Rain birds are not acutally birds but are large insects that herald the rainy season will be here in 6 weeks.

This is always very welcome news and it is always very exciting to hear the first rain birds. This year April has been a beautiful month and the weather has been fantastic. Very often April and May can be a little hot and dusty as we all eagerly await the rains and the most beautiful season of the year here in Ajijic, Lake Chapala, the “Rainy Season”.

Most of the snow birds have headed back north and I always think it is a shame that they do not get to experience this amazing time of year from June 15th to October 15th.

We are used to thunderstorms coming from Toronto, Ontario but the storms we have experienced there are nothing like the dramatic and exciting thunder and lightning storms we get here.

For those lucky enough to have view of Lake Chapala you can see the storm start at one end of the lake and make its way spectacularly to the other end. This is truly a spectacle not to be missed.

It usually only rains at night so the days are still warm and sunny. Everything smells wonderful and fresh and the flowers and flowering trees are in gay profusion.

The brown mountains turn into green velvet and everything is very lush and wonderful.

We have the privilege of living in paradise and never is it more magnificent than the rainy season.

Gardens bloom with many colorful flowers and smells and less water is needed to keep your grass and gardens green and lush.

Naturally, if you have dogs, as most of us do, you might want to keep a towel at the door as they happily play in the muddy garden and then come in to leap on your white furniture. Drying off wet paws is a very necessary rainy season activity.

So when you hear the rain birds you will learn to love their sound knowing that the rainy season is only about 6 weeks away.

Paraguas (umbrellas) can be bought at the dollar store beside the bank in downtown Ajijic or Walmart.

No one had asked “Is it safe or will we be OK?”. Everyone happily hopped on a plane and came to support the family. Granted it is not terrific weather in Toronto at this time of year but nonetheless…

Unfortunately, our widely touted perfect weather did not co-operate and it rained every day for 15 days or more days and we seldom saw the sun. It also teamed cats and dogs on the day of the wedding but we moved inside and took comfort in the old wives tale that rain on your wedding day is good luck.

The weather did not prevent us from going everywhere in the day time and at night.

We frequented many restaurants both upscale and not so much and even some of the troops went to the Carnivale in Chapala at night. Fijate! (Imagine that!)

Long walks in Ajijic and on the Malecon were taken and all forms of markets visited and purchases made.

Night clubs were visited until the wee hours and admittedly some alcohol was consumed.

ATMs visited in all locations and I am very happy to report that there was not one incident of any note that threatened anyone’s safety.

We did, however, suggest to our visiting guests, that they might not wish to get involved in dealing drugs while they were visiting the lakeside area.

They took our advice to a man and all was well. I also mentioned that one has to keep one’s eyes open and wits about them wherever there are people and this advice was followed.

Having been born and bred in the big city of Toronto, Canada, I am no stranger to the dangers of a big city. I still feel very safe and happy here in Ajijic, Lake Chapala and so did our visiting friends and family.

Come on down. The weather, once again, is fine!

It very seldom rains any time other than the rainy season from June 15th to October 15th so everyone is quite stunned that we have had light rain on and off since Sunday.

Imagine people talking about the weather. Up north people incessantly talk about the weather with jolly good reason but here in our beautiful village in the sun the weather seldom is a topic of conversation.

We wake up every morning to beautiful sunshine which is good for the soul and our amazing gardens.

We plan outdoor activities with confidence all year with the possible exception of the rainy season. Even during the rainy season it usually rains only at night and the days are filled with sunshine but some picnics or other outdoor events might possibly get rained on.

Golf and tennis and all boating are year round activities which is very good for one’s handicap in the case of golf and for one’s backhand in the case of tennis.

I walk the dogs five days a week and never have to worry about getting caught in the rain and having to scramble back to the house.

People enjoy their meals outside and smell our beautiful flowers and flowering trees every day of the year.

This is winter and we do not have to worry about digging our cars out of mounds of snow or having snow removing vehicles crash into our vehicles or scrape the ice off the windshield with a credit card or try and find warm clothes to wear to go out the door.

