My Big Fat Cuban Family: A Cuban-American Blog

Bilingual in the Bubble

DISCLAIMER: The following post may not be completely understandable to my non-Cuban blog readers. I apologize in advance.
 
I often refer to South Orange County (where we live) as The Bubble. This is white whole-wheat bread capital of So Cal.
I miss my Bilingual in the Boonies friend, Carrie. Unlike my (lovely and fabulous) American friends, Carrie "gets" me and I "get" her in that inimitable Cuban way. In other words we speak the same Spanglish. =D

For example, she didn't bat an eye when I told her that I was not just tired, I was "desmoñingada." (umm... extremely tired). And then she called me "una fiera" (a ferocious beast) and of course, I took that as a compliment. We spent hours "metiendo tremenda muela." (umm... talking... a lot).  She explained some ideas she had about sending my cookbook to Andy Garcia (which we'll discuss in greater detail later, but that's not important right now) and her explanation "me la puso en China" (umm...appeared to create some difficulty for me). There it is. Hours of Spanglish fun for the whole family! That's right, my whole family and hers, too...

Yes, that includes Maria, who knew exactly what to do when my kids yelled "un besito!"

Los extrañamos muchisimo! Too bad you live "en casa de yuca!" (umm...far. =D)

Island girls blog, too.

The Balboa Island Ferry.
Just one of those local historically charming things we have here in South Orange County.
Since 1919 the auto ferry has been taking 3 cars at a time (plus pedestrian passengers) back and forth between Balboa Island and the Fun Zone at the Balboa Peninsula.

To my complete excitement and delight, my Cuban friend, Carrie, of the fabulous blog, Bilingual in the Boonies is visiting us here in Southern California, far from their Boonie Home in Tennessee, along with her enchanting husband (No, they're never going to build a bridge there, Tom - get over it. =D) and their delightfully animated and chatty daughter, Maria, who breathlessly told me this great story all about how she has a baby sister, Rebecca, and an older sister, Lilly, but they don't live in the same house as her, and yada, yada...

I knew Carrie and I had much to catch up on, but still....

Me: "You have two other daughters?? And they don't live with you?? You're holding out on me!" 

Carrie: "Marta,( she said in a voice of infinite patience, that she obviously uses to explain things to her 4 year old and her thick-headed-quasi-retarded friends) Maria is four and doesn't quite get the concept of COUSINS." 

And that was just the beginning of our evening.

I suppose you are still wondering what we were doing boarding the Balboa Island Ferry at 10 o'clock at night. I know the setting seems odd, but seriously, what could be more natural (or more fun???) than two Cuban girls on an island?  =D

(Stay tuned - I will have much to report!)  ;-)

The game's afoot...

I'm on vacation. Truly I am. We're swimming and relaxing and I'm even doing some scrapbooking and lots of reading. Yes. A perfectly relaxing vacation.  However, I'm still connected to the world because we inhabit a world of super-techiness (is that a word?).  So, I'm sitting today by the pool and I receive a text from my friend, Gene, Pam's husband, with a picture:

"We're at  the opening of Toy Story Mania. It's phenomenal. Hoping to see you.
Where are you?"

Hmm.... unexpected. My friends are at Disneyland and California Adventures and I'M NOT.

So I reply:
"Big Bear. On vacation. For the rest of the week. So sorry we missed you."

Moments later I receive another text, this time from my niece, Helen, with a picture:

"Just got off the new Toy Story ride. No wait - was amazing. Where are you??"

Ummm, here I go again... Helen and Daisy are my tried and true Disneyland buddies. And they are there WITHOUT ME?

"Big Bear. On vacation. For the rest of the week. So sorry we missed you."

This was starting to take on the characteristics of a conspiracy! I'm apparently the last Disney pass holder on the planet to ride on the new Toy Story ride. And no, I'm not jealous. I'm not. I swear...... heck, I'm on vacation! (and having a wonderful time, but that's not important right now) But the plot thickens and it's my own fault because I was the one who started the Scavenger Hunt in the first place, but that's not important right now either...

