Palo Alto Jo

At one time, 35 years ago, I moved from Southern California to Texas. The difference in housing was dramatic, I wanted to buy up all the houses and "re-sell" them. Luckily, I found out quickly that the housing market in Texas was never a money maker back then. We lost money on our house every time we were transferred, about 6 times in 30 years. In 2010 we actually made a little on our house sale. Now, the house I sold in 2010 is valued at twice what it was then. I think you hint at the possible reason, it probably has a lot to do with politics, taxes, schools and jobs. People will pay more to be in a desirable location, and Boquete certainly qualifies as more desirable than David to most ex-pats I assume.

I have seen young people post their "hidden tattoo" pictures that often also include the F bomb.... Talk about double permanent. Might as well have had the tattoo on their face. Why these people feel the urge to disclose their "secrets" rather than use the media to increase understanding of different topics is beyond me.

If a mob can't pull Maduro off the world stage, I don't see any hope for Venezuela. He's relatively young, and completely blind to his own people's suffering. His waistline alone infuriates me in a nation of starving people. And this in a country that was one of the wealthiest in South America. What a mess socialism has made of a once emerging country. Added to that fact that both Maduro and Hugo Chavez have transformed the country into a dictatorship. Starving people have a much harder time storming the Bastille.

I had breakfast this morning with a friend who was born here, and spent most of her life here. I feel her pain in one area. Building costs and regulations have reached the point where it's the rare Panamanian who can purchase a home or even repair their current home. She says you have to go to the outskirts of David to find land or homes anywhere near affordable. She noted it has all occurred in the last 15 years, and yes, it's because Gringos are willing to pay exorbitant prices for property. I have to take her word on this, but part of me also thinks ex-pats do not compete for smaller, Panamanian style homes. But, I guess our houses have made even the smallest home here go up in value based on the supply, demand and location. I can see that being very worrisome to the locals. My friend says neither she nor her almost grown children could afford any home in Boquete. And she is an educated professional. They would be near homeless but for the fact her parents bought the home she lives in 50 years ago, that she now struggles to maintain, as building materials have skyrocketed.

Penny, I love that idea. That would be so fun, and take care of the parking situation. And I'm betting it'll be a packed bus every time.

I'm charging $49, and starting at 7:55 a.m. JOKING!!

Wish I could read that. May get a friend to help me. The reason they no longer allow people to be paid in the U.S. is because studies showed the people who "donated" for the money often were the highest risk of passing on hepatitis and HIV, many were homeless street people in poor health themselves. I'd love to see the pre-blood draw questions asked of donors here. Are there required lifestyle questions as well as medical and travel questions? Or does that vary from place to place? If it's up to doctors, maybe we could get a local doctor to be willing to store and distribute as needed the few (maybe 4-6 units total, A,O, and B kept on hand) that we need here in Boquete. Dra. Boya has an ambulance , she might be a logical choice. Just a thought.

I'm thinking they may need to adjust their fees, too. Wow, we have paid $20 a day twice, and the last time had a beautiful young lady house sit for free for a week. We just paid for her groceries, she didn't have to pay for a hotel. Worked out for all.

Just as no one wants to live to be 100 years old except the fellow who is 99..... No one cares a fig about a blood bank until it's them or their loved-one in dire need. I do hope we can all start speaking loudly, every time we see a physician, that we are concerned. Most of us cannot donate to each other due to age or travelling, so please let us help get one going that does work for all. Even if we cannot donate, I'm sure the volunteers to assist in blood drives at churches and civic meetings (bring cookies and juice and pat hands, etc) would pour out. I wonder what the veterinarians do here. I remember that there was a dog blood bank in Houston featured on the evening news, and that there is a "universal dog donor" type. These valuable dogs (often rescue or strays) are kept at vet labs or by vets themselves I've heard about one dog that may have helped saved hundreds of dogs in her life.

Ok, OK!! My guilt is high, the cats haven't been to the vet in ages. It doesn't look too traumatic,, I'm going to take them in!! Thanks for the nudge. Dr. Chely looks like a fine choice.

I agree Bonnie. I will join your crusade, and I continue to talk to lots of doctors. In your arguments please add that it is easier to start in Chiriqui, get the kinks out, before unifying it with a countrywide system. It could be perfected here, lessons learned, before implementation in Panama City. I know several people with PhDs in Blood Banking in the States , I'm sure we could get one here to give us some help and supply valuable information, especially a retired one, or one from a charitable-minded organization.

Beautiful pictures, interesting flora. I'm inspired to make the trip. Glad to see the road is good, and the park seems to be true jungle. Thanks for posting.

I guess I'd need to see this statistic from a recognized Public Health organization, no offense to your neighbor that teaches English. AIDS untreated (as most of these would be if it were in 50% of the population) leads to emaciation and death. I don't see a whole lot, certainly not 50%, of the Indigenous peoples walking around terribly thin, with open sores, tuberculosis etc, which goes along with AIDS.

I had a rather fun discussion with an Hispanic friend from the U.S. recently. He told me that Pio Pio is the "sound" that a chicken makes, not "peep peep" or "cluck cluck". We went through lots of animals getting the translation for "moo", "meow", "baaa". I don't remember the translation for "arf", but I'm pretty sure it's also very different. Arf is no doubt meaningless in Spanish. Good move to get a name that has more wide-spread appeal.

