| Focus
On Mexico March 2011 Newsletter |
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Click
here or the picture above to see the March community events for
the Lake Chapala Area...
Below is a link to a list of Mexico's most important civic holidays
and traditional festivities during 2011.
See
the complete list of holidays and fiestas for Mexico and the Lake
Chapala area...
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 by
Karen McConnaughey
A new civic organization based in Guadalajara has started a unique
campaign to fight violence and fear in Mexico.
Their answer: positive energy. The group Minuto Por Unidad (One
Minute for Unity) believes the combined goodwill of the people has
the power to change the country for the better and are urging everyone
to…[recite a phrase]… for one minute every night at
8 p.m. Those who wish to participate must say the following: “Vivo
en un pais pacífico, próspero y armonioso, como yo
soy” (I live in country as peaceful, prosperous and harmonious
as I am).
Liliana Reguera, a sociologist and creator of the organization,
insists that it has no religious affiliations and is open to people
of all ages and beliefs. More information about Minuto por la Unidad
can be found on Facebook or by contacting unminutoporlaunidad@gmail.com.
No
matter what country you live in, learn more about "A Minute
for Peace"...
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Wherever you are
in the world you can contribute to the Focus on Mexico Newsletter
(or Our Website).
As a correspondent or just as an individual who wants to write articles
that may be of interest to our readers, your input is more than
welcome.
Companies can contribute, groups can contribute, local Ajijic and
Lake Chapala residents (or want-to-be-residents) -- Whatever you
know and wherever you are, we want your input.
Write us stories we can share about your personal experiences about:
- Hospitals/Doctors, Dentists,
- Good deeds by the Mexican people,
- How living in Lake Chapala has made a difference in your life,
- Cultural Activities and Involvement,
- How you re-invented yourself in Mexico,
- Heart warming stories of good deeds... and so on.
Click
Here and let us know what it is you want to shout about...
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The
Boomers are Comimg
The Boomers are coming! In the 18 years between 1946 and 1964, over
75 million babies were born. That means the first wave of baby boomers
are 65 years old and ready to retire. Some experts forecast a huge
migration south to balmier and less expensive climates. And the
vast majority of them will be heading to Mexico!
Why is this you ask?
Well let's face it, it's difficult for them to afford to
stay in the United States. It's sad, but it's true. The
current breakdown of the U.S. economy has ravaged savings and forced
boomers to figure out their priorities. And propelled them to think
outside the box about how what remains in their IRAs can be stretched
to the fullest.
Learn
the reasons the boomers are heading to Mexico...
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Beatriz Gallagher,
PhD, CNS
Doctor in Integrative Medicine
 Beatriz
G. Gallagher was born in México, and moved to the US after
marring an American citizen. She received her degree as a doctor
in Integrative Medicine Integrative Medicine from Capital University
of Integrative Medicine in Washington DC. She also has a Masters
Degree in Human Nutrition from University of New Haven, in Connecticut,
Diplomate in Chinese Medicine and a Bachelors degree in Science
and Biochemistry from UCONN, Certified by ACAM in Chelation Therapies
and certification in Low Lever Laser. Certification in Drug
Addiction therapies based on Biochemical Markers to correct neuro-transmitter
imbalances (in progress).
Click here to see some of her services...
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Dying
in Mexico
By Victoria Schmidt
She arrived on August 19, 2010, after years of dreaming of living
in Mexico. She died on October 5, 2010, just four days shy of her
63rd birthday. Barb was one of my dearest friends.
Soon after arriving from Canada, she went to a Mexican doctor who
within a few weeks diagnosed a medical problem her doctors in Canada
had missed. She had been diagnosed previously with COPD-stage 4
and had moved down to Chapala with the hopes that the climate and
altitude would ease her breathing problems. It did. She was much
more active in Mexico. But then we received the devastating diagnosis
that she only had a few weeks to live. The specialist in Guadalajara
told her she was "a year too late." Her condition was
inoperable.
Learn more about the important documents that needed if you should die in Mexico...
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Modern
Acupuncture for Pain Relief
By Beatriz Gallagher, PhD, CNS
ETPS (Electro Therapeutic Point Stimulation) is a Neuro-Mechanical
Acupuncture which does not use needles as traditional acupuncture
does. It is the newest form of therapy being used to combat chronic
pain and acute pain. Is a non-invasive therapy applying concentrated
form of low frequency to acupuncture points, to motor/trigger points
and also on contracted muscles with the help of a hand held device,
similar to a TENS machine. This produces an effective and versatile
approach to chronic pain management.
Also
read her article about modern Acupuncture for pain relief...
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National
Laugh at Work Week (or Anywhere!)
April 1-7, 2011
Have
a giggle-fest
By Karen McConnaughey
And while this holiday is mostly about workplace humor, I think
it should be National Laugh Anywhere week, because, positive
humor has absolutely no negative side effects.
There actually is some truth to the old saying, "laughter is
the best medicine." Dr. Lee Berk and Dr. Stanley Tan of Loma
Linda University in California discovered that laughing
lowers blood pressure, reduces stress hormones and boosts immune
function.
