Fergus Jackson MacPhee

I woke up this morning to the strangest, saddest cat cry I had ever heard.  The cats that were in bed with me all went on high alert and we jumped up to find out who had made that mournful wail.

It was Fergus.  I saw him taking his last breaths and ran upstairs and got the kids.  Fergus was not sick, nor was there any reason to think he was going to die.  He was just a month past his sixth birthday.

I was looking for his kitten photos on the computer today and for some reason I can't find them.  I only found some from the last couple of years.

Fergus had the softest, most plushy fur I have ever felt on a kitty, like a sheared beaver coat.  He was a joy to pet and run your fingers through his hair.  He would, about once a year or so, get a little spot on his back that would mat up like a little kitty dreadlock.  We have no idea why.

His eyes were like pools of jade.  Not that clear emerald green that some cats have, but like a gorgeous piece of jade.  You can see that a little bit in that last picture.

Fergus was the only one of our cats who liked to lay out on his belly with his back legs straight out behind him.  Splayed out with his belly in full contact with the cool floor.  His breathy purring and really loud, whiney sounding meow are going to be missed around here.

Fergus Jackson MacPhee

July 30, 2026 - Sept. 17, 2012

R.I.P.

Obit Reading Part 395847395

There were just a little over 2 pages worth of obituaries this week.  That's good.  Typically we have 3 full pages and sometimes more.  There were several who were over 100 years of age who had led nice long, and full lives.  For example, Ms. Carmen Quintanilla Flores (who let me just interject here that I find it unusual for a woman of her age to use the title Ms.  She must be a progressive thinker!)  Ms. Carmen wrote part of her obituary herownself and called it "Los Caminos de la Vida" the roads of life.

Here's some of what she said:

"Who would have thought that one hundred years is a long time but instead feels like a brief moment. Los Caminos de la Vida started in Parras, Coahuila (a state of Mexico just south of TX) with my parents who worked with the Madero family while at the same time working in my grandparent's vinery. All was well until the Mexico Revolution came and my parents were forced to leave and go to Monterrey, Mexico. My father had family in Monterry and stayed with them for a short period, but then decided to come to the United States with nothing but our clothes in a stage coach - my son Fernando would say in a covered wagon - NO, NO NO, Coach. It was very hard leaving your country and having to start over but the Good Lord helped us to have a new beginning in spite of the hard roads of life. I am thankful for meeting my husband at my mother's boarding house. He came to San Antonio to study from Zapata, TX. His family had received land grants way before Texas belonged to the U.S. A very proud traditional ranching family with deep roots in Texas that is maintained today."

Then she goes on to say "I would not have imagined flying in an airplane to go visit my family or flying to a foreign country to go on vacation in a matter of hours. Riding in a car (Model T) for the first time was an adventure beyond belief and in later years riding in cars with lots of comfort and air conditioning - amazing. Thank You Lord for allowing me to have seen and experienced with all my children, granchildren and great grandchildren Los Caminos de la Vida."

Her family did the "before and after" pictures, as I call them.  One when she was a young fashionplate and on as a grandmother.  She was quite the looker!

Then we come to George Guzman who was a handsome Navy man from back in the day.  Because of his love of the sea he is getting a military burial-at-sea and the family was nice enough to give a brief description of that procedure.  I had no idea about this, so of course, I thought I would share it with you.

"It's because of George's love of the Navy and sea that final disposition will occur with a burial-at-sea in the Pacific Ocean. During the ceremony, performed by a U.S. Navy chaplain, the active-duty ship will come to full stop with its colors at half-mast. The officer passes the word "All hands bury the dead." After the sailors are assembled and called to attention, all stand at "parade rest", read scriptures and prayers, and commit George's remains to seas. The officiate reads a benediction, the firing detail fires three volleys and the bugler plays "Taps".

Can you just picture that?  It doesn't say if the family will get to participate in this or not.  But let me tell you, I have attended several military funerals and it is heart-wrenching when they salute them, fold the flag, hand it to the mama, play taps and fire the guns.  Nothing is as moving as that.

I leave you now with a short but very sweet and heart-warming tribute to a man not much older than myself.

"Kevin Jon Johnson

Beloved brother, loving husband, dedicated father and most loyal friend was called home by his Lord. With valiant effors, Kevin continued to epitomize the man of character he was. Quick to smile, fun to be with and a firerce defender of that which is right. Althogh those left behind will deeply miss him, we were blessed by the time we shared with him. Heaven will enjoy his presence. He now joins his dear friends Mel & Joe to fish off God's pier where the fish always bite, the stories always fun and beer cold."  (spelling and grammar are theirs)

Have I ever mentioned that beside being a birth doula one of my fondest wishes is to take the training to be a hospice volunteer?  Essentially it is really being a "death doula".  You provide pretty much the same care, respect and help for this life transition as you would for the other.  I have thought about this for a really long time, and I am now ready to embark on this new adventure.

If any of you have done this and have words of wisdom, please feel free to share.

As always, thanks so much for stopping by and please leave me some comments.  I love to hear from you.

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?

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.

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.

The Reading of the Obits

Sadly, the obit section of the paper has been bigger.  25% bigger to be exact.  Typically, we have 3 pages to wade through but lately?

FOUR FULL PAGES!

That, my friends, is a lot of dead people.  And not just one week, but consistently since right before Christmas.  So it's truly a lot more than the usual numbers.

Anyhoo, I was reading along as I tend to do and came across this one particular one that was so interesting.  And I mean really interesting.  Interesting enough to consider making a movie or writing a fabulous book out of this family history.  So instead of listing all kinds of sundry things about the obit writing and such I decided to just share this one in it's entirety.

"Gertruda Medynski of San Antonio passed away peacefully on January 4, 2012 at the age of 98. She was born in Wejherowo, Poland December 3, 1913 to Jan and Anastazja Wolter. In 1941 she married Grzegorz Wojewski who became the commander in chief of the Secret Military Organization "Gryf Pomorski," a Polish anti-Nazi resistance group. Gertruda herself was a secret operative known by the pseudonym "Rose" as she gathered information about imminent Nazi arrests and provided false documents to assist Poles escape persecution. Wanted by the Nazi's, she gave birth to her second daughter, Danuta while hiding in a basement. After Grzegorz was secretly executed by the Russians following the war, Gertruda took over running her husband's factory producing construction materials. She moved to the United States in 1972. She visited Poland in 2001 for the dedication of a memorial to her husband and in 2002 for the dedication of a school named after him. She is survived by her oldest daughter Barbara Rupinska, her granddaughters Monika Dalrymple, Arleta and Edita Rupinska, and great granddaughter Alexandra Dalrymple."


