#696 – The Expat Files: Music, Culture, and Survival in Latin America

Automatically transcribed from the original recording; names and wording may contain errors.

[00:00] South of the border down Mexico way That's where I fell in love when the stars above came up to play and now I wonder Hello there all you expat wannabes I'm Johnny Mueller and you're listening to the expat files living in Latin America the show that tells you just what it's like to live Work play and or retire down here in Latin America It's a mix of the good the bad the ugly and the great and it's all right here. So let's get started Saw something mighty strange yesterday. Well, I guess it's a sign of the times You see I was out canvassing some of the music stories in a big Latin American city lots of music stores You know and I saw a few strange things that would never happen in a music store up in the States

[00:46] You've heard me say before that Latinos have a very musical culture. Maybe that's why they're so happy They're singing and dancing all the time fact I've been to many a Latin party and bash and three-year-old kids are out there dancing boys and girls like just cutting a rug Which is probably why so many Latin males absolutely love dancing Whereas I don't think I've ever met a first world Caucasian gringo who actually likes dancing for dancing's sake It's only a means to meet members of the opposite sex. I mean, I've never heard a gringo friend of mine ever say Hey, let's go dance and I've been chomping at the bit all week to get out on the floor Don't tell me you don't remember those junior high and high school dances where the guys were all Standing mulling around looking at all the girls on the dance floor either dancing with each other or with guys they call today

[01:36] gender non-specific Anyway, the fact that music is a huge part of Latin American life. They need musical instruments, right? That means when you go to a music store here in Latin America, you'll see all the brands you're familiar with up in the States And a lot of weird brands too since there are instruments down here mostly percussion stuff You just don't see up in the States except in Latin quarters now since Latin's love everything and anything first world They also crave musical instruments with first world brand names and that stuff's here But most of it is unaffordable for the average Latin person Which is why really cheap Chinese clones are everywhere along with Japanese Korean and Mexican guitar clones, too Now the odd thing is first world American musical instrument brand names are usually not made in America

[02:27] Not anymore Anyway, as with almost everything and the few that are actually made up in the States are very expensive and high-end So for example, if you see a famous guitar brand like Fender, which formerly was made in Fullerton, California And now almost all of them made in Korea, Japan or Mexico your average Latin American musician doesn't know that He just knows a US brand name when he sees one and the American model would be on his ultimate wish list Now, of course, I've always been a lot of handmade musical instruments here in Latin America some just laughable and shoddy others Exquisite and instruments made here in Latin America are not generally made in big factories Except for the US company Fender making guitars in Mexico

[03:13] They're mostly one-offs and custom-made jobs now get this I know a garage mechanic that's so low-end. He doesn't even own his own car does really good work, though Yet one day I walked in he was playing a very nice handmade guitar. I asked him where he got it He said I made it. I'll tell you some of these Latin guys are very clever craftsmen That guy was so talented. He could play the classics flamenco and man Could he drink which is why he probably never had a gig outside of his garage Anyway, like I said, all first world musical and recording equipment is available down here at the music stores However, they're first world expensive because they're imported But since almost no one makes a decent living playing music down here just like up in the states

[03:58] There's a gigantic used musical instrument market You see music stuff for sale all the time on those famous bulletin boards They're all over the place too and classified ads and on olex.com my favorite Latin American Craigslist So as for musical instruments retail, they're expensive, but man the used market Wow Can you get some deals now? Why do you think that is well because almost everyone who's selling an instrument's a desperate seller So yesterday I was checking out some of the big music stores not for musical instruments But to buy a couple of wind screens for my recording mics Anyway, I do what I always do when I walk into a music store I spend way too much time just checking things out You do it yourself or snow the feeling when you walk into a hardware store and you ladies know that feeling when you're out

[04:46] Chew shopping there is a good kind of energy there You know what I mean and generally when you're talking about musical instruments They've got the no name knockoffs in most of the store as well as some very nice first world displays That's where you'll find recognizable First world brand names like Fender Martin Marshall and Gibson and even with those first world name brands Most of their manufacturing is in China, Korea, Japan or Mexico though. Not they're very high-end expensive models They're made in the States. Come on. How many times have you seen a label on anything that says Designed in the USA, you know what that means don't you? Who do they think they're fooling? So unfortunately these days probably 95% or more of all the equipment in a music store is made in China

