Thank You...

To all the wonderful Veterans who have served our country loyally. To those who have served, and to those who still serve, I thank you, from the bottom of my heart. May God be with all of you.


Take the time, today especially, to thank a Veteran. When you see an old man in a restaurant or store with a service hat on (they are usually easy to spot - generally dark blue with some gold writing, naming a war, or a ship, or a branch of service), stop him, and thank him for what he did to help this country be free.

Okay, I promised more...

So here you go!

When we last left the MacDonald Clan on vacation, we discovered a visit to family on Day 5.

Day 6 of our vacation:

Pretty much what we had done for the other days, lol! We did morning beach time at Tigertail Beach. We spent the afternoon in the pool. We went out to eat that night. We ate at Su's Garden, Chinese food. All proclaimed it FANTASTIC. Scott said he had some of the best General Tso's Chicken that he'd ever eaten. I really enjoyed the chicken fried rice and crab rangoons. The kids especially loved the teriyaki beef sticks. They were skewered on wooden "kabob" sticks, and had a pineapple and cherry on each stick. They brought us a little "hibachi" (I think it had gelled sterno in it!) and we "warmed" our meat up on the grill. The kids thought it was GREAT! We did have leftovers to take home, as they served SO much.

After that, Hannah and I took a private trip to Tigertail Beach. It was low tide, and we were determined to find some more sand dollars. We headed across the lagoon, and started walking up toward the point. It was REALLY low tide, and the shells were great. As we walked in the shallow water, with the waves lapping gently around our ankles, I took a step and scared a small stingray! This freaked Hannah out! She refused to walk next to me. Of course, this meant that she would miss potential sand dollars.

BUT...as luck would have it, we were able to find THREE of them, in really good condition. I found two, and "helped" Hannah spot the 3rd one. We likely would have stayed longer, but there was a storm rolling in...the dark clouds were a bit scary, so we decided not to get caught and headed back across the lagoon (the tide was starting to come in again, so the lagoon was getting deeper).

All in all, a successful evening, and a good time with my lovely daughter.

Unfortunately, we didn't take a SINGLE picture that day! Scott wouldn't let me bring the camera in to dinner, and I was disappointed, since we had such a fun time! Oh well. More to come...

Gosh...

I'm so sorry I haven't updated this blog. I'm pathetic. I SWEAR, I am going to do some serious updating next week. I have been sick for close to two weeks now and BARELY was on the computer last week. This week, I intended to get caught up in photo editing, but once again managed to be distracted (though it was for a GREAT cause, making a video for church on Sunday - the video is about one of our missions team's trip to Thailand). In any case, there is SO much to share, and I have just been bad. Facebook is a big culprit. Blame FB!!!

It's not racially motivated

Listen...Joe Wilson comes from my state, and his comment was totally out of order (though I thought he was brave to stand up for his feelings) during President Obama's speech. But why, oh WHY did someone have to pull the race card out of those 2 words: YOU LIE.

YOU. LIE.

huh. Don't see any racial epithet there. No "n" word...no reference to color, creed, nationality. hmmmm...

Gee. I tell my kids that all the time. You LIE. Does that mean I'm making subliminal racial remarks?

Why would people automatically say that it was a racist remark..that it was motivated by race? Because they (these people who brought it up) have NO recourse...no defense. They can not deny that it is entirely plausible that Obama lied during his comment. They can not, without definite proof, accept that there will be illegal immigrants who DO get free health care coverage (they get it now, at emergency rooms all over this country).

Joe Wilson made a poor choice in voicing his opinion. Not that he voiced it, but rather, WHEN he voiced it. And he apologized. TO THE PRESIDENT HIMSELF. And in the graciousness of his office, Mr. Obama ACCEPTED it.

And President Obama doesn't think it was racially motivated:

WASHINGTON - The White House said yesterday that President Obama did not believe he was being criticized because of his race.

Spokesman Robert Gibbs said that Obama did not think that criticism of his policies was "based on the color of his skin."

