My Life Was Changed By A Train » Love

Welcome

ckrapp — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 01:28:04 +0000

It’s with great excitement at I can announce the newest member of our family: Miss Lucy Rapp.

The Jayhawks – Live at the Bijou Theatre – Knoxville, TN 10/27/11

ckrapp — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 20:00:16 +0000

I hadn’t seen The Jayhawks before and they hold a particularly special place in my heart (B and I slow danced to them on our first date). I have to admit, it’s not that I wasn’t expecting to like it, I just wasn’t expecting to be so blown away. It was definitely one of the best shows I’ve seen in years. I hope you enjoy!

Found photos

ckrapp — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 18:50:34 +0000

My family has always loved photos. They were everywhere and we were always taking more. I would thumb through old albums or stacks of pictures staring at much younger versions of my parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles. This week, someone I don’t know was posting old photos he’d found in a Facebook group to see if anyone recognized the faces. Luckily, I did. There, staring back at me was a twenty-something looking Granny and Poppy. It is just delightful to see them and so surprising because I just assumed I’d seen every picture of them that existed.

Naomi Fine Kelly 1915 – 2011

ckrapp — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 03:46:08 +0000

July 18, 1915 - January 3, 2011

KELLY, NAOMI FINE – went home to be with her Lord on January 3rd at Life Care Center of Rhea County. She was preceded in death by her husband Charlie Kelly; parents Grover and Myrtle Cox Fine; granddaughter Kelly Martin Streets; brother, Jewell and Ross Fine and sisters Reba Holland and Willie Arnold; and sons-in-law David Wisthoff, Sr. and Freddie Martin.

Naomi retired in 1977 after forty years with Robinson Manufacturing Company. She was a multi-termed past president of the American Legion Auxiliary unit 100, the Dayton City School PTA, and the Rhea Central High School Band Boosters. As loving as she was loved, Naomi was special to everyone who knew her. She had a tender, caring heart for animals as well as people, and fed wild animals like she did her pets – even the crows, much to the chagrin of her friends at her favorite garden center. She was a genius at gardening and her yard looked like a painting, a landscape of flowers, shrubs, trees, ponds, and wildlife. Something bloomed there year-round. Over the years, she supplied flowers, for many church, school, and garden club events. She was also appreciated for the vegetables and fruit she and her husband shared with many. She was known as an excellent cook, from her Sunday dinners to her pimento cheese and ham salad sandwich picnics and her renowned German chocolate, pineapple upside-down and coconut cakes, but she was most famous for her chocolate gravy breakfasts.

She will be sorely missed by her survivors; daughters Katie Wisthoff (Les)Wiedrick of North Dakota and Pug Martin and Brenda Marler of Dayton; grandchildren David (Tam) and Jonathan Wisthoff, Ruth (Brian) Skar of North Dakota, the Reverend Dr. Stephen (Grace) Wisthoff of Nebraska, Charlotte Churchill of Florida, Andrew (Karissa) Marler and Catherine Marler (Brenden) Rapp of Knoxville; thirteen great grandchildren and eight great-great grandchildren, and her beloved brother Jake Fine, Dayton.

The family is most appreciative of Dr. Chetan Shah and his employees and the staff of Rhea Medical and Life Care Centers from whom Mrs. Kelly received outstanding, loving care. The funeral will be Saturday, January 8th at 2 PM following visitation from 11am. Coulter-Garrison Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Wherefore art thou kindness

ckrapp — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 21:07:12 +0000

As most of you know, my dear friend Katie lost her son this year. Today is his 19th birthday. Katie and Henry’s story is featured on the Daily Beast today and in honor of Henry, her sister is asking friends and supporters to participate in Acts of Kindness for Henry.

I think it’s a beautiful tribute to a beautiful person. I’ve struggled all day to think of something kind to do. I can say I have been kind to those I’ve interacted with today, more so than usual. I drove by Katie’s house on my way to lunch (she lives near my home, I’m not creepy) and upon seeing her car in the driveway, I immediately wanted my act of kindness to be grabbing flowers or bright balloons and running to her porch. I felt like that might be an intrusion and I knew it was no coincidence she was home today, so I gave her that privacy.

I thought about filling all the parking meters downtown but then realized that most spaces aren’t metered and by the time I got enough change, I needed to be back to work. By the time I get off, the meters w0n’t be ticketing. I thought of buying flowers for my coworkers, but the day before payday made that a not-so-wise decision.

