The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men Often Go Awry

It is the merry month of May. I had great plans for May. I had signed up for a photography tour In Oaxaca with Gary Goldberg. It has been 26 years since I've been there on another photographic tour with Geoff Winningham. This year the tour included visits with Mexican photographers and artists, time to photograph but also we were going to stay at Casa Colonial which is where I had stayed 26 years ago. I loved Casa Colonial, a huge garden, comfortable rooms, delicious meals, and filled with wonderful Mexican art. 

I was planning to go a few days early and stay a few days after the workshop. Unfortunately, the Pandemic changed those plans but I was thinking about the trip this morning so I opened the Oaxaca folder that had some scans of the black and white film I shot with my Pentax medium format camera. 

Digital Photography has brought many changes to the way most photographers work so looking at the scan of a film negative was shocking. Film had grain! And to print the negative you had to go into the darkroom, mix chemicals and spend hours on one image making test strips and multiple prints until you were finally satisfied with the resulting print. Then you had to spend a few more hours washing and treating the print for archivability. If you were able to finish two prints in one day, you had accomplished something. 

Looking at these negatives brings back some wonderful memories but I don't want to go back to the darkroom although I do want to go back to Oaxaca. 

This image was made just outside the village of Tlacochohuaya where we had stopped on the side of the road to look out across this wide valley with magnificent clouds hanging in the sky. 

The Rio Grande

 



This is the Rio Grande as it snakes between Mexico and Texas in Big Bend Texas State Park. The thin line that divides two countries. Everytime we stopped at some vantage point to look at the river, I wondered; "Where are they going to build The Wall in this rugged country?"  "What will it cost?" And don't tell me that Mexico is going to pay for it.

Today, Sunday Morning News on CBS ran a segment on the United States/Mexico border at the small village of Boquillas which is on the Mexican side of the Rio Grande but it had long been an informal crossing point between the two countries. Many Americans liked to visit Boquillas to say they had been to Mexico. After 9/11 the United States stopped anyone from crossing. Now there is a formal Port of Entry for checking in and out with a passport and people can once again cross back and forth. But the informality of going between the two countries hasn't totally disappeared. This crossing is just about a mile South of the Port of Entry and the guys on horses went back and forth several times while we were making pictures from a ridge above the Rio Grande. It felt very old west.



This is facing East from Boquillas toward the Gulf of Mexico.

The Sunday Morning News showed the reporter wading in this area at the entrance to Santa Elena Canyon. I doubt it is more than knee deep. I almost felt like they had stood in my foot prints to make their video for the show. But this natural wall between the two countries is a favorite of photographers. With the right light and from the right place I've seen fabulous images.

 



I was surprised at the emotional response I had in seeing the Rio Grande from these vantage points. I almost wanted to weep. Maybe it is because I live in Mexico but the United States is still my country. Maybe it was because of the vitriol that is being generated against immigrants during the Presidential campaign. While I was looking at the River I thought that I would write something very political on the blog. I'm not going to do that except to say I hope The Wall does not ever happen.

 





Instead of a Christmas Tree....

Instead of a Christmas Tree, Mexicans celebrate  the birth of Jesus with a nativity diorama in their homes, businesses and churches. I've seen them before made with some live vegetation and moss but gradually I'm seeing them decorate the vegetation as we would in the US with Christmas lights and glass balls. This manger was in the Monjas church. I was in the church for quite a while and these two little girls were standing in front of the diorama pointing and whispering to each other. I was kind of waiting for them to move on and then it dawned on me that they "made" the picture.

Since before Christmas I've been trying to go to all the churches to photograph their nativity scenes but most of the time I've been in town and ready to photograph there was a Mass going on. Today I thought that finally I'd get in the Parroquia because from what I can see from the back of the church it looks like they have a colorful and twinkly scene. Nope. The main floor of the church was decorated with white roses and roped off in anticipation of a wedding. I'll have to go back again. I'll also have to go back to the San Juan de Dios Church. The doors were closed. Although the doors of the churches in the Centro are almost always open, the San Antonio and the San Juan churches are closed except when there are services going on.

This nativity scene was in the San Juan de Dios Mercado. Actually there were two nativity scenes in the Mercado. In both of them the baby Jesus was disproportionately large for the other figures in the scene but then he is the principal character.

While I was at the Mercado I checked to see if any of the stands were set up to sell toys and candies for Mom's and Dad's to buy presents for their children for Three King's Day. Not yet so I will go back.

I love the Nativity scenes. So appropriate for remembering the reason for Christmas.

Nothing Is Certain But Death and Taxes

Unless you are a US citizen living in a foreign country you have probably never heard of a fairly new tax law called FATCA. The original goal of this law was to target those bad old millionaires who were hiding income and assets in off-shore accounts. Maybe even those dangerous drug cartels who move money around. Alright! Go get 'um.

