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Articles, Baja Norte, Breaking News, Ensenada, Rosarito, San Felipe, Tecate, Tijuana

Dealing With An Emergency Here If You Don’t Speak Spanish

Expat911 is a smart phone app that was designed by expats for expats.  It is a service that covers you for all types of emergencies when at home, on the road or out for a night on the town.  It utilizes GPS location services which allow the operators to target your exact location.  Many of us may have the capability to say our home address to Mexico’s Spanish speaking 911 operators, but what happens when we are in an unfamiliar area?  How can you explain where you are when you have no idea what the names of the streets are in the area during your emergency?  Also, how will you explain in detail about the type of emergency you are having?

Expat911 is an app that works on Android and iPhone devices.  Within the app you have a profile with information that will speed up the process when reporting an emergency.  You have a basic medical profile which has your blood type, allergies and sicknesses.  There is also a contact area where users can add 1 US/Canada contact and 2 Mexico contacts.  Expat911 will notify these contacts after your emergency has been reported to Mexico’s 911 on your behalf.  This way your family back home will know about your situation and so will the people that you trust here in Mexico.  The Mexico contacts can be neighbors or local doctors that speak English.  Many times our neighbors can come to our aid while we are awaiting the emergency services to arrive.  The Mexico contacts can also be used for our insurance agents or medical air evacuation plans that we may have in place.

So how does Expat911 work during an emergency?  You only have to click on one of the 3 emergency buttons.  There is a button for Police, Ambulance and Fire.  Within seconds an English speaking operator will call your phone and verify the emergency.  If you do not pick up, then they will assume that this is a serious emergency and report to Mexico’s 911 on your behalf.  If you answer, they will verify some quick details about your emergency and then call Mexico’s 911 to report the emergency.  Once the emergency has been reported, they will then confirm this with the user.  At this time they will stay on the phone with you if you request them to, or they will start calling your emergency contacts.  So it is very simple to use during an emergency and all you have to do is click a button.  They will take care of the rest.  They also record all calls so that there is a record of the emergency being reported to Mexico’s 911 and the call with the user as well.

Expat911 does have a cost to use their service.  It is important to understand that this is a 3rd party service who worked directly with Mexico’s C4 and C5 offices around the country.  C4 and C5 are the agencies that handle all 911 calls in Mexico.  Expat911 has a direct line of communication with all local C4 and C5 offices nationwide.  It is also important to realize the value of this service.  An alarm in our home has a cost of 1,000’s of pesos to install.  Then we pay an average of 250 pesos per month to have the service in case our alarm goes off.  So the yearly fee of an alarm in Mexico is 3,000 pesos on average.  This alarm system will only cover your home and you while you are at home.  There is no translation services included with your alarm company and you are only covered for police emergencies.  This is why we see the huge value in Expat911 which has a cost of $ 99.00 per year.  That cost is under 2,000 pesos per year and will cover you everywhere within Mexico.  Plus Expat911 has the added benefits of being 100% English spoken and contacting your friends and loved ones during your emergency.

Expat911 has recently implemented a couples plan.  The first user pays the full amount upon registration.  They will then contact Expat911 to ask for a coupon code which will be used on their spouse or family members.  The user will be provided with a 50% off coupon code for any other family members that wish to use the service.  So it is not just limited to your spouse and can also be used for you children, brothers and sisters who may also be living here in Mexico with you.  All additional accounts have a fee of $ 49.50 which is 50% of the original rate.

Expat911 is already serving a large number of expats in Mexico.  They have active users in 11 states and are growing daily.  It is a great service for those of us who have not been able to develop a strong command of the Spanish language.  It is also great for those of us who do speak Spanish well enough, but might worry about the stress during an emergency hampering our ability to speak another language.  It is also a great aid when we are traveling to an area that is unfamiliar to us.

If you are interested in using this service, we highly recommend reaching out to the company.  You can visit their website here:  https://www.expat911.mx/ref/baja/  If you have any questions about the registration process or require assistance, then you can email them directly at info@expat911.mx.  You can also request a call from them by sending an email and setting up a time to speak with a representative.

