Fortune 500 Company

After a few months adrift I've got a contract position starting next week that has the potential to lead to bigger things.  It's with a Fortune 500 company that headquarters here in the frozen north and it's along the lines of my educational aspirations.  As of Monday I will be a Contract Accounts Payable peon for the next 9 months.  I'm not sure what to expect, but I certainly hope they have decent technology since it is such a huge company.  I refuse to weave my hopes and dreams around the possibility of a future with this conveniently located company that offers phenomenal benefits.  The future is now, and the only option it to keep moving forward.

I really needed some good new this week with Alberto's birthday coming up and Ashley's birthday following soon afterwards.  My love is going to be 28 this year, and our daughter will be 6 years old.  I have been feeling increasingly numb these past few weeks, which I have been attributing to the birthdays this month and the fact that our 7th wedding anniversary is in December.  I try to maintain my realistic, if not optimistic, outlook on life but it is becoming increasingly difficult as I get older.  I wonder when I will find my first gray hair.

Denied the Rainbow

It's so difficult to continue living when what you want most is only just beyond your reach. Naturally I am talking about my afternoon craving for skittles and the demonic vending machine that refused to dispense them after gleefully accepting my dollar. My afternoon without skittles was horrifically long and devoid of sweetness. It is cruel and unusual punishment to be denied the rainbow when you are a sugar fiend like me.

I've just completed what may be the most pant-shittingly terrifying thing I’ve done in recent history. I officially dropped health insurance coverage through the non-profit I work for to take advantage of ACA (aka Obamacare). I will save over $400 a month on premiums and will have a yearend savings of approximately $5000. The only thought I had while I was reviewing the numbers before purchasing my policy was, if only Alberto were home that money could go towards the purchase of a newer car. I dream endlessly of owning a new car; a vehicle that only I have driven daily and the history of which is not the great unknown. I’m tired of my Volkswagen, even though I do have to admit it has held up well despite all the abuse and neglect it receives from me. That fact does not make me hate Hans any less. Hans is my Volkswagen; it’s only fitting that I would give it a German name and a name that is associated with the villain of one of my favorite action films - Die Hard.

Answer more confusing than the question

Our request for assistance from the CIS Ombudsman Office has served to confuse me more about immigration and the logic that is not employed by the government in general. I received the first response on Tuesday of this week, in the form of an email requesting a signature to authorize their pursuit of information. The email did not actually have the form that needed to be signed attached so I found in on their website, signed, scanned, and emailed the completed document back within the hour. Thinking that my portion was done, I thought to myself that I would be lucky to hear back before I leave for Mexico and moved on to my mountain of paperwork.

The next day I had another email waiting patiently for me in my inbox. This email explained that it was not my signature that they required, but that of the 'applicant' who will be referred to henceforth as my husband. In a state of extreme agitation, I forwarded the email to our attorney Lance. He responded quickly that they should not need Alberto's signature as we are inquiring on the status of the I-130 petition and not of the I-601 waiver as they had mentioned in their email. With this response in hand I emailed the CIS Ombudsman office that we needed help with the I-130 and not the I-601. Within minutes my phone was ringing. A little bewildered, I answered to discover it was the assistance of the individual that I had just emailed in the CIS Ombudsman office. They were already calling me about the email I sent not 5 minutes ago? She said that her supervisor had told her to call me and explain that it was not the I-130 petition that was 'holding up the process', but rather they were adjudicating of the I-601 waiver. Since they needed to check the status of the waiver, I needed Alberto's signature. I said I would do my very best to obtain his signature in the week they were giving me, and that was the end of the conversation.

Home and Hearth

I’m alive and its Friday, which means the next two days, will be spent mostly at home doing laundry.  @#^%!  I’m sure I’m over-reacting, right?  I mean I do get time to myself, granted I’m never awake to enjoy it, but that counts for something right?  I want what my mom wants, some quiet time where I can sit and read a book should I so desire without interruption.  I’m seriously considering getting a hotel room for me and Ashley to have a mini-vacation.  We could have French toast for breakfast, a peanut butter sandwich for lunch, and popcorn with a movie; if it came with a Jacuzzi tub, a bodice-ripper romance novel, and a complimentary hour of child-care it would be a restorative dream come true.

