Last Obituary Reading of March 2012

There were a LOT of dead people this week.  4 full pages.  That is a lot.  All ages, all different causes of death.  Sometimes when I see so many my mind runs to the "oh my Lord, what if there is an epidemic going on!" kind of thinking.

Some of the interesting phrases, wording and information given this week were these:

"Ramon went peacefully to be with the Lord on March 22 in the presence of his loving family and devoted Chihuahuas, Pinky and Glory."

**Every time I read about people going peacefully surrounded by herds of people and dogs, I have to question how peaceful it really was.  


There was one obituary in particular that was a column and a half in length that reminded me of ME!  Holy Moly!  She and I shared many interests in common.  We lived in some of the same places, worked for the same types of charities, and enjoyed similar hobbies.  She was another one who went peacefully surrounded by the whole family.

You know how sometimes you think you are being all cool and objective and neutral on something but when you go back and read it, it becomes painfully clear that you are seriously pissed off or hurting or just full of emotion that you didn't realize was there?

Read this:

"Glen Philip, aged 54, was taken from us to soon. He passed away in San Antonio, on Wednesday, March 21, after a brief illness. He had been a candidate for a liver transplant, and was scheduled to have the life saving surgery on March 22, and came so close to that goal."

***Oh my Lord.  Can you just feel the anguish coming off the page?  It breaks my heart.




Want to take a guess as to the occupation of this next person?

"Entered life's classroom in KY, 1/20/1910, graduated in TX 3/16/2012."

***You see that this makes her 102 years and almost 2 months of age?  Miss Clara Lynn was a teacher from the 1930s through to the 1970s.  Her family goes on to say:  "Mom, you enjoyed teaching, cooking, baking, mailing cookies, candies and cakes to all of us; playing cards and keeping current. You kept your keen mind intact and enjoyed people until you Graduated. We're all o.k. Thanks for the Lessons. Rest in Peace."

The last one I want to share with you is a great example of people truly trying to see the bright side.  They don't list a cause of death, but from the lovely words it gives the impression that she suffered in life.

"Mary Lillian, "Momma", was received into Heaven at 9:05 a.m. on March 21 where she immediately used strong new lungs to sing with the angels, flawless new teeth to smile at her Lord who she could see clearly with perfect new eyes, all while dancing on strong new bones with her friends and family that preceded her to Heaven."

**Awww, don't you love that they have this vision of their Momma?  Bless her heart.  By the by, she was 97 years old, and had a full life with lots of family.  You can't ask for much more than that, can you?

Playing Along with my S-i-l

1. What song always makes you happy when you hear it? Sadly, it is Wake Me Up Before you Go, Go! 
2. What, if anything, would you change about your blog? More posts with better pictures.  I have got to learn how to take better photos.
3. If you could only keep one thing in your wardrobe, what would it be? My Tevas. Best, most versatile sandals ever!
4. Warm sunny beaches or snow covered mountains? I could go either way. 60% beach if it's for a vacation, 60% for the mountains if it's for a new home. 
5. What's your favorite book? Tough one!  So many favorites to choose from.  Can I pick one from each genre?  One from each author?  I bet hourly I could come up with a new favorite.  Right now I would have to say "Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe".
6. What 3 words best describe your personality? Nurturing, loving, passionate. 
7. What's the first thing you'd splurge on if you won the lottery? Retirement property!
8. Do you have an embarrassing song that you rock out to on your I-pod? So I guess the most embarrassing thing about this question is that I don't have an i-Pod. I may be the last person in the free world who is without mp3 music at my fingertips.
9. Do you have a hidden talent? I think I am a great kisser.  Everyone knows I am the best hugger, but very few know about my kissing.
10. If you could take a one month trip anywhere and money was not a consideration, where would you go? Well, right off the bat I would say I want to do the trip I planned a few years ago and for one reason or another it never came to fruition, and head to Tahiti.  But lately, I have been doing so much ancestry research that I feel a month trip to Scotland and Ireland would better serve my needs.
11. What's your favorite sport and why? NBA Spurs Basketball!!!  or World Cup Soccer watching Team Argentina.

Anyone else want to do this?  Comment here with a link to your responses!

Dark Shadows!

Have you seen the trailer to the new Dark Shadows movie?

Oh Lawzy, it looks like fun!

I will be first in line (cyberly) to get tickets!  Yes, I am that excited about this.

p.s. Fabulous soundtrack, don't you think?

