Dancing with the Stars - the winners are . . .

Gosh but it was difficult to pick the best dancers of the three finalists but in the end I was happy that Melissa & Tony won.  This was a really fantastic season with so many terrific dances.  It was the best entertainment we’ve seen on television in a very long time.  I especially enjoyed the rest of this season’s celebrities returning to continue dancing.  Some cute moments with the young dancers made it different as well.

       Well done.

A Scrooge in the House

My mother is the sweetest person in the world until Christmas starts to come in the air.  Surprising though it may seem, Mother does not like Christmas.  While we had noticed Mom would sometimes seem a bit crankier than usual we only thought it was because we were underfoot due to our Christmas break from school.  We were adults before we were told that our sister Jill was born on Christmas Eve and therefore it was a bad time of year for her.

       All these years later Christmas is still not my mother’s favorite time of year and so it can be a real challenge to get into the spirit when she kyboshes everything.  Walking down the aisles in a store I am told that I don’t need any more ornaments, that I don’t’ need to look at tablecloths, candles, tinsel or what have you.  Christmas cards, perish the thought.  I found myself encouraging her to go look for prunes to stuff the ducks.   Don’t laugh, this really happened.  I felt like the mother with the cranky child.

       Today I put on the Christmas carols while we washed all our crystal and china and suffered through the criticism of Michael Buble’s singing (not up to Bing Crosby standard).  I found myself lurking in the family room, secretly setting out Danish elves and red table cloths while Mom had her nap.  If only there really was fairy dust that I could sprinkle in her eyes to cheer her up.

       Challenges await us at every corner but the good part is that as the day draws near and she has to start thinking about baking and cooking things start to smooth themselves out.  And then we can think about spring.

A midwife in the family

At 10:00 p.m. on November 22^nd my sister got called to her son’s home to take care of her young grandson as her daughter-in-law was going into labour.  By the time Jeanette made it to the home the baby was on his way and my sister was up to the challenge.  With great presence of mind she asked her son to call the ambulance while she assisted Audrey in laying down. Within minutes our little Chester was born, mother was doing well and it only remained for Jeanette to go down to the street to let the paramedics in.  She made the comment that watching TLC certainly paid off.

       It’s taken several days for my sister to come out of the clouds but always her sense of humour remained strong.  The morning after the delivery she told the tale to her various colleagues and then she felt the need to tell the tale to those who missed the first telling.  By way of excusing herself she said “Sorry, but I have to make my rounds”, without even realizing what she had said she was on her way.

       Chatting with me she was still quite thrilled but she admitted ‘birthing a baby was never on my bucket list” which made me laugh.  She certainly handled the situation much better than I would have done as I most certainly would have been faint on the floor.  Emergency situations are definitely not my forte. 

       We are very happy to have our new boy enter our family with such a grand entrance.

Second Anniversary of Sanne's Grain of Salt

Here we are two years after the real start of this blog and what have I learned?  First and foremost, that writing a daily blog is a HUGE commitment.  To write with consistent quality and interest is a full time job so needless to say the writing has been erratic in the extreme.  The flip side is that blogging gives me an avenue to express my opinions on a world stage, be that world ever so small.  Family anecdotes and celebrity stories are more popular than political ravings.  Musings on the meaning of life also elicit more comments than worrying about health or safety. 

But where do the stories come from on a daily basis?  When you don’t lead an exciting life it’s hard to discover new topics every day.  There are stories in the paper that invite comments but how often can I question the sanity of humanity?  There is always the danger of blogging becoming journaling and I’ve had a few of those moments.  At the end of the day though I just write what’s in this mature woman’s mind and let the chips fall where they may.

More than ever I’ve learned to appreciate columnists, journalists, and authors for their stick-with-it-ness.  Not only are they searching for stories to write, they then have to write them, and then they have to send them out into the world and wonder if they are being read and appreciated.  Occasionally they are read and then one must endure the criticism that may pop up.  It’s a daunting profession.

