"Three Little Fishies"

Happy Halloween everyone!

I know, I know, Halloween is pretty much over for another year.  In fact as I start to write this, there are only 42 minutes of it left.  But I had an experience  tonight that I would bet large amounts of money,  no one else, anywhere, ever had.  And I want to tell you all about it.

As with all of my stories, there is a bit of background that I must tell before I get to tonight's events.  It all started on Halloween two years ago.  As usually happens the largest segment  trick or treaters starts out as soon as it gets dark, before dark are some of the very little kids who have no clue what is going on, sometimes even still being carried by mom or dad.  They are completely adorable and I love the look of utter confusion on their faces and their various efforts to say some semblance of  "trick or treat".  So cute, but so funny.

Once dark hits though, the kids begin to get older.  It's almost a chronological progression.  The later the time, the older the kids.  By about 7:30 or so we are getting the middle school and early high school kids, the 11 to 14 crowd.  Things begin to thin out as the younger kids are taken home with their overflowing pumpkins and bags.

So two years ago, at somewhere around 7:30 or so, the doorbell rang and a small group of girls who looked to be around 12 or 13 shouted out "Trick or Treat" as I opened the door.  They were a happy, giggling group of maybe 2 or 3 girls.  I cannot recall exactly how the conversation went, I think I made a comment about one of their costumes which had something to do with fish (she might have been some sort of aquarium or some such thing.)  Anyway, as frequently happens, it reminded me of a song, soI sang a couple of bars of "Three Little Fishies," a song my mom used to sing when I was a little girl.  Evidently the girls hadn't ever heard it and one of them asked me if I knew the whole song.  Well, of course, I did.  So I sang it and the girls laughed and loved it.  As I gave out the candy the girls were extremely polite; they thanked me for the candy AND for singing for them and they went on their way.  They were a nice group and I enjoyed talking to them, but there were more kids coming up the walk and it was time to move on.

Well, the next Halloween (which would have been last year), around the same time, the doorbell rang and on the porch stood a slightly larger group (maybe 5 or 6).  When I opened the door, one of them said, "Hi, do you remember that last year you sang for my friends and I??  Of course, I remembered.  She then said, "We brought a couple of our friends with us tonight.  Could you sing the Little Fishies song for them too?  They've never heard it either."  Well, that was a real surprise.  I couldn't imagine that these girls would have remembered something like that for a whole year.  So of course, I sang the song again for them, with all the verses I could remember.  Well, they laughed and applauded, and complimented my singing and they told me that they were part of the choir at their school.  We chatted a little, I gave them their candy, we waved goodbye and shaking my head with a little wonder, I turned to the next group.

Okay, fast forward to tonight.  You can probably guess what happened.  At about 7:30 again the doorbell, when I opened the door there was a group of at least 15 girls!  They were probably 14 and 15 by now.  The girl from the first year, smiled and said "Hi, Remember us??"  You sang for us before.  These are all the girls from our Vaudeville group from school.  Would you sing for us again, please?"   I couldn't believe it, but I said sure and asked if they wanted 3 Little Fishies again!  Several said, no, just sing whatever you want to!  So I sang  "Strong Woman Number" from a show called I'm Getting My Act Together and Taking it on the Road, written by Gretchen Cryer.  (I chose that because I was pretty sure I knew all the words!!)  They smiled and laughed through the whole things (it's a great song.)  They loved it!  When I finished they applauded enthusiastically, and smiled, and thanked me again!  While giving them the candy, one of girls who had been standing near the back wiggled her way through group to the front and she looked at me and with a little hesitance asked, "Were you on Broadway?"   I smiled at her and said, "Oh no, honey, I've never been on Broadway."  She smiled sweetly and said, "Well, you should have been!  You are really good."

Oh. My. Word.  I was blown away.   I'm no where near that good a singer, but to think this sweet girl thought I could have been just felt unbelievably good.  And to think that this group of girls comes back each year just to ask me to sing them a song....what a unbelievable compliment.  Even if they never come back, I will never, ever forget these lovely girls who are in the process of learning to love music just as much as I do.  I wish them all a future filled with the music they love and I hope that one day some of them will be called on to entertain another group of girls who value music even more than Halloween Candy!!

I am touched down to my soul!  Bless their dear sweet hearts!

