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5 Tips to get ahead of holiday debt

Sponsored content by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

The holiday season is fast approaching, and most people find themselves spending a little – or a lot – more than usual during these festive final months of the year.

Americans spend more than $1,450 each year on holiday-related purchases – from gifts and travel to decorations and entertainment. These costs layered into your monthly expenses can significantly strain your budget.

You don’t have to break the bank to celebrate the season. Smart planning can get you ahead of the holidays and leave you with funds for merrymaking the way you want. Consider these five tips to minimize holiday debt.

Save, save, save 
While solid advice for any time of year, it can take on more importance during the holidays. One way to save is to set up a separate savings account for holiday expenses. Start saving at the beginning of the year, and vow not to withdraw any money until it’s time for holiday shopping.

Make your holiday plans now

Set guidelines for your holiday spending. Make a list of your expected holiday expenses and estimate the costs to see if they fit into your overall budget. Adjust your list as needed.

Build a holiday budget—then stick to it
Once you’ve made your list, commit to staying within your budget. With so much pressure surrounding gift-giving, it’s easy to spend more than you planned. Shop online to ensure you’re getting the best deal, or search for coupons and deals to help lower costs. Get family and friends on board with your plans by suggesting a gift swap instead of buying gifts for everyone; opt for handmade gifts or even pitch in for a group gift. If you’re hosting a holiday dinner, shop in bulk for food items.

Scope out major deal days
In addition to the deal-hunting tips above, take advantage of Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales. Look up retailers’ deals ahead of time to see if you find goods and services you planned to purchase anyway at lower prices. Many retailers start big holiday sales as soon as Nov. 1, so do some homework now on the gifts you have your eye on so you can spot and take advantage of online and in-person deals before the holiday rush.

Pick up a short-term gig
Even the best-laid budget plans can still fall short of your available funds. If your schedule allows it, take on a temporary job to bring in some extra income. Many retail or dining establishments need additional workers to handle the holiday rush, and demand often increases for ride-booking and delivery services as well. Or take up a side hustle selling crafts for example.

These are just a few ways to help you get a handle on holiday debt, but there’s so much more that savvy consumers can do to save. See if your credit cards have special offers at your favorite stores or for your favorite purchases, and look for special cash back deals. Be flexible and keep an open mind in general – if you can’t get a good deal on the gifts you originally planned to buy, see if any of the special offers you qualify for might be good substitutes.

The bottom line

Putting financial parameters in place can help you feel more confident and less stressed about your holiday spending. Have fun with your planning, saving and budgeting – it’s a great way to get into the holiday spirit early.

To learn more about budgeting, visit chase.com/financialgoals.

Is it OK for foreigners to paint their faces on Día de Muertos?

Para usar el maquillaje con respeto y evitar ser acusado de apropiación cultural, recomendaría a la gente que no lo use como parte de un disfraz de Halloween. (Canva)

by Mexico News Daily writer Gabriela Solís

In a world where being politically correct is increasingly important, some foreigners have wondered if it’s okay paint their faces on Day of the Dead, fearing it might come across as inappropriate or, worse, as cultural appropriation.

As a Mexican expat living in Dubai, I empathize with the sentiment of not wanting to act disrespectfully when it comes to joining foreign traditions (like when I get to wear the traditional clothing Muslim women wear to enter a mosque but fear I might not wear it properly). So today, I want to share my perspective on foreigners using skull makeup on Day of the Dead – and ways to avoid being disrespectful to true observers – as we discuss the true meaning of the holiday and its original traditions.

Day of the Dead and its traditions 

Day of the Dead or Día de Muertos (not Día de los Muertos), follows the pre-Columbian Indigenous belief that the dead temporarily return to Earth between Nov. 1 and 2.

While the origin of the holiday can be traced back to the Mexica (Aztec), Totonaca, Purépecha and Maya civilizations, the festivity we celebrate today is a syncretism of Indigenous beliefs and Christian tradition.

Families and communities gather to celebrate, go to church, and set up “altares de muertos” at home or at graveyards honoring their deceased loved ones. These altars are decorated with traditional items like “calaveras de azúcar” (sugar skulls), cempasúchil flowers – a native variety of Marigolds – candles, photos of the dead and their favorite foods.

While each region in Mexico celebrates Day of the Dead slightly differently, depending on how influential Christianity was in the region, the holiday’s essence remains the same – it is an intimate time spent with family, to honor and remember those who have passed away.

How Day of the Dead became a global trend

The story of how Day of the Dead became a global phenomenon actually lies with two recent movies.

In the opening scene of 2015’s “Spectre”, James Bond is seen chasing a villain through a crowded Day of the Dead parade in Mexico City’s Historic Center, which features enormous skulls and people adorned in colorful makeup.

The parade, which had never actually taken place, has now become a tradition in Mexico City, attracting thousands of visitors every year, with both foreigners and Mexicans alike coming to admire the festivities.

When Disney released “Coco” in 2017, the hype for the holiday and the practice of face painting grew even more. In Mexico, children started attending Day of the Dead parades at school with their faces painted, while adults would wear skull makeup to parties.

