My Aunt Marcille

Have you missed me?  Well, I've been in Tucson, Arizona, celebrating the 90th birthday of my only living aunt, Marcille Lynn.  Actually, she is my aunt by marriage.  Her husband (Sarah's dad) was my father's younger brother.

If I were a wagering woman, I would bet you 10 to 1 (whatever that means) that you have never known anyone like Marcille.  Here I am handing her a birthday card which says, "90 Incredible Years."  That is very appropriate!

 i

Now I had told Marcille we would do whatever she wanted to celebrate her birthday.  Personally, I was hoping she might choose a trip to the Canyon Ranch Spa for a mani-pedi or a massage.  Instead, she wanted the three of us to hike in Catalina State Park, where she has volunteered for 27 years.  She used to lead hikes and move rocks to arrange trails (!) but now she just collects entrance fees.  So off we went, searching for wild Mexican poppies.  She says we just went 2 1/2 miles.  It sure felt like more to this "youngster."

After the hike we went to lunch, where I presented her card, then to a butterfly exhibit at the Desert Museum.  Marcille is also a docent of long standing at the museum, and has a host of friends there. 

I'm summarizing this day very briefly, but it was exhausting to Sarah and me.  I don't think Marcille was as wiped out as we were!   Doesn't she still look pretty perky?

This perky little lady loves University of Arizona basketball.  She goes to all the home games with her grandson or great-grandson, if one or the other is available.  If not, she goes by herself!  She prepared breakfast for the whole family on a previous visit.  This time she treated the family to breakfast at her favorite spot.  She goes to theatre productions frequently.  In fact, she took us to see a most delightful one-woman show, Shirley Valentine, while I was there.  She had seen it several times before!

 
Marcille is an inspiration to me when it comes to maintaining physical strength through activity.  I remember that she was always hiking or mountain climbing when I was a growing up.  She told me that when she was 72 she had to be air lifted from the north rim of the Grand Canyon.  She had fallen and suffered a shoulder injury, but that certainly didn't stop her!  And you think I'm brave in traveling alone?  She is going to Costa Rica in May--alone--at 90!

This incident just took the cake!  I got home without a program for Shirley Valentine.  I have a special keepsake box for all my playbills, so I was disappointed.  Marcille drove back out to the theatre, got one for me, and drove by and left it in Sarah's mailbox on the way home from the U of A basketball game to which she had driven by herself--at night!

Marcille Lynn is one special aunt and lady.  I've got to go walk on my treadmill in my air conditioned exercise room while I watch my satellite TV.  That will make me like Marcille.  Won't it?

The Grannies Do All State

Has anyone mentioned that Madeline made All State choir?  Oh, I thought so!  Well, Shirley (other grandmother) and I drove down to San Antonio in person to take it all in!

Now on our last trip (to New York) we did something very embarrassing right off the bat.  The hotel gave each of us a key to our room.  We went upstairs, dropped our stuff, and headed off to Ruby Foo's with the fam for dinner.  It was quite late when we got back to the hotel, and I'm sure you can guess what's coming.  Yes, neither of us had our key with us.  Here we were, trying to look youthful and cool, and we had to trek down on the first night and get new keys.  So, on the way to San Antonio this past weekend, we resolved not to do anything that would make us appear, well...old. 

It didn't work out.  The morning after our arrival I was putting on my makeup and deciding that I would buy a small Keurig coffee maker to take on trips for hotels like this lousy Omni La Mansion Del Rio. (It is definitely NOT lousy.)  I was dying for my coffee.  Rob called and asked if he could bring us anything from McDonald's.  Shirley and I both said "Coffee!"  He said, "Haven't you made coffee in your coffee maker?"  No, we hadn't because we didn't have a coffee maker in our room.  Well, yes we did.  We just hadn't found it.  A cute 2-cup brewer slid out from a lovely cabinet.

We eagerly proceeded to get some coffee brewing.  I was kind of a smart aleck about it since I had had the same coffee maker in a hotel before.  I smartly showed Shirley where the little coffee packets went in the little tray, and she went to get the water.  We had lovely black ceramic (inside and out) coffee mugs. Classy!

When the brewing stopped, I removed my cup and poured one of our two creamers into it.  It looked so strange--like creamer in water in a black cup.  It WAS creamer in water in a black cup.  I had failed to reinsert the tray containing the coffee packets after showing Shirley how to do it!  At least Shirley doesn't use creamer, so I had one for my first cup!

We had such a great time on both trips.  We laugh at each other and with each other.  We spend most of our time looking for stuff we brought but can't find.  We talk about food and diets endlessly and then go eat whatever we want.  We reminisce about our happy times and miss our guys.  We just bask in the glow of our precious children and grandgirls.  We thank God constantly for all He has done for us.  We're two VBG's (that's Very Blessed Grannies.)