Wherever we lived in Latin America, the power always centered around El Señor. Whoever he was, whatever he did, it always was the same, the culture believed that El Señor magically always knew best. Very “Father Knows Best” of the 1950s, but then the Latin America of my time was just like that. 

So it came to pass in that summer of 1986 when we moved to Guayaquil, that my husband morphed from the Meneer of Curacao, to the El Señor of Ecuador. Different words defined with the same meaning online, sir. 

It was a hot, sunny, and until the call, uneventful Saturday morning when our landline rang with a call from El Señor’s comptroller. 

“Gary, did you hear about Ernesto and the company car?” Being an Americanized-Puerto Rican, the comptroller called El Señor by his forename. 

On Friday night, the feed mill manager, Ernesto was driving his company car. Stopping at a red-light, he was crashed into by a car that ran the light. The impact pushed Ernesto and his company car into a very deep, open sewer, jamming the electric doors and windows, preventing his escape. In the real threat of drowning in the sewage, a passerby broke the windshield to extricate Ernesto through the broken, jagged glass, cutting his leg in the rescue. 

In the 1980s in Ecuador, the country built only one type of vehicle in country, the Jeep. If a customer wanted anything else, it had to be imported under a 400% tariff tax, making the Jeep a very popular vehicle. 

It was like Henry Ford’s quote, “Any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants, so long as it’s black.” 

“Yes, I know about the accident,” Gary responded. “Is Ernesto alright?” As the company manager, Gary didn’t really care about the total destruction of the very expensive company car, but did care a great deal about Ernesto. Although he was quite a few years older than Gary, Ernesto always insisted on calling Gary, “Sir.” It was a form of respect to the Anglo boss, El Señor. 

After the accident and rescue, Ernesto had been taken to the best hospital in Guayaquil where his cousin, the doctor, was also the head of the hospital. Ernesto’s cousin-the-doctor, then carefully stitched Ernesto’s gashed leg closed. 

Late Saturday night the phone rang again. “Gary, have you heard what’s happened to Ernesto now? They’re getting ready to amputate his LEG!”

Jolted wide-awake, Gary said this wasn’t possible. Hadn’t he spoken to Ernesto only a few hours earlier? Although he wasn’t feeling too well, how had this situation deteriorated amputation? 

Hanging up Gary began to work on evacuating Ernesto by air ambulance to Miami for the first-world treatment available there. Visas would have to be arranged, payment for the air ambulance made before the air ambulance would even leave Miami for Guayaquil. 

Unable to reach anyone from US corporate at this late hour on a Labor Day weekend, Gary woke his wife. “Please co-sign this,” he said, handing over a pen and one of their money market account checks made out for $10,000 for her co-signature.

As Saturday night flipped to early Sunday morning, while Ernesto’s wife cried hysterically in an adjoining waiting room, Gary found himself surrounded by a contingent of Ernesto’s extended family and friends in the cousin-the-doctor’s office. Various doctors were in attendance, awaiting the imminent arrival of the senior hot-shot Ecuadorian specialist who knew all about gangrene and amputations. 

Suddenly everyone in the room turned to El Señor, the newly-arrived company manager of various businesses, and Ernesto’s boss. Should we amputate the leg, they asked El Señor? Amazed, aghast and appalled, El Señor was speechless.

It was hardly a question covered by his international MBA coursework.  

El Señor responded that the doctors and specialists were the ones who knew best if gangrene had set in, and Ernesto’s family were the ones who had to make life and death decisions of this sort. Shouldn’t they wait for the hot-shot expert’s opinion?

The hot-shot arrived, assessed the situation to say that even though the leg was black and smelled putrid, it couldn’t be gangrene since it hadn’t been 72 hours since the leg was cut and infected by the sewer water. 

Sighing with relief, Gary took over the necessary work to get Ernesto and his wife onto the air ambulance and into a hospital in Miami. The diagnosis there was that the leg had an anaerobic bacterial infection due to the wound being stitched closed, but that Ernesto wasn’t out of the woods, with a long, painful process to save his leg in the USA. 

