A Run For The Roses

 About 40 of us gathered in the common room for a party of epic style yesterday afternoon. Churchill Downs did not have a thing on us!

                            We had colorful fascinators, 

                                horses, 

      southern food,   

      

                         yummy mint juleps, 

  and betting on what we hoped to be the winning horse. 

I thought I had it won but Golden Tempo passed me by and my horse came in second. But, that was ok. I only lost a dollar!! And, wasn't it cool that two brothers finished in first and second place! We were cheering our jockeys on and just having a blast. 

My daughter has headed up the Kentucky Derby party here at Centerbrooke for the past 3 years and we always have such a good time. She made cheese straws which surpassed store bought one and her bourbon meatballs were out of this world. Lois made the mint juleps and they were divine. The staff furnished the potato salad, deviled eggs, ham sliders and pasta salad. 

There were some new residents attending and it was great seeing them having such a good time. 

     I just wish you all could come join us next year. 

Packing up, Flying Out

 I just wanted to post a quick note. I will try to have time to post about the Kentucky Derby Party tomorrow but I am in the midst of a very busy and exciting time. My grandson is getting married on May 9th to a lovely, sweet woman named Kelsey. 

At least two weeks ago I set my luggage on my spare bed and started gathering what I would need to take with me to Sea Island, Georgia where the wedding will take place. I mean,  at this age, you sort of worry that you'll forget something important... so, I started that 'gathering' early on. Lucky I had that spare bed!! 

I am being organized, I think, but you just watch..... I'll forget something. I have already packed my underwear and gowns, 3 pair of hose  in case one runs!! Yes, I wear hose when I need to. All  you 'young'ens go barelegged now but I'm old school. 

I've even packed some thread and a needle (just in case the bride or someone else splits a seam or loses one of 900 kazillions buttons she has down the back of her gown). 

I have a bag of candy that I just love so I am taking that for us all to snack on.... you have no idea how many times over the past week I have been tempted to rip open that bag and dive in! But, I've been a good girl. Gee it was hard, though. 

The wedding is taking place at a friend of the groom's summer home. And, we will be staying at the house. Geez, I  bet they might have needle and thread... nah, people don't sew anymore so I am safe by taking my own. 

The bride and groom along with his mom, fly from NY down to Ga on Monday. I will leave Virginia that same day and the four of us will have the rest of the week to 'pull our hair out' before the ceremony begins. Weddings are so stressful. But, what a beautiful event it will be. I can't wait!! 

To the Moon and Back

 Remember when Artemis 11 went around the moon and back to earth? I bet you didn't know that I was aboard that flight? 

Well, not my physical body but my name was onboard and it made the journey of a lifetime. 

My son-in-law is all into this space stuff and my dau finally told me the other day that I went around the moon. I wish I'd known it at the time of the flight!

Of course, I bet there are times she'd like to send me to the moon (as would, I to her) hehe. 

I have the boarding pass to prove it, too. This has been a ton of fun.... I went to the moon!! 

On a more earthly thought....

some of us residents met the other day in the common room to make hats for our Kentucky Derby party which will be Saturday. 

I still have my hat from last year so I just watched the others at work. 

I don't think the party will be as much fun this year. Only about 1/2 the number signed up to attend but there is something about the weather that keeps people in their apartments. And, it's gonna be rainy and in the 60s. But, those of us who will be there will enjoy ourselves and eat all that good food. I hope I pick the winning horse!

Nuts About My Computer

 I painted yesterday. Never could get the background like I wanted it but I finally just quit. Sometimes that's the best thing to do... if it isn't working, just quit. But, I'll share my effort with you anyway. 

I often find that people are amazed that I do as much as I do on the computer. I tell them it's like how I drive a car! I can drive that thing but just don't put me under the hood to fix something. That's what tech guy (son-in-law) is for!

It must have been 1989 when I got introduced to a computer. I was heavy into doing genealogy and decided I needed a way to keep it besides the tons of info I had on pieces of paper. 

So, I walked into Radio Shack (remember those?) and told the guy I needed something. I'd never even seen a computer but he showed me once and convinced me it was what I needed. I walked out of there with it under my arm. 