La Catrina, the inspiration behind the Day of the Dead makeup

While movies played a big part in boosting this practice, our culture has been familiar with friendly images of skulls for quite some time – since around the time of the Mexican Revolution in 1910.

Back then, Porfirio Díaz had ruled Mexico for 30 years, modernizing the nation throughout his tenure. His obsession with all things French led illustrator José Guadalupe Posada to sketch “La Calavera Garbancera”, a satirical cartoon of a woman’s skull wearing a flamboyant bonnet with flowers.

“Garbancero” (which derives from the word garbanzo or chickpea) was a common word used to describe those members of the Mexican high society who shared Diaz’s vision and led a European-inspired lifestyle.

“Those who today are powdered [with makeup] ‘garbanceros’, will end up as deformed skulls,” was the caption that accompanied Posada’s cartoon when it was first published in a Mexican newspaper in 1913

Such was the resonance of Posada’s sketch, that the comical skull, later dubbed as “La Catrina” (in reference to an upper-class woman) by Diego Rivera became the iconic Mexican image of death.

The sketch later merged with the colorful sugar skulls we use in the altars and inspired the same skull makeup we see many people wearing on Day of the Dead.

So, is it OK for foreigners to paint their faces on Day of the Dead?

Posada’s message behind La Catrina is universal – we are all equal in death. It doesn’t matter where we come from, if we’re poor, rich, powerful, or influential – sooner or later, we will all share the same fate. For that reason, I think that anyone, be it Mexican or foreign, can paint their faces as a skull.

But it must be done with respect, because while La Catrina is not an original part of Day of the Dead, it is deeply rooted in our culture and serves as an icon of national identity. Seeing it as a “trend” can make our important traditions feel less appreciated and respected.

How to use the makeup respectfully

To use the makeup respectfully and avoid being accused of cultural appropriation, I would advise people not to wear it as part of a Halloween costume or alongside Halloween elements such as spider webs or pumpkins. I would especially advise visitors not to enter a church or cemetery with their face painted as it can be extremely disrespectful to locals – these places are not tourist attractions but sites of worship for families who have lost someone.

Aside from these scenarios, I do encourage you to paint your face and learn and engage with our beautiful holiday. Day of the Dead is more than just a fiesta vibe and skull makeup – it is a time when families get together to remember their loved ones through ancient rituals and traditions.

Find a Day of the Dead event in your city (preferably hosted by Mexicans), or ask your Mexican friends how they celebrate and if you can take part. We love to share our culture and always feel honored when foreigners show an interest and want to participate.

I can assure you that most Mexicans – if not all of us – will be more than happy to include you in our Day of the Dead celebrations.

Bashing Republicans for ‘rights regression,’ Newsom sidesteps protections for marginalized Californians

by Alexei Koseff

CalMaters

Nearly two decades ago, Gavin Newsom catapulted onto the national political stage when, as mayor of San Francisco, he began issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. It was an act of defiance, far ahead of public opinion at the time, and so controversial that some of his fellow Democrats blamed him for costing the party the presidential election later that year.

But for Newsom, who said he was driven by a “moral obligation,” it eventually became a political calling card — validation for progressive voters of his fearless leadership and forward thinking that would be proven right by history.

Now the second-term governor is himself burdened by presidential ambitions — if not his own, then those of just about every pundit compiling a list of future Democratic contenders — and maneuvering more cautiously than he once did.

Even as he regularly rips Republicans across the country for stripping back the rights of Americans, Newsom declined several times in recent weeks to extend new protections to marginalized groups, delivering stinging legislative defeats to allies on some of the year’s most contentious issues.

Following a month-long hunger strike by supporters outside a Capitol office building, Newsom vetoed a measure that would have made California the first state in the country to outlaw caste discrimination. His rejection last month of a bill requiring judges to consider a parent’s affirmation of their child’s gender identity in custody disputes generated such an intense outcry that the governor’s office rushed out a package of new laws supporting LGBTQ rights the next day.

Assemblymember Lori Wilson, the Suisun City Democrat who carried the custody measure, Assembly Bill 957, said California is so often at the forefront of national debates that it “can be a shock to the system” when the state forgoes that leadership position.

“We are so used to, and sometimes take for granted, how often we get to be in the lead on these issues,” she said.

Entering the national stage

The “rights regression” has become one of Newsom’s regular talking points. At public events, he decries conservative efforts to roll back protections for abortion, voting access, LGBTQ people and more.

It came up at a signing ceremony last month for new gun safety laws, where the governor warned there was only so much the state could do under an assault of hostile court decisions. When he appointed Laphonza Butler, an openly lesbian Black woman, to succeed the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein earlier this month, he praised Butler as “uniquely positioned” to stand up to “this cultural purge that’s going on in this country.”

“That’s for a national stage,” where Newsom is trying to cement his place by rebranding himself as a leading defender of these rights cherished by liberal voters, said David McCuan, a political science professor at Sonoma State University.

Despite his frequent protests that he has no interest in the presidency, the increasingly national lens through which Newsom approaches his job has made it impossible not to view his actions as a potential positioning for a future campaign. The governor went on a “red state tour” earlier this year to promote Democrats in conservative communities and is preparing to debate Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican presidential candidate, next month on Fox News.

