MBFCF Giveaway Week Winners

I want to thank you all for celebrating with me this week. Also, to my very generous sponsors for providing the cool Cuban giveaways I've been priviledged to share. Thank you all. I'm blessed and humbled by your constant love and support.

MBFCF Giveaway #1 - My Big, Fat, Cuban Family Cookbook

goes to....

**************************************************************

MBFCF Giveaway #2 - WASSUP En LA? Family Gift Pack

goes to...

**************************************************************

MBFCF Giveaway #3 - Cubamerican The Movie, Tickets

The winners will be contacted by the Producers of Cubamerican.

**************************************************************

MBFCF Giveaway #4 - Santayana Jewelers' Leather Bracelet and the Azabache.

goes to...

Also, if you're still interested in this beautiful bracelet (and I know you are), remember that Santayana Jewelers has graciously added a special promotion for MBFCF readers:

$40 off your $150 purchase with the promo code MARTASENTME.

**************************************************************

MBFCF Giveaway #5 - The Cafe La Llave Cuban Coffee Basket

goes to...

**************************************************************

I want to thank you all for entering my giveaways and for participating in my weeklong celebration of my 7th Blogging Anniversary. 

To all the winners - Congratulations! Please shoot me an email that contains your mailing address. Put HEY, MARTA! I WON STUFF ON YOUR BLOG! in the subject line so that I don't accidentally delete it and I will get your goodies out to you ASAP.

But wait! There's more....

I wasn't quite prepared for the ridiculously generous show of support from my Cuban Cubiches and now I have some more sponsored giveaways coming up this weekend!

Please stay tuned for MBFCF Giveaway Week - The Sequel.

Many thanks to you all for entering and sharing. I'm overwhelmed with pride and love for all the friends of MBFCF. Seriously.

Cuba Nostalgia - Tell them, "Marta sent me!"

I didn't get to go to Miami for Cuba Nostalgia this year. And I'm feeling a little sorry for myself.

It's the 15th anniversary of Cuba Nostalgia and the brilliant Tony Mendoza did the poster for the event which I'm totally in love with.

Get it? 15 years. The Quinceañera. Genius.

I already put out the word to my people on the ground in Miami (I'm looking at you, Amanda from Brandon's Puppy) that I must have this poster, but that's not important right now.

I have lots of friends who will be at the Fair Expo Center in Miami this weekend.

Of course, Babalú Blog will represent. It's their 10th Anniversary in the Blogosphere telling the truth about Cuba. Congratulations, guys! So proud to be a part of the Babalú Family.

I lamented my inability to be present to my friends at Santayana Jewelers, who always have a wonderful presence there. 

They're running a Cuba Nostalgia Special this weekend:

If you buy 4 of the Cuban Charms for your Habana Collection Bead Charm Bracelet, they'll throw in a 5th charm for free. Awesome, right?

1) I don't have to tell you this, but if you're Cuban or love all things Cuban, you must have a Cuban Charm bracelet. (Duh.)

2) If you already have the bracelet, you will want as many Cuban charms as you can fit on it, right?

Wait! It gets better...

3) If you're a MBFCF (which, obviously, you are if you're reading this now...)

"The first 5 people to come over and say Marta Sent Me get a free "cafecito"charm."

What are you waiting for, people? Go! Get yourselves over to the Santayana Jewelers booth at Cuba Nostalgia this weekend and say, Marta Sent Me! (I'll expect a full report from the lucky 5.)

Also, have a guarapo for me.

Thanks, Santayana! You are the maximum!

My Big, Fat, Cuban Family Cubiche Christmas Gift Guide

Christmas shopping.

I am so not the get-up-at-the-crack-of-dawn-to-snap-up-deals-on-Black-Friday type of person. I am much more the online-shopper-in-my-pjs type. (However, if you tell anyone about the PJ thing, I'll most certainly deny it, but that's not important right now.)

It's just a matter of covering more territory while sitting in the comfort of your PJs (or not...) and finding fabulously different gifts. Plus think of the savings on gas!

For example, I'm pretty sure Target doesn't carry a Tardis 4-port USB hub for my nerdy,  Dr.Who-loving son, Jonathan. But ThinkGeek does. (Don't worry. I've given nothing away. He doesn't read my blog unless I ask him to.)

Also, I may or may not have gotten one for myself. (Don't judge me.)

My mom, Luza, who is 98 now, says she loves the hustle and bustle of going shopping at Christmastime and that she loves fighting crowds and she loves carrying lots of bags and packages around. I remind her that she hasn't been Christmas shopping on her own since the 70's and that perhaps what she probably remembers is a scene from a Christmas movie and that maybe her memory is not what it used to be. (Note to self: Don't ever contradict an Old Cuban Woman on what she may or may not remember. That is all.)

