Wednesday ART THERAPY

Yes, Lou I will post a LIKE. I will be reading everyone's message from time to time. Just need a little time out.

 

Thank you so much, Robin, for saying the
veterans at the Legion like me for the
cheerful guy I can be. In addition to
the Korean War vet, widower, I hang out
with another veteran,83, but looks & acts
10 years younger. His wife of 50 years,
died a couple years ago,and he was
recently dating a widow, 70s. If he can be
open to dating, so can I. I've talked about
this , with my brothers, Gary & George,
but not Chad, bc it's probably too soon
for him. I've also sought the wisdom &
understanding from Karen and Deb. It
is such an individual choice. Lou

 

Oh, Karen, that's wonderful, and warms
my heart. GIC is not the same without
your wit & wisdom. Nobody laughs at
my typos like you do! I also need your
Ann Landers , or Dear Abby advice, if I
start dating again,as I told Robin.....Lou

 

Oh my goodness Karen I'm so sorry!!! As I'm reading and writing, you're in my thoughs, I'm sobbing.... our companions are leaving us... I don't have any words, just sending my love and some. Peace

 

It is whatever you want it to be!

 

Deb, thank you for returning to GIC,
after taking a break, to comfort Karen,
in her hour of need. You are one of the
leaders of TGW. You are a true Grief
Warrior, who will leave no one behind
on the battlefield of grief. I know Gary is
out there somewhere, and he will come to
Karen's aid, too. Lou

 

You’re welcome Lou, I’m happy they welcome you with open arms. Dating is most definitely such an individual choice. We each need to do what feels right for us and when. Way back before you were on GIC there were people dating in less then a year after their spouse passed. No one judged. Others who never see themselves with anyone else. No one judged them either. I don’t see myself with anyone other then Ron. But that’s how I feel now. Who knows.
Well it’s now pouring and thunder/lightening. Great and my daughter is picking me up to do errands. have a good evening. Robin

 

Finding our about Rambo's dead I'm feeling very sad, my memories of loosing our furry companions there are present. We brought 3 cats from HI, now I have only Sami, a female tabby cat, she is almost 17 yrs old and here we adopted Yogi, now he is also 17 to 18 yrs of age, knowing about Karen's loss got my tears present, so many emotions, I know that my companions also will leave me....just thinking about, I don't know what I'll do when the time comes, my sadness is so intense, loosing a partner and next a close pet companion....grief is the hardest emotion that we are experiencing. HB

 

Is just because I like melons and avocados, I like the simplicity of your pastel! thanks is very nice!

 

Robin, so sorry you are sometimes in a
maelstrom of crap weather. I'm glad you're
not a lighthouse keeper! No rain here. Beautiful, sunny 70s weekend. I'm happy
for my business owner friends, who
depend on the summer tourists, who are
finally starting to come.Thank you for
your kind words about the prospect of
dating again after one's soulmate has
died. Did you ever see the movie, Boynton
Beach Club? It's about a group of widows .& widowers. It's funny & sad, with great
character actors, like Brenda Vaccaro,
Joe Bologna ( who's a riot), and Len
Cariou. I identify with Len's character.
He is very awkward when he starts
dating Sally Kellerman's character. I saw
a podcast by a widower, who said that
at his first date after his wife died, he
felt like he was "cheating" . That didn't
work that time, but he tried again with a
different woman and it did. Lou

 

Yeah we’ve been given quite a lot of rain this year. But we’re finally having some warm sunny days and that feels extra nice. I’ve never seen Boynton Beach Club, I’m familiar with all the actors you mention though. I need to try and find it. My son lives in Boynton Beach.
I’m up late again, my daughter had someone knocking very loudly on her door around 12:30 am. She didn’t answer the door but she was scared. They were speaking but she couldn’t understand them. She called me cause she felt scared. But remembered her Dad told her not to open the door to strangers.
I’m going to get some rest now. Hope you’re sound asleep. Robin

 

Robin, I WAS sound asleep, but the
consumption of BIGELOW Sweet
Dreams herbal tea, great for putting me to
sleep, and for its' much needed hydration,
also makes me you-know-what. That
was scary about your poor daughter.I
believe, & follow , what her Dad wisely
told her. Wow, if you know all the
character actors in the movie, you'd really
like it. The scenery of pools and ocean,
is striking, and reminds me of our trips
Florida. The fact that your son lives in
Boynton Beach, is an added plus! Well,
back to sleep. Coffee with my veteran
friends at the Legion, in the morning.
Sleep well. Lou

 

Lou, I couldn’t get theBigelow sweet dreams tea but I found a different brand and got that. But I’m afraid to have it before bed for the same reasons you mentioned. I need to try it though. Ron is still taking care of us. Protecting my daughter and the handrail he built for me to get off our deck plus the chair he placed on the deck. Are just a few things. And they make me smile. My daughter said to me. Daddy always said don’t open the door to strangers. I did the right thing but what if they needed help? I told that her Fad guided her and don’t worry. Take care of you.
I’m looking forward to finding Boynton Beach club. Enjoy your morning coffee at the legion. I’m getting ready for a relaxing day on the beach. Robin

 

Melons and avocados are cool! Glad you like it!

