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Friday, November 30, 2001
No surprise, my mother e-mailed Karina several times this week.
I didn't even get a two-word message from her yesterday.
How can a parent(s) hate their own child for trying to be a good parent and a good person?
How can a parent(s) literally tell their child, no matter what age, they wish they were dead?
How can a parent(s) be a pathological liar about their not just with one child, but all their children?
How can a parent(s) do this, not just with one child, but all their children?
I have tried to be nice to my parents, even after the years of crap they pulled with Karina, the crap they pulled at our wedding and the crap they pulled at their anniversary party in June 98. I have been nice enough to e-mail my mother an update on Karina for some reason or another, even after her stunt of going to Karina's school last year (prior to our move) and telling lies to gain sympathy and information.
No, we don't trust my parents, so for our safety and especially Karina's, we have never given them our new address (or exact town) or phone number.
My mother tells people that I am a loser, a drug addict (totally untrue, I rarely even take Tylenol and don't smoke), an alcoholic (I don't drink), a liar (especially when SHE is the one caught in a lie), a child abuser (how dare I tell Karina "no!" or ground her?)
Amazing, she never threw out any of those accusations against my brother who has served several stints in prison for drunk driving...with his then 8-year-old son in the car, also.
Siiiiiiiiiiiiigh...fourth consecutive year o nothing, you think I'd be used to it by now.
But, why do I still crave for them to be proud of me and love me? Sunshine - Walking on Sunshine -
11/30/2001 07:13:00 AM
Thursday, November 29, 2001
November 29th Facts 333rd day;
26 more days until Christmas Day;
Astrology sign - Sagitarius.
Trivia 1890 - 1st Army-Navy football game. Score: Navy 24, Army 0;
1951 - 1st underground atomic explosion, Frenchman Flat, Nevada;
1959 - The Grammy Awards were shown on network television for the first time;
1963 - LBJ sets up Warren comm to investigate assassination of JFK;
1963 - Beatles release "I Want to Hold Your Hand";
1983 - The Dow Jones Industrial average closed at 1287.20, a new record.
Birthdays 1607 - John Harvard, Harvard University was named after him;
1832 - Louisa May Alcott, American author (Little Women);
1898 - C.S. (Clive Staples) Lewis, author;
1918 - Madeleine L’Engle, author;
1928 - Paul Simon, senator;
1949 - Garry Shandling, actor;
1955 - Howie Mandel, actor;
1960 - Cathy Moriarty, actress;
1961 - Kim Delaney, actress;
1962 - Andrew McCarthy, actor.
Deaths 1981 - Natalie Wood, 43, drowned off Santa Catalina, Calif.
1986 - Cary Grant, 82, actor
Marriage 1927 - Dr. Suess and Helen Palmer
Songs 1961 - Runaround Sue - Dion
1970 - I Think I Love You - The Partridge Family
1979 - Babe - Styx
1988 - Bad Medicine - Bon Jovi
1997 - How Do I Live - LeAnn Rimes
#1 movies 1982 - E.T.
1986 - Star Trek IV
1989 - Back to the Future II
1991 - The Addams Family
1995 - Toy Story
2000 - The Grinch Who Stole Christmas
2001 - Harry Potter Sunshine - Walking on Sunshine -
11/29/2001 11:32:00 PM
Today was my 31st birthday, or, as Bethany concluded, "31 flavors." Needless to say, her creative thoughts showed through best on both of my ice cream cakes from Baskin Robbins. One was white cake with chocolate chip ice cream, the other was chocolate cake with mint chocolate chip ice cream. She had a great party for me yesterday at iCan. Only Bethany "gets" me every year.
I'd like to thank many people here for helping make my birthday such a nice day.
Lisa - thank you for being such a great friend and surrogate mother;
Bethany - thank you for making sure I feel like a kid again;
iCan staff - thank you for putting up with yet another bday party for me (at least I didn't cry this year!);
Shannon - thank you for starting the birthday song;
Nancy - for cutting an dishing the cake;
Mac - thank you for not telling me where you park...whoops! thanx for lunch!
Carol - I'm sorry you missed yesterday's fun, but am glad you felt better today. (I had that bug earlier this week. ICK!)
