Went to the Los Angeles Central Library! What a Good Trip!

I had a MUGA scan this week. I started having them every 4 months  because the results were good. So I went to have it done and after the second scan he says he wants to do it over. When I ask why, he said my spleen was in the way. I asked if that was a problem and he said "no."  I told him he has never mentioned this before and he said  "I know,  I checked previous scans and it wasn't there. Your guts moved."  So odd!  Finally, at the end of it all this woman comes in to tell me we're done. In my moving, I felt I was very wet on my side. She said "0h!  You are bleeding!  Are you taking blood thinners?"  Yes, I am. Well blood was all over the sheet and on my blouse. I was glad the blouse I was wearing was black, because it would have frightened people. I had to go pick up my morphine prescription, but I didn't scare anyone. 

On the day that Janet came, on Saturday, my refrigerator started making a lot of racket. I couldn't figure out how to stop it without turning off the refrigerator. Well when I did that, it stayed quiet for a while when I turned it back on.  I called the man who replaced my ice maker. He called me Monday and came out on Tuesday.  I'd rather fix it than pay to replace it if I can.   When he came he found the ice maker fill switch was no longer working. It cost $95 to get that taken care of. I was relieved because I thought I'd have to get a new appliance.   Water had dripped over everything in the freezer and there were many ice cycles.  He cleaned out the whole freezer to boot!  What a relief!  He also told me appliances don't run problem free like they used to for years. I've noticed that too. I remember buying a new appliance for upgraded and a more modern look. I think I would aim for the plainest refrigerator next time. Less things to break down!

Wonderful art class with Carol Bradshaw!  She can look at my drawings and see what are my issues. She thought I made a break through in drawing where there are no obvious lines. So we tried different ways of showing water when doing a river, waterfall, a puddle and rain. We also used the embossing tool which was nifty in showing much of this.  I took pictures and even some videos of her so I can look at it when I'm doing this. We won't have a class next week. So I have two weeks to work on this. When we get together again, I need to have some pictures of elephants to choose from. I look forward to that.  We also discussed how color is used to identify many things such as meanings, moods, chakras and musical notes among other things. 

Close-up of the Kern River above the dam.  Water rushing
over rocks.  This one I like.  It may require more
shading, but essentially I got it.

My attempt at a waterfall again.  I definitely
will redo this.

Janet and I joined my neighbor Celeste at the Renegade Room at Bakersfield College for dinner again. Last time it was delicious!  Janet and I had a glass of wine before we left. They do not have alcoholic beverages.  We had a wonderful lamb dinner. Celeste, my neighbor is in escrow for the fourth time with this time it looking like it will go through which will be the end of the month, or a possible delay of a week, though no reason that it would not close. 

Celeste has come down regularly from Alpine Flats in the mountains to make sure all was in order. People would say how they wanted everything modern. Well, in that case, they should go buy a new home.  Irritating. They do pay less for an older home  here, so they are getting a deal. There is a pool and the pump is brand new. 

I went with my friend Barbara and her genealogy group to the Los Angeles Central Library in Downtown Los Angeles. After seeing a place like this, it makes you so aware of what you are missing. What an exciting trip!  This building was built in 1926. It had wonderful artwork everywhere we went. Four floors are underground and four floors are above ground. They also had a Cafe with a Panda Express in the library. The prices were okay and if you needed to do research, you wouldn't have to leave the library to take a break. The only floors I was on was -4, 1 and 2. So I'm sure I would see a lot more if I went to the other floors.  Genealogy and history was on -4.  I got a library card which in addition to checking books out (which is not too likely I would do because of the distance), it does allow me access to download music and much from their e-collection.  I looked at a book on the Holocaust which was from Survivors' perspectives.  I decided to order it. I understand you can check out an iPad while there. It s amazing what can be done when adequate money is given to these services. They had an 8x11 flyer on both sides with all the activities going on at at that library for the month. They even had a section dedicated to teaching people to read.   How wonderful is that!   They also helped people who were homeless to get services they were eligible to get. 

Heading south to Los Angeles

In the Mountains

The shorter building in front with the tiled
roof is the library.  Misleading, in that there are four
floors underground and four floors above.
Beautiful weather!

