Memory Lane

As so often happens, time has escaped me again. Heaven knows where it hangs it's hat but I am sure that it is somewhere where time has no end nor any meaning.

Well with that now out of the way I must try to play some catchup with all the most recent events which have transpired over the past 2 months. Mike and Jen are still enjoying their life of work and adventure in the lands down under though since mid July they have moved on to the much bigger counterpart known as Australia. They have kept us well informed on their travels with words and pictures (how true it is that a picture is worth more than a thousand words) ie: crushing boulders and strength unlimited! Am really looking forward to next year when Mike & Jen step back into our world again. Miss them so much but at the same time am so glad that they are doing this while they are yet young enough to enjoy it as well as the careers which they have worked so hard to attain that are in demand in other countries.

Mel, Ty and Neish went on a 3.5 week trip to Eastern Canada, New York city, Niagara Falls, with a return trip all across the top sections of the USA. They took hundreds of pictures and more importantly had a terrific trip. I was most fortunate to be invited to step in and fill Neish's shoes delivering her flyers. The weather was so darn hot I nearly died from heat exhaustion but determination came to the rescue. It is really nice to have them back home safe and sound.

Ter & Kim are working hard trying to build up their painting business but with Ter's back injury it does sometimes make it difficult to keep up a steady ongoing pace. I babysit their 2 young daughters now; Aria is 6 and Jersey is 4. They are most times quite priceless and easy to look after. Through a few trials and errors we have managed to glide smoothly over the few rough spots that have found their way in.

The month of October is really a busy month for birthdays and anniversaries. Geoff's & my anniversary, Me now 60, Neish 14, and many many more family birthdays then in Nov a few more birthdays. Gosh one would think we are all getting old or something.

It seems this whole year is slipping by just way too fast. Seems like it was only January a short time ago and now here we are in mid October. I am still battling my liver disease and rather than feeling like I am making progress I know that I am getting worse and worse. I seem to be so tired all the time and absolutely getting nothing really accomplished that I want to get done.

Halloween is just around the corner and as usual Mel & Ty have already got everything out for their Halloween yard display. This year features the headless bride and groom along with all their other fright night  sights. Already they have had people touring slowly past both day and night. If you have the nerve and the courage do slide on over to their hauntingly haunted house. 

Was thinking about Thotman and his recent blog which was on Materialism in a Spiritual World; as so often is the way his thots provoke my thoughts into commission.

Of late it seems so many of us blogger's have either found other avenues of expression or have had our lives altered by outside influences or possibly a mixture of both.

So hence 3 new albums have found their way onto memory lane;

Friends of Yesteryear and today - such fond memories fill my world with rich rewards of those who have been a part of my life. Sadly though I do not have pictures of many others who helped shaped me into who I am today.

Nostalgia Lane - Early television shows were new to most people who lived in my era; it was truly a shocking phenomenon and became indelibly etched into my subconscious mind forever. Mickey Mouse Club, Lone Ranger, Cisco Kid, Zorro and many many more. Again I do not any of those pictures.

Fond memories - When my children were young, some of the places we saw, the farm where I grew up, my husband, his sister, the school buses I drove, badlands, trip to Montreal by air and the buses Geoff and I drove back. So many more memories flood my memory bank but again do not have those pictures to commemorate those sweet and precious moments back there in time.

Sometimes some things weigh heavily
on my mind and no matter what I do
I just cannot seem to get past them
until I have verbalized my thoughts
and/or do something constructive
about it. In this case it is about
a young friend whom I cherish but
who also has a rough road to travel.
It is hard enough being a teenager
without added senseless stress
strapped on young shoulders. Please
read the following 2 poems; hopefully
I have managed to convey how deeply
I feel about this and how hard it
must be to be treated unfairly.
Wish I could be her special Gramma!

BALANCED FORM - (APR 22/08)
never say your child's not good enough
to be what you want not up to snuff
forcing them to what you deem is right
roughly throws them into frantic plight
be thankful they are not into drugs
better yet not one of gangster thugs
be proud of the good friends they choose
let them learn on their own win or lose
activities impeach balanced form
choosing their own is part of the norm
so what if their grades are not top grade
praise lovingly for achievements made
    copyright 2008 Marlene E Purvis

HARDER THEY TRY - (APR 22/08)
some parents truly just don't understand
how harping destroys those in their command
true we have expectations and desires
what we perceive best for our destined sires
do we care how they feel deep down inside
realize how much we take from their pride

belittling such a sweet innocent child
will not take too long till they drive them wild
perhaps down the road taking their own life
not knowing how else to end all this strife
perfection deemed for heavenly beings
us here on earth receive much less blessings

feel somehow must help them open their eyes
before too late hearing friends sobbing whys
emotional mental abuse rank high
child's frustration mounts harder they try
continual battle never be won
never ending dead end streets not fun
    copyright 2008 Marlene E Purvis

Today a special poem for
a special space friend!

THOTMAN THOTS - (FEB 21/08)
ever done a space walk
not the outer limits kind
well worth stopping off
inner workings of the mind

literary knack
thots that inspire
every conceivable thot
conveys heart striking
emotionally charged bonds
striking memory chords
hits home ground
travels abroad
bounces back
honesty thwack

cognitive thots deserve merit
step boldly in Thotman's world
breathe in deep each poignant thot 
realize thot processes now unfurled

copyright (c) 2008 Marlene E Purvis

This is so extraordinary that I would be
remiss not to shout it out to the world.

