Blog

Rest in Peace Marcos Ratliff

Under the house of a family who was renting from our friend Olga lived a dog who was chained up. He was a skinny yellow Labrador. Over a six-month period we saw this guy go from healthy and who used every inch of his long chain to roam the space under the house to just giving…
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A Day in the Life of This Transplanted Utuadaño

What do: Los rotos (giant potholes) Road closure of the main road from my house to the town of Utuado A detour down an alternate road Me unable to back up the hill to allow a car to pass because I have zero depth perception The starter in my car dying Three men—one a client…
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Héctor’s Gonna Do What Héctor’s Gonna Do!

Twice daily we go hiking. Although many might assume because we work for ourselves that we don’t keep to a schedule, we are actually ruled by routine. Our day always starts out the same. The three roosters remind us why we no longer need an alarm clock. The time varies but they generally start the…
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Thirty-six and a Half Years

Yesterday I got some news that gave me great pause. A friend of mine named Steph Bader, told me that this past week, after 36.5 years with her partner, she got married. My first thought was, "why'd you wait so long?" My second was, "after that many years, why now?" These are, of course, the…
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Fixing the Holes Where the Cars Fall In

It’s three years into his term as mayor and he’s right on time. Roads badly in need of repair are getting fixed around here. The one-lane road outside our farm had holes so large you could set up tables for four people quite comfortably. Living in the countryside you learn quickly how to perfect the…
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Doing Laundry in the Tropics

When pondering whether to do laundry in the tropics, one must carefully consider not what the meteorologist reports to you, but what the sky tells you. If the pretty lady with the elaborately painted nails, four inch heels, in the skirt hiked up to here tells you there is no rain in the forecast, assume…
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Speak Rapidly and Carry a Machete

On our way home from the home of friends one day, we popped over to pay the wife’s sister and her husband for a visit. Miguel, “Miguelito” directs me to the back of their property where I find Lucilla, dressed in shorts and a tee shirt, drenched in sweat, machete in hand, hacking away at dead…
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Politics in Puerto Rico

This was originally written in 2010 and so it might seem a little dated. High up on the list of discussions for drunken philosophers anywhere in the world is politics. My doctor tells me nearly every time I see her, "Never engage a Puerto Rican in a discussion about politics." Generally I am not one…
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