July 17, 2016 – July 22, 2016
I have stepped away from the daily blog, as life is now settling down into somewhat of a routine. Michelle works at the hospital in the café, and so I have started going in with her every day, and then walk around downtown Tamworth. I love Tamworth so very much. The distant from the house to the hospital is over 5 miles, so I am working hard to start getting in shape for next year.
This week is all about preparing for the mystery bus pub crawl on Saturday. Michelle has organized an incredible fundraising bus trip with the proceeds entirely going to Ronald McDonald House in Tamworth. This will be the third pub crawl. The theme is “Fancy Dress”, which means wear whatever you fancy. Michelle is a Teletubby, Mark is a Sailor, and I am an Annoying American! Mark’s daughter, Anita, and her partner, are coming down on Friday, and everyone is really getting excited.
Every day we go to the hospital to see Betty Burgmann, Mark’s mother. She has been in the hospital for almost 5 months due to a hip replacement gone terribly wrong. Then the absolute worst happened this week. Just as the end was near and she was looking forward to going home, her hip dislocated AGAIN!. Unfortunately, this means another surgery, her 6th!
She is dealing with it the best she can. The whole family is upset, but, just like my dear John, they are taking things in stride.
July 23, 2016
Today is the day! The mystery bus tour is ready to launch. This is going to be GREAT! When I woke up this morning, the house was buzzing with activity. There was Anita and Josh, Corey and Tamiah, Kimmy and Dean, Mark and Michelle, and me! Mark and Michelle organized a big Aussie breakfast, with eggs, bacon, rolls, etc. Everyone feasted like there was no tomorrow. We all knew that today was going to be a big day drinking, and the idea was to start us off right.
One we all ate, it was time to put on the crazy costumes. Corey was Princess Leia (Poncey Larry), and Tamiah was Darth Vader. Kimmy was a crazy bull, and Dean was the Joker (Heath Ledger). Stacey was a Nun. Anita and Josh were pirates. When we were ready, we all went out to the driveway o wait for the taxi. It was hilarious to see the looks from the neighbors as they passed by. WE sure looked like a crazy group!
We dropped the men off at the starting point, a place called The Pub, and all the women went over and decorated the bus. This was a very nice coach. The driver, Keith, was just the sweetest man, and he was wonderful all day. Once the bus was decorated, we went to The Pub, and picked up everyone.
There were 32 people on this charity fundraising event. Everyone was dressed in all sorts of outfits. If you are a “friend” of mine on Facebook, you’ll see a bunch of pictures. We had a wonderful time. We went to 6 different pubs throughout the day. At every stop, Michelle had arraigned games, etc, and we went to all the other patrons and hit them up to donate. We played pass the rude dog toy, hit the tennis ball with the pantyhose potato, and other games, had several auctions, sold jello shots on the bus, and were absolutely crazy and fun. Everyone was wonderful and had an amazing time.
I was so lucky on this trip. I had been in contact with a friend of John’s, Tracy, and she and her friend and partners came and surprised me. We had a great time together. At the end of the day, we raised $2400 For Ronald McDonald House. How incredible! Michelle and I met up with Paul and Anne, friends, and they brought us back to Calala for dinner, and then home. When we arrived home, all the kids were outside in the back yard, and the party was going strong. It was so wonderful to see them all having a great time and enjoying their family time together. After a very long day, we were tired, but knew it had been a job well done.
July 24, 2016
Today began just like yesterday. While everyone was decidedly not as “bright” as the day before, a good breakfast feed really helped the headaches! We didn’t do much today, just relaxed. Anita and Josh headed back to Coffs Harbour, as Anita is starting a new job in Brisbane on Tuesday.
July 25, 2016
This is going to be a huge week. The café at the cancer center is finally going to open tomorrow, and Michelle is completely in charge of it. Today, I went in with her, walked around quite a bit, and then went back to help set the shop up. We had a good time, and a lot of work. Michelle’s boss was very happy to have more help, me, and expressed her appreciation.
Today I also got confirmation that there will be a new addition to my little family. Yes, I will be adopting a new puppy when I get back to the US. She will be a silver Labrador, and her name will be Desdemona. Can’t wait!
July 26, 2016
The café at the cancer center opened today. I went in with Michelle to help with the last minute preparations. Once everything was done, I left and walked back home, with a stop at Shopping World. I love walking down the streets of Tamworth. It is a beautiful little town. I know that people who live here really want to move out, but I could so see myself living here. No, I know I can’t move here. I have my son, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter in California. But still…..
My Grieving Widow's Tour 