Being a Philly fan
By Lou Christine, Jan 12, 2007

The phoenix is best known for being the bird that rises from its ashes, but this year it’s my Phightin’ Philadelphia Eagles football team. Eight weeks ago when the Eagles’ all-pro quarterback, Donovan McNabb, was injured and knocked out for the season with a torn ACL (anterior cruciate ligament), even the most ardent Eagles fan would have predicted they were more done than that Thanksgiving turkey and you might as well put a fork in them. 

But wait! Off the bench came a journeyman quarterback named Jeff García who took over the reins along with a hard-nosed defense, and both have led the Eagles back from the dead with six straight wins. These days, the Eagles are in the mix to vie for a Super Bowl berth! García has spunk and exhibited the heart of a champion. The Philly defense is much like the spirit of the city itself—they make you pay dearly and painfully for any gain.

The Eagles came from near the back of the pack to win their NFC East Division by beating the Cowboys on Christmas Day, 27–7, ensuring a spot in the NFL playoffs.

Then, last Sunday, the team in green whooped the New York Giants 23–20 and are now just two wins away from returning to the big game on February 4. This Saturday they visit the rejuvenated Saints in New Orleans.

Down here in San Miguel, a certain contingent of expatriates and many Mexican and American football fans root for a number of teams. Tom Vincent and David Bossman are big New York Giants fans, the Kimball boys, of hot air balloon fame, religiously follow the San Francisco 49ers, Gerry Gill and Jimi (the hat) Strange are loyal to the Cleveland Browns, Meagan Burns loves her Chicago Bears, Gabriel Rubiera and Paco, front man for local rock band “Pila Seca,” are strong for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Chris Norris loves the Atlanta Falcons. Robbie Mantooth, Dan Goodman and Steve Kelso go with the Tennessee Titans, Tom (the Massager) Frazee adores the Rams, and guys like Bill Taylor lead a big contingent of Dallas Cowboy fans known for their braggadocio. 

Anybody who knows me realizes that moi and a few other die-hard Eagles fans, like Larry McGearity, Elizabeth Breck and Jim Callahan, live and die with the Eagles. Cut us and we bleed Eagle green.

Now, being an Eagles fan has been tough duty, as has being a Philadelphia sports fan. The “City of Brotherly Shove” hasn’t had a major sports franchise win a title of any sort since 1983, a drought lasting longer than in any other major sports city in the country. The last bit of glory was when Julius Irving and Moses Malone led the city’s Philadelphia 76er basketball team to an NBA title in 1983. 



The Philadelphia Phillies waited 98 years, until 1980, to win its first World Series game, let alone its only Major League baseball championship, a length of time way longer than the Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs have had to wait. Philadelphia’s hockey team, the Flyers, won back-to-back Stanley Cups in the mid ’70s, but before that, championships have been mostly nonexistent. It is probably some William Penn curse or something.


The Eagles made it to three NFC Championship games (2002–2003) then lost before earning the right go to the Super Bowl after the 2004 season, only to be defeated by the New England Patriots in Jacksonville, Florida. Before that debacle the only other Super Bowl appearance by the Eagles was in 1980. The Eagles came up empty when the bad-boy Oakland Raiders cleaned their clocks in New Orleans. Only the losses of certain women’s hearts have hurt more. Philly fans have to go back to 1960—that’s way before there was such a thing as a Super Bowl—when Norm Van Brocklin and “Concrete” Chuck Bednerik beat Vince Lombardi’s star-laden Green Bay Packers to win the NFL championship at Franklin Field on December 26, 1960.

I was all of 13, standing on the corner in the freezing cold on that day. A truck driver delivering milk to a corner store asked if I was a football fan. “Shoots! Does an accordion player wear rings?” The deliveryman looked at his watch and said he would not be able to make the Monday afternoon game. I had a free ticket. I had about 80 cents in my pocket, enough to get me on a bus and the El to go out to West Philadelphia on the University of Pennsylvania campus to have a frosty 20-yard-line seat, sitting with some kind-hearted fans who bought me hot dogs and hot chocolate, screaming my lungs out and watching my Eagles win that historic game.

