Peeping Tom

Earlier this summer I had a strange experience. I felt eyes on me when I was in the bathroom.....a very unnerving feeling to be sure. Well of course I looked around and checked everywhere for any evidence of cameras or suspicious looking paraphernalia. I came up empty handed and thought I was just imagining it. I must be going crazy!

Then I went to open the bathroom window and let in the beautiful summer breeze with that glorious sunshine and this is what I found! Not so crazy after all. 

 Oh yeah....all full of excuses and innocent looks but I know a Peeping Tom when I see one!!

Mystic Aquarium 2017

 This type of jellyfish had little neon lights running through it continuously. So cool looking!

Another extremely different looking jellyfish  

 Shay enjoyed them all. She kept saying 'fishes' all day. 

 The colors were amazing. 

 Shay watched the sleeping sharks for a minute then turned to us and whispered "Shhhhhh....sleeping."

 Of course they brought healthy food for Shay like they always do but she is not above eating someone else's french fries for dessert. 

 I think Kaylee enjoyed the day more than she expected to. She even left her phone in the car without me asking her to!

 Shay eating Daddy's french fries. 

The saddest moment of the day. This little penguin was standing in the corner alone. I was told he is in mourning for his wife who died of old age yesterday. Penguins mate for life and will often display this kind of behavior at the loss of a mate. So sad! I was assured however that he will rebound and join the others after a few days. Poor little guy. 
His wife was 30 yrs old and he's close to that age too. In the wild they usually only live for about 12 yrs.   

After seeing so many frogs all day I was only interested in this flower.  :)

Learning

Shay is learning how to use a big girl cup. 

Shopping With Shay

Shopping with Shay is always an adventure.

Expect The Unexpected

If there is one thing I know about a baby it's that they change so quickly. They grow up fast and as they do they learn a few things along the way. However what they learn is not always what you think you are teaching and what they show us is not always what we expect from them. 

For example: 

 When Shay learned to say Oh-Oh!

 When Shay learned to ham it up for the camera.

 When Shay learned to make her own style choices.















When Shay taught Daddy her style. 

 When Shay learned that a basket is just as good as a chair.

 When Shay learned she can get Daddy to do lots of stupid things and that's always fun!

 When Shay learned you can laugh at Grandma through a window in the middle of the door. 

 Shay leading in style by example...

And it worked Shay! 

 Shay learned that anything can be a hat. 

 Shay learned to make the Popeye face (even though she has no idea who Popeye is yet.) And then she taught Mommy how to do it. 

 Shay learned that 'ears' are appropriate at anytime at Grandma's house. (for both casual and formal attire)

Shay decided that a winter hat and plastic eggs are cool any time too. 

The Moon

Sometimes I think the night sky speaks to me. I'm not sure what it's saying but I can feel it. 

It's Just Life

One of the hardest things about life is growing up....or at least it is for me. In some ways I feel like I've been a grown-up forever but in other ways I can look back at my life and realize I was a child for far longer than I knew. It makes me wonder if this is true for everyone or is everyone's experience of 'growing up' different?

What makes us think that growing up is the best way anyway? Maybe it really is better to go through life jumping in puddles and catching snow flakes on your tongue. You've never seen a stressed out person jumping in puddles have you? And I'll bet someone that goes out in a gentle snowfall and tries to catch snowflakes on their tongue isn't secretly worried about the stock market either. And here's another thought while I'm at it. When do we stop doing these things? The fun stuff, not the stressed out crap...that seems to stick around forever.  When do we stop jumping in puddles and spinning in circles with our arms out making ourselves dizzy and laughing? Maybe more importantly why do we stop it? You're probably thinking because we grow up. Well ok...I get that. But who decides when that is? Who decides it's time for us to grow up? For that matter how do we know when we are grown up? Is it when all the fun dies?

I think now that I coasted through most of my life with no direction and no plan. At every stage of my being I thought I was accomplishing something but in fact I may have just been existing and accomplishing nothing...nothing that mattered in the long run at least. Could this be the reason why I feel like I'm in a race against time now? Like my clock is running out and the ticking is getting louder; at times almost deafening and with it comes a desperate feeling that I need to change direction. I need to accomplish something...and soon. But what direction should I take? What do I need to accomplish? Who the hell am I?? I was asking that question when I was a teenager and I'm wicked surprised ((a word from my teen years) to find I'm still asking the same question. And dammit, nobody is answering it for me!!

Is this a feeling most people get as they age and begin to realize they are running out of time? Is this because I am beginning to realize that eventually I may not be able to physically do a lot of the things I take for granted now? I'm still asking myself (among other things) if I'm normal. And asking myself (without obtaining an answer to the first question) does it matter if I'm normal or not? And who is worthy or qualified to answer either the first or the second question in the first place?

Obviously all this self doubt and worrying about my accomplishments in life are a product of adult thinking. I never had these thoughts when I was a kid. Kids don't worry about falling off that swing at the playground. They just do it. But at some point I began thinking I need to be responsible. I need to do responsible things to get ahead in life. But what was I getting a head of? Who or what is behind me that I needed to get in front of? And aren't they thinking the same thing? Aren't they trying to get ahead of me too? Or are they still spinning in circles and actually enjoying themselves instead of worry and pushing and striving? 