A year or two later at a company family gathering, Ernesto happily showed one and all his horrifically scarred leg, a leg that looked like a side of an air-dried ham. Loosened with a few beers, he also told El Señor that although the pain in Miami had been so bad that he thought he would have rather lost his leg than undergo the treatment to save it, life had changed his view. Smiling beautifically, Ernesto admitted that over the past year the time with his children and family had more than made up for all the pain and suffering he’d undergone. 

Tragically a handful of years later, Ernesto was killed in an air disaster, but only after he’d had a few more happy years within his loving family. 

From Barry Sanders’ jukes to Odell Beckham’s one-handed catches, check out the greatest signature moves in NFL history.

Tweet

• Advertisement:

• Advertisement:

• 
  

  Welcome to ChicagoNow.

  Meet
  our bloggers,
  
  post comments, or
  
  pitch your blog idea.

  Sign in
  Pitch your idea
  Play games

• Subscribe by Email

Completely spam free, opt out any time.

Facebook

Tweets by @ChicagoNow

Latest on ChicagoNow

• The Imaginary Writers’ Room gains another poet

  from Margaret Serious by Margaret H. Laing
  posted today at 5:48 pm

• Feature Friday: Wireless Charging

  from Drive, She Said by Jill Ciminillo
  posted today at 5:36 pm

• Chinese-Americans be damned, Kevin McCarthy’s OK with Trump’s racism

  from The Quark In The Road by Aquinas wired
  posted today at 1:57 pm

• Is the Karen moniker more sexist than funny?

  from Windy City Legal Geek by Windy City Legal Geek
  posted today at 12:24 pm

• Chicago 2020 Farmer’s Markets: dates & locations

  from Show Me Chicago by Carole Kuhrt Brewer
  posted today at 12:19 pm

Posts from related blogs

• 

  Eye on Chi

  Most recent post: 10 years ago today from the Trib and Sun-Times: the Bears reach the Super Bowl

More from News: Media

Read these ChicagoNow blogs

• 

  Cubs Den

  Chicago Cubs news and comprehensive blog, featuring old school baseball writing combined with the latest statistical trends
  • The Den Podcast – Ep 41: Jared and Myles on Baseball’s Return, Rule Changes, and Horse Expressions
• 

  Pets in need of homes

  Pets available for adoption in the Chicago area
  • Yoda — Petraits Rescue
• 

  Show Me Chicago

  Show Me Chicago previews, reviews and expresses opinions on what’s happening in Chicago from Blockbuster Theater, to what’s new in dining, arts, and the neighborhoods.
  • Chicago 2020 Farmer’s Markets: dates & locations

Read these ChicagoNow Bloggers

• 

  Ray Salazar, NBCT

  from The White Rhino: A Blog about Education and Latino Issues:
  Latinx Chicago Public Schools valedictorian highlights what class of 2020 must ask itself
• 

  Natalie Matthews

  from Aspiring Dance Mom:
  Pandemic Parenting: The childcare struggle continues
• 

  Tron Griffin

  from Keeping An Eye Out:
  YouTube, for over 10 years I have begged you to get rid of the racist El Negrito Tomas and El Negro Mama

Advertisement:

Although there are states other than Florida that are on the rise with Covid-19 cases, I have been residing here for the past 10 weeks. I’ve seen first hand why the cases have risen to record breaking levels. I am returning to Illinois this week and praying that the phase 4 reopening does not lead us to what is happening down here.

In mid-April we made the temporary move to our place in Florida. We were afraid of the rapid rise in Illinois and with Florida being nearly double the size of our home state, it seemed a safer place to be. We are on the West coast, away from the original madness of the Miami area. Our businesses were shut down, it seemed like a good thing to do. At the time.

