It must be difficult for the Federal Government to sue one of its own. That is just what happened today: The United States is suing the State of Arizona. It is reported that the people of the United States are divided as to whether greater enforcement of illegal entry or greater emphasis should be placed on dealing with the 12 million illegal aliens that are in the U.S.
Political division in the latest polls show that more than two-thirds of Republicans want the focus to be on border security, while 55% of Democrats want the focus to be on those in the country.
Perhaps working on both would be a good thing.
It is safe to say that most Americans would like to see some form of comprehensive immigration reform.
It is also not difficult to understand the frustration Arizonians have with illegal aliens affecting their economy and quality of life.
A couple points that have been discussed here are that we support a reform, but not at the expense of the Constitution of the United States. We believe the Arizona law does compromise Constitutional rights and could heighten problems of racism. We are of the opinion that the enforcement of existing laws as well as more Federal involvement in an effort to resolve some or all of these issues is past due.
Living mostly in Mexico we suggest that President Calderon of Mexico face the facts that his demands for fair treatment of Mexican citizens must be a two way street. Poor treatment of illegal aliens entering Mexico’s southern border with Guatemala is widely reported.
We should add that we have had nothing but fair treatment relating to our being/living in Mexico. We consider Mexico our home regardless of our country of origin.
In this writer’s opinion more open borders at both ends of Mexico would be better.
Mexico allows people to be in the country as long as they bring sufficient money with them. Few come to Mexico to work obviously. So the scales are not equal.
These are very disquieting times for those of us living in Mexico as expatriates. In our area of Xico, Veracruz and the surrounding area including Coatepec and Xalapa we were feeling some slight negative attitudes about our being there just before we left five weeks ago. We hope we will go home to calm waters.
We often state our belief that more than 5 billion people living on this small planet must find ways to live together; to accept one another; and that we all must champion peace. Lofty ideals I know. But there is no reason to believe that these qualities of life can not be obtained.
We are delighted with the U.S. Federal Government taking action to stop Arizona from causing further erosion of the Constitution as a method of trying to solve their immigration woes. At the same time we accept the fact they are frustrated. We hope other ways can be found to lessen or end the problems.
Please stop the hating! We can, we must, find peaceful solutions that will maintain the freedom and individual rights depicted in the United States Constitution.
We hope you all had a great Fourth of July Holiday in the United States.
The Calypso family is at the 36th parallel north, well above the troublesome borderline and a long way from our 19th parallel north home in Xico, Veracruz.
We arrived in Las Vegas on a record heat day – 110 degrees Fahrenheit. We often have good timing on being somewhere where a record weather event is occurring.
There is NOTHING ‘RAPID’ or ‘EXPRESS’ about this border crossing.
It has pretty much been HOT every since we departed Xico on the last day of May.
One of our goals in retirement life has been to be somewhere where the weather is neutral most of the year. By this we mean not needing cooling or heat as much as possible. Xico has been an excellent example – one never needs cooling since it rarely gets past the mid eighties. Heat is necessary perhaps 65 days a year. It never gets below the low 40’s and seldom below 50.
Las Vegas lays claim to 133 days a year over 90 F and 28 days below freezing; and a fraction over 4 inches of rain annually. It is no wonder they have no state income tax; providing impetus to live in a state with extreme weather conditions.
On the other hand, and I have nothing to back this up, Las Vegas seems to be one of the cleanest cities in the U.S. The contrast between our area of Mexico and LV is dramatic.
In Texas we read signs warning of a $2000.00 fine for littering where as Las Vegas threatens $500.00. I can not recall seeing a fine warning in Mexico. They do have signs requesting not littering.
The first most obvious difference when you cross into the U.S. is the roads. In Las Vegas even the residential streets are wider than most highways in eastern Mexico. Then it is so clean – main street Disneyland comes to mind.
The travelers tip is to bring your own water along. I had mentioned this some time back about bus travel in Mexico. Water is incredibly expensive here in the U.S. $1.89 plus tax for a liter of water in the U.S. seem to be the norm. Of course these are the travelers roadside places NOT Walmart with their 27 cent Culligan machines (bring your own container).
