Morning Shows

When I was twelve and living in Queens, my mom had to wake up early every weekday to get to her job in Brooklyn.  I remember waking up with her, and it was still dark.  I kinda stayed in bed while she was getting ready and I would come down with her.  She would leave through the kitchen back door, and I would hug and kiss her and watch her walk off to the street in the darkness.  

I think she made lunch for me before she left.  I didn't know what I wanted because in the Philippines I didn't have to think about that.  We got served a good hot lunch at school, or I would just go home to get something to eat.  So I just ended up with a cheese sandwich.

Anyway, I would then go upstairs and get myself ready for school.  I can't really recall if I watched TV in the mornings.  There was one time though that I turned in on around 5am, and the three stooges and "I Love Lucy" were on.

In the weekends, there would be Saturday morning cartoons.  One of them was "Garfield".  There was also ninja turtles, which was my favorite.  There were other shows, but I can't recall which ones they were.

My mom sometimes had to work on the weekends also.  I think my first weekend in the States, I came to work with her.  We took a bus down some Avenue and then got off.  We went to a Dunkin' Donuts or something, and then we went to a magazine store or something.  I got her to buy me a Mad Magazine.  My cousins in Manila had some of them, and I got to like them.  It felt nice having a magazine of my own.  I also got a Hershey bar, I think.  My mom liked the Crunch bars, and I think I eventually tried and liked them, too.

I think I only went with her to her work once.  It was pretty boring.  It was kind of an interesting adventure, I guess, just being out and riding the bus and the subway.  We got lunch at some random Chinese place, and I didn't know what to order.  I think my mom suggested lo mein, and I got it and put soy sauce on it.

The rest of the weekends when she would go to work, I can't recall what shows I watched in the morning.  But I'm pretty sure I must have turned the TV on.  I mostly watched CBS, I think, because they had the turtles, but it's possible I also checked out NBC and ABC.  Actually, I think I watched "Winnie the Pooh" at some point.  I was probably switching channels.  But there was something about the theme song of that show that touched me.  And watching the two friends sitting together during the end credits.  I didn't actually have friends at that time, and TV ended giving me company.