This is what it looks like when you enter.  Painting of the
murals are on linen.  The painting on the ceilings were painted directly
on the ceiling.

This is the front of the library.

Ceiling Art

From a different angle

Help for People in Need

View from the first floor to the east

Another hand painted mural

There was a fascinating display called "State of Deception - The Power of Nazi Propaganda. Do Words Kill?  "Learning what propaganda is and how to counter it is essential in today's information-saturated world."  This exhibition was produced by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.  "Nazis used propaganda to win broad voter support in Germany, implement radical programs, and justify war and mass murder."  This can happen anywhere and we need to be aware of it so we can take action to keep it from happening. 

There was also a nice display of Hollywood advertisement of movies over the years. In one glass display case, there was a fantastic display of 3-Dimensional origami.  I'm positive there was much more on floors we did not visit. 

Beautiful 3D Origami!

Across the street from the library, 1 Bunker Hill.
That is a waterfall between the steps.  Does anyone
know if this is where Angel Flight was?

We decided we will be going back there regularly.  It was a wonderful place to be.  Lots of tours, Lots of reading, Lectures and a variety of resources available.

I am continuing to feel quite tired.  I am again taking more breaks. As long as I take these breaks I can do these activities.  So that is it for the week.  I still saw some wonderful things;  though, I want to see more at the library.  I hope your week went well.  I'll see you next Sunday.                      Rachel

Dealing with Deaths and the Anniversary of Deaths

Here are the top five regrets of the dying. I think most have to do it this way.  We are in a particular place that allows us to look at life differently than when death is not on our mind as imminently.  It doesn't make sense to be thinking about death and dying when you are young and have other experiences necessary for life. 

http://upliftconnect.com/regrets-of-the-dying/

This week was the anniversary of Paul's and my marriage. It wasn't too bad because I was busy that day in a good way.  I feel for my friend Vicki who is grieving the loss of her husband the previous week.  It is very painful. I find it best to acknowledge the pain and get the support I need. Her pain makes me feel tears when I think of all the people who have been so important to us who are no longer here.  

At art class Carol was showing me how to show water around rocks.  I worked on a waterfall.  It is so interesting watching how she does it.   I will continue working on picture with rocks and water. 

Three Level Waterfall

More Detail on Rocks

Barbara and I went to see Jason Coleman, the grandson of Floyd Cramer through the Bakersfield Concert Association.   He played his music in the style of his grandfather which included the "slip note", which was a unique, distinctive touch his grandfather used. Here is a recent picture of Jason and a picture of Floyd Cramer with Jason when he was a child.  This was a good concert.  He was here two years ago and was well received then. 

Jason Coleman

Jason with his Grandfather Floyd Cramer

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

The Bakersfield Concert Association will move their concerts to Harvey Auditorium.  They will be at 2:30 on Sunday's so people will be able to get home before dark if they desire. There will be 5 concerts this next season and the cost will be $75 if you buy a season ticket. Otherwise it is $35 per concert. Of course it is a great deal when you buy the series and doing it in the afternoon makes it so much better for people who cannot handle late evenings.  I really look forward to it. 

We went to a Chinese restaurant called Ching Yen on Columbus. Barbara is vegan and they are willing to make her vegan dishes which are delicious. The owner also gave us cups of tea she makes for herself which had ginger as the base. Very good!  This restaurant consistently gets high ratings!

I had chemotherapy this week. Recently, I have been hearing my heart beat when I lie down to sleep.  There is a squeakiness when it beats.  My nurse told me to contact my primary doctor to see if something needs to be done.  So I will see her the first week in May. And, I will have a MUGA scan tomorrow which measures the flow of blood through my heart.  I also am feeling tired again like I had experienced before. Maybe they are related.  I feel I could sleep a lot!

My friend Janet also is grieving the loss of her husband four years ago. It doesn't feel that long ago. I invited Janet over for a lamb stew dinner over noodles with a unique coleslaw and pears poached in wine for dessert.  She stayed overnight because today is the anniversary of Ron's death. The anniversary of Paul's death is at the end of the month. 

