Saturday, June 4, 2011

Lisa Is Dead for No Reason

June 6 will make 6 years since my brother killed his wife. I am posting this in hopes that some woman will see herself here and do something before it is too late. Feel free to repost this on your own blogs.
Lisa was my sister-in-law. I say "was" because my brother murdered her. What is really sad is that even though he beat her for years he didn't intend to kill her and he will only serve a 5 to 8 years sentence for it. As my niece said, "he finally hit her too hard one time."
I have a severely dysfunctional family. The only reason that I was even speaking to my brother was because I wanted a relationship with my niece and nephew. Lisa was aware of this. Lisa and I were typical sisters-in-law. We got along fine most of the time but we also had arguments like sisters do. Yet even when we argued we both knew we could count on each other if something happened and we proved that to each other time and time again. At the time of her death we were arguing. When I say arguing I mean not speaking. Even though we weren't speaking there were several times when we stepped up to help each other in that period.
Over the years my brother abused Lisa both physically and verbally. The first instance that I knew of happening was while she was pregnant with my niece. They had been married less than 9 months. I went to her when I was told about it and let her know that I would help her in any way that I could if she decided to leave my brother. I was not about to let my future niece or nephew suffer because of my brother's actions. His violent nature was well documented in my family as well as his propensity to cause trouble by manipulation. When I went to Lisa at that time I think it established the basis for our relationship.
Lisa, of course, refused to leave Billy. Five years later along came my nephew. I never heard of any more problems with them until about 15 months later. Lisa called me crying. I was living in Florida and she was living in West Virginia. (Our family is from WV) She told me that she had left my brother. She told me that he had beaten her badly and that it had been going on all along but she did not want me to know because she knew that I would encourage her to leave him and she loved him.
She also told me that he had raped her. She was living in a separate house and he broke in and forced her to have sex while threatening my niece and nephew who were asleep in the next room. She said that he rammed his entire fist into her mouth to keep her quiet even though she was afraid to make any noise because she didn't want to wake the children and scare them. Keep in mind that my brother is 6ft. 2in. tall and weighed about 250lbs. Lisa was about 5ft. 2in. tall and the most she ever weighed was about 130lbs. usually she weighed about 110lbs. Again I assured her that I would help her and the children in any way that I could including financially.
A few weeks later the entire family showed up on my doorstep. I was quite surprised because I had spoken with Lisa several times in that period and she had not mentioned a reconciliation. I looked at her and she signaled for me not to mention anything. So I didn't. Later she told me that she had reconciled because of the kids.
A few years later I came back to WV when my own marriage broke up. Billy and Lisa were very helpful to me. I asked Lisa several time if there were any problems and she always told me no. Things seemed to be fine except for the normal arguments that every couple has except I would go to their house and there would be fist sized holes in the wall and once my nieces' door was ripped off the hinges. If I asked them what happened I wouldn't get an answer. Everyone would just look away and then change the subject.
I did go in one day when it was obvious that he had just finished beating her. She looked like a ragdoll. She was completely enraged saying that she would get even with him. But once again she did not leave him. She told me that she didn't want to end up like I had after the break-up of my marriage. (i.e. broke and trying to start over) She, most of all, did not want her dad to tell her "I told you so". She did start a countdown of when she was going to leave my brother though. "D" day was my nephews' 18th. birthday.
Billy and Lisa then got into some legal trouble over the business. Unfortunately he convinced her that the best way to beat the charges was to stick together no matter what. Because Lisa would not testify against her husband in court, she was sent to prison for about a year. I tried to talk her into testifying against him but she was convinced that this was the best way to handle the situation. I had been listening to her do her "D" day countdown for about 2 years and I reminded her of this, telling her that sending him to prison was the best way to leave him. She would also be able to stay with her children that way.
The bottom line was that she loved my brother.
