Terri Schiavo

I am so upset about the latest ruling by the appellate courts. It seems to me that this time Terri will die and that makes me so sad and so angry. I just don't get it. Her husband claims she would not want to be kept alive in this state based on some comment she made back when she was a young woman. Okay, so maybe she did say that, but how many of us have made statements in our twenties only to find ourselves feeling exactly the opposite once we've matured? I know I have changed a lot since my 20's. The fact is, she didn't have a written document stating her wishes. In my opinion, if you have family members willing to care for the ill person, why is there even a question as to whether to sustain life or not? Let the family members who want to take on the burden do so! What does it hurt Michael Schiavo to let Terri live? I just find it hard to believe that he loves her so much that he has fought for her "right to die with dignity" for so long and yet he shacks up with and has children with another woman. It really does seem to be about money. Let it go, Michael! Let the Schindlers take care of Terri and spend their lives with her. After all, they have been her parents a LOT longer than you were married to her (pre-heart attack). Shouldn't they have some say? It just makes no sense to me. It's not like Terri is on a respirator and ventilator and lying in bed like a zombie. She can do everything but swallow. That doesn't seem like a state of being that is so awful as to warrant pulling the plug. Heck, who knows what she is aware of? Look at the woman who was in a persistent vegetative state for 20 years and then recently suddenly "woke up" and started talking!!! It can happen! Let Terri live!

As for living wills - I think we don't think through all the scenarios when we draw these things up. We say "oh, I don't want to be kept alive artificially if something happens to me". Okay.... But what constitutes "kept alive artificially"? I could understand if you were brain dead, or maybe unable to breathe, eat, etc. on your own, but what if you could breathe, move, make noises, respond to stimuli, but just couldn't swallow? Would that change your instructions about being kept alive artificially? Look at Stephen Hawking - the guy is pretty much unable to move, can't speak except through a computer that he controls with nearly invisible movements.... I don't know about whether he can eat on his own or not, but it sounds like he is in a state very similar to Terri's and yet he is one of the most brilliant men on earth. He went from being "normal" to his current condition thanks to ALS but I don't see anyone clamoring to take away his ventilator or stop feeding him. Anyway, back to living wills.... If you are in a coma, on life support or being fed through a feeding tube like Terri, what difference is it going to make to YOU, especially if you aren't aware of your surroundings, if a loved one doesn't want to pull the plug? Theoretically, you're oblivious. If it makes your spouse, children, siblings, or parents happy to be able to visit you, communicate with you, etc. Why should they be denied that opportunity just because you, in all your wisdom, wrote out a document that says "pull the plug"? I think you should write out a will that says "pull the plug unless my (family members of your choosing) don't want to". You never know - some miracle "cure" or breakthrough might occur during your time in a coma, or you could awaken magically one day. Why remove that option? I feel the same way about funeral wishes. People make comments or put in their wills that they don't want a funeral or they want this or that done after they die. Excuse me, but aren't you dead? What difference does it make whether or not you liked funerals and want one? If your loved ones want a funeral service to celebrate your life, they need to have one! My mom hated funerals and said she wanted to be cremated and sprinkled out over the ocean. When she died, he just had her cremated and the Neptune Society sprinkled her ashes over the Pacific. Okay, Mom got her wish, but the rest of us never got to say goodbye. We were young and didn't know any better, but as we got older, the lack of closure started to bother all of us and her brother. Several years ago we all chipped in and bought a headstone and had it put in the cemetery in Santa Maria so that someone 100 years from now traipsing through that cemetery will see that Lynda Filippi lived and was loved. It may seem silly to some of you, but for us, it helped give us closure. We wanted to have a service for her but have yet to get all of us together from across the country t do that. So.... My dad has in his will "no funeral"....Tough darts, Dad. We're having one. You'll be dead so it really won't matter to you, but it will matter a lot to us. That's sort of the same way I feel about the whole living will and dying with dignity issue. Let those who are alive, who love you and care about you, have at least the option of maintaining life support for you if they want to. If you're coherent enough to say "I don't want to live like this", well that's another story and a different matter. If you are brain dead or tests show no response whatsoever, then pull the plug, but if there's any doubt at all, let your loved ones make the final call.

