Our Girl

 

She came crashing into our life weighing barely four pounds and two months early. I remember Tim telling me after waking up after the ambulance ride to the hospital that Dr. Moore said it was touch and go but besides the blood loss (mine and hers) everything should be okay...and (thankfully)was.

She turned into the cutest baby and toddler I've ever seen, right from the jump.

 I don't think she said more than ten words before she turned four.

Once she finally started talking, the Kelly in her took right over and she's been chatting ever since. And she's still a beauty, inside and out.

It's been a pleasure raising my "Best Friend Forever."

                    She is turning twenty nine. How on God's Green Earth did that happen so quickly?

She keeps me in line now. She corrects me (a lot) when I say something which isn't socially correct or accepted anymore. She rolls her eyes at me but that's okay, I did the same thing with my own mother.

She's literally dragging me down the cyber highway with all things technology related and I would be either hacked  (again) or completely lost without her eye rolling assistance. In other words, "I adore her."

               Almost thirty years with  her and I still love her more each and every single day. Her heart is deep and wide, and accepting.

I think every single person who knows her would absolutely agree with me. If Massey is on your team, she has your back, is going to show up every single time and be your biggest champion.

This wounded world would be a much better place with more people like Massey in it. I'm just fortunate enough to have her on my team by proxy.

This picture of Massey, my sister and me at the beach all those years ago reminds me every time I see it that women can move mountains too.

I Love You, Massey...and thanks for loving me.

Happy Birthday, Lil' Hurricane

I'm Pretty Much CLUE Less

 

Facebook, or as I've come to call it, Hatebook just isn't my cup of tea these days. Especially in a contentious election year. I prefer the ole TikTocker or Insta. Much easier to navigate the algorithms and only see what I want to see. My Hatebook is full of people I've known my whole life who have apparently lost their minds and sometimes seem almost delusional about certain topics. Sometimes it's better to keep things closer to your chest, especially politics and religion. I have said it many times, it's social media not social studies.

Anyhoo...

I used to really enjoy FB and will continue to post my dog vids and garden/food/craft finds and for now my blog posts. (until I figure out Substack) 

I came across this cool game on the ole TikTok and ordered it. Q-Less. It was less than $15 and right up my alley, a solitary game of Scrabble played with dice with letters printed on every side. I moronically thought the name was a play on the word Clueless.

It arrived and I was immediately obsessed. I got all fancy and used my Yahtzee cup to shake the dice up before I rolled them onto the table.

I literally played it non stop for about five days before I realized why it was called Q-Less. There's no Q on any of the dice.

DUH!! 

It made me feel better when my daughter (who I constantly ask for help from whether it be a game or computer issue) said when she went to bed the other night, she actually thought "What will happen if Mom rolls a Q without a U?"

Kudos to me, that was the night I finally figured out why it was called Q-Less. Let me add, I felt like a total dumb ass. (which doesn't require a Q or U)

You know, at this point in my life I'm just happy to wake up every day and feel extremely grateful when The Big Guy Upstairs lets me do it again the next morning. I'm not sure what's going on in the world, so many people I know dying so young.  So many people who are struggling to make ends meet. 

#beentheredonethat 

 

I was (absolutely) probably the ugliest baby my mother ever had. But they took me home from the hospital and gave me a more than spectacular early life and youth. Guess Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta didn't give refunds. Also I can't even believe they paid money for this picture.

I may be clueless but I get the drift. Be a good person.

It's been so much fun being back on my blog, which at this point in the technology world is probably an outdated way to navigate the cyber highway but one I feel most comfortable with...for now.

Here's my take away from life thus far, and I am sixty four, which is obviously the last leg of my race, any way you look at it. Do good things when you can. When you don't agree with other people, let it go. Left wing, right wing? It's still the same bird, but let's work together to make it fly.

I much prefer laughing over crying and have done both.

 

I didn't get much cuter as I grew up but my Momma sure knew how to sew a fancy shirt!

This ole woman will continue on  as long as she can. I don't want to live a long life, I want to live a wide one.

Peace Out and Be Happy... COTTON

It's Been a Minute

  It's been years since I've written a new post. Literally.