Lawmakers and advocates are often reluctant to discuss Newsom’s intentions on the record, including several who declined to comment for this story. But the speculation has become pervasive in political circles, a nearly automatic framing for analyzing the governor’s decisions, especially on the most contentious matters.

Anthony York, a spokesperson for Newsom, said every piece of legislation is evaluated on its merits and the governor takes that process seriously. The caste discrimination and custody measures were vetoed because of specific policy concerns, he said, and do not represent any broader retreat by Newsom from his defense of civil rights.

“You have to take the bills individually,” York said. “I would argue that California continues to be a leader on protecting and expanding rights.”

Newsom signed 890 bills this year — 85% of the 1,046 measures that made it to his desk — including many that advanced liberal priorities such as abortion access, gun control and environmental protections. Some are bold new policies unique in the country, such as a requirement for large companies to disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and a ban on certain chemicals commonly used in sweets.

Yet the proposals that the governor rejects can seem more instructive about just how far he believes the country is ready for a mainstream politician to wade into unsettled and controversial issues, such as drug use. Newsom, who once led the charge for California to legalize recreational cannabis, raised some eyebrows by vetoing a bill to decriminalize magic mushrooms and other plant-based psychedelics, something voters in Oregon and Colorado have already done.

Newsom and his team “are being very cautious about not leading public opinion and getting away from the median voter,” which occasionally belies his fiery rhetoric about rights regression, McCuan said. “The danger is that it positions him as a hollow vessel.”

Navigating a South Asian schism

Activists who pushed for Senate Bill 403, which would have added caste to the list of categories in the state’s housing, education and employment discrimination laws, also wonder whether Newsom’s national ambitions derailed the measure.

The governor vetoed the bill earlier this month, calling it “unnecessary” because “discrimination based on caste is already prohibited” under existing civil rights protections — echoing a point made by some Republican opponents.

American awareness of caste — a centuries-old social hierarchy system, especially prevalent in South Asian countries such as India, where one’s employment and education opportunities are determined by birth — has been rising in recent years. A 2020 state lawsuit alleging workplace discrimination at the San Jose-based tech company Cisco against an employee of Dalit ancestry, the lowest-ranking caste, garnered national headlines. This year, Seattle and Fresno became the first two cities to ban caste discrimination.

Though SB 403 passed overwhelmingly in the Legislature and was endorsed by the California Democratic Party, it also received among the most visible opposition of the legislative session, at committee hearings and through an aggressive online campaign. This was led by South Asian groups affiliated with the Hindu nationalist movement, who argued the proposal unfairly targeted Hindus because caste is part of their religion.

“This was contentious within the South Asian community,” said Ria Chakrabarty, policy director for Hindus for Human Rights, which supported the bill.

She noted that many of the opponents, who are generally upper-caste, hold powerful positions in Silicon Valley and have more money and political access than the lower-caste supporters, who are more recent immigrants to this country. Newsom might have worried that signing the bill could put a potential fundraising pool at risk, she said.

One major Democratic bundler, Ajay Jain Bhutoria, posted online after the veto about a meeting with Newsom at a Democratic National Committee donor event in Chicago last month and thanked the governor for “listening to my recommendation to veto SB403.” Bhutoria did not respond to an interview request.

York said Newsom met with many people on both sides of the issue and no one meeting swayed his mind. The governor did not want to go down the road of explicitly stating protections that are already available under existing law, he said.

“He wrestled with the issue and we had a lot of discussions about this as a staff,” York said. “He vetoes all kinds of bills that he deems unnecessary or duplicative.”

But advocates believe that Newsom did not understand the depth of the caste problem in the United States, and why a specific new protection is necessary, because he did not hear from lower-caste people.

“If he has ambitions to run for president, he should have taken sides with the exploited,” said Karthikeyan Shanmugam, secretary of Ambedkar King Study Circle, a Bay Area group that campaigns for the end of caste oppression.

Through a representative, Sen. Aisha Wahab, the Fremont Democrat who carried the bill, declined an interview request and reiterated her initial statement about the veto, which seemed to flip Newsom’s rhetoric back at him.

“I believe our laws need to be more explicit especially in times when we see civil rights being eroded across the country,” she said. “We cannot take anything for granted.”

Why ageism prevails and how to stop it

Age isn’t everything when it comes to human health and ability, yet it often dominates conversations about these to the detriment of older adults

by Selen Ozturk

Oct 9, 2023 – Age isn’t everything when it comes to human health and ability, yet it often dominates conversations about these to the detriment of older adults.

In a Friday, Oct. 6 EMS briefing, aging experts discussed why ageism — discrimination on the basis of older age — prevails in the way we view older adults, and how to overcome it.

How we talk about aging determines much of how we experience it, said Dr. Louise Aronson, a geriatrics professor at UC San Francisco. “We were about the same age as a species for a really long time, and though now we’re a whole lot older, some things haven’t changed. Old age still ends in death.”

As far back as 10,000 B.C. until as recently as 1820 A.D., the global life expectancy was 20 to 30 years; in 2019, it was over 73.

