Time In Mexico

I have concluded that I have a multiple personality disorder and one of them happens to be “gringo”. His name is Larry and he’s definitely making my life difficult. Lets face it, Americans like to plan…EVERYTHING. I’m not saying this is detrimental, but it can limit your flexibility and ability to improvise, especially when you’re the only one operating that way.

When I was a kid I used to call myself the “Master of Disaster” not because I was creating it (which I did) but because I was really good at free-flowing stress-free in the midst of chaos. Now, after conditioning myself during college where I had to schedule everything–friends, sleep, classes, family, girlfriend, meals, even taking a dooky–it’s been a little difficult re-adjusting to my old ways especially with the added responsibility of being an adult.

Ever since I moved to Mexico, a watch has become nothing but a decoration on my wrist. Actually, I don’t even use one anymore. I’ve been stood up, forgotten about, and left waiting more in this past year than I have in my entire 16 years in the US. And I’ve tried “getting even” with some people just for the sake of it and even after getting to the destination late, I got there before them 🙁

I know this doesn’t speak highly of my beloved Mexico but I’ve learned to embrace this reality as a blessing rather than a curse. As a matter of fact, I feel like I’ve bonded with my inner Aztec that can look far out into the horizon and determine the time of the day based on the location of the sun. True story.

No matter what anybody says, you can always be more productive. I’ve had issues with people, family and co-workers about their attitude towards optimizing their time. When they stare back at me with a blank look, Larry wants to come out and give them a peace of his mind. But that’s the thing, Larry feels uncomfortable with an environment that is supposed to take care of itself and just let it be. It’s a different rhythm and style of going about your day in Mexico. You just gotta relax and go with the flow and be efficient when you can, which is something Larry is “tolerating” to do. If it weren’t for the fact that Larry hides as a personality within Payazaro, he would have been deported back to the US a loooooong time ago.