Posts Tagged ‘restaurant’

Nostalgia from a 1950’s Diner

Monday, February 18th, 2019

1950s-diner

Recently my dad has been in and out of the emergency room as he is getting blood clots, has difficulty breathing, and is fighting cancer. He’s at home now, although weak. When I was sitting in the hospital room, watching him sleep, I had plenty of time to think back over all the years I’ve known him, special memories of growing up. One of those memories was my dad getting out his 1950’s records, blasting the tunes while my sisters and I danced all silly and slid across the floor in our woolen slippers. It still makes me smile.

So when I came across these pictures of my husband and I with our children in a 1950’s malt shop in Spokane, I stopped and thought about why the 1950’s meant so much to me, even though it was long before I was born. It meant a lot to me because it meant a lot to my dad.

diner-from-the-1950s

I remember back when I lived in California, I took my dad to a fun 1950’s malt shop where we were able to experience the ambiance of my dad’s favorite decade, from 1950’s music to the decor to the flavors of the food. His face lit up with joy because he was transported back in time.

strawberry-malt

My dad looked so happy, sitting in the booth with me, eating his burger and fries with a malt. He was quite emotional. It was like going back to your grandma’s house after many decades, breathing in the familiar environment where so many happy memories were made. The aroma of my own grandma’s house would always transport me back to childhood, and I felt young and free again, with the whole world opening up before me, full of endless possibilities.

flipping-burgers

Now I sit looking at these photographs of my own husband and kids, enjoying a modern history field trip where we were able to experience the 1950’s as if we had lived through that time period for real.

Some day my own kids will look back on their own memories of their parents blasting through the house our favorite decade music–the 1980’s. My own kids have a love for 1980’s music because it was played the same way my dad played his music, with joy and nostalgia.

To see the 1950’s birthday party I threw my dad several years ago (including pictures of my jukebox cake and poodle skirt), click here.

Our 15th Wedding Anniversary

Saturday, July 14th, 2012

15th-wedding-anniversaryLast night Alan and I celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary. When the waiter came to the table, he told us that he was about to get married in a couple of weeks. He turned to my husband and asked him what he needed to know to get to his 15th anniversary. “What is your secret?” he asked, and he was earnestly wanting to know. People who see my husband and I together notice that we are one and are comfortable with each other, act sweet with each other, and still have chemistry.

15th-wedding-anniversary-2My husband paused a moment before answering, “Love is an act of the will. If you believe that love is a feeling, you won’t last, because a few months into the marriage, you’ll be sick of each other. Feelings come and go.”

“And they deepen and get much better,” I added.

The waiter said, “I’ve never heard it said that way before.” He actually paused and stood there for a minute before finally taking our order.

Sushi and a Walk by the River

Tuesday, May 17th, 2011

sushi-and-a-walk-by-the-river

I’ve never liked sushi. It’s probably because I was raised in a third-world country, and my mother told me to never eat raw fish. But lately my husband has found sushi the most delectable food around. Most of our rare date nights end up in a sushi place. I frantically try to find something cooked on the menu, and I can usually find something…

Well, last Friday night I had a taste of sushi that was magnificent. I was stunned. Not only did I not feel like barfing; I actually wanted another bite. This was so funny to me because I classified sushi in the same category as snails and grasshoppers (not edible).

cooked-sushi

We were at a new sushi restaurant down by the Spokane River. It had a conveyor belt that wound itself around the room like a meandering train track. And on that conveyor belt were all kinds of sushi and other Japanese foods. You just grabbed the small plates as they passed by your table. There was no need to wait or to order. At the end of the meal, the waiter counted up the different-colored plates for the final price. A cooked oyster (two sides with delicious stuff inside) was $1.50. Other plates were $4. Anyway, each of the foods we ate was delicious. My husband said, “We definitely need to come back here.”

Another great thing about the meal was that you could stop whenever you were full. You didn’t have to feel overstuffed after forcing yourself to finish a huge, heaping plate of food. If I wanted a vegetable, I waited for a vegetable plate to parade by, and I’d snatch it up. I didn’t have to get sick of just one taste during the whole meal.

sushi-conveyor-belt

After dinner, my husband and I took a stroll along the river, crossing bridges and looking at the torrential waterfall. The dam had been opened, and the water looked dangerously high. The power of the raging water as it crashed over rocks was incredible. We just stood there and took it in for a while. Then I noticed a solid rock in the middle of the torrent. The rock remained secure despite the crashing waves around it. That rock represented my husband and I.

Many years ago my husband held my hands and looked into my eyes and said, “Susan, I want you and I to be a solid rock, that no matter what life throws at us, we will not waver or fall, but that we would be a bulwark against the storms of life.” He gave as an example an older couple that we know. He said he wanted us to be like them.

date-night-in-Spokane

As I looked at the power of the crashing waves against the rock, I realized that despite the way I felt, I was acting like that rock. I was one with my husband, and I was repeatedly surprising myself with how I would lean on God to help me endure our trial for yet one more week.

The river isn’t always this strong and damaging, though. Most of the time we’ve crossed that bridge, the water has been quite peaceful. I’m longing for the day when the waters recede and the sun comes out again to shine on the rock. The sun seems long overdue…

Japanese Grill

Friday, January 28th, 2011

japanese-grill

I filmed our experience at the Japanese Grill. It was like a food show, with fire and flashing lights. The kids ate all their food.

japanese-grill-2