Shameless Plug

I was clicking around on the links over on the right and noticed that over 300 people have viewed our profile. I'm not sure if that means 300 unique people have read it, or if one person has viewed it 300 times. I'm guessing that it's probably some combination of the two (although, I can't imagine why anyone would need a second or third look, not much there).

So, just thought I'd take a minute to say (here it comes, but hey, I'm not calling you - you can call me if you want my help) I just funded my 700th mortgage loan, so even though the mortgage business is constantly changing, I think I kinda, sorta know what I'm doing. If you would like someone to take a look at your current debt situation and give you an honest evaluation of your options, I'd be honored.

You can reach me at the office (708) 406-6265 or on my cell (708) 323-7673. You can also email me at mrose@ptffinancial.com or max_rose@sbcglobal.net.

If I don't hear from anyone, I can guess that the "Grandmas", "Grandpas" and "Aunts" have been doing all the "clicking".

Max and Mason

PTF Financial Mortgage advice mortgages homes real estate chicago oakpark riverforest IL

Jenny's Mom

*UPDATE JULY 13, 9:00 PM*
Viola has gone for another epidural injection today. She is moving around with minimal help and has hardly any pain. We are optomistic about her recovery and it appears that she will be back to normal soon.

*UPDATE July 2, 5:00 pm*

Well, Grandma is home. Not quite ready for the high-hurdles, but seems to be ambling along nicely. I was out all afternoon, but Mason (being the very good grand daughter that she is) went over to stay with Grandma while Grandpa went to the Osco to fill some prescriptions. Seems we're back to normal, whatever that is.

*UPDATE July 1, 9:00 pm*

Viola is making great progress. The epidural injections appear to be working and she managed to walk without pain today. If everything looks good, she'll be coming home tomorrow. I'm sure that Bob is happy about this.

*UPDATE June 27, 9:00 pm*

Mason and I just returned from a nice visit with Grandma. She was in good spirits (which is an accomplishment in itself considering all the poking and prodding) and appears to have the pain under control. She is scheduled for more tests tomorrow. The path that the doctors appear to be taking is to administer epidural steroid injections to cure the pain - the success rate for this procedure is about 75%, but Viola will probably have an asterisk next to her name in the record books now ;-)

Viola was admitted to the LaGrange Memorial Hospital yesterday for severe pain in her back and legs. The pain started on Friday and after a couple of visits with the orthopedist, without a solid diagnosis, she was admitted for further tests and appropriate pain management.

I'm sure that she and Bob would appreciate your thoughts and well-wishes. Email me if you want more information. We'll keep you posted.

Max and Mason

We love you grandma!

Quality Time

Mason and I FINALLY had our first round of golf together this year. Previously, she's been "too busy" to join me for a walk while we chase the little white (in her case purple) ball around. She managed to squeeze me into her schedule and we had a very nice time at Legends in Bensenville.

Even though Mason hasn't practiced much, she put together a nice round. She drove the green on the first hole and made one par. Like most golfers, she needs to practice her short game. She did however, make a putt that was over 20 feet. Pictures of our round are here.

I really cherish these moments together. We talked a lot, but not about anything serious (other than that Mason thinks I'm way overdue for a haircut). Just walking and talking about nothing in particular - it was a great way to spend the afternoon. Afterwards, we went to Johnnie's Beef for a hot dog and Italian Ice, yum!

Max and Mason

Thyme & Honey Review

For about the past year, my Papa and I have been going out for breakfast on Sundays. Today, we tried the newly reopened Thyme & Honey on Madison in Forest Park.

This restaurant used to be in Oak Park, but closed a few months ago - they just reopened on Wednesday of last week. It's obvious that they still don't quite have their system figured out. The service was slow. We were seated right away, but it took ten minutes for the waiter to come take our order. I ordered a Belgium Waffle and Papa ordered two eggs, bacon, potatoes and an english muffin. It took another 12 minutes for our food to arrive. My waffle was good, but I've had better. They overcooked the bacon (even though my dad ordered it to be soft) and they forgot his english muffin.

