Adrienne Ostman:
CLASS OF 1958
Hackensack High SchoolClass of 1958
Hackensack, NJ
Paterson State Teachers CollegeClass of 1962
Paterson, NJ
State Street SchoolClass of 1955
Hackensack, NJ
Sara M. Gilmore Elementary SchoolClass of 1954
Union city, NJ
Midland Elementary School 1Class of 1954
Rochelle park, NJ
Adrienne's Story
Life
Life has brought me to exactly the right location to enjoy my circumstances. I got here by way of a six-year detour to California. My introduction to earthquakes was the 1971 quake that knocked down a nursing home and freeways. It also knocked me out of my bed! After a while I got rather used to them, but I'm happy to be on a bit more steady ground. Ours just moves gradually--the water table is only a few feet below the surface. I had two swimming pools in my years down here and had to always keep them filled or they could pop out of the ground. A fun bit of trivia for you.
I've been disabled since 2001 and now can only get around with a walker. Living in deep south Texas, in that tip where the Gulf of Mexico and the Mexican border meet, is perfect weather-wise. I don't like cold weather--our winters are usually in the 70s--and I can tolerate the semi-tropical heat in the summertime. I don't have to worry about walking on snow and ice, but I can't walk on the beach either. That's okay, I can still watch the waves break on the shore.
The small town I live in reminds me very much of Rochelle Park back in the 1950s--except for the palm trees, of course. I have a small home and two cats to keep me company. Feeney and Joshua have totally different personalities, so it keeps life interesting. Fortunately, I have providers/caregivers to assist me seven days a week. My life is rather carefree for the day to day needs. I no longer drive, so a friend from my church takes me to church, shopping and my doctor appointments. I'd be lost without her help since providers aren't allowed to transport me anywhere. I am thankful for all I have, rather than angered about what I've lost.
All my immediate family has passed on and I never had children during my short-lived marriage that ended in 1976. I was too involved in my jobs to worry about finding another mate, so I never remarried. I'm up for adoption if anyone wants me. A sugar daddy would be fine too, as long as nothing is expected in return.
I'm hoping to be able to attend the 50th Reunion in 2008, but only time will tell. In the meantime, I'd love to hear from those who remember me. Just email me on Classmates.
UPDATE 2012 As many of you know, I did manage to go to the 50th reunion and I'm so glad that I did. My old body revolted afterward and I was unable to do anything but sit around my cousin's home and catch up on the 25 years I hadn't seen him--since the 25th reunion. Sadly, there's no way I will be able to go up for the 55th reunion in 2013.
For the last couple of years, I've had to depend more and more on a wheelchair to get around. Now I can't walk at all, but I still manage to tran...Expand for more
sfer chairs. I use the old fashioned wheel-yourself kind of chair, although I do have one of the electric power chairs you see advertised. The one thing i didn't understand about power chairs is that they operate using Joy Stick movements, unlike the supermarket variety with two-handed steering. Well, guess who has never played games with a Joy Stick, and guess who is totally uncoordinated when it comes to driving with a Joy Stick, and guess who is danger personified on the electric wheel chair. You got it--me! All the paint is scraped off my doorways, furniture has dings and spots worn to bare wood, but I drew the line when I slammed into a wall and left a hole behind me. My Joy-not stays where it is for now, only getting moved out of the way as needed.
Just before Christmas 2011, my dear little Feeney went across the Rainbow Bridge. Joshua is 15 and was acting his age and beyond, so a trip to the vet got him revitalized again. More of the friends I was sharing my time with have moved on forever, too. Everyone is missed. Life has changed without them.
Aside from my providers, morning and evening, I am alone. I've been considering advertising for a housemate. The private bedroom and bath is nice, plus there would be use of the rest of the home's facilities. For about three years, a housemate/friend of mine from the 1980s came back into the picture. She and her grown son lived here and somewhat kept me company. I say somewhat because I'm a night person and she wasn't . Her son enjoyed the private little building I have in the back yard, although he had to use the facilities in the main house. It was once the laundry room, but I moved that inside the house almost 20 years ago. He had running water, air conditioning, and it had been decorated when I made it into to my exercise room. I couldn't get out there to use the equipment any more, so it was perfect for him, once a bed was moved in and the equipment removed. They left Texas again about two-and-a-half years ago and it's been vacant since.
This is the longest I've ever lived in one house, although it hardly seems long at all. When I bought it, I wanted it to be my retirement home. Fortunately, I'm still as happy here as I would have been if it weren't more a nursing than retirement home. Had I known I'd be wheelchair bound though, I would have made some doorways a size wider and a hallway just a smidge easier to get through to my back porch. There's some maintenance stuff that needs to be done, but not right now. I'm just waiting for God's next miracle to do my budget/building fund some good. You should hear the heart-wrenching scream from those poor little pennies I keep pinching!
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