Mid May to Mid June 2008

June 10, 2008… yes almost one month from the last instalment…boy, what can happen in a short time… I have been back and forth to the US twice, to Lake Como with niece Jessica, Prague for a two day meeting and I am now travelling back from Stockholm after a two day meeting!! Yes, I can honestly say that I am a well travelled gal. So, let’s see, what else has happened during (or in between) my airplane rides? The most significant was the birth of my grandson, Vincent Steven Noce who weighed in at 6lbs, 14oz, 21.5 inches long…a good size for being two weeks early. (see pictures on My Kodak Gallery)

He was born via a planned “C” section, therefore both Grandma’s were able to share in the joy! Big Sister Adriana, Auntie Steph, and friend Arwen were among the waiting room guests. We all cheered when proud Daddy, Tony brought the alert, bright-eyed baby boy to meet his family…. Shortly after, Great-Grandma West (Dolores), Grand-Auntie Chris and Grand-Cousin Jessica arrived to welcome Vinny as well… All went well, Kelly is a trouper, not one to want any special attention. She doesn’t complain and she made sure her daughter was included in the family’s special day… Everyone came home three days after he was born. By Sunday he had his first outing to his big sister’s dance recital… already a very social kid…While his mom and dad stayed with him in hospital, the two grandma’s and Auntie Steph got to spoil Adriana silly. I bet she will remember his birth as a very fun time for her… she got presents, two new dresses, got to stay up late and eat whatever she wanted. She didn’t have to go to school and we didn’t have her doing homework! Good times. Unfortunately, my trip was short and I headed back to the UK on Sunday, arriving on Monday morning. Monday afternoon I was on another plane to Prague… no rest for the wicked!

During my time in Prague I was lucky to “firm up” my new job which will land me back in California. I will be working in marketing for our Consumer Solutions Division in Sunnyvale. No details yet, still waiting for the offer. Once that is completed I will be able to plan my exit from EMEA… bitter sweet, I have loved my job and the people I am working with. At this point in my life I realize how fast life moves on. Being so far away from my family, especially the grandchildren forced my decision to come back. Two years sped by. It is time to come home and once again settle into my life. I feel stronger, renewed and wiser…It will be a new adventure…

Ok, to catch up: So, let’s see… Niece Jessica… while she visited we travelled to Lake Como, Italy… this was a combined business/personal trip. I had been asked to meet with one of the event companies that Seagate uses for a very upscale incentive trip for our sales award winners… oh darn!! The trip started with a delayed flight that got us into Milan very late at night… we had to land at an alternative airport and then be bussed to the intended one…it was 1:30am before we arrived where we were supposed to pick up our rental car… guess what? Car rental place was closed! We could not find a taxi either! After about 30 min we finally found a taxi that would take us the 45 minutes to Como… it was pouring rain! I was glad I didn’t have to drive since I had no idea where I was going... we made it to our hotel, however, the front doors had been closed with steel storm doors, presumably to keep the riff – raff out. Luckily our taxi driver pounded on the door and got someone to let us in. We hit the pillows about 3am… and then we were off again in the morning to the upscale hotel we were there to check out… Wow… it was fantastic. One of then Leading Hotels of the World., the Villa D’Este sits on a wide part of Lake Como… You can get there either by car or boat… The rooms were lovely and the view spectacular, even if you were in the back of the hotel. The first day we visited some off site event possibilities, a fabulous villa that George Clooney used in Oceans Thirteen, two restaurants that were great “dine around” options and then a wonderful dinner at a restaurant that had so many fresh flowers you might mistake it for a flower shop. It even had little stools at each table for women’s purses… The next day, however, was by far our favourite outing. We got picked up in a semi-covered water taxi, complete with a local guide who shared the history of the area with us. She pointed out the important houses of the rich and famous, among them, George Clooney, Richard Branson (Virgin), Versage and many of the Italian rich and famous that we didn’t recognize… As we cruised along, the waves splashing easily, the sun shining, listening to the history of the area we just kept smiling at each other and Jess just kept saying… “This is so cool…” and it was! We cruised right up to the shores of Bellagio, the village that the Las Vegas hotel was inspired by. There were lots of wonderful shops, eating places, as well as the best people watching anyone could ask for. Sad for us, but lucky for our wallets, we were only there for a short time. Of course we managed to purchase a few things before getting back on board… Our next stop was an island only reachable by boat. Overlooking the lake towards the town of Como sits a restaurant, Locanda dell'Isola Comacina , famous for it’s never changing, traditional northern Italy menu and odd ritual of coffee service at desert. Many pictures hang on the wall advertising the important visitors over the years….The Ocean’s Thirteen crew (including Jennifer Aniston with Brad Pitt), political and sports figures and many more that we did not recognize… If you are in Lake Como, you must go there… there is a story to the whole place…up to you if you want to know more!

We then spent a rainy weekend in Como. We visited the quaint town of Lugano that sits on Lake Lugano in Switzerland. It was more shopping and eating… good times. One evening we visited the “American Bar” and proceeded to hang out with the local girl bartender who kept giving us shots of something that we had no clue of what it was…of course that didn’t stop us from drinking them… anyway, the bar closed at 1:30am and Jessica would not let me go to a Karaoke bar with the last of the group… (Thank God!) boy, I was feeling no pain. At least the next day was not too bad for me since I had been diligently drinking my water in between shots! Yes,,, good times..

We arrived back at my UK home that Sunday night and then we were picked up at 8am the next morning to catch our flights back to the U.S,; me for the birth of Vincent and Jessica for the last week of her vacation.

My trip to Prague was also interesting… mostly meetings but we got out a little at night. Because of where it is located, Prague stays light until almost 10:00pm…So we could still see a lot. This wasn’t my first time there. I had been there last year. It was a totally different experience because I stayed in another area in what was an old monastery. It was very clean, relaxing and peaceful… Another place I would like to return to on vacation. So, I got back on Wednesday night, into work on Thurs and Friday and then off to Stockholm Sunday night.

I travelled back to the same hotel I stayed at last year on my first trip to Stockholm…One of our staff members lives near the hotel. He has a boat and kindly organized for a friend of his to join us with his boat for a tour of the lake and canals into Stockholm… So fun. He filled coolers with beer and champagne and we sped along the lake taking in the views, beautiful homes, picnicking locals while we enjoyed our drinks… Yes, life is good! (This is after we sat in a meeting all day… we felt we deserved this time!) Anyway, something I am going to miss, these little adventures with my European colleagues.

Just about getting ready to land… another plane ride done! It is always so nice to get off! :>)

Uncle Tom and Cousin Mike Visit

12 May 2008
Well, high over the Northwest states, I once again travel back from my birthplace, San Francisico, California to my current home in England. It is an eleven hour plane ride. Because it is a business trip, I am travelling business class. Lucky me… my leg room is comfortable and I currently being served a cocktail and warm nuts..(love the warm nuts!) anyway, time to write.

Prior to the trip home, I had a wonderful visit from my cousin, Mike Kelly and my Uncle Tom Kelly. Uncle Tom lost my aunt last November. They had been married 50+ years and she died suddenly. He is doing his best to cope. My cousin Mike (son of my late Uncle Ted, brother to Uncle Tom) organized this trip for him to travel to visit me and to visit Ireland… I decided to drive them to Ireland. ...So the adventure continues....

They arrived in London on Tuesday morning. I picked them up at the airport and deposited them at my home, explained how to get downtown and went off to work. Returning at about 2pm, we took off to London. We took the train, then got on the tube and came out from the underground at Piccadilly Circus. Uncle Tom was amazed! He never thought he would see London… We then rode the double decker bus that passes all the important sites in good old London Town. He was thrilled!... We enjoyed a wonderful pub meal in one of the famous Soho pubs, called Brown’s. We enjoyed traditional English pub food… and desert! This trip did not include alcohol, but lots of deserts! Men after my own heart!! …(did not help my waist line!) Just the beginning of a “good times” with “Tom Kelly, International Man of Action…” as my cousin Mike titled him.

