Fathers Day....It truly breaks my heart to think of the fathers whose only link to their children is the child support that they pay. The men who wanted to be fathers, were good fathers, but through vindictive mothers and an unequal court system, have lost their children. And the children, who knowing today is a special day for Dad's, has no one to make feel special.
I have been wondering this weekend how Nate is feeling, his father, who was never much of a father, being dead now.
Today my heart hurts for those father's who have lost their sons to war. I'm sure on a day like today that loss is felt even more profoundly.
I love my Dad. Charles Fletcher R. I named Nate for him, Nathan Charles. My dad was the youngest of 8 children, his oldest brother, Chester, was 20 yrs older than he, and really was the only father that my Dad knew. His father, for reasons that will remain unknown since he passed away many years ago, left my Grandma when my Dad was a baby, and started another family with another woman.
Here's a weird one for you...When one of my Dad's older sisters died a man at the funeral came and introduced himself to my Dad. His name? Charles R. He was my Dad's half brother from his fathers second marriage. And he was married to a Janet....which is my Mom's name. Creepy, huh?
The Prankster
Anyhow...From my childhood I don't really remember much about my Dad besides the fact that he was always gone, working. And when he wasn't gone working, he was at home working. I remember him, his brother Laird and a bunch of brick layer friends doing the brick veneer on our home. I remember him remodeling the kitchen. The dining room. The living room. I remember helping him in the basement, as he saw cut the floor to put in drainage pipes I held the hose so that the water cooled the saw blade.
He always said "go ask your mother". He never decided anything with us kids, that was Mom's job. And if she said wait till your father gets home, we knew we had only hours left to live *g* When the big gun gets called in, you best be prepared *L*
My Dad was always a quiet man. He used to smoke, but never in the house. He used to drink a little bit, but Mom made him miserable about it so he didn't do that much. Mom got us into church and then sicced the preacher on Dad who was reluctant to attend with us. Next thing you know, he's the one getting us up on Sunday mornings to go to church and insisting we were there every time the doors were opened.
Over the years my Dad has became a different person than he was when we were kids. He talks to me now as an adult and somehow it feels so strange to be having a real conversation with this big strong quiet man, and then again, it feels so right. I remember not too many years ago that I would hug him and tell him I loved him and he would feel stiff and awkward hugging me quickly and giving a nervous laugh as he said Love you too. Now he hugs like a bear and there is no nervous giggle as he proclaims his love for me.
Good luck getting a straight face outta this guy!
When Nate left for bootcamp is the first time I saw my Dad cry. We were here on the back porch, my parents had come in from Pennsylvania to see Nate off. The recruiter was late coming to get Nate and my parents needed to be back on the road home so they were saying their good byes. My Mom hugged Nate and told him she loved him, and then my Dad hugged him and I heard someone sobbing and they were both shaking and I thought it was Nate crying...but it was my Dad.
For bootcamp graduation my parents and my sister accompanied me to Georgia to see Nate graduate. We were standing in this building looking at all the "boys" with their same hair cut and same clothes, trying to pick Nate out of the crowd. When I saw my Dad wipe his eyes and quickly turn to look at the wall, I knew Nate had been found. Later that day when my Dad had the honor of pinning Nate's infantry cord to his uniform, he did it with red face and tears streaming down his cheeks.
And when Nate flew in from S. Korea for his 14 day leave before going to Iraq, again my parents drove in from PA to meet him with me at the airport. My Mom, sister, niece & nephew were up by the security gate as close as we could be, watching every passenger coming down the ramp, looking for our Nate, while my Dad hung back a little bit...When we saw Nate I turned to point him out to my Dad, but he had already seen him and was standing there shaking and crying.
