Recap: Good Morning, From Here, December 20 to 26
Monday
This will be the last whole week of Vallarta Mirror. It doesn’t make me sad one bit. I made a note in my daytimer that the Rearview Mirror is two years old today. It will have two more publications – this Friday, the 26th, and next Wednesday, the 31st. I gave it a good shot.
Happy Winter if that’s not oxymoronic. I am sitting in Vallarta, 6 am, Monday morning, in a nightshirt, a dress, a sweater, and all my windows are still closed! Baby, it’s cold outside! The difference between summer and winter is amazing, even here, where most people think it’s summer all year round. Thank god, no! It is a delight not to sweat.
Winter was celebrated elegantly and lovingly at the solstice party at Tom and Chiara Montante’s house last night. The food was gorgeous, plentiful, and delicious, as it is every year.
The wine flowed and fueled the biggest love fest I have ever had the pleasure of being a part. The ancient ritual that Chiara has led for 35 years, in different parts of the world, last night unleashed a torrent of gratitude that must have flown over the city from the open terrace, and touched everything with love. So many voices trembling with emotion, putting into words the collective hope of a disparate group of people, many of whom were strangers going in, but not coming out. I am still humming from the good vibrations.
“She, He, Him” debuted at Nacho Daddy, Saturday night. Amy Armstrong’s new production with Sargento Dan lending his voice and antics to hers, with Musical Director Mark Hartman on piano and sharing his voice too, making some serious harmonies. This fun, musical variety show will happen every Saturday at 7:30 pm.
One week today will likely be one of the best concerts of the year, with Effie Passero joining Branden James and James Clark as CelloVoci takes over Teatro Vallarta.
Sutton Lee Seymour will host, with Mark Hartman as Musical Director. The first hour will be devoted to holiday faves, and the second to blending classical and contemporary music in their own extravagant ways, which led CelloVoci straight to Carnegie Hall a year ago! What a gift it would be to fill every one of the 900 seats in Vallarta’s largest entertainment venue! Do not miss this one-show only of “Night Divine,” Monday, December 29. Doors open at 7, with the show at 8 pm. See you all there! Don’t miss reading “The Anatomy of a Trio” in Vallarta Mirror after 11 am today. It is the story of CelloVoci.
Christmas shenanigans continue at Nacho Daddy tonight as Gouda Gabor teams up again with Mark Hartman and guests to celebrate the holidays in two languages. There might be a few tickets left; I hope to see you there for pre-Christmas hugs and laughs!
Hugs are good anytime, and if you have some extras, throw them my way. It will be my pleasure to hug you back, From Here.
Tuesday
Christmas is tomorrow if you are Mexican, and the day after tomorrow if you are Canadian or American. I will celebrate both because I can! Mistletoe was in full swing as “A Very Gouda Christmas” got underway last night at Nacho Daddy, starring Gouda Gabor. Of course. I wonder how tall Gouda is, counting her hair? Must be seven feet or close to it! Gouda is gently funny; her humor never ridiculing or nasty toward anyone.
Sargento Dan and Brenda Gaviño (who was absolutely stunning in a Mexican-red evening gown that shimmered like Shantung silk) sang in both languages with Mark Hartman at the piano, doing what virtuosos do, PLUS sang a funny ditty or two and provided harmonies throughout the night as needed. He shared a glass of champagne, well, prosecco with Gouda.
Amy Armstrong gets lost in her narrative, which is one other reason she is so engaging onstage.
She will take a simple ‘for instance’ and run with it (she is so funny), as she winds her way deeper and deeper into a conversation with herself, with small pauses to let the laughter roar in from the crowd. She is truly a great storyteller. Her voice, powerful and rock steady, is as colorful as her clothing and speech patterns. Don’t miss both of her weekly shows at Nacho Daddy.
Mark Hartman is working everywhere, including upcoming on the 29th at Teatro Vallarta for CelloVoci; I am sure he hasn’t even unpacked yet, but just hit the ground running from the airport. He has been away from Vallarta all summer, working as Musical Director in various parts of the US.
