The Daily News
1 I woke up this morning in dire needs of generic Crystal Light and Nutella.
2 When did it come this?
3 I was into the four a.m. as usual, and dry as a donkey.
4 I gotta hydrate.
5 And I am in dire need of fake chocolate with a nutty, buttery flavor.
6 At what point in life did it come to this?
7 Post St. Paddy’s cravings.
8 Oy.
9 Dog just walked in, ate, passed wind, and went back to sleep.
10 That just about sums it up.
11 It was a poem, I swear to you.
12 Hope you have a remedy.
13 I’ve reached the point in life that I celebrate St. Paddy’s with generic Crystal Light a spoonful of Nutella.
14 When did it come to this?
15 Ah, who knows.
16 Moving on, Part One: I spent the weekend going up and visiting my Dad. He’s supposed to need care, but you wouldn’t know it.
17 We spent the weekend eating, talking, gardening, and watching old teevee.
18 We had utterly nothing to do with Crystal Light or Nutella.
19 Nope.
20 For the record, those things didn’t exist when we grew up together.
21 Oh, I also tended to my grading, and preparing for this week’s maddening accountability meetings.
22 I managed to get my work/prep boushit done.
23 My time with my Dad trumped all of that.
24 I’m supposed to watch his diet. That’s my job every third weekend.
25 I did great.
26 He has a bajillion things going wrong, but you wouldn’t know it.
27 When I got there Saturday morning, he had already cooked himself a grand breakfast.
28 I was only about ten minutes late, but he had scrambled a fabulous breakfast that was perfectly fine according to hospital rules.
29 I think he didn’t know I was coming, and was enjoying his freedom.
30 When I took his blood sugar, it was absolutely fine.
31 We then talked and talked, and joked and joked.
32 It set the tone for our entire weekend.
33 We spent the entire St. Paddy’s Day weekend outside, gardening, sunbathing, and talking about old times.
34 When we were inside the house, we watched re-runs of Roseanne and Golden Girls.
35 How excellent.
36 The rest of the world was getting ruined on alcohol and fizzies.
37 We were two Irishmen loving life.
38 Yesterday we went to the cemetery to visit Mom. Both of us remembered, and then forgot to get flowers from the garden in the front.
39 We remembered, then forgot. I can’t emphasize that enough. Apple. Tree.
40 I told him, “We can surely find flowers from here to the cemetery.”
41 We laughed, and hopped into the car.
42 On El Camino Real in South City, I saw this little family flower shop. I pulled over, looked at the displays, and made my choice.
43 Carnations.
44 My Mom was not a rose person. She LOVED carnations. This place had large carnations for $7.99, which I thought was a bargain.
45 They had mini-carnations for something like $3.99, which I thought was a steal.
46 They were absolutely charming. They smiled at me in their quaint perfection. The guy in the store said, “You want me to cut these short?” You gotta love it. Somehow he knew we were on our way to the cemetery.
47 I bought them and said to Dad, “I think Mom will LOVE these!” He said, “She always loved carnations.”
48 We went to the cemetery. The sun shone bright. It was glorious. There were tons of people and flowers there. One family had brought balloons. Must have been someone’s birthday.
49 I put the flowers into the holes they provide. They looked up at the sun and smiled beautifully. Dad and I had a quiet moment. I loved it. He did the sign of the cross. He then said, “That’s about all I can stand.” He meant it literally. He can’t stand for long periods of time anymore. I chuckled and said, “You’ll be hearin’ about that one next time you see Mom!”
50 He said, “When I get there, she’ll say, ‘What were you thinkin’ when you wore that shirt?’”
51 <sigh>
52 I could go on, but I won’t.
53 We later enjoyed the sun still more, and then a wonderful dinner of corned beef, cabbage, carrots, potatoes, and rye bread.
