Curations from the Human Jungle
[So many of our comic contributions have come from north of the border. This one come from Silverbelle Mary Bernadette, who we first met while south of the border in San Miguel d'Allende. She contacted us recently to send some warm wishes despite the cold shoulder that our President has given to our Canadian neighbors.... Continue Reading →
[Silverbelle Sandy and I enjoy traveling to Mexico. Unfortunately (and embarrassingly), neither of us, in the words of George W. Bush, speak Mexican. In the quest to blend in with the locals, I have spent many hours watching videos and reviewing list like the ones below. Sadly, every time I venture a word or phrase... Continue Reading →
All good things come to an end. Isn’t that the cliche? After its dizzying ride in the 1980s Vermont Castings ran into financial trouble in the early 1990s. Murray Howell died way too young, so did Don Larriviere, of Air Don fame. The company jet was sold. Duncan Syme was booted out of the company,... Continue Reading →
[We spent several weeks this passed winter in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. My wife, Silverbelle Sandy, took a class in paper mache sculpture where she created a miniature version of the giant, comic puppets that roam the streets of the Centro districts of Mexican towns looking for a reason to celebrate. When it came... Continue Reading →
[A year ago, after visiting San Miguel for the first time, we decided we wanted to return again in 2024. We checked out a few places, but the one we liked best had a third floor patio under a blossoming Jacaranda tree. Jacarandas are not native to Mexico, but were a gift from the Emperor... Continue Reading →
[This is a bittersweet time of year. The garden has never been so bountiful, but with a fragility that lets you know that it won't be long. And you know what lies ahead. So do the hummingbirds and the monarchs. A frenzy of feeding is followed by a silent departure. Suddenly ... one day ...... Continue Reading →
Alive in the Flapping of Infinite Orange Wings Monarch butterflies’ epic annual migration from North America to Mexico inspires an anthropologist to reflect on this insect’s precarious life cycles through the lens of “multispecies ethnography.” By GIDEON LASCO 1 NOV 2022 Gideon Lasco is an anthropologist and a physician based in Manila, the Philippines. He obtained his... Continue Reading →
How Filipino Sailors—and Coconuts—Helped Create Mexico’s National Drink by Gideon Lasco Most people see tequila and mezcal as quintessentially Mexican spirits—but recent research has uncovered their unlikely connection with the Philippines. While visiting Oaxaca, Mexico, last year, I joined a mezcal tasting tour. The guide, Antonio, asked participants to introduce ourselves. When I told everyone I... Continue Reading →
It's "Travel Tuesday." One of the casualties of the past few months has been our freedom to travel, especially across international borders. I, however, have just returned from a trip to Mexico with my frequent travel companion, Paul Theroux. From the publisher: "Paul Theroux has spent his life crisscrossing the globe in search of the... Continue Reading →