Okay, I kinda omitted details about the wedding and preparations. So, here goes.
With only six weeks to prepare, I was frantic. Joe and I decided to forego invitations, opting to send out announcements after the event. We decided to only invite family and very close friends. As mentioned before, my family were no-shows other than one uncle and his wife. Same with friends...only Al and Marion Kliemann attended. Joe's family and friends made up for it though. And I was so sick, I didn't even want to be there.
Three weeks before the wedding, the kids and I went dress shopping at Hudson's in downtown Detroit. Between us, Joe and I had decided I could pay up to $50 for a dress...which was a lot of money back in 1968. I found the perfect dress in Hudson's third floor...and only $38.00! It was a knee-length, sky blue chiffon that floated around me when I moved. I also found a perfectly matching length of blue mesh that I attached to a floral tiara for a headpiece and a pair of white cloth covered high-heel shoes that I dyed a matching blue. Another chore marked off my to-do list!
After a few instruction classes in the Serbian Church, the kids and I were ready to be baptized.
Two weeks before the wedding, we met Kum Walter and his wife Lillian at the Serbian Church.
The ceremony was short. Father Mijatovich said a short sermon, asked if we had fasted and heard our confessions. Then, with Kum and Kuma stood with me at the baptismal fount while Father liberally doused my head with water. Then it was Tammy's turn. Kum and Kuma's daughter, Pam, stood with Tammy as her Kuma, while she was similarly baptized. Then their son, Paul, stood with Buddy as his Kum. Father really dumped the water on him...saying afterwards he went easy on us girls because of our hair-do's...but Buddy got the works! It was a very solemn, beautiful and heart-warming ceremony.
Afterwards, Kum took us all out to dinner at a fine Italian restaurant and the kids, theirs and mine, felt very grown-up as they ordered their first Shirley Temples, while the adults had a bottle of fine wine...with which Kums toasted our conversion to the Serbian Orthodox Church. More about the Serbian Church in a later post.
Somehow, during those busy six weeks, Marion Kliemann found time to have a personal bridal shower for me. The women in the office as well as the wives of my male co-workers gave me boxes and boxes of lovely sexy lingerie.
After I went back to work after the wedding, Al Kliemann had a dinner-party for the whole office and their guests, as well as many realtors and office workers from other real estate offices, with whom I had worked and become friends with over the years, at a restaurant in Ann Arbor celebrating our wedding. We got many lovely wedding presents...including a solid silver tea service and an original oil painting and several hundred dollars in cash. I must add, I was so moved by all the love my friends lavished on me, I was in tears the whole evening!
A Serbian wedding is a beautiful ceremony. I just wish I hadn't been so sick. It wasn't until I attended another wedding, a few months later, as a Kuma to the daughter of another family friend, that I really understood what a lovely, solemn ceremony it truly is. It began with just Joe and me and the priest, Father Mijatovich, at the "high altar"...where we swore our vows to each other. Then the ceremony continued at the "low altar" with Kum Walter and Kuma Lillian attending us. Mine and Joe's hands were lightly tied together with a while handkerchief. The four of us walked around this table three times while the cantor chanted and spread incense.
Kum and Kuma, for their part, had to vow to help us with our religious growth in the Church.
The incense made me feel faint...and I was scared to death that I was going to pass out. Father thought so, too...and skipped or hurried through the last part of the ceremony. He introduced us to the guests as Mr and Mrs Joe Wussles...and added "somebody help him carry her out of here!"
Because I was so sick, we went back to the apartment so I could lie down for a bit. We ended up being nearly two hours late to our own wedding reception. Of course, there was a lot of catcalls and ribald teasing about us being too "eager" to wait until after the reception!
I was too sick to eat anything..but was told the buffet was terrific. I did take part in cutting the wedding cake and ate a small peice of that. Mostly, I sat at our table and let people come up and talk to me. Towards the end, I did dance with Joe. Afterwards, we stopped at the bar to speak to his Uncle George. Uncle George picked me up in a big bear hug, swung me around, and bellowed for everybody there to hear..."You belong to us, now!" It was a perfect ending for a day that would have been perfect...had I not been so sick.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
LIFE WITH MY CHILDREN PART 30
Once Joe makes up his mind to do something...he wants it done right away. Before I knew it, we had made an offer on a house in Highland Park...and made all the wedding arrangements for July 11.