The COVID-19 pandemic “showed us how age matters,” she added, as older adults had disproportionately greater risks and fatalities. U.S. adults 65 and over made up over 75 percent of COVID-related deaths as of September 2023, according to the CDC.

The health system’s very definition of older adults as anyone 65 or older, however, prevents practitioners from meeting these adults’ individual needs.

For example, “We give vaccines based on people’s biology and social behaviors, so there are 17 subcategories for children, three for adults between the ages of 19 and 64,” Aronson said. “But everybody aged 65 and up is lumped into a single category, even though a child would instantly see the physical and assume the differences between a 64 year old and 104 year old. This distinction is not based on scientific evidence about our lives.”

Nevertheless, “age isn’t everything,” Aronson said. Ethnic differences also compounded these risks, with Black Americans aged 75 to 84 having a nearly 900-fold difference, Latinos well over a 500-fold difference, Native Americans a 200-fold difference, and AAPI a 150-fold difference over non-Hispanic whites in the first six months of the pandemic.

This way of viewing age in terms of vulnerability to death has particular implications for ageism in the U.S., where life expectancy has declined to 76.4 years — the shortest in two decades.

However, life expectancy, too, is disproportionately divided among racial and economic lines. Even before the pandemic, for example, 56 of the 500 largest U.S. cities had life expectancy gaps up to 30 years between neighborhoods a few miles apart.

“That isn’t about biology,” said Aronson. “That’s about social choices, and where we put our money, our values and our priorities … I would like to see a world in which you may be “over the hill,” but the entire range of the hill has value … ‘anti-aging’ terminology is not helpful. The only way not to age is to die.”

Cheryl Brown, Chair of the Executive Committee for the California Commission on Aging (CCOA), said that behavioral health, caregiver training, and housing access are key to addressing ageism.

Such policies prioritizing equity for older adults are key given that by 2030, California will be home to 10.8 million older adults — comprising one-quarter of the state’s population, and nearly twice as many as in 2010.

The trend is similar nationwide: by 2030, U.S. adults 65 and over are projected to increase by nearly 18 million from 2020, comprising one in every five Americans and outnumbering children for the first time.

Brown urged efforts in other states and nationwide similar to the California Master Plan for Aging, a 10-year blueprint developed by CCOA in 2021 and aimed at supporting older adults socially, economically, and healthwise.

Ageism and Alzheimer’s 

Relating ageism to Alzheimer’s disease, Dr. Barry Reisberg — psychiatry professor at NYU and adjunct aging professor at McGill University — said the point at which older adults can no longer participate socially and in the workforce is later than many may think.

This point is measured clinically by the Global Deterioration Scale, which identifies the 7 stages of Alzheimer’s.

Reisberg, who developed the scale, said stage one precedes any detectable impairment of memory. In stage two, the adult “would not remember things, like names or where they place things, as well as they could five or 10 years previously”; this lasts a mean of 15 years.

In stage three, this symptom advances to “a decrease in job functioning” — e.g. organizational or travel skills — which lasts about seven years in otherwise healthy adults. Many people can go on working into this third stage and the fourth — which entails more forgetfulness of recent events — depending upon the job at hand, he emphasized.

In the fifth and sixth stages — which entail the need for help with daily activities and a greater inability to recall names — the key is to help older adults “be all that they can be as long as they can,” said Reisberg. In the seventh and final stage, which normally lasts one to two years, communication is impaired and help is needed with all daily activities, like bathing and dressing.

One way to both combat ageism and support older adults — especially in the case of health problems like Alzheimer’s — is optimizing aging through intergenerational activities” and communication, suggested Brown, wherein older adults could learn from innovations of youth and youth could learn from the experience of older adults.

Optimizing aging is not mutually exclusive but inclusive with recognizing aging, added Aronson. “Does old age come with an increased risk of illness and death? Absolutely it does,” but “age alone cannot predict which category the person is in …  There are some teenagers with really good judgment, who could drive perfectly well at 14 and there are others who shouldn’t be driving at 25.”

“We need different sorts of measures than age,” she continued, “so everyone over a certain age doesn’t feel completely a part of this society … (and) won’t miss out when they could have added to it more fully.”

Hurricane Otis is strongest ever to hit Mexico’s Pacific coast

by the El Reportero‘s wire services

Hurricane Otis made landfall near Acapulco as a powerful Category 5 storm early Wednesday, bringing extremely strong winds and heavy rain to the Pacific coast resort city and surrounding areas.

The storm was stronger than Hurricane Pauline, which claimed hundreds of lives in Guerrero and Oaxaca in 1997.

Otis, which strengthened very quickly into a major hurricane after being upgraded from tropical storm status on Tuesday morning, flooded homes and roads, toppled trees and caused significant damage to buildings in Acapulco, but no deaths had been reported as of 11 a.m. Wednesday.

“The hurricane hit Guerrero very hard,” President López Obrador said at his Wednesday morning press conference, noting that Acapulco, Coyuca de Benítez, Benito Juárez and Técpan de Galeana were among the municipalities most affected.

He said that no deaths had been reported, but acknowledged that communication “had been completely lost” in the area, where electricity, telephone and internet services were cut off.

