Topete

Topete's grandfather died Saturday morning around 5:30 am.  He had to go into work at 7, so he went in and worked a few hours and then left for the funeral home at 11.  When we got there at 8:30, he had been there all day.  I had discussed it with Mom since our plans had changed...  She said the same thing I thought, "It's strange to say, but it's an experience others won't have."

I find it interesting (and surely there's a reason) that they have the visitation the day of and the funeral and burial the next day.  The weekend I moved in with Alma, her brother's mother-in-law or cousin's grandmother, or someone she knew but wasn't related to had died and she went to the visitation on Friday (the day of the death) and then the funeral and cemetery on Saturday.

It fascinates me that everything is so fast since this is such a culture of family and quality time.  It seems to me they would take more time mourning together.  What do I know?

We stayed at the funeral home with Topete for about two hours.  Quinantzin an Iván had come to pick up Alma and me and off we went.  Mayra came later.  

We never even entered the viewing room.  We stayed out in the common area that had at least 40 black leather couches arranged in horseshoes of three couches.  It was full of all different families.  There was a cafeteria and bathrooms.  There was a huge waterfall that went down the glass by the elevators.  It looked like a ballroom full of couches.  Iván and Rocio came and it was good to see them.  Daniel (Liliana's brother) came, too.  

Alma got a call from Ocyé that she'd had a fight with her sister or something and so Johana was going to pick up Alma and me to go visit Ocyé.  However, while Alma was on the phone outside, Quinantzin and I started talking about how hungry we were!  We decided we'd go get dinner before she and Iván went to their party and Alma and I went to the birthday party for her friends from Navolato.  Alma came back in informing us that Johana was on her way, but I backed out, wanting food!

She left as did Iván and Rocio.  Shortly after, Liliana and Renato got there.  Lili cut her hair and it is adorable.  It was really good to see her and Renato.  After we said hey to them, we jetted to the parking garage.

We decided at 11:00 the only thing open would be tacos, so off we went.  The place was called La Ceiba (which is apparently a type of tree) and Mayra and Quinantzin ordered a quesadilla to split.  I ordered a quesadilla and they both looked at me like I was crazy, yet not telling me to just order a half.  Iván abstained.

The tortillas for the quesadillas were literally the size of pizza crusts.  My quesadilla came out (they serve quesadillas the way we could call taco- cheese, lettuce, meat, onions, DELISH) after Mayra and Quinantzin had gotten theirs.  The guy came to the table to deliver it (not our waitress) and started to put it in front of Iván.  "Una quesadilla?"  I raised my hand and he made a look like, you can't eat all this.

I had eaten very healthily all day and it was 11:00 at night; I was starving!  I ended up eating almost all of it.  And I didn't even feel guilty!

As we were finishing, I texted Alma since we were going to meet back up when she finished with Ocyé.  She said they were going to eat dinner, too.  Where were we?  I told her and she said they were on their way.

So we sat through another meal.  Johana ate a whole quesadilla too, so I didn't feel bad!  Johana is hilarious.  I wouldn't say she rubbed me the wrong way, but something seemed strange at first.  Now I just realize she's always the life of the party and loves to laugh.

From there, we all decided we'd go with Alma to La Callecita (the club for old folks where her students were going to be) and wait outside while she went in, made an appearance and came back out.  While we were waiting outside, Johana decided to leave.  Iván wanted to go home.  So we all drove around dropping people off and then came back (Mayra, Quinantzin and I) to wait on Alma.  She came out and we looked for another party that Pirru had told us about.  Mayra had wanted to go because an ex-boyfriend was there.  We drove by, but it was crowded and we couldn't tell if Pirru was there (and he was the only one we'd know there) and he hadn't answered our calls.  We went around the corner and Mayra and I traded places so she could see instead of driving.  I did the drive by.  We still saw no one.  Considering it was 2:00, we took Quinantzin home and headed there ourselves.

Ángeles y Demonios

The plan was for Topete to pick us up at 8:50 for the 9:30 movie.  He got there a little after 9 and Alma was not yet ready.  He had first picked up Pirru (whose rancho we use for birthdays), who has a history with Alma and a girlfriend who is out of town.  Alma and I had had a really good talk that afternoon about all that drama.

She meets us outside and tells us that Quinantzin was at a café and was going to meet us there, so we needed to pick up Iván and Mayra from Mayra's house.  We got to Mayra's and she came out at the same time that Iván showed up to park his motorcycle in her garage.  Six of us were not going to fit in Topete's miniature car, so finally we got it all settled that they would take Mayra's car.  (A very Mexican encounter.)  Once we get to the movies, it only got more Mexican.  We stood in line for the tickets (this time Alma only had two passes) and as soon as we got up there (9:40 for the 9:30 show), they were out of tickets.  That was almost a blessing because we had been debating which time to go (9:30 or the Spanish version at 10:30) but Mayra and Iván hadn't gotten there yet and we didn't want to make a decision without them.

The got there and we explained the situation.  Alma didn't want to see the Spanish version.  We could stay for Wolverine at 10, but most of us wanted Angels and Demons.

Alma checked her phone for the times at another theater and we started walking out the door.  Of course, we walked slowly and had to stop several times to make the plan of who would drive and could we all fit in one car (we now had Quinantzin with us, too).  

My world: we find out all the times of the movie we want to see at several different theaters.  We choose the one we want (the day before) and buy tickets before the show (someone who lives close to the theater).  We show up and sit down.  

My Mexican world: We get to the theater and wait in line without a plan.  A wrench is thrown into the mix.  We regroup.  We leave.  We debate who will drive and where we'll go.  We end up there, an hour after the first plan would've started.

It bugs me sometimes.  Honestly.  But I'll miss it when I'm home.  Honestly.

Friday's ride

Guille had an appointment on friday morning, so Thursday before I left with Maribel, I arranged for Sandra to pick me up again.  However, on Friday morning, I got there early (since she had been so early the other time) and waited over 40 minutes for her.  By then, she wouldn't have gotten to me until recreo, so I just went back to the house and prepared for the day.  I had to run by the office to get my report cards (they were already due, but Maribel thought she had given them to me...).  I did that and was back home in time for lunch.  It was  delicious fried chicken tacos, potato salad, and salad.  

