August 8 2008
 

Beautiful to the Touch: Ruth Suarez, Textile Artist

   by Tara Spears

Special to the Jaltemba Sol

Looking for an original leather purse? Or custom window treatment and slipcovers?  Local La Penita textile artist, Ruth Suarez, has a long list of satisfied customers. “I always loved the color and feel of fabrics, sewing for myself whenever I had any free time” said this petite craftsman.

 “About 10 years ago, I was visiting friends in San Miguel that worked with leather. Fascinated, I asked them to teach me how to sew leather.  Over the years, I have challenged myself to make leather items to match my imagination.”  The spectacular results of Ruth’s talent and creativity can be viewed and purchased every Thursday near the church square at the market.  Additionally, Ruth specializes in custom orders: “Tell me your idea for the perfect purse,” she explains with enthusiam, “and I can turn the dream into reality.”  This is one artist who clearly enjoys her work.

To read the rest of the story please click here  

MEXICO HEADLINES

Mexican president seeks life for some kidnappers

It was a normal school day for 14-year-old Fernando Martí, son of a sporting goods mogul, but it was not the normal route taken by his driver and his bodyguard to the British American School. Then, a makeshift roadblock on a busy thoroughfare, men dressed in black with guns. It was a setup and Fernando was the target. ….More

Mexican army takes lead fighting crime

Mexican Gen. Sergio Aponte Polito attends an event in Tijuana, Mexico, April 29, 2008. In a slap at the police, Aponte has publicized a phone number for citizens to call when they need help, and on Sunday he gave the news media a letter complaining of police corruption. Aponte leads many of the 20,000 troops Mexico's President Felipe Calderon dispatched to retake parts of Mexico that were taken over by drug trafficking…..More

Secretary of the Economy Eduardo Sojo is replaced by Gerardo Ruiz Mateo, Calderon's former chief of staff.

Sojo, who is being shunted to Mexico's national statistics agency, INEGI, served as chief economic advisor to Calderon's predecessor, Vicente Fox. But the veteran U.S.-educated economist has come under fire as Mexico struggles with the highest inflation in 3 1/2 years…..More

 Sharks off Mexico tagged to prevent attacks

ACAPULCO, Mexico - Scientists have begun tagging hundreds of sharks off Mexico's Pacific Coast in the hopes of preventing new attacks on humans.

Leonardo Castillo, a researcher with Mexico's National Fisheries Institute, said scientists will attach transmitters to two sharks and track them by satellite to better understand their behavior and where they hang out…..More

Mexico's Calderón closer to energy reform deal

MEXICO CITY – President Felipe Calderón is closing in on an energy reform that could give a shot in the arm to Mexico's struggling oil industry, but it is not clear if oil majors will be lured into crucial deep-water projects. ….More

Mexico's wondrous silver city of Zacatecas

Zacatecas, Mexico - Precious metals have always fascinated people and without gold and silver, the Mexican city of Zacatecas may never have been born. The city is the capital of the same-named state and lies about 600 kilometres from Mexico City. ….More

Mexico Says Pepper Farm Tests Negative for Salmonella

Mexico's government said its tests of serrano peppers and water from a farm the U.S. identified as infected with salmonella showed no signs of the bacteria. ….More

The secret of Maya green

The blue-green colour of veszelyite seems to have been chosen to blend in with and even imitate jade.

A pigment unknown to art historians has been identified on ancient Maya artefacts from Mexico. The blue-green colour of veszelyite seems to have been chosen to blend in with and even imitate jade, the most precious substance used by the Maya. ….More

Global AIDS conference opens in Mexico City

MEXICO CITY, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- About 25,000 scientists, policymakers and physicians met here on Sunday for the 17th International AIDS Conference in search of better ways to curb the spread of the epidemic. ….More

Mexican police bust two California cops for allegedly taking guns, ammo into Mexico

Two Monterey County police officers were in the custody of Mexican authorities Friday after they were arrested near Tijuana, Mexico, for allegedly taking guns and ammunition across the border.

