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| UHD - View from the cafeteria patio |
After an emotional final face-to-face finals week at UHD, I flew to New Mexico to spend a couple of weeks with my family. It was a great way to rip the band-aid off of the fact that I won't be back on campus at UHD ever again to teach a class. I will definitely miss this view and my students!
It was kind of sad to tell them I won't be returning, especially since several students told me they had signed up for classes with me in the summer and fall. I felt a strong obligation to let them know myself that I would not be returning in the fall. I was happy and sad to hear "Booo" and "Awwww" (boo that you're leaving UHD) but simultaneously "Yay!" and "Congratulations!" (because I'll be an asset as a tenure-track faculty member elsewhere). I felt less sad upon becoming friends with many students on my personal Facebook page. I always like to keep in touch and see how my students' lives progress beyond our time in the classroom together. : )
It was a breath of fresh air to be in New Mexico -quite literally- because the weather is breezy, sunny, sometimes cloudy, and with zero humidity! That's one thing we will most definitely *not* miss about Houston. Texas summer heat is no joke and a big part of us is kind of happy that we're leaving before the hell that is August weather hits, haha.
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| Godmama Mandy & lil' man A.J. |
I spent quality time with my parents during the weekdays/nights and got to attend some family events on the weekends including my cousin's wedding and my godson's 2nd birthday party. Of course we spent the majority of time massively preparing and planning for the big graduation/farewell party for the New Mexico family held Memorial Day weekend. While helping my dad with some yard work in preparation for the party, I was surprised by a tan gopher snake and damn near had a heart attack! I was screaming and running as far away as possible and my dad was running towards it saying, "Where?! Where is it?! What did it look like?!" Haha. My parents say it was bound to happen since I'm always so preoccupied with the wildlife in the desert when I'm visiting N.M. That's not an experience I'd like to re-live. Let's hope it was a one-time thing...
The party was a total success and more than anything I was so happy to be able to spend quality time conversing with my huge extended family. It's a rare occasion to get everyone together like that so it meant a lot that they all made the effort to be there. My Tia Dorothy was able to make it into town from Houston as well as my in-laws from San Antonio and our good friends Pam and Jack (also from Houston).
We were happy to be able to show them around the Albuquerque/Santa Fe/Rio Rancho/Bernalillo area. : )
My family members are all so very excited about my having acquired a Ph.D. - it really is a collective accomplishment and reason to be proud - this is not just about me, it's about the Martinez name! Collectivist Latino/a culture at it's finest, my friends. : ) I felt like a celebrity with my highly prized Dr. Martinez label, hehe. The food was awesome, the drinks were refreshing, and the company was the absolute best. Thanks to my personal paparazzi --Tia Dorothy & Pam-- we have a ton of photographic memories from this *epic* party...
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| Dad & Tio Danny with cousins Cynthia & Cathy |
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| Tio Roland, Dad, Tio Carlos, & Tio Ramon |
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| Al and my Mom - so much alike, it's scary, haha! I definitely married a male version of my mom. : P |
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| Me and Al with Al's parents. They're so trendy & festive! |
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| Me and cousin Tiffany (aka Trippany, lol) |
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| The kiddos enjoyed the party favor Sparklers - we had 50 boxes and they were gone fast! |
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| Me and my two grandmas - Grandma Grace (dad's mom) & Grandma Ramona (mom's mom). We're color-coordinated! |
In the days before and after the party, we showed our out-of-town friends and family around and hit some of the touristy highlights of the area. We went to the Chimayo Sanctuario, the Camel Rock, Tomasita's in Santa Fe, the Santa Fe Plaza, Old Town Albuquerque, the Rattlesnake Museum, and then we went up to the Sandia Tramway and hiked the trail up there; we stopped for some hot cocoa and beer at the restaurant on top of the mountain as we waited for our tram to take us back down. We rented a mini-van and road tripped back to Texas. We stopped in Ft. Sumner, N.M. to see the Billy the Kid grave and museums and then hung out in Lubbock, our half-way point. It was such a perfect break amidst the madness that transitioning from one job and state to another can be! : )
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| Chimayo Sanctuario - the dirt replenishes itself in here and you can take capsules of holy water. |
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| Santa Fe Plaza |
Native American dancers entertaining the masses in Old Town Albuquerque... and we were brave to enter the Rattlesnake Museum! Of course the thick glass separating us from the snakes helped with that bravery, haha.
Camel ROCK!... You're probably thinking, Hot cocoa in May? When the temperature in the mountains is 44 degrees, hot cocoa hits the spot!
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| *Sunset view from the top of the Sandia Mountains * |
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| PALS at the Billy the Kid Grave |
It was a breath of fresh air to be in New Mexico -quite literally- because the weather is breezy, sunny, sometimes cloudy, and with zero humidity! That's one thing we will most definitely *not* miss about Houston. Texas summer heat is no joke and a big part of us is kind of happy that we're leaving before the hell that is August weather hits, haha.
The party was a total success and more than anything I was so happy to be able to spend quality time conversing with my huge extended family. It's a rare occasion to get everyone together like that so it meant a lot that they all made the effort to be there. My Tia Dorothy was able to make it into town from Houston as well as my in-laws from San Antonio and our good friends Pam and Jack (also from Houston). 
My family members are all so very excited about my having acquired a Ph.D. - it really is a collective accomplishment and reason to be proud - this is not just about me, it's about the Martinez name! Collectivist Latino/a culture at it's finest, my friends. : ) I felt like a celebrity with my highly prized Dr. Martinez label, hehe. The food was awesome, the drinks were refreshing, and the company was the absolute best. Thanks to my personal paparazzi --Tia Dorothy & Pam-- we have a ton of photographic memories from this *epic* party... 