We noticed a long wait after we were seated, even though there were at least seven tables open.

Rating on a scale of 1-5 (5 being the best)

Service - 1
Food - 2
Value - 3, but if you order OJ, it's $4 for a large glass!

We'll wait awhile before going back. Maybe they just need some time to get their act together.

-Mason

Summer School

During summer school I'm taking Ping-Pong first, then Movies, Music and More, next Girls Rule. During Ping-Pong we have singles and doubles tournaments all summer. In Movies, Music and More we are making a movie about a family member(I chose my Grandma and Grandpa on my mom's side.) and we interveiw them. In Girls Rule we do arts and crafts; so far we have done Father's Day presents, and "Barbie Makeover". Next we are decorating t-shirts.

Every Tuesday morning I have a flute lesson where I practice my songs at 8:30 A.M. with my flute teacher Mrs. Halter.

You can find more Summer School pics here.

-Mason

Remembering Jenny

Jenny would have celebrated her 46th birthday on July 16 of this year. I will miss spending that day with her and sharing her favorite "Crunch Cake", that her mom makes, with her. Jenny always ate the "ends" and left the middle for the rest of us;)

I put the journal entries from her Tribune Guest Book into a pdf, if anyone would like a copy of that, please send me an email and I will send you a copy.

Please feel free to add a comment about a memory of Jenny by clicking the "comment" link at the bottom of this post. To get things started, I'm posting a few memories from some of Jenny's friends below:

I've never written to you about my relationship with Jenny, I guess for a lot of reasons, none of them being any good I suppose.
Jenny and I met when Prescriptives was launched at Marshall Fields SS.
She was my counter manager. I was there when she met you ( or saw you for the first time) and the great amazing crush she had on you..............and then , well............there WAS Jimmy Buffett
A vivid memory of Jenny was her LONG dark nails and fishnets and little black boots. {back in the day},Prescriptives tried to get her to change up a bit, but that gal stood her ground!!!

I think that Mason summed it up in her 3rd grade story when she said that Jenny was as kind as a kitten and the hardest worker anyone will ever meet.

Jenny made me feel like I was the most important person in the world to her and she always had time for me no matter when I called or wrote. She was obviously magical in that way. She and I both had cats {back in the day} as single gals and I was always amazed that all of hers would come running when she called them. Her magic was clear with furry friends too.
I would want Mason to know that, Jenny loved that child with a depth that goes deep and never goes away.

I can tell you that every day that I use line preventor I think of Jenny.

Your wife was a gifted and magical person. She would not want you to suffer Max and I hope that you are taking care of yourself.

I married the man of my dreams, and the greatest gift I have gotten out of Jenny's passing is that I look at him every morning and thank g-d for one more day because the afternoon of Jenny's death could not have been a bigger shock no matter who you are or how you look at it.
I have gone to the stock room a thousand times myself, there is no way anyone could have thought of something so dramatic...happening.........to anyone,
There will never be another Jenny and we all know it.
Her greatest gift to all of us was the way she lived life, treated her friends, family and animals. We were all really lucky to have known her .
many blessings to you and Mason
Trish Freeman Gerencser
Ohio
---------------------------------------------------
Dear Max and Mason,

I mostly wrote this last year-I don’t know why I didn’t pass it on-maybe I thought it wasn’t done, but this seems like an appropriate time.

Some thoughts on my friend Jenny Rose:

Jenny loved life and all living things, and most of her family.
She valued honesty, loyalty and integrity above all.
She would want you to remember to hug your animals every day.
She also loved Prescriptives makeup, Jimmy Buffet, flea markets, old houses, lunch with the girls, red wine, grocery store bargains and Super Bowl parties.

I am proud to have been her friend.