I’ve survived two years and I hope I’m up to the challenge of going into the third year.  Come along for the ride and I will make you laugh.

Jumping for Joy

It’s Saturday and the day looks promising both with the weather and the plans ahead of us.  Mother and I are taking a jaunt into the big city to start our Christmas shopping and then hook up with our book club friends.

       I’ve always loved the month of November which begins that happy momentum into the holiday season.  In recent years November is the beginning of Christmas parties and already the stores are stocked up on Christmas finery.  Surveys have already started coming out on how much people are going to spend over the holidays, drink and eat themselves into a January diet program and so forth.  I like the hustle and bustle of November.  I enjoy the socializing aspect as well as the anticipation of festivities and gift exchanging.  Few things give me more pleasure than seeking out a perfect gift for a loved one, hiding it away until that special day when I start wrapping all the treasures up.  In the past the wrapping has been random and uncoordinated but Martha Stewart has waved her wand of influence over we happy few who still follow her artistic lead.  I have the added influence of my native country that goes whole hog into the Christmas season.  Regardless of the season the Danes have an amazing ability to make things hyggelige and one of my pleasures is to pull out my mother’s immense stack of Danish magazines and pore over the holiday editions.  What a Dane can do with a candle and pinecone is priceless!

       Then we have all the baking, recipe hunting, pre-cooking, card and letter writing to begin.  My family and friends are scattered around the world and Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without the traditional card.  I’m sorry but an email just doesn’t do it for me.  Let’s not forget that I am an addict for stationery of all kinds. 

       Lastly there is the socializing and oh what fun can be had with that.  Now that’s for tomorrow.

Happy Friday's Here Again

Let’s end the week on a happy note after my long tirade against social and economic injustice.  I’m currently watching some spectacular streaks made by 2 jets, which look like a monochrome rainbow.  Just the right vision to get me in the mood for an artistic story.

       So here I am,  a middle aged woman, struggling to get into my clothes.  What happened to simply throwing things on, brushing my hair and walking out of the house in ship shape?  From the inside out, it is now a struggle.  Forget panties, there’s this thing called Spanx which operates on the same concept as corsets forcing one’s body into a shape it long ago gave up.  Next layer, pantyhose.  Since when was it a struggle to put on hose?  I used to be able to do it standing up.  Now it is a nightmare to do it sitting down.  Yesterday i nearly popped my eyeball out while I was in a contortionist’s state.  Oh, I almost forgot the bra stage in the underwear process.  On second thought, let’s put the Victorian curtain over that particular hell before I begin contemplating suicide again. 

       Now we are at the stage of actual clothes and I will skip over the painful selection process of what will look good on me.  I’m putting on the dress, stepping into it like models supposedly do.  There’s a tug at the hips, this morning it’s a slight tug due to the Spanx which is pleasing but now I have to zip it up.  Once upon a time my arms were like that of a monkey and it was no problem to reach around back and zip it up!  Now it is done in stages, with a twist here and a jerk there and at the end of the zip I make a mental note to call the chiropractor for another appointment since my back is now out of whack.

       By the time I am dressed the sweat is pouring out of my face and I have yet to deal with the hair.  The makeup had already put on prior to the dressing up process but now it is dripping away or running down my neck.  The hair which was somewhat arranged is now a wet mop.  No handkerchief for me, I take a towel and start dabbing away at the face, but who can be dainty with a towel.  Before I  realize what I am doing I am scrubbing away and have to start all over again.  The second bell has long ago stopped ringing and I am late.

       So much for Happy Friday.

Economic Engine

A noticeable absence during any election in the past couple of decades has been the question of tariffs on imported goods.  While there has been some discussion on the fact that jobs have been imported overseas the solution to those lost jobs is studiously ignored.  Here in Canada we have dollar stores sprouting up all over the place.  We have shoddy footwear in cheap chain outlets and clothing that falls apart after one washing in stores like Walmart.  We also have food products coming in from overseas that have questionable content including pet foods and vitamins to name a few recent outrages. 

