Columns

I thought I was emotionally prepared to do the right thing for this week’s  #DiaSinNosotras” women’s strike. I looked forward to spending a quiet day at home with my family, removed from the hustle and bustle of daily life to reflect on high ideals.

Monday, March 9, won’t be any ordinary day in Mexico. The call for women to drop out of normal activity that day in protest of violence and abuse against the distaff gender has gone viral.

Lent, the 40-day period between Ash Wednesday and Easter, commenced February 26. While generally considered among practicing Christians as a time for penance and fasting, in Mexico it stands out for the guilty pleasures of indulging in lip-smacking culinary specialties of the season.

I think it’s safe to say that anyone who came from abroad at least five years ago to reside at lakeside no longer counts as a newcomer. They’ve learned the ropes, figured out how to get by in an unfamiliar cultural environment, and fit in with a compatible social circle.

Anybody who’s been driving the Chapala-Ajijic-Jocotepec corridor lately can verify it’s a jungle out there. The poor state of streets and roadways, aggravated by the on-going “improvements” of the ciclovía, make for perilous travel for cyclists, pedestrians and motorists alike.

As one of the few survivors of Lakeside’s very first chili cookoff, this weekend’s 42nd edition conjures up lots of bittersweet memories.