But wait just a minute, this law is also affecting US citizens who live in other countries off of fixed retirement income. It is also affecting citizens of other countries who are working in the US and want to send money back to their families. And it is forcing foreign  banks who do business in the US to keep records and report back to the IRS or else face substantial penalties on the bank's US assets.

If you want to know more about the law I've given you a couple of links in the two paragraphs above and there is much more you can find by Googling in case you are really interested. There are financial, ethical and privacy issues about FACTA that I do not like but what I want to talk about is how it is affecting me today as well as a lot of my friends here in SMA.

My savings and investments are in the US. I don't make any money in Mexico. I use an accountant and file the required reports each year and of course I pay my US taxes. I had an arrangement set up where I can write a check on my US Bank and either deposit it to my Mexican account or cash it for pesos. That is how I was paying my living expenses. It has been working great.

Now the monkey wrench, FATCA, gets thrown into the system. The Mexican Bank has to comply with the reporting requirements for US citizens with foreign accounts or stop servicing US citizens. There are quite a few US ex-pats in Mexico and the banks don't want to give up that clientele. While there are many rumors about which bank is doing what, basically most of the banks have stopped accepting US checks for cash or deposit. And they have set up ways for wire transfers to a banking facility in the US and somehow those funds get transferred to our accounts in Mexico. I assume this provides a way for the Mexican banks to gather the data to comply and avoid stiff penalties in the US. Also, it is a way for the US to track our dollars as well.

My Mexican bank said they would not accept any US checks after August 15 so I wanted to test the wire transfer method before then. They told me that the wire transfer would take 24 hours. I arranged for my US bank to do a transfer last Thursday. Thursday after banking hours I sent the Mexican bank the transaction number. Friday they told me that in addition to the transaction number they needed the dollar amount as well. I sent it to them.

Monday I got an email from the bank that the transfer of funds would occur on Monday evening. Tuesday I went to the bank to see if the funds were, indeed, there. Yes, the funds were there but the transfer had not been made on Monday afternoon because the lady in Mexico City was not available Monday afternoon. Therefore the funds would not available until they had "slept" in the bank overnight. Don't ask me why my money has to sleep in the bank. Don't ask me why there is "one lady" in Mexico City who has to do these transfers. I'm just reporting what I was told.

So my wire transaction will be available on Wednesday, four full business days after the transfer. The system works but I think that a 24 hour turn around isn't going to be a reasonable expectation. I think it is more likely that it will be a 48 to 72 hour turn around. That is okay with me as long as I know what to expect.

This law has put a burden on foreign banks, not just in Mexico but worldwide. I don't think we have the final rules and regulations that will be propagated by the IRS nor do I think the foreign banks have it all figured out either. They are looking at ways to make the reporting easier and less costly for themselves as well as more convenient for their clients. In fact my bank has told me about another option for moving my living expense dollars from the US to Mexico. It might work better but I think I'll let a few other beta-testers use it first. And who knows the bank may even come up with an easier plan or the IRS may change some of their regulations. I'm going to let the dust settle.

As Benjamin Franklin wrote in a letter to Jean-Baptiste Leroy in 1789, "In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes."

Out on the Town

It has been a busy week. I bought an extension ladder and started the change to LED track lighting, may have figured out how to get money into my Mexican account and helped Mujeres en Cambio by shooting portraits of the University Students. None of those things are minor events. If I had time I could write a blog essay about each of them.

I have also been out to dinner three nights. Last night dinner was at Mi Casa at the Instituto. Mi Casa is a fairly small, intimate restaurant. You needed reservations and the place was packed because Doc Severinsen, Gil Gutierrez and Gabriel Hernandez were performing.

I always think of Doc as a Big Star on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson and yet here I was sitting about 15 feet from him in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. But next month he could be playing with an orchestra in a concert hall in Chicago. Why would he play in this little restaurant for very little money. The cover change was only $120 pesos/person. That is like $10/person. Why?  He lives part time in San Miguel. It is obvious that he has bonded with the other musicians in the group and they are world class musicians from Mexico and Cuba. But most of all, I think he just loves music and he needs to perform.

There were people sitting in front of me so I had to shoot the video through the side door. The sound isn't as good as I would like. I still haven't learned how to edit video so you might want to skip over to about the 45 second mark.

I am so lucky to live here. Wonderful friends, beautiful town, amazing cultural opportunities.

I Feel Like I'm in Mexico

One of the things that I love, love, love about Mexico is eating in Patio restaurants. The first time we came to San Miguel in the 1980's we ate at two patio restaurants. Those two restaurants could have been what sold me on San Miguel.

The first was Bugambilia's which use to be on every tourist list of "Must Go To" restaurants. At that time it was on Hidalgo in a beautiful old patio. The food was good, the service was attentive and the lights were low. It was so romantic.

