Jewelry

[SportyShorty07]

@Enufstuff That's wonderful that your love for art and biology started at a young age and I'm very impressed by your awards that you've won in contests for poetry and art .  Your ex was so absolutely wrong th=o throw out your portfolio- such a violation of trust! The only silver lining is that the mosaic he was about to destroy survived and is now proudly displayed in your home.

    I definitely am a gifted artist and as are you, thank you for such kind words! Artists are artists no matter what jobs we do and art is always a part of an artist .  It was fun to work in luxury retail and do window display designs, it really was. Your work in food science and dietary technology is so fascinating! Such intelligence to do something like that- to know that you have done science behind food labels and data analysis and experiments.  I hope i cna patent my invention- I designed it all from scratch and fabricated/prototyped it using powertools and different materials until it was a fully functioning prototype.  I hope to publish my book.  If I get this career as a police officer, I will have the confidence and finances to patent the prototype and more.  

   Fingertips are so interesting- when I had my nackground interview for the law enforcement career, they took all of my fingerprints and my thumb kept coming up with a bomerang shaped burn that I got from baking cookies a few days before the interview- I touched the sheet pan and burnt my thumb .  I bet I'm the first potential recruit that they processed who has a cookie sheet pan burn on her thumb print .  Your son is lovely to help you open jars and help out your husband to open things too! 

[SportyShorty07]

@Enufstuff That was so clever to design Adrianna's dress so that she would grow with it. I bet Adrianna and the rest of your great grand daughters love going to powwows with you and it is so wonderful that you're giving them these experiences to connect with their and your cultural heritage. i bet Adrianna does some lovely anime drawings with those nice colored pencils.  I'll make sure to read your poetry and I hope that you have a great rest of your night- I am headed to bed after doing my aerobics and washing my face  .

[Enufstuff]

@SportyShorty07   Wow! Your are fearless! I would be too afraid of using any power tools. Designing and creating your own invention is a great accomplishment and writing a book too.

You  have many creative ways to keep yourself busy. It sounds like you have a dynamic drive to achieve great things.

I'm sure that you will get your book published and patent your invention. I do wish you the best in your endeavors.

You do have a very unique thumb print, with that boomerang shaped burn. I'm sure that is a first.

 I wonder if a burn permanently changes a fingerprint, or if it will come back to normal, as it heals.

 A way to help heal a burn and prevent a permanent scar is vitamin E oil. Just take one of the capsules and poke a couple of tiny holes with a pin. Put some of the oil on the scar, a couple of times a day. You could cover it with a small band-aid, so the oil doesn't get on everything. Do this for several weeks.

 I had a burn at the base of my thumb, years ago and used vitamin E on it. I have no scar.

 My son is in his 40's and it is so helpful to have him here. In

addition to opening jars, I am always having him get things from high shelves in the kitchen.

 He is my resident IT person. I'm using a computer that he built for me and he helps me to post pictures and with any computer problems. He has also built computers for other people.

He went to school for electronics and he can fix anything in the house. He has kept our appliances and tv's working for many years. He has also done plumbing, installing a bathroom sink and kitchen faucets.

He has done many repairs on my cars. Last week he repaired a door in the house and installed a new cable box for the tv.

Last month, he fixed his sister's vacuum cleaner.

  Tonight he is installing a new light switch

in the basement. For fun, he repairs VCR's and recording equipment.

 When he was 12 years old, he installed a stereo system in his older sister's car. She would'nt even let her boyfriend do it.

 At the same age, he wired up his room so that a red light came on when his brother opened the door. Back then he ran wires through the house, so we could get cable on all three floors.

 He can fix just about anything. He has been a mechanics nerd, since he was a little kid, always reading manuals and his father's old Popular Mechanics magazines. He loved taking things apart, to see how they worked.

  My brother calls him when he needs help with anything mechanical or electronic. He is a Latin professor with a PHD, but is helpless with anything mechanical or electronic.

 My husband is not handy either. He is great with the landscaping and gardening, but not at fixing things. At 85, he is lost with electronics, so he appreciates all that my son can do.

 My son takes after his father, who could fix and build things and knew cars, but he did not know electronics.

He is handy to have around, plus he does clean up after dinner, putting food way and taking care of all the pans and dishes.

He would love to have his own apartment, but rents are so high

around here, north of Boston, that it takes more than one income to afford one.

He is a great help to us, especially since my husband is getting older and needs help with heavy things.

[SportyShorty07]

@Enufstuff Thank you so much ! I think you're really fearless and creative too- think of all of the amazing things you've done with art, cooking, doof science and technology, microbiology, art, fashion design and the list goes on! You really have a lot of gifts and you are a great story teller.  I believe in your endeavors too.

     Thank you fpr the vitamin E tip about burns- that is such a great tip ! I can still feel a slight raised boomerang type brun on my thumbprint and its been about 2 months since I got it, so I'll get some vitamin E and try that.  I'ev found that the pink bottle of Bio Oil also helps with burns and scars- I'm working on a burn I got on my forearm from baking a cheesecake a month or so ago- it makes me look tough until i say that it came froma cheesecake springfrom pan burn .