Michele - Thank you for the announcement on the board.
I apologize if I left anyone off, but it's bedtime now. Nope, I won't be up at 11:50 p.m. for my REAL birthday. Next year.
Dinner was scheduled for 12:30, I think because of football. It was held at Rick's sister's new house in HL. *I,* not Rick, had been assigned to make and bring sweet potatoes and fruit salad for 18 guests. So, at 9 a.m., I was getting them ready.
I had called Rick's aunt (who is married to Rick's mom's brother) to get a delicious sweet potato recipe she had made last Christmas. Well, as I am compiling the ingredients in Rick's mom's kitchen, she informed me, "Only make one can, our family doesn't like sweet potatoes." Well, LA DE DAH! Karina and I easily consume a can ourselves, so I had brought four, but compromised with three. teehee
Then, Heaven Save Us All, but I wasn't making HER recipe (put 1 can of potatoes in a pan with a stick of butter and a bag of marshmallows and bake.) Well, before she could recover from that, I started in on my fruit salad. I had several cans of fruit cocktail (regular and tropical), a fresh banana, a jar of marachino cherries, 2 cans of pineapple and a big tub of Cool Whip.
Pineapple?!!? Tropical fruit?!!? Cool Whip?!!? "Our family doesn't eat fruit salad like that, and I always MAKE my own whipping creme. Where are the little marshmallows?" UGH!!! (Marshmallows are a "white food," which means I don't eat them, lol. Explanation another time.)
My mother-in-law had to leave, I think I was frustrating her too much by then. Well, nobody had given me any recipes and this was the first Thanksgiving meal I spent there in almost 7 years. Probably the last for a looooooooooong time, too.
Dinner was pretty good, we had 2 kinds of turkey: regular oven and deep fried. DELICIOUS! My potatoes were a HUGE hit with the 8 kids and my two sisters-in-law (who married into the family.) The fruit salad was fabulous, too. So much for tradition.
Thinking back, I find it very odd that Rick's sister told me to bring the family "unfavorite" dish of sweet potatoes (which did NOT have to feed 18) and the only dish, fruit salad, that Rick is allergic to. Siiiiiiiiiiiigh...
Thank goodness when we left, we were on our way to spending the weekend at Rick's brother's house near Cadillac.
**************************
Friday and Saturday were basically the same...SHOPPING! My sister-in-law, Jo, drove us, along with her cousin Karen, to Traverse City for the day. I have never really BEEN to Traverse City before, just passed through. We hit Grand Traverse mall about 9:30 a.m., long after the good sales were depleted, but still in time to see some women acting like immatue brats and lines long enough to make me appreciate the art of browsing a bit more. Karina and I split from Jo and Karen, but agreed to meet in a few hours for lunch. My wonderful little shopping partner and I first hit Mrs. Fields for chocolate chip cookies (power breakfast), then a few novelty shops, like Animal Lovers and Holiday Traditions in the mall.
Later in the afternoon, as the four of us were in Marshall Fields checking out the jewelry before leaving, who should we run into? Bethany and her mom! It was such a pleasant surprise (but not total surprise, since they have a house here and were up for the weekend anyway.) Of course, I had introductions to make. Jo was thrilled that she got to meet the infamous Bethany. Honestly, I knew I was being smiled upon from above since Bethany and I are almost never truly separated for more than a day or two, but this one LONG weekend, I didn't have easy Internet access. Yay! We had a few moments to get caught up.
Next, the four of us shopped downtown and it was a fabulous time! We snacked at Kilwins on pumpkin fudge and white chocolate popcorn and marveled at their 3 foot tall chocolate Santa. Karina and I could have stayed in the bead shop for days, but we had to shop on to help keep the economy going.
Finally, everyone was tired, so we headed for home about 8:30 p.m. Karina had made out like a bandit with an owl ring (very cool...Harry Potter-ish), a Beanie Baby and a small box of Harry Potter stones. I had even done a bit of my Christmas shopping, too.
Saturday morning was spent at a HUGE craft fair at McBain High School. Jo and I have so many neat ideas now and are seriously discussing putting up our own booth next year.
