Category: A Bit Of Randomness

This category is full of randomness that really doesn’t fit nicely into any of the categories having to do with my road to walking.

“SaQUAD” OR Tune #40 Inspired by GMFB

My Mom was over at my house on Sunday when I could catch the second half of the Lions game. Things were going pretty well but then I saw Saquon Barkley‘s run. He shed three guys for a first down. My Mom was in the kitchen but I called her to come see the replay because it was so amazing (Even though it was so not cool!).

I explained to my Mom about last year, the breakfast table naming him,”SaQUAD” because of this picture.

We scrolled through the images and also saw this one:

My Mom saw the pictures and asked me if he works on his legs. Well, YE-AH!!! I told Sean later in the day that she asked me that and then we both laughed.

I remember seeing him work out because he was injured a few weeks ago so they had footage of him working out on GMFB when I first saw the video, I wondered why he always wears spandex. Then, I thought about it more and those aren’t spandex! His quads are just HUGE!!!

So, GMFB had their #AngryRuns segment yesterday and I knew this run was going to be on it. What I didn’t know or expect was the unanimous vote!

I tweeted them after the segment was over:

I wanted to post about that segment yesterday but my Dad was on my mind pretty heavily! At the end of the segment, Kyle references Gnarls Barkley so, here you go:

Incoherent

Tomorrow is Sean’s birthday. We will celebrate with dinner on Sunday. I can’t stop thinking about the fact that I went into labor at about one or two in the morning just after Halloween. My Nom ended up driving me to the hospital because I was at her house when I realized that something was terribly wrong.. She told me to call the hospital I was set to give birth but when I did, they told me that I needed to go downtown to the main hospital because the place that I was supposed to give birth was not equipped with an NNICU in case my baby needed to be delivered.

I did just that and once I got to the hospital and was admitted, the doctor hooked me up to a prenatal monitor because since I had MS, I was a high-risk pregnancy.. I spent November 1st pretty much incoherent. A nurse came in periodically to check my vitals and she took one look at me and asked me if I knew where I was and what day it was. I told her that I was in the hospital and it wasHalloween. I said it was Halloween because that was when I declared that I could NOT carry this baby anymore!

The doctor came in to see me during rounds in the morning on the 2nd (Sean’s birthday). Because I have been in and out of sleep is I try recover from/deal with this rain and cold, I’m reminded of that day 18 years ago. It’s hard to believe that it really was 18 years ago now! I never thought that I would be as disabled as I am now but this is where I am.

Our Place

So, when I was growing up, my Dad used to take the entire family out to Red Lobster for dinner for special occasions. That was our place for birthday dinners. Red Lobster does not accept large party reservations. Since I started driving, it was my job and to go there, sit there after giving the hostess our name, and wait in the restaurant for everyone to get there. Sometimes I waited for over an hour.

My birthday is in March and it is most often during Lent. My birthday dinner always ended up having to beat Red Lobster. As Catholics, we aren’t supposed to eat meat on Fridays, hence Red Lobster. My immediate family was 12 back then. I would tell them as they slowly got to the restaurant that I would much rather have my birthday dinner at Wendy’s. It never happened.

We (my Mom, brothers, and me) as a family, haven’t really been there since the dinners we had with my dad. I take that back, my Mom, my brothers, their families, and me and Sean went with one of my Dad’s coworkers not too long after his funeral. Sean and I went there a few years ago for Mother’s Day.

My brother takes his family to a steakhouse. Now, I can’t afford steak at all! So, I guess my place is Red Robin. I like that place for my birthday so I asked Sean if that was OK with him for his birthday this year. He agreed. When my Dad first died, my Mom, Sean, and I went there often because we were so broken and neither my Mom nor I could muster up the strength to cook.

There is a Red Robin not too far away from my house and Sean and I used to go there when I could still drive. I always let him get a chocolate shake. For me, I am a huge fan of the guacamole burger! No onions and no tomatoes, medium.

Sean and I went to the Red Robin in Westland on Saturday for his birthday. I even got a chocolate shake with him for his birthday! I haven’t had one of those in so many years! The parking lot hand and extra large parking spot that we parked in. It was comfortable for me to get transferred into and out of my will chair. That never happens!

I told Sean that this is our place because it’s what I can afford. He did not mind at all! I made it a point to force myself to get out and eat in a restaurant in my manual chair because my baby does not turn 18 every day! It has taken me three days to recover from my outing for his birthday and I am not fully recovered yet.

The Little Mermaid LIVE

I saw on Facebook yesterday that this would be an ABC. The Little Mermaid is iconic to me! I think I saw in for the first time at the movie theater for a friend of mine‘s birthday party. Either way, my friends and I watched it over 1 million times when we were in grade school! We all sang along with the entire movie!

It had been so long since I last saw in because I had a little boy so I only watched little boy movies. When he was small, he would not let me watch The Little Mermaid!

As soon as it was on, I changed the channel to watch it. I was amazed that I still knew all of the words to the movie and to all of the songs! However, I think I prefer the cartoon version to the live version only because I have heard it the way for all of my childhood. I still had to watch the whole thing though!

I can no longer sing along with the movie as if I am Ariel because I no longer have the strength in my vocal cords and can’t use my chest to push the sound out.

I did not realize how much I loved the ending of the movie. In fact, I think I only love it so much because my Dad is gone now. I always called him, “Daddy.”

This scene really got to me and I cried. I was by myself watching it so it really didn’t matter.

