Skip to main content

Pittsburgh By Duck



Ducky Birthday To You!


Today is Mom's 98th birthday which we celebrated on Saturday by taking her on the Just Ducky tour of Pittsburgh. When asked if this was something she wanted to do, she replied, "I'm game!" So here she is wearing her Cocoon sunglasses, ready to roll (literally) at Station Square.

Our Amphibious Vehicle


Rose is a former Monessen Greyhound who fell in love with a Donora Dragon. She met her Andy when she and a girlfriend stole several pieces of chocolate covered cherries from an unopened box in his unlocked car that just happened to be parked near her house. The girls were sitting outside on her porch when the cherries called to them. Andy returned to his car, and asked them if they saw the thieves. They denied any knowledge of this heinous crime, but struck up a conversation that lasted for more than 57 years. It was only after several years of marriage that Rose admitted to being the Cherry Thief. Every Valentine's Day after that, Andy bought his sweetheart a box of her favorite candy.

Rose did not pursue this life of crime, but went on to become a national award winning quilter and seamstress. She won the top prize in Needlecraft magazine's Christmas 1988 contest with her poinsettia quilt.


 She became fascinated with Tiger Woods even though she knows nothing about golf. Early in his career, she started clipping newspaper articles about him, and saving them in page protectors placed in binders. To this day, we are trying to figure out a way to send these scrapbooks to him. Any suggestions? We want to be certain he gets them, and not a PR person or agent.

 She became Supermom to five children. Here is a "duck's eye view" of her superpowers:

Faster than a speeding baseball


More powerful than a Steel Curtain



Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound



A fountain of love, beauty and grace


Supermom did not get the opportunity to fulfill her youthful ambition to become a hairstylist, but instead, assumed the disguise of Rose Warholic, mild-mannered housewife in a great metropolis.

Rose would like to thank Miss Maggie, the captain of our Duck, who performed admirably on land and sea. She would like to thank James, our tour guide, who devoted a lot of personal time to our group, and kept telling her how awesome she was. She would like to thank the Just Ducky agent who wanted to take her dancing Saturday night. (You should have gone out with him, Mom!) She would like to thank all twenty-nine passengers who sang Ducky Birthday To You, and congratulated her as they disembarked. And of course, she would like to thank her two daughters and their husbands, her granddaughter and her boyfriend, and her two newest grandchildren from Latvia (who won the Ducky prize for travelling the greatest distance to be with their Babushka) for joining her on this adventure.

 She sends a hearty QUACK,QUACK,QUACK to thank her three sons in California, their wives, and all of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren who could not be with her in person, but would have if they could have.

And Mom, all of us would like to thank you for all that you have done for us for the past 98 years. How does one even begin to repay the huge debt we owe you? The answer is:  We can't. All we can do is wish you the happiest of birthdays and many more. We love you more than words could ever express. We are also planning your 99th and 100th birthday celebrations. I'm thinking one might include a helicopter ride over your metropolis and another may include a visit with Tiger Woods! We consider him a fourth brother anyway. Or perhaps a trip to Switzerland, your dream vacation. I can already hear you saying, "I'm game!"







Sandra Warholic Seeley is the creator and author of Kanela's Korner and The Sandra Seeley Column. She is a lifelong educator whose teaching experience ranges from suburban Bethel Park, PA to Hawaii to urban Pittsburgh Public's Homewood, Hill District and Squirrel Hill communities. She has taught in every grade level from Kindergarten through Grade 5. She has a Master's Degree in Education from The University of Pittsburgh with a minor in English. Her passion has always been the teaching of Communications: Reading and Writer's Workshop. She is now a freelance writer. To contact the author, click the following link.

Comments

Wonderful heartwarming commentary on our Mom. Love you Sis, Patrick

Popular posts from this blog

Future Champions

We All Need Inspirational Stories, Even Humor Columnists I thought I would tell a story that is near and dear to my heart. A while back, my older brother Patrick, wise in years of experience, gave me a small digital voice recorder for my personal note taking. While sitting around the table, reading the instructions and figuring out which buttons to push, he decided to give me an example of how the new technology works. So Patrick searched for something that he could read into the mic. It was at this time that he was reading a motivational book titled, What to Say When You Talk to Your Self , by Shad Helmstetter , PH.D. Skimming through the pages, he settled on a section of the book that begins with, "I can do anything I believe I can do!" and ends with, "I am an exceptional human being." Talk about killing two birds with one stone, oops, no killing birds here. But it was great to be able to see and hear how the voice recorder functioned as well as hearing the ve

Dear Dad

I'm a steelworker's daughter, the first of the baby-boomer generation, raised on my Dad's WWII Navy stories, who misses him more every year. He sailed on his final voyage twenty years ago, today. There are countless things I would like him to know, so Dad, this one's for you: Dear Dad, You joined the Navy because of the attack on Pearl Harbor. You would be devastated to know about the attack on 9/11/2001, in the heart of New York City and all the senseless attacks in our schools, churches, movie theaters, marathons, transportation systems, police forces and on random individuals. How fervently you would have prayed your daily Rosary for peace. Do you know that every man, woman and child now carries a cell phone, including me? They are no longer the size and weight of gold bars (roughly 27 pounds), but fit easily in pockets and purses. I can just see you shaking your head at technology. I remember how I used to love watching you develop pictures in your dark

Circle of Life

The sun rolling high Through the sapphire sky Keeps great and small on the endless round "From the day we arrived on this planet, The Circle of Life is moving us all." And yesterday our family circle widened, with many of us witnessing the surprise proposal as Brandon, on bended knee, asked for Jessica's hand in marriage with a sapphire and diamond ring. It was an emotional day filled with love, tears of joy and laughter. Two families are now in the early stages of blending. We get to share treasured stories with fresh ears to hear. Our family gains a new son, grandson, brother, cousin, etc. Our daughter, Jessica, gains a second family of loving relatives. Exciting plans will soon begin while "visions of sugarplums dance in our heads." Wedding date, church, hall, gown, music, flowers, parties, colors, food, guest lists, invitations, oh my! I've already started a mental list: lose more weight, learn to dance, earn more money and shop for my d