Saturday afternoon, Jo, Karina and I went to Lake City to a neat little shop called Woodstock that has lots of unique gifts. Then, we headed into Cadillac and hit a few neat shops and WalMart. Karina and I have an obsession with the crane-games which are in WalMart, we always have to check them out to see if I can win anything. Well, I saw something and had to borrow a dollar from Jo (Karina had used my singles for nachos and a Slurpee), but I won a Christmas-y outfitted reindeer. Jo was shocked, she had never seen anyone win something before. Karina and I laughed while Karina bragged I "always" win. Not entirely true, I did lose once, but I am very selective. This particular time, I didn't pick up the stuffed animal, but I actually used the crane to knock it into the winning hole. Totally legal, just like making those tongs too loose to hold onto anything, right? teehee
Rick, Cody, Karina and I left Sunday morning. Rick pulled our camper home so he can winterize it now, and we dropped Cody off on our way. I won't even detail Rick taking the wrong turn from US-10 onto 27.
It was a great weekend! Oh, Liiiiiiiiiisa, I have more FREEEEEBIES! hehehe Sunshine - Walking on Sunshine -
11/28/2001 06:11:00 AM
Ah, the wonderful time of Thanksgiving...driving 3 hours in some obnoxious traffic (damn deer hunters!) plus a 45-minute stop at the store to pick up The Things We Need.
Wednesday afternoon, I got home and finished packing. We left about 6 p.m., Rick in the conversion van, me in my Jeep. That was a bit of a point of contention, but I didn't care what Rick said, I need MY Jeep. I wanted us to have freedom to come and go if we wanted it.
We ran M-13 up to Saginaw to avoid the chaos of I-75. Simba and I stopped at a grocery store there, while Rick went ahead with Karina to Paulette's house to pick up Cody's math book. (Cody had gone to Rick's parents in HL the evening before since Paulette doesn't like him to go swimming, which was his class trip on Wednesday.) I was on my way into the Kmart next door (we HAD to have the new Grinch DVD, of course!) when Rick called to say he had the book and was almost out of Digital Zone, was there anything else I needed? I said no, then asked him, "What did Karina eat for dinner?" Oops! He had forgotten to feed her and would do that ASAP. Siiiiigh...
On a happy note, I put in some mid-grade gas that was just $1.15 per gallon. Sunshine - Walking on Sunshine -
11/28/2001 05:43:00 AM
Sunday, November 18, 2001
First off, today was bright and sunny and 58 whoppin' degrees! What an awesome November day it was, perfect weather!
Second, I wore mid-thigh jean shorts and a jersey. Like usual, this generated quite a few remarks from people and clerks in stores who couldn't believe my attire. People who I didn't know and probably never will (I wasn't even in my home area!) felt the need to walk up to me and ask, "You're wearing shorts, TODAY?"
I get this a lot because shorts are my #1 choice. Fashion be damned, I prefer my own style. I live in them at home, no matter what the weather. Hey, why not, I have this great new invention called HEAT. Yes, my new home came equipped with this thing called a "furnace." I know, what an option! I'm tellin' ya, this is going to be a biggie!
But, get this...my 1996 Jeep has HEAT, too! Imagine that! Yeppers, my Jeep is definitely "fully-loaded."
Third, I'm a smart aleck, these really are my most common retorts. Big shock, eh? My choice words tend to end most conversations with the self-appointed "fashion police," who are usually breaking a fashion rule, or two, themselves.
I really don't understand why my clothes bother so many people. It's not like I am hurting them or even looking provocative, they aren't short shorts or even strategically ripped. In fact, I even shaved my legs! teehee
Then again, maybe if I held off on the shaving, by early December, nobody would even be able to notice I was wearing shorts still.
Karina and I spent the whole day together, except in SuperWal-Mart, while I grocery shopped, she browsed the toys. We love SuperWal-Mart in Howell, it seems like I always bump into someone I know, which is pretty rare! Today, I ran into the wife of Rick's former boss. It has been about 4 years since I've seen her or her husband, Dave. Vicki is a blast, we chatted about our kids and exchanged business cards. I know we will be getting together because we only live a few miles apart now.
