Bits and Pieces from Mexico Part 1

I have taken the liberty to present facts and then stretch them to enhance both your reading pleasure as well as my own experience while writing.

Having lived here in Hermosillo, Sonora for the last year and a half has had its share of interesting cultural uniqueness’s. I do not live in what is commonly called “an American colony” of which there are many around Mexico. These are cities or towns where you will find Americans living close to each other thereby maintaining a level of consistency as it relates to the cultural norms. I do not live in such a situation and am not suggesting that any one situation of living in a Mexican town or city is better than another. Each has its own palate of circumstances. This is about my situation.

For instance, I live in the central part of Hermosillo very close to the Zocala (town square). Many years ago this neighborhood was THE place to live as evidenced by the very large homes throughout the area, many of which are still occupied by “old money”.
The rest of the homes are a mish mash of culture. For instance our neighbors behind us have one of these large homes. The difference here is that the previous owner (who was old money) had no family to leave the home to, so it was given to the housekeeper (presumably for many years of fine service). Well of course the housekeeper along with ample family members moves in, dogs and all and proceeds to do what just about anyone would do in such a circumstance; open a business fixing cars. At least that is what it sounds like back there. We have enjoyed many hours or roaring engines, car alarms and junk yard dogs. One particularly noisy day we went up on our terrace which overlooks our neighbors’ yard to see what it was all about. Our neighbors, not liking the fact that we could “look down upon them” proceeded to construct a visual blockade soaring 25 feet into the downtown skyline. We lost a nice view of the cathedral on that day and there was nothing to be done about it.

The Daily News, Delivered.
Every morning at around 7 am a car with a rather large stereo speaker attached to the roof drives up and down the neighborhood streets with the morning news blaring out. Of course the news is relayed in Spanish, and with the quality of the speaker on the roof of the car and my understanding of Spanish somewhat limited, I really have never understood what was being said and more often than not had a few ugly things to say about people who drive around at 7 am with high volume anything coming out of one highly taxed stereo speaker. Today was different. Today as my partner Ethel and I were checking our emails, the “news car” rolled by and Ethel started laughing. Apparently the rendition of the news that was blaring went something like this, “Last night a poor man who was feeling down on his luck, with a hungry belly and spirits dancing in his mind (drugs/alcohol) was found in a neighbor’s house risking his life and freedom for a few pesos to feed himself and his family. By chance, a policeman found him there and took him to the great castle (jail).” Apparently many renditions of news stories are literally juiced up like this to make one feel less fear and get a little chuckle instead.

Dog town.
Everywhere I have been in Mexico I have noted the omnipresence of the canine. Unleashed, un-collared and street savy. These are not mean dogs, they are simply part of the culture. Roaming, exploring, sometimes alone, sometimes with amigos. One of the oddities I have noted is that I have never seen the loose roaming canines barking and carrying on. These dogs know how to cross a busy street and in some cases even direct traffic. The “domesticated” canine is where I find the problem. I use the word domesticated with a looseness that borders on anarchy. I have considered a few of the local domesticated canines with pity and distain. One around the corner from us lives 24/7 on a second floor balcony totally exposed to the sun all day and the moon at night. If you are not familiar with Sonora weather, summertime daily temperatures routinely hit 115- 120 degrees. Aside from being penned up all day exposed to extreme temperatures, wouldn’t you bark your little brain out every chance you had? Nobody appears to listen to the pleas (I am talking about the owners here), we get to hear the canine news frequently as this is only one of several dogs who have “barksex” almost every night. They really want to meet each other, I can tell from their tone, but they are separated by human walls and fences.

The Housing Crisis and Debt Bubble
When I first started driving down to Mexico, I couldn’t help but notice the number of partially built homes and buildings everywhere I went. Columns of cement and cinder blocks with steel rebar poking out from all the seams. It was always something I had been noticing almost at a subliminal level. My thought process went almost un-noticed. I made the assumption that these structures were in the process of falling down. There was no evidence of people working, machinery or equipment, just partial buildings on a dirt patch along the side of the road. These structures take a bit of the luster out of enjoying the scenery of a country side or a city, but there they were. I often wondered why these eyesores were not simply taken down repairing the view ………. And then I found out the truth.

The truth is Mexico is still pretty much a cash economy. While there are plenty of banks, people do business the old fashion way. Hell, those houses weren’t leftover; crumbling edifices and eyesores, they were new construction! Many people down here go by the economic principle “pay as you go”. Them there houses I was seeing all along the highways and byways were getting’ built when the owners had the cash to make the next improvement. I’m still wrapping my mind around these new fangled ways of doin’ things ‘round here.