My Story

Now onto the story!

Growing Up

I was born on November 6, 1943, in an army hospital in Biloxi, Mississippi. The hospital was free there because my dad was a soldier. Here's a photo of me with Mom taken in 1945.

Here I am a toddler, on the left. The other shows me a little older:

I was the oldest of three boys, each spaced five years apart. My youngest brother was Tom. The one nearer my age was Fred. Since I was first, I got special attention from my mom. She doted on me to the extent that I was smothered, not mothered. In other words, everything I presented to her was great because I was her boy. I could not distinguish one activity or creation as better than any other. My dad was not interested in fathering. Once I told him that I got an "A" on a paper. His comment, "Why didn't you get an "A+?" Fortunately, male friends of the family took an interest in me, teaching me how to tie my shoes, tell time, and later, how to drive a car.

Here are some family photos:

As I grew older, I lacked self-esteem, thinking I was stupid, ugly, and clumsy. In high school, I had problems getting dates. But there was one gal I dated who was outstanding, Mandy. Here we are at the beach, and with me doing the limbo.

College and Beyond

My goal in life, from high school, was to become a PhD biochemist, teaching and doing research. My understanding is that upon graduation, I'd get a good paying job, have a wife and family. I met a woman, fell in love, and married when I was 22, just before starting grad school. I was so naive! What she needed was a father, not a husband. Two years into the marriage, when she asked me to drop out of grad school to spend more time with her, that was the end. Luckily we had no children. 

During my third year in grad school, I realized that academic science, with its "publish or perish" and "old boy school," was too competitive for me. My younger brother, Tom, introduced me to the new and popular counter-culture: communes, drugs, radical politics. These were much more interesting than my academic life. I got too involved with psychedelics. They opened me up to information about my past. This went beyond my understanding. I became psychotic and landed in a mental hospital where I made the decision to drop out after I'd  already completed seven years of college. They gave me an MA, and, unknown to me for some time, bad references.

Here's a photo of me in grad school:

Healing Years

I was hospitalized seven times over an eight year period, from 1969-1977. During my last hospitalization, I realized that the staff made a living from my suffering. That's when I decided to do what ever it would take to stay out. One activity that helped me was weaving. I obtained an apprenticeship with a professor in the art department and was on my way to a different career as a weaver and fiber artist. Here are some images from that period.

Tom insisted we go to the original Woodstock Festival in August 1969. There I experienced half a million people, together for four days, treating each other as brothers and sisters, and with no police interventions. Three years later, a group formed what became an annual meeting/woods camp-out, called the Rainbow Gathering. In 1982, I attended my first national gathering, and since then many more, including regional ones, and a couple of internationals. This became a very strong influence in my life.

Here's a photo during my "hippie" period:

From the ages of 5-13, Mom sent me to summer camp, where I found a deep interest and connection to nature. Here's me during a camping trip to the White Mountains in New Hampshire:

During the 90s, I lived in a New Age ecovillage called Sirius Community, in Shutesbury, MA, spending time living in this structure: 

I worked for fifteen years, off and on, as an R&D chemist for small companies. I met Jonathan at the community and wound up working with him. He introduced me to a summer opportunity--volunteering at a week-end outdoor folk festival. 

During my fourth year there, I met Giovanni, who made and sold drums. He had a copy of a book about Rainbow Gatherings that I bought, and told me he lived part-time in an international Rainbow community in Mexico. He invited me to visit. The following year he was very insistent, as the community was running a 5-day camping retreat called the Turtle Island Bioregional Gathering . This was to be in Tepoztlán, Mexico, at the boy scout camp. At this same site, I attended a similar gathering many years later.

I visited the community two other times. During my last visit, I cried just before it was time to leave. I did not want to leave this country where family and community are the focus, to return to the materialistic USA. The tears prompted me to get a high-paying job in Boston where I worked for two years to save money to move to Mexico. 

It was difficult discarding things before the move and saying good-bye to old friends to shove off for the unknown. Finally in September 2003 I was on my way.

Mexico

I arrived at the community on October 5, 2003, to spend a month until I found my own place.

My first memoir, The Bumpy Road, describes the life adventures I outlined above. Since 2017, I've published a monthly photo blog, Letters From Mexico. When I looked this up in a search engine, the only other publication with this name was authored by Cortez. I felt he wouldn't mind my using it. A few years ago, I put out an ebook compilation of Letters.

Some of the many activities I've enjoyed in Mexico, over the years, are gardening and dancing, as you can see here:

I am skipping a lot of my travels, both in Mexico and the US, and glossing over or entirely leaving out a lot of my activities in Mexico, because there isn't space here. You can find more information from my second memoir, Better Living in Mexico.

Here's me guiding my hiking group to a peak with a view:

The hiking group has been active weekly since the beginning of 2024.

Another of my favorite activities is playing blues harmonica. I got my first instrument when I was fifteen years old, and am self-taught. Long ago I overcame my fears of being onstage in front of an audience, and now I'm thrilled when I get an opportunity. My guitar-playing, singing partner lives in California and comes to Tepoztlán for a yearly visit. I enjoy playing at clubs with him.

Current Project: Mexico Living Experience

Four years ago the apartment upstairs from mine was vacated. I had my friend, Jim, a professional jazz drummer, move in. He came to live in Tepoztlán ten years before I did. Together, we've helped countless travelers and expats feel welcomed here. There was a huge influx from the US, Canada, and Europe during the covid pandemic, leaving their countries for a less restrictive environment. We helped many of them settle in. 

A couple of years back, Jim suggested we organize a business to help people visiting Tepoztlán. We would provide a valuable service, grow our community, and perhaps make some money. It took me two years to embrace the idea. We've been working for eight months to bring it forward. 

At six months in, two experienced local business women showed us why our website was not good, and how to fix it. I began in earnest on this huge job. Then, as happens often when one moves in a good life direction with inspired energy, a miracle happened. One of those business women had her friend and web designer visit. This woman, a high end website creator, was prompted by my friend to help us. What an angel! She spent countless hours on her own and together with me constructing a beautiful site. 

We are very close to readiness for posting paid Facebook ads. Please like our Facebook page, and tell your friends and relatives about our program for retirees considering relocation in Mexico.

This has been quite a departure from my usual blog. I hope you liked it. Next month we'll revisit Cafe Arte , but in its new incarnation: Casa Cafe Arte.

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