Our place here is in a very small gated community. We have isolated ourselves almost completely. We pick up groceries curbside, we do not go to restaurants (even outside), we do not go shopping or any other activity that would put us at risk. We tried an outdoor place and when we had to use the restroom and go inside we were shocked. The place was full to capacity and not a single person other than a server wore a mask. So, we said never again. Just because literally everything is open doesn’t mean that we will partake. I am sincerely hoping that Illinoisans will be smart now that the state will enter phase 4.

The reason that Florida is spiking is simple: few follow the rules. Masks are not required in numerous places. In the beginning we saw them but as time has gone by we realized that it just doesn’t seem important to the general population. When we drive down the Main Street in our downtown area, restaurants are packed outside. Tables are right next to each other. Although the waitstaff are wearing masks, many of them have them down under their noses, completely nullifying the purpose. It’s as though there is no virus – and look what is happening.

As we scramble to get out of here we are concerned about Illinois entering the next phase of reopening. The state has done an excellent job in reducing the spread, much to the chagrin of many people. A lot have criticized the Governor for his stance – I applaud him. Cook County was the worst in the country, now our daily cases pale in comparison to other states. While we have roughly 600-700 cases a day, Florida just saw a one day total of over 5,000. Think about how many people those 5,000 have been in contact with.

What will people do now that restaurants will open indoors? Bars? We saw in Wisconsin bars packed to the gills without a single person wearing a mask or social distancing. Are we going to see that in Illinois? Will restaurants follow the capacity rules? Will everyone wear a mask? Will gatherings of 50 people or less actually practice social distancing and wear masks, particularly when indoors?

It’s a simple equation. Masks have been proven to stop the spread. Staying a safe distance apart has been proven to stop or slow the spread. As Illinois moves into the next phase, will people suddenly forget these rules? They have here in Florida and other states such as Texas. My daughter lives in Austin; as of today the state is re-closing bars and reducing restaurant capacity. Apparently people just can’t follow the rules. Let’s not be those people.

Many of my small business clients are following the rules and seeing good results with them. They are able to do business and people (for the most part) are happy to help. With Illinois having waited longer than other states to enter this phase, why ruin it with stupidity and ignoring rules? If we all stick together and follow the new normal guidelines, we can safely move forward and start to enjoy our lives again. If not? It will be inevitable that we will see spikes in cases and start moving backwards. I for one want to resume my life, my work. I want to safely see my kids and not worry if I hug them.

As I’ve been saying for months now, do your part. Stop making a mask a political statement. Pay attention to the rules. Stick to safety measures in this new phase as you would have before. Let’s continue to move forward. Don’t you want to see a light at the end of this tunnel?

I sure do, so please don’t spoil it.

Just in time to get the first of those Early Girl tomatoes and still time to get seasonal strawberries, Chicago’s Farmers Markets have announced opening dates.

Chicago’s farmers markets offer a variety of items from farm fresh eggs, artisan cheeses and homemade bread to seasonal fruits, veggies and more.

Don’t limit your shopping to your “local” market–as each neighborhood market offers specialties unique to their area.

Game Plan

With Covid-19 still lurking in the shadows, don’t expect the “frills” offered in past years–at least not at the start of the markets and most likely not all season.

Here’s what there will NOT be:

No music, arts or crafts; No children’s activities (it is recommended not to even bring children); No yoga or cooking demonstrations.

Grab and Go

The idea is to go to the market, make your purchases, keep moving, don’t loiter and leave as soon as possible. OR you can order ahead for pickup or delivery with Whatsgood.

Opening dates, days and locations for Chicago’s 2020 Farmers Markets

Garlic roots are available at many markets. Photo: Corole Kuhrt-Brewer

Opening June (to October)

• Division Street City Market, (30 W. Division St.), Saturdays,  June 20 to Oct. 31, 7 a.m. to noon.
• West Humboldt Park City Market, 3601 W. Chicago Ave., Saturdays,  June 13 to Oct. 3, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

July to September

• Austin Town Hall City Market, 5610 W. Lake St.; Thursday’s July 16 to Sept. 17, 1–6 p.m.
• Bronzeville City Market, 4700 S. King Drive; Sunday’s July 12 to Sept. 13, 12–4 p.m.
• Englewood City Market, 1219 W. 76th St.; Saturday’s July 18 to Sept. 19, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• LaFollette Park City Market, 1333 N. Laramie Ave.; Wednesday’s July 29 to Sept. 16, 2–7 p.m.

