"A Separate Peace................"

Good Evening;

Well things have been hectic these last 4 days, and will be so until this Saturday.

Early this morning Tom's dad passed away around 2:00 am. after 3 and 1/2 days in the Joseph Richey Hospice. His system just finally shutdown, and Tom was there with him when he left, quietly and with dignity.

Edward Knowles Cassedy II = 04/22/1935--03/08/2010 = Requiescat In Pace

After Rachel and I left the library we stopped at the Giant and I bought her a box of Philly Swirl Pops to take home for dessert and her mom picked her up. I headed back to Jenn's and Father Dave and his wife Beth dropped off Ed and Devin, whom they had been watching while Jenn and Tom were at the hospice. Tom stopped by about 11:00 to pick up his insulin and headed back to spend the night, and Jenn came home for some sleep. 2 hours later the phone rang and she got dressed and headed back downtown. After dealing with the paperwork and following the vehicle transporting him to the funeral home near Towson, and collecting his belongings, they got home about dawn. They crashed almost immediately, and I hit the Giant as soon as it opened and picked up some food to have around the house and treats to keep the kids occupied. When I got back they headed out to deal with some of the logistical issues and such, and I again took over my duties as alternating tyrant and pushover to the grand monsters...lol.

As Jenn left to go purchase some last minute wardrobe items, I decided to take the opportunity to escape for a couple hours. She and Tom will again be running all over the place tomorrow, coordinating everything, and I hope to be able to get the kids out in the sunshine for a while, since the temps are going to be about 60 degrees, (of course after Saturday when I finally am able to leave their place you know it will get cold, and windy...typical March weather...lol).

Viewing are on Friday afternoon and evening, and the funeral service is on Saturday at the church, Mt Calvary of which Ed was an active member, as is Tom, as well as a major factor in the founding of the Joseph Richey Hospice.

He was also instrumental in starting the Fuel Fund of Maryland when he worked for B. G. & E., and was involved with the Paddle For People fundraiser in the Inner Harbor. (I'm told that somewhere hidden in the deep dark photo morgue of the Baltimore Sun is a photograph of Ed and then Mayor William Donald Schaefer,[in his striped 'onesie', Victorian style bathing costume], and somewhere in the picture is a pudgy little redheaded kid.....that's Tom....lol, I'd love to get a copy of that pic, for nostalgia, AND blackmail purposes....LOL!!

There should be a pretty large turnout at the church....(the snow in February has wrecked such havoc on both the grounds and the scheduling of the Md. Veterans Cemetery that they cannot schedule the interment until the 19th of March, so the graveside will be family only). I have volunteered my childcare services for one or both kids as needed, and Jenn has not decided yet on whether either child si going to go on any of the 3 occasions, the question being, since it is an open casket, do they really want them to see Granpa Ed as he is now, literally only skin and bones, or carry the memeory of him in their hearts and minds as a vital, living person. If it was up to me, I'd say they stay home.

I will probably not be going in any case, I truly have no fit clothes, those 2 MARYLAND sweatshirts and the one pair of jeans you see me wearing in the story photos are it. My clothes always seem to all wear out at once, tee shirts, tight whiteys, socks.....that is because I hate to shop, I kind of make a commando buying raid on Target or K Mart when everything finally falls apart in the dryer from sheer fabric exhaustion...LOL!!! I also feel a bit strange thinking of all tyhe folks who may be there, and the awkward pause after the introduction then either recognition or/or explanation phase kicks in.

Some newer readers just tuning in after seeing the J.T. or B.M. articles maybe wondering why in a blog that is called Homelesscide, I am talking about family and funerals, well, besides all the other crap I/we have to deal with, our worlds overlap and intersect with yours all the time. So not only do I have to be concerned about an intake and evaluation at the case management firm on Thursday, and where I will be staying after Saturday, and the fact that my boots are so worn that my ankles, knees, hips and back are a total effin' mess....I have these "normal" issues too.

Times up...................later......Dave