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Since so many people could not pull this website up, I have moved. My new website is, http://nansviews.wordpress.com/. Please check it out and follow..........


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Laughter is the best medicine

I have always had a problem with outburst of laughter at the most inopportune time. I inherited this from my mother. I laugh loud and hard. I've never been one to chuckle or politely giggle. Mine are like convulsions with my head swinging back and sometimes the loss of bodily fluid. Sorry, just saying. 


I remember being in the 4th grade and my teacher,  Sr Charles moved my desk in the hall and made me sit there through the rest of the class because I couldn't stop laughing. No one else was but me. God only knows what was so funny. I was also sent to the principle's office in high school for the same thing. Thankfully my mother understood. And then I remember being at the funeral of our dear family friend and neighbor, Maury. My mom and I started laughing and eventually my brother Sean who was the alter boy did too and then so did the priest, Fr O'Donnell.  The whole service was laughing then and all interrupted. Speaking of funerals, at my dad's funeral this became an issue too. THE most heartbreaking event of my life, thus far. We were at St Roch's Church in St Louis and had the bagpipes playing as we walked in. So beautiful. All my family together. It meant so much. Sitting in the front pew and listening to the sermon and all of a sudden it hit me. Yes, a tremble. Oh no! This cannot happen. As I tried to stifle the tremor it began to grow. I looked over at my mom and she had a horrifying look on her face of knowing whats to come. My brother and sister began to smile and shake too. I grabbed a tissue and held it tight and my body began to rock. Everyone more than two rows back thought I was crying and having a really hard time. When I knew this was not going to stop, I had to exit the building fast before a complete outburst occurred. I moved quickly down the side isle and down the stairs to the restroom. I splashed water on my face and tried mightily to hold it together. I entered again and took my seat with my family. But this time I made a point of making no eye contact with any of my siblings or my mother for fear it would just start up again. My dad would of understood. 


This has been obviously an ongoing situation that I have tried to get a grip on but with no success. In 1995, I married my 2nd husband Greg. Very small wedding with no one but our immediate families there. When it was time for me to say my vows all I could do was laugh. Could not seem to form a word. As I was trying mightily to control my seizure on the alter I looked back @ my mother who was giggling in her seat too. My dad was used to this and just looked on with, oh here we go again, look on his face. The pastor had to stop and give me a break to get myself under control. Looking over at Greg and his family, they looked mortified. Finally, realizing I was pissing the whole Nichols family off so I somehow got it together.  No one would have believed it had I not gotten it all on video. Greg came to appreciate my disorder and often times provoked it. Whether we would be in an aisle in Wal Mart or anywhere else extremely public, he would push my buttons. And then next thing you know, I am doubled over and holding on for dear life with tears rolling down my face. 


If I am at my daughters home and she has friends over and I begin to laugh hard, she will do whatever she can in her power to stop me. She gets so embarrassed. Same thing if we are in a restaurant. There was some very memorable humiliating events that I'd love to share with you that I just cannot bring myself to repeat out loud. If you know me well enough then you most likely witnessed this. I am not proud of this. Below you will see a picture of my little sister Colleen and daughter Kari. As you can clearly see, its in the genes. Sorry girls. They say that laughter is the best medicine. If this is true then I should be one healthy woman. Or maybe it was, laughter is the best policy. 

The Ultimate Salesman

I know I'd probably be a great car salesman,  like my brother Barry, but its not really my style. But I have sold just about everything else. Looking back, my first sales venture was probably selling ink toner cartridges. Not sure the set up was all legal though. It was a shady company but I was young and stupid. It was the typical telemarketing scheme. I then moved on to Tybrisa Beach Resort timeshares. You would get a free camera for just doing a walk thru of the condo and listening to their speil.  Not bad. I sold so many things and can't remember all of them.

Most were just a part time gig, but were guaranteed to make me a millionaire.  There was Avon, Tupperware, BeautiControl, PartyGals, Premier Jewelry, Clever Container, long distance calling cards (back when people used them), Melaleuca, MonaVie, Life Insurance and Annuities, some kind of Home Interiors and so much more. I also was one of those chicks that stood in Sams Clubs and other stores wearing the black apron with a tray of samples trying to push one product or another.

Whether I am working or not, I am always so enthusiastic about whatever it is I am passionate about. "Oh my God! You have got to go to that new car wash place that opened up on Main St! They did a fabulous job", or "I just had THE best bagel of my life".
Maybe its the combination of being the town crier and being dramtic that makes a good salesman. Its just the follow through that I have problems with. I can close the sale but when things go slow or kind of boring then I move on to the next deal or just drop out all together.  I don't think I'm a sucker for any loser out there pushing me a good line. I am realistic but I do believe that if they can do it and make $10,000/ a month then I can too.  I have went to the cheesy National Conventions and met others and did the group cheers, walked on their run ways and received oh so many pins.But that is stuff that I would much rather not done or received. I never really cared about driving that pink Cadillac or having my name & picture in one of their quarterly newsletters under, Bronze Stars. I only cared about the money. Show me the money!!!