July to October

• Printers Row City Market, 700 S. Dearborn St.; Sunday’s July 11 to Oct. 24, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Pullman Market City Market, 11100 S. Cottage Grove Ave.; Wednesday’s July 1 to Oct. 28, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.

August to October

• Roseland City Market, 138 W. 109th St. (Lavizzo Elementary School); Wednesday’sAug. 26 to Oct. 28, 2:30–5:30 p.m.

Independent Markets

Visit a farmer’s market

Lakeview’s Low-Line Market at the Southport CTA Brown Line station starts June 11, 3:30-7:30 p.m.

Plant Chicago has restarted its weekly Saturday farmers market in Back of the Yards at 45th and Marshfield, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Green City Market opens in Lincoln Park on June 13 and in the West Loop (at Mary Bartelme Park) on June 20.

Logan Square Farmers Market is running Sundays, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Entrance is only at Milwaukee Avenue and Logan Boulevard.

The Portage Park Farmers Market, Jefferson Park Sunday Market, and Independence Park Farmers Market have joined forces to form the Northwest Side Farmers Market Collective. Initial market dates are planned for June 14 and June 28 at the Sears at Six Corners, 4730 W. Irving Park Road. Check social media for updates.

The Glenwood Sunday Market in Rogers Park has a tentative opening date of June 21.

The Andersonville Farmers Market has an online version: Order on Friday, pick up the following Wednesday at Clark and Catalpa streets.

The Lincoln Square Ravenswood Chamber of Commerce holds a daytime market on Tuesdays and an evening market on Thursdays in the municipal lot adjacent to the Western CTA Brown Line station. Anticipated kick-off dates are June 16 and June 18, respectively.

The weekly South Loop Farmers Market gets underway June 18, Second Presbyterian Church, 1936 S. Michigan Ave.

The North Center Farmers Market debuts June 20 in the neighborhood’s revamped Town Square, 4100 N. Damen Ave., 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The first of North Park’s monthly Community Markets is set for June 14, 5515 N. Kimball Ave., 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The Pilsen Community Market opens June 14 in Plaza Tenochtitlán, 18th Street and Blue Island, and will run Sundays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The Wicker Park Farmers Market is delayed until July 5, but organizers have created pop-up and virtual market opportunities in the meantime. The Everday Edgebrook’s Farmers Market starts July 11. The Argyle Night Market in Uptown is postponed until August.

Still up in the air: The Horner Park Farmers Market intends to return in some form or other, but no start date has been set as of press time. The SOAR Farmers Market in Streeterville is awaiting the go-ahead for its weekly market in the Museum of Contemporary Art plaza.

For those who are reluctant to attend markets, the Chicago Farmers Market Collective — a collaborative effort from several markets — has gathered a list of vendors and how to purchase directly from them.

Subscribe to Show Me Chicago by email

If you would like to keep in touch with what’s happening in Chicago, like us on Facebook or subscribe to Show Me Chicago by email. To subscribe, type your email address in the box below and click the “create subscription” button. Our list is completely spam free, and you can opt out at any time.

Count me among those who don’t find the “Karen” designation amusing. I think it’s sexist, anti-woman, and even dangerous.

When I first learned of this social media trend, which has even been adopted by the regular media, particularly the tabloid press, a Karen was defined as a white woman who calls the police on black men for trivial reasons. Now apparently the moniker has morphed to represent a white woman asserting herself or her rights in any situation at all, whether or not it involves a non-white person and whether or not it involves the police.

(For the record, my name is not Karen – thankfully.)

At first I was merely offended on behalf of women named Karen. It seemed unfair at best, defamatory at worst. But now I think it’s much less benign than that.

