|
Gene Murdock March 19: It’s a terrible thing to lose a son, especially when he was only 43. My original reactions were shock and disbelief. My spirits were bolstered by the immediate visits by family and friends, who were themselves in shock and disbelief. One of the first things I did was to check my schedule to see if there were any conflicts with family doings, and I saw that I had planned to go out and see the sand hill cranes the next day. I immediately tabled that plan, but then had second thoughts – I had told Rick about my planned trip and he had said that he really wished he could go along. I remembered how I had dealt with grief and lack of closure when my mother died. Since I couldn’t get to the funeral or memorial service, I decided to hold my own down in Alabama. So I took a day to travel all around my favorite haunts, and in my mind, I took my mother with me and showed her the sights. That worked like a charm and provided comfortable closure. I decided to do this with Rick – I would go on my trip to the sand hills and bring him with me in mind and spirit. So off we went, heading westward in Nebraska. I avoided the Interstate and stuck to the back roads. One of Rick’s favorite books was "Blue Highways" by William Least Heat-Moon. William traveled across country by "blue highways,” referring to the way the roads appear on a map. Interstates are bold color and double lined, major US highways are in red, and all other back roads are in blue. This gave me open roads, slower speeds, and much less traffic, which allowed me to think and reminisce. I thought of how Rick had brought his weight down from around 230 to 180 with the help and encouragement of Jaime. Just a few years ago I had considered talking to Rick about his weight, but put it off and now I realized that here he had gotten down to 180 and I had gotten up to 230! So if he could do it, I can, and I will. Our first stop was in Seward, Nebraska, which is almost two hours from home, and a handy place to stop because it is far enough off the Interstate that gas prices are normal, and it has a new Wal-Mart, good gas stations, a Pizza Hut, McDonalds, Valentino’s and Burger King – anything you need for a good pit stop. I had mentioned this place to him several times and now I could show it to him. We passed a sign that said Stick Creek, and a little further another one that said Wood River. Someone had a sense of humor, which we enjoyed. Then we came upon a town named Greenwood. That was odd, because I live in Glenwood and work in Greenfield, IA. So if there is a Greenwood, there ought to be a Glenfield! The whole trip was about 450 miles, during which I did not play any music, listen to the radio or listen to my audio books – I just chatted in my mind with Rick. The road ran parallel to the main railroad tracks that run between Montana and the east. These tracks were full of railway coal cars – the full ones heading east, the empties going back west. The oncoming full trains of about 100 cars came about every thirty minutes. We estimated the number of trucks that it would take to haul that same amount of coal and realized if it came by truck in that quantity, the line of trucks would be CONTINUOUS! Rick and I used to spend a lot of time discussing oddities like that. All these fond memories brought both laughter and tears. The tears flowed easily because of an audio book Rick and Jaime had given me for my birthday. It was the first book in the Mitford series by Jan Karon. In it Father Tim on two occasions counsels his flock on crying, saying it is quite good and quite beneficial. Crying cleanses the mind of troubles and allows you a new start. So I did. Several miles past Grand Island, I turned off onto a farm road which was paved at first. But as I headed south and got nearer to the Platte River, it became a dirt road and went right into the Sandhill Crane’s feeding area. There they were – on both sides of the road, at least a thousand of them feeding in the cornfields. I could sit and watch them, moving up and down the road for better views, and not another soul in sight. They were all down at the tourist designated viewing areas, snapping their pictures, snapping their gum, talking loudly and ruining the day for others. Even though this was a back road, about every town had a Casey’s gas station and store with all the travel necessities you could possibly need. And since they are a chain, you can go into any one and know right where the things you want are. I had planned to stop in a few museums on this trip, but decided not to, because they would take my mind off the thing I was dealing with. One place I did stop, however, was in Kearney at the Cabella’s Outdoor store. Rick loves these places. When we went into one he would always zero in on the outdoor food section with all its camping gadgets and packaged food with lots of good spicy sauces. Rick and I had many favorite toy stores in common. Beside Cabella’s and similar stores, we could spend a fun hour in the big hardware stores like Home Depot or Menards, or in the Tractor Supply store with all its fascinating farm equipment. From Kearney I turned around and headed home, musing on all the things we had seen and experienced. When I got home I felt great. I had reminisced, laughed, and cried, and I felt I had reached a stage of closure with Rick’s passing. So I say, “Thank you, my son, my friend, for making me a better person!” |