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 Articles, Baja Norte

What To Do With All That Fish

Terry Byrns, a weekend marshal at Bajamar found bonita and yellow tail off Ensenada. He caught this bad boy trolling deep swimming rapalas along the 90 feet of water from Bajamar to La Mission. He and his fellow marshals Edgar, Angel and Ivan, have taught us all how to build a smoker from an old fridge.

The preservation of fish has been an integral part of every seafaring culture. Over the course of thousands of years of drying, salting, and smoking fish the technique has developed to a point where once common food has become a delicacy.

A smoker is an oven/BBQ type of thing for cooking at low temperatures in a controlled, smoky environment. There are a lot of different types of smokers, from small electric units to large fancy store bought smokers big enough to feed an army, literally.

Terry Byrns fishes a lot so he made his own smoker out of an early 1950s refrigerator. The old ones are all metal inside and out and are able to handle the temperatures that the new refrigerators could not because of the plastic interiors.  A refrigerator even comes with multiple shelves for a nice distribution of the meat.

Terry modified his refrigerator with adjustable air intake and adjustable air exhaust; the intake air comes in the bottom and the exhaust goes out the top. By closing or opening these he can control the temperature. Terry likes to use Kingsford charcoal briquettes as his heat source, then distributes chunks of hickory and mesquite he gets at Home Depot which he soaks overnight. He puts three or four chunks about the size of a baseball on top of the hot charcoal. These will smolder and create smoke inside the smoker and season the meat with that aroma. Terry believes Kingsford gives the best consistency and lasts the longest.

Fattier fish absorbs smoke better than leaner fish, but he smokes whatever he can catch. While any fish will be delicious cooked in the smoker, Terry tells us that going with tuna, salmon, sea bass, or sailfish is best for tender, moist smoked fish.

Cold smoking requires temperatures below 80 degrees F for several days. Hot smoking, however, can be done at temperatures of up to 250 degrees and only takes a few hours.

It is best to start with a saltwater brine. The way Terry does it, the brining process is quick so don’t worry about having to start out the day before. Plan on the fish being in the brine for about 15 minutes per 1/2 inch of thickness. Also, plan on 1 quart of brine per pound of fish. The brine of course, makes the difference in flavor. Some people call a brine a “cure” when smoking fish. Whatever you call it, it imparts a lot of good flavor. This process eliminates moisture from the fish, adds flavor, and helps in the preserving process.

The typical brine has three elements – sugar, salt and water. The liquid can be water, soy sauce or a dry, white wine. Mix together the sugar, salt, soy sauce, water, wine, onion and garlic powders. Pepper and Tabasco sauce are good too. Martha Stewart probably doesn’t brine, but it shouldn’t be hard to come up with a recipe from Google.

Hot smoking can be done in any grill or smoker, is easier and quicker than cold smoking, which may require more specialized equipment and a lot more patience. What you get is equally smoky, but isn’t dried or preserved in the same way. This does mean that hot smoked fish has a short shelf life and needs to be refrigerated or frozen.

On a final note, not only does fish make a great meal or appetizer, it also makes a great ingredient in other food. Try blending the smoked meat with some cheese, garlic, salt and pepper and you suddenly have a great spread for crackers. Many recipes call for smoked fish, from soups to salads to main courses.

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 Articles, Columns, National

What’s Going On In This Country?

Oh happy day! According to our new president elect there will be no federal government inspectors including those from the tax department. AMLO explained, “we’re going to trust the people.” Ja ja ja! Sure, trust us all to mail in that tax money your government is going to steal and blow on stupid stuff, you bet.

In addition to no Federal Tax Administration (SAT), inspectors, the Secretariat of Health and consumer protection agency Profeco, among other departments, won’t exist during his presidency.

Well, Profeco protects us, we want their consumer protection efforts. Like they inspect the gas station pumps.

Citizens will only have to sign a document pledging that they are “conscious” of their obligation to act within the law, the president-elect said.

It’s not the first time that López Obrador has placed his faith in the people of Mexico. Announcing that he will forego personal security as president days after his landslide victory in the July 1 election, the political veteran said: “The people will protect me. He who fights for justice has nothing to fear.” Yikes.

7 million go thirsty. 20 water truck companies hired by Mexico City to supply the people affected by a planted maintenance water-out are nervous about getting the job done. The water will be turned off for three days (it was initially projected to be four) 930 trucks with capacity for 10,000 to 40,000 liters have been arranged for deliveries, but they expect long wait times at the locations where tanker trucks can load up, meaning they cannot guarantee deliveries to consumers.