My daughter and my sister, and even my oldest son have all been hounding me about cranking up the ole Blogarooney again, so here we go!

I guess I quit blogging when COVID hit, or around that time. COVID was one of those life changing moments, like JFK being shot, MLK being shot, the Vietnam war, 911 and now the Pandemic.  Not a good track record for Mother Earth, but is what it is.

It was hard for me going from working full time to not working at all. Don't get me wrong, I was all for hanging up my serving tray, just had to get used to not having all the money I wanted, whenever I wanted, for whatever I wanted. I spent all my savings helping us to relocate to Orlando, moving is NOT cheap and saving has never been my forte'. Luckily for me it is Tims'. Being a server can get you really spoiled. If there is something you want or someplace you want to go, just pick up extra shifts until you have that money and if you are a good server it usually doesn't take long. On the upside I turned 62  shortly after the pandemic started to wind down and started drawing my Social Security in 2022. 

After being broke for an entire decade we were very conscientious about money and by the time we moved into our home here, we had it paid off in just over two years, had no credit cards, no debts and all our vehicles were paid off. We flipped our house back in Georgia and did a lot of the work ourselves. Not a whole bunch of fun but paid off handsomely in the long run. Sold the house when the seller market was on fire and with the help of a dear childhood friend who is a realtor, sold our old house in about a week if not less. They offered us 5k over our best offer, all cash, no inspection.

Karma is real.

So now we're sitting pretty with no mortgage and everything we need to be happy and then some. If you would have told me life would end up this way back in 2008, I would have laughed...after I quit crying about how in debt we were. But we had a village, we had family and we had friends, even strangers who helped us limp along and allowed us to eventually set the ship afloat again.

It was a pivotable  time in our lives which changed my perspective on everything...and I mean everything.

I've always tried to be someone who helps others, but when you end up being that person who needs help, it reinforces the Golden Rule.

 A little over six months ago I ran across a picture of this woman on a group page I joined years ago on FB. It was from the neighborhood where I grew up. It was brutally cold temps back in Georgia and neighbors were all worried about a woman who had been living under a bridge in their community for several years. People would stop by and check on her, take her some coffee, water or drop off some food. Ms. Cathy was her name.

Ironically enough a former elementary and high school classmate of mine was also searching for her sister at the same time, who fell off the grid after their mother's death eleven years ago. Someone contacted her and said they thought Ms. Cathy may be her long lost sister.

She was. My old friend found her sister under a bridge in our hometown of East Point. The temperatures were in the single digits, She was using a blue tarp as a blanket. 

It was a battle I felt compelled to join. Eleven years on the streets. Holy Guacamole. She doesn't weigh eighty five pounds soaking wet. East Point is literally ten minutes from the heart of downtown Atlanta. How she survived is still a mystery to me.

The wonderful people of East Point started a GoFundMe to get Cathy off the streets and into a warm motel room. That got expensive, and quick. I began sharing the story at least once a day and just like that, my village came back and helped out Cathy this time. Then others jumped on board, spread the word and literally came to her rescue. The hurdles, red tape and criteria for getting off the streets is absolutely useless to a homeless person with no support system or advocate fighting for them. Cathy's sister drove done from her home in Cleveland, Georgia every weekend when she was off work to check on Cathy and take her to file for food stamps, social security and bring her staples. She was staying in a not so desirable place but at least it had four walls, a roof and a door that sometimes locked. An efficiency lodge for $1350.00 a month. We were just spinning on a hamster wheel and bleeding the GFM dry.

Trial and error. Hear of possible subsidized housing only to be told it would take six months if not more to even apply. Finally, after pulling every string we could and reaching out to every person we knew on the city council and in the city administration we got a hit!! The downside was we were low on funds. My former classmate was hesitant about asking for more donations so I did it for her (with her permission) and in a not so quiet way.

We had a move in date! Brand new build for affordable housing for people fifty five and older. Mostly all females, which was good news as Cathy has suffered abuse several times over the years from men. Rent would be $939 a month and included all utilities. They had a gym, a garden terrace, an office center with computer access and her apartment had a washer/dryer hook up in her own laundry room!

