Just a girl writing in the blogging ring
Who is your best friend Tesla?
You mom!
Awwwww…..who is your second best friend?
Ying!
Laughing…who is your third best friend?
Amanta!
Amanda Hoke is the smartest 3-year-old I know. She calls me Pattie Cakes which I find adorable.
She knows more dinosaur names than I will ever learn.
~P.
I can not put into “perfect words” how much I appreciate all your support during this very difficult time of separation from my daughter. It feels good to know I can lean on so many friends when I feel I am falling down.
My facebook friends, college friends, high school friends, life long friends….you get the picture. You always have a listening ear and words of encouragement. This is why friendship is priceless.
Dale is the greatest boyfriend I’ve ever had. His feelings were hurt a little bit when I told him he couldn’t be my “best friend” because having your significant other as your best friend is a challenge. If a bf or gf is your bbf and you two break up, you’re doubly screwed, and not in a good way!
Friends are precious and even if long periods of time pass between talking to a friend, it’s so easy to catch up. Never take a friend for granted or after a while you will find you don’t have any “real friends” at all.
Remember, you get to pick your friends.
Choose wisely,
~P.
Friday night Dawn and Scott Wolf were over to visit Dale and I. Around 11 pm we heard a crash outside and I looked out the window but didn’t see anything. I didn’t bother to open the front door.
Earlier on Friday I gathered up all the yard decorations and set them right outside my flower bed. My intention was to get Tesla’s wagon later and take them around back to the garage. It slipped my mind and I didn’t really think about the yard ornaments again the rest of the day.
Dawn texted me asking if we wanted to go to the Viking Club for dinner. They came over to our house after dinner. Dale and Scott were in the dining room while Dawn and I were in the living room watching Auction Hunters on tv. There was a loud bang, like someone punched my front screen door. I looked out the window but didn’t see anyone or anything.
Saturday morning around 11 am, I went out the front door with Ying and found this.
Fairy 1
My first thought was “some idiot smashed the fairy that didn’t have a broken wing and stole the one that was broke.” The fairies were wedding gifts from my friends Joyce Fetter at Labor & Industry and the other was from Kim and Dave Oburn. Friends I had made through my co-workers, Scott and Malinda Ettinger. Had some great times with all my work friends. We all fell out of touch after I retired from my state career.
The fairies have been part of my yard decorations ever since John and I received them in 2005. They had a long life, those fairies. John and my marriage….not so long.
I kept the head-he's keeping his eyes open for deviants
The second fairy wasn’t stolen after all. Someone smashed that one against my neighbor’s door. Her screen door actually broke and she called the police and landlord. I called the police also and they returned my call noting a second fairy was smashed and my screen door was dented. They asked if I had any suspects. I said, “not really” and that was the end of the fairy tale.
I imagine it was kids walking up Rt 74 with nothing better to do then ruin other people’s property.
Fairy killer!
~P.
Over the past three years, I have been trying to develop the ability to judge “true friends” from the “fake ass wanna be friends” that just use you for their own benefit.
Don’t you hate being fooled by those “fakes” that say the right things, at the right time then show their true colors later? Takes any amount of respect I had for that person and flushes it right down the toilet.
I don’t fake friendship. You either know if I like you or don’t. When I dislike someone I pretty much block them out of my life. Even if they are right in front of me talking, shouting, etc. If I don’t have to utter one word, not a single breath on this person, I won’t.
I would much rather save my breath for my friends and family that I care about and they care about me. Appreciating a true friend is so important. My true friends have been in my life supporting me during the toughest of times. In return, I am there for them.
I don’t need fake friends. I especially don’t need fake friends who testify on my husband’s behalf to make me look bad. Just so everyone knows, the truth will eventually come out and it won’t matter what John’s witnesses have been coached to say.
Fake friends apply elsewhere,
~P.
Here's your chance for a preview
Here’s your chance. What do you want me to write about? Fiction (ToadLicker), non-fiction (Beaver Hole)…..school stories The Spartan stuff, divorce (ughh drama), kid story (Telsa stuff), embarrassing friend stories (Spanish, art, Weiners?? short-stories, adult stories/poems, my own bizarre twisted thoughts without proof reading?
You tell me and I will write. Or send me a question to answer. Or a “first line of a story”
Hit me…I’m feeling creative. Will credit suggestions unless you want to be unknown. Why is that?
