That Just Happened!

New Years Day has always held a special place in my heart.  I come from a very large family (my Dad has 11 brothers and sisters) and every year all of my aunts, uncles, and cousins would converge on my house for a party.  My Mom would be up all night preparing, shopping and cleaning to get ready for the descent into madness.  The cousins would play and rough-house in the basement, while my aunts would be in the kitchen offering my Mom help (which she would usually refuse).  My uncles would be holed up in the basement smoking and drinking and playing cards.  It would take weeks for the smoke to clear from the basement, even with the double doors that opened out to the backyard.  It was a pretty chilly place to be for the whole month of January.

My Aunt Judy and Uncle Brian would always be the first to arrive with their kids Michael and Steve.  They were also the last to leave.  Steve used to team up with my cousin Shannon and they would antagonize the smaller ones.  It would end up with us all piling on them in an attempt to body slam them to the floor.  Hey, what can I say?  My family loved the WWE.  Small dramas would play out in the kitchen.  With six sisters someone is bound to be having an argument with someone else.  I think of all the time Stephtastic and I spent fighting as kids and I can only imagine what it would be like times 6!  Sometimes the kids would sneak up and try to eavesdrop until one of our aunts noticed and booted us back down to the basement.

Of course, the men would stay out of it.  If you could pick the place furthest from the kitchen, that’s where they would be; in the furthest corner of the basement holed up around the table playing poker until the late hours of the night.  After that night there would literally be cases upon cases of empties stacked in the basement waiting to be returned, the yeasty smell combining with the smoke smell.  It sounds gross, but it is kind of comforting.   Stale beer still makes me a little nostalgic.

There were also small (and large) dramas played out amongst the cousins.  There was definitely a hierarchy at play there.  Older siblings would hide from younger siblings because they were annoying.  Younger siblings would try to find older siblings because they wanted to annoy them.  There are three very notable incidences from this time that I remember so well.

As you can imagine there is quite the spread in ages between the cousins.  I won’t even try to guess the oldest cousin’s age (and I certainly wouldn’t broadcast it on the internet.   The youngest first cousin in my extended family is actually my brother.  So, when some of us were in our early teens, others were older and dating, and occasionally their partner could be duped convinced threatened within an inch of their life to come.  Once when we were playing hide and seek a few of us decided to hide in the bathtub and our cousin’s boyfriend came in.  We just about died, we really didn’t want him to pee in front of us, but we also didn’t want to be caught hiding there looking like perverts.  Before we could make up our mind on a course of action, my cousin came in and they started making out.  Well, that was just about as much as we could take and we were convulsing in fits of silent laughter.  I think we were just relieved he didn’t drop trou.  They ended up leaving after a short amount of time and we burst out laughing and shouting “oh my god!”  My cousin didn’t ever bring him around again, and I don’t think she ever found out that we were in there.  Unless she happens to read this.  In which case…um…moving on…

One of my cousins, who is close to my age, has a sister Stephtastic’s age.  Of course it was “us versus them” mentality and we frequently refused to play with them, or let them in my room.  One time Stephtastic and the younger sister went missing for a while.  We were all playing nicely when we realized the two of them hadn’t been by to bother us in a while.  We went to look for them and it was a good thing we did.  We finally found them in the furnace room dressing our dog up in a pink party dress.  The moment we opened the door the dog went shooting out and ran around the basement in paroxysms of fear.  We couldn’t believe that they would dress up the dog; we also couldn’t believe they spent so much time doing it.

