Celebrate Freedom

Eagle of Freedom

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/eagle-of-freedom/

Well, the next big holiday for us in the USA is Independence Day, so thought I would update my blog to celebrate our freedom. It is too bad all the countries can't celebrate freedom. It seems to me that the world is in more turmoil now than ever. People seem to want to push their beliefs and standards on others. Everyone should be allowed to choose what they want to believe in and have the freedom to do what they want. I am not going to push my beliefs on anyone, so don't worry.

Eagle of Freedom Wallpaper

http://animals.desktopnexus.com/wallpaper/690709/ 

Have a good week. Be back soon.

Happy Fathers Day

Time to wish our Dad's a Happy Father's Day. I had the time today to write so thought I would tell you a bit about my Dad. 
   
He was an outdoor guy, hunted, fished, farmed, logged, worked in a ship yard, rode dirt bikes, road bikes, camped and loved his family. He could fix anything and make anything. He built tractors, etc.

 He wasn't a huggy type of guy because he wasn't raised that way. He never told me he loved me but I never doubted it for one minute.

I was the oldest child and worshipped him. I remember him playing cowboys and indians with me and my brother when we were little. 

He smoked from the time he was 15. It was a curse he fought his whole life. And in the end, partially why he died. He did quit toward the end but then took up cigars! 

I always wanted my Dad to be proud of me and I worked at it. My husband and I, Dad, my brother, our sons, and a bunch of different friends would go dirt biking at Gold Bar, WA a lot on Sundays. I remember when my Mom told me that Dad said I was a really good dirt biker! I think that was one of the proudest moments of my life. Isn't that silly, but it was?

Towards the end of Dad's life he had a lot of health problems. He had open heart surgery and while he was in the hospital with that, they had to do an emergency prostate surgery. A few years after that he had a spot on his lungs which they watched but when it started to get bigger they operated on him to remove it. They thought they got it all, but Dad just couldn't stand not feeling well and never got back to normal. One morning in February, 1999 our phone rang around 5:00 or so in the morning. My husband always answers the phone if it rings in the night or early morning because it is usually something not good. I could tell by the way he talked something was bad and I figured it was Dad. It was the Marysville police saying my Dad had committed suicide. My poor Mom, I have tears in my eyes now, remembering it. She had loved my Dad since she was in high school and they had been married 62 years. We were half way to Marysville when my husband told me that Dad wasn't dead but wasn't expected to make it. He had shot himself with 2 guns and one had misfired. We went to Mom's to pick her up and she was very calm, but totally rattled. She was trying to find Dad's paperwork regarding end of life and had papers all over the floor. We got her to the hospital and waited and waited. A surgeon came in and said they would try to operate and save him, but he would be blind, etc. My Mom and I both jumped up and told him "No!", my Dad would never have done what he did if he had wanted to live. With 2 guns! My God, he wanted to make sure he didn't make it! 

Anyway, they did what they could to make him comfortable and we kept going in to see him. We knew it wasn't going to be long because his oxygen level kept going down. Close to the end and the last time I went in, I kissed him, told him I loved him, I understood why he did it and forgave him. It wasn't long after that he got what he wanted. His pain had ended. And ours began. 

Mom did really well for 3 years. She kept their place up and had a big lawn to mow, plus her garden, sewing and crafts. I remember her telling me one day she was mowing, and she got really mad at Dad. She looked up at the sky and yelled, "Dammit, you are supposed to be here doing this!" That was the anger part of grief we go through when we lose someone.

I still miss my Dad. I know my husband misses him. They were really close. When we were dating sometimes we never got out on the date because he and Dad would sit and talk! They went on hunting trips together for years. 

Happy Fathers Day, Dad. I love you and miss you. Take care of Mom. I know you are together.

Checking in!

Patriotic USA

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/patriotic-usa/ 

I hope everyone is having a great summer. Can you believe that the 4th of July will be here in less than a month? I can't. The only good thing about it is that it is closer until The Sons of Anarchy DVD comes out in August! 

I have been working away, making way too many designs, more than I can even submit.

I have gotten some really nice emails lately. One was from Steph. She told me that I had inspired her to go back to school for graphic arts. That made me feel like the hours I put in is actually worth something! I don't make any money doing this but if I can inspire at least one person to continue schooling it is doing some good at least. Another gal told me that my designs made her daily work on the computer much more enjoyable so that is a good thing, too!

One lady, Steph read my last post regarding the Stacy Martian that has been using my designs to make Facebook Covers sent me the link where all of this person's "designs" are. I can't believe that this website has absolutely no way to contact their site. I have searched and searched and found nothing. Plus I have no way of contacting her since I don't do FB. I do not want to be on FB since I think it just causes a lot of problems. My sister and sister-in-law want me to join so we can keep in touch. I will keep in touch with email! 

Speaking of my sister, I just got an email from her and she was out walking her little dog and three big dogs attacked her and her dog. They tried to tear her poor little doggie in half, so he had go have surgery, but will hopefully be all right. My sister got bit on her neck/shoulder and leg. She was talking on the phone to her husband at the time so he heard the whole thing! I can't imagine what he must have been thinking. It is over now and hopefully the 3 big dogs will be held accountable. Personally I am not fond of big dogs. 

Well, I am going to get out and enjoy the sunshine for a bit and have my coffee.

Hope all is well with everyone. Have a great Father's Day. I may get on later this week.

Piercing Ears

I just took my earings out to clean and got to thinking back to when I pierced them. We lived on the farm in Iowa that was on a dirt road that I previously talked about. I was 12 years old and my cousin had just gotten her ears pierced. I thought it was the coolest thing in the world but my folks said I couldn't get mine pierced. So, wanting something badly enough I decided to do it myself. I got a cork, some alchohol, matches and a good sized sewing needle, I went upstairs to my room and commenced to pierce my ears. I dabbed the ear with alchohol, dipped the needle in it, heated up the needle, put the cork behind my ear and pierced the left one first. Everything went really well. It didn't hurt too bad and I got the earring in easily. I didn't have a post earring so put in one I could change the dangle on! The right ear was a little more difficult and I couldn't get the earring in. I worked on it for a long time and finally decided I had to go downstairs and let my parents know what I had done. At first they were a little angry but my Dad stepped up and said he would try to get the earring in for me. By then my ear was pretty darn sore but I bit my lip and let him put the earring in! I was so proud! 

Well, when I went so school all the girls thought it was pretty cool and wanted theirs pierced. So, I started taking my cork, alchohol, matches and needle to school and I charged 1 pair of earrings for every girl's ears I pierced! (Back then earrings were like .29¢ at the dime stores) I don't know how many I did before we moved and never got in trouble with parents or school officials. Can you imagine any one doing that now? I would probably be hauled off to jail or juvie! 

We moved to WA when I was 16 and no one had their ears pierced out here. I did my sisters, sister-in-law's and a few women's later because by then it was beginning to be popular. And I pierced our daughter's when she was old enough and wanted them pierced.

It is funny how times have changed!

Just thinking!