I grew up on job sites.
I used to watch my mother lay block with her dad and brothers. My mother was tiny but tough. Curvy enough to render a man completely stupid and helpless yet virtuous enough to say, in her thick Mexican accent, "If you look at me like that again I'll poke your eyes out!"
Men respected her or they lost their jobs and feared losing their favorite appendage.
I loved the enormous cement trucks and Mexican music blaring from my uncle's beat up pick up. My siblings and I played for hours in the huge piles of sand which would be used in the mix.
When the Arizona sun got particularly hot and nasty I watched my mother dunk her entire head into a bucket of water mixed with morter to cool off. The same bucket used to wash off the shovels thick with cement.
My grandfather chastised her and warned her of wrinkles.
My mother built houses from the ground up. With her hands. Climbing tall scaffolding and digging deep trenches. Nobody can shovel like my mother could at 35 years of age.
Her custom home building company started in south Tucson 31 years ago and is now enormously successful. She no longer mixes mortar. Now she points her finger and things get done.
My dad stopped working in sales and management long ago to help her build up this empire. The two of them have made miracles happen.
In this economy any job is a miracle. My parents employ many trades in Tucson and provide jobs for every one of their children and children-in-law.
This week I have been sewing drapes and table coverings for the Sahba Home Show display.
Because my mother did all the really tough work when I was a child I get to stay home with my children and sew on the side, if I feel like it. I felt like it. I'm grateful I have the option.
Yesterday and today I helped set up Golden Star Properties booth.
I look really fat in this outfit. Obese, really. I hate when I look obese. I'm going to go ahead and blame the pants... Stupid, stupid fat pants... making me look obese and all....
I was pretty excited I got to drive my car INSIDE the Tucson Community Center. I kept saying, "I can't believe my car is INSIDE! I always wondered how people did that!"
Golden Star Properties was named for me, by the way. My middle name is Estrella, which means Star. I've always felt pretty good about that...