As usual, I made way too much food.  The lamb stew was very good. Janet and I read the directions of the Instant Pot I bought through Amazon.  What is interesting with this food appliance is that it does so many cooking functions like sauté, slow cook and steam. So we sautéed and then used the pressure cooker element for 15 minutes. It had few ingredients and turned out very tasty and tender. I got it because my friend Barbara got one and she cooks beans and vegan soups and stews in just minutes which are very tasty.  

So we were too full and cooked up the pears in the morning. Delicious!  Then we went to the cemetery to visit Ron's grave. I'll be back to visit Paul in a couple of weeks which is near Ron. It will be the 9th anniversary of his death. It seems hard to believe it was that long ago.  In many ways it feels almost like yesterday though I am not as emotionally wiped out as when it happened. 

My refrigerator has gone out of whack.  It started yesterday making a grinding noise and then continuing to emit a loud buzz. It might be time to get another refrigerator, though I remember when these appliances lasted years and years and years. It is too bad they don't make them to last like they used to.  But, I think that is intentional to keep us regular customers. 

So April is rough but it is leveled out with the birthday of my step-mother Kate and my brother Ben, who are two people very important to me. Kate and I went in together to send Ben tamales. Ben loves Mexican food. When he comes out here to visit, he can go to a Mexican restaurant at every meal and he would not tire of it.  Kate and i will get together at the beginning of May. We always have a good visit so I look forward to it.  I also try to be involved in activities to keep the tough times in perspective. I could not have possibly done this when Paul died as my friends couldn't either at the time of their husbands' deaths.  It is just too close and painful. As time goes on, we integrate these deaths into who we are and it is not the same acute pain as when it just happened. 

Here are a couple more photographs of our trip to The Tejon Ranch Conservancy. The first one Shelley my daughter took using my iPhone which has a panorama setting and the second I took of a herd of deer that wanted to keep their distance from us. 

So that is my week. I hope your week went well and I will see you next Sunday. 

I Did Some Amazing Things Then Got Sick!

My friend Vicki's husband Dwain died.   This seemed so fast!  There is nothing that can be said which could lessen the pain.   I know how we all want to make it better, including me.  We reach out, but feel inadequate in giving this support-it's not enough!  I made an Asparagus Quiche and a fruit salad I will  take this afternoon. My way to nurture.... as do a lot of people.  My heart goes out to her!

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I got a bug soon before I was ready to publish my blog last Sunday.  I had a fever for a couple of days and my chest was tight. I was so drained, I finally decided to just save this for the following week.  I didn't do so much this week as I allowed myself to heal.

This is a gorgeous picture taken in Big Sur,  a state park along the California Coast in  the Calla Lily Valley done by Yan photography. It was posted on The Rain Forest Site. 

Easter was a pleasant time together.  Shelley made a wonderful meal. Everyone enjoyed themselves. Crystal brought Her daughter Nylah who was handled by just about everyone. Alyssa came later because she was working. She is 15 weeks along. Recently, her sister Hesther did an ultrasound on her. They were unable to tell the sex of her baby but Alyssa went for a 4D ultrasound to determine this.  The results are in. She will have a boy.  Everyone is excited. 

Heather doing an ultrasound on her older sister Alyssa

I met two friends, Annemarie and Lynnette in Cambria, on the coast who were getting their continuing education units (CEU's) in psychology. I'm a social worker and I have gone inactive. I don't think I'll be working again,  but you never know, so I pay an inactive fee in case I change my mind and go to get my CEU's.  So we stayed at  Lynne's sister's home on the coast. How lovely!  It was roomy and comfortable.  Her sister Lori was a kind and a very down to earth person. She stated it well when we were leaving "It feels like we've known each other for years."   Yes, it did feel that way.  And my friend Lynette said, "We meshed."

Lori and Lynette

Annemarie, Me and Lynette

We could see whales from the house. I saw air being forced out of their blowholes, which pushed air, gases, etc. making a great show of what we were seeing, though I missed every time when they leapt out of the water.  So fun!   And, we also drove up the coast and saw mothers and their pups elephant seals molting before heading further north.  I thought they were huge, but the adult males can get up to 3,000 pounds. 