See?  Isn't that amazing?  I hope the rest of her life was as fulfilling as her early years were.  What a legacy to pass on to those granddaughters!  They have some mighty big shoes to fill, don't they?

Look what I got

Look what I got sent to me!

My daughter, the fabulous Rachel Pie's partner sent me this picture.  And you know how a picture is worth a thousand words?

Well, check this out:

Bahahahahahahaha!!!!!

Just look at Kim up there with her 1980's phone!

Is that the most hilarious thing you have ever seen?

The next time I go back to where my aunt lives, I am going to the cemetary to take a picture of this headstone that reads "I told you I was sick".

Heeee!  I bet her family all feel like morons having to go see that little message everytime they go pay their respects to grandma.

p.s. It's my birthday and I am off to finish putting up Christmas decorations and set up for a lunch time party I am hosting on Friday.

Thanks for stopping by!

The Reading of O'bits

Obituary reading!  Gasp!  It has been f o r e v e r, hasn't it?

Under the Interesting Way to Say Died column we have:

"was granted her angel wings on Nov. 3, 2011"

"went unto our Lord"

Then we have 2 fabulous and very interesting obits to look at.

The first one is for a lovely lady named Mary Jo, she had a "before and after" picture thing in hers. You know, one when she was really young and had the awesome 1940's Joan Crawford looking hair style and the other as an elderly lady.  She is really pretty with dark lipstick and a twinkle in her eye and that Mona Lisa kind of smile in the young/before picture.  But the after photo?  Awesome, is what it is!

She is sporting a hat with flowers on it and a big, wide, happy infectious smile.  That's a person I wish I had known.

Here is a few snippets of what the family had to say about her:

"She was born Jan. 14, 1924 in the Family Quarters of the Georgetown Jailhouse.  Her father was the Marshall and Jailer."  

**See, right there sounds like there were some great stories in this family.

"She so loved and protected each and every member of her family. She endured much sadness as her father was killed in the line of duty, her husband was a prisoner of war, the loss of a daughter, a son and a grand daughter. She handled this with grace and a great deal of faith."

This brings me to the other one that was really endearing.

"Elsie Beulah was a generous person with a heart as big as Texas and a carefully cloaked but acute and penetrating sense of humor.  She loved live theatre, dance, music, art, black and white clothes, reading, playing cards, tooling around in her classic 1978 Honda Civic, recycling, cheering the St. Louis Cardinals, collecting stuffed mooses, drinking margaritas and champagne, and throwing parties."

***Now if that weren't enough fun facts, get a load of THIS:

"She was a fantastic cook of all sorts of dishes including lasagna, pot roast, grits, stroganoff, baked spaghetti, prison jack, bean loaf, hide the pickle, gourmet toast, pies, cakes, puddings, top-shelf turkey gravy and on and on."

***Prison Jack?  Bean Loaf?  Hide the Pickle???


"She vanquished crossword puzzles with abandon almost to the end. She knew more words than God."

***Heeee!  Really?

"In lieu of flowers, please give someone a warm hug and a kiss today or send a donation to  . . . . "

**Awww, isn't that wonderful?


Elsie Beulah sounds like my kind of woman.

One last tribute here, this one is a bit odd to me.  I had a hard time understanding it.  Which means it was kind of family-inside-knowledge information or something.  But also, that future generations may have a hard time understanding it as well.  Check this out:

"Col. Joseph "Lew" Walter Lewandoski, aged 94, went to his creator, master and God on Nov. 1."

Then it goes on to say "Joseph is preceded in death by his parents, his daughter, Carol Munn, and his brother Steve and his wife, Doris. He leaves behind his "Night & Day" love, Helen."

***Now, does this mean Joseph's wife Doris is dead and he has a Night & Day love named Helen? Or does it mean that his brother Steve had a wife named Doris and the Night & Day love named Helen is Joseph's wife?  It kind of threw me off reading it and I had to go over it about 20 times.


Last, there was one nice looking gentleman who died on his own birthday.  I wonder how many times that happens?

Enjoy your day!

In other news . . . . .

I am so sorry for the delay in posting anything.  But I gotta tell you, after the horror of the last post I just could not figure out a decent way to segway into another topic.  If and when anything happens on that issue, I will be sure to let you know.

So today I am going to ramble on about a few different topics, but first!

Fun with the Obits!

Yay!!!  There were some doozies in this week's obits.  But the first one we are going to talk about sparked a little ruckus in my very own kitchen.  Here's what it said:  "Juan M. is loved and will be greatly missed by his wife of 49 years and 11 months, Teresa S., 4 sons, 8 grandchildren, 1 greatgrandson and well as numerous loving relatives and friends."

**49 years and 11 months??!!  You know good and well someone had already gone to a lot of effort to plan a huge shin-dig for this milestone, right?  So I commented that if I were Teresa S. the beloved wife I would not only be sad but more than a little bit pissed off right about now.


This sparked a whole conversation about how you always read about women passing who have been predeceased by their husbands for years and decades, but men?  2 seconds after the wife dies they are back on the market and have a new wife right away.  You know what I am talking about?  You see it all the flipping time.


Here is where the controversy comes in.  Mr. Big Ed (evil husband) chimes in and says "Well, you don't have to worry about that!"  


Me:  "Really?"


Evil Husband:  "Oh yeah, after 30 years of marriage, who would do THAT again?"



insert 30 seconds of crickets chirping and it slowly soaking in his brain that he actually said that out loud. 




Evil Husband:  "Um, what I mean to say is that, you know, 30 years is enough."


Yeah, like THAT was so much better.  Another short time to let that soak in and then he comes up with this gem:


"What I am trying to say is that after 30 years of you, how could anyone else compare and why would I even bother!"


Whatever.  You know the "he needed killing" defense?


Back to the obits, and not Mr. Big Ed's.

An interesting one began this way "Rick lost his life to lung cancer, on the island of Kauai. He was there accepting a job to teach arts and craft."

**Ok, I have questions.  Did he know he had lung cancer before he moved to Hawaii to teach?  Was he diagnosed after the move?  Did he not want to come back home to the loving family here in Texas to spend his remaining days?  The family did write a very loving and beautiful tribute to him so I don't think there were any hard feelings.


And we have a tie for Most Interesting Way to Say Your Loved One is Deceased.  I will quote the opening to both and let you be the judge.

