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Work 4 Peace,Hold All Life Sacred,Eliminate Violence! I am on my mobile version of the door-to-door, going town-to-town holding readings/gatherings/discussions of my book "But What Can I Do?" This is my often neglected blog mostly about my travels since 9/11 as I engage in dialogue and actions. It is steaming with my opinions, insights, analyses toward that end of holding all life sacred, dismantling the empire and eliminating violence while creating the society we want ALL to thrive in

Sunday, November 14, 2010

In search of oil...

I return to the huge park this morning, make a pot of coffee this time, grab all my Spanish lessons, and head for the gates.

My guard friend Roberto, greets me and asks me - I think - if I drove up from the coast. I tell him no, I drove from Hermosillo. I am a little surprised to see the park open as usual on a Sunday, given the extent of Catholicism that supposedly has a hold here.

Actually, maybe I don't know what they look like, but I've seen very, very few churches - not like Nebraska or Florida even. I saw one building yesterday that was the front of an old church but the rest of the building was a hospital. hmmmm.

I wouldn't even know if was Sunday today. Everything seems the same as it did yesterday. Except for "the" fight spectators out in the streets.

I study so hard today. I'm learning to conjugate verbs in the present tense and past tense - but not the past tense that's the short past, but the long past tense. hmmmm.

It is almost 3 by the time I end my lessons and return to my truck. Fortunately I have my veggie curry waiting for me that I heat and gobble up. I am on my way to pick up oil at the "Sushi To Go" restaurant - my first oil score!

When I get to the Sushi restaurant, so proud of myself for finding my way around Hermosillo, I talk with the young man, Cesar, who speaks some English. First he says they don't have oil but then he says maybe.

We go around back and I see the container that is a little over half full. I point it out to him and tell him, yes, this is what I want!!! And where is the rest?

He says this is all they have and starts looking for a container to put it in for me. I tell him, it's okay I will get a container. I strut to my truck and grab the funnel, a container, my gloves, and a piece of jeans for filtering.

When I return, he tells me how sorry he is but he cannot give me the oil! I am disappointed, not that it is that much oil, but it would have been my first score in Mexcio!

GGGRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

He explains that they have a recycler who comes and picks up oil and who complained that very weekend that they weren't getting enough oil from this location. I ask for the name of the recycler - maybe I can get oil from them - and he tells me to return for the guy's name tomorrow, which I will.

At least I have Jung tomorrow morning. HOPEFULLY that will work out. I will retire early tonite so I can be at Jung by 7:30 or so. They said 8:15 but I don't want to take any chances.

What do you think of me?

Two young womyn approach the truck as I am cooking. It is dark so I cannot see them but I have the door open and the light on. One is Anabel, the other Catarina. They are friends and tell me they are 22 years old.

Neither womon speaks English – like my Spanish – so we have a good time trying to understand each other. I invite them in for soup – my yummy veggie curry lentil & rice soup – and neither of them like it. Just when I’m thinking, too healthy for them, they pull out their packaged chocolate chip ahoy cookies, trident chewing gum, and little square candies.

They are trying to ask me something. I finally am so happy I can figure out they want a ride somewhere close by to get a jacket – the weather has changed & it is chilly. I have 2 hours to wait anyway and I’m up for going somewhere new.

We get in the truck and proceed several blocks away. Anabel waits in the truck with me as Catarina jumps out and leaves. I think Anabel is worried I will take off without them.

At one point, Anabel asks me what do I think of her. I am torn, as I want to make a joke but I think we don’t understand each other well enough. So I seriously tell her the Spanish words I know for beautiful, kind, smart, funny. I add in English “I hope you are not selling your body and I hope you are not taking drugs.”

I do not translate into Spanish. Catarina’s 5 minutes have stretched into 15 but Anabel and I are laughing and having a good time trying to communicate, which her learning English and me Spanish. Finally Catarina returns but is not ready to go. She runs up the street to the gas station and returns in a few with a bag of more junk.

We return to where I met them by the Gay Bar. By now I see there are lots of womyn walking the streets – womyn like my 2 new friends. I invite them to come with me to Secrets but they say they are meeting some other friends. We part.

At Secrets, I admire the décor – it is DEFINITELY a gay boy scene, with really loud humping music, colored lights swirling around, several sofas that only gay boys could pull together, tall aluminum modern round tables surrounded with equally tall chairs.

There are hardly any people there when I arrive – certainly no other womyn accept the one working the door. I have gotten there to early – 9pm. Maria and her girlfriend are supposed to meet me between 9:30 and 10.

No one is dancing, although the dj is certainly playing great dancing music. I have a conversation with Jorge’s partner John, in English – he is bi-lingual. He really wants to watch ‘the’ fight – as everyone there does.

I get some water from the bar and pick out a sofa far away from the smoke as I can get. And wait. By 10:20pm I decide to go ‘home’, back to my truck. I cannot stay in this neighborhood – it is full of police, flashing lights, and hookers.

When I get back to ‘my’ parking spot, the streets are loaded with cars and the bars are overflowing with people. I see and hear ‘the’ fight as I drive around looking for a place to park.

I end up on the road next to the Holiday Inn’s parking lot. At 4:30am I’m awoken by the sound of a huge motor idling. I think it’s a damn truck so I’m ready to move. When I get out of my camper and into the front of the truck, I see it is a huge bus warming up the engine. I go to ‘my’ home anyway. As I suspected, no one is parked there now and I have the whole side of the street to myself.