Homies

Remember the little homie figures that were sort of cult popular in the late 90's/early 2000s? You know:Well I have recently learned that these characters were created in Espanola based on the people who live there...I am somehow not surprised, and very amused. Espanola is the town I work in about 25 miles north of Santa Fe. It's the heroin capital of the country. It is also the low-rider capital of the world. (I shit you not. Just ask MTV) Needless to say, the equation equals an interesting health care population. Lots of baby-daddy drama, crazy baby names, and a few too many hard drug-related consequences.
The work itself is going pretty well. I mean, it's a hospital, so it's not my ideal, and working 12 hour shifts means waking up at 5 and getting home around 8:15, but then I get 4 days off, and of course I am learning a lot. Oh yeah, and I have health insurance now! Of course, I sliced my finger the day before it started, and now will probably have a gnarly scar, but I think it will be a nice reminder for me of the year and a half I went without health insurance...something to tell my kids when the country finally has universal health insurance...See kids, this is why it's important for everyone to be able to see the doctor when they are hurt or sick...thankfully, mommy was a nurse and had the skills and resources to care for herself, but not everyone does...

Santa Fe living is treating me very well. I have a great roommate, who makes maps for the gov't and bakes wonderful pies. And I've had several couchsurfers in my 3 weeks here, a couple of whom have been absolutely wonderful, and I cannot imagine my experience without them. One was a nurse-midwife from Miami with whom I went salsa dancing at the gay retirement community as well as gallavanted around town. The other was a cancer massage therapist from Monterey, CA, who cooked me fabulous meals when I came home from work and delighted me with great conversations. I've gone on several nice hikes and checked out some meditation centers with another friend who I've met through couchsurfing.
I'm now a proud card holder at the Santa Fe public library and a member of the Santa Fe co-op. And I have a punch card for the Japanese hot spring spas. It's a goooood life!

Come visit! I anticipate writing much less frequently, since my life seems less and less entertaining to the observing eye, but more and more fulfilling to ME! Hence I plan to spend more time living it and less time on the computer :)

Love to all,
Rachel

PS to throw a wrench into your idea of Espanola, I would like to also note that Espanola is additionally home to the largest community of ethnically diverse Sikhs in the world.
New Mexico is a very strange and diverse place if you haven't noticed (even aside from the alien sightings). One time my roommate asked a foreign couchsurfer, "what is the strangest thing you have ever seen in your travels?" And he responded, "Santa Fe, New Mexico."