Last week was a stormy one in the U.S., marred by political and racial strife, while the Covid-19 pandemic continued to spread in large sections of the country. Except for two days, when Stew and I felt a welcome respite from all the gloom. On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that "[a]n …
Continue reading Thoughts on a joyful two days, amid the bad news
Some forty years ago, while staying with friends in Minnesota, I was served soybean "bacon" strips, prepared in a microwave by the hostess, who has long pursued a healthy diet, including a reduction in the consumption of meats and other animal-based products.The fake bacon strips, sporting whitish stripes meant to resemble the layers of fat …
Continue reading It looks, cooks and tastes like a burger, but…
Sick and tired of reading, hearing and writing about the Covid-19 pandemic, and now the murder of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis, and the ensuing street protests, I'm going to turn my attention to something that's been bothering me for awhile: The silliness of "Latinx", a neologism that's gained traction over the past few …
Continue reading The politically correct silliness of 'Latinx'
Yesterday Stew and I went to Querétaro for a doctor's appointment and a quickie visit to Costco. In the pre-virus era, we might have combined a Costco raid with a movie and dinner at the Antea shopping center, coffee at a Starbucks, or a walk-through one of the department stores. In other words, a somewhat …
Continue reading Is the smoke clearing regarding the Covid-19 lockdown?
One unexpected, and welcome, outcome of the Covid-19 lockdown, under which we've been living for almost three months, is that it's given me time, and permission, to do some uninterrupted reading, and also let my mind wander, to fantasize even. And so, two weeks ago I finished Erik Larson's "The Splendid and the Vile," a 500-plus-page tome …
Fear is one of the principal threads running through the story of the coronavirus pandemic, and so is the reluctance of many of us to articulate and deal with our fears. Fear induced by the pandemic engulfs the mighty and the lowly, from President Trump down to the working-class John and Jane Does.One suspects that the president's frequently …
Twenty years ago, when I worked for the Chicago Tribune, I maintained contacts with a few genuine Cuban communists, in particular a comely young couple who fervently believed everything Castro had ever said, thought or done. Any attempt at debate with them was about as pointless as arguing with one of Trump's disciples today.Once they …
Continue reading May 20, 1902: Cuba's unresolved independence
We've been in shutdown mode for almost two months, and recently I was reminded of how this weird situation might be getting to me: I couldn't remember which day of the week it was.Being confined at home, except for a few outings to the grocery store and a restaurant once a week, hasn't been terribly …
This year, the vernal equinox, the official beginning of spring, fell on March 19. And by an odd coincidence, on the same day the mayor of San Miguel announced a sweeping lockdown of the municipality, to go into effect the next day, that banned most public activities indefinitely, in response to the coronavirus pandemic.And if …
Continue reading Covid-19 forecast for San Miguel: Hopeful but with a chance of storms still ahead
We haven't had any significant rain here for months, and that, in addition to a heat wave for the past couple of weeks, is making me doubt my own propaganda about San Miguel having the "perfect climate."It's been pretty miserable indeed, temperatures up in the low 90s. Not Baton Rouge, Houston or Phoenix miserable, mind …
Continue reading What is this? Summer, spring, early rains or what?
El Rancho Santa Clara 