The Day the Music Died...But The Guard Survived !

It was the last day of competition...our Guard had won 1st place on Saturday and was back on Sunday to try and repeat. I was crouched in my filming position ready to go. The judges were ready, the Guard was ready and "East Coweta Varsity" took the floor for competition.

Before our girls went on I was sitting up in the stands by the mother of a girl on another guard team. She asked me what team I was there to see and when I told her, she rolled her eyes and gave a slight shake of her head. EVERYBODY knows our team! She said it was always a great show when our team performed. I puffed up with pride and told her the team put in long and hard hours to do as well as they do...she said politely "It really shows."

Sitting crossed legged on the floor of the balcony in the gym like the graceful lady I am I turned on the camera and blew my daughter a kiss for luck.

Great start...great spinning and every one was in sync. I have finally mastered how to operate my cam corder (with many tutorials from my kids) and things were looking good for our team through my viewfinder.

A little over halfway through the program I began to relax a little...it seemed the Guard did too and they all looked like they were having the time of their life.

I thought the music seemed to be dragging a bit, but attributed it to that major stroke I have felt coming on for about a year now.

NO...it was DEFINITELY dragging and sounding worse every second. It began to not even sound like a song but background music for a haunted house. The team kept right on.

Right before the music stopped completely the team began counting time out loud. First one person, then another joined and before three more seconds passed the entire Guard was counting off the routine with no music whatsoever. They never paused, hesitated or let the smiles fade from their faces. They ended the routine just as they had time after time before. The entire gym stood and gave them a standing ovation.

As the Guard exited the tarp they all gathered in one corner of the gym.

One of the Guard, a petite and absolutely beautiful girl inside and out has a heart condition and has had a few episodes as of late. Thank goodness her mom is a nurse...that's what I have always admired about nurses, they are the most calm and reassuring people you could ever want in a crisis. Her dad and mom led her out of the gym and you could tell from the young girl's face she was most definitely in distress and was having a hard time even breathing.

Right after this happened it was determined the Guard would have a second chance to perform once the music track was fixed.

By this point all the Guard was frantic about their friend and worried about marching right back in front of the crowd...without their team mate to do another performance. I think their motto is most certainly "All for one and one for all."

The young girl was being taken care of by her mother (luckily also a nurse) and as they say in show business "The show must go on."

I scrambled back up the steps to resume my lady like position on the floor and once again heard "Are the judges ready? Is the Guard ready? East Coweta Varsity you may take the floor for competition."

So they're off again...rattled and worried about a team mate and more determined than ever to make it a tribute to their friend. (At least that's the way I saw it.)

They pulled it off...they squeezed together a little and spread out a little and to the amateur's eye you didn't notice the missing Guard...she was only missing in the Guard team's own minds and thoughts.

Luckily the girl recovered...since I'm a bit touchy about getting things right I got the scoop from her mom/nurse.

"It was not a heart attack but sinus arrythimia, exacerbated with increased heart rate that wouldn't drop with rest. She also had chest pains with shortness of breath."

That, my friends...is not a hang nail but a serious situation.

Praise the Lord she is oaky.

Praise the Lord our Guard won another first place.

Praise the Guard they presented this girl with their first place trophy to take home as her own.

The above video is the now wildy popular video of "The Day the Music Died." Enjoy...

LOVE YOU RACHEL !

Three Kids Asleep...Three Kids Still Up

Just walked in from work. Didn't think tonight would ever end! At least the kids were all in bed and the house is nice and quiet. My OTHER three kids were still awake and waiting right by the kitchen door for Mama to come in and give them some loving.

The tipping Gods smiled upon me tonight...it seemed they were just throwing money at me and thank goodness I am a pretty good "Catcher On The Fly." (little shout out to JD Salinger.)


Every table I had was nice ...only one guy left me $5 on a $48 tab. Hey! Not bad all in all. You know what they say "One bad apple."

I was so tired when I went in at four that I almost asked to go home. I've worked the past seven days and have seven more to go. Once it starts getting busy though I am alright...just takes a while for this ole woman to get her engine running sometimes. I work with mostly all young people in their early twenties...well "I" work...mostly they complain and hide in the bathroom with their cell phone texting their friends about how awful it is to have to be at work on Karaoke night. They probably add those little musical notes in their text (where do they find those? I've often wondered.) It took me forever to just learn how to make smiley faces with punctuation marks.

