It’s a phenomenon that always struck me as odd: people who move to Texas on purpose seem to really love Texas. This includes lots of Canadians. Canadians!

I was born and grew up in Waco, Texas and did not see what the big deal was. We didn’t even have mountains (that I’d seen yet, anyway). Boring! I mean, also I grew up in Waco in the 80s and 90s, which was no hotbed of multicultural thought. “What do we have here that’s cool?” I’d think. “The Dr. Pepper Museum and the Suspension Bridge? Lame.”

Boy did the Branch Davidians show me!

Texas is really big and super diverse — actually, so much more diverse than people think. Houston was ranked in 2024 as THE most diverse city in the country! Did you know that? I didn’t know that, but it’s easily believable. They have a Chinatown with actual street names in Mandarin next to English. Wow!

This is a good place to add a reminder, actually: if you haven’t seen that show Mo, you really should.

Anyway, Texas is real, real big, and kind of like India (I’m told) it might as well be divided up into several pretty distinct regions and areas. Here’s my favorite totally scientific explanation from one of my favorite dark comedies, Bernie:

All this said, especially if you’re part of the dominant racial group like I am, all that diversity isn’t something you’ll notice if you’re not looking for it, meandering into the parts of town where Not the White People live. I went to school with plenty of Black kids, but there was only one Latino kid in my class, and he kind of kept to himself. Thinking about it now, he probably didn’t speak much English, which is something that hadn’t occurred to me.

I don’t think I even ever heard anyone speak Spanish in real life (and not on the radio) until I was well into elementary school. And this was in Texas, where the Latino population sits at over 40%! Where were they? Not in my school, hailed at the time for its diversity (about an even divide between Black and white kids, more economically diverse than anything else, which is important for a school).

It wasn’t until middle school that I saw my first Mexican “baile folklorico” performance and was blown away. “THE BOYS ARE DANCING WITH THE GIRLS?? And they look happy doing it?? And the girls get to wear those beautiful gigantic dresses?? Why don’t I get to wear those beautiful gigantic dresses and dance with boys??”

That was the moment I knew I was missing out. (Early happy ending aside: boys in Mexico really do want to dance with me and are openly romantic. It is fabulous.)

Alas, it stopped there, at least at the time, as the racism that was naturally soaked into the culture had soaked into me as well. And with it, of course, comes fear. Because you can step over to the other side(s), but it’s hard and anxiety-inducing. Will they like you? Will they be nice? Will they resent you, make fun of you? I hadn’t personally designed the classification of Latinos in Texas as second-rate citizens, but I was a descendent of those who had.

I believe it’s that mix of shame and fear that keeps most people hanging back instead of taking the risk of popping over to get to know the neighbors. We fear what’s different, especially if we know that our ancestors had their knees on their ancestors’ backs. No one ever officially kissed and made up about it, and no reparations were ever made, either, perpetuating inequalities for generations that are still easily visible. I mean, just look at the statistics. I’d be mad.

It felt a bit like avoiding a friend who you suspected might have found out you were spreading rumors about them; you wanted to avoid a possible confrontation, because should one arise, there was no way you’d not come out looking like a toad.

So in high school, I didn’t take Spanish. I took German, the language of my ancestors and also a language that today, truth be told, is not all that useful.

Then I went to college in Indiana, where I was an “outsider” practically on the level of the international students. Most of the student body came from places that were a maximum three-hour drive from campus. Lots went home at least one weekend a month, and we “outsiders” learned to create out own little international enclaves.

And that’s how I got to Mexico: I met and made friends with Mexican exchange students, and people from all over the world. I remember having to clarify with friends back home in Texas: “No, I don’t mean Hispanics, I mean, like, people from the actual country of Mexico.” Because in Texas, calling someone “Mexican” was practically a slur — a signal that you didn’t know or care where Latinos there were from, but rather that you recognized as Not American.

Basically, I had to leave the often uncomfortable racial dynamics of Texas to realize what great, quality people one could find hailing from basically anywhere on earth. “Oh! How did I not realize this?”

I am embarrassed to admit that this was any kind of revelation at all, but what can I say? No one can explain the grammatical rules of their own language unless they’ve specifically, intentionally, studied them. It’s the same with baked-in cultural habits.

Lucky for me, my specialty wound up being language and Sociology, which is its own kind of decoding, but of society.

So here I am, many years later, finally appreciating the Texas I grew up in, learning all kinds of things I never did in Texas History (pro tip: the Mexicans are actually not the bad guys).

Since I left, Latino culture in general is having A Moment, which I’m glad of. When I was headed to Mexico in 2002, most people would raise their eyebrows, widen their eyes, and say, “Why?!”

But things are different. Now when I return to Texas and say I live in Mexico, people say, “Oh, cool!”

And this year, I visited McAllen, a well-known border town for the first time. How had I never realized what cool places might be right there along the divide? Well, I know exactly how I didn’t realized: racism made the idea that any place more Mexico than the US would be implicitly worse.

But it is not. It is awesome.

And now I can say, for the first time, that I feel like a proud Texan: proud of the diversity of my state, proud of the variety of language, of people, of food, of ideas. I even wear a cowboy hat now sometimes.

Y’all know I love Tiny Desk Concert, and I was excited to come across a Texas born and bread band on it…who spoke and sang entirely in Spanish. It made my little Tex-Mex heart swell with pride.

Actually, this blog was going to be a lot shorter and mostly for the purpose of showing you this video to enjoy on your Sunday, but I got carried away. So finally, without further ado: the Edinburgh, Texas native band, Grupo Frontera!

Y’all are going to love these guys.

The presidential election, of course, is the one we’ve all got eyes on.

The next president of Mexico will most surely be a woman, and it will most likely be the ruling-party Morena candidate, Claudia Sheinbaum.

So here we are: in a move that no one would have predicted a few years ago, Mexico is getting its first woman president before the US, a country which seems to increasingly be trying to turn back the clock in the worst ways possible (labor rights, women’s rights, environmental protection, public and social services — let me count the ways. Actually, please stop me; it’s depressing.). It’s been stuck in a black hole of political despair since Trump won by way of the Electoral College in 2016, and I’m still not 100% convinced that we didn’t get thrown into some nightmarish simulation that night by some Very Angry gods.

Unlike our own election with a woman top-contender, Mexicans do not seem to despise Sheinbaum the way that Americans (especially American men and the women who wanted to make a point of how cool, fair, and sensible they were) despised Hilary Clinton. Given Mexico’s reputation as a far more chauvinistic country than our own, this is a pleasant surprise.

Maybe it’s because the other major candidate is a woman, too, so there’s no point to attacking her on a sexist basis. (What we’d call a far-behind, no-chance-of-winning “third-party” candidate, by the way, is the only male candidate for president.)

It’s probably the fact they’re both women, actually. But hey, I’ll take what I can get, because it’s just nice to not hear a candidate for president be described by a bunch of seemingly perfectly nice people as a “vicious bitch.”

As you’ve likely concluded by now, I’m still not over 2016. Before the election, and even after, nearly every liberal male I knew made a point of exclaiming his distaste for Hilary Clinton. They’d always have a long list of specific complaints about her, and the popular phrase at the time was “I’m holding my nose and voting for her.” Talk about enthusiasm!

Here’s what I noticed more than anything, though: none of those same people ever had anything close to that long of a list for other (male) politicians they didn’t completely agree with (when it looked like Elizabeth Warren might claim the nomination, though, I noticed an uptick in anti-Hilary-like grumblings).

On one hand, this was kind of normal: Democrats have always made a bit of a show of ensuring that everyone knows we scrutinize our own as much as our opponents. It just went majorly overboard with Hilary, as she bared the brunt of scrutiny while The Dudes were simply accepted as the imperfect people and politicians that they were.

No one took anywhere near the time they did with Hilary to research up a list of very specific reasons to both hate them and to prove that their hate was justified. Ask people where their lists about Al Gore are, or even Joe Biden during his first run. Were they published on Facebook, perchance?

And then she didn’t win, and that’s how the women of the country learned that lots more people than we thought harbored feelings of contempt — both openly, à la Trump, and slightly buried, à la “She’s awful and I hate her but have to vote for her” — for women who wanted to be powerful.

And it was very sad. And now, to top it off, access to abortion for large swaths of the country, even to save a woman’s life and/or health, are a thing of the past. Talk about insult to injury. So many things are so much worse as a result of that election.

Because that is what happens when we are collectively unable to accept the competing values between what it means to be a good politician and what it means to be a good woman. In 2016, Hilary being a good woman was the more important value, and she was punished — really, we were all punished — for not living up to those standards. In the eyes of too many, politics and the seeking of power made her contemptible.

So rather than have a woman president, we put a literal sexist, fascist, baboon in office. Yes, yes. Much more presidential. Well done.

Like I said, I’m still not over it, because just look at the consequences (the Supreme Court, oh my God), that that shit show of an election has wrought.

But here in Mexico, it’s happening. We’re discussing whether or not “presidenta” is an official word now (most are leaning toward “yes”). And while the likely new president’s detractors might hate her, they hate her because they hate her party and its platform, not because she’s a woman.

And that, I think, is progress.

There’s a word in Mexico to specifically describe that feeling of discomfort from being around just too many people at once: engentar. (See the word “gente” (“people”) in there?)

It’s a word I use a lot, because – wouldn’t you know it – every time I decide it would be lovely to take a little trip somewhere, it seems everyone else has independently decided on the exact same thing. 

What to do?

If you don’t mind the crowds, the extra time waiting in lines, and the elevated prices for everything from taxis to souvenirs, just enjoy yourself. Some people thrive on the particular kind of energy that lots of people in one place bring, and if that’s you, then carry on.

If that’s not you, then never fear: I’ve got some tips to make you feel a tad less engentado on your next trip, whether you’re coming to Mexico from abroad for a long vacation, or hopping over to the next town for a long weekend.

How to avoid the crowds in Mexico

1. Check the holiday calendar (especially the SEP calendar).

   Long weekends are a prime time when people decide to get out of town for a bit, and if there’s any kind of prime tourist destination or big holiday event or festival within reasonable driving or bus travel distance during those times, chances are you’re going to find big crowds.
   
   If you really care about being present at a specific event, try to plan way ahead: make reservations for whatever you can (hotels, meals, even parking if you’re able), and be prepared to enjoy a baño de pueblo (literally, a “people bath”)!

2. Try to avoid going out on weekend quincenas.

   A quincena, literally a “fortnight,” (15 days) is the term people use for “payday” around here, usually around the 1st and the 15th of every month. As everywhere, people tend to go out looking for some fun once they’ve got some money in their pockets, so everywhere from the movie theater to the grocery stores tends to get a heavier-than-usual volume of visitors.

3. Stay in the city when everyone else leaves.

   Semana Santa, summer break, long weekends…these are the best times to explore the urban landscape, as traffic is usually down and the hot spots are a little roomier than usual. City folk who can afford to get out of town mostly do get out of town during those times, so they make for rare moments of feeling like you’ve got the whole place to yourself!

4. If you can, do your traveling and exploring during the off-season.

   This is likely a logical conclusion you’ve come to given the above, but it bears repeating: if you can travel during the times that most people are not traveling, you’ll have a lot more breathing room.
   
   Another advantage is that prices tend to fluctuate up and down with the comings and goings of crowds of vacationers. If you can go when demand is low, you’ll likely find you can hold onto your funds for a bit longer – perhaps for your next trip!

5. Get off the beaten path.

   We all know the hot spots in Mexico right now, and we know how popular they are. But Mexico has much more to offer than its beaches and popular-with-expats cities.  Especially if you can speak/read Spanish, have a look at some Mexican travel sites to get a glimpse of some of the lesser-known areas, or take a look at the “travel” section of Mexico News Daily! Sometimes a little extra research majorly pays off, particularly if you are looking to avoid crowds.

So, those are my tips! If you’ve got any for your fellow travelers – or recommendations for great places to visit that people might not know about and how to avoid the crowds in Mexico – drop them in the comments below!

Spring has arrived, and it is getting hot out there! But at least we can laugh while we drip in sweat, right? Grab a beer, and we can laugh extra hard at these Mexican memes currently making the rounds on social media. 

The best part? You can legitimately say you were studying. 

Meme translation: “Ma’am, classes were canceled today for the eclipse.” 

“He wants to be an astronomer.”

What does it meme? Did everyone catch the eclipse last week? Depending on where you were, it was more or less dramatic (there was a little under 70% coverage where I was).

