Marsha, Marsha, Marsha! 

This is a serious biography of the HUGS and HOPE Club founder. For the funnier one, click here.

I'm a disabled grandma in northern Wisconsin (where winter lingers longer -- as in forever). I love Maxine, Hallmark's crabby old lady.  She's my mentor!

I also like sunshine, jokes that make me laugh, pizza, the smell of babies (CLEAN babies, that is), and classical guitar music.  The reason I get out of bed in the morning is CHOCOLATE!

One of my favorite proverbs is "With a sweet tongue and kindness, you can drag an elephant by a hair."  I have a lot of favorite Bible verses, but three of them are:  "The tongue of the wise brings healing" and "I know the plans I have for you.  They are plans for good and not for evil.  To give you a future and a hope" and "We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed.  Perplexed, but not in despair.  Struck down, but not destroyed."  

Some of my favorite quotations include these:  "My mind is a garden.  My thoughts are the seeds.  My harvest will be either flowers or weeds." (by Mel Weldon) and "Pain is inevitable, but misery is optional." 

The best advice I ever received was this:  "When you're feeling blue, don't watch "Old Yeller", do not open your credit card bill, under no circumstances weigh yourself, stay away from mirrors, never try on swimming suits, and don't go near a chocolate shop!"

I wear size nine shoes, if anyone cares; and I'm sitting smack dab in the middle of what my (so-called) life turned out to be!  Come on, say it out loud with me all you mouseketeer-watching, hula hoop spinning baby boomers:  We have entered the middle ages.  We cannot identify any more with Wally and the Beav.  We have become June and Ward Cleaver!!!!!  Though I am considerably younger than the statue of liberty, I will never be Miss Teenage America. I'm well over 50 (but still nifty),  and I've discovered that life not only begins at fifty, it begins to SHOW!  And wisdom doesn't always come with age.  Sometimes age comes all by itself and it ain't pretty!  At my age, there's nothing scarier than looking in the mirror first thing in the morning.

I have three brothers and two sisters.  I was a middle child.  This is a handy excuse for everything that's wrong with me.

 I've battled blubber, migraines, and depression all my life.    I have impaired vision from complications of my Mixed Connective Tissue Disease, but I strive to live by this Bible verse:  "Fix your eyes not on what is seen, but what is unseen.  For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."  (2 Corinthians 4:16).  I try to thank God for even the smallest of things, whether I feel like it or not, because I've learned that if  I flood my mind with good thoughts, they push out the bad thoughts.  I concentrate on what I can do, rather than on what I can't do.

 Lupus-like diseases cause chronic fatigue and muscle and joint pain, as well as headaches and other symptoms. Since I have this illness, I don't think I can be an organ donor; but I do plan to leave my body to science for research. I'm sure Science will be delighted to study my brain (assuming that they find one in my head).

Here's a photo of me with JUSTIN B, one of the special HUGS and HOPE Club kids.  I was fortunate to meet him before he passed away from liver, lung, and brain cancer.  (Click on thumbnail photos to enlarge them for better viewing.)

My mom died  of emphysema - a chronic lung disease caused by smoking.  She suffered for many years as her lungs got weaker and weaker. I also had an uncle and two aunts who suffered horribly and died with lung cancer.  My husband and I were in shock when we learned that our  son was diagnosed with lung cancer -- though he never took a puff of a cigarette in his life. 

60% of lung cancer victims didn't smoke themselves but got cancer from the second hand smoke of those around them.  Consequently,   I  ABSOLUTELY DETEST  CIGARETTES  and I shamelessly nag people to quit smoking.

Because of my physical limitations,   I'm not very active anymore and I have gained a lot of weight in recent years.  These days, putting my shoes on is tougher than giving birth ever was! When I bend over to tie them up, I practically pass out because of the lack of oxygen to my brain and it feels like my intestines are being squeezed out my ears! 

Here is a picture of me with my grandson, Cobi.

He's much older now.  In spite of the fact that we were on the same intelligence level for a few years, he has now outgrown me. He tells me I need to find some younger kids to play with.

