We just cancelled our account with Dish network. Too much time spent watching worthless programs. In fact there is not much to see that has any redeemable value. Most of the programming seems so petty, dumbed down, and gives a distorted view of life. One of my regrets is that I spent as much time as I did watching mindless programs. I'm glad that our boys have yet to fall into that trap. 

Beth started giving cooking lessons to some of the women from Union Zapata. Anywhere from seven to fifteen women come to the house every Wednesday to learn a new meal. The recipes are all inexpensive to make but give the women choices of meals to prepare at home. No one owns a cook book so meals are usually traditional meals that have been passed along, many of them containing a lot of fat. Spaghetti, chili, banana bread, various Chinese meals, and apple pie, are menus to date. Along with helping others Beth gets a chance to speak and increase her vocabulary. When planning the menu for the following week, the ingredients are divided so no one is burdened with the expense. A couple of weeks ago the women taught Beth how to make tamales of chicken and chepil (a plant that grows here. Don't know the name in English.)

This is the chepil plant. A variety grows wild here.

Our final rain was a drencher. It poured! Our well became contaminated from rain water so it had to be pumped dry which took about eight hours. There was some mud at the bottom that was removed a bucket at a time. Cement was poured around the well so next year we will have less of a problem. We did have our water checked in Oaxaca and it came back fine. No bacteria. There is a high presence of alkaline so we still buy water to drink. Cooking, brushing our teeth, washing dishes, and bathing are all done from the tap. 

One of the advantages of retirement is the time I have to read and think without a lot of distractions. Because of the number of books we have (over thirty thousand ebooks and growing) I can really jump around. Beth and I both have Kindles and we love them. 

I had a crown break last week so we went to a dentist in Matatlan that was referred to us. His name is Dr. Guillermo Serna Bautista. He had to extract the tooth and is going to build a bridge. Total cost, four hundred and twenty three dollars. Incredible! His story is another success story. He crossed into the US as a young man and worked for five years. In America he saved his money, paying for college when he returned. I was proud being next to him and listening to his story. Talk about determination!

Not sure if I mentioned but our burra is pregnant. We believe she is due in March. We are so looking forward to having a little burro jumping and running around. Lily has caused us a little trouble. We usually keep her tied to a twenty foot rope. Every once and a while I let her run keeping an eye on her. Well sometimes I'll walk into the house for a while and she disappears. I finally followed her and found out she's been getting into a field and corn and squash. When I caught up to her she was enjoying a squash. I could see where she'd eaten some corn off the stalks. The next time the owner comes by I'll have to square up. We keep a rope around her neck but have recently found out it's not a good idea. With the rope around her neck it's impossible to stop her if she decides she wants some corn. I tried a couple of times and bit the dirt on both occasions. Sunday we bought a halter to keep control of her. She was very quiet when we first got her but she has become very verbal lately when she wants something letting us know with the typical donkey hee-haw. 

Saturday before last we had fifteen people over for a brunch of tasajo (thinly sliced beef), tortillas, pico de gallo, and guacamole. There was quite a bit of meat left over so we made a day of it eating tacos for dinner. We still had meat left over so we had people over again the next Friday to finish it. Simple conversations are becoming easier and easier for Beth and I. We have a couple of friends that speak extremely fast. They keep us on our toes.

A couple of weeks ago we went to a Calenda in Tlacolula honoring "el Vergen del Rosario". As you can see there were quite a few people there. Some of those globes weigh one hundred and fifty pounds. Men and boys dance with them attached to a harness until they get tired then pass it on. Many young adults and children dressed in traditional costumes. I was a little surprised when beer and mezcal were passed around. The festive mood was captivating. I love the way Mexican's celebrate!

I saw an article that I believe was a follow up to the question of "buying and fixing up haciendas here in Mexico". Someone used our house as an example.  http://sparksmex.blogspot.mx/2013/06/hacienda-in-oaxaca.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+SparksMexico+(Sparks+Mexico)  The structure that Beth is standing is not our home though. It's the hacienda in Xaaga, the sister hacienda to ours. 

I finished the web page (in English) that gives a little info about the very old organ in the church in Tlacolula. There is a place to make donations through Pay Pal if you'd like. There is still work to do. The page is located at: http://edeese.wix.com/organodetlacolula I'm not a web designer so any suggestions on how to improve the page are welcome. A young friend of ours is currently translating the page into Spanish. 

A few years ago we met a man from Washington State who married a woman from Mitla. He owns a storage facility in Eastern Washington. They come down every year for five or six months. About three weeks ago Jeff and Elia came down for their yearly visit. They showed up the other day on a motorcycle and since we've met with them several times. Jeff is one of those guys who knows a lot about a lot of stuff. He reminds me of my brother in law Sam. Septic tanks are made a little different here. Most people that have running water use it for their toilets only, so little water enters the septic tank. Some are even without any kind of drain. Tanks that drain do so through the bottom. No cement is poured on the bottom so liquids seep out through the bottom. That's how or septic system was built. But...... because all the water we use drains into the septic tank we are beginning to see it fill up. That little seepage through the bottom can't keep up. I mentioned it to Jeff the other day and he explained how to build a drain field. A couple of days later he showed up with complete instructions on how to build a drain field complete with diagrams. I could see that he'd spent considerable time on the instructions. We are very thankful for his work. I had been thinking about adding a drain field earlier but I would have done it wrong. Thanks Jeff!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lastly I've been thinking about the idea of getting ahead here in the Valley. In an earlier post I listed some prices of goods. Imagine someone making a living when their income is twenty five dollars a day or less in most cases. The idea of getting ahead is simply unattainable in many cases. I believe the idea is foreign to many. When something as simple as adding a power receptacle is viewed as a major improvement it shows the plight of a lot people here. An illness or need for dental work can set a family back for years. A year without rain also has catastrophic results. I knew before we moved here that we were going to be exposed to the sufferings of local people. It's proven to be more difficult and widespread than we'd imagined. I've said it before. The United States has been a godsend to the people here. The income derived from being in the States changes lives significantly. I read an article a while back that stated many Mexicans are returning home from the States because of the slump in the US economy and the surge in the Mexican economy. I have no idea what's going on in the rest of Mexico but here in the valley that's simply not true. Many families that we know with relatives in the States tell us that their family members have no intentions of returning. Some are counseled by family here not to return. It's a tough choice. Remain in the US and reap the financial benefits away from family and friends or return to be close to loved ones and become engulfed in the brutal economy here. Many people here have never seen grand kids. The young children that left to work in the States are now grown up. Everyone loves to talk about the successes of their children in the States. They are proud and sad at the same time. They pay a horrendous price for getting ahead.