Fourth of July Party

I am so exhausted right now.  I can hardly think.  I can hardly get my fingers to move across these keys.  I think my brain may be shutting down.  Today was the Fourth of July Party at the Consulate.  But let me start at the beginning of the day.
So, my second day at work was more meetings.  I met with shipping to talk about a few things.  They already have my HHE in El Paso.  Of course, I still won't get it for 3 weeks or more.  I have to wait to get my id from Mexico City before they can attempt to get it.  That's ok because I realized today that I did NOT put my inventory list with my important papers.  Note to self: In the future make sure to have the HHE inventory with you even if shipped from storage because they cannot import it without that list!

Gizmo stuck under the couch

Because today was the Fourth of July Party, the day was really relaxed (for me anyway).  I had a meeting in the afternoon about my job at the party, but other than that, my afternoon was wide open for me to work on the things I need to work on.  The charge d'affairs also spoke to us before we went home.  It was interesting because he kept switching between English and Spanish.  I think that was the for the benefit of the local staff (though I haven't met one yet who didn't speak excellent English).
When I got home from work (by the way, I drove my car today) I only had about an hour to get changed for the party because I was carpooling with a colleague (as suggested to make sure there was enough parking for our invited guests) and he needed to be at the consulate early to escort a VIP.  I couldn't find Gizmo again, and I thought to myself, "Is he that dumb to try to go under the couch again?"  Sure enough, he was under the couch.  I tried to get him to come out.  He inched towards me, but stopped.  I decided to leave him.  If he could get himself in, he could get himself out, right?
I went upstairs to get changed.  After barely a minute, I hear this loud yowl.  I go downstairs only to see Gizmo stuck half under the couch.  He kicked his little legs trying to maneuver his way out, but he was stuck.  It still makes me laugh when I think about it.  Finally, after taking pictures of course, I helped him to get out.  I hope he learned his lesson this time.

Gizmo stuck trying to get out from under the couch

I finished getting ready, and was leaving my house just as my ride was there.  We didn't get very far.  We were turning left on to the main road out of my housing complex when a man on a motorcycle (driving WAY too fast, by the way) hit the back of my friend's car.  I heard the skid of his tires as he tried to stop, but neither of us saw him until he was about 20 feet from the car.  if he hadn't been going so fast, we would have made it across the street, or he would have been able to slow down.  There was no one in the other two lanes, so I don't know why he didn't move over, unless he was hoping for some money.  Who really knows.  He may also just not have that fast of reflexes.
When you get into an accident in Mexico, you cannot move the vehicles.  If you do, you will be considered to be trying to flee the scene of the accident . . . aka hit and run.  I suppose that also brings a presumption of guilt.  In any event, we weren't going anywhere.  The police were there very quickly.  I think they must have seen us stopped or something, because I don't think anyone even had a chance to call.
I mainly stayed in the car because I was wearing heels and didn't want to be on my feet any longer than I had to (especially knowing I would be standing at the party, if we ever made it).  At one point I looked and there were four police cars!  Who knows why they needed so many police officers at the scene.  They all had their AK-47s (or that's what I assume they were), too.  My friend tried using his Consulate issued cell phone to call for help, but could not get through.  He asked me to try.  I was able to get through to the 24 hour consulate number and asked the duty officer to send someone to where we were located.  They showed up within a few minutes, but after that one call, we were not able to make another call, from either of our phones.
After awhile, the municipal police trickled away.  I think they left after the transit police arrived.  The transit police are the ones who normally respond to an accident.  They also have AK-47s.  It was interesting to see.  By that time, one of the local staff from the Consulate had arrived, too.  He had just seen us there as he was driving to the Consulate and he stayed to help.

After the Fourth of July party with my fan gift.

Next, we had to wait for the insurance company to arrive.  In Mexico, when you have an accident, you can't leave until the insurance company comes, either.  It made for a long wait.  The chances of us getting into an accident are pretty high.  I'm hoping that this one counts as my accident so I don't have to get into another one later.
Another thing, when you get a ticket in Mexico, they take your driver's license.  You can still drive in Mexico as long as you have the ticket to show if you get pulled over.  You have thirty days to pay the ticket and get your license back.  I think also, if you get pulled over again, they take your front license plate.  If you get pulled over a third time (all without having redeemed your previously confiscated items), they take your back license plate.  I guess that is to ensure that you pay your tickets.  I wonder what they would take if you got pulled over a fourth time!
After the insurance companies came, we finally left for the Consulate.  The first guys who came to our aid drove along with us.  It felt like VIP treatment.  I guess if you're going to arrive late to a party, that's the way to do it.
When we got in to the party, everyone was relieved to see us.  It was nice to see that everyone cared and was worried about us.  I made it with about 15 minutes before my job was to begin.  My job was to give people a gift as they left the party.  For the first hour, it was pretty slow (so it's not like we missed the entire party).  Still, my feet started to kill me in those shoes.  After being at FSI for so long, my feet are not used to wearing heels.  I need to look into those cushions specifically designed for heels.
It has been quite a day.  It has been quite a week.