The Quack Shack

[quackiemama]

Welcome back to the first installment of:
The Life and Trials of Trim, a story in the making.
​

My father was caught cheating on my mom the day I was born. He got to see his mistress, but not his first born that day. 3 days before my 1st birthday, my parents divorce was finalized. From that point forward an emotional and finical downward spiral was started.

I never really had a male role model to look up to and learn to be a man from. My uncle (fathers brother) was the closest it got, and I spent a lot of time with him. Later on I learned he was a despicable person. He was a drunk that would beat his wife and children and then force them to clean up whatever mess he had made. He'd use whatever was closest to him, chairs, lamps, 2x4, and just viciously beat them. As a child I didn't know that was not right, not normal. This person fed me, taught me to fish, and loved me when my father wouldn't. This had to be what life was like. Not once did he raise a hand to me though. He'd tell me "If you'r cousins would do what they're supposed to, I wouldn't have to correct them." I believed him. I also found out latter in life, he was only nice to me because he wanted my mother's attention.

In 1991 my mom moved us to Florida. I was told it was because my mom suffered from SAD, but again, I later found out it was also to escape the violence that surrounded us. See my mom was physical, mentally, and sexually abused by almost every man in her life, including family. Just to help paint the picture. My mom's first husband raped her and beat heron a regular basis. He beat my 17 year old aunt to death, beyond the point of recognition, and then slept with my grandmother 2 days later while my mom was being held captive. Even if she didn't know how, she was going to provide us with a better life than she had.

When I was 12 we moved to the area we are in now. There is a lot of money here, a lot. I went to school with Shaq's little brother. It was VERY common to see things like Ferraris, Bentlys, and Lambos. Around that time, the city we live in was rated the 3rd best place to raise a family in all of the lower 48. We did everything to try and fit in, but rags and riches just don't mix well. I do not know how my mom was able to do it, but she made it work.

Around the age of 14, I started fighting. I was getting in trouble constantly with the law. By the age of 16 I was a habitual battery offender. I got tired of getting picked on for being poor, and just started ripping in to people. I justified it by going after bullies, but over time being a dominant figure was all to hard to resist. I no longer fought in the name of defense or honor. It wasn't to help the nerd who got his lunch money stolen anymore, it was to strike fear in people, and I was good at it. I was also heavily gang affiliated and had quite the fondness for prescription drugs.

One day though, I got arrested, and the judge was tired of seeing my face. He decided to make an example out of me. I was slated to go to Dozier a state ran "reform school." That's what it was publicly called, in actuality it was a level 8 juvenile prison. Reform school just sounded better to the public. I was to spend a minimum of 18 months locked up. In a ditch effort, I checked myself in to a rehab center and begged for one last chance. I didn't mean it though, I was just very good at manipulation. It did work, and the judge agreed to let me finish the program, but if I got in any trouble, I was going to a maximum security juvenile prison. Dozier was off the table, and I would be held until the age of 21, deemed a risk to society.

Per the Department of Juvenile Justice, State of Fl.


The rehab program was for 3 months in patient and 3 months outpatient. It took me 5 months of in patient and 6 months of out patient to graduate. I was bound and determined to beat the system, and continue life as I knew it. All I had to do was not get in trouble. I was sober the entire time though, and surrounded by adults that cared for me, and over time that broke down my walls.

Colleen was one of the staff members there. She was a recovering crack addict that had nothing else to loose. She had lost her the respect of her family, the custody of her children, her teeth, her breast, and for a long time her own self respect. I hated her. She was such an experienced junkie I couldn't pull anything over her. Lucky for me Colleen didn't hate me, and she sure as hell didn't leave me alone no matter how hard I fought her. There was other staff members that cared for me, but Colleen was the one to get through to me. I finally realized that if I continued on the way I was, the best I would ever do is to be a 15 year recovering addict trying to change mindset of a child. I finally learned to respect and love Colleen, but I did not inspire to be her.

The day I graduated from rehab, Colleen presented my certificate to me. She had tears running down her cheeks and a smile on her face. It was the first time I remember an authoritative figure being proud of me.

She taught me That I didn't need the gangs or drugs in my life. She taught me I didn't need to be a follower, and how to think for myself, and that was the greatest gift she could have ever given me.

I haven't seen Colleen in 20 years, but I hope she knows she did a good job, and has nothing but the highest respect and love from me. She let me know I could change and I did not have to repeat history. The same history my mom fought so hard to remove us from.

I'm not really sure how to end this. It's not very often I share that part of my life, but I'm not ashamed to. It is a very large part of why I am, who I am today. For that, and that alone, I don't ever want to forget how far I've come. I'm not looking for pity either. I made my bed, and I'm laying in it. Now it just has a new set of sheets.

Thanks for your time folks.

Chris.

That is so beautifully written Chris. I love who you have become and I just want to give your mom a great big hug!

