life in the old lane

Today was one of those scary nice days. Like – this is way too good. The wheels are going to fall off any second now.

But, I am going to enjoy it – a day of grace in a world of chaos. 

Took pictures this afternoon around The Asylum. This wonderful woman works in food service on our health care unit. She has worked here for 5 years and has been in the US for 17 years. But, she never got the money and time together to enable her to go through the citizenship process. As we residents looked on in horror over the last couple of years at the increasing hostility towards immigrants – we wondered what could we do? Well, actually rather a lot. Some of us can give money, others help candidates prepare for the test, some help with negotiating the bureaucracy. Apparently we are currently able to assist 28 employees through this process. 

Our lady has completed the process and is awaiting the arrival of her US passport. That passport will allow her to travel to her native land to visit her mother with the assurance that she will be able to reenter the US and return to her home and her children.  

This is a win for everyone. We old folks can still make things good things happen.

Most of us got this lovely junk mail in our boxes tonight. We are in agreement that lunch should be at Texas Jack’s Barbeque or the Smoking Kow. 

It is best to be very easily amused as one gets older.  So, you might as well start practicing what Mr. C called “the joy of living” now.  

Getting a handle on my trip around the UK. It is still a work in process. 

1. Get to Heathrow at 1430 June 19. Make way to Paddington St via train and then train on to Bath. For no apparent reason. Roman Baths.  Bath
2. June 20 – stay in Bath another day. Bath
3. June 21 – train to Cardiff. They have a cool castle. Cardiff.
4. June 21 – train to Llandudno. This is a five hour ride. Llandudno.
5. June 22 – train to Glasgow. This is another 5-6 hour trek with several changes. Glasgow.
6. June 23 – stay in Glasgow another day. Glasgow
7. June 24 – train to Edinburgh.  Edinburgh.
8. June 25- stay in Edinburgh another day. Edinburgh.
9. June 26 – train to London. 5 hours. London
10. June 27 – Latest return to London. must spend the night in London
11. June 28 – fly to Bermuda plane leaves at 1455.  

Going to let this perk around for a while. Might be better to just go to Glasgow, Edinburgh, and London. And use a night train or two.

Now that I am done with tulips, I can do dogwoods.

In addition to going to the office and doing yoga – which is a pretty action-packed day for me – I discovered that I can bail out of my SriLankan  Airlines flight through Colombo for about $600 and take Singapore Airlines directly to Dubai. But, I am guessing that if I want to do that I should get the new flight sooner. Not later.  Knowing me, I will most likely just stick with my original plan. I was always one to worry more about dysentery than violence. Violence will kill you flat out but dysentery will make you wish you were dead for days on end.

On a happier note. I am testing out my new power bank. It is charging up my Kindle. 3 big type G plug adapters also arrived. That is my usual number. 2 to use. And one to keep in the suitcase “just in case”. This trip is starting to seem like it is really going to happen.

So, I think I’ll put the blog away and figure out what to do with my 9 or 10 unplanned days.

Had a fine and festive Easter with my Asylum Sisters. We Brunched. Then I believe we all slumped off into a food-induced coma. Only to come out of it for a very light dinner. I had soup. Most had salad. But, salad required more effort than I was able to come up with. 

Ordered a new power bank for my phone. And some plug converters for Singapore, Dubai and Great Britain. My Round the World Before Alzheimer’s trip is about a month away. 

Note: I am booked on Siri Lankan Airlines via Colombo for the transit from Singapore to Dubai. I was planning on squeezing in a little sightseeing. Actually, I wanted to go pay respects to Arthur C. Clark. Rethinking that idea. 

Before he died, Carlton told me that Cliff was my go-to guy for advice. Problem is Cliff was 5 years Carlton’s senior and he isn’t around any more. But, he was so solid and so consistent – that I can just ask myself “Now, what would Cliff’s advice be?”. Which is what I did when selecting a hotel in Dubai. 

I will be arriving in Dubai late at night. The answer to “What would Cliff advise” was “Book a good hotel and get a car service”. I am staying at a hotel that is attached to one of Dubai’s big ass shopping centers. And, I have arranged to be picked up at the airport. It is one thing to ride the train in Tokyo or the bus in Singapore. It is something else again to ride Metro in Dubai at midnight. Midnight is not the right time to economize.

Making the reservation reminded me that UAE is not Kansas. When making my reservation I could be Dr., Mr., Miss, or Mrs. I decided that I would be Mrs. 

