The 20783 zip code will never be affiliated with big mansions. True you may see some Benz' and Beamers running around. Nestled in between Hyattsville and Silver Spring is a very special place. Even though it's spelled with 11 letters, most people describe it by only two. Lp or Langley Park is an "unincorporated area and census-designated place (CDP) in the Washington, D.C. metro area" according to Wikipedia. To me and to many people it was or still is home. I recently had the great pleasure to have found a Facebook group named "You know your from LP........" The first few days it was awesome. Walking down memory lane with many people that walked the same streets as I. Some I knew most I didn't. I'm pretty sure if I saw them I would recognize them and visa-versa.
From all those anecdotes and silliness I was inspired to share some of my fondest memories of my childhood stomping ground Langley Park. In 1982 we immigrated to the United States from Nicaragua, Central America. My father had come ahead of us and made his way to Washington DC. We joined him in a ground floor flat in NE. I turned 3 soon after we arrived to our new life. A year or so later we moved to the Langley Park Apartments. Our first unit was located on the corner of Merrimack and New Hampshire. It was a one bedroom for my parents, my brother, and I. I was a rambunctious 4 year old. I covered the walls in scribble scrabble. I jumped I cried and broke anything I got may hands on. About a year after that we were "kindly" asked to move to another unit. I think our neighbors complained. We then moved to a unit on Merrimack and 14th. I can't remember what the building number was but I can never forget the view from our living room.
To a 4 year old our two bedroom seemed 3 times bigger than it actually was. The living room seemed huge in my memories. IT had a 3 section wide window overlooking the picturesque Kmart and parking lot. Up from the base of the building to the parking level was a steep hillside. When it snowed we would slide down it on anything we could find. My first memory in Lp came the day that my parents told me I would be spending the day with the upstairs neighbor. A lady named Olinda lived on the third floor. She had 2 little girls. They would later go on to be like my sisters. Well my parents walked me upstairs. A kind older woman with glasses and chubby faced greeted us at the door. She seemed to be nice and comforting. This wasn't Olinda, but Aura. Aura ran her daycare out Olinda's apartment. The problem was that she (Aura) lived out in Upper Marlboro. She found it easier to get clients in Langley Park. It was a savvy business move. Since she was Hispanic it would be easy for her to market her services to all the working families in Langley Park. She cared for Nancy, Alondra (Olinda's daughters) me and a handful of other neighborhood kids. When I got older I stopped going upstairs but Nancy, Alondra and I became friends for life. I remember sometimes Olinda would come wake me for school and make sure I drank my chocolate milk. From the 2 daughter's grew up with she ended up with 8 kids. I saw them all come home and grow up. They are all my brothers and sisters.
Just after we moved to the new apartment. My brother Julio came to live with us from Costa Rica. He shared a room with my other brother Adolfo. I slept in my parents bedroom. I was a tiny bedroom with a double on one side and a twin on the other. I fell off of that bed all the time. My brothers both attended High Point High School. Adolfo would go on graduate in 86'. Julio dropped out not too long after he enrolled. I would later attend HP and also graduate from there. As some of you may have read in Adolfo: Break Master #1 my brother Adolfo was one of the baddest breakers to come out of Langley Park. He was one the few Hispanic break dancers from High Point. He was a cool dude. I used to envy his Kangol bucket and his gazelles. One of his friends from school was guy named Eddie. Eddie was the first man I ever saw with and earring. He had just gotten it pierced by his sister. It consisted of a looped piece of thread with a Jesus cross hanging from it. I also remember that Eddie smoked cigarettes. I used to love the smell, this was back in the day when no one cared if you smoked inside. I still remember ash trays in McDonald's. Eddie went on to become one of the most successful drug entrepreneurs out of Langley Park. To this day, if I run into him he remembers me. I ran into him at the Omni Shoreham a few years ago. I hear a guy call out "Pollito, Que Paso?" There he stood in a mustard tailored suit, hands, neck, and ears covered in gold and diamonds. He asked about Adolfo and mentioned he had the presidential suite upstairs. Back in the early days he was one the smoothest brothers in Lp. He had all the freshest kicks and gear. What I remember most was his girlfriend then. She was so fine. I was 5 and I wanted to get at her. Even though he was my brothers boy, Adolfo never got caught up in that shit. He knew my mom would kill him. Julio on the other hand always operated by his own volition.
Julio was 18 when he arrived fresh from Costa Rica. Growing up he was enrolled and kicked out of many a boarding school. He once jumped the fenced and escaped. He definitely always did what felt right. My father told me he would give away his clothes to his friends that didn't have any. He made his debut in Langley Park around the same time that Crack did. He started out with the pure white. Crack took over his life. He ended up using a laundry list of narcotics over the years. I'm pleased to say that after 20 years of addiction he finally managed to get clean. It didn't come easy. He lost his youth. He risked his relationship with his daughters and put my parents through a lot of hell. I just sat back and watched him self destruct. I appreciate the Lp years the most. He was always pushing me to do my homework and stay in line. I could always count a couple of bucks or a treat like Chinese food from him. I remember that back then, we only had one TV. For Julio to watch porno he would have to take the TV to his bedroom. He once tore the cable of the back of the TV for my Atari. To this day he is sort of a fixture in Lp. All the older heads either smoked with him or sold to him at one time or another. I knew he was a fixture one day that I was driving down 14th. As I was telling my girlfriend that this is the neighborhood I grew up in, I look over to see a crowd of people. Looked like a riot was about to pop off. Apparently there was a car accident that let to an argument. I focus on the center of of the crowd to see but who else, my brother, Julio mediating the situation. I thought that was so funny.
