Mukilteo Musings

2009-08-12T15:07:00.000-07:00

The Culture Queen is back!Many of you may remember my mother plugging my own blog, http://theculturequeen.blogspot.com, a long time back before the whirlwind of her illness hit. After much consideration and a newfound engine-revving of my writing, I've decided to return to my blog, whose goal is to bring classical music and gourmet food together for normal people to enjoy.I just wrote a "welcome

2009-07-11T21:15:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone!The Eatons are all safe and sound, back in Seattle after a glorious trip to Germany, Estonia, and Finland. I'll post pictures soon (there's a lot of them, so it will take some sorting out) so you can get a taste of our adventure!In the mean time, I, in my rebellious, secretive and impulsive way, decided that I would permanently pay memory to my mother on the way home from a concert

2009-06-04T20:25:00.000-07:00

Today I was alone in my house, like every day. It’s a big house to inhabit alone. No matter how old we are, solitude in a big house brings the unknown to the forefront. Especially doors – they loom, mysterious. What’ s behind them. When you’re alone, you can’t ask anyone, “hey, what do you think is behind that door?” And then when there’s wind –

2009-05-17T21:05:00.000-07:00

Goat Cheese I have a very specific memory of sitting outside next to a 10th century castle, that 2003 summer in France which incinerated the entire country, bicyclists and all. There was an umbrella over our heads, thank God; and red checked tablecloth, a (several) basket full of bread, a (few) bottles of wine, and sun-and-sweat (and wine) induced delirium. The ground

2009-05-10T10:06:00.000-07:00

Every night, without fail, I dream about my mom. Sometimes it borders on a nightmare, with me waking in the morning resentful that in my dream she was ill, or upset. But the other night, I dreamt that she was visiting – and it reminded me of the color of our relationship with perfect exactitude; and when I woke I felt not more agony, more emptiness, but a completeness, a realization that I can

2009-05-04T16:53:00.000-07:00

I hate sentimental writing. I absolutely despise clichés, hokey metaphors, things we’ve all heard before in Hallmark movies. On the surface, it seems like loss provokes really bad art; but one thing I’ve realized is that words and images we consider trite are maligned for their overuse, which, truthfully, just signals something inherently human. And therefore something inherently true. So while

2009-03-19T08:55:00.000-07:00

My mom always told me I was a "surprise", not an "accident". That I just decided to exist, and that's why she knew I was here for a reason. Here is my reason.mem·o·ry \ˈmem-rē, ˈme-mə-\ nounplural mem·o·riesEtymology:Middle English memorie, from Anglo-French memoire, memorie, from Latin memoria, from memor mindful; akin to Old English gemimor well-known, Greek mermēra care, Sanskrit smarati he

2009-03-18T21:53:00.000-07:00

Friends of Janet-Please see the lovely tribute to Janet, written by 'The World According to Chuck' Sigars, and also appearing in the Mukilteo Beacon this week:http://chucksigars.com/index.php/2009/03/18/dear-mrs-lucas/comment-page-1/#comment-41316Thanks for writing this, Chuck.Dave

2009-03-15T21:05:00.000-07:00

Janet Carol Lane Eaton 1953-2009Dear Blogger friends of Janet -- today is the last post, a tribute to Janet. Her obituary is below.Thank you all for the marvelous support you have provided us in this most difficult time. Don't delete your URL-- Kaley, who is a marvelous writer, has promised to write a few tributes to her mom for posting on the 'Mukilteo Musings' blog!DaveJanet Lane Eaton, J.D.

2009-02-24T16:30:00.000-08:00

[Dave transcribing for Janet - Tuesday, 2-24-09]Sorry this is so delayed. I got stuck in a nursing home for 10 days. Although redecorated, not a very nice place to be-- they didn’t even have wireless [much to Dave’s chagrin]! Luckily – or unluckily- they almost killed me yet again, so yesterday I was shipped back to the UW hospital. The nursing home failed to give me enough fluids so I became

2009-02-09T16:22:00.000-08:00

I'm still here![Janet speaking, dictated by Dave]:I just want to wear pearls, and sweeters and get dressed fast! And have fun. I gave my family a scare- again. I guess I bled in my stomach on Saturday; the ordeal took the whole day, and everybody rushed around. I'm sorry. I woke up surprise to find everyone looking at me. And I asked them "Did I scare you?" Evidently I did, in a big way.

