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Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Who would of thought that Ron Paul would turn out lines that went over a mile long throughout a NYC book store? Lines swerving in and out of aisles starting on the 3rd floor and winding its way to a set of escalators that lead to the 2nd floor where Ron Paul was seated at his thrown. Well, he was there and amongst the crowd stood soaking wet and giddy with excitement The Bissol Family.

We woke at about 6 am to get ready for our big adventure. We drove into Trenton, NJ and took the kids on their first train ride into New York City. If anyone noticed, the weather in NYC was not pretty. Rain fell non-stop throughout the day. We got off the train at Penn Station and walked outside and stood looking around at the hustle and bustle of rain boots and umbrellas, no NYC was still as busy as ever and WE HADN'T A CLUE which way to walk.

So being immature New York sight-seers we notice a "Borders" bookstore on one corner and that is where our journey was taking us but to The Border's Store at 100 Broadway....so who better to give us directions then an employee.....bad idea?..."excuse me miss, can you tell me how to get to 100 Broadway, there is a Border's there that is having a book signing".....Ms. responds" "We don't have another Border's book store in NYC, wait, Lisa, is there another Borders here in NYC" Lisa responds: "Yes, it is at 54th and Columbus Circle" Me: "Can we walk there" Lisa: "Yes, it is only about 26 blocks, although in the rain you may want to take the subway" Me: "Ok, so the address is 100 Broadway, is this the same place" Lisa: "Yes, it has to be, that is the only other Border's in NYC"

So The Bissol Family heads back out in the rain....did you know they form lines for cabs in NYC? In the rain? You wouldn't have thunk it! So we head in the direction that Lisa pointed to and began the long hike....about 4 blocks in we are soaked from toes to nose....Joe and I look at each other...should we get a cab? So we decide to walk down a side street where I stick my head into a cab letting out a rider...."Excuse me, can you take us to 54th and Columbus Circle, a Border's Book Store," Taxi driver Dushund from India responds: "yes yes!" So after much shoving and banging Joe and Dushund manage to get the stroller in the trunk and we are off....in a dry space w/ little to no oxygen....the 5 of us squished into a NYC Taxi....a neat experience for the kids ;) Me: "So Dushund, is 100 Broadway at 54th and Columbus Circle"...."Uh, no" as he is driving in the wrong direction. Me and Joe look at each other....what do we do?

Joe pulls out his cell phone and calls David, a co-worker of his who knows where we are...."Hey David, will you look up the address to where Ron Paul is going to be today"....of course David obliges and says, "he is at 100 Broadway". So we tell Dushund, sorry but we need to go to 100 Broadway when he responds, "You know that is in the Wall Street District, right"....we tell him, yes that is fine. Who knew how big NYC really was until you have seen it from a NYC Taxi cab. Thank goodness for their new touch screen TV's, it kept the girls and Joey's fingers busy. NYC is beautiful in the rain and even more beautiful when you finally reach your desired destination. The $40 bill didn't seem that bad to finally be there. A Border's sign and a Ron Paul sign, we are definitely in the right place! So yes, maybe a call to Lisa to let her know more than 2 Border's exist in NYC is a good idea.

Potty time was necessary at this point. So we trustingly ask an employee of Border's to point us in the right direction and he knew exactly where it was! Fantastic, "3rd Floor, elevator is in the back"....in fact the whole time we were at this Border's the employees were awesome.

We don't even pay attention to the craziness surrounding us, we were focused on getting to a potty....after we are all done we walk out of the bathroom to see that we were exactly at the end of the Ron Paul line. So I hop in while Joe goes off to buy the book...."Joe" I yell, "wait, buy 3 copies, we can give 1 to Mike and 1 to David" with a big smile Joe nods and he is off...we are slowly moving down an isle....as I look around I pick a book off the shelves that intrigues me "The Self Sufficient Life and How to Live It"....hmmm, I look around and also see "An Inconvenient Truth: The Crisis of Global Warming" by Al Gore. To me it was a message that what myself and Joe have been "re-thinking" in life was something to keep pursuing. About 6 months ago we would have never been so brave as to step out of our own backyard and take all 3 kids into NYC...and today, well today life is completely different. We have started to see life in a whole other way. All in part to paying attention to what Ron Paul is saying. (I never intended this post to become a novel but I guess it has, I have a lot to say)

