Attitudes of Gratitude

       It is "Black Friday" and since we live across the street from the Queens Mall you can try to imagine the new sights and sounds we are experiencing; not exactly the quiet neighborhood of Cedar Hills, Utah.  Stan and I are presently snug in our comfortable little fourth floor apartment enjoying Christmas music and working on our individual projects at a pace much more enjoyable than the people down on the street are experiencing.  The CD player is randomly playing through the five different Cd's and every so often we hear the CD Aubrey's junior high choir made back in 1996 with Mrs. Jolley as the choir director.  One might think the Mountain Ridge Junior SSA Choir would not hold up to the famous individuals commonly listened to at Christmas time, but the her choir music not only sounds great it brings back enjoyable memories of years gone by.  We were so blessed to have lived 25 years in Utah County.  What a beautiful place filled with faithful people and wonderful opportunities; a great formula for raising a family.
       After spending four years in northern California we arrived in Cedar Hills in early June of 1985.  We had Don, David, Aubrey, and I was four months pregnant with our fourth child, Lindsey.  Earlier in May of that year Stan and I had gone on a "house hunting mission" to Utah with the express request from the children that we "get a place with a big pack yard."  The home we found in Cedar Hills was the perfect place for us.  Not only did it naturally have a large back yard but there were hardly any fences marking yard boundaries.  Thus, "our" back yard, in our children's minds, consisted of the Hall's, the Shepherd's, and our yard.  If we said, "stay in the yard," this "yard"was where we could expect to find a child.  Besides being a larger home for us and having a big yard we had a view of Utah Valley, Utah Lake, the mountains, and eventually Mt. Timpanogos Temple; all of this for $2,000 less than we sold our California home. With our home facing west we learned to feast on the countless beautiful sunsets before our eyes most nights of the year.  "Come and see the beautiful sunrise!" became a common summons from one family member to another.
       However, there was one thing we were not able to offer our children while living in Utah; cultural diversity.  The home we left in California was a pre WWII era, flat-roofed, two bedroom, converted carport extra room home.  It was our first home, and we were grateful to have it.  It was located in West Pittsburgh (now known as Bay Point) which was the bottom of the housing market in Contra Costa County and unfortunately in a rough neighborhood.  One of our neighbors was a known drug dealer, but he and his siblings liked Stan and were nice to us because Stan had given them a new piece of Armstrong flooring (the company Stan worked for before going into the Church Education System) for their street break dancing.  Although the neighborhood was culturally diverse, we felt it was too rough to raise our children and were grateful for Stan's transfer to Utah.
       Now, without children at home, Stan and I are living in a three-bedroom apartment on the fourth floor of a 50-year-old flat-roofed building in a culturally diverse neighborhood.  We are enjoying the experience.  Queens, New York is known for its diversity and is the  home to people of numerous nationalities.  Sometimes, as I am walking down the street, I become aware that I am the only native born, English speaking "pink" person (as Stan call us) in sight and I ask myself.  "Do I feel safe and accepted?" and gratefully, the answer has always been, "Yes."  Despite the challenge of living so far away from those we love we are grateful for this opportunity to live here and make new friends.  We hope our children and friends will come and visit us and experience a taste of the cultural diversity we are enjoying.
       Oh, how we wish we could speak a foreign language or two.  It sure would be helpful.  Maybe the "Can Do" attitude is all we really need to have to get over our fears of trying.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtYg1roxkoI

Our sunset from our 4th floor apartment in Elmhurst, NY.

Our sunset from our home in Cedar Hills, Utah.

Family & Fall Feasts

     October was a wonderful month. From October 13th – 20th Don, Janey, and Dmitri came to visit us here in New York. Don and Janey said they had a good time, but it could not have been better than mine. Dmitri was adorable, and I was able to soak up as much of him as I wanted. Each day we hung out together while his parents went off and dined on tasty cuisines. As far as I’m concerned, it was the best arrangement. We were able to see and visit with Don and Janey and know they were having a good time while we feasted on the enjoyment of a grandchild! 

     We've always wanted to experience New England, with all its foliage in the fall. We scheduled our retreat for October 22nd – 23rd. (It helped to have something to look forward to after Don, Janey, and Dmitri left us.) Stan let me choose the location of our get-away, and I chose Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Even though we are right here on Long Island we are busy enough that we have had little experience with the Atlantic Ocean. Thus, I wanted a small seaport town that was a reasonable drive for only a two-day retreat. Although we were a little late in the season and many trees had already dropped their leaves, it was still a feast for sore eyes. The weather was very crisp but clear. We loved it! While going to Portsmouth we took the quickest route, but on Saturday we drove 1A along the New Hampshire Atlantic coastline until we got to close to Boston where we got back on the freeway and bee-lined it home. Next October we plan to get away earlier in the month and see another beautiful New England fall.

Buses, Plays, & Subway Rats

Week Ending Sept. 26, 2010

This week I saw my first subway rat.  I have been told the subways are full of rats and no doubt this is true, but I had never actually seen one, until last Friday afternoon.  I was waiting for the 1 train at Times Square, on my way to the Manhattan Temple, when I saw it down on the tracks scrounging for food.   It did not look so bad down there all by it self, but if there were more than one, or if they were up on my level, it would be very unnerving.  Thursday evening, as we were traveling back from seeing an off Broadway play called, The 39 Steps, (a spin-off of an Alfred Hitchcock mystery/thriller that was very enjoyable) our friend, Gwen Hagland, did see a rat up where we were standing waiting for a train.  But by the time I turned around to look, it was gone.  (Gratefully)

Another adventure for me last week was to ride the Q60 bus all by myself to the Queens Stake Center building at Woodside at night.  This is the same building Dad has his office in and it is also where he teaches an institute class on Tuesday and Wednesday nights.  I thought it could not be very difficult to ride the bus straight up Queens Blvd. and get off a few blocks from Dad’s building.  Nevertheless, the bus was late, it grew dark, and I was nervous.  New Yorkers can be vocally impatient with people who do not stand in line the correct New York way, and since I did not understand the “bus etiquette” rules, I did not want to give cause for someone to say something rude.  Signs on the bus actually tell the passengers to enter the front door and exit the back door and the front seats are saved for the elder or handicapped.  But people pile out both doors or sometimes the back door does not seem to open and everyone comes out the front.  Not knowing if the back door would open when I wanted to get off, I worked my way to the front so that I could get off at the stop I wanted.  Later, I asked Anita, one of Dad’s students, how it was supposed to work. She told me to push the “Stop Wanted” button the stop before I wanted to get off and when the green lights lit up around the back door, to push it open.  She also told me that buses do not have to stop at every stop if there is no one waiting at the stop to get on and if the “stop wanted” button has not been pushed. I am thinking about figuring out what buses I could ride to go to the fabric store and back, so this is very helpful information to have. 

Stan & I with our friends, Howard & Gwen Haglund.