I've always wanted to be able to say that I come from Los Angeles, California and feel quintessentially American - even if I said that in Spanish.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
When I began to travel around the country, I would notice in places like Los Angeles, Chicago, Phoenix and even Texas that Latinos didn't want to speak Spanish. You would ask a question, only to be answered in English.
I certainly have a sliver of me, which is definitely American, and feels a great pull towards where I spent time when I was very young, which is in California.
I've grown up surrounded by Americans and to a very large extent feel American. It sounds strange because I seem to be so quintessentially English in everyone's mind - and perhaps I am. Perhaps it's quintessentially English to have a fascination with America.
I speak Spanish because I grew up overseas in Spain, Uruguay and Argentina.
When I travel round the country, people can't place my accent; if there's someone in the audience, they'll be like, 'You're from Philadelphia', but everyone else will say, 'Where are you from, California?' I get England sometimes - bizarre!
One of my reasons for living in California is its close proximity to Mexico. The Latin influence is in every corner of the community. My love of Spanish music hasn't wavered since the '50s. I could hear the blues voicing from the Flamanco families and I always dig for inspiration in Latin music.
I'm completely Americanized - I have an American accent, an American wife - but a residue of me is foreign.
I mean, I love California, but LA to me is still a strange place.
I take great pride in the fact that I have lived in a Spanish-speaking country.
I struggled with being a Latino growing up in Los Angeles. I felt very American. I still do. I went to 35 bar mitzvahs before I went to a single quinceanera. I could talk all day about my culture and what it means to me.