Morena in Mexico

Lost in Translation: My Name is Organ Donor

2010-04-15T13:59:00.000-07:00

Getting mail in Mexico, particularly in a small town like Valle de Bravo, isn't always easy. There's a Pak Mail franchise here in town, however, and for a small per item fee they will receive packages on your behalf and call you to come pick them up.

Aran and I have been waiting for a particular book for quite some time now, and it finally arrived. I went to the store to pick it up, and of course, the polite young man manning the store required an ID before he released the book to me. I handed him my Maine Driver's License and 25 pesos, and he carefully scrawled my name into the store's official log:

"Shetterly, Organ Donor."

Con mucho gusto!

Economics Rap (for econ/finance geeks only)

2010-02-10T19:24:00.000-08:00

While perusing Harvard economist Greg Mankiw's blog (yes, I am an econ/finance geek) I came across a video called "Fear the Boom and Bust (Hayek vs. Keynes rap)".

Free-market advocate Friedrich Hayek and fiscal and monetary interventionist John Maynard Keynes are headed to an economics conference but get sidetracked by a night on the town ("Party at the Fed...20 minutes") with all the accoutrements --stretch limo, Cristal, fine female entourage--and engage in an epic battle of rhymes on the merits of their respective economic philosophies.

Like many, I must admit that the freshwater economic zeal of my callow Wall Street youth has been somewhat tempered with age (and the global financial meltdown). However, I think Hayek kills it in his rap.

Runners up

2009-07-08T18:46:00.000-07:00

We were notified today that we were not among the finalists for the Expansion Los 10 Emprendedores del Año 2009. Better luck next year! Thanks to all for the good wishes, and to Expansion and Endeavor for the nomination.

Entrepreneurs of the year?

2009-06-30T16:58:00.000-07:00

Last week, Aran and I found out that we had been selected by Mexico’s business magazine Expansion as one of 20 finalists for their special report Los 10 Emprendedores del Año 2009 (Top 10 Entrepreneurs of 2009). Yesterday morning at 11:30 AM sharp, we met with a group of nine journalists, business experts and private equity investors for a five-minute presentation of our company, Editorial Manda SAPI de CV (Inside México), followed by a five minute rapid-fire Q&A session. The panel will select the finalists today, and the winners will be notified tomorrow. Profiles of the finalists will be published in Expansion sometime in the next month.

Starting a business in your own country is hard enough, but doing so in a new country—and in a second language!—is something altogether different. Four years ago, full of adventure and optimism, we left our homes in the United States to come to Mexico and start this business. With an idea, a business plan and a little seed funding, we literally drove down from the US, set up camp in Oaxaca (only later did we move to Mexico City) and proceeded to start what would become Inside México.

In retrospect, our Honda Element was actually a turnip truck, as we had no idea just how complex and difficult an undertaking this would turn out to be. As refugees from the dot-com industry, we had our hands full learning the ins and outs of magazine publishing. Even more daunting, however, was navigating the sea of forms, fees, regulations, lawyers, notaries, accountants, government agencies, door keepers and other intermediaries involved in starting and maintaining even the simplest of businesses in Mexico.

The time since has been replete with achievements as well as disappointments. We’ve had the good fortune to work with people with world-class talent, people who have rolled up their sleeves and plied their talents into the wee hours to make Inside México what it is. We’ve become fluent in Spanish, and functional in our understanding of Mexico’s business climate. Inside México is now the most widely distributed English language publication in the country, and our website Insidemex.com, which we relaunched this spring, is really taking off in terms of traffic and functionality. We count among our advertisers some of the most recognized businesses in Mexico (Bancomer, Santo Tomas wines, HSBC, ATT Alestra, Coldwell Banker, even Jif Peanut Butter) as well as scores of smaller businesses from around the country. These days, when we go to a client meeting, we’re as likely to get a warm “Oh yes, I read your magazine, I know your website!” as the impassive stone face that was par for the course when we were first starting out. We even managed to generate a little press. The images above are from a feature article Expansion magazine published on us in October 2006, right after we launched Inside México's first issue.

But there are many days when the demands of the business are crushing, when physical work, mental stress, uncertainty and an endless string of 18-hour work days would send us to our sickbeds, but for adrenaline, coffee and the stubborn, blind desire to move the business forward. Rejections —from potential clients, potential investors, potential partners, banks, adverting agencies, you name it—litter our inboxes and file cabinets. We’ve been courted by any number of investors and partners, only to be left standing, gobsmacked, in a lurch, at the altar. Clients pay late; banks don’t give credit. The times we’ve looked at our bank account and asked ourselves “How are we going to make it through this week?” are now too numerous to mention. Sometimes the French entrepreneur’s false cognate undertaker feels more apt when I think of what this has exacted from us.

