Why?

Some of my close friends are going through extremely rough times right now. One, has cirrhosis of the liver; one's brother died and mother is with hospice; one is having surgery, and the list goes on. How do I respond to these people who are obviously hurting?

As I talk, I have to refer to the God of the Universe Who is still in control. It sounds trite but it is so very true. I am praying for their hurting; I am praying for their healing; I am praying to be able to help in some way.

Only God knows where our lives will go and what will happen along that path, but I am reminded of a quote from a very wise professor [Dr Diane Schwope] who once said - "IF I BELIEVE GOD IS IN CONTROL OF MY LIFE, THEN I MUST BELIEVE I AM EXACTLY WHERE HE WANTS ME TO BE." Sometimes that is not easy to believe, especially when we "go through" whatever is happening at the time. I don't claim to have that "down" all the time, but I am working on it.

I have become extremely pragmatic, especially as I experience more of life. Life is so fleeting and so real that some times I forget as I move along, I get focused on THIS LIFE. As I deal with the day, I have to be grateful. Don't get me wrong, I am also realistic. We are the total sum of all our experiences, but I like to believe I am getting better with age like fine wine and cheese. The truth is, I can't go through a day without God's help. And, I like it that way! Living where I do, I think I'll go to the beach today. God is good.

A new day

I currently have the "car" fever. My son just bought a new SUV. While I think SUVs are a "necessary evil", they are just NOT my style.

I now have a 2004 red, Mustang, convertible, and it suits me fine. I love driving so we were MFEO, or "made for each other." (Yes, I've seen "You've Got Mail.") So, the obvious thing to do is look for another Mustang. I DO want another car, but I HATE, HATE, HATE shopping for one. My solution and perfect for me, is internet shopping.

Through various ways, I have had e-mails from 3 dealerships. They are all about the same in price, same features, same add-on options and discounts. WHAT WILL SEAL THE DEAL FOR ME? I'm not sure. One big factor is what my credit union let's me borrow. While I am doing okay financially, I still have to finance a car or house. I haven't garnered enough resources yet to pay cash for those items. (That is a personal goal of mine though)

Another factor that will help me decide is the personality and endurance of the sales person. Will they hang on long enough, not be obnoxious but still seem interested, and keep me interested? I don't know. This is a whole new game to play out in cyberspace. TOTALLY ANONYMOUS. I think I like it. Oh and yeh, I never DID get to the beach last week.

It's Not Easy Being Me

Another week is almost over and sometimes I feel my whole life is just zipping by. Maybe it's my age, or maybe it just "IS" a fast moving world; I don't know which it happens to be, but my life seems so full and busy that I some times want to yell, "Hey!!! Let me off."

I really need to get to the beach. That is what really refreshes me. I am a true "crab" sign in that I feel best when I am by the water and in the sun. I am going to try to get there on Saturday of this week. Most any beach will work, but I prefer one that has changing rooms and showers. That makes it easier when you are finished sunning you can always take a shower and get the salt water off before heading home.

I have a rough day tomorrow, too. Our latest department "team building" exercise is to go to a "Park" and have lunch at my favorite restaurant - "Js". We get to do lots of events, eat, and socialize - Man it's rough!!! Somebody has to do it. I'm just glad it's me. For this week, at least, I guess I'll just muddle through.

Is it Mobile or Mobil?

After my field trip to St Augustine, FL, I dragged myself out of bed at 5:00 am to be able to shower for my trip to Mobile, AL. It is Easter week-end; the most Holy of all weekends for the Christian populous and I am on my way to a leadership conference to judge artwork of school-aged children. I was not happy about the timing. I was not happy about the early departure. I was not a happy camper. I tend to get crabby when I am tired, hungry and just inconvenienced in general. (I am so spoiled)

Why was I doing this? Several months before, I had "volunteered" to help some children at church write essays for a pre-convention event, not totally realizing that I would be going there and the actual date of the event. It took 8 hours to finally get to Mobile. I had anticipated a leisurely afternoon with a swim, some reading while getting the "rays" by the pool, great dinner and to be ready for the judging the next day. THIS IS "NOT EXACTLY" how it happened.

