Welcome Home And Congratulations To The SF Giants!

The SF Giants won the World Series in 2010! Awesome!

In 2012...

The SF Giants win the World Series; again! 

They dominated the season and took no prisoners!

Go  

 

Thank you for all of your hard work, but it wouldn’t be anything without your hearts behind it. You are definitely a team with heart! Relax and enjoy what you have reaped. Go SF Giants!

What Is It About Mondays?

Yeah, Mondays can suck. Monday is the day after the weekend and being such, has become one of the least popular days of the week. But what do you really know about the day we love to hate?

Basic Monday Facts

Monday is the day between Sunday and Tuesday. According to international standard ISO 8601, it is the first day of the work week. Monday is derived from Old English, mōndæg literally meaning “moons day”. Monday aligns with the celestial body, the Moon, and the astrological sign of Cancer, and is represented by the symbol of the Moon, ☾.

Common Monday Names

The term ‘Mondayitis’ has become a popular saying among employees who work a common working week starting on Monday.

In times past Monday also became known as ‘Blue Monday’, named when the first day of the week was set aside for doing laundry. Bluing was used to keep clothes white and from that product the day became known as ‘Blue Monday’. Although today Mondays are not typically set aside for laundry as they once were the term ‘Blue Monday’ still exists as many employees begin their working week after a weekend break.

Monday’s Health And Color

According to the British Medical Journal, there is a reported 20% increase in heart attacks on Mondays as opposed to the other days of the week. As the color of the moon is milky white the ancient system of health care called Ayurveda which centers on holistic health recommends wearing milky white and being around white flowers on this day of the week.

Songs About Monday

♦ Monday Monday – The Mamas and The Papas

♦ Monday Morning – Melanie Fiona

♦ Manic Monday – The Bangles

♦ Rainy Days and Mondays – The Carpenters

♦ I Don’t Like Mondays – The Boomtown Rats

Books On Monday

♦ Monday Begins on Saturday – Boris and Arkady Strugatsky

♦ Mister Monday – Garth Nix

♦ Monday Mourning – Kathy Reichs

♦ Monday with a Mad Genius – Mary Pope Osbourne

Number Of Monday’s In A Calendar Year

There are either 52 or 53 Mondays in a calendar year, depending on what day of the week a year starts. It will also depend if the year is a leap year. In 2010 and 2011 there will be 52 Mondays and there will be 53 in 2012. So if you are not looking forward to next Monday remember you are not alone, and try to look on the bright side – there are still six other days of the week in between.

Named Holidays

♦ Easter Monday - follows Easter and is celebrated as a holiday in some cultures.

♦ Cyber Monday - follows Thanksgiving- refers to the increase in online sales.

♦ Hansel Monday - first of the new year in which gifts are given to convey good wishes in Scotland and Northern England.

♦ Clean Monday - or Ash Monday- the first day of Lent. Refers to being free from sin.

♦ Big Monday - ESPN's College Basketball presentation.

♦ Black Monday - October 19, 1987- the day the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 508 points.

The Worst Day

In many cultures, the first day of the work week holds the honor of being the worst day. Another interesting fact about Monday, the second day of the week, is, the French used to call automobiles that turn out to be lemons, "Monday Cars."

The Brighter Side

On the brighter side, there are two positive things about Monday. First, if you were born on this day, then you're not homely. After all, the old rhyme goes, "Monday's child is fair of face". That's a good thing. And second, when you're going to shop for a new car, do it on a Monday. Car salespeople make the bulk of their sales on the weekends. When Monday rolls around, there are usually few customers in sight, and the weekend is a long ways off. That's why car salespeople are more desperate on Monday, and they'll be more willing to cut you a deal.

Miscellaneous Monday Fact

A strange Monday fact is it’s associated with Silver when it comes to Alchemy; an ancient chemical science.

