Although this isn’t really new anymore, I haven’t posted the most recent change in my life. In October, my grandmother passed away.

She is the one who, with good intentions, would send boxes of crap to various people around the country. You might remember the gifts I’ve described in the past… the puffy strawberry basket skirt, the various broken toys (that could be great if you can just find a new set of wheels for the truck), and rusted flashlights from 1953 (lifetime guarantee from a company that is no longer in business).

Since I live so close, I was able to see her while she was in the hospital. She was very very sick and was hard to understand, but I was glad to have the chance to talk to her before she passed. My dad and uncle both were in town before she passed, but my sister and mom joined the day after. Grandmother and I recently came to an understanding. She was one to share her opinion of things gone wrong in other’s lives in a way that (to put it lightly) could be misconstrued as rude or even mean. One such letter was sent to me earlier this year and after much debate with myself, I decided to write a letter that I was hoping wouldn’t hurt her feelings, but also explained what I thought about how I expected to be treated. Thankfully, it worked out well and all the bad feelings were behind us. I was particularly grateful about this when I found out she was in the hospital.

Now, we move forward. I have so many fond memories of her house. I don’t talk about it much publicly, but it really is a great place. I’ll miss her and all her eccentric ways. Even the boxes filled with crap. It provided entertainment for many.