The hotel, formerly part of the Adam's Mark chain, was under renovation. (Need I say more?) The whole 4th floor was closed - due to renovation - the pool area was included. The parking garage was closed- due to renovation - so I had to park in a municipal parking area around the block. The entrances from the parking garage were closed - due to renovation - I had to drag my "stuff" around, across and up and down from the parking area. AND, if that wasn't enough the Dinner hour was at 5:30 and I had a meeting then, that I had not known about. Needless to say, I was not a happy camper.

I TOTALLY needed an attitude adjustment. You see, when I was younger and "stupider" this type of thing would have allowed me to stay angry for days. God has shown me that it is without a doubt, the dumbest thing I can do to let circumstances affect my attitude and how I treat other people. I needed to get alone with God and get ME straightened out.

My personality is a lot like my birth sign, the crab. I retreat, recollect my thoughts, and then come back out with a better perspective on everything. God has shown me that I am so much better off then and I don't have to apologize for all the nastiness I do and say. So, I took a shower and found a bar area in the hotel that would give us something to eat. It's amazing how much better I felt after that.

The first picture is out our room window of the harbor @ Mobile. Not a bad view, huh? It was actually very interesting. On one side there was the Convention Center, which you can see the top of in the bottom lefthand corner of this picture. To the right, there is a cruise ship in the harbor, docked for boarding.

We are so fortunate with our weather. We had totally great weather both driving days. In addition to this picture, below you can see a picture of our room, which wasn't all that bad either.

I was able to be home fairly early last night; got a good nights sleep, and up in time for church this morning.

I am truly grateful for my blessings. On this Christian High Holy Day, I am especially thankful for my family, my home and my church. God is very good to me.

I've Been Busy

(Here I am with the same view, basically, as my trip to Hong Kong. This IS a different color, granted, but basically the same place. I am on the bus with two classes of 4th graders.)

This has been an extremely busy week. M,T,W I worked. I had to do a lot of "things" on Wed that I normally do on Thursday because I was privileged to go on Thursday with a fourth-grade class to St Augustine. I must say, I was impressed with the tour. Instead of just going there, trying to "discover" the history of St Augustine, the teachers had the wonderful idea of booking a tour, buses and all.

Being a former teacher, I never once thought to do this. And, I'm sorry I didn't. It was great. The group was organized, on-time, and a professional visit to our oldest city was had by all.

This was our first stop - bathrooms of course.

The bus driver got us there safely, with "lots of scenery to see" , and earlier than we had previously thought we would get there. That was great for us. It gave us extra time to "shop."

From there, we went to the fort. This time we only ate lunch, but we still had to keep off the walls.

The chamber of commerce would have been proud of the day. There was a slight breeze blowing off the water so it was an ideal day to visit central Florida.

The fort was part of our tour, as was the old school house, and the old part of the city.

It was built over 300 years ago of coquina shells and has to be protected from the oils on our hands and the elements of the weather, as much as possible.

Our guide was so informative and knowledgeable about the fort. She made it interesting and exciting just learning all about the many phases of ownership and occupation mostly by the Spanish, French, and English.

One of the "dressed up" guards allowed me to take his picture with Julie. (She was also with me in Hong Kong.)

I wanted to bring him home with us he was so cute, but he said his wife might object. (This was probably true.)

That uniform looked like it would be very warm to wear it, and it was also made out of a type of "burlap" which would not be very comfortable either. But, it made a nice picture.

The picture on the left was looking over one side of the fort to the other side; part of the harbor was visible also.

Scott, on the right, was one of our guides. Nice guy who lives in Ocala and works all over. He has been a guide for 17 years and can't imagine doing anything else. He sounds like he likes his job as much as I like mine.

I was impressed by the room used for meditation. It was a little "rustic" for my taste, but it definitely had it's place in the early days of our country.

