Evel's aunt

A little bit of trivia here folks. Useless knowledge, I suppose. Evel Knievel died today following a multitude of problems, including pulmonary fibrosis and complications of hepatitis c. His aunt Angelita Knievel was my principal at Manitowoc Roncalli in the late 1970's. She also taught a variety of classes, and was very bright and always welcoming. She was a member of the Franciscans. Jo and I just talked about how bright and articulate the Franciscans are. Most have masters or doctorate degrees. Angelita always blushed when anyone asked about Evel. She was very proud of him. It seems he was quite the philanthropist, and had several charities he donated to. Pic is of Evel (real name Robert Craig) and his son Robbie.

good-bye to a friend

Today was the funeral for Germaine B, a wonderful elderly woman who I've been visiting for 3+ years. Her husband of 62 years passed away this spring, and she has been carrying on without him. They were such a great couple. They farmed for many years in St. Peter, just east of Fondy and on the ledge overlooking Lake Winnebago. Germaine and especially her husband Leander, always would remember the Lisa French halloween murder case of 1973, because Lisa's remains were found on their farm. This was their 'claim to fame' that they'd rather not have. They were just delightful people. They had 1 son, and he had 6 or 7 kids...all great people too, and they were very proud of them. I'll miss them both. Rest in peace Germaine, and enjoy your reunion with Leander:)

good old dog

Mctavish is really going downhill because of his arthritis. He's on aspirin therapy but it doesn't seem to help much, and he continues to need help to get up. He can't manage the stairs either. The hope is he'll just sleep away. Having put several pets down, it's not something I want to do. Today is just as cold, and at around 11 AM we had quite a blast of snow. I went out to help Stan at the farm, and for a while it was white out conditions. Eva and I are going tree shopping today, and then working on the table centerpieces for the wedding. Also have to give the house a thorough cleaning, before dragging in all the Christmas decorations. Thank heavens Grandma Mare is back on-line, and we can shoot her e-mails once again. For anyone who doesn't have her new address, it is: gmare@lakefield.net

different directions

Everyone is busy tonight. Eva cantored for a funeral earlier today, and now is heading out to do homework at the cafe. Her plans then include meeting with Rick to bring him some gingerbread because he's been sick today. Elle has auditions for the middle school musical, which will be The Wizard of Oz. Aliyah is busy trying out for the jump roping team at her elementary school, the Wizards. I had the day off, and planned to put up the outdoor decorations. It was 17 degrees and 35 mile per hour gusts, so I abandoned that idea. I've been busy addressing Christmas card envelopes. We plan this year to include a wedding photo in our cards. It would be difficult to wait until after the 15th. to address everything. So, I'm thinking I'll address the usual Christmas list, and then on the 16th, order a nice wedding photo to include. Response cards have been coming in regularly. We may have to do a few calls for those who haven't responded yet. Paul is busy at the new church tonight, getting ready for the bishop and tending to many details, for the dedication of the new church. He says after December 1st, he'll 'have a life again.' We'll see.

poor little guy

I just spoke to Jo. She spent 4 hours in the ER with True. He was running a fever and feeling poorly all weekend. After some x-rays the doctor confirmed pneumonia. We've got to stop these ER visits! Get well wishes go out to True Samuel:)
Love you. xxooxxooxx

lovely weekend

Special thanks to Rick and Kate who picked up James and Elise at MKE on Thanksgiving Day. We finished up some last minute wedding details, and had a traditional feast. Elle made her famous gingerbread trifle:) On Saturday, Elise and James left and we drove up to visit our Manitowoc family. Jeff and Mickey joined us from Madison, and we had another great meal at Jeannine's house. It was very relaxing. Eva is feeling much better, but is still on her meds. We had a nice surprise when we came home today. Vonn visited from Platteville with his lab Vala. He's testing for his pilot's license next week. Good luck Vonn! He promised me a flight after his solo. To Grandma: I'll be the first to go. I trust his training and his judgment, and I think it's a privilege. We'll get you on a plane yet! (Maybe to Nashville to visit Elise and James? Or to St. John, to vacation with Krissy and Dave.)

ER night, Busy day...

Last night we ended up in the ER for 3 hours with Eva. She was having chest pain, and it was getting serious. She was born with 'pectus excavatum' or funnel chest to the lay person, and when she was 5 years old doctors said it was not bad enough to warrant surgery. She has never had any symptoms, and has always been very active. Her cousin Kylie had surgery several years ago to correct this problem, and I recall her Mom Kathy saying she just had 4 inches between the sternum and backbone. Eva's case was not that severe. Somewhere I read about a familial link(?) Anyway, after a series of tests, blood work and x-rays, it was determined not to be serious, but only a condition called 'costochondritis,'which is a swelling of the cartilage joining the ribs to the breastbone. The source of the pain may have been stress induced. What stress? A wedding 3 weeks away, a break-in down in Nashville, term-papers, finals, pedagogy class, juries, etc. Did that hit close to home. She was prescribed hydrocodone, but I'm VERY cautious about that. She had 1 dose, and it cleared up the pain immediately, but she was totally 'loopy' for lack of a better word. We'll see how today goes. I'm working at an all day church community blood drive, and later helping out with Immanuel Trinity's free thanksgiving meal program to the homebound. It's a great community effort. Volunteers sign up to help fix the meals, or deliver them to individual homes. I heard that they will be starting up a Christmas meal program also. Lots to do today....best get started. Keep Eva in your thoughts and prayers, please.