"School Days"

Way back, a millennia or so ago, when I was in high school I did everything I could to avoid advanced math and advanced science classes.  As I may have mentioned a few hundred times, I'm not any good at math and I wasn't any good at it back then either!  I hated trying to understand anything to do with numbers.  Because I hated it, I did not even try very hard either.  (Shhhh, don't tell my mother!)  Somehow I managed to figure out that a lot of advanced science classes used a lot of advanced math. So why would I torture myself by taking calculus, or trig or chemistry, or physics?   All that was required for graduation in my high school was to take either a life science or a physical science, so I stuck with Biology.....no numbers!  In the math area I never had to take anything higher level than Solid Geometry (which was no snap, let me tell you!)  

Well anyway, I'm not sure if it was just the times, or that it was such a small town, or if I just blocked it out, but I don't recall ever hearing anything about a Science Fair or the like.  I certainly never did an individual major science project for any kind of competition or even NOT for any kind of competition.  That was just fine with me!  In fact, having to do something like that would have been my worst nightmare come true!

That was in high school, before that in Junior High (before Middle School was invented) and elementary school, math and science were much more basic and there were no Science Fairs there either.

But, oh my dears, times have changed!

I told you some months ago that M-t-G is in 6th grade this year and attending a Magnet Middle School with an advanced academic program for bright kids.  She is doing very well (for the most part "A"s).  She is even in an honors math class.  She loves math and does very well in it.  (She does not take after her Grammy in this regard!  Thank goodness!)  Each of her classes is challenging and for the first time she finds she has to work harder than she had to in grammar school.  This is a good thing, because she is finally being required to think and put some real effort into her classes.  Still she loves it (most of the time anyway.)

Last semester for her science class all the kids were required to undertake an individual project that they worked on all semester.  The assignment was to make a time-keeping device that would ring a bell consistently every 1-2 seconds (I think.)  They had to do everything themselves and could use only things from around the house.  They could spend no more than $10.  They had to keep a journal of their daily progress, then give an oral presentation of the plan, another presentation of the working device, and finally a written report outlining the whole project, the steps taken, the processes used, and give a demonstration of the working device.  Yikes!  

M-t-G elected to make a water clock!  (I didn't even know what a water clock was!)  It was made using a wooden wheel which turned on a spindle with little medicine cups attached all around the wheel to collect the water which was funneled from a 2 liter soda bottle through a tube, the water landed in the little cups which made the wheel turn.  It had 2 nails hammered into the wheel.  As the wheel turned the nails would, in theory, strike a small bell within the time constraints given.  

M-t-G had to research the project, choose the elements she would use, figure out how and where to place things, build it, make adjustments until it worked the way it was supposed to and document everything.  It was an enormous project for an 11 year old.  Even a bright one!  Parents were only to provide guidance and that is was T.A. and Ratchlet did.  M-t-G did everything herself.  It took every bit of time that was allowed and she encountered many challenges and problems along the way.  In fact, the first time she was to give a working demonstration, it did not meet the time interval requirement.  She then had 2 more days to try to fix it and to present it again.  She made some adjustments and when she went to present it for the class.....it worked!!  Because it didn't work the first time, she did not get an "A", but she got a B+ (I believe.)  And she learned a lot about perseverance and commitment, and water clocks!

She was close to despair a time or two along the way, but she kept at it until she got it right!  We were all very proud of her.  She had participated in Science Fairs when she was in grammar school but nothing of the same scope, originality, ingenuity, and creativity.  She worked hard and she made it come out right.  She made a working water clock at the age of 11 in the 6th grade.  May I just say WOW!  What a project and what an accomplishment!!  And most of all....what a kid!

I don't know about you, but I sure don't think "School Days" are what they used to be!

This semester they have to make a working musical instrument capable of making 8 tones that are tunable!   M-t-G has chosen to make a hammered dulcimer....


Oh my Lord!!

"We Are Family"

After spending most of the evening learning how to use our scanner correctly, I finally figured it out!!  And I am proud to share with you some of our family photos.  There isn't anything special about these photos or these people, except that "We Are Family".  I love them and I miss all who are gone.  But now, thanks to my lovely Little Sis,  I have lots of photos of  treasured faces and the wonderful memories they bring.  Here are just a few shots of random people at random times and random places.  I am happy to share them with you. 

