Monthly Archive for November, 2005

a perfect day for a funeral

Published
by
Val
on 11.30.05
in Days Go By
. 8 Comments

It was a Sunday. We stood there, on the hill, in the mud. The wind was blowing harder than I have ever had the privilege of feeling. The children cried because the wind was in their face, the trees rocked incredibly making one think they were going to fall over, and we stood.

We stood in dresses and pretty shirts, in suits and ties.

We stood, ten adults, six children, eight males, eight females, two great-grandparents, four grandparents, ten parents, eight aunts, eight uncles, eight nephews, eight nieces, seven brothers, eight sisters, and sixteen cousins. We stood and mourned the loss of our littlest one: a son, a grandson, a great-grandson, a nephew, a cousin, a brother.

He was born early Monday morning, November 21, 2005. He was only at 14 weeks gestation. To some, he is a fetus, but to us, he was William. His heart once beat, he was most certainly a boy, he had a nose, mouth, fingers, toes, eyes that could blink, the ability to move, and so much more. He was a child we never got to know, a friend my son will never play with.

His father and grandfather led the services and they were just beautiful. He talked of the child and we sang a hymn I did not know, his oldest daughter ran to him and hugged his leg. The grandfather shared some words and the father shared a poem. Then the tiny little body was laid to rest in a tiny little hole in a tiny little 4″x2″x2″ treasure chest box.

My hair whipped in the wind, hitting me in the face so that I could not see. I didn’t mind. It was an easy way to hide the tears.

Still here

Published
by
Val
on 11.30.05
in Days Go By
. 0 Comments

So unlike me not to update for four days, isn’t it? Well I was looking at my one year ago post and, well, I can’t not laugh when I read this.

Some real posts coming soon, I’ve just been sitting on them for several days, unable to write the words…

The Forgotten

Published
by
Val
on 11.26.05
in Days Go By
. 7 Comments

So I’m sitting here watching The Forgotten, I haven’t seen it yet although I always thought it looked really interesting. Very interesting. Anyone seen this? What did you think?

We went to a wedding earlier this afternoon, one of my best friends. It is so weird to think of her as married. She was the one who loved to flirt and liked all the boys, so it is all just a bit strange. :) I almost cried when she walked out with her dad and then she winked at me as she went by and that almost really did it. She was so pretty. She is pretty. Always has been. The wedding was very simple, yet strange in a lot of retrospects. One thing is that the church is circular, so the stage is in the center and all the people sit around it facing it. So we saw the side of the couple during the ceremony. And when they came in, they walked all around the circle for the procession.

Vanessa & Bret's Wedding Ceremony

Vanessa & Bret's Wedding Ceremony Vanessa & Bret's Wedding Ceremony Vanessa & Bret's Wedding Ceremony
Continue reading ‘The Forgotten’

‘Tis the Season

Published
by
Val
on 11.25.05
in Days Go By
. 7 Comments

And so the insanity of the holidays has begun. I cannot believe the people that got up this morning before dawn to wait in line for a store to open. Or for those who even spent the night outside on the streets for the same reason! And as if that’s not enough, they get in the stores and absolutely climb all over each other and yell at each other and sometimes even break out in phsyical fights. All for a laptop or an XBOX or a cd or even stuffed animals. It’s absolutely nuts.

What makes today, the day after Thanksgiving, so special that people feel they must turn to these crazy measures? What makes this stuff, these toys so important? Furthermore, what has happened to our lovely Christmas holiday that people have to get so worked up about it? They have to get the perfect gift, have to make everyone “happy.”

Why can’t we just be happy with what we have, why can’t Christmas just be about seeing family and spending time together, celebrating a special day? Why must we worry about how “festive” the house looks, or if little Johnny gets his Playstation or if little Sue gets her EasyBake oven that she just has to have? Why is it we can’t tell our kids “no” or even “wait” anymore?

Why must we be pelted with ads about Christmas from October on? Why must it be drilled in our brain that we have to go out shopping the day after Christmas? Why must these materialistic types try to ruin Christmas for the rest ofus?

I really don’t get it. I don’t get it at all.

‘Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving

Published
by
Val
on 11.24.05
in Days Go By
. 4 Comments

and my house was crazy!!