From the time that Neish was 15 months old
she has developed a love for movies. Her and
her Grampa Geoff probably watched Walt Disney's
Beauty and the Beast close to 3 times a day for
at least 6 months to a year. In the first five
years of her life this became her all time
favorite movie. Even to this day Neish has
certain movies which she loves and can devote
herself to re-watching them over and over again.
Not only does she watch animated movies with this
much intrigue but also great movies like Titanic
and Gone with the Wind. (although they bring her
instantly to tears of sadness)

When Neish and her mom moved to Moose Jaw another
one of her senses was greatly influenced by her
introduction to live theatre. Ev and George, her
day care providers, were an awesome couple who were
deeply involved in producing their own productions.
Neish and Mel attended nearly every one of these
productions in the years they lived there.

Every so often Neish, Mel and Ty attend these live
performances and can attest to enjoying each and
every one they have seen. Last October Mel and I
ordered tickets for Beauty and the Beast which
we attended last night. This was my first time
ever to attend such a performance. I had no idea
what to expect especially when it was an animated
movie now being transformed into full life.

At first I was quite uncertain if I was going to
enjoy it but it wasn't long until I was deeply
moved by the acting abilities displayed as well
as the beautiful singing of everyone involved.
Hannah, who played Belle, has a beautiful and
most incredible voice and one can tell she loves
to sing. Her eyes were bright and sparkling along
with her whole being totally thrown into the part
she was playing. Mrs. Potts, the Wardrobe and so
many more were just as incredible.

Along with the individual singing the whole troupe
was exceptional. The acting combined with the occasional
display of humorous antics, especially those of Lumiere
and Cogsworth, were well appreciated. Gaston and his
cohort Lefou were superb as well as everyone else in
the show. Lefou's energy flowed naturally. I would
be remiss not to mention Gaston's great recovery. I
cannot single out every one but in case any of those
involved do happen to read this please be assured that
you are all included in this as well. Each and every
one of these people brought this show to life and helped
make this a show to remember!

Sometimes I think my daughter hates my critical nature
as I hate most TV shows and rarely watch movies as I
am not a real movie fanatic. Very few movies grab me
and make me wanna stayed tuned. So please believe me
when I say I thoroughly enjoyed this theatrical play
of "BEAUTY AND THE BEAST" I honestly do believe we
have great talent here in our fair city. RAH RAH RAH!

Well today sort of starts a new day. I have finally managed
to complete the sorting and cataloguing of all my poetry.

This process took much longer than it should have as my
printer balked a bit with the 100 pages per volume so had
to adjust it to a more reasonable level.

Once the decision of making 40 pages the magic number
was in motion then there seemed to be no looking back;
although at many times the decision to scrap it all did
try to slip in but that notion was quickly tossed out.

Talk about insanity! How could I even think of something
that horrific after all the hours and days and months
I had devoted to this task.

Sometimes I think the human mind is just all too powerful!

Up to this point in time I now have a total of 22 complete
volumes; working on volume 23. I hope to soon get them all
printed. Once complete then will put 12 volumes into each
of the two editions I am planning to utilize.

Just to give you a rough idea each volume has about 70
poems so that means I will have written nearly 1800 poem
by the time I reach volume 25. At this point in time I have
just over 1575 poems.

I started writing poetry as a release for my pent up emotions
as it seemed I had no way to vent them. To keep them bottled
up inside would release a violent storm leaving me stranded
in the destruction I had caused thereby increasing the need
to make even more amends. Most times once I have put them to
paper they seem to alleviate; some tend to totally disappear.

In later years I wrote in a different style to try to help
relieve the stress my daughter was feeling by perhaps adding
some humor to kick start her day. This trend has carried on
now for at least five years so I still write a poem a day so
as to carry on this tradition. There is a good probability
that these daily readings will be missed once I am gone but
at least once these are put in print then all of them will
have the opportunity to read them all again and again.

They say variety is the spice of life; Amongst the pages of
these volumes one should find such awesome treasures; an
array of spices to compliment their lives.

For those of you who have felt abandoned over the past few
months I do ask that you try to forgive me. Even though it
seems we have lost contact I can assure each and every one
of you that you have always been in my thoughts. Many of
you are among these pages of my literary collection for you
are all my dearest friends.

© copyright 2007 Marlene E Purvis

Jen's Grad June 14/07

We left home at 0545 for Calgary. We arrived
about 0845 at the University of Calgary with
phone directions from Mike as to where to go
and where to park. Once inside we procured
good seats near the front and surprisingly
not far from where Jen would be seated.

The ceremony started at 0945 with a jazz
band entrance of all the officials of the
U of C followed by staff and a solo bagpipe.

A surprise for us was the honorary degree
bestowed upon Murray McLauchlan for his
accomplishments and his talents. Murray is
a songwriter/singer who has received 9 Juno
Awards and has 19 albums out.

I have put up a new album Jen's Grad June 14

After the ceremony and a few pictures we all
travelled to the Taj Mahal for their superb smorg.

After gifts and an enjoyable visit we left
for home arriving about 1800. Very tired
but also very glad we were able to go.

Way to go JEN! Rah Rah Rah Love ya lots

Goat Farm Visit - Sunday June 10/07

We decided to travel East about 2 hours to
visit Teresa and Walter and to see their
goat farm. My sister, Teresa, had told me
they had lots of baby goats and that they
were so adorable. So we just had to head
out there to see how adorable they were.
Check out the new Album; you will agree!

We decided to take 2 of our granddaughters,
Aneisha and Aria, and Neish's friend Taylor.

We all had a great time and we all got to
ride on the Quad to check out the farm.
The view from the hill top was fantastic.

Lots of fresh air, fun and exercise as well
as great food and company made for a very
memorable day.

Must be sure to make time to get out there
again before too long.

Thank you Teresa and Walter! Love ya!