 

[Trimurtisan]

They are lovely Do they bloom along time? do you get a lot of Humming birds? Ours headed home quite a while ago.

It stays in bloom for a good 6-8 weeks. One thing I fo not understands is it's supposed to bloom in the late spring. When I read up on it before, I did find mention that in the EU they grow Winter Rapeseed, but I wasn't really able to find much on it. It has been a while though, maybe I just forgot.


We do get humming birds here, but I've not seen them on the RS flowers. I can barley see it from inside though, and I'm normally am on the other side of the property.

The humming bird love the bromeliads though. We have probably five or six different varieties, up to maybe 30 different plants. Most of those I can see for my living room, so I do get to enjoy the humming birds with those.

Have you ever watched a timelapse video of one building a nest?

 

[Trimurtisan]

That is so sweet. What a great weekend

We had a really nice time. The weather was perfect too. Not for swimming, but for hanging out. The UV index must have been low too as nobody got sunburned.

This is the sea'cosphere we made. So far no life has shown itself, and I could not find any live seaweed, but we had a good time building it anyways. It also is still very attractive in the window.

 

[quackiemama]

That is cool.

 

[Miss Lydia]

That is really cool looking Chris.

I love humming birds we only get the Ruby throated here but they are so magnificent, I love to sit outside in summer an watch them zoom around. I'll have to check out the time lapsed nest building.

 

[donkeydew2farms]

This is my 6 month old Cochin Bantam roo named JefferyView attachment 1951820View attachment 1951821

he is gorgeous .

 

[Trimurtisan]

Hey guys...
So the company my wife works for is basically family ran and owned. The owners are a married couple, my wife was previously married to their son, and the foreman has been with them for over 20 years. So it's not blood family, but a tight knitted family none the less.

About a week ago, Tom, the foreman went to the hospital with chest pain, and they found multiple blood clots ranging from his legs to his lungs. After a biopsy, they discovered he had cancer in his lungs, and gallbladder, with a mass in his pancreas. Today he has received the results of everything, and it's not good. He has advanced stage pancreatic caner, and that is where it all started. He to far advanced for radiation, but chemo is a possibility. If you know anything about pancreatic cancer, you likely know that chemo or not, he doesn't have much time left to live.

If you guys could keep him in your mind, prayers, best wishes or whatever it is you prefer, please do. He's one of the better men I've met in my life, and this has been quite a blow to all of us. Tom's wife is a breast cancer survivor, and I can only imagine how difficult this is for her.

I've never seen a couple work so hard to achieve what they have. Both of them work 50+ hours at their day jobs, and run an entertainment company on nights and weekends. It's very common for them both to work 70+ hours weekly. They are only a couple years from retirement.

Their names are Tom Wry, and Ruth Ann Wry.

I probably won't be around much today. If you just wouldn't mind investing whatever kind f positive energies you could, we would all appreciate it.

Thanks you.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Sure will Chris!

 

[Duck_life]

Hey guys...
So the company my wife works for is basically family ran and owned. The owners are a married couple, my wife was previously married to their son, and the foreman has been with them for over 20 years. So it's not blood family, but a tight knitted family none the less.

About a week ago, Tom, the foreman went to the hospital with chest pain, and they found multiple blood clots ranging from his legs to his lungs. After a biopsy, they discovered he had cancer in his lungs, and gallbladder, with a mass in his pancreas. Today he has received the results of everything, and it's not good. He has advanced stage pancreatic caner, and that is where it all started. He to far advanced for radiation, but chemo is a possibility. If you know anything about pancreatic cancer, you likely know that chemo or not, he doesn't have much time left to live.

If you guys could keep him in your mind, prayers, best wishes or whatever it is you prefer, please do. He's one of the better men I've met in my life, and this has been quite a blow to all of us. Tom's wife is a breast cancer survivor, and I can only imagine how difficult this is for her.

I've never seen a couple work so hard to achieve what they have. Both of them work 50+ hours at their day jobs, and run an entertainment company on nights and weekends. It's very common for them both to work 70+ hours weekly. They are only a couple years from retirement.

Their names are Tom Wry, and Ruth Ann Wry.

I probably won't be around much today. If you just wouldn't mind investing whatever kind f positive energies you could, we would all appreciate it.

Thanks you.

We sure will, that sounds horrible i'm so sorry this is happening. Sending prayers.

 

[Claires Poultry]

Looks like I've got some catching up ro do, again.

Good morning everyone! The rapesed is in full bloom. This was the first thing I saw when we originally looked at the house. You can see it from the street, but it's in the back corner of the property. It's just so big, you can't miss it. It's one of my favourite wild plants here, and makes sure we have beautiful "fall" colors too!

Just for comparison, the lumber in the bottom left is a 10'x10' trellis.
View attachment 1952112

It's so beautiful!