Month: November 2016

Tamale Toil

A kitchen divided against itself cannot stand. Mom was recently informed that we’d like to try a slight change to her time-tested Tamale recipe. The request came from our home’s CEO. I felt the immediate tension as the deliverer of news and a de facto mediator. But as two-score and eight minutes ago the masa and newer/older ingredients have been laid out and tomorrow’s dinner will be rather special

An Immigrant Gives Thanks

When we crossed the border many years ago seeking a new life it wasn’t glamorous and uncertainty was high. Our parents had a dream though and they hoped we’d realize it. 
Their hopes were simple. 
Contribute positively to the community that may adopt you, act in accordance to a set of commandments and educate yourselves so that you may educate others. My father knew he may not get to today with us but if he had he’d see something I consider special. All his immigrant children now adopted into the community of Citizenship coming together with families to give Thanks. 
He isn’t though so I get to share with others the pride he would have certainly felt because I know I do. 
Thank you America!

A New Hope

One would think that I have given up on this Blog. I haven’t but I certainly pressed the Pause button on it a while ago.

I have not written much here but that doesn’t meant that I have not put thoughts on line over time. To the contrary. I have expressed much more but in other platforms.

Now with the end of the year coming I’d like to back-fill for posterity some of my favorite thoughts from around the interwebs. Some of these are tied to specific events and I’m afraid that in sharing them on this blog they may come to loose their meaning.  My hope is that in time they’ll be read as my stream of consciousness and someone may one day come to appreciate what the whole of them meant as one work.

With that said. Here we go…

New Starts

Life didn’t really begin at Casa Torres until Nic (my wife) and I kick-started it. 
That’s changing. 
This morning I was awoken to the sounds of a sliding glass door and feet running out to the chicken coop to tend to our egg givers. Then a bit later there was clanking of spoons, dishes and beeps from the microwave as a simple breakfast was being made. As I contemplate getting up I know teeth have been brushed, TV remotes found and there’s been some controversy over what Saturday morning show to watch on their shared TV. 
Guess I should go make myself useful.

Men on the Metro

Two men walked onto the Metro and that’s when I entered their story. 
They sat across my sleeping boy and I. In their sack the carried Vodka and so were careful when they put it down on the train floor. They argued in hushed tones and one implied feeling sick. I couldn’t help looking at his cracked lips as he said so. He was soon sleep and this left his fellow traveler with red eyes and sporting a clinic’s bracelet to stare about the cabin for a while. 
We left each other’s gaze at about Downtown LA and what will become of them I do not know.

A Mighty Query

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under an understanding….And hence the side eye looks my other half and I share as our kids turn ever older. 
Should we delineate? We then thus pivot towards an auld lang syne when one subscribed to an elder rotund Elf? I couldn’t, shouldn’t, wouldn’t rob him of the fantasy. Or is the time now? 
I use coded intricacy in language to mask my query. I trust other parent folk to get my meaning and share their sentiment wisely!

A Pointed Tale

I don’t think anyone is a fan of a super thin, cold and piercing needle coming at your warm vein. It’s always disconcerting the moment the point touches the skin and callously penetrates into the flesh and hungrily seeks out our inner red liquid. At the other end of it a vial receives our essence and in seconded engorges full. It’s an unpleasant scene but I learned a long time ago that I’m the type to not look away. 
I face it so it won’t scare me next time. Weird eh?

Guiding Light

After picking up some dry cleaning and making my way to my truck a very tall and quite muscular young black man and a companion walked towards me. He seemed lost in thought and didn’t seem to notice he was in my direct path. As we neared one another he was tugged forcefully by his UCR Blue shirt and in a second snapped by into reality. He apologized to me and with a smile I told him not to mention it. As his much shorter mom and him walked on I overheard her scolding him to pay more attention and he gave out a respectful acknowledgment. 
That’s the power of good Moms I suppose