I was glad I hung in there ... made better money than I have made all week, so the back ache and twisted ankle I have been limping on for three days felt better til I went to the back of the kitchen to check out and stepped in a huge puddle of water that soaked both my feet and made the rode home cold and damp.

Once in the house the dogs couldn't seem to stay away from my shoes...they could care less if it is kitchen slop, just smells like steak to them and I had to put my shoes in the garage for them to settle down for their "blog picture."

Tim had an interview today WOO HOO ! I was long gone to work when he got back and now he is at Wally World stocking shelves so I won't talk to him til morning. I hope it went well. The other night when I rolled the trash out to the street I saw a beautiful falling star and made a wish for Tim. I think it was God telling me to hang in there just a bit longer and wanted to send me a sign that he was still looking out for us.

Time to go iron a shirt for tomorrow...if I iron a shirt the night before and take a bath...it gives me thirty more minutes in the bed in the morning . I have myself on a strict 20 minute schedule from wake up to walking out the door for work. With my low maintenance hair and a pre ironed shirt sometimes I can make it out the door in 15 minutes. I've thought about shaving my head like Britney Spears did and sleeping in my car with my cell phone as an alarm clock and I can knock it down to 10 minutes EASY!

Tomorrow is a day shift (my favorite kind) and I can spend the entire night with the kids and cook them an actual meal that doesn't involve a microwave.

It is such a relief to at least have Tim back to work even if it is part time (I know it is a HUGE relief for him) and I have three great kids that haven't complained once in the past year.

I think my dogs are secretly trying to teach each other how to speak English so they can bitch...but they are dummies and will never master it (I hope.) Thank goodness they say English is the hardest language to learn!

Thanks to everyone that reads my blog, helps me out and prays for me. Your prayers are so important to me and I can feel the tide changing.

Just pray it's not a tsunami!

Til next time...An older, tired but hopeful COTTON

The True Meaning of Christmas

We had a Christmas party at Frances' house last night. If you read my blog you know how much this dear woman has come to mean to me and my family. She has overcome in less than a year what most people would consider a fatal blow. She had a botched catheter which sent her not only straight to open heart surgery but a nursing home for rehabilitation. That in it's self would have most probably sent me knocking on the pearly gates begging for admittance citing all my good deeds versus evil ones hoping the gates would swing open in pity.

This woman never once complained or acted like a grandma (she is of that age) but acted like it was simply a task she had to take on and conquer. She not only became the mascot of the nursing home but the mascot of our family.

She gave us an appreciation Christmas party last night to thank all of us for helping her through her adversities.

Her niece was there...a hoot that I have come to love as dearly as Frances. They both cooked a fabulous dinner for us. Pork roast, meatballs and pigs in the blanket. There were so many side dishes that my stomach hurt from the unusual full feeling it had!

She showed off a beautiful cape with leopard trim that her aide had given her for Christmas. A wonderful woman that comes several times a week to help her and treats her like family not an employer.

I was supposed to leave early and take Massey to practice but just couldn't. Being with family is the one thing I CAN afford this Christmas and not having much spare time in my current life just wanted to stay and enjoy the love and friendship that means so much to me . It was my first and only Christmas party and one of the best times I have had in months. Even Zach got into the spirit of things having his picture taken with Frances with both of them wearing their "Hoodies." Frances gave us all presents and presented each one with why she was grateful for that person...it was truly a touching thing.

I think I may have gotten Massey into trouble with her guard coach...but for Pete's sake, I want to enjoy my Christmas too and making Frances happy makes me happy. If that is wrong, find me guilty!!

Got home and I fell into bed. I have been running a fever for two days and it makes you feel like crap. I went to bed by ten and slept til noon. I woke feeling a little better and went out to scope out if I could afford anything they had left to buy. I found a couple of things I may be able to get the kids if I make a butt load of money on Christmas Eve. I did get a ham pretty cheap at BJ's (they take a week to process a check...MY kind of store) and went into work to work a mad shift.

