MOM

Mothers and othersmay love you,

but you’ve got to be your own

best friend!• Carol Daye, October

2010

At theDisneyland

Hotel

Here’s something I learned:

Extravagances are sometimes worth the

money.

Th

e vie

w fro

m o

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win

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at th

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The Matterhorn 2010

I took this shot of the Matterhorn at Disneyland

while Mom and I were waiting for the monorail to take us back near our room in the Disneyland Hotel’s Dream

Tower.

I wish I’d known that this visit to the Magic Kingdom was the last time she’d have energy to run around from ride to ride.

We never did that again.

Celebration Cake on Main

Street

Aunt Mildred and Mom used to share mashed potatoes at this

restaurant on Disneyland’s Main Street. Mom and I did

too, adding salads with thousand island, and dividing a piece of Mickey’s Celebration

Cake.

We always rodeIt’s a Small Worldbecause it wasGrandma Wilkins’favorite.

Jim and I once gotstuck on this ride.Argh!

Endless rides on theDisneyland Express!

On our last few visits, we ate at the Blue Bayou and rode the train round and round.

Thehouse

onRiverLane:

in her diarybefore it was

even for sale, Mom wrotethat it washer dream

house.

Ribs sound good!

Charlie, mom, and I shared a rib dinner at Claim Jumper on 17th

Street in Santa Ana.

It was enough for three and more—leftovers for another day!

Mom didn’t like ice cream or chicken or turkey, loved fried

potatoes and biscuits and gravy. Always ordered a cheese

enchilada. Drank margaritas.

When she came to visit, she liked to have Jimmy’s pot roast

and mashed potatoes. Pork chops were a special favorite too, so he usually fixed those.

And we had mud pie too!

Waiting for our treat. Mom didn’t like ice cream.

She liked this.

She’d say she didn’t want any, but several forkfuls later proved that was a lie!

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tion

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y years a

go.

TAQUITOS!!

Mom and I have been eating taquitos at the same little

restaurant, Celito Lindo, at Olvera Street in Los Angeles since the

1950s.

They haven’t changed at all.

October 2010 we had our last taquitos together except for the

ones I brought back to her on the bus the next time I visited.

Clifton’sLos Angeles

Aunt Mildred and Mom always split the chocolate cake

layered with bananas and whipped cream.

They usually had macaroni and cheese and the iceberg lettuce wedge with thousand island

dressing too. Sugar and I liked the mac and cheese and I

loved their stuffed peppers.

What can we split?After Aunt Mildred died, I became the splitter. Before then, Mom and Aunt Mildred always split a meal and picked at what I ordered—the Claim Jumper’s mud pie was a special favorite of theirs. They never ordered it, just liked to take bites of mine. It used to annoy me, but in later years, I loved the camaraderie and the predictability of their “no dessert” protestations while enjoying whatever someone else got.

Sharing Chinese food between movies

Third StreetSanta Monica

After the movie, we’d sometimes have onion rings and Fatburgers. Mom’s

was always “no mayo, no catsup, add mustard.” Mustard, onion, and pickle

was her regular McDonald’s hamburger order. Lots of ketchup for her fries—I used to tease her that she

had fries with her catsup.

Almost all my pictures on our adventures are unposed. Mom

usually said “no” to photos when she didn’t have lipstick or a comb handy!

Mom

an

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yle

Th

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life live

s on

. . .