Class reunion - to go or not to go!

"No, no, a thousand times no," I told Donah and Janet each time they asked me about attending past class reunions. "I will never go back to Warren, Ohio." Noting the escalating pitch in my voice, bordering on melodrama, my dear, patient, loving friends would relent and say, "Okay, Lor, but we wish you would reconsider because we know it would be fun." Not in my lifetime said the invisible bubble above my head. So, this year, when the topic came up, as the reunion committee sent out notices that they were organizing a 35th year celebration (one year late!), Dee Dee and JC said with resignation in their voices, "Don't suppose your interested in going?" "Nope, but you girls have a great time and tell me all about it." Then, I received a lovely, warm, enthusiastic note from Kitty who was on the reunion committee, just wanting to make contact, but realizing it was a long way to travel for a week-end gathering. We started chatting back and forth, which led to chats with a few others like Tom O and THEN, before I knew it, I opened a FACEBOOK account, which in my mind epitomized internet indulgence and frivolity, and who, for heavens sake, has time for such silliness. I found myself peeking into the lives of former classmates like Kitty,Kathi, Randy, Tom and Sandy, and kept thinking, "I really like these people! Hmmm, they sure have planned a great reunion week-end, maybe it would be fun."


But, Donah was coming out in July to stay for a week and Janet would join us, so we kind of thought that would be reunion enough. Janet, however, was already commited to going to visit her mom on the reunion week-end. In one of our conversations, Janet mentioned the airfares were cheap so I said I would think about it. Then, Donah called and said, "Heard you may have a change of heart about going to Ohio." My husband said, "You should go." Click, click, search, search,search, reservation made. I emailed Kitty and Tom and told them we would all three be attending, and she wrote back saying, "So far the response is a bit sparse. Only seven people have confirmed, and now with you three, that makes ten." Kitty, NOW you tell me! :-)
Omigod. Too late to cancel so I called the girls with the news. We cracked up, Donah tried to back out. Oh, no sista, you are IN, no matter what! We then reframed the event as an opportunity to form intimate connections with very substantive individuals!! Donah and I went to work on getting Ann T to attend and she acquiesed without too much pressure! She ended up staying with us at Donah's aunt Cathy's home. I think Ann and I have claimed her as our own "Aunt Cathy," after being the guests of such an embracing, delightful woman! Donah, Janet, Ann and I shared the buried and blatant truths of our past, and regaled one another with stories about our lives since 1973, creating a loving bond that we will continue to cherish and nurture.


Janet, her mom (who was entirely too much fun and looks like one of our peers), Donah, and I visited our old, still beautiful, neighborhood and other familiar haunts. My pores soaked up the joy and contentment I felt being with my two best friends as we whooped with laughter over the crazy things we did! I realized that my resistance to returning to Ohio had nothing to do with my junior high and high school years, which hold the whole spectrum of memories, from grand to sad. It was the two years POST graduation that had me stuck in the muddied, burdensome memories of poor and bad choices I made during that phase of my life. My parents provided me and my two brothers with the most wonderful family life imagineable and I was disgusted with myself for separating from that strong, loving foundation to "experience" independence, in a rather corrupt manner. Thank God, the safety and security of their unconditional love bekoned me back to a path that eventually led me to life I cherish.


Kitty,Tom, Kathi, Elaine and Sandy put together a fabulous week-end, beginning Friday night and ending Sunday evening. From socializing at the lovely clubhouse, to clubbing it at Blue Magoos, listening to our very talented classmate, Tom McCoy play and sing the blues, to Saturday night's delicious dinner and funky band (thanks to Tom O), to Sunday's all day outdoor music festival, benefitting breast cancer, put together by Tom McCoy, it was extraordinarily special! I think there were 40 to 50 people who attended, some with spouses, some without, and all of us were thrilled to be reconnected. It was wonderful to see how certain people gravitated to one another, sharing common past, and present, interests. No longer plagued by teenage angst, rebellion, or a need to fit in, we were all infected by the loving energy created by decent, caring people, coming together again after 36 years. I am so blessed to have enriched my life with new and rekindled friendships. Thank you Kitty, Tom, Kathi, Elaine and Sandy!