Love,
Tracey
----------------------------------------------------
Max and Mason,
Jenny was on my mind all day yesterday, as were you and Mason. I'm sure this was a long year for you both. You are always in my prayers. She was a great person.If there is anything I can help you with -feel free to let me know.
In Friendship,
AJ

Thank you to everyone for your kind thoughts and actions. Mason and I appreciate everything. Please post a comment about Jenny for us to read.

Max and Mason

Barenaked Ladies in Chicago

The Barenaked Ladies showed off on Chicago's lakefront last night. They weren't naked and they weren't ladies, but they put on an awesome show. Below is a clip of Ed and Steve, two of the five band members, singing one of Mason's favorite songs. Enjoy.



Mason, her friend Nikki, and I braved the thunderstorm and saw the show at Charter One Pavilion on Northerly Island. Last night was a great escape. You can see all of the photos here. I've also added other photos from the memory stick there too.

Northerly Island was designed by Daniel Burnham in 1909, it was originally intended to be a public park. In 1930, the Adler Planetarium was constructed on the island. In the 40's, publishing mogul, Merrill C. Meigs convinced local and state governement to put an airport on the island to cater to Chicago's executives and elite. In 2003, Mayor Daley closed the airport and converted the island back to a venue for public enjoyment - Mason, Nikki and I sure did enjoy ourselves.

Max and Mason

Tribune Guest Book Coming Down

I just sent out an e-mail to all of Jenny's address book to notify everyone that the online Guest Book is coming down on June 18. Like an idiot, I forgot to include the link in the e-mail. So, I've included it here. Jenny's Guest Book

While you're here, feel free to read what Mason and I have been up to lately.

With love
Max and Mason

I'll Never Forget

That Day, One Year Ago

On Wednesdays, Jenny would work the opening shift at Marshall Field & Co. at Water Tower Place. She would drive her car to the Green Line stop at Harlem Avenue and catch the El around 7:30 in the morning. Wednesday, June 14, 2006 started out like any other Wednesday.

I got out of bed around 7:00 to be greeted by an already showered and dressed, beautiful wife of 15 years. Mason got up a few minutes later and we said goodbye to Mama. Like many couples, we exchanged the "I'll see you tonight" and a peck, I had no idea that I'd never see her or hold her again. I hopped in the shower and got ready for work, it was summer vacation and my first job of the day was to drop Mason off at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Jenny would be there after work to pick her up.

I held a weekly sales meeting at my office on Wednesdays, we started at 9:00. I don't recall the meeting topic, but I'm sure it revolved around things like improving client retention, finding more clients or increasing productivity - pretty normal stuff in any business. I went about my day, talking to clients, reassuring loan officers, eating lunch at my desk, structuring loans, etc. Everything was normal until I got that call from Mason around 4:45 saying, "Mama's not here yet. I've called Marshall Field's, they said she left a couple of hours ago." I told her, "There's probably something wrong with the El, or she missed her bus. She'll be there soon."

I tried to reach Jenny on her cell, nothing, just got her voicemail. "Hi, this is Jenny. You've reached my cell phone, please leave a message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can."

About 30 minutes later, Mason called again. "Papa, Mama's still not here. She always calls if she's going to be late." I reassured my daughter and told her I would track her mother down and call her back in a couple of minutes. At this point, I wasn't worried - who would be? Jenny was only an hour and a half late, by Chicago's (and mine) standards, that's not too unusual - but, Mason was right, this was strange by Jenny's standards.

When I called Marshall Field's, I was told that someone would have to call me back. "Now that's odd," I thought. After about five minutes, no call, so I called back. This time I was transferred to someone in HR. I asked if he knew what time Jenny left work, he said that there had been an accident at work and that someone else would call me back. I explained that my office is only a few minutes away, and that I'd be right over. I gave him my cell number for this other person to call me back and promptly left the office.

