UFOS
Donna Finlay disappears in the dry rushes of the Chihuahuandesert. It happens anywhere
between 8:15 P.M. on Saturday, August 7th and 8 P.M.on Sunday, August 8th. Astrid Finlay, her
daughter, knows this because she and her mother havea system.
When Donna is traveling for work, she calls her daughterat 8 P.M. every night. For any
other daughter, it may be an annoyance. For Astrid,it is a reassurance that her mother is alive
and still on this planet. On Saturday Donna tellsAstrid about the International UFO Museum and
Research Center she had stopped by in Roswell. Didyou buy a magnet? Astrid asks. Of course,
Donna answers. It’s got a chupacabra on it. AfterRoswell, Donna makes her camp in the desert
about two miles from Las Cruces. She laughs abouthow she would be eating canned beans and
pasta for the duration of her stay out there. Theytell each other they love each other, and then
hang up.
When the little clock on her laptop turns 8:30 P.M.the day after and Astrid still has not
received a call from Donna, nor has Donna answeredher calls, she contacts the Las Cruces
police from her apartment in Brooklyn. They tell herthat it is too soon to file a missing person
report, that she should call back if she hasn’t heardfrom her mother in 24 hours. She tells them
she’ll look for her mother her own damn self. Theearliest flight she can catch to Santa Fe is on
the 10th, so she does call back the next day to formallyfile a missing person report.
By that time, the majority of Donna’s ufologist friendsfind out about her disappearance,
and proceed to tell everyone they know. Since Donnahad appeared on countless History Channel
and Destination America episodes on alien encounterswithin the United States, as well as the
fact that her disappearance took place miles awayfrom the infamous Roswell UFO crash site,
she makes it onto national news.