macarena

four cups of masa, four cups of beef broth, a whole slew of corn husks and some roasted poblanos can only mean one thing around this house: we are all dancing the macarena (aye).
oh. no we're not.
at the request of a certain beloved co-worker of mine, its mexican pot-luck day and im making tamales. its quite an undertaking, i must say. hopefully they will be worth it. last night when i was spreading masa on the corn husks, bub walked in and laughed (thank you very much). i looked at him lovingly and said "WHAT?!" i may have sorta barked in rather than just said it, but it was late and i was tired and he was laughing. brat.
he said "you arent afraid to try anything are you?" i told him that no i was not afraid and i continued to slather masa. i asked what he was afraid to try, and he paused for a minute.
what he said next, i will never forget: "CiCi's pizza. im afraid to try that."
remarkable. after all these years, i never knew.
even more remarkable was what happened next: he helped finish the tamales. seldom do i ask for help in the kitchen. there are a few reasons for that, but the most influential reason for my kitchen independence is that im fairly sure that i am the only one who can do it right so get out of my way you crazy man.
anyway, he braved the kitchen with me and now the tamales are steaming away on the stove top. he may have had an impure motive. bub likes to have me snuggled up on the couch with him while he watches tv in the evenings. if im building tamales, im not snuggled on the couch.
when we finished in the kitchen, you should know, i went straight to the couch.
i understand him and his plotting. thats why we work so well together.
another possible reason for bub's contribution in la cocina is his hope for a tamale of his own. i will leave him one. ONE.
by the way, please dont tell him that he is not mexican, because he believes that he is. he loves all things mexican. the food, the culture, the people, the macarena - all. things. mexican. it would break his heart if he knew he was a guero. yes, there are some light skinned, green eyed mexicans, hes not one.
anyway, to re-cap, i made tamales. bub helped. he is afraid of CiCi's. hes not mexican.