Yucatan News: Weather and Cats
Weather: Be Prepared!
It’s getting late in the hurricane season, but now is not the time to stop paying attention to what may be coming toward us from both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Late August and September are the most active weeks of the hurricane season and no one can afford to brush off the risks. Although the State of Yucatan is seldom hit by hurricanes, their remnants sweep across us with rain and even hail. Expats who have lived in Yucatan for more than a decade have seen the outside edges of some storms actually sit on Yucatan for up to a week at a time, and have seen a Category 5 hurricane pass over Merida, Hurricane Isidore. Currently, there are tropical depressions coming across the Atlantic, one behind the other, and they are low enough to get into the Caribbean before turning north. At the very least, this means several more weeks of thunderstorms. While this kind of weather doesn’t seem to put a damper on daily life in Yucatan, it does require awareness of where you are and what you can do to keep yourself, your family, and your pets safe. Probably Yucatan will have another year without a hurricane, but we encourage you to stay prepared, just in case.
Yucatan’s Unemployment Rate Falling
It was reported this past week that Yucatan’s unemployment rate fell to 3.1% mid-year and is expected to continue to fall as growth increases in the maquiladora and clothing industries, in hotels, restaurants and other tourism oriented businesses, and in the construction industry. We often see farmers, ranchers and fishermen struggling but overall, the creation of new jobs in Yucatan is continuing to rise in the cities and in some municipalities in the interior of the state. For workers in Yucatan, the future is looking brighter than many have seen it in a very long time.
Call for Blood Donations
This call is for donations of A negative or O negative blood for Daniel Tyrrell, who is soon to undergo surgery. You may e-mail Daniel at: danielt12@gmail.com For more information about how and where to donate blood in Merida, see Yucatan Living’s article on a previous call for blood donations Here.
Sixty Cats Losing Their Shelter
Sixty cats and four dogs at La Casa de Los Gatos Malcriados have lost their home. Diana and Lida only have until September 30 to empty the shelter. If you have ever thought about helping the homeless cats in Merida, now is the time. All of the cats available are adults, fixed, indoor pets and not used to life outside or in the street. That means this is a real emergency! If you can help, please contact Diana Tió or Lida García. You can contact Lida at lidikebrimisu@gmail.com and Diana at quilling4me@gmail.com Their facebook page is: La Casa de los Gatos Malcriados.
Another Merida Cat Shelter Closing
Please help find a home for 17 MORE cats that lost their shelter due unforeseen circumstances. They are all fixed, clean and love to give lots of love. The need for your help is urgent! These cats have one month to leave the shelter and their future is completely uncertain. Please share this information with friends and family that could be willing to adopt or help. For more information, contact Maria Fernanda at her cellphone 9993 54 16 80. Their Facebook page is: Ayudemos a buscarles un hogar
Call for Donations for Evolution’s Second Annual Garage Sale
To learn more about this wonderful dog shelter, you can visit the YAPA website. Items welcome for donation to this garage sale include: Gently used/new toys, clothing, tools, kitchenware, books, holiday decorations & furniture
Drop off Locations:El Estudio, Paseo Montejo #486 x 41 y 43, Animal Servimedic Calle 115 #360 x 60 y 62-A Col. Castilla Cámara Mon-Fri 10-7pm, Saturdays 10am-2pm, Calle 29 #478-B x 50 y 52-A Col. Itzimná. Drop off deadline is September 4. To arrange pick up of large items please contact Irlanda at irlanda_lopez@hotmail.com or phone 999 127 2674.
Location: Calle 53 steps away from the Merida English Library
Time: TBD
Admission: Free
About Chelem Christmas Dreams Toy Drive
The next three news items are in our Events article this week as well. They are all associated with the now four-year=old Chelem Christmas Dreams Toy Drive. We are often asked what volunteer projects are available for both expats and those who are still in their home countries but would still like to be a part of helping families in Yucatan. The Chelem Christmas Dreams Toy Drive immediately comes to mind. Giving a little boy a soccer ball or a little girl a doll once a year is a worthy cause. Most expats could not imagine a childhood without a Christmas toy but better than that, the sponsors of the Chelem Christmas Dreams Toy Drive want this program to show the kindness of strangers and that the world isn't such a hard place all the time. In this program, toys are given to every child in Chelem, which includes over 800 children. The Chelem Christmas Dreams Toy Drive is not an act of charity. Instead, it is a chance for expats to show their appreciation for the local people welcoming them into their village!
