Author: Kristy Ambrose

Anachronism in “Titus,” the 1999 Film Adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Titus Andronicus.”

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By Kristy Ambrose

            Anachronism is a theatrical device that places something modern in an old or ancient setting.  Although this technique is associated with postmodern cinema, plays from the Middle Ages also utilize anachronism. Shakespeare used the technique to make allegorical references to contemporary themes and political figures. This connected the mentality of his audience with the drama on stage. In modern Shakespearean adaptations, anachronism is often utilized for the same purposes. One of the richest examples is Julie Taymor’s 1999 film, “Titus.” The film uses music, costuming, and set design from various eras, with a special emphasis on the 20th century, in a Classical Roman setting. This use of anachronism helps convey the timeless themes within the play and gives the modern audience a frame of reference.

            Shakespeare’s play Titus Andronicus is unique among the Bard’s work for several reasons. Unlike other plays that use a setting from Roman antiquity, such as Julius Caesar, the characters and events of Titus Andronicus are wholly fictional even if the era is not. It contains extreme examples of the death, violence, and evil schemes that are scattered throughout the tragedies. Elizabethan plays were known for their reliance on shock value when it came to drama, and Titus was written at a time when the practice was actually fashionable. This is not one of the most popular plays when it comes to theater productions because of the horrific subject matter, and that’s as true for now as it was in Shakespeare’s time. (Ebert)

            One thing that is fairly new is the concept of adapting stage plays for the silver screen. A Shakespearean play often has to be edited to fit into the common three act structure that defines most films. In the case of Titus, some speeches are rearranged and scenes are in a different order than the play. The dialogue itself is quite faithful to the play, with some lines omitted or paced elsewhere, but nothing is added. (Titus, 1999) There are some extra scenes added at the beginning and end but these do not contain dialogue. You can follow the text of the play as you watch the film. (Shakespeare).

            The backdrop of the theme, imperial power and perpetual war, connects to the underlying theme of war. The opening scene is not in the play and takes place in a contemporary kitchen. The vintage furniture and fixtures date from the 1960s and the toy soldiers cover a variety of eras. There are Roman soldiers along with soldiers from a modern army on the kitchen table. The child is carried from the modern house into a Roman amphitheater. This transition from modern to ancient is jarring and sudden and i meant to guide the audience from their own time into a much older one.

“Titus” was filmed in Roman ruins throughout Rome and the amphitheater featured in the beginning and opening scenes is located in Croatia. The play and the film are set in an unspecified historic period and the anachronism in this scene emphasizes the ambiguous historical time frame. The following scenes, in which the dead soldiers are interred and Alarbus is sacrificed, are virtually devoid of anachronism except for some details on the uniforms of Lucius and Titus’ other sons. In the play, this is the second scene, but it is moved to the opening in the film. The sacrifice of Alarbus is the “major reversal” that sets the rest of the story in motion and takes place within the first ten to fifteen minutes of a movie. Introducing the title character first is also preferable for this medium so the audience knows exactly who he is.

As we move to the debate of Bassianus and Saturninus the time period shifts again, This time, the audience again follows young Lucius to a setting that could be any political uprising. We are back in modern times again, but not the 1950s kitchen. The clothing, music and even the hirstyles reflects the Fascist philosophy of 20th century Italy and, the hedonistic music is reminiscent of 1920s big city life. (Ebert).

Saturninus is marked out as a villain partly because of his modern clothing and hairstyle. He and his rival, Bassianus, are both dressed in modern clothing. They drive cars and use microphones that would date from the 1920s. It is in this scene that we see how color is used with anachronistic features. Each faction has different flags. The colors of traditional Rome have already been established as black, white and light blue. Bassianus is flying blue and white banners as he approaches the capital building. The banners of Saturninus are red, orange and back, a contrast to the muted colors of his brother and in a pattern that recalls the modern German flag. His haircut is reminiscent of the clean-cut styles often worn by Nazis and his black suit mimics a Nazi Gestapo uniform.(“Good Hair, Evil Hair.”) The announces his intentions to rule Rome before the capitol building, which is not Classical but instead mimics modern Fascist architecture. The references to Nazi Germany could hardly be more stark.  

Anachronism is used in this part of the film to help introduce main literary themes. There’s the conflict between traditional and modern, symbolized in the younger Bassianus claiming the throne despite his less-qualified older brother being first in line. A more compassionate and qualified ruler can be defeated by a more populist authoritarian one. Titus himself is often shown in traditional Roman military uniform, which is steadily shed as his misfortunes mount.

The two main female characters, Lavinia and Tamora, wear both traditional and anachronistic costumes and hairstyles. The colors used in their costumes is also significant. Tamora is introduced first in the traditional clothing and attire of an ancient Goth. When she is presented as part of the spoils of conquest to Emperor Saturninus from Titus, she is dressed richly in gold. This puts her in contrast to a film palette that is mostly white, light blue or black. Lavinia is always in either black, white, or grey. The only other color we ever see on her clothing is the red of her own blood.(“Titus.”)

Lavinia first appears in a black dress and veil, the cut and style of which is reminiscent of Jackie Kennedy. This is a callback to the opening scene which was set in the same 1960s era and an example of traditional modern clothing. As the daughter of Titus, Lavinia embodies the best and most pure example of Roman piety. This is symbolized by her conservative, anachronistic clothing and her entrance, to pay her respects to her fallen brothers and victorious father in their family tomb.

The Andronicus family tomb is darker than the Senate chamber and throne room, but other than lighting there is little difference in color. When we see Lavinia in the Senate chamber as the intended of Saturninus, she is wearing the same black dress. In the same scene, Tamora is dressed in a golden breastplate and gold is woven into her blond hair. She embodies the spoils of war and how easily compulsive lust and unlimited riches can corrupt a weaker man. Saturninus admits as much when he sees her by referencing her unique appearance.

On lines 288 and 289 in Act 1 Scene 1 he says, “A goodly lady, trust me; of the hue / That I would choose, were I to choose anew.” (Shakespeare). A similar device might have been used in Elizabethan times to portray Tamora as a powerful character.

Strong colors and modern but less conservative clothing are used to distinguish the main villains throughout the film adaptation. They are connected with symbols of ruthless imperial power from the modern age. The wedding feast of Emperor Saturninus and Empress Tamora is a picture of decadence. It takes place in an interior amphitheater decorated with murals and centered around a luxurious pool. This is one of the more colorful sets in the film and also one of the most historically accurate. (“Titus (1999)”)

The music dates from the early 20th century, the clothing ranges from the Classical time period to contemporary designs.  We have a rich Roman banquet combined with a swinging Prohibition-style party. Saturninus is still dressed in the same era of clothing but more white than black. Tamora wears a modern sequin gown. She’s literally in gold from head to foot. Modern audiences would recognize these symbols of wealth and power. These eras were also indicative of a time when wealth meant ignorance and power meant corruption. Rome eventually fell apart and the excess of 1920s dissolved into the Depression of the 1930s.

The villains of Titus will also fall, in a dramatic bloodbath that is actually fairly tame compared to other tragedies like Hamlet. The setting is the rustic dining room at the Andronicus estate, which is deliberately designed to fit into any or no time period, but the guests are attired in modern clothing. Titus himself is wearing a clownish chef’s outfit, which dates from the 18th century, Lavinia appears in a white dress with a modern cut that mimics a burial shroud, while Saturninus and Lucius are still wearing modern military uniforms. Both Saturninus are dressed in white and gold. The clothing of Lucius and the Emperor is a reminder that this dinner is a military negotiation and tensions are already high. Tamora stands out again in gold braids similar to the scene in the Senate, reminiscent of the lust and greed that drew the young emperor to her side.    

 As the film closes, the audience once again follows Young Lucius to a somber but hopeful resolution. He is wearing a modern white suit that could be for both his father’s coronation and his grandfather and sister’s funeral. The play that began with a messy game of war ends with a peaceful sunrise and two hopeful children walking from the ancient ruins into the horizon. By returning to the present era at the end of the film adaptation, director Julie Taymor takes the modern audience out of the surrealistic nightmare of Titus and back to waking reality. (“Titus (1999)”)

The use of anachronism in the play serves an important artistic function. Titus alienated many in Shakespeare’s time with it’s violence but many others were drawn by this same thing. Today’s audiences are equally fascinated by horror, evil plots, and death. The universal themes of revenge, greed, lust and even squabbles between lovers and family members are still featured in movies and television shows as a source of drama and intrigue. Anachronism helps an audience in the modern era understand these timeless concepts as part of their own personal experiences.

Works Cited

“Good Hair, Evil Hair.” TV Tropes, tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/GoodHairEvilHair.

Gabe Moura. “The Three-Act Structure.” Elements of Cinema – A Student’s Guide to the Fundamentals of Filmmaking, http://www.elementsofcinema.com/screenwriting/three-act-structure/.

Roger Ebert. “Titus Movie Review & Film Summary.” Movie Reviews and Ratings by Film Critic Roger Ebert, http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/titus-2000.

“Titus.” Directed by J Taymor, Clear Blue Sky Productions Overseas FilmGroup Urania Pictures S.r.l. NDF International. Film.

“Titus (1999).” IMDb, 21 Jan. 2000, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120866/?ref_=ttrel_rel_tt.

