez (2017); Garry Musgrave (2017); Monica Powers (2018); George Radford (2018); Immediate Past President: Howard Feldstein. Executive Director - Terry Vidal

The LCS Newsletter is published monthly. Deadline for submissions is the 17th of the month preceding publication.

Submit all news items to newsletter@lakechapalasociety.com Note: The editorial staff reserves the right to edit all submissions according to time, space availability and editorial decision.

Saw you in the Ojo 55

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The Ojo Crossword

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Saw you in the Ojo 59

CARS

:$17(' Looking for a VW Vocho in excellent condition, body, interior, running rear and engine.

FOR SALE: 1988 Ford Crown Victoria, 109 K miles, South Dakota, $1000 US or best offer. Call: 766-0948. :$17(' Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re looking for a used car for our son to take back to the US. Honda CRV or something similar is what we have in mind, but the bottom line is that it should be good in the snow and reliable, with good gas mileage. Email: msalexg@gmail.com.

FOR SALE: 2010 Ford Focus. $26,000 pesos. Mexican plated 2010 automatic 4 cylinder black Ford Focus with 62,000 km, excellent condition!, Stereo with CD, AM/FM Radio, $LU FRQGLWLRQLQJ UHDU Ă&#x20AC;LS XS DGMXVWDEOH VHDWV Power side mirrors, front windows, steering, locks, trunk, Alarm system, ABS, Airbags, New tires. Call me at 376-766-2282 or email cindygenidi@hotmail.com. :$17(' Roof Rack & Carrier for Honda Fit. Email: lorijaelynn@gmail.com FOR SALE: VW Jetta 1.8 turbo year 2001. :$17(' Mexican plated small/compact SUV. Prefer 2010 - 2013, quality features, excellent condition. Contact Gary at evergreen410@gmail.com or 333-480-7675.

FOR SALE: 2009 Toyota Rav 4 Sports.

108,000 km, excellent condition, Mx. Plated, $160,000 Mxp FOR SALE: Toyota Camry 93. $2200 usa dollar or equivalent in pesos OBO Automatic, 6 cil, 4 doors, 88k original miles, Jalisco plates, paid 2015, papers on hands, chrome rims, perfect running condition with no mechanical problems. Call or text anytime 331-007-8873.

FOR SALE: 1993 Suburban 2500, V-8, automatic, seats 8 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 9, Mexican built and plated, All fees paid including emission control. Red body in good shape with a few dings, engine excellent; recently paid 10,000 for repairs, KBB value: $3,000 USD Asking $45,000 pesos or best offer will trade for Beetle or Jeep of equal value.

Email: gmel1936@yaho o.com.

FOR SALE: Classic bug for sale 17 , aluminum rims new tires, engine very strong, Jalisco plates, papers on hands paid 2015 newer, paint OK interior call or msg, anytime OBO. $2500 USA dollars or equivalent, Volkswagen Beatle, 1981, White-Purple, Standard Transmission.

Email: Sergiogudino5@gmail.com.

FOR SALE: Motorcycle Honda 750 Shadow. 26,950 km, excellent condition, drive shaft, clear Jalisco title, $58,500 pesos. Call: 376-766-1218. :$17(' Kawasaki 650 KLR or similar only good condition. Call: 376-766-1218.

FOR SALE: 2004 Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer in excellent condition with nearly new tires, well maintained and records available. )XOO ORDGHG VHDWV IROG GRZQ Ă&#x20AC;DW IRU WUDQVSRUW or storage. Roof rack and trailer tow package.

It has 106,000 miles. Jalisco plates and clear title. $89,000.00 Pesos. Call Lester at 331039-5150.

FOR SALE: 1992 Volkswagon Combi camper with rebuilt engine, low mileage, solar panel. Excellent shape. Pop top. Double bed below, single bed above. Propane stove.

Storage. Two batteries, one operates with solar power. Standard transmission, 4 cylinder engine, alarm. Jalisco plated. Metal cage that attaches to rear of camper for extensive trips.

Price: $140,000p. Call 376-106-0849.

FOR SALE: HONDA XR 250. Excellent runner new tires and rims Excel lots of extras very well maintained Plated for 2016 in my name no less than 20mil. Price: $20,000.00 Pesos. Email: chardmex@gmail.com FOR SALE: Toyota Pick Up. 4 cil, au-

60

tomatic, paid 2016 stickers, Jalisco plates, new all terrain tires, chrome rims, new paint, new seat, Alpine sound, no mechanical problems, call or text anytime Price: $4500 US or equivalent in pesos. Call: 331-007-8873.

