I’m sharing the next installment of Kym’s Everyday Images Prompts and will link up with her blog this coming Thursday. The prompts this time around were, spooky, black and white, trees, blaze, selfie and ornate.
Thank you, Kym.
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spooky
black and white
My Pop
Greg’s Dad
trees
The tree above is from our Grands’ Granny’s home.
blaze
selfie (quarterly)
ornate
Edinburgh, St. Giles Cathedral.
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Happy November everyone! Is it just me or did October fly by? Today we are heading to Spokane airport to pick up my best friend from the Russian Baptist Church days in L.A. and her hubby. They are flying in today and will be with us until Tuesday. They are city mice and will see what country living is like here with us.
The last time they were in Washington state was at Josh and Laura’s wedding in 2001!
Ken, Heidi and Christina (my sister-in-law) from 2001 on our friends’ deck for an after wedding barbecue. Our friends were gracious to host our guests (family and friends) from out of town after the wedding.
Fresh photos from the country instead of the Western side of Washington coming soon.
It is time for another Wednesday Hodgepodge and Jo From This Side of the Pond has the questions ready.
1. June 12 is National Simplicity Day. In what way is your life simple? What’s one way that it’s not?
Since moving to the country our life has become more simple in a few ways. We entertain less. We don’t leave the house as often. When we drive anywhere in town we only encounter 2 traffic signals. There are many places we travel to without even going through one traffic light. The one way it’s not as simple is that we have more property to care for. We need a riding lawnmower and we have more weeds to pull!
2. Something you remember from a ‘simpler time’?
One of the things we enjoyed doing way back before 9-11 was to drop travelers off at their airport gate and greet them when they returned at their gate. Nowadays you can barely get a hug in when you drop them off at the curb.
3. Do you like squash? If so what’s your favorite variety? What’s a favorite way to prepare squash?
I don’t mind squash but I wouldn’t go out of my way to eat it or prepare it except for maybe Butternut Squash Soup.
4. Do you shop the warehouse stores (such as Costco, Sam’s B.J’s, etc)? If so how often do you go, and what’s something you always buy in this type of store?
We do shop at Costco regularly and when we have a project we might shop at Home Depot. Monthly trips to Costco are normal. We always fill the gas tank when we first arrive at Costco. They have the cheapest gas prices around these parts. We regularly buy coffee beans, lemons, toilet paper, water, tissue, toothpaste, shaving cream, bar soap, liquor, rotisserie chicken, pure maple syrup, agave sweetener, ranch dressing, and nuts. We were there on Monday to pick up Dear’s hearing aides. He has never had them before so he is now getting used to them. I also check out their clothing piles to see any deals on items that will work for us. I regularly make purchases for the church kitchen at Costco, too. The items in italic come in multi-packs so we purchase them less frequently.
5. Father’s Day is this coming Sunday. Any plans to make the day special? Tell us something about your own father, or something about your hubs as a father, or about someone who stepped into your life and acted as a father if yours was not a part of your life.
My older sister Kathy, Pop (working on a jigsaw puzzle) and me camping in Big Bear California in the 50’s.
My pop was a carpenter and he worked hard to earn enough money to feed and clothe us. When he immigrated to the U.S. just after World War II he had to get creative to find work, later he was able to get carpentry work regularly and he was part of the Carpenters Union. Although he was religious there was something missing until He heard the Gospel clearly at a Billy Graham Crusade at the Los Angeles Coliseum. He knew God was calling him to repentance and a new life following Jesus Christ as his Savior. When he asked God to forgive him, and he put his faith in Jesus Christ for his salvation, he knew immediately that something changed in him. He now had the help of the Holy Spirit to live this new life following Jesus. He desired this new life for all of us and for his parents and siblings, too. Sharing Christ with others was a priority in his life. When his papers were filled out for his legal immigration his name was translated to Moisi in English but it would have been more accurate to be spelled Moses. Our parents sacrificed for their children. They very rarely spent money on themselves. Pop lived to be 95 and outlived our mom by 5 years.
This photo is from a celebration we had for our parents in April of 2013 for their 90th birthdays and for their 70th wedding anniversary. Our brother Fred was missing from this celebration. Our mom died in September of 2013 and our Pop lived for 5 more years.
Our kids will be giving their tributes to their ‘Pops’ on Sunday. He’s a good man and I’m thankful for him and our life together. While I’m sitting at my computer answering these questions, Greg is vacuuming our entire home! What a guy!
We will celebrate with our local kids on Sunday evening here in Colville.