54 A pot of gold.
55 That’s about all I can stand.
56 For now, we’ll shorten this.
57 All that needs to be said for today has been said.
58 Gottago.
59 Peace.
~H~
www.xanga.com/bharrington
The Daily News1 I woke up this morning in dire needs of generic Crystal Light and Nutella.2 When did it come this?3 I was into the four a.m. as usual, and dry as a donkey.4 I gotta hydrate.5 And I am in dire need of fake chocolate with a nutty, buttery flavor.6 At what point in life did it come to this?7 Post St. Paddy’s cravings.8 Oy.9 Dog just walked in, ate, passed wind, and went back to sleep.10 That just about sums it up.11 It was a poem, I swear to you.12 Hope you have a remedy.13 I’ve reached the point in life that I celebrate St. Paddy’s with generic Crystal Light a spoonful of Nutella.14 When did it come to this?15 Ah, who knows.16 Moving on, Part One: I spent the weekend going up and visiting my Dad. He’s supposed to need care, but you wouldn’t know it.17 We spent the weekend eating, talking, gardening, and watching old teevee.18 We had utterly nothing to do with Crystal Light or Nutella.19 Nope.20 For the record, those things didn’t exist when we grew up together.21 Oh, I also tended to my grading, and preparing for this week’s maddening accountability meetings.22 I managed to get my work/prep boushit done.23 My time with my Dad trumped all of that.24 I’m supposed to watch his diet. That’s my job every third weekend.25 I did great.26 He has a bajillion things going wrong, but you wouldn’t know it.27 When I got there Saturday morning, he had already cooked himself a grand breakfast.28 I was only about ten minutes late, but he had scrambled a fabulous breakfast that was perfectly fine according to hospital rules.29 I think he didn’t know I was coming, and was enjoying his freedom.30 When I took his blood sugar, it was absolutely fine.31 We then talked and talked, and joked and joked.32 It set the tone for our entire weekend.33 We spent the entire St. Paddy’s Day weekend outside, gardening, sunbathing, and talking about old times.34 When we were inside the house, we watched re-runs of Roseanne and Golden Girls.35 How excellent.36 The rest of the world was getting ruined on alcohol and fizzies.37 We were two Irishmen loving life.38 Yesterday we went to the cemetery to visit Mom. Both of us remembered, and then forgot to get flowers from the garden in the front.39 We remembered, then forgot. I can’t emphasize that enough. Apple. Tree.40 I told him, “We can surely find flowers from here to the cemetery.”41 We laughed, and hopped into the car.42 On El Camino Real in South City, I saw this little family flower shop. I pulled over, looked at the displays, and made my choice.43 Carnations.44 My Mom was not a rose person. She LOVED carnations. This place had large carnations for $7.99, which I thought was a bargain.45 They had mini-carnations for something like $3.99, which I thought was a steal.46 They were absolutely charming. They smiled at me in their quaint perfection. The guy in the store said, “You want me to cut these short?” You gotta love it. Somehow he knew we were on our way to the cemetery.47 I bought them and said to Dad, “I think Mom will LOVE these!” He said, “She always loved carnations.”48 We went to the cemetery. The sun shone bright. It was glorious. There were tons of people and flowers there. One family had brought balloons. Must have been someone’s birthday.49 I put the flowers into the holes they provide. They looked up at the sun and smiled beautifully. Dad and I had a quiet moment. I loved it. He did the sign of the cross. He then said, “That’s about all I can stand.” He meant it literally. He can’t stand for long periods of time anymore. I chuckled and said, “You’ll be hearin’ about that one next time you see Mom!”50 He said, “When I get there, she’ll say, ‘What were you thinkin’ when you wore that shirt?’”51 <sigh>52 I could go on, but I won’t.53 We later enjoyed the sun still more, and then a wonderful dinner of corned beef, cabbage, carrots, potatoes, and rye bread.54 A pot of gold.55 That’s about all I can stand.56 For now, we’ll shorten this.57 All that needs to be said for today has been said.58 Gottago.59 Peace.~H~
www.xanga.com/bharrington
Comments (2)
Thanks for sharing
I spent post-St. Paddy’s trying to heal a near-broken friendship between my wife and her best friend. (Well, at least the friend appreciated my efforts.)
Yeesh. A guy could get into quite a pickle trying to do that. Glad to hear you’re safe!