Shhhhhh, It's a Surprise!

Carrie Lane Elisabeth was born on October 8th. You can't have a surprise birthday party on that date. She is much to smart for it to be a surprise which is the main theme of this party.

We are having it today. The movie theatre is the place. The daughter has rented a room at the theatre and after the party the kids will see a movie. The parents can either go or have a few hours go do what they want.

I'm in charge of getting Carrie to the place of this event. She spent the night with me and is still asleep which brings me to last nights escapades.

The door opened. It was swung open with force. The two women dressed in dark clothing hurried from the patio door across the corner of the living room and disappeared through the doorway into the kitchen. The younger women was whispering to the older woman as they approached the hallway to the bedrooms. I woke up.
I wake periodically through the night and usually am able to go back to sleep. I have heard we dream every night though we may not remember them. Each time I fell asleep last night, my nightmare would continue. Each time I woke up I reviewed that dream. I was awake a lot last night. The scene would change with each continuation of that deam. Sometimes I would be in my car in the driveway as the women approached the house and sneaked inside. I would whisper to my daughter, "Call 911" and would wake up to review yet again this dream. I'm exhausted from last nights activity.

I'm ready to slip back beneath the sheets and, hopefully, get a few more hours of dreamless sleep. 

And Time Marches On With and Without

I suppose we all reach a time in our lives when acquaintances and family and old friends leave this trail and "pass on" as most people put it. "She passed" or "he has passed". I heard one person report that "he was transitioning well". I want to transition well. I like the sound of transitioning but to where? It sounds as if that person is making a position change as in easing into a new job or into a new home.

Growing up in a very small town and in the years this was done, there were people that were considered prosperous who would by today's standards be considered lower middle class. Money was tight for most people and the few families that worked in the one factory located riverside in Ravenswood had it better then most. Construction workers had seasonal jobs and the winters could be tough. Families were large then. It wasn't uncommon for seven to 12 children in one family. Usually the larger families lived on the farms. I don't remember any large families that were "townies".
Vacations were not something I ever heard my friends discuss. Trips were made to see Aunts and Uncles, grandparents and cousins. Weekends were family affairs not a beach experience or more exotic travel. The families that remain in that small town travel much more then we did in the '50's and 60's. 

I'm writing this to pay homage to "one of our own" that just "passed". She was a classmate; one that was well known and liked. She wasn't a person that I spent a lot of time with but as is common in small towns, I knew her whole family. Her parents and her siblings. I was shocked to hear of her passing and saddened to know she had left us so early. She was a part of my past as were all my classmates.
RIP Janice. You are on my mind.

And This is The Story

This is highly condensed; a more vivid description omitted. This is not to condemn or add to more hurt.

How can one person's life change so drastically? The trial date was set and the main players appeared. A plea bargain was agreed upon. Plead guilty to two felonies in exchange for the other person's charges being dropped.

The lawyer assured him he would "probably" get off with "time served."  That's not exactly how the story ended though.

It all started when the couple were reported to Child Social Services. Neatness was never their strong point. The children were raised among, shall we say, less then a sterile environment. "Less then sterile" is left up to your imagination and interpretation. The children were removed from the home; the next day in a fit of rage, the father appeared at the school and told the school receptionist "it's no wonder what happened at Sandy Hook happened! It's because of stuff like this!" No weapons were found on him. It was his words; words from a father distraught at having his children taken from him.

The receptionist immediately notified the authorities and the dad was arrested for terrorizing the school. The Sandy Hook incident was but days old. This was not the time to go barging into a school with these comments.

5 felonies were levied. A price was to be paid. He was arrested, booked and jailed with a steep bail which he was unable to raise. Months passed and eventually he was granted release on his own recognisance  but with the stipulation that he would be on "house arrest".

More months passed and finally the court date was set.
 Another arrest and he was back in jail awaiting sentencing.

You may think this is a belligerent, aggressive, abusive and violent person. It sure reads that way doesn't it?

l've known this person all my life. He is rough and unpolished, kind and helpful, non confrontational and very social. He not just likes being around people, but has to be engaged in activity and interaction with others.

I can only hope that upon his sentencing date, he is given "time served" and is released to his family once again.

Good luck brother. My heart hurts for you. Keep your chin up, maintain your cool. I'll be waiting for that phone call that says "Hi sis, how are you doing?" He called me every night to make sure I was alright and to offer emotional support during this "journey" I'm taking.

I only wish there was something I could do to make this easier on his family.

Sunday Morning, Football Sunday

Our rainy weather continues and so does the wonderfully lower temperatures. It was 75 degrees yesterday and my friend Pat appeared at my house wearing a jacket. Really?

"Pat, are you really cold?" and to that she responded, "Yes, I am!" Today is the first day of fall. It might be a long winter for Pat. For me, I'll thoroughly enjoy the cooler temps.

We spent Saturday watching the usual college football games and munching on some Buffalo wings.  I'm in the mood for some Gumbo and some potato salad. My tongue is still tolerating warm foods so I am thinking I should take this opportunity to ingest them while I can.

Carrie returns home from her dad's today and most likely will spend the night here with me. Monday is the day I do the library assistant thing so she will ride to school with me and instead of being a "drop off", I will walk her into the school where we will take different paths for the next two hours. A 40 minute wait after my library duties and I'll spend lunch with Carrie. That has become our routine lunch date since I started my library work.

I could easily curl back up and sleep some more but today I'm going to stay OUT of bed and do a little housework. With the rainy weather, cooking that gumbo and making a batch of brownies sounds like a wonderful afternoon.

It's time for a nice warm shower, some eyebrow shadow and some eyeliner. I now do both of these makeup tricks. My eyebrowLESS face looks absurd with my bald head. A little eyeliner and some eyeshadow blended into "where my eyebrows" usually take up space on my face, it  helps define all that forehead and head space.

That's my exciting plans for this Sunday. I'm done here.