Another One Bites the Dust - Goodbye 2011!

Well, in the words of Freddy Mercury and Queen, "Another One Bites the Dust", the year 2011 that is!

Here I sit in our Media Room in Dallas watching "The Big D" New Years Eve show on the big screen, waiting for another year to end. This is a yearly tradition to spend New Years Eve in the Media Room, eating papusas and tamales. There are 40 minutes left of 2011 here in Dallas. I have already said Happy New Year to my children in Maryland. I always wonder about the same thing at this time every year. . . if my future self could visit me right now, what would she have to say? Will everybody make it through 2012? Will it be a good year at work? Will I reach all of my goals this year? Only time will tell. . .

This is usually a very lonely time of the year for me, even with family around. I can feel the winds of change stirring in my life. People have come and gone and I am at a crossroads. I want to be a be a better person this year. I don't want to sweat the small stuff anymore. I want to improve my physical fitness and find some ways to give back to the community somehow for my good fortune and blessings. I want to continue to give love to and care about others, but I want to receive some more back this year. I don't think that this is asking too much.

For the past few months, I have really been enjoying one particular person for their mind. I love what they have to say and look forward to reading about it every day!  I want to continue to do this as it gives me something to look forward to every day.  It is so amazing that with all of the video games and advanced technical gadgets that we have today, the thing that makes me happy is reading somebody's blog!  This just underscores the fact that the simple things in life are the best.

We had a birthday party for Alex tonight.  He turned 22 years old today.  Here is a cute picture of Adeline and Daddy right before he blew out the candles on his cake.  I hope that he will become more involved in her life this year!  She is such a sweet child and needs her Daddy in her life. 

Adeline and Alex (Daddy) Getting Ready to Blow Out the Candles on His Cake

I would like dedicate this post tonight to to the memory of my cousin Patrick Reilly, who died on New Years Day, 2010.  Pat moved down to Florida to retire and had just purchased a Harley Davidson so that he could ride with his friends.  Unfortunately, he was a novice rider and lost control of his bike and crashed into a house.  He died at the scene of the accident  Rest in Peace, cousin Pat and God Bless your soul!

I pray that all of us have a safe, happy and healthy year.  For all who read this, Happy New Year and may you, your family and friends be safe, happy and healthy in 2012!

Home, Sweet Home

We arrived home this morning after flying all night, with layovers in LA and Houston.  Although Hawaii is a beautiful place, I have to say that I am truly glad to be back home and that I plan to stay put until my return to work on the Tuesday after New Years Day.

We drove to Waxahachie to pick up Adeline and got caught in some major traffic around Dallas. We stopped at Boston Market on the way home and picked up dinner, which was chicken, corn, mashed potatoes, vegetables, macaroni and cheese and baked apples, along with the little cornbread loaves that they provide with dinner.  It was delicious!

Nicole and Brandon sent some presents for Adeline,  along with a beautiful photo book from their wedding for us, which was very thoughtful and much appreciated!

Here are Adeline and I sitting by the tree when she opened her presents:

Mae and Adeline opening presents from Auntie Nicole and Uncle Brandon

Adeline loved her presents and colored in her new coloring books until she went to sleep!

So now that Christmas is over and 2012 is on the horizon, I have already started my soul searching and contemplation on what I need to do to improve myself in 2012.  I have already made arrangements to work with a personal trainer at 24 Hour Fitness where I work out. His name is Brad and he is going to help me with my workout and diet.  He told me that what you eat is 80% of your total fitness results.  Although I do eat healthily, I think that this is where I have been going wrong.  I am looking forward to mitigating the hate relationship that I have with my body by  loosing a few pounds and gaining some muscle.  I would also like to start on something more meditative like some Tai Chi classes.

I also need to work on my emotional and spiritual selves.  I have spent alot of time during the past year or more caring deeply about people who don't care about me.  Although I won't completely abandon caring about these people, I have determined that I need to divert a large part of this energy to care for myself and others who will give some love back to me.  I am not one for having alot of friends as I believe that quality is far better than quantity.  I would like to find a friend for mutual spiritual and emotional support.  I really need this badly!

Here's to building more physical, spiritual and emotional health in 2012!

Christmas Eve in Paradise

It's Christmas Eve in Paradise!

A Floating Christmas Tree at the Polynesian Cultural Center

We flew out to Hawaii on Monday of  this past week for a holiday in paradise.  Unfortunately, the holiday did not start out too well.  Continental/United Airlines lost our bags, I lost my favorite jacket, and an iPAD2 screen broke.  To top it all off, several days later I forgot to get my credit card back after I paid for dinner at Gordon Biersch.

