My Favorite Place

Rachel Catena
September 21 2014

    With the turn of the doorknob a little fluffy creature will always approach you with ears back and tail wagging. The thump of her paws on the hard tile is enough to brighten your day. Her little yellow body stumbles over the shoes scattered in the hallway and slides into your legs almost knocking you over before you can even put your bag down. The little yellow lab will follow you into the kitchen, bathroom, up the stairs, down the stairs until she gets the attention she craves. At any given moment you can walk into the kitchen and smell pasta cooking. There is never someone not in the kitchen. The television is constantly streaming Family Guy full blast yet people are still screaming and talking over it but refuse to turn it down. The little lab Sandy is always in the way and always grubbin’ for scraps of anything edible. My mom is running behind us trying to organize everything we make a mess of. My dad is standing in the middle of the kitchen stirring pasta, and pouring wine while talking to my sister who is all the way upstairs in her room. As she skips down the stairs and sits in her usual spot at the kitchen table she picks up the remote control and we all know what is going to happen next. She’ll put on the Food Network or the Game Show Channel and my dad will yell at her because Jeopardy comes on at seven. By this time, my mom is still standing, my older sister Allie is sitting next to my other older sister Victoria but is occupied with the little furry creature under the table. My dad is still cooking odd amounts of food that way more for a family of five and I’m sitting here soaking it all in.

    The kitchen table is a long wooden oval with six green chairs around it. There is always the one empty chair that we pile all of the miscellaneous items that were on the table that week so we don't have to sort through mail and figure out whose keys are whose and what those little sticky notes mean before we get started on dinner. My kitchen table is what holds all my childhood memories. We still try to meet there every Sunday night, all five of us, well six including my little dog. I’ve done my homework there for twelve years and learned how to write my name on that very table. I dyed my first Easter egg there and played endless games of Rummy, a card game that my mom always seems to win. Every birthday cake of mine has been served at that table and funny stories of the day or weekend have been shared over that table. My kitchen is the family meeting area, and eating area. When anything happens that needs to be talked about, or advice needs to be given or taken, through all the times I’ve been yelled at and praised, we have met in that very kitchen. I love the people that live in my household and wouldn’t want to spend my time in a chaotic kitchen with anyone else.

Response to Hip Hop

Rachel Catena
September 21

    In the reading, “Hip Hop Planet” by James McBride, the character talks about avoiding Hip Hop music for many reasons. Even though Hip Hop was becoming the biggest thing at the time, and history was being made, the character stepped away from that type of music because it held everything he wanted to leave behind. The character then says, “In doing so, I missed the most important cultural event in my lifetime.” After making this statement, he begins to talk about  Hip Hop in a different way. The character describes the atmosphere of Hip Hop by explaining how the MC’s and DJ’s work and mentions that “graffiti artists spread the word of the “I” because the music was all about identity: I am the best.” The character mentions identity because he feels as though the music itself was helping guide those individuals in becoming who they truly are. Hip Hop shapes his identity because that type of music isn’t just music. It tells a story along with an interesting beat and often has a dance that goes with it. Hip Hop music was made for parties and entertainment but also told life stories of those who wrote them. The history behind Hip Hop is what makes it so strong. It told stories of slavery and the way things used to be.

Finding out what signifies who you are is something that is different for everyone. In the passage “How To Tame a Wild Tongue” by Gloria Anzaldua, she tells her story of how her language is what defines her. For Anzaldua, she identifies through her language and that is what made her the person she is today. For me, however, my language doesn’t define me as much as a certain place does. Luna Pizza is a place that has truly shaped me into the person I am today and with that it is what I consider to define me.

