82 Candles

It's that time of the year again - my Dad would be 82 if he was alive today. I wouldn't mind that at all.

 

I wanted to scan some more pictures in addition to the ones I've been using, and it was really rough going through some of them. I don't miss any one person in particular, but I miss having everyone around. In particular, I found the card from my Stepmom Diane's memorial service and it was a real jolt to realize how long it's been - next March will be the 30th anniversary of her death. She was only 51 when she passed, but still...also lots of pics of her with my Dad brought back a lot of memories. I also found the memorial card for my Grandma Loomis and that was 20 years ago.

Where does the time go? And will someone please hurry up and invent a time machine so I can get out of this crazy world and go back to better days? 

Anyway, this post got a little drearier than I'd intended.  Happy Heavenly Birthday, Dad!

 

SURPRISE!!! He thought he was walking into the restaurant manager's office because Diane had slipped on her way to the ladies room. It was actually a ruse to spring his 50th surprise birthday party on him! It wasn't even an office - it was a banquet room. Diane put that sign on the door. I helped her prep earlier in the day and she was a wreck fearing it wouldn't go off as planned. It was the only time I can remember ever seeing Diane nervous, and everything went perfect. Great night! Shiloh Inn, Pomona CA.

 

 

 

 

It's that time of the year!

That's right - it's pumpkin season!

 

Trader Joe's is leading the way with pumpkin products. Here are a few that I will be throwing money at:

 

 

Note: All images are from the linked Delish article.

 

Other seasonal TJ's products include pumpkin bread and bread/muffin mix, pumpkin ice cream and ice cream cones, pumpkin butter pumpkin gnocci, pumpkin ravioli, pumpkin spice yogurt, vanilla pumpkin hand soap and lotion, pumpkin doggie treats, pumpkin spice hummus, pumpkin bisque, pumpkin brioche, pumpkin bagels, pumpkin cream cheese, pumpkin spice tea, pumpkin cereal bars, pumpkin tortilla chips, pumpkin Madeleines, aaaaaand (wait for it)...pumpkin spiced pumpkin seeds. And there are still more items I didn't list.

 

And of course, there's always this:

 

Temperature-wise it's still summerish here in Southern California, but pumpkin spice is always welcome. 

 

LOL Kailua-Kona

There's a terrific webcam on Ali'i Drive, the main drag in Kailua-Kona, where my Dad used to live. And the Ironman World Championship takes place in Kona in a few days. 

Because of where the cam is located (on top of the Fish Hopper Restaurant on Ali'i) you get a great view of the prep for the event. 

A few minutes ago I decided to take a look and tuned in just in time to see this:

Behold the majesty of the giant sports drink bottle!

Seriously, looking forward to checking out the event. The Ironman is a big deal in Kona. 

September Words of Wisdom

I like old bookstores, the smell of coffee brewing, rainy day naps, farmhouse porches, and sunsets. I like the sweet, simple things that remind me that life doesn't have to be complicated to be beautiful. --Brooke Hampton

 

Today I will not stress over the things I can't control and I will enjoy this beautiful day. --Brigitte Nicole 

The love of heaven makes one heavenly. --William Shakespeare

 

The higher we soar the smaller we appear to those who cannot fly. --Friedrich Nietzsche  

Don't be afraid of being outnumbered. Eagles fly alone. Pigeons flock together. --Unknown

 

I don't want to be part of a world where being kind is a weakness. --Keanu Reeves

 

Solitude is dangerous. It's addictive. Once you see how peaceful it is, you no longer want to deal with people. --Mia Siya

 

Cats have no guilt and very little shame. --Ursula K. Le Guin 

No mud, no lotus. --Thich Nhat Hanh

 

Stop looking for happiness in the same place you lost it. -Unknown 

 

When walking through the valley of shadows, remember, a shadow is cast by a light. --Austin O'Malley

 

People pay for what they do, and still more for what they have allowed themselves to become. And they pay for it very simply; by the lives they lead. --James Baldwin

CSI: Sacramento

When he's not being crowned U-Haul Salesman of the Year for his role in the mass exodus of Californians worn down by Dem policies to more freedom loving states, Gavin Newsom is addressing other important issues that require his immediate attention (unlike the homeless crisis, crime, and record-high gas prices). Check this out:

 

That sound you hear is Golden State crime writers firing up their laptops. Because (all together now) what could possibly go wrong and how can I use it in a story? 

 

Kind of reminds me of this:

Thanks for the story fodder, Gavin! At least he's making himself useful to Californians for a change. 

 

God rest her soul

"Those who serve will be loved and remembered when those who cling to power and privileges are long forgotten."

Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury

 

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has been laid to rest at Windsor Castle with her beloved husband Prince Philip, and along with the rest of her family: her parents King George and Queen Elizabeth (The Queen Mum) and her sister Princess Margaret.

The BBC's closing monologue to their coverage of the Queen's funeral (and also their non-stop coverage since having to announce her death on September 8) delivered beautifully by Kirsty Young:

What a momentous day it's been, from the might of the military parades and the splendor of Westminster Abbey, to that hushed intimacy of St. George's Chapel in Windsor. It's often felt in recent days that a veil of sorrow has covered the nation, but the Queen's funeral has surely exemplified her reign. She unified us in one final act of togetherness, unifying the United Kingdom and indeed the world beyond in respect, ceremony, and significance.

