Memories

Kendall and I on Halloween.  We were probably 2 or 3 years old.  I have the big afro in case you couldn't tell!

I attended a funeral today.  It was for the mother of one of my cousins.  I do not, however, consider her my aunt.  She was married to one of my paternal uncles a very long time ago and together they had one son named Kendall.  We are the same age and I have quite a few memories of playing together as children, however I had not seen him for close to 20 years.  She was also the sister of a very close friend of the family that I considered an uncle while growing up.  I never put two and two together until last week when my mother called to give me the sad news.  Without going into great detail about the dysfunction of my family history, I felt like I should go to this funeral and possibly reconnect with some family I have not been in contact with for a very long time.  My mom and my brother also attended the funeral.

It was really great being able to visit for a bit with Kendall, even though the circumstances weren't the greatest.  We were able to catch up and exchange contact information.  We only live about 30 minutes from each other so hopefully we can get together soon and be part of each others lives again.  I also was able to visit with one of my paternal uncles, which was nice.  He reminds me visually a lot of both my paternal grandma and grandpa (who have both passed away) so it made me a little bit sad.  I miss them a lot.  And he also reminds me a lot of my dad, who I haven't seen for a couple of years (he lives in Ohio).

Mostly this whole experience made me rethink a lot of my childhood and try to remember at what point everything went from roses and rainbows to a string of alcoholics, drug addicts, theft and various reasons that my relatives have ended up in jail.  Either I was completely sheltered and ignorant and this was happening while I played hopscotch and rode my bike or at some point my extended family started unraveling during my teenage years and that is why I was never around any of them from that point on.  I guess I should just be thankful that somehow my parents managed to keep my brother and I away from that lifestyle.  Sometimes I look at my family history and wonder how they did it.  But whatever they did, however they did it, I am thankful.  Kudos to my mom and dad.

On a completely different topic, I wore my Vibram Fivefingers twice this week.  Once to boxing class and once for a 15 minute run.  I LOVE THEM!  They are the most comfortable shoes I have ever put on my feet.  Honestly.  And while my toes and feet were a bit sore from them, I have not had sore calves whatsoever.  I guess they must be toned up enough already!  I ordered a cover for my Nike+ sensor that will allow me to attach it to the velcro strap on my Vibram's and still use my Nike+ program.  I hope it works, I should get it next week.  That way I can visually see any difference in my pace with the Vibram's and still track my mileage.  Oh, and I have now officially run 500 miles in the last 8 months.  SWEET!

10/22/10- 152 lbs (not sure how that happened, but darn if I was going to argue with my scale!)