We stayed at the Sierra Nevada Hotel and they had a lovely patio. We had lunch there one day with our friends Pat and Tom. We ordered enchiladas and they served them on eight inch plates with straight one-inch- high sides with handles. Pat and I fell in love with the plates. The enchiladas were good but the plates were added to our shopping list. We found where they were sold in San Miguel and each bought six. We would have bought more but that was the total stock. Those "enchilada" plates were the first of my Gorky Gonzales collection of pottery.

The pictures in this blog entry were made last week in Casa Del Diezmo Restaurant at Jesus #36. It is another great patio. It is large and full of plants, hummingbird feeders, sculpture and little bubbling fountains. There is a long portico along one side. The food is Yucatecan and quite good. I had lunch there and I could have stayed all afternoon because I really felt like I was in "my" Mexico.

What Happens to the Copies?

First of all let me say, I love Mexico. I love living here but the thing that drives me crazy is how you have to provide copies of documents over and over to prove who you are. Although the question of this rant is more about what happens to the copies, let me give you an example of how these copies accumulate.And if your experience in getting something similar done is different you know that your experience may vary depending on the weather or whatever.

Ned opened a bank account years ago so that we could cash or deposit US checks for our living expenses. I could sign on the account but after he died I could not change the account so that I was the primary rather than the secondary on the account until the house was in my name.  I continued to use the account but it was a little aggravating every time I went into the bank to deal with the issue of identifying the account in Ned's name. I know that seems strange but that is the way this bank works. I recently completed getting the house in my name.

The employee at the bank told me that they will close the old account and open a new account in my name but first they need a copy of the death certificate, a copy of the new deed, a copy of a utility bill in my name, a copy of my passport and a copy of my Permanent Resident card....front and back.

A copy of the death certificate....that is reasonable.  A copy of the new deed......I've never had to give out a copy of a deed to a bank before unless there is some transaction involving the deed. A copy of a utility bill in my name.....why? If I own the house, I own the house. What difference does the utility bill make? A copy of my passport and a copy of my Permanent Resident card.....why both? If the Mexican government has granted me permission to live in Mexico and the Permanent Resident card has my photo on it why do they need copies of both?

I don't understand the reasoning behind all of this but it is the way it is done in Mexico. Then I find out that in order to change any of the utilities to my name, I have to furnish each company a copy of my deed, a copy of my passport and a copy of my permanent resident card. Why do they have to have a copy of my deed?

Okay, I tell myself, stay calm. This is the way it is done in Mexico.

The deed along with other papers that are stamped and stapled to it is about 20 pages but I comply. All of these copies get made and distributed to all interested parties. Now I can add a copy of a utility bill in my name to the stack that goes to the bank.

Finally! A checking account in my name in Mexico.

At the bank maybe they do keep a copy of the deed but at the utility companies what do they do with all of the copies? Next year if I went to one of the utility companies, could they locate the copy of my deed? Don't think so. Are the copies stored in a secure place? Don't think so.

So here is my question. What happens to all the copies that we ex-pats as well as the Mexicans are required to furnish for government agencies, banks and utilities? Those of you who live here in Mexico, what do you think?

Residente Permanente

 It is official now. I'm a Residente Permanente in Mexico. I don't have to pay a fee or go through the procedures to renew a visa every year, or prove that I have enough money to live here, or prove that I haven't been out of Mexico more than a certain number of days in the last five years. My home has been in Mexico for several years and it is very satisfying to know that I have been given the right by this country to come and go as I want and I guess as long as I don't cause any problem I can remain a Residente Permanente.

There is one problem. The terrible photo on the card. The photo I had taken, while it wasn't wonderful, it wasn't this bad. I don't know what they did to it but I think I'm stuck with it for a long time. Well, like Permanente. 

What Would You Do?

Port Aransas - December 2012

This week over dinner with two couples, the conversation drifted to family members and friends who required care because of a variety of health and age conditions. Some were in the USA in assisted living or nursing homes and others were here in San Miguel. The cost of care for those in the USA was mind boggling but in general, even with the staggering costs, no one seemed to feel that the level of care was at the level it should be. On the other hand we talked about several people we knew in San Miguel who required someone with them around the clock as well as close supervision by medical personnel and we all agreed that they were receiving excellent care at a fraction of the cost found in the USA.

Everyone seemed to feel that they would rather be in Mexico if they were in such a health situation but there was also kind of an assumption that the spouse would be here with them to coordinate the care. Then one of them asked me, "Billie, what would you do? Would you stay here in Mexico?" Meaning would I stay in Mexico if I had a long term illness. I can't say that I haven't thought about that in the past and certainly I've thought about it in the last 10 months since Ned died. But it has been more of a passing thought not anything that would generate a plan.

Those of you who live here in Mexico, have you thought about this issue? As you get older and perhaps incapacitated with illness are you going to stay here in Mexico or go back to the USA or Canada or somewhere closer to family? What are some of the issues that figure into what you are thinking that you would do?