Tom, shown here dancing with Cindy, would actually show up on my doorstep most mornings at 7a.m. with a case of Negra Modelo and a tube of Chapstick.  I haven’t seen him since Cindy left.  Now, for a bit of bad news.  Our local doctor, who bears an uncanny resemblance to our new grandson, has discovered that I have a hernia, which he has recommended we return to the U.S. to have treated.  And so, we will be heading back to Los Angeles on March 26th.  RATSPIT!  Consider this fair warning to be elsewhere when we come a knockin’.  See you next month.  Hugs, Chuck and Zookie

Here at the Totonaka RV Park, El Jefe, Don Jose, has been concerned about his escalating water bill.  And so, in true Mexican fashion, he merely re-routed the water line, removed the water company’s meter and installed his own…

After enduring weeks of intense pain, comparable to child birth, my on board banker agreed to part with the money required for me to experience the pleasure of a root canal.  The preparation was my favorite part…

I can’t remember if the significance of the donation is to bring good luck or protect you from bad luck.  Either way, I need all the good luck I can get so I always give them a few pesos.  My generosity may have something to do with them following me around town through the entire season of Lent…or they could simply be waiting for a dinner invitation…

Mardi Gras in Guaymas is not quite the elaborate spectacle it is in New Orleans but the parade floats are well done and the people are as enthusiastic as any crowd ever assembled in The Big Easy…

Speaking only the 3 “necessary” words of Spanish (cerveza, taco, cerveza), I am always quite impressed listening to this group of transient troublemakers jabber away in the Spanish tongue.  It is fortunate that I can also bear witness to their verbal prowess when not answering “canned” questions.  One such situation occurred at the local Carnaval parade in Guaymas, which my Bride was enjoying from her curbside perch…

She is also a member of the Cuatro Gringas, a group of four ladies who study Spanish together and spend their free time confusing the dickens out of Mexican waiters with their version of the spoken word…

and birds…

Getting around San Carlos and the nearby city of Guaymas is very easily done in a regular old run of the mill family car, but if you want to get off the beaten path and enjoy the more remote and rugged areas, there is only one way to do it…

an abundance of desert wildflowers…

The only noticeable problem with Smokey is that he suffers stage fright and tends to stutter a lot while singing.  Well, that, and the fact that he only knows old Jimmy Rogers tunes, which I am the only one in town old enough to remember.  I’m writing some new songs for him and I am certain that when the crowds hear him singing my renditions of “Dirty Old Egg Sucking Dog” and “Flushed From the Bathroom of Your Heart," Mulligan will become a mere memory.  We managed to catch up with an old friend recently and had her come down to visit us for a week here in San Carlos.  This visit resulted in a big boost to my popularity for a time, as Cindy is legendary for her “kissability.”  I had some difficulty remaining sober during her visit as the guys, and a few gals, were more than willing to bribe me with beer for an opportunity to kiss Cindy…

Is this any way to run a dental office???  You BET it is!!!  I mentioned last month how a fellow named Mark Mulligan was ruining our lives by his steadfast refusal to find gainful employment…

the local fishermen, living in clapboard shanties, still have the best views in town…

of many varieties…

After Fat Tuesday begins forty days of Lent.  Here in Mexico it is occasioned by the appearance of members of the local Indian tribe dressed in costume and dancing for donations…

When, lo and behold, the News Anchor from one of the area's Mexican television stations spotted her…

They wrap your head in a hot towel and give you a facial massage before the dentist ever gets near your mouth.  I think this guy has experienced one too many bites in his career and wants the patient as relaxed as possible.  My bride somehow found the time to record the entire procedure on film between snacks…

I try to work in pictures of our Jeep at every opportunity and occasionally have to divert the dialogue a bit to accommodate this peculiar trait.  This really annoys my Technical Support Staff as it represents one more picture that she has to upload to the Internet of something that has already been viewed by 90% of the civilized world on at least 50 previous occasions.  I don’t really feel too guilty about doing this as it is glaringly apparent that she has very little else to do…

That stunning gentleman on the right is Don Jose.  Naturally, whenever there is any sort of excavation going on, it guarantees the appearance of kibitzers offering much sought-after advice…

In addition to all of the natural beauty of the area, the local inhabitants are friendly, polite and extremely hospitable to the legions of gringos who descend on the area each winter as well as those who came down for a weekend and are still here 25 years later!  And although the Yankee horde has taken much of the high ground and built elaborate homesteads overlooking the sea...

secluded coves…

I have spent the past month scouring the countryside (hanging out in all of the seedier watering holes in Guaymas) and believe I have discovered a reasonable alternative to Mulligan…

Proving, yet again, the resilience and adaptability of olde geezers, we are now completely immersed in harmonious synchronism with the Mexican way of life as it is practiced here in San Carlos, Sonora.  I have decided to include a lot more pictures than normal this time since we now have a website with unlimited space and a hired gun (Go Daddy) to figure out just how to make the whole thing fit.  Sooooo……sit back, buckle up and get ready for a low speed, high adventure thrill ride through a sleepy seaside Mexican village!  Located about 300 miles south of the border on the eastern shore of the Sea of Cortez, San Carlos offers some amazing ocean vistas…

This anomaly, though most frequently noticed in land excavations, occurs pretty much any time a workman is “going in”…

   San Carlos                                                                   March 4, 2007

The subsequent meltdown was captured on film and shown innumerable times on local television.  I have never heard the phrase, “más despacio, por favor” used quite so often (translation: “Would you please speak more slowly.  You’re confusing the Hell out of me!”).  In the previous two pictures my bride is finely adorned in her Mardi Gras beads, which she "caught" in New Orleans and has been carrying around in our motorhome for the past 5 years.  NO MORE!  She fell prey to a young Mexican cutie who could charm the fillings out of your teeth if given the opportunity…