It is true we may need a sweater or sweatshirt in December or January but come February which is tomorrow the sun will come out again. This was a particularly mild winter and we did not even put the quilt on our bed or use the heater in our living room once.

So we will survive this off and on rain and grey skies knowing that the sun will, in fact, come out tomorrow. Well maybe not tomorrow because it calls for rain but soon all will be bright and warm and sunny again.

http://www.thestar.com/news/article/1074406–peaceful-canadian-port-thrives-amid-a-mexican-drug-war

Surprisingly enough as we watched the Dow Jones Index plummet 512 points yesterday we still find the economies in both Canada and Mexico are growing and even flourishing in many parts.

Real Estate is booming in Toronto and Vancouver, Canada and we are lucky enough to be busy here in Ajijic, Lake Chapala even though it not the “busy season”.

They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result. It would seem then that perhaps looking south of the border during these times of financial unrest could make a lot of sense for a better life and easier retirement.

I would suggest going north of the border but I am partial to our almost perfect weather in Ajijic, Lake Chalapa which is 75 degrees and sunny 99 percent of the year. Having lived in Toronto, Canada for many years I cannot say the same thing about the Canadian weather.

For those on fixed incomes it would make sense to have your limited income go as far as possible and the cost of living here is much less than it is in the US or Canada.

One of the many reasons Mexico’s economy is thriving is because many now skilled workers are returning home from the US as the jobs are scarcer or non- existent. This influx is stimulating the economy as the infrastructure continues to improve.

We see it ourselves. Things are very different here than when we moved to Ajijic, Lake Chapala over 17 years ago. We now have world class technology available at competitive prices which makes doing business anywhere in the world possible.

Products and services are now available to us that in the past were unheard of and things continue to get better every year.

Some people like to view Mexico as a third world country but we have always seen it as a developing nation and I think if you do your due diligence online you will find out that Mexico could be the place of the future for growth and stability.

Retirement can be stepping into the great unknown but now with everything Mexico has to offer in terms of economic growth, excellent affordable healthcare and realistic real estate opportunities this might be the place for you. It is certainly has been for us and for that we are very grateful for every wonderful day we spend in our paradise in the sun.

Ask questions and find it if Mexico has everything you need and want in a retirement opportunity.

Our favorite expression is “Most people come for the weather but stay for the people”.

Evidently, there is a hurricane off the coast of Mexico, Beatriz, which is causing the rain we are having during the day. As I have written the “rainy season” brings us rain usually early evening and in the night and the days are bright and sunny como siempre. (As usual.)

There is a silver lining, however, brought by all this rain that is twofold. One, it is very good for the level of our beautiful Lake Chapala and, two, the warmish temperatures have dropped to a very comfortable degree. Wet but comfortable.

The level of the lake is very important to our community. When the lake is down it affects real estate and when it is up, as it is now, real estate booms or at least moves.

Also another bonus is that if you look up at the Sierra Madre Mountains you will see that they have turned into the green velvet I foretold.

This is, to us, still the most beautiful season of the year here in Ajijic, Lake Chapala. We were lucky enough to get our roof seen to before the rains came and have an aluminum piece plastered across our front doorway to prevent water coming into the house.

None of these small things affects our love of the “rainy season”. The flowers are blooming in gay profusion the flowering trees are wonderful and the smells are so fragrant after the rains. The storms are exciting and dramatic and the gardens love all the attention.

The hot dry month of May is over and the rains even came a week or so early so we have that much more time to enjoy this most wonderful time of year. The temperatures are perfect this time of year and all outdoor activities are greatly enjoyed or will be when the hurricane system off the coast moves on.

The beauty, of course, is even with all the rain when the sun does come out everything dries up very quickly and our lovely outdoor living continues.

So make sure your windshield washers are in good working order and buy your “rainy season” umbrella which we seldom use but buy anyway.

If you watch any of the weather reports from up north you will see that over 11 states are experiencing dangerously high temperatures and even in Toronto this week it has been over 90 degrees F.

So if we have to put up with a little more rain during the day that we are used to remember it is only temporary and we still have the best climate in the world in our beautiful village in the sun.

