December 30, 1993: Home to Michigan

Yesterday, we just relaxed and watched 'Young and the Restless'.   We packed our bags and took a walk around the park. 

Today was our last day in Florida.  We took a cab to the airport.  It was hard to say goodbye to Grandma.  I always had so much fun with her.     We got back safely to Grand Rapids.  Charlene picked us up.     When we got back to Muskegon, I picked up my schedule at Plumbs. Helen Coyne said everyone missed me.   I sure did work with some nice people at Plumbs, but I didn't like the job duties.  Went over Sue's house to play with all of Ashley's Christmas presents.

December 28, 1993: Busch Gardens

Went to Busch Gardens with mom, Grandma, and her friend, Edna.  Went on a river raft ride and two log rides and got wet.   Saw alligators, gorillas, giraffs, camels, elephants, birds, monkeys, and zebras.    Listened to Congo type music.   Learned that crocodiles and alligators are born in 2 months.   The sex is determined by the temperature.   The mother hatches eggs and then covers them with leaves, dirt, etc and then sucks up water and puts it over them.  This decomposes and heats up the eggs.   Eggs that are heated from 86 degrees or higher become male and below 86 degrees become female.   Up to 50 eggs are hatched and only 1 percent survive.    The reason so little survive is that some are eaten by other animals.  Saw an animal nursery.  Mom bought a Moroccan purse.   I bought a t-shirt.  Ate corned beef sandwiches and German potato salad and watched a Christmas program.  Today was so warm and gorgeous.   I found out later that today Busch Gardens set an all time record in attendance.  Just think, I was a part of that history.

December 27, 1993: Relaxing at Grandma's

Today's temperature was 73 degrees. In Michigan, it was about 12 degrees.  Took a walk with mom through the trailer park.  Saw the golf course and club house.   Hung clothes on the line outside.   Helped Grandma bag leaves.  Watched the 'Young and the Restless'.    Victor kissed Hope.    Watched 'Oprah Winfrey' and they said to teach your kids to never speak to strangers regardless of how friendly they are.  Also, be sure to tell kids what to look for and listen for such things as assistance with finding a pet, etc., mom's in a car accident, etc.   Always be watching kids.   Also, older people should be on the lookout for themselves.   Anyone you don't know who asks for assistance, offers money to you in any way or tells you your car was stolen is someone to stay away from.   Stay away from strangers asking for assistance.  Ate pizza at an Italian restaurant.  Went to K-mart and watched TV.

December 26, 1993: MGM Studios

Mom and I went to MGM studios.  We went on the production backstage tour. They use small boats or props when they film a boat scene in a movie.    They often use 100 hours of footage before editing for a 2 hour movie.   Saw the stage being constructed for Dick Clark's Rockin' Eve 1994.   Saw 'Golden Girls' and 'Empty Next' houses they used. Saw the Indiana Jones backstage.   Watched some people picked out of the audience do some segments from 'I Love Lucy', 'Home Improvement', 'David Letterman', 'Johnny Carson', 'Golden Girls', 'Bonanza', 'Gilligan's Island', 'Cheers', and 'General Hospital'.    The people were so funny. I wish I could've done that, but there were too many people to pick from.   Went on a Star Wars spaceship ride.   Ate dinner at the Hollywood Brown Derby.   This restaurant was like the one in California in which stars from the 1930s and 1940s dined such as Bette Davis and Lucille Ball.   Booth #5 was where a segment of the 'I Love Lucy' show was taped in the episode where Lucy saw a Hollywood star.   Saw the set of 'Honey I Shrunk the Kids'.    The grass was huge and so were the legos.

December 25, 1993: Christmas Day in Florida

We all opened our presents.  Gonyos called and I got to talk to all of my cousins.  I called Sue Arnouts and found out all about Ashley's gifts.  Of course, I had to brag about the warm temperatures in Florida.   Ate with Grandma, Hoagie, Millie, and my Mom at Johns Restaurant.  This was supposed to be the nicest restaurant in Zephyrhills. I can't say it was that fancy or anything.  The whole place was flooded with old people.  I swear I was the youngest person by fifty years in that place.   We took some of our food home.    When Cindy Chancellor from work saw my picture of us outside Johns with our containers, she said "Did you bring some food down there from the deli?"  I thought that was so funny.   

Visited Grandma's friend, Mrs. Church, at Palm View Gardens.  Church's lived in Grandma's old trailer. 

