SUNDAY is family day...

My mother left a message on the phone last night (she lives in Berkeley CA). She wanted to know how come we had moved away without leaving a forwarding number. A veiled reference to the absence of calls on my part, I have no doubt. I am making up for my inattentiveness by including a reference here to our subsequent conversation.

We talked books – a very safe topic, because she reads a lot, certainly more than I do, and she remembers names of journalists, speakers, authors, which, again, is a considerable improvement over me. She feels good that in spite of the fact that our ratio of academic degrees is me 3 to her 0, she does better in the reading department. Our conversation goes something like this:

She: “I went to hear Ben Chehatsky speak yesterday”
Me: silence
She: “You don’t know who Ben Chehatsky is, do you?”
Me: “No clue, Mom”
She: “You say you have a law degree and you don’t know?”
Me: “Really, no clue.”
She: “He was excellent. The room was packed. They couldn’t pack a room full of people in Madison to see him, could they?”
Me: “Maybe people here don’t know who Ben Chehatsky is.” [this is just handing her the bone, but what can I do..]
She: “Hard to believe, isn’t it? And I’m guessing it’s cold now, right?”
Me: [I certainly can’t argue that one] “It’s cold.” And then, to find common ground: “Have you read the new Tyler book yet, Mom?”
[the rest of the conversation is about her reflections on Tyler, and I need only listen since of course I have NOT read every single Tyler book out there, and she has.]

I should admit, however, that I am currently reading Tyler’s “Amateur Marriage” – which hits at all the Polishness hidden within me as it is loaded with character names like “Mrs. Pozniak” and “Mrs. Kowalski” and "Mr. Kostka". I’m catching up on you, Ma!