Email: Sergiogudino5@gmail.com :$17(' Looking for a Merc Benz, preferably C-Class, about 2004. Reply here if you have one youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d like to sell. Also interested in older 1980s (W123 or W126) model.

FOR SALE: 2005 HONDA CRV. New tires, regular oil changes. Bought from original owner three years ago. Price: $126,000 pesos ($7,000US) Please email me at bstiles1063@ gmail.com or Call: 331-821-7980.

FOR SALE: Seat seven comfortably, all back seats can be folded down to be converted into a cargo van. American made Mexican plated at the border. navigation system. Call hm: 376-763-5736 or Cell 331-735-7066.

FOR SALE: Are you returning to Canada, we have a great car to exchange for a similar Jalisco plated car. Our car is in excellent condition, had every service and never had a problem; we want it down here but cannot import it. It has sport shift, individual heating/ cooling and heated seats. No damage at all, in excellent condition, mainly driven back and forth to MX. Price: $10,000.00. Please phone 766-3118.

FOR SALE: 2012 GMC Terrain SLT every option +front and rear bumper guards.

This car is garaged, fully loaded, excellent rubber, and clean. 22500 miles. Edmunds private party value 23,650 US. Kelley Blue Book 23,330. PM if interested with reasonable offer.

No need to sell. South Dakota title, registration renewed for 2016 and emissions done.

FOR SALE: Mercury Villager GS. One owner well maintained. 7 pass very clean nonsmoker. U.S. plated with current 2016 tabs, and ready to be driven back to the U.S.A. Price: $3800,00 or Peso equivalent. For more info call 106-0691.

FOR SALE: 2007 Ford Focus. Excellent condition. One owner. Price: $130,000. Call: 331-299-7835.

COMPUTERS

FOR SALE: Amazon Fire TV. Amazon has recently reduced their price to $85 USD. So, I will also (or peso equivalent) for a hardly ever used one with KODI (tvaddons.ag) already side-loaded.

Also, TWO Fire TV Sticks for $40 (or peso equivalent) each. VPN required for Amazon Prime movies and TV, but not for Amazon Prime music or KODI (tvaddons.ag). Email: egwmx@aol.com.

FOR SALE: HP Laptop, $5000 pesos. HP Elitebook 8540P Notebook - Intel Core i5 2.53 GHz, 4 GB Memory 160 GB HDD - Windows 7 Professional. One year warranty. Color: Silver CPU Type: Intel Core i5 CPU Speed: 2.53 GHz Screen Size: 15.0â&#x20AC;? Touchscreen: No Operating System: Windows 7 Professional HDD: 160 GB Memory: 4 GB. Call: 331 330 1050 FOR SALE: HP 74 black and HP 75 tricolor - $100 pesos for both. Send message if interested. Email: lassalvias2005@yahoo.com.

FOR SALE: Amazon Gift Card $US - Receipt included. Originally priced US $51.95 selling for US$50 or peso equiv.

FOR SALE: Epson Ink #60. I have 1 packet of Colour ink and 2 packets of Black ink, you can have them for half price. Call: 766-3118. Email: gbarbor@gmail.com.

FOR SALE: Projector Lamp for Dell 2300MP. Also used bulb--unknown hours-200 pesos. Price: $850 pesos. Email: dyett@aol. com.

FOR SALE: +3 2IÂżFHMHW 3UR :L )L printer rarely used. Compatible with Ipad using free HP print mobile app. Price: $1900

El Ojo del Lago / May 2016

MXN. Call: 766-1710.

FOR SALE: Nintendo Wii. System comes with 8 game discs, remote with jacket, balance board, manuals, and cables. Price: $1700 MXN. FOR SALE: iTunes U.S. $50.00 Gift Card - Amazon Gift Card - still packaged. Originally $51.95 U.S. (receipt provided) No longer using iPad. FOR SALE: /RZ SURÂżOH GHVNWRS LQFOXGHV lcd screen cannot upload pic of lcd screen cannot get it low enough in resolution and to VKRZ WKH ORZ SURÂżOH RI SF QRWLFH WKH PDUNLH next to pc. Price: $1500 pesos. Call: 045-331402-0742.

FOR SALE: Total 3 Genuine Canon printer ink cartridges; 1 - CL 41-color. 2 - PG 40-black. Price: $600mx. Email: dottiemat@ gmail.com. :$17(' I am buying used Desktop Computers. Do you have a pl PC gathering dust? Call me for quick sale. Thank you â&#x20AC;&#x201C; SNS. Call: 331-526-7026.

