I recently celebrated having traveled around the sun for 21,900 days (give or take a couple of leap years). I had a lot of assumptions and deep thoughts about this particular milestone in my life.
I'm 60 years old.
Here are 20 of my Big Thoughts about this journey of life.
1) I thought that I would be further along in certain places. I'm not.
2) I thought I'd feel differently than I did when I was in my 20's. I don't.
3) 60 didn't suddenly make me wiser or funnier or more resilient. But then it's the slow-growth aspect of my trajectory that made those things happen. There is no suddenly when it comes to character development. It just seems that way when you're not trying to be too careful about measuring that type of growth from moment to moment.
4) That cliché thing that says you only remember moments? True.
5) I'm particularly diligent about maintaining scrapbooks and documenting my life and those are moments that I collect. Some moments feel much more important as they happen. We remember things that were said, or weren't. We remember expressions. We remember the laughter.
6) I'm so very glad I started documenting my life and the journey my family and I have been on for the past (almost) 9 years. Blogging has been the best thing ever.
7) Perfection being the enemy of the good? True.
8) People won't remember what you wore, but they will remember how you treated them. Today's to-do list will be forgotten soon. Your words and actions remain.
9) I'm feeling all squishy and sentimental and very goofy. I thought I'd be more serious on reaching this milestone. Not a chance. I still find everything irreverently funny.
10) I thought I'd feel much older. I don't know why it is that certain numbers feel bigger than others. I don't feel 60. I don't even know what 60 year olds are supposed to act like (but that's not important right now).
11) I thought I'd be bulletproof by now and wouldn't get my feelings hurt as easily. Not true. However, I maintain a practice of forgiving quickly. Maybe that's the same as bulletproof?
12) I thought I'd be lost after my years of active parenting were over. I am learning that I'm already pretty far into Act Two before I've even had the chance to grieve (or is it celebrate?) the first one.
13) I thought I'd be a plump and matronly sort at 60. White hair and rocking chair with bifocals dangling on the end of my nose and cross-stitching into my old age. Hasn't happened. Except for the plump part. It seems to fill in the cracks in my face quite nicely, thankyouverymuch.
14) I thought I'd be much more reluctant to do new things. Not true. I seem to be busier than ever, going new places and trying new things and meeting new people. Lots of new in my life right now. Who knew? (<--see what I did there?)
15) It never occurred to me that I'd be seriously embracing my naturally curly hair at this point in my life. I spent so many years trying to tame the crazy.
16) I'm less apt to care what people think of me, but much more conscious of their feelings. Maybe empathy is something that grows with age?
17) I am appreciating all the things that make up my self so much more. Maybe that's the beauty of aging and self-care. You get to be more kind to yourself and accepting of what makes you unique.
18) I have found that humility can co-exist with pride when apportioned correctly.
19) Many of the things that I loved as a child, I still do. Playing house and making pretend food and being a make-believe mama have all served me well in my life.
20) I am 60 and my mom is 101. I still want her to be proud of me.
I'm happy to report that I have made it to this 6th decade and I am content to be here. I am happy about where I am in life and I look back at where I've come from with a big smile on my face.
Looking forward to the next chapter. If you're already there, no spoilers, please!
I'm talking about my life as Eric and I approach our Twilight Years. Which are really more of a pale yellow at this point, but that's not important right now.
Here's how I pictured it:
My kids would all be grown and gone. I have never had any illusions that they'd stay home forever. That would be just plain weird.
But I did picture them living nearby. And they'd be coming over for a weekly family dinner. And we'd sit around the table and I would bask in the love and fabulousness of the beautiful family I'd created. And we would grow. And the table would stretch to accomodate more. It would all be super noisy and delicious and there would be lots of laughter and smiles.
And that would be how Eric and I would live out our Twilight Years. Happily surrounded by our growing family and maybe investing in a bigger table.
But obviously God (and my growing family) have other plans for this whole Twilight Years business.
As you know, Amy Kikita moved to Florida last year. See this post about Changes. I wrote about all that last August and now, just recently, there have been so many more changes. Which is where I find myself today - thinking about all of this and questioning my Twilight Year Plan.
From that writing to now, Amy has landed a job in Sacramento, California. 400 miles away, but now she's at least on our coast and is only a one hour flight away. She's busy shopping for an apartment and furniture and settling in to her new (from the sound of it) Hipster lifestyle.
Adam has taken a job in Washington D.C. with the Susan B. Anthony List. I'm quite excited for him as this is a great opportunity, but of course, that means he is clear across the country. Alysha and the baby are still here as he looks for a place to live, but they'll be leaving in about a month. I will miss them terribly. Especially my grandson, Asher.
However, we are happily offering our babysitting services as often as Alysha will let us.
Lucy moved out last September (see this post about Finding Her Place) and is adapting well to her new digs. She's also only a few minutes away right here in Mission Viejo, but she's busy starting her own graphic design business, so I have to bait her with use of my washer/dryer and food. It's working so far. (Food always works.) Who knows what her next adventure will bring?
Jonathan is in school and going from audition to audition, which means driving to Hollywood a few days a week. Some days I'm lucky enough to be called upon to be his carpool buddy. But I'm picturing the day he needs to move up there permanently. For now, he's still here with us.
But who knows for how much longer?
Here's how I'm dealing with all of it...
The weekend that Adam was set to leave, I bought Amy a plane ticket to come down and scheduled a family photo shoot and going away dinner.
I contracted our friend and Master Photographer, Dan Shalaby to document the magic and we spent a few hours down at our favorite beach frolicking and posing. Or photobombing. Or just having fun together.
I just wanted one last hurrah before everyone went their separate ways.
Many Cuban mothers take issue with their kids moving away. I swear, I thought I'd totally be in that category. Until now.
