September 2009 Archives

I met Rochella (I hope I have the spelling right?) on the train yesterday.  She was a wonderful woman who says I have inspired her.  Well she inspired me as well.  This post is dedicated to her and her plans to start living and eating better.  Good luck Rochella!

I got another pleasant suprise this morning! I may have a job interview tomorrow, so I went to take my suit in to the cleaners. I had just worn it for Rick's funeral on Friday and noticed it was a little big, so I asked if the pants could be taken in a couple inches. The woman at the counter asked if I would like to see the seamstress, and when I said I would, took me to the back.

When we got to the back to see the seamstress, I reinterated what I had told the lady at the counter as I was holding up the pants. She looked at me with a puzzled look which I took to mean that she would not be able to take them in. She then said it looked like they needed to be taken in a good 5 or 6 inches (not 1 or 2), and verified this by measuring both me and the pants!

After the week I had last week, this was welcome news to say the least.

You know, there are things that seem to go out of their way to trip you up when you're trying to make a change for the better in your life, and then there are things that set your resolve deeper than a Mississippi chigger. Football Mom helped me out today with an unsucessful "flex"

"Football Mom" is one of these people who has her fingers in everyone's pie and really seems to relish it. She's the Football Mom who works very hard and usually does a very good job keeping the program rolling. Without people like her, the season would be much longer and much more disorganized and usually, you'd appreciate all her efforts. This Football Mom however, needs to relax a little.

For those of you who follow this blog and were suprised by the "Rick" entry, I apologize. I love my little cousin Amber tremendously and used this blog to express my grief, for her sake as well as mine. They had been together for some time and had just married a few months ago. They were even waiting on their wedding pictures to arrive when Rick Passed. However, even in the face of tragedy, life does go on and so does this "project" of mine.

I'll admit that I have been finding comfort in food through this whole thing. I knew what I was doing while overeating, I just didn't care. But I'm back.

On Saturday morning...

I don't know how the Alspach family or Amber will view this eulogy of sorts, but I do know that I don't mean it to grab attention or show off or anything like that.  It's only that I don't have anything else to offer.  While I know that this will not ease any pain, maybe it will serve to let them know who I am, and how far Rick's life, personality, and vigor for life influenced others.  Probably not, but Rick and Amber are worth the effort at the very least, so here goes.

I didn't know Rick very well, but I know he was an extraordinary man.  I know this because he was madly in love with my cousin, Amber and that was enough for me.  I know this because Tom, Amber's father gave him permission to marry Amber, which was no small feat.  As Tom told me the other day, "If your daughter gets married, you want the man she marries to be madly in love with her".  I have no doubt that was the absolute, purest truth.  You could tell by the way they interacted with each other.  You could tell when he offered to help Amber's cousin find a job, and when the cousin turned down the job, which put Rick in a bad spot, he never held it against Amber or her cousin.  He did this not for my sake, the cousin in this story, but for Amber's. 

I don't know what this tragedy will do to the relationship between the Torluemke and Alspach family, but I know that Rick would want them to remain close, and would be disappointed if they didn't.  I know you all love each other very much, but sometimes these things can make us drift apart.  Rick loved Amber's family almost as much as he loved her, and it is my deepest hope that the 2 families stay tight.

I don't know how I fell out of Amber's life these last few years.  Maybe it was because I felt I had my own 4 kids to worry about.  Maybe it was because life just got in the way.  I do know that she was in good hands when she met Rick, and maybe that made it easier to let her go. 

Whenever I look at Amber, I always remember the time I took her to McDonalds play place where we stayed for 6 hours.  She got me to stay by bribing me with hugs and kisses and I remember how easy it was for me to be suckered.  I guess I figured that her skills had only improved in that department, and that Rick was now the sucker.  In my mind, it was Rick's time now and that I should let him enjoy it as much as I did.  I now see that was a huge mistake, not only because I missed much of Amber growing up, but also because I missed my chance to get to know her soul mate.  For that, I'll always be sorry. 

Finally, I know that Rick was a diehard Cub fan and, being a die hard White Sox fan, I would normally chalk this up to a character flaw.  However, as Rick went Home after he was able to see his beloved Cubbies whoop up on the NY Mets by a score of 11-4, I'm thinking, if it was me, that would have been a great way to leave.  I can imagine him talking up the day with Amber, meeting up with his friends and family who shared his passion, and enjoying the rare opportunity to see a Cub victory in a storied and memory filled ball park.  Also, all TRUE Cub and Sox fans need each other.  Why?  Well, the rivalry that exists, no matter how irrational, is what makes the City of Chicago one of the greatest on earth.  Additionally, with the way both teams are playing lately, we'd have nothing else.

On that note, I will offer the only other show of support I can.  On every August 29^th from this point forward, no matter how much it hurts, I will root for the Cubs with as much passion and vigor usually reserved for my White Sox.  Not only in Rick's honor, not only for Amber (who somehow became a Cub fan herself; I'm still trying to figure how that happened), but for my dear close friends who also happen to be fans of the North Siders, so that I'm reminded of what is really important.  So to Rick and Amber, Rick's family and friends, as well as to Milligan, Andy, Brian, Grace, Mr. Patrick, Tony the Mac, and The Boys in SB 5, THIS BUD'S FOR YOU.