Mike asked Uncle Tom if he might want to go to Paris? “Sure” says the International man of action… I arranged for a driver, Bruce, to take them to St. Pancreas station so they could catch the Eurostar through the chunnel to Paris. That man of action, at 79 years of age, got up at 5:30 in the morning and travelled with his side-kick, nephew - Mike, the never-stop-going- kid, to Paris… They ran all over Paris, using the metro. He saw the sites of Paris… that International Man of Action! In the famous cathedral, Notre Dame, he lit a candle and said a prayer for his dear wife… “Why wouldn’t she get on a plane?” he voiced over and over…

(I think it was because she wanted him to have something to do after she left)

So they returned from Paris on Thursday evening, the driver Bruce delivering them to my house around 9pm. I had dinner waiting and enjoyed listening to the details of the Paris adventure. Uncle Tom repeated over and over, “… this trip as been great so far… I never thought I would ever see what I have seen…”

We decided that they needed a “down” day, which worked well for me since I really needed to spend another day in the office. Saturday we set off, first to buy Uncle Tom a new camera… (it got lost in the security check point at the train station going to Paris)…Then to the ferry that would sail us to our destination. Our destination was Ireland… Uncle Tom wanted to kiss the Blarney Stone! Like he needed too! (It is supposed to give you the “gift of gab”… believe me, I am sure he kissed it in his previous life!)

The schedule included a four and one half hour ride to Holyhead in Whales in my little BMW. The arrangement worked fine. I drove, Mike behind me…sleeping as soon as I started the car!...Uncle Tom in shotgun, able to move the seat back so his long legs could stretch out.. and Mike guarding all the stuff we needed to travel - water, candy (what else for a road trip!) ect… At Holyhead we caught the car carrier ferry and took the 2.5 hour trip over to Dublin… it was a quick trip to homeland! (The name Kelly in Ireland is like Smith in the US…)

We spent four days in Ireland. Two days in Dublin, one overnight in County Cork…up to the Cliffs of Mohr and then down to Waterford and then to the return ferry at Rosslare Harbor. The visit included an AA meeting in a small town outside of Dublin, Irish Music in the Temple Bar District, a visit to the “Book of Kels” at Trinity College, a hike up to the vista at the Cliffs of Mohr and a car tour through Tipperary and other counties to Waterford… (too late for stores… we saved some money there!)… 12 May 2008

That International Man of Action walked all over Dublin, clapped and stomped his feet to the Irish band we enjoyed at Goharty’s Pub in the Temple Bar area… he climbed the narrow, winding Castle stairs to kiss the Blarney Stone… and that he did! … Again he said, “I never thought I would do this..” Good Times… We drove to the Cliffs of Mohr where he climbed the path to the vantage point without even being out of breath! Talk about “Man of Action”

We ended up taking the late ferry at 9pm and arrived at my house at 5:30 in the morning on Wednesday morning.

We slept until noon then ventured out to Windsor Castle… we didn’t get to visit the castle because the Queen was in residence and she was having some kind of event so the castle was closed…

Not to be stopped, the International Man of Action and his two side kick relatives ventured over to Eton which is within walking distance of the castle. The old English lifestyle is very evident in this school boy town… we enjoyed a nice drink by the river at a place called the River House which we thought was an appropriate establishment for us to finish up our trip.

More good times!

The next day I orchestrated the perfect airport pick up/drop off… I dropped off cousin Mike and my Uncle Tom outside terminal three at 8:am… circled around and parked my car. Walked into the arrivals terminal and greeted my cousin Pauline who arrived on a 7:30am flight…Back to my house where I left her to her own devices then set out to work! I was pretty proud of myself for what ended up being a great airport coordination! She and I enjoyed a great time together.

The next day she went off to spend time in London and I headed for the States… well that is a whole ‘nother story!

March travel

The map on the overhead plasma monitor indicates our plane is coasting towards Athens. We are heading south from Milan. Since my last entry I have once again been a travelling fool. My trip back to the US was busy but fun. I visited with family and friends as well as former co-workers. The reason for my short trip was to attend a mentoring meeting sponsored by my company. I was honoured to be asked to mentor a wonderful girl, Christie Edwards, who works as a sales analyst for one of the Executive Sales Vice President’s. She works and lives in Colorado and is a single mother of two young kids. We get along very well and I expect to benefit from the experience as much as she. Anyway, that was a one day deal and then I was able to visit our offices in Sunnyvale and Scotts Valley, networking and meeting face to face with many of the people I speak to on a regular basis on the phone… Good meeting, good visit… I was there for a week and then back to Marlow for a week of meetings, including meeting and entertaining some of our executives and customers. Busy times… The following week, my son Joe came to visit. We took a trip into London, explored the British Museum, took in a dinner and a show… saw “Spam-a-lot,” I took a few vacation days and we decided to visit Dublin…

Dublin was loads of fun. Luckily I checked with others to find out where we should stay. Our hotel was situated in the “Temple Bar” district. This is the tourist area of the city where lots of the bars and restaurants are located. One Irish bar after another, touting …live music, pub food, good fun…all true! We know, we went into all of them! We did a whisky tasting and had more Guinness than I have had in my lifetime.. Funny travelling, mother and son…it didn’t seem to matter. Joe was still a magnet for girls… He sweetly let me go back to my room by midnight and then he went out to explore the bars more! (see pictures of Joe’s trip on my Kodak site)… We got on the hop on hop off bus and toured the Guinness Factory, the Dublin Zoo and the National Museum. We saw a lot! It was very fun to just be on vacation, not working.

Joe left on Saturday and then on Monday I flew off for a week of site surveys, looking for a venue for our next big customer event in the September time frame. Venice was our first stop. ( I am travelling with the owner of our event company, who is also a good friend and lots of fun.) OMG! I had no idea! Venice is wonderful. As a friend of mine once said of Venice, “Who knew?” I love Venice and would proudly were a hat that says so (all though you wouldn’t while you are there!) The canals, the shops, the people, the food, the shops, the ambiance… you truly can’t put it in words… (see my pics on Kodak) It is expensive. I hope we are able to negotiate a reasonable rate with the San Clemente Palace Hotel… located on it’s own island in the lagoon surrounding Venice… Yes, you have to take boat to get there. Not just any boat, one of those wood designed speed boats with the little cabins. I really felt like I was in thee rich and famous world! After Venice we flew to Barcelona where we stayed one night. The weather was terrible so we stayed close to our hotel and did not venture too far. I have been to Barcelona before and know that you need lots of time and good weather to really get around. After Barcelona we headed for Athens. This plane trip made a stop in Milan and then on to Greece. The Milan airport was interesting… yes, I spent more money… finding a nice little jewellery shop where I purchased a ring and bracelet… my travelling is never dull! Anyway, once we got to Athens, it was dark. We had an appointment for dinner with our agent there. The hotel we stayed in was located just below the Parthenon. I took a picture from the balcony of my room!. The weather was mild so we took a nice walk to the restaurant, passing many people starting out their evening. Happy people, strolling below the ruins of the old city, oblivious of the history. We had a wonderful dinner at a trendy place. The following day we visited two potential hotels, one “city center” hotel and the other out on a peninsula about 30 miles outside of Athens…neither hotel really suited our needs but it was a good day. We flew out from Athens directly to Heathrow Airport, lucky for us, the second day the infamous terminal five opened. Luckily we had carry on luggage as they had major luggage handling problems and not enough staff on duty in customs… it was a mess! Lucky me, I was able to get through fairly quickly.

