The name? Well it should say it. I am fiesty, loud, unconventional, random, happy-go-lucky, and overly friendly.
I love papercrafts, animals and my family. A random story telling blog of my life from October 2008 till now...
----- Original Message ----- From: Feisty To: carrots Sent: Friday, March 5, 2010 9:06:21 PM GMT -06:00 US/Canada Central Subject: A message from Mia.
Hello,
I have to tell you that I was tucking Bagel into bed for the third time (ya know, first time is reading, and singing songs. Second time is for her water to be filled, and the third is to tell me she can't sleep)
So I was tucking her in, and she told me this...
"mommy, I miss my Great Gramma Alice. Can you show me her picture when she was holding baby mia in the morning, and I want to watch the video with her"
It made me smile. I want Bagel to know that even though she only had 6 months with her great Gramma how much she was loved. And I want the kids to know of all their great grandparents.
I thought you would like this.
Love
Feisty
There are some kids who don't even know who their parents are, a few more don't remember their grandparents, its even more amazing the ones who have, or had, the opportunity to know their great-grandparents. My mom touched all of us in her own special way, apparently Bagel was touched. Thanks Gack for keeping that memory alive. Dad
My parents were very nice to me (not sure the reasons why, MAYBE just because they love me?) because they took me to the Chicago Flower and Garden Show at Navy Pier! Just us 3. Fun for me, because this NEVER happens. (not the garden show part silly, the me and ONLY me and my parents. Sorry everyone else!) So here's our day, or most of it in pictures... enjoy...
Mom and me took a class on Container Gardening! For $20 we got the fun biodegradeable pot, the dwarf daffidol, the cyclman, ivy and the polka dot (now known as splash) lots of fun!
Here's the 3 of us! The Queen, myself and Carrots!
And my dad sneeking a snack while mom and me were in our class, BUSTED!
Pretty flowers!
Not kidding this was super cool. (I am a bug and lizard lover!) This is a female Hissing Cocaroach, from Madagascar! Very cool!!
This was cool, and I even let it crawl on my hand. It's a millapede from South America. Hard shell body, but wormy underneath. And yes the bazillion legs were kinda creepy on my hand.
I LOVE this. If you don't understand how much. Think of how much you know I LOVE coffe, and art supplies, and that is how much I LOVES this sectional. OH how pretty this would be on my deck. Right in the corner... I would live on my deck...
Who's this REALLY tall guy?
The guy from the Feldo window comercials!!
I think me and my mom need these in our yards!!
Cute bird houses... wait? Who's the crazy lady in the window!? It's the Queen mom!!
Afterwards we went to Chili's (here in town) and I enjoyed a sideways rain ass woopin' while driving down the highway, thank goodness when I got to the dark side roads it was a wall of hail. I did get home after driving 20 on the highway, and 5 on the side streets!
Alright so I thought the title was funny, no? It's not about seeing TT's at all, it's about getting shit down around my house, and thanks to my kick ass parents I did.
I need to ask a question, on what you would call this space. If you are in Weaky's bedroom on the second floor, and you go into his closet, my dad had cut a hole in the wall that lead to this space. (there once was access directly below where I am sitting you had to get a ladder and go up through the garage) I thought this was was easier.
And so my question is, what do you call it? We say attic, but my mom the Queen thinks crawl space? Not sure because I thought the crawl space was down below the house, and the attic was above the living space, and this is neither?! It's this big ass section at the front of the house, that my wonderful dad, Carrots, put in a plywood floor, that I covered with old blankets and rugs, and it's the toy/purse/extra dinner chair storage area.
