Monday, July 09, 2007
Austin Vacation
KT & I had a great vacation in Austin. It was mellow, which is exactly what we needed. Almost right after KT finished his first year of teaching at MSSD, we took off for Austin.
We landed in Austin in the late morning. Got ourselves a rental car, a Dodge Caliber. Nice car that's somewhat a smaller version of a Toyota Matrix. However, it is a gas guzzler.
Of course, the first person I had to see was one of my closest friends, Barbie. We met up for lunch along with her husband. It was so so so good to see her.
That night, we met up with some Deafies at Taco Cabana: Rosey, Brandy, Jillian (visiting from PA), LaDonna, Julie and her son, Ronlee. It was so good to see them.
Well, what do you know? It rained in Austin. In fact, it flooded in some areas outside of Austin. So, that meant that we couldn't go to Barton Creek Springs or Lake Travis because of the high levels of bacteria. So, we just went swimming at the community pool in Barbie's subdivision.
However, it was really nice to just relax with a couple of books. Catch up on stuff with Barbie. Eat out at cool places. Check out some places.
Over the weekend, KT & I drove down to San Antonio to see family and friends. Dad seems to doing ok with his wife in the Valley. My other relatives seems to be doing alright in their own ways.
I took KT to the zoo, which is totally different than I remembered as a kid. Isn't it fascinating how things seemed "cool" when you were a kid. But as you get older and return, you're like...what is all this crap?!?!
That night, we went out to the Riverwalk. It's such a great place to go people watching.
Our visit to San Antonio was short and sweet. I only went there just to see my grandmother who was put in a nursing home during Thanksgiving week. (I will blog about that another day.) Plus, I wanted to see my mom's grave.
Well, what can I say? The last time, KT & I went to Austin, we fell in love with it. This time, it only confirmed that we're still in love with Austin. So, guess what? We're thinking of relocating there next year in the summer. That is...if we can find a job. However, we do feel that it will happen. So, all goes well, it's gonna be a fun summer next year!
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We landed in Austin in the late morning. Got ourselves a rental car, a Dodge Caliber. Nice car that's somewhat a smaller version of a Toyota Matrix. However, it is a gas guzzler.
Of course, the first person I had to see was one of my closest friends, Barbie. We met up for lunch along with her husband. It was so so so good to see her.
That night, we met up with some Deafies at Taco Cabana: Rosey, Brandy, Jillian (visiting from PA), LaDonna, Julie and her son, Ronlee. It was so good to see them.
Well, what do you know? It rained in Austin. In fact, it flooded in some areas outside of Austin. So, that meant that we couldn't go to Barton Creek Springs or Lake Travis because of the high levels of bacteria. So, we just went swimming at the community pool in Barbie's subdivision.
However, it was really nice to just relax with a couple of books. Catch up on stuff with Barbie. Eat out at cool places. Check out some places.
Over the weekend, KT & I drove down to San Antonio to see family and friends. Dad seems to doing ok with his wife in the Valley. My other relatives seems to be doing alright in their own ways.
I took KT to the zoo, which is totally different than I remembered as a kid. Isn't it fascinating how things seemed "cool" when you were a kid. But as you get older and return, you're like...what is all this crap?!?!
That night, we went out to the Riverwalk. It's such a great place to go people watching.
Our visit to San Antonio was short and sweet. I only went there just to see my grandmother who was put in a nursing home during Thanksgiving week. (I will blog about that another day.) Plus, I wanted to see my mom's grave.
Well, what can I say? The last time, KT & I went to Austin, we fell in love with it. This time, it only confirmed that we're still in love with Austin. So, guess what? We're thinking of relocating there next year in the summer. That is...if we can find a job. However, we do feel that it will happen. So, all goes well, it's gonna be a fun summer next year!
Labels: family, friends, vacation
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Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Hunger of Memory
I've just finished reading "Hunger of Memory: The Education of Richard Rodriguez". I found it to be an ok autobiographical read. I was somewhat disappointed in it because Rodriguez seemed to dwell too much on language (Spanish & English). However, there were other parts about the book that I liked. I liked his personal accounts of assimilating American values and his minority status in higher education.
Anyways, what I liked best was his portrayal of his mother. His portrayal reminded me so much of my mother.
- Family...a private matter. A lot of Hispanic families, especially mothers, believe that family matters are private. My mother used to tell me, all the time, that we don't "air dirty laundry". What happens in the family stays in the family. My mother would chew me out and pinch me if she ever found out that I shared some personal information. She hated it when I shared such information with my cousins. Of course, there were some things that were private and then there were some things that were not a big deal. I guess life as an open book is a foreign concept.