[05:32] Alright, so I'm not saying Chinese don't make good stuff They make a lot of good stuff make a lot of crap too. Anyway, yesterday I saw something that caught my eye in the Fender guitar section where again 95% of their manufacturing is outside the states Except the very top flagship most expensive line now Gibson guitars another very well-known name in American guitars Their cheaper instruments made in the third world go under the name Gibson Epiphone and their top-end American-made models the most expensive and desirable only about five percent of their production Are labeled just plain Gibson which is why you almost never see a latin guitar player with a real us-made Gibson or Fender Unless he's a rich kid or a genuine old-timer who got that guitar as a hand-me-down

[06:23] Because you know There was a time when us manufacturers did not outsource And the only electric guitars that ever made it to Latin America were made in the USA So then what's the difference with a brand name that has guitars made in the USA and in China or Korea or Mexico? Well to the non-musician or novice musician, they look almost exactly the same, but the price difference is astounding For example, if you wanted to buy a brand new us-made Fender Stratocaster guitar the one that so many professional American rockers use It could be anywhere from 1500 bucks and up whereas one made in the third world same brand 200 to 600 bucks less than half the price of the us model But they look pretty much the same same thing with Gibson and their cheaper version epiphone

[07:12] They look almost exactly alike except the real thing made in the USA is about twice as heavy You can tell when you pick it up meaning the quality and density of the wood is much different Not to mention real guitar players could tell in a second just by playing a few notes even with their eyes closed So why am I bringing this up and what's it got to do with living in Latin America? well I happen to own a couple of original classic Gibson and Fender guitars a real Les Paul made in the late 60s and a Fender jazz bass Early 70s and they've got a number of on the job dings bangs and scratches to prove it Both made in the USA, of course because back then there was no outsourcing Meanwhile back at the music store. I made a beeline for the Fender guitar display

[07:57] Where there were maybe 30 guitars nicely displayed with at least 25 of them the squire That's the low end Fender guitar line made in Korea Now in that group of 30, they also had two or three the very high-end made in USA guitars, which almost no one can afford So then why do they stock them hard to fathom, huh? I guess in a way it's like having a lotus Ferrari Maserati dealership. They've got them all down here You know in reality very very few of them are ever sold except to the one percenters. They're very wealthy They're just toys that inevitably end up gathering dust when their owners lose interest Anyway, while checking out the Fender guitars, I noticed two new entries that weren't there the last time I was in that shop an expensive us made Fender jazz bass and

[08:45] Stratocaster each was close to 2 000 bucks yet They were scratched and dinged and kind of marred up like old classic instruments are like my own So I pulled them down and looked at their tags. They were distressed reissues from the 1960s Which really struck me funny because you can go online and buy an age distressed old 1960s or 70 classic guitar for around the same price Sure, there are some very valuable ones online and you can pay 10 or 20 times more But you can get a lot of them within that price range. If that's your style, that's the sound you're looking for Why not get the real thing? Sheesh I really don't get who's in charge of marketing for these companies has to be Gen x's or millennials or maybe it's just me

[09:32] I've been living in latin america too long and i'm hopelessly out of touch Well if I am i'm having a pretty good time of it Oh, and here's the greater point I wanted to make about this little music store adventure There was a little latin salesman guy following me around the whole time that happened sometimes I asked him what kind of interest his client's had in those distressed expensive guitars Well, he said everyone who walks in wants to play them. All right, but no one ever buys them We haven't sold one Then he said normally it's our policy not to let anyone take a guitar off the top rack and even finger it or play it Meanwhile, I had taken both of them down and I was strumming one as he was speaking to me I looked at him handed him the guitar and said oops. I'm sorry Then he apologized and said no. No, I didn't mean you

[10:18] Go ahead and play play as long as you want. He said don't worry. Our house is your house You know the mikasa is your casa bit. Yep, the gringo advantage rides again Though in this case there were two parts to that gringo advantage one I was possibly the only person who walked in that store all day or maybe all week or month who actually Appeared to have the money to be able to afford one of those guitars And number two something I never thought about but he also mentioned when he said go ahead play any one of them as long as you like He said now get this it's nice when a gringo comes into the store and plays one of our guitars And you know, there was a steady flow of people coming in and out taking guitars off the rack strumming them poking at keyboards and drums 99 percent of them dreamers who will never make a cent from music

