GRACE

One uponce a time in a world far away called Texas, there lived a most graceful and coordinated lady named Michele. One spring day when her brother and friend Ruth were both away out of town, she was enjoying the peace and quiet of the beautiful morning. She had been napping in her chair (oh for shame) and upon waking sprung light footed and proceeded in a southerly direction toward the kitchen. She was met by terrible amazement when her right foot had apparently been asleep also as it turned and snap, crackle, pop. This did not sound good. The next minute Michele was staring up from the floor with her knees about her elbows looking somewhat perplexed.
"Damn my foot hurts like a big dog!". she uttered. Now what to do. She crawled around and hobbled a round on one foot, favoring the right one. Into the kitchen for the phone and back to the recliner in the living room. An inspection of the foot revealed swelling and a blue tinge. She called her oldest daughter. They both decided that it would be prudent to have it looked at...although she was pretty sure that to be broken it would have to be purple. haha. A call to Karen. Damn, Karen concurred. So off to the emergency room. Three and a half hours later -- and not because they were busy -- it was as quiet as anything in there -- they managed to X-ray it and proclaim it was a bad sprain.
I now have a stylish; black sjpeome strong and an anti-inflammatory and a swollen foot which may take around 4 to 5 days before I can get rid of the black shoe.. The follow-up sheet says 3-6 weeks to heal, but I’m not believing that! Seven days and I'm good to go!

Hope all of you are walking around on two feet. Best wishes to all. Michele

Where I Feel At Home

I am a member of the Roman church -- a Catholic. I have been since the fourth grade, a year after my mother married my stepfather who was Catholic. I had been going to the Holy Rosary school and wanted nothing more than to be Catholic like all the other kids. So my Mom said ok. Mom ran a Catholic house for all the years I was growing up. I played the organ at church. I was a good Catholic until my first marriage ended, I started dating someone and then got married in his church because I couldn't get married in the Catholic church. I was divorced.

He is now deceased and I am back to going to church when I can. Being unable to drive for health reasons, I am excused from attending Mass on Sunday. I could probably make a greater effort but I don't think that that is what it is all about. I think it is about where your heart and beliefs and actions are.

I believe there is a God. Something/someone has to have ultimate power over this universe.

We cannot conceive time before time but in that period someone created life. Originally there were only elements floating around and eventually the big bang and slowly evolution into the world we live in and the earth and man, woman and animals. Life had to come from somewhere. It didn't exist. It couldn't evolve. At least it is what I believe... Secondly, note how many cultures believe in a god. Why?

I believe that Jesus Christ was the son of God. I believe He died for our sins. I believe He arose on the third day.

I believe in the Holy Spirit. And I believe in the Holy Trinity...one God in three persons.

The Old Testament and New Testament of the Bible recite the history of Judaism and beginning Christianity, along with a book forecasting the future: Revelations. I believe the essence of the stories is true. There may be some degree of metaphor or allegory or other create writing device applied to the actual facts.

When it comes to things like confession, I don't think I have to have an intermediary between me and God. I love the decorum and beauty of the music and rites of the Catholic Mass and other' services. I wish they would bring back he Latin mass and the Gregorian chant. There is a certain feeling like "coming home" when I enter a Catholic church. The candle is always lit on the altar. There are usually candles burning for the intention of others. Usually there is someone visiting and praying. It just feels comforting.

A PET PEEVE-- THE MEDIA

I was reading the news online and found an interesting section which shows all the outlandish news being reported one of which told of a woman in Britain who caught an intruder by hurling a garden gnome at him. She got a direct hit, called the police who came straight away and arrested him. I thought it was great to read some crime news with an up beat to it for a change. Have you noticed .......... of course you have ........... there is no good news in the newspaper. Why can't we demand the press include some good news along with all the bad, gory and sensationalism that they print? They say they print what sells. But we buy what they provide regardless. Am I the only person who gets tired of the constant sex, cheating, blood, guts, gore and money slant? Obviously people are going to continue buying it.... How do we get the message to the media that we'd like to hear some good news too...a little more plain facts...a little more balance in news coverage. A single letter to the editor doesn't carry much weight. Any other ideas? thoughts? gripes?

WILDLIFE PRESERVATION

I casually walked out the back door this afternoon just to enjoy a little of the Texas blue skies and warm sun. Looked over at the deep end of the swimming pool and it looked so beautiful. There in the deep end of the pool --- the chlorinated pool --- was swimming around a GIANT TURTLE.

My first thought -- how cool!
My second thought -- this is not Jacques Cousteau; something's wrong with this picture!
My third thought -- the chlorine is probably bad for the turtle!!

I rushed for the skimmer net and proceeded to try to get the turtle onto the skimmer. Great! The turtle is exactly the size of the skimmer - no room to spare. Got him! Balance him and bring him up to the top of the pool and........................he dives off the skimmer, back into the pool. Aha. I see this is not going to be a simple catch.

Thirty minutes later I have managed to maneuver the skimmer with turtle on top over to the grass. I put the turtle in a box, take it in the house and put the turtle in the bathtub with some water. Close the bathroom door to keep it safe from the Doberman who has been running from side to side of the swimming pool eyeing the tasty snack she thinks I'm catching for her. Now it's all over but the waiting...waiting for Ruth to come home and drive me up to the ponds with turtle in tow. She arrived a couple of hours later and took me and the turtle in a box up to the ponds where I turned it loose in an environment truly suitable. Don't know where he or she came from, but hopefully the turtle will have a long life hanging out at the ponds. I've done my wildlife preservation work for the season.

