Spring weather here in Southern California is like no other. The first thing I do when I get up in the morning is open all the windows and doors and let the fresh air in. This is how the trouble started... I left the slider in our bedroom open the other morning, and a bee got in the house. I didn't know that that's what had happened. I ...
Cuban family
It Won’t Be A Surprise Party…
I had my mom, Luza, with me over the weekend. Our major activity was making plans for her upcoming birthday next month. We will be celebrating her 99 years on earth. Me: "What would you like to do for your birthday?" Luza: "I would like a party." Me: "Of course." She stops for a moment, thinking. "Can I have ...
His Descendants are Many…
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 ...
The Things I Didn’t Blog About in 2012 – Luza
I write just about every day in my journal. I use the pages to rant and complain so that I don't do as much of it here in this public space. In my journal, I write about my fears, my worries, my hopes, and my dreams. Some days I just write about how tired I am (which admittedly is not the best blog-fodder, but that's not important right ...
The Best of MBFCF in 2012
I've been blogging here in this space for the past six years and a half years. That's a lot of life that has transpired and that I've documented here on my blog. A couple of years ago I started doing a recap in January of the year that had passed. Here are years, 2009, 2010, and 2011. I like looking back to see where I've been ...
My Big, Fat, Cuban Family Photo Op
I'm sure there are lots of obedient people who, when the photographer says, “say cheese!” do so without any problems. My big, fat, Cuban family? Not so much. Please enjoy.My son, Adam and his fiancee, Stephanie.My son, Adam. My daughter, Amy Kikita. My niece, Katie.My sister, Helen and her two grandchildren, Daisy and Ben.My sister, ...
El Wiwichu
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 ...
Cuando Sali de Cuba – Ada’s Story
Marta here: I have more stories than I could fit into just one month. I am going to share them once a week. Thank you all for having the courage to share the details of the most difficult time in your life. Today's story comes from Ada. Being able to leave Cuba after just having had surgery was worth the risk.by Ada Owens My mom, my dad, my ...
Is Anybody Listening?
It's barely 5:30 AM. I'm in the uber-hip offices of NPR in Los Angeles waiting to be called into the studio. I'm cooling my heels in the lobby as I wait to be summoned into a recording studio to tape a segment about my recollections of the Cuban Missile Crisis. October 22, 1962. I was only 7 years old and my family was living in ...
Remembering Papi. Resolviendo – Cuban style
My dad was an Electrical Engineer. A Cuban Engineer. Which made him brilliant and innovative with just a touch of Mad Scientist to him. When we first arrived in this country, someone had given us a very old, very used, five foot tall refrigerator. We were grateful to have it, since we arrived here with nothing. A gift of a large appliance, no ...
