+ 12 - 10 | § ¶My Second Mom

MJ (Mary Jane) Pirk Born May 4th 1930 Dalla Texas. Died Feb 25th 2008 Lakewood, Colorado.

How do you explain the relationship between moms and sons?
You don’t. Moms and sons don’t need an explanation. It’s just the way it is.

How do you explain the relationship between moms and daughters?
You don’t even try. Moms and daughters need encyclopedias - their own personal encyclopedias.

Ask a simple question of your son.
You get either a grunt or a simple “You know, Mom” or “I know, Mom.”

Ask a simple question of your daughter.
You will get the rock-hard, true facts of your family history since before written word.

MJ could do both with her simple, no frills responses.
MJ could take a bad situation and turn it into one of life’s so-so events.
She could make a crisis into a laughable situation.
She could take the good and make it outshine the bad.

Daughters say that their moms are opinionated and stubborn.
Sons won’t admit it out loud, but their moms are their rock and compass.

MJ depended on her faith in God. She felt safe within God’s arms. And no matter what happened, she always knew that everything would be OK. I think that’s why she went so peacefully. She had said everything she had to say.

Hard to believe, but when I met MJ, she was only in her 40’s. And I am now in my 50’s.
She inspired me for the last 35 years.

In some respects, she had already done more in her life by the time I met her than in the time I have known her.

She had married, lived in many places around the world, reared children, owned and kept a beautiful home. She loved working on the road as a pharmaceutical rep. She loved playing bridge. She loved volunteering for causes she felt were so important. She loved being part of her church. She loved being involved with anyone who touched her life.

I remember playing pool in the basement, watching TV in the family room, eating the most delicious meals, sitting around talking to everyone at the house, seeing the Christmas trees grow in the back yard.

We had such good times, MJ and I. We could talk for hours. MJ loved to talk about family, life, hopes, past lessons and future endeavors. MJ remembered everything. I could tell MJ how I felt about my own Mom and she would be able to help me with whatever issues came up between my Mom and me. She always let me know how important my Mom is to me. She understood and she gave me the right answers.

From the first time I came into her home, MJ welcomed me like we had known each other since the beginning of time. She took everyone into her life as they were, accepting us for what we were.

I had the privilege of MJ’s company here in California in the last year or so. I wanted her to feel as welcome here as she always made me feel whenever I came to visit her. She experienced the Santa Monica 3rd Street Promenade and the eclectic milieu of people mingling in this tiny piece of southern California .We ate at restaurants by the ocean, walked the Santa Monica Pier and marveled at the carousel, the local vendors, and the sea shore activities, and went to the race track.

She understood my passion for thoroughbred racing. She sat and watched the races last year with me in Colorado, knowing how important it was to me. She shared her past experiences growing up in that part of the country and the excitement of watching the races there.

MJ bet on some horses at Hollywood Park on Ken’s birthday. Steve was with us and she said to me, “Today is Ken’s birthday and I don’t think Steve remembers. Please don’t tell him. It is just so nice to be with him. I don’t want to make him feel bad.” The horses she bet on were Dancing Groom and Dixie Banker. Neither won but it was a nice sentimental thought.

I can only compare her to one of the greatest horses ever, Barbaro. After hearing of MJ’s surgery for colon cancer, my enthusiasm for life, like others, suffered a crushing blow.
The combination of dedicated doctors, a woman with an amazing spirit, and the eternal hope of her children caused me to look at this very sad event in a much more positive light. Everyone did what they could. There is always hope with cancer – so many advances. Would MJ beat the odds?

I knew that I had to remember MJ, if only for her dogged determination in her fight for survival. God knew that it was time.

I can only say to myself that MJ will always be right next to me, in thought and in prayer, always.

I love you, Becky, Steve, and (Mike) Dave. You have been a part of my life for so long and I will miss your Mom so much. And all of yours, may you grow up happy, safe and loved by all. Because that is what your Mom, your Grandma, wishes for you.

Love,
Tressa

+ 14 - 11 | § ¶Baby New Year!

It has certainly been a while... Where to begin? Here it is, 2008, and a few things have changed in my life. I will list them out in chronological order from the first biggie to the latest. Hard to believe it has been 6 months since an update...

Soon after I heard that Jen and Ryan were going to have a baby, I finally came to the conclusion I had been avoiding for a long time, namely, it was time to get out of LA. The first thing I did was let my boss know I was going to move. I told him I really liked working in the group I am in and I hoped we could come to an arrangement. He started to think about it. Next thing I did was to fly up to Washington and start looking at some houses. I called Jen to let her know, and called mom to meet me in Seattle. Jen did some legwork on listings, and we added more after I got there. Only saw one house I really liked, so I also looked into land to build on. The land idea did not pan out, so I called the agent that listed the house to see if it was still on the market. He said yes, so I got a buyer's agent to work with me and flew back up to Seattle. 5 weeks later, I was the owner of an awesome house.

My boss told me a few weeks after I brought it up that it was probably doable, but would require some work on HR's part. Once I had pt an offer on the house, I gave 2 months notice on my apartment. Moved out at the end of September, and moved into my new place October 1st. The work remote thing got final approval 2 weeks before I moved. Man was that a nail biter! I am now close to both of my daughters, and I get to keep doing the job I love, living in an awesome state that actually has weather.