Reading of the O'bits! St. Paddy's style

Okay, it has been a stressful week.  And I mean stressful.  I have been so run down and run ragged.  Day after day of getting up and being out of the house early and not getting home till evening time, Mr. Big Ed has been out of town and all the care of 5 gazillion damn pets dropped in my lap.  And on top of that?

When Mr. Big Ed is gone I can't sleep.  I always have one eye open and at least one ear open for any little sound.  So that means I am dragging my ass out of bed early after bad or little sleep.  And what does that bring?  Me resorting to loads of caffeine to function.

And what does all that caffeine do?

It keeps me up again!!!  Aarrgh!  The cycle!

And!!!  2 people I know are in the obits this week.  I attended one of the funerals Saturday and the other one will be held on Tuesday.  It is sad around here, is what it is.

I just have a few things to tell y'all about the obituaries this week.  First off, there were some doozies of names!  Lots and lots of really old people above 90, and while that's sad, it does mean we get some great names to look at and remember.  Awww, I love the old-school names that no one uses any more.

Here's a smattering of great names for you:

Cornelius a.k.a. Buddy,
Nell,
Eunice,
Ernest,
Edith,
Imogene,
Loftus,
Ethel,
Minnie,
Floy Marie,
Rogene Lacy,
Royal and II, III, and even Royal IV!,
Ruby Lee,
Pearl,
Ola Jean,
Lily Belle,
Velma,
Edwin,
Alma,
Hilmer,
Edgar,
Milton,
and last but certainly not least:
Hedwig

And now we come to the part where we look at all the euphemisms for "dead".  As usual there are a lot of the passed away and gone to be with the Lord variety.

There was one retired Navy  guy in his 70s who "set sail on his final deployment."

2 people "died peacefully".

One lady "happily went home to eternal rest with the Lord and her dear Virgin Mary at the age of 93".

Helen Iona went to the home that Jesus prepared for her on Thursday.

"Entered eternal life".

Ethel was freed of pain and called by the Lord.

But you know I saved the best one for last, don't you?

I loved this one!

"Bobby Joe Elliott, transferred his membership from the Church Militant on earth to the Church Triumphant in Heaven on March 14."

I'd like a membership transfer, please.  Love it.

Book Review

I am reviewing a book I only started last night!!!


I am barely into this and am imagining the possiblilities for my own self.

Believe it or don't, this book has it's own trailer on youtube.  Am I the last person on earth to know that this happens?

Now that you have watched it and have an inkling of what this book is about, let me move on with my own thoughts about what I am reading.

Jen Hatmaker makes the choice to do this project and document what she finds in order to remove clutter from her mind and her life in order to make room for God and his message.  I think this is awesome. She is on the path to discovering that things, possessions, filling your life and your mind with all this crap only slows you down and impedes you finding your purpose.  Finding why you were born.  You and your own set of talents and gifts were born to do something, to be the best you there is.  To possibly teach or be a lesson for someone else.

But living our lives the way we do with so much STUFF doesn't help us achieve our purpose.  All it does is cloud things over and distract us.

I love how she lays out how each month will work and has her group of women she calls her Council to help her find what the boundaries of each should be.  They also hold her accountable and go on the journey with her each in their own way.

I love how she allows herself the freedom to complain and bend the rules or break them when necessary. And then spend some time reflecting over each decision and find the lesson.

The first month is food.  She did not force her kids to do the first couple of months but then the rest were all done as a whole family.  For the food she worked out a nutritious gang of 7 foods and stuck to it and tried to find recipes to incorporate as many as possible.  The only seasonings, condiments allowed were salt and pepper.  And so Jen opted to make those 7 foods as healthy as possible and bought local, organic and high quality foods.  Her findings over this month were really inspiring.

The second month was clothes.  Holy moly!  I am sure a lot of people are like me and have a huge closet full of things and yet only wear a tiny fraction of what is there.  Jen went through all the closets in her home and guesstimated the amount of items and multiplied that by $20 for each and got a staggering figure of how much money is just hanging there in the closet, unloved, and unneeded.  That's a sobering idea, isn't it?

And let me tell you, I have waaaaay more hanging in my closet than she did!

