Space Goddess

Okay, so I’m a knee-jerk liberal, mainstream middle America consumer—a person who is aware of world events, even has opinions about them, but is, admittedly, not very well read or media savvy.

I just perused a fun website that my friend Suzanne introduced me to a few years ago. northernsun.com. Although I don’t agree with all the politics or philosophies of that site, I enjoy many of the quotes. I stumbled onto a quote by Molly Ivins (August 30, 1944 – January 31, 2007) and before I added it to my blog, I researched “Molly Ivins.” Fine, laugh if you want, but although I’ve heard heard her name, I only had a vague idea of who she was, what she did, and how she thought.

Since our niece, Krista, is about to embark on her second tour of duty in Iraq, I’ve become more vocal about this quagmire we call a war. People are being killed—many of whom are innocent of any wrongdoing; they are simply at the wrong place at the wrong time; not lucky enough to be a member of what Michael calls “The Lucky Sperm Club!” (My husband is quite the philosopher and, often when we travel and see how plush our live is compared to so much of this world, he’ll ponder why we are part of the “haves” and the people we visit are part of the “have nots!” Thus, he came up with the theory he labels “The theory of the Lucky Sperm Club”). Please keep Krista in your prayers and enjoy the Molly Ivins quotes below:

“I still believe in Hope – mostly because there’s no such place as Fingers Crossed, Arkansas.”

“I am not anti-gun. I’m pro-knife. Consider the merits of the knife. In the first palce, you have to catch up with someone in order to stab him. A general substitution of knives for guns would promote physical fitness. We’d turn into a whole nation of great runners. Plus, knives don’t ricochet. And people are seldom killed while cleaning their knives.”

“I know vegetarians don’t like to hear this, but God made an awful lot of land that’s good for nothing but grazing.”

“Next time I tell you someone form Texas should not be President of the United States, please pay attention.”

“The political fight over global warming is over, except for the Bush administration, which has some weird problem with science in gneral.”

“The thing about democracy, beloveds, is that it is not neat, orderly, or quiet. It requires a certain relish for confusion.”

“It’s hard to convince people you are killing them for their own good.”

“We are the people who run this country. We are the deciders.”

I know you wake up every morning and rush to read my blog—which has been frustrating to you, of late, because I’ve only been blogging about once a week! Anyway, I’m sure you recall the blog entry of June 10th (Party! Party! Party!) where I invited you to Great Getaways 15th Anniversary Bash at ARTichokes in Mission Farms, 10557 Mission Road. If you don’t remember that entry, I’ll wait right here while you go back and read it…

Now that you’ve refreshed your memory, let’s continue: 15 years is a big deal in the travel industry! Companies come and go; some ideas that sound good thrive while others fade. Our industry has weathered all sorts of events, some unfortunately of our own design. Those of us who have grown and prospered are the ones that have returned to our roots; we are NOT order takers or glorified reservationists; we advise; we counsel; we use our vast pool of experience to benefit you and the journeys you take.

On that note, I once again invite you to join us to celebrate our anniversary, to share your own memories of a life well lived, and to create some new ones. My mother has so many memories of her many journeys around our world, but, unfortunately, many of those memories have been stolen from her by the insideous disease, Alzheimer’s. As I’ve watched Mom’s lapses of memory, her increased irritability and confusion, I grieve the loss of the mother I remember. She was so active, organizing reading groups and book clubs long before Oprah made it trendy; she followed the stock market, daily charting her investments; she went to the theater regularly and supported her favorite restaurants (Don Roth’s, The Cheesecake Factory, and The Bagel to name a few); and Mom was passionate about politics—that is, as long as the politician was a Democrat! (I still remember the birthday card I gave my mom that said, “Some said you’re so old, you voted for Lincoln” and inside it read, “But I know you’re a Democrat!”).
That vibrant woman has departed and what I see now is just a shell that houses glimpses of the woman that raised my brother, sister and me.
So, it is with great honor that we will have an amazing silent auction at our 15th anniversary celebration in support of the Alzheimer’s Association! Feast your eyes on some of the goodies that could be yours if you are the highest bidder:
A Mediterranean Cruise courtesy of Celebrity Cruises; 3 nights at the chic Azul Blue in Mexico courtesy of Creative Leisure; 3 nights at the Ritz Carlton Kapalua, Maui; a 3-night Mexican vacation courtesy of Classic Vacations; an original painting by Becky Pasha, one of the owners of ARTichokes, an orginal piece of artwork by Richard Stern (www.sternartworks.com); a selection of books courtesy of Rainy Day Books; tickets and a parking pass to a 2008 Royals game courtesy of David Wolff and Nancy Hipsh; haircolor and styling by Kim Jegen of Beauty Escentuals; and more!

