INTRODUCTION

Happy New Year and all the very best for a healthy 2007.

There were very good intentions of having this issue of The Akumalian published a lot earlier in the month, as the plan is to shift the distribution date to the first of the month, or there-abouts. This change will allow each issue to look forward for a calendar month, versus a half of this month and a half of that month.  And, sine we now have the issues being published on The Akumalian web site, it might be more practical to have two issues each month.

Besides being earlier in the month, this issue also brings a couple of new columns/ideas together.  One is to publish Birthdays, and another is to cover more "events ", and a third is to have a Table of Contents.  It's nothing really radical, but hopefully they make The Akumalian even more personal, informative, and easy to access.
 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Important January Facts

• January Birthdays and Anniversaries

• Carnation Day, January 29th

• Full Moon, January 3rd

• Robin's Best Shirt Award, January 5th

• Bandikoro at the Beach Bar, January 11th

• Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday, January 15th

• Passport Required for Akumal, January 23rd

• Paula Humphreys to Play in the Qtar Masters Pro-Am, Jan. 24th

• Akumal's Red and Yellow Flashing Lights

• Comings & Goings

• Events

• How Far Away Lightning Strikes

• Remembering Those Who Left Us in 2006

• What Are They (Taser) Thinking?

IMPORTANT JANUARY FACTS

Astrological Signs
Capricorn: December 22 - January 19
Aquarius: January 20 - February 18

January Birthstone: Garnet, the symbol of constancy and fidelity
January Flower: Carnation and Snowdrop

JANUARY BIRTHDAYS AND ANNIVERSARIES

Birthdays
1    Kelly Colladarci
3    Arlene Pargot
3    Thierry VanderElst
8    Diane Mather
17   Tricia Haynes
22   Cheryl Ragan
26   Myrna Bush
27   Lisa Combs
29   Tom Baxter

Anniversaries
4    Bob & Diane Mather
30   Richard & Arlene Pargot

NOTE: Send in your Birthdays and Anniversaries

CARNATION DAY, JANUARY 29th

The carnation was originally called dianthus by the Greek botanist Theopharastus. The carnation has been cultivated over 2,000 years.

The name carnation has two possible origins. One thought is that the name comes from "coronation" or "corone" since it was used in Greek ceremonial crowns. Another thought is the name is derived from the Greek carnis meaning flesh, which was the original flower color.

Carnations in general mean fascination, love and good luck. A white carnation stands for innocence, devotion and pure love.
 

FULL MOON, JANUARY 3rd

The Full Wolf Moon was on Wednesday, January 3rd at 8:57am. Amid the cold and deep snows of midwinter, the jaguar packs howled hungrily outside Mayan villages. Thus, the name for January's full Moon. Sometimes, it was also referred to as the Old Moon, or the Moon After Yule. Some called it the Full Snow Moon, but most tribes applied that name to the next Moon.
 

ROBIN'S BEST SHIRT AWARD, JANUARY 5th

We all know Robin was very big on nice shirts, and he periodically made his personal, informal "best shirt" award at the Lol Ha Beach bar, and now, his sister, Mary Henderson, is making this an official monthly Akumal Event. On the first Friday of each month, Mary will be the judge and jury as she selects the "best shirt" worn by a male, and as we go to print the criteria are still somewhat nebulous, but it looks like "coolest", "neatest", and "most colorful" might garner a lot of brownie points.

Mary has cajoled Gerardo to award a free drink to the winner. And, the actual trophy will be permanently and prominently displayed at the Beach Bar, behind the bar, on the top shelf.

A special thanks goes to Diane & Bob Mather, who conceived the idea when Robin awarded his  'best shirt ' award to Bob last year. Bob & Diane, co-owners of the ground floor of Casa Zama with Margaret & Leroy Wiedman, took the initiative and designed and commissioned the trophy for this event.

The first award ceremony was made on Friday, January 5th, and Mary, despite a full lineup of Akumal's finest men in their best shirts there at the Beach Bar, selected the Lol Ha Beach Bar waiters as the winners. Well done!! Go to Best Shirt for more photos.
 

