Moving forward, but never forgetting.

Thank you everyone for following this blog.. I thought about keeping it up after Dad left us, but Trunk Cheese was Dad.. 
So I started a new blog, it is basically the same thing, my view of the world, my world as I see it!
Catch me at http://rachaeludell.blogspot.com/

I now have a new Angel looking over me as do Mom and my silly siblings. We all miss you Dad. 

Thanks to everyone.

We are back in Vegas. 
After a job well done. A project that took many hands, and resulted in a very nice tribute to my Dad.
The weekend tested our patience, from missed flights, broken ovens, bitchy car rental hags, rooms that locked with keys and life lines on the other side of the door... But it was all worth it to see all those who loved Bob and were able to make it across the miles to say goodbye.

Not nearly as good as the real thing.

So many hugs!

Thanks Cousin Wade for the music.. 

Old friends.. and good food.

Guess whose arm that is?  That aint right Sis, after all the work Rhone did.

A special Thanks to Rhone and Janet, for finding all the ovens for the pounds and pounds of meat.. for supplying the venue and being the best Utah connection out there. And about a hundred other things.


Also Aunt Kathy for all your time, wine, pasta, truffles, flowers, support and help looking out for this crazy crew!

Hello Utah!

We are starting to invade Utah. Topher flew in yesterday morning, he had to hand around all by himself for hours. Josh had a family emergency and had to be with his kin. Mom, Chell and I drove in from Vegas. We started out with some major Grrrrrrr at the car rental place.. but we made it!
Mike and his fun car found us all at the huge rental house last night.








That is some serious Ice cream!



Matt was supposed to be the first in from the east coast.. he missed the plane, and we will miss him.
Marti is next.. Mom just went to pick her up, I hope she made it!
Then Sarah and Chad are getting here this afternoon.
When mom gets back she is going to make our lists of things to do today.



Dads Obituary ran in yesterdays Deseret News.

The celebration of his life will be tomorrow, the 24th at the Benina Chapel at 3045 West Bernina Drive in Taylorsville, at 1pm.  We are looking forward to seeing old friends and family. 

Don't answer that.

A few months ago the Teenagers thought it would be a good idea to have a get to know your neighbors party.
What they didn't know at the time, is the hood is full of crazies!



The woman next to the Sutter Home. (We will call her Vicki, cause that is her name.) 
Has been in the process of being evicted for the last year or so.. the bank expects payment or something.
She has ignored all notices on her door.. 
To appear in court, and to get the hell out.
There is no running water and the house hasn't been cleaned since 1984. 

Vicki don't give a shit.

Did I mention that she is crazy?

So yesterday was a nice day.. the weather has turned cool enough to kill the A/C and open some windows and the front door.

So when the bell rang, I couldn't even pretend not to be home.

Not again.. 

 So there is Vicki.. took me a second to realize who she was, she had a freaking plastic grocery bag on her head.

Yes, a cheap Walmart shopping sack covering her hair, and a bucket in her hand. 

"Hi Rachael I was hoping I could use some water? My daughter started coloring my hair and I was going to rinse it at my boyfriends but he isn't home and I thought if I could fill this bucket I would wash it out in my back yard over the rocks and of course over the rocks not in your driveway, it is starting to burn and I was just hoping you didn't mind if I filled the bucket.??"

One long  breathless monologue as I stood stunned in the door way.. little drips of red dye peaking out of the Walmart bonnet. She looked like a causality of some sort of Vegas lunatic genocide.

There are limits.

Once recovered I told her go ahead take fill the bucket.

She just stood there...

Oh No! I realized that she was waiting for a invite to use the shower.. No way Sister!

My Charity is plentiful, but you lie to us all the time... use the water without asking when our doors aren't open and you don't think you will be caught. 

The kind of woman who can suck the life out of me within a minute of conversation. 

And you are plain gross, my bathroom would never recover from your lack of hygiene.

Never enter her domain. Never!

 Needless to say, I pointed at the hose by her feet and let her take her water to wash away the bright red, burning, $1.50 dye from her hair..
I can't help but think that if you are squatting in your own house, with no water or place to wash... should covering your gray hair be a priority?
On the bright side, temperatures are rising and I can shut the doors once again at crank the air, and ignore the crazies.