 Here's an even scarier thought....nobody tell you what you are supposed to be achieving in life. Here you are with this big adult feeling that you have to go forth and create something or find a niche for yourself in the world and do something that is great. But you have no road map; not even an inkling of a direction to start your journey. Your friends are as clueless as you are and believe me the macaroni jewelry makers from kindergarten are not going to help you here either. Nobody knows! Nobody! And yet we all make this push towards adulthood at some point. And with that comes the judging and damning of your fellow humans who are not doing it your way or maybe not doing it at all. Some of them are thinking about making changes others have no clue. Some of them may remain clueless paste eaters for the rest of their lives....figuratively I hope. But for the most part most of us feel ourselves pushed forward and we go with it. 

I've often wondered why there is no class in school that actually teaches you about the cycles in life. Oh they have Home Economics to teach you how to cook 'food' by following the directions on the back of a box. And maybe you might take a class called Life Studies that skims ever so easily over the deep truths of life and makes it all sound so simple and obviously obtainable. But I'm talking about a class or series of classes that teach you the cycles of life and how they interact with each other; how it all comes full circle eventually and you find yourself in the beginning again if you are lucky or unlucky depending on your view. We need classes that will teach you what it is really like to be a child and how to help children appreciate this time in their lives and really enjoy it....it's so fleeting after all isn't it?

 I know they have classes about child development and geriatric studies; what we should be able to do at certain ages and the like. I'm talking about showing them how to enjoy being a child and having no responsibilities. And how about a class that will tell us what it's like to age. How it feels when you are not old yet...or not willing to admit to being old yet...but are older than you were when you went swimming in the very early Spring at your favorite lake and everyone said you were crazy for jumping into that freezing cold water. But you were young then and it was fun. And you surprised the fisherman there for opening day of fishing....and you scared their fish away too. Wouldn't it be nice to have a class that will tell you ahead of time to treasure those silly days when you are young because you won't do it 10 yrs from now? And doesn't it feel unfair that there is no class that teaches us our bodies will start to hurt and what we can do about it or to hold it off as long as possible? Or that maybe our faces will start to age but our hair color hasn't changed yet and your friends all think you dye your hair and you don't, but they won't believe you and it shouldn't matter and most of the time it doesn't. But sometimes it does matter... just a little bit. 

I just think it would be nice and make so much more sense to actually have a clue about what is coming up as we age. Somebody should have warned us that eventually you can't complain about old people driving terrible because YOU are the old person driving terrible now. And you can't stay out til the wee hours of the morning 'partying' anymore because it takes you days to recover from that stuff now and in the morning you will go into a panic trying to remember if you took your contacts out the night before or are they still in there somewhere. Where is the class that will tell us that ice skating at 20 is a blast but ice skating at 60 is a painful adventure that will leave you walking funny for days afterward?

Ok....let me put the brakes on here. I've strayed a bit from my entry point it would appear. But in essence what I'm getting at is that none of us have any idea what we are doing from childhood to adulthood to old age to death. We start off just being ourselves and having fun for the sake of fun. We eventually move thru all the cycles of adulthood gaining various amounts of experience and accolades along the way. Until we come to old age...I mean real old age...where it is all catching up to you and you are forced to become more and more dependent on others along the way. At this stage you have hopefully experienced the joy of being a parent and the even greater joy of being a grand parent (all the fun with none of the responsibility and they like the same things you do!). You are no longer dealing with the amount of responsibility you once did and you have time to reflect on what you've done; where you've gone and what it was all about. Now hopefully once again you can allow yourself to do what makes you feel good for the sake of feeling good. You no longer feel the push and pull of accomplishment and perhaps don't even question life at all. You are closer to being a child again than you will ever be and no one bothered to tell you this is how it goes.  

Princess Bucket Head

 In the earliest days of bucket wearing, Shay would just pop any old thing on her head as if it were a hat. She will still do this if it's brightly colored or if it makes someone laugh. She's a complete ham, like her Dad. 

 Gradually she seemed to select one particular bucket as a hat and would wear this one only as a hat. There was no other use for this bucket but being a head covering. I can't tell you how hard it is not to laugh when you see her showing up on some of her outlandish outfits. Thankfully most of them have made it to Face Book and a lot of my friends love seeing her pictures. 

 Sometimes it almost seems normal for her to being wearing a bucket hat. She does it so often. 

 And she doesn't really do it for the laughs anymore either. Now she wears her bucket for her own enjoyment. 

 In this shot she was carrying a stuffed toy; had her bucket hat on and decided to add a 'scarf'....which is a kitchen hand towel. Every time she finds out (at her eye level so they are easy to notice) she wraps it around her neck to wear it. 

 In this picture she get extra creative. She's wearing a pink hat and put the bucket on top of that in order to sit and be comfortable in her own little chair. 

And then there is the bucket head inside a buck adventure.....