They cancelled the move in date after several snafus and paperwork being submitted wrong (on their end). Then we got another move in date and a welcome letter telling her all about how to go about getting the key. Once again, red tape interfered and we were put on hold again. At the very last minute, literally the eleventh hour, we got the go ahead to move her in.

Our advocate from the city for East Point went to the efficiency lodge in her own car, picked Cathy up and took her to the new apartment building to sign the lease and get her key.

Now we're talking!!

Next was the big move in day. My sister, who is an Angel herself had contacted people in her church who donated furniture...tons of it. She also has a painting business and many of her clients offered furnishings as well. My brother donated an antique solid oak queen size bed with a new mattress and box springs and all the bedding. He even had it shipped from Orlando to Atlanta via the freight company he works for. I drove up from Orlando and spent the night before the move with my sister. Some wine was consumed and many laughs were had. The next morning we headed out early to pick up the rental truck. We were originally going to use her husband's truck and flatbed trailer but recently a woman who she painted for also offered us an almost new Speed Queen washer and dryer so we needed more room, plus rain was in the forecast. I put out a post asking for help with the move and of course one of my own village from years ago was the first (and only) to sign up. Our biggest problem was all this was basically orchestrated by several women, the youngest being me at sixty four and the oldest being in their mid seventies. Not exactly muscle material. My friend who signed up showed up that morning with his daughter, I'm guessing fourteen, and off we went! The UHaul got less than a mile down the road before the Low Oil Pressure and Stop Engine light came on. We had to put five quarts of oil in it to even show anything on the dip stick but at least we were back on the road. (an email has been sent to UHaul asking for a refund of $36.00 we spent on oil and a refund of the $15.00 insurance I signed up for in case of damage to the truck, since we did incur a problem but fixed it ourselves.)

Our last stop was for the furniture my brother had shipped up for us to his freight company's Atlanta terminal. The employees were so incredibly helpful and after learning about Ms. Cathy wished us well and said they were honored to help in some small way with her journey.

Arley Cuero, the operations manager who has so far twice battled and beat cancer is the one with the mask, along with the fork lift driver,  Claudio Paredes somehow someway made everything fit in an already jam packed truck. Yes, it takes a village. These Forward Air employees are both getting letters sent to their headquarters about their efforts helping us in Cathy's cause.

Once again, our village showed up.

I told my sister as we finally wound our way to Cathy's new apartment, that God had His hand in this journey today...no doubt.

A wonderful man from the Facebook group showed up to help us unload the truck. He didn't know any of us from Adam but simply said he just wanted to help Cathy.

I've never been so thrilled to see someone with side burns. He and my friend, Dean had everything unloaded and in her apartment in under thirty minutes. I carried a rug, and end table and held the door open several times.

We unloaded and had the truck back to UHaul ten minutes before the return time. This was three o'clock. I dropped off Dean and his daughter (who is amazing) and took my sister back to her house about twenty five minutes away. Loaded up my bag from her spare bedroom and hit the road for Orlando by four thirty. 

The drive from Atlanta to Orlando (MouseTown) is always brutal and often harrowing. My ride home was nothing but easy breezy the entire way. Not one traffic jam or slow down. No wrecks or crazy drivers encountered. I put it on cruise control and rolled into my driveway before eleven PM, and I stopped twice. I usually only stop once.

I think Ole Willie nailed this one on the head, because it has sure been truer than true for me. I was so exhausted that I slept until after noon the next day but thought it was about 9:30 when I woke up. It was a good tired though.

Imagine how Cathy felt waking up under a bridge for eleven years, with nowhere to go...for a bath, a meal or even to relieve herself. 

Of course this has taken a toll on her mental well being (I can't even imagine) but we will continue to assist her to get some help and counseling through local advocacy programs available. 

Cathy needs to realize she is worthy. She needs to realize she matters, she needs to realize we are all here for her, for the long run, no matter how long that may take. It's a lot for her to wrap her head around after eleven years on the lean mean streets.

In the words of Elton John "Someone saved my life tonight."

I really didn't do squat except do the fund raising asks. All my many friends and family and once again even strangers rallied to the call, just like they did for my own family over ten years ago. 

