IT'S A JUNGLE OUT THERE

This is not what a desert is supposed to look like!

When George and I moved to Loreto Bay almost four years ago, I packed four umbrellas, never thinking we'd actually use them much or at all, but, hey, I was a Girl Scout and old habits die hard. As it turns out that was a smart move, because the past two summers have delivered a lot of rain and those umbrellas have really come in handy. Well, they did come in handy, but I couldn't find a single one during Monday's latest deluge. We got hammered with another nine+ inches, courtesy of Tropical Storm Octave, which seems an appropriate name for a rain event that produced shrieks from me that became higher pitched as the day and rainfall wore on and on and on. 

Our front courtyard Monday night

Once again the Paseo is flooded with water and once again most of us here ran around with pans and buckets to catch the leaks in our homes. And wouldn't you know it that this rain came up just about the time the mosquitoes from Tropical Storm Ivo were brought under control. So now we'll have to fight the good mosquito fight all over again. Bummer.

Tuesday morning after Octave

I'm pretty sick of the rain and didn't really want to write about it again, but I started thinking about climate change deniers Monday while sopping up water from the floor and changed my mind. What will it take for those ostriches with their heads in the sand to wake up to the reality of the world we live in? What is it about science that instills such fear in them? Why do some people totally reject an almost universally agreed upon scientific conclusion? It's fear, pure and simple. Fear that stems from a changing world and it's this fear that drives the Tea Party to declare that the Environmental Protection Agency is not a necessity and should be trashed. Get rid of the Clean Air Act and forget about greenhouse gases and keeping our rivers, lakes and streams free from toxic chemicals and other pollutants. Who needs clean water! Who needs clean air! Who needs to be a good steward of our lovely planet! Heck, let's just continue to trash it like we've always done. Drill, baby, drill, and don't worry about suffering the consequences cause you'll be dead by the time the consequences roll around. Uh, except not. Right now we are suffering the consequences of very poor stewardship in the form of global warming which in turn causes climate change. 

George and Zoe - no, she's not dead, just wet!

Weather patterns are changing and there's no denying that. Here in Baja we have seen evidence of climate change in the amount of rain that's fallen in the recent past. Baja is a desert, but you'd never know it now.  As we were driving into town today it was hard to even recognize the landscape, because it's been so dramatically altered by the rains this summer. It honestly looks like a tropical jungle. 

All over the world storms are getting stronger, bigger and more ferocious. And there are more of them. Greenland's ice sheet is melting, setting the stage for the forestation of that country, which sounds nice, but Greenland's ice sheet comprises 10 percent of the world's water. The polar ice caps are shrinking, deserts are turning into jungles and when the Pacific Northwest has more than a month of summer (as they did this year), then you know things are changing! I could go on and on, but I won't. Suffice to say we all need to get serious about the environment and what we're doing to it. Wouldn't it be nice to change the world for the better, not for the worse? For more info on global warming and climate change, click here.

IT'S A DOGGONE SHAME

Loreto Bay is a dog-loving community. Sometimes it seems as though there are almost as many dogs as people in our little community and for the most part we live in people/pet harmony. Most of us are responsible pet owners. We walk our dogs on leashes, we faithfully stock up on poop bags so we can pick up their poop and deposit the waste in a garbage can and we try to keep our dogs from being a barking nuisance.

Now here comes the but…

Unfortunately, a small minority of dog owners don't follow these simple rules - rules, by the way, that are clearly spelled out in our HOA rules and regs. Their dogs can be seen running through the community unleashed and unsupervised. Their dogs tear up the landscaping and poop with abandon throughout the development and the thoughtless owners expect the gardeners or security guards or someone else to pick up after their pet. I've walked by some homes and heard the howls and barking of dogs left home alone while their owners are out playing golf or relaxing by the pool or, as is the case with some renters, off at work.These kinds of thoughtless pet owners make Loreto Bay less enjoyable for all of us.

Zoe says keep your pets leashed and pick up their poop!

The mess left by irresponsible pet owners is annoying and unpleasant (especially if you happen to step in it - ugh), but it's not the worst that can happen when a pet owner doesn't follow the rules. There have been several cases in the past year of unleashed dogs attacking leashed dogs. There have also been some problems at the beach where many dog owners take their dogs to run off leash because HOA rules don't apply there (and, let's face it, dogs need to have a good romp once in awhile) and in a few instances a larger aggressive dog has gone after a smaller dog with injuries resulting. But even if an encounter doesn't result in injuries, it's still scary for the pet and the pet owner. I know because we've had a couple of close calls with our dog, Zoe, and it was damn scary. 

So what can we do? We can report offenders to our HOA administrators. I'm not crazy about that policy because it makes us the pet police, but it's all we've got at the moment. So let Associa know if you see someone violating the rules, because the owner is the violator, not the dog. The dog is just doing what comes naturally and it's up to the owner to make sure that his or her choice to be a pet owner (and it is a choice) doesn't make life more difficult for everyone else in the community.

To those very few dog owners who don't follow the rules: Please keep your dogs leashed; please pick up after your pet; please be a responsible pet owner! Your neighbors will love you for it.

MOVIN' ON UP

Sleepy little Loreto (pop. about 15,000, give or take a few souls) has many charms. A beautiful plaza; lovely ficus-lined streets; an historic old mission; a spiffy new malecon (an esplanade along the waterfront) that's nearing completion; many great restaurants; and warm, friendly people. There's little the town lacks, but number one on the wish list for a lot of us is a bigger supermarket. The largest market in town - El Pescador - has improved a lot over the years and even carries more gringo-oriented items now. But it's still pretty small and shopping for groceries usually means a trip to three or four different small markets in order to get everything on our list. It's called hunting and gathering here in Loreto Bay (I call it a full-blown Excedrin headache), but it looks like all that could change soon.