Got home and I managed to plug into the electrical outlet but now, what? So, a call to my son and he walked me through turning it on.....

And, the rest is history. 

I wrote my first book that was published on it. I cussed it alot during that time, too. I got on Myspace and later on Facebook. Just lately I was talked into getting on Instagram but I'm not nuts about it. For a few years I had a YouTube channel but I've not kept that up. I do enjoy some of what's offered on YouTube. 

And, I've been blogging since 2008. I do love my computer! And the friends I make on there.

But, as I said, don't ask me to fix any problems. It's just fun and I'm no technician. 

How long have y'all been blogging? 

A Night To Remember - Paris

 This is a 'blast from the past' ....

In 1986 my dau. Susan needed to work in Paris for awhile to upgrade her portfolio. Models have to do that and Europe is an excellent place to achieve a better book. 

She invited me to go along. Neither of us had ever been to Europe. If any of you have been in another country you know that things are different 'across the pond'. And, I was nervous about us not knowing one word of French! So, I bought one of those books 'See Paris on $10 a Day' or something like that. I found a listing for a hotel that might work for us... the staff spoke English. 

We take a cab to Hotel Marginan, the driver sets our suitcases on the sidewalk and away he goes. We go in to find the check-in desk in a tiny cubby hole. No lobby. Okay, that's different. 

We follow the clerk up a narrow wrought iron stairway to the second floor and down a long hallway. We open the door ... it looks like a girl scout camp! 3 small cots lined up along one wall, covered with those stiff, indian looking blankets. There's one small wardrobe to hang our clothes in, a chair and a telephone on the wall.

No bathroom? Oh no, there's just one bathroom for the entire floor and it's back down the hall.

We are exhausted. I mean, there's no getting any sleep on an overnight flight! So, we crawl into bed. It's January, folks. and those people don't believe in heat evidently. I got up and piled our coats and other clothing on top of us to stay warm.

Sometime during the night I needed to go find that elusive bathroom. One tiny light gave me enough guidance as I wandered down the hall. I finally found the place. I went in, tried to turn the light switch on but it was weird. It was a knob that you turned. I sit down to take care of things and notice that the ceiling is very high and there is a small window up there and the darn thing is open. Cold air was flowing in. 

All of a sudden the light goes out. I am in total darkness. That thing was on a timer. I stumble to the door and make my way back to the 'comfort' of my bed. 

Needless to say as soon as we got awake we set out to find a different place to stay. And, we found it, too. Hotel La Louisanne ..... 

We had our own bath! Glory Be. And, it was warm inside and was on a street filled with sidewalk vendors (flowers, fish, etc, etc). So much for following a travel book to find lodging. We'd done better on our own.

that's me with the camera standing behind the truck. 

As I say things are different in different countries. Americans are pretty used to comfort. We might could use a little more restraint on that level. But, that's another story. 

A Perfect Life

 This journey that I've been on to find ME has been so interesting. And, I'm still finding out something new about myself every day! I'm loving it.

On April 10th I posted something about the woman that is my "life coach". She comes once a month and always has a 'project' for us to tackle. The latest one was this:

During the night a miracle happened... you awoke to find that you were living your PERFECT LIFE.. What would that life look like? 

Well, now, that was mind-provoking. You'd think I would say something like, I'd be healthy, rich, traveling, eating at fancy restaurants, have a perfect family and staff so I didn't have to do anything. HA HA. 

Here is what I said:

1. I would never get cancer again. I mean, I've had it twice already. Isn't that enough! There is always a niggling in my head saying, 'suppose you do'. 

2. I'd know that the lives of my children were as good as it could  be. There's some changes that need to happen there.

3. I would never again feel guilt in saying the word, NO.  I wish I'd learned that years ago.

4. I'd be an elegant lady with perfect manners and have a real sense of fashion. I always feel like I am not put together very well. 

5. I'd find out I just won the lottery. I'd hire an assistant and the two of us would travel to all those places I've always wanted to go. 

Here's the thing. If you'd like to play along, I hope you will post your perfect life in the comment section. That will be some fun reading!