At 5:30 am one morning while I was at work, my mom called me. I knew it was bad as soon as I heard her voice. I was working my midnight job and there was no one there to relieve me. I made her tell me what was wrong. She said "Lisa's dead". I asked what happened. She told me they found her in a trunk. I asked what kind of trunk(picturing a piece of luggage). She told me the trunk of a car. I knew immediately what happened. My mom told me that my brother had disappeared with my nephew and she wanted to know if I knew where he might have gone so that she could tell the police. I couldn't think of anything.
My mom had told me that she was sending the police to a friend's house that she thought that Billy may have gone to. I knew that was wrong because Billy and Mike had not really spoken in years but Mitzi (his wife) and I were good friends. So I called them, Of course Billy was not there and they couldn't understand why my mom would send the police to their home. I explained to them that in a lot of ways my mom lived in the past and refused to believe that they weren't good friends with my brother any more.
Then I called my uncle.(My brother had gone there to hide from the police once after he had beaten me) My uncle said that the police had been there and searched the house but would not tell him why. I told my uncle why and of course he was in complete shock about the situation.
I finally got to leave work about 6:30 that morning. I had to go home and care for my animals because I knew I was going to be gone from home for a few days. I tried unsuccessfully to reach my nieces' boyfriend. I did not want to tell her what happened because she was due to have her first child any day.
At 10:30 that morning I spoke with my mom and she said that the police had found my brother at my grandma's house. She didn't know where my nephew was though. I went to my grandma's house and asked her where Arny was. She told me that the police had come and taken him away at about 6am. She had to tell me 3 times because I thought she was talking about my brother - not my nephew. I couln't figure out what the police wanted with my nephew. He had always been a mama's boy.
I left intending to call the police to find out my nephew's whereabouts. The State Police Barracks office was just a couple of miles away so I went there. I went in and identified myself and told them that I didn't want to know anything about the murder, all I wanted to know is where my nephew was. The woman told me to wait. A few minutes later they led me to a room and there was Arny. I was so relieved to see that he was OK.
The police had been questioning Arny even though he was a minor. They asked me to be present for further questioning. I asked Arny if he felt up to questioning and told him that if he felt he needed a lawyer that he should wait. Arny told the police that he had nothing to hide. I will never tell anyone what was said in that interview for legal reasons. I will say that everything my nephew told them was entirely believable. There were a few points that I felt the police could have gotten more information but they were following an entirely irrelevant line of questioning trying to pin the murder on Arny instead of my brother. (my nephew was in school at the time of the murder)
I wanted to tell them where to elaborate their questions but it quickly became obvious that they did not want to listen to anything I had to say. Finally at 1:30pm. I put a stop to the questions because my nephew had been up all night. His mother was dead. His dad was in jail. He had nothing to eat since the night before. It was obvious that he needed rest before the police forced him to say something stupid because he so desperately needed some rest.
A few minutes later his grandpa showed up.(Lisa's dad) The first thing he did was ask me what I thought happened. I told him we both knew what had happened and discussing it in front of Arny at that time was not the proper thing to do. He said he would take Arny to get something to eat and take him home. Once I knew that Arny would be OK, so I took off to Florida to be with my pregnant niece. this was Wednesday Afternoon.
Becca had a beautiful Baby girl on Sunday Night. Kendall Marie Descalzi (Marie was Lisa's middle name and also the paternal grandmothers' name is Maria. So it is the perfect name.)
It is now six years later and my family is still torn apart by Lisa's murder. My brother maintains his innocence and several member of the family believe him. I have a couple of aunts who maintain that even if my brother is guilty it is not his fault because of his abused childhood. Hogwash! Even though I had documented his abuse in this blog, he still made a concious decision as an adult to beat his wife. I spoke to him several times over our lives about breaking the cycle of abuse. He would always tell me, "I'm working on it."
The hard part is watching my niece and nephew function without their mother who adored them.

