It will never rain on my parade~~~~~

Hello Sweet Things,

The entire Film Noir Festival was marvelous fun, Joe had a chance to come with me a few times to see a few of the films, even though he's retired from the police force his new work keeps him busy, so when he can't come I'd ask Yoshie or Janet they love Noir films as well.   Yoshie of course likes the one's where the setting takes place in San Francisco's China Town although those are rare.  

She has slimed down so much ever since she started her health program with her doctor and she has so much energy, that I had to ask her if she was taking anything, "Nope" she said "Just vitamins and Iron, nothing to over stimulate my heart"   she looked so good in a Chinese Dress that you'd expect the Dragon Lady from "Terry and the Pirates" to wear and her Mother helped her with her hair so she'd looked right out of a '40's noir film all deadly and fantastic.

Joe enjoyed looking like Alan Ladd from "This Gun For Hire"  and me?  Well who do you think?

We missed the Gun Show at the Cow Palace but we hope to hit it in April, I am looking forward to it.   And the Vintage Fashion Show in March at the Concours, but for now both Yoshi and I are looking forward to the Chinese New Years Festival and Parade and this time her husband can come, she is so happy that he doesn't have to do all that traveling overseas for a while.  So it will be a real family affair.

The year of the Snake, I wonder what it will bring?

I'm planning to also go and see my country home tomorrow for the weekend, it will be nice to go during the week instead of making plans for a weekend, Hal and Josie have been keeping the place up real well and with the Agricultural School there has been a few new animals added to the barn, Josie said that the place is more alive now than it has been in a long time and already some bookings have come in for weddings, so those times are now blocked out.  But one of the prospective couples want to spend their first night in one of the bedrooms, Josie told them that the house is not a bed and breakfast but they said that it didn't matter, they just knew they'd be too tired to drive especially on the roads since the roads are twisty and most of the wedding party was going to be staying in the nearby hotel.   So I'm going to be meeting them this weekend to discuss this and make it clear that it is an exception and not the rule.  Although I do understand their precautions.

And when I get back it will be time for me to put my tax papers together what a bore, but it needs be done.
Just a few hours ago I met some volunteers who are working to have people attend a City Council meeting in my town to discuss what will be done with the new open space, it use to be a rail line and yard but now it will be turned into open space, what a wonderful idea considering that it seems that every bit of open space is being crowded with McMansions, with tiny or no yards.   I'm not going to be able to attend but there is an on line link to the city for input or suggestions.   I'm certainly going to give my 2 cents worth.

The weather seems to want to warm up slightly, but not much in the way of rain, I've already seen birds that only come when they are migrating,  it's too early for a hummingbird feeder, but maybe I should put one out.

Oh this Diva is becoming such a home body, but there I times I go out on my balcony and look across the bay to my City, and I feel an almost throaty growl within me, I made it my energy says, I made it, I'm in a position to call the shots, I have an independent income, I have my own work schedule and am my own person.  I can walk the City Streets and know I was not defeated by it, not by anything, I made my choices and I feel good, what good I could and can do I have and will do, what pleasure I find with family, friends, lover, I find and feel happy,  there have been ups and downs, but somehow I sense that all is not done yet, there is still something around the corner.  What it is I don't know, but I am going to meet it with eyes wide open and see what there is to see.   And that feeling is Wonderful.

Kisses Sweet Things

"When the Lights Go Down In The City..."

Friday was a day of very mixed emotions' Day Sweet Things.

Thursday I was excited, yes, excited to see the rain coming down and once again washing my City, creating a misty haze for the neon lights to blur into and be defused from their gaudiness to soft accents in the twilight, the buildings lined in red to celebrate the 49er’s win.

As the ferry pulled away from the dock taking me home to my refuge, droplets of rain and the spray of the bay made a further soft distortion of the city skyline, rendering it to a fairyland of lights that hide the grittiness of it’s streets; a promise on its lips like lies on a well paid hooker’s tongue.

Like that song “When the lights go down in the City….”

It was comforting to return home, although silent, but warm, lived in by both our lives, Joe once again pulling a late night shift, his cell phone message about grief on the streets, and his thoughts knowing I am his support to get through another night in our own ‘naked city’.

Then Friday morning as he returned from duty, my own knight, giving this ‘sleeping beauty’ an awaking kiss and the smell of coffee perking in the kitchen, even as the night had not yet given away to a rain drenched over cast dawn.

Seeing his face drawn in sadness and hearing softly in the back ground Etta James singing “At Last”….

I asked him “hard night?” and he nodded saying “it wasn’t made any easier after I heard Etta James passed away.” Etta is one of Joe’s favorite female jazz singers.

“It’s like when we lose one of them that we grew up with, we lose a part of ourself too.” he said. I could only hug him; I knew the night had been tough on him and that he always likes to relax with one of his singing ladies. I told him “It may not seem like much but at least she was recognized and we have a large body of her work preserved, she’ll never die.” And I was rewarded with a smile.

Only when things had been difficult or funny would he unload what is on his mind, a young 11 year old Asian girl was kidnapped in the very early morning hours from her parents home by a 40 year old Asian man who was acquainted with the family, a shooting at a undercover officer, the funeral of a 5 year old boy who was shot and killed and his murderer still not found, Joe sent a donation to the family to help with the funeral, he told me a number of officers sent something.

The Occupy Oakland group protesting against the police and vandalizing property along the way. Joe warned me that the Occupy S.F. group was going to be in the financial district, he was worried for me, and I assured him I had my tennis shoes and pepper spray already packed.

But it’s the children that prey on his mind. More than once he’s said “what kind of society shoots, kidnaps, rapes, murders little children? What have we become?”

“When the lights go down in the City….”

He fell asleep on my bed, exhausted as he was reciting the nights event’s, I removed his belt and shoes and covered him with a comforter, set the timer on the coffee maker for when I know he’ll wake up. Seldom has his internal clock failed him.

Fortunately I didn’t have a problem getting to work; my connections were fine as the Ferry plowed through the Bay to my City, even the rain felt so good on my face.

Everyone seemed to want to go slow and be careful in what they were doing, tying up loose ends, dotting I’s and crossing T’s. Making sure that nothing was going to delay their leaving to go home.

“When the lights go down in the City….”

My assistant was worried about getting home, so we planned on leaving together, which turned out to be a good thing. A hundred or so protestors were being an annoyance, I saw one man just upset talking to police, I was told he was parked in an alleyway out of the Occupy’s way and some dozen or so of them surrounded his car and told him to move, he wasn’t even in the car just watching the parade of protestors, until some of them threw paint on his car, it wasn’t an expensive car, it was a working man’s car, part of the 99% and yet they vandalized it.

My assistant and I came to the conclusion that this so called Occupy Wall Street West is nothing more than an excuse to do damage and be vandals under the disguise of being protestors. They have lost any and all creditability with me.

We were wondering how we could get down to either a BART station or the Ferry, in the rain and the wind, so we looked at each other and started singing “Love Me Do” a Beatles song, and sort of danced with briefcases in hand doing our 2012 version of “Laverne and Shirley”, then we switched off to “It’s a Hard Day’s Night” followed by “5 O’clock World” (the Vogues), flipping to “She Loves You, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah”, I was surprised my Assistant knew so many of the songs, but she’s a 60’s rock fan. So singing and dancing our way down towards the Ferry dock in our now soaking tennis shoes, people made way for us, even the Occupy protestors, the police officers that were there just smiled, yes we were harmless, we kept it up until we arrived laughing at our destination. And no one stopped us.

Using her cell phone she contacted her Grandparents to tell them where she was going to be when we got on the other side of the Bay. Using the time waiting and riding the Ferry we exchanged our thoughts on the City, on work, on our dreams, she is ambitious and she has smarts, in time when she moves up in the company or takes a better position at another company we can be friends instead of Manager and Assistant.

She was feeling the pull as well as I saw her looking with longing at the City as it receded into the distance.

“Oh I want to be there in my City…ohhhh”

Her Grandparents, met us at the dock, and taking advantage of their kindness they drove me home; I thanked them and wished them a good night and a good weekend.

