The Chronicles of Ricky: 2008

2008

Hanging at Paul's in Stafford Springs

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Dom's first real snowman. That's how I labeled this picture, like it matters. lol

I think this was because the previous years snow sucked and I was finally able to build a real snowman, not a tiny nothing.

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February

The Rex Lounge in Chicopee: Fist Fight Night

The 7th (date on Banks 2021 paperwork)

It started as a normal night of Karaoke. I was there with my dad, Mary W, Darlene, B, Reno, Tony Cross, Erica Larner and a bunch of other regulars including Dino and Kathy.

I swear it was not my fault, I was minding my own business. Either way, we were all sitting at a table by the front door, Darlene was sitting across the table from me, with her back to the wall, Reno was sitting to my right and we were just talking, goofing around and waiting for our turns to sing karaoke.

Then this guy that looked just like Magnum Pi, he had the 80s hair and mustache, he was tall, muscular, and I guess he felt like it was his lucky night. He came over to our table, leaned in close to Darlene and started getting flirty.

I guess it started with him whispering stuff in her ear, but at some point his mustache brushed her neck, so she asked him to stop. lol

I remember someone said something to me, but I didn't witness this incident, so I didn't care, lol I wasn't going to get upset over something I didn’t see, so I just ignored it. I assumed people were just feeling the alcohol.

A few minutes go by and this guy's back over next to Darlene and the same thing happened again.

The next few moments were like slow motion.

I remember hearing Reno ask this guy to nicely to step away, he said something like; she's asked you not to do that, and that's when this Magnum Pi looking guy says to Reno- "you want a punch in the mouth" and then he just hauls off and punches Reno in the mouth. lol

Looking back now, I don't think that guy punched Reno that hard in the mouth, but it was the heat of the moment, so I just responded.

Before Reno even had time to touch his lip, I burst from my chair, I shoved Reno out of the way, which incidentally threw him to the floor, which I didn't even realize. lol poor Reno

I just started punching this guy in the face, his head started bouncing off the wall, I hit him like 15 times, then my father yanked me away and this guy felt at a floor, blood pouring from his nose and mouth.

I saw Tony and Erica were trying to help him up, then in the heat of the moment, I don't know what the fuck I was thinking, I yanked myself away from my father, then I soccer kicked this guy in the face, before he even had a clue what was going on.

It was horrifying, I've never seen a body just drop limp like before. In my defense, this guy was a lot bigger than I was at the time and he just started swinging, so I didn't know what to do, I just reacted and it was ugly.

When the cops arrived, they started congratulating me, they said this guy has been going to local bars and picking fights with all kinds of people. The people in the ambulance were laughing because I broke this guy's nose and he had a 3 inch gash across his forehead. They said I was about time this guy got his ass kicked.

But honestly I felt like such a piece of crap.

I remember going to the bathroom after they took him away and looking in the mirror, my hands were shaking and I couldn't believe what happened, I felt so bad because that guy had to be taken off in an ambulance.

I felt strange that I like such a piece of shit while everybody was congratulating me, they thought it was such a great thing. I tried to pump myself up and go along, but it felt so fake, I didn't really feel good about beating that guy unconscious.

I think the worst part for me was that my right hand and my right foot both hurt for over a month after that. Every time I went to the gym I was reminded of that fight. I was bothered because I felt like it shouldn't have happened or there should have been another way, I still felt like I was in the right, so what are you going to do lol

Picture below of me looking like a dork around the time of the fight. lol

Picture of Darlene and I singing Picture by Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow. She didn't sing very often, but I got her to sing a couple times. lol

Mary on the Left, Hank on the right and I can’t recall the two in the middle right now.

We got to do karaoke roulette, so of course I picked ridiculous songs.

I can't remember them all, but

I wrote Jump by the Pointer Sister and Mary picked it, needless to say she didn't finish the song. lol

Tony picked "Oops I farted again" a parody of the Britany Spears hit, I picked Bitch by Meredith Brooks which wasn't really a challenge, or embarrassing. I can't remember what Steve picked, if I recall correctly he just picked his own song and pretended it came out of the hat. lol He wasn't into making fun of himself.