While In San Diego

I was in San Diego from the 30th of March through the 6th of April and had a grand time. Visiting my eldest daughter and her family. Monica a lawyer turned 3rd grade teacher was home on a month long break. She teaches on a year-round teaching cycle. Kathryn, 15 my beautiful granddaughter was also home for part of the time. Andrew, 12, was in school, and Karl, my favorite chef son-in-law was at his law office trying to determine if a raccoon could be defined as a pirate under admiralty law for a case he was working. I told him I thought he would stand a better chance with a beaver or a muskrat. What say any of you?

We had plenty of time to visit, eat, watch movies, and just have fun. We went to the mountains. I saw where the fire was last year that had come so close to their home that it had caused them to evacuate. And I saw some of the destruction left. They have had so much rain that much of the vegetation has begun to grow over the black earth. The tree skeletons are covered with green vines such that at first you don't notice that the fire was there. Closer inspection, however, makes it so clear how great the devastation was. Homes are being rebuilt in established areas which were heavily forested and now appear like new developments with all the new homes and lack of trees. Yet, next door will be the old established clubhouse building and old trees which luckily were saved from the fire. It is amazing to see.

Another amazing thing is the charter school set up that Kathryn is attending for high school and Andrew will attend for middle school next year. This charter school system is set up in the area where the former USMC base was at Pt Loma. It's called High Tech. Kathryn is going to High Tech International High and Andrew will go to High Tech Media Arts Middle School. Their mission strong emphasis on project-based learning and maintaining a common intellectual mission where all students are enabled to complete a rigorous college prep education utilizing the ;latest technology available. The school is partnered with certain business leaders to provide internships where they have a chance to apply what they are learning to the adult world. Classes are small -- about 200 per graduating class vs. 2500-3000 in a regular school.

Monica had to teach a remedial 3.5 hour class the last three days I was there, and I had the privilege of watching her teach. I graded some papers and made some flashcards. Took me back four decades to when I used to do that for my Mom. Funny. I was surprised at what a good teacher she is. To get their attention she sings "One, two, three, Eyes on me." and they sing back "One, two, Eyes on you". Pretty catchy. Anyway, it was fun. Afterwards we were poking in some little shops and picked up the kids from school. Wednesday, we went to lunch and then to my plane.

It was just the right amount of time for a trip. And they will be here for Thanksgiving. Bill and I are supposed to go there for Christmas. I am also supposed to get myself to Phoenix for a visit in June. It's good to be back.

It's

"TAKE THE TRIBOROUGH BRIDGE"

She was last to board the plane. It was one mishap after another since tripping out of bed. Walt had driven her to the airport in no particular hurry. He never was. Since his accident four years ago he had become used to not having a schedule, not going to work and he had slowed down considerably from the driven man she had married. He had even apparently become satisfied with the Workmen's Comp. check he was drawing. He didn't seem too worried about when his case would settle. It had been ages since he had checked to see where the application for Social Security stood. And that's why this trip was so damned important. She had to do well at this interview. If she could get this position, it meant a job at corporate headquarters, a sizeable increase in salary and job security. That was going to be most important now. She was officially the breadwinner of the family she thought with distaste. "I always hated that word. It sounds like an ad for one of those spongy sandwich breads".


She kissed him on the cheek, alit the car, checked her bags at the curb and headed for the gate. They had already begun boarding. Seatbelt fastened. She felt the thrust of the jets as the plane left the runway and lifted into the air. She really needed to focus on this interview. She knew she interviewed well. Firm handshake, look direct in the eye, speak clearly, smile. She didn't get nervous; actually, she rather found an interview an interesting challenge. She had the appraisals to back her up. What she didn't have was the supervisory experience. But she had all the business classes on suupervisory skills and management from working toward her business degree. And she supervised outside paralegals and a library service. That must count for something. Another point that had been set out in the job requisition was that the supervisor would have to bring together existing employees from the New York headquarters office, from the Virginia office and new hires and make them into a smooth running team. That's where she saw the real challenge. It was very similar to taking Walter's two children (dyslexic & emotional problems), her two children (high IQ & 1 ADHD) and their one (above avg IQ) and putting them all together to make a family. Her thoughts were interrupted by the bumping of the wheels on the pavement. The plane was landing at La Guardia.

"150 E 42nd Street, take the TriBorough Bridge, please." "Make sure they think you know what you're doing." That's what her boss had said. "Otherwise the cabbie will take you on a tour of New York City and inflate the fare." Well, she had that "no nonsense" attitude about her; inside she was trembling. She hadn't ever done much travel for business. Her interview was in one hour. The taxi pulled up to a quick halt in front of the Mobil building. Headquarters. A lot of history flew through her mind...Standard Oil, Magnolia Petroleum, Mobil Oil. It made her feel proud to be part of such an establishment. Through security and through the hoops until finally she was seated opposite the man who would make the decision on whether or not she was the one to fill this position. He needed someone to supervise employees in a brand new technology unit. New procedures would have to be established for the unit and they would have to be coordinated with another team supervisor. She asked him to step out of the box and look at her "experience" as she outlined putting a family together. Then she added the actual supervision of paralegals and library personnel plus the classes from her 90% finished business degree. At the end of the interview, he told her he had reservations, but that he was offering her the job. She thanked him graciously, promising to do her best. She was dying to scream "Yes! I got the job! I got the job!" He explained the salary, the moving benefit, the housing allowance, the temporary travel and temporary housing allowance and told her to report in two weeks or sooner if possible. That night she stayed at the Helmsley, had a nice meal and when she called a cab to return in the morning she said, "LaGuardia, please. Take the Triborough bridge."