It is always crazy right before Christmas (a good thing) and when I walked through the door one of the servers told me to come out into a side room we have for parties. This friend of mine had gone out and bought us a turkey for Christmas, made a pan of dressing had two packs of dinner rolls and even cranberry sauce for my family.

Dang...I never knew I had so many tears in my ducts, but they just seem to be working overtime.

My family, my friends...where would I be without them?

I was worried that my ham may not be enough...now I can invite others that don't have anywhere to go.

I decided the other day that my mantra would be "Maybe life sucks...but doesn't that mean at least I am breathing?"

Now I know the true meaning of Christmas is real.

People love you if you love them.

The golden rule has come to mean so much more to me in the last year that it has in the 49 years I have been alive.

"Do unto others as you would have then do unto you."

I have plenty of food and plenty of love to throw around at my house on Christmas day...come on over if you need some.

Merry Christmas and Thank you...those sayings should go hand in hand.

A blessed...slightly sick but happy COTTON

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU

Friday The 13th...WHAT A LUCKY DAY !!

Got home from work today and decided to have a girls night out with Massey. We were originally going into downtown Atlanta to an event at the Biltmore Hotel. It was a jewelry and clothing show . The tickets were $35 to get in but they gave you a goody bag supposedly worth three times that. I thought we could just walk around and look at things we couldn't afford. When I got home from work I looked it up on line and it seemed a pretty pricey affair and maybe even one that you had to be 21 to get in (cocktails and such.)

I got my anniversary check at work today for my 12 year employment date, $1000.00. Unfortunately after taxes and them catching up my state taxes the net was $616.00. Still it was a welcome shot in the arm AND the bank account. I decided to splurge on a dinner date with my daughter and once we decided against the down town affair (I was relieved...too much $$$) I let Massey choose where we would eat. She picked her favorite restaurant, Mama Lucia's here in Newnan.

If you are ever in the southern crescent of the ATL...it is well worth a visit. A family run business...their son is a good friend of mine and used to work with me at my restaurant. His dad used to be a manager with our company and his mother works there as well. It is a lovely place and the food is out of this world.

Our waitress tonight is the wife of one of our former bartenders (see previous post "Andre the Giant, Doofus." One of the bartenders at Mama Lucia's is the wife of one of my favorite former managers so going there is a very homey and friendly feeling.

I splurged and had one glass of wine, Massey had Parmesan Encrusted Talapia over sauteed spinach with tomatoes and a Caesar salad. I had Veal Piccata with capers (YUM) over angel hair pasta and a Caesar salad as well. It was MARVELOUS! It was so nice to see my friends and chat with them while we had a lovely girls night out. I don't get to see them often but we keep up via FB or when they come into my restaurant.

Massey and I were adding up the tab in our heads, already thinking that we could take the leftovers home to the boys and feed them as well.

Crystal (we'll call our waitress that for this post) brought us our check and packed up all the leftovers for the boys and sent home that wonderful bread with the olive oil, spices and cheese in a small container. I picked up the check and of course had to hold it as far away from my face as I could just to read it (too vain to wear my dollar store reading glasses in public) and saw the total:

$6.96

I asked Massey to look at it to make sure my eyes hadn't taken yet another turn for the worse. Sure enough that was the total. I told Massey to try and get Crystal's attention, but before she could the owner came up behind me. She was setting up a party behind us and said that the girls (Crystal and my bartender friend...we'll call her Jen) wanted to do that for us and they would be mad if I left a huge tip. She said she let them use their employee discount on us.

Here came the water works! I told the owner (we'll call her Barbara) that I couldn't do that and she said the girls really wanted to do it and it was her pleasure to let them use their discount. I tried to leave $50...she said no, she said no more than $20 so I left a twenty on the table and went to the bar to find Jen. I gave her another ten and asked her to take it as well and split it with Crystal and she refused.

What have I ever done to have such wonderful friends and family and have so much support?

Massey and I decided on the way home that we would babysit for each of these young mothers to give them a night out like we just had.