The United States National Hurricane Center (NHC) reported that satellite imagery showed that Otis made landfall near Acapulco at about 12:25 a.m. Mexico City time.

“The maximum sustained winds are estimated to be 165 mph (270 km/h),” the agency said a short time after the hurricane hit.

At 9 a.m., Otis was a Category 1 hurricane with maximum winds of 130 km/h, according to the NHC. It was located 160 km north-northwest of Acapulco near Ciudad Altamirano.

https://twitter.com/i/status/1717206856441962765

The powerful winds brought by the hurricane shattered windows and sent objects flying through the air in Acapulco, according to a report by Aristegui Noticias. The newspaper Reforma reported that hotels were among the buildings damaged, while the Associated Press said that “downed trees, persistent rain and flooding made it difficult to move” in coastal areas of Guerrero.

A photograph showed that the Galerías Diana shopping center in Acapulco sustained major damage.

Dozens of vehicles were stranded in floodwaters on major roads that run through Acapulco, including the seafront Miguel Alemán Avenue, according to Reforma, while the Autopista del Sol highway was closed near the La Venta tollgate due to a landslide.

Videos posted to social media showed wind howling through buildings in Acapulco, including an IMSS public hospital.

Guerrero Civil Protection Minister Roberto Arroyo Matus said early Tuesday that authorities hadn’t been able to establish contact with regional Civil Protection officials. There are dozens of small towns along and near the Guerrero coast where significant damage likely occurred.

Shelters were set up in numerous towns in Guerrero and authorities had warned residents to take measures to protect themselves. However, the rapid strengthening of the hurricane likely caught many people by surprise.

The New York Times reported that “forecasters were alarmed by the speed of Otis’s intensification.”

“… Just how much devastation it will wreak, experts say, will depend both on the storm’s force and the rapidness of emergency response,” the Times said.

The National Meteorological Service (SMN) said Wednesday morning that Otis would cause “extraordinary” rain of over 250 mm in Guerrero as well as “intense” precipitation of 75-150 mm in Michoacán and southwest México state. Heavy rain is forecast for Morelos and parts of Puebla and Oaxaca.

Meanwhile, the Federal Electricity Commission said on the X social media site that power went off for over 504,000 customers, but service had been reestablished for just under 203,000.

Guerrero Governor Evelyn Salgado said on X that authorities were working to reestablish telephone service as soon as possible in areas where it was cut, including Acapulco and Chilpancingo, the state capital.

“From the first hours of the morning, we’ve met with representatives of the three levels of government to evaluate the damage caused by the impact of Hurricane Otis,” she said, adding that assistance was already being provided to those who need it.

With reports from Reforma, Aristegui Noticias, AP and El Universal 

The plight of the refugees

It is very sad to see how millions of Latin American brothers and sisters, along with other nationalities from around the world, overflow the border to enter the United States, with the hope of achieving relief from their misfortunes, from their lack of opportunities that they do not obtain in their countries of origin, to be able to live a comfortable and prosperous life.

The desperation in which those human beings live who were not able to fulfill a dream of getting ahead economically for the happiness of their families in their countries, is painful.

I’m sitting at a table in a Nicaraguan restaurant eating a delicious fish fillet with gallo pinto and slices of ripe plantain. Sitting next to me is a Puerto Rican lady who once said that she was 93 years old. She arrives with her caregiver almost every day to taste the dishes at Las Tinajas Restaurant in SF.

My concentration on my food is taken away by a woman who approaches the old lady and asks her if she needs someone to work in her house, or if she does know where they need someone.

The old lady answers that she does not, and after an exchange of words, the woman approaches a worker who came to pick up the dirty dishes from the table.

The woman asks the worker if they need someone to work. She answers no.

Then the woman is about to leave the restaurant, and it occurred to me to call her. “Hello, excuse me,” I said. She turns to look and approaches me.

“What do you know how to do?” I asked her.

“Well, anything, cleaning houses, helping in a restaurant…”

I invited her to sit at my table so she can tell me more about her situation. She starts to tell me that she is from Nicaragua, without knowing that the restaurant she is in is Nicaraguan.

“This restaurant is Nicaraguan,” I said. “Oh yes,” she answers, surprised.

“Yes,” I replied.

She tells me that she has been in the US for three months and that since she arrived she has not found a job, even though she has been knocking on doors from business to business in search of employment. She has work permit. That she lives with her girlfriend in a nearby city and that she gets around by train (BART or Metro) and on an electric scooter that her friend lends her, who is the one who petitioned her through the expanded humanitarian parole program that the United States launched in October 2022 for Venezuelan migrants and was later expanded to Cuba, Nicaragua and Haiti, for a two-year permit.

Guessing that maybe she hadn’t eaten I ordered her a plate of food and gave her $20.

She accepts them from me with regret, with a “don’t worry…” I figured it would help her.

I gave her several contacts of restaurant owners that I know to contact them.

On another occasion as I am walking on the sidewalk on Mission Street in the Mission District of San Francisco, something catches my attention.

“Fresh arepas,” I think the sign said, which a very nice young woman with a complacent smile held up and showed to those who passed by.

