Showing posts with label Memory walk. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Memory walk. Show all posts
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Nothing ever changes in a small town.
Okay so my busy Saturday started out a bit confusing and slow, then picked up a bit, then ended in utter disappointment.
First off, Mom, Dad & I had a good time this morning at the Memory Walk. We got there an hour early because the time on the website was wrong. That's okay. There were a total of eight Team Inez members. We were the second largest team. West Lauderdale High School's HOSA club was there with about 20. I won first place for most donations raised by an individual. I got a trophy... (I've got pictures. I'll load them later.)
After the walk, I went home to quickly shower and we headed for Quitman for a BBQ with Wes' parents. Kevin & Kim were there with Dalton. He's 10 months old. Precious... (I'll load those pics tomorrow)
Then off to the reunion....
Since I got home from the reunion tonight, I've been thinking about the meaning of the word. Reunion. It means a seeing someone/something you haven't seen in a while. Reminiscing about the days of old and catching up on the times in between. Well, that didn't happen... At all. It was like I stepped back into high school. First of all, I felt really bad for Amber. She put a lot of time (& money) into this. There were only nine "graduates" there. Out of the nine, there were two couples. (Wes was actually the only one there who DIDN'T attend Enterprise.) The owners of the building kind of jipped Amber by promising live music, but then reneged on that a few days before. Also, Amber was given a lot of "maybes" and had to estimate for the caterer. Well, ALL of those maybes turned into No's. She ended up in the hole big time.
When I got there, everyone was standing around talking. I tried to mingle around, but got the cold shoulder a few times, just like old times. Instead of asking each other how are things and where are you know? The questions I heard were where did you go last night, and why didn't you call me back the other day. Questions that you'd ask someone you see often. I suddenly realized that I was the only one asking the typical reunion questions. So for me, I was at a reunion. To everyone else, it was simply another get together. I felt alone. I felt like Wes looked. Bored and not "knowing" anyone, displaying that "courtesy laugh" you give when you really don't want to be in the conversation. I also came to realize that I was the only one there who left Enterprise and never went back. Everyone else wasn't there for a reunion. They reunite everyday. At the school when they drop off their kids and see their former classmates as teachers. At church every Sunday. On Saturdays at the pee-wee football or baseball game their kids play together on. I'm not in any of those things.
I was expecting a room full of friendly, mature, grown-up faces, and "What are you doing now?" questions. I was prepared with my camera, pictures, printed cards with my info on them and a notebook to collect addresses. I never took my camera out of its case. I showed Kim & Michael a picture of Pete. That was it. Funny how these things turn out. I was looking forward to reuniting with folks and I came out with nothing. Not even an address or phone number. The only positive is that I've reunited with Amber. And that was just by luck of running into her at the fair last week. I don't yet know what to say about all this. I'm a bit confused, but I know I shouldn't be. I'm not going to dwell on it. Actually, it somewhat reiterates the reasons for several life choices I've made throughout the years, if that makes any sense.
I'm going to bed now. I had 3 1/2 hours of sleep last night and I have to be up early for Sunday School and church. (The banana bread is very good by the way!) More on all this later. I'll load pictures tomorrow.
E
First off, Mom, Dad & I had a good time this morning at the Memory Walk. We got there an hour early because the time on the website was wrong. That's okay. There were a total of eight Team Inez members. We were the second largest team. West Lauderdale High School's HOSA club was there with about 20. I won first place for most donations raised by an individual. I got a trophy... (I've got pictures. I'll load them later.)
After the walk, I went home to quickly shower and we headed for Quitman for a BBQ with Wes' parents. Kevin & Kim were there with Dalton. He's 10 months old. Precious... (I'll load those pics tomorrow)
Then off to the reunion....
Since I got home from the reunion tonight, I've been thinking about the meaning of the word. Reunion. It means a seeing someone/something you haven't seen in a while. Reminiscing about the days of old and catching up on the times in between. Well, that didn't happen... At all. It was like I stepped back into high school. First of all, I felt really bad for Amber. She put a lot of time (& money) into this. There were only nine "graduates" there. Out of the nine, there were two couples. (Wes was actually the only one there who DIDN'T attend Enterprise.) The owners of the building kind of jipped Amber by promising live music, but then reneged on that a few days before. Also, Amber was given a lot of "maybes" and had to estimate for the caterer. Well, ALL of those maybes turned into No's. She ended up in the hole big time.
When I got there, everyone was standing around talking. I tried to mingle around, but got the cold shoulder a few times, just like old times. Instead of asking each other how are things and where are you know? The questions I heard were where did you go last night, and why didn't you call me back the other day. Questions that you'd ask someone you see often. I suddenly realized that I was the only one asking the typical reunion questions. So for me, I was at a reunion. To everyone else, it was simply another get together. I felt alone. I felt like Wes looked. Bored and not "knowing" anyone, displaying that "courtesy laugh" you give when you really don't want to be in the conversation. I also came to realize that I was the only one there who left Enterprise and never went back. Everyone else wasn't there for a reunion. They reunite everyday. At the school when they drop off their kids and see their former classmates as teachers. At church every Sunday. On Saturdays at the pee-wee football or baseball game their kids play together on. I'm not in any of those things.