Reality Check

Comparing Obama to Hitler? This is a joke, right? Well, I guess it isn't a joke to the extremist radio talk show hosts and t.v. commentators
who are some of the most vile perpetrators of hate I have

ever been witness to. They spit their vitriol and spew

their hatred, creating as much divisiveness among racial

cultural, and socioeconomic lines as they can muster. They

prey on ignorance and bask in the glory of notoriety. But,

I know, underneath this puffed up righteousness, they have

vacant souls. This notion that President Obama is proposing a health care bill that advocates euthanizing of seniors is just simply ludicrous. Why would anyone oppose the educated counsel by people in the health care profession who can delineate end of life options such as hospice, living wills, and advanced directives to the aged. Oh, that's right, this is all a part of Obama's big plan. He will have saboteurs in these settings, really pushing for "just a little more morphine, Mrs. Jones," and then, "Oops, guess I overdid that one. Let's call it at 9:40 p.m." I, for one, have a living will and I am grateful that I have at least that tiny bit of control over my life, should I become critically ill.

That being said, there are legitimate issues regarding this bill that clearly require political accountability - trying to push it through for approval without scrutiny of the components and stating that the new health care plan will create a surplus, not a deficit. Puhleeez. This is politics as usual, and unfortunately, we have not seen a politician yet that doesn't skew statistics and parcel out facts to support their positions. Disappointing? Absolutely. Evil? Hardly.

I am disheartened as I watch rageful faces at these town hall meetings. People are desperate. We ordinary folks were royally screwed and we were promised change with this new administration. Yet, big bonuses and private jets still prevail. I am an Obama supporter and have no doubt that I will continue to be. But, our country is in a mess, headed that way long before January, 2009. I am sad to see how we are choosing camps and throwing poisonous barbs at each other at a time when we need to come together and find a middle ground. Any movement or action that is inspired by teeth bearing, growling fear, and manifesting in hateful words and behaviors, will ultimately leave barren spirits in its wake. We can do better than this.

C'mon, they both begin with "C"

So, I read that castor oil is good for dry skin, among many other things like muscle aches, blood circulation, ect. Since I have been in and out of the chlorinated pool all summer, I thought castor oil sounded like just the ticket. As many of you know from previous posts, I am kind of susceptible to quick fix skin products. Off to The Vitamin Shoppe! I went right to the shelf with caster oil, needing no assistance from the sales clerk, which was ultimately quite unfortunate. I found it most peculiar that castor oil came in orange and lemon flavors along with your basic "pure" castor oil. I didn't know it was meant to be consumed, but I did recall either my mom or Warren saying they used to be forced to take a tablespoon of castor oil with sugar to cure whatever ailed them. I THINK that's what they said so I was sure that someone must have come up with a way to consume the stuff that made it pleasing to the palate. I knew I would be rubbing it on my skin and thought the artificial flavorings might be toxic, so I went with the pure variety. Last night, after showering, I slathered up my body with this new skin tonic, paying close attention to my arms and hands. After I put on p.j.s, I went upstairs, made my nightly bowl of popcorn and settled in to watch CNN. Every time I stuffed a handful of popcorn into my mouth, my nose would crinkle, twitch, and sniff the air, wondering about the smell wafting about. I thought maybe I had popped my corn in a bad batch of canola oil. Even after I had wolfed the bowl down, the smell lingered. I checked to see if there was cat breathing down my neck, who might have just eaten a dish of that nasty tuna/salmon casserole pate. No, that wasn't it. And, everywhere I moved, the smell trailed. Hmmm, I thought, maybe caster oil has an odor. But, an odor that is reminiscent of a gold fish bowl that has needed changing for a couple of days? This is weird. Well, it was time for bed anyway so I traipsed downstairs to take Cayenne out for her nightly poop and pee. Back inside, I brushed my teeth and looked again at the bottle of castor oil on the bathroom counter top. I got into bed and found myself a little distracted by the fumes, when I suddenly had a vision of the bottle on the counter. It didn't say Castor Oil, it said COD LIVER OIL!!!!!!! Omigod, I had doused myself with the stuff and was walking around in a funky cloud of stink. Believe me, cod liver oil doesn't smell like grilled halibut. That I could live with. You would think I immediately showered after that, but, no, I was tired and I had gotten used to the scent. At first, I thought, Oh, no, I have so many scratches on my skin (the travails of a ranch hand), and isn't it true tha fish often carry flesh eating bacteria? Well, maybe not, but I'm sure I read that somewhere, too. Still too lazy to get up, I decided to take my chances, but I wondered if I should leave a note for somebody in case I had a sudden onset of the deadly bacterial infection and died. Thankfully, Warren was staying over in Los Angeles so I didn't have to see his face grimace in disgust while he asked, "Did you change the litter box?" Even though the two odors are worlds apart. Then, I began to think maybe something that smells this bad might have some real healing benefits. You know, the product is unadorned, very pure, that's what the label said, and many fish have absolutely beautiful scales. So, that's what I went with. Ahhhhh, I drifted off to a peaceful slumber with just a hint of a smile on my face.

