I took my first trip back to El Paso ("El Chuco" a todos mis vatos) last week. Boy, what a trip! I did really well, though, because I'm a woman of the world and we women of the world know how to get things done . . .
. . . like eating ice cream during our layover in Chicago.
Back on the plane to El Paso, I unplugged for a while.
When we arrived in my hometown, we had to drive up to Las Cruces, where we stayed with Uncle Art. I wasn't too sleepy, so we played a little. Uncle Art got me a cell phone for Christmas--that's two cell phones I own now. I'm a woman of the world and we women of the world have a lot of networking to do.
Uncle Art also let me play his piano. I always get emotional when I sing "Feelings." Woe, woe, woe.
Then we went to Sunland Park Mall ("El Mall"), where I danced with some stranger on TV:
Then we had to see You Know Who: Santa! You can see how excited I was to see him--so excited I couldn't let go of Papi.
The nice photographer lady consoled me by giving me my own reindeer hat, just to show there were no hard feelings.
Oh, I forgot to tell you the whole reason we went to El Paso in the first place: Papi's graduation from UTEP. He earned his PhD in July, but he wasn't able to walk the stage and be hooded until now. Uncle Art and I watched on as Papi led the processional.
And here's the big moment. Papi is the first PhD from the Rhetoric and Composition program at UTEP. What a nerd.
Isn't Papi handsome in his regalia and hoodie! He kept having that tassel-caught-in-the-glasses problem all day.
And here's Dr. Papi's dissertation director, Dr. Kate.
And here we are, with Dr. Helen on the right. She's Papi's friend and mentor during his days at UTEP. She was also his second reader for his dissertation, whatever that means. I'll probably learn when I begin my own PhD. I'm leaning towards physics with a concentration in writing studies. I'm particulalrly interested in exploring notions of string theory and their applicability toward generic constraints of discursive practices. . . . Oh, never mind.
Afterward, we went to a party to celebrate, and the hostess--my godmother, Sheila--gave me a singing puppy:
Lots of people came, even Grandpa Gary and Grandma Linda, Aunt Dorothy and Uncle Kenny, our friend Jaime and Mami's former student Billy.
After all this partying, I was pooped out, so we went to Dr. Helen's house to rest. She put us up for the night and even babysat me while Mami and Papi went on a date. While I was there, I found these cool cans and plugged into some mad tunes. Righteous!
Now we're back home in Virginia, but we're leaving again Saturday for Kansas, where I'll finally meet my cousin Carter. That's my Uncle Mike and Aunt Kari's boy. He's six months older than I am. But I'm a woman of the world and we women of the world know how to handle men. I'm sure I'll have more to say about him after I meet him. Stay tuned.
Besos!
Y Feliz Navidad, Kwanzaa, y Hanukkah!
