Symphonies for Us

We all need to experience new things, or even old things that we have not experienced in many years that gave us joy. As adults, we need to have fun, enjoy life even in tough times, especially in tough times.  Friday my father and I went on a Father-daughter date to the symphony.  He loves classical music, and one of his favorites was playing.  I had never been to the symphony and looked very much forward to the first experience.

I love the fact that I will be able to say that the first time going to the symphony was with my Dad.  He was very excited, as was I.  We left in plenty of time for traffic (which for Atlanta is at least an hour with some extra padding).  Upon arrival we noticed quite a crowd.  Each part of the art center had functions, and Atlanta loves the arts.  We were seated in the main orchestra section close enough to see everything.  We even met a very nice lady who gave us tips on the best places to sit depending on what we wanted to see the most.

And then the music started.  Wow.  As many live music shows as I have been to, I have to say that there is nothing like the symphony.  To not only hear the music, but to see and notice the nuances as the instruments are played is amazing.  You are carried away by the violins, then the cellos…then you notice that the flutes are being played, when you had not noticed their subtle under tones before…and a whole new world is opened in that piece of music.

We were both lost in the music while the orchestra played, both fascinated by the way the conductor led the members, and both carried away to another place and time.  Wonderful memories.  And no doubt there will be more symphonies for us, as looked online to see what our next musical adventure.

 

This Father’s Day

I wrote this about my Dad several years ago. It describes how I see him and the man he is. Every Father’s Day I post it on several sights. It’s a few days late this year, things were busy and I did not make it to the computer to post.

He is doing much better now, My father. He is feeling good, more energy than he has had a quite a while, and is in very good spirits. He was s out working quite a bit this weekend, enjoying being with his family, laughing, kissing Mom and the cheek, saying those funny one liners with his incredible dry sense of humor. So here is my Father’s Day tribute to my Dad:

My Dad is like one of those men from the old movies.  The hero.  A man of few words rides into town, stands up for what he believes in, and touches everyone around him.

He leads by example:  Loyalty, honesty and spirituality.  Always keep your word.  Hold family close and God Closer.

My Dad has worked very hard to make a business and a reputation many would envy.  He’s worked hard to give his family the kind of life and opportunities where we would want for nothing.  He has integrity and honor, and those are not easy qualities to find these days.

He has been a wonderful example of a man, a father and a human being.  From quietly asking mom about our dates to sharing boiled peanuts and beer, to watching thunderstorms and lighting with us.

He has taught me so many things about life, just by example.  And he is the best father a girl could ever hope to have. I have so many wonderful memories of him growing up, and as an adult.  Like him, try to read fairy tails to me and mispronouncing the names – like “Ra-pun-zel”, or reciting the bedtime story of “Once upon a time, a deer drank wine…”

Then the is “Piddles Jumping Spunker” and Chief Beer Fetcher in Charge (CBFC), can’t forget being the Cowstail, or all the lessons on the bottom shelf.

He taught me how to change the oil in my car, how to rotate my own tires, change the break pads and calipers, check the spark plugs (when cars actually had spark plugs). I remember going out to dinner with him, and how he opened my doors for me, pulled out my chair, found out what I wanted to eat and ordered for me. Always wanting to make sure that I was happy.

I will always love his voice, his hands, the way he smells and his little smile. Yes, I will always love my Daddy. The first man to make me feel safe and secure, the man who has always been the example of how a man should treat a woman, and how I should expect a man to treat me.

And he gave me the best Christmas present I have ever been given. One he hand made a wonderful case for my Barbie Dolls, complete with a little mirror for them, a place to hang all their little clothes, and he even hand made these little wire hangers for all their clothes to hang. I still have it and it is one of my most cherished possessions.

For these and so many reasons, too many to list, I am proud to call Jim Burch my Dad.  If I could have looked out and chosen who my father would be, I would have chosen you.

Love you Dad.  Happy Father’s Day.

Storms With My Dad

When I was a child, my father and I would sit outside during storms and watch the lightning. We always had covered back or front porches, always lived in the country, so you could see the sky for miles. And we would sit out there, sometimes for an hour or more, and watch the lightning dance across the sky. The air would crackle with the electricity of the storms and I would be thrilled to see the beauty play out before my eyes.

Maybe that is from where my life of storms comes, or my desire to capture lightning on film. Because it’s like capturing those memories, as I think of my father every time I see lightning in a storm. And I remember feeling so very special as we sat and watched, my father and I.

