Lucia, Lou, Lu, Eloise, Delores

Lucia, Lu, Lou are names used by a woman in many of the stories. The character is also identified as Eloise and Delores. The author uses these different variations of her own name. Sometimes, she does not use a name at all in a first-person narrative.

The character is a stand-in for the author's name as many of these stories are semi-autobiographical. The woman ages from a young woman to a middle-aged to an older woman.

Lucia is a recovering alcoholic and spends time in rehab. Sometimes her character is in the throes of her addiction. Lucia understands how her addiction may affect her children and the people around her.

Lucia's sister, Sally, is dying of cancer in the later stories. Lucia moves to Mexico City to help care for Sally. Lucia wants to conquer her own addiction and see her sister healthy again...