blackbird |
Gene Murdock April 16: As I was driving the 85 miles (I found some good shortcuts) to the Aviation Museum last Friday, I saw along the way many new-born calves, sheep and goats. I also enjoyed the brilliant colors of a red-tailed hawk, a red-winged blackbird, and two pheasants. All this and the greening of the fields as well. I never get tired of this ride! Everywhere I go these days I see something that makes me think “I’ll have to tell Rick about that!” Which makes me realize even more how much I miss my son and friend. This past week I hung out a beautiful color picture of 22 flowers. It was the same one I hung out a year ago that received rave reviews. At the time I looked over my supply of pictures and posters and figured I had enough for one a week for a whole year. By the time a new year starts, people will have forgotten the previous ones. But nay, not so! It seems like just yesterday that this picture was on display. I noticed the library has a lot of new pictures in their gallery, so I can stave off the repetitions for a while by checking those out. I just re-read an old friend of a book, “The Cat” by Georges Simenon. The story is a humorous but poignant tale of an elderly couple without children that have learned to put up with each other by ignoring each other except to play occasional mean tricks. The man thinks the woman intentionally put rat-poison in the cat’s food, while the wife thinks the man intentionally let the parrot out of the cage so the cat could get it. But instead of outwardly saying anything or showing their emotions, they resorted to a different tactic. The man would write something on a small piece of paper, fold it up as small as he could make it, then quietly snap it towards her. She would ignore it until she had to get up for some reason, then would casually pick it up and take it to another room. When she opened it said just two words: “THE CAT.” Chris loved this book and read it several times, something she rarely did, and she so enjoyed Simenon’s stories that she asked to read his whole set about Inspector Maigret. We were in the living room one day, when something small fell in my lap. I picked it up, having no idea what it was, and found it had to be unwrapped many times. When I finally got it open and read it, it said “THE CAT.” And that started the game. We kept up the humorous play-acting for a long time. Then she took one of the little stick-on labels that comes on apples and such, and stuck it on my drinking glass. That started us off on a stick-the-label binge that lasted a long time. There is now one on her cherished Cloisonné jar that holds her funeral ashes, so I got in the last word! Every Saturday at ten a.m. I have been showing the residents a movie or TV show from my collection, but recently I tried something different - I played music for them. I have a collection of Hit Parade Songs from 1940 to 1959, each annual disc having 24 Hit Parade songs on it. They loved it (1940), and one of the residents got up and danced to most of the songs while the rest sang along! I hold the blurb that comes with the disc so I can tell them who the musician is and what the name of the song is (after they try to guess). I will go through the years with a different one every four weeks. |
Minneopa, 2006 |
Rickey Murdock First of all... I am sorry that it has been so long since I wrote to you both.... I have been keeping so busy with all the kids home and with doing tattooing that I have kind of slipped with my communications. We would also like to thank you for the card and anniversary gift. We have been together for almost eight years now and married for four; that is still really something. I remember building forts with Jason, sitting up in the trees, and talking to each other about what we saw our lives turning out to be. Now as an adult I am building tree forts with my kids and watching them be creative with their minds - It is just really exciting. To share things like that with the love of your life is special, plain and simple. Thanks for always being there for us all... Murdock Family R&D |
Valerie, 2006 faculty photo |
