When the sun goes down and the lights go up even the least lovely town starts to look better.
Evening
Sunrise
The morning after the karaoke party, having been awake since three o'clock, I was ready for breakfast by seven. And I was out of eggs. So I got dressed and went to 7-Eleven. When I stepped out into the street, I could feel the sea. It was like being next to a beach. Of course…
Sleep Schedules
The karaoke party started at three a.m. Maybe it's my Northern European genes, but my body thinks--nay, truly believes--that it should be resting when it's dark outside. I go to bed too early and wake up too early for a part of the continent where people don't eat dinner until ten o'clock at night. So…
January
January is a miserable month in Louisiana. In the first place, there's the big let-down because all the excitement of Christmas is over. The tree comes down January 7 (if not a lot sooner), there's a depressing can or box of crumbly fudge or cookies still lingering on the table, and there's no money left.…
stress relief
The week before Thanksgiving I wrote: I appreciate my former coworkers. I didn't understand, really, why they would be so relieved, and vocal about their relief, when a long weekend or holiday approached. I would get anxious because a day off just meant that things would be tougher when we came back. A day off…
Flowers
There aren't many flower beds here in this desert town. The centers of the main avenues are mostly bare dirt littered with trash and lined with diseased palm trees. But the walled streets, no matter how poor and dirty, have bougainvillea blooming all over them, and flowering trees. There are flowers everywhere here; they just…
History and Pecan Trees
Walking across town, I stumbled upon Museo de la Revolución. I love museums. Especially the ones about history. It was Saturday afternoon, and I was the only person in the tour. Some high school students were guiding. Their English was very limited, and my listening and vocabulary in Spanish are limited, so while I can…
Staple foods
I finally bought some of what the man on the bicycle was selling in the neighborhood. It's elote. AyLOHtay. It's corn. In Louisiana, we are very familiar with corn. It's everywhere. Corn is served on lunch buffets, at home as a side dish with supper, in casserole at Thanksgiving (alongside the cornbread dressing). You may have…
“Vivo en la Calle Olmos” Part 2
After I got here, it took weeks to get settled into the apartment and learn how to find my way around the city. My Spanish was so poor that I was scared to try to call a taxi to take me anywhere, even if I had known where to go. I was beginning to get…
Border Crossing
If you listen to all the media hype (let's call it what it is), you might think that the world is a very scary place. You may begin to feel that nowhere is safe. You (meaning I) might be afraid to go anywhere. For example, consider the movie Sicario. If you haven't watched it, don't.…
Trina Morgan 