One day at home, then on Sunday I headed to Paris again, on the train. The train is a great way to go. It only takes 2.5 hours and is a pleasant ride. You can get up and walk around, you don’t have to wear a seat belt…you leave one world and end up in another! I had two meetings to attend there. One was my staff meeting and the other with my peers. Champagne, nice meals, good people. Good Times!

family stuff

I am going to add another blog that will have family stuff uploaded

It is still a thrill!

29 February 2008

Well, here I am once again on a plane travelling from London to San Francisco. It is February 29th, that extra day we get every four years… Time for reflection, I think… Since my return from the holidays in the states I have been busy. End of January I travelled to Monte Carlo, Monaco. This is where the famous Princess Grace lived. The very cleanest city I have ever been in. It really is an idealic place, quite the contrast to my trip last week to Cairo, Egypt…one of the dirtiest places I have ever been. Boy, what a difference!

Monte Carlo sits facing Meditterean Sea, huge yachts that never see the open sea… sailboats, in and out of the neatly arranged harbour, cruise ships stop regularly to give tourists a chance to see the sights. The streets are full of stores like Prada, Dolce and Gabana, Tiffany, you get the idea. The woman walk up and down the hills in designer shoes and clothes. People sit at outdoor cafes sipping expresso and champagne, depending on the mood. Every corner has a park, most with beautifully tiled fountains. There is carefully disguised construction; continuing the tasteful layout of the famous city. The dirtiest habit there is the smokers, still a sophisticated vice. Each building, even the newer ones have character, brightly colored shutters or fancy awnings. Everything is kept in good shape. The street cleaners work very early daily, preparing the city for the day. Ferrari’s, Mercedes, BMW and Audi, are the everyday cars on the road.

Cairo is located on the Nile River, one of the longest rivers in the world. (Amazon is the longest.) I have been told it runs South to North (it also has this in common with the Amazon). Most rivers run North to South… anyway, the Nile is a major river in Africa. It is a busy river. Boats are continuously making there way up and down. Cargo ships, loaded with containers make there way to various destinations. There are sail boats with what looks like ancient styled riggings. I did see some kayaks, (now that would be the way to do the nile!) There are a lot boats that look like little ferry boats, bringing the locals across or up/down the river. The river is filthy! I don’t think I would want to swim it. It is brown in color with a hint of green. It is still an awesome sight! The streets appear to never have been cleaned. This must have to do with the desert sand and heavy smog. There are no emission standards so not only are the roads filthy, every building has a brown film of dirt/dust on it. In the general areas of Cairo there is no character. Tall, twenty story buildings with each floor the same, clothes hanging on balconies to dry… 90% of the buildings look either unfinished or in the process of being knocked down. The guide we had explained that when a building is finished, taxes apply. If a building stays in an unfinished state, no taxes are due. Therefore most of the building is left unfinished either on the first floor or mostly on the top floor. You see what looks like unfinished top floors, rebar sticking out into the air. Satellite dishes sit on these unfinished roofs… very unappealing. On the roads you see Mercedes, BMW and Audi… all in the same car! The tier 2 taxis and general population cars are a hybrid, not gas wise, parts wise… they take parts of old cars and build new ones. The typical Egyptian car has a furry dashboard, ten mirrors in the front, is either black and white or gray, or it is a donkey pulling a cart! Yes, and on the freeway! They do stay in the slow lane at least!

Most of Cairo’s population of women wear beautiful scarfs and western type clothes. A few women dress in the full outfit of the fundalmentalist (all black, face covered)…It is because most everyone is a Muslim… the Christians try to identify each other and become very happy if you are one of them… one driver gave my adorable Lebanese Marketing Coordinator, Diane, a beautiful crucifix to protect her… He was also Lebanese, working in Cairo. I have decided that most women wear the scarfs because it protects their hair from the sut and dust! If I lived there, I would wear a scarf!

You do see the designer stores, but not like Monte Carlo. Every other store is a shoe store, probably because they do a lot walking (it is faster than driving and they have very virtually no mass transportation system. There is what we call freeways, however, there are no lane restrictions… in other words, you may have three lanes marked but six cars will be driving neck and neck and weaving in and out of traffic like there are no rules… well, there aren’t! I learned to trust the driver and not look out of the side windows… just looked at the scenery…

In Cairo there are old cemeteries (looks like New Orleans cemetaries) with large family plots, many with small buildings housing the family’s dead relatives. People live there!!! That is how bad the poverty is there! They use water from the Nile but no electricity or any other amenities… Thousands of people live in these “Cities of the Dead”… incredible that in today’s society, people live that close to civilization yet as if it was ancient times. Cairo is a city of approximately 18 million people…

Every person in Cairo looks like they work hard. Every person in Monte Carlo looks like they don’t work at all. The people that serve in restaurants, bars and stores in Monte Carlo act like they are doing you a favour. They are not outwardly happy people. The people in Cairo are so wonderful. They are so happy that you are in their country. They are appreciative, kind and helpful and seem to have, as my friend Sally always says, “joy” in their lives. Wow, what a cultural dicatomy! Isn’t it interesting, happiness or joy do not equate to money or living conditions.

So what you ask, was the best thing about Monte Carlo? Well, I enjoyed being near the sea, it felt a little like home to me because I could smell the sea air, enjoy the beautiful vista, see the sun and moon over the sea… sailboats, ect… The beautifully kept buildings. I stayed in a hotel built in the early 1800’s that was originally the hotel that the servants of the rich and famous stayed in when there master/mistresses were visiting Monte Carlo… It was gorgeous… beautiful shuttered full length windows… spacious rooms with high ceilings. This was for the one extra night I spent after the meeting I attended. The hotel we stayed at for the meeting was also fabulous, but in a different way. It was a new hotel, very modern… the first time I stayed there was during the World Music Awards and all the music stars were staying there.. ( not that I knew who they were!.. you could just tell they weren’t “regular” people!) Anyway, the hotel sits right on the Monte Carlo Bay, the views were spectacular! I have pictures posted so you can see… Anyway, for me, Monte Carlo is not a “real” place which is OK sometimes when you want to just forget about all the miseries of life. It is almost like a dream place, not a place anyone would actually live in.

Cairo, what was the most impressive? I have to say, actually climbing the Pyramids! Something I have secretly always hoped to do… It was all that I had expected and maybe more! It is just as amazing as they say… The Sphynx which is located in the same area was also quite a sight! Imagine, a girl from Shoreview, San Mateo, California walking in the same sand as those Egyptian workers so long ago! I was smiling the whole time… truly awesome. I decided not to ride the camels. They were dirty and stinky! (a girl can set limits!) I took a picture of them. That was enough for me!

As I was there for work… (I know, it doesn’t sound like it!) we entertained customers in the evening. One night we took a dinner cruise on the Nile. We didn’t see much of the Nile because the entertainment was non-stop! First, a belly dancer was brought in on a gilded chair, ala Cleopatra, and she danced for at least 45 minutes… then, the featured entertainer, a guy dressed in what looked like ancient Turkish attire. He had on multiple skirts and he was spinning for at least 30 minutes… all to fast drums and other instruments… it was fantastic…see pictures… I can’t even explain it all but it was amazing! Anyway, the Nile was magic with all the colourfully lit boats, the building lights and fantasy-like street lights on the bridges… Very different from the day!

Cairo was amazing, interesting, disturbing and exciting, all at the same time…

I am on the down side of my EMEA adventure. I hope to be permanently back in my house sometime this summer… with a new grandchild on the way, I am looking forward to getting back to family and friends… look for more adventures though… I am not done yet!

It has been too long... I am behind

January, 2008... Last post was in July. Well, time goes so fast! Ok, where to begin... End of July...Trip to the U.S. began... I was able to go to California and attend the Kelly Family reunion at Russian River. It was great and little did we know that it would be the last one Aunt Lori would attend. She looked great and no one had any idea that she would be gone by Thanksgiving. May she rest in peace.