The real estate market here is as depressed as I have seen real estate in my lifetime. Even the State of Nevada has reduced value for the tax rolls to 40% or less of the value a couple years ago. Makes for an interesting, albeit complicated (too long to explain), housing market.
I am working on buying Senora Calypso a computer of her very own and attempting to sort out papers to file our taxes – staying cool all the while at my sister-in-law’s casa – she is soooo sweet to put us up.
We are having fun catching up. I always hear some great ‘when we were kids’ stories from my sister-in-law. She treated me to a photo I have been needing for all those that have asked for proof that Anita played the accordion. Sort of looks like a little girl with a piano laying on her chest (lol).
Christmas Eve Morning in Xico Mexico: The sun also rises here up on the mountain at Rancho del Cielo. At 6:30 AM a balmy 65 degrees with a light wind produced a majestic sunrise with Mexican colors. The burnt orange sky and a fine cup of Mexican coffee has to be one of the best ways to wake up to another Christmas Eve morning.
There is no way I have the skills and the equipment to give the scene here justice captured with a digital camera – you the reader will have to imagine what an expanse like this might be here in living color.
This says a lot because writing about living in Mexico is the same in that we can only touch upon the beauty, grace and tranquility of our adopted land. It is like the photo – you really have to be here. (Click to Enlarge – it is worth it!)
As the sun dawns we are listening to O Come All Ye Faithful performed by The Choir of King’s College, Cambridge. From Colorado, U.S.A. to Veracruz, Mexico, to London, England – a glorious international morning sort of speak. We are after all one people.
Nearing the end of another year, moments like these in the quiet solitude of a Mexican sunrise pretty much puts it all in perspective. Life is good – better than we deserve I think. But we will not look a gift horse in the mouth.
The Calypso family wishes you and yours a wonderful holiday.
We are winding down our stay in the U.S. – well so I would like to think. The truth is we may be here until the end of the month; but we are ready to go home. The glitz of Las Vegas and the charm of Capitan have not assuaged our preference to be in Mexico.
The good news is I received my U.S. passport – now I can get out of Dodge and ride to South of the Border.
Because a passport wasn’t necessary when traveling by car to Mexico until June 2nd of this year I didn’t bother getting one. Then the last two years I was spending more than 6-months in Mexico so the FMT visa was not sufficient. I needed at least an FM3 Mexican visa to stay beyond 6-months.
To obtain a Mexican FM3 visa requires a U.S. passport. Now that I have a U.S. passport when Anita goes to renew her FM3 I will apply for one.
Getting the passport was pretty painless and quite quick; less than 4 weeks from start to finish. Included was a pamphlet titled, “With Your U.S. Passport, the World is Yours!
I just saw the passport as some people regulating where I was allowed to go and that I was required to have it simply to enter the “free country” I was born in, served in the Army and worked within for my entire adult life up to retirement. Of course this is the libertarian in me coming out.
One included document explaining some details of possessing a passport was written in English on one side and Spanish on the other – Oh how I wish the Mexican government was as accommodating.
But, then if I were to get any wish it would be to not have to get permission to leave/enter the United State and Mexico. But I will stop complaining now and be happy I have this important legal document. Stay Tuned!
We shopped at both ends of the spectrum yesterday – not the very extreme ends, but close. I like to buy shoes at Dillard’s in August as they have sales and I usually need shoes then – Cole Hahn, Gucci, Born, Sketcher, Nike and this time some Crocs.
Ok I am not buying $800.00 Bruno Magli Italian jobs but I like a good shoe.
On the other end of the shopping spectrum, we love thrift stores – other people’s junk is often our treasure and occasionally retail stores foist off returned, slightly damaged or even poor selling new stuff. And OK I am going to come out on this – I love a bargain!
