HOW QUICKLY WE FORGET

Do you remember when airlines used to be hijacked? I mean, people got on planes who were convicted killers or whatever, who actually forced planes to fly to all sorts of places for many reasons. There were hijackers who would kill without much provocation.

If you have forgotten about those, please, please do a search on the Internet and get reacquainted.

The reason I bring this up is that I was sitting in traffic the other day and listening to the radio. The MC read a letter from a listener who was all boiled up over the security laws in place and the pat-downs, etc. The MC brought up MANY instances of when planes were hijacked all over the world. Do we see that now? When was the last time that you heard about an airplane being hijacked? Well, I don't even remember the last time and having just come back from Europe on September 10th, I realized that not once did I feel in fear for my life. That is the most comforting feeling when you get on a plane these days! I realize that being the subject of a pat-down is not the most pleasant thing (Have you ever had a German female TSA agent pat you down? Whoha!!), and I don't know about you, but I would rather be very intimately frisked than be in fear for my life, or dead in some field in God knows where. 

Just think about it. 

Red, Purple, and Yellow

Red, Purple, and Yellow are now the colors of my skin. I took a BIG fall down some concrete stairs and landed face first on the concrete walkway below. It was one of those freak accidents that in your wildest dreams you hope you won't have. I was even thinking I needed to put on a different pair of shoes so I changed them. I thought a lot about those stairs because they are very steep and I felt I was being very careful, using the handrail all the time, really keeping my eyes on the stairs as I descended, just being overly cautious. Well, my downfall (pun intended) was my left pant leg. My right foot got hold of my left pant leg somehow and down I went. The minute I sort of realized what had happened I yelled "Help" since I was unable to move. My neighbors, whom I had not met before, came running to my aid...helping me get off my chest/face into a sitting position, bringing towels to help with the bleeding, calling 911, and even helping me stay alert and talking until the paramedics came.

A little fuzzy - but  this is the stairs I fell down.

My family was called by the apartment complex management folks and they met me at the hospital. After a ton of x-rays - I mean my WHOLE body  - including a CAT scan I got the good news that there were no broken bones!! YAY!!! Then I had to go through the really painful cleaning out of the wounds to my face. The consult with the doc came: "Am I going to have to have stitches?" " Will I look like Frankenstein's monster? " He told me that I could have scaring...pink skin and maybe a little scar- but maybe not too bad if I stay out of the sun. I can do that! Right now it looks really bad and I keep an ointment on it which makes it look worse, but I know it is only temporary. I have multiple bruise all down my left side from where my bra strap was to my ankle, plus some minimal bruising on the right side. I am the sorest in my rib area and it just reminds me of the two other times that I actually broke or cracked them!!! But this time I only bruised them so they should feel better in a relatively short time.

I was really concerned about the two teeth in my mouth that were pushed in at a 25 degree angle. Somehow in the midst of a nap yesterday I moved them back into place with my lower teeth (woke me up, of course), and I found out that the time frame that they were out of place is in the window where the chances that the teeth could heal was pretty good. There is an outside chance I might have to have a root canal but I don't think that will happen.

Flowers from some really great people.

My sweet son-in-law was supposed to go to a conference and was a participant, but because of my accident, he stayed home to help take care of me. The people at the conference were so concerned that they actually sent me flowers! Now I don't recommend falling down stairs and practically killing yourself to get flowers, but they sure help in the recovery process!!!

So, my Thursday night was pretty interesting....but I had just come from buying my furniture so I was feeling pretty great about that! Life has a way of knocking you down a few pegs...and I am beginning to feel like I'm taking someone else's hits. I'll probably feel differently when my ribs stop throbbing....so in the meantime, I want each and every one of you to watch your step....to watch the stairs that we all have in our lives, to make sure you use the handrails and watch what kind of slacks/pants you wear. Those stairs can reach right up and grab you! 