       Once upon a time Canada and the United States had a thriving fabric and clothing industry. We used to have shoe manufacturing and industrial factories which are now located in Mexico or Asia.  In the 1990’s we were told that we were now going to be a technology based economy but in recent years we have had our IT business also migrate overseas into India and Asia.  What are the drivers that are pushing businesses overseas?  The cost of wages which will give corporations a wider margin to declare dividends for their shareholders.  Business has a right to operate the business as they see fit but it ought to be the right of the average citizen to have the power to elect a government that will do right by the general population.  In this, the 21^st century we ought to have governments who see to it that 100% of the population has a humane quality of life that would include a living wage, access to decent homes and the ability to obtain the necessities of life and some few luxuries.

       In other words, our government ought to place tariff on imports to the extent that it would force back manufacturing jobs as well as jobs like telephone operators.  If there is one thing that drives me around the bend it is talking to an operator over in India that I barely can understand.  How is that even allowed?  Many accounting jobs have also been farmed over to India and again, how is that allowed?

       When the politicians talk about creating jobs, why isn’t someone asking the question about reinventing the wheel?  Why can’t we have the jobs back that were shipped overseas?  Is it too much to ask that our accounting clerks receive a living wage with their job?  Are dividends to shareholders more important than people?

       Apparently the answer to that last question is yes, but I have to then ask, why?

Immigrants and a Fair Wage

I wrote a strong article yesterday but I want to make it clear that I do not have anything against immigrants.  Immigrants help make a country strong even today when nations are already built.  My concern with immigration as I see it here in Canada is that many of the immigrants that are brought in are here to take menial jobs for insufficient wages.  In allowing certain types of jobs to be poorly paid the employees become second class citizens.  How many of you have heard or said “I don’t want to work at Walmart”.  The implication is clear that working at Walmart is the very lowest type of job because of the pay.  After all, we all appreciate it when a clerk in any store will assist us so clearly the services are needed.  If we knew that the clerk was paid, for example, $25 an hour and had a 40 hour week and full benefits, one would not look down on that clerk.

       Before 1993 and before the Safeway union was broken it was a respectable career to work in a grocery store.  The managers in any of the departments and even the cashiers had a well paid position and could expect a decent middle class lifestyle.  That isn’t the case today.  The people on the assembly line at Burns Foods in 1970 made more than double what the office workers earned and were able to afford a mortgage in a nice neighbourhood.   The Cargill and XL workers are lucky if they can afford rent.  Many of the employees are injured due to inhumane speed on the lines and insufficient rotation of duties. 

       A friend of mine told me the story of his wife’s experience at a bakery in Calgary.  When the employees began their work they were locked inside the bakery until noon.  They could not get out even for a bathroom break.  They were all immigrant workers with poor or no English and no knowledge of labour laws.  I was shocked that something like this was happening in the City of Calgary.  Another friend told me the story of her nephew working in the restaurant world, where he was made to work double shifts without any overtime pay.  He was afraid to object because he only had a working visa and was afraid he would be sent back home.  There have been worse infractions written up in the newspapers and yet the abuse of immigrant workers continues in part because our laws and our punishment are not sufficient deterrents. 

       How do we come to grips with economic disparity?

Working Class

Even though most of us have to slug it out 5 days a week doing our jobs we are not termed “working class” because we are not doing physical labour and we are educated.  This is according to the Wikipedia article.  I however am considering that while we may not be so defined now in the future we will again revert to working class status because this is how the economy is being driven. 

In my opinion I believe that the political will since at least the 1990’s has been to drive the mass population downwards in economic expectations.  This can be seen by the extreme pressure that was and is brought to bear on the various unions around the world.  In breaking the unions the powers that be have helped keep down the wages of all workers.  In addition a large portion of industry has been shipped outside of Canada and the United States which means thousands of jobs have disappeared.  Here’s a news flash for Mitt Romney and his ilk, consequently there is unemployment in America.  I do not know what is happening in the United States but here in Canada we are allowing immigrants to enter our country because they demand lower wages and will do the menial work that “white folks” won’t do. 

