Monday, October 22, 2007

Back to Normal with a Twist

I'm now fully recovered from that nasty bug I brought home. Just when I'm ready to get back into a blog routine I'm hit with a move. These beautiful shots were views from my sick bed and now I must bid these hills farewell. Dave got a great job near our new home just yesterday and will start Nov 5. I will be moving THIS weekend and getting settled in before he starts.

We do have a possible nibble on my current home but it's a low bid and they have not been through the house yet. I bought this home 9yrs ago on my own as a single mom so it will be very sad to leave. Hopefully they come to see it before we move or the moving chaos could kill the whole deal. I need to hide the fact that our whole block has lost water for a few days due to a burst pipe...Ewww! Can we say added STRESS!


Deep breaths and calm thoughts are needed as I prepare to say goodbye to my TK. 2 1/2 hours is not bad but our weekly visits will be no more. :(
I must cancel my DSL service on Friday and revert to mountain life blogging via dial-up in 7-10 days. My new email will be tammyndavid@att.net (I hope) the gal spoke terrible English and with my slur you never know. I'm an emotional basket case even though I want this change. I just did not think it would happen so fast. See you all soon!

Monday, October 15, 2007

Friendships Through New England

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I have known Sherrill since I was seventeen and together we took the road trip of a lifetime. A real Thelma and Louise without the hunk or ending. I'm still sick but I'm very bored so I'll be brief. We flew into Portland, Maine on the red eye from San Francisco and rented a car that took us down the coast to Wells ( just pass Kennebunk). We then headed north to the White Mountains in New Hampshire where we had a time share in Bartlett called The Attitash Resort. It was the closest we could get to Vermont. Red eye's really stink if you can't sleep sitting up, just ask Sherrill. I had my drugs so I was a tad better off than she was. We had a stop over in New York but Jet Blue had a wheelchair waiting at every gate to help us. We really only had 4 days to accomplish our journey not including the last day of leaving, layovers and airplane stuff.

My ALS is very touchy with temperatures so I call this my "God trip" because the leaves were turning and we had sunny days in the 75-80 degree range...WOW! We drove the second and third day back and forth to see Pam in Vermont (2-3hrs from resort). I'm not one to stop and eat when on a schedule so poor Sherrill was handed a power bar whenever she got hungry. She said traveling with me is a great diet. She also risked her life in traffic to capture some of these shots. My camera was broken and I couldn't just jump out and get the shot. Sherrill was great!

We made a great team and she had to really carry most of the load but it was sooooo worth it! After 846 miles of driving we are now official "leaf peepers." Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont are AWESOME in the fall. We took different roads every day and stayed off hwys except one night. The covered bridges, rivers, lakes and foliage were stunning!



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This trip was a mission to meet Pam and she was everything I had been drawn to and more. We were fascinated by the differences and similarities of our illness. Her caregiver was a spunky, funny and caring gal. I even brought home a few helpful tips and imparted a few. Seeing someone you already love is a surreal experience and was so rewarding. When I showed up with the Batman and Robin costumes she was a great sport. She is a heck of a woman and my rock.

Meeting Nancy was the cherry on top of my journey. Sherrill and I met Nancy and Stu on our last night at "the best" Italian restaurant in NH. What a kick in the pants she was. Warm,outspoken, funny and spunky. We acted like we were sisters and even looked alike. Sherrill was just thrilled to get a real meal. lol Sherrill was moved and inspired by these women too and really enjoyed the trip.

Between a rigorous trip, germy airplanes and no sleep going home I got really sick. I'm not getting better so I'm off to the docs. I hope these pictures give you a window into my trip. It was this times ten. :) In my sidebar is a picture of Pam and I, please hit "click here" because when you watch the video you help ALS research. Thanks!

Thursday, October 11, 2007

Hit Upside the Head

Such beautiful welcome back comments, thank you! I've been hit with an airplane/jetlag bug and it hit hard. I had no idea my body would stiffen into spasms with fever until it happened. My body is too weak to cough hard so rest and drugs are needed. I promise to come say hi and share my trip the minute I recover. The pictures have arrived! :(

Tuesday, October 09, 2007

Writer's Island - Renewal

I'm back from New England but my pictures are still coming so I'll wait to share my amazing journey. I've recovered from my jet lag and spent a day with my guy who I REALLY missed. My Tivo is smoking from trying to catch up but I feel renewed and relaxed. I've stolen pictures from Pam and Nancy to give you a taste of my life changing trip. Knowing it is Tuesday on "Writer's Island" I'm sharing these beautiful lyrics.

When Fall Comes To New England
Words And Music By:
Cheryl Wheeler
When fall comes to new england
The sun slants in so fine
And the air's so clear
You can almost hear the grapes grow on the vine

The nights are sharp with starlight
And the days are cool and clean
And in the blue sky overhead
The northern geese fly south instead
And leaves are Irish Setter red
When fall comes to New England

When fall comes to New England
And the wind blows off the sea
Swallows fly in a perfect sky
And the world was meant to be

When the acorns line the walkways
Then winter can't be far
From yellow leaves a blue jay calls
Grandmothers Walk Out In Their Shawl
And Chipmunks Run The Old Stone Walls
When fall comes to New England

The frost is on the pumpkin
The squash is off the vine
And winter warnings race across the sky
The squirrels are on to something
And they're working overtime
The foxes blink and stare and so do I

'Cause when fall comes to New England
Oh I can't turn away
From fading light on flying wings
And late good-byes a robin sings
And then another thousand things
When fall comes to New England

When fall comes to New England



I can't catch up on 175 blogline alerts but I missed you guys!


Pam and I chatting in her yard in Vermont.


The Dynamic Duo, Batman & Robin. She wrote about our wonderful visit here http://capeandtights.blogspot.com/2007/10/batman-and-robin.html

Nancy and I celebrated our 46th birthday's together. She got her sweet hubby Stu to take her to New Hampshire for her birthday from New York so we could meet.