DINNER AT MI VIDA

The other night we had a lovely dinner at Restaurante Mi Vida with our good friends Bea and Don from Cleveland. Of course, we started with a bottle of wine. The waiter brought us a beautiful tray of little pizzas and different breads. We all had heard about a very popular entrée on their menu. It is a salt-crusted baked Red Snapper. The four of us decided to have the fish. They needed to prepare two fish. The way they charge for the fish is by kilograms (weight).

The fish was taking a while to prepare, so the staff brought us a small “amuse-bouche”, a small complimentary appetizer. The French term means, “it amuses the mouth”. It was pumpkin soup with a shrimp. Interesting, but non-descript.

After the fish cooked for about 45 minutes in the oven, the waiter brought it to our table and “cracked” the crust off the fish. The presentation was very interesting. It was steaming hot. The fish was moist and mild. After dinner we shared a dessert, cheesecake with pureed berries. Then they brought us a small tray of sweet petite bites. Oh, did I mention another bottle of wine.

Overall, we had a wonderful evening. For the money, in our opinion the fish was somewhat over priced.

"BRIDGING" THE EDUCATION GAP

We have previously written about the rainy weather here in San Miguel this winter. To reach our school, Los Ricos de Abajo, we must drive across what is normally a dry river bed. Because of the heavy rains we have not had the ability to cross the river and teach English since January 27, 2010. The water was simply too high for the vehicles to safely cross the river. We missed the teaching days of February 3rd, 10th, and 17th, all due to the heavy rainfall. But today, February 24th we were determined to continue our teaching no matter what it took to reach the school.

A group of over 30 volunteers, ages fifty something to eighty something, made the adventure. Our coordinator, Dianne, contacted the nuns at the Monasterio. They agreed to allow us to park the SUV’s on their property and to look after them. All of us ventured down the road and crossed over a suspension foot bridge. Just before we were ready to cross the bridge, we saw an elderly rancher. This is the same rancher that Bob and Sam saw last year at the bridge. By the way, last year Bob took his photo and submitted it to the local paper, Atencion, and it was published as the photo of the week.

After crossing the bridge, everyone hiked along the river’s edge to the main road. We then took the winding road up to the school. It was a very nice walk. The weather was picture perfect with a slight cool breeze and lots of sun. It took about 30 minutes to make the hike.

When we arrived, the students came running out to greet us. They were as excited to see us as we were to see them. They were all dressed in their school uniforms. They looked wonderful.

After class, we also met with all of the Los Ricos students from the past three years. They are currently attending the 7th, 8th, and 9th grades at the Telesecundaria school in Atotonilco. Dianne introduced each student to our group and then presented each of them with a short novel as a reward for their scholastic achievement. These types of books are not readily available to the students. Sam couldn’t believe how these young adults have grown. Our first year volunteering was in 2008. These students are now in the 8th grade. The first “scholarship recipients” are in the 9th grade.

Many of these students have the desire to continue their education in the Preparatoria school this fall. Their desire, versus their family’s ability to pay, are two different things. It is our desire and the desire of so many volunteers to help the students fulfill their dreams. The goal is to try and educate the village one student at a time.  This is the reason why we created the Morrin/Zimmerman Fund as part of the Feed the Hungry organization.  Please visit our blog posting entitled, "In Memory of Our Parents".

After interacting with the “scholarship recipients”, all of the volunteers began the hike back to the vehicles. It was another great day sharing our time with the students at Los Ricos.  Please click on the links below to see the photos.

http://s233.photobucket.com/albums/ee21/eplbobsam/FEB%2024TH%202010%20LOS%20RICOS%20SCHOLARSHIP%20STUDENTS/
 
http://s233.photobucket.com/albums/ee21/eplbobsam/LOS%20RICOS%20ADVENTURE%20-%20CROSSING%20THE%20RIVER/

FRIENDS, FOOD, FELLOWSHIP, FORTUNE, AND FUN

Last week we gathered with a group of friends. Tom and Linda graciously agreed to host the dinner at their beautiful home in Colonia San Antonio. They live just a couple blocks from us. Their home sits on the highest point of the colonia. They have a wonderful view and sunsets on their roof top are spectacular.