Maribel

Yep, on Thursday she called again!  I wasn't prepared for it though, because I don't teach 1st grade on Thursdays.  This time she called during recreo and told me that Rocio needed a favor at the office.  She wasn't sure what it would be but we would both be going.  I informed her that I was in jeans and a t-shirt (not my cutest) and she said she was, too.  It was okay, though because Rocio would not be there.  She said she'd pick me up at 12 and we'd go from there.  She also told me she had fussed at Arturo for not feeding me lunch that day at Casa Achoy.  I felt terrible of course.

We got to the SEP (the Board of Education) and found parking which is a miracle in itself!  We got to the office and were taken to Rocio's office to look for some presentation she had done but needed translated into English.  Apparently Mayra Cota (the director over the scholarships- I'm not sure what else she does) had already translated a good part of it.  We waited for Mayra to get there.  Arturo showed up to do something else in the office.  He was no help with which presentation and what we were to actually do.

Mayra got there and gave me stuff to check while she and Maribel translated more.  Then we rotated.  After an hour and a half we were almost finished and lunch had arrived.  It was sushi, but a kind and a place I had never had.  It was almost sensory overload.  There were a lot of flavors mixed in (sauces and such on top, very Mexican), but it was good.  And I was ridiculously full when we finished.  After another 15 minutes, we finished all the work and Maribel dropped me off at home.  That was the night Rocio thanked me and talked to be about the voice correction after yoga.  She took me home and told me that there would be a "sneak peek" of the video on Monday in her office.  All the coordinators from the state would be there and she wanted me to come.  Of course, when I told Maribel, she told me to wait until it was confirmed, since I had no ride yet.  She'd let me know the plan on Monday.

Feliz Cumpleaños, Marco

We got to Wings after the party had gotten started of course.  Quinantzin came to pick us up around 9:20 and the official start time was 8:30.  We then went to pick up Mayrita and were at Wings before 10.  We had tried to order ahead, but it didn't work out.  This was going to be an interesting night (or at least had potential for that) since Karla would be there and she's basically the reason Lenin and Graciela are together.

It all worked out okay.  In the picture above, from left to right around the table:Me, Alma, a friend of Karla's I don't know, Karla, another friend of hers, Mayrita, Quinantzin.

We all ordered our stuff and waited.  Topete and Iván joined our end of the table and the photo session began.  Alma never lets a photo op pass.  There are plenty of pictures I left out to spare you.

The one picture Topete smiled normally in.  Alma and I couldn't get it together (on a side note, I couldn't get my picture taking act together all night!).
This was supposed to be the girly picture like three best girl friends.  Topete didn't cooperate this time.
But take two was hilarious.
Alma felt the need to goof up a picture with Topete because he had given her bunny ears in a picture for someone else's camera.
There's no telling what was said or done here, but I obviously found it funny.
This time Alma and I did it right and Iván didn't cooperate.  
The whole group with the birthday boy: Mayrita, Quinantzin, Iván, Marco, Grace Kelly (no joke), Alma, Topete, me.

Karina called Alma around 12 and said she should come over to Johana's and spend the night.  She asked me if I wanted to go and I probably answered more quickly than was polite.  I needed my bed and I needed lots of sleep!  Alma left when Topete did since he lives close to Johana.  I got to witness how the group bill gets paid in Mexico.  I had always marveled that seemed to just work out.  Well it doesn't.  The key is to pay your part and leave.  We stuck around until the bill came with lots of people's money.  The fortunate part was that Marco and Ana Lu were taking care of the bills, so we ended up just leaving our money and going, too.  It was a fun night.  We made plans for another visit to the movies on Friday.  We had plans for a Girls' Night Out with the English teachers, but more than one commitment never stops Mexican plans!

Pavlov

When I got to my second group of first graders, I texted Maribel saying, "Are you on your way here or what? :)"  Within thirty seconds she was calling me.  She was stressed!  She thought I was serious and that she was supposed to be there and wasn't.  I explained my humor and we hung up.

School was normal for once; I taught all four of my classes for the first time this week.  I got home and crawled into bed.  I needed a long nap to make up for all the outings I'd had, not to mention that night would be Marco's birthday at Wings Army and possibly an outing to a tourism event in Culiacán (Johana works for the tourism industry).  It took me a long time to fall asleep.  The instant I got into a deep sleep, my phone rang.  It was the English office.  I was out of it, so I silenced my phone and rolled back over.  Before I could fall asleep again, I heard the house phone ring, so I knew I would have no chance.

Mamá came knocking ever so softly on my door and had the phone in her hand.  It was Maribel, who was super stressed out.  "You have to get to Casa Achoy immediately.  Now.  Can you get a ride or does someone need to pick you up at the church?!"  Mamá was about to go pick up the grandkids, so I knew she was out.  I told her I needed a ride.  I considered not eating.  The day before, Maribel had called checking in after I was finished.  She asked if I'd eaten lunch and I said no, that they had ordered food but hadn't invited me.  She said that Rocio had called and asked but she didn't know since she'd left to get her girls.  I told her it was no big deal.  She had told me that Rocio would ask me at yoga so to be ready.  Thankfully, Rocio didn't make it to yoga on Tuesday!  I knew she'd be upset.  Especially since Maribel had said the whole reason they were ordering food was for me!

Anyway, I hadn't eaten lunch yet on Wednesday and I was hungry.  I also needed to wake myself up.  I had been in such a deep sleep that my voice was going to tell on me.  I chugged some water quickly and threw together a tuna fish sandwich.  Then I jetted out the door toward the church.  I got there just as the white Sentra was pulling up.  I got in and chatted with the girl.  I had no idea who she was and she looked peeved to be driving me around.  Once we got a little closer, she was more friendly.  We got there to a locked door, but it was quickly opened by the custodian.  We went straight to the recording room and they all joked about how quickly I was back (I had told them I was coming back to Culiacán within the next year to visit and they said I must stop in to see them.  One day later was so much sooner than a year.  Hardy har.).  They took awhile to get to the point, so I was nervous I had screwed something up.  What I really thought was that I had done my part too quickly and that the video was too long.  That would just mean reading it again.  I could handle that.  It turns out that something had been changed in the original.