We all enjoyed being together, David my nephew played the bag pipes and we played a dice game. Steve and Chris and I rented a cabin on the river and I got to swim in the river without stopping which was awesome. My kids canoed, we had a lot of fun. I had to leave early to catch a plane to Chicago for my company sales meeting but the short trip was worthwhile.

Chicago was great! So much has changed from the last time I was there about ten years ago... Sailed on the Lake in the afternoon and then watched fireworks from another boat later on in the evening... danced at a blues club until 3am....(yes, still recovering)... also did a little work...

After four days, back to California where I caught a plane to Cabo San Lucas to meet up with my son Nick, his girlfriend Ashley and my brother Brian's family. We stayed at a great resort... and, as you do, I bought a time share so that my family would go on vacation with me (even if I am old!) Anyway, it is a gorgeous place overlooking the Pacific Ocean...

I returned to California for another week and then back to the U.K.... Since that time the traveling has not stopped... Paris, Dubai,Istanbul, Munich, Nice, Amsterdam, Monte Carlo, Geneva, Paris... One airplane after another... except, I try to always take the train to Paris... a much better way to travel.

july 28 Chicago
sept 2 Paris
sept 6 Dubai
sep t 16 Istanbul
sept 25 Munich
oct 10 Nice
oct 22 Amsterdam
nov 4 Monte Carlo
nov 8 Geneva
nov 11 Paris
nov 17 SF

Significantly, Dubai - Disneyland vs New York!, Istanbul so old, so much history, Nice - truly a well named place...Monte Carlo - incredible, cleaner than Disneyland, Geneva - beautiful, Swiss... Paris - still my favorite... no, home is my favorite place... we take so much for granted living in California.

Unfortunately, just before the Thanksgiving my wonderful Aunt Lori who was married to my Uncle Tom something like 46 years passed after a short time in the hospital with a brain tumor that she didn't even know she had. Timing is everything because I had scheduled a trip home for a meeting that was right around Thanksgiving. I was able to get home in time for the wake and funeral. She was buried in the cemetary on the hill down the road from their cabin. It was a beautiful day, sad but a lovely ceremony. I felt blessed that I was able to be there. My aunt and uncle are very special people. She was smart, funny and never afraid to say what she thought! I learned from her... she was a great mother and grandmother as well as my Uncle's best friend... she is missed.

Anyway, then we had Thanksgiving. My sister Ce-ce and her husband Jeff hosted us this year. They rented a tent for the back yard. It was a lovely day, great food, great setting, great people... Fun times.

I returned to the U.K. after my meeting in San Jose the first week of December. This was the beginning of the holiday season for me... First, a nice dinner at a trendy restaurant just off Piccadilly Circus with one of our advertising agencys, the following week same place for dinner and then off to see Hairspray the play...fun, fun, fun... The following week my staff and our event team celebrated with a forty-five minute ride on the London Eye, overlooking all the lights of London in our private pod, complete with champage and picture ops... then dinner and gift exchange.. of course singing! Numerous lunches, meetings and dinners followed concluding with a wonderful dinner for our entire office at an elegant old manor house, complete with black tie attire, an Elvis impersonator, gift exchange and of course singing... (45 people singing the twelve days of christmas... you had to be there!) And then, home again, home again... my holiday vacation began!

Adriana had "grandma days"... whistling, talking and singing all the time. We don't need the background music played everywhere during the holidays because she can sing every song... over, and over again!

I got to spend time with friends and family, saw a couple movies, did some shopping and of course ate and drank too much... also got some exercise in! Had two Pilate's classes, walked in the woods, walked on West Cliff... all the things I like to do.

The highlight of the party season was my mother's 80th birthday party... She is such a beautiful person, loved, revered and yet humble. A true role model. The family organized a lunch on her birthday, Dec 30th. 140 family and friends showed up. She was walked into the room with her grandson David, in full dress attire playing the bag pipes. Her husband, her sister, her children, nieces and nephews, grandchildren and many friends got up and spoke about her and what she has done for them over the years. Of course, one of her four great grandchilden...Adriana, took the microphone and a capella sang Happy Birthday to "GGM"... My niece Megan prepared a fantastic slide show/video capturing her life. It was great!

While in the U.S. I traveled to Las Vegas week of Jan 6 to the Consumer Electronics Show... Large TV's - small phones.. It was for work. I got to stay at Bellagio and catch up with old friends.. not bad for a work week.

The Noce family is going strong. We are looking forward to a new member. Tony and Kelly are expecting a baby boy the first of June. Adriana who now is four was at first upset when she was told it was going to be a boy. She wanted a sister... now she is very happy that she is going to be a big sister and looking forward to having a little brother. Oh, this is going to be fun.

This January we have everyone but me in school. Tony and Kelly are registered for classes at Cabrillo. Tony will be taking EMT courses which should provide him the final classes he needs combined with Air Force training to complete his AS in Fire Science. Kelly is taking courses in accounting and will get another Associates degree... Steph will be continuing her classes at CSU Monterey towards her teaching degree, Joe is beginning classes at USF towards a Masters in Teaching and Nick begins the Fire Academy in San Mateo and will continue his courses in Fire Science to get his AS by summer... Very busy family! Oh, Adriana will be starting dance classes this month too!

summe update

8 July 2007…I am actually once again on the Eurostar to Paris… meeting tomorrow in our Paris office. Who knew I would be visiting Paris on such a regular basis.. Some people have it really tough.. Anyway, I have been writing, just haven’t posted it. So, here is a catch up…

Can you believe it? I am once again on a plane to Istanbul! Never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine going to Istanbul twice in a year --- boy life can be amazing!

So, to catch up… Where has the time gone.. It is mid June and I will have been here a year in August. I was last at home in May, both for a staff meeting and Mother’s Day… It was good to be home, the whistling three year old, my adult children, the Brook girls + Teya, Sally and Paul, Larry and Em, Chris and Steve, Jess and John, Mike and OOO Olivia … the new “love of my life,” Macklin (he loves me too!), but best of all I was able to celebrate my brother Neil’s 50th birthday with all the Kelly’s minus Chris and Steve who were in Oklahoma with Ben… even the infamous Danny Kelly and his wife attended. A good time was had by all!

End of May (I have lost track of the days…) My friend Sally’s daughter flew in from Africa… boy did she have great stories and pictures to share. She started her trip off with three friend in Kenya then she went off by herself through other areas, landing So. Africa. She is amazing.. She had a short layover before going back home but we had a ball. We went into London, went to the British Musuem, Buckingham Palace, Picadilly, Covenant Garden …. Had a great early dinner in a traditional pub.. lots of fun. We spent a whole day talking, drinking champagne and looking at her pictures… just could not have been more fun!

On June 20, my 57th birthday… yes, I am getting older looking…don’t feel any different inside.. it is a shame because the mirror and what others see is not really what’s inside.. Oh well, everyone gets here eventually….

Anyway, my handsome nephew Patrick (Neil and Di) arrived with his friend Scott for the first leg of a grand tour of EMEA!! He and I share this birthdate… Oh he was only 22, but still, we had a great time. I picked them up at the airport, we dropped their stuff at my house and went to the train for the trip to London. We were planning on seeing the play ”Wicked” hich has become one of my favorites… I have seen it twice.. so we got our tickets and had time so we walked to Buckingham Palace, had a great dinner at tappas restaurant and then to the play… after the play (yes, they fell asleep during the first part but then coffee at the break got them through the second half. They enjoyed it. We then walked from Victoria Station to Picadilly Circus and then into SoHo where we hit a pub and a drink. Both boys seemed to really be enjoying themselves. We rode the “drunk train” back and then back to my house by about 1:30pm (see, I can keep up)… the next day they went into London themselves armed with a list of things to do and a map of how they would get it all done. That Patrick is very organized. Anyway, the stayed until Saturday the 23rd then off they went to Amsterdam, last I heard they were in Prague, “having the time of their lives” to quote Patrick. Their trip includes, London, Amsterdam, Munich, Prague, Croatia, Rome, Lake Como…and more, but all in one month! Pretty impressive.