P.S. I still haven't showered and my skin looks luminous!

It doesn't get much better than this!

My two best girlfriends from junior high school visited last week. We attended junior high and high school in Warren, Ohio, where my family lived for several years after leaving California. Janet lives in Camarillo, Ca and Donah lives in Darien, Connecticut and Naples, Florida. We have kept in touch and gotten together over the years and each time, it seems as if we fall into a rhythm of familiarity without missing a beat.

We talked about our beloved families, grief and loss, sex and marriage, bodily functions, phase of life "issues," aches and pains, and anything else that free flowed from our minds and hearts. Well, we did avoid politics because the campaign year leading up to President Obama's election, strained and stretched our tethers to each other, but they could not be severed. Although we have significant differences around particular social and political beliefs, we recognize the compassionate core in each other, and this binds us like an egg to flour. Laughter threads its way in and out of our trio with such ease.

Hanging out by the pool, Donah pointed out to me as I was getting ready to take a dip, "Lor, I hate to tell you this, but you have your bathing suit top on inside out." I didn't even bother to look and said, "Oh, that's okay, I didn't want to wear a suit anyway." I tossed my suit aside and dove in, with Donah and Janet right behind me, doing the same. I mean, how many friends could you comfortably do that with? At this age?! And, NO, nobody was imbibing. We cracked up as we recalled our younger, firmer days when we threw caution to the wind at our favorite swimming holes, the pond and the quarry. We kept retrieving other memories of those days of youthful indiscretions, sometimes causing us to revel in hilarity and other times, making us cringe at the thought of some our choices! It is comforting to be around friends who know the whole of you, inside and out, and still love you without reservation. There is an intimacy that can only exist because of our long history of connectedness. For me, it is as soothing as a warm blanket on a comfy couch with a great book and a cup of tea. In my world, it doesn't get much better than that.

I'm talkin' substance!

Well, after my last post, I received a lovely, heartfelt note from an M.D.

Yep, the compassion expressed by him was just so moving. He said he enjoyed my blog and could see that I am "a person of substance," but he was compelled to reach out to me in my quest to look more youthful. Oh my, he went above and beyond by providing me with his website address and he mentioned I could even have a skype consultation. Naturally, being the empathic individual that he clearly must be, he warned me about about procedures that may create an "unnatural" appearance. However, I think he must have forgotten to offer me any free services, being so caught up in his generous concern over my well-being.

HELLLLLLLOOOOOOO, Dr. Makeover, did you even READ my blog??? Do I sound like a person who is mired in worry over my aged face and body? The post was supposed to be FUNNY, ha, ha, you know, give my friends and family a chuckle! Heaven knows, there are many serious issues that need pondering on my treks through the woods. Like the other day, when I was walking on a trail that is now only about ten inches wide, with weeds on either side that are taller than my knees. I was gingerly stepping, hoping a rattler wasn't lurking in the thick foliage, when I suddenly visualized an angry badger lunging form the brush and latching onto my leg. Yes, I KNOW we don't have badgers here in southern California, but don't you see, that's why this badger was so enraged. Poor fella, here it is springtime, the season of love and lust, and all he sees is a field full of fluffy bunnies and hyped up ground squirrels that never pipe down. Doesn't quite cut the mustard. Well, back to my injured leg. At this point, I couldn't walk, but naturally, I screamed for Cayenne, who immediately rushed to my rescue. Even though I had been savagely attacked, I still tried to prevent Cayenne from maiming the badger, because I understood that I was simply in the wrong place at wrong time. He had no malice toward me personally. But, Cayenne ignored my pleas and grabbed that badger by the back of the neck, gave it a couple of quick shakes, and left it in a lifeless lump just out of my reach. Now that we were safe from further harm, as long as rattlesnakes, red biting ants, and rabid coyotes stayed their distance, I had to figure out the next step. Actually, I couldn't step because of my leg injury so I grabbed a indelible pen and some colorful ribbon and wrote, "Need help, injured on Autumn Trail." You may be wondering about the pen and ribbon. No, I don't actually carry it with me, but I am thinking of taking a backpack along with those types of provisions as well as a large can of bear spray, a machete, and some food and water, of course. It just makes sense out here in the wilderness. Once the message was written, in between writihing, moaning, and groaning as I checked my leg wounds, I tied it the ribbon on Cayenne's collar and said, "Go, Lassie" Her quizzical look and lack of action indicated I was becoming delusional, perhaps from blood loss. So, I tried to focus. Oh, yeah, right, I mean, "Go, Cayenne!" "Go fetch Warren!" "Or, Steve and Rosalee, if that's closer, just go!"

