Monday Meanderings - January 16, 2017

First Meandering ...

Saturday was my hubby and my 33rd wedding anniversary. We went out to lunch but mostly spent the day working on the new house. In February we're going to attend a Regency Romance Ball--all dressed up. Yes, my sweetie is a good sport like that. :D

Second Meandering ...

When I was a teen, I lived for a couple of years in San Francisco. 

Source

Did I mention that we lived in the middle of the bay? My father was stationed on the Treasure Island Navy Base. 

View of Treasure Island from Yerba Buena Island. Source

I attended 9th and 10th grades in the City. We had some challenges in 9th grade--some real horror stories. But it made me work really hard to get good grades, so I didn't have to go to the high school my junior high fed into. 

But, it's a really cool place with quite an interesting history.

That's one of the reasons I chose it for the headquarters of Grantham Industries in the story Waves of Deceit (from the Teapots & Treachery anthology).

Shelby Nash, the heroine, loves San Francisco and has some fond memories there.

Such as ...

Eating a hot fudge sundae at Ghirardelli Square (to die for!)  Source

Biking in Golden Gate Park (which is one of the best parks in the world. So many cools things there, like biking, hiking, paddle boats, de Young Museum, botanical gardens, Conservatory of Flowers, etc.

Screen Capture of the park as seen a Google Maps. Click here to see more detail.

Sailing on San Francisco Bay. *sigh*

Photo by Steve Gerner

Third Meandering ...

We have carpeting and counters. Tuesday we're supposed to be ready for the final inspection--and then can begin working on the inspector's list of things to fix. But it's seeming real now.

Do you have fond memories of someplace you've lived or visited?

What made you love it?

Monday Meandering - Regrets

So, it's my first "official" post since coming off my hiatus. It's been a good break. I got a lot done--not as much as I'd hoped, but it's all good.

Only meandering ...

I wanted to share this video. It  really struck home for me, even brought tears to my eyes.

I'll share one of my regrets, and it's a big one.

When I was fourteen, we'd just barely moved to the Navy Base on Treasure Island in the middle of San Francisco Bay. My mom had been in Oak Knoll Naval Hospital in Oakland for nearly two weeks as they tried to figure out what was wrong with her. With the cutting edge technology (of the day), they diagnosed a brain tumor.

The evening before her surgery, I drove with my dad to the hospital. I hated seeing my mother look so bad, and the hospital creeped me out. I chose to stay out in the car while my father went inside alone. Mom survived the surgery, but there were complications due to swelling. She died early in the morning.

If I could change anything in my life, I would have gotten out of that car and gone with my dad. I'd seen her alive one more time. I'd have told her how much I loved her. One more time.

Everyone has a story.

Everyone has regrets.

What is one of yours?