- Facial expressions. Hispanic mothers are experts with relaying the mood of the situation with their faces, especially their eyes. You knew right away if the situation was serious or if you were in trouble. Not a word had to be said. For me, it was worse looking at my mother stern eyes and hearing her hiss 'come here' That only made me wanna run in the opposite direction. But I knew that if I even took a step backward, it would involve my father and that was the last thing I would want. So, with "a tail between my legs", I'd go and face my mother's wrath.
Now, I just look back and laugh. I'd look at my cousins and I'd say, "you are so like your mother". Of course, that'll earn me a couple of cuss words from them.
For me, I'm not as limited as to what can be shared or not in regards to family matters. There are a few stuff that I'll tell KT, "don't you dare". Then, I'll re-evaluate and laugh as to why I considered a particular stuff as dirty laundry. I guess we all want a good life.
As for the evil eye, I guess I'll wait til I have kids of my own to use it.
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Saturday, December 09, 2006
In Memory
Today would've been my mother's 51st birthday.
Happy Birthday, Mom!
Love & miss you much!
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Happy Birthday, Mom!
Love & miss you much!
Labels: family
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Thursday, December 07, 2006
Grandma
Yesterday, I was pretty upset after discovering news about my grandmother.
Since my mother passed aways almost 3 years ago, I've kept regular touch with my cousin Susan via email. However, since September, we've not had regular contact. She had to have surgery on her hands, due to carpel tunnel syndrome. She had one hand operated and recuperated for 3 weeks before she had surgery on the other hand. Now, she has to rest her hands for 3 months.
However, she just had to let me know about my grandma (her aunt). Before I start, the last thing I had heard about Grandma was that Dad and his older brother, flying in from Pittsburgh, would visit her on Thanksgiving. This was a couple of days before Turkey Day. Dad and I keep in touch like once every blue moon.
My grandmother has her own house. I'm not sure if she lives alone. Everytime, I'd go there, she always had some family staying with her in one of the bedrooms. However, from the stories I've gotten from relatives, it seems that she was living by herself this time.
According to Susan, Grandma has been slowing losing her mind. They're not sure if it's Alzheimer's or if it's stress-induced senility. My great-grandmother became partially senile during her last years. She pretty much recognized everyone. The only thing was that she always thought Grandma was her mother.
Grandma is another story. She has lost a few marbles. It got to the point where my Aunt Lucy moved her in with her so she could watch over her. Now, my aunt isn't exactly good health to be taking care of someone else. However, my aunt thought it was doable. Wrong! Grandma would try to strip off her clothes. She would try to escape from the house and wander off. These actions kept my aunt up 4 days straight.
My cousin drove down from Austin to help out my aunt. My aunt basically collapsed from exhaustion. Susan took care of Grandma. She said Grandma would curse her but then turn around and bless her repeatedly. She kept calling my cousin by another name. She would just babble on and on.
Afterwards, my aunt called a social worker about Grandma. After review, they decided it was best to put Grandma in a nursing home.
Susan said, my dad didn't show up to see her until after she was put in a nursing home.
Oh, I was livid! I heard nothing from Dad nor from Aunt Mary (Mom's baby sister).
So, I called up my aunt via Relay. I somewhat chewed her out for not keeping me updated. Her excuse was that she was too busy, due to the holidays. I'm sure she wasn't too busy to keep in touch with my other aunt in Chicago.
Anyways, she tells a different story. She said, according to Dad, that it was him and my uncle who found her at her home, naked, starving and talking to herself. She said it was them who put her in a nursing home. Apparently, my aunt doesn't know about my other aunt taking care of Grandma.
So, I'm getting 2 different stories. I was just really upset. After Kevin picked me up from work, I vented to him.
However, the more I thought about it, the more I realized that we can't blame each other. After all, Grandma was left alone. I'm sure everyone felt guilty, just like I did.
I could say that Mom would have never allowed this. Mom was always checking up on Grandma. She used to tell me that Grandma was getting older and that we'd have to prepare for the time when we'd have to have Grandma move in with us.
You see, Mom used to make me promise that if she got old, to never put her in a nursing home. My aunt, my grandma and Mom felt so bad when they had to put GrannyMa (my great-grandmother) in a nursing home. So, Mom always said that Grandma wouldn't be put in one. Well, Mom's gone. She was the glue that held us all together. After she died, we all kinda went our separate ways. However, I know that's not a good excuse. Mom's gone and we have to work together to keep the family together.
Yet, realistically, Grandma is better off at a nursing home. My aunt cannot take care of her. Her health isn't good. Dad has moved out of town and is dealing with his own issues. I'm way out here in the DC area.
Grandma is always kind. She may be weird but you know...she's my Grandma. Mom thought she was just absolutely hilarious. I love her. I may not always show it but I do. She was the one who used to sneak me out on rides with her. She'd teach me signs. She was a special ed teacher. I vividly remember my first sentences in signs: "I WANT HOTDOG. I WANT HAMBURGER."