A new Soriana market may be headed our way and we've got our fingers crossed that this isn't just another unfounded rumor. The difference this time is that we heard the news from a reliable source and not just the usual rumor mill, which churns out all kinds of crazy talk. My personal favorite was one repeated endlessly two or three years ago stating that City Club (a Soriana warehouse store similar to Costco) was coming to town. Uh, huh. Still waitin' on that one. We're also still waiting on the Costco that everyone insists will be built in La Paz, but so far it's a no show.

I couldn't confirm the news online, but I did find a Reuter's story that said Soriana is planning to open 63 new stores in Mexico this year. And why shouldn't Loreto be on that list?!

Soriana has a chain of supermarkets throughout Mexico and they're nice. Wide aisles and a good selection of products. Clean and well-lit. We've shopped at Soriana in La Paz and Ensenada and we were impressed. I checked out the Soriana Web site and learned the chain has five types of stores, ranging from City Club to the mega-type like a WalMart Superstore to the smaller neighborhood market, which is what we heard is coming our way.  

This is exciting news, but as much as I love the idea of one-stop shopping coming to Loreto, I'm also a little worried that a chain store will change the town. Does this mean a second traffic light is in our future? Can a cineplex be far behind!? Only time will tell...

Baby, it's cold outside

The sun may be shining and the sky may be blue, but it's cold here in Loreto and all one has to do is look around to know that's the case. The standard issue Baja uniform of t-shirt, shorts and flip-flops has been replaced with socks, jeans and jackets, and, in some cases, even woolen hats and gloves. George and I are bundled up whether outdoors or in, but still my toes are cramping and I have to pull a blanket over myself - and Zoe - while watching television or reading. I turned the heat on for the first time in three years and we're even taking hot showers now and that just doesn't happen in this part of Baja! Good grief, we're freezing to death down here.

Zoe keeping warm  in the sweater she got from her BFF Maryanne

Last year at this time daytime temps were in the upper 70s to low 80s. This winter we've seen highs that only reach 60 (gasp!) and lows near 40 degrees. Those of you north of the border may scoff, snort and send me photos of people shoveling out from under several feet of snow. My response to all that potential scoffing and photo sending is this: What the heck are you doing there? Get thee to Baja where you can at least lose the snow shovel!

We've been staying indoors a lot lately, only venturing out to take Zoe on her walks or when cabin fever propels us out the door and into the wind and cold. We've been hit with blustery 20-30 mph north winds during this cold snap, which really makes it seem cold - as in up north cold.

I've been keeping busy, though, by baking and cooking. And, of course, what I'm baking and cooking is good, old comfort food. Bread and rice pudding have been at the top of my list. I thought I'd take a page from my friend Sue's blog and post a most awesome recipe for rice pudding I found online. Thank goodness for the Internet and Mr. Google. I honestly don't know what I'd do without them. Credit for this recipe goes to The Frugal Chef at thefrugalchef.com:

Creamy Rice Pudding

1 cup short grain rice

1 1/2 cups water

2 cinnamon sticks

1 cup whole milk

1 – 14.5 oz. can evaporated milk

1 – 14.5 oz. can of condensed milk

Powdered cinnamon

Wash the rice well and place it in a pan with the water and cinnamon sticks. Simmer it for about 10 minutes, until most of the water is evaporated. Add the milks, mix well, and bring back to a simmer. DO not cover the pan and make sure it does not overflow on you. If it starts overflowing give it a stir. Cook the rice for about 20 minutes or until it is fully cooked through.

Remove the pan from the heat and transfer the pudding to a bowl or individual ramekins. If you are not going to eat this warm, cover the bowl or ramekins with plastic wrap, placing it directly on top of the pudding so as to prevent a crust. Sprinkle some powdered cinnamon on the pudding when you are ready to serve. 

In my humble opinion it is the sweetened condensed milk (nectar of the gods!) that makes this so wonderful and creamy. But I also learned an important lesson when I made this the first time and it's a simple thing we can all learn from: Don't leave out one of the ingredients when making this pudding! I forgot to add the whole milk which resulted in a very hard pudding. But it was still good, just not very creamy.

I also learned something about cinnamon, which I couldn't have discovered without help from my friend, Mr. Google. I used the last of my McCormick's cinnamon sticks when I first made this recipe earlier this week. The pudding was gone in a flash, so I decided to remake it but had to run into town to find more cinnamon sticks. The type I found is very different in appearance from what we get in the States, but I figured cinnamon is cinnamon so I bought it anyway. Not so! The type sold in Mexico is Ceylon cinnamon which is much lighter in color, more brittle and flaky and much less flavorful. My research also revealed that the type used in the States is mostly from Indonesia and is darker and more dense with a much stronger flavor. I didn't let that stop me from making the pudding again, but I am going to order some of the good stuff and ask a friend to bring it down for me, along with vanilla beans which I haven't found anywhere in Baja. Which is odd because Mexico is renowned for its vanilla. Just another strange anomaly and one of many that keep us scratching our heads.

The good news is that our cold spell is on its way out with the forecast calling for warmer temperatures every day this week, which means I can get out of the kitchen and try to work off some calories!

Hurricane weather

Zoe is not a happy camper in all this rain!

It was one hell of a summer and now it's one hell of a Fall as Hurricane Paul makes for our part of Baja. The storm is approaching Baja at a Category 2 level, but will hit our area as a Category 1, bringing 30-40 mph winds (which doesn't sound too bad, but that remains to be seen) and even more rain. Hurricane Paul : 5 Day Forecast Map | Weather Underground

Jorge Macias, our home owner association administrator, stopped by a few minutes ago to warn us about the impending storm with suggestions on safeguarding our home. Thanks, Jorge, that's what I call going above and beyond! We'd already started stockpiling water and shoving towels under doors and now we've moved our lighter outdoor furniture to safer locations, so we're as ready as we're going to be. 

Aargh! Not again!!

