Félix, our jack-of-all-trades assistant at our ranchito, comes from a dirt-poor family plagued by illiteracy and other problems. Felix himself only reached the sixth-grade before going off on his own to work at whatever he could find, including a stint doing manual labor in Texas.Yet if you were to dismiss him as a pitiable dumb …
Continue reading As mass shootings become ever bloodier, American politicians keep shooting blanks
After four or five days of one- to one-and-half-inch rains the ranch is swamped and glorious.The same over-grazed, almost scalped land we found ten years ago now is covered with wildflowers. Amid the stolid agaves, which not even a hurricane could budge, the delicate wildflowers constantly dance and sway to their own music at the …
Birds may have small brains, but they have it all over people when it comes to colors. While engaging in one of those mindless and expensive habits that keeps the U.S. economy going—wandering around a Lowe's home improvement center looking for nothing in particular—I ran into a bright-blue metal bird feeder to replace the old …
Los Rodríguez is one butt-ugly town, particularly if you don't like topes, or speed bumps, and more particularly if you've been driving for hours and this miserable place is all that stands between you and your warm bed at home.I have no idea how the town came to be. Apparently one day the Rodríguez clan …
Won't someone please inject somefacts and figures into the health care debate? The more the debate trudges on in Washington over health care reform, also known as the campaign to repeal Obamacare, the less I understand even the basic contours of the ruckus. So confused am I that I woke up this morning thinking about Ross Perot, …
Continue reading Ross Perot's approach is what we need to break the muddle over health care reform
There aren't many sure shots in life.Medical care in Mexico is not among them. The constant chatter among San Miguel expats about medical care reminds me of the fleet of old American cars cautiously sputtering, wheezing and farting along the streets of Havana.Invariably there is something wrong with one of them and opinions abound, expressed with much …
The differences are legion, but respect forthe rule of law may be the most telling Whenever Stew and I travel to a so-called First World country, returning to Mexico, our home for almost 12 years, is invariably a shock. The taxi ride from the Mexico City North bus station to the airport, or vice-versa, is an …
"The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago.The second best time is now." (Sent to me by Anita, a friend in San Antonio)When we bought the ranch nine years ago, the first thing Stew and I did was put a fence around it. We'd been warned …
Our solar electric system went on the fritz andthat brought us some unexpected blessings Our house is "off the grid"—the only external input is a refill of propane gas every two or three months—and the system worked well until last Friday afternoon when our solar electricity rig crashed, taking down with it all appliances and electronic …
Is it cynical to attend churchmainly to meet other people?While in the U.S. church attendance continues to decline, during our eleven years in San Miguel we've noticed that English-speaking churches here seem to be growing almost as fast as restaurants and art galleries.No doubt previous religious affiliations point some expats to certain denominations, but I …
El Rancho Santa Clara 