Eleven Monday Fun Facts

1. Most of us don't crack our first smile until 11:16 a.m.

2. The best-preferred way to beat Monday blues is by watching television or having sex.

3. Over 50% of employees are late to work.

4. Most people will moan about it being Monday for a whole 12 minutes.

5. People between the ages of 45 and 54 are likely to suffer the most Monday blues.

6. Workers only manage 3 1/2 hours of productive work.

7. Monday is the most likely day to commit suicide.

8. Most heart attacks happen on Mondays.

9. Monday is the least rainy day in the week.

10. Monday is the best day to buy a car.

11. You’re most likely to have a hangover on a Monday.

Enjoy your Mondays! Keep On Bloggin'!           

The Month Of May

This month is my birthday but I like the month of May for many reasons. The big one being that Spring is warming up and everywhere there’s signs of new life. I look at May as a month of renewal and of change. I can’t wait to see what life brings me next as I welcome May back.

Poems About May

May Crown

All early in the morning
I rose to greet the day,
And underneath my window
I saw a Child at play.

The robins were not fearful
Of one so mild and meek;
They lighted on His shoulder
And nested at His cheek.

He picked the clustering roses,
The lily in its sheath,
The long-stemmed purple violets,
And wove them in a wreath.

And then I saw a Lady
Come walking in the dew;
Her robe was white as starshine,
Her mantle was deep blue.

And as the Child approached her,
All sweetly she knelt down
And bent her head, receiving
His fragrant, flowery crown.

© Helen Connolly

May

Hail, sweet month of May!
Hail, bright month of May!
Bring sunshine with thee,
Chasing clouds away.
March has left us sighing
In cold and chilly blast,
April's tears have fallen,
May has come at last!

I will wander in the meadows,
I will search in sunny bowers,
I will cut sweet-scented posies,
I will twine a wreath of flowers.
The lily and the rosebud
With May I will entwine,
And lay them for an offering
Upon Our Lady's shrine.

And there is another offering
Which at Mary's feet I'll lay,
I know that she will prize it more
Than all the flowers of May,
I will pray to her to keep it
And never from it part,
And my Queen will deign to take it -
My poor, yet loving heart.

I will pray to her to guide it,
In truth and wisdom's way,
And make it pure and balmy
As the flowers which spring in May;
I will pray to her to warm it
With the sunshine of her love,
And make it fit to deck a crown
One day in heaven above.

Anonymous

May In Bloom

May is so beautiful:
Orchards are fair;
Branches of fruit trees
Make gardens of air.

Flowers of fragrance
Bloom in the light;
Fall like the snowflakes
Showering white.

Orchards of heaven
Grow with a grace,
And like a blessing
Perfume the place.

Each tree in blossom,
Each lovely spray,
In this month of Our Lady,
Bring glory to May.

© Helen Maring

May Quotes

"Be like a flower and turn your face to the sun."
- Kahlil Gibran

"Sweet spring, full of sweet days and roses,
A box where sweets compacted lie."
- George Herbert, Virtue

"The world's favorite season is the spring.
All things seem possible in May."
- Edwin Way Teale

More May Poetry

May

"The wind is tossing the lilacs,
The new leaves laugh in the sun,
And the petals fall on the orchard wall,
But for me the spring is done.
Beneath the apple blossoms
I go a wintry way,
For love that smiled in April
Is false to me in May."

© Sara Teasdale

An English Rhyme

"A swarm of bees in May
Is worth a load of hay;
A swarm of bees in June
Is worth a silver spoon;
A swarm of bees in July
Is not worth a fly."
- Rhyme from England

May Weather Lore

A cold January, a warm May. - Welsh Proverb

Mist in May, heat in June, make the harvest come right soon.

A wet May makes a big load of hay. A cold May is kindly and fills the barn finely.

A swarm of bees in May is worth a load of hay.

Flowers before May bring bad luck. - Welsh Proverb

Happy May Day!

Keep On Bloggin’!

The Facts Of Chocolate

A guy found a bottle and a genie granted him three wishes.

"Well," he said: "I'm broke and life sucks.
I'd like to be really stinking rich."
***POOF****
There was a million bucks.

"The best car in the World," he said;
"Is what I'd really adore,
But it costs $1.7 million.”
***POOF****
There was a Bugatti Veyron 16.4.