Plenty of schools canceled classes that day, and those who didn’t supposedly had pretty low turnouts. Some parents though, like the one in this meme, were apparently less than thrilled about having to find childcare for their little ones when they still had to go to work!

Meme translation: “If you drink, don’t drive. And please, don’t call your ex. Value your life and your dignity.”

What does it meme? Now this…is a good sign.

And now you know: drunk dialing isn’t just a problem in the English-speaking world. The plethora of memes and jokes about it here, in fact, would leave me to believe that it’s even more prevalent around here! 

So remember, kids: if you’re going to drink, get a designated driver or take a taxi. And if you’re tempted to profess your love to someone long lost, give your friend your phone. Your dignity will thank you.

Meme translation: “Why hasn’t my package arrived? I ordered it through…”

(on screen) “FraudEx”

What does it meme? If you’ve had anything delivered to you in Mexico, chances are you’ve come into contact with one of the most prominent shipping companies here, Estafeta. 

I’ve always thought it was a strange choice of a name, as (to me) it looks and sounds pretty similar to the word for “scam,” estafa. “-Ote/ota” is one of Spanish’s  augmentative forms (as opposed to a diminutive form that you’re probably already familiar with, like “-ito/ita”), and visually it fits perfectly with this joke: “Estafota” would translate to something like “big scam” (I did my best above to make it look at least somewhat like the name of a shipping company).

I don’t think that kitty’s package is going to be making it after all.

Meme translation: “When you’re an English teacher and you see that there’s a kid from the United States in your class.”

What does it meme? Most kids in Mexican schools take English classes. But teaching a different language (especially one different than your own) ain’t no joke, and the truth is that most language teaching positions for Mexican nationals don’t pay enough to recruit teachers that are truly fluent in the language they’re teaching, as those who are can usually make much more money elsewhere.

So, when a student shows up in their class who does speak the language fluently, it can be a little intimidating. Knowing this, I’ve always given my daughter strict instructions to never, under any circumstances, publicly correct an English teacher unless specifically asked to.

Apparently, she’s taken that lesson to heart a bit too much: when I had a meeting with her teacher a few months into this last school year, he said he had no idea that she spoke English at all!

Meme translation: “If I could have one power, I’d like to be able to be retired.”

What does it meme? This one takes a little explanation: poder as a noun is “power”; poder as a verb is “to be able to” (basically, “can”). Perhaps a better translation might be, “If I could have one power, it would be the power to be retired,” though really, there’s no perfect option: plays on words don’t work across languages unless the languages have the same word for two of the same different concepts (which does sometimes happen, fortunately).

That said, I share your wish, my little tlacuache dude.

Meme translation: “It was there the whole time and we didn’t see it.”

What does it meme? If you’ve spent much time in Mexico, you’ve probably run across the cultural icon that is El Chavo del Ocho. The TV show ran through the 1970s until the early ‘80s, but I still don’t know a single Mexican, even under the age of 10, who wouldn’t immediately recognize the show’s character, who’s being rendered in the above photos out of the portrait of Benjamin Franklin. (They can all probably do a pretty good impression of the character, too.)

The series centered around a kid who lived in a barrel (and it was a comedy!) and his interactions with his neighbors in the vecindad, the little neighborhood where his barrel was located. 

Meme translation: (on screen) “The Pope forgives everyone” 

“And I said, ‘That’s good! One less thing to worry about.’”

What does it meme? I put this one up just because I thought it was adorable: the world might be falling apart, but, hey, the Pope forgives us. And whether from him or our dear ones, isn’t forgiveness for (and preferably ignorance of) all our shortcomings what we all really want?

I love watching TV and movies, and I’m not embarrassed to admit it. After all, we humans are practically programmed to really get into a good story.

I’m also a fan of watching Mexican TV (and Netflix) specifically for learning purposes. With technology that lets us put on subtitles at will, watching local shows and movies is a fantastic way to study both Spanish and Mexican culture, and one that I’ve long recommended.

To help you enjoy them as much as I do, I’ve come up with a list of recent Mexican TV shows that you can find on some of the major platform services available — one is hosted on Disney, and the rest are on Netflix. 

I’ve tried to stick to lighthearted comedies and a couple of intriguing dramas, but there’s certainly more out there — especially if you expand your search to film! Mexico has an astoundingly varied and storied film history, so it’s worth a much deeper dive than we’re taking here for those especially interested.
El Galán

El Galán | Tráiler Oficial | Star+

This is an adorable show that I got to know because I was on the subtitling team for it a couple of years ago, and I… think I’m allowed to say that. It centers around an aging telenovela (soap opera) star looking for a comeback in his native Mexico after a couple of decades performing on cruise ships. Back in Mexico, he realizes that the world has changed quite a bit since his popularity as a womanizing and — let’s admit — obliviously sexist leading man. This is a comedy that follows this flawed but loveable ex-star as he tries to find his footing once again in a world with very different sensibilities than the one he found so much success in before.                              

La Casa de las Flores

La Casa de las Flores | Anuncio Fecha de Estreno Temporada 2

This might be my favorite modern Mexican TV show, and was so popular that it resulted in several spin-offs. This dark comedy centers around a wealthy family in Mexico City — as many Mexican shows do, admittedly — whose wealth was built initially by a flower shop. The show begins with a startling mystery and features some of the best comedic acting I’ve seen. My favorite character is one of the older sisters – especially since she speaks very, very slowly, making dialogue easy to follow. If you only have time for one show, make it this one!

Club de Cuervos

Club de Cuervos | Official Trailer [HD] | Netflix

For an incredibly humorous deep dive into the world of Whitexicans, you can’t get much better than “Club de Cuervos,” which centers around a pair of siblings who inherit a popular soccer club when their father dies suddenly.

The son is a bit of a loose cannon and the very face of unrestrained, slightly psychopathic but fun privilege, while his sister is serious and businesslike, far better equipped to take over the team but much less likable: what male-dominated industry wants a woman who hardly smiles bossing them around? This show is impeccably acted and uproariously funny – and well worth your time.

Ojitos de Huevo

Ojitos de Huevo | Tráiler oficial | Netflix

This show was an interesting mix of Disney-like simplicity in storytelling and some rather adult themes.

It centers around two disabled young men who have graduated from school and decide they want to leave their families in Querétaro to try to “make it” in Mexico City. One is blind, and the other has cerebral palsy. They’re both smart and funny, but they’re also young men who by definition are not in the most intelligent phase of their lives.

When one of the boys decides he wants to be a standup comedian, the pair and their band of misfit friends do everything to make it happen in this heartwarming and very funny one-season series.

Luis Miguel

Luis Miguel La Serie | Trailer Oficial | Netflix

I’ll admit that this is the only show on the list that I have yet to see, a biopic on one of Mexico’s best-loved artists. That said, it’s been highly recommended to me by several people, usually with an introduction like, “It’s surprisingly really good!”

If you don’t know who Luis Miguel is, you surely will soon if you spend very much time in Mexico. He grew up on stage, singing songs that most Mexicans know all the words to, and was the very definition of cool in the ‘80s and ‘90s. One of the cafés I frequent only plays his songs…and no one minds at all.

And apparently, he’s had a life fit for a soap opera, which is dramatized in this biopic series. 

This, of course, is a very short list, and doesn’t include many of the shows that are still watched nationwide on cable TV. But you can put subtitles on these, so they’re a great start!

Got any other Mexican TV shows you’d like to recommend? Feel free to list them for us all in the comments section!

Though this won’t be published until later, I’m sending these Mexican memes in to the editor on April 1st – the favorite day for cracking jokes for many of us!

April 1st isn’t necessarily a special day for jokes here, though: Mexico’s version of April Fool’s Day is on December 28, which is called Día de los Inocentes (Day of the Innocents). That’s when you’ll typically see the fake positive pregnancy test Facebook posts from Mexicans.

But if you ask me, every day is a good day for a joke. So, without further ado, here is your curated list of Mexican memes!

Meme translation: “I don’t like the organ grinders or banda music either, but I’m not going to let some freaking (note: this is a polite translation of the word) foreigner come here to criticize my people’s horrible taste in music.”

What does it meme? Oh, dear… it seems quite a few nerves have been touched of late regarding this issue of “noisiness” on the beaches of Mazatlán at a time when the city is doing its best to attract luxury-seeking foreign tourists with very clear ideas about what “luxury beach vacations” sound like.

To be fair, my reading of the above article led me to conclude that it had been a Mexican (sounds like a whitexican?) luxury hotel owner who was trying to get the banda players off the beach, and not, as many emotional Mexican patriots believe, a band of angry tourists with pitchforks and bad Yelp reviews. Sigh. 

But I get it: I’m allowed to say my kid’s being difficult, but if someone else suggests she’s a brat, I go for the jugular. Seems like Mexicans who don’t like banda are in the same boat!

Meme translation: “When they confuse your plant collection with a plant nursery.” (on sign: “NOT A PLANT NURSERY”).

What does it meme? I mean, the above space does look a lot like it might be selling some of those plants – there are so many!

If I had a greener thumb, I’d have a similar setup…and likely be pretty annoyed if people were constantly ringing my doorbell trying to buy them from me! Still, it’s a small price to pay for enjoying as much greenery as one can, even in the (very common) absence of a yard. Thankfully, there are plenty of other viveros around!

Meme translation: Well, this one’s in English.

What does it meme? Ah, “ahorita.” Could a word so urgent to understand and use be more confusing? 

The joke is, of course, that ahorita means all of those things. Sometimes, you can tell from the context and the tone of voice in which it’s said:

“Te dije que ahorita en este momento!” (“I said right now, this very moment!”)

“Claro, ahorita…” said with a wink and a smile, which means, basically, “Maybe if I remember it after 100 other things I’d like to do first, but really, I have absolutely no intention of doing it.”

“Ahorita te lo traigo.” – “I’ll get it for you in just a second.”

“Ahorita que llegue mi hermana vamos.” – “As soon as my sister gets here we’ll go.” (so, later).

When you really need to know what it means, maybe ask for a specific time. Fair warning: most Mexicans will find that kind of abrasive. But hey – sometimes you need to know!

Meme translation: “Time heals nothing; what really heals is the frog’s tail.”

What does it meme? I’ll admit that it was the little froggy butt that really got me on this one.

There’s a little rhyme (which is apparently also a song, but I’ve not heard the tune once in my 20-plus years here) that people say, especially to little children who have a “booboo,” and it goes like this: “Sana, sana, colita de rana, si no sana hoy, sanará mañana.” (Heal, heal, little frog’s tail, if it doesn’t heal today then it will tomorrow.” Trust me, it’s catchier in Spanish).

This is usually said while giving a light massage to wherever they’ve hurt themselves, and as far as I’m concerned, is a magic spell. Learn to say it, and you’ll be ready to comfort toddlers all over the country! 

Meme translation: “Beginner. I can’t even handle my life, to say nothing of this car… I’m new to driving a standard. Be patient with me because I still screw up and roll backwards. Keep your distance and don’t honk because it makes me anxious.” (note the spelling, “amsiedad” which should be spelled with an “n” instead of an “m.” I don’t know why, but the “m” just make it sound funnier!

What does it meme? Oh, what sympathy I have!

Driving in Mexico can be quite a doozy, and lots of even brand-new cars are standard shifts (they’re cheaper). I wish I’d thought of putting up a sign like this when I was learning!

Meme translation: “Shit.”

What does it meme? I usually try to stay away from curse words in these memes, but this one really cracked me up! That’s Freddy Kruger, of course, caught in a dreamcatcher. 

Dreamcatchers are pretty popular around here lately – I’ve been seeing them more and more in artisan markets. Too bad the characters in the original story didn’t have them!

Meme translation: “Male animals. Female animals.”

What does it meme? I’ve seen this before in English, and I am very happy to see the Mexican meme version appear as well! Seeing the elaborate colors and drama, especially of male birds compared to female birds, is always a fun thing to observe!

A note on these words: unless they’ve humanized their pets quite a bit (which certainly happens), most Mexicans don’t say the equivalent of “boy” and “girl” when indicating the sex of an animal; it’s “macho” or “hembra.” 

Likewise, you should be careful not to use those words on human beings, lest you want them to think you see them as animals! For us, it’s hombres (men) and mujeres (women), or the gendered endings of words like niño/a, muchacho/a, chavo/a, etc.