My Niece's Comment About the "Lisa is Dead" Blog

As the daughter of Lisa, I thought I'd let everyone know that I do not appreciate that she stayed with my father just to be able to give me material things. I'm far more damaged now than I ever would have been had she just left him and I grew up in a broken home. Maybe I wouldn't have understood and maybe I would have been upset by not having everything I wanted, but I'd rather have that than a dead mother. I am angry at her and I rarely feel sad. It would have been another thing if she would have left and he would have hunted her down. Anyway, I don't appreciate what she did for me. It obviously was not a favor. Everyone needs to realize that their kids are better off in a trailer park with a single parent than having no parents at all and having to deal with their family's name in the headlines and never being able to tell the truth about what your parents do without having people think they are totally pathetic. I promise, if you get murdered by your spouse, your kids will be very mad at you. Harsh, but honest. Maybe I'm angry, but I think I've earned that right.

Home from Work

I have tried to recreate my Ouija board experience from my childhood several times with no success. The closest I ever came was I was with my 2 stepdaughters when we were doing the Ouija board. I started to ask for proof of the spirit's existence and the board said that it would give us a sign in 10 minutes.

My stepdaughters and I sat there for 10 minutes wondering what would happen. Exactly when the second hand of the clock passed the 10 minute mark we heard a key in the door. This, of course, scared us silly. The front door opened and in walked their dad. He was home one hour early from work! None of us had any idea that he was coming home early. He wanted to suprise us.

WELL HE SURE DID!

He Cut Me Out

My beautiful nephew Arny was born in 1990. I was in the process of moving to Florida at the time. I put off my move 2 or 3 days so that I could be there when he was brought home for the first time.

His mom and dad brought him home and I was there with other family members to see my new nephew and wish my family well. Around 10 years later my brother was showing family movies. He put the tape in of Arny's first trip home from the hospital. I had been cut out of it completely. Everyone else who was there was on it. Not me.

It was one of the most hurtful things my brother ever did to me. I couldn't say anything to him about it because I didn't want to raise a stink in front of my niece and nephew.

I left.

Those Poor, Poor Kitties

When I was a kid I had a kitten named Willie Akers. Willie Akers was our local championship basketball coach. I didn't have poor Willie for a week when my mom picked me up from school one day. I should have known something was wrong because she NEVER picked us up and she didn't pick up my brother and sister, just me.

She tearfully started to apologize to me and proceeded to tell me that she had accidentally run over poor Willie in the driveway. She didn't even know what she hit when she hit him. She just saw him dead in the driveway after she backed up to the road and stopped to checked traffic. An accident.

She took me home and showed me where she had buried him next to the wall where the big forsythia bush was. She had found some vines with big purple flowers and draped them over the wall and poor Willie's resting place. It was really quite pretty.

I'm sure I probably had another cat within a week or so but I don't remember that part.

Once I had left home my mom and dad got 2 pure white, persian kittens. They were ethereal in their delicate beauty. One day my 6 foot brother walked in and sat on the couch to visit everybody. He sat on a comforter on the couch. He was devastated to find when he got up that he had squashed and smothered both kittens.

Unfortunately we were a cruel family and even though we were sorry that the kittens died we couldn't help but joke about how my brother killed the cats! What asses we were! Of course, his ass is what murdered them to begin with! I couldnt resist that one.

Another time I looked out my window one day to see my cat laying in the grass. I knew she was dead immediately because of the position she was in but also because one of her legs was laying a few feet away from her. I watched a a pit bull dragging a chain left the yard. I reported the dog to animal control but all they did was take it in and as soon as the owners posted bond they gave it back to them.

My heartbreak didn't matter to them at all.

Later that day I went to the animal shelter to get a cat. I got a cat that had 7 front toes on each foot and an extra toe on each back foot. The defect made her fur fan out and her feet looked feathered like a clydesdale horse. It was the only five minutes I was happy that day.

On the way back from the animal shelter I pulled into the side of another car. Completely my fault. The damage to my car was negligible but he couldn't open either driver's side door. I offered to get him another car just like it (it was a junker and they were easy to find) and he agreed since the car he was in was still driveable and then he would have 2 cars.

Unfortunately I couldn't find a car for him. He ended up suing me for repairs that were worth more than the car was. My insurance company was furious with me because I went into court and claimed complete fault and told them to pay the man he had waited long enough for his money and he had been more than reasonable.

They argued they didn't have to pay more than the value of the car. Fortunately the magistrate agreed with the man and made the insurance company pay for his repairs. I also apologized to the man because I had tried to get him a comparable car, I just couldn't find one.

Sometimes all you can do is make the best of a bad situation.

As Usual, Nobody will help

It's a hard situation. There is a deer, here, in downtown Charleston, WV. It is in the vacant lot across the street that the drunks frequent on a perpetual basis on their many walks to Rite Aid to buy beer.

She will panic - she already has once when a trash truck came by. She will end up being hit by a car.

I've tried to call DNR (hopefully for a tranquilizer), then animal control, then the police, then 2 news stations. It's Saturday. No one cares. Can't have something to handle on a weekend afterall.

No one is interested in helping her. That is until she panics and gets hit by a car and causes a couple thousand in vehicle damage - never mind the damage to her.

If I had the capacity to help her I would. I don't. Time to wash my hands of it but I worry.