Gibbs said, rather, that some people had disagreements with some of Obama's decisions

So...if Mr. President thinks so, then THAT should be good enough for everyone.

Jimmy Carter, though he is a former president, should STOP stirring the racial pot. This country spoke overwhelmingly that they did NOT see race as an issue, by electing a BLACK president. So get over it all ready. Stop pulling out that race card every time something goes against the president. It's NOT about his race...it's about his POLITICS.

The homeroom mom

Yup. That's me. The Homeroom Mom. huh. Never thought I'd do something like this! I am the homeroom mom for Hannah's 3rd grade class.

It's not a tough job, really...I just need to coordinate the parents to volunteer for certain things...

Like Duty Free Lunch. (no, for all my "border" readers, it's not a tax-free lunch, lol). Duty Free Lunch is a once a month happening. It means that the teachers get to go have lunch with other teachers, and the parents take over lunchroom duty. They bring the kids to the lunchroom, enforce the rules, assist with needs, etc.

And Staff Appreciation Day. When they PTA arranges an event each month for the entire staff. This requires volunteers to bring in items in order to make food for the staff, and also parents to help set up, serve, and clean up afterward.

Oh, don't forget parties. They only have TWO. The Holiday Party (musn't call it Christmas!), and the End-Of-Year party. Easy enough...arrange parents to bring in goodies, etc.

And other things, like "activities" (this is the term used for other celebrations, such as Valentines Day, Halloween, etc - we can't have a PARTY on those days).

Now, mind you...I DID volunteer for this position. But I have ulterior motives. Because in this school, they don't give you a name and address list. You see, back in KS, the PTA provided a school directory. This was a handy thing to have. It was great if you needed to contact a parent in your child's class. It was especially great if you wanted to send out invitations to a party. Because, as with all schools, you are no longer allowed to distribute invitations at school unless you include all the children (heaven forbid someone's feelings get hurt). And I'm NOT about to have a party for 20-some odd children in my home, nor am I willing to fork out BIG BUCKS to rent a roller rink or some other "venue" (we have Monkey Joe's and Monkey Business, both great places, but not some place I want to sink a few hundred dollars into, thankyouverrrrrymuch).

So...since we don't have access to any addresses, how are we supposed to invite kids "out of school"? They don't provide anything. You're outta luck...basically. Unless you get your child to ask her friends for their telephone numbers, and then call each of the parents and get their addresses to send out invites. Yeah. Not happening.

BUT....

As the homeroom parent, I will HOPEFULLY have everyone's email and/or phone number, along with their childrens' names. Now, don't get all bent out of shape. I'm not planning on using this to promote my business (LinMac Photography), nor will I distribute junk mail or email or spam to these people. But I WILL use the list to my advantage, ONE time, in January.

So...wish me luck getting volunteers. I've typed up my volunteer letter, and will be bringing it to school later today. Let's hope for the best. I don't want to be doing Duty Free every month!

A Sad Farewell

Today, I attended a memorial service. For a man I did not know. Because I knew I must. For him.

CW5 Robert O. O'Brien was a bandmaster in the U.S. Army. He died here in Columbia, SC, back in April of this year. Scott knew him, but not well...Mr. O'Brien was one of the people who sat in on Scott's warrant officer audition years ago.

We didn't know he died. I get the local paper every day, and yes, I read the obituaries. Always have. So, I would have seen an obituary, had it been printed. When Scott found out he died, it was early May. I still had the papers for several weeks back, and I combed through the obituaries. I went online to The State and checked there, thinking I might have missed it. There was nothing. That was so odd.

Because Bob retired here in 2003, and you'd think that an obituary would have been placed here by his family. But there was nothing...no mention of a funeral, or a service. It was as though he were nothing...

