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...in focus
is Focus on Mexico's
informative and fun newsletter about living in Mexico on your own terms. You will
be receiving it the first Friday of every month. We decided to send it on
Friday so you'll have the whole weekend to take your time and enjoy the
articles and digest the news. We hope you like ...in focus. If you
have any questions, or would like to see more articles on a certain subject,
please write to us at newsletterteam@focusonmexico.com.
In this issue:
- Best Places to Retire to That You've Never Heard Of
- Making a Case for Travel Insurance
- NEW RESIDENTIAL SALES (UNITED STATES) IN SEPTEMBER 2010
- The Man on Fire by Jose Clemente Orozco
- Spanish 101: Old, Big and Young
- Why 'EE. UU.' for 'Estados Unidos'?
- Chicharron - Crunchy Botanas
- Centennial Anniversary of the Mexican Revolution
- Bicentennial Song for Mexico 2010
- Restrain Your Pets...Please!
- 365 days & counting: Pan Am Games clock unveiled
- Get motivated for change in 2011
- The Agony and Ecstasy of Writing By Mark Sconce
- Balloon Festival in Ajijic By Walt & Nancy Heine
- Karen shares "stuff" in Karen's Korner...Such a fun month with lots of interesting ‘stuff’ to share!
Best
Places to Retire to That You've Never Heard Of
ABC News, May 13, 2010
Homes,
Weather, Culture Draw Boomers Off the Beaten Path to Ajijic
It's not easy to pronounce (hint: Ah-hee-heek), but American retirees love this
quaint Mexican village set between lush mountains and a sparkling lake.
"It has a spring-like climate year round, it's not too far from Guadalajara, and it's
pretty," says Margaret Wylde, CEO of retirement consulting firm ProMatura
Group. Because there are many Americans already living there, the town offers
most amenities you could find at home. Retirees join one of the dozens of
English-language clubs ranging from the booming Lake Chapala Society, with its
English-language library, to the American Legion or the Lakeside Little
Theater.
"They have everything that an American might need," says Daniel
Prescher, editor of special projects at International Living magazine.
"You can get a can of Campbell
soup if you really need one."
At the same time, Ajijic and neighboring San Miguel de Allende do not get
flooded by drunk college students during spring break, and they also offer
cheap medical services -- which local experts say rival U.S. standards.
The Mexico
retirement boom is only likely to grow: the Mexican government recently
launched a national initiative to attract more foreign retirees and is working
with developers to build more senior communities.
NEW
RESIDENTIAL SALES IN SEPTEMBER 2010
Sales of new single-family houses in September 2010 were at a seasonally
adjusted annual rate of 307,000, according to estimates released jointly today
by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
This is 6.6 percent (+/-16.9%)* above the revised August rate of 288,000, but
is 21.5 percent (+/-13.3%) below the September 2009 estimate of 391,000.
The median sales price of new houses sold in September 2010 was $223,800; the
average sales price was $257,500. The seasonally adjusted estimate of new
houses for sale at the end of September was 204,000. This represents a supply
of 8.0 months at the current sales rate.
The
Man on Fire by Jose Clemente Orozco
By Tere Ruiz
Art allows the expression of ideas, emotions, perceptions and feelings.
Allowing your spirit to express itself through any kind of visual, linguistic
or sonorous resource, takes you to a point of fullness. Jose Clemente Orozco
put together his ideals, beliefs, philosophy and much more, to express them
through the visual arts, painting magnificent images and murals that have
placed him in a privileged place as one of the most renowned artists worldwide.
Jose Clemente Orozco was part of the Mexican Muralist Movement in a
Post-revolutionary Mexico. In those times, a new culture was being defined in Mexico, a time
in which the Industrial Revolution was making an impact in Mexican history as
well as the rest of the world.
Orozco’s paintings reflect the society of this culture, the impact of the
Conquest by the Spaniards and the effect of the Industrial Revolution; in other
words the social history of Mexico, and at the same time his own predictions of
what would come in the future, all this from the point of view of his personal
philosophy, opinions and political convictions. The drive behind his artistic
expression was the images of his people’s self-destruction.
Read more about The Man on Fire by Jose Clemente Orozco...
Centennial
Anniversary of the Mexican Revolution
It's 2010, and did you realize that Mexico is celebrating its dual
bicentennial-centennial? The government has been planning the festivities for
the past four years. As you know from reading this newsletter and other
publications, Mexico
celebrated the 200th anniversary of its Independence
on September 16, 2010. On November 20, it will celebrate the 100th anniversary
of its Revolution.