Even though I know this, I pause at one of my most frequented restaurants every time I approach the bathrooms and think to myself, “Wait, is it M for “macho” and H for “hembra,” or M for “mujeres” and H for “hombres”? (It’s the second one). 

Y’all, it has been A WEEK. Actually, it’s been a couple of weeks, and I’m exhausted.

It will end eventually. But man, I’m getting sick and tired of feeling like I’m standing on the ocean shore and getting knocked down by a new wave every time I manage to stand back up and gulp some air.

I won’t bore you with the details of all my very pedestrian issues — doubt about our ability to stay long-term in this house that we love, antagonism at work that seems to have popped up out of nowhere, grouchiness from those close to me that amplifies my own, and now being on the second day of feeling pretty sick — you know what? Maybe I did want to bore you with details.

So while I recognize that none of the above are tragedies, I still can’t help feeling kind of sorry for myself, like I’m in the bowl of a molcajete that people have unexpectedly shown up to grind me down to a salsa in (no need to add salt; I brought my own tears!).

Anyway, it’s not all in vain! Because it made me think of a great new word (well, variations of a phrase, I guess) to teach you in Spanish.

Mexico, and I suspect other Latin American countries, though I can’t speak as authoritatively on them, is a pretty superstitious place. Babies are adorned with red bracelets for protection and luck. People of all ages wear evil eye protection emblems. And everyone tries real hard not to knock over the salt.

Humans are superstitious creatures in general — we can’t help but believe in magic, as the pain of there being no order or meaning to both our good and bad fortune is too much to bear for most of us.

One thing you can do, at least, is to not spill any salt; and if you do, to throw some over your shoulder to…reverse the effect?

In Mexico, people say echarle la sal (a alguien) (literally, “to throw salt at someone”), whicm means to take away someone’s good luck. Likewise, it’s common to hear (from me, after these past couple of weeks), Estoy bien salado/a. “I’m really salty,” its literal translation in English, of course means something different; the true translation is, “I’m really unlucky (right now).” (I added the “right now” because of the verb estar, which is a more temporary form of the verb “to be” than ser.)

While I know logically that no feeling, good or bad, lasts forever, at this very moment I feel incredibly sure that that’s simply not true. I’m stuck here. This is where I live now, and I might as well settle down and pick out some nice throw pillows and maybe some frilly curtains for my new forever home, The Pits.

Soon, my friends, I will no longer be salada. I have faith. But maybe I should think of investing in a little something to ward off el mal de ojo.

First article: But wait, Mexicans do want us here, don’t they?

I still remember clearly the first time I had a group of Mexicans glare angrily at me. 

I don’t remember my exact wording, but I was exasperated and said something like, “Why can’t Mexico figure out that these milk boxes are not actually easy to open at all?” with a chuckle to my host family. (The milk boxes back then said “abre fácil” – “easy open” – but were anything but easy: you had to tear off the corner of it and I always wound up making a huge mess of it).

I wasn’t trying to insult anyone, but boy did I learn my lesson: while this is an incredibly bromista (joke-loving) culture where sarcasm does indeed hold a place of honor, sarcasm applied by a foreigner regarding the way something is done in Mexico is most definitely not appreciated.

This was over 20 years ago, and I’ve learned quite a bit more about this particular culture’s sensitivities since then. And as more and more of my paisanos join me in this beautiful country, I think some studied consideration about how to be respectful a la mexicana is in order, especially as natural tensions in some sectors are rising with such an influx of new people.

To be good guests and immigrants, here are some things to remember:

1. Mexicans wear their pride on their sleeves; this goes for personal and national pride, by the way. As a country, Mexico has been both invaded and put down (by, collectively, us) enough to be a little sensitive about criticisms toward them…especially by newcomer outsiders. Indeed, who enjoys criticism at all?
   
   Every country, as we well know, has things they do well and things they don’t do so well. If you need to vent about the “not so well” category around here, try to keep it restricted to your personal journal or a close friend or therapist rather than venting online.
   
   Because as some of us have learned the hard way, social media is not a place where nuance can be easily detected and emotions stay calm. Foreigners who vent in public or even private groups seem to find themselves more and more met with an angry “Why don’t you just go back where you came from” sentiment (which, curiously, tends to come much more frequently from the political left rather than the right).

2. Make your curiosity bigger than your desire to start every sentence with, “Well, where I come from…”. Spoiler alert: most Mexicans already know what things are like where we come from if where we come from is the US or Canada.
   
   No one has bad intentions when they start talking about themselves…it’s a way to start or keep a conversation going, after all. But it behooves all of us to remember that most basic of conversational skills: to make a great impression, let the other person do the talking (and really listen).
   
   And if you can, make your best effort to do it in Spanish!                                                                   

3. Tensions between the economically advantaged and the not-so-advantaged are just as high here as they are elsewhere. And as I’ve said before, seeing a group of people who don’t necessarily work harder or even have more education than you knocking it out of the park because they’re gaming the system (earning in one economy and spending in a different, cheaper one) while you struggle doesn’t feel good.
   
   “But our spending here is helping the economy” might be logical, but nowhere in the world are people logical; they’re emotional. Nor are they usually thinking about the advantages, on a country-wide level, of tourism. What they’re thinking about is the fact that rents have gone up exponentially in areas newly popular with dollar-bearing newcomers and their menus are suddenly in English.
   
   So, what to do? On a practical level, do your best to find out the actual costs of homes and services in a certain area that locals are accustomed to paying rather than simply laying down whatever money’s asked because it’s cheap to you, specifically. Too many people doing this is exactly what drives gentrification, a topic that has many locals in newly-popular areas particularly tense. 
   
   At the very least, don’t behave as if you’re doing anyone a favor by spending money here or crowing loudly about “how affordable Mexico is.” For most people living here, it’s not. So enjoy what luxuries you might not have been able to in your home country, but remember that they’re still out of reach for most people.
   

4. Not everyone is into fast change. In places that have long been known for their catering to the tourist crowd like Los Cabos or Cancún, people know what to expect: lots of English-speaking establishments, high rents, services catering specifically to the tastes of foreigners. Those changes happened long ago, and they’re used to it. In newly-popular areas in Mexico, things are changing (and gentrifying) fast, and not everybody is into it.
   
   In those places that used to be considered “the real Mexico” where not many foreigners could be seen (Oaxaca city comes to mind), the speed of change is a touchy subject for some Mexican residents…especially when it’s accompanied by increased prices for everyone (which is not solely a result of the influx, but the optics make it seem like it is). On the positive side, most Mexicans are honored and proud to see that so many foreigners have fallen in love with their culture and communities, so emphasizing that can do wonders.

Mexico is a delightful and magical place, and it’s a country where most residents are warm and open to the newly arrived. Our task, then, is to remember to be good neighbors first, and careful not to treat our new homes as an amusement park: squeal with delight on the inside.


And, as promised, more memes!

Bilingual laughs: The best Mexican memes of the week

Sarah DeVries

March 23, 2024

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It is time once again, my friends! If you love Mexican memes and you have a questionable sense of humor like I do, then you’ve come to the right place.

Seriously though. What better way to learn about Mexico and its humor than through the Spanish-language memes currently making the rounds? See below for some hearty laughs, complete with translations. Enjoy!

Meme translation: “The good thing is that you have your kitty so you won’t feel lonely.” “Safe distance, safe distance!!!” 

What does it meme? Well, here it is, folks: the reason I’m not really a cat person. (Why can’t they just let me love them?)

“Safe distance” doesn’t actually do the translation above justice. During the pandemic (oh, how distant it seems now!), the Mexican government came up with a character named “Susana Distancia” as a catchy way to illustrate and remind people (mostly kids) how far they should be standing from each other to lower the risk of transmission.

The name “Susana” is common, and also means something if you split it up: “su sana…” (your safe…” in English). Cute, right? It was also a great opportunity for those who, like that cat, didn’t love being in close proximity with others in the first place.

Meme translation: “My body is like a Catholic church. Filled with bread, wine, and sin.”

What does it meme? Cute, right? I imagine that this is something that would give most Mexicans (who are majority Catholic) a pretty good laugh. Especially now during the winter months, I’m heavy on the bread and wine – got to keep warm and keep up my reserves!

Meme translation: “What do you know about caresses if you’ve never traveled by metro?”

What does it meme? I’ll admit that this one is not new, but it’s one of my favorite ever so I just had to share it with you.

If you’ve ever traveled by metro on one of the more heavily traveled routes (especially during rush hour), you’ve probably, like me, stood staring in disbelief as more people than you thought possible packed themselves into a metro car. 

Don’t like people touching you? Too bad. Not only will you be squished in like sardines, you’ll have to fight your way both in and out. Godspeed! 

Meme translation: “When I see some chick graffitiing a monument that I peed on three days ago.”

What does it meme? It’s always during the annual women’s marches in Mexico that righteous indignation for the country’s symbols of patriotism swells like rainwater during a hurricane. 

Quite a lot of it is geared toward graffiti from the march – women writing feminist messages or symbols on highly visible monuments and buildings. It’s not very ladylike, and extremely unappreciated by those who would prefer the damitas stay home and wait patiently for their equal rights to show up. 

Do a side-by-side, though, and I don’t think you’d find much of a difference between women marching for their rights and the average male citizen when it comes to general respect for pristine public spaces.

Meme translation: “Men: not all men are like that.” “Men to their daughters: yes, all men, every single one of them.”

What does it meme? And speaking of feminism, a fair zinger, I’d say. 

When wondering about whether you really believe what you’re saying, a good question to ask yourself is this: Would I swear this to the person I most love if I knew they would take my words deeply to heart?

Meme translation: “Bro, how do I know if my Jordans are real or fake?” “Mm, look at the logo. Hold on, look…”

What does it meme? At least in the 20+ years that I’ve been here, Mexico has been a place where you can find counterfeit goods galore (the word that most people would use to describe a knockoff of something is “chafa”) – there are even certain markets that are famous for them.

I’d personally actually seek out those chafa sneakers above, and I’d be willing to be someone out there knew there’d be a market for them. (If any of you see them on sale anywhere, e-mail me? Thanks.)

Meme translation: “What is that?” “An insect.” “What kind?” “A green one.” “Right but what’s it called?” “Jonathan.”

What does it meme? Mexicans enjoy deadpan humor as much as the rest of us! Remember, if you’re not sure what something is called…you can always make up a name!

First article: Why so close? Personal space is different in Mexico

It’s been 21 years, but a part of me still feels a little flustered giving and getting pecks on the cheek. 

It’s not that I agonize over it. It’s just that this perfectly normal way in Mexico of meeting and greeting non-family members and then bidding them adieu will never feel to me, on a cellular level, 100% non-sexual.

To this gal from a country where Puritans were the cultural founders of the current regime, it feels ever-so-slightly mischievous.

If you’ve spent any amount of time in Mexico, you’ve probably noticed it: this population’s sense of personal space is a bit different than ours, “ours” meaning those of us from the countries that currently send the most visitors and immigrants Mexico’s way.

So in the spirit of cultural knowledge-sharing, let’s dive right into the spaces between what’s considered familiar and normal in Mexico.

First, a general statement: Mexico is a much more “touchy-feely” country than its north-er North American counterparts, the United States and Canada. While there will always be variety among individuals within a culture, we know for our own on an instinctual level what’s normal and what’s not. For unfamiliar cultures, there’s some learning to be done!

Normal: Standing, walking, and talking very close to you. The short explanation: this is a matter of the physical space available and how many people live and reside within a certain area.

You’ve probably noticed that this is not a country of wide, open spaces… or at least people don’t tend to live in its wide, open spaces, anyway. Lots of things seem smaller, too, because they are: the aisles in the grocery store, the parking spaces, the cars, the bathrooms, the tables and chairs, the streets, the sidewalks, the buses, the metro (oh God, the metro).

When this is the case, you just get used to being a little cozier all around, as eventually people simply stop noticing when they’re closer than they need to be (to the point, sometimes, that you can easily smell people’s breath when they talk). Ick, and you’re allowed to back up or turn to the side if they don’t catch the hint and mindlessly follow you; “This is my good ear,” I might say to be polite. The smaller spaces also mean that most people are oblivious to the fact that you think they have any polite responsibility at all to move over to let you rush past them on the sidewalk. Move where?

Not normal: Standing or sitting right next to you when it’s not necessary to do so. If you’re packed into a metro, chances are you’re going to be standing pretty darn close to others. If you’re on a nearly-empty bus and someone plops down in the seat right next to you, though, you might want to get up and move toward the driver. 