1. "Lights must have dimmed at chic tourist spots and fine dining establishments around the globe on July 26, when Mary Jane passed after a long illness. She was 85. The fashionable redhead was an enthusiastic world traveler who was always the center of attention, livening up any gathering with her stories and opinions, facts and wise observations, gained from her globetrotting and life experience."

2. " 'O-75' The final bing ball of the final bingo game has been called as the final child of Daniel and Louevie Ophelia was called home on July 27, at the age of 96. She joins her parents, her brothers; Major, Homer, John, Douglas and her sisters; Robbie and Louise as she passes into the hands of the Lord and eternal rest."

**What say you?  Weren't both of those awesome?


Sadly, we are still following the trend towards more and more deaths due to complications of Alzheimer's.  There were no other small children or babies listed other than the one I shared with you on the last post.  My heart still breaks and I still cry every time I think about it.

New topic!

Anyone watching summer t.v.?

Big Brother started up and I was so excited to get to see Evel Dick again and then *poof* he was gone!

Hell's Kitchen is on and it has got to be hard to find that many annoying cooks.

Weeds and the Big C are back on Showtime and both are shaping  up to have a great season.

Entourage is back for it's final season.

Celebrity Rehab is on and good Lord!  What a bunch of idiots!

I hope things are well with you and you are enjoying your summer (or winter if you are reading from the southern hemisphere!).

Weekly Obit Reading going on now

You know how every Sunday I read the obituaries and like to notice things about the person, or the family names and how generationally they change or the latest euphemism for "Dead"?

Well, yesterday I did all that PLUS!

Plus, I also noticed there were a ton more "in lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to xyz charity" than usual.  Sometimes that is the only clue as to cause of death.  If they are asking for donations to leukemia, cancer or heart association then that is a safe guess as to what they have been dealing with.

Here's a sampling of what people thought would be better ways to spend your money than on flowers:

Increase International (religious charity started by the deceased)

Shriner Hospital fund

St. Vincent de Paul

Deceased person's church

Hungry Kids International

The hospice program the family used

American Heart Association

family requested potted plants only

local children's hospital or family church

private church school, museum and hospice

Southwest College of Naturpathic Medicine

donations to family church or plant a nice tree in her name

National WWII Museum in New Orleans

Local humane society

another one for the Shriner Children hospital

Polish Heritage Society in Nebraska

Juvenile Diabetes Research

Meals on Wheels

Lung Association

Arthritis Foundation

and this one was my favorite:

"at Tom's request, in lieu of flowers, just thank a veteran for his service"

Here's what I think about all of this; even in people's greatest time of sadness and grief they are still kind enough to consider how their loss can make a positive impact on someone in the future.  Doesn't that speak volumes about the heart of man?

This is my challenge to you, faithful readers.  Think about what your "in lieu of flowers" might be.  You might be all "hey, what about the poor florists!" or "I do love some flowers at a funeral".  And I do agree that a funeral with absolutely no flowers would be sad, indeed.  But think about this.  What would you want part of your legacy to be?

At long last, more obituary postings!!!

It has been a while, hasn't it?  I have been gone a few of the Sundays and there were a few lately that were just not funny, interesting or they were just so sad that I couldn't even nitpick the grammar on them.

But yesterday?

Well folks, we are back in the saddle!

Right off the bat we have a lovely woman whose picture appeared to be from the '50s.  Great hair that I would love to have.  And you know how I am a sucker for a great euphemism for "dead"?  Get a load of this:  "On July 14, God took the hand of Doris Marie and led her into the heavenly home He has prepared for her, there to await the family, relatives and friends who grieve at her passing but rejoice at her reward."

Whew!  That was a mouthful.  Try saying that out loud without taking an extra breath in there.

Next we have a very nice looking gentleman of 91 years at his passing.  And I am sorry to say this but the family names this bunch is sporting?  Hilarious.  Especially if you try to say them aloud.  The dearly departed had a given name of Harvey Carl.  Family name of Boehme.  In his family tree there are Clara Haegelin Boehme, there are Bipperts who married into the Boehmes and became Bippert Boehme. There are Earl, Armin, Claude and Lorine.  There were oodles of Bippert Boehmes and you have to love that!

Albert was a very interesting man who was a veteran of four different branches of the military.  His poor mama died before he was 2 and he was taken and adopted by an aunt and uncle. When he was 15 he enlisted in the Marines.  After boot camp they figured out that he had lied about his age and released him. When he was 16 he signed up in the Navy.  Later on he joined the Army Air Corps which then became the U.S. Air Force.  He will of course be buried at the military cemetery with full honors.

Now this next one either has some really interesting back stories or there are some screw ups in the names.  Seems Virginia Lucille was born with the last name of Archibald back in 1925.  She married Leonard Bossom, he preceded her in death. She married Elmer Bossom and he also preceded her in death.

**Hold the phone!  She married 2 men named Bossom?  Or was the first one really Archibald and they didn't list her maiden name?  Her sons have the last name of Archibald.  It was too confusing for me.

This one confused me as well.  You know how they always have interesting ways of saying "dead"? Well, this one didn't.  But it did say this about his birth:  "Lt. Col. Norman, USAF, Retired was born August 19, at Shady Ranger Station, near Mena, Arkansas - third son of a Forest Ranger."

Also in the category of interesting names but to be included in the few that list cause of death is this one. And oh, I wish you could see her picture!  She was a beauty.  With big, beautiful blonde hair all done up.  "Wilma Miriam Hrabanek Dolezal died of natural causes." They go on to say this "Wilma was a woman who led a very rich and fulfilled life."  and "Wilma's passions in life were education, flying and aerospace. In 1968, Wilma was the first woman to receive a PhD in Aerospace Education and was honored by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics for this achievement."

This is the very first one I have seen that has to get filed under the wtf category.  It is also very sad because this young lady is the same age as my Sparky (25).  But at the very end of the obit there is a quote that I am assuming is attributed to the deceased? I am not sure.  Here it is: "I'm so Happy cause Today, I found my friends, there in my head."

I have no words for that.

I loved this one and all the names in her family as well.
"Maxine Jones, age 88 was born a twin on March 26. She passed away peacefully on Sunday. This beautiful Christian girl was named Maxine LeWallen by her mother Bertha Hood LeWallen and Father, Elihu LeWallen. Family consisted of her twin sister Maureen, other sister, Mavionee (Sissy), Brothers, Hugh, Walter and Kent (Bo).Life was growing up in a very small town on the creek. When ready she loaded up her belongings and headed to the big city of San Antonio, TX."

The oldest person listed was a Caroline T. Owen who was 104.  She is survived by kids, grandkids, 19 great grandkids and 10 great great grands.