Joe was still asleep, he was more exhausted than I thought, at least when he woke up it was to good news, the 11 year old Asian girl was found unharmed, they captured the suspect who shot at the police officer, I wish I could have given him more.

The coffee was warm but being so long on the warming plate it had turned bitter, I washed it out and made a fresh brew, dinner was baking in the oven, a simple shepherds pie.

As the coffee dripped through, the dinner baked, and Joe taking a shower, I went out onto the covered balcony and looked out at my City, partially hidden by rain and clouds, the early evening darkness surrounding me, and my City….

I realized I could never leave here, the pull is too strong, I’ll keep my country home but until I can no longer walk those streets, with it’s rain and fog, it’s bustle and hustle, it’s crowds and smells, it’s noise and it’s hidden silence, it’s light and dark, with all it’s contradictions, my eternal hunt for “the black bird”, it’s magic, for all it’s grittiness, has me entwined to its heart…

“For when the lights go down in the City,

And the sun shines on the Bay….

Oh I want to be there in my City…

Oh, oh, ohhhhhhhh”

Later Sweet Things, Kisses.

Worries & Sadness~~~

Hello Sweet Things,

I have been keeping both my eyes and ears glued to the media on any changes in the European economy. Because we have become global we do have the "Butterfly Effect". What happens in Europe affects the U.S., what happens in China, Japan, the middle east, Canada, South America affects the U.S.

I have continued to encourage my people to be conservative and think of their basic needs, shelter, food, medicine, health care, utilities, transportation---I know I'm over-simplifying, but I really cannot give out more information, but I can tell you this I have given as gifts, when I can purchase them, Elaine St. James' books on simplifying one's life. For my older people they have taken it to heart, and I can see that their faces are more relaxed, less stress.

On the younger ones they do not like the suggested restraints, but I've become a sort of "Mama Bear" and have told them that it will create a greater comfort level for them as they get older.

I've been doing it too, not walking so much on the wild side, I think having re-connected to my family and with Joe in my life along with Lillian's comfortable and wise wisdom and Heather's youthful zeal on things, I am finding the simple things to be so much better.

Although a bit chilly today, Lillian, Heather and I are going Christmas Tree Shopping, I have no desire to put up my "black" tree (artificial) I want a real tree. Not too big, table top size.

Lillian is going for something a little larger about 4 or 5 feet, There is a couple of lots sponsored by local churches that I know will have something just right and it benefits the church programs for the needy. Now I'm going to need Christmas ornaments, but Heather said to check Salvation Army, Goodwill and St. Vincent De Paul, so I will, but the lights will need to be new.

Joe is tired, angry and sad, he knows it's not going to be a happy Christmas for one family, an 18 month old toddler was taken off life support yesterday and died. His father is a rapper and he had taken his young son to a food truck where he and some of his "homeys" were going to do a music rap video, when someone snuck up on them and spray shot at them, some where hit but the little boy was shot in the head, he had been on life support, and the doctor's told the family that all indications showed the baby was brain dead.

What frustrates Joe is that the people know who did it, they won't give up the names, and these same people complain that the police won't do anything---how can they if the witnesses refuse to at least anonymously give up names.

Joe and a number of other officers along with the chief of police were in a march organized by the community and family members in memory of this little boy to try and have people speak up and help the police stop this violence. What makes it even sadder is that the boys father will not co-operate. There is rumours of possible gang retaliation.

Between this and the expenditure of dealing with the idiots of "Occupy Oakland", law resources are spread thin. Joe said to me that the basic message of the "Occupy" groups is correct but they are going about it all wrong, and they need to be careful of doing more damage than good.

There is a petition going around to re-call Jean Quan, the question is "who would be better".

I am glad that I live were I live and not in Oakland, or Berkeley. Not that it's much better in a way, this local government has made mistakes too, not as bad as others but still I cannot turn a blind eye on things. With my work it's impossible.

But for a few hours I will think on church Christmas trees and ornaments, and getting some toys for Toys for Tots, giving food to the food bank and doing what good I can where I can.

Joe has some time off, so he is going to drive Lillian's van and help us haul some trees, tonight comfort food for all 4 of us and hot apple pie and cider as we decorate Lillian's tree.

And you Sweet Things---what kindness are you going to do to help others this Holiday Season and through out the year?

Kisses.

A Thanksgiving Update~~~

Hello Sweet Things,

I hope you don't mind the picture that I've posted but as you go further down reading I think you'll understand why I posted it.

Thanksgiving with my family was wonderful! Baby Sis and Ted her fiance, Mom and Dad, and Trixie the dog, (she was a good little girl).

Dad also invited some of his co-workers who couldn't get together with their families for Thanksgiving, he said it would be a shame for them to be alone.

I'm not going to tell you the feast we had, but we had all the traditional fare, but substituted sparkling cider for wine. I loved it, Mom had made copies for Baby Sis and I of her recipes she said she plans to copy all her favorites for us.

I had a chance to call Joe while he was at Lillian's for their dinner, he said he had to go on duty that evening, so they were having theirs early and he was taking extras as sandwiches for his late supper. Turkey with cranberry spread sandwiches, it may make for a strange sandwich but tasty.

Afterwards we played games first it was "Squeak" a card game, and then "Chicken foot Domino's" I had no idea how to play the latter but I learned. Mom is deadly at that game.

It was good that Dad had invited Alex his co-worker to dinner, his wife had to go back east because her Mother was very ill and she had to help out her sister, Alex was feeling lonely and was thinking of some restaurant then taking in a movie, but Dad said he was coming to our house, and Ralph who is a widower, he lost is wife last year and his children live out of state. Ralph's funds were a bit tight to travel he had just paid off the last of his wife's medical bills, which is sad because although the insurance came through for the bulk of it, there were some that could not be written off and the cost of the funeral as well. And Dad told Ralph that he wasn't going to be alone for this holiday or for Christmas either.

Seeing my Father put himself out there for Alex and Ralph during their difficult times warmed my heart. Dad was always so self-contained before, but as we took our late night walk with Trixie, Dad told me that he is looking at people and situations in a different way, and sometimes, the best gifts he's discovered are the one's that are not bought and gift-wrapped but one's from the heart. He had seen Ralph just looking so down after his wife passed, that he thought he might be suffering from Depression and so one day after work, they got together for coffee and Dad suggested that Ralph see someone to help him make sense of his loss, he knew that the priest from the church that he and Mom go to is also a specialist as a grief consular, so he suggested that Ralph go and see him, even if Ralph is of a different faith.

And it seems to be helping. Dad said that Ralph is now more focused at work and seems a bit lighter in outlook, but the holidays can always be a set back.

I thought that Dad was going to plan to retire next year but he said that he's going to put it off for another year or two. He enjoys the routine and he said that if he retired he'd just be getting into Mother's way, but he told me that he is quick to ask the younger staff members their opinions on things, more staff input, more "brain storming" to which the productiveness has increased as well as moral.

I'm planning on going down the day before Christmas and staying through New Years with the Folks, with Dad's Internet connection I'd have no problem staying in touch with the office.

Joe had a busy Thanksgiving holiday, there were good things and difficult things, the shooting they had recently in which a 1 year old was shot in the head has him feeling down, and the little guy is still in critical condition, just because someone wanted to take out a local rap artist. Joe said that because of the violent competition between rappers and their "fans" no one wants to hold a rap concert, there is no guarantee that no one will not get hurt.

I said in an earlier post that I'd have to modify my thoughts on education and jobs...on the education portion I found out that there are special programs for people who do not have the finances to pay for the training jobs, and this is being offered though several government programs, it's to help keep people on track and off the welfare roles by training them and getting them job assistance especially for those that do not have the funds to pay for training or junior college.

The other thing is that I read in a recent Bloomberg Business Week magazine (Nov 14, 2011 ?approx.) the cover said why Americans won't work. Well they do but they don't want to or can't seem to handle the hard back breaking work like picking tomatoes or cleaning fish, or changing beds. In Alabama alone because of a law in regards to immigrants many of them that were doing these jobs, left because of their illegal status, even when employers used the government Internet program to verify their status.

