April 6, 2015 Duck Dynasty - Willie's Road House

Nothing much to say about this except that I saw signs on the road mentioning Willie's Road House restaurant...owned by the famous family.  I just had to stop.   No, I've never watched the TV show.  However, I was a big fan of young Sadie and her partner on Dancing with the Stars a while back.  She was absolutely adorable and a great dancer!  She made it all the way to the finals.

I didn't expect to see Sadie at the restaurant, but I was curious about the restaurant and what they offered.  The sandwiches were HUGE, it was a typical hamburger type place...with a gift shop FULL of Duck Dynasty chatch-key stuff...

I splurged on a red, white and blue bandanna and back on the road.  The sandwich was nothing to write home about either...not sure I would stop again!

April 3, 2015 We're a Long Way from Flint Creek!

My visit with Andrea ...

My travels took me south from Chapel Hill North Carolina to Georgia.  I mapped out the drive to Cumming, Georgia, which is just north and a little west of Atlanta.  I recently reconnected with a friend and neighbor and her husband, Andrea and Rich DeLuca.  The subdivision we lived in back in Illinois was called Flint Creek, in Barrington, Illinois.  During my visit Andrea and I both discussed what a special place Flint Creek was, how friendly it was, how fun for the adults to socialize and the children to make friends in the neighborhood.

Andrea and Rick were gracious hosts and I enjoyed my visit with them so much.  Not only was it fun to see the suburban Atlanta Georgia area where they lived, it was fantastic to have time to sit and talk about our families and shared times in Barrington.

Andrea and I slipped away for lunch one afternoon and enjoyed a little shopping in Alpharetta.  She introduced me to Kendra Scott jewelry, I made a little purchase and and we meandered along the shopping center and found a place to sit in the sunshine and enjoy a glass of wine - and LOTS of chatter!

Do I have to tell you how wonderful it was to walk outside and enjoy the warm sunshine in the middle of MARCH???  Oh, yea!

Now if the DeLuca's wanted to, they could offer their guest "suite" as a B&B or VRBO shared suite!  This is located on the second floor of their home, complete with private bathroom and sitting room.  Rich has an office in a bedroom on this floor as well.

Campana - yummy dinner!

The guest room!

The three of us went for dinner the second night I was visiting.  Conversation never stopped.   It was so fun to hear about grown up Talia and Jared. And of course I had lots to say about my boys. 

You would never know it had been YEARS since our last visit!

Okay, we promised to keep in touch more often - and I'm thrilled at that idea.  They travel around the country from time to time and have family in the New England area and I know I'll be back down in the southern part of the country again - so we WILL meet again!  Here are a few wise words displayed in their home:

I would be remiss if I didn't include a picture of the beautiful home I arrived to.  Lovely subdivision, check out the porch....I didn't get to enjoy that but hope on the next visit we can sit outside and enjoy more of their southern hospitality.  Thank you, Andrea and Rich!

Second Floor balcony

May 25, 2015 Memorial Day with Will and Emma

No words...just no words!  It was such a fun Memorial day with Emma and Will!

June 3, 2015 Brother in Law Love

Patty Wags ... or "Salty" as he called me ... and Bill

June 4th is a day that will be remembered forever as one of the saddest days of my life.  My brother in law Bill lost his battle with cancer.  I've never had the experience of being along side someone I loved so much in their final moments of life as it happened on this day in June. 

A hospital bed had been moved in to my sister's home to make Bill comfortable a few days earlier in the week and I was standing next to the bed trying to help him get comfortable when he started coughing and choking and struggling to breath.  From what I had heard I knew that these would be his final breaths, that his body was giving up and he was dying.  

I put my arm around him and started to stroke his head as he struggled and I told him I loved him.  I tried to hold him close to me as his body was lurching forward, as though he was trying to sit up.  I reached over and rubbed his shoulders, trying to console him, saying more words of love to him.  With all the strength and courage I could muster, I was talking to him, telling him it was going to be okay, that he didn't have to fight any more, that he could let go and not be in pain anymore.  With those words I fought back the tears...I didn't want to lose him - why was I encouraging him to "let go."  

Paige, my sister's 8 month pregnant daughter was in the house with me that morning.  And a family friend, Sister Brunie was there too.  Sister Brunie sat at the end of the bed keeping us company.  She generously brought food in a little earlier for all the friends and family that were stopping by.