So, back to online shopping.

I live in a wonderful all-American Peanut-Butter-and-Jelly neighborhood in Southern California. It's not just the place to be finding gifts with an especially Cuban sensibility. Sad, but true.

This is why God invented online shopping. To get the perfect gift for your Cuban Cubiches. (For my non-Cuban readers, a "cubiche" is loosely translated as "Cuban kin.")

Which is why I'm providing the... *drum roll, please*

My Big, Fat, Cuban Family Cubiche Christmas Gift Guide

Disclaimer: These are places that I myself have ordered from and who have delivered on quality and service. None of them are paying me for this free linky-love. (I wish! *sigh*)

1) From Cuban Food Market (if you're in Miami, the name of the store is Sentir Cubano on Calle 8):

Tacitas! Or Demitasse espresso coffee cup gift set. With a Cuban flag on them and they come in a "it's a Cuban Chrismas" straw gift bag. I think, yes! (Trust me, there is nothing like this in Mission Viejo.)

2) From the "Jewelers to the Cuban Communtiy," Santayana Jewelers:

The Habana Bead Collection of Charms. They fit Pandora and Chamilia bracelets. And come in such genius designs as: A cafetera, Corazon de melon, Azucar, and Caja China. Go check them out. You must see to believe.

Santayana Jewelers is running a special promotion right now: $40 off on your purchase of $150 or more. Trust me, I have already taken advantage of this great deal (someone in my family is going to be deliriously happy on Christmas morning). The promotion expires January 6th, 2013 - El Dia de Los Reyes. Of course. That's sooo deliciously Cuban, isn't it?

VERY COOL PROMOTION ALERT! Just for MBFCF readers: If you suggest a design and they make it into a charm, they will send the winner that charm. Come on, people! I know you've got this. Leave suggestions in the comment section of this post.

3) And of course, my good friends at Habana Brand Clothing have got the most fabulous über-Cuban (<--is that a word?) designs on their high quality shirts.

I also want to take a moment to thank Habana Brand and all the MBFCF readers who suggested new designs for their shirts. They have assured me they are hard at work creating some of your concepts. Way to go, kids!

This one is hot off the press (thanks to YOU!) - Ladies V-neck Vintage Ride T. Click HERE to order and see the rest of their beautiful line. That's my Lucy being all cute in her Cubanity (<--is that a word?) and rocking the Habana Brand Vintage Ride tshirt.

They're also having a Facebook promotion right now as the Cuban community finds them online and they are working their way to 1,000 "likes." Please go like Habana Brand Clothing on Facebook. And please share with your friends.

Go! Shop! Be proud of your Cubanity! (<--That should totally be a word!)

MBFCF Giveaway Week is over - And the Winners are...

Thank you.

I'm so grateful that so many of you joined in my 6th Blogiversary Celebration Week. I am humbled by your wonderful response and good wishes. I so love when you play along with me, but that's not important right now.

Sometimes I think I've told all the stories I have to tell and that I don't have one creative bone left in my body. Sometimes I stare at the blank screen and find it impossible to string two words together to attempt to make a sentence. But then...you leave a comment telling me about your life, or how you found my blog and that it makes you happy, or you tell me about how you love Cuban stuff like I do. This gives me the energy and vision to keep moving forward.

So, once again...Thank you.

Without further ado (drum roll please) here are the winners of last week's giveaways.

Congratulations to all of the winners!

1) The My Big, Fat, Cuban Family Cookbook

The MBFCF Cookbook goes to:

Dyana B said...

Oh dear, I have no idea when I found you but I'm so happy that I did. It's been at least four years, for sure!

I love EVERYTHING about your blog! I also live far, far away from anything Cuban and just reading your recipes motivates me to cook at home as well!

If the question of "How long have you been here?" is about the U.S.? Then my whole life. I'm a 1st generation American and very proud of my Cuban heritage! <3

Reply October 01, 2012 at 03:35 AM

************************************************

2) Santayana Jewelers Habana Bead Collection Bracelet with 4 charms

If you would like to order your own Habana Collection Charm Bracelet, Santayana Jewelers is very graciously offering an online promotion for My big, fat, Cuban family readers. If you buy 4 beads, the fourth is free when you enter the promo code MARTA at checkout. Go to Santayana Jewelers online.

The beautiful bracelet from Santayana Jewelers goes to:

Jcass0912 said...

