I sure do miss them!

This week has been kinda hard on me. March 27th my grandmother passed away 10 years ago and a year ago today a very close friend of mine passed away. I have been thinking about them A LOT this past month. I'm going to tell you a little about both of them...

My Nanny:

Nanny was AWESOME!!! She and my Paw Paw helped raise me. When my sperm-donor (father) left, my Paw Paw built a house behind theirs for my mom, my sister and I. So, from the time I was 3 years old until I was 21 I lived behind my grandparents. So, I guess you could say I was just a little spoiled. Since my mom had to work, my Nanny would watch my sister and I during the day. I remember when I was 3 years old (I do remember this, I have a very abnormal memory.) Nanny and I were grocery shopping at Weingarten's in Channelview and there was muzac playing and I was dancing around the shopping cart, when we got home she asked me if I wanted to take dance lessons. Of course I said yes, and that is how I started dancing. She sewed the majority of my dance costumes, she never missed a dance recital, football game, spring show, etc... My friends would come over and we would go sit in Nanny's room and take turns playing Tetris with her. (Yes, Nanny had a Nintendo hooked up in her room and played Tetris the majority of the time.) She always called me punkin and sugie (pronounced like sugar only replace the ar with a long e sound.) Because she helped raise my sister and I, we did not have the normal grandparent/grandchild relationship. Usually, grandparents won't discipline their grandchild...Well, Nanny had no problem telling us what we had done wrong. I will say this, she had the fastest hand in all of Texas. She did not mind giving us a good slap on the cheek. Please don't think she was a mean grandmother, usually we deserved it. She taught me to be a lady...Always sit with your legs crossed at the ankle not at the knee, things like that. Her favorite phrase was..."Nice young ladies don't________." Apparently when she was growing up in the 30's, nice young ladies didn't do much of anything. Some of my favorite memories are from the summer after I graduated high school. She and I would sit in her bedroom and talk while we listened to talk radio. I would get up early to go to her house so I could listen to John Matthews, Rush Limbaugh and Mike Richards. (Her urn has probably fallen off the shelf after finding out that John Matthews is now in jail and Rush Limbaugh was addicted to pain medication.) The first election I was able to vote, she was the one that took me to the polls and when we got back to the house she called Mike Richards and talked to him on the air and told him this..."Mike, I just wanted to call and tell you how proud I am of my granddaughter. She voted in her first election and voted a straight Republican ticket." She passed away right after my 21st birthday, I really wish she could have lived long enough to see the woman I have become. I miss you Nanny!

Mike:

I know that I never name names on this blog, but the friend of mine that passed away a year ago's name was Mike. Mike was like the father I never had. He was the executive vice-president of the company I worked for. He taught me so much. There were so many nights that he, a co-worker, and I would go to Pappacito's and drink and talk for HOURS. He always had the best advice, and his advice would usually start with "Hear me now, believe me later." or end wth "It is what it is." I would often joke with him that he should adopt me. Everyone loved Mike, he was one of those bosses that you could go sit in his office and tell him about all your personal problems and he would just sit and listen. When I was promoted at the company we worked at together, he took me under his wing. He was the first "mentor" I have ever had. Because of Mike, I became the control freak that I am now. He taught me about cost analysis, margins, etc. He gave me tools in business that could never be taught in a classroom. I miss him bumming cigarettes off me, I miss hours long conversations about life, and I miss our daily meetings going over fuel margins. Going over margins was the time of day I looked forward to the most. It was our time, and once the business talk was over we would discuss whatever was going on in our lives at that time. I hope all of you have a boss like Mike at one point in your career.

Until next time...

Single Girl