29 –June -2007

I am once again on the Eurostar returning from Paris. A meeting with an agency and the Seagate Retail Marketing Manager was the reason for the trip. Since Joe was visiting, I thought he would enjoy the visit to Paris… What was I thinking??

To begin the trip:

First of all, it took too long to get to the train (Waterloo Station)… we had a driver who was taking us there. Joe could not believe the traffic… this sucks… (his favourite phrase!) We arrive at the train station and he gets something to eat, so he is a little happier… but, those seats were so uncomfortable! His legs were just too tight!. We finally made our way to the bar car where he was much more comfortable because he could stand and have one beer after another until we got into Paris…
Arriving in Paris:

Ok, so now, I know he is going to be impressed! Wrong! Oh, it was such a long walk when we got off of the train, … why did I bring an umbrella? … he wasn’t going to carry it!... As we worked our way through the crowd to the main part of the station… he seemed to really begin to take in the Parisan atmosphere… until… we took a right to the taxi line… What the hell!!! The line was unbelievable. It wrapped around twice and then extended beyond the entrance almost to the front of the building. I thought he was going have a stroke! All kinds of dramatic sighs, tongue snapping.. You know, Joe at his patient best! He suggests we just start walking and try to catch a cab.. I know better and tell him it is best to just wait it out, after all, we have no where to go except our hotel! He does settle down and accept that we are now on Parisan time… 45 minutes later, we finally get into a cab. The driver speaks no English and has no clue where our hotel is, even after I show him the map… “Oh my God!” Joe exclaims… I then tell him to head towards the Louvre… He doesn’t know what I mean… Joe says… “Louvre”… loudly to the cab driver…The cab driver patiently keeps looking on his map to find our hotel… Joe then roles down his window and folds his hands over his chest, closes his eyes and lays his head back. Thank God!

Finally the cab driver figures out where to go and proceeds to drive. Joe is making noises and complaining about the traffic, not even looking at his surroundings! As we are getting close to the hotel, he exclaims,” I have to take a piss so bad..” Gee, I guess four beers go through you pretty fast! Anyway, finally we get to the hotel and Joe jumps out while I am arranging payment and receipts…He proceeds to grab our bags from the trunk and slam it down so hard the car moves and the poor driver looks at me in fear! Oh my god… what a start!

The hotel:

In an effort to enhance my knowledge and experience in Paris, I chose a three star hotel (I prefer 4 star). This hotel was in an area quite close to the Louvre and shopping… close to Notre Dame… Well, the hotel is a small one (35 rooms)… ok, we check in. The night clerk is a very nice black man who spoke English with a combination French and So.African accent, which meant it was very hard to understand him. Joe found a toilet, and I checked us in. We proceed to the elevator which was originally constructed as a dumb waiter, I am sure. Joe and I squeezed in with our bags under our feet. We were told to go to the 4th floor and then through the door up a flight of stairs to our room… As we made our way up the dark, carpeted stairway… Joe looks at me like I am the worst person in the world… “Where the hell?...” he says. Ok, this is what made it a three star… anyway, we get to the top floor of the building to a dark hallway. Luckily, I have been in these type of hotels and know that there are usually light switches by the doorways… sure enough, we turned on the light and could see that the 5th floor consisted of three rooms, ours at the back. We open our door to find what looks like a double bed (I specifically asked for two beds!) Again, my experience has been that they try to make these rooms look like they have a double bed but it is really two beds pushed together… Thankfully, this was true… Ok, Joe “tisked” at this… Oh, we had a window… it overlooked the four cornered inside space between buildings where the air conditioning (yes, we had aircon) vents and various other pipes…very charming! I decided we better head on out to eat or he was going to flip!

First night in Paris:

Directly across the street from the hotel entrance was a sushi restaurant. Joe suggested we go there…fine I said, not wanting to search for a restaurant with him. So we enjoyed an excellent meal of sushi and sake… his mood was improving. He commented on the bathroom in our room…”that bathroom in our room is OK”.. well that was positive!

After dinner we decided to walk around the neighbourhood and I wanted him to understand where the Louvre was in relation to our hotel so he could check that out in the morning while I was out at my meeting across town.

The hotel is located near the back of the Louvre, close to the Saint Eustachia Church, in a great area full of restaurants, bars and cafés… Ok, so he is somewhat impressed. As we start to walk, he tells me that his feet and legs hurt. (On Monday he had done a run in my neighbourhood and then took the train into London and walked all over the British Museum.) …Now, I think, this isn’t going to work… you really have to be able to walk around Paris! Oh brother!

Ok, so we walk around to the front of the Louvre, along the Seine. You can see the Eiffle tower, all lit up, he is a little impressed… but his legs really hurt… We head back to the hotel because he needs the toilet again… once back at our hotel, I decide to get on line and do some work. It is now 11:30pm. He decides he is going to go back out and have a drink but because he is tired, he said he would be back soon. He takes the cell phone (my extra one, I forgotten my work one…) I give him the map and the room number so he will be able to find his way back…

As I am finishing up my emails, I notice that it is 1am… hmm, I think, he has been gone an hour and a half, he must have found a good bar. I go to sleep… wake up at 2am… hmm… no Joe. Well, he is an adult, not to worry… try to go back to sleep, nap a little, expecting him to arrive at any time… 4am… no Joe.. ok, now what to do.. I don’t know the phone number of my extra phone because it is programmed into my other cell phone that I left at the office…Bars don’t close in Paris, he will be back soon though.. 4:30, 5:00, 5:30am.. Now I start to worry… has been arrested? Did he get attacked and left on the street? Did he hook up with some French girl and go off to her apartment…(no, I knew it wasn’t that… he wouldn’t talk to French girls..,) anyway, I guess I will wait until 7am because I can call one of my UK friends who know my extra cell phone’s number…

At 6:30am I call down to the front desk because I am going to ask if someone might have seen him when he left so I can search in that directions… the kindly desk clerk said, oh 504, your son is on his way up…

Thank God!

Sure enough, Joe stumbles in… he got lost! He tried to get a cab but the cab driver kicked him out (because he didn’t know where the hotel was…) no, I think it was because Joe was too drunk and probably belligerent! Anyway, Joe said he kept saying… the Louvre… and the cab driver didn’t know what he was talking about! Joe got lost, walking all over the place on those sore feet and with those bad legs!

2nd day in Paris:
So, now I have to get up and go to my meeting with about two hours of sleep, my heart pounding for the better part of six hours… yes, I was in great shape. I leave Joe a note that I will meet him back at the hotel at 5:30pm… knowing full well, he would never leave that room for the rest of the day, but I was trying to be positive.

I had to meet my colleague at the train station so that we could travel to the meeting together. She carried my forgotten phone with her. Thankfully.

Once we finished the agency meeting, I thought I would call Joe and check in… It was about 3:pm… Yes, you guessed it, he was still asleep! No Louvre or sightseeing for him.

Once I got back to the hotel, about 7:30pm, he was once again sleeping… He had gotten up and gone out and had something to eat and then went back and laid down. We walked to a restaurant suggested by one of the people I had been meeting with. It was good. Joe didn’t have much to say except that he did not like France. Mostly because he doesn’t speak the language. He said the women are beautiful, but he doesn’t speak their language.