What a touching story!!!! How can you pick a favorite?! Each one is so meaningful! I have to say I do love el corazon de meon and la cafetera! Reminds me of my grandmother she used to call us her corazones de melon! This charm would be perfect for my Mom!!!!

Reply October 02, 2012 at 10:59 AM

************************************************

3) Juan of the Dead DVD

Juan of the Dead, is available to rent or download on iTunes at http://bit.ly/ZombieRevolution and on DVD at http://bit.ly/zombieRevolution.

 

The winners of the Juan of the Dead DVD are:

1)

Lilly Medina said...

I'm not really into the zombie fad but this movie was hilarious! One of my favorites for sure!

Reply October 03, 2012 at 07:59 AM

AND

2)

Rebeca Montalvan Del Sol Toth said...

I absolutely LOVE horror movies, especially Zombie ones! I must have a copy of Juan of the Dead it is so funny and absolutely Cuban! If there was a zombie outbreak in Havana I know our Cuban brothers and sisters could handle it! We are survivors!

Reply October 03, 2012 at 01:51 PM

AND

3)

Emilia Platas said...

I'm with you on the horror movie thing--even agree on the American Werewolf in London part. However, mi niña is another story! She LOVES Shaun of the Dead. It's like a cult classic with her and her friends! So how perfect would it be to give my USA-born girl some cubanismo in the form of her favorite genre? (Did I mention her b-day is coming up?)I always say one of the best ways to educate is with comedy. Plus, the girl has lots of friends so your friends at Focus World could be sure the film would be seen by other teens and young twenty-somethings. Heck, even I want to see it!

Reply October 03, 2012 at 11:45 AM

************************************************

4) The Red Umbrella and A Thunderous Whisper (autographed by the author)

The Red Umbrella and a Thunderous Whisper are both available at Amazon.com.

The books, The Red Umbrella and a Thunderous Whisper - both autographed by author, Christina Diaz Gonzalez go to:

Esther Avila-Young said...

I remember when I was in Cuba still in the early 60's some of our neighbors boys left as Pedro Pans, and I have also have met some Pedro Pans here in Southern California. What a sadness that must be to leave your parents behind to the unknown and uncertain, not knowing anyone, not knowing the language and hoping that you some day will see your parents again. My heart breaks just thinking about it. What a courage of those parents to send their children before them.
I do have a "Cuando sali de Cuba moment" and story that will share with you one of these days.

Reply October 04, 2012 at 11:14 AM

************************************************

5) A Gaviña Gourmet Coffee Basket, which includes their new Holiday Coffee Collection (!)

The fabulous Gaviña Gourmet Holiday Coffee Baskets go to:

1)

BBabushka said...

Which one of the coffees in this Holiday Collection (!) sounds the best to you?

Caramel Spiced Rum- Caramelo, especia- verbo, sazonar, Ron

Vamo mi gente, you can't get more Cuban than that!!

; ) Loving this series Marta- Congrats.

BB2U

Reply October 05, 2012 at 12:47 PM

AND

2)

Nancy Reed said...

My first cup in the morning...Well, honestly ANYthing as long as its strong. I even enjoy the FREE coffee at church on Sundays. My afternoon cup (yes usually I do have one)I enjoy my flavored k-cups and it feels like a treat. One of my favorite is the pumkin spice. As an October baby I love anything fall. Happy Anniversary MBFGF! time flies huh?

Reply October 05, 2012 at 07:38 AM

************************************************

6) Handpainted Varadero Sign

The hand-painted (by me!) Varadero sign goes to:

Jackie said...

Cute! I can't wait to see what you have in your Etsy shop!

Reply October 06, 2012 at 08:14 AM

************************************************

Again, thank you all for your very enthusiastic participation in my Blog-anniversary Giveaway Week and congratulations to all the winners. And a big thank you to all of my giveaway sponsors for their gracious generosity.

If you won, please send me an email with HEY, MARTA! I WON STUFF ON YOUR BLOG! in the subject line so that I won't accidentally delete it. Also, send me your street addresss. I will forward to my giveaway sponsors so you can get your goodies ASAP.

You make me very happy.

Besos,

Marta

Cuando Sali de Cuba - Elena's Story

Marta here: Most Cubans are familiar with Santayana Jewelers. They are a mainstay of the Cuban exile community in Miami. I'm delighted that Elena Santayana has graciously agreed to share her family's stories. Her memories of growing up Santayana are both hilarious and poignant.

(Translations to her Cubanisms are marked with a red * and are at the bottom of the story.)

Gracias, Elena. You humble me.

