A couple times a year while running into a grocery store or maybe the bank I find myself passing a man with a bucket, or a can.
Usually he's an older gentleman, decked out in a decorated uniform.
Colorful stripes and medals, whose meanings I don't pretend to know.
Sometimes he's old and feeble and stands supported by an old cane, other times he's sitting in a wheelchair.
I toss a handful of change into his container.
"Thank you miss" or "God bless you for your contribution" the man says as I pass him by.
I make my way to my car and along the way I pat myself on the back for my generosity.
Once, a few years ago I sent my step dad Papa G a message it was for either Veteran's or Memorial day, I can't remember which now, anyway... I thanked him for his service to our country.
Not only was he in the military, but he also served as a US Marshall for almost 30 years.
That's a lifetime of devotion to one's country.
My country, our country.
My step dad wrote back that he can count on one hand the number of times someone has thanked him for his service to this country.
Really? How sad.
He told me how touched he was by my gesture.
I don't just toss in a handful of coins anymore.
That is not enough.
THAT IS NOT ENOUGH!!!!
Now after the old Vet thanks me for my pitifully tiny contribution to his cause I take a moment and look into his eyes, I offer my hand and I say "IT IS YOU SIR THAT DESERVES TO BE THANKED!!!...THANK YOU SIR".
It never fails to bring a surprised smile to their face and often a tear to their eye.
What is Memorial Day? A quote found online says "A day to remember and honor those that serve, those that have served, those that have gone to rest in service, and any person serving another as an act of duty, unconditional love, devotion and obligation"
So in honor of Memorial Day I'm going to thank a few of my favorite Veterans (and the brave young men in my life that soon will leave to serve our military) for their past, present and future service to our country
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU Papa G, Uncle John, Uncle Dan, Uncle Clarence, Donnie, Tony, Chad, Bretton, Matt, Phil, Jake...may God continue to keep you safe and may you always know that your past, present, future contributions and sacrifices to this country are very much appreciated.
If you would like to send some Memorial Day wishes or thoughts to a Veteran please leave a comment or two on this blog...I promise to pass them on.
It's the very least we can do....
Merci.
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Not yet....
Another Saturday Centus, a themed writing meme. The challenge is to write 100 words to add to the prompt started by Jenny Matlock from off on my tangent.
The writing prompt is in itallics....
It’d been so long since she’d seen him.
When he reached for her hand the pain of years separated melted away.
“I’ve missed you” Daddy said spinning her around “ Look at you, all grown up and pretty as ever”.
She closed her eyes tight, it felt wonderful to be with him again.
A booming voice startled her eyes open.
“May I help you, miss? You look puzzled.”
“Mmmm… thank you, I’m just looking for my father. We came in together a moment ago, but he seems to have wandered off.”
A confused Missy told the bearded man dressed in white.
“MISSY, MISSY!!! Come on honey ” another voice called.
The flat line on the screen came roaring back to life.
Bleep... bleep... bleep....
And Dr. Jonah Simpson felt again Godlike.
Friday, May 28, 2010
I dropped a bomb and the ball....
Two days ago in my culinary class I had the loveables making cake cookies...we do this often, they're cheap and easy to make.
Most times we use an ice cream scooper to make really large cookies...they are baked in a professional convection oven.
Stressing the importance of having the cookies be uniform in size I suggested to one of the loveables that since he didn't have enough dough left to make another cookie that he should divide what he had left and add it to any of his other cookies that might be "needy"..."add it to the deserving cookies" I teased.
He proceeded to go to each cookie and comment...
"You are stupid" he said to one.
"You are ugly" he said to another.
"You are too fat already" he said to a third.
"You are black" he said to the fourth.
I was stunned silent.
I hoped his stupid comment went past my African American co-worker.
There were four staff around that large table and not a damn one of us said one word.
But I'm positive we all heard it...there was no way we didn't.
This incident took me back to something that happened to me in high school...I was in ninth grade and had a wonderful friend named Jackie.
My high school was mixed (I won't say diverse, because we weren't)..we were mixed.