Finally, he said; "I'm a nerdy geek
I'm not one of those hunky jocks
I'd like to be irresistible to all women.”
***POOF****
He was turned into an automatically, refilling, giant chocolate box.
(Which unfortunately has no need for money and a car but on the other hand, will get slobbered over by all women.)

Jon Bratton 2012

Tee shirt slogan

EMERGENCY ALERT:
If wearer of this shirt is found vacant, listless, or depressed,
ADMINISTER CHOCOLATE IMMEDIATELY.

The 12-step chocoholics program: Never be more than 12 steps from chocolate!

Chocolate causes certain endocrine glands to secrete Hormones that affect your feelings and behavior by making you happy. Therefore, it counteracts depression, in turn reducing the stress of depression. Your stress-free life helps you maintain a youthful disposition, both physically and mentally. So, eat lots of chocolate!

Elaine Sherman
Book of Divine Indulgences

Researchers have discovered that chocolate produced some of the same reactions in the brain as marijuana. The researchers also discovered other similarities between the two, but can't remember what they are.

Matt Lauer on NBC's Today Show, August 22nd

Chocolate is the first luxury. It has so many things wrapped up in it: Deliciousness in the moment, childhood memories, and that grin-inducing feeling of getting a reward for being good.

Mariska Hargitay

Chocolate doesn't make the world go around ... but it certainly makes the ride worthwhile!

Chocolate is the greatest gift to women ever created, next to the likes of Paul Newman and Gene Kelly. It's something that should be had on a daily basis.

Sandra Bullock

It's not that chocolates are a substitute for love. Love is a substitute for chocolate. Chocolate is, let's face it, far more reliable than a man.

Miranda Ingram

Giving chocolate to others is an intimate form of communication, a sharing of deep, dark secrets.

Milton Zelman, publisher of "Chocolate News"

I have this theory that chocolate slows down the aging process.... It may not be true, but do I dare take the chance?

After about 20 years of marriage, I'm finally starting to scratch the surface of what women want. And I think the answer lies somewhere between conversation and chocolate.

Mel Gibson

I don't understand why so many "so-called" chocolate lovers complain about the calories in chocolate when all true chocoholics know that it is a vegetable. It comes from the cocoa bean, beans are veggies, 'nuff said.

I take chocolate from strangers.

... the taste of chocolate is a sensual pleasure in itself, existing in the same world as sex... For myself, I can enjoy the wicked pleasure of chocolate... entirely by myself. Furtiveness makes it better.

Dr. Ruth Westheimer

I could give up chocolate but I'm not a quitter.

Forget love...I'd rather fall in chocolate.

Chocolate is cheaper than therapy and no appointment is needed.

My mouth is watering after writing this I'm off for some chocolate!!!

Keep On Bloggin’!

Results Of My Eye Operation After Two Months & Three Days

I went to see Dr. Lam (my Ophthalmologist) on March 14th to find out how my eye surgery finally turned out. She did two operations on my right eye on January 19th. Even though I couldn’t tell I had a cataract the new lens in my eye surprisingly improved my eyesight and that was an awesome side effect.

Dr. Lam told me the second operation would really be difficult to pull off because a Macular hole is hard to close and there could be a lot of complications involved. She told me ahead of time that the gas bubble might not do the job, said to keep my head down, follow her instructions, use the eye drops as directed and keep my fingers crossed. I not only did that, but I prayed that my eye would respond to the treatment.

When Dr. Lam came into the examining room that day with the images of my inner eye she was really pleased. She showed me the images and it was amazing! The Macular Degeneration that caused the hole had disappeared! The before and after pictures were striking as the gas bubble had worked and the hole was gone. My doctor and I hugged as she congratulated me for following directions. Of course, I was lucky to have her as my doctor she was very good at her job and I thanked her.

I wasn’t sure if it worked or not before this last visit and was worried because I could still see the kink in a straight line when I used that eye but my doctor explained that it would take awhile for the damage that the hole had done to clear up and because we treated it so fast there wasn’t much damage at all. I can surely live with that and it saved my central, hell, it saved my vision in that eye!

