LAKESIDE LIVING

Carol D Bradley 2020

Carol D. Bradley

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Phone: 33-2506-7525

August 2020

 

“Medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits, and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for.”

—Dead Poets Society

Whatever our pursuit of the arts may be—acting, painting, writing, music, cooking—the pursuit of beauty in our work is appreciated by everyone who loves what we stay alive for.

Here at Lakeside, those of us who can, with the proper safety precautions, are enjoying the music of our local musicians and the food and ambiance of our entertainment venues. They are pulling out all the stops to entice us out, safely of course, with live music and outstanding food experiences.

They have been waiting for you.

While our popular Open Circle presentations have been suspended, here is their usual inclusion in Lakeside Living for your information:

“The Lake Chapala Society hosts Open Circle every Sunday at 10AM, a popular community gathering in Ajijic every Sunday morning to enjoy a diverse range of presentations.”

On July 1, Open Circle began operating under the capable management of The Lake Chapala Society. They regret that they remain uncertain when they will be permitted by the State of Jalisco to reopen the LCS campus and resume some form of safe Sunday morning Open Circle gatherings. They are hoping that will occur sometime in September, but the course of the virus is unpredictable and so patience and flexibility are required of schedulers, presenters, and our faithful family of attendees. We all agree that safety is the prime consideration.

In the meantime, in lieu of live presentations, the following reruns of favorite presenters is offered. In August there may also be some selfie videos that, if submitted, will take immediate precedence over reruns. Stay tuned. All videos are accessible through opencircleajijic.org.

Olga Kaplounenko. Nine Romantic Songs in Two Romance Languages Plus Russian & English.

Olga Kaplounenko

Olga Kaplounenko

Our favorite Russian chanteuse will enchant us with nine romantic songs from different countries. They will be sung in Russian, Italian, English, and Spanish.

Olga is a Muscovite who earned a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering as well as a degree in music and jazz vocals from the Moscow Jazz College. She was a guest researcher in Denmark, Sweden, and later in Silicon Valley, where she worked for 16 years. While in the US, she sang solo and in different choirs. When her husband (recently deceased) was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2011, they moved to Lakeside where she’s been involved with Los Cantantes and has participated in the LLT productions Drowsy Chaperone and Tickle Your Fancy. She also plays piano and guitar, but singing is her passion.

Ed Tasca.  Leonardo da Vinci: A Tribute.

Leonardo da Vinci

Not Ed Tasca

Arguably the most fascinating mind the known cosmos has ever produced, Leonardo da Vinci was a major figure of the Italian Renaissance. This year the world joins in celebrating him on the 500th anniversary of his death. Ed Tasca will attempt to capture da Vinci’s essence but will certainly fall short. As of yet no historian, no biographer, no researcher has been able to come close because of the vast array of his achievements and the complexity of his creative genius.

Ed Tasca is a writer, novelist, playwright, and essayist. Among his books is a collection of Leo’s fables, The Fables of Leonardo da Vinci. Tasca’s works have been published in the US, Canada, England, Australia, Italy, and Mexico. He currently writes a weekly humor column for the Guadalajara Reporter and does some acting.

Peter Steven Malakoff.  An Introduction to Ayurveda.

Peter Steven Malakoff

Peter Steven Malakoff

Ayurveda is the oldest medical system in the world, and gave birth to Chinese, Tibetan, Greek, and Western medicine. Our present approach to healing has gone over to the “dark side of the force,” primarily treating symptoms with drugs and surgery instead of removing the cause. As a result, iatrogenic disease (a state of ill health or adverse effect resulting from medical treatment) is now the third leading cause of death in the Western world! Ayurveda is not idealistic and what may be good for one person may be poisonous for another. Ayurveda always takes into account dosha (elemental body type), season, time of day, and period of life (youth, middle age, and old age), and in those contexts prescribes diet, herbs, lifestyle changes, and other modalities to bring about health.

Peter has a degree in Religious Studies (Hinduism-Buddhism) from UCSB and in 2004 received the Ayurvedic Sadhana Padavika Diploma from Kalidas Sanskrit University, Maharashtra, India. For the last 14 years he has taught courses on Ayurveda in the United States and India.

Carlos Martinez, Bryan Clark, and John Pint. You Need to See to Believe Mexico.

More than 1,000 years of Meso-American cultures define Mexico in so many ways, but the sudden influence of Spain transformed everything. New cultures emerged through a mishmash of religion and traditions. Life as it was known before changed for the inhabitants of the New Spain.

Forty million people visit Mexico every year, but little do they fathom its secrets. This Sunday three experts will introduce you to what is only a stone’s throw away, untouched and barely on the map—natural, man-made, cultural, and culinary experiences unknown to most locals. They will reveal some of the fantastic secrets of Mexico.

John Pint, writer, professor. Passionate speleologist and nature lover. A life of exploring.

Bryan Clark, always a helping hand in more than a dozen countries.

Carlos Martínez, writer, professor. Passionate speleologist. Curious about everything.

Música Para Crecer. The San Juan Children’s Orchestra and Chorus Annual Holiday Concert.

Five years ago a few community leaders in San Juan Cosalá began a music program intended to give disadvantaged, at-risk children a sure and safe path to young adulthood. The students studied hard, stayed off the streets, and devoted themselves to what they most loved—music. They have traveled to music festivals and camps, encountered children of other cultures, lived with them, and made music with them. The program has transformed not only individual lives but also the village itself. The San Juan Children’s Orchestra and Chorus (Música Para Crecer) now enriches the lives of 80 children from five to 18 years of age. It includes 20-year-old graduates of the program who assist as teachers. Their Open Circle concert features traditional Mexican, pop, classical, and Latin American music, with Daniel Medeles conducting.

 As a nonprofit civic organization, Música Para Crecer is supported solely by governmental grants and private donations. Government support for the arts has been drastically reduced under the current administration, and the orchestra is looking for generous patrons and the backing of civic organizations and businesses to help guarantee their future. Open Circle has watched them from the very beginning and has adopted them into our hearts as though they were our own. Let us continue to relish their music and do our best to assure their future.

During the month of July, Open Circle will remain closed for outdoor monthly gatherings, but will provide weekly videos of the past most highly rated presentations. These are accessible at opencircleajijic.org. On the docket are:

open circle

“We at Bare Stage have been praying that events will open soon, so that we can get on with the business of entertaining people. At our meeting this last Wednesday we had to scrap plans for an August production of The Savannah Sipping Society, a hilarious comedy. We had just chosen the cast before all closed down. We’re now hopeful about moving forward in September but that depends on how the fight against the virus progresses. Our theater space can be ‘open air’ and seats will be arranged for ‘social distancing.’

bare stage logo

“We’re chomping at the bit to see you again, and hope all of you in the Lakeside Community (and beyond) are healthy and eager for a return to the ‘new’ normal, soon.”

I will continue to keep tabs on our theater and arts organizations to find any news on reopening. Stay tuned, readers. Lakeside Living does not know what life will look like for our new normal . . . we wish you all good health and happy survival.

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