September 16, 2007
First of all, I want to thank all of you who have been kind enough to email me with your positive comments regarding my blog (the address is at the end of this column). It is always so nice to receive compliments, especially from folks who aren’t even here!
Lots of happenings in my life this past week, contrary to the last few. It was one of those rare times when there was something on my agenda every day, passing through the remembrances of September 11th and ending with the Jewish New Year celebrations - very exciting indeed!
Saturday the 15th, a whole bunch of us - new Mexican citizens and "foreigners" - are going to celebrate El Grito at Carmen Porras' El Arrayán. We've been told she's going to have mustaches and sombreros and all the accoutrements for all her guests. Should be a lot of fun - and great food. I'll tell you all about it next week.
I was moved when I heard that U.S. Ambassador Garza said "Some have suggested it is no longer appropriate to commemorate 9-11; that six years have passed and that we should now let it go. I say we must remember history, to avoid repeating it." The Jewish people have been saying that for the last 60 years…
Getting back to the here and now, first there was the «excitement» of having to drive around town with what seemed to be all the streets either totally closed off or reduced to one lane. You can just imagine the traffic jams that caused.
What surprised me is that during all my comings and goings, I did not see a single workman near any of the piles of cobble stones that were blocking the lanes, ready to be installed.
Once again, I marveled at the wisdom of our Public Works Department who decided to do all that work, all over town, all at the same time - in the middle of the day, when traffic is at its heaviest.
On the other hand, I shouldn’t be surprised considering that they undertake similar projects in the height of the high season, seriously affecting the businesses that depend on passing traffic during those months of the year for their income - and cushion for the meager months.
Once last week’s issue of the Tribune had been put to bed, I had dinner with a most interesting newcomer to PV, an American lady who’s lived in Guanajuato for the last two years, and who -I hope- will become a regular contributor to our paper in the fall. We went to Joe Jack’s and scoffed on what are still the best fish ‘n chips in town. But you’ve got to check out their new menu format; it’s one of those folded-up types, with lots and lots of fun information and drawings inside (apart from the menu of dishes per se), and they’re meant for you to take home. We sure got a kick out of it.
Thursday, I figured I would return to my bank,
Six days later, I received a phone call from Santander's main branch on Mexico Ave. telling me my card was there, and why had I not gone to pick it up? Go figure.
Thursday was Charity Bingo night (see separate note) and Friday I got together with Maximiliano IV’s Regent with whom I had dinner at Espresso - excellent food and service, as always, and super stimulating conversation. Afterwards, the Regent and I went over to Starbucks for that decadent dessert only they offer: the Triple Chocolate Cake. Ohmygoodness!
By that time, I had been at the Benito Juarez Parking Plaza three times already, and I ended up joking with one of the attendants about the fact that never, since the place opened a year ago, have I ever been there that at least one -if not all- of the machines wasn’t out of order.
These times, I got to witness a number of the possible permutations and combinations. One time, it was the ticket dispensing machine, then it was all three machines (including the payment one) and the last time, it was only the payment machine that was fuera de servicio. There was a superb, huge moth-type butterfly just sitting there, like a decorative touch to the out-of-order sign. Of course, I did not have a camera with me, so I can’t share its beauty with you.
Oh yes, the big highlight: After two years, I finally made it to the Vallarta Zoo! I heard that there were two panther and two tiger cubs there, at that perfect age when they can still be handled by human strangers without reacting in a nasty fashion. If you haven’t visited the place yet, I highly recommend it. Wear comfortable walking shoes and bring plenty of bug repellent with you! They’re charging $60. Pesos per person regardless of age, and you can also buy all sorts of souvenirs, snacks, drinks, food for the animals (good idea!), etc.
Although I’m very ambivalent when it comes to zoos, I do applaud the fact that their animals are obviously well fed and cared for, though I do believe that they should invest a little more in providing those creatures with some sort of diversion so they do not bore themselves to death in their barren cages…
On the way out there, we noticed something extremely disconcerting: El Nogalito set up a humungous sign by the entrance to that site that says "Botanical Gardens", with a huge arrow pointing left. What chutzpah! And so confusing to visitors who have heard about our real, original, huge and ever more beautiful Botanical Gardens over the last two years. I hope the owners of the latter have that sign taken down A.S.A.P.
Another "new beginning" last week was the presentation of the Tribuna de la Bahía's new format. That is our sister publication, the Spanish language daily whose billboards you might have seen all around town.
The new format is interesting, definitely more modern. Now all they have to do is find a way to print their photos -and ours- in a way that they don't come out all black...
I've also been told that now the new directors will be setting their sights on the Tribune. We'll see what innovations they come up with.
Not surprisingly when we take world actuarial figures into account, there’s been an increasing amount of internet and other media items directed to the growing baby boomer market. I came across one in particular which I would like to share with you. It was sent to me by gimundo.com, entitled "For Seniors, Bad News Isn’t So Bad":
"OK, so a lot of stuff about getting older isn’t so great. Your joints are creaky, your back hurts, and those horn-rimmed bifocals aren’t exactly the height of fashion.
But you know what the good part is? The older you get, the less any of these little things will bother you. The big things, too – according to a new study, the more liver spots you have, the less sleep you’ll lose over all the atrocities of the day.
In the study, psychologists rounded up a group of participants ranging in age from 18 to 81, and hooked them up to electrodes that measured their brain’s responses to visual stimuli. As images ranging from adorable puppies to horrendous car wrecks flashed across a screen, the psychologists measured each participant’s reaction by tracking his brain wave activity.
For the younger members of the group, brain activity went into overdrive each time they saw a negative image. No surprise there – who do you think are the people buying tickets to all those blood-and-guts horror movies?
But among the stately elder members of the study group, even the most horrific images barely registered on the scale. When we reach a certain point in our lives, it seems, we learn how to let all the bad stuff slide off our shoulders, and just sit back and relax.
Sure, there are always exceptions (your mother-in-law, perhaps?), but for most of us, once we reach the golden years, it’s all good from there."
So don’t forget to do your crosswords and sudoku regularly, dear reader. Keep your brain active!
In the meantime, L’Shana Tova to all our Jewish readers, and a most enjoyable week to all. Hasta luego. pvmom04@yahoo.com
"Whatever you do will be insignificant, but it is very important that you do it." - Mahatma Gandhi
posted by Anna Reisman @ 4:24 PM
1 Comments:
I enjoy reading your column in the Tribune. I was disapointed, however, to hear about your report on the Vallarta Zoo. I toured the zoo in June and was appalled at the dirty water, unkempt pen areas and the confined spaces for the largest animals. The poor bear was in a very small cage. The opening behind him to move to the other small space had a piece of barb wire sticking straight up. I was very sad to leave the zoo knowing that the animals were being so poorly kept. I have only been exposed to American Zoos, and the Vallarta Zoo was in very sharp contrast.
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