Jacquelyn's Space

I am a Romulan…really. I grew up in Romulus, Michigan, ha. I recently joined a facebook group “I grew up in Romulus, Michigan” against my better judgment. I am not overly fond of my hometown or even hometown sentiment. It seems people tend to think where they grew up is better than all the world. That bugs me. There are a lot of beautiful places out there, a lot of different people and perspectives and I feel that it is a bit narrow-minded to focus on one hometown.

Of course I am a little double-sided on the issue because I love Michigan and feel it is better than all the world but I try to keep an open mind about things. As far as my hometown goes, although I don’t feel the connection some of my fellow ‘Romulans’ feel to that place, I do enjoy reading the memories they have. I have some memories of my own – good ones. I am just glad I don’t live there anymore, glad I realized I didn’t have to stay glued to the place physically or mentally.

My Romulus Memories

My neighborhood friends especially Johnny and Venise – playing in the creek (that is one of the first memories I have of the place – all the kids were playing in the creek that ran perpendicular to my street when I met them) playing tag, kickball, hide-n-seek, slumber parties where we played “Light as a Feather, Stiff as a Board”, riding bikes around with everyone (bike tag, bike-n-hide), staying in the pool all damn day and having swimming olympics, me and the kids looking for mysteries I guess looking for trouble…

Walking to elementary school: my elementary was just a big, grassy field away from my street. It was cool to walk through that field on a foggy morning. One Halloween it was foggy all night and I went out there and chased some older tricker treaters, haha.

Exploring the woods and wetlands by my house: once the neighbor kids and I made a raft and tried to float through the creeks back there. It worked until a heavier kid got on it and sunk it. Someone put cement blocks and boards out in the wetlands in order to walk through, that was cool. Wild strawberries grew back there and smelled lovely.

Me and Johnny riding our bikes up to the corner gas station to get candy when candy was cheap.

Me and friends riding up to the drugstore or to A&W’s in Taylor. I still love me an A&W root-beer float.

The flee market and the creepy (half-built) old dance hall (?) next to it. Us kids used to go back there and stare at the building to scare ourselves.

Mayflower Roller Rink – went there when I was really young. It wasn’t around long after I moved in because it was an old place. My Grandma told me she went to dances there in the 1920’s when she was a teen and there were bad girls there who had short hair, short dresses and smoked (flappers, LOL).

favorite teachers: Mrs McGinnis, Mr. James, Mrs. Hiser, Mr. Kruse and a few others I whose names I forgot or will misspell.

Riding the bus to junior high past the airport but still seeing cows and farm fields along the way, even within the airport fences.

Drama club and doing plays in high school, band concerts, homecoming game even though I hate football, skipping school to hang out in the dark HS auditorium, skipping school to go to the library (either the HS one or I would walk up the road to the town library), hanging out at McDonald’s and eating biscuits (fresh made every morning at that time) with Rachel. Those are my best high school memories.

Pink Castle – supposedly a haunted house. It was an old Mediterranean style mansion/house in the middle of nowhere (Waltz, Michigan or on Waltz Road, New Boston). We would drive by it and scare ourselves. I was never brave enough to walk close up to it. It was behind a lot of brush and had an iron gate with the words “Buena Vista” on it.

Driving around acting crazy with the girls in my first car, the Banana Boat, a 72 LaMans.

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See a lot of my memories have less to do with place and more to do with people and time although I wouldn’t have the memories if I hadn’t been in Romulus in that place and time.

Yesterday was my nephew Alex’s fifth birthday so of course his Mom threw him a party. It is always fun to see the little stinkers, my nephews and their friends, running around acting crazy; lots of laughs to be had and also photo ops. My brother bought a trampoline for his kids and he, my Dad, and my husband put it together tonight.

A couple of weeks ago was Alex’s brother, B. Brent’s birthday and coming up next week is my Mom’s. It is crazy how we get slammed with birthdays at this time of year. Then again in November when it is my nephew Kenny’s, my Dad’s and then my stepson’s followed by mine 2 weeks later. It kind is stressful with all those birthdays so close to Christmas. Truthfully, the summer birthdays seem kind of more fun because we usually have a party outside by the pool. My Mom always wished I had a summer birthday, ha. Well now she has 2 grandkids with summer birthdays. Plus who needs the excuse of a birthday to throw a party in the  summer?

