Ships Ahoy! Part 2

In my last post I mentioned that I took two trips on the water. Here is my account of my 2nd trip – sailing on my co-worker’s boat from near Gibson Island, Maryland out onto the Chesapeake Bay.

It was a long awaited trip from over two years ago. The group of us works closely together in our division to see that things run smoothly, to offer assistance to each other, to help shape our departments and grow them, to help each other solve problems and face challenges great and small. We arrived at the Potapskut Sailing Association (PSA) at 1:30pm where Marcea &Ken’s boat Sophie is moored. PSA has an interesting past that goes back to 1938.

The interesting history of the PSA from their website:
“Five Chesapeake sailors sat on a porch drinking in the calm and color of the fading day and sipping their favorite elixir of Rye and Water. Their sailboats swung listlessly on moorings in Wall Cove.

It makes little difference now which one of the five first voiced the suggestion, for it had been in the mind of each for some time...the idea of a True Sailing Association, for skippers only, was spontaneously accepted. They walked to their cars in the deepening twilight with the mutual agreement that each would discuss the formation of a "Sailing Association" with the owners of the other sailboats then moored in Wall Cove, and with a call to all those interested in a meeting as soon as possible.

On October 10, 1938, thirteen men signed the Articles of Association. Our Sailing Association was born...The name of the new Association proceeded along the usual course, with many suggestions, until we became aware that the root or derivation of the name of the river that splashed against the pile of rocks at the mouth of Rock Creek, came from an Indian word "Potapskut", meaning "at the jutting out of the white rocks".

We walked our way down the dock to the lovely sailboat. I made sure to have my seasickness patch on and an additional anti-motion sickness pill swallowed before our drive down past Baltimore towards the water. The sky was so momentously blue. It was 86 degrees – which is a minor miracle in Maryland in August – with a light wind. It just couldn’t get any better a day in August for such an adventure.

We boarded the boat and off we went sailing away to the Chesapeake Bay. The water had some minor movement, but it was more than easy to deal with. I never got sea sick once on that boat. There is a special seat at the very front (bow)of the boat sitting almost all the way over the water. It was really nice to sit there. A Titanic “king of the world” spot. Saw all of the action so to speak. It was very relaxing. We took turns riding on the seat at the bow. Then when we picked up some wind in those sails the fun really started.

When the boat leans to one side it is called listing. This occurs often if you have some wind in your sails. I set myself down on the listing side and put my legs over the edge of the boat. That’s when I started getting a little wet. It was very refreshing. Soon my co-workers were joining me. The captain of our boat decided to play a little trick on one of my co-workers. He waited until this co-worker got down and put his feet over the edge to let the boat list over even more – the implication that this had caused the boat to list more by adding his weight to that side. We laughed and laughed as the water grabbed our feet them let go in splashing waves.

I will recall it always – the water sparkling like diamonds, the white sails flying against a deep blue sky, the wind taking the edge off of the heat from the bright sun, and the cooling waves splashing me while sitting with good people who aren’t afraid to laugh like children in delight. It was a day of good fortune.

I can only be grateful for a generous co-worker and her family to share something so wonderful with us. Thanks Marcea & Ken

Ships Ahoy! Part 1

In the last two weeks I have had the opportunity to go on two fun trips. The first trip was a chartered fishing trip from Tilghman Island, Maryland on the Chesapeake Bay. The second a sailing trip on a co-workers sail boat from near Gibson Island, Maryland on the Chesapeake Bay. The two trips could not have been more different if someone had planned it that way!

Our first trip started on Friday evening at Harrison’s Chesapeake House. It is an “inn” for fishermen awaiting their early morning push offs at the dock for their chartered fishing boat trips. Apparently fishermen do not require the most lavish overnight accommodations. However, this fisherwoman does and it was a challenge. I knew that the “inn” had rough accommodations, and we prepared ourselves for this, but our last trip was in October when the air conditioning was not required.