And last but not least we have this gem.
"Elizabeth (Betty) Quinn Riley was born in Rochester, NY. At age one, her family moved to St. Louis, MO where she grew up. A resident of San Antonio since 1948, she died peacefully and naturally on July 14 while drinking her morning coffee and planning the menu for her next bridge party.  The rock of her family and a beacon of love, she was an inspiration to all who basked in the shining light of her enduring presence."

**I am not sure how peaceful and natural it is to drop dead while drinking coffee and planning a menu, but let's hope she wasn't scalded in the process.

It is interesting that for a while all we saw as cause of death was cancer.  Different types of cancer, but it was all cancer.  Then it gradually became Alzheimer's.  And today we have two that said natural causes plus the 104 year old lady most likely died of being 104 since they didn't list anything else.  I sincerely hope that most of us can go peacefully and naturally like Miss Betty and Wilma.

Day after holiday let-down. Oh, and some obit reading too!

Anyone get that Day after a Holiday Let-Down Feeling?  You know what I mean?  I think all the anticipation and build-up to a holiday and then the day of with all the excitment and emotion hits a peak and then . . . .

WHAM!

Nothing.

Just time to start building back up for the next holiday.

Can you guess who woke up a little sad, nostalgic and such today, the day after Mothers Day?  And this is a real shame because Mothers Day was a really nice day over here at Chez Lisa Pie.  Other than my very small and precious Rachel Pie not being here, it could not have gone any better.

And, I was able to get some obituary reading in as well!  So talk about a good day!  Woot!

Now that I have used up all the excitement points for the day I will get on with the obit reading, readers digest condensed version style.

This week we had more versions of "passed away", "died" than I think I have ever seen.  Oh!  And by the by, I was reading some antique obits while on ancestry.com and doing geneology stuff.  Boy oh boy, did they have way better ways of sending people off than we do now.  I will try and remember to post something from way back in the day for y'all.

Anyhoo, here are some of the euphemisms for dead that were used this week:

Entered peacefully into God's rest.


Our Heavenly Father opened his arms to our loving mother, grandmother.


Billie Louise received her wings.


Entered eternity on April 18.


Josephine embraced God on May 5.


Died suddenly.


Entered into peaceful rest at the age of 89.


passed away peacefully after a short illness on Tuesday at her daughter Ellen's home.


was called home to be with Jesus.


passed away suddenly.


was freed from his earthly bonds on May 3 and is now with his parents in the heavenly kingdom.


"Mother, mother ocean. I have heard you call".  On May 1, Steve heard Mother Ocean's call and passed away in his sleep.


a devoted family man joined our heavenly Father on April 30, with his loving wife of 26 years by his side.


Jon had music in his heart and soul. His music and his son made his life complete.


Hannah was 99 years old when she passed away during he early morning hours of April 28.


Retired teacher, Eva entered the eternal embrace of her loving Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, after a brief battle with pancreatic cancer.


See what I mean?  That is a whole lot of ways of saying passed away or died.

Other things that were interestingly worded were in one particular obit.  Whomever wrote this felt the need to "put everything in quotes" like that.  Such as husband's nickname, "apple of her eye" to describe the grandson, the phrase "fierce force" to describe her work in the banking field, and calling her "one of the elites".  There were a whole lot of quotation marks is what I am saying.

My favorite family today had 3 generations of Clydes.  First Clyde was known as Clyde, Sr. Then came the second one known as Buster.  His son Clyde was known as Chico.  Personally, I think Clyde is an awesome name and I would rather be known as Clyde than either Buster or Chico.

I hope you had a great Sunday whether you are a mom or not.

Who's been a bad blogger?

Heeeee!  When I typed "bad blogger" the first time up there in the title, it came out "baG blogger".

Bag blogger?  wtf?

I am always curious when I do things like that if they are Freudian slips or if they are just clumsy fingers.

So here's the deal, I was in a training the week before last learning to be an Infant Massage Educator. And this past week at a Doula Training.  In the middle of the classes was Easter weekend and my car's breakdown.  Been a busy time at Chez Lisa Pie, is what it has been.

Can you even flipping believe that it is May?

MAY????

Already?

You know what this means, don't you?  I am already behind making my Christmas plans.  If I am going to call myself a person who makes and handcrafts all my gifts they I need to be more on the ball with the planning and creating, don't I?

So I am asking for all ideas on things I can make for gifts.  Any ideas are welcome.  My criteria is that the gifts should be things that are welcome, consumable if possible, environmentally friendly, and it would be even better if they were meaningful for the recipient.  Oh, and it should have no parts that are stamped Made in China.  I am boycotting Made in China what with their shitty faux drugs, tainted pet food and melamine (plastic) in infant formula.  Shame on them and their no-standards-selves.

Any ideas?