Now, I'm just embracing the moments as they come. So grateful that we live in the age of Skype and FaceTime and texts and emails and Facebook and Instagram. (Also, I'm Smrtqbn on Instagram if you want to follow me.)
I love that they have developed their own relationships with each other. I'm no longer the glue that holds them together. Even though I am the one who insists on the photo shoots, but that's not important right now.
I'm grateful that they're all so much fun to be with and I'm looking forward to reinventing myself.
I still can't get enough of my grandson, Asher. But that's the general consensus around here. That kid is seriously well-loved.
So I'm working on accruing miles on my Southwest credit card and making plans to travel more often this year and thinking big thoughts about what I'd like the next chapter of my life to look like.
And truly, Eric and I are happy in this season. It's taking some getting used to not having all the crazy around all the time. But it's really good. We are delighted for all of their success. And grateful for the quiet days.
As far as my Dinner Table Fantasy goes, I had them all with me right after the photo shoot. We went to our favorite Cuban restaurant (of course) and it was all super noisy and delicious and there was lots of laughter and smiles.
And I thought to myself, "I really am the luckiest."
For one, we get to have our meetings at Porto's, but that's not important right now. What's so very cool this year is that the Dodgers love our Cubanity (<--that's a word, rightr?) so much that they've added a Cuba Night At Dodger Stadium.
How awesome is this?
The fun goes down on Monday. May 11th at 7:10pm against the Miami Marlins. Mark it on your calendars and make it happen!
For every person that buys a ticket through www.dodgers.com/cuba for that night, you'll receive a voucher for a commemorative Cuba/Puig t-shirt.
Are we having fun yet?
Of course I'll be there along with My Big, Fat, Cuban Family. (Thanks for asking.) We'll be the ones wearing Dodger Blue and yelling "Dále!" at Yasiel Puig and eating the Cuban Dodger Dogs. Here is my recap from last year.
Because that's the way of our people.
Just so there's no confusion, we also have a Cuban Heritage Day at Dodger Stadium over the summer.
THAT'S TWO DAYS OF BASEBALL AND CUBANITY, PEOPLE!
This year the 3rd Annual Cuban Heritage Day is on Sunday, July 12th, 2015.
For Cuban Heritage Day at Dodger Stadium in July, here's what you need to know for tickets and tshirts.
Habana Brand Clothing is accepting pre-orders now thru May 1st, at a special Pre-Order Price of $20.00 - after May 1st the on-line price will be $25.00.
Orders will be shipped early May. We are only producing a very limited amount of these shirts, so do not be left out! Wear it proudly when you join your family and friends at Dodger Stadium for the cultural celebration of the 3rd annual Cuban Heritage Day on Sunday, July 12th.
The Cuban-themed Viva Los Dodgers festival will begin 2 hours prior to first pitch and fans can enjoy festive live music, player autographs and various activities.
Admission to Viva Los Dodgers is free with a paid ticket to the game. We will also be selling the t-shirts on various dates at Porto's Bakeries. Click on the following link to place your pre-order:
The 2nd Annual Cuban Heritage Day at Dodger Stadium has come and gone and it was, by all accounts, a huge success.
I'm still a little overwhelmed by all the fabulousness and fun of celebrating baseball and Cubanity(<--it's a word, right?) with my people. And it was the hottest stinking day of the summer in LA, so, if this is a little incoherent, please forgive me ahead of time. Still recovering from the heat.
Picture this: Cuban music playing (loudly) from the stage. Once a song starts, the smile of recognition quickly spreads across the faces. When the music plays, we must dance. It's in our Cuban DNA. We seriously can't help it. We spontaneously begin dancing with, and next to, and behind, and in front of whoever happens to be there. I so loved that.
Although many wore their tried and true Dodger Blue, many of us showed off the official shirt of Cuban Heritage Day 2014. Designed by the extremely talented Roly Vega of Habana Brand Clothing.
It was a crazy-hot day in LA, but there were lots of fans (works on two levels) available to beat the heat provided by Café La Llave and a special one designed for the day by Habana Brand Clothing and our good friends from Wassup En LA.
Part of the fun was wandering the stadium (in the shade, of course) and finding old friends, all of us flapping our fans to cool off in a modern version of what was probably a typical scene from Havana of the 50's.
Rudolpho Zalez, Pritesh Shah, Carlos de la Vega of Wassup En LA?
Speaking of old friends, the first pitch was to be thrown out by Tony Plana, the very talented Cuban actor who played the dad on the hit TV show, Ugly Betty. Tony has had a distinguished and accomplished career. My favorite of his roles being "Jefe," from the comedy film, The Three Amigos, but that's not important right now.
It turns out that Tony's brother and I went to school together and I knew his family pretty well. "Tony, I'm Marta, from St. Augustine's..." I didn't get a chance to finish my sentence.
He grabbed me in a big Cuban hug of recognition. Made my day.
The Committee
It was my pleasure and privilege to serve on this year's Cuban Heritage Day Committee. What a delight it was to get to know the other Cubans involved in putting on this event and sharing our love of baseball and Cubanity (<--I'm pretty sure it's a word) with each other. I loved how everyone brought different skills and talents to the table.
My friend, Lucy Vega, of Habana Brand Clothing, also brought red lipstick. I'm forever grateful. The beautiful blonde you see here is Rose Marin, head of the committee and the mastermind of this entire project.
Lucy Vega, Marta Darby, Rose Marin celebrating red lipstick
The committee got to do a photo-op with Cuban Wonder Boy, Yasiel Puig. Or as our community refers to him, "Yasielito."
I confess that I totally gave in to temptation and went in for the selfie. Guys... I had to.
I know. Shut up.