Cathy's sister said she was going to call me the "Facilitator."

I will wear that badge with honor. "You never know unless you ask and all they can say is No" is my mantra.

Say a prayer or just send up some good vibes for Cathy as she navigates going from being  a basically feral person to part of society again.

Because let me tell you a truer than true fact. There but by the Grace of God goes any one of us.

I even received another check for Cathy today, on my birthday in a note from a dear high school friend.

My faith in humanity has been bolstered by this journey and reinforced by the outcome and out pouring of love and compassion for a person in need.

I have decided to start writing and blogging again. Facebook helped me get the word out and help for Cathy, but I simply can't take the misinformation, divisiveness and derogatory comments and memes currently bombarding the site, especially concerning women, immigrants  and race. I liked FB because I am old and knew how to navigate it as compared to IG, Substack and the ole Tickity Tock.

The level of hate and division in this country and around the world is truly too much for me and literally has me in a psychological funk. Sometimes I find myself turning off the television at night (I rarely ever watch during the day) my cell or iPad and simply staring at a wall in the dark, hoping sleep takes over soon. 

Yes, I need to work on my own sanity sometimes and I am not ashamed to admit it.

 The thing I can't get out of my head is blatant misogyny, racism and non inclusion. Hello, United States, we are ALL immigrants unless you are a Native American. You know, the ones we raped, pillaged and shoved onto tiny reservations after we took their land and hauled in slaves to do our dirty work. Am I the only one who paid attention in US History in high school?

Anyhoo, I think my thoughts just aren't suited to the FB Nation anymore and not sure I want to be there anyway. It will take me a minute or two to figure out Substack or talk my daughter into doing a Podcast with me but I will bounce back here and let you all know where to find my written drivel.

Thank You one and all for helping Ms. Cathy. And Thank You for loving me. I love you right back!

Earth angels are real

My Earth Angels. They are so real and they are so spectacular.

 I am so thankful they continue and allow me to be their friend and witness their greatness, especially after all they have done for me and countless others. If the end of time comes and we all go at once, I'm hitching a ride Upstairs with them and hoping I get in the Pearly Gates by proxy.  

My retired life is amazingly enough filled with nothing but spare time, no rules or regulations or time clocks to punch.

Has it been a journey to get to this point? Absolutely.

Would I change that journey if I could? Absolutely not.

Not always, but generally what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

At least that's been my experience (thus far) and I'm sixty four.

Of course some people experience the Kennedy syndrome. Hit after hit and catastrophe, one after another. At least they had money.

 I tend to think about the millions upon millions upon millions who hit the skids, get a bum deal, make a bad decision, have a run of bad luck or get that dreaded medical diagnosis with no insurance or means to pay.

Anyone who follows me or knows me, knows what a hippie (peace, love and rock and roll) and total believer I am in coexistence and an equal playing field.

If some circumstance seems weird or wrong to you; maybe it's because you have never been in that person's situation or ever walked a mile in their shoes.

Why don't people think of life that way more often?

Or always?

I'm with the old hippy. (see above)

I have so much spare time that I totally took it upon myself to barge into another person's story and start steam rolling.

It took well over six months for me after getting involved, took  well over a decade and then some for her sister to even find her...but we got a homeless woman off the streets.

I cannot even fathom or begin to think what mental toll it has taken on Cathy to live on the streets and under bridges for eleven years. Especially as a woman who is tinier than me and has been abused by men. (and I ain't big)

But I can tell you this. 

She has a village now. And it is a village of warriors behind her, for what is right, and for what she deserves.

A home.

 I simply feel lucky that I am a good "Friend Picker."

On move in day we couldn't hook up the donated washer and dryer because we were missing the water hoses and the dryer needed a different cord. (three prong vs four prong)

Today one of my Earth Angels drove up from twenty five miles south to Cathy's new digs, bought and brought the new hoses and cords needed to hook up the washer and dryer so  Cathy doesn't have to wash her clothes in the wash tub anymore and hang them to air dry.

He (by himself) moved about almost a thousand pounds of furniture while about five of us old women cheered him on and held a hand truck for him from slipping. (Go Us) .

