"Bullies" Even in BoJon Town

You know I was recently at my friend Pamela's blog : Pamela. She has a beautiful place I like to go for encouragement and kindness.  Recently she acknowledged that she had bullied someone in school a long time ago. I was reading the previous comments and a flood of feelings came over me. Bullies are everywhere. I am not condoning the Columbine killers here, but at a young age they were bullied too. One of them had a very strict father who had served in the military and although the young man wished to be like his father, he was tormented instead. I do not even know words to use for bullying that leads to  further violence and even mass murders! But I do know the pain of a bully. As a kid in the 6th grade, walking home from school one day, I was attacked by a girl who lived near my home. She attended Edison public school and was a bit rough around the edges. She slammed me up against a wrought iron fence, on Mesa Avenue.  It was the home of the Hiza's. I went to school with their grandkids, the Krasovec's. She accused me of saying terrible things about her mother! Her mother had been ill for a long time and she passed away while we were still young. It hurt my heart because my friend Karen high tailed it out of there and left me with this bully! She hung me up on that wrought iron fence and I was still one of those shy kids so I did nothing to fight back! Today I might have laid her out on the sidewalk, because after a while you just can not take it anymore! But the worst part about it all was the fact that I never said an unkind word about her or her mother! I was raised better than that! Yet it hurt me to think someone did say unkind words about her mom and said I was the gossip! You know if I saw that girl today, I am not sure I would want to be on the same side of the sidewalk as her. It hurt me deeply.

I am not perfect. I have had my share of talking about someone else. I doubt anyone, anywhere could say that at some point in their own life, they  never gossiped .  When I was working the miserable job that cut me loose last November I saw and heard things that were so unkind and rude. It made me sad to think an educated man like that doctor would participate in such gossip but truthfully, there are men who are every bit as bad as women when it comes to gossip!

Once I walked into our break room and heard the doctor carrying on about a patient who was an unwed mother. His office manager at the time was very ignorant. She was not raised properly, I do not believe, and the two of them were having a grand time laughing and making fun of this lady. I was stunned by their insults because they both knew myself and another woman in the office, were unwed mothers at one time. My father was a very wise man, he would say , "be glad God is your judge and not people around you!" Amen dad! That is a very truthful statement. The doctor had lived with his wife over twenty years before he proposed marriage.  His office manager married a divorced man! There is a boat load full of insults and meanness in both of their own situations!  I never felt truly comfortable with either one of them after that. If you ever feel yourself in this type of situation there is a ton of Scripture to help you sort out your feelings. Surprisingly, it made me feel much better and I took to surrounding my work space with Scripture and lots of positive and  happy things for the rest of my time there. Here are a few: The Book of James, Chapter 3, Deuteronomy 32:33, Psalm 55:21., Ecclesiastes 10:11. Check them out before you have the urge to gossip.

I was raised by wonderful, kind, God fearing parents. They were really goodhearted and they were not gossiping, evil spewing people! They were about as close to the Lord as you could get. Anything good, decent and kind I learned from them. As a child we were not allowed to bad mouth or "bully" anyone. Even if I was  not fond of someone I was always polite because that was how I was raised. Today too many people lavish praise alone on their children and the kid thinks the world revolves around them. Bullying happens, and what frightens me today is the fact that kids will destroy someone's desire to live by their hatefulness and evil doings. I am so glad I was a raised in a simpler time when people respected each other and kids minded their manners and their parents.

I am going to miss posting these daily but since I have to take a quick road trip to Kansas so we can store Nick's things until school starts, I guess a small break will be nice. Next week we will go on vacation with most of the phamily. It will be a different feeling, Lots of change. Nick heading back to school on August 10, the day we get back from our little mini vacation. That feeling you have after returning from vacation, feeling a little sad that you can not enjoy some more relaxing time. Still hoping to find a decent job and moving from the summertime into the autumn. Life moves forward.

