The e-mails going around about small childrena ingesting hand sanitizer and getting alcohol poisoning are TRUE according to Snopes.com
Check it out for yourself! keep those bottles of hand sanitizer out of small children's reach!
http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/sanitizer.asp
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Mom advice - choosing the right partner
I received a note from a friend who was going through a divorce but was keeping an eye to the future. Here is my answer.
I'll give you the same advice someone gave me and I've passed on to my kids.
Make a list of all the traits and things you want and don't want in a relationship. This list keeps getting refined as you heal and grow after a breakup or divorce.
It's ok to be picky!
Then when it is time ask these questions:
Does he make me laugh?
What does he do when I cry?
Does he cry?
When? Crying is healthy even in men though some don't see it that way.
Can we talk about anything? Money, power, relationships, kids, feelings, lovemaking, men only establishments, politics, ANYTHING. You don't have at agree you just have to be able to talk about it. Agreeing to disagree is fine.
How does he handle anger?
How does he handle my kids' and my feelings? Are the feelings ignored, trampled, or acknowledged?
What is his views of discipline?
Corporal punishment?
What are his hobbies?
What would he like to do for retirement? It may be a long way off but has it been thought about.
Does he have children?
How will we blend the two families? We had one rule. The biological parent had the last say in matters. I think I used it once and he used it twice on VERY important matters (all were life and death type matters).
Can he talk me out of my funks and down times?
Can we sit in silence comfortably without strain?
What makes him jealous?
Do we enjoy similar things? The key is to talk, talk and more talk. The more you talk the more you both learn about each other.
I'll give you the same advice someone gave me and I've passed on to my kids.
Make a list of all the traits and things you want and don't want in a relationship. This list keeps getting refined as you heal and grow after a breakup or divorce.
It's ok to be picky!
Then when it is time ask these questions:
Does he make me laugh?
What does he do when I cry?
Does he cry?
When? Crying is healthy even in men though some don't see it that way.
Can we talk about anything? Money, power, relationships, kids, feelings, lovemaking, men only establishments, politics, ANYTHING. You don't have at agree you just have to be able to talk about it. Agreeing to disagree is fine.
How does he handle anger?
How does he handle my kids' and my feelings? Are the feelings ignored, trampled, or acknowledged?
What is his views of discipline?
Corporal punishment?
What are his hobbies?
What would he like to do for retirement? It may be a long way off but has it been thought about.
Does he have children?
How will we blend the two families? We had one rule. The biological parent had the last say in matters. I think I used it once and he used it twice on VERY important matters (all were life and death type matters).
Can he talk me out of my funks and down times?
Can we sit in silence comfortably without strain?
What makes him jealous?
Do we enjoy similar things? The key is to talk, talk and more talk. The more you talk the more you both learn about each other.
This was Buster only the treat was blueberry muffins - 18 to be exact.
I left them on the counter overnight to cool. The next morning I couldn'tfigure out why there were only six left. We found one small bit of evidence. A tiny torn piece of muffin paper in the living room.
Needless to say Buster stayed outside that day!:)
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Another round of "20 Questions"
1. What is your occupation right now? Wife, Mom, G'ma, clerk (an admin in the real world)
2. What color are your socks right now? White
3. What are you listening to right now? David Sandborn on my ipod.
4. What was the last thing that you ate? Chicken noodle soup and peaches.
5. Can you drive a stick shift? Yes. The Chevette I owned was a blue, two-door, manual transmission. We packed a ton of stuff in that car! It could hold all the camping gear, 2 adults, and 2 kids. Antoher time it held, 2 adults, and five kids going to the drive-in movies on car load night!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Chevette
http://auto.howstuffworks.com/chevrolet-chevette.htm
6. Last person you spoke to on the phone? My dh!
7. How old are you today? Old enough to know not to answer THAT one!
8. What is your favorite sport to watch on TV? Golf. You can take great naps in the lazyboy chair snuggled in with Tinkerbell and an afaghan when golf is on tv. There is no yelling or loud cheers, just restfull soothing voices.