The problem we all face here in Loreto Bay when the winds kick up is loose tower tiles flying through the air and wreaking havoc. And all this rain means more leaks and more interior damage. We heard of a couple of cases of water just pouring in through people's ceilings after the last rain and this go-around sure isn't going to help. More mildew, more mosquitos and more slogging through water. 

I suppose it helps to think of this storm as an adventure, but that's hard to do when we've had to deal with all the earlier rain and storms. I know I'm not alone in saying, "Hey, nature, enough's enough!"

Next up: A plague of locusts?

It’s been a summer of rain, earthquakes and brutal heat, which is making me wonder what’s in store for us next.  Locusts, perhaps? 

Just a few days ago we experienced a 6.3 magnitude earthquake here, which probably caused some cracking of plaster around Loreto Bay but no real damage from what we've heard. According to the really cool earthquake app on our iPad, there were also several distinct smaller quakes about 20 minutes after the “big” one and then several more shortly after midnight later that day.  The quakes were located closer to us than we’ve seen before, originating a little more than a 100 miles south of us in the Sea of Cortez.

I was at a neighbor's house during the quake and didn’t feel a thing, but George was shaken awake while taking a snooze and it really freaked him out. It was a first for him, but I doubt that anyone ever gets used to that weird sensation. Creepy!

Flooding from maybe an inch of rain!

This morning we woke to the sound of pounding rain and once again (sigh) the Paseo is flooded and will stay that way for at least several days but probably longer. Homex, the developer that came in and bought up pieces of Loreto Bay a couple of years ago, repaved the road a year and a half ago, but didn’t do the proper engineering so there’s no drainage in the area around us and in areas of the Founder’s Neighbor to our south. Rain and heavy equipment traffic has already worn away parts of the road and it’s doubtful that Homex will repair it. Sigh.

Get out your kayaks!

Water beads up nicely on new waterproofing

And speaking of bugs! For the past month, we’ve been plagued by really aggressive flies that aren’t content with just landing on us. No, these killer flies dive bomb our heads with the apparent goal of getting in our noses, ears and mouths. Yikes! Taking our dog Zoe out for a walk has become a real nightmare as we duck, weave and flap our arms trying to keep the flies away. We’re also seeing monster moths and other strange creepy-crawlies, but that’s normal for this time of year. Happily, though, I’ve also seen a couple of dime-sized frogs in the landscaping in front of our house, which is a nice sight since our house frog, Sparky, apparently bit the dust this year. RIP Sparky! 

After that epic 20-inch rain in August we sprouted several leaks in the house, so we bit the bullet and paid to have the roof terrace and tower re-waterproofed. And it was finished just in the nick of time this past week. Not only do the tiles look much better, we shouldn’t have any leaks this go-around. 

Another huge problem with the rain down here is that the wooden doors and window tend to swell, which means doors and windows stick, or in some cases, swell completely shut. Fun. It’s too bad (and frankly, ridiculous) that the design guidelines down here prohibit the use of anything but wood for doors and windows. There are a few homes that have managed to squeak by the rules and install beautiful clad windows and doors, which look just like wood but are more durable and earth-friendly. 

Considering the fact that this community was marketed as green and sustainable, it’s anything but! Founder’s is an all-electric community, for crying out loud! How green is that? At least here in Agua Viva we’ve got solar water heaters and gas, but many home owners have had to replace their solar panels with regular water heaters because the panels didn’t work.  Sigh. Until those guidelines prohibiting anything but wood are changed, we can all look forward to continue shelling out more money every year to apply possibly toxic stains to all the wood in our homes to keep it from disintegrating. Now, how green does all that sound?

The greening of Baja

To think all it took was 20 inches of rain in a couple of days to turn our desert landscape into an incredible green wonderland. 

Highway 1 between Mulege and Loreto

We missed the big downpour, but we were still in Baja, just much farther north in Ensenada.  This is the third summer we’ve left Loreto for a break from the heat and a quick trip to the States for shopping. 

Our house on left with new lake out front

At first, I was really disappointed we weren’t here for the big rain event, but that disappointment turned to relief when we saw the photos of the mess that deluge left behind. Good grief, there was one photo of a resident kayaking in the new lake outside our home, which covered the road and all of the area below our house. Our neighbor, Maryanne, said the water was up to her knees when she crossed the Paseo to check on our house and up to the top of the tires on her car. What a mess!

Agua Viva looking south

Then we started getting reports on our house and learned we had some leaks and decided to head home a week early.  Once we hit the Sea of Cortez side of Baja we noticed a big change from our journey north less than a month before. 

All along the highway it was green. Goats were resting on lush green grass beneath beautiful green trees. It looked downright idyllic and totally unlike anything we’ve seen here before. This year there’s plenty of grass to fill the stomachs of all those cows, goats, donkeys, horses and burros that forage alongside the highway. A very welcome change from the usual view of half-starving livestock searching for any little sprout of edible green. I expect we’ll be seeing some happy-looking livestock for the next couple of months.

We arrived home, unloaded our packed-to-the-rafters SUV and started checking out our house. Considering the amount of rain we got in such a short time, the damage wasn’t too bad. And nothing thus far has diminished the pleasure we get from seeing all this green.

Storm clouds roll in over the mountains every day

But there can be too much of a good thing. It's already rained twice since we arrived home Monday and every day the storm clouds roll in and the humidity shoots up. I really wouldn't mind some more rain, but I sure hope it holds off until all our repairs are done. And if you're planning a trip down here anytime soon, be sure to pack the insect repellent. The mosquitoes are out in full force!

A magical, mystery tour Baja-style

Is there anything better than sharing the things you love with the people you love? I’m thinking not, and I’m guessing you probably are, too.

A perfect example is the recent visit of my brother, Richard, and his beautiful wife, Belinda. For such a long time we thought no one would ever visit us. The cost of airline tickets has skyrocketed and these days, who has the time? But I finally persuaded my newly-married brother to bring his bride to Loreto, and, boy, did we have a blast!