I may regret this,
~P.
My best friend from middle school has a very sick husband. They are struggling to make ends meet by selling off their possessions, including her wedding rings.
Dawn has been an awesome friend since we were about 13 years old. Some friends come and go, others remain in your life forever. Dawn is the forever type of friend.
Here is Dawn’s story about her husband Scott. If you are touched by her story, please consider helping them by using this link I created. Wouldn’t you want your friends to help you, if you were down and out? http://wolfheartfund.chipin.com/scott-and-dawn-wolf
It began in June of 2005…
He was having very bad abdominal pains, so I rushed him to the Hanover
Hospital ER thinking it was his appendix. A CAT scan did not show a problem with his appendix, but the doctor said that Scott’s blood work was not right. The nurse drew more blood and we waited.
The doctor came back and by this time Scott had enough waiting. He
was begging to smoke a cigarette. This made the doctor mad and he told Scott to go home. If he still had pain in the morning I was to take him to our family doctor.
The next day he was still in pain, so we made an appointment with his family doctor and he saw him the same day. After looking at Scott’s blood results, Dr. Ton asked why he was not admitted into the hospital. I told what happened the previous day and Dr. Ton was amazed. He was referring Scott to an oncologist and Scott never should have left the hospital the day before. It would take the oncologist about 2 weeks to
get Scott in for an appointment which was fine with us, but we were worried.
Our concerns were realized as we were leaving Dr Ton’s office. A nurse from the oncologist’s office called and told us to get to Hanover Hospital as soon as possible. Scott needed a phlebotomy. I was like…okay. I had no clue what that was at the time, but boy do I know now!
Dr. Mohan had him scheduled for phlebotomies for 5 days straight. If you don’t know what a phlebotomy is, let me enlighten you. A doctor drains a pint of blood out of you.
Normally a person can only give a pint of blood every 6-8 weeks but Scott needed to have a pint a day for at least 5 days straight.
Within a week the oncologist, Dr. Mohan, was able to get Scott an appointment. She was baffled and had no clue to what was wrong. All she knew was Scott had way
too many red blood cells and she needed to get them out. A bone marrow biopsy
was performed and another test where they drew a test tube of blood, mixed it with
radioactive dye then injected it back into his veins. I cried while they did
this because I could see on Scott’s face how much it hurt.
The next 3 months were terrible. Scott had just started a job, but was unable
to work until the doctor cleared him. We had no income except my babysitting pay and that was not much. The company he worked for was awesome and held his job for him. They also did a fundraiser for us and the company owner wrote us a check for $2500. The office staff raised about $100 and donated lots of food.
Scott was finally diagnosed with Polycythemia Vera. This is a rare blood condition affecting bone marrow and over-producing red blood cells. It is also pre-stage leukemia.
In 2006, Scott had a Deep Venous Thrombosis (blood clot) in his left calf.
Next, a mini-stoke in 2009 followed by him passing out at work. Our family doctor sent him to a neurologist for tests but those came back normal. The doctors were stumped and started more tests to figure out the problem.
In September of 2010 our family doctor sent him to Gettysburg
Hospital for an echocardiograph. She figured we would start working our way down his body until she could figure the problem out. We arrived at the hospital
on Oct 1st at 9 am. We were told the echo would only take about 20 minutes and we would get the results from his family doctor in 2 days. I sat in the waiting room with 3 toddlers under the age of 3 for over an hour.
The waiting room door opened and a doctor asked me to come with him. I told him I
couldn’t because I had 3 toddlers and no stroller. We went into the hall and he proceeded to tell me that Scott has a large mass growing inside his heart and he needed to
go to York Hospital NOW!!!!!
It took me two hours to get from Gettysburg Hospital to York Hospital that day.
Imagine a frazzled woman with a sick husband and three toddlers trekking
across the county. Not a pretty sight.
Sometime after 7 pm Dr. Taylor came and explained that Scott had a golf ball size mass growing on his mitral valve. The doctor had no clue if it was a blood clot, a tumor, or just deposits of an infection. So again we waited, this time all weekend.
On Monday, Scott had a heart catheter done to make sure there were no surprises when the doctor went into his heart. Scott’s open-heart surgery was scheduled for Tuesday
early in am. That time frame came and went. Then it was scheduled for Tuesday
afternoon….that came and went also. Next, it was scheduled for Wednesday early in the morning, but again was rescheduled for Wednesday mid-morning. Finally they came to prep him for pre-op and then they wheeled him away. Again, I waited and waited.
