HIPPIE HOLIDAYS! MOONPHOTO. SUMMER OF LOVE. VW BUS PAINTED IN FLOWER POWER. HAIGHT ASHBURY. TICKET TO DREAM. ROCKIN' AROUND THE CHRISTMAS TREE, IN THAT NEW OLD FASHIONED WAY! THEATER OF WAR. BE THE VOICE! HER DREAM KIDS. I'LL BE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS, IF ONLY IN MY DREAMS! WHAT MATTERS MOST IS WHAT HAPPENS AT HOME. WHERE YOUR HEART STOPS BEATING. HERE COMES SANTA CLAUSE, RIGHT DOWN SANTA CLAUSE LANE! A BLOCKBUSTER CHRISTMAS. ROCK CHRISTMAS! HAPPY HOLIDAYS. I SAW MOMMY KISSING SANTA CLAUSE . . . MISTLETOE KISSES! LEARNING EXPERIENCES ARE THE VERY BEST GIFTS. GIFTS WE LOVE! GHOST QUARTET. TROUBLE IN PARADISE: CALL ME BY YOUR NAME, IS A TAD PRETENTIOUS, VERY SMART, AND PLENTY BEAUTIFUL. STOP ACTING LIKE IT IS GOVERNMENT BY DARK BACK ROOMS! NEW RULING MEMBERS. WALL OF SEPARATION BETWEEN THE WHITE HOUSE AND THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSITICE! HOT BED OF LIBERALISM. A FIGHT FOR THE SOUL OF AMERICAN DEMOCRACY. I WILL FIGHT UNTIL I DIE! --SENATOR, ELIJAH CUMMINGS. NOW UFO'S ARE REAL? ANOTHER ATTEMPT TO DISCREDIT AMERICAN SCIENCE AND GOVERNMENT? WHO IS THIS JACKASS? TOTALLY UNPROFESSIONAL. HELP THE RICH. HURT THE POOR. CAPTURE MOMENTS OF A CO-EQUAL BRANCH OF GOVERNMENT. NEED TO IMPEACH. THE WIDOW. JOY TO THE WORLD, THE LORD HAS COME, LET EARTH RECIEVE HER KING! OH, HOLY NIGHT. SILENT NIGHT. PRESIDENT OBAMA, DRESSED AS A SKINNY BLACK SANTA, DROPS OFF GIFTS AND TOYS, TO THE GIRLS AND BOYS CLUB! WHAT A CONTRAST, NOT ONLY IN THE COLOR OF THIS PRESIDENT AND OUR LAST, BUT IN THE NATURE OF THEIR INTENT . . . WHERE YOUR HEART IS, YOUR TREASURE IS ALSO! I HEARD THE BELLS ON CHRISTMAS DAY, THEIR OLD FAMILIAR CAROLS PLAY AND WILD AND SWEET THE WORDS REPEAT, OF PEACE ON EARTH GOOD WILL TO MEN! THEN, PEELED THE BELLS MORE LOUD AND CLEAR, GOD IS NOT DEAD, NOR DOTH HE SLEEP, FOR HATE IS STRONG AND MOCKS THE SONG OF PEACE ON EARTH GOOD WILL TO MEN!

GIVING THE GIFT OF MERMORIES!

PLAYING UP THE FUN!

WADUP?  SURF'S UP!  SCOOBY DOO AND SHAGGY!  DISNEYLAND TO SAN FRANCISCO!  OCEAN SAND. KIDS ASLEEP IN THE VW VAN. MOM AND DAD MAKING LOVE ON THE BEACH!  HIPPIE HOLIDAYS REDISCOVERED!  LOL.  MOONPHOTO, GREENWOOD, SEATTLE, WASHINGTON.  WHILE FEARLESS LIVES IN THE MOMENT, HAPPY, REMEMBERS THE PAST!  SMILE.  GOOD TIMES.