My Dad is a very strong man. He's worked construction most of his life and then maintenance for BP. When he retired from BP they had a party for him, picked him & my mom up in a Limo and took them to a fancy restaurant in Cleveland. His boss spoke at the party and he said he never met a man with hands as strong as my Dads. He said, Chuck tightened down bolts with his bare hands that I won't be able to untighten with power tools...stay close Chuck, in case we need you to tear down something you put up". *g*
Dad will be 70 in August. He looks like he's in his 50's. He has been retired for 12 yrs but he has worked every day since he retired. He digs basements for people, does all the work needed at the Church & parsonage and has remodeled many peoples homes around where they live.
When God finally decides that it's time for Chuck to come home, I hope and pray that he takes him quick. It would be so hard for my Dad to be laid up and lose his strength, to die slow and weak. That every day sickness thing, to become weak and frail, would break him more than the sickness itself. And we that love him too.
I think that my Mom and us kids and our kids have come a long way to healing whatever hurt my Dad felt at not having his own Father. A lesser man might have let that fatherless growing up make him bitter and unable to have his own strong family. My Dad knows he is loved and he loves us right back.
Happy Father's Day, Dad. I love you.
I've been tagged by valreads to play this game so here goes.
Here are the rules:
1) People who are tagged need to share seven random facts/habits about themselves on their own blog.
2) Include the rules.
3) Choose seven people to tag and include their names. Don't forget to leave them a comment and tell them they've been tagged.
Here goes:
1. I am an excellent friend to have, I will drop everything to come help you if you call, but I do not call my friends just to chit chat. Ever. Only one of my friends gets this about me and doesn't bitch and try to make me feel bad about it, although she likes to tease me about it.
2. People who do not know me well think that I am 'the life of the party' when actually I almost always berate myself for accepting an invite, have to talk myself into going, and most of the time if it's something that no one close to me is at, I am miserable the entire event and just want to go home. But I must appear as if I'm having fun...I dunno.
3. At work, I cannot work if my desk is covered and cluttered. It makes me feel overwhelmed and stressed. I have to at least get things into workable piles and then move through them till I get everything done & put away.
4. I must take a shower every morning. I cannot just get out of bed, get dressed and run a brush through my hair. On Saturdays sometimes I'll do that and go out to work in the yard and I feel grungy all day until I get into the shower.
5. There's 7 of these? Sheesh....I hate to be interrupted while reading a good book. If the phone rings or Nate talks to me I am short and agitated with him and impatient to get back to the book.
6. I really only have 2 friends who get me and still love me. I am intolerant of bullshit, I'll give you a couple of chances and then I'm done with you. And when I'm done, I'm done. Life's too short, babe.
7. And last but not least...I like to do things for people where they never know it was me that did it. It doesn't bother me if they think someone else did it, I just get pleasure from knowing it was me.
There. I did it. Seven things. Now I have to tag seven of you. I pick drops, misyapa, wannabewanted, Wissh, Pheebles, SunnyC & Wildernessity. Have fun!!
Ok...I just cannot contain myself any longer. For those of you that miss my rants, here ya go......
I'm just gonna start at the top and work my way down....
President Bush.
I didn't vote for him the first time, but I gained a lot of respect for him in the day's following 9-11 and I worked to get him reelected in 04. When we went into Afghanistan, I was with him. When we went into Iraq, I was with him. But on this border issue, all I can do is shake my head and say WTF? What is he working towards, it's certainly not the security of the United States.
I have nothing at all against immigrants. I love immigrants. I must be a descendent of an immigrant, I'm sure my family didn't just spring out of a river in Pennsylvania. LEGAL immigrants, like our friend Damaris, who did all the right things and learned our language, worked within our system and earned her citizenship. It took too damn many years, in my opinion, if the government would fix that part of it maybe more people would come in legally.
How are we to deport 12 million illegals? I don't know...trucks? All I know is, if they didn't come here legally, get them the fuck out. Build the damn fence - it's been approved, the money is set aside, build the damn thing already. Stop putting border agents in prison for protecting themselves. Stop allowing non-citizens to use our courts to make points and intimidate our legal system. This new border bill or whatever they're calling it that they are trying to pass in Congress? We already have laws on the books, ENFORCE THEM. We don't need a new law that will also be ignored.
