Tuesday, August 29, 2006

Nana


Nana lived in a San Francisco neighborhood across the highway from Candlestick Park and Little Hollywood in Visitacion Valley just above a barber shop and nextdoor to a dry cleaners. I LOVED visiting her. She'd serve me coffee loaded with sugar and milk and didn't worry she was stunting my growth. We'd play black jack with real money she saved up. She always left her kitchen door open and the wind would whip around and feel so chilly, but she would wipe the sweat off her brow complaining of hot flashes.

Her boyfriend was named Meryl. And he smoke tipperillos and drank Olympia beer. Nana smoked Kools and drank burbon.

One day, Nana happily agreed to let my cousin style her hair and give her a permanent. When it was time to pull out the curlers, all of her hair came out with it! Nana laughed so hard when she saw herself in the mirror.

That afternoon she went shopping for a wig.

4 comments:

danny said...

Wow she sounds like a real character! I can tell where your sense of humor comes from! :o)

Rayne said...

Wonderful memory and she sounds like an incredible woman.

ValGalArt said...

Haha Tiparillos, I haven't heard that word in a very looooong time! What a wonderful post, I feel like I met your Nana. I love when adults treat young people like equals ie the coffee part... wonderful story Shawn!!!

Janet said...

HaHaHaHaHa! Your Nana was soOo cool!!!