Once upon a time in Vegas

 One thing that I love about reminiscing about places that I have lived is that I have had many to choose from.

Although I have been in Paradise for the entirety of this blog's life, prior to that I lived in many parts of the Eastern Seaboard of this continent. Mainland only.

The first quarter of my life I lived only two places, but between the post-school era and the pre-Paradise phase, I had over twenty addresses in a decade and a half.

Not long after I returned to Vegas (the fond nickname for the State Capital, as opposed to the Nevada destination)(during the latter stages of that time), I met 'Salina's Dad and not long after that I moved in with him. And during that while I had the most beautiful landlord and landlady couple.

George and Georgina lived down the road and around the corner from the duplex that was their retirement plan.  They lived underneath that house, and their adult son or daughter's family lived upstairs.

Georgina always wanted to feed you something when you arrived. Their flat was a large kitchen/dining/rumpus room. I remember nothing else of it - I suppose it had a bathroom and bedroom, but this huge low room had her command centre in the kitchen corner. 

This was where she could see who was coming and things on the stove (like a rich stew)or in the oven (perhaps kourabiedes) and the grandkids playing or watching television or doing homework. Or the tenants bringing by their rent.

George going down to his patch and then coming back with offerings.

George had a steep backyard, unsuitable for playspace or lawn. But with post-war Greek economic refugee ethic, he carved a staircase and his garden from this slope.  Every piece of exposed earth had purpose, with compost and mulch and a scraggly orchard (a mango in the corner) and at the bottom, a cement blocking rectangle housed hip height beds around three sides and a seat along the middle and a shaded end with a frame and chain link enclosing the whole structure of absolute bounty.