The big event of the day was to move this big brown dresser behind my head to this space (Carrots and Spaghetti were betting we wouldn't get it through the mini door (the door is only 4 feet by 2 feet) but we did with ease, and I even got it sideways! Great for storage (btw I look like I have pink antlers from the ribbon handle I rigged on the dresser, and speaking of how I look, I haven't lost a damn pound in the Lose it Bitch challenge, I am pathetic. I look like a hippo)
And here it the view from the other dirrection, wish I had before and after, these are just before, so mentally erase all those bags to the Queens right, and the crap off the floor (we are selling 4 bags of toys at the garage sale from this mess!!)
Check out the old school video things Queen and Bagel have! You would pop these yellow vhs looking things into the end and turn the crank to watch a silent mini movie. She is finally getting the hang of one eye closed to do this!
Might seem kinda weird, but I made my mom save almost every toy I had as a kid. ALL the damn little pieces too. I have O' Jenny houses and the people too (think pre polly pocket) I have Sulvanians (little furry animals that live like people, and their house too) I have Precious Places SO many of the houses, and people, and the mansion! I have these BIG 3 story barbie houses (two of them, one was Frances' and one was mine, for Bagel along with Barbie clothes, and furniture) I have my little pony, mermaids, care bears, strawberry short cake, rainbow bright, I mean ALL the people, their cars, there accessories.
SO my weird idea is, when Bagel and Weaky are age appropriate for each toy, I will give them as a gift. Say Xmas, or Birthday, Easter, whatever. This Easter will be the Carebears for both of them. But don't think Weaky will miss out, he is lucky to have a mom that loved boy toys too! I have ALL the Thunder Cats, Tinker toys, matchbox's, Aunt Fraces' Richard Scary farm, but he get's the most important toy of them all...
My lego collection. I am a Lego Maniac, I have loved them since I first layed eyes on them. And now I have a boy to give them too. But I still have to wait about 6 more years, till little man is 8 years old for him to get them. I can't wait.
Don't worry they still get current toys, I don't force them to live in 1988 toy land. But it's fun to see them play with what made me so happy as a kid.
In other news, while the Queen and I entertained two small kids and purged, cleaned and reminised about old toys, Carrots was a busy boy he had to fix a loose cable wire in Weakys room, and
Install a new ceiling fan in my loft. Silly man installed one about a year ago, got it from a friend. Nice friend that forgot to tell him the light didn't work. So for almost a year, I have been struggling to see in the dark, or by lamp. But now I have a HUGE light there! Hooray!! Thanks Dad!
And my other reasons for ditching out on you blogger?
Since I got over the flu I got a BIG ol' clean and purge bug up my ass, I also only have 60 something days till the big garage sale I need to get stuff gone through! And so that is my day on Friday! Now onto another post about more randomness you may or may not care about!
Promted from MamaKat's Writer's Workshop, I will go with this prompt...What’s in YOUR name? What does it mean? Why was it given to you? etc..
I was named after my father. John. He goes by Jack, when he was a young boy he went by Jackie.
So along came me, and I was named, you guessed it. Jacqueline. Jacqueline Susanne to be formal. I of coarse go by Jacki. Nope didn't forget the 'e' there, a few days after I was born my dad wanted to take the 'e' off my name, to banish me from ever having those cool pens, tooth brushes, pencil cases, ornaments, you name it with the "right" spelling of my name on it.
I thought it was cool to be a Jacki, a different Jacki. The no "e" Jacki.
Growing up I hated Jack as a nickname. It was only called to my by a few people, people like uncles that you really couldn't go into detail about how much it bugged you, but then it got to be more of an exclusive club. And I took it as more of a nickname from those people.
Sure 98% of the people who know me call me Jacki, Jacqueline is reserved for when I am deep shit, by my parents when I was young, and even sometimes Spagehtti has called me that.
My real nick name? It was given to me by my sister. Back when she was learning my name, instead of Jacki, she would say Gacki, (nothing to do with her speach issue now. She was able to speak clearly as a kid) it stuck.
(love this shot of my dad, Jack (Carrots) and my sister, Susie (Frances) laughing at him)
Gacki. Sounds like a noise you make in your throat.