6. Insert your own random thought here.
Me and my Pop, 1973. This was taken at a Los Angeles terminal for chartered flights. Several family members and friends were all together with no restrictions at the departure gate.
Our first Wednesday Hodgepodge in February is bringing back special memories of our dear Babushka Vera. We also called her our ‘little babushka’. The photo above was taken at Greg and my wedding in December of 1974.
One of the best family memories is stopping at 31 Flavors (Ice Cream shop) on Beverly Blvd. after a church event for our two or three scoops! I chose orange sherbet and chocolate chip. One of my brothers always chose vanilla.
3. Something you learned from a grandparent?
From our little babushka Vera we learned you could still do amazing things with only one hand. Her left arm was amputated at the elbow when she was very young. With one arm and hand, she managed raising children, cooking blintzes, baking piroshky and creating beautiful embroidery just to name a few. The photo of her above was taken at Greg and my wedding shower at Bethany Baptist Church in Los Angeles.
She made all those goodies on her kitchen table for Christmas breakfast before we walked a few doors down for church. All her ‘people’ would stop into her apartment before church for a treat and the most Merry Christmas start to the day.
This embroidered tablecloth and napkins was my little babushka’s wedding gift to us.
4. The most visited cities in the world last year (according to this site) were-Bangkok, Paris, London, Dubai, and Singapore. Have you been to any of the cities mentioned? Which would you most like to see? How do you feel about international travel in general these days?
Of these cities, I’ve only been to London and would choose London to see again from this list of cities. Still hopeful for travel to the United Kingdom. I’m a comfort traveler so I’d avoid any country where I wouldn’t feel comfortable about language barriers, etc. There are enough wonderful International adventures for me in the UK.
5. February is the perfect month to ______________________.
February is the perfect month to be loving and kind to one another.
6. Insert your own random thought here.
Our Babushka Vera was promoted to heaven to be with her Savior in March of 1980. She was a Godly woman who prayed for all her grandchildren and for all her grandchildren’s future spouses. She prayed for our Pop’s salvation and for the salvation of her own husband. After they were married and he became a follower of Christ, our Dzedushka Fedot became a Baptist Minister. He was killed in Iran just after our parents immigrated to the USA after World War II. Our little Babushka immigrated to the USA with my Uncle and his family without her husband. I am so looking forward to seeing Babushka in heaven and seeing Dzedushka for the first time in heaven.
I’m way behind this week after a busy full and wonderful weekend and then our Hot Water Tank repair job that took our son Dan and Greg all morning into the afternoon on Monday to fix. Hey…but we have some hot reliable water now and it will hopefully last a while.
Jo has worked on some more questions for us to answer for Hodgepodge Wednesday. Want to join in the fun?
1. What’s your earliest memory?
With this old brain this is a tough one for me. I seem to remember being in front of a wonderful bakery with cookies displayed, a Jewish Bakery, in East Los Angeles. Bakeries always draw me in and that brings me to my biggest first world problem!!
We moved from East Los Angeles to Montebello Gardens soon afterwards and most of my ‘early’ memories are connected with that property. I remember things like an incinerator in the back yard. A cement slab where our new family room would be built where we played jacks for hours. Our first black and white TV, watching Engineer Bill, Chucko the Birthday Clown, Ed Sullivan, The Mickey Mouse Club, and other Disney shows that included the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew? The only books we owned were Bibles and Encyclopedia Britannica. I remember having to sit for what seemed to me hours in front of a bowl of borsch, not wanting to eat it, after everyone else had left the table. Stopping by the seed man after ‘Big Church’ to buy packets of ‘plain’ sunflower seeds that came in brown paper packets and pumpkin seeds that came in clearer paper packets.
I better stop there, you really got my old brain going.
2. What’s something about you today that the old you would find surprising?
The old me would be surprised that I moved away from the Southern California Beaches to Washington State and now I’ve left the city girl life for the country far far away from the coastal beaches!
3. Do you like to fish? Are you a fish eater? Favorite fish (to eat)? Favorite way to prepare fish?
You know, I’m not a fan of fish unless it’s Fish and Chips or fish tacos!
4. What’s your biggest first world problem?
Keeping that bakery weight off is my biggest first world problem!
5. What one word would you use to describe your year thus far?
Sanctifying. Growing in the Word of God, the work of the Holy Spirit and fellowship of Believers. This is a life long process that got sharpened this year after Greg’s stroke last November and the state of our world.