However, not all is lost!  One of the bags showed up the day after we arrived and the other (containing my stuff) just showed up on on Thursday; I found my jacket at the Lost and Found at the Navy Lodge and we have an AppleCare policy on the iPAD2.  I also got the bank to shut off my card and nobody tried to charge anything to it.  What became so apparent from all of this is that material possessions are fleeting.  You can have everything one day and nothing the next.  When it comes right down to it, what really matters is your family and friends!

Still, all of this doesn't keep me from being pissed off at Continental/United Airlines for their incompetence and total and complete lack of giving a damn about our bags!  Not once did they apologize for the serious inconvenience that they caused us, but they also didn't even try to find our bags.  They never called us at all to say the bags had arrived at HNL.  We just showed up at the Baggage Claim and got them.  I only had the clothes on my back on Tuesday and had to go spend a good bit of money on clothes and toiletries to get by until I could get my bag back.  I am sure they will not reimburse me the full amount.  What makes it even worse is that we are One Pass Gold Members, which means we are really good customers. They will receive a formal complaint from me after we get back home..

All of that aside, Oahu is a very beautiful place!  We went to the Polynesian Cultural Center yesterday.  This is definitely a "don't miss" for anybody visiting Oahu.  The Mormon Church runs the Polynesian Cultural Center and provides young folks from the Polynesian Islands with scholarships to Brigham Young University in Oahu in exchange for them to share their culture with folks visiting the Center.

Visitors get to experience the cultures of Hawaii, Fiji, Tonga, New Zealand, Samoa and Tahiti and they are all very beautiful!

The day started out with a Canoe Pageant where people from each of the islands floated out on canoes dressed in their traditional costumes and doing their traditional dances.

The first canoe out was the "Royal Ali'i", which represented Hawaiian royalty of yesteryear:


The Royal Ali'i Canoe


Next came the New Zealand Canoe:

New Zealand (Aotearoa) Canoe

And after that was the Samoan Canoe:

The Samoan Canoe

Then the Fiji Canoe:

The Fiji Canoe

Followed by the Tongan Canoe:

The Tongan Canoe

And finally, the Hawaiian Canoe:

The Hawaiian Canoe

There are little "villages" throughout the Polynesian Cultural Center that represent each of the islands.  There are shows in these villages which teach visitors about the particular island's culture.  I particularly liked the Fiji and Tahiti Villages.

Here is a picture of some of the lovely young ladies from the Fiji village:

3 Lovely Fijiian Ladies

The Fiji show and dancing was quite tribal and lively.  I really enjoyed the Fiji Chietan's dancing:

The Tahiti Village also had a nice show and dancing.  Here are some of the Tahitian dancers:

There was a Luau after the village shows, which featured entertainment and a traditional Luau meal which consisted of Kahlua Pig, teriyaki chicken, poke, long noodle chicken, sweet potatoes, rice and poi.

The traditional Kahlua Pig is covered with banana leaves and roasted slowly in an "Emu" or pit all day.  Here is a picture of the Kahlua Pig:

Kahlua Pig

What a wonderful time!  I am so glad to be able to embrace diversity in such a beautiful manner!

All of this loveliness aside, I did have a few disappointments during the last week.  A Facebook friend went somewhat beserk and was posting all kinds of anti-Christmas comments, and then unfriended her daughter and a bunch of friends, including myself.  Also, a colleague at work sent out a "thank you" email to everybody that "helped" her team during the past year.  She listed a group of people and cited examples of how they helped her team.  Unfortunately, she seemed to forget about the fact that her team used my work in a recent major presesentation, as well as all of the time that I sat with her team to help with the presentation.

However, I must continue to realize that the only behavior that I can control is my own, which I plan to do this year and throughout 2012.

Merry Christmas!

Rotonda West on Dwellable

Farewell, My Friend

I have felt very sad all day long today.  A friend of mine will be driving out of Texas tomorrow and into the sunrise. I hope that there are some really good things on the horizon for her.  It kind of reminds me somewhat of the morning that I left Basic Training at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas.  The bus I was on drove off into the most beautiful sunrise I had ever seen, and I saw this as a sign that there were many good things in store for me, and there were!  If I had to do it all over again, I would have still joined the Air Force.

A group of us went to lunch today at Pappasitos to bid her and another person farewell. It was a very nice lunch. Before I left work today, I went over to her, told her goodbye and gave her a pocket Angel Stone to ensure that the angels would watch over and protect her in her new location.