My room was hotter than the seventh level of hell. I thought that by turning the air conditioning on at the start of dinner time – 6p- on at full blast that by the time we were done eating, laughing, talking, drinking, and doing karaoke-around11p - we would have nice cool rooms. Apparently five hours was not nearly enough time to cool down my room. It was now only as hot as the third level of hell. Sweat was just pouring off of me. I tried a variation of locations on the bed in an attempt to get the most air conditioning near my skin as was possible. It was just never enough. I was concerned about possibly becoming sea sick (although I had no problems the last time) so I got a medicine patch for behind my ear but I was so sweaty it wouldn’t stick. I had to use band-aids to keep it in place. I had no original intention to shower becausethe water smells like rotten eggs, but sweating all night did not give me a choice. My shower gel did counter act the rotten egg smell, so that was good. I brushed my teeth with bottled water. I couldn’t stand the thought of that taste in my mouth.

On a real positive note - one really great thing about Harrisons is their food – their buffets. Friday evening we had a seafood buffet with snow crab, shrimp, calamari,oysters, and it included other food items like macaroni & cheese,vegetables, and prime rib. Always delicious! Their horseradish was divine on the prime rib. I also got anon-alcoholic pina colada and man was that good!! I loved it. Dessert was a tropical bread pudding. It sounds bizarre but it was additively delicious.

We woke up at 5:30 am. Anyone who really knows me understands how challenging this is for me. I cannot truly function that earl yin the morning at all. Plus add in the sweating and lack of sleep it was a miracle that I dragged myself to the restaurant for a light breakfast; just in case I was to get nauseated and (fill in the blanks)… We boarded the biggest boat at the dock. Captain Buddy is a well-known local personality and he was taking us out personally. His boat is 60 feet long and 20 feet wide. We boarded around 6:30a. Immediately we could see that this trip was going to be a bit different from the last one. On the boat was a barrel of fish. Never thought I’d see a barrel of fish- ever, anywhere. I kept thinking of the saying, “Like shooting fish in a barrel.” These were real live swimming around in the water fish. They were going to be bait. Oh man. Apparently Rock fish in August in Maryland are downing spot fish. They are on the hunt for them. So, that it what we had to use for bait. Sigh. As we made our way to our first fishing location all was well with me and any possible sea sickness. It didn’t last long. My thanks to God above and all other heavenly bodies that I had that medicine patch on, other wise I would have been chucking my guts all day long.

We got to our first fishing location. They baited our rods, we cast our lines, and the second I looked down into the churning water, my stomach almost fully rebelled. I handed off my rod immediately and sat down on one of the outside couches. I basically stayed there, unless I was braving moving around for a shot on my camera. The Chesapeake Bay was so choppy there were white capped waves – all of the men handling our trip agreed that it is rare for a day with the water so dramatic. The waves were tossing our big boat to and fro. There were much smaller boats out there and I wondered how they didn’t capsize.

We were out from 6:30a to 12:30p. In six hours combined our boat of eight people caught 17 fish. A great haul! There were other unfortunate boats with upwards of 15 people on them who only caught 4 fish. I reeled in one fish between my bouts of nausea. A couple of times I was offered a snack to help settle my stomach. I declined the food with the philosophy that I would rather be empty than emptying.

U2 360 Tour North American Tour II Great - Another Lesson Learned

On November 17, 2009 I went on Ticketmaster.com and purchased my 4 allotted presale tickets due me as a paid member of U2.com. At the time, the closest U2 was going to come to Taneytown was Philadelphia, PA - a 2.5 hour drive. The planned wonderful night was July 12, 2010. I immediately purchased a night at a hotel and alerted my best friend Jamie that we were going to have another chance to enjoy the U2 360 Tour - our first time was September 30, 2009 down in Charlottesville, VA.

We got the second best seats in the stadium. U2 sells many levels of tickets. The three levels of tickets remotely in my realm of affording are Premium at about $200, Good at about $100 and nose bleed or general admission (standing on the field) at about $60. Jamie and I had the good tickets for our 2009 concert. We were surprised and saddened by the concert attendees in our section who didn't seem to enjoy the concert the way we were. We were thinking that we were in the "old people" section. We were the only people yelling, singing, jumping up and down, dancing, and generally losing ourselves in U2 and throwing ourselves into the music with abandon. At one point we saw the crowd in front of the stage just enthralled by U2 and enjoying them the way we were off in the stand in our seats. We promised that we would never miss the opportunity to be in that crowd should another opportunity present itself.