And occasionally she will walk around the house with a book in her hand; a pocketbook on her shoulder and of course the bucket on her head. 
And now you know why she is known on Face Book at Princess Bucket Head. Long may she reign!!

Pictures from Crane's Hill

As it usually turns out, I found some pictures taken on Crane's Hill after I put up the last post. These pictures can't begin to capture the thrill of flying down that snow covered hill in deep winter. But maybe they will shed some light on why we all loved this place so much. 

Below here is my dog Charlotte when she was an adult dog but still young. I'd like to point out that she is not wearing a leash. Charlotte was such a wonderful dog that she didn't need to wear a leash. She never left my side and I took her everywhere with me. I would carry a leash in case the dog warden showed up but it was never on her....just wasn't necessary. 

This picture was taken at the top of Crane's Hill. There is a pine tree at the top first and foremost (right side of the photo) that dominated the hilltop but still allowed plenty of room to maneuver people, sleds, looky-loo's (people too scared to actually slide down the hill) and the occasional dog. We did not discriminate against a well trained dog who would jump on board for a ride down the hill. For that matter we didn't discriminate against the poorly trained dogs that would chase and snap at our sleds all the way down the hill either. 

This next picture was taken from the top of Crane's Hill as if you were about to go down the hill. It does not show the sudden drop you take once you shove off from the top. There is a steep and scary drop involved here that can't be seen in this picture. If I find any side view shots I will certainly post them too. 

If you look towards the top of the photo you'll see a building which is on the other side of the road. I think at the time this photo was taken it was a single family home but that place went through many changes as I was growing up. For a short while it was used to make picnic tables...when that didn't pan out they even made hot dogs in there for awhile. I don't know what it started out as when it was built but it ended up being a two family home. 

To the left in the upper section you will see what looks like two round white circles. That is actually the massive oil tanks that used to be there when I was a kid. I believe the oil tanks belonged to Hall & Muska (local oil business) but the property it sat on also housed the town garage. As kids we would haunt that town garage and poke our noses into every nook and cranny. There used to be a large barn (to the far left of where the picture ends) that was open the full length of the back side that faced the town property. The side facing the road just looked like a regular barn. 

The open side had what I'd describe as large open stalls where they kept a large store of rock salt; treated dirt and various types of large road equipment. There was also a closed area that was locked. I'm not remembering what was kept in there or if I ever even knew what they kept in there. There was also a mountain (and I do mean mountain) of sand kept behind the barn just beyond the dirt roadway that snaked from the paved road to the far back area where they had the dog pound. I don't think the mountain of sand was treated...at least I hope not because we spend hours upon hours playing back there. In fact one of my brothers once broke his arm jumping from that mountain of sand. 

And there were also large cement or cement like tubes that were kept stacked back there. I can only assume that they were used for drainage under roadways and things like that. They didn't use them often because they were there the entire time I was growing up and never moved or disturbed. We spent a lot of time hiding inside those massive tubes playing cards; eating candy; telling stories and sneaking the occasional cigarette when we were a little older and just beginning to rebel against the rules. Sometimes we'd jump on them and then jump from one to the other as fast as we could. There was a sense of freedom to that game and an element of danger too. Many of us went home with skinned knees and scraped hands but we didn't care. It was all part of growing up.  

The town garage is all different now. It looks much better if truth be told. The old barn is long gone and where there used to be mostly sand and small sharp rocks to cut bare feet there is now lush grass growing that is mowed regularly in the summer months. The oil tanks sat empty and unused for many years but are also gone now. In their place stands a three family condominium. The road way to the back is now paved and the dog pound has been upgraded as well. I believe the dog pound is now air conditioned in the summer....it wasn't when I was a kid. 

The cattails that grew in the swampy areas around the perimeter are still there. As long as there is a wet area they will always be there. Time moves forward and things around us change. It can't be stopped and although change can make you miss the old ways and the old scenery, in the long run change is good. The cattails are still there and so are the memories. 

Crane's Hill

When I think back to my life growing up in Broad Brook it sometimes feels a little bit like Mayberry ...you know, that program with Sheriff Andy Taylor and his deputy Barney Fife? Of course Broad Brook was in full color unlike Mayberry which was mysteriously in black and white yet we never questioned that while growing up and in fact never really even noticed. 

So how was Broad Brook like Mayberry? I think it was about the innocence and naivete of the times. Broad Brook was a small town and it was not a lie to say that I knew everyone I met while walking down Main Street. If I didn't know them by name I would at least know what the family name was and therefore was able to correctly place them in my mind. A friendly wave or a polite nod and a smile in passing were common for the ones you knew in this way. For the people that were real friends it was more common to give a full arm wave and maybe bellow out their name....as if there was some possibility they may have gone deaf and blind since our last meeting and may not notice me walking along the street. 

So in this way there was always the feel of being in a close community...safe...I felt safe from whatever horrors were out there in the world. I knew nothing of the horrors of the world actually and had nothing but a vague idea that there were 'bad people' out there to be wary of if you met them. Somehow I imagined that I would be able to pick these bad people out in any crowd....as if there was something inherently evil about their look that would tip everyone off on sight. Luckily for me I never did encounter any of the 'bad people' (fingers crossed that I still remain safe from them) and life continued on in my little Broad Brook. 