These final moments lasted only about 2-3 minutes...but while they were happening they seemed like much longer.  With his final breath Bill's beautiful blue eyes opened wide and he was silent and he stopped moving and his head fell back.  That was the end of life for Bill.  And that was the end of a loving relationship I shared with my brother in law and friendship like no other that I have ever experienced.

There were any number of things to take care of with my sister in the days that followed.  We both were in a sort of cloud, going thru the motions, making decisions, planning his memorial service and trying to understand what had just happened. For me it didn't seem real.  It seemed like I was in a bad dream and that I would wake up and it all would be over and  none of it would have happened.

Bill and I shared many, many conversations over the years.  He would often call me while out on the road, as I would call him.  Car Talk.  That's what we did.  A lot.  Sometimes several times a week.  If I was having a bad day or upset or not feeling well, I always knew I could call him and talk with him.  Often he was my sounding board.  

When my phone would ring, I liked knowing if it was Bill calling - so I made a special ring tone for him on my phone.  It was iPhone's barking dog.  Bill was a dog lover and he had a couple of dogs over the years.  Jim the Beagle and Tracker, a Brittany.  The barking dog tone was so appropriate and fun!  Bill had nicknames for me...sometimes when I was busy and missed his call he'd leave me a voice message.  He'd say "Patty....Patty...where are you?  Ok, goodbye."   He also nicknamed me "Salty" - cause I loved the beach and we would talk about how much we enjoyed walking along the ocean.

As we were planning Bill's memorial service I thought I would be too emotional to speak.  I couldn't begin to even think about preparing anything to say.  Deep in my heart I knew I wanted to stand up and talk about him a little - but I was concerned about being too emotional.  The morning of the memorial I began to think about what I wanted to say about him.  It became clear to me that the message I wanted everyone to hear was about the kind of person Bill was, how he loved my sister and her family and cared for them for many years.  His dedication and commitment to them was unmatched.  He was forgiving, loyal, honest and generous.  When I thought of all these traits the popular poem about Love - that is mostly used in weddings - came to mind.

That is what I decided to base my comments around - those words that are found in the Bible about love.  He loved my sister Robin so unconditionally...if there was one thing that Bill knew and understood it was about what it took to be in a relationship and stay in it and not waiver.

So I prepared my words early that morning.  I wrote them out on notebook paper so I could read them because I knew it would be hard for me to talk without prompts.  I wrote and re-read and wrote again.  It wasn't hard, the words came easily.

There were a few others that spoke that day at the memorial service.  Robin had asked Sister Brunie, to manage the program.  Sister Brunie started to talk and her words were startling to me.  She also referred to the poem in the Bible and related the words in the Love Is poem to Bill and his personality and love for his wife and family.  As I listened to her talk I thought - wow - I'm going to be saying the same thing!  Nothing like someone "stealing my thunder!"  Now what will should I do?  Should I change what I'm going to say?  In just a few moments I was going to be called on next to talk.  I'm sitting in the reception room listening to her say some of the same things I was about to say about Bill.  And, I didn't even know Sister Brunie nor had I met her before this week!

Andrew and Nikki, Robin's son and daughter spoke next and talked about their love for Bill.  Then it was my turn.  I quickly decided to go forward with my prepared words.  I prefaced them by saying that I had never met Sister Brunie before this week and if there was anyone I could forgive for "stealing my thunder" - it was her.  Wasn't it interesting that the two of us didn't know each other - but we both knew Bill - and we both have similar words to share about him today? 

Here are the words that I read.  And I managed to get thru it without breaking down and sobbing - which is what I thought would happen.  I was pretty numb, still, from just two days before being with him and holding him while he took his final breaths.

From the day I met Bill, I knew that he was a very special, kind, loving, caring man.  Without hesitation he grew in love with my sister and cared for her three children as if they were his own.  

 Bill and I shared a special friendship.  As you know, he wasn't my brother in the true meaning of the    word.  However, from the beginning I loved him as a brother and believed he loved me as he would love a sister.  

As I was thinking about what I would say today I realized the most powerful thing I could say on Bill's behalf was to share with you my thoughts on how he lived his life and loved and cared for his family.  He was an expert in his field of carpet cleaning and mold remediation with people reaching out to him from near and far for advice and help.  I believe everyone knows that. 

But the most important thing that he knew, was how to love and what it took to love someone and be strong and dedicated to that love. 

Many of the pictures you see here today of Robin and Bill were pictures I took of them thru the years.  I never tired of capturing the love they had for each other or the love Bill had for his family.

I've known people in loving, caring and giving relationships.  Bill's love for Robin was among the greatest examples of love I have experienced.

