Ben Lee Properties — September 2024 Newsletter
This Month's Article
By Ben Lee I t’s been years since the start date has changed to August, but I still associate September with back-to-school.
I guess to a certain extent I also associate the month with my birthday but since it’s no longer quite so exciting turning a year older, it’s easier to focus on school instead.
My middle son Spencer started college this month and like most transitions, it was fraught with both joy and tears.
We were so happy and proud that he got into a phenomenal school (Cal Berkeley, GO BEARS!) but when a child flies from the nest, it’s hard not to feel wistful about the past and a little weepy about the family unit’s future now with one less bird to feed.
No matter how close to home they stay or how far away they stray, the dynamic inevitably changes and balancing the happy/ sad emotions of it all isn’t always easy.
We turned Spencer’s dropoff into a family road trip.
Both his older and younger brothers ditched their respective classes, hopped into the car and managed to squeeze their bags in with all the college freshman’s dorm gear.
We left LA on a Friday and hit the road, heading straight to San Francisco.
We made it there with an hour to spare before having our first meal at Tony’s Pizza Napoletana, an institution of North Beach.
We accidentally signed up for the tasting menu which provided so much food we probably could’ve gone without eating the rest of the weekend.
Tony himself was entertaining a group at the table next to ours and he was excited to share that a handful of locations are slated to pop up in Southern California soon.
I can attest it’s delicious pizza and huge portions so be on the lookout for this staple of San Francisco cuisine to hit the Hollywood stage later this year.
Another highlight of our time in San Francisco was taking a long walk through the city, stumbling upon the famous Haight-Ashbury intersection and specifically Jerry Garcia’s house a block up the street.
As a devoted Grateful Dead fan, it felt like a pilgrimage of sorts to check out the iconic Victorian home in which Jerry resided during the Summer of Love.
The next day, we hit the road again to visit my aunt, uncle and cousins who live in Napa.
Their house was built in the 1860’s and is surrounded by a working farm that includes chickens, vegetables, a pottery studio and a vineyard that stretches as far as the eye can see.
Growing up, it was always so much fun for a city boy like me to spend some time ‘on the ranch’ as it’s known and each time we get the chance to share the magic with our boys is special.
My aunt is a 5 ft. fireball Martha Stewart-type who is energy personified.
Not only does she run the farm, but uses ingredients plucked from the garden in everything she cooks, all from scratch.
She’s also an acclaimed local artist/ceramicist which means all the plates, cups and baking dishes were created and fired in the kiln she keeps out back.
My uncle just turned 90 and is the last living relative from my mom’s immediate family so sitting with him around the breakfast table makes it feel like my mom is with us again, too.
We hugged our Napa family goodbye and hit the road again, this time to Berkeley, California.
It was too early to move Spencer into the dorm but getting to town a few days early meant his brothers could get a sense of where he’d be living for the next few years.
As a family we walked through campus, snapped some photos, sampled some delicacies at Top Dog and absorbed as much time as we could with our boy before having to say goodbye.
After a festive dinner in downtown Oakland, the two brothers flew home so they wouldn’t miss any more of their own classes and the whole journey from door to door only took a few hours.
A few days later, it was time to move him in.
In a span that felt like only a few brief minutes, we carried Spencer’s belongings up to his dorm room, helped make his bed, met one of two roommates, and then all of a sudden, it was time for us to leave.
We took turns hugging him tightly and tried not to let our tears affect his optimism or make him sad.
He was ready to jump in and so excited about starting this next chapter of his life.
Ironic that this was the child who cried for weeks during pre-school drop off, begging us not to go and now we were the ones who had to be brave and say goodbye.
As parents, we were proud. As a family whose nest is just a short flight down the coast, we felt lucky.
As people who will miss having our son making us laugh at the dinner table every night, we couldn’t help but be sad.
But a combination of contradicting emotions striking all at once is what makes transitions both difficult and beautiful at the same time.
So, at the start of another school year this September, a salute in solidarity to you other parents helping your birds fly free this month.
And to those who are looking at your babies, unable to fathom this far-off-future-day ever happening to you, know it came as a shock to the rest of us, too.
Just try to savor the time together while you have it and if they’re smiling at college drop off, pat yourself on the back for a job well done.
We raise them up to let them go. And hope they’ll want to come home for a visit soon.
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Community & More
Cheviot Hills happenings By Ben Lee I was thumbing through the pages of my late father in law’s book, Westside Stories, and was amused by some of the traditions he highlighted that Hamilton High featured back in the day.
Our youngest son is now a Hami 9th grader, and in the nearly 70 years since his grandfather was a student there, it looks like a lot has changed however a few traditions remain.
Back in the 1950s, graduating Hamilton students selected a class name which set the theme for the yearbook and parties all year round.
They celebrated “Cotton Day,” a festive event in which boys would wear original shirts made by girls in Home Economics. “Sadie Hawkins Day,” was another tradition in which girls would ask the boys to a dance since they were pretty much forbidden from doing so for the other dances throughout the year.
Prom Night and Grad Night are two traditions that Hamilton Students still enjoy today although the venues have changed.
In my father-in-law’s era, Prom Night was held at the Coconut Grove at the Ambassador Hotel (both no longer there).
Current Hami students get to go to their choice of Amusement Parks for Grad night however back in the day, graduating seniors headed to the Chase Hotel in Santa Monica which is now the Sea Castle Apartment Building, right on the beach.
Hamilton Traditions By Ben Lee T hank you to everyone who entered to win the gift cards to Target.
This month we offered to give away two $50 gift cards, one to a newsletter reader and the other to a teacher who may need some extra funds to buy classroom supplies.
The two lucky winners are: Kimberlyn Kelly and Rachel Marcus, for the teachers of Westwood Charter.
Congratulations, ladies! Hope this makes your back-to-school shopping a little easier.
To all those who entered but didn’t win, don’t worry.
There’s always another raffle around the bend.
For this month, in honor of my birthday, I’m not revealing how old I’m turning but we’re giving away a $51 dollar gift card to the delicious Chinese restaurant in Culver City called: 51 Kitchen.
To enter, simply send me an email: ben@benleeproperties.com and write 51 in the subject.
That’s it! We’ll notify the winner at the end of the month.
Good luck! Raffle By Lilli Lee E veryone had such a good time at the August Ladies’ Wine Night hosted by Karin Leonard, we’re going to do it again!
Please join us at the next gathering that will be hosted by Betty Vidor on October 23.
These are very casual get togethers where neighborhood ladies can enjoy light bites, wine, non-alcoholic drinks and meet other women from around the area.
These parties are open to anyone who wants to join and the guests’ age range spans the decades so you’ll meet some new friends and probably reconnect with old ones you haven’t seen in a while!
If you would like to come in October, please send me an email or text/call and I’ll add you to the evite so you can have all the details: Lillijlee@yahoo.com or 310-650-7735.
We’re also always in search of hosts who like to entertain and are willing to open up their home for a few hours so please let me know if you’re interested in hosting an upcoming Wine Night!
Thanks so much. Next Wine Night