I might melt

There is this wet stuff falling from the sky here in Vegas.




Vegas doesn't do rain well

It was a good day to stay inside and scan even more photos..
Here are some of my favorites...


Kisses... and a coin over the shoulder for luck. (Trevi Fountain)




Relaxing in Mexico...




See! Us kids inherit our sense of humor.. not our fault.
(He won first prize in the costume contest.)




He is so Mr. 1960!

 If it keeps raining I might have everything scanned and on discs by next week..


Just because it makes life easier

I would write Miss Manners and ask her if it is proper to try and get a rough estimate on attendees of a Memorial service... 
But I don't like that bitch.

Dear Miss Manners, is it okay to bitch slap old women who practice illeism?

So proper or not, life would be easier if we had a idea... 

How much food, chairs and stuff.. 

And just so everyone knows.. Josh, Sarah and Mike are cooking so you are going to want to stay for food..

Yummy..

 The service is going to be around 3 on Saturday September 24th.. I put a little poll on the side bar of this blog.. Just to give us a general idea.. 

If you have any questions... Zip me a email at udellrachael@yahoo.com

Watch out Utah... the Udell and irreverent crew are on their way! 

Keeping busy.

It's been a full week.. Topher has been a great help, but has a extreme potty mouth.. Mom thinks he left his filter in Austin.

It's a good thing I never say bad words.. I am the good  child.

He did behave in the Social Security office.. well for the first hour or two... then we both started getting restless.. We were surprised to learn that the offices have a no more than a half hour wait policy.. Pretty sure they fail that one on a regular basis.

They need a new clock.

We may have been a little less behaved at the Health Department....

Gomorrah brings out the bad behavior. Not our fault!

But on the productive side we managed to digitize almost 4,000 slides... 

There were the fun ones..

The random freaks and partial nudity..

But mostly nature... and...

Buildings... every building ever built

I will say we had a great time doing it... Hours of looking deciding and scanning.... Lots of laughter and making fun of some of the creepier stranger shots.. 

Topher was a great help in booking flights, cars and houses.. 

Josh is now here and in total catering mode..  Yummy..

We are all looking forward to seeing everyone.. 

Months ago Dad said that it sucks that he is going to miss his Memorial Service.. his favorite people will be there.. 

Planes, trains and automobiles

Everyone is working towards Utah on the 24th. Tickets booked.. Cars reserved and a giant house rented for the weekend.
All of Bobs kids are making the trip for his Celebration of Life!

Road trip!

I hope that the suburb of Murray knows what's coming! (that is where the huge house is..)

I had know idea either..

Mom is lucky in that, people spend thousands of dollars for a party planner... She has her own little gaggle of Gays all ready to do Party Fabulous!

Look for this plane.. you will know they arrived!

We would all promise Mom that we will behave while in Utah... But we hate to lie!

That is a lot of pictures!

With Topher here to help us, we decided to attack the boxes of slides.. Thought it would be nice to digitize some and bring them to Dads Celebration of Life.

Slides and tapes for slide shows.

Slowly getting through a box or two. Only 8 or so more boxes to go !

About 30 slide reels or more.. probably more.

To say there are many would be understating it.  Slides from all over the world.. pictures of every single building in Europe.. or so it seems.
Shifting through little boxes marked Italy, Greece, Austria.....wait what's this?
Family! He did take some family slides! 
Here is a little taste.. 

Topher!  Took us awhile to figure out that wasn't Matt.

Family gathering back in 81 I think it was marked.

Yay! Santa brought me a stereo.. I remember it had a 8 track and cassette!

Mom and her first Grand Baby! Hi Quynn.

Matt looking like.....

Another Matt.

Then in Hula hula!

Topher in Garage sale Drag!

Taiwan PJ's. 

Girls turn..

So young.

Rhone in Taiwan where he went on his Mormon mission.

Mom made the best costumes... Scary we ate all that KFC to make helmets.

That is just a sample.. There are so many more along with strange shots like these..

Look close.. it is what you think it is.. and creepy.

Mom, Topher and I were laughing our asses off at some of the pictures.. There were so many that I had never seen before.
Then there was the game of 'Who is that? Mike, Matt or Topher?'