Photo © Mike Korostelev/Solent News

Groundhog Day, February 2, has long been a favorite holiday of mine. I have especially enjoyed the movie of the same name annually, with Bill Murray. But now I recognize the date for what it was: a pathetic ploy to con myself into surviving another dreadful winter. Why live in place seriously devoid of sun when there is warmth enough to sleep with the windows open all winter just a few thousand miles to the south? (There’s a small pool in the backyard, although not big enough for the guest depicted above.)

Six more weeks of winter is mostly a lie.  (*Many northerners also call the groundhog a woodchuck, thus ‘Chucky.)

We are living in what amounts to the Egypt of the Americas, surrounded by pyramids and ruins of amazing construction. I find them fascinating, not merely for the architecture, but for the ancient culture they reveal. That culture is still thriving around us in Yucatan today. ¶ The skill of the masons working in our backyard has a long history. Over the weekend we journeyed south to visit a number of ruins, with tour guide Marina Aguirre who will be hosting several other trips within the near future. The names of the ruins we visited are linked here.  My description as being rock piles is truly affectionate, as there is a much loved sports stadium in our home area, replaced long ago, yet still available to the community, which is termed The Rock Pile. We also made a trip into the jungle of southern Campeche state in pursuit of wildlife. The photos below will give only a hint of the adventure. 

 A howler monkey clings to the funhouse furniture

A toucan scans the canopy for lunch

Our fearless tour guide climbed all the way to the top.

A stucco frieze found inside the pyramid at Balanku

Yours truly, at Edzna. Photo by Doris Huber

The “acropolis” at Edzna

Last week we had some heavy weather overnight, with rain and high winds. At one point my wife heard a huge crash. In the morning we discovered that a neighbor’s tree, next to the wall separating our properties, had toppled the wall. We soon discovered that the wall was not the only casualty. The impact had caused a mini earthquake which shattered a plumbing line, below.

We were scheduled to visit ruins to the south, near the border with Guatemala, and had already paid for the excursion. So we called in our masons and our plumber. The masons began immediately. The plumbing took a bit longer. The shattered plastic elbow was attended to by Dr of Vascular Surgery, Rolando. Although he had a backlog of cases,  he showed up at precisely the right moment, a day after our return, as we had just run out of water in the tinaco up on the roof. (Translation: ¡seismo! no water anywhere in the house, due to that mini earthquake.) Fortunately, before we left, I had noticed that the water meter at the street was spinning wildly, so I had shut off the supply. Once he replaced the fractured joint, all was well again. And, get this – when I went to the public water utility, Japay, to pay our bill, they gave us a significant reduction in charge – more than half – due to the nature of the leak! And I didn’t even have to ask! What a lovely city to live in.We took the mason’s advice of deconstructing the wall all the way back to the vertical free-standing column, as the wall was weak. They are nearing completion of rebuilding it with added strength, tying vertical reinforcements into the foundation, which they restacked.  It’s really much nicer. (The neighbor’s side of the yard is sadly being used as a mini landfill; it was seriously overgrown with weed trees and littered with trash. But they kindly allowed us to cut the trees, as long as there was no expense to them for repairing the wall.) We’re  nearly back to normal. Soon they will install vertical pipes upon which we will stretch arbor wire for trellising some vegetation, for restoring the privacy lost when the trees were cut down. Most earthquakes take longer in recovery, I suspect.

This might be an important book. Here’s a quick sketch, with a link to a review, below: Hyperobjects: Philosophy and Ecology after the End of the World by Timothy Morton is a book of quasi-popular philosophy (hope you’ve at least skimmed your Heidegger and Kant) about the very big things that have come to dominate human existence: cancer, global warming, radionuclides, petrochemicals. Morton is the head of the English department at Rice University and a leader in the field of object-oriented ontology, affectionately known as OOO, a relatively recent philosophical movement that declares the human being just one thing among many things. Human consciousness, for OOO true believers, isn’t all that special, even if we are a thing that can write epic poems, perform Bach concertos, and run a mean pick-and-roll. REVIEW.

The New Year’s tradition here involves fireworks, of course. And every city block has several local displays of ushering out the Old Man. Don’t do this to your neighbor – make your own straw man! It sounds like a war zone has erupted suddenly. (May it be brief, resulting in peace.) Happy 2014!

I’ve long been deeply interested in reality. I don’t care much about political correctness, or about social niceties: “just the facts.” A favorite children’s story which I caused my parents to visit numberless times is The Emperor’s New Clothes. Awkward issues don’t generally stall me; so I’m delighted to share a newly minted article here from the journal Philosophy Now which argues compellingly for the existence of God, written by Professor William Lane Craig. If you enjoy this essay, you might also find this book by Alvin Platinga of interest. For those who want something lighter on the topic, a movie by Ben Stein, EXPELLED  is fun and stimulating.

A stray dog (a shepherd, no less!) found his way into a
nativity scene and curled up for the night. He was
adopted by a member of the church.  (~from NonDualHighlights #5119)

Here’s a link, written by an atheist, for those who cannot yet believe. 

For many years we have made our own Christmas cards. Here’s a link to another couple who did likewise, long before us.

My (daily) Christmas prayer:

One thing have I desired of the Lord, and that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple. (Psalm 27:4)

Christmas scene from Yucatan:

Dancing in Santa Lucia park, Merida

Some very wacky photo greeting cards.

Below is a link to my outline for a lecture I’m giving today at Merida English Library, around 12:30. 

   COMMUNITY • Bah, humbug?

As a video size-limit here prevents me from embedding a portion of today’s event (and, oddly, I’m also unable to upload it to Youtube)  anyone who might care to ponder the issues addressed is invited to contact me. There is about 23 minutes of good quality digits available for viewing. 

After some discussion the group in attendance said it would be useful to attempt another meeting specifically focused on addressing the needs and perils of growing Merida English Library. Interested parties can be in touch thru this blog. We will also attempt to reach out to the membership for participation. I guess this constitutes the initial formation of an ad hoc library committee. Please sign up if you care about the survival of this important institution. Additional discussions will address specific improvements rather than metaphysical approaches.

Mount Etna vortex ring. Photo by Tom Pfeiffer/Barcroft Media

Things seem so polarized! Our discourse has become so coarse. It is even palpable here in an expat community. What happens if community fails? What can we do to shore up our institutions?

I’ve asked to speak at Merida English Library as part of the ongoing Saturday morning lecture series. My talk will be happening this Saturday, (winter solstice!) December 21, about 12:30 pm. This public event is open to anyone. (Perhaps there will even be usable video for posting on youtube.) Here’s the invitation which will be rolled out early this week. I promise my presentation won’t be smarmy.

COMMUNITY: Bah, humbug?

I’m an idealist. I love community. When it flourishes, we all thrive. When it fails, we all struggle and suffer. Building a better ant hill benefits us all. I’d love to celebrate community together with you at this holiday season – with any and all who might be so inclined – on Solstice Saturday, December 21, at 12:30, at MEL – shortly after Debi Kuhn’s lecture on composting. (Debi’s will be a cool act to follow, as composting recycles that which is out of energy into that which can nourish.)

My presentation will be upbeat and positive. It will include some readings, and a sharing of thoughts and observations on how we might do community better. Afterwards, there will be an “open mic” for others to share in a similar fashion. Suggestion: bring a poem, a quote, a verse; sing us song – or, bring sheet music if you’d like us to sing along with you. Bring an instrument, or a platter of cookies to pass, or whatever might contribute to goodwill and sharing. Most importantly, bring your spontaneity and love. Ultimately community is working together. Let’s do this!

~eric.
Eric Chaffee
MeridaGOround.com