I was curious and asked her where she was from. She told me that she was from Venezuela, and that she had been in the United States for several months. She told me that in her country she had studied industrial engineering, that she had a little girl and that they lived with her husband. I marveled at her effort and creativity.

Another day, on the same Mission Street, a woman who was about 7 months pregnant was with her husband offering “fruit drinks, delicious and all natural, without sugar,” and sweet biscuits, in a cart. I bought her a glass, and it was delicious. She charged me $10.

The number of professionals who are in strange lands, without the English language, and who knows with what housing limitations, looking for their daily bread, without being able to work in their respective professions, and many times without being able to get a job, is sad.

The majority have abandoned everything in their countries: husbands or wives, dependent children, their houses where perhaps they did not pay rent, and on top of that many have pledged their properties at high interest rates, which they may lose if they do not find work soon after arriving here. And the greatest sadness: not knowing the language, which makes them vulnerable to being exploited, humiliated and discriminated against.

In large cities like New York and Chicago, local people are already rising up against their mayors and politicians for promoting the reception of these refugees, as the cities are providing services and resources that they claim, “should be used in the local communities”, which is risking these cities to go bankrupt economically.

California Academy of Science honors those who died on their day

by Magdy Zara

The California Academy of Science has organized a series of activities to celebrate the Day of the Dead, and honor the souls of the deceased.

For this, the group “Xiuhcóatl” Danza Azteca will open the show with a traditional Aztec blessing held outside the building before starting the event.

To pay tribute to those who have passed into the world of the dead, a beautifully decorated, crafted and curated offering was created by the Latin Affinity Group of Conciencia Academy.

Mariachi San Francisco will be in charge of making those present dance all night, with electrifying rhythms and moving melodies.

Likewise, attendees will witness the captivating story of life and death, through a fascinating folkloric ballet performance, there will also be living catrinas wandering through the museum from the Mission Cultural Center.

This evening will also feature delicate sugar skull-inspired face paintings by talented artist and face painter Beatriz Saldivar.

Additionally, tonight there will be more than 20 Latin vendors at El Mercado, displaying their varied merchandise ranging from artisanal jewelry to handmade ceramics.

The Academy of Science’s Day of the Dead celebration will take place on Nov. 2, from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.; at Golden Gate Park 55 Music Concourse Drive San Francisco. Tickets are $22, for those over 21 years old.

Santa Cecilia appears in San Francisco

The musical group La Santa Cecilia, based in Los Angeles, performs in San Francisco after a long break in 2020 and 2021 due to the quarantine as a result of Covid.

La Santa Cecilia (named after the patron saint of musicians) was formed in 2007 as a sextet. Its founding members were the guitarist Gloria Estrad; the accordionist and requintero, Pepe Carlos; the bassist, Alex Bendaña: the percussionist Miguel “Oso” Ramírez: the drummer, Hugo Vargas and the main vocalist Marisol “La Marisoul” Hernández.0

The band members were born or brought to the United States when they were very young. While they all grew up with traditional forms of Latin music at home, they were also exposed to the sounds of American pop culture: rock, soul, blues, jazz, funk, punk, ska, reggae, and other world sounds played on the streets. waves and in the neighborhoods. They performed at block parties, bars, coffee shops, and occasionally at opening concerts for out-of-town events and festivals.

Its members are musically inspired by the Pan-American rhythms of Colombian and Mexican cumbia, bossa nova, rumba, bolero and tango and combine them with rock, soul, R&B, ska, jazz and even klezmer.

The group, which is made up of the children of immigrants, has a long history and has been awarded a Grammy for Best Latin Rock Album and this Nov. 2 will perform at Salón de Agosto, starting at 7 p.m. The entrance fee is $30.

August Lounge is located at 420 Mason St. San Francisco. For over 21 years.

Tickets on sale now at http://ow.ly/6lRc50L6p5y

San Francisco hosts APEC Economic Leaders Week

The United States will host APEC this year 2023 under the motto “Creating a resilient and sustainable future for all.” Concluding its year as host, the United States will host APEC Economic Leaders Week (AELW) in the iconic San Francisco, California.

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) is a regional economic forum created in 1989 to take advantage of the growing interdependence of the Asia-Pacific. APEC is the primary platform for the US to advance economic policies in the Asia-Pacific region that promote free, fair and open trade and investment that foster sustainable and inclusive economic growth.

APEC’s 21 member economies represent nearly 40% of the world’s population, nearly 50% of global trade, and more than 60% of U.S. goods exports. Additionally, these economies have made impressive direct investments in the United States, estimated at $1.7 trillion and employing 2.3 million American workers as of 2020.

AELW 2023 will bring together delegates, opinion leaders and stakeholders with global leaders to address global challenges, focusing on three global policy priorities of APEC 2023.

The APEC Economic Leaders Week will take place between Nov. 7 and 11 in the city of San Francisco.

10 essential utensils you are sure to need for your Mexican kitchen

by Bethany Platanella

Oct. 24, 2023 – Whether you’ve moved to Mexico or simply want to create Mexican masterpieces in your kitchen, a few special tools are essential to your success.

