More things about me - How true it is

Your Five Factor Personality Profile

Extroversion: You have medium extroversion. You're not the life of the party, but you do show up for the party. Sometimes you are full of energy and open to new social experiences. But you also need to hibernate and enjoy your "down time." Conscientiousness: You have medium conscientiousness. You're generally good at balancing work and play. When you need to buckle down, you can usually get tasks done. But you've been known to goof off when you know you can get away with it. Agreeableness: You have high agreeableness. You are easy to get along with, and you value harmony highly. Helpful and generous, you are willing to compromise when necessary. You give people the benefit of the doubt and don't mind giving someone a second chance. Neuroticism: You have low neuroticism. You are very emotionally stable and mentally together. Only the greatest setbacks upset you, and you bounce back quickly. Overall, you are typically calm and relaxed - making others feel secure. Openness to experience: Your openness to new experiences is medium. You are generally broad minded when it come to new things. But if something crosses a moral line, there's no way you'll approve of it. You are suspicious of anything too wacky, though you do still consider creativity a virtue. http://www.blogthings.com/thefivefactorpersonalitytest/

Back sooner than I expected

I've been doing a lot of thinking, much of it subconscious, for the past two days. It is still a huge shock to me of how creating this blog and writing has opened me up. And I've been discovering other writer/artists so far beyond me that they actually inspire the art of FOCUSING in me. Case in point - http://growwings.blogspot.com/ Laini is amazing and after reading her Sunday Scribble from today and then looking at it again, I realized the 14 year old girl she was writing about was ME!! Well, not literally, of course, but at 58 I feel myself definitely slipping sideways to the left and seeing all manner of new possibilities.

Don and I celebrated our 28th anniversary last night over dinner at a favorite restaurant of our's, Henri's. We talked a lot about our frustrations at work and though there is no immediate solution in sight, it was certainly helpful to both of us, I think, that we were able to talk about our various challenges. I don't know where this is all going to end up but I do know that if nothing else, I will work for four more years and THEN be totally prepared to walk into something else whatever that may be.

Taking a Break

I need to take a break for a few days. I've spent so much time here that I've totally gotten behind working on my art journal class I'm taking through Artella. I've been taking an on-line art journaling class for about nine weeks now. The class cost me only $40 and has been so worth the price. My friend Lotus took this class previously and that is how I found out about it. The next class starts the end of May. Please check out the link below. If you like what you see and decide to sign up for the class, tell Zura Annie sent you. I'm so happy I took this class. Not only do I have an art journal now, I also have a terrific tips, techniques and art exercises book. The link is : http://artellawordsandart.com/ZuraBethLedbetter.html The most important thing I've learned from art journaling and blogging is that the journal is for the inner me that I might share individually; the blog is the part(s) of my world that I don't mind sharing. Sometimes the two overlap like the knitting I will post here eventually and the art journal page I'm working on now that was inspired by the knitting. So see you all again in a few days. I'm off to various places and Don has told me not to make any plans for this evening. Today is our 28th anniversary and he has cooked up a surprise.

New Meaning to the Phrase "French Postcards"

Over the past few years Francine has cleared material clutter from her life. She has been relentless and brutal in her quest of simplicity. But since she knows that my idea of simplicity does not match hers at all, I have come into possession of some amazing treasures. Case in point - She was given the most remarkable collection of over 100 postcards by her cousin who lives in France. They all date from early 1910 through May 1911. They are all from one man to one woman - Phaa's grandparents. I was fascinated by the tale of their romance and how little was actually known of it. I find that it is all the empty spaces that, if filled with imaginings, would make a great love story. Since the real story is now forever lost in time, I asked Phaa to write me of what she DID know. Here is the story that surrounds the postcards of Henri to Yvonne.

Dear Annie,

I feel lucky, happy and relieved that you WANTED to acquire the box of my French Grandmother's 1910 postcards from the mysterious "H" whom my cousin Edith managed to deduce meant Henri. My own mother's actual father.