William Shakespeare. “Titus Andronicus.” Open Source Shakespeare, http://www.opensourceshakespeare.org/views/plays/play_view.php?WorkID=titus&Scope=entire&pleasewait=1&msg=pl.

Bibliography

“A Brief History Of The Chef’s Uniform.” Escoffier, 17 Feb. 2016, http://www.escoffier.edu/blog/culinary-arts/a-brief-history-of-the-chefs-uniform/.

De Grazia, Margreta, et al. “Anachronism.” Cultural Reformations: Medieval and Renaissance in Literary History, Oxford UP, 2010.

Ebert, Roger. “Titus Movie Review & Film Summary (2000).” Movie Reviews and Ratings by Film Critic Roger Ebert, 21 Jan. 2000, http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/titus-2000.

Moura, Gabe. “The Three-Act Structure.” Elements of Cinema – A Student’s Guide to the Fundamentals of Filmmaking, 29 Nov. 2017, http://www.elementsofcinema.com/screenwriting/three-act-structure/.

Grasso, Joshua. “Creative Anachronism in Imaginative Fiction.” Medium, 19 Dec. 2018, medium.com/@joshuagrasso_58239/creative-anachronism-in-imaginative-fiction-7e661ba7001b.

Marcus, Leah S. “Chapter 7, Editing Shakespeare in a Postmodern Age.” A Concise Companion to Shakespeare and the Text, 1, Wiley-Blackwell, 2007, pp. 128-144.

Shakespeare, William. “Titus Andronicus.” Open Source Shakespeare, http://www.opensourceshakespeare.org/views/plays/play_view.php?WorkID=titus&Scope=entire&pleasewait=1&msg=pl.

“Titus (1999).” IMDb, 21 Jan. 2000, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120866/?ref_=ttrel_rel_tt.

Titus. Directed by J Taymor, Clear Blue Sky Productions Overseas FilmGroup Urania Pictures S.r.l. NDF International, 1999. Film.

“Titus.” TV Tropes, tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Film/Titus.

Death At the Bus Stop

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It’s there at the same time every morning, just like I am. Of course, totally unbothered by the cold.

Dante described a layer of hell as a frozen wasteland, where the cold was used to torture instead of fire. The damned were frozen up to their necks, traitors to trusted friends and allies, and I agreed it was a suitable place for such wretched sinners.

My own sins were unknown to me. But I suppose the damned always say that.

I can’t ever see its face, so I don’t know if there’s really a skull or what underneath that hood. He turns this blank, unmarked void in my direction as I trudge to my assigned place.

“You’re late,” the voice is monotone, tired, but hopeful. Even the deity itself doesn’t know exactly when those yellow lights will shine through this white darkness. It raises a bony hand clutching an hourglass up to my face.

An angry schoolmarm trapped in the body of a mythological menace.

“You’re early,” I reply with my best sneer, but my bravado is hiding a real sense of fear. I pretend I’m not using my side-eye to peek down the street.

Looking for the lights. I couldn’t have missed them. Maybe they’re late, just like me.

The hourglass disappears, and it turns away, droning on. The voice he has today is gruff and fuzzy, like an old man grinding through the channels on a ham radio.

“Same drill as always,” it sounds bored. “Five minutes late, I take two of your fingers. Ten minutes, four more, along with your ears and nose.”

It is bored. So am I. Years of this. But it has to tell me, just the same. Divine protocol or something.

“Twenty, and you never have to go to school again.”

The statement ends with an uneven hiss that might pass for laughter in Hell.

“Burning in hell doesn’t sound so bad at the moment,” I stamp my feet, a combination of a tantrum at the unfairness of it all and the will to keep from dying.

The yellow light is weak, but cuts into the void. Two lights brighten on the street, and two others, red with authority, join them in banishing the creatures of the cold.

There wasn’t so much as a whisper. Death was gone. At least for now.

Better luck tomorrow, I thought, and was not entirely dishonest. It would be better to die, cross the river Styx, and be frozen in a pile of stinking mud than go home and tell my mother I had missed the bus.

I ascend into the school bus, all ten fingers intact.

Winter Morning

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The kettle screams like two broken sheets of ice rubbing against each other in the frigid water. No amount of wool and cotton coverings can shield me from that.

Still groggy with dreams, I twist my body towards the window. The early morning is lined with frost and bright with stars and snow. The windowpane is so cold it feels like it could cut into the palm of my hand.

The thick woods nearby are blurred and dark. The lights of the distant road shine against the snow and ice. Sheathed in layers of soft flannel, I stumble to the kitchen and remove the hysterical kettle from the electric element.

It still emanates heat for a few minutes and I stand as close to it as possible, shivering. My mother, the enabler of the boiling beast, appears fresh from her morning jog across the new layer of snow. The very thought of this offends the warm Mediterranean blood that I inherited from my father. I dream of his sunny homeland as I wrap my hands around my steaming mug, which I habitually drink with too much sugar. My mother enjoys a bitter cup of plain tea as she informs me that the cross-country skis have already been waxed. It is far too early to worry about such fashionable frivolities as matching mittens, especially in this dark little corner of the world.

I find a mismatched ensemble of outerwear. By the time I step outside to strap on my skis, my fuzzy extremities are already slightly damp with sweat. The sky has taken on a streaky orange tone and the evergreen outline of the nearby pine forest have become much clearer, cutting into the auburn clouds. The steam is rising in plumes from my mouth but the goo inside my nose is stiff and not quite frozen. I twitch it, like a rabbit, testing the air. It is not too cold to snow.

I stab my poles ferociously and begin to glide forward. The way is familiar and I barely look up. Soon layers of snow and pine needles have closed in over my head. The hum of the nearby streets and power lines disappears as my feet glide down a long dark tunnel of scaly bark and frozen sap.

Every so often I catch a movement from the corner of my eye, and even though I try to tell myself that we are much too close to human habitation to encounter bears or wolves I feel my pace quicken. To emerge from the shelter of the trees is always a tense moment. I expect to feel a sudden, harsh wind to whip across the frozen river and numb my lips and eyes.

This morning the weather is merciful. There is no wind and a light snow is beginning to fall. Even with the scattered grey clouds the glittering white landscape is too much for my dilated pupils, still burning from sleep. My skis slip easily into the tracks made by those who came before me. They branch off at various points along this icy highway; residential homes, the junior high school, the outdoor hockey rink, and finally, the cemetery. I stop for a breath of air by a pile of black and grey marble lined with crusts of snow and icicles. As I peel off my toque and loosen my scarf, a chickadee sings a cheerful morning greeting and his voice echoes hauntingly at the edge of the dark wood. In passing it occurs to me that I would have to kill him and his entire family just to make a decent side dish.

The freshly fallen snow has turned the sidewalk into a mass of brown slush and the skis will move no more.

Years later I sit under the hazy heat of a bustling Asian city. The wind has grown cool as the autumn wanes into winter, and I dream of the day when the soft snow will kiss the city’s smoggy lips.

The Emerald Circle

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Full disclosure – I wrote this almost 20 years ago now, and even though cannabis is now legal in several US states and on a federal level in Canada and Germany, it’s more important than ever that the Drug War ends.

The current US administration is filled with alcoholics that are using the Drug War as a pretext to kill people of color. Those boats getting blown up in the Eastern Pacific aren’t too far away from my own doorstep.

How many people has the White Empire killed using fentanyl as an excuse? Meanwhile, the Sackler family walked free after agreeing to a meager settlement.

END THE DRUG WAR NOW.

The Emerald Circle

It’s been 79 years since the Marijuana Tax Act was passed in 1937. Recent decades have shown some progress and finally, the facade of Prohibition is starting to fall apart. 

The Canadian legalization process took decades but was ultimately successful and recent rulings in Mexico have opened up the road to nationwide legalization. Success in the United States has mostly been at the state level. Efforts of anti-Prohibitionists to counter this alarmist and misguided social policy with facts, studies and logic are finally reaching the federal government.

As legalization progresses, what is the next step? Further education of the general public? Decades of misinformation have taken their toll. “Reefer Madness” continues to be a stumbling block to the commercial success of cannabis.

Proponents of cannabis legalization are heavily focused on the results of their efforts. The movement focuses almost exclusively on a result, the legalization of marijuana.

Instead of trying to break or damage the Prohibitionist ideology, the legalization movement should build another ideological system. This competing system will empower marginalized groups by demonstrating what they all have in common and appeal to even the most reefer-mad voter.

The Why, Not the What

Logically, the lies that prop up Prohibition should be successfully countered by the truth and hard facts.

Prohibitionists don’t care about the truth or the facts. They continue to ignore them. What exactly do they care about, and why? 

Prohibition advocates are more focused on the efforts they make to achieve the result. This is why they are not affected by the logical assertion that “Prohibition simply doesn’t work.” The results of Prohibition are not as important as the efforts made towards achieving that end.

It is the effort that drives the Prohibitionists, not the result, and this effort relies heavily on a system of belief that will never be swayed by facts.

“It’s not WHAT they do. It’s WHY they do it,” Simon Sinek asserts in his TED Talk, How Great Leaders Inspire Action.

This lecture is more about marketing and product positioning than civil disobedience, but Sinek uses inspirational civil rights leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. to help illustrate his point. His “Golden Circle” is constructed based on what motivates people and why.

