Patrick O’Heffernan.
Three double bass players – Evaristo Leyette, Gilberto Rios, and David Calvario – ran into each other at the Plaza recently and talked – as three musicians will – about ways to promote music in Lakeside. They were joined by the new Director of Culture for Ajijic and San Antonio Tlayacapan, Santiago Baeza ,who also happened to be in the plaza.
Ideas flowed, and the three double bass players decided to call a convocation of musical artists for a dialogue about organizing for the benefit of the musicians and the community. Baeza agreed to attend as a guest, andEl Barco offered them meeting space. Evaristo sent out an online invitation to the music community. The response was enthusiastic.
About 30 people filled the chairs on a sunny afternoon, mostly from the music community, including local band leaders, producers, and artists. The meeting was conducted in English and Spanish and was chaired by Evaristo. Culture Director Baeza spoke, giving a little of his background in the arts and pointing out that as yet he did not have an office so his office “was in the streets,” which allowed him to give artists his full attention, which he did.
He outlined his vision for the “Good times ahead for art and culture in this area”, including musical events held in many public and private places, a possible international jazz festival, and increasing the opportunities for musicians to play.
“My job is to give you more options – I want to use every inch of Ajijic and San Antonio Tlayacapan for cultural activities,’ Baeza told the crowd.
I love that vision – it reminds me how the South By Southwest festival uses every inch of Austin, Texas, and puts the small Texas city solidly on the map as an American music and creative hub. As a music writer who has been covering fusion music (Mariachi blues, recuerdo rap, alt. cumbia electronica, chicana rock – you get the picture) in the US, Europe and Mexico for almost 15 years from Los Angeles, I was heartened to see that the instigators were Mexican, that about a quarter of the audience was Mexican, and that it was bi-lingual from the start. I was also encouraged that some of the area’s heavy music hitters were there from all genres – major producers, band and orchestra leaders, popular artists – and they seemed to be buying in.
After the meeting, Baeza told me how unique and vibrant the music scene has become in Ajijic and San Antonio Tlayacapan. The energy and vision that Evaristo and his double bass co-conspirators surfaced clearly demonstrated that the music scene here is not only varied but high quality and dynamic. Baez’s energy and commitment supercharges this energy.
So what now? The convocation was not an official event but it was an important event. Many independent musical artists got together, added their names to a directory, and offered ideas and proposals. More importantly, they offered their commitment and their energy.
The double bass trio have a plan, determination, and allies. The product of what they have started could be music festivals, jobs and audiences for musicians, and tourism. But what is more exciting is how they may just lay the foundation for a reputation that goes far beyond Pueblo Magico, branding Ajijic/San Antonio Tlayacapan nationally and worldwide not only as Mexican centers for art, but as a creative hub for music. We shall see, but the possibilities are music to my ears.
(see a personal statement by Director of Culture Santiago Baeeza elsewhere in this edition)
Patrick O’Heffernan
Doña María.
“Granny!” The boys on the garbage truck shout to her, waving their hands in greeting.
Doña Maria sweeps her street every day, and not only her street, but also that of her neighbors and the whole block, or as far as her strength allows her to go. Her street is Calle Javier Mina, in the neighborhood of San Sebastián de Ajijic. She and her husband arrived here many years ago. He worked in construction, after having taken care of a farm with hot springs which was on the road in Zapotitán de Hidalgo. She does not remember when they got here, nor the date of her husband’s death. She’s forgotten many things, but not the cold that seeped through the windows of the spacious bodega where they lived at first.
Now she lives in a house with a narrow hallway and uneven steps that she walks down every day without difficulty. She lives with her 64-year-old daughter who is bedridden with «sugar» complications. At 94 years old, Margarita Montes Moya takes care of her daughter, and although a granddaughter helps them, Doña Maria carries most of the responsibility on her shoulders. Even at night, she sometimes wakes up to assist her daughter.
This morning, in the company of Ajijic artist Antonio López Vega, I talked with Doña Maria. She is always looking up. Her body is tiny, short and lean, her strong legs marked by varicose veins. Her thin hands are covered with age spots, and visible veins run down her arms. Her face is furrowed with the lines of time. She doesn’t use a cane, she doesn’t wear glasses. She can eat anything without problems, although she likes frijoles best. She wears a flowered apron, a short-sleeved sweater and cloth tennis shoes.
“Let’s go for coffee,” we suggested. She agrees and we walk down the street, the one she sweeps every day, very close to La Cochera Cultural.
“When I sweep I earn my pennies,” she says, smiling. ““I went to school, but I didn’t learn.”