There were the blacks and there were the whites.
And once in a while we mixed.
I'm Caucasian and Jackie is African American.
Back then we called ourselves White and Black.
Jackie was a tall, leggy beautiful girl.
And she was funny as hell.
We talked every day at school and often on the phone.
One day I was telling her a funny story and in the middle of it I said the "N" word...it slipped out of my mouth and before I could catch it, it landed in the middle of Jackie's and my friendship.
Like a lead balloon.
I pretended like I didn't say it.
Jackie pretended like she didn't hear it.
But our friendship was never the same.
So I stand some 30 years later around a work table with a couple of punks and the adults placed in charge of them and I pretend that the elephant in the room is not there.
I should have told the punk to shut the hell up. I should have yanked his dumb ass out of the room and told him how stupid and ignorant what he said was.
I should have done something, anything.
Instead, I let it melt and slip through the cracks and slide it's slimy slithery self onto the floor and out of the room.
It's destruction, though mighty, was silent.
Just like the bomb I dropped so long ago.
Shame on me, times two..... :-(
Most times we use an ice cream scooper to make really large cookies...they are baked in a professional convection oven.
Stressing the importance of having the cookies be uniform in size I suggested to one of the loveables that since he didn't have enough dough left to make another cookie that he should divide what he had left and add it to any of his other cookies that might be "needy"..."add it to the deserving cookies" I teased.
He proceeded to go to each cookie and comment...
"You are stupid" he said to one.
"You are ugly" he said to another.
"You are too fat already" he said to a third.
"You are black" he said to the fourth.
I was stunned silent.
I hoped his stupid comment went past my African American co-worker.
There were four staff around that large table and not a damn one of us said one word.
But I'm positive we all heard it...there was no way we didn't.
This incident took me back to something that happened to me in high school...I was in ninth grade and had a wonderful friend named Jackie.
My high school was mixed (I won't say diverse, because we weren't)..we were mixed.
There were the blacks and there were the whites.
And once in a while we mixed.
I'm Caucasian and Jackie is African American.
Back then we called ourselves White and Black.
Jackie was a tall, leggy beautiful girl.
And she was funny as hell.
We talked every day at school and often on the phone.
One day I was telling her a funny story and in the middle of it I said the "N" word...it slipped out of my mouth and before I could catch it, it landed in the middle of Jackie's and my friendship.
Like a lead balloon.
I pretended like I didn't say it.
Jackie pretended like she didn't hear it.
But our friendship was never the same.
So I stand some 30 years later around a work table with a couple of punks and the adults placed in charge of them and I pretend that the elephant in the room is not there.
I should have told the punk to shut the hell up. I should have yanked his dumb ass out of the room and told him how stupid and ignorant what he said was.
I should have done something, anything.
Instead, I let it melt and slip through the cracks and slide it's slimy slithery self onto the floor and out of the room.
It's destruction, though mighty, was silent.
Just like the bomb I dropped so long ago.
Shame on me, times two..... :-(
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
"Here kitty kitty......"
Since I've been a little girl I've known it is going to happen.
I could (and can) feel it from the top of my head to the tips of my (chipped) toe(nail)s.
And everywhere in-between.
It is going to happen.
(I'm taking a page from the SECRET theory...ask the universe for it, be convinced that you are gonna get it, and it will happen).
So, as often as I can, I sneak to the Treasure Store and actively search for my destiny.
Into the jewelry case I peer...
Are you here?
Next, to the furniture department to look over old stained Lazyboy chairs and odd misshapen book cases with bad paint jobs....
Are you here??
The shelves of knick knacks takes me the longest...there are so many.
Ashtrays, cheap ceramic statues and squat, clear glass candle holders litter the shelves.
You are not here....
I sort through salt and pepper shaker sets and the old dinner plates.
I see chipped china and shot glasses a plenty...
Are you here???
Half an aisle of baskets, mostly junk.
No, you aren't here.
Ohhhh, wait a minute...now this looks interesting.