Nor can delivery be booked beforehand because the Mexico City water department, Sacmex, will control water distribution at the 450 locations where tankers will be supplied.

Residents of Iztapalapa will have to rely solely on government tanker trucks because private companies refuse to deliver to the borough after their trucks were stolen in the days following the earthquake on September 19, last year.

Residents will have more water at their disposal prior to the suspension in order to fill up water tanks and containers. The National Water Commission will bump water pressure by 15% five days before the suspension begins and for five days after service resumes.

Oh, toughen up! We here in Los Cabos only get water a couple times a week and we don’t stink nor go thirsty. Nor do we whine.

The Vaquita are nearly done, right? Well, maybe not. An expedition to investigate the dwindling vaquita porpoise population found three different groups of the mammals, including babies, raising hopes about its future. It was determined only months ago that the small dolphins found only in the Sea of Cortez were nearly goners, with only a handful left. Well, maybe they’re hiding, they’re shy. How do people know how many there are anyway? Let’s face it, these vaquita huggers have no idea what the hell they’re doing.

No more plastic bags. First it was straws. Tijuana has now banned plastic bags. Living with this isn’t as bad as it sounds. We’re doing it n the States now and you get used to keeping a cloth bag in your car. If you forget they will sell you a paper bag. Of if you’re really us against it, just have them throw all your stuff back into the basket and you throw it all into your car. The campaign against plastic pollution was launched in the spring of 2017 by the United Nations Environment Program.

According to data compiled by the federal Secretariat of the Environment, Mexico generates close to 103,000 tons of trash every day, 10.9% of which are plastics which are often washed away by rain and end up in the ocean.

We’re waiting for someone to get excited about all the unnecessary plastic bottles we’re buying and discarding. We’re not eco freaks but even we think that’s nonsense and we buy our water by the gallon and pour it into smaller bottles we re-use. That’s certainly more important than ripping straws out of our mouths.

Vanished! Money, of course. More than US $852 million in federal health care funding that was transferred to state governments between 2013 and 2017 is unaccounted for, audits show.

The newspaper Milenio reviewed audits conducted by the Federal Auditor’s Office (ASF) and found a range of irregularities in the use of funds allocated to the Seguro Popular health care program. Oh gawd the Seguro popular program. That’s stealing from the poorest of the poor.

The problems include overpayments for medications, payments for which no records exist, unauthorized transfers of funds and the inclusion of phantom employees on payrolls.

Authorities have identified those believed to be responsible for 3 billion pesos of the missing money and have begun the processes to recover it. However, none of those resources have yet been recovered.

The public program provides medical coverage for 55 million Mexicans who have no other health insurance, including 22 million people who earn less than twice the minimum wage (176 pesos or around US $9 per day): in other words, the nation’s poorest people.

Statistics show that the number of doctors, nurses and other medical personnel working in the Seguro Popular system is below both OECD levels and those for Mexico as a whole, while medicine shortages have occurred in several states.

Corruption is suspected of being a significant factor behind the system’s shortcomings and there is evidence that its consequences can be fatal. “Corruption kills.”

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 Articles, Baja Norte, Rosarito

The Rosarito Flying Samaritans Need Your Help

No sooner had the Flying Samaritans of Rosarito celebrated their successful first Oktoberfest sell-out, tragedy struck. On the night of October 13 or 14, thieves broke into the Flying Samaritans clinic pharmacy, possibly in search of narcotics, and ran amok. The Flying Samaritans clinic does not stock or offer narcotics or opioids at any time. But apparently the burglars didn’t know that.

However, the perpetrators did steal three computers, medical items (i.e. anything not nailed down) and diabetic supplies. They also pretty much tore up the place. The Flying Samaritans offers the only diabetic care available to many Rosaritenses.

The good news is that community members have already donated four computers to the clinic. But funds are desperately needed to make repairs to the clinic, and to replace diabetes medications, medical supplies, and to purchase a security camera system with motion detectors and lights.

