Las Lagunitas eBulletin Board

Last week’s notice produced but two players. Not to be deterred, we are trying again. 8:30. Hotel tennis courts. Be there or be pickled.

WANTED 2 BEDROOM CONDO Reasonable rent for long term lease agreement. A garage would be great but not a requirement. Utilities included. Most of you know me and my dog, Goose. I have been living in Mazatlan but am missing EDM. Please contact me at prstamm@gmail.com.

Thank you!

The second thing we noticed in the grocery store was the fact that high fat, high sugar and high sodium foods are now flagged. Seems like AMLO was serious about improving his constituents’ diet. And no wonder these tortillas are so good.

Beginning tomorrow, Pickleball will resume at the hotel tennis courts. There will be a short stretching session beginning at 8:00 am followed by at least one court of Pickleball beginning at 8:30. Bring your hand sanitizer and gloves, masks too if you plan on playing with someone other than your housemate.

I am concerned that my enthusiasm about arriving in paradise might have overflowed. It seems that people in the highlands of this beautiful country may be better at following the rules than the coastal folk. While everyone inside the Ley’s Express in Villa Union was properly masked, my subsequent observations and investigations have revealed phase III maids congregating unmasked inside Victor’s former office. Unsurprisingly, members of large wedding parties at La Paloma are unmasked. While nearby Barrón has few cases and fewer deaths, people in the streets are not generally masked.

Please remember that we are all only as safe as the least of us. Wear a mask even if the threat is not perceived. Every day, every occasion. Don’t forget your mask in the car or on the dining table. We only have to do this for a few more months until vaccinated. Stay safe, friends.

After a summer of pretending to be part of my couch, I really need to start stretching. If anyone else is in a similar situation, please let me know and we’ll figure out a time to socially distance and stretch.

It has been a very long summer. After fleeing uncertainly home in March, I have confronted incredible mouse inundations, millions of house flies invading my kitchen. There were unseasonable major snowstorms in May, June and October, multiple threatening fires, unbreathable air, deepening drought not to mention a narrow political escape. It was with trepidation that we decided to head south when the weather turned and the COVID situation worsened in my home state. Deep red Wyoming (that voted republican by a 70% margin) never did get the hang of wearing masks and are currently paying the price as are all the surrounding red states and the one blue state on our southern border. Schools are closing, hospital beds are hard to come by, the Wyoming Cowboys were forced to cancel their football game with Air Force. Normally, Wyoming has not one OB-GYN in the state. They have only 16 cardiologists, 58 anethesiologists… in the state. They are not only unprepared but are unwilling to deal with this pandemic. They have been shipping their patients out-of-state for treatment for a month. And the people still don’t wear masks. The State legislature has just now begun to debate the wisdom of wearing masks. Even if they tried to curtail the populations’ freedom to infect others, it would not be successful. Too little…too late.

Compare this to Mazatlan, and to Mexico in general. During my recent two-day journey, almost every single person I saw had a mask on, even outside. I just checked the infection rates in Mazatlan, there were only 51 new cases yesterday and that is part of a downward trend. There are ten times more people in Mazatlan than there are in the state of Wyoming and there are ten times fewer cases here today. I have come to the conclusions that for me, it is safer in Mexico.

And it’s warm. And it’s sunny. And my friends are here. Granted, we have to wave to each other across the parking lot, but I am barefoot, a balmy breeze blowing through my hair, the sun gentle on my face. The mountains are a lush green with the recent rainfall. The road from Durango to Mazatlan was pretty chopped up in spots due to slides, but crossing the mountains on a bank holiday Monday proved to be a wise choice. I’m glad I came.

Now I get to deal with mouse inundations here.

And all is well.

… but I wouldn’t want to live here.

Keeping to our travel-in-Mexico rules, we stopped before dark and found a well-hidden Best Western near the river. They have room service and CNN, but no beer. Mexico is serious about this virus. Everyone has a mask on even when riding in the back of a pickup. And they have halted all beer and alcohol sales. Wish I would have known that earlier…

Tomorrow’s trip will be six hours and I hear the road across the mountains is in pretty tough shape. Today’s roads were very good. Absolutely no problems or hang-ups whatsoever.

Tomorrow, the beach.