6. Insert your own random thought here.
We got rain on Tuesday and what a wonderful sound that was to wake up to. We’ve had such oppressive smoke filled skies because of fires and the rain should help. Hopefully the rain will fall on all the fires in the region and help the Fire Fighters with their seemingly endless task!
Another good day to stay in and make a dent in the sky of this puzzle!
It’s Hodgepodge time again and Joyce is celebrating Hodgepodge #500!! Congratulations to Joyce and Hodgepodgers everywhere. Click over to join in the fun.
1. Last time you drove/flew 500 miles (ish)? What’s a place you’d like to visit that lies approximately 500 miles from your current location?
In December of 2022 we drove to Abbotsford, B.C. Via Bothell Washington and once we arrived in Abbotsford we drove on to Chilliwack with friends for our Mennonite Girls Can Cook Christmas party. That was just under 500 miles worth of driving.
It would be a nice vacation with Family to stay at Cannon Beach on the Oregon Coast for a few days and enjoy the sand and sea just beyond our doorstep. Cannon Beach is 500 miles from us.
2. Tell us about a time recently it felt like you were ‘racing against the clock’.
Being retired and older I don’t race much. I have felt the need to clear out things and let things go before our kids have to sort through it all.
3. Have you ever attended any really large sporting events?
Yes!
What was your impression of the experience?
We have enjoyed memorable experiences at some large sporting events. I attended my first Rose Bowl Game on January 2nd in 1967 (USC v. Purdue). The Rose Parade and Rose Bowl Game are always on New Year’s Day unless that day lands on a Sunday. When January 1st lands on a Sunday the parade and game are moved to Monday. My second Rose Bowl Game was in 1992 when Greg was a student at the University of Washington and the Huskies played at the Rose Bowl against Michigan. The Huskies won this game which made the experience very exciting.
In 1984 the Summer Olympics were hosted by Los Angeles and we were able to get tickets to some rowing events at Lake Casitas. The most exciting part of these Olympic Games was the fact that my husband Greg was able to represent his company as an Olympic Torch Bearer!
In 1994 our sons got tickets for World Cup games in Los Angeles and Stanford. The USA was hosting that year. The photo above was at the Rose Bowl for one of the games we attended.
Dan and I attended Brazil v Camaroon at Stanford Stadium. Attire was colorful and the party atmosphere was very lively. Both those countries know how to celebrate.
We were able to track down where the US team was staying and training and our sons met every player on the team and got all their autographs. That’s Alexi Lalas with our sons. That’s not a cigarette in his mouth.
When Dear and I were traveling with Josh and Laura in England in 2013, Josh got us tickets to a Manchester United game v. Crystal Palace at Old Trafford. That was a great time! Josh also made it into an Arsenal game on that trip.
The Superbowl, The Kentucky Derby, The World Series, FIFA World Cup, The Indianapolis 500, The Daytona 500, The Olympics, The Masters, Wimbledon, The Boston Marathon, March Madness, Tour de France, Monaco’s Grand Prix, The Open (golf), The Ryder Cup, The Stanley Cup Finals..of the events listed which would you most like to attend in person? Or maybe one that’s not listed?
Fifa World Cup, it will be hosted by the USA/Canada/and Mexico in 2026.
4. Are you an iced tea drinker? If so, do you drink it year round, or only in the spring and summer months? Do you make your own or buy it bottled? Sweet or unsweet? Flavored? Lemon or no lemon? How about a Long Island Iced Tea?
Not a usual for me. If I do have an iced tea it would be lightly sweetened with some fresh lemon squeeze or the last variety.
5. April 20th is Volunteer Recognition Day…do you volunteer in some way? Tell us about it. If not, tell us about a volunteer you appreciate.
I volunteer at church under Women’s Ministry. I’m the branch leader of Hospitality serving the church family in planning, supplying, and carrying out fellowship opportunities involving the entire church body. Responsibilities include: Maintaining the kitchen and supplies. Helping with food serving and cleanup for church events like potlucks, Easter brunch, pie and praise, and funerals.
6. Insert your own random thought here.
We celebrated our grandson’s 4th birthday this past Saturday. We had a T-Rex crash the party and we had a cute dinosaur and delicious dinosaur cake. If you want to see more of the surprise T-Rex entry click here.
I’ll be sharing more from JJ’s Dino-wonderful party on Friday.
The first decade of my life was from 1951 until 1961. Born in East Los Angeles, moved to Montebello Gardens and then at the end of this first decade we moved up to Montebello. Warning up front that these decade posts will be a photo and information overload for many of you.
