A sister is a little bit of childhood that can never be lost. ~Marion C. Garretty

A sister smiles when one tells one's stories - for she knows where the decoration has been added. ~Chris Montaigne

Claire and I are keeping a blog of childhood memories. If you are interested ... the blog's page is twonicholsmakeadime.blogspot.com


~enjoy :)

Hero's

I have been wondering when we would see a note from you! Glad to hear you are up and about and able to take nourishment! Joe, you are my Hero! What a thunderous hit you took! Will you be Alex's agent when he goes pro?  The Bears could use a guy like him! You know, the kind that is big and strong, fierce and mighty. The kind that eats pig's eyes, ribs, hind legs etc! (you will probably make sure he signs with the Jets!) 

You were kind enough to to sacrifice yourself for the team, took one for the the gypper, gave of yourself.  You have been very giving all your life and why not let the kid take you out? You stood up to the challenge, accepted what that young man gave you and walked off the field under your own power,and gave him a ride home!  No, you were not about to let that boy see you stay down. No sir, you got up, peeled yourself off the floor and walked off under your own power.  How many men do you know that would have done just that? Not only Joe, did you fight the fight, you took the hit turned, walked and drove on! You are a man among men. Stand tall Joe Nichols, you manly man, you! You are a fine man, a great husband and father of 6 wonderful children. You are a pillar of the community,  steadfast in the face of adversity. 

Life has dealt you a wonderful hand and so what if you have a bump in the road? And you know Joe, those bones will heal just in time for football season.  You can probably get out there right after school gets out and help coach Alex on his technique so that the next time he runs down a poor unsuspecting Uncle like you Joe,  you'll know which way to turn..........best of health to you Joe. May you have a speedy recovery. I know the kids can't wait to see you out and about!

isn't that right Joe?

Al

"For the first half of your life, people tell you what you should do; for the second half, they tell you what you should have done." Richard Needham

I have had a lot of spare time lately. Around three weeks ago I got hurt. It was bad.

I was playing "touch football". It was a two on two game. My nephew, Alex, shown to the left as Number 60, threw a pass that I intercepted. Between the goal line and me was a six-foot something fifteen year old -- Alex. I thought that I was faster. I ran as hard as I could. I almost beat him. That's me, on the ground. What fun I had. Alex just touched me. Because I was going so fast, though, I fell on my left side. After some time on the ground I did get up and walk -- something that I should not have done. I drove Alex home and went to my house. As soon as I tried to get into the house, via the stairs, I felt sick, sweaty and in terrific pain. As you may imagine, Kathleen whooshed me to the Emergency Room at Alice Hyde where I stayed for quite a few days.

So, I am left with a fractured pelvis. This is what my particular fracture looks like:

On the left side you can see where the bones are apart. That is what happened to me. However, the bones came apart only slightly and not as drastically as shown on the lower right, (my left!).

So, the first few days I was in bed. To the credit of the physical therapist, I was out of bed walking in no time, though it hurt like anything. I am now walking around the house with a cane and have started going up and down stairs.

The one that hurts just as much is the fracture of the clavicle, (collarbone).

I fractured it in three places: two places near the acromion and one place near the sternum. Ouch! I have dreaded the sneeze. I can tell you that since I have been hurt, I have sneezed four times. I remember them all.

Theresa came to help us and what a help she was. The one thing that I will always remember about Theresa is her advice about drinking water, water, water. I have never peed so much in my life during and since her visit. Theresa told me to drink 37 gallons of water per day. (Well, perhaps I exaggerate a bit...) She put up with a lot, but her visit was the occasion for fun for Mag, Veronica, Paul, John and Clairehead. She also put up with my friend, Todd Webber, who visited; my friend Ed Boyea, who wished he visited and a host of others. Thank you, Theresa. Theresa also worked at the St. Lucia Cafe with Kathleen and I think that they had a lot of fun doing that as well.