5 Years Later...

September 21st was my and Cito's 5th anniversary. I realize that, in the scheme of things, it's really not that long, but considering the things he and I have been through in that short time, it feels like so much longer.


Our options were kind of limited, so we decided to meet up at the border in Nogales (on the Mexico side, of course), and celebrate there. So Huerita was sent off to grandma's house, and I spent half of Saturday driving through the desert, this time with valid vehicle registration ;-) I crossed the border without being stopped, and saw my love waiting on the other side. I quickly gave up the driver's seat as I refuse to drive in Mexico any more than is necessary, and we headed off to explore.

My man and I both have only ever really seen Nogales as we've been passing through, so this was an adventure for both of us. The part of town that I had seen looked fairly Mexican, although there were a few fast food places with signs that shocked me until I started acclimating to prices in pesos. I never expected, however, to see a (huge!) Super Wal Mart right around the corner from street vendors, nor did I anticipate eating our anniversary dinner at Applebee's, but it was cool. We even had the opportunity to watch '¿Qué Pasó Ayer?' (The Hangover) at the Cinépolis and it was in English with Spanish subtitles.
We found a nice hotel, the Hotel Fray Marcos de Nizo, right next to the border.  I was pleasantly surpised by our room, and even more so by the price.  It was $600 pesos/night, which came out to $55 USD, which was much better than the $90 that Fiesta Inn was quoting.  We even had free wifi, and as my man was excited to learn, we also had hot water in the showers.  Oh, I ask myself, what am I getting into?  Will I, too, one day be grateful for hot showers?  Is that a bad thing? (I always wonder how the hell they do it in the winter) 

So, anyways, we had a great time- I brought a big bottle of Hennessy, and some recent purchases from Frederick's, and a new going-out outfit (complete with some killer heels!), and we really had a blast.  It's the first time we'd been together without my daughter since he went down there in June, so it was some much-needed quality time together.  The fight was on in the bar downstairs (and every other bar in the neighborhood), there were leftover fiestas in the streets from the celebrations of el 16 de septiembre, and there were more cocteles de elote than we knew what to do with.  I guess it's a good thing they don't put nutrition labels on that stuff. I probably don't even want to know... but it's soooo good, and I have yet to find it here in the States.

When all was said and done, we had our tear-filled good-byes at the Tufesa station (I really think Tufesa sounds like an insult <"Ay, mira esa tufesa chingada">), and I sat in the 2 hour line to get back across the border. Fortunately they felt no need to hassle me this time, and asked no questions about why I was there, and thus, I began my 3 1/2 hour journey back home.  But ahhhhh, it was so worth it.

Amber was the color of my energy...

Nogales @ 5 in the morning, when everyone finally went to sleep

Heroica Nogales, out our hotel window

More of Nogales

Even more...

Our hotel room @ Fray Marcos de Niza

Introductions

Well, I finally caved and decided to try this blog thing.  Maybe it'll work out for everyone.  I have a feeling it will be therapeutic for me, and possibly even entertaining for a few, and at the very least, in case the deepest fears of my loved ones are realized and I am abducted/caught in drugcartel vs. law enforcement crossfire/forced into sexual slavery, etc on one of my many excursions to Mexico, (yes, just in case) there will be a record of this trying time in my life. 

So, here it is:

Me

I'm Jen aka jenadegracia.  The user name is a play on words, derived from "llena de gracia", Spanish for "full of grace".  Cuz' I damn sure must be full of grace to have made it this far, and even more so to get through this.  I kinda got it from the movie "Maria, Llena de Gracia," which is really worth watching, so you should check it out.
I am in my 2nd-ish year at community college, going for a degree in Digital Arts: Digital Photography.  A lotta good that's pry gonna do me in Mexico, I know.  But hey, at least I have something to fall back on.  And maybe it sounds progressive enough for them to issue me and FM3.  Who knows.
So what's the deal?  Why am I in this predicament?  Well, I guess maybe we can thank

Him

The Man.  Heretoforth known as D or D-cito, or a variety of other cloying pet names ;-)  I've been with him since I was 16.  We've been through a lot.  A lot.  Long story short, he was a permanent resident in the states from age 1 until about 3 months ago... He ran into some trouble.  Nothing dangerous, just stupid.  One way or another, he became exiled to Mexico.  'Nuff said on that. 
I love him.  Had our story been a little different, we would have been married by now, but we're not- not legally anyway.  We're committed though, and of course, we do have

Her

My baby girl.  La Huerita.  You have probably never seen a whiter half-Mexican.  I know the Mexico we've visited hasn't...  She is 2 1/2, and a major handful.  And she misses her daddy.  And she's probably smarter than I am. 

And that's just the beginning... but so is this.  I'm just trying to make sense of this mad world, and mentally prepare for my impending move to "the other side".  It'll probably be about a year and a half, but who knows.  As I know well, life can change in an instant.