Visit Chelem Christmas Dreams Toy Drive on Facebook to learn more about this program.
Chelem Christmas Dreams Raffle
This is a raffle ticket everybody wants to buy! The big prize is for a 3-night stay at the Mahekal Beach Resort in Playa del Carmen. The prize must be redeemed before December 15, 2013 and is subject to availability. And the prize list is growing! Prizes now include haircuts, manicures, pedicures, dinner at restaurants like Masai Maya and Soma, excursions to cenotes, jewelry and more.
Tickets: $25 pesos each or 5 for 100 pesos.
Purchase Tickets: Contact Sherri Sullivan at 999-227-1304 or e-mail chelemchristmasdreams@gmail.com
Drawing: The drawing will be held on August 30, 2013 at the Chelem Dreams Bingo Extravaganza at Lizard Joe's in Chelem. Winners do not have to be present to win. All proceeds go to the Chelem Christmas Dreams Toy Drive.
Chelem Christmas Dreams Bingo Extravaganza - August 30
Tonight’s the night for the Raffle Drawing. But there will also be lots of bingo and loads of winners! You decide how many cards and how many games you want to play. If you want to donate $150 pesos for an entire night of bingo including 3 regular games and the blackout game, we'll let you do that! If you just want to play one or two games or save all your pesos for the blackout game, we'll let you do that too! Cards for regular bingo will be $25 pesos each, and the cards for the blackout round will be $75 pesos each. You can play as many cards as you want and if you want to keep playing after the scheduled 3 games and blackout are over, we'll accommodate that also.
Proceeds: As usual, half the bingo money goes to the toy drive fund and half goes to the lucky winners. Paul and Cynthia and their crew are going to be serving up drinks and they'll make sure you don't go hungry by providing a special torta and Fries menu.
Location: Lizard Joe’s in Chelem
Time: 6:00 PM
Admission: Free but we hope you bought a raffle ticket and play lots of Bingo!
News from UADY
The new school year has begun and UADY is out of the gate with more than a few projects and upcoming events that will put them on the global map as one of the best universities in the world. Here are just a few headlines from this week’s UADY press releases
-Methane Study Applauded: UADY is the only university in Mexico that has the equipment and personnel to measure the methane produced by cows during digestion. This past week, they were visited and commended by the deputy director of the National Council of Science and Technology. This work is of vital importance because it is a major greenhouse gas and ways to mitigate its effects must be found.
-Math Dept Anniversary With Walk and Run: Happy September 1, 50th Anniversary to the Mathematics Department at UADY. We are reporting this early because we want our expat runners to know that there will be a 10 km run and a 5 km walk, beginning at the central building of UADY (in Centro), on September 1.
-UADY to Host Mexican Mathematical Society: In November, UADY will host a meeting of more than 2,000 members of the Mexican Mathematical Society.
-New Organization: Asociación Peninsular de Estudiantes de Medicina: 8,000 students of medicine, from Yucatan, Quintana Roo, and Campeche, have just formed their own association. The students recognized the need for physicians in training to form closer relationships, strengthen ties and friendships, as a means of ensuring better job performance in their future professional lives, as well as helping them strengthen the programs at their own universities. This is going to be a very active organization and certainly one to watch.
New Restaurant in Merida
After 20 years of service, the VIP `S restaurant on the corner of Paseo de Montejo and Perez Ponce Avenue, has closed. According to Por Esto newspaper, the closure was due to the sale of the division of restaurants and cafes by the current owner Wal-Mart Mexico. A new restaurant, El Paseo, is opening in this location.
