Luck and Hard Work

The campo area surrounding San Miguel de Allende is largely agricultural and has at times been called the breadbasket of central Mexico.  However in contrast to the US a lot of these small farms are extremely manual and do not have the vast resources that the corporate farms in the US process.

We have been told by our neighbors that for most of these farmers and the small shepherds whose herds graze in the surrounding areas that it is hit or miss on whether they can provide the necessary financial resources to make it to the next year.

So as Billie has been saying in her blog the weather here has turned down right cold and the growing season is quickly coming to an end.  Over the past week as Jo Ann and I have been riding around the campo I have been amazed at the degree of success some farmers have achieved compared to  others.

Here is a good example of two adjacent small farms.  One planted alfalfa and is harvesting probably the last of a successful harvest, the other planted corn too early in the year and will harvest nothing. 

A big difference between successful and unsuccessful farmers is the availability of irrigation.  Here in Mexico they still are using very primitive irrigation methods, but to have access to a well certainly improves your success ratio.  As you can see here, this farmer did not have access to irrigation and  planted his corn too early. 

Not only do some farmers not have access to irrigation, some don't even have access to mechanical equipment.  As you can see this farmer is still using a burro and a horse to plow his fields.

So on this day after the US Thanksgiving Day as most Americans head out to their local malls for black Friday shopping, please stop and consider how the majority of the world lives.  Here in the campo for many a day of giving thanks is just a warm casa with enough food on the table.  I love living here in Mexico, it has opened my eyes and mind to understanding what is important to us and the value of friendship and adventure.

Cacti Propagation

Tuesday started out a bit on the cool side, it was almost 50 degrees but not bad considering it was mid-November. We headed out to el Charco botanical jardín for a lecture and demonstration on cacti propagation given by Martin Smith, the curator of el Charco's cacti collection.

Martin is a most interesting individual who is British and was first introduced to the study of cacti at age four. He has dedicated his life's work to the study, cultivation and protection of cacti.

Martin began the class by giving us a background of cacti and succulents. First off, all cactus are succulents, but not all succulents are cactus! Another interesting point he made was that agaves (which are very plentiful here) are not cactus, but a member of the grass and orchid family, which is very interesting and not something I would have guessed. Needless to say most of us were surprised by this fact.

The first part of the seminar covered soil mixture which consists of two parts tierra negra (basically a fine silt that contains nutrients), two parts coarse sand, one part tierra lama (or river silt) and one part pumice gravel which can be acquired at a local building supply. This mixture is used for all propagation methods. Martin stressed that it is most important that the soil mixture be open and free draining.

Next he gave the group a demonstration of the different methods of cactus propagation. These included cuttings of vegetation such as leaf, stem or small side plant and planting from seed.

We finished off the class by being given a tour of the garden's collection of cacti from around the world, although most of the collection is from Mexico. The variety of the plants was astounding! We really enjoyed the lecture and demonstration and highly recommend it to anyone who has a chance to attend a future seminar given by Martin.

To see more photos and commentary from this wonderful seminar, please check out the photo set at my flickr page here.

Welcome Moet & Chandon, plus a Frida update

As I mentioned last week, we have added a little more to our group of pets here at Rancho La Luz.  Last week we completed the purchase of two horses, Moet and Chandon.  Now you can probably appreciate that we do enjoy a little drink of the bubbly, but also Moet, which is Jo Ann's ride, is very bubbly and quick to canter.  Chandon is more of a love bunny, but is also a lot of fun to ride.

Here is Moet.

And here is Chandon,

While I am at it, here are two more, one of Moet and one of Chandon.

We are now in the process of building two new stables, a tack room and a place to store their alfalfa.  We had always planned on doing this, it is just that we ended up accelerating our plans to get the horses since the opportunity arose.

I also promised an update on Frida, our compo dog that we found two or so months ago.  She is doing wonderful now that we have been able to rebuild her immune system and get her better nourishment.  She had been covered with lice, maggots and fleas when we found her, but now she is doing great.  When we found her she weighed less than five pounds, but as of today she has grown to 18 pounds and as you can see below, she is very healthy and a lot of fun to have around.

For more photos of our animals and our travels around San Miguel de Allende and the rest of central Mexico check out my flickr page.

