Category Archives: Back in US
RIP Doc
So sad to hear that you are no more, Dr. W!
Ten years ago when we were hunting for a new home, we found the one that you had put your heart and soul into, building it for your young family, way back when. Despite having to renovate and update the house, the one thing that stood out was that the home had character and that’s what we loved and bought. This was not one of those cold real estate transactions.
We moved into your old house while you were “downsizing” because you had just retired. But then you had gone and built a house just as large as the one you vacated right next door! When I kidded you about it, you said you only downsized the land, not the house. I guess that kind of makes sense….less lawn to mow.
We are so glad that we found our new home in your old one, and it has been wonderful to have you and Mrs.W as neighbors all this while.
Just a few days ago, you were fine, chatting about all kinds of topics, so it is doubly sad for us that you have left us so suddenly
Thank you for everything you did, from watching our house when we were away (a lot!) to making sure our garbage can was back in its place by the garage after it had been emptied. Every Monday, for the last couple of years!
And for being so kind always.
Thank you for your visits and for coming by to share a glass of wine or whiskey (or two or three, even if Mrs. W had said you could only have one).
Thank you for all those discussions on life, family, economics, politics (with you being as red as red could be and I as blue as blue can be) and more…they were ever so cordial, funny and kind – there, that word just keeps coming back to me!
Funny, I remember this like yesterday when you were telling hubby that all he had to do was wear some scrubs and go to the hospital and (given that he is Indian American) everyone there would just assume he must be a physician. You kept asking him to try that out. Just fake it, you said, you’ll be fine. 🙂
And I also remember when you came by as soon as I called you that day that I had had a break-in at the house…so worried and kind. I can’t seem to get that word out of my mind!
Thank you for being so appreciative always – how come you found something nice to compliment us every time we met?
We are so very sad to hear of your passing.. What with all of our commuting back and forth these past couple of years, we never even had the chance to say good bye properly! We always knew you were there, looking out for us. Right now, we are mourning the loss of a wonderful neighbor and friend.
RIP, kind Dr. W – we count ourselves lucky to have known you for the past ten years. We will miss you.
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“If we are to love our neighbors, before doing anything else we must see our neighbors. With our imagination as well as our eyes, that is to say like artists, we must see not just their faces but the life behind and within their faces. Here it is love that is the frame we see them in.”
— Frederick Buechner (Whistling in the Dark: A Doubter’s Dictionary)
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Whoa, Alaska!
I hate cruises. The thought of sharing a floating city with five thousand or more people simply does not appeal.
Nor did my first cruise experience change that sentiment. We were supposedly on the newest, grandest, largest, baddest cruise ship ever built, which would sail the eastern Caribbean seas for a week. The ship was truly over the top, typical of super-size, super-everything America.
By the middle of the cruise, for whatever reason, people began suffering from some kind of gastroenteritis maladies and by the end of the journey most of the passengers had been sick or were well on their way to being sick. I don’t think anyone was spared, including the crew.
So, I swore never to travel that way again.
Until an opportunity to see Alaska by cruise came my way. I made an exception and am tremendously glad I did.
As a further testimonial, I met a woman from Anchorage, Alaska on the cruise, and she told me that this was one of the best ways to see her state.
“Seward’s Folly“, so named because of the large sum of money ($7.2 million!) that the then American U.S. Secretary of State, William H. Seward paid the Russians to purchase Alaska, which became the 49th state of the Union. And possibly the most spectacular state when it comes to nature’s bounty. Absolutely no one thinks it’s a folly now!
If an urban-dwelling, urban-loving person can extol this state’s glorious natural beauty, I can just imagine what the nature freaks think of Alaska. For those who are choosing where to travel, I would definitely consider this as one of the places to see before you die. A must for your bucket list, in fact.
Here are some pictures taken by an amateur that provide a taste of the beauty and the bounty of Alaska –
Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau, Alaska
Alaskan Sunset
Glacier Bay, Alaska
Simply. Alaska.
A word about cruises…this second cruise changed my mind. I don’t despise cruises any longer. I merely dislike them. The beauty of Alaska balanced out the distaste of being on a humongous, hedonistic floating vessel.
There’s something about the decadence of these cruises that is unhealthy for mind and body. Any longer than seven entire days must truly suck. Also, for those who can’t help but indulge during this journey on a massive, “all-inclusive” boat (unfortunately I’m one of them), a word of caution to you – I’m finding that it’s very easy to start resembling one of those hump back whales you will most likely see on the trip. Fair warning.
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The Yin and Yang of Life Anywhere 