My Time at Hachland

Tammie moved to the Albany area in the mid 1980's and together with Mike; they raised two great boys there. The Hacheys technically live in Ravena, NY, but are really closer to South Bethlehem and their home is located on an old farm. When I lived there, a farmer lived out back and had several heads of cattle. Occasionally, the cows would get loose and filter down to Tammie and Mike's and out into the road. More than once, some passerby would stop and ask me to gather my cows before they were hit by a car. I would try to explain, but I don't think they were really listening. After a frustrating day with cataloging and statistics (I was in library school at the time), that farm house was a tremendous refuge for me. No matter how difficult the day, I was always rejuvenated when I walked inside and saw my nephews and had a chance to catch-up on the day's activities with my sister and brother-in-law.

Derek and Sean were very interested in sports at that time and their uncle was very pleased about that. Together with Mike, we played wiffleball, (Mike had a wicked 12-6 curveball that was almost impossible to hit), tag football, Nerf basketball and a little indoor football. We had great battles and a whole lot of fun. Although, I recall that Tammie wasn't too thrilled about the indoor sports. The two boys also played organized baseball and football and Mike coached baseball and helped carry the yard markers during the football games. Tam was always there to cheer them on and even had a stint in the public address booth.

During his Little League days, Sean played third base, first base and catcher. As I recall, he also was a pretty good hitter. Unfortunately, people seemed to have a hard time pronouncing his name and that was apparently an ongoing problem for him. One day, Tammie was asked to introduce the players as they came to bat and Sean, it appeared, was finally guaranteed to have his name pronounced correctly. Well, he strode to the plate, dusted off his shoes with the bat and climbed into the batter's box prepared to face some young phenom. Unable to contain herself, Tam took delight in introducing Seen Hackey to the crowd and a stunned Sean turned and shook his fist at the box high above the stands. You just never knew what to expect from Tam Terrific.

While there, I was also able to spend time with my godson and nephew, Derek. Of course, I took delight in purposely calling him Donald and teasing him about his "magic cow". Even though there was no such cow, this nonsense seemed to bother Derek a bit and that just encouraged me. I also loved helping him with his spelling words and playing a few games of Double Dragon. I found out quickly that I could wreak havoc in this game by attacking my "partner" from behind. From what Derek explained to me, this could be interpreted as cheating. Having learned from my own father on how to compete in such games, though, I had difficulty grasping this concept.

Tam also starting teaching during those years and was the Cub Scouts Pack Leader. She is so proud of her boys and has always loved spending time with them. Along with Mike, she did an outstanding job raising these fine young men. During this difficult time, Derek, Sean and Mike have been so wonderful to Tam and I know that deep down she truly appreciates their efforts. I certainly enjoyed my year with the Hachey's and I cherish the memories.