Invasion of the Tellas

My morning began a bit on the headache side of life as the libations of the previous night made their presence known. After a tasty and greasy egg breakfast sandwich, Josh and I were fully recovered from our night out. Alas, we were reminded of our smoke inhalation disaster as soon as I opened and then quickly closed - the microwave.

"I think you want to deal with that when you're back from the weekend," I said.

I bid adieu to Josh and before I made my way back to Medford, I met my friend, Cindy outside her Boston office. Cindy and I grew up together. She and her sister lived a block away and we were together from kindergarten until high school. I can still hear my mother and all her friends talking about how cute we looked together and that "wouldn't it be so nice if they got married?" Cindy had two pictures of us from 1970 - one from our kindergarten graduation and the other with her sister and my brother at one of our birthdays. Were we ever that young?  The two of us caught up over coffee and I made my way back to Medford on the Orange Line and as the train neared my stop, I thought how nice it was to know there's someone in the world who knew you at a time when you didn't even know yourself. 

Getting off the train, there was the little big man sitting in his car waiting for me as he has done so many times in the past. After a quick change, it was time to take care of the last of our pre-trip errands. I took Rosemarie to the bank.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"Medford Savings."

"Medford Savings is gone isn't it?"

"Oh, your right, I mean Citizens, it's up here on left, so stay to the right."

"If it's on the left, why do you want me on the right?"

"I'll show you where to turn around," my mom said.

"Oh, the woman who doesn't know how to drive and has no sense of direction is telling me where to go?"

Sure enough - we missed the turn.

"Oh," she said, "I didn't know you could turn there."

"That's why I drive and you don't."

Needless to say, I took care of closing out our travel fund and getting the Euros we needed to get our 15% cash discount at the hotel.

"I could never have done this by myself," my mom exclaimed as I tried to picture my father driving her to the square and having her grasp the meaning of the exchange rate.

Since we were in the square, it was a quick ride past my old high school and then to the cemetery where my grandparents are laid to rest. Every time I return to Medford, I make it a point to pay my respects there. I can only imagine what my life would be if my grandmother were still alive. What would it be like to have her greet me at the front door each time I returned. I miss her still to this day and even the briefest visit to where she is  brings me so much comfort and peace.

The rest of the afternoon was on a much more jovial note as I spent helping my mother finish her packing. I drew the line at the Irish knit winter sweater that she pulled out of the closet.

"Put that back," I immediately instructed.

"It might get cold on the plane."

"It's not going to be winter time on board and where do you think you're going to wear that fashion atrocity?"

I did approve of the light jacket that was its replacement.

We made a few other adjustments to her list of items and then it was time to meet up with my dad's family at Pizzeria Regina. The invasion of the Tellas had commenced.

"Are you ready for this much Tella?" I asked my cousin Linda's daughter's boyfriend. Technically, Alex is my cousin as well, but for some reason, I always refer to her as my cousin Linda's daughter. It keeps everything in perspective in my head.

The cousins Tella

Now one would think that a restaurant would know what to do with a party of 14 - but for some strange Medford reason, they squished us behind two circular tables with a small square one in the middle while there were four perfectly rectangular tables directly behind us. It made little seating sense, but it brought the Tellas even closer together. It was loud, boisterous fun - and looking around at all of us, I couldn't help but think of all the times we would go to their house, sit around a table overflowing with food and drink and laugh for hours. Some of the best times of my childhood were spent around their dinner table. Every New Year's Eve, we would order Chinese food (from a restaurant that is still in the same location today) and occasionally downstairs my cousin Janet would teach us disco line dances. (Yes, I said disco.)



Although I can say there was a time when I took family for granted - it's wonderful to know that as I've gotten older, I've appreciated how special it is to be a Tella. And as if the night didn't end on that high note, I'd forgotten some things at Target and decided to take my parents there since it was right around the corner from the restaurant. After finding what my mom and I needed, I had to search for the little big man in the massive aisles. Do you know how hard it is to find Alfred in the massive corridors of a super Target store? Thank God I'm only taking my mom to Italy. My father would probably disappear into a crowd of tiny Italian man and then I'd just eventually give up the search and go back to the hotel to bed. My mom, on the other hand, is worried someone's going to try and pinch her. For what reason I cannot fathom, but it's a great visual isn't it? In any case, that won't happen as she's not going to let go of me for ten whole days.

The Godparents Tella with the now infamous book I wrote for my dad.