Somewhere in East Los Angeles possibly on Humphreys if my memory serves me right about the street name from our Pop. My sister Vera is telling me to shush. My brother Fred is not happy about me crying.
Yikes, I’m crying again. My little babushka is standing behind my mom. My parents good friend Zena Katkov next to her and my Uncle Paul holding my cousin Valia and then my Aunt Nina with my cousin Walter beside her. The lady sitting next to mom is a friend from San Francisco (Mrs. Hamzieff) with her son. Not sure who the lady is between her and my Aunt Nina.
These next photos are from our home in Montebello Gardens/Pico Rivera, California.
My sister Vera’s birthday party with many of our cousins on our Father’s side.
Camping in Big Bear, California with our maternal cousins.
The paternal side of our family.
Our cousin Johnny’s birthday on our Pop’s side of the family.
Maternal side of the family on Easter. Our Babushka with her grandchildren.
That’s a pigeon on my head.
Paternal cousins on another Easter.
Berry picking somewhere in southern California.
Paternal grandparents.
Our brother Tim was born and he usurped me of my title of being the youngest in our family.
My seventh birthday.
Cracking up at the way I lay my hands for photos.
I’m on the rug in front of my sister Vera, sister Kathy holding our new baby brother Tim and our brother Fred with the accordion. Love my goofy expression!
Easter 1958. We always got new clothes and shoes for Easter and Christmas.
Christmas 1958
Another photo from Christmas,1958. I’m on the left at seven years old. Our little brother Tim was 11 months old. There’s a reason I’m the only one who isn’t dressed in their Christmas clothes in this photo. I had some medical problems that I can only remember as some kind of kidney infection that I was hospitalized for. I ended up having to have a teacher come to our home for a couple months in the new year, (1959). By Valentine’s Day I still wasn’t back to school because I remember that my home school teacher brought me Valentine’s Day cards from my classmates.
Easter 1959
My birthday in 1961 and our last year in Montebello Gardens. Our next little brother, Steve is on the left barely in the photo. Cousin Vera and Johnnie on my Pop’s side of the family. Our cousin Valia, Tania and Walter on our Mom’s side of the family and my two little brothers, Tim and Steve and older brother Fred who is not quite visible.
My 5th grade photo. I sent this photo to Paul Kushnerov when he was in the service. His girlfriend at the time asked me to write him while he was serving our country in the 50’s. This little act inspired me to be more of an encourager with letters and cards. It was always a joy to receive something in the mail. Paul and Vera were married and would be our youth leaders for a time at Bethany Baptist Church in Los Angeles. Paul’s son shared this photo he found in amongst his parents keepsakes after Paul passed away a few years ago.
At the end of my first decade I was still in elementary school. We were living in Montebello and we walked to school crossing busy Whittier Blvd. There were six siblings and our parents living in a 3 bedroom, 1 bathroom home. In my next decade our family increased.
Because I skipped a grade (2nd or 3rd). I’ve always thought it was 2nd grade that I skipped but now with a little detective work I think it was third grade since I do not have a school photo for the third grade nor do I remember a teacher from the third grade. Now I’m also wondering a lot about 3rd grade. What is 3rd grade known for? 4th grade you have multiplication. From 4th grade on I was a year younger than most of my classmates.
In this first decade of my life my parents socialized mostly with our relatives or Russians who we went to church with. Both of the churches we were a part of had services in the Russian language. Our pop made friends that were non-Russian at work but not lifetime friends. Work is where he picked up most of his English. My mom became friends with an Italian lady who lived across the street named Lucille. Lucille gave me simple jobs around her home and paid me. She made the best Italian cookies. She would let me have some out of the oven, delicious! She baked them for weddings and I remember them iced green and pink and stacked on every surface of the house! When I cleaned the detached room that 2 of her sons lived in she said if I found any money under their beds I could keep it. I did find some! Maybe that was a way of getting me to clean thoroughly. My mom learned a lot of her English from Soap Operas. As the World Turns. Lucille helped her, too.
There was another friend across the street who had an Avocado tree in her backyard. We learned to really enjoy Avocado on toast in the 50’s long before the current trend.
We had a lot of Hispanic neighbors. Rosie was my next door neighbor who’s dog bit me on the mouth. Not a fan of Boxers to this day! Her mom seemed to have a pot of beans simmering on the stove most days I visited inside the home. It was an aroma I had never experienced. Rosie and her cousin betrayed our friendship one day by jumping me and beating me up and ripping my favorite blouse when we were walking to the store. Our friendship ended. Needless to say I didn’t smell beans simmering after that day until high school days with my very good and faithful Hispanic friends!