So several young men who were out of work went to pick tomatoes and most of them quit after one week---Why? Because the work is hard, picking tomatoes in the hot sun. One Employer stated yes the work is hard, but they have the same type of guys working in the hot foundries and that is hotter and more dangerous than picking tomatoes, but the difference is the benefits.

One young man said it is hard and he's just amazed that these immigrants they just keep at it, hardly taking breaks and he's exhausted. Another employer also admitted the work at his fish factory is hard too, cold and long hours but if the work isn't done the food that is produced will rot and go to waste.

One young white male said that for someone like him such work is like impossible, how can anyone white or black do that kind of work that the immigrant workers are doing.

It had me thinking that since these are minimum wage jobs, with next to nothing in benefits, it is one of the reasons why some of our food costs are so low, years ago from the teens to the 1950's in Montery, Ca. there were all these sardine processing factories, and everyone for blocks and blocks around worked in these factories and they were not immigrants per se, so when the sardine boats came in the factories would blow their whistles to call everyone to work and they did, hard, cold, miserable, stinking work to keep a roof over their heads, food on the table and clothes on their backs.

Now the sardines are gone fished out, the Cannery factories on Cannery Row turned into Restaurants, or boutiques and all hurting in this current economy. And back in the depression and drought of the 1930's farmers lost their homes, and people moved from place to place camping out in shacks to work the next crop, the classic picture of the farmer's wife with the two children taken by Dorothea Lang, is iconic for that period, but what a lot of people don't know is that the family eventually by following the crops and available work found themselves in California in L.A. and some years later that same woman, much older saw that photo of herself at an exhibit and she was mad, she said that they were not poor and are not poor, she has a nice house and wonderful children and grandchildren.

What had happen is that when the husband found work and she found work they saved up enough to buy a house and live comfortably, they, according to this same woman were just going though a hard time and were doing what they could to find work.

In the National Review magazine either Nov. 14 or 28 there is an article about the "philosophy" of the Occupy groups, but it is, according to the author a dangerous "Marxist" philosophy.

My thoughts were almost on the same line, I felt that the Occupy groups were really not focusing on the problem and were in danger of falling victim like the characters in the novel "Animal Farm".

As I've said before I worked for my education, hunted for grants and scholarships, went hungry, shared a place with 3 or 4 other girls, walked to save on bus fare, had to go to free clinics when I got sick, even went a dental school when I had a toothache and allowed myself to be a teaching "device" while my toothache was being treated to save money, or for check ups or cleaning, I don't need to tell you how painful that was. To get my hair permed or cut I'd go to a beauty college and allow myself to be a "guinea pig" for students, more than once I had to wear a knit cap to hide the mistakes.

And I had no guarantee that there would be a job out there for me, NONE! I went to the Library the other day and a staffer whom I'm friendly with said that they had one opening for a technician, only one and 92 applicants for the job, every one with different degrees of experience but one, just one edged out the rest by the tiniest of margins.

If the people who are a part of the Occupy groups think that by doing this it will get them jobs, it won't. They forget we are now a Global Economy, not a National one so they are competing with people from India, China, the Philippines, Mexico, etc., etc., etc., for jobs. So they better be prepared to pick tomatoes or clean fish.

The one thing the Occupy groups do have right is the so-called hidden bailouts by the government to the banks, but they need to look deeper, if some of these bailouts didn't happen, more people would have their homes lost with no options for re-financing.

But as I've heard one old-timer say to me "Gas, Grass or what you sit on, nobody, but NOBODY gets a free ride."

Now a slight apology, perhaps I'm over simplifying things, being too simplistic, the issues that surround our economy our un-employment, our fee raising, is far more complicated. I for one do not approve of handing out bonuses and high raises on the backs of students and their parents, I do not approve of stock holders getting big dividends on the backs of the elderly, I do not approve of our government slackers at the Capitol doing cut backs on our elderly, widowed and children.

So if the Occupy groups want to really make a statement, Do it at our Nation's capital in the Middle of Winter if need be and let everyone else get to work doing their job that you are intent on disrupting.

Sorry Sweet Things---I really have a lot of pent-up anger tonight. I think I need some pumpkin spice bread that Mom sent to me, some hot coco and watch "Columbo" on the retro T.V. program when times might have been simpler.

Kisses Sweet Things and thank you for letting me Rant.

Happy Thanksgiving~~~

Hello Sweet Things,

I am on my laptop, and am going to be heading towards my family home via the train, where I'm at has Wi Fi and I want to wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving.

I will be with my family for the next few days, Joe, Frank and his girl friend Eva, will be having Thanks giving with Lillian and Heather, then Joe has to go on duty, no chance for the "Turkey Snooze" as he calls it.

He's been exhausted with moving the "Occupy Oaklanders" from hither to yon, and he's discovered that many of these so called protesters are long time homeless people who refuse to go to shelters, get help or anything, a waste of resources and energy he says. But it seems that the cold and the rain is taking the wind out of them for now. He's hoping that they will form themselves into a more legal positive advocate group to help people who are out of work, losing their homes etc. and give them legal assistance instead of protest demonstrations which only attract the violent elements.

But it's the city of Oakland and it's tax payers who are the losers, businesses have lost business, some have refused to settle here which is a loss of job opportunities, according to some of my sources if "Occupy Oakland" did not do their demonstrations, nearly 1,000 jobs were going to come to Oakland, but are now lost and over $2 million in taxpayers money has been wasted on "Occupy Oakland", money that could have been put to better use.

The general consensus at my office is that the "Occupy" groups have not done much good, true they have pointed out what is wrong with the government and Wall Street but they are not doing it where it needs to be done---Washington D.C. and right on Wall Street in front of the Stock Exchange---but then who wants to freeze in the snow.

I can understand why college students are protesting the increase in tuition's, considering that the State Government is cutting off funds, but when I was going to college I worked, went to school shared a room with 4 other girls, sometimes went with out food, wore clothing from thrift shops, used free clinics for health care, and just scrambled to exist.

They say that education is a "right"---I'd have to agree but---and here is where I know some people may disagree with me, which is alright---because it's only my opinion. So here is where I disagree---all children have a right to education from kindergarten through the 12 grade or High School, which is paid for though the taxes as paid by the citizens of the city, county, state, country----and that will give one the basic skills as needed to get most basic jobs.

But if when one is in High school or even younger, one decides on what vocation or career choice you wish to "train" for then that is on your own coin, you want to be a Doctor, Lawyer, financier, you pay for it when you go to College and other qualified learning institutions. You want to be a carpenter, plumber, electrician, mechanic you pay for it going to vocational school and becoming qualified for it and then apprentice yourself on the job to learn more.

You want to become a first class chief---you pay for it, you want to become a legal secretary or para-legal you pay for it.

You pay to learn these skills and then you work to improve upon it and become masters of your craft, learning from the masters to pass that craft on. And it is hard! Very hard.

One time I was walking back to my shared room from work (to save on bus fare) I had to sit down on a front stoop, because my feet were aching and I knew I still had 12 long blocks to go, there was an elderly African-American gentleman sitting at the top of the stoop and he said I could sit to rest my feet.

We talked as the blood got back to my toes, about life, school, education and he said to me, with a pardon for using inappropriate language "Gas, Grass or Ass, nobody, but nobody gets a free ride, we've all gotta work fo' it Missy, we's all gotta work fo' it. And when we works fo' it, it's all the sweeter." He reminded me of the Aesop's fable of the Grasshopper and the Ant and said "That Aesop feller, he talks about life and how stupid and greedy and lazy people's can be and doin' it on the backs of us Ants, not right ya know, and then when their candy is takin' away they's cry about it, well don't cry I's says, go and works for it"

I walked many a time down that street while I was working and going to school, he'd call me Missy and I called him Mister, I never did learn his name, he never asked for mine, but there was many a time I'd rest on that stoop when he was there and we'd talk.