I recently embarked on a mission to find out exactly what is required in an authentic Mexican kitchen. I enlisted the help of my friend Mich, born and raised in Mexico City, and his mother. I admit there is one vital tool missing from this list that I personally deem the most important of all – jícaras for mezcal. Because you’ve got to sip while you slice, right?

If you’re in Mexico, many of the items below can be found at your local tianguis, or market. Admittedly, I’ve succumbed to ordering from Walmart and Ikea on occasion, which carry nearly everything needed for a Mexican kitchen. If you’re not in Mexico, it will be just as easy to stock up with the assistance of almighty Amazon.

Ready to fill up your cart? Here are the 10 essential items you will need to become Mexico’s next top chef.

Molcajete

Known in English as a mortar and pestle, the molcajete was the number one utensil that each of my interviewees suggested when I asked for the most essential Mexican kitchen items. Molcajetes serve a variety of purposes: grinding spices, making salsas and smashing up local avocados for a giant bowl of crowd-pleasing guacamole.

However, it’s crucial to research your molcajete options thoroughly before making any purchases. Many “knock-off” pieces have surfaced in recent years, made of cement instead of volcanic stone.

Comal

If you’ve walked the streets of any Mexican town or city, you’ve likely seen a comal sizzling with quesadillas and gorditas. They’re usually round, flat and quite thin griddles made of clay or cast iron, and are used to fry tortillas, meats and tortas. A comal is also great for toasting chiles and spices.

“Cazuela” is a word that can refer to both a “stew” or “casserole,” as well as the recipient the cazuela cooks in, oftentimes a shallow clay dish painted with delicate flowers or vines. A cazuela can come in a variety of sizes and can be used to hold soups, stews or even cocktails.

Traditional cazuelas are made by hand in states like Hidalgo, where clay is extracted locally. They can be used directly on a stove top, in an oven, on a grill or even in a microwave if the size is right. Make sure to cure the pot before usage.

Tortillero (tortilla warmer)

Regardless of whether you choose to make or buy them, tortillas are a staple in any Mexican household and a tortillero will save you both the time and energy required to reheat them continuously. If you’re in Mexico, you can buy a colorful tortilla warmer on any street corner for a modest price.

Lime squeezer

Some locals may gawk at the idea of using a squeezer instead of your fingers and a fork, but for those dishes that require lots of lime juice, a squeezer is a game changer. I suggest buying a stainless steel squeezer, because despite the visual satisfaction of a colored plastic one, the paint often chips off from the acid and can fall into your dish. There are much better seasonings to choose from.

Tortilladora (tortilla press)

If buying fresh tortillas from the tortillería (tortilla shop) isn’t an option, or if you enjoy the process of making your own, a tortilladora will be all but necessary in your kitchen. These presses can be made of cast iron, aluminum or wood, and come in a variety of sizes. Have a look at this article in Epicurious, which rates and ranks a handful of tortilla presses that can be ordered online.

Olla de barro frijolera (ceramic black bean pot)

Similar to a cazuela, the “olla de barro” is a stout clay pot generally used to make beans, and can be used on a stovetop or in an oven. Since the pot is made of clay and generally comes with a lid, your culinary masterpiece will keep warm for a much longer period of time. When purchasing your olla de barro, double check that it is not coated with any toxic substances and make sure to cure it before use.

Wooden spatulas

Wooden spatulas are a staple in any Mexican kitchen since they will not scratch your cooking pots and pans while sauteing. Over time, they tend to absorb flavors and spices so it’s good to replace spatulas about once a year. While on the topic, allow me to also suggest investing in an “escobetilla”, a small bristle brush used to clean everything from fruits to cooking pots without leaving a scratch.

Vaporera (steamer)

As we enter the never-ending Mexican holiday season, now is a good time to purchase a “vaporera”. Why? Because if you are the lucky guest to end up with a tiny baby Jesus figurine in your slice of Rosca de Reyes on Three Kings Day, you will be expected to host a tamal feast on Día de la Candelaria (Feb. 2). And how will you make tamales without a steamer?

Well, you could order them, but what’s the fun in that? If you’re not located in Mexico where you can buy a vaporera at your local market, check out Bustle’s list of The 4 Best Tamale Steamers and order online.

Molinillo de chocolate

I actually left this one off the first draft, thinking nobody actually made hot chocolate at home. Well, apparently I was wrong.

When I showed my original list to my friend Mich, he immediately identified this tool as the missing link. A “molinillo”, or little mill, is a wooden whisk that will, and I quote, “mix and melt it without leaving big pieces of chocolate.”

With this little gadget you are guaranteed an even distribution of chocolatey flavor in your mug, impressing even the most experienced of abuelas.

But wait! There’s one more!

Specifically for readers moving, or recently relocated, to Mexico, I highly suggest investing in a good quality water filter. Plastic water bottles, and garrafones (jugs), are available and affordable, but with the safety of drinking from plastic constantly in question (see the Clean Water Action Organization’s article, Bottled Water: The Human Health Consequences of Drinking from Plastic), it’s good to know that there are options. Eco Filtro is made in Guatemala and comes in a beautiful variety of colors, designs, and sizes. It filters tap water naturally through a system of activated carbon, clay, and colloidal silver, leaving clean and fresh drinking water – without the plastic waste.