I was told by a business person that their company has been experiencing a crisis with respect to using truck transportation.  The truck drivers barely speak English and more than once they have had the cargo either stolen or abandoned on the road.  I was considerably shocked since I had worked extensively with transportation in my past career and never once in 15 years had I had an issued with my transportation.

In recent weeks we have been experiencing a cross country crisis with our beef industry which has a two-fold reason.  The meat inspection agency is now privatized and the vast majority of workers are immigrants who barely speak English.  If you cannot understand the language how can you possibly understand the regulations required to keep a factory properly sanitized.  I was practically raised on a kill floor since my father frequently brought us children with him to the various meat plants he worked in, I worked my summers in a meat plant, I was the first woman to work on a kill floor as a meat inspector and the first woman in Canada to make the list as a Federal meat inspector.  I was also co-owner of a federally inspected meat plant.  I know whereof I speak. 

I am not attacking immigrant workers, I am questioning why our government feels it is necessary to bring in lower paid workers rather than investigate the need to pay our existing Canadian workers an honest living wage.  Why have our labour standards deteriorated to the extent that it is now acceptable to have stores open 24/7 and yet these same stores have the majority of their employees working less than a 40 hour week?  Thus the stores are not required to pay full benefits to these workers.  If the store cannot afford to give their employees a living wage with full benefits that store should not be allowed to operate.  Let’s face it, these same stores grant bonuses and dividends at the top levels.  I’m sorry but that is not acceptable when the employees cannot by groceries.

In the American election, as well as our own recent federal election, there was a lot of rhetoric but there was very little substance with respect to why there was rampant unemployment.  Those of us who watch a number of different magazine shows and political analysis shows will have a better grasp of what is really happening, but for the average Joe what do they really understand?  Are they so hammered down by their situation that they cannot protest?

If there isn’t a strong protest soon North Americans will lose their middle class ground and again become the working class, in an economic sense.

Fashion Trends

In my teens I used to make sketches of different dress styles and then I used to make fancy gowns for my Barbie dolls even though I was challenged by not having a lot of good material.  I was never a very good seamstress but I must have inherited some of my mother’s sense of style since I was interested in clothes.

       There is no question that a woman feels 100% better about herself when she knows she is dressed exquisitely.  Even in the right jeans, with a nice shirt and trim jacket, she can be a knockout.  But there is something wonderful about a truly nice dress with all the glitz and glamour that makes a woman look like a goddess.  Fashionistas everywhere pour over the magazines after Oscar night to see the celebrity gowns and right now I bet many are waiting for the next season of Downton Abbey to see the gowns Mary  will be wearing.

       In grade 6 I had to make an 18^th century gown for my Barbie as a special history project.  Little did my teacher know that I had already pored over a calendar of fashions which my mother had received in our Christmas parcel a year before.  I was already well versed in the fashion of different eras.  I had learned that a petticoat was not a coat at all but an underskirt.  I knew what pantalets were and I had been exposed at a tender age to the design of a corset (my grandmother wore one).  The following year my parents began purchasing the Knowledge Encyclopaedias from the grocery store and then I was truly in love with the different centuries fashions.

       My favorites include Eleanor of Aquitaine’s period (12^th century); the Renaissance; Antebellum South’s extravagance; the Roaring 20’s and today’s gowns. Enjoy these plates.

Eras

Expanding on my observations yesterday I got to thinking about the evolution of civilization.  It would appear that humanity can only get to a certain level of civilization before it stops and reverts in on itself.  What do I mean? 

