Happy Independence Day!

Image via WikipediaI hope you're all having a wonderful holiday!  We went to a family BBQ early this afternoon & have been at home relaxing for a while.

Well actually, I've been lurking visiting some blogs & commenting on some, too.  Your blogs have inspired me to  post!  (Truthfully, I felt guilty because I looked at my visit page at the bottom & saw how many people stopped by to see if I wrote another post ;)  So, it was a little of both.

Since I was last here, I've been a little busy.  My daughter graduated from high school on June 10th.  She was in National Honor Society, D.E.C.A., played tennis, & wrote for the school paper.  She received a scholarship for almost half of what she will need for the first 4 years of college tuition.  (It will definitely help!)  Last week Wednesday, she went for her orientation, picked out her classes &  starts college on August 31st.  My baby will be living at home because the college is about 10 minutes away.  She has decided she wants to be a forensic pathologist, which means about 12-13 more years of school.  This, of course, includes medical school.  She better make great money when she's through because she will be paying the loans back. (I'd have to be a lunch lady until I'm 200 to try to pay that back...lol...UGH!)

Cover via AmazonAs for this lunch lady, my summer vacation started June 14.  I've been trying to get some reading in.  I finally finished reading "Gone With the Wind" & the sequel (written by a different author years later) called "Scarlett".  My uncle sent a book for Sarah to read called "Stiff:  The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers" by Mary Roach.  (related to her future career & because we like to read & watch gory, horror stuff)  The book is more documentary with added author humor.  It's a very interesting, but sometimes graphic, read.  The book I'm reading now is "Annie's Ghosts" by Steve Luxenberg.  It's a true story about a family member that no one knew about until his mother died.  His story covers his grandparents coming to Detroit from Russia in the early 1900's until his modern day search for the unmentioned family member.  I like this book because of all the references to the Detroit area.  Living here, I can pretty much picture where & what he is writing about.  I don't usually care much for historical facts but this talks about Poland, the Hitler regime & the holocaust.  Of course, my great-grandparents were already in the U.S. but I'm sure we still had family in Poland during the war. (something I really want to start looking into)
Cover via Amazon
And the noise of fireworks begins...

AHEM!  Sorry for the interruption.  I am going to get this post done if I have to strangle ignore the noise-making people.  I know it's the 4th of July but they've been at it every night for a couple of weeks already & they are ILLEGAL!  Anything that explodes or leaves the ground is illegal in Michigan.  So that leaves the only legal fireworks-SPARKLERS!  Those they can play with every day of the year.

We now return to our post, already in progress...

The next book I will read is the new Steven Tyler (Aerosmith) book called "Does the Noise In My Head Bother You?".  Sarah is getting it for me for my birthday (July 17-no gifts, just send money-please...lol).  I love reading the Rock-N-Roll stories.  I have a Kurt Cobain (Nirvana) memoir-type book & "The Heroin Diaries" written by Nikki Sixx from Motley Crue.  It really makes you wonder how they are still alive (excluding, of course, Kurt Cobain who committed suicide).  I am also waiting for the next book of Charlaine Harris' "Dead" series (also known as the "True Blood" books) to come out in paperback.  I read the first 10 so I am eagerly awaiting the next one.  And, I'm glad that the new season of "True Blood"  has started on HBO! LOVE IT!!!!

Well, I meant to get into some other things but I guess you can see that reading is definitely a passion of mine (& Sarah's, too. Hubby used to read more before he got his laptop & smart phone ;)  I will just have to post sooner & more often. (Yes, I have said that before.  I will try harder because I miss it & all of you)

God Bless You, your families, & our United States of America on this Independence Day 2011! (OK-The World!)
Waving the flag like my babushka,
Collette