It’s the why that’s important, not the what.

Every lie the Prohibitionists tell themselves and the rest of us about pot aren’t really about pot at all. Every myth about cannabis for recreation or medicine that Prohibitionists use is connected to a bigger picture, and ideology driven by very basic human emotions, the greatest of which is fear.

When a Prohibitionist sees the green marijuana leaf, it is not a literal depiction of a plant to their eyes. It is a symbol their worst fears. Some common, non-specific fears are fairly obvious, like the fear of terrorism or poverty.

Other more intangible fears include the fear of competing ideologies. For example, environmentalism stresses a world that is not human-centric. Socialist policies stress the good of the group as opposed to the individual.

The leaders of the Prohibitionist movement insist that marijuana is the source of many, if not all, of these real or imagined threats. The anti-Prohibitionists have this backwards. Most of the dialogue of the anti-prohibitionist starts with the “what” – the legalization of marijuana, which is the ultimate goal.

But why are we doing it?

The Circle Template

We can view the Prohibitionist ideology of fear in a simplified form using Simon Sinek’s “Golden Circle” diagram as a template.

            Why – to protect you from all the bad stuff in the world (crime, poverty, terrorism, sickness, sin),

            How – by doing everything we can to eradicate this plant, which is the source of your horrors, and punish anyone who touches it,

            What – marijuana prohibition.

As overblown as the “why” claim sounds, it succeeds by appealing to the most basic and childlike needs and desires of every human being alive. It simplifies complex problems and blames a single, outside entity for them, real or perceived. 

The “why” encompasses the purpose, cause and beliefs of the Prohibitionists.

Because without marijuana Prohibition protecting us, terrorists and criminals would swarm over society in days, leaving us completely powerless. We just can’t take that chance!

Another fringe benefit of the fear factor is that it gives the Prohibitionists the impression that they are constantly being attacked by these malevolent and insidious forces, which justifies their aggression against their opponents as a form of self-defence. This is how Prohibitionists justify harassing otherwise harmless people who are clearly not criminals.

This also explains why a Prohibitionist can rationalize their own personal pot use. The effort to eradicate marijuana certainly won’t include them. They don’t include themselves in any of the groups typically associated with marijuana (liberals or “leftists”).

The Legalization Movement needs its own Golden Circle. We need to recognize and use our own powers rather than work within the framework the Prohibitionists have built.

Breaking Prohibition doesn’t mean only the legalization of cannabis. It will empower the entire human race. And that means everyone. Inclusion is important because Division is one of the Prohibitionists’ favorite weapons (they keep it right next to Fear in the Authoritarian toolbox).

Emerald Circles

The Emerald Circle is about inclusion, improving the quality of life of everyone, and freedom from fear, anger and exclusion. Historic context is also important, as the Prohibitionists bristle at the thought of a world that existed without them.

In a very broad sense, this is one all encompassing form the Emerald Circle can take.

Why – to improve the quality of life for every single human being on this earth,

How – reducing and even eliminating our dependence on fossil fuels by discovering and developing alternative fuel resources, eliminating corruption in police and government, saving millions in taxes and fees and delays in our court processes related to overcrowding and lack of funds, etc. (pretty much everything that farmers, doctors, economists and hippies been trying to say for the past 90 years),

What – LEGALIZE IT.

The Emerald Circle is just as supernatural in its claims as the Prohibitionist counterpart.  However, every one of these things is possible with legalization even if in a tangential way. 

It makes more sense to break down the Emerald Circle into specific categories and apply it to different ideologies. For example, for those concerned with factory farming or GMO seeds and crops the Emerald Circle would focus on a different aspect of Prohibition.

Why – improve food production, availability, affordability and quality,

How – lift the restrictions against hardy and versatile crops that farmers are currently not allowed to seed, grow or cultivate,

What – LEGALIZE IT.

The connections to the bigger picture here include industrialized hemp as well as any seed that has been genetically modified or restricted for farmers to use, like certain types of corn. The Legalization Movement stand firmly in solidarity with another group, one that opposes genetically modified crops and factory farming but has the same ideological goals.

The message is a positive one that focuses on inclusion, empowerment and appeals to those that are concerned about the quality of their food or, on a more extreme level, afraid of starvation. Groups like Monsanto use the fear of starvation and unemployment to coerce both farmers and consumers into accepting factory farming and genetically modified crops. Nor does Monsanto allow its customers to choose what they grow.

The message of the Emerald Circle is diametrically opposed to the one that Monsanto and their supporters use. It empowers instead of bullies. It encourages self-sufficiency as opposed to relying on corporations to curate our food supply. 

Here’s another example that demonstrates the wider appeal of this philosophy.

Why – lessen the costs associated with health care while at the same time improving quality and delivery, 

How – by allowing patients to use natural and holistic alternatives that are scientifically proven to be effective against a variety of ailments and have been quality produced and tested by experts,      

What – LEGALIZE IT.

Concerns about the cost and delivery of health care are serious issues, so this appeals to anyone. This includes any and all patients (remember, inclusion is important) but can be applied to chronic patients that also need expensive prescriptions over long periods of time.

In this instance, we include anyone who is concerned about the costs in a general sense as well as the side-effects of prescription drugs that are distributed via the health care system and the ulterior motives of the companies that produce them. Government and insurance companies play on the fear of removing health care entirely when they insist that they must make cutbacks or increase premiums under the guise on improving or even saving the system from total destruction, depriving the frightened and vulnerable of a world entirely without health care.

The Emerald Circle combats this feeling of helplessness and empowers patients and doctors alike instead of threatening them.

One more example and perhaps the most poignant considering the driving forces in North American politics these days.

Why – eliminate our dependence on petroleum,

How – by researching and developing alternative forms of clean and renewable energy sources of plastic and other petroleum based products,

What – LEGALIZE IT.

This includes hemp, of course, but can apply to virtually any alternative fuel source. Hemp is an option for replacing petroleum either as a bio-diesel or an ethanol fuel.

This counters the alarmist claims of  petroleum advocates who claim that without oil we would all have to go back to living in caves, appealing to the basic human fears of poverty or material loss. The general understanding is that petroleum is so important that we simply can’t live without it, even though we did so and thrived as a society and species for many thousands of years.

Just like the Prohibitionists who insist that making plants illegal is a normal practice and is common throughout human history when the contrary is true.

Fighting this false ideology that has been the Prohibitionist gravy train for almost a century by trying to challenge it with facts may seem like the obvious answer but it has proven to be futile. A competing ideology, one that uses the opposite tactics (inclusion where there is division, empowerment where there is helplessness) and appeals to positive human emotions instead of negative ones can succeed where raw data has failed.

The Emerald Circle is not a marketing ploy or a psychological trick. It is the natural evolution of  normalizing cannabis. The Legalization Movement needs to remind humanity of the positive things they were capable of, and will be again, in a world without cannabis Prohibition.

References

Hemp Ethanol Saves the World: http://hemp-ethanol.blogspot.com/2008/01/economics-history-and-politics-of-hemp.html

“Mexico: February 22 Recreational Marijuana is Legal.” The Mazatlán Post. Last modified February 17, 2019. https://themazatlanpost.com/2019/02/16/mexico-february-22-recreational-marijuana-is-legal/.

Simon Sinek, “How Great Leaders Inspire Action.” http://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action.html

 “The Emperor’s Wears No Clothes”, Jack Herer, AH HA Publishing, 2007.

 US Legal, Inc. “Marijuana Tax Act Law and Legal Definition.” Legal Definitions Legal Terms Dictionary | USLegal, Inc. Accessed April 16, 2019. https://definitions.uslegal.com/m/marijuana-tax-act%20/.

Vulcan Biometrics – Part 1

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A Star Trek Enterprise Fanfic

Land acknowledgement: This book was written on the unceded territory of the Mixtec Nation in Oaxaca State, Mexico.

Copyright notice: This is a work of independent fan fiction and is in no way affiliated with or used by Paramount or its affiliates.

“Well, that’s why they say, hot like Vulcan!” Dr. McCoy, “Amok Time.” (Star Trek: The Original Series, S2E1 “Amok Time.”).

Shi’Kaar, Vulcan, Stardate 2167

    His eyes might change, Trip said. Sometimes it happens with human children. They are born with blue eyes, but they change.

    The months passed by and his eyes stayed blue. T’Pol decided it was easier and safer to hide him than to explain him.

    Nobody in this era would have believed it even if she had tried to name Trip as the father, never mind the social and political implications. The former Chief Engineer of the Enterprise was supposed to be dead, and his present circumstances were a dangerous secret.

    T’Pol was a controversial figure on Vulcan for working so closely with humans already. Rumors that she had given birth to one had deepened the rift.

    Those hysterical, illogical, smelly things. The Vulcan High Command was wise to keep them out of space.

    How could she have lowered herself?

    And what kind of dangerous creature would it be?

Glasses or lenses would hide her son’s eyes, turning them the same lightless hue as any passing Vulcan.

Officially, Selek was the child of Koss, T’Pol’s former husband. Despite him being incredulous initially, since a Vulcan-Human hybrid was thought to be a biological impossibility, he agreed to play along. Just for the sake of scientific curiosity, of course.

