I grew up in a Mexican household in San Diego, CA. I have lived all my life close to the Mexico-USA border. Most of my friends were also Mexican and we always shared common experiences with household tendencies and habits. I personally thought all of these similarities were “San Diego” things until I came to UC Davis, but that wasn't the case. Of course, there are many things that were left out, but I hope that this list of 50 things is only the tip of the iceberg for similarities between different families united under the same culture.

So here’s a list of 50 things that I believe are true to almost every Mexican:

1. When your family told you “Quiere llorar!” it made you cry more and you lashed to your room.
2. You taste your first beer around age 13 (because you’re a rebel).
3. Vicente Fernandez… don’t even let me start.
4. You walk in your house and hear Dr. Polo singing Caso Cerrado.
5. Pozole pa la cruda!
6. You learn how to dance when you’re a kid, or else you learn the hard way.
7. You come out in many Quinceañeras.
8. You pass by McDonald’s as a kid only to find out your mom had JUST made lentejas.
9. The ice cream man is your hero.
10. Your family wakes you up early on Saturday mornings to loud music and you start yelling at them to keep it down.
11. You don’t know if your mom is putting away the ‘chankla’ or if she found out you did something wrong and you’re about to get it.
12. Tortillas serve as plates and utensils.
13. You prepare your whole childhood to be the one who breaks the piñata open first.
14. Chocolate Abuelita or Maizena make you the happiest person ever.
15. Vicks and té de manzanilla fixes every possible sickness, followed by “Sana sana colita de rana.”
16. You have an uncle that fixes everything.
17. We make homemade Tupperware.
18. You don’t know if the butter container has butter or salsa.
19. Your family always teases you of having a boyfriend/girlfriend.
20. Your family is divided between Chivas and América (or Cruz Azul) .
21. You try screaming “Goooaaal” for as long as you can
22. Every weekend you go to a family member’s house for a get-together.
23. You take La Lotería very seriously.
24. Your aunts are always talking about ‘comedias’.
25. You feel like a kid again when you hear Chabelo speak.
26. We all had bottles of chile, chamoy, and limón at our houses.
27. The first YouTube video we watched was “La Caida de Edgar.”
28. Everybody dances to “El caballo dorado.”
29. Nobody stays inside the house when your mom is making chiles.
30. Everything is a ‘milagro’ to elderly women.
31. Your mom can talk for hours with women she doesn’t even know.
32. You must say hi to everybody at a party.
33. If you move houses, your family manages to fit 2/3 of your house in one truck.
34. There’s always at least somebody dressed as a cowboy at a party.
35. There was a time where you collected Tazos.
36. Your family is good at bargaining.
37. You’re able to fit 12 people in a small car.
38. One of your Mexican friends sold chips in high school.
39. You used to play marbles as a kid.
40. You sleep with a San Marcos blanket.
41. You were threatened with El Cucuy as a child.
42. Fabuloso cleans everything.
43. You watched Sábado Gigante with your grandma.
44. There is always pan dulce at your dinner table.
45. Your mom makes you save plastic bags so you can then compile them all in a bigger bag.
46. You feel accomplished when you learn how to flip the tortilla on the comal.
47. All your pots and pans are in stored inside the oven.
48. You hated the guy who was in charge of the piñata because they played with you too much.
49. Your uncles sanitize the grill with an orange.
50. Your mom likes to keep the house extra, extra clean.