Especially if you’re a woman, you’ll want to be cautious with distance. If your spidey senses are telling you that some dude is standing way closer behind you in line than he needs to, a full-bodied turn to the side (pro tip: get your butt to a point where it’s not facing him) and a quick “What do you want?” look is totally called for.

Normal: Quick pecks on the cheek to meet, greet, and bid farewell to friends and acquaintances, mostly in casual social situations. Ah, the kiss. If you’re from a place where kisses are mostly reserved for romantic partners and one’s own young children, kissing people who don’t fall into those categories might always feel just a little bit devious to you. It still does to me, and I’ve been here for over two decades. But oh, how I love having a set physical protocol and the bookends that they naturally put on either end of social interactions!

So how’s it done, exactly? First, it’s most typical to go in for it by moving your head slightly to the left. You’ll likely touch cheeks with the other person, but the kiss will mostly be in the air next to them and will not necessarily land on their skin. If you’re just meeting the other person, this might be accompanied by a simultaneous handshake that begins a second or so before, and if you already know them, you might lightly grab their left shoulder as well before pulling apart. If you’re good friends, a full-on hug could happen, too – oh, boy! Women and women kiss, women and men kiss, and men and men usually shake hands and maybe do the shoulder squeeze thing or a hug.

If you really don’t want to kiss-greet someone, just offer your hand for a shake, and use it to keep the distance between your bodies, which should get the message across.

Not Normal: Kisses from random strangers or in professional settings, and slobbery kisses planted firmly on your cheek (or on your mouth – yikes!). Remember, kisses are not required or expected in all social situations: you don’t kiss the clerk at the grocery store or the immigration officer or the person who’s interviewing you for a job. 

When I taught high school, I did not greet or say goodbye to my students with kisses – not even the ones I was on a friendly basis with (plus, we’d have never had time for the actual class!). Mexicans tend to be unshy about respecting social hierarchies, and it would be rare to lean in for a kiss toward someone in a position of either authority or subordination in relation to you, or you to them. 

When in doubt, a handshake is always polite!

Normal: Hugs from good friends and family members; a light touch on the shoulder or arm from a stranger who needs your attention. It’s interesting to note that in a culture generally more comfortable with physical closeness and touching, hugs seem to be considered more intimate here than those air kisses next to the cheek. But if you think about it, it makes quite a bit of sense: a short moment of facial closeness is a lot less contact than pressing your entire bodies against each other for a few seconds! That’s why hugs are usually reserved for really good friends, family, and romantic partners.

Not normal: Hugs from strangers, or even acquaintances that you’re not close to; a stranger grabbing you or touching you anywhere below your shoulder. If you don’t want to press your body up against someone else’s, by all means, don’t – you’re not obliged! And if a stranger grabs you around your waist, whip around and give a well-deserved “back off” dirty look. 

So there you have it! This is an article and not a book, of course, and is therefore not an exhaustive list. But I hope it’s given you at least a somewhat broad idea of what to expect in your personal interactions in Mexico. Go forward and kiss the air next to people’s faces!

Or maybe just a handshake.


And another installment of Mexican memes:

What are the funniest memes making the rounds in Mexico? Honestly, we don’t know.

But hey – we do have some good ones!

So welcome, one and all, to this week’s installment of “What Does It Meme?”, Mexico News Daily’s bimonthly collection of humorous memes in Spanish, complete with Spanish to English translations and explanations. 

So take a load off, learn some Spanish, and have a good laugh!

Meme Translation: “Alexa, whistle at the corn guy.”

What does it meme? Most of us are now familiar with Alexa, the smart home AI assistant. She’s starting to catch on (albeit slowly) in some Mexican homes, too!

Alas, there are some things Alexa can’t do, like stick her head out the front door and whistle to get someone’s attention.

That’s too bad, because the elote guy’s attention is something you want. If you don’t make it out of your house on time, he might just pass you by! Who is “al de los elotes”? He’s a guy who pushes around a cart of delicious corn on the cob (usually steamed), as well as kernelled corn for cups (in that presentation it’s called “esquite.”) An “elote” is corn on the cob with all the fixings, which in Mexico includes mayonnaise, lime, cheese, and picante (powdered spice; you can also ask for “el que no pica” – the one that’s not as spicy). Until Alexa grows legs, flagging down the elotes is up to you!

Meme Translation: “When I’m old I’m going to be super cool, not some bitter old man.” “Me, old: ‘Assholes.’” (“Al chile,” the symbol in the upper corner, means something like “for real” or “seriously”, by the way…don’t ask me what it’s doing there).

What does it meme? My partner sent me this one after an extended laugh; he’s not yet 40, but has often said he already feels like an old man in a young person’s body. 

I’ve got to admit, I sympathize with the dude in the meme…my goodness is it easy to get frustrated with random people, especially when they’re driving terribly! I’m working on relaxing my face from a permanent scowl when I’m on the road, but only Botox could hide it at this point, I fear.

Meme Translation: “Humans around a campfire…it’s cold and I’m starving, I could ask for something to eat. What’s the worst that could happen?” “10,000 years later”

What does it meme? This is one of my favorite memes, like, ever; I’ve seen it in English as well (lots of memes actually get translated and republished these days, which to me is the internet working the way it’s supposed to: spreading good laughs). The pictures might change, but there’s always a wolf on top and an assortment of derpy-looking dogs on the bottom.

I think of it every time the temperature dips below 70 degrees Fahrenheit and all the dogs in my neighborhood are immediately outfitted with sweaters. Oh, how the mighty have fallen!

Meme Translation: “Lesbian: a woman who likes another woman.” “Gay: a man who likes another man.” “Puto: the one who’s reading this.”

What does it meme? Well, we’ve got to have at least one kind of offensive meme in the stack! The last line is a very old joke, similar to the “For a good time, call…” messages seen on US bathroom walls for decades. “Puto” is a derogatory term used for gay men, which is why I didn’t translate it to that above; it also connotes prostitution (“puta,” its female equivalent, means “whore”).

I don’t recommend that anyone use either of those words to insult someone, but I am proud to have introduced you to one of Mexico’s oldest vulgar jokes. You’re welcome!

Meme Translation: 🎶 “My first jooooob…” 🎶

What does it meme? Now let’s swim back up through the decades to arrive at a much more recent meme, usually shown in video fmemeorm; here’s a compilation of typical examples. 

Here’s how it goes: there’s a kind of silly song called “Mi Primera Chamba” (My First Job), and it’s always set to videos of people failing spectacularly and hilariously at their jobs. 

Cynicism about humanity and the state of the world right now seems to know no bounds, so God creating humans (unfortunately) seems to fit the genre just fine.

Meme Translation: “Good herb – yerba buena.” “The band – lavanda.” 

What does it meme? In Mexico, we like to play around with terrible translations as much as anyone, and they can be extra funny when they’re literal.

“Yerba buena” is the Spanish name for the spearmint plant, which I find adorable – the person who named it must have either really liked it, or just not known much about botany (“yerba mala,” for the record, is what they call weeds). But “good herb” is indeed the literal translation and a good example of why you shouldn’t trust literal translations.

“Lavanda” is the word for lavender; “la banda” (pronounced the same, as there’s hardly a distinction in the way “v” and “b” are pronounced here) is a kind of funny and super casual way to say “the guys” or “the group,” in addition to, of course, an actual band…people even sometimes kind of narrow their eyes and slow their speech to say it, doing their best imitation of a hippie high on pot. 

Meme Translation: “Tlaloc likes it when you offer your recently washed clothes to him in sacrifice.”

What does it meme? When it comes to hanging your laundry out to dry around here, Murphy’s Law seems to kick in every time. There might not be a cloud in the sky when you hang it, then an hour later, boom: it’s drizzling and the sky is threatening more.

But here’s a more fun way to look at it: a sacrifice to the old Aztec god Tlaloc, god of rain! Hopefully, all those freshly washed clothes please him and he’ll bless us by warding off drought and water shortages. Keep those sacrifices coming, people!

First article, with a note: I’m not encouraging you to curse, okay? But you’ll at least want to recognize what’s being said, right?

How to swear in Mexico: Curse words for south of the border

The time has come, my friends: it’s time to talk about cursing and swear words in Spanish, and in Mexico particularly. 

Several specific regions of Mexico are well known for their – ahem – colorful language. One of those places is my home state, Veracruz, where curse words flow as freely as the beer from our much-loved caguamas (those liter-sized returnable beer bottles), a mere expansion pack of our casual speech.

Other places, particularly those closer to the center of the country (save Mexico City) tend to be more conservative and proper in their speech, lest they be seen as crass or vulgar. Coastal cultures, particularly ones that became accustomed quickly to receiving “guests,” have by necessity developed a more open and relaxed attitude, pearl-clutching being something that just holds everyone up. 

That’s my theory, anyway.

Anyway, let’s get this show on the road! Though before we begin, the necessary heads up: there are very bad words below; don’t read them if you’re easily offended by off-color language. Below each, I’ve given a non-cursing alternative.

Common variations of “chingar.” This is the closest Mexican Spanish equivalent to the word “f*ck” in English. And like its English equivalent, it’s both very rude and very common. Common variants include the insults “chinga tu madre” (“F*ck your mother” – yikes) and “vete a la chingada” (Go f*ck yourself), the exclamation “¡chingada madre!” (Motherf*cker!) and the more tame “chingao”, whose equivalent might be an emphatic “damn it!” in English. “Chin” is closer to “darn it” if you want to use something extra tame but still common.

Honestly, an entire book could be filled talking about just this word…it’s complex and varied, with plenty to unpack culturally. But we’ll let someone else write it.

“Pendejo(a).” This is a common insult for calling someone something between an *sshole and an idiot. Incidentally, “idiota” sounds about as harsh to the Mexican ear as “*sshole” does to ours, so careful with that one! If you want to say something like “dummy,” “tonto” or “zonzo” are safe non-curse options, the latter being closer to “silly.”

“No mames.” This is also an exclamation you’ll likely hear pretty frequently that means, basically, “Come on,” or “No f*cking way,” or “You’ve got to be kidding me.” It literally means “Don’t suck,” and you say it when you’re calling someone out on their bad joke or misbehavior, or when you’re in disbelief (usually disappointed disbelief). One way to take the cursing sting out of it is the more tame “No manches” (literally, “Don’t stain”), which means the same thing. “No puede ser” (“It can’t be”) is a good slang-free option. (Funny side-note: my partner, a native veracruzano, saw this list and said, “What? “No mames” isn’t cursing!” It is.)

“Pinche.” This word is an adjective meaning “bad,” and I’d put it somewhere between “damn” and “f*cking” in terms of rudeness. It typically precedes another word (“Pinche comida fea” – “f*cking disgusting food”), and is used to emphasize your distaste for something. Alternatives include any other negative adjective or adverb like “terrible” or “terriblemente,” depending on which part of speech you need.

“Desmadre.” De…mother? Don’t ask me how anyone came up with that. Anyway, a desmadre is a big damn mess or maybe even “sh*tshow,” and can be used both for actual physical messes (“Con la construcción el tráfico está hecho un desmadre” – “With the construction going on, traffic’s just a big damn mess”) or for some kind of big blow-up fight. A tamer way to say it: desorden (literally, “disorder.”).

As I’m sure you know, this isn’t anywhere near a complete list. That said, all the words and phrases above are quite common.

I personally curse quite a lot in both languages — I learned Spanish in Veracruz, after all. I’m neither proud nor ashamed of it; it’s simply part of my vocabulary. Here in Veracruz nobody bats an eye, but I once said “desmadre” to a friend in Querétaro and promptly got a speech about how ladies didn’t talk like that. 

Just like in all languages, who is doing the cursing matters, as does the context. Hanging out with friends and having a few beers, fine; in a job interview or with someone’s grandma, not so smart. 

So go forth, my fellow compatriots, immigrants, and visitors, and understand more of what people are actually saying! 

Just be sure to proceed with caution if you plan to partake.

And, some more memes!

It’s a Saturday, and that means it must be time for the latest Spanish meme review with the newest installment of “but what does it meme?“

This week, find some spicy jokes, steal some laughs about an empathetic burglar and enjoy a staggeringly (ahem) funny confrontation between two jealous lovers. Let’s dive right in!

Meme translation: “Yeah! Let Taylor Swift score a goal!”

