a p r i l . 2 0 2 6

the showers of April have started!

     here in Cali it's raining but on the Space Coast it was a great day for a moon launch of Artemis II! 

     the roses were blooming, enough to bring in the house. 

     for Easter, neither of us had energy to cook, so we enjoyed a country baked ham, their Mac & cheese and green beans, and we baked yams.  I also made the cream cheese apple cake that was so good at the last holiday. 

    

     before we were done with dinner, cousin Phil texted to let me know that Uncle Don had joined Aunt Sylvia the day before.  I passed along the sad news to the west coast family.  over the next few days I talked with Denali for her birthday,  Cheryl to express our condolences and Grant to talk about possibly attending services as representatives of Sylvia's sisters' families.  

     ten days after they left earth, the Artemis crew safely landed back on earth!  another one for the history books! 

     after spending months following a strict low calorie diet, eliminating alcohol and added sugar, plus adding easy low impact exercise, I still showed zero weight loss since my surgery 2 years ago.  SO frustrating!!  in a face to face visit with my oncologist I expressed all of my concerns, and she determined she wanted me on a whole food plant based diet.  I went home and started planning all the things I would need to make that happen.  I really want to be able to wear a lovely mother of the bride dress in September. 

     I had an opportunity to get tickets for us to see the legendary Frank Oz in an interview with another legend, Pete Docter in conjunction with the Disney Museum!  Craig fell ill again the day before this event and had to be admitted to the hospital again.  since I couldn't be useful there, I used one of the tickets to attend the event.  photography was forbidden but I'll keep the memories forever!  I wore a Muppets tee shirt that received many comments and compliments from the crowd. 

     since my mobility is not awesome and I run out of steam pretty quickly, I went to the medical supply store and bought a rolling walker with a seat.  this particular event wasn't at the museum, but was instead at the ILM Theater at another part of the Presidio campus, a 5 minute car ride away.  it was still a long walk from the parking garage to the theater doors, so I was glad I had the walker!  as we were waiting outside for the doors to open, one of the ushers asked if anyone needed special attention and I was lucky enough to be in that group to go inside early.  I don't do well in direct or heavy sunlight and warmth. 

     I sat in the front row with another handicapped person and we were less than fifteen feet away from Mr. Oz!  Mr. Docter had a direct line of sight me, so I was very attentive and responsive those whole time. when it was over and they were walking out, they was less than four feet away from me!!  I capped off the afternoon by spending a couple of hours strolling through the museum exhibits.  there was some kind of event on the lawn with food tents and a bandstand, so the crowds attending that made parking a little challenging. 

     I have been to the museum before, so I've seen many of the permanent exhibits.  this one I love especially because I think it was Mama's favorite Disney movie, which came out when she was seven.  she bought the music book shown at the top and learned and played all the music from it to us as kids growing up.  I still have this book in the collection I got when I inherited the piano on behalf of Joyce. 

     the winter olympics that happened the year I was born in the state where I ended up living most of my life! 

     this one news illustration is one of many that were published when he passed away.   as you leave the exhibit area, there are more uplifting images and quotes from people who worked with him to raise your spirits again. 

     for admin professionals day my team got me a beautiful bouquet of flowers, as well as $50 for a food delivery service!  a local golf event company gave admins a free afternoon party where we could tour their facility, nosh on some good food, drink some no-jitos (mojitos with no rum) and play a little golf!  it was challenging but fun to get a club in my hands again.  I did ache in every bone in my body by the time I got home though. 

     at the last weekend of the month I attended two theater related activities.   the Celebration of Life for my English teacher and fellow thespian Mr. T was held in Los Gatos.  after the lovely service that included several musical moments and a spirited eulogy by his nephew, we gathered in the church's reception hall where a couple hundred of us enjoyed good food and fellowship.  I saw SO many theater friends that I miss so much!  

     back at home on Sunday, I attended a local production of Treasure Island.  in this version the character of Jim Hawkins is a teen girl, so the story line has all the tension of her being pigeon-holed for her sex and she showing them she had no limits!  it was also interspersed with musical interludes of both traditional sea shanty music, and popular pirate music of today!  it was quite enjoyable.