[11:06] So in a way this salesman guy was thinking of me as a marketing tool So there you have it yet another example of the gringo advantage By the way in most latin music stores as in up in the states You can rent musical equipment and instruments too, you know in case you have a one-off gig at a big venue You can rent some high powered stuff However, as this little latino salesman told me they don't rent out the good stuff The american made gibsons and fenders and some of the other high-end stuff. Hmm. What does that say? Could it be they've experienced the cultural problem of latinos not being very good caretakers of theirs and other people's property? Hmm details details. Yep. I've been stung that way too. I learned my lesson I lent things to various latin american amigos and the stuff always seemed to come back in worse condition or didn't come back at all

[11:57] However, that happened to me with a couple of family members and friends up in the states too So maybe it's just one of those universal human foibles, huh? All right. Never said about that You know, I get emails all the time from people saying johnny What's the best latin country right now to live work play invest or retire it or they say johnny i'm coming down What latin or gringo businesses do you recommend I get into or invest in when I get down there? Yep, i'm talking about straight to the point simple emails like that Like it's that easy to just say go to nicaragua buy a macadamia farm and live happily ever after there You have it all of life's problem solved. Happy days are here again. Well, it ain't quite that easy I appreciate all those emails and that you're thinking about your future At least many many people are thinking about the idea of getting the hell out

[12:43] Everyone with a brain really does need what might be the best insurance policy of all that would be your plan b Which is why I urge everyone to go to www.thenewexpat.com and download my phone consult questionnaire form study it fill it out Take some notes I'm sure you'll find it'll give you a broader and deeper perspective on the questions you're looking to have answered You'll find your best latin country options destinations business and investment options depends a great deal on you your lifestyle your personality your finances interests Hobbies the baggage you might have whether you're bringing it down or leaving it back home Are you a social butterfly a loner? Do you have kids? How old are they? Are they on board with the plan? Do they even know there's a plan?

[13:30] Do they want to come down or do they hate you for even mentioning it? Are you an introvert extrovert fun-loving party type chance taker pragmatist intellectual? Are you a loner teetotaler do-gooder or maybe you're the ultimate off the grid do-it-yourself type Are you sensitive or tough a nice guy or difficult to get along with? Are you looking for love looking for a relationship or maybe looking a ditch one? Do you meditate? Are you the natural type maybe looking to write the great un-american novel? Do you want to build a boat live on a boat build a container house? Maybe live on a lake the ocean in the highlands by the beach Can't you see there's just so many variables and so much you have to consider Which is why there can never be just one country or destination. That's perfect for you. There are so many good options

[14:18] Speaking of business and investments there are lots and lots of gringles and expats who have struck it rich In fact a lot of newbie expats and gringles who just landed recently They can't help but notice a lot of really jamming gringo businesses, especially on the tourist trail I hear newbie expats and gringo say all the time man. Look at that guy rake in the doe Such a simple idea so cheap too so easy. Well, sometimes it is and sometimes it ain't Though it sure looks easy from where you're sitting because you just happen to have gotten down here in the last couple of months And that gringo the guy who's cleaning up with that beach chair rental business and that texas barbecue guy with the mobile trailer Making money hand over fist. Well, they just got down here before you did and fill the niche

[15:04] So that's true. There's a lot of easy money down here, but it's in those niche opportunities And how do you find them? Well boots on the ground, of course, by the way I remember my dad once said easy money made too young makes you lazy That's the story of every entitled rich kid here, too And that believe it or not is a big problem with gringos who bring their kids down Why is that so common? Well suddenly you can afford full-time housekeepers and nannies In fact, I was shocked just the other day when I heard an expat lady say her and her husband We're going to have another kid. That would be number three All right to each his own and then she said then she said i'm gonna have to get another nanny All right, except for the fact that she's got a cleaning lady a gardener And a full-time nanny to take care of her other two insufferable gringo kids. Can you even imagine living that way?