ONE PHRASE.  I had to change the number 800 to 948.  I was almost in shock (yet not because we're talking Mexico here).  It had seemed so dramatic and important.  This English video was actually just a nice thought Rocio had had.  The actual video would be in Spanish.  This version was for me to show friends, family, and colleagues back home.  I didn't tell them this, but I knew inside that none of you would care if 800 teachers had been certified with this test or 948.  (As a side note, after yoga on Thursday, Rocio took me home and thanked me for changing it since that was such an obvious and important difference.  I guess it all depends on which lenses you wear...)

Johana's

During yoga on Tuesday, Alma had sent me a message saying we had plans at Johana's for her work at 9 if I wanted to go.  We could talk about it when I got home.  When I went to pay my monthly subscription at yoga, Cristina was uncomfortable and looked pained.  She said she wasn't sure what to do.  Finally she spit it out (that was the Mexican in her trying to be polite and word things the right way, where I would've just come out with it).  She closes for the summer and was considering June 20 as the last day.  However, that was less than a month away, so she wasn't going to do monthly subscriptions anymore.  We would pay by the class.  That's perfectly fine!  I was wondering what the big deal was.  I asked her if she always closed for the summer and she said she did last year (I guess this is just the second year of its being open) but that she may not re-open in the fall.  She doesn't make any money off of it because not enough people come.  Now I could see why she was so pained.  I was just thankful for the timing of my grant and that I'd gotten to benefit from it for most of the year.

I got home and Alma almost looked sick she was so tired.  She was in the den watching tv with Mamá Alma while working on some stuff for school.  I asked her what we were doing and she said she wasn't sure she still wanted to go because she was so tired.  I said that was fine, but then she said, "Well, if you drive, we can still go.  I should go since it's for my boss."  I still didn't really know what was up.

I got my shower (a nice cold one!) and we were off.  We got to Johana's and their PISI (Saturday English classes at Centro de Idiomas) boss Elvira was there.  (It had been her birthday on Saturday.)  There was a 20s-ish guy on the floor.  We all introduced ourselves.  Tadeo was his name.  Turns out he's Graciela(Lenin's new girlfriend)'s ex-boyfriend.  They broke up three months ago after four years.  He obviously had not talked about it at the length Alma had because he needed listening ears.  It was all funny.  Karina showed up shortly and we continued the chit chat until about 11 when the real discussion finally began.  They were meeting (Tadeo left in the middle and I almost wished I had gone with him!) to discuss the upcoming change of Director for the UAS, which is the government owner of the Centro de Idiomas.  That meant change of leadership.  Apparently, everything there is very political, which Alma had told me before.  If you played your cards right (to the people who were in authority positions but shouldn't be), you could get a great schedule.  However, if you made a wrong step, your schedule might look like classes at 8, 12, 3, and 7, so that you couldn't do any other work and had to be back and forth to Centro de Idiomas all day.  Elvira is hoping to be the new director for Centro de Idiomas, but they have to go about it in an underground way.  They discussed friends and foes within Centro de Idiomas and how to rock the vote.

By midnight, my eyes were closing.  Elvira left then, but we stayed to rehash all Tadeo had said (what Karina had missed) and how Alma was feeling (good).  Wednesday was going to be a long day!

After Tuesday's Game

I got another phone call from Maribel when I was in first grade.  I was beginning to feel like a Pavlovian dog; whenever I went into my second group of first graders, I expected to hear from Maribel.

She said they needed me at Casa Achoy before noon, so she'd come pick me up during recess.  She wasn't looking forward to telling my principal since he had "made faces" the day before when they had returned for more filming...

I finished my first grade classes and gathered my things.  The principal struck up a conversation asking how I was, what I'd been up to, etc.  I was able to work it in that Maribel would be coming to pick me up.

When she got there, he was conducting an unofficial faculty meeting, so she apologized for taking me away and off we went.  Our plan was to park at the English office and hang out there until it was time to go to Casa Achoy on foot.

We joined in the conversation at the office and enjoyed the air conditioning.  As we were leaving around 11:45, Gaby and Maria Delia (receptionists) looked suspicious and we questioned them and got a , "Nada!" in unison.  Once outside, Maribel said they were discussing lunch and we obviously weren't invited.  Ni modo.  We got to Casa Achoy and the guard told us we weren't supposed to be there until 12:30.  Maribel said that she had been told before noon.  We sit for a minute and he does some checking around.  Before he comes back, Maribel's cell rings and it's Ana Luisa back at the office.  She said we were supposed to be there at 12:30 (apparently she just needed to pick me up from school before 12) and that there was ceviche at the office that she wanted me to have.

We basically ran out of there.  As we were headed back, Arturo was parking, but we told him Ana Luisa had called us back and we'd be back shortly.

We all (Gaby, Maria Delia, Maribel, Cecy and I) headed to the back room to try to contain the smell of seafood while Ana Luisa conducted an interview.  I love ceviche.  It was not my favorite (like many Mexican foods with lots of ingredients), but it grew on me quickly!

We ate and chatted until it was 12:30 and time for us to head back again.  We waited this time at Casa Achoy for almost an hour.  Rocio showed up around 1:30 with the script for me to read as the voiceover for the English video.  I was told I would watch the Spanish script being read so I would understand the process and then I would have my turn.  

Guess again.  

Maribel had to leave to pick up her girls from school (private schools are in session until 2pm), so she left me in Arturo's care; he would take me home when I was finished.

The guy in charge made me do some vocal exercises and stretches and I felt like a fool.  Then we practiced the reading part.  He of course had to slow me down since I'm used to speaking quickly and reading quickly as well.  This was a narration, so it needed to sound more informative and formal.  About the fifth time I read it, he told me to put more emotion into it.  That my tone was all wrong.  I can tell you, knowing two languages, that you can't correct a native on tone.  But I did my best.