Richard and Belinda on the Malecon in Loreto

I’ve always known my outdoors-loving, back-packing brother would go crazy over Baja. Like me, he has an affinity for the desert after living for so many years in New Mexico. And like me, he likes the wide open spaces more than people-populated places. I knew it would be a match made in heaven. And it was.

Thank goodness Belinda is such a good sport. She’s a city girl through and through, but she’s naturally outgoing and friendly and she very gamely put up with the inconveniences that routinely confront visitors, like less than sanitary banos (in some cases, downright disgusting) and hotels that aren’t up to U.S. standards. She was a real trouper and we love her for it.

It was a long and frustrating trip for them from Orlando to Miami to Mexico City and finally La Paz, where we met them at the airport (surprisingly small for such a large city) after midnight. Our first night was spent at a nice little place off the Malecon, which was billed on Trip Advisor as very quiet and probably would’ve been if the Baja 1000 wasn’t finishing up in La Paz that night. We were serenaded by the sounds of revving engines well into the wee hours, but that didn’t diminish my excitement the following morning as we did a little a sight-seeing and then headed to Loreto.

View from Loreto Bay and Punta Nopolo

Although it’s a long and boring trip from La Paz to Loreto, there’s a terrific payoff when you finally arrive at Loreto Bay. It's such a beautiful place and such an unexpected sight after traveling through miles and miles of scrub, cactus and desert. It's a beautiful oasis with the incredible Sierra de la Gigante mountain range on one side and the crystal waters of the Sea of Cortez on the other.

Agua Viva, Loreto Bay

It was a whirlwind of activity from that point on and the highlight of their visit for me – and I think for them – was the time we spent on Poco Loco. We saw huge pods of bottle nose dolphins that leapt and cavorted and surfed through our wake on both trips, sting rays flying out of the water and even a small whale (a young fin whale, we think). That was a real surprise and an amazing end to a wonderful day that included snorkeling at Honeymoon Cove and anchoring in the bay at Villa del Palmar where we took the dinghy in for a fabulous lunch.

A prime spot at Honeymoon Cove

A day of leaping dolphins

We also had an unexpected detour to Isla Montserrat on our second Poco Loco outing, but that side trip is worth it's own post, so look for it here or on http://www.sueslifeinbalance.com/ sometime in the near future.

Yellowstone Beach, Isla Montserrat

And speaking of food (my favorite subject), we ate the most awesome meals and drank the most delicious margaritas during their week-long stay. In other words, we had a great time.  Another highlight was going to a Los Beach Dogs gig at Bajaja Bar & Grill, where George, Rich and Steve put on another great show. Sadly, this was Bajaja's end of the season grand finale, so we'll all have to wait until Fall for more of those great hamburgers and french fries and more of the Los Beach Dogs, too.

What's not to love?!

But the very best part of their visit was that George and I got to know and love Belinda and I got to spend time with my little brother and share in his excitement and wonder of this incredible place. It’s an awesome thing to see the place you love through someone else’s eyes. 

It was hard to see them go but the good news is they’re building a pool at their home in Orlando and Belinda works for Disney! You can’t beat that combo, so we’re hoping to visit them next year. In the meantime, we’ll continue to beg our family and friends in the States to come visit us. It really is a joy to share this wonderful place with those we hold near and dear and we can’t wait to do more of it.

A whale-sized adventure

One of the highlights of living in Loreto is the annual opportunity to see gray whales (ballenas gris) up close and personal. Hundreds of gray whales make the yearly trip to the Pacific coast of Baja California Sur from the cold seas around Alaska to calve in the warmer waters along the coastline. Luckily for us, one of the prime breeding grounds is only an hour and a half away at Magdalena Bay located at Puerto Lopez Mateos, about 25 kilometers outside the small town of Insurgentes.


The whales start their migration in October, making their way down the west coast of Canada, the U.S. and Mexico. The 5,000 to 6,800 mile trip takes two to three months and by late December and early January the whales arrive and the calving begins. We plan our trips for mid-March when the babies are older and less shy. By this time, most of the mothers seem relaxed about their little ones socializing with humans and even proud to show them off.


For the second year in a row we made the trip with our friends, Tracy P. and Tracy W., with the addition of Tracy P.’s cousin, Meghan, from Alexandria, Virginia. It was Meghan’s first time in Loreto and her first time to see and touch the friendly, playful mothers and babies.


We all decided that last year was good, but this year our experience was spectacular! Check out the video and you’ll see just what I mean…

Feathering the nest

Now that our neighborhood is looking more neighborly with beautiful walkways and plants, George and I decided it’s time to do something about our good-sized side garden which has stood dusty and forlorn for way too long.


Originally, we’d come up with an elaborate – and expensive – plan that would include a plunge pool to help us in our never-ending battle to combat the heat during our six-month long summer. But our purchase of Poco Loco put an end to that plan, because who needs a dinky pool when there’s access to the best and biggest pool around – the Sea of Cortez.

So now our plans are more modest, but we’re excited nonetheless, because this will give us more space for entertaining and relaxing and much more storage space in the form of a large storage shed or bodega, as it’s called here in Mexico. Finally we’ll have space to store our electric scooters and bikes, as well as all the other odds and ends that are now crammed into every nook and cranny of our casa. Maybe we’ll finally get organized! Then again, considering our penchant for disorganization, maybe not…

Already the floor of the bodega is in place and work on the flagstone paving has begun. We’re also planning on a decorative wall fountain and lots and lots of plants and at least one leafy shade tree. And finally, too, we’ll be able to use the Weber grill that’s been gathering dust outside, which is a real bonus as our upstairs grill seems to have only one heat setting – incinerate!


The only fly in the ointment is the half-finished home that towers over our side yard. To say it’s an eyesore is to say the least, so we’re trying to come up with some creative ways (other than hiring a bulldozer) to camouflage our unsightly neighbor. The simplest plan is to plant climbing vines and that’s where we’ll start.