The men are Sgt. Jorge Matos of the Presidio of Monterey Police Department, and a Soledad Police Department officer who local officials declined to name. . ….More

290 Mexicans die crossing US border in 2008: lawmaker

MEXICO CITY, Aug 2 (AFP): A total of 290 Mexicans have died trying to cross the border into the United States in the first half of 2008, according to a lawmaker in Mexico's Chamber of Deputies. . ….More

Falling oil production perplexes Mexico

Pungent smoke billows from aging petrochemical plants here. Foul-smelling bluish water gathers in pools outside the walls. Fading paint announces the creaky Lazaro Cardenas refinery, a perfect metaphor for one of the world's biggest and most antiquated state oil companies. . ….More

Mexican guerrilla leader makes first public appearance in months

Mexico City, Aug 3 (EFE).- Subcomandante Marcos, leader of Mexico's Zapatista rebels, made his first public appearance in months at a meeting this weekend with supporters in the southern state of Chiapas, the press reported Sunday. . ….More

Mexico's Peso Reaches Six-Year High on Rate-Increase Prospects

The Mexican peso increased to the highest exchange rate against the U.S. dollar in almost six years on speculation the central bank will boost the country's benchmark lending rate from 8 percent at its Aug. 15 meeting. . ….More

High Time for Tequila

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As few as five years ago, many considered tequila shooting a feat of bravery, both for the immediate fiery flavor and for the horrendous hangover the next day. It was a drink served straight — with salt and lime, of course — only on nights that were predestined to be out of control, a badge of honor worn by those who value the deep end of inebriation and weren’t afraid of drinking fermented blue agave juice to get there. All you had to say was “tequila,” and friends and strangers would clear the way. . ….More

 Learn Spanish Today  - Learn Spanish on-line for free, using interactive audio/visual lessons.

Cleft palate surgery

Cleft palate surgery, which is done quarterly, will be Aug 6, 7, 8 at Regional Hospital in Puerto Vallarta.  The quarterly event is sponsored by the International Friendship Club of Puerto Vallarta. For nearly 20 years 10 to 15 indigent children of the entire bay area and beyond are operated on by plastic surgeons from Guadalajara who come to PV to help the children and provide their follow up care.  For more information call 299 5601 or 299 5603.    

Guanajuato Photograph by Bill Bell  to view other Mexico Photography click below

Calderon Proposes Life Sentence for Kidnappers
Jens Erik Gould - Bloomberg
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Mexican President Felipe Calderon proposed life sentences for policemen convicted of kidnapping after officers were accused in the abduction and slaying of the 14-year-old son of Alejandro Marti, founder of sporting goods retailer Grupo Marti SAB.

Mexican police are the target of rising fury over corruption after officers were implicated in a spate of high-profile crimes. This week, a top radio host dedicated an entire show to Fernando Marti, Congress observed a minute of silence for the boy, and companies from Morgan Stanley to Costco Wholesale Corp.'s Mexican unit bought condolence notes in local newspapers.

Marti's death, and the execution of a family of six by officers in Jalisco state last week, show Calderon's campaign to fight organized crime and clean up the police may have a long way to go. Calderon is already calling for more legislation on security only months after Congress passed an overhaul of the judicial system.

"We can't allow organized crime to imprison our nation with terror and fear," Calderon said today in Mexico City.

Calderon said he will send a proposal to Congress to allow life sentences for kidnappers if they are or have been policemen, if they kidnap minors, or if they injure, torture or kill their victims.

The president's much-touted plan to weaken powerful Mexican drug cartels includes efforts to restructure police forces and root out illegal behavior. Congress approved a bill in March to revamp criminal laws in an attempt to make the judicial system more transparent and to hold authorities more accountable.

Six Killings

The public image of police continues to suffer. Last week, six members of a family that had worked for Agricultural Minister Alberto Cardenas were stabbed and shot to death in a home in Jalisco state formerly owned by the minister. A state investigator in the anti-kidnapping unit was arrested along with six other men in connection with the killings, prosecutors said.

Marti's body was discovered in the trunk of a car in southern Mexico City on Aug. 1, almost two months after the boy, his driver and bodyguard were stopped at a false police checkpoint. The boy's family paid a ransom to the kidnappers before his body was found.

The "principal actors" in the crime were policemen, Attorney General Eduardo Medina Mora said yesterday. Two policemen have been detained in connection with the kidnapping. Neither has been charged.

"This kidnapping will trigger much more pressure on the federal government," said Jorge Chabat, a political science professor at the Center for Economic Research and Teaching in Mexico City. "This case could be the straw that breaks the camel's back."