Little did I know that 46 years would pass without another professional football championship under my belt.

I like to say I am more of a fan of the game than strictly a homer. Over the years I have fallen in love with teams like the Miami Dolphins in the early ’70s, the Pittsburgh Steelers in the late ’70s and the ’Niner’s with Joe Montana, mostly because during those eras my team stunk to the heavens and the Eagles certainly didn’t soar. 

I played the game until I was 23 and coached for many years. In my view, there is no better viewing sport. I like the contact, the strategy, the blazing speed and athletic moves. I admire the camaraderie and teamwork and the nail-biting suspense. 

When I coached, I’d tell my players that playing football might be their last chance to really put the wood to someone, to knock them on their butts, because later on in life, one could go to jail for such action. But on a football field, all opponents are fair game and participants are permitted to plow into opponents with all their might.

So here we are in January, and my Eagles are in the hunt. They have overcome adversity and doubt. They’re sticking it to others. They’re again in a position to win, and maybe this Eagle fan can finally get bragging rights and win a Super Bowl before I’m pushing up daisies. Eagles have always been underdogs, as has been Rocky Balboa and a myriad of Philadelphians, me included. Philadelphians have heard all the W.C. Fields sort of jokes. We want respect and perhaps our piece of the pie. Maybe, well just maybe, the time has come! Let’s go Eagles! Bring it home, baby!

Letters, Jan 12, 2007

Send your letters to the editor to letters@atencionsanmiguel.org  Atención will not publish offensive or defamatory material.



Editor,

I learned with dismay about Bold Mountain Development’s project to convert one of San Miguel de Allende’s most beautiful parks into a “bald mountain” by cutting more than 200 healthy and beautiful trees. The area in question is the only remaining preserved land of what once was a beautiful orchard. Greedy developers have destroyed most of the area and turned it into an ugly desert. Now, Bold Mountain intends to follow their example and kill whatever is left of the environment.

I appeal to Bold Mountain’s sense of decency and imagination as real estate developers. You can make a beautiful multimillion-dollar residential development by exploiting the trees instead of destroying them. An area with shady green parks and gardens will attract a lot more attention from wealthy prospective buyers than a high-density development that resembles low-income housing in a concrete jungle. By preserving the environment you actually give more value to your investment.

You also need to consider your long-term prospects. You can be an example of sustainable development in one of Mexico’s prime real estate markets or you can kill the goose that lays the golden eggs by making the town look like a slum.

If you act with responsibility, the residents of San Miguel will welcome you and help you be successful. If you come just to make a fast buck, we will fight you at every step and tell you: “Gringo, go home and cut trees in Aspen, Colorado—not here.”

Rodrigo Treviño

Editor,

My husband and I had the pleasure of taking a young, sweet, and lively little girl from the Don Bosco Orphanage out shopping for Three Kings Day. We had done this in the past, but this year our lives got in the way of making a timely commitment to do it again. As luck would have it, Susan at La Conexión got a phone call from the orphanage as I was waiting to pick up my mail. Apparently, there was one little girl who hadn’t been shopping to pick out gifts yet. Of course I agreed to do it, and I am so glad we did. Maria Juana wanted to go to Mega (it’s new and exotic—who could blame her?), and we made a morning out of it, browsing the clothes and toys and having a snack afterwards. It made our day to make the day of this child, and to see her beautiful smile, and get a warm hug and a kiss! The taxi that took us back to the orphanage waited until she was safely back inside and then took us back to our home. We chatted about where we’d been, and the driver expressed his sincere gratitude that there were people willing to take time out to do something for these children. This was what I call a real holiday moment, where the barriers of language and culture just crumbled away as we talked. It turned out that this driver was the son-in-law of our housekeeper and he knew who we were! This just demonstrates to me that San Miguel is a small village, really. And we all have to look out for one another and, when able, to help others that are not as fortunate as us. This event was truly a rewarding and uplifting experience. We strongly urge everyone to mark their calendars for next year’s shopping trip during the holidays—you’ll be glad you did! If you are interested in doing more for the orphans during the rest of the year, please contact Susan at La Conexión, who coordinates this effort. Both time and/or donations are most welcome, and volunteers are always needed!