       Greece, or more particularly Athens, reached a point of civilization that experienced a high level of education or the appreciation of knowledge.  An emphasis was placed on expanding knowledge which led to speculative philosophy on the nature of humanity.  Instead of reaching out to the general population society deteriorated into a battle ground.  Then the Renaissance period saw a resurgence of interest in education, knowledge and philosophy but once again the period fizzled out and became mundane.  There was another, stronger wave that saw education spread to the masses by the early 20^th century.  Now, when humanity in the Western world at least ought to be truly civilized into looking beyond the material world what do we find?  So much greed at the upper levels that it is beyond the comprehension of the ordinary mind.

       A very simple and brief observation is that mankind has the potential to be great and benign but there is always a serpent in the garden.  Even ordinary people with no hopes of true riches can be found who begrudge a simple luxury to someone perceived to be an outsider. 

       How can one eradicate personalities or mentalities such as Conrad Black or Donald Trump?  The former in particular is such a repulsive character that I am astonished that anyone would have anything to do with him.  I saw some news clips of him recently speaking in such an irrational manner to the interviewer that I wondered why any station would even bother to air it, particularly since he was out flogging his book.  Who would want to read anything from a man like that?

       People still continue to amaze me.

Class Distinction

While wrapped up in Matador, Upstairs, Downstairs (both series) and Downton Abbey one becomes enthralled with the whole division of class.  Decades ago my mother made the observation that the middle class were the people that behaved with most decency because they were the ones with the most to lose.  The rich have money to whitewash their sins while the poor already have nothing so bad behavior doesn’t have many terrors for them.  But the middle class has struggled to get where they are and so they don’t want to lose it by behaving badly.  We are of course talking about past generations and about morality.

       In Matador we see things a little more blurred because the disparity of wealth is not as great as it was in England (at least not in this little town).  What is illustrated in the early episodes is how the serving classes behave towards those who are presumably wealthier than they and the common man.  Some are so exaggerated in their manners that one wants to throw up or strangle them; others are scheming, others are decent and caring.  Interestingly enough one can take a look in the workplace and see the same types of behavior though coloured differently.  There are those who barely see a secretary in the room but who gravitate immediately towards a manager.  Those are the visible signs, then there are the emails that are ignored unless one includes the boss’s name in the cc section.  How rapid the response becomes once that name is added and how pathetic that 100 years after the era of Upstairs, Downstairs, nothing has changed.

       In a social context how does one go about the art of mingling?  We are approaching the season of Christmas parties where people make attempts at conversing over the loud music that is provided with the idea of dancing although people tend to converge on the bar for most of the evening.  In this setting one can observe those who are true minglers, who visit everyone for a little chat and a nibble at the food and then there are those who converge on those they believe matter, have their chat and then leave the party.  They have been seen by those who matter, apparently.  These parties never appear to have the zing of the parties one sees in films.

       A truly Social event is one where like minded people can enjoy conversation and fun without distinction of who is better or more important than another.  Enjoying the company of friends while having a nice meal or just coffee, chatting about the events of the day, good books, a fun film, a political happening, or simply social chat, that's entertainment.  A simple concept but one that a gravitate towards.

Snowbound

It’s time to get out my copy of “The Long Winter” by Laura Ingalls Wilder since it is my tradition to read this notable book after the first blizzard of the winter.  This year I am blessed with the smells of home made bread and struedel as my mother works in the kitchen.  What a contrast to the subsistence fare the Ingalls had during that bleak winter of 1880-81.  Between this book and “Gone with the Wind” I stock up my groceries in the winter months.

       I’m currently looking out the window, on the watch for the snow plow, in the hopes that he will assist me in scraping out the bottom portion of my snow filled driveway.  Better yet, I just called the MD and they will help me out some time this weekend.  So now I can snuggle in and watch “Matador” with my mother.  This is an old mini-series from Denmark which chronicles the life of a small town after WWI and into WWII.  It is one of the most beloved series in Danish television history and for good reason.  The quality of the writing is even better than that of some of the best of Masterpiece Theatre.  In fact, I wish they would put English translation on the bottom as they do with foreign films.  Although I can understand most of what is said, the dialect is different from my own and they speak so much faster than we slow Aalborgenser I sometimes find myself guessing at what was said.  But in any event, that is my surprise for my mother today since she’s been hounding me to watch it with her (again). 