She likes to work, to clean the street, to clean her kitchen. She wakes up early because the bed makes her tired. She doesn’t like to sit down, either. She was the youngest of ten siblings and her mother, she says, taught her to wash and embroider.
She used to like to go to mass and to sit in the square to watch the day go by. She hasn’t done that for a long time.
Antonio López Vega is painting a portrait of Doña Mary.
“Do you know who this is?” we ask her, showing her the painting. She looks at it for a long time and smiles.
“It’s you.”
“Who is it?” we ask again.
“ Maria,“ she says, blushing.
She sips her coffee and eats three cookies from the plate.
Serenely, she observes the children painting in the workshop of La Cochera. She looks at the sky and searches her deepest memories to continue talking. Sometimes she repeats herself, but she keeps on talking.
“Blessed be God,” she says.
This woman knows no fatigue.
“Don’t you get tired?” we ask her. And she does: she gets tired of sitting, tired of the bed, tired of doing nothing. Doña Mary does not remember many things. But she has not forgotten to smile, to walk in the middle of the street that is hers because she has always swept it and because she has walked it so many times that the steps cannot be counted or forgotten.
Ajijic, Jalisco. October 30, 202.
Translated by Elisabeth Shields
Miss Grand México 2021, Mariana Macías from San Antonio Tlayacapan will face a new challenge in the beauty pageant crunways.
Editorial staff.- With the crown of Miss Grand México 2021, Mariana Macías from San Antonio Tlayacapan will face a new challenge in the beauty pageant crunways. She will represent Chapala and México in the ninth edition of the Miss Grand International 2021 pageant to be held from November 16th to December 5th.
In a local interview, Mariana said it would be Mexico’s first time participating in the Miss Grand International pageant. She has begun to research the host country, as well as increasing her skills in public speaking, runway modeling, and physical exercise, among other disciplines as she prepares to head to Thailand.
If she qualifies and triumphs in the distinguished beauty pageant’s December 4th final, the former Miss Jalisco 2019 pledged she would work on her range of activities that include trips to different countries. If she doesn’t win the crown, she believes she already feels like a winner since she has achieved a tremendous level of self confidence.
Translated by Sydney Metrick
Town council session held last Thursday, November 4
Sofía Medeles (Ajijic, Jal.)- Only nine homes will have access to the State Fund for Natural Disasters (FOEDEN), it was announced in the last municipal council session, held on Thursday, November 4.
During the meeting, both the municipal president, Alejandro Aguirre Curiel, and the general secretary, Lilia Alvarado Macias, explained that only two types of support were available: rebuilding damage to infrastructure for two homes, and replacing damaged household goods in seven homes.
A few hours after the landslide in west Ajijic, the municipal government issued a communiqué in which they estimated the number of affected homes at a total of 159, of which 61 had total structural damage and loss of household goods.
More recently, Aguirre stated that only approximately 42 homes would be eligible for FOEDEN resources, according to the state civil protection report, but the state only approved 9 homes..
The amount approved for those that suffered structural damage was $541,111 pesos, of which the state would contribute 50% and the municipality the other 50%; while the damage to household goods is $209,187 pesos, where 80% would be provided by the state and the rest (20%) by the municipality.
Likewise, Secretary General Lilia stated that the required information has already been sent to the Secretariat of Agriculture and Rural Development (SADER), which, in approximately five working days, will have an answer on the grant rules and how resources will be sent to those affected.
Regarding the number of houses approved for the fund, the municipal trustee, Gamaliel Soto, commented: «It is not the only mechanism where the damage suffered by the people can be reimbursed; it is only one of ways to access funding. We e will seek support for more victims, including individuals and organized commerce […] it is up to the government to deal with the resources it has.»
The municipal council of civil protection ratified the agreements and approved the formation of the emergency committee during the session of October 6th. President Aguirre added that they have not ceased providing food supplies and visiting damaged sites, and commented that from the moment of the incident that occurred on October 5th, they have worked with more than 100 people; he also thanked the generous support of civilians. Finally, the item to access the aforementioned resources was approved.
Translated by Kerry Watson
Improvised landfill behind the municipal cemetery in Jocotepec. Photo: Courtesy.
Héctor Ruiz Mejía – Stymied by the decision of the City Council of Ixtlahuacán de los Membrillos to allow it to continuing dumping garbage in the town’s GEN sanitary landfill, the municipality of Jocotepec has scrambled for other sites, including clandestinely dumping garbage into ejido land.
Ixtlahuacán objected to the one thousand tons of garbage being tricked into its territory every day from Lakeside and the Guadalajara Metropolitan Zone (ZMG). So it closed its landfill, setting off tremors throughout the affected municipalities.