Tinsha Monastery, Khomi Province, Vulcan – Star Date 2197

       Selek could still hear the blood rushing in his ears and the echo of the gong. The thin, dry air was heavy with the smell of copper. His lungs contracted, shortening his breath. The pain of his wounds only seemed to enrage him further, as if his muscles could contract and burst from his own skin.

It is said the body is in torment, but the mind remains unclouded.

He remembered everything vividly. The memory of the duel was still fresh, and it was flooding his mind like the pool of blood open and growing on the warm stone.

His breath was short again, and he was choking, gasping to breathe, and failing. The sound was drowned out by a jarring memory of his own rage and the whistle of the tirpan as it swung through the air.

Selek felt the cold of an infirmary bed against his back and understood. T’Nedara was nearby.

           The sea of dark green that had reached up to consume him thinned, and the bells and gongs faded. A coolness touched his forehead and spread to his eyes and mouth.

The rushing in his ears stopped and he heard a familiar voice.

            The mind controls the body

            Control The Mind

            And the Body will follow

Selek exhaled heavily, and felt his joints loosen and his muscles unravel. He took a deep breath, and the air in his lungs seemed to draw him upward.

The prayer was based on Surak’s teachings and was repeated often in the temple. He pushed some air through his mouth and found he could speak again, and repeated the chant.

            The mind controls the body

            Control The Mind

            And the Body will follow

Light came back into his eyes and his vision cleared. She was kneeling next to him, a bowl of watery green liquid and piles of cloth bandages were close at hand.

Her index and middle fingers were pressed against his forehead. It was a chant derived from the Way of Hakihr, a monastic tradition descended from the Kolinahru. This was an ancient Vulcan sect that turned its psychic energy inward as an interpretation of Surak’s teachings.

The chant had revived him.

            “T’Nedara,” he spoke carefully, his breathing still painful.

            “Selek,” She answered him calmly, but her hands were visibly trembling. He tried to sit up, but he moved too quickly and winced in pain.

It was difficult to hide her alarm.

“No, don’t move,” she said, trying to sound like the calm and logical expert in Biometrics that she was every day. She touched her fingers to his forehead again.

He closed his eyes and raised his hand to take hers. He said nothing, but he could feel her nerves humming at the same rate as his own. His eyes were blurred sweat and tears, but he was able to give her a questioning look.

“My blood burns with yours,” She said softly. “You have defeated your rival, as the Vulcan laws are written.”

Selek wanted to speak, but the air caught in his throat. She pressed her two fingers against his mouth, and not only to silence him. For a Vulcan, this was a moment of passion, a frenzied kiss in a rushed moment.

The light touch of her fingers and the air from her mouth brushing against his face calmed his nerves from the duel, yet drove him into another frenzy.

She undid the clasp of her robe. It slipped away from her body. They lay down together in the infirmary bed.

“I claim my Champion,” she held him close, and their burning blood was cooled. 

The gong sounded. The trial of the Kal If Fe had ended.

Writing Resume

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Contact Info And LinkedIn Profile

Educational Background

  • May 1997 – May 2000: The University of Victoria, Victoria, BC – B.A., English Literature and Italian
    • My BA consists of a major in English Literature and a minor in Italian. Completion of this program included studying at a university in Perugia, Italy, for five months in 1999.

  • January 2013 – March 2013: Douglas College, David Lam Campus, Coquitlam, BC – TESL Certification
    • This program reviews and improves on earlier ESL certificates by including linguistics and lesson planning along with conversational learning methods. It’s designed primarily for teachers of adults, but many of the skills taught here can be used in virtually any classroom.

  • September 2025 – June 2026: The Writer’s Studio: Creative Writing Certificate, virtual classes 
    • My personal cohort was Commercial Fiction. Each module focused on a specific part of the writing process, up to and including publication. Admission was decided by portfolio submissions and graduation is determined by demonstrating refined skills after the last term.

Professional Experience

Demand Studios, Writer and Editor

  • March 2009- May 2013  

Produced short blog posts on a wide variety of topics that included travel, pet care, education, and more. Tasks included editing and research in addition to producing compelling and factual copy.   

BrightHub, Writer and Editor

  • January 2012 – November 2013         

Responsible for producing articles and blog posts specifically related to travel, pet care, and education, specifically ESL teaching. Pieces required strict and meticulous adherence to research and detail, especially regarding references.

Constant Content, Writer and Content Creator

  • January 2010 – 2015    

A part of several writing teams that worked on various corporate projects, which involved product descriptions, travel advice, and other trending topics.

Tasks also included private jobs and composing individual, customized pieces for websites, instruction manuals, “top ten” lists, and transportation guides.

Valnet Inc., Writer and Content Creator

  • March 2019 – August 2025

Equal parts working alone and with various groups and teams to complete lists and guides about trending topics in the world of entertainment. 

Subject matter is dominated by video games, but other popular categories of interest include movies and television shows.

Static Media, Writer, Photo Editor, and Researcher

September 2025 – June 2026

  • Creating travel-related content for a variety of destinations throughout Canada, the United States, and occasionally Mexico
  • Responsible for factual, meticulously sourced information regarding accommodations, travel times, attractions, and activities

Related Activities

Sunset over Zipolite

Character Analysis : Bigwig

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Anyone who knows me in private life or has read any of my gamer fanfiction already knows how much I love the novel “Watership Down.”

The most adaptation from Netflix caught my eye waaay back in 2017, and it has since fallen down the memory hole.

I was unimpressed. I could live with the poor computer graphics if the characters I love weren’t so maligned in this interpretation. Hazel is defined by his problems with females, which is silly for a rabbit. It’s one of the few advantages to being a rabbit. Ask Donnie Darko, from one my favorite movies, partly because it references this book.

Bigwig, the great and gallant hero who fought off the fearsome Woundwort, is portrayed as, to put it bluntly, a fucking asshole.

There’s this crucial scene in the Netflix adaptation when Hazel and Bigwig first meet. Bigwig actually threatens him. This isn’t something Bigwig would do, this is something Toadflax would do. That’s why Hazel and Fiver have their encounter with Toadflax first, to emphasize that Bigwig, unlike other Owsla officers, has some redeeming qualities.

In the novel, Bigwig has a mocking tone, but it’s friendly and totally non-threatening.

I’m not sure how or exactly when the trend to make jerks into the heroes got started, but pandering to the worst human beings for popularity and money is a tale as old as time.

I’m reminded of other leading men in the media like Christian Grey, people like Varian Wrynn from World of Warcraft, and the new incarnation of the Beast from the recent live-action remake of “Beauty and the Beast.”

These are not good people. They are abusive jerks. The original characters had redeeming qualities and acted on them. Varian Wrynn is an interesting case, and I think a more sinister one. That deserves its own WoW essay about how they got away with all the cultural appropriation and laundering a villain into a hero because he happens to be a white guy.

That might be the topic of my next essay. The point of this one is that Thlayli-rah is a hero.

The Evolution of a Hero :

Bigwig from “Watership Down.”

By Kristy Ambrose

It might be a children’s story, an adventure book, or a chilling vision of a dystopian society. Richard Adams seems to have combined them all in “Watership Down.” The characters that we meet in the course of our journey across the English countryside are familiar literary figures. Many groups of adventurers have among them an archetype who starts as a rebel but evolves into a hero.

In “Watership Down,” this role is filled by the irrepressible Bigwig, a typical fighting man, or rabbit in this case.

The character’s introduction is important. It takes place during a crucial moment at the beginning of the novel.

The readers learn that the name Bigwig has two connotations. His fellow rabbits mean it literally to describe him using the distinctive tuft of hair on his head. The first translation from the Lapine word Thlayli is actually given as “Furhead.” (Adams, 6) This is an interesting call-back to insults like “hairbrained.” This term denotes a character of lesser intelligence, and we soon find out that although Bigwig is compulsive and rebellious, he isn’t stupid.

This might be why Adams adopts the name Bigwig as a translation instead. This is a slang term from English that means a person in charge. Other terms like “Boss” or “Big Cheese” might be used in this case, and neither has anything to do with intelligence.

Classical References

Bigwig is similar to other characters that are written in the same mold. The rabbits follow the same journey as many other human heroes from both ancient and modern times. The long journey of The Odyssey has been retold many times, and the destruction of the Sandleford Warren echoes the ruins of Troy in The Iliad.

Shakespeare’s Kent meets King Lear much like Bigwig meets Woundwort, as a mercenary in disguise.

Joseph Campbell himself compared Bigwig to Han Solo of Star Wars, arguing that both are pragmatic and materialistic, but essentially compassionate. (Campbell and Moyers, 129) The essential difference between the two is that Bigwig has more agency. He volunteers his skills and energy to the adventure with more enthusiasm at a much earlier time in the story, even if it means he bullies his way in as the easiest path to leadership.

The picture of Bigwig as a hero isn’t a happy accident. Richard Adams was inspired by Joseph Campbell’s work on the hero’s journey. (Bridgman, 108) By the time the rabbits assault Efrafa in the second part of Watership Down, Bigwig has learned to defer to Hazel based on brains instead of brawn. A mission like this would have been impossible for him to complete earlier in the novel, as he would have relied on sheer force.