When I got my degree I walked to that stoop in the hopes of seeing him there but he wasn't so I rang the front door and his daughter came to the door. I told her about our talks and I wanted to let him know I graduated and was going to get my first job. The lady sadly smiled at me and said that they took him to the hospital the other day, he had a heart attack and died.

She asked me for my name and I said "He always called me Missy and I always called him Mister" she looked at me sort of strangely and said "He started sitting on the front stairs and kept saying he was waiting for Missy, then he'd come in after a time and said he and Missy had a nice talk. My husband and I thought that he was dreaming, because Missy was my younger sister's name and she died some years ago."

The lady told me that Missy had a lot of talent and potential but wasted it when she got involved with drugs and died from an overdose, they thought he was dreaming when he'd started talking about his talks he had with Missy but never discouraged him because he'd seem happy and the day before his Heart Attack he said he knew Missy would get her diploma and do good. She was stunned to learn I was the "Missy" he was talking about. And her sister always called their Dad "Mister".

We fell crying into each others arms, she thanked me for making her Dad happy and I thanked her for all the wisdom her Dad gave me.

Now when someone comes along and I know they are working hard and "paying their dues" to get that job or position and I know they would be good at it, I help them, because they are the Ants who work and strive.

And every Thanksgiving I say a prayer and give Thanks to having meet "Mister".

Happy Thanksgiving Sweet Things! Kisses

A Quote to think on~~~

Sweet Things, I came across this quote and it describes how I feel about the print media:


"A newspaper is tactile, engages all of the sences, and leads to more immersive reading than what people might do on line." ---- Arun Gupta



-30-

A slight disappointment~~

I am sorry to report Sweet Things, but no "Ghost and Mr. Chicken" last night.

Instead they ran "Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman", but all was not lost, we enjoyed that as well. But Lillian Tvoid "The Indestructible Man" that was running on another station. "Saving it for an opener next week" she said.

I love it! Joe put in a long, cold shift and just came home, I made him take a hot shower to warm him up. He did not tell me what was happening on the "Occupy Oakland" situation, which is just as well, I can always find out on the news.

To my Sweet Fram, I think I will rent that movie you suggested, just to see the country, and that is so very interesting about your gun purchase---I am jealous! I need to go to a gun show.

On the television idea, when Baby Sis and Ted told me about that I ran it by Joe and even he liked the idea. So we too are going to be watching for an old cabinet, that would work. Joe said he needs a few hobbies to get his mind off of things. On his car restoration, that is going a bit slow, finding the right parts, having the time to do it. But in the end it's all worth it.

In my home I have a lot of old-fashioned things, I think it was because I'd always been searching for my "imagined" idea of a family home, and also I always felt that there was a sort of old-fashioned homey style to it. It was my reaction to what I felt I had been missing from my childhood. Now it seems to be coming full circle.

The sun is out right now, and I am going to take a walk down towards the beach, Heather is working on a paper, and Lillian said she'd join me for brunch at one of our favorite cafe's she'll pick me up from my walk once I call her by cell phone.

Joe has gone to bed, and I can hear his snores rattling the rafters, that only happens when he's very exhausted.

By the way Sweet Things, I still have not bought a car yet, I rented one for the Trip to Disneyland last month, and it was a good thing it was a good size Dodge van, Baby sis and I stopped at a number of shops on the way down and back. Had quite a few finds.

So I hope before Thanksgiving I'll be the proud owner of a new car. But I make no promises.

Kisses, Sweet Things

Headaches, aspirin and ramblings~~

Hello Sweet Things,

Right now I'm taking a little breather at my desk, and planning an escape, no 3 day weekend for me.

With Greece, Italy and the other overseas countries having their own form of fall-out, I've been putting in long hours.

So has Joe, this latest insident with Occupy Oakland now has the police union demanding that the "tent city" be removed. I know of one business that has decided to close up shop, and that is a tiny tip of the iceburg of the possible finaincal crisis Oakland is facing. The Occupy Oakland movement has cost 500 new jobs because 3 bussiness that were planning to move into Oakland, make Oakland their headquaters have now changed their minds and 2 others are going to move out.

So what has the movement done? Even my assistant says "Nothing". To ramble abit and say "Hecuba--but what is Hecuba to he and he to Hecuba that he should go on so?"--Hamlet.

For a while I and my assistant have been taking BART home she goes to a different station and her grandparents pick her up, but there have been times when the Ferry has been best and her family has been kind enough to give me a lift home. All because Occupy Oakland has now lost their focus.

That doesn't mean I'm against the message, I'm not. But the message has been lost because of 1960's tactics, hi-jacked by outside elements and no balance between.

I have always been a cautious person especially when it comes to investing, fiances and purchases. But there has always been people who have unattainable dreams. Think of Dorothy in the "Wizard of Oz" after all her adventures in a magical land, she learned that the simple things were the most important.

Dear Sweet Fram says I should look into Gold and Guns, well I would not invest in gold at this time, the return would not be good, but a long time ago I started investing in gold when the rates were very low, and my return has been good, but now I would not except modestly, I feel very cautious on it right now.

On guns? I'm thinking about a pump shotgun, and lots of shells. Joe didn't know what to get for me as a Christmas present, now he does.

There is one thing that I have not mentioned to all of you Sweet Things, besides my own home and the two pieces of property that I bought (of which one I sold). I have purchased other pieces of property---income property---a couple of 4 plexes and a duplex at the time when the market has gone into a serious slump.

They pay for themselves right now, the profit is modest and I keep the extra funds for repairs; when the market turns around, and it will, then I'll sell them. The hardest part is keeping the rents affordable and still be able to pay taxes, insurances, repairs. I'm lucky all my renters are very responsible people and I have good property managers.

I fell in love with the properties because of their Art Deco style, something that I'm determined to preserve. And I go with local business that can do the job.

BUT---in this entire world there are more people than jobs ---overpopulation---something that in a better frame of mind I would discuss at greater length but my headache is not getting any better. But that is what we are looking at.

Frightening when you think about it.

Now I must go, my assistant is trying to perk me up with "Pumpkin Spice Tea" and two aspirin.

And if I do not make much sense right now----blame it on the long days and nights.

Kisses, Sweet Things

Where is the Sun??

Hello Sweet Things,

All this Grey weather can be depressing, but for a few hours this morning there was sunshine, so taking advantage of it and letting Joe sleep, I took a much desired walk on the nearby beach.

It was so refreshing to see the waves or more like wavelets, kissing the shoreline, watching the various sea birds swoop and ride the sight air currents, the joggers, the serious walkers, the dogie walkers, the parents with babies in strollers taking it a bit of sun and air and enjoying a free sight and thing to do.

Then looking off into the distance counting the number of carrier cargo ships at anchor in the bay, there use to be the sound of fog horns years ago, even with just a slight cloudiness but either the wind wasn't right or they don't use the horns anymore, I miss that.

The weather man says we will have sunshine for the next 4 or 5 days, frankly it can't come soon enough, I need the natural vitamin D that Sunshine provides to help lift my mood. Yoshi suggested that I look into those light bulbs that provide full spectrum light similar to sunlight, she uses it with her Grandmother and it seems to help. I'll look into it, but for now it was nice just to be out in it even for a brief moment.

I took advantage of my walk to end it at the local Starbucks for coffee and a pastry, and as I was contemplating walking home an acquaintance of mine Hank and his wife walked in so we shared a table and they offered me a lift back to my place since it was on their way out of town. To IKEA they said for bookshelves for their college age daughter's room, when they said she was in college I hadn't realize how much time had pass since I first knew them and their children were just little babies.

Now I'm at my computer, and enjoying seeing the sun play "peek-a-boo" behind the clouds, I have few minor chores to do, thanks to Esperanza my housekeeper, my house work is greatly reduced, but it's nice to be hands on a few things.

I'll need to make plans when the weather stabilizes to go to my country place and check on things, Lillian wants to go to the movies this evening to see "Rango"---Johnny Depp as a lizard, that should be interesting.

Ahhhh the sun is out again, I can't resist it, I must go and enjoy it's benefits, until later Sweet Things.