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Picture is of me working on my optical illusions, it looks like I'm licking my father's ear, while his girlfriend is giving him a kiss on the cheek. lol I obviously wasn't licking him.

Of course I had to take a picture of the bruise on Reno's arm.

As you can see in the pic below Reno's lip isn't swollen, but his arm is bruised from me throwing him to the ground, so I did more damage than the guy going around hitting people in the face. lol. What are friends for?

Court after

Even though that Magnum Pi guy was in the wrong, Reno and I still had to deal with this nonsense in Chicopee district court,

Reno ended up hiring an attorney, this lawyer was a complete buffoon, he didn't seem to have a clue what was going on, he even mentioned that this could take months and that I might want to hire an attorney.

I ended up arguing with the prosecutor. I thought it was a bunch of bullshit that Reno and I should have to deal with this shit at all. Reno was a victim and yeah sure, maybe I could appear guilty for defending someone else, if that’s a thing, but I only hit that guy because he sexually harassed someone, then punched someone in the face after someone politely asked him to stop.

I was furious that I was expected to explain myself over and over. I demanded to know where all the statements were from the witnesses that night and I had a list of people that were ready to testify, I thought it was fucking bullshit we had to deal with this at all.

I guess the prosecutor agreed with my way of thinking, they had us sign a paper that claimed we “didn't recall the details of that night and weren't going to pursue charges against the other parties”, we agreed it was all just a big misunderstanding. lol wtf

Then this buffoon of a lawyer has the nerve to tell me that I should become a lawyer or an investigator.

After these charges were dismissed this Magnum Pi looking guy still wanted to fight me, I guess he was a boxer, felt like I had cheated and he still had something to prove. lol

All because he hit my friend and then I hit him, cause and effect. lol

Some people never grow up, this guy was 10-15 years older than I was, he shouldn't have been acting like an angry/spoiled child, just because things didn't go his way and here he was looking to get knocked out again. lol Like I would trust this dickhead to stand toe to toe in a fair fight. Lol

Needless to say the fight never happened, I’m not sure if he changed his mind or if he was just blowing off steam.

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March 2008 I got the results of the DNA test and like I thought I wasn’t the father, but it was a cheap and interesting way to prove it, without the courts getting involved. It’s funny that I remember being annoyed that she claimed I was her baby's dad and also relieved because I was a mess, I had gotten sniped and didn’t want more kids. I felt like I had made a big enough mess for one lifetime, but there were a few drunken times that I could’ve made a bigger mess of things, so I wanted to be sure.

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April

Saturday April 19th Westfield Wildwater Canoe races, Saturday I raced with Dara in the aluminum canoe, and my dad and brother raced in a Coleman. I felt so bad for Dara, this entire race we zigzagged back and forth, we spun around like a bunch of goofballs and I had no idea that it was all the canoe's fault. She probably thought I stunk lol

Dara and I came in 12th place at that hour and 12 minutes and 53 seconds in the recreation mixed male female class. My brother and father came in 29th place at an hour and 25 minutes and 40 seconds in the Coleman class.

Dara is one of the daughters of my 6th grade teacher Mr. Kohrhamer. I used to run into him at the Planet Fitness on Carando Dr. but I don't recall if I was hanging out at Mingles or how we started talking about racing as a team.

I'm pretty sure I bragged bragged about how we are going to kick ass and then then we spun around right here like a bunch of goofballs, it was terrible, we lost so much time and we did so much worse than I thought we were going to do. lol I really don't stink that bad lol

This picture below is a reminder that my dad loved to nap. and with my low energy levels at times, I always wondered if my dad also had a mystery health issue. It's 2026 now and he's been gone for over 4 years, so it's too late to ask, so hopefully future generations won't ignore things that could be part of a larger puzzle.

