• Home
    • Get the Podcasts
    • About
      • Contact Latinopia.com
      • Copyright Credits
      • Production Credits
      • Research Credits
      • Terms of Use
      • Teachers Guides
  • Art
    • LATINOPIA ART
    • INTERVIEWS
  • Film/TV
    • LATINOPIA CINEMA
    • LATINOPIA SHOWCASE
    • INTERVIEWS
    • FEATURES
  • Food
    • LATINOPIA FOOD
    • COOKING
    • RESTAURANTS
  • History
    • LATINOPIA EVENT
    • LATINOPIA HERO
    • TIMELINES
    • BIOGRAPHY
    • EVENT PROFILE
    • MOMENT IN TIME
    • DOCUMENTS
    • TEACHERS GUIDES
  • Lit
    • LATINOPIA WORD
    • LATINOPIA PLÁTICA
    • LATINOPIA BOOK REVIEW
    • PIONEER AMERICAN LATINA AUTHORS
    • INTERVIEWS
    • FEATURES
  • Music
    • LATINOPIA MUSIC
    • INTERVIEWS
    • FEATURES
  • Theater
    • LATINOPIA TEATRO
    • INTERVIEWS
  • Blogs
    • Angela’s Photo of the Week
    • Arnie & Porfi
    • Bravo Road with Don Felípe
    • Burundanga Boricua
    • Chicano Music Chronicles
    • Fierce Politics by Dr. Alvaro Huerta
    • Mirándolo Bien with Eduado Díaz
    • Political Salsa y Más
    • Mis Pensamientos
    • Latinopia Guest Blogs
    • Tales of Torres
    • Word Vision Harry Gamboa Jr.
    • Julio Medina Serendipity
    • ROMO DE TEJAS
    • Sara Ines Calderon
    • Ricky Luv Video
    • Zombie Mex Diaries
    • Tia Tenopia
  • Podcasts
    • Louie Perez’s Good Morning Aztlán
    • Mark Guerrero’s ELA Music Stories
    • Mark Guerrero’s Chicano Music Chronicles
      • Yoga Talk with Julie Carmen

latinopia.com

Latino arts, history and culture

  • Home
    • Get the Podcasts
    • About
      • Contact Latinopia.com
      • Copyright Credits
      • Production Credits
      • Research Credits
      • Terms of Use
      • Teachers Guides
  • Art
    • LATINOPIA ART
    • INTERVIEWS
  • Film/TV
    • LATINOPIA CINEMA
    • LATINOPIA SHOWCASE
    • INTERVIEWS
    • FEATURES
  • Food
    • LATINOPIA FOOD
    • COOKING
    • RESTAURANTS
  • History
    • LATINOPIA EVENT
    • LATINOPIA HERO
    • TIMELINES
    • BIOGRAPHY
    • EVENT PROFILE
    • MOMENT IN TIME
    • DOCUMENTS
    • TEACHERS GUIDES
  • Lit
    • LATINOPIA WORD
    • LATINOPIA PLÁTICA
    • LATINOPIA BOOK REVIEW
    • PIONEER AMERICAN LATINA AUTHORS
    • INTERVIEWS
    • FEATURES
  • Music
    • LATINOPIA MUSIC
    • INTERVIEWS
    • FEATURES
  • Theater
    • LATINOPIA TEATRO
    • INTERVIEWS
  • Blogs
    • Angela’s Photo of the Week
    • Arnie & Porfi
    • Bravo Road with Don Felípe
    • Burundanga Boricua
    • Chicano Music Chronicles
    • Fierce Politics by Dr. Alvaro Huerta
    • Mirándolo Bien with Eduado Díaz
    • Political Salsa y Más
    • Mis Pensamientos
    • Latinopia Guest Blogs
    • Tales of Torres
    • Word Vision Harry Gamboa Jr.
    • Julio Medina Serendipity
    • ROMO DE TEJAS
    • Sara Ines Calderon
    • Ricky Luv Video
    • Zombie Mex Diaries
    • Tia Tenopia
  • Podcasts
    • Louie Perez’s Good Morning Aztlán
    • Mark Guerrero’s ELA Music Stories
    • Mark Guerrero’s Chicano Music Chronicles
      • Yoga Talk with Julie Carmen
You are here: Home / Blogs / ZOMBIE MEX DIARIES 6.17.12 “FATHER’S DAY – NOT”

ZOMBIE MEX DIARIES 6.17.12 “FATHER’S DAY – NOT”

June 18, 2012 by JT

I really dread Father’s Day. Why? Ever since I can remember, all around me kids at school with fathers talking about what gift they’ll get their dad, the great times they’ll have. And me? I don’t have a dad. You see, I’m a zombie without a dad. So what am I supposed to do?

