Nina

Today is my baby sister's 21st birthday, she is an adult, but only to the world and not yet to me. I want to start by remembering the day I met her 21 yrs ago, but I dont remember. I do remember taking care of her as if she were my play doll, not a Barbie for those suffered decapatations and other fatal injuries at my hands, Barbies suck. I would often change her diaper and feed her and clothe her and bathe her, my mother was too busy doing housework and laundry (thus began the basketcase years) what I didnt know then, that I know now, is that Nina in her own special way was preparing me for my own child, I had my son at the tender age of 15 and Nina was only 3 yrs old, I thought I was the mother of two growing children, and I never left her, she came with me to disney, parks, parties and where ever I was invited. My children still are my life, I am proud of her in ways she will never imagine, because she lacked parental guidance and still managed to make decisions that were best for her. I did the best to maintain the relationship but she ended up moving in with my other sister Mara, Mara took over and did an amazing job, Nina is the most responsible adult-child I know. She was well cared for by both of us, we made sure we knew everywhere she went, her friends, and her grades. She is 21 married and in college and I will always be here for her, no matter what odds she stands against, she will never stand alone. My parents were just the bank account.

That being said, I also watched her and my son fight and torture each other, one day Nina was in the spa bathtub my parents had and was taking a bubble bath, probably with her sweet sea doll and seahorse friend Flounder or whatever, anyways we had just adopted (I think this was Mara's brilliant plan) a cat named Oliver (after Oliver and Comp) Tito decides that he could take Oliver up and down with him through the house and in his little impish mind (the cat suffered minor nose bleeds from time to time) he decided to throw the cat in the tub with Nina, chaos followed. The cat was clawing to get out and Nina was screaming with surprise, when I walked in Tito had a horrified look on his face, as if he was not involved in the fiasco. All I remember is the cat spinning around Nina like the coins that spin on the donation funnel that just go round and round in circles, and the more I tried to grab the cat the more they both slid around, the cat made it out sounding like it was being skinned and Nina had scratches on her arms, legs, and back. There isnt anything else nice I can say, it is funny now.

And as for the cat...my mother decided one day to dry some laundry and heard a horrible commotion from the laundry machine, she opened the door and out flew the cat, I dont know where it went but she called me to tell me "I think I killed the cat!" The cat came back that night. The damn thing always made it back. One night I actually drove the satanic beast a half hour away and dropped it off and thought, we are done the cat. The cat came back. Ultimately Oliver passed away from some kitty disease complication and I am sure if my dad found out the price for a surgery to save it from its umpteenth life he would surely have removed my sister from the state and his will, and disowned her too. He has no price for animal life, I am surprised he allows London a doggie haircut, but he has no choice for the dingle berries that appear on his doggie behind smell something rotten. And as for my mother, she finally managed to save an animal from the chaos that is my house. Someone, maybe Mara, got Nina a bunny rabbit, now there is a phone call. My mother called me at work to tell me she vacuumed the rabbit. Me leave work for that, wicked the thought. She was vacuuming the cage and the rabbit dissappeared, not like the black hat trick, the damn thing looked puffy and all, but got sucked into the tube of the vacuum and well that was the end of bunny. I am sure that had he made it, he would have gone through some other horrific trauma at the hands of my mother, at one point or another we all do. Happy Birthday Nina.