I was at the intersection of Chicago and Wells when my phone rang. It was a detective with the Chicago Police Dept. He told me that Jenny had had a serious accident and asked if he could send a squad car to pick me up. When I told him I was only a few blocks away, he told me where to park and that officers would be waiting for me, and that they would watch my car while I went into the store.

I hung up the phone. Now I was worried. My heart started racing. What happened? How badly is she hurt? It must be bad, the cops are going to "watch" my car, during rush-hour in downtown Chicago! When I arrived at the spot where the detective told me to go, two officers greeted me. "Are you Mr. Rose?"

"Yes"

One of the officers said, "We'll watch your car, you should go in and ask for the HR Manager."

"OK"

"Mr. Rose, prepare yourself. It's pretty bad."

I literally felt my knees buckle and my heart drop into my stomach as I began to walk toward the entrance. I was met by a woman wearing a radio earpiece, she asked me to follow her. I did. (While I recall most of the details of this tragic day, I don't remember everyone's name. I could probably, if I thought hard enough, but for a few of the people involved, this was the first and last day I saw them - so it makes it hard to remember). We, along with several other security and management personnel, walked through some back rooms and hallways till we reached the loading dock of the store. There, just before we got on the elevator to go to the stock room, the woman pulled me aside and told me that Jenny had died.

I was in shock. I just stood there with a blank look on my face. I thought, "this woman is crazy", "what am I doing here?", "just shut-up and take me to her." We rode the freight elevator up to the 6th floor stock room where a couple of detectives asked me to "have a seat".

"No, I'll stand. Where's my wife?" I just stood there with a blank stare and tears rolling down my face. My mind was racing and standing still at the same time. After they asked me a few questions, I asked again. "Where's Jenny, can I see her?" The policeman advised against that. He said that the paramedics had done everything to revive her, but their efforts were unsuccessful.

At that point, I lost it. I cried, I screamed, I threw things - I just lost it. About the time I calmed down, Lisa showed up. Lisa is one of Jenny's long-time friends. A few minutes later, Tracey appeared, then Elly. Word had traveled quickly (much quicker to them than to me - throughout all of this, remember that Mason and I had been trying to find out where Jenny was for several hours. Nobody called us. The only reason we found out anything when we did, is because Jenny was late. What if she had an appointment after work? What if she planned on stopping by her real estate office? Who knows when we would have been told?) After a long time of crying and explaining to Lisa, Tracey and Elly, Elly offered to drive me home and a couple of Marshall Field's employees followed in my car. Now comes the hard part...

On the way home, I called Jenny's brother, Rob, in Florida. I also called Jenny's parents and explained that Jenny had an accident and I would be home in a few minutes to fill them in.

While the rest of the evening is quite vivid, I don't think I can write the details here. Not yet. Maybe someday.

Our lives are much different one year later. My goals have changed, my objectives are different. Somedays I don't know which end is up - and unfortunately, bad things continue to happen and we have to deal with them. It hasn't gotten easier yet. I hope it will, until then we'll just keep getting through each day as best we can. Jenny, we miss you!

Love,

Max and Mason

How an 8th Grade Science Teacher and His Bunny Really Messed Up My Day

Today is the last day of school for Mason and all her friends. We've started summer!

A lot of the normal things happened with the end of the school year; cleaning out the locker, rowdiness, saying goodbye to teachers and friends, signing yearbooks - oh, and giving away the classroom pets. This year, there were leeches (yuck), snails and a bunny.

For those of you who don't know, we have a houseful of pets. Daisy, Lily, Murphy, Stephanie and several aquatic creatures. The last thing we need is another furry friend in our home (at least that's my opinion, Mason thinks differently). Apparently, a science teacher at school has a bunny that he no longer wants, so he offered it up for grabs. At least he had the sense to require parental authorization. Maybe he just needs a home improvement loan? On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday - Mason attempted to get that authorization from me. It all started out nicely, "Papa, can we get a bunny?" to which I replied, "No, we're not getting a bunny." Variations of this exchange went on for three days!