Janie

My Changing Life

I started a job yesterday, part-time, so I could "get out" and meet new people, do new things, and spread my wings in a new area. I will be doing Admin work but in order to learn the business I am starting on the "floor", learning about the business by doing. The business is located in a warehouse-type building which has many other businesses in it, most of them some sort of artistic endeavors. As I stood at the counter doing my first task I listened to the sounds coming from the other businesses and it made me feel like I was in some way a part of the creative processes that give our world meaning. I really am having trouble telling you how I felt, but it was one of those times in your life that you feel like you are around like-minded people. It was awesome!! 

I am finding that I like the "big city", even the driving around. The freeways terrified me at first but now I'm feeling more confident and it's not so bad. The best part of living here is that there are so many things to do, activities, and more which I will start exploring soon. 

Upon leaving my new job yesterday I encountered a train...as the business is located in the area where there is a lot of train activity. Even sitting in a line of cars waiting for a train to move through the train signal was not a problem, even though it lasted for about 20 minutes! I believe I will return to listening to audio books because of long distances between places and the occasional traffic back-up and the train crossings.

Railroad hang-up

I am hopeful that by this time in a week or two I'll have living room furniture and maybe even dining room furniture. We take for granted that we will always have the comforts of home, and I have learned that a person can live without them but it is very hard. Our surroundings give us a sense of well-being, a sense of safety, a sense of belonging. As an artist, my surroundings need to feel welcoming and "warm". In that vein, I purchased a bit of whimsy yesterday, the first addition to my living room. His name is "Oscar". When I saw him in a store a few days ago I knew he belonged in my home. I'll add an imitation "tree" behind him and he will be complete. Isn't he just adorable??

Oscar the Giraffe

Oscar is about 6' tall

Adorable!!!

Relocating is a very hard job, it is something I have never done "on my own" before. In fact, I have never lived alone in my life. I have always taken care of other people and now I'm learning to take care of myself. It's overwhelming at times but I also feel that I'm learning a lot about myself, that I'm actually listening to myself, and making the changes that I need to make to be the healthy person I know I can be. 

I hope your never take for granted what you have - whether it be tangible possessions or emotional connections, they are both very important in our lives.

Janie

Paris, France

I fell in love with Paris, France on my recent trip to Europe. We arrived in early evening and spent the first night in a "fancy" hotel with all the amenities. For some odd reason our credit cards all had holds placed on them by our banks because they didn't realize we were in France!! So we considered turning around and going back to the airport and trying to get on an earlier flight but possibly spending nights in the airport was not even in the area of possibility for us. We came up with enough for the first night so we could eat and get some rest and then decided to move to a more economical one and get hold of our banks the following Tuesday (Monday was a holiday in the USA). 

The front of our little hotel

Well, the second "hotel" was only 10 rooms and just exactly what you would expect to stay in in France. It was so delightful I hardly know how to describe it. The hotel had a tiny lobby with a fireplace, lots of flowers and things. There was a lift (elevator) that was big enough to hold two suitcases and one person. The stair were a little winding staircase. There were 5 floors in the hotel, and 2 rooms to a floor. Our room had twin beds and a dresser and two night stands. It also had two small chairs and a TV hung overhead. There were large french windows that opened into the room and a ceiling fan for cooling. The bathroom was the tiniest thing but so well put together! There was a deep tub with a removable shower nozzle, the toilet, and sink and they had a hairdryer, mirror that magnified what you were looking at (great for makeup applications), and a clothes line that you pulled from one side of the tub and it hooked to the other side. Bathrooms in Europe are called water closets and the toilet in our bathroom had a handle that you pulled which hung out of the ceiling. It was just the cutest thing I ever saw!!! The only drawback was that the water wasn't hot enough. In fact, I never had to turn on the cold when I took a bath or a shower. 

Tub and water closet

Sink area

We decided to spend the first day on a bus tour that we had passes for. It took us all around the most important places in Paris. The bus was a double-decker with the top deck open so we sat up there and it was the best place to take photos of things. 

Top seating on the Double-decker bus

Sculptures on the side of a building.

There are so many statues around Paris!

I just love the architecture in Paris!!!

