The Reader's Digest Version

Well...to make a very long story short...which is difficult for me...

 ...I now have a Salt Lake City, UT address.

In November of 2009, I made the difficult decision to leave my Minnesota family and friends.  (I miss you N8- with all my heart)

The solace was that after 34 years - I have enjoyed living closer to my sisters in Southern California and my mother in Las Vegas.

But also since living in San Diego - I have lost two jobs.  Facing the daunting reality of yet another job search was discouraging to say the least.
  

But the upside - the layoff did open the door for me to finally make the decision to close the distance gap of a 2+ year relationship with MRW. 

Even though I still face a job search - knowing we can experience a normal dating relationship together - is a comfort.

Thanks so much to my amazing family and friends for your encouragement and support to follow my heart.  I love you all!

It's time has come....

...Woodstar's Journey continues.

Update

...on the road again...

...More later.

(Not so) FAQ's #15

If I follow my heart...

..should I make sure that my heart has a brain?

Poss(um)-ibilities

My San Diego family has been having some nocturnal visitors.  These visitors show their presence by leaving holes dug under the fence.  It was a possibility that the culprits were skunks - mostly due to "eau de Polecat" wafting in the morning air on occasion.

So they hired a guy to come and live-trap them - whatever they were - and relocate them to someplace else.  Cat food is the bait of choice - an irresistible delicacy to most critters who are enticed into said traps.

To their surprise - the midnight diggers were possums.  This is #5 - who was released in the same spot as numbers 1 thru 4 - several miles away by the banks of the San Diego River.

We figure that if they find their way back to the house - jonesing for more cat food - it probably won't be before 2015.

We expect...and hope...that they're having some happy family reunions right about now.

Possums have "smiles" that look rather vicious.  However - the Possum Police insisted that they are really quite friendly and docile creatures.

To prove his point - he stuck his finger in the cage and proceeded to touch the possum's toothy grin.  His finger remained unscathed - still attached to his hand.

Nobody wanted to challenge his theory.  We're all aware that there's a first time for everything.  We prefer our fingers intact - thank you very much.

But now we all have a new appreciation for that cute possum smile.

I think RS has captured the 'essence of possum' quite nicely.

I think he's been practicing...

(Not so) FAQ's #14

How did you get that scar in your mouth?

You may wonder how that question appeared in my mind on this day, July 4, 2011.  I did have to go way back in the recesses of my memory to find it.

This is a question I've been asked by every new dentist I've ever visited.  There really is a scar - on the roof of my mouth - a result of a rather weird accident on the 4th of July (I'm guessing here) 1960.

We were living in Hibbing, MN at the time.  I was on the trapeze on our swing set - holding my

pride-and-joy purchase from the 4th of July parade:  a red, white & blue wooden baton.

One end was a ball adorned in massive amounts of silver glitter.  The other end was basically a stick.

I was holding the baton in my hand - stick side up - and decided to swing strong and then jump off the trapeze.  It was something I did all the time - just never with a stick in my hand.

When I landed - my feet hit the ground and the opposite re-action was the upward motion of my arms.  The stick found its way into my (obviously) open mouth.  Net result - roof puncture! 

I clearly remember that it didn't really hurt. What started the panic was when I realized that I was bleeding.  What I didn't know at the time was how serious it could have been if the stick had gone in about 1/4 inch further. 

I was lucky.  The guardian angel of glitzy batons was watching over me that day.

It healed fine, left a scar...

...and has puzzled dentists ever since.

Button, Button...

...who'll find the button?






While reminiscing in my mind about Jane - I thought of the Button Game and this little memory....

Before I moved from Minnesota, I called Jane to see if she wanted to meet for lunch.  It had been a while since we'd visited.  She was at a shopping mall in Burnsville when she answered her cell phone.

I told her I had just one errand to do first - to go to Joann's Fabrics and buy a button.

I had replaced the buttons on a new blouse and was short one.  I had forgotten to count the buttons on the sleeves.


She started to laugh - because at that very moment she was standing in front of the displays at Joann's...yes... shopping for buttons.

So I gave her the details - and she picked up my buttons for me.

Fortuitous for me....and we thought it funny and quite the coincidence.

Jane found the button.  Thanks Jane.

Farewell to Jane...

Jane was my friend.

We first met when I went to her home to pick up my son Nate.  Nate - and Jane's daughter Laura - were juniors in high school and had met when performing in The Music Man at the Chanhassen Dinner Theatre.

When I arrived - Nate, Laura and some other friends were in the music room - and it was clear they had no intention of saying any quick good-byes.

So I joined Jane in the family room and saw a jigsaw puzzle spread out on a card table.



I loved doing puzzles too - so we sat down and worked on it together and got to know each other.

A new friendship was born.

There were many impromptu family dinners together, photo ops with Nate and Laura at proms and theatre performances, picnics at the Arboretum, weekends at Stevens Point and much more.

One weekend in June 2005, we drove to Stevens Point to see Laura perform in a college musical production.  I drove Jane's SUV there and back.  It was a perfect arrangement as I liked to drive and Jane liked to ride.

The following Tuesday, Jane sent out a group email explaining that she had some blurry vision in her right eye and had it checked out.  Unfortunately, a cancerous tumor was found in her eyeball.

The good news was that it was all-contained - and even though she would lose her eye - there wouldn't be any radiation or chemo treatments required.  It was surreal as she never mentioned or complained about any eye issues when we were together just a few days earlier.

Through it all - she maintained her positive spirit and deep faith...

...and her sense of humor.



She loved the cookie bouquet I got for her - complete with a pirate cookie with an eye patch.

Until it happened... I never knew that Jane's doctors had cautioned her that there was a possibility that the eye cancer could potentially manifest itself in liver or lung cancer within 6-10 years.

Unfortunately they were horribly right - as 6 years later cancer did appear in her liver.  It was unyielding and relentless and took her too soon.

Through it all - she and husband Don were so courageous.  Their CaringBridge posts displayed their unshakable Faith.  It was gut-wrenching, heart-breaking, amazing, and humbling, to be included on their journey. 

Jane was a woman of faith, integrity, and fun.  I will be forever grateful for her being part of my life.  I miss you Jane....til we meet again.

Jane was...and will always be...my friend.