I’m so happy to say I’m back and ready to write! My eye surgery worked and I’m thrilled! Besides that, I’ve missed my social networking, writing and reading your blogs!

Keep On Bloggin’!

Update. 

Unfortunately, although I did everything right this failed. I had to have it done again immediately. Again, I beat the small odds that it wouldn't happen again, yet I can't win the lottery or anything else for that matter.

My retina finally stayed down. I can see but the middle of my vision is damaged making it hard to read at times when I really notice it. My good eye is really bad now with floaters that are in the way of my vision. I don't write as much because of it. Lucky for me when I ride my bike outside and look around it's still beautiful.

In the next 4 short years, my life went to hell. My favorite aunt and mother died. My brother didn't tell me my mom was dying until it was too late for me to see her! Afterward, I got no closure. 

My roommate lost his permanent job, I lost my alimony and rent/bills kept going up. I gained a lot of weight and suffered the worst depression of my life. I lost my savings accounts which dwindled to nothing paying bills beyond my means. My health was on the verge of completely failing. I had nowhere to retire.

Don't Wait For Someone To Save Your Ass

You know, the only one who cared to save me was myself? I looked in the mirror one morning (opiate addicted, depressed, and fat) and "something clicked". I think it was self-preservation fighting its way through the fog because I was truly, finally, and thoroughly disgusted and embarrassed at what I saw looking back at me. 

It took one millisecond at a time because real change happens slowly and is full of pain when you are alone.

I did many things (I've already written about on Bike With Bekkie) to get to where I'm at today. Without daily exercise, something I could do that made me feel better, something that I enjoyed-I wouldn't have made it. Especially over the long haul because it's been over 3 years now. It wasn't easy, the changes I made were depressingly slow but once I gained momentum it's all good habits now.

Once you reprogram your thinking and acting it becomes your way of doing. So make it good. I was in a very dark place. 

I may not have much (a bicycle and a car are about it) but from my bike seat, things look a lot brighter now. The world is still turning, the sun is still shinning and me, I'm still in it to win it!

Today is good. Thanks for reading!

My Three Month Hiatus

It’s good to be writing again! I can’t even think of the last time my personal life made it hard for me to write. I’ve been blogging since I left AOL all those years ago. That’s a long time!

My website “Bekkie In Wonderland” actually started on Windows Live Spaces around 1990 something. I can’t think of the specific year now. It was a very rough looking site compared to what I have now at Blogger and when I remember those old posts I want to blanch with embarrassment over my writing skills. We all have to start somewhere though.

Windows Live was a good place to meet people and I met many of my online friends there. Friends I still have to this day (along with all my newer friends here at Blogger.) That was Windows Lives' heyday before they started dropping all kinds of services until they were down to Messenger, profiles and Spaces.

Then Windows Live informed us that they were dropping Spaces in 2009. They offered to transfer our sites over to Word Press and I agreed. I started a Word Press account and waited for my site (and work) to show up. It never did.

I licked my wounds and started blogging on Word Press. Hated it! I like to have my animated gifs and Word Press wasn’t having it. Also, I was using Windows Live Writer (I’m using it now) and although it worked with Word Press too, I just didn’t like the fit. (I've since given it up, MSN dropped Windows Live Writer in 2011 or so.)

It was the best thing that ever happened to me in my blogging career because in 2009 I wrote my first and last blog of the year on Blogger. My writing and my website have improved greatly since those fumbling early days and I have a website that I’m actually proud of now on Word Press. So where have I been lately?

In January of, 2012 I had a change of eyesight and found out I had developed an ocular hole in my right eye. Everything turned out fine but it was hard work and a frightening experience. I worked very hard to get that hole closed after surgery.

The end of November I noticed another change of eyesight. It was disheartening to say the least. I got pretty depressed and quit writing. I knew the hole had opened again and I’d have to go through it all again. No surgery is a piece of cake.

When I went to see Dr. Lam she told me that it had indeed opened and that I was one of 6% that had it happen again. She was surprised it had happened so fast. I had surgery again before Christmas.