Friday, June 3, 2011

If you want to see grown men cower...

...watch them when they catch a snapping turtle when they are fishing. Eddie and I went fishing yesterday. Actually he fished and I went and waded in the creek again.

When I went back to the pond he and another man were fishing. Neither had caught anything. I hadn't been there 10 minutes when the other man caught a snapping turtle. I had been watching 2 of them and he caught the big one. I reeled it in with a whole lot of effort. Then he was dumb enough to think he was actually going to get his hook back! The turtle thought differently and it won the battle!

I tried to warn the man but, of course, he didn't listen. A snapping turtle can extend it's neck about a foot from the shell. It has no problem reaching around the back of it's portable house and snapping one of your fingers right off your hand. It was fun to watch the idiot reach down and jump back as the turtle tried to dismember him! All for a 10 cent fishing hook. When the man would jump back the turtle would make a dash (yes, they can dash when they are upset) for the bank. The man would pull back on the line and the turtle would leverage it's feet against the side of the embankment much like a 3 year old child grabs onto the door frame when it's being hauled to take a dreaded bath!

Finally he wised up and cut the line. The poor turtle has to live with a hook now but at least it's alive and the man has all his digits. Then a few minutes later Eddie caught the little turtle. Much the same battle ensued except I tried to get him to let me put it in the back of the truck. I was going to let it walk around back there until we got home and then I was going to kill it and eat it.

Eddie would have no part of it. He was too scared. He just cut his line and let it go!

It gives me a new respect for my ex. I was married to Daniel Boone. He would catch bigger turtles than the ones we caught yesterday and I can guarantee you that even though he would show them a healthy respect for their ability to chomp, he didn't hesitate to kill it. I ate turtle many times when we were first married.

It's good. People tell you it tastes like chicken. It kind of does but with a much richer flavor. I finally got the nerve to taste frog legs a couple years ago. It took me a few minutes to remember where I had tasted that flavor before. Turtle and frog legs have the same flavor. Turtles have much more meat.

Before we went home Eddie caught a bass. I cleaned it. He will cook it today. I will eat it.

Thursday, June 2, 2011

I'm getting younger

http://www.realage.com/raap/realage-test

According to realage.com I'm getting younger. I took their test a couple of months after I was first diagnosed with heart failure 5 years ago. I was 73 years old! (I was really 44)

I took the test this morning I was 59 years old! Yeah, I know it's still too old for me but I have improved by 14 years! I'm doin' a happy dance!

Playin' on the Hatfield Cemetery

Pretty much everybody has heard of the Hatfield and McCoy feud. The leader of the Hatfield clan was Devil Anse Hatfield. The Hatfield family cemetery was about 1/2 a mile around the mountain from my Granny Brennan's house. Sometimes we would sneak around the mountain (we weren't allowed that far from the house) to play in the cemetery. We thought it was haunted.


Devil Anse' grave had a life size statue of him which was imported from Italy at the head of his grave. It was weather beaten and overgrown with vines. A ring of faded white-washed stones surrounded his sunken-in grave. The whole cemetery was overgrown with weeds and vines and the tombstones looked better than any that you can find in a horror movie.

We never stayed long because the joke was to play hide and seek and everybody would leave you behind and not look for you. All of a sudden you would find yourself alone in a haunted cemetery!


There used to be a sign marking the entrance to the cemetery it said "Devil Anse Hatfield is buried here. He was the leader of his clan in the bitter family feud with the McCoys. A life-sized statue modeled from photographs and imported from Italy marks his grave. "


Now the cemetery has been refurbished. This was done to help atract tourists to Logan, W.V. and it does. I think it was better when we were kids though.

I have video touring the cemetery as it is today in the video section of my blog.

Have you ever nearly strangled yourself to death while brushing your teeth?

I've managed to do it twice this week. Not only did I swallow some mouthwash but it went down the wrong pipe both times!

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Dead Men Walking

Pam rolled over to look into the cold, dead eyes of her husband. She jumped out of bed squealing. How can he be dead?

Mary went into Rick's room, apparently he wasn't going to respond to the alarm clock - again! The kid was going to be the death of her! He was dead.

"911, what's your emergency?" The emergency center was being flooded with calls. Men were dead everywhere. There was no way to respond to all the calls. All over the valley men weren't waking up. What the hell is going on?