And yet: day after day, we walk forward. We make the calls, we send the emails, we hatch the ideas, we change the plan, we adapt to the circumstances, we lick our wounds, we fight back, we take the chance, we make the mistake, we try to fix it, we pull the all-nighter, we hash it out, we close a deal, we do it all again. And most of all, we close our eyes and summon our belief in ourselves, in our colleagues, in our vision and also in Mexico, which as an entrepreneur is not always easy.

Recently, President Calderon announced a plan to streamline the long, expensive and confusing series of forms required to start a business in Mexico. Mexico is a country of hard working people with great ideas, and I believe that making it easy for those people to act on their ambitions is the key to this country’s long term economic future. But this plan, which amounts to an online consolidation of federal databases, should be just the beginning. In order for startup businesses to revitalize the Mexican economy, the entire act of setting up a business—from contracting phone and internet service, to opening a bank account, to hiring and firing employees and paying taxes—needs to be more efficient, less time consuming and less costly. This is particularly true if Mexico is to take advantage of the thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands of migrating foreigners, whose plans for their new routines in Mexico include more than the daily margarita on the beach.

Regardless of whether we’re one of Expansion’s top ten, being selected as a finalist is quite an honor and a real picker-upper after these last few hard months. We gave it our best, and enjoyed the back and forth with the panelists. If nothing else, it’s a wonderful acknowledgement of what it’s take for Inside México to get to this point, and a much-needed shoutout for the value of entrepreneurship in general.

Insidemex.com launches FREE classifieds!

2009-06-11T08:38:00.000-07:00

Want to buy a house, rent your apartment, find a roommate or dogwalker, post or look for a job?

Insidemex.com has just launched FREE classifieds.

(1) Register as a member of the site
(2) Post free ad

It's that simple! Click here now!

Mexico is back in business

2009-05-04T17:38:00.000-07:00

Although today was quiet, there's no question that Mexico City and the rest of the country are getting back to business as usual. We'll open the Inside Mexico offices on Wednesday and the volume of work-related emails (that is to say, work emails related to something other than swine flu) was significantly greater today.

The Mexican government has a real challenge ahead of it: how do you crawl out from under the PR disaster of the swine flu (and this on the heels of the "War Next Door" nightmare)? Air Canada and regional WestJet airlines canceled flights to Mexico's tourist destinations; Argentina and other airlines have also canceled flights. Mexico is up in arms over China's aggressive handling of Mexican tourists (though Canadians and others have been detained as well...the facts don't support the claim that China is singling out Mexicans). But what is Mexico going to do to turn this around?

White folks staying away from Mexico City's Zocalo

2009-05-02T10:35:00.001-07:00

This morning, I clicked to the El Universal website to find the following story:

Pocos güeros visitan el Zócalo (Few white people are going to the Zocalo)

"En la plaza principal del centro histórico los extranjeros sólo esperan el momento de irse, no por miedo, si no porque todo está cerrado." In Mexico City's main plaza, foreigners are hanging out while waiting to leave the country-- not for fear, but because everything's closed.

As readers of this blog know, güero is the word used to describe a person with white skin. It is not a synonym for foreigner.

Maybe there were no moreno foreigners in the Zocalo when the correpondent did his investigation? Maybe all the Mexican güeros (yes, there are lots of white Mexicans) were hanging out at home?

I speak Spanish as a second language, so I might be missing something here. Am I wrong to call them out on this? For me, the headline displayed an ignorance both of the diversity and international nature of Mexico's tourists and residents as well as of its own population.

Dirty Money

2009-05-02T10:12:00.000-07:00

Smart Money magazine just published an article titled "Can you catch swine flu from money?" The piece is quite interesting and in addition to answering the title question (yes, you can) goes into fascinating (if stomach-churning) detail about the transmission mechanism. The Central Laboratory of Virology at the University Hospitals of Geneva, Switzerland conducted the research, and you can read the full abstract here.

An interesting point: nickel and copper have antimicrobial properties so coins are cleaner than paper bills.

After reading the article, I must say I'm less conncerned about catching flu from money than coming into contact with scarier germs, like staph and pneumonia bacteria.

Swine flu treatment options

2009-05-01T10:52:00.000-07:00

Whoops, I mean "Influenza A (H1N1)" treatment options. Over at Insidemex.com.

