Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Service
in San Miguel de Allende
Hotel Posada de Aldea, Ancha de San Antonio 15
Sundays
10:30am Service
Tel: 155-8014

From the Editor…

Results from the Web
Our website at portalsanmiguel.com/lifestyle/unitarians/
unitarians.html has resulted in several queries from outside Mexico, proving that people really do go to the Web to check out UUs in San Miguel. So far I’ve heard from a lady in British Columbia wanting a penpal, a Florida couple coming here next year to celebrate his 80th birthday, and a woman wanting information about rentals.

These queries come directly to me because mine is the only email address posted on our website. If you’re willing to help field this kind of request, please let me know at kendalbusa@yahoo.com or call me at 044 415 103 2312, and you too can achieve Internet fame.

—Kendal Butler

SWUUW Annual Women’s Conference
Coming Up in Houston
“Sisterhood Is Still Powerful” is the theme of this year’s South West Unitarian Universalist Women’s Conference in Houston, Texas, February 4–6, 2005. The agenda is sure to appeal to anyone seeking spiritual growth, personal awakening, or a connection to the power of sisters helping sisters.

One highlight of the Conference is sure to be Margot Adler, award-winning NPR journalist who hosts the show “Justice Talking.” Margot will give the keynote talk and also lead a ritual and conduct one of the workshops.

Margot Adler has traveled a remarkable journey and is generous in sharing her experience and observations. As a child of socialists, she says she often felt herself an outsider. After getting her B.A. at Berkeley and a Master’s in journalism from Columbia she began, as she says, “walking between worlds.” She has been a Wiccan priestess for three decades and is an active and influential member of the Unitarian Church. Well known for her first book, Drawing Down the Moon, she has also completed a second book, Heretic’s Heart. You might enjoy reading the books before meeting Margot; she will be signing them at the Conference.

More than thirty workshops will be offered, with topics rangeing from “Advancing Justice for Women” to “Writing a Heart Full.” You can even work on a “Bra Quilt.”

There will be opportunities for exercise (swimming, yoga, tai chi and more), a bit of shopping from twenty local vendors, and walking in Herman Park, along with time to share experiences and stories with others in the Red Tent.

Check out the full Conference brochure and register online at www.swuuw.com (before Jan. 1 for the lower rate of $130), then call the Warwick Hotel at 713-526-1991 or online at warwickhotelhouston.com to reserve a room. Tell the hotel you’re with SWUUW to get the preferred rate; available only until Jan. 20th.

A few scholarships are available as well. For more info, contact Susan Borches at 713 665 8710 or smborches@yahoo.com.

New UU member brings Maria Muldaur to San Miguel
UUSMA’s newest member, Jon Sievert, has persuaded his old friend Maria Muldaur to perform in San Miguel on Saturday, January 8, to raise money for an exciting new charity.

“Midday at the Oasis with Maria Muldaur”—an afternoon of blues, jazz, gospel, soul, folk, and old-time music with one of America's greatest singers—will take place at Casa Los Pirules, the country home of Gary and Laura Richtmeyer. The event starts at 11:30 a.m., with music, food and bar concessions, and swimming in the casa's private thermal hot spring pool.

The concert begins at 1:00 p.m. with a performance by Marc Silber of Berkeley, performing blues, folk,
and original numbers, followed by Maria with her two-man band, Chris Burns on keyboard and Marc on guitar.

The event is a benefit for Casita Linda, a new San Miguel charity dedicated to providing low-cost housing for San Miguel's poorest citizens.

Casita Linda, founded this year by Jeffrey Brown and Irma Rosado, employs a unique building system
using forms and a special concrete mixture to build a plumbed and wired 12' x 14' structurally sound house for as little as $1,000. Their initial efforts have been in the rural community of La Huerta, south of San Miguel, with the first home going to a 104-year-old woman who was living in a falling-down adobe structure with a collapsing roof. Recipients are chosen by the local community, and the homes are constructed by village volunteers under the guidance of Brown.

Tickets at $200 pesos and $400 pesos (reserved seating and a private reception with Maria) are available at Re/Max Real Estate on the SE corner of the Jardín, or you can get them any Sunday directly from Jon Sievert.

Buses will leave from in front of Posada de la Aldea, on Ancha de San Antonio, at 11:30, noon and 12:30. Don’t miss your chance to experience an exhilarating musical event and help a poor family get a new home.

Canada Sending Back U.S. Unitarians
By Joe Blundo, Columbus Dispatch
The flood of American liberals sneaking across the border into Canada has intensified…, sparking calls for increased patrols to stop the illegal immigration.

The re-election of President Bush is prompting the exodus among left-leaning citizens who fear they'll soon be required to hunt, pray and agree with Bill O'Reilly.
Canadian border farmers say it's not uncommon to see dozens of sociology professors, animal-rights activists and Unitarians crossing their fields at night.
"I went out to milk the cows the other day, and there was a Hollywood producer huddled in the barn," said Manitoba farmer Red Greenfield, whose acreage borders North Dakota. The producer was cold, exhausted and hungry.

