The dynamic duo...

will celebrate their 58th wedding anniversary on March 20!

My hero

After the previous post extolling the virtues of my mom, I realized I needed to post about my dad also. Pop turned 78 years old in January. He too is beautiful inside and out. Pop had a hard life growing up. He had to quit school at 15 and go to work to help support his family after his father left. Even with just an 8th grade education he managed to gain the experience to become a Class A machinist with General Electric where he worked for nearly 20 years. After his retirement he set up his woodworking shop (part of which can be seen in the photo) where he built furniture and various other items. He has had both knees replaced with stainless steel joints, 2 quadruple coronary by-pass surgeries and most recently he had a defibrillator implanted. His health won't let him do a lot of things now that he used to do and it is hard for him to realize that he needs to slow down. He's a real go-getter! There'e never been a time when I couldn't go to him with a problem. He's always been there for me. Here's to you Pop! I love you!!!

My Inspiration

Today is my mom's 77th birthday. I guess most people think their mom is special but, actually, my mom IS special. When she was 13 months old she was stricken with polio. The first 7 or 8 years of her life were spent in one of the Shriners' hospitals. Part of that time she was in an iron lung. As a result of the polio, one of her legs is about 2 inches shorter than the other. The polio also destroyed the joint in one of her hips and one of her ankles (the doctors were able to rebuild the ankle joint but it has now deteriorated and is no longer working) and caused her to have scoliosis. Because of the scoliosis, her lung capacity is decreasing, causing breathing problems. She is now suffering from post-polio syndrome which causes weakness in her muscles. Her other health problems would fill a small book. She is able to get around only with the aid of a walker and even that is difficult for her and she is in constant pain. But even with all of these problems, she has the most upbeat, positive outlook on life. She lives with her pain and doesn't dwell on it. I don't think I could live for one day with the problems she has lived with for the past 75 years. She constantly amazes me. To me she is the most beautiful person in the world - both inside and out. Here's to you Mom. I love you. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Heart of the Matter

My favorite song by Don Henley. I was reading a commentary on this song on the Don Henley Song Blog on L&M's Fastlane (the best place to go for all things Eagles). I guess this song means so much to me because of my own lost love. It's been 38 years since we broke up. We dated for 2 years and were engaged for 2 years. He was ready to get married and start a family but I was just not quite ready. I wanted to wait a while longer and he couldn't accept that. The last time I saw him was in February of 1991. He came to visit my parents and asked to see me. I was living next door with my husband and 3 boys. Seeing him again made me realize just how much I missed him and still care so deeply for him. He lives in Florida with his wife and 2 sons. I don't know what he does for a living but, knowing him, I believe he could be successful at anything he sets his mind to. I truly hope he is happy. There is rarely a day that goes by that I don't think of him and what a fool I was to let him go. To quote another Henley song, "If you find somebody to love in this world you'd better hang on tooth and nail..." (New York Minute - Don Henley, Danny Kortchmar, Jai Winding)

Heart of the Matter - Mike Campbell, Don Henley, JD Souther

I got the call today that I didn't wanna hear
But I knew that it would come
An old, true friend of ours was talkin' on the phone
She said you'd found someone
And I thought of all the bad luck and the struggles we went through
And how I lost me and you lost you
What are these voices outside love's open door
Make us throw off our contentment and beg for something more?

I'm learning to live without you now
But I miss you sometimes
The more I know, the less I understand
All the things I thought I knew, I'm learning again

I've been tryin' to get down
To the heart of the matter
But my will gets weak
And my thoughts seem to scatter
But I think it's about
Forgiveness, forgiveness
Even if, even if you don't love me anymore

Oh, these times are so uncertain; there's a yearning undefined
And people filled with rage
We all need a little tenderness; how can love survive
In such a graceless age?
The trust and self-assurance that lead to happiness
They're the very things we kill, I guess
Oh, pride and competition cannot fill these empty arms
And the work I put between us - you know, it doesn't keep me warm

I'm learning to live without you now
But I miss you, baby
And the more I know, the less I understand
All the things I thought I'd figured out
I have to learn again

I've been trying to get down
To the heart of the matter
But everything changes
And my friends seem to scatter
But I think it's about
Forgiveness, forgiveness
Even if, even if, you don't love me anymore

There are people in your life who've come and gone
They let you down; you know, they hurt your pride
You better put it all behind you, baby, 'cause life goes on
You keep carryin' that anger, it'll eat you up inside, baby

I've been trying to get down
To the heart of the matter
But my will gets weak
And my thoughts seem to scatter
But I think it's about
Forgiveness, forgiveness
Even if, even if you don't love me...

I've been tryin' to get down
To the heart of the matter
Because the flesh will get weak
And the ashes will scatter
So I'm thinkin' about
Forgiveness, forgiveness
Even if, even if, you don't love me...

(Forgiveness)
Yeah (Forgiveness
Baby(Forgiveness)
Oh (Forgiveness)
Ah, yeah (Forgiveness)
Ooh (Forgiveness)
Even if you don't love me anymore

Yet another senseless death

A troubled 14-year-old child was beaten and died at the hands of "officers" at a Florida boot camp. Yes, the boy had been in trouble and broken the law. But is this any way to treat a child? And that is exactly what he was, a child only 14 years old. Anyone else would be in jail right now for child abuse. Surely there is some other way to handle children who break the law. Must they die at the hands of people who are supposed to be there to help them? Trying to say the young man died because of a genetic blood disease is laughable. It is my firm belief that the he died as a result of the beating. It will be interesting to watch this case and see what the final outcome is. To let these people off would be a travesty. These "officers" should be punished to the fullest extent of the law.

Another senseless death

This is a very disturbing story of an innocent wife and mother cut down in the prime of her life due to a senseless act of violence. Apparently her only transgression was firing someone. My heart goes out to her family. Their lives are in shambles because of the rage of this obviously disturbed individual.
Family mourns 'a good mother'

Okay, it's time to bring back public hangings (update)

I've found a bit more information on this sleaze bag William Edward Ronca. Seems he was the child's stepfather. Here's his ugly mug:







Photo from WISTV.com