To contact the reporter on this story: Jens Erik Gould in Mexico City at jgould9(at)bloomberg.net

 

WANTED - (ENGLISH- SPANISH)  SECRETARY-RECEPTIONIST
WILLING TO LEARN, GREAT PRESENTATION  AND HONEST
OFFICE HOURS  9.00 TO 5.00 P.M.; MONDAY TO FRIDAY; WILLING TO MOVE TO TEPIC.
SHE WILL HAVE AN OPORTUNITY TO INTER-ACT WITH MEXICAN CULTURE, TAKE CLASSES AT THE UNIVERSITY AND PERHAPS GIVE ENGLISH PRIVATE LESSONS FOR EXTRA INCOME.
SALARY TO BE DISCUSSED.
ANYONE  INTERESTED PLEASE CONTACT .
LIC. LIVIER VILLALOBOS VALENCIA
AV. JUAN ESCUTIA # 45
COL. H. CASAS C.P. 63080
311 2120803
     2164065

 

Figuring out your electrical bill Mexico

By Working Gringos

Yucatan Life

If you live here, you know about the CFE: La Comisión Federal de Electricidad. But no one calls it CFE here in Mexico. They call it by its first name only: Comisión, and everyone knows who they are talking about. Electricity is the most expensive utility in Mexico, at least among the expat crowd. Comisión has a great website, where they proudly proclaim, in both English and Spanish, that they are una empresa de clase mundial (A world class company). On the website, you can learn about their mission, find out the weather all over Mexico, read the history of the Comisión (did you know that as late as 1937, there were three different companies providing power in Mexico?), read their financial statements, and of course, pay your bill. Oh, oops! You can’t pay your bill there… but they will refer you to a bank (Banamex, Banorte, Inbursa, Bancomer, HSBC or Santander) where you CAN pay your bill online. Of course, there is much MORE information on the Spanish side of the website, but really, the fact that there is an English website at all is rather impressive.

Usually, we have no occasion to read the website. We pay our bills, in cash usually, and we are grateful for reliable electricity. But the other day, due to personal circumstances, we learned something about electricity consumption here in Mexico, and we thought we’d pass it on. This is not something we would have ever known if we hadn’t moved from one house to another and noticed a big change in our electric bill.

In our old office, we worked in a traditional colonial home that had been renovated. Due to a lack of windows, we ran two mini-split air conditioners all day, every day while we were working. We had a small refrigerator. We regularly paid bi-monthly bills of $8,000 pesos or more during the summer months. We figured this was just the cost of doing business.

Flash forward to our new home and office combined. We built this building with air flow in mind. We built higher ceilings, a second story, skylights that open, and a breezeway, so consequently, we have less need for air conditioning, even during the hottest summer days. In addition, this house and office are almost completely new: new walls, new wiring, new fixtures. Electricity flows unimpeded by faulty connections or old wiring. Our appliances are all new, so we have energy-efficient air conditioners and refrigerators (yes, we have two refrigerators). The house and office combined are at least three times larger than the former house and office, and yet the CFE bills have been less than a third of our former bills.

We were extremely grateful for this… but also puzzled. We looked at the meter… yep, the right meter number is on our bill. The meter is turning. The reading on the bill is correct. We were a little afraid to ask, but we called CFE to understand why our new bills are so much lower. Here is what we learned:

If a house uses over 850 kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity per month, averaged over a year, it will get bumped from the "1C" Tarifa (rate) to the "DAC" Tarifa (De Alto Consumo, which means “of high consumption”). Once this happens, your rate climbs in three ways. First, DAC customers are charged a minimum of $65 pesos per month. Secondly, the Basico (basic) charge for DAC consumers increases from about $0.5 to $2.5 pesos per kilowatt hour (summer prices). The third whammy (that’s the technical term in English for golpe) is that the government does not give you an Aportación Gubernamental (Government Subsidy). That aportación can underwrite more than two thirds of your bill every month, which is certainly not trivial. take a look at our last bill, below, for reference.

If you find yourself still categorized 1C, know that you have to stay under 850 kilowatt hours of average energy consumption per month every year. You’ll enjoy lower energy prices and a government subsidy if you do. If you use more than that for twelve months running, then be prepared for much higher energy bills and no subsidy. If you find yourself already in the DAC category, what can you do? Cut your energy costs down to under 850 kilowatts per month for 12 months, and the CFE computers will (supposedly) lower your rates automatically. If they don’t, here’s what you can do: Take another look at the copy of the bill below. See the column titled, Consumo kWh por dia? Multiply that number by 365 and divide by 12. That’s your average monthly consumption. If the number is less than 850, chances are you qualify, so take a stroll down to La Comisión and ask them to change your Tarifa back to 1C.

If these policies aren’t motivation for cutting energy consumption, we don’t know what is.

ADDENDUM:

In investigating this issue, we have learned more about how CFE charges.

CFE rates each city in Mexico according to its average temperature. Merida is a "1C" city, whereas Chelem, por ejemplo (for example) is a 1B city, meaning it’s average temperature is lower (in this case) and warrants less energy usage. The chart below shows the level of Kilowatts per month that the consumer must stay below in order to avoid being charged as a DAC (de alto consumo) customer.