       I hope everyone is safe and sound today and has something interesting to do at home. My drive home last night was very treacherous and I saw a number of vehicles spun out in the ditch along the way.  I was glad I left a few minutes early yesterday.  By the time I reached Cayley the visibility was only about 10 feet ahead.  Nasty weather.  Stay Safe My Friends.

All Stars - Dancing with the Stars

This has been an interesting season with the returning stars and the level of dancing has certainly gone up for most of the competitors.  I love Kirstie Alley and find her incredibly entertaining but she is not the best dancer.  You can’t help admiring her simply for the work out she is doing to get to the level of dancing she is putting out there.  She has improved a lot and you simply have to give her credit for her age!  Last night’s spoof of the election was fabulous and Kirstie was the winner by far!

       Once again the stars were amazing in their charity work, raising funds, food and other supplies for the relief of Hurricane Sandy.  You simply have to give huge credit to the Americans for always, always stepping up to the plate when it comes to helping their fellow man.  I find it curious that they will go the extra mile in charity, but they won’t understand how social help would also help their fellow man.  That requires a different type of compassion perhaps.

       Today will see how America wants their country to move forward.  I can hardly wait for the results but most of all I can hardly wait for those commercials to be over. 

       Okay – I’m giving my wishful call – Obama for 4 more years.

Howling Winds

I woke up to howling winds this morning and with that the thought came that we are going to have another hideous winter of hurricane force winds.  Whoever doesn’t believe in changing weather patterns is simply in denial. 

       Which brings us to American politics.  We are on the eve of a very exciting and interesting election.  I was very much engaged in the previous election, particularly the Democratic convention which was of historic proportions.  Since American politics does affect Canada I’ve always watched with interest their elections. This time around the level of hypocrisy and outright lying is beyond anything I’ve heard in the past.  I wonder if Americans are so desensitized by their own process that they don’t recognize the lies, or do they just scratch the ballot like a lottery, come what may?

       Since I’ve been to the States but rarely I am not in tune with the American people, I don’t understand the way they think in a truly personal way.  I can only make assumptions based on what I see and read and what I gather from those I know who have lived and travelled in the States.  One of the problems of assessing Americans is that their population is ten times the size of Canada so the proportion is completely different.  America is also divided in sections to a much greater extent than Canada.  While Canada is a true melting pot of nationalities they are distinct in a way that America is not.  It seems as though whatever nation immigrates to America, they become Americans very quickly.  America must have a stronger sense of programming, though that isn’t quite the word I need to describe the assimilation process.  America has a stronger sense of identity and immigrants seem to want to embrace that identity in a way that our Canadian immigrants do not.

       When I watch 20/20, 60 Minutes or a Diane Sawyer special I find myself appalled at the conditions that Americans live in.  We don’t see anything like that in Canada though I have been on some aboriginal reserves that are pretty sad.  Not to say that we don’t have some run down conditions in some big cities but not the kind of squalor they show us in the Appalachian mountains for instance.  I know there are ignorant Canadians, but as I said, not anywhere like the numbers that there appears to be in America.

       What I’m trying to say is that while every fibre of my being says Obama should win, it’s anyone’s guess since America hasn’t figured out that Mitt Romney is not the friend of 99% of the America population.  America, you should really read some more statistics.

Paralyzed

If you have been reading my blog for the two years (yes, it’s been 2 years now!) that I’ve been putting myself out there then you will realize that I hardly ever get into a slump of negativity.  The last few weeks I’ve been questioning my worth by looking through the eyes of someone else and that has certainly not been pleasant.  I’ve come through that with my old perspective of myself – that I am worthwhile in my own eyes.