A little off subject here Charlotte, but if you have any voice in the ongoing discussions I highly recommend the system used by UPMC (Pennsylvania) system be looked at. They are the best I've ever worked with, cover many States and even Saudi Arabia. Far superior to the Red Cross. Very hi-tech, very easy, very standardized so that all hospitals work exactly the same, and share records. All crossmatches are done "virtually" from a central location in Pittsburgh, and the individual hospitals simply hand out the unit number that is deemed appropriate by the Central Blood Bank personelle. The Main Blood Bank keeps records on all donors and recipients for future reference, which is extremely important if someone had to receive non-type specific units in an emergency. Future transfusions can be trickier, and might be at a different hospital the next time. So, keeping central records is important. I think their system is far, far advanced over anything the Red Cross has , less expensive, less red-tape , and extremely safe, as each transfusion is verified by 2 technicians for clerical errors (the number one cause of BB accidents), one at the Central BB, one local, before a unit is transfused. They also know of every unit sitting in every refrigerator, so when a certain unit is needed at another location, that unit is transferred to the site needing it.

Bonnie, We certainly have a difference in our personal experiences. Thanks for giving me another perspective. My gardener tells me thanks for the food. Then I found out he was throwing all the meat in the bushes unless it was chicken. He basically wants chicken, rice, potatoes, hot tea. Even throws out carrot sticks and lettuce. Other families he worked for gave him chirrizo and canned hams for Christmas, and we learned he threw that out, didn't even give to some other family. He told our cleaning lady that "no one would have wanted it". She's Panamanian, she wanted it!! I'm pretty sure food choices are a matter of personal taste as well as cultural. The other food they seem to eat that lacks much nutrition is plantains. The one thing not at debate is that they need more protein in their diets, the reasons are no doubt financial and personal/cultural. I do know its been going on long enough to cause birth defects, and shortened life expectancy. Let's hope education will change at least the "personal tastes", but the financial is going to be much more difficult.

The medical conditions could be improved with better diet and making incest taboo. I know the nutrition schools at Universities here are giving special lectures and classes on the Ngobe health problems, but when they try to convey their knowledge out to the Ngobe they are often told that it is "culture" as to what they eat (very little protein in the diet), and that incest is also cultural and none of our business. It is heart-breaking to watch.

On Facebook they are reporting that the driver suffered a heart attack. That seems plausible, as there were no brake lights.

I had a friend who's son was speeding on Vocancito Rd and flew into some treetops. After a minute "rest" it fell to the ground.... He walked away uninjured, and when they pulled the car up it started and was able to be driven.... Crazy luck some people have.

I'm still relatively new here, and drive by many Ngobe housing areas daily. These housing places are free to the indigenous workers and their families, right? They do buy food and personal products, but surely they do not pay for water, electricity, rent??? I realize $400 doesn't go far, but just wondering what they do have to buy. I know we try to give our gardener school supplies and toothbrushes and toothpaste and other very practical items for Christmas for his 4 kids. But, just wondering if some of the coffee finca owners don't supply addition items such as school supplies, soap, propane, etc. Extra Christmas bonuses? I guess it differs from finca to finca?

Sounds like each facility makes its own rules. Perhaps that's another reason to start a blood bank here in Boquete or Volcan. Id hate to be down in David waiting for the "proper donor" when I could have already received the blood in the ambulance on my way. In this case, these people are waiting for surgeries, but for GI bleeders or car accidents, we could start transfusing in the ambulance and the hospital couldn't deny the transfusion.

Even if there is one is David, we need a few emergency units in outlying cities, like Volcan and Boquete. The hour or more to get to David could mean bleeding to death. We have enough horrible wrecks out here to justify it. In the U.S. , when the units get nearer their expiration date, they are transferred to the nearest hospital, trauma center, and new ones are collected for the local Blood Banks. Our having little banks here would even help those in David. Any idea if it is legal to pay for blood here? We certainly have enough hostal kids around that could probably use a few bucks, they alone could keep it stocked. It's not legal to pay in the U.S. except for plasma for other uses (like shampoo).

The cost is minimal. A refrigerator (with generator) , a centrifuge, a few thermos coolers for transporting. The preservatives in the unit bags are good for about 90 days now (frozen plasma for 2 years). We could get and keep 2 As and 2 Os pretty quickly, and actually test them for hepatitis, etc. Also, we need to get smarter and give Rh pos blood to non-childbearing Rh Negative patients (especially older males, they can always safely get Rh positive blood), if needed , as well as a few other well established procedures currently in use in the U. S. Blood Banking isn't as hard as it used to be. It is one of the cheapest, but also one of the most important things in emergency healthcare. Just read the "Carnage Report" on CL daily.....

So American politicians aren't the only ones who manage to insult their voters? I bet the guy is trying to find a rock to get under right now. haha

I wonder if the operator gets to decide if it's important enough to pass on the call to the consular, or do they pass all messages? I'm not sure they characterize a stolen passport as "life or death", so they may have just ignored my friend. Or waited until the next day to deliver our message? At any rate, its nice to have the information. Phone answering for 1.5 hours per day seems pretty skimpy to me. I was getting tempted to call my Congressman to get them to answer the phone!!