Sarah's Angel Stone

She and I hugged and said "goodbye".  I hope that this was not the last time that I will ever see her!  When it comes right down to it, she probably doesn't give a rat's ass about me, but I really do care about her, for some reason.  Now I have to walk past her empty desk when I return to work after New Years. This makes me feel very sad and empty.

My dear friend, I will say it again, I really care about you!  I hope that you find happiness and fulfillment in your new life. Just don't forget about the past two years here in Dallas.

So here is a song that I am dedicating here on my blog, just for you . . .

I wish you were still here and I hope we can meet again someday.

Until tomorrow's sunrise . . .

A Shot in the Bum

I have been sick for the past week or so with severe sinus congestion, a sore throat and the general malaise that accompanies ailments of this sort. I finally broke down today and went to the doctor. Well, the proverbial "shot in the arm" to cure one's ills morphed into a "shot in the bum" for me. A steroid shot that is, along with a Z-PAC prescription. It ended up being a sinus infection. I want this to be gone before I get on the plane to Hawaii next week!

Today turned out to be a pretty decent one. I went to lunch at Pappadeaux's today with several people from work to celebrate the birthday of a very lovely girl at work who I enjoy talking with on a daily basis. Well, the infamous "TW" joined us at lunch today and it was a very pleasant experience! I have mentioned TW in my blog before. I really like TW, but they shut me out at times for some unknown reason, which really hurts my feelings.

TW was out of the office at another location for several weeks and just arrived back this past week. I have noticed that things seem to have eased since their return. The veil appears to have lifted somewhat. Perhaps it is because this is TW's last week here. I hope that things stay this way until their departure. I would love to sit down and have a long discussion with TW to tell them how much I care. I don't know if this will happen now or ever, but I hope it will somehow, somewhere, sometime.

So, here's to you, TW. I truly care about you, so don't you forget about me after you leave! I am dedicating one of my favorite songs to you tonight and for ever more . . .

More to come . . .

The Blue Lady

I just got an iPAD 2 this past week and I have really been enjoying playing with it! I don't know why I waited so long to get one, as they are so much easier to use than a regular laptop. So after dinner tonight I was playing some more with the iPAD and came across an app called "Photo Booth", where you can take different kinds of distorted pictures, some of them like those funky mirrors at amusement parks. I was oddly drawn to the "Thermal Camera" selection and took my first "self portrait" on my iPAD 2. I have titled it "The Blue Lady", because it actually depicts how I have been feeling this week. Here is "The Blue Lady":

The "Blue Lady"

This reminds me somewhat of those aura reading photos you can have taken in places like Sedona or Pleasanton, CA.  If I were to do an aura reading on this photo, I would say that the subject is a blue lady surrounded by fire with serenity above,  Oddly enough, that is exactly where I am at right now in my life. It is cold and dark outside and the holidays are approaching.  I am feeling pretty blue as a result.  I am surrounded by a very stressful environment at work, and the only peace that I have is from the Lord above.

I need to be take great care to keep this under control.  I am going to Hawaii at the end of next week, which will help immensely.  I also need to stick to a strict exercise regimen, eat healthy food, and surround myself with positive and caring people.  Sticking to these principles, I hope to become Ms. Sunshine again:

Ms. Sunshine

Until tomorrow . . .

Pearl Harbor Day

I dedicate my post today to those who died in the attack on Pearl Harbor in Oahu, Hawaii on this day 70 years ago.  How tragic that something like this could happen on what was a beautiful, sunny day in paradise!  What is so sad is that there were strong indications that this was going to happen, but they went unheeded. This tragedy underscored the importance of how intelligence should be used to protect the United States of America from all enemies foreign and domestic.

Although I have been in Oahu many times, the USS Arizona Memorial never fails to have an effect on me.  It lies in shallow waters beneath the beautiful stark white memorial built in its memory and honor. You can actually see the ship in the water under the memorial:

The USS Arizona Lies Still Beneath its Memorial in Pearl Harbor

  
Visitors are taken to the memorial via a barge and once there, asked to enter the memorial in silence and respect.  It is a very somber place, as the bodies of 1,177 servicemen who died aboard the ship remain entombed there today.  When you look out of the windows of the memorial, you can see one of the gun turrets right outside:

Gun Turret Right Outside the Windows of the Arizona Memorial

Here is a picture of a large plaque of the list of names of those servicemen who died there:

Plaque of Names of Those Who Died on the USS Arizona

I will pray for the souls of these brave servicemen who died at Pearl Harbor 70 years ago.  I pray that both they and their families are at peace.

Until tomorrow . . .