What does it meme? In case you were wondering, Taylor Swift-mania hit Mexico, too!

And while the Super Bowl isn’t quite as big of a deal down here as it is north of the border, there are plenty of watch parties because…well, we just like to party! Also, it’s true: many Mexicans actually like “American football,” which I’ll admit is a complete mystery to me.

That said, I think it’s fair to say we’ve all found plenty of amusement in the focus on Taylor Swift, who was responsible for getting more than the usual crowd watching the Super Bowl this year (and apparently a few Very Manly Men upset). Irreverence and desmadre is the name of the game in Mexico, and we are 100% here for it!

Meme translation: “Well, well, if it isn’t the consequences of my own actions.”

What does it meme? I’ve seen similar formats to this one in English, and it cracks me up in both languages. I also love it because it’s a humorous mirror to humanity, who would absolutely love to think that any sin committed is “free,” cosmically or otherwise.

My own observation of the culture in this respect is that people are either 100% resigned to this fact or 100% in denial (“How dare the waiter give anything less than stellar service after I was rude and didn’t leave a tip last time!”). There’s not often a whole lot in between.

Meme translation: “Honey, what were you doing online at 3 a.m.?” “And how do you know I was?”

What does it meme? To be fair, services like Facebook Messenger show you are pretty much always online even when you’re not, and I know plenty of insomniacs who are up and scrolling in the wee hours of the morning.

Most likely, though, “conectado” is referring to WhatsApp, Mexico’s most ubiquitous messaging service, which does pretty faithfully let you know when someone is online or not.

Now, for the picture: in Mexico, “ponerse los cuernos” (“to put on horns” apparently? I never really thought about how weird it sounded in English) means to be cheated on.

In the case above, it’s clear what each partner is assuming about the other. Who would one be talking to at 3 a.m.?

Meme translation: “Your life or your money?” “What life? What money?”

What does it meme? I might be hugging that poor fellow, too. In the lean, party-free months following the holidays, chances are we’re all feeling a little like him.

Meme translation: “Yesterday I was making lunch and my son said, ‘Mommy, one day I’m going to work and help you with the food and household expenses.’ My eyes filled with tears; my little boy is already 32.”

What does it meme? Young Mexican men have a reputation for never really learning their way around the house, as there’s a tendency for mothers to “baby” their babies — especially their male babies — for much longer than one would think. This isn’t universal, but it’s widespread enough to be firmly entrenched in the cultural imagination; the gender divide when it comes to housework and childcare is still pretty one-sided.

This is very fortunately not the case in my own home, and I hope and sense that a generational change away from this stereotype is afoot!

Meme translation: “Everyone’s talking about how cold it is in the city…but the cold of my body asks for you, and I don’t know where you are.”

What does it meme? This one sounds weird, I know. But the bottom part of this meme is a famous line from an even more famous song, Si No Te Hubieras Ido (“If You Hadn’t Left”). 

It’s such a romantic line, and it’s one that everyone knows even if they don’t know all the rest of the words (but they probably do). A karaoke classic!

Meme translation: “When you’re able to generate a molecule that’s an irritant so you don’t get eaten…but you grow in Mexico.”

What does it meme? Poor chiles. Evolution thought it had it all figured out. Unfortunately for spicy plants, a los mexicanos les gusta la mala vida (“Mexicans love the bad life”), as some around here would surely joke. 

In any case, I sure am grateful they figured out how to make those spicy plants tasty…mostly, within reason. 😉

As promised, I’m restarting my Wednesday republishing of articles I’ve written for Mexico News Daily. I’ll be doubling up until I “catch up” to the more recently published, so here are two!

Here’s the first: How to find what you need in a Mexican pharmacy, and not what you don’t!

The first time I walked into a Mexican pharmacy, I stood still in the doorway for a few beats. 

Why was it so small? Where was everything? No candy aisle, no greeting card aisle, no sexual health or feminine hygiene products aisle. In fact, there was nothing that could even be called “an aisle.”.

For such a cramped space, it was incredibly confusing.

I soon learned the ropes, and now, my fine readers, it is time to pass that knowledge on to you. Here’s what to remember when it’s time to go to the pharmacy in Mexico:

1. Not all pharmacies are created equally. In my neck of the woods, we can divide pharmacies up into three “tiers.” (When I say “tiers,” by the way, I’m not necessarily talking about quality, but about familiarity for those of us from the United States who are stores like Walgreens and CVS.)
   
   At the bottom is Farmacias Similares, which is a regional low-cost pharmacy chain stocked with cheap, generic versions of many medicines. Many of these pharmacies also come with an attached consultorio (doctor’s office), where one can see a general doctor for minor illnesses like digestive or respiratory infections. The doctor will write you a prescription if one is warranted and recommend other medicines for your symptoms, which you can (of course) buy at the pharmacy. The fee for seeing the doctor is symbolic (about 50 pesos, or close to US $3), and the pharmacy itself is countertop-style and pretty no-frills — there’s no “store” to walk into. Needless to say, you must ask an attendant to fetch the medicines you need, and the supply of basic toiletries is fairly limited.

2. Farmacias Similares, by the way, is where you might find someone dressed up in a Dr. Simi mascot costume, a staple of modern Mexican culture. As far as I’m concerned, their medicines are just as good as any others, though I have had doctors tell me not to buy certain medicines there, so apparently there are medical professionals out there who have their doubts, valid or not.
   
   The next tier would include chains like Farmacias de Ahorro and Yza, which may or may not come with an attached consultorio (Farmacias de Ahorro usually does, and theirs is free). At these pharmacies, there is a little “store” area with items you can pick up and examine, though these are restricted to a fairly small variety of toiletries and over-the-counter medicines. Condoms are mercifully available in this area now as well (you had to ask for them at the counter when I first arrived in Mexico). On the shelves, you can also find things like nail clippers and lip balm, and maybe a few snacks and refrigerated drinks. A few different brands of baby formula and diapers are available behind the counter, as well. Most independent pharmacies are similarly stocked.
   
   Finally — this is a long “item” for a list, I know — are larger pharmacies like Farmacias Guadalajara and Farmacias San Pablo, which are the most similar in terms of selection to a place like CVS, though without as much variety; I’d include grocery store pharmacy areas in this tier, as well. Medicines tend to be a little pricier, but if you need to get more specific toiletries or other things on the same trip that you might normally look for in a tiendita or grocery store, these pharmacies can be very convenient.
   
   Lastly, homeopathic pharmacies are in their own class, and there’s usually a homeopathic doctor available if you choose to go that route.

3. You don’t need a prescription for everything. When I first arrived, you could ask for pretty much any kind of medication, including antibiotics, and they would just sell it to you. That’s no longer true for antibiotics or stronger pain medications (more on that below).
   
   One notable area on this subject is birth control: in Mexico, you can simply ask for birth control pills (by brand, as there are many), as well as the morning-after pill at a pharmacy without a prescription. While abortion before 12 weeks of gestation is now officially legal at the federal level in Mexico, asking for the abortion pill (Mifepristone) may yield success on a case-by-case basis, depending on the pharmacist you are dealing with. A quick online search of local pharmacies makes it appear that this is completely possible, but seek the advice of a medical professional.
   
   Other medicines you might be surprised to learn you don’t need a prescription for are psychiatric, like many generic versions of SSRIs, a class of antidepressants used to treat depression and anxiety. Treatments that are known to be addictive, like stimulants, for example, are less widely available and can still only be bought with a prescription and are often subject to shortages. Weight-loss wonder drug Ozempic is similarly available over the counter across all of Mexico.
   
   As with all major medical procedures and treatments, starting anything new under the treatment of a doctor is always the most advisable.

4. You probably won’t find everything you’re looking for. Part of this is simply because the market in Mexico is unique and certain brands haven’t expanded here (luckily Excedrin Migraine finally has…now if I could only get a hold of some Tylenol Sinus!). The lesson? If you have a go-to over-the-counter medicine that works for you, you might want to stock up during trips back home.
   
   And if you’re looking for something particularly strong, such as opioids, you’re likely not going to find them anywhere outside of a hospital. If you do happen to find them, I’d advise you to be incredibly suspicious of their origin and authenticity: that level of pain medication in Mexico is typically reserved for palliative care; my mother couldn’t even access them after having surgery here. Since certain pharmacies in tourist and border areas have been found to sell counterfeit medications containing fentanyl (those that do typically advertise these drugs heavily to foreigners, another tell-tale sign worthy of avoidance and suspicion), it’s best to stay far away.

Like with many things in Mexico, a trip to the pharmacy will be a different experience than you’re probably used to, one in which you’ll need to interact with the people who work there to get what you need. Thankfully, you’ll likely find people to be as helpful and accommodating as they are elsewhere. Happy shopping, and get better soon!


Now, for the next! Behold, some more Mexican memes:

What Spanish memes are trending in Mexico this week?

We’re back with another installment of What does it Meme? To share the most popular Mexican memes translated for your risas!

I don’t know about you all, but I sure remember things better when they’re funny. Hence, it’s a logical conclusion that reading funny things in Spanish will help them stick better in your brain…right?

Whether you’re here to learn some new words, or just here for some good ol’ fashioned Mexican humor, we’ve got you covered with this week’s installment of But what does it meme?

Meme translation: “Someone: Hey, isn’t it tiring being a mom and working?” “No, not at all.”

What does it meme? This is part of an entire genre of memes where women who look completely torn up say something to the degree of “Oh yes, doing everything on my own/motherhood/staying home with toddlers (etc.) is easy!” It’s a favorite of mine, as I’m generally a fan of finding the humorous side (sometimes the darkly humorous side) of tough situations that can’t be changed very easily.

I also appreciate that it’s appearing so much in Spanish for cultures where it’s been, until quite recently, pretty taboo for a mother to admit that being a mother is tough, as opposed to sucking it up and doing one’s best to be perceived as the Virgin Mary (everyone’s ideal mother around here) herself.

Meme translation: “We’ve been fired because they realized we lied in our interviews about speaking English fluently.” “Oh darno :(“

What does it meme? “Darno” is a made-up word, and so is “caracoleishion.” So what gives? 

The same way an English speaker might jokingly put an “o” at the end of any word to make it “sound Spanish” (my sister loves doing this: “What do you think of my new plantos?”), so Spanish speakers put the /shun/ (like in the last syllable of “concentration”) sound at the end of Spanish words to make them sound like they’re in English. A good friend of mine who speaks zero English, for example, sometimes says to be funny “Estoy en la limpieshion” (she’s cleaning).

“Caracoles” is a funny way to say something like “darn it” or “dang it” in Spanish, which strikes me as 100% adorable. Snails!

Meme translation: “If a hen is overcome with emotion, does it get person bumps?”

What does it meme? In English, we say “goosebumps.” In Spanish, though, it’s “piel de gallina” (literally “hen skin”). 

So what might hens say? We may never know, and that’s the kind of thing that keeps He-Man up at night.

Meme translation: “Why did you leave me on read?” “I was eating.” “For the past five days?” “I was really hungry.”

What does it meme? It’s cute, of course, but the main reason I added this meme is for the key phrase “dejar en visto.” This means to “leave on read,” considered by many – usually depending on their age – to be a grave sin. 

My go-to when I’m the one who’s left someone else on read is usually, “I am so sorry, every time I thought about writing you I didn’t have my phone open in front of me and I’d get distracted and forget when I did,” which is lame but true. Maybe it’s time to get a little more creative!

Meme translation: “Entrepreneurship is my passion.” (on truck) “Mobile Motel”

What does it meme? Well, maybe it’s not the worst idea out there. Still, it looks a little grungy.

By the way, an important difference between “hotel” and “motel” down here: while the difference in the US is mostly regarding the price and how nice it is, In Mexico, it’s a bit more marked. “Hotels” are where you go to stay for one or more nights if you’re, say, on vacation or on a business trip.

A motel, however, is the kind of place where they rent the room by the hour (ahem) and you put your car in a hidden individual garage while you’re there, lest someone recognize it and start a trail of gossip. Since many Mexicans live with their parents until they get married, motels can provide the kind of privacy you wouldn’t find at home. And a mobile motel is actually not a terrible idea if no one in the relationship has a car! The one above, however, could still use a little work.

Meme translation: “My parents: What do you want to go to Oaxaca for?” “Me:”

What does it meme? I’m old enough to have seen Nacho Libre in the movie theater as a college student, and I loved it immediately. Believe it or not, I still watch it at least once a year, and I have a sister and a friend with whom I regularly quote the movie.

