WillThink4Wine

I’ll miss the good ole days…. Winthrop…….Cottage Park Rd, eating red ants & always in trouble…you were like the older brother I never had…..surely you will be missed…..Cousin Robert

That was an excerpt from one of the entries in The Guestbook at my brother John’s Funeral. There were many heartfelt condolences, and many that made me cry. However, this one stood out for me. I was quite curious to know why 2 young boys would not only eat red ants, but also have fond memories of the experience. So, I called my cousin to ask him about this.

Must. Have. Input.

Robert told me that he, being all of a year younger than John, couldn’t stand up to the pressure John put on him. First John tried to make it sound cool! Ah! A classic approach! When that didn’t work he teased Robert, saying he was a baby, or chicken or words to that effect. In the end Robert totally caved and ate the red ants. Still, he remembers it fondly as part of his childhood memories. Boys are so strange.

So, 40 years later, I’m wondering… who I should feel more sorry for?

• My brother John, the consummate bully
• My cousin Robert, the picked on younger kid forced to eat red ants
• The red ants, snack food

In the end, I think it would have to be the party who ultimately gave it their all… the red ants, of course!

Who would you pick?

Oh, and Robert and The Donald? They’re justlikethis.

I used to have a little red plastic suitcase, left over from my childhood sleepovers. It held all my special memories and all my hopes for the future.

That’s where I saved all of the love notes Mr. X wrote to me while we were in Junior High and High School. I also kept all the ticket stubs from movies and concerts, napkins from restaurants, all the little mementos of our 5 years of dating before we got married. It even has some wedding souvenirs in it and some pictures.
When Mr. X and I divorced and I moved out, I had forgotten all about it. It was in the spare bedroom closet. I asked him for it years ago. He’s since remarried, sold the house and moved.

I wonder… What are the odds that he still has it?

Tags: Aging Gracefully, Mr X, Random Thoughts, Simple Pleasures

Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom; mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power.~Lao Tzu

The last part of that quote… I’m not even close to mastering anything. No strength or power here, I’m afraid.

I’m a work in progress. I’m not easy.

I’m pretty good when it comes to knowing others. I almost always get a feeling soon after meeting somebody for the first time. I have learned to trust my first impression and my own instincts. I’ve always been sorry when I didn’t. I’m a good listener and people usually feel very comfortable talking to me. Sometimes what they say falls under the heading of “more than I wanted to know”, but that’s OK.

Actually, I’m much better at knowing others than I am at knowing myself. I didn’t really get serious about figuring myself out until I realized my 21 year marriage was a complete failure. I had to take a really close look at myself to determine what part I had played in that. Ultimately, I claimed nearly all the blame. I realized that before I’d ever gotten married, I knew in my heart of hearts that it wasn’t what I wanted. I went into it knowing he had anger issues, didn’t want kids, didn’t share my faith, but I pushed that all away. I actually believed I could “Cure Him”! I was young, foolish and in love. I settled for less; less than I deserved and it was also less than Mr X deserved.

It’s been 14 years since the divorce and I’m still working on knowing myself. So I certainly wouldn’t say I’ve attained true wisdom just yet, but I’m working on it.

Tags: Mr X, Random Thoughts, Wisdom

I love Gatherings. I love to gather together all the people I love into one place, at the same time. Any excuse that I can get everyone to rally behind will do!

So often we often hear the phrase “Small World”. Well I certainly don’t think so, at least not in the ways that really matter. Just try and plan a Gathering! We’re scattered up and down the east coast. Schedules make it nearly impossible to gather: work, social, school, sports, dance… Busy, Busy, Busy we are!

The SisterDears and I are trying to plan our first annual “Once a Year, Everyone’s Here” Day for next July when my parents and I travel back to New England. The logistics are quite challenging! We want everyone from all 4 generations to gather. I’d also like as many cousins to show up as would like with their families. We want a new Family Photograph. Perhaps a Burgers & Hot Dogs family picnic. It will be magnificent if we can pull it off!