He was placed in open-heart intensive care unit and Dr. Taylor came to tell me how it went. He said it was a blood clot and he also discovered a hole in Scott’s heart, so he fixed that too. All along, I had thought Scott only had a hole in his head.
Scott’s nurse told me to go home and get much needed sleep. I had slept on a
chair beside Scott’s bed from Friday until Wednesday. I arrived at the hospital at 6:30 am Thursday and walked into 3 doctors, multiple nurses and all kinds of machines. A nurse took me from the room and told me to sit, “A doctor will be over to talk to you shortly.”
Never believe that line from a nurse. A doctor never came and when
everyone left his room I ran in to see what was going on. Scott’s ICU nurse said that he had trouble breathing in the middle of the night and they had to put him on a bypass
machine. Eventually I learned his right lung had collapsed.
Scott was sent home on October 12th with 13 medications and on oxygen. A
visiting nurse came to our home every day for 4 weeks. On November 9th we went for his 4 week follow-up appointment with the surgeon. This appointment did not go well. Dr. Sheers listened to Scott’s heart and immediately sent him for an echocardiograph at
Gettysburg Hospital. After the echo, a “white coat” (as Scott calls them) came into the room (this is never a good sign) and told us to go back to Dr. Sheers for an explanation.
We went back to Dr. Sheers office and he met us at the door. We were told to
go to York Hospital NOW!!!! Boy, that was way too familiar. Now what?????
We’re at York Hospital now and a nursing assistant told us that his heart rate was 204. He needed to relax and get into bed. (Relax? Oh sure, no problem) A doctor came in later and
explained that Scott had fluid building up around his heart and the fluid was
crushing it.
The next day we went for another heart surgery, his third within 5 weeks. After his surgery I went in to see him and was surprised he was awake, and very mad. He told me that he was conscious for the surgery. I nodded and thought he was on some good drugs and was talking crazy. What surgeon would do heart surgery when the patient is awake?!
Later that day Scott’s heart surgeon, Dr. Taylor, came in the room and sat down with us. I immediately began to worry because Dr. Taylor never sits. He proceeded to tell us that he was sorry he had to do most of the surgery while Scott was awake. I almost fell out of my chair. WHAT?????? He explained when they tried to intubate him, he flat-lined. Thinking fast, Dr. Taylor pulled the tube out of Scott’s mouth did CPR. Once Scott was conscious and breathing he cut him open and put the tubes in to drain the fluid around his heart. Afterwards, they intubated him so they could shock his heart back into rhythm.
The next day, his chest started to fill with fluid and his right lung collapsed again.
He was at York Hospital from November 9th to the 18th was sent home on oxygen again. He was taken off of oxygen in January of 2011. On March 25th we were out with some friends for dinner and a little dancing (for me not Scott.) Suddenly our friend came to me and said something was wrong with Scott. I ran to him and he was visibly in pain, holding his chest and gasping for breath. I called 911 and friends got him out to our truck. One of our friends, an EMT, did what he could until the ambulance arrived.
At the ER they did test after test. Thankfully, it was NOT a heart attack, but he had an episode of AFib. He was admitted and cardiologist, Dr. Schuler, came to see him the next day and telling him he needed to wear an event monitor for 21 days. When we went for his appointment with Dr. Schuler he told us Scott had a Supravascular Tachycardia SVT and
needed another heart surgery. This would make his 4th surgery in less than a year, on a 39 year old man!
Scott was on short-term disability from September 10th until May off 2011. He still
had 4 weeks left but he wanted to go back to work. Dr. Schuler said it was ok for now and that he would schedule the surgery when Scott was ready. On June 30 2011, Scott’s boss came to him and said the township was out of money and making cut backs in all the departments. We have found out since that NO other departments had cut backs and no one else lost their job. Things that make you go hmmmmmm!
On Sept 19 2011, Scott had his 4th heart surgery in 11 months and he is doing ok. We were told that because of all of his ER visits the past 2 weeks and his surgeries; Unemployment Compensation feels he is unemployable. Scott has been the moneymaker in our
family for as long as we have been together (17 years) and now I am trying to
figure out what to do. I still do child care in our home, but I only make $60 per week. I cannot get a “real” job because then Scott will lose his medical assistance and we cannot have that. He needs medical insurance and I have to take him to his appointments, which are quite often. We applied for SSI back in August and as we all know, that takes forever.