There was not much room inside but the character of the place helped to distract.

When it was time to go home, most everyone was ready. There was a lot of walking, and even if it was breezy, it was still around 85 degrees.

It WAS a wonderful day, but I had a packed week-end ahead of me and I had to "sleep fast" for I had to be up, packed and ready for our trip to Mobile, AL the next day by 6 a.m. That trip was also an adventure, but for another blogging.

My Friday

When I am working, we refer to the last day of our week as our "Friday." Today is my "Friday" at work. It is always a joy to go to work. That probably will never change. It just seems that I can't quite get any energy going. I am tired quite a bit and everything seems to be in slow motion. I don't know how to explain that.

It has been an interesting week, though. I have met so many people with a plethora of stories - a 10-year old cancer patient that is visiting through "Make A Wish" foundation; a couple celebrating their 40th anniversary; and the list goes on... each one trying to have a "good time." But does "the place" make the good time or do the people make the good time? Probably a little of both.

I saw a young mother of two sitting on the curb eating hot dogs with her sons. They were clean, but their clothes were not new. I asked her if it was her first trip; she said "Yes Mam." I would guess that she had saved quite a while to be able to afford this trip for her children. They were quietly "having a good time" eating hot dogs, enjoying being with each other. There were no expensive souvenirs; no digital cameras being used; no extra people to interfere with their time. As I observed them later in the afternoon, they seemed to share that secret of a "good time."

I am going to St Augustine tomorrow with one of my little friend's classes; fourth graders. That age is very busy, right? Then on Friday, we leave for Mobile. I find it very interesting that a "church sponsored leadership conference" is on the week-end of the holiest of all Christian holidays. I will miss sunrise service and being in church. (I'll have pictures the next time I blog.)

We have to move in November because the apartment is "going condo" and we're not buying this one. Where to go? This is a very big decision and it is mostly Charles' as he is the primary "bread winner" of the two of us. So, it will be interesting to see how this plays out.

As I reflect on this week and look toward the next few, I wonder where I am headed with my life. What's next? Do I go back to school? Do I help buy a house? Do I do nothing? Is there more, OR, is this all there is?

Sunday

I had a severe storm awaken me this morning about 3:30. I don't usually hear storms, but this one was very low and very loud, and as I am still starring into the dark, I thought I'd just blog a little.

I made it through this past week okay. This was the 4th anniversary of Tom's death, and in many ways it was easier than last year, but in many ways so much harder. I don't know how others cope with anything, but I have a tendency to "avoid" unpleasant things in my life. I think somewhere in the back of my mind, if I avoid it, it will go away. Unfortunately, that doesn't happen when someone dies. You have to face those facts straight on; face to face. And, I don't do that well.

I can't honestly say I coped well. I didn't get out of bed much on Friday. I tried to "escape" to somewhere, but I couldn't force myself to leave the condo. I am more able now to "reflect" on events in our lives that we experienced together than I used to be. It's nice to think about the last 8 1/2 years of our marriage. I have found out that every marriage has it's ups and downs, but our last few years were truly blessed with each other. I don't know how Tom would remember them, but I remember the good times and the even crazier times we had. When I would "whine" about something, Tom always said "Sheila! (in his lower voice sound) It will build your character." Well, as anyone who knows much about me, I AM a character. I guess he was right after all.

Thinking Things

Yesterday when I was at work, some men were setting up scaffolding for a taping of a TV show to be taped after the park closed. I watched as they maneuvered the metal bracings and I had to remember Hong Kong. Their scaffolding is bamboo poles thatare tied together with "strips" wound around the connections. These men do all repairs by hand walking all over that "creative" structure. It is like a ballet, movement to their own music that is never heard by the human ears, yet with great grace. As I watched the men in Hong Kong working, I thought to myself, how do they do that? They seem to move effortlessly, rarely with any apparent slipping, side to side doing what needs to be done.