So, the opportunity presents itself and I buy 4 general admission tickets and wait for the 8 months to go by to my next chance to enjoy U2. Less than a month before the concert Bono got hurt pretty bad preparing for the Salt Lake City concert. The news was sad, Bono had severe pain with partial paralysis from a severe compression of the sciatic nerve caused by a serious tear in a ligament and a herniated disk. He had to have emergency surgery in Germany. The entire North American tour was postponed to 2011.

The postponed date was July 14, 2011. I immediately purchased new hotel reservations and dealt with the disappointment. The friends coming from out of town to enjoy the concert still came for their 2010 visit as many of our other tickets and reservations were not refundable like the hotel, the tickets to see an exhibit on Cleopatra, tour bus tickets etc...

I have been counting down the days since January 1, 2011 for the concert. I actually had a hard time finding people to attend the concert with me. Luckily some co-workers were happy to attend with me about 3 months before the concert.

We drove up to Philadelphia and enjoyed an authentic cheese steak sandwich at Jim's (an hour wait), then checked into the new hotel chain called Aloft. Very modern decor and we loved it. We relaxed for about two hours before heading off to the concert at 4:45 PM. I was seriously excited. After waiting in the long line we got into the stadium and were like 5 people/rows from the front of the outer stage. This is where the happiness of my experience fell apart.

I thought I was young enough for this situation. I thought I was a U2 super fan. I was TOTALLY WRONG. Standing from 5 PM to 12 Midnight was very painful. Being pinned in that throng of people was challenging in a feeling crushed, claustrophobic kinda of way. People were drinking beer like it was the last night that beer was available on Earth. People were smoking both legal things and illegal things (this was not a Grateful Dead Concert). People were arguing, pushing and eking their way into fights right in front of me. One guy was talking to hear himself talk about how many of the U2 360 tour concerts he's seen and it sounded kinda impossible unless he was wealthy and this was his whole life. The group to my right kept having friends come and join them as they showed up much later than the rest of us. I survived being there through the opening act - Interpol - who we could not understand and every song sounded the same. The count down to U2 started and I couldn't see the stage because the guy in front of me was over six feet tall and the guy in front of him was over six foot four.

I lost it. I turned around and started pushing my way out of there. I almost knocked one person down. I was completely freaked out and the more people I had to push my way through the more panicked I got. It was bad. I kept thinking about something going wrong and having no way to escape. I also thought about what if I have to go to bathroom?!!!? When U2 came on stage this crowd of people was going to press on each other and go crazy. I am very glad we got out of there. From the back of the crowd I could see better, dance, sing, yell, clap and just generally have room to breathe. So, I really belong in the old people section, but I act like I am on the field.

So, once in the back of the field all was well. U2 came on and I was in nirvana. They played songs that I never thought to hear in concert. I felt the music. I moved with the music. I sang the words and yelled my happiness to the world.

Here is the link to my concert...www.u2.com/tour/index/date/44/97

Of course I am looking forward to the next album and the next concert tour so that I can buy those expensive Premium tickets and enjoy the concert from beginning to end.

On the Road Again...

Today we journeyed toward a lovely destination. Not a particular physical place, but a space inside. The catalyst for this journey was called Time Out for Women. My mom and I have been planning this trip since January 1, 2009.Time Out for Women (TOFW) is a tour of sorts. An inspirational tour/program sponsored by a branch of Deseret Book and affiliated with Latter-Day Saints. My mom and I attended the event in Richmond, Virginia. Richmond is generally a three and a half hour ride from our home. Here is a link to their website http://deseretbook.com/time-out/

