Okay, so last time, I had us at the The Big Bend Saddlery and I was envisioning the g’kids, in a few more years, on horseback. (Yikes.)
After that, we returned to the AirB&B. David and I took the kids to the local playground. Miles had a great time in the jungle gym. Hazel managed, finally, to climb up into the skateboarders’ half-pipe, which wasn’t easy, and took quite a lot of effort, so it was a triumph for her. Then, a little later, an older boy (maybe seven? or ten?) appeared and joined them. It was rather sweet, really. He was, we learned, another out-of-towner, though his parents owned a house here, and he spent part of each year in Marfa. I think he was lonely. Anyway, he struck up a friendship with Hazel and Miles, and they all had a pleasant time together.
Then it was back to the AirB&B, where, though we didn’t know it, things were about to get ...complicated.
Martha was going to cook dinner that night. This meant that she was tense. You’re always tense when you’re cooking for people whose opinions you really value.
About the photos: Just two today. First, an interior shot at the Hotel Paisano. You’ll recall that the film Giant was filmed in Marfa. And, understandably, Marfa folks are proud of that. The Hotel is lavishly decorated with shots from the film. On this particular wall, there’s a photo of the cast relaxing between takes.
Second, my obligatory shot that has nothing to do with the story. Here’s Martha in Santa Fe Plaza in 2023. We’re waiting to see the concert by James McMurtry.
Also, there was the small issue of supplies. You’ll recall I said that there was a slight shortage of grocery stores in Marfa. Well, Martha was going to cook lemon chicken piccata, which is one of our favorites and which she does very, very well.
But...the ingredients. You’d think that would be a breeze. I mean, there isn’t much involved--chicken, capers, salt and pepper, vegetable oil, flour, some spices, and a lemon or two. What could be easier?
Answer: almost anything. You’d be surprised how difficult it was to get what she needed to cook. We had to make multiple trips to the Loews in the town, and some more forays to Marfa’s collection of gourmet shops, in order to get the very, very, very basic ingredients. We finally got them all, but it was definitely last minute and by-hook-and-by-crook. So, of course, up went the needle on Martha’s tension-o-meter.
Then came the cooking. And Martha’s a great cook. Except...the gas stove top in the AirB&B proved to be, shall we say, eccentric. One burner would roar to life like a Saturn V on steroids. The one next to it would flicker, flash, and quietly die a sad little death in the night.
And Martha’s tension would go...up a notch. Or several notches. As in lotsa notches.
Okay, then, remember Mooey? The inflatable bouncing cow toy we got Miles but he wasn’t interested in it? But his sister was?
At that precise moment, Hazel remembered Mooey. And she decided it would be fun to ride Mooey around...and around...and around(!) the house...and through the kitchen...while her brother chased her while yelling. And yelling. And YELLING.
So...we’ve got Martha trying to cook. On an predictable stove. While...Hazel is bounding around. And Miles is cheering her on. And, oh, the dogs are running around barking. As in BOING...eek!...BARK Boing...EEK!...BOING...EEK!...BARK... BOING BOING BOING BOING BOING BOING BOING BOING BOING BOING BOING BOING BOING BOING BOING ...EEK! EEK! EEK!...BARK BARK BARK...BOING EEK BOING BARK EEK BOING EEK BARK BOING EEK BOING EEK BARK BOING EEK BOING EEK BOING EEK BOING EEK BOING EEK ...
And so on.
And, of course, for reasons known only to itself, that was when the smoke detector decided to go off. No. Really. It did. There was no smoke in the house. There was no Carbon Monoxide. It just...went...off...
Timing is everything.
It is a great testament to Martha, and her fundamental stability of mind, that she didn’t go stark raving crackers and start flinging half-cooked chicken breasts in all directions. Somehow she held it together. I’m not sure how. But she did.
Anyway, David and I managed to redirect the g’kids and sort of block off the kitchen so that Boinging and the Eeking and the Barking were reduced to a bare minimum. In fact, shortly after that, Mooey sort of disappeared. I didn’t see it again in the AirB&B during our visit. And, to the best of my knowledge, it was never re-inflated once the kids and g’kids were back to their home in Austin.
Gosh. Golly. Gee. I wonder why. Such a mystery it is.
Anyway...finally the chicken piccata was finished. And it was a great success. The g’kids loved it. I think Miles would have happily devoured a dozen cutlets and come back for more.
So I think we all got off easy that night. The family enjoyed the food. I managed to be of some use around the kitchen. And Martha didn’t have a major conniption fit. And Mooey...didn’t get deflated with a steak knife and jammed headfirst into the broiler.
So, victories all around.
Next up...the kids head out, Martha and I visit the Hotel Paisano once again, and then we’re on our way home.
More to come.
Copyright©2024 Michael Jay Tucker
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