This evening, Karina and I did the town, preteen style. We had dinner at Ryan's, which is a steakhouse/buffet. It's not bad, in fact, it's quite good with the selections. Definitely not fine dining, but that was not part of our mission to stuff ourselves silly. We each had a plate of boring dinner-stuff, then two plates of desserts each. Cake, cookies, pies, ice cream cones...yummmmmm!
After that, we went to watch the 8:15 p.m. showing of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. It was pretty good, but a bit long. Karina highly suggests reading the books first and I agree, since there seemed to be quite a few parts that made me think, "Huh?". Overall, in my opinion, it was better than Jurassic Park 3, but not as good as The Mummy Returns. Karina proclaimed it her new favorite movie.
Honestly, the real treat for me was seeing the trailer to "Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones." You can bet that my family will be seeing "Clones" the day it opens!
"Girls' night out" just ended with Karina going to bed. She put her ticket stub in her Harry Potter scrapbook. And she bestowed upon me the Best Mommy Dearest title, not for taking her to see HP, but for enjoying it along with her. She didn't feel like a "little kid."
Pretty soon, Karina's "girls' night out" won't be spent with me, but instead with her friends. Right now, I'm taking every moment I can. Tonight was just a flashy title for us to create a few more memories.
Today was Heidi's funeral. It was a beautiful, Catholic ceremony in a truly magnificent, newer church, St. Hugo of the Hills. The service encompassed an entire Catholic mass, and having been raised Catholic, I was able to follow along easily for once.
Several years ago, Heidi told her mom that when she died, she wanted to be buried with some personal items...and a fork. The reason? When your plate is cleared, what are you supposed to keep? Your fork. Why? Because "the best is yet to come."
Rick called me this morning. He got his buck, an 8-pointer, at 10 a.m.! Woohoo!!!
Karina and I are thrilled, now we won't have to listen to him lament over becoming Reuben Soady, from "Escanaba in da Moonlight." This is a great stupid movie that is more truthful than it is ridiculous. Unfortunately, it has only been released in Michigan theatres, but maybe one day, it will be on DVD for the world to see.
Rick told me that he is going to get his buck mounted for the bare spot above the fireplace mantle.
Considering the state of my Christmas tree and ornaments, I'd bet those antlers are going to be be great uneven bars for gymnastic kitty-devil Dalton. Sunshine - Walking on Sunshine -
11/15/2001 09:38:00 PM
Wednesday, November 14, 2001
Rick left this morning for hunting. Mind you, he was going to work first, but heading up to Marion (near Cadillac) once he punches the clock. Firearm deer hunting officially begins at sunrise tomorrow.
NOTHING interferes with his first-week hunting. Nada. Nuttin'. Uh-uh, no way, Jose. As for the rest, usually, his idea of a concession is meeting us closeby at his mom's for Thanksgiving, he HATES coming back to our house for the holiday, though. This year, he is only hunting the first four days, then again, over Thanksgiving. He is saving his vacation for our 3-week trip with the kids next summer to the Grand Canyon and Mt. Rushmore, instead. That is the reason we bought our new, fully-loaded, 27' Dutchmen camper. Full bath, TV, microwave, stove, oven, running water, two REAL queen beds...total luxury for him. Rick even took the Sony Playstation and a bunch of games and DVDs.
It kind of stinks having him gone, since November really is a busy month, and I have to do most of it on my own. Parent/teacher conferences for Karina, Turkey day prep, Christmas shopping and even my birthday. Yes, he has missed my birthday. Luckily for him, I'm pretty independent and don't mind his absences on a more personal level. I'm not scared to be without him, I sleep just fine.
For the next few days, it will just be Karina and me. We have plans and no plans. We make food, not meals. The TV probably won't even be used. I get the bed all to myself...oh, and with three loving, but possessive kittens. I get to SLEEP IN on school days until 6:30. Woohoo!!!
And, I am typing this while wearing Rick's old grey sweater. Sunshine - Walking on Sunshine -
11/14/2001 06:35:00 AM
Tuesday, November 13, 2001
Sometimes I feel like a cold and heartless monster.
Grieving for Heidi, is both a blessing and constant reminder of my moral dilemma.
