Melissa
my frequent visits to her house
our nightly phone calls
bringing her jelly sticks
listening to stories about her life
being ignored when Deal or No Deal comes on
eating her Greek cooking
having maati done
helping her plant her potted vegetables
doing her nails
taking her to the library
her will to do exactly what she wanted
watching her play bingo
her love of sports
her feisty nature
her signature disapproving hand gesture
seeing the light on in her room
her calling me sweetie
her telling she loves me "very, very, very, much"
Chris
Miss her yelling at me, telling me I am the one that spoiled Charley.
I used to tell her she knew him first and spoiled him first.
Her and I comparing stories about the Cancer Center and how our
treatments went.
The look on her face when she won on the scratch tickets that Charley
and I would bring to her.
That great supply of candy she had.
My first Easter at the Tranos house when we arrived back home and the
candle went out. Wow, Mary was so upset and everyone was yelling. I
was ready to go and hide. The next few years I always brought a
hurricane lamp and protected the candle. The look on her face as we
walked into the house holding it. It was a Hallmark moment. We all had a good laugh.
So many memories. She had the best egg olemon soup.
George
Her unwavering love of her husband and her family.
Her cooking (except for liver)
How I could do nothing wrong (not always the case)
How she wanted to try smoking "grass"
Ice Cream
How I (and Judy) loved going to lunch and play Keno with her
How excited she was playing craps with me at MS with everyone at the table calling her "Ma"
Helping me with my German vocabulary
The Independence Day parties she and Dad hosted in our backyard with their friends
Her doing the cross and waving to me from the front door when I drove home..........
Karen
the morning call and evening call (especially that one)...she said a long "goodnight Karen, goodnight Jimmy" and every call in between
going to the Cancer Center with her and watching her interact with all her friends there and yes, Friendly's after and sitting at her favorite booth
ma giving me directions about how Jimmy drives to Friendly's..I never got that one right!
picking up her roast beef sandwiches once or twice a week and sitting at the kitchen table with her and getting her beer, chips and watching her eat it
sitting and playing the video game, "Let's Make a Deal" and yeah, Jimmy did that one better by making it a $5 wager and he did everything possible to make sure that she won!
talking to her about one of our favorite shows.. "House" which happily aired all weekend.
her love of soaps...everything revolved around "Day of Our Lives" Sometimes, I watch it for a few seconds now so she can see it through me.
how she loved the Red Sox games and how it always gave me something to tell her that was coming at the end of winter to cheer her up,,,and yes how she gave the Yankees the evil eye or abruptly turned off the tv
her cooking, of course; wish I had paid better attention to her culinary arts
her vegetable garden and walking down there to look at all her tomatoes and cukes that she was so proud of..and eating her bountiful produce,,,she actually harvested bushels of tomatoes once
how she loved to flirt with the younger guys,,she always rallied to run out to see the landscapers Bill and John ..and believe me they both said they miss her totally...even the mailman that I recently met said how sweet and friendly she was
how she sometimes made me chuckle..she could be really funny..even if she wasn't trying to be
how stubborn and independent she was..I was slapped more times for trying to help her up a curb, etc.
how she loved her family and let us know that..even when she was annoyed with us
how well she helped to raise Melissa and Adam while I was working...it's ok that she gave them sips of beer with their lunches...I did not find out until they were adults..wonder what other fun things they did at yia's and papou's?? They learned a lot, yes, indeed..the states and capitals. how to play cards and more.
watching her come down the hall to open the front door for me when I went shopping for her, she never got annoyed if I go the wrong thing..a couple of my neighbors that I shopped for did...it hurt my feelings. And also, after shopping , talking about papou and how I used the coupons like he would have done
watching her peek out the window at me through the blinds when I was walking there to visit her...she got her exercise by running from window to window to see what was going on..an excellent idea especially for someone who was totally independent in her own home.
her beauty...inside and out! Feisty? Yes. Opinionated? Yes. Beautiful person and oh how very intelligent.
there is much much more, but that is another story for another day.
Miss you, Ma.
Adam
-Drinking coffee with her before I turned 10 years old
-Drinking the end of her beer with her before I turned 10 years old
-Cinnamon Toast w/Sugar snacks after school
-Her taking care of me after school
-Her babysitting (really just keeping me company) me on Saturday Nights
-Playing cards with her outside for pennies (nickles = high stakes)
-Doing the puzzle of the united states w/her and getting quizzed on the state capitals
-The glow of their Christmas tree in the front window with those big old energy efficient bulbs...the image of that gave me such a warm happy feeling.
-Her cooking....miss that real bad
-Her constant praise and support
-Seeing her at the holidays
-Bingo
I think we could all list 100s of things...
Looking back, almost 30, I have a clearer perspective on my relationship with yiayia. She was my grandmother, but when I was little I looked at her like she was a close friend. She always looked out for me, loved me, and made our time together fun.
I remember where I was almost to the foot when I last spoke with her. I was stopping to get groceries and cat food in Burlington on the way home from work. I called from the car and was walking to the store talking to her (Melissa was over her house) telling her that I was looking forward to seeing her on for her birthday party....I remember saying happy birthday and telling her that I love her very much....she told me that she loved me "very very much" too. I was about 50ft from the front door of the store when she said that to me. When I drove up Storrow drive to go to work in the morning, I will occasionally look up to the windows of the Hospital where she passed and think of her...
I feel lucky to have her as my grandmother and part of my life and I know that she (papou, memier and others too) can feel our love.