However, the half-finished homes that comprise a large part of Agua Viva look like they’ll be an ongoing problem for years to come for all of us who finished our homes. What do you do when people walk away from their investment, leaving partially finished homes to deteriorate and devalue completed homes? Our hope is that some of those people will just deed the property over to the home owner association so we can deal with the mess they left behind. Otherwise, legal action is our only remedy. And for those who think they’re safe from legal repercussions because they live in the U.S. or Canada, think again! You can lose your property here in Mexico whether you live here or not.

But the problem with these derelict homes is much greater than just being an eyesore. Many of them are a safety hazard. Too often there is rusting rebar protruding from the concrete of these homes, which poses a threat to anyone walking by. We know of one home owner who fell face down on exposed rebar alongside a derelict home, leaving her with a terrible black eye and the knowledge that she could easily have lost her eye. Talk about a literal eyesore!

So, as much as we’ve accomplished in making our community more livable and pleasant, we’ve got a long way to go.

Yippee, yahoo and hurray!

If you’d told me a few years ago I’d be thrilled to be getting a walkway outside my door, I’m sure I’d have scratched my head and said “Huh?” But that was then and this is now and WOW! To say George and I are thrilled is to say the very least. Not only do we have a walkway going in, we also have a beautifully built retaining wall and stairs – be still my heart.


No more slogging, slipping and sliding through dust and dirt up an embankment to our front door. No more wondering what might happen to said embankment and our casa if a hurricane hit. This is a big deal for us, our neighbors and the community as a whole. Because even though the line of demarcation between the Founder’s Neighborhood and our own Agua Viva is geographically distinct, we are all part of Loreto Bay. So when our property values go up with the construction of beautiful new walkways, the property values in Founder’s also get a little boost. We’re all in this together – sort of.


The sort-of comes into play because we’ve taken on the burden of completing our walkways here in Sub-regime I all by ourselves. Through the efforts of our rep and committee members (disclosure: George is the rep for our sub-regime), we’re completing our area with funds left over from the last assessment imposed on our home owners. We’re doing this in spite of the fact that half the home owners (including individuals, contractors and our less than shining knights, Homex) did not pay and left the rest of us holding the bag and assuming complete financial responsibility for our part of Agua Viva. Shame on you guys, by the way!


I really can’t say enough about what our rep and committee did for us here in Sub I. They worked tirelessly (well, OK, they did get tired) for months to bring all this together with the help of Associa, including Jorge and project engineer Eduardo. They were able to negotiate a favorable contract with one of the best landscaping contractors around and we’re now seeing the reality of all that very hard work. And all of this is being done without any additional expense to the home owners who have already paid much more than their fair share.

So thanks, Terry, Tom, Mike, Nick, Julie, Bradley, Penny, Rich and Ed. And how can I forget George?! As the man on the ground here in Loreto Bay, he’s all HOA, all the time and he’s put in more hours than most people do in a regular full-time job. It should come as no surprise to anyone that I simply can’t wait for his year to be up in February (let me throw in another Yippee! here). In fact, I’m insisting that his involvement cease and desist on that date. Hey, we’re supposed to be retired and that new boat needs cleaning!

What’s happened here in Sub I is a perfect example of determined home owners making a difference in their community. So to each and every person who helped make this a reality – thank you very much.

Signs, signs, everywhere a sign…

Signs and banners are popping up all over Loreto Bay, bringing a welcome touch of color along with a sense of optimism for the future of our little community. Maybe there’s hope after all! Heck, we’ve got a paved main road, two new restaurants with a third on the way (Beinvenidos, Bajaja Deli Bar & Grill!) and signs of progress in the newest phase of Agua Viva with construction of four new homes by Homex.





The improvements have been slow in coming but they are coming. There are welcoming billboard-type signs at the south entrance to the development and just north of us where Homex workers are busy putting up the new model homes in the second phase of Agua Viva.



The Paseo through Loreto Bay now has festive banners pointing the way to Loreto Baja Golf Course (formerly known as the Loreto Bay Golf Course, which sounds lots better than the new name as far as I’m concerned) and the Loreto Baja model homes, while the south road has banners guiding visitors to the Inn at Loreto Bay.



And speaking of the Inn, the bell tower is now adorned with very attractive lettering on both the front and back sides. The pool at the Inn is also looking much better after a much-needed cleaning this past week. It had gotten so murky in the past few weeks we'd quit swimming there, opting for the hotter but cleaner community pool across the Paseo.

Homex has also been touching up the paving on the Paseo that was gouged and crumbling from cars driving on the fresh pavement last winter. The little things really do mean a lot, so thanks (again) Homex!

All of these improvements are a hopeful sign for the future of Loreto Bay and Loreto Baja. And unlike the song referenced in the title, these signs aren't "blockin' the scenery, breakin' my mind." They're improving the scenery, for sure.

Backstage pass Loreto style

One of the perks of living with a musician is getting that prized backstage pass. And now that George is part of the almost famous, soon-to-be legendary trio that’s wowing audiences from Puerto Escondido to Nopolo that backstage pass has even more cache.

What started as three guys with guitars and a desire to play music has evolved into a tight trio with a dedicated fan base that has reached beyond the borders of Loreto Bay. (This is where George told me my prose might be a bit on the biased side – OK, his actual words were “over the top,” but that doesn’t mean it isn’t true.)

Steve, Rich and George (pictured below left to right) are Los Beach Dogs and they have become more than just a trio of musicians here in Loreto Bay. At the risk of sounding over the top (again), they have helped our beleaguered community come together through music.



When they first started playing together the fate of our part of the development, Agua Viva, was still in doubt and the whole development was at a virtual standstill. Would we survive Citigroup’s abandonment? Could we build something from the rubble that surrounded us? Home owners were cautiously optimistic, but the outlook was grim.

There was no better time for a little music and that’s what the guys provided. Hesitantly at first, but after just a few informal gigs they started to come together (in the immortal words of the immortal Beatles) and home owners throughout Loreto Bay were hooked.