I have said it before, I appreciate all the input from all the wonderful people who took the time to help out. Keep writing those memories down with the wonderful stories. Share your photos. Don't let your heritage slip through your hands. Keep talking about it, we all owe it to those you went before us.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, a great finish to the summer and you keep writing and thinking of all the wonderful memories you have shared. I am sorry I ended my 31 posts on a more difficult post but I felt like I need to share it. Mike Barnett, my great cousin who started me on this path of our heritage once said, I Never said all BoJon's were nice!" There is an occasionally bad apple in everything in life. I just think bullying is such an overlooked problem in schools today. You can't just tell a kid stick up for someone, someone, like an adult needs to be around to control the situation. I think people want kids to solve difficult problems by themselves and this is one of those problems that you can's smile and say, it will be ok. We all need to stand together and stop bullying for good! Have a great evening and thanks for stopping by!

My BoJon Heritage: Hold On To Your History

Basilica Marija Pomogaj , the patron of Slovenia and also St. Mary's Church in Pueblo, CO. I learned this from Ursula Perko who is currently visiting Slovenia So I found this google image and decided to write about our culture. Ursula and her family arrived there just in time for Benediction and Rosary. She said it was a very beautiful experience.

Here is a google image of the altar inside this church. This made me think how important cultural studies are and why we need to stand up and tell your children that they need to to understand the importance of of learning their culture through studies. I don't want to get political here but there are very few ethnic studies that are offered in colleges today. People need to reach out to their own culture and study it and work hard to get these studies into the educational system. I do not mean to be rude here but when two of our children graduated from college in 2012 and 2013 they attended their graduation ceremony. People with degrees in the only two cultural studies were 1 out of 10 in attendance for African American Cultural studies and Chicano Studies. I think that is really sad. Why would you choose a field and not show up to celebrate your accomplishment?

International Business School at Lubljana. It seems that education is an important part of our culture.

Piran, Slovenia, it looks like a lovely coastal town with a beautiful view of the Adriatic Sea. This is a major tourist attraction. The town has medieval attraction with narrow streets and compact houses. Talk about tiny house nation! I laugh when I see the HGTV commercials for this show. Goodness, people everywhere else have been living economically for ages.

This is a beautiful portrait of Mary Help of Christians and the Infant Jesus. I loved studying the lives of saints when I was a kid in Catholic school. There was a lot to learn back than and I found great joy reading the stories of these heroes.

I have been following Ursula's various posts at Face Book regarding their trip to Slovenia. It is fun to see the small towns that host music festivals and offer free drinks and pastries. I think the sLOVenian culture is quite interesting and there are many people who have made our heritage proud. I would personally like to visit this country and see the roots of our ancestors. They struggled and suffered many hardships so they could offer all of us a better life. I think walking on the soil they grew up on would be a thrilling feeling. Because of the Communist regime our ancestors grew up with they witnessed many tragedies in their lives and lost loved ones. Through the years when I talk with someone who has visited the birthplace of our ancestors they tell me the country is remarkably beautiful and offers a variety of wonderful cultural events including music and food. The country is known for many liquid refreshments. There is a lot of art and history to visit throughout the country and when I wrote my post about Rye, Colorado and the Perseren Home I knew I had seen that name in Solvenia as I was reading about this country.

Francis Perseren was a 19th century Slovene romantic poet who was born December 2 or 3 1800 (December 3 is my own birthday)! He passed away 6 February 1849. He is best known as the poet who has inspired virtually all later Slovene literature and is the greatest known Slovene classic author. His work has been translated into at least a dozen languages and his poetry is laced with torment of love lost. All of his closest friends died tragically and he also attempted to take his own life. During his lifetime he lived in conflict with both the civil and religious establishment. His lyrical poetry dealt with his love of his homeland  as well as the suffering humanity and his unfulfilled love toward his muse Julija Primic. Regarding education Perseren had obtained a law degree and did practice law. He never lost his love for Julija and confessed this on his death bed but he had three children with Anna Jelovesek , whom he never married. His life was quite unhappy but his work is still well known today,