There have been so many others. It has been an abundance of blessings. Family, friends. Friends of friends and even strangers.

Look beyond your own self. Look beyond your own story.

It's called the Golden Rule for a reason.

I inserted myself into this story. I didn't do it for credit. I did it because it  felt like it was the right thing to do. And it was.

Lucky for me, my family and friends felt the same way...even people I didn't even know felt the same way too.

In this world of hate, in this country of division...we gotta move on. We have to do better.

Wouldn't you rather be a part of the solution than a part of the problem?

Peace out and Love each other... COTTON

It's Been A While

 

It's been a hard year for me, and everybody. Not so much financially for us; we have been totally blessed by Tim's new(ish) job, which landed us all here in Orlando, living in our tiny slice of paradise. 

It's just been a crazy spin off and continuance of the year 2020...and then some.

I have never, ever lost friends over politics until the last presidential election. My objections weren't party based or political whatsoever. They were more a question of morality, and the severe lack of ethics in a person who happened to be a candidate for the highest office in the land .  It reminded me of why my parents never talked politics. Not with us three kids, or anyone else. Ever. 

I need to follow their lead on that one, so I don't lose what's left of my tiny mind. The past four years were a lot for me to try and absorb, but those years are behind me and all we can do is move ahead.

And don't even get me started on why it was okay and fine and dandy for my Momma to get us vaccinated for measles, mumps, rubella, typhoid, polio, and tetanus in the early sixties; and me get my own kids vaccinated in the eighties and nineties, along with flu shots and no one thought a thing about it. But suddenly when over five million people die from a virus in less than two years, everybody screams about how it's a political ploy to take their rights away?

Where's the logic in that?!

It certainly (and literally) beats taking your breath away, doesn't it? Scientists and medical experts are not politicians, nor do they have an agenda. If they were, I'd be more inclined to question their judgement, that's for sure.

True Facts.

The older I've gotten, the more I feel like I finally am learning to understand life. I was seemingly clueless for almost thirty years, and spent the next thirty scrambling to get my own act together to not kill or lose the three kids we signed up to raise. We were their only chance at survival and having hopefully successful lives...with them having absolutely no choice in the matter (as far as parental units went)  until they were old enough to crawl to the state line without our assistance. Lucky for us, they hung around and took their chances.

My three greatest accomplishments by far.

Then the Atlanta Braves won the World Series, and I knew everything was gonna be okay!

 Just like me, the Braves went from a worst season record... but persevered, plugged ahead, made some errors, never gave up, and ended up winning it all at the big dance.

 Bonus points, they brought the city, an entire state, and a pretty huge fan base to its feet...and made every single one of them jump up and down like winners for following them, and believing in them.

For anyone who used to go to Atlanta Fulton County Stadium, like our family did, and sit through all those ghost town games with a five dollar ticket...

the hometown team done us proud again.

Their win in the nineties was epic. This one was life changing for me...my kids were old enough to enjoy and remember it as well.

Sometimes when life gets so maddening and downtrodden and everyone seems at odds with each other, it's nice to have America's (in this case, Atlanta's) Greatest Pastime to give you hope, and a feeling of not only success but an enjoyment of camaraderie that is borderline off the chain. (of pearls)

The moment may pass, but the feeling needs to sink in and stay with us.

We're basically all on the same team. The Human Race is the most important one for all of us to win.

Together.

Till next time, COTTON

...And Just Like That

 

This is (was) where my son, Zachary lived in Newnan, Georgia. The above photo was taken Friday morning.

This photo is how it looked less than twenty four hours before.

And just like that, everything was gone in the matter of a few seemingly long seconds, but most probably less than sixty, still feeling more like a lifetime to them all.

My emotions have run the gamut... from terrified, to grateful, to thankful. 

He doesn't call me all that often here in Orlando, so when he called on a random night, I knew it was something. Mommas just know.

 

He immediately said "Mom, everything's gone. Every thing."

He had just gotten out of the walk in cooler in a local bar around the corner from the  restaurant, where they made everyone go once the tornado sirens started. He immediately checked on the restaurant and then called home to his room mates, half a mile away.

