The Future

Do you ever sit and think about your future? 

If you are like me, it's hard to get past just a few days ahead, so thinking about funeral plans never happens.  I know it's a good idea to have your funeral planned out beforehand, if only to make it easier on those you leave behind.  Finding funeral insurance quotes is pretty simple, too.  It is probably a lot easier than trying to get insurance for seniors.  I mean, most insurance plans require a medical exam, and most seniors have a long list of ailments that may prevent them from getting coverage.  Of course, their are ways to get life insurance with no exam. 

For right now, though, I am going to continue living one day at a time, and worry about tomorrow when it gets here. Hopefully, there will be many more tomorrows, and I can worry about funeral expenses when I get a little older.

Thank You All

I can not express how much your kinds words about Junior's dad's passing mean to us.  It's been a rough week, but I think it's getting easier for him every day.  We are going to go to therapy every week (instead of every other week) for a little while, and hopefully that will help Junior work through some of his anger and pain.  Thankfully, his work has been extremely supportive, allowing him to take this entire week off.  He'll go back to work on Monday. 

I think one of he hardest things for him was that there was no funeral or memorial of any kind.  His brother and sister arranged for him to be cremated, and they are going to scatter his ashes at his favorite fishing hole.  We didn't even expect there to be an obituary in the paper, but yesterday there was a very small one.  I have been trying to keep Junior busy, so we went out to lunch, and I bought a newspaper, not expecting to find anything.  Of course, seeing it in black and white was hard for him, but it also confirmed it for him.  He was just saying yesterday morning how he didn't feel like it was real because he didn't see anything for himself.  Now that he has, I think it will be easier for him to move on.  Make sense?

Please continue to keep him in your prayers.  I know he will be just fine, in time.  He doesn't want to grieve for a man who was nothing but mean to him, but it's human nature.  He was still his dad. 

My FIL Passed Away

I have written and erased, rewritten and erased this post quite a few times this morning.  The words just don't want to come out right, and everything I try to write just sounds wrong.  If you have been a reader for a while, you know that my husband did not have the best relationship with his dad, and about two and a half years ago, we walked away and cut contact with him.  In fact, my husband decided to cut ties with his entire family. 

This did not mean that he stopped caring about these people.  They are his family.  It just meant he got to a point in his life where he needed to put himself around positive influences, not negative ones.  The news of his father's passing was not easy for him to hear.  No matter what happened in the past, this man was his father.  Now, there is no chance of ever reconciling.  He will never hear his dad tell him he loves him.  He will never hear his dad tell him he is proud of the man he has become.  And this breaks my heart. 

We will continue to go to therapy, and hopefully one day my sweet husband can move past this.  For now, we will take things day by day, and hopefully find a way for him to heal.

Stunned

Early this morning, I was watching the news like I do every day while the kids are getting showered and ready for school.  Our local news is big on "teasers", and I caught a blip about an upcoming story about an 82 year former sheriff who was found dead early this morning.  They showed the building where he was found, and I recognized it. 

Now, some of you who have been reading this blog for years may remember that I used to run a produce stand for Junior's former father-in-law.  It was nothing more than a bunch of tables set up under a tent in his side yard, but he had some pretty good business.  It wasn't in the best neighborhood, and I was always nervous when I was there alone.  Right across the street from where I sat was this garage, where an old man sat trying to sell cars and all kinds of other stuff,  I don't even know how to describe it other than, maybe, collectibles.  Most days, he would walk across the street and sit with me for awhile, talking about everything and anything that was on his mind.  It made me feel safe knowing he was right across the street when I was there alone.

This is the guy who was found dead, in that garage.  And they say it is "suspicious".  Apparently, when he didn't come home last night, his family called the cops, and they went to his garage and found him dead.  So sad.  He was the sweetest man, and I can not imagine why someone would kill him, except maybe to rob him.  But, the cops aren't giving out any details.  They are just asking the community to phone in tips.

I hope they catch whoever did this, and make him (or her) pay.

And Yet Again, I Cried

We all knew before this season of Deadliest Catch started that Captain Phil died. 

But we watch, week after week, waiting for the inevitable. 

I thought it was going to be last week.  Then I thought maybe this week.

I found out this afternoon that they are going to air the episode where he dies in two weeks, on July 13.

I know it's crazy, but last week and tonight, I cried during the entire episode.  I know I will continue to cry for the rest of the season.  It's not like I knew this man personally, but I do feel like he shared a big part of his life with not only me, but the millions of other people who watch this show.  It is hard to watch his sons deal with what is happening to their dad. 

I almost lost my dad to a brain aneurysm 16 years ago.  I know how hard it is to sit by and not be able to do anything but wait.  Thankfully, my dad recovered.  But maybe that is why I am so emotional watching this show.  I have been where Jake and Josh are. 

And it's not a good place to be. 

Goodbye, Captain Phil

I was very saddened to learn this morning that Capt. Phil Harris of the Cornelia Marie, from the show Deadliest Catch, has died. My heart goes out to his sons, Jake and Josh, and the rest of his family.

Goodbye Johnny Castle

To me, Patrick Swayze will always be Johnny Castle.

I know he did other things, like The Outsiders and Ghost, which were both amazing movies, but there is just something about Dirty Dancing. I can watch this movie over and over, and never get tired of it. In fact, some of it was filmed not too far from here, and when I first moved down here, I remember going and walking through the woods, finding all the spots from the movie.

It is so sad that he died so young, but at least he is no longer suffering.

Rest In Peace, Johnny Castle.

Too Much Death

First Ed. Then Farrah and Michael. And now Billy.

What is going on? They say death comes in threes, but that makes four.

Does that mean we should be waiting for two more?

This is just scary.

Bronze Plaques

I have a confession to make. I think I might have mentioned this before, but it is something that is becoming more and more popular where I live, and I find it disturbing. Someone, somewhere invented these glow in the dark crosses and angels that people can put on the graves of loved ones. Now, I have no problem with crosses and angels. They are both beautiful things. However, when it is night time, and I am driving by a cemetery, and all I see are glowing figures all over the graves, it's a little spooky. I mean, it seriously creeps me out.

I am not afraid of cemeteries at all, just the glowing. In fact, on many occasions, I have wandered around a cemetery while visiting a certain grave. I love finding the old graves, and reading about peoples lives. I hope when I die, Junior looks at Bronze Markers And Plaques, and finds something that I would love. They have many different bronze plaques and memorial plaques, and they have so many designs to choose from. In fact, while I was browsing the site, I found a pretty cool looking bronze grave marker that has a stream and fish on it, and I immediately thought of my husband. Is that weird? I guess it's a good thing to be prepared, right? This site has so many epitaph examples to look through, I guess I was bound to find something I liked. I think he would prefer a grave marker to a huge tombstone. We are all about the simple things, so why change that?

I was also reading about their commemorative and dedication plaques, and was impressed with all that they offer. For instance, if you want a garden memorial plaque that you are going to mount on a boulder, rock, or tree stump, they can make a fake boulder, rock, or tree stump for you, and have it delivered to your doorstep in a few weeks. It will also have the plaque mounted when they deliver it.

If you are thinking of having a plaque made for any reason, check out this site. There is no middle man, they cast your plaque themselves in their bronze foundry, which keeps their prices down. I am going to go pick out my own design, that way I can make things easier on my loved ones when the time comes.