The Rains Continue

Here in San Miguel de Allende the rainy season is suppose to have ended and we should be moving into winter with the gardens and trees moving into dormancy.  However, what is suppose to be isn't and last Friday evening we had a fairly heavy rain, although most of it occurred while we were sleeping.

Once the clouds cleared Saturday morning, Jo Ann and I decided to take our normal Saturday bike ride, we had hoped to bike into San Miguel and have lunch.  This is a great ride, about 50 kilometers total since there is not straight line other than the main carrterra and we refuse to ride along it as there are no shoulders or bike lanes.

Riding through Rancho Viejo we noticed that everything was much wetter than we anticipated, in fact in several places we had to navigate around several major water holes.

When we got to the carrterra Palo Colorado, we realized that it had rained much more than we initially thought.  As you can see here, the road was under water in many places and we abandoned our initial plans and decided to take a shorter route through Taboada and then to Atotonilco.

Everything was a muddy mess but we continued a long our plan, when we were about half way to Atotonilco we found probably the only person or animal that was enjoying the muddy results of the recent rains.

It took us a lot longer to compete the ride given the weather, but it was a great ride, although as you can see below, I had a lot of clean up to do afterwards. 

Well at least I did not have to do the laundry!

Who Controls the Schedule?

The past week has provided a lot of challenges to my personality regarding schedules and appointments.  In the past I have been almost anal regarding the importance of being on time and achieving deadlines, however down here in Mexico, well it is just not the same.  Here are just a couple of recent examples.

First I have been dealing for two weeks in trying to get our plumber and electrician to come out to do a final days work.  This work is starting to get in the way of completing our landscaping project and the construction of the new garage.  We call and make appointments, but alas no one shows.  We will keep on trying.

Second, I had a doctor appointment last Wednesday.  I showed up on time (well within the norm for Mexican on time) and there was no one at the office.  I waited for a couple of minutes and then called my doctor on his cell.  He told me that he had an emergency at the local hospital and that his secretary was suppose to call me, but she had not nor was she there to reschedule my appointment.

Third, last Thursday we were told that the movers who were shipping our furniture from the US were going to be at our place in the afternoon to unload.  We were excited and got everything ready and waited.  By five in the afternoon we were deflated and called again to find out what was happening, well we were told that because it was the Day of the Dead, that the driver decided not to complete the drive and that they would have to come on Friday.  That was fine, but could someone please have called us.

Finally, on Saturday we were suppose to met the person who we are going to buy two horses from.  She is a trainer and gives lessons on riding but when we showed up there were two lessons going on and several people trying to talk with her.  To say the least we just decided to reschedule to a less hectic time so we could talk about the horses and complete the deal.

But there are also things that make living in Mexico even for a schedule fanatic like me.  Last Tuesday we had to go to a lab in Querétaro for a special test and we had never been to this place.  Well the road was under a lot of construction and we got lost.  We called the lab and told them where we were and guess what, they sent someone over to show us the way to the lab.  Have you ever heard of something like this in the US.

So living in Mexico the schedules and appointments are a bit more fluid and subject to change.  However the people are so friendly and supportive, you just have to laugh and enjoy the day.  But isn't that what life is all about?

Almost back to normal

The past couple of weeks have been very busy which has kept me from many of my normal activities including writing posts to this blog.  Hopefully I will get back into a more comfortable routine and will be able to get back to two or three posts a week.

So last Monday Jo Ann came back across the border after packing up the rest of our stuff from the US.  Her two cousins Matt and Jerry shared the ride with her so from Tuesday until Saturday we were heavy into the tourist scene.  On Tuesday we bummed around San Miguel as well as going to the weekly Tiengas for some shopping.

After the trip to town and the Tiengas, we then did a hike down to the arroyo and up the dry river.  Since we have not had any rain for the past two weeks, most of the river bed is dry.  However the dogs found one nice large pond and made the most of it.

 

On Wednesday we hiked from Rancho La Luz to La Gruta though the small town of Rancho Viejo.  It is about a five mile walk each way as we go through Atotonilco, which has this wonderfully restored church.

And of course a bunch of street vendors that are selling various religious artifacts.

The pools at La Gruta are from the thermal springs in the area and are so comfortable.  The grounds are very tropical, which is so different from the normal local vegetation, but beautiful just the same.

Thursday then held a wonderful tour at the Hacienda Las Trancas, which is a little north of Dolores Hidalgo.  There are so many wonderful images that I took at the Hacienda, but I will limit the posting to only a couple.