A few notes on Grandmere: Mademoiselle Yvonne Pardon, variously residing on Rue de L'Epe de Bois, Paris; in Cemboing (Jussy, Haute Soane); and in adulthood, in Salon-de-Provence between Arles and Marseille in the south. She was born sometime during the 1890s in Finisterre, Britanny, northernmost France. Yvonne was one of 4-5 sisters, another one of whom was the infamous Aunt Jerry (Tante Germaine) I sometimes mention. Yvonne became pregnant (scandelously) with my mother Gisele prior to marriage with this violin-playing Henri, who then disappeared into WWI. The dates are wrong so he probably was either disinterested or reluctant, a possible "fact" supported by Yvonne's description to me 50-years later: "He was a zero." But! as Edith said, when handing the postcards over to me last year when Gary and I visited the family now residing in the countryside south of Salon: "Ca, c'etais l'amour." Meaning, this box of postcards, sent by Henri, preserved by Yvonne, THAT was real love. Edith also gave me Henri's old violin, which you saw, Annie and Krista. Yvonne later married Emile Ripert and together they produced Josette, Gisele's 10-years younger half-sister and Edith's mother. Josette died about a year ago, after a life of close family ties. Her other two children, both sons, remain close together with Edith and their various spouses and offspring now constitute a group of about 15 relatives, most of whom we got to know during our wonderful visit last year.

French Postcards

Walking the walk

Saturday was walking day. Not that it was a scheduled thing but after lunch Francine got Kris and I out walking. So we three ladies dressed in pink plus Gary were off. First bit of news, "look up the hill Annie, that is where we are going". Oh my, I am thinking to myself. I am so out of shape. Will I embarrass myself by breaking down? Will my back spazz out on me? Will my feet in their fake Burkies fail me? There was only one way to find out so I was off. I have to admit that going UP the hill after the deceptively easy start was a real shock. Several stops to catch my breath in the company of the patient and supportive Gary got me to the top. Kris and Phaa had scooted way ahead of us by this time but the trip was worth it. The walk to the top of the hill through several blocks of neighbor ended up at a fabulous view of the entire lower South Bay. I was so proud of myself. I actually did it and never once indulged in a mental grumble over how the heck I had gotten to this moment in time. I felt instead a great sense of achievement. I also discovered that walking and confronting and conquering a hill was much more achievable and interesting than walking on a treadmill and programming in a hill. THAT is totally boring and easy to turn away from. But that HILL!! I just was not going to let it beat me. Unfortunately, now back at home there isn't a hill in sight. Not even a ripple.

Villa Montalvo

Montalvo is a non-profit organization dedicated to forging meaningful connections between art, artists and the communities we serve, through creation, presentation and education in extraordinary ways and settings. Located in the Saratoga hills Montalvo occupies a Mediterranean-style villa on 175 stunning acres, which Senator James Duval Phelan left to the people of California for the encouragement of art, music, literature, and architecture.

Back in the early to mid 1980's I was living in San Jose, CA. Don was going to school. Then I was going to school. We lived in married student house that was so substandard that even the roaches filed complaints for tenant abuse. But is was while I was living there that I discovered the dream place, Villa Montalvo in Saratoga, CA. Saratoga is a small town where a 3,000 sq. ft. house is probably considered a cottage. I went to the Villa a few times to art openings and drove around Saratoga weaving fantasies of life behind any of the doors I drove past.

When I visited Francine and Gary this weekend with Krista, we drove around in the afternoon exploring Los Gatos Village, which is just up the road from Saratoga. Gary and Phaa are considering moving there and so we explored back streets throughout the village looking at likely property. Eventually we moved on to Saratoga. Entering the town, we passed the sign for Villa Montalvo and I jumped at the opportunity to see this dream place again.

In fact, it isn't just the place itself but also the road leading up to the villa that stirs my imagination. The road is lined with magnificent homes and landscaping both natural and by design; one hardly knows where to look first. What was amazing is that I recognized and remembered EVERY home we drove by even after the passage of 20 years. Little had changed except for the random home that I spotted that had not been there before. Francine couldn't believe I remembered the road and was, in fact, able to note the houses that were not there before. But it was, after all, my dream and I had visited often. How could I forget?

I'm glad I had the chance to experience this special place again. It was interesting to discover that during a time when I had little of material value, I didn't covet what I could not have. Now 20 years later, it is easy for me to sit back and admire what others possess but like that earlier time, I don't desire it. I can enjoy the dream without feeling any hunger to make it a reality. This is a very comfortable feeling to have in this latter period of my life.