In the meantime, the kids and I were spending a lot of time driving back and forth from Ypsilanti to Highland Park. Joe was teaching and coaching junior high school. He got lucky and stepped into a position vacated suddenly by another teacher. In the spring, he also coached sandlot baseball.
Joe wanted to be married in the Serbian church. Tammy, Buddy and I had to take a couple of classes in the religion and be baptized. One Sunday afternoon Joe took us to visit his Kumas...Serbian Godparents. We...they and I, liked each other right away. Therefore, it was okay with me when Joe wanted them to be our Kumas at our wedding...same as best man and bridesmaid. Also, they were Kumas to the kids and me when we were baptized.
It's not easy to plan a wedding in six weeks. It can be done and is a lot of work...but I did it.
The only real blight on my wedding ...well, the first one anyway...is that Tammy and Buddy could not be there. Mom and Dad came to Ypsi and got them over the Fourth...as always. I campaigned my best to be allowed to take them with us to Florida on our honeymoon...but Joe refused. He wanted that time for just us. And we were going to be staying with his relatives.
On the day of our wedding I was sicker than a dog! I woke up that morning with a 102 temperature! I went to Kuma's and spent the day, getting dressed for the wedding there. Kuma Lillian doped me up with cold medicine. My wedding is a blurred memory, what with the fever and meds. Our reception was held at a bowling alley owned by friends of Joe's family. They put on a great buffet at no charge to us. My family was represented only by my Uncle Calvin and his wife, Janet. My boss, Al Klieman and his wife Marion were my only friends there. Joe's family came out in force. There must have been 50 or more that I met for the first time. And never remembered any of them!
Instead of leaving on our honeymoon that night as we had planned, since I was so sick we went back to Joe's apartment for the night. I laid in his arms and cried that night because my kids were not at my wedding. So, the next morning when we were all packed and in the car for the trip to Florida, Joe said we were going to Indiana first! I was glad we were going to see my kids...but still tried to talk him into taking them to Florida with us...but with no success. We got to Mom's about noon and stayed a few hours before leaving for Florida. The first thing Tammy said to Joe was, "Can I call you Daddy, now?" Joe just beamed! and said he would be proud for her and Buddy to call him Daddy....and from that moment on, they did.
In the meantime, the kids and I were spending a lot of time driving back and forth from Ypsilanti to Highland Park. Joe was teaching and coaching junior high school. He got lucky and stepped into a position vacated suddenly by another teacher. In the spring, he also coached sandlot baseball.
Joe wanted to be married in the Serbian church. Tammy, Buddy and I had to take a couple of classes in the religion and be baptized. One Sunday afternoon Joe took us to visit his Kumas...Serbian Godparents. We...they and I, liked each other right away. Therefore, it was okay with me when Joe wanted them to be our Kumas at our wedding...same as best man and bridesmaid. Also, they were Kumas to the kids and me when we were baptized.
It's not easy to plan a wedding in six weeks. It can be done and is a lot of work...but I did it.
The only real blight on my wedding ...well, the first one anyway...is that Tammy and Buddy could not be there. Mom and Dad came to Ypsi and got them over the Fourth...as always. I campaigned my best to be allowed to take them with us to Florida on our honeymoon...but Joe refused. He wanted that time for just us. And we were going to be staying with his relatives.
On the day of our wedding I was sicker than a dog! I woke up that morning with a 102 temperature! I went to Kuma's and spent the day, getting dressed for the wedding there. Kuma Lillian doped me up with cold medicine. My wedding is a blurred memory, what with the fever and meds. Our reception was held at a bowling alley owned by friends of Joe's family. They put on a great buffet at no charge to us. My family was represented only by my Uncle Calvin and his wife, Janet. My boss, Al Klieman and his wife Marion were my only friends there. Joe's family came out in force. There must have been 50 or more that I met for the first time. And never remembered any of them!
Instead of leaving on our honeymoon that night as we had planned, since I was so sick we went back to Joe's apartment for the night. I laid in his arms and cried that night because my kids were not at my wedding. So, the next morning when we were all packed and in the car for the trip to Florida, Joe said we were going to Indiana first! I was glad we were going to see my kids...but still tried to talk him into taking them to Florida with us...but with no success. We got to Mom's about noon and stayed a few hours before leaving for Florida. The first thing Tammy said to Joe was, "Can I call you Daddy, now?" Joe just beamed! and said he would be proud for her and Buddy to call him Daddy....and from that moment on, they did.