BANDIKORO AT THE BEACH BAR, JANUARY 11th

On Thursday, January 11th, there was a wonderful musical evening at the Lol Ha Beach Bar, as Laura arranged to bring in the multinational nine member band, Bandikoro, to delight the crowd with their energetic fusion of African Latin music.

There was a lot of movin' and groovin' going on the dance floor.  And, to add to the Latin flavor, Laura brought the taco bar out to the Beach Bar, and she was even at the grill flipping tacos. Go to Bandikoro for more photos.

MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. BIRTHDAY, JAN. 15th

The Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., often called Martin Luther King Day, is a United States holiday marking the birth date of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., observed on the third Monday of January each year, around the time of King's birthday, January 15. It is the only United States federal holiday commemorating an African American, and one of only four to commemorate an individual person.

Martin Luther King Day was founded as a holiday promoted by labor unions in contract negotiations. After King's death in 1968, Rep. John Conyers introduced a bill in Congress to make King's birthday a national holiday, highlighting King's activism on behalf of trade unionists. Unions did most of the promotion for the holiday throughout the 1970s. In 1976, trade unionists helped to elect Jimmy Carter, who endorsed the King Day bill. After that endorsement, union influence in the King holiday campaign declined, and the King Center turned to support from the corporate community and the general public. The success of this strategy was cemented when musician Stevie Wonder released the single "Happy Birthday" to popularize the campaign in 1980 and hosted the Rally for Peace Press Conference in 1981. 6 million signatures were collected for a petition to Congress to pass the law, termed by a 2006 The Nation article as "...the largest petition in favor of an issue in US history."

Opposition to the bill was led by Senator Jesse Helms, who questioned whether King was important enough to receive such an honor. He was also critical of King's opposition to the Vietnam War and accused King of having Communist connections.

President Ronald Reagan was also opposed to the holiday. He relented in his opposition only after Congress passed the King Day Bill with an overwhelming, veto-proof majority (338 to 90 in the House of Representatives and 78 to 22 in the Senate).

At the White House Rose Garden on November 2, 1983, Reagan signed a bill creating a federal holiday to honor King. It was observed for the first time on January 20, 1986.

On January 17, 2000, for the first time, Martin Luther King Day was officially observed in all 50 U.S. states. The day is marked by demonstrations for peace, social justice and racial and class equality, as well as a national day of volunteer community service.
 

PAULA HUMPHREYS TO PLAY IN QATAR MASTERS PRO-AM, JANUARY 24th

On Wednesday, January 24th, Paula Humphreys will be playing in the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters PRO-AM event, based on her having won three tournaments in 2006, including the Commercial Bank Golf tournament in April. Given that her place is sponsored by the leading tournament sponsor, she will probably get to play with one of the top players, so she is very excited, if not a little intimidated. As you may know, Paula, Neil, Katie and Ellie have been visiting Akumal for many years now, always being here for about five weeks in the July-August time frame.

Following hot on the spikes of Paula and fellow golfing superstars Ernie Els, Sergio Garcia and Retief Goosen entries, American Ryder Cup star Chris DiMarco is the latest big name to sign up for the 2007 Commercial Bank Qatar Masters. DiMarco's appearance at the Doha Golf Club from January 25-28 will be his first visit to Qatar and underlines the appeal of the $2.2 million tournament, sanctioned by both The European Tour and the Asian Tour.

The Doha Golf Club is a par 72 course that measures 7,312 yards, and with eight artificial lakes weaving their way along most of the holes, the utmost accuracy is required.
 

PASSPORT REQUIRED FOR AKUMAL, JAN. 23rd

Five years after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the U.S. government is on the verge of implementing security-inspired changes to passports that will affect millions of international travelers. On January 23, air travelers to and from Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean will, for the first time, need a passport to cross the U.S. border. Starting in the spring, all U.S. citizens applying for a passport will get an electronic version that's embedded with a "smart" chip designed to thwart forgery. The new regulations represent the most significant changes in border control in years, as federal officials try to bring the process of checking identification into the digital age.