       When I look back on my thought process, my way of wanting to slap back, then trying to add more value to myself, I shake my head.  Why was I doubting myself?  I don’t want to be a lawyer, I don’t want to be an engineer so why would I try to evaluate myself through that lens?  I’ve lived my life in my own peculiar way and I have been happy.  I challenge myself in ways that no one else would dream of doing and while I may sometimes fall short of my expectations of myself, these are my challenges and what I want to do with and for myself.  I’m independent and anyone who knows me will tell you that I am an Individualist in the fullest sense of the word.  Why did I come crashing down?

       For discretion’s sake I cannot write about the situation that brought me down except to say that a few weeks ago it was brought home to me that I had hit a ceiling.  I was dumbfounded. And then I was angry.  The more I thought about it the angrier I got.  When I finally came out of my red rage I was able to put the brakes on full stop and take a look around me.  When I did that I realized that I was now in a win situation.  Again, discretion is the better part of valour.

Now I look around and I wonder, how many other women in the workplace are under utilized?  I suspect that the vast majority of women are in precisely the same situation as women were when Women’s Liberation was the cause in the 1960’s.  Now our plight is that we are Women and we are Aging.  I’m not yet 60 but I am considered old.  How pathetic is that?  I can feel the anger coming on again so I think it’s time to do a little meditation to get back my morning bliss.

Oprah's Coming to Town

I happened to catch the news announcement this morning that Oprah will be coming to Calgary in January which I find very exciting even though the chances of me getting a ticket will be slim.  I checked it out on a website and there were a lot of comments, many of them talking about the cost of the ticket (which hasn’t been announced yet) and people bashing Oprah because of the cost and thinking she ought to donate the space in the Saddledome to homeless people.  Just how that makes any sense is something I don’t want to bother about.

       There is no question that Oprah has been one of the most influential women in America.  I have long respected her for her stepping away from the sensational and making her show more about empowerment and positiveness.  Is she flawed?  Of course, who isn’t?  But that doesn’t erase the wonderful things she has done to improve people’s hope and life.  Some of my favorite things about Oprah are her love of books and how she has encouraged many people to take up reading.  From this she has also helped countless authors with the sale of their books.  I also like her “Live Your Best Life” series, in her magazine, her show and her workshops.  She has brought so many life coaches to the forefront with this series who have helped countless people for almost three decades now.  I really like the way she believes in inspiring people to do their best and although I must admit that I’m a bit dubious about her school in South Africa when there are plenty of children in America who could use help; it’s still an admirable cause.  Sometimes people’s hearts take them to a different place.

       Oprah is so beloved by so many because she appears like a girlfriend.  She’s honest and open and “in the moment” when on stage.  It would be exciting to hear her live.

Uplifting

It can sometimes be an uphill climb, a climb all the way to Mount Everest, to get to that positive place that makes you feel as though you really are on top of the world.  It is easy to speak in clichés and quite simple to do the work, but to utterly believe in one’s own estimation of self can be a superhuman effort.  This is especially true when there are daily reminders that can quash self esteem.

       So while I am currently climbing the hill I take a look back and think about what Mother Nature has wrought these past few days on the East Coast.  What is a single person’s ego in comparison to the devastation thousands of people are facing right now due to a natural catastrophe?  I remind myself of an old friend’s comment “no one has died” in my scenario.  So putting things in perspective helps but it still doesn’t mean that I haven’t got to do the work to bring my self esteem up to an acceptable level.

       Self esteem is personal.  Climbing the hill is different for everyone.  Evaluating is where I am, which I suppose is a plateau.  I have to look at what is real, why am I feeling so low, is it my self-worth or am I trying to figure out what others may NOT be seeing in me?  It is a confusing process.  In the end though I have to question what is my expectation for myself and have I somehow let myself down.  I think this is a periodic stage for people as they go through the life cycles.  Painful.