It took about 45 minutes in all.  We all joked around (and they did the Mexican man flirt), and then Arturo and I walked out.  The guy in charge came out asking what was going on for lunch.  We spent 15 minutes deciding on sushi and ordering it.  Arturo would pick it up after dropping me off and then head back to Casa Achoy to watch them work.  He explained to me in the car that if you don't feed these guys, they don't work, and if you don't watch them, they don't get it done.  Since there was a deadline coming up for the video (it's going to be shown at the 6th grade certification ceremony in a few weeks), he would spend the next few days there with them.  I got the feeling that was not his favorite work task for the year!

He dropped me off and I joked that I'd see him soon.

More of my babies...

This, by contrast, is my angelic group of first graders.  The ones with the nurturing teacher (which by default makes me more nurturing with them than with the others- although the fact that I get things thrown at me in the other class doesn't improve their chances for being nurtured!).  

This video is from Wednesday (because videos and pictures are such a pain with blogger, this one is out of order) as the first graders were taking a test.  I hadn't told them in advance because I didn't want them to study- they had been prepared more than enough in class.  This class blows me away.  

We had done the first section of the test (4 questions).  The second section was a little difficult and sometimes first graders have trouble understanding the logic behind tests, so I explained to them what they would do.  There was a picture at the left of lots of different animals.  There were different numbers of each animal.  Then there was a sentence and they had to circle the correct number word.  I read them the first sentence and before I finished, they were reading aloud along with me.

In this video, you'll see them helping me with number three, which means they'd already had practice with one and two before I thought to film it.  The sentence they are reading is:  There are three/five cats.  They don't answer because it's a test.  They just had to circle the correct answer.  The most vocal girl (to the right of the center) is Ximena.  She's my star student and future teacher.  She talks too much and bosses the other kids, but she loves school, English, and learning.

My babies

This video is an excerpt from my first group of first graders.  We were playing the fly swatter game, which they loved.  However, you'll notice how much they struggle (and you might notice the stress in my voice when they continually can't get it!).  We've been working on these words for two weeks.  This game is he lowest level on foreign language there is.  All they have to do is listen and understand.  I provide the word for them and they have options.  They don't have to produce anything, yet they struggle.  The first little girl is Karin, who is a star student, so I think she must've been nervous.  About midway through you'll see Michel who wins but also struggles.  She has some learning disabilities I think, but has come so far.  She's one who wouldn't even know what page we were on (or what planet for that matter) the first few months of school (I speak quite a bit of Spanish with this group, so the language isn't the reason).  She has since learned the procedure of my class (greeting, review of flash cards, command to open books with page number written on board, lesson, song, goodbye) and is a really good student.  She seems to like English, and she's also very good at it.  I attribute a lot of that with this class to the rote memorization.  That's her strength and this class is mostly just that.

You ought to be able to notice that she's a bit awkward, but also that she is pumped to be playing and winning.

Monday's dress

Monday (this week!), I wore a dress to school.  A knit, spaghetti strap, inappropriate for work by US standards but the norm for Mexico dress.  It's the perfect solution for me, actually.  I cover as little of my body as possible (I'm still me, so I'm still pretty covered), keeping me as cool as possible, while looking Mexico-dressed up.

I was teaching my second first grade class (my angels) when I got a text from Maribel saying they would be coming to school again to tape again.  Ugh.  She didn't ask this time if I had a shirt.

I was not in the mood for it.  I'm not really sure why.  But I would have to deal.  It occurred to me that it was already 10:00 and recess would be in 20-30 minutes, so I texted her telling her it was almost recess, that they shouldn't come for another hour- or maybe tomorrow?  She was quick with the response saying no can do, Boss's orders.  Bummer.

I enjoyed recreo as much as I could, trying to think of something else creative to do with the kids today.  Nothing came to me, so I decided we'd just do the exact same thing we had done on Friday.

At 11 on the dot, Maribel (with an English button up in hand), Arturo and a camera man showed up.  After greetings all around and popsicles for those who wouldn't be teaching, Arturo leaned over to Maribel and said, "It's after 11.  Shouldn't recreo be over?"  "Not at this school."

At 11:15, we made it to the 5th grade classroom.  It went much more quickly this time since we all knew what we were doing.  The students coached me and told me I shouldn't laugh this time.  Also, this camera man (who had to come because he had a professional camera), in my opinion, wasn't very good.  He would turn the camera on and off a lot instead of just capturing it all and then editing later.  And oddly enough, Arturo was better at creative angles, etc.  We did two takes and were out of there to the 2nd grade classroom only to find that less than half of the half of the kids who had bought books had them with them (1/4 of the class or less, you follow that?).  It didn't matter.  They decided they'd film mostly me anyway.   Of course, due to the dress-meets-button-up combo, the filming was waist up.  The kids did fine.  We played the same game from before and they were much more comfortable with the game.  Of course, the camera man missed the two rounds where the kids knew the answer without hesitation and only captured the rounds where they struggled.  Arturo had noticed which kids knew something and which didn't and focused on them when he had the camera on kids.  

Finally, we needed the first grade shout of, "We love English class!"  They were all in PE, so we decided to do it out on the cancha.  I somehow escaped the greeting kiss from Ramón, but I'm guessing he had given me one at some point that morning.

Again, this camera man was not as skilled.  We practiced with the kids (since a- this wasn't something they said on a regular basis and b- this time we had both classes together) and the camera man would say in a quick rhythm, "Uno, dos tres."  The kids would then shout their phrase.  We practiced that way about 15 times.  Then it came time to film.  This time, he slowly drew out, "uuuuuunooooooo, doooooooos," and then just pointed for tres.  You can't change the rhythm of the counting and expect the result to be the same.  It was awful.  It took forever and the kids were getting tired of it.  I don't think it ended up how we wanted it, but we'll see.

It was noon by this time, so Maribel said they could take me home from there.  Arturo (like the rest of Culiacán) is at a minimum an acquaintance of Alma and Shania, so he knew how to get to Alma's house. They dropped me off and that was that.  Or so I thought!

And hurt it did....

At 7, I got a text from Alma.  She hadn't been able to sleep, so she was texting all of us thanking us for being supportive instead of texting Lenin to let him have it, which is what she really wanted to do.  That woke me up and I had a hard time going back to sleep.  I wasn't about to get out of bed though.  I fell back asleep around 10 and got a two hour nap before I woke up again.  I stayed in bed, checking email, making lists, and reading, hoping to get tired again.