I was so worried about my eyesight. I don’t need to really say it but eyesight is so precious. Losing it even in one eye is not an option I wanted to explore anytime soon.

After the gas bubble got smaller I began to be able to peek over it. I saw black and white spots all over the place. Even though it was one eye I could see them with both eyes. I decided it was better than being blind, and thought they must be permanent.

Last Monday I went to Union City to see Dr. Lam with a heavy heart. My eyesight seamed worse and the spots were everywhere I looked. I sat in silence during the ride soaked in my sullen thoughts.

Not only was the hole gone, but during surgery my doctor removed the tissue that was pulling and causing the hole to return. She also told me that the spots were only temporary caused by the gas bubble rubbing against the iris. (I didn’t have spots at all after the first surgery.) The nurse had tested my eyesight early in the visit and I was told my eyesight had actually improved.

I was dumbfounded. Then I experienced extreme happiness for the first time in what seemed like forever! I even let out a whoop while still at Kaiser. I’m keeping all my digits crossed that the hole doesn’t come back again. Did I tell you my eyesight is better? What an emotional merry go round I’ve been on in the last year.

The sight in my right eye isn’t perfect but I can see. If I’m looking at a line with that eye it will have a kink in it and words can swim around but if I’m patient I can read it. Also if a person is far away or the light is dim, one side of their face looks like a monster. (Yeah it’s hard to explain.) Actually my brain lets me see fine with both eyes. I feel like I won the eyesight lottery!

I will be posting regularly now and things are getting back to normal again. I really enjoy working on this website and I’m happy to be back. Thanks for all your support through this and I hope you will come and visit me soon.

Back, to Wonderland!

Keep On Bloggin’!

Eye Will Be Offline Having Surgery

I like to try to blog once a week or more but recently I haven’t been blogging at all. This is because I found out more about my serious eye problem and need an operation right away due to Macular Degeneration.

There are two kinds of Macular Degeneration, wet and dry. The dry form is by far the most common type and doesn’t require surgery. The wet form is much less common, but it comes on more quickly and can become severe. Lucky me because I have the wet form and I am not a brave person.

The dry form accounts for 9 out of 10 causes of Macular Degeneration. It develops slowly and causes central vision to become dimmer or more blurry over time. It usually doesn’t cause severe vision loss unless it turns into the wet form.

The wet form accounts for only about 1 out of 10 cases of Macular Degeneration. It can cause serious vision loss within months or even weeks. People who have the wet form have the dry form first.

In either the wet or dry forms of the disease, one eye may seem to be affected while the other remains unaffected for a period of time. During that time, the healthier eye may compensate for the affected eye. However, in most cases, if one eye is affected the other eye will develop Macular Degeneration in time, too.

My eyesight has been pretty good for this aging Hoosier. Anything up close is blurry without drug store glasses but I still have good vision when looking far away. I had no vision problems that I had to worry about and sometimes still could see close up on a “good day.”

About a month ago I noticed an eyesight change. My eyes seemed to be growing more tired while watching TV, reading, blogging, etc. I could still see just fine but questioned my vision change. Since it wasn’t something I could put my finger on, I chalked it up to my eyes getting worse with old age. Vision changes can hide a serious problem so I decided if it got worse I’d go to the doctor.

One night when my eyes were really bothering me I put my hand over my right eye; no problem my sight was fine. Then I tried the left eye….OMG! I could see with it but I noticed right in the middle of my sight I could see a problem. Especially when looking at a straight line, I saw a kink in it. Also when looking at a person’s face the left side of their face looked distorted. I had no black spots in my vision and I could still see fine at night but obviously, there was something seriously wrong.

After going to my doctor he referred me to an Optometrist who told me that some of the vitreous gel in the back of my eye turned to fluid and that was why my vision had changed. He said it was due to old age, told me not to worry about it and referred me to a Retina Specialist Dr. Lam. This is when things got serious; I got my diagnosis and she said I had to have surgery as soon as possible.

This last Monday I had 3 appointments to get set up for my surgery which will be January 19th and I just got a call from Kaiser today ( telling me it will be at 1PM.) 

