Era un domingo right after morning Mass when Grampo Caralampio turned and said to la familia: "Ei, ¿por qué don't we go over pa'l A&W and echarnos un hamburger?"

"I could really use un hamburger, como ahora mismo," said Canutito. "I can't remember la última vez when I had one."

Toda la familia jumped in el pickup del grampo and drove into town. As they were driving over Grama Cuca spoke up: "I remember cuando we used to venir to town en el carro de caballo."

"Really, grama?" Canutito asked her. "Did you really come to town in a horse cart?"

"¡Sí!" Grama Cuca affirmed. "Era un long ride into la plaza from Arroyo Seco y yo y mis brothers and sisters no teníamos nada más to do que count the fence posts along the road. Entonces we would get todos dressed up porque people always dressed up cuando they would venir a la plaza. Pero en aquellos días there was no place para comprar un hamburger. There was no A&W de manera que we would have to go to 'The Pig Stand' en los outskirts de la plaza and buy one allí. I think que costaban como 15 cents."

While Grama Cuca was talking, Grampo Caralampio was driving a todo mariachi into town porque he was really hungry. Toda la familia pulled up to the A&W and waited por la waitress to come out to take their order. Pero la waitress no venía so Grampo Caralampio honked on his pito.

"Uh, grampo," Canutito said to him. "I think de que tiene que press that little button on the menu marquee para que la waitress will come out."

Grampo Caralampio looked at the menu marquee just beyond his truck window. "¡Arredovayas!" he exclaimed. "Mira qué new-fangled están estos aquí en el A&W. Ya now they have automatic waitressess que vienen only si I press un botón." He pressed the button and, sure enough, una waitress said from inside, 'May I help you?' "

Grampo had never been to a drive-up place before so he was un poco spooked by the disembodied voice. Canutito then spoke up. "Grampo, just tell the machine que es lo que quiere comer."

Grampo looked at the menu and said, "Please traígame un Papa Burger, un Mama Burger y un Baby Burger."

"Will that be all?" asked the strange voice again.

"No, también bring us tres root beers en frosty glasses y tres turnovers de manzana," grampo said.

While they were esperando for la waitress to bring them la orden, Grama Cuca remarked de que rumor had it que los owners del A&W had invented a new dish llamado un 'Frito Pie' that they served en el mero parquete.

"Really, grama?" Canutito asked her. "Do they really serve the Frito Pie in its own bag?"

"Sí," said Grama Cuca.

As she was talking, la waitress came con la orden and left todo en un tray attached to the truck window con unos hooks. Grampo Caralampio got right into eating his Papa Burger y también su root beer en el frosty glass. Grama Cuca y Canutito munched on their Mama Burger y Baby Burger. Grama wasn't drinking her root beer though, so Canutito asked, "¿Por qué isn't grama drinking, grampo?"

"Es so that she can dejarnos picãos when ours is all gone," grampo replied. Just then he noticed de que sus apple turnovers hadn't come with the order so he pressed the button tres más times yelling: "Turn over, please! Turn over! Turn over!

Inside the A&W the waitresses just hacían maromas every time de que grampo said, 'turn over'...

¿Le gustaría compartir sus propias anécdotas o comentar con Torres sobre esta columna? Envíele un correo electrónico a lartor@unm.edu