I went home for the weekend, because my mom put together a benifit for my step-niece.
my niece seems to be recovering very well from her 'shaken baby syndrome.' We are still very unsure as to what developmental problems there will be. The doctors are still saying she is going to be mostly deaf and will have very poor eyes, if not blind.
Anyway, so, my mom put together a benifit to raise money to put into a trust fund. This money is to be used for any hospital bills or special needs she may have.
A lot of people showed up. It was quite the affair. It was a very 'american' moment. There were all types.
Some harley riding chaps showed up, wearing chaps, and missing teeth. Quite a few trashy girls wearing skin tight flair hip huggers, the new jeans of the all-american small town girl. My step-brother and his friends, who all looked pretty much the same, were there manning the children's duck pond. They all sort of looked like Kid Rock minus the country music vibe. They had scruffy long chin hair, thermal shirts with short sleeved t-shirts over them, and of course the ever stylish stocking cap. Carhart is in.
Oh, and there was an old tired stripper from the bar up on the hill. She was probably in her late 40s and looked very, as my mom would say, "road hard and put away wet." So many characters, it was great!
As incredibly 'white trash' as this gathering was, it was still very nice to see folks of so many different backgrounds getting together to raise money to help out a little girl.
There was a 50/50 drawing, a silent auction, and a raffle. The raffle prizes were amazing! There were free bottles of round-up weed killer and Leaf shine. (I have family that work at the local pesticide factory.) There was a gift certificate to the local stripper bar, tanning sessions, ugly yard ornaments, and other small town gems.
Food was plentiful. Pies, Cakes, Chili, Catfish, Brownies, a Redneck Cornicopia with an opened bar. My mom made a bunch of enchiladas...a bunch equalling hundreds. Folks were buying them by the dozen and taking them home. When I first got to the benifit I bought three of them and ate them, washing them down with a can of Pabst Blue Ribbon. The perfect white trash lunch. I was so one with my roots.
I asked my mom what would happen if Lillian ends up developing just fine with only a few minor disablities. Would they give back the money that was raised at the benifit? She said they would just use the money towards college.
We didn't raise quite enough for college. In the end there was 800 dollars raised, minus the cost to have Lillian's picture plastered on everything from buttons to T-Shirts. She is going to be so embarrassed when she is older.
All in all it was a good day. It reminded me how great my family is. Some would say they are bit dramatic and odd...I think instead that are just all dynamic people who aren't afraid to be themselves...no matter how nuerotic that may be.
Okay...and also dramatic and odd. But, that goes for me, too.
Gotta get some sleep.
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