It's Freezing in Dallas!

It is freezing in Dallas, Texas!  It has been this way for the past few days and is supposed to be the same for the rest of the week.  I have woke up to cold dark mornings, donned my heavy winter coat, and then returned home in the cold dark evenings.  I don't want to do this anymore!  We are going to Hawaii in two weeks and I cannot wait!  Here is a picture that I took last year of the beautiful, private beach on Bellows Air Force Station in Oahu, HI:

Private Beach on Bellows Air Force Station in Oahu, Hawaii

Hawaii, here I come!  Anyway, once the sun came up today,  I had a decent day at work.  I ended up getting a really good year end performance review from my manager, and that made me feel good.  I have worked hard and truly cared all year long and it paid off!

Until tomorrow . . .

The Yule Tree and its Lesson in Diversity

We put up our Christmas tree and decorated it last night.  We don't put it up every year as we are often away during Christmas, but we will be home for part of the holidays this year, so we decided to decorate.  We bought some new ornaments for it this year.  Here is a picture of the tree after we decorated it last night:

The Yule Tree

I fully embrace diversity and have several friends who are Wiccan.  My Wiccan friends call this a Yule Tree.  The Yule Tree is decorated and consecrated for the Winter Solstice, which is at the latter part of December and is the shortest, and often the coldest and darkest day of the year.  The Celtic Druids venerated evergreen trees as manifestations of deity and as symbols of the universe. To the Celts, these trees were sacred because they did not die from year to year like deciduous trees. Therefore they represented the eternal aspect of the Goddess who also never dies. Their greenery was symbolic of the hope for the sun's return.

The Yule tree is consecrated by sprinkling it with salted water, passing the smoke of incense (bayberry, pine, spruce, pine, spice, cedar, or cinnamon) through the branches, and walking around the tree with a lighted candle saying:

By fire and water, air and earth,
I consecrate this tree of rebirth.

I have never been at a Winter Solstice ceremony, but I am sure that it is quite lovely! 

I am indeed privileged  to have some Wiccan friends who are kind enough to help me understand more about their religion.  I had a very strict Catholic upbringing and for a long time was scared to death of the pentagram as I thought it to be a symbol of evil. This is not the case in Wiccan beliefs, in which the pentagram represents the five classical elements, which are invoked during many magical rituals, notably when consecrating a magic circle. The five elements are Air, Fire, Water and Earth, plus Aether (or Spirit), which unites the other four.

The latter description of the pentagram is vastly different from I was brought up to believe. This just underscores the fact that there are many people in this world who are prejudiced against what they don't understand!

If we would all just take some time to talk with and understand people who are different than us, we would find that there is much more beauty in the world than what we can behold while wearing our blinders!  When we free our mind from prejudice, we become so much more enriched in life!

Update - 20 January 2012

Although I still fully embrace diversity and think that Wiccan beliefs are interesting, my Wiccan "friends" that I referenced in this post turned out to be intolerant biggots who hate Christianity and everything associated with it.  Needless to say, I am not friends with these people any more. This is sad, but my last word on the matter is "good riddance".

Ode to the "Ancient Mariner"

I am dedicating this post to my father John "Jackie" West, who died on this day 14 years ago.

"The Ancient Mariner"

John "Jackie" West grew up in Tobyhanna, PA during the Great Depression.  Although times were hard, this did not dampen his enthusiasm for mischief, which he is said to have participated in often. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy when he was 17 years old and went off to serve his country in World War II. His life was often in considerable danger as he served as a Navigator on Naval ships that sailed the hostile waters off of France and other parts of Europe. "Jackie" would not speak of many of the atrocities that he witnessed during the war, but it was obvious that they affected him deeply.

He survived WWII and was a Navigation Instructor at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. He served a total of 22 years in the Navy. When he retired in 1963, he and his family moved from Annapolis, MD to Tobyhanna, PA.  Although Jackie could navigate the ocean with precision, he often got lost on land while driving and would not stop to ask for directions, much to the chagrin of his wife, Nora!  As such, his children lovingly dubbed him as "The Ancient Mariner".  He lived in Tobyhanna with his family until his death on 1 December 1997.

"Jackie" will always be remembered as an imaginative storyteller. His rich tenor voice graced the masses at St. Ann's Roman Catholic Church in Tobyhanna, where he served as a lector and sang hymns. One of the songs that he loved to sing the most was "Danny Boy", which was sung by a vocalist at his funeral mass in December 1997. There wasn't a dry eye in the church during that song!  After mass, a military funeral detail arrived at St. Catherine's Cemetery in Moscow, PA to give him a most beautiful send-off with a 21 gun salute while a bagpiper played "Amazing Grace".  The funeral detail then played taps on a bugle and then presented a flag to his lovely widow Nora.