Of course we have the best climate in the world. Our cost of living is substantially better than up north. We enjoy kinder gentler times, a full infrastructure and a schedule as jam packed with an extensive choice of activities or as free as one might like.

Properties are as varied as one could possibly imagine with something for everyone at very affordable prices and if you do ever want to sell your house this is much easier than up north too.

We also enjoy visits from family and friends especially when it is cold up north.

At the moment we are lucky enough to have our first grandson, Ethan Alexander, visiting with us for what we hope is at least a few months.

Our daughter gave birth in the US so he would have dual citizenship which used to be automatic for an American giving birth here but that has now changed.

She and Ethan returned to us June 19th and are now living with us with her husband and we are delighted to have them.

Now I know I sound like a first time grandmother but he truly is a wonderful boy. Ethan has the calm temperament of his mother (and her incredible deep blue eyes) and seldom cries. He is very alert and advanced for a two month old as he is holding his head up and loves to keep moving. This will be fun when he starts crawling.

Our two dogs, a golden lab and a bichon frise/poodle mix, are both very gentle with the baby for which we are very thankful.

Ethan is indeed a very lucky boy to have his mother and father now reunited and having a wonderful time as a young family. Ethan’s father is very gentle with him and Ethan looks forward to his coming through the door every evening.

Today they were going off to visit family in Chapala and I had to laugh at the preparations just to get Ethan out the door. As our daughter said “it is a process”.

We will enjoy every minute we are lucky enough to have this new family with us which is another wonderful thing about retirement in Ajijic, Lake Chapala.

Everyone always comes home to our beautiful village in the sun.

Here we go again…..it’s like a daily ritual with the USA mainstream media. Today’s fake reality show episode comes to us from MSNBC with the omnious title “Time to say adios to Mexico travel?”.

In this paranoid fearmongering post, they take a poll asking “Would you visit Mexico given the worsening violence in some areas?”. The results are ugly and telling.

Eighty-Four percent (84%) of their readers chimed in shaking and quivering pushing that keyboard with an empahtic NO! I am sure if the button read NO F&#$ING WAY, that would be even more popular cause we’re dealing hysteria here folks.

How do I know? LOL! Because I have been living and travling all over Mexico for the past 12 years and that’s how I know and my wife of 26 years is Mexican.

For those of you 84 percenters, it’s called first hand knowledge and experience. Is that more credible than idiot pawn reporters working and getting paid by mainstream media living in the USA? What do you think? Yes, think!

Even more funny is that there are over 1,000,000 Americans living in Mexico who are laughing with me at this bullshit. Because Mexico is such a wonderful place to live, work, and travel, most of us get pissed off when hear this complete and utter bullshit over and over from US main stream media. That’s the first reaction. But since this war on Mexico has been going on for years now, after a while, we just start to realize that the USA is just neurotic, period! No hope!

After we get passed this accpetance, then we start to think…..geez us, maybe they should build that wall so we can keep this 84% out of Mexico. They have no clue on how stupid they sound when they try to talk about something they know nothing about. Worse, they are convinced that they live in the best most free country in the world even though there is NO evidence in 2011 that supports this bullshit.

USA # 1 right? Yeah, keep yelling it until you believe it with all your heart and then get your ass handed to you by the facists in Washington DC who control every aspect of your life. This is not 1950s America folks, this is Gattaca 2011.

I mean, we are talking about Mexico here; great weather, beautiful beaches, gorgeous señoritas, awesome and rich culture, friendly people with 1950′s American family values, and a heart that beats happy all day and night. No wars except the fake Drug War that the USA just loves to keep alive.

On the ground here, there is NO WAR. Read that again so you know its’ not a typo! NO WAR! Okay!

For 111,000,000 Mexicans, the war is virtually a non-issue. It’s just not in their face. Now, if you happen to be in the “selling drugs to sick Americans biz”, then, yes, you’d see it….everyday! No doubt about it. But in reality for most everyday Mexicans, this place is safer than most places on the planet.

Do you remember when kids used to walk down main street without fear? Yeah, I bet you do…..well in Mexico, they don’t wish this….this is how it is. The only place that have a high level of paranoia are in Juarez, a small city bordering Texas, and Mexico City with its over 25 million people.