Now, on to something completely different.

~~~~  The Reading of the Obits!  ~~~~


Oh, how I wish I could share some of these photos with you!  I just adore the old pics from the '40s and '50s.  Cute hair-dos and earbobs, abound!

There was an absolutely precious photo of Helen Ruth who "passed from this life into the loving arms of the Lord".

Next we come to this one: "Our Lord called Adelina to his heavenly home."

This one was really clever: "Celeste was escorted by angels to her eternal home."

I loved this one.  This man was a professional baseball player and "was known to many as the man who struck out Mickey Mantle and he was proud to let people know it with the newspaper clipping he carried in his wallet."

**How cool is that?


Ok, you will love the story told in the next obituary.  It would make a great novel or a movie.

"At the age of 14, after traveling along 19 days, on a ship from China to California, he arrived in San Antonio in 1938. He attended an American school and slo attended the Chinese school working alongside his father and brothers at Sunny Side Grocery Store. It was there that he learned his great work ethic. He eventually moved to Laredo, Texas where he managed the Shanghai Cafe and that was where he met his future wife."

**See?  Isn't that a great story?  It goes on to say that after retirement, he and his wife traveled to China, Mexico and took cruises.


Then we came to one of a man that I actually knew.  Many years ago we were in the same area and I knew of him back then.  After listing all him many civic and charitable accomplishments his family had this to say "He lived his life based on Christian principles, especially to help others in need. He exemplified honesty, integrity and a work ethic that he passed on to his children. His glass was always half full."

Best and most wonderful names belongs to the obituary of Miss Lilly Pearl who was born in Crabapple Creek.  She was married to Chester Louis and sister to Herbert.  She was an avid rose grower and a "consulting rosarian" with the San Antonio Rose Society.

**If my name were Lilly, I might have raised lillies rather than roses.


And I am sorry to do this but it has to be done.  The family that gets the You People Should Not Be Allowed to Bestow Stupid Names on Innocent Babes award includes these:

Julio Cesar

Misty

Krystal (like the burgers??)

Channce

Codie

Cash Bailey

and bringing up the rear . . .

Canyen.

This is closely followed by the Family with the Worst Nicknames:

Debbie = Booboo

John = Big Boy

Last but not least, since he was alphabetically last we come to Mr. Kenneth Wayne W. who will be dearly missed by his friends and loyal rat terrier, Clyde.

**Awwww.  No family?  Just friends and a loyal rat terrier?  How sad.  There were no services listed either.  R.I.P. Mr. Kenneth Wayne.  


I sure hope one of his friends takes Clyde and gives him a good home.

A little bit of this, a little bit of that. . . .

I have been gone for a few days.  I went to see my sister Bertha to help her celebrate her birthday.  This is why you might have noticed my absence.

We had a ball.  We cooked, we baked, we grocery shopped, we ate, we were such wild women.  Yes, that is how we roll.  I will post the pics of her amazing birthday cake we made.  Hopefully tomorrow.

Today I have the ever-so-exciting updates from the  . . . .

wait for it . . . . . .



THE WEEKLY OBITUARY READING!!!

This week I have to complain about the use of nicknames.  I know, I have complained mightily about these in the past.  But please!  Does the family of Elaine not think we might guess that she is lovingly referred to as "Laine"?

Forest Freitag's family affectionately called him "Tag".  Similarly, Sumner Hudson went by "Hud".

Also in the Nickname Honor Roll are:

Theodate known by all as Teddy.

Jimmy who went by "Bo".

And Jesusita known as Susie.

Another pet peeve of mine is the use of the word "currently".  As in "currently of San Antonio".  How about the more accurate term, "lately" or just say "of San Antonio"?  To me, currently means the person is presently residing there.  Not so much.

The family that had the most interesting names had the surname of Smith.  Believe it or don't.  In that Smith clan there were Nelsons, Dibbles, Wendells, Cecils, Vesters, and Lela Maes.

The very best, and most heart-felt obit belonged to Mr. John Poindexter Landers.  Here are a few lines of what was said about him:

"John Poindexter Landers, Historical Preservationist, Poet, born May 9, died, April 4."

He studied at the Gregorian University in Rome Italy, University of Texas, Virginia and Oxford.  He was the recipient of the Rhodes Scholarship.  He traveled to 45 countries on 4 different continents studying art, architecture and history.

And . . .  he appeared on the Antiques Roadshow.

Mr. Landers lived an amazing life if the little bit of information in the obituary is any indication.  He also had a very handsome picture with a great smile.  God Speed, John Poindexter Landers.

Oh, one more thing, you know how sometimes people don't put the cause of death?  I think you should.  I have been doing so much work on my geneology and cause of death would be one of the things I would love to find out about my ancestors.  Wouldn't you?

Anyhoo, in this week's obituaries, Alzheimer's was the cause of death most-often listed.  Typically it is cancer, but Alzheimer's is creeping up.  Very scary to see that.  So go exercise your brain.  Do a crossword puzzle, jigsaw puzzle and whatever else is good to help ward off that stuff.  Also, watch your intake of aluminum.

Damn!  I had turned the page and almost forgot to go back to tell you about a wonderful lady I wish I had known.

Diana Kathryn (known as Kay) "was the mischiefmaker in the family and known for her wicked sense of humor, her love of birding and all wild creatures, Tex-Mex cheese enchiladas and the Democratic Party. when asked her religious preference, she answered dryly 'Druid'."  Ha!

And even better she wants all contributions to be made to the Humane Society or the Nature Conservancy.

R.I.P. Diana Kathryn, and all the other dearly departed from this week.

Hilarity in the Obits

There were not a lot of interesting tidbits that beared repeating, but the ones that were there?  Gems!

Let's start out with a ridiculous use of " ", apostrophes.

"Our loving Husband, Dad, Grand"Pa", Brother and Uncle"

**Really?  apostrophes in the midst of Grandpa?  Capitalization of all titles? Dad, maybe.  Uncle as part of a name.  Say, Uncle Bill.  But just for the sake of clarifying his position in the family?  Nope.  Husband or Brother ?  Never.
That one irritated me.  They should really have had a proofreader.


I love this little bit of info on Brig. General Puck:
"Armin met Marguerite, his wife of 71 years, on a Coco-Cola date".

And let me tell you, opening sentences don't get any better than this:

"On March 30, and at the age of 100, Linda left this world to join the man who had loved her every moment of their 67 years of marriage, and joined him at the gates of heaven. Linda was a brilliant, creative, ambitious woman born before her time."

We come to a pretty scary visual with this one:

"Charles, of San Antonio, miraculously surrounded by family, grand-daughter bouncing on his lap, suddenly passed away on Thursday."

**o. m. g.  I just don't have words for this.


Now this guy gets honors for the best euphemism for dying or passing away.

"Edward, (Brother Ed), age 71, was promoted into glory on Sunday."

Then it gets odd:

"He is survived by his devoted wife of 45 years and helpmate, Katherine of the home; a son of New Braunfels, a daughter of San Antonio"

**His wife "and helpmate" is of the home, while everyone else gets a place of residence?  Seems odd to me.


The most beautifully written, touching obit was for Gloria Goldstein.  This was written by her son and honestly the whole thing was gorgeous.  It made me cry to read it.  Here is just the opening:

