Chicagoacán

Tonight I went to the presentation of a new book by Marcia Farr titled Rancheros en Chicagoacán. Well, you will be surprised to learn that Mexicans vary in language and culture from region to region. This books deals with the subject of Mexicans from the state of Michoacán who live in both Mexico and Chicago. The host of the event was thinking of using the Monarch butterfly as a logo for Casa Michoacán since it travels freely from Michoacán and the U.S. I arrived at the Casa Michoacán ten minutes before the event was supposed to start. When I sat down, the only two men in the place who were conversing in Spanish greeted me in English. I’m sure why, but they did. I, however, greeted them in Spanish. Somehow, they didn’t find this at all unusual. When some women entered they all automatically greeted me in Spanish. More people came, but the organizers decided to wait a little longer to give the latecomers a chance to arrive. They started a half-hour late. Even the author Marcia Farr was late. I guess she really adapted well to Mexican time while living in Michoacán. (Whenever I have a party, I tell everyone that the party starts at 4 if I want everyone to come at 5.) I did get to eat and have a glass of wine while there. And they gave me a free T-shirt!