I combed the internet to try and find something...anything about Bob. There was a small snippet from some class reunion site, which said:

Robert O. O'Brien...musician, beloved son of the late Joseph and Margaret, died April
21, 2009 in Columbia, South Carolina. His early love of music led to a distinguished career as arranger and band leader in the U.S. military. He is mourned by Geoffrey, Carly, Heather, LaVerne, Yasoko and Harriet. (From New York Times Obituary)

That was IT? Nothing about his life other than a snippet of his career? No "he will be sadly missed by his brother, etc.". I continued to look, thinking that this man had been forgotten. I found this, from a website for the Fort Ord Band:

CW5 (ret) Robert O. O’Brien passed away on 21 April 2009, after a long struggle with cancer, in Columbia, South Carolina. I had hoped to have more details, but they have not been forthcoming and an obituary is not yet available. He was a member of the USMA Band, 1966-1971. Without details, I can only estimate his age at the time of his passing at approximately 64.

Bob enlisted for the USMA Band in 1966 as an arranger, joining Ken Whitcomb, already on the staff, assisted by Chuck Collazzi who was an outstanding guitarist and copyist. By Dec of that year he was appointed a CWO, then quickly promoted to CW2, giving the arranging staff of the USMA Band a complement of two Warrant Officers and several copyists. On 14 Dec 1969, he was separated from service then received
a Direct Commission to 2nd Lieutenant on 15 Dec 1969. With that, he became the Chief Arranger upon CW3 Ken Whitcomb’s departure, remaining until 1971. As an additional duty he was also the Combo Officer, arranging some commitments and collecting payments for disbursement, before that type of thing evolved into the current system. Bob then left service once again for about two years, re-entering later as an Army Bandmaster, again was appointed a CWO and embarked on his new career as a Warrant Officer Bandmaster.

Bob went to the Warrant Officer Senior Course at Ft. Benjamin Harrison in 1988. CWO O’Brien was highly talented, innovative, and his bands performed extremely well under his Command. He eventually became the Staff Bands Officer for CONARC (sic TRADOC). He attained the rank of CW5 and worked in the Band proponency office for C, AB in 2000. After completing that posting, he retired in June 2003 to
Columbia , South Carolina. After leaving the Army a second time, he had formed his own music publishing company for a couple of years....."

A much better, and more fitting tribute to this man. What he deserved...what people should have known and been told about him.

What he did not deserve, however, was what happened after his death. He was cremated, but no other plans were ever made for him. Finally, after some time, his sister-in-law was contacted and eventually, a memorial service was planned for him. Since he was a bandmaster, Scott wanted to show him all the respect due a CW5 bandmaster, and offered to provide a full band, something not usually done for most military funerals.

His memorial service was held at the new Ft. Jackson National Cemetery. There were 12 people there, not counting the band, honor guard, firing party and cemetery employees. TWELVE people (including me). Of those 12, six people likely didn't know him well, or at all. I didn't know him, but having heard his story, I was determined to be there; determined that this man deserved at least a few people to bid him farewell. The band came in dress blues...they were sharp and somber.

We all stood. The band played a song as the flag was unfurled (apparently, they weren't even going to do this, but Scott insisted they do this the right way and honor Mr. O'Brien properly). The firing party shot its 3 rounds. The bugler played a moving and beautiful rendition of Taps. The band played another song as the flag was folded. The flag was presented to Mr. O'Brien's real estate agent. Yeah...you read THAT right. No one in his family was here. That broke my heart. NO ONE bothered to come from his family.

After the flag was presented, the funeral director made some noises about why the family didn't come, why he was taking pictures, etc. But in the end, the final point was clear. This man died, and his family didn't come.

After all was said and done, there was some small talk at the ceremony site. I went up to Bob's urn and said a little prayer. I hope that what happened today helped a bit. That he is up in heaven, and he knows that he wasn't forgotten and was treated with dignity and respect. I prayed that he knew God and was now whole and healthy again.

Because in the end, you don't want to be alone, forgotten.

I hope that one day, when I die, people are there for me.

well, I'm on a ROLL! (Day 5)

Figured I could put up another day or so!

We are now on Day 5 - Friday:

We went to St. James City (near Ft. Myers) to visit my aunt and uncle (mom's oldest sister, Dorothy). I have not seen them in a LONG time (about 28 years!). Uncle Jack had some blood clots pass through his lungs, so he doesn't get around much. It was so nice to see Uncle Jack and Aunt Dot again.