I could (and can) feel it from the top of my head to the tips of my (chipped) toe(nail)s.
And everywhere in-between.
It is going to happen.
(I'm taking a page from the SECRET theory...ask the universe for it, be convinced that you are gonna get it, and it will happen).
So, as often as I can, I sneak to the Treasure Store and actively search for my destiny.
Into the jewelry case I peer...
Are you here?
Next, to the furniture department to look over old stained Lazyboy chairs and odd misshapen book cases with bad paint jobs....
Are you here??
The shelves of knick knacks takes me the longest...there are so many.
Ashtrays, cheap ceramic statues and squat, clear glass candle holders litter the shelves.
You are not here....
I sort through salt and pepper shaker sets and the old dinner plates.
I see chipped china and shot glasses a plenty...
Are you here???
Half an aisle of baskets, mostly junk.
No, you aren't here.
Ohhhh, wait a minute...now this looks interesting.
Etain Zinn Pewter candlestick holders...not bad at $3.99 for the pair.
Still not "The Kitty"....but I know I'm gonna find one.
I just know it.
(And in the meantime, I need to find a good hiding place for these...Daddio can sniff out treasures from the Treasure Store like a dog after a peanut butter filled plastic bone.
He swears that soon he is going to clean house and take my all my treasures back to the Salvation Army...where he is convinced I will just buy them back again.)
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Dr Laura is a bit like black licorice ...either you love her or you hate her.
When I was a full time stay at home mom I listened faithfully to Dr Laura Schlessinger, and I liked a lot of what she had to say.
Often I thought that she was way too hard on some of her callers, but what she said did make a lot of sense to me.
Sometimes though she was just plain rude and I wondered how she had so many people calling,when all of us in the listening audience, knew the caller was going to take a beating.
Over the years she's received some really bad press because of her opinionated stands.
Here are some of her recent blog titles:
Academic problems occur more often in step-families.
My DNA made me do it (young men being genetically prone to violence).
Military training good for American youth.
She stands firm that mothers should be home with small children and not working on anything other than raising those children.
Although, stay at home dads, Dr Laura says, are okay with older kids.
She feels strongly that mothers should place their dreams on hold when they have children to care for.
She is all for going back to school or whatever it is you want to do after your job of mothering is done.
She does not believe in shacking up (living together before marriage).
She believes that parents should stay married for the sake of their children, although she will be the first to say to a woman *hit the road * when you have an abuser, (physical, drug, alcohol) or a philanderer for a husband.
She then advises the newly single mommy to move close to or in with her parents to get some help raising the kids.
I totally agree with her philosophy in her book The Care and Feeding of Husbands.
Treat your husband like a King and he will treat you like a Queen.
Lately though, I think I've become the woman Dr Laura complains about...the one who gives too much to her work and her own interests and who comes home too tired and worn out to take good care of their family.
I know my kids are quite grown, and it doesn't hurt them to fend for themselves... but I'm finding that old habits die hard.
And when I think of Dr Laura and how she says I should be treating my family, well, I'm kinda falling not just short...but totally flat.
I've gotten selfish and often place myself first.
I still think it's a Cardinal sin to eat cereal for dinner, but I'm shedding no tears when we eat soup and sandwiches in place of four course meals these days.
And instead of sitting at Daddio's feet (massaging for all I'm worth), staring at a basketball game with my mind a million miles away I'm online reading blogs and playing catch up with my 454 pieces of email.
A hour or two here and there I even sometimes play free online games, I've gotten pretty good at shooting those colored balls in groups of three or more.
Yesterday I got an email from Dr. Laura's camp advertising a subject that she was going to be tackling.
It had to do with blogs.
Here is the blurb... She had been communicating with family on a private blog. She was shocked that I told her to shut down the blog. But then, 24 hours later....... Find out what she has to say, tonight at 11pm on...
Dumdumdumdum.....
I fell asleep and missed it, darn it.
On second thought... that may have been a good thing.
I wonder lately if I could just coast for awhile on my past successes?
All those tender pot roast dinners and that perfectly filled linen closet.