So today, I am still struggling to find my specific act of kindness. In the meantime, in honor of Henry’s family, I’m reaching out to those I hold dear and telling them I love them. I’m making time to see them. And I will make sure they know, nothing is worth more than seeing them another day.

But, I just might throw a good joke in there too because, Henry wouldn’t have it any other way.

Stress? What stress?

ckrapp — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 16:46:03 +0000

This has been a challenging week. I realize it’s Monday, but we’ll just say “the previous seven days” and consider that this week. Maybe even longer, but I don’t want to think it’s been longer. When I was letting it all sink in, I realized that the little stress-o-meter thingy people use to measure stress is going through the roof for me*.

We’ve had some changes on the home-front. We’re trying to get all our finances in order so that we can start making all the repairs and fixes on our house so that we can sell it this year. That might not sound like much, but when you’re talking about a new roof (our quotes are around $5,000), removing wallpaper and trim, putting in new flooring in two bathrooms, painting the whole house, and any hundreds of small things I’m forgetting, it adds up to a lot of work and money.

Then my grandmother, who is 94, had surgery on her cornea on Friday. Obviously, anytime someone of that advanced age has a surgery of any kind, it’s a big deal. She wasn’t looking forward to it and has been struggling with it since. It’s irritating her and now it seems she’s got an infection. The doctor says that’s common, but it doesn’t add to her comfort level or get her back to normal faster. I wish there was some way to help. We went to visit her this weekend but the pain medication made her so drowsy she couldn’t enjoy it. She knew we were there though, and that’s all that matters to me.

Then on Friday, we found out that my aunt, my mom’s sister on the same side of the family has breast cancer and will be having a mastectomy tomorrow. This is my aunt that I’m the closest to, she gave me my first job working for her in a real estate office. Her only daughter is down in Florida and really can’t come up to help. This puts the brunt of the caretaking on my Mom’s shoulders, all while maintaining a full time job. So in addition to my ill family members, I’m worried about my Mom. I’m afraid to think of what HER stress-o-meter thingy looks like.

I guess all of this minimizes all the changes going on at my work. Even though I have some pretty serious career decisions to make, a major re-organization has got nothing on my loved ones!

*I’m at 322. Seriously.

Photo-blogging Christmas

ckrapp — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 15:42:21 +0000

Week of Bonnaroo and more

ckrapp — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 21:21:05 +0000

We made it to another Bonnaroo last weekend. I’d bet I’m still recovering! A coworker asked me what artists I saw and I had a hard time remembering them all. This is not due to any extreme alcohol consumption, more because of the sheer number of acts we saw in such a short time. I’ve spent the last two days trying to explain to people that it’s not what most think it is and that everyone, EVERYONE, should go at least once.

We weren’t able to go until Saturday early afternoon and that was a bummer but it was for a very special reason (one that I’ll share later when I have better pictures). As soon as we walked up, Jenny Lewis was playing and we both love her so we stopped in and started to get the feeling that, “Wow, we’re really here!”. No sooner had we looked at each other grinning and high fiving at the thought of finally making to the ‘Roo, did she say, “I’d like to welcome my friend Elvis Costello to the stage”. Golly geez, what a welcome. Thanks Jenny and Elvis.

The highlight would definitely be The Boss. DT is a HUGE fan so we already knew it was going to be something special. Despite my usual reluctance to front row, we decided this was our chance to work our way to the front since many young folks were leaving. They didn’t leave for long! Bruce Springsteen showed everyone why he is one of the most famous and beloved rock and roll entertainers. He rocked the crowd for over 3 hours. DT’s comment was “For me to smile any bigger, I’d have to eat my ears!”

Not at all a complete list, but we saw/heard:

Jenny Lewis, Elvis Costello, Wilco, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Nine Inch Nails, AA Bondy, Mike Farris, Todd Snider, Erykah Badu, Robert Earl Keen, Merle Haggard, Snoop Dogg, Neko, Case, and Phish.

Oh! And Triumph the Insult Comic Dog!