Rest in Peace, Jackie!

All Ends Well at the Family Table

I did not have much energy today and the whole day dragged on at work.  This is very unusual for me, as I usually have enough energy for several people.  It is very hard going back to work after a holiday!

I don't really have a whole lot to say here today, but I do want to post a picture of Adeline, who looked adorable in her ladybug outfit that she wore to school today:


Adeline in her "Ladybug" Outfit

I also want to congratulate Cassandra Leigh Amaya for making the Honor Roll for her hard work in the 6th Grade!  Here is Cassie celebrating her accomplishment at a Sushi dinner:

Cassie Eating Sushi to Celebrate Making the Honor Roll!

After a frustrating day at work, we all finally got home and settled down to dinner.  Here is what we had for dinner tonight:

Baby Bok Choy, Mixed Wild Rice, and Vietnamese White Fish

So here is one of my mottos:  No matter how bad or unproductive your day has been, at the end of the day, make sure that you sit down with friends and/or family and have a nice dinner!  Share what you did today or what is going on in your life with your friends and family and hear what they have to say about their day as well!  There is no substitute for the Family Table!  I was raised on it and I continue the tradition with my friends and loved ones! 

Until tomorrow . . .

A Hail and Farewell from My Ancestors

Ancestral research is one of my favorite pastimes.  I got bit by the ancestry bug a few years back, right after I finished my Masters Degree and had a little more time on my hands to explore new things.  I was talking to my brother Mark on the phone one day and we were discussing our maternal grandmother Minnie Hart.  Minnie died when our mother was only two years old and we know very little about her.  Even after years of dogged research, she continues to be a woman of mystery. Some of the things that Mark told me that day got me hooked on delving into our family history.

Once I embarked upon researching my family history, other areas of mystery emerged.  One of those areas involved my paternal grandfather Douglas H. West's family.  The Wests emigrated from somewhere in Ireland to the Channel Islands in the early 1850s.  Mark paid a woman to do some research in Guernsey and she produced some good results. However, the Wests left Guernsey in the early 1860s and nobody knew where they went.  The general consensus in our family was that they went to Austrailia, but there was no proof of this anywhere.

So, I dug into censuses, ship passenger lists and everywhere imaginable looking for my West ancestors. I did this for months on end and finally struck pay dirt.  My grandfather Douglas H. West boarded the R.S.S. Olympic back in the early 1900s to come to the United States.  On the ship passenger records, he listed his destination to be his Uncle Thomas Kent's home on Park Avenue in Hoboken, New Jersey.  None of us had ever heard of any Kent family, but it turns out that his aunt Mary West married a man named Thomas Kent and they settled with their 8 children in Hoboken.

This was a huge discovery as it also lead to the fact that my great-great grandparents John and Alice Hussey West also went to the US and settled in Hoboken, New Jersey.  They both died there and are buried in Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City. 

I continued to research the Kents to find out more about them, which lead me to contact a woman on Ancestry.com by the name of Ann Kent Dennis.  I contacted Ann because she had a Thomas Kent in her family tree who had lived in New Jersey.  After talking with her, it became apparent that she was my g-g-uncle Thomas West Kent's daughter, which made her my 4th cousin. At that time, she was 91 years old and surfing the internet!  What an amazing woman!  Anyway, Ann and I corresponded periodically and traded information, but some time had passed since I had heard from her.    Here is a picture of Ann and her father Thomas back in the 1930s:

Thomas West Kent, Ann Kent Dennis and Aunt Lillian Rayfield Tabor - August 11 - 1936

Well, I received an email from her granddaughter Erin yesterday telling me that Ann had died on Tuesday, November 22, 2011.  This resulted in a hail to Erin, a cousin I didn't know about and a farewell to my dear Cousin Ann.  Rest in Peace, Ann!

Erin and I are comparing notes now.  I sent her a bunch of information that she didn't know and pictures that she didn't have.  She is going to use these pictures in a slideshow at Ann's funeral service, which is wonderful!  Meanwhile, Erin has some pictures and old documents that were in her grandmother's effects that I really think are going to help me learn more about my family.  Ancestral research can be tedious and frustrating sometimes, but moments like this make it all worth it! 

Meanwhile, going back to work this week was brutal after being on Thanksgiving holiday in Sedona!  I have been dragging badly and cannot wait until the end of the week.