Massey thanked me controlling my water works and keeping them to a minimum and we left and went window shopping at Lizard Thicket and enjoyed a wonderful evening together. While we were leaving the store, Tim called and said that the financing had come through for the trucking company he and several others were starting up. Tim will be sales manager and another couple has put up all the financing and it is a great opportunity for him. Today his background check came back from Walmart and he starts at the first of the week. (Thanks to another wonderful friend we'll call Lisa and her husband we'll call Russ.)


Who would ever think that Friday the 13th would turn out to be such a fabulous day?

I think my new lucky number is "13"

Just Hang On...

I feel like Zach did in this picture when I took it seven years ago at the Powers Crossroads Festival. He was all geared up and excited to begin the climb. He was a tough guy and knew he could do it.

Ten feet up he began to look nervous..twenty feet up and he began to look for a way down. He had on a harness and had a safety line attached so we knew that even though he was scared he would be okay.

Some days I wake up and forget that I have my own harness from God keeping me safe.. It's always been there and sometimes you just seem to take it for granted.

The harness holds you but what happens when you take a fall?

I found out today at work.

I went in for my thirteenth day in a row and was lucky enough to get an 11 top of investment bankers having lunch together. They were probably scheming how to bilk old people out of their savings..but it was over eight people so I got to add an 18% gratuity.

The hostess came up and said I must be popular because I had a party that wanted to eat with me as well.

I quickly sent in the order for the 'Schemers" and went to find a girl (I call her that because she has always seemed like that to me) with her daughter and grand child sitting at my table.

I grew up in East Point Christian Church and her older sister was one of my best friends from the nursery on up. My best friend was the middle sister of three ... the girl at my table was the baby sister and has remained that way in my mind for all these years.

I always call her giggle box because she has the most delightful giggle I have ever heard and I seem to bring it out in her every time I wait on her.

In server speak, she is a "PHAT" tipper and is one of the easiest people to wait on. As long as she can sit and dote on her grandchild and visit with her "mini me" daughter she is happy. Her daughter looks just like her mother and has the same wonderful qualities.

She told me she had read my blog about my Mother's birthday and that she had loved it (another reason I love her.)

After my fiasco with the bad shop at work with the dreaded secret shopper she sent me an email telling me how great a server she thought I was.

We chatted about her Mom who is the most emailing and forwarding woman I know. Where do they FIND that stuff? I couldn't even begin to know where to look on the Internet for the things this woman sends me..but along with a couple of other friends of mine, they seem to do all the searching for me so I don't have to worry about learning how.

Anyway, we had a nice visit and I had a free kids meal coupon I gave her daughter and set them up with drinks to go in our to go cups that I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE. Big 22 oz. cups that I have about thirty of in my cabinet at the house. When my kids leave the house and want a drink , I always say put it in a "GO" cup. Cups always seem to leave my house but never come back.

I started to get busy and when I went to pick up the check she said she didn't need change so I kept on working my section until I got a break to go by and pick up the payment book from the table.

Her tab was $33.00. Inside the book was a hundred dollar bill.

She had been gone for fifteen minutes when I went to pick up the check so I knew she was long gone...but the tears fell from my eyes so fast it almost hurt.

As soon as I got home from work I sent her an email to thank her for her wonderful gift. You know, just when you think the harness is going to break and you don't think you can hang on any longer...another Angel comes swooping in and saves you.

I was embarrassed...again, but her wonderful gift brought my bank balance back into the black...a place it hasn't been in a week. I am the proud owner of $1.42 and could just POP!!

How am I ever going to re pay all these wonderful people that keep pushing me on and helping my family to survive?

I don't know what I have ever done in my life to deserve this outpouring of love and support...but I have been truly humbled and learned that family, friends and caring are probably the three things that come right after "GOD."

When I went into work today I was a broken woman..when I left I was an uplifted woman.

Thank you to my readers, thank you to my family, thank you to my friends and Thank YOU to the Good Lord above.

I can hang on...you just wait and see !!!

Shout out "S.T.B" You made my day!!

Til next time...a revived COTTON

PS Be sure to click on the picture of Zach..he seems to be looking for an Angel (or ladder) as well!

Three, Two, ONE!

I am sure that Frances is counting down her days left in rehab.

She only has three more days before she can return to her own house, bath , kitchen and bedroom. I know she will be glad to be home, but what is really strange is that she told me and Massey the other day that she had gotten so used to being around "A crowd" that it was going to take some getting used to being at home alone again.