On more than one occasion, I too, was the recipient of that care and love as Bill traveled to Illinois to help me when I needed it.

The following words are words many of us have heard.  I've taken a few of these words from the Bible that, for me, represent how Bill lived his life, loved his wife and loved and cared for their children.  Think about him as I read...

Bill was patient

Bill was kind

Bill did not envy

Bill did not boast

Bill was not proud

Bill did not dishonor others

Bill was not self seeking

Bill kept no record of wrongs

He did not delight in evil

Bill always protected

He always trusted

He always hoped

Bill persevered - we all have seen Bill's strength and courage in these final months of his life.  

Bill's love never failed...

Our lives have all been enriched by his love.  My sons Mike, Tim and Andrew and I will miss him dearly and be forever thankful for the times we've spent with him.

So, that's what I said.  I got thru it.  And I'm still trying to accept and understand all that has happened since he was diagnosed last October with stage four rectal cancer.  I'm so thankful I traveled to NJ in December, March, April, May and then June and I got to see him and talk to him and tell him how much I love him.

Just yesterday I was walking down the street in town and I could hear the iPhone dog bark ringtone.  I reached for my phone, realizing it was Bill calling.  Then I realized it wasn't my phone ringing at all...it was the person standing near me...and I was so sad as I realized he was gone and would never be calling me again.

Geez, I miss you Bill.

April 17, 2015 A Day on Pier 39 with Carol

What a fun reunion I had with a friend from high school days in Toms River, New Jersey!

Carol and I met thru our dates at Admiral Farragut Academy, a naval prep school in Toms River.  She was dating Dave and I was dating Dick.  Oh my...our reunion brought back some great days of long ago.  

We have stayed in touch over the years and our lives have taken lots of twists and turns.  We both married, had children and divorced.  Carol is now living out in the bay area near her son.  When I realized I would be in California for a number of days and would have extra time because the boys would be working - I immediately contacted Carol to see if we could get together.  

Is there a more perfect place than San Francisco's Pier 39?  

Nooooooooooooo ~

So, Carol's lovely daughter in law drove her in to the city to Tim's apartment where we met.  I loved meeting her two adorable granddaughters, and off to Pier 39 we went.  Carol and I broke away as the girls had another agenda in mind for the day so we had an entire - beautiful - day to enjoy together.  We walked up and down the pier, stopped to enjoy the sea lions more than once, and found a place at the end of the pier for lunch.  Sitting in the window we were entertained by a sea lion roaming around and lots of boats touring the bay.  

There was a lot of catching up to do.  I hope we can get together again soon!

We arrived early in the morning, before the crowds!  It was super!

This spot was visited more than once during the day...so fun to see (and hear) the sea lions!

Love, love, love San Francisco!  My happy place for sure!

Friends going back ... (do I dare say?) 45+ years!!!!

I want to go back!

Entertainment from our window at lunch

Looking out from the Pier - notice Coit Tower off in the distance.

Lots of girl talk...we sat for a couple hours yakkkkkking!!

Summer in Wickford - Art Festival!

The sidewalk in front of my windows - my bedroom is in the front of the apartment!

Friday night setting up tents along the street

Saturday morning, the view down Brown Street

Walking in any direction in the village where I'm staying, I catch glimpses of Wickford harbor.

One block away from my apartment/house is the center of town

Typical historic home on the block

I "stole" a picture of one of the artists...typical beach art

The house where I'm renting.  The first little door (behind the pole) is an entry for my upstairs neighbor.  My doorway is the next door down.  Notice geraniums along walk to back and side of home where I enter.

A better picture of the home where I'm renting.  See the lady?  She is standing in front of what is my living room windows.  In this picture you can see the second little overhead "roof" for the doorway along the side of the building, which is the entrance to my apartment.

Early Saturday morning before the fest began!

Early Saturday again...

All "shops" closed up for the night.

It was a fun experience to be here in Wickford this past weekend.  I'm told this art festival is one of the largest in New England.  Normally, I park my car right in front of the house.  Signs went up early Wednesday morning letting us know we needed to have our cars off the street by 5 pm on Friday.

Vendors started arriving sharply at 5 setting up their tents.  My landlord told me I could park my car in the church parking lot around the corner and not expect to drive much for the weekend!  The street remains open, but it's challenging to drive with all the people strolling about.

Earlier in the week I learned there would be food prepared and sold at different churches.  There is an Episcopalian church across the street and they were serving lobster roll sandwiches in the church hall all weekend.  $15.00 bought a lobster roll sandwich and a bag of chips!  I WENT TWICE!