We had a very nice dinner tonight, part of which we got from the Omaha Steak Company:

Dinner Tonight:  Baked Potato with Sour Cream, Filet Mignon and Brussel Sprouts

Until tomorrow . . .

The Bittersweet Holidays

I have commented to some friends during the last few days that Thanksgiving, as well as the Christmas holidays are always such a happy and sad time of year,  They are bittersweet in that we are with family and also remember our family and friends who have died.  This year has not been any different from the others.  We lost Alicia Rivas de Amaya on the 22nd of November and it  just came to my attention yesterday that  a childhood friend died last year.

I spent most of my formative years in a small town in the Pocono Mountains, PA called Tobyhanna.  Tobyhanna, which means "dark waters" in the American Indian language, was established by mostly German and Irish immigrants back in the mid 1800s. My paternal Irish ancestors set up housekeeping there in 1852 after they fled the Potato Famine in Ireland.

We settled in Tobyhanna after my father retired from the US Navy when I was four years old.  Despite the resignations of my mother, my father insisted that we return to his childhoold home to be near his mother and sister.  I had several childhood friends that I played with there who I shall forever call "The Tobyhanna Girls", and Patty Bonny Gaige was one of them.

A very nice girl who I went to school with at Pocono Catholic and who I have since become friends with on Facebook informed me yesterday that Patty died last year in Florida.  I was very saddened by this news!  I would like to dedicate my blog for today to Patty as follows:

Photo Courtesy of Mary Kay Carota, Posted on Facebook

Here is Patty's Obituary, which was posted in the Herald Tribune in Sarasota, FL on 28 July 2010:

                                                                       ~~~

Patricia A. Gaige
 
Nov. 13, 1959 - July 19, 2010

Patricia A. Gaige, 50, of Rotonda West, formerly of the Poconos, Pa., died July 19, 2010.
Services will be private. Lemon Bay Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Survivors include her mother, Rita Bonny of Rotonda West; and sisters Lynn Kelly of Tobyhanna, Pa., and Theresa Storm of Tannersville, Pa.

                                                                      ~~~

This is certainly not much to say about Patty, who was such a vibrant and spunky woman!  The last time that I spoke with her was in the early 80's in the Tinker Hollow, which was a bar in Mt. Pocono, Pa that burned down in the mid 80's.  It was such a nice conversation and she was so sweet!  I remember her telling me that she had given up Cosmetology and was pursuing other avenues.  I hope that Patty found some happiness in her life before she passed away!

Lord, please bless Patty!  Please let her be at peace and in your light!


June 29, 2013 Update

I ended up getting in touch with a girl by the name of Teresa Kelly today.  Teresa and I were classmates at Pocono Mountain High School and we partied together a few times outside of school.  Her brother Pat married Patty Bonny's sister Lynn.  I asked Teresa if she knew what happened to Patty.  She told me that Patty was a very heavy smoker and had other health problems, one of which I know was diabetes from somebody I talked with recently who knew her from Tobyhanna.

Apparently, Patty's smoking and health problems resulted in a fatal heart attack while she was sleeping. Unfortunately, she was dead for about three days before anybody found her.  Teresa told me that she helped Lynn clean out Patty's apartment.  What a terribly sad story!

It was very nice to get back in touch with Teresa again though!  She has pictures of David Schmitt, a classmate of ours who died tragically back in 1987.  I'm hoping that she'll let me put one on a memorial site that I created for Dave.  I look forward to reminiscing with her about our school days!

November 13, 2015 Update
  
Today would have been Patty's 56th birthday.  Once of the girls that grew up with us in Tobyhanna posted this picture of her on Facebook today in honor of her birthday:

Picture posted on Facebook by Tina Marie Merli

Happy Birthday Patty!  Rest in Peace!

Long Layover in Houston

We flew out of Phoenix this morning to return to Dallas, but never made it home.  All was fine on the departure monitors when we arrived in Houston, so we took the train to Concourse B.  Unfortunately, by the time we got there, the flight had been cancelled and there were no other flights going out to Dallas for the rest of the day.  This was very frustrating because we just wanted to go home, but apparently the plane had mechanical problems.  Since this was the case, Continental ended up putting us up in the Marriott. We figured that there had to be some reason for this to happen, so we decided just to make the best of the situation.

 The Marriott is actually right in the IAH airport. You can get to it by going down to the bottom floor of the airport and taking a tram.  It was pretty convenient as the hotel is only one tram stop over from Concourse B.  Continental couldn't find our checked bags right away, so we went over and checked into the hotel and waited for them to call us, then we took the tram back over to Concourse B and collected our bags.