Teresa K.

Editor,

I understand that San Miguel needs to allow controlled development and encourage commercial enterprises in ways that bring in revenue without adding unnecessarily to the ugliness that sometimes accompanies commercial development. It is reasonable, for example, to permit enterprises to identify themselves with signs that can be seen from the road, or that identify the route to off-road locations. However, I wonder if the municipal authorities have considered that large-scale advertising billboards along the roads and streets, though they may be a source of some income, are both garish and unnecessary.

Other forms of advertising that do not intrude on the eyes of every resident and visitor are available. 

Left unchecked, the competitive proliferation of billboard advertising can eventually create an impression of sleaziness that will repel visitors to San Miguel and undermine the value of the very hotels, developments, and other enterprises that will increasingly feel compelled to compete for attention through such advertising. 

I respectfully suggest that San Miguel’s municipal authorities may find it useful to look into the experience of the municipalities and states in other countries that have chosen to preserve the natural beauty and historical interest of their area by declining to permit random, large-scale billboard advertising.

Richard Brown 



Editor,

In response to the ad by Charles Albert Weiss [Dec. 29, p. 54], I personally am thankful that the new shopping centers are here. If he likes the old one better, it is still there for his pleasure.

As for myself, I found the old one reasonable until all the products began to be imported from the US, and I refuse to buy or eat them.

Also, as far as the cobblestones go, I personally could not manage them with a cart full of groceries and dog food. It was a constant pain to me.

So, as much as I appreciate SMA and its charm, I am delighted to have a decent store, so I don’t have to drive to Querétaro for items that could not be found in SMA before. It’s nice to be able to park, push my cart on cement, and be helped by people who are always there if you need them.

Maybe some trees and plants could make the places more attractive, but the convenience is great.

Our centro is becoming terrible, what with all the new construction, dug up streets, lack of parking, and filth.

I wish we could all live in the past, drive horse and buggies, and live in Wonderland, but progress is here to stay, whether we like it or not.

We can only hope it is done in good taste, and good for everyone.

Nora Thea Lewis



Editor,

I am trying to, as they used to say, wrap my mind around the message of the full-page paid advertisement called STOP ALL THIS CHANGE that appeared in your issue of Dec. 29. So, let me see ... I do agree that we need to stop all this change. It appears that the author, Mr. Charles Weiss, is attempting to be ironic, and I will reply to that. But first, I would like to supply some information. There is no “new” Gigante. Yep, that’s the sad truth. It’s like this: The old Gigante moved into a new building! That’s what happened! Just breathe in the familiar sent of old codfish near the entrance and “follow your nose” to the same old, same old. You will find yourself in the same unwelcoming presence of your old friend Gigante. Yes, there is the same brown-edged lettuce and lots of your old favorites. 

It may be somewhat amusing to make fun of the people here, Mexicans and foreigners alike, who feel that it is vital to maintain the integrity of this colonial town. I don’t find it particularly amusing to pretend that we (I include myself) feel that the old Gigante and Pollo Feliz are the “old San Miguel.” That is ridiculous and fatuous. Is it possible that we could accept a historical downtown and the rest of San Miguel can go to hell? It is too late for that. Subway just appeared, and for everyone’s information, Wal-Mart has all their papers signed, sealed, and delivered. Did they do all their paperwork in San Miguel? Why, no. If they had, then everyone would know. But they will know soon and can watch the emergence, as if by magic, of a Wal-Mart in our own town soon. And what will this do to help San Miguel prosper and grow? If you have ever lived in a town that received the blessing of a Wal-Mart store, then you know how fast the original stores that held your town together went out of business one by on
e. This has happened everywhere a Wal-Mart has appeared. But maybe that's ok, too. Mega Comercial, Wal-Mart, Suburbia soon to follow, will have us pining for the old San Miguel of yesterday, codfish and all.