Here are the stables of the hacienda.

And here is one of the beautiful bedrooms.

After the tour of the hacienda we went into Dolores and had lunch and bummed around the town.  Of course no visit to Dolores can be made without some of the delicious ice cream that they sell at the central jardin.

Friday was another day of bumming around San Miguel and Saturday Matt and Jerry returned to the chilling state of Minnesota.  It was a very nice visit, but Jo Ann and I were exhausted from the activities.  We were a little upset though with Matt and Jerry, they seemed to have left their Minnesota weather down here.  Saturday night the temperatures dropped to 0 (32 for those of you in the US) and many of our recently planted native trees and shrubs were touched by frost.  This sure seems early but I am sure that Jo Ann will be able to coach them back to health.

This week is also one packed with many activities.  First and foremost it is the festivals for All Saints Day and the Day of the Dead. There is also a circus in town that we want to go see.  We also have our on going landscaping project and today we start our last project, that being the construction of the garage.  Then we stop!

So here's a big thank you to Matt and Jerry, they had a safe trip home but we hope that they will return again soon.  It wasn't our normal week, but we enjoyed playing the tourist, it is just not something we do often.

End of the Rainy Season, Not Yet!

Two weeks ago we commenced the final project related to the renovation of Rancho La Luz, this being the landscaping surrounding the house.  We had decided to delay this project until we had a good probability of the rainy season being over so that all of the dirt moving and the re-grading of the yard.  As I have commented in earlier posts, we have a problem when it rains, as the water runs down from the pasture and right onto our front porch.  Also we wanted to establish some more typical rancho style gardens, including a cactus garden.

So two weeks ago we commenced the project and started to reshape the yard around the house.  The idea was to establish some burms that would channel the rain water away from the house and to create some interesting elevations to plant on.

We were making great progress and had started planning on where the driveway, walkways and the new garage were going to be placed.  This work requires a lot of raw materials and a talented crew to select, place and secure the rocks into the cobblestone type driveway and walking paths.

As you can see we have plenty of the raw materials,

and a very talented crew. 

However on Friday afternoon we started to hear thunder and by 3p it was raining hard.  Other than a short break in the rain between 6 and 8p, it rained steady until 2a.  When I got up on Saturday, it looked like I was back living in Minnesota as it seemed that we were in the land of 10,000 lakes.

Here it new driveway, just don't stop or you may not get moving again.

And this is the new garage, yes it now looks like a swimming pool which Snickers and Frida are enjoying but it will someday dry out and we will have a place to park our truck.

It rained again on Saturday, almost as hard as it did on Friday evening and as I sit here on Sunday, I am wondering when we will be able to recommence the project.  Clearly the project is on hold for a while, I can only hope that we get some sunny and windy days which will help to dry out the soil.  The good news is that I did not have to water all of the native plants that are part of our reforestation project, but the bad news is that the landscaping is on hold and every time the dogs go outside, they come back a muddy mess.

Planes, Automobiles and ..... Snow?

I was going to call this post Home Alone 2 as Jo Ann left San Miguel on Wednesday to visit her parents and to prepare the move of our furniture down here to San Miguel.  However Jo Ann has encountered another of those lovely trips that the airlines do not want to have published.

She was scheduled to leave the Leon airport at 7:10 so off she goes at 3:45a to reach the airport in order to comply with the "rules and regulations" of the airlines.  After checking in and going to the gate all she sees is a dark airplane (well at least the plane is at the gate).  At 7a there is still no signs of life on the airplane so she calls me and I check the web which shows that the flight is still scheduled to leave at 7:10 without delay.  Around 7:40 the airline's web site finally shows that the flight is delayed but she should still make it in time to catch her connection.

At 8:15 Jo Ann goes to ask the lone ticket agent what is happening with the flight and she is told that there is a major fire at the DFW airport,.  I then checked the web and I can't find any notice of this "major" fire, so I relay the news that this comment is quite suspect.  Around 9a Jo Ann calls again to say that they are boarding so she may still make here connection.  Alas after boarding they had to deplane as they were told that there was mechanical problems.

So finally around 10a they are boarded and take off.  Of course, Jo Ann misses her 11a connecting flight from DFW but is able to catch the 1:10p flight to MSP. 

