An end and a beginning

  Thoughts about the end of 2008

1. Secular Christmas:  

        Black Friday should be discontinued.  Someone died.

The commercial with dancing corkscrews wearing red and white Santa hats singing Bev Mo lulia.  Sick.  (This may have been a California thing)

2. Keeping Christ in Christmas.  

      Please bring back 'swaddling clothes" for Jesus.  Dressed in cloth doesn't work for me.  

     Glad Tidings is better than good news. 

      Sore afraid is better than terrified or as one pastor said 'So scared they peed their pants." 

The list could go longer but I have some positive things to say.

1,  Going to the Nutcracker with Shae and Skyler and Robin.

2. Shae and Skyler playing in the fresh snow until their hands were cold, cheeks rosy and a very short snowman decorated the yard.

3. Christmas eve service ending with candles and Silent Night.

4.  The quiet that falls over the city when most businesses close for Christmas day.

5.  Cards, family photos and newsletters.

Looking forward.

It's a new year with 364 fresh new days ahead.  I spent the first one having brunch with friends and then a long walk under foggy skies.

HAPPY NEW YEAR everybody.  

Two Saturdays

These pictures are for the baseball fans among us.
Last Saturday I spend a little over three hours on a 10K Volkswalk through five cemeteries.  We went to Colma, CA, just south of San Francisco where the dead of SF have been burried since the late 1800s,  There are fabulous statues, mausoleums, stones of all sizes and shapes and monuments large and small.  I would guess every nationality and ethnic group is represented, some in their own cemeteries.  A lot to see.  For more history google, Colma, CA and got to the city site for the history.  I will have to go back because I didn't get to see the Wyatt Earp grave.  (Because it was the Sabbath) He is in the Jewish cemetery because his wife was Jewish.  

Today, 11/22/08, I drove through the early morning, rather heavy fog to Davis to walk the 5K Turkey Trot.  I walked with some of my friends.  I had to work hard to keep up with and pass my 83 year-old friend who claims not to be competitive.  Jan and I crossed the finish before she did because she was distracted by talking to someone.  Coffee, scones, muffins, coffee and conversation followed.  This year's t-shirt is ugly.

Ruby Tuesday

Here's a Ruby Tuesday sunrise from my balcony.

Election

The clear sky and slightly crisp air on Election day put everyone in a very good mood.  I walked to my poling place.  There was a line of about twenty-five people.  Everyone seemed ready to party.  I voted and on my way back home a woman stopped her car and asked if I needed a ride. I claimed my free tall coffee from Starbucks.  

The world watched us on Tuesday and I believe we can be proud of ourselves.  Thank you, LaDawn for your words from France.

I want to share this story about my friend who has lost her ability to communicate  due to rapidly progressive aphasia.  She lives in a memory facility.  She has worn an Obama for president button, daily, for the last two years.  Legally she cannot vote.  However it was her wish to vote.  Her daughter talked with the memory care director at the facility and it was arranged for Elinore to 'vote'.  She was given an absentee ballot and voted for her candidate.  According to her daughter she was on 'cloud nine' today because she had voted for Obama in this historic election.

Apple Hill

On Sunday we took a family trip to Apple Hill.  The orchards and farms are open with pony rides, clowns, crafts, apple food and millions of apples.

Here is Sterling  taking her first pony ride; she doesn't seem very impressed.  She is not easily impressed.

SloMoe the clown chose Paulette as a volunteer after saying I need a woman in her 40s.  Shae and Skyler jumped around her pointing.  "Auntie P is 40. "  They shouted.  The clown missed her with all the darts that broke the balloons.  This clown was very entertaining.

Shae and Skyler were volunteers to hold the tightrope while SloMoe walked it juggling toilet plungers.  Shae is very serious and Skyler almost dropped the tightrope when one of the plungers hit SloMoe in the face.

Other adventures included a little hike at one place.  Sterling, almost two, trudged along even up the rather steep hill.

We had a picnic at the Jack Russell brewery with pints of beer for the adults.  

It was a perfect fall day.

Alaska

Alaska

A little taste of Butchart Gardens  We were told not to miss it and I agree--in Victoria, don't miss Butchart Gardens.

Ship's log, Thursday, August 7, 2008--Victoria, B.C., Canada,  6:00pm First line ashore.

It is difficult to describe our tour of the gardens.  Here are a few of the flowers and scenes we saw.  

11:30pm  All lines gone.

Back on board the ship we spent time with people we met in the Crow's nest lounge.  Jessica and the HAL cats played Hernando's Hidaway.   Paulette and I danced a Tango.   we had a couple of drinks and went to our cabin to pack for disembarkation in the morning.

Ship's log:  Friday, August 8, 2008--Seattle, Washington,  6:15am First line ashore.

We are awake early and our room service  breakfast arrives--again, right on time.  We are scheduled to leave at 8:15am.  Our luggage has been picked up overnight and sent ashore.  By 8:30 we are looking for our bags in the terminal and by 8:45 we are in a cab to the ferry dock.  Chris picks us up at the Bremerton ferry terminal.  Back in Port Orchard we pack the car, take Chris to lunch and at about noon we are on our way back to Sacramento.   We arrive home in the wee hours of the morning.

All during the trip we had lovely weather.  The only rain was on shore  excursions was in Juneau.  It  changed to partly cloudy for our bike tour.  Tracy Arm was cold because of all the ice in the water, I guess.  The other  places were pleasant.