Normally, Mason and I agree. I've found it's just easier this way and neither of us ever asks for things that the other finds too difficult to accommodate - but I feel very strongly about this, we aren't getting a bunny. This disagreement really took its toll on us. I think we both spent more tears on this subject than any other in the past few months combined. Mason, is, of course, upset because she feels very strongly about "getting this bunny" and I was upset for causing her to be upset. It's no secret that I dote on her. I love her and want her to have everything, but I just can't have the responsibility of another pet.

In the end, other than some hurt feelings, we're OK. Things seem to be back to normal, whatever that is? Jenny, I hope you would approve. I sure do miss you.

Mason's Hero

Yesterday, Mason gave me a folder that contained homework assignments from each year all the way back to kindergarten. Apparently, they compile this information each year and give it back to the students at the end of 6th grade. It was great reading through her "works of art". One in particular was extremely moving. I've transcribed it below, mispelling and grammar are all Mason's (I see worse from adults, everyday in business). This was written when she was in the 3rd grade, her teacher was Mrs. Miller at Lincoln School in River Forest.

My Hero

By: Mason Rose

2.20.04

Who is your hero? Mine is my mom. She takes care of me in a very kind way. She is a hard worker, she does work every day. Whether it is at home or at her job. She always loves me know matter what I do. My mom is a hero to me, and she is the most kind person I know.

In the morning my mom starts off with a kind start. Every morning she brushes my smooth shiny red hair. Sometimes my mom does it hard, but I forgive her. It's kind to me because even though I can do it myself it's nice of her to do it anyway. After she brushes my hair on weekends, she usally plays with me. Sometimes we play games like pick up stick or cur plunk. Sometimes we play board games like "What would Lizzie do?, chekers or mollopaly. My mom even plays hide and go seek with me or we play on the computer. My Mom is kind as a kitten, but also is works as hard as an elephant. My mom is a hard worker. She loves to work in the yard. Sometimes I work in the yard too. My mom makes the yard look beautifil. She plants flowers every spring, mows the lawn and plants new grass if we need it. When ever my mom plants flowers with me the squirrels always dig the flowers up again, but we keep trying. She offen goes to work insted of staying home. My mom is a realetor (she sells houses). She also works at Marshall Fields. Her name is Jennifer Rose. She mostly sells lipsticks, perfume, and lots of make-up. She offen goes on the computer to see what homes to sell or to see what homes are selling. My mom works very hard but loves me just as much.

My mom is a loving person. Whenever I'm hurt she takes care of me. For example when I fell off my bike my knee was gushing with red blood. My mom gave me some stingey medicine and a big bandaid. After that she always holds me. Every night she saids good-night, we read a story, she gives me a hug and a kiss, and don't forget she tucks me in.

Hero's come in all shaps and sizes. My mom is a blond headed hero. My mom treats me very kindly. She is a hard worker, whether it is at home or at work. She loves me know matter what. My mom is a hero to me, and know one can ever replace her.

Happy 12th Birthday Mason!

Well, I'm only about 3 weeks late posting this announcement. I really need to find the time (scheduling and self discipline were never my strongest subjects) to post to this regularly.

Mason turned 12 on May 8th. We had an eventful birthday week ;-0 Uncle Rob (or as Mason calls him, Ant Rob - long story) and his daughter Hannah came up from Florida for the event for a few days. It was good to see them again.

Mason invited a few friends to Margie's Candies for some ice cream sundaes and we all had a great time. It's one of those old fashioned ice cream parlors - same location for almost 90 years! We also had a nice dinner with Jenny's parents, Ant Rob and Hannah. Elly, Shannon and Tracey stopped by for some pizza and soda too. More photos here.

I can't believe that she is 12. She's quite a young lady, pierced ears and everything now - growing up too fast. 6th grade ends next Friday and then we start our big summer. Plans are coming together and I'm really going to try to post more often.