Kisses

It's Been So Long~~~

Hello Sweet Things,

It seems that I can't really stay away, and I know it's been awhile.

Truth is that life has been very busy for me, that I had feared that I would not be able to post again, but then I've managed to steal a moment.

It seems now that my blog has become more of a diary to make concrete my thoughts, to look back on events and analyze them.

I'm looking out now from my window at the sunshine how it plays on the water, the beach, this last week, the water was very high, so high that one had the impression that if you stepped off of a dune you'd be right in the water, all grey, choppy, a large flock of small birds where wheeling and sweeping down looking for a place to land, they finally did on the water, I thought the waves would over whelm them but they rode it out like the veterans they are.

Rain, and cold, snow on our local mountains have made for very chilly conditions, people taking their children to the local snow and indulging in snowmen, snow ball fights and snow angels. I smile at the thought of it.

Work has been busy, the effects of the events in Egypt and near by countries are being watched very closely---the "butterfly" effect I call it.

How are things going for me? Busy as always, I've been promoted, have a wonderful assistant who has a good head on her shoulders, unfortunately she came down with a strep throat this last week, I told her to stay home and get well, we've been in touch by e-mail and she thinks she'll be well enough to come to work this week.

And here at the office people have been dropping like flies with this flu that gives one a terrible sore throat, so far I've stayed well, hydrating, vitamins, eating healthy.

Everyone at work has been looking forward to the 3 day weekend, so have I, but I'm staying home for the weekend. Just going to local places.

I went with friends last night to enjoy the Chinese New Years Parade, cold, wet, but no rain and just bright and beautiful, Jeannie Cho one of my co-workers who join me gave me a tiny rabbit charm for good luck and I gave her one in return. I stayed at the Westin St. Francis instead of making my way home from the parade, I made plans for that some time before. And it was a good thing.

Lillian is more frail now, but she still insists on staying in her home, but her granddaughter is staying with her this weekend which is good.

Lillian's idea for me to have a housekeeper was so right and it has been working out beautifully.

Joe is still restoring his vintage jeep, but he saw a 1940's Ford, he told me about it and even though a mess I could see the good "bones" it had, he kept saying "she only needs this" or "She only needs that" so I surrendered and SHE is now in my garage. I told Joe there is no more room so be content.

With sickness and the holiday weekend Joe is pulling double shifts so it's been a bit hard for us to have any long stretches of time together but we manage. And I am contentedly happy.

My family is doing very well, I had a chance to go down by train for the holidays to see them, they met Joe and they like him a lot and he likes them. Dad is happy that I have someone good in my life. I asked him if he was worried and he replied "Only that if anything happens to your Mother and I that you would be alone, but now I feel better about everything" I can understand his feelings.

As much as possible I take the ferry to work and home now, there is something so soothing about getting on board from the chilly dock and riding it, seeing San Francisco receding just like my worries floating way on the cold bay waters. Sort of a Zen feeling.

For now the clouds and rain are gone and I am going out to enjoy the sunshine while I can, too much have I been indoors between work and home, now to break free.

Later Sweet Things.

A phone call~~~

Hello Sweet Things,

My Mother and I are going shopping in a few minutes, Dad is at work, Baby sis is with her husband to be (eventually).

While Mom was getting ready I got a phone call from Joe, he said a number of sweet things to me and asked me to seriously consider something which could mean a change in my life, he doesn't want to rush me, as he said "we have all the time in the world."

He is seriously considering retiring from his job and looking at taking another and yes he is a police officer, he wants to stay in that line of work but in another location, away from the Bay Area, but he knows I have my life as well. So he said he'll hang in there until I'm sure about my decision as well. No rush, no time constraints he knows I have commitments as well.

He was married once, a long time ago, she died---cancer, no children, so he knows it means changes in how we live and commit ourselves and our life styles.

He said to not think about it now, to enjoy family and friends, and then later we'll put our ideas and feelings on the table, I could only agree, so we shall see sweet things, we shall see.

Mom is ready so we're off.

Later Sweet Things and Happy Easter.

Home is where the heart is~~~

Hello Sweet Things,

I'm here with my family for Easter, every one's in bed except me and Trixie the dog, I'm at my Dad's computer and she is at my feet, waiting for me to turn in.

Just too wound up today, and I don't know why. Flew down on an evening flight from Oakland Airport, I'm glad I took a taxi to the terminal and only packed one bag. It only confirmed for me the train is the way to go.

Even that evening everyone trying to get a flight, some on standby, and even though it's local still had to check everything.

If I have to I can fly, but I really don't feel secure on something so 'iffy', the ratio of thrust to lift to mass, technically they say that the bee can't fly, yet it does, technically a piece of "tin" shouldn't fly, yet it does, but if it drops---kiss everything good-bye.

Mom said that if I want to buy a few things and leave them here I could, I just might do that, we're going to do a little shopping tomorrow and she has a closet and bureau in the sewing room so I can leave things there, mostly casual stuff and toothbrush, comb and such. It would be less to pack, especially if I have to take the plane again.

And Dad going to be baptized in the Catholic Church! A Miracle and one that I'm glad about.

I talked to Joe on the phone earlier this evening, he's going to work Easter Evening, to cover for one or two of the men who have families, he sounds good, Lillian is still at her son's house, her other son is checking her house, she is doing fine, said she'll be home next Tuesday. I'm glad I miss her company.

And Baby sis graduating this June, but she's going right back for her Master's, she said that she's going to skip the graduation ceremonies, she feels the one for her master's will be more important, Dad kept asking her if she was sure and she said she was, it would be more fun and relaxing just to have a special party at home. She said she didn't want all that graduation stuff to clutter up her thoughts.

Mom's little business is doing well, she has a couple of wedding gown's in the works, and both will be ready for the June dates, she refused to do the bride's maid dresses, and a couple of suits for a Great Gatsby to do. She's done a couple of hats and is sewing gloves. I managed to pack some vintage patterns for her that I found at a thrift store in the City, she loved them.

Oh, oh Dad is here, and telling me time for bed. So to bed I must go.

Nity Night Sweet Things

Thoughts on a cold rainy day~~~~

Hello Sweet Things,





Well I did something unusual for me, I went in very early to work, did everything that needed to be done and was through by 11 a.m. and took the rest of the day off.





Why? I really don't know except that it felt that kind of day, and I really don't know why, the day was rainy, heavy dark clouds, heavy rain, wind, really not a special kind of day, but for some reason I was drawn back home and I took a walk along the beach.





The tide was high, the water choppy and a sort of green gray color, with small white caps, a few venturous souls were para sailing but not for long, the rain came and put an end to that, I kept walking away from my home, just looking out at the beach and the water, just enjoying the elemental nature of it.

There was something almost hypnotic watching the waves coming in and going out, eroding the beach a little at a time, it's like life, if you allow all the stresses and worries of your life work upon you it begins to erode you feelings of comfort, of joy, of self confidence.

But if you instead look upon those waves as if they are really wearing down all the worries instead of one's self confidence, and allow the wush, wush, wush sound of the waves lull you into a relaxed state what happens is that one's worries are eroded away instead, and you feel relaxed and in a positive state of mind.

I found myself feeling that way after watching the waves for a while, from a convenient bench, just watching them

I wish I had brought my camera but I was more in a mood to look at things as oppose to capture them on film.

There were a few hardy joggers braving the rain, as they ran along the cemented walk way above the beach proper. Eventually I got up walked some more but then I turned away from the beach when I reached the post office and headed towards the open air mall and the Starbucks, I thought it would be crowded but it wasn't, at least not yet, so I had my Hazelnut Mocha (with whipped cream) don't need sugar with whipped cream.





It's one of my indulgences, and just sat back and let my thoughts float, watching the rain come down through the window, watching the people run to and from their cars, watching a couple of students type away on their laptops.





And an older man also typing away, I wondered what he was doing---writing the great American novel? Who knows, each so wrapped up in their thoughts. The music playing was Eartha Kitt, jazz, it was a jazz mood blues kind of day.