    Wow, your son sounds so brilliant and creative- the apple doesn't fall far from the tree! He went to school for technology, builds computers, fixes appliances, repairs cars, plumbing, technology, VCR's, installs cable boxes and more! He even reaches tall things and helps with computer and internet issues- he sounds like such a helpful, caring and smart guy! I applaud him for being so helpful and I'm sure you and your husband really enjoy having him around .  You and your husband may have some arthritis, but your son can be both of your hands for difficult tasks that require a lot of grip or dexterity- he helps in so many ways, and he even does the dishes and cleans up after dinner.  What a sweet guy! I wonder- how did you meet your second husband? 

[GinaV24]

@Enufstuff The earrings are lovely! 

thanks for sharing your creations with us.

[Enufstuff]

@GinaV24   Thank you very much.

[Enufstuff]

@SportyShorty07    Thank you, but I would never consider myself fearless. I did have faith in my strength, when I was alone with five  children for eight years and sometimes had to work two or three jobs, to be able to keep my house and pay all the bills. When I started my city job, I still worked part time at the lab, for two and a half more years.

  I am too cautious to ever try using power tools, never mind even entertaining the thought of being a police officer. Now, that is fearless.

 If you want to know how I met my second husband, are you ready for another long story?

Would you believe that I met him at a cemetery?

I'll start at the beginning. In 1989, I had been working for the city for a year and there was a young co-worker. She had matched up three of her friends with young men and they married. She would say, "I'm going to find a nice guy for you."

One day, she came to work and said, "I have a guy for you".

She had previously worked with him at City Hall. She said that he had been married, but they were no longer together.

I was not that enthusiastic, I had never been matched up by a

third party before. A couple of months later, she told me that she was going to a fundraiser for the mayor, she had previously worked on his campaign.

The gentleman that she had spoken to me about, was the mayors campaign manager and he would be there. She wanted me to go to meet him. I said that I would go to check him out,

to see if I even wanted to meet him. It was a plan.

Well a couple of hours before the event, she call me to say that she was not feeling well and could not go. I can't say that I was

disappointed. I just felt that is was not meant to be.

 But, she did'nt relent. She kept telling me how nice he was and still wanted me to meet him. Other people who knew him, told me that he was good guy. One of my aunts had met him and said that if she were younger, you would go after him herself.

Well more months went by and about 9 months later, she came in to work one day and said that, she heard from a friend who worked at City Hall, that there was woman there who was interested in him. She said, we have to find a way for you to meet him, before he gets interested in her.

She came up with a plan. At this time, he had been promoted to another position and no longer worked and City Hall. He was now Associate Department off Public Works Commissioner.

He had his own little historic building with his office and offices for two secretaries. It was at the city cemetery. He was responsible for running the cemetery, the maintenance garage,

the greenhouses, plantings and lawn crews. When I met him, he told me that he sold real estate ( cemetery plots).

Her plan was to make an appointment to meet with him to discuss her family cemetery plots. My reason to meet with him

was since my mother had passed away that January, the ground was frozen and a headstone could not be placed.

This was now May and when I went there to put flowers on her grave for Mother's Day, there still was not a stone. I was not sure if I had left her flowers at the correct place.

She made an appointment for May 18, 1990, 3:00 p.m. right after work. We went to his office and he was nice enough.

I had always been attracted to the Greek, Italian, Mediterranian types. He was not someone that I would pick out of a crowd.

 He was older (52), had white hair and blue eyes, like Phil Donahue and his name was Phil. He was polite and accommodating, but I was not wowed. He offered to take us to where my mother's  grave was.

My friend sat in front with him and I sat in the back. I had left the flowers at the right spot and the stone had been set.

I didn't feel that he had taken any special notice of me. I thanked him and then went to the supermarket for a few

things before going home.

 (I'm going to continue in the next post)

[Enufstuff]

@SportyShorty07    Part II

  When I arrived home, my son, who was then in high school said, Holly called and wants you to call her right away.

  I called her and she said, "Phil was so impressed with you and

wants to know if he could call you to go out for dinner".

 I told her that I would not be home the next day, I was travelling to a day long dance workshop, that was quite a distance away.

I said that he could call me. He seemed like a gentleman and

dinner would be nice. He did call and asked me to have dinner with him on Sunday. Okay.

 He arrives in a big Lincoln and had a red rose for me. He had made a dinner reservation for the Hawthorne Hotel in Salem.

(the witch city) We live in the next city.

It is a lovely historic hotel in the heart of Salem. An episode of Bewitched was filmed there.

You won't believe this. On the way to Salem, he asked if I was related to Paul *****, the same last name as mine. I said yes, he is my ex-husband. I was so surprised when he told me that

the same day that he met me, he had hired my ex to work for

him in maintenance at the cemetery. Small world!

So we had a lovely dinner and he was very nice, we seemed to share some common interests. He took me home and asked if he could call me again. No harm in that, so I said yes. He asked if he could kiss me on the cheek. I liked that he was gentleman.

