Caray, Caray!

Hola Jack. Those treats sound delicious; if I just stand over here drinking my lemonade and don't sample them, it's just because I...had a big lunch. Yes.

What an interesting theme. I always noticed a very feline quality in Estrella, as well. Jero is a rat for sure, and boy did all those cats and kittens let him know it. He was always so abused, pobrecito. Gabi and Paula were probably the best Toms to his Jerry; they didn't put up with anything.
 

Hibiscus tea? Sounds PURRRfect. It's right up my ALLEY.
 

Didn't watch Gancho, but waydago, Jack! I wish people would stop insulting animals by comparing them to humans.

Wilbur Wildcat
(photo)
 

Gracias Jack for helping out Carlos. I hope he has thanked you for all of the times you've helped him out. BTW, is it raining cats and dogs?
Like Julia, I had a huge supper, will have to pass for now. Perhaps a little lemonade before turning in.
 

Oh Carlos, you clever man. You always find new ways to spice up our Gancho line. Wonderful. I love it that JackCat is now hoping you'll stop saying "you owe me one".

By the way, tell Jack that our Kizzie says "hello".

Red-Headed Mexican sounds interesting although I've never liked booze mixed with sweet soda. Like the idea of cranberry juice and a lemon or lime peel though.

One of my favorite summer drinks is just to put a splash of cranberry juice in a big glass of iced club soda. More interesting than plain ol' water and very refreshing.

Had a great time running around town yesterday with one of my 90-year-old students and two of her sixtyish friends who were in town from Philadelphia. They wore me out! Of course they were going to kick back and relax before going out to dinner later, but I had to head over and teach class.

Missed recording part of the second half of STuD while I was recapping Dinero last night. What do you want to bet it was the passionate scene in the playhouse that got lost!? Oh well, I'll find out at lunchtime.
 

Thanks Jack. OK, we're even, now get outta my chair.

Julia,

"I always noticed a very feline quality in Estrella"

Indeed. Remember the notorious leopard print dress that she loaned Monita? I still get a little tachycardic when I remember those scenes.

Paula,

very cute. Hibiscus tea? Good choice.

Wilbur,

Welcome! Could I interest you in a spot of catnip tea?

Jeff,

Raining cats and dogs? Not bad. Fresh lemonade for you.

Judy,

So now you're running with a fast crowd? Cranberry juice and club soda? Actually that is one of my favorite summertime drinks. You are right... very refreshing, tart, not cloying.

I hope that you recorded the groping in the playhouse. They definitely now have some unfinished business.

Carlos
 

Carlos~~~You should be writing books. Children's books , perhaps, with Jack as the ''author.'' I mean it !!! You are a talented taleteller, storyweaver. Judyb, you did miss the love shack scene in STuD. I was visiting my sister and cousin last night, and I had trouble getting away, but I got home just in time to see Val and JM race in the rain and then start to get their motors running in the love shack. Did you watch CS ? It's getting soooo good . Well, time to go over to my daughter's to watch Janie . Tonight, Hub and I and our friends are going to see Peter Frampton at a mountain venue. The heat and humidity have finally dissipated for awhile here. Thank goodness. I'll try one of those Redheaded Mexicans on ice, Carlos. Jack, I will pass on your unappetizers....bleecchhh
 

Susanlynn,

Thanks. I'm glad that you're a regular here at Club Gancho. I know I always enjoy your warm and witty comments. Glad to hear that you are getting a respite from the Summer heat. We're having an unusually rainy Summer here.

Jack is a little disappointed that the treats he put out aren't a big hit, though I don't think he's very surprised.

Carlos
 

I love catnip! It makes my eyes look like peppermints spinning around and around.
 

Thanks for the offer Jack, that drink looks great!

Many greetings to everybody in Club Gancho, I've been keeping up as much as I can with Caray from my phone but I've been at my grandmother's place without a computer unfortunately. She turned 90 last week so we had a big celebration for her.

I'm bringing some news: The Gancho actors are keeping themselves busy it seems. Sebastián Rulli and Margarita Magaña were in the first two episodes of Cuando Me Enamoro and now they'll appear in the new novela "Teresa".

