Hometown Friends

I haven't been back to my hometown since January but not much has changed. My mom's house is still cavernous in size yet recognizably cozy. My cat Neko still throws himself at my feet. And my old video-game systems are still willing to boot up with nostalgia despite a thin layer of dust over the disc drives.

Everything is comfortably the way it should be.

As part of my weekend in Sacramento, I decided to visit one of my old haunts: Arden Fair Mall. The long corridors of the mall look familiar despite a few store changes. Orange Julius realized it is 2009 and turned into a Jamba Juice. The fancy t-shirt store discovered that people would rather buy overpriced shoes than shirts and turned into a Foot Locker. Going to Arden this weekend was like seeing your buddy right after they lost 15 pounds: noticeable change but comfortable friendship.

And Arden was happy to see me too. It welcomed me with open arms and a Lego event. I felt privileged that the event occurred the weekend I happened to be there. Mall events are always moderately exciting; you see the event posters and say, "Dang! That looks like fun!" but you never actually leave your house for them.

I lucked out: The 8-Foot Lego Yoda was in full production.

There were about 10 tables full of Lego blocks. Each table had instructions on how to build larger bricks that the Lego Expert would then fashion into the Lego Yoda. So we, the Lego laymen, didn't actually build the Yoda, but we supplied the master architect the larger, 7-inch bricks.

I had no other obligations at the mall. I didn't have any shopping mates, so no one would call me asking me to try on pants. I didn't have any dinner plans, so I could stay as long as I wanted. I participated in this community build project and felt not unlike a member of an Amish community raising a barn.

I squeezed between an older gentleman and an excited boy. We worked as a team snapping the blocks together. Once we had a few 7-inchers, the boy would run the blocks over to the expert, who would add to the Yoda.

It was fun. The three of us chit-chatted about how much we love Legos and Star Wars. "Yoda was originally a puppet," the older gentleman explained to the boy. "No way. Yoda is too fast for a puppet." I looked at the older man, and we shrugged, both of us wishing we were so young to know only of a computer-generated Yoda.

I left the mall about two hours later convinced I would return the next day to see the finished product. I noted the time the final unveiling was to occur and planned my day accordingly. It was fun to be a part of a community project.

- - -

I arrived home to San Jose at 5:30. I had accidentally forgotten about Yoda and Arden and Sacramento.

But maybe that's how hometowns are. Hometowns give you comfort when you need them, but they never hinder you from living your new life in another city. Both Arden and Sacto will be there when I go back. It's strange to say, but they're two of my most dependable friends.