Tuesday, November 30, 2010

RANDOM THOUGHTS

OUT OF MY MIND ON A TUESDAY



I wonder if my newly-married sister wants more children, specifically, a son. Her twin has three, one girl and two boys. Her husband has a daughter from a previous relationship as does she, with her girl being a year older.

It isn’t like I really care but I was in the tub and scraping the dead skin off my feet and I was thinking how big a sissy I must have seemed when I was younger. Walking around the house with skin cream on my face and forever buffing my fingernail, finishing them off with clear nail polish.


To the outside eye, it is a wonder that the twins took the pursuits that they did. The ‘oldest’ twin in the Army along with her twin followed my lead into the ROTC (though it was Navy ROTC) in high school. I remember speaking to them at length about the benefits of service and that even if they did not enlist, they could still become reserves, go to college and all the other good stuff that the ROTC could do for them.


The Army twin would also play basketball at a HIGH level, getting on the court for repeat city champs in high school and a state championship. Her sister, with whom I had a very close bond with (it is was not by accident that she asked me to walk her down the aisle) would run high school track, go on to pioneer woman football as a member of the Detroit Demolition AND even get in the ring a few times as a boxer!!

Now I never ever pretended to be a ‘Father’ for them or anything. I could say the same thing about my darling brother and getting him to be ‘Miss Piggy/Leroy from ‘Fame’ on skates’, among the imprinting I did on him. Strange… the girls took to the masculine traits in me and my brother… well, I am not saying he took his sexual cues from me, but he was certainly comfortable in our house. He wasn’t teased for his orientation (but I did have my sardonic taunts that annoyed him plenty!), but he was encouraged to be who he was. One of the funniest moments of my amateur career occurred at a club on the east side.

Normally any place that had room would do for a fight show. Foreign Legion Halls, Bingo Parlors, and sometimes night clubs… even gay ones. I used to tag along with him, mainly to make sure he was safe and to listen to the coolest music! Anywho, I remember one smoker was set up at Todd’s and the cat working the door eyeballed me. He no doubt recognized me and was wondering what on earth was I doing? Then he saw me fight. Afterwards, he gave me some real daps and smile the next time I would come in with my darling brother, even giving us a serious break on the ID card (we didn’t often get carded, but we didn’t have to produce any ‘make believe’ to get in after my boxing match there!) check at the door.

Boiling this down to what hit me in the tub, I thought how the twin who got married would seem to her prospective son. Sunday on one of the NFL pre-game shows, there was a story about a NFL player whose Mom really wanted to play football when she was young girl but was not able to do so. She did pass that love on to her son… and I wonder if something like that would happen to the newlywed girl’s prospective son? It would take ‘being tough as a girl’ to a new level, don’t you think??

It took me until after I came home from the Army for me to realize that I was both bigger and stronger, physically, than my Mother. It was the first week home and I felt like I towered over her. What struck me was that I had prolly been this much bigger than her for a while… I did not exactly ‘grow’ while I was in the service… maybe an inch, inch-and-a-half. Weight was static so, it must have been her presence that had me think she was ‘bigger’ than me. Funny… if she did have another child and it was boy, I don’t think that the apple would have fallen far from the tree.

Nebraska noticed how my new BIL personality can be a bit annoying. I wonder how the couple are going to mix, because my sister is a go-getter and isn’t used to being told what to do but, he is former military and I think having been a soldier could help in their marriage. I know she used to get along with a certain Army cat who wore the AG shield on his class A’s…


While it put a HUGE crimp in my budget (the will be no COLA increase this year… one day, I am going to post about what I think about the mess over Social Security and how I think there is something fishy about the boondoggle going on in the socio-political spin cycle), having done so, I feel a lot better about myself and my future. Having my Dad see that I made the effort and getting a chance to meet Nebraska (along with my nephews, they were also able to note my ‘position upgrade’) and making my sister’s big day, I figure that my ‘break in case of emergency’ box  has been refilled, wouldn’t you say?  It isn’t that I am thinking that things won’t work out for me here but that is a part of my ‘eclectic method’. Anywho…

 ILLINOISE (a really cool Suftjan Stevens cd!!)

I remember how tremendous the Kendall Gill-Kenny Norman team was in the ’88-’89 season and how they tortured Michigan in their regular season match-ups. Then Glen Rice went all GLEN RICE in the NCAA’s , including their third match-up in the Final Four for that season. It was also the year I finally got a well-earned win over my simon-pure nemesis in the Golden Glove, the same night as Michigan’s win over the Illini.

Now that Roy Williams coaches Carolina, I am less fond of them as a ‘team’. I really liked Tyler Hansborough, because of his grit and hustle (plus Mookie Dee could not STAND him!! Of course I would wear my Carolina stuff when they played national games… but NOT when they played against Sparty... ALWAYS root the home team, with one notable exception). I didn’t like how Coach Roy Williams left Kansas, which was quite classes, if you asked me. But as long as they were that Carolina blue, I am going to lean toward the Heels.

Northeast Indiana cheers for Illinois? Or is it the Big Ten thing?? I don’t know but I could see either one being enough… I would like for the Big Ten to do well in the ACC-Big Ten challenge, even if they have to beat Carolina. Either way, I will be good, but tomorrow, it is all about Sparty! I respect Duke and its coach, Mike Krzyzewski and the job he does graduating players, but some of them are the most hatable cats in college basketball… it has been proven through history! I still hate Jim Spanarkel and Mike Gminiski, much less Danny ‘The Bust’ Ferry and Christian Lattener among some of his better know players. But I did like Tommy Amaker and wanted him to do well at Michigan… but what a catch for Harvard!! Can you imagine HIS resume?? Graduated Duke with a national title, won a NIT title at Michigan and coaches at Harvard… do you get any better than that?

Squirted all over my word count limit… sorry about it. Hope y’all are having a good day… I know that I am!!

6 comments:

mrs.missalaineus said...

i remember todds and parking across the street at the mcdonald's.

be well!

xxalainaxx

betty said...

I am having a good day, Mark. I'm hoping your newly married sister takes some time to be a couple before they consider adding to their family, of course age could be a consideration, but I think sometimes it is good to have that alone time as a couple (even with kids they brought into the relationship). But whatever they decide, I'm sure it will be a good one for their family :)

glad to hear you are having a good day!

betyt

Unknown said...

I wish your sister well. If she's anything like you, I'm sure she's worth her salt.

Angel said...

Just have to say this:

I FREAKING LOVELOVELOVE YOU!!!!!

seriously. :)

Anonymous said...

I will never feel the same about my tub again :-).

Ken Riches said...

So glad you made the trip, that you are on better terms with sis, and that you are having a good day.