When she arrives in Minneapolis, it is snowing and the temperature is 32, this is October 11, not December.   To top off this flight from h*ll the airline lost her luggage and told her that they had no idea where it was located, I am sure glad they have the high tech systems to track luggage.

Her cousin Matt was there to pick her up and they made the five hour drive in blowing snow and windy conditions.  Gratefully they made it safely, but there was about 2 inches of snow on the ground. 

Yesterday it continued to snow with the high of only 34.  I just got off the phone with her this morning and at 7:30 there is close to seven inches of snow on the ground and the temperature is 22 with a 15 degree wind chill.  I did not have the heart to tell her that it was 65 and sunny down here, she will probably read this and scream.

Last night the airline called to say that they had found her luggage and hoped to get it to her on Friday, however, if not it would not arrive until Monday as FedEx does not deliver on Saturday where we have our house in Northern Minnesota.

Jo Ann is in great spirits considering this trip but as someone who use to travel and average of 200,000 air miles a year in my professional career, I am just amazed by how the level in the airline industry has continued to decline.  No wonder no one wants to fly any more.

Follow up on patience

Since the post earlier this week, I have had to face more events that have been testing my boundaries of patience.  As I mentioned we have commenced a project to re-grade the land around our house as the current grade allows the water from our heavy rains to drain to the house and creates large ponds of water outside our front door. 

We have not had any flooding inside the house but on several occasions this summer it was close.  Thus this project was commenced and as you can see there is a lot of dirt being moved around by the back hoe.

However on Wednesday afternoon the back hoe tore up our main electricity lines and the house was completely without power.  I am grateful that our contractor and electrician were able to come out any by 9p we had partial power back to the house.  Then yesterday they came back and established power to the rest of the house, albeit via a temporary solution where I have power lines running all over the ground that need to be inserted into PVC conduit and buried underground.  This was suppose to be done yesterday afternoon but I could not find them to determine when we were going to get the work done.

I was starting to have a significant break down as I also have a friend in town who needs some major computer work done (she can't get her computer to boot properly and I need to get there to deal with it), we have several appointments today with local schools related to our work with Patronato Pro Niños and I really want to get the power lines underground before anything else serious can happen.

Then around 9p last night I get a call from my contractor and he says that everything will be done today (I am writing this on Friday morning), but that they had another emergency and could not get out there yesterday.  So I relaxed and realized I need to slow down a little and just enjoy the process.

Then this morning I was reading some of the blog postings that I have in my rss reader, and I came upon this touching story about some blind children learning to deal with their lost of sight.  I guess I just to realize how insignificant my problems are compared to some others that really have some difficult issues to deal with.  You can read this posting at http://www.mexicanpictures.com/headingeast/2006/10/blind-leading-blind.html

Learning patience

From wikipedia, patience is the ability to endure waiting, delay or provocation without becoming annoyed or upset, or to persevere calmly when faced with difficulties.

People who have known me for a long time, know that I am not a man of patience.  In business we always had to deliver to the client before their expectations (we almost always did), in sports we always had to win (although we didn't) and sometimes (many times?) in my relationship with Jo Ann I demand perfection (which is also a major fault but we can discuss that later).

So moving to Mexico is opening a whole new chapter for me, it is the need to learn patience.  I have three examples of why you need to learn the art of patience if you are going to move to Mexico.

Last week we were suppose to start a project to re-grade the front yard of our property.   The current slope has all of the water from the rains run down to the front door of the house and creates a lake outside the front door.  Although we have never had it flood into the house it has been close so this needs to be done.  Well they were suppose to start last Tuesday, but did not show.  We got an email from them that said that they had machinery problems but would be there Wednesday.  Guess what no shows on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.  My old self would have been going nuclear demanding that they get over here and start, etc. etc.  However, I was able to just let it go and they did come this past Monday and are doing a wonderful job.

We are also almost done with the renovations to the house, we have four relatively small open items left on the contractors punch list.  Well I have been calling him for three weeks and sending emails, he finally called me yesterday to say that he was going off to vacation this week but would be out that afternoon to close out three of the open items and arrange for the fourth to be completed.  Well guess what another no show, and I can either blow a gasket or I can just continue to try to reach him this week before he goes on vacation.