2009-01-28T13:08:00.000-08:00

(Dave is transcribing this:)My dear friends,Two days after my 'good news', I started not to feel so well (on Saturday). At the moment I'm at the UW Hospital. Evidently, sometime on Saturday I went through a severe bowel perforation. I guess the chemo worked too well and burned a hole through my colon. I've never been through such extreme pain in my life, even after having two babies without

2009-01-23T15:59:00.000-08:00

Yep, I am Getting Better!Yesterday, I went through both a PET scan and a CAT scan. They do not seem to have a DOG scan, at least not yet. Let me say, the tests are not fun. It took three hours and my bladder had to be catheterized which is a most unpleasant experience. In addition, they make me drink this Barium stuff which tears my stomach apart all night and into the next morning. The best

2009-01-20T10:22:00.000-08:00

Inauguration DayTaken this morning right after the ceremony.Yesterday, I sent Dave on a task after my chemo. He was to find an American flag for us to hang on this momentous day. And he did and here it is draped in our Puget Sound fog.Obama's speech was powerful to me. People were quiet, wanting to gather every emotion and hear every word. It is one for the books to be studied. I could have

2009-01-17T14:49:00.000-08:00

My Favorite Inauguration StoryGeorge Hickman, age 84 of Seattle, has been invited to President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration. Mr. Hickman was a member of the Tuskegee Airmen, the segregated black air force that served and bravely fought during WW2. They were not allowed to be mixed with the regular Air Force made up exclusively of white men. When they returned from the war, they were excluded

2009-01-14T12:45:00.000-08:00

EntertainmentFor several years now, Kaley has thrown a large Christmas party for her friends. This year when she asked me if she could once again have her party, I said yes. Again, I thought I would not be on chemo. When I learned otherwise, the party invites had gone out and I did not want her to cancel her popular party. Even though my life is totally off kilter, I have this great desire for my

2009-01-10T14:28:00.000-08:00

FloodinessWe seem to be having 100 year floods every year now. You cannot have foot after foot of snow in the lowlands and the mountains with a warm up to 50 degrees without serious consequences. Mudslides, avalanches, and rivers over their banks surround us on all sides. For a while, all of the mountain passes were closed and I-5 was closed between Portland and Seattle. The Puget Sound area was

2009-01-09T15:36:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Was My Birthday!I turned 56 yesterday. Birthdays are a premium as one ages and especially so if one is sick with a serious illness. I still cannot believe I am in the pickle I'm in but it is what it is.My Mom and my only sibling, my brother, flew out here to be with us for my birthday. I have felt pretty good. When they made the original plans, I thought I'd be off chemo and feeling

2009-01-06T13:44:00.000-08:00

TriumphantTriumph and triumphant. I like these words. Now that we enter a new year, I do believe I want to incorporate them into my daily life. Saying the words out loud gives strength. Of course, the words are found in Christmas carols and this is why they came into my head this morning. Many issues lurk before me and my prayer is to be triumphant in dealing with everything.Dave and I were

2009-01-01T10:14:00.000-08:00

New Year's DayAs usual, we have been watching the Rose Parade. I remember back in the day when color TV's first came out and people were excited to be able to view the Rose Parade in color. The Rose Parade was the standard. Now it is HD and digital and blah blah. All I know is that even regular TV these days is infinitely better than the first color TV's. When we were first married, we still had

2008-12-31T11:47:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year?On Monday, we met with my oncologist. He was out of the country when the results of my last CT scan were available so he wanted to talk with us about my new chemo regimen. No new information was provided but being faced with the reality of my situation again upset me.This morning I woke up realizing it was New Year's Eve and all I wanted was to wake up from this bad dream. I was

2008-12-28T14:31:00.000-08:00

Church TodayIt is difficult for me to get anywhere or do much of anything in the mornings. Happily, I made it to church today with Lucas, Dave, and Kaley and was able to listen to Kaley sing three solo Christmas carols. The entire service was enjoyable. Two babies were baptized and along with them we all renewed our Baptismal vows. The music director also had a brass quartet playing carols before

2008-12-27T16:30:00.000-08:00

Christmas Follow UpI was blessed with feeling quite good on Christmas day. We managed to get in a walk through the snow and slush and we had good friends come over for a glass of wine in the afternoon. After dinner, we tried to get Lucas and Kaley to sing or play some carols on their instruments. Kaley responded we could hear her in church on Sunday where she will do some solo Christmas music.

2008-12-25T14:28:00.000-08:00

Merry ChristmasDave had no presents from me under the tree thanks to our snow and UPS. It seems as though FedEx had fewer problems. They managed to get my online orders to Montana in horrible weather conditions on the day I requested. But getting packages from Everett to Mukilteo by UPS? Nope. Kaley's presents to us also did not make it so we will continue to have Christmas in the tradition of

2008-12-23T10:52:00.000-08:00

Dreaming of a White Christmas----NOT!Seattle had ten inches of snow. I was a little concerned about getting to my chemo yesterday but Dave got me there. And my regular nurse made it there, too. I didn't want my schedule to be off. Thank goodness Dave is such a good driver in the snow. His Montana upbringing along with an accident or two as a teen in the snow has served him well. The hills in our