In a few days, I'll be heading down to the central highlands of Mexico for a look at San Miguel de Allende, and Guanajuato.  With about a week in each location, I hope to return to Colorado with a better sense of whether a life there is practical for me (if even conceivable). 

I expect San Miguel to be a bit over-gringofied with aging wealthier retirees, many of whom have not fully embraced Mexican customs, language, or culture.  A bit precious, like Santa Fe or Carmel perhaps.  There are, however, people there to whom I may relate, including an excentric artist who has created an indulgent compound and exuberant life with his partner of many years.  In fact, I plan to help this artist, Anado, prepare his latest gallery and studio venue for its formal opening a little over a week from now. 

Guanajuato on the other hand I expect to offer little concession to a non-Mexican.  Little English spoken, and few accomodations to our bland homogenized Northern sensibilities.  But there too, I have identified a number of possible like-minded people who I look forward to meeting and learning from.  What led them to choose this life, and how has that worked out for them so far?  I have arranged to stay at a little apartment that is part of a U.S. guy's effort to develop a little eco-farm complex near the center of town.

I am aprehensive about this journey into an unfamiliar area, with some risks to person and property.  I do not travel well, no matter what the location.  But I am going to look for the bright features that might suggest a good alternative to the descent into darkness and dysfunction that is occuring all around us here in the U.S.  While the ugly side of this more Northern American life is getting to be harder all the time to disregard, I am going to try to follow the example of 19th century author and explorer Francis Hopkinson Smith, who in his book A White Umbrella in Mexico said of his extensive exploration and Mexican experiences, "I have delighted my soul with the swaying of the lilies in the sunlight, the rush of the roses crowding over mouldy walls, the broad-leaved palms cooling the shadows, and have wasted none of my precious time searching for the lizard and the mole crawling at their roots."

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Life seemed so grand until it wasn't

Life seemed so grand until it wasn't

I am finally realizing that after all our wandering around the United States, the idea of trying to relocate and find a decent new home is akin to rearranging the proverbial deck chairs on the Titanic.  The chairs might be comfortable, but with the advanced state of disease and continuing deterioration afflicting our national politics, society, and economy (and all the areas that cascade from there), we'd might just be selecting a new viewing spot for an impending catastrophe. 

I'm not a good candidate to try and arrange a 'lifeboat' survivalist encampment.  I want to enjoy some urban amenities - walk or bike to the market, tie into the infrastructure of services, and experience some cultural richness.  I do know a few people who are increasingly self-reliant in the face of anticipated WTSHTF devolution, but that's not for me. Not at this age, and I have little tolerance for the hard work, discomfort, and discipline that way of life demands. 

Many in our country embrace the notion of 'American exceptionalism' to reassure themselves in a way similar to the Mexicans' "Como Mexico no hay dos".  However, I believe the Mexicans include in their statement an implit acknlowledgement of all that is good and bad.  Not the best in every respect, but indeed, there is no other like it.  I find it refreshing that the Mexicans have no illusions about any supposed superiority or moral/political/religious high ground.  They live embracing all that life offers, accepting what is denied, and have a relationship with mortality that rivals that of a highly realized Tibetan Buddhist. Their disdain for all three major political parties can be summed up in a little cajita scene I picked up in Merida some years ago.  

Representing three political parties of Mexico

Our tendency to imagine ourselves in a state of perpetual superiority here will eventually give way to a recognition of the harsh realities that are unfolding around us, and I anticipate a lot of people reacting badly when that occurs.  There remains much to be proud of, but the shame and horror associated with what is being contrived for us by people grasping for or wielding authority is increasingly worrisome.  Reassurances of our great promise and immunity from harsh adversity are ultimately as effective as a little cardboard evergreen air freshener hung in a well-used outhouse.

There is also the matter of diminishing time remaining on the planet for us both.  I have another little cajita that cautions me about obsessive hoarding of assets and delaying potentially expensive iterative life changes.



I hope the upcoming visit to the Mexico central highlands yield a sufficient level of confidence to finally follow through with a long-delayed movement forward.  It seems we have really worn out our welcome here in the North.  And with a mid-day high here in Colorado of about twenty degrees today, and low eighties most days down there, the weather por lo menos should be an improvement...

Mexicans may be skeptical of all things official,
but they are not lacking national pride.

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Going on month three of six of this sort of scene...

We were discussing our situation here this morning - the situation where we are stuck in a place we don't enjoy (especially in winter) and long overdue for attempting to live in Mexico. Over the preceding several years, we have considered relocating elsewhere in the U.S., perhaps establishing a base and then exploring south of the border, but after visiting and considering numerous seemingly pleasant and promising domestic locations and finding no level of commitment to giving any of them a try, it really appears that Mexico will have to be explored first. If that's unsatisfactory longer term, we'll have to return and see what we can come up with.   Of course, there's also Costa Rica and Nicaragua...

Every journey begins with a single step.

I'm headed down soon to spend a week in San Miguel de Allende, followed by a week in Guanajuato. I expect that after my return to Colorado I will be engaged in downsizing and preparing to place the remaining contents of the house in storage in anticipation of finding a rental in either of those two places or Merida, which continues to hold our interest.

