Midlife Mavericks

Abstract

Midlife Mavericks chronicles a new trend--unmarried American and Canadian women building better lives for themselves in Mexico's beautiful colonial villages.

Cozy up on a comfortable couch and share a margarita with successful women who have found an alternative to high-stress careers. Sip a glass of wine with empty-nesters seeking adventure and drink a glass of ice tea with retirees living in comfort on just their Social Security or disability income.

You'll laugh and cry with these gutsy gringas as they journey from unfulfilled yearnings towards answers each woman must ultimately discover for herself.

"Like the seafaring sirens, Midlife Mavericks, will lure reticent readers from their lukewarm existences into lives of discovery and purpose."
Marilyn Davis, author of
Mexican Voices, American Dreams

About the Author

Everything you never wanted to know about me and more:

I feel like the most important part of my bio can't be written yet because I haven't lived it . For those of you who want to know who this "Blue" person is, I've encapsulated my life here for you:

At age twenty, I spent a semester aboard the University of the Seven Seas as a public relations assistant. We sailed out of New York, around the world and four months later, back into San Francisco. It was an incredible cultural experience that made an indelible imprint on the rest of my life. I earned $300 for the semester, sold my car for an additional $300 and created more memories for that $600 than should be humanly possible.

I interviewed Madame Shiang Kai-chek, dined at the King of Siam's castle, rode camels in the Sahara Desert (in the rain), climbed the Pyramids of Egypt, slept on the beach in Thailand, had a personal audience with the Pope, and was tailed by a government agent in Formosa. My fake identification allowed me to join the rest of the staff in the ship's beer hall.

As a result of a short-lived marriage at age 22, I'm now the proud mother of two wonderful grown children and have maintained a steadfast devotion to life as a single woman.

My corporate America years were split among several careers. The first was in information systems, where I wrote Cobol programs, designed Hewlett-Packard's cost accounting system, and managed a data center. During the next ten years with Hewlett-Packard, I became somewhat of a guru in business-to-business direct marketing for high tech products and services. After leaving HP, and finally earning a B.S. in Business Management, I started my own consulting company. Last and least, I spent three years managing a software technical support and training organization.

There, that's the boring stuff.

When we weren't living in Silicon Valley, California, my kids and I spent three years in Germany, three years in Boise and a year in Vancouver, Washington, moving around with my career. I think gypsy blood is part of our cellular structure.

Now, aged 63, I consider myself a midlife maverick. Eleven years ago I chucked my life in corporate America to "retire" in Mexico and search for my life's purpose.

The last few years I've been traveling, reading, writing and playing. I started writing Midlife Mavericks about 10 years ago. I bought all the books on writing and getting published. I followed the instructions on finding an agent to a "T". About a year into the process, I landed a well-reputed agent in New York. She took the next year trying to convince a major publishing house to take on the book. Finally, she said, "I'm frustrated. This is a good book and deserves to be published. The editors have all been very interested. They just don't think the market is big enough. After all, how many women want to move to Mexico?"

"And what percent of the men who read Mt. Everest planned on climbing the mountain?" I asked. In any case, by the time I retrieved Midlife Mavericks from the agency, the face of publishing had changed considerably. Print-on-demand and e-publishing technologies had matured to the point where any author could see their dream turned into reality.

After I learned how to manage the marketing end of self-publishing, I sold nearly 3500 copies with very little marketing. But the real bonus was the hundreds of emails I received from women who considered the book to be "life altering." The women's stories gave them the courage and determination to make significant changes in their own lives. Not all moved to Mexico, but knowing my writing has touched others' lives in such a profound way gives more purpose in my life than years of filling shareholders' pocketbooks.

Becoming a bit bored, in 2001, a friend and I started an on-line magazine called Living at Lake Chapala. (www.mexico-insights.com). After three years, I quit to become "retired" again, only to meet a special someone with whom I've been RVing around Europe and North America for the past three years.

Besides being involved in the writer's community here, I am active in several on-line writers' groups, tackle various crafting and painting projects, create soft sculpture dolls and enjoy bridge, Scrabble and Cranium. For two years I taught English at the orphanage in San Juan Cosala. Whew! That's why I put "retired" in quotes above.

I live in La Floresta, a small cobblestone neighborhood just outside Ajijic, which is located on the north shore of Lake Chapala, south of Guadalajara with two very special dogs. Max is a black miniature schnauzer and Maurice is a white miniature poodle.

Each day I count among my blessings, being able to live and write in this beautiful place with such warm and gentle people. I now look forward to the second half of my life unfolding for me, day by day, in ways I could never imagine. When I asked my good friend if she wanted to wish on a wishbone with me, she looked at me and said, "What possibly could you still have to wish for?" I looked at her and said "You're right. I've pretty much got it all. I'll wish for your wish to come true, instead."