We live in a world where uncertainty and change abound, while rapid technological advancement ironically both expands and inhibits human connection. While several of these advancements have improved the state of the world to some degree, the negative consequences have humans facing an increasing lack of community, isolation from nature and one another, rootlessness, and disconnection from self. Mental health issues are at an all-time high, loneliness has been called a world epidemic, distraction reigns, and stress is an unwelcome frequent visitor for an increasingly disillusioned population. I ..read more

Spring has arrived, and it is getting hot out there! But at least we can laugh while we drip in sweat, right? Grab a beer, and we can laugh extra hard at these Mexican memes currently making the rounds on social media.  The best part? You can legitimately say you were studying.  Meme translation: “Ma’am, classes were canceled today for the eclipse.”  “He wants to be an astronomer.” What does it meme? Did everyone catch the eclipse last week? Depending on where you were, it was more or less dramatic (there was a little under 70% coverage where I was). Plenty of schools canc ..read more

What do you do after you finalize your divorce in Mexico? Hit up the cantina with your ex-wife or ex-husband and have a few beers, of course. At least that’s what one young man and woman did in Mérida, Yucatán, on Thursday. Judging by the smile on the face of the man, it was more a matter of celebrating their newfound freedom than drowning their sorrows. Or maybe the recently-separated couple were just dying for a beer amid the intense heat that has plagued Mérida this week. El Cardenal, a cantina in the Santiago neighborhood of the historic center of the Yucatán capital, brought the news of t ..read more

Environmental activists in Mexico continue to face violence despite a slight decrease in attacks in 2023 compared to the previous year, according to a report released this week by the Mexican Center for Environmental Law (CEMDA). The report found 20 lethal attacks against environmental activists in 2023, which represents the fifth-highest number documented by CEMDA in the past decade. In 2022, the figure was 24. Michoacán topped the list with seven victims, including Eustacio Alcalá Díaz, a 68-year-old Indigenous activist who was murdered last April. He was a community leader in Huitzontla, a ..read more

The Morena party’s candidate for mayor in Irapuato, Guanajuato, has accused a rival candidate of being behind a mugging of her personal secretary in which two men stole at gunpoint notes she was planning to use in Thursday night’s mayoral debate. Irma Leticia González leveled the accusation at PAN-PRI-PRD candidate and current Mayor Lorena Alfaro during the debate before repeating it in posts to Facebook and X (formerly Twitter). Morena party mayoral candidate Irma Leticia González (at left) accused Irapuato’s incumbent mayor, Lorena Alfaro, of orchestrating an armed attack on González’s perso ..read more

Always check the depth of the pool before you dive in, and make sure there isn’t a crocodile lurking beneath the surface. That could be good advice for residents and tourists in certain parts of Mexico given that a crocodile was found in a pool at a luxury beachfront development in Zihuatanejo, Guerrero, on Thursday. The croc reportedly made its way to the pool from the Playa Blanca estuary, located about 20 kilometers southeast of the city of Zihuatanejo. The reptile — approximately two meters long according to one report — was removed by Civil Protection personnel, who returned the specimen ..read more

Mexico City water authority Sacmex has filed a complaint over what it called “events appearing to be the crime of sabotage” that may have caused the contamination of water in the borough of Benito Juárez. Residents of several Benito Juárez neighborhoods began complaining about foul-smelling tap water in late March. Neighbors initially suspected gasoline had contaminated the water, but the Mexico City government said that industrial oils and lubricants were to blame. Residents of the affected areas of Benito Juarez should expect to have contaminated water coming out of their faucets for another ..read more

The rainy season seems far away as “heat wave” continues to be the buzzword across large swaths of Mexico, but at least some areas do have wet weather in the forecast. Friday’s weather forecast from the National Meteorological Service (SMN) warns of extreme heat, while also predicting heavy rains and hail storms. The report predicts that the northern states of Coahuila, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas and San Luis Potosí, as well as the central states of México, Hidalgo, Puebla, Tlaxcala and Veracruz, could see up to 50 milliliters (3 cubic inches) of rain this afternoon, accompanied by lightning storm ..read more

A new flight connecting the city of Tepic in western Mexico with Los Angeles could soon be a boon to Pacific coast beach destinations along the Riviera Nayarit. This week, Mexican aviation authorities began conducting test flights from Tepic, in the state of Nayarit, to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). These trials became possible upon completion of a 2.5 billion-peso (US $145 million) renovation project at the Tepic airport. Aviation authorities completed the first Tepic-LAX flight on Friday. (Miguel Ángel Navarro/Facebook) The trade magazine Aviación 21 reported that the funds were u ..read more

If you’ve ever strolled through the streets of Mexico, especially in smaller cities, you’ve likely observed the absence of pedestrian signs, resulting in people crossing the streets wherever they please, sometimes at the risk of their own safety. Whenever we witness this danger, we instinctively shout “aguas!” and immediately prevent someone from being hit by a car. Ok, I am being a bit dramatic, but it is not that far from the truth. Apart from getting into the details of this useful word, I’m going to explain another useful Mexican slang word used to prevent you from coming to any harm.  ..read more