If you're an employer, why not take this week to run a multi-tiered
humor-based campaign geared to your employees and clients? If you're
not at work, hand out toys to people you meet.
The first year Bill and I were together during the Christmas season,
he bought some fun plastic toys at the dollar store. He took them
with us when we went to restaurants. He handed them out to our waiters
and bartenders. I could not believe how delighted and laugh-inducing
these cheap little toys were to everyone he gave them to. It was
the start of a wonderful tradition for me.
Laughter
stimulates the release of endorphins, which are your body's natural
relaxants. A good laugh increases productivity, teamwork, employee
retention, and job satisfaction...
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Economic
crystal ball gazing for 2011
Friday, February 04 2011
Guadalajara Reporter
 A
stronger dollar in the second half of the year and growth in Mexico
of around 4.5 percent were among the predictions made by Ernesto
O'Farrill Santoscoy, Actinver's director of strategy, during a January
19 presentation in Ajijic for some 50 expatriates and Mexican attendees.
Commodities, stock, bond and money market directions, world fiscal
and monetary authorities responses to the crisis and how their decisions
have played out were the main focus of O'Farrill's presentation,
which was organized by the Actinver Brokerage House in Ajijic.
Read
the 10 predictions O'Farrill made for 2011...
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When kids misbehave just put them in a plastic ball and float
them out on Lake Chapala Mexico for a while. That will teach them!
~Steven Miller
For all you fun-seekers out there...Yes, you can get a floating
ball ride at $30 pesos for 15 minutes. During carnival week they
are located on the east end of the beach near the Cozumel Restaurant
in Chapala.
Karen's Comment: I wonder if they have a weight limit! I want
to do this! :-D
Photo & comments by Steven Miller…one of the many
talented people who live in the Lake Chapala area. Steven is a retired
US Air Force officer dabbling as a travel writer and photographer.
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The
Irish in Mexico
by Tarra Sabín
This is NOT about St. Patrick's day parties. This is about
an infamous time in North American history, and how two different
countries reacted to it. The other day I mentioned something about
a special kind of St. Patrick's Day observance in México
to an American friend. Startled, that person asked me, "Do
they recognize St. Patrick's Day in México?" The
answer is a resounding YES, and the following explains why. It is
an article I wrote in 2005, which was published in a national English-language
magazine in March 2006 (in time for St. Patrick's Day). It was
the cover story, and won me a national writing award. It is about
the Saint Patrick's Brigade, Irish heroes of the Mexican-American
War. It reinforces why I proudly celebrate my Irish heritage, as
well as my Native American and French heritage.
¡Viva!
Los Colorados Valientes!
By Teresíta (Tarra M.) Sabín ©
"Los Colorados Valientes" or "the brave
redheads" is the way many Mexicans affectionately refer to
the Brigade of Irishmen called "Los San Patricios" - The
Saint Patrick's Brigade - who fought alongside the Mexican people
in every major campaign from 1846 through 1848 during the infamous
Mexican-American War. Of course, they weren't all Irishmen, although
the majority were; nor were they all redheads. So many were, though,
that it became the name they were known by to the Mexican people.
Read
more about the Saint Patrick's Brigade...
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 Spring
Equinox -
March 21, 2011
In many places in Mexico there are spring festivals, festivales
de primavera, that take place to celebrate the beginning of
spring. Children's parades are also popular and if you're
in Mexico on or around the date of the spring equinox you may see
children on parade dressed up as flowers and animals.
Monte Coxala will be having a special celebration with Rafael Bejarano,
who plays a variety of instruments from various cultures of the
world.
A few members of the Focus on Mexico team attended Rafael's
special Spring Equinox Celebration at Monte Coxala Spa de Altura
in San Juan Cosala, Mexico in 2008.
Read
more and see pictures of this event...
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Violent
Deaths in Mexico: Everything Is Not as it Seems
11 August 2010 - The Catalist
 In
recent months the debate about violence in Mexico has heated up
significantly. Most news channels have been giving a broad coverage
on the facts of crime, which are usually focused on the issue of
combating organized crime.
When it comes to human lifes, it is always difficult to speak coldly
about figures. But when we need to know what really is going on,
in terms of crime, we can do nothing but refer to them.
The indicator which measures the violence in a country is the number
of violent deaths per 100,000 people. This indicator has the advantage
of allowing us to compare figures between countries with different
population sizes.
This indicator is highly reliable and comparable between countries
of the world, since in all countries it is necessary to produce
death certificates to account for a death caused for any reason
whatsoever. In the case of violent deaths, there is no possibility
that this indicator, unlike others, observe significant levels of
sub report because violent deaths are registred by law in all countries.
According the available indicators, Mexico as a country has a general
level of 13.3 violent deaths per 100.000 inhabitants, making it
one of the safest countries in Latin America. Levels in Argentina,
Brazil and Venezuela surprised us since they are at high as 16.8,
36.7 and 44.9 deaths per 100,000 population, respectively. Brazil
and Venezuela are two and almost three times more violent than Mexico,
respectively.
Read
more on the debate about violence in Mexico...