 

Robin, I sat with 2 Vietnam veterans,
about my age. One of them still has an
occasional nightmare from the horrors
he saw. The other has a wonderful wife,
who hugged me last Veteran's Day, when
she saw me standing alone, crying, listening to a bugler play taps. I was
crying for Linda, of course, in addition to
the brave soldiers , who lost their lives in
battle. I told them about seeing my wife
die in front of me. I said I didn't want to
compare my tragedy with their horror,but
I did have a form of PTSD, too, bc I
couldn't sleep at all, with a constant loop of
seeing my wife die. I told them about GIC,
& it felt good. Usually, we just kid around,
but this was really important. Enjoy the
beach! I'm meeting a veteran friend, a
widower, as well as my drummer friend.
at the cafe for lunch & to listen to a
female vocalist. Then, I will head down to
the Neck by the water. Lou

 

Thank you Helena. I don't know what to do either, but cry.

 

Lou,

The very kind things you said about me, I feel the exact same way about all of TGW... However, if it wasn't for you, always finding a way to get us to "talk" about ourselves, referring to more than one of us in your conversations, making it easy for us to "talk" to each other, and coming up with the name for our now very close, GIC "family," I don't think we would be anywhere near as strong and united as we are. You are the glue that bonded us together and has helped keep us together... As Gary, at least I think it was Gary who first said, "there is strength in numbers." You have taught us this and so much more, as we continue to fight Mr. Grief together. Thank you for being you!!!, for doing what you do best...

Stumbling on GIC one day while surfing the net less than a year ago, deciding to become a member, was one of the very best decisions I've made since Bob's death. I can't imagine not having TGW, my GIC "family," by my side, as I continue, as all of us continue, to fight those way too frequent, multiple daily battles, with Mr. Grief. It SUCKS!!!

I hope you're enjoying a beautiful sunshine filled day with friends, enjoying excellent conversation, sharing lots of LMSO moments, while listening to some great music... All while being surrounded by the ocean... One of God's most wonderful creations...

As always, sending you hugs and love, wishing you peace, all of us peace. DEB

 

Helena,

I'm teary eyed reading this... I can "almost" feel your pain. No words of wisdom..., no advice..., just sending you the very BIGGEST!!! virtual hug. It SUCKS!!!, TUTTAM!!!

My very favorite fur baby has been gone since May 1, 2015. Sometimes it feels like she's been gone forever, but other times it feels like it just happened yesterday. I still love her and miss her with all my heart... I always will.

I still get teary eyed looking at pictures of her... especially pictures of her wearing her hot pink life preserver, standing on her back paws, her front paws on top of one of the sides of the boat, looking out over the ocean... the wind blowing her long white and yellow fur, her long furry tail wagging excitedly behind her, her big floppy ears, one sticking up straight...

Whenever we asked her if she wanted to go for a boat ride, she would excitedly run to the back door, scratching at it with one of her paws, until one of us opened it for her. She would run outside, quickly squat in the grass, (she learned from a very young age to go before she got on the boat, a story for another time, if I remember with this foggy widow brain, lol...), and as soon as one of us opened the door to the back seat, she had to be the first one in, afraid she might get left behind... (not a chance!!!, TUTTAM!!!, lol...) She went on every single boating adventure with us...

Those were some of the very best days in my life... Being on that boat, just the six of us..., Bob, our three children, and our very favorite fur baby... Looking back, I took way too many of those days for granted. If only I knew then, what I know now... I would have treasured every single second of those way beyond wonderful summer days... Even the time our very favorite fur baby, just a puppy, tried to hold it, but couldn't. She politely squatted at the very back of the boat,right against the door, but the kids were back there and barefoot. Enough said, lol...!!! Although the kids didn't find it funny at the time, this became one of those "remember when's" that always got the five of us hysterically laughing....

I miss those over the top wonderful summer days... I miss Bob... I miss my very favorite fur baby... with all my heart. I need a tissue...

I just kicked the F*CK!!! out of Mr. Grief,, not just for me, but for all of TGW. Hoping I kicked him hard enough so that he'll be unconscious for awhile, unable to bother us, allowing us to get just a little bit of peace... It SUCKS!!!

However, just think how miserable life would be if we never fell deeply in love, how shallow our existences would be. Without true love, grief wouldn't exist, but, and this is one of those really BIG!!! BUTS!!!, our lives would be so very empty..., so very beige... (Thanks Lou for sharing one of Linda's expressions with us, which I've adopted and can't seem to stop saying. Love it!!!, TUTTAM!!!)

Sending you, Sami and Yogi, lots more hugs and love, wishing you peace, all of us peace. DEB

 

Deb, you could write a screenplay for a
family comedy movie, complete with a
lovable dog. Linda & I laughed at the
original Beethoven movie, about a
St. Bernard , who was a lot of fun for the
kids, but who exasperated the frantic
father, played by the uptight Charles
Grodin. It's taken me a long time to
think of Linda's funny words, like beige,
without sobbing. I love to honor her
memory, by quoting her to friends ( who
didn't even know her), and to my dear
GW on GIC. Thank you for taking us on
that boat ride with your family, Deb. Lou

 

Deb, thank you for giving me credit for
pulling people together. Linda used to say
I could be a pest. But, I felt it my duty, as
The Godfather , as Gary amusingly
calls me, to ask each new member for the
name of his , or her, soulmate. Because of
that, I've gotten to know Bob, and many
others, and I like to share the stories of
Linda--- both happy & sad. I've been
taking 3 steps forward and 1 step
backward lately. I'm also trying to
keep tabs on my health, and to try to enjoy
life ,like Linda wanted for me. Lou