I spent most of the day closed up in my room.  Alma had left around 5 with the girls, but she thought I was asleep, so she let me be.  I was fine getting in bed again around 10 when she still wasn't home!

Party times 4

Saturday was typical for me.  I got all of my laundry done and my room cleaned.  I ran and did some computer things.  I knew we had two parties to go to that night, but I didn't know the details.  Alma got home around 7 and started getting ready, telling me we had Elvira's birthday (her boss from Centro de Idiomas) and then a birthday party for a friend of hers from high school.

When she got out of the shower, she told me Mayrita had called and wanted us to go to a surprise birthday (I'm telling you- birthdays all the time) at Quinantzin's house for Rabsomething.  I can't ever remember his name.

Mayra came to pick us up at 9:30 and we made it to Q's house before the birthday boy.  We surprised him, had some chocolate covered marshmallows and strawberries, made conversation with the crowd, and then left (Alma and I) once Karina got there to pick us up.

We got to Elvira's house (I had been there for a posada with Mabel since Alma had invited us) and immediately took advantage of the tacos.  They were carne asada and delish.

Johana, Karina, Ocyé, Elvira, me, Alma
The foursome (Ocyé, Alma, Johana and Karina) are inseparable and completely take over center stage wherever they are.  I remembered that from the posada, too.  Ocyé was like the deejay.  They kept us in stitches and didn't let go of the karaoke mic until we were ready to go, which was much sooner than I had expected.  But I guess when you have another party to go to....

I was preparing myself for the high school friends party where I wouldn't know anyone.  I was excited to get to know these people (another group Alma had not been around much in the Lenin days).  However, we pulled into an area near Wings and I realized we were going to Novo.  It's the club I first went to with these girls when I arrived in Culiacán.  I guessed that the birthday party would be here.  I was glad it was already 1 because I wasn't enthused about dancing for hours upon hours with new people.  Give me my gang and I'll party all night, but...
We got in (I love that girls get in free everywhere in Culiacán) and found a table by ourselves.  This was not the party.  This was just the dance break before the party.  The ended up playing some really good music (with none of the junk that usually comes between every good song).  Some of it was US pop, but most of it was just good Mexican music that I knew!  We had a ball for about 45 minutes and then headed out.

From there we made our way back toward our house.  There was a huge party going on on the corner across from the Oxxo.  Turns out that was our party.
We parked and as we were walking up to the entrance, we saw Jair and Foca driving by.  We told them to park and come on.  As we walked in, though, Alma saw Karla, Chapo, Lenin and Graciela leaving.  She didn't think they had seen her, but obviously that put a cloud over the rest of the night.  It was about 2 already.  The only people here I knew were the girls I had come with and Yuri (the guy from the bridge night), only I hadn't recognized him at first.  Around 3, Alma went to the Oxxo with Mayra Loca's brother.  I imagined they were chatting about all the drama.  By 3:30, my eyes weren't staying open anymore.  I was standing, thank goodness, so I was still awake.  I told Karina I was just going to walk home since it was so close.  She forbade me to go alone, saying Alma would be back soon and could walk with me.  Half an hour passed and she was still with Juan Carlos, so I decided I would just go.  However, at that exact moment, a bunch of army men stopped in the street and started checking parked cars and stopping traffic (maybe for drugs?).  The party started edging its way back from the fence.  I stuck close to Karina, Ocyé and Johana.  We called Alma who said she was on her way, but we told her to stay put and we'd come to her.  At 4:15, we were walking back to Alma's house (Johana had decided to stay at the party).  She took the girls and Juan Carlos home as I trotted off to bed.

It has been since DF that I have stayed up this late.  It was going to hurt in the morning!

He's Just Not That Into You

I got home from school, ate and napped.  Such the life I lead!  Late afternoon, Alma got home with Karina and Ocyé.  We all piled onto Alma's bed and chatted.  There was new Lenin drama.  It turns out he already was going out with another girl and Mayra had called Alma to tell her that she had seen them dancing together at a party back when Alma and he were still together.  The new girl is one of Karla's friends, so it's made it hard for the whole group to hang out.  We spent an hour or so talking about boys ("They're all the same!"  "They're all immature!") and breakups.  About why girls always end up making the same mistakes.

I had watched He's Just Not That Into You this week since I had bought it in Puebla.  I suggested we watch it when we were discussing possible options.  Johana had gotten there in the middle of it all and was stressed about something and chowing down on some chicken strips from Wings.  We debated for about 15 minutes about the details (Alma's car was downtown an they had come the three of them in Karina's car.  Johana had her car.  We needed to pick up Alma's car, but everyone wanted to ride together.)  I explained that this was another major difference in Mexico and the US (at least my US); when it was time to go, there would've been no conversation.  We would've all gotten up, gotten in our cars, and gone.  There's no need to ride together when you're about to be together again.

Off we went.  Johana and Ocyé drove straight to the raspados place that had been closed on Sunday and Karina, Alma and I went to get Alma's car.  

We got our raspados, and this place is as good as Mabel's place.  In fact, it's in the same neighborhood (which happens to be the same block where her dad lives!).  From there, we drove to Johana's house (she does not live with her family like everyone else- I'm not sure why) which is the privada next to Mabel's.  

I considered dropping in.  Yeah right.

We watched the movie in English with Spanish subtitles.  The translations were awful, which I'm guessing is what happens with a pirated movie.  The girls loved it, though.  It's a great movie.  It's a chick flick, sure, but a good one.

We were out of there by midnight.  We all laughed that we were turning in so early!

A Very Mexican Week

Last Friday started what will remain in my mind forever as a typical Mexican week.  It unfolded through yesterday, so keep that in mind as you read the next few entries.

It started as any school day (well, as any school day should, but doesn't always start in Mexico) when Guille picked me up from in front of the IFE building.  We got to school and I piddled on the computer and made copies as need be.  My phone rang and it was the English office.  I was prepared for it to be Maribel.  She always calls from the office.  

"Good morning."

"Good morning."

"Are you wearing your English polo?"