Aunt Dorothy (Dot) and Uncle Jack (John)


Me with my aunt and uncle.

This is one aunt and uncle that we haven't seen much, since they don't live near all the rest of the family. Uncle Jack (who has a great interest in geneology) discovered that my great-grandmother, Annie Long, was decended of a gentleman named Phillip Long - who was a Scottish Presbyterian (MacDonald is Scottish-Presbyterian...go figure!!). Also that he (Phillip) was not a good man, as he GAVE away American secrets during the Revolutionary War...probably why he headed to Canada, lol! So it turns out that we have a turncoat in our family. Such is life!

We spent several hours there and then headed back home. As you head east on Veteran's Parkway (or is it Stringfellow?), there's a neat little town called Matlacha, on a small island, which was quite colorful. I didn't take pictures, unfortunately. This is part of the Pine Island area, which is where St. James City is found. They have crazy painted telephone poles too...it was fun to try and spot them!

We took Rt. 41 and enjoyed the trip down...even with the many lights, it was neat to see all the little towns. Once we arrived back to Marco Island, we decided to eat at The Crazy Flamingo. We were going to try this restaurant the night we ended up at Almost Famous Mel's. We weren't able to find the Crazy Flamingo that night, because even though the address was Collier Blvd, it really WASN'T on Collier. But we looked it up and decided to go. I do wish we hadn't, for the most part. It was a small "bar" type restaurant. The food wasn't that great, and was rather pricey. Scotty and I had fried ravioli - it was my understanding that it was dipped in a batter first. That's how I've had fried ravioli before...but, NOPE. They just threw regular old ravioli into the fryer. The only redeeming quality of the restaurant was that they played Christian music the entire time. That really surprised me. It's rare that you'll get a restaurant that tunes into a Christian radio station! Oh well...not every restaurant has good food.

We went back home; everyone was tired. I think everyone went to bed early!!!

so...where WAS I??? (Day 4 vacation)

oh yeah - DAY 4 of vacation...can't believe that I've not posted it more. Easily distracted, I guess.

So. Day 4 was Thursday:

We decided to drive to Ft. Lauderdale! Scott's aunt Alice lives there...but she WASN'T there this time. She happened to be up in the 'Burgh visiting her sisters and nieces and great nieces. Oh well...maybe next time! We crossed over Alligator Alley, which is really I-75. We've been over this many times, but I had NEVER seen an alligator. Always wondered why they called it Alligator Alley, if there weren't gators. Of course, they have fences all along it and the canals, so it's not like the gators are crossing the highway. But...I saw MANY this time around, all in the canals and water...mostly heads or snouts, but one entire body. We arrived in Ft. Lauderdale just in time for lunch, so we went to Primanti Brothers (see post about this) and I got to eat my favorite #2 Pittsburgher sandwich. The kids proclaimed pizza FANTASTIC and ate every bit of it. After lunch, we moved the car from the metered (quarter for 12 minutes, folks!) spot, and headed to another parking area, where you pay for hours at a time instead of minutes. Ft. Lauderdale has parking right along A1A; you just have to cross the road and you're at the beach. So we went to the beach again, this time on the Atlantic ocean.

Looking north up the beach. Notice the beautiful shades of water!

The sand and water are MUCH different here. The sand is hotter and brown (while the sand on Marco is white and cool).The water was incredibly clear and cooler. SO pretty. The kids really enjoyed swimming here, as the waves were not as big as on the gulf. We didn't find any shells really, but several pieces of coral.

Scotty lays down in the water


kids in the clear water


Hannah braves the Atlantic


We got to see the Goodyear Blimp flying around. That was something the kids had never seen!

After spending a few hours here, we headed back to Marco. A storm chased us all the way home, but we managed to avoid it, with just a few spits of rain here and there. Saw many more alligators in the Everglades. Cool! We got home in time for supper and ate our leftovers from Almost Famous Mel's. We then spent time in the pool relaxing.