Mom2Mom : planning the memorial

I’m dying. At
least I feel like I am as I lie here struck down very sudden-like with
the flu. I should have seen it coming. I mean I was rubbing shoulders
(literally) with the masses along the Vegas Strip just to go play cheap
blackjack. I was hugging on so many other bloggers. I found myself on
the plane home in a row that was sandwiched between the harried mother
of two devil children who all were hacking up a lung and the hapless,
college kid who tossed his cookies right there in his seat. BlogHer
“Ebola” hit hard post conference according to my sympathetic pal, Kari.
So of course it would follow that there would be a SITScation Swine
outbreak. I intend to blame all typos on that because I can scarcely
see the screen on my laptop. At least THIS time I have an excuse.

Meanwhile, I do feel like I am dying and I’m afraid that my family will be in trouble.

We are THAT family that talks about THOSE
things like feminine hygiene products, S-E-X…if it is tabu or awkward,
we will discuss it freely. Case in point, just last week two of my
girls and I discussed and shared my final wishes with two of their
friends. Why? A Lynrd Skynrd song came up on my iPod playlist while we
were driving to the Hayward BART station. Of course we would discuss
mom’s memorial service. It makes perfect sense! In the car, Holly turns
to Danielle and Taylor to inform them that when I die I want “Freebird”
playing at my memorial during a slide show of pictures of me living
life with the people I love.

Before Danielle and Taylor can even begin to wonder why we were
discussing my death and memorial, Holly turrns to me and exclaims, “Mom,
that is going to be a REALLY short slide show because we have like NO
pictures of you! People are going to think thast you had a sad life if
we show the pictures that we do have.”

“Well, that is because I’M the one always behind the camera.
Maybe I need to start taking a ton of “MySpace” pictures like you kids
do. Or maybe you guys should start taking pictures of me. You DO have
cameras that I bought you.“

“Wait! You have your camera, mom. I’ll take some pictures now.”

“Now?”

“Sure, right now.”

And so began the “Mom’s Memorial Photo Shoot” while I drove along
the 580 interstate. Let me just say that I love having my picture being
taken while I am driving. Here is the result of that photo shoot.