FOR SALE: Desk top computer monitor 19â&#x20AC;? (Synch Master 920 WM), bought in 2008.

Price: $40 US. Email: adbond@ieee.org.

FOR SALE: LYNKSYS 2.4 GHz wirelessG Ethernet Bridge still in box new $79.99, now $35.00. NETGEAR 54 Mbps Wireless Router, still in box was $49.69, now $20.00.

Email: adbond@ieee.org FOR SALE: Wireless PCI adapter. TPLINK 54 Mbps wireless G PCI adapter (model TL-WN350g) still in box, new $68.59, now $30.00 US. Email: adbond@ieee.org.

PETS & SUPPLIES

FOR SALE: Dog stairs only 1 left. Two VHWV RI VWDLUV IRU GRJV XS WR SRXQGV ,Q ÂżQH condition and measuring 18 inches deep, 14 inches wide and 12 inches high. The cover is machine washable. The stairs are collapsible. Asking $150 pesos each or both for $250 pesos. Call: 766-5870 or email: bjmiller@ prodigy.net.mx

GENERAL MERCHANDISE

FOR SALE: Rival food slicer. Price: $500 pesos. Call: 331-125-8877.

FOR SALE: Like new vertical heater/2 speeds. Call: 331-125-8877 FOR SALE: Rechargeable 18v drill. Price: $600 pesos. Call: 331-125-8877.

FOR SALE: Gas Clothes Dryer, used very little, excellent condition, white. Price: $2500 pesos. Cell: 331-174-7133.

FOR SALE: DISHNET box and 1.8 meters dish already connected and functioning now - out of New York with HD and the major networks ABC, CBS and NBC - great large package that includes Turner Classic Movies (uninterrupted by ads) AMC and 70 Sirius music channels to satisfy any whim and/or taste. Box $4000 pesos - dish $4000 pesos and 6 months service for half-price at $4000 pesos = $12000 pesos - ´tis a GREAT bargain!. Parting with the items due to a death in the family and the buyer must remove the dish themself and pick up with the box. Call: 333833-7819 or email: NOLIKRUQV#\DKRR FRP :$17(' Upright Freezer not chest type.

Already checked around Ajijic and Chapala.

FOR SALE: $500 pesos for a beautiful framed Tree of Life mosaic brought back from Jordan 29â&#x20AC;? x 29â&#x20AC;? Call me at 376-7662282 or email cindygenidi@hotmail.com FOR SALE: $1,200 pesos for 41â&#x20AC;? x 32â&#x20AC;?

Egyptian framed artwork. Call me at 376-7662282 or email at cindygenidi@hotmail.com.

FOR SALE: $3,000 pesos for the 50 piece dish set which includes: 4 tall glasses, 4 tea cups, 4 tea plates, 1 tea pot, 4 soup bowls, 4 cereal bowls, 4 regular bowls, 8 dinner plates, 4 salad plates, 4 dessert plates, 1 large jug, 1 small jug, 1 casserole dish, 1 sauce dish,

1 fruit bowl on stand, 1 sugar bowl, 1 napkin holder, 1 candle holder, 1 hot plate. Please Call: 376-766-2282 or email me at cindygenidi@hotmail.com.

FOR SALE: $1,000 pesos - Excellent condition. This item will help remove the cold dampness in your home in the rainy season as well as keeping away mold and salitre by removing the moisture in the air. Call: 376766-2282.

FREE: I have just bought a new Costco IULGJH DQG KDYH DQ ROG *( SURÂżOH DERXW D 25ft3 side by side with water and ice dispenser (cubed and crushed). Measures 32.5â&#x20AC;? (83cm) wide, 31.5â&#x20AC;? (80cm) deep by 69.5â&#x20AC;? (177cm) high. It needs repair to work to replace the electronic card. I want to give it away to someone who would come and collect it, but doubt anyone wants to buy a fridge that needs repair.SO, if you want to come and cart the old one away its all yours.

FOR SALE: Whirlpool refrigerator. Approx size: 162cm tall X 64 wide. Price: $4,000p OBO. Email: l@ziggypiggy.org.

FOR SALE: Roof Top Carrier BIG attaches to roof rack U$200 or equivalent. Norman Cell: 331-624-2081.

FOR SALE: Chula Vista Golf Club selling cheap the last half of my year membership.

