Violated Airspace!

Today is Martin Luther King Jr. Day but this post is not about Martin Luther King Jr.  Instead, this is part of my "A Moment from Mondays Gone By" series...where I re-post a favorite story or in this case, share a favorite memory.

As I was running errands today, I happened upon a small community football field.  What surprised me the most is that it was empty.  See, when I was a kid, if we had had a day like today...no school, no snow, dry ground, blue sky, 40 some degrees...the neighborhoods would have been crawling with kids.  We would have been all over that field!  That makes me sad.

Moving on.


Part of my growing up years were spent in a trailer park.  Don't judge.  Our lot was the main hang-out for all the park kids.  We had a great sledding/biking hill with a bridge over the irrigation ditch; an amazing log fort; materials for building epic bike jumps; AND an empty lot next door.  Our lot was separated from the empty one by a deer fence, which had started out about 3 feet high but had been pushed down for easier access.  However, the grass that had grown up through the fence was at least 3 feet high.  Anyway, this lot was used for football, soccer and Frisbee.

The problem was the neighbor on the other side of the lot.  She was a witch.  She ate children.  If you looked her in the eye, you would be paralyzed and she would put curses on you.  Actually, some of that might not be true but we weren't about to take chances.  I don't actually remember ever seeing her but I have distinct memories of being yelled at.  And we never got our ball or Frisbee back when they went over the fence.

So, there we were...enjoying a "no school" day...playing football.  Suddenly, the ball veers off course...15 or so kids freeze...there is a collective "gasp" as the ball crosses the plane of her lot...multiple voices yell, "VIOLATED AIRSPACE!!"...15 or so kids run-jump-dive-roll-slide into our lot and hide behind the grass until the coast is clear.  Then 10 or so kids brave enough to continue, scrounged up another ball while everyone else went and hid in their own yards or houses.  It was so much fun!  But then again, any experience that could be followed-up by the phrase "We almost died." is a winner in my book.

I wish all kids could have that experience!

Moments from Mondays Gone by...

This morning, as I was reading through some of the blogs that I follow, I noticed that there were a couple of stories involving dogs.  That got me thinking about the dogs we had growing up so I have decided to share a "dog" memory.

Now, we had several dogs growing up and they were all unique...but there was one dog in particular...well, he was special...

His name was Zach.  Zaccheus, actually, because when Dad brought him home the only thing we had to tie him to was a Sycamore tree.  He was a black lab puppy that, before we knew it, turned into a black lab dog.  He was strong and full of energy...uprooting the young Sycamore tree, then tipping over the big swing set (the next thing he was tied to) and then separating the porch from the house...

But before I share this particular memory, I must preface it by saying:

I have a temper.

Some people hear me say that and are shocked.  "I've never even seen you get angry," they say.  That's because I am Christian ADULT who believes in practicing self-control.  But seriously, I have red hair...and I'm Irish...it's kind of a no-brainer.  However, I did not always practice self-control.  In fact, when I was young, I very rarely practiced self-control.

So anyway, I am coming home from school one day (I was about 12) and it was a bad day...maybe...at least I like to think I was already having an awful day because it makes my reaction seem a little less...insane...
Zach is all excited because now there are kids and kids means he will be let loose and he can play.  Even as it was happening, I knew that he didn't do it on purpose, but... he was soooo excited to see me and he's barking and jumping around and (when I got close enough) putting his paws on my chest and trying to lick my face...and he bit me.

It was just a nip, really.  But, evidently, it was enough, because...









I bit him back.





Yes.  I grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and chomped.  Through the haze of my anger I hear my mother yell, "Janet Lorraine Roach! Get that dog out of your mouth!"  Or something to that effect.  Zach and I stood there looking at each other with petulant glares before each going to our separate rooms to sulk although my sulk lasted a lot longer than his did.  That is one of the best things about a dog...they don't hold grudges.  Still to this day, I wonder what the neighbors were thinking?...





Oh. And if YOU are wondering what I was thinking?...well...I wasn't.  Eventually, I learned to control my temper but I just have to chuckle sometimes, because, when I get angry, my first reaction is still wanting to "bite" something.  But I stick to gum these days.

It Started with Some Mistletoe...

This is really an installment of Memories from Mondays Gone by...on a Wednesday.

About a decade ago...when I was still in Washington State, my youngest brother and I were the only ones still living at home. (Actually, I was living at home AGAIN. You know, they talk about the boomerang generation...adult kids that move back in with mom and dad...I'm more of a yo-yo.)  Anyway.  We had not had  a decorated Christmas in a couple of years and for some reason, Tim and I decided that we would be funny and hang a single sprig of mistletoe in the living room. 

So, we dig out the Christmas decorations and a step-ladder and attach the mistletoe to the light fixture in our living room.  Then we step back to admire our handiwork.  That's when our attention focussed on the step-ladder.  Evidently, we both had the same silly idea at the same time because we just smiled at each other and proceeded to decorate our metal "Christmas tree."

When Mom and Dad got home, they were greeted by a gleaming silver "tree" complete with garland and bows.

And I don't think they ever noticed the mistletoe.

Memories of Mondays Gone By...Thanksgiving Edition

I love Thanksgiving.  I love the food...the turkey, the stuffing, the sweet potatoes, the pumpkin pie.  I don't like the cranberry jelly but other than that... I even like the green beans.  I remember a Thanksgiving when I was about three, my mother asked me how many green beans I wanted. I answered "6."  That's a big number to a 3-year old.  My 5-year old cousin David overheard my answer and got all excited and proclaimed that he would take 6 green beans as well.  I also remember several Thanksgiving poker games where we used the vegetable tray instead of chips..."I'll see your radish and raise you an olive."

