Tag Archives: dad

hey dad – start here

21 Sep

this weekend holds two momentous occasions for me.

saturday, is my one year anniversary to my wonderful husband ROF.  i’m going to give that it’s own post.  on the 25th it will be the anniversary of my dad’s death.  it will be 6 years on sunday.  it’s not sad, just i remember back to everything that happened that you can read here.

this story i found on-line on a flint, michigan website.  i’m in michigan now and i think of this with every coney place i pass.  it’s one of my favorite and something that was passed around on email FOREVER.  it so has my dad’s way of telling a story which i miss so much:

Famous Coney Sauce

 Passed on by Barbara Bacon Ewing

 From Jim Krause….R.I.P.


Good Evening folks! Since we all spent at least one afternoon in beautiful downtown Flint, this should bring back some memories.

This has been a secret of mine for years that I have been unwilling to share. However, in my present state, I am hoping that if I can share so much joy for so many people, the good Lord will say this man needs to be saved. OK, I know it is a long shot, but worth a try.


A LITTLE HISTORY:


No matter what you may have heard, I grew up in the Coney Island hot dog capital of the world. (Flint, Michigan.)  As a youth, a perfect evening would be taking a date home and then going directly to your favorite Coney island restaurant. In my case, it was the Original Coney Island located on Saginaw Street down from the Durant Hotel by the railroad tracks.  You could pull right up in front in the no parking space as long as you were just running in for “two to go”.  At 1:00 AM the place was full of drunks and hookers but that had no bearing on the Coney Islands.  I would get two with onions and head for home.  The plan would be not to ever try and eat a Coney in the car. However, about two blocks away the smell would be just too much. I would say to myself, I will very carefully eat one on the way home. No matter how carefully you tried, those onions and sauce would drop between my legs and sometimes fall on the floor. They were also known to ruin a great new tie. It didn’t seem too serious at the time, but the next day when you opened your car door after three hours in the sun, those Coney’s had a different smell.

Now, some people will tell you the key to the Coney island mixture is the Koegel hot dogs that are only available in Flint or online. However, you can still make a great Coney with regular hot dogs.
Before, I give you the recipe, this is the way to fix the Coney Island Dog on a soft hot dog bun, steamed bun would be best, mustard to taste, much Coney island mix, and then top with a generous portion of chopped onions.

Cheese is optional. If you are on a diet, do the same thing without the bun. (low carbs)


I can usually get about two dinners, four lunches and one late night snack out of a mixture. After six days and seven warm ups you sometimes get a little green tint to the meat. That tells you it is time for a new mixture. But DO NOT throw out the old mixture, just mix it in with the new and therefore none is wasted.

Here is the recipe:

1 tb butter
1 tb margarine
1 1/2 lb LEAN ground beef
2 md onions finely minced
1 clove garlic finely minced or equiv garlic powder
3 tb chile power
1 tb prepared mustard
1 6oz can tomato paste
1 6oz can water
10 skinless hot dogs
salt and pepper to taste

Do NOT brown beef before using!!!  Combine all except hot dogs and simmer until thick. Grind up the skinless hot dogs or chop in food processor.
Stir in and cook 15 min longer. The big secret in this recipe is the ground up hot dogs.

DO NOT SEND MONEY………………JUST ENJOY!

 

final wednesday story

24 Aug

wednesday will still continue being a part of the week, but this story ends today. 

if you’ve missed any of the previous postings and want to start from the beginning, you can click on the list over to the right  or click here for the beginning.

as you can tell, the story has a little more to it than what people thought.  the experience has taught me so much.

#1.  don’t live off of gossip, hear-say and half stories.  remember everyone’s story has probably way more to it than you can imagine, another viewpoint and a little more depth.  don’t be one of those petty people that just passes on bad news.  i learned this from the hurt i felt from one comment from one pretty insignificant person.  thank you.  i now know how not to act. that goes for your feelings on cancer, old people and divorce.  just because everyone goes through it doesn’t lessen the blow.  it’s still painful.

#2. be open to peace.  i once asked my mom how she could forgive karen.  how unusual of a reaction that was.  she told me “i prayed for peace and God gave it to me”.  i don’t understand – what does that have to do with anything?  “because of what we went through with dad dying, i just wanted peace and i felt like i could go be bitter and angry and making matters worse or forgive.”

#3.  everyone, everyone has a story.  and we liked karen’s.  we all love karen like she was a part of our family.  in fact, my mom and karen are very, very close.  they both built houses in a retirement community (hello, swank, i might add!) and travel together and attend family functions together.  they don’t advertise their background to everyone and consider it funny because they both have the same last name and people always say “are you SURE you’re not related?”  i would love to hear karen and mom’s story together.

#4. ask for forgiveness.  you might just get it and a new best friend after all.

#5.  remember the little stuff every day.  it will stay with you for the rest of your life.  when someone has such a profound impact on your life – it is hard wrapping your mind around not “doing life” with them any more.  i can still remember holding my grandma’s hands and feeling the softness of the tips of her fingers and the ridges around her knuckles.  i can still remember my dad’s hands big and strong and then weak and painful.  i can feel it like they were both right here with me now.  thank god i got 9 months with my dad.  to laugh, to cry, to allow him to say “i’m sorry” .  i feel more blessed because of the situation than to have gone on life hating karen and my dad and feeling sorry for my family.

i end this story with one more very private admission.  well, when i drove to whole foods with my mom and found out dad had died and we were racing back down lemmon avenue  – the same road i was on when i found out dad was sick –  my vision turned technicolor.  it was so bright i could barely see.  the green grass was florescent, the sun bright yellow.  i wasn’t dreaming this, it happened.  it was a feeling of comfort and peace like i’ve never felt before.  i know dad is in good hands.

i finish this story with this picture. 

if i had to pick one picture of my dad and i this wouldn’t be it.  but it is a close second.  this is my dad real proud of me.  is there anything quite like the feeling of your dad being proud of you?  there are certainly substitutions, especially if your dad is an a-hole.  but for me, this was what it was all about.  here, in my ugly 90’s outfit (must have been about 22) and bangs.

thank you for letting me share my story.  And thank you to mom & karen for letting me.  i love you.

“the story” – part 5

10 Aug

before i continue on our wednesday story, there is something i need to say.  since this is my therapy a little bit and i’m bringing you along for the sorted ride (insert evil laugh) i need to share.  there were so many people in our family’s lives who dropped off at this part.  my parents got divorced, lots of gossip…dad got remarried, got cancer and died and that’s all that they know.  i hope they’re reading.   stick with me here, because this story doesn’t go where you think it will go.

so we left off last wednesday at a pretty deep place.

how would you react to being told that you had a life expectancy of 4 months?  no, really, think about it for a minute.  you’re in a doctors office and he tells you that you “have a tumor the size of a football in your abdomen and that you have about 4 months to live.”

4 months.

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“the story” – finally! part 4

3 Aug

bawling like a baby at midway airport is where we left off last week.

dad had just left mom for another woman after 34 years.  if you’re new to the story, you’re going to want to get caught up here.  do it quick...we’re moving on.

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