Only Frances would enjoy the company at rehab!

She is by FAR the most capable person I have met while I have been visiting. She is sharper that some of the people that WORK there.

Pretty much most of the people there are in a "Nursing Home." they scoot along in their wheelchairs propelling themselves with their feet...wandering the halls for hours at a time. Many of the people I have come to recognize on my visits never have anyone visiting them.

Frances is known by EVERYONE. She is mostly called "The Computer Lady." When Massey and I sit with her in the lobby while she surfs the net, they gather around us in their walkers or wheel their chairs close enough to us so that they can hear our conversations and gawk in wonder as Frances logs on and begins to type.

I sometimes wonder how many of these people are staring at a lap top for the very first time, or have been in there so long that lap tops weren't even invented when they were out in the world on their own.

Some speak to us, ask us to sit by them or just seem to be fascinated by our "New fangled contraption." It breaks my heart to think of these many, many people that family and friends have forgotten about or choose not to spend a few hours a week with.

Some are totally unaware of their surroundings (which may or may NOT be a good thing) some are obviously there to never leave and some look pretty close to dying at any given moment.

I would have NEVER written this post when Frances first checked in, not knowing if it would be a couple of months she was spending there or a prolonged period of time (she reads my blog).

I have noticed that some of the "lifers" seem to have a certain hallway they like to sit in, or a window they stare out of for hours or a particular sweater that they seem to favor every day of the week. I have come to know several patients on speaking terms and often wonder what their 'story' is.

Do they miss people coming to see them, do they wish they could leave or are they sorry they have been put in this place at all?

I have NEVER witnessed any patient abuse...and if I did, I would be the first person to speak up (loudly) in their defense and report it immediately. The abuse comes from family that dumps off their relatives and never even thinks of them again, much less visits or calls.

I remember one time at Walmart when a man smacked his little boy in the face for not brushing his teeth that morning (was it a delayed reaction?) and I stepped right up to him...as my own kids said to each other "UH OH...Here she goes!" I told this man that the boy was too young to even realize how important brushing his teeth was and if he hits his child out in public, no telling how he treats him when he is alone with him. I told him how would he like for me to smack him ? Trust me , I wasn't scared to do it and actually wanted to anyway. The little boy looked ALMOST as surprised as "Daddy Dearest" and the man just mumbled something under his breath as he walked away. I asked loudly "What did you say, I couldn't hear you?"

By this point my own kids were begging me to let it go (I am such an embarrassment to them when I do these type of things) and giving in to my own kid's mortified faces I let him off with a hard stare that meant to tell him that he was a sorry excuse for a parent to smack a kid that hard for something that he obviously hadn't taught or instilled in this small boy.


My kids still talk about that, especially if we are out and I see someone treating a child or even another person without respect or kindness. I just can't help it! I will not stand by and watch a human treat another human as if they were not an equal or not even a human being.
It can be a child, an animal or an elderly person...don't mistreat them in front of me or you will quickly realize how LOUD and MUCH I can talk !

Frances was fine in rehab...she would be the FIRST person to complain of ill treatment or any type of negligence. Not to mention that she had many friends and relatives visiting and checking up on her often and the staff noticed right off the bat that she had many people looking out for her best interests.

All in all though, I am glad she is getting her parole papers.

What bothers me is the hundreds we are leaving behind. The ones not as savvy and sharp as Frances. The ones no one comes to visit. The ones that roam the halls 24/7 scooting on walkers or shuffling along with their feet in wheelchairs just looking for someone to listen to them. The ones who are parked in beds lining the halls with limbs contorted and asking as you walk by if you can help them get out of there.

It breaks my heart.

My Dad's cousin is one of the lucky ones...but what about the ones that didn't draw that lucky card?

There are many that seem pretty "with it" and I have grown fond of. I really truly think that I may continue to visit this place and spend some time getting to know the ones that seem to be craving only friendship or a person to talk to or to listen. I know that the staff will be "under-thrilled" at the prospect of seeing me again...but that's tough!

I guarantee that Frances will go back with me to visit if I asked her.

Til next time...COTTON