In Mexico you will not find people camping out waiting for the store to open that is selling the latest iPod or Hank Williams Junior CD. There are no busiest shopping day after Thanksgiving Fridays. There are no after Christmas sales where mayhem breaks out as they open the doors – no department store injuries or fatalities – no retail sales rage. The Mexican’s shop calmly and respectfully.
Any visit to the U.S. includes shopping lists and annual visit to Dillards, Fry’s and many visits to thrift stores. Here on Wednesdays the many Goodwill stores discount 25% to seniors (I laugh at 55 year olds, mere kids, being labeled as seniors).
We have even become friendly with a few ‘regulars’ that we see nearly every visit to our closest Goodwill. I know they are either selling on Ebay or have unending weekend garage sales, but don’t expect them to fess up to that – competition is fierce in that game.
Yesterday between banking, mailing out broken car parts and a camera lens, a visit to Dillards and some cursory shopping for a Stihl weed eater, we stopped at Goodwill.
Anita found a broken wine corker just like a broken one we own. With the two broken ones I could create one working one – into the cart. Score – a nice wooden pepper mill. Sure we have one or three but it was a bargain and after all we have two locations in Mexico and one in the States. I threw a new blue jean jacket in the cart – still considering it.
But then there it was – the deal of the day!
A near new, full featured, heavy duty battery charger – a real man’s item. If you have been reading along you may remember my problem with having loaned one of my chargers to a couple Mexican guys in the Hood. It was returned very broken.
This was like divine intervention. I deserved a deal on a fine hardy charger – a charger Tim the Tool man would be proud to have in his garage – oh happy day; and at under $20 with my senior discount. This had to be a $60 or more savings.
In the thrift store shopping world this is the kind of thing you just have to be in the right place at the right time for. They bring out a man’s treasure like that and a crowd gathers immediately. I have learned to scoop these kinds of things up fast and decide whether you want it after it is in your cart.
If you aren’t familiar with thrift stores then you might not know they do not allow returns of electronic devices, a beef I will save for another time. What they do allow is testing of anything electronic providing a receptacle or two that supplies power. Some have actual ‘testing stations’.
Now that I possessed the shiny charging box I plugged it in at the test station – it hummed when on and not when off – 6 volts, then twelve volts came to life on the meter as I put it through the paces. I checked the connectors and the condition of the heavy cables – everything seemed good. I was happy.
Anita found some pants and some brand new ace bandages. I rummaged through boxes and boxes of cables and charging cubes – not really needing anything in particular – but you never know.
I remembered Bonnie and Charles had asked us to keep an eye out for a moto helmet for Charles – size 7 ¼. We had bragged about the fine five dollar helmet Anita had found here when we were all in Mexico – her’s found at this very store here in Las Vegas. I went across the store to the hats and helmets area. No, nothing jumped out at me as a brain protector for Charles.
I checked in on Anita who was pushing apart pants hanging on long racks. “I’m going to try these on.” She said.
“Have you seen our cart lately?” I asked.
“No.”
I spied it across the store. When I got to it I immediately noticed that my battery charger treasure was gone. “Help I have been robbed!”
I looked up and down the isles – no charger. I ran up to the counter and asked breathlessly if anyone had passed through purchasing a shiny black battery charger – “Yes.”
“Is that scoundrel in the store? Can you identify him?”
“No I think they paid and left the store.”
I had been robbed of my treasure forgetting a cardinal rule of Thrift shopping – DO NOT LOSE SITE OF YOUR CART!
This would not happen in Mexico. Kidnappings, beheadings, shootings and mayhem – never seen any of that in Mexico. It is safer there. Here I let my guard down. Some unscrupulous robber had seen the value of my charger; he looked around and saw no one guarding the cart. Then he grabbed the heavy black box from my cart; ran up to the counter; paid and escaped into the parking lot jungle.
Of course I was disappointed and yes even mad. But life goes on…I have this hopeful rational…that scoundrel gets home with that charger only to find it really doesn’t work. From here on out I will take any real find right to the counter and out to my car – a thrift store tip Stay Tuned!
Stay Tuned!