I was expecting a room full of friendly, mature, grown-up faces, and "What are you doing now?" questions. I was prepared with my camera, pictures, printed cards with my info on them and a notebook to collect addresses. I never took my camera out of its case. I showed Kim & Michael a picture of Pete. That was it. Funny how these things turn out. I was looking forward to reuniting with folks and I came out with nothing. Not even an address or phone number. The only positive is that I've reunited with Amber. And that was just by luck of running into her at the fair last week. I don't yet know what to say about all this. I'm a bit confused, but I know I shouldn't be. I'm not going to dwell on it. Actually, it somewhat reiterates the reasons for several life choices I've made throughout the years, if that makes any sense.
I'm going to bed now. I had 3 1/2 hours of sleep last night and I have to be up early for Sunday School and church. (The banana bread is very good by the way!) More on all this later. I'll load pictures tomorrow.
E
Banana mashing is fun!!!
I just finished baking my first loaves of bread. I made three small loaves of Banana bread from scratch. One is Apple butter banana bread and the others are plain banana bread with walnuts. It smells delicious in here!! I've always wanted a bread maker. I still don't have one, but I think I can manage. I used loaf pans. I made them for our Sunday School class. I wanted to do something besides donuts or breakfast casserole. I saw these recipes in the Betty Crocker and realized that I had found a project! It's 1:30 am right now and I have to be at the Alzheimer's walk at 7:30 or so. I also have a cook out at Wes' parents at noon and then we have to go to my High School reunion at 6pm. I'll be tired tomorrow, but I'll manage. I'm currently waiting for the bread to cool so I can wrap it up and go to bed.
Yesterday, I finished reading Flags of our Fathers. It's a great book. I've seen the movie, but books are almost always better. This one hits closer to home because my (great) Uncle was a flamethrower and was there when the flag went up on Iwo Jima. He wrote a few short memoirs of his experiences that day and the days following. His stories are nearly identical to the book, but you can tell in his writings that he was haunted by what he saw. His English is bad which makes it a bit difficult to read, but I find it fascinating. I am proud to say that I have relatives who served our country on such historic days. I am also proud to say that my 6th Great Grandfather on my Dad's side was a man named Ferdinand Kowall. He was Copernicus' Assistant. He helped Copernicus prove that the world was round and traveled with him during his academic quests.
This morning, I started reading Randy Pausch's book, Last Lecture. I have not been able to put it down. I have read over a hundred pages already. It's a small book, but full of wonderful life lessons from a man who knew his fate. I'm pretty sure I'll finish it before the weekend is up.
I think my bread is cool enough now. I'm going to bed. I have to be up in 4 hours... If you see me yawning tomorrow, pinch me and tell me it's my own fault for staying up so late. I could have just bought donuts.....
Yesterday, I finished reading Flags of our Fathers. It's a great book. I've seen the movie, but books are almost always better. This one hits closer to home because my (great) Uncle was a flamethrower and was there when the flag went up on Iwo Jima. He wrote a few short memoirs of his experiences that day and the days following. His stories are nearly identical to the book, but you can tell in his writings that he was haunted by what he saw. His English is bad which makes it a bit difficult to read, but I find it fascinating. I am proud to say that I have relatives who served our country on such historic days. I am also proud to say that my 6th Great Grandfather on my Dad's side was a man named Ferdinand Kowall. He was Copernicus' Assistant. He helped Copernicus prove that the world was round and traveled with him during his academic quests.
This morning, I started reading Randy Pausch's book, Last Lecture. I have not been able to put it down. I have read over a hundred pages already. It's a small book, but full of wonderful life lessons from a man who knew his fate. I'm pretty sure I'll finish it before the weekend is up.
I think my bread is cool enough now. I'm going to bed. I have to be up in 4 hours... If you see me yawning tomorrow, pinch me and tell me it's my own fault for staying up so late. I could have just bought donuts.....
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Volunteering For Volunteers
UPDATE ON TEAM INEZ
We now have a SPONSOR!!!
Mom told me that last week, someone from the hospital asked her if she would start a team for the Alzheimer's walk. When she told them about our team, they decided to use our team as their team. Now we are the Riley Hospital Team Inez. They are keeping the name. Mamaw volunteered at the hospital as a "Pink Lady" for many years. The hospital has made flyers with her picture and they will also be selling T-shirts with our team name for $10. (Half will go to the team) The slogan on the flyers and the T-shirt is "Volunteering For Volunteers." I'm getting more and more excited about our team. Maybe we'll have the biggest team or the team with the most money raised.
PLEASE GO TO THE WEBSITE ABOVE AND JOIN OUR TEAM OR DONATE TO THE CAUSE!! YOU DON'T HAVE TO WALK.
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
JOIN TEAM INEZ!!
Mom & I have started a team for the upcoming Memory Walk. Please join us on October 11 at Bonita Lakes to raise money for the ALzheimer's foundation and walk in honor and memory of our loved ones. Here's the letter I have sent out to recruit team members and donations...
As you may know, Our family had a loved one who has been affected by Alzheimer''s. My grandmother, Mary Inez Martin suffered with the disease for nearly a decade. She passed away on February 27, 2002. My grandfather, Paul Martin, was recently diagnosed with Frontaltemporal Dementia. Because my family and I have seen firsthand the impact this disease has, we are participating in the Alzheimer''s Association Memory Walk®.Funds raised through Memory Walk help support scientific investigations into better treatments and a possible cure for Alzheimer’s. And for the millions already affected by the disease, Memory Walk donations help to provide care, support and education programs.
Please help us make a difference by supporting our team with a donation.
Thank you in advance for your support.
Please come out and support us on Oct. 11. If you're unable to, please contribute a donation to the research for a cure. Here's a link to our team page where you can join up and donate.
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