This led to desperate Jocotepec City Hall to clandestinely dump about a ton of garbage in the ejido of San Luciano, as reported by an anonymous source, as well as another ton of garbage on a lot located behind the municipal cemetery of Jocotepec. Semanario Laguna did directly observe these areas.
But the clandestine dumping has not solved the problem in Jocotepec as the streets of the municipal seat and the towns have filled up with garbage due to the lack of collection, prompting María Luisa of Jocotepec to complain that, «it is starting to smell bad, there is a mosquito infestation».
The collection crisis has also prompted desperate people from around the municipality to dump their household trash on Jocotepec’s streets. One resident, Guadalupe, told Laguna that , «they come in nice cars, we know they are not from here, and they just leave their bags of garbage on the street corners», she complained.
The problem has overwhelmed the municipal authorities so Jocotepec president José Miguel Gómez López posted a video on the official City Hall sites urging the community not to take out their garbage, saying, «we have a problem with garbage collection, this could take days».
Although the mayor stated in the video that work is being done to solve the problem, during the third regular town council session on November 4, no comment was made on the matter, nor has there been any official position on the matter.
Meanwhile, the desperate measures taken by the City Council have begun to generate concern among the town population, since the garbage disposal has been a problem for about three years and the people of Jocotepec still don’t know what to do with their garbage.
Translated by Patrick O’Heffernan
Garbage from about 15 days ago at the J. Vicente Negrete elementary school. Photo: Courtesy.
Héctor Ruiz Mejía: The inconsistent garbage collection system in the municipality of Jocotepec generates growing sanitary risks for residents, according to a survey conducted by Semanario Laguna.
One person responding to the survey was Mayra Berenice García, director of the J. Vicente Negrete elementary school in El Molino. She said about 15 days worth of garbage has accumulated at the school, generated by the 300 children who attend the institution.
“It has been an odyssey,” Mayra explained. “They told us that the truck cannot reach where we are. We are up the hill and they tell us the truck doesn’t have enough gasoline, so they ask me to take the garbage down myself.” She said she must carry garbage about 200 meters down the hill.
“Even the director of Aseo Público, Anselmo, has asked me to take the garbage in my truck, which doesn’t cost me anything,” said Mayra, adding that even when they have done so, dogs have destroyed the bags, so they have to gather the garbage again. She prefers to keep it at the school until Aseo Público comes to pick it up.
Gustavo, who runs a grocery store in San Juan Cosalá, has also been affected. Accumulated garbage sometimes gives off unpleasant odors. “It’s worse when there are street markets,” he said. “All the vegetable garbage is left there to spoil.”
A resident named Claudia said rats are a bigger problem than the unpleasant smell. Rats have invaded her house, thanks to the garbage. “I don’t know what to do. I don’t know where they get in. I have covered all the doors with rags,” she said in a distressed way.
While Jocotepec residents try to improvise ways of solving the problem, they fear the crisis will worsen.
In addition, the Ixtlahuacán de los Membrillos government recently refused to allow riverside communities to dump their garbage in the GEN landfill. This has caused dozens of Jocotepenses to store garbage in their homes.
Translated by Mike Rogers
La imagen antes de comenzar la procesión.
María del Refugio Reynozo Medina.- “La Virgen del Rosario quiere mucho a su pueblo”, dice con la voz cargada de confianza, una mujer que junto con su acompañante espera la salida de la imagen para la procesión.
Es 31 de octubre, el cierre de las celebraciones de la Virgen María en su advocación del Rosario en Ajijic.
El día de su fiesta es el 7 de octubre y cuando no existía la pandemia, la imagen salía de su capilla desde el día 29 de septiembre para visitar los barrios que conforman la población; el barrio de San Sebastián, barrio de Guadalupe, San Miguel, San Gaspar y Santo Santiago. Todos los días se rezaba el rosario a las 5:00 de la mañana con cohetes y música durante todo el mes, me cuenta Josefina que dice extrañar los festejos de entonces.
Un día como hoy, dice que había carros alegóricos y danzas. Ahora hay unas 30 personas apostadas en la entrada del templo, esperando que termine la misa para caminar la procesión con la imagen de la Virgen. Los muchachos de la banda afinan sus instrumentos. Mientras, un hombre vestido de negro prepara la imagen en la sacristía, con un ramo de nardos y lirios rosas a sus pies. La Virgen del Rosario esta ataviada con un vestido largo de color flor de durazno forrado con un encaje beige, lleva un chal de encaje luminoso; en una de sus manos sostiene un cetro y el rosario conformado por cuentas aperladas. Con el otro brazo carga al Niño Jesús que lleva una corona plateada en la cabeza y sostiene otra figura circular color azul como globo terráqueo, vestido con un ropón de encaje blanco.