The next day, Sunday the 20th I did the pro canoe races with a buddy Joe Ferrero and I got my picture in the city newspaper. I think it's hilarious that he got cut out of the picture. lol

I was much more prepared for this race after the previous day's disaster.

Found the original pic, I paid for it off of the newspaper website and I was going to frame it, since it's the only time I recall having my picture in the paper, but I like the look of the picture from the actual article better, plus with the way the text is structured, I was able to add that years pin to the frame as well.

Before the race Joe told me the only way that he gets pumped up is if ‘somebody sticks a finger in his belly button”, apparently I didn't stick my finger in far enough because we didn't win the race, but we did win our race fee back by placing 17t, I think. lol

April 30th Testing Dom's grip strength I don't know how long it took before you could actually do a pull up LOL

June

2008 Country inn and suites 2008-2009

May 12

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In June of this year I thought it would be hilarious to take this photo and have a poster made at Walgreens, because they would mail it and everything, it totaled like 20 bucks, so I couldn't resist. I thought it was the funniest thing in the world. So I had my sister take a bunch of pictures, I settled on one, uploaded it to Walgreens and I just had to wait for a response.

My uncle ended up calling me like two weeks later and asked me what the hell I was thinking. lol When I went there on vacation in 2009, he had it hanging above the mantle in his living room. He had taken some thumbtacks and pinned it there just before I arrived. I thought it was absolutely hilarious. lol I also took it back home with me that trip.

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2008-06-16

2008-06-18

Kathy also shaved Dominick's head for the first time this summer

Quabbin trip June with Paul

July

This picture below was taken at crossroads in palmer at the end of 67. I never miss an opportunity to climb something, I'm part monkey. lol

It's funny that I don't recall liking most of the music these bands were playing. lol I was just nice to be around people, in a positive atmosphere,

July back to Mt Tom we went a lot that year. Paul told me to try to look like Beaker from the Muppets, so I try to suck my face in as best I could. I think I did a good job. lol

2008- Charles "Bill" Cote died 8-16 born 12-30-1932 Erica Stebbins Grandfather, we used to go swimming at their house.

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August?

This is one of the most exciting times I had in Vermont, I jumped off this bridge a number of times. It was nice of Mary to take pictures for me.

I feel really lucky that I got to spend a lot of time with my dad during these trips.

One time I kayaked down this river, I think it was this trip, I almost caught a fish, but because of the angle and me not paying attention, it flipped the kayak. I almost lost the camera, but only ended up damaging the strap to the case. Thankfully my lures were in a case that floated. I actually only ended up losing the pliers that my dad loaned me, those at the bottom of the river somewhere. lol The water was like 3 feet deep in that area and choppy, so I could have easy lost more.

2008-09-28

I was devastated when I learned Dominic's father had died, someone had notified me while I was working at the Country Inn and Suites at Holyoke. I felt like garbage at the time, my forearms were on fire, and I was an emotional disaster. I couldn't stop thinking about all of the memories that Dominic was gonna miss out on, All the special events that his father wasn't going to get to be there for Come on it and it was eating me alive and I didn't know how to handle it, and no one else seemed to care.

I felt like I needed to step up and become a role model in his life. I did the best I could as an uncle and role model, but this world is brutal and I'm not sure how history will judge me.

lol

Being sick off and on kept me from doing as much as I wanted with him, and it made me more cautious in life.

2008 BHN 2008-2009

October 5- Bugs

I found a Preying Mantis in the front yard and showed it to Dom in the pic below. It's not often I see these anymore and even now in 2026 I can only recall seeing a few, maybe. So I always make sure to take a moment to enjoy it.

October 6- cushion tunnels

This pic below reminds me of my childhood and how I still love pillow and cushion forts. I used to set up the outdoor chair cushions like a long tunnel and Dom would crawl through. I'd attack sections and chase him through.

Carved pumpkins with the kids- I think it was around this time that I invited Darlene B and her kids to move in with us. I was not mentally in the greatest of places, but I did it anyway, I didn't know any better.

There's so much more to this story, but I need to take the time to think about it.

