It all started when I was a little kid. You see, my dad’s hobby was buying/fixing-up homes and moving our family constantly. By the time I graduated from high school I had lived in more than 20 homes [I know what you're thinking...no, my dad wasn't in the military]. He simply liked to fix up homes. Once he ran out of things he could do to the home and yard, the For Sale sign would go up, and we would move….again.

As a child I didn’t really consider this transient life abnormal; it was all I knew. What I did realize at a young age though, was that friends and classmates weren’t important because they weren’t permanent. Only family was permanent.

Andrea’s Car Gypsy comment surprised me and triggered a several-day period of reflection that culminated in a surprising conclusion: I had become my father.

Early in my adult life I started down the “House Gypsy” road my father had taught me. In a matter of 10 years I had lived in 7 apartments/homes/condos. I was on track to rival my father’s impressive number of moves. In 2000 it occurred to me that this may not be the right thing for my then 6-year old daughter who had already lived in 4 homes. It was then that I decided I wouldn’t move to another home until my kids were grown. Easier said than done.

Every few months I get an itch that I can’t scratch. I’d start looking at homes for sale and even taking Andrea to see them. In a matter of a couple of days I would remember my desire to give my children a stable environment in which to grow. But the itch would not easily go away.

Outgoing Car? Mercedes-Benz C230 Kompressor

In retrospect, I now realize that I found the anti-itch cream through automobiles. Cars became my father’s homes. In the last 10 years I have switched my cars out 11 times. 11 cars in 10 years! That’s crazy…but it keeps me in the same home, and has done so for nearly 12 years now. That is a Wilson family record! Not one of my brothers or my sister have yet to surpass my record…yes, it seems they inherited the Gypsy gene, too.

So, I AM a “Car Gypsy” and proud of this fact. It means that my kids can build healthy friendships and experience the security of permanency. It also means that I get to drive some pretty awesome cars, like a sweet Mercedes-Benz and now this titan silver Bavarian specimen below. I wonder how long she will last? I’d tell my lovely wife that I’m keeping this one for a long time (like I did the Mercedes), but I already know that’s not true. It’s a pretty awesome car, though, so maybe I WILL keep this one for a long time.  ;)

Incoming Car? BMW 330i (it's awesome)

What do you think of this plate for the BMW?

ADA — Graveside services for Ruby Lee McGee, 89, Ada, are 12 noon Saturday,  Nov. 13, 2010, at Memorial Park Cemetery, the Rev. Earl Hood officiating.
Mrs. McGee died Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2010, at Ada. She was born April 20, 1921, at Selby, S.D., to LeRoy and Della Chamberlain Easterling.
She attended school at Jennings and was a homemaker.

She married Ray T. McGee II on May 2, 1941. He preceded her in death.

Survivors include a daughter, Nancy Jarman and her husband Lonnie, Oklahoma City; a son, Frank Nichols and his wife Leota, Ada; three granddaughters, Danita Nichols and Gavin, Frisco, Texas, Robin and Andy Hallford, Arlington, Texas, and Leslee and Gary Sanner, Moore; three great-granddaughters; and five great-grandsons.

She was preceded in death by her husband, a son, Ray T. McGee III; a sister, Marie Shellenberger; a brother, Joe Sloss; and a granddaughter, Kimlee [Kemley] Wilson.

Criswell Funeral Home, Ada

Ruby Lee McGee is the mother of Ray T. McGee, who is the father of Kemley McGee Wilson, who is the mother of Riley Wilson, my daughter. Yes, Riley’s great-grandmother died two weeks ago and was buried soon after in Ada, Oklahoma. Ray and Kemley loved her very much. I’ve been to her home in Ada many times over a 10-year period and had learned to love her as a grandmother. Riley knew her from infancy through 4-years of age.

It would have been nice to go to her funeral. It would have been nice to be invited. It would have been nice to be told she had died. It would have been nice….to be thought of.

Sadly, this is just another example of a family that has been divided by death, distance, and so many other instances of peculiar behavior that it’s not surprising. But, it is disappointing.

We now have absolutely no contact from the McGee family, Riley’s family. No calls on holidays. No birthday gifts/calls/cards. No calls to Riley to just see how she is. No contact.

Maybe one of them will stumble across this post when they Google “ray t mcgee,” and just maybe they’ll remember that there is another “McGee,” one who doesn’t live in Oklahoma, one that might still like to feel that she is part of the family.

I ran across this YouTube video today, which had me laughing so hard that I had to share it. Enjoy!

As the product manager of one of the Mormon Church’s websites (mormon.org), it’s wonderful to have someone as talented as Avinash recognize the Church’s work and SEO efforts.