Posts:
By Mark Travers Ph.D. Nothing can rattle your sense of invincibility and security quite like a rupture in normalcy: losing a job, getting a life-changing medical diagnosis, experiencing a breakup, or losing a loved one. The reactions these crises spur may differ...
If you ever wondered what happens when a childhood fascination with Meccano and Lego collides with the arrival of tercera edad, then the answer may be called Arduino. The name is Italian, but in Spanish I think it means “something that won’t work until you watch five...
When I saw that the late Virginia Giuffre was publishing a memoir called Nobody’s Girl, I downloaded a copy out of professional curiosity, even though I have no experience as a pimp on my resume. Once upon a time Charlie worked for a couple of years at a Florida...
By Karla Freeman But don’t do the other sins Are there good syns and bad sins? Don’t you agree that there are ways to see life that work to feel alive and prosperous no matter what is happening on the outside? The other day I decided I was ready to receive clients as...
The other day an expat retired engineer at my patio de comidas table told me he did not understand why Ecuador’s interest rates never budge when the Fed raises its own. In that moment I realized most of us brought our dollars here without quite knowing how they behave...
By Paula Span Ronald Klein was biking around his neighborhood in North Wales, Pennsylvania, in 2006 and tried to jump a curb. “But I was going too slow — I didn’t have enough momentum,” he recalled. As the bike toppled, he thrust out his left arm to break the fall. It...
Editor's note: Carol Leutner is hosting a conversation about her new book, 21st Century Paradigm Shift: What It Is and How to Thrive In It, Saturday, October 25, 6 pm at Carolina Bookstore, Calle Hermano Miguel 6-76 y Presidente Cordova. By Jeremiah Reardon Feeling...
When I first heard Cuencano parents talking about Peppa Pig, I thought they were recommending a new cut of pork at the mercado: something to go with mote pillo and a side of ají. But no, Peppa Pig (or La Cerdita Peppa in Spanish) is not a dish of spiced pork, she is a...
By Caleigh Wells Wasted food is a financial and environmental bummer. It costs U.S. consumers $728 every year, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, and emits the annual equivalent planet-warming greenhouse gases of 42 coal-fired power plants. Carleigh...
By Ray Horsley What an odd custom, dining out. Somehow, we've come to view this routine as perfectly normal, but how might this be viewed by another civilization from our distant past, one unfamiliar with the practice? We go out with the idea of treating ourselves to...
By Ray Horsley My recent article "Why Cuenca Needs Uber" solicited a good deal of responses, even an entire article from one of Cuenca Highlife's most prominent writers. With the same idea in mind, that being a minor touch which could improve the already wonderful...
By Steve Hendrix Ending your U.S. citizenship isn’t quick, easy or cheap. The decision is permanent and, of course, some other country has to take you. Still, thousands of Americans living abroad do it every year. Among notable ex-Americans are writer T.S. Eliot,...
As Cole Porter wrote and Louis Armstrong once sang in a duet to Ella Fitzgerald, “Let’s do it, let’s fall in love.” These days in Cuenca, it seems everyone’s doing it, only they are falling for digital transfers instead. Not cards, not cash, just a quick hop from your...
By John Olson Cuenca’s English language theater has scored a coup in securing the rights to produce a new play that has already won rave reviews in Chicago, Los Angeles and Denver since its premiere in Michigan in 2023. A Jukebox for the Algonquin is a comedy-drama...
By Miriam Drake It’s not morbid, it’s practical! Have you told your loved ones how you want to be cared for at the end of your life? Are you content and peaceful inside with respect to all of your relationships? Have you told these folks everything you want them to...
If you ever wonder why the senora behind the counter at your favorite panadería looks as asustada when you reach for a debit card as if you had pulled a gun, the answer is simple. Cash is cheap. Plastic is pricey. When you hand over seventy dollars for a slap-up...
By Louis Bourgeois The essence of my mission of service I call Conscious Living. And this whole teaching is predicated on the evolution of consciousness. In a nutshell, we are entering our 3rd era as humans. Our first emergence was our transition from our primate...
Now and then, a news story from the United States filters down to Cuenca that’s so strange it feels imported from another planet. Last week’s comes wrapped in fur coats, private jets, and 1910 legislation. It involves Sean “Diddy” Combs a rapper. recording mogul,...
By Simar Bajaj Q: I’m losing my sense of taste as I get older. What can I do about it? All senses decline with age, but taste loss is surprisingly common. A 2016 study estimated that about three-fourths of older adults have taste issues — more than any other sensory...
In May 2022, my wife Belinda and I flew from our home in Cuenca, Ecuador to San Francisco, California, for our nephew Matthew Reardon’s wedding. “Belinda, it’s great we’re gonna see Joe! It’s been four years.” I reminded her as we settled into our seats on the...
