My full name is James Hutchings Allen Jr. I work in North Hills as an administrative assistant in HR. I came to Penny Lane in October of 2020.
I’m loosely connected to the culture of the mid-west, 1/8th Lithuanian and 1/8th Swiss. It's difficult to pinpoint the ancestry, because my grandparents had moved from their hometowns and relocated in California. My mother’s side of the family was from Michigan, and her mother’s family was Lithuanian. On my father’s side, his dad was from Missouri and his wife’s family was based in Virginia but had moved from Switzerland.
I’ve never visited the areas from which my family originated. I grew up in Studio City and spent a lot of my childhood with my grandma who was Lithuanian.
Lithuanian food is an acquired taste. My mom occasionally makes a Borscht, which is pink colored creamy soup. It’s made of hardboiled eggs, potatoes, herbs, and beets. Its best served with some potato pancakes.
I’ve never researched mid-west music or Lithuanian folk. I was an eighties child and was largely influenced by the culture that emerged from the melting pot of Los Angeles. The trajectory of my vinyl collection goes back to 1970’s dub, dancehall and moves forward to mostly electronic and experimental.
One cultural tradition that is shared by many Christians is having a miniature nativity scene during the holidays. For my family this is more essential than the wreath at the front door. This religious display consists of hand painted clay or wood carved figurines and a crèche which is a barn type of stall. The artisanal handmade quality of these displays is something closely tried to arts, toys and other crafts made in Michigan. As a child it was my responsibility to set up the créche on the mantle and pack up the display for storage.
Mid-west culture is different from other regional cultures in the US. My family in Michigan has a distinct dialect, fashion, and features; as soy farmers they hold a traditional value scale and simplistic lifestyle. There are many site-specific traits and conditions that people born in the "goiter belt" region share. Their psychology has been shaped by the rural farm environment and a connection to working with their hands. The Great Lakes could easily define the people there, a typical Michigander might be a workaday commercial fisher who is a rugged outdoorsperson and known to be a hermitic character. Personalities can be remote due to the solitude of boat life or the conditions of their work. These are a few aspects of my Anglo background that are difficult to classify, categorize and measure as such.