Category Archives: Uncategorized

It all started with an Old-Fashioned 1940’s Oak School Desk-Chair-would never think of refinishing. At age five, I needed a Desk-Chair to conduct my “private business”. So, Mother and Daddy got a chair like this for me so I could go to work. They placed it in the hall because Mother would not allow itContinue reading “WORKING”

“You cannot swim for new horizons until you have courage to lose sight of the shore.” ― William Faulkner That quote speaks to me. Maybe because Faulkner said it. Losing sight of the shore is scary. I read Facebook and feel guilty I’m not marching in the streets with a sign of some sort. MyContinue reading “SWIMMING TOWARD NEW HORIZONS”

This blog just rambles. What can I say – I need to ramble. We are reinventing the wheel over here, and the unknown is becoming known. I am learning. You are learning. The world is learning.  John C. Maxwell said, “The unsuccessful person is burdened by learning, and prefers to walk down familiar paths. TheirContinue reading “WHEN INSPIRATION FAILS – RAMBLE!”

“Do you speak French?” That was the first question that everyone asked Steve and me when we said we were moving to France. We both said no. No problem. We would learn. Well, we tried, but it did not come trippingly off our tongues. Luckily, we gestured and pointed our way through most situations. However,Continue reading “BACK TO SCHOOL!”

It has taken me a lifetime to realize the value of downsizing. I was raised by a mother who saved everything. All closets were stuffed to the brim with you-name-it – old clothes, new clothes, too-small clothes, too-large clothes, winter clothes, summer clothes, coats, hats, shoes, shoe boxes, rags, yarn. All available space was crammedContinue reading “LESS IS MORE”

Inspiration eludes me this week. I’m sitting on ideas for blogs or blogs about blogs – ugh. Problem is – I agreed to write something each week. OK, so my agreement was with myself. That’s the way I do things. Agree to commit. So, as I sit here, determined to keep a stiff upper lipContinue reading “NEW YEAR’S EVE – 2016”

I met her in 1969. At that time, her name was Helena Fielding, from Westwood, California. She lived and worked in Highland Park. I was referred to her by a gestalt therapist whom I was seeing at the time, Robert Martin. I was referred to Dr. Martin by a doctor in Pacific Palisades, Dr. Beck.Continue reading “REMEMBERING HADIDJAH”

My husband, Steve Orlandella, loved to write. By July, 2016, he was on a roll – brimming with ideas for his blog, Vic and the redhead, Facebook posts. Witty ideas and fun ways to express what he wanted to say. He had fun reading and re-reading what he wrote. I had fun reading them. StillContinue reading “LEGACY”

Thanksgiving is over, but the spirit of camaraderie remains. Knowing this year would be Thanksgiving without Steve, I looked for something to do. Any restaurants in town serving turkey? No. Not that I know of. Then, I saw – The American Club of the Riviera (ACR) was having a Thanksgiving Luncheon at the Café deContinue reading “THANKSGIVING IN MONACO – 2016”

The woods are on fire. Trees have been hit by lightening bolts. Nature is forcing new growth – whether I like it or not. Well, I don’t like it. It has jolted me out of complacency. Things I took for granted, people I took for granted must never be taken for granted. Time out! Think.Continue reading “OVER THE HILL, THROUGH THE WOODS….”