As I pack, I also love my home. I also need to unpack, because the kitchen sink just won't fit.

I'm driving with a friend to New Mexico for the next few days (1500 miles.)  And then to see my son in Colorado.  What a great adventure. But I'm also anxious.  I have this need to be in control, and I won't be. I am thus facing one of my all time personality quirks...you might say, to be a co-driver, to not be in charge of anything.  Oh my.  It's another f-ing growth opportunity! At my tender age too!

But I am always up for an adventure. And this one has most of it planned, but with some delightful unplanned times.

So hasta a vista, mi amigos y amigas!

Quote for today:

One must view the world through the eye in one’s heart rather than just trust the eyes in one’s head.

Mary Crow Dog

Happy Birthday Gummy

My grandmother, Ada Phillips Swasey Rogers, was born on this day in 1886, 129 years ago.  She lived until 1964.  She was quite a lady...and all her grandchildren remember her fondly.  She spent some time with her great grand children who also lived in Houston where she lived the last 24 years of her life.

She gave birth to 6 children, all except the youngest born in Galveston, TX, where she grew up herself.  But she was born in San Marcos, TX. Her youngest son was born in Fort Worth, Texas.

I wrote about her life in a lot of detail last year for her birthday HERE.

I've been showing some still photos taken from some home movies including my grandmother.

Considering these photos were taken about 1943-46, she didn't look much different to me the last 20 years of her life (but then again, I was much shorter than she was when these were taken!)

The summer of 1949 my parents, my grandparents, my Uncle Chauncey, and my cousins Claudette and Sandra and my sister and myself drove all the way from Houston to Stevens Point, Wisconsin, in two Studebakers. One had a board built across the back seat for us children to play on, or lie down for naps. That's 5 adults and 4 children.


Poppy wanted to see some of the places the Rogers family came from, including some Civil War sites...so the trip was a bit convoluted.  We also went through the Smokey Mountains to see some of the Tennessee sites where the Rogers had originally settled.  The cars over-heated several times in the mountains.  We stayed in small little motels, sometimes each room a tiny little cottage.  There are still some of those little stone buildings standing, but not in business any more.

We also wanted to visit Principia, the school in St. Louis for Christian Scientist children.  It must have impressed my parents, because we moved there to attend that school the next summer.  I met my cousins, Pat and Chris for the first time in Wisconsin, but don't remember many details.  I was only 7 that summer.

Strength and humor are the words that best describe my grandmother, as I remember her.

The rest of the journey

Cathy offered me a drink before the plane taxied away from the terminal.  How did I get so lucky?

When I went to the boarding gate counter, in Atlanta, to get my seat assignment for the second leg of my trip, the guy behind me in line apparently decided to be benevolent, and paid for my ticket to be upgraded to first class.

My first class seat

He and his wife were also traveling to on the same plane, but I didn't even see them after I got to my seat in the second row.  Wow.
My son thinks one of them worked for the airline and had some points or something...but whatever way it happened, I was so grateful.  I didn't do anything, and was so pleased.

So once again, just two seats on each side of the aisle.

My Santa just said it's a Christmas present.

I had the trusty camera out and played tourist the whole way.

 So my next post will be about the strange land I viewed through my camera.

Over the river and...modern days

I know she's taking that box and going away...

 I'm sleeping until I can sit on her while she tries to sleep tonight!

Sweet little plane out of Asheville

Yes, only 2 seats to a side!

Flight was fun as I met a nice gentleman on his way (with family) to visit Germany (including Paris & Vienna)...but he won't get to be with my family over Christmas. 

I started something, Jeff was soon taking photos of his family across the aisle from us!

More tomorrow on the second leg of my trip and the small blessing I received (big for me!)

Trip 2011 August, first night

More email notes tell me about my first night on the road, on the way to Connecticut for my 69th birthday.

I don't know about you, but once I find a reasonable motel, I try to use it again.
The trip was planned loosely that I would drive home a different route, and stay near DC, then spend a day looking at museums that hadn't even been built the last time I got to go to DC.  I was giving myself some art exposure as a birthday present.  It didn't work out that way.