They started playing acoustic gigs on rooftop terraces throughout Loreto Bay and over time word spread and the terraces couldn’t accommodate the crowds. So there was a plugged-in courtyard concert in Founder’s that drew some 100+ home owners. The Dogs expanded their set list and started playing charity events (all of their performances are gratis in accordance with Mexican law). Then they played at Loreto Fest a couple of months ago, the big annual fund-raising bash at Puerto Escondido, and their fan base expanded and hit the floor dancing!

Each of the Dogs brings something unique to the trio and they bring out the musical best in each other.

Steve's intricate guitar licks add an extra dimension to the tunes, while showcasing his jazz roots. When he's not working and playing in Loreto Bay, he's working and playing with a jazz combo in Northern California.

Although Rich spent his formative years as an endodontist (root canal guy) in Minnesota, he has a real knack for penning tunes that totally capture the essense of living Loreto. Whether sweetly sentimental or wildly hilarious, his tunes are big crowd pleasers that all of us here can identify with.

And then there's George, who spent 20 years on the road as a solo musician/performer, and who can still wow a crowd with his expressive voice and commanding stage presence (he's going to absolutely hate that description, but I speak the truth!). And how about those mouth harps he wails on!

Last night it was an informal, mellow gathering to celebrate the completion of a neighbor's garden, but the result is always the same no matter the venue. The music brings us all closer together. The music makes us more of a community.

Gracias Beach Dogs!

FAQs

Since George and I moved to Loreto more than a year ago we’ve been inundated with questions about life here south of the border. Some of the questions are downright silly and some have merit, but there are a few that keep cropping up, just screaming to be addressed, so here goes!

“What made you decide to move to another country?” This is a legitimate question and deserves a thoughtful and measured response... I sure wish I had one. Truth is we were up for a big adventure and after trolling the Internet for possible retirement locations we happened upon a Web site for Loreto Bay that struck a chord with us. The site was filled with photos of a beautiful place – a desert landscape we were familiar with being from New Mexico with the added bonus of being near water. The views are of dramatic mountains to the west and the sparkling Sea of Cortez to the east. It was a no-brainer. Bottom line is we were seduced by a Web site, which only goes to show the power of really good marketing.

“What do you do all day?” This one is harder. When this question has been posed (which is often), I’ve always stumbled and tried to rely on my wit and that hasn’t always worked, which should come as no surprise to anyone who knows me. My typical response used to be something along the line of “a whole lotta nothing.” So much for my wit. It’s actually hard to describe what we do all day. We putter, we talk, we walk, we ride bikes, we hook up with friends, we lollygag and we shoot the breeze with anyone and everyone, in short, we have a great time. We enjoy the scenery, the people, the food and the lifestyle. Hey, it’s retirement! But after an unfortunate encounter with someone who persisted in pressing me for a different response (and how weird is that?!), a friend told me the best response is to simply say that we enjoy life. (Thanks, Robert!)

“Aren’t you afraid of the drug violence in Mexico?” No. Although the news north of the border is full of dire predictions about the fate of gringos in Mexico, the reality is that we had more to fear from drugs and crime in Albuquerque or most anywhere else in the States than we do here. Just for clarification, the vast majority of drug violence takes place on the U.S./Mexican border, which is 700 miles north of Loreto. Enough said.

“What do you eat?” Food. Really, really good food without the additives, hormones, antibiotics, refined sugars and other icky things that are staples in the States. So, what do you eat?

“Isn’t the language barrier a problem?” It should be but it isn’t. The people here are more than willing to help us with their language. We stumble and fumble and they smile and help us along. And the really cool thing is that they enjoy helping us understand their language.

“Don’t you miss the States?” No, we don’t, with the exception of family, friends and Costco. OK, I really miss Target, too, but that’s it.

“Don’t you get bored?” Are you kidding?? We live on the Sea of Cortez, which means we have access to water, water sports, wildlife including beautiful birds of all kinds, colorful fish, playful dolphins, swimming, snorkeling, kayaking, boating, sunny days, incredible sunrises and sunsets and beautiful vistas. That one is definitely a no-brainer.

“What happens if you get sick?” We have gotten sick and we went to the hospital here in town, we were treated and it was an eye-opening experience in that it was totally unlike going to the doctor or hospital in the States. We waited all of two minutes before we were seen by a competent doctor. We were escorted into an examination room by the doctor (not a nurse or receptionist who, in the States, leaves us in the room to wait another 45 minutes before seeing the doctor) where he asked us about our problem (it was a tummy thing) and then proceeded to order tests. We returned with the requested test results (which we picked up the same day) and after reviewing and explaining the test results, the doctor wrote out a couple of prescriptions. We were charged nothing for the consultation and the doctor’s time. Zip, zero, nada. The tests cost the equivalent of $18 USD each and the prescriptions were about the same. And we recovered from this common intestinal problem after a few days of treatment. All in all, it was like visiting the family doctor 50 years ago. No paperwork, no hassle and no wait.

Any more questions?

A year, a month, a week and a day

I’m taking some poetic license with the headline, but I am close when describing how long George and I have lived in Loreto Bay. It seems like a good time to do a ‘year in review ‘ kind of thing that is so popular in the newspaper business, which is where I spent my formative years. So this is what we’ve learned over the past year, month, week and day…



Never make a major decision (or any kind of decision, for that matter) after two margaritas. Just say no! Sure, it seems like a good idea at the time, but the next morning can be painful! But, truth be told, even though it’s been a strange, convoluted and sometimes painful journey to get to where we are today, we’d still drink the margaritas and make the same decision.

Because we love it here in Loreto Bay. Our home is beautiful, our surroundings are awesome and I can’t imagine living anywhere else in the world. But it’s been hard. We’re still waiting for sidewalks, landscaping and all those things we took for granted in the States. And we may continue waiting for quite some time. Our feet are always dirty from slogging through the dust and silt that awaits us outside our front door. We get cranky and talk endlessly about the problems that face us.

