This is how time is calculated in Albuquerque.
- I order a taxi for 2:15. He calls to say he’ll be there at 2:30.
- Gary sends me an overnight package and pays extra to have it there at noon. It arrives at 7:30 p.m.
- I have to be at my brother’s house at five p.m. to take posession of medical supplies. They arrive at 9:30 p.m.
- Later I wait for the supplies to go back whence they came. They are supposed to arrive to get the stuff at 5. They show up after I am in bed at 9:30.
After I question this, in each instance, I hear that they all live in “The Land of Mañana,” in which things will always happen tomorrow. So I pose the question to the next Hispanic person I see, the police officer taking the drugs from me on Pharmaceutical Day: how is this blatant racism allowed to fly? Her opinion is that “Land of Mañana” is a convenient excuse for people who don’t want to work hard of all races, but it is an Albuquerque problem. Now that I know, I’ll just … well, I’ll never go back to Albuquerque again if I can help it. And if I do go back I’ll just order anything I might need a day before I want it.