Monday, August 17, 2009
LIFE WITH MY CHILDREN PART 29
During the period Joe and I were broken up, my children faced another heart-breaking situation.
Over the years, I had stayed in touch with their father, Meredith (Mark) Reed. Not real closely, but he would call once or twice a year and I sent school pictures and updates at least once a year.
In April that year he called and said he was being shipped to Viet Nam and wanted to see the kids before he shipped out. He said he was going to Grand Rapids to see his folks and would stop by Ypsilanti on his way there.
You never saw two such excited kids! That's all they talked about all week. On Saturday we spruced up the house 'til it shined. I even bought two bouquets of fresh flowers for the living room. Now, I had tried to dampen their excitement a little...hoping to dull the disappointment if he didn't show up, by telling them all the reasons he might not be able to visit. Like...not enough money to make the trip....early deployment...illness, him or his wife....etc. Yet, their excitement was contagious and I got caught up in it, too.
So, then Saturday...then Sunday...came and went with not so much as a phone call. Tammy and Buddy were devastated. They cried off and on all Saturday night and all day Sunday. And I cried, too....for the pain they were feeling.
That was the end of any cordial feelings I had towards my ex-husband. Hurting me was one thing, but hurting my kids was unforgiveable. Except for one Christmas present each the next Christmas, they had no contact with their father until they were grown and contacted him on their own. To this day, and they're both 50 years old at this writing, they have never seen him since they were two and three years old.
Over the years, I had stayed in touch with their father, Meredith (Mark) Reed. Not real closely, but he would call once or twice a year and I sent school pictures and updates at least once a year.
In April that year he called and said he was being shipped to Viet Nam and wanted to see the kids before he shipped out. He said he was going to Grand Rapids to see his folks and would stop by Ypsilanti on his way there.
You never saw two such excited kids! That's all they talked about all week. On Saturday we spruced up the house 'til it shined. I even bought two bouquets of fresh flowers for the living room. Now, I had tried to dampen their excitement a little...hoping to dull the disappointment if he didn't show up, by telling them all the reasons he might not be able to visit. Like...not enough money to make the trip....early deployment...illness, him or his wife....etc. Yet, their excitement was contagious and I got caught up in it, too.
So, then Saturday...then Sunday...came and went with not so much as a phone call. Tammy and Buddy were devastated. They cried off and on all Saturday night and all day Sunday. And I cried, too....for the pain they were feeling.
That was the end of any cordial feelings I had towards my ex-husband. Hurting me was one thing, but hurting my kids was unforgiveable. Except for one Christmas present each the next Christmas, they had no contact with their father until they were grown and contacted him on their own. To this day, and they're both 50 years old at this writing, they have never seen him since they were two and three years old.
Friday, August 14, 2009
LIFE WITH MY CHILDREN PART 28
Once again, life was good. We were all settled in our new home. Joe was back in school for his last semester...hopefully. I was working at a job I loved, had a part-time job I equally loved, a man I was crazy in love with...and who apparently felt the same way about me. Tammy and Buddy were happy with all of it!
Tammy had her first crush! Four young men...18 to 22 years old...musicians, all...shared the house next door to us...we shared the same driveway. The next nearest neighbor was at least a quarter mile away. The boys took a liking to my kids and spent a lot of time outside playing with them. I had my reservations about them, even though they were always pleasant and polite to me, even offering to baby-sit after school on the days Joe had classes. Too often, when I talked to a couple of them, I could tell they were high on something...and not alcohol. I forbid Tammy and Buddy to go into their house at any time. Of course whenever Joe and I discussed the boys in her hearing, she became very hostile and defensive of the boys.
We lived on Freeland Road for only a year. While it was Tammy's and Buddy's favorite of the places we lived, it was my least favorite. I liked living in an apartment in town where I didn't have to worry about mowing grass and shoveling snow. Also since I often had to go out in the evenings to settle problems, show apartments to prospective tenants, collect rents, or just make inspections, I had several miles to drive. Joe was wonderful. He never complained about the hours I worked. And the small management company I started was growing. That winter I had 20 apartments in six buildings plus five single dwellings...all rented to college students. The apartments were rented furnished with utilities paid. It seemed like the entire months of September and October I was out every evening for two or three hours.