Anyways, I told my aunt to get all the necessary information to I can keep in touch with Grandma. I'm gonna make an effort to keep regular contacts with her. She's my only living grandparent that I have now. So, I wanna make sure that she knows that I do love her and that she's in my heart and in my mind.
So, be sure you let your grandparents know that you love them and think of them.
UPDATE:
Ugh! After I posted this, I called my aunt to get Grandma's new contact information. Just found out that Dad is moving her to another nursing home. Ugh! Wish he would communicate with me!
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Since my mother passed aways almost 3 years ago, I've kept regular touch with my cousin Susan via email. However, since September, we've not had regular contact. She had to have surgery on her hands, due to carpel tunnel syndrome. She had one hand operated and recuperated for 3 weeks before she had surgery on the other hand. Now, she has to rest her hands for 3 months.
However, she just had to let me know about my grandma (her aunt). Before I start, the last thing I had heard about Grandma was that Dad and his older brother, flying in from Pittsburgh, would visit her on Thanksgiving. This was a couple of days before Turkey Day. Dad and I keep in touch like once every blue moon.
My grandmother has her own house. I'm not sure if she lives alone. Everytime, I'd go there, she always had some family staying with her in one of the bedrooms. However, from the stories I've gotten from relatives, it seems that she was living by herself this time.
According to Susan, Grandma has been slowing losing her mind. They're not sure if it's Alzheimer's or if it's stress-induced senility. My great-grandmother became partially senile during her last years. She pretty much recognized everyone. The only thing was that she always thought Grandma was her mother.
Grandma is another story. She has lost a few marbles. It got to the point where my Aunt Lucy moved her in with her so she could watch over her. Now, my aunt isn't exactly good health to be taking care of someone else. However, my aunt thought it was doable. Wrong! Grandma would try to strip off her clothes. She would try to escape from the house and wander off. These actions kept my aunt up 4 days straight.
My cousin drove down from Austin to help out my aunt. My aunt basically collapsed from exhaustion. Susan took care of Grandma. She said Grandma would curse her but then turn around and bless her repeatedly. She kept calling my cousin by another name. She would just babble on and on.
Afterwards, my aunt called a social worker about Grandma. After review, they decided it was best to put Grandma in a nursing home.
Susan said, my dad didn't show up to see her until after she was put in a nursing home.
Oh, I was livid! I heard nothing from Dad nor from Aunt Mary (Mom's baby sister).
So, I called up my aunt via Relay. I somewhat chewed her out for not keeping me updated. Her excuse was that she was too busy, due to the holidays. I'm sure she wasn't too busy to keep in touch with my other aunt in Chicago.
Anyways, she tells a different story. She said, according to Dad, that it was him and my uncle who found her at her home, naked, starving and talking to herself. She said it was them who put her in a nursing home. Apparently, my aunt doesn't know about my other aunt taking care of Grandma.
So, I'm getting 2 different stories. I was just really upset. After Kevin picked me up from work, I vented to him.
However, the more I thought about it, the more I realized that we can't blame each other. After all, Grandma was left alone. I'm sure everyone felt guilty, just like I did.
I could say that Mom would have never allowed this. Mom was always checking up on Grandma. She used to tell me that Grandma was getting older and that we'd have to prepare for the time when we'd have to have Grandma move in with us.
You see, Mom used to make me promise that if she got old, to never put her in a nursing home. My aunt, my grandma and Mom felt so bad when they had to put GrannyMa (my great-grandmother) in a nursing home. So, Mom always said that Grandma wouldn't be put in one. Well, Mom's gone. She was the glue that held us all together. After she died, we all kinda went our separate ways. However, I know that's not a good excuse. Mom's gone and we have to work together to keep the family together.
Yet, realistically, Grandma is better off at a nursing home. My aunt cannot take care of her. Her health isn't good. Dad has moved out of town and is dealing with his own issues. I'm way out here in the DC area.
Grandma is always kind. She may be weird but you know...she's my Grandma. Mom thought she was just absolutely hilarious. I love her. I may not always show it but I do. She was the one who used to sneak me out on rides with her. She'd teach me signs. She was a special ed teacher. I vividly remember my first sentences in signs: "I WANT HOTDOG. I WANT HAMBURGER."
Anyways, I told my aunt to get all the necessary information to I can keep in touch with Grandma. I'm gonna make an effort to keep regular contacts with her. She's my only living grandparent that I have now. So, I wanna make sure that she knows that I do love her and that she's in my heart and in my mind.
So, be sure you let your grandparents know that you love them and think of them.
UPDATE:
Ugh! After I posted this, I called my aunt to get Grandma's new contact information. Just found out that Dad is moving her to another nursing home. Ugh! Wish he would communicate with me!
Labels: family
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