The first report on the morning news went as follows: All over the country reports of men dying in their sleep are pouring in. The CDC has already begun an investigation into the phenomenon. There is one common thread in all the reports. Once the men go to sleep they just don't wake up again. Currently an advisory is being issued that ALL MEN SHOULD STAY AWAKE AS LONG AS IS HUMANLY POSSIBLE AND SLEEP ONLY UNDER SUPERVISION (although the supervision doesn't seem to help)

In a related story, we are sad to report the demise of our morning anchorman Chris Wells. His wife found him dead this morning. Police are investigating.

24 hours into the current emergency situation businesses and services are shutting down all over the country. All the handymen and maintenance workers are dying like flies. The women have little to no training to take over the routine operations of most heavy equipment. The world can't run with no one to keep it running.

What men that are left are doing their level best to stay awake. Apparently to sleep is a death sentence. The CDC is investigating but have not managed to learn anything in the first day of research. There is a definite timeline here. In 2 or three more days there will be no men because it just isn't humanly possible for them to stay awake.

Pregnant women giving birth to boys have their dreams turn to nightmares as each boy born is stillborn. Once they give birth, the boys cannot survive on their own and they just die. The little girls are fine. Steps are being taken to secure the nation's sperm banks. If all the men die then all the population will die. In extreme cases women are lining up to be inseminated by the men left who see a definite need to perpetuate the species.

One week later. All the men are gone. Women are struggling to run everything but they must be trained. There are rumors of men still living in certain medical experiments but by and large the whole male population of the world is gone. Research is on going but even if a cure is found for the new born male children, there is still going to be a generation of humanity with no men.

That sucks.

LEGALIZE 4 WHEELERS!

I don't understand why they won't legalize 4 wheelers for the highway. It would save gas and some of the newest cars on the road aren't any bigger. They would just have to regulate them like they do motorcycles.

Other than an image problem (i.e. the redneck hillbilly) I can see no other reason not to legalize them. An awful lot of people around here already have them - once you get out of Charleston anyway.

It's silly.

One time I was hit by a train

What I Did Today

Today I sat in the land of serial killers and nature lovers. No sane person should deliberately go where every scary movie they've ever seen tells them not to. But I can relax in the forest like no where else. The beauty of the springtime foliage is unbelievable. I have paid good money to vacation in places that aren't nearly as beautiful.

I can camp there for $25 a night. Just me and the red ranger and my oxygen machine. what else does a girl need? I used to make fun of people who had electricity when camping - kind of defeats the purpose. Now I can just hook up my machine and sleep in the great outdoors again.

Even with my broken (possibly ) toe, I have done more today than I've done in a long while. Stopping the 2 heart meds is working. I can feel a strength and restlessness that hasn't been there in years. Please let me keep getting stronger.

I had to drive through 3 streams that were in a hollow I've been wanting to check out for awhile. I had to wait until we had a dry spell so I could be sure my truck wouldn't get stuck in the creek bed. That would be a real kick in the head.

I waded in a creek today. I saw a couple of crawdads and some minnows. I dangled my feet in the water that was cold enough to qualify for the icepack that is SUPPOSED to be on my foot. I couldn't resist the urge to dunk myself in the creek. It only took 2 steps to remind me about my broken toe. I contented myself with dowsing my shirt in the cold water. It was refreshing.

Beside me was a bridge, I kid you not, where I watched 2 birds swoop and hover over the bridge before flying underneath. It looked like a scene from a Disney movie complete with birds chirping in the background. I knew there would be a nest so I peeked under the bridge and, sure enough, there was a nest! I didn't disturb anything so the mother could return to her eggs.

When we were kids that poor nest wouldn't have stood a chance. We would have carried it home with some big story about how it was abandoned. We had every intention of helping the little eggs hatch but invariably we would accidentally bust them before the day was over.

I've heard this hollow is haunted. I read it on the internet. They described the overwhelming sense of foreboding hanging over the area. The only thing I saw were vines and leaves hanging overhead. It's positively tranquil.

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Barnabus Collins

When I was growing up there was nothing scarier than Barnabus Collins. Barnabus Collins was the vampire on Dark Shadows. I wasn't allowed to watch Dark Shadows because I had nightmares. My mom watched it every day. I learned I could sneak behind her recliner and watch most of it with no worries about getting caught! One day there was a scene where someone was calling, "Angelique! Angelique!" It was supremely scary and ended with one of the scariest looking, dead, hair blowing witches that I have ever seen in my life to this day. I didn't sneak and watch Dark Shadows anymore.