Although strong and loyal, this heavyset rabbit does not volunteer his trust lightly. Despite his strength and prowess, his natural instinct to do the right thing for himself and those around him keeps him from becoming an elitist like the Thearah or a tyrant like Woundwort.

Adams describes Bigwig, or Thlayli in the rabbit language, as having a “warm and impulsive nature” that is defined by compassion and sympathy. (Adams, 189) It’s because of these core traits that he can evolve. He starts as little more than a practical and selfish buck, but by the time the story concludes, he’s an essential and renowned member of the community.

Bigwig rejects authority generally and acts impulsively when left on his own. This indicates that he isn’t afraid to act against the Thearah, but it also means Hazel will have to work that much harder to earn his respect. The leader of the lost band of rabbits sizes up Bigwig early in the journey.

Hazel realized wearily that Bigwig was probably going to be troublesome. He was certainly no coward, but he was likely to remain steady only as long as he could see his way clear and be sure of what to do. To him, perplexity was worse than danger; and when he was perplexed he usually grew angry. (Adams, 18)

Hazel compliments Bigwig’s character instead of clashing against it. Although he is dismissive of Hazel initially when he asks for an audience with the Thearah, Bigwig does remember his name and deduces that Hazel should speak to the Chief. He is not overbearing, nor is he rude, unlike the rough and angry Toadflax.

The Lapine Shakespeare

Bigwig is the Shakespearean idea of the model knight. He quotes Kent from King Lear when first speaking to General Woundwort, “I can run and fight and spoil a story telling it.” (Ibid, 186) This is a slight variation of the original quote from the play, “I can keep honest counsel, ride, run, mar a curious tale in telling it…” (Shakespeare, 1. 4. 564-565)

A mix of warrior, rebel, and sometimes the joker, Bigwig’s rebellious and compulsive nature is both beneficial and detrimental to the group as a whole.

Until the appearance of Bluebell, it is Thlayli who acts as the comic relief. We laugh at him when he “growls appreciatively” at a reference to El-hrairah’s sexual prowess, (Adams, 16). Like a proper Shakespearean hero he always seems to have a few creative insults to hurl. “Moonstruck field mouse” (Adams, 66) and “U embleer hrair” (Prince of Stench) (Ibid., 267) are only two stellar examples.

Bigwig’s attitude changes towards leadership from the beginning of the novel to the end. Initially, Bigwig values size and strength more than intellect, but he eventually comes to love and respect the much physically weaker Hazel.

This touches on one of the novel’s themes, that intellect is more powerful than strength. It culminates in a dramatic victory when Hazel crafts the ultimate trick to foil the strongest rabbit they’ve ever encountered. Bigwig’s role in this final battle is essential, and by the time it happens, he is ready to admit that strength is not the last true authority.

When Bigwig gets into trouble, it’s often because he ignores Hazel or Fiver’s advice. This attitude almost costs him his life in the Warren of the Snares, where he learns the peril of ignoring both the hard way.

Bigwig, a character that symbolizes physical strength, is the only rabbit from the Sandleford to get snared at Cowslip’s warren.

A snare is a device set and fastened by brains, not brawn, and it is the intellectual power of Blackberry and Fiver that frees him. Once again, this stresses the theme that might does not always make right, and intellect is more important than strength. As Bigwig himself confesses to Fiver later. “You’ve bitten through a bigger peg than the one I’m dragging.” (Adams, 70)

This is the first time that Bigwig defers to a physically weaker rabbit. Up until now, he did what he wanted regardless of what Fiver or Hazel thought was best. They were more like equals in the chain of command. After experiencing this vulnerability, Bigwig asks Fiver, one of the smallest and weakest rabbits in the group, to give them an order.

Several other rabbits will out-think him throughout the novel, and he supports their efforts.

Bigwig is set up in direct contrast to three other rabbits in positions of authority. The Thearah, the Chief Rabbit of the Sandleford Warren, Holly, who is of a higher rank in the Sandleford Owsla and more authoritarian, and Woundwort, a paranoid and sadistic tyrant.

Two of these are introduced in the initial chapters, while the final and most intimidating is saved for last. As a leader, Hazel could be compared to these characters in a separate essay, in particular, the brutal and iron-fisted General Woundwort.

Woundwort never understands how a rabbit as strong as Bigwig can defer to a weaker one for any reason. Thus, we have Woundwort’s fatal flaw, and this blind spot is his undoing. He is badly shaken when Bigwig confesses that he is not the Chief Rabbit of his warren.

Thlayli’s reply, when it came, was low and gasping, but perfectly clear.

“My Chief Rabbit has told me to defend this run, and until he says otherwise, I shall stay here.”

“His Chief Rabbit?” said Vervain, staring.

It had never occurred to Woundwort or any of his officers that Thlayli was not the Chief Rabbit of his warren. Yet what he said carried immediate conviction. He was speaking the truth. And if he was not the Chief Rabbit, then somewhere close by, there must be another, stronger rabbit who was. A stronger rabbit than Thlayli. Where was he? And what was he doing at this moment? (Adams, 269)

In this crucial moment, Bigwig permanently declares that he defers to the power of the intellect. He’s no longer the sassy rabbit who sneered at Hazel or called Fiver names, the careless rabbit who questioned crossing the river in Chapter 8, or disregarded Fiver’s advice in Chapter 17.

Woundwort, on the other hand, always assumed that he was the Chief Rabbit because of his size. The only conclusion he can draw with his myopic view is that there is another rabbit nearby, even bigger and stronger than Bigwig. Woundwort is a Shakespearean villain to match a Shakespearean hero.

Bigwig, The Hero

When news arrives of the incoming Efrafan assault, many rabbits argue that they should run away. Hazel is adamantly against this and cites two main reasons: Clover and Hyzenthlay.

Clover is currently nursing a litter of kittens, only hours old, and can’t move from her burrow. Hyzenthlay does not have any kittens yet, but she is “heavy with young.” (Adams, 245) Even if they run, he argues, Hyzenthlay and other does sharing her condition won’t make it very far. In the final scenes, the duty of protecting the new, fledgling warren falls to Bigwig.

This doesn’t just mean the greater macrocosm of the community. In a detail that gets overlooked, as Adams never explicitly states it, Bigwig and his companions have their own families to protect at this point. The next generation and their home, Watership Down, must be protected. (Adams, 245-246).

Any number of does could also be carrying kittens at this time, but it is interesting that Hazel points out Hyzenthlay, a rabbit close to Bigwig, to drive his point home. It’s never explicitly stated, but it’s fairly obvious that Bigwig is the bunny daddy, making the stakes higher for him.

Protecting the new home they forged symbolizes the culmination of the effort made during the hero’s journey. The defeat of Woundwort and the survival of the next generation represent the emergence from the Underworld. The symbolism of the underground in the daily life of rabbits is used by Adams numerous times throughout the novel. Despite the dangerous path, the quest must not be abandoned.

Like the classic hero, Bigwig does not emerge from his battle with Woundwort unscathed. He gets the best of his opponent, but he is “scarred from head to foot” (Adams, 267) emotionally as well as physically. The reader might recall the price that Blackavar had to pay when he was mutilated for trying to leave Efrara, or how El-ahrairah lost his ears and tail to the Black Rabbit.

As the story comes to a close, we learn that Bigwig is the Captain of the Watership Owsla, and happily trains young bucks who have never seen cats about how to fight cats. There is some echo here of how the children of peacetime can’t understand war, and how the younger generation might take their safety for granted.

At the same time, the innocence of the young bucks, who love him dearly, is touching. This is Bigwig’s gift to them from the Underworld, an existence of peace and idealism.

Not every hero can enjoy a happy ending. Rabbits have a different idea of the value of life than humans do, another important theme in the novel, and Bigwig understands that he is now more than he ever asked to be. The gallant captain lives happily ever after, so to speak, as a scarred veteran in a world of children who know nothing of war.

Works Cited

Adams, Richard E. Watership Down. Rex Collings, 1972.

“Archetypes.” Hillsborough Community College Home, http://www.hccfl.edu/media/724354/archetypesforliteraryanalysis.pdf.

Bridgman, Joan. “Richard Adams at Eighty”. The Contemporary Review (The Contemporary Review Company Limited) 2000.

Campbell, Joseph, and Bill D. Moyers. The Power of Myth, Harmony, 1988.

Shakespeare, William. “King Lear: Entire Play.” The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, shakespeare.mit.edu/lear/full.html.

Snider, Clifton. “Brief Outline of Jungian Psychology with some Archetypal Images, Themes, and Symbols.” California State University, Long Beach, web.csulb.edu/~csnider/jungian.outline.html.

The Flying Cat

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A Guide to Feline Air Travel

Travel with pets has also become more common, and travel culture has evolved to reflect the trend. Taking the family dog seems to get a lot of press, but what about our feline friends? It’s actually quite easy to travel with a cat, even on a plane.

This short guide can help you travel safely and efficiently with your furry friend.

When Cats Fly

Sometimes taking your pet with you is worth alleviating the stress of paying for a kennel or finding a sitter. It’s not as complex or terrifying as it sounds. With just some simple advance planning, and you and your feline friend can travel together with confidence and comfort.

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The same make and model of a basic, hard-sided carrier. In 2002, cargo was often mandatory for live animals and a hard-backed carrying case was essential. Pets now travel in the cabin as long as they can fit.

