With the holiday season now officially upon us, I’m once again throwing back to the past by linking up with Sunshine at Such Life in the Tropics to share an old photo, along with five fun facts that relate. Since I've been busy reorganizing old family photos featuring my Nana, who passed away in October, I thought this image taken on
Christmas Eve 10 years ago would be an especially perfect choice.
1) My mom, sister and I have been going to Christmas Eve dinner at my grandparents' house for as long as I can remember, basically ever
since I was born. Some of our long-standing traditions have included opening one
present ahead of time that night, spoiling our dinner with Nana’s famous Italian Anisette Cookies, and laughing
our heads off at my grandfather’s annual stories about all the crazy things he and his
friends did while growing up in 1940s Boston.
2) Even though she moved to California during the 1950s, Nana never lost her Boston accent. People who are familiar with this type of speech
pattern say they can also hear strong hints of it in my voice and my mom’s. Those who
aren’t familiar with it often mistakenly believe that I am from the south, though, or say they just
can’t pinpoint the correct region. Hearing Nana’s unique voice is one of the things I
already miss most and hope I won’t ever forget.
3) I still have this red tank top in my closet and have worn
it a couple times in recent years, most often paired with a black cardigan, pencil skirt and heels. The black
designs on the front are rosettes.
4) The oak cabinet in the background used to have a giant glass case
resting on top of it, which displayed tons of my grandparents’ finest china and
mementos from over the years. Sadly, the entire thing crashed to the floor and
was destroyed during the infamous Northridge Earthquake in 1994. The earthquake also damaged
their home in other significant ways, but fortunately, all were fully repairable. After
living through that experience, I am still traumatized by earthquakes big and small to this
day.
5) This picture, quite grainy by today’s standards, was taken with
a throw-away camera. My grandparents have continued to use them over the years, never wanting the hassle of going digital. They have also never fully
embraced using computers, signing up for cable TV, using a dishwasher or placing
wet clothes in a dryer instead of outside on a clothesline.
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