I love taking pictures of the kids. Oh to have all that energy again! To be so carefree…

B.Brent’s and Alex’s Birthdays:

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I am really trying to bust out of this funk I have been in lately so I am going to try to blog more. I always say that but I really need get some writing practice in before school starts. All I have wanted to do lately is sit at home and chill; just think, play games, watch TV, and sleep. I don’t really have time to chill, ugh! Not with all I want to accomplish. I have been so exhausted, more exhausted than usual. I think it is a combination of factors but mostly the wacked out work schedule I have been getting (mostly nights and thirds – I can’t seem to sleep at night now) and hormones. My hormones are out of whack too. I hope I am not pre-menopausal – I definitely don’t have time for that! I am going to make a push to get healthy! I don’t know what to do about my hormones but I bet eating better, sleeping better, trying to exercise and keeping some sort of regular schedule will help. I can’t wait to go back to school – then I will have a regular schedule.

A bunch of storms and a deluge of rain rolled through my area the past couple of nights. We needed the rain but unfortunately we lost power at home for almost 24 hours. That really sucked because as much as I love the romance of candlelight I really love my computer technology. I find I cannot live without it so when the power goes out I get a little perturbed, a little on edge. Actually it is both not having power and access to hot water, or any washing water for that matter. We have a well so when we lose power we got nothing. I cannot stand to be without a shower. Shower and computers, my favorite technologies!

I worked third shift the night (I work at a fast food joint) I lost power at my house. I was hoping I would get to work and the power would be out there too so I could get to go home – no such luck, they had power. It was busy at work too because of everyone else not having power. It was just 3 of us running our butts off. At 1:29am I was ringing up a customer in drive-thru – a very hungry volunteer firefighter who had been working an accident on the highway and a house fire – when, as his receipt printed out, we lost power at the restaurant. His receipt got stuck in the printer and I was afraid we wouldn’t be able to get his food because everything is cooked to order at that time. The cook started cheering and I started laughing at the cook because he was so happy. He said “That is what I’ve been praying for all night.” I was kind of happy too but I knew that just because the power was out we weren’t just going to be able to say “Forget it!” and go home. I half expected the power to come back on but it did not. Luckily we were able to serve the customer his food then we had to figure out what to do. We only had safety lights (no generator) to work by so we had to close the store to customers for sure.

What it came down to was we had to clean up the store as best as we could and put all the food away in the walk-in refrigerator and freezer. We were already behind because it had been a busy night. Lucky me, when I work third shift I do dishes and work drive-thru so I was stuck doing dishes in the dark, ha. Fun, fun. I did dishes until I ran out of hot water. I got almost all of them done – don’t know how well because I could barely see but hey I tried and their not too picky about the dishes around there anyway, ha. Then we had to sit around until the end of our shift. I tried to do some other cleaning but with limited light it was a challenge. It was weird being in the store without power – so quiet. I felt like a ghost (a McGhost, hee hee) walking around there. It was weird but it was also relaxing, and it was cool watching all the lightning once I got to sit down. Pretty much everyone loved the experience, at least on third shift and the early morning crew. I guess the restaurant didn’t get power until 2pm so other people who came into work had to clean all day because they had daylight to work by. I thought they would just be sent home but because no one knew when the power was coming back on they had to be ready. Boy am I glad I worked thirds. At least I got to sit on my ass and get paid (that doesn’t happen that often in fast food) and I didn’t have my dumb store manager breathing down my neck. Yay.

Well I have had a rotten week. Kinda, sorta. It has been relaxing but I have not done anything. I have just worked a bit, slept a bit, and read a book (oh yeah, I went to a Psi Chi meeting – it was good to see my psychology pals). I just cannot seem to get rested. I was pretty wore out last week too for vacation – still on that 3rd shift schedule of up all night, sleep all day. Tired of being tired.  Tired of not having any energy. So since I am off the next couple of days I am going to try to get energized. I need to exercise, study, write and of course clean. Can I get a sarcastic “Yay”?

you are falling asleep and think of something brilliant. So brilliant it would be a good thing to write about, or at least tell somebody about it. You promise yourself you will remember the idea later as fall deeper into sleep. Then when you wake up you cannot remember … Ugh! That happened to me today. I had a brilliant writing topic and now I cannot remember it. I must keep a notebook and pen by the bed!

This happens to me far too often – I get great ideas as I am falling asleep, or in the shower or while I am driving and I always think I will remember them but I tend to forget. I must get more vigilant about writing these ideas down or recording them.

Now what was that idea today???