That's my rant. You can disagree as you like. You can think I'm an idiot. But it won't change my position. We should stop being so darned selfish and let those who love us do what they need to do.

There and Back Again

So, we just got back - well, on Saturday we got back - from our Spring Break vacation. This was a really random trip that turned out really well. We hadn't really planned to go anywhere during Spring Break, though Tom had bid the vacation days last March. We like to try to schedule his vacations to coincide with Jonathan's school breaks as much as possible cuz you just never know. Well, this year it turned out to have been a really good thing.

About a month ago I decided we should try to at least go somewhere for a few days just to get away. That meant we'd be driving so our destinations were somewhat limited. We all decided we did not want to go to the Oregon Coast. We've done that before in April and it's cold and windy and not a lot of fun after the first few hours. Seattle, on the other hand, has so much to do regardless of the weather. So, Seattle it was. Then I had the brilliant idea of also going somewhere I've always wanted to go - Victoria, BC. I talked to a friend who has been there often and was informed that, though it's early and not a lot of flowers are in bloom yet, it would still be worth a visit. So, I started planning. Initially, I thought we'd stay the week in Seattle and maybe do a day trip to Victoria. My friend suggested I consider staying in Victoria since the exchange rate is favorable and it's not high season so rates are low. What a great suggestion that turned out to be! I got a great price on a room ($50 a night), the ferry ride over turned out to be half price, and I got half-price discounts for almost every "attraction" we visited!

Anyway, we headed to Seattle on Sunday, arriving about 4PM at the La Quita Inn & Suites Downtown where we get a great FedEx corporate discount (just $70/night). After we got situated in our room we headed over to the Space Needle and Science Center just to walk around and look at stuff and take pictures. It was about a half mile walk from our hotel - a piece of cake! We decided to go ahead and go up in the Space Needle - something I haven't done in over 18 years. We had to cajole Tom into going as he is not fond of heights. Once we got to the top, he was glad he had come. The weather was perfect! We could see Mt. Rainier - a rare thing - and all the islands and everything. It was beautiful! I have never been to Seattle on a more perfect day. Jonathan took tons of photos, getting some really beautiful sunset shots and cool nighttime shots. There was a guy up there with a great Canon digital SLR setup taking photos. Jonathan finally went over and started talking to him about his camera setup, what he was shooting, etc. Jonathan has really caught the photography bug and is talking about working two full-time jobs this summer so he can buy a digital SLR. I must say, he seems to have a great eye for interesting photos. He didn't get that from me. I tend to take very touristy photos. Jonathan has learned a lot about how to look at the subject matter from a very different perspective from his photo teacher and is putting that to good use. Anyway, we had a great time up there looking at the city, watching the sun set, drinking lattes, and then browsing the gift shop at the bottom.

Day 2 we trekked to Pike Place Market. What a cool place that is! We got there early - before a lot of the merchants were even open - so we walked all the way down the zillions of steps to the wharf. We walked around down there for a while, then headed back up to the market once it was fully open. Again, photography sort of ruled the day. I did get to talk to some of the guys at the World Famous Pike Place Fish Market about the fact that the management team at the library read the book When Fish Fly, a book about management and customer service written by the owner of the fish market. I saw the owner buzzing about and tried to talk to him, but he was really busy so I never got to say hi to him. Anyway, we walked up and down the market several times, had a great Russian pastry at one of the shops across the street from the market, took more photos, and walked some more. Then it was time to head to the Crab Pot Restaurant for lunch. This "event" was Jonathan's main reason for going to Seattle. They dump this huge pot of shellfish, corn-on-the-cob, potatoes, and sausages on your table and you just dive in. Here is a photo of what the pile of food looked like:



It's not cheap - $29/per person - but it's sooooooo delicious and filling!!!

After lunch we walked back up the stairs to 1st Street and then headed down to Pioneer Square. On the way back we stopped in at this shop that has every imaginable caramel and candy apple you could imagine and had their Explosion apple.