– Bethany Platanella is a travel planner and lifestyle writer based in Mexico City. 

Anti-hunger advocates seek federal funds, honor CA lawmaker

by Suzanne Potter

California News Service

October 16, 2023 – Groups that fight hunger are calling for a fair shake in the upcoming farm bill, which provides federal matching funds for programs that help low-income families afford fresh produce.

The Market Match program gives people on Cal Fresh about $15 per market per day to spend at 270 sites across the state.

Minni Forman is the food and farming program director at the nonprofit Ecology Center in Berkeley, which runs Market Match.

“In 2022, there were 500,000 transactions,” said Forman. “Almost $20 million in CalFresh and Market Match spending, primarily going back to small and mid-size farmers. So, this program has massive impacts for CalFresh shoppers, for farmers and for market operators.”

The current Farm Bill expired September 30 and negotiations are ongoing for a new bill to cover the next five years.

Groups such as the Farmers Market for All Coalition and the Alliance for California Farmers Markets are asking Congress to fund programs such as Market Match across the country.

Andy Naja-Riese is CEO of the nonprofit Agricultural Institute of Marin (AIM), which runs farmers markets.

He said the feds need to prioritize programs with proven results and not make them compete for funds with newer programs.

“We’re advocating for our elected officials to support this tiered approach,” said Naja-Riese, “so that programs like in California and across the country can continue to operate successful innovative programs like Market Match.”

On Sunday, anti-hunger groups gathered at AIM’s Clement Street market in San Francisco on its tenth anniversary, to honor Assemblyman Phil Ting – D-San Francisco – who wrote the bill in 2015 that led to the creation of the Market Match program.

Ting said there’s enough money to keep it going – for now.

“With the Market Match program,” said Ting, “we did the $35 million this last year’s budget to hopefully get us through one or two more years before we have to ask for more money.”

Grupos de consumidores y seguridad automotriz instan a vetar el proyecto de ley para cambiar los límites de las demandas

Los grupos que luchan por los consumidores y la seguridad de los automóviles están instando al gobernador Gavin Newsom a vetar un proyecto de ley que, según dicen, haría más difícil para los californianos que alegan fraude o se quedan atrapados con un vehículo “limón” probar su caso. El Proyecto de Ley Senatorial 71 aumenta el límite de $25,000 a $35,000 para evitar ser trasladado a un tribunal civil limitado, donde el proceso de descubrimiento y el número de declaraciones son limitados.

Frustrated young asian man looking at broken down car engine on street waiting for assistance to arrive and recover or fix the vehicle. Male angry stand front a broken car. Broken car while traveling.

Michael Brooks, director ejecutivo del Centro para la Seguridad Automovilística, sostiene que este cambio pondría en desventaja a las personas que compran vehículos de gama media.

“Lo que están haciendo es aumentar el límite a 35.000 dólares”, dijo. “Y luego, a todos los que estén bajo ese listón les resultará mucho más difícil tener éxito cuando tengan un vehículo defectuoso que califique como limón”.

El proyecto de ley cuenta con el apoyo de los cobradores de deudas y la Alianza para la Innovación Automotriz, que representa a la industria automotriz. La Alianza, en una carta a los legisladores, dijo que el cambio “beneficiaría a los consumidores y a la industria automotriz al reducir los costos de los litigios y acelerar los plazos de los casos en los casos de la ley limón”.

Brooks dijo que esa línea de argumento no se sostiene.

“Se está haciendo pasar como un proyecto de ley que de alguna manera simplificará el proceso para los consumidores, pero lo que en realidad hará es limitar su capacidad para probar su caso”, imploró Brooks.

En los tribunales civiles limitados, el plazo para presentar apelaciones se reduce a 30 días y hay un límite en las indemnizaciones que un juez o jurado puede otorgar. El proyecto de ley también aumentaría el límite en los tribunales de reclamos menores de $10,000 a $12,500.

 

Underground installation

PG&E’s undergrounding program is an essential tool for wildfire prevention

 

To the editor:

 

October 23, 2023 – At PG&E we are deeply committed to doing everything we can to stop wildfires in the communities of Northern and Central California.

Burying power lines is the most effective solution to reducing the risk of wildfires caused by electrical equipment as it reduces the risk of ignitions in areas with the highest risk of wildfires by almost 98 percent. Undergrounding also makes power more reliable by reducing outages caused by winter storms and in some cases eliminating the need for safety shutoffs.

That’s why we’ve proposed moving 2,000 miles of overhead power lines underground by 2026.

However, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) wants to dismantle this critical safety program by reducing the proposed underground to just 200 miles system-wide.

We have seen the devastating toll that wildfires have taken on our communities. Our customers and local officials have told us time and time again that they want us to bury our power lines. This is because burial is the safest and most effective tool we have to prevent ignitions in high fire risk areas.

We urge CPUC to review its proposals and accept PG&E’s proposal to bury 2,000 miles through 2026. If you agree, please let the commission know by visiting www.cpuc.ca.gov/publiccomment.

 

Aaron Johnson

Region Vice President, Bay Area

PG&E

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