Poco antes de las 6:00 de la tarde, las campanas anuncian la salida del recorrido. La figura de aproximadamente un metro de altura, es colocada en una plataforma de madera, cuatro hombres con playeras blancas y pantalones de mezclilla la sostienen de los extremos. La delicada figura femenina comienza a avanzar y las personas aplauden con su aparición.
La banda comienza a tocar y los asistentes se enfilan para caminar por la calle Hidalgo. El contingente rebasa las cien personas, aunque el padre pidió en misa que no acompañarán a la imagen, debido a la contingencia sanitaria por el COVID-19.
La corona y el resplandor sobre la cabeza de la imagen se iluminan con los últimos rayos dorados del sol y la piedra color verde esmeralda, incrustada en el lado frontal, resplandece. La gente va sumándose al contingente y en algunas casas, las personas salen a tomar fotografías, a dar aplausos. Una mujer mira emocionada y con las manos entrelazadas suspira sin perder de vista el rostro apacible de la Virgen del Rosario. Otra, avienta un puñado de confeti desde la caja de una camioneta que está estacionada.
Al paso de la procesión salen algunos ancianos y enfermos conducidos por sus familiares, se persignan y lanzan vivas. En las intermitencias de la caminata, se escucha a lo lejos el ladrido de los perros desde algún patio y las pisadas de los caminantes sobre las calles empedradas y a veces polvorosas.
Una patrulla del Ayuntamiento custodia la procesión con las luces azules y rojas encendidas. En las fachadas hay globos de color pastel y tiras de serpentinas de papel crepe.
A la llegada de la procesión, la banda de música entonó las mañanitas y los asistentes rompieron en aplausos. Los rostros de las mujeres están al punto del llanto.
¡Viva nuestra madre santísima! – Grita una voz femenina.
Una mujer le dice a otra emocionada;
-todo lo que le he pedido me ha concedido-
Y vuelve la mirada a la pequeña imagen.
Luego de un recorrido de poco menos de una hora termina la procesión con una ráfaga de cohetes que hacen explosión en el cielo y la banda toca “amigo” de Roberto Carlos.
La imagen avanza en medio de aplausos y es colocada en un nicho a la derecha del altar.
¡Viva San Andrés!
¡Viva Jesucristo!
¡Viva nuestra Virgen del Rosario!
Y los fieles embelesados intercambian miradas con el rostro de la Virgen iluminado por decenas de flashazos.
Ajijic, Jalisco 31 de octubre de 2021.
Desde hace 21 años, este encuentro entre líderes mundiales intenta minimizar los efectos del cambio climático. El acuerdo trascendental se hizo en 2015, con la firma del Acuerdo de París; sin embargo, desde hace seis años en que se firmó los avances son mínimos.
Abigail A. Correa Cisneros.- La actual cumbre se realiza en el límite del momento para tomar acciones contundentes. Los cambios drásticos de temperatura en el orbe son cada vez más notorios. Deslaves, huracanes, inundaciones y olas de calor son cada vez más comunes. Estados Unidos y China, los dos principales emisores de gases de efecto invernadero (entre los dos logran el 40 por ciento del total), se comprometieron conjuntamente a reforzar acciones climáticas para alcanzar los objetivos planteados en el Acuerdo de Paris, principalmente, evitar que la temperatura de la Tierra suba más de 2°C.
Otro de los grandes compromisos es poner fin a la deforestación. Más de 130 líderes mundiales se comprometieron la tala indiscriminada para 2030.
Asimismo, el gas metano, se reduciría para el 2030 hasta en un 30 por ciento, en comparación con los niveles de 2020.
Más países se sumaron a las acciones. La lista ahora incluye a Argentina, Brasil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, México, Panamá, Perú, República Dominicana y Uruguay.
Sin embargo, los gigantes y principales emisores de metanos se abstuvieron, lo que significa un estancamiento en las acciones realmente beneficiosas que se logren alcanzar en la COP26. Entre estos, China, Rusia e India.
Actividades que van desde la agricultura hasta la producción de ganado y el uso de gas natural, así como su extracción, son los principales motivos por los que no se ven los resultados de estas cumbres. Siguen siendo acuerdos de papel mientras no se tomen en serio las propuestas y se deje de usar hidrocarburos, si no de tajo, al menos mostrar más alternativas en cuanto al uso de energías limpias.
