Good bye Cari

I'm sorry to say Cari has passed away. Please keep her family in your thoughts and prayers.

Ketchup

So many of you keep blogging quite consistently, and I am impressed. I don't know if I ran out of things to say or if I'm lazy. To be honest, it's probably the latter. Also, my life is kind of dull which isn't a bad thing. I handle dull much better than strife.

The kids started school just over a month ago. I had planned on doing homeschooling. What changed my mind was observing my son in his kindergarten class at the end of the school year. He was doing great. I'm sure the charter homeschool thought I was a dingbat since we had already signed up with them and tested the kids. It might be something I will revisit, but we are content for now.

I told myself I would not volunteer as much this year as I did last year. Last year I volunteered for three hours a week. This year I am up to four. It's not really a lot, but I find all that housecleaning I had imagined getting done isn't happening. This could have something to do with the fact that I hate housework. If I could do it, and have it look clean for more than forty-five minutes, it might not be as depressing. As it stands though, freshly mopped floors are completely sticky by the next day.

I mentioned a few posts ago that I was going to visit my Grandma. It was a great visit. My mother wanted to do something fun so she suggested the casino. My sister and I hate the casino. If I spend twenty dollars I'm done. Twenty dollars is enough to eat at Subway at least three times. Throwing it in a slot machine that sucks it up in five minutes flat gives me a whole lot less pleasure than snarfing down a veggie delight.

As you can imagine, I'm great fun to take to a casino, especially if you're on a machine that is winning and I'm ready to goooooooo.

We settled for bingo. That way we could gamble, all be done at the same time AND visit, or so I thought. We ended up sitting near a couple of senior ladies. They were regular bingo players who played all week long and bingo was SERIOUS BUSINESS.

I can't remember what our first conversation was about, but they grumbled at each other about our noise. Since they hadn't addressed us directly, we ignored them. One of them then said, "I can't hear the caller!" They were both looking straight at the caller. Also when the numbers are called, they display on a TV monitor. Then they are shown on a board behind the TV monitor. I'm nearsighted and didn't have on glasses and I could see the numbers.

We truly weren't trying to be rude, but I hadn't seen my family in forever and my sister was catching up and making me laugh in the process.

The next conversation was between my mother in law and my mother. They were discussing underwear. This was during a break between games so it shouldn't have been an issue. The lady's face reflected her irritation anyway. It's not like they were talking about crotchless panties, but I guess underwear is one of those "vulgar" things that shouldn't be discussed in public.

The third conversation, and apparently the last straw, was when my sister talked about cleaning out my mother's refrigerator. My mother's refrigerator is legendary for being packed full of all sorts of food stuffs. My mother is legendary for not wanting any of it thrown out. "Why that yogurt is perfectly good. I haven't opened it yet."

The lady yelled, "EXCUSE ME. MY FRIEND JUST MISSED A BINGO!" Actually her friend missed a NUMBER, the same number which was displayed on two screens that they were looking straight at.

So I settled for passing notes to my sister high school style with witty sayings on them such as, "Bingo or Bitcho?"

So now we know. You are not supposed to talk during Bingo. It wasn't in the rules anywhere, but I did google when I got home and it is one of those "unwritten" rules. Where the hell is the fun in that? We promise to keep our uncouth selves out of all bingo parlors from now on. I'm sure bingo players everywhere will thank us.

The only other thing of import I can think of is the female kitten has gone in heat a week before her spay appointment. I made the appointment in August. They were that booked out. The only thing grosser than two cats trying to get it on all over the house, is two cats who are siblings trying to get it on all over the house. Yick!

Cari

I want to tell all of you about Cari, an amazing person.

Cari is a fellow blogger I met by accident. I was new to blogging and hitting the next blog button when I stumbled on her blog. The first thing I noticed was the beautiful pictures of her children. The second thing I noticed was how much she loved her children. I commented on her blog. She was kind enough to comment on mine and that's how we met.

What I have always loved about Cari's blog is the obvious joy she takes from her family. She is so proud of her children and appreciative of her husband and parents and is happy to let everyone know. She has a gift of living in the now and savoring life. That has always shone through.

Cari is in her early thirties and she is a runner, the last person you would think would get diagnosed with breast cancer, but she was.

She shared every step of her breast cancer fight, the chemo, the fatigue, the radiation, the mastectomy, even posting pictures of her shaved head. Her humor and her faith in God came through with every post.

When it was time for the breast cancer fight to be over, she still didn't feel right and that was when brain cancer was discovered. Again, she shared every step of the battle. Despite being busy with chemo and surgeries, she took time to reach out to my sister, who had recently been diagnosed with breast cancer. Cari is that kind of person.

Sadly, Cari is not doing well. There is no way for me to let her know the huge difference she has made to me and to others. I know we are all hugging our loved ones closer and learning to appreciate the little things. Cari, is truly one of a kind and I have been privileged to know her.