Melanie is the host, from Sparks From A Combustible Mind

QUESTIONS

When you were a kid, did you eat the crusts on your sandwich or not? I don’t totally remember but I believe we did unless mom cut them off. We were told that it was just part of the bread. I can sort of recall eating all the bread part to the crust. I used to cut the crusts off for my kids because it almost seemed like that made an opening to eat the sandwich.

Are you a fan of musicals—why or why not? Yes, and no. I enjoy them and when I have seen them they have been wonderful but I can’t even remember the last time I saw one. I do remember going to Phantom of the Opera when my kids were little but I also remember how hot it was and that I was falling asleep the whole time.

Is it difficult to do what you do? (for a living, hobby etc.).  If you’re retired, what you ‘did’ previously for a job can be substituted. Teaching, especially Special Education, can be very hard. I always had the kids with social/emotional issues so that made it harder. I wouldn’t trade those years for anything though. Building my miniatures is not as much difficult as it is labor intensive. Putting all the tiny stuff together takes time. I love every minute of it. Making pottery can be very difficult but it seems to depend on the state of mind I am in. When I am more relaxed throwing pottery on a wheel turns into beautiful bowls. When I am super stressed out, hand-building a small animal or object can seem impossible.

What’s the best concert you’ve ever been to?  (Doesn’t have to be a rock concert either). From what I recall I think my favorites were Pink Floyd and Tom Petty (separate shows).

GRATITUDE SECTION

Looking back over your life, what is one thing you’re grateful for?  One thing you really regret?
I am so grateful for my life with my husband and kids. I knew Bob longer than I knew my own mother! Then my kids…I don’t know if I would do it again, if given the option, but I don’t regret them one bit and love them more than life. One thing I really regret was the time my sister, whom does not like me one bit, told me that my son was growing pot in his closet. I went in and sure enough, he had the closet blacked out and was running lights and all that. I recall wondering why my electric bill was so high. So I went back and called her and told her I told him to get rid of it, get it out of my house. She got back to me and told me I was crazy! She told me to go in there and get rid of everything NOW! So I did. Joey ended up killing all the plants in my garden as revenge. Yes, it was screwed up that he was growing pot in my house and yes it was completely screwed up that he killed my plants (just because I killed his) but the thing I didn’t even stop to hear him say was that he was so proud of all the chemistry he had figured out to grow this beautiful plant. All his time and effort and he wasn’t even given the chance to get it out of my house, I just demolished it all. Why do I regret this? Because my son saw black and white, there was no gray. He saw what he did as a huge accomplishment and I totally wrecked it because my sister told me it was what I was supposed to do. I know my logic may be screwed up too and it isn’t just because my son died. I regretted it when he was alive. I just never told him how much I regretted it. It wasn’t the “right” thing to do as a parent – tell your kid you regret your own actions. And then after killing my plants, I was told that it was completely “fucked up” and that I should be so mad. I wasn’t. Maybe if people knew Joey they would have understood why I felt the way I did and why I wish I had given him the chance to get it out of my house in his own way, rather than destroy it. My therapist always told me I should really think about the fact that “why did he think it was okay to grow it in my house”. That makes more sense to me. I’m sure everyone has their own ideas but I’m the one that lives with it.

By the way, there are so many smaller instances of me listening to my sister that I regret and now that she has openly told me how much she doesn’t like me, the regret feels that much worse. But, those are all in the past……