This cult classic about a monk who wants to be a pro wrestler was filmed in Oaxaca, and I would consider a trip to some of the filming sites a very worthy destination – but only if I had my lucha libre mask with me, of course!

Meme translation: “My family: ‘Heaven just got another angel.’” “Me, reincarnated as a rat.”

What does it meme? Mexicans are well-known for many wonderful qualities; that said, the ability to admit that maybe you haven’t been the perfect person you pretend to be (ask yourself how many times you’ve seen someone truly and sincerely take personal responsibility for something bad that happened) are not among them.

So, it’s refreshing to see this kind of sentiment expressed (albeit humorously): “Nah, I’m no angel.”

What’s the last frontier in language learning?

Why, it’s humor, of course! In this column, we bring you Spanish-language memes galore, complete with English translations and explanations of what makes them funny. So sit back and enjoy, for the time has come for your Mexican memes of the week!

Meme Translation: “People downtown complaining about the other people downtown.”

What does it meme? Ah, Christmastime in the city. If only there were a little more space to move around! 

The downtown areas of most cities and towns in Mexico tend to get fairly decked out during the holidays, and events for families abound. There’s more going on in the shopping world, with special markets set up to accommodate last-minute Christmas gift hunters. 

All this means that things can get pretty crowded…what a nice time we’d have if it weren’t for all these people taking up space, am I right?

Meme Translation: “Look at you dancing cumbia last night. And you claim to be a rocker!”

What does it meme? One of my favorite things about attending Mexican parties is watching pretty alternative-looking people join in the festivities in surprising ways: no matter where people are from or what stage of life they’re in, they all seem to magically know every word to every song a mariachi group might play; a lot more people than you’d think dance as well, especially if you’re from a country where most men, by definition, do not dance at all.

And Christmas Eve, by the way, is a great party and no solemn occasion: walk into most celebrations on that day and you might mistake it for New Year’s Eve!

Meme Translation: “Selfie with the birthday boy.”

What does it meme? In Catholic families (which is most families around here), a traditional posada includes putting “el niño Jesús,” a doll, in his place on the nativity scene. This means that before Christmas, you’ll see his little hay crib empty, but afterward, he’ll be in the manger where he belongs, waiting for the arrival of the Three Kings on January 7th that will bring him and all the other children gifts.

Meme Translation: “Is my Christmas gift ready?” “Yup, just got to wrap myself up.” “Hahaha, be sure to save the receipt so I can return it.”

What does it meme? This person’s attempt at being cute backfired majorly! A word to the wise: don’t assume the gift of yourself is enough, ha!

Meme Translation: “*Family reunion.*” “Me going into my room:”

What does it meme? Another thing about those Mexican parties? They tend to last very late into the night. So when they’re being held at someone’s house and the babies start getting cranky, they’re inevitably taken to a room with a bed to rest while the party goes on. 

My family and I went to a friend’s Christmas Eve party this year, and there were about 40 people. After the posada, meal, and games, we headed out around 11 p.m. Everyone was still there celebrating. 

I guess a few kids fell asleep before their parents were ready to go home. When you’re in it for the long haul, you’ve got to find solutions!

Meme Translation: “I’m so full, I over ate.” “Who wants turkey?” “Me! And a little bit of that apple salad.”

What does it meme? As I’ve mentioned, these are the days of gigantic meal after gigantic meal, and then leftovers from said gigantic meals. 

Unfortunately for our waistlines, it’s too good to pass up! And just like in every other country, gyms will be waiting for us with open arms come January. 

Meme Translation: “Santa, this isn’t the crush I meant.”

What does it meme? The word “crush,” as in the person you’re romantically interested in, is widely used and understood in Mexico. Too bad Santa didn’t realize that!

If you’re on a quest to understand Mexican humor — or at least to find the best Mexican memes to share with your friends — we’ve got you covered! Here’s this week’s curated collection with a translation, background, any relevance to current events, and hopefully, a good chuckle.

Meme translation: “I’m sorry, but the rental agreement has a ‘no pets’ clause.” (picture sent) “Well, I’ll make an exception because he looks very polite.”

What does it meme? Every animal-loving renter (or would-be renter) has run into the “no pets” problem at least once. Perhaps the trick is just to find an extremely polite-looking pet!

Meme translation: “Take care of my ecosystem just like you take care of your bill.”

What does it meme? This one is more sweet than funny, a reminder to give value to things that need to have a value assigned to them. 

The axolotl, an adorable…amphibian, I think?…is having a moment. It even made it onto the new award-winning bank note in 2021! Many people, myself included, still treasure the first ones they received, mostly crisp and in perfect condition (we’ve got ours between the pages of a book). The little dude above reminds us that many things need to be taken care of, some even more than a 50-peso bank note.

Meme translation: “Let’s do something.” “Okay, what?” “If you can guess what animal this is, you can be my girlfriend.” “A DOG.” “Ta-da!”

What does it meme? Well, no one can say that Mexican men aren’t persistent! Add playful and charming to the list, and it’s easy to see how one might get entangled in romance around here. I’ve seen this meme make the round a few times, and it never fails to crack me up! 

Meme translation: Y’all know what? It did not occur to me until I was proofreading this thing that this one is actually in English. Something to not look forward to about being fully bilingual: not realizing what language something is in. Whoops!

What does it meme? If you’ve got many Spanish-speaking friends on social media, you might have noticed that they write “haha” as “jaja,” which is phonetically the same. I learned Spanish back in the days when one would have to go to an internet café to instant message people on MSN Messenger (as close to “texting” as we got back then), and pretty much immediately got used to laughing “in Spanish.” It didn’t make me feel like I had a giant brain, but it was a minor indicator that I was at least somewhat familiar with the language.

I got a little too used to it, though, and later my mom asked me in desperation, “Why do you keep saying ‘yes’ a bunch in German? What does that even mean?”

Meme translation: “Don’t let this beer be an inspiration to call your ex in a pathetic attempt to get back with them. Excellent grains and hops died to make this drink. Show some respect.”

What does it meme? Overall, we’re a passionate, romantic bunch down here. Unfortunately, when that passion gets paired with alcohol, exes can get dialed or texed, kisses can get planted on the wrong person and declarations of love can get shouted from the…bar stool tops. You get the idea. Kudos to this beer maker for trying to prevent a regrettable decision before it happens! 

Meme translation: “Why haven’t they put up the Christmas tree downtown yet?” “City workers untangling the lights.”

What does it meme? The tone in most countries lately seems to be a grouchy, “Oh, government! Can’t they do anything right?” This meme reminds us that behind every institution, public or private, there are real people – or mice – trying to untangle the Christmas lights from last year, just like the rest of us.

Meme translation: “I’m going to swallow my pride and talk to him…” “Excuse me, aren’t you going to give me a calendar? I buy things here all the time.”

What does it meme? There are always some small businesses – often stores or the gas delivery company – that have simple, through-the-year one-page wall calendars made up with their name on it and some kind of holiday message (“Gas Express wishes you a very happy holiday!” or something) to give to their loyal customers.

I always appreciate the gesture, but it’s never occurred to me to look forward to them or count on their use. My partner, however, has already mentioned several times that he wants a calendar from the gas delivery people…so we’ll be ordering gas in a week or so when (hopefully) they’ll be handing them out!

Meme translation: “When the game is loading and you see your reflection in the television.”

What does it meme? I don’t know about you all, but the combination of the colder weather and often sad world news has me spending a lot of time inside staring at the TV, where it’s easy to forget what you should be doing for an episode or six.

This particular meme is for people playing video games, but I see a similar image when the following episode is loading! Maybe it’s time to get up and do something!

Meme translation: “December begins.” “The fish right away:” (And yes, that’s a Bacardi bottle and a can of Modelo beer.)

What does it meme? This is a reference to a popular Christmas carol in Spanish, Los Peces en el Rio. The second part of the chorus goes, “Beben y beben y vuelven a beber; los peces en el río por ver a Dios nacer.” (In English: They drink and they drink, and they drink again; the fish in the river will soon see God as he is born.) 

I’ve never really understood the song – do fish “drink” water? And how does drinking water help them see the Baby Jesus? – but it’s a popular one that most people learn as kids, and it’s sweet. Anyway!

“To drink,” in Spanish, just like in English, can mean to drink alcohol, and “in the river” (en el río) can double as “by the river.” Looks like these fish have found a nice loophole in the lyrics! 

Meme translation: “My ex when they tell their version of the story.”

What does it meme? I’ve hinted before in a few articles that Mexicans can fall a bit on the dramatic side when it comes to the ending of relationships: to hear people tell it, every woman is “crazy,” “lazy,” and possibly secretly abusive, and every man is a cheater and a player who only wants some kind of cross between a mother/servant and a friend with benefits.

Judging from the way my ex’s current partner refuses to look or smile at me, I’m guessing that according to him, I’m about as unstable and neglectful as they come. Alas, I might not ever know!

Meme translation: “Today we’ll be making origami with your victim paper (role).”

What does it meme? The reason this works as a joke is because of the word papel, which can mean both “paper” and “role” in Spanish. Easy enough to remember, right?

So, who is this person? Why, it’s the beloved Cositas (which means “little things”), famous for teaching children crafts – like origami! – on her TV show. She was on during the times of Barney, that big purple dinosaur, and was (from what I understand – I was never a kid in Mexico) about as popular.

This clever blow, coming from Señorita Cositas? Burn.

Meme translation: “I hereby inaugurate the message: ‘We need to get together before the end of the year.’”

What does it meme? If you’re a busy señora like me, you’re probably struggling to find the time to hang out with anyone not in your immediate family or work circle right now. But it’s already December, so if suddenly, you realize you haven’t seen your good friends in the past few months, now’s the time. And with so many holiday events just around the corner, surely you’ll find the time, right? Riiiiiight.

These messages have already started to arrive in my own chats with friends, with a tentative posada date of December 15th. Will we? Won’t we? So much could happen: extended work assignments, sick kids, sick us…only time will tell.

Meme translation: “What I imagine when people say ‘magical town.’”

What does it meme? Mexico’s “magical towns” has been a wildly successful government program that gears funds towards lovely smaller communities that people might not otherwise hear about, in order to showcase their charm and attract both local and international tourism.

“Magical towns” is a great name if you ask me, and when I hear it, I think more about the magical realism literary style than actual magic going on there. Even so, a cow flying through the air is quality entertainment, so I had to include this one! 

Meme translation: “Trees during Christmas.” “The birds in their nests.”

What does it meme? I’ve seen several versions of this meme – oddly, only in Spanish – and it cracks me up every time. In my city, we’ve got a lot of birds, and I’ll admit…we don’t often stop to ask ourselves if the lights bother them when they’re sleeping!

Incidentally, a friend of mine has surely been looking exactly like this guy for the past few nights: her neighbors put up flashing Christmas lights that they never turn off, and they’re those bright LED lights that I always say should be illegal. 

Why doesn’t she go and ask them to turn them off after a certain time? I asked. But alas, no one ever thinks that directly confronting someone, even kindly and openly, is a good idea around here.

While I miss writing opinion pieces of the sort that the main publication I write for no longer wants to publish, I am having fun hunting for memes each week.

Also, you may have noticed that I didn’t publish anything this past Sunday, something I totally forgot about until Sunday night. Whoops! I’ve got a good story rolling around my mind though, so this Sunday it’s coming. For real.

In the meantime, enjoy!

If you’re on a quest to understand Mexican humor – or at least to find the best Mexican memes to share with your friends – we’ve got you covered! Here’s this week’s curated collection of memes with a translation, background, any relevance to current events and hopefully, a good chuckle.

Meme translation: “I’m feeling lazier than Disney’s graphic designer.”

What does it meme? I selected this meme for two reasons: 1) it’s funny, and 2) I wanted to point out the phrase “tengo flojera,” which means, roughly, “I’m feeling lazy and don’t want to do anything.” Like hunger, “laziness” is something to have rather than to be.

And you’ve got to admit: whoever designed those movie posters definitely found a style and stuck with it!

Meme translation: “My son won’t eat fish; what can I replace it/him with?” → “With a kitty. Kitties love fish.”

What does it meme? This is one of those jokes that works more in Spanish than in English. The reason? The direct object pronoun “lo” could be referring to either the fish or the son, given that both nouns are masculine. The joke, of course, is that it’s the child, not the fish, that is replaced in the answer. 