Ned and Billie and Tom and Dianne also joined us. Everyone chipped in to make the evening great. We had wine and appetizers on the roof top. This was followed by grilled racks of lamb, oven risotto, salad served in lacey parmesan cheese baskets, delicious bread and wonderful churned butter, and more wine. The table was beautiful and the flowers were spectacular. Linda got a great deal on the flowers…$200 pesos.

The evening was topped off by the best Flourless Chocolate Cake with a Chocolate Glaze we have ever eaten. This was served with a wonderful Zinfandel Port wine.

We were all commenting how nice it is to have such wonderful friends. We are all from different parts of the US and have different backgrounds. We are a doctor, chemical engineer, human resource consultant, rocket scientist, educator, administrative assistant, banker, and financial consultant. The one thing we all have in common is good fortune.

The best thing of all, the clean up was done by Tom and Linda’s housekeeper, Paty. We do know a good time was had by all.

PEDRO DOG

http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee21/eplbobsam/Pedro%20Dog%20-%20Chapter%2010%20-%20The%20Truth/IMG_1389.jpg

Our first year in San Miguel was 2008. Some of you may remember that we met a dog named, Pedro Dog. He was our tour guide and showed us all around.   Cut and paste the above link to see Pedro Dog in 2008.  He even took us to La Gruta, a hot springs spot; he was a major con artist. Pedro Dog was with us for two months. Ultimately we learned that Pedro Dog was a she dog and not a he dog. Also Pedro Dog’s real name was Dulce.


In 2009 we went searching for Dulce. We just wanted to say “hi” and see her owner. When we got to the Antique Store where Dulce lives, the owner told us that Dulce was gone. She wondered off and at that time was gone for over two weeks. He was heartbroken and thought he would never see Dulce again. For the next several weeks while we were living in Colonia San Antonio, we searched for Dulce. We never did find her.

Now it is 2010 and we were walking on Calle Allende in Colonia San Antonio. This is the street where Dulce lived. We went by the Antique Store to talk with the owner; however it was closed. We looked across the street and who did we see…yep…Dulce, bushy eyebrows and all. Dulce was in a small tienda playing video games. We couldn’t believe our eyes. We tried to get a picture; however Dulce wasn’t interested.

Several days later we went by the Antique Store again. The owner was there talking with his friend. We said hello and asked if he remembered us. He said he did. He also told us that Dulce was indeed back. She came back last year after being missing for over two months. He told us to come back that afternoon and Dulce would be there. We wondered where Dulce could have been. Perhaps she was playing more video games. Later that day we did walk up Calle Allende. We saw Dulce and she came right up to us. However, she wasn’t wearing her normal red hoodie. If fact, she wasn’t wearing a sweater at all. That’s right, she was topless. Anyway, we were just happy to see her knowing she was back home with her owner. Scam on!

All is well with Dulce in San Miguel.

MARDI GRAS CELEBRATIONS

Today is Fat Tuesday. The celebration of Mardi Gras has been going on for several days in San Miguel. On Sunday, we were at the Jardin and it was completely packed with lots of families. The children were running and playing and having a wonderful time. Of course we didn’t have our camera with us to capture the moment.


This afternoon we were in the Jardin once again. We arrived just before the children got out of school. Once the children arrived, the entire Jardin exploded with laughter, children chasing each other with eggs filled with confetti and glitter. Once they catch their friend, they smash the egg on their head and begin running so they don’t get caught. This is being done by children of all ages, little kids to teenagers. We try and stay out of the way and just watch them have fun.

Vendors are selling these decorated eggs, bright flowers, and clowns. The colors are vibrant and beautiful.

Around 5:20 p.m., we decided to venture back to Centro. We had heard and read that the world’s shortest Mardi Gras parade was happening at 6:00 p.m. This parade was definitely for the adults while the eggs in the Jardin are for the children. The parade got started about 6:10 p.m. It had a king and queen riding in the back of a pick-up truck throwing gold coin candy and beaded necklaces. The length of the parade was about 50 yards. It stopped in front of Harry’s New Orleans Café where the party continued.  Just like Mardi Gras in New Orleans, all of the ladies were collecting the beaded necklaces...you know what that means!!

