Letters to Mom

Another one is with you, Mama.  We knew we'd lose Annie and Darcy this year. We didn't expect either of them to live as long as they did.  Darcy made it past her birthday but not quite to the anniversary of her joining our lives on Halloween.    Remember how I'd go to the post office almost every day six days a week in North Fork and she'd climb the steps up the hill and wait on the rock next to Josh's place for me.  She'd spot me and begin meowing softly: mew, mew, mew, mew.  That was her special time with me.  I'd talk to her, pet her, she'd scratch on the boards and I'd pet some more.   She continued that here a lot, running down to the steps when we'd pull up, demanding attention. Our beautiful, beautiful Darcy, she took a final trip to the vet today and crossed over as I held and talked to her. She gave me tiny mews and head butted me.  She was calm and attentive, not stressed out at all as I was afraid she might be.  ...

  We left the house on bicycles to a nearby credit union. They would put a 9 day hold on a check and not sure they'd open an account for Jackie, please try Regions.  Okay, ride the bikes up to the UHaul rental place (2 miles from home) and get a pickup. We put the bikes in the back and drive to Walmart.  The amount of the check is too big for Walmart to cash or put on the prepaid card. Drive to Regions.         No problem - open an account and get starter checks, the ATM card and printed checks will be sent out. We were told there would be no problem buying a car today.        we then drive to Honda (no food yet) There was Jackie's car on the showroom floor with her name on it.  Midnight plum, 2013 Honda Fit.  Awesome - fill out the paperwork which takes HOURS.  Wait, a starter check? No printed check? Let me check.  No, need a cashier's check instead.         O...

Hey Ma, took some time but ships are sailing.  They won't sail around the world but we can breathe some fresh air now

One of the Facebook pages I watch is a tribute page to Peter Cushing, one of my favorite actors since I was 9 yrs old.  It reminded me of a favorite story from you, Mom. gather round guys:  "The day my mother told my father she was pregnant with me they went to a drive in movie in KY.  Hound of the Baskervilles was playing.  Unknown to Mom there was a resident dog at the drive in that would go around scarfing up the inedible hamburgers, hot dogs and cardboard pizzas...... A big dog - a Great Dane.  The timing was perfect, I'm told. When the Hound on the screen attacked the Great Dane leaned his head in Mom's window and muffed at her. My father ended up on his tailbone sitting outside the car and Mom was standing over him trying to calm her racing heart, his ears ringing from her scream. She had somehow gotten out over him and under the steering wheel, knocking him out of the car.  He couldn't get off the asphalt for several minutes because he was laughing...

    Dear Gd, thank you for seeing us home on brand new bikes with racks that held a bag of cat food and tools on one and a PRINTER/COPIER/SCANNER and a backpack with odds and ends.         Thank you for giving us the blinding rain after walking the bikes a mile on an upgrade. The blinding rain was challenging on new bikes but very refreshing**         ** mild sarcasm indicated We didn't intend on getting bikes today but the deal was good. Now we die for the rest of today and tomorrow