Jonathan and Lucy (and friend, Nathan) happily partook of the Cuban Dogs. Picture a Dodger Dog, but with a Cuban sandwich twist to it: Ham, pork, swiss cheese, mustard, pickles. (For more on the awesomeness of Cuban sandwiches, see this post.)
Eric, who has been married to me for 22 years, held his own with all the Cubanity (<--I think it's a word now).
It was a long, hot, wonderful day. The Dodgers eventually lost to the Brewers, but that didn't dampen our spirits. The day was a perfect celebration of all that is good and holy about Cuban baseball.
Here's a perfect recap by the talented and lovely, Ailis Garcia of Dodgers Nation.
I'm still recovering from the LA Cuban Festival last weekend. Thanks to all of you who came out and said hello. Also, if you have a photo of us together (and we look cute), please send it to me!
Today's post is really a PSA for Cuban Heritage Day at Dodger Stadium.
Cuban Heritage Day at Dodger Stadium is coming up next month on August 17th, 2014. I would love to see as many of you there as possible, which is why I'm sharing this today. I promise you won't want to miss it. In case you were wondering about my love for the Dodgers and last year's day, look here, and here.
(Also, if you want to read a really cute story about my mom, Luza and a former famous Dodger player (full disclosure: she's a Yankees fan), click here.)
Thing 1)You need tickets! Click on over to the Los Angeles Dodgers Page and order them today. There are some good seats still available. (I'll be giving some away in a couple of weeks, but that's not important right now.)
Thing 2)You need shirts! My good friends at Habana Brand Clothing have designed some gorgeous t-shirts, which you will want to wear to the game, beause that's what all the cool Cuban kids are doing. Pre-order is happening NOW. We need to represent, people!
I'm loving these shirts so much that I'm thinking you're going to want one even if you don't make it to the game.I'm super excited about this day, because...
Cubans + Dodger Baseball = The Best Day of Summer 2014. See you there!
I have amazing news! I'm proud and privileged to announce that I was invited to be on the planning committee for Cuban Heritage Day at Dodger Stadium this year! (I know. Shut up.)
Seriously, if I was going to add an item to my Bucket List, this would be it. Of course, I didn't know I would have added it until they actually asked me, but that's not important right now.
So our very first meeting was at Porto's Bakery. (If I was writing the script for the movie of my life and adding this chapter, I swear I couldn't have written it any better than this. Pinch me.)
And even though I was completely driven to distraction by the giant plate of pastelitos de guayaba (guava pastries) they placed in front of me, I think I was able to contribute something of value besides, "Can I please have another?"
I have a lovely Facebook friend/MBFCF reader, whose name is Ed. He was following my Hey-I'm-on-the-Cuban-Heritage-Day-at-Dodger-Stadium-Committee excitement on Facebook (if you're not following the relajo on My Big, Fat, Cuban Family Facebook page, you totally should) and he sent me and my family an amazing gift.
Shirts! Beautiful Dodger Blue Shirts! Not only that, they say, "Los Doyers."Also, he sent them for the entire family. I was overwhelmed. (Again, I couldn't have written this part of the book better myself.)
How cute and happy do we look in our Los Doyers shirts? (Didn't I tell you they were awesome?)
Lucy and Jon decided they would rather do a "photo shoot." Of course.
"Look at my shirt!"
I don't know which makes me happier - being on the Cuban Heritage Day at Dodger Stadium this year, or having such a thoughtful and generous reader bless our family in this way. (I'm thinking it may be a tie.)
Also, having my kids be so excited and proud to represent makes my cup runneth over.
Eric got a shirt, too. But he was busy doing some work in the garden, so he missed the photo shoot. (Or did he?)
Thank you to the Dodgers ("Viva Los Doyers!") and the Cuban Heritage Day at Dodger Stadium Committee (if you're not following them on Facebook, you totally should) for including me in this awesome event.
Thank you to my friend, Ed for the beautiful and generous gifts.
Color me happy! (Of course, you realize that happy is now officially Dodger Blue, but that's not important right now.)
We're getting ready to celebrate my mom, Luza's 100th birthday in another week. And of course, as we're trying to put this thing together, we've tried to include her in as many decisions as possible.
She doesn't care much about the decorations, she says. She trusts us with those, as long as they are bright, not just one color, but all the spring colors, but no red and absolutely no black. Oh, and flowers. Lots of flowers. (So much for the trusting us part... but that's not important right now.)
There are two other things that she has a very strong opinion about.
1) Send an invitation to every single person in her address book. This was a no-brainer and obvious to us, of course. The interesting part is that the names in her address book ranged from her first neighbor in Miami back when we first arrived in the U.S. back in 1961 to her old ESL classmates from the 70's. *shaking my head*
2) When we asked if she had a preference for the food we'd be serving, she said, "Yes, I want it to be Italian."
This second feature comes up randomly and at the most bizarre moments. Of course, there's a back story...
The Random Italian Thing
When she was growing up in the Cuban port town of Manatí (read some of that story here), the big cargo ships would come in to load Cuban's main export, which was sugar and they would unload whatever import happened to be coming from Italy (of all places). It was the Italians that captured her imagination. They were from a far away place called, Napoli, and they sang songs, like "Oh, Marie," and talked in accents and fascinated the residents of Manatí, particularly the children.
Apparently the entire family was enthralled with the Italian Thing. My grandmother, Osmunda (as my mom tells the story) learned to cook the most amazing macaroni. And every now and then, as happens to all of us, the craving for the food that her mom cooked overwhelms her.
So, the menu for the party is Italian with a Cuban spin.
In honor of that, I'd love to share this recipe for the most delicious Mac and Cheese. It's pretty simple and in fact, I did a test run the day of the Super Bowl Big Game and it was a hit with everyone. My grandmother, Osmunda's secret was to use chicken broth to cook the pasta and then make it in a flat pan so that every bite has cheese and crunch. I promise you will love.