So now I'm texting with Gene and I'm texting with Helen when Gene suddenly wants to know where the thermometer is. In my original Disneyland Photo Scavenger Hunt there is a thermometer which reads 40 degrees. I took the picture in the doorway of the Coca-Cola Corner - Here's proof:

Gene and Pam are getting frustrated. No Thermometer. So I enlist Helen (after all, she was with me when I took the photos and she's already done this scavenger hunt) to help Gene and Pam find the Thermometer.

"On which side of the park are you? The Thermometer is MIA." 

It's not at the Coke Corner, she says, in fact, she's sure it's at the Carnation Cafe. I finally give Gene, Helen's number and vice versa (trying to extricate myself from the proverbial loop - I'm on vacation here, people!) but the texts kept coming:

"Not there. The Employees have never seen it before. yada yada. and you're delusional."

What?? This hunt wasn't that long ago.... (I start feeling a bit worried and responsible and a bit crazed when I'm supposed to be relaxing - did I mention that I'm. on. vacation! sigh).

Helen and Daisy let me know that they are now on their way to Main Street and the Carnation Cafe. Surely they'll find the bloody Thermometer - how hard can this be???  Okay. I admit it's a pretty difficult hunt - not for the faint of heart.

So now I get poetic: "Your Sacred Quest - FIND THE THERMOMETER."

They play right along with me: "No quest is too dangerous for the unstoppable duo of Daisy & Helen!"

By this time we're getting ready for dinner. The texting has been going on all day. My family is kind of tired of The Impossible Thermometer Quest. Gene and Pam apparently are tired of it too because they are resting and they think I'm lying and they've given up. (sorry, guys!)

Last text from Helen, way into the evening now:
"There is a nail hole, people!"  Mystery solved.

"Our Disneyland Scavenger Hunt has been sullied. The thermometer is gone, baby, gone!"

SIDE NOTE: When I send text messages with my friends we don't use text-slang (ie - CU L8TR which always sounds like bad vanity plates,but that's not important right now), we use punctuation, upper and lower case letters, and capitalize proper nouns. I know!

It cracked me up that they were furiously texting me all day over this Case of the Missing Thermometer and that yes, even though I'm on vacation.... I still got to play along!  And that makes me uber-happy! But I'm sad that my scavenger hunt is spoiled now.

I guess that only means one thing: I need to start working on a new one. (sigh. A creative-Disney-loving mother's work is never done.)

From the (allegedly) vacationing Marta - Peace out. =D

"Elementary, My Dear Watson there was a NAIL HOLE."

2 families. 1 house. 70 years. 3000 miles.

Who are these people?
They are my friend (from Babalu blog), Val's grandparents.
Why is that important right now?
Umm.... well, I get very emotional when I talk about this.
So just read the story here in Val's own words.

WARNING: Get Kleenex first.

Cuba Nostalgia, Day 1 - I'm already Nostalgic

I already have so many stories I can't wait to share . . .

I am so excited to be here in Miami and to re-connect with my friends from last year.

Here I am with my co-bloggers (is that a word?), the amazing Ziva, the wise-cracking Reinier, and the lovely Amanda.

It was crazy, everyone was hugging, talking, laughing, and (of course) blogging. Adam kept joking about how we were the uber-nerds of Cuba Nostalgia. "When there's all this amazing Cuban food and music, you people BLOG??"
There's Amy (exCUSE me - "Kikita") blogging alongside the focused Henry, and the brilliant Alberto.

I found a new best friend partner-in-crime. . . (Hi Claudia!)

And (can you believe it?)  I have a fan club!  (Okay, well, maybe just A Fan, but that's not important right now. =D) People were actually buying My Big, Fat, Cuban Family Cookbook and asking me to sign it!  This is my fan recipe reader:  Mario along with his beautiful wife.

I feel like such a celebrity (with a very little "c.") =D

La Gorda y La Flaca

Because my children are obedient in the best possible way, they don't even try to challenge me anymore when I make them take the "Mickey-face" picture.  I must have hundreds of these, because I insist we take one EVERY TIME. I know. But one day it will be a very cool thing and they will insist their kids do it too, but that's not important right now. =D

Yes, we were at Disneyland this evening. And so was everyone else in Southern California apparently...