The third most memorable thing that happened was again an “us versus them” moment.  My cousin Chris was close to my age and he had two younger brothers.  We were running around trying to get rid of them and decided to go into the spare bedroom.  We raced in there and tried slamming the door, but it wouldn’t close.  Figuring his brothers were pushing on it, Chris took a running jump and slammed his whole body in it.  There was a second of silence and then an ear-splitting scream.  All we could hear were the pounding of footsteps as the aunts came to investigate.  It turns out Chris’ brother had his finger in the door and when it closed, it did so on that.  His finger was smushed completely and he was howling.  All Chris and I could say was, “Sorry!  Sorry!  Sorry!  Sorry!”  Luckily, his brother was very young at the time and when you are young your bones are almost soft, so his finger literally bounced back.  Also, someone thought to distract him by offering him a cookie at which he promptly stopped crying and started saying, “Cookie?  Cookie?  More cookie?”  Yeah, Chris and I were pretty lucky that day.

My cousin Shannon passed away in a tragic accident when I was in my early teens.  I always think of him when I hear “Poison” by Bell Biv DeVoe.  My cousin Chris passed away about 10 years ago, also due to a tragic accident.

Earlier this year we lost my Aunt Judy to cancer.  Last Friday we lost my Uncle Bruce due to an illness that set in quickly, and the negligence of the hospital staff.  Two days later on Sunday night, my Uncle Gary passed away after a long illness.  In each case they have left behind family that loves them and will miss them terribly.

I hate getting older, when you aren’t shielded from death and you are forced to deal with it more frequently.  I hate that everyone is getting older and diseases like cancer claim more of my family.  I hate that I can remember being out with my Dad and having him go say hello to someone he knew, only to find out he was the director of the funeral home (who was a lovely man, it’s just not someone you want to know through their “work”).  I hate that needless deaths occur and there is nothing you can do to prevent them.

I hate that I don’t know what to say to make it better.  I am a “do-er”, I like to solve problems and tackle problems head-on.  It is not a good feeling to know that you can’t do anything except just be there as a passive participant.  I know everyone has these stories.  I know everyone can relate.  I know that if it were happening to a member of my immediate family, I don’t know what I would need from my friends and family.

I love having these memories of New Year’s Day.  I love that growing up I had such a positive experience and a chance to reconnect with my cousins.  With such a large family, it can be difficult keeping up with everyone.  I’m not entirely sure why we stopped having New Year’s Day, but when I get a house of my own, I think I may try and bring it back.  After all there are a lot of second and third cousins that could benefit from the camaraderie and fun these parties bring.  Also, I’m pretty sure Steve wants to prove he can still body slam someone.  With marriages, divorces, births and deaths things change really quickly.  Sometimes I wish I could go back to that basement.  Yeasty beer, smoke smells, and all.

That Just Happened!

Mama Kat hosts Writing Prompts every Thursday over at her blog www.mamakatslosinit.com and this week one of the options was to write about your Top Ten Fall Fashion Favourites.  As much as I love the summer, fall is the season for fashion.  All of the fall shows are huge, there are more clothes, more layers…and more luxury.  So, these are the first 5 items on my Favourites list.

1.    Actually, this first item I already have in my closet.  Passed down to me from my mom, this adorable cape was my grandma’s.  It came to me by default because I am the only one in the family who even comes close to fitting her…busty proportions, shall we say.  Since it was given to me, capes have come in and out of fashion twice and I have worn it that many times, so I am looking to get a little more use out of it this time around.  Also, I’m hitting two notes, because plaid is very in this season (or so I’m told).

2.   As I have briefly mentioned before, I had to wear a uniform for school, so anything to do with kilts and nylons makes me break out into a skin rash.  Until recently, the thought of wearing loafers did as well until I saw this seasons adorable loafer heels that come in colours other than dark brown and can be worn without a shiny penny.

3.   Hal-le-lu-jah, the 70’s are making a comeback!  I can’t say I am particularly in love with any decade past the 60’s, but the wide leg pant is for me.  I am too hippy for the boot cut, and the skinny jeans are so last year, so it is nice that they are featuring a pant that doesn’t make me look like an apple on a stick.  (Coincidentally, candy apples are another thing I associate with fall, but I don’t want to look like one.)