"Teresa" is a remake of the 1989 version of the novela of the same name with Salma Hayek. But it seems the producer is mixing that story with "Rubí" .

Angelique Boyer will play the title character which will be a mix between Teresa and Rubí, Rulli will play the same character he played before in "Rubí", with Ana Brenda doing the character played by Jaqueline Bracamontes in that same novela. The galán will be the character from "Teresa" though (a poor mechanic who lived in the same vecindad as Teresa and knew her most of her life), not the Alejandro character from "Rubí" (who was a med student and later a doctor and met her at the begining of the story). It seems they'll use the backstory from "Teresa" but the same setting from "Rubí" when it starts.

I'm not sure how they'll manage with the story. "Teresa" was pretty grimm, the producer (Lucy Orozco: "Ramona")reflected on the hardships and reality of extreme poverty and the audience could emphatize with the character while she was doing everything she could to get out of there, even if she was becoming lost and corrupted. "Rubí" was about a woman of extreme vanity who was ready to betray her love, friends and family from the begining to climb te social ladder. Both became the villain of their own story but I don't think they could be considered the same character.

I'm wishing Rulli would get a better type of character, he is always playing guys very easy to manipulate. I liked Mau but he was a big dumb bug.

Jarocha
 

Hello Jack, how nice of you to do a favor Dr. Carlos and Linda. How does it feel to be typing away on the computer like your "parents" do? Have you heard of Facebook? I bet there is a cat version, you might meet some wonderful online/feline friends, you just have to learn to grab the computer when Dr. C and Linda are away!

Actually, I'll take a Redheaded Mexican this time, enough of that tea, something stronger might be great after the last few weeks!

JudyB, glad to see you hear, I thought you might be out of town. How is your summer going?

Any fun trips or plans for the Gauncholanders this summer other than Sylvia's voyage?
 

Jeri, if Wilbur enjoys his catnip, then he and Jack are soulmates. Linda keeps a pot of fresh catnip in the kitchen windowsill and it is almost embarrassing to watch him get into it. He truly becomes intoxicated. Sometimes affectionate, sometimes highly energized, sometimes playful, and at other times, just stoned.

Jarocha, you are always such a fount of inside information. We always look forward to hearing from you. Glad that you were able to get in touch. I watched a movie this weekend, Rojo Amanecer starring Maria Rojo (Clemencia of CS) thinking it would be a rather sweet movie (which it was up until the violent and discouraging ending). I can't recall having felt so devastated after watching a movie. Have you seen this movie and what did you think about it?

Sandy, so good to hear from you. We missed you here last week. Jack is pouting at the moment. He was hijacked this morning and spent the day at the vet's. Just a checkup... he's fine. The Redheaded Mexican is a very pleasant drink. A squeeze of lemon makes it just about right. One of my favorite ways to drink Tequila is to follow sips of Tequila with sips of lemonade. Smooth.

Carlos
 

Hi Sandy. Glad you checked in over here. As much as I love the discussions on Mi Pecado, I was horrified when that new commenter accused me of portraying "infidelity as a sacrament". In fact "horrified" doesn't quite convey it.

Just doesn't feel safe anymore over there, if my words can be so twisted and turned around. Ugh. Of course I love all you guys and the excellent recappers. But don't care to be flamed again.

The show continues to be riveting. And as dreadful as the happenings are, it is truly my favorite show. So well done, so tightly paced, so beautifully filmed and acted.

A shame, for me anyway, that the discussions which had always been so respectful, were derailed like that. I did my best to explain my intent, but it was not acknowledged. Nor did she acknowledge the warm welcome you all gave her. So as I said, the MP neighborhood no longer seems the same.

Gancholand, on the other hand, is Home Sweet Home. Tequila and sips of lemonade sound great, but I'd be under the table in 2 minutes Carlos. Jack and I could be stoned together.
 

Judy, that attack completely baffled me (as we discussed, but I'm repeating it here). The commenter's issues didn't seem to have anything to do with what she quoted from your comment. You talked about forgiving and looking for happiness; she went off on good-looking people getting treated better than ugly people.