In Memoriam

Just over one month ago, on May 10, 2011, my Babcia (grandmother in Polish), passed away.
     Babcia was 94 years old.  Yes, she lived a long, full life, but you could tell she wasn't ready to go.  She caught a bad cold that turned into pneumonia & was in the hospital for a few days.  They sent her home on a Wednesday, still too weak to even walk by herself.  Two days later, on Good Friday, my uncle, in town for Easter, took her to the emergency room.  She was septic.  Babcia was still coherent through to the next morning until around 8:30 am, when she became unresponsive.  The doctors were not hopeful.
     A few hours later, before noon, she woke up as if nothing happened.  We were all in shock, as were the doctors.  They asked how she was feeling & she said "I feel good!".  The hospital was abuzz with our Easter 'Miracle".  The day after Easter, everyone from out of town left for home.
     Even though she was free from infection, Babcia started going downhill shortly after that.  Her body was just too weak.  She barely ate what everyone was trying to feed her.  They didn't expect her last a couple of days, but she held on.  Eventually, the decision was made to put her in hospice.
     She entered hospice on Wednesday, May 4th.  Every day there was a message to get to hospice right away because "This could be it".
     On Mother's Day, the whole family was there.  My dad, his 3 brothers, my sisters, husband & daughter, my cousins, spouses...It was a celebration of sorts.  We were all there for Babcia, our matriarch, the foundation of our family.  We laughed & cried, sang & played polkas for her.  We shared memories & picked on each other, the way we always do.  And every once in awhile, we'd get a knowing smile from her.  This was her party, the eternal hostess.  Babcia had her family together.
     Life is never fair as people have to go home & get back to work.  The family flew back to their respective states as we all prepared for the end.
     Monday, May 9th, the ones who live here, visited at various times during the day or evening.  We expressed our love, as always & reluctantly went home.
On Tuesday morning, May 10, 2011 at 12:41 am, my Babcia went home to God.

I wanted to share this with all of you because you know how close I was to my Babcia.  I am doing a lot better than I was so I knew it was time to tell the story.  I will post again soon.  Thank you to all of you for being here for me.  I love you all!
Hanging on to My Babcia's Babushka,

Collette

* Filth & Foul*-Pardon My French

I had no intentions of posting this very moment until I got home from my grandma's house.  I figured it would let me vent off some of this steam.
                                      
                                  I am sick & tired of this FUCKING SNOW!

(now you understand the title?)
 
Till Christmas, we barely had any snow.  We had one bad snow/icestorm & then we'd been getting about an inch every other day or so.  This was doable.  Now that it's after the holidays, we keep getting INCHES (meaning at least 4-5) every week, but usually more often.  And it's the wet, heavy kind that truckers can get stuck in.  I have a little, blue Chevy Cobalt FWD (which I am grateful for), but small wheels tend to get stuck in big snow.  I just happen to get stuck almost everytime I go to my grandma's which is every day.  Most days, I go there & she needs something from the store, so I have to go back.  If I didn't get stuck the 1st time, it is almost inevitable that I will get stuck the next time.

Take today, for instance, it snowed overnight, again, but only a couple of inches & it's been melting.  I stop over to visit & babcia needs me to go to the bakery.  Great!  Not only do I have to try & find parking, but I also have to make sure I can get in & out without getting stuck.  Of course, the spot in front of the bakery that I was going to take was filled by the time I got around the block.  (parking is very hard to find here even when there is no snow)  So, I spied another spot & wouldn't you know, also filled by the time I got to it. But, this time, there was just enough room for me to park behind it if I backed up a little on the snow bank when I backed in.  Ok, good enough.  Now to the bakery which is around the corner & down the street a little.  No one in the bakery, so I get my goods & head out.  Back at babcia's, I pull up into her mostly snow-filled driveway with the car blocking the sidewalk.  I usually don't get stuck when I park this way.  I take in the bakery goods & chit-chat a little.

I'm supposed to take her to the beauty shop tomorrow because we have a baby shower on Saturday.  But, don't you know it, there's another snowstorm on the way for tonight through tomorrow morning.  I did not mention this because come hell or high water (in which case there would be no snow...grrr) I will get her to the beauty shop.

Back in the car, I attempt backing across the street to the other driveway (my dad suggested it would be easier) & lo & behold I am stuck once again.  This time I am blocking the entire street sideways.  Lovely!  Also, since it started getting cold, my car has a stalling problem.  Probably something with fuel not making it to where it needs to go, but I haven't taken it in because...(a) Low on funds &  (b) it starts right back up.  Of course, this is wasting time when I have to keep doing it.  A car decides to come down the street.  She sits in the car about 5 minutes, looking at me & backs up down the street.  Thank you so very much!  Next time, I will charge for entertainment.  Somehow, after about 15 minutes of rocking the car back & forth, drive to reverse, I made it back into the driving ruts.  No matter how many times this happens, it is NOT something you get used to.  It stills wears so badly on your patience that you want to get out of the car & just leave it. (till the snow thaws)

There is also the issue of the amount of gas it takes to get unstuck.  And, with gas prices the way they are going right now, it's very worrisome.
I am having so many "If-Only's" right now.  I think the major one would take care of a lot.

If only I had the money...

Waving the Babushka to flag down someone to push out my car,
Collette  (((HUGS)))