The Explosion is the one on the second shelf in middle section. You can't tell how huge it is in this photo but it's easily twice the size of the other apples. It's enormous and has seven layers, one of which is peanut butter, all on a nice Granny Smith apple. It was amazing. After walking around Pioneer Square, we headed back to our room. By this time we had walked about 8 miles (I wore a pedometer). The plan was to get the tripod and go back when it got dark to take some more photos then go eat at the Red Robin on the wharf. Well, we did get the tripod and did go back to the market to take the photos, but the thought of walking down those zillions of stairs and back up again was just a little daunting. So we headed back toward our room looking for some place to eat that was not fast food. We ended up eating at a Mexican restaurant in a shopping center that reminded me of River Park Square in Spokane (upscale shops, AMC theater on the top floor with eateries around it). It was okay food but very expensive and the service was slow. By this time, it was late and we still had quite a walk back to the room. We pretty much crashed into bed and fell asleep almost immediately.

And that was all just day one! (to be continued)

That's Level 3000 in WoW Years

Yesterday I hit the half century mark. I also realized I have been with my husband for half my life! That milestone was almost harder to grasp than my age. Wow, half my life! Actually, as of July we will have been living together for 25 years. We got married in June 1981, but we began cohabitating in July 1980, so yeah, half my life.

This was an awesome birthday. It started on Monday. My best friend, Kate, took me to lunch for my birthday. It has been our tradition to take each other to lunch for our birthdays and Christmas. My folks were coming to town to take me out on my actual birthday, so Kate and I went on Monday. There is this awesome restaurant in town called Cafe Trinity. They serve Creole style food that is well-prepared, beautifully presented, spendy but deliciously worth it. It is always fun to get away from work and just visit with Kate and Monday was no exception. The food only added to the enjoyment of the occasion.

Upon my return from lunch, as I walked by the information desk, one of the staff persons pointed to this huge dieffenbachia sitting on the counter and said "Gina...." I looked at her quizzically, completely confused. "Huh?" "That's for you!" I still had a really puzzled look on face and it just wasn't sinking in that this plant was for me. What had me really baffled was I couldn't begin to imagine where it had come from. I thought perhaps Robyn (the staffer) had gotten it for me as a thank you because I've been helping her with some projects for the business she and her husband have. I walked to the plant and saw a card. It was from my awesome sisters, Kristi and Richele!!! This plant is beautiful, as you would expect a plant from a florist would be. Immediately I realized that they were both lying little "tricksy fellows". Kristi had called me Saturday to ask me if I was going to be at work this week, claiming she might forget my birthday and wanted to wish me happy birthday "just in case".... Rikki did the same thing Monday claiming she was booked up all day Tuesday and wanted to say happy birthday just in case but wanted to know if I was going to be at work or not.... Liars! They wanted to make sure I was going to be in so I would get the plant! I called both of them immediately and greeted them both with "You liar!!!" which was met with gales of laughter by both of them. What a wonderful surprise!

Tuesday morning we had a staff meeting scheduled. I now take the notes on this laptop so I have to be sure to be there on time, something I'm not known for. I rushed in at 8:26 - the meeting starts at 8:30 but we are to be there at 8:25. As I walked into the meeting area I was greeted by a chorus of voices saying "there she is!" On the table were platters of fresh fruits, donuts, and pastries. I was wished happy birthday by everyone. At the head of the table was a chair that said "Gina's chair". I sat down, smiling, and got the laptop out to begin notetaking. Wayne, the boss, said to put it away, that we were not going to have a regular staff meeting. They then wheeled out on a library cart a huge chocolate cake that said "Happy Birthday, Gina" on it. There was a beautiful bouquet of flowers, a gift, some cards, and a balloon bouquet. Molly came over and placed a very gold plastic tiara on my head. We had ice cream cups and juice as well. I cut the cake and thanked everyone profusely. It was so wonderful. I have never felt so appreciated! Molly got me a beautiful crystal bell to add to my bell collection. She has an amazing knack for remembering what people collect and manages to get them the perfect gift for their birthday or Christmas. She is so thoughtful! The flower bouquet was from Sue E. She is another wonderful, thoughtful, amazing person who is the Mother Theresa of squirrels. She has two pet squirrels and feeds an entire squirrel community at her home. Whenever a squirrel is injured or a baby is found without parents, she nurses them back to health. She's incredible. I got several cards, a cool little birthday pop-up book, and some other nifty little gifts. When the meeting was over, I went up to my office. It looked like a garden in there! Kate had given me a big basket filled with primroses of every color with a cool frog Mylar balloon attached. Robyn had given me a bouquet of daffodils and another balloon, and there were other little gifts on my desk. Sue M gave me a beautiful peach latte mug with two biscotti and some Lowry's Fogcutter blend coffee (she so knows me!) It was amazing! Then, moments later, I was called down to the info desk to get another delivery! My wonderful husband had sent me a beautiful spring bouquet! (Nieman's Floral made a killing off my birthday!) So, my office really DID look like a garden!