4.  DVF is one of my favourite designers.  Her clothes are meant for girls of all shapes and sizes (all hail the wrap dress!) and are available in sizes 0 – 16.  Her Teresia silk dress is perfect for fall and is very versatile.  Good for work (layered with tights, black boots, and a cardigan) or a night on the town, the Teresia is a great staple piece for the wardrobe.  Plus, black is boring and sombre, my thought is to save it for winter.

5.   Let’s just say the most I have spent on the wedding so far has been in the form of bridal magazines.  Each season all the new ones come out and I snap them up with glee.  Oh, to have an unlimited budget and peacock feathers…but I digress.  There is one thing that most of the wedding gurus and designers agree on: Purple is the hottest colour for fall.  Pantone released their fall 2011 colour report and purple is on the list.  What makes Pantone an expert?  Well, they asked the fashion experts, of course!

Next week, I’ll tell have the next 5 on my list, so until then…

That Just Happened!

Some things from your youth really stick with you.  Whether it’s your Mom saying, “Don’t wear white after Labour Day,” or your Dad saying, “Never let the salt stay on your car,” they are words of wisdom you find yourself taking to heart to this day.  I remember sitting in morning assembly in high school (yes, we had morning assembly each morning) on the first day of school.  As usual the Headmaster was giving his “Welcome Back” talk, but my friends and I were more worried about who was dating who, catching up with our friends, and finding ways to inconspicuously roll up our kilts.

I found myself only half paying attention until a call went out to the gym.  “Who here makes New Year’s Resolutions?”  Almost everyone’s hand went up, even the elementary students who probably didn’t know what a resolution was.  “How many times have you broken it?”  Again, a lot of hands went up.  The Headmaster went on to say that New Year’s resolutions are made and then broken quite easily.  In fact, most people expect that they are going to break it before the end of January.  He pointed out that September is like a New Year for us.  It is a time for all students to embark on the school year.  A time to reflect on what you want your year to look like, the goals you want to accomplish, the activities you want to do.  So many New Year’s resolutions are broken, but here is a second time to start anew. 

Something about that always appealed to me and to this day I see September as a fresh start.  The back to school commercials and the accompanying dip in temperature call to mind a time when September was the beginning of the year.  A year of friends, fights, successes and failures, and new school supplies.  I remember sitting in the gym with increasing resolve; I would get straight A’s, I would not let my French teacher annoy me, I would be nice to everyone in my class…All of these resolutions made in my mind, resolutions I would only have to keep for ten months instead of twelve.

Thinking ahead to ten months from now, there are going to be a lot of changes.  My brother will be graduating from high school, my Mom will be (potentially) facing an empty nest, I will be ending my single life by getting married, and my sister and I will both (potentially) be moving closer to each other.  So the question is; what do I want the next ten months to look like?  Do I want to let the pressures of planning a wedding get to me?  Not really.  Do I want to lose some weight for those wedding pics?  Yep.  Do I want to be looking for a new home and saving up money?  Definitely.  Do I want to get a new job and start a career?  For sure! 

I have all of these wants and dreams, but it is also important to think about the road I want to take to get there.  Do I want to sit at home all the time to save money?  Not really, I have to find a balance.  Can I lose weight and get healthy by sitting and wishing?  *sigh* Unfortunately not, I have to dedicate myself to fitness.  I want to achieve my goals in a way that is graceful and will help me to enjoy life as it is now.

The main point of this is a little reminder.  New Year’s is not the only time to set resolutions; you can do it any time throughout the year.  September is a good time to start because there is a change in seasons, many of you with children are experiencing a change back into the “routine”, and the weather isn’t so depressing you can only imagine curling up by a fire (*ahem* January *ahem*).  With all the little reminders that school is starting it helps you to get in the mind space for change.  Plus, all of the TV shows are new, and if TV execs tell me it’s a new year than it must be goshdarnit!

Think about what you want the upcoming “school year” to look like and how you can achieve these goals.  A new beginning doesn’t have to start when the calendar year does, and ten sounds so much more doable than twelve.

That Just Happened!