Muscle Cars

Just in case you don't know, I have the best family ever.

Specifically - the best father ever.

Now what makes a father so fantastic you ask?  Several things really.  

The first and foremost reason that my dad is so awesome is that he has four daughters and not one shotgun.  That, dear readers, is an accomplishment in itself.  

For with Steve Keusch, there is no need to brandish such means of intimidation.  

Don't know my father?  That is probably impossible.  

He actually knows everyone on this planet.  I have witnessed him strike up a conversation with someone he "knows" in every county of Indiana, several counties south of the river in Kentucky and even standing alongside the sparkling canals of Venice, Italy.  Admittedly he doesn't "know" these people per se - perhaps the better idiom is that he doesn't know a stranger.  

He listens.  He jokes.  

He makes you feel like what you have to say is pretty darn important - but he will not listen to bull.  He is a walking talking bullshit detector.  I know this first-hand.

He also takes time for his kids like no other dad in the world...there are 5 of us, so that is pretty darn time consuming.  He gives extra time on top of that for his grandkids...a mere 3 of those at the moment, but even if each of us has only two babies, I expect 10 grandchildren will keep him rather occupied in the future.  That's a lot of chocolate to hand out when Mommy and Daddy aren't looking...

The Bosses and the Fam

But the top top reason he is so great.  

He and my mom taught us how to be good.  

Good at everything we try.  Even if we are shit at whatever it is, they wanted us to succeed at life, not just at one thing.  This is the very reason why I can sew, cook, bake, change a tire, use a powertool, garden, wash a car, sand a fender...the list goes on. 

Instilled in each of us are the family values and work ethic that make our family a successful unit.  

Also instilled in all of us is a love for Muscle Cars.  

Random, you say?  Not if you know my father...

The family grocery-getter...

 I spent the formative years of my youth riding around in the back of this 1968 GT500KR Shelby. It was my mom's car, and if I am not mistaken, they really didn't know what the heck they had on their hands.  

I vividly remember being a backseat passenger in another GT500 Shelby riding round the Indianapolis Motor Speedway...my sister Keena and I taking the racing straps from the front to tether us in, as the angle of the track had us sliding all over the backseat.  My mom was probably about 38 weeks pregnant with my brother Kail...so these memories were made for us even whilst in the womb.

Every time I smell gasoline, exhaust from a carburated engine, or moth balls I am immediately transported back to my childhood - packing up the Shelby to take a ride for the weekend car show in Brown County national park.  Once a year, every May since I can remember...this was a pretty big deal for us kids.  We usually saw these "car friends" on just this one special occasion.
We were allowed to run free among the rows of polished muscle cars (never touching of course...the very first lesson we were taught upon delivery into this world).

We ran through the forests of the park all day, being sure to make it back for chili and hot dogs at lunch.  It was a different time...who knew back then that these family trips, all the car-washing, chamois-ing, and Armor All would stick with me for the rest of my life like it has. 

 The last time I spent that special yearly weekend in May with my family in Brown County, Indiana was two days before I left for Italy...an appropriate last weekend all together. 

Big blue sky and trees as far as the eye can see....I love Indiana...

And since that departure, there is not much more I long for than to once again spend that particular weekend stateside .  Plus the added desire to pass the Muscle Car love on to my baby girl...

We start 'em young...

So, while my husband is indeed a slightly younger version of my car-enthusiast father; he tends to favour the wrong side of the 70s....as well as the wrong side of the Atlantic.  He looks at and drools over British motors which I have never heard of, and all the while I can't imagine why he or anyone else for that matter wouldn't want to run a Classic Mustang.

My favourite!

 Agree to disagree I guess...because these wonderful days that formed my character and formed our strong Keusch family bond come in part from the hard work of the patriarch, Steve. 

Hard work as a body man, and even harder work as a daddy to all of us.  

One day I promise I will be back to help wash the cars and set out on the road to Brown County...

xoxo sjkh

PS - Family pictures taken by the fab Miss Meghan Hochgesang ; MH Photography ...Indiana people, you should RUN to your telephone to book her up.  Like, NOW.  For real, she is the best.


PPS- Did you know that my father is a rough customer to convince him to travel this way to come visit?  Do you think this worked??

Bucket list?

After nearly SEVEN years living here in Italy, I have come to realise that I have been doing just that.  

Living in Italy.

While I have made the most of my life here, I suddenly get this strangely proud feeling in my stomach when I think about the things I have done while I have been living here - some AMAZING things honestly.  

But that strange feeling quickly turns to knots when I think about the things that I HAVEN'T done while I have been living here.  

It's funny how a life that is beautiful and comfortable can suck you in no matter where you are at.  I was the same in Indiana to be honest.  I had no desire to really get out there, to see what there was outside my fun little bubble in Indianapolis...until I met Henry and that all changed.  

So I made the big jump...I came here seven years ago full of adventure and full of the desire to learn, to see and to experience.  And I have.  

Don't get me wrong here ladies and gents, I have certainly taken this life and grabbed it by the proverbial 'palle'.  I became quasi-fluent in a language I had ZERO words in (unless you count, pizza, spaghetti and 'non parlo italiano') and that took me about 2 years.  After that, I organised not one but TWO of my own weddings using said language - and subsequently threw the two best damn wedding parties I have ever attended (third best being round three in Indiana...).  

I gestated and pushed out a perfect baby girl hopped up on nothing but meditation and a few curse words...all through social healthcare believe it or not!  

I have seen many places - London, Austria, a bit of Germany, Slovenia, Monaco and the south of France.  But still I feel this knot rising up in my belly...

Why, I wonder.  The simple answer is this.  I am a mamma and wifey extraordinaire.  Last weekend I took my girly to a 'paperine' (little ducks) swimming lesson, worked, and then spent the days chasing her and the chickens around the garden and watching dvds.  

So when people enquire about all the wonderful things that Europe has to offer and the things I have had the amazing opportunity to see, I kind of have a mini panic attack.  

I am largely a homebody.  I love the Hart Compound Monfumo. 

So, I need to make myself a bucket list...if not just to make me feel better.  

I need to at least PRETEND that I have more of a desire to see the world than to just sit and tend to my tomatoes and basil in the veggie patch.  

So here it is - My bucket list of European places not done but definitely must do...

1) See Paris - Even if it is a solo journey.  Hubs is not a fan, so it would be hard as I am completely LOST with the French language...
2) Visit Spain - Not so picky where!  If for nothing than to just brush off my Spanish and eat tapas.
3) See the Vatican - A quick trip around Rome didn't cut it.  I want to see more!
4) Visit the south of Italy - Maybe not Napoli, but I'm thinking beaches, lemons and sun...
5) See Berlin - If just to see what remains of the divide...history not to be missed.
6) Spend more than an afternoon in Venice.  Sounds weird, as it is in my backyard, but I have never seen the sun set over Grand Canal. 

...and here is one I will be able to check off this list at the weekend...

7) See my baby girl learn how to ski on the SAME piste where I learned to ski 7 years ago...

Wow.  Where has the time gone...?  

So, What's on your bucket list?

xoxo sjkh