Looking at the actual trip down, I think of a quote by Booker T. Washington. He was an American educator, orator, author and the dominant leader of the nation's African American community from the 1890s to his death. He was born into slavery and freed by the Civil War in 1865, he led the new Tuskegee Institute, then a teachers' college for blacks. He said, “Nothing ever comes to one, that is worth having, except as a result of hard work.” In a more modern interpretation I have heard the adage "Nothing worth having comes easy."Since my eleven year old little green Ford car is literally limping on its 198,000 miles and my Mom's Kia is in desperate need of new brakes we asked around to see if anyone else was heading down that way for the event. Luckily, a lovely lady from our congregation at church was in need of traveling companions and was willing to drive us in her van. Of course in strict adherence to my "Preparation" Code of Ethics the trip was planning to the last detail and yet again my plans were thwarted. I am in way too good of a mood to contribute it to the world and universe combining against me, but...sometimes I get that niggling in the back of my mind, mmmm, it could be (smile) ever since I fell in love with the X-Files I have always loved a good conspiracy, but I divert...sincerest apologies.Our well planned 3.5 hour journey lasted a patience testing 6 hours. At one point it almost took an entire hour to drive five measly miles. Just five. No exaggerating (which I admit to enjoying on an occasion or two). Again I was foiled by Washington D.C. traffic. It never fails. And yet time and again, I am surprised and somewhat annoyed.

Blessedly, my traveling companions saw the humor of our situation and took it as it came. The lovely lady who drove was ever patient in the daunting traffic. It made the trip more bearable. The magical kingdom of Leesburg did not wield any power on this trip and we escaped unscathed of such detours.Our plans included staying at a remarkable and historic hotel in downtown Richmond called the Linden Row Inn. Originally built in the 1840s, Linden Row Inn is a 70-room hotel located in the heart of historic Richmond. It has stunning period architecture, fireplaces, chandeliers, and high ceilings. It is reminiscent of a more gracious era. The rooms are filled with antiques and reproductions from the Victorian and Empire periods. We stayed in one of the Main House Rooms - #318. These rooms are located in the 7 connected row houses and feature 12' ceilings, rich jewel-toned color schemes, contemporary amenities, and access to the veranda over looking the courtyard. We found out that this hotel is the only in the city listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

After our 12 Noon departure from Taneytown, Maryland we anticipated arriving in Richmond, checking into our lovely little inn, walking to one of the local quaint eateries, then traveling the few blocks to the start of the TOFW event at 6:30 PM. Such was not the case and it is good to learn to "roll with the punches" so to speak. I-95 Southbound from Washington D.C. was simply put - a parking lot. Some people just pulled off to the side of the road to take a nap until the worst of the traffic eased up. There were accidents of all kinds most of which were the garden variety of vendor bender, but those came with police and rubberneckers. Nevertheless, our faithful and stalwart travel leader pushed on.

We arrived in Richmond just minutes before the event started. Our travel leader said, "I'm just glad we got in one piece and aren't going to miss any of the program." I am grateful for both.The Friday evening portion of the program included a lot of music. I love music. It does something inside of me. Lyrics are so critical to me. Music has great power and influence in my life. I have changed the course of my life with inspiration from two lines of one song - oddly enough a U2 song, but that is a story for another day. The words echo in me. I feast on them. I move them around in my head, peer into and through them, and follow where they lead.The opening performer is a singer and song writer who centers her music on the human condition in relation to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Her name is Hilary Weeks and she has at least six albums out now. Her music really touched a chord within me. She spent time talking about her experiences, sharing stories about her family life, and sharing her strong feelings about Jesus Christ and our Father in Heaven. Here is a link to her website http://hilaryweeks.com/

The second presenter was a professional photographer named Mark Mabry. He is as a professional photographer with his own private studio, focusing on family and commercial portraiture. Over the past few years, in conjunction with Mesa, Arizona’s annual Easter pageant “Jesus the Christ,” he created a portrait exhibit called Reflections of Christ. Work from this project has recently been published in a book, CD, and DVD titled Reflections of Christ. He shared a video about the making of the Reflections of Christ exhibit. Then he spoke quite frankly about the transition that he made from "high fashion" photographer to a more Christ centered work portfolio. He was so open and honest about the changes he had to make in himself to become worthy of the project he was undertaking. I was so impressed by the things that he shared. So few people, men especially, are not capable or willing to show such transparency into their weaknesses and foibles. Here is the link to the website about the project http://www.reflectionsmg.com/