Cash donations may be made through PayPal at www.FlyingSamaritansRosarito.org. For more information on how you may donate, or just help out, contact President of the Flying Samaritans, Susan Smith at SusanSmithz@hotmail.com; MX phone: 661-100-6066; US phone 1-858-240-2360.

The Flying Samaritans may even be able to utilize your talented hands to help with the institution’s repairs. And remember, the Saturday clinics can always use more volunteers. Thank you very much, fellow Rosaritenses, for your support!

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 Articles

The Big Chalupa

Whenever something major happens in life, the taxman is never far behind.  Buying property is one of those “somethings”.  It’s slightly more special when outside the U.S.  Here’s a non-exclusive primer on some U.S. tax aspects you may wish to consider when purchasing a dwelling for your use in Mexico.

If you rely on home equity loans or second mortgages to fund Mexico home purchases, know the new tax law curtailed deductibility of those. But the IRS clarifies the law: independent of what the loan is called, it could be deductible if used to buy, build or substantially improve the taxpayer’s home securing the loan.  If your Mexico home is not loan security, the interest is not deductible.

Mexican mortgages: your interest could be deductible. We just lost the foreign property tax “predial” personal deduction for individuals. Now, predial is only deductible if the property is used for a business or for the production of income– rent.

Those who purchase and later rent out must depreciate (it’s an allowance for wear and tear) the property and take annual deductions for it (later “paying it back” when the property is sold).  The new law changed the time period for foreign residential property from 40 to 30 years, leading to higher deductions. Don’t forget to depreciate if you must.

Documenting your purchase price is a critical.  U.S. taxes are paid in dollars; make sure you document the Peso exchange rate.  As back home, improvements call for an adjustment of “basis” in the property. It should be documented during the life of the property. You would be amazed at how many people try to reconstruct these numbers, years after the fact.  Did you inherit the property instead of buying it?  Get it appraised.  You may need to report the inheritance if it came from a non-U.S. person. It may not be taxable, but reportable.

If your Mexico property meets the test as your “principal residence” the federal gain on its eventual sale can be excluded from your tax, just like a U.S. home. The same limits and rules apply.

If you are wiring money from the U.S. to buy, remember Foreign Bank Account Reports.  And do yourself a huge favor: unless you have a really, really, very good reason, stay away from setting up foreign corporations to hold real estate. A well-structured fideicomiso (land trust) would be a far better way to go.

Now, welcome! Enjoy your Chalupa!

 

Orlando Gotay is a California licensed tax attorney (with a Master of Laws in Taxation) admitted to practice before the IRS, the U.S. Tax Court and other taxing agencies.  His love of things Mexican has led him to devote part of his practice to federal and state tax matters of U.S. expats in Mexico.  He can be reached at tax@orlandogotay.com or Facebook: GotayTaxLawyer.  This is just a most general outline. It is informational only and not meant as legal advice.

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 Articles, National

Dia de Muertos

Dia de muertos or day of the dead is a famous Mexican tradition. It is a day to honor the dead, but it is also a day to make fun of death. You have seen it in many movies, but most of the big screen depictions I’ve seen picture it wrong (I haven’t seen Coco by the way). Today we’ll give you the real story. First we will start with its origins:

Before the Spaniards came to Mexico, the day of the dead was already being celebrated. There are historical registries of this tradition in the cultures of the Mexica, Maya, Purépecha and Totonaca ethnic groups. The ritual of celebrating the life of the deceased has always been part of Mexico. In the pre-Hispanic world it was a common occurrence to keep the skulls as trophies and exhibit them in the rituals that celebrate death and rebirth.

The cult of death: When somebody died festivities were organized to guide his soul through its journey across the underworld. The body would be buried rolled up in a “Petate” and personal objects along with his favorite food would be placed in his tomb in case he got hungry.

The most important aspect of this celebration is the ofrenda or offering. On this day it is believed that the souls of the dead come back to be with their loved ones, that is the reason of the offerings. Some of the ancient beliefs link this offering to the four elements: Water, air, earth and fire: Earth is represented by the fruits in the offering. This are usually pumpkins, tejocotes, tangerines, sugar cane and oranges. Water is placed in a jar to calm the thirst during the journey. Fire is present trough the candles, there are usually four candles that represent the cardinal points to guide the soul. Wind is in the copal and incense burned and it is believed to mark the way for the deceased to follow.