Unfortunately, my office is such a disaster I had nowhere to put all the wonderful flowers and gifts so I decided I had to finally clean it up. Our finance person, Denise, is the most organized person you will ever meet. Ever! She came in and asked if I needed help. Was she kidding? Uh, YE-ES! So, we started dividing stuff into groups - computers that work and that we're keeping, computers that work but we're selling as surplus, and computers that don't work and that we're tossing. The same with parts. By 11:30, just a little over an hour later, we had made some pretty amazing headway. My folks arrived to take me to lunch so we took a break.

My folks took me to Joel's, this cool little Mexican food place that used to just be a stand but became so popular he had to expand and provide some indoor seating. The food is awesome and cheap. Joel is a character, very friendly, funny, and likeable. His wife is even better. They make you happy just seeing them. I had a fish taco - sooooo delicious and only $2.50. Mom and Dad had the carne asada burrito with a chili verde burrito to go. All that food and a Diet Pepsi for just over $10. It's more than enough food too. So, we ate and visited and had a great time. I have to say, it was one of the best visits I've had with them. It was truly enjoyable.

When I got back to work, Denise went back to attacking my office. I'm happy to say that 1/3 of my office is clean - clean enough that I can display my flowers and gifts on my workbench. Today she and I will start on the piles and piles of paper on my three desk surfaces. That's going to be interesting. The ultimate goal here is to rearrange my office, putting my desk over by the window instead of opposite it and hopefully opening up the space a bit more by rearranging the desk, workbench/tables, shelves, and storage cabinet areas. I have it all planned out in my head and I can envision it. It's just going to be interesting to see how it all really looks. The furniture is big, heavy, and cumbersome so moving it around will be a feat, but Dayton, our building manager, said he is more than happy to help, even disassembling and reassembling as needed. It would be cool if I could get it done before we leave on vacation next week for spring break!

So, to end my birthday, my daughter and son-in-law came over and made dinner for us. YUM! It was a kind of shepherd's pie but made with pork, apples and onions with mashed potatoes on top. It was delish! We had steamed asparagus and salad as accompaniments. The dessert was a homemade from scratch (cake flour and the whole bit) chocolate cake. Tyler, my 3 year-old grandson, when I asked Shana what kind of cake it was, said "chocolate, chocolate, chocolate!" Turns out, that's exactly what the Martha Stewart for Kids cookbook called it! :) It was quite the delicious chocolate cake and soooooo moist! And the biggest surprise of all... they got me a beautiful amethyst ring! It's simple (the way I like jewelry) with a beautiful square cut amethyst set on the diagonal (so it looks diamond shaped when you look at my hand) in a very simple gold setting. It's exquisite. Purple is my favorite color so, when she couldn't find an aquamarine she liked, she opted for the amethyst. Smart girl! I have a ring my dad got me for my high school graduation - an alexandrite in a very simple antique gold setting that looks like a small flower - that I have worn every day of my life for 33 years. The new ring fits on the same finger (right ring finger) so I have to decide whether to have my old ring resized for my pinky or just alternate rings. I'm still pondering that option. But what a wonderful surprise the ring was. I am thrilled to death!

So, that was my 50th birthday. At 9PM I finally talked to Jonathan who reminded me that I was now officially an old fart. He said "wow, you're level 50 - I mean...." and started laughing. I could hear his roommate, Nathan, laughing the background. Jonathan went on to explain that he'd been talking about World of Warcraft with Justin and was playing at that moment so his mind was on levels.... So I figured, it seems like these guys level about 5 levels a month, which means about 60 levels in a year, give or take (I could have this totally wrong and I'm sure one of them will set me straight, but for the sake of argument, let's just say I'm right), so that would make me about level 3000 in WoW years. Happy birthday to me!