I grew up in Chula Vista, CA right near the border of Mexico. I’ve always had a fondness for Mexican culture, intrigued by the delicious food, colorful art and the Spanish language.

Spanglish was something I envied throughout high school, listening to kids being able to mix English & Spanish together in the same conversation with ease.

Cinco De Mayo was a day that even the whitest of wetta’s like myself could feel Mexican for a day. We could dance and sing to “De Colores” and practice our Mexican slang without much ridicule.

My favorite thing to do for Cinco De Mayo, besides eating guacamole, is listen to live Mariachi music.

Sometimes Mariachi bands can get down and throw in some funk/disco.

What will you do this Cinco De Mayo?

When I was growing up Winter holiday decorations and Christmas music weren’t seen or heard until the day after Thanksgiving. Between Halloween and Turkey Day there was a calm before the holiday season that created a feeling of excitement when the first fake snowflake was spotted on the local store window.

These days we can see department store workers putting up their holiday displays the same day they’re moving the Halloween items to Clearance. This makes perfect sense from a marketing perspective but from what I’ve gathered from family and friends it’s a bit annoying to the consumer.

Back in the day before DVD, YouTube, Hulu and Netflix we actually had to wait until the appropriate season to see holiday specials. These specials aren’t so special anymore because we can watch The Grinch at Halloween or The Great Pumpkin on Christmas Day.

The latest pop culture tradition might be holding out to put up the tinsel until after we’ve cleaned off the Thanksgiving table, or waiting until the week before Christmas to watch Rudolph. I’m going to break tradition with my HIH holiday image above because I’m going on a holiday hiatus. I need some time to hibernate offline.

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season with or without decorations. It’s a time to get ready for the New Year, to reflect on memories, and spread love in the form of hugs, gifts and even a dollop of Cool Whip.

Happy Holidays!

Click here to learn more about one of my holiday favorites, The Snowman.

For classic Christmas specials on DVD click here.

We’re not going too far with this Friday Flashback. I thought we could take a trip through the Housewife in Hollywood.com halls.

So light those candles, gut that pumpkin and enjoy some not so scary entertainment with these Halloween themed posts from last year. Flashback to October 2008 by clicking the hyperlinks below.

My Top 5 Halloween in Hollywood Favorites:

http://housewifeinhollywood.com/my-top-5-halloween-in-hollywood-favorites/

Are You Ready for a Mad Monster Party?

http://housewifeinhollywood.com/are-you-ready-for-a-mad-monster-party/

Maypole Dancing

The May Day holiday is celebrated on May 1st. A traditional way to be festive is to dance around the Maypole in honor of the Summer Equinox.

Put some flowers in your hair and gather around the Maypole today. All together now:

This of course should not be confused with Basic Pole Dancing exercises. Click here if you’re interested anyway.

Emergency Code Word

Mayday is an emergency code word used internationally as a distress signal in voice procedure radio communications.

I tested this out once when I was a little kid riding along in my dad’s dump truck. The construction convoy stopped on the side of the road for some snacks at the Circle K. I decided it was a great time to have some CB radio fun.

I yelled into the transmitter, “Breaker Breaker Mayday Mayday!”

It worked sending more than a few truck drivers over in dismay. My dad was not so thrilled.

Genevieve the Dump Truck & Suzanne age 6

Mayday the Band

There are quite a few bands called Mayday. An indy rock band, a hip hop band and the one that I like the best is a Taiwanese Band. I’d like to find out why the biggest band in Taiwan is named Mayday. Anyone?

I dig the intro on their site, check it out by clicking here:

International Workers Day

May Day is also known as International Workers Day. Some may be dancing around Maypoles and making flower baskets while others are celebrating the social and economic achievements of the international labor movement. Organized street demonstrations and marches by millions of working people are held throughout many countries of the world.

Find out more about the origins of May Day and the 8-hour day by clicking here.

Wolverine

So what does the X-Men character Wolverine have to do with May Day? Many comic book enthusiasts will be celebrating this May Day by watching the movie Wolverine on opening day May 1st.

What will you be doing this May Day weekend?

Remember back when decorating for Christmas meant stringing colored lights around the roof, planting a few snowmen on the lawn and sitting on the porch with a cup of hot cocoa?

These days, Christmas lights  are high-tech synchronized exhibitions. A few years ago, this new display of holiday cheer was a bit of a novelty. Strolling around the internet, one can see that it has manifested into a new art form, merging holiday spirit with technology.

Trans-Siberian Orchestra  might have the most popular music to be synched up to a suburban home but some people decide on a more traditional Christmas tune:

Even if some of these displays seem over the top, you have to admit that loading the PJ wearing kiddo’s into the mini-van after dark brings a bit of Christmas magic into our daily life. So load up the family, bring your thermos of hot cocoa, and turn the dial to the radio frequency suggested. Then ooh and ahh at a new holiday high-tech tradition.

Do you decorate your home with Christmas lights gone wild? Do you know a great neighborhood for a nice holiday drive? Leave a comment and let us know.