Adios Mexico

On Sunday, I drove from Mission, Texas to Houston. I've made the trip dozens of times, but I'm 99.999% sure that I will never be employed in the Rio Grande Valley again, and any trips back will be strictly for pleasure. I made some great friends while living there, especially my cycling pals, and I hope to make it back down to ride with them, but I will never again be employed in the maquiladora industry.

When I was employed in the maquiladora industry, there were days when my co-workers and I would commiserate about our mutual misery. It wasn't any different than any other jobs -- I had great days and terrible days. I think that overall it was a great experience, but I remember on one particularly bad day, I promised one of my buddies that when I left Reynosa for the last time, I would play "Adios Mexico" by the Texas Tornadoes as I drove through U.S. Customs. I didn't keep the promise back in October of 2008 when I left for my temporary position in Austin, and I have regretted it for months.

On Sunday, I made up for breaking the promise. After watching movers pack up our house, I drove the family back to Houston. I played the song, and then my daughter, not realizing why I played it but loving the accordion beat, asked me to play it again. A double shot of "Adios Mexico" was just what I needed to break me out of the funk of leaving behind a life in the Rio Grande Valley, and starting a new one in Houston.