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Abe Observes
Abe Villarreal is the Dean of Student Success at Cochise College. He enjoys writing about people, pastimes, and the small things in life.
By Abe Villarreal
I like those really corny jokes and sayings that you find on little pieces of paper or small objects. For some reason, they are always there when you need them. The jokes are written like they are meant for kids, but you often see the older people chuckling at them the most.
I like them because they are usually paired with other kid-like things like Laffy Taffys. I don't think today's Laffy Taffy eaters even know that the jokes are there or that the candy's name is connected with laughter. The yellow, or banana flavor, kind is my favorite.
The jokes and puns are easy to understand but also clever. Like the one that asks what you would call a cow with a twitch. Isn't it obvious? Beef jerky!
It feels good to laugh about the innocent things in life. Today we call them dad jokes. I don't like the term because it makes them sound dated and suggests that good, clean humor belongs to a past generation.
By Abe Villarreal
All the things that we welcome with each new season are the same things we long to see go away by the end of the season. As the heat of summer leaves us, so do the mosquitos and the monsoon rains. The long days are not long anymore. The trail of ants is shortening. The clouds of yellow butterflies I see where I live have now disappeared.
For weeks we've been complaining. We prayed for rain and then prayed for it to not come all at once. We welcomed the sun and on some days we told each other that it was just too hot outside. That's what people do. We want something, and then when we get it we wonder why it came the way it did and why it stuck around for too long.
And now that the mornings are colder and the nights longer, there will be those of us looking forward to sweater weather, and others will travel with portable heaters. Personally, I like the cold days, and I've been looking forward to not-so-hot days.
Of course, I say that at the beginning of what may look like an early winter. By December, I'll be singing a different tune because that's what people do.
By Abe Villarreal
I like those free trading post newspapers you see in gas stations and restaurant waiting areas. They are the kind of publications that don't seem like they have much to say until you open them and give them a chance.
In the fast-paced back and forth way we like to live our lives, many of us miss the old trading post newspapers. It's not that they are not there, waiting to be picked up; it's just that we seem to feel like everything we need is already in the palm of our hand. We don't know what we don't know because we don't take time for things like the trading post newspaper.
Then, you find yourself waiting in line, and you see the trading post is piled high, thin folded layer on top of thin folded layer. On each side are thicker publications, coupon-filled, color-pictured, and seemingly more important. Laying next to its costly counterparts, the trading post newspaper feels small and insignificant.
I decided to give the trading post a try this week, just to see why so many are published and why they manage to keep on getting published. Printed in black and white and free of any pictures outside of the advertisements, the publication is full of words but doesn't feel too wordy.
By Abe Villarreal
Sometimes I like to get to my work office a little early just to sit and stare out the window. I'm lucky to have one of those corner offices with two big windows. It's one of those perks that we call perks but that we take for granted.
Now that the mornings are getting cooler and the sun a bit less fierce, looking out the big office windows before the workdays begin is a bit more satisfying. The world is quiet at this time. It's just me and my thoughts.
If you sit anywhere for long enough, you'll start to notice things that you'd never thought of before. Things like the barely heard whisper that the breeze makes against the trees. Here, in the beauty of the desert of the American southwest, quiet and still moments are broken up by the pitter-patter of little rabbits. When nothing else is moving, you can't help not to see them and how they move in quick but short bursts, run, stop, look, run, stop, look…
By Abe Villarreal
Before our current fears over germs and spacing, coughing and handshaking, most of us still remember a time when we did things that now seem out of the ordinary.
Not just everyday things like greeting people with full-on embraces and bear hugs, but also the kinds of things that got us extra dirty. Fun things and not-so-fun things, but still, everyday things that over generations somehow haven't brought the end to our civilization.
While we work to keep each other safe and take every precaution possible to be healthy, I hope we can go back to the time when everyday, not-so-clean, ordinary ways of living can be done again. I'm thinking of the kinds of little things that make life special which now have become worries even before the pandemic.
By Abe Villarreal
I never thought I would be so anxious about a cat. The last few days, coming in and out of the veterinarian office has been a bit taxing. Now, Nadya is home, and I know she's happy to be here.
When I adopted Nadya from the humane society in Silver City, she was about a year old. I first saw her in a room full of other cats that had been waiting to be taken in by a loving family, or maybe just a single guy in his thirties, for months. The pandemic was just in its infancy and I read in the newspaper that dog adoptions had spiked.
People were feeling in need of some extra company. I hadn't owned a pet since I was in high school, but there was always some kind of animal around the house, from what I remember. From dogs named Princess and Sparky to cats of all sizes and colors, and even a parakeet, there has always been a love for furry little guys in the Villarreal residence.
By Abe Villarreal
A lot of people have said goodbye to old friends in the last year. Fortunately, many new friends have also been made.
I met a guy named Sean who works at a homeless shelter in Sierra Vista, Arizona. I see him there during the evening hours when the residents line up in the kitchen to eat. When I have the blessing of helping out during my monthly volunteer cooking, he's always there to talk about the latest happenings in life.
Sean is from the Midwest. He's far away from home, and I'm not sure how he ended up in the Southwest, but he's still got a little of that midwestern in him. When I cook, I always know to leave out the veggies because he's a meat and potatoes kind of guy.
By Abe Villarreal
It's that time of the year that we traditionally think about new beginnings. Kids are back in school. Bus drivers have returned to their old routes. Moms are packing lunches. Sports teams are on the field for morning practice.
Maybe the beginnings aren't so new. Maybe we are going back to what we always have known. Going back to the things that make us feel like us.
This past Friday I drove out to the tiny town of Elfrida, Arizona to watch a football game. Less than 500 residents live in this middle-of-nowhere farming community but what they lack in size is made up with spirit. The Valley Union High School Blue Devils trounced their competition that night winning 28-8.
It's no exaggeration to say that it seemed that half the town was there to support the 8-man team and it must have been good for the competitors to know that everyone around cheered them on with chants and cowbells. We all need a little cheering on these days.