The original plan was to come back to the UK on Saturday night from Paris, giving us two full days together to do sightseeing in Paris… Well, you know, all the lines you have to wait in, the traffic, French people don’t speak English…his legs and feet hurt so he can’t walk… he only has a week vacation.. Joe wanted to go back the UK asap. So we rescheduled our return for Friday, at noon.

Not sure whether he will ever return to Paris. He was not at all impressed as I expected him to be… you know, the history major that he is…

Oh well, I am back to Paris in a week anyway for another meeting. As I told him, it was probably good he was with me and wanted to return early. It is the “sales” season in Paris and I would have just spent too much money… As it was, I upgraded us to Business Class on the way back…I didn’t want to hear about his sore legs and feel! He did enjoy the champagne and wine with lunch as well as the extra leg room… believe me, so did it I! It was worth every Euro!!

Once back in the UK he was happy. We got back to my cottage at about 2pm. I had a few conference calls so he rested on the couch. Then he decided he needed to go out, boy so did I!...We had a great walk to a pub on the other side of the “green”… had dinner then went to the pub close to my house and closed the place (11:30pm) Yes, there was a new girl working there who was a very nice, tall, blond… Oh, and she spoke English… We were happy again.

Barb in London, Steph with Adriana, Barb in Windsor, Adriana and Anthony

Baby "Mac"

Olivia, Adriana with boys, family

April -- Busy Times

It has been a while since I have written... mostly because I have been busy, both with work and with travel. A number of people have come to visit and I even got back to the states for Easter with the family! I left off with Jessica and her son Josh....

After Josh left to return to school, Jess and I took a trip to Bath, a lovely old Roman City about 1.5 hours from my home. We had a great time, even took in a “spa day” at the new roman baths that include multi-scented steam rooms, rooftop, outside mineral pools and an indoor whirlpool. Communal bathing at its best… with “swimming costumes” of course... Jessica couldn’t believe that suits were required… I would not have done it if they weren’t… then again, I don’t look any better in a suit than I do naked!! :>)

I had to travel to Amsterdam for work and Jessica came along. She went on a tour of the flower gardens and a downtown walking tour. I finished my work Friday evening and we took a dinner cruise on the canals… It was great! Some of the canals are so narrow that boat barely fit! We saw lovely, lit, bridges, converted houseboats and lots and lots of bikes… Amsterdam is a very colourful city! We even ventured into a “café” where Jessica proceeded to tell all that would listen that we were original “flower children” from San Francisco. A very young man behind the bar handed us what looked like a menu with names on one side and prices on the other. This was the “weed” list... He recommended one that he thought would suit two former “flower children.” We made our purchase and asked if could roll the joint for us. He explained that things had changed since our day and they now have little filters. How helpful!!(I still started coughing… the main reason I am not a “pot head” today!) Anyway, we each took about two hits and decided that was enough. We passed our purchase off to a very nice looking young man at the bar and went our merry way. By the time we got unto the train, we were in full on giggles…Nick called during this time and while I tried to sound coherent, he noticed something wasn’t just right…. “You’re stoned, aren’t you?” he said. (Hey, it’s legal in Amsterdam!) I tried to deny it, but then both Jess and I started laughing like silly little high school girls and it was all over. He immediately called his sister to tell on me… Can’t a girl have any fun??

Shortly after Jess left, I headed home for Easter. It was great to be home. I was very homesick, despite the visitors. It was a short visit but packed with lots of family time and especially Adriana fun. To note, I also met Nick’s new girlfriend, Ashley, another very attractive, trim, interesting person whom he has known since they were freshman in high school. (They met in the Hillsdale Mall one weekend when he and Ben and Andre were hanging out there). She lives in San Francisco and is an event planner for a very well respected destination management company… (They just handled former President Clinton’s visit to S.F.O…

Another cool thing is that I got to spend some time with my new grand nephew who was born just the day before I left from the states in January. He is now three months old and I must admit, one of the most handsome babies I have seen. Albeit he is as white as the driven snow… He is, however a happy, sweet child… I actually think he might be in love with me. As I held him, he smiled, looked lovingly into my eyes and tried to talk!! Yes, he loves me!! Olivia, his big sister is also as cute as can be. She let me put him in “her crib” to nap and then decided he needed to be tickled, so she crawled in with him… He is going to have to be a strong kid because she is not going to let him get away with anything!

Steph and I did a "hair bonding" appointment with our regular stylist, Julie, in downtown Santa Cruz. Boy it was good to be home… My brother and sister in law (Dan and Shell) along with Tony, Kelly and Adriana, joined us for a great dinner at Chianti’s across the street.

Saturday was spent letting Adriana pick out a dress for Easter. She is three years old. Her mother and I took her to Macys. She picked out, and tried on at least ten dresses. Some she didn’t like because they did not twirl or they were too stiff or “not right”… she is going to be trouble for her parents… she knows what she wants. We ended up with an adorable blue and white dress the passed the twirl test and included a cap that reminded me of Shirley Temple… She loved the hat too!!

Easter was at Tim and Corrine’s. It was a lovely day and all the Kelly’s with the exception of Matt and Kathy’s family were there. The sun was shining, everyone was in a good mood and Tim made his infamous Gin Fizzes. Coco’s scalloped potatoes and honey baked ham, always the best, were complimented with the pot luck of dishes everyone brought.

My sister in law (Steve’s sister) Diane, had a stroke about two months ago. She is currently rehabilitating in a nursing home in Lafayette. Her youngest son, James, brought her to our Easter celebration. She is in a wheel chair, has short term memory loss, but was genuinely happy to see all. Boy, see what smoking can do to you! (She has been a chain smoker for over 50 years!)

Adriana and I spent a lot of time together. We played croquet in the living room, made a tent with her tunnel, made chocolate chip cookies and watched “Happy Feet” more times than I can remember. I painted her finger and toe nails, helped her sketch in her new drawing book and read from the Princess Story Book… We took the dog to the park, played hide and go seek and went to visit my friends. She is the perfect grandchild!! In between her whistling (yes, she taught herself how to whistle) she told me that I was such a nice grandma and so “butiful.” She told me over and over again, “I love your grandma…”

She is the best!!

While I was home, Steph was packing for her move back to Maui... Yes, again. This will be the third time. She says she can get a better job and will be happier. She wasn’t planning on staying home as long as she did anyway, she said… Anyway, she has shipped our old Explorer to drive over there, packed up everything she owns (which isn’t much) and back she went. She left the day after I did. She says she is very happy. She got to swim in the ocean, eat at her favourite restaurants and smell the sea air. Her cousin Nicole had a baby boy, Jack, and she has been able to spend time with them. She is living with her friend Rachael. Job hunting has been first priority. Knowing her, she will have a job in no time… she says they are hiring everywhere... We’ll see. Her brothers are mad at her for moving back but she didn’t care, she felt she had to go. They’ll get over it.

I also visited my friend Emily who is recuperating from a very serious neck/spine surgery made necessary by a virus that destroyed almost 40% of her spinal cord. She was in surgery for 8 hours!! Now she is dealing with wearing a neck brace, daily I/V doses of antibiotic and painful physical therapy. She has limited use of her right arm and a weakened left arm… Please pray for her, she has a long road to recovery.

My friend Sally joined me for the visit with Emily. She took a break from her latest project, helping her son Matt and his girlfriend Danielle with the remodel of his newly purchased home. (see blog) They have put in new doors, replaced windows and added insulation… Better them than me!! Sally says she won’t be able to travel to visit me until this project is done… I’ll be back by then!

The Noce family got together for dinner in honour of my nephew Virgil’s visit from New York with his six year old son Anthony. It was very fun, but sad, as we were missing Steve. Adriana could not stop flirting with Anthony. She chased him around and around and they were both laughing. It was so good to see the circle of life. It wasn’t so long ago that Steph and Virgil were doing the same thing.