So Joe arrives back in line to where he finds me reading up on solar panels and wind energy. I point to the section we are in and point out the book on "Coin Collecting" and mention something to the irony of the section we are standing in at that exact moment. The irony being that recently Joe has been collecting pennies and nickels because they are worth more as metal than they are as currency. It is one way he deals with the new found knowledge of our government running our economy into the ground. We continue with our mini steps and wonder how we are going to maneuver our double stroller through the rest of the aisles. I look around and see all these people and wonder if any were as crazy as us and traveled a long distance to meet someone who has impacted there life so thoroughly. I see older men and think, they must have gone through "the change"(what I call what we are going through right now) a long time ago and seen many "Ron Paul's" many "Revolutionaries" and they were just hoping that this one, this person would make the impact for change. I had a sad thought that many were hoping that Ron Paul would become president and that they would see this change in their lifetime. I almost hoped they were proud of us for realizing "the reality" so early...I know I was proud of the young boys a few spots ahead of us in line who seemed to "get it"...seemed to know our world, our country was in chaos and the only person who could help us was at the end of this long line.

I started in my head thinking of all the things I would say and do when I got to the end of this long line. Would I get Olivia to say as she does almost everyday for the past several months "Ron Paul for President"...would he get in a picture with me and my family so I had something to cherish for decades to come....I would definitely say "Ron, you have changed our family for the better and I thank you" and give him a great big hug. I looked at Joey in the face and said, "if you could be the most polite you have ever been in your life I would truly appreciate it, make sure you shake his hand"....the line continued to move slowly but surely.

As we waited we heard a loud roar of RON PAUL WE LOVE YOU, and we figured the king had entered the building. Continuous chants of "Ron Paul" sent shivers up my spine as I saw Joey, Joe and I all stand on our tippy toes to try to sneak a peek. Joey grabbed the camera and headed on an exploration to snag a picture. Me and Joe looked at each other and wondered if he would be alright. As Joey disappeared around the corner, right in front of us Ron Paul heads down the escalator waving right to us! We missed the most amazing opportunity for a picture but thought it was better that Joey felt important on his attempt to get a picture of the "Rock Star."

The girls were getting edgy so I let them down to look at the children's section. We surprisingly found a "Fancy Nancy Dictionary" of all words fancy, the girls love the "Fancy Nancy" series of books. We circled the children's section a few times where the girls found hand puppets to play with. Megan was in heaven when she found a rabbit in a top hat. She kept saying "Abracadabra" and some other words that I guessed were "funny fun, scarves scarves must be one" which is from Calliou and she watches it all the time. All this fun has made the line seem to move much quicker as I look over and Joe is about to reach the escalator. I pick up the girls to make a run as I know reasoning with them won't work...can you imagine "Girls, we must stop playing with the fun toys because we need to continue to wait in line on another floor." The girls protest a little but settle down with the bribe of more animal crackers and juice.

As we approach the escalators the Border's employees escort us to the elevator since we can not go down the escalator with the stroller, they are nice to make sure we do not lose our spot in line. When we get to the 2nd floor where Ron Paul has his table set up I can see him. I am starting to get nervous and not sure how to act.