He was like a nervous young boy. He and his wife had been together since high school age and he had not dated since they

had split. I think that he expected her to come back, but she was now with someone else.

The next week, he took me to a romantic dinner at an Italian restaurant in Boston. It was then that I knew that I would not be dating anyone else.

He told me about the woman at City Hall that had been pursueing him. That had turned him off. He didn't like her aggressiveness. She even arrived at his house unannounced , with food that she had made. He was not the least interested in her.

He was very attentive and kind. I never thought that I would be so happy. He sent me flowers at work. There were flowers for every occasion. Someone one at work teased me and said, "He probably dug them up at the cemetery."

  Before he worked for the city, he had owned a Florist business and then was in the greenhouse selling business. So,

flowers were important to him. I love flowers, but I don't grow them. He plants our gardens every spring. I don't know if he will be up to it this year, since he had a hip replacement in November. I'm sure that he will try. Gardening is what he loves.

Two years later, we got married at the Hawthorne Hotel in Salem. We had a lovely small wedding, only 60 people.

We went to Bermuda for a honeymoon. (my favorite island)

 You asked, so that's the story of how we met.

  We were happy back then. Times have changed.

[SportyShorty07]

@Enufstuff  Wow! Thank you so much for sharing the story of how you and your husband met - it could be turned into a romantic movie! I think that so many different things were set in place and timed in just the right way that all of the steps and rescheduling and different happenstances led you to him and him to you.  I love how your coworker played matchmaker for you and wouldn't ley up in having you meet.  It was very clever of her to ultimately decide to meet him in the way that you did and what are the odds that he hired your ex for cemetary maintenance? Wow- and it was so great that you your aunt and young coworker and others all relally admired and respected him- it meant that they knew that you really deserve a great guy and that not just anybody was going to date a wonderful, special lady like you !

    That faitful May 18th, 1990 day at 3pm when ou visited his historic office at the city cemetery, he was professional and kind and also was very composed in meeting you and keeping thing s professional when he clearly felt an attraction ad draw- I really admire that. You both are so classy! You know, I've always thought that Phil Donahue was/is very handsome- and very intelligent too as I'm sure your husband is.  That is so hip that you turned down the date to go to a one day dance workshop! I bet your husband thought, "Oh she's spectacular!" Your husband really planned a lovely date with the Lincoln, a long stem red rose and dinner at the Hawthorne Hotel in Salem- and the gentlemanly request to kiss your cheek was super classy.  I bet you looked lovely for your first date with your husband .  The Italian dinner in Boston must've been delicious too- I love that he planned dates and followed through and made them special.  

    Can you imagine if he would've chosen the aggressive girl ? He wouldn't have because she seemed super clingy and had no mystery to her- whereas you are elegant and play it cool and you're so multi-dimensional with your  talents and interests!  I hope that that aggressive woman found a husband- some guys love unanounced visitors at odd hours .  I just love how you got married at the same hotel that you had your first dinner date at together- so tender . 

    How lovely that he owned a floral business and always made it a point to give you flowers and he gardens and everything.  Hip replacements take a while to recover and I'm sure your lovely husband will be gardening when his hip feels better.  Aruba must've been wonderful- that's where you found your sea glass, right? The triangular saped pieces? Thank you so much for your story- it really was wonderful to read!   Thank you for your kind words about my fearlessness, that's really so very nice.  I am so amazed that you worked three jobs at the beginning to raise your kids- major mom points and your adult children must've turned out very well under your care .  

[Enufstuff]

@SportyShorty07   Thank you for having the patience to read and get through that excessively long story. It was an amazing summer in 1990.

   I had felt that my mother was instrumental in getting us together. It was because of her, that I even had a reason to go to that office. She was only 64 when she passed away from kidney failure and a stroke.

  About a month after I started dating my future husband, my ex came by with the child support money for the two boys. He always made a point of coming in person. I think that he just wanted to see me. I didn't care about seeing him. He had been re-married for a few years at that point.

 Well anyway, I told him that I was dating his boss. He said that he had been thinking that Phil would be a great guy for

me.

 Funny story. We had trees and some large plants that we kept on our porch. In the winter, my husband would put them in the

cemetery green house as some other people on the Cemetery Commission did with their plants.

My best friend lived across the street from us. When she saw my husband and my ex- husband moving the trees onto a pickup truck, she told me that she said to her husband, "There are Donna's two husbands, moving her trees". That cracked me up, when she told me that.

The woman who was after my husband in 1990 wasn't a girl. I think that she was older and close to his age. He is nearly 10 years older than I am. So at 43, I was the "young chick".

 Bermuda is the island that we went to, where I found my Bermuda Triangles. I had been going there since the 70s and I knew that he would love it too.

  I have traveled there with both husbands and four of my children. I know that my oldest daughter would love it, but she won't fly.

  I have been there 15 times and I hope to maybe go there again. We haven't traveled there since Covid.

  You know, If I had gone to that political event, the year before, just to scope him out, I probably would have told Holly, "No, he's not really my type", plus he was older.

 You never know. My mother used to say, "You can't judge a book by its cover".

  At our wedding reception, he gave Holly a dozen red roses.