Speaking of being beat up there was a day that I angered someone at school who let everyone know they were going to beat me up when we got off the bus after school. There was more than one school bus stop in our neighborhood of ‘The Jardines’ and at the last minute I jumped off the bus at the stop before our stop and ran home avoiding the fight.
We would watch TV as a family. Shows like Art Linkletter, Micky Mouse Club, I remember Chucko the Birthday Clown (popular in L.A.) because I went on the show for Victor Katkov’s birthday party. I would like to have footage from that show. I ended up winning a prize on the show, too. Can’t remember what it was. Other L.A. based shows like Engineer Bill were popular, too. “On the green light you go, on the red light you stop because no engineer would ever run a red light” They used that to get kids to drink a glass of milk. Sheriff John was another popular show and here’s his birthday song!
We were able to go to Disneyland shortly after it opened. We also would get in our jammies and load up in the car to go to the Drive-in to see all the latest Disney releases. Bambie was sooo sad. I couldn’t keep my eyes open for the sad parts. Falling asleep in the car on the way home was a regular occurrence. Knott’s Berry Farm was another experience we enjoyed. If my memory serves me right the first time I ever ate in a restaurant was at Knott’s Berry Farm’s Chicken Dinner restaurant.
Many families that we knew had a story about one of their kids falling out of a car from leaning on the door or from the door opening going round a corner. No seat belts and no car seats in those days.
This post is an ‘all about me’ historical post and if you made it all the way to the end congratulations. Maybe my grandkids will enjoy reading about their Baba in the future when I’m not around to answer all the questions.
Happy Birthday to me and I thank the God who loves me and called me, Jesus who saved me from my sins and the Holy Spirit who indwells me, Three in One, that I have made it to my 7th decade 8th decade and to my 71st year. Thank you to Anneliese for noticing I’ve entered my 8th decade!!
Wednesday Hodgepodge questions that Joyce From This Side of the Pond asks each week are not surprisingly Christmas themed in December. Here we go…
1. What do you think it means to have the holiday spirit?
Going deep on this one and deferring to my hubby:
“It’s having the Spirit of Christ, who convicts of sin and enables faith in that Jesus is who He says He is and has done what He has says He has done. Without the work of the Spirit of Christ we would have no hope for forgiveness, for eternity with Him, for glory.
Romans 5:1 (ESV)
“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through Him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”
2. What’s one thing you’ve baked this month?
I baked a Chocolate Decadent Bundt cake last week for our card night.
Have you eaten the finished product?
Yes, at the card night last Friday night. It got very good reviews from those who ate it.
How much baking do you do around the holidays?
This varies from year to year. Some years I don’t make any cookies…shock!
What baked sweet something does your family insist is on the menu during this season of the year?
Roolyet is a Russian treat our mom would make every Christmas. A yeast dough rolled with a walnut filling (walnuts, sugar, egg whites and vanilla). Now that my sister and I perfected the recipe I should make it every Christmas, too.
3. Your most recent ‘half-baked’ idea?
How about thoroughly baked. In January I clicked on the buy button for plane tickets from Seattle to London for September of this year. Then COVID-19 struck us all. Plane tickets, Air BnB deposits and many plans made that had to all be cancelled. Thankfully all was refunded.
4. Where were you the last time you ‘baked’ in the sun?
In my own backyard pulling weeds.
The top ten sunniest destinations in the world (most sun from January-December according to this site) are Dubai, Bali Indonesia, Los Angeles CA, Miami FL, Barbados, Dominican Republic, St. Lucia, Mauritius, Antiqua, and the Canary Islands Spain. Have you been to any of the cities listed?
I was born in East Los Angeles and raised in the “burbs” of Los Angeles and spent many summers baking on Southern California beaches slathered in Coconut Butter. Craziness!
Which one on the list appeals to you the most?
We do not choose sunny destinations these days. We do not lay in the sun. We look for shade and head straight to an umbrella when the sun is out and the air is hot. The only reason L.A. is appealing these days is because of our loved ones who live there and who we enjoy spending time with.
If the world were not upside down crazy and you could lie on a beach anywhere right now where would you go?
Never mind lying on the beaches, I would choose Jolly Old England any time of the year, walking down a lane instead of lying on a beach!
Now that said, we do enjoy walking on the beach at dawn in the summer and any time of day in the Winter.
5. Today I wish I had more _____________________.
Options for shopping in my little town of Colville.