His room mates were fumbling in total darkness trying to get out of the house, with gaping holes everywhere, the roof and the walls, with rain pouring down and in, and two dogs to boot. Once outside, still in complete darkness, they were lost in a sea of downed trees and live powerlines.

Basic nightmare times ten.

They all survived, without a scratch.

The house was basically demolished, outside walls still up but all innards toast.

My Boy was homeless in less than two minutes...and I was four hundred forty four miles away.

 The response was immediate and instant...not to mention right on time.

So he's couch surfing... for now. Seems there are a lot of couches around Newnan, just waiting to be slept on.

How awesome is that? 

My hat goes off to Newnan for taking care of their own...and MY own.

If there's one thing I have learned in life and know to be all so true, it's this...

Never assume, and never dismiss that gnawing feeling.

It's there for a reason.

A grateful Momma and a lucky member of the human race.

Let's win this race together.

Till next tine...COTTON

I Am A Lucky Duck

 

Sometimes life pops up and smacks you in the face for no apparent reason.

Sometimes in a good way, and sometimes in a bad way.

I only know a handful of our neighbors by name. I wave to a lot of them or  speak over the fence as they pass. Let's put it this way, I've never been in any of their houses. Maybe I've been on a porch or two after chasing down a runaway dog to return it to the owner, but that's about it. I still feel kinda like the newbie in the hood. A lot of these families are second generation households.

The only neighbor our house is close to is a family of four, their house sits right on the other side of our privacy fence. In other words we hear them but don't see them. The couple is in their early forties with two younger sons. I'd guess around nine and four...by now. I see the husband more because he does the yard work and sometimes we do it on the same day. His wife you rarely ever see. In the two years we've lived here I have met and spoken to her once, when they were walking down the street one afternoon, to the stop sign and back.

Very short trip.

They have a small dog, with a very shrill bark...who doesn't stop. If it's outside, it's barking. It is absolutely not scared of my boxer (85 lbs) or my brother's dobe (95 lbs) and they bark through the fence at each other, relentlessly, talking their Doggie Smack. Thank goodness we put up a new fence, the old one was pretty shaky towards the back of the yard and their little dog has gotten into our yard more than once through a small opening. Thank goodness my dogs have never been out when it happened.

Actually it did happen once, when we still had our big boxer, Ham.

 He was a solid ninety pounds of pure muscle but blind as a bat. Had been for years and years. (juvenile cataracts) He had a hard time adjusting to this new home. There were so many gardens, paths, trees and vines, every which a way. He would get lost every time we let him out to do his business and would wind up tangled in vines or stuck behind a bush, not knowing where he was. It broke my heart. But one afternoon he went out for his daily business, and was wondering around in the front yard...while our neighbor's dog was exploring our back yard, after getting through the fence. Ham never even knew he was there. Thank goodness.

It was kind of strange living next door to them. The dad was always the one who walked the dog or pushed the (then about two) younger son in a stroller while the older boy ran along beside them. You never saw the wife.

Just that once.

 She would pull in the driveway with her car and she and the boys would go inside after her picking them up from school, but last year around this time, school was pretty much cancelled and went virtual.

So her car didn't move all that much after that.

Of course, neither did my car. I haven't worked since March of last year and only leave the house for essentials. 

But that little dog...

As the months passed by, it seemed to bark all the time when it was outside, and they never seemed to be in a rush to let it back in. Some mornings or afternoons, it would bark for well over an hour. I'm surprised its little barker didn't give out. It's a good thing I really like dogs, because I used to lay in my own bed, listening to it bark in the mornings, and bark and bark... knowing if  I could hear from my own bed, they could certainly hear it from theirs.

Fast forward to just two weeks ago.

  My husband (who has never, ever worked in the yards before us moving here) was out trimming some banana trees near our neighbors' side of the yard. He ran into the husband and they talked for a minute or two. Tim's not much of a talker so it kinda surprised me.

I feel like the most self centered person, ever.

Tim came inside and said "Did you know our neighbor's wife has been battling cancer for the past four years?"

First shoe drops.

