Inauguration Day, 2009 U.S.A.

Today is one of the most exciting days of my life.
It is Jan. 20, 2009, the day Barack Obama was inaugurated
as President of the United States. The news media are carrying wonderful stories
of people determined to be there in spite of cold weather, no place to stay,
scarcity of bathrooms, and just general crowding. There will be thousands of law enforcement officers there, and they have to sleep on cots in a crowded hall.
Businesses all over the city are allowing their employees to spend the night at work, so that they might be on hand for the celebration.

Charley Gibson carried a news story tonight about a woman from Texas who drove to D.C. with her six children. She had been made homeless by Katrina. Her youngest was 6 months. Somehow, through the internet, she had found a family willing to house them in exchange for her doing all the cooking. She had no tickets to anything, but she just wanted to be there..to take part in this historic day.

I can't think of another event in my lifetime, other than the millennium celebration, or perhaps the Olympics, where Americans meet with such great joy and hope in mind. There is literally dancing in the streets. It is heartwarming to see our country joyful again.

Let the whole world watch and see how we have been relieved of a great weight, a burden of worry that has pervaded our lives for eight years.

In spite of 1.4 million people crowding the streets of Washington, D.C. , and in the face of 12 degree weather (wind chill -14!) there were not incidents, no fights, everyone was cooperative and helpful, and the general ebullience was contagious. The cameras panned over faces, red with cold, but still smiling and crying with happiness. Other networks carried scenes from Indonesia, Kenya, Hawaii and other parts of the world, as their people watched in awe and shared our hope for a better futures.

May be return to the days when all were proud to stand and sing the National Anthem with pride!

Inauguration Day, 2009 U.S.A.

An Attractive Woman

I started the first day of the new year right. I slept late. Then I went to the gym . Not many people there so we all felt a little virtuous. Not only was I rewarded for my exercise, but I had  a little experience that brightened my day and set me thinking.

I  can't speak for what men find attractive in women. But I have my own ideas of what sets woman apart when I first meet them. It's a woman with a   friendly smile. Nothing improves a person's looks like a big , sincere smile. There was a woman working out and as she passed me she was humming to the music.  We both exchanged  "Happy New Year" greetings. She was  rather petite,  wearing a crisp , white, long sleeved blouse and what we used to call pedal pushers. The music was rather lively and I felt my body start to feel the beat and want to move to the music.

  She got off one resistance machine and started dancing across the carpet. She was very lithe, and her steps made her look like someone who had a lot of dancing experience. A teacher, perhaps. As the music continued , she moved from machine to machine, doing her dance steps in between  and really enjoying the music.  I wanted so much to get up and follow her around, conga like, trying to emulate her moves. Another woman said something to me about  it and  I allowed as how I'd like to have the nerve to do that. She laughed and said , "Not me! I have two left feet!"

  The dancing woman continued her moves until she spotted a friend and they began an intense conversation that lasted quite a while. As I prepared to leave, I passed them and she stopped her conversation, called out to me, and said, " You and I greeted each other and I think we should meet. I'm Angela and this is my friend, Joanne."

I told her how her dancing had affected me and she revealed that her husband really doesn't like to dance and she misses the opportunity to enjoy it.

We chatted for a while and I thought how pleasant it was to have met someone so bright , so 

joyful and so eager to meet others. Now that's an attractive woman!

What a  positive way to start the new year...meeting a new friend or two.

A Perfect Holiday

Today was the end of a perfect holiday season. I have two married sons and a total of four grandchildren, each one as precious as the next. This weekend, we were all together.

The rush of Christmas, the hectic schedules, the mad wrapping and then tearing off of  paper on packages was past us. Everyone was full of good food and making resolutions to lose weight in the coming months. It was  time to relax and just enjoy being a family.

Yesterday we packed up two suvs with picnic food, towels, shovels and pails, and headed for the famous Siesta Beach off Sarasota, Florida. And  so  did everyone else in town. We searched in vain at several locations for a parking space, and finally went for Plan B. We found an open but deserted ball park with picnic  tables, playground equipment and clean rest rooms. We ate our food there under sunny skies, and watched the children play happily together. 

       We were so pleased with  ourselves, we decided to try again today.  Fully loaded with the same stuff, but new food, we headed for Ken Thompson Park near Mote Marine  on Longboat Key.We were lucky to find a spot to park, shaded picnic tables. and clean restrooms once again.

Our view of Sarasota from across the bay was spectacular.  We watched as children played in the gently lapping shallow water....little ones in diapers wading happily, mothers with pant legs rolled following at a safe distance.  Older boys with fishing poles optimistically hoping to make a big catch in ten inches of crystal clear water.   Sailboats, canoes, kayaks, water scooters and motor boats entertained us. So did   majestic osprey whose distinct cry caused us to look up and see him in full flight...a magnificent sight.

The ambiance in  Sarasota is so beneficent and it is totally free and accessible to all.  Seeing other families enjoying the same blessings as ours showed us that we were not the only ones counting their blessings.

Gifts and presents are fun to get. But the gift of this kind of day comes along all too seldom and we need to be aware of the fact that it is we who can make Christmas come all year, and we who can make these magic days happen.

Happy New Year, all you dear friends and readers.

Christmas Eve Day, 2008

This has been a  wonderful pre-Christmas season.

Having three young grandsons around can make even the most stoic person believe in Santa and 

the real message of Joy found in this season.

My middle grandson decorated my tree for me, using a step stool, and every single trinket was on the three branches in the front! I smile every time I pass it, and marvel that it doesn't tip over.