My sparkling toilets and dusted mouldings.
How bout all those hours spent on school projects and ball games and plays and yummy cupcakes for a class of 36?
Foot rubs and back rubs and all the other things I did that spoke loud and clear to my family.. "you are first."
Just like black licorice is bad for my colitis, so may Dr Laura be for my soul.
I don't like her implications that "you are not enough"...my own voice saying it is bad enough.
Often I thought that she was way too hard on some of her callers, but what she said did make a lot of sense to me.
Sometimes though she was just plain rude and I wondered how she had so many people calling,when all of us in the listening audience, knew the caller was going to take a beating.
Over the years she's received some really bad press because of her opinionated stands.
Here are some of her recent blog titles:
Academic problems occur more often in step-families.
My DNA made me do it (young men being genetically prone to violence).
Military training good for American youth.
She stands firm that mothers should be home with small children and not working on anything other than raising those children.
Although, stay at home dads, Dr Laura says, are okay with older kids.
She feels strongly that mothers should place their dreams on hold when they have children to care for.
She is all for going back to school or whatever it is you want to do after your job of mothering is done.
She does not believe in shacking up (living together before marriage).
She believes that parents should stay married for the sake of their children, although she will be the first to say to a woman *hit the road * when you have an abuser, (physical, drug, alcohol) or a philanderer for a husband.
She then advises the newly single mommy to move close to or in with her parents to get some help raising the kids.
I totally agree with her philosophy in her book The Care and Feeding of Husbands.
Treat your husband like a King and he will treat you like a Queen.
Lately though, I think I've become the woman Dr Laura complains about...the one who gives too much to her work and her own interests and who comes home too tired and worn out to take good care of their family.
I know my kids are quite grown, and it doesn't hurt them to fend for themselves... but I'm finding that old habits die hard.
And when I think of Dr Laura and how she says I should be treating my family, well, I'm kinda falling not just short...but totally flat.
I've gotten selfish and often place myself first.
I still think it's a Cardinal sin to eat cereal for dinner, but I'm shedding no tears when we eat soup and sandwiches in place of four course meals these days.
And instead of sitting at Daddio's feet (massaging for all I'm worth), staring at a basketball game with my mind a million miles away I'm online reading blogs and playing catch up with my 454 pieces of email.
A hour or two here and there I even sometimes play free online games, I've gotten pretty good at shooting those colored balls in groups of three or more.
Yesterday I got an email from Dr. Laura's camp advertising a subject that she was going to be tackling.
It had to do with blogs.
Here is the blurb... She had been communicating with family on a private blog. She was shocked that I told her to shut down the blog. But then, 24 hours later....... Find out what she has to say, tonight at 11pm on...
Dumdumdumdum.....
I fell asleep and missed it, darn it.
On second thought... that may have been a good thing.
I wonder lately if I could just coast for awhile on my past successes?
All those tender pot roast dinners and that perfectly filled linen closet.
My sparkling toilets and dusted mouldings.
How bout all those hours spent on school projects and ball games and plays and yummy cupcakes for a class of 36?
Foot rubs and back rubs and all the other things I did that spoke loud and clear to my family.. "you are first."
Just like black licorice is bad for my colitis, so may Dr Laura be for my soul.
I don't like her implications that "you are not enough"...my own voice saying it is bad enough.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Secrets, lies, and a damn good coffee cake....
I went to a meeting this past Friday morning. It was a steering committee meeting. (lots of e's in that sentence)...I'll explain soon what this steering committee is all about.
In the meantime suffice it to say that Beth Gump has been invited to be a member, WHY she has been invited is one of the great mysteries of her life....HOW she can pretend to fit in, may be another.
Secrets.....
I pass this sign every day on my way to work. It used to identify a busy, bustling with life hospital which is no more...a victim of this crappy economy.
The parking lot, long untended is getting weed filled and littered with bits of trash.
But the sign gives me a feeling of hope and optimism.
GOD BLESS AMERICA....a surprising, unexpected, beautiful message in a dreary cold moment in time.