I don't have a back up plan right now. I can't say that I'll never sell again but I'm definitely not planning on it. I know my down falls. One of the things I hated about selling stuff was having to contact my family and friends. I would much rather do cold calling to strangers for 8 hrs a day then to bother my loved ones. Hopefully I will never be ringing your door bell again saying, "Avon's calling".

Mary Catherine

I remember being little and looking up to my older sister, KK like she was perfect. Her real name is Mary Catherine but for some reason we have all called her KK since I can remember. She was blonde, fit and never seemed to get in trouble be it @ school or home. She went to an all girls catholic high school for 4 years then went on to a big state university and ended up marrying her big brother from a fraternity she joined. They did the big wedding at our childhood parish church and reception at city hall. They had 3 kids, white picket fence and dog. But then I came along trying to follow in her foot steps and ended up in 4 different high schools, dyed my hair, got pregnant before marriage and got in trouble every where I went. I was given the same tools my sister was but ended up completely different. Why is that? Now @ age 44 and two divorces later I still look up to her as perfect. Kind of perfect. She did it right. I often joke with her about being Suzy Homemaker, Betty Crocker or Martha Stewart. She is the soccer mom, the mom who volunteers at the kids school, the mom who never forgets to send a special gift to the teacher, the mom who goes on all field trips. You know which mom I'm talking about....


We shared a bedroom for a while when we were little, and for a little while it was 3 of us girls in one room. We had a big home but with only four bedrooms and 7 kids, you have to make do with what you have. I used to try to tag along with her and her girlfriends as much as I could but I was a bother. I used to try to spy on her and sneek through her things. Growing up with her I don't remember being necessarily close with her. She was 5 yrs older than me, I think. It wasn't until I had a child that I think we began to bond. I remember hanging out with my brothers and I remember hanging with my little sister, but never with KK. My earliest memory of her was when she was in high school. I remember riding with her right after she got her drivers license. I remember when she had a party and my parents went out of town. She made me go to bed and not come out. I snuck to the landing on the stairway and watching from a distance as the house was full of high schoolers partying. 


Why is it that siblings can live in the same house with the same rules and up bringing and turn out so different. Don't get me wrong, we have our similarities. We don't favor each other, except maybe the chin. I think all kids should grow up having a wonderful example like I did. She was never arrested, no tattoos, no piercing, no knock down drag out fights with my parents and never flunked out of school. We both live out of state from where we grew up and both still and will always have a strong love for St Louis and the Cardinals.

My Leave it to Beaver childhood

I live in a small town in southern Georgia and have for 25 years. I moved here from St. Louis and no matter how long I've been gone from there I still feel like a Midwest girl. I believe most people feel that way about the places we call home. I can go there for a visit and see family and friends but am never quite comfortable being there. Isn't that strange? I feel like a Midwest girl and call St. Louis my home but still feel like a foreigner when I'm there. I guess when your a transplant you never really know where you belong. Growing up in St. Louis was so normal and I had a wonderful uneventful childhood. We did not have any alcoholics in the family or drug addicts or child molestation or knew any transgenders. I grew up in a typical Irish catholic neighborhood. I always referred to my home as a similar place to Leave it to Beaver's home. My mom stayed home and my dad wore a suit and went to work and all seven children went to nice catholic schools. We ate dinner together every night and all went to church on Sunday mornings. Most of the other families in the neighborhood were exactly the same. I don't think I even met someone that wasn't catholic until I was in the 11th grade. I wasn't allowed to hang around kids that came from a broken home, which was odd enough back then. My parents were always involved in the schools and community. They loved trying to make a difference and setting a good example. I very rarely remember hearing my parents argue. They never raised their vocies with each other and always backed each other up. My father was born in 1918 (which might explain a lot) and was respected by everyone in my family. He was madly in love with my mother until the day he died. It was these good examples and normal childhood that ruined me for the real world. 

I assumed life was like that which I knew. I thought couples got married and stayed married and very rarely fought. I thought wives could marry the man of their dreams and stay home waiting on their man. I thought everyone went to church and voted and was part of the PTA. HA. When I got in high school I began to rebel and test the limits. I drank, I smoked and did drugs. I flunked out of school and ranaway, briefly. I had to find out EVERYTHING life had to offer, especially the things I didn't learn @ home. To this date, there is very little I regret. I do regret worrying my family though. 