9. What is your favorite drink? lemonade
10. Have you ever dyed your hair? What color?
11.Favorite food? I didn't get this size without loving food!
12. What is the last movie you watched? Why do these quizzes always ask that? I don't remember. I'm too busy to watch movies.
13. Favorite day of the year? All of them!
14. How do you vent anger? Clean.
15. What was your favorite toy as a child? Depends on the age. This included my younger sister and brothers, my barbie dolls, and the first 10-speed bike I bought from mowing lawn money at 15.
16. What is your favorite season? All of them!
17. Cherries or Blueberries? Both!
18. Living arrangements? husband , 2 cats, 1 sometime dog, 1 all-the-time dog
19. What is on the floor of your closet? Which closet? I've taken over several for different purposes.
20. What did you do last night? Spent time with dh in Cleveland.
21. What are you most afraid of? Snakes.
22. Plain, cheese, or spicy, hamburger? None of the above. I'm not a hamburger fan.
23. Favorite dog breed? All of the ones I've owned.
24. How many states have you lived in? One
25. Diamonds or pearls? pearls
26. What is your favorite flower? Iris.
27. What are you supposed to be doing instead of answering this?
Not a thing
2. What color are your socks right now? White
3. What are you listening to right now? David Sandborn on my ipod.
4. What was the last thing that you ate? Chicken noodle soup and peaches.
5. Can you drive a stick shift? Yes. The Chevette I owned was a blue, two-door, manual transmission. We packed a ton of stuff in that car! It could hold all the camping gear, 2 adults, and 2 kids. Antoher time it held, 2 adults, and five kids going to the drive-in movies on car load night!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Chevette
http://auto.howstuffworks.com/chevrolet-chevette.htm
6. Last person you spoke to on the phone? My dh!
7. How old are you today? Old enough to know not to answer THAT one!
8. What is your favorite sport to watch on TV? Golf. You can take great naps in the lazyboy chair snuggled in with Tinkerbell and an afaghan when golf is on tv. There is no yelling or loud cheers, just restfull soothing voices.
9. What is your favorite drink? lemonade
10. Have you ever dyed your hair? What color?
11.Favorite food? I didn't get this size without loving food!
12. What is the last movie you watched? Why do these quizzes always ask that? I don't remember. I'm too busy to watch movies.
13. Favorite day of the year? All of them!
14. How do you vent anger? Clean.
15. What was your favorite toy as a child? Depends on the age. This included my younger sister and brothers, my barbie dolls, and the first 10-speed bike I bought from mowing lawn money at 15.
16. What is your favorite season? All of them!
17. Cherries or Blueberries? Both!
18. Living arrangements? husband , 2 cats, 1 sometime dog, 1 all-the-time dog
19. What is on the floor of your closet? Which closet? I've taken over several for different purposes.
20. What did you do last night? Spent time with dh in Cleveland.
21. What are you most afraid of? Snakes.
22. Plain, cheese, or spicy, hamburger? None of the above. I'm not a hamburger fan.
23. Favorite dog breed? All of the ones I've owned.
24. How many states have you lived in? One
25. Diamonds or pearls? pearls
26. What is your favorite flower? Iris.
27. What are you supposed to be doing instead of answering this?
Not a thing
READ THE LABELS ON ALL MEDICATIONS!!!
Phenylpropanolamine (PPA) This is the story of one mother who suffered a hemorrhagic stroke while she was driving home on 7/30 and passed away on 8/3. Her stroke and passing was an enormous shock because she did not have any symptoms or risk factors for a stroke. Just the week before she had gone to her doctor for a check up and received a clean bill of health. She did, however, develop a cold while she was on a visit and had taken Alka Seltzer Cold Plus for 3 days. Since her passing, it was learned that Alka Seltzer is one of the many cold medicines that contains Phenylpropanolamine (PPA) which can cause hemorrhagic stokes or cerebral bleeding even with the first use.