"No."

"I told Ana Luisa you probably wouldn't be since you wore it to give the test yesterday.  Guess what?"

"What?"

"We're on our way to video you."

"Okay.  What do I need to do?"

"We just need some footage of you for Rocio's video.  Your DVD didn't work."

"Okey dokey."

When I had copied the DVD at the office, I had checked it on a computer and it wouldn't pull up.  César tried it on his laptop and it worked, but it skipped.  The quality was awful.

I wasn't thrilled about the visit and video because I knew I was going to have to pull something creative out of nowhere.  Good thing I was born to teach (and have adjusted to this dog-and-pony show).

They got there around 9, I put on the English polo, and we went to my second grade class- the class that I was actually supposed to be with at 8:50 (so not too off track).  Arturo filmed off and on as much as he could and then asked me to do some things again.  He moved some kids around.  I have to give 2nd grade credit; they can be pretty wild at times.  They aren't known for their listening and they usually wait until I give them the answer and then just copy instead of engaging in independent thinking.  Still.  In May.  No, I'm not too frustrated with that!

But this day they did well.

In the middle of the filming, Rocio had called Arturo and asked to speak to me.  She thanked me again for doing this and then asked if I could do a mini interview as well.  All I needed to do was introduce myself on camera, tell why I was here, where I was from and then end with "I love Sinaloa" or something along those lines.

Done.  We left second grade and chatted about our next goal.  Theoretically, I should've gone to 3rd grade.  However, I was going to do the same game with them that I had done with second grade, so the filming would look very similar.  We decided to go to first grade, where they have the best accent.  Martha's class gathered around me by the board and we practiced, "We love English class!"  They actually did a really good job for having just learned the phrase.

We had them repeat me and then we did it over and over with the camera rolling.  Arturo is Rocio's assistant (there's another word for it, but I can already hear Mom, "Laura!") as well as the assistant for Ana Luisa (the coordinator of half of Culiacán's schools) and Zulma (the other half- Alma is an enlace for Zulma).  Anyway, to have been an assistant and neither an educator nor a camera person, he was really good at dealing with the kids (keeping the cameras rolling, knowing they would need more than one take) and also with the shooting in general.

We finished with them and went out to the cancha to discuss the interview part.  Arturo was pumped.  He had an idea.

I would enter a class, start it as usual, ask a few questions and then turn from the board or the class and start my spiel.  It was kind of hilarious just how excited he was.

We chose 5th grade.  They're used to being recorded and having to practice and perform on camera.

The plan was entry, greeting ("Good morning" "Good morning, Teacher." "How are you?"  "Fine, thanks, and you Teacher?" I didn't teach them this.  It was ingrained in them in the early pre-Laura years), ask them for the date, turn to the camera and introduce myself.

The first time was good, but they struggled with the date, so we practiced.  The second time, I died laughing after saying, "I love Sinaloa."  It should've been frustrating to Arturo that I wasn't cooperating, especially considering Rocio kept calling and fussing at him.  However, we all (kids included) found it hilarious.

They thanked me for my time and headed out once it was recreo time.  

My afternoon classes (4th and 5th) were great and motivated me to cover a lot of ground in my last five weeks.

1 week

I am currently caught up to one week ago on my blog.  That's the closest I've been since before spring break.  Hopefully I'll have some free time tomorrow afternoon and get completely caught up.  Stay tuned- next week's events get more Mexican!

Thursday's Exam

Maribel had told me to be at Josefa at 8 am on Thursday.  Why so early when the first exam was at 9, I wasn't sure, but I made sure to be there before 8:15.  I was the first one to arrive of course.  She came in loaded down and sweaty from having walked six blocks from the office due to no parking.  Coquín, the English teacher there, was there to assist us.  She teaches over 60 sixth grade girls at a time, so Maribel broke them into two groups and we each would test a half of a class at 9 and then another group at 11.  Thank goodness Coquín was there because she read the 30 minute-long instructions in Spanish.  I could've gotten through it, but my mouth would've been tired and it would've taken more like an hour!

While the girls were testing, I worked on some ideas for testing my kids back home.  I also made lists of things I needed to do before I leave.  It's getting closer and closer and I don't want to forget pictures of things or people.  I've got a thousand lists going right now.  I figure I'll get them all organized in the next five weeks of school and get them accomplished before I go.

At 10:30, we broke for recreo and snacked.  Then at 11, we started with the next group.  We didn't finish until after 12:30.  I walked with Maribel (and the 130 exams) to the office.  Once there, Ana Luisa asked if I could help reword a translation for Rocio.  Sure thing.  I got to work on that and then called it a day.

5 day week

Mom and Lori had both given me a really hard time for finally having a five day week.  Well, I accidentally made it a four day week.  I didn't get up when my alarm went off and by the time I did get up, I didn't have time to get ready before Guille got to our meeting spot.  So I sent her and the principal and Sandra texts saying that I wouldn't be coming in and would see them Friday (I had to go administer the test at Josefa on Thursday).  No big deal; that's how it's done in Mexico.

I did, however, have to go to the English office to drop off the video footage I had for Rocio to use in the end-of-year video.  I hadn't burned the disc, but I had made a folder with the photos and videos.  I took my computer, charger and disc to the office and burned it while there.  It's a really fun place to just hang- especially when I have something to do.

I left the DVD with Ana Luisa, who was going to make sure it got to Rocio and I went on my way.  I went for a run around 6 and enjoyed my cold shower after!

Cold Showers

Knowing we had a movie date at "9," I rushed home from yoga and jumped right in the shower.  I have had cold showers for about a month now.  Maybe since a little after spring break.  the first time it was shocking.  Since then, it's actually been pleasurable.  My night showers are after yoga or running, so I'm super-sweaty and still hot.  The initial jump in is bad, but I don't even get cold chills at the beginning anymore.  I thought of myself as pretty low maintenance before (especially when I had to be), but after this year, I'm going to be off the charts low maintenance.

Anyway, I've gotten used to these showers and look forward to them as relief after my workouts.

