Topic : Is This Normal Social Discussion

Just read that your dear son will be heading off overseas later on this year, God Bless him for that!

I'm sure that he will be fine while he is over there. Mark is going to Afganistan, but I know that he will be fine there, as the job that he will be doing will be inside the Base and he will not need to go outside very often.

Please keep us up to date with what's happening with your Son, JP!

You and your's all Take Care, Love Kelly.

That was some nerve missy coming here with that itty bitty post and no story! I've done this to myself cos I went danceing with my boot on! And went to a little town shopping without my boot on. And went to the Bedlam (where companies dress up vehicles and where costumes and race) and to the Derby Parade and, and, and. I'm just too hyper for my own butt! Of course you're walking all awkward and it's too much strain on my hip more than anything else. I've gotten deep tissure massages, sat in hot tubs to loosen it up and am trying very hard to be good. ALTHOUGH! I have danced twice because I can not not hear that music (cha-cha slide. Are you familiar with it?) and not do it. However I am unable to complete a dance. But I will by gawd. Someday, sooner than later.

Will that be with your good foot or your bad foot?  Just checking.

I'm sorry that I haven't posted any stories for you lately.  They're all outlined there in my journal and the back of my head, but the truth is that right now I just don't have the heart to write them.  The problem with going away for three weeks on the vacation of a lifetime is that - well, you have to come home.  And the stuff you left behind never got the opportunity to go away or even relax.

She of the feather boa has been in the hospital - she has a strange virus that has affected her balance and made her weak.   Her blood pressure is over the roof.  At first the doctors thought she had a stroke, but all of the tests have been negative.  Now, she of the feather boa has never been sick, ever.  She just turned 75, lives alone, and all those years of being healthy, and now suddenly dependant - well, as you know she has a strong personality and is very, very pissed off.  And scared.   Shannon went to stay with her for awhile when she got out of the hospital, but now Mom is staying with a friend in Uxbridge for an indefinite period of time.  On a good note, she tells me she's lost five pounds...

And my daughter and grandaughter - well that is a book in itself!  We're still going through a wicked custody battle (you don't even want to know the details of what that pr*** is doing to us - now there's a man who needs a good boot in the arse!)  We were supposed to go to court again last week but MJ's lawyer is finally seeing the light and checking into Nick's behaviour.  So the court date was adjourned until September 10th.  I am so, so tired of his allegations and the way he interrogates MJ when he sees her.  When all of this is said and done, I will be suing the bastard for slander.

But life goes on and we have no other option but to follow it's course.  And find humour in crap.  Yesterday Shannon was scheduled to go to a group session at CAMH (Centre for Addiction and Mental Health) and said to me, "Mom, would you be really upset if I didn't go? I just want to sit here on the balcony and read a good book.  Kind of like a Mental Health Day."

I just gave her my one-eyed stare (and trust me, that stare could stop traffic) and said, "What the hell are you thinking? Are you going to call the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and tell them you're not coming because you need a Mental Health Day!!!"

She went.

And so it goes.  I promise JP, to send you some stories eventually.  But for now - this is all you get.

xoxo

Trace

much less your arse! Even tried to form a posse but nobody showed up! At least now I understand the reasoning. Sorry sweeite that you're going thru all that. Someday, someway that jerk will have his and it ain't gonna be pretty. What a complete and total arse he is. My gosh. How long has this been going on now?

I'm glad your mom is staying with someone. There are things we do that we don't realize and maybe her friend will be able to watch and help. Being vulnerable is not an easy thing when you are so independant. I know it certainly makes me mad and I can't imagine what it's like at her age. Madder I'll bet. As in "I'm not ready for this!" It's all gonna work how somehow Trace. It will. It always does. One Day At a Time.

And I agree with the quality of friends in here. My oh my have we been thru alot together. Have no idea what I'd do without all of you.  *hugs* How's Tap doing? I'm off tomorrow and may try to hook up with her. I miss her everytime I get on here.

got caught up doing stuff and no time to be on here.... :(

Anyways, thanks for the 1st year Anniversary wishes.  Time sure does fly!!!

We camped from the 2nd to the 6th and we went out for supper on the 7th.  Now I've been working the last couple of days.

sure nuff....soon as I get time to play on here someone pulls in to our lot here.....well at least it keeps me busy.

later

I sent you an email about a week ago and didn't get a response.  I know you always reply, so I checked my "sent mail" thingy and the email has disappeared.  This damn internet connection I have has been on the blink since I got home.  In fact when I finally got a hold of them on the phone, they offered to upgrade my service free of charge, speed up the connection and credit my account for the last month.