STOP TAKING anything containing this ingredient. It has been linked to increased hemorrhagic stroke (bleeding in brain) among women ages 18-49 in the three days after starting use of medication.. Problems were not found in men, but the FDA recommended that everyone (even children) seek alternative medicine.
READ THE LABELS ON ALL MEDICATIONS!!!
"Since companies continue to reformulate their products, FDA is not maintaining a comprehensive, updated list of products that still contain PPA." Again, READ THE LABELS ON ALL MEDICATIONS!!!
Here is information from the web site...
"The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is taking steps to remove phenylpropanolamine (PPA) from all drug products and has requested that all drug companies discontinue marketing products containing PPA. In addition, FDA has issued a public health advisory concerning phenylpropanolamine. This drug is an ingredient that was used in many over-the-counter (OTC) and prescription cough and cold medications as a decongestant and in OTC weight loss products.
In response to the request made by FDA in November 2000, many companies have voluntarily reformulated and are continuing to reformulate their products to exclude PPA while FDA proceeds with the regulatory process necessary to remove PPA from the market.
We have received numerous requests for a list of products containing PPA. Since companies continue to reformulate their products, FDA is not maintaining a comprehensive, updated list of products that still contain PPA. FDA is aware of emails circulating widely that list many products allegedly containing PPA. These emails, however, generally contain dated and inaccurate information and should be ignored.
The FDA recommends that consumers read the labels of OTC drug products to determine if the product contains PPA. The Agency believes this to be the most accurate method for determining the PPA content of OTC products rather than providing an incomplete or out-of-date list of products that may have already been reformulated and no longer contain PPA. (Introduction updated 03/07/2003)"
In response to the request made by FDA in November 2000, many companies have voluntarily reformulated and are continuing to reformulate their products to exclude PPA while FDA proceeds with the regulatory process necessary to remove PPA from the market.
We have received numerous requests for a list of products containing PPA. Since companies continue to reformulate their products, FDA is not maintaining a comprehensive, updated list of products that still contain PPA. FDA is aware of emails circulating widely that list many products allegedly containing PPA. These emails, however, generally contain dated and inaccurate information and should be ignored.
The FDA recommends that consumers read the labels of OTC drug products to determine if the product contains PPA. The Agency believes this to be the most accurate method for determining the PPA content of OTC products rather than providing an incomplete or out-of-date list of products that may have already been reformulated and no longer contain PPA. (Introduction updated 03/07/2003)"
43 Things
My cousin sent me this one - 43 things you might or might not know about me... have fun reading!
1. Do you like blue cheese? Kind of. Georgia got me started on this cheese. I like it in very small amounts.
2. Have you ever been drunk? YES and NOT proud of any of those moments!
3. Do you own a gun? Never!
4. What flavor of Kool Aid was your favorite? What's with was? I still drink kool-aid! lime & cherry. Remember the competition? Rootin' Tootin' Raspberry and Choo-choo Cherry?
5. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments? Rarely the doctor. The dentist - oh yeah even after all these years! And I like my dentist Dr. DeMaria!
7. Favorite Christmas movie? The Christmas Story
12. Do you have A.D.D.? No. Dislexia - switching numbers is what I do the most.
13. What's your favorite shoe? Any that fit properly and don't look too bad. hey, at a 10.5 EEE you take what you can get that doesn't look horrendous!
14. Middle name? You guess! It starts with an L.
15. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment? I'm cold, hungry and loving our new digital highspeed internet!!!!
16. Name 3 drinks you regularly drink ? water, diet dew and coffee during outages.
18. Current hate right now? Hate just eats you up inside! What goes around comes around.
19. Where are you right now ? Home. Alex shared his sickies and so I'm taking it relatively easy tonight.
20. How did you bring in the New Year's? Watched g'baby and went to bed early. Ken was working.
21. Where would you like to go? Anyplace with my dh - ok almost anyplace.
22. Do you own slippers? White ones. Do I have to count the ones I wear that aren't mine?
23. Do any cats own you? Yes, Pumpkin and Tinkerbell.
This is Pumpkin's "I'm resting why are you bothering me" pose. yes, he WAS orange at one time.
