Kids of 1995 Predict the Future of the Internet – correctly!!

Today marks the 35 anniversary of the death of Elvis Presley. A record 75,000 fans were on hand at Graceland for the candlelight vigil held every year beginning last night.  This morning, his ex-wife Priscilla and their only daughter Lisa Marie were interviewed side-by-side for the first time inside the mansion.  Remarkably, Elvis’ biggest fear was that he would be forgotten as quickly as his fame rose.  Obviously, it can be argued that he is at least as popular today as he was in his prime.

Also highlighted in a 24 hour marathon is the Hollywood years. 31 movies made in only 13 years (in 1968 he made at least 4 movies).  A few show what he could have become.  Many are fun to watch while a lot are painful to watch and for him, personally, to make.  This afternoon while sick in bed, I tried to watch Double Trouble.  In one scene, he sings “Old MacDonald” to a 17 year-old girl who throws herself at him every chance she gets.  I gratefully rolled over and went back to sleep.

This morning, I also heard a rendition of one of my 3 favorite Elvis songs performed as a duet with Lisa Marie and found a video of it to share. Almost remarkable how much daughter resembles father. Over the years, I have come to not only appreciate the power and heart that he brought to the more “meaningful” songs but to prefer them.  What a loss at only 42 years of age.

This post is about nothing because I should be in bed.  I’m writing as a way to vent because I can’t sleep.  We’ve let our daughter have sleepovers pretty much constantly for the past 2 weeks.  We’ve run into some of her friends and figured what a better way to end summer in a fun way than with some sleepovers, especially with these friends we don’t see often.

Problem is, all these girls seem to lose track of the rest of the world when they’re together.  They run up and down the stairs like a herd of elephants (I am SO not going to mention this out loud – what could scar a sensitive pre-teen girl more than comparisons to the largest land mammal??), they giggle incessantly, and they BURST into our bedroom at midnight complaining of a scary noise.  And that’s what led me here.  Having a group of kids burst into my room as I’m trying to relax with some quiet reading time at midnight apparently set off my adrenal glands – big time.  It’s now almost 1 am, and I can’t even think of laying down again for fear of my quiet bubble being burst yet again.  My adrenaline is pumping so hard; I feel like I’ve just ridden a roller coaster or like I’m about to deliver a speech.  The kicker is, with little or no sleep, how I am going to be able to supervise 6 kids tomorrow – with one of them being a VERY exploratory 10-month-old??  I don’t know how it’s going to work.  All because of a scary noise.  Well, unfortunately for this group of self-absorbed ‘tweens, they’re about to find out that a long day with a very tired and grumpy Mom is infinitely more scary than any kind of noise or bump in the night.

Good luck, girls.

Saturday night, the Edgerton High School class of 1992 met to commemorate and reminisce on 20 YEARS  of life following graduation.  In total, 17 classmates (along with their significant others… well some with their s.o) gathered at Sam’s Place.  A golf outing had been arranged but those plans fell through which was fine with me (unless it was a round of mini golf). It was a special evening shared with some classmates I have not seen in 20 years.  James is a 20 member of the military and a Navy Seal (took him three times to accomplish that but WOW!).

It really was a journey back in time as we shared memories as well as where life’s journey has led us.  I shared a table with Cousin Dan (and his wife Carla), Amy, and Angie (and her husband Trent).  One of our memories took as all the way back to Mrs. Webb’s Kindergarten class where Dan met with the paddle (for what I did not catch).  He also mentioned that he wanted to have a book read to him so he brought one over to me.

I also caught up with Pastor Matt and Peggy (caught up is a loose phrase since we actually live a block or two away from each other).  Matt did not know that I was a fan of the superhero genre.  I was a bit shocked at this revelation since I have been for as long as I can remember and we discussed the finale to the Christopher Nolan/Christian Bale Dark Knight trilogy.

Following dinner, we remembered the three (or was it two?) classmates we had lost since graduation.  Unintentionally, this turned into a rather humorous debate.  We had a set of twins throughout our years and it was finally concluded that one of them in fact did not graduate with us.