(*They will enlarge if you click.)

My mom (mid-blink) and I in Phoenix in the late 1990s.

Little Sis and I around 1961.
She's a lot bigger now, but she's still just as cute!

My mom and dad, 1957

My dad always smiled for photos,
except this one!!  1957
(I wasn't much help either!)

Dad, Mom and I, 1953

My cousin Sherry and my Gram, 1952
(I'm not exactly sure who was teaching who!)

Me and my Gramps, 1950
(He never smiled in photos....except this one!) 

"Goomby" and Me, age 2, 1948

 

My Gram, two of my aunts, and me.
1947

One of my aunts' wedding, 1945
(from L to R:  my great-grandmother,
my grandfather -- see? No smile --
the happy couple, and my grandmother -- who always smiled!)

This lovely pin-up is my Mom, 1945
(There is writing on the back indicating that she sent the photo
to my dad overseas....and he brought it home all safe and sound!)

My mom, Lorraine C. Lisk, 1930
First Holy Communion

My grandfather, Norbert M. Lisk, Sr., 1921
(I think this is the oldest photo in the bunch.)

Yes, we are family and I love "seeing" them all again!!  I miss them every day!

I Will Survive!"

Just some memories for pondering.....and a break from Christmas for a little bit...Not my creation, and there was no indication who the author was.  Whoever it was, the author nailed it, dead center!  

To All Who Survived the 1930s, '40s, '50s, '60s and '70s!!

First, we survived

Being born to mothers who may have smoked and/or drank

While they were pregnant.

They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing,

tuna from a can, and didn't get tested for diabetes.

Then, after that trauma, we were put to sleep

On our tummies in baby cribs

Covered with bright colored

Lead-based paints.

We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles,

locks on doors or cabinets,

And, when we rode our bikes,

We had baseball caps, not helmets, on our heads.

As infants and children,

We would ride in cars with no car seats,

no booster seats, no seat belts,

No air bags, bald tires and sometimes no brakes..

Riding in the back of a pick- up truck on a warm day

was always a special treat.

We drank water

From the garden hose and not from a bottle.

We shared one soft drink with four friends,

from one bottle,

and no one actually died from this.

We ate cupcakes,

White bread, real butter, and bacon.

We drank Kool-Aid made with real white sugar.

And we weren't overweight.

WHY?

Because we were

Always outside playing...that's why!

We would leave home in the morning and play all day,

as long as we were back when the streetlights came on.

No one was able to reach us all day.

-- And, we were OKAY.

We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps

And then ride them down the hill,

Only to find out we forgot the brakes.

After running into the bushes a few times,

we learned to solve the problem..

We did not have Play Stations, Nintendos and X-boxes.

There were no video games,

No 150 channels on cable,

No video movies

Or DVDs,

No surround-sound or CDs,

No cell phones,

No personal computers,

No Internet and no chat rooms.

WE HAD FRIENDS

And we went outside and found them!

We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth,

And there were no lawsuits from those accidents.

We would get spankings with wooden spoons,

Switches, ping-pong paddles, or just a bare hand,

And no one would call child services to report abuse.

We ate worms, and mud pies made from dirt,

And the worms did not live in us forever.

We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays,

22 rifles for our 12th,

rode horses,made up games with sticks and tennis balls, and

- although we were told it would happen -

we did not put out very many eyes.

We rode bikes

Or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell

Or just walked in and talked to them.

Little League had tryouts

And not everyone made the team.

Those who didn't had to learn to

Deal with disappointment.

Imagine that!!

The idea of a parent bailing us out

If we broke the law was unheard of.

They actually sided with the law!

These generations have

Produced some of the best risk-takers,

Problem solvers, and inventors ever.

The past 50 to 85 years have seen an explosion

of innovation and new ideas..

We had freedom,

Failure, success and responsibility,

and we learned how to deal with it all.

If YOU are one of those born

Between 1925-1970

CONGRATULATIONS!

You might want to share this with others

Who have had the luck to grow up as kids

Before the lawyers and the government

Regulated so much of our lives

For our own good.

While you are at it, forward it to your kids,

So they will know how brave and lucky their parents were.

Kind of makes you want to run through the house

with scissors, doesn't it ?