The Baptist church had grills set up and they were serving hot dogs and hamburgers - and fries!  I haven't had a hot dog in a long time - it sure tasted good!  

The lady I'm renting from, Linda, is super nice and I asked her if she wanted to walk over with me on Friday night to enjoy a lobster roll.  She declined, saying she was too tired but said she would join me for lunch on Saturday if I wanted to walk over to the Baptist church.  So we did on Saturday at noon. While we were busy talking and eating, Linda invited me to the local neighborhood yearly art fest yard party Saturday night.  I got to meet lots of the neighbors.  Very friendly folks.

Both Saturday and Sunday I strolled around the streets enjoying some lovely art.  Since I don't have any walls at the moment to decorate, I declined purchasing.  I did pick up an art fest T-shirt, tho, and a birthday gift for my daughter in law.

Fun weekend in Rhode Island!

March 29-30, 2015 Traveling thru Pennsylvania and special people!

Christine DeGrado Tyma

Marylou Gross

I made a quick stop thru the Philadelphia area and how lucky to have not one but TWO special people to visit!   It was getting close to my birthday month (April) and Marylou treated me to a yummy lunch at Cheesecake Factory in King of Prussia.  Years ago when I lived in Norristown, Pa., the King of Prussia mall was a favorite place to shop.  Fast forward about 35 years and I wouldn't know the place.  Big, big super mall!  Thank goodness I was escorted around.

Christine is an amazing friend and one of the most talented women I know.  Take a look at this, I couldn't imagine what was inside - not in a million years!

A BOOK!  A lovely, homemade book!  Journal!  Precious, precious journal just waiting for me to take pen in hand and write.  So clever...so creative.  Special, just like Christine!  

April 13, 2015 Meeting TAR Friends in San Francisco

Breakfast with Don Bradner and Stephanie McCaffrey

What a fun birthday it was!  Not only was I in San Francisco and visiting with my sons Tim and Andrew, I was there for 10 WHOLE DAYS...and I got to meet two of my fellow ankle replacement "friends."  TAR = Total Ankle Replacement

Since my ankle replacement last August, I've been on a Facebook page that has been an amazing support group for me.  How many people do you know that have had an ankle replaced?  Probably none...well, me too!  Following my surgery last year, I was at a wound care appointment at Lutheran General and along came a man on a scooter (like me) with his foot all bandaged up.  We quickly started to chat about our injuries and surgeries and he told me about the Facebook page.

It's where I spend a lot of my internet time these days....specifically on this particular page.  It's private to everyone else so I can post and comment and the rest of my world doesn't get to see any of it.  I like it a lot.  This is where I've learned of other experiences with this surgery.  I've been able to learn about things that could help me from other's experiences.  I've also been able to explore ways to solve some of my issues by reading about how other's have handled some of the hardships that go along with ankle replacement and recovery.  It's been a fantastic support group for me.

Once I had my travel plans in place, I reached out on this page and announced that I would be in San Francisco and would enjoy meeting anyone in the area that had an ankle replaced.  Two folks responded, pictured above.  Don Bradner (who is one of the administrators of the site) and Stephanie McCaffrey.  Don had a routine check up in the city with his doctor and suggested we meet for breakfast.

It was a great start to my birthday!  Afterwards I took a Lyft ride down to the apple store - the new apple watch was being previewed.  Tim met me there and we checked it out together.  Yes, I would love to have an apple watch - just not yet.

How shall I say it? I'm W A Y behind!

Wow, another lesson learned.  If you don't MAKE the time to write and post, next thing you know you're wwwwaaaaaaayyyyyy behind and it's hard to catch up!

For anyone following my posts, I'm going to go back in time and try to catch up on what's been going on with me and my travels....

I'll post dates in my titles for a while...so if you choose to read them in sequence, you can!

Maiden Voyage...and K A R M A ....

Today - Sunday, June 28th, is a milestone day for the newbie RV'ers....Pat and Don.  Don took the wheel for the entire day as we traveled south to Normal, Illinois for our "trial" run.

We packed a few things like sheets, towels, pillows, overnight necessities  - and drove away from Normandy Hills in Northbrook.

Our plan for our first "trip" in the new travel home was to take it down to Normal IL, to Crosspoint Cummins where maintenance is done on RV's and trucks - big trucks, that is (and BIG RV's).  We needed to have the chassis serviced.  These big hummers can't be serviced just anywhere....and when it was purchased in Island Lake IL we were told it had been serviced down in Normal.  Don decided to call and make an appointment for the first service on it and have a few things checked out.  It would give us a chance to drive it not too far away from home, sleep in it, and get familiar with all the ins and outs.