The national committee to organize celebrations for both events was created by
decree in March 2006 by President Vicente Fox, after Congress declared that the
year 2010 should be dedicated equally to both anniversaries.
In March 2007, the entire year was proclaimed by President Felipe Calderón as
"Año de la Patria,"
or "Year of the Nation." During that speech, Calderón called upon Mexico to use the upcoming anniversaries to
reflect on where the country has been and to think about what kind of Mexico
descendents will inherit in the future. He said the vision of the insurgents of
the War of Independence was forward, not backward, so every celebration of
these past events must consider the future as well.
Read more about Centennial Anniversary of the Mexican
Revolution...
Bicentennial
Song for Mexico 2010
Lyrics by
Jaime Lopez
Music by Aleks Syntek
Sung by Aleks Syntek
"El futuro es milenario"
Nacimos para cantar
Nacimos para bailar
Nacimos en el lugar
Del Cielito lindo
Más siglos para el amor
Más siglos para el color
Más siglos de una canción
Serán bienvenidos
Orgullo que se comparte
De México a todas partes
El alma vuela y revuela
En la gran celebración
La plaza se va llenando
Lo bueno está comenzando
Unidos por lo que viene
Read the entire
Bicentennial song for Mexico 2010 as well as the English version..
Making
a Case for Travel Insurance
By Clay McAdam
I don’t know how many are like me when they travel and it comes to purchasing
insurance. For many years I traveled without having travel
cancellation/interruption /medical insurance, secure in the knowledge that I
would never need it. In recent years I began to purchase travel insurance
thinking to myself what a waste of money it is, but I bought it anyway, mainly
at the insistence of my wife.
This year saw many people stranded all over North America and Europe, and other
areas as well, when the volcano in Iceland blew and disrupted the
travel plans of many thousands of people. Everybody has heard a story of
someone who was stranded and ended up paying astronomical hotel bills that the
hotel industry saw fit to charge the unfortunates who were caught stranded. My
wife and I were some of the unfortunates who had travel plans disrupted in
April when we were trying to fly from Mexico
to Belgium via Atlanta, Georgia,
U.S.A., and London, England.
We had flown from Guadalajara, Mexico to Atlanta
with no problem. The fortunate part was that we had decided on an overnight
stop in Atlanta to stay with my niece before
going on to London and Belgium the
following day.
Learn more aboout why travel insurance is important...
Dogs
and Cars - Restrain Your Pets...Please!
.jpg "Who is the Rescuer")
by Jean Sutherland
A friend of mine with a beautiful pit bull was driving to a friend’s house for
an afternoon playdate. Her dog in the back of the car was clearly excited as
she knew that a ride in the car meant afternoon fun.
Unfortunately on the way there the car was in an accident and hit almost head
on. Due to the fact that the car was not travelling that fast the friend was
fine as her air bag deployed and saved her from serious injury.
Unfortunately the dog was not as lucky. She was thrown from the back seat right
into the windshield and died almost immediately. This is becoming a scenario
often seen across North America and the sad
part is it was preventable.
A car travelling at 24
miles an hour, hit head on will propel a dog straight
into the windshield with death almost a certainty. We've all seen the TV news
spots where manufacturers test drive cars into a wall, showing in great detail
what happens to a human inside the vehicle, even with air bags deploying.
Read more about how a restraint can save your dog...
Chicharron
Crunchy Botanas
By Tere Ruiz
One of my favorite Mexican foods is chicharron, which is a fried spongy, crunchy
botana (snack) that can be made from pork skin or from flour.
First of all, I have to say that chicharron (singular) is what you call the
fried pork skin, and chicharrones (plural) is what you normally call the ones
made from flour. The difference is because when you buy fried pork skin, you
normally get a piece, as big as you want, and you buy it by weight, normally in
a butcher shop or in the market or supermarket.
On the other hand, you normally find the chicharrones in two different styles—
the home-made ones that you normally find in street stands or in the markets to
which you add lemon juice, salt and salsa. And the second, the commercial ones,
come in bags under a well-known commercial brand that also manufactures pork
skin chicharrones (cut in pieces) and potato chips among others.
Learn more about chicharrones...
Spanish
101: Old Big & Young
By Tere Ruiz
Mayor means:
* Oldest as in: “Mi hermana mayor es cantante.” “My oldest sister is a singer.”
* Biggest meaning intensity as in:
1. “mayor ambicion” biggest ambition
2. “mayor deseo” biggest wish
* Mathematics: “>” as in “2 > 1”
(is greater than)
1. 2 > 1: “2 es mayor que 1”
“2 is greater than 1”
* Elder as in: John es un hombre mayor. John is an elder.