Forecast for the Flu Free mask: Hot and Humid

2009-04-29T20:11:00.001-07:00

Today I took my Flu Free Mask to the streets. I was a bit self-conscious at first, expecting that my mask would create a stir, in a place where I already stand out. But then I remembered--it's the swine flu, everyone's wearing a mask!--- and hustled off to meet Dyana in the Colonia Roma, a 20 minute walk away. I was able to breathe through the mask-- not quite freely, but comfortably enough-- and I started thinking of myself as a mobile bug zapper (though I suppose the correct, less attractive analogy is a mobile fly trap).

Mexico City was hot and sunny today. Mexico City was hot and sunny yesterday, and is expected to be hot and sunny tomorrow. In fact, most days in DF this time of the year are hot and sunny, and a two-layer knitted cotton mask with a two-layer oiled cotton insert covering half of your face wouldn't be your first wardrobe choice if it weren't for that damn epidemic.

I ambled across Michoacan and started to feel the heat. I walked up Insurgentes and I started to perspire. By the time I hit Alvaro Obregon, I was sweating.

And then my nose started to run. The mask-sauna had overwhelmed my nasal passages.

Panic set in: how could I take off my Flu Free Mask in public? We're all hypervigilant about germs right about now, and on the alert for anything that even remotely resembles an H1N1 symptom. Theoretically my fellow citizens could march me to the authorities and have me carted away, until the health powers-that-be give me the visto bueno to be set loose.

Thankfully, Dyana was running late. I sat down on a bench and cooled down, and tried not to offend the amiable (mask-free) homeless man sitting next to me by sniffling. ("Think...New York in December...think DF in February," I thought. "Cold...colder."). I stopped sweating and the mask slowly absorbed the (flu free) droplets from my nose.

But what are the politics of sniffling or sneezing in public these days? If I'm walking the dogs without a mask (maskless human that is, not maskless dogs), most people don't even want my dog's nose near their hounds's hindquarters, even if I'm not within the CDC definition of "close contact" to them.

Then again...a sneeze is a sneeze is a sneeze...unless it's the swine. Maybe it's better if we all just stay home.

Video Report from Mexico City: More about the mask

2009-04-29T16:27:00.000-07:00

Everyone here in Mexico is obsessed with masks-- do they work? What kind are best? How do I use them? From television and online news reports, it looks like the rest of the world is going down the same path. We've been aggregating information about masks over at Insidemex.com. Here, I demonstrate my homemade mask to Dyana.

Swine Flu Update: Video Report from Mexico City

2009-04-29T15:53:00.000-07:00

My friend Dyana Pari Nafissi has been doing video reports from Mexico City, some of which have made it to CNN's IReport. She interviewed me this afternoon about Insidemex.com and the kind of information our users are looking for. You can see the video here.

"No Masks"

2009-04-29T09:24:00.001-07:00

Photo from El Universal, http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/594548.html
Mexico City and other cities around the country are running out of protective masks.

Department of Homemade Security: the results are in

2009-04-28T19:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I made my homemade flu mask. A description of the full process and some other thoughts are over at Insidemex.com.

Of course, as a Mad Knitting Scientist, I had to put my own crafty flourish on the experiment, and knitted a "Flu Free" mask to hold the oiled cotton filters.

Meanwhile, today I had a conversation with a real scientist: my sister Jocelyn Lee, who is completing a PhD in Biochemistry at Emory University in Atlanta. Jocelyn, though not a microbiologist, said that one of the most important factors in determining the effectiveness of any mask is changing them frequently. The moisture from one's breath encourages captured germs to multiply. Thus, even a mask which in the lab is 95% effective won't offer protection if worn too long. The CDC is located on the Emory University Campus and Jocelyn's going to help put me in touch with epidemiologists and virologists who can help clarify science from fiction.

But if you're in a situation where even the flimsy masks are in short supply-- Mexican newspaper El Universal just reported that masks in Mexico City are all but impossible to buy now--you gotta get a plan B.

Swine humor from Homer Simpson

2009-04-27T14:38:00.000-07:00

Homer: Are you saying you're never going to eat any animal again? What about bacon?
Lisa:No.
Homer: Ham?
Lisa: No.
Homer: Pork chops?
Lisa: Dad, those all come from the same animal.
Homer: Heh heh heh. Ooh, yeah, right, Lisa. A wonderful, magical animal.