Sargento Dan sang a signature song from his one-man hit show based on Mexico’s longest-running (only?) jukebox musical, ‘Mentiras’ (‘Lies’ in English). That performance, which has been improved upon (I can’t imagine how Sargento could make it better, but he insists it is!), opens next month. And, you can catch Sargento twice a week at different times at Garbo’s Bar for his crazy-popular and busy Broadway sing-alongs.
Brenda Gaviño sang Oh, Holy Night and promoted her two very different shows at Nacho Daddy: a Linda Ronstadt Tribute and a nod to the women who sing the blues. As always, check VallartaCalendar.com for show details and times.
Gouda hosts Open Mic every Tuesday at 7:30 all season long at Nacho Daddy, and it is really one of the best shows in town, attracting all the major hitters from other venues to come and promote their shows. And, there’s no cover. And the food is yummy.
Last day to shop for presents. My darling Bogie and I have mutually decided not to exchange gifts this year, but we will sit together with full tummies and share a couple of purrs, a few naps out of the blue just because we can, and be grateful for one another, and raise a paw or two to 2026, which I already know is going to be a fantastic year, From Here.
Wednesday
Yesterday, at about 4:40, I left my house and started walking to El Coloso and my friend Sandra Bradley’s condo for a gathering. I took advantage of the light and chose the scenic route up Guerrero/Cuathemoc, which I don’t/won’t walk after dark. There is often construction trash dumped on the side of the road, and regular trash tossed from cars by people who should know better but clearly don’t.
It’s a quiet street, a few cars on the dusty road, and even less foot traffic, so I can make good time without bumping into someone that I know. I heard a feral cat cry and immediately prayed I would not come across a mama cat and her kittens. I didn’t, but what I nearly stumbled over took my breath away. I stood shocked as the dust kicked up from my feet settled, and there, in an oversized black garbage bag that had burst open or maybe was never closed – the weight would have been enormous – Thirty, 50, maybe more paperback books in English.
They were dusty, of course, but I couldn’t see mold or water damage and didn’t have the time or inclination to dig through to see if any were salvageable. The bag was not there the last time I walked the street, and I am still baffled this morning at the degradation. And the loss. And the waste. I thought about the authors of these books and how dismayed they would be to see their work trashed.
Used books can cost up to 200 pesos for a single paperback! I don’t know if there were any authors I covet in the broken bag, and that is not the point. There are so many ways to recycle things you no longer want; throwing them away on a lonely, barely used road like that is never the answer. And, who could have lifted that bag in the first place? Someone did. From the trunk of a car or in the back of a pickup truck. Saw fit to throw away perfectly good reading material. In English. Waste makes me crazy!
The sight of the books jarred a long-forgotten memory of being at the city dump in Calgary, maybe 50 years ago, dropping off some irreparable pieces of furniture when I saw a massive truck with Salvation Army logo all over it stop, open the rear doors of the truck, and dump what had to be a thousand pieces of clothing into the sloppy pre-separate-the-organic- waste mess that was already there. I have never set foot in another “Sally Ann” in my life.
In these days of so much plenty. So much food. So much stuff at Christmas. Please recycle. Share what you don’t want, can no longer use. Give things away, sell them. Trade them. Try to remember that books are sacred: dammit. From Here.
Thursday
Merry Christmas, everybody! When Bogie finally got me up this morning, it was a full-blown day.
And a gorgeous one, to boot! Nary a sign of snow, and the whole city is still sound asleep, having been up all night long singing and having a party until just a couple of hours ago. Santa had no problem finding Vallarta; his reindeer are unaffected by the sound of explosions, benign or not.
There are some relatively ‘old’ words coming back into vogue in the English language. A ‘gathering’ is a soft way to have a meeting of like-minded people. Sounds like there could be a bonfire on the beach attached to a gathering as opposed to a conclave, say. But they both mean the same thing. The term ‘Love-in’ was coined in 1967 and became permanently attached to the hippie movement, which, as we all know, was a counterculture centered on peace and love.
Why did that go away?