Then, we remembered one of the sweetest girls who we were all pleased to call classmate and friend.  After receiving a kidney transplant, Heather’s system ultimately rejected it and she passed away on July 19, 1998).  Our hostess, Peggy, was able to locate Heather’s mother who provided a picture and a poem that Heather had written especially for us:

“MEMORIES”

Hold a favorite memory,

Hug it to you tight.

Dream of it fondly,

As you drift to sleep tonight.

Don’t let it slip away like sand through

your fingers,

You’ll want to keep it close so that it

always lingers.

Memories

are

treasured

more valued

than gold,

They’re

guarded

cautiously,

never to be sold.

Make the most of memories, they’re

the best possession you’ve got,

just be sure you make happy memories

for they never can be bought.

LOVE ALWAYS, HEATHER

Finally, came the obligatory photo session (unfortunately?, I did not make sure that my camera had a SD card).  However, a group photo was taken of the 17 of us.

Overall, a fun evening of remembrance!

The theme of camp this year, for the entire summer actually among all the age groups, was war.  The years switch off between two themes for 4th/5th grade age group but this is the first time I noticed the entire summer was the same theme.  Anyway, this song from Passion 2012 was this summer’s main theme song:

More to come, but I wanted to get this out of the way first that you may be blessed by it.

(note to admin: the Godtube tag no longer works?  No matter, I found a version on Youtube, fortunately  without ads- harder to do each day.)

Hey, I’m back!  Ok, you never knew I was gone since I barely post.  Well, I have something to post about now.  Camp 2012.  Coming soon, but first a rest.

Boy, you can almost hear the crickets chirping around here lately, partly due to me of course.  I do know the situations of two of you of course; as for Jamiahsh, the new job must be keeping him busy.  Or has this blog site run it’s course?  Maybe it’s time to open a Twitter account since I don’t blog much anyway.  And I don’t think it has to be tied to a real name unlike Bookface, I mean Facebook.  Could be wrong though as I have never looked into it.

My lunch today:

That is all.

This week saw the departure of two very important people in the lives of each member of my family.  After only one year, Father Art Niewiadomski really made a name for himself in our community.  Unfortunately for all of us in the area, he needed to downsize as he has been in less than ideal health and returned closer to his home.  Sunday as the congregation was filing out, I shook his hand, thanked him, and wished him well.  He, in turn, thanked me and encouraged me to continue to use my “wonderful gifts” and talent.  In the past 30 some years, I have really known 5 of the priests who have come into and gone out of the parish.  Father Art was undeniably the most outgoing, down-to-Earth, not to mention musical of them all.  It was so awesome that he took the time after each mass or funeral I sang for to thank me and to tell me what a “nice job” I always do.  Very humbling and made me feel really good inside and only over the course of one year!  Bon Voyage, Padre may you find good health in your next endeavor and bring as much joy and faith to your next port of call!

This afternoon, Aunt Cathy left after a two-month visit to return to her home in California.  Her being here was a HUGE help as we continue to see Dad struggle with health concerns of his own.  She transported him to doctor’s appointments and ballgames (even when he did not want to go; he usually sat in the car at the little league games).  Cathy was such a help to my Mom especially by taking a bit of the load off her.  We all know that Dad is going to have his days.  Last night, most of the family came by for one last visit before sending Cathy off to Detroit Metro.  By the end of the evening, Dad was actually laughing!  I’m not sure what brought that about but it was good to see (even if it was strained).  Plus, I have been told that he is no longer under 24-hour surveillance.  He can be left alone if need be!  This will hep once Mom starts driving the school bus in the coming weeks and on days that I am at work myself.  But I pray that we all continue to be there for both of them and lift them up!  As a farewell gift, Aunt Cathy and I went to see The Dark Knight Rises which we felt was the purrrrrfect way to end the Christopher Nolan/Christian Bale Batman trilogy.

THANK YOU BOTH!  What a difference you both have made in such a short time!

