Diary of a Metal Mommy

Whew–if I can see through these foggy contact lenses I’ll try to manage a post here…contacts don’t fare too well when a person is constantly tearing up in them. Today was Jim Nisser’s funeral, and who am I kidding? I was not just tearing up, I was bawling. I certainly was not alone, my friends, I don’t think there was a dry eye in the house. Pastor Tim is an amazing man–heck, he’s kept me at church for about 12 years now, that is no small feat!–and his sermon could not have captured Jim any better. Just check out the lastest blog post he wrote for Wooddale’s web site, his sermon today was very much like this. After the service we all drove over to the Minikahda Club, the country club that Jim had worked at for so long. Listening to the general manager’s eulogy and taking part in the amazing and delicious brunch he so graciously provided for all of us in Jim’s honor made me realize that everyone there was definitely Jim’s family as well. What a lovely place!

I liken Jim to a Hobbit. I know what you all are thinking, and I can’t say I blame you…anyone who knows me knows I am completely obsessed with Lord of the Rings and will look for it in everything…but truly, it hit me today, witnessing the number of lives that he has touched–a Hobbit is the perfect way to describe him. A Hobbit is
humble, and Jim was the epitome of humility. A Hobbit is simple and gets joy from the simple things in life. Jim didn’t drive a fancy car or wear fancy clothes. He worked an everyday job doing things most people wouldn’t want to do like washing dishes and cleaning up, and his first love was baseball. Just look at ol’ Samwise Gamgee and you know that a Hobbit is a good and trusting friend. Jim was everyone’s friend. He had a smile for everyone, all the time. A Hobbit will sacrifice whatever they need to to do the right thing. Simply put, Jim served everyone and never complained. A Hobbit changed the world. Jim may not have changed the entire world, but I dare say that he has effected every life that he has touched. Tim mentioned today that even people who didn’t know him at all had written in saying how touched they were at his story, that they could tell he was what the world should be. Jim didn’t run a multi-million dollar company, he didn’t adopt starving children or play major league baseball. But he made us see how the little things in life that are done with grace and humility are so powerful and touching and can have a profound effect on us all–maybe in a small way, he did change the world…even if just for a short time.

Im so proud to say I was Jim’s friend! What a great loss. Now today, it’s time to take out these annoying contact lenses, don the glasses and get on with life. Thanks to all of you out there who are in my life. It’s always things like this that make you really appreciate what you have.

OK! I promise the next blog post won’t be so darn depressing! I’d better get back to shoe shopping or something…!!!

What can you possibly say when you’re getting ready to start your day just like any other and you get the news that a dear friend has been killed early that morning? I’m sure as Jim Nisser got ready to ride his bicycle into work at the Minnekahda Club, just as he did every early morning for 46 years, he had no idea that this was his last day here. Jim was not only hit by a car, but the driver had the audacity to drag him around a bit and then flee the scene. I know we all have to go sometime, and for Jim it’s a bit fitting that he ends his life on the bike that he rode everywhere, but this was not the way for this dear man to go.

Jim was 65 years old, but he sure didn’t look it. He didn’t act it either–he was forever young. At my church, Jim was there before everyone and left after everyone, always the person to clean up and always did so with a joke and a smile. I never heard Jim complain about anything. He was always so generous with a kind word or a helping hand, and often remembered the kids’ birthdays with a little gift. A lover of cars just like Sullivan, sometimes he’d show up with a car from his collection for Sully just because.

I remember when the nursery school was just starting up at the church and they needed to do a fundraiser party to get things going. Sullivan was attending, so I chipped in to help. It was my duty to make and serve sno-cones, and this was not an easy task for one person! Before I knew it, Jim was by my side and we were laughing and having a great time. He had nothing to do with the preschool at all, but there he was.

Church will feel very empty now without Jim, I have to say. I think many of us will feel an empty spot in our hearts. The world needs more people like Jim, that’s for sure. Cory had taken this photo of him not long ago, and our friend Rosemarie said the most poignant thing… she was glad to see this last picture of Jim, because it was a rare thing to see him sitting and relaxing with a cup of coffee…he was usually serving everyone else.

Well, summer definitely went out like a lion…a fun holiday weekend to be had and a very hot temp for the first day of September, which of course seems so strange since September just sounds so ‘fall’.It started out on Friday with a birthday celebration for me…yes, Metal Mommy is another year older (and of course deeper in debt…I’m in America, aren’t I??). It was the 42nd one, sort of a blah birthday. Although 42 definitely means you are IN your forties, not just hovering around it anymore. Vivian made me a lovely cake–she did pretty well with only yellow food coloring, random frosting tubes and a few candles. In her usual clever (and thoughtful!) manner instead of putting 42 candles on the cake she put four and then the number 2 candle. Yes, I blew them all out in one puff…of course knowing me with all of my hot air I probably could have managed 42 of them!! The only thing I really wanted was Godfather’s pizza for my special meal…it’s a memory thing, Godfathers was the pizza place I went to after every football game and fun event in junior high and high school. It was a nice gift indeed, considering Coreman had to drive a bit to get it, there isn’t a restaurant very close by. The pizza was a bit cool by the time we got it home, but definitely worth it. Yum! I don’t know if it’s especially good pizza or just the association…but no matter! It’s a pizza I can’t refuse!

Over the weekend we got invited to Mark and Dawn’s house to celebrate the end of summer with yet another lovely BBQ. Friends of theirs have a Sullivan too…a girl one! I’ve heard a lot about them, so it was fun to finally meet them and have the Sullivans play. They were pretty much inseparable–my Sully was in the pool from 2:00 when we arrived until 9:00 when we left. Check out those pruney feet! Imagine if the Sullivans married? Sullivan and Sullivan. Sounds like a law firm.