I found myself sort of lulled by the music, the rain and the warming flavor of the coffee.





I realized I didn't want to cook dinner tonight, so finishing my coffee I went over to the China Gourmet, and ordered one of their dinner's for two to go. I knew I could heat up the left overs for tomorrow and I walked back home along the beach walk, the water sometimes looking threatening, and then the rain stopped and the clouds broke up and the San Francisco skyline looked beautiful in the late afternoon watery sunlight.





Promises of things to come perhaps.





When I got home, I started up the fire in the fireplace, put on Ella Fitzgerald, Billy Holiday, after all it is a Jazz Blues kind of day.





Kisses Sweet Things

Thoughts~~~

Hello Sweet Things,


Well in my office alone we managed to raise $1,000 for Haitian relief, Yoshi it making arrangements to have it go to the Red Cross. We are watching things develop in Haiti because we know that if anything like that happens here----well, we have an idea of what it could be.

For some reason I haven't been able to sleep the last night or two, and even now I want to go to be but can't. A restlessness is upon me, but not a good restlessness.

My family is well, so there is no fretting about them. And my tennants are doing well, so no concerns there, and work has been busy at all levels. As a matter of fact they are upgrading the systems, this weekend and hopefully all the bugs will be out when we go to work Tuesday.

There is a gun show at the Cow Palace, this weekend, I always enjoy that but I feel like I need something more.

I know what I'll do I'll pack a weekend bag since the office will be closed Monday.

I'll go to the gun show and check it out for a few hours, then off to my place in the country, I'll let my caregivers know that I'll be coming sometime late afternoon, I hope before sunset, it's starting to rain here and it's traveling to the Sierra's where we need the snow pack, fortunately my house is not so high up that I'd use chains, but I'll pack them in the trunk anyway.



It doesn't matter even if it's raining, I almost welcome it. I just feel so confined right now.

I have no idea why I feel this way, my tax paperwork is all properly laid out and all the information that I still need is coming in. My appointment is not until next month---I have a very good Preparer do it for me---I just don't have the time to do it, so it pays for me to have someone else do it who is up on all the new tax laws.

Maybe I need stronger fresh air to clear my head.

In some ways I feel like this kitten, you maybe holding a gun to me but watch out!! I've got claws!!

Lillian is back from visiting her son, so no problems there, as a matter of fact we had dinner together tonight and she said she felt the same way. Just feeling confined.

Maybe different sights will give a fresher viewpoint. Maybe it's been too much Holiday celebration and the work week is feeling Bleh to me. Maybe it's because one of my clients having passed on and then hearing about one of our neighbors, elderly having passed away in her sleep, something that Lillian prays for.

Maybe it's just a mood that will pass or I need vitamins. I just don't know. But I'll see how things go in the next few days.

Until then, be safe Sweet Things, stay dry and warm. We are going to be having some very wet and wild weather for the next week. I always welcome it.

Until Later, Sweet Things, Kisses

And Update from the Week and thoughts~~~~

Dear Sweet Things,

My blog friend Fram has posted, and I know he is well. And now I find I can follow his adventures.

Warsaw, Poland----what history is there to see, how exciting!

When I was a child I read some of the histories of these countries, Warsaw, Berlin, Paris, Madrid, especially in biographies or Novels that dealt with spies or espionage. How strange my mind worked back then.

Did I ever have the courage to travel to those countries? Not really, getting an education, earning money and surviving on just what I could earn demanded my courage and strength. But I have found that even here I can travel to different countries or at least part of it's culture as it survives here.

Already my friend Yoshi is asking me to help her find things for the upcoming Chinese New Year's festival and we are making plans to celebrate it, and it may rain.

And last year my co-worker Maria asked me to help her get things for her family's Day of the Dead Festival, her car had broke down so I lent her a hand.

So I find that sometimes history and culture comes to me in unexpected ways, but now thanks to the Blogverse, and Fram's travels as well as others, I can travel in a blink of an eye, it is not the same as being there to hear the sounds, to feel the atmosphere, but it is a start.

I shall enjoy Fram's postings as he does his search and his travels, not exactly Watson to his Holmes, but enjoying just the same.

The weather here in the Bay Area is cloudy and chilly and overcast, we are expecting rain, and have already experienced earthquakes south and north of us. Eureka had a 6.5 and down in Hollister a 4.1, I hope that it has released enough pressure off of the faults, everyone is worried about the Hayward and the San Andrea's, let them be little ones.

As just a forwarding, if for some reason I do not post for a long, long time, check the news and see if the San Francisco Bay Area is still on the map. For the earthquake window is beginning to open again and I dread the spring of April. It has been 104 years since the big one, and many are not prepared.

Work has been busy for me, clearing away any snags from 2009 and almost all of us are pronouncing 2010 as Twenty ten, so much easier.

We've been having budget meetings, some leanest is going to be expected, and perhaps longer hours, but on the whole we are in very good shape, the goal is to work within the budget, spot where there is excessive expenditures and see where we can get better deals.

My clients are happy, but I did lose one with his passing away, very sad, he was a dear, sweet man, unfailing polite and a gentleman. I am working with his heirs right now as they are dealing with his trust. They don't want to sell, but they have to have things divided, so its a question of value.

And Tax time is coming, so much fun, I know how I'm going to be spending my weekends for the rest of this month. ***sigh*** but done it must.

And now the State is taking out more in state income tax!! ***Snort*** They can't balance their "books" so take more money from the people. Well if some of those political big wigs would look at their own "books" and reduce their income maybe the budget would be balanced. But only in a perfect world would that happen.

***Well I have to be off***my cupboard is bare, in fact even my laundry supplies are very low, so I'm going to be doing a lot of shopping today. Hmmm I guess it's Chinese Take Out tonight and a DVD.

Lillian has gone to visit for a week with one of her sons, so I'll be collecting her newspapers and mail and checking her potted plants. She has a warning instruction sign on one of her plants a "Venus Fly Trap" I understand they are not easy to grow in indoor conditions, but I've seen this thing and it's gotten bigger. Shades of "Audrey Two"??!!

I still I think I have a chance to do a little exploring today, even if it's only for an hour or two.

Until later Sweet Things, Kisses. Be safe Sweet Fram.

Thar's Gold in Them Thar Hills~~~~~

Hello Again Sweet Things,

I'm blogging from my place up here in the Gold Country. Yes Sweet Things, that is the euphemism for the lower Sierra Foothills that surrounds Hwy 49.

First I want to Thank Dear Sweet Fram for his generous compliment on my writing in my last blog. Thank you for the encouragement. I never really thought of myself as any kind of writer, but now you have my mind thinking----maybe I should consider taking some "creative writing' courses or something. Thank you Fram, Kisses to you. (MMMWhhaa) (giggle)

Baby Sis has been following my blog and has also insisted that I save the blogs onto a flash drive and later put them together for a "journal" in print format. Who knows where this might lead.

Definitely not like the "Dame Shirley Letters", but who knows. All I can say is "Thank Goodness for Spell Check".

Because of my work I paid to have installed a DSL connection here at the house, that way I can be in touch should an emergency arise. My caretakers made sure it was done properly and in a way that it doesn't intrude into the 'fabric' of the house, so it was installed in a Armour that I purchased in town and put into the room that was originally the 'office' of the house when this was a large working farm/ranch.

The last time I was here, I suggested to use that room as a office, they looked at me and told me about it's original purpose, and managed to find pictures of his great grandfather at a desk in that very room. Looking through the attic and the basement, we managed to find a number of things, restore them and put them into the 'office'.

There did appear to be an Armour there that was used to hold the account books for the 'farm' years ago, but it was sold some years later for needed cash. Now they are happy that bit by bit things seem to be going back in time.

I have to say that this house seems to "speak" to me, I feel so much at home in it.

But before I digress to far from what I was going to say.....

I once again left early on Friday, first to go to my other rental property towards the south, just to see how my tenants are doing, they knew I was coming and offered to put me up, but I didn't want to put them to too much trouble and instead stayed in a nearby motel and treated them to dinner.

