BKTF Day 2010

Spoil someone today! But not with cigarettes, beer and gambling.

A surprise around every corner

 It's kind of hard for me to believe that I could still be finding things around this house that surprise me leftover from Mom and Dad.  I was cleaning Amy's room and found the Grandmother's Book I gave Mom so she could record her memories for her grandchildren.  Today the book itself is in the same pristine shape as the day I presented it to her but tucked inside I found a sheet of paper handwritten by Mom with the notes below.  I assume these are her memories in freestyle format.  I thought they needed to be shared.  The notes are handwritten in pencil on yellow paper and don't reproduce well, but it was a site for sore eyes to see her careful handwriting (and questionable spelling) once again!


A world without plastic, wringer washers, clothes lines as dryers, milk in glass bottles delivered everyday, cream frozen in winter, all wool snow suits, Run Spot--See Jane--Dee Dick, cloth diapers only, rationing food and gasoline, shortages of hose and cigarettes, 10 cent movies, soda shops that smelled wonderful, calling a store with a grocery order and having it delivered, two mail deliveries a day, ice boxes, an hour fo rlunch from school everyone went home, sterile silent gloomy libraries, not being allowed to see Gone With the Wind until I was in college--too risque, fish on Fridays, no TV until 1954, radio stories--suspense, Green Hornet, Gang Busters, Jack Armstrong, FDR, WWII, Pearl Harbor, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, March of Time, standard shift, two lane roads, 25 cent gallon gasoline, ethnic prejudice (racial and religious), Wooden sleds with metal runners (coasters), Shirley Temple, Betsy Wetsey, passenger trains, beautiful train stations, doctors who made house calls, polio, iron lungs, measles, mumps

Tucked into this folded sheet of paper was a collection of photos, some of them new to me.  This one is dated August 18 1975 almost exactly 35 years ago.  It's riddled with tack holes presumably from being on the cork board by the refrigerator for a lifetime.  Gotta love those pigtails Paula!

Everybody's Got One...

This is Dad at his graduation from St. Bonaventure with his mother, brother and Aunt Bud.  Something about the way Dad talked about his Aunt Bud always made me think he had a special bond with her.  She is Grampie's only sister and closest to him in age.  I've been told she was beautiful and this picture seems to reflect that.  Her name was Violet and she was apparently in love with a married man and stayed with him for some 20 years waiting for him to leave his wife, which he never did.  Gotta love that stylish purse she's got!

I think maybe Breyen will remember Kathy's recent visit as a special time for him.  I know that I will!  The party was GREAT despite the rain (maybe the rain forced everyone a bit closer to each other creating better conversations) and I'm so glad everyone could be there.  Time spent with sisters was very restorative for me--I'm still smiling at how wonderful it felt to have everyone together. 

Maybe every family has that member who kind of goes off and does their own thing--I imagine Aunt Bud's brothers worried about her sometimes too the way we do about Kathy.  I don't think Kathy is comfortable with the thought that we sometimes worry but it's mostly due to distance and the lack of personal contact distance generates.  I see Aunt Bud took the trip out to Olean for the graduation which I'm sure made Dad as happy as we were to see Kathy for the graduation party. 

We didn't get to recreate the picture from 4 years ago, but I love this and expect it to be one of my all time favorites.  Thank you all! 

Hummingbird Kisses

These baby birds were nesting in a tree in our yard until recently.  I hope they left because it was time for them to leave--they look fairly big here--and not because my camera stalking chased them away.  I just think this is a very cool shot so I wanted to share it.

Yesterday I was standing on the deck talking to Jim who was working in the yard, so I was kind of leaning on the railing.  There was a little commotion in my peripheral vision and I turned to look straight into the face of a curious hummingbird!  She was right there so close I could touch her.  She was just suspended in the air looking straight at me as if to say "you got anything for me?".  It lasted longer than I would have expected it to before she took off leaving me feel like I'd had a special connection with nature (yea, me--a special connection with nature!).  I'm still feeling the wonder of that encounter today so that's my Daily Notice for Aug 8.

A rare visit--just like Kathy's upcoming trip!  Somewhat fleeting but I don't think a connection to nature will be on the horizon........

Happy Birthday Dad

We like this picture of both Dad and Amy.  I especially like it because it was taken at a parade, which is something Dad enjoyed very much.  Happy Birthday Dad.

I've decided it's possible I watch and read too much news.  Too much of the news I watch and read is bad news and I think it's impacting my daily outlook.  I'm going to try an antidote by a) not watching and reading as much news and 2) taking time to consciously notice one thing a day that makes me smile.  Sort of along the lines of Paula's picture a day project.  In order to keep me honest (let's see how long that takes!) I'll share my daily notice with each blog post.

Daily Notice Aug 4 2010:  the way the light looks on the pine tree branches in the early Aug morning hours.

Aug 3 1985

Here we are 25 years ago today.  It didn't seem to me that so much time had passed until I started looking through the pictures from our wedding and began to get a little melancholy noticing how many we have lost in that time.  It's days like this that make us miss our friend Roger very much.  Gone too soon like Mary Jane and others. 

Judy makes a good point to enjoy the opportunities we have to be together while at the same time we should also acknowledge that it's those everyday happenings that often create warm feelings.  I'm thinking about what Ryan will be looking forward to when he comes home from Cortland for a visit.  I would miss simple things like Mom's sauce and I imagine that might have surprised her to learn.  So I wonder what it is that Amy looks forward to about coming home and what will it be for Ryan.  It's about making memories big and small.

Speaking of memories, does anyone know why Nanny isn't in this picture????  Cheers to Jim and I.  It's no small thing to make things work for 25 years although it seems the time just slipped away quietly.  I think that's kind of like watching Olympic athletes making their events look EASY when you know very well that it is exactly the opposite and is a product of many years of hard work.   Happy Anniversary Jim.

Perfect Summer Day

We went to Lake Sagandaga (not sure if that is spelled correctly) and had a great day riding the boat with Captain Matt. It is incredibly beautiful there and we got to spend time with one of Pat's cousins.

It seems as though the summers slip by so quickly that we don't have enough time to do it all. I don't know if you feel this way too, but as I age, it all seems so much more important to spend as much time together as we can. I am looking forward to seeing everyone at the Dalpiaz soiree so that we can do just that. I remember talking to Patty Anne years ago about creating memories for our children so that they can pass them on to their children. As Ryan J graduates and Ryan P will be next, I am hoping that we create more memories for ourselves and our children.

Paula stopped by the other day and stayed for dinner and I am really glad that she did. Nothing spectacular happened, but I am glad for the time.

So, make the most of your summer everyone! See you in a few weeks.