I am winding down to my last two posts this one and tomorrow's for my 31 days of July. I am hoping  Mike will pick up where he left off and post on his blog .This is a wonderful journey I have begin and it is far from over. We are heading to Kansas this weekend to put Nick's things for college in storage. The school changed their move in days and we are going to be on vacation next week. So on Monday the 10th of August we will be sending Nick back to the Kansas Wesleyan University and his next year there. It has been a wonderful time and it is always hard to let go of Nick. He is a blessing and a joy and a great help to me. We get to have lunch together each day and he has helped me with the task of caring for all the pets during the day. When I return from vacation I am praying there will be a job offer or two waiting for me. Cousin Kay said her mom, Aunt Steffie always lite a candle and prayed by her statue of the Infant of Prague.

She said if someone needed a job her mom did this and that person always found work. I know Catholics love their saints and I thought this was sweet. Kay said she will be praying when she gets back from Slovenia for me.

I hope you have learned a little something and enjoyed some of these posts. I have enjoyed it very much and I am hopeful I will be able to put this month of July into book form to have for future reference. Remember to not let go of your heritage. It is as important to you as anyone else in your life. and we should not let our culture disappear. We need to keep it alive. Until tomorrow...

"K" is for Kin : My BoJon Heritage

"K" is for Kin and it fits perfectly for Ms. Jenny and the folks at Alphabe Thursday! Relatives, Relations,  family (members). I am the smallest member in this phamily photo taken in 1959 and probably at Rye, Colorado's Perseren Home. My cousin Joanne is next to me with her glasses on. My mom is directly behind me and man oh man was she pretty. Even my sweet grandma Steblay the phamily matriarch is smiling here.

I like to check the definition of words. I was a decent speller when I was in school so this helped a lot! Ohana is the Hawaiian interpretation for P H A M I L Y ! If you were in Slovenia today I am guessing they would say :

Družina

I thought this was quite appropriate to fit into my BoJon Heritage 31 days of July posts. I have enjoyed writing about my folks, siblings, cousins, aunts and uncles and grandparents as well as friends and neighbors and, of course, our wonderful neighborhood we grew up in. I have been been blessed with  help from so many loved ones, including my sister Mary, cousins Mike Barnett, Juliane Cosimano-Barden, and Kay Samples-Elliott. My nieces Karla Hoffert-Suazo and Holly Hoffert-Webb. Stories and photos and just pure love from so many wonderful people ! Cousin Mike Barnett would say that's what BoJon's do. It is true, we take care of our own. We love and laugh and listen. We do for our own and we do for others too. It is how we were raised. We are related, we are kin, we know our blood runs deep because we come from some of the greatest people ever created! We fit together like a giant jigsaw puzzle. We share laughter and tears. We know each other's sorrows, we have fears and yet we manage to get through it all by the grace of God and our good BoJon genes!

 If you haven't tried it, go to one of the many sites to trace your heritage. There are so many and  you can connect those dots together and find out so much information.

 All the kids except Jeremy and here he is:

1. 

   This was Colton's high school graduation. So as they were leaving, Colton took a snapshot with each guest and their phamily. Jeremy, Brittany and Addy  were happy to oblige.
2. 
   
   Jeremy and His auntie Mary 2013 at her grandson Ryan's  high school graduation. 

I was thinking of the mothers that raised us. The people who surrounded us. We had life lessons each day of our young lives. We learned, we prayed, we laughed, we loved. Our mom's made nourishing meals for us to eat. They washed our clothes and chauffeured us everywhere we needed to go. Sundays, we attended church as a phamily. Our mother's cooked, I know I said it before, but my mom had two standard Sunday dinners, one was fried chicken and the other one was pot roast. We spent Sunday afternoon's with Grandpa and Grandma Kocman and evenings with Grandma Steblay. We had manners and respect for others, sadly lacking in today's messed up world. Our dad's worked hard. Mine started at the C F and I Steel Corporation when he was 13. At age 16 he was given a raise and told by his boss, I knew you were younger than you told me you were when you were hired but you were such a good working that I could not let you go. Forty-seven years later he retired. He worked his way into the rail mill and was a head roller. I remember going on a field trip and seeing my dad working. I admired his perseverance because that was a tough job. Some girls in my class had fathers who worked in offices, I felt sorry for them. Pushing a pencil while my dad made steel to make cars with!  He was like a Super Hero to me! It was one of the things I knew made my dad that  hero. As for my mother, she was the go to person. I learned "don't tell dad" from her.  I remember one night coming home from work and a Friday night out with the girls from my office. I was dead drunk and she cared for me, never saying a word, except, don't let your father see you like this. I once asked him why he never drank. He said that was what  single guys did. Once a man married, he needed to be responsible and take care of his phamily. 

