My Story - My Parents

I was born in 1961. It was a very different time. My father, Ken Pretzer, was born in 1919. His family was extremely protestant. He really didn't like school, but he loved the lake. He had 2 siblings, his brother Willard and his sister Margie. Willard was 2 years younger them him. My Aunt Margie was 9 years younger. My grandparents lived on Schaaf Road in Cleveland Ohio. Howard worked for the Federal Reserve of Cleveland. My grandma Florence was a stay at home mom, but everyone was back than. My dad was a roadie in a band in high school and he was not allowed to o if the band played at a Catholic school. My grandfather was a 32nd degree Mason. My grandma was in the Eastern Stars. My dad was never like...

He was drafted the day after Pearl Harbor and was in basic training January 1, 1942. He spent the entire war in Australia. He was a decorated Staff Sergeant. He handled all of the supplies for everyone stationed in Australia. Although he was Army, he was detached to the Air Force. He took dead bodies out of planes, rescued down pilots, and a bunch of other things. Unfortunately I don't know alot about that time. He, like most of the boys, didn't talk about when they got home. I know he had a pet kangaroo and a parrot that swore at officers. He got malaria that had negative effects on him the rest of his life. He was on a boat home on VJ day. He crossed the equator twice.

My Uncle Will volunteered for the Air Force. He was a pilot based out of Italy. He was shot down over Czechoslovakia on Friday, October 13, 1944. Yep Friday the 13th. He spent the rest of the war in a POW camp.

My grandma made scrapbooks for both the boys. They were incredible and told a story of their war years.

My mom was born in 1920 to polish immigrants, and she was very poor. They spoke Polish at home. My Grandma was bed-ridden from the time was 9 years old. She had an older sister, Helen, an older brother, Chester, and a younger sister, Eleanor. Uncle Chester dropped out of school, so he could go to work. Aunt Helen was a wild child and left home at 14. She and my mom were not close. My Auntie Eleanor was very close to my mom and very much a part of our life growing.

Ultimately, my mom, Ann Loje, went to work for the Federal Reserve of Cleveland, and that is how my parents finally met.

My Story - Growing Up!

Like I said I was born in 1961. I was adopted by Ann and Ken. I had an amazing older sister, Karen. She was creative, fun, funny, and put up with me even though really wanted me to be a live doll! Like I said , she was very creative. She curled m hair when Mom and Dad had a big New's Eve Part with the Birtha Club. It wasn't her fault I wanted to see if the heating element was still hot when you took the roller off. I still have the scar! It wasn't her fault I freaked out 8 months after ou decided to tell me m real partners were Jewish. We were swimming in Economos pool when she told me. It was April the following year. I was preparing for my First Communion. I came home cring. My Mom asked what was wrong, so I wanted to know if I could make my First Communion even though I was Jewish. M mom caught on when she noticed Karen crawling out of the family room. I didn't believe when she told me I was Charles Mason's bastard child. She introduced me to Dark Shadows. I had the worst nightmare I ever had after an episode of that show. She introduced me to Bruce Springsteen when I was in 8th grade. She played "Born to Run", and I fell in love with the music and the man. It's lasted my whole life! She got me a fake ID, so I could go to see Bruce at the Agora in 1977. Wow, I rocked it! She influenced all of my music choices from Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young, James Taylor, Joannie Mitchell, Paul Simon, and many more. Karen passed aw in 2020, and I will miss her forever.

My family moved into the pink house in 1965. It was a great place to grow up. Lots of kids, great neighbors, the valley, a tandem, Economo's pool, the church bells from OLA, the lightening bugs, the games of Red Rover, watching Dark Shadows, Lost in Space and reruns of Gilligan's Island on the black and white TV, and eating snacks that were SOOOO bad for you. I remember the Moon Landing on July 20, 1969. It was Sal's birthday, and I got him a rocket. My family watched iut together on the couch. My dad and I were enthralled. Karen and my mom were not as excited.

There was also the really bad stuff like JFK's assassination, Jon Jon saluting at his father's grave, my first memory, MLK's assassination, RFK's assassination, Kent State, the race riots in Hough. Hard to believe it was 56 years ago. We celebrated the Bicentennial in 1976. It was my first paid babysitting gig!