Back in those days Lp was a nice quite neighborhood. Except for the occasional fight, gunshot and police siren. I know that it got much worse over the years. I used to walk with Nancy and Alondra down Merrimac to Langley Park McCormick, my elementary school. It stands today and looks the same to me. Before attending there I used spend a lot of time at the basketball court. My brother, Adolfo, used to ball on that court. I started Kindergarten when I turned 5. I had to go to Nicaragua in the middle of the school year for two weeks. I ended up staying 6 months. I don't know how I passed to the first grade. I remember them trying to put me in ESOL. I was given a test by the ESOL teacher. She had me describe some illustrations. She told me that I didn't need to be there and sent me on my way. I think I was the only Hispanic kid in my class. I had a crush on this light skinned girl named Teresa. The following year I was sent to Catholic school and then kicked out and went back to McCormick for the second grade. I only went to McCormick for two years but I later graduated with a handful of my classmates 11 or so years later when we attended High Point together.
The Kmart was one of the biggest landmarks at the time. I used to love going there especially the toy section. It was right behind the registers. I also remember the photo booth in the entrance and the turnstile. Downstairs was the clothing. I remember when they sold the vinyl "Thriller" Jackets with all the zippers. I used to love turning the display on the jewelry counter with the replacement wristbands. I also loved getting a cherry ICEE when I was good, which wasn't often. When you walked out the back door it would lead to the rest of the shopping center. Directly to the left was walkway that sort of zig-zagged and led behind the store. It was eventually closed for safety. Too many people were getting jacked back there. I can't remember each of the stores, but I do recall the Optician, where I got my first glasses, which might still be there. There a was Payless Shoes. Of course everyone remembers the Peoples Drug (later CVS). I was there before they remodeled it. Right next to it a pizza and sub shop called Carousel. It was also next to a bar and restaurant that only opened at night. After that was the liquor store (still there today) then the dry cleaners. A furniture store that at one time was HUD then The Room Store. The Giant was the anchor of the shopping center in those days. It later shut down and became an international market. Today there is a McDonald's in the parking lot. Before it existed there was Mellon Bank that I never went into.
Directly across the street is another shopping center. This one was the home of the famous Hot Shoppes that burned down. It also housed the Bank of America (formerly Nation's Bank). I'm not sure what all was there back in the day, but I do remember the Movie Theater and The Wiz. It also had a Merry Go Round and another clothing store that I can't recall the name of. I think the Lilian Fabrics has been there all this time. I do recall on the other end was a Gap and a Kinney Shoes. Next we go onto, you guessed it, another shopping center. My favorite place on that side was the Mcrorys, Erols, Waxie Maxies and the Tony Villa, which by the way, the last man standing of the old Langley Park businesses. I also have a a a lot of cool memories of the Chevy Chase Bank (now a Capital One) I used to go with my dad to do transactions and talk to the bank managers. I always loved all the brass, dark wood, and marble counter tops. I still remember when their ATMs had open and closed signs. Usually closed after 10 pm. My dad once put his card in a closed machine and lost it. The last shopping center featured a Goodyear store. The cheap video store, a 7 11 and the Red Apple Market. One of the first Asian Markets in the area. Further up was the Horn and Horn Smorgasbord (which is now an Aldi supermarket) Another one of my favorite places was back there and it was the Post office. It was next to an old cobbler shop (where they repaired shoes)
We were the first generation of Hispanic immigrants to arrive in Langley Park. Back then my parents knew all of the Nicaraguan families that lived there, and the surrounding areas. They all stuck together and took care of each other. They also made a lot of friends from various nationalities through our church, Our Lady of Sorrows in Takoma Park (Langley Park's slutty sister) Since then a drove of mostly Central American immigrants have come through Langley Park. Combined with the drug market, prostitution and corrupt law enforcement has given Langley Park the negative image that it has today. There were always home based eateries in various apartments in Langley Park. That then spilled into the streets when ladies started selling tamales and other tasty Salvadorean fare out of shopping carts. I knew Langley Park had changed forever when I went there one night to buy something and noticed that after 10pm no one without a local address could enter the neighborhood. We knew they meant business by the car they had pulled over just past the sign.
Now I live just minutes away, but only pass through it at times if I'm going to Sliver Spring. I don't know anyone overthere anymore. Even my boy Edwin moved out, which I though would never happen. I still see the old Langley Park in my heart, but know that it will never be what I remember again. I know that it's still home to a good number of hardworking families. I think it is a badge of honor to be from a great place like that. I hope that future generations can continue to build up the community and go on to represent us in many important ways.
This entry is dedicated to Aura Adams. She was a warm and loving woman who loved children and teaching. She taught me how to read, laugh and learn. I crave information because of this woman. She took to my first library, even before I could read. Olinda's 8 kids and I will always honor her memory.
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