And what the fuck is with Pres. Bush having a tizzy about Congress not passing this bill last week? Every little sound bite I hear, he is castigating Congress about this bill not passing. My question to Mr. Bush? Where the hell was all this passion when Congress was holding up the funding of our TROOPS?? Why didn't you have a fuckin fit then and forbid them to do their little Spring break thing until that issue was settled? I'm sure there is some method to his madness but at this point I want to know what the fuck it is, because I do not think it's any where near "the best interest of our country".
And to those who can never defend their points by any way but by calling those who oppose them names .... oppose the border bill? You must be a prejudiced bigoted hate monger...No, I am a PISSED OFF AMERICAN. Feel free to call me that.
And Congress? You DO NOT speak for me. You ARE NOT doing my will. You want us to pull out of Iraq but you don't want to say pull out of Iraq, you want to cut the funding and force our boys home. That is not my will. My will is if you want to end this war before it's done, have the damn courage to cut the funds and BRING OUR BOYS HOME. You tie their hands, they can't shoot first, they can't do this, they can't do that, you put them in prison for putting a pair of underwear on a prisoner's head while the enemy is sawing ours off with rusty knifes, BRING THEM HOME or let them fight the damn war. We are not losers. We are the most powerful Military in the world, we do not lose. Unless you want us to. Which is apparently the deal. Your political lives are over if we win. Wow, that's a great thing to balance against almost 4000 lives. Fucking idiots.
If any one in the federal government today worked for a private corporation, they would have been fired long ago. Why do We The People put up with this shit? I say everyone go change your affiliation. No Dem's, No Rep's...all Independents. Do you think that would send a message? I do. And yes, I have always voted as an Independent.
And now down to YOU. You voted these idiots into office. What are you gonna do about it? If you're a democrat, did you vote for shitty democrats just to stay in your party? If you're a republican, did you do the same thing? Who are you going to put into the Commander In Chief's seat this next election? Hillary? Why, because she's a woman? Because she's "smart"? She is smart, too bad she uses it for evil 90% of the time. Do you think she gives a fuck about you? No, she wants to be the first woman president. She wants that power. She wants to be in the History books. She wants to further her career, not be sure YOU are ok. Don't ask me who is better than her, I see no one at this point that I could vote for without wrapping duct tape around my head before I pull the lever.
Why is Scooter Libby going to prison for 2 yrs for lying about a crime that has never even been proved to be a crime, while Sandy Berger stuffed documents in his pants and removed them from the Congressional Library, a crime that was proved, but "he just made a mistake" and is walking around free as a bird......
How is it that Teddy Kennedy lets a girl drown while he goes home and sleeps it off and is rewarded by 44 yrs of sitting in Congress?
Why can Bill Clinton's Attorney General, Janet Reno, sack all 93 U.S. attorneys in one clean sweep upon taking office and now Alberto Gonzalez is under investigation for getting rid of 8?? I guess Bush should have fired them as soon as he walked into the White House in 2000.
Stop wasting our damn money on all of these useless investigations!!
I heard the story of a guy today...made me want to puke. He is a former Border Agent. Had 8 yrs in our military before the Border gig. Perfect record. An illegal drug smuggler gets caught by him, he tries to detain the guy, the guy gets him down, is choking him and going for his gun, the border agent somehow gets him off, kicks him in the back, handcuffs him. And does 24 months in a federal prison for assault. On an illegal drug smuggler. No witnesses to this, he was convicted on the testimony of this illegal who was doing 60 months for the drug smuggling. Now...do you not see something wrong with that??
Ok. I feel better. I'm done. For now.
Wake up, America.
Oh, and don't forget to not use your turn signals during rush hour on a 6 lane highway.....wouldn't want the rest of us to know what the hell you're doin, now would we? Schmuckers.
Oh, say, can you see, by the dawn's early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, thro' the perilous fight'
O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming.