Phase 1 = Complete.

I read an article not too long ago that stated that the longer you have your Christmas tree up, the happier you are. I am definitely a person who believes to NOT put your Christmas tree up until AFTER Thanksgiving! There has been one exception to that rule though. In 2006, the year that my Dad died, I put my Christmas tree up November 1st.

That’s right, I put my tree up BEFORR Sean‘s birthday. Because I was so broken that year, I needed time to get used to Christmas. Even though it was my first Christmas without my Dad, Sean was is only 5 and he needed a good Christmas to keep his mind off of our grief.

My Christmas tree is always a 6 phase process. I’m pretty particular and now my Mom puts my tree up because I can’t. She’s pretty particular as well; I get that from her.

With that article in her mind about being happier with the Christmas tree up, my Mom put mine up. Only phase 1 is complete and my Mom has left for the day.

So, even though it’s before Thanksgiving, I think I just need some happiness right about now and my Mom recognized that. I’m grateful for that and I can’t wait for the lights to go on the tree! (That’s phase 2)

Phase 2 = Complete.

So, I guess I am just breaking norms these days! Decorating after Thanksgiving is not really an option. I’m OK with that because I’m not doing it and I could definitely use some happiness right about now! Phase 2 is complete.

Sean brought the other Christmas boxes upstairs and I opened one and this took my breath away.

It is the Hallmark Keepsake ornament from 2006. 2006 was the only year that Sean and I completed making a gingerbread house. I say “Completed” loosely because Sean was five and I had divided all of the candy as we were putting the sides together with icing. Sean had put little bit of candy onto the house and then asked me if we could just stop and could just eat the rest of the candy. I let him do that. It was really cute having a half finished house!

We were still living in our second apartment then and that year, the plumbing backed up into the basement storage units. Raw sewage smells really bad! We spent a couple of nights at my Mom’s house until it was all fixed. I threw the gingerbread house out because I would not let Sean eat in because it was sitting out when our apartment smelled disgusting! He didn’t really understand back then but it was gross!

I had planned on getting that ornament when I saw it but that year was really rough for me! It was the first year that myDaad wasn’t with me! Last year, I scoured the Internet to try to find it and I was able to It did not come until the day after Christmas so I will unveil it this year. I actually Accidentally got two of them and I told Sean that once he has it tree of his own, I will give him one. As for all of my other ornaments, he will have to wait until I am dead to get them!

Ornaments are not until Phase 4 so I have some time before I get to put it on the tree. I’m not even sure where I will put it yet though.

Phase 3 = Complete.

As I sat in my living room like a lump, my Mom completed Phase 3. She has always been a morning person and as time goes on with this disease, I really can’t comprehend that! I was so out of it this morning that I couldn’t even turn on GMFB because the Lions lost yesterday and I couldn’t even bring myself to hear about it.

She busted those beads out this morning very quickly! I think phase 4 is my favorite but I don’t know that we will do that today. When I say, “We,” it’s really, “She.” She knows how much joy my Christmas tree brings me so that is what she is doing and I will take it!

Bad Day(s)

So, yesterday was a bad day! A really bad day! Now, I will accept fault for the snow in Southeast Michigan. It is no secret that I have been setting my Christmas tree up and watching Hallmark Christmas movies as I do so. Well, as my Mom did so! I will admit that it is my fault that it has snowed because I can feel the Christmas vibes exuding from my house! So, I guess that snow would be in order. For that, I am truly sorry! My Mom, however, does not believe that I am that important in the grand scheme of God and the cosmos!

On Monday, a nurse from the Henry Ford Health System called my Mom because she has been listed as my caregiver. This woman, Geraldine, called to ask how I was doing. She wanted to make sure I was OK with the weather and the snow. She told my Mom that she usually calls all patients with mobility issues/restrictions when the weather changes. I am now listed on the patient list having met with both the physical therapist and occupational therapist. My Mom assured her that I do NOT go outside in the snow and this year, I was forced to turn my heat up by 3°.

My Mom saw how badly I felt yesterday and it was a continuation of Monday’s snow. It continues today as well but my Mom got me a present to make me feel better.

I am wearing it right now! I was excited to put it on today after my Mom washed my hair because it will help to keep me warmer. I don’t even care that it will smash my clean hair down! So, I apologize for making it snow with my premature Christmas tree setting up but know that I am gearing up for some bad days coming!

Tweets to GMFB that I Haven’t Chronicled Here This Week: #1

I guess I am on a time delay because it is so cold I guess. I sent this tweet on Wednesday after watching The Long Show segment on GMFB in which Kay Adams hosts a game show complete with a Price is Right microphone. She asks the guys a question and they have as long as the play lasts in the previous week’s games to answer it. Sometimes it is the physical challenge and other times they just give a verbal answer.

Last Wednesday, Kay asked Peter to name all of the Georgia Bulldogs in the league. WELL, DUH! MATTHEW STAFFORD IS A BULLDOG!!! That is the reason that Sean got me a University of Georgia hoodie for my birthday last year and I have since bought myself a Georgia football T-shirt. I thought for sure that Peter would know that he is a bulldog. I think he named 10 players who went to the University of Georgia and he did NOT name Matthew Stafford! I was aghast! I tweeted him this:

I thought of this segment on GMFB because I had gotten an alert from the NFL app on my phone that my man, Matty is NOT playing this weekend. That fact really bummed me out! I hope he will end up being okay!!!