Right now I am most of the way through her Month 3 of no media, meaning no t.v., no facebook, no texting, no Wii, no screentime except for work and school.  So the family are forced to deal with each other face to face.  They go find things to do, like bike riding, playing ball outside, really good intereactions with each other rather than mindlessly staring at a screen.

I am wondering as I think about the first 3 chapters how this is going to manifest itself in my life.  Am I willing to be this drastic in any area of my life, much less 7 different ones?

I don't know.  I will continue mulling it over and let you know as things unfold.

News of a titanic discovery

Go read this article

It's about all new sonar mapping of the Titanic wreckage and it is very cool.

They will be having a 2 hour special on the History Channel on April 15 the 100 year anniversary of the sinking.

Set your dvrs!  This will be some t.v. worth watching!

Denied Holy Communion by Snape?

Did you read the story last week about the woman who was denied Holy Communion at her mother's funeral?  Seems that there is a lot of controversy regarding this.

For me it's mostly about the priest and his having poor judgment, timing and manners.  The way I understand things is this:

1. The victim here is Barbara Johnson, a lesbian in a committed relationship.

2. Barbara's mother died and during the service, while she was at the altar in front of her mother's coffin, the priest looks at her and covers the Host and says, "you are living with a woman and in the eyes of the church that is a sin."

3. Then the priest, Rev. Marcel Guarnizo, left the service and there was no one to accompany the body and family to the graveside portion of the funeral.

This is bad.

I understand when you are going to communion you are supposed to be in a state of grace, but that is supposed to be between you and God.  Not for a priest to call you out publicly with the whole congregation as witnesses.

And have you seen this guy?

  I am sorry, but I find it really hard to be serious when I see the priest and and can only think . . . .

The whole thing is beyond awful.  That poor woman losing her mother, being patronized and called out like that by the very place she would go for solace.  Where will she go now?

And if I were the dearly departed?  Imagine your spirit looking down and seeing your child treated so shabbily.  It breaks my heart.

Cork, Cork, Cork.

So, I was sitting here listening to my Irish Drinking Songs cd and thinking of what to post about.  I was also considering St. Paddy's Day coming right up and my shopping list for my traditional St. Paddy's meal. And this week I have gone ahead and plunked down the $$ for the ancestry.com software to be able to print up loads of different charts and such.  You may find it hard to believe that all these things are related, because I sure did!

I have distant ancestors from several different branches of my family tree from County Cork.  I didn't know a damn thing about County Cork so I looked online and found that it is, at least according to the County Cork's own website, the largest county in all of Ireland.

Here is Ireland:

County Cork is the highlighted county below:

Here's a close-up:

And below are some beautiful photos of County Cork:

This one is looking up at Castle Blarney

And this is up above looking down on same Castle Blarney, obviously at different times of year.

And we all know what the Blarney Castle is famous for, don't we?

The Blarney Stone!  And the kissing of the stone!

Now, who wouldn't want to go get hung over the side of the wall upside down to kiss a stone that millions of other lips have touched?

I am using the information I am finding on ancestry.com to plan a trip, possibly next summer, to Ireland and Scotland.  I don't know exactly what I hope to find, but the question of why on earth would anyone ever leave such a lovely place keeps springing to mind.

The Great Potato famine was in 1845 - 1852 and Ireland lost 25% of its population due to starvation and emigration.  Many of the ancestors I am looking up left Ireland 100 years before this.  So I researched a bit and found there was a previous famine in 1740-1741 due to some horrible weather and bad crop harvest.  If my 7th great-grandparents could stick it out through this, why would they leave approx. 10 years later?

Back to this coming St. Patrick's Day!  What will you be doing?  Will you be wearing the green?  Do you make Irish Soda Bread?  Drink green beer?

I wear loads of green and several Irish pins.  I will drink Irish Breakfast tea.  Then I will make a corned beef, cabbage, carrot and turnip dinner.  I will drink Irish beer.  Harp is my favorite.

I will either make some Soda Bread or some gingerbread.

Have a great time celebrating your Irish heritage if you have it!

You are going to thank me for this

Yes indeedy, you will thank me for this link

I just got a little heads up on this blog from Kelly Pie, and I didn't ask her permission to link to her blog, but if she says yes, then I will do that as well.

But, go check out Margaret and Helen at the above link.  So flipping cute, smart, clever and adorable I can hardly stand it!!!