There were many quaint aspects to growing up in a small town. Knowing everyone or at least knowing their family was one of them. Working for the small town store owners was another plus as they treated you like family and of course knew your parents as well. But that's getting a bit ahead of myself here because I wanted to tell you about when I was younger....not old enough to have a job yet. That's when my life was mostly full of playing with my siblings and neighborhood kids. And I'm thinking of a time before my best friend Darla moved in next door but this fun time expanded to include Darla and her sister eventually too. 

One of the places that I loved the most and that gave all us kids the most joy was a steep hill up the road from us that was called Crane's Hill. As early as I can remember we were dragging our sleds; saucers and once a toboggan to this hill after every winter storm so we could terrify ourselves on the ride down this steep hill. It was a local sledding spot, not known to anyone outside of the people who lived on Mill Street. I remember it being very tiring to keep trudging back up the hill with our sleds, always making sure to walk on the very outside edges of the slide area so as not to make ruts with our feet....but also to avoid being hit by someone else coming down the hill at top speed. It was rare that anyone actually got hit but we expected it to happen occasionally because if truth be told we had very little control over the sleds once we were on our way down...and absolutely no control over a saucer even on the smallest hill. I do recall Darla wiping out badly on a saucer once when the hill was mostly an ice slide. Darla scraped her face up pretty badly that day and went home in considerable pain. 

But for the most part we didn't get hurt sliding down Crane's Hill. We just hit that hill with the kind of energy that young kids have and enjoyed the thrill of flying over the hump in the middle of the hill that could send you straight into a stand of trees if you happen to hit it wrong. Strangely enough although we wiped out often we usually didn't get hurt. And as the most recent victim of a wipe out would be pulling themselves out of the snow pile, wiping the snow out of their eyes and beginning the trek back up the hill, they'd hear the laughter of the rest of us as we came down the hill. Oh yes, we were laughing at them while hoping we weren't going to end up in the same snow pile. But that was part of the fun. Maybe you'd be the one that turns your sled too fast and rides the lower half of the hill on your butt. And all your friends would be laughing at your fall. But it wouldn't be too long before the ones laughing at you became the ones that were doing a desperate dance while trying to get packed snow out of their snow pants. That hill was great for dragging you backwards still clinging to your sled ropes, while jamming snow down the back of your pants; inside your boots and grabbing hats completely off your head!!

Cranes Hill didn't loose it's appeal even when I became an adult. I recall bringing my own kids there when I was in my 30's and showing them how much fun it can be to scream all the way down that scary snow covered hill. I brought my dog Allie and she liked to chase the kids down the hill barking the whole way. Things do change over time however and someone had left an old couch near the bottom of the hill. Although I was disgusted that anyone would have so little respect for our wonderful hill, we did make the best of it. The kids positioned a piece of ply wood against one end of that couch and before I knew it we were all taking our sleds over that couch ramp. We became couch jumpers!! Luckily in the years since then someone has removed the couch because although it was fun that day it was an eyesore too. (something only an adult would probably think)

But Crane's Hill wasn't just for winter. As a teenager I would meet many of my friends up there and we would engage in what would now be considered illegal activities...but back then we called it 'partying'....which meant we were drinking. We were mostly under aged which is why it was illegal but where I came from it was a right of passage. That's what you do when you are a teenager...you test the limits of your parents endurance and you try forbidden things. So we'd go up to Crane's Hill and get drunk, then have some spontaneous fun sliding on the lush grass with a piece of cardboard; climbing trees to see who could go the highest without chickening out; or just walk through the uncharted wooded areas up there that were dotted with somewhat hazardous (as we found out ) areas of wetlands. They weren't quite swamps but they were areas that were wet enough to drag a shoe off your foot. I wonder if there are still shoes up there now. 

Inevitably someone would fall out of a tree....usually one of the guys. They never seemed to hold their booze as well as the girls did. But rather than be concerned that they were hurt, we'd laugh our asses off at them. But don't feel bad for them because any of the girls that rode that piece of cardboard smack into a tree was equally laughed at too. We had so much fun up on that hill!

Sometimes someone would bring some music and we'd light a small campfire and sing along to the songs. It was a magical time in my life. I felt so close to these friends and was so happy to share so many laughs with such a fun group of people. 

There was a time however when Mr. Crane showed up. Yes, Crane's Hill was actually owned by a man named Earl Crane and his wife Evelyn Crane. My parents knew them of course but that doesn't mean any of us had permission to be on his property. Mr. Crane owned Broad Brook Gardens which was on Main St., across from Saint Catherine's Church. We never really knew him well but I remember my mother bringing us (me and at least one other of my siblings) to Mr Crane's green house to buy plants.  He was a smallish man; thin; with glasses and he didn't talk much. He didn't strike me as either mean or nice...just quiet and matter of fact. His wife I had only seen from a distance as she didn't have much to do with the plant business and stayed pretty much in the house. 