The friends I had were all from large families and their brothers and sisters went to school with my brothers and sisters. Everybody knew everybody in my neighborhood. I believed it was middle class America @ it's finest. We all played school soccor, basketball and volleyball. There were tons of neighborhood kids and on summer evenings it was easy to find 10-20 kids playing kick ball in the middle of the street. Everyone was active whether it was school goverment, sports or neighborhood block parties. A strange world we lived in back then. Times sure have changed. I now know no one who lives on my street and only know one other person in the whole city and have never been to her house. I don't know who the mayor is and am not happy with the federal goverment. I do still vote but rarely go to church. Everyone is so busy with their lives that we lost that normalicy that we all grew up with. Life happens. 

The greatest loss of my life

When I was 18 yrs old I started dating Ricky Groover. He was 25 yrs old and always the gentleman to me. I was introduced to him by a friend of mine named Karen. I called him the next weekend and asked him out. I didn't know anyone in town except a few people and really was considering him as a future friend and not a romantic interest. He picked me up from my parent's house and came to the door. He made small talk with my parents and then opened the car door for me. I was really impressed by his car, but later found out he borrowed it from his friend Steve for the night. The whole night I kept thinking to myself that I really am not interested in this guy in the boyfriend way. But he did and said everything right. At the end of the night he caught me off guard and pulled me into his lap and kissed me. Wow. I was shocked. And our relationship started from there.

We dated for two years and he treated me like a queen. The sweetest person to my family, friends and me. He was hard working and a great lover. What more could a girl ask for.  We started to plan a wedding and booked the church and ordered the invitations and other little details but began to get super stressed. In the end, we decided to trash all our plans and just elope. He asked Steve to be his best man and I asked Angie to be my maid of honor. We went to Ridgeland, SC and saw the justice of the peace. When we returned we went to my parents house and told them and we went to his parents house and did the same.

I had never had anyone cater to my every need the way Ricky did. He cooked, he cleaned and rubbed my feet. He spoiled me rotten. He also insisted on naming our baby Kari Lynn. After she was born, he proceeded to spoil her too. He was just one of those fellas that knew how to treat a girl right.

Realizing now that this blog could probably go on forever,  let me sum up the end. We divorced.  I couldn't take all the partying he was doing. I moved out. We remained close friends until the day he died. Continuing to celebrate birthdays & holidays together and talking on the phone almost daily.

He died of lung cancer when he was 44 yrs old. My whole world came crashing down when he was under Hospice care. He had always been there for me: mentally,  emotionally and financially.  And to top it off, I had to watch my daughter try to deal with her losing the love of her life. I don't think my daughter has ever recovered from this loss and might not ever.

Ricky Groover, 1961 - 2006

10 of my favorite things

I got this title from the Bravo TV series called, "10 Things that make me happy".  Of course I changed it a little. This is just some of my favorite things.

10 - Imos Pizza, THE best pizza on earth. Located in St Louis. Never ever tasted a pizza anything like it.

9 - My Samantha Brown luggage, my daughter gave it to me last Christmas. It is the coolest and spaciest suitcase I have ever used.

8 - DVR, This has taken over any life I may have had before.  All of my friends and lovers live in my DVR box.
7 - Heavenly Perfume, from Victoria Secrets.  Not sure how many years I've been using it but I wear it every time I leave the house.
6 - Eyelash Extensions,  haven't worn them since November I think but that is still my favorite luxury to have done.  I automatically feel so beautiful with them on.
5 - DROID,  one of my favorites just because I would be lost without it. All of my information is stored in it; contacts, list of meds, my alarm clock, kindle, all my passwords, bills information, pictures, everything.
4 - Books on CD, I spend so much time in my car that I have come to love listening to books. I still read a lot the old fashioned way but this makes driving so much more enjoyable.
3 - Electric blanket, I just started using one about 3 years ago and am amazed at this wonderful invention.  I will use it year round, mostly because my boyfriend keeps the air conditioning so cold. I find it very hard to sleep without it.
2 - This big flashlight that I do not know the name of. It is about the size of a pair of boots, maybe a little bigger. My boyfriend bought it from Auto Zone. It cost about $80 and I freaking love it. If the power goes out @ your house, it will light up several rooms at once. It has several settings so you can use it very dim too. It will also charge your cell phone. I will not ever try to live without it.

1 - fireworks! And not just small town fireworks or sparklers or snap, crackle or pops but full blow big ass fireworks. I love to watch fireworks. It doesn't matter who I'm with or where I'm at, this always seems to captivate me.