A serial killer was on the loose that year, killing mainly college girls in Ypsi and Ann Arbor. One week, early the next summer, Avanelle's son, Gary...came out to stay a few days with us. He got bored and went home after a couple of days...while I was at work. He walked home...a good five miles cross-country, through fields. He told his mother that he walked near a dead animal...it stuck to high heaven. A couple days later a 14 year old girl's body was found in that field.
Eventually, the serial killer was caught...not long after I moved to Highland Park. Come to find out...the killer had been one of my tenants for a few months, sharing a house on River Street with several other boys! I had no contact with him, other than saying hi, how are ya...when I'd visit the house. My contact there was just one boy...a graduate student who was responsible for collecting the rent from the boys sharing the house...anywhere from five to eight at any one time.
In addition to my two jobs, Joe was having trouble with another class. It was a math class involving algebraic formulations. Now algebra was the only class I got below an A in in highschool. I had a C one semester in it. Nevertheless, I went to the library and took out algebra books and taught myself enough that I could help Joe with his class. Actually, I did his papers for him, all A's I might add...and he barely passed the tests. But did pass the course with a C.
Joe got his degree in January and we began making plans to get married. Then disaster struck again. On Monday I took the afternoon off work so we could go get our blood tests and apply for our license. When I went home to pick him up...he wasn't there. Instead, there was a note saying he was sorry, but just didn't think he was ready to get married. Just like that he was gone.
I was heart-broken and so were Tammy and Buddy. My life-saver was Dr. Hoff. He was furious at Joe and tried to get hold of him but Joe would not take his calls, nor mine. For the next few months the kids and I spent a lot of time with Bob Hoff and his son who was Buddy's age. I can't say I was never attracted to him, but valued our friendship too much to let him know. After I realized that I was attracted sexually to him, I backed off on the time we spent together and encouraged him in his pursuit of other women...until one of his students began spending too much time at his house. Then I really lit into him over it, asking how he could be so dumb to take such a chance with his position and job. After that he stopped seeing so much of Alice and decided to take a sabbatical. Well, I guess he had been working on it for awhile. That summer he planned to take five years, spending two years in Norway, one year in Germany and two years in a couple African countries studying their physical education systems.
The middle of May, Joe came back. Not exactly back...he still lived in Highland Park where he was teaching middle school...but back into my life. I won't say I welcomed him with open arms...even though I loved him, I was hurt and angry. But he wooed me non-stop. Nightly phone calls. Flowers. Gifts for the kids. He would even call the house and talk to Tammy and Buddy in the hour between when they got home from school and I got home from work.
I was still mixed up and didn't know whether to take Joe back or not when I talked to Bob Hoff about it. Then Bob really threw me for a loop. He said he was the wrong person to ask that advice because he, himself, was in love with me and wanted the kids and me to go to Europe with him. But the proposal he made was that he would pay our way...until we decided whether or not to get married...and he thought we should give it at least six months together before we made that decision. I said no way, jose! I was tempted, I admit. I wasn't in love with him but did like and respect him and can't deny there was a certain sexual attraction. He asked me not to make a decision right away but to think about it. He had two weeks before he had to finalize his plans with the school.
Well...
I decided to take those two weeks and see if I could salvage my relationship with Joe or not. At the end of the time, I had to tell Bob that Joe and I were engaged and proudly show him my diamond.
Did I make the right decision? I have often thought how different our lives would have been had I gone with Bob. How the kids lives would have been enriched by five years in Europe and Africa. But I loved Joe and wanted to spend my life with him.
Tammy had her first crush! Four young men...18 to 22 years old...musicians, all...shared the house next door to us...we shared the same driveway. The next nearest neighbor was at least a quarter mile away. The boys took a liking to my kids and spent a lot of time outside playing with them. I had my reservations about them, even though they were always pleasant and polite to me, even offering to baby-sit after school on the days Joe had classes. Too often, when I talked to a couple of them, I could tell they were high on something...and not alcohol. I forbid Tammy and Buddy to go into their house at any time. Of course whenever Joe and I discussed the boys in her hearing, she became very hostile and defensive of the boys.