But…

We have forged friendships that will be a large part of our lives until we die. (You know who you are! Love you, mean it!) We’ve made the best of a difficult situation, which has strengthened us and made us better people. We’re a part of a community of people (see reference above to wonderful friends) who want to make this place a vibrant, welcoming and inclusive place.

We wake up every morning to the sound of birds chirping and the knowledge that we live in a special place. We can take our morning coffee to the tower and (as long as we don't look down to see the mess that is still a part of the scenery) see the panorama of the Sea of Cortez. And we have a paved Paseo (thank you Homex) to ride our bikes on. We have two new restaurants in the development and another on the way. Life is good and getting better.

We’re actively working to become a part of the larger community of Loreto. We take Spanish classes in town, courtesy of Senor Jesus Jacques, and although we struggle with the language, we are trying. We love to participate in the events in town, like the Optimist Club Spaghetti Dinner we attended this afternoon with friends. Maybe we’re not doing enough, but we’re trying and we’ll get better at it over time.

Tomorrow we’re off to La Paz for a few days for shopping and loafing and kicking back. How lucky are we? Very damn lucky.

Fits and starts

It’s feast or famine here in Loreto Bay, especially concerning work on paving the Paseo. Last week Homex kicked it into high gear, with asphalt finally making its way north into Agua Viva. But today it’s once again quiet with no road crews in sight.







The fits and starts are frustrating, but now that actual resurfacing has happened on our end of Loreto Bay I feel more confident that we’ll be inhaling the sweet smell of tar and oil even further north in the near future.

It’s never a good idea to try to pin a date on the completion of improvements, but we’re thinking another couple of months and the road will be done. Or mostly done. Maybe.

In other news, we learned that Homex won’t just be selling off the 60-plus lots they bought in our phase of Agua Viva. Instead, they've decided to build on the lots they sell. That’s good news as it indicates they’re in it for the long haul and it gives them more of an incentive to make our phase of the project as attractive as possible. Like all else here, we’ll just have to wait to see how things unfold.

The sound of silence

Ever since the end of the holiday season (no matter how you measure it that season has been over for some time now), we’ve been waiting for the sounds of paving and road work to once again fill the air here in Loreto Bay, particularly in the Founder's Neighborhood which has been awaiting asphalt since long before the holiday break. But it’s the sound of silence that continues to dominate, with only the occasional caw of a gull to break the monotony.

Homex started this project with a colossal amount of energy and speed that has dwindled over the past few weeks to a few workers here in AV finishing up the curbing and retaining walls. The only completed and paved portions of road after all this time are the south entrance from Highway 1 to the Paseo and then the short stretch to the Inn and a couple of other very short branches.

Even just a couple of weeks ago Agua Viva was abuzz with road construction activity, but now work is at a virtual standstill. The two photos below were taken from our roof tower at about 2:30 p.m. today. As you can see, there's a whole lotta nothing going on.




So what gives?

The most persistent rumor is that work has stopped because the paving contractor has not been paid by Homex and he’s holding out until he gets some cold, hard pesos.

I, for one, don’t blame him, if it’s true he hasn’t been paid in months. It seems unlikely that any small company could go months without an infusion of capital, while still having to meet overhead and pay employees. Why should a small Mexican contractor have to carry a behemoth like Homex for months at a time? Considering how many local contractors got ripped off by the old Loreto Bay Company, it’s a wonder anyone will do business out here at all. So if this rumor is indeed fact, then Homex should do the right thing and pay the contractor. Let’s get this show on the road, for crying out loud!!

Another whisper on the wind says Homex has stopped work because the bigwigs are mulling the possibility of asking home owners to ante up and share the cost of paving the Paseo. This particular scenario doesn’t make sense at all. Homex hasn’t allowed any home owner input regarding the layout and paving, so it’s hard to imagine they’d have their hand out for help at this point in the project. This isn’t some rinky-dink company we’re talking about here. Homex is one of the largest companies in Mexico, so it would seem safe to assume they’re not crazy. Then again, this is Mexico...

Maybe work will resume tomorrow or maybe it won’t. Maybe they ran out of asphalt like they did before the holidays or maybe we’ll never know what caused the work stoppage. Whatever the reason, we hope Homex pays up, gears up and finishes up this project before we’re all too old to enjoy a new road!

Unplugged in Loreto Bay

Saturday our Internet and phone went out here in Loreto Bay. Everything went kaput. But we weren’t alone because the entire development suffered the same fate. It was excruciating that first day. Initially, all I could think was "What if something happens out there in that other world, that world of family and friends and news in the States? How will we know what’s going on?"

Sunday morning dawned and still no Internet and no Vonage phone… Holy crap! I can’t read Frank Rich in the New York Times! I can’t read the New York Times period or Huff Post or emails or call my son in New Mexico as I do every Sunday! How will I spend my day?? What the hell is going on?

George and I groused and grumbled about Road9, the carrier that keeps us in touch with the outside world. Then we left for the Farmer’s Market as we do every Sunday. We saw other Loreto Bay home owners and compared notes about our isolation. "When will this end," we asked each other. We were all dismayed, but we’d had no word on how or why our lifeline was shutdown and for how long we’d have to be incommunicado. Agony!

When we got back from the Farmer’s Market there was still no phone service or Internet. We had to adjust because we had to rethink our whole day. And we did. I made waffles and bacon and fresh squeezed OJ for brunch. And we talked. Gasp! We talked instead of reading the news on the Internet and then groaning over what we were reading. We didn’t agonize over Tea Party insanity or Sarah Palin’s latest outrageous Tweet. We talked about the things that make up our day. Imagine that! And then we spent the day reading books. Good books that we always seem too willing to put aside, opting instead to read the mostly depressing news that keeps us tethered to the "real" world.