After dropping the bags off at our room, we took the elevator up to CK's Revolving Restaurant and had dinner.  This was pretty cool as the restaurant actually spins around 360 degrees during the course of 1 hour and 20 minutes, so you get a full view of the airport while you are eating.  It is sort of like being on a merry-go-round, only it is much slower.  Hernan and I ended up getting prime rib, scalloped potatoes, and mixed vegetables. Here is what the prime rib looked like:

The dinner was qute expensive, but it actually tasted pretty good! The prime rib was very tender. Adeline got a kid's pizza and french fries, which she hardly even touched.  Now we are just laying around in the room and will probably go to bed soon.

I will be very glad to get home and get back into my regular exercise routine!  Exercise is so crucial to both my physical and mental well being, and even more so during the holidays.  I frequently end up feeling sad during this time, usually about family or friends for some reason or another.

This Thanksgiving went well, except for the fact that my Mother-in-law passed away.  She was very ill, so her death was bittersweet.  It was disappointing that I didn't end up talking with my brother or sister this Thanksgiving.  My brother, sister and I are the only 3 people in my immediate family who are still alive.  I really would like to be in touch with them more often as life is so short.  I left messages, but haven't heard back from either of them, which is sad!  Neither of Adeline's parents gave a damn enough to call her on Thanksgiving, which is even sadder!

However, the only behavior that I can control is my own, so I am going to make sure that I get enough exercise, eat right and keep a positive attitude this holiday season!

Thanksgiving in Scottsdale

We drove from Sedona today to spend Thanksgiving in Scottsdale.  We have to fly back to Dallas early tomorrow and didn't want to be making the trek from Sedona to Phoenix early in the morning.  Scottsdale is one of my most favorite places!  It is just the coolest little western town with Indian jewelry shops and great restaurants!  We are staying at the Doubletree Resort by Hilton Paradise Valley on Scottsdale Road, which is where we usually stay when visiting here.  It has a great pool, beautiful grounds and a very polite and attentive staff.

This was the menu at dinner tonight:



Dinner was okay, but nothing like being at home.  The service wasn't the greatest, but then again, most people are at home on Thanksgiving.  The bottom line is that we really just need to be thankful that we have our family and food on the table!

Here is what the Entree looked like:


Thanksgiving - 2011 Entree


Here are Hernan and Adeline snuggling at dinner:

Hernan and Adeline

Here are Adeline and I at dinner:

Mae and Adeline

Before I can retire on this wonderful Thanksgiving - 2011, I would like to dedicate the day to Alicia Rivas Amaya, who died on November 22nd.  Here is her obituary that was posted in La Prensa Grapica on November 23rd:


Lord, Thank You for you for blessing us with our family, jobs, a roof over our heads and food on the table.  Please bless our loved ones who have died and let them be at peace and in your light!

Until tomorrow . . .

The Air Above Sedona

We took a helicopter ride with Red Rock Helicopter Tours over Sedona yesterday and it was really cool!  Our Pilot's name was Dave and he is a Navy veteran who put himself in harm's way to keep our country safe. Thank you for your service, Dave!

Here is a picture of us by the helicopter and Dave giving us the thumbs up inside:

Helicopter Ride Over Sedona - 22 November 2011

The weather was perfect and the view of the red rocks was spectacular!  Here is a one of the best shots that we got from the ride:

Sedona from the Air


After we finished the helicopter ride, we went to the Scenic Overlook near the airport and took some pictures of the spectacular view.  Here is one of the best shots from the Scenic Overlook:

A View from the Airport Road Scenic Overlook

We got to see some really beautiful sights yesterday!

Today, we headed out to the Jerome National Park,  It is about 24 miles from where we are staying.  When we got there, there were signs posted that the park is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.  We were really disappointed!  What kind of National Park closes on Tuesdays and Wednesdays?

We ended up going the Montezuma Castle National Monument in Camp Verde, AZ.  This is a really cool place!  Montezuma's "castle" is a well-preserved cliff-dwelling that was built and used by the Pre-Columbian Sinagua people around 700 AD. It has been said to look like a prehistoric high rise apartment complex.

Montezuma Castle

Montezuma actually had nothing to do with this castle. The Sinagua people farmed the land here and then ended up eventually disappearing from the area.

So, the day didn't end up as we planned, but Montezuma's Castle was a cool place to visit.  Tomorrow, we will head to Scottsdale where we will spend the night and then fly back to Dallas on Friday, 25 November.

Until tomorrow . . .