I really did not know Heidi very well, but that doesn't mean she didn't touch me. It has been amazing to see iCan grow in the last 2.5+ years. I remember Heidi talking with Bethany that first day, and yes, her positive, yet determined, attitude even before iCan went online was contagious.
Why do I feel like a monster?
I have blood relatives who have died and are dying now, who I know I will never feel loving grief over losing. My father's mother died in early January 1996, but I didn't find out until nearly a month later. Honestly, it didn't matter. I had only seen her twice in the previous 15 years. Plus, my memories were not kind.
According to my mother, her father is dying. I really do not know the man, nor does he know me; even as a child, he never knew our names (my sister was Krissy or Kristy, not Kristina, and I was Shelly or Shirley, never Sheila.) He would have never recognized us walking down the street. At the age of 15, I was completely disowned by my maternal grandparents in 1986 for telling my grandmother off. (They had come to visit, the first and ONLY time, and stayed a week. My grandmother sat there insulting my father, "he's a bum," and my parents' marriage, "their marriage will never last" [by then, my parents had been married 22 years!], etc. I got fed up and told my grandmother that she was in my father's house and she would NOT insult him there, or in front of me, again.
Less than three days into their 8-day visit, my grandparents quit talking to me (and my grandmother shut up, too.) I have seen them only once since then, at a family function in 1997, and they not only ignored me, but they completely ignored Rick and Cody, too. My grandfather refused to shake Rick's hand when they were introduced, and my grandmother simply walked away.
I have been estranged from my own parents for several years now, and my mother does not have best credibility record, so her claims about her father are highly suspect. To be honest though, I wish the man no ill will, but I have no desire to know either way.
I sometimes wonder if I have a moral obligation to feel some kind of personal sorrow? In recent years, I have grieved from my heart over the death of a best friend, Rick's grandma (who I loved dearly) and Heidi. I have felt much sorrow over deaths of people I didn't know, like those involved in the Sept. 11 tragedies.
I have been told that I owe my blood relatives more, if only because of the saying, "Blood is thicker than water." Interestingly, that logic defies me. Maybe because I know more?
Nina, Gramma and Heidi...I feel grief, I feel sorrow, I wailed at my own personal God at our difference in opinion. I mourn many tragedies, whether big or small.
I really hope I am not a cold and heartless monster. Sunshine - Walking on Sunshine -
11/13/2001 07:31:00 AM
Sunday, November 11, 2001
I must have heard wrong.
Not Heidi. Not Heidi. NOT HEIDI!!!
But it was.
One of the most inspiring and awesome people I ever had the opportunity to know had passed away this morning.
Heidi was like Elvis and Madonna and Oprah. One name, but many people knew just that one name. Heidi.
Wednesdays are Birmingham days. Bethany and I go to iCan for meetings, and always passed by Heidi's office. Not to long ago, Heidi was always in there in a meeting or on the phone.
Last week, the iCan staff meeting was in Heidi's office. Her chair was empty; it was like everyone else, eagerly awaiting her return.
My kids both had the opportunity to meet and speak with Heidi. They, like Rick, ask about her. Often. She is highly respected and admired. Nothing will ever change that.
My condolences to her family, friends and coworkers.
Twenty-six years ago today, during what is known as "the gales of November," the Edmund Fitzgerald suddenly sunk in Lake Superior, just north of Whitefish Pointe. There are many theories as to what may have happened, but even today, nothing is concrete. All 29 crewmembers went down with the ship, there were no survivors to give an account of the exact event.
Gordon Lightfoot wrote and sang a song chronicling that last voyage, "The Sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald," which is legendary, especially within the Great Lakes region. (On a personal note, I found out that Rick has a cousin who is in Gordon Lightfoot's band.)
Whitefish Point Museum houses the bell from the boat, while the Valley Camp Museum Ship in Sault St. Marie has two rafts that washed ashore. I highly recommend visiting both in person, not just for their E.F. displays, either. Whitefish Point is quite picturesque, while the Valley Camp is a huge old freighter converted to a maritime museum.
Remembrances are held every year along the Great Lakes to pay respect to the lost lives on the Edmund Fitzgerald. Toll the bell 29 times. Plus one more, for all the lost sailors of the Great Lakes.
