Louisiana writes to her newest penfriend in Florida, Eddie Greene, after he has written her a letter. She is trying to get her emails caught up prior to leaving for the hospital tomorrow, where she will then have back surgery on Wednesday.
Monday, February 21, 2005, 3:11 p.m., C.S.T. (WHY do I insist on trying to put JANUARY instead of FEBruary?? Guess I must be gettin' old....LOL)~
Dear Eddie~
Hey there, my friend in the Sunshine State! Thank you for writing; but do you mind sharing some of that lovely Florida weather with us here in Music City U.S.A.? It's a nasty, raw, rainy day here, really miserable weather! It's a day more suited for DUCKS than humans! LOL
Thanks for your prayers, and thanks for your encouragement. I will take your words (and prayers) into light when I leave for the hospital tomorrow and before I go to surgery. I am still scared (that is natural), but I know that a lot of people are praying for me, so I shouldn't really worry, hunh?? I am glad that things are going well for you guys; things are going well here, but I will soon be having my surgery, and my husband, Bill, and my one daughter, Ronee', will be leaving on a jet plane tomorrow; Ronee' is going to Hollywood, California, to tape a segment for the television tv show, "America's Most Talented Kids", on PAX; and it will be shown sometime during the summer. I pray (and hope) that Ronee' does well; but even if she DOESN'T win, I AM proud of her for making it this far, and I pray that something happens with her music career; she just loves performing (and singing) so much!
After I get home from the hospital (that is, as soon as I am well enough), I will be sending two more of my children on an airplane: my son Johnny and his older sister, my daughter Barbara are going to spend a week and a half with our friend, Sikik Eegeesiak, who lives waaaaaaaaaay up in the Arctic Circle, in the northernmost town of Barrow, Alaska. This is going to prove to be a very rewarding, eye-opening (not to mention, very educational!) experience for both Johnny and Barbara, and both are getting excited at the thought of going to Alaska. Johnny is looking forward to his second trip there (he went last year on a cruise with Bill, Ronee', and myself), and Barbara has never been; so you can imagine just how excited she is! I shall miss both Johnny and Barbara horribly; but I know that Johnny is in very capable hands; Barbara is very good with her little brother, and she knows how to handle any medical emergency that may happen. If not, she can always get in contact with me.
In lieu of your questions concerning cruises, yes, we have been on one cruise in our lifetime: last year. We went to Alaska on the Disney Cruise Lines, and we had a ball. We went for two glorious and fun-filled weeks, and we did--and saw--so much in a spate of two weeks it STILL makes us tired whenever we think of all we did! LOL We saw many of the Disney characters on board our ship, and we ate like kings. We did very many activities on the ship including audience-participation games, going on the Internet, looking at the ocean blue and looking at the gulls flying about our boat, watching the fish and dolphins in the water, enjoying the feel of the cool breezes on our faces as we stood at the dock of the boat, seeing some wonderful Las-Vegas style shows tailor-made for families, and so much more! But our cruise threatened to start on a bad note, as Bill suffered an asthmatic attack upon getting to our destination in Sitka, and he ended up being in the hospital for a few days; but once he was out, we continued our cruise, and we stayed with our friends in Anchorage, Jenna and Michael; and we had a wonderful visit. We then continued on our sailing adventure after we left Jenna and Michael's, and we saw and did many more things as our boat sailed around the Alaska coastline, and then back to San Francisco. We then went to the San Francisco International Airport, where we then jetted our way back to Nashville, Tennessee, our home base. The weather was nice some days, rainy or snowy on others, and we were lucky enough to capture some of Alaska's majestic splendor and enjoy her abundance of wildlife. We saw wolves, foxes, moose, bears (brown and black mostly; we also saw a few polar bears at the Anchorage Zoo), birds by the flock, caribou, and reindeer; and we even went to an Inuit festival, where we saw Inuit-style games and listened to Native Alaskan music. It was very interesting, and we had ourselves a wonderful time! We even saw some spectacular auroral displays, and my daughter, Ronee', who is aurora-crazy, was in awe of the spectacular light display in the nighttime sky. We will never forget Alaska as long as we live, and we are already saving up for a return trip--only THIS time, I am taking the ENTIRE brood to Alaska! Yes, it WILL be very expensive, but in the long run, it will be worth every penny! :)
I would like to go on a cruise to Mexico or the Grand Caymans, but before we do, we would like to see Alaska again, this time as a family. Cruising is fun, and it provides a lifetime of pleasant memories that will never be forgotten! :) I can't afford a cruise every year as you can, it must be fun to be able to go on a cruise once or twice a year! (I am a little jealous here...GRRR!! LOL)
Now to change the subject, my second book is a collection of stories as written by myself and some of my fellow nurses, about some of the things we have experienced as nurses. My third book (which is still in the planning and developing stages at this writing) will be a sequel to my first one, "A Family Made Out of Rainbows and Miracles"; of course, that one is to be nonfiction as well. I may also do a children's book about international adoption down the road. So many ideas running through my head; my muse has been a very busy thing lately! LOL I hope you enjoy the book I am sending you, and I hope you enjoy what I had to say in my book. I really enjoyed writing it, and it was a lifelong dream of mine, to be an author.
I have to finish packing for my going into the hospital; I will write more later, maybe while I am still in (just as soon as I am feeling stronger and more like myself; it may take about a week--or even longer than that!--before you hear from me, but I WILL write back just as soon as I am able to!). So until then, you take care, give your kids (((HUGS))) and XXXX's from me, and God bless you and Minka! Write when you can; again, thanks for all the prayers and encouraging words you have sent my way! They will be much appreciated in more ways than you will ever know!
(((HUGS))) and much love, your friend in Tennessee, Louisiana. :)
*author's note...I am dreaming again; I want to go on an Alaskan Cruise so bad I can't stand it! Maybe next year will be our year when Karla and I can go to Alaska...*SIGHHHHHHHHHHHH*
Note: Since my husband's cancer surgery 4/25/05, this book content has been integrated into the public speaking content for audiences interested in a sassy approach to personal and/or community awareness events. Another chapbook on intimate love poet
Monday, February 21, 2005, 3:11 p.m., C.S.T. (WHY do I insist on trying to put JANUARY instead of FEBruary?? Guess I must be gettin' old....LOL)~