I need a little escape, but I can’t afford that little bit of relief, especially now.  My mom said something on Tuesday that I have never heard before, “I went to go put gas in my car and I wasn’t sure if my check would bounce.”  My mom may have spoken of financial hardship in the past, but never like this.  She’s spending three times what she normally did for groceries that don’t last half as long as before.  My brother has yet to pay her the rent he’d promised and they aren’t helping much beyond using the WIC coupons that Carol has.  The electricity bill is through the roof just like the other utilities and my brother’s main concern seems to be where he’ll find his next economy-size bottle of Bacardi and does it come with a complimentary can of Kodiak (chewing tobacco).  I just doubled my rent payment because I need to do something, anything, to help out.  I’m also going to start extending my exercise schedule after working at FedEx so I can shower at the YMCA 5 days or more a week.

I’m putting an immediate halt on all unnecessary spending and I’m counting the days until I can file my 2012 tax return.  I won’t get as much back as I have in other years, but I will get something.  I just hope that something is enough for 2 tickets to paradise for me and my favorite girl.

“I see my path, but I don’t know where it leads.  Not knowing where I’m going is what inspires me to travel it.”

Rosalia De Castro

Ciao

Cloud 9 3/4

Today is the first day this month that I feel optimistic.  Even reflecting on the awfulness of ‘shitstorm Tuesday’ doesn’t bring me down from my perch on cloud nine.  It all started with an email… from Diana.

From: Diana

To: Deza

Hi Deza,

I received notice from our liaison today that the file was sent to the National Visa Center this week.  It usually takes 2-3 weeks for the NVC to receive the file and load it into their system.  I will follow up next week with the NVC and keep you posted.

Thanks,

Diana

That three sentence email made up for everything that’s happened in the last 2 months.  I feel hopeful again for the first time in a long time, and I’ll be praying every night that I can finally bring my husband home.  Please please please…

“In all things it is better to hope than to despair.”

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Ciao

Radio Silence

I hate Mondays, but I’m sure by now I’ve made that perfectly clear. Today I’ve made an important decision; in order to preserve my sanity, I’m going to work my frustration off. I’m going to stick to my program (Couch to 5k) and make it work. I’m going to be sensible about my diet and simply avoid sugary snacks/drinks while adhering to a single serving on a modestly sized plate. Most importantly I’m going to practice a form of radio-silence and not discuss it on the Facebook page that my husband sees. I’m going to be quite sneaky about it and hide my shape whenever I see my in-laws, although my face and neck are a giveaway because they get more defined as I lose pounds. Why you ask? Well it’s because I’m going to be selfish for once. I want to see his jaw drop when I go to Mexico in February. I’ve never had the body of a model, but I’m going to have the best body I can manage.

The first week of the program started on December 4th and I discovered that I can handle it. Sure I was wiped out for an hour afterwards and that first day I was so tired, but the next day I felt better. I didn’t have any breathing problems (suck it exercise-induced asthma!) and I wasn’t wobbly from working harder than usual. I think I would have been setting myself up for failure had I not been working out 3 times a week on the machines at work. This program is set up to be 3 times a week for 7 weeks, so we’ll see just how well I progress. I’m not afraid to repeat a week if I think I need more time to get used to the jogging before advancing.

Pins and Needles

Today is the day I talk about my newest obsession: PINTEREST!  I was introduced to this addictive website by a coworker almost a year ago, but I never actually took the time to look at the site until recently.  I was in need of a distraction, which Pinterest most definitely is.  I have pinned more projects than I will probably ever be able to complete!  I really think pinning is the best part, although some of the things I’ve pinned I really want to try.

My favorite topic is all about the bucks; how can I save a few making things myself?  Homemade laundry solutions (detergent, stain remover, oxy-clean, & fabric softener), household cleaners, and diy market bags (old t-shirts!) top my list of fascinating things to do.  Mom says I am forbidden from making my own detergent in her house since she believes I would just make a horrible mess.  After looking at my room again just now I’m inclined to agree with her assessment.