We decided to program the GPS to keep us off highways and interstates, so it was a long afternoon meandering thru the farmlands of Illinois - roads well known by both of us from many motorcycle trips thru the years.  Corn fields after corn fields and then MORE corn fields.  No surprises except the further south we drove we began to see LOTS of these:

Windmills among the corn fields!

The day was overcast and we hit a few sprinkles but all in all Don did a great job driving.  I wasn't feeling 100%, so I was the copilot for the day.  You could say I was the "nag-a-vator!"

Something pretty incredible happened along the way to Normal.  We stopped for gas at a station in Oswego.  I went in to use the bathroom (no we hadn't started using the toilet in the RV yet) and when I walked back outside there was Don talking alongside the RV with another couple.  They pulled up and asked him how he liked the bus.  Turns out it was the prior owner!  As I approached I heard Don say - Pat, you're not going to believe who this is...and boy - what a surprise!  This was their fifth and last RV.  They expressed lots of sellers remorse but just couldn't drive the distance to Florida anymore.

They were driving down the road when HE noticed the RV in the gas station.  HE (Frank) said to his wife - "that's our RV!" - turn around and drive back in to that gas station!  So SHE (Donna) turned around and pulled in and they introduced themselves to Don.

Original RV owners find us at a gas station stop in Oswego!

Now, what are the chances of that happening??????

So, we stood and talked to "Donna" and "Frank" and asked several questions about the vehicle, and they gave us their phone number to phone them if we had more questions.  They were quite friendly and happy to meet us!

Our little trip south was pretty uneventful as Don got used to navigating thru construction areas, small roads thru little Illinois towns, interstate highways, even parking lots as we looked for our dinner stop near Normal.  Don did an amazing job on our first trip out!  I declined driving at all as I wasn't feeling well...maybe had a little touch of some flu bug and I had a slight headache all day.

At the end of the day we parked in the parking lot of Crosspoint Cummins, pulled down the blinds covering the windows, cranked up the generator to cool the place, Pat took a shower and by 10 pm we were both comfortably tucked away in bed for a good night's sleep in our king sized bed!

What a great first day out on the road!

Saturday Morning In Rhode Island - at Casey Farm

Beautiful Saturday morning at Casey Farm.

Coastal Growers Market...lots of good food here!  Nice start to the holiday weekend.

www.coastalmarket.org

Organic Pickers!

My Moraga (CA) Friend-Pam

Pam Pocklington and I were good friends many years ago when I lived in California.  We were friends during the ten years that I lived in California.  Pam was busy raising four children - I was busy raising 3.  Our paths crossed often during school, church or sports activities.  Pam and I would steal away once in a while for girl time.  My family and I moved away to Illinois (where Pam's mother lived) and we stayed in touch.

During the last couple of years that I lived in Moraga, I took a job supervising young people delivering newspapers for the local paper - the Contra Costa Times.  Michael had a paper route in the neighborhood. We would get up at 5:30 am when the papers were delivered to our door, Mike would sort them, fold them and stack them in his carrier bag and head out on his bicycle.  Some mornings I drove him in the family station wagon-he would sit on the back and throw the papers to the porch.  I was a weekend supervisor for the newspaper and supervised Mike and about 15 other local youth carriers.

Pam joined me as a supervisor at the newspaper...we made a few more memories together working part time.

On my travel adventure this year to California I was fortunate that Pam was in town and we were able to spend two full days together.  I took the BART train from San Francisco to Orinda where she picked me up.

Yes, a selfie....

The view from the Orinda BART train station, love the green hills!

Pam and I spent the day in Danville, California, walking around the town and enjoying lunch.

The following week I took the train out of the city again and we met in Orinda for a second visit.  We had plans to drive to Tiburon, a coastal town located north of San Francisco.  Very scenic little town along the bay.  After Pam picked me up at the Orinda train station, we traveled along the San Pablo Reservoir  along San Pablo Dam Road, over the Richmond San Rafael Bridge, past San Quentin to Tiburon.

The hills were barely green in some spots...def a water shortage!

Along the San Pablo Dam

Richmond San Rafael bridge

Views like this...took my breath away!

The bay near Tiburon

Our lunch stop...

Imagine living in one of these?

Downtown Tiburon

Thank you, Pam!  It was so fun to see you and spend time with you again!  Can't wait to do it again!

Local color...

Happy traveler!