 

Now, being homeless has its challenges . . . where do the kids come for Christmas?  The ONLY thing, I remember, my kids, ever asking for, after the divorce, law school, Pick's Disease, solo practice, being my own, little ACLU and United State Supreme Court, rolled into one, was, a place, that, they could come, hang out and just enjoy, their brother and sisters, cousins, and family fun.  Oh, I can do that, and did, but the government, proceeded, to either run me out of my house the day before, going the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver, on, my $357 million securities case, or, physically, try to kill me, in my Parowan house.  Houses, vehicles, law practices, and shattered lives are not easily, replaced.  So, once, walking along Greenwood Ave. to the Woodland United Methodist Church, on 78th and Greenwood, I noticed, this small, photography shop, called MOONPHOTO, and in the window of the shop, there was this great, colorful, fun, wild, cool, picture of this, woman, painting, an old VW bus, that looked, almost exactly, like, the one me and my husband had, orange, with a white roof, the one in the photo, looks, like it has an orange body, like ours, but with a light yellow, or gold, roof?  I thought, I ought to get a copy of that picture, if they will print me some, for my kids, for Christmas, so they can, remember, all the family fun, we had in that bus, I would give my eye teeth for, to have right now!  A FLOOD OF MEMORIES filled my mind.

 

So, yesterday, after, climbing out from being more under the weather, than, I thought, I stopped by, the photo shop, to see if I could even get prints, a week, but great, realizing that, my kids are likely to get an after Christmas present, or I guess I could call it a, NEW YEARS EVE present, to ring in the new year!  My kids are GREAT, they are lucky to get anything, because, their attorney, professor mother, HATES to shop!  Actually, I hated to shop, before, becoming either!  After a few years ago, when, in about, February, Chris, asked, Mom, so what did you get me for Christmas?  THE SAME THING I GOT YOUR BROTHER AND SISTERS . . . NOTHING!  Shit, I am lucky to be a live, but, they don't want to hear that, and my tales of great escapes, have gone, and escaped, not part of their memories and probably for the better.  Since then, Chris and the others, say, WE KNOW, YOU LOVE US, AND WE LOVE YOU, so don't worry, or you need the money, more than we do!  TRUE!  LOL.  But, if I can, I do, and if I can't, I don't and I don't feel one bit guilty, and I believe, the whole gift part of Christmas, is over-rated anyway, and the lights, music, memories, conversations over the phone, and love, are what, really, gives us reason for the season, and of course, the religious aspect of this day, or the REASON FOR THE SEASON! 

 

THIS POSTER, ACTUALLY, TAKEN, FOR THE 50 YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF THE BIRTH OF THE HIPPIE MOVEMENT, IN HAIGHT ASHBURY, CALIFORNIA, NEAR, UC BERKELEY, STILL A HOT BED OF LIBERALISM, AS OF LATE, I THINK . . . I'VE BEEN THERE, BUT, DIDN'T KNOW, THE HISTORY EXACTLY, BUT LAST NIGHT ON THE PHONE, THE LOCAL PHOTO ARTIST, WHO LIVES HERE IN GREENWOOD, COOL, SELLS A PHOTO ALBUM OF MORE PICS OF THE EVENT, IN THE PHINNEY BOOK STORE, PHINNEYWOOD, FILLED ME IN ON SOME OF THE DETAILS . . . BUT, GIVEN, THE SECRIST FAMILY MEMORIES CONNECTED TO THE ORANGE AND WHITE, VW VAN WITH SO MANY FUN TIMES, IT WAS A MUST HAVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GIFTS WE LOVE!

I thought it would be fun, to write a few of the memories down, jolting, my kids memories, probably, long lost, in being parents, now, or going to college . . . actually, the Berkeley connection for Elliot, who just graduated from the University of Utah, as a music major, right where I taught, family law, is that, he got accepted to the Berkeley School of Music in Boston, Ma . . . but, that was back when, Mom was expecting to actually, get the attorney's fees, from $700 million lawsuits, against the government, that were just wrapping up!  Who would figure, that not only didn't I get the money, but they took my house too!  Oh, what fun, right?  What is interesting to me, is that many of the Baby Boomers, have Gen-Xers and Millennials for kids, and, the two groups of people and generation types, have a lot in common, with, kind of hippie tendencies, from drum circles, to beads, pot to wanting to save the world!  There was really, never much of generation gap, between me and my kids, and we see, so much of life, similarly, but I did raise them!  Politically, we differ, but, lifestyles, values, principles, passions, we are all very similar . . . I was hip, before, you were all born!  LOL  So, was your Dad!!!!!!  LOL.  I couldn't figure out, how to write this, and stuff it in the photo tube, so, I figured, that, the kids, would just, after Christmas, so as not to ruin the surprise, read my blog, that no one reads!  LOL.  SHHHHHH.

 

They say, that kids personalities, are formed, by the time they are 5 years old . . . as I look, where I am now, and where I was, on the trip to Disneyland, particularly, the second part of the trip, things, are not changed!  LOL.  Just some bulleted highlights, that might, give you some fun ideas of your own, with your kids!  GROWTH THROUGH LOVE . . .