* Adult as in: “Debes respetar a tus mayores.” “You should respect adults.”
(You should respect your elders)
Mas grande (regarding size):
* “Su casa es mas grande” “His house is bigger”
* “Su casa es la mas grande.” “His house is the biggest”
Learn more about the differences among Old, Big and Young in
Spanish...
Why 'EE. UU.' for 'Estados Unidos'?
Question: Why is the
abbreviation for Estados Unidos written EE. UU. instead of simply E.U.?
Answer: The double E and double U indicate that the letter represents a plural.
Some other common Spanish abbreviations, among them FF. AA. for Fuerzas Armadas
(Armed Forces) and AA. EE. for Asuntos Exteriores (Foreign Affairs), do the
same thing. (Also in very common use are the abbreviations without the spaces
and/or periods, such as EEUU, FFAA and AAEE.) Such a doubling of letters isn't
done for all plurals; ONU is the abbreviation for la Organización de las
Naciones Unidas, the United Nations.
We do the same doubling of letters in English in a few cases for words of Latin
origin.
For example, the abbreviation for "page" is "p.," while for
"pages" it's "pp." (The same abbreviations are used in
Spanish for página and páginas.) And the abbreviation for
"manuscript" is "MS" or "ms," while in the plural
it's "MSS" or "mss." (Again, the same abbreviations are
used in Spanish.)
You will in Spanish occasionally see the abbreviations EUA (for Estados Unidos
de América) and even USA
for Estados Unidos, but much less commonly than EE. UU. and its variations.
Get
motivated for change in 2011
It’s that time of the year again…where we start thinking of our resolutions for
the New Year…yes, it’s almost here.
Remember - taking on too much too fast is why some people fail their New Year's
resolutions. It's important to be realistic, specific and accountable.
- Set smaller goals with
smaller steps...baby steps! Don't jump into a diet; resolve to change small
aspects of your eating patterns; a donut for breakfast only one day a
week; cappuccino every other week day. Smoking "one less cigarette a
day, increase it every week. Write down your goals and reward yourself for
making the change...
- Frame your goals positively.
As one web site puts it: "Despite the proven health risks of certain
habits, such as smoking, thinking about a habit in the negative will not
help you nix it. Studies have shown that it's hard to get motivated about
avoiding cancer, but easier to think about smelling better and saving money
as reasons to quit smoking."
- Look at the pros and cons. Make a list of the benefits
and costs. It helps
to be clear about what you want to change and why.
- Get a resolutions buddy who
can help you keep track of what you want to do. If you can find someone else
who is working towards the same goal you are, it helps to keep the
motivation going. That's why 12-step programs like Alcoholics Anonymous
and even Weight Watchers are so successful. You have support and there's
someone there keeping you accountable.
- Be patient with yourself and
don't be overanxious. Don't make a long list...so choose somewhere between
three and five things to change. Don't set yourself up for failure from
the first step! And change the word for resolution which indicates a
'pass-fail' ultimatum...go for a goal!
The Agony and
Ecstasy of Writing
By Mark Sconce
O Writers, O you chosen ones!
And Poetasters on the run,
As I describe your agony
And then perhaps your ecstasy.
Come closer now, sit next to me...
Read the entire insightful poem...
Balloon
Festival in Ajijic
.jpg "Balloon Festival 2")
By
Walt & Nancy Heine
If you want to see the videos and more photos
that Walt & Nancy posted, got to their blog View from
the Terraza.
Years ago Walt went to the Albuquerque Balloon Festival, and was in awe of the
size and intricate design of many of the balloons. So when we moved to Ajijic
three years ago, we heard that the Saturday prior to Dia de Independencia,
which is 16 September, they have a local balloon festival. So we had to go
check it out and have tried to go every year since. We went this year again and
thoroughly enjoyed it. Unlike the hot air balloons in Albuquerque, these balloons are totally
different. They are not powered by propane gas, nor do they carry people. They
range in size from a few feet across to over 20 feet. The biggest
difference is they are not made of fabric but simply tissue paper. The source
for the hot air is a wire ring wrapped in cloth that is soaked in kerosene and
then lit. This actually works, and the balloons can attain a tremendous height,
in fact, we have seen them go well above the mountains behind our house and
these mountains are 3,500
feet above the lake. The greatest amount of excitement
though is the fact that you have an open flame contained within a balloon made
of tissue paper. You guessed it, a very flammable situation. Even though the
balloons are made of tissue paper the designs rival those of Albuquerque and the size may not be as big
but some do get as large as 20 or 25 feet in height or even diameter. So they are
pretty awesome. It is a unique event to our village, and of course you can buy
all kinds of food and drinks, cotton candy and palletas (fruit popsicles).