Today is the last day of the festivities as tomorrow is Ash Wednesday.

IN MEMORY OF OUR PARENTS

BOB AND KITTY ZIMMERMAN

JIM AND FRAN MORRIN

We have spent the past three winters in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. At the end of this winter, we will have spent 9 months living and volunteering in San Miguel. During this time, we have volunteered many hours teaching English at a very poor primary school (grades 1 – 6) in the countryside called, Los Ricos de Abajo. Sam is the lead teacher for the 5th/6th class, and Bob helps Sam and all of the other teachers.

Feed the Hungry is a 501(c)(3) organization. It has a kitchen at the Los Ricos school that feeds the kids each day. We have also donated food to one needy family and last year we sponsored a scholarship for one student to attend secondary school. This is a very poor community and many kids don't go on to 7th grade because the families must pay for books, uniforms, etc. beginning in 7th grade. In Mexico, the kids are not required to attend school beyond 6th grade. We identified a 5th grade student last year, Ailyn, who is now in our 6th grade class, and we are going to sponsor her for 7th, 8th and 9th grades.

With the passing of Bob’s mom, we decided to do something in memory of both sets of our parents. We are who we are today, because of them, Jim and Fran Morrin and Bob and Kitty Zimmerman. Bob’s parents had six children and Sam’s had seven. Later, Sam’s parents adopted three more children, actually their grandchildren, when their son, Gary died in a car accident leaving the three boys behind. Jim and Fran also raised another grandson, raising a total of eleven children. Both sets of parents loved kids. So, in memory of them we established the tax deductible Morrin/Zimmerman Fund through Feed the Hungry to help feed and educate needy kids who attend the Los Ricos school where we teach.

Here is a link to a web site for Feed the Hungry www.feedthehungrysma.org/ and to a short video about Los Ricos de Abajo. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1uJYPf5uIg The video was made last year.

We made an initial $1,000 contribution to the fund. We will direct the money to be used for educational scholarships and food. It costs $200 to fund a student for one year of secondary school which consists of 7th, 8th and 9th grades. As mentioned earlier, we are funding the full secondary education of Ailyn. We haven't yet decided how the remainder of our initial contribution will be used.

As another point of reference, it costs $.56 per student per day for food. The kids are given a well balanced meal and can have all the food they feel they need to eat. There are about 200 school days per year so it costs about $112 to feed a student for the year. For annual budgeting purposes, Feed the Hungry uses a figure of $125.

Contributions in any amount will be welcomed to the fund and will be put to good use. Each donor will receive a written acknowledgement of the donation which is tax deductible in the United States. Contributions are confidential. We will not know how much any particular person gave, however, we will be provided with a periodic accounting for the fund.
If you are interested in making a contribution it should be made by check and payable to:  Feed the Hungry.

The memo line of your check should state, "Morrin/Zimmerman Fund" to ensure that it gets to the proper account.

Your check should be mailed to:

Feed the Hungry San Miguel, Inc.
PMB 636
220 N Zapata Hwy #11
Laredo, TX. 78043-4464

Thanks for helping us celebrate the lives of our parents.

ALL AROUND US

The people of Mexico are very devoted to their Catholic faith. Everywhere we go, people display their faith. They are proud to be Catholic. There is no apology for having religious displays in their tiendas, restaurants, markets, etc. As they pass a church, and there are many, they stop, bow their heads, say a prayer, and bless themselves. We see this repeatedly on a daily basis.

Whenever we see the various religious artifacts, we are reminded of Bob’s Mom. Mom was the same way. Her home was full of religious items. She too was dedicated to her faith and unapologetically displayed symbols of it in her home.

Bob’s Mom passed away on Thursday, February 11, 2010, after being ill for a long time. She passed peacefully in her sleep with Bob’s brother, Tom at her side. Her favorite color was pink. Thursday afternoon was dark and cloudy. But shortly after Bob got the news of Mom’s passing the sky flashed pink. Just one more sign that mom is around us.

The funeral mass is today. We are here in Mexico; however, our hearts are with the rest of the family in Michigan. And of course, Mom is around all of us.

We know that Mom will rest in peace as she never questioned her faith.