Gonna climb upon a soapbox for a moment…

The families in Colorado who were involved in the shooting need prayer.  Probably one of the very last things they need right now is a network of UNsupport – people using mass media to put down the people involved and some of their decisions.  Mainly, I’m bugged by those who say things like, “What was a 3-month-old doing at a movie theater anyway?  Especially a MIDNIGHT showing of a PG13 movie??”

What’s wrong with taking a baby to a movie?  As long as the parent(s) willingly leave before the baby causes a disruption, then I don’t understand what all the fuss is about.  I have 5 kids, none of whom have slept thru the night until they were over a year old (probably – my youngest is only 9 months old, but he’s the worst sleeper yet, so I’m guessing he won’t sleep thru the night until he’s a year).  So if I’m up at midnight anyway with the baby, I think it should be up to me if I want to spend my own money on a movie, knowing there is a chance that I won’t get to see the entire movie if I have to leave if the baby fusses.  Babies are not going to watch the movie; they’re not going to pick up any bad things from the screen at that age, and taking the baby to the movies late at night can actually be the ONLY time new parents can find to connect to each other while trying to balance the demands of parenthood and careers.

Or, take the situation of a big brother who REALLY wants to see the midnight showing of Batman.  Again, the parents feel they are going to be up anyway with the baby, so why not schedule in some family time at a most unusual, however more convenient, time.  Again, if kids (or babies) cause a disruption in the theater, they should be taken out immediately as a courtesy to others who have also paid to see a movie.

Well, that’s all I have time for now, just had to get that out – I just don’t see anything wrong with taking a baby to the movies, and it bugs me a tiny bit that people are so busy worrying about how others raise their children instead of getting out there themselves to improve our society’s crumbling family unit.  Please don’t attack the parents who are actually seeking to spend time with their children.

Dear Lord, Thank you so much for the gift of children.  We pray to you to continue to guide us to love them, to nurture them, and to lead them to you.  We pray for the comfort and healing of those involved in the Colorado shooting.  May they grow ever closer to you, Lord.  Amen.

Wasn’t it just a few years ago that I reported on a “microburst” which swept the village hall to shambles?!  Last night around 11:00, another landmark was struck.  This area has been in almost desperate need of rain.  Our prayers were answered as lightning and thunder rolled throughout town.  While watching the Yankees handle the Blue Jays, a large booming “pop” was heard, felt, and seen.  No one knew where it originated from but undoubtedly, it was from one of those streaks of lightning that lit up the night sky.  Between 10:30 and 11:00, police cars, fire engines, and ambulances lined the street in front of the house so of course, I began to wander outside to investigate.  I did not get far before I came face to face with the unmistakable smell of smoke.  I could not see anything so I came back home and called my sister who lives right across from the United Methodist Church (my house stands 5 buildings to the north of the church).  “Yes, the church is on fire!”  This would explain the pop that went off about a half-hour earlier!

At approximately 11:45, I saw the smoke and flame from outside our dining room window.  Initially, heavy smoke was reported coming out of the steeple and higher parts of the building.  Eventually, flames erupted and the roof caved in, injuring one of the dozens of firefighters from 15 surrounding communities.  The firefighter was transported to an area hospital with non life-threatening battle scars.  I went across the street to the empty school lot to investigate along with dozens of others some of whom were out of towners who had gotten off 2nd shift jobs.  Thankfully, the blaze was contained and did not spread.  However, the battle was fought well into the night/early morning.

This morning, the damage could really be seen.  Holes in the roof.  Stained glass windows on the north and south sides of the building blown out.  Remarkably, the bell tower was still hanging on and the windows on the east side of the church were still intact.

I personally have had a relationship with the church over the years.  Each summer, my brothers and sister attended Vacation Bible School.  The church has sponsored our village’s Cub Scout pack for a number of years.  Each year, the pack participated in a service by providing alter boys, readers, and other functions.  Over the last several years, the church has held Wednesday Night meals and provided a food pantry for the needy in the area.

Another landmark that has stood over 75 years brought down by nature’s fury.  May God be with the rescue teams who responded so bravely, the one who was injured, and most importantly, the congregation of Edgerton United Methodist Church as they will rally together and continue to follow the Lord.