No matter which airline you choose, or where you’re going, finding a carrying case should be your very first priority. Make sure you have a suitable kennel for your pet to travel in. It must be comfortable enough for your pet to stay in for extended periods of time.

Some airlines will not allow you to fly your cat as cargo due to weather or space constraints but insist that your pet is in the cabin with you. This is a preferable option, as the cargo hold can be cold and cramped, and is usually reserved for larger pets like big dogs.

After taking these things into consideration, you are ready to book your flight.

“Plane” Ahead

Before you book your flight or flights, consider your feline friend. What is their general disposition? Are they young or old, quiet or active?

An energetic or noisy cat might be better flying as cargo but an older, calmer cat can stay with you in the cabin.

Can your cat stay in one spot for a long period of time, perhaps with only a small toy, water, and the occasional snack?

Virtually all airlines allow pets but not without restrictions. It’s generally easier to get a cat on a plane than a dog, as they are smaller and have fewer cultural stigmas.

Contrary to popular belief, airlines almost unanimously request that you not sedate your pet. Sometimes a calming medication can have the opposite effect if the animal is panicked or in an unfamiliar place.

Sedate your pet only if your veterinarian recommends that you do so. Many airports have pet-friendly areas that you and your pet can use to rest between flights. Some charter or “no frills” airlines still do not allow pets at all because of space and baggage issues.

The major carriers usually have all choices available. Your cat can travel in the cabin with you, in the luggage compartment if you go on the same on the same flight, or departing as cargo on another flight.

Certain carrying equipment and accessories will be mandatory in transit. You will be required to purchase them on the road if you don’t have them, which will be more expensive and cause delays.

Visit the Vet

Getting your cat’s health checked by a vet and officially certified are two of the biggest steps you and your cat have to take.

Aside from the documents for customs, the airline will require their own documentation that describes the cat’s vital statistics (weight, age, size, color) and confirms that it has a clean bill of health. Find these vital statistics by using the equipment at the veterinarian’s office instead of your scale at home. Measure the length from the tip of the tail to the tip of the nose, and the height from the floor to the top of the shoulder, and obtain written confirmation regarding your pet’s measurements from your vet.

Ask your vet about motion sickness medication for your pet even if they are a seasoned traveler. Try to choose something that won’t sedate them. Get as much documentation as possible regarding vaccinations, chronic conditions or surgeries.

Up-to-date rabies shots are required for any cross-border travel and may also be required by a motel or other kinds of transportation.

Most airlines will only require certification of a recent vet examination and confirmation of rabies shots as a health certification. This will most likely need to be accompanied by a similar certification from a government agency, such as the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) or the CFIA (Canadian Food Inspection Agency).

Island nations such as Japan, England and Australia are notoriously strict and will require at least a few weeks of quarantine regardless of your preparations.

Countries like South Korea, Canada and Mexico have minimal requirements of rabies shot and a clean bill of health. The US is also very accessible with the exception of Hawaii. Check with the embassy of the country that you wish to visit for the exact forms and regulations.

Follow these steps to the letter. Failing to do so might result in you and your pet being turned away, or even worse, your cat could be euthanized. Avoid this nightmare and be prepared!

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Pangur Ban, always an enthusiastic traveler. He’s sitting in a soft-backed carrier that’s the required size for a trip with you in the cabin. The hard plastic carrier below can also fit under an airline seat.

Purry Landing

Make sure that you have the proper paperwork on hand if you are crossing an international border. You should have at least two copies of each.

Bring a supply of any medications or special food your pet needs. These might be difficult to find depending on where you’re going.

Rent a car with a pet-friendly company to avoid dealing with trains or public transit, which usually do not allow pets unless they are working animals. Uber or other rideshare programs also have these options.

Consider your arrival arrangements carefully. Determine if you will need a hotel and for how long. Budget carefully, as motels often require pet deposits, and pet-friendly rooms can be more expensive.

You will be required by the motel to provide a contact number to confirm your reservations (this will also be required by the airline, if applicable) and details regarding your furry friend, including its measurements and weight.

There are many reasons to take your cat with you when you travel.

Perhaps you are taking an extended vacation and your affectionate, sensitive feline companion can’t bear to be left alone. Maybe you’re taking an employment contract overseas that might last months or even years and you can’t bear to give your best friend away.

Fear not, as your feline friend is now welcome in airports, planes, and hotels as long as you stay informed and plan ahead.

References:

Pet Airline Information | Airline Travel Tips | PetTravel.com. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.pettravel.com/passports_airlinetrtips.cfm

Pet Travel Tips. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://petswelcome.com/articles/travel-tips

Pets (Dogs, cats and ferrets) – Animal Health Certificates – Canadian Food Inspection Agency. (2018, March 5). Retrieved from http://www.inspection.gc.ca/animals/terrestrial-animals/exports/live-animals/health-certificates/pets/eng/1321265624789/1321281361100

Travel Training for You and Your Pets. (2017, October 19). Retrieved from https://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/ResourcesforYou/AnimalHealthLiteracy/ucm352635.htm

The featured image was taken by a neighbor of mine when Chamsae and I lived on Nelson Street in Vancouver. 

Local Superfood

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The word “superfood” sounds dramatic, but it’s just a marketing term that refers to certain kinds of nutrient-rich food. This trend overlaps into restaurants, markets, and grocery stores.

Blueberries, kale, and salmon are famous examples. I also see plants like bamboo as hemp as a superfood, since they can do so many things other than being food. Related to the superfood craze is the juicing trend, the popularity of detox drinks and the farm to table restaurant niche.

Image: mangos

Growing up in western Ontario meant that fresh fruit was a novelty just as much as hot, spicy food. Actually, any kind of fresh food was a novelty.

My obsession with the tropics might have something to do with my appreciation for exotic food, especially fruit. Even bananas were a treat back in the day. And there was one variety – yellow.

Yellow with a sticker.

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I remember the novelty of seeing mangoes and coconuts for sale in the grocery store at a certain time of year. They were a luxury, and restrictively expensive.

The mangoes were always a pile of dark green bricks that smelled better than they tasted and the poor little coconuts were barely the size of softballs.

The fresh fruits and veggies I enjoy now are too numerous to count. Cold-pressed juice, fresh seafood and organic vegetables are just a way of life here in Oaxaca.

Here’s a short list of some “superfood” that I see here almost every day.

Mangoes

A colleague at UNISTMO in Tehuantepec told me that there were more than 16 different types of mangoes in Oaxaca alone. I haven’t been able to find a source to back this up, but considering that Oaxaca produces more mangoes than any other state in Mexico, it’s not hard to believe.

The ones I often see are the small yellow local ataufas or the much larger Tommy Atkins variety, which range from green, orange, and deep red. They’re really high in vitamin C and contain minerals like calcium and iron that other fruits don’t often have.

Mangoes are fantastic not only because of the sweet, rich taste and nutritional value but because of all the things you can do with them in the kitchen and workshop.

They work great in smoothies, pancakes, and salads just to name a few. More ambitious crafters use the creamy texture in cosmetics like creams and shampoos.

coconuts

Coconuts

Another food that can also be a million other things. Besides just being great fun to eat, coconut products have a number of amazing health benefits.

Is it the lightly scented oil that’s great for both your skin, in your smoothie and as a cooking ingredient? Or is it the refreshing water that seems to stay colder longer than water? Could it be it the husk, which you can use to build furniture, make jewlery or keep your beach campfire going?

Apparently, you can eat the tender white flesh on the inside, too.

Yes, coconuts contain a lot of fat. Deal with it.

Tamarind

Here’s one you don’t know. It’s a bean that grows in a seed pod from a tree and has to be prepared by being soaked or ground up before you mix it with water or sauce.

Tamarind is also common in India and Southeast Asia. The tart but sweet taste and fibrous texture of tamarind remind me of rhubarb and it has many of the same uses.

That taste comes from the abundant tartaric acid and an indication of the strong antioxidant properties. Then there are the high levels of vitamin A and C, and minerals like calcium and iron. It’s one of the common “aguas fresca” flavors and is commonly used to make sweets, snacks, spreads and pastry filling.

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Jamaica

Here’s one you know, except that you don’t. But you do.

This is not the Caribbean nation that gave us Bob Marley and Grace Jones. This is the name of a herb that comes from a flower, and it’s pronounced “ha-my-kah.” Or you can use the word you’re familiar with; hibiscus.

Hibiscus tea is fairly common throughout the world, but there is a myriad of other things you can do with the dried pods and flowers.

Jamaica resembles cranberry in color and taste and has many of the same health benefits, but I find that it’s not as bitter. It’s got those good citric and tartaric acids and is used to regulate cholesterol and blood pressure.

I’ll keep posting these as I discover them. I originally wanted to add nopal, but then I thought it would be better to do a whole other post on cacti and related plants like aloe vera and different types of agave.