Earthquake: as if the flu weren't enough

2009-04-27T12:41:00.000-07:00

I'm starting to believe the fates have it in for Mexico. About two hours ago, a 5.6 magnitude earthquake hit here, with epicenter in Acapulco, which is to the south west of Mexico City. At the moment, I was in Pedregal, in the south of the city, and didn't really notice it. Friends here in the center, however, report that the earth did indeed move. Many buildings evacuated their occupants, though there are no reports of harm to people or buildings.

Department of Homemade Security

2009-04-27T07:59:00.000-07:00

One of the effects of the modern media cycle is that previously arcane and specialized jargon suddenly makes it into common parlance. So it is that everyone from your boss's boss to the guy bagging groceries, whose previous conversations were all about, say, next quarter's profit margins, or Wii, start waxing on about collateral damage, suborning perjury and superdelegates.

And so it was that I knew about N95 filters. During the SARS epidemic, the N95 filter was offered up as the most effective way to protect against catching the virus. A face mask made with this filter is supposed to protect the wearer against 95% of airborne contaminants, including the "H5N1 Avian Bird Flu and SARS". An N95 filter and a prescription bottle of Cipro was so the rage for the trendy doomsayer on the move circa 2003.

Given the current swine flu outbreak in Mexico, the US and beyond, we could be in for another boom market in N95 masks and other protective gear. But I was thinking--is there any way to make a decent mask out of ordinary household materials? Not as good as N95, perhaps, but better than the flimsy face masks for sale at the corner pharmacy?

A little research turned up the possibility that ordinary cotton-- a bandanna, for example-- which has been permeated with oil, such a petroleum jelly, could be an extremely effective filter. It appears that the oil traps the particles and makes it less likely that they'll make it all the way to your lungs. This is even truer if the bandana or textile in question is folded to create several layers. Apparently this oiled cotton technology is a staple of air filters used in high-performance race cars. This page has several posts relating to the effectiveness of this and other filter materials.

It seems like a reasonable proposition to me, assuming the bandanna fits your face and you're able to seal off your nose and mouth. I'm going to try it myself and will post the results. My scientists out there: what do you think?

Swine flu is the new SARS

2009-04-25T08:59:00.000-07:00

Six years ago, I was traveling through Asia when the SARS epidemic hit. Specifically, I was in Hanoi, Vietnam, which, along with Hong Kong, was the outbreak's hot spot.

Friends and family, responding to CNN's 24-hour panic cycle, sent alarmed emails and begged me to "evacuate". Of course, the situation on the ground is never the same as what's portrayed on the reality show known as cable news: in Hanoi, life went on as usual, and my three week stay in the Vietnamese capital was pleasant and more memorable for its wonderful cafes and shops than for anything that resembled a deadly health pandemic.

So here I am six years later, smack dab in the middle of what might be the Next Big Thing as far as epidemiologists are concerned. The swine flu, actually a strain that combines human, pig and bird genetic material, has already claimed 20 lives in Mexico and has caused eight illnesses in the US. Global health officials are on alert for outbreaks in other locations; it only takes one sick person on the Mexico City-New York-Hong Kong route to give the virus access to billions of potential new hosts.

Mexico City officials closed schools and museums yesterday; Mayor Marcelo Ebrard announced this morning that all public events will be suspended for 10 days, something that hasn't happened since the catastrophic 1985 earthquake. The epidemic has been today's top story on NPR, CNN and just about every other internation news service. Over at Insidemex.com, I posted the latest update as well as information on prevention, symptoms, and care.

Global communications have evolved since 2003, and this time the concern from family and friends has come via Facebook, Twitter and Skype as well as email.

So: what's it like on the ground here today?

The Condesa, full to overflowing with revelers most Friday nights, was uncharacteristically quiet last night. There were fewer runners out on Amsterdam Avenue during my early walk today with the dogs, and the normal Michoacan Avenue breakfast crowd seems to have stayed home. Many people have covered their faces with blue surgical masks, which apparently are being handed out in the subway.

Other than that, things, for the moment, feel fine. No panic in the streets, no stepping over dead bodies on the way to catch a cab. Still, we're taking precautions. Aran and I are headed to the market to stock up on groceries, thinking eating at home will be safer than eating out. We'll certainly avoid street stalls, which aren't as rigorous about their hygiene as restaurants. We're being vigilant about washing our hands, and are staying tuned to the news for updates.

Where are you from, Morena? Part II

2009-03-29T06:27:00.001-07:00

"Morena in Mexico", you may say. I get the Mexico part, but what does morena mean?

Morena (or moreno, the masculine descriptive) refers to someone who has brown or dark skin. Unlike the US, where directly referring to a person's color, their size, or other physical characteristics falls somewhat beyond the bounds of political correctness, throughout Latin America, it's more than acceptable to call someone exactly like you see them.