But my sister called me that, so did my parents, a few of my close cousins, and only a few of my closest friends.
(One of my closest friends D. Pimpster Mudd got married, you may notice me, but note on the left is Maternal Mirth.
Don't know her? Her blog is fanfuckingtastic, when she gets around to it)
But we don't stop with Gacki. Because I was young when I was called that. So we shorted it to Gack. (and I mean WE as in NOT me) Gack is SUCH a noice you can make with your throat! Eww!
But my dad liked to sing the Lego song with my name in it, cuz I love Lego's and all (Gack, Gack, she's a Lego Maniac! Glad you can't hear me singing that right now.) And Nickelodion came out with "Gack" a gross putty thing to play with also.
So somewhere between a throat noise, a girl who loves boys toys, and gross putty. I was pretty original.
And so after having the nickname for about 30 years now, it's still with me. Lots of people ask, and I love to tell them, you have to know me to use it.
As for my middle name. Susanne. Well my mom didn't want to be left out. She is Susan. Queen Susan. And Frances, well she is Susie, formally Susanne Frances.
So there you have it. Jack and Sue had Jacki and Susie. I didn't think it was weird till Spaghetti pointed it out. I think it's cute. So there. Hmrph.
I went on Twitter today. I saw that my sister Frances had Tweeted about some Youtube video. Her comment was "I used to live here" with the link.
Where could she have lived that had a Youtube video? I quickly followed the link to this...
If you knew me growing up, from 1978 to 1990, then you knew this was my house.
This was a wave of emotions that hit me. From the tree out front, that I planted with a seed. The tree is a maple tree, and his name is Fuzzy. (when we moved to the next house I took a bit of that tree, and replanted there, to make Frizzy) to the windows where Carrots BIG home made Nativity scene would go, the front poarch where my mom's mom and me once stood.
The hall way where we would listen to my dad's stereo and records. The living room where the big tree would go. The bathroom where Frances got stuck in the laundry chute, the stair case in the wall (while doing some bathroom work my dad found a hidden staircase, from back when the house was 2 appartments) and where my mom knocked one of my loose toothes out!
The purple room, (it had DARK purple carpet) which was the toy room, and my mom's sewing room, where I first fell in love with crafts. Later it became my room, where I had a Corey Feldman corner and slept on silk sheets! I would dance on that bed to Debbie Gibson, and sing in my hairbrush.
I remember my friends Renee, and Maternal Mirth (yeah we go WAY back) over playing in there.
The kitchen still has the original faux brick walls, and cabinets too. My dad built that island for my mom. I miss the old floor in there. It was a fun red brick pattern.
There is a luvor door in the kitchen, it's a walk in pantry. I remember when my dad would get off his shift doing construction, coming into the house and smelling like dirt, oil and all things construction, he would take his belt and stick it through the cracks in the pantry door to play with our cat Shadow. The pantry was an L shape. I remember when my mom did NutraSystem and we had ALL that food from them in there!! My dad told me that when the old house was here, there was a stair case that went straight down to the basement.
The dining room was built by my dad too. It was once a small room, and there was bifold doors there to go out. But my dad opened it all up and him and my moms brother (the shit head) put those windows in. (one window fell on my Uncle. (good)
I remember the heat vent in the floor between the edge of the kitchen into the dining room. I would stand there in my tights, before school, knowing we had to walk 2 blocks in the snow.
I remember that dining room. I remember sitting in the windows watching the rain. I remember Easters, Father Days, Mother's Day... I remember her voice. I remember MY Frances from when we were kids. I remember her telling mom I love you over and over and over and over again. I remember her calling me Gack.
I remember those stairs, that's where we left our boots for St. Nick. Up in the loft area my dad had his desk. My mom bought him the desk for father's day one year. From a store called Naked Furniture. She stained the big roll top desk herself.