KONICA MINOLTA DIGITAL CAMERA

 References:

Oaxaca. (n.d.). In Encyclopedia of the Nations – Information about countries of the world, United Nations, and World Leaders. Retrieved from http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/mexico/Michoac-n-Zacatecas/Oaxaca.html

Shereen Lehman, MS. (2017, March 27). Coconut Nutrition Facts: Calories and Health Benefits. Retrieved from https://www.verywellfit.com/coconut-nutrition-facts-4135199

The Surprising Health Benefits of Hibiscus. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.gaiaherbs.com/articles/detail/42/The-Surprising-Health-Benefits-of-Hibiscus

Trim down club. (2016, August 28). Superfood: Mango Nutrition [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://www.trimdownclub.com/superfood-mango-nutrition/

What Are Superfoods? (11, May). Retrieved from https://www.livescience.com/34693-superfoods.html

What is Tamarind Good For? – Mercola.com [Web log post]. (2018, April 8). Retrieved from https://foodfacts.mercola.com/tamarind.html

The featured image at the top of this article is entitled “desktop-exotic-fruits-and-vegetables-wallpaper” and was taken from http://www.freehdimages.in/wallpaper/desktop-exotic-fruits-and-vegetables-wallpaper/

Remember that scene (skip ahead to 1:01) when the evil Jedi makes Obi-Wan Kenobi eat the poisoned apple because fresh fruit is so delicious that it can ease his physical pain? No? Not part of the official canon anymore, I guess.

The Beach of the Dead

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Mexico has a number of famous tourist destinations, but there are still many mysterious places off the beaten path that are waiting to be discovered. Zipolite, also nicknamed “the Beach of the Dead” is one of those special places. Get there before the modern world gentrifies it into one of these charming and fashionable “magical towns.”

Zipolite

Playa De Amor and Roca Blanca

Playa Zipolite
Roca Blanca and Palapas, Playa Zipolite

There are probably thousands of beaches in Mexico, but this is the only one in the entire country where nudity is permitted and cannabis is openly smoked by both locals and tourists. Local vendors sell a wide variety of curiosities and handmade treasures. Buy crystals and glass pipes, get a henna tattoo, or indulge in a massage with scented oils. The nightlife is more than decent considering the size of Zipolite, and clubs and bars have names like “El Hongo” (the mushroom). The legacy of the first hippy tourists is alive and well between Playa de Amor and Roca Blanca.

Zipolite is not a big place, but the beach itself is vast and open, clearly marked by Roca Blanca in the west and Playa de Amor in the east. Roca Blanca simply means “white rock” and that’s exactly what you will see on the north end of the beach. This is a haven for seabirds and they’ve branded their personal space in their own distinctive way. Most of the shops, stores, tour guides, bike rentals, transportation, paved roads and other amenities are on the Roca Blanca side of Zipolite. Closer to Playa Amor you’ll find a quieter neighborhood with a soccer field, a quaint seaside church, and a children’s playground along with a few small shops and a relatively peaceful residential neighborhood.

Playa de Amor is the small, sheltered alcove at the very end of the beach on the eastern side. You have to climb a steep stairway to get there but it’s not a long one. In the high season, there’s a small restaurant perched on the top of this rocky outcropping where the stairway dips back down towards the ocean. This tiny beach is hidden in a little cove between two steep hills. There are actually two or three secret little beaches near this spot, and rip tides here are virtually non-existent, so it’s a nice place to safely swim. The rest of the beach is marked with yellow or red flags to denote safe swimming spots. The undertow is no joke and will often shift with the tides, winds, or time of day. Enjoy the ocean but be confident in your swimming skills, listen to the lifeguards, and bring a friend.

The End of the World

Zipolite, afternoon

The southern coast of Oaxaca was virtually untouched by tourism as late as the 1960s, when the first hippies headed south looking for a counterculture haven. They found it here, on a pristine beach that had neither bank, cop shop nor boat launch.

The name, Zipolite comes from the local indigenous Mixtec language and has two possible meanings. The first, which has become a part of the local urban legend and the area’s nickname, is “the Beach of the Dead.” The beach is uncrowded and virtually free of boats because of the dangerous and unpredictable rip tides that make navigation difficult and swimming dangerous. The second meaning, considerably less romantic and therefore likely more accurate, is simply “the place of many hills.” The latter is also accurate and makes for some inexpensive lodgings that still have a first-class view.

The geography of the area, including the ocean itself, also contributes to the ethereal feel Zipolite seems to have. Unlike the beaches to the north, which face west across the Pacific Ocean, Zipolite faces south. To head straight out from Zipolite would take you not to Hawaii, Asia or New Zealand, but to a vast expanse of virtually nothing, at least until the wastes of Antarctica.

The locals share all kinds of stories about the ancient history of the beach and those that were fortunate enough to find it before the days of highways and airplanes. One tall tale is about the ancient Nahuatl people. They were aware of this isolation on some level and would come here to offer sacrifices to the gods of the dead that lived past the end of the world. How true that may be has been long lost in the riptides of time.

I tell the friendly camionetta[1] driver that I don’t need directions, and he’s surprised at first.

I smile and mime smoking a joint. Now he understands, and gives a hearty wave to incoming traffic as we pull back onto the highway.

The folks who know Zipolite know it well.

No rush on this journey. I’m high already. The few hits I took of that nice fat roll before I left Puerto Escondido an hour ago are just starting to wear off. I’m looking forward to a pleasant come-down on the next leg of the ride, which consists of an old truck careening through the jungle. It’s scenic, breezy, and social. The perfect metaphor for life on the Oaxacan coast.

This region of Mexico has yet to see development on the scale of other notorious cities. You’ll still hear sad stories about how Tulum went from fairly rugged and peaceful to a gaudy tourist trap in less than a decade. People curl their lips a bit when they mention Acapulco, about 8 hours up the coast in the neighboring state of Guerrero, but it doesn’t have the history to be any real competition.

Tourists come to Oaxaca on local terms, with means no fear of shameless authenticity and a quiet, steadfast mindset that rejects gentrification. There is little grace for the white man here.

Don’t like the rough roads, menus in Spanish only, or showers with no hot water? Here’s a bus ticket to the Yucatan Peninsula, snowflake. And don’t let the door hit your pasty ass on the way out. 

The transportation I regularly take from Puerto Escondido is what folks back home might refer to as “a chicken bus.” And yes, I have seen chickens on it, along with dogs, cats, and sometimes huge bushels of fresh produce.

I have yet to see a bale of fresh weed, but hope springs eternal.

The junction of San Antonio is the first place I change buses. It’s about an hour and 15 minutes east of Puerto Escondido. For those coming from Huatulco, it’s about the same distance, but you’d get off at the crucecita[2] of Pochutla instead. Take another camionetta through the seaside town of Puerto Angel to reach Zipolite.

Private taxis are also available but coast a lot more. It’s easy to get used to the more economical public transit system if you spend a lot of time here, and I do, so the whole trip from Puerto Escondido to Zipolite takes less than two hours and costs a total of seventy pesos. That’s less than five US dollars.

Excellent. More money for the deadly triumvirate of seafood, cerveza, and cannabis.

The Road to Zipolite

The ride from Puerto was fairly comfortable. I shared a seat with a commuter from Pochutla. It’s common to chat with total strangers on buses here and it took some time for introverted me to get used to it. My travel buddy heading back to his family home after doing some work in Puerto, and jokes that he wasn’t sure if he should talk to me at first, since guerros don’t like to talk to strangers. But the time passes more quickly, don’t you think?

When he finds out where I’m going, everything makes more sense. Only long-term residents and serious tourists can find Zipolite.

I walk just a few meters past the junction to find some shade while I wait for the next ride. I’m not alone for long. An older lady with a plastic tub and a cooler filled with snacks, drinks, and other edible goodies is waiting as well. She’s heading to the beach to sell her wares to stoned and thirsty tourists, and I’m pleased to give her a head start. I happily purchase a bag of roasted peanuts. They mix them with a combination of dried garlic, peppers, and salt. Rich, oily, and crazy delicious.

I caught a buddy of mine throwing out the dried garlic cloves once. Good thing he brought me some amazing hash because I just about killed him.

We’re soon joined by a few other tourists as other buses and taxis drop folks off at the nearby junction. The little camionetta is already full when it comes by, but this is Mexico, where there’s always room for one more. After a moment of everyone working together to rearrange the bags and make a little space for me and the Peanut Lady, we’re off.

It’s standing room only, which is fine, as I’m near the front of the truck and have a clear view of the road ahead. The first leg of the journey takes us past a few lush fields and open ranches, then we make a few sharp turns and the jungle closes in around us. We’ve recently had some heavy rain, so the trees are thick with leaves and the air smells like wet earth and fresh flowers. My sense of smell is heightened while I’m stoned, which can be good or bad. Right now, it’s glorious.

There are several stops along the way, but the first real city we reach is magical Mazunte. Seriously, this is one of Mexico’s “Magical Towns” and it’s the closest thing to a tourist trap in the region. I think of it as gringo flypaper. Most folks who don’t know any better stop here and never go any further west, and that’s what I’m thinking as I watch virtually the whole camionetta disembark.

Good, I think. Fewer people to mess up Zipolite.

Mazunte is nice, but that’s the problem. It’s a haven for hipsters, cruise ship passengers from Huatulco, and rich folks looking for yoga retreats and vegan restaurants. There’s some great shopping here, I have to admit, and when I have some extra cash I indulge in the upscale clothing, cosmetics and sometimes a new pipe.