The final performer is another singer and song writer named Michael McLean. I had seen him in concert many, many years ago - 16 - and enjoyed it immensely. He sang songs about change. He shared that he had been struggling with clinical depression for quite some time and had found the way through it and wanted to share how he had done this. Many of you know that I live with Bipolar - or more commonly called Manic-depressive disorder. I feel a connection to other people who suffer with mental illness. When you feel like the only person in the world struggling with something it is lonely and isolating. It is a fallacy that I am the only one suffering, but there are those days nonetheless. He was upbeat and frank about his struggle. It takes great care and work to get past the dark times. His recent album is entitled, "Changed." Again, his performance has a spiritual side. A lovely Twitter quote of his from his website is "The problem isn't that there's no evidence that God loves His children. The problem is we're afraid to believe it." His website is http://www.michaelmcleanmusic.com/

There is more to come from our Saturday event.

Dumb and Dumber Go to Charlottesville, VA

As most of you know, my dear friend Jamie and I were pleased to have tickets to see U2 in concert in Scott Stadium at University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia. This is our "travel journal". Please enjoy our comedy of errors, and so much more...

I, in my true overly orderly nature, spent time preparing a folder with many important items. All of the mapquest directions we needed to get from each place to the next. The treasured (and expensive) concert tickets to see U2 and the costly parking pass. Copies of reservation information on the car rental and the hotel. Directions and info on visiting Thomas Jefferson's home, Monticello, as we planned to visit there the day following the concert. I planned and planned and planned. I forgot the reminder that nothing goes exactly as we plan.

Jamie and I arrived at the car rental place at precisely the correct time. While there we were experiencing a "Seinfeld" like experience of obtaining a car. After extra time spent securing a car, we wiped our brows in relief and went on the road in our macaroni and cheese yellow Chevy Aveo.

All was working well, with the exception of a few "traffic moments", as this is Maryland and traffic surrounding Baltimore and Washington D.C. can leave a person astonished, even after a lifetime of exposure.

Then we came upon the magical city of Leesburg. We traveled problem free. We followed the directions given by mapquest exactly. As we thought that we were pulling away from Leesburg into a more rural area, imagine my surprise when it looked like we were arriving BACK in Leesburg precisely the way we arrived 20 minutes before! I was confused and asked Jamie to counsel me on the EXACT directions for leaving Leesburg. We soon found ourselves driving past rural sights we had encountered on our first time around. Specifically, one could hardly believe that there are TWO tall grain silos painted pink with black polka dots. As we pulled into Leesburg AGAIN, we deducted that the mapquest directions were taking us in a circle. The thought did cross our minds that Leesburg had a magical quality that once one has entered the only option was to stay, build a house, and make a new life there. We made jokes about our future generations who would pass down the story of how we arrived in Leesburg and could never leave.

We stopped at a gas station and were given directions to get out of Leesburg and further on our way to Charlottesville. There was significant traffic and construction. It seems that most cities and roads were constructing "traffic circles" which are meant to be a distraction and possible road block to the quick and efficient movement of vehicles from place to place. At this point we were at least 1.5 hours behind my intended schedule, thus causing me frustration. Jamie helped me keep the frustration down by revealing the humor behind our comedy of errors.

When we were approaching Charlottesville, the "directions" again failed us. One road turned into another without any communication. W Market Street turned into E Market Street even though we were actually heading West! The "maps" provided by mapquest included much, but not enough. We always seemed to be just out of range of where the map started. We were driving without planned decisions and making poor choices. Had we stayed on one of the various roads we turned off of in a panic we might have gotten to our hotel 45 minutes earlier. Again, we had fallen behind schedule even more. When we pulled into our hotel we were almost 2.5 hours behind the plan. We began getting ready for the concert at 6 PM. We had no dinner as we were concerned about getting to the concert on time.

We got ready in record breaking time and hit the road. We were pleased to note that the exit for the stadium was only one exit down from our hotel, but...over 50,000 people were all trying to take the same exit. It was causing considerable traffic. Our excitement and impatience were combining. Eventually we found our parking lot and began the trek to the stadium. We began to hear the music of the band Muse who were the opening act. Jamie and I decided to purchase our concert t-shirts early on. Then we purchased food and drink to make up for our dinner. With soda, pizza, and t-shirt in hand we approached the seating area. I was suddenly astounded!!!!!!!!