And last night, an impromptu BBQ here with our friends Darcie, Dan, Elliot and Q. Here are the big boys talking gadgets, as always. Too bad I didn’t get photos of the kids downstairs doing their ‘band’–Elliot on drums, Sullivan guitar (a blow-up one, that is…) and Quinton on microphone. Luckily we did get some movie footage…good stuff. They were jamming along to “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, by Nirvana. Makes a Metal Mommy proud…*sniff*…

And another *sniff*–off to school the kids went today! I am crying both in sadness and joy. Sadness of course because the summer is gone and you can’t get those days back…my children are on to
another school year. Joy because the summer is gone and that means FREEDOM for Mommy! Although I will miss sleeping in, there is definitely something to be said for my very own schedule for a few hours a day. ahhhh.

Happy Back to School everyone!

I’m here! I know it’s been forever since I’ve blogged–so sorry to the two people that check up on me here every so often. All is well, it’s just been a busy summer. And the times that weren’t busy…well, who wants to write about that?! As writing a letter or journal entry can be DAUNTING when you haven’t kept up with things–so much to catch up on!–I will make this more of a scrapbook entry, if you will. On to the Highlights of My Summer:

As nice as it is to have the summer to DO things, often there is nothing better than to just lounge on your deck in your cushy Papasan chair. Luckily we HAVE a Papasan chair, and a darn nice view of the woods from our deck. Nothing quite like relaxing out there, especially with a nice summery Tanqueray and Tonic. Now that’s gettin’ your zen on!

Normally I hate having to be involved in one of my kid’s school projects…it’s like, didn’t I go through this already when I was in school??? But Vivian’s summer project for her upcoming advanced Social Studies class was to do a report on some historical place of her choice in Minnesota. She chose the Split Rock Lighthouse, which is up in Two Harbors. What a great way to start off the summer–taking in gorgeous views of the north shore and just feeling one with nature. Plus I got to hang with my brother and his kids, it’s always great to see the cousins having a good time together. This was one project that was just as interesting to me as (hopefully!) it was to Vivian, and one thing I did learn for sure…those lighthouses are a bit claustrophobic…

Ahhh, the 4th of July. At Stephanie and John’s, once again. How lucky are we to get pampered and spoiled by the best cook (s), the most gracious hosts, the lovely scenery, titillating conversation (I love that word) and fireworks on the golf course?? Honestly I never cared that much about the 4th–well, not since I was a child and we spent it at Iowa City City Park every year…great memories there–but the 4th with Steph and Company definitely now makes it a highlight of my year!

Summer is great for family togetherness, but it’s also superb for donning your favorite sundress and going out for a lovely dinner with your peeps. Somehow Stephanie Kim and I have stumbled into a dare-I-say regular routine of trying a new restaurant together once a month or so…well, new to Kim and I–we let Stephanie guide us to the right places! Oh do I love hanging out with my girls. Never underestimate the power of getting a bit gussied and having a night out with your buddies! It is a wonderful thing. Of course the sad thing is this has sort of replaced our podcast get-togethers for now….but only for the time being. I’m not ready to give up on Feminine Hijinx yet!

Summer in Minneapolis would not be complete without visiting one of the 10 thousand lakes! Not much makes a Mommy happier than to see her child enjoying themselves so completely and so purely in the sand and sun. Sullivan spent hours this day working on a very cool sandcastle complete with moat. When we dragged Coreman back out there that evening, it was amazingly still there.

Ahhh, Brookside. Our family will probably never have any other summer vacation but heading up there–but you know, that is not such a bad thing. Kids are safely free to roam and play, parents can relax (or be active…I myself mostly choose the former…!) with good company and just be a family. And since Brookside is also a childhood memory for me, that makes it all the more special!!

And we say goodbye to yet another summer by hitting the Great Minnesota Get-Together..the State Fair, of course! Both kids had their artwork displayed and ribboned…Sullivan getting a blue for his first time in! Yes, the fair is crowded and dirty (oh, the germs!) sometimes unbearably hot…but I for one can’t resist it anyway. Where else can I eat a gyro, some mini donuts, fries and an elephant ear all in one day, absolutely guilt-free??!

So there it is, my friends, my summer in a nutshell. Nothing too spectacular in some eyes, I’m sure, but perfect by me. The only downfall is that it went by wayyy too fast…and it goes faster every year. I am excited tho, for the new beginnings that a new school year will bring for the kids. Here we go again…!

Rock and Roll lives on in this household, in one form or another. Vivian has said “been there, done that” with the electric guitar, and now she’s on to the drums. As a parent, part of me feels badly that we let kids drop things like this so easily…should we force them to continue to learn something they aren’t interested in for the lesson of sticking to something? Part of me feels that yes, we should. Then again, Vivian has spent her own money on the guitar and the lessons and if it’s not something she really loves or wants to pursue, what good does it do anyone to force her to? How would one know where one’s passion lies unless they try it all?

Jamming with her cousins on their set got her interested in the whole drumming thing and I might say she has a natural knack for it. It’s like that with any instrument she tries, really, so it wasn’t a surprise. We’ll see if this one lasts…ah well, if not the drums will go up on Craig’s List, where we found them, and it will be on to the next thing. It has been great fun to have those drums set up for anyone who wants to give it a try. Coreman and Vivian have actually gotten a good jam going, I think I heard some Sex Pistols filtering up the stairs at one point. nice. The girl has to learn the important beginnings of rock and roll!!! I fiddled around on the set and let me just say Vivian does not get her natural drumming talent from her Metal Mommy. I have a hard enough time accomplishing one thing, let alone trying to do 3 or 4 different things at the same time–which is essentially what drumming is. Now I just have to figure out how to have a conversation on the phone around here…!