"It is with great sadness that I share the passing of my mother, Gloria Goldstein on March 24. I was honored to be her son, and am who I am because of her guidance, generosity and unconditional love."

And last but certainly not least; we have what I know in my heart they did not mean to be funny but it came across that way.  Well, just read this for your own self and see what you think:

"Jan had a big heart and friends too numerous to mention all over the Nation. His sense of humor was legendary. His generosity was notorious. His corneas were donated."

**I will leave that as the last word.  Heee!!

Obit Reading and Reviewing

Okay, there were the usual amount of obituaries, but not really any super cool or interesting ones.  I am sure all the people were lovely.  I am just talking about the actual writing of the obits. Please don't misunderstand or misunderestimate what I was saying there.  Heh.

There were a couple of Honorable Mentions.

First up!  We have the very lovely Viola Bennett, who "after dancing in many parts of his world, began joyfully dancing with the angels on March 23 at the age of 92."

Then we have Miss Betty Jo Bisbey, was known to family as Gram, but to many of her friends as Bingo Betty.  I bet they said things like "I saw Betty the other day" and the other one would say "Really?  Which one?  Was it Bunco Betty or was it that really cute Bingo Betty?"

And then we have  . . . . . .

"God called and Mr. Wilfred "Speedy" Washington answered on March 16 ay 7:25 a.m."

Speedy!  Gotta love that nickname.  The best thing of all was the last line of his obit. "You were a father, dad and mentor to all. You will be missed and loved infinitely."

Now, who wouldn't want to be loved infinitely?  That's a wonderful thing to say about someone.

Have a fabulous day!

Obit Reading and Reviewing Part 934,234,658,123.54

I haven't reviewed the obits in a couple of weeks.  Maybe because I have been sick with the crud and it felt a little too close to home?  Like I was one foot in the grave?  Who knows?

But yesterday, there were a TON of dead people!  There were 3 1/4 pages.  Typically we get 2, or 2 1/2.  Anything greater than 2 1/2 is a lot.  3 1/4 is unprecedented.  Must have been all that partying hard for St. Paddy's that did them in.  Ha!

So here's the low-down on the obits:

There were two people who died that belonged to the same church.  There was one woman who quit being a nun after 30 years to become a professor.

Sometimes it's not just the facts they lay out but the "in lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to such and such" that will tell you something about the dearly departed's life.  For example, there is a really sad one regarding a boy who died a day shy of his 22nd birthday.  As if that wasn't sad enough, the family wrote so many lovely things about him that it made you wish you had known him.  Then they go on to request donations be made to a local Recovery Center.

Now this could mean it's a favorite charity of theirs, but most likely it means they had been dealing with this boy's addiction issues for a time and that is what killed him.  So sad.

There was a beautiful picture of a woman with thick gorgeous hair.  She had really high cheekbones and was doing the little Mona Lisa smile.  Her obituary was wonderful.  Whoever wrote it tried to capture her spirit and not just state geneology facts.  The story of how she met her husband upon his return from the WWII European front was awesome. "He asked her to marry him almost immediately and wrote in a letter, 'When I first held you, I felt like I'd known you always!'"

She was an avid craftswoman, "a virtual Martha Stewart a la Mexicana".

The family with the best group of names has to be the Humphrey bunch.  First up is Hazel (the deceased a.k.a. Fern), then her husband Willard, Ed, Joe, Wanda, Brandy, Misty, Caedmon, Rhett and Zoe.  In the  listing of services it says "Funeral Service for 'Geen' is Tuesday, at 1 p.m."  Huh?  Geen?  I thought it said Hazel was known as Fern?

Runner-Up for best names, but also probably for Coolest Obit:

"Stanley Kahawaii, 58, of Waianae, went with God on March 6, in San Antonio. Leaving his loving wife, Madonna; children, Alexander (Crystal) and Sierra; sisters, Nanette Smith (Robert Leval) and Ella Ching (Rudy Paredes); Hana'i families, Iokia and Pakele; nieces, nephews, and "da boys".  Celebration of life will be at 6:30 p.m. Aloha attire."

Now, aren't you sufficiently curious about this bunch?  Sadly, there is no location listed.  I guess you would have to call the funeral home to find out the details.

Oh!  There was a new twist on saying "died" in this week.  Check it out:  "Bradley passed from the loving arms of his family to the everlasting arms of our Lord".

Also a contender for Coolest Obit:  "Orval Manuel Fletcher, Jr. Predeceased by his life partner "Jellybean".

This one is in a class all it's own.  It's a long one so I will just share some of the highlights with you.
"Masterpieces are often contemplated, admired, reflected upon, and cherished for eternity. These larger than life and immortal objects, masterfully designed by the hand of god, molded from clay, panted on canvas, carved and crafted in stone, and captured on film all conceived by careful consideration and masterful manipulation by the hand of man. On March 13, a living masterpieces was lost to this world. A timeless work of art to be admired, loved, and cherished forever. "
**Ok, I have to interject here, could they have used the word MASTER and any of its variations any more in that little paragraph?
They go on to say "A descendant of kings, queens, and of military grandeur, she lived her life in royal fashion with a curious interest in, and a love for life. 'Plus Oultre', chere Mama"

Okay.

There were a couple of people who passed away due to a brief or sudden and unexpected illness.  One of them was surrounded by family.  Really?  If you are surrounded by your family and sick and in bed, I don't think it is that terribly unexpected.  Hell, I have been sick for over 3 weeks and not once have I been surrounded by my loved ones.

Several people died from car accidents.  One of them was a young 27 year old police officer.  She had only been on the force a little over 3 years.  And get this, she was responding to a call and was hit by some drunk idiot who was on the expressway going the WRONG WAY with no headlights!  How do you even get on the wrong side of the expressway?  What a complete douche.  According to the witnesses, there was no braking, no turning of the wheel or anything by either car.  They flat did not see each other until it was too late.  And you know what I am going to tell you next. The "allegedly" impaired driver?

Lived!

Also, there was an 83 year old homeless veteran listed.  It states that he served honorably from 1947 to 1967.  It breaks my heart that we have homeless veterans.  There should be more of a safety net for these guys.

That's it for this week's obit reading.  I hope you enjoyed sharing in this with me.  Let me hear from you!

The Reading of the Obits, yet again

Before I jump right into this past week's obituaries, I have to tell you the funniest story.  I was reading the local news online, since I only take the Sunday paper (for the obits) and there was an article about weird and interesting funerals.  So you know I clicked on THAT one first thing!  Anyhoo, in this article the owner of one of the large funeral homes was quoted several times.  This made me think he must be a big-wig in the local funeral parlor game.  Never in a million years would you ever guess this dude's name.  Never!  I kept going over and over the article because there is no way I thought this was real.