De acuerdo con expertos, para lograr mantener la temperatura de la Tierra por debajo de los 2°C, se requiere ya no solamente de acelerar la descarbonización. Es necesario comenzar a ejercer políticas que protejan y restaren ecosistemas ya que son los que se
encargan de absorber carbono. Destinar recursos para la adaptación al cambio climático. Ayudar a países pobres y que los objetivos planteados en los recientes acuerdos sean factibles para 2030.
REDUCIR EL IMPACTO DEL SECTOR PRIMARIO EN EL CAMBIO CLIMÁTICO
En México, las acciones deben notarse desde el sector primario. Es necesario reducir el impacto negativo de la agricultura en los recursos naturales, en la pérdida de biodiversidad y emisión de gases de efecto invernadero, que son la causa del cambio climático y, al mismo tiempo, impulsar un desarrollo incluyente.
Lo tiene muy claro el secretario de Agricultura y Desarrollo Rural, Víctor Villalobos Arámbula quien ha expresado en varias ocasiones que, para alimentar a una creciente población, ya no será posible incorporar nuevas superficies a la producción de alimentos. Lo que se debe hacer es incrementar la productividad y la eficiencia del sistema agroalimentario y abatir pérdida y desperdicio de alimento en las cadenas de suministro y consumo.
Recientemente, en el Foro Global Alimentario 2021, Villalobos Arámbula mencionó que la innovación productiva cobra más importancia ante el reto de producir alimentos saludables, que estén accesibles a todas las personas y contribuyan a reducir los problemas de mala nutrición que aquejan a parte de la población mexicana.
DESDE EL CENTRO
Dictan prisión preventiva a Emilio Lozoya Austin, por el caso Agronitrogenados y delitos de lavado de dinero, cohecho y asociación delictuosa. El exdirector de Pemex es acusado de promover y aprobar la compra con sobreprecio de más de 200 millones de dólares de la empresa Agronitrogenados a Alonso Ancira, accionista mayoritario de Altos Hornos de México (AHMSA)… Inaudito el recibimiento al presidente de México, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, en Nueva York, Estados Unidos. Cientos de simpatizantes acudieron a la sede de las Naciones Unidas para entonar “es un honor estar con Obrador” y “no estás solo”, acompañados de mariachis.
abicorrea79@hotmail.com
A 360 mil pesos ascendió el valor del cobre robado en las dos escuelas dentro del municipio de Jocotepec. Foto: Cortesía.
Héctor Ruiz Mejía / Domingo M. Flores.- El excesivo robo de cobre ya dejó sin electricidad a diferentes espacios públicos en el municipio de Jocotepec, por lo que autoridades municipales buscan interponer las denuncias correspondientes.
Y aunque, se ha tratado de dar solución, el problema “está en todos lados”, aseguró Juan Martín Santana, encargado de servicios públicos, en la sesión de comisiones que tuvo lugar en el cabildo de Jocotepec.
En dicha reunión realizada el 4 de noviembre, Juan Martín informó que el malecón, el camino a Potrerillos, así como el campo empastado y el parque de la cabecera municipal, son los espacios que más afectaciones han sufrido, “hemos hecho (en lo que respecta a reparaciones) lo que hemos podido, pero el problema es muy fuerte”, aseguró el funcionario público.
Pese a que no hay presupuesto, tanto el malecón como el campo empastado fueron ya atendidos y se está buscando reemplazar el cobre por aluminio, ya que éste último no es tan cotizado en el mercado. “Estamos colocando cableado de aluminio, pues éste lo respetan más”, les dijo Juan Martín a los regidores.
El problema ha afectado tanto al municipio que 20 de las 54 escuelas, con las que cuenta el mismo, se han visto afectadas por el robo de cobre, informó Ana María Cano Espinoza, directora general de educación de la Delegación de Jocotepec, quien sufrió en carne propia dicho delito en su vivienda. La entrevistada calculó los daños en alrededor de 17 mil pesos.
Otro caso, fue la escuela J. Vicente Negrete, de la delegación del Molino, quien desde hace dos meses no cuentan con electricidad tras sufrir el robo de 300 metros de cableado y pese al reporte ante las autoridades educativas como la Secretaría de Educación Jalisco (SEJ), 300 niños se encuentran asistiendo a un plantel sin electricidad.
En el mercado, el cobre tiene un valor de venta de 97 pesos por kilo, en contraste con el aluminio, el cual sólo llega a un precio de 22 pesos por kilogramo.
© 2016. Todos los derechos reservados. Semanario de la Ribera de Chapala