"He asked me if I could spare a latte and some free-range chicken. When I said I didn't have any, he left. Didn't even get a chance to show him my screenplay, eh?"

In an effort to stop the illegal aliens, Greenfield erected higher fences, but the liberals scaled them. So he tried installing speakers that blare Rush Limbaugh across the fields.

"Not real effective," he said. "The liberals still got through, and Rush annoyed the cows so much they wouldn't give milk."

Officials are particularly concerned about smugglers who meet liberals near the Canadian border, pack them into Volvo station wagons, drive them across the border and leave them to fend for themselves.
"A lot of these people are not prepared for rugged conditions," an Ontario border patrolman said. "I found one carload without a drop of drinking water. They did have a nice little Napa Valley cabernet, though."

When liberals are caught, they're sent back across the border, often wailing loudly that they fear retribution from conservatives. Rumors have been circulating about the Bush administration establishing re-education camps in which liberals will be forced to drink domestic beer and watch NASCAR.
In the days since the election, liberals have turned to sometimes ingenious ways of crossing the border. Some have taken to posing as senior citizens on bus trips to buy cheap Canadian prescription drugs. After catching a half-dozen young vegans disguised in powdered wigs, Canadian immigration authorities began stopping buses and quizzing the supposed senior-citizen passengers.

"If they can't identify the accordion player on The Lawrence Welk Show, we get suspicious about their age," an official said.

Canadian citizens have complained that the illegal immigrants are creating and organic-broccoli shortage and renting all the good Susan Sarandon movies.

"I feel sorry for American liberals, but the Canadian economy just can't support them," an Ottawa resident said. "How many art-history majors does one country need?"

In an effort to ease tensions between the United States and Canada, Vice President Dick Cheney met with the Canadian ambassador and pledged that the administration would take steps to reassure liberals, a source close to Cheney said.

"We're going to have some Peter, Paul & Mary concerts. And we might put some endangered species on postage stamps. The president is determined to reach out."

A Senior Citizen’s Prayer
In honor of our very own Rev. Farley Wheelwright, who turned 88 on December 5, we are reprinting this charming bit of doggerel from Waymark, the newsletter of “Unitarians in Edinburgh” in Scotland.

Today, dear Lord, I’m 80 and there’s so much I haven’t done.
I hope, dear Lord, you’ll let me live until I’m 81.
But then—if I haven’t finished all I want to do
Would you let me stay awhile until I’m 82?
So many places I want to go, so very much to see,
Do you think you could manage to make it 83?
The world is changing very fast, so very much in store,
I’d like it very much to live until I’m 84.
And if, by then, I’m still alive, I’d like to stay till 85
More planes will be up in the air, so I’d really like to stick
And see what happens in the world when I am 86.
I know, dear Lord, it’s much to ask (and it must be nice in heaven)
But I really would like to stay until I’m 87.
I know by then I won’t be fast and sometimes I’ll be late,
But it would be so pleasant to be around when I am 88.
I will have seen so many things, and had a wonderful time,
So I’m sure that I’ll be willing to leave at 89—
Maybe!

Los Vagabundos, the group of happy travelers that toured all over Mexico for 16 years, is hitting the road again after a few years off. This time they’re headed for Melaque for a few days at the beach after the New Year. The bus will leave Friday, January 7, and return Thursday, January 13, with a stop in Tonalá on the way.

Los Vagabundos was started originally by and for David Rico Olalde, a scholarship student under the wing of Helen Morris and the UUs. David, who ultimately received a Fulbright scholarship and is now working in the U.S., is happily passing on the benefits of the Vagabundos to Jóvenes Adelante, which will receive all the profits from this trip.

The viaje a Melaque will cost US$300, which covers transportation, hotel, and tips. “You’re responsible for your own meals and happiness,” says Helen Morris, whom you may call at 152-3013 for further information.

Several of our members have experienced familiar pickpocket scams recently, both at the Posada de la Aldea and in the centro. If you have friends and family coming down for the winter, be sure to warn them against the following:

The Mustard Maneuver
Someone thoughtfully tells you there’s a mustard/catsup/paint stain on your jacket (having just put it there) and solicitously starts wiping it off, while you put down your bag/camera/suitcase to inspect the damage. A confederate makes off with the loot.

The Loose Coat Caper
You put your bag/camera/suitcase down on a table or on the floor, where somebody else “accidentally” covers it with a coat while looting the contents.

The Angelitas Approach
In the most recent episode, two angelic little girls assisted one of our older members up the stairs to Border Crossings while efficiently relieving him of his wallet, which he was carrying in his left-hand trousers pocket.

The Moral
The amount of money stolen may be small, but the inconvenience of loosing your driver's license and credit cards—not to mention your passport and return ticket—can be huge. Keep an eye on your valuables at all time. For money and papers you need with you, carry them somewhere they can’t be easily stolen— an inside buttoned pocket or a pouch strapped to your body. And be sure you have a record of your credit card numbers and the phone numbers to call in order to cancel them.
Don't let a few bad hats spoil your stay in SMA.