I am such a disappointment...

I know that I have not posted anything in quite some time. I apologize and I promise that in the next week you will get some updates...

Aunt Ria

This has been a sad weekend. My Aunt Ria passed away on Saturday morning. She was my dad's sister and was about 76 years old. She was the last remaining female Doherty elder. She died roughly 15 years after her mother, my Grandma Candy, passed.

Aunt Ria was the consummate strong woman. You could see it in her build. She was tall, big-boned, with almost a German look about her. And she always stood ramrod straight. But she could surprise you. The last time I saw her, about 5 years ago, we were discussing books and the things we liked to read. She mentioned that she enjoyed trashy romance novels on occassion. That in itself wasn't a shock, but when she mentioned that she liked to read them because it spiced up her love life with Uncle Julius, I nearly choked.

I remember when we would visit her and Uncle Julius when I was little. It was always fun. I loved being in that house. It was the only house that I knew of that had two staircases to the lower level. Their house was a farm, with the typical smells and animals running around. Spring was always a good time to go since we could usually find eggs in the incubator in the basement next to the bar, and Meaghan would always ask to take home one of the many kittens that were around. You could go into the backyard and see ducks or rabbits, and for a little while when I was really young, they even had horses. The only thing that bothered me about their house was the dog that always scared the crap about me.

My siblings and my cousin and I would always take off for the woods next to the house. There was a path that ran along the mountain, and if you found the right place, you could go to the top of it and be on a bright clear hill that overlooked the town on the other side. Whenever I was up there I felt like I was in the Sound of Music.

I remember thinking that Aunt Ria and Uncle Julius must have been rich. Not only did they have the fun house, the forest, and the animals, they also had some of the largest stuffed animals I had ever seen. You know those stuffed animals that are like 3 feet tall and stand on their own? They had a bunch of those - mostly horses and lions and other four legged animals. Meaghan and I liked to play with those all the time.

Aunt Ria you will be missed. I am happy that you are no longer suffering. Tell Grandma that I love her and I miss her too. I know that I now have two very strong women looking out for me. I love you both.