I'm going to begin placing more frequent updates here as this situation develops...



Color!  Life!  No Tebow!



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"You can never get enough of what you don't need to make you happy." - Eric Hoffer

Only seven more no-shopping days remaining...

It was about ten years ago that I completely stopped shopping for anything related to Christmas, except perhaps a box of cards at the dollar store and a few extra ingredients for Christmas cookies or a special dinner some years.

What a relief. Besides saving a lot of money, there is no need to go wade into the grotesque annual orgy of hyper-consumption with no idea what kind of crap to buy for people who most likely needed nothing that I might provide as a gift. I also appreciate the halt to receiving unwanted items that increase the already intolerable clutter of my own life.

Check out Buy Nothing Christmas on the web, and consider trying this out. It can really improve the holidays for everyone...

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Here is the current craigslist ad for current foster Foxie, discussed in the previous post:

Foxie is about a one year old small (20 lbs or so) girl who might be a Queensland Heeler/Border Collie/Fox Terrier mix. She was rescued from an out-of-state where she was at risk for being euthanized due to overcapacity conditions. She has been in foster care here in Fort Collins, where she has been an absolute delight for her temporary guardian family.

Foxie learned in one day how to use a dog door to the back yard, and has learned to sit for treats. She enjoys spending time in her crate when she tires of playing. She's always ready to romp in the back yard or go for a walk around the neighborhood. Her foster people have been taking her on two half-mile walks a day, and she is very easy to handle on a leash. She appears to be in good health, and is current on her vaccinations.

Foxie is not a very shy dog, she is only slightly hesitant with new people, and so far has not showed any signs of agression to people or other animals. When an unrecognized person walks in the front door unexpectedly she may growl or bark a bit (as you would expect from any dog) but that passes quickly. She quickly bonded with her foster caregivers, and seems to enjoy greeting new people, including small children. So far has been observed to be a very energetic, playful, and loving dog. She has seen a cat a foot away through a glass storm door, and only seemed mildly interested - we did not observe any predator behavior. Other than that she is still untested with cats. Foxie is house-trained and has had no accidents in foster care. As with any young dog new to an environment, she should be supervised closely and shown where she should go for a while at first. She would do best with a yard to play in, as she enjoys running around free and this burns up some of her pent-up energy.

Foxie is a pretty quiet dog - she rarely barks. She has been well behaved in the house, where she chews on toys and rawhides that are provided for her. She seems intelligent and eager to please, and loves affection.

If you would like more information on Foxie, or if you would like to meet her to see if this sweet adorable little dog might be a good match for your home and family, please call/text Ashley at 973-452-5127 or email apuppysvoicefc@gmail.com. A Puppy's Voice has a website at http://apuppysvoice.com. You can learn about adopting at the web site, and even download and complete the foster or adoption application.

Foxie is a wonderful, good-natured girl who deserves a great forever home. She will certainly be missed a lot by her foster family.

Thanks for taking an interest in Foxie!

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We took the current foster dog for a walk in a nature preserve a few days ago. Someone had installed a bench as a memorial there, with an inscription you can mostly make out in the accompanying photo - it's repeated below...

"A dragonfly lights beside us like a sunbeam, and for a moment its glory and beauty belong to the world. But then it flies again, and though we wish it could have stayed, we feel lucky to have seen it".

This certainly applies to my current feelings about most of the fosters I've had converting to a lifetime adoption. This little dog 'Foxie' especially is so great, I was stuggling with the idea of her leaving for an adoption family. The same struggle has occured with several past dogs, and each time I have to consider how great it is to share some time with them, then let them go. I also need to consider the value I might continue to provide for future foster animals. There are never enough foster homes to meet the needs, and the rescue people are often overextended.

As I've sorted this out, I have to acknowledge that I'm still not prepared to begin another lifetime commitment to a dog, no matter how great a short-term companion they are. After numerous 5-10 day visits I still probably need to try a longer period of living in Mexico to see how I feel about eventually living there as an expat. It's so hard for me to get to the point where I even attempt a month(s)-long visit that adopting a dog would probably disrupt the process entirely. I have a low tolerance for complexity and hassles, and I need to minimize complications to facilitate moving on to whatever lies ahead as life here in the house in Fort Collins winds down. It has occured to me that intolerance of hassles and complications in everyday life might be a disqualifying temperment for Mexican life to begin with, given that things don't always unfold smoothly there.

It also occurs to me that my foster dog relationships are probably not unlike that that of a grandparent who adores their grandchildren - it's great to have a weeks-long visit with the little darlings, but if the parents were to expire in a freeway encounter with a semi on the way to pick them up, there might be some altered feelings...

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As I listen to the screeching and braying of the candidates positioning themselves for the election of 2012, forgive me if I disassociate and imagine an alternate reality...



This is the climactic scene in Chaplin's scathing indictment of fascism, which he wrote, produced, directed, and starred in. He played two parts - the dictator (modeled after you-know-who), and a simple barber. In this scene, the barber is mistaken for and stands in for the dictator, and delivers what appears to have been an impassioned and personal appeal to reason and decency by Chaplin.

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