I take my camera out and snap a few pictures but my camera of course is flaking out and all the pictures are dark even though my flash is going off....so I quickly change the setting to video and get a bunch of people moving in line blocking my view of Ron Paul. Man ol man I just wish people would stop walking in front of me getting in my way...when I think, they are probably just as excited as me and are not thinking about the person behind them. I put the camera down and try to focus on what I am going to say, also reminding Joey to be polite. OMG, 2 more people to go, we are there, we are now next....breath, breath, you can do this....."here Megan give this to Ron Paul" as I hand her "Gifts: Mother's Reflect on How Children with Down Syndrome Enrich Their Lives"....she starts bending the pages and I get even more nervous "Megan don't do that" as I grab the book back and she yells "NO MY BOOK" really loudly and of course it is now our turn. I hand her the book back as we approach the desk to quiet her down. I am speechless, no words come out of my mouth. Ron asks, "How many kids do you have" "Thank you for coming out" still no words from me. I realize he is done signing and I grab the book from Megan and hand it to him and say the one word he will probably remember me for......"HERE" as Joe explains to him why I am giving him the book, I smile and walk away realizing I didn't ask to get a picture or say the things I wanted or to even give him a hug. Would his posse even have let me? He excitedly responds to Joe's explanation of the book by saying to his posse, "She is one of the authors." I grab my camera in a futile attempt to walk back over and make things better when I realize I am a meek and boring human being who would rather walk away without saying a word and eat the guilt the rest of her life. We awkwardly carry the stroller down a flight of steps to get to the elevator when I wipe my brow to realize that I am actually sweating. I am actually breathing really heavily too.

Emotions run over me as we step into the elevator to go check out with our new "Fancy Nancy Dictionary" and a few games (yeah games at a book store). As Joe gets in the check out line I am still getting over my emotions when I feel tears coming on. I quickly grab a pair of sunglasses from my coat pocket and put them on. How do I explain why I am crying? I just got 3 autographed copies of Ron Paul's book "The Revolution: A Manifesto", I was up close and personal, he was kind and thankful. Why was I upset? I wasn't sure but what I was sure of was that my sunglasses indoors would definitely not draw attention to myself.

As we exit the store we haven't a clue what we are doing or at least we don't speak it. But this does not stop me from flagging down a taxi and saying "Toys R US, Time Square"....when I saw it from the Taxi from our 1st ride I knew I wanted to take the kids there. So we hoped back in a cab and headed back towards the train station. We ended our excursion with a nice afternoon together as a family, happy to be Americans, proud of changing it up and living outside of the norm. If anything we taught our children that LIFE is most important to be lived on a whim and to every once in a while to follow your dream and follow the path that leads YOU to righteousness. I know from reading words from "The Revolution: A Manifesto" on the train ride home with Joe that the words on those pages we both agreed with and watching our girls sleep and Joey watching the MP3 player that "our day" will not end. Our trip to NYC is just the beginning of our story.

Wednesday, April 23, 2008
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Oh how they have grown:

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Monday, April 21, 2008
Get out and VOTE tomorrow!
Joe will be at the polls all day handing out sample Republican ballots.
Ron Paul needs all the supporters he can get.
YES, he is still in the Republican Race!

This makes for some interesting information, please watch:


If you live in Yardley you know this simple rule..."We break for ducks"!
Dowtown in Yardley is Afton Pond home to a few dozen CRAZY ducks. Olivia and Megan sure did enjoy this day....they did not want to leave.
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Do your LO's try to fit into the smallest and strangest of places? Megan finds a space and challeneges herself to fit which leaves us with this:
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Sunday, April 20, 2008
This was a bus from the IU where Megan goes to school. My heart about fell out when my mom showed me this in the paper:

‘God was on Route 1’

By BEN FINLEY
Bucks County Courier Times

As he stood along a silent stretch of highway Friday afternoon, Public Safety Director Fred Harran said, “God was on Route 1 northbound in Bensalem today.”

“It’s a miracle that no one was injured,” Harran continued. “Another 2 inches and the van could’ve gone into the ravine.”

The front bumper of a minivan that was carrying three preschoolers was still hanging 6 feet off the ground in a splintered tree.

That bumper marked where the Bucks County Intermediate Unit minivan launched off the pavement of the Route 1 Superhighway.

That bumper also tells the story of what could’ve been. Behind the scrap of metal and the splintered tree is a 30-foot drop into sloping ravine, which deepens into a tea- colored brook.