[15:57] Three kids and two full-time nannies and she said it like having three kids without two nannies is such a heavy load Well, you know, you can't live people's lives for them I find it kind of hard to keep my mouth shut around that one Though I have mellowed a lot in the 27 years i've been down here Don't laugh. Sometimes i'm actually accused of being on manana time. That's gringo manana time You know, there is a difference that could be 5 10 15 20 minutes even a half an hour late Quite different from latin manana time which could be a couple hours late or even manana You know just like the word. Hey, i'm not the only one when you're a gringo down here a long time You'll probably fall into that pattern yourself. You'll figure it out. Eventually You can either show up on time and sit around with your finger up your butt for who knows how long and get all

[16:45] Irritated and frustrated or you could do as so many of us do slip into gringo manana time and have a much more relaxed And enjoyable day that way when the latin start trickling in for appointments and such you'll be much less pissed off In fact, I remember early on when expatty first started his sushi business He said he was at wit's end and just about to throw in the towel We just could not get his people to show up on time He said it reminded him of a couple of girls He used to go out with back in the states and they weren't latinas either If the date was at eight he'd be at her house on the dot He'd sit in the living room for a while and she'd waltz in at 8 30 By the way, it's often much worse when playing the dating game here in latin america another latin american cultural quirk you have to get used to

[17:31] But where were we oh, yeah Talking about some of the emails I get and why if you're looking for answers to big questions Like where should I live in latin america? Well first? I highly suggest you download my phone consult questionnaire form on the new expat.com website It's free. So do it then after you've gone through it all and answered those questions That's when you should consider setting up a one-on-one phone consultation with me Or maybe not maybe you've got your own plan b pretty well in order You've done the studying research legwork You've got boots on the ground and are ready to pull a trigger plus you've got my past shows to listen to all 696 of them that in itself is over 300 hours of information So then maybe you don't need to talk to me personally one-on-one about anything at all

[18:20] But a few hundred people have done so already and of course if you plan on attending my january 2018 Expat insider seminar you'll get a free one-on-one phone consultation with me as part of the deal by the way I've always offered a money back guarantee if you're not completely satisfied with the seminar Now let's see i've been doing this seminars a couple times a year now for seven years And I never had a single person ask me for a refund I've had lots and lots of repeat offenders too, and that says volumes in itself Though I did have one guy stiff me You long-time listeners probably remember me telling that story maybe four or five years ago now guy who came down By the way a guy that no one really wanted to sit next to he was a kind of disagreeable know-it-all

[19:06] Now I didn't learn about this till much later But I found out a lot of the other attendees were referring to him as head He ad always preceded by another four-letter word and where is he right now? Well, I don't know but I bet he's on the gringo tourist trail somewhere and he's earned the same nickname By the way, if you want to hear the whole story check the archives That said how's your plan be insurance policy coming because that's really what it is a very important insurance policy When I saw the news about the whole island of Puerto Rico being without power That's around three million or so people and that hundreds of thousands of people are being evacuated because of the floods I'd be thinking if I didn't have my plan be at least started i'd be worried. There's no other way to put it

[19:54] So again, i'm gonna ask how far along are you on your plan B? You know I think and many many people are saying the very best way to get that plan B going Is to attend my expat insider seminar this january You can check out the sign-up page the itinerary and the early bird discount set www.thenewexpat.com And if you just can't make it down to my boots on the ground event The next best thing to take in a seminar is to sign up for my expat essentials course Get my free video that explains it all at expat plan B.com. All right changing gears a bit But not much when you talk about calamities emergencies and natural disasters I mentioned a few shows ago about emp blasts There's been a lot of talk lately about north korea's two satellites that are passing over the us every day

[20:46] Each one some analysts think capable of setting off a emp device And that as you know could disable large parts of the electric power grid And even if north korea doesn't give it a shot that will be the next stage of warfare as we know it So the electric grid could be disabled with a very small suitcase nuclear device But easier yet because nukes are very hard to come by and are very closely monitored Many experts are saying the grid will be brought down first by hackers In fact, you heard me mention a couple shows ago how hackers have penetrated various us power plants and the government knows it The question is are you ready for that eventuality? Either way, it will happen, you know Oh, and there's the real possibility of a solar mass ejection from the sun

[21:35] Look it up solar mass ejection the big ones hit the earth Infrequently a couple times every hundred years in fact, we're overdue for a big one now And when that happens big chunks of the power grid will go down for a long long time Now I mentioned a few shows ago about faraday cages and how you can protect some electronic equipment One of the best ways is to have a big old metal garbage can by the way It shouldn't be a rusty one and the lid should fit nice and tight You put your electronic devices in the garbage can before the event, of course By the way, you'll probably get some advanced warning in the case of a solar flare a couple hours Of course, if there's an imminent war in some kind of electronic attack is coming You'll hear about the tensions in the buildup on the news, maybe even a couple days ahead