Read more about Walt and Nancy's great adventure...
365
days & counting: Pan Am Games clock unveiled
Friday, October 15 2010, Guadalajara Reporter
City and state dignitaries have unveiled
a giant clock that counts down the days, hours, minutes and seconds until the
start of the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara.
The clock at the Minerva Glorieta was revealed in dramatic fashion Thursday as
part of a mini-festival to celebrate one year before the games begin in
earnest. (They actually start on October 13.)
A futuristic clock that changes color stands next to the Minerva statue. For
the next year, it will count down the days to the Pan American Games, which
start on October 13, 2011.
Local politicians have been the subject of stinging press criticism over delays
in selecting the sites for the athletes village and athletics stadium but Games
Organizing Committee President Mario Vasquez was upbeat this week, noting that
preparations were going well.
“There’s no turning back now,” concluded Vasquez, a newspaper magnate who is
also president of the Mexican Olympic Committee.
A meeting of all the organizers takes place on October 19 in Acapulco, when any final problems are
expected to be ironed out.
Organizers may be keeping a careful eye on the Commonwealth Games taking place
in Mumbai, India. Similar in size and scope to
the Pan American Games, this sports competition includes member countries of
the British Commonwealth and has been plagued
by infrastructure problems from the outset. The Mumbai games were almost
canceled when the ceiling in the weight-lifting arena collapsed, as did a
footbridge in the days leading up to the opening ceremony. Ticket sales have
been chaotic and many events have played out to empty arenas.
Hopefully nothing similar will happen with the Guadalajara games. Eleven of the 15 new
sporting complexes are already complete and the remainder are well on their
way, giving everyone reason to be cautiously optimistic.
The standout venues appear to be the new 2,775-capacity tennis arena in the
Parque Metropolitano that has 12, top quality courts and opens Saturday with
exhibition games featuring Andre Agassi and Jim Courier. The new 2,500-capacity
baseball stadium in Lagos de Moreno is another venue that is guaranteed to sell
out.
The remaining doubts, as Vazquez has noted, are the athletics stadium and the
athletes’ village. Both have undergone a number of location changes but are now
under construction.
Up north, Torontonians will also be keeping a watchful eye on Guadalajara knowing that four years later it
will be their turn to host the Pan American Games.
In other games related news, Nissan will provide 400 vehicles to transport
athletes and officials from 42 nations around the city during next year’s Pan
American Games.
Noted Nissan Mexicana General Director Jose Muñoz, “The success of a games
depends on the three primordial things: the athletes’ village, the diet of the
competitors and the transportation.”
Nissan Mexicana have also obtained the naming rights to the new gymnastics
stadium, which will be called the Estadio Panamericano de Gimnasia Nissan.
Meanwhile, volunteers for the games are still being accepted for a range of
roles. For details, go to www.guadalajara2011.org.mx/eng and click on the
“Volunteers” link at the top.
Such a fun month with
lots of interesting ‘stuff’ to share. Hope you enjoy.
Printer Ink & Fonts
I just read in the recent September Reader's Digest "Save printer ink by
using the Times New Roman or Calibri fonts. You can get up to 27% more pages
per ink cartridge, according to Consumer Reports ShopSmart. Another study also
recommends Century Gothic and Ecofont (a typeface with holes in the
letters.)." Wow! Guess I'll have to give up my favorite Arial font! I used
TNR on this document.
Source: Reader’s Digest
Quick Flower Arranging – Even I can
do it!
Who says you have to master the art of floral design to create pleasingly
balanced arrangements? Use a toothbrush holder as a vase and you'll achieve
perfect symmetry every time. Simply fill the toothbrush holder with water and
tuck one or two stems into each hole. Then take a step back and admire your
handiwork. You’ll be amazed how good it looks. Try it!
Source: Marthastewart.com
The Benefits of Drinking Water
This is one of those emails going around. I found several naturopathic web
sites that agreed with this, but didn’t find anything on allopathic web sites.
Drinking water at the
correct time maximizes its effectiveness on the Human
body:
- 2 glasses of water after waking up - helps activate
internal organs
- 1 glass of water 30 minutes before a meal - helps digestion
- 1 glass of water before taking a bath - helps lower
blood pressure
- 1 glass of water before going to bed - avoids stroke
or heart attack
Drinking water is good
for you no matter when you do it!
I have such fun with
this stuff!