And the rockets red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Oh, say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
Find out more about our flag at USFLAG.ORG
Ok, first, that was NOT my experience, but I laughed so hard, tears rolling down my face, that I HAD to share it with you all here. Ok, yeah, I put Nate's name in there but....And, Lona, all I could think was Lona must have written this!! *L*
Secondly...if it were me, I'd be very hurt by all your snickering comments. Geesh, I coulda been scarred for life *L*
Here's some pics of my drive border for your enjoyment...sorry if you have dial-up...upgrade already, would ya? First pic though is for you worry-er's out there, Yes, Nate does wear a helmet. (most of the time)
Pics of the new roof...although you never saw the old one so you won't see the difference...Believe me, much better now!
Had a very cool weekend thanks to a big hail storm on Friday. And I do mean BIG hail storm...2-3/4" diameter hail. All we lost was a garage window...My neighbor's vinyl siding took a beating. I just happened to be home and it sounded like 20 big men were jumping up & down on my roof. Awesome! The pics are dark, but hopefully you can see...across my one neighbors front yard, big chunks of ice....
Anyhow, I got a request from our friend Iraqidirtchick for my banana nut bread, so I just baked all weekend & sent to her and 2 very special soldiers.
Hawaiian Banana Nut Pineapple Bread, Chocolate Swirl Chip Cookies, Chocolate Chunk Cookies and not shown, Peanut Butter Cookies. Hopefully everything will arrive fresh & yummy!
Ok...Got work to do. Hope all is well with you all...Catch you next time!
My night began as any other normal weeknight. Come home, work in the garden. I then had the thought that would ring painfully in my mind for the next few hours: "Maybe I should pull the waxing kit out of the medicine cabinet." So I headed to the site of my demise: the bathroom.
It was one of those "cold wax" kits. No melting a clump of hot wax, you just rub the strips together in your hand, they get warm and you peel them apart and press them to your leg (or wherever else) and you pull the hair right off. No muss, no fuss. How hard can it be? I mean, I'm not a genius, but I am mechanically inclined enough to figure this out.
So I pull one of the thin strips out. Its two strips facing each other stuck together. Instead of rubbing them together, my genius kicks in so I get out the hair dryer and heat it to 1000 degrees.
I lay the strip across my thigh. Hold the skin around it tight and pull. It works! OK, so it wasn't the best feeling, but it wasn't too bad. I can do this! Hair removal no longer eludes me! I am She-rah, fighter of all way ward body hair and maker of smooth skin extraordinaire.
With my next wax strip I move north. After checking to see where Nate is, I sneak back into the bathroom, for the ultimate hair fighting championship. I drop my panties and place one foot on the toilet. Using the same
procedure, I apply the wax strip across the right side of my bikini line, covering the right half of my *hoo-hoo* and stretching down to the inside of my butt cheek (Yes, it was a long strip) I inhale deeply and brace myself.... RRIIIPPP!!!!
I'm blind!!! Blinded from pain!!!!....OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!! Vision returning, I notice that I've only managed to pull off half the strip.
CRAP!!! Another deep breath and RRIIPP!! Everything is swirly and spotted. I think I may pass out...must stay conscious...Do I hear crashing drums??? Breathe, breathe...OK, back to normal.
I want to see my trophy - a wax covered strip, the one that has caused me so much pain, with my hairy pelt sticking to it. I want to revel in the glory that is my triumph over body hair. I hold up the strip!
There's no hair on it. Where is the hair??? WHERE IS THE WAX???
Slowly I ease my head down, foot still perched on the toilet. I see the hair. The hair that should be on the strip.
I touch.
I am touching wax.
CRAP! I run my fingers over the most sensitive part of my body, which is now covered in cold wax and matted hair.
Then I make the next BIG mistake...remember my foot is still propped up on the toilet? I know I need to do something. So I put my foot down.
DANG!!!!!!!! I hear the slamming of a cell door. *hoo-hoo*? Sealed shut!
Butt?? Sealed shut!