French and Catalan Flags

Entry to an Administration building

Looking at Notre Dame as our bus approached

Buildings across the River Seine

A museum - forgot which one

A typical Parisian street

Arch de Triomphe

A sculpture on the corner of a building

The second day we went to the Louvre. The buildings outside along with the glass pyramid are so awesome and huge! I was almost moved to tears when I first saw them. We had to cross over the River Seine to go anywhere from our hotel and there were artist working and selling their paintings or drawings on the bridge and a couple of times there was a man playing an accordion on the bridge as well. If I hadn't had to come back to the States and I had a lot of money, I would have stayed in Paris. It is very, very expensive to live there AND to visit there.

Just attached to the Louvre is what is called "The Carousel". This is a small shopping mall and a food court, which even had a McDonald's! Before you say the word "boo", they sold wonderful things like brioche, and croissant rolls of different kinds and the best coffee and orange juice ever. 

Once inside, we wandered from the sculptures (and there are a lot of them) which I really like to the paintings, to the apartments of Napoleon. We saw all the things that you "hope" to see...and the Louvre has thoughtfully built in two restaurants so that when you get tired and hungry, you don't have to leave the Louvre and come back in to eat. You have to go through security to get into the Louvre so this is very nice. 

My daughter's chocolate Brioche and coffee

McDonald's 

Outside of the Louvre

One of the inside sculpture gardens at the Louvre - really awesome!!!

I will show much more in my next blog of what we saw there. 

The last day we spent on another bus tour in order to see more of Paris that wasn't the usual tourist fare. We saw the less than picturesque side of Paris where the factories are and learned more of the history of Paris. The one thing we never saw was a grocery store...ever, anywhere.  odd???

I hope to go back to Paris someday. I want to spend more time in the Louvre. I want to sit and study the paintings and learn more from the art that fills that beautiful building. I also want to be among the people more. Most thought we were from Canada because of our "accent", but everyone was so nice. Waiters came and sat at our table to talk, hotel people bent over backwards to make our stay comfortable, and people were so very understanding of our inability to speak their language. We picked up a few more words than we went with as we had done in Spain. 

The River Seine 

Another bridge crossing the River Seine. This bridge had locks placed on the side of the bridge by tourists/lovers signifying that they came to the city of romance and renewed their love for each other.

This is the premier shopping area in Paris where all the big name designers have their stores

I hope there is travel in your future. There are other cultures to be enjoyed and learned from.

Janie

The Gold Ring

We were going from our hotel in Paris over to the food court at the building that contains the Louvre and two young women were coming toward us, looking like they were walking together. Right in front of us, also walking toward the Louvre, was a Nun. As the two young women approached us they split so that one walked by my daughter and the other walked by me. The one who was walking toward/by me almost bumped into the Nun. As she passed me she reached down to the ground and came up with a gold ring in her fingers.

Gold Ring from Paris, France street scam

She held it up and asked me in very broken English with a heavy French accent if it was mine. I shook my head and she tried it on her finger and it was way too big and she handed it to me to try it on and it was way too large for me too. After that she started to walk off and then suddenly turned around and walked quickly over to me and gave the ring to me, saying something about wanting me to have it. So we turned to walk off. 

All this time my instincts were that this was a scam or a set-up for a pickpocket thing. I hugged my purse to me and made sure no one could get in and all the while I was trying to watch her too. As we finally walked off she came running back to us making a gesture of taking food from her hand to her mouth...indicating that I should keep the ring, so Tammy gave her the equivalent of about $2.00 and the girl thanked us and finally went away.

So, here I sit with this *gold* ring...which is probably tin painted with gold paint....thinking on the past 4 days here in Paris and all the wonderful experiences and how this one little thing stands out. It was not an unpleasant experience, on the contrary, the girl seemed very nice and actually quite humble. 

People are actually the same the world over, as I have seen the pick-pocketing in Spain and this little scam in France I am reminded that the US isn't entirely free of such activities either and that we must always be on our guard, even if the perpetrators are nice or courteous. Personal safety is our own responsibility, especially when out and about alone or traveling alone, but even if you are with someone else, women have to be especially alert.