Life went on. In 1975, I graduated from St. Angela Merici's. We are having our 50 Runion this year. I would like to go back. I went to Magnificat for high school. I was in plays at Mags, St. Ignatius, and St. Ed's. Smoked a lot of weed at Freak's Field by the green barn. Drank and smaked too much. I made tons of friends. I still consider them the best friends ever. Oh Eileen and I have been best friends since kindergarten. Love you, Een! I graduated in 1979 and headed for Purdue.

Purdue was a corn field in Indiana. It was not the right place for me, but I had good friends. Unfortunately, I have lost touch with them. Bernice, Matt, Joe, Donna, Ginny, Sue, I miss you. If you see this, please touch base!

My Story - Pretending to be an Adult...

In May 1983, I graduated from Purdue, I went home to the pink house in Fairview Park, Ohio. I started work at the Board of Elections in Cuyahoga County. Crazy as it might sound, I got my jobs through the Republican Party since my dad was a staunch republican. I went to work for the Big Haired Lady, Jimmy's mom, and she was a great boss. I mostly stayed out of trouble!

In September, I got my first real job at CNS as a reporter for a trade publication Ken Krych hired me and during my interview I learned he was playing the piano in the chapel at Kent State during the riots. I was sold on Ken and the job. I met Susan, and she became another life long friend. She was a wild women, and we had soooooooooo much fun! The job was great. The people were great, but unfortunately it was a start up with minimal cash, and paychecks bouncing didn't work!

In 1985, I went to work for Society Bank fixing ATMs. The job was wild dealing with lots of cash. I grew to hate money, smelly and dirty! I got a place to live. I got a dog. And I got pregnant. Crazy! My mom was a very strict Catholic, so I was scared to tell her. I left a note in the bathroom. IAfter she called and screamed at me, I didn't talk to her from September until after Kenny was born. I hid my pregnancy very well. I also realized I wasn't going to marry Kenny, but I wanted my baby! Because I had a choice, it made me see abortion differently. I changed from anti-abortion to pro-choice!

Life went on. I had Kenny! I moved to Toledo for work with the bank. I met Bill. My mom got sick. I moved back to Cleveland with Bill. My mom died! Bill would steal my car and get DUIs. I married him.

Kenny got sick, We found out he had a brain tumor. Kenn went to the Cleveland Clinic for surgery immediately. Dr. Cohen was his pediatric neurologist, and he kept me sane for many years. They put a hole in his 3rd ventricle to allow the fluid to drain. That didn't work, so they took him in the emergency surgery to shunt him. Life went on!

We moved to Tulsa, so I could work for First Data Resources. I met Valerie and Iris, and we became life-long friends. I had a beautiful baby girl named Elizabeth. We moved to Omaha. We moved back to Tulsa. I had a beautiful baby girl named Samantha. We move to Winfield Illinois. Kenny told everyone he was in the witness protect program. We moved back to Ohio!

I came back with 3 kids, 3 dogs, and unfortunately Bill. My dad couldn't drive anymore, and I needed to be there. We found a great place to live in Fairview. Ultimately, I got rid of Bill. He went to jail for 4 years, and I was the victim. Kenny went to St. Ed's and started swimming and diving. We moved in with my dad in 2004. We lived in the pink house until my dad passed away on Christmas Eve 2009.

Kenny went to Warren Wilson College and graduated in 2009. He left for the Peace Corp that summer. The girls and I move to Deep Gap NC in March 2010. They hated me. Leaving Ohio and moving to a place that the closest Target was 60 miles away was horrible! But the grew to like the mountains. I relearned how to drive in the mountains. Samantha excelled at school. Liz joined Mountain Alliance. Kenny came home to a place he had never been before.

I got an incredible job offer at Family Dollar in Charlotte, so we move again. The girls were not happy with me, but Charlotte was a better place academically for them. We found a great place to live off of Providence Rd. They went to Providence High School. Liz joined ROTC and drill team. Samantha joined theatre and met Ken. Kenny moved to Asheville and started dating Brett again. We had 4 dogs, Curly, Hope, Sparkle, and Wilco.