This is Tink's "Aren't I ADORABLE?" pose.
24. What color shirt are you wearing right now? Which shirt? I haveon three of them! I said I was cold!
33. Last thing that made you laugh? Grandkids' antics!
36. Who is your loudest friend? Vocally - Katrina (kid), character-wise - hmmmm I'll have to think on that one!
Harley Jane is actually Katrina and Chip's dog but she is our part-of-the-time dog also. I don't spoil her at night do I.
1. Do you like blue cheese? Kind of. Georgia got me started on this cheese. I like it in very small amounts.
2. Have you ever been drunk? YES and NOT proud of any of those moments!
3. Do you own a gun? Never!
4. What flavor of Kool Aid was your favorite? What's with was? I still drink kool-aid! lime & cherry. Remember the competition? Rootin' Tootin' Raspberry and Choo-choo Cherry?
5. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments? Rarely the doctor. The dentist - oh yeah even after all these years! And I like my dentist Dr. DeMaria!
6. Do you like where you live? Yes! However, that said, someday the entire house will be remodeled to fit our style not the previous owners.
7. Favorite Christmas movie? The Christmas Story
8. Can you sing well? Used to in school. Now I'm way out of practice.
9. Can you do push ups? What year?
10. What's your favorite piece of jewelry? Don't wear jewlery usually but my favorite necklace are the tiger eye ones Ken bought me. My favorite ear rings are the ones Katrina made for the Ohio State-Michigan game years ago. The other favorite pair is the ones Brannon made also.
11. Favorite hobby? make that hobbies! Quilting, gardening, crocheting, crafting in general.
12. Do you have A.D.D.? No. Dislexia - switching numbers is what I do the most.
13. What's your favorite shoe? Any that fit properly and don't look too bad. hey, at a 10.5 EEE you take what you can get that doesn't look horrendous!
14. Middle name? You guess! It starts with an L.
15. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment? I'm cold, hungry and loving our new digital highspeed internet!!!!
16. Name 3 drinks you regularly drink ? water, diet dew and coffee during outages.
17.Current worry? Why worry? It is counterproductive!
18. Current hate right now? Hate just eats you up inside! What goes around comes around.
19. Where are you right now ? Home. Alex shared his sickies and so I'm taking it relatively easy tonight.
20. How did you bring in the New Year's? Watched g'baby and went to bed early. Ken was working.
21. Where would you like to go? Anyplace with my dh - ok almost anyplace.
22. Do you own slippers? White ones. Do I have to count the ones I wear that aren't mine?
23. Do any cats own you? Yes, Pumpkin and Tinkerbell.
This is Pumpkin's "I'm resting why are you bothering me" pose. yes, he WAS orange at one time.
This is Tink's "Aren't I ADORABLE?" pose.24. What color shirt are you wearing right now? Which shirt? I haveon three of them! I said I was cold!
25. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? NO! You slide off the bed and so do your covers!
26. Can you whistle? Kinda - sorta but can't carry a tune!
27. Favorite color? All of them!
27. Favorite color? All of them!
28. Would you be a pirate? No. Not into swashbuckeling. And get your minds out of the gutter!
29. What songs do you sing in the shower? none
30. Favorite girl's Name? All of my girls'!
29. What songs do you sing in the shower? none
30. Favorite girl's Name? All of my girls'!
31. Favorite boy's name? All of my buys'!
32. What's in your pocket right now? Kleenex - lots and lots of kleenex - with aloe please!
33. Last thing that made you laugh? Grandkids' antics!
34. Best bed sheets as a child? Sorry, I grew up in the era of plain old white, cotton (100% that also got ironed every week!) sheets. Yes, I said IRONED!
35. Worst injury you've ever had as a child? Did I mention I am accident prone?
36. Who is your loudest friend? Vocally - Katrina (kid), character-wise - hmmmm I'll have to think on that one!
37. How many dogs do you have? One all-of-the-time and one part-of-the-time dogs. Buster Brown is our all-of-the-time dog. Ken taught him how to swim. Buster LOVES the pool!