Why this name in particular, out of all the names in the world? There are an awful lot of non-white women named Karen. What do they think of this? It seems there are more lily-white names that could have been chosen; Caitlin or Buffy just to name two.

Now that it’s come to apply to virtually any Caucasian woman in virtually any situation, I worry that it could dissuade women who feel justifiably uncomfortable or threatened in a situation from speaking up or seeking help, for fear of being Internet-shamed in front of millions as a “Karen.” Is this what we want?

Where are the #MeToo people? Where are the feminists? There seems to be nothing but radio silence on this from the usual quarters that come forward to defend women. And shame on the tabloid media for picking this trend up and running with it.

It doesn’t seem that the notion of Karens gibes with #MeToo, #TimesUp, or #BelieveAllWomen.

It made me wonder whether Bill Cosby’s accusers are now considered Karens. Weren’t most of them white? And sure enough, Camille Cosby came out the other day and accused the #MeToo movement of being racist.

And why isn’t there a corresponding term for a man in a similar situation? Why are only women being targeted and labeled? Why don’t we hear about “Jeffreys” or “Todds”? I would venture to guess that there are more racist white men out there than there are racist white women.

It’s time to stop the misogyny.

“House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy lashed out at a reporter on Thursday who asked whether the California Republican thought Donald Trump’s use of a racist term ‘kung-flu’ was “an appropriate way to ‘characterize the coronavirus.'”

When asked about Trump’s racist names

For Covid-19 McCarthy flames.

He acts outraged, quite shocked and cross

Before the press, but not his boss.

Before I got my new iPhone 11, I was jealous of people who were able to “cut the cord” for their phones in test cars and use the wireless charging feature.

My phone’s battery was perpetually dead, and if I forgot my charging cable, I may as well just turn my phone off because it was going to be bricked soon anyway. 

Now that I’ve upgraded, I’d say a new Apple or Android phone that supports wireless charging is worth its weight in gold — not only for in-car applications but for home charging as well.

But I digress. What is this wireless charging thing and how does it work?

Quite simply (and obviously), wireless charging allows you to charge your phone without plugging the phone itself in. In a vehicle application, there is usually a ledge or a tray you set your phone on, and when you line it up properly, your phone starts to charge. 

Most vehicles make this easy and obvious, and in current generation charging setups, you don’t have to do a lot of futzing with your phone to line it up correctly — the charge pad usually cuts a large swath. 

In Jill terms, how it works is also simple: There is a thing in your phone that connects to a thing in your car that allows energy to pass between the two items, and voila! You phone charges.

But to give a more thorough answer, I consulted an article from Computer World. While they use a lot of technical language, my takeaway is this: A magnetic field, which is created inside the charging pad through the use of copper coils, creates an electrical current that can charge a device with a receiver as long as the two items are within close proximity.

If you are more technically inclined or generally curious, I recommend you click through to the linked article because it also explains why Apple lagged behind and the different kinds of wireless charging available. The video below is also pretty informative without being super techy.

As I’ve started testing my phone with this feature I have noticed it’s not necessarily ideal for long road trips and it doesn’t work fast. So, it’s nice if you need a boost and you have a half-hour drive, but it won’t bring your phone back to 80% within 20 minutes or whatever it is fast-charge cables promise these days. 

 Most new phones being released today offer this technology, and similarly, most cars come with wireless charging as an option. So, if you’re interested in cutting the cord, check your phone’s capabilities and add this feature to your “must-have” list when buying a new car. 

One thing to know: Because this feature has been around for a few cars, you’ll likely find some used cars that also have wireless charging. Just be sure to test it with your phone before you buy because some of the earlier systems didn’t work as well and were really finicky. 

