Listening Post 2

On my second listening post, I met with Hazel Rodriguez again at Flea Market USA, and we conversed about her life as a girlfriend, mother and wife.

Hazel went to elementary school in Carol City. When she was young, she didn’t understand why she was the only Spanish girl that attended her class. Her classmates would bother Hazel because of her hair. She felt sad because she felt she was different, but as she grew older, she felt accepted. In her later years, she had a boyfriend that was black.

Hazel was 13 years old when her parents got divorced. She was both sad and happy when the divorce came about. When she used to live with her father, he wouldn’t allow her to wear skirts or to have boyfriends. She believes that if she was still raised by her father, she wouldn’t have been married, and her sisters would have not gotten pregnant. Hazel and her siblings were rebellious when her parents separated. They moved a lot because of the children’s behavior. When her parents were together, her father used to drink a lot, and he still does. She would always see her father arguing with her mom.

When Hazel would behave badly, her mother would send her to New York until she started behaving well. Once Hazel started behaving well, she moved back to Miami. In one of the visits to New York because of her bad behavior, Hazel met her ex-husband and ended up staying there. Hazel didn’t mind missing school because she didn’t like going to school, and it did not affect her emotionally. She enjoyed traveling. Eventually, Hazel did not end with good grades because of her absence.

Hazel had her first baby when she was 18 years old. She planned to get married in New York with her boyfriend, the baby’s father, but she ended up being pregnant with the baby before marriage. She was 3 months pregnant when she got married. Her boyfriend and she both wanted to get married regardless before the pregnancy occurred. The father of the baby was her first love, and she wanted to have children with him. Both of her children are from the same father. She got divorced because her ex-husband cheated on her with another woman. Hazel says her ex-husband was a good father. She was surprised to find out that he cheated on her.

Hazel had some relatives that worked with him in Foot Locker at New York, and she was informed that he was cheating on her. She had another proof when she caught her boyfriend’s co-worker who was a girl flirting with him and kissing him on the neck.

Her ex-husband dropped out of high school. Hazel got her GED. When she got married, she didn’t worry about her ex-husband’s salary because he was getting paid well at Foot Locker since he was the manager. She didn’t think that not obtaining his degree really affected him. Her ex-husband likes to drink and party and she didn’t like for him to go out with friends. Hazel feels that she drove him away, and it was partially her fault because she restricted him from doing things.

When her ex-husband cheated on her, Hazel grabbed her clothes and children and moved to Orlando with her mom for a few months till she got her own place. Hazel’s ex-husband wanted a second chance after he cheated on her and she gave it to him.

She did not forget him, but once he moved to Orlando, he started working at a factory with Hazel. Hazel tried to make him jealous by flirting with a co-worker of hers. She wanted revenge for what he did to her. In her ex-husband’s Myspace, Hazel found out that the girl that he cheated on her with was writing that she was pregnant with her ex-husband’s baby. Hazel’s husband at the time found out Hazel was talking to the man at the factory because he found a letter saying that he wanted to take her out, but Hazel admits that they were just friends, and he was younger than her.

Her ex-husband started talking to the girl he cheated on her with in New York. Her ex-husband moved back to New York. Hazel’s mother moved back to Miami, and she rented an apartment. When Hazel’s mom decided to move back to Orlando, Hazel stayed in Miami at the same apartment she had. Hazel met her new boyfriend at her apartment complex. She met him while he was trying to preach to her about his religion. Her admirer asked her out, and she said she was going to think about it. Eventually, Hazel said yes to her friend.

In the beginning, the separation with her ex-husband affected her children, but now it doesn’t affect them, and they get along with her new boyfriend. Her new boyfriend is not jealous. She is planning to get married again with her new boyfriend. He is Christian, just like her. She says that Christians have to be married before living together.

Hazel is able to see all things in a different light because she is Christian, and when she was young, she didn’t conclude what she really believed in. Hazel was raised in Opa Locka and Carol City. Her dad lived in Carol City, and he still lives there. Her mom moved to Opa Locka after separating from her father. Her mom is currently living in Orlando.

Now that Hazel has her children of her own, she doesn’t want her father to be a bad influence to her children by making them think that drinking is good. Hazel is able to see all this in a different light because she is Christian, and when she was young, she didn’t know what she really believed in.

After Hazel’s new boyfriend moved in with her, her ex-husband ended moving back to Orlando with the girl he cheated on her with because he liked the Orlando ambiance. His new girlfriend was 8 months pregnant. After setting in at Orlando, they ended up back in New York because they couldn’t manage there.

While in New York and while Hazel was rooming with her new boyfriend, Hazel’s ex-husband contacted Hazel because he wanted to get back with her. Hazel wanted to give it another try because he was the father of her children. Her new boyfriend moved out, and he understood her situation.

When they were living together, Hazel and her ex-husband would bring out the past and insecurities will build up based on past relationships. He would ask her what she did in the sofa with her recent boyfriend, and they would argue. Hazel realized that she had stronger feelings for her new boyfriend. Her ex-husband was confused, and Hazel told him to go back to New York with the girl he was seeing. Hazel now speaks to her ex-husband at times over the phone because of her children. Hazel’s new boyfriend picks the children up from school, and he babysits them. When Hazel left her ex-husband and told him to leave to New York, her new boyfriend was understanding and accepted to establish a relationship with her once more.

In addition, Hazel feels she doesn’t have to worry about her new boyfriend because he does not smoke, drink or go out clubbing like her ex-husband does. Her new boyfriend spends time with her at the park, movies and at church. She has many Christian friends now.