Lisa and I met when we both worked at a drugstore in 1994, and became fast friends. Even though I moved from Port Huron in 1995 to Waterford, then she moved from PH to Alabama in 1996 (then Atlanta a few years later), we still keep in constant touch via the Net.
Through the years, Lisa and I have instituted the weirdest and best Christmas tradition. No, it is a COMPETITION, now.
During the year, we compile the freebies we get: from friends, stores, party favors, mail, Internet, etc. We enlist our family and friends to help. We join clubs and grab the toothpaste/brush giveaways when at our dentist office.
How it started, I don't remember, but this will be our fourth or fifth season. Our ground rules are simple: no spending $, not even on a stamp and nothing perishable. Money can only be used to send the package to the other person in December. (I already gave her a very large shoebox of freebies for her birthday in May, and I actually sent it home with a friend of hers who was visiting my area.)
For me, the most fun is knowing how much effort goes into these presents. It is always in the back of my mind, when I am taking my Christmas tree down in January, to the "dog days" of August. I suspect our holiday fun is just as important to her, considering the cool stuff we exchange! Books, toys, JellyBelly candy, soaps, perfumes, etc.
Obviously, whoever said, "nothing good in life is ever free," surely never met Lisa or me. That's a shame, I'd love to get my hands on all those freebies they are refusing. Woohoo!
This nickname is literal and implied. In May 2000, she performed in the 5th grade school play, "Alice in Wonderland." She was only in 4th grade, but her music teacher, who loved her voice and confidence, gave her a part anyway. Karina was Alice.
Karina gave several spectacular performances, the last being in front of approximately 400-500 people. Of course, she had a great time! It never phased her to get up on stage, singing solo, in front of an audience. She just glowed.
This past June, Karina was in her new school's 5th grade talent show. About 30 classmates tried out, but only 10 made the final cut to perform in the show (there were no prizes, it was simply a program.) Karina sang solo, and entirely in Spanish, the song, "She Bangs" by Ricky Martin. Even Cody, who normally disses her performances (like most big brothers), thought she was cool AND brave.
This school year, Karina, like 60-80 of her schoolmates, tried out for the drama club. They are doing a mini-musical comedy called, "Guess What I Did Last Summer," which only has 15 speaking parts. For those 15 characters, only three 6th graders were chosen--one being Karina. She has a very rigorous practice schedule: Tues., Wed. and Thurs. from 2:35 until 4:30 p.m. She has gone to every single session and, unfortunately, had to give up joining Book Bowl. Ballet, luckily, is late enough that neither interferes with the other.
People tease us that one day, she might be quite famous. That is NOT funny! OK, so it is, and I am preparing for it already.
Every famous person has a "shrink," right? Whenever I tell Karina she has to do something she doesn't like, before she can complain or play "drama queen," I remind her that one day, this will be something she can tell her "shrink" when she is older.
Right now, I would bet she has a good 5 years of potential therapy.
Ever the "drama queen," she says 10. Sunshine - Walking on Sunshine -
11/09/2001 06:40:00 AM
Wednesday, November 07, 2001
Simba is our dog who we adopted from the Michigan Samoyed Rescue, but our family has been adopted by Bianca.
Bianca is THE reason we have Simba. One Friday night in June, Karina and some friends were playing at the park and this friendly, fluffy, white dog decided to follow them home, but he listened best to Karina.
Bianca had no tags on her. Since our village is so little, I just went on up to the bar and the gal there took us around town, trying to find the owner. We didn't, no one knew the dog. I put up signs and passed out my business card, just in case. Monday morning, I called a bunch of local vets, but none had reports of a missing dog matching her (our vet told us she was a Samoyed.) I called the local newspapers and placed FOUND ads, but without her breed listed.
By this time, we had decided to call the dog, "Trinity." Yes, Rick is a BIG "Matrix" fan. "Trinity" settled right into our family. Most Sammies are sweet, loving and great with kids, which described her exactly. We decided that if nobody claimed her, we would keep her.
Tuesday was Rick's birthday. That was also the day we got The Call. We were all devastated, especially when we heard that Bianca (her real name) was not even considered lost until the night before. She often disappeared for days on end. How sad.