In honor of Luza's 100th Birthday and the Random Italian Thing, I give you...
Flat Pan Mac and Cheese (estilo Osmunda)
3/4 pound elbow macaroni
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (you'll be dividing it up)
1/4 cup flour
2 cups whole milk (must be whole for the best texture)
5 cups chicken broth (divided)
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
6 oz bread crumbs. (I use fresh bread and make crumbs with my food processor. This gives it a fresher
taste.)
1 medium bunch of fresh parsley
5 cloves of garlic, peeled
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 cups of grated Parmesan cheese (about 4 ounces)
1 cup Fresh Mozzarella, diced into small cubes (8 oz)
Preheat oven to 425°F.
Bring 3 cups of water to a boil. Add a tablespoon of kosher salt.
Boil macaroni for about 5 minutes. You want it "al dente." Drain. Do not rinse. Set aside.
In the same large pot, melt 4 tablespoons of butter over medium-high heat.
Add flour, whisking constantly for about a minute. Add milk and chicken broth, whisking constantly.
Bring to boil, then reduce heat and gently simmer. Add kosher salt and pepper to taste.
Simmer until mixture begins to thicken, about 20 minutes. Note: It won't get too thick, but it should coat the spoon.
Meanwhile, melt remaining 4 tablespoons of butter. Measure 3 cups of breadcrumbs (Pulse bread in food processor to make crumbs or use packaged crumbs) and place in a mixing bowl.
Add parsley and garlic to food processor. Pulse until fine, then add to bowl with breadcrumbs. Season with 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt. Pour butter over top and mix with spatula until combined.
In a large mixing bowl, toss macaroni with grated the grated Parmesan — it's ok if the noodles are sticking together.
Pour the milk mixture (bechamel) over the top of the noodles. They should come apart easily now.
Line a long, flat, jelly roll pan with a sheet of parchment paper. Spread macaroni mixture over top.
Distribute the diced mozzarella cubes over top. Scatter breadcrumb mixture evenly over top of those. You can add any other toppings that make you happy at this point. I like it as is.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until top is golden and the macaroni is bubbling. Let it sit for about 10 minutes before serving.
Also, it's not too late if you would like to send my mom a Happy 100th Birthday Greeting. Click here and feel free to leave your good wishes in the comment section.
I'm looking at my calendar and it's already the 8th day of 2014. I was planning on taking a few days off at the beginning of the year and wow, did they go by quickly!
Come to think of it, 2013 feels like it went by pretty quickly also. Is it just me, or is this one of those things people tend to repeat a lot as they get old? Shut up. Don't even say it!
This past year has been quite eventful in lots of ways, which makes me happy that I blog (and scrapbook) because I would otherwise forget the thoughts and events and conversations I've had this past year. I know. There's that getting old thing again. Stop it.
Here are the top posts for each month of 2013. (Time is seriously flying, isn't it?)
2. #LookAtMyFood in which I continue to overshare what exactly I had for breakfast, lunch, and dinner via Instagram. (Also, if you don't already, you should follow me. I'm Smrtqbn.) I'm really very good about sharing my food.
3. Cuban Word of the Day - in which I share my delight at being honored by the wonderful artists from Wassup En LA? in their Cuban Word of the Day segment. (Technically it was 3 words - Pastelitos de Guayaba - but that's not important right now.)
4. 99 Red Balloons in which I share how we celebrated my mom, Luza's 99th birthday. Cute video attached to that post, too.
5. Ahora Sí! in which I tell about the night I finally got to meet Andy Garcia. (I know. I still can't believe it. Pinch me!)
6. Hello, Outdoor Movie Nights - in which I list all the great movies we have to choose from for our Summer Backyard Movie Theater. Also, it always marks the official beginning to our summer. And this pleases me greatly.
7. "If you build it..." - in which I celebrate the wonderful farmhouse table that my kids built for me.
8. Hurry up...and wait - in which I tell the story of Jonathan's first acting job in a feature film. (Now that I told you, I'll probably have to kill you.)
10. My Big, Fat, FROZEN, Cuban family - in which I gush (yes, there's gushing) about my day at the Walt Disney Animation Studios and the making of the animated feature, FROZEN. Also, the Disney Animators made me a personal video which totally put me over the edge.
11. ALL the Picadillo at the Blurb Books Food Fair in which I share about my visit to San Francisco and how I got to cook for lots of hungry book buyers. Also, there's a very cool video they did about me and my picadillo.
12. Cuban Picadillo Pies® - in which I developed a new and fun way to eat and share picadillo. (<--also, what a weird descriptive sentence that was!)
Thanks to all of you who have been faithfully following MBFCF for all these years or who have just found me in the last year. I write this blog mostly for myself, so it genuinely pleases me when you respond so generously to my over-sharing.
Also, did the year just fly by for you, too? (I know. Old. Shut up.)
Every year we make a large batch of Cremé de Vie or Cuban Egg Nog, if you will.
Photo: Jae C. Hong, AP
And every year we toast, "El año que viene estamos en Cuba.""Next year in Cuba."
This started in December of 1961. We had been in this country for a little less than a year and it was obvious that the whole silly revolution thing was going to blow over soon. Of course, it was.
My parents raised their glasses and said the toast, "El año que viene en Cuba."
My mom would always add, "Si Dios quiere." "God willing."
Year after long year. It will be next year for sure. Next year. No, next year. Maybe next year...
"Si Dios quiere."
The toast endured, even as we quickly and soberly realized that even if we could return, we no longer would. We were Americans now, with Cuban roots. This is our home.
Ah, but Cubans love their roots. We're proud of where we came from. We have endured loss and longing for many years. But we're not dumb.