3ULFH SHVRV ÂżUP \RX VDYH PXFKR Act fast because l leave soon. Call: 376-7664557 Chris.

FOR SALE: Professional Portable Massage Table. Excellent condition. Price: $500.00 U.S. or best offer.

FOR SALE: 5HG IDEULF RIÂżFH FKDLU IRU sale. Price: $700 pesos.

FOR SALE: Turbo 7-Speed Ladies Bicycle. 28â&#x20AC;? wheels, carrier, front & rear lights, cup holder and rear view mirror. Excellent condition. Asking $4,000 pesos or best offer. Call (376) 766-5984 or 331-801-5039. E-mail: bobcard@shaw.ca FOR SALE: Goya Classical Guitar G-10.

That I never use. I bought it a year ago for $125. USD and will sell it for $100. It is a G-10, and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s in good condition. New strings.

Has a good mellow sound to it. You can email me at betsy63@yahoo.com if you would like to see it.

FOR SALE: Round Wood Pedestal Table.

Excellent condition. 24â&#x20AC;? dia top X 28 1/2â&#x20AC;? high.

Asking $2500 MXN. Call Walter at 376-7665452.

FOR SALE: French Cabriole style love seat. Approx 60â&#x20AC;? wide X 31â&#x20AC;? deep X 32â&#x20AC;? high.

Good condition. Asking $2200 MXN. Call Walter at 376-766-5452.

FOR SALE: Want to keep your electric meter from being stolen? Or tampered with?

Ok I had two made, you can have the white one, metal bars, a metal door, looks like a cage actually, new, painted white, holes drilled for screw attachment to building exterior. $300 pesos, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m in Chapala. Email: billyking50@yahoo.com. :$17(' Need an item from Home Depot in the U.S. Painting the inside of my house.

Regular paint rollers are too much work for a house my size, and my wife forbids workers inside. I need the Wagner Smart Roller, which I used a lot when I was living in the States and is a godsend. Unfortunately, Home Depot will not ship it to Mexico and Home Depot here does not sell it. If it was taken out of the box, there should be no problems at the border. I was hoping that someone on this board is planning a road-trip across the border and would be willing to pick me up one. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d pay cash up-front $50 + the cost of the device + extra custom rollers + tax. My number is 331859-6766 FOR SALE: Liberty portable sewing machine, model 653 L with foot pedal. Original instruction book but it is in Spanish. Several

different types of feet. Runs good but only needs thread adjusted and I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know how.

I bought a computerized one. Price $50 usd.

Call 106-1160.

FOR SALE: 3 Reebok Steps. Used but in good shape. 2 are the standard reebok steps each with 2 risers. The 3rd is a knockoff but has three levels of risers. Make me an offer.

Email: achartier@admiralsecure.com.

FOR SALE: Bar and Restaurant License.

Available for transfer. Price: $20,000.00 U.S. or best offer. Call Dr. Jim at 331-571-0789. :$17(' Large items wanted for conVLJQPHQW 'XH WR KHDY\ WUDIÂżF DQG H[FHOOHQW location Casi Nuevo Across from 7-11 in Riberas. We have space for large items. just recently sold a large hutch for 12,000 pesos.

Please call us phone more information 1062121 All consignment fees go school for special needs children and Have Hammers carpentry school.

FOR SALE: 7ZR GRZQ ÂżOOHG Q\ORQ MDFNHWV by â&#x20AC;&#x153;Hermanâ&#x20AC;? size large, one navy blue and the other royal blue in excellent condition. Only $30 USD each. Call 106-1160. :$17(' Does anyone know where I can buy a gas grill at Lakeside without having to go to Guadalajara? Email: roglobal@ yahoo.com. :$17(' Price range: $2,000p-$2,500p.

Mini Bar style Fridge. Must be in good running condition.

Call Heinz Stapff: 331-252-1613 or 376765-7123 Email: somosplanes@gmail.com.

FOR SALE: I recently acquired an almost new menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mountain bike and would like to

swap it for a womanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mountain bike. It is a black Benotto. Please email me at learlady010@comcast.net or even better PM me.