Kind of like a rose in December.
1. Baby's got back.
2. Yoga pants look good on everyone.
3. The family curse of "no butt" aka "pancake ass" has (thankfully) passed Googie by.
4. It's a sin to burn perfectly good clothing.
(Disclaimer...Googie does have back. This is how she looks every week when she's bringing her sleeping quarters up to white glove perfect.)
A few short weeks from now I will be perfectly fine sitting in a stuffy high school gym high in the bleachers watching as my last baby walks across a decorated stage and accepts his diploma.
I won't tear up or embarrass anybody by crying my heart out. Big, gulping, body racking sobs won't cause those around me to squirm (or Daddio to threaten to pop me one in the nose), no I won't do that ...at least not out loud I won't.
I know I mentioned something in the title of this post about a damn good coffee cake...not only did I leave the recipe at work, but I'm sitting here over my keyboard with leaking eyes and a boogery nose soooo I must excuse myself quick like and find some Kleenex.
Please, come tomorrow back for that recipe and a virtual bite.
And have yourself a merry little Monday....(i really really hate mondays).
In the meantime suffice it to say that Beth Gump has been invited to be a member, WHY she has been invited is one of the great mysteries of her life....HOW she can pretend to fit in, may be another.
Secrets.....
I hope this young woman hangs around for a long time. She makes my boy a better person (which is saying a lot since I already think the kid is the shit).
I pass this sign every day on my way to work. It used to identify a busy, bustling with life hospital which is no more...a victim of this crappy economy.
The parking lot, long untended is getting weed filled and littered with bits of trash.
But the sign gives me a feeling of hope and optimism.
GOD BLESS AMERICA....a surprising, unexpected, beautiful message in a dreary cold moment in time.
Kind of like a rose in December.
Lies.....
2. Yoga pants look good on everyone.
3. The family curse of "no butt" aka "pancake ass" has (thankfully) passed Googie by.
4. It's a sin to burn perfectly good clothing.
(Disclaimer...Googie does have back. This is how she looks every week when she's bringing her sleeping quarters up to white glove perfect.)
A few short weeks from now I will be perfectly fine sitting in a stuffy high school gym high in the bleachers watching as my last baby walks across a decorated stage and accepts his diploma.
I won't tear up or embarrass anybody by crying my heart out. Big, gulping, body racking sobs won't cause those around me to squirm (or Daddio to threaten to pop me one in the nose), no I won't do that ...at least not out loud I won't.
Photo by Kathleen Foulkrod of Heartstrings Photography
I know I mentioned something in the title of this post about a damn good coffee cake...not only did I leave the recipe at work, but I'm sitting here over my keyboard with leaking eyes and a boogery nose soooo I must excuse myself quick like and find some Kleenex.
Please, come tomorrow back for that recipe and a virtual bite.
And have yourself a merry little Monday....(i really really hate mondays).
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Oh black water.....
Another Saturday Centus, a themed writing meme. The challenge is to write 100 words to add to the prompt started by Jenny Matlock from off on my tangent.
The writing prompt is in itallics....
I look back over my shoulder, squinting into the late afternoon sun, gawking with stunned alarm at the broad rolling muddy waters of the Mississippi.
Thick black smelly water begins to fill the car from the bottom up, giving me just a moment to ponder my decision to take the powerful candy apple red sports car that wasn’t mine and speed down an unknown path toward an ending that wouldn’t surprise anyone. The cops would surely be in big, big trouble for chasing me. I always knew I’d pay them back somehow.
The writing prompt is in itallics....
I look back over my shoulder, squinting into the late afternoon sun, gawking with stunned alarm at the broad rolling muddy waters of the Mississippi.
Thick black smelly water begins to fill the car from the bottom up, giving me just a moment to ponder my decision to take the powerful candy apple red sports car that wasn’t mine and speed down an unknown path toward an ending that wouldn’t surprise anyone. The cops would surely be in big, big trouble for chasing me. I always knew I’d pay them back somehow.
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