That sort of thing seems more like a random eruption of someone's own issues, and it's just unfortunate she dragged you into it. I hope you will stick with us on Mi Pecado and let us know your thoughts, even if you say them somewhere else. It's such an intense show and you always have something insightful to say.

Jarocha, combining two old stories into one novela sounds confusing, but I like the actors and it could be very interesting. I'll look forward to finding out how it works out. I like smarter characters as well, rather than the gullible guys.
 

JudyB,

I knew that was hurtful and had been concerned about your thoughts. I have been looking for you and even called for you on the MP blog this AM. When that comment was made, I was in a hotel on a cell phone and couldn't really respond in any significant way. Truthfully, I wasn't even sure what she meant by "infidelity as a sacrament." By the way, your response was perfect, you returned kindness to her comment. All I'm going to say is that we really need your thoughts on this hard novela, MP. Come back...
 

Carlos: I can only imagine how shocked you were when you realized what that movie was actually about!

Yes, I did see it. I saw it first when I was 10 years old, it was a censored version that was around at the time. I saw it again uncensored during my first year of college, during an event we had to remember the date.

"La Matanza de Tlatelolco" is truly one of the most horrifying events in Mexican history. I made a note about it when I was reading Distant Neighbours, actually*. The book claims there were between 200 and 300 deaths but only 32 people were recognized, now 25 years later we have 48 deaths recognized and we believe there were at least 700 deaths, possible much more, maybe thousends. It's imposible to know because the army probably burned the bodies. Some people were lucky to find the bodies of their relatives that same night, but had to sign papers that claimed they died from other reasons to be able to keep them. Hundreds of kids were captured and sent to jail for years too.

Every year we remember the date: "2 de octubre, no se olvida". When I was at school the teachers always made sure to make us understand what happened, the magnitude of the crime committed by the Mexican government against their own people. It's been 42 years but every october 2nd we still remember it with sadness, frustration and anger.

In 2001, after the PAN party took over the power they claimed they would investigate the massacre. Many photographs, videos and information were found. And it was possible then to clearly picture how things happened. However, they neved did anything to the people that were involved then and still alive now because the were "too old". It was clear they were just using the massacre to make themselves look good and keep their image against the PRI.

*I am still planning on posting about Distan Neighbours, I think it gave an excellent picture of the Mexican society. Some things have changed and some things, like the Tlatelolco massacre, are seen differently now. But I still think it's a great book that serves to understand our people.

JudyB: I'm sorry you feel bad about posting on Mi Pecado. I wasn't there when the problem with the poster happened. I'm very sorry to lose your point of view of the characteres and situations happening. Your comments are always interesting and insightful and I'm very sorry you are not posting there anymore.

Jarocha
 

Julia: I curious about the novela. Even with all my reservations.

Jarocha
 

"This too shall pass" Jarocha. I'll get over it. I miss discussing the themes of compassion and forgiveness with the others like Sandy and Julia etc. because forgiveness is such a key issue in a meaningful well-lived life. And it's often the issue that gives us the most trouble.

Met someone recently who was still angry and unforgiving about a husband who'd been gone from her life for 30 years! That's tragic. And my own mom had unresolved forgiveness issues towards her own mother until nearly the end of her life. And now my sister and brother have the same with my mom (who has passed away).

Hmmm....probably TMI but certainly that is part of the reason I consider forgiveness a key issue. It's been a thorny problem in our family. And Mi Pecado seems to deal with it dramatically every episode. Quite a powerful telenovela and churns up a lot of feelings in the viewers, that's for sure!
 

Judy,

I would like to talk further on this topic, but don't want to hijack Gancholandia. My email is sandyt223@gmail.com. I have some time tomorrow, I'd like to talk with you, we have some common points of view on this forgivness subject!
 

Jarocha, my wife saw quite a bit of Rubi and that sounded pretty grim to me. Teresa sounds like it would be pretty grim as well then. Did Rubi 2 ever come out? She was still alive at the end.