Keep moving forward

Friday came and went with little fanfare.  I managed to come up with an excellent idea on someone who could vouch for Alberto’s moral character; the pastor currently leading our church.  As of approximately 6 days ago, the pastor at our church is now Father Ortero, originally of Mexico.  I had a meeting with Father Ortero on Wednesday and told him the whole sad story.  He agreed to meet with Alberto in Jail and write a letter vouching for his good moral character.  He said he would even write the letter just based on what I had to say, but I thought it would be helpful to Alberto to visit with a priest anyhow.  The only downside was when Father Ortero said the Mexican man is not typically mature before they reach their mid to late 30’s, but I suppose I already knew that on my own.  I just need to talk to Alberto to make the appointment for Father Ortero to go and visit him. 

The thing I hate the most about this whole situation is when I see my husband so downtrodden.  The guards are rude to all of them and seem to go out of their way to belittle and harass their charges.  I understand well enough that more people will sign the deportation papers after a few days of this treatment, but isn’t being in jail for wanting a better life bad enough?  I know there are immigrants out there that do bad things and deserve this fate, but there are just as many if not more who contribute to society and wish to raise their children somewhere safe.  Would you punish the son for the sins of his father?  Oh wait, our government does that already.  Isn’t Alberto a prime example of a minor child brought to the United States who became a deportable ‘alien’ a mere 6 months after his 18th birthday?  I hate how these immigrants are referred to as ‘aliens’ as if they were from Neptune, instead of from the other side of a line someone long ago drew in the dirt. 

 

A Miracle

I expected Monday to be an awful day.  I expected to buy a one-way plane ticket from my best friend and experience that loss all over again.  I expected to turn in his suitcase to some smirking immigration agent.  I expected to have another bad episode triggered by what I was told was likely to happen.  There was no way on heaven or earth that we could have anticipated what was going to take place.

Alberto called me just as I was leaving Ashley’s Preschool, which was odd as he should have been in route to the USICE holding area for his court appearance by that time.  He said that the guys had come at 5 am like usual, but they told him that he didn’t have court today so he didn’t get to go.  Naturally he was a little upset, thinking that we received yet another continuance, but I told him I’d do what I could to get to the bottom of it.  I asked Alberto to call me back in 30 minutes so I could call Lance to see if he knew what was going on.  I went straight to USICE and stared down the guards blocking my entrance.  I held back my snappy retort through the sheer force of my will, but I don’t know that I would be that strong if I have to come back again.  I swear they must enjoy playing the fool since there is no good reason to spend my days in a building full of irritating and often dense immigration officials just because I want to.  The largest guard actually pawed through my purse this time; must be because of the ‘shanks’ I carry to help while away the hours.  Lance calls my circular knitting needles my ‘shanks and ligature’ even though the steel barreled pen in my purse is a more formidable weapon in my eyes.

2011 Christmas Letter

Dear Friends and Family:

During this season of family and celebrations, I wanted to send this short letter to let everyone know what is happening in my family.  Ashley, who turned 3 this August, started Preschool in the fall and loves every minute she gets to spend with her teachers.  We enjoy hearing about school and her tales are highly entertaining.  It is fulfilling to know she enjoys school, although she sometimes complains on the weekends that she would rather be there than at home.  She is developing into quite a feisty preschooler.

In regards to our home situation, I have an encouraging update.  In effort to correct past mistakes and secure our future as a family, Alberto has complied with the many requests of immigration in order to gain permission to reside lawfully in the United States.  These requests included leaving the United States of his own volition and returning to Mexico, a country he had not seen in 10 years.

During his stay in Mexico, Alberto had the opportunity to visit the city he was born in and see distant family members he had not seen since he was a young boy.  With the help of one of our Minnesota Senators, we finally saw some progress in our case this past year.  Only last month one of the final barriers holding us back from proceeding with our case was finally removed; giving us the opportunity to begin work on the last and most labor intensive portion of this grueling process.  I understand that immigration policies are confusing because I myself have been very confused at times, and for that reason I wanted to take the time to briefly explain our situation.  We anticipate that 2012 will be the year that all our hopes and dreams come true.

We hope that everything goes well during these last crucial steps and we will soon be united as a family here in the United States.  Thank you for your understanding and support during this difficult period in our lives.

Merry Christmas and God Bless,

The Mendez Family

What are you thankful for?

