Celebrations, Competitions, and Changing Air

I am being lulled by Fall. It seems drier in the air: we haven’t had any rain for three days. The river is still high, and after walking home last night from La Catrina Cantina, it occurred to me while unlocking my front door that I was not sweating. Yay! These small idiosyncrasies keep us going in the tropics and mark the changing seasons.

So, backtracking to La CC. I went last night to welcome Angeloo back after winning the State singing contest, La Voz de Zapopan. He has not received all his prizes yet, but he certainly enjoyed all the applause he garnered after his first set last night. He came to my table to say hello and got a huge hug, of course. A switch has been flipped, the little boy vibe is gone, and a subtly confident young man stands in his shoes. Well done, Angel, you are so loved.

This afternoon is the Celebration of Life for Patrick Henry Murray. Lots of singers are planning to stop by La Catrina Cantina to help spread the love. See you there at 5 pm.

My dear friend, dear Sharon Gerber Scherer, sent me a message from the wilds of New Brunswick last night asking how the Scrabble tournament went. She was shocked to learn she won’t be playing me for the crown in November. Our newest member, Andre Couvillion, from Colorado and a relatively new resident of Vallarta, won two out of three games at Qulture yesterday. A handful of points only separated us every game, and he caught me with a mitt full at the end. That’s how it’s done; very well played, indeed!

I walked down to Nacho Daddy for the second bingo game of the Season to benefit the Colina Spay and Neuter Clinic. A good crowd turned out to support this worthwhile charity, which sterilizes 20 cats and dogs for free every Saturday, and has been doing so for the last 13 years. I won a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon for my sister, who arrives in 25 more sleeps. And – this is the most annoying thing about bingo, I was one number away from winning on four other games! That only counts in horseshoes, right?

Today, Thursday, is when I will put the Rearview Mirror together for publication bright and early tomorrow morning. That aspect of the Vallarta Mirror is the compilation of all the articles published this week, from Sandra Bradley’s metaphysics column to Tommy Clarkson’s in-depth look at tropical plants and particularly their medicinal qualities. You can also read about Richard Coleman’s walks around Manzanillo. And there’s more! Subscribe to that with your email address. It’s free!

Tomorrow is Friday, which means the fabulous first Saturday of the Month follows with the big fiesta at Arte Vallarta Museo.