I penguin walk around the bathroom trying to figure out what to do and think to myself "Please don't let me get the urge to poop. My head may pop off!" What can I do to melt the wax? Hot water!! Hot water melts wax!!
I'll run the hottest water I can stand into the bathtub, get in, immerse the wax-covered bits and the wax should melt and I can gently wipe it off, right??? *WRONG!!!!!!!*
I get in the tub - the water is slightly hotter than that used to torture prisoners of war or sterilize surgical equipment - I sit.
Now, the only thing worse than having your nether regions glued together, is having them glued together and then glued to the bottom of the tub...in scalding hot water. Which, by the way, doesn't melt cold wax.
So, now I'm stuck to the bottom of the tub as though I had cement-epoxied myself to the porcelain!!
God bless the man who had convinced me a few months ago to have a phone put in the bathroom!!!!!
I call my friend, thinking surely she has waxed before and has some secret of how to get me undone. It's a very good conversation starter - "So, my butt and who-ha are glued together to the bottom of the tub!"
There is a slight pause. She doesn't know any secret tricks for removal but she does try to hide her laughter from me. She wants to know exactly where the wax is located, "Are we talking cheeks or who-ha?"
She's laughing out loud by now...I can hear her. I give her the rundown and she suggests I call the number on the side of the box. YEAH!!!!! Right!! I should be the joke of someone else's night.
While we go through various solutions. I resort to scraping the wax off with a razor. Nothing feels better then to have your girlie goodies covered in hot wax, glued shut, stuck to the tub in super hot water and then dry-shaving the sticky wax off!!
By now the brain is not working, dignity has taken a major hike and I'm pretty sure I'm going to need Post-Traumatic Stress counseling for this event. My friend is still talking with me when I finally see my saving grace... ....the lotion they give you to remove the excess wax. What do I really have to lose at this point? I rub some on and OH MY GOD!!!!!!!
The scream probably woke the neighbors and scared the dickens out of my friend. It's sooo painful, l but I really don't care. "IT WORKS!! It works!!" I get a hearty congratulation from my friend and she hangs up.
I successfully remove the remainder of the wax and then notice to my grief and despair....THE HAIR IS STILL THERE.......ALL OF IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!. So I recklessly shave it off. Heck, I'm numb by now. Nothing hurts. I could have amputated my own leg at this point.
Next week I'm going to try hair color...
You kids have a lovely evening ~ You know I will!!! 
May we never forget the sacrifices made for the freedoms we enjoy here in America....Home of the Free because of the BRAVE.
Trace Atkins - Arlington
Many prayers today for the family of Fallen Hero Pfc Joseph J. Anzack, one of our three MIA Soldiers.
May God protect and save the remaining two - Specialist Alex R. Jimenez and Pvt. Byron W. Fouty.
Nate's new toy:
I bet he wishes he had that much space in the garage all the time. He would...if he got rid of other toys *L* I'll have to get a pic of him on it...He's wayyyyyy cool 
People have asked me if I'm scared of him riding. To which I reply, God didn't bring him home alive from Iraq to have him die on a Harley. So...No, I am not scared. I'm happy to see him so happy.
Lots being done around Teriland this week. The new roof is going on the house. Went home today at noon to put Sadie in the house so the guy can mow the lawn this afternoon, and they had the garage roof done...it looks rather smashing. I picked Heather Blend, which is a dark brown and goes really well with the brick. Pics of the finished product when its....um...finished.
Doing some work on the pond garden as time and heat allow after work every night. It's slow going, with all the wild growth from last year, but I am beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel. It just feels so good to be able to work out there, I can't even tell you. I'm being careful of my back so we don't have a repeat of last year. I might even put a couple fish in the pond this year, even though no fish resulted in a clean, carefree pond all last summer. It just seems like there should be at least one fishie swimming around in there. I'm thinking on it.