Now when we raise our glasses and toast, "El año que viene en Cuba," it has become a prayer. Not that we would really ever return to live there, but that our homeland will one day be free and that we will live to see that day.
I gave an interview to the Associated Press last week. Now the story of "The Toast" is being run in hundreds of news outlets across the country. Here's the link on Fox News Latino. (Also, I'm quite delighted to be quoted next to my friend, author Gustavo Perez-Firmat, but that's not important right now.)
It's a proud and bittersweet moment for me to be the face of Cuban exiles and our broken dreams.
But I promise you this, I'm not going to stop toasting, or stop praying for this until Cuba is free.
It may be many, many more years (I hope not) but I'll continue to say it until I take my last breath, "El año que viene estamos en Cuba."
Today's lesson in Cuban culture comes to you directly from Miami from my friend, Elena Santayana. Last year Elena was kind enough to share her family's "coming to America" story here on My Big, Fat, Cuban Family. Her family owns the beautiful jewelry store of the same name. Santayana Jewelers in Miami.
The azabache is a black onyx stone. Cleaned and polished and attached to a pin of some sort. The unassuming azabache is the grand protector of all Cuban babies from untold evils.
There were two things that every Cuban child was practically born with: Violetas cologne and an azabache.
The Violetas is a light cologne scented with violets. I am venturing to guess that there is not one Cuban child in my family who was deprived of smelling deliciously of violets, but that's not important right now.
Also mandatory for every Cuban kid, was the azabache. It's the only thing that can protect from jealousy, the evil eye, and all sorts of untold calamaties brought on by strangers glancing sideways at you as they pass by.
As Santayana says, "The azabache...keeping you safe on the playground since 1978..."
Today's very Cuban offering for MBFCF Giveaway Week is generously sponsored by Santayana Jewelers.
And it is.....you guessed it - An azabache!
Not just any pedestrian azabache, either. It's a Santayana exclusive design - an authentic silver azabache pendant on a leather and silver Chamilia bracelet.
Leave a comment on this post for a chance to win this gorgeous Leather Bracelet and Azabache charm from Santayana Jewelers and please answer one or both of the following questions:
Did you have an azabache pinned to you as a baby?
Did you pin one on your own kids - por si acaso? (I know you did. Confess.)
NOTE: Even if you're not Cuban and don't have the fantastic superstitions that we grew up with as part of your emotional baggage, please feel free to enter to win this beautiful bracelet. Just tell me anything about yourself as a child.
For an extra entry,, please go "like" Santayana Jewelers on Facebook and come back and leave me another comment telling me:
"I like Santayana Jewelers!"
So that's not one, but two chances to win.
I'll choose a winner at the end of MBFCF Blogiversary Giveaway Week on Wednesday, October 9th, 2013 at 11 am, so you have all week to enter.
If you absolutely can't wait for a winner to be drawn next week and you want to go ahead and order your own Azabache Bracelet
immediately (take no chances with your health, people!), Santayana Jewelers is very graciously offering an online
promotion for My big, fat, Cuban family readers.*
*Santayana & MBFCF Promotion: $40 off your $150 purchase with the promo code MARTASENTME. (I feel sooo accidentally cool.)
When I was very small, maybe about 5 years old, my parents took me to Santiago de Cuba to visit "El Cobre."
Santiago de Cuba is about five hundred plus miles from the city of Havana. I remember it being a long and dusty car trip. But we got to stay in a hotel and eat at restaurants. This is pretty much all I can recall about the travel itself, but that's not important right now.
In the hills above the city sits a beautiful basilica dedicated to Our Lady of Charity, so named because she was found bone dry on a wild, stormy sea by some fishermen. On her was a sign that read, "Yo soy La Virgen de La Caridad." (Translated: "I am the Virgin of Charity.")
Of course, Cubans always seem to familiarize the things they love. We call her "Cachita." This particular version of Our Lady of Charity is the Patron Saint of Cuba and she has a presence in pretty much every Catholic Cuban home.
From our trip to El Cobre, we brought pieces of copper from the mines as souvenirs. And my mom got a little statue of Cachita to put up in our home. Since that point in time, Cachita has always lived in our family home in some iteration.
On September 8, 1961, having been in this country for just a few short months, our family went to pray at a mass alongside 30,oo0 other Cuban exiles for the peace of our homeland. The image of all those displaced families remains with me to this day. In Miami there's a beautiful chapel dedicated to her and I know she still lives in lots of Cuban homes.
Here is my mom's altar to Cachita.
I'm no longer a practicing Catholic (I'm an Evangelical Christian), so I don't usually subscribe to Catholic images of saints. But there's something about our Cuban Cachita.
What do I love more than Cubaneo*? I can't think of anything off the top of my head. (I know. However, the "husband and kids" answer is way too easy, but that's not important right now.)
(*Cubaneo is when a bunch of Cubans are together and trying to talk over each other. It's an amazing thing.)
We're going to the Cuban Heritage Day at Dodger Stadium on Sunday and I couldn't be more excited.
And we're taking a lucky MBFCF reader with us!
The winner of the Two Cuban Heritage Day Dodger Tickets is:
Congratulations, Ileana! I look forward to having you join My Big, Fat, Cuban Family for all the Cubaneo and Dodger baseball.
Please send me an email with HEY MARTA! I WON STUFF ON YOUR BLOG! in the subject line so that I don't accidentally delete it. Then I can connect with you and we can make plans. And we can wipe away tears together as Arturo Sandoval plays the National Anthem.
Okay, maybe you're not as sappy as I am, but still...
I promise I will most definitely buy you a Dodger Dog.
Go Dodger Blue!
If you are still interested in going to the game on Sunday, September 1st, but haven't gotten tickets yet, go to www.Dodgers.com/Cuba and use the promo code 13CUBA for exclusive savings.