Altars are placed with the offerings to celebrate the deceased’s loved ones. These altars are usually set up at home and  decorated with zempasúchil  flowers surrounding a picture of the defunct person all this on top of a white mantle. You can almost always find colored paper cut in ingenious designs decorating the altar.   And don’t forget one of the most famous and enjoyable offerings “pan de muerto” or bread of the dead which comes in a plethora of presentations and flavors. And last but not least the kids’ favored offering: Skulls made of sugar, often with the name of the person being remembered.

There are different variations on the celebration of this day according to the geographic location. In some places the number of steps in the altar represent the levels of the underworld the soul has to go through. There can be up to seven steps but most common is to have only two that represent heaven and earth.

In the present the date of this celebration is officially on November the 2nd  but the original tradition also has the first of November as the day to honor the dead children. The Catholic church calls this day the saints innocents day.  In some places the offering starts on October 28 until the official date. The Aztecs used to dedicate a whole month to this holiday but it all changed with the arrival of the Spaniards.

People often go to the cemetery with family and friends and spend the day there eating, drinking around the graves. They clean up the tombs and decorate it with candles and even spend the night there. Often there is live music in the cemetery making this a complete celebration.

There are many fun other traditions linked to this holiday. One of them is the calaveras: These are verses that depict a person as if they were already dead mostly in a satirical way. The verses date back to the Virreinal age, starting as a satire of the long dedications the rich people used to put on their loved ones’ graves. Later it became more of a way to do social critique up to the point the government censored them. After a while fun drawings of skeletons were added to the calaveras. The most famous artist in this venue was Jose Guadalupe Posada, He is the original designer of the Catrina character, whom you’ll recognize as the elegant rich lady skeleton you find in Mexican artesania.

The calaveras today are less political and more a fun way to express the feelings towards someone, whether it’s love, hate or critique. Often they are used as gifts to that person.

In November 2003 the UNESCO recognized The dia de muertos holiday as a cultural heritage masterpiece of humanity.

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 Articles

Cempasuchil Signals the Days of the Dead

If you’ve been driving round town lately, you may have noticed the budding flower stands popping up everywhere, offering bright orange flowers in pots and by the bunch. It is the season of the cempashuchil.

The cempashuchil is the ceremonial flower of the ofrendas, or Day of the Dead altars, from October, through November 3. Also known as marigolds or flor de Muertos (flowers of the dead), this blossom is the traditional flower to decorate not only altars, but gravesites throughout Mexico. Even though the marigold blooms in white, yellow, and orange, the orange is the traditional color chosen for this holiday, and one of Mexico’s most important traditions.

The flowers sold in Rosarito, Tecate, Mexicali, and all over Baja are grown right here in Rosarito, at the El Carrizal Ranch in Rosarito Canyon; started by one of Baja’s first families, the Machados.

Only a mere 300 yards from the Rosarito Beach Hotel as the crow flies, the El Carrizal Ranch, owned by Machado descendant, Jorge Luis Hinojo Gonzalez is one of the oldest farms in the Rosarito area. This region was, at one time, the border between the United States and Mexico. In actuality, the US/Mexico border has been “relocated” several times throughout history. It’s kind of nice that the border has moved, and there is not a wall running across Benito Juarez Boulevard.

Rancho El Carrizal is open to the public as well as wholesalers, so feel free to run up and see the b eautiful fields before they are all harvested for the season.  But be careful when visiting the marigold fields; there are bees… lots and lots of bees.

Directions: go east and under the cuota on Calle de la Palma, from the Festival Plaza Hotel. Turn south, continuing past the Oxxo and gas station onto a dirt road (Calle Alta Tension). Turn right at the bend in the road, and follow the signage reading “Ruta Eco Turistica Canyon” to the gate of El Carrizal, and the signs that read: “El Carrizo Cempasuchil” and “Verita flor de cempashuchil  Mayoreo y Machado.”

Whether you have a traditional Day of the Dead altar at the house, or want to cheer up a gravesite, or just want to have something pretty on your coffee table, pick up some marigolds in town, or at the ranch, and enjoy.

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 Articles, Ensenada

Wow! Did You See That Giant In Ensenada?