<Saturday, August 20, 2011 8:33 PM
<Hi ladies...
<Yeah!  The motel where I'm staying, can't remember which chain it is, has Wi Fi.  Oh, it's Super 8.  Very reasonable! 

<Driving has been nice and easy today.  Didn't see any accidents.  Did have to stop with several personal "near accidents "from IBS almost hourly.  I'm so upset that this is happening, where I take exits and rush to the first bathroom holding it...barely.  I just don't like taking the over the counter stuff that stops it, cause then for days I won't go at all.  But I probably will go buy some in the morning so I don't have this all day tomorrw too.

<I will be lying down soon for the night.  It's kind of hard to believe I'm actually north of DC, though a ways west of it.  Oh, I'm in Winchester, VA.  It's been so beautiful, the Virginia countryside.  I'm really enjoying it.

Next day was the fun drive through  VA, West VA, Maryland, PA, NJ, NY and CT - yes 7 states!

I hit stormy weather at one crucial point where I ended up getting off the highway and getting a bit lost...see tomorrow's posting!

Just before my 69th

Have just started my yoga and meditation routine again...that half hour in the morning is amazing that it changes my attitude so much.  I need it.  It's like water or air.  How come I let myself slip away from it for so long?  Duh!

I write emails daily to two dear old friends, who I'll call The Brain and The Flowery One.  So I've got emails that I've sent, and they've replied back.  Much of my life is recorded through these dates, though it's a bit of a strange format.  But it's a great resource when writing a book.



<Friday, August 19, 2011 4:19 PM  (NOTE: I turned 69 on Aug 23, 2011)
<TO: The Flowery One and The Brain

<Oh, that's such a lovely complex...and your patio (even without all the plants) is also very nice.  I didnt' realize your fence just was waist high, so you've got view of sky too.  Nice. 
(NOTE: I'm responding here to a picture of The Flowery One's patio picture.  Also I tend to not correct my misspellings while I'm first waking up in the morning, so the more typos there are, the earlier I was writing.)

The Flowery One's patio

<I've done some errands and bought some ginger ale for The Enlightened One and myself...she's talking with the Hospice nurse and says she's eating a little bit for each meal.  But she is tired a lot, so I just gave her a hug and said I'd see her in 10 days.  
(NOTE: My friend, The Enlightened One was dying of cancer, and had already started having Hospice visits.  I hated to be away to visit my family, but didn't see that things would change rapidly [hindsight is 20-20])

<My dear old IBS is rearing its ugly head, as I thought would happen tomorrow.  nah, it couldn't wait.  So Iv'e bveen creative at finding bathrooms while doing my errands.
(NOTE: This writer does have Irritable Bowel Syndrome, which causes all kinds of problems in travelling.  Later in this year I will finally have some good medications that allow me to go anywhere, oops pardon the pun, I mean they would allow me to travel!!!)

<I loaded the crate of pottery that I'm offering to my son, The Consultant's family...hope I don't have to bring it all back.  Well, maybe some would be ok.  But I sure don't need it all collecting dust.  I'd rather my grands have it already.

<So the laundry is done.  I bought 2 new bras, cause there are only 2 that fit still (I know,  Flowery One...you don't have to deal with that any more...lucky you.)  The Enlightened One offered me all of hers, but they wouldn't go around my big old tubby form, she's a little bit of a thing.
(NOTE: The Flowery One is a breast cancer survivor!)

<Anyway, I've been washing one out every night, having only 2 at this point that fit, and decided that was just not the way I'd be welcome in a family bathroom!

<I'm going to put my feet up, then take the ice cream cake to the pot luck at 6:30.  Will pack after that.

NOTE: the above email had deleted a few items.  Other than those, it's pretty much the way it was written.   I won't copy emails verbatim, because that would be pretty tedious.  But I wanted you to have a feeling for my way I'll be retrieving events that I've recorded in this way.  The condition IBS is one that is seldom brought up in conversations, however many people suffer from it also, so I'm letting you know about my situation here, especially since it dictated some of my decisions along this trip.