Happy OY, EH Day! I hope the holiday that I insisted upon will become every family’s favorite! So go ahead, start planning yours! Best Wishes for 100% turnout. Please let me know when you post about it! I’ll certainly be posting about ours!

Thank Goodness, my boys’ schedule always permits plenty of time for me!

P.S. - I so want the necklace in the banner that the ImageChef made for me!

If you like my idea of 100% Family Reunion Participation Vote here!

Are you still here? Leave me some Comment Love & get outa here. Go start Planning your first OY EH Day!

Tags: Daily G's, Family, Gatherings, Grayson, Random Thoughts

175 WORDS CHALLENGE

I met him when we moved into our new house. My cousin told me he lived next door to her. He and his older brother were “volunteered” by my uncle to do some of the heavy lifting.

It was the first time I ever noticed a boy!

He was tall and dark, not at all handsome, unless you think dorky and be-speckled is handsome. He was the second oldest in his family of six. I found myself doing stupid things in front of him, tripping, stumbling, dropping, tongue tied and talking too much. I was in crush.

As tired as I was that day, I was sad to see it end because that meant he had to leave my house. I wondered if I’d ever see him again, maybe at my cousin’s house. I wondered if he felt any of the same feelings.

We slept that night on mattresses on the floor. Morning came and my MotherDear came in to wake us for breakfast. She lifted my blanket and said to me “That boy is downstairs asking for you.”

• 175 Words
• 917 Characters

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ARE YOU UP FOR THE CHALLENGE? YOU CAN DO IT!
DIRECTIONS FOR THE CHALLENGE:

Firstly, click on the link provided below. While there at the site, type your life’s event in the box provided. Total your words. Your entry MUST meet the challenge of 175 words!! NO LESS!!!! Must be 175 words at least!! If it’s not, it doesn’t qualify. Then, copy and paste your life’s event to your blog and place your total of words - the exact count into your blog entry also. That’s it!

If you want to try the challenge go to Hootin Anni’s HERE.

I’d like to know you’ve done the meme challenge for fun. If you do, please come back and tell me in the comments section!! I’ll come by for a visit.

Tags: Mr X, Random Thoughts, Simple Pleasures

Good Morning SisterDears! It’s very quiet here. I’ve been up since five thirty. I, like everyone else on the planet, am numb. Tom Brady is surely feeling his blues. All I can think is “Wow”. I hope he is not blaming himself for the Heartbreak Bowl.

We all know the outcome was the direct result of a poor wardrobe choice. Specifically, the red sweatshirt Coach B was wearing. That’s the first thing I noticed when I sat down to watch the game. It’s not rocket science, if you’ve worn the gray one the whole season and it’s well known as the lucky one, why mess with a good thing? Just my opinion. 

My own Thomas was feeling very blue this morning. He didn’t want to go to school. He does this every so often after he has been sick. He was out Friday with a cold, and he was home the whole weekend with me. He has a hard time getting back into the swing of things.

Anyways,  it was still dark outside when they were buckling him into his seat. He was crying and I was looking across at him.  His little lip was quivering. He said “I want to stay with you Mama”.  I was standing there waving, saying I love you, but at the same time feeling so sad for him. I let this bother me for a short time and quickly came to my senses. I did call his teacher to let her know he seemed scared. She assured me he was no longer upset and was in a good mood.  

So, if an eight year old can put a sad experience behind him in such a short period of time, lets hope the coach, the man, the team, and the fan nation will do the same.   

Oh yeah, someone should throw that sweatshirt in the trash! 

Remember a few days ago where I did a post that said “Sometimes I just read the Google Ads“? Well, I was reading one of my favorite blogs (Welcome back Heather!) and there it was again… Spanx - $5 shipping. I had to do it, I clicked it.

I’m so ashamed.