So one day while we were sliding on the hill in the winter. Mr Crane showed up and he had two rather scary dogs with him. (I want to say he also had a rifle in his hand but I'm not absolutely sure of that. This happened quite a long time ago after all) The dogs arrived first and they were not the friendly type. I think they were Dobermans but the memory is too vague to be sure. Anyway, everyone was terrified of the dogs as they took a stance and barked non-stop at us. Some of the guys lit off running down the hill or I should say falling down the hill...there was no way you can keep your footing in the winter going down that hill. I stayed where I was and there were at least a couple of the girls and at least one guy that stayed as well. I don't remember now who it was that stayed...I just didn't feel like it was smart to try to out run these dogs and I honestly didn't feel like I was doing anything wrong anyway. 

It wasn't long before Mr Crane came into view and confronted us. Who are you and what are you doing on my property? I swear I had never made the connection that Crane's Hill actually belonged to this Mr Crane until he showed up that day. I know, I know...how stupid can you be, right? Well, I was a young teen and pretty much oblivious to the workings of the real world, somewhat sheltered by my parents all my life and had been sliding on this hill for many years. No one ever had challenged our right to be there and I never once gave a thought to who must own the property. An equally stupid note here is that the property was always mowed...the grass was never overly tall. I never questioned that either.  The concept of trespassing was unknown to me. I'd probably been trespassing on others property all my life without knowing or even thinking about it. 

We launched into explanations and introductions of sorts....telling Mr Crane who our parents were (he knew mine of course) and explaining we were really just sledding on the hill and making a lot of noise while we were about it. Eventually we convinced him we were not someone that the police should be taking away and he let us stay and continue sledding. From that day forward we had sort of permission from Mr Crane to use his hill for sledding as long as we didn't hurt anything and didn't leave a mess. Only once more did Mr Crane ever show up and that was when we were drinking on his hill one night. He made us put out the fire and go home....but he never called the police on us and he didn't bring his dogs that time either (but he might have had that rifle with him then too). I think he had decided we were somewhat harmless twits that had a tendency to use his property like it was our own. Overall he was a pretty decent guy to let us use his property and I really did appreciate it. We made sure no one left garbage or even cigarette butts behind whenever we had been on the hill. We took home everything we came with....except maybe the occasional shoe that may still be stuck in the mud up there somewhere. 

Earl Crane died at the age of 79, that was in the year 2000. Him and his wife never had any children. Broad Brook Gardens was sold to a local guy, Bob Muska sometime before Mr Crane died. I am sorry to say I never missed Mr. Crane or his wife Evelyn who died at the age of 91 in the year 2013. I had long since stopped going to Crane's Hill and didn't give the place much thought except once in awhile when a memory would pop up while talking to one of my friends or family members about old times. Broad Brook Gardens was moved out of Broad Brook and is currently located in South Windsor still being run by Bob Muska and his daughter. I don't know who owns Mr. Crane's house and property now. 

I wish I had had the presence of mind to tell Mr. Crane how much we all appreciated him letting us young hooligans use his property for all those years. Although I never knew him well, I had a deep respect for him for trusting us with the land and for never calling the police on us. He made these wonderful memories possible just by being a decent guy. Thank you Mr. Crane. And thank you for the delicious black berries we stole from your property too. They were growing wild but they were on your property and we did eat our fill of them more than once...without your permission but somehow I think not without your knowledge. 

2016 In Review

I know I'm late with this but better late than never, right?

Dec.31st 2015: Feels like a lifetime ago now. I babysat Shaw for New Years eve. Gone are the days of rowdy parties and hours of drinking. Gone are the days of wondering how I got home and why I have two different shoes on...neither one mine. Gone are the days of waking up with a the mother of all hangovers, swearing I'd never do that again.....and then eventually doing it again. I thought I'd miss those days. I don't.

Jan. 8th, 2016: Had dinner at Lulu's with the old crew from Dakin. We were the Thursday Night Crew before Dakin stopped being open late on Thursday nights. It was good to see the gang again.

Later, I babysat for Shay again. I can't wait until she can actually use coherent words. She has an ear splitting scream she uses when she's happy....ear splitting I say!

Jan. 10th 2016: Went to the first swim meet of Kaylee's....or at least it was my first one. Nice to see she swims like a fish! It has always been important to me that my kids and grand kids know how to swim. I grew up with a brook on our property and all of us kids went swimming just about every day. I wanted that for my kids and their kids too.

Jan. 11th 2016: Bunny started working at Carrington today. We have not worked together since we were teenagers and worked at Gunver Manufacturing together. This should be interesting....

Jan. 19th 2016: Worked yesterday which was Martin Luther King day. I was paid double time so I didn't mind one bit!

Jan. 23rd 2016: The new plow guy is much better than the guy I had last year. He did the driveway and the sidewalk. Hopefully my wrists will be able to heal from last years shoveling now.

Jan. 25th 2016: My first class for Recreational Therapy tonight. At last I'm getting an idea of what this job would be. The class seems like it will be fun and not a ton of paperwork. I'm sure I'll learn all kinds of different types of therapy and it sounds like we'll be doing a couple of field trips too.