Today, on the day after Thanksgiving, has got me thinking about what I am thankful for this year.  I have a new outlook on life and a different set of priorities from years past, and my new perspective might help someone out there discover something that they can be thankful for.

1)    I am thankful for the opportunity to finally see an end to all this misery and heartbreak.  Our future is still currently up in the air and rides on the shoulders of an immigration judge, but even knowing that the end of this journey is near is a blessing.  Whatever the outcome may be, we will face it united, as a family.
2)    I am thankful that Alberto is in Minnesota, even though he has been residing in county jails.  June of this year was the first time we had seen one another face to face in 1 year and 2 months.  Since then Ashley has come to know her father in a way that talking on the phone and looking at pictures never could. 
3)    I am thankful that Alberto has rediscovered his faith in God.  Faith has the power to move mountains and gives us the strength to take whatever life throws at us.  He is well on his way to becoming the man that I knew he could be, someone to admire and be proud of.
4)    I am thankful to be employed.  I work with people that care and support each other in the good time and the bad.  I feel blessed that I was guided to apply at this organization, and only more so to become a full-time employee.
5)    I am thankful for my family; my parents, my siblings, and my extended family.  It is amazing how a family will rally around a member that is in need of support when they need it the most.  There are people in my family who are anti-immigration, but those are the people I have largely learned to ignore from a young age.
6)    I am thankful that my daughter loves me, even though I have not always been the best mother I can be.  It pains me to admit that I cannot remember the first year of Ashley's life and though I may never forgive myself for that, she loves me.

Change will commence in…

Here we are again on the precipice of change only this time I don’t know exactly what to expect and that scares me.  Alberto’s probation officer called me on Wednesday to talk to me about him.  I didn’t expect her to have so many questions and I hope I was able to create a picture of my husband clearly in her mind.  The probation officer was personable and soft-spoken and I definitely hadn’t expected that so I suppose I told her more than she expected.  I talked about our relationship and how like any normal couple we’ve had our disagreements, but we always talk it through.  I’ve never been afraid of Alberto nor do I believe him to be capable of violence.  I acknowledged that my brother-in-law Caña is a volatile, violent man and I had never signs of the same behaviors in Alberto.  We discussed his use of alcohol and I described Alberto as a social drinker who knows his limit.  She asked about his temperament, if he had any mental illnesses, would I trust him with our daughter and other questions along the same line.  Then at the end of all this, she wanted to know why Alberto left the country in 2008.  I gave her the full story, with nothing omitted, though I could hear the pain in my own voice.  I spoke of the race to keep Alberto here to face the charges, his compliance with the orders of the immigration judge, and the painful kick in the gut when we received that approval a day too late.  I spoke of the battle to get our case processed by the USCIS and the invocation of my *favorite* Senator that finally gave us results.  I spoke of the anticipation of the visa appointment, and the gut wrenching pain when he was denied the second appointment.  I offered to bring in the documentation for her review to which she replied it wasn’t necessary, but this information was extremely important to her and his case.

The probation officer told me to expect Alberto to receive a stayed sentenced for the minimum possible; one year plus 1 day.  He would have 5 years of probation with no conditions imposed because this charge, though a felony, was still minor in nature.  She stated that any time he was still in jail for on the immigration hold would count towards his criminal sentence and if he served 2/3 of his sentence by the time we were able to obtain his release from immigration’s grasp, his obligation to Hennepin County would have been fulfilled. 

Interpersonal Relationships

Dear readers, I have to admit I’m a little apprehensive of what the future holds for us.  Above and beyond the legal and immigration issues, I’m experiencing a whole different type of anxiety I hadn’t anticipated.  How am I going to make the transition back to an intimate relationship with my husband?  Will I acclimate to his snoring easily or will I want to smother him with a pillow after the first few nights?  I also remember him being a cover hog and a restless sleeper when over tired.  I know it shouldn’t be an issue but I’m still the same weight as I was after Ashley was born.  It makes me uncomfortable knowing that although I haven’t gotten any worse, I definitely have not gotten any better.  Alberto says that how we look outside doesn’t matter because it’s what we have in our hearts that makes us truly beautiful, which is utterly amazing coming from him because he has never talked like that before. 