I spend hours on end driving seven minutes from home to this old, beaten up, white building with no shutters. The parking lot can fit maybe four cars (including mine). The letters ‘L’, ‘U’, ’N’, ‘A’ are spray painted and bolted to a hand cut wooden sign my dad made and placed on the front porch. The door is this red color that can only be described as the same color as our sauce. I answer phones, and waitress, and prepare food, but I’m also the cashier. Luna Pizza Restaurant is set in between two train tracks in the heart of a small town by the name of Three Bridges, NJ. It was opened up six years ago by my family, The Catena Family. With three girls by the ages of eleven, thirteen, and sixteen, we now had a full working staff. This place is a second home, the thing I’m most proud to own, and one of my favorite places to be.  For a year, my parents, older sisters, and I tiled floors, painted ceilings, and tested out a million delicious recipes; we had no idea what we were doing. On May 6th 2008, we opened the doors and started the craziest chapter of our lives. That year took off and we won a number of awards including “Best Pizza in Hunterdon County” and “Cutest Restaurant,” which without a doubt we were. Friday nights turned chaotic with a line out of the door and the phone ringing off the hook. Six years later, we still have our regular customers who come in and sit at “their” table and not say a word because they know their order is memorized by heart. My parents will take time to sit with the customers and not only ask how the food is but tell them our story of how we came to be. My family has come a long way and has learned things that are only to be learned through an experience like the one we’ve had. At only twelve years old I had the responsibilities of someone twice my age. I developed skills that will stay with me for a lifetime. Now at the age of seventeen I run an instagram page for the restaurant, do the food shopping, and often times even open up the place by myself when my parents are running late. Without Luna Restaurant, my Friday and Saturday nights would be like a normal teenagers’. However, I also would not be the person I am today. I have gained so much confidence in talking to people I do not know and having conversations with adults. I learned how important it is to make connections and have been introduced into the business world without even knowing. My parents have given me an incredible taste of the business world which is how I have chosen my major. Most importantly, I have spent the past six years and will spend the rest of my life traveling and criticizing pizza without even meaning to. Luna has shaped me into a new person and has tied me closer to my family than ever. I could not be more proud to be defined by such an amazing place that was created solely by the most important people to me.  

Black Power

In the Color of Water by James McBride, he talks about the concept of black power and how it defines him as a young child. McBride talks about black power in a way that has changed him. The fact that he uses the saying “black power” many times throughout the entire piece makes the concept even stronger and emphasizes just how impactful it is. McBride reminisces on watching cars, with names painted on the side, race through the streets. One that stood out to him in particular was a GTO with the words “Black Power” painted across the side. McBride’s reaction to this scene with the car is a main supporter of the fact that he is trying to make of black power being a strong concept. He says, “we thought he was God, But there was a part of me that feared black power very deeply for the obvious reason.” By McBride saying he thought that the man in the car was a god shows that McBride highly respected him. The juxtaposition of God and terrified is an interesting way to describe the man seen in the car. Usually people associate God with feeling comforted and safe but in this case, McBride describes himself to feel both terrified and amazed with the man in the car labeled “Black Power.” The scene creates a good understanding of what “black power” means. It shows how the phrase is something within itself. Power is the main focus of the concept along with respect. 

What Defines Me

When thinking of what defines me a few people, places, and objects come to mind. However, when trying to write about what defines me, I only feel super passionate about one thing. A place. This place is a second home, the thing I’m most proud to own, and one of my favorite places to be. Luna Pizza Restaurant is set in between two train tracks in the heart of a small town by the name of Three Bridges, NJ. It was opened up six years ago by my family, The Catena Family. With three girls by the ages of eleven, thirteen, and sixteen, we now had a full working staff. For a year, my parents, older sisters, and I tiled floors, painted ceilings, and tested out a million delicious recipes; we had no idea what we were doing. On May 6th 2008, we opened the doors and started the craziest chapter of our lives. That year took off and we won a number of awards including “Best Pizza in Hunterdon County” and “Cutest Restaurant,” which without a doubt we were. Friday nights turned chaotic with a line out of the door and the phone ringing off the hook. Six years later, we still have our regular customers who come in and sit at “their” table and not say a word because they know their order is memorized by heart. My parents will take time to sit with the customers and not only ask how the food is but tell them our story of how we came to be. My family has come a long way and has learned things that are only to be learned through an experience like the one we’ve had. At only twelve years old I had the responsibilities of someone twice my age. I developed skills that will stay with me for a lifetime. Now at the age of seventeen I run an instagram page for the restaurant, do the food shopping, and often times even open up the place by myself when my parents are running late. Without Luna Restaurant, my Friday and Saturday nights would be like a normal teenagers’. However, I also would not be the person I am today. I have gained so much confidence in talking to people I do not know and having conversations with adults. I learned how important it is to make connections and have been introduced into the business world without even knowing. My parents have given me an incredible taste of the business world which is how I have chosen my major. Most importantly, I have spent the past six years and will spend the rest of my life traveling and criticizing pizza without even meaning to. Luna has shaped me into a new person and has tied me closer to my family than ever. I could not be more proud to be defined by such an amazing place that was created solely by the most important people to me.