Now I have 9 or 10 days to spend somewhere within 8 hours of London. Might just totally wing that one. 

And, tonight I escaped The Asylum and we had dinner at a nearby Afghani restaurant. It is always good to escape. 

Well, The Asylum is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Anglican or is it Episcopal Church. And they take Easter pretty seriously.  Hence, the rabbit. 

On the other hand, I have always wondered why the Christians commemorated the Romans nailing a nice Jewish boy to a tree by having a rabbit deliver chicken eggs to good little boys and girls. Don’t get me wrong. I am in favor of bunnies. Dark Chocolate Bunnies. But Peeps – not a big fan.

I respect any religious occasion that involves food.

Just did almost nothing today. I managed to eat meals and go for a much-needed walk. But, that is about it. Guess this is a part of the aging process. I need more downtime. Carlton called that “white space”. I need more white space in my life. Less clutter. Less busywork. More naps.  Having a bit of difficulty embracing this aging thing.  But, it is happening. Creeping up on me. Little by little. Taking parts of me away. Little by little.

Eat the cake, buy the shoes, take the trip!

Well, Carlton, yesterday would have been your 84th birthday. And, if you had been here – I would have ignored it. We never did birthdays. We never did any holidays except the Summer and Winter Solstices.  

It was a lovely warm springy day today. But, I spent it all inside working on a little project for The Asylum. My contribution to our annual resident fundraising campaign to give a Xmas bonus to our staff who work for low wages and no tips. Making a generous contribution is the least I can do. Making a few little “advertising” videos is just a little lagniappe. 

Tomorrow, I will decide where to stay in Dubai. I will spend a bit more than usual because it will be so hot that I might well spend more time than usual inside. Also, Dubai doesn’t seem to be in the least bit “walkable”. So, a hotel that is connected to a shopping center/metro stop might be worth a few extra dirhams. And then it will be time to decide what to do with my nine days between coming in to and going out of Great Britain. 

My Asylum sisters keep having birthdays. But, that is a good thing. As long as we can eat cake and laugh at ourselves. I stressed the boundaries of the fancy dining room dress code by wearing leggings (which are not forbidden) and a graphic tee-shirt (which is verboten). Ms Marvel’s “cat” Goose/Chewie. Carol, the birthday sister has two cats. Including a yellow tomcat. So, my Goose tee just had to be worn on this occasion. 

Speaking only for myself, I never planned on getting this old. Funny thing is, I am not planning on getting a lot older either. Nevermind that there are people here who are 20+ years older than me. Statistically, I have about 10 more years. OK, maybe. But, I doubt it. 

If I live as long as Carlton did – I have 4 more years left. 

Not morbid. Just is. Nobody is promised tomorrow. Do it today!

 

 

 

Well, I made it to Tuesday. And, by the end of Tuesday, I am always tired. Back to back days of yoga (and work), I think that is what does it.

Spending a little time this evening wandering thru my photos from February of this year. Santa Barbara was one great little city. Eating, shopping, drinking and surf. What’s not to love?

The spire, the gargoyles, the organ, the rose windows, the bells, the statues, the crypts, the list is endless. My heart hurts for Paris, for France, for the Church. 

May no lives be lost and may this be just a terrible accident. 

It was an April showers kind of a day. I decided to make one last lap through my March photos. I discovered that I had about 400 train trip and Mardi Gras photos that I hadn’t even downloaded. Much less cataloged etc. But, I think March is all done. 

Oh, and I found this one – which post-processed up into something interesting.

Another lazy sort of a day. I am going through my pictures from Mardi Gras. 

Getting my photos cataloged, culled, and backed up makes me feel more organized and in control. 

And, it reminds me of how much fun I was able to pack into a little over 48 hours in New Orleans. I am starting to think that I am trying to pack too much into my 38-day dash around the world. If this is Tuesday, it must be Dubai. So, if I could arrive in New Orleans at midnight on Sunday and be back on the train rolling north at 0700 hours on Wednesday – I should be able to find fun in my 5 days in Tokyo, 4 days in Singapore and 3 days in Dubai.

I found a public bus that goes from Dubai to Abu Dhabi. The trip takes about 90 minutes. Just time to check out the White Mosque and then head back. The good thing about this adventure is that it involves a public bus that runs 3 times an hour and nothing complicated. 

There will be plenty of time to rest after I am dead. Or during my 4 days in Bermuda. Whichever comes first!