When I was in the 3rd. grade I was kept having a dream that Barnabus Collins was in the dining room next to my bedroom. He was pacing back and forth at my doorway and he was going to get me. My mom had to consol me many times over this dream and she would counsel me that it was my dream. All I had to do was take control and I could get rid of that mean, old Barnabus!

One night as Barnabus came particularly close, I became so scared that I got mad! I turned around and looked him in the eye and told him, "this is MY dream. You don't scare me!" I promptly proceeded to spit tobacco in his eye!

I never had the Barnabus dream again. That was my first lucid dream.

A Terror Filled Night for my Husband

One time my husband was gone playing poker and I decided to go to bed for the night. At some point I started to have a nightmare. I was dreaming that a man was tromping through the trailer in heavy, hiking boots. I was terrified that he would find me in the bedroom!

I got out of bed and got the gun!

When Bobby came into the bedroom I was in tears. I was ready to shoot him. He said he had to calm me to get me to give him the gun. He really thought I was going to shoot him.

I don't remember anything about it.

After that I NEVER knew where the guns were ever again.

Smart move on his part I would say.

Have you ever sleepwalked and known you were doing it WHILE you were still doing it?

I have. I have also driven in my sleep. It was frightening to wake up about 5 miles from my house on a very curvy stretch of road. I suspect that I was having trouble negotiation those curves which is what probably woke me up to begin with.

Anyway, back to the sleepwalking and being aware of it while you do it but still not being able to stop.

1. I woke up in the car. It was raining outside. I looked around to get my bearings and decided to go back into the house. Once outside of the car, in the rain, I decided that before I went back inside the house I had to go around back and get the 18 St. Bernard puppies and get them out of the rain. (remember I'm dreaming) I walked around the house to the patio. I bent over and scooped up all the puppies. I carried them back around the house to the garage.

I can remember walking with my arms extended fulling in front of me cradling those nonexistant St. Bernard Puppies. I don't remember going back into the house. The next day my mom asked me why I was outside in the rain and covered with grass when I came back into the house. She said that when she asked me what I was doing the night before, I told her I was putting up the puppies and went on to bed.

2. I woke up one night and I had to go to the bathroom. When I was walking down the hallway past the top of the stairs, I had to step carefully. I was on a sinking ship in a stormy sea. I could see the foam of the ocean swirling around the broken boards as I carefully navigated my way across the ship.

Even though I could see I was in the hallway, I could clearly see the foamy waves and I knew if I missed a step I would be hurled into the dark, murky, depths of the sea. (i.e. down the stairs!)

recurring childhood nightmare

I had this nightmare over and over when I was a kid. It was how I learned to lucid dream. (I didn't know there was a word for it then) It always started out in my Pepaw Brennan's house.

In the dream my whole family would be leaving from visiting my grandparents house. We were in a car backing down the mountain when we reached a fork in the road. My dad would decide to turn around by backing into a garage in the fork of the road. Once he backed in a concrete door would slam down and trap us in the garage. It was pitch black.

We would trapped there until my whole family starved to death. Usually around this point I would wake up. If I stayed asleep I would find a door in the back corner of the garage but I couldn't get it to open. This was another point that would wake me up.

If I did manage to open the door, I would start to go down some creepy, concrete, cobwebby stairs that were barely lit. The stairs were steep and there would be another door at the bottom. I would wake up at that door too.

Finally I got the nerve to open that door and there was a room full of vampires and witches and mummys and werewolves and all the other scary creatures of my childhood. I woke up at this point for years.

When I gathered the courage to race through that throng of screaming, grabbing monsters I finally made it to the front door and ran out of our green house. There, sitting by the road was a police car with it's lights flashing. I was safe. I never had the dream again.

My parents spent many sleepless nights because I would sleepwalk. One night my dad caught me when I raced out of the house right before I ran into the road! I have often wondered if that is the dream that I was having when that happened. I don't remember because I was sleepwalking, they have told me about it many times though.

The Wolf Whistle

My grandparents owned a myna bird.

The myna bird could talk.

It could also wolf whistle.

One day when my pepaw was working in the yard next to the porch, one of the neighbor lady's walked past.