I love the football...Grandpa was very big on team loyalty.  My cousin Brent was the only one who ever dared to oppose him.  He was a die-hard Raiders fan in a Seahawk family.  I remember my mother cheering during the game.  Whenever her team was doing poorly she would yell, "Dang!"  Whenever her team was doing well she would yell, "Hot Dang!"

And I love the friends and family.  I love the hugs, the laughter, the memories (or exaggerated stories), and all the quirks and idiosyncrasies that make a family...yours.  Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday.  And I am very grateful indeed.

Moments from Mondays Gone by...

I know that it has been a while since I've shared a Moment from Mondays Gone by but I was thinking about youth trips today.  Working with the youth at my church is the part time job that I am giving up to go back to school so I realized that I will not be going on a youth trip...at least for a while.  So...I am sharing one of my favorite youth trip moments as previously shared in another blog post.


We Were Making Great Time Until…




I went to Virginia this last weekend with our high school youth group. We took 3 vehicles…the van (an 11-seater), the bus (a 15-seater), and my personal car. We left the church at 5:30ish so had to make our way through DC traffic. Once we got off the beltway the van and the bus moved into the HOV lane. I, however, only had one individual in my car and was unable to do anything but watch them leave me sitting in traffic.



About an hour and a half later, while eating dinner, one of the youth leaders says, “Hey, where’s Janet?”



Meanwhile, back in my car, my co-director calls as says, “Where are you?” and I’m thinking, “uh…not very far from where you left me…” (skipping ahead…) I pull over at this scary gas station to wait for them. After going inside for my own dinner (Coke and Cheetos) I go back outside to sit in my car. I realize that the scary gas station is seriously in the middle of nowhere. It is pitch black out, it is late enough that there is very little traffic, I look over my left shoulder and notice that there is a creepy motel on the hill above the scary gas station and suddenly realize that no one would be able to hear me scream…



Half hour later I have a passenger and I am the caboose once again. And after one more bathroom break we started to make great time until…









…we hit the…







…tree.





Yes…all three vehicles.





Yes…the same tree.



The tree happened to be hanging over the highway. The van driver saw the tree at the last moment, swerved slightly and only ended up with a cracked windshield and a bent antenna. The bus driver didn’t see the tree until it was trying to get on the bus and ended up with a cracked windshield, a missing antenna, broken running lights and a completely sheared off side mirror. The bus was large enough that it bent the tree as it went by so it snapped back into place just in time for me to drive through it. I muttered a soft “ooew. I shouldn’t’ve hit that.” Thankfully, my car suffered no damage…because she’s short.



All in all, no one was hurt, we got to our destination and we all had a great weekend!

The Butterscotch Pudding Episode...

Here is another installment in the Moments From Mondays Gone By Series. I am sitting here enjoying a butterscotch pudding cup and I suddenly get the giggles as I remember...


It sounded clever in my head. But when you are twelve...pretty much everything sounds clever in your head. Anyway...Mom and Dad were out and I was home with my three younger brothers. I was making Bean with Bacon Soup (or...stirring Bean with Bacon Soup as it was from a can) and somehow came up with the idea that it would be funny to tell them it was butterscotch pudding. I told them that the reason there were lumps was because it wasn't the instant kind of pudding but the kind that had to be cooked and this was my first time making it. So, there they were with a large bowl of sweet, delicious, buttery-goodness in front of them and a big ole mouthful of...soup. Savory, bacon-y, bean-y soup...some of which was spit directly back into the bowl.

I laughed...they didn't.

That was 30 years ago...but the effects have not worn off. I have two brothers who are "not fond" of butterscotch flavor and one who shudders at the mere mention of the word "butterscotch". Would I have played that practical joke had I known just how far into the future I would influence?.....uhhh...yeah.

Moments from Mondays Gone By...

I have decided to use Mondays to remember the past. Sometimes this will take the form of new postings of past memories. Sometimes it will take the form of re-posting from previous blog and journal entries...like this one:

The Container Store
How did we do it? How did we ever get along in life before the Container Store?

I don't have the answer to that but I do know that we were more content. It is nearly impossible to walk through that store and remain content. (I know for many people that would be true of any store but I usually don't feel that gnawing discontent except in bookstores.) Now some of the discontent that is felt when meandering through aisle after aisle of plastic and polyurethane may be a positive and even necessary discontent. It is the discontent that makes you think of that secret place in your house that is in need of a good spring cleaning...that drawer, that closet...that room that is threatening to overstep its bounds and make its presence known to innocent bystanders who just happened to "drop by".

But that kind of discontent is not the focus of my rant. I want to dwell for a moment on that negative, unnecessary discontent. The discontent that goes shopping because you need 12 more hangers for your closet but walks out with 144 so all your hangers will match... The discontent that picks up a 12x12-in block of polyurethane that holds 48 tubes of lipstick and says,

"I need this."
Nobody needs a container that holds 48 tubes of lipstick...and if you do, discontent is not your only issue. Then there is the discontent that picks up a tiny container (no matter how cheap) and says,

"Oh, this is so cute...what could I put in it?"

Or even the discontent that says,

Teenager: "Hey, look! It's a bulletin board made out of compact strips of recycled paper."
Mom: "We just bought you a bulletin board."
Teenager: "But this one is made from recycled material."
Mom: "What are you going to do with the one we just bought you?"
Teenager: "Um...recycle it."
(All actual overheard conversations)
But whatever the cause of your discontent...whether be it necessary or inane...the Container Store has a box, bucket or basket you can put it in.

"I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you have renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you have been concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength." Philippians 4:10-13