[22:23] So you put your vital electronic equipment computers and stuff in the big metal garbage can and what I forgot to tell you is you should never Let your electronics touch the metal of the can inside You should have your electronics in Tupperware or plastic storage boxes and then put those in the garbage can That means things like laptops ipads portable backups and hard drives iphones walkie talkies radios I'll be safe in there. I know just talking about this sounds a little nutty, doesn't it? I know a couple of guys very high up in the military and they're saying that's the next plan of attack Anyway, there are lots of other electrical appliances in your house that will get fried internally No, they won't blow up or start smoking But the electronics are very delicate and they can get fried and you'll never know it

[23:10] By the way There is a way to save 50 to 80 percent of all the electronics and appliances that you can't get into your garbage can faraday cage Here's the trick if there's an anticipated gigantic solar flare or some pudgy north korean idiot with a bad haircut Is intent on escalating the pissing contest do the following to the electronic appliances you can't get into your garbage can Number one remove all the power cords and chargers from your electronic stuff immediately You know how you can unplug your power cord from things like your dvd and tv Of course one end plugs into the socket and the wall But the other end sometimes plugs right into the back of your unit, correct? It's the cord that acts like an antenna during an emp

[23:56] Sends that signal into your unit and fries the electronics So removing the cord will drastically reduce the intensity of that pulse So keep that in mind also keep in mind that you can use an old microwave oven as the perfect faraday cage, too So as far as it goes Here's a little more on that subject since we've all blown out microwaves and might just have an old one laying around If you got an old one that doesn't work anymore, it will protect your equipment nicely However, when you open the door, you'll see it's not that big in there but big enough for a couple of tablets some iphones External hard drives backups that kind of stuff. Remember what I said about power cords microwaves refrigerators wash your dryers and other appliances, etc The power cords are permanently attached to the back panel, right?

[24:44] You can't pull them out like you can with your tv That means those appliances are very vulnerable And the smarter they are that means the more electronics they have the more likely they are to get blown out So that's something to think about next time you have to buy a major appliance Get a dumb one one that doesn't have all those electronic buzzers and whistles Two reasons for that, of course one I just mentioned and secondly Do you really want all those devices in your house spying on you because in a way that's what they're doing And the smarter they are the more information they're sending back to the electric company through your smart meter and the internet But you knew that already, right? So by all means next time one of your big appliances poops out get the stripped down model That'll be the one that'll spy on you the least and the one that's most likely to survive

[25:33] A big solar mass ejection or emp and as for that old broken microwave oven That's going to be serving as your new faraday cage Just take a big snippers and cut the cord off right at the back end of the unit the shorter the better So what about the other big appliances that won't be in the faraday cage? The ones with the big long power cords like your refrigerator that cannot be detached from the back of the unit Well, this might sound like overkill. In fact, this whole conversation might sound like overkill to you Now just so you don't think i'm completely going off the edge here, you know, I am a degreed electrical engineer Biomedical engineer and satellite communications engineer So I know a little bit about this stuff

[26:19] I'm not the tinfoil sombrero wearing type and even if I was i'd take it off once in a while to wash my hair You know, I have a few engineering buddies up in the states I still keep in contact with more than one of them who i've spoken to about this emp and solar flare stuff Has solved the problem of the long cords on those big appliances that will never fit in a faraday cage They're taking the subject very seriously and redoing the cords themselves In other words, they've cut the cords off completely and made individual plug-in socket ports in the back of each appliance So now just like computers and tv's etc. They can pull the power cord instantly I know I know that really does sound like overkill But for engineering guys who are in the node to go out of their way and do all that

[27:08] Because it does take some time and effort that should make everyone else non-technical types That is more than just a little nervous So who's wearing the tinfoil sombrero now, by the way, most engineers and scientific types I know are a little bit wacky, but without them and their ideas, you know, we'd all still be living in caves. So Are you nervous yet? How's your plan be coming? south of the border This is the expat files living in latin america If you want me to help you out with your own plan b just schedule a one-on-one consult Send me an email the expat files at gmail.com And if you want to learn how to move forward with your own plan b from right up there in the states go to www.xpatplanb.com and check out my three videos. See ya nos vemos