I want some Kocman phamily photos like this one. When Troy graduated from high school and Kate from nursing school, earning her R.N. degree we were all together. Oh, there is that BoJon sheriff front and center wearing her shades and that sexy black top! Sissy's mom Joanne is the girl with glasses in my top first photo. She and I reminisce at times. We talked about taking the Greyhound bus all the way to Alabama with our mothers and a packed lunch of fried chicken! We had that chicken finished off before we hit Trinidad which is about an hour and 15 fifteen minutes away from home base! I can not believe we rode that bus all the way to Alabama which is about 19 hours by car! Add the Greyhound Bus time to that and....kids today have it so easy! We were stuck on a bus with nothing, no i pods, i pads, phones, zilch! Guess what? We entertained ourselves and it made us closer as cousins. Today it is so easy to entertain yourself with frivolous stuff. Unimportant junk! Phamilies today are torn apart, spread across the miles, and most make no effort to stay in touch.

Joanne has cousins that are also wonderful BoJons. Although their mom did not like the term "BoJon" she preferred sLOVEnian, the Mencin phamily were good people. Their folks came from the old country. The younger brother Mark recently passed away. So sad. He was a year ahead of me in school and a good BoJon kid. When I was a high school freshman he helped me get a date with one of his friends for the Sadie Hawkins Dance. Mark had the same friends from school all these years later who grieved the loss of him at such a young age. BoJon's are kind that way!

Uncle Louie turned 70 years old in 1978. We had a big birthday bash for him at Auntie Ann Petkovsek's home. He loved the kids and all his sisters. He was left with a huge responsibility at age 18 when he lost his dad and younger brother in 1927. He did a lot for all of us and so did my parents. They gave everything they had for each one of their children. Whether people today acknowledge that I will never forget my folks and their good hearts. If there was work to be done they pitched in. When someone needed help with a financial situation they were there. My only regret with my dad was he did not live to see me repay my mother every single cent he lent me to move from Pueblo to Denver in 1983. He and my mother helped me raise my first born child, until I married my sweet hubby and you know, I don't say this a lot but when my husband asked my dad for my hand in marriage in 1984, my father was at peace. When he passed away a year later, he knew Avery would take care of Noelle and I. I never turned my back on my phamily. None of them. When I don't see them, I pray for them. I am sickening today at the shape of the American phamily. No regard for their roots, their siblings, their hometowns. People walk away as if these things never existed. When I lost my folks, I can tell you word for word the exact last conversation I had with each one of them before their untimely passing. When I am called home to go with the Lord, I will not have to answer for turning my back on my phamily. There will be no regrets there.

I know I can talk a lot! I learned it from my mother! Dad was quiet, she was full of words! Colton, my youngest grandson and his girl Jacey are a serious item. I said to him recently, never, turn your your back on your phamily. Once you do you will grow old and regret it. Everyone loves their own people but when you are in a serious relationship you need to learn balance.  Each phamily is important, make that balance work. I won't tell him that a second time, I don't meddle.  I just know plenty of people with guilt, hardened hearts, sad and bitter feelings....I am grateful to God that I am not one of them. Now until next time...