To be truthful he has never been one to declare his feelings verbally, so you could say I went through most of our relationship guessing how he felt.  I can count on my fingers and toes the number of times I can remember him saying “Te amo” before he left for Mexico and still have digits to spare!  Alberto is the reason I always said ‘Mexican men are emotionally constipated’ which I usually follow up with some quip about how alcohol is a natural laxative for this affliction.  The only time I can remember Alberto committing a spontaneous PDA was when he’d been drinking and grabbed my posterior in front of his brother.  Considering I had just saved him from getting carted off to jail for being a moron, it was the least of my worries. This time he has spent in jail has been good for him because he’s learning to express what he would never say before.

Weightless

An amazing thing happened to me on Wednesday morning.  It all started my alarm went off as usual at the ghastly hour of 6 o’clock in the morning.  I got up, walked a few steps to my alarm, hit the snooze, and dived back under the covers.  As I settled back into my warm bed, a strange sensation came over me.  My mind was calm, my thoughts were clear, and I felt as light as a feather.  The immense weight on my shoulders that had been my constant companion these last 4 years was gone.  So, this is what it felt like before my world came crashing down around me?  It’s amazing the ability we have to adapt to our surroundings and adjust our expectations accordingly.

Alberto called me last night to talk about what will happen next.  I told him I had sent an email out to Lance to find out when we will be engaging immigration yet again, although I suspect it will not be until after the sentencing in November.  I also let him know that Brian had stated that he didn’t believe that Alberto would be serving the full 240 days.  Most people only serve about 2/3 of their actual sentence, which means Alberto could be out as soon as the day of the sentencing hearing.  If you do the math, 2/3 of the 240 days is only 160 days.  As of today 155 days have passed since his arrest at the border, and if you add the three days he had in custody from the original arrest, Alberto has served a total of 158 days to date, which means he ‘could’ be released on Friday.  However, since he has not been formally sentenced Alberto will remain in custody until that time.  At least that is my understanding of the legalities.

T minus 6 days and counting…

I can do this…  I can survive these last few days of anxiety and pain.  I will do whatever needs to be done.  I just need to relax and keep breathing.  Breathe in – hold – and breathe out.  Now that I think about it, this is an excellent time to research meditation and relaxation techniques, so if any of my readers out there have some tips to share I would love to hear them! 

I am averaging around 4 hours of sleep each night when I’m not tossing and turning.  Last night I stayed up until 1 am sorting clothes and packing boxes for whichever organization contacts us regarding donations first.  I’m up to 3 full boxes of clothes, with a fourth box of miscellaneous items.  I can’t believe how much clothing I have that doesn’t fit me even though it’s supposedly the correct size.  During these times I bemoan my large frame and above average height since getting clothing that fits properly is a rare or very expensive.  Thus the reason why retail therapy sessions never go well for me; I always wake up the next morning wondering what happened and why there is a bunch of ugly clothing on the floor.  It’s only a small comfort knowing that 90% of what I put into the boxes was purchased 3 or more years ago.  Just another good reason for me to avoid the mall when I’m feeling overwhelmed, but then again I do the same thing at JoAnn ECT, amassing a collection of miscellaneous crafting supplies for no conceivable reason.  At this point in time new clothing is a luxury item, and the only crafting I’m interested in is making my own clothes.  One of these days I will get brave enough to try something on my sewing machine…

Making plans for Saturday!

So my adorable Ashley turns 3 on Saturday and I’m having more fun planning the menu then I will have cooking it!  I’ve decided to do tacos de carnitas de res for tacos, pico de gallo, salsa verde, chocolate cake, and maybe attempt making some arroz.  I’m making a cake without egg because my niece Josie is allergic and I’m glad I found a recipe without butter since that makes her tongue itch.  I’m going to take a moment right now to give thanks that Ashley was born without any food allergies or sensitivities.  I’m hoping I find an easy recipe for arroz mexicano, since I really want to try and make it myself.  I have a cookbook somewhere but I don’t know how much I was trust the recipe.  Veronica says that the recipes are close to what she would do, just cut out the weird ingredients such as the cinnamon they added to almost everything.