I wish they would put me to sleep for the operation but I have to be awake and this will be the first surgery I ever had like this. I am petrified at the thought of being awake during the surgery and just hope they have some strong-ass medications so I’m not at all aware of what’s going on!

I don’t know how my sight will be when this is all said and done but sight is one of the most important senses we have. I would rather lose a lot of other functions than my sight. Even one eye would be acceptable to me. My grandmother (bless her lovely soul) lost an eye to cancer and took it like the trooper that she was. She was no young lady either; in her 70’s when it happened. She was awesome!

Some Facts About The Eye

♦ The retina is a thin lining of nerve tissue on the inside back wall of the eye. The macula is the center of the retina. It is the part of our vision process that makes possible recognizing faces, reading, and driving a car.

♦ Symptoms of wet macular degeneration may include loss of central vision and visual distortion. For instance, a straight line may appear wavy or a small object may seem to be farther away than it really is.

♦ Macular degeneration doesn't cause total blindness. Peripheral vision may not be affected, but central vision, which is used for activities such as reading, watching television, and doing close work, is.

Then there’s the after eye surgery torture! OMG! I have to use this therapy device that keeps my head pointing down for 10 days OR MORE. That’s 24/7 folks; eating, watching TV, going to the bathroom, riding in a car, or anything that keeps my head in this face-brace control in a face-down position. This is to keep the gas bubble on the healing surface of the retina.

Bedtime will be fun! I need sleep so I have to sleep (if I ever sleep again) on my stomach with a board-thing stuck between the mattresses holding the face-brace contraption on it so I can keep my head in it. I can only sleep cross-wise on the bed or at an angle. So comfortable.

They think they have a plan so you don’t go completely insane. The face-brace contraption comes on this folding chair (like a desk in grade school) that has a built-in table and a two-way mirror. They expect me to spend most of my time in it so I can watch TV, read, (oh my aching back) and try to eat with my face down like that. I’m sure straws will be in order.

24/7 For At Least 10 Days! 

If I don’t use this stuff and keep my head just like they tell me then the gas bubble they inject into my eye will not float to where it belongs and fix my eye. If I screw it up, I get surgery again, mess up my sight more plus all the costs that aren’t covered by insurance.

Oh, did I mention that my face-brace contraption (and comfort items) costs $20/day (at least) and my insurance (Kaiser) doesn’t pay for it? Wave bye-bye to aftercare.

Freaking Out Now

I have always been an artist and my love of beauty, hell my love of life has everything to do with what I see! Then there’s “Blu” my beloved sports car that I adore driving! I almost lost my license in 2010 due to a medical problem....

How am I going to blog and be online? Not easily even with a two-way mirror, I’d say. As you can tell it’s going to be hard to use my computer AT ALL. Bummer! My computer is not a laptop. Big sigh! Being busy getting ready for this has put me behind in my writing. Something I miss when I can’t do it.

I really shouldn’t be whining; I mean it’s not cancer or other painful, horrible and fatal diseases people get every blink of an eye. It’s just another crisis in the life of Rebecca Del Sanchez and she’s had so many recently. I don’t use my blogs to complain but it’s time for me to have a good year. I just want to enjoy my life as much as I can. 

It feels like a huge boulder is on my chest and if that bolder was just a bit smaller, well then managing it would be a little easier and I could catch my breath for once.

Dr. Lam assures me that she’s done this surgery many times before and as a team, we can do this. I just worry if it’s so important to keep my head like that (and the gas bubble stable) that I should be in the hospital a few days afterward. You know how it is these days everything is outpatient! Organ transplant? No problem, have you in and out in a day! Yes, you can wear your 5-inch heels when you go home. Tee hee!

Today I’m just trying to chill out and prepare for Thursday. I am taking a break from being online until my procedure is done and heals. I pray my sight is at least this good when I am finished so I can come back and do all of the many things I enjoy doing and get my head out of that torture device.

Pray for me if you will and I’ll be back ASAP!

Update: The first surgery failed! I had to have it done again right away. Positioning, gas bubble, everything. Finally, it worked.

Keep On Bloggin’!