I am sitting at the Long Beach Airport, waiting to fly home via Jet Blue. If airports were food providers, the Long Beach Airport would be like Cowgirl Creamery -- a pure delight, always surprising, and very low maintainence (well ... Cowgirl Creamery cheese is low maintainence in that it goes with so many things). LAX, on the other hand, would be Sysco -- a huge conglomerate, necessary sometimes but not often, and much more ubiquitous than Cowgirl Creamery. I could live on Cowgirl Creamery cheese.
At this airport, you still board via stairs, and they board via the front AND the back of the plane. It's a beautiful art deco airport. When you land here they tell you "When you get to baggage claim, your baggage can be found on the only baggage carousel - you can't miss it." This is the airport where Douglas Aircraft Company, later McDonnell Douglas, had a hub for years, and it has a lot of tradition within airline history. Oh yah - and Jet Blue has free wireless throughout their terminal. I would highly recommend flying into it if you ever have the chance.
I have had a hectic few days here ... combining family time with work. It has been good. Our family has one main event a year -- an event where everyone who can make it gets together. And that's mother's day. It started years and years ago when my godmother and her sister used to go out to a local park early and stake out spots for us. I would go with them sometimes, and I think that they used it as much as an excuse to hang out and chat as a way to save us a spot. Both of them passed away years ago, but it is a great tradition that we continue.
I would guess that there were about 75 - 80 people there, and approximately 80% of them are family. My mom got smart this year and made a family tree skeleton on an easel pad and everyone took turns writing down their names where they belonged. It was fun watching everyone - from the kids to the oldies look over the family tree closely and try and figure out who everyone was.
My grandmother is the matriarch of the family. At 86, she has outlived her peers in the family and takes her job as matriarch very seriously. Everyone brings their babies and children over for her to look them over and "approve" them in her funny way - the fatter the better, and it's always good when they make eye contact. Whereas I lose track of who I have said hello and goodbye to, she will report to me the next day about cousin so and so who didn't say hello or goodbye to her. If someone takes too long to come over and say hi, she will say loudly, "What? Are you too good for me?"
Jason and his mom and stepdad were able to come to the picnic this year (their first!) and when it was time for Jason to say goodbye, I said to him "I don't care who you say bye to - just make sure you go talk to my grandparents." And the funny thing is that this same phrase could be heard throughout the picnic. The kids who are old enough to talk are told to go over and say hello to Lupe. They kind of drag their feet as they go over and shyly pay their respects.
I am really happy that our family values the older generation so much. Even throughout the year, it is amazing to me how many family members will drop by my grandparents' house to keep them updated on everything. When I only have time to make one phone call, I call my grandmother instead of my mom or aunt or sister. The best thing you can say to her is "I haven't told anyone this yet." She relishes being able to call everyone in our immediate family to tell them whatever tidbit I have passed on.
It's an unsaid thing, but we are all painfully aware of how little time they have left with us. My sister and mom see them quite a bit, but the time that I have with them is always very concentrated and we all try and spend quality time together. I had the most amazing morning with my grandma this morning as she launched into a long story about our family and my godmother who was married in 1933 when she was 15 (!). In about 20 minutes, I had a fuller picture of the history of an entire arm of our family than I have had in my whole life. I am really hoping to have more of those moments with her.
I have talked to her about spending a good chunk of time with her this summer trying to document her recipes ... I can't believe that we haven't formally done that yet. All of us have an idea of how to make many of the items, but I am really feeling the need to archive exactly the way that she makes her tamales and enchiladas and beans.
Anyway ... I am playing a bit of hooky tomorrow and Thursday. Taking off of work to go to the Great Valley Conference in Sacramento. Hopefully it will give me some insight on the local and sustainable food scene in the Central Valley of California. Hope to have new great things to report from there!
