September 2011

WARSAW  vs. KRAKOW: Opt for the Cash Cow By Carol L. Bowman   This is a tale of two Polish cities: the country’s present capital, Warsaw, and the medieval center of government until 1596 A.D., Krakow. They’re as different as the negative and positive poles of a magnetic field. Warsaw left me feeling empty and […]

Thai Yoga Massage Is Unique! By Julie D’Costa               dcosta.julie@gmail.com   Thai Yoga Massage is an ancient healing tradition. Performed for centuries by monks in Buddhist temples, it still retains its spiritual and meditative aspects.   More than a purely physical practice, a crucial aspect of Thai massage is the intention with which it is given. Breathing,

The Schizoid Factor By Fred Mittag   Schizoid contradiction is the characteristic affliction of today’s conservatives. Every Republican voted against the stimulus bill. Glenn Beck said it was a secret attempt by Obama and Pelosi to make America “socialist.” Then Republicans returned to their districts to bestow stimulus checks before God and TV cameras. Like

Things That CrawlBy Lucille van Straaten   Reading Victoria Schmidt’s story about ‘Things that Crawl’ I was amused, but saddened. Why do humans want to “viciously stomp” on creatures they are not familiar with? Those creatures were here long before we arrived, and are valiantly trying to survive in the world we have created for

Survivors By Patricia Hemingway   Roy M. Crandall, M for Marion, was my mother’s father. He showed up at our door when I was thirteen, and he was broke and sixty-five and couldn’t work anymore. I don’t believe he had anywhere else to stay while he waited for his old age pension, so he came

Lake Chapala Hospice   Lake Chapala Hospice is a community based, nondenominational, non-profit organization, which offers in-home hospice and palliative care to the English-speaking community. Palliative care shifts the focus away from treatment and healing, and onto symptom relief, pain management, and comfort care. Such care has only been legal in Mexico since 2009. Patients

Cuarto a Cuarto en la Casa (Room to Room in the House) By Margaret Sloan Speaking Household Spanish with the Household Help   Do you have telarañas (spider webs) in the corners? Las migas (crumbs) in el comedor (dining room)? Polvo(dust) coating all horizontal surfaces? For those of us, living in Mexico, there is an

A Chance To Do Good By Herbert W. Piekow   In 2010, the Auditorio de la Ribera, our local auditorium, hosted 94 various events from international virtuosi to traditional Jalisco Mariachi, Ballet Folklorico and school graduations. This aging auditorium is in dire need of a more balanced air conditioning system and the stage lighting has

Our Twisted Way Of Speaking By Tommy Clarkson   It would “appear” as quite obvious, to those who know me, that I like to play with words. Accordingly – in an attempt to, again, apply logic to our English language – if that lack of awareness, on their part, were to go away, said cognition