Cops Are BoJons Too: Law Enforcement People in my Phamily

Not all cops are bad people! You know, we live in such a modern high tech era yet we tend to be so judgemental! Because we read about a handful of bad cops we automatically think they are all bad! Now I am related to a whole bunch of cops, law enforcement  people! I do not have photos to share with you  about each one of them, but I will share each one of them here and tell you how proud I am to be related to such unselfish human beings!

Friends of Littleton K-9 Unit! Doesn't the sweet grand baby look so adorable petting his new friend, a brave hero from the Littleton K-9 Unit?  We need to continue to teach our children that if they are in trouble reach out to a police officer. All the controversy over gun control and other issues, let's just agree to disagree and let us call these brave people in time of need.

We once had our home robbed, in broad daylight, with nosey neighbors around us who, of course, never saw a thing! Well, these guys (and gals) were doing their job and they came out to handle our situation. When a guy who was born in Scotland and became an Adams County Sheriff's Deputy can make you laugh in troubled times, you know they are good people. A shot out to Rose, who grew up in the old neighborhood on Durango Street, she along with her husband are sheriff deputies.  Nick's BFF Jazin who works in the control room at the Adams County Sheriffs Dept. He gets to lock and unlock those doors that lead inside and out of the jailhouse.

My nephew, by marriage, Aaron comes from a phamily of officers, his dad Carl and his wife Evie are/ were Pueblo Police Officers. I think we often take for granted what others do by putting themselves in harms way to keep us safe. Aaron may not be a BoJon by blood, but he can cook like one! My hat is off to his dad and Evie for keeping the streets down home safe.
My cousin Joanne has a daughter, well two, but this one, Sissy is a Sheriff's Deputy. She lives and works in Pueblo, Colorado. This BoJon powerhouse took after her late daddy Jesse, and became an officer of the law.  Her dad was a good man. When Uncle Louie got older and needed to give up his drivers license all the local cops talked with Jesse and felt he was best served to tell Uncle to give up his car keys!.  He did it in a manner that Uncle was not insulted and graciously gave up driving. Sissy also attended the academy with my cousin Danny's son Lee Medved I pray for these BoJon's all the time. Lee recently got engaged to be married. More BoJon's to make the world go round!

You can click on this article to enlarge it. Please read it. Just remember many good ,decent folks are out their protecting our butts! They are like our military, taking on the job the rest of us do not wish to do. Another shout out to a fellow BoJon Dan Badovinac who was a police officer while his brothers Nick and John were invovled in sports in our hometown. Lots of good BoJon's doing good deeds. Sissy has a cousin, who is also a police officer and I believe he is in Pueblo as well. I want to say he is Vince Petkosek, but regardless, he is a BoJon too! Good blood running through BoJon veins!

A little police humor to make you smile. My cousin Ray Medved was a cop, he spent a lot of years doing his job and doing it well, in California. I remember my Auntie Gela asking us to pray for him. She worried about her son, although he was a grown man with his own phamily. We never stop worrying about those we love.

I like this, I think we all need to remember cops, like the rest of us, are people, trying to do a good job, earning an honest living. Pray for our law enforcement please.

You know that cops deal with this on a daily basis. I know first hand because when I got my very first speeding, on a downtown Denver street running alongside  of Coors Field, home of the Colorado Rockies, He asked me where I was speeding to? I wasn't thinking when I flipped my wok badge over and said, I was just trying to get to my office. As he proceeded to write my ticket, a homeless man stood across the street with his shopping cart, shaming me, making faces at me! I told the officer, who, of course, had his back to the guy, and he turned around and told him to move along before he gave him a ticket for loitering!

I am very proud of all my BoJon law enforcement people! I pray for all of them daily and admire their perserverance and dedication to a tough job, that somebody has to do!

 Until tomorrow....

Don't Tell Dad and Other Tails of the Dog Life (Cats too!)