If you go down the stairs, there was a landing, it had shelves where my mom kept all her canned applesauce (I big puffy red heart applesauce and still do eat it almost everyday) and tomatoes. We had an apple tree out back. Off that landing you could go outside, or to a small door (which was PERFECT for kids) to a crawlspace under the dining room. My parents kept their 2 liters of pop there. And our folding chairs for summer. You could look out a funny vent to the back deck.
If you went back to the landing, you could go down some more stairs to the basement. There was a door their, with stained glass, and my dad had a sign (which I now have on my back door) it reads "Come on in. My day was ruined anyway" with a man in a cauldrin.
I remember when it was around Christmas and Dad wouldn't let us in the basement because he was working on something. He kinda gave it away when he "borrowed" a barbie doll. But we were still shocked to see 3 story barbie houses. One for each of us. (I still have them. But they do need to be flipped. They were well loved. Do you remember those houses Maternal Mirth? Pimpster D Mudd?)
The basement held the washer and dryer, it had a coat area, with cabinets. I remember when I was young I helped my dad smooth part of the concrete floor he was working on. This is the first project I remember working with him on.
He had a LONG work space down there, and off there was another room. We called it the Holiday room. It stored ALL the holiday decorations, and the litter boxes.
We had the back section for some storage, and then for our toys too. We had the best kitchen area to play in. All our friends loved it. When it was winter we would ride our big wheels around it. And my mom the Queen would play stop. go as she did laundry. I remember the floor was uneven, and there was a ramp down from my dad's workspace. It was fun.
If you went outside, my dad built a roof over the concrete deck. We had a playhouse. Made of plywood and it was painted black. I would eat cottage cheese and applesauce out there with my cousin Matt. It had an upstairs, and apples would fall on the roof. Next to it was our swing set. Erica my neigbor friend and I would make up routines and write them down (I still have that list)
Our yard was long and skinny. I remember the tiger lilies all along the side, the garden my mom had next to the car port. Ah the car port. It housed the Nova. And the shed! I remember my mom and dad moving the shed. It was a little metel one. They went inside and picked it up and walked it down the yard. My dad's truck "Chuck" was parked behind there. We grew strawberries on that side.
In the back was an alley. And Fetz street one of the smallest streets around. 2 houses only! One that caught on fire alot.
In the alley, Frances and I would play in the gravel after the rain. It made big puddles. We would make little paper boats, and sink them with rocks. I can hear her voice again...
I remember my dad built a garbage can area. Like a mini deck for them. I remember thinking how great of drivers my parents were because of how you had to to pull in, back up, then in again. We were at the dead end of the alley.
I remember my dad letting me ride in the front seat of his truck to go to work with him. He would drive me around to the front and I would get out and run to my mom. I loved when my dad came home, I would race down the little sidewalk to greet him.
On the side of the house, well one side had Chic (not sure if that was his real name, he was big and scary and looked like he ate children for snacks) then his son Gregg lived there too. He was nice. There house was originally green, and it was SO close to our house you could almost touch it. (about 2 feet apart)
The other side had a big brick apartment building. With 3 apartments. All with BIG decks out back, and out front. And a big yard too. Mary and Loyd lived on the top. They were great. I don't remember seeing Mary in anything but a big house dress. She let me sit on her swing and visit with her. We could see them from the loft room in our house.
I remember Maime. She lived alone, and was nice too. The other place was rented out on and off, once by actor who did comercials. He was nice too.
Along the house there was a Silver Maple tree, which is HUGE now, bigger then the house, and a pussy willow tree too, they are SO big! Frances used to play with her barbies in that tree. Along the house we had these buttercup flowers. With rail road ties along the front of them. I would have my Jacki and Katie dolls play in there.
I remember the evergreens out front, and the big garden spider I would write books about, on the type writer. I remember sitting on that porch with my friends from the block. Jimmy, and his sister Olivia, Erica and her sister Lauren and brother Jay. Mel, and the Mutz girls. Sometimes Emily too.