It is my hope that each of you will be aware of things around you, especially for your own personal safety, Janie

Cruising on the Mediterranean Ocean

I took a cruise with my two grown daughters on the Norwegian Epic recently. We had such a wonderful time! I thought it might be interesting to share some of my photos here on my blog with you. For anyone who hasn't cruised, DO! They treated us like Queens from the moment we arrived until the day we disembarked. Our stateroom steward cleaned our room in the morning and came back in the evening while we were out eating dinner to turn down the beds and leave fresh towels, as well as make cute little towel animals and leave them on  the bed! We had room service (free of charge), meals with more food than you could possibly get down (free of charge), and lots of things to do. 

My daughters took tours in Pisa, Italy to see the "Leaning Tower", Rome to see well....Rome, and Pompeii. I didn't get off the ship because of my back and the back pain had been so much worse in Spain because I couldn't wear my pain patches in the extreme heat there and the same thing would apply in Pisa, Rome, and Pompeii. So while the girls were off doing the tours I had my hair done, had 3 acupuncture treatments (never had that before), watched a couple of movies on our large flat screen TV in our stateroom, and wondered around the ship....oh, and had delightful room service for breakfast and for lunch one day! 

OK, here we go with the pictures... Oh, for those of you who don't know, we cruised down the "boot" of Italy and back to Barcelona, Spain. OH, and they are going to be completely out of order because blogger.com seems to be having a problem with what I want to upload tonight!

Towel Elephant made by our cabin Steward

Towel Bunny made by our cabin Steward

Almost complete sunset on the Mediterranean Ocean

Beginning sunset on the Mediterranean Ocean

Early morning in Lavorno, Italy - we are coming in to port

The Bridge on the Norwegian Epic

Pools and hot tubs

Sitting area

Main area chandalier

Another chandalier

Looking down over our balcony, seeing the life boats below and water going by at night

Other ships around the port of Barcelona when we left there.

Staircase which was used for going from deck to deck. Each floor was a different color.

A view of the Norwegian Cruise Ship the EPIC in the Barcelona harbor.  A Beautiful ship with great crew members !

Well, all the photos for tonight. I'm exhausted from walking all over the Louvre in Paris today!! It was amazing and I'll have photos of that for you in a future blog. Have a wonderful day!

Huggs, Janie

MAGIC FOUNTAIN IN BARCELONA, SPAIN

My daughters and I decided to go see the Magic Fountain the last night we were in Barcelona. We were dropped off at the beginning of the drive-way/road up to the large water fountain on the other end. It was night as the show is played every 1/2 hour from 9:30 pm until about 11:30 pm. Along this road are smaller fountains, with white lights.

Waterfalls along the sidewalk

As we got closer to the large fountain we saw thousands of people around the fountain and even up the hillside around small (?) waterfalls and below the large fountain were more small waterfalls.

Waterfalls on hillside

Waterfalls on hillside

Small waterfalls below the fountain

Just as we arrived to right at the side of the Magic Fountain the water started to rise, in different colors and patterns as classical music played. You could hear the Oh's and Ah's all around as the water fountain show commenced. Below are a few pictures which really don't give it justice, but it's better than not showing you anything. 

Water Fountain with the waterfalls on the hillside behind

Something very moving happened to me during this show. We were all standing there and during the show people would go up closer to the water and their friends/family would take photos of them. All of a sudden a woman, about my age, came up to me and handed me her camera. With hand signals she motioned to me to take her picture in front of the fountain. I nodded in understanding and agreement. I took her photo and she returned to me to get her camera. Then the unexpected....she took my hand in her's and lightly squeezed and looked at me with the most kind expression of thanks! It was such a moving experience as I knew, that even though she did not speak my "spoken language", she spoke the language of friendship...even momentary...between two women. I shall always remember that.

Thank you, Barcelona, for a magical evening! Janie