So, come party with us (casual attire, of course—comfort IS important!), enjoy the food, the music, the art, and the event, and bring your credit card or checkbook! I promise you’ll have an out-of-this world good time!

Gasoline to drive to the Celebration: $5.00
Money for Babysitter $25.00
Bidding on the oodles of luxuries in support of Alzheimer’s Association: Priceless!

What does one tenth of one percent look like? In my world when I envision .001 I see Judi Chaitman, Vice President and Manager of Great Getaways. Judi has been selected as one of the TOP TRAVEL SPECIALISTS in the world by Conde Nast Traveler Magazine (August, 2007 edition)! This marks the SEVENTH (7th) year Judi has received this amazing honor! Wendy Perrin, Consumer Affairs Editor of Conde Nast Traveler, annually selects the best of the best in the world of travel providers. This is a tall order by any stretch of the imagination because, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are over 88,950 travel “agents” in the US alone!

Two weeks ago Michael was leaving the airport parking lot (which,btw, our landlord expertly designed!) and we were chatting on the phone. Suddenly he said, “I’ve got to go! I just was in a crash!” CLICK!

Stunned, I looked at the phone as if it was a “live feed” video camera and I could view what just happened. Realizing I was holding a plebian telephone and not a high tech device, I put the phone down. “Okay,” I said to the committee in my head, “What do I do now?” Hannah the Hysteric suggested I call 911. That suggestion received boos and catcalls. “An obvious overaction—as usual…” yawned Anna Arrogant. “Call Michael back RIGHT NOW! RIGHT NOW! HURRY!” demanded Ina the Impatient. Rhonda the Reasonable prevailed with her suggestion that I wait for Michael to call me back before taking any action. Thus, my mind quieted and the committee in my head went back to their usual bickering.

Michael did call back after a few minutes of my watching the clock. An airport bus driver was apparently overly eager to leave the parking lot to return to the safe haven of Terminal B to await homeward bound passengers—or—to be real—the bus entered the main road of the parking lot without yielding to the cars already on the road! I am very “fonda my Honda” but it is no match for a heavy-duty airport bus. Michael was able to drive home—slowly—and we immediately took the car to the body shop for repair. Our insurance company arranged for us to use a rental car while ours was being fixed, a Chevy Cobalt. I’ve been driving the Cobalt for 2 weeks now (does the insurance company get a cut of what we pay the car rental company?). Here’s my review of the Cobalt: it is small (like a Honda Civic) and I love the size! It is definitely “no frills”—as in manual windows and manual door locks (does performing those actions count as aerobic exercise?)! It is not the peppiest car I’ve ever driven but it gets me where I need to go. It doesn’t get very good gas mileage compared to my Honda Accord—hmmmm. It’s a boring beigy, goldy, tan color—typical of rental cars. Have you noticed that rental cars are rarely painted colors you and I would normally pick? You can have the beigy, goldy tan; non-intrusive silver; electric eye-squinting blue; and, occasionally, white (usually reserved for vans). If you want something snazzier—either by color or style, you’ll be shelling out more money!

The manual locks “thing” has me worried. I found that I could lock the doors (how many calories do I burn reaching across to the lock on the passenger side’s door?) and walk off—easily leaving the keys in the car. There is no automatic alarm or locking system that politely reminds me, “Hey, Bozoski (ask Michael about that name!), you left your keys in the ignition!” So, I’ve become obsessed with the keys to the Cobalt. I get out of the car, keys in hand; I stand beside the car and look at my hand to be sure the keys are still there; carefully, I put the keys in my designated “key spot” in my handbag (one of the few “designated” areas in that “black hole!”). I live in absolute fear of leaving the keys in this rental car! Life must be way too serene for me to have time for this kind of paranoia!
‘If you think locking your keys in your car is terrible, watch this!’

Sorry to sound bossy—just consider me your “Travel Mom”! Like a regular mom I have your best interests at heart. I’ve suggested for years that everyone should get a passport and the zoo that we fondly call the passport application process is proof positive you need to get a passport! Having a passport is like the way we used to think about the American Express card (not anymore, thank God!) with their slogan, “Don’t leave home without it!” It’s official, it’s uniform, and it is accepted all over this planet as proof of citizenship.