I didn't get to go to Miami for Cuba Nostalgia this year. And I'm feeling a little sorry for myself.
It's the 15th anniversary of Cuba Nostalgia and the brilliant Tony Mendoza did the poster for the event which I'm totally in love with.
Get it? 15 years. The Quinceañera. Genius.
I already put out the word to my people on the ground in Miami (I'm looking at you, Amanda from Brandon's Puppy) that I must have this poster, but that's not important right now.
I have lots of friends who will be at the Fair Expo Center in Miami this weekend.
Of course, Babalú Blog will represent. It's their 10th Anniversary in the Blogosphere telling the truth about Cuba. Congratulations, guys! So proud to be a part of the Babalú Family.
I lamented my inability to be present to my friends at Santayana Jewelers, who always have a wonderful presence there.
They're running a Cuba Nostalgia Special this weekend:
If you buy 4 of the Cuban Charms for your Habana Collection Bead Charm Bracelet, they'll throw in a 5th charm for free. Awesome, right?
1) I don't have to tell you this, but if you're Cuban or love all things Cuban, you must have a Cuban Charm bracelet. (Duh.)
2) If you already have the bracelet, you will want as many Cuban charms as you can fit on it, right?
Wait! It gets better...
3) If you're a MBFCF (which, obviously, you are if you're reading this now...)
"The first 5 people to come over and say Marta Sent Me get a free "cafecito"charm."
What are you waiting for, people? Go! Get yourselves over to the Santayana Jewelers booth at Cuba Nostalgia this weekend and say, Marta Sent Me! (I'll expect a full report from the lucky 5.)
I probably shouldn't make such a big deal about it, but I do. Family Dinners are super important to me.
It has nothing to do with surveys or statistics. Although statistics are on the side of regular family dinners for keeping families connected and eating well.
Family Dinners are kind of sacred around here.
Confession: I don't always cook Cuban. But I do cook a lot. And there are always vegetables and salads and lots of variety in the main dishes, although we're mostly unapologetic carnivores.
My rules are that 1) dinner must be delicious and 2) phones must be off. The exception to the turning-off-phone rule is that you may take photos of your food, and you may even Instagram it, which everyone knows is why God gave us smart phones.
I know the Family Dinner thing is hopelessly old-fashioned. But as everyone has gotten busier, it seems to be the only place where we consistently connect and share as a family. I miss not having my older kids here as much, as they've gotten on with their busy lives. But when they are here we make it a point to have a feast.
In the interest of full disclosure, we also order pizza and take out Chinese food. But even then, we sit at our places and slow down enough to spend time together. Did I tell you that everyone has their own place at the table? (I know. Shut up.)
Ironically, yesterday, as I was working on this post, I had a terrible fibro episode. I did not even make dinner and every man was on his own. Those times make me glad that we have so many everybody-sit-down-together type meals. The free-for-all is much more the exception, rather than the rule.
I think the need to feed people and have them around the table comes from my happiest memories of my Cuban childhood. The Family Table was sacred. There was always lively conversation and delicious food. I wish we had more moments like this in our lives. This is why I've become so intentional in making Dinner Time so important.
In the Movie of My Life, most of the scenes and family exchanges will take place around the dinner table. In that silver-screen-fantasy there will also be someone else who cleans up after the meal, but that's not important right now.
When I see the faces of the ones I love best as they laugh and share and we listen to the stories about who said what and how their days went, there's no question that this is a good and solid tradition.
Go and grab yourself a nice, hot cafecito and make yourself comfortable. This post is going to be long and newsy. I'm about to seriously dish about the new TV sitcom, Wassup En LA? with lots of details and tons of photos about the project. (This is why you love me, right?)
I promised you a few weeks ago that I would write about the making of Wassup En LA? in great detail. I have so much to share with you about why I think this show is going to be fantastic and why I believe it's going to be must-see TV, but let me back up a bit.
Here I am with Wassup En LA? creators, Rudolpho Zalez and Carlos de la Vega. At Porto's, of course.
The co-creators of Wassup, Rudolpho Zalez and Carlos de la Vega envisioned a good, old-fashioned TV sitcom. In their vision, they wanted to follow in the footsteps of old-school, family-themed TV classics, such as "I Love Lucy," "The Cosby Show, "Chico and the Man," and "¿Que Pasa, U.S.A.?"
Family friendly TV? Yes, please.
The premise is already hilarious:
Manolito Diaz has dreams of making it big as a Hollywood actor. His Cuban family is extremely supportive. In typical Cuban style, his mom and dad show their support by moving the family from Miami to Los Angeles to help their son reach his dream. They bring along his reluctant-to-leave-Miami sister and, of course the very deliciously Cuban abuelos.
Meet the fictional Diaz family:
From left to right: Oscar Torre as Pepe Diaz, Jean Paul San Pedro as
Manolito Diaz, Nicole Garcia as Teresita Diaz, Nelida Ponce as Eufemia
Olga Diaz, Gerardo Riverón as Alfredo Figueroa Diaz, and Jezabel Montero
as Rosa Maria Diaz.
As I understand it, the entire first season has already been written. The taping we attended on March 23rd involved the shooting of the pilot episode and also a few scenes from various key moments from the rest of the season.
So, for those of you asking where you can see it, there's no good answer for that....yet. The show is still in the works. The scenes that were filmed on the 23rd are still in the post-production phase. It's quite an exciting (and nerve-wracking) time for all involved.
Preparation
You'll recall that the producers called and asked if I had any Cuban-looking props for the set. Of course, I was happy to oblige. My kids and I willingly drove up to L.A. to deliver the goods. (I'm willing to drive to any area code where a Porto's can be found. I know. Shut up.)
Much to our everlasting delight, we got to visit the studio where the live taping was going to happen.