Elephant Seals Molting and Lounging

We went to two nice restaurants- One in town called Robin's. I have been there two other times before. They have vegan and vegetarian choices which were very nice,  the food was all around excellent.  I needed to get out of the restaurant because I was having a hot flash.  Lynette also come out. They had a slanted walkway and when I came down it, I took too sharp of a left turn and fell on the plants. Lynette was helping me get up, but quite a few people saw this and ran up to help. There is no way of handling this gracefully but to accept their help and attempt to walk like I didn't go through this s. 

The following night we are at Moonstone Beach Bar and Grill. We sat on the patio which had a glass guard to block some of the wind.  They had outdoor heaters and lap blankets to keep you cozy if you wanted them. The whales were getting active while we were there and people from inside the restaurant came out to watch them play. The food was excellent. I had salmon which was very moist and tender. 

There is a very nice wine tasting room that actually offers wines from different wineries and also has nice paraphernalia related to wine drinking there. Very nice!  It is called Fermentations. So the wine was not overly expensive and handling and shipping I believe she said runs $14.50 for each shipment plus the cost of three bottles of wine three times a year, or you can come to get them, taste and change them if you prefer a different one.  There is a 20% discount even for anything in the store or online.  So I did join. When I was there in previous times, I ended up buying items in the store and wine. 

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Last Saturday six of us including my daughter Shelley, my friend Janet and my friend Barbara along with Barbara's friends Doris and Cindy went on a tour of the Tejon Ranch Conservancy. It was wonderful and if you ever get a chance to do this,  I recommend it. Beautiful wild flowers, deer, a horned lizard, burrowing ground owls and many other  birds you don't always see including the California Condor, but it was flying too far away to get a good view. 

My daughter Shelley

Me and Barbara

My friend Janet

Our Group - Doris, Cindy, Shelley, Barbara, Janet and Me

Our Tour Guide Scot holding a Horned Lizard

We made a stop for our picnic lunch. We had so much food, we could have fed six more people.  We did give a lot to our tour guide. 

When I got home from this, I was done in and went to bed. It was soon after this that I became quite ill and found out that three others in our van had the same symptoms. I don't know how our tour guide came through all this. One went to urgent care and ended up on antibiotics.  Her doctor thought she was getting pneumonia. My friend Janet and daughter Shelley both sounded like me and were home bound. 

I called my friends Annemarie and Lynette and found they had been sick too.   So  I caught it there and then passed it on!  Sorry guys!  It sure was contagious!  I understand this bug can go from a day to six weeks!  What a bad one! 

I felt fair enough to meet with my Red Hat girls at The Ivy. We were not impressed. Food was too salty, some felt their dishes were too bland and I got the French Onion Soup and I felt it tasted too concentrated. I also got a plate of Tapas, but they didn't have the stuffed figs and it was very mediocre.  Two of our friends had husbands who have been ill. We were all trying to be supports for them. They had been through a lot. My daughter Shelley was still sick and had to miss our dinner. 

I met my friend Jeanne at Mama Roomba. They have excellent food. We ordered several dishes, but it was the vegetable soup that seemed to be what my body was craving.  She works part time as a hospice nurse. She loves the company she works for and the extra money is helping her to make some changes on her home.  Her son and his family moved out having gotten their own home.  I wouldn't really want to share my home with four more people including two children.  I think about going down the hall in my underwear and I think, ummm, no. I'd always be on my guard. 

Billy's and Meagan's sons are very loving to each other.  And her is a  picture of Nylah showing that she is not always happy.

Conner and Kason

Nylah

So, I am recovering.  Not completely up to par but a huge improvement.  I did miss my art class because I was sick, but I drew rocks in the stream.    I tried to show the water going over the rocks, the wicking of the moisture above the water line and the white water when it got to the other side of the rocks. This is it.  I think it needs more value changes.

I am baking my Asparagus Quiche and putting together the fruit salad to take to Vicki.  I hope you are feeling well and I will see you next week.                      Rachel

I have decided to post last week and this week in one post which I will do this Sunday. I need to allow my body to heal. I have done some amazing things, but I got a bug from someone and I know at least one of my friends also go it. See you next Sunday.      Rachel

I cannot post this week!  I don't feel well. I will on next week.           Rachel