The bird decided it would be a good time to wolf whistle.

Of course the neighbor lady thought that my pepaw whistled at her.

He didn't bother to deny it.

He knew it was a waste of time.

He and Granny laughed about it many times over the years.

This was where my mom got her great love of birds.

Monday, May 30, 2011

Abba Goochie Goo!

Across the land

I heard such a cry

Abba Goochie Goo!

Walking through the woods

Land Sakes Alive!

Abba Goochie Goo!

Whirling through the trees

Got me on my knees

Abba Goochie goo!

Never saw such a force

Raining down on me

Abba Goochie goo!

Limb by limb

Ripped apart was me

Abba goochie goo!

I like Smiley's

I don't ever remember my mom leaving a note (even when I became an adult) that my mom didn't leave a smiley face on.

This year for her birthday I am going to get her a double decker cake with smiley's all over it

My Mom Series

I posted the following "mom blogs" a few years ago to honor my mom. I posted one everyday between mother's day and her birthday. I took her copies to read. She seemed pleased.

A month later when she saw me she was furious about the way I had portrayed her.

I didn't understand it then and after rereading them 3 years later I really don't understand it now.

My memories are my memories. One thing people always think is unusual about my family is that we never defend each other. In normal families when one does wrong the family circles the wagons but that doesn't happen in mine. If something is wrong, even though we love each other in our own hard way, we don't defend the other's actions.

right or wrong - that's how it is.

Mom, You Gotta Love Her

she changed several thousand diapers for you

she cooked several thousand meals for you

she held your hair back while you were puking in her floor and put cold wash cloths on your neck for you - all the while telling you that it was OK - and then she cleaned it up to boot!

she took you to school, doctor, ball games, piano lessons, bowling leagues, shopping...

she made your favorite dinner for your birthday or sometimes just because

she built your character - thank her for that one no matter how hard it is!

she did all that stuff that makes a house run - you know the stuff that you thought a magic genie did

she bailed you out of trouble (even when you were in the wrong) and let you know HOW distasteful the situation was to her

she showed up at my door one day out of the blue and told me, "I'm here to buy a month of your life." Then she wrote a check for 1 month's bills because she knew you were too sick to go to work.

Sometimes she seems to be trying to make amends for the hard way she did things. It would be stupid of me to drop my guard though. Experience is a great teacher.

Cake in the Face!

My mom loves cakes from our local bakery. One year, I don't remember if it was mother's day or her birthday (her birthday is June 4th.) we got her a cake. We knew that she would sneak and taste it so WE WARNED HER not to eat it until it was time. SHE DID NOT LISTEN. We walked in and caught her red-handed (or icing fingered if you will) in the cake.

So my brother walked over and picked up the cake and planted it firmly IN HER FACE! The whole time the cake was imbedded in her face she was chomping it as fast as she could. It was one of the greatest presents that she ever received she said.

"A WHOLE CAKE JUST FOR ME!"

Obviously we couldn't eat any after it was buried all over her face. (It was much too mangled after that) We even have pictures of the cake in her face. (at least we did until the house burned down)

Fun Stuff!

Diamonds are my mom's best friend

My mom adores diamonds. I can safely say that there is nothing that she covets more on earth than those clear, sparkly stones. She has more than she can ever wear including one that is 3 1/2 carats and another that is 3 3/4 carats. She used to wear diamonds on every finger (including those "two" rocks) as well as whatever bracelets or necklaces or earrings that she chose to wear as well. Now she had arthritis and doesn't wear too much jewelry anymore.

One time she was getting ready for work and she looked down to find that one of the "rocks" had fallen from it's setting. In a panic she searched the house and was considering calling the plumber when she sat down on the bed to cry. SOMETHING POKED HER IN THE BUTT! She stood up and looked at the bed and nothing was there and she searched all around and under the bed thinking that maybe the stone had fallen off when she stood up.

Finally she sat down again and something poked her in her tail again. (those are her words, my mom would NEVER say "butt") She thought a minute and she reached down inside her pantyhose and THERE WAS HER BELOVED DIAMOND! Apparently when she was getting dressed the diamond had come out inside her pantyhose when she was putting them on!

When my mom got her first diamond I was at piano practice. She was in shock over her ring and forgot to come pick me up. She told me that it was natural for a woman to forget what she was supposed to be doing in that kind of situation.