This teacher appears to be a throwback to the hippie days. She's definitely flaky and not well organized. She makes a point of telling us not to be late and then she is late to class. I like her.

Feb.19th 2016: Went for a hike today with Nicki at McLean's in Granby. I met Paul Lagel there (pre-arranged) with his two dogs. All the dogs got on very well together - no fighting; no attitudes. I was rather sore the next day. Need more exercise!

Feb. 20th 2016: Had an awesome time with Kaylee today at the Heritage Fair held at FJK Middle School.  I bought some Polish food; listened to someone play the bagpipe; watched a young woman do a dance from India and we both tried Laughter Yoga. We did not like it but at least we tried it!
We were given 'passports' when we got there and then we went around to each station that represented different countries. Each 'country' gave us a stamp in our passport and they all had information about their native country to tell us about and some had demonstrations. It was a very cool cultural event.

Feb. 22nd, 2016: I did my class presentation tonight and it went great! I had them play the Over Under Game. I get to see everyone's comments next week. Woo Hoo!

Feb. 27th 2016: I took Bell to the bike trail in Granby for a nice long walk. It was colder than I thought it was going to be but very nice all the same. Bell certainly enjoyed it!

Feb. 28th 2016: Went for a hike/walk at the bike trail in Southwick, Ma. The weather was fantastic! We took Zack; Nicki; the baby; Kasey; Justin and me!  We came across a beautiful 'Under the Sea' mural painted by someone under an underpass. I'm sure it was originally quite beautiful but some vandal has tried to cover some of it with paint in certain places. It was still quite a surprise to find it and quite beautiful! Later I babysat at their house while they went out to dinner. That little girl is so sweet!

Mar. 1st 2016: Kasey's mother and father were both in the hospital at the same time. Weird timing. Stressful for Kasey I'm sure. 

Mar. 13th 2016: Had brunch with Larry at Denny's. I do like that place! He's looking good and talking about buying a house. 

Mar. 19th 2016: I met JD for breakfast at Sunny's (across from the East Windsor High School). I remember this place as a run down house on the outside and a greasy diner with some ripped seats on the inside. It became a place to go between classes when I was in high school because they had a pinball machine there and we'd get french fries. Of course we weren't supposed to leave the school in those days but we did manage to do it for years without being caught coming or going. 
That place looks nothing like the old dive it used to be. It's a popular breakfast place now....although still very small and somewhat overpriced. In any case, it was JD's pick and it was great to catch up with him. This was the first time I'd seen him since I was laid off. He's been laid off too now. 

Mar. 26th 2016: Went hiking with Paul and dogs in Tolland. I took Bell - she was fine with his dogs. It may have been Bald Mountain that we were on...not sure. Very pretty place and has a large pond with ducks on it. That was a really good hike. On the down side, we did find a deer leg hanging in a tree next to an old tea pot...which was also hanging in a tree. The pot looked really cool...the deer leg did not. I did not care to speculate on what kind of a person would leave an entire deer leg hanging in a tree. We did not stick around there long. 

Mar. 29th 2016: Took Bell to meet a new Vet in Granby. This Vet was odd as hell! Again....an old hippie but this one apparently doesn't wear deodorant either. She did some kind of magic hand movements over Bell and called it an 'adjustment'...never did a damn thing for the cyst the dog has growing on her back. Yeah...ok, bye-bye!

Apr. 4th 2016: Had our RT class at an assisted living place in Glastonbury....sort of spur of the moment with this thing. The building was absolutely beautiful inside....very impressive. We worked with memory impaired people. Now I know I don't want to work with them...maybe not with the elderly at all. Most of them did not want to be there; did not want to deal with us at all; some refused to engage and at least one got up and went back to her room. I had to laugh at that....at least she knew what she didn't want to do!
Unfortunately I felt that what we were doing with them was not appreciated and it made me wonder if it's always like that. Not my cup of tea at all but it was a good experience. 

Apr. 16th 2016: Babysat Shay in the AM and then brought her back home to Kasey's birthday party. I set up the game I made up for my RT class and they loved it! Justin had prizes for everyone to win. They kept the game to continue playing while I took the baby home to stay overnight with me.  

Apr. 19th 2016: This is the 2nd anniversary of Carol's death. Her red tulip is coming back up again. I call it hers because I never planted it and it showed up after she died. I don't know if she planted it when I wasn't around....that actually seems rather unlikely because she worked such late hours. I hate the color red so you know I'd never plant that tulip and they grow from a bulb so it' not likely to be an accidental planting. I guess I'll never know for sure how it got there. 
I still think of her almost every day. There are so many times I wish I could talk to her about all the changes in my life. Sometimes I talk to her flower instead. 

Apr. 22nd 2016: Kaylee stayed overnight with me. I took her with me to a hair appointment the next day. She seemed quite comfortable at the Hair Saloon - talking to Jamie who was cutting my hair. When Kaylee went home she left me another awesome message on the board....but forgot her jacket.