Today, however, I’m happy to let others enjoy Mazunte while I move on. The last stop in town is by the Turtle Museum, where one person embarks to keep me company on the road to Zipolite.

Like me, this scruffy gentleman has lived in Mexico for a while. He looks like he’s been here since the 1960s and from the odor it’s possible that he hasn’t bathed since then, either. Now that sense of smell isn’t so fun.

He’s holding a fat, oily roach in his hand, which he smokes as he stands on the edge of the bumper, and the heavy purple cloud helps masks the perfume of an old school naturalist. I nod and smile, too overwhelmed with respect to let the smell bother me. It’s because of people like him that Zipolite is what it is.

The Beach of the Living

He offers me a haul, but I can smell the tobacco mix and politely decline, explaining in English, “That’s not how we roll them in Vancouver.” He smiles and laughs, a slight British accent showing through his reply, “Oh, the organic! Good show!”

In the hippy heyday several decades ago, there was virtually nothing connecting the Playa Chica to the outside world. There are legends told about the single dirt road that led to Oaxaca or the occasional boat that would leave from Puerto Angel or Huatulco, but that was all. The neighborhood of Zipolite stayed isolated longer than others. The dangerous currents that surround the beach make it too awkward to land a boat, so any water transportation was also extremely limited.

Despite that, a few intrepid foreigners who loved the alternative lifestyle managed to find it in the late 1960s. They brought with them cannabis, nudity, tolerance in general and an appreciation for a simpler way of living. The legacy endures for others that would follow.

The camionetta turns down a gentle curve, and here we are just outside of Zipolite. I used to get off at the crucecita bit further down, but then discovered a back lane that takes me to the main street a lot faster.

Old Hippie waves as I hop down. He lives nearby, but today he’s heading to Pochutla to find a bank machine.

I call it the back lane, but I have no idea if it has a real name or not, or even if it is a lane. It’s used as a road in the dry season, but it spring turns into a muddy river bed. It used to fork off to the right, but after a tree fell across it during a spring storm a few years back the locals are used it as a foot or bike path. It explodes into a nest of rich yellow flowers every few weeks, which also might be why the locals haven’t moved it.

Bike tracks and footprints line the narrow path that leads behind it. Sooner or later, some motivated local with come down here with a chainsaw and collect some firewood.

I pass a few hostels, houses and shops that start to peek out of the jungle. Most people recognize me from previous visits and wave from their front windows. It’s early summer and the tourists that saturated the place a few weeks ago have gone home.

The paved road opens up to the street known as Adoquin, and up until three years ago it was the only paved road in town. There’s no shortage of upscale hotels here but only if you know where to look. The nudist and naturalist community love Zipolite, and there are more than a few places that welcome the lifestyle.

If you’ve seen the film, “Y Tu Mama Tambien” then you’ve seen the expansive Playa Zipolite. Great for selfies but not so much for swimming. The deadly currents that prevent the construction of a boat launch make for ideal afternoon surfing but are deadly for swimmers. It’s theorized that the people who lived here in ancient times actually used the strong undercurrent to dispose of their dead or offer them to the gods, leading to the theory that zipolite is an ancient indigenous word that means “The Beach of the Dead.”

That also might be why hardly anyone wanted to live here.

To combat this problem, a group of volunteer lifeguards was formed in 1995, cutting the mortality rate in half. These guys are still here and they’re the backbone of this beach. I’ll be visiting them soon. They’ll save your life in more ways than one.

I’m not staying the night this time around, but I’ll stop by my favorite posada[3] and greet the owner.

Lifesavers

I turn right at the sign with the whale, and I’m on the beach. The little hotel forms a square archway. I walk through it and find my friend lounging in one of the many hammocks. As usual, he’s accompanied by a thick bit of pulp fiction and a thermos of iced tea.

“D!” I extend my hand as I greet him. “Long time, no see!”

This is a joke. I was here about ten days ago.

We take a few minutes to get caught up. He’s planning on heading north again soon. D. is originally from California, and he loves cannabis just as much as I do. He’s been here since the 1990s, when the place was still mostly virgin forest, and he was the first person I met in Zipolite.

The concierge always has a nice fat joint waiting for me when I arrive if I’m staying the night. This time, it’s just a day trip for lunch and a bag of green goodness. D. has a special treat today anyway. He digs into the fridge and brings out a plate filled with brownies.

“I know you’re more of a smoker,” he grins with mischief, “but a friend of mine made these, and they’re exceptional.” He wraps two into a paper towel. “Take them with you. Nice for the bus ride!”

I thank him profusely as we walk back to the hammocks. Now it’s time for me to head next door and get down to business.

I’ll call him Jesus, as I consider him to be my personal savior. I’m sure there are others that think of him that way in a literal sense. If Jesus had a peso for every distressed swimmer that he’s pulled out of the deadly riptide during his career as a Salvavida[4], he could pay for Trump’s border wall all by himself.

When he’s not cheating Death, he’s selling weed. I stand by my belief in his divinity.

Of course, Jesus has his chosen Disciples. The dangerous nature of the ocean means there’s a whole team of Salvavidas and if he’s not here there’s always a kind friend to help you out. Today it’s fairly quiet and Jesus is here with the apostles Matteo and Juan. Matteo has a frisbee on his lap and is rolling a joint, because that’s how you roll a joint on a breezy shoreline.

Juan and Jesus are discussing some surfing later and Juan is motioning towards the Roca Blanca side of the beach, so he doesn’t notice me right away. Matteo sees me first and greets me before handing me the frisbee and offering me his seat. It always gives me a secret joy to see these rough surfers in their board shorts and tattoos being such perfect gentlemen.

He knows what I need, and since it’s not a busy day on the beach he can grab it for me while Jesus and Juan keep an eye on the swimmers. I’ll finish the joint while I wait! Gracias amigo!

By now, of course, Jesus and Juan turn and say hello. They call me Maestra, I reference to my career as an English teacher. It’s what originally brought me to Mexico. When I first started coming to Zipolite I worked at an Oaxacan university about four hours down the road. Juan has pretty decent English and he likes to practice every chance he gets. And there are many chances, since the whole world comes to this beach. Jesus speaks some English and French, but he and I usually speak in Spanish.

Life is basically good, but they have concerns. The mafia comes sniffing around once in a while and limits their ability to sell. Jesus has a good relationship with the local cops, who look the other way for the most part, but there’s always the federal guys and of course, someone is always on the take. Sometimes they sell openly while other times things have to stay quiet. At the moment, it’s a bit of both.

The drug trade is big money here, especially in the high season, and the local organized crime is always trying to get a piece. The Salvavidas know I come here so I can buy weed outside of the crime element. Luckily, Zipolite is well protected by a small, close community that’s more like an extended family. They were here before the mafia, the police, or even the road, and the organized crime thugs at least have some respect for that. There are warnings, sometimes some harassment, but no deaths or beatings. Independent dealers in bigger cities are not so lucky. That’s another story.

I finish rolling. The joint is impossibly fat because I had to bust up the greasy buds with my fingers. Jesus proudly proclaims that he grew this himself on his patio. Totally organic and perfectly flushed, this is his own secret stash.

The thick blue smoke rises from our circle of plastic chairs. It sure beats the hell out of that skanky overpriced “Oaxaqueña” that I find in Puerto. On the other hand, the low-quality of the city weed has been a strong motivation to get the cannabudder recipe right.

Matteo returns with a small bag filled with delicious weedy goodness. I roll another joint from the weed from the bag. It’s the same stuff as the frisbee joint, which doesn’t happen often. It’s low season, Jesus explains, so he can break out the good stuff for the regulars. 

As if listening to a sound that only he can hear, he stops speaking and turns quickly back towards the shoreline. Someone is in trouble, might be a surfer or a swimmer.

Juan is already grabbing a flotation device, and his whistle is clenched between his teeth. All three bolt out from under the palapa[5] without another word.

I don’t take it personally. I hear the lifeguard whistle sound as I find a place on the beach to stretch out and get some color, free of a pesky tan line. Matteo won’t mind if I keep the frisbee for the time being. I’ll get another joint ready for their return, and my mind turns to thoughts of shrimp cocktails and beer.

This is Zipolite, the Beach of the Dead. Bring your gay partner, a bag of weed, the dog, and your bare ass. All are welcome. A true paradise on Earth. 

References

Camp. (n.d.). Zipolite Playa Nudista Mexico [Video file]. Retrieved from https://vimeo.com/259265569

Clarín.com. (2018, February 4). Desfiles, baile y poca ropa en el Festival Nudista de Zipolite. Retrieved from https://www.clarin.com/viajes/desfiles-baile-poca-ropa-festival-nudista-zipolite_0_H1CVqONUz.html

The Dangerous Waters of Zipolite. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://tomzap.com/zip-dang.html

Playa Zipolite. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://tomzap.com/zipolite.html

Destinos – El Universal – Oaxaca y sus Playas. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://web.archive.org/web/20110130084712/www.eluniversal.com.mx/articulos/w30321.html

[1]. A form of public transport that ranges from a minivan to a truck with a canopy.

[2]    A junction of a highway with a city street or main urban road.

[3]    A small hotel with basic amenities.

[4]    A lifeguard. The literal translation is “lifesaver.”

[5]    A roof made with an intricate woven pattern of palm tree fronds.