Traveling to China

Traveling is one of my passions. I love everything about it, even figuring out what to take and schlepping my bags to the airport and the lines to get through security. Whatever...the whole thing makes me happy.
Last year I went to Israel (check my Israel posts here) with SmarTours and it was a fantastic trip. I have to say their customer service leaves a little to be desired but the trip went off without a hitch, so no complaints there. So this year I'm going with them to China. China! I never had a burning desire to go to China but I'm suddenly all about going to exotic places with cultures totally unlike my own. So, off I go. Tomorrow to San Francisco, Tuesday to China.

See Sophie Tucker with her back to me? She's pissed that I wouldn't let her in my suitcase. Maybe I should tell her they eat cats in China.

(Nothing goes better with packing than a nice Chardonnay.)

Stay tuned!

Review for What More Could You Wish For

A Self-Realization-fiction

St. Martin's Press  

    Samantha Hoffman's first novel, What More Could You Wish For is a delightful read.

    Libby Carson  goes about life “as is”, after having two failed marriages and

opting to shed the corporate world to build her own sewing/fashion business and having

 a fairly steady boyfriend for several years. UNTIL, she turns 50 and her boyfriend

pops the “question!”                                  

      She panics. She she has always had  approval from her family, who are loving and supportive. ”Yet she seeks that approval,” While doing it “her way”

     Meantime she re-connects with a high school boyfriend, the then, love of her life. They e-mail and ultimately connect.

     Things progress until a serious family situation sends her into a 180!

She starts planning a wedding with the present boyfriend.

     Hoffman's characters are vibrant and real.  Well-rounded.  She is in their

skins and really knows them.  Turning 50 for some women  is celebrated with black balloons and angst, the “going down hill” syndrome. Libby works through all this

 in the midst of  family sorrow.   

    Hoffman  carries the story through to conclusion in an up-beat satisfying

ending. 

~Norma J. Sundberg: Author of An Odd Fable, a children's story

Pubished CyPress Publications/available on Amazon

How Many Stupid Things Can You Do In A Day?

How many stupid things can you do in one day? Two, so far, and counting.
This morning I go to get my driver's license renewed because I will be in China on my birthday (so excited!) and am leaving in just a couple weeks. And yay! only two people ahead of me in line (if you're downtown you MUST go to the Chicago Loop Express), so I get up to the counter and I'm all happy because for the last (at least) 15 years I've been carrying around this license with a picture where I look like a drunken troll. They keep automatically renewing it and each time I think, "No! Don't do that!" I even had it stolen once and thought finally, I'd get a new picture. But noooo...they just pulled up the old one right out of their ugly picture archives and reissued the damn license.
So there I am this morning and I haven't had a drop to drink and my hair's looking pretty good and I've been practicing my smile in the mirror all morning, and the woman behind the counter looks at my license and looks at me (probably thinking, "Honey, this is a badass picture), and she says, "Your license expires in 2014."
Oh.
Why did I have it in my head it was this year? Wishful thinking, I suppose, but all I had to do was look at the damn (ugly) license.
So then I stop on the way home and grab some lunch and I give the guy a twenty and he hands me back a twenty. I look at it and I say, "What's this?" thinking he's going to say, "You're the 50th customer this morning so you get your lunch free," but instead he holds up the second twenty that I gave him that's still in his hand.
There is no free lunch.
At least he was honest. I would never have known.
Can I blame all this on the fact that I didn't sleep well last night? No, I didn't think so.
Have you done anything stupid today? It would make me feel so much better if you had.
So, two stupid things for me today. But the day's still young. I'll keep you posted.

Oh, oh, oh...I have one more. This didn't happen today, but there's no moratorium on stupid things. So last week I watched this fantastic Eagles documentary on Showtime and afterwards I ordered one of their newer CDs and when I got it yesterday I realized I already have it.
I hate shit like that.