Judy, I didn't see that on MP. Sorry to hear about it. Sometimes things get misinterpreted and you can't correct it. I've seen a few times where people take offense and even what looks like a good apology to me does not get accepted. Then again, the comments weren't directed at me, so hard to say how I would have taken it. :) It sounds like you'll be back on that Mi Pecado horse soon. Not much time left, you'll have to be there to talk about everything that comes out in these last few hours.

Julia, combining two TNs that I haven't seen probably wouldn't be any more confusing than a normal TN. :) Sometimes I think it is a mistake to say a TN is a remake as then it gets compared to the previous one, even though they may not be that much alike. I guess they have to see if it is based on another one, but seems like it hurts more than helps. Of course, we then get into the discussion of why so many remakes and not more new stories.

Carlos, pick up any new cats or dogs from the rain? :)
 

Carlos, it's actually Rocky who's the catnip nut, but both my boyz like it.

Wilbur and Rocky

They have their own table behind my desk. Otherwise I would have no desk.

I notice you were taking my advice about watching CS tonight; I think it might be safe to explain here it's the (long-delayed) wedding night.

I wouldn't want you to stay up if you were expecting, say, Leonarda and Rodrigo to be burned at the stake with an Aimee chaser. That's not it.
 

Querida Judy, a bagazo poco caso!
 

Judy, you've been holding out on us. Infidelity is a sacrament? You minx! Actually Tequila and sips of lemonade is just what the Dr. ordered. Sit here by me and let's compare scars. Your story is much more colorful than mine, however. Infidelity vs. corn pudding? You win hands down.

Actually one of the features that has endeared me to this site is it's gentility and decorum. For the most part, everyone (with very rare exceptions) is treated with the utmost respect and tolerance. I have never ventured out to any other blogs, but one hears things. Generally, the most heated discussions that I recall have been over Spanish grammar. You once gently counseled me about not letting one person spoil things for me, so now... How about another shot of this fine Tequila?

Carlos
 

Jarocha, the novela Teresa sounds good to me. It will be fun to see Angelique Boyer playing the main villainess. I know she's played mean girls before, but this will be the lead, right? She has the kind of face that can be either innocent or wicked, depending (in part) on what makeup she's wearing. It also intrigues me to see Ana Brenda in the part Jacki Bracamontes played in Rubi. Again, this would be a switch from the part she played in Sortilegio (this time from mean to nice, I guess). I never saw the original Teresa, but I'm looking forward to this one.

Judy, I sympathize with you as to the negative comment. I do recall a couple of exchanges that were less than nice on some other shows, and I was always happy that Gancho seemed to be such a nice community. Even when people disagreed, they were respectful about it.

Carlos, thanks again for the great pictures!
 

Jarocha, I read Distant Neighbors (a Spanish translation) several years ago as part of my Spanish tutoring program and remember vaguely reading of this atrocity, but reading about it didn't have the same impact as that movie did. I am still shaken by it, and I'm not all that squeamish. After all, as an intern, I spent many a weekend night in the emergency room at the city/county hospital in Austin, Texas. The senselessness and brutality depicted in the movie was simply devastating.

On a lighter note, I kept trying to figure out which character was played by Eduardo Palumbo. When the credits rolled, turns out that it was one of the more minor characters, the injured student, who looked nothing like Alejandro from Ramona.

Carlos
 

Carlos, actually Jack, thanks for the photos. Dani is just so cute! I hope we get to see her again soon. Jack, you're a handsome feller. Did you see the photo of Jeri's cats? Quite good looking also. Have we seen Judy's Kizzie?

Tequila followed by lemonade? Sounds wonderful. Or the Redheaded Mexican. Judy, care to join me under the table? I'm also a cheap date!

And Judy, I'm so sorry about the flaming on Mi Picado. We don't watch it - Mike tried but gave up, and one soap a night is my limit. We Ganchadores are a gentle bunch aren't we? Disagreement is part of the fun, but we don't try to wound.

My excitement for the week... I burned up our toaster oven, fire, smoke, the full catastrophe! I was toasting a tortilla and it got a huge air bubble that touched the top element and caught fire. I unplugged it, waited for the fire to go out and then carried it to the back yard and hosed it off - mainly so the dry parched grass wouldn't catch fire also. Time to buy a new toaster oven. Never ending fun at the Martin house!
 