Talk to strangers

ckrapp — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 19:23:31 +0000

Everyone I know, loves Sam Venable’s column and I’m no exception. It is just the kind of piece that you can rely on to be a funny, wise, witty, or poignant, and sometimes all of the above; I just like it. That being said, I don’t always READ Sam’s column. Most people think that since I work for the paper, I read every word of it, every day, and while it would be wonderful if I could say I do, I can’t. I read it often but sometimes, after a busy day, the last thing a newspaper employee wants to do, is look at a newspaper!

On Saturday night, a friend of ours, my husband and I went to the Time Warp Tea Room to see a great folk/blues/country musician, Malcolm Holcombe. After the set, I heard the guy who had been sitting across from me, talking about music and musicians to another patron. My husband was outside, so we struck up a conversation. As it turned out he was quite a music aficionado and had similar taste in music as my husband and me. He told me that he had lost his wife to leukemia and that music had been such an important part of their lives and a comfort during her sickness and eventual death. It was a very moving conversation, especially one to have with a stranger.

We exchanged cards when he noticed that I worked for the same paper as Sam Venable. “He actually wrote a column about me and my wife.” That’s when I remembered reading it. It was such a beautifully written commentary on a beautiful love and a final, beautiful tribute, there was no way I would have forgotten it. Being a newlywed, I remembered thinking about our love and what would happen if we had to go through something like that. It just touched me deeply. I certainly can’t do it justice quoting it, so go read it. Here, I’ll link it again.

Bill was using his backpack, stuffed with spare clothing, for a pillow. It turned cold that night. During the wee hours, he put on the extra clothes. When he awoke, his head was resting on a pack that now contained only one item.

The small cardboard box filled with Mary’s ashes.

“There she was, comforting me,” he said. “One more night.”

As we talked, he mentioned he makes primitive baskets from bark. During Malcolm’s set, at times I couldn’t see and behind him hung one of Bill’s baskets; I had been staring at it for a couple of hours wondering what it was, just letting my mind wander while I consumed the music. When I said I was a newlywed, he said he had noticed we were holding hands and that he too had been thinking about us, wondering.

We talked of how life paths cross and you meet people, and read things, you sometimes read things about people you never thought you’d meet! And that if you open your eyes, there’s a lot of really beautiful things around us. With a tear in my eye, I hugged him as we left and said we’d certainly meet again. I’m glad I eavesdropped on his conversation about music and chimed in, and I think he is too.

I often think about how random life is, and that maybe, just maybe, it isn’t so random. What made me read that particular article? Why was I staring at that basket? Why did he notice us when there were plenty of other couples in the place. What made me just start talking to him? I don’t know the answers. When I got home, I pulled out my computer and looked up Sam’s article. Bill’s wife passed away on May 23rd, the day that my husband and I got married, and the “hill with a pretty view” he chose to scatter her ashes? Overlooking the very spot we exchanged our vows.

It dawned on me that I could screw this up too.

ckrapp — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 21:17:20 +0000

I have not led, what I’d call a successful life. At least not as successful as what I’d say my potential should have allowed. While I have a good job, many wonderful friends, and the most wonderful husband, I’ve come to believe that those things are almost in spite of myself. I’ve certainly been my own worst enemy.

Although I love learning and I have an insatiable thirst for learning, I didn’t take my education very seriously. If I could go back, and I probably will soon, you can bet my approach to college and my education will be drastically different. While I’ve always been active and pretty sensible, I didn’t take my overall health very seriously, either. I mean, I’m not a candidate for gastric bypass surgery or anything, but I certainly could have done a better job of managing my weight. I have a great job, but if I look back at that 18 year old girl that moved to Knoxville, I’m not where I could have been. I would be much more successful in my career, if I’d just made it a priority and realized it was as important as any aspect of my life. I made some not so good decisions in my love life and a couple of REALLY bad ones. But even so, here I am married to the greatest guy I know.

I was thinking last night, I’ve screwed up a lot in my life. Yeah, it could be a LOT worse, but as I ‘ve mentioned, it could be a LOT better. And this thought process led me to my marriage. I’m a newlywed so everything is still blissful on our end, but then again, no one gets married prepared to eventually screw it up. This marriage is the most important thing that has ever happened to me and I never want to forget (or have my husband forget) that if we aren’t careful and make caring for and nurturing our relationship a priority, we could screw this up too. That’s a pretty scary thing to me.

And finally, if my mediocrity in the other aspects of my life is what led me to this perfect guy, then I’m pretty lucky to have been a world class underacheiver!