That tree, thick as a telephone pole, was the only thing that stopped that van — and three toddlers — from plunging into the unthinkable.

The tree stood alone — nothing within 10 feet on either side of it.

According to police, a Honda Prelude had cut off the van and brushed the van’s front. The collision sent the school vehicle airborne, launching over the guardrail and into the tree, police said.

The tree’s trunk withstood the full brunt of the van’s weight, and seemed to guide it out of harm’s way. By the look of the soil, the van seemed to leave the trunk and hug the ravine’s edge — moving parallel to Route 1 — as it traveled another 60 feet before finally halting at the trunk of another tree.

When the van came to rest, it was sloped toward the ravine at a 45-degree angle. Its smashed front was clinging to outside of the guardrail.

When Nottingham Fire Chief Ronald Harris and his crew arrived, several people were already pulling the kids, ages 3 through 4, out of the van.

The kids were visibly upset, but they had no serious injuries, Harris said. The woman driving the van, Cornelia Fulmor of Northampton, suffered moderate injuries but nothing lifethreatening, Harran said.

The driver of the Honda Prelude, Steven Vickers of Morrisville, and his passenger, Angelo Quisito of Yardley, suffered only minor injuries even though their car flipped over and came to rest on its roof in the middle of the highway. Two employees for the Intermediate Unit, a county agency that provides services to special education students, had rushed to the scene. But they declined to comment as they stared at the wreckage. The newspaper was unsuccessful in reaching IU spokeswoman JoAnn Perotti for comment.

Harran said that police officer Donald Schwab will continue to investigate the accident.

As he surveyed the wreckage again, Harran said to one of his men: “Can you imagine what it must have been like for those kids?”

To our family is Aiden John, born April 1, 2008
Here is my BIL holding his new and first son.
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Here is Uncle John, Aiden and Joey
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Thursday, April 17, 2008
WOW! I just bought that book last week at Barnes and Noble. I was so excited to walk in and see it sitting on the shelves in my store right next to Gifts. The shelves full and fresh. Last time my visit showed our book needed re-stocking, so this is a good sign that people are buying it! To see Jennifer and Avery on the cover of the book and being a continuous reader on Pinwheels, I felt like I personally knew the author of the book and was so proud to pick it up. I love the smell of a brand new book. I was so excited to add it to my library of books. So proud of Jennifer's accomplishment, I told all my friends about her and how she also has a story in Gifts and that she was my friend (on-line). I still feel that some people roll their eyes at that idea of meeting someone online. I feel like half my friends today that I talk to regularly are from my online community.

I am not finished the book yet. I am still reading as I only wish I could just sit for hours and finish all at once but the girls will not allow that. I am almost embarrassed to say I am living through Jennifer as I read the book. After finishing the chapter "some days are better than others"...I find myself in the grocery store buying a chicken to roast. That sounded really good when I read it, very comforting....but I do steer clear of the bakery to avoid any obnoxious clerks who might be eying up my Megan ;)

As I type this I want to give Jennifer a big hug and tell her she has put down the words so clearly. It is almost like having a diary for myself. It reminds me of my journey with Megan and it is refreshing to actually read the words that I only ever thought in my head. My husband does not read books, but he will read this one. He has already mentioned that if it can make me buy chicken and cook a nice meal, that he is ready to sign up!

Well, I actually have about 15 minutes of spare time and want to get back to the book....Jennifer, if you read this, I LOVE YA! I AM PROUD OF YOU! And this book will mean so much to so many! Now today, your name will be mentioned with the likes of Martha Beck, Emily Perl Kingsley, Martha Sears and Joan Guthrie Medlen.

Wednesday, April 9, 2008
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR MOM,
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!

happy birthday

Tuesday, April 8, 2008
It is with a heavy heart that I post Melissa Riggio, advocate, signer song-writer and daughter of Barnes and Noble CEO has passed away. She was an inspiration to me and I wanted to share her with all of you. She fought a courageous battle with Leukemia. Heaven gained its newest angel who already had her wings.

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