I rushed home that Tuesday night and jumped in the shower only to be surprised by hot water.  I couldn't get the cold to work.  I think it was too hot to have just been warmed from the sun all day.  I don't get it.  I'll assure you this: even in Nashville, when I leave hot yoga, the last thing I want is an immediate hot shower.  After getting accustomed to cold showers, I was miserable!

I got out of the shower almost hotter than when I had gotten in!  We got ready and when I went downstairs, Topete was already there.  I didn't know who all was invited to this shindig, so I was kind of surprised.  I had only seen him the one time at Iván's game night since Manzanillo (first week of April), so it was good to catch up.  He and Alma comforted each other in their break-up dramas.

Shortly after, Iván arrived and it was approaching movie time.  Good news: the Matthew Mc movie was the movie of choice!  We called Mayra to see where she was and what the hold up was.  Her answer was that she was at a family thing and would meet us there.

Topete drives the four of us there and we meet up with Quinantzin and her hair stylist who came to game night but whose name I never caught (it's a non-traditional one that I haven't seen so I haven't committed it to memory).

Alma had free passes to the movie, so we all got in without paying.  Nice.  The boys went to buy popcorn and cokes while the girls went to the bathroom.  The real reason came out why Mayra wasn't there.  It was girl chit chat and basically she had thought it would be a 2-4 person outing and (oops on my part!) it turned out being 7 of us.  Anyway, we went in to watch the movie and within the first 15 minutes, my man Matthew says, "No" in his beautiful southern drawl and I could see Topete turning in my peripheral and I said, "See?  Nouuuuu.  It's how it's said!"

It was funny.

I loved the movie.  It was your typical chick flick and semi-predictable things, but not as cheesy as they can be.  And who doesn't love Jennifer Garner?

As we were leaving, we walked out and Alma said, "It smells like rain."  I looked at her like she was crazy.  Just that day, one of my favorite (I know, I don't have favorites) first graders looked out the window and said, "It smells like water."  It's very Mexican to smell the rain coming or going.  I wouldn't know, being neither Mexican nor a smeller!

A few minutes later, Iván caught up with us and said, no joke, "It smells like rain."  I gave him the same look and Alma and I just laughed at each other.  I had to explain that I can't smell, but I didn't bother explaining that it was such a Mexican thing.

Another 1 am school night.

Movies?

I have not seen many movies while in Mexico this year.  I don't see a ton of movies in the States, but usually on breaks from school I make up for the months I go without seeing them.  I've been to the theater only once this year and rented about the same.

I got a text from Alma about the time I got home that we would either go to the movies or dinner at 9.  I was excited to have plans.  There were a few weeks of mourning over Lenin that we didn't get out much!  I texted her back saying I'd love to see the Ex-Girlfriends movie with my boy Matthew McConaughey.  She said she'd let me know the plan.

Mamá fixed tacos dorados for lunch and I couldn't have been happier.  She is such an amazing cook.  She's going to have a lot of teaching to do in the week I'm out of school and still in Culiacán.  As yummy and filling as those are, I still needed some chocolate later, so I walked to the Oxxo.  As I was approaching, a car honked at me (not out of the ordinary), but I thought it was Mayrita.  I waved, but then suddenly was embarrassed thinking I was mistaken.  I walked in and saw the girl I thought I had seen in the car and thought, "Great.  Not Mayrita."  But then I saw her at the counter adding time to her phone.  We chatted for a minute and she seemed nervous or some such.  Like she knew something or had some secret, yet wasn't sure how to tell it or how to hide it.

I asked her if she'd be going to the movies and she said yes.  We chatted for just a second and then she had to jet because she had to work.  I thought it was strange, but just went back home.

I got a text from Iván later asking if I'd heard about the movies and I said yes, see you there.

I did what I could blogging, but battled big time with my connection.  I hate when that happens.  When I'm all motivated and ready and have the time, but the internet doesn't cooperate.

Guille's rides home

After a car has been in the sun for four hours in Sinaloa, the heat is just ridiculous.  Guille has a little shade for her front windshield, but it does little to combat the crazy heat that invades this city!  When we leave in the afternoon, she has the air on level 2 and it takes forever to cool off.  Not to mention she stops and goes in a way that would make me pretty nauseated, even if I were in the cool.  I remember being younger and riding in Honey's BMW to Brad's.  We would crank the air all the way to 5 and she would say, "Don't you wish there was a six?"  I did; I did wish there had been a six!  But Guille just leaves it on the next-to-lowest setting.  That makes me all the hotter thinking about how much faster it would cool off if she'd rev it up.

Oh well.  I try to remain focused on being thankful for the ride.

Jasiel and his class

It's no secret that I love one of my first grade classes and pretty much despise the second.  What's worse, that just about accurately describes how I feel about their teachers as well.  That's pretty unfortunate.  Jasiel is in the first group.  The class that moves more slowly, understands less, and listens way less.  The teacher that frowns, yells, and doesn't give me the time of day.

Jasiel was such a problem all year.  He quickly became less urgent when Carlos Jovany joined us.  He's the one that throws things at me, cusses, and chases kids around the room.  Yes, while I'm "teaching."  And I wonder why they haven't learned as much as the other class?!

Anyway, I've noticed a gradual change over Jasiel in the past few months.  I shouldn't say that.  I know the change was gradual over months now in hindsight, but it seemed overnight that he was not only interested in English class, but also actively participating and right most of the time.  "Caballo es horse, verdad Teacher?"  He has just become eager.  He's still a bit of a crybaby.  He still is a busy body little boy that needs constant correction (which is so hard in a class like his).  The difference now is that he is engaged.  I've won one!

Maribel/6th grade testing

Last week was the window for the standardized English test for 6th graders.  In order to promote fairness/ethics/all things missing from the Spanish tests, all the English teachers proctored the test at a different school.  Maribel and I would proctor the test at Josefa, the all girls school I had observed earlier in the year.  Our day was Thursday, the same day my sixth graders would have the test.

Tuesday morning, Maribel called and asked about my students and their test.  She had accidentally sent the teacher to my school on Tuesday!  My kids were not ready, so when she showed up at my first grade door asking if I were the "Teacher," I promptly sent her away to come back on Thursday.

