What Are You?

So, all month-long NPR's weekend edition has had this series called "Beyond Black and White" about people and race and ethnicity in America. I've actually enjoyed listening to it, as it features people who have been dealing with a lot of the same questions I've been trying to answer for years. As a kid growing up in America (well, in Southern California) you do get asked the question, "What are you?" fairly regularly: signing up for anything, going to school, meeting new people, etc. I've tried answering this question several different ways.

Racially, I'm brown. I know, I know, that's a color not a race, but I can't hide it, not even if I wanted to. OK- racially I'm mixed, but it's pretty complicated. According to the information I've gathered from my grandmothers, I'm: Spanish, French, Afro-Cuban, (probably also Mexican-Indian but grandma wouldn't admit it), Iranian, Italian, Jewish, and Japanese. So, racially, I look like anyone and everyone. If you've been following this blog (bless you!), then you know that in the Middle East and India people thought I was a local, until I opened my mouth.

Ethnically, I'm American-Mexican. I totally identify with being American. In fact, when I was a teenager/early twenties and people would ask, "What are you?" my answer was, "I'm American." *sigh* Sadly, this made things more unclear because then they'd ask me what tribe I belonged to or how many hundreds of years my family has been in California. So, I quickly gave that up.

Culturally, I'm Mexican-American, but I don't speak Spanish so for some this doesn't make me "Mexican" enough. When my family emigrated to the US, the attitude back then was, "We're in America now, so let's be American," and they embraced the language and a lot of traditions like Independence Day and Thanksgiving. They still kept some bits of Mexican culture like the food and music, piñatas on your birthday, and they all speak Spanish. But my cousins, siblings, and I didn't grow up bilingual.

Anyway, part of me thought that being back in America would make this question moot, 'cuz I'm back home. But, I got hired at a school where I am one of two brown people. Now, that doesn't mean that the other teachers aren't culturally mixed (which they are) but they have asked, "What are you?"

My answer? I figure if they ask, then they are going to get my big, ol' list of races that I already gave you. To me, being mixed in any way is fairly American.

Eating Chicken Feet

My mother used to tell us, when my sisters and I were little and determined NOT to eat whatever veggie was on our dinner plates, how she used to eat chicken feet when she was a girl and how lucky we are to be eating the dinner we have.


Ha ha, Mom! Now I've eaten a chicken foot and can say it wasn't that bad. Just a lot of bones, though. (dim sum with Chris)

Medford, MA

After spending one night in New York City we checked out of the Chelsea Star Hotel and went in search of a sit-down place for breakfast suggested by the desk clerk. Well, to us a sit-down place is a diner or restaurant where someone takes your order and brings you your food. All we found after following his directions was a bagel counter with chairs. Granted, it was a big bagel place with lots of seating so we ordered bagels with stuff, sat down, and ate while figuring out which train to take to Chinatown and the bus.

This was to be our second time using a Chinatown bus. Apparently, there are bus companies that drive between the Chinatowns of Washington DC, Philadelphia, New York City, and Boston. The ones that we took were great and everything Froody wanted: cheap and fast and comfortable. Fast because they only go from chinatown to chinatown unlike Greyhound which stops at all the towns in between.

Anyway, we've been in Medford, outside of Boston, staying with family and getting some last minute stuff done before we leave America for a year (OMG-it's starting to sink in that I won't be home or in familiar surroundings for a whole year)!! We got our last shots, picked up some board shorts and a belt for Froody, and got substitute rings.

Tomorrow I hope to see an old friend who is nice enough to want to see me after not hearing from me for years. Then we'll spend Sunday with Froody's parents, Monday we take the china bus back to NYC and ferry into New Jersey where we'll spend the rest of the day with a friend of Froody's and fly. out. to. Paris. Tuesday.

I think both of us feel that our trip will REALLY begin that day.

For more pictures, click on the links below. Froody has them arranged by dates (month, then day). Click on each thumbnail to see all the pix of the day!

*Last days of June, still in California and with my family

*Beginning of July, in DC and with Froody's family

First Hurdle Jumped

Washington, DC
Froody and I have just left Washington, DC. After spending 5 days there I'm amazed by how much we didn't see. There's so much to see and do in our nation's capitol; you need to go there. Go there now! Anyway, we did enjoy some free music at the Folklife Festival at the Mall, caught an Imax about aqatic dinosaurs at the Natural History Museum, got a short tour at the Library of Congress Madison Building, and really had a blast at the A Capitol Fourth. Not only did we manage to get in to the free concert on the lawn of the Capitol, but we got to see it all from the steps which turned out to be the best seats in the house since it rained for about an hour while we waited for the show to begin. We both thought that the concert would just be some symphony but it was a real shabang! Jimmy Smits was the emcee and the opening act was Huey Lewis and the News. Man, I so loved their music back in the 80's. There were some other performers, some that we didn't know, but the last one before the National Symphony Orhcestra and the military drum and bugle band was Jerry Lee Lewis. Froody and I got up and danced to his classic hits and I guess we were well received by the rest of the crowd. His last song was "Great Balls of Fire" and, surprise surprise, the fireworks began. I can't describe how it felt to be there watching the fireworks above the Washington Monument. Of course, we weren't alone. Guesstimates of about 200,000 people on the mall is what we heard. So, lots of people, some good music, a bit of rain, fireworks, and free water! I was really impressed how smoothly it all went.

Today we said, "Good-bye" to our friend, Chris, who very graciously put us up in his small apartment. We shared the livingroom with his massive collection of action figures (Japanese and American) and were comforted by their cool, green glow at night. We met him for a farewell lunch at DC's China Town after finding out that our reservations for the china bus to Philadelphia didn't go through. The 3 pm bus was full as was their 9pm bus. After this minor setback, Froody and I went to a Starbucks to formulate Plan C. Luckily, meeting Chris was a pleasant diversion and he took us to a dim sum restaurant. Neither Froody nor I had ever had dim sum so it was quite an adventure in dining! They roll tasty food in little carts and when one goes by you point to whatever looks good and that is what you get. We went through a lot of little plates: shrimp dumpling, trip, chicken feet (yes, the feet not the drumstick), duck, sesame balls, and more food. Sooo good!

At My Mother's House

After much packing and moving and cleaning and throwing away and garage saling and driving, Froody and I are done!!! We're here at my mom's house, visiting family I haven't seen in years, only see annually, and won't see for at least 12 months. I do love my family and will miss them. It'll be a bit hard come Thanksgiving and Christmas, but at least I won't be alone. I'll have Froody.

These past couple of days have been very nice and relaxing. We've just been sitting around a lot and playing with our niece and nephews. It's way too hot here to do much outside other than a neighborhood walk in the evening.

Tonight we leave for Washington, DC. I'm looking forward to checking out the monuments and museums and seeing my friend Chris. It's sure to be a good week.