That evening, Rick found the Michigan Samoyed Rescue organization online. We wanted a dog and Rick now wanted THAT kind of dog, which is exactly where we adopted Simba from in August.
But Bianca comes back to our house still. I let her stay awhile, then call her owner. Unfortunately, a few weeks ago, the boy next door found her in town and thought she was our Simba, so he tied her to our dog run (which Simba doesn't use), and left her there, until we came home the next night. That caused a neighborhood uproar, since we were out of town and everyone thought WE were abusing "our" dog. NEVER! (It was quite the saga, believe me.)
Today, I picked Karina up from school on my way home from work, and we let Simba out as we walked in the door. Guess who trotted around the corner of the house? Bianca. She and Simba got to know each other a bit, and both were jealous of the other getting attention from me (they know who has the food.)
I took Bianca back home, but she tried to leave with me in front of her owner. He is selling his house and moving soon, and says he is giving a lot of serious thought to our offer of adopting Bianca. As it is, he admits he cannot take care of her properly, and one of these times, she may not end up in a good home, or even back at his home.
Tonight, Simba has been constantly pestering us to let him outside, and when we do, he just looks around. He is waiting for her to return. So are we. Sunshine - Walking on Sunshine -
11/07/2001 10:27:00 PM
Tuesday, November 06, 2001
Today, I was asked, "What's with the name 'Walking on Sunshine'?"
"Sunshine" was the nickname given to me by Nick, one of my best friend's from school. He loved how I was always happy and laughing, and often joked that I was never in a bad mood. (OK, I like the song, too.)
Our friendship began when Nick sat in front of me in 4th grade and I "helped" him. We were never romantic, we knew each other in our geekiest preteen years, but we were close friends until we graduated. He knew my crushes, I knew his. We would spend hours on the phone listening, giving advice and gossiping, until my dad put a 10-minute limit on my phone calls.
Nick and I had some pretty fun times, especially our senior year. I was dating a few guys, but Nick and I would get together because we still ran with the same circle of friends. One cold December night, he and another friend came over and we trekked down to McDonald's for ice cream. On the way home, we decided to walk through the cemetery down the street. Nick, who was a football player, started freaking out when something ran across his foot. Shawn and I were nearly hysterical because Nick just ran away.
One spring evening, a few of us were "uptown," and Nick and Kevin started arguing over who had the fastest car. Nick had an older Nova; Kevin had an 87 Daytona Turbo. Of course, they had to race. So, I went with Kevin, who I was seeing occasionally, and Nick took Lisa, who was a junior. The impartial judge was another guy who drove a little Dodge Omni, (who couldn't judge since BOTH cars were A LOT faster than his Omni.) We raced around the back roads and Nick not only lost the competition, but he also lost a hubcap. The five of us looked and looked, but we never did find it. Every time any of us noticed that missing hubcap, we would have a good laugh. Honestly, I bet that is exactly the reason Nick never spent the $10 to replace it.
Nick and I last saw each other at our 10-year reunion in 1999. He dished on me to Rick a lot less than I thought (and feared.) Unfortunately, I couldn't tell his wife, Patti, much, since we had all gone to both junior and senior high school together and they still lived in the town where we grew up. [The photo is an aerial shot of MCJH and MCHS, which are connected and located on the right side of the picture.]
Nick did tell Rick about my nickname "Sunshine." Rick liked it, he said it still fit.
One of my biggest pet peeves is junk mail, especially "urban legends" from otherwise intelligent people, who do not use the stuff in the National Enquirer, Weekly World News, The Globe, etc. for their most trusted news source. Unlike those who buy the "tabloids," these otherwise intelligent people quickly pass along their junk e-mail to everyone on their e-mail list and get offended if you don't buy into the crap.
I received yet another urban legend from a close family member. This is the one about Budweiser/Pepsi/Sept. 11. I went to Snopes and found it quickly with their obvious search engine, so I hit REPLY ALL and sent the Snopes link back with a message, "Sorry, this is an Urban Legend."
Well, I upset another family member who thought it was a "nice story." Of course, she does not think it is racist in the least, or care that it is a lie. Nope, it is a "nice story."