The Chinese are truly amazing people. I saw so much creativity and sheer knowledge of how to get something done. Wanting to be creative, like I do, is not the way to get things done. They manage to accomplish so much with so little, and do it quite well and usually better than most. I am impressed with their expertise.

Today I have many things to do - laundry, allergy shots, wrapping pashminas, car washed, grocery; so much, so little time. But, I'll probably get it all done. You know why? I'm just so blessed with so many conveniences and time. And, I am afterall, in America once again. And, it feels great to be where I am.

What is Normal?

The Magic Kingdom, where I usually work, looked awfully good to me yesterday. It was like going home. Everything was right where it was supposed to be and I so enjoyed being back. Being there seems to make everything all right. I'll have more pictures of the trip, but I have decided to continue blogging. For some reason, it has become a part of my life that I really like doing. It's a way of being open and yet anonymous.


I need the "centering" for my life right now. Today would have been my Mother's 92nd birthday. April 7 is the opening day for Expedition Everest, a new ride here at Animal Kingdom. There is always great celebration and "hoopla" for every new event. It just happens to coincide with the 4th anniversary of my husband's death. For me, that is not a time of celebration. The two events are in stark contrast of each other. While I am happy for the people who get to experience Everest, I have a hard time on this date. It would be very easy for me to slip into the "pit" of depression on this day and I must confess, I have to fight doing that, but I am trying to focus more on my blessings.


I have a great life! No ifs, ands or buts. I cannot complain about how God takes care of me. I seek to be more and more grateful for all I have. This has especially come home to me while I was in Hong Kong. How can people live on san pans? Their whole life is there - home, business, family, possessions, and yet they do. It makes me stop short in my life and especially thank God for all that is given to me.


I am truly blessed with wonderful friends, too. The other three ladies that I have breakfast with every month have so blessed my life; I could never verbally explain to them how much. I have know them for 20 some years and we have been through most of our adult lives together. They have prayed and cried with me. They have supported me when they knew I was probably wrong, but loved me anyway. And, I rejoice with them as we pass milestones in our lives.


I have another group of ladies I have known about 15 years. They are my "church" lady friends and they too have put up with me through numerous encounters in my life. They were the first group to come to my aid the three straight years I had 50% of my immediate family die. Some of them even came to my apt when I was sick with pneumonia at Christmas this year, bought a tree, went to storage and got the ornaments, decorated the apartment, and returned the empty boxes to storage. They too have supported me throughout the events of my life.


I have another group of friends from school. (Don't' tell anyone, but I'm a former teacher) These ladies are equally supportive. Time and time again they have "been there" for me with prayers and "goodies" when it seemed there were no answers, no where to turn, and "what was I going to do" questions.



I am gaining new friends in my new church and on my new job "on this side of the pond" as I call it. I moved to Orlando in November after living in another place for over 20 years. Two of these ladies went to Hong Kong and they took very good care of me while we were there. I even documented one of our events with a T-shirt that says, "I was lost in Hong Kong". (Enough said)


So you see, I'm not just blessed with "things" but I'm blessed beyond measure with intangibles that can't be measured by earth's standards, but by "heart" standards. And, that is truly a blessing.


As I get ready for the day, I have to stop and thank God. Not just for the "things" I have, for I have a good life, but most of all for the friendships. They cannot be measured nor explained.

More Tourist Info

We had some pics left over from our visit to Disneyland. I thought I might publish additional ones that were not included before.

At The Hollywood Hotel, on property. Sandy got to do a survey too. To the above is a picture of Sandy and Johnny, the surveyer. She got a cute keychain with Tinkerbell attached after she finished. She was pleased.

The picture below is from our hotel window at the Hollywood Hotel. I don't think I included it before now.




During the whole trip, my only regret is that I didn't get a picture of Roy and Jack. Visiting Roy, I believe is almost a religious experience. And, well, as far as I am concerned, Disney isn't the only place there is magic performed.