“Michi” is a cute word for “cat,” mostly used by cat lovers (gato and its diminutive, gatito, are the words you probably already know for cat).

Meme translation: “Thanks to a quite respectful client, I just realized that I’ve spent over a year telling people to get naked with me (bare with me) instead of to have patience with me (bear with me).”

What does it meme? We’re not the only ones who make second-language mistakes! There are plenty of Spanish-speaking people throughout Latin America who work in customer service for English-speaking populations.

The above mistake isn’t particularly egregious, especially since most English-speakers wouldn’t even notice the misspelling. It’s certainly not as bad as the time I told my Spanish teacher that I lived in the condones (condoms) down the street (Note: you can’t shorten “condominium” in Spanish the same way you can in English.).

Meme translation: “Don’t go, it’s barely midnight!” → “But this is the last combi to my house!”

What does it meme? “House” in this case is understood to mean “neighborhood,” but no matter. Once the combis stop coming, you’re out of luck.

“Combis” are vans that operate on bus routes throughout the day (and part of the night). In my own city, combis supplement major bus routes when there’s a lot of dead time in the bus schedule, or they replace them entirely  when the streets are too narrow for a bus to get through. When you board a combi, you pay the driver and have a seat (if you can) on one of the benches that line the interior. When it’s time to get off, you can either press the red button on the grab bar, or you can simply shout “¡Bajan!”

Meme translation: “This has been a year of personal growth.” → “The personal growth:”

What does it meme? Unfortunately, this is one that we can all likely sympathize with: the “personal” growth of our bodies! Especially with the Mexican holiday marathon, which is just getting started, those sizes aren’t likely to go back down very soon.

Well, there’s always New Year’s resolutions! 

Meme translation: “tell me something I don’t know” → “The first letter of a sentence should always be capitalized.”

What does it meme? I know this meme is kind of sexist (and the fact that I find it hilarious checks with my generation’s general discomfort with posting selfies that strangers can comment on), but as a fellow grammar and punctuation snob, it gave me a hearty laugh! 

Meme translation: “You know you’re doing things right when a three-million-dollar vehicle comes by to pick you up every day.”

What does it meme? What’s the three-million-dollar vehicle? Why, the metro car, of course! 

This meme struck me as sweeter (“tierno,” most people would say) than funny, as it reminds us of the amazing feats of infrastructure and organization available to us every day. 

Modern public transportation is a pretty sweet deal.

Meme translation: “Yeah yeah, f*** off.” (on box: “Halloween crap”)

What does it meme? “A la chingada” might actually be 20% less strong than my best English translation of the phrase – perhaps the way British people in the movies say it so nonchalantly as if they didn’t have such a cemented Puritan history? My point is, it’s rude but you’ll hear it.

Anyway, when used in the way it is above (yes, there are other meanings!) it’s a common dismissive phrase when people just don’t want to hear about something anymore. Chingaderas is also somewhat rude, at perhaps slightly about the same level as my translation of it.

Well, we’ve got to admit: we’re ready to decorate for Christmas, right?

But until then, have some more memes!

If you’re on a quest to understand Mexican humor – or at least to find the best Mexican memes to share with your friends – we’ve got you covered! Here’s this week’s curated collection with a translation, background, any relevance to current events, and hopefully, a good chuckle.

Meme Translation: “Shakira after paying 7 million Euros.” “Me after paying my electric bill.”

What does it meme? If you’ve been following celebrity news, which I highly recommend as a nice respite from the regular news, then you might know that beloved Colombian singer-songwriter Shakira – who, by the way, is responsible for teaching me, like, 20% of the Spanish I know – was charged by Spanish authorities for tax evasion. Luckily, she can pay the bill, and hey, at least she’s not a US citizen.

For most of us, even the regular bills hurt, more so lately as the peso continues to strengthen against the dollar. At least we can laugh about it, right?

Meme Translation: “Were you a good dog?” “Yes! I sat. I was loyal and provided love to my human family.” “And you, were you a good cat?” “You’re sitting in my chair.”

What does it meme? Y’all have probably figured out by now that I’m a sucker for cute animal memes. No matter what language they’re meowing in, cats seem to be known the world over for their entitled attitudes!

Meme Translation: “Me: I wasn’t even that drunk.” “My friend: Dude! You cried over the song La Vaca Lola, because she has a tail (a butt) and you don’t.”

What does it meme? “La Vaca Lola” is a beloved children’s song in preschools all over the country, and likely all over the Spanish-speaking world. It goes like this: “La vaca Lola, la vaca Lola, tiene cabeza y tiene cola, y hace muuu!” It’s one of those songs that everybody knows because they learned it as kids, kind of like Twinkle Twinkle, Little Star. So what had that girl upset?

“Cola” can have a few meanings in Spanish, and one of them is, to put it politely, “butt.” I guess it hurts to feel outdone by a cartoon cow!

Meme Translation: “My preferred hobbies: – squeeze, but not strangle; – help the early riser; – make people so they come together; – know why I do things; – have perfect timing; – need another angel in Heaven; – work in mysterious ways.”

What does it meme? Chances are that you recognize some form of these phrases in English; many of them are ways that people describe the wisdom of their favorite god. In Spanish, some of them even rhyme! “Al que madruga, Dios le ayuda.” (In English, that’s “God helps the early riser,” though I prefer another version that I know for certain is true, “El que madruga, no encuentra nada abierto” – “The early riser finds nothing open.”)

Meme Translation: This meme, of course, has no words, unless you look at the signs. The first one says “Pasteles,” (cakes) and the second one likely says “Panadería” (bakery), or possibly, simply “Pan” (bread).

What does it meme? Ah, the famous bolillo: the bread roll you see adorning a tree placed in front of the baked goods section of a grocery store! Bolillos are the kind of bread often used to make tortas. They’re cheap, they’re sturdy, and they can last for a while. Go to Mexico City, and you’re likely to find all kinds of things stuffed between two slices of bolillo. In fact, chilangos (as Mexico City residents are often called), often get made fun of for putting pretty much any kind of food between two slices.

Meme Translation: (on screen) “How do you make a voodoo doll?” “Finally done…oh yeah, that feels good.”

What does it meme? There have been a lot of adorable voodoo doll memes in which kind acts are done to the dolls instead of evil ones, and they are just too sweet and wholesome not to share. Another of my favorites says something like, “Can whoever has my voodoo doll please give it a kiss on the forehead and put a little spending money in its pocket?”

Meme Translation: “She said to do whatever I wanted to her, so I made her my princess.” “Article 12 – In the United States of Mexico no titles of nobility shall be given.”

What does it meme? This is one of my favorite memes of all time and makes me literally laugh out loud. The top panel is practically nausea-inducing with that prince-rescuing-the-loose-woman-teaching-her-to-value-herself trope, so the panel of the Dwight Schrute-like judge saying, basically, “absolutely not” just floors me.

For anyone who’s had to deal with Mexican bureaucracy, most authorities’ lack of a sense of humor…and of romance, at that, is most certainly recognizable.

Meme translation: “Apartment for rent five minutes from the beach; if you trip, it’s only one minute!”

What does it meme?: Basically, to be cautious when getting excited about rental listings! Seriously, though: I often joke that “safety third!” is Mexico’s official motto when it comes to building everything from public infrastructure to private homes, and this photograph proves the rule. 

Mexicans, of course, take this kind of thing in stride: unlike the U.S. where the builder of something like this would get sued fairly quickly, the prevailing wisdom in Mexico is simply, “Well, watch where you’re going!”

Meme translation: “Well, well, another pregnant lady on Earth! Woosh, woosh, take that, you little brat!” → “Aha! You can’t hurt my child, I’m wearing a red ribbon, and some safety pins just in case. Double protection!”

What does it meme?: Every culture has superstitions around pregnancy (and everything else, I guess), and this is a prominent one in Mexico: if you’re pregnant during a solar eclipse, then you need some extra protection to keep the phenomenon from hurting the fetus. What protection do you need, you might ask? Why, a red ribbon tied around your pregnant belly of course, and safety pins (or at least something metal) for good measure. It sounds pretty wild to most people, but if you think about it, we all have our superstitions and rituals to guard against what often feels like the random and uncontrollable cruelty of nature at large.

Meme translation: “OBJECTIVE: Go running every morning.” → “OBSTACLE: Running is what cowards do.”

What does it meme?: If you need an excuse to not exercise, look no further – you can simply claim you’re brave! Like everyone everywhere, excuses for avoiding exercises are the absolute easiest to come up with.

Meme translation: “I only spent $30 (about $2 USD) on breakfast at the market, and instead of spending $250 ($15 USD) on an Uber, I took the bus…Now I have diarrhea and I’m lost.”

What does it meme?: In Mexico (depending on where you live of course), it’s possible for 10,000 pesos to be enough for the month, and for 100,000 pesos to be not nearly enough for the month. While some of that depends on location, much of it depends on lifestyle.

If you’re not used to eating in places that may or may not have excellent sanitary ratings, doing so can be both an adventure and a risk. And before boarding a bus, be sure to ask where it goes…and perhaps ask the conductor or a fellow passenger to let you know where to get off for good measure!

Meme translation: “Spotify: I’m sorry, you were off by one letter, we can’t find that song.” → “YouTube: endaaaaaaa iaaaaaa…”

What does it meme?: There’s a whole genre of funny videos and audios of people requesting English-language songs with the lyrics of what they think is being said in Spanish. But some people (and apps) are better at guessing than others! Here, we sing the praises of YouTube over Spotify search engines!

Meme translation: “All people know how to do is complain instead of enjoying everything the country has to offer.”

What does it meme?: Ask a Mexican what, on a philosophical level, Mexico’s problem is, and quite a few will point out the collective Mexican psyche, usually calling it “hypocritical.” “People complain about everything but they’re perfectly happy contributing to the problems,” they might say…follow them down this road of reflection, and they’ll usually admit to doing the same.

But sometimes, there’s a moment of clarity and appreciation for what’s special about their lives…and this fabulous meme is a spoof on that.

Meme translation: “My mom: go to the store to see if there are any nochebuenas (the word for poinsettias in Spanish), and bring some home if there are.” → “Me, back from the store.”

What does it meme?: If you’ve been in Mexico around Christmastime, you might know about one of its famous seasonal beers, which shares its name with the famous seasonal plant (and native plant to Mexico!), the poinsettia. And unlike other places in North America, it’s plenty common to send your kids to the store to fetch some beer!

Noche Buena is made by Bohemia, which is my favorite commercial beer here (that’s saying a lot, as I’m kind of an insufferable beer snob). It’s heavy and alcoholic, a good way to warm up on some cold winter nights that just hit different in the absence of central climate control. Just be sure to drink it earlier rather than later in the season – unlike wine, beer is best enjoyed fresh!

Thankfully, showing up with a case of this instead of a plant won’t likely anger too many people.

This was the very first article I wrote for Mexico News Daily back in 2019. AMLO had only recently come into office as president, and the country was brimming with hope that finally, things would be different.

While much of the hope I felt in the beginning has soured to cynicism — as it often does when it comes to promising politicians — I still believe in the value of a good apology. Enjoy.

While staying at a bed and breakfast in Guanajuato back during the George W. Bush administration, I chatted one morning over breakfast with some Canadian women.

Upon hearing I was from Texas, one of them said, “Really! Well, you Texans have a lot of apologizing to do”.

I was irked, of course, especially since I was (and am) a card-carrying liberal who had voted against and even protested against “W,” and who did these ladies think they were, anyway?

(Disclaimer: I have always been extremely jealous of Canadians, what with their national health care system and smooth social graces.)

President López Obrador’s proposal that Spain owes Mexico an apology for the conquest (and while we’re thinking about apologizing, the Catholic church to the country’s indigenous population) has me thinking about that incident once again. How responsible are we for our past, or for the place and culture that we come from?

“Let bygones be bygones” seems to be built into Mexican culture, possibly out of necessity: if you’re an hour late, they’re at least happy that you made it; if you had a huge fight the last time you were together, well, that was a while back, and maybe a beer and a party will help.

Mexicans don’t seem to spend a lot of time sitting around dwelling on past hurts, which is one of the things I love about them.

That said, there are quite a few “bygones” to get over when it comes to the conquest. Through disease, murder and, as some now believe, a pair of very inconveniently-timed droughts, the indigenous population was decimated.

Alliances with tributaries to Tenochtitlán and the subsequent battles against the Aztecs crippled many indigenous cultures, and weakened status and forced labor became the name of the game for many that were left.