Picture this, me and Mr. Big Ed are bereaved and for some reason (knocking on all kinds of wood) are at the funeral home and having to make arrangements.  We are sad, we are overcome with grief, yet still having to make mundane decisions.  Then the director comes in and introduces himself.   "Hello, so very sorry for your loss.  My name is Dick Tipps and I will be here to serve you".

Yeppers.  Dick. Tipps.  They call me Mr. Tipps!

Did his parents wake up and say to themselves "Selves, we must toughen up this tiny little 6' 7" baby boy. I know!  Let's name him Dick!  Then he can get the crap beaten out of him every single day of his school career!!"  Not to mention he won't have a girlfriend to cramp his focus on his academics.

Mr. Big Ed and I were so bad, we giggled about this for quite some time and could not picture ourselves doing this and keeping straight faces.  I had to call my friend Patty Cakes and tell her all about it too.  I sure hope we aren't going to hell for our interest in obituaries and wanting to correct all the grammar in them.

On to the obits!!

Under the category of bad names, like the afore-mentioned Mr. Tipps:

We find Harold Rocco DeBona.  Was he known as Harry?  Harry DeBona?  His two sons were Rocco and Bruce.  Rocco Jr. was married to Sugar.  Sugar and Rocco DeBona.  You can totally picture this cast on the Sopranos, can't you?

Then we have Mae Gee who lived to the age of 95. (Yea Mae!!) She was born to Woo Gee and Shee Gee.  And yet her only 2 surviving brothers were named Paul and William.

New and interesting ways to say "died":

Linda Rose got her angel wings and was reunited with our Lord in her new mansion on Friday, Feb. 11.

Our dear sweet mother, Mary Louise, went to her heavenly home on Feb. 3 after a lenghy battle with dementia.

Jack Paul Leon died peacefully of pancreatic cancer at home on Wednesday, in the arms of his loving family.
**I have been with too many people in my family dying of cancer and I find it almost impossible to believe that was truly peaceful.  I sincerely hope that it was.

This next one also gets an award for longest run-on sentence. "Jenny Fleming, who was born in China and came of age in Shanghai during WWII and who married John T. Fleming Jr. in 1949, lost her valiant struggle with the complications of pneumonia and passed away peacefully on Feb. 7.
**I am sorry for poor Jenny Fleming, but seriously?  Who is born, came of age, got married, fights pneumonia and passes peacefully all in one sentence?  Give Jenny some dignity and use a period or two.

This one almost got the award for longest sentence, but they actually used two sentences for this. "Frances Marie "CISCA" Maestes, "Keka"; devoted daughter, inspiring sister, loving partner, loyal and generous friend, age 43, passed away quietly Saturday, Feb 5, at her home, surrounded by her family, into the waiting arms of her Heavenly Father. After a long and valiant battle with cancer; her spirit was just too big and too beautiful for her broken body to contain".
**The pain just leaps off the page in that particular one, doesn't it?  So sad to see these really young people who are truly in the prime of their lives dying of that no good bitch cancer.




Wonderful old names that we don't see anymore:

Eva Edna.  Love it!

Under the category of really interesting info:

"Curtis Wayne Lamb Hayes was born Sept. 13, 1937 in Long Beach, CA. Curt died from cardio/pulmonary failure. He also suffered from Alzheimer's disease. Curt was the only son of George Samuel Lamb and Almeda Marie Hill Lamb. In 1941, George was killed aboard the U.S.S. Arizona during the attack on Pearl Harbor."  Curt's mom remarried and he went on to live a great life and did loads of fun things.  It was a really nice, and interesting obituary.  A life well lived!

Then we come to Tara Nancy, who was way too young to die at 42.  Here is what they said about Tara. "Tara had an exciting career as a helicopter pilot, private and commercial, for 15 years and was a member of Whirly-Girls, International Women Helicopter Pilots."

"James Lee Oaks, age 70 went to be with the Lord on Feb 8. His death was unexpected. James was born in Coldwater Miss. August 3, 1940. He was from a family of 10 children and he lost his father in a fire when he was only 10 years old. He helped raise his siblings before he joined the Air Force."
**I can only imagine that losing his dad in such a horrible way was a defining moment in his life. Especially if he was only 10 years old.  I was curious as to where Mr. James Lee was in the birth order of those 10 kids.  My first thought was that he was the oldest, but that would mean there were 10 kids in as many years and can you imagine what his poor mama went through?  She would have been completely worn out with 10 kids under 10 and losing her husband.  So let's hope that James Lee was in the bottom of the pack and there were some teen-aged kids to help her out after this ordeal.


And one of the obits had a great little bit of info about the deceased that sounded a lot like me.  I read it to Patty Cakes and she said we should save it to work into my own obit.  "Mary was a life long homemaker, devoted wife and mother and an excellent seamstress, who could also crochet up a storm. She loved to work in the yard, watch the birds, do crossword puzzles and do for others. She also enjoyed many wonderful travels with Morris and friends over the years. But what she loved most was spending time with her family."

Now other than "an excellent seamstress", that sounds a whole lot like me.  And I would be traveling with Mr. Big Ed, not Morris.

Over all, it was some good reading this week.  Sadly, there were too many young people, and the worst of all was a little 15 month old named Madelynn.  The sweetest little picture of her accompanied her obituary.  So sad, just heart-breaking for this to happen.

I wasn't going to tell you this, but I will.  One of the obituaries was of someone I knew.  He was a very close friend of one of my friends.  I went to his funeral yesterday and it was so sad.  I barely knew this man and I cried like a baby when he got his military honors.  When they do the playing taps while also doing the whole folding of the flag and presenting it to the mama, you just can't keep it together.  No one should ever have to receive a flag for their child.  I am crying again just thinking about it.  We get lots of military funerals here since our Ft. Sam Houston National Cemetary is second largest behind Arlington.  And they keep those old veterans busy out there most every day doing the 21 gun salute and playing taps.  The ritual of the service must be hard for them to do day in and day out.  But that ritual is what is so meaningful to the mourners.  It was a beautiful service and I hope it was some comfort to his family.

And now, to completely change gears!!

Queen B!  would you prefer black, green or white tea?

Mish Mash, Super Bowl, Obits, and what-not

I have sooooo many things to talk about today!  Firstly, let's just talk about the Super Bowl and get it over with, shall we?

I gave up watching NFL games with any regularity years ago.  Mostly because we lived out of the country and they weren't available. But a Super Bowl is usually a guaranteed good afternoon of t.v., food, half-time  music, commercials, etc.  The game itself was pretty good.  I was glad to see the Packers win.  Let's just re-cap this.

1. The game was good.  The team without an alleged sex offender won.

2. The half-time show?  Not so much.  I didn't get it.  What was the point of bringing out Usher?  What was the point of Slash standing there and Fergie gyrating all around him?  While ruining a perfectly fine song.  It was a low point in half-time shows, is what I am saying.

3. The commercials.  What a sad state of affairs.  Very very few good ones.  And even the good ones couldn't hold their own against any of the previous good ones.

Here is one of the good ones.