Many people heading to Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean now travel with just a driver's license for identification. Under the new rule, U.S. citizens traveling by air need a passport. Though a driver's license will no longer suffice, the government does leave some wiggle room. The Nexus Air card, issued under a USA-Canada cooperative program to prescreened travelers, is acceptable. The passport rule will apply to land and sea travelers no later than June 1, 2009.

For Americans who don't want to pay $97 for a passport, the State Department also plans by the end of 2007 to introduce a "passport card" that would work like a passport. The card, which costs $20 for adults, is good only for those traveling by land or sea to Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean.

The State Department issued 16 million passports in 2006, vs. 12 million in 2005, with the increase largely the result of the new rule. It's now issuing the "e-passport" in some areas of the country. Conversion from the old passport will be complete this spring. The new passport looks like the traditional type, but its smart chip stores the traveler's photo and personal information. If the chip is broken or malfunctions, the holder can continue to use the document as a non-electronic passport or buy a new one. Traditional passports will remain valid until they expire.

Critics say that transmitting information wirelessly can compromise security, and important data could fall into the wrong hands. With proper equipment, someone could remotely intercept personal data, a practice called "skimming."

People applying for passports at the federal agencies in Denver, Boston, Washington and Miami now get the new e-passport. Those applying at 13 other agencies may still receive the traditional passport until this spring, when agencies will start issuing only the e-passport.
 

AKUMAL'S RED & YELLOW FLASHING LIGHTS

Now you see them. Now you don't.

The red & yellow flashing lights before the speed bumps on MX 307 went unlit for the longest time, and then just before Christmas, they were turned ON. They were ON for about five days, and then the one south of the intersection was DOWN and OUT. Initially, it looked like it was toppled by an accident, but then, at about the same time, the highway department was widening the road over there, so they may have taken it down.
 

COMINGS AND GOINGS

The Christmas and New Years holidays are over, and January tends to be a slower month for rentals, and as a result, many local owners and guests are visiting Akumal. And, South Akumal has its Owners Meeting on Saturday, January 27th.

Comings:
* Richard & Arlene Pargot are back for a relatively long stay.
* Denny & Diane Mahan have returned to Akumal after an extended holiday vacation with family and friends up north, in Ohio and Georgia.
* Pat & Cheryl Ragan were around town over Christmas.
* Kathy Farrell Sonheim & Jim are back in town for an extended visit.
* Bobby & Mary McCarney were also back in South Akumal for Christmas.
* Jack & Anne Kennedy were back in Las Casitas, and they had their daughter, Pamela, son-in-law, and grandsons, Jack and Cole, for New Years.
* Marcy & Maimo Essy were back to host the “Live Nativity”.
* Joe & Kathy Volpolicello are back in Aventuras Akumal.
* Terry & Lisa Turner came back to South Akumal for New Years.
* Same with Larry & Cherie Jackson.
* Gene & Mary Ellen Langan took advantage of school vacation and returned for New Years.
* Adrian is back around the dive shop.
* Bob & Diane Mather are back in Casa Zama for awhile.
* Hollis Hines, George Plamondon, and Billy just returned to South Akumal.

Returning to Akumal later in the month:
* Steve & Judy Holz on the 12th
* Scott Pargot and family on the 15th
* Macon & Susan Gravlee on the 20th
* Nancy & Creighton Walker on the 20th
* Lisa Combs the week of the 22nd
* Larry & Karen Canter in the second half of the month
* Leroy & Margaret Wiedman the last week of the month.
* Betty McElhatten on the 28th with David, Francesca, Dylan and Finn
* Roger & Denise Burton, also on the 28th

Goings:
* Gary & Kay Walton left for Houston, Texas on the 8th
* Linda Tate is also in the states now
* Gabriella Herbert heads over to Naples, Florida on the 16th
* Mary Henderson goes back to Houston around the 24th
 

EVENTS

During the week before Christmas and Kwanzaa, a number of "events" took place within Akumal.

Turtle Bay Cafe & Ixchel Boutique Christmas Party On Sunday, December 17th, Bart & Jen Smith, Mary Henderson, and Linda Tate hosted a combined Christmas party for their staff at the Turtle bay Cafe. Needless to say, Santa was able to take time out from his extremely busy schedule to spend some time with all the good girls and deliver an array of presents. Go to TBC Christmas Party for more photos.