When you come to think of it, he couldn't even see the ornaments if they were on the top or in the back, now could he?

I'm a fortunate person to have so many loving relatives to come and visit me, and they all come at this time of year. Therefore, this is my first post in six weeks!  Shame on me! I resolve to be more current in 2009.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all!

SOFT, SANDY BEACHES OF SARASOTA

Going to the beach has been my favorite activity since I was a child. No , there are not many beaches in West Virginia, but my family once spent a week at Virginia Beach. We made all the mistakes tourists make and got hopelessly sunburned. My brother even had heat prostration and we had to call a doctor. I had my hair in braids, and the sun burnt little blisters all along the part line. I couldn't comb my hair for weeks! And , the 300 mile drive home in a car full of burnt people was like being trapped in a 4 x 4 prison cell!

Then , we moved to Florida when I was 16. My dad didn't have work yet, so our days were free.
We would get up at 7 a.m. and head for Pass-a-Grille beach, where once stately Australian pines offered a nice spot for sitting in the shade. It was bright, beautiful, and not too hot at that hour and we loved splashing in the waves . (One photo shows my son romping in the surf with his daughter)
On the way home, we would stop where they were selling watermelons 3 for $1 and get a big , bursting melon. We all learned how to "thump" them to choose just the juiciest, sweetest of all.
For breakfast, we had watermelon after hosing off the sand from our bodies. Spitting watermelon seeds was a great pastime!

While I was in junior college in St. Pete, we loved to sneak away and go to the "Surf Club" on St. Petersburg Beach. It was just as you see in the movies..young , oiled and tanned bodies all lying around on blankets, hoping to "make out". Young, virile men from McDill Air Force Base were everywhere and stirred up the blood of hormonal young women.

Our friends would plan beach parties at night. Back then we were allowed to make a fire.
The most fun was to go into the water and watch the phosphoresence in the water light up our every movement and splash. It was a magical time,never to happen again.

There was never enough surf on the Gulf Coast for surfing, but my sons got into that sport in a big way while they attended University of Florida in Gainesville. Many weekends betters spent studying were gleefully enjoyed at Daytona and neighboring beaches.
I expect those are golden memories to them.

One year, we had a family reunion in St. Petersburg. My three sons and their wives/sweethearts were with me and we all decided to go into the water at sunset. We had heard about the green flash, and we actually saw it. I would try to explain it, but you would be better off googling "green flash" and see photos of it. It is a phenomenal thrill.

These days, (my "golden years"), I don't get into the water much but love to walk along the beach, especially at sunset. It never fails to bring me peace and happiness.

The first photo is my  son and his daughter frolicking in the surf.The second photo is two of my grandsons playing "push me , pull me" at Siesta Beach, Sarasota.

GYMNASTIC GOINGS ON

I remember when I first joined a gym , back in 1990. Back in those days, gyms were mostly like "Gold's" and the people who went there were largely policemen and firemen.
I wanted so badly to go, but felt that I would be woefully out of place. I was afraid that if I was using a piece of equipment that some jock needed, he would be annoyed with me.
I remember my first time. I must have driven around the block several times, trying to get up the nerve to actually park and go inside.

I did make it inside. Everyone was friendly and helpful. I noticed right away that
most of the real bodybuilders were looking in mirrors, admiring their pecs. They just didn't care if I was there or not. Since that time, I have had a steady membership in gyms, among them the "Y", the Jewish Community Center, the Senior Center, and now Shapes. From time to time I hire a trainer to give me a routine and then tty to stick to that until it becomes old.

I currently belong to an all female gym. It is really interesting to see the variety in the people who come there, the trainers, and in the programs they offer. I see women into their eighties and nineties, doing their best with what they have. Some of them have been coming most of their lives and are in pretty good shape. Women young and old, slim and pudgy,
white, black, asian. Today I saw a muslim woman come in and remove her scarf before changing into workout clothes. Some women are so overweight that you have to admire them for trying to make a change. Some are so thin, you expect them to break something on the lifting equipment.

Some are bent with osteoporosis; some limp with bad knees and hips.
They don't move very fast, but , by gosh, they are moving . There are five or six swim classes at my gym and they are all full. For one hour, they move as instructed and get a very good, full body workout. A good percentage of them are women over 75 and the water makes it possible for them to move fully and positively. They laugh and joke and have a great time . Many of them form groups to go out to breakfast after class.

I am there early, so from my vantage point of the treadmill, I see the working girls leave. They have a good workout, get a shower, blow-dry their hair and set off to work in their professional clothes and high heels, looking very nice indeed!

Some days there is a row of strollers along the outside sidewalk when I leave. That would be the StrollerMoms. They line up the little ones in a row and, having supplied them with crackers and juice, start their workout. All the bouncing and jogging keeps the kids entertained and mom is just a step away! Great idea and fun to watch.

Clothing is interesting. Gone are the outfits that conjure a mental image of Jane Fonda in her sweatband and rolled down socks. We wear what is clean and ready. We wear what is comfortable . No beauty contest.

Since Sarasota is a circus city, we see a number of the aerial artists there. They really work hard, as you might imagine. And, they take the yoga classes for balance, both physical and mental.

I try to do thirty minutes on an aerobic machine, and that can get very boring. Thus I learned some time ago to get large print books out of the library. They are easy to read while bouncing and you can forget about time when you are into a good book.
Others like their ipods. My ipod is filled with talking books, not music. My favorite book on tape is David Sedaris' "Me talk pretty one day." It keeps me laughing and those around me give me weird looks.