Massey googled their name and found an article about how our neighbor's wife had been diagnosed with breast cancer while pregnant and in her second trimester with their youngest son, four years ago. She went through chemo during the rest of her pregnancy after a mastectomy. They followed up with radiation after she delivered a healthy boy.

Second shoe drops.

The cancer returned, has spread and she is currently in the hospital on life support. 

Do you know how selfish and small I feel?

Even worse, how do you think she felt, laying in her own bed, hearing her little dog bark outside, but simply too weak to even get up and let it back in.

I could have done that. I could have walked that dog, I could have let the dog in after going out. I could have walked over there one day when I saw her at the mailbox, even though our mailboxes aren't that close together.

If I'd done that, maybe I would have realized how sick this poor young mother of two was...living steps away from my own house.

 I could have, but I didn't.

 Instead it was a running joke about "The dog next door is barking again. Shocker!"

But it's too late for me to be the better person. That little dog tried to tell me. I truly believe it did. I just didn't listen hard enough.

I'm old school, but Lassie episodes (in the sixties) would be all about Lassie barking relentlessly to let little Timmy know that somewhere help was needed!

I heard the call but failed to recognize it. And me, a dog person! I should be ashamed, and I am.  There's been an older gentleman over there this past week, pretty much round the clock. He was out getting their mail when I was getting ours last week. I threw up the neighborly hand wave and he responded with the same. I motioned to him and walked over.

I asked if everything was okay with our neighbor's wife? It was not.

She was currently on life support, he told me, and introduced himself. He was her father in law, staying there to help out his son with the boys, who weren't aware of the severity of their mother's illness.

So for months and months as I made light of the little yapping dog next door who they just let bark and bark and bark...this young woman, wife and mother of two, lay in her bed too weak to probably even turn over much less go to the door and let a dog back inside, was trying to also take care of two young sons while her husband went to work to provide for them all...as I was sitting right next door, with nothing but time on my hands.

My husband came inside the other day after working in the yards and remarked that we needed to pray for our neighbors, there were an awful lot of cars over there and he wasn't so sure it was a cook out or celebratory get together.

It wasn't. It was visitation by friends and family.

When I met the father in law at the mailbox I asked if we could at least help feed them so they wouldn't have to worry about cooking. He accepted the offer and I went and got them stuff to make sandwiches, chips, some fruit and snacks and paper products where clean up would be minimal. 

It's the craziest thing. The little dog doesn't bark outside like she used to. Her message was finally received, by the slowest human neighbor ever.

I should have stopped her one of the rare days I saw her getting out of her car and walked over to introduce myself, but I didn't.

I chose to stay on my side of the fence and assume what was going on on their side...they had an annoying dog.

No, they had a dog who was trying to tell me I needed to come over and make sure everything was okay with its owners.

 I've been cooking for them every day or so, sending over things in throw away pans and hopefully entrees which will last a day or two.

Lots of visitors.

Tim has been working out of town all week but walked over this morning when he saw the father in law cutting the front yard, introduced himself and asked how she was doing? 

She died yesterday afternoon. 

Not even forty five years old.  The cancer came back with a vengeance , this time in her spine, then spread to her liver. After quarantine it was harder to get appointments and treatment for her and of course was given the run around by insurance and red tape.

And I was next door the entire time, doing nothing. I told Tim I didn't want to ever let that happen again. My presence couldn't have cured her cancer but it sure could have eased her mind, if only just a little bit.

It was a bitter lesson for me...you always need to be a bigger person, because you simply never know.

We will continue to help this family out any way we can. I'm just so sorry it took us so long.

https://www.clickorlando.com/news/2017/08/10/orlando-woman-delivers-baby-while-fighting-breast-cancer/  

(copy and paste the above into your browser)

They are very quiet and private people, and never once complained or asked for help of any kind. They relied on their faith. They are good decent people. We should have read between the lines or simply gone over there to introduce ourselves and extended the hand of friendship two years ago. 

I hate that I learned a valuable lesson at my neighbor's expense.

Always remember, if you don't know the whole story, never assume.

As one of my high school teachers used to say, "Assume: it makes an Ass out of  U and Me."

Till next time,

COTTON

You Gotta Laugh...Seriously!