We lived on Freeland Road for only a year. While it was Tammy's and Buddy's favorite of the places we lived, it was my least favorite. I liked living in an apartment in town where I didn't have to worry about mowing grass and shoveling snow. Also since I often had to go out in the evenings to settle problems, show apartments to prospective tenants, collect rents, or just make inspections, I had several miles to drive. Joe was wonderful. He never complained about the hours I worked. And the small management company I started was growing. That winter I had 20 apartments in six buildings plus five single dwellings...all rented to college students. The apartments were rented furnished with utilities paid. It seemed like the entire months of September and October I was out every evening for two or three hours.
A serial killer was on the loose that year, killing mainly college girls in Ypsi and Ann Arbor. One week, early the next summer, Avanelle's son, Gary...came out to stay a few days with us. He got bored and went home after a couple of days...while I was at work. He walked home...a good five miles cross-country, through fields. He told his mother that he walked near a dead animal...it stuck to high heaven. A couple days later a 14 year old girl's body was found in that field.
Eventually, the serial killer was caught...not long after I moved to Highland Park. Come to find out...the killer had been one of my tenants for a few months, sharing a house on River Street with several other boys! I had no contact with him, other than saying hi, how are ya...when I'd visit the house. My contact there was just one boy...a graduate student who was responsible for collecting the rent from the boys sharing the house...anywhere from five to eight at any one time.
In addition to my two jobs, Joe was having trouble with another class. It was a math class involving algebraic formulations. Now algebra was the only class I got below an A in in highschool. I had a C one semester in it. Nevertheless, I went to the library and took out algebra books and taught myself enough that I could help Joe with his class. Actually, I did his papers for him, all A's I might add...and he barely passed the tests. But did pass the course with a C.
Joe got his degree in January and we began making plans to get married. Then disaster struck again. On Monday I took the afternoon off work so we could go get our blood tests and apply for our license. When I went home to pick him up...he wasn't there. Instead, there was a note saying he was sorry, but just didn't think he was ready to get married. Just like that he was gone.
I was heart-broken and so were Tammy and Buddy. My life-saver was Dr. Hoff. He was furious at Joe and tried to get hold of him but Joe would not take his calls, nor mine. For the next few months the kids and I spent a lot of time with Bob Hoff and his son who was Buddy's age. I can't say I was never attracted to him, but valued our friendship too much to let him know. After I realized that I was attracted sexually to him, I backed off on the time we spent together and encouraged him in his pursuit of other women...until one of his students began spending too much time at his house. Then I really lit into him over it, asking how he could be so dumb to take such a chance with his position and job. After that he stopped seeing so much of Alice and decided to take a sabbatical. Well, I guess he had been working on it for awhile. That summer he planned to take five years, spending two years in Norway, one year in Germany and two years in a couple African countries studying their physical education systems.
The middle of May, Joe came back. Not exactly back...he still lived in Highland Park where he was teaching middle school...but back into my life. I won't say I welcomed him with open arms...even though I loved him, I was hurt and angry. But he wooed me non-stop. Nightly phone calls. Flowers. Gifts for the kids. He would even call the house and talk to Tammy and Buddy in the hour between when they got home from school and I got home from work.
I was still mixed up and didn't know whether to take Joe back or not when I talked to Bob Hoff about it. Then Bob really threw me for a loop. He said he was the wrong person to ask that advice because he, himself, was in love with me and wanted the kids and me to go to Europe with him. But the proposal he made was that he would pay our way...until we decided whether or not to get married...and he thought we should give it at least six months together before we made that decision. I said no way, jose! I was tempted, I admit. I wasn't in love with him but did like and respect him and can't deny there was a certain sexual attraction. He asked me not to make a decision right away but to think about it. He had two weeks before he had to finalize his plans with the school.
Well...
I decided to take those two weeks and see if I could salvage my relationship with Joe or not. At the end of the time, I had to tell Bob that Joe and I were engaged and proudly show him my diamond.
Did I make the right decision? I have often thought how different our lives would have been had I gone with Bob. How the kids lives would have been enriched by five years in Europe and Africa. But I loved Joe and wanted to spend my life with him.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
LIFE WITH MY CHILDREN PART 27
The two years we lived on Hamilton were a very memorable period in mine and the kids lives. So much happened those two years that I could probably write a blog a day for a year about all the things we did and that happened.
