I couldn’t blog on the plane so I grabbed a sheet of paper from Rick and started writing. Here is an excerpt.

snip > I used to love flying. I’ve done a lot of it over the years, especially with our two European assignments. Back and forth to the U.S. and some exotic locales. Today though I don’t enjoy it as much. I suffer from mini panic attacks. My heart pounds. My palms sweat. My Rescue Remedy spray is always close at hand. It’s irrational, I know.

We just took off from Newark Airport after being 20th in line for take-off. Not at our cruising altitude yet and all is calm. The cute older man in the seat behind me chatters excitedly, giving a running commentary on what he sees out the window: the Vietnam Memorial, and oh! there’s Long Beach Island! Sure enough as I glance out the window the Jersey Shore lies like a sandy ribbon on my left. The sun’s morning rays turn the rivers below into gilded, winding snakes. I see estuaries; bays. The far Eastern edge of the United States.

snip

The rest of the flight was very bumpy and I was glad to finally be on the ground. The automatic doors of the airport terminal slid open and we were engulfed in a rush of warm tropical air.

As we walked into the marbled lobby of our hotel, a pith-helmeted, uniformed bellman handed out hot towels, while another proffered up a huge plate of chocolate chip cookies. But the lavish welcome wasn’t quite over as yet another bellman arrived with a tray full of flutes of champagne for us as we checked in. I think I could get used to this! Our bags were taken to our room and our bellman gave us all the information we needed regarding the hotel’s services.

Our slippers and robes awaited us.

I could see the sea through our window and couldn’t wait to open the door and step out onto our balcony.

When I did, this was my view. First to my left:

and to my right:

Not long after I sat down to “blog” the old-fashioned way (note the good use of the robe). Since Rick had his laptop with him for most of the time and we couldn’t get internet access in our room (only in the lobby area) I resorted to ~gasp!~  writing my thoughts down with pencil and paper.

Here is what I wrote.

snip > Right now as I sit on our sea-view balcony, the crashing roar of the waves is deafening. ~~ ... boom! swoosh ... ~~  The sea is rather angry and agitated today due to a storm front passing through. Our bellman told us that normally it is so calm and serene that you can see fish at the tops of the waves. Not so today.

Our resort is “all-inclusive,” meaning literally all you can drink or eat. We have four restaurants within the resort to choose from for all our meals. The service is impeccable. The minute you finish your drink or look as if you need something else, like magic a liveried person appears at your side offering more. If my wine glass even started to look in the slightest bit drained, it almost immediately got filled back up again. Kind of like a never-ending bottle of wine. A bit dangerous, don’t you think?

Our room reflects the color of the sea beyond our window, decorated in turquoise and pristine white. A very calming and comfortable room. 

I normally don’t think of myself as a tropical climate kind of girl, but I think I could get used to it. The sea mesmerizes with its endless rhythm of waves. I find myself gazing mindlessly into its turquoise vastness. Waiting, just waiting, for the next wave to come crashing to shore. One finishes its crescendo while another is waiting to take center stage right behind it. They wipe my mind clean of thoughts.

snip

To be continued ...

Freeze. Thaw. Freeze. Thaw. That seems to be the theme lately. Winter can’t seem to make up its mind. Right now we’re having extremely mild weather. Daytime highs of nearly 60ºF. Rain instead of snow. The icy white blanket that covered our yard has nearly all melted away. Just a few weeks ago our pool looked like an ice skating rink, and if I wasn’t so afraid of tearing the pool cover I’d have gone skating! Now it’s taken on the persona of a reflecting pool.

I liked the reflections of the trees and the way some leaves scattered themselves around.

I imagine it won’t be long before Winter decides to make its return. Blustery winds, snow, frozen ground. Come on, Winter, bring it on! What are you waiting for?

This year we decided to go to the Radio City Christmas Spectacular, celebrating their 75th Anniversary. Inside the lobby, a gorgeous tree made from hundreds of Swarovski crystals hung suspended from the ceiling.

The stars of the show were, of course, The Rockettes—those high-kicking precision experts of dance. They’ve come a long way, baby! (The following photos taken from the program.)

The show was nothing short of spectacular. The sets were magical, the special effects extraordinary. We donned 3-D glasses to watch Santa Claus fly through the sky in his sleigh: first stop New York City. Look, there’s the Empire State Building—quick, duck!—we’re headed straight for it! We even got snowed on at one point in the show. Sheer magic.