I must have come to the end of my walk because that is as far as that mind meandering took me on that day. All of that to say, "Wake up, Dr. Makeover!" Life is full of perils and challenges that require extreme vigilance and think on your feet kind of action, with no time left over for superficial musings over image enhancement. Get real!

It's all about character...

Hey, no worries, you are supposed to laugh at the image to your left. Okay, don't laugh THAT hard and you can take your hand away from your wide open mouth as you say, "Wow, she has really aged!" Yep. I am going to reveal my vulnerability about aging, sort of along the vein of Oprah and her yo-yo weight saga. I was all prepared to write about my fabulous springtime walks in De Luz and one of descriptive lines was about how my cells burst open with new life (more on that next post). Anyhooo, I started thinking, yeah, how come those new cells aren't showing up on my face, puffing out those wrinkles? I mean, how many times have I been snookered into buying facial products with the "new, nano age technology" that reduce the signs of aging in just a a few short weeks! You know, these products work on the cellular level. Really, they do. So, with my cells bursting, and my latest facial regime, I thought surely I was turning back the clock with every cotton swab and serum drenching. I decided to prove it to myself and take a self portrait in harsh light and don't ya know, the product manufacturer is going to be sure to want me for their before and after testimonies. Click, click and a look at my camera screen. Ewww, ouch, maybe I need more time for the products to work. Then, I used that little magnifying thing on my camera and zeroed in a small section on the bottom of my face. I thought I would puke. Here was this deep crevice, with little blond hairs gone haywire, and blemishes to boot. As soon as I got home, I at least cut those little hairs, thinking they were sort of flag wavers saying, "Hey, looky here, get a load of these wrinkles!" So, with my face still looking like a well traveled road map and no stimulus road renewal in sight, I am left thinking, it sure is a good thing I live in De Luz, where we are all about character, none of that plastic stuff for us. Well, I did run in the house and google the "Lifestyle Lift" and "Thermage Facial Rejuvenation." You know, just like to know what's out there!

Catching Up!

Just a note about the images: they do not always reflect what I write about because I just like to include them on the blog to pretty things up on the page! :-) Oh, the treasures of De Luz!


I can't believe it's been over a month since our llama trauma! I don't know how to change the date of these posts and for some reason, "it" (the brain in blogland) assigns the date that I upload images and it might be days or weeks before I write. SO, today is Sunday, March 15th and I want to give an update on our scrappy, skinny, sweet, caramel colored camelid, Brown Sugar! She has completely recovered from the attack, albeit some crusty scabs and scars. Warren and I gave her antibiotic injections twice daily for ten days and treated her wounds with a potent antibiotic ointment. Brown Sugar was a wonderful, compliant patient. Warren held her while I injected, and then he doctored up her wounds. After about three days she decided it was less painful if she cushed while we gave her the shot. In case you wondered what the heck I mean by cush, it is when llamas lie down and tuck their legs underneath their body, head up, looking like an oblong boat on dirt, with a mast, no sail!

Brown Sugar was delighted to be allowed onto the pasture with the other girls after two weeks of confinement. And, it is so comforting to feel and see her presence among the herd again.


BOOK REVIEW!
I recently read "The Middle Place," by Kelly Corrigan and was completely engrossed in her story. I read it in a couple of days. Many of you have seen her on youtube where she is featured reading her essay, "Transcending." I was so moved by her words that I googled her and found that she had written a memoir. She writes about life, which includes her diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer, her relationship with her parents (childhood through adulthood), marriage, children, and her father's battle with cancer. It is the way she writes, with such candor, humor, strength, and vulnerability that makes for a compelling story. This short passage displays Kelly's ability to reveal feelings that are often left unspoken. After a biopsy of her breast, she writes, A sick part of me actually wants the bad diagnosis, if only to prove that I know my body, that I am not a hypochondriac looking for unwarranted attention. And, given the ongoing push-pull with my husband, who sees no danger in the world ("she's not going to crawl out the window") and me, whose imagination runs toward the catastrophic ("we're three floors up!"), I almost want the lump to be tumor so he sees that sometimes fears are justified. But, it's more than that... Later, she wants to suck back the words, On the way home, I close my eyes and pretend to be resting while I secretly take back my perverse thoughts and promise whoever may have heard them that no matter what flashes of curiosity I may have had, I definitely, definitely, don't want cancer.
I cannot imagine that some part of Kelly's story wouldn't resonate with most of us. It is an inspirational tale, touching the reader's rainbow of emotions.

Okay, I am done writing for today even though there is more on my mind. I will have to continue this coming week because right now, I must go cook some eggplant, shitake mushroom, green pepper goulash for my tractor lovin' husband!