When Angela had the Tuesday Show and Tail it made me smile. Then she had so much on her plate she gave it up! Breast cancer and the yucky stuff life throws at you! So once and a while I think about those fun posts and decided to put one here today! I am not affiliated with the Big Barker Dog Beds but I really want to find a clever way to get them for Jeremy's dog Smokey, Hannah's dog Leo and Noelle's dog Trek! This is a google images of the Orthopedic Big Barker dog bed. Does anyone have one of these beds? I notice the large breed bogs sometime struggle going up and down. The dog is the photo here looks so content and comfy! A few things I L O V E about the Big Barker is it is made in the USA! That alone is a gift! It has a ten year warranty and if your dog does not love his or her new bed you can return it postage paid by the company!

You know I babysit the dogs for Jeremy. Mr. Bandito, Bandit, the venerable old gent of the group. He was born in North Dakota over 14 years ago. He is a pure bred, a rat terrier. Do you know how I found out why they are called rat terriers? Because they can climb like a rat! When he was a brand new pup he came into our bedroom one night and he started to scurry up the bed. He is older and more mellow these days but he loves nothing more than to be on the bed snoozing. One of the big dogs stepped on his back paw and he is seeing the vet on Thursday! Rebekah was here over the weekend and she soaked his foot for him and took such great care of him. Jeremy had been in Boston on a business trip. Bandit does not see as well as he once did and can be grumpy and snappy if you come up on him too quickly. But his hearing and sense of smell is incredible! He is like a lil super dog!

If you know the story behind Smokey and Stella, you will know he is her protector. Smokey was born on the 4th of July eight years ago. He is a boxador, meaning he is half boxer and half labrador retriever. He is quite skilled at that lab business. He once snatched a goose from a field . He thinks he is a person and often will sit in a chair like one with his back legs sticking out while he balances himself with his front paws. He is smart and kind and he will protect Stella always and forever. She is a rescue, a Shepherd/Blue Heeler mix that Jeremy found tossed on the side of the road. She became Smokey's best friend and he is happiest lying at her side. Since we do not know Stella's actually birthday, the vet guesstimated her to have been born in February eight years ago. So I told Jeremy to celebrate her birthday on Valentine's Day! She is, after all,  the love of Smokey's life. Smokey once got very ill, with a viral infection. They had slept together in a very large kennel and when we took her out of there so he could heal, we thought they would both die from a broken heart. My husband's brother likes Smokey, not so much, Stella. But I have to keep Smokey close to me because my BIL does not understand their bond. He never married, never  had a phamily and he is clueless as to their love for each other. Stella does not like Smokey to go too far away from her. Thursday will be an interesting day, as I am taking Smokey and Bandit to the vet for their check ups! We usually try to take Smokey and Stella together but this time she is fine and he and Bandit are not!

Oh Leo, he is like a very bratty only child! He likes to rule the roost, so to speak! Leo think because he is so big he can boss people around. I have deemed him "Bossypants"! He also think because he weighs 100 lbs. he should be able to climb into your lap! LOL! He gets very sad when these three dogs go home at night. He follows me around during the day because like Jeremy, Hannah is at work. Leo is a Mastiff/Shepherd mix. There are so many sweet traits that he has. I bought him a tiny swimming pool, I thought, if I start small, he will learn to love the water. He started to drink from his swimming pool but only after he gets very dirty rough housing outdoors! I am forever changing that water. He will stand in the middle of it and drink! He likes to be first out the door, and first back inside! He has no manners yet but we are working hard on them. You can't give this boy a toy because he shreds them! But try to take it away from him and he will give you a look that is so sad, you will cry! LOL! Leo thinks he should be in the middle of the bed.

Dad does not like Leo climbing on the bed! But when the others are on the bed I can not be mean to Leo! I don;t want him to feel left out, so don't tell dad you saw this post here with pictures proving that I do  let Leo climb on the bed!

I am not a very materialistic girl! These furry people are my diamonds in life!

We have two cats also so I can not leave them out. I think all furry friends are as it seems!

I think they speak to us with their eyes.

 I can not forget the Chicken Rangler, Rose and her buddy

Mr. Kitty. These two make the house an exciting place to be!

I hope you will share some of your own "tails" of the furry friends with live with you. Enjoy your day!