It’s these wonderful precious memories I have of my Dad that often make me smile.  I have always been a Daddy’s Girl, and will always be. While my Dad is sick and recovering, it is these memories that somewhat ease the pain I feel.

Never underestimate the  memories someone may have of you. Sometimes the simplest of things will be the best of memories for those you love and who love you. And When I pray at night, for his quick recovery from this last chemo treatment, so many memories come to mind. Indeed, I am a lucky girl.

My Dad, a good storm and two chairs. Yes, that’s the good stuff.

And I am lucky enough to have found a man that my father respects.  That means the world to me. And to my  heart.

 

Photo Albums

Digital camera’s and photos are all the rage, but I am a bit old fashioned. I love the old photo albums with pictures actually taken on film. I was going through some of my old albums tonight, walking down memory lane, thinking of the people, places  and adventures in my life. It has been very full. Here are a few memories taken from those books. Enjoy.

Smiling on Bear mountain

Me Swimming in a Puerto Rican Waterfall

A house in Puerto Rico

All of us girls getting ready for a Suave Shampoo Commercial. So fun!

The family Christmas Stockings

Us girls in Aruba

My bff and I in Aruba

Us girls in NYC

Old Picutre, Great Memories

A friend sent me these OLD pictures…dating back to High school to about 5 years ago. Hysterical!

The Gang posing. age 19

What was I thinking with all those bangs?? Age 15

Again, whats up with those bangs? Age 16.

Homecoming. Age 17

THe Gang again. Age 19

Yeah, I thought I was a model, Haha! Age 14

Promo radio shot with my then morning partner. Age 27

In NYC. Age 30

Very tired girl. Age 16

Junior in high school. Wow, was my hair really that long?

On the beach with my BFF

Halloween 1992, age 19

Me back in my radio days. Age 29

The famous “ass shot” taken when modeling in NYC

Kiss me…again, what’s up with the hair?

Short hair, Age 34

Long hair again, Age 33

Me and Mom, the pick ladies, Age 33

Sitcom Moment #37…Oh Christmas Tree

Written a few years ago and thought I would share. Enjoy!

This year I could not wait to put up my Christmas tree, so last night I broke out the new artificial one (the cat peed on the one last year, so had to throw it away).  As I weaved the lights in and out of the limbs on the tree, my heart filling with the joy and excitement that only the season can provide, I noticed the light strand was a bit tangled.

Now, if you find yourself in this situation, please, unplug the lights before untangling.  I did not do this and found myself temporarily blinded when finished and looked back up at the tree.  Well, in the true spirit of a Pinktank (my nickname), I tripped over where the lights were plugged into the wall – falling, blindly, flailing, into the Christmas tree.

As the tree and I not so gracefully fell to the floor, I could hear “Chestnuts Roasting…” playing in the background.  When the fall had been completed, I was tangled in a combination of lights, light chords and Christmas tree limbs.  Surely anyone watching would have died laughing, as I clumsily tried to stand up, still attached to the tree; it jerking and moving in ways that are completely unnatural for an artificial tree, and I spitting out plastic needles.  The cats had run into the corner, shaking in fear that this Christmas tree monster might come and eat them (maybe this will be enough to keep them out of it).

I did finish decorating the tree and no ornaments were harmed…can’t say the same for the tree. It is now a little lopsided and leans a bit to the left.

Maybe Santa will put some Grace in my stocking…

The Dental Floss Net of Doom and Other Tales of Having a Big Sister

When you have siblings, you often have adventure and funny stories. My older sister and I definitely had that. Growing up with my sis was…very interesting. Actually I loved it. She is four years older than I, which meant growing up, she was always light years ahead of me in intellect, maturity and education. This made me idealize her. She was the smartest person in the world (except for Mom, but nothing can beat Mom-sense). But we fought, all the time and then we made up.

And we were pranksters. All the time. I remember opening my bedroom door only to have a bucket full of water fall on my head. Yes, just like it does on TV…only the water was much colder than it looks on TV.  When Mom banned buckets of water from being strung up above a persons door, she went to putting buckets of confetti.

Then there was the Zip-Line Tree Incident. My sister and I were tom boys and always climbing trees, they couldn’t keep us out of them. So my parents gave up the fight and just started giving us things to make tree climbing more fun. I love my parents!  Mom and Dad had gotten us one of those zip line things to put up around the trees in our yard. Well, it was time to try these new zip line things. After I started zipping on the first one, I yelled out to my sister…”How do I stop?”  She yelled back, “Don’t worry about it, you’ll stop when you hit the tree.”  Yes, I did.