Did the drugs overtake the peace and love part? It doesn’t matter, but the hippy movement still lives in my heart.
In the Love and Peace part of my heart. The protesting part of the movement has been tossed out of my life because there is only Love left standing when all is said and done, so really, why bother? It takes so much energy to hold onto anger. Look at all the physical repercussions of being angry. Yipes. That stuff can kill you!
So, all this boils down to is what’s left to do? Love. That’s it, AND I have been to not one but two Love-ins this past week!
The first one was called The Blessing of Winter Solstice Ceremony, at Chiara Montante’s house; I wrote about it a few days ago. The air was so thick with loving words, warm hugs, and the most disparate group of people who were, for one night, not straight or gay, married, single, divorced, or widowed, male, female, or pick a gender. Not any of that mattered one bit. For one bright, shiny moment, we were unanimously LOVE.
The second Love-in was at Sandra Bradley’s house a couple of nights ago. Half of us present had been a part of the first Lightworkers Gathering in Vallarta, four years ago this coming February, at Casa Karma, but the balance of the small group were strangers. In less than four hours, we were family, standing afterward in Sandra’s kitchen waiting for coffee to brew, laughing at the baby in our midst, mulling over the life stories we heard with compassion and tears. Spontaneously hugging one another, because why wouldn’t you?
Two extraordinary evenings, chock full of love, and that exponentially has to affect the environment and everybody in it. We can live like that every single day, and it’s easy. Just choose love and let that love you back. Everything else will fall into place. Of that I am certain.
Merry Christmas, once again, to everyone reading. I love you. Pass that on, From Here.
Friday
Happy Boxing Day to my fellow Canadians. Lots of places in town will be serving great sandwiches with leftover turkey today, including Fridas and Langostinos on the beach.
Bogie and I had a great Christmas, grazing through whatever was in the fridge, working a bit on some editing, and enjoying the quiet after a rambunctious Christmas Eve in the neighborhood.
Tonight at Coco Cabaret is a Bruno Mars Tribute starring Victor do Espirito, at 7 pm. I have seen Victor channel Bruno Mars before on various stages in town, but Chris Lopez produces this show, which is a guarantee of fabulous!
Saturday at Act2PV reunites three friends who have appeared together in many countries overseas and will debut “Double Standards” celebrating contemporary musical theater. With Michael Ferreri on piano, baritone Tony Oakley, and John Carden, tenor, the evening promises fast-paced harmonies and storytelling in true cabaret fashion.
CelloVoci on Monday night will be a triumph at Teatro Vallarta. It will be like having Carnegie Hall delivered to Vallarta with some holiday music thrown into the mix because it is the season. It will be wonderful to hear Effie Passero with Branden & James together again, on such a grand scale. The new Gay+Community Center will benefit from ticket sales to “Night Divine,” if you needed just one more reason to go!’
A couple of days ago, I wrote about how Effie and Branden & James met. I wrote that B & J and I all heard Effie for the first time at a concert with her and Spencer Day. To set the record straight: “Effie first appeared in Puerto Vallarta with David Hernandez at the “Palm” before the pandemic or Covid in March of 2020.” I received that notice on Facebook this morning, so thanks to Rudy for the clarification!
We start a new year next week, and it looks like 2026 really will be different. Nearly everyone I have spoken to is determined to start taking better care of themselves.
Imagine a population taking care of itself first! Even the language used is different. Starting something rather than stopping something else and going forward in positivity rather than setting oneself up for failure. A curious mind shift.
So, 2026 will be The Year of Me. And, feel free to change the ‘Me’ in that sentence to You! To only do what gives me joy, and so many things do just that. It doesn’t matter what it is, as long as joy is there during the process and at the end.
During the past couple of quiet days, I have altered a couple of dresses and made a couple of fabric necklaces to go with. I am clumsy with my sewing machine, but that will improve with use. I also want to improve my skills. To make new things with more care, and not to rush the end product as I am wont to do. I believe I just made a Resolution!
Have a fantastic weekend and try to rest a bit for Wednesday night. See you back here Monday morning, From Here.