Valerie Davidson April 25: I had applied to a summer technology program which pays a nice sum if you are accepted, and I didn't get in. I was disappointed for about twenty minutes, until I realized that this industry-funded program is interested in teachers who will promote their products for them, and create a generation of future customers. Whoa! That is not me. I'm the one who is keeping the old clunkers humming, teaching students to use and be glad for the available resources, and fashioning copyboards from pieces of masonite and clothespins. This appeals to my cash-strapped school district more than to the big-buck corporations. Perhaps I can find another way to replace the antique Macs my students are using.... I don't remember if I mentioned my after-school tutoring project - a fifth-grader who just arrived from Japan in August. This is proving to be a very enjoyable experience, because he was an excellent student in Japan and works very hard to master English and function in his mainstream classroom here. BTW, I don't feel a day over 54. |
Hillary's Bridal |
Mary Reese We are so excited here at Hillary's Bridal! We have been nominated for Boston's 2007 A-list in the best wedding dress category! Your vote and comment would be greatly appreciated, help us make the list! Click here to vote for us. Feel free to pass this along to people on your mailing list; we won't mind! Thank you for your support; have a great day. |
Sonora, TX |
Margery Aukstikalnis April 8: Hi, Y'all! I am writing from Mission Texas, where we are having a wonderful visit with Jim and Paula Baldwin. They are keeping us hopping with many things to see and do. You should see all the flowers and birds in this part of the country!! We are experiencing some cool, rainy weather, but that doesn't seem to diminish the beauty any. We are on schedule; we got a late start the first day because Dear Feline Emily thought it the perfect time to play hide and seek. She had NO intention of traveling with us, and it took four hours to capture her. Despite pouting for two days, she's tolerating the trip well. We stopped for a day in Sonora Texas to see some marvelous caverns. Within 36 acres, there are 7 1/2 miles of trails through the caverns which are 90% active! Stalagmites and Stalactites and columns everywhere! The caves are 71 degrees and humid. We followed our tour guide through 2 1/2 miles, careful not to touch anything but hand rails along the way, because body oils "kill" the active process, and the growing stalagmite or whatever will never grow again. We also saw helictites which grow out sideways from the walls from a tiny pore that exudes moisture. Some of the helictites grew into "butterfly wings" which were beautiful. At the national park yesterday we saw scissor-tailed flycatchers, whistling ducks, mockingbirds (one mimicked a police siren!) kiskadees, Mississippi kites (migrating), orioles, sparrows, swallows, cooper's hawk, ... oh gosh, MANY other birds ..... and we were only there two hours!!!!! We walked to the Rio Grande, careful not to step on the leaf-cutting ants along the trail, and rode the tram throughout the forest. Tomorrow we are going to drive to the Mexican border, go on foot and ride the hand-pulled ferry to Mexico, take a taxi to the village for lunch and walk the bridge back. It's a trip Jim often takes with his bicycling group. Tuesday we head for Edna, TX where we will reorganize; then Wednesday we stop in Houston for a couple of days. Texas sure is beautiful. Wide and various terrains and temperatures and colors and textures. Something for everyone! More another day. |
wall quilt, "And This is My Garden" |
Valerie Davidson April 18: Thanks, Mom, for the pictures of quilts, flowers, and the woods! Of course, the photo of the wooded path is my favorite! Often at night, when I put myself to bed, and once the lights are out, I like to pretend that I am upstairs at Grandpa & Grandma Murdock's old place, with the sound of crickets coming in the open window, and knowing that the woods are nearby (okay, so I have a good imagination!). I like to feel a sense of artist's garret - very comforting - and perhaps their old place and its associations provide me with the stuff for the dream. I also like to remember the tiny front room at Grandma Howlett's, with the thin old window shade, upon which the streetlight illuminated the tree branches that danced in the wind in a somewhat eerie fashion. You were right in your vision of the three of us dining together to celebrate my birthday, but I'm not sure you would be impressed with the healthfulness of our spread. Our always-favorite is to go to Chevy's. Jerod amused us with his sizzling steak fajita plate. He obviously has done this before, but the meat was too rare for his taste, so he spread it out and sort of barbecued it on the steaming metal plate. (Who says he's a fussy eater?!?) I've gone to a totally gluten-free diet, so I chose some enchiladas, rather than my previous always-choice of flautas. Larry had the sizzling shrimp fajita plate. We groaned all the way home and then napped. (ahhhh...) My "trigger finger" has gone two rounds now of cortisone shots, and they're starting to talk more seriously about a little surgery in the meaty part of my palm, which sounds pretty unappetizing