Category Archives: Editorial

Merry Christmas, No Traditional New Year’s Eve Party in Las Tablas, Swabs Center to Remain Open on New Year’s Eve, No Curfew due to Omicron Variant.

Friday, December 24, 2021 Merry Christmas everyone!  I wrote a little bit about Christmas last week and this week you’re getting a lot of the same.  This is by far my favorite holiday.  The only thing that would make it better would be to spend it in my home state of Wisconsin.  Since the day […]

Making Friends during the Holidays, Scams in the Sale of Rental Cars, 127 Vaccination Centers Enabled, This Weekend is Teleton 20-30, Death by Eggnog.

Friday, December 17, 2021 Making friends the Brett Mikkelson way, during the Holiday season: First and foremost, Merry Christmas.  Also, Happy Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Boxing Day, Ōmisoka, and soon to be New Year’s Eve…  Aaaaaand, this is why we should just say “Happy Holidays” and get it over with.  You see, for us world-hoppers, we try […]

New Measures for Travelers to the United States, DGI Announces Tax Relief, Panama Updates List of Countries at High Risk for Covid-19

Sunday, December 12, 2021 About this time 28 years ago, I was on the phone wishing my family a Merry Christmas from my barracks in Corozal, Panama.  It was Dad’s turn to talk and he was always a bit cryptic.  This time though our talk was more important than ever, as I was already out […]

Major Money Seizure in Panama, Lower Fuel Prices, Omicron Variant.

Friday, December 03, 2021 Life is anything but easy and becomes significantly more challenging when your ankle decides to stop working efficiently.  After a series of tests both in the USA and in Panama, I found out that I have a fully ruptured tendon as well as a slightly torn Achilles tendon.  Well, that’s not […]

Happy Thanksgiving Day, Back to School 2022 will be in person, Cold Front will cause rains until November 27, Vaccination Points in Panama to be Increased.

Friday, November 26, 2021 Growing up as a farm kid from Kansas in the 1960’s, Charlie Plumb had a dream to become a pilot.  He was an average kid with big dreams and the determination to turn those dreams into reality.  He joined the Naval Academy and joined the ranks of what we now recognize […]

Fuel Price Drop, Government Could Extend Vale Digital, Insecurity in Panama, Recognition to Ruben Blades.

Friday, November 19, 2021 By the topic of today’s introduction, you’ll be able to tell when I wrote this.  Today, Kyle Rittenhouse was acquitted completely, entirely of all charges against him.  I’m going to shy away from the politics behind this as much as possible, but there’s a very important moral to this story that […]

Veteran’s Day; Elimination of Curfew in Colon; Cocle is the Province with the Fewest Cases in Panama; Continued Booster Vaccination.

Friday, November 12, 2021 Veteran’s Day has come and gone.  It’s one of my favorite “low-key” days out of all the holidays.  Of course, Christmas has now become my favorite beating out the 4th of July and New Years by just a few inches.  But, Veteran’s Day, for me, has become a day of reflection.  […]

I was Once a Newbie; Police Operation and National Holidays; New Protocols for Travelers to the U.S.; Temporary Closure of Vaccination Center; Protest Gallery

Friday, October 29, 2021 Once upon a time, I was new to Panama.  I had been told a lot of lies about what it was and what I would expect.  When I got orders to come down, I was disappointed because I had hoped to either stay in the USA or go to Germany with […]

Slow Down and Stop Yelling at the Dog; What Has Allowed Panama to Avoid Case Rebound; Panama to Donate Vaccines to Nicaragua; Panamanians Vaccinated Abroad Will Not Receive EU Digital Vaccination Certificate; The Boy Scouts

Friday, October 22, 2021 My best ideas start the moment I wake up in the morning, but they fade within 30 minutes.  The moment my brain goes from horizontal to vertical, the thought starts to fade.  I swear, if I don’t record the idea before I get out of bed, it won’t make it to […]

Here Comes RACC-27; Reinforcement Dose Scheduled for October; School Start Date for 2022; Minsa Plans to Relax Mandatory Use of Facemasks; Please Donate to Panama’s Awesome Volleyball Team

Friday, October 15, 2021 The ever-declining interest in working has yet to come to a head.  In May and June of this year, I had the chance to get up to visit family and take care of a few medical issues that have been bugging me.  The flight to Minneapolis was almost completely uneventful if […]