Finally and probably the most frustrating is the problems I having with my Internet provider.  I love the Internet, the ability to research new things, to view various photoblogs, to communicate with friends, etc. so to me high speed Internet is a requirement.  We don't have a TV but I can not live without high speed Internet (you get my point).  Well for the past month I have been trying to get my Internet access stable, it is up, down, fast, slow, just completely unstable.  So yesterday they came out and swapped my broadband modem saying that would solve the problem.  Well last night I was down for the entire evening and this morning it has been up and down.   I know that these guys are trying very hard, but they blame TelMex (who provides the DSL connection), the need for a new high speed router in their back office, and who knows what else.  I probably get most upset about this problem but I am learning to live with sporadic connectivity.  However, I do have hope that this one can get solved.

So moral of this posting, is if you are coming to Mexico, don't expect customer service like you get in the US.  It is a different culture and the people you are working with don't have all of the latest technology and tools.  They try the hardest that they can but sometimes things just don't work out as you planned.  That is just part of the adventure.

Commencing another project

Am I glutton for punishment or do I just like to have too much too do?  This is a question that I need to ask myself often and most times I don't know the answer.

If you have been following my previous posts you will be familiar with  our reforestation project but we have now decided to expand this.  I have been referred to an organization  called Grupo de Acción Interdisciplinaria Ambienta A.C. (GAIA) that is working to improve the watershed management of the lands in Guanajuato.  This referral came from the el Charco del Ingenio jardín botánico and has continued to open my eyes to the groups that are working to enhance the lands, waters and plants around San Miguel de Allende.

I met with Ata who is one of the leaders of this group about how they can help me address some of my erosion problems as well as to enhance the arroyo that runs along the east side of my rancho.  They have started to identify a plan that I will be able to implement that uses simple techniques to reduce the erosion and to ensure the sanctuary of the arroyos.  I am sure that this project will also take several years to implement do to time and money issues, but it is amazing that there are so many organizations like GAIA and INIFAP around here that are trying to do great things but are restricted due to the lack of funding.

However this is not the only part of this new project that I am looking at.  As Ata and I talked it seems like there is a real need to try to educate and provide eco-friendly landscaping tools and supplies, such as drip irrigation and compost producing tools.  Thus we are investigating the potential of starting an import business to bring these products into Mexico and to try to educate the residence of the benefit of organic gardening and the use of drip irrigation.  I am investigating the various hassles that this will require to set up and to try to estimate what the investment that will be required.  And here I thought I was only going to be working on our rancho, boy was I mistaken.

What do you do in Mexico?

I probably hear this question at least twice a week from my friends who live north of the border.  Many of them just have a hard time understanding how we can be so happy living in Mexico and how we fill our days with personally rewarding activities and events.

So to try to address this question collectively, I have prepared this post with a summary of the past week, which I would say is generally representative of a normal week for us at Rancho La Luz.

Monday

• Spanish language class from 8 to 10a.
• Work in the rancho pruning the existing native trees and with our new additions that are part of our reforestation project.
• Meeting in San Miguel with a craftsman who will repair the seat cushions for our outdoor furniture.
• Meeting at the offices of Patronato pro Ninós, which is an organization that we volunteer.  Patronato pro Ninós works with rural schools to identify children that need medical attention and provides the funding for these services.  Today we were dropping off the names of the children we had identified the prior week so that the children could get referred to the proper medical specialist.
• Work on some photos that I took over the weekend and Jo Ann worked in her vegetable garden.

Tuesday

• Spanish language class from 8 to 10a.
• Had the vet out to look at Keisha, our cat, and to update the rabies shots for the dogs.
• Work in the rancho on the native trees and shrubs.
• Drive to the Hacienda Las Trancas for a wonderful tour and lecture lead by the two owners of the hacienda, Kelley and Stephen Wilkinson.  This tour was part of the SMA Down to Earth garden club.  I still hope to have a posting on this wonderful tour with some additional photos beyond the ones that I posted on my photo of the day blog which you can see here, here, here and here.
• Work on some of the photos that I took at the hacienda and Jo Ann worked with her gardens.

Wednesday

• Spanish language class from 8 to 10a.
• Worked with one of our contractors in finishing the new cabinets for our kitchen.
• Meeting with one of the landscape architects that we are interviewing for the work to be done to re-grade the yard surrounding the house and the different ideas for the design that he was planning.
• Visit to the school at Terra Blanca for Patronato pro Ninós where we identified about 25 children who need medical attention.
• Meeting with our principal contractor about finishing up the work on installing our propane heater for the main living room and his estimates for building a carport for the rancho. Ouch, I thought everything was cheaper in Mexico, that is always not the case.