There were plenty of indigenous people, of course, who helped Spain put an end to the Aztec empire. I wonder, if they could see the centuries of after-effects of that, if they’d have made the same decision.

While Cortés and his men were busy with physical conquest, Spanish missionaries set to work winning over the hearts and minds of the populace, though not always peacefully. Through oftenforced “re-education,” the indigenous learned to at least make a show of worshiping the Christian “gods.”

The church was particularly good at comparing saints to already-established indigenous gods, and I often like to imagine them walking to church to pray to “la virgen” (cough-Tonantzín-cough-cough), though my fantasies of subversion could quite possibly be pure imagination.

Though a number of people make a point of honoring their indigenous roots, for the most part, day-to-day indigenous life is decidedly uncool and backwards to most. We celebrate festivities, we love the costumes, we still say “guajolote” for turkey and start sentences with “when they conquered us . . .”

We also consistently find European features to be more attractive than indigenous ones, and it’s obvious that there’s a pretty strong correlation between skin color and socioeconomic status. Grandmothers jokingly encourage their children and grandchildren to “mejorar la raza” (improve the race), and like in most other places of the Americas, the indigenous population is the poorest, the least educated and the most consistently abused and exploited.

The more they can conform to the culture of their conquerers, the better off they do, and this is as true today as it was 500 years ago.

My Facebook feed for the past couple of days has been filled with jokes about AMLO’s request, but I’d argue that apologies for things that happened long ago in which the perpetrators were entire countries are not unprecedented: Germany apologized for the Holocaust, Tony Blair apologized for England’s role in the potato famine of Ireland and former Prime Minister Rudd of Australia apologized for the country’s role in “the lost generation” (the unfortunate habit of white settlers stealing indigenous children).

I’ve apologized for many wrongs, intended and not; it’s not a hard thing to do, and it’s healing both for the wronged party and for the released guilt of the perpetrator.

Much to my dismay, AMLO’s detractors have done a fairly good job at making him seem like one big joke. I’ll admit that he’s eccentric and fixated on his self-appointed tasks enough that he doesn’t always help himself recover in that department.

It’s true, there are plenty of pressing matters that are more important than obtaining a 500 years-too-late apology from the country your own culture has been inextricably blended with and the church that over 90% of your citizens now belong to. But why not apologize anyway? Is it so undignified?

As for myself, I officially apologize, on behalf of the state of Texas, for giving the country George W. Bush as president. That said, not everything he did was terrible, and to grow means to accept that even one’s enemies and rivals make good points sometimes.

On the occasion of apologizing for the Japanese internment camps during World War II, Bush said, “No nation can fully understand itself or find its place in the world if it does not look with clear eyes at all the glories and disgraces of its past.”

Right you are, Bush.

Last week was the first week that I missed my Sunday post.

Honesty, I just forgot: my sister arrived on Saturday for a week-long visit and in the excitement and business of preparing things and picking her up, it got pushed out of the part of my mind that remembers someone-routine things.

What followed was a weird, weird trip.

She’d had COVID the week before and still wasn’t feeling great, so most of the plans we’d made for the week were postponed for the next trip. But we weren’t fazed: we were determined to make the most of it.

Truthfully, we’d hang out with each other in Hell if that were the only option.

And that’s pretty much what we did.

On Sunday, we went to visit a friend from the States who lives outside of Perote, a high-elevation and cold desert-like area not too far from here. How striking it is that two wildly-different ecosystems can exist in such close proximity!

My friend had invited us to a barbecue, which I thought would be at her house. Instead, we went to a hacienda she’d been wanting to see and had finally gained access to after a lot of trying, with plans to have a barbecue in the middle of the wilderness instead — a surprise to me given that all of our previous outings had been, in their majority, fairly bourgeoise affairs.

I was a bit worried for my sister’s comfort, but in the spirit of adventure and an almost dog-like desire to please those around us, we both tend to go along in most cases without protest.

The hacienda, it turns out, was in the middle of nowhere: we drove 20 minutes without passing a single man-made structure in order to get there.

When we arrived, we were greeted by a jovial-seeming 50-something year-old man and a young girl, who at first I thought was his daughter who might have had some kind of mental incapacity: she didn’t speak or look anyone in the eye, but followed us around during our visit.

My sister described the hacienda as “Mexican Gothic,” the name of a novel she’d read. I thought it looked eerily like the set of ¡Viva Mexico!, and I felt as uneasy as if I’d been stuck in the reality of that dark movie myself.

There was an array of exotic animals in cages, and several horses. The vast central courtyard was empty, and the sun beat down on us without a single cloud to block its rays. It was cold.

The rooms of the hacienda seemed to have been mostly left as-is, with their original furniture and disturbing murals of brown people working the land, though there was evidence on the ground-floor of an amateur taxidermist and computer purchases made in the 90s. There were elements of Arab design, reminding us that the Spanish hadn’t been the only newcomers to Mexico.

My friend’s husband, who is from the area, was as polite, quiet, and impeccably gracious as always: he struck gold with my friend, and he knows it. She struck gold with him, too.

His ancestors had both built and worked on the hacienda as slaves, and there are rumors that underground secret tunnels run between the various haciendas in the area and the church. Much of the property, I was told, had been returned to “the people,” but I’m a little fuzzy on the details of who exactly got what. The owners of this particular place apparently wanted to keep owning it, but not live there or visit it.

It was decided that we’d have the barbecue there, and tables and supplies were off-loaded from the pick-up truck and prepared while my sister, my friend and I wandered around the property’s vast rooms.

The caretaker and the girl lived in an area of the horse stables.

About the girl: my friend soon told me that she was not his daughter, but his wife. She could not have been more than 14, and my sister and I were horrified, shocked into silence in her presence and unsure of what to do. Pretending like everything was normal felt like complicity.

My friend and my partner, who both have better social graces in those types of situations that we do, tried to make friendly conversation with her, definitely the preferable behavior to having a dumb little internal storm about it. My uncle does have that gift, but it must be a recessive gene.

She would smile in response and wait for her husband to confirm with her that she could do something we’d invited her to do (like sit down).

She told my friend that she was 17, a lie none of us believed. She said she had never been to school. She was from a neighboring town, where she’d met the caretaker. When my friend asked her if she really liked being married, she seemed to tear up. She said she had a cold.

While my sister was ready to call the Mexican equivalent of CPS right then and there, the rest of us knew that it would be of no use. There is no such thing as “anonymous tipping” in cases like these; we’d have to go to the police and essentially file a complaint against the man. You also need full names, addresses, paperwork; “the two people living at that one hacienda” isn’t going to cut it.

And as a result of doing so, he may or may not be investigated, and everyone would know exactly where the complaint had come from. I explained to my sister the reason that most people simply look away: there’s a taste for revenge here that’s much more alive than what we’re used to up north, and very little likelihood that you’d be protected from it. Going to the police can make you a target, meaning the only real possibility we had of getting this girl away from this man was staging an elaborate kidnapping, which, I don’t think I need to point out, is not our speciality.

So we had barbecue together, pretending we were not hanging out and making small talk with a tacitly legitimized pedophile and his victim.

The sun started going down, and it got colder. We left.

Earlier in the day when I urgently whispered to my partner about the girl and proposed devising a rescue plan that I would never actually work up the nerve to carry out, he asked, “Did she ask for our help?”

That response instantly made me aware of one of the greater cultural divides between where I grew up and where I am now: my own sensibilities tell me that she doesn’t need to ask for help: it’s wrong because it’s wrong, because she’s a minor, because she’s a victim, because she has no agency.

But she never had any agency. Her parents willingly “gave” her to this man. She was not sent to school, perhaps out of poverty, or apathy, or both. People here know instinctively that some people’s lives are just going to suck, and they also know that there’s not much they can do about it, especially if they don’t seem particularly and actively motivated to escape.

It seems wrong to accept something like that when you’ve been brought up with a very American “can-do” attitude, but perhaps the trick is something we should all learn: focusing on offering the human kindness that we can.

That said, I can’t let go of the feeling that we saw someone in Hell, and then just left them there. What are we supposed to do, as outsiders, in the face of something like this? What can we do? I’m still thinking on it, and I’ll let you know when I come with an answer.

The ride back was a physical extension of my uneasy emotional feelings: I became severely carsick (the elevation change and alcohol I’d had surely hadn’t helped, though I swear I was not drunk), and threw up the entire way home. The toll road that gets us back to Xalapa in under an hour was closed, and so we took the regular one, which was stuffed with cars that had been turned around as well as from a Christmas tree event nearby. It took us four hours, and by the time we finally arrived home I’d spent four hours feeling like I was dying but without the actual release of death.

It’s been a week, and I’m still feeling slightly queasy, with other weird symptoms having popped up during the week as well. The hacienda haunts me.

Enjoy!

When it comes to learning about a culture, humor is often the last frontier. What do people find funny, and why?

It’s often not enough to understand the language; cultural context, and sometimes even a healthy dose of local current events knowledge is key. In that spirit, we bring you a new column that is actually more of a slide show: Mexican memes!

Each week, I’ll show you a series of memes – seven to be exact, one for each day of the week! – currently making the rounds in Mexico, and will provide you with a translation, background, any relevance to current events, and hopefully, a good chuckle.

Most of these memes are found in the normal way: in chat groups, on Instagram, and on Facebook. If you’ve got a suggestion about one to include, feel free to send it my way! Now, without further ado…

“Cancelen todo, era pastel.”

Translation: “Cancel everything; it was just cake.”

The “revelation” presented to the Mexican Congress a few weeks ago by Jaime Maussan, well known in Mexico as a presenter of all things supernatural on History channel-type shows, seemed like it was positively made for memes.

This is one of my favorites, as it ties in with another weird cultural moment that’s been on people’s radar both in the US and in Mexico: competitive TV shows in which contestants make cakes that look like things, and others have to guess if they actually are those things they resemble or cake.

“Mis Ojos Lloran Por Ti”

Translation: “Do you have any special talents?” → “I can sing the fast part of ‘Mis Ojos Lloran Por Ti’” 

If you’ve ever been to a karaoke party in Mexico (I have personally been to and hosted many, as pretending to be a rock star is as close as I’ll ever get to actual rock stardom), chances are you’ve heard someone stumble through this song, badly.

“Mis Ojos Lloran Por Ti” starts out as a romantic-sounding ballad, but then is punctuated by super fast rap segments. Listening to people try to get through it is hilarious.

“Tacos 3 x 10”

Translation: “The martian after trying the ‘3-for-10 (peso)’ tacos.”

Moctezuma gets his revenge on foreigners and nationals alike…especially when it comes to mystery-meat tacos with too-good-to-be-true prices at dubious-looking taco stands.

The cure? A generous helping of electrolytes for the lost water after tummy upsets. This alien – perhaps it’s friends with Jaime Maussan? – has apparently learned that lesson the hard way.

“Do you like chayote?”

Translation: “When you flirt and you’re over 40: So, do you like chayote?”

The Simpsons and Spongebob both make popular meme formats around here! Chayote is a versatile vegetable popular in Mexico, and (apparently) can even help fight cancer!  

The funny part about this meme, for me, was mostly the image, but the ridiculously boring question paired with it made me laugh out loud.

“Oiga”

If you’ve learned much about Spanish, you know that there are two ways to say “you”: the informal way, with “tú,” and the formal way, with “usted.” Each of these pronouns has its own corresponding verb conjugations (and annoyingly, actually saying the pronouns is optional).

To get someone’s attention (like saying “Hey”), “Oye” is the conjugation for “tú” and “Oiga” is the one for “usted,” often used for older people. Hence, the indignation of this phrase: “Right in the flower of my youth, someone says ‘oiga’ to me!”

“Ya está en gris”

Mexicans love dogs, too!

This one is adorable in any language: “Step on it, it’s gray!”

“Capitalismo”

One meme I’ve been seeing making the rounds in English goes something like this: “Even when things are absolutely terrible, I’m still gonna make a little jokey-joke about it.”

That, I believe, could very well be Mexico’s motto when it comes to humor.

The UNAM (Universidad Autónoma de México) has recently been facing a very unwelcome problem: bedbugs (“chinches,” as they’re called here).

The UNAM is considered a bastion of liberal thought, so of course the chinches can’t help but be influenced. Here, one recently educated chinche assures us, “The problem is capitalism.”

I agree, Mr. Chinche.