 

Anybody who knows me or is even just around me for  five minutes knows I'm crazy.

I've said it before and I'll say it again.

I like being a goofball.

I can find something to laugh at, at any given point in time, about nothing or about the direst of situations. Trust me, it makes you feel better in the long run. I can't begin to count how many church services, weddings, funerals, award ceremonies, meetings or important appointments I have found myself so tickled about something that I can't stop laughing. The harder I try and stop, the more I want to giggle. Especially if I am with my sister.

I remember a funeral years and years ago, probably twenty, that my sister and I were sitting together at a funeral for a former classmates parent. My sister always gets nervous because she has a terrible memory but absolutely everyone remembers her and comes up to speak, with hand extended and calling her by name. My job as younger sister (who both my siblings call Rain Woman) is to lean over nonchalantly and whisper their name in her ear and maybe a tidbit about where she knew them from. I still remember a lot of childhood friends' telephone numbers or addresses, what kind of car their parents drove and what their pets names were. I remember all our teachers and all our parents' friends, going back to the early sixties.

It's a gift.

I am Rain Woman.

So any way, we were sitting at this funeral, and believe it or not, we got there early and sat down. People began walking in and I would tell my sister who every one was, as they headed in our direction to speak with us. (that's why we try and get there last minute)

I had everyone pegged correctly with my secret whisperings in her ear and made my sister look like she had just seen them last week at the store. Trust me, she doesn't even remember what she bought at the store last week.

So out of the blue this old codger with faded jeans and a rather large belt buckle appeared at the back of the church. He had long, I mean LONG hair, flowing like gray wire and a beard almost down to his stars and bars belt buckle on his faded Wrangler jeans. He was also wearing (of course) dark glasses and cowboy boots. We grew up way down south (in the land of cotton) if you get my drift. #smh

 My sister seemed nervous as he came in our direction to sit behind us. She asked, with her hand in front of her mouth, "Who is that?"

I didn't miss a beat and whispered (with fake sincerity) "He's one of the lead singers in ZZ Top."

We laughed the entire funeral.  We would get ourselves together, but if one of us looked at the other one, we fell apart all over again. I don't think anyone noticed us and thank goodness we'd sat in the back and were the first ones to leave. I'm glad we didn't sign the book.

Going somewhere solemn with my brother is even worse. If all three of us are together, it's a lost cause.

We lost our mother in 1977 and our father in 2002.

In hindsight they both may have possibly died of embarrassment.

We're a lot.

Yeah, I'm nuts. But so are they.

I remember the time my sister said one of her flight attendant friends said to her on a work trip, "Did I see a picture on Facebook of your sister on a dog bed with a toy bone in her mouth?"

My sister just said yes.

 No need to try and explain me.

The similarity between above and below is uncanny.

I'm a legend in my own tiny mind.

At least my brother and sister are a lot smarter than me and have gone lot further in life, career wise... while I slung plates around for a living.

(and I don't mean spinning them on a long stick)

They have been awesome to be able and fall back on, and have always been there for me.

I'm not sure if they really love me, as much as just feel sorry for me, but I'll take it either way I can get it.

My sister gave me this card a few years ago. You know how you'll keep a card someone gives you for a few weeks, maybe shuffling it from the letter rack to a junk drawer and finally end using it to jot a number down on and eventually throw it away after several months?

Not me.

 If someone gives me something I really relate to or love, no matter how small or insignificant, I'll keep it.

Forever.

This card my sister gave me one birthday, years ago is one of those things.

 I still have it today, and will still have it when they clean out my locker at the insane asylum for old peeps nobody can tolerate, as I sit in a chair petting a fake battery operated dog. (I'm not big on cats)

On the inside it simply read:

 ''There's you, and then there's everybody else. Happy Birthday, you."

TOUCHE'

I think Jimmy Buffet sums me up best...

"It's these changes in latitudes, changes in attitudes

Nothing remains quite the same

With all of our running and all of our cunning

If we couldn't laugh we would all go insane."

So I'll just sashay my crazy little self on down the road of life, laughing as much as I can, for as long as I can. Crying's not near as much fun.

Till next time,

COTTON