Other items in the Friday Feature series:

• Near Field Communication
• Seat Extender
• Auto Stop/Start Engine
• Park Assist
• Adaptive Cruise Control
• Track pads and touch controllers
• Winter Tires
• Rear Camera Mirror
• Lane Keep Assist
• Passive Entry
• Automatic Reverse Braking
• Hyundai’s Remote Smart Parking Assist (aka Smaht Pahk)
• Rear Cross-Traffic Alert
• Around-View Backup Cameras
• Mazda’s Infotainment System
• Hyundai’s Blind View Monitor

I walked into the Imaginary Writers’ Room, one of my favorite corners of my mind, with a bigger smile than usual on my face. It makes me happy to retreat there with my favorite inspiring writers, to talk about their work — and mine. But that night, I was arriving with happy news.

“Sir Arthur,” I said respectfully to the chairman of my imaginary committee, “I’ve brought good news for Mr. Burns and Mr. Stevenson today.”

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle closed the agenda folder on the mahogany table that decorates the room. “That’s a’ for the planned meeting, then,” he said gently. “But you’re not needing much help on your story the now, are ye?”

I smiled. Dad used to tell me “Good night the now,” and it was good to hear the Scottish usage.

“No, Sir Chairman, I’m doing fine with my book thanks to all of you.”

“What then, Margaret?”

Robert Louis Stevenson propped up his head on his hand, lying on the comfortable sofa alongside the longer edge of the table and across from us. Robert Burns, equally alert, held the arms of his chair against the table.

Burns spoke first. “What’s happened? Are we awa’ out of here?”

“Awa’ wi’ your bother,” Stevenson snapped. “I’ve been been here since Margaret was a wee lass. I’m not leaving.”

“Ach, awa’ wi’ the pair of ye!” I told them — the Scots equivalent of “Get outta here!” and just as affectionate. “Will you listen?” I said, putting back my Illinois accent (tinged with the Scots I heard from Dad and other relatives) back on.

“Do tell us,” said Agatha Christie.

“Yes, do,” drawled Daphne du Maurier. “You know Agatha can’t handle suspense!”

Sometimes it’s just as well I’m the only living person in the Imaginary Writers’ Room.

“It’s time we had another poet around here,” I said.

“But you’re not that fond of poetry, are you?” said Conan Doyle.

I winced slightly. He pronounced it poi-try, as one of my Scottish pastors, my childhood pastor in Illinois, and (to hear Dad remember it) several relatives did.

Burns and Stevenson looked nervous.

“Louis, it took me a long time to find poems I loved as much as ‘A Child’s Garden of Verses,'” I said.

Stevenson beamed at me.

“And Robert,” I sighed, “I’ll never forget hearing my father getting every laugh you put into ‘Address to a Haggis.’ “

“Even some that I didn’t really put there,” said Burns. “Warm, reekin’ ginger and lemongrass, indeed!”

“It’s funny, but it still sconners me,” I said.

Ever the medical doctor, Conan Doyle pulled out a chair on the ladies’ side of the table and reached for a pitcher of ginger ale I keep there for the writers. Including me, in this case.

“Get that right down, Margaret,” said Doyle gently. He really did sound like my grandfather. I drank and the nausea passed.

“You got those laughs yourself this year, before everything stopped,” said Agatha loyally. “And now you’re doing well at the suspense, but who is it? Who’s joining in?”

Maybe I wasn’t all that steady yet. “Arthur, would you get the door?” I said.

Not worried at my familiarity — who owns the room, anyway? — he did. A tall, wide-eyed American man in a three-piece suit not too unlike Arthur’s was waiting there.

“Hello, Tom,” said Arthur.

“Sir Chairman,” said T.S. Eliot.

With that, I thought they would need some privacy, so with a smile for Agatha and Daphne, I said, “Here’s how I handle suspense, ladies: I’ll be back later.”

Yes, as much as I detested “continuing stories” when I was growing up, I must admit it: I’d walked into writing one, and here ends part one.

For more fun with words, stop by the Margaret Serious page on Facebook.

What will Eliot get up to with the committee? Will it be men vs. women or poetry vs. prose? Susbscribe and don’t miss part two! Type your e-mail address in the box and click the “create subscription” button. My list is completely spam-free, and you can opt out at any time.

nbsp;