The most important to all three of us was meeting Joe. It didn't take long for him to become an integral part of our lives...Tammy and Buddy as much as me. Actually, many times I , kiddingly, teased him about marrying me just to get my kids. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
I think I mentioned in an earlier post that I had a part-time job managing land contracts for a few people. In 1965, I added to my little management enterprise by taking on several apartment buildings...renting them and collecting rents. My experiences with that are a whole bunch of blogs on their own, so I won't go into them here. But, the extra money made our financial situation much better. I even managed to save a few hundred dollars here and there and decided to buy the building where we lived.
After a couple months of negotiations, the owner and I decided on a price...very reasonable, too. Except, he wouldn't carry the mortgage. Being a single mother, the bank wanted a big down payment...much more than I had. If I remember correctly, I was paying $11,000 for the building; the bank wanted twenty percent down...which was about three times the amount I had saved.
At work, I attended a real estate closing in the absence of my boss who was on vacation. After the closing, the attorney...with whom I had become friends with over the years...making small talk, asked what was new in my life. I told him about the building I wanted to buy. To make a long story short..he called me a couple days later and offered to help me out with the purchase...he would put up the money and I would make payments to him. We made an appointment for me to meet with him later that week to discuss the particulars.
Joe was taking a summer course at Eastern and kept Tammy and Buddy during the day...until time for them to go to Indiana.
Well, on the day I was to meet with the attorney, I got a phone call from Buddy. He was so excited I could barely understand him. "Mom...don't sign any papers, the house is on fire.!"...and he hung up! I must have screamed because everybody in the office was soon gathered around me asking what was wrong. I was shaking all over as I repeated what Buddy had said. I said I had to leave right away and go see what was going on. My boss wouldn't let me drive...he insisted on taking me.
When I got to the house, it, indeed, was on fire...or had been. Fire trucks and firemen were all around it. My main concern was Joe and the kids..I couldn't see them anywhere. When firemen tried to block our way, my boss told them who I was and they told me my family was across the street. At the same time, I heard Tammy and Buddy screaming..."Mommy...Mommy" and I rushed over to them, hugging them tight while we all cried. Joe had his arms around all three of us while he tried to explain what had happened.
The kids downstairs...and Buddy...had decided to roast hot dogs on the cement porch. Buddy said he left and went upstairs after he ate his hot dog. Then the fire must have got out of control, because Joe said Tammy and Buddy were in their bedrooms when he smelled smoke and heard the kids downstairs yelling. He said he didn't worry at first...until smoke started filling the living room. About that time, Buddy who had gone downstairs to see what they kids there were yelling about, ran in and said the house was on fire.
After Joe got the kids out he said he hoped I had not signed any papers on the house! Then he gave Buddy a dime and told him to go to the corner store and call me. He said Buddy was supposed to tell me the house was on fire, but that they were all okay.
All the fire damage was to the downstairs living room. But there was a lot of smoke damage, as well as holes in the walls made by the firemen...even in our living room upstairs. Everything I owned was sooty and stinky.
Joe, the kids, and I went to Avanelle's. The next day, a week early, I took Tammy and Buddy to Indiana. Joe went home to Highland Park and I stayed with Avanelle while looking for another place for us to live.
As it happened, one of the buildings I managed was vacant. It was a farm house just a few miles from town, with two big bedrooms, living room, kitchen, bath and utility room...as well as a basement with an outside entrance. It was perfect...except for being out in the country!
From the apartment, I took the wood furniture...dressers, chests, tables, chairs, ...the TV...lamps....dishes...and other kitchen stuff. I tried to save our clothes and linens. But, after numerous washings, they still smelled so I ended up having to scrap nearly everything. There went my savings...what with a months rent and deposit and new clothes for all of us plus bedding, towels, etc.
Bless my family! Again they came through for me. Uncle Speed and Jim, Avanelle's husband, helped me move what I could from the apartment into the new house. Avanelle and Phyllis helped me scrub everything down to get rid of the smoke smell. Uncle Troy bought me a couch and two chairs at an auction sale. Uncle Speed gave me a double bed. I bought a set of twin beds at a used furniture store, including mattress and springs. By the time the kids came home the middle of August, everything was ready for them...they had a home again.
The most important to all three of us was meeting Joe. It didn't take long for him to become an integral part of our lives...Tammy and Buddy as much as me. Actually, many times I , kiddingly, teased him about marrying me just to get my kids. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
I think I mentioned in an earlier post that I had a part-time job managing land contracts for a few people. In 1965, I added to my little management enterprise by taking on several apartment buildings...renting them and collecting rents. My experiences with that are a whole bunch of blogs on their own, so I won't go into them here. But, the extra money made our financial situation much better. I even managed to save a few hundred dollars here and there and decided to buy the building where we lived.