Harley Jane is actually Katrina and Chip's dog but she is our part-of-the-time dog also. I don't spoil her at night do I.
38. Does someone have a crush on you? No
39. What is your favorite book? Too many to list. Check on this blog.
40. What is your favorite candy? Candy? That's a tough one. Now ice cream, that's easy, mint chocolate chip. Candy? Guess it would be either malted milk balls or chocolate covered raisins.
41. Favorite Sports Team? Any the g'kids are on!
42. Are you happy right now? Of course!
43. What song do you want played at your funeral? None. Only want a memorial service.
We have it!
The Amplex Internet men have been here. We have DIGITAL internet!!!!!!!
WOOOHOOO!!!
Now on to the task of cleaning all the old files and folders, and old programs on my 'puter.
WOOOHOOO!!!
Now on to the task of cleaning all the old files and folders, and old programs on my 'puter.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
I'm excited!!!!
March 24 is THE day we get HIGH SPEED internet!!!!
I can not wait! Then look out blog readers cuz this will be full of stuff!
I want this on my "to read" list
During my early years in college. I took several sign languages classes. I don't remember many signs now but can still finger spell. I never learned to be proficint at reading the signs even though a deaf man from class would help me study. I could not grasp the idea that ASL uses concepts instead of word for word as in oral language and writing. The various body language that always accompanies signing determines what the word means. One word could mean many different things varying from impish playfulness to something horrific depending upon the body language that accompanied the sign. ASL takes concentration to all of the body language and I just didn't want to work that hard to decipher the meanings. I still find it facinating and a beautiful language.
I listened to this man on the radio and found the exerpt on the link listed. The author is now 70 years old and talks about the deaf/hearing worlds vividly. Enjoy...
Excerpt: 'Hands of My Father'
by Myron Uhlberg
Being a printer was the only job my father ever had, and he loved it. He would work for the newspaper until he retired over forty years later. In all that time he worked side by side with hearing co-workers, but he never really knew them. Like most in the hearing world, they treated him as if he were an alien — primitive, incapable of speech, and lacking human thought: a person to be avoided if possible, and if not, ignored.
After an apprenticeship of many years, my father was issued a union card. It was the proudest moment of his life. It was tangible proof that he was as good as any hearing man. Even in the dark days of the Depression, when one out of four men were out of work, he, a deaf man, could support himself.
And, he reasoned, he could also support a wife. My father was tired of being alone in this hearing world. It was time, he thought, to create his own silent world. A world that would begin with a deaf wife.
One bleak winter day, while we were sitting at the kitchen table, the rain sleeting against the windows of our Brooklyn apartment, his hands told me the rest of his story, in which began my story:
"Sarah was a young girl. She had many friends. She liked to have fun.
"I first noticed her at the beach in Coney Island. She was always laughing. "All the deaf boys were crazy about Sarah. Even the hearing boys.
"There were many handsome boys on the beach. All the young boys had muscles and chocolate tans. They could jump and leap over each other's back. They could do handstands.
"I was older. I didn't have muscles. I couldn't stand on my hands if my life depended on it. I didn't have a brown tan. I would get sunburned. My skin turned red. And then I would peel.
"It didn't matter. The handsome young boys with their chocolate skin and big muscles only wanted to have fun with Sarah. They were not serious boys. They had no jobs. So they had plenty of time to play, and make muscles, and get brown skin from the sun.
"I was a serious man. I had a job. A good job. The best job. I was no longer an apprentice printer. I had a union card, just like the hearing workers.
"I didn't want Sarah just to have fun. I wanted a wife for all time. I wanted a mother for my children. I wanted a partner forever. We would be two deaf people in the hearing world. We would make our own world. A quiet world. A silent world.
"We would be strong together, and strong for our children."