October Halloween at Ellie and Billy's

I get get excited every time I think of going to Ellie and Billy's. This Halloween was no different. There was a bunch of there, though i can't recall who at the moment. My mother, Kathy, Dom, Darlene, Ellie, Billy,

2008-11-14

Lillian Grace Stebbins

2008 Kirk Anthony Intellisano died 11-28 Born 6-13-1973 Nephew Dominic's father. hung-out a few times. nice guy with struggles. I remember I was devastated when Kirk died because Dominic was just a baby and I knew what it would be like for him to grow up without a father.

I think the worst part is that somebody called me at work and told me I was working out the Country Inn and Suites in Holyoke and there was nothing I could do about it, except just sit there alone at work, dwelling on on kind of things that don't help the situation and be totally unaware my imagination is trying to give me a panic attack. lol

December 2008-

I'm not sure about the date, but as always I was building a snowman after a dusting of snow. lol I gathered as much as I could and tried to make it taller than the kids, but I don't think I was able to from the look of this photo.

It really sucks looking back knowing that I let these kids down and could have been a positive role model for them. Instead I'm just some shit-head guy that came into their life and them them in a more difficult position and it's going to happen twice.

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I think it was December I started doing cross stitching at work. I started getting really bored just sitting there alone and it was giving me anxiety. This is also around the time that my elbows started to really burn as well.

My forearms felt like they were on fire all the time, it was so bad I tried ice packs to cool them down and the doctor didn’t believe me.

So I found hobbies that keep my mind focused. I tried building models, but I wanted to paint them and at times answering the phone would get in the way of gluing parts, so I new painting would be a nightmare and wouldn't allow me to switch focus to work instantly without making a mess.

I also used their printer paper and went crazy making all the different origami animals I could find online. At the time I think I had 40. some were variations of different folds, though it doesn't matter because I needed instructions, I couldn't just remember and fold all these complicated designs from memory. That's not how my memory seems to work these days, though I can fold some nice paper air planes and I did while there too. since the second floor had a balcony that overlooked the first floor entry way, I did try throwing paper planes from time to time. I also got to learn how to use the waffle maker, so I would try to fatten myself up when I got really bored.

I also bought my dad an RC helicopter for Christmas and crashed it in the lobby, since the ceiling was so high, I thought I was safe, but I wasn't feeling right and my reaction time was slow, so I crashed and broke it, before ever gave it to him. lol which gave me the opportunity to learn how to fix it before Christmas.

That thing didn't last long, my brother tried it, flew it up, I guess it flipped and flew into the ground, so that was the end of that. Ultimately a bad idea, but with funny memories to go with it.

I'm not sure what got me to settle on cross-stitching, but I think butterflies are beautiful and the work was a slight challenge, it required me to focus and it gave me something to look forward to as these patterns emerged. Once I knew where I was, I could pick which area I wanted to finish first.

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December I recall taking Valium around this time and it didn't help at all.

Trying these medications caused a lot of problems for my relationships over the years and this suffered for it as well.

Sure you can claim I cam just a weak an unmotivated guy, but I think the undiagnosed thyroid issue and these medications where the root cause of a lot of my issues. sure I made them worse, but someone else set things on their course.

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Since I used to stand in the corner a lot as a kid. I thought it would be funny to offer to let Dom try, but this was the end of it. lol

I laugh but it makes a part of me want to cry. lol

I can remember what it was like standing there in the corner and being totally clueless as to why I was standing there.

Since it takes two parents to tango, I will blame them both. lol

Neither of them ever took the time to sit there and explain things to me, so I would repeat things for the simple fact that I was dumb and didn't have a clue why I was being punished in the first place. I just knew the punishment ended sooner once I acknowledged I did something wrong and if I didn't guess right, I would stand there longer.

Which also makes me wonder how many times I was totally aware of what I did to deserve being punished, but knew I wouldn't have to talk about it if I accepted punishment long enough.

I don't think I learned anything by being forced to stand in the corner, I don't think it helped me understand things easier.

Medications for the year.

1978-1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989,