I have one son and one husband who is older than dirt (to whom I've been married for 35 years now -- with the aid of intensive therapy and strong drugs). 

Below is a picture of me and my hubby.  This is not how we normally look.  We got fixed up for the photo, we usually look much worse.   (click to enlarge photo)

We have a badly behaved, brain-damaged toy poodle with bladder control problems.  His name is King Louie and he rules our household with an iron paw.  He's completely untrainable and has the worst fish breath on earth.  Recently, he had several teeth pulled, so we now call him the toothless wonder dog.  Lucky for him he's cute.  It's his one and only redeeming quality. If he hadn't been this cute, he never would have lived this long.  He's going on 14 years old.

My husband is a craftsman who restores antique wood boats.  My son is a talented artist and Blues guitarist (his album to was released October 2009); and my grandson is the cutest, sweetest, smartest,  most wonderful child in the world! (In my objective opinion).  Unlike the rest of my family, I have no talent whatsoever.  I make up for that, though, with my sparkling personality.  (Check out my son's CD here)

My hobbies include collecting antiques, shopping (but only if I can spend mass quantities of money),  ignoring my dirty house, and aerobic eating (in restaurants, never my own cooking). I am a nutritional over-achiever.   I am addicted to rubber stamping too, so I always have ink-stained fingers and glitter on my face.   

Over the years, I've been a Kindergarten Sunday School Teacher, a Boy Scout and 4-H Leader, a volunteer reading tutor, a "Picture Lady" (teaching art appreciation), a home-schooling mom, a publicist for a nature book and tape company, a real estate analyst, an administrative assistant for a college dean, a hospital registrar, an Avon lady, a Shaklee distributor, a Home Interiors Demonstrator, a rubber stamping demonstrator and a preschool teacher (not all at the same time, however). I've done a lot of different things because I'm not afraid to try something new.  That's because I remember that amateurs built the ark.   

All this experience makes me feel entitled to give advice to everyone I know and even to a few strangers on the street.  I feel like I know EVERYTHING.  Oh no!  I've become my mother!!!!!

My dad is a health food/vitamin fanatic who is in great shape.  I'm in shape too -- round is a shape!  My dad just turned 82; and he has the body of a 60 year old.  He brags about how many hundreds of pushups and sit ups he can do.  He hasn't found anyone who does more than he can.  Below is a picture of him with his favorite child.  (haha - it's me).  He's a fantastic person whom I admire.  He taught me how to love unselfishly and unconditionally and to live with integrity - as well as countless other desirable values - and I get my crazy sense of humor from him.

He instilled in his kids a strong conscience.  (That's the thing that hurts when everything else feels good.)  He also taught me the value of a positive attitude and a sense of humor.  You'll see what I mean when you click to enlarge this picture of him:

He's gotten me into taking a lot of vitamins and herbs.  I pray that they go straight to my brain where the cells are dying off at an alarming rate.  I hope the supplements will help me to live to be 100.  So far, so good.  I'm halfway there.

As you've probably noticed, I like to laugh.   Remember: You don't stop laughing because you grow old, you grow old because you stopped laughing.  Lucky for me, I get a good chuckle every time I look in a mirror!

For more laughs, BUY MY BOOK!

Check out my FUNNY life story. Click here 

Thanks for stopping in to get to know me better.

Warning: Reader assumes full responsibility for proper use of this web site. These words are for external use only.  Do not swallow them.  If you do, induce vomiting or don't, whatever you prefer.  Discontinue if rash, redness, irritation, or crossed eyes develop.  Side-effects may include itchy teeth,  uncontrollable drooling, projectile diarrhea, and mild to severe chocolate cravings. Do not read while operating heavy machinery, flying an aircraft,  or sleeping. Keep away from open flames, dogs in heat,  and toddlers.  Do not place in bathtub or toilet. Views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the infamous Marsha Brady, anyone else calling herself "Marsha, Marsha, Marsha!"  or any person real or fictitious, living or dead.   This web site is void where prohibited.

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