The Rockettes appeared in nearly every act. They were reindeer pulling Santa’s sleigh; toy soldiers (my favorite!); toy dolls that ended up doing the can-can; tourists on a double-decker tour bus seeing the highlights of the city; Santa Claus; and of course just as themselves. The precision in which they perform is absolutely amazing! They are always right together in everything they do.

For 90 minutes straight we were thoroughly entertained. We both felt like little kids again, taking in the wonder of it all as we sat sipping our Pina Coladas in our commemorative Rockettini™ glasses with festive swizzle sticks.

I know what you’re thinking—you don’t fool me. You’re thinking that they are just about the tackiest, kitschiest things you’ve ever seen, right? Well, just wait till you see what else I got…

Of course no visit to New York City at Christmas would be complete without seeing the tree at Rockefeller Center. All in all, a really great day that put us in the Christmas spirit.

Now, here is my favorite thing from the whole day. I know you’re just dying to know what else could be tackier than the Rockettini™ glasses. Actually, I wanted one of these when I saw them for sale in the lobby but Rick wouldn’t let me buy one. I pouted a bit and when I got home I was still kicking myself for not buying one. Somehow he managed to buy one for me anyway and sneak it into my stocking on Christmas morning. Here she is: my battery powered Rockette! Ta da~ !

Here she is caught in mid-spin.

And now you can watch her in all her full glory!

Come on, you gotta love her! Don’t you want one too?

I’m so excited! I’ve just signed up for the ABC-Along 2008! What is that you ask? Well, you can read the details here at (Vicki) Knitorious or I can give you a quick explanation. A group of knitters and fiber freaks got together a few years back and came up with the idea to post a photo every two weeks that corresponds with a letter of the alphabet. The photo should mean something to you and doesn’t have to include knitting or fiber in any way. I was a little concerned about joining because my blog is rarely about knitting. I love to knit and always have something on my needles but it’s just one of the things in a long list that I might blog about.

I needn’t have worried as I was accepted in the fold quickly by Vicki who has answered all my questions and got me started in Flickr. This is going to be fun! If you are interested in joining you need to email Vicki on her blog (link above) for an invitation to join by January 19th.

Now I have yet another reason to get more creative with my photos. I hope you will look forward to seeing what I come up with every two weeks. I know I look forward to coming up with something as I try to be inventive as possible.  I already have my “A” photo ready to post which I will do in the next few days.

I also found another very cool site from reading Vicki’s blog: Photojojo. I immediately subscribed to their newsletter. Lots of good ideas and helpful hints for photographers of all kinds at this informative site! Check them out and you’ll see what I mean. I started browsing their archives and before I knew it I had spent an hour there. I want to make several of the Photo Journals as gifts! Such a great idea.

Anyway, I have several excursions into NYC to tell you about if I can just get started. I’ve been dragging my feet long enough. I need to get back into the groove here! I’d better get busy because I don’t want my “A is for

”  to get buried underneath all that. Maybe tomorrow ...

Finally we’ve seen the end of 2007. Done. Over with. Finis. I was not sorry to see the Year 2007 fade into the waning din of the fireworks our neighbors were setting off. It was not a good year for us. Too much sadness, upheaval, and grief.

Sorry I’ve been so boring lately, but really I’ve had nothing important to say. Day after day goes by without much consequence. Pretty pathetic, really, but at least it’s non-cataclysmic. All the words and thoughts I’ve had pent up inside me seemed to have dissipated over the holidays. ho hum. But I won’t sit here and apologize for my boring-at-the-moment life. I"ve got a New Year to look forward to. A fresh start.

I refuse to make any resolutions at the beginning of this year because I don’t keep them. Neither will I make lists of things I should do, because I won’t do them. Why make them only to break them? That’s just setting myself up for failure. Instead I will just look ahead with a positive attitude and hope things fall into place behind me. Like getting all my ducks in a row. How does that sound? Not quite like a resolution; more like forming my future by focusing in on what I want.

With that in mind I see the following things in my future:

Rick and I on a beach in Cancun two weeks from now, maybe exploring a few Mayan ruins, enjoying a well-deserved vacation.

Happiness.

There. That should about do it for now. My inner crystal ball can’t see any farther than the next several months.

If you’ve made resolutions for the New Year, here’s wishing you success! Let’s all embrace the light of the New Year 2008!