Hekab Be Biblioteca de Akumal Christmas Party
On Thursday, December 21st, Maggie McKown hosted a Christmas party at the library, and Santa was able to make a return visit to Akumal to deliver presents to all the children in attendance, and there were quite a few. Go to Library Christmas for photos.

MexicArte One Year Anniversary
Nayeli Aparacio and Pablo Diaz hosted the first anniversary celebration of their MexicArte shop (beside the Hotel Akumal Caribe front lobby at the arch) on Friday, December 22nd It was a very well attended event, and a good time was had by all. Go to MexicArte Anniversary for more photos.

Christmas Program and "Live" Nativity
On Saturday, December 23rd, the annual Akumal Christmas Program was presented on the Akumal/CEA stage. This program once again featured the very popular "live" Nativity, live music with the Akumal Choir, the Christmas story, candle lighting, and candy canes. It was a beautiful evening, and it was very well attended. Santa did not make an appearance at this event. Go to Live Nativity for more photos.
 

HOW FAR AWAY LIGHTNING STRIKES

Can you calculate how far away lightning struck by how long it takes for the thunder to arrive?

Yes.  Sound travels through air at "the speed of sound." Officially, the speed of sound is 331.3 meters per second (1,087 feet per second) in dry air at 0 degrees Celsius (32 degrees Fahrenheit). At a temperature like 28 degrees C (82 degrees F), the speed is 346 meters per second.

So, the speed of sound changes depending on the temperature and the humidity; but if you want a round number, then something like 350 meters per second and 1,200 feet per second are reasonable numbers to use. So sound travels 1 kilometer in roughly 3 seconds and 1 mile in roughly 5 seconds.

When you see the flash of a lightning bolt, you can start counting seconds and then divide to see how far away the lightning struck. If it takes 10 seconds for the thunder to roll in, the lightning struck about 2 miles or 3 kilometers away.
 

REMEMBERING THOSE WHO LEFT US IN 2006

At the conclusion of the "Live Nativity" on December 23rd, Marcy read the names of the four very dear friends of Akumal – Bill Guynes, Robin Goble, Greg Brown, and Gayle Walker - who died during the year, and this was a very stirring and emotional moment for those of us who were privileged to know them. There were others as well.

 Greg Brown died on February 23rd.

 Gayle Walker, 1949 – 2006, died on May 10th

 Robin Phillip Goble, 1938 – 2006, died on July 23rd.

 William “Bill” Guynes, 1924 – 2006, died on September 20th.

 Vince Welnick, keyboard player for the Grateful Dead, died on June 2nd.

 Rene Wingrove, a condo owner in Aventuras Akumal, died in July.

 Ricardo Schieber, “The Mayor” in Tulum, died in August.
 

WHAT ARE THEY (TASER) THINKING?

Taser International unveiled a new model of its controversial stun gun designed for widespread use by regular folks. It's more affordable and small enough to be stashed in a purse or backpack.

Critics and supporters have a lot to say about the sleek device unveiled at the 2007 International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The size of a TV remote control, the Taser C2 goes on sale in April for about $300 and comes in the metallic pink, electric blue and titanium silver of popular cell phones.

Opponents say Tasers can be used for torture; supporters say the devices are safe when used appropriately.

Taser has sold about 120,000 civilian versions since 1994, a model that is larger than the latest incarnation and shaped like a gun. Since 1991, Taser has sold more than 200,000 devices to law enforcement. Both shoot barbs that pierce the skin and deliver an incapacitating jolt of electricity. Current civilian models cost about $1,000.

Taser says the C2, less powerful than the police version, is designed to stun for 30 seconds, providing enough time for the shooter to flee from danger.

"It's a terrible idea. It's a dangerous idea", says Larry Cox, executive director of Amnesty International USA, which says there have been 200 Taser-related deaths. "I can't think of any reason you would want these out in public."

Private citizens are not allowed to own Tasers in the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Michigan, New Jersey, New York and Wisconsin.

 

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