Packing, Generosity, Early Birthday Celebrations, Fabulous Friends and FamilyI am so fortunate to be surrounded by very special and caring people. The last couple of weeks have been filled with very different happenings - some I have never experienced in my life and some were plain and simple but very memorable.
I'm getting ready to leave for my two week trip to Europe and so many people have rallied and helped me with things I needed to do before I can get on the plane.
I am the Newsletter Editor for the Newcomers Club in the area and had the newsletter all ready to be mailed off but it had to be put on hold for a situation beyond my control. Knowing that it was delayed and now pressing me for time, a friend took over the entire mailing - love ya Shary! You took a huge load off my shoulders.
I have to say it again. I absolutely LOVE Facebook. I have connected with people I went to high school with that I haven't seen since graduation. Because of Facebook, we're doing a Girls' Weekend after I'm back from my trip. One girl I haven't seen for almost 35 years, one is Betty, who we had the Celebration of Life party for back in December and the other was one of my closest friends in high school. Another high school friend has a place in the town where we're meeting so hopefully she can come too! If you haven't tried Facebook, it's worth a look.
Talk about generosity...my friend, Kathy, has opened up her home to me for the next couple of weeks in London. I can't wait to see what she has planned. It is a VERY small world - I found out this week that a friend from Fresno will be at the Chelsea Flower Show too...I have my international cell phone set up to send texts to my blog, so we'll see if it works. If not, there'll be tons of pictures here in a couple of weeks.
More generosity...I told a friend I was looking for a red, white and blue tablecloth to take to my friend, Kathy. My friend, Mary Clare, took it upon herself to be on the lookout for the tablecloth while she was out shopping getting ready to leave for Greece today. Mary Clare, you are one in a hundred million - love ya! AND, she mentioned on a shopping trip that she had a suitcase scale. I'd heard stories about people getting to the airport and their luggage being overweight and having to pay huge additional amounts. Mary Clare surprised me last night with my very own scale AND it has a tape measure on the side to measure the luggage - another important thing. MCZ, can't wait to dish when we're both back home.
My birthday is while I'm away, so I've had a couple early celebrations this week. My sister and nephew took me to dinner in a nearby town for fish and chips and surprised me with binoculars. I have been so envious of my next door neighbor - I always see him out on his deck looking out at the ocean with his binoculars. So, now I have my very own. My friend, Valerie took me out to dinner last night for yummy salmon covered with avocado and Bearnaise sauce (only in Callie!). Fabulous! Mary Clare joined us too as a little bon voyage dinner and we had cake to celebrate our birthdays.
A friend needed to get me something a couple of weeks ago, so I offered to go to her house to pick it up. Her house is so delightful - it's huge, has an amazing view, a gourmet kitchen and her basement is an art studio - she's an amazing watercolor artist. It was a rainy, cold day, so we sat, had tea and chatted about life. I believe she's another person brought into my life for a reason I'm not quite sure of yet.
I am looking forward to being on the plane and doing what I call a Brain Dump. It is something I have come accustomed to doing on the first day of a trip. I take a notebook and a smooth writing pen (that's important to me!) and just write and write and see where it takes me. It is a very exciting time - full of ideas - some very old that always pop up when I do my Brain Dump but some new and refreshing ideas always pop up. My book is coming along fantastically and I have had an offer to post some of the projects on a new and growing website. I am hoping to expand on my book projects AND I have a new venture I'm working on. I have a couple of friends already working on the elements and will come up my to do list for when I get home.
My friend, Frances, came for a quick visit earlier this week with her husband and her parents. It was a gorgeous day and we sat outside and enjoyed the beautiful view. I am VERY grateful that Frances volunteered (when you live at the ocean many people volunteer) to house sit while I'm gone. Now, I don't have to worry about my newly planted trees and keeping my yard alive while I'm gone and Frances gets to bring her clay and be creative in a wonderful environment.
It will be VERY hard to leave My Rock and head off to Europe, but I know amazing adventures await me. To all my friends and family, thank you for being a part of my life. Each and every one of you bring such uniqueness to my life. I cherish each and every one of you.
I just wrote someone on Facebook that I'm heading to Europe for two weeks - oh, my gosh! I'm heading to Europe for two weeks!!!
Joan
Days 1-3 