After a couple months of negotiations, the owner and I decided on a price...very reasonable, too. Except, he wouldn't carry the mortgage. Being a single mother, the bank wanted a big down payment...much more than I had. If I remember correctly, I was paying $11,000 for the building; the bank wanted twenty percent down...which was about three times the amount I had saved.
At work, I attended a real estate closing in the absence of my boss who was on vacation. After the closing, the attorney...with whom I had become friends with over the years...making small talk, asked what was new in my life. I told him about the building I wanted to buy. To make a long story short..he called me a couple days later and offered to help me out with the purchase...he would put up the money and I would make payments to him. We made an appointment for me to meet with him later that week to discuss the particulars.
Joe was taking a summer course at Eastern and kept Tammy and Buddy during the day...until time for them to go to Indiana.
Well, on the day I was to meet with the attorney, I got a phone call from Buddy. He was so excited I could barely understand him. "Mom...don't sign any papers, the house is on fire.!"...and he hung up! I must have screamed because everybody in the office was soon gathered around me asking what was wrong. I was shaking all over as I repeated what Buddy had said. I said I had to leave right away and go see what was going on. My boss wouldn't let me drive...he insisted on taking me.
When I got to the house, it, indeed, was on fire...or had been. Fire trucks and firemen were all around it. My main concern was Joe and the kids..I couldn't see them anywhere. When firemen tried to block our way, my boss told them who I was and they told me my family was across the street. At the same time, I heard Tammy and Buddy screaming..."Mommy...Mommy" and I rushed over to them, hugging them tight while we all cried. Joe had his arms around all three of us while he tried to explain what had happened.
The kids downstairs...and Buddy...had decided to roast hot dogs on the cement porch. Buddy said he left and went upstairs after he ate his hot dog. Then the fire must have got out of control, because Joe said Tammy and Buddy were in their bedrooms when he smelled smoke and heard the kids downstairs yelling. He said he didn't worry at first...until smoke started filling the living room. About that time, Buddy who had gone downstairs to see what they kids there were yelling about, ran in and said the house was on fire.
After Joe got the kids out he said he hoped I had not signed any papers on the house! Then he gave Buddy a dime and told him to go to the corner store and call me. He said Buddy was supposed to tell me the house was on fire, but that they were all okay.
All the fire damage was to the downstairs living room. But there was a lot of smoke damage, as well as holes in the walls made by the firemen...even in our living room upstairs. Everything I owned was sooty and stinky.
Joe, the kids, and I went to Avanelle's. The next day, a week early, I took Tammy and Buddy to Indiana. Joe went home to Highland Park and I stayed with Avanelle while looking for another place for us to live.
As it happened, one of the buildings I managed was vacant. It was a farm house just a few miles from town, with two big bedrooms, living room, kitchen, bath and utility room...as well as a basement with an outside entrance. It was perfect...except for being out in the country!
From the apartment, I took the wood furniture...dressers, chests, tables, chairs, ...the TV...lamps....dishes...and other kitchen stuff. I tried to save our clothes and linens. But, after numerous washings, they still smelled so I ended up having to scrap nearly everything. There went my savings...what with a months rent and deposit and new clothes for all of us plus bedding, towels, etc.
Bless my family! Again they came through for me. Uncle Speed and Jim, Avanelle's husband, helped me move what I could from the apartment into the new house. Avanelle and Phyllis helped me scrub everything down to get rid of the smoke smell. Uncle Troy bought me a couch and two chairs at an auction sale. Uncle Speed gave me a double bed. I bought a set of twin beds at a used furniture store, including mattress and springs. By the time the kids came home the middle of August, everything was ready for them...they had a home again.
Monday, August 3, 2009
LIFE WITH MY CHILDREN PART 26
Granny (Polly Shepherd) loved the Tigers baseball team. She never missed watching a televised game. Joe had some friends on the Tigers team and he tried to get tickets for her, but she couldn't get around very good and we decided there was just no way she could ever attend a game. Back then, as with most public places, Tiger Stadium was not very handicapped-friendly.