to me. I'll try some of the hot/cold therapy first. My gluten-free diet is in part a response to this inflammation. I've been more or less avoiding flour for a number of months now, except on Fridays when teachers at my school take turns bringing "treats." But now I'm seeking to break the cycle by being 100% about it. By the way: I LOVE WHEAT!!! Oh, well. It looks as if nuts and soy are also out. Thank goodness, Larry is as committed as I am to organic vegetables, so we splurge and indulge in that area, instead. The collection of quilt photos is very impressive! As a teacher of creative processes, I set a benchmark of VARIETY, and that's what I see in this group. To get such a spread, the ideas have to spring from a rich source. Mine doesn't look as beautiful in the photo as it does on my wall, and it is still my most treasured. I often gaze at it - that one and the Kennisto get the most hours of contemplation. The latter has some hard-to-define mystique, but also includes the kind of scenery closest to my heart. (Click here for “Twilight on the Kennisto.”) I'm sorry to say that the huge numbers of butterflies, crickets, ladybugs, and hummingbirds which used to populate my backyard are all gone. Just gone. On a happier note, my front neighbor has transformed her front yard into a bit of a jungle, and some crickets moved back in last summer. What a joy it was to hear that music again! |
|
Colleen McKay I have totally worn my niece out by touring - that and the auto exhaust. She is used to much cleaner air to breathe. She is resting again. We got up earlier to go to the Sistine Chapel We got in line at 8:05 for the 8:45 opening and got inside the museum at 9:10. The line stretched for blocks when we exited the museum. We did not get to St Pauls Within the Walls. It was closed on Saturday when we passed it. I told her about the Lincoln face in the mosaic. She had fun posing in the museum where the Chinese artifacts were housed. It was like we were in a private showing - nobody except the guards were in that part of the musuem. We got to sit on the bench in the Sistine Chapel and admire the ceiling. I have not done St Peter's dome. She was not up to doing 320 steps after the lift. We did throw a coin in the Trevi fountain, have gelati every day, found only one chocolate shop and bought only a 100 gram bar apiece. We went to Mass in Italian at St Peter's Saturday night but our trip to Florence on Sunday did not happen. The tour company does not check its email frequently. I emailed for a reservation and they emailed back after we left on Saturday morning for a credit card number for a guarantee. I sent it when we got back in the evening but no bus showed Sunday morning to pick us up. So we rested. We walked down the Spanish steps, toured the Coluseum, Pantheon, went to the Villa Bourghese park, visited the four basilicas and got the last two in today. JoAnnah bought Italian leather shoes and we saw the changing of the guard at the Quirinale. We just happened upon it looking for street signs to locate where we were. |
|
Deanna Murdock April 10: I am sorry it's taken me so long to get in contact with you. I wrote you a long email after our anniversary, and Trinity unplugged the computer and erased the whole thing. Thank you very much for the Anniversary gift and Daniel's present. We are working on a special thank you card for you guys, and we are working on developing some pictures that you shall be receiving in the mail in a couple weeks. Our schedules have been so busy that we haven't had much time if any to check our emails, or to write back to anyone, and we are sorry for that. Rickey and I work 10 hours a day and after work we cook, clean, and he home schools the kids. Tuesdays Jack goes to two therapy appointments (speech and occupational therapy) and I go to physical therapy the same day. Tanaya goes to school full time and after school works on homework and chores. Daniel goes to school 9am-11:40 am Mon-Fri; after school he does homework and chores. Jack goes to speech therapy school two half days a week, Wednesdays and Fridays. He works on a lot of homework every day of the week. He is working on learning how to help around the house. Trinity does not go to school. She keeps everyone busy by getting into everything, exploring her surroundings. Along with all that, we have to plan birthday parties, go to birthday parties and holiday events, plan family outings, and go to school conferences and special school events. Life here is really busy and never quiet unless it's bed time. For next year, Jack got a school scholarship grant to attend the Readiness program after preschool classes, and he will still be going to his speech therapy classes too. So he is going to be attending three classes in the fall. Plus all the kids’ appointments keep us on our toes. The days just fly by when you’re having fun! Talk to you later, gotta go... |
|
Top /
Muse Home /
Who's Who / What's New |