Jonathan, Lucy, and I dropping off our Cuban props (Hey! That works on two levels!) at CML Studios.
We got to watch the beautiful set being built.
And we got to sit in on one of the rehearsals.
Director Rudolpho Zalez getting the perfect reaction from Jezabel Montero (Rosa Maria Diaz).
Let me stop right here and tell you about the cast.
The Cast
The first members of the cast that we met were Gerardo Riverón and Nelida Ponce, who play the abuelos, Alfredo and Eufemia. For me, it was love at first sight. Both accomplished actors, in their own right, they brought the "Cubaneo" from Miami to the Diaz dinner table. I love that even as they delivered lines in Spanish and Spanglish and broken English, they were always translated beautifully as part of the family dialogue, which is not easy to do.
Kudos to the writers for making them completely Cuban and perfectly accessible to the American audience. Or as we Cubans say, "Se la comieron." Which translates literally to "They ate it." It's a Cuban idiom that means they fantastically exceeded all expectations. (See what I mean? Not easy.)
Here's Nelida (Abuela) showing the next generation how it's done:
Jezabel Montero (daughter of the iconic telenovela beauty, Zully Montero) plays Rosa Maria, the mom. She's an absolute joy to watch as she effortlessly portrays everyone's Cuban American mami. I'd like to interject here that she is a lovely, blond haired, blue-eyed beauty, which is so very typically Cuban (believe it). Smart, funny and oh, so approachable. She's exactly who you would want for a next door neighbor, co-worker, or best friend.
MBFCF, meet the lovely and talented, Jezabel Montero and the fabulously versatile, Oscar Torre. That's me in the center of this look-at-all-this-Cuban-talent sandwich.
Oscar Torre plays Pepe Diaz. He is the quintessential Cuban dad. All Cuban perfection in his tone and delivery. The ideal blend of seriousness and tenderness. There's a particularly beautiful scene in which Pepe reminds his son, Manolito (Jean Paul San Pedro) what a family is truly all about. I may or may not have cried a little during that scene. (Also, please notice my Cuban souvenir mini-conga set on Manolito's dresser, but that's not important right now.)
"No family is perfect. But be thankful you
have one that loves and supports you."
Nicole Garcia plays the smart-alecky sister, Teresita, who hates that they left their lives in Miami to help Manolito chase his dream. She plays the role with a perfect balance of snark and sweetness that's almost breathtaking. I know Teresita. She's all the Cuban friends I grew up with.
And, of course, the one who brings them all to L.A. as he chases his dreams of stardom, Manolito, expertly brought to you by Jean Paul San Pedro. Watch the following video and fall in love with Manolito.
You're totally pulling for him already, aren't you? I know.
The Taping
The taping went on for the entire day. We arrived around 1:00 PM for the 3:30 PM taping, which was sort of happening on "Cuban time" which was more like 4-ish.
I expected to enjoy the show. Hello? A Cuban family. On TV. What's not to like? I often felt growing up, that our everyday family interactions were worthy of a sitcom. I think most of us who grew up Cuban felt that way. I think that's why many of you relate to me here on MBFCF, and why we Cubans all so passionately love ¿Que Pasa, USA? These are our people. Our stories. Our lives.
Seriously, I have to say it again: Se la comieron. (Just to review: "They ate it." In other words, they fantastically exceeded all expectations.)
Both Eric and I were floored by what great chemistry the cast had with each other. Did I already mention that the entire cast consists of real Cuban Americans? (As God intended.) They were truly believable as a family. As a Cuban family.
My favorite moment of Cubanity (<--that should sooo be a word) happened as the family was gathered at the dinner table.
The director's cue was: "El Cubaneo. Go!"
The family starts talking all at once and over each other. Genius. That's dinner every night at our house, people. I know you know what I'm talking about.
Pepe, the dad prays before the meal. Mostly for patience on the 405. LOVE.
The script was beautifully written. The comedic timing of the actors dead on. The actors were there from 6:00 AM to almost 10:00 PM. And for every take they were both fresh and funny. Every. Time. Seriously.
I'd like to interject here that obviously the appeal to me, personally, was that the hilarity all takes place in a Cuban family. And while that was both familiar and priceless, let me reassure you, the family interactions are of the every day variety. Bickering was balanced by caring. Misunderstanding complemented by tenderness. The only difference being that they were a little bit louder. And they rolled their R's.
I want to know these people in my real life. Yeah. That, right there? Makes this sitcom a total winner in my book.
The shooting of the pilot took about 7 hours. We were entertained in between the hurry-up-and-waiting by live Cuban music, the awesome comedy of Fernando Duran and "snacks" from Porto's Bakery.
Pastelitos de carne. Pastelitos de guayaba. From Porto's Bakery. Amen.
The shooting of the pilot wrapped up around 9:00 PM and we stuck around to watch them film a few scenes from other episodes.
From the episode: "One quality plate is better than a buffet," Pepe gives Manolito and his friends dating guidelines. I must reiterate that Oscar Torre gives the perfect Cuban papi performance. He is the Cuban "Everyman."
The best friends, Allen, played by Pritesh Shah, and Judd, played by Aaron Kuban.
The supporting cast of friends, Pritesh Shah, Aaron Kuban, and Keila Hamilton (as Teresita's friend, Tawana) were all superb as complementary characters to the Diaz family. (I think I'm running out of superlatives here.) Oh, how I wish this show were on the air already!
I encourage all of you, my friends, to support the effort to get this brilliant sitcom on TV. You can help in the following ways:
Go love them on Facebook. Follow them on Twitter. Subscribe to their YouTube Channel (be prepared to get hooked on these characters). Share with your friends. Get the word out. We need their kind of magic on TV.