As a very young woman she famously said her whole life, whether it be long or short, would be devoted to our service; well, never was a person truer to their word and today we have come together, many of us with tears in our eyes, but all of us with an abiding warmth in our hearts for all that she gave.

Just over three months ago the world - and a certain little bear - said, "Thank you for everything," and the Queen looked as though she thoroughly enjoyed the occasion. We will surely be ever grateful to have had that final opportunity to celebrate with Her Majesty her remarkable long reign. If, as she once said, "Grief is the price we pay for love," then the weight of our collective sorrow is testament to the depth of affection in which she is held.  

She made history, she was history. Queen Elizabeth II is gone, but she will surely never be forgotten.

You can watch it on this thread on Twitter.

 

 

Flights of Angels

The BBC has had a live feed of the Queen's Lying-in-State since Thursday, after her family accompanied her coffin to Westminster Hall and the public, which had been queuing up for miles, was finally let in to pay their respects. And I've been watching it obsessively ever since. Witnessing the mass of British subjects, many of whom had been in line for ten hours or more, pay their respects to the only monarch most of them had ever known, was a riveting, moving, and addicting viewing experience. I'm going to miss them when the lying-in-state ends and the feed goes dark.

To the British people, thank you for sharing this amazing part of your tradition during what must have been a devastating time for you. I'm going to miss seeing you all.

Note: All images are screenshots taken from the BBC's Live Feed.

Updated 8:12pm (PDT) - The lines are thinning out:

Updated 10:35pm (PDT) - It's over.

 

The final mourner.

 

Rest in peace, Your Majesty.

The Ugly American

Meghan Markle has been making an unfortunate spectacle of herself since the day she was fixed up on a "blind date" with some random British guy she had never heard anything about, had no idea who he was, and didn't bother to Google, mewling only (she says), "Is he kind?"

The funny thing about that particular story (one of her many works of fiction) is that according to many sources, if someone asked the same of her the answer would be a resounding, "HELL, NO!"

I won't get into the countless times she has slagged the royal family, their customs and protocols, and their people since that fateful, gold-digging date; they are legion and you could probably find them by using that Google thing. Some info can be found here, and keep in mind that book was released in 2020, before things got really ugly. Abusing palace staff as well as driving the then-Duchess of Cambridge to tears (then lying and claiming she was the one left crying), and generally acting as if it wasn't just her husband who'd been to the manor born.

Keep in mind, most of us (me included) had no idea who Meghan Markle was when she arranged to be fixed up for a hot date with a ginger prince, and we would still have no idea today had she not managed to get him to put a ring on it. Without marrying up, Suits would most likely have been the high point of her Hollywood career. Her acting was apparently mediocre at best. Heck, did you see The Queen's performance in the Paddington Bear skit for her Jubilee? Probably better than any of Markle's performances. Certainly more sweetly sincere.

 

Speaking of her performances and her insistence on playing the race card, how about this tidbit? A while back, someone on YouTube did an analysis for Markle's imdb entry. She specifically looked at how many of the characters she played were important enough to warrant a full first and last name. Here are the results, from most recent:

Rachel Zane - Suits (series)

Amy Peterson - When Sparks Fly (TV movie)

Charlotte Boyd - Castle (series)

Officer Leah Montoya - CSI: Miami (series)

Jr. FBI Agent Amy Jessup - Fringe (series)

Holly Shepard - Without a Trace (series)

Annie Ortiz - Knight Rider (series)

Sadie Valencia - Good Behavior (TV movie)

Kelly Calhoun - The Apostles (TV movie)

Veronica Perez - CSI: NY (series)

Teresa Santos - Love, Inc. (series)

Notice anything? Out of the eleven roles she played that warranted a full name, five of the eleven - almost half - have Latina/Hispanic surnames. Montoya, Ortiz, Valencia, Perez, and Santos. Latinas.

This tells me a couple of things: One, that her mixed race wasn't much of a barrier to being cast (her acting, on the other hand...) Casting agents seemed to find her believable as both Latinas and non-Latinas. Word is some of her high school classmates assumed she was Italian. But the point is, these roles were given to a non-Latina actress and therefore took career and employment opportunites away from actual Latina actresses. If Meghan was so attuned to all the racial stuff she claims to be a victim of, shouldn't she have declined these roles? Surely a small price to pay to make the world a better place, empower her Latina sisters, and all that other self-made, independent woman stuff Markle is fond of blabbing about.

And now word is coming out that Markle is already wanting to know about her inheritance from the Queen and titles for her half-royal rugrats. Couldn't even wait until the woman has been buried. Greedy and grasping. Having said that, I would pay top dollar to see this scenario play out:

Her Majesty was nobody's fool. My guess is that any inheritance Prince Harry and his children receive from her will be part of a trust with strict guidelines about how the money can be accessed and used in order to be kept out of Meghan's grubby mitts.

Never forget

Many have, I never will.

 

I will also never forget how meaningful this was at the time. We needed a kind gesture like this and guess who gave it to us.

 

From the video description: 

In a break from traditional protocol, Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain ordered the change to the daily ceremonial parade to show solidarity with the United States in the wake of the 9-11 attacks. Prince Andrew, representing his mother, was joined by the US ambassador to Britain, William Farish, for the 45-minute ceremony. 

As the band of the Coldstream Guards began the US national anthem hundreds in the crowd sang along while others wept, before observing a two-minute silence. 

An incredible moment for both nations.