Rest in Peace, Señora de Amaya

Alicia Rivas Amaya had her first child at the tender age of 14 and her last child when she was 49 years old.  She and her husband Salvador had 18 children.  She spent most of her life raising her children in San Miguel, El Salvador.  Her life was not easy by any stretch of the imagination!  She washed her family's clothes with a washboard.  She ground corn by hand for tortillas and tamales.  She raised chickens so that there would be eggs and meat for the family table as well as to sell to others for family income. She always made sure that nobody went hungry, including visitors who happened to stop by to visit the Amaya Family.

Alicia was a strict mother who wanted the best for her children.  Her efforts were successful as she turned out 2 doctors, a laywer, an executive chef, a teacher and several successful small business owners.  She raised her children to be honest and respectful, which are qualities that are not evident in many young people in more recent generations.  Up to the day that she died she remembered every one of her children's birthdays.

She was a grandmother to 37 grandchildren and also a great grandmother to so many children we have lost count!

We are so blessed to have been able to visit with her in El Salvador right before she died and several other times before that.  Here is a picture of her relaxing on one of the hammocks in her house when we visited her during Carnival in 2008:

The last time that we saw her alive was on the week of November 2, 2011, when she celebrated her 78th birthday.  We arrived in San Miguel on Friday, October 28th.  When we drove up to the Amaya residence, we were greeted by her daughter Cristina, who was in tears.  We thought that Alicia had died before we could see her for the last time.  She barely held on to life that whole day and we were sure that she would pass away before the new day dawned.  Most of her children were able to fly from the U.S. to be with her in her final moments. 

However, seeing all of her children gave her the strength to live until today, November 22, 2011.  She passed away at 1:40 AM this morning with her faithful daughter Xeomara by her side.

Her family visited her today for the last time during this lifetime at her wake in San Miguel, where she looked like a beautiful bride!

 She has now joined her parents and her sons Saul and Salvador in heaven.  Dios bendiga su alma, Alicia!

A Room With a View

Today was a very laid back day in Sedona.  We got up and went to the grocery store to pick up some forgotten items. On the way out, I took some more pictures.  Here is one that I took in the back of our unit:


Autumn Leaves in Sedona

This place has the most picturesque views!  The view from the balcony is red rock formations and in the back there is autumn foliage.

On the way back, we stopped to take a picture of one of the neat little picnic areas on the property.  This one is surrounded by beautiful pine trees:

Adeline and I sitting amidst the Sedona Pines


There are also grills at these picnic areas, which is a great way to have an excellent dinner surrounded by natural beauty and without the big restaurant tab!
 
Next, we stopped at the Visitor Center here at the Wyndham Sedona and the Concierge hooked us up with some really cool things to do during the rest of our stay here.
We ended the day by dining in again:

Dinner Tonight - Steak, Broccoli, Corn and Sauteed Peppers with Onion

Dessert was Good Humor Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream, yummy!  This tasted really good, but I am going to have to work it off tomorrow at the gym.

Tomorrow we plan to go to a place called Jerome, which is said to have been "the Wickedest Town in the West".  It is also supposed to be haunted, which is very intriguing!  On Tuesday we plan to take a helicopter ride over Sedona.

Now I am going to drink a few glasses of wine and then go to bed.  Until tomorrow . . .

The Long Road to Sedona

The flight from Dallas to Phoenix yesterday did not go quite as we planned.  The leg from Dallas to Houston was delayed 3 hours due to bad weather.  Consequently, we got into Phoenix around 8:00 PM and then drove to Sedona.  By the time we got there it was 11:30 PM.

However, the trip out here was definitely worth it!  We are staying in a beautiful place called the Wyndham Sedona.  The staff here is so nice and helpful and the place is gorgeous!  We are staying in Unit 1222 and it is like an apartment. We have the most beautiful view from our balcony!  Here is the view that we saw from our balcony this morning:

Here is another view from the balcony:

We got dressed and went to breakfast down the street at great little place called "The Coffee Pot" and then did some food shopping at Safeway, which is right across the street from where we are staying.  Once we got home we took a much needed nap. We spent most of the day just doing nothing but relaxing. Our unit has a full kitchen in it, so we had dinner in tonight.  Here is what we had for dinner tonight:


Eggplant Parmigiana with a side of Angel Hair Pasta.  It was an excellent first dinner in Sedona, and the best part of it was that we ate it in our pajamas!

After dinner, Adeline took a nice soak in the Jacuzzi.  She really enjoyed it!

A relaxing day like this was just what the doctor ordered!  I am looking forward to 6 more days here in Sedona.