Steve was marinating the turkey and I was getting the kid ready for a bath. The water is running and he’s trying to get himself out of his onsie/jammies. I run into the living room for bath toys he’d drug in just minutes earlier only to catch the stupid dog peeing on my rug! I yell at the dog, my arms full of clothing and toys and he runs towards his bed leaving a line of pee behind him. I’m trying to get him to quit and get outside so then the trail went from his bed, also, into the middle room to under the kitchen table. So Steve starts freaking out and we’re both trying to get the dog out and keep the kid from walking through the trail. And the water’s still running. And I take the dog outside now and Steve’s getting the mop and stuff out and here comes the kid. He comes down to the glass door where I’m standing and tries to open the door. He is now naked except for his diaper and the pj’s wrapped around his ankles. But yet, in his mind, it’s perfectly okay for him to come outside to the 32° air. :|

Then Thanksgiving morning, I walk outside to where Steve is preparing the frier for turkey frying and I notice that my garage now smells like a Chinese restaurant. I go inside again and to the basement and when I get to the bottom of the stairs, I think, “OH. MY. GOSH. WHAT. DIED!?” Then I notice it - the sewer backed up into our basement. Water was bubbling up from the drain. I run and get Steve. We can’t figure out what happened, this has never happened before. Now I’m expected to pull stuff out of the water and either clean it or pitch it. Steve tapes together a broomstick and an old, cheap mop and goes outside to the sewer vent. He shoves it down there and whatever was clogged went bye-bye and the sound of rushing water is a great relief. Now it’s time to clean up the basement. I got to throw out half a box of new Priority Mail boxes. :|

Then Thanksgiving evening at my mom’s, her stupid poodle bit Elijah. No blood, thankfully. But apparently we all thought Elijah was in a different room and he approached the dog in the dark and she’s old and acts like she’s got something stuck up her bum, so… yeah. Also, I hear the latest family gossip. Protected post to come. :|

We arrive home at 8.30pm in 29° weather to a 55° house that still smells like Pine Sol. We drop Steve’s truck at the dealership down the road. In the morning he will take my car over and leave it and then take his truck and go to work. This solves the problems of getting me and Elijah up at 5.00am to do this and the fact that the carseat does not fit in the truck. The poor guy a the gas station on the way home when I needed a soda, he was so bored. So bored he was pacing in the station when I came in. Poor guy. :|

There was a baseball mit in our yard tonight. Not at the borders, either, smack dab in the middle near the wood pile. What’s up with that? It’s in good condition, too, doesn’t look like a dog carried it here or something. Crazy neighbor lady probably told grandkids it was okay to play in our yard when we were gone. :|

What a day. :)

What are you thankful for?

Published
by
Val
on 11.24.05
in Days Go By
. 7 Comments

Last night, I laid awake for a bit and tried to think of what I’m thankful for. Sure, it’s obvious, right? I mean, my kid, husband, friends, family, house, food on the table, etc, duh. Yes, but this year I wanted to specifically point out those things that I don’t notice every day, the things I would, however, miss if they were gone.

Here’s what I came up with:

– my cellphone. Yes, I am thankful for my cell phone, because of it I feel safer while driving around with the check engine light on. I know that if I do break down, I won’t be stranded for long, I will be able to call someone to come get me.

– the internet. I know this sounds cheesy, but the internet keeps me in touch with my family. Before we all got “on line” I hardly ever got to see or talk to my relatives in Texas or Colorado, etc. Now we at least share occassional emails and they can view my photos online. It keeps us connected, easily, quickly, and cheaply. And not only that, because of the internet, I’ve met family I didn’t know I had. They’re not that close in bloodlines but we’re becoming close emotionally all the time.

– my camera. With this I can capture life’s daily events and I can easily flashback to good times and bad.

– the town I live in. Though I complain about it and complain about tourists, it’s really not that bad here. It’s quiet and we’re a half an hour from everywhere!

– the jack ball project. It keeps me sane.

Okay, your turn. What are five not-so-typical things you are thankful for? Go ahead, be a little selfish. :)

Oh, I’m also thankful for strollers, and Dora the Explorer, and sandals, and post-it notes, and Ibuprofen, and lights that dim, and the scent of lilacs, and gentle breezes, and packing peanuts, and teddy bears, and people that are willing to take a chance on me, and…

Happy Thanksgiving 2005, everyone! :-D

1-866-660-6940

Published
by
Val
on 11.23.05
in The Working Stiff
. 22 Comments

I love having callerID (the callerID I *don’t* have), really, I do. Anyway, over the last several weeks, it seems the number 866-660-6940 has been calling me constantly. Of course, the calls have always happened to come when I wasn’t here. Until yesterday.

I was sitting here at the desk when the call came through. I answered and there was just dead air. I said hello a couple of times and was a second from hanging up when someone answered. She asked me if this was “Hollyfield web design.” Now, first of all, if you’re going to call me, at least say my name right, please. Second of all, the second she asked for that, I knew where they’d gotten my number: the whois information on any domain registered by me for me or by me for someone else.
Continue reading ‘1-866-660-6940′

Eh?

Published
by
Val
on 11.22.05
in Little Light
. 5 Comments

What’s three dozen quart-size jars, seven dozen pint-size jars, three dozen half-pint jars, four dozen fourth-pint jars, and one dozen warmer jars have in common?

They’re all sharing a cart with the cutest little boy in the world.

:cute:

* I, anela, blogged this straight from Flickr, come visit me there, if you like.