Not even three degrees of separation

So Piper has been at the hospital... a lot. Between the scheduled appointments and the other stuff they should dedicate a bench or something.
But that's not the point of this post, the point is that sometimes I use google latitude to see if she's still there and also on the map just down the road is this thing that looks like an oval of track, and that would be because it is.

I can't remember which trip it was but I'm pretty sure it was one of the early ones, Kim and Piper were driving me around and we came to this part of town to see the old Vineland Raceway. If you look closer you can see there wasn't just an oval but a track that ran across what is now College Dr and onto Cumberland County College before returning back around.

That day we drove onto the property because there were no fences and got as far as the oval, it was an interesting little ride because the vehicle we were in didn't have the greatest clearances and the "road" was quite badly rutted. Piper and Kim talked about the geocache that's somewhere on the property but we either didn't have the time or the equipment to go hunting for it so we just had a look around and then tried to drive out. I say tried because I can remember that we grounded on the way over the ridge between the oval and the land next to the road and panicked a bit, it wasn't too bad, we didn't leave any of the car behind but there was a moment when we thought we might get stuck.

It's funny, Kim wasn't from the area but she knew craploads about it and its history, probably more than some locals who just take things for granted. Kim was interested in stuff, she looked beyond the obvious and did more than her fair share of research which is something I plan to carry on.

How often do I think of Kim?

Not often, only any time there's a Bond film or a comic book movie, or Shrek (particularly 3, I saw it with K&P), Robots (saw it in IMAX with K&P) pretty much any other IMAX film. Anything with Richard Gere in it, all the Kevin Smith films, anything made by Disney, about Disney, associated with Disney, the Blues Brothers or anything set in a part of Chicago I recognise.

Anytime I hear anything by the Beatles or Barenaked Ladies or Alice Cooper or the Eagles, some tracks by Nelly Furtado, Lilly Allen or the Killers, Umbrella by the Manic Street Preachers (yes they did a cover), Smoke on the Water, anything that was used on a Bond soundtrack, Amy Winehouse for pulling out of doing a Bond theme, Queen's 86 Wembley concert.

Watching Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (we didn't watch much TV)

Things to do with Atlantic City or Philadelphia or Chicago or Michigan City or New York or Cincinnati. Amusement parks, particularly Six Flags Great Adventure or Disney Parks. Browns Mills, Red Bank, Red Lion Diner, Roebling Steel, the RiverLine, Railroads in general, Conrail or Winchester and Western in particular. Funny billboards, LED billboards, driving along the Schuykill Expressway, Micro Center, KoP.
Whenever I come out of Philadelphia Airport I remember the first time we met; 30th Street in Phily reminds me of the times Kim and Piper met me off trains. The trip in 2007 when we went all over Indiana, the trip to Orlando in 2008 which we took in her memory.

About half the time I see something to do with tea or with feet (these two things are related). Ordering the most expensive non-fish dish on the menu, fish dishes (again these two are related).

RonJons Surf shop, any time "young and irresponsible" is mentioned.

1001 more things.

Random times.

Nope I don't think about her much at all :(


Hugs
Cat

PS Every time I think of something else that reminds me of her I'm going to add it here, so expect this post to double in size :)

5 Years. . .
60 Months. . .
260 Months. . .
1825 Days. . .

All of those numbers,  even if you add them all together, doesn't really give you any idea how much I still miss Kim.

I think of her daily, I miss her frequently.

I have found someone very special to share my life with, and we are being blessed with the opportunity to bring a new life into this world together, and all I can think of is "Kim would be so happy"... or "I really wish you could have met Kim"...

It's hard, especially with Kim being 746 Miles away from here :(

It's been what... 3 years now since I've been to visit?

I know she's not there, her spirit is somewhere looking over us, but I still have the desire and even NEED to show my respect and devotion by visiting her in Michigan City.

To visit her Parents buried right next to her and thank them again, for raising Kim...

To travel around the town, remembering all the stories she told me and Cat about the place...

I want to post more, but just don't think I can...

It's been 5 years since I looked at you, and I still wake up some mornings wanting to run into your room and tell you about the story idea I had last night.

I miss you Kim, and while my heart doesn't feel as empty as it did right after you left this world, there is still a hole where you once were.

-Piper/PiggilyTails/Kirstyn Amanda Fox/JulieChristine/Serentiy/RyAnne