Then there was the infamous Bathroom prank that went terrible amuck. My sister, being brilliant, patient and particular, took the time to make a net. Out of dental floss. And rigged it to fall on some unsuspecting person(me) who came in the bathroom. But this wasn’t just any net, no, that would not be good enough for my over achieving big sis. Sis can hand tat lace, seriously. So this was not your every day, run of the mill, your sister makes a net out of dental floss net. No.This was the Dental Floss Net of Doom(!)….it was huge and it was the kind that only got tighter the more you struggled with it, until you were one big knot of dental floss. I imagine it is similar to getting caught in a spider’s web.  It was brilliant. Unfortunately, it was my mother who was caught in that net of deadly dental floss. I say deadly because Mom swore she was going to kill my sister once she got out of it. But that took a bit of time.

Yes, growing up with Big Sis was an adventure…though I am not sure if it was more of an adventure for me or my parents. Either way, there are many stories and much laughter.

Keeping Keepsakes and Being Sentimental

http://talinorfali.wordpress.com/2011/12/11/i-am-a-very-sentimental-person-i-like-to-keep-my-memories/

There are those things we must keep, those little things that remind us, make us smile, make us remember, maybe even makes us cry just a little. And they do because they means something. They are not just things, they are attached to a specific time, a specific place, sometimes even, most of the time, specific people. And we keep these things around us, and we find it hard to throw them away. Yes, I am a keeper. And I mean that in more ways than one! Or a packrat, others have said. But I am a sentimental person, and I love the idea of keeping these things that mark certain times instances and events that have meant something in my life.

First and foremost, I keep all of my handwritten journals.  I have written in a journal since I was 10, that is almost 30 years worth of handwriting, events, loves, loss, feelings, and adventures. My life. And as I go back and read those journals, sometimes, happy, sometimes sad, sometimes embarrassed, sometimes proud, it is all in familiar handwriting on those pages.

Looking in the boxes of keepsakes there are also so many pictures, of family, friends, places, things, and myself. All these wonderful memories that i could never get rid of, and why would i even want to? There are also old notes, letters and poems.  I still have every love letter my first boyfriend ever wrote me. He would be the man I would later move in with and plan to marry almost 13 years later. I still have all of those letters too. I have poems that my loves have written me and even a notebook one wonderful fellow wrote me over a trip across the country and gave to me later. Poems from long ago loves that still make me smile today.

And if I want to revisit high school, I still have many of the old notes my friends and I wrote back and forth to each other. Oh who I laugh when I read them now. Who so-and -so had a crush on, what another person said in the hallway, and who we heard and another someone kissed behind the school.  Yes, those were the days of innocence, yet every little thing seemed to make our world stand still.

And all the little nick-knacks and items from my travel. And part of the fun of travel and picking up these things are learning the kinds of things that you will actually keep. I have learned that I do not keep up with post cards of pretty places as well as I do a framed picture or piece of jewelry. So now I pick up things for me to wear or hang in my house. Or Christmas Ornaments. I love to hang something I picked up from some far away place on my tree.

Whatever those items are, what they reflect is a wonderful life, well lived and well-loved. The good, the bad and the ugly have all played a part in getting me where I am today and molding into who I am. And I feel as if I must always remember the construction of me, and how it is always changing, always being molded into something new, because I am always learning. As long as you are living your life in a way that you are always curious and thus always learning then you are really truly living. And that is why I keep all these things. They are the keepsakes that remind me I have lived a good life, worth being sentimental about. It is these memories that keep me inspired to always do better, reach farther and become more every day.

Every Moment a Memory

It is summer, a time to roll down the windows, turn up the radio, put a sundress on and head for the nearest spot for sun and fun. It is a happy time of year, with lots to do, places to go and people to see. Screen on the green, Beerfests, street festivals, Thursdays in the Gardens, my wonderful vacation sailing in the ocean…all have summer written all over them. I have the feeling that this summer is going to be one for the history books.

And because of this I am also acutely aware that come fall, things will never be the same. The summers will never be the same. I find myself wanting to soak up everything, ever conversation with him, every glass of wine with friends, every bit of laughter, every look, every moment. I want to take a picture of it in my mind and preserve it in my heart. Because I will never be this place again, here, in this ,in this lifetime.

I want to keep all those thing precious to me very close this summer as I enjoy everything the season has to offer.  I will take pictures, I will stay up too late, I will laugh too loud, I will celebrate my life. And I will make every moment of this summer a memory to last a lifetime.