I beg to differ, she would be VERY offended if, instead of a nationality for the "bad guys," we just changed the description to locals from HER little town. I am sure she wouldn't like her town to be given a bad reputation, especially because of an Internet lie.
I am sure she would be horrified by my reworked edition of her "nice story" which features the business she works at and her fellow employees.
Unfortunately, by doing so, the Urban Legend lost most of its anger. Now, with a whole new area and Barney Fife characters, the whole thing just seems....well....PATHETIC.
Now, though, a moral dilemma....should I send it? Sunshine - Walking on Sunshine -
11/05/2001 11:45:00 PM
Sunday, November 04, 2001
As promised, here are some new pictures of Simba and the kittens. Dakota, our oldest kitten at 5 months, is next to Princess, Karina's 3-1/2-year-old cat. Either Dakota is pretty big, or Princess is pretty small, because they are the same size! (Tux and Dalton are asleep behind them.)
Here is a photo of Princess "mothering" Dalton, who is NOT her kitten, despite their similar coloring. It has taken a few months, but Princess is adjusting finally. As shown with Dalton, she does not even mind being interrupted from her nap.
Sorry for the "possessed" looking eyes, I didn't use my good camera with the flash feature.
Honestly, I think the best advice my parents ever gave me was to marry a man who could fix a car.
And I did.
Rick is truly the most wonderful guy (sweet, kind, loving, great father, yada yada yada), but he is also incredibly mechanically inclined. He may not remember birthdates, our wedding anniversary or even his own age off the top of his head, but this is a man who can fix just about anything--cars, computers, lawn tractors, etc.
Last weekend, he was looking over our vehicles and for "winterizing" and discovered my Jeep would need a new alternator belt soon. Thursday, I told him it was making a funny noise, so he stopped on his way home from work to buy a new one and replaced it in less than 10 minutes. Impressive!
Unfortunately, that ended up not being the root problem, which was the water pump and some fan thingy. Those were a cool buck-n-a-half, but because Rick did it himself, there was no waiting for an appt at the dealership (ICK!) or additional insane labor charges (4 hours at $75 per hour is not chump change.) Also, it was done on a weekend and I even had a "replacement vehicle" for my errands. Oh lala! THAT is service!
It is truly amazing to try to calculate the money we have saved in the last year by Rick's incredible wealth of knowledge. He wired the phone lines throughout our new house (8 jacks, 2 separate lines); he does all the maintenance on our 4 vehicles: light replacement, oil changes, etc.; he repairs and builds our computers (his idea of fun is crashing computers which he then rebuilds); he built our shed and many, many other things.
Lucky for me, Rick works cheaply--today's payment was a grilled steak dinner with a homemade banana creme pie, a case of beer and my undying respect for his extraordinary mechanical and handy-man capabilities.
One of my jobs, which he REALLY appreciates, is to remind him of little details like birthdates, our anniversary and his age.
What I was doing was not unlike gawkers passing by an accident scene.
Yesterday morning, on the way home from driving Karina to school, I listened to the Q95.5 morning show, Mojo in the Morning. They were doing "The Battle of the Roses" and I, like many other in the metro Detroit area listened as a married man admitted that his wife's girlfriends told him she was cheating on him with another guy.
Sara, a cohost, called the wife pretending to be from a new flower company and offered to send flowers FOR FREE to anyone. Well, the wife fell for it after a bit of coaxing. While her husband was listening on the other end of the line, the unknowing woman said to have the flowers sent to the OTHER guy with LOVE in the signature. As soon as Mojo came on and told the woman the situation, she hung up. The husband, of course, was stoic, but devastated, so the station went to some music "while a call was made."
I sat in my Jeep, listening until then, and just couldn't take it anymore. I felt dirty and ashamed to be entertained by someone else's pain, even though he had willingly put himself on display. The man hoped to be proven wrong, it's not like he was doing this for money or even a toaster oven door prize.
And, what REALLY dumbfounds me is the wife, who obviously has never heard the old saying, "If it sounds to good to be true, it usually is!" Sunshine - Walking on Sunshine -
11/02/2001 11:11:00 PM
