plinky prompt | Mary J. McCoy-Dressel

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Riding with Captain Steve-in a Round-a-bout Way

Posted at 11:43 pm by Mary J. McCoy-Dressel, on June 16, 2012

Playing with another Plinky Prompt today: Who’s the most famous person you’ve ever met? I do need to change this a little: Who are the most famous people you’ve ever met?

Well, my friends that would have to be the former Detroit Red Wings captain Steve Yzerman and his team. (Steve was still the captain at this event.) It was a benefit banquet for Hospice and all the players were there, including the recent, now former captain Nick Lidstrom. Nicklas has the most beautiful blue eyes I think I’ve ever seen, and a smile to knock your socks off. Actually, I gave one of my book heroes his eyes. It doesn’t stop there because I met the whole team, including the owner Mike Ilitch and his wife. They conversed with me like we were old friends, and Mike signed my jersey. Karen Newman was even there but we didn’t speak. A large crowd swarmed around her. She’s the gorgeous blonde who sings the National Anthem at their home games. If my memory proves me right the coach, Scotty Bowman, also joined the guys.

Oh, the pictures I have are grand. Of course, like all my past photos they’re printed out and packed away somewhere. My signed jersey is all I have for proof right now until I can find and scan my pictures.

The banquet was totally awesome. At the time Darren McCarty was also one of my favorite players. His signature was the first on my jersey. What a terrific man he was that night. He and Kris Draper were playing a video game, and I think Chris Osgood (goalie) was there too. I patiently waited beside Darren. I found the nerve to ask if I could have a photo with him. He said, “Sure, when I’m finished.” I continued to wait, and wait…thinking it probably wouldn’t happen because he was really involved with the game, and after all, he was Darren McCarty, part of the “grind line”. The next thing I knew he turned to me, put his arm around my shoulder and squeezed me tight, and said, “Okay,” and smiled a big smile. Do I have to tell you how fast my heart beat? Which cloud I found my feet on?

Brendan Shanahan was there too. Yes, we’re talking about the team that won back-to-back Stanley Cups. Federov came later. Larry Murphy has the cutest smile. I don’t think I’ve ever been in a room with that many handsome gentlemen. These big burly men, who can check another player into oblivion, rip their gloves off and go one-on-one or five, can send a puck high into the stands– mingled there altogether in one room as perfect gentleman. What a handsome bunch.

It took days for me to come down from Cloud nine.

The former Captain Steve Yzerman is the friendliest, most down-to-earth man you’d ever want to meet. This banquet took place at Game Spot at Great Lakes Crossing in Auburn Hills, MI. It was a grand-opening. I don’t think it’s there anymore. One of the games was a motorcycle ride where you actually sat on a bike in front of a screen. You looked at a screen and had to steer to stay on the road you were riding on. You’ve probably seen this with race cars where you get in a car and try to stay on the track. Well, standing there by Steve that night made for one of my most memorable pictures. It looked like I was on the back of a motorcycle with Stevie. (That’s what we Wing’s fans call him.) Don’t think I didn’t play on that for awhile!

The whole night stands at the top of my list of best memories in my life. You won’t see some of these guys on the ice anymore, but the next time you do see a rough and tough hockey player, remember who they are when they’re out there serving their public.

Now, shall I continue on about the time I met Dale Earnhardt Jr.–Jimmy Johnson–Isaiah Thomas? A celebrity news anchor—Alan Trammel– Ernie Harwell…? There are more….

*Sigh* Memories.

If you’re a Steve Yzerman fan, I think you’ll enjoy this video tribute to his career. You know, for the memories. You’ll find another for Nicklas Lidstrom at his link above. He retired this year, 2012.

How about you? Who is the most famous person you’ve ever met?

The credit for this video is at this link.

Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments | Tagged benefit banquet, Captains, Detroit, Detroit Red Wings, Hockey, mary j mccoy dressel, Michigan, Nick Lidstrom, plinky prompt, Riding with Captain Steve in a round a bout way, Steve Yzerman

Love Without Limits~ Our Furry Family Members

Posted at 1:20 pm by Mary J. McCoy-Dressel, on May 24, 2012

I’m updating this old blog post because of a recent incident with my dog. I woke in the wee hour of the morning to her standing beside my bed, panting as if she had run a marathon. I let her out, thinking that’s what she wanted. It wasn’t.

I went back to sleep and again she woke me, still panting. This told me she must have been in pain. I called my son because she’s really his dog, and he came to check on her.

By then, my concern escalated to fear of her having a heart problem. She ended up going to an emergency vet center, which is what her vet suggested. The vet at the emergency center suspected pain as well. In the past she had injured her knee–a torn ligament.

Earlier snowfall 2015. Nothing compared to the East Coast.

With the deep snow we’re experiencing, the vet said dogs with hip, knee, and spine problems are experiencing pain. She has a little path dug out for her in the backyard, but she still ventures out into the deeper part. She’ll be on a leash until the snow melts.

While at the vet center, they noticed tenderness in her abdomen. Lately, she’s had breathing issues, too, as in more rapid breaths being taken. This is noticeable while sleeping. They’ll do x-rays now and blood work. She came home with pain pills. As soon as the pain medication kicked in, the panting stopped and she rested peacefully.

This leads to the next section…

This is the original blog post I wrote in response to a Plinky Prompt. If you could get your fur-baby to understand one thing, what would it be?

I’m sure my dog knows this, but if I knew for certain she’d understand one thing, I’d tell her how much I love and depend on her. Our furry family members love us without limits. When we’re having a bad day we might not smooth our hand down their furry coat. They still love us.

They’ll wait patiently until we take the time, because I think they know we’ll feel better if we do run our hands along their cuddly fur. If we come in the door and don’t acknowledge them right away, they still love and wait. I truly want my fur-baby to know how much I love her back. I show her by the care I give and by the way I pat my bed for her to come up at night. Not to mention the hugs and tennis balls.

With her knee injury, she can’t jump on the bed any longer or chase tennis balls like she used to. She might know by the healthy snacks I give her, but if I could look her in the eyes and say, “I love you. I honestly love you, and I’ll always take care of you…” To have her understand completely—that would be what I’d want her to know.

How about you?