Comings & Goings (And an Announcement!)

Oh, hello. Are you still here? Good. Sorry I’ve been AWOL for so long (2.5 months? Eek!). I wish I could say that I’ve been super busy and working on important projects, but that’s simply not true(though one is brewing). I’ve just been living the ol’ day to day. We have about three months left here in beautiful Mexico and I guess you could say I’m kind of coasting downhill at present.

That’s not to say nothing out of the ordinary has happened, though. We're at that time of year where officers and their families start preparing to depart...but a whole lot of people have been going...and for a myriad of reasons!

When we took our vacation with my parents back in April, I couldn’t find my iPod. I was beyond irritated because

A) I had wanted to take it with me;

B) It was brand new...a Chanukah gift from TJ; and

C) I knew…I just knew…that our current housekeeper had stolen it. And why wouldn't I? I've got experience.

Shortly after returning to Guadalajara we discovered that our "friend"Johnnywas the true culprit…because the fool was crazy enough to bring it with him on what would sadly be his last visit to our home. I guess he didn’t realize that wiping the memory was but a tiny hurdle that a nosey person like myself with a serial number and the foresight to register electronics could leap with relative ease. I gained an iPod and lost a buddy that day. Fortunately, I hadn’t fired our housekeeper yet. Can you imaginethe guilt I would have felt?

On May 26th we attended yet another wedding on the beaches of Nuevo Vallarta (Congrats, Erin & Mike!).

Attending this wedding was Monica, one of the consulate's Locally Employed Staff, and Jamie, one of TJ’s fellow officers who had previously departed post but had returned for the wedding. Jamie and Monica had dated for a year or so while he was posted here in Guadalajara but had separated upon his departure. Things rekindled, the two were quickly engaged, and Monica has since left us to be with her sweet baboo in Washington, D.C. Best of luck, you guys!

Then, on May 31st, I said goodbye to my friend Pablo who, having been in something of a rut that I at least partially blame on a break-up from several months prior, decided it was time for a change and moved to Santiago, Chile on June 2nd. It was sad to see him go, even though in the back of my mind I knew that I’d be leaving in a few months myself. He seems happier now. He tells me there is a Taco Bell there, and he loves it more than real Mexican food. O-kay...

On June 23rd our friend Ernesto came to visit from Tepatitlán. This was the first time we had seen him since terminating our friendship with Johnny...which was awkward since Johnny had introduced us, Ernesto had come to visit with Johnny on that fateful day, and we had to shove themboth on a bus while trying to respect Johnny's friendship with Ernesto by not saying why we were shoving them on a bus...Anyway, he visited. We did the Tequila Express (again). It was fun. He also knows that Johnny is a thief. All is good.

I have three or four pics like this.

I need a new weekend hobby.

On July 3^rd I attended the US Consulate General Guadalajara’s 4^th of July event, and stood awestruck as TJ and fellow Entry Level Officer Nick sang the hell out of The Star Spangled Banner. Local newspaper The Guadalajara Reporter had this to say:

This was to be our CG’s final 4^th of July party. After three years at post and 32 years in the Foreign Service, Consul General Daniel Keller will be retiring on July 24^th. Warmest wishes, Mr. & Mrs. Keller!

Last Saturday we had dinner with some of our consulate friends, and I was sad to say goodbye to dear, sweet Karin, a fellow EFM who departed for Washington today. I’m happy to say our time in D.C. will overlap with her by about a month, so I’ll see her soon. At May 23rd's consulate goodbye party for all of the departing officers, I actually played a poor-man's Karin in a skit inspired by SNL's Celebrity Jeopardy. Enjoy the hot mess that was me:

Practically twins, right?

And finally, this afternoon, while sitting in my office waiting for TJ to wrap up his work so we could head home for the day, I saw this on Facebook:

Yes, yes, it’s true. Today we celebrate our 9^th Anniversary. I'm not gonna get too mushy about it. I did that last year.

Still, that's as good of a segue as any, I suppose.

For any of you NOT yet in the know, TJ and I have decided that before we celebrate our 10^th Anniversary together, we will be married.

Yes, folks, we are engaged. And since every other blurb in this post talked about somebody going somewhere...let's just say that our parents went insane. And not in a good way. But more on that at another time, I'm sure.

So. Do I know how to bury the lead, or what?

In closing, I leave you with a tribute to Donna Summer, who passed away on May 17th. TJ and I once saw her rise gloriously from a bedazzled piano at Universal Orlando's Mardi Gras celebration. This song is special to me in that it was my ring tone for TJ when we first started dating.

Happy Anniversary, baby. Nine years later, I still think you're Hot Stuff.