Then, just as the rain stopped and thin rays of sunlight striped the tabletop, my father smiled to himself, his hands thinking … "Maybe we would have a little fun before the children came." Lost in reverie, his hands, bathed in golden light, now lay silent on the kitchen table. Time passed. I sat and watched his still hands, waiting patiently for them to continue his story. I loved the quiet time we spent together, and I loved the stories his hands contained.
Then my father's hands came alive again, eloquently describing a warm spring afternoon in 1932 Brooklyn.
"I knew I had to make a good impression. I had to dress well. I wore my best suit. Actually, it was my only suit. The big Depression was still going strong, and I watched every dollar."
He tells me his suit was a fine wool serge that cost him two weeks' salary. Its jaunty design was at odds with the feeling of dread that grew in him that day as he set off for the apartment where Sarah lived with her family, having written to her father asking if he might pay a call.
The scene unfolds with cinematic vividness as my father's hands recount each stage of his quest.
He descends with the crowd, down the stairs from the subway platform, sweat dampening his armpits, and exits the station into the frantic gay activity of Sabbath shoppers rushing about, making their last-minute purchases for the evening meal.
The salt scent of the Atlantic Ocean hangs over every shop awning, every outdoor stall, reminding my father, as if he needed such a reminder, how far he had traveled this warm day from his familiar home in the northern leafy village reaches of the Bronx, after one trolley ride and three subway transfers, to the very end of Brooklyn, on the honky-tonk shore of Coney Island. And why has he come here on this warm spring day, sweat pooling at the base of his spine, palms moistly clutching now-wilted store-bought flowers? Today, this very afternoon, my father will meet, for the first time, the family of the girl he has chosen to be his wife.
Unfortunately for him, my future mother, waiting at home, believes he is hopelessly boring and much too old for her; besides, she feels, she's too young to be married, there being so much fun to be had with all the good-looking boys who flutter around her like bees around a hive of honey every weekend on the hot sand of Bay 6, their hands gesturing wildly to gain her exclusive attention. And she could not banish from her mind the image of the hearing golden boy whose attentions she enjoyed so much and who said he loved her.
Glancing nervously at the written directions, my father marches down the broad bustling avenue, so unlike the uneventful Bronx street where he lives. His hands at his sides rehearse the arguments he will employ this afternoon to convince this dark-haired young girl and her father that he is the one to whom she should commit her future. He has been marshaling the arguments in his favor for the past two weeks. He has a steady job and a union card. He is mature and serious. He is a loyal and dependable fellow, calm in an emergency. He can read. He can write. He can sign fluently. And if she will have him, he will love her forever. He finds himself impressed with his qualifications as he cycles through them. He is an up-and-comer. Besides, he has a full head of hair parted perfectly down the middle and a dandy mustache, and is altogether a fine-looking fellow.
Excerpted from Hands of My Father by Myron Uhlberg Copyright © 2008 by Myron Uhlberg. Excerpted by permission of Bantam, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
I listened to this man on the radio and found the exerpt on the link listed. The author is now 70 years old and talks about the deaf/hearing worlds vividly. Enjoy...
Excerpt: 'Hands of My Father'
by Myron Uhlberg
Being a printer was the only job my father ever had, and he loved it. He would work for the newspaper until he retired over forty years later. In all that time he worked side by side with hearing co-workers, but he never really knew them. Like most in the hearing world, they treated him as if he were an alien — primitive, incapable of speech, and lacking human thought: a person to be avoided if possible, and if not, ignored.
After an apprenticeship of many years, my father was issued a union card. It was the proudest moment of his life. It was tangible proof that he was as good as any hearing man. Even in the dark days of the Depression, when one out of four men were out of work, he, a deaf man, could support himself.
And, he reasoned, he could also support a wife. My father was tired of being alone in this hearing world. It was time, he thought, to create his own silent world. A world that would begin with a deaf wife.
One bleak winter day, while we were sitting at the kitchen table, the rain sleeting against the windows of our Brooklyn apartment, his hands told me the rest of his story, in which began my story:
"Sarah was a young girl. She had many friends. She liked to have fun.