I remember when Maternal Mirth's mom was seeing this guy, who lived a few doors down from us. Her mom married that guy. They live somewhere warm and sunny now. They are great people.
If you go back into the house, and off the loft area there is a stair case (which once had a big white statue, at the bottom of the stairs and on my first Communion I had on slippery white shoes, I fell down the stairs, sprained my wrist and broke the head off the statue. (I was so nervous because I had been chosen my Sister Celine to carry the gifts up durring OUR Communion! I still did, brace and all!)
At the top of the stairs was a window, then a door. That room was where me and Frances had our bunk beds. A big closet full of toys, and a 1/2 bathroom was there too. That half bath had a drawer FULL of little girl hair ties, and if you pulled the drawer out to far you would have hair ties ALL over the place! And you would have to resort them! At the end of the bathroom was some shelves that my dad made sliding doors for. My mom stuffed it SO full of towels that the doors often came off the track.
I remember one time, my mom was outside in her garden, and I thought it was a great idea to open the window. And for me and Frances to go out onto the flat roof with our Barbies in their car. My neighbor saw us because she was on her third level swing, and yelled to my mom. For some reason they thought it was scary that the 7 year old was sitting on the edge of the 2nd story roof. My sister wisely sat back by the house. (No barbies were injured in this story)
That room was where I had a nightmare after watching Thriller for the first time. I dreamed that all the monsters were coming up the stairs. I remember the red picture that my mom would fill our humidafier with when it got dry in the winter. I remember the Queen and Carrots room. My dad built shelves around the windows, and the long closet along the wall. He also built a small room for my mom to sew in when I took over the purple room.
I remember when we were told we were moving. I remembered my sister getting pissed. She LOVED Marble street, and we cried to have to leave all our friends. I remember moving day. And the guy who stuck his head in the freezer, because it was so hot. The day was my parents wedding annivesary.
I remember our cat Shadow getting scared and hiding above the duct work in the basement ceiling. Her and Frances both wanted to stay. I remember my parents used my friend Jenny M's parents big van to move, our truck and nova, and my cousins horse trailers (they promised they were clean!)
I remember SO much from that house, it was my first 13 years of life. I remember a happy family of 4 who is still as close as they were back then. I loved this video, and the memories it broght back. Thanks for going back in time with me.
Still here. Just peeking out (with Bagel!) to see how everyone is...
Us. Were good.
It's been an emotionally draining week. Spaghetti has been the airport gopher for his family coming in. His cousins, and then his parents and Grampa flew in early from their vaca to Arizona to see Uncle T.
Update? He's sadly still here. Sounds morbid to say, but he is just barely here. The hospital told the family to make arrangements already. I've never heard that before, but I guess. The wake is tomorrow (Sunday) and the funeral is on Monday. (pending)
We did go up to see him on Tuesday, I had Queen out early, then Aerial came over and watched the kids for us. It's about a 45 minute drive, we picked up water for Aunt N. Cuz told us she needed some. And asked us not to leave her mom alone.
We didn't hesitate and spend the afternoon and evening with Aunt N. and Uncle T. he's in a single hospital room, it's overseen by Hospice. He didn't look like himself, his hair was all slicked back, and he didn't have his glasses on. In the 11 years I have been around I have never seen Uncle T. with out his glasses on.
We sat and told stories, shared memories, and cried. At one point Aunt N. told a story about how Uncle T was a Vietnam vet and how he was not welcomed home. But 20 years later a parade was thrown for him and the local vets. The whole family got involved. Cuz and her brother Little T were even in it. Spaghetti's mom & dad brought there BIG video camera (I do believe it was the 80's) and taped the whole thing.
After we told the story, suddenly Uncle T moved. He started to move his left arm (can't use his right side) like a hug. The nurse came by minutes later and Aunt. N asked her if he was in pain. The nurse said no, his morphine drip was good.
