Going going back back to Cali Cali
We flew in Saturday and when I walked out of the doors at the Oakland airport I was surprised at how damn cold it was. I expected warm balmy weather but it was cool enough to wear a sweater. I can’t tell you how great it felt. Coming from a heat index of 106 to weather in the 50’s was incredibly refreshing.
Sunday morning we decided to drive around Oakland a bit. We ended up on International Blvd, which is definitely not the best part of town (it’s even in Wikipedia stated as such lol). Then we went to Jack London Square where there was an incredible farmers market going on. Fresh fruits, veggies, nuts, breads… yum 🙂
Sunday afternoon my Aunt flew in, so we met her and my “Aunt,” “Uncle,” and “Cousins.” I put those in quotes because in the Filipino culture, much like many other cultures, Aunts and Uncles aren’t really technical terms lol. We chatted a bit and headed off to my Grandma (Lola in tagalog)’s apartment. She had no idea we were coming and immediately started crying when we got there.
To give some background, this trip to Cali isn’t just a vacation. The main reason for the trip was so that my Mom and Aunt could talk to my Lola about her assets, will, and apartment. Lola’s apartment is a mess, and that is after my “Aunt and Uncle” helped clean it up a bit. Lola is a bit of a hoarder. Her apartment is full of… stuff. But before we got there they had made some headway in creating pathways from the entrance to the other rooms in the house. Lola’s apartment will be seen on Saturday to see if it is livable, and if not she will be forced to move probably into some sort of assisted living facility, which of course she does not want to do.
In addition, she has been in and out of the hospital lately. She’s getting old, and is a diabetic. She has a hard time getting around, and I don’t think she’s really following a diabetic diet very closely. To put it bluntly, she is slowly deteriorating. And I doubt if she has more than a few years tops left.
That being said, I have never had much of a relationship with her. Mainly because of distance (we’ve always been far from here), but also because there is a lot of tension between my Mom and Lola. There is a lot of background behind it and I’m sure I don’t know the whole story, but needless to say, they have not seen eye to eye in a long time.
To be honest, it makes it a little awkward for me. Because I have to hear from my Mom certain comments about my Lola that truthfully I don’t really want to hear. I get that there is a rift between them. I get that their relationship is not great. But that is none of my business, and has nothing to do with my feelings for my Lola. She is my Mom’s Mom. She is part of where I came from. And I can’t ignore that.
Anyway. That being said, I know my Mom loves my Lola. Because my Mom came here. And yesterday, all day, she and my Aunt helped clean up some of her place. They made a definite dent in the mess, but there is still a long way to go. So my Aunt is going back tomorrow to help clean some more.
Well, I know this has been a boring entry but I’ll try to write more soon. I just wanted to make sure my trip is chronicled.
On another note, I miss my honey. I
really wish he could be here with me. We would have an amazing time in San Francisco together… I think I’ll have to plan a trip for us to go next year. Yeah… we’ll have to do that.
I wish I had him in my arms tonight.
But for now… I’ll dream of the wineries we’ll be visiting tomorrow 🙂
R