Cuando

I was born en la saguesera. That’s the southwest area of Miami, on June 8, 1978. I have three sisters, Marisa, Miriam and Patty and a twin brother, Rudy. We grew up in a split plan home in the beautiful Westchester area of Miami, Florida.

Totem pole pic

Santayana loved taking totem-pole pictures.

Both of my parents came to this country alone. My dad, known as Santayana, was Peter Pan (pronounced with rolling r’s). I thought that meant he wore green tights and fought pirates. Later, I learned it meant he came to this country without his parents and stayed at a home for boys until a cousin or uncle picked him and his brother up. But I never really “got it” until quite recently. When I was 17 years old and in high school, I never took a moment to imagine, “What if right now, I was sent away to live in another country, indefinitely, with little money and alone?”

Mom arrived in the United States on the Freedom Flights. In 1961, the day before Halloween, she was supposed to board a plane with her brother and sisters but there was a problem with her visa and she was made to stay an extra couple of days in Havana. She was 17 years old and didn’t speak much english. She lived in a house with 12 other people in the northwest area of Miami or, as she says, “la casa del nor’wes’ ”.

The original hipster

Elena's mama. The original hipster.

My father, Santayana, was a hard working man. Every morning he would dress in a fine suit and take his maleta* of jewelry to visit clients at their homes. Before he opened the jewelry stores, my dad was known for his maleta. I still hear stories of people who remember my dad showing up at their house, opening his maleta and revealing tray after tray of sparkling jewelry.

In the 80’s my dad had three really cool things in his possession. Number one, Santayana owned a beeper. Not the beeping kind we know now, the kind doctors still use. Dad’s beeper was like the speaker at KMart. Here’s how it worked:

• Step 1: Call the beeper.
• Step 2: Wait for the tone.
• Step 3: Convey the message for all to hear over the speaker/beeper strapped to his belt. Twice.

The messages were to be coded at all times so that random strangers on the street wouldn’t suspect he was carrying a maleta of jewelry and give him the proverbial, “Palo por la cabeza.*” 

An example of an acceptable message would be: “Santayana, llama la tienda. Santayana, llama la tienda.*”

However, if you said, “Santayana llama la joyeria.*” - that got you in big time trouble. Similarly, if you said, “Papi llama a mami,*”  you would get banned from beeper detail. Singing Happy Birthday into the beeper was also not warmly received.

Second, Santayana had a car phone. His car phone was super cool, space-age stuff. Imagine a rotary phone bolted to the center consul of his wine colored Caprice Classic. The advanced car phone technology also required the Caprice to sport a subtle, 6 foot long antennae on its roof. Phone calls were ridiculously expensive but dad was a gadget man and had to have it. No one had a car phone.

Well, some people had carphones - drug dealers. In third grade some kid asked me, “Is your dad a drug dealer? Why does he have a car phone?”  We’re talking about Miami in the 80’s, this kid was not asking an illogical question. So I told him, “Noooo, my dad is not a drug dealer, he’s a jeweler.”

The third, neato thing Santayana had in the 80’s was a beautiful, brand-new, wine-colored Caprice Classic. On the rare occasion that Santayana took me and Rudy to school, he would pretend that his car was an airplane; he was the captain and we were his crew. I was the flight attendant offering peanuts and Rudy was the mechanic. There was always something wrong with the plane and we would have to rush, rush, rush to fix the problem. This game probably explains my fear of flying.

Although it had been over 20 years since our parents’ flight from Cuba, growing up in the 80’s, we were raised to believe that our residence in Miami was temporary. Every Christmas Eve someone proclaimed, “El año que viene en Cuba!*”  Then everyone would toast and cheer and give each other big hugs.

Santayana fam 1980

The Santayana Family. Circa 1980.

My uncle Marcelo, who exiled to the Canary Islands after serving 9 years in a Cuban prison, had a really short index finger. His index finger was literally shorter than his pinky. Don’t imagine that his finger didn’t have a nail. It totally did. The whole thing was intact, it was just short. Like a baby finger. As a kid, that finger was the freakiest thing I had ever seen.

He waved that finger around like there was nothing wrong with it. I once asked him about it, he loudly proclaimed, “Porque este año, este año cae Fidel!*” while slamming the tip of his freakishly short index finger on the table. I totally believed him. I mean, it made sense to me that slamming that finger down every day for the past 20 years would make it a whole phalanx shorter.

Every year was the year Fidel was going down. Every Christmas we were spending the next one in Camaguey. I worried about what I should pack in my luggage. Should I take a bathing suit, a sweater, boots? Should I start packing today? Was there going to be horseback riding? Whose house would we be staying at? How would Santa know where to leave the presents? It was all very confusing.