So, here we are, January 3rd 2008. My first grandson, Greyson was born on January 1st, 2008. What a day! Jen called me in the morning. I said, "hey, I thought you would be at work?". She told me they had a slight detour to the maternity ward instead, because her water broke at 2:40 am New Years day. I was like "holy crap!!! Today!?!?!?!". Got showered and dressed and went over to the hospital. Things were not really moving, so I left after a couple of hours to take a break, and about 20 minutes after I got home, got a call telling me to head back. Greyson came into this world at 5:09 pm PST, New Year's day. After they got everything ready for guests, I got to go into the delivery room and have a peek at my first grandchild. I did not know what to say, so I said... "wow...". I did not stay long, as both Jen and Ryan were beat, so I took some pics, gave them both a hug, and headed home. It took a long time to come down off of cloud nine. Went back for a quick visit the next day, and got to hold Greyson this time. Gads! he was so tiny! I gave myself and the kids a night off tonight, but I bet I am over at their house tomorrow! This grandkid stuff is addicting!

+ 17 - 9 | § ¶Good luck Melissa!

Melissa Hoshizaki (Jen and Laura's step sister) is going into surgery tomorrow (Wednesday) to pin and plate her broken ankle. Seems she broke it in three places last week during soccer practice, and the docs think surgery with pinning is the best option. She will be having the surgery at a Seattle sports hospital around noon or so. Here is to hoping that everything comes out well. I know she is working hard for a scholarship to college, and if this heals well, she should be fine. Good luck kiddo, we are rooting for you!

+ 17 - 9 | § ¶Happy Father's Day!

Wishing all the dads out there a happy Father's Day! That means you, Leche, Nopal, Shaka and Subotai :-) Got calls from both daughters today. Jen called while she was on break at work, and Laura called from the ferry. She was heading over to her mom's house to celebrate with her stepdad Denis. I hear she is going to have to cook tacos for dinner. Serves her right :-) Called my son-in-law Ryan to wish him a happy Father's day too. Even though the baby has not arrived yet, he is still a dad in my eyes. Sister Becky is in Montrose with the kids doing a trubute to Steve. I think what they are doing is wonderful. I sure wish I could have been able to call my dad today, but I can still wish him a happy Father's day. I miss him so much, and today just serves as a reminder once again that he is gone. Thanks for everything dad! Love you!

+ 15 - 10 | § ¶Breeder's Cup, what a blast

Mom and I went to the Breeder's Cup at Hollywood Park today. Horse racing is a whole lot more fun than watching the greyhounds run. We bet on a few horses and won a little bit. I came out ahead, but mom ended up in the hole. Tressa, who invited us, bet on the pick six, but did not get enough winners to have a payoff. Oh well, she only spent 4 dollars. I got to meet Catherine, Tressa's friend. Man, what a fox! The day went absolutely great except for the 9th race. 10 feet from the finish line, Three Degrees broke her leg. When they were trying to load her into the van to take her to the vet, she broke away, took two strides forward and fell. It was so sad seeing her lying there unable to get up. I will not mention the rest of the episode, because it makes me too sad... Farewell Three Degrees. You had a hell of a career.

+ 16 - 11 | § ¶Congrats Jen and Ryan!

Got a call from my daughter and son in law this morning... Jen and Ryan are pregnant! She had to wait to call me until Ryan was there so they could put me on speaker phone and tell me together. Verra cool! I was like WHOOHOO!!!! Jen goes back for more tests in a few days to get final confirmation, but it looks good so far... This is awesome news. I am so happy for them. Congrats Jen and Ryan!

Meanwhile, my sister got to my mom's house this morning and mom was doing a little jig saying "pink and blue ribbons..." over and over. Becky was like what the heck...? Mom told her and she started screaming too. Laura, the youngest daughter, found out late last night. Turns out that that was why she would not call me back because she was not sure she could keep the secret. Devious kids...

Oh yeah, I guess I am going to be a grandpa in about 9 months...

+ 13 - 9 | § ¶In Loving Memory...

What can a son say? After a long bout fighting cancer, my father ran out of energy and passed away Tuesday. It was not totally unexpected, but sooner than I thought it would be. I happend to be in a cab heading for LAX to fly up to Seattle to be with my daughters during the impending crisis when my brother called to let me know that he passed away.

Mom had just had him moved back home where he could be with family, and shortly after they settled him into bed he just kind of left. Mom said when she went in to check on him, he had a smile on his face. Kind of like he was glad to be home and decided it was time to go.

I will miss him a lot.

Jen, Laura, Ryan and I will fly to Colorado next week for the memorial service, and to be with family. My only regret is that I came really close to being able to be there that afternoon. Maybe I should have gone ahead and flown to Denver. Instead, I chose to head up to Seattle to be with my daughters while all this was happening, because we needed each other.

Dad... We will all miss you.

+ 20 - 10 | § ¶Well, Christmas is almost here...

Here it is, Christmas eve, and I am stuck at home with a broken bone in my foot. What a month from hell it has been. Broke it the night before Thanksgiving, and the Doc said "no weight on it for a month". I go back the day after Christmas to see how things are going. Maybe he will give me the go-ahead to start walking on it again.

Things are doing ok other than that. Been working from home since Thanksgiving, so I have not had to miss any work. Kids are doing great, but Jen has to work Christmas day, so she and Ryan are having Christmas tonight. Laura is working today, but will join Jen and Ryan at their mom's house later this afternoon so that they can all celebrate Christmas together. I will head up in January once I am back walking good. Could not imagine trying to navigate airports and planes on crutches, so I passed on a Christmas visit.

Looks like dad will get to go home for a half day on Christmas day so that he can be with the rest of the family. I am so happy mom pulled that off. I am sure it will mean a lot to everybody.

Well, the pizza just arrived, so I am going to go eat some. I will post more stuff either today or tomorrow, because it is that time of year for reflections, and I have a lot to reflect on. Oh btw, Heather, Mike's wife *is* preggers, so we should be seeing a baby Vogel next year.
Peace, Love and Happiness to all, and to all a good night...