But we were there with A Purpose. 
Look who we found among the throng....

Yes, that's my blog friend, the lovely and talented Chantel Acevedo! Of Fiction and musings with a side of yuca fame. (and yes, that's her book over there on the right because she's also one Smart Cuban Author.) 
Shut. Up.

Okay, seriously, this is the first time we've met face-to-face and it's always dicey when you meet someone you've only just known online.  You have an idea of what they will look like and sound like and their mannerisms, etc.  And you worry just a little bit that you may not get along as well in real life.  (you'll have to wait until she posts something to see if our stories match...)

But can I just tell you, Chantel is the sweetest, nicest, most delightful person to be with. We sat and talked and talked and reveled in our Mutual Uber-Disney Dorkdom. And yes, I'll say it, I feel like I've known her my entire life.  If she and Orlando and Penny lived even remotely near us (they don't) we would want them with us as much as possible. 

So I was having a sort of surreal moment when Penny was asleep in her stroller and Chantel and I were sitting at a little table in Tomorrowland talking about our lives and I was thinking to myself, "Wow. I'm sitting here in Tomorrowland with Chantel, and it's soooo Not Weird."

Eric, Amy, Lucy and Jonathan met up with us later and we had such a lovely time together that we were all reluctant to say goodbye. What lovely friends!  

Well... we may just have to consider vacationing in Auburn, Alabama someday.....

Did I mention that I live a charmed life?  =D

I sound much taller than I really am. . .

I know.
You come over here and read my blog all the time and you wonder . . .

"What does Marta's voice sound like?"

Well, here's your one big chance to find out. (Because I'm sure after they have me do this, they aren't likely to ask me to do it again, but that's not important right now. =D)

I'll be co-hosting the Babalú Radio Hour with Henry "El Conductor" Gomez this evening.

Tonight at 5pm Pacific - 8pm Eastern

Click HERE to listen to the podcast.

The  Call-in Number is :  (646) 652-4506

 

Be kind. ;-)

Dressing for success

Isn't she adorable? This is sweet CJ wearing a prototype of an apron for Marta's Cuban American Kitchen.

Her grandma is my best friend and a dedicated lover of all things Cuban, but especially Cuban food.

I get such a kick out of this. Some of my very first memories involve helping in the kitchen and of course, the greatest, most fun part was strapping on that apron.  It made me feel so professional and special.

Okay, so really, I still like any excuse to dress up, but that's not important right now. ;-)

Get your own apron here. Your Cuban food will taste so much better. Trust me. =D

Feliz Navidad

Me: Can you guys do a 30-second Noche Buena commercial spot?

Them:  Umm. . . Duh!  Watch this . . .

I want to wish all of you my very faithful blog visitors (whom I totally consider my Big, Fat, Extended

Let's talk about "pressure"

Isn't that a beautiful Pulpeta?? (Cuban "meatloaf" - although I'd just like to reiterate that it is nothing like American meatloaf and we just use the word "meatloaf" as a point of reference. There. I feel better now.)

No. I didn't make it. (And yes, I totally admit it's much prettier than mine, but that's not important right now.)

I got a sweet email with photos from (hungry) Babalú reader, Claude, who talked his lovely wife, Cindy (who will henceforth be known as The Amazing Pulpeta Cook) into making it.  ;-)

"Last night we had Pulpeta and it was a hit, my two daughters loved it and it was much better than just regular meatloaf*. Thank you for posting it and please keep those recipes coming."

(*See?? I'm not the only one who thinks so! =D)

Did you catch what he said there at the end?  "...and please keep those recipes coming."

You know, I'd really hate for people to be going hungry on my account, sooo . . .

You'll find my recipe for Cuban Fritas** over at Babalú today.

** They're like Cuban-style mini-burgers or "sliders" (think White Castle if you're on the Right Coast, or Ruby's if you're on the Left Coast)  but they're really not burgers, per se and I just use the word "slider" as a point of reference. . . oh, you know what I mean!

Go.  Make them.  Send me pictures.  Ask for more.  I can do it. I can take the pressure. Bring it on!  ;-)

[NOTE to the Betancourts:
You ROCK!! =D ]