1 up to 250 Kwh/month
1A up to 300 Kwh/month
1B up to 400
1C up to 850
1D up to 1000
1E up to 2000
1F up to 2500

To explain, if you live in Chelem (a 1B city), then you have to keep your consumption below 400 kilowatts per month in order to keep your 1B designation (and your lower rates and your government subsidy). If you live in Merida, you get to consume up to 850 kilowatts per month before moving to the DAC designation.

Any questions?

 

 

Calculate your next CFE bill

Letters to the Editor

Wanted...a few more Barbie dolls

Dot, thanks for making those changes. In the next Sol issue, could we put in a short notice asking for dolls??? Dawn just has a few left over from last year and so far I only have commitment of 50 barbies this year. Help! We will arrive on 1st of December. I can give you a shout shortly after that and we can do the interview. I'd like for Dawn to be included, too. We are staying in a house in Los Ayala this year. Thanks for your help with our Barbie Angel project. Geri
So what is Jaltemba's favorite golfer up top?

THE RESULTS OF ONE OF OUR FISHING TRIPS THIS SUMMER.  UNFORTUNATELY I DIDN'T GET ONE BUT MY SON JOHN AND DAUGHTER TIFFANY EACH GOT 40 POUNDERS.  I DID HAPPEN TO CATCH A 25 INCH RAINBOW WHICH WAS A BLAST.  MY SON IN LAW BEN WAS THE GUIDE.  LOVE TO ALL AND I'LL SEND MORE LATER.  GARY

Ed note. click on picture to make the fish look bigger

Hi guys,

Just wanted to drop you line and say how much we enjoy reading the Jaltemba Sol.  For those of us who winter down in beautiful Rincon de Guayabitos, you are our only connection with what is happening.  You must put in a lot of hard work and effort to produce such a fine publication on an “almost twice weekly “basis.   We especially enjoy reading Adam Caddell’s profiles on people in our second community.   Keep up the good work and when we get there we would love to buy you a beer at Mateja’s or Hinde and Jaimes.

Jean and Tom from Alaska

Hola Bill and Dot,  Really enjoyed this last edition of Jaltemba Sol, especially the information regarding CFE.  I visited the sites suggested and found them very en-lighting,  Please send this issue to my landlord Dave Jones who manages Cruz Maria RV.   Thanks very much, you guys do a great job! Saludos,  Irene Lee

 

Our Adam seems to be a hit among readers Hola Dorothy and Bill:  Have to tell you that Fred and I can hardly wait for Mondays and Fridays knowing that the Jaltemba Sol will be waiting for us on the computer.  Love the articles that Adam has been doing.  It brings the people of La Penita that much closer to us.  Particularly liked the one on Dr. Lidia and thought that I would add that she often works with families with little or no money.  She has a heart bigger than life itself and does a lot with very little.  I was able to leave a supply of asthma medications with her last year and she said that she would be able to help so many that otherwise would not have access to these medication as a result of my gift.  Having  spent a fair amount of time in her office myself, what with one thing and another I can vouch for her professionalism, her expertise and genuine caring.  What you see is what you get.  She is to be commended for her work with the less fortunate.  I consider myself lucky to be added to her list of patients and highly recommend her services to any that might need them. Keep up the great work Adam, your articles are  a welcome addition to a wonderful, informative newspaper.  Look forward to meeting you in person when we return in the fall.  Fred and Faye Hodson To view all of Adam's previous stories click here Dear Adam:  I really enjoy your articles- they have motivated me to try the various businesses.  However, there are no addresses given:  what town, what street?  I've asked my gringo friends, and they don't know either.  Very frustrating to me.  Another item to include in future articles, whether the business speaks English- remember that your audience is English speaking (especially the large snowbird population during the high season).  Thanks for the delightful bios- I look forward to more!   Tara Spears  editor note...below is a map and locations of Adam's ongoing features of people in the Jaltemba area...check out previous stories by clicking the "People" button on the left of this page.

Hi Bill and Dot,

Counting the days until we leave home for marvelous Mexico.  We had 5 glorious months in NZ and Auz in 2008 but back to Mexico this year.

Is there a website that gives me current prices of diesel in Mexico??  If you don’t know I don’t think anyone else would!!

Thanks

Nancy and Larry Schnurr

Fuel Prices ( July 18, 2008 )
Magna (Gasoline)	6.92 pesos per liter	$2.53US per gallon (approx.)
Premium (Gasoline)	8.64 pesos per liter	$3.16US per gallon (approx.)
Diesel	5.91 pesos per liter	$2.16US per gallon (approx.)

 

Much more Jaltemba Sol

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