In Juarez, the gangs are fighting to see who can sell drugs to those who demand them in the USA. The profits are so big that’s it’s out of control there. No question about it.

And in Mexico City, hey, there over 25 million people living there. What do you think it’s going to be? Do you walk around New York City with your head in the clouds? Come on! You need to be vigilant in any major metropolitian area. That’s normal. So save the stupid comments okay! I am talking about all of Mexico and not just Juarez or Mexico City. Heck, do you idiots travel to downtown Detroit for your vacation? Get real! Geez us people! Come on!

Anyway, yeah Mexico’s has more poverty than the USA….Opps! Scratch that! I was looking at 1998 stats! Opps! Mexico “used” to have more poverty than the USA. I mean given the complete USA meltdown over the last 10 years, believe me Mexicans are way more wealthy then the indebted enslaved brow beaten servants that the USA tries to call it’s middle class.

Heck my neighbor who lives in a colorful blue 500 sq. ft shack making $ 50 a week at the local fish plant is more wealthy than most Americans. At least she owns her own house! That’s right! Free and clear and her property tax is just $ 150 a year. Yep! That’s it. She don’t need no nuerotic BS about retiring when she’s 65 and some financial planning from a bankster who’s just going to rip her off.

And don’t get me started on healthcare in Mexico…..lets’ just say my daughter who is stuck in Dallas waiting in line at a doctors office with 50 others is begging to come to Mexico and get health care where doctors are trained to treat patients not insurance companies. Yeah! No waiting…..just go in and you can get 1 hour of face time with a GP, easy. And for $ 25. Not $ 500 for 10 minutes!

Anyway, the point is…..that all this bullshit about Mexico is fake made up BS from a determined US media who is aiming straight at the resort industry in Mexico.

And the truth is that this strategy is working. Just like when they scared the crap out of Joe American with their WMD bullshit and their Osama Bin Laden terror alerts waving all those dangerous yellows, oranges, and reds at us. All non-sense, yes! But effective like no other! Powerful stuff!

I mean, yeah, check it, I have a cousin Jethro who lives in Alabama. He has the stupid gall and arrogance to tell me how dangerous it is here in Mexico. Yeah, go figure! What a jerk! I told him to take his stupid right wing sorry dumb ass and plant it back on his Fox Idiot News Channel and stay the heck over there with his face planted on the “news”. This Joe-the Plumber moron deserves his ignorance for never questioning the sources of his “news” and “information”.

Of course, guaranteed, there will be 84% of you Jethro’s reading this who’ll side with my cousin and will have the stupidity to write lame ass comments here telling me how wrong I am and how right you are! You betcha! Heck you can put money on it right now! But to these fools I say “We got Osama Bin Laden, Yippee!”

But really, it’s not their brainwashed fault but the fault of their leadership who plays this game on them. And that’s the truly sad and tragic part of this story. Americans are the real losers here, not Mexico. Very seriously, I can’t tell you how sad it makes us expats who know the truth because we actually live and see both sides. It’s heartbreaking really.

Mexico has virtually accepted the fact that their fellow North American neighbor is just so over the top gone that it’s useless to even try.

Mexico has a growing middle class and their education system is providing their huge and large young population with better access to the future. The government and corporate PR advertising is getting stronger and promoting good responsible stuff to the youth. Its’ really good here. Impressive!

Can you ID the drug dealers on this dangerous beach in Playa del Carmen?

Now Mexico is reaching out to the rest of the global world to attract business and relying less and less on the USA for it’s travel industry.

I think that’s a great strategy that will bring dividends because, sadly, the USA is hopeless market! We’re dealing with a country that has 84% of it’s population believing that Mexico is dangerous when it’s the exact opposite. The USA is far more dangerous than Mexico!

Strange huh! Hearing that truth has gotta go against the mainstream but it is exactly true! Sorry to hurt your feelings!

In the end, the determination to assassinate the character of Mexico is too strong and deliberate by US main stream media.