• I think our VW bus, was a 1978 model, and we bought it a few years old, and part of the way, we bribed, our kids, and taught them, the art of delayed gratification, was that, when, Mom, graduated from Weber State College turned University, while I was there, the second, I walked through, graduation, we would hit the road, and go to Disneyland and head up the Coast, to San Francisco.  We got this huge ass plastic bottle or container, and, told the kids to help with the cost of the trip, when, they found, dimes, pennies, and nickels, to put them, in the bottle, on the fridge, and, that would be to spend on our trip . . . they saved a thousand dollars!
• just like we promised, with the van loaded, they came to graduation, watched me walk, after, four kids, four colleges, and 12 years, I finally, was graduating from college, 1986.  A few highlights from the trip, some from heaven and some straight from HELL!  LOL.
• between Ogden, Utah, and Provo, now more than, two hours apart, and about, 12 or more hours to our destination, the kids, had asked if we were there yet, about 20 times!  NO!
• if you ask me one more time, I am going to go stark raving mad, and take off all my clothes, and go up to the top of that hill, screaming, so, just chill out, because, we have a long way!
• the van, in the days, before, you had to use car seats, for kids up until they are 8, was a fun-free-for-all for the kids!  The nice thing is, we were all paired up: (1) Mom and Dad in the front seat, doing adult speak, and (2) in the next seat, Greta and Nicole, controlled, that, and had their own, girl-talk, speaking to each other, probably, unspeakable insults in Pig Latin, so, no parent, had a clue, what they were saying about us!  The last row of seats, (3) were generally empty, and the boys, Chris and Elliot, usually, did a tuck and roll, over the back seat, to rumble in the open spaces, falling all over the suitcases and backpacks!  This was a great arrangement, until we hit San Francisco, and 5:00 PM traffic, trying to find our hotel!
• Disneyland, was not as fun, as Lagoon Fun Park, in Farmington, Utah!  You have to be kidding me . . . we could have gotten away with taking the kids, for a 20 minute drive?  Shit!  Now, we are stuck with the kids, all the way to San Francisco, that, after we drove it, we realized, that it was further, then, from Utah, to Disneyland!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Scream.
• seeing the OCEAN for the first time, was an amazing experience for the kids!  I am not sure where we were, but, we were able to pull the van, right, down to the water, park, play, wade, cook dinner, hot dogs, let the kids sleep in the van, while Mom and Dad, romped on the beach, in the sleeping bags zipped together!  LOL.
• NEWSFLASH, PARENTS . . . OUR KIDS, LIKED SAN FRANCISCO, BETTER THAN, DISNEYLAND!  The lines were long, at Disneyland, and by the time, we got there, I think it was, the first day, school was out, and every parent and their kids, landed in Disneyland!
• oh, shoot . . . I forgot, I was on timed, computer!
• the funniest part of the trip . . . the kids, started playing this, SLAP GAME, where, if they saw a VW bug, they did SLUG BUG, or some hybrid version of that game, but the slaps, got harder, and the kids got louder, right, as I was trying to direct, Zeke to the hotel, and we were going crazy with the kids, needed out of the VAN, with no relief in sight.  IF YOU GUYS, SLAP EACHOTHER ONE MORE TIME . . .  GRETA, THE OLDEST AND RING LEADER, TURNED TO ALL HER SIBLINGS AND SAID: "HOW MANY OF YOU LIKE MOM?"  NO HANDS WENT UP!  SEE THAT, ISLAND, OVER THERE IN THE OCEAN?  IF YOU GUYS, DON'T KNOCK OFF THAT STUPID GAME, I AM TAKING ALL OF YOU, AND DROPPING YOU ON THE ROCK, OR ALCATRAZ, THE PRISON!  LOL.

FUNNY, HOW, THE SECRIST KIDS, HAVE COME FULL CIRCLE IN LIFE!  LOL.  NEVER, LET YOUR KIDS, BEAT YOU!

LOL!

HAVE A HIPPIE HOLIDAY!

ROCK THIS CHRISTMAS!

MAKE SOME FUN MEMORIES!

Greta and her friend, Kelly, playing in the VW, parked in our driveway, took the park break off, freaked out, opened the door, catching it on, the hedge, ripping the door, almost off the hinges . . . I was just glad she was safe!

2 MINUTES LEFT . . . MAKING A LIFETIME OF MEMORIES!