What Reason

"One doesn't come to Italy for niceness...

one comes for life."

-E.M Forster Room With a View

So Silly

It's All About Attitude

" I believe the single most significant decision I can make on a day to day basis is my choice of attitude. It is more important than my past, my education, my bankroll, my successes or failures, fame or pain, what other people think of me or say about me, my circumstances, or my position. Attitude keeps me going or cripples my progress. It alone fuels my fire or assaults my hope. When my attitudes are right, there is no barrier too high, no valley too deep, no dream too extreme, no challenge too great for me." Charles R. Swindoll, American writer and Clergyman

b. 1934

How To Judge A Man's Character

"You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can do nothing for him."James D. Miles

Still Angry

One Man's Advice

Things To Remember:

1) The worth of character

2) The improvement of talent

3) The influence of example

4) The joy of origination

5) The dignity of simplicity

6) The success of perseverence

quote by Marshall Field and American department store owner whose pioneering activities in retail merchandising were continued and extended into publishing by successive generations of his family 1834-1906

Heritage Park, Little India and the Batting Cages...OH MY

May 4th was a beautiful sunny day.  We decided to make our way to Heritage Park in Cerritos.  

Heritage Park

18600 Bloomfield Ave., Cerritos, CA 90703

When are daughters were young we always enjoyed bringing them to this park.  It feels like a miniature Bostonian town, some historical landmarks, a covered bridge takes you to the island where there are all kinds of slides, rope climbing apparatus and fun places for kids to play.

Not quite sure if we were ever going to see Mat again when he took the kiddie slide down the curved tube

Highlights:

• It’s a FREE, public park.
• It’s an island!  How cool is that?
• The play equipment is built INSIDE the buildings! You can ride a tunnel slide from the top of the church.  You can climb through attics and across roof walkways for fun pretend play.
• There are hidden slides and historical locations.
• Don’t miss the pirate ship! Can you find the concrete canoe?
• Look for ducks, geese, and turtles.
• Hit the library and read up on Paul Revere’s ride before you come.
• The Play Island is the real attraction, but there’s another playground off the island.  

There are plenty of surrounding areas off the island to play basketball, baseball, swing and picnic.  We brought our Bocce ball set and had alot of fun on the grassy area.

A friendly game of Bocce

Measuring distances to gather points

In nearby Artesia you will find "Little India" on Pioneer Blvd.   There are lots of wonderful Indian restaurants, shops and spice stores.  We went to "The India" restaurant for their buffet lunch.  It is great and very inexpensive.  We all ate too too much but it was delicious.

We headed home late afternoon for some quiet time and naps.

When our energy level returned we drove to the nearby batting cages at sunset.  Had a lot of fun  practicing our swings.  A good way to work off some of the calories we consumed at lunch.

Another great day with Mat and Athena!

Just An Ordinary Day and yet...

We all spent a wonderful few days together and these photos are taken on Monday May 14th just a few hours before Aria was to leave to fly back to Madison Wisconsin and a day before Athena was to return to Sydney Australia. 

 They depict ordinary activities: lounging in our backyard, the girls painting their nails on the patio table.  It is a scene I can recall throughout various stages of their youth and yet these photos are among my favorites.   It is a timeless vision for me, like an endless warm sunny day in the summer.  I love these photos and wanted to share them with you. 

Just an ordinary day and yet...

A sister is a little bit of childhood that can never be lost.  ~Marion C. Garretty



If you don't understand how a woman could both love her sister dearly and want to wring her neck at the same time, then you were probably an only child.  ~Linda Sunshine

and then there's this:
"There is no better friend than a sister.  And there is no better sister than you."  ~Author Unknown

Celebrating Aria, Athena and Mat's Spring time visit with the Family

Slideshow design personalized with Smilebox

Stefanie's Graduation Party

Saturday May 19 my cousin Peggy and her husband David hosted a wonderful party for their daughter Stefanie who just graduated from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.  It was a wonderful celebration with family and friends.  
"The closer we get to being who we are meant to be, the brighter we shine."


 Stefanie, your family and friends wish you great joy in your continuing journey in becoming who you are meant to be.  Enjoy your new adventures in life.

Picture slideshow created with Smilebox

Travel Town Transportation Museum

May 5th our adventure at Griffith Park continues. 

Following our tour of the Gene Autry Western Museum 

we drove to the nearby Travel Town Museum.   

In the late 1940s, Charley Atkins, a Recreation and Parks employee, along with a handful of rail enthusiast friends, had the idea that a steam locomotive would make an attractive addition at the Griffith Park miniature railroad ride. The original intention of the Museum was to be a "railroad petting zoo," an opportunity for the children of Los Angeles to "imagineer" themselves as engineers. The City of Los Angeles Harbor Department had two little engines destined for scrap that seemed to fit the bill. The idea escalated as Atkins, with the enthusiastic support of former Recreation and Parks Department General Manager George Hjelte and Superintendent of Recreation William Frederickson, initiated contacts with major railroads in California to determine what equipment they might be willing to donate. At that time, the steam locomotive era was drawing to a close, and Atkins found a good response. Travel Town was dedicated on December 14, 1952. The concept of a combined transportation museum and recreation center blossomed, and wishes for donations were generously fulfilled. In 1965, Travel Town's exhibits were re-grouped, and the park re-dedicated. Today, Travel Town is in a state of new growth and development.

Circus trains

An old streetcar

Entrance to Travel Town is free but tickets are available for children to ride the miniature train around the park.

Mike "The Engineer"

I have always loved train travel, sitting by the window and watching the scenery whizz by.  I especially have loved my time on trains in Europe.  One can get lost just sitting and gazing at the passing scenery.

    

"I knew I was going to take the wrong train, so I left early." - Yogi Berra

I have also loved the kind of light that one sees in train stations.  It seems mysterious and romantic.  I love watching the people carrying suitcases and bustling to make a trains departure  ... so much activity fills the air.  It all makes me want to hop aboard for unknown new destinations.   

 

"Life is a train of moods like a string of beads;  and as we pass through them they prove to be many colored lenses, which paint the world their own hue, and each shows us only what lies in its own focus." 

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Travel Town Transportation Museum
5200 Zoo Dr. Los Angeles, CA 90027

 Located in the nortwest corner of Griffith Park.  Parking and admission are free. Picnic areas are on the grounds.