There are many suspects for this delibrate attack but like all things in the USA, war is convoluted, ugly, messy and profitbale; so you know someone is making money off this deal. But who? It certainly ain’t cousin Jethro! And you? Are you making money off this deal? No? And now you’re mentally not able to come to a Mexican resort and enjoy hot warm oceans on sandy white beaches….really! Sucks to be you!

Now for those Americans living in Mexico reading this, I know I have been very direct with my fellow Americans here but the time to be subtle is over.

We tried being polite. Being polite and accomodating the neuroris is not working.

It’s time to hit back hard now and tell them the truth. Yes, the truth! Even if it hurts or they push back with made up FOX “facts”, sadly, it’s time to hit them back harder and maybe, just maybe, we can save a few from the grips of the brainwashing facsists posing as freedom sellers in blue and brown suits!

God Bless America …….and Mexico too!

This is terrific as it has been quite warm and already the temperatures have dropped to a very pleasant level.

I was out to dinner with two friends last night and one of my companions said that she heard rain drops. I had heard nothing but saw the waiters looking out the windows. I ask him if it was raining in my best Spanish and he replied that it was.

Within minutes there was a torrential downpour complete with thunder and lightning. We were at Pedro’s “Go” restaurant and had a wonderful view of the storm. Wonderful until we started to get rained on through the open windows. We were hastily moved to a drier table and continued to enjoy our excellent dinner.

We had parked the car quite a distance from the restaurant and were in no hurry to navigate the wet, slippery cobblestones in the darkness to get to our vehicle. So we leisurely enjoyed desserts and Earl Grey tea and decaf cappuccino.

When the rain had slowed down we paid our bill and ventured outside. One of my friends was driving a car that she had never driven at night and did not know where the lights and windshield wipers switches were. I emailed her this morning and she did manage to figure it out and got home safely having to choose between a large puddle and a little mud to get to her car.

Naturally, we were all wearing our smart little shoes and mine were satin. Who knew it was going to rain last night?

We were picking our way carefully back to the car when I saw in front of us what looked like a river that we needed to ford. I did what I have often done, when having drinks at La Nueva Posada in Ajjic, Lake Chapala during the rainy season and that is take off my shoes and venture barefoot through the torrent rushing down the street. This too can be fraught with hidden dangers such as broken glass or various insects but it is always worth the risk to save my shoes.

On arriving home safely, thanks to my friend who is an excellent driver, I opened the front door to puddles of water flowing down the front hall into the dining room. My husband had put towels in front of the door which were saturated as was our front door mat.

Although it may sound that I am complaining I am not. It this is truly the start of the rainy season and not just a teaser I, like most residents, will be thrilled to welcome the most beautiful season of the year in our wonderful village in the sun.

Every day when I am out walking my dogs (well almost every day) the sound of the rain birds, who herald that the rainy season is imminent, are croaking themselves hoarse. Sitting at home I can hardly hear myself think for the noise if these not really birds but very large insects making themselves heard.

When we look up north and around the world we have to, yet again, be very thankful that we live in paradise. Yes it is a little warm but we don’t have horrible and very destructive tornadoes, floods, erupting volcanoes and wild fires.

Some of my family was recently in Toronto in mid-May and the weather was cold and rainy every day for days. Naturally, the sun came out and it warmed up as soon as they were on the plane headed home to Ajijic, Lake Chapala but it is cool again now and cloudy.

Our wonderful climate which is the best in the world attracts a lot of people to our village in the sun but it is the warmth of the Mexican people which makes us stay.

Don’t get me wrong, I complain as much as the next man (or in my case, woman) about the heat but the fact remains there is nowhere else in the world I would rather be.

I feel great compassion for those who are in the path of the tornadoes and floods which are taking lives and homes of so many. And it is not over yet. Like us I hope you will do what you can to help. So when I think yes, it is a little warm, I know very soon the rains will come and we will all enjoy the best season of the year here in Ajijic, Lake Chapala – the rainy season.

Next Wednesday is June lst and then it is 2 weeks or less until the rain comes. I think we should all be able to hold out until then and in the meantime we can thank whatever God we pray to for allowing us to live in, as my father used to describe it, our little slice of heaven.

Another wonderful thing that June brings is the mangoes. At our house it is a race to get them before the dogs do but there is always plenty for all.