Yoga

I got to yoga on Monday night and hadn't been in over a week and a half due to all my travels, the flu, and laziness.  When I got there, Rocio (the big boss of the English Program in the whole state) was already there, which was strange.  She almost always arrives late and she usually gives me a ride home.  She struck up a conversation with me and told me she had been worried about me since I hadn't been to yoga.  She knew I came every chance I could and since she hadn't seen me, she was afraid something had happened.  She said if I hadn't come that night, she was going to call me to make sure I was okay.

She also mentioned that she had some school stuff to talk to me about and would take me home if I didn't already have a ride so we could discuss it.  Perfect.

Yoga was okay.  It's always tough when you miss for awhile.  It feels hotter, more humid and just tough.

We rode home and Rocio continued with her praise and thanks for my being here (as if I've done them some huge favor) and then tells me about this video she's working on.  It's about the English program and they do it every year.  Kind of a synopsis including all the numbers for the year.  Since it's still a relatively new program,  they include how many new schools have been served, the progress of students, and certification of teachers.  She said that the narration is in Spanish since most of the people listening to the presentation are not English speakers (parents, educational administration).  She told me she'd like some footage of me teaching to be able to include that in the video as well as use me to make an English version of the video to be able to take back with me as a souvenir.  I was more than willing of course.  I also offered the video footage I already had to save them from having to come video me at school.  She thought that sounded great.  She dropped me off and told me she'd be in touch.  Perfect.

School on Monday

Guille had to go to the doctor on Monday morning, so Sandra came to pick me up.  I assumed she would come late since she gets to school late.  When Maribel came to school to ask someone to give me a ride due to the robbery, Sandra had offered, saying we wouldn't have to get to school right at 8 since I didn't teach until 8:50 all days except Tuesdays.  

At 7:30, ten minutes after my alarm, I got the text that she was on her way!  Whoops!  I got dressed quickly and might have left out make-up.  I got to our meeting point three blocks away and she wasn't there.  As I was pulling out my phone to text her, I saw her rounding the corner.  She had made it all the way to my house.  Next time she needs to pick me up, I'll be ready early!

We got to school and life was as usual.  Ramón (PE) found me before the day was over to give me my greeting kiss.  My just-a-little-too-close-to-my-lips greeting kiss.  I mean, I try to avoid him, but it's impossible.  So then I just have to shudder as he walks away.

At recreo, Sandra came in with a bag of tamales de piña for me because before the flu outbreak, in normal conversation I had mentioned that I'd never had them and since I loved tamales so much, I needed to try them.  She had wanted to bring me some then, but kept forgetting.  Then we got out for the flu.  The lady who sells food at recreo had brought them that week, so she bought some and brought them in to me.  By then, I had already tried them, but I was more than willing to take them home and take care of them.  They're just like tamales de elote (the sweet corn ones), only they also have pineapple strips in them.  Heavenly.

I took those home and they didn't last past lunch.  

El Puente Negro

So this is the black bridge.  It's one of the things that Culiacán is known for.  In fact, when Yuri and I had only recently switched places, she was telling me how beautiful she thought Culiacán was (ha) but how much prettier Nashville was, and how she felt at home seeing the pedestrian bridge because it reminded her of the puente negro in Culiacán.

After I slept all day and afternoon on Sunday, I sent Alma a text telling her I was finally up and willing to do something (7ish).  She was at the movies with the girls (Johana and Karina) and they would come get me soon.  She forgot to mention that they had just gotten to the movies!

At ten, they were at the house picking me up.  We were going ot get some raspados.  We ended up stopping at this place on the malecón that I had gone to with Alma and Lenin once that sold everything.  Their raspados look like they won't be very good, and they're true to form.  I got one, but was sorely disappointed.  Alma got a coconut, Karina got a cup of peanuts doused in lots of Mexican sauces (the Japanese peanuts that you like, Mom) and lime juice, and Johana got something else.

We ate and called Johana's friend Yuri (a boy).  We decided we'd pick him up to come hang out, too.  The music in Johana's car was so loud I could hear the speakers busting as we drove.  I wondered how much more hearing loss I would have after getting back from this year in very loud Mexico.

We picked up Yuri and tried to decide what to do.  We played a "game" called papel tirado to decide who would decide what we did.  Each person got a small piece of paper and the one with the dot on it got to decide.  Somewhat like drawing straws.

Karina won or lost depending on how you look at it.  I didn't want to win because I had no idea what to suggest considering I had school the next day!

Karina decided we'd go to the puente negro and cross it.  It's a train bridge.  It's supposedly still active, but I have yet to see a train on it.

We got there, parked the car, and started climbing up.  It crosses the river, so it's no small bridge.

Karina and Johana were in their Mexican heels, so they had a little trouble scaling the wall.

Alma was ready to go!  She walked across it as if it were any road- as if she couldn't see the ground underneath between the slats.  She and I covered some ground, but my fear of heights got to me.  She wanted to cross the whole thing, but it is long, so I told her we could go to where the water began and then come back.

Johana and Karina, aside from having heels on, were paralyzed with fear.  Alma just laughed at them.  The pictures we have are terrible quality because they're from Alma's cell, but they beat nothing.

You can see Johana and Karina holding hands in the background because they were so scared.

I was laughing, but it was a nervous laugh as if at any minute it could be me who was paralyzed!

Alma, the fearless one, poses with confidence.  (I don't know if I mentioned her wreck.  Someone ran a stop sign- a common occurrence in Mexico- and smashed the front of her car.  She walked away, but was very sore the next few days and was prescribed the Mexican cure-all: a neck brace.)
After Alma and I had gone all the way out to the water and back, we took some pictures of the scaredy cats still working their way back from the 15 steps they had taken.  They barely even got to the part where the tracks begin to separate from the ground.

Happy faces after it was over, though Karina and Johana were still clinging pretty tightly to each other.  (Me, Alma, Karina, Johana)
The girls with Yuri the rescuer.  After we had accomplished our goal, everyone else was hungry, so we went to a taco stand outside a park.  Then we took Yuri home and headed there ourselves.  After a day of traveling, bridge crossing ending at 1 am isn't the best plan.  Ni modo.  (Translation, more or less: Oh, well.)