Thursday

• Bike ten miles over to Rancho Jaguar for a lecture and tour of their gardens, lead by the assistant director of el Charco Botanical Jardin.   I do hope to have a posting on this tour and lecture later this week, but I do have some photos here and here.
• On our way to the lecture and tour we found Frida, which you can read in a previous posting here and here. 
• In the afternoon I had to take my truck in to the Ford dealer for replacement of the brake pads and needed to do some shopping at the local mercado and bakery.  The truck was not going to be done until the next morning so I had to bum a ride home that day.

Friday

• Spanish language class from 8 to 10a.
• On the way back into town to get my truck we found Frida's sibling, so I had to chase after it to get it so we could bring it into the San Miguel SPA.
• After picking up my truck I had a meeting with the Patronato pro Ninós organization again so we could deliver our listing of recommendations for medical attention and to request that the dental truck make a visit to the school at Terra Blanco.
• I then had a meeting with a very interesting individual who is working with several family members to save the local arroyos.  We discussed how we could work together as he was familiar with my reforestation project.  He thought that it would be beneficial for both of us to research how we can reduce the erosion on our property and help retain the local arroyo that borders my rancho.
• I also had a meeting to discuss how to resolve one of the last issues associated with the purchase of our rancho.  It is basically extortion but it will help resolve this final open issue and we can move forward with completing all of the legal issues associated with our purchase of the rancho.
• I did get some time to shoot some photos of the preparations for the Grito which is given every year on the 15th of September celebrating Mexico's cry for independence.  This event which does not take place until very late in the evening of the 15th, is way too late for us to attend given that we live in the campo so this was my only chance to get in and see the preparations.

Saturday

• We worked the entire day in the rancho, this time transplanting some of the roses into pots as they were not doing well in the ground and other general (and always continuing) tasks around the rancho.

Sunday

• We got a very long bike ride in, this time heading out to La Gruella, which was about a 25 mile ride.  It was a beautiful ride on a beautiful day and I got a number of good shots that I still need to process before I can share them.

So if you are still wondering if all we do down here is drink cerveza and eat tacos, I hope you are relieved that our lives are fuller than that.  Although talking about cerveza and tacos is making me hungry so I guess I am off to the local tienda for some comida.

Hasta luego!

An Update on Frida

It has now been three days since we rescued Frida and I can't believe how much she has improved since we brought her into our pet family.  The puppy that I brought home on Thursday was quiet, non-responsive, covered with fleas and lice and seemed very sickly.  Well Frida is now a very active and inquisitive puppy, who is taking food and water on a regular basis.

Here is an updated photo of Frida.

We had the vet over on Friday morning and as she was leaving the rancho she called us to tell us that she had seen a sibling of Frida on the same road that I found Frida.  She was unable to catch him/her but armed with this information, I went out there and found her sibling.  Since we already have four dogs (including Frida) I took her to the San Miguel SPA where I sure hope that he/she will be adopted by a loving family.  As you probably have noted, I did not check to see if it was Frida's brother or sister.

The only problem that we have had since inviting Frida to join our clan is that the three big dogs are keeping their distance from her.  I am sure that this will pass, but both Jo Ann and I would like to get everyone into one happy family as soon as possible.

Welcome to Frida

This morning we headed out to the lecture and tour of Bob Haas' garden that was sponsored by el Charco.  Since it was less than ten miles away, we decided we should bike to the event and not drive.  On the way out there we saw this small but very cute black and white puppy, however since we were late we could not stop, even though we knew it was wild.

On the ride to the lecture we decided that we would try to rescue the puppy, but it would have to wait until later.  So upon our return we went back to the spot we saw her and put out some dog food.  Later in the day we went back there to see if the puppy had eaten any, or if we could find it.

Alas the food was not touched but we kept looking and after about an hour we spotted her.  I followed her for quite a while as she was very scared.  Finally I found her curled up under a cactus in the fetal position and shaking.

I had brought a long some cooked chicken and dog food and got her to eat some of the food so that I was finally able to pick her up.  Once we got her home Jo Ann and I gave her a good bath (she has lots of fleas and other bugs), some food and water.  It was at time that we decided that she was probably going to join the Erickson clan and we named her Frida.  So please welcome our newest addition Frida.