I’m excited because I’ll get to see friends that I don’t get together with often enough.  I am not inviting my in-laws because if you invite some then you need to invite all or there will be trouble.  The last count of immediate family still in the United States includes 8 adults and 14 children, which is too many people for me to feed for any reasonable amount of money.  I bought a small piñata that you pull ribbons to break rather than hitting it for safety reasons.  I’m going to do treat bags because they’re fun and cheap to make if you know where to buy the trinkets. 

To be continued

To be perfectly honest, I didn’t anticipate that the Omnibus Hearing on Friday would be quite so interesting.  I had dressed carefully in a suit and even styled my hair using a hairagami to make a bun.  I love those things by the way; super-fast and easy even for the fashion inept!  Well I managed to get out of the house on time (que milagro), and Ashley didn’t complain too much about being left with Gisela.  The hearing was scheduled to start at 9 am, and I was in the area by 8:30.  Since I had been unable to find any information regarding the location of the hearing, I stopped at the jail.  After the guards at the desk couldn’t help me, they told me to go through security to speak with the clerk of courts for that building as she would have that information.  As I waited in line, I quickly removed any items on my person containing metal parts and placed them in my purse to go through the x-ray machine.  I walked through and set off the detector which I had never done in all the time I had come to this same building to visit Alberto.  I removed my shoes thinking the buckles might be the issue and stepped through again. BEEP BEEP BEEP!  I took off my bracelets next to walk through again. BEEP BEEP BEEP!  ¡Chin!  I came back looking confused and the guard asked if I had anything in my hair or any other body jewelry that was not gold or silver.  I couldn’t think of what would be causing the detector to go off so the guard used the wand to discover the source.  It was my hair, more specifically it was the hairagami that was folded into my hair to create the bun that looked so nice.  After discovering the source, I pulled it out of my hair, set it down, and walked through without a hitch.  That was 10 minutes of my time out the window for trying to look nice. 

So after I got through security, I approached the clerk of court to get the information.  As I was talking to her I had pulled another hair binder from my purse and was securing my hair in a bun without the use of the dratted hairagami.  I had to spell out Alberto’s full name for her and was informed that court was being held in the Government Center across the street and that it would be on the 17th floor.  Great!  I rushed out of the jail and moved with surprising speed towards the Government Center.  I found where I needed to be and discovered I would have to go through security again which took up another 10 minutes because I had several people in front of me.  The guard on crowd control was surprisingly chipper, and I managed to get cleared without taking everything off again.  After getting into the elevator and cruising up to the 17th floor, I was greeted by emptiness.  There was not a single person to be found on this floor until an attorney emerged for another elevator.  I found the courtroom for the Judge assigned to the hearing and sat down to wait for Brian.  He said he was going to be late since he had another hearing in another building that had started at 8:30.  I did not speak to anyone, nor did anyone speak to me when the interesting portion of the hearing started.

Independence Day

This weekend has been interesting to say the least.  On Saturday I got up extra early and hoofed it downtown to see Alberto in Jail.  I arrived at the Jail by 7:10 am and I was in the 3rd person in line.  By 7:30 am the line had grown to over 20 people so I was glad that I was down there early.  I felt guilty about going to visit Alberto without Ashley, but since I had to work afterwards I just couldn’t justify yanking her out of bed and driving an extra 20 miles.  He was so surprised to see me and I was worth it to see the smile wash over his face.  He picked up his phone and told me that when his name was called he was wondering who would be coming here to see him on a Saturday.  I told him that since I couldn’t see him on Monday, I had decided to see if I could get in to see him on Saturday.  We talked about a few different things, but the one topic that sticks in my mind was regarding Ashley. 

I think I mentioned it before that one of my in-laws had started telling Ashley that ‘Chucky’ was hiding in dark rooms waiting to get her.  We think it was little Maria because she seems to be the only one who believes in that still.  I think she is going to be five this year, but with so many nieces and nephews in Alberto’s family it’s amazing that I remember everyone’s name.  Anyway, Ashley finally stopped talking about ‘Chucky’ a few days ago although she still doesn’t want to go into dark rooms alone.  Instead now she talks to me every night about monsters.  Dios mio Ashley, you don’t want to go around thinking about monsters every night or you’ll end up just like your pobre Mamí. 

