World Neighbor Goes to Hawaii for Thalia’s Wish Trip

OK...I am going to post some personal BLOGS that I have already posted to my daughter's "CarePage"...Her name is Thalia, she is 6 years old and she has Leukemia. We recently went on her Make a Wish trip to Hawaii with the family and we had a GREAT time. here ya go....















Thalia has her monthly visit to the hospital next week. This is visit number two on her three month cycle. On the third month she gets a break with no spinal tap procedures at the hospital. Naturally we like those third months the best! She is still on her cycle of home chemo and other medications and mommy is ensuring that she is 100% compliant to the routine with zero variance. She will continue on this "maintenance" cycle until August 2009. We are coming up on one year since Thalia was diagnosed (April 27) and she is doing very well. Her hair is continuing to grow in. She has a cute little 'do and has given up her headscarves entirely (I will be posting new pictures in the photo gallery soon). She has been eating a ton for the past few months but has recently tapered off to a level more consistent with her sister. I think she was trying to catch up for all those months that she was wasting away during her hard-core chemo phases. She looks healthier and is getting more active and strong with her swimming and gymnastics.





Between May 3 and May 11 Thalia gets to live her wish. She has asked the Make a Wish foundation to go be a veterinarian to a golden zebra. This golden striped zebra with blue eyes is due to a condition called "amelanosis" and not to being an albino. This is a rare birth defect and there have only been a few golden zebras documented in captivity. There have undoubtedly been golden zebras born in the wild, but since they stick out like a sore thumb they more than likely become lion food rather quickly. The zebra's name is Zoe and she lives in Hawaii. When Thalia requested this wish and I found out that the zebra was in Hawaii, I thought "wow this kid is truly a genius…what a great idea!" ;-) Thalia's original wish to go to the Power Rangers TV series shoot, didn't pan out so we are going with the golden zebra wish. The Power Rangers show was done shooting by the time Thalia was in maintenance and ready to go. Thalia and Thera have both been talking about being veterinarians for a long while now, so I think she/they will get great joy out of this wish. We will be sure to take lots of pictures and video of this once in a lifetime event.

Masked Old Men Cutting a Rug in Patzcuaro

One of the tradition of the P’urhépecha is to perform a folkloric dance while made up like wrinkled old white men. When the conquistadors came to town, this was one of the ways that the P’urhépecha expressed their frustration. They thought (think) that it was very funny how the white people aged. Their hair turned gray, they got all wrinkly and saggy and they stooped over. This dance is typically performed by young men as it is a very athletic and aggressive routine. They wear a serape and a wooden carved mask carved and painted to resemble ancient old white men. The young men protect their faces with cloth so the mask won’t scratch and tear their face off.

I happened upon a great demonstration of this dance in the main square of Patzcuaro. There was a band playing traditional music while six dancers with wooden sandals danced on a sheet of plywood. This amounted to an early version of tap dancing as the wooden shoes crashed and stomped against the plywood. The vision of the old men stomping about so aggressively was a paradoxical treat. They were drawing a large crowd and we all enjoyed the show.

Dance on over to WORLD NEIGHBOR now!!

P’urhépecha Artisans and Cardio

I stumbled across a little courtyard that housed five or six artisans in a collective. One of the artisans had scores of masks and Catrinas (the day of the dead skeletons). Her prices were excellent and her quality was beyond compare. I started loading up with her works much to her surprise and delight. She wrote up the hundred or so items that I gathered together and started the process of packing them for their long journey home. I made sure to grab her contact information since I wanted to establish a long-term business relationship with her.

I had to make a few trips to get all my goodies back to my hotel room. I worked up a good sweat while I traipsed up and down the hilly and cobbled streets or Patzcuaro. A few of the locals got a good chuckle out of me huffing and puffing and covered with sweat. I still was not completely acclimated to the climate and I was hurting! What a great trip…I get to stock up on inventory and burn down my love handles at the same time - Sweet! Tomorrow was the day to catch my bus back to Mexico City so I had to finish up my purchasing, packing, and shipment preparation.

Work it out on over to WORLD NEIGHBOR!