It was so good to be home. My house is withstanding my absence just fine. Tony and Kelly are doing their best to keep things going and do a lot of entertaining which makes me happy. That is what the house is for. I know it is hard for them to live in my house but I really appreciate them being there. At least I have somewhere to stay when I come home.

My friend Barbara returned to the United Kingdom with me. She has never done much travelling and was a bit nervous about the trip… She is doing great! Using her rewards miles from one of her credit cards, she was able to fly “upper class” on Virgin. This means she got a bed and anything she wanted going over. She slept for five hours!! Anyway, we have done quite a bit together and she has gone out on her own. We went into London, (I like to show people how easy it is to take the train and then get on the tube to get around.) For the first time, she and I took one of the double deck bus tours around London. It was very interesting. The weather was perfect, which made the day all that more enjoyable. She made her way to Windsor for the castle tour all by herself. Just today she took herself to London and visited the British Museum, taking the train and the tube…I was very proud of her…

While she was here we took a trip to Paris via the Euro star… such a nice way to go!! I had reserved a package deal through Expedia. Yes, you guessed it; we got bumped due to over booking at the hotel we wanted to stay at (literally across from the Louvre. ) We had to walk several blocks to another, much smaller hotel. At first they put us in room that was so small, that if you wanted open the bathroom door, you had to move the bed…So, in true “Uncle Jack” fashion…we upgraded! We moved to a junior suite that was more to our liking.

Besides shop and eat well, we did a lot of walking and we saw a lot. For me, the highlight was visiting the Museum d Orsay… original Van Gogh, Renoir, Degas, Monet, Mamet, Toulouse Lautrec. It was fantastic! Our only problem was that we had spent 6 hours in the Louvre and didn’t realize that two museums in one day were too much. Our “dogs were barking…” as they say. Included in the Orsay tour we had a spectacular dinner in a 16th century mansion and decided it had been a great day.

The following day we took a tour to Versailles… Oh my God! The garish, unabashed show of wealth and privilege… No wonder the French think they are better than anyone else!! That is what it came from… For the last night we took a dinner cruise on the Seine... the food was good and the ambience even better. Along with a strolling violinist they had a strolling cabaret singer who entertained us all night, singing the “Ave Maria” as we passed Notre Dame. Of course, the lights of the city were magnificent.

The Eiffel Tower still sparkles every hour!!

Who knew that a year ago I would have been to Paris five times since August... I can almost be a tour guide!!

Happy Mother's Day... yes, it is in England!! We won't be trying to go to lunch today... Lunch on Sunday is a traditional social time in most of Europe. You either have people over for lunch or you go out to lunch. I kind of like it... It is very civilized.

It has been a very busy week. We had a number of collegues at work visit us from the US this week. Aside from the meetings we entertained them for dinner out one night and then I cooked on another, my first true large dinner party... great fun. I even played tour guide, with a trip on the train into London. Picadilly, Trafalgar Square, St. James Park and then a nice pub dinner with a busines associate from SF. All good fun, but tiring.

List of guests to Cleare Cottage the past few weeks include my second cousin, Eliza (Shannon Kelly's daughter) and her mom... great people. It was wonderful having a true chef in the kitchen... also a friend of Nick's who was on spring break from his German studies, Kevin Fox... as they all made their way to different spots, my good friend and her son, Josh arrived... We did a trip to Stonehenge, a train trip to London and Jess and I even went to Mass in a beautiful church, the Immaculate Heart of Mary situated between the Natural History Musuem and Harrods. We just happened past it while Josh and one of his friends from high school visited a pub to get up date on each others lives. It was Sunday night and they had a 7pm service. Well, it was total "old school" mass. The priest wizzed through in 30minutes (including communion). His sermon was a very appropriate one on what Lent really means and how we should look at it as the spring of our religion, not the sorrowful time some make it out to be. It was very thought provoking. Anyway, after Mass we walked past Harrods peeping in the windows because of course it was closed on a Sunday night. We hooked back up with the boys at a cute little restaraunt off the main street and had a wonderful meal, served to us by the cutest Irish boy... then we went to another pub, the "Bunch of Grapes" that was actually an Irish pub, deep in the Kensington part of London... The boys wanted us to share Tequilla shots with them, we declined. I had to work and besides, Tequilla is no longer my friend!!! All and all we had a good time. Jess and Josh went to Paris during the week and returned on Thurs night. Yesterday we went to Windsor and I finally "stormed the castle" with an amazing tour of the state apartments...truly amazing. We were treated to a choir presentation complete with orchestra in St. George's Cathedral... they were practicing. It was fabulous... almost 100 in the choir with at least a 20 piece orchestra... both Jess and I felt very nostalgic, remembering our time in the Mercy choir with Sister Mary Susanne leading us with vigor!! We both felt a spirtitual twinge... Josh of course rolled his eyes at us and wanted to move on... agreeing though that it was amazing. Anyway, well worth the time! We took Josh to the airport this morning as his spring break is over and Jess is staying for another week. We are planning a trip to Bath for a couple of days. I have to be back for work on Wednesday and then on Thursday she is going with me to Amsterdam, as I have to go over there for a customer meeting. She leaves on Saturday. I am off to Denver on April 1st and then home for Easter on the 6th.

Also of note this week, my good friend Emily (of Larry and Emily) is recovering from an 8 hour surgery to remove an abcess on her spinal cord. She had to have three vertabrae removed from her neck and then they put in a rod to support her neck..eewwwh! Larry reported that she is speaking (they weren't sure she would be able to) and they think that it was a successful operation. Please pray for her.. she has had some major health problems lately...

Marbella Spain

Marbella… Spain

It is a 2.5 hour flight from London. In that time one goes from gray, rainy sky to cool breezes, sunshine and palm trees. It is located on the southern Mediterranean coast, 45 minutes from Gibraltar and a short ferry ride from Tangiers. I was tempted to take the day trip to Tangiers but my friend who went the day before explained that you had to leave the hotel by 6:30am (not good for me) where you board a bus that takes you to the ferry and then you board another bus for the Tangier’s tour where they take you to shops that sell rugs and jewellery. Evidently the sales people apply a lot of pressure and one of my friends bought a rug and another some shirts. I decided that a long walk on the waterfront and swim in the pool was much more to my liking. Good for me because I didn’t even wake up until 11:30am!!
Oh, why was I there? I was there for a Seagate regional sales meeting. All of my colleagues from the sales and marketing teams were invited. Some of my US colleagues were also invited. Teresa King, my work partner for 12 years was one of them. It was so great to hang out with her again. (Did help the homesickness that I have been feeling lately) Also, a surprise, on Thursday night, my daughter’s childhood friend, Chrissie Dahl and her new husband, David Burns, arrived in Marbella, as they are travelling in Spain for the honeymoon. We were able to get them a room at the hotel and they went off for dinner while I attended the last night’s festivities, themed as “White Night.”

We asked all the attendees to wear white and the entire dining room was decorated with black and white table linens, white candles, silver accents, with black lights rotating from the ceiling. It was very dramatic and good fun. The meeting ended on Thursday night, so Friday and Saturday were ours to enjoy.

