1. Stan received a promotion and a raise (Hooray!), and had to fly out to L.A. last week for training, and has to go back out for another week this coming Sunday.
2. I finally met my brother Tyrone, my dad's son, who's sister found my dad on the internet after 38 years.
3. Me and my mom went to Florida last week for a mini vacation and stayed with my Aunt Mary and Uncle David...AND we went to Epcot Saturday!!
Yesterday was me and Stan's 2-year anniversary. Pretty crazy. It just seems like we've always been married most of the time, but then I can remember our wedding like it was yesterday. It's an amazing thing to be able to say that I happily married to the greatest guy ever. I'm definitely a handful, and I know I can be the biggest pain in the ass, but he loves me despite all of that and he knows how much I love and appreciate him. I did score some awesome anniversary presents. He got me this really simple black leather watch, an X mug from Anthropologie, and this siqqqqq purse from the Vans store out in L.A.
I met my brother Tyrone a few weekends ago, he's in prison down in Sneads, Florida right across the Georgia border. When my dad was 17 he got married to this woman and they had a son right before my dad got drafted into the army...I guess this would've been around 1968. While my dad was gone the woman divorced him and left the state with his son and one of my dad's friends. Never found Tyrone again. So a few months ago Tyrone's sister found my dad on the internet only to tell him that he's in prison for prescription drug fraud, and a bunch of other bogus charges the police and attorneys trumped up against him. My dad immediately got in contact with the prison down there, and as soon as he was approved, he went down to the prison to see Tyrone.
Me and Tyrone started writing each other letters all the time, so it was pretty much like we already knew each other before we met in person. He's the most upbeat and positive person I think I've ever met especially considering his circumstances.
So I guess it's time for Ty's back-story...His step-dad abused him for his entire childhood, beat the crap out of him, locked him in closets, and so on. His wonderful mother stood by and watched all of this take place never lifting a finger in Tyrone's defense. Tyrone now has to take seizure medication daily because of the head trauma that shithead caused from repeatedly hitting him in the head.
His whole childhood his mother and his grandparents told him that the "reason his dad LEFT HIM was because he was a drunk and irresponsible". Now, my dad will be the first to tell you that he experimented with all sorts of drugs when he was younger, but the irony? He never drank!!! And he still doesn't. Fast-forward to today, and Tyrone can't even call his mother from the prison after 7 p.m. because she's wasted out of her mind and belligerent.
Tyrone grew up to be a phenomenal guitar player (just like my dad) and played with all sorts of huge metal bands and did studio work and such. He developed a bad addiction to heavy-duty pain killers which is what landed him in most of the trouble he got into. It all stemmed from a bad motocross accident and he also ended up with a plate and screws in his left wrist (he's also left-handed).
So, obviously he made some bad choices, but the thing that landed him in prison was writing fake prescriptions for pain killers. Now here's the clincher, he ran from the cops so instead of charges for evading police officers they added all this assault on a police officer bullshit among other things. Now, when it came time for his sentencing the ATTORNEY, in cahoots with the police I guess pulled all sort of illegal b.s. and threatened him with thirty years in prison and scaring him into a plea for 15 years. Can you believe that crap? Rapists get out in less than 10! Now not only is that illegal, but he was also medicated when he entered into his plea, which is also illegal! Tyrone has already served 6 years in prison because of it, but for the past couple years he started educating himself by reading books at the Law Library and realized pretty quickly that he had gotten screwed. He has a hearing in March for his appeal and everyone is pretty confident that even if they don't give him an immediate release, that he should be out pretty soon.
He doesn't make any excuses for anything either. He'll be the first one to tell you that he deserved time for his choices, and that he's not sure if he would have ever gotten off the drugs on his own...but 15 years? Now THAT is the true crime. It's amazing how all of the pieces fell into place for us to all become a family, and he is so incredibly happy to have all of us. He talks about how he's never really felt like he had a family until now. He's one of the most humble people I've ever met. Meanwhile his mother tells him over and over and over that he deserves to be where he is and she takes no responsibility whatsoever for his childhood or any of his other problems. What kind of family stands by and watches a person that they love abuse themselves that way? How could you not step in? When he first got sent to prison his mom didn't even speak to him for three years, THREE YEARS. She only got in touch with him after she found out that he was diagnosed with leukemia. He got really sick and had to go through the chemo and everything behind bars. Now he's waiting for a transfer to this other prison in Zephyr Hills, Florida where they have a waste water treatment program, so that he can get the training to work and make a living when he's finally released.
It really puts things into perspective, doesn't it? All of my petty problems seem to be pretty insignificant in this light.
On a lighter note, I did make some delicious blueberry muffins this morning. Why don't I bake and cook more often? I love doing it I just have to start making the time.
This weather blows and it's way too cold...I wish I could go back to Florida and just bring Stan with me!!Love and X's,
Rachel
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