But the best one was from the local grocery store chain H.E.B.  For those of you who are not in Texas, you most likely didn't get to see this ad.  It is Jack Ingram singing at Gruene Hall, the oldest dance hall in Texas, and probably the most famous.  This is the same dance hall they used in filming that movie Michael with John Travolta playing an angel.  Remember this?

That was in Gruene Hall.  Anyhoo, back to the awesome ad for H.E.B.  This is the full length 3 minute long one.  The one on t.v. was only 1 minute.

Now, on to the obits!!  There were some fabulous old-school names listed!  Love the old antique-y names.

Sadly, Mrs. Elora J. Bump passed away at the age of 88.  She was married to Delmar E. Bump.

Louis Lorelli Guido, Jr. was married to Agnes known as "Tootsie".

Ronald G. Kruithof a.k.a. "Ron/Ray"

Nellie Knopp's family included Ben Mikolajczyk, Victoria Sczodrok, Bruno Knopp, Jimmie and Gladys Zigmond, Alphons Zigmond known as "Rusty", and Cheyenne, Chaely and Colton Zigmond, and Alex and Clara Mikolajczyk. When is the last time you met a Bruno, Gladys or a Clara?  Much less all of them in one family!  Love it.

Hiram Abiff Cockrell died peacefully.  He had 2 brothers by the names of Hansel and John Ross.

We had some unusual euphemisms for dead this week too:

"left this life peacefully"

"passed with her daughter by her side on Saturday evening, after an arduous battle with alzheimer's. The Lord released her of her suffering and took her into His arms."
**Isn't that the saddest and sweetest thing?  It just breaks my heart.


"after 83 years of laughter, love and joy, Janie was granted eternal life after 59 years of marriage to her loving husband, Leonard G."
**Okay, I was seriously confused by this sentence.  Way too many thoughts going on in there. 


"went to eternal rest with the Lord"

"F. Todd Spann, a loving gracious son given by the Lord to Delores A. Busher Spann and F. Rudy Spann, was born on Nov. 11, 1964. Todd was reunited with our Mother Christmas morning when he was welcomed into his eternal home. We rejoice in the knowledge that he passed the barrier of time as we know it and is forever at home with the Savior he faithfully served and his Mom whom he loved dearly."
**Whew.  I am beginning to think they don't charge by the word or the column inch, but rather by how many periods you use.  Why else would people all try to cram as much into each sentence as they do?




And the Most Interesting Obit this week goes to the writer of Cindy Cox's obituary.  Here is a snippet:

"Cindy Cox, born Sept. 27, 1923 in Valdosta, GA, died Feb. 1, 2011.  She was a farm girl during the "Great Depression". When a child, her family fed and provided toys for children and buried the kin of families who could not afford it. Her father, Morris Franklin Hobby (Dice) donated his own farmland for a school. Her mother, Kate Furney was a crack shot who could shoot a screech owl at midnight from 100 yards in the dead of night."
**Now, how could you NOT want to know these people?  Not only does Miss Cindy Cox sound like a wonderful person, her parents were awesome!  And whomever was left to write this tribute knew enough family history to bring their stories to life.  Good job, family of Cindy Cox!!


And since today is the 7th of the month it is time for another drawing of someone to receive a FREE BAG OF TEA!!  Straight from the tea stash of Lisa Pie's pantry.  Yea!!

Last month's winner was Sarah with an H.  I sure hope she received her lovely bag of tea alright and has been enjoying it.

So if you too would love to be chosen to get some FREE TEA, please leave a comment and keep checking back this week to see if you were chosen.  Woo Hoo!!

Random Things from This Week

Nothing like a big serving of randomness, is there?

1. Yesterday I posted my usual thing of obit reading.  But I also talked about a t.v. show that ended.  And since I led with the t.v. show and ended with the best obit I have ever read, I kinda thought that the last thing you read would be the first thing commented on.  Nope.  Not so much.  Either y'all don't really give a shit about the obits, or you really liked the husband from the t.v. show!  Ha!  That was pretty much the concensus of the comments.  Everyone liked that guy.  Did anyone give a rat's ass about the poor dead concentration camp survivor guy?  Apparently not.

2. We had a storm come through here last night and dropped the temp about 50 degrees, with lots of wind and rain.  And this usually makes for some great sleeping at my house.  Love, love to sleep during a rainstorm.  However, last night?  All the flipping pets were up at one time or another and were all a bit on edge.  None of us got a good night's sleep.  In spite of that, I still have a full day of things to do.  Those dogs and kitties?  I am sure they will be basking in front of a window with lots of warm sunbeams on their fur.  I intend to poke each of them and wake them up every time I walk by and see one of them sleeping. Twice if they were one of the ones who kept me up all night.  Revenge, it's what's for breakfast!

3. I am reading a book that my son has for one of his classes this semester.  He brought it in and said he thought I might like it and he doesn't have to start on it for a few weeks.  So I have been reading it at night and it is really an interesting premise.  Let me go get it so I can tell you the title.

Okay, I got it.  And I went ahead and took a pic of the cover so you can see it.

A World of Babies, Imagined Childcare Guides for Seven Societies.  The little blurb on the bottom left is from T. Berry Brazelton, my favorite of all pediatricians.

So, here is the deal on this book - The opening chapters are explaining what the premise is behind each supposed childcare guide.  Then with each childcare guide there is a synopsis of this particular society, how it functions, how large it is, what are the social, religious, spiritual more's, etc.  Then there is the imagined childcare guide written from the perspective of a healer, a grandmother, a midwife, or whoever would be a respected person from that culture.

It is really interesting.  And all these babies will grow up just fine not because of the way their parents rear them, but in spite of!  There are so many conflicting customs.  Some believe in bathing babies 5 times a day, some 2 times a day, some not until they are 210 days old.  Some swaddle tightly for months, some never.

What all this means is there is no one right way to do things.  There never has been.  What is appropriate in one society in one time period would never work across the world in that same time period or any other.  What we can take from this is that we should all be open to learning new ways and not judging things as "right" and "wrong".

I think I am on the 4th society and have 3 more to go.  I will let you know if I change my opinion when I finish.

4. Since Lester Buster made it back home safely, I have not let him go outside at all.  Everyone else thinks I am being too hard on him, taking away his Outside Privileges, but I swear to you I lost 5 years of my life worrying about him and I don't think I can do it again.  I am sure that in time I will loosen up and let him go out front again, but for the time being, he needs to be indoors.  Which brings up all kinds of my codependent issues.  It's like I am learning to be better in one area of my life, and BAM! Lester goes missing and I fell right back into my old familiar pattern.  Nice.

5. Yesterday would have been the birthday of one of my sisters.  She died 15 years ago, way too young. Her best friend and I sent each other email messages remembering things about her.  It was a rather sad, nostalgic day. R.I.P. sweet beautiful girl.

6. And before this turns any more maudlin and depressing, I have this for you!

I sure hope he gets picked up for a new series or new movie or something.  He is a cutie, isn't he?