I was so sorry to hear that my favorite panda bear is headed to China. Tai Shan was the first baby panda born into captivity to survive infancy (I guess that makes him First Panda). I followed his story and wanted so much to see the little bear in person. When I finally visited our nation’s capitol, the National Zoo was on my list of places to see. Tai Shan had just turned two years old when I met him one hot July afternoon and he looked so chubby and cuddly in his little fur suit but my heart went out to him. If I was overheated in a sun dress, I can’t imagine how uncomfortable he was. Pandas love the winter, and the snow storm that traveled through Washington this week, dumping snow on our capitol, was a fitting send off from mother nature. Good bye and good luck little American bear, may the people in China care and love you as much as the people of these united states do.
A friend emailed this to me and I thought that I would share it with you. I hope as you listen, you remember the joys of Christmases past and commit to carrying that joyous feeling through the upcoming year.
Here’s your own personal Holiday juke box…just click on the song you want to hear….
Christmas Songs to Remember
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Cleaning out my old emails this morning, I came across one from a good friend of mine and I would like to share it with you. It’s in response to a question I positted a while back about getting older and it exemplifies the adage of aging gracefully. She writes…..
I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life or my loving family for fewer aches or a flatter belly. As I’ve aged, I’ve become kinder and less critical of myself. I’ve become my own best friend. I don’t chide myself for eating that extra cookie, or for not making my bed every morning, or for buying that silly cement turtle that I didn’t need, but that looks so avant garde in my fern bed. I am entitled to a treat, to be messy, to be extravagant. I have seen too many dear friends and loved ones leave this world too soon, before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging. Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 a.m. and sleep until noon? Who even cares? Read more »
Here’s a news flash! According to AOL Money & Finance, consumers ratcheted back their spending by the largest amount in 28 years and tougher times are still ahead. Clobbered by pink slips, shrinking nest eggs and falling home values, consumers are holding on even tighter to their wallets while party members argue about which political candidate has what it takes to lead us out of this meltdown. Personally, I am not sure any one really knows the solution to this problem because I think we are in familiar but uncharted waters and it will take a series of trial and error attempts to figure out what is going to work. For most of us, we will have to continue to watch our spending and wait it out. How can we benefit from these tough times? For one thing, we can make a list of those things that are most important in our lives and post it where we can see it every day; an overt reminder that there is more to life than money. Another thing that we can do is find more creative and less expensive ways to spend time with family and friends. The joy is in the company we keep, not the events we attend. Remember pot luck dinners and card/board game nights? Just because the economy is dismal, does not mean that our lives have to be too. When faced with the clouds on the horizon, seek the silver linings and who knows, these just might turn into the “good old days” that everyone talks about. Please help make it easier to get through these difficult times and share your ideas or reminiscences of simple but significant memories.