Wonderful things come in small packages

Yesterday the mailman brought me something wonderful, a letter from Alberto!  Well actually it was three letters in a single envelope, but I was happy to have gotten something from him at all.  When he called me just as we were sitting down to dinner I got to tell him how happy it made me to get letters from him.  He jokingly asked me if I could read what he wrote, and I informed him I was an experienced interpreter of his letters.  The reason he asked me this question is that Alberto never finished high school and I believe his education more or less ended by the time he was 14.  His handwriting is poor at best and his spelling is pretty bad as well so it can be difficult to determine what he is trying to say.  He attended school here in the US for a couple of months to a year, but due to circumstances his family pulled him from school and sent him to work.  He told me several years ago that the reason he stopped going to school is because his cousins were trying to initiate him into their gang, Los Sureños, and his sisters intervened to save their youngest brother.  Knowing what I do about that particular gang and about his cousins, I am truly grateful that Yesica and Rosa moved to protect Alberto for their bad influence.  It was several months later that I actually met Alberto while working at McDonalds and our story began.  Anyway, in his letters he refers to me as mujer mia and mi amor several times which is probably the most romantic he’s ever been that I can recall.  I will say that it is difficult loving a Mexican man because the majority of them are constipated when it comes to emotions; it takes a laxative (beer) and great pain (the threat of a hangover) for them to confess their love.  Watch a George Lopez special, he does a bit about this and it wouldn’t be that funny if it wasn’t true.

I'm miffed that I can't go and see Alberto on Monday as we usually do because of the Holiday.  At this I have to admit that being in jail has apparently been good for Alberto since he’s found faith again after being without it for so long.  He writes to me about trusting in God and how he is content with just being about to see us after so long.  This change is mostly amazing to me since for years Alberto would only go to church on holy holidays and even then it was grudgingly.  Ok, so I promised myself that I wouldn’t get preachy because I know how much it irritates me when someone tries to force their beliefs or lack thereof down my throat.  I am not saying that my beliefs are better, but they are my beliefs and shall stay that way.  The first amendment to the Constitution was the freedom of religion, press, and expression.  With that said if you happen to pray, please take a moment and pray that justice may be served for us this coming week.

Change may be on the horizon

I just want to say this once:  We should lock the legislators together in a small room with only a bathroom until they have solved Minnesota’s budget to avoid a disastrous governmental shutdown.  Both Ashley and I have health insurance through the state, what in the hell are we going to do if the government shuts down?  What if we get sick or sustain an injury which requires medical care?  I guess we’ll be SOL, but that’s not even the worst of the matter.  What about the people who depend on WIC or EBT to provide enough food for their families?  What about the people who need Section 8 just to afford safe housing?  The legislators have already made sure that they will get a paycheck through a shutdown, but what about the working poor within in the governmental sector?  Who is going to help the government workers who will be out of a job and unable to pay their bills or buy groceries?  I’m not just talking about the secretaries and clerks either.  You have to consider the police, sheriff, correctional officers, parole officers, postal workers, sanitary workers, and county courthouses are all government run entities which will be negatively impacted by a shutdown.  My biggest fear surrounding the budget standoff here in Minnesota is what will happen to our criminal proceedings if the government experiences a shutdown? 

This was brought on by an email I received from Brian just a few hours ago.  It was a forward from the County Attorney’s office which stated that the Discovery was available for pick up on our case.  The Discovery is a process of obtaining and exchanging information between the prosecutor and the defendant both before and during a trial.  In our case, the Discovery will tell us about the strength of the case the prosecutor has built against Alberto and will help us to make a decision as to which path we should take.  After the Discovery has been reviewed is typically when the defendant will attempt a plea agreement to obtain a reduced sentence for the crime they have been accused of.  I am praying with all my might that Alberto will not have to plead guilty for a reduced sentence and conviction just to avoid the dire consequences of a guilty verdict from a trial.  Alberto did not in any way, shape, or form commit a crime let alone what he is being accused of so having to plead guilty to save himself would be demoralizing in the extreme.  We’ve talked about this hundreds of times and he is prepared to do whatever the best option is.  He has turned to God in this hour of need and his renewed faith has brought him peace.  If Alberto is found guilty of a felony, he may never be able to obtain legal status within the United States and in fact be barred from reentry for LIFE.  Está gacho te digo…