-- Author Unknown

Silent Sunday

I'm trying something new for me -- Silent Sunday.  Obviously I'm not supposed to say anything, Just let the photo tell the story.  So  for the very first time in the history of the my world, I will now shut up!



http://www.mochabeaniemummy.com/silent-sunday/

"Sounds of Silence"

Even if you don't have any children, you probably noticed new school supplies in the stores for the last couple of months.  Yep, according to most school districts, summer ends sometime between August 15 and September 6,  when it's back to school.  Parents of school age kids trot off to Wal-Mart or Target or wherever, list in hand, to pick up the paper, glue sticks, rulers, protractors (do they still use protractors??  Do you even remember what a protractor looks like???  Or what you do with one??), notebooks, pencils, markers, erasers, and so on for the little darlings.  Oh, and don't forget a new pencil box!

I used to love helping Ratchlet get her supplies together.  It was fun to see all the new colors and designs and gadgets that come out each year.  Picking out a new lunch box (they never last more than one school year!) and new school clothes (even if it's just the school uniform in a larger size!),  all of it was fun, but then I only had one child.  I don't know how multiple-child families do it!  Just the logistics of doubling or tripling (or more) all those things and keeping it all straight so that Susie and her brother don't get their stuff mixed up (oh Heaven forbid!....."Mo-ooom! Make Susie get her cooties off of my new Darth Vader lunch box!!!")....I shudder to think!

Every year kids get older and the supplies get more complicated and more expensive!  No more lunch box, now it's calculators and laptops.  The sneakers they "must" have cost more than all the stuff from previous years put together!  Oh my, the mind reels!

It's a ritual and process that every family with kids goes through for a whole lot of years!!  A huge chunk of their lives is spent in school....from pre-school to kindergarten to grammar, middle, and high schools, then some go on to college (where it gets REALLY expensive....start saving the day you find out you are pregnant!  Trust me on this!).  Let me reiterate, every year costs more than the year before....pre-school crayons are cheap....college textbooks are NOT!
You will learn that EVERYONE applies for financial aid for college.  There is no shame in applying!  I've even heard that some people actually GET money!  Not us you understand, but some people.  Did I mention that it gets REALLY expensive??!

Of course, then if your kids make it through those four years and aren't totally sick of school, they could even choose to pursue a Master's degree and then.... (oh help!).....a Doctorate!!  We won't even mention Dental, Medical, or Law School!!  If your child chooses that route it's time to take out that 2nd mortgage because you will have used up all your money paying for college and grad school!

Now if you have raised your kids right, (meaning they understand that you are NOT Fort Knox), somewhere along the way they will take on at least partial responsibility for their education costs and will get a job AND apply for loans (which they will then pay off for the rest of their lives!).

Once you get to that point the end is in sight.  Usually by the time they are in their mid-to late twenties their school days are over and the financial drain on the Bank of Mom and Dad dwindles to a halt!  They are educated and on their way! They have an actual job, with an actual salary!!  And mom and dad can suddenly afford to buy steaks again!  Oh happy day!

Whether there is one child or six children, eventually the family reaches the point when all their kids are....dare I say it??....grown up. They have moved on.  They have moved out.  When the last one takes that very last box filled with whatever has been hiding in the back of his closet for the last 20 years, the house will echo every sound, the house suddenly loses its color and verve! Mostly what you hear are " The Sounds of Silence" 

You worry, you cry, will he really be able to take care of himself by himself?  He can't even find the clothes hamper most of the time!  Mom will decide to make one last sweep to make sure nothing was forgotten. "Oh,look, he forgot a sock!!  Well, I'll just drive to Denver from Miami to get his favorite sock back to him!! I can check on him and make sure he's all right, but it won't seem like I'm hovering exactly, 'cause he's gonna want that sock...Right???"  Yeah, right.

 After you've gotten past those first few weeks of empty nest, it won't take long before you turn his room into a crafts room, and you're looking at brochures for getaway weekends....or CRUISES! Then at some point he'll come back for an extended visit, and oh my word, you'll wonder how you ever lived with the noise!!

It's a long and winding road, getting those kids educated, raised to be responsible and functional adults. But the pay-off is worth every penny, every headache, every worry. Courage, my dears, you will survive, as will they. 

And looking back, you will be proud!