Early on, I think I was seven years old, I decided to ask my mom about my father. “Is he still alive? Where is he?” I asked. “Why doesn’t he come by to visit?”

“Porque es un sinverguenza cabrón!” She replied. Suddenly she was more angry than I had ever seen her. “We will NOT talk about your useless father who ran out on us when I needed him the most. You are lucky NOT to have father like him! Sinverquenza! ”

After that I didn’t task any more questions about my father.

Nonetheless, every year, come the beginning of June and I would start hearing my classmates all conferring on what gifts they would be getting their dads, and how the family would go out to the beach or on a picnic or have a special bar-b-que to celebrate Father’s Day.  And they would always ask me, “Hey Lazo, what about you? What are you getting your dad and where will you go?” Of course, I was embarrassed to admit I had no dad.  Before long I had invented my own version of my dad walking out on my mom and me.

“He’s in the military.” I would say conspiratorially when asked about my dad. “Special forces, can’t really talk about it–secret assignment. Yeah, he’s out there defending our country and he’s not going to be able it make it back for Father’s Day this year. A tough job but someone’s got to do it.”

That usually shut everyone one up. No more questions. Which is exactly how I wanted it.

The hardest part came on Father’s day itself.  It always fell on a Sunday and I would wake up knowing that somehow I had to get through the day. Since my resurrection from the Evergreen cemetery, my mom had gotten very religious–she went to mass every morning and twice on Sundays. Fortunately for me, she didn’t want to raise any questions about me since some of the brothers and sisters at the Parish had also been at my funeral. So I got to stay home.

When I was ten years old, my mom could see that I was really struggling with the Father’s Day thing and a few days before Father’s Day that year, I overheard her on the phone talking to my Uncle Chepito, her brother.

“Cheppy,” she said, “Please. En el nombre de Díos, take him out to a movie or to Disneyland or something,. The poor child needs a father figure. I’ll pay for it all.”

I was not surprised when the dreaded day finally came around and my mom woke me up early, a huge smile on her face. “Mijo, get up!  Get ready, brush your teeth, put on your make-up and deodorant! You’re Tio Chepito is going to take you to a movie!”

Gotta say, it really put me in a good mood. I got dressed quickly, scarfed down some raw liver festering in the frig and was ready when my Uncle Chepito knocked on the front door.

Okay, my Uncle Cheptito is no great father figure, let me tell you. I’m grateful that he agreed to show me a good time–problem was his idea of a good time and mine were totally different.

He drove us to the cinemaplex at the local mall and we had to wait in line for twenty minutes before we could even buy the ticket. He bought just one ticket and gave it to me. “Look,”  he said, “I’ve already seen this movie. Just go in and when the movie’s over, you come find me at that building over there, the one with the sign.” He pointed to a building across the mall with sign over it which read , “O’Reilly’s Bar.” “Come for me and I’ll take you home.”

Hey, I was getting a free movie so I wasn’t going to complain. So I went into the theater and found a seat. As the movie began I imagined that my Uncle was there sitting next to me, or perhaps the father I had never known was there with me, or, heck, anybody but the young couple who were making out all through the movie.

When the movie was over, I went to find my Uncle Chepito at O’Reilly’s Bar.  He was sitting at the bar counter  with a woman I didn’t  know. They were drinking and talking loudly and having a good time. I could see from his expression when I walked up to them that my uncle was not all that happy that movie was over. “Mijo,” he said., “I’ll be ready to go in just a minute. Horetencia, this is my nephew, Lazaro.” The woman smiled at me with big teeth, one of them capped with gold. “Oh, what a darling!”

My Uncle Chepito motioned to the bartender. “Sammy, get me something for the kid, will ya? “ he added with a wink, “He’s older than he looks.“

The bartender brought over a foamy mug of a kind of coke I had never tasted before. It was a little bitter at first, but after a few sips it got to taste really good. I don’t really remember too much of the rest of that afternoon. My uncle and his lady friend had a great time and after a while I was laughing right along with them, though I didn’t really get the jokes.