Bob Freeman

Editor,

We live on a quiet, safe street in San Antonio. At 11pm on Sunday night, our doorbell rang. I went to the door with trepidation and asked who was there. It was a policeman, asking if it was my motor scooter parked on the street in front of my house. In fact, it was. I had forgotten to put it in the garage for the night.

What an unexpected, gracious service! Where else but in San Miguel could this happen?

Gracias, policía de San Miguel de Allende.

Charles Soberman



Editor, 

First of all, I want everyone to receive my warmest good wishes for 2007. As you know, over the last few years the quality as well as the quantity of the shows, lectures and films in the Teatro Santa Ana and Sala Quetzal have improved a lot, and for this I have to thank all of you, because working together as a team we have achieved this good start.

Now, I have a special request to make to the generosity of Atención readers. The musical and artistic community here in our beloved San Miguel has been populated by excellent musicians, singers and composers from all over the world and from all the genres. We do have a piano in the Sala Quetzal, which by the way was donated by Kay Franger. This piano has given us delightful moments during concerts and recitals. Just picture a jazz, opera or chamber music concert in the theater—maybe even musicals!

Unfortunately, this piano doesn’t fit on the stage. We need a good upright piano that can be stored behind the curtains and that will leave us space for live theater and all the events that we hold in our Santa Ana theater. Maybe someone out there has such a piano and could donate it to the Teatro Santa Ana?

Please, make my year and surprise me with a call. Music lovers in San Miguel will thank you. For more info, suggestions or surprises, call me at 152-7305, ext. 116, Teatro Santa Ana.

José Luis Mendoza Aubert



Editor,

In response to Alice Sperling’s comments on the quality of local restaurants (January 5, p. 37), I would like to point out that many of us in San Miguel have worked or lived in other foreign countries and have enjoyed the local cuisines. But we came here because we like the Mexican culture. Mexican culture is Mexican food. I no more expected to find a “great” Mexican restaurant in Singapore than Ms. Sperling should “expect” to find “great” Chinese food here. She reminds me of the (too) many newcomers who “love” Mexico but want to live here in high-rise condos and find parking for their Hummers.

But so as not to be completely negative to Ms. Sperling, I hereby offer to lend her any of my collection of cookbooks from around the world.

Buen provecho!

Gordon Jett



Editor,

Finally, a voice that speaks out what I have been thinking for a long time. The restaurant food in San Miguel is, like Alice Sperling writes, mediocre and boring.

I totally agree with her that I do much better by cooking at home. I’m a casual cook and don’t claim do be a chef, but most of the time after eating out in San Miguel I think I should have stayed home and done the cooking by myself. Of course, there are a few exceptions. Just to name one, I don’t get tired of the chilaquiles and the green salsa at Café de la Parroquia.

Claudius Ruile



The Biblioteca Pública will hold its annual meeting on Friday, February 9, 

at 11am in the library’s Sala Quetzal, Insurgentes 25. 

The meeting is open to library members and the general public.



La Biblioteca Pública celebrará su junta anual el viernes 9 de febrero, 

a las 11am en la Sala Quetzal de la Biblioteca, en Insurgentes 25. 

La junta estará abierta para los socios de la Biblioteca y al público en general.



THANK YOU

This issue of Atención was made possible by contributions from …

Lou Christine

Robert de Gast

Julie Doherty

Christine Foster

Melanie Harris de Maycotte

Tim Hazell

Jim Johnston

B. K. Lake

Teresa Lemon Shepro

Gonzalo Martínez

Charles Miller

Gary Mitchell

Elsmarie Norby

Sally Philips

Doug Robinson

Linda Sorin

Robin Velte

Carolina Vidal

Editing & Proofreading

José Luis Mendoza Aubert

Darryl Clifford

Robert de Gast

Arlene Krasner

Luba.