12/20/25 A FRANTIC WEEK

Final week.
I’m actually kind into this case study, though I’m dreading it and finding it incredibly hard to stay motivated. I have also hit a point in my academic career where I am not notably smarter than many of my peers and I am not flying through work and I am not reading once for a commanding grasp of concepts. It’s humbling (theme of the fucking year) and requiring adaption.
So of course the weather had to go haywire and work had to activate to respond to flooding. This was not ideal. It also ruined my attempts at ordering ubereats less. It’s been that kinda week, nothing going quite right, with wins being related to what feel like unnecessary problems.

This also meant I had to skip the hike on Iztaccihuatl Saturday which I am deeply sad about.

My phone is dying. I have deleted everything and I’m using all the space just on IOS and apps I use. This means I can’t take pictures, open WhatsApp, and about half the time apps just close when I open them. The enormous upside to this is that I will be seeing my parents in Oaxaca Sunday early afternoon and they will be bringing me a new phone. Phew.

In short, it’s been hectic enough with some big and some little challenges that I am extra looking forward to my vacation! A week in Oaxaca, 4 days at the beach, coming back to a few more off with Tess in tow. This will be excellent, so much delicious food and sun and raw fish and ocean and culture (there is a night where Oaxaca hosts a radish carving competition!!!). And that freakin’ delicious tomato salad. This feels needed which is a little scary cause my last one was like 2.5 weeks ago and also felt needed. It brings me back to thinking that while Mexico may be long term, Mexico City has a shelf life for me.

That’s been aided by having woken up every day with a mild headache and the cool temps of late (ok, I was gonna say cold, but then remembered my audience). It’s also rained a few afternoons which feels patently unfair (again, this is nothing compared to the last few weeks in Oregon).

In spite of all, the city’s festivities are beginning to feel a little contagious. I do have to confess that I have not been the best picture taker having been constantly in a hurry and having had to remember to bring my work phone.

A word on piñatas: Did you know they have a season!? Did you know they have a song?!
Piñatas are most commonly associated with Las Posadas here which occurs between December 16th and 24th. They’re a community event meant to represent Mary & Joseph’s journey to find shelter. Individuals dress up as Mary & Joseph (or more commonly now, carry images) with a procession and certain houses are designated to be “inns”. The group travels to one house each night, the welcoming household sings a song and serves ponche and snacks. Prayers might be offered, but generally it’s a festive party atmosphere, not somber in nature. Then there’s a piñata, theoretically every night. Imagine the joy. The traditional posada piñata is a 7 pointed star, representing the 7 deadly sins. As in the US, they are generally filled with candy. And now to the song.

This is to be sung when each kid is up for their turn at bat.
Roughly translated:

Hit it! Hit it! Hit it! (Dale, dale, dale)
Don’t lose your aim (No pierdas el tino)
Cause if you do (Por si lo pierdes)
You’ll lose your way (Pierdes el camino)
You’ve hit it once (Ya le diste una)
You’ve hit it twice (Ya le diste dos)
You’ve hit it three times (Ya le diste tres)
And now your time is up! (Y tu tiempo se acabo)

I actually got to witness one of these on the plaza at my house. I didn’t stay till the end (see above) and it was definitely gonna take forever with a large collection of 4 years queued up.

Tonight there appeared to be a play going on behind the church, chairs were set up and there was definitely an angel offstage aka the other side of the building waiting for his time in the spotlights. No idea what it was about.

I am so very thankful for these little moments I got to witness cause it was a rough week. I was basically trying to accomplish too much and mostly felt like I was doing nothing well. I’m lacking inspiration and with it excitement. But now, activation is dying down and the semester is over, I will have fared however I fared and that in and of itself feels like a burden lifted. And tomorrow I get up about 4 hours from now and go to the airport. Ew. But then I’ll be with my family in Oaxaca.

Tacos of the Week: The Carnitas Stand outside of the ZocoFresh.

I do not know what this place is called, but they usually have a line.
I went in the early afternoon, which was apparently a mistake because they were out of my usual chamorro preference. When I asked what they still had I heard espadillas, surtido, cabeza, maciza and oreja. I knew I didn’t want head or ear or the mix of everything (surtido) and had no idea what espadillas is. Maciza it was. Maciza is basically just some lean meat, which means the texture is inoffensive, but it also means it’s a little lacking in flavor. I also screwed up and piled salsa roja on (cause maciza is always a little dry) before noticing that there was salsa verde. I also later learned that espadillas is probably pork shoulder, which is clearly what I should have ordered. Note the plastic wrapped plate- a staple of taco stand sanitation. Overall, okay. I will go back and try a more succulent cut.