May 5th 2016: Mowed my entire lawn today! I hurt for days afterward. I'm needing to either hire someone to do my lawn or I need a rider mower. But the lawn looks great now!!

May 14th 2016: Took Mom to a belated Mother's Day lunch at Little Red Riding Hoods Cafe in Southwick, Ma. We both loved the building and the interior. Mom liked reading about the history of the building too. I don't think either one of us were impressed with the quiche we had. They used canned corned beef - YUCK! But it was a very large size. I gave my leftovers to the dogs for their dinner. It was a very expensive lunch but the dogs loved it. 

May 22nd 2016: Walked the canal trail with Tony today. Had a great time talking with him and went farther than I've been before on the trail. That's what happens when you start talking and enjoying the conversation. Next we are going to try bikes on the trail.  

Beginning of June 2016: Sara moved back in. She has a storage place for most of her stuff so only what is needed came back to my house. 

June 1st 2016: I hired a guy (Jason) to do my lawn. What a great feeling to come home to a perfectly cut lawn! He's going to paint my fence over too. Can't wait to see that!

June 4th 2016: Visited Indian Leap Falls in Norwich, CT. with Bunny. did not expect falls to be in the middle of the town....no real hiking. They were pretty falls but I was somewhat let down because I expected it to be at least surrounded by some woods. We also visited an Indian Chief monument in the town...total joke of a monument. Oh well!

June 10th 2016: I had Shay overnight with me while Justin, Kasey; Jess and Matt went to Washington DC for the weekend. The weekend was great! No problems with the baby and she slept through the night like an angel. 

June 15th 2016: While I've been out sick from work I've managed to plant some flowers and plants around the yard. I want to help out the bees as much as I can but I haven't really seen anything other than bumble bees so far. I think it's too late to plant any veggies in the garden now. Couldn't get it tilled early enough so I'm not planting this year. 

June 17th 2016: While planting flowers in the half whiskey barrel under the tree in my back yard, a humming bird hovered over my head and chirped repeatedly at me. I never knew they could make that kind of noise! I never knew I actually had any 'takers' on the hummingbird feeder either! I think he was scolding me for being in his way. Cute little guy!

Later: Tom Krewalk called me and we talked for awhile. He's had foot surgery and is getting really sick of being at home. He caught me up on everything in his life. 

June 18th 2016: I planted different flowers in my "flower box" in the back yard this year. I couldn't find any dahlia's this year. I also added a solar lightening bug...very cute. 

June 24th 2016: Had dinner at the Yarde Tavern with Ann tonight. I had a cob salad (love that) but couldn't finish it. I took the rest home. 

June 25th 2016: I went to Elizabeth's (my niece) graduation party at her parents home. I had no idea she was that old already....seems like just yesterday I was refusing to friend her on FB because of a stupid stunt with re-naming my photo's. lol  She's talking about going into the Navy reserves and she's already in the Broad Brook Fire Dept. 

July 3rd 2016: I took Nicki with me back to Peaked Mountain. We hiked around Lunden Pond this time. Nice hike but pestered by horse flies the whole time. Nicki enjoyed the exercise for sure!

July 4th 2016: Went with Justin; Zack; Kasey; Shay and Kaylee to hike a little at the West Hartford Reservoirs. We got there later than we should have and it was VERY HOT! The baby was over tired and uncomfortable in the carrier. She slept in the car on the way home. 
I was not impressed with the place. It was over populated with people; bikes and dogs and the worst part is they won't let you in the water! 

July 8th 2016: Kaylee stayed overnight until Sunday night. An exhausting weekend to be sure but it's always great to be with Kaylee. 

July 13th  2016: Hard to believe Dad has been gone for 6 years. I still miss him so much. I have a couple of pictures of him up in my home office so I can see him every day. My life (and others) changed drastically when Dad had his stroke....and it's been a little empty feeling since he died. It's truly like he took a piece of me with him. 

July 16th 2016: Took Mom with me to see Finding Dory. It was a cute movie but not as good as Finding Nemo. Mom had a very hard time walking  - had no idea she was that bad now. She also had to get up to pee at least 3 times. This may not be the best way for her to see a movie these days. 

July 30th 2016: Went blueberry picking at Easy Pickings with Kasey and Shay today. We picked 3 lb each. Shay was a doll and funny too. Kasey took pictures. 

Later: Watched a movie (Epic) at Justin and Kasey's house with Kaylee. Kaylee and I had seen it before but it was good to see it again. 

July 31st 2016: Visited Larry today at his new house on Pease St. He gave me a tour and little Pierre even decided I was ok enough to pet him. Pierre is a very nervous little dog. We went to Jimmy's for brunch - ran into Bruce there. This is the first time I've seen Bruce since Carol died. He was Carol's worthless, self-centered boyfriend. I felt nothing toward him - the anger is gone. 

Aug. 31st 2016: I started school again... 4pm - 6:50pm this time. It's nice having an earlier class but it's a little tough to make up my time at work. 

Aug. something 2016: Forgot to mention I went exploring and found the Gurleyville Grist Mill in Stores, CT.  This is a completely preserved mill. I want to go back when its open so I can go inside and get a better look at all the equipment. 

