As I sat in my car looking through the few snap shots I had taken, my cell phone began to buzz. Another old buddy had left me a text message saying that he was watching a football game down the street from the McD’s. William is a few years younger than I am, he has always been like a little brother to me. We used play basketball together right after we had finished working the graveyard shift.
Within minutes I was at the sports bar where William and several of his friends were hanging out. If I hadn’t seen his recent photos prior to my trip, there was no
way I could have recognized him at the bar. My “little” brother isn’t little anymore. My memory of Chilly Willy – as we all called him, was this scrawny kid, as thin as rail. The friendly smiles looked exactly the same as I remembered, only he had bulked up over the years. I mean he had bulked up A LOT!
William had prior engagement with his friends and couldn’t meet with us. I told him it was all right, there would be a next time. We chatted for several minutes before we parted our ways. “Take care, bro!” we said to each other, just like we used to in the old days. We both look forward to our next reunion.
It was close to 5:30 pm by the time I drove back to my sister’s place. She was busy prepping dinner with my mom as her assistant. I remembered my mom used to cook up a storm in the kitchen entertaining family friends. This trait of hospitality definitely runs in our family. My sister often hosts Thanksgiving, Christmas dinners and seasonal BBQ outings. “有朋自遠方來, 不亦樂乎” seems to be our family motto. I’m very fortunate to have a wife that also enjoys cooking as much as hosting.
I was playing with my nephew and niece when my sister informed me, that my younger brother was on his way down for a visit. What a pleasant surprise! I hadn’t seen my bother since he last visited us with mom back in ’08. Although the day was winding down, it was still getting better!
My dear sister cooked up a big pot of beef noodle soup (紅燒牛肉麵) for me, one
of my favorite food items. All the ingredients were freshly picked from her
garden. Come to think of it, I wondered what she used to fertilize them? I’m
not going to ask!
My brother and a friend of his arrived while I was in the shower. We chatted a little before we sat down for dinner. It had been several years since we had a dinner like this, the three of us and our mom. It would have been nice if dad were still around.
After the hearty dinner, we spent our evening in casual conversations and some good laughs when my nephew schooled my brother in Wii tennis games. It was absolutely a very delightful evening. Somehow, I couldn’t help but thought about my sons back home and my wife up in Palm Springs. I called up my old lady and gave her a briefing on the day’s activities.
I spent the next day and a half at my sister’s, just hanging out with the “old ladies” – my mom and my sister. I accompanied my nephew to his karate class on evening. I still remembered giving him baths when he was just a baby. I applauded to my niece when she played a few songs for me on her piano. Too bad our sons weren’t there with us, the kids would have a riot together.
Time flies when you are having fun! Very quickly, Tuesday had arrived. I was set to head back to Palm Springs in the early afternoon. You don’t want to get stuck in the rush hour traffic in Southern Cal. That was why I decided to drive back in the early afternoon. I said goodbye to my mom, she was teary as usual. This tiny lady had raised me and instilled the family values in me. I gave her a big hug and told her that we would all be back to see her again soon.
The clouds were gathering and looked as if it was going to rain. Luckily it didn’t. The crazy drivers on the road simply can’t drive in the rain. I must have switched to my lead foot on my way back. I found myself arriving in Palm Springs just shy of 80 minutes. To my surprise, my wife was in our hotel room surfing the web. Apparently there was an intermission of some sort. She had to go back at around 4 pm for the prize drawing. She showed me the loot bags with all the goodies she had gotten from various vendors. Quite a collection my must say.
“Wouldn’t it be nice if you win the trip to come back again next year?” I said to my wife. It’d be even nicer if this conference is held closer to San Diego County. I headed to the shower as my wife left to check on her luck at the prize drawing. I sat on the sofa with my feet up after the shower. This four-day R&R session couldn’t have come at a better time! It wasn’t long before my wife returned from the drawing, well, she didn’t win this time. It was OK, no big deal. We spent the evening strolling around Downtown Palm Springs. We browsed through several restaurants, they were all very expensive!
We finally settled on where we wanted to have dinner, a somewhat upscale pizza place. We shared an appetizer and a couple of entrees. It was very nice and relaxing for once. Usually we are busy getting food for our sons before we start on our own plate. I told my wife more in detail about my SD trip. She also gave me a run down on her 4 day conference, she had one more day to go on this trip. It would have been perfect if she didn’t have any business agenda. But you know, I’m not going to complain.
My flight back (to Indy) was early next morning. My dearest dropped me off at the airport, not far from the hotel. The connecting flight from Phoenix to Indy was only 2 ½ hours, I should be at home by 5 pm. As I sat in my seat, I looked through all the photos I had taken. I smiled, chuckled, just trying to soak it all in.
Right before the plane had landed, I was reminded that we were in the middle of winter. The swaying palm trees could not be found anymore. What greeted me was a winter wonderland. I was picked up at the airport by our good friends – the couple who looked after our sons the weekend before. One of them was also a S. Cal. transplant. I was very glad to find out that our sons had behaved very well. One thing for sure, our kids are very easy to feed. They devour pretty much anything you cook for them.
The four o’clock commute from the airport wasn’t too bad – to my surprise. We arrived at our house just before 5 pm. I thanked them for the ride home and told them that we would be seeing them soon. I didn’t spend any time unpacking as I went straight to my car. It might sound corny but I really missed my sons.
I hurried to our neighbor’s place to pick them up. I told our neighbor that we were very thankful that they had agreed to host our boys for three days. Well, she got compensated for it but nevertheless, it was a big favor. I could tell that my older son was happy to see me. I asked my younger son, “Are you happy to see baba again?” “Ah” was his reply. I didn’t care, I hugged them and ushered them to the car.
Our sons had a great time with our friends as well as our neighbor’s family. As I was preparing dinner for the three of us, a warm feeling crept up on me.
Home sweet home!
Wife