"I first noticed her at the beach in Coney Island. She was always laughing. "All the deaf boys were crazy about Sarah. Even the hearing boys.
"There were many handsome boys on the beach. All the young boys had muscles and chocolate tans. They could jump and leap over each other's back. They could do handstands.
"I was older. I didn't have muscles. I couldn't stand on my hands if my life depended on it. I didn't have a brown tan. I would get sunburned. My skin turned red. And then I would peel.
"It didn't matter. The handsome young boys with their chocolate skin and big muscles only wanted to have fun with Sarah. They were not serious boys. They had no jobs. So they had plenty of time to play, and make muscles, and get brown skin from the sun.
"I was a serious man. I had a job. A good job. The best job. I was no longer an apprentice printer. I had a union card, just like the hearing workers.
"I didn't want Sarah just to have fun. I wanted a wife for all time. I wanted a mother for my children. I wanted a partner forever. We would be two deaf people in the hearing world. We would make our own world. A quiet world. A silent world.
"We would be strong together, and strong for our children."
Then, just as the rain stopped and thin rays of sunlight striped the tabletop, my father smiled to himself, his hands thinking … "Maybe we would have a little fun before the children came." Lost in reverie, his hands, bathed in golden light, now lay silent on the kitchen table. Time passed. I sat and watched his still hands, waiting patiently for them to continue his story. I loved the quiet time we spent together, and I loved the stories his hands contained.
Then my father's hands came alive again, eloquently describing a warm spring afternoon in 1932 Brooklyn.
"I knew I had to make a good impression. I had to dress well. I wore my best suit. Actually, it was my only suit. The big Depression was still going strong, and I watched every dollar."
He tells me his suit was a fine wool serge that cost him two weeks' salary. Its jaunty design was at odds with the feeling of dread that grew in him that day as he set off for the apartment where Sarah lived with her family, having written to her father asking if he might pay a call.
The scene unfolds with cinematic vividness as my father's hands recount each stage of his quest.
He descends with the crowd, down the stairs from the subway platform, sweat dampening his armpits, and exits the station into the frantic gay activity of Sabbath shoppers rushing about, making their last-minute purchases for the evening meal.
The salt scent of the Atlantic Ocean hangs over every shop awning, every outdoor stall, reminding my father, as if he needed such a reminder, how far he had traveled this warm day from his familiar home in the northern leafy village reaches of the Bronx, after one trolley ride and three subway transfers, to the very end of Brooklyn, on the honky-tonk shore of Coney Island. And why has he come here on this warm spring day, sweat pooling at the base of his spine, palms moistly clutching now-wilted store-bought flowers? Today, this very afternoon, my father will meet, for the first time, the family of the girl he has chosen to be his wife.
Unfortunately for him, my future mother, waiting at home, believes he is hopelessly boring and much too old for her; besides, she feels, she's too young to be married, there being so much fun to be had with all the good-looking boys who flutter around her like bees around a hive of honey every weekend on the hot sand of Bay 6, their hands gesturing wildly to gain her exclusive attention. And she could not banish from her mind the image of the hearing golden boy whose attentions she enjoyed so much and who said he loved her.
Glancing nervously at the written directions, my father marches down the broad bustling avenue, so unlike the uneventful Bronx street where he lives. His hands at his sides rehearse the arguments he will employ this afternoon to convince this dark-haired young girl and her father that he is the one to whom she should commit her future. He has been marshaling the arguments in his favor for the past two weeks. He has a steady job and a union card. He is mature and serious. He is a loyal and dependable fellow, calm in an emergency. He can read. He can write. He can sign fluently. And if she will have him, he will love her forever. He finds himself impressed with his qualifications as he cycles through them. He is an up-and-comer. Besides, he has a full head of hair parted perfectly down the middle and a dandy mustache, and is altogether a fine-looking fellow.
Excerpted from Hands of My Father by Myron Uhlberg Copyright © 2008 by Myron Uhlberg. Excerpted by permission of Bantam, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
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