Cindy
My 7:00 o'clock phone calls every night to catch up on the day
My 7:00 o'clock phone calls when she ignored me because she was watching or listening to something or someone else.
My Sunday afternoons visits.
My visits with her and my father when they would reminiscence about the old days.
How she would tell my father that he was" making up stories" and we would all laugh about it.
Going to the house with Ma opening the back door for me and Uncle
Charlie sitting at the dining room table reading the paper.
Going to Bertini's where she would have a beer or 2, play keno and always reach for a $20 bill to pay.
Her voice, her smile, her feisty nature, her signature hand gesture, her strength and her devotion to family!
What I am grateful for is that she told me when my mother died she came and got me and brought me right to her house where my father and I stayed to heal and grow up.
I love and miss you Ma!
Judy
What a Mother-in-law!
Mrs. Tranos didn’t start out as my mother in law, (to me, she was Cindy’s mother) but she saw to it that she would become just that!
When I was 14 years old, one day my friends and I were going to a farewell party for a boy who was going off to Vietnam. I was in the back seat of the car when we pulled up in front of 4 Bedford St. to pick up Cindy. I was all dressed up in my cute white “sailor dress” with blue trim. Mrs. Tranos came out of the front door and walked down the steps to say hi to all of the girls. Then, out of nowhere, she exclaimed “Judy, you look beautiful…I have to show you to my son!” She then called (it seemed more like yelling) “George come out here and see Judy”! George, rather sheepishly (-sheepishly-who? George?) came to the door and waved. Mortified, all I could think of is WHERE’S CINDY…get her into the car so we can go! But quietly, I did have a crush on him and apparently he had had one on me. So thank you, Mrs. Tranos, for bringing to life your son, my lifelong best friend.
One year at Thanksgiving, we, the “second generation” declared that we were going to wash the dishes after dinner. Reluctantly, Mrs. Tranos agreed. So I was at the sink, Cindy and Karen on dish drying detail. Every so often Mrs. Tranos cruised through the kitchen to keep an eye on things. One time, as I was rinsing a dish, she ran her hand under the faucet and checked the water temperature. It was not hot (aw shucks! I thought). There was nothing that she had to do or say, but ever since that moment, I always rinse dishes with very hot water!
Mrs. Tranos also taught me how to dry dishes…dry dishes?...isn’t it pretty straight forward? Well yes, but there is one important step. When you pick up a dish to begin drying, you must hold it upright and allow the water to drip off before using the towel, hence, towel doesn’t get excessively wet.
When I was about 15 or 16, I’d occasionally eat dinner at Cindy’s. After Mrs. Tranos served everyone their food, she would always say “How’s the food”? I, of course, said “delicious”! However I responded a beat to soon, because she hadn’t added the “George” yet. It took me many times to remember to wait until the whole question was asked before I responded.
Who ever loses weight when on vacation? Well, guess who did. George and I took Mrs. Tranos on a grand trip that included Hong Kong as its first stop. After a few days, Mrs. Tranos wasn’t eating very much because she didn’t like the food (surprised anyone?). So George and I spoke to the concierge at the hotel and asked him where we could get an American style dinner, hoping she would eat something, ANYTHING! We took his advice and went to an American style steakhouse. (very expensive I might add). I looked at the menu and thought “perfect”…authentic New York Sirloin Steak and Idaho Baked Potatoes. She pushed some food around on her plate and when we asked her what was wrong, she responded “It’s just not the same”. Anyone hear that line before?
Well, farewell to an exceptional woman. A modern woman who was born before women had the right to vote; a woman who saw all of her children and grandchildren receive college educations, and she, having only gotten as far as 8th grade…the Great Depression stood in the way of furthering her own education; a woman who survived Prohibition (God bless her); a woman whose love and devotion to her family created a legacy like none that I’ve ever seen.
Thank you, Mrs. Tranos
Jimmy
a wonderful mother-in-law and son-in-law relationship
visiting her every day and having a cup of coffee at the kitchen table and talking
stopping at Land and Sea to get her a flounder dish and happily watching her enjoy every bite..she loved the flounder
the first visit to Friendly's after the Cancer Center,,meeting new people there..and enjoying a good breakfast and she loved the good deal we got
how she called every time we almost hit the lottery number..and I finally said, "Call me when I win!!"
playing the Deal or No Deal video and how she loved to play for cash..she would grit her teeth if she lost...
spending a lot of time together after dad passed
how we could tell each other how we felt and still got along when we disagreed
it was 1 AM at Mohegan Sun..Karen and I were ready for bed and Ma was not the least bit tired...even though she was usually in bed at 8PM at home
how she hated leaving her house..cause someone would steal it.
how lucky I was to have a mother-in-law that I could be friends with and be treated more like a son than a son-in-law.
Miss You, Mary!
Charlie
All the good and fun times we had growing up together
As a kid being spoiled especially by going to great places like Violet's for fried clams
Reminiscing about the old days
Bringing her donuts and having coffee together
Watching Family Feud together
Getting yelled at because I wasn't talking loud enough
What I am grateful for is that she was my sister but always took care of me like a second mother.
Ted
Mary's hospitality. She welcomed me into her home and family like she knew me all my life
Holiday meals at her house. Not only for the great food but for Mary and Charlie's company too
Hearing " Hi Teddy Boy".
Finally, I said it before and I'll say it again, Mary was the best egg and lemon soup maker I ever met and had the best M&M stash around!