I do remember getting sick when my Uncle finally took me home. I was trying to hold it down but didn’t quite make it to the front porch. I barfed all over the front lawn of the house. About that time my mom came out and ran to me. She took a long at me as I continued to barf on the front lawn. She gave my Uncle Chepito an angry look. He tried to smile at her.

“I guess it must have been that hot dog I bought him at the movie.” He said.

“Sinverguenza!” My mother said “Emborrachaste a mi hijo! Malagradecido! Sinverquenza!  You men are all the same!”  She picked me up and dragged me into the house. And that was the last I ever saw of Uncle Chepito.

Ever since then I have created my own way of celebrating Father’s Day. While my mom is away at church, I slap a rented video into the DVD player. It’s always the same movie, the one that I saw by myself when I was ten years old and pretending my Uncle or dad was there with me–“Home Alone.”

 

Copyright 2012 Lazaro De L aTierra and Barrio Dog Productions Inc.

Filed Under: Blogs, Zombie Mex Diaries Tagged With: Chicano zombies, Latino zombies, Mexican zombies, zombie mex diaries, Zombies

RICARDO ROMO’S TEJANO REPORT 01.28.23 CRYSTAL CITY 1969

January 27, 2023 By wpengine

An Inspiring Latino Play: Crystal City 1969 David Lozano and Raul Trevino wrote Crystal City 1969 in 2009, a production which The Dallas Morning News called the “Best New Play” of 2009. Residents from Crystal City learned of its success by word of mouth, but individuals who contributed to the school walkouts that permanently transformed […]

RICARDO ROMO’S TEJANO REPORT 01.20.23 OSCAR ALVARADO MASTER MOSAIC ARTIST

January 20, 2023 By wpengine

Oscar Alvarado: Latino Master Artist of Tile Mosaic On most days of the year, Oscar Alvarado steps out of the warehouse at his San Antonio Southtown studio, spaces that he shares with his twin brother Robert, to look over sections of nearly two acres filled with sand, tile, rock, glass, and steel. He treasures the […]

RICARDO ROMO’S TEJANO REPORT AL RENDON AN ACCLAIMED LATINO PHOTOGRAPHER

January 14, 2023 By wpengine

Al Rendon: A Highly Acclaimed Latino Photographer Every American City has its favorite photographer who is able to produce revealing imagery that captures the mind and soul of its people, that documents the cultural attributes of its society, and that reveals the historical aspects of the region’s landscape. Large cities with diverse populations count on […]

RICARDO ROMO’S TEJANO REPORT JOSÉ ESQUIVAL A CHICANO TRAILBLAZER

January 7, 2023 By wpengine

José Esquivel: A Chicano Art Trailblazer José Esquivel, one of the founding members of the Chicano art movement in America, passed away on December 16, 2022. He was 87 years old. A memorial to Esquivel is planned for Tuesday evening, January 3rd at the Centro Cultural Aztlan. Through his paintings Esquivel documented life in his […]

More Posts from this Category

New On Latinopia

LATINOPIA EVENT 1966 UFW PEREGRINACIÓN (PILGRIMAGE) MARCH

By Tia Tenopia on March 19, 2013

The effort to organize farm workers under a union contract has been a long and difficult struggle. In 1965, César Chávez and Dolores Huerta created what would become the United Farm Workers Union. From the onset they  faced many obstacles, not the least of which was how to get dozens of California grape growers to […]

Category: History, LATINOPIA EVENT

LATINOPIA MUSIC ANGELA ROA “TOCO DESAFINADO”

By Tia Tenopia on June 22, 2014

Angela Roa is a Chilean singer and lyricist residing in Los Angeles, California. Her songs are about the Latino experience in the United States and in Latin America. Here she performs an original song, “Toco Desafinado” (Out of Tune). She is accompanied by Fernando Losada, Rich Silva and Thiago Winterstein..

Category: LATINOPIA MUSIC, Music

LATINOPIA MUSIC LOS FABULOCOS “UNA PURA Y DOS CON SAL”

By Tia Tenopia on January 4, 2015

Delta Groove Music recording artist Los FabuLocos is a Southern California band whose unique sound, “Cali-Mex,”is a fusion of blues, Americana and Chicano soul music. Band members include Jesús Cuevas, accordion and vocals; Rubén Guaderama, guitar,bajo sexto, tres and vocals; James Barrios, bass and vocals; Mike Molina, drums and Kid Ramos, guitar( not in this […]

Category: LATINOPIA MUSIC, Music

© 2023 latinopia.com · Pin It - Genesis - WordPress · Admin