Over dinner they told me what they thought the property needed to have done, so in the light of day I inspected it and agreed. A corner of the foundation needed replacing but the rest appeared to be fine, and they would get estimates for me. Some of the other things, they could do themselves, mostly cosmetic or simple repairs, I asked them to take pictures of before and after and to save all the bills for my records.

I was happy to hear that things were going well for them, Bill was working and Margie got a part time job a few days a week while her children are at day camp. I kept wondering how they could put up with the heat being well into the nineties, but they told me that getting up early in the morning and doing the outside work before the heat became unbearable helped and then towards the cool of the evening to finish it. It was a matter of pacing oneself.

I realized that living with the cool weather of the Bay Area I had gotten soft and had forgotten this wise idea.

Then just after lunch with a final wave I took off and drove up Hwy 49 to my "country home".

Hwy 49 is a mixture of narrow two lane roads with turn outs for slower traffic and modern Highways, but I found myself enjoying the two lane roads with it's twists and turns, because it gave me the feel of what it might have been like in the 1880, with the notorious Black Bart and Joaquin Murietta, robbing the Wells Fargo Stagecoaches, or raiding the miner's camps.

The wild grasses had turn a golden brown, and in the heat when I stopped to stretch my legs I could hear the cicada's with their high whine as they hid in the grasses, and seeing an occasional horse or cow taking shade under a huge oak tree with it's branches twisting and reaching, some of them to such impossible lengths that I wondered how the branches could remain up without breaking under the weight.

Sometimes the two lane roads would be flanked with what appeared to be old rock walls or fences with dried moss in the crevasses, when I took one of my rest breaks I examined one of those fences and was surprised to see that the rocks were of lava and appeared to have been there for years. I wondered what would they look like all wet when the winter rains came, I just knew I had to come back to see the changes.

I thought of those old western T.V. programs, where they show huge dry expanses of land as the hero rode across, and had a sense of what it was they were trying to capture.

But I knew it was more than visual, you have to feel the heat, smell the grass, feel what little breeze there is, hear the rustle of the grass and the insects, to look up and see a hawk or a buzzard soaring over the bright pale blue sky to really get the feel of it, the grittiness and how it could, if one wasn't strong enough, beat a person down.

Tough people those pioneers, I thought, tough and determined.

Then driving through the towns when the road doesn't by pass it, like Jamestown, Sonora, Angels Camp. The towns and people that were written about by Bret Hart and Mark Twain,
"The Luck of Roaring Camp"---"The Jumping Frog of Calavaras County"......

It made me think, think about how I got caught up in this modern world and not taking time to look and see what has made us what we are, the history that surrounds us that we just take for granted, that we ignore and destroy in our greed.

Development and progress is fine if it is done for the right reasons, but before our economy crashed it was done for all the wrong reasons. This country, away from the flash and zip of the big city, makes you think and think outside one's little ticky-tacky boxes. And I got some ideas which I quickly wrote down in my ever present note book, now I just need to formulate them, that will take a little time, but out here you feel as if you have time.

All too soon I knew I had to get back into my car and get to my other house, I had told them to not wait for me as I wasn't sure what time I would arrive; starting up my car I felt like I was on a stage coach traveling to my destination, traveling over the same routes that perhaps even "One Eye" Charlie Parkhurst had driven, cracking "his' whip over the heads of the team of horses and not a single person knowing that Charlie Parkhurst was a woman.

Of course a far more comfortable drive than being in a stagecoach or mud wagon, a lot less bouncing and jostling and air conditioned as well, but instead I turned it off and lowered the window to feel the heat, and catch was smells there were, other than gasoline, from this country.

I arrived just before dinner time and was greeted warmly by my caretakers. That evening over ice tea they told me what had been happening, so many positive changes that made me smile.

And now with the Internet connection they can almost immediately keep me posted on things and send me pictures as well.

I slept deeply last night, waking up early with sun up, my hosts having gone to church this morning, I'll be joining them soon as their church is having a fun raiser breakfast and church bazaar to raise money for a new roof, they are very close to their goal. I'll be meeting them there and I'll give a very generous check for the church's roof, after all it was built in 1878.

I'm not going to be returning to the Bay Area until Monday, allowing me a little extra driving time, but I will be driving to work in the late afternoon to see how things are going and hitting the grind stone once again.

But to keep the feeling of the Gold Country I'll be reading some of those books that I bought, and making plans.

Until Later Sweet Things, Kisses.

Had to Take a Break~~~~

Well Sweet Things,

I just had to take a break from the Bay Area and once again drove down to the Santa Cruz Mountains.

I took a chance that a hotel or motel room would be available, but this time I did not go all the way to Santa Cruz but instead stayed in Brookdale just 5 miles north of Felton on Hywy 9.

I think it was last year that I drove past it on my way to Santa Cruz and thought it would be a quaint place to stay for a night or two.

Work was boring me, and the weather had turned yucky, not warm enough, over cast, just a bore.

I was ahead of things and with WiFi I knew I could keep in touch if I had to, so I made arrangements and on early Thursday evening I took off, Chugged South down 880 and I have to say chugged because it was afternoon going home traffic.

But near Los Gatos I took the opportunity to turn off onto Hywy 9, the back door, granted with it's twists and turns it is slower, but at least people don't try to run you off the road like they do on Hywy 17.

I was so into going along the road that I missed the turn off for Brookdale Lodge and had to back track, not unusual considering how tight things are.

And I was lucky they did have a room available, I had a chance to see the age of the building, it had been around for a long time, and it seems that maintenance is a never ending chore, but the room was comfortable, the water hot, the fellow stayees quiet.

They have a swimming pool, a cafe for breakfast and lunch, a bar, live music on the weekends, and the most fantastic dinning room, a brook runs through it and an excellent dinner, more than enough to eat, I had to take what was left over to my room and finish it later when I dined there on Friday evening.

I was told that I should come in the spring after the rains and see the brook when it runs at it's fullest.

There are some down sides, no air conditioning but it seems that people come to the mountains to get cool and air conditioning is not necessary, heat really is.

So I used Thursday to settle into my room and do a bit of simple exploring in nearby Felton in the evening where I came across a park that had a historic bridge built and had a chance to walk a bit in Henry Cowell redwoods with a family before sunset. It was enchanting, and felt otherworldly

Granted Felton had a number of the "modern" conveniences, like a chain drug store and super market, the Starbucks, but if one looks you can find things that are still "rustic" and "Homey".

Friday I used to see what the town of Brookdale and the other nearby communities, there was a church that had been converted into a museum, I was lucky to get there just as docent was opening it up, I bought a couple of books about the area and took pictures, the lady who was more than happy to talk about things told me about some of the other historic places I should check out and about Roaring Camp, Big Trees Railroad and was advised to get there early for parking----it seems that "Thomas the Tank Engine" was going to be visiting Roaring Camp

Saturday Morning I got up early and had a very good breakfast at the Lodge's cafe, blue berry pancakes and they didn't skimp on the blue berries, I got there early and found parking and was already being overwhelmed by little children and their parents clamouring about "Thomas"

The closest I came come to the excitement is like opening day at Disneyland, a lot of children, a lot of steam whistles and a lot of parents tired before the day begins, but friendly helpful staff at Roaring Camp, I managed to buy a ticket to ride the Narrow Gage train that takes one up Bear Mountain----this was different from the Thomas train ride-----very informative, historical peaceful and just delightful. We even managed to catch a glimpse of a buck I think his antlers we coming out of velvet, of course the children cried out "Bambi", it just stood there for a moment and then trotted off while everyone clicked their cameras.

A lot of old growth and second growth redwoods, all preserved for future generations I'm happy to say and the people of the concession of Roaring Camp also working to preserve it as well.

I've got to admit, I spent time in the "General Store" afterwards buying books in regards to history about California and the West---it seems my library is going to be taking a different turn.

I again had a chance to take a walk from a different end through Henry Cowell Redwoods, seeing it from a different time of day, but I felt at peace with it even though I could hear the steam train whistles it seems as if they were not intruding but a part of the fabric of the area.