The show is not only family-friendly, but beautifully written and the performances were all fantastic. So entertaining. So fun to watch. So positive and frankly, uplifting. Just like the shows I grew up watching and loving as a kid. I promise to keep you informed as soon as I know anything about where and when it can be seen.
The fabulously talented Oscar Torre and Jean Paul San Pedro with a very star-struck and satisfied Cuban blogger.
Thank you, again, Rudolpho and Carlos and the beautiful cast and hard working crew for your tireless energy, perseverance, and faith to see this thing through. I'm waiting, rather impatiently, to see what happens next with Wassup En LA?
Last summer, I came across a Kickstarter Campaign for a not-yet-produced TV show called "Wassup en LA?" The theme was that a young Cuban American actor from Miami goes to Los Angeles to find fame and fortune. And his Cuban family, abuelos and all, follow and support him.
I clicked on the link, read the synopsis and and fell in love. You will recall that I wrote about it here.
If you know how Kickstarter works, you know that the project has to meet your fundraising goal by a pre-determined date to get the funds. Sadly, they did not meet their goal.
But something else magical and serendipitous happened. A faithful reader and follower of MBFCF in Sugarland, Texas (of all places!) stepped up and became the Executive Producer. Her production company is called Sugar Cube Productions. (Get it? Cuban? From Sugarland? Sugar Cube. Genius.)
After four years of sweat and toil and script writing and casting decisions, the day came when the pilot of Wassup En LA? got a green light for filming on March 23rd.
A few weeks before The Filming Day, I had a fabulous lunch (at Porto's Bakery, of course!) with the co-creators of the show, Rudolpho Zalez and Carlos de la Vega.
They gifted me some cool Wassup gear. I gave them autographed copies of my cookbook. Win-Win.
During lunch they asked me: Did I have any Cuban-looking props they could use on the set?
Hello? My (freakishly small) house is one Big Cuban Prop. "Help yourselves."
Which is how a few of our household items ended up on the set of the TV home of the Diaz Family. How cool is that?
I have so much more to tell you about the show and how fabulous it was to watch the live taping and being part of a mostly Cuban studio audience. I promise I WILL BLOG ABOUT IT IN NAUSEATING DETAIL, but today's not that day.
For now, I just want you to just appreciate how accidentally awesome it is that a blogging Cuban mom in Mission Viejo wrote about a project that was seen by the movers and shakers in Texas (hello, Sugarland!) who actually brought the thing to fruition. Mind. Blown.
Makes me think that God's hand was in it somehow. And that makes me feel completely humbled, and sooo accidentally cool.
I have been taking a hiatus to get myself well again from being sick for the first part of this year. (Thank you, Vicks VaPoRub for your constant support.)
I'm 100% better and I'm ready to jump back into blog-world. I had a feeling-sorry-for-myself-emotionally-fragile moment of "I wonder if anyone even remembers me?"
This morning I wake up to this in my Facebook news feed, which was like a shot of adrenaline.
Wait! Is that my face? Shut. UP. I feel sooo accidentally cool!
I may or may not have shed a quick tear. Gracias, Wassup En LA?I'm back. Pastelitos and all.
When we first moved into our present home eleven years ago, I had a vision of what I wanted along the wall of the stairwell. I wanted a sepia toned collection of family photos, old and new.
The black and white photos and the brown sepia tones would be the unifying factor between the Now and Then look.
It all started with a photo of my dad. A self-portrait he had taken sitting perfectly still playing with a long exposure. He was working on what was then known as the Isle of Pines (Isla de Pino) and had grown a beard and wanted to document this momentous occasion for my mom to see.
I always loved the photo of Papi. He looked so young and so "Indiana Jonesy." So, I had it framed years before and it hung in my parents' home for years. My mom gave it to me as a gift when I moved into this house and I still treasure it.
Also, I found a poster of an old photo of my sisters and me on the beach in Varadero Beach in Cuba, circa 1958. I had that blown up back in the early 70's and had it mounted on a plaque and so I get to enjoy it every single day.
So, I had my idea and I added to it photos of family and some vinyl lettering with the year we got married. And I added a scripture that I felt added to the feel. I had a custom stencil made and painted it directly on the wall.
From the book of Job 5:25, it says in Spanish:
“Sabras que tu descendencia es mucha, y tu prole como la hierba de la tierra.”
In English:
“You will know also that your descendants will be many, and your offspring as the grass of the Earth.”
I truly love the way the wall came together and expresses the "old timey" feel I wanted. When I come down the stairs I remember my dad, who passed away 13 years ago. He was pretty brilliant and had a delicious sense of humor. I love the photo of him and picture the moment of him, so many years ago, doing his painstaking self-portrait.
This past New Year's Eve, we had a party and there were fake mustaches involved, but that's not important right now.
You know how you see something every single day so that it gets to a point that you don't really "see" it? Yes. That's me. All the time.
Imagine my surprise when I came down the stairs and noticed this:
I laughed out loud and thought, "Papi would have loved this."
There's so much that I love about the holidays. My earliest Christmas memories are all filled with abundance and magic.
I think one of my favorites happened as we were learning the language and the customs of our new adopted country. Our default greeting was always "Feliz Navidad." But here in the U.S. things were a little different.
Our Cuban tongues that could so easily roll R's into oblivion were a challenged by the Christmas greetings we heard around us.
Merry Christmas came out sounding more like, "Meri Cree-mah," all Cuban accented, broken and abrubt syllables. And then there were the new songs we were learning in school. (I started 1st grade here in the U.S. without speaking a word of English.)
Our favorite was something we called, "El Wiwichu."
That's right. It goes something like this:
"Wiwichu ah Meri Chree-mah, Wiwichu ah Meri Cree-mah, Wiwichu ah Meri Cree-mah. Ana hapi niu yiah."
As I send out my Christmas cards, I can't help but think of El Wiwichu.
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