Mucha Lluvia

This past Thursday evening we got a long steady rain, it started around 8 in the evening and continued all night.  It was not a hard rain, but one that was steady and continuous.  Also there was lots of lighting and thunder, so the dogs were sleeping on the bed as they were scared.

The next result of this storm is that everything is very wet right now, we have a lot of rain over the past couple of weeks so the ground is very saturated resulting in lots of standing water.

So today we headed out on a long bike ride.  Since most of our rides are off road we soon discovered that most of our trails were just impassible.  We quickly were covered in mud and decided that it just wasn't a good day to enjoy a long ride.

Thus we returned home and decided to walk the dogs to the Rio Carman which borders our rancho and is usually dry.  Along the walk we saw this interesting bird nest in the middle of this large cactus.

A little later we came upon these beautiful butterflies flying around in the pasture.

As we neared the Rio Carman, we came upon these bright yellow flowers that I have mentioned before.  The flowers are so rich in color but never seem to open any further than they are shown below.

Finally we came down to the Rio and we could not believe that the Rio was still running at a fairly strong rate.  As you can see below the water fall was running fairly strong even though the last rain was a couple of days ago.

An as you look south you can see that the river is running very well.

So as I write this update on Saturday afternoon, we are in the middle of another strong rain storm.  It sure looks like there will be no off road bike riding for at least another couple of days.

Burro's Day of Beauty

So this morning we had an appointment with our veterinarian to clip and file the hoofs of our four burros.  Well you may laugh but this is really a hard job, as Jo Ann may enjoy a pampered day at the spa, but the burros really do not like to have this procedure done.

Geraldo, who is an outstanding veterinarian, comes out to our rancho as it really is not feasible for us to just load them up in the truck and drive to his office.

So the total procedure for the four burros takes about an hour and a half and at the end, I am exhausted.  This is hard work for an old man, but someone's got to do it.

So below is a number of other photos of our burros on their day of beauty for your enjoyment.  Oh by the way, I clearly did not take these photos as I was more than a little bit distracted.

Introducing something new

I have always worked best with deadlines and commitments however in working with this blog, my postings have been sporadic and not always timely.  Thus to improve  my commitment to working on my photography and sharing my photos, I have decided to separate this blog into two separate ones.  This one will continue to be photos and commentary about living in Mexico and what is happening down here in San Miguel de Allende.  These postings will continue to be made as events dictate and will also contain photos that enhance the commentary.

The second one will be dedicated to presenting a daily image from my photography collection, hopefully taken that day, but if not it will be from a recent shooting.  This blog is located at sanmiguelphotooftheday.blogspot.com.  I hope you will continue to enjoy this rambling commentary as well as my commitment to share one photo a day at my other site.

This morning Jo Ann and Analle were out walking the rancho and picked this beautiful bouquet of wild flowers and I just had to share them with you.

No Share the Road Signs Needed

Today was the longest ride that we took since my accident.  We headed out to Las Cañas and then went on some very old roads, more like burro trails.  We went almost 20 miles today so I think we are back in the saddle so to say.

While we were riding we came upon this road that looked just like some of the roads that we use to travel in California.

So what did we see:

2 pick-up trucks

1 car

2 wagons pulled by burros

3 shepherds watching over their flocks

Many beautiful trees, shrubs and plants

This wonderful looking old building that just made me ask when was it built and what happened to it?

 

After shooting this image, I turned and looked at Jo Ann, it also made me ask, what was she looking at?

So we did not quite get to Rancho Nuevo (it is funny we live near Rancho Viejo, which means the old rancho, but we were trying to get to the new ranch).

While we were returning we came upon this family that was going to the circus in Terra Blanco and we stopped and talked with them for quite a while.  The families out here in the campo always seem so happy to stop and talk about anything.  We asked where the road went, where they were going, did they enjoy the circus, and more.  After some time we offered the children some candies that I always carry in my back pack and then one of the older girls said "Thank you" yes she new English but was happy to see that we could talk more than a little in Spanish.

One the ride back we did come across another shepard with a flock of goats.  This one just was so cute.

 

Finally we came back to Terra Blanca and saw the circus that the family was riding to.  This circus has been moving around our little universe of happiness for the past month.  It must be a tough life, move week to week from one small town to another.