Well it's been my experience that "things too good to be true" usually are.  Now the computer has all kinds of bells and whistles (stuff I don't need) and is slower than an old hooker trying to get out of bed in the morning.  And I can't find half of my documents.

So I apologize.  It's not that I can't remember what I wrote to you - but in the moment the words made so much more sense. 

My brother is in the process of writing his second novel.  He's an incredible writer, very disciplined.  He wakes up every morning and before he writes, does his research.  This new novel is about a soldier who comes home from Afghanistan and has to care for his ailing mother, whom he hasn't seen in years.

When I was there with my brother in Vancouver a few months ago, I walked into his office and there on the wall was this huge map of Afghanistan.  He opened up his email, and there were dozens sent to him by army personnel (do I have the terminology right?) who have returned from there, have heard about his book and want to tell their stories.  Mark has spoken to alot of them on the phone.

Mark and I are pacifists, Kelly.  We grew up as Jehovah's Witnesses and were never allowed to strike back.  Even in the school playground, if somebody hit us, we quoted scripture!  "Seek peace and pursue it!" or "Turn the other cheek!"  We left that religion along time ago, but not before we came home with bloody noses and bruises.

So, with that engrained mentality as little children, I still find it difficult to understand why people go off to war to fight, especially when they don't trust the men who rule countries and put them there in the first place.

Don't get me wrong.  I admire your Mark and JP's son and KAK's daughter and pray and know that they will be fine.  But what I told my brother, after reading his first three chapters - is that I admire him too for trying to make sense of it.  And perhaps he should be talking to those who are left behind and wait for them to come home.

Love ya Kelly.  And now I will turn over the soapbox to the rest of you!

Be kind!  I'm fragile....

T. 

Thanks for your message and yes I'm sorry also that Mark has to go, but this is part of his job and I knew what I was getting into when I gave Mark that very first kiss more than 19 years ago!

Mark has been in the Army for more than 21 year now and so has made this his career of sorts, slowly getting up the ranks, he is due to be promoted early next year so that will be great for him and us as well, as his pay will got up abit!

I think from what Mark has told me from time to time, is that the Aussie Soliders seem to get treated better than any other countries do. Mind you I was on another part of these message boards and was told by Army Wife from Amercia that her hubby is now on his 3rd tour. His first was about 9 months long, the second was 14 months long and this one that he is on now is going to be about 18 to 24 months long.

Gee's, Mark is going to be away for only 6 months, it really made me think, that I'm just so glad that Mark is only going to be away for 6 months. I really feel for that woman, she is one very brave and tough girl to have to wait that long to be with her hubby.

JP, do you know how long your son, Jason will be gone for? And will he get some Leave half way through to come home?

Mark will get some Leave half way through his time and he might come home or I might meet him somewhere like Rome or Egypt.

Well JP you and your's Take Care and hope to hear from you again soon, Love Kelly.

Good to hear from you and hope you and Ron did have a lovely day on your Anniversary. It only seems like yesterday that you both got married, you know!

Where did you all go camping? You seem to go camping abit, sounds like you all enjoy it too.

We use to go camping each Easter to a place that use to be a big township, but when the Mine's went broke, they removed most of the houses and shop's and it was left to be like a ghost town. My Grandpa grew up there and so when he got married and had my Mum and her Sister, the 4 of them would go down to the Valley and camp there. Then when Mum grew up and met Dad, they started going down there too.

When my sister was born, she started going there as well and then when I was born, well you know the story.

Mum and dad use to have a tent, but then they deicded to hire a caravan each year and so we would atleast have abit more comfort and warmth, as it use to get quite cold down there, especially at night.

There were other familes that we knew that came down too, so all us children would have heaps of fun playing down by the creek and getting dirty in the mud and riding our bikes everywhere as well.

It was great fun at night too, as the men would build a big bonfire each night for us all to sit around and enjoy. The men would have too much to drink most nights and then there would a sing-a-long, which of course us children would just start laughing at the Mum's and Dad's that were trying to sing,lol!!

Yes, they were good times, the last time I remember going down there was when I was 17 years old, after that I didn't want to go down there, i wanted to be with my own friends, then of course Mum and Dad moved interstate from New South Wales to Queensland.

Well Vicki, you and your's all Take Care and hope to see you here again soon, Love Kelly.