She said that often times he can hear us. He's not awake, more like a dream. But she said sometimes they hug at us, at our voices. Whether this is true or not. It made us happy to think that Uncle T. was listening the whole time.
Then we chose to talk as if he was listening. Sharing more stories. Uncle T & Aunt N's close friends drove down from Wisconsin. It was over 4 hours. After listening to R's stories, we found out they were more then just neighbors at one time. R and Uncle T were friends in H.S. and went through some scary things together. Knowing that they have had over 40 years of memories made me understand the 4 hour drive alot more.
I haven't been back to the hospital since. Cuz and Banjo are here, and so is Cuz's brother Little T, his wife, Spirit and son, Col are here too. I am curious as to what today will hold for Spaghetti's family. If his Uncle will pass, or will he continue to suffer. Maybe he waited till everyone was here with him.
So Wednesday, the day after visiting Uncle T. my dad was scheduled to come over and start project "Pixie Hollow" for Bagel. We had a busy day of painting her room a pretty purple, while Queen played with the kids, and made us food.
About 20 minutes into work, I dropped my paintbrush and ran over to my dad and bear hugged him. He hugged me back. He knew. He knows that I am thankful for everything he does, and all the zillions of ways he has helped me. He knows that I see him in Uncle T. it hits home for me to know that someone that I think of like my dad is dying. And it hurts just as much to know that Cuz, Banjo, Little T, and Spirit will be with out.
Carrots gave me a big hug, and said "I'm not going anywhere if that is what all this is about." Tears running down my face I say "You can't leave me dad. I need you. I love you" to break this emotional boo hoo fest he says "I can't leave, we've just started Bagel's room." I then said "Well if that's the case I will keep you booked painting rooms forever!" Thanks for the hug dad, and thanks for everything.
See this handsome guy?! He is 59 years old today!! Looks just like my Weaky Man too!
Here he is just 6 years old at his old house...
Fast forward to June 30th 1973 when he married my mom the Queen! And thus the beginning of the Queen and Carrots!
One of my favorite pictures of the Queen and Carrots this summer out on there deck. God I love my parents. If you missed the post on this picture, you have to read it. One of my favorites. I do have a special home in mind for them both!
And this is my favorite. Not because of the serious look on his face, or the fact that he has hot peppers up his nose.
This is my favorite because after I dared him to do this, and my mother warned him this was a bad idea, he did it. Only seconds after this picture he cried like a girl for about 10 minutes and bitched through the mall, about how badly his nose burned from the hot peppers! Silly daddy!! Thanks for the laugh though.
Anywho, happy 59th birthday dad. Your an amazing father, husband, son, and papa. We all love and adore you. Keep on with your silly faces and your hot peppers up your nose!
My parents have always been the funny haha kind of people. Not a day goes by, with out a funny prank, or a joke. The house was always filled with laughter and love.
And even when I stop by with the kids, they still find it funny to be just the special people they are. So when you are sitting on the deck, and you see the opportunity for a great photo, and you say "smile!"
Then you get an unscripted, and unrehearsed goofy face from both of them. My mother looks pissed off, and my dad looks like we forgot to medicate him. (love the farmer tan by the way) Again I ask them to smile for me. Take a cute picture? No? Thanks. Now neither of them knew the other was making funny faces. But now with my mother looking possessed, and my father looks just plain insane. I remind them that I will find them a special home to be cared for when the time is right. I love you Queen and Carrots.
Still here. Just peeking out (with Bagel!) to see how everyone is...
See this handsome guy?! He is 59 years old today!! Looks just like my Weaky Man too!
Here he is just 6 years old at his old house...
Fast forward to June 30th 1973 when he married my mom the Queen! And thus the beginning of the Queen and Carrots!
One of my favorite pictures of the Queen and Carrots this summer out on there deck. God I love my parents. If you missed the post on this picture, you have to read it. One of my favorites. I do have a special home in mind for them both!