Family Dollar merged with Dollar Tree. I lost my job. Liz graduated from High School. I went to work for Wells Fargo, then Delhaize, then NCR. Lizzie went to Western Carolina. Samantha graduated from high school and went to UNC Greensboro. Kenny and Brett came back from Hawaii, tried Denver, then San Diego. Ultimately, they came back, bought a house in Sylva, and went to Western. Samantha decided UNCG wasn't for her, so she moved home and went to UNC Charlotte. Kenny got his Masters in 2018. Lizzie graduated in 2019 with her bachelor's degree. Brett received her PHD in 2019. Everyone went to California by way of Vegas for Kenny and Brett's Wedding.

I think I did okay growing up. I still drink too much. I like eating gummies, but I don't smoke anymore.

Sometime in November 2020, I had a heart attack, and I did not realize it. Looking back, Lizzie was able to figure out when it happened. It was a Sunday morning in November 2020. After that, I started feeling really horrible./ And it kept getting worse. The girls and I needed to go to my sister's funeral. That was a wretched experience. Between losing my sister and trying to hide how dreadful I was feeling, it was an intense couple of days. By the end of December, I could barely function. On December 30th, I went to my primary doctor. After some tests, he came back in, and told me I needed to go to the hospital immediately, do not pass go, directly jai. I, of course, told him that I had to work the next day since I was covering for 2 team members and it was New Year's Eve. He stated if I didn't go, I would die. Oh well!

I went home and told the girls. We ate Twizzlers and I drank red wine. Unfortunately I was out of white wine, and the girls would not go to the store to buy me a bottle of white wine. I think it was my punishment for not going to the hospital.

I rose early on New year's Eve. Took a long bath. Then I worked. I sent an email to my boss to let her know I would be out and would let her know more when I found out. I packed a bag with everything I would need.

Eventually, my daughters had enough and took me tio Presbyterian Medical Center in uptown Charlotte. December 2020 was during COVID, so my daughters dropped me off since they couldn't go in. They spent the evening with their boyfriends, and we did not get to eat our traditional shrimp and grits. That was devastating!

The hospital was packed with coughing people. It was so cold outside, and inside was chaotic. I was prepared though. I found a spot and hide under my blanket while I waited and waited. After a couple of hours, I was finally seen. Bloodwork, tests, and many questions. Plus my daughters were texting me for updates. Back to the waiting room and more waiting.

Ultimately, I was put in a room and waited more. It was probably a little before midnight when I saw a doctor. Wow, shock of shocks, they were going to admit me!

I was placed in a more private room in the emergency room since there were no rooms. I felt like I was in Bethlehem. More tests, more doctors, and more texts. At least the girls come and see me. I also gave all the kids access to mychart. On Sunday , I had my toe amputated.

Then I was placed in a room. The food was horrible. The girls were wonderful and bought me decent food. I also had to fight hospital regulations, so I could get up and go to the bathroom. I tried to escape several times so I could smoke a cigarette. More doctors and social workers and video conferences so Kenny, Lizzie, and Samantha could all take notes and ask questions. I even tried to work but I really was not functioning very well.

My doctors were great and answered all our questions.

The nursing staff even tolerated me and helped me. They even allowed me to shower at weird times, wear my own pajamas, and eat what I wanted.

I weighed less than 100 lbs, so eating and controlling my sugar was critical. Samanthga and Lozzie had the really difficult part. Samantha took great notes and supported mee on some difficult days. Lizzie always combed my hair, excused my behavior, and watched the news with me. Remember this was January 2021, and I am a true Biden supporter. It was Trump "bad behavior" news 24/7.

Then it was January 6, 2021 -- the day before my open heart surgery. That was not my focus. At 1 pm the news broke -- the insurrection at the Capitol! That was all I watched from then until 5 am the next day. It was horrible, and I was overwhelmed with the death, the behavior of a horrible man that happened to be our President for 14 more days, the bravery of the Capitol police, and the fortitude of the House and Senate led by Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer. It truly impacted me. Poor Lizzie! She was with me that day, and I was fixated. The nursing staff and the doctors had to deal with me!

So my political views are completely on display. I apologize for so forcefully displaying them. Unfortunately it is very much a part of this story. Well, I survived surgery even though it was very scary for the kids. I heard Kenny even went to the chapel. I was taken back in when I had a bleed out. The girls were terrorized. I missed Samantha's virtual graduation. I heard Kenny wore a green blazer of mine.

