Love's Baby Soft
Crackberry
"The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada", Tommy Lee Jones
Saturday, January 14, 2006
SUV vs. Car
I haven't written in a long time. It's been a crazy busy week and I've walked three times this week. As usual, if I'm exercising or writing I can't blog. I've worked on my novel a little bit this week during lunch. I made a lot of progress deciding which part I'm going to read at my reading in three weeks. This week my plan is to write during lunch all week because I'm so tired in the evenings after walking, but I have to do both.
I've had two really interesting weeks driving my husband's Honda Civic. He had knee surgery 2 weeks ago and he's been at home and taking the kids to the sitter, so I've been driving his car so he can drive the truck. I don't usually call the truck an SUV because it's not one of those super sized SUVs. It's one of those more moderately sized ones and it drives a lot like a car. OK, a big car, but not a Honda Civic.
The interesting part is that when we got the SUV 5 years ago I never thought I could drive it. I started driving it when I got pregnant with Miranda and I quickly found out that I could definitely get used to it. In fact, I loved it! I've been driving the SUV for 5 years.
So now five years later whenever I drive Rey's car I feel the difference immediately. I feel like I'm driving down low to the ground and more than that, I feel like people just don't give me the same respect when I drive the car. I feel like other drivers, especially SUVs, let me into their lanes when I have my blinker on. When I drive the car I feel like they ignore me and my blinker and I have to wait until the last possible moment and bogart my way into the lane. I wonder if it's because the car is so small or is it me. Am I less confident when I drive the car, therefore I'm less aggressive and don't get any respect?
Or do I get less respect because I'm driving an older looking car? In this superficial world that we live in, people judge other people by the car that they drive. When I drive up to places, especially around the West U area where I work, I see people give me funny looks in the older car. I don't feel like I get those looks when I drive the SUV. Or maybe it's me? Maybe I'm feeling self-conscious because I'm driving an older car or maybe I'm the one thinking superficially....
Nah, it's not me. Most people are superficial and they do look at what kind of car you drive. If that wasn't the case then cops wouldn't pull over minority men in old cars all the time.
I've had two really interesting weeks driving my husband's Honda Civic. He had knee surgery 2 weeks ago and he's been at home and taking the kids to the sitter, so I've been driving his car so he can drive the truck. I don't usually call the truck an SUV because it's not one of those super sized SUVs. It's one of those more moderately sized ones and it drives a lot like a car. OK, a big car, but not a Honda Civic.
The interesting part is that when we got the SUV 5 years ago I never thought I could drive it. I started driving it when I got pregnant with Miranda and I quickly found out that I could definitely get used to it. In fact, I loved it! I've been driving the SUV for 5 years.
So now five years later whenever I drive Rey's car I feel the difference immediately. I feel like I'm driving down low to the ground and more than that, I feel like people just don't give me the same respect when I drive the car. I feel like other drivers, especially SUVs, let me into their lanes when I have my blinker on. When I drive the car I feel like they ignore me and my blinker and I have to wait until the last possible moment and bogart my way into the lane. I wonder if it's because the car is so small or is it me. Am I less confident when I drive the car, therefore I'm less aggressive and don't get any respect?
Or do I get less respect because I'm driving an older looking car? In this superficial world that we live in, people judge other people by the car that they drive. When I drive up to places, especially around the West U area where I work, I see people give me funny looks in the older car. I don't feel like I get those looks when I drive the SUV. Or maybe it's me? Maybe I'm feeling self-conscious because I'm driving an older car or maybe I'm the one thinking superficially....
Nah, it's not me. Most people are superficial and they do look at what kind of car you drive. If that wasn't the case then cops wouldn't pull over minority men in old cars all the time.
Sunday, January 08, 2006
Going Home
Hello all! We're driving home after our weekend trip to the Valley. We were there for a funeral but I also made time to visit my 91 yo uncle. We also drove into Matamoros for some bottles of liquor.
Today we bought 2 more bottles duty free at the border, before leaving, then U turned in Reynosa.