FOR SALE: Alberca System. CHLORINE GENERATOR. Pentair Intellichlor, for salt system pool or spa. Used only two seasons. InFOXGHV VHSDUDWH SRZHU FHQWHU ,QWHUQDO EDIĂ&#x20AC;HV free of corrosion. New cost: $800USD. Asking $7,000 pesos. Reasonable offers considered. 333-807-5035 :$17(' Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m looking to purchase a skinny tire road bike, at least 10 speeds. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d also consider a hybrid bike as well. Email: mwg1914@gmail.com FOR SALE: King size Canopy Bed in beige ÂżQLVK ERDVWV D FKDUPLQJ DUFKHG GHVLJQ WKH set includes headboard, footboard and canopy. $4,000 pesos or best offer. Please Call for more details Cell: 333-493-0533.

FOR SALE: 4 Wood and rattan Mexican style dining room chairs. Very solid and very good condition. Price: $2000 pesos for 4.

Call: 766-4105. :$17(' Looking for an instructor to give my wife and me ballroom dancing lessons. Private or small group. Email: michsrose@yahoo.co.uk.

FOR SALE: Green plastic dividers 4 LQFKHV HDFK LQ OHQJWK 7KHUH DUH ÂżYH DQG 1/2 dividers. They are cleaned and ready for your garden. Asking $300 pesos for all. Email bjmiller@prodigy.net.mx or Call: 766-5870.

FOR SALE: Two garden obelisks, silver in colour. One is 2 feet 8 inches tall and the other is 2 feet tall. Ready for your garden climbers.

Two for $200 pesos. Email bjmiller@prodigy.

net.mx or call 766-5870.

FOR SALE: Grass trimmer 13 inch with three prong extension cord. Truper whipper snipper 13 inches with extra line. Used for a short time on very small lawn. Cleaned and ready for new owner. Includes manual and 16 foot three prong extension cord. Paid 847 pesos for trimmer. Asking $600 pesos for both.

Email bjmiller@prodigy.net.mx or Call: 7665870.

FOR SALE: 4 wheel mobility scooter. $12,000 pesos or best offer. Original wholesale $18,000 pesos, retail at Lake Med $28,000 pesos. Details call Bev 376-1062070. :$17(' Want to buy 16 - 20 foot catamaran. Email Rob at robertjgagnon@yahoo. com. Thanks. Or do you know where I can rent one? :$17(' Looking for corded AC tools: sanders, drill, hacksaw, handsaw, pipe wrench, and more. Call Rob at 766-5992 or email robertjgagnon@yahoo.com.

FOR SALE: Shaw Satellite dish and 3 receivers. Paid two years ago $598 US/ These will be available on April 12 as we are moving then. Will hold with a deposit. Price: $300Mx. Call: 376-106-2143. Email: rmolson75@gmail.com.

FOR SALE: 1LFH RIÂżFH GHVN PRGHUQ great shape, Please email for pictures. $1,500 pesos. Email: bstiles1063@gmail.com.

FOR SALE: (TXLSPHQW IRU ZDWHU SXULÂżFDtion purposes. $2000 USD or mxn equivalent.

See it at plaza messico next to Dr. Pinto.

FOR SALE: White Mabe Gas Clothes

Dryer, in Good Condition, used very little, located in Chapala Price: $3500 pesos. Call: 331-174-7133.

FOR SALE: Diffusers for your stove. 8â&#x20AC;?

Heat Master Flame Tamer. A must for slow simmers on Propane Mexican stoves at high altitude!! Provides uniform controlled heating for electric or gas stove tops. Constructed of aluminum steel Changes your pan into a double burner Special air pockets. High Quality Heat Diffuser Maintains Perfect Simmering & Slow Cooking On All Fire Surface. Price: $400. Call: 766-1717.

FOR SALE: Sony CMT-DV2D Micro HiFi System AM/FM Radio, Cassette player, Single CD Player + Remote. Plus 2 Pioneer Model CS903 Speakers with 4 Tone Selector, Norm, Soft 1, Soft 2 & Crisp. Power indicators: db -27 -26 -24 -22 -19 -16 -13 & overload. Each speaker measures 45 cm wide x 25 cm deep x 71 cm high. Great sound & ideal for Garden or Patio setting. Call to arrange for a demo, Tel: (376)765 5085. Asking $75 USD or MXN Peso equivalent.

FOR SALE: I had my vintage Bernina 830 red accessory box stolen while being shipped to Mexico. I will pay $100 dollars US or in pesos for another one. The one I was supposed to get had about 14 feet. Please PM me if you locate one. Email: jausten09@yahoo.com. :$17(' Bench sander. This is a sander where the sanding belt runs vertically and there is a platform perpendicular to the sanding belt.

Saw you in the Ojo 61

Saw you in the Ojo 63