Typing to you live from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico!
En route to ProjectHola’s 2011 World Headquarters, tomorrow I go to Guadalajara and on Wednesday, I take a four hour bus ride to San Miguel de Allende. Who wants to join me? =)
Today’s Big News is the announcement of the winner of last week’s drawing for Ten Free Name Tags. The winner is FutureStorm! But the rest of you can take heart – Ten Free Name Tags will be given away this week, too!
SURPRISE (or not) DRAWING for TEN FREE NAME TAGS!
To enter, simply post a comment on any ProjectHola! blog article between now and 9:00pm PDT Sunday, June 8, 2011.
Drawing for Ten Free Name Tags!
The winner, drawn at random, will be announced within next Monday’s ProjectHola! blog article (June 9th).
This drawing is open to everyone, world-wide. The Ten Free Name Tags will be in English (as pictured above) and will be sent via the United States Postal Service, courtesy of my father.
Thank you, everyone, for your comments during the previous week. They are highly appreciated.
As for me, I’m struggling with a frustratingly slow Internet connection at the moment, so I’m simply going to walk away from my laptop and continue my life-long search for the world’s best enchiladas.
Hasta pronto!
=) Eric
This time I will be the first one to comment!
Wishing you good luck on your trip!
Hope the enchiladas were tasty!
Project Hola Moments
I live in a rural/wilderness interface “resort” community that includes a hefty proportion of folks who really just want to be left alone to interact with people just like themselves. So, I am inclined to let them.
On Father’s Day, I dragged my husband out to walk the dogs and kids around the lake and reached out beyond my preconceptions for two lovely encounters that made my life more happy. First, as we approached a curve in the path, a bench sits facing the lake. A man and a young boy sat, each wearing a different kind of hat. The glistening lake water outlined the silhouettes of their backs and the outlines of the hats – one tall, one lower.
I thought, what a lovely picture for Father’s Day. So I handed my dog over to the husband and asked the man if he had a camera. He pointed down the bank to his friend who had one with a lens about two feet long! No, I said, just something to take a photo of the two of you, because it looks so cute from behind here with your hats. He handed me his cell phone, I took the photo, and he sent it to his father right away.
Just a moment to say “hola.”
About a mile further we saw two brawny young men carrying mechanical looking bows with spears attached by a substantial nylon line. Chris inquired of what they were hunting. We then engaged in a rather involved conversation about invasive carp, overgrown, discarded goldfish, game laws, tourism and life stories. Overall, rather pleasant and informative.
I have become much more closed in on myself, focused on my own tasks, and do not speak with “strangers” very much. Yes, I do try to engage the check-out clerk in genuine conversation, but it’s a chore because it is more efficient to just move on.
Wandering amidst a world of isolated strangers who none-the-less live vitally interconnected lives impoverishes the human experience and endangers overall survival. Breaking out of the isolation, silence and indifference offers adventure, contented connection and happiness.