What would Bobbie do?

A Marathon for Bobbie by Zeynep Kilic

Greetings friends!

As you know I am raising money for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society as a participant in their Team In Training and I'm asking you to help by making a contribution. I am running the marathon in Alaska in late June in honor of my friend Jen's mother Bobbie. I am up to 14 miles on my long runs and plan to run 16 miles this weekend.

Each donation helps accelerate cures for leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma and brings hope to the patients and families who are on the front lines of the battle against these diseases. I want to thank all of you who already donated so generously. Even if you cannot donate would you be kind enough to send this email to your network of friends? You never know who is touched by cancer and they might donate on my behalf even if they do not know me personally.

Please use the link in this email to donate online quickly and securely. You will receive a confirmation by email of your donation and I will be notified as soon as you make your donation.

On behalf of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, thank you very much for your support. I really appreciate your generosity!

You can learn more about my efforts and make a donation by visiting my Web site:

http://www.active.com/donate/tntdms/tntdmsZKilic

If you would like to donate by check, please write your checks to "The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society" and mail them to me:
Zeynep Kilic
16013 S Desert Foothills Parkway, #2064
Phoenix, AZ 85048-8450
(I will send you a receipt when I receive the checks)

P.S. Please forward this email to as many people as you can to encourage them to donate as well!

Happy Bobbie's Birthday to us all!

Tomorrow is Mom's birthday, and as you may know she asked us all to lift a glass to her in celebration of a life lived hard and well on what would have been her 80th birthday. Ok, actually she asked for more than a glass, so drink well and laugh and have a peek at the picture gallery on the left, under Bobbie's Farewell Tour. All the pictures aren't organized yet, and there are hundreds and hundreds more yet to scan, but hopefully this will give us all a few smiles and memories to share. If you have photos you'd like to add to the gallery, please send them to me at bpetzen@gmail.com, and if you have captions to contribute, send them along as well. Happy Mom's birthday, everyone, and here's to all she gave us!

Don Steiner created a great card for Mom way back when, and I've been trying to figure out how to post it. Here it is--you will need Acrobat to see it--it's wonderful! Thank you, Don. Download dons_rebus_card_for_bobbie.pdf

The party at Kizkalesi, Dec. 06

Jennifer and Kim, Barbara and Liam, and Mary and Saige all met up in Kizkalesi in December to host one last grand party for Mom in her apartment. We spent days reminiscing with Miryam and Shahin and the Rain crew,visiting Yasar and friends in Silifke, traipsing through the ruins and pouring libations to all her favorite gods (Tyche, Zeus, Poseidon and Dionysis, you'd best be feting her as she deserves!) at Uzuncaburc and Kanlidivane and Heaven and Hell, saying hi to folks (and cats) at Narlikuyu, and, of course, shopping and eating. We made lots of Mom's favorite dishes: brownies, chocolate chip cookies, apple pie, apricot meatballs, lots of cheese and crackers, and purchased (what a surprise!) copious amounts of raki and wine. The party (photos coming soon) was a blast, with tons of people from Mom's checkered past showing up along with a couple of journalists who kept snapping away all day. We shared memories of Mom for a couple of hours and then went down to the beach to raise our glasses in her memory in her favorite place. In fact, during those weeks, many, many, many glasses were raised!
Just before Barb and Liam left to return to the States, we took a dawn voyage by boat out around the castle, scattering Mom's ashes into her beloved sea. Sorry the water was so cold, Mom, but at least we adulterated it pretty well with raki to keep you warm!

Someone to watch over me...

George watched over Bobbie, his partner in passion and Democraty, from his post over her bed.

A Celebration of the Life Well (and Truly) Lived

I can't believe she's gone--every day I hit the forward button on a good joke or outrageous news story, or reach for the phone, or put my hand on her doorknob...and then remember she's not there. Still, I don't really believe it--her absence still feels like a dreadful, annoying but somehow temporary emptiness that can't possibly stay. Nature, after all, abhors a vacuum.

So let's fill that vacuum with all the joy and passion and outrage and, above all, good food and friends and fun that Mom exemplified for all of us! I told her that I planned to create a website in her honor, and for the last weeks -- when we lived every day so hard it hurt -- she kept coming up with things she wanted on her site. "Recipes!" she cried out one morning at 5:30, startling me off the sofa. "You have to put up all the recipes for our favorite foods!" "The ones we make, or the ones we ate somewhere else?" I asked. "Is there some reason for moderation here that I don't see?" she asked archly.

That's Mom all over--no reason for moderation if joyful excess will serve! So herein expect an excess of excesses--lots of recipes, photos, and memories from all her friends, favorite sites she loved to visit, tributes, etc. If you have 'em to add, the blog format will let you post whatever you like by clicking on "Comments" below or at the end of one of the posts in the categories to the right. If you have any problems, email me at bpetzen@gmail.com and I will add your contribution to the site.