Sept. 10th 2016: I went to the Hampton Beach Seafood Festival with Taunya today. Excellent food and Taunya and I had so much fun! She is crazy and brings out the crazy in me too. She likes to watch people and she takes pictures of them if they are note worthy. Oh, yes...there were some that were definitely note worthy!
I bought Kaylee a necklace for her birthday. We watched a lobster roll eating contest and it wasn't until it was over that I realized we could have eaten free lobster if we had just entered the contest!

Sometime in September 2016:  Shay has learned to walk!! No more weird scooting for her!
Later: Shay is still scooting....but now there is hope! lol

Sept 23rd 2016: Went to the Big E with Justin; Kasey; Shay; Jess and Uncle Mark. Shay loved the animals and I bought fudge. 

Sept. 23th 2016: I picked up Shay from the Leicester Country Club where Kasey's brother was getting married. Shay had been the flower girl. Unfortunately the poor little girl cried almost all the way home. Poor baby!

Sept. 25th 2016: I volunteered for Dixie Dogs with Anne today. It was a fiasco with the 'cat lady'. I've never had such a disorganized, crazy time there before. I'm thinking I'm not going to sign up anymore but just show up when it's convenient for me. That way I can do whatever needs doing when I get there. 

Oct. 4th 2016: I saw Dr. Hunter for the first time. I'm not overly impressed but I'll give her a shot. She's a natural doctor and I now know that she is not able to write prescriptions. I wish I knew that before I went to see her but it may not be an issue. She wants more blood work done but I've been too sick to have it done. I've been sick almost continuously since about June. This has got to stop. 

Oct. 4th 2016: I got a call back from the Simsbury Senior Center  for a job I applied to quite some time ago. As it turns out they were only interviewing one day and were not willing to accommodate my schedule at all. I had just changed my vacation time around at work and could not change it again. They were not willing to let me interview one day later....so I told them I couldn't interview. 
If they are that strict with their rules I don't want to work there....their loss. 

Oct. 13th 2016: I have decided to quit the Rec Therapy program. This was not an easy decision. I love going to school and I've gotten straight A's since I've been there. But this program is just not taking me into a direction that I want to go in. What a pity....

Oct. 26th 2016: I'm taking a second round of steroids to try to get rid of these maddening cold symptoms that never go away....so far not working. 

Oct. 28th 2016: I had the snow tires put on my car - something frozen from rust preventing them from doing an alignment. They tried a torch and then sprayed something to loosen it up. Now will have to go back in a week. 

Later: Went to another STYLES workshop with CTWorks. I'm trying to have them allow me to transfer from the Rec Therapy program to the Vet Assistant program at Asnuntuck. This has never been done before. 

Later still: I met Ann for dinner at The Yarde and surprised her by having Annie show up too! Good night together and we got a good picture together too. 

Oct 31st 2016:  HALLOWEEN!!!
Shay was a bumble bee. 

Nov. 8th 2016: I went to see a specialist to have him look at my ears. They are constantly full and painful. The day I went my ears were fine and he has no idea what the problem could be. Of course!

Nov. 17th 2016: Got out of work early to go to Asnuntuck and see the counselor. She was great. I signed all my paperwork; got more stuff to read and she answered some questions. She's very nice...nothing like that other counselor at MCC. 

Nov 18th 2016: Kaylee got her report card. She got all A's and B's! She even got an A in Spanish!!

Nov. 24th 2016: I had Thanksgiving at Justin & Kasey's. I brought Mom. Shay was adorable! It was hard leaving her. It started raining and I took Mom, Sara, Ryan and Kaylee home in my car. Tight fit!!

Thursdays: Thursdays are my favorite day of the week. Shay comes to my house -we play for a couple of hours and then she will have her bottle and fall asleep on my bed while we watch tv. 
I'm going to miss these days when she grows up. 

Dec. 23th 2016: Shay loves the Christmas tree! And she spends all her time taking the ornaments off and handing them to me. Eventually I had to put a baby gate up to protect the tree. I put her first pair of footy pajamas on her. They were adorable!

Shay cuts her own Christmas tree every year. This is how she looks when she finds just the right tree!

Dec. 24th 2016: Christmas eve at Tom & Marie's. The usual suspects showed up. I got to see cousin Bob and talk for a bit about his terrible house fire. Marie and Sara made snow penis's on Bunny's car before she went home. I love that my family is crazy like that!!

Dec. 25th 2016: I took Mom (and her gravy) to Justin & Kasey's house for dinner and gift giving. The turkey was delicious and Mom's gravy is always good. I made stuffing and a veggie platter that looked like a Christmas tree. I used cuke slices for the tree; cherry tomatoes for ornaments and cauliflower for snow under the tree. Shay spent her time wisely....stealing Great Grandma's cane when she wasn't looking, so she could do her Little Bo Peep impression. 

Dec. 31st 2016: I babysat for Shay while the kids went out to a party. Shay was a bit on the tired side by the time I got there but still such a sweet little girl to play with her grandma.