World Neighbor Phone Home

I grew tired of spending $1.50 a minute using my mobile to call home. I sought out a call center in the main square in Patzcuaro. There were a few to choose from and they only charged .15 cents a minute so I was all over that. I gave my home number to the highly made up girl behind the counter and she punched it in. She told me “cinco” as she applied yet another layer of mascara onto her pitch black eyelashes. I ran over to booth five and closed the glass door behind me. My wife, Demetria, answered and we were in business. While it was kind of a pain in the ass to walk four blocks to make a phone call but at least I was saving some scratch. As long as I remembered to bring my anti-bacterial wipes to remove the scunge off the receiver I was good to go.

I told Demetria all about the awe-inspiring voice of the girl from the previous night. I also regaled her with my margarita soaked tales of newly found friends. She in turn told me some wonderful stories of mac and cheese, hot dogs, and soccer practice. OK…I get it…I will tone down the fact that I have been eating some of the most delicious food in a long while. I will relax with my bragging about cigar smoking, tequila drinking and comfortable bed sleepin’. But seriously, I can’t wait until tomorrow when I will get that delectable cup o’ flan from the little corner restaurante.

Get Thee to World Neighbor NOW!!!

Beautiful Voices Over Dinner

My first night in Patzcuaro I stopped by at the restaurant "Cha Cha Cha". Carlos recommended the place and it was owned by an American ex-pat who was very friendly. I grabbed a table in the courtyard and ordered up my first margarita. The weather was perfect and the courtyard was adorned with lush tropical plants. Just before my dinner arrived a lady at the neighboring table struck up a conversation with me. She and her friend were also ex-pats that recently purchased homes in Patzcuaro. Her name was Elizabeth and she was very nice and outgoing. We talked a bit about our backgrounds and I explained all about World Neighbor. I passed out some free swag to her (pen, magnet, business card, etc.). She was excited by the idea of a fellow world traveler and we ruminated on our favorite destinations. Elizabeth introduced me to her friend Jay who exported art from the area. He has turned out to be an invaluable connection to the World Neighbor network. Hey Elizabeth! Hey Jay!

When my dinner arrived a family consisting of a mother, father and daughter were getting set up to serenade the crowd. The father was the guitar player while the mother and daughter provided the vocal talents. The father also kicked in with a well placed harmony every so often. The mother held court first and she had a great voice. She had a sweet sound and was very pleasant to listen to.

Then the daughter stepped up and belted one out… ¡Mierda! what a voice! It was powerful and soulful and it belied her young age. I was so impressed that asked if I could video a tune. They were happy to oblige. The daughter was a bit timid at first while I was taping, but she delivered a inspiring version of "Santa Rosa" that I was glad to capture. I will be posting the video soon...check it out!!!

How much Copper would a Coppersmith Smith, if a Coppersmith Could Smith Copper?

My guide and interpreter was a very resourceful guy with lots of great inside information and contacts. He know a guy that was a coppersmith who could help me ship my goods back to the states. The copper smith at the shop also put on a great show of "smithing" for me to videotape. I can't wait to edit all the footage down and share it with my World Neighbor Friends. All my adventures will be posted to YouTube, so stop on by and check it out!!

We strolled into the back of the Coppersmith's shop to witness the transformation of raw copper into beautiful works of art. The area around Santa Anna del Cobre used to be a copper mining area. As those mines have dried up, the artisans now use scrap copper to create their masterworks. They are also blessed with an abundance of (pine/cedar?) that burns a bit hotter than other woods and allows for the correct copper forging temperature. The guys back in the shop were stoking up the fire to commence with the demonstration. They started with a little chunk of copper about 6X6 inches and 3 inches thick. They heated that up until it was red hot and brought it over to the anvil. Four guys with sledgehammers then took turns pounding it into shape. A fifth guy held the copper in place with a long par of tongs while the beating was underway. These guys would be champion bell ringers at the carnival with their precision swipes at the raw copper. This process would continue until the copper was stretched into a thin sheet.

Carlos took me over to where another set of guys were forming and tempering the copper sheets into pots and sink basins with a series of specially shaped anvils. This was hard and sweaty work, but the works that filled the front showroom were a testament to the great work that these artisans produced. Juan Jose was the owner of this shop and he was also a valuable contact for me since he agreed to ship my multiple purchases back to the States for me at a discounted price. He knew all the ins and outs of getting the best deal in shipping to the border and then from there to my doorstep. I was extremely happy to have met this guy….and once again Carlos came through with another extremely valuable contact.