I decided to get a haircut in Hong Kong. I don't know why. Just a whim, I guess. Faye's in a mall area in downtown Hong Kong is "THE" place to visit, in my opinion. Roy not only washes your hair without getting any soap or water down your back and in your ears, but he gives a head and neck massage during the process. He is UNBELIEVABLE!!!. And, he didn't even use pixie dust.

Jack used his shears to remove all the unwanted hair on my head that had grown so quickly. I saw one of the workers in the shop with a hair cut that I liked, so he cut it like that. It did look a little "pixie-ish" on the other girl. On me, it looks more like a flat top. But, I love it.

We ate in a restaurant close to the salon, also in the mall area. The food was okay; too American; too much. If you eat in the Asian "type" restaurants, they give small portions. (Which I think is good.) But, the American "type" restaurants give very large portions and we didn't want to try to transport leftovers.

We found that the typical Asian family shops daily, uses fresh vegetables, and eats small portions. And, they run everywhere, or at least at a fast clip walking. No wonder they don't gain weight easily. (There are lessons to be learned)

I can't say enough good things about the transit system in Hong Kong. It is so easy to maneuver and with a "travel card" it is even easier. The system is color coded for the MTR, which is their rail system. It connects to the rail out to "Dixie Lai" which is "aka" Disneyland, so theoretically, you never have to go outside to do any shopping. The bus system and taxi cabs are equally accessible, also using the travel card. The card is also good at most of the shops or fast food restaurants. It is unbelievable. It's like a debit card where you put money on the card and it automatically deducts the amount needed.

It is about 6 am and it's back to work today. I am soooooooooooooo glad. I really missed the real "Magic Kingdom", which we all know is in Orlando, FL. (And, the real castle and princesses.) I work during the daytime today. I'll get the rest of my week's schedule when I get there. It was a marvelous trip and we have approx 600 pics with all 4 sets of photos, so maybe I'll include more some time, until the next session TTFN (For those who don't know Disney"ese", Ta Ta For Now.

Hong Kong Revisited

Looking back over all my pictures with my friend Ruth, I saw things I had almost forgotten - smoggy days; sky high buildings; hydrofoils; more smog; more Disney. I'm including some of those now:

The pictures below are of downtown Hong Kong.
















The picture to the right is looking off of "The Peak" which is one of the highest points in Hong Kong. As you can tell, we didn't get to see much that day. But, this is how the sky looked most of the time we were in Hong Kong.

The picture below is of Hong Kong on a clearer day. According to our tour guide, the higher up the mountain you live, the richer you are. These are some highrise apartments. This is the type of housing in which most of the people of Hong Kong live. The buildings are too numerous to count, but our guide said the population was 7 million, at the last "loose" count. This picture was taken from a san pan in the China Sea. This was part of our tour of Hong Kong that we took on the second day we were there.














The picture to the left is of the Mtns behind our hotel. This was our view on our last day in Hong Kong. It had rained the day before and we actually saw the sun on this day.

And, to our surprise, the view out the other side of our hotel was amazing. The picture below is of the mtns that we didn't even realize were there.



I left wishing we didn't have 25 travel hours ahead of us. I also left hoping we had taken enough pictures. But most of all, I left praying for Hong Kong. I pray for better air for them; for less stress in their lives; for parents to accept their "daughters" as the beautiful gifts they are; for better understanding between countries, and last but not least, for more people to love and discover the goodness of God.

Celebration

Charles landed a little late because of a late takeoff in Chicago. No explanation was given, but I am thrilled he is here. It was strange at ORA - No listing of any United flight arriving from Chicago; even Information had no record of the flight.

Evidently, Charles walked right past me on his way to baggage pickup. He called my cell and told me where he was. Man was I surprised. (What did we ever do without cell phones).

He's experiencing the "numb" feeling of jetlag. I had never had it before and it is certainly "interesting". This week-end is a double "whammy" for us with daylight savings time on Sunday. Oh well.

I am celebrating both of us being home, safely. God has so blessed us with so many things. I think reality really hit when I got through with customs and the guard said to me - "Welcome home". And, I was glad to be "home."