Losing your marbles and flipping your lid

Crap.  It has been way over a week since I have posted.  I was so busy (here's the losing your marbles part of the title) planning and taking care of the big 80th birthday party for my father-in-law that took place last weekend.  The party and all the family stuff was so much fun.  And unbelievably, all of us, and I mean every last one, were all in attendance.  Isn't that wonderful?

I don't know about you, but in our family, whether it be my side or Mr. Big Ed's side, there is always a conflict with someone's schedule and it just leaves a hole in the dynamics.  So anyhoo, it was wonderful that we were all here and that we got loads of pictures.

Rachel Pie and I worked hard on a project for this that we called "When Dad was my age".  I wrote down every child and grandchild in age order, then calculated what the year would have been when Dad was their current age.  For example, the youngest grandchild is five, so his part (read by his older brother) was this:  "When Grandpa was my age, the year was 1937.  FDR was president. The price of gas was, the price of a loaf of bread, and some fact pertinent to Grandpa's life".

You get the picture, right?  It was really fun taking those little strolls down through what was life like at each of those stages.  So, I sent all the info to Rachel Pie who took it all and put it on little pages for a scrapbook.  We skipped every other page and left the facing page blank to then put in a picture we took of Grandpa with each of the participants.  Then we ran off to CVS and printed up those photos and stuck them in and gifted him with the book.

I gotta tell y'all, it was a HIT!  Everyone loved hearing what each other had to read and Grandpa loved it. But for some reason, neither Rachel Pie nor I expected it to become a touching, emotional event and it turned that way really quickly.  Lots of tearing up and dabbing of the eyes.  Then we had cake and ice cream and everyone was happy again.  : )

Last night Sparky and I were up really late and sitting in the family room in our respective "spots" and we heard this loud, and I mean really LOUD, BANG!!!!  We looked all over and Sparky looked outside but we didn't see anything.  So he wanders off to go to bed and I started hearing sirens.

Not hearing sirens off in the distance, like I normally hear when they are headed to the hospital nearby, but like right in front of the house.  So first I peeked out the peephole and there were flashing red, amber and blue lights aplenty!  Holy Shitballs!  Something major was happening on our street!

So I yelled at Sparky to come back down and look.  We looked again and for some reason I don't understand, he went back to bed!!!!


Not me!  I grabbed my cel phone and went trotting out there to see what was what.  It took my eyes a bit to process what was actually going on.  There were 2 huge fire trucks, and 5 cop cars all with lights blazing.  There were neighbors out there in all sorts of pajamas and hurried-on garb.  And in the midst of all this there were 2 cars in the street.

One was a parked car that had been not only side-swiped but shoved down the street.  And the other one?

Upside down and had been spinning on its top and come to rest facing perpendicular to the street.

Holy Shitballs, indeed!

Seems that the very young looking girl who crawled out of the red upside down car was loaded on something.  Whether it was booze or drugs remains to be seen.  She was barrelling down our street and managed to hit the parked car (of the neighbor's girlfriend) and careened into a free-flying upside down spinning disaster.  I have no idea how she got out of that car and was still all in one piece.  If anyone had been in her backseat they would be toast.  That car was fucked up bad.

Another cop car joined the light brigade and then 2 tow trucks came, one from each direction.  We were all wondering how on earth they would get an upside down car onto the bed of the tow truck.  You know how they do that?

THEY FLIP IT!

Here are some crappy cel phone pics of that whole process:

Amazing, right?

So after they flipped the car and all sorts of crap went flying out of the car, loose cds, cel phones, her purse, etc. They put all the valuable things in a plastic bag, gave the arresting officer the purse and took a huge push broom and swept up the remaining parts o'car and put them inside the car!!!


For some reason, that struck me as funny.  "Yeah, here's the REST of your car for safe keeping".

While all this was going on, we went back and forth between commiserating with the poor girl who will probably get her car totalled just by parking it on a quiet neighborhood street at 2 a.m. and watching the officer try to get a field sobriety test completed by the driver of the red spinning top car.  It was not pretty.  She was not present enough to know that her life had just taken a screeching wrong turn and there's no coming back from that.  Thankfully, no one was killed and she herself didn't appear to be hurt.  She is going to be sore as hell today when she wakes up in jail, that is a given.

It got me to thinking about how they always say that you get a lesson over and over again, stronger each time till you get that lesson and learn it and are able to move forward.  Wonder what her lesson might have been?  Sure hope she got it, because she might not live through another more forceful lesson.