Almost as much fun as forgetting there's a leftover pizza box in the oven and firing up that baby to preheat to 450 degrees and ay yi yi...plenty of smoke.

Or not cleaning up the spillovers from the last apple pie and.....yep, same thing.

That's our hot passionate drama these days Emilia. Who knew?
 

The heat and humidity have returned...ugh. I'm on my way to the pool. Well, my daughter's 2 dogs got out of the house while I was babysitting Janie yesterday. However, TBMOE [the best man on earth...hub] came right over and combed the neighborhood and found them and saved me. He's saved me a lot over the years . What-a-guy. Peter Frampton was great last night. The man can play the guitar. If you ever have a chance to see him...go. Did everyone see Melinama's new page devoted to FC ? Terrible news about Mariana Carr. Anyone know the details???
 

Sorry...the above is from me...Susanlynn.
 

Emilia, I'm sorry for your toaster oven and am glad that you didn't burn down the house or set fire to the grass, but you certainly made me smile... no, actually I laughed a little bit. Sorry. I could picture the tortilla bubble expanding toward the heating element and then igniting. I once lost my microwave privileges for a while for heating a bowl of chili with beans without a cover. No fire, but the results weren't pretty.

Susanlynn, hurrah for TBMOE for retrieving the pooches. Good job.
What happened to Mariana Karr? She is one of my favorites.

Carlos
 

Judy: I'll be waiting for your comments. I especially hope to hear your general thoughts on the show after the finale.

Carlos: I perfectly understand. The movie makes sure you get to know the characteres and feel for them and their situation. Just when you think the worst has passed and they will be okay the worst happens.

This movie was made during a time when there was still alot of hermetism about what happened. The way they shot it inside the apartment was partly because they were hiding the production in fear the project got shot down by the government. It didn't come out in theaters until a few years after it was made.

Eduardo Palomo was pretty young and pale back then. I think he was already popular back that time but surely not as much as when he did Ramona.

By the way, Mariana Karr is on Zacatillo, Un Lugar en Tu Corazòn which is the novela finishing right now. Teresa will take it's place. I wonder if you'll get that novela in Univision after Dinero since it is a comedic novela. But it is much better than Mar de Amor.

Hombre: Before Sortilegio I had seen Ana Brenda play only good characteres. I think she'll be good in it. I think Angelique has played mean girl types but nothing really like a villainess so this will be a bigger trial for her.

Jeff: I don't think they are planning for a Rubi 2. It would be interesting with the turn they did with the niece but there has never been a second part and she always survives to see her face destroyed.
 

Sorry.

That was me Jarocha :D.
 

Jarocha, thanks for all the information about Rojo Amanecer. Somehow I knew that you would know about the movie and the events it was based on. As painful as it was, I'm glad I watched it. I must have seen the unedited version... I can't imagine it being more graphic. There are images I will not soon forget. Very well acted and very powerful. Now I'll get back to watching la Negra Tomasa, not as well acted and certainly not as significant, but a lot cheerier.

Jeri, Rocky could almost be Jack's twin. I'll bet Wilbur and Rocky have a blast together. Interesting that they don't share the same affinity for herbs.

Carlos
 

"Infedity as a sacrament"...? Oh, you've been flamed by a satanist, I guess. Or a Victorian Gothic novelist wannabe.

Although I wonder if it's our old friend, CindyBin. She might be too embarrASSed by such harASSment or maybe she had a bad day bASS fishing. Well. If that doesn't draw her out, I don't know what will.

Judy & Sandy, include Emilia on your chats about forgiveness. Mi Santa Esposa had a trial w/ mother yesterday. Actually, for the last 37 years that's been true.
 

Carlos: I know the violence at the end was pretty graphic but the pictures that came out in 2001 showing real corpses of some of the students are just impossible to describe. Be very careful if you ever decide to investigate online about Tlatelolco, some places don't have a warning about how crude their info is.

Changing the subject, I like your Coni and Aldo capture. It was almost at the beginning of the show so I had forgotten about that whole debacle. Aldo had alot of control to stop Coni's advances.