The largest cruise ship in the Norwegian line dropped anchor in Ensenada’s bay for the first time on Saturday, October 6. It did look big, from wherever you viewed it.

the Norwegian Bliss will set sail from the Port of Los Angeles for a few week long voyages to Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlán and Puerto Vallarta, before squeezing through the Panama Canal to ply the Caribbean route for the winter season.

This past summer it sailed between Seattle Washington and Alaska. It had to wait for low tied to go under the Lions Gate bridge on arrival in Vancouver British Columbia.

The newly built Bliss is Norwegian’s largest cruise ship, and has an onboard go-kart race course, a water park, Broadway theater shows, and a very cool sounding laser tag arena. Some people don’t like such big cruise ships, so there is a separate upscale section, called The Haven that offers quieter, more luxurious accommodations. Away from the unwashed masses, one would presume. Well, we presume.

The big boat can take up to 4,900 passengers, mostly in 170 square foot balcony rooms, but there are 2206 rooms total, in 42 categories on 11 decks. Altogether there are 20 decks It takes about 1700 crew to keep it all organized. Top speed is about 26 miles an hour, and the $920 million ship gets about 3,000 gallons an hour.  That’s 3000 gallons to move the ship 26 miles down the road. Sounds expensive, but with 4000 passengers, that’s only about three quarters of a gallon per person per hour.

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 Articles, National

What’s Going On In This Country?

Pipeline taps. Petroleum theft, committed by gangs of thieves known as huachicoleros, costs Pemex US $1.6 billion a year, and is just getting worse. Officials blame this trend on Pemex workers in cahoots, and because people living nearby protect and often join in the effort. They view the robbery as   getting back at Pemex for rising gasoline prices.

Good idea for tires. The seventh annual used tire collection drive in Cuernavaca, in the state of Morelos, collected 46 tons of old tossed around tires from streets, homes and businesses.

Known as Llantatón, the event was run by the local Sustainable Development Secretariat (SDS) and the Japanese tire maker Bridgestone. Yup, believe it or not, Bridgestone had always been a Jap company. It’s the English version of the word in Japanese for bridge stone. What??

The problem is, rainwater collects in used tires left around, becoming breeding grounds for mosquitoes. The collection drive was designed to remove the hazard. They also kept the tires from reaching rivers, ravines, streets or open-air dumps.

In the seven-year history of the tire collection marathon it has rounded up 446 tons — an estimated 46,000 tires, which have been used as an alternative fuel in the cement industry or reused as furniture parts or an asphalt ingredient.

Raising The Price Of No Water City officials in La Paz are warning about raising the price of water delivered to their 104,000 homes, 70,000 of whom don’t even have a meter. Well, that’s alright, since La Paz doesn’t have water.

Although a lot of their watery  is pretty spotty, the official price of this “non delivery” is about 40 cents US for about 270 gallons. The average in Mexico for that much water is about $1.60.

Mayor Ruben Munoz explains, “We would like to start with the tariff update program, but first the administration needs to improve the quality of the service and once we have made the service more efficient, then I will propose the increase in tariffs.”

This effort was halted by top Democrats in Congress and so far dismissed by the Mexican government. Well, it might work better than a wall.

Thousands of Central Americans travel through Mexico to reach the U.S. and either cross the border illegally or legally. In any case, the Trump administration doesn’t want them and is willing to pay the Mexican government to deal with it. Although Mexico says they want no part of this plan, it would be just like Mexican officials to take the money anyway. And why not? $20 million bucks doesn’t grow on cactus.

Put that call on hold. In a crackdown on extortion calls, almost 3,000 cell phones have been taken away from prisoners in seven prisons. “Suspicious” telephone equipment was found among 20,000 inmates, and they are linked to 6,926 chips.

In order to establish a cell phone as “suspicious”, the telephone companies took into account factors such as whether these devices presented an “atypical number of outgoing calls” or that they worked with several chips. The 3,000 phones made 3.7 million calls last year.

The authors of this report urged prison authorities to design a program that reduces the number of cell phones in prisons. It was also suggested that prisons block all outgoing calls.

Prisoners rent the phones by the day from other prisoners, and then sit on their bunks and dial for dollars all day long. They call random numbers and threaten people with bodily harm or kidnapping if they don’t pay. Some people are tricked into paying.