So, what are you waiting for? Download an application at www.travel.state.gov

Need a certified copy of your birth certificate for the passport application? While you’re ordering one, I suggest you order two and keep the extra one in a safe place. I promise the day will come that you will once again be asked for a birth certificate for some yet to be invented government form, and, voila, you’ll already have one!

Also, be sure to check the entry requirements of the country(ies) you’ll be visiting. Many require that your passport be valid for 6 months past the date of your visit. Others require multiple blank, facing Visa pages (which you might not have because you’ve used them on previous journeys we created for you!).

Create 2 photocopies of your passport and take one copy with you (not in the same place you store your real passport) and leave one copy with us (or should you, for some reason not understood in the world of logic, use another travel company, give them a copy–hopefully, they’ll know to keep it safe for you!). If that moment we all fear, the loss of our passport, does occur, then having copies will expedite the replacement process.

There, now don’t you feel better? See how your mama loves you! Now, brush your teeth and go to bed. That’s what I’m going to do!

Every cloud has a silver lining—in my former life, several years ago, I hated that saying (Those were the days when I thought Murphy’s Law was optimistic! Glad I grew past that awful period of my life!)! Truly, I have discovered that a big key to happiness is finding gratitude in whatever I experience on this journey called Life. Another saying I used to abhor is “Happiness is wanting what you have, not having what you want.” I’ll spare you that comments I used to make about that thought—just imagine sentences dotted with the words “ignorant, moronic, and lobotomized”.

And, you are asking, “Exactly what does this have to do with sage and eggplant?” Be patient, friend, you can read on for awhile. After all, I haven’t blogged for days! Sit back, relax, and enjoy!

On Memorial Day I received a phone call from a co-worker, “Barbara, I just got a call from our landlord. Our office is flooded!” I looked outside—it was sunny, dry, no rain in sight and it hadn’t rained for days. Becky went on to explain that a pipe had broken in the bathroom across the hall and clean water (I emphasize CLEAN!) flooded through the building.

Armed with a roll of paper towels, I headed to the office (A roll of paper towels???? Can you tell I was in a lot of denial?). I was greeted by my landlords, who apologized profusely. Although that was kind, it was totally unnecessary because we work in a beautifully decorated and well maintained building! With artwork and sconces on the walls in the hallway and both rough and smooth marble tiles on the floor, we work in the lap of luxury. I knew this pipe thing was a fluke.

I surveyed the damage and quickly realized that the paper towels were a laughable addition. We had standing water (did I mention it was CLEAN water???) in varying amounts throughout our office. Miraculously, our server was in a closet that had minimal water—wet carpet but no measurable puddles! Within minutes, the company that cleans up water damage was in our office packing up our bookshelves and moving furniture away from the walls. As I left the crew was wheeling in commercial fans and dehumidifiers. Everything was going to be fine…

Ignorance is bliss…I had no idea how many fans, etc. the water damage people were bringing in nor did I have any idea how long we’d work amid what sounded like a roaring tornado. And although the water was CLEAN (I think I mentioned that!), the walls and carpet retained a slight odor—mold, mildew—oh my, do we need to call the EPA, the CDC, EEOC, the ABC, and XYZ????? After the landlord’s insurance company’s claims adjuster’s 3rd trip, he agreed that we needed new carpet in addition to the new paint he had already promised!

Yesterday was the 4th of July, another holiday, and nobody called to report a disaster. In fact, today the painters came in and we now have new colors on our walls that match 2 of our company’s colors—sage and eggplant! This weekend the new carpet will be installed and on Monday, I invite you to come visit our newly redecorated office! Yes, we had 2 weeks of unbelievable noise; we worked in chaos with furniture jammed in the middle of the rooms, extension cords creating spider webbed designs; we assured clients we were not a “here today, gone tomorrow” company, that we’d had a flood, etc; we’ve had to pack up all our files, cabinets, and drawers; and tomorrow we’ll close early to move our computers to a storage room for the weekend; Michael and I will spend Sunday evening moving furniture and computers back into our office; and on Monday we’ll still have to empty many boxes.

And, you know, with all that hassle, we’ll have a beautiful new office in which we’ll create wonderful experiences for our clients—how cool is that?