Yia Yia 100th Birthday Video (2-15-1916)

[@Doh1961]

Happy Birthday Yiayia! How wonderful! Thank you Grendrel for sharing this with me. I hope all is well with you. Take Care, Pete

[@Grendelmonster8u]

+Pete Friis Hi Pete! Thank you. You're always so sweet to watch my family videos. People who meet her always love her and she remembers everyone. I hope you are doing well and surviving the winter. Take care of yourself too. (:

[@Doh1961]

+Grendelmonster8u You are welcome. I bet your grandmother has some great stories. :)

[@Grendelmonster8u]

Pete Friis She does and her long term memory is great. Since she was born in 1916 think of the history. She has an interesting story about when her family had to be quarantined in their house due to Scarlet Fever which her brother got and it damaged his brain so he was like a man-child his whole life and what we then called "retarded." But, yes, his growth was retarded by the disease. He was sweet. PLus when she moved after 76 years in her house, I acquired one of her photo albums out of zillions with old photos. So she lived through the Great Depression, wars, Prohibition, diseases we didn't have vaccinations for yet, places that had a Golden Age like Coney Island, Atlantic City, etc. where she'd go frequently, etc. Plus, since my grandfather died in 1973 she travelled all over. When over her house a year or so ago we played Boggle (forming words out of letter dice) and she loves Yahtzee, which is kind of brainless and chance, but I've played it since a kid). So her cognitive abilities and writing are the same as 30 40 years ago. She's getting a little more short term memory problems, but then people my age are losing that. I'll ask her what she had for breakfast for the last two days and she remembers, but my sister doesn't. Hard of hearing too but she has a hearing aid. It's really just physical issues--bad knee, rotator cuffs, and walking up stairs is nearly impossible to she needs ramps or for people to pick her up. She has only had one tooth pulled though I lost one when I was in my 20s. Once at the hospital the nurse asked her to take her teeth out. She said, "I can't." Those are her real teeth and straighter than mine! They also did a brain scan and told her brain is like a 60 year old's. Some people just get lucky. She's never been a drinker, smoker, and never drove a car. In the old days she could just walk downtown to all the stores like my other grandmother. However she and her parents were both born in the US and the old people in the video are her grandparents in Greece. Her father's candy store was cool. Boy would I love that! I have a serious sweet tooth. She really liked being independent so that is why she lived alone until a year ago because it's just too hard. Where she lives now near my uncle near DC is like a hotel or cruiseship. They have tons of activities, a movie theater, salon, pool tables, art classes, and she even does exercise classes--basically lifting weights. You should see the place. It's fancy...dining rooms, bars, library, computer room, etc. It must be very expensive, but my uncle has been a big time attorney and hardly poor. He's the kind who has argued in front of the Supreme Court of the US, real big cases, huge law firm, Princeton/Harvard grad. My grandparents produced three very intelligent kids. That generation had a strong work ethic given their parents had to struggle. My other grandmother was not born here and never learned to speak English well and she was a housewife and everyone spoke Greek to her, but she watched TV. She was from a village so when my father was young she had chickens in the back whose heads she would chop off. She too could walk to stores and they were all separate--a butcher shop, etc. Both of my grandfathers owned successful diners. Unfortunately my grandfather died before I was born. She had a special affection for me, I think because I am tall and she was taller than me, and she thought I was pretty. Ha ha because she'd always say that. I guess everyone has their taste. Unlike most Greeks her hair was light brown before white. So she was of an older stock, so to speak. Most every Greek I know has naturally black hair. Two of my cousins in the video got their mother's German hair while the one who made this video got the Greek hair. (Of course women color their hair.) Anyway, she's so well liked and she'd meet strangers whether here or in Europe and then send them cards. Considering that she lived alone from 1973-2014, and was very independent, I guess she likes attention. She was also a huge photo taker, thankfully, and I have the old 8mm films. I taught her to use my iPAD. When she said my cousins have all these new digital cameras, she pointed to my iPAD and said, "I want one of those!" Lol. I had her search online herself and there's an article about her still online. She was also reading my emails. ((: You can teach old dogs tricks. I had to teach my father on his computer at work...from turning it on, etc. His clerks got excited because he hadn't been reading his emails. But he's always complaining that I spend too much time online though he doesn't really know. He'll read news, but he's still a newspaper guy. Oh, my grandmother also reads the obituaries to practice her math. Anything to keep her mind sharp. Plus she reads and helps her 9 great-grandchildren with their homework since she loves teaching. I'm babbling...sorry if it's boring. Have a great day, and thank you so much for keeping in touch. I hope all is well with you. (:

[@Doh1961]

+Grendelmonster8u Grendel, I love hearing from you. I have never thought of you as a babbler and you are never boring. :) WOW! I think it is great that you were able to learn about the history of your family, and most of it first hand. I think it is very interesting. My parents were married in 1939 and I was born late into their marriage. (1961) Three of my grand parents had already died by that time. My only grandmother died in 1966 so I barely remember her. Thank you for sharing some of your history with me. I really do like those kind of things :) I will keep in touch with ya .Most of time it will be outta the blue like it has been. I don't want to pester ya too much haha. Take care, have wonderful spring & summer.

[@Grendelmonster8u]

Pete Friis Thank you for your kind words, Pete. Enjoy your spring too. Warmer here today, so I hope we won't have more snow. We have gotten snow in April before, so I don't too excited in March. Talk to you soon. (:

[@RebekahCurielAlessi]

Thank you for this miraculously wonderful video. I watched it cuz I miss YiaYia, my sister's mother in law who passed last year fighting covid. Thank you for sharing your grandma's joyful, beautiful and inspiring life. Blessings.♥️

[@Grendelmonster8u]

That’s very sweet of you to say. I was surprised when I saw your comment on this video and wondered how you came across it. I’m sorry to hear about your family’s loss. She must have been a lovable person. My cousin made this video for my Yiayia’s 100th birthday. She is now 105 1/2 years old. She’s still healthy, still has her original teeth, just hard of hearing but is now showing some mental wear. (Memory.) Because of COVID we missed celebrating her birthday and had to do it on Zoom. She is very loved at her assisted living place and they decorated a room in her favorite color purple in party fashion. She looked happy as always…loves the attention. We figure part of why she’s lived long is her happy disposition, 15 grandchildren and great grandchildren to watch grow up and she wasn’t sedentary after my grandfather died in 1973-she traveled a lot. She has had a good life. Thank you for your comment. 💕

[@RebekahCurielAlessi]

@@Grendelmonster8u oh.... blessings and gratitudes for responding to me and including me somehow in your grandma's web of merriment and appreciation for this wonderful, colorful and sometimes disappointing life we share, and, for including details about someone (YiaYia) of whom I am enamored since meeting some few hours past.... Your YiaYia's mirth is a hundred percent transmitted through the tiny screen on my phone like beams of light and just as enlightening. I believe I was listening to your presentation of Stephen Still's So Begins the Task? and was taken by your sensitive editing and pressed "look back" or, you know...."see what else this person offers on KZbin"... Thank you so much again for responding and for giving me a rare second chance to appreciate my nieces' YiaYia who slipped away before I could barely acknowledge nor even mourn her... your grandma looks so similarly to my niece Gina with whom I have a special connection. ♥️♥️♥️♥️

[@almostafa4725]

@@Grendelmonster8u America is a terrorist state