One of Al's contributions to youtube

Here Al (Alex, that is, for those of you who don't know that's what I call him) was playing with Paint and decided to put it on youtube. I told him I'd put it on my blog.



Drawing with that program is not an easy thing. There isn't a great deal of control when you draw with it, in my opinion. It's like an Etch-a-Sketch for the computer age! Ha ha!

I told him that if he wants to, he can make a little video with my camera and we'll post it on here. So stay tuned for that in the upcoming future.

Have a great day. Off on my trek southbound!

Love, Mic

Some pictures

Here are some pics of Keith, Tracy and Brendon. Thanks for sharing them, Keith. They are great pictures! (Now that I've had a bit more practice in adding pictures, I will add some more that others sent me. But, right now, homework beckons! Yippee!!)

A personal thank you

I just want to say thank you to all of you for the contributions you are making to make this blog something really fun. It is such a sanity saver when I am feeling down and having a rough time coping with all I have "on my plate". I look forward to seeing the comments and receiving your emails with stuff to put on the blog. (I admit, I often read them more than once because I gain a sense of comfort from them). They give me encouragement to keep doing it, despite my grueling schedule, and help make me feel more balanced in a way. Sound goofy? Probably, but it is how I feel.

Thank you so much!

"Patty B" 1924-1990

On the eve of the anniversary of Mom's passing I thought it befitting to pay a bit of tribute to her, since I will be leaving for class in Albany today and will not return until late tomorrow night.

The above sketch is the only piece of her artwork I have out of all the countless sketches and paintings Mom did, and I cherish it as if it were a master work in a museum. Mom had such a creative spirit, and I am blessed to have received just a small portion of that from her. Now, as a woman myself, I look back on memories of her and wish I had had the opportunity to get to know the woman in her.

A few fond memories of Mom I'd like to share:

- her caramel popcorn balls and old-fashioned hot cocoa
- the warm hats and mitts she knitted us (although they were not off the fashion plate, I do remember them being warm)
- those cute cartoon boy and girl elephants she used to draw
- the clothes she used to sew for me (I'm thinking of the short sets, in particular. The dark blue one with white scottie dogs, the bright green one with red strawberries...anyone else remember these?)
- letting us call her a "dirty dog" when she won at rummy (the only time I ever remember being able to get away with talking to her like that)
- trying to teach us to draw or knit or sew
- being home alone with her when all of you were gone to school each day
- her making one of you, my lovely sisters, comb out the rat's nests I used to get in my ever-so-curly hair (that must have been a veritable nightmare for you guys...I remember Les having done it quite a few times. Man, did I ever brush my hair??...ha ha ha!)
- her playing the organ (in Toronto, Malone and Montreal); and I remember the upright piano in the family room at the house on Rt 3, but I don't remember her ever playing it. Did she?

Maybe some of you could add some of your good memories of Mom in the comments.

And finally, here is one of my meager attempts at poetry as a tribute to our Mom

Yellow Rose

Your season has passed
but your memory lives yet
in the minds of your children
who will never forget

The grace of your beauty
from without and within
only helps to remind us
what your heart had therein

All the sacrifice nothing
to the will of a mom
helps us face our own storms
with the same sort of calm

Second place took your talent
to raising your brood
making all of us mind
meant you had to be shrewd

The belle of dear Texas
in our memory still grows
like the beauty of a single
bright Yellow Rose




Rest in peace, Mom.

"the music of the years gone by"

"Stardust" - Nat King Cole

Now, we ALL must remember this song. How many times did we hear it over the years? I am not sure if this was "their" version, but nonetheless it will bring back memories of Mom and Dad dancing together. I remember they would put the record on and the only light in the livingroom would be that coming from the kitchen. I remember even then (I was quite little still) thinking "How romantic!"

Now when I hear it, if I let myself drift along with the sound, I get all teary-eyed (surprise!! not!). But it will always be a spark to light a very fond and loving memory of Mom and Dad.

Notre Dame was never so blessed!

Deb, thanks for the pictures you sent me. I chose this one, since Les and Steph are in it and I already have one of you and Telle. The Notre Dame Cathedral was never adorned so lovely as it was at that moment. :) If I recall correctly, Les, Steph and Eric went sometime in July of this year. As it turns out, the group they travelled with included the wife of one of the guys I work with.

Thanks Natelle

The pictures you sent me are awesome! Here is just one of you and your mom so that everyone looking at the blog can see you. Deb, the backdrop doesn't hold a candle to you ladies. ;) And, Natelle, sending me the pics motivated me to figure out how to post them so that when others send me some I can do the same. Thank you.

Mahna Mahna

Can anyone guess why I put this video clip on the blog?

(aside from testing the video posting feature and that

it is a cutie...and I think hilarious...little clip). I find

I have to click the 'play' arrow in the center of the video box

twice to play it. You might have to too.

Flashback

The other day at work, one of the "guys" came across a person whose last name was Lapham. It peaked my interest because, upon hearing the name, I recalled the Laphams we knew in our younger years, the owners (?) of the Sunrise Lounge, and owners (?) of the house we lived in right next to that bar.

Deb, remember that picture of you with a German shepard? Was that their dog?

The other thing it made me recall was the evening we watched a strange object in the sky over the parking lot of that bar. Does anyone else remember it? I remember feeling scared. Or am I hallucinating all that?

This last memory led me to remembering an evening at work, several years ago, during which I got a call from Tim and Karen. (Tim was staying at Karen's house on the Wallace Hill Rd. then.) They had called me to tell me that in the sky behind Karen's house, in a northerly direction they saw a round orange object hovering in the sky. (No it wasn't the sun! ha ha ha!) Now, not long before that I received a call from a female on the Stafford Rd, reporting the same thing. I referred the woman to a number in our Rolodex for UFO sightings, then dismissed it from thought (I get a lot of crackpots that call me there!), until that call from Tim. It was a creepy ride home that night, thinking of that evenings happenings.

My "babies"

For those of you who have never seen my children, or haven't in awhile, here are some photos. You can see by the date on the pictures that these aren't recent, but Chantelle (now 20) and Alex (now 13, almost 14) look pretty much the same. Alex is taller and his voice is changing now.

That day was my 4oth birthday. My friend, next-door-neighbor and fellow dispatcher at work, Kathy Owen, took these pictures. She also took one of me but it's crummy, so I'm not posting it. I was crying in it. Yes...Michele is still Queen of the Waterworks!! (May she reign forever! Ha ha ha!) I have even been known to cry at sad cartoons. The kids always do a "tear check" whenever we watch anything that is even slightly sad. Or when something special happens, like that birthday! Kathy had us over for dinner and cake and I recieved nice gifts. And as usual my kids added their own character to things (Chantelle's beautiful smile and Alex hamming it up...bow, pinky and all!).

Chantelle and Alex, I love you guys VERY MUCH! Thanks for being the great kids you are. Thank you for your love and understanding.

Love to all, Mic/Mom