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New
Immigration Procedures for entering and leaving Mexico
Recently Mexican immigration has changed the procedures for entering
and exiting the country if you have a FM3 or FM2 visa.
Read
the new procedures...
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'STUFF'
that fascinated me during the last month
Indoor S'Mores
No need to light a campfire to make these easy S'mores. Just
think…chocolate, marshmallows and graham crackers without
the bugs, gathering wood and twigs to make a girl scout fire, and
no sticky hands!
Cook Time: 6 minutes
Total Time: 6 minutes
Ingredients:
- graham crackers
- chocolate bars
- marshmallows
Preparation:
Place graham crackers on baking sheet. Put 1 square of chocolate
on each cracker. Place a marshmallow on each piece of chocolate.
Put in a 350° oven for 4 to 6 minutes, just long enough to melt
marshmallow and soften the chocolate. Remove from oven and put another
graham cracker on top to make a sandwich.
And, a bit of advice for my friends in Mexico: You must have American
marshmallows; those Mexican ones won't get soft roasted on the bonfire.”
Who knew??? And, if you're having trouble finding marshmallows,
Wal-Mart has them for $10 pesos a bag!
Source: southernfood.about.com
Problems with your
Eyeglasses?
Clear nail polish will keep a loose eyeglass screw in line: Tighten
it, then dab polish across the top for a longer-lasting fix. If a
screw has already gone missing, replace it with an earring for a temporary
fix.
 Protecting
Grains
To discourage insects such as weevils from setting up home in
your grains and legumes, try this age-old trick: Drop a dried chile
pepper or bay leaf into each jar. These colorful plants are nontoxic
and have natural insect-repelling properties.
Source: Marthastewart.com:
How to Ripen Avocados
Quickly
Firstly, to set the record straight, the plural of avocado is
avocados, not avocadoes as I see this spelling
often in my research.
We have a Hass avocado tree in our yard. It produces a ton of
avocados now and, because of that, we recently ran our own experiment
on how best to ripen them. We never wanted to try it before because
we didn't want to waste any of the precious avocados we bought
from the store. By the way, we checked yesterday...avocados here
are selling at less than $29 pesos per kilo (approximately $2.35
for 4-5 avocados). Regarding ripening, we haven't always been happy
with the brown-bag results that seem to be the most popular!
So here's what we did. We picked all the fruit at the same time
and used each one of these suggestions to see which did the best
job. I think you'll be surprised at the results. We certainly were:
- Wrap in Paper Bag or Newspaper:
- Add Ripe Fruits
- Bury in Flour
- Place in Windowsill
- Use a Microwave
If
you want to find out our test results, click here...
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Mexican
Cheese Substitutes
 Have
you ever taken a look at the selection of Mexican cheeses in the
market and wondered what the difference was between them and what
we shop for in the states or Canada?
Well, our friend Linda Rudisell Hines took an article from Mexico
Insights about Mexican vs American cheeses and summarized it for
all her friends as a guide in deciding which Mexican cheese will
be best suited for your recipe.
See
what she has put together...
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Bringing
Prescription Medications into Mexico via the post office.
Many people have asked us how to get their prescription medication
into Mexico once they already live here. We have just received the
following email from one of our alumni who successfully managed
to do this. There is no guarantee of course, but if your meds are
paid for in the U.S. and you otherwise have to purchase them here
from your own pocket, it is worth a try.
"Hola Marie,
Just wanted to let you know we were successful (at least once so
far) in getting Tom's meds from the VA shipped down to us. We had
the VA ship the meds to our daughter's address in New York and then
she shipped them down to us using U.S. mail - priority mail and
addressed to our home address here at El Dorado; the custom's form
(2976) must be completed and attached to the package. The package
took about 5 ½ weeks (better than nothing). We'll keep our
fingers crossed for the shipments to follow.
Regards, Dee"
Thanks Dee. Hopefully this will help the next person.
Marie Dwyer-Bullock
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 Afraid
to cross the Mexican Border
By Karen McConnaughey
Are you afraid to cross the Mexican Border? Did you know that millions
of foreign travelers visit Mexico every year without any problems
on their vacation? Did you know that Bill and I have lived here
over seven years and crossed the border at least five times and
have never had one problem?
Learn more about why is it safe to cross into Mexico....
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The
Monthly Verb Column Love
by Tere Ruiz
February is the month of Love and Friendship… and if we hadn't
run our Special Edition in February, you would have known all about
Love in Spanish! We decided, however, that it doesn't hurt to
know about love no matter what month we're in.
So
this month, we are introducing you to the verb AMAR...
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TOP
reasons for you to read the Focus on Mexico blog
 Karen
writes about her friend Kitt in "So Many Things to Do in Lake
Chapala"
"I heard from my friend Kitt again. She and her husband
Bill live in El Chante on the shores of the beautiful Lake Chapala.
I love her spirit, her sense of community and her active lifestyle.
Thought you would like to see some of the ways she occupies her
time. I honestly believe if you get bored down here, it's your own
fault!"
Read
what else Kitt finds to do at Lake Chapala Mexico...
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