Paco de Otromé Jico

My English name is difficult for Spanish speakers and for those who speak the dialect.  In the Maya highlands, Marco Aurilio, a Kʼicheʼ speaker and my companion into the world of shamanism, could not pronounce it at all.  Because of the fiery chile peppers I always ate, he tagged me Paco, which sounds similar to his word paqon, meaning hot and spicy.  The name stuck.  My wife and sons call me by that name, as do all my friends.

Anthology:

Aside from individual reminiscences of high school in Midland, Texas, I am most interested in what happened with my classmates after those formative years.  Indeed, Dr. McElligott included a section of this website devoted to such an inquiry, so I expect that others are likewise curious.  My contribution is an anthology of personal recollections of experiences subsequent to my Midland years.  These stories contain many photographs and may take several minutes to load.

(Click on each title below)

Mt. Everest

The Maya Highlands

Travels in South America

Camels, Curry and Chai

Whale Tales

Camp Coati

Adventures in Yucatán

The Miskito Coast

In the Painted Caves with the Shamans

Shipwreck, Cannibals, and the Island with the Long Tail

Texas Boys and the Big Fish

The Little Texas Grandmother

El Centauro del Norte

Most Soldaderas Wanted to Fight Just Any Man

The Lone Rider from the Land of the Magic Quileli Bird

Treasure of the Round Rock Rest Stop

Maguey to Mezcál

Blue Jackets, Bull Buttery and the Choir

The Coronado Trail

Las Corajudas de Chachos

Punked and Pimped at the Jardin

Little Paris

Only Can Know Those Who Go