Jarocha
 

Hi Mike. Sorry Emilia had a rough day with your mom. But I'm counting on her sense of humor to get her through it. Sometimes Humor is a Sacrament!...(or at least it should be).

No, I'm pretty sure my flamer wasn't Cindybin. Just laughing remembering all that. I missed all the crossfire because I was in the hospital with my husband who'd just had another heart episode. So it fell to my team to defend me. I remember Ferro going after her hammer and tongs. And who could forget Sylvia's recap a few weeks later that was all about the workshop on dealing with a$$holes? Good memories.

@Carlos: Thanks for those cute pics. I especially like Estrella Falcon actriz! She brought so much humorous swagger to that role. And it was much richer than her previous stint as the "amargada" servant in Guapos.
 

That scene with Constanza and Aldo was so funny, and so horrifying. I was surprised he never mentioned it to try to get Coni's custody revoked. I mean, can you imagine if Mauricio had hit on Luisa? NO WAY would anyone have shrugged that off.
 

Judy, Estrella Falcón... actriz assumed some great roles during Gancho,but I think my very favorite was her impression of a Fresa in order to distract Ximena so that Moni could enter a (Mauricio's, I think) hospital room. I laughed out loud and rewound several times to savor her performance.

Jarocha and Julia, that scene between Coni and Aldo was jaw dropping for me. I had forgotten just how seductive she was. I borrowed that photo from one of Kris' recaps (gee, I miss her, I hope she drops by again sometime). Fortunately, Aldo was deeply under the spell of Estrella Falcón... actriz at that time. As I recall, he seemed genuinely confused by her advances.

Today's memory is our favorite shrink, Dr LeFort. Remember Beto's mutilation at the hands (paws? jaws?) of the good Dr.'s Rottweilers (or were they Dobermans? We never actually saw them). He was great in Gancho, but more endearing as Tio Meño in Tontas.

Carlos
 

Thanks Carlos. I'd totally forgotten about Dr. Lefort. Happened to be looking up another word and found "headshrinker"..."Loquero". Fits right in with your pic.
 

Ah yes, Tio Meño / Dr. Lefort. I had forgotten about the dogs. What a memory you have, Dr. C. Happy Birthday!!!

I agree about Estrella Falcón... actriz and her best scene. Definitely the Fresa. Love that girl and hope we see her again soon.

Have a wonderful weekend everybody. We had rain last night, thunder, lightning, the whole booming summertime fun. Today it is cooler and less humid - YAY!
 

I could try to learn some continuity and punctuation...sorry.
I sound like Eats Shoots and Leaves. Depends where you but the commas!

So, Happy Birthday, Dr. Carlos!!
 

That's too cute! I have a cat named Jack, too, who LOVES Fancy Feast (Chicken Flourentine, to be exact). He has to have it every morning and every evening. My other cat Max hates it. Go figure.

Steve
 

Emilia, thanks. My birthday is next Friday and believe me, I've begun to dread them. As far as I know, there is no big party planned this year. My 65th B'day party was a real blowout, mariachis, an Elvis impersonator, and lots of food and drink.

Judy and Emilia, looking for pictures to post has been a blast. I had almost forgotten how rich this show really was.

Oops, the ladies are getting restless wanting to go home. Later.

Carlos
 

Steve, there is no accounting for feline tastes! I once kitty-sat for a friend with a shoes-off house. That cat was insane for my shoes! I'd step in the door, slip off my shoes, and Camie just start loving on a shoe, rolled on her back with the shoe in her paws, tried to crawl inside the shoe, etc. I inherited smelly feet from my father, and this cat had some sort of fettish for foot stink. She loved my socks, too.
 

Mike, yesterday we went to Bluewater Seafood hoping for some nice oysters... well... nopis. Jennifer (our sweet waitress) said that none were available since Tue. She was not certain why. We have had a lot of rain the past week and sometimes they close the beds after heavy storms, but from other things I've heard, it could be a result of the spill. They did have some for frying and I had a very good oyster po'boy. We also had boiled shrimp and gumbo.

How's the new job going? Are you coping well with the commute. Linda and I ride together these days so we generally have great conversations each day. I would have thought that we would run out of things to talk about by now.

