* Flowers and the Women of San Miguel

I have to say, bringing these big bouquets home from the market is one of my biggest thrills!!  This is the second arm full of flowers I have bought.  They are so fresh when I get them, they seem to last forever.  They make me smile constantly!

Last night I joined the 'Sisterhood' at the restaurant.  I thought it was for dinner.  I had not eaten since breakfast.  It was Happy Hour - 2 for 1 and only nibblies ... popcorn, chips, and some Mexican  "hot stuff".  So hot infact when I tried a small drop on a nacho I ended up at the counter chocking out the word agua (water), and when they handed me a glass, I escaped into the street and literally coughed til I gagged.  This went on for 10 minutes!  Embarased?  No, what the hell, I'm a crone now, I can do anything I want ... lol.  Won't be having more of that any time soon.  At least until my pallet adjusts.

There were women from all over the world.   I met three ladies from Canada, one lady from Germany, who has bought land here and is building a house.  I didn't meet everyone, because it was a large group.  I think most of the rest were from America.  I sat beside an artist who had moved here about 7 years ago.  She tried out the gringo community in SMA.  She liked it, loved the vibrancy of the city, but somehow missed the authenticity of old Mexico.  Gail ended up buying an old colonial house in an old Colonial town named Pozos.

Pozos is nestled between the hills and clouds at 7,500 ft. above sea level (I would be puffing more there than here!), about 25 miles from SMA.  In earlier glory days, Pozos was an opulent colonial city which lived through several gold bonanzas from 1556 through the Mexican Revolution of 1910.  It was declared an Historical National Monument by the Mexican Government in 1982.  Currently the town has a couple of hotels, a couple of restaurants, and about 50 artists making their home there.

Each year there is a huge mariachi festival there, with the best mariachi bands from all over Mexico attending.  I would love to go.  Mariachi music makes my jaws hurt.  I can't stop smiling.

So, as I was saying.  Gail is an artist who lives in Pozos. A group there puts on a huge art show every year.  She does altered art and asemblage. After some time living in Pozos, Gail felt she needed a little more balance between the small town life and SMA.  She now keeps an apartment here.   She entertains madly when she's in town, and has discovered a wonderful balance between her two homes. Gail is seventy four.

We are all so different.  I find it very fascinating.  There were other women who come here every year and seem so know each other.  Others lived here on a permanent basis. There are women like me, who are here for the first time.  Everyone is welcomed with open arms.  I walked home with a lady from Flordia who's name is also Donna.  She called tonight to invite me to another evening of socializing at the 'Sunset Bar' ... a rooftop establishment, where from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm it's happy hour, you can visit, meet new people and watch the beautiful sun sets of San Miguel.  I declined.  This cold seems to have knocked a little of the zip out of me.  I had been out all day and I am honestly tired tonight.  Next week, I will attend and see who I meet.

Art class tomorrow! This is going to be a challenge for Nina.  I am totally lost with my homework.  We shall see if she can help me through this one.  If she can help me save this piece I have started, it will be a miracle!  lol

Grumpy Marshall Westher Report for San Miguel de Allende for Thursday January 28th, 2010

Jan 28	Cloudy / PM Sun Hi: 77° Lo: 48°	Day: Sunny skies. High 77F, humidity 25%. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph. Air Quality: NA, UV Index: 7
		Night: Cloudy skies. Low 48F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph.

"In the universe, there are things that are known, and things that are unknown, and in between, there are doors."  ~ William Blake