Trump hires Mexicans. The Trump administration is moving ahead with a plan to pay Mexico $20 million to deport migrants from Central America and prevent them from reaching the U.S., even after the plan had been cancelled.

Those pesky laws. The Senate is trying to establish penalties of between one and three years in prison for those who promote, apply or fund therapies that claim to cure homosexuality. It also proposes to suspend the professional practice of physicians who promote or apply these practices.

The United Nations withdrew homosexuality from the list of diseases in the 1990s and advocated eradicating these supposed therapies as being “a painful and cruel practice”.

Lotta scofflaws. Four out of every 10 electricity customers in Mexico City don’t pay their bills, according to the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE). That’s 1.15 million customers. CFE is not amused.

That accounts for 41.4% of the 2.77 million electricity customers in Mexico City. The number of defaulters increased by 282% between January 2012 and August 2018. Contrary to what might be expected, the increasing number of people not paying for their power consumption is not a product of any dramatic increase in electricity rates. CFE data shows that prices have gone up by just 3.5% in Mexico City over the past six years, less than half the average 7.75% hike across the country.

Other states with high numbers of people who don’t pay their electricity bills include México state and Tabasco. Not in this state, you will notice, as around here CFE is quick to cut the cord. You will be in the dark within days after ignoring a CFE bill. And if the bill gets blown off your door knob before you get home from work, break out the candles. In Mexico City, México state and Tabasco as well as Chiapas and Veracruz, a large number of customers who refuse to pay their bills are claiming “civil resistance” against the public utility, a movement that first began in 1995.

To make CFE’s problems worse, President-elect López Obrador said in July that his government will cancel the debts owed to the CFE, but stressed that the “clean slate” applied from July 1 of this year.

Between this January and July, the CFE cut off more than 3.2 million residential customers across Mexico for failing to pay their bills.

Drink beer. More than four million Mexico City residents will have no running water for up to five days at the end of this month due to maintenance of the capital’s main water system, and people are already wringing their hands over this. The Mexico City government advised residents to prepare by stocking up on water before it begins, adding that water tankers will be used to supply hospitals, schools, prisons and other public places. Everyone else is on their own.

Buncha whiners. We here in Northern Baja go that long without water, and don’t even get any warning. Supposedly the local water agency warns us on their website or facebook when a particular neighborhood is going to go dry, but don’t count on any accuracy there. Nor do we ever know when the water is going to come back on. Don’t see us whining like the Mexico City folks.

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 Articles, Rosarito

A Farewell to Nelson Denniston

There will be a Celebration of Life potluck for longtime Rosarito resident Nelson Michael Denniston on Saturday, October 27, 1:00 – 4:00 pm at the home of Judy Westphal in Mision Viejo.

Nelson passed away after a brief illness on September 7. Born February 13, 1936, in Brooklyn, New York, Nelson served in the United States Army and saw action in the Korean War. Nelson was married for 52 years to wife, Adele (who preceded him in death). The couple lived in Long Island, NY, and moved to Orange County, California in 1965. Nelson is survived by his sister Ellen, his two children, daughter Vanessa, and son, Rosarito resident Wayne, four grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren.

Nelson built DC-9s and DC-10s for McDonald Douglas before supervising the manufacture of computer chips in the OC. Nelson also worked closely with the Orange County Repertory Company before retiring to Rosarito with Adele in 2005.

While in Rosarito, Nelson kept busy in the community by serving as a volunteer and Board member of many of Rosarito’s charities, including the United Society of Baja California, Flying Samaritans, and Cruz Roja Voluntarios Americanos. He was also a monthly attendee of the FRAO breakfast meetings. I never saw this man without a smile and a cheerful word for me… for everybody. So please come to the potluck with a smile and a cheerful Nelson story to share.

Potluck information: The main dish and dessert will be provided. Please bring a side dish of eight servings to share. A no host bar will feature coffee, soda, beer and wine. Advance RSVP is required. Please contact Jim Henshaw at Jim@Henshaw.com, cell phone 664-748-3949, by October 22.  Directions: KM 50 on  the free road, south of the sand dunes; 49994 Calle San Juan Capistrano in Mision Viejo, south arch. For additional information, please contact Judy Westphal at jawmem@msn.com.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Denniston family at this sorrowful time.

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