I want you all to know that the sounds and sights were FANTASTIC!! I was so excited, I was trembling and could barely walk down the stairs towards our seats. You can feel the music! Muse was performing when we sat down. They did a great pre-show. I am going to go on iTunes and purchase a few of them that I liked. Then the lights came up and many of the 399 U2 stage crew started getting the set ready for them.

The show started with a song from No Line on the Horizon - Breathe. No pun intended, but I was breathless!! I screamed, I clapped, I sang along, I danced my booty off! New songs, old ones, even sacred songs like Sunday Bloody Sunday. I started crying when the opening notes began to play. The remix of I'll Go Crazy was AWESOME and I HAVE to find it.

Here is the blow your mind playlist:

• Breathe
• Magnificent
• Get on Your Boots
• Mysterious Ways
• I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
• She's The One/Desire
• Elevation
• Your Blue Room
• Beautiful Day
• No Line on the Horizon
• New Year's Day
• Stuck in a Moment
• Unforgettable Fire
• City of Blinding Lights
• Vertigo
• I'll Go Crazy - Remix
• Sunday Bloody Sunday
• MLK
• Walk On
• One
• Where The Streets Have No Name
• Ultraviolet
• With or Without You
• Moment of Surrender

At the end I was deaf and mute. I couldn't hear anything and I was so hoarse from singing and yelling I didn't want to speak, but there was so much joy and adrenaline, I was walking at least 2 feet above the ground. I want to go again, but next year's shows are in Europe, the closest of which is Portugal. I'm tempted, believe me.

Recovery

Reovery

Had Neck Surgery

About eight weeks ago I woke up with a "stiff" neck. I thought that I had slept wrong. I thought that it would work itself out. The second week that it hurt it was spreading to the back of my left shoulder. My Dad gave me a shoulder rub and the pain did not ease at all. Then in the next week the pain spread to the deltoid muscle that connects the shoulder to the left arm.

At this point I went to the doctor. I had an MRI and it showed a herniated disk with herniation completely pinching off the cervical spinal nerves that make up the brachial plexus. Then I went to the neurosurgeon. He did some strength tests. He said I could try three things:

1. Ignore it and hope it goes away.
2. Try disk decompression.
3. Surgery to free the nerve.

I tried the disk decompression for 2 weeks. I had improvement in my range of motion, but not in pain relief or strength building. I went back to the neurosurgeon and he did some of the strength tests again. I had lost significant strength in those two weeks. There is concern that I would have permanent nerve damage. His recommendation was surgery now.

I was nervous. I had been having 'nightmares' about it. Monday night in my nightmare I coded (stopped breathing) during the surgery and woke up in the Critical Care Unit intubated (breathing tube down my throat) and not able to communicate with anyone. Tuesday night the dream was that they peformed the surgery on my hand instead of my neck.

So, Thursday 7/23 I went in for surgery on my cervical spine. In Peri-Op they prep you. Get your gown on, get the I.V. set up. I am nervous around needles (conceptually as well as physically). I pretty much have awful veins to find. My blood pressure was pretty high when they were getting ready to put in my I.V. - 156/101! They put it in my hand.

Then like three different people came and asked me the same questions over and over again.
When it was time to take me back I became super nervous. By the time they got me in the operating room and did my blood pressure it was up even higher - 178/118! The meds burned a little bit when they started them. Then I fell asleep. When I woke up I was still in the OR getting prepped for PACU Phase 1 (Post Anesthesia Care Unit). I stayed there for 2 hours coming off of the anesthesia and getting my pain medication. Then they moved me to Phase 2 where my Mom could come in and see me. They said that I was recovering very quickly and I started off to go home.

That's when the nausea hit. All the way home I was barely able to keep myself from being sick. When I got home, I could not control it. That lasted for about 4 hours. Then I calmed down and had some crackers and soda.

The next day I was able to start eating again. The pain has lessened over the last few days, but I still have it. I am trying to be up and about so that I can go back to work on Wednesday. I cannot drive a vehicle for 10 days. No riding in a vehicle for 6 days.

I'm getting tired and sore just sitting here doing this, so I am off. The minute I can get a photo of it I will. Right now there is a waterproof dressing over the incision to protect it. Luckliy, I can shower with it.