For now, we just sit here worrying and waiting, trying to sell pretty much everything we
own to pay our bills. We have some great friends and family that have helped us with what they can. I cannot thank them enough!
Dawn Wolf
Thank you Dawn, for sharing your story. A big thank you to those who have already made a donation to the Wolf family through this link. http://wolfheartfund.chipin.com/scott-and-dawn-wolf Scott is one tough bird and he is greatly loved. Please keep the Wolf family in your prayers.
Showing heart,
~P.
The Rev's crazy mascot, Downtown
Watching the York Revolution’s play ball is always fun. When possible, I take Tesla along with me. There is a draw back to taking Tesla; I don’t get to watch much of the game.
My Doodle Bug
The playground is much more interesting to her than the men with bats trying to hit the ball. She hates when a home run is hit and the cannon goes off. She even asks me, at least twenty or more times during the game if it’s going to boom.
Downtown's Web
Dale, Tesla and I went to the game Saturday night with Traci Murray and Deanna Maruski, friends of mine from Dover Highschool. While Tesla and I were at the playground (and I was missing the game) I ran into the VanGeisen family and Tesla got to meet her cousin Colin. I honestly don’t know if Tesla would have ever met him otherwise as I get the impression John doesn’t talk to his family much. Last time I saw Colin he was an infant and Tesla was just a little over a year old.
Meeting her cousin Colin
A very cool addition to the stadium is the huge Downtown bobble head. We don’t have room for a bobble head that big but I wish they sold small ones in the gift shop. Even better would be Downtown posters!
After quite a bit of searching we finally found Downtown in the stands. He jumped up on the dugout for a photo with Tesla. Dale held Tesla’s ice cream cone and she warned him if he ate it she would be really mad.
We left the game while it was still tied. The Rev’s were playing the Blue Crabs and the game was exciting but Tesla was getting tired…and so was mommy.
What a cheeser!!
Deanna texted me later that evening that the Rev’s did win. I wish we could have stayed but Tesla was so tired when we got home she didn’t even want to watch cartoons in her bedroom!
Go Rev’s!!!!
~P.
We all encounter angry drivers. Sometimes, we ARE the angry driver. This was not the case yesterday. My friend Kym’s son, Tanner and his friends were walking along Emig Mill Road in Dover and a silver Stratus with a purple heart on the license plate yelled at them to get off the road. According to Tanner, they weren’t on the road and told the driver so. Tanner told him he shouldn’t drive so fast. The driver of the Stratus apparently didn’t like being told by someone not old enough to drive that he should slow down.
Instead of driving away, he positioned his car directly in line with Tanner as if to hit him. Thank God he didn’t run him down, but he did jump out of his car and yell at Tanner that he wish he knew who Tanner’s parents were so he could kick their ass and then pushed Tanner. All this over some young teens just walking along the road?
What makes someone snap out like that? This complete stranger was awarded a Purple Heart for his service to our country. Surely combat can cause people to do unimaginable things during war, but can that carry over into everyday life after a tour of duty? Unfortunately it can. Many of our Americans who have served out country in the military suffer from the after effects of war.
In my opinion, there is not enough after care for our citizen’s who serve our country. War is devastating and changes a person. The simplest irritation can cause a person to act irrational. I understand why Kym was so upset as the whole encounter was unnecessary and scary to her son. We can only hope this veteran was just having a bad day and not suffering from long-term effects of service to our country.
Don’t walk on the road,
~P.
With the help of my friends, Mark and Kristin Hoke, Deanna Maruski, Aaron Laird, Sue Crider, Zeth Bonawitz, Sam Coeyman, Arden Haines, Dawn Wolf and Scott Zirkle, I created this blog. These are the word choices they texted me. See if you can tell what many of them had on their minds…..
It was a wild vagina in Nashville.
The engorged penis blows hot baby oil.
A capricious enchilada is slowly running.
A big truck on Ski Round Top is quickly bleeding.
Rutter’s wistfully has fast driving cock.
My motorcycle is sluggishly exfoliated and sleeping.
The car and house were attacked by Godzilla with sex and a bong.
Weirdo’s,
~P.
girlboxer1970 