Chrissie and Dave found a last minute.com condo rental close to Marbella for only 50€ a night for three nights. So, since they are on basically no plan, this was good for them. Teresa and I took advantage of the pool and lounges. I swam in the overly warm lap pool and then laid in the sun, enjoying the sound of a flute being played somewhere below us on the beach. Teresa’s husband John came in around 8:30pm. (They are planning on travelling around Spain by train for the next 10 days.) It was so nice to enjoy one of these resorts that we have meetings at…oh, also, Teresa and I, like true old ladies, went down to the beach and hunted for perfect sea shells. We were able to get quite a few… Teresa says she is going to make wind chimes… not me, I admit I don’t have that much creativity…

Anyway Chrissie and Dave met us at the hotel that night and we walked to old town which is about 1.5 miles for Tappas.. We followed the signs for Tappas and ended up at a traditional Spanish restaurant where we enjoyed traditional Paella, fresh steamed prawns, meatballs, octopus salad and a wonderful potato dish. To compliment, we had a good Roja wine (Spanish Merlot) and a light Blanca bottle. All in all a great Spanish meal… eaten on Spanish time! By the time we got there it was 10:30pm… they like to eat late. We walked back along the sea and got back around 12:30pm, you have to love that Spanish time… at the hotel several older (older than me) couples were dancing to salsa music…

Loads of fun…

Joe and Dominque and So here's what I have noticed.

... Pictures of Joe and Dominque... Week of Feb 4-10
Joe and Dominique just left today, I am so sad! We
had a great time. Joe even drove the car to Windsor. He loved the Pubs... I think they went to one at least every day. They really saw a lot in their short time here.
On his birthday we went into London, on the train,... visited Buckingham Palace, St. James Park, the catholic cathedral, Westminster Cathedral (very cool), had dinner at a tapas restaurant and went to see the play, Billy Elliot... then back in the tube to the train and home. Next day we drove to Stonehenge... got a little lost, but finally made it there, easy trip home... (you can imagine Joe when we were lost!! He actually did pretty good but we had a navigation system, a map and internet directions and we still got lost.. my fault, really... but now I know where Anover is..) All in all, a good day... On Monday they went into London on their
own and didn't get back until 11:30 (Pub closed...), they went on the London "Eye", a huge enclosed ferris wheel that sits on the Thames and provides fantastic views of London... We went to Windsor for dinner...
expensive but fun (they treated me.) On Wednesday we back into London via the train and tube. We went to the Natural History museum and then to a pub for dinner and then a play at an old theater in Picadilly Circus... 39 steps, a lot of fun.. 4 people do the whole play...
we got tickets at the half price place.. Anyway, fun again. Thursday it snowed!! We were housebound. I worked and they went out for a walk and hit two pubs in the travels... Joe loves those pubs. They had a good day. Yesterday they took the car and rode into Windsor, just missing the castle tour by 10
min...parking can be a challenge.. Last night we
went into Marlow for Indian food...

This morning, we got up, they were all packed and we
drove down to Gatwick airport.. Yes, I did shed a few tears on the way home... It was a good week!

Feb 19, 2007

Well, here we are... mid-Feb... I have already been here six months! My job is very challenging. I am enjoying it very much. The people I work with are great... they think I am a crazy American. Every day they laugh at something else that I comment on or don't understand.. Who knew a "jumper" is a sweater? Who knew that a "jacket" potato is a baked potato wrapped in aluminum foil? What about pronouncing the letter "z" zed? ... and they tell me I don't know how to spell... they put "s" where we put "z," and "u's" for no reason... oh well, we are getting used to each other. They are very quiet people and I think I shock them by being "out there"... I am sure they go home and say, you aren't going to believe what she said today...

My little house... oh sorry, "cottage" is adorable. I am very comfortable, even with guests. It is a cute little place with three floors. Bedroom, bath and office on the second floor, (first floor if you are English). Guest room on the third floor,(second floor if you are English)
...From my front room window I watch people riding horses, walking their dogs, groups of people walking and talking. Most where "welly's" (big green rubber boots) because it is very muddy on the "green."

The neighbors are very quiet. Everyone keeps to themselves except on Thursday's when each of the two middle cottages drag their garbage cans through my backyard (garden) to put out front for collection, and then back in again on Friday. It is so funny, it happen's, but no one seems to run into each other... It is funny to see someone dragging their garbage can past my kitchen window... We just wave to each or nod...

There is a house next to me that is not connected to our cottages. It is called the "Farside Cottage." Bob lives there. He lives alone in a good sized four bedroom house. He is a work-aholic. He has been very helpful to me. He helped me de-scramble my DVD player (it would only play UK movies) and he helped me get my wireless set-up. He is really the only one that talks to me (probably because he isn't connected...) He is actually the only one I have seen outside.. he rides his bike... He has just taken off for a three week vacation to New Zealand where one of his best friend's just moved.

I have been to the local pub a few times. Once with my sister-in-law Shelley and then once with Joe and Dominique. The food isn't bad but it smells like smoke and I don't like having to shower after being there. The people in that pub are not that friendly either, but it is close. There are lots of other pubs, so I am sure I will find one that I like. Joe and Dominique went to quite a few while they were here and enjoyed them. I have actually gone to some really cool old pubs with the people at work for lunch. (usually on Friday's)

Driving is going fine. Only one ticket so far... they have CTTV's every where... no police, just camera's. The biggest problem is parking... the spaces are so small, even my small car is a challenge... I need to lose weight just to be able to get in and out of my car in a parking garage. (I am not kidding!) Parallel parking is difficult from the right side... people are always laughing or honking at my attempts. Luckily I have sensors on my car. I really like my cute little blue BMW. It has a navigation system, bluetooth for my phone, parking sensors and I can play my IPod through the radio. Of course I don' know how to use most of the stuff but it is fun. I only have 800 miles on it... I have had it for four months but I really only go to and from work.

Traffic is the same as the US... too many cars, too many trucks... rrr trucks, I hate them!! They drive even faster here! The funny things are the roundabouts on the "dual carriage ways".. it is like being on hwy 17 and then you have to slow down, go through a roundabout then get back on hwy 17. Wierd. They even built overpass roundabouts... Oh well. They are very considerate drivers unless you go too slow, then they pass you like it is the Indianapolis Speedway... The freeway signs are very big... with large arrows so you can figure out where to go... I guess there are a lot of old people driving around!

The weather isn't bad... a bit gray at times.. Not too cold. It snowed the week that Joe and Dominique were here. We were told not to drive anywhere that morning so we didn't... Oh my God... the news was ridiculus..They cancelled school that day and you would have thought they cancelled school for a month... they had big interviews and discussions about it. It was only one day!! That is how boring a news day is here!

TV... hmmm, I am fairly happy now. I don't watch that much, but now I can watch the new episodes of American Idol, Lost, ER, Boston Legal and "Dr. McDreamy.." so I can't complain, oh also, "Ugly Betty" (watched it for the first time tonight) anyway... they have soap opera's on at night. I haven't gotten into watching them. The nice thing is that they run their commerccials in a very sensible way. You get to watch whatever for at least 30min before commercials and then commercials go for about 6 minutes...

The food... not bad. Fresh vege's and fruits at all the stores, pretty much anything I would want. I have figured out what most things are...chips are called "crisp's" candy is "sweeties" and cookies are "biscuit's."
Take-out is called "take away"... Indian food is referred to as "Curry" and as yet, I have never had anything that I would call curry at an Indian food restaurant... Only food that is so hot, I can't eat it!!

Wine is about the same price over here. I have started drinking white wine (acid reflux...) anyway, I like the Australian Chardonnay. I thrill at the site of a California wine. I even found a bottle of Ironstone (Murphy's) at a local grocery store. I do drink a lot of G and T... (gin and tonic)... and they do ask if you want ice and/or light tonic (diet)... not me, if you going tonic, go for the good stuff...

There is big concerns with obesity here. Jamie Oliver, you know, the "Naked Chef," has made a big thing about school menu's. This year they instituted healthy foods at the school cafeteria's... When one boy was interviewed he said, "... I don't like vege's and fruit and I really don't like Jamie Oliver!!" Out of the mouth's of babe's..

I see a lot of people walking, jogging, riding bikes. You would think it was California. Whatever one might think, these are very active people...

Well, enough for tonight.