The Greatest Fan

There she is. The Packers' greatest fan. I will never witness anything about the Green Bay Packers again without thinking of her. My Mom.

Over the years her loyalty never waivered. She watched every game. She gathered souvenirs and mementos. She screamed and hollared "Go-Go-Go!" from her living room so loud they probably heard it in Green Bay.

She collected memorabilia. She had her photo taken with Chris Jacke. She had a room in her apartment dedicated to "The Pack". In it she hung posters, schedules, photos, a wooden hand-painted Packer on a swing suspended from her ceiling. She collected stamps, and any limited edition ornament, or keychain. She wore Packer jewelry - earrings with the logo outlined in rhinestones, a pin, something that blinked. She wore a Packer jersey and hat on game day, and for Halloween - going as none-other than the ultimate fan - herself.

She new the players. The plays. She knew the rules, and when the rules were broken. She knew a good call from a bad. She loved the game, and the team. Stood by them no matter what.

She reveled in their victories. Cheered loud and strong when they went to the Superbowl, and dreamed of seeing them go again.

This past year she battled colon cancer and lost. Late in the summer we met with the doctor to discuss her prognosis. To discuss what kind of time she had left. In the meeting she told the doctor she wanted enough time to see the Packers play another season. She wanted to see them go to another Superbowl. The doctor told her she might see the Packers play another season, but, well, the Superbowl was another matter. She laughed. He laughed. We all laughed.
It was a strange day.

Little did we know that day that she wouldn't make it to another season at all. Only two weeks later she was fading quickly away. Much faster than any of us would have hoped or anticipated. The day before she died the Packers played a pre-season game against the Colts. They won. Though she lay unconscious in a hospital bed in her living room, the tv set was on, and the game played as we gathered to be with her. When they won we told her so. The next day she died, and the Packers were short one incredible fan. On earth at least.

As the days moved on we cleared out her things. We sorted through her Packer shrine. Some things we shared, some we didn't. But every bit of it spoke to her enthusiasm for the game and for her team.

Throughout the season my sisters and I would comment on how well the team was doing. We would remark that maybe Mom was up there somewhere guiding the Packers to a Superbowl. We would joke that we could almost hear her cheering them on from somewhere in the crowd. That maybe now she was on the sidelines with our Dad, pushing them closer and closer to victory. Sprinkling some kind of magic over the field.

So far it seems to be working. Mom's favorite team is going to the big game. The Superbowl. Just as she'd hoped. Just as millions of other Packers fans hoped. A dream come true.

And yet, I can't help but feel melancholy. Sad that she didn't make it to see it here with the rest of us, on earth. Missing her every day. Thinking of her with every mention of the team, and the big game.

All I can do is hope that wherever she is, she'll be watching. My dad sitting beside her. Both of them cheering and screaming and yelling "Go-Go-Go!". Praying for a win.

I'll be praying, too.

Awkward Moments

Living with parakeets is a joy. Presently, we have four of them. Tori, Pumpkin, Miss Pixel and Texter. My husband, Joe, worries that I will come home with another at any time. Not that he doesn't like them. He does. But he worries. Or so he says.

The babies, as we call them, are all pretty easy going, happy birds. Each has its own distinct personality. Tori was my first, and we have a pretty strong bond. He was talking quite a bit, with his best phrase being "How was your day?". But once Pumpkin came along, Tori decided that, aside from the occasional "pretty bird" or "I love you", he would just talk parakeet talk.
He and Pumpkin got along well from the start. Although Pumpkin can be a bit of a stinker, and likes to follow Tori around, wants to eat what he's eating, play with what he's playing with. Pretty much the same as a younger sibling will shadow an older one. But, at times, when they sit close together, chatting, or one chatting away and the other listening closely, with his eyes closed, they seem like they've been friends forever.

Tori is what I call my intellectual. He likes to sit quietly and listen to music. Sometimes he will sing along beautifully, joyfully. He loves to sit on my shoulder, and, since he was very young, really enjoys sitting atop my nose. Early on he would sit on my glasses for the longest time while I read a magazine, or watched television. He waits eagerly for me to get out the hair dryer in the morning when I'm getting ready for work. For some reason, he loves to sit on my hand, or my shoulder while I dry my hair (I use a diffuser, and never point the dryer in his direction).

Pumpkin came along second. He was one of a pair of brothers. The brother was adopted, and I thought it was just too sad that he was all alone without his brother, so he came home to live with us, and Tori.

Pumpkin is always moving. Rarely still. Always checking out what's going on, and very eager for all the others to come out and play. He was very shy with me for a while, so I didn't push it. Once he was ready, he was flying over to sit on my head, or hand, or to help Tori clean my teeth. (check out the youtube video here)

Miss Pixel was chosen by the boys. I had taken them to visit Kay, (the pet shop owner/breeder where we've found them) for nail trimmings. When we go to the shop we visit the other birds. On that particular day Miss Pixel decided that we were of interest to her. Both Tori and Pumpkin perked up, and chatted at her. She came right to the front of her cage and answered back. I talked with her a bit, and she answered back sweetly. I figured she might be the next one, and discussed it with Kay. Tori and Pumpkin were boys. Miss Pixel could add a whole new dynamic to the scene. Kay suggested I talk it over with Joe first. We had decided the next bird would be named Pixel. But since it turned out to be a girl, we decided to call her Miss Pixel. A fitting name, actually. She's a bit of a diva. But, very, very sweet. She was sitting on my finger and chatting with me the first night we had her home. It took a while for her to really trust me, but she and the boys got along very well. There have been a few romantic triangles and awkward moments since she came along. Check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYKUau7SzMg

Texter was chosen in much the same way. I took the babies in for pedicures, and we visited the birdies at the store. Tori showed a keen interest in Texter, and Texter seemed very interested as well. Both were hanging from the fronts of their cages and just quietly observing each other. Again, I went home and discussed it with Joe. The next day I went back for Texter. By the end of the evening, he was hanging out with the gang.

Not that there haven't been surly moments between them all. A few scuffles here and there, but no injuries, no malice. Just, hey, that's my toy, my swing, my perch.

We have no plans to add another right now. But that could change...