Over the years I’ve heard things from American Friends like:
“Mexicans people are loud and talk really fast”, “Mexicans workers are very
creative but they don’t always read the instructions”, some things maybe a
little bit out there like “Mexicans party like there is no tomorrow” or even
questions like “Do all Mexican’s siesta every day?” … well you know it’s a
crazy world! But the one that still bugs me today is “Mexican’s wear to much
cologne” … there is no thing as “too much cologne” in a tropical weather like
the one I live, it’s just plain courtesy to wear LOTs of it!
On the other side of the coin I hear things from Mexicanos like
“Americans only eat burgers and hot dogs”, “Americans just watch stupid TV
shows”, “Americans shop for things they don’t need”… and I always think … good forbid
one day I start to pay attention to stereotypes or worst doing them.. Or worst
doing them!
But you know, it’s me, I always find a way to get myself
into really crazy situations, like the one I’m about to share. Here I was, in
the World Head Quarters of the company I work for, been working all day,
meetings, lunch meetings and such on, this trip had a little price attached to
it, I got invited to go to the Yankee Stadium, the new one, but not just that,
to a boot on top of 3rd Base, right next to Alex Rodriguez, butler
service, drinks, great food, snacks, well a really big deal.
So after my meetings, I went to the bathroom, wash my face,
and my teeth, change my shirt and open my bottle of cologne, and then it
happened, I spilled half of my cologne bottle all over my shirt and pants! I
tried to air it, and even thought to wear the other shirt, but as I had put it
in my back pack, it was all wrinkled, I was not going to wear a wrinkled shirt
o Yankee boot! Never! So I decided to air it, let it cool and maybe It would go
under the radar!
On my way out, I say bye to some fellow workers and hug with
a couple, I noticed the first grin when and old friend hugged me goodbye, but
decided to play it cool and ignore the fact that the ENTIRE LOBBY smelled like
Dolce and Gabbana! I keep walking towards the meeting point where my friend Lisa
was supposed to pick me up, we have not
met before that moment, and she got a big big big! First impression of me.. I
could hear her thoughts “it’s true Mexican’s wear to much cologne” but being
such a lady as she is, she kept it to herself. We got to her car and jumped
right in, we ride for 10 minutes and I started noticing her face going
red-white-red-white-red almost like flashing, then she said, hey Sal, it’s not
that cold outside, lets open the windows and enjoy the autumn breeze! .. I
opened my window as fast as I could, I was in fear she would faint in any
moment!
The autumn breeze worked like a charmed, by the time we go
to the stadium, my D&G stink was mellow, kid you not, still strong but bearable;
Until this day I have not been able to spray some D&G cologne without laughing my ass off…