There is a special young woman in my life. Her name is Dawn Schiller and if you read my blog , you know she is the daughter of my heart. I have had a special love for Dawn ever since she was my neighbor and my confidante in the little town of Independence in the shadow of Mt Williamson in the beautiful Sierra Mountains.

To just say Dawn is a survivor would not do her justice. I see her as a full-fledged Amazon who has crept, clawed, and fought her way out of some of the worst that life could hand any one. I have seen her grow from victim of abuse to advocate for battered woman. I have watched her fight her own battle with addiction, and I have seen her take on the role of Presenter in workshops for Throw-Away Teens.

Dawn is an excellent writer and over the years she has remarkably honed her skills. Her autobigraphy, The Road Through Wonderland will be in bookstores next year. I could go on and on about her accopmplishments, but instead, I hope you will go over to her site, read about her special birthday and leave her a birthday greeting.

Iam leaving for the coast to have a girls’ beach-time cool down. I will be in the little town of Cayucus with old teaching friends. We will be staying at the summer house of one of our retirees It looks like half the folks are coming from Southern California while the the other half from Northern California. We will leave here Tuesday morning and arrive in time to party the night away. Then on Wednesday morning, we have rented a van and will head inland to the wine country to do a little wine -tasting. Thursday, will find us all headed back home. It is only a little break from our grueling heat, but it should be a wonderful time for fun.

Meanwhile, with a fleeting feeling of guilt, I am leaving Bob here to care for all the animals. I promise to bring back some great wines for him and if there is time, some special treats for the dogs.

Well the above was my wonderful escape message that I planned to post as I left out the door for the Coast. Last night, my cold worsened and I coughed for what seemed like hours. I thought of what I would be putting others through if I went. Actually my thoughts were more like what if they draw straws to see who gets to hold the pillow over my face until the coughing stops This was of course the middle of the night, a time. perfect for gloomy thoughts.

This morning I called and gave my regrets. I am trying to be adult about it, but the child in me feels like my tickets to the circus have been torn out of my hand by a bullying wind. Whining won’t do me any good and a friend gave me the best description of my illness. She described the summer cold that has been circulating as “A Cold on Steroids”. Perfect description of the last seven days.

So it off to bed and more cough medicine, lozenges, and Popsicles.

The germ gremlins paid me a visit this week. I have blurry, itchy eyes, a mean cough, and the feeling that some Meany has stuffed my head full of cotton. While I was teaching, I built up a wonderfully strong immune system. After all, all those kids were known germ magnetics and I believed I had super teacher resistance. Sadly my magic powers are gone after eight years of retirement.

On Monday, I cancelled meeting my daughter Kristi and the twins for lunch. On Tuesday, I begged off meeting friends for coffee. I don’t remember Wednesday, and today I cancelled a lunch with friends and postponed my Friday hair appointment until late Saturday afternoon. By that time, by all that is good and just, , I will have survive this atrocity.

Meanwhile, this article about the town I have lived in since 1972, was featured in the Los Angeles Times. I think it as an excellent portrait of a town that I have learned to love. Ridgecrest is the town that supports the Navy Base known as China Lake. The article paints a pretty picture of the booming economy of the area and this is true. However, we are at the whim and fancy of the Navy. This base in the past has held the reputation of being a “favorite child” . There have also been times , we felt like the “Navy’s unloved stepchild. So many of our ups and downs are based on Politics and Governmental Monies. Those of us who live here often talk of the need to bring in other kinds of business and then we become complacent and nothing happens.

I hope you take time to read Navy’s High Desert Boom Town. I think it will help you understand my rather unusual little part of the world.

At the UCLA Medical Center Bob and I were both poked and prodded in health exams. I was pinched, (mammogram) and a suspected vampire drew blood from both of us for various tests and now we wait for the results. Since no one asked us to stay for further observation, We are hoping the results will all be good. I am most optimistic.

I was totally exhausted after my two hour visit to the Jules Stein Institute. My eyes suffered eyestrain all the way home. The bright lights used for the photos and for the exam always raise my anxiety level. I swear the military could use that flashing light as an interrogation technique. After about 20 eye photos, I was ready to tell them anything they wanted to know just to get them to stop.

The good news is that my macular degeneration has not changed and this is my third year of no change. Pretty remarkable and a result that makes me very happy. Guess this once again means I can put off getting that Companion Dog for the Blind. I know I am being glib and reaching for humor, but I am so relieved and so elated that I know you will forgive my silly joke.

The puppies, Sammi, the Doxie, and the birds were all happy to see us when we picked them up at the sitters. Not happier than we were to see them and it is nice to be home with the critter family. . . even in the 115 degree heat.

I took a couple of photos of Tiverton House where we stay when we have appointments at UCLA Medical Center. It is a wonderful place close to the Medical Center and it is there for family and for recovering patients. I love staying there. I am also including photos of a new apartment complex close by that if I were a millionaire, I would rent one just for fun! I would live in it in the fall and I would have an apartment in New York at Central Park West for spring. Summer and winter? I will wait to decide where I want to live during those seasons after I win the lottery.

This is our last morning in the Sierra’s. The wedding we attended was yesterday and it was of course, lovely in all ways. The bride was beautiful, the groom handsome, and the couple were surrounded with family and friends all who wildly approved of the beginning of a life together for these two.

I love weddings and I think I captured the reason I do in this photo. It is in the wistful faces of the bridesmaids as they watch the groom kiss his bride.

Click on photo to make it larger.

After getting the RV road ready, we walked up and booked a spot back here the second week in August. It is our plan to stay 7 to 10 days to avoid the heat of the desert. We would have stayed on now, but Bob and I both have health exams at UCLA next week. We will just have time at home to unload, march the dogs and birds off to their sitter and leave bright and early on Tuesday morning.

Wish I could stay here forever. . . or maybe just until September. It is really cold and snowy in the mountains in the winter and the desert is beautiful in the fall and spring and more than tolerable in the winter. Best I be careful what I wish for.