I was in a medically induced coma for 72 hours. It was very hard coming out of it. I didn't think I had had my surgery. I believed the nurses were Trump supporters and trying to kill me. I was swearing at them and fighting them. I thought they were trying kill my daughters. I claimed I didn't even like Mike Pence, but they had tried hanging. I wanted the FBI brought in. I bit one of the nurses. Yes, it was bad! After biting the nurse, I went back to sleep. The nurses got to take my thoracic tube out.

Eventually I woke up, and Kenny was there. I still thought the nurses were trump supporters and were trying to kill me. I wanted to know who they voted for. I only would allow Biden supporters to take care of me. I think they just told me they didn't vote. They wouldn't let Kenny leave. He went in the hallway to talk to Brett, and I heard him tell her that he thought I had dementia and needed to go to a psych ward. I kicked him out! He also had yellow eyes like the demon in "Supernatural", so I thought he was a demon. I called the girls in the middle of the night telling they had to get Alfie from the poung because they were putting to sleep the next day. The next day when Samantha got there, it was still very vivid. But I started realizing it really didn't happen.

It took awhile for me to recover and go home. I was at the hospital until January 18, 2021. Everyone was so wonderful, except the weird guy with the life vest. I weighed 74 pounds when I went home. But I did go home and watched Biden's inauguration. That was special. The Poet Laureates was unbelievable. I was so happy Trump was a soar loser and didn't show up. It was horrible seeing the National Guard guarding the streets.

Samantha kept track of my diet and counted all my food, carbs, salts, and sugars, Lizzie made great meals. Samantha even cooked. Kenny and Brett came in for Valentine's Day to give the girls a break. I went back to work on March 1st. It was tough. I was still in rehab and at home care. I also had lots of appointments and issues with sugar being low. In fact, I enjoyed my hallucinations that came with really low sugar. The best was when Kenny and I were in Wyoming doing peyote with the Indians in a sweat lodge.

Lizzie and Samantha moved out. I got another dog after we put poor Sparkles down. Lord Oliver Cromwell was an English Bulldog. Alfie didn't like him too much, though. He unfortunately died unexpectedly. NCR let me go. Hope needed to be put down. That was really hard on me. I bought some land in Marion and wanted to convert a shed to a tiny Home. Then I got a job. I lived with Lizzie for 6 weeks. Kenny and Brett bought a house for me in Rock Hill. Brett announced she was expecting. I moved to Rock Hill.

January 29, 2023, I thought I had a stroke. I couldn't speak. Plus, my right foot was infected. Lizzie was ut of town, so I called Samantha Sunday morning. She didn't answer, but my message was all garbled. She thought I was drunk. I wasn't. My speaking did not get any better that day. I went to work the next day, and it was really bad. I talked to my boss, Karla, and she was very concerned. Things got progressively worse. Finally, the Operations Director called an ambulance. I got ahold of my daughter, and off I went to Presbyterian Hospital. It took them forever to test if I had a stroke, so they called it a TIA. I had 2 more toes removed on the right foot and i on the left. My foot surgeon thought it was from wearing steel toed shoes. I never went back to work. I eventually had all the toes removed from the right foot and 2 on the left foot. There was the a issues with the bottom of the left foot, so I was in a wheelchair for 2 months. It;s hard to drive. Plus I have to buy kids shoes, so the match. If you know me, you know I love funky shoes. I retired early and started Social Security in July.

Finances are very tight since my Social Security is a lot less than it would have been if I worked until 67. It's been tough. Plus, I have had really low blood sugar issues. My hallucinations were not fun. Lizzie found me passed out on the floor. My blood sugar was in the 30's, and my body temprature was 90degrees. I didn't get out of going to the hospital that time. I am doing much better now and completely off of insulin!

Samantha got married to Ken, her high school sweetheart. We are waiting for Lizzie to get engaged to Sean. I am a grandma with a red headed grandson named Atlas. Kenny and Brett are doing well and still travel. Lizzie and Sean have the travel bug too. Little Wilco passed away at 21! I got another dog, Copper. He;s an 85-pound beast, but very smart and handsome.

I began substitute teaching at St. Ann's in Rock Hill. I love it. I have taught 3-year-olds to seniors in high school. It keeps me busy and really helps financially. I have also worked for the Board of Elections for voting in York County. The money is good. I wanted to start this in March, but I was working 35 hours a week. Better late than never. Hope everyone enjoys it. Please let's build this community