Lois (the corpse flower) sort of halfway bloomed and the fizzled. Never did fully open up and a lot of her fans were disappointed with a less than overpowering stench. I think they may have kept her too cool.

Jeff, we had a big soccer match at Reliant Stadium... Manchester somebodies vs. US Allstars. It was a 5-2 blowout. The Manchester team has a Mexican superstar (whose name escapes me at the moment) so there were a huge number of fans from here cheering them/him on.

Carlos
 

Paula,

I've misplaced or misfiled or lost your Email address. I finally got around to writing a little essay about reading Spanish. If you will Email me at cmhillmd@sbcglobal.net,I will forward it to you. I hope it's the sort of thing you had in mind.

Carlos
 

Carlos. Gracias! A new photo. Rolando looks scrumptious. Great hair. Let your fingers do the walking. What a thought. Thanks for brightening up my Saturday morning fantasy world. Now to get to work on choreography. Bye!

PS Love it though that you and Linda still have great conversations going to and fro work. A testament to a happy marriage!
 

Thanks for the Klunders, Carlos. As a rule I'm not really a fan of long hair on men, but rules are made to be broken, right? I think Rolando has an awfully nice smile when he wasn't being cheesy.


Mike is on a motorcycle ride, his first in about three weeks, poor guy. He always comes home with a smile on his face. We live near the Colonial Parkway that runs from Yorktown to Jamestown and is a great place for a motorcycle ride. It's shady and has minimal traffic. He took his new camera so I don't expect to see him until he gets hungry.

Carlos, I'll have to remember your 65th birthday when Mike turns 65. For his 60th we had a picnic for local family and friends. Low key and lots of fun. Maybe we should crank it up a notch next time!
 

Emelia, I'm glad that Mike had the opportunity to enjoy the day riding his hog with the wind in his face. Maybe he'll share some of his photos with us.

As to photos, this week's final offering may be puzzling to some. It is another that I borrowed from one of Kris' fabulous recaps and it recalls one of the show's early plot devises that I wish had continued throughout, but was, alas, abandoned and never revisited. This is a scene from the Chinese convenience store that Beto was told was Moni's employer when she first began working for Groupo Sermeño. There were hilarious encounters between Beto and the family that owned the store. In fact his first trip (for us at least) to jail was the result of a brawl that he precipitated with them. Too bad we didn't have the opportunity to revisit this colorful family business.

Carlos
 

Carlos, your fried oyster po'boy sounds exquisite. Fried is the only way I'll eat 'em this time of the year, holding to the old saying about only eating raw ones during the months with an "r" in them. Too much nastiness in the Chesapeake and its tributaries any more to take a chance.

My commute is made more bearable by NPR, which usually holds my interest. But as of now, I plan on pulling chocks when the contract is over the end of January.

I did indeed have a lovely ride yesterday. It was mostly overcast and cooler. I stopped to take a couple of shots, got one and then got the dreaded "Card Full" message. I'd forgotten to wipe it before I left, but I"ve changed my profile photo to share the one photo I took. All in all, a nice day, nice ride and I'm gonna enjoy the new camera.

Great scenery on STuD Friday night! 'Bout time we guys got something other than TBLMOE's abs, dammit!
 

Mike, I love your new photo. That is so soothing and tranquil. It reminds me of the view of the Brazos from Lovers' Leap in Cameron Park in Waco. I'm glad that you had a great ride.

About the oysters, there was a study several years ago that indicated that having an alcoholic drink with oysters gives good protection for a person in reasonably good health. The study was done with wine and mixed drinks (mixed drinks and oysters?) but I think a good stout beer should work OK. I absolutely adore oyster po'boys and the gumbo at Bluewater (and Captain Tom's) is exquisite... the only better is the Lovely Linda's.

Carlos
 

Hmmm, Carlos, I've heard of something called "mignonette" that is sometimes served w/ raw oysters. Apparently it's a mix of champagne, vinegar and shallots into which the oyster is dipped. Sounds a bit frou-frou for my palate, but maybe it proves the point about tbe goodness of alcohol w/ respect to oysters.

Feliz Lunes a todos!