"One thing at a time"

Nothing is more desperately helpless than being forced to acknowledge that there is nothing you can do to avoid what is about to happen. Thud, crash, a jolt, a moment of fear that the airbag is about to hit your face....etc etc.... and of course the sad and pleading look in that eyes of the poor animal who had just taken the last leap. I only saw one eye as my car squrely hit the deer. No big deal, I know, especially where I live, where we are surrounded by the families of deer. Funny thing is that about 30 minutes after my incident, a pack of 5 or 6 were spotted right down the street several houses away in the neighborhood. Having funeral? Or figuring out the family court issue..... I did see a bambino.... (by the way, these photos were taken in my backyard a few months ago) I had a car behind me that I could not slam my breaks. I was really afraid to be rear ended. But I slowed down enough before I hit the deer head on. The impact was felt but the airbag did not deploy. My son was...

Well, well, after 200, 000, this CRV still keeps going strong. The most we have had to put into so far was replacing the radiator 4 years ago which cost us $400 or so. I remember the day we brought this car home after spending all day at the dealership. It was 1997, mid August, when our baby was not even three months old. It is a bit nostalgic to look back those days. I can almost hear the clicking noise of he baby car seat being locked in place. The car grew old with us and also with our son. We, the adults are 13 years older and gained a few pounds and inches here and there along with additions of wrinkles and grays. The car has a few dents on the exterior and chocolate stains in the interior roof. (Erik and his buddies at age 4 watched hot fudge splatter on the ceiling when they all flicked the spoons together. ) My husband was in graduate school and we considered this CRV a major luxury those days. It really was! It gave us an incredible comfort when we traveled far and wide....

I began writing a few times these last few weeks and each time, I somehow became entangled with other concerns. I just did not seem to have the inspiration long enough to carry me through one title. Now, this sounds terribly familiar. I went through a few years where I had an inspiration for oil painting. I am afraid it has been almost two years since I painted anything worth hanging on my wall. I made a few small scale attempts but neither of them panned out. Well, most recent desperate attempt to manage a brush and paint ended with a newly repainted office in my house, solidly painted in olive green. My inspiration has left me. Then I realized that when my mind is immersed in certain project such as writing on relatively complex nursing or medical issues, my artistic element retrieves to the background. It is like the word inspiration does not belong to my dictionary anymore. Today, I spent 8 hours staring at lines and lines of Japanese characters that are arranged in stacked row...

Wasting time is a crime, so I think, but is it? I guess the answer depends on what you define as a waste of time is. I have such a weakness in feeling that others waste my time in certain circumstances. One such situation occurred when my huband and I attempted to order a few 99 cent/a dollar specials on the menu at the well known burger establishment. I was not willing to allow someone to waste my time or our time that I was willing to pay a few extra bucks. Is it the problem with our common sense issue or lesson on flexibility or education on how to deal with customers or ??? It was such a small incident that does not deserve my time but ironically, I am now intentionally choosing to let it waste my time! Because, all we needed was just a bit of snack while on the road with only another 3 hours to get home, we asked the attendant that we wanted to order two orders of 1 dollar burgers and two orders of 1 dollar french fries. The young lady replied while looking over the area french ...

I am not born to be a writer. But I will continue my simple journey of "expressing as I go" through this blog in 2010. Happy New Year. My family just returned early this morning from a 3700 mile road trip passing through 14-15 states on the south and the east coast of one of the largest continent on the globe. Comparing with the air travel we have done going to Japan or flying to Italy, the miles we traveled may not appear as extensive. But for our family history of road trip, this was by far the longest and most challenging one. We three of us were together for hours on end within the space of our car for hours and days. We rejoiced together when we approached our destination for each day during out rip, we mourned together so to speak as we departed from our treasured friends and families knowing it would be a long time before our reunion can be realized again. We were excited when we found "a cool place to stop" along the way such as Hershey Chocolate World. B...

I felt that it was appropriate to post this video here since not all my friends and relatives are on another popular community website. We hope that you will enjoy this piece, Bring the Torch Jeannette Isabella arranged with Rustles of Spring by Sinding.  No matter where you are and under what circumstance you find yourself in this year, may the blessing and the unchanging love from above embrace your entire family.  We wish you and your family Merry Christmas.  P.S Words can not explain what music does to my soul/spirit/heart or whatever it is that is created within me. Music simply uplifts me when I need a lifting, infuses me with new energy when I need the simple tug to keep going,  fills me with the simplest but precious joy and soothes my soul with pure melody that is almost heavenly.  I feel quite limited with my own vocabulary to describe just what I feel when I have the opportunity to listen to those musicians who performs with such dedication. I never personally achieved that ...

I can think of a friend after friend who had a significant loss in recent years or recent months. Our Holiday can be a time that brings back the warmest memories of all the special moments, but at the same time, our Holidays can bring back the most painful or sorrowful thoughts to us. The reminder of the definite absence of your loved ones are never felt deeper than the time of the holiday season. I think of my dear friend in Japan who lost her first born to a condition not consistent with life some years ago. Then, I remember the tough fight fought by a sweet friend who succumbed to an aggressive cancer a month before Christmas only a few years ago. Or another family mourn the death of their youngest one who perished unexpectedly leaving the legacy that is irreplaceable. Humanly speaking,  it is very hard to imagine what would possess anyone, even God to send his only son to die for others.  Because we know the pain of the loss human heart feels, it is unbearable to imagin...