6. Insert your own random thought here.
This past Sunday to Monday we enjoyed a 46th Anniversary night at the Coeur d’Alene Resort in Idaho on Lake Coeur d’Alene. Dinner at Beverly’s on the 7th floor made us feel like normal before all this craziness came upon us all.
Our complimentary Anniversary dessert! Vanilla ice cream wrapped in cotton candy with some fruit and dessert bark.
When the Christmas cards are all signed, sealed and delivered to the Post Office I feel like I should get an award. Do you still send cards?
On Saturday my daughter and I were in the Los Angeles area and we met some family members at Descanso Gardens. What a beautiful garden to stroll through. The roses were beginning to open up nicely…
Welcome to ABC Wednesday. We are on the letter Z. Yikes, the end of the Alphabet.
What fun I had meeting my brother, his wife, little Hope, my niece Michelle and her son, Jackson at the Los Angeles Zoo the week of Christmas!
My brother was here with his family from Dallas to celebrate Christmas with all of us. Hope will be 1 in January. What a joy to spend time with them all.
My niece Michelle and her son Jackson live in the L.A. area and they joined us for the fun.
It was a nice cool day at the Zoo and the animals were out and about. The bird is a Kookabura. We were singing the Kookabura song for quite a while after we saw this beauty. But since we are on the letter Z, this song would be more appropriate…
Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah
Zip a dee doo-dah, zip a dee ay
My, oh my, what a wonderful day.
Plenty of sunshine headed my way.
Zip a dee doo-dah, zip a dee ay
Mister bluebird on my shoulder
It’s the truth, it’s actual.
Everything is satisfactual.
Zip a dee doo-dah, zip a dee ay
Wonderful feelin’.
Wonderful day.
Lyrics by Ray Gilbert and Allie Wrubel.
Since we are on the letter Z, I couldn’t ignore the Zebras!
This photo is of my brother Leonard and me pushing the strollers at the zoo.
For more ABC Wednesday posts on the Letter Z visit the ABC Blog.
Photobucket is holding all my photos from 2007 to 2015 hostage and has replaced them all with ugly black and grey boxes asking for a ransom to have them re-published. Such a frustrating bother as I go through each post to delete the ugly boxes.
Mariachi is a type of musical group, originally from Cocula, Jalisco, Mexico. Usually a mariachi consists of at least three violins, two trumpets, one Mexican guitar, one vihuela (a high-pitched, five-string guitar) and one guitarrón (a small-scaled acoustic bass). They dress in silver studded charro outfits with wide-brimmed hats. The original Mariachi were Mexican street musicians or buskers. Many mariachis are professional entertainers doing paid gigs in the mainstream entertainment industry. Professionals are normally skilled at more than one instrument, and they also sing.
Some of our Mexican Restaurants in Southern California have Mariachis strolling around the restaurant taking requests for songs to play and sing.
This Mariachi group played at my nephews wedding
I was born and raised in the East Los Angeles area of Southern California. The Mexican culture (these days if you are politically correct called “Hispanic” not “Mexican”) was all around me. We celebrated Mexican holidays at my elementary school, took field trips to Olvera Street in Los Angeles where the culture was further introduced to us. I have always enjoyed Mexican Food. There isn’t a Mexican restaurant in the Southern California area that calls itself Hispanic that I know of. They still all refer to themselves as Mexican restaurants.
Our favorite Mexican Restaurant in the Camarillo Area is El Tecolate. In Mexico El Tecolote means the Owl. Mexican Restaurants always serve chips and salsa at your table when you arrive. Sometimes we order guacamole to go with the chips too. Guacamole is a dip made with mashed avocados and other ingredients.
They have decorated the restaurant with many different types of owl “art”. This is just a fraction of the Owls you’ll see inside.
They serve your typical Mexican food here and other interesting dishes that are unique to this restaurant.
This is an open tamale
Carnitas (slow cooked pork) is another Mexican favorite. So yummy…
There are some Mexican restaurants that still hand make their tortillas. The restaurant where this Mexican lady is making tortillas is in Venice Beach, California (a district of Los Angeles).
And last but not least I leave you with a Margarita which is a classic Mexican Tequila and lime drink! You can have the double, I’m fine with the single.
We prefer ours on the rocks. A lot of people like the blended variety that gives you a brain freeze on your first sip. Muchas Gracias for visiting my M post mi amigos y amigas.
Photobucket is holding all my photos from 2007-2015 hostage and they have blacked them all out. I’m slowly working at restoring my posts without their help. Such a tiresome bother!
The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b. 