Mom (far left) with 8 of her 11 siblings

Elena's Mom (far left) with 8 of her 11 siblings. Tio Marcelo (not pictured) died this year, 2012, on her dad's birthday.

In 2007, my father was diagnosed with a horrible form of cancer. One night, as I was sitting with him at the hospital, it came over the TV that maybe Fidel Castro was dead. I wondered to myself, “Do I wish death on Castro now?” I wasn’t sure if I wanted Castro to be dead just then because my father was, at the time, on his own death bed. On this night, facing the uncertainty of my father’s life, I wasn’t sure I could wish death upon anyone. Not even on the person who had caused so much misery to thousands of people.

I also did not want my dad to live in a world where Castro was finally dead. The one reason he had not visited his childhood country after all these many years was the fact that Fidel Castro was alive, and finally, right when it was too late, the son-of-a-bitch up and dies? I didn’t know what to do. So I did the first thing that came to mind, I went to La Carreta.

I have celebrated many major life changing events at La Carreta. I sounded the horn of mom’s minivan from our house all the way to La Carreta both times the Florida Marlins won the World Series. I made sure to find parking far and early both times the Heat won the Playoffs because getting there late meant being stuck in traffic. Once, the day after Halloween, my friends and I dressed up in costumes and strutted our stuff carrying a boom box from the entrance, all the way to the back, then right out the front door. But this night, the night we thought Castro was dead was different. The energy in the air was celebratory, but nostalgic. It was both happy and sad. And I watched, completely covered in goosebumps, as a group of 20 or so teary individuals sang and danced in unison to Willy Chirino’s “Ya Viene Llegando” (video below) until the police came and broke up the entire party.

I don’t have to tell you, but I will anyway, Fidel Castro was not dead that night. Nor has he been dead any night since. My dad wasn’t happy I danced in the streets. He didn’t want me to go La Carreta to celebrate that man’s death. He didn’t want to be duped by the Castro regime. But I wanted to pass the joy in my heart to my dad. The joy I felt from being his daughter and the immense sense of pride I feel of being Cuban.

A few days or maybe weeks later my father passed away. He died in a world where Fidel Castro lived, his beloved Cuba, still existing under the foot of a tyrant. But, in the end, the only thing that ever truly mattered to him was his family. When my dad died I understood, for the first time ever, what Cuban nostalgia was really all about.

* Translation of terms used in Elena's story:

• Maleta - suitcase.
• Palo por la cabeza. - Blow to the head with a large blunt object.
• Santayana, llama la tienda. - Santayana, call the store.
•  
• Santayana llama la joyeria. Santayana, call the jewelry store
• Papi llama a mami. - Dad, call mom.
•  
• El año que viene en Cuba! - Next year in Cuba!
• Porque este año, este año caie Fidel! - Because this year, Fidel will fall!

Marta's Christmas Gift Guide #2 - It's all about the image

As long and as far back as I can remember, everyone in my family has had an old school "cafetera" sitting on the stove. There might have been a few years (waaay back in the day) where my parents used a sock-thingy to make Cuban coffee. But for the most part, the stovetop cafetera has always been the must-have Cuban coffee making device.

And so, whenever I see this very familiar image of a stovetop Cuban cafetera it makes me totally happy. And makes me want whatever I find with a cafetera on it. (Shut up. I know.)

I do all my Christmas shopping online. All of it. It makes total sense for me in all my busy-ness, plus the stuff gets delivered to my door, all that's left for me to do is to wrap and tag. And voilá I'm done with Christmas shopping. Win-win.

Today I want to share some of the very cool online I-love-my-Cuban-cafetera finds with you.

From the super fun ChiChi and Flaco shop comes the Cafe con Leche! tshirt:

I love the clean simplicity of the design. 

From the very prolific and talented Cuban artist, Tony Mendoza, one of his most fun Fine Art Reproductions, Cuban-American:

I have been coveting this charm for my Pandora Charm Bracelet for ages. (Thinly veiled hint to whoever happens to be buying me something for Christmas, but that's not important right now.) From Santayana Jewelers in South Florida, the Cafetera bead charm:

My very artistic friend, Maria Soto Robbins has the most beautiful stuff. This one is a pin with her original art called Cuban Coffee and Lime. I am completely in love with it! You can also get her Cuban Coffee and Lime print at Fine Art America. 

And from the muy loco geniuses at Latin Laundry, comes the Artudito tshirt for the Cuban Star Wars lovers.

Me? I'm going to have another colada so I can get my second wind for wrapping all the fabulousness I just purchased.

P.S. You're welcome.  ;-)