Entry 5

This is such a great picture. My two boys and girls. I have been blessed with you all. Whenever I get down I look at our albums and remember what a lucky man I truly am. The year is 1973 and I am right out of school. I was hired as a Nurse's Assistant I, old name for direct care, at Danvers State Hospital. My starting salary was $120./wk.. I worked in the medical building, second shift, on what now would be called an Alzheimer unit. It was a shock to my system caring for 35 demented men, a lot of direct care, i.e. showering, feeding, dressing, and supervising. It was my first real regular paycheck. After a few months I saved up enough to make a down payment on a car. I got a Triumph Spitfire, should have been named Misfire, a small, two seat, black and red convertible sports car. Imagine a car half the size and height of Julia's Hyundai. It had a tiny eight gallon gas tank, and got about 7 or 8 miles to the gallon. I was forever running out of gas. The electrical system was awful so I replaced fuses with choices like well I can have headlights or turn signals. Your Mom rode in it a few times; she had a sensible yellow Volkswagon Beetle. Oh do you know what a standard shift is? It had a clutch that you engaged to shift gears. When I bought the car I had never driven a car with manual shifting. My folks thought I was nuts but it only took me four or five days to no longer be a menace on the roads. I kept getting speeding tickets with that car. I think it had to do with being a sports car, it sounded fasssssssssttttttt that is when it wasn't broken down on the side of a road. I applied for the job of Assistant Staff Psychologist in late November of 1973 and was hired to the Lawrence Unit. I met your Mom walking up a flight of stairs in December of that year. She was hurrying down the stairs. An image that should be familiar to you all. Suz was wearing a short dress and had hair down to her hmm well butt. Jules I'd never let you out of the house in a dress like that but it was the '70s and she did look great in it. As we passed on the stairs I thought, "Someday I'm going to marry that woman." It just so happened she had recently been hired as the Lawrence Unit's Occupational Therapist. Your Mom at first thought I was "..stuck up.." but in truth I was simply terrified of all my new job responsibilities. I'm not sure what would prepare you for a back ward of actively psychotic patients. We were part of a clinical team that evaluated, treated, and advocated for hundreds of patients. Suz and I were both 23 and idealistic. Your Mom even then was a great clinician; dedicated, creative, and tireless. After a party at your Aunt Binky and Uncle David's house in Manchester, MA., your Mom decided I was o.k. and maybe date material:-) The wonders of a little bit of alcohol and my dimples. We gradually started "..hanging out.." It was very rare for us not to see each other. At meetings we'd sip coffee from the same cup. Oh your Dad was so subtle. We seamlessly went from very good friends to boyfriend/girlfriend to two people very much in love. I introduced your Mom to my parents very early in our relationship. My Mom loved her immediately, she knew her Mark had found gold. My Dad came to love her as his other daughter. I met your grandparents Kelly the day before our wedding in'76. In retrospect I should have been nervous. We got married in the backyard of Camp on June 6, 1976 by a very nice Catholic priest. We had a ceremony later that day at the Sweedish Social Club with a Justice of the Peace, a licensed person who conducts civil marriages. My extended family attended the second ceremony since watching Markalah being married by a priest would have given some of them kanipshin fits. Your Uncle John wanted to change the signs at the second ceremony to the Weiner-Weiner wedding. Its getting late and Dante is pacing to be let out so that's it for now. Sweet Dreams Kids, Love, Dad