December 24, 1993: Florida

Watched Regis and Kathie Lee.  Saw Kathie's baby, Cassandra, for the first time on the show.   Went to the bank, grocery store, and ate at Wendy's.   Watched the "Young and the Restless".   Grandma let me open my first present.  It was a word find book. I used it alot while I was in Florida.    Aunt Marianne Gonyo sent my mom two boxes of candy made in California.   Mom and I organized Grandma's cluttered cupboards.   We finally got her to get rid of some things.  Grandma Thomas called us in Florida.  The Thomas Christmas party went well.   In Muskegon, they got 8 inches of snow.  They said it was extremely cold.  The storm started the day after we left.  It was so nice to hear from everyone.

December 23, 1993: Cypress Gardens

Went to Cypress Gardens with Grandma and Mom.  Mom drove Grandma's car.   A semi almost hit us on the busy I-4 highway.  Watched a ski show, took a boat ride through jungle, and went into this greenhouse full of butterflies flying all around us.  It was so neat.    It was like we were in some real jungle.    Looked at all of the beautiful flowers.  Ate lunch and birds were bugging us around our table. Another couple sat down and were swamped birds.  We saw the most gorgeous poinsettia display.  They were displayed in shapes of Christmas trees around water.  When I showed my pictures of Cypress Gardens to Cindy Chancellor at Plumbs, she said they must have a lot of weeding to do.  She loved my pictures of the flowers.   Anyway, Grandma's steering wheel locked and we had trouble getting it unlocked.  Finally, a man told us what to do and we were on our way.

December 22, 1993: Epcot Center

Ate with Grandma, Mom, and Grandma's neighbor, Vera (from Canada) at "The Kettle".    Went on our Grayline tour to Epcot Center.  Signs on the road on the Disney property were purple with red letters.  It was so neat looking.  Saw all of the different countries that were represented.   Mexico's was cute and so was Canada's.    Had a delicious dessert in France.   Looked at the giant 'golf ball' that was a symbol of Epcot Center.   Spike and Edna (Grandma's friends) and Grandma picked us up after Grayline dropped us off at the Budgetel Hotel across from the Florida State Fair.

December 21, 1993: Big Top Flea Market and Dade City

Grandma took us to the Big Top Flea Market and to the University of Southern Florida mall.  My favorite store there was Burdines of Florida.  When we got home, Uncle George called to talk to everyone.  The weather down here was gorgeous.   Back home, a snow storm had just begun.   Grandma and I watched our favorite soap opera, "Young and the Restless.".   At night, Grandma took us into Dade City to see Church street.  On this street, there were Christmas lights and singing from church to church. It was beautiful.   We also visited the hospital that Grandpa went to when he died.   In the front of the hospital, there were Christmas trees decorated for each state.  Each state was decorated with things they were known for.  When we got home, we watched "Roseanne.".  

Decemer 20, 1993: Florida

Charlene drove my mom and I to the Kent County airport for our flight to Tampa, Florida.    We flew Northwest to Detroit and then into Tampa.   Our flight in Grand Rapids was delayed 45 minutes due to mechanical problems. When we got to Detroit, we had 5 minutes in order to catch our next flight to Tampa.  We've never run so fast, so far, in our entire lives.   We made it just in time.   We sat in the last row in the plane boy and was it noisy.   We arrived in Tampa at 11:20 a.m.   Grandma Gonyo and her friends, Hoagie and Millie Hogan, were there at the gate to greet us.  The airport here was so gorgeous.  Hoagie drove Grandma's car to Zephyrhills.  We all had a bite to eat at Hardees.  Grandma's trailer was in Betmar Park at 5244 Betmar Drive.   It was really big.  The living room was twice the size of ours at home. The main reason that we visited here at Christmas was that Grandpa Gonyo had passed away on November 11th and we thought that we should be with Grandma during the Christmas holiday. 

December 7, 1993: Jesse Kuhn

I swear I must have been crazy about every guy who work at the Plumb's grocery store that was my age.   When I look back, I think it was so funny.  Anyway,  I liked Jesse Kuhn.     I met Jesse at Russ's for lunch.    He was born in Chicago.  He was about 6'5.   He said his dad could've got a job in the Somoa Islands, but decided on a job in Muskegon.   He was surprised at all of the places I had traveled to.    He went to Catholic Central with Bill Daugherty.     He drove a 1988 Beretta with 90,000 miles on it.   

Tim Allen, an actor on the show "Home Improvement", used to come to Muskegon to visit his brother. I had found out that Tim Allen came to our Plumbs store one time.    Yes, I was in love with Tim Allen, too.     Jesse didn't know that Tim Allen had come to our store.    

December 3, 1993: Chicago Shopping Trip

It has been a tradition of my mom and I to go on a one day shopping trip to Chicago around Christmas.   This year, we took the trip through West Shore Travelers to Chicago.    We had lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe.   We visited Chicago Place, which was a new shopping center that opened in September.   We loved shopping at Petite Sophisticates.