I left about 1:30 just when it was getting really, really crowded, but staff was smiling and working to make things run smoothly, I could appreciate that. I also manged to get information about future events they are going to have, I have to plan on going down for Labor Day weekend when they have their Great Train Robbery Event---it should be fun as well as a nice little get away.

I couldn't leave right away as there was a pond with ducks and since I also bought a bag of duck feed I had to toss it to them, all fat and sassy.

In going back through Felton I checked out several place that were more out of the way and quiet and found several to my liking, they still had rooms available for Labor day weekend, but I'll have to reserve them by this week.

When I eventually returned to Brookdale Lodge, I was amazed to see the parking lot filled with antique autos----I found out that they were doing a run from the Bay Area taking Hywy 9 with the owners staying at the Lodge overnight.

I made the acquaintance of one couple that had the most marvelous Model T. They invited me to join them for dinner at this little restaurant in one of the communities that was just two miles away, so jogging and jolting along I had the most fun ride, and enjoyed the wonderful company.

Paul and Gretchen live in Fremont and knew a few acquaintances of mine, they said they were coming up for Labor Day weekend as well and recommended one place that was on my list, it seems they are also members of a Gunfighters re-enactment group that is taking part in the Great Train Robbery event. Now I have to go.

But all too soon Sunday morning has come, I had to return back to my home. My new books are now on my shelves waiting for me to read, in checking my e-mail and work everything is going smoothly.

So now I just have to do a little grocery shopping, pick up my mail from Lillian and treat her to dinner and tell her about my travels.

This next weekend I need to go to my gold country properties, I know it's going to be hot, thank goodness my car has air conditioning. I'll also be taking some more clothes to my country house and see how things are going with them.

But after my little "escape" from the world----I'm beginning to wonder do I want to continue to do what I'm doing---do I want to do something else. These are things I'm going to have to ponder on.

I know I have to make money, and my money needs to make money even in these tough times, it will take some careful consideration.

Until later, Kisses Sweet Things.

Next weekend I'll be visiting my gold country properties.

Changes and Buying Things~~~~

Well Sweet Things, I’m back.

And I think I need to ‘splain myself.

I had remarked to dear Sweet Fram things about change and moving and such, and it seems that I received inquires here on my blog, from Mean Kitty and others, as well as a question by Fram, why was I moving or changing?

Well Sweet Things, it’s not so much moving as it is investing. My own home is almost paid off, and with interest rates being so low I began thinking (gently encouraged by Fram---you little devil, you ***smiling ;)*** ) that purchasing property would be a good thing about now, of course it depends on where and how one purchases it and for what reason.

I am of the belief that things will take a turn for the better, of course first the stock market has to improve then the economy and then finally joblessness will start going down ward and when that happens, spending goes up and so does the interest rates.

But now is a good time, as much as I would like to buy in Santa Cruz or by the sea, the values haven’t gone much lower in the areas where I prefer, but there are some areas where one can find bargains.

I took a few days off and went into the Gold Rush Country having made an appointment with a reputable and well recommended real estate agent to look to purchase some property, Fram you are right, the time is perfect now with the much lower interest rates and although it’s harder to get a home loan one can still find them.

I had been looking for a while in listings in the Sierra Foothills, granted with drought conditions and worries about wild fires perhaps the Sierra Foothills is not the best area to buy, but it is the most affordable. And I was looking really for a place to both rent out for vacation rentals and make an income with as well as an investment that will increase in value (as all things must) and eventually make a profit from should I decided to sell when the time is right. Or given that I can be a bit of a “changeling” eventually move to if I should decide to just ‘chuck it all’.

And if I should decide to do the latter I can always rent out my home here in the Bay Area and make an income from it as well.

I’ve been thinking about this for a long time, and now is the time to make my move to purchase.

This last weekend, I narrowed it down to two properties, both were very, very affordable, and fortunately both were and are handled by the same agency.

So I bought both!

Alright Sweet Things, why both---well I just couldn’t make up my mind!!! Simple as that!

The first property is in Merced, yes, at the gateway to Yosemite, a very simple ranch style board and batten house, two bedrooms 1 ½ baths, rustic but with modern plumbing, on one full acre, currently it’s being rented by a family that has resided there for the last 8 years, the husband was out of work for 6 months and finally got another job, they had hoped to buy the house but were not in a position to, but I talked to them and we’ve agreed to continue on with the lease that is in place (I’m over simplifying) they have kept the place up in great condition, and they plan to continue to live in the area until they are in a position to buy their own place, but that may take time and I know from the previous owner that they are excellent tenants so I’m not in a rush to have them move, and I don’t think they are in a rush to leave.

The second property, well this had a sad story which I was able to give a happy ending, the agent put me on to it. It’s within a short walking distance to a historic gold rush town (sorry, I do need to keep the location private) lovely old Victorian built mid 1870’s, owned by the same family since then, but now the people who own it made the mistake of taking out a very high interest HELOC to do repairs, well repairs done but they were only paying the interest on the HELOC and were planning to renegotiate the terms but the husband was stricken with congestive heart failure, and is now on disability, the wife works and they are able to make the interest payments, but they were not in a position to re-negotiate, they were having a hard time paying the outstanding medical bills and were afraid they were going to lose the family home.

I talked to them, they are both in their early 50’s and have no children, so when they die there will be no one to inherit the house, but they are also afraid of being out on the street, they agreed to sell me the house for the cost of the HELOC plus a little extra to pay off the balance on the medical bills, and in turn would pay me rent and keep up the place for me.

And with the much lower interest rate the amount of the rent will cover everything and it’s more affordable for them, they no longer have to worry about insurance, property taxes, the painful HELOC or medical bills and they know that the house with the original furniture will go to someone who will appreciate it when they pass on and they can live there for the remainder of their lives. They’ve also agreed to keep one bed room and full bath just for my use when ever I plan to stay there when I want to get away from the Bay Area.

I had wondered about why they didn't consider a reversable mortgage, but it turns out you have to be 62 and older to do that, they were too young. And they were worried that the house would be torn down and modern condos put up. Just would not do.

So with what it would cost me to buy a house in the Bay Area in poor condition, I’ve been able to negotiate purchasing two income properties in very good condition, with the income from both to cover the payments, insurances and taxes, plus a bit extra to cover other things, and have two very good tenants residing in them.

Of course I’m over simplifying, the whole process is more complicated, but that’s it in “a nut shell”. So the changes for me was thinking and purchasing income investment property, a greater financial security, looking towards the future and a place to go to should I feel the need.

But that will not stop my “foot-looseness”, if I want to just get up and go for a weekend I can, I have to admit that going into the Sierra Foothills, with flowers blooming, and all that fresh greenery was very refreshing, seeing different places, talking to different people, feeling a different pace of living. It is a start.

I don’t know if in the end I’ve done the right thing, but something tells me that I have, so if one is going to think or do changes, one has to start somewhere, right or wrong, one does have to start somewhere.

And Fram, thank you for the compliment on my changes in writing style, I know that this is not like the other two, but…well…one does have to try things and see what works. And I am glad that in some way my Web Log encouraged you to do your own, I do enjoy reading yours as well.

Now it’s a very warm evening, and I’m tired from driving, but Lillian is coming over later with Coffee Ice Cream, and I cannot resist Coffee Ice Cream, with walnuts. Mmmmmmm.

Could this be?~~~~

Hmmmm while I was out celebrating my Birthday yesterday (with my friends), there was a gentleman who 'saved me' from a dangerous situation.

Could this have been Fram?

There was something in the jaw line that made me think it could have been the Legendary Fram.

But then he was there and then gone, so fleeting was the brief encounter, and so romantic.

And now I am contemplating who was that man with the strong jaw line, who looked at me in frank regard, and with gentle grace said "adiu", was that the Fram of Legend?

I shall never know, for now I have a mystery to ponder upon.

Robert Frost~~~

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And (many)miles to go before I sleep.

And promises I've made to myself, long before I discovered Mr. Frost and his delectable poetry that echo my sentiments and feelings. (purr)