We went to bed that night wondering what the heck was going on and we awoke Monday morning to more of the same. No phone, no Internet. We shrugged and talked idly of the rumors that were circulating. Road9 has gone out of business we heard. They’ve walked away and we’ll never have Internet again. They’re upgrading to wireless. They’re being forced out by TelMex. You name it, we heard it. More shrugs. Oh well. Hey! Let’s read some more. Let’s go for a walk to see those jelly fish we heard about this morning. Let's talk.

Imagine that!

My thoughts kept going to the those hardy souls who moved down here before the advent of the Internet and Vonage or Skype phones. How the hell did they manage?! Weren’t they worried about staying in touch with family and friends? But you know what? They managed. They lived their lives and stayed in touch however they could.

Tuesday was more of the same, but it was easier to tolerate. More talking, more reading, a trip into town for Spanish lessons and a chance to check our email. Oh well.

This morning we woke to discover that Internet service had been restored. Although a large part of me was thrilled, a smaller part of me was not.

Imagine that.

That George is one lucky guy!

Life is all about the milestone markers. When we’re young those milestones have a triumphal feel. “Hey, I got my driver’s license!” “ I can vote this year!”
“Let’s go get a drink, I’m finally legal!”

But as we get older, those milestones sometimes feel more like millstones around our neck. Our bones start aching, our joints start creaking and wrinkles pop up in all manner of strange places. When those things start to happen the passing years become a lot less exciting. Let’s face it, once you hit a certain age birthdays can be downright depressing.


George marked one of those milestones this week when he turned 60 – a very youthful 60, I’d like to add. But his milestone took on the feel of one of those youthful triumphal moments thanks to two friends here in Agua Viva. The two Tracys (one a home owner, the other a friend of her’s who visits regularly) decided it would be fun to celebrate George’s last day as a 59-year-old by preparing a pre-birthday meal before they left for home the next day.

We were greeted at the door of Tracy’s casa with the news that lobster and steak would be served, as well as baked potatoes, salad and fresh bread from Loreto’s newest (and best) bakery. My first thought was “Great!” my next was “How am I ever going to top this!”

Watching the two Tracys in action was like watching a synchronized Olympic event. They displayed a combination of gracious hospitality and intensity of purpose that was a sight to behold. The drinks were divine (massive quantities of vodka paired with cucumber and mint, yum!), the conversation was entertaining and the meal was superb, including an excellent wine Tracy 2 decided she'd like to share with us. But the highlight of the evening was watching these two friends as they worked in tandem to prepare the meal. They were so in synch it was almost scary. How’d they do that?! They shrugged off the compliments and went out of their way to make George feel special. And they succeeded. What guy on the verge of 60 wouldn’t be thrilled to have two good-looking young women cooking up a storm for him?

Thanks Tracy and Tracy for making George’s coulda been a millstone into a very fun milestone. You two are the best!

But that wasn’t the end to the 60th birthday festivities. A bunch of friends came over last night to help us celebrate and both of his birthday parties have me thinking that maybe turning 60 isn’t so bad after all…

A little Feliz Navidad, a lot of Merry Christmas

This is our year of firsts. The first time we drove the Baja, our first hurricane season (thankfully we dodged the hurricane bullet this year), our first summer (stunningly hot), our first Thanksgiving (which we were lucky enough to spend with our friends, Carol, Al, Sue and Tom) and our first Christmas holiday season, which is currently under way – in an understated Mexican kind of way.

It’s a different sort of holiday season for us with the only real sign of Christmas the appearance of a vendor selling Christmas lights on Salvatierra past El Pescador and a very small Christmas tree lot under a tent on the road into town. What has been very nice, though, is a total lack of the Christmas hysteria that pervades the holiday season north of the border. I stopped buying into the holiday shopping frenzy years ago, so the more relaxed and much less commercial feel to the holidays here in Loreto suits me just fine.

But I have to admit that it’s been hard to get into the holiday spirit with the temperatures hovering just under 80 degrees and the palm trees swaying in the breeze. Not that I’m complaining. The weather has been incredibly wonderful. But it does put a damper on the old holiday spirit when you’re wearing flip-flops and sweating like a pig while you put up the traditional Christmas tree. In our case that would be the traditionally fake Christmas tree I load up with lights and lots of ornaments (which always leave me feeling misty-eyed with memories of Christmases past) every year while tunelessly humming old standards like “Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer” or that Burl Ives classic “Holly Jolly Christmas.” I’ve always loved Burl Ives’ rendition of that song, even though he always kind of gave me the creeps. Go figure.

To be honest, I had to force myself to put the tree up this year. I kept coming up with excuses not to do it, which is something I’ve never done before. I’ve always been one of those people who puts up the tree as soon as the Thanksgiving dishes are done. But not this year.

Maybe it was because of the weather or maybe because I knew I wouldn’t be with my family this holiday season. Whatever the reason, I was about to go treeless for the first time in my life when it occurred to me that George and I have to make new holiday traditions here in Mexico to add to the old tried and true traditions we brought with us from the States. Just like we brought (at my insistence) this oversized piece of fake evergreen nostalgia that I put the finishing touches on today. And it’s beautiful, even if does look more than a little out of place in our casa here in Mexico.

I’m already feeling more Christmassy and I expect that feeling will grow warmer and brighter as I take in the Christmas traditions here in Loreto. There’s the day of wrapping Christmas presents at the Internado School and the Christmas Carol Mexican Songs Contest for elementary and junior high kids outside the Mission. This Sunday is the Caritas Christmas bazaar – the same charitable organization that Drew McNabb wrote so poignantly about in his blog, Living Loreto, last week. Those events along with our own traditions – luminarias, green chile stew, posole and making gifts of cookies and candies - are sure to make this a Christmas season to remember.

This year we’ve got just a little bit of the new Feliz Navidad with a lot of the old Merry Christmas. But that ratio is sure to change over the coming years. And that will be a good thing.