So it is that I became La Morena, and my husband Aran, a blond-haired blue-eyed WASP became El Guero (the white guy).

"Buenas dias morena, como estas?" says the lady at the market, whom I pass each morning on my walk to work.

"Buenas tardes, La Morena de la Roma (morena from the Colonia Roma, where I used to live), en que le puedo servir?" says the gentleman at the hardware store. "What can I help you with?"

"Oye morena...," says the slightly lascivious security guard at the building down the street. "Porque no nos vamos a tomar un traguito un dia?" ("Hey, why don't we go get a drink sometime?")

"Pues...no creo que mi esposo suportara eso." ("Well, I don't think my husband would like that very much.")

"Estas casada?? Con El Guero??" ("You're married? To the White Guy?", says the guard, realizing that yes, the man he has seen me with day in and day out for months is my husband, and no, there is no possibility of a drink).

And so on. Petite blondes become rubiacitas, chubby folks become gorditos, skinny people flaquitos, a vertically challenged fellow is a chaparrito, a tall or statuesque woman a grandota. The language and the culture are rich with these kinds of personal descriptives, and for the most part they are uttered with no disparagement and accepted with no self-consciousness.

As an African-American woman from the US, getting used to this ontology took some doing. Two years ago, I wrote a piece for Inside Mexico's "Black in Mexico" issue describing some of the complexities of color, identity and nationality that I'd confronted in Mexico. I had to learn to embrace the constant referral to my brown skin as a neutral to affectionate comment rather than a racially charged comment. And in fact, it's been quite a liberating thing to think of myself, even to refer to myself, as La Morena.

Of course, getting used to the fact that I am also a gringa is another story altogether.

Do we have a new US Ambassador to Mexico?

2009-03-27T07:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday morning the Mexican newspaper El Universal reported that Cuban-born career diplomat Carlos Pascual had been selected as the new US Ambassador to Mexico. Mr. Pascual is currently a VP at the Brookings Institution. He is fluent in Spanish and also Ukrainian, having served as the US Ambassador to Ukraine. His Brookings Institution bio lists his areas of expertise as "post-conflict stabilization, international security policy, nonproliferation and economic development with particular focus on Europe, Russia and Ukraine."

The New York Times made reference to the appointment in a report yesterday but the information otherwise has yet to appear in the US press, and it seems to have been a leak or trial balloon of some sort. When will we have confirmation of the appointment?

Coincidentally, as El Universal published the story, I was on the phone interviewing former US Ambassador to Mexico James R. Jones, who served in Mexico City from 1993-1997, and has successfully combined a career in the private sector and public service. I spoke with Ambassador Jones about the role of the ambassador and the Secretary of State, as well as his thoughts on the current US news coverage of the Mexican drug wars.

You can read the interview here:

Secretary of State Hlillary Clinton comes to Mexico.

2009-03-26T10:11:00.000-07:00

My day yesterday was typical of the current cognitive dissonance in the debate over Mexico. From the comfort of my calm apartment in the fashionable Condesa neighborhood, I sipped coffee, attended to morning emails and did a scan of the morning news: NPR: Violence Continues As Drug Wars Rage In Mexico; The New York Times: Mexican Drug Cartel Violence Spills Over, Alarming U.S.. CNN piled on, sending the intrepid Anderson Cooper to the border to check things out. They even have a title for the unfolding drama: The War Next Door.

Yesterday evening, I attended the press conference given by US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, in which she announced a new US-funded scholarship program for indigenous students in Mexico. The setting was the stunning Bellas Artes museum, in Mexico City's historical center. Aside for the usual traffic, I arrived just fine, no bodyguards required, no encounters with stray bullets or thuggery of any sort. Secretary Clinton was warm and engaging, and carried on a brief but lively discussion with the Mexican students selected to accompany her on the dais.

Maybe Anderson Cooper should bring his camera crew to follow me on my daily rounds, just to provide the American public with an idea of what's going on in the rest of this very large and very diverse country.

Where are you from, Morena?

2009-03-26T09:47:00.000-07:00

Three and a half years ago, I came to Mexico with my husband Aran Shetterly to start an English language media company called Inside México. Our time in Mexico has been an interesting journey, full of highs and lows. In addition to learning about Mexico, we’ve learned more about ourselves that we ever imagined possible, and have gained a new perspective on what it means to be an American and a citizen of the world. This blog is about my daily life in Mexico, love, entrepreneurship, economics, culture and identity, and perhaps a little bit of knitting.