Other planned projects around the homestead is painting all the exterior woodwork. A few years back I painted around my doors with a Colonial Blue which really looked nice...but I'm tired of it and it's not so Colonial anymore, so back to white I go. Plus the old garage door (big laughs here) My dad worked for BP in maintenance, so he was always bringing home paint and using it around the house. So the garage door is this silver reflecting ugly ass paint, with the garage being white siding. Can you say eyesore? As of yesterday, Nate & I have been in the house for 10 yrs. (Amazing how time flies!!!) and I've been looking at that door all this time...Well no more, I tell you, no more! It will be white, very shortly *L* My dad...gotta love him! I'll give you before & after pics....you'll agree it has to go *L*
No plans for the holiday weekend. I think I will work on the garden and meditate on what Memorial Day is supposed to be all about. I have about 3500 Fallen Heroes on my mind most of the time, nearly 600 of which I know by name...what better place to think of them than in the peaceful calm of the garden. I am just eternally thankful that I don't have a gravesite to visit. Thank you, God.
Did I tell you that I am planning a 50th Anniversary Party/Picnic for my parents? Ok, me & my sister are planning it. We spent $113 on M&M's. Can you believe that? My sister's idea *L* They go in the little favor tins...and they say Chuck & Janet on them. On all of them. Pretty cool really, but.....$113 on M&M's?? Geesh. The picnic will be at their place in PA and we've invited about....a lot of people...their whole church and all of our family...so...about 130 people *L* Of course we won't have that many (PLEASE!) but....it'll be fun. 
My niece is pregnant. The un-married 18 yr old niece, not the married 24 yr old one. ~sigh~ Oh well...between my sister & I we have 3 children whilst unmarried, so who are we to say anything. My first grand-niece/nephew. We have truly become my Mom & Aunts. Could be worse, we could have become someone elses Mom & Aunts *g*
Ok...Really have nothing else to share at the moment so....
You kids have a lovely evening ~ You know I will!!! (picking up cig butts out of my driveway, damn Roofers!)
(running through my head right now? The B.I.B.L.E. Yes that's the book for me. I stand alone on the word of God, The B.I.B.L.E!)
Ok, don't freak out when you see my footprints on your pages and the lame thoughtful comments that I made, I actually had a 1/2 hr that no one was claiming today 
So...not much happening around Teriland these days. I've been dedicating my weekends to cleaning up the flower beds and have made much progress. Totally done with the front & both sides of the house now, only thing left is the beds by the pond and the bed I am taking out. Partially out. One half has some plants growing very well and I am afraid to disturb them to move them to other areas. Two Astilbe's that Nate bought me over the years for Mothers Day...and an orange Azalea tree - the only Azalea that I have managed to grow and not kill. Probably because I planted it and then left it alone *L* Anyhow, I'll probably blend the bottom half of that garden into the pond garden...it will look smashing And of course, I will share pics with you all. Maybe even before & after pics, even though I am ashamed of the before *L*
So....what else...Oh yeah, I'm sure you all remember that I've been asking God to send me a man with a Harley and a pension plan. Well, he did. Kinda. I'm sitting at my desk Monday afternoon, look up to see a good looking man pulling up in front of my door, on a Harley. Yep, it was Nate. *L* (For any random reader, Nate is my son) I'm going to have to be more specific when I talk to God from now on, I have realized that he has a great sense of humor *g* Anyhow, yeah, Nate bought a Sportster 1200. He looks cool on it. I guess he doesn't think he worried me enough by going to Iraq. Oh well, he gets off that bike and grins like a kid in a candy store, so I can't complain about him being happy.
The good news is that suddenly I seem to been attracting men. The bad news is that they all seem to be married. What the hell is up with that? I want a husband, MINE, not someone elses. Holy Shit Sam.
Holy Shit Sam-----did I tell you where that came from? I don't remember. I love saying it though *L*
Ok...I gotta go get my nails done....Please pray hard for our Soldiers who were abducted this past weekend. I am so scared for them, knowing what those animals did to the last 2 Heroes they kidnapped, Kristian Menchaca and Thomas Tucker last June.
You kids enjoy your evening ~ you know I will
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