Funny thing happened coming into US. The border agent got stern w/me because I was on my cell phone IMing. I forgot I was supposed to turn it off because I was so excited to be IMing my girlfriend in Spain on my Blackberry! Then she asked if the kids were ours. I wanted to laugh but I didn't want to get in trouble by making a joke.
Today we bought 2 more bottles duty free at the border, before leaving, then U turned in Reynosa.
Funny thing happened coming into US. The border agent got stern w/me because I was on my cell phone IMing. I forgot I was supposed to turn it off because I was so excited to be IMing my girlfriend in Spain on my Blackberry! Then she asked if the kids were ours. I wanted to laugh but I didn't want to get in trouble by making a joke.
Friday, January 06, 2006
Blogging on the Road
This is the first time I blog using my Blackberry. This is pretty cool! The keyboard is similar to a typewriter with the letters in the same place. Except that I have to type w/my thumbs. We're driving to McAllen to the funeral of an uncle. I love technology! What did we do before this?
Monday, January 02, 2006
Reading Old Books
Now that I've been working so diligently on finishing this book besides promising that I won't blog until I've written something, I'm also not reading. I love to read so much that I get addicted and can't put the book down. So instead of reading a novel I'm reading a collection of essays. That way I'll only read an essay here and there. It's called Border-Line Personalities- A New Generation of Latinas Dish on Sex, Sass, & Cultural Shifting.
I've had this book for over a year. In fact, the copy I have is signed by the two editors. I went to hear them read from the book at Barnes and Noble for a Nuestra Palabra event. I decided to look at the book to read a few essays that caught my eye. It surprised me that I hadn't made the time to read the book because I found a few authors that I know. Well I've only met one personally, e-mailed another, and I listen to the other on the radio but still, three authors to whom I felt a connection.
One was Cecilia Bali who writes for Texas Monthly magazine. She wrote the great article on my cousin Oscar Casares a couple of years ago and I met her at his Nuestra Palabra reading here in Houston. The second is the actress Jackie Guerra who played Selena's sister in the movie and I e-mailed her a random comment on her website once and she replied. The third is Maria Hinojosa from Latino USA who I don't know at all but I feel like I do because I've listened to her radio show so many times.
I've read two already. The one by Cecilia Bali entitled, "I Get Up to Work" is really touching. She deals with the challenge of writing about your family, especially your parents, and how hard that can be. Jackie Guerra's "J's True Hollywood Story" is very inspiring! I love something she says in the last paragraph, "I've learned that hard work does not always ensure success, but not working hard almost always ensures failure."
It's funny how a book can sit on your shelf for so long and you don't know what treasures lie inside if you don't pick it up and read it. I'm sure I have a lot like those on my bookshelf.
I've had this book for over a year. In fact, the copy I have is signed by the two editors. I went to hear them read from the book at Barnes and Noble for a Nuestra Palabra event. I decided to look at the book to read a few essays that caught my eye. It surprised me that I hadn't made the time to read the book because I found a few authors that I know. Well I've only met one personally, e-mailed another, and I listen to the other on the radio but still, three authors to whom I felt a connection.
One was Cecilia Bali who writes for Texas Monthly magazine. She wrote the great article on my cousin Oscar Casares a couple of years ago and I met her at his Nuestra Palabra reading here in Houston. The second is the actress Jackie Guerra who played Selena's sister in the movie and I e-mailed her a random comment on her website once and she replied. The third is Maria Hinojosa from Latino USA who I don't know at all but I feel like I do because I've listened to her radio show so many times.
I've read two already. The one by Cecilia Bali entitled, "I Get Up to Work" is really touching. She deals with the challenge of writing about your family, especially your parents, and how hard that can be. Jackie Guerra's "J's True Hollywood Story" is very inspiring! I love something she says in the last paragraph, "I've learned that hard work does not always ensure success, but not working hard almost always ensures failure."
It's funny how a book can sit on your shelf for so long and you don't know what treasures lie inside if you don't pick it up and read it. I'm sure I have a lot like those on my bookshelf.
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