Another thing she wanted to do was go to Canada. So, one Sunday when Joe wasn't with us, Phyllis and I packed a picnic lunch and then picked up Granny and Aunt Dora. We wanted to surprise them so we told them we were going to a park for a picnic. We dared the kids to tell them where we were actually going.
When I got on the expressway, Granny...in the front seat with Phyllis and me, said, "Lordy, what park are we going to?"
The kids snickered...jumping up and down in their anxiety over keeping the secret, had Aunt Dora bickering at them to keep still.
Granny finally figured out where we were going, but not until I got in line to go through the tunnel to Windsor. She grumbled all the time we were in the tunnel, saying she hoped that wasn't the only way back. I told her it wasn't and we would not take the tunnel back home.
As I drove along the road by the river on the Canadian side, I pointed out the Ambassador Bridge and told her that's the way we would go home! She said absolutely not! At which, we all laughed and I explained the only three ways home were the tunnel, the bridge...or swimming.
We found a good parking spot by the river and near a playground for the kids and had our picnic. Granny and Aunt Dora just enjoyed looking at the river and watching the boats.
After a couple of hours, we were ready to leave. I took the bridge home, and, forgetting that Granny was scared of it, stopped near the center so Phyllis and I could get out and look at a sunken ship that was in the process of being rescued. Granny yelled at us and said "Get in this car right this minute and get me off this bridge!" Opps!
On Granny's 75th birthday, which was a Sunday, I planned a surprise for her. Mom and Dad and the kids came up for the weekend...which wasn't unusual so Granny didn't think anything about that. Granny and Aunt Dora went to both Sunday School and Church every Sunday morning. That Sunday, between Sunday School and Church, Granny's entire family marched into the church. Mom and Dad and kids, Troy and Susie and kids, Darvin and Shirley and kids, Lee and Syreda, Calvin, Phyllis and Suetta and me and my kids. Talk about a surprise! The look on Granny's face was priceless! Of course, Aunt Dora was surprised, too..I hadn't told her for fear she'd let the cat out of the bag...but she let Granny think she'd known it all along!
After church, we all gathered at Troy and Susie's for dinner and birthday cake and gifts...lots of gifts. Granny said she was 75 years old and it was her very first birthday party!
Another thing she wanted to do was go to Canada. So, one Sunday when Joe wasn't with us, Phyllis and I packed a picnic lunch and then picked up Granny and Aunt Dora. We wanted to surprise them so we told them we were going to a park for a picnic. We dared the kids to tell them where we were actually going.
When I got on the expressway, Granny...in the front seat with Phyllis and me, said, "Lordy, what park are we going to?"
The kids snickered...jumping up and down in their anxiety over keeping the secret, had Aunt Dora bickering at them to keep still.
Granny finally figured out where we were going, but not until I got in line to go through the tunnel to Windsor. She grumbled all the time we were in the tunnel, saying she hoped that wasn't the only way back. I told her it wasn't and we would not take the tunnel back home.
As I drove along the road by the river on the Canadian side, I pointed out the Ambassador Bridge and told her that's the way we would go home! She said absolutely not! At which, we all laughed and I explained the only three ways home were the tunnel, the bridge...or swimming.
We found a good parking spot by the river and near a playground for the kids and had our picnic. Granny and Aunt Dora just enjoyed looking at the river and watching the boats.
After a couple of hours, we were ready to leave. I took the bridge home, and, forgetting that Granny was scared of it, stopped near the center so Phyllis and I could get out and look at a sunken ship that was in the process of being rescued. Granny yelled at us and said "Get in this car right this minute and get me off this bridge!" Opps!
On Granny's 75th birthday, which was a Sunday, I planned a surprise for her. Mom and Dad and the kids came up for the weekend...which wasn't unusual so Granny didn't think anything about that. Granny and Aunt Dora went to both Sunday School and Church every Sunday morning. That Sunday, between Sunday School and Church, Granny's entire family marched into the church. Mom and Dad and kids, Troy and Susie and kids, Darvin and Shirley and kids, Lee and Syreda, Calvin, Phyllis and Suetta and me and my kids. Talk about a surprise! The look on Granny's face was priceless! Of course, Aunt Dora was surprised, too..I hadn't told her for fear she'd let the cat out of the bag...but she let Granny think she'd known it all along!
After church, we all gathered at Troy and Susie's for dinner and birthday cake and gifts...lots of gifts. Granny said she was 75 years old and it was her very first birthday party!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
