Love is in the Air. Or is it?

Today on the train...A young woman struck up a conversation with a man sitting nearby. 


"Nice day, isn't it?" She said
"Yea, yea it is." He replied and off the conversation flew. 

He moved to sit closer to her. She teased him. They laughed. He complemented her. They introduced themselves. And then it got derailed.


He told her that the next stop was his but that he'd really like to talk to her again so could he get her number. Do you know what she said? "Oh...no, I enjoy my freedom." 


I just couldn't understand why she would start a conversation with someone, flirt with them more like it, and have no intention of having it go anywhere. There are so many ways to not talk to people on the train, I just thought that she was giving the poor guy mixed messages.


People are funny.

Sunday to Sunday in the LBC

Ok kids, since Tina did not contact me I used random.org to find another winner. The winner this time is....Kathryn!


Yay! Kathryn, I really hope this pillow goes with your new condo! And if you want more to match, Stephanie has two more available. I'll bring the pillow to you this week.


Also, this weekend the boyfriend and I had a little train adventure and I got plenty of pictures to spread the love on blogs to come. We started at the stop where I get on the train to go to work (seen in the pics below) and took it all the way to Pico Station. But every couple of stops we got off and I found the public art work and snapped some photos.

The adventure made me realize just how much art we have at the stations. I had seen that a few stations had it, but never looked very closely as I sped by in the train. We took time at each station and I saw that a lot of care and planning went into where the art was places, the subject matter, and the neighborhood that it was placed in. 

As I was taking the pictures I got a couple weird looks, but hopefully the people were able to see what I was seeing and appreciate their neighborhood train station a little more. 

Drum Roll Please!

And the winner of the Wavy Teal Pillow from Cowan's Creations is TINA! 


Tina, please contact me by Sunday, April 25 to claim your prize. 

I realized as I was choosing the winner on random.org that my set up doesn't require people to leave their email addresses so I don't have any way to contact the people that leave comments, unless I know exactly who they are.

Thank you everyone for participating! This was my first giveaway but I think it went pretty well. I loved all of your comments and ideas of what to do with your favorite items. Now that you've picked them out you gotta go back and purchase them!

Thanks again everyone!

Counting Blessings

Today on the train...there was yet another accident that caused train delays. This time the accident was just close to the tracks, not involving the actual train. The train was pretty full, but the driver came on the loud speaker as the train arrived saying that there were two trains right behind him so not to crowd too much. I actually got a seat in an area that I prefer!


Behind me I overheard a woman on the phone. She was saying that she absolutely hated her job. She was busy all the time and one of her coworkers was very needy and was demanding things from her that overwhelmed her work load. She knew that she had to deal with it because the job market isn't very good right now which made her feel even more stuck. (One of my least favorite feelings by the way.)


Half way through my ride home she got off and was replaced by a young boy and his mother. As soon as the boy sat down he started saying "That's my blue car. That's my silver one. Oh and that red one." and then he said "Mom, aren't you going to point out your cars?" So of course the mother started in. We passed a park and the boy said the cutest thing, "That's my park...but I share it with Andrea, and Mark, and ..." and listed off all of his friends.


Another part of my trip that I enjoyed, and always enjoy when it happens, was when a man sitting down noticed a mother standing up while holding her sleeping toddler. He tapped her on the shoulder and offered his seat, which she gratefully accepted. And let me tell you, her toddler was not small so I'm sure her arms thanked the man too. 


I love when people have manners!


*Don't forget to enter my give away. It closes tonight at 11:59 PM PST.


** I will be going on a picture taking adventure this weekend with the boyfriend so I apologize for not having pictures today.

Sunday to Thursday Giveaway

After seeing some fellow bloggers do this, I thought I would mix it up and do a giveaway! My sister Stephanie has a great Etsy shop and has kindly offered to donate a Wavy Teal pillow for my giveaway. 

She started her shop about a year ago when she was laid off from her teaching position. In between her school networking and substitute teaching, she took her free time into her own hands and has created some really beautiful items.  

How do you get the fantastic pillow? To enter all you have to do is leave a comment telling me what you would do with your favorite item in Stephanie's shop. You can also enter by tweeting about my giveaway and leaving a comment with a link to your tweet. Or you can mention the giveaway on your own blog and leave a comment with your blog link! 


The giveaway will close Wednesday, April 21 at 11:59 AM PST. The winner will be chosen with random.org and announced in my Thursday post. 

The Strength Within Us All

Today on the train...well actually a while back. I've been wondering if I was even going to write about this experience. It makes me nervous to think about even, but I think it's an important story to tell.


After the rush hour dies down the train becomes pretty empty so when I was getting physical therapy done on my knee and had to take a later train, there was barely anyone on it. This was before I sat in a caboose that was connected to the driver, and before I made an effort to get a seat where no one would sit next to me.


Just like every other day, I sat in one of the many open seats next to a window and got my book out. A few stops down the line a man got on and sat right next to me. He put his arm up on the railing in front of us, kind of boxing in the row. I looked at him from the corner of my eye and went back to reading. 


As the ride continued his leg got closer and closer to mine. I normally sit pretty close to the window anyways but I kept trying to scoot over. Finally, there was not any more space to fill and every part of the side of his leg was touching mine. My heart started to race. I tried to make excuses. Maybe he just had a different sense of personal space, but then he started to "giggle" a little, a creepy quiet giggle. 


I really don't remember what stop he finally got off at. I do remember that the side of my body that he was sitting near, still radiated his heat. I knew it was inappropriate, but it was over. At least that's what I thought. 


The next time I had physical therapy he was there again. Again I was in an empty caboose and he sat right next to me. I knew it was him because of the way he sat down, with his arm over the railing and his outfit was the same as before. This time I wasn't going to let him make me feel that way! I wasn't going to be a victim and let him get his rocks off by making me feel uncomfortable.


I told myself that if he started to do it again that I would tell him to move. My heart raced. I wasn't reading anymore. I was just waiting for him to start, which of course he did. I didn't know if I could get the words out because my heart was racing so fast. 


"You need to move your leg!" I said looking from his leg to his face. He seemed startled, moved his leg and got off at the next stop.


I was so proud of myself! He was NOT going to make me feel threatened! And that, my friends is why this is

Random Acts of Kindness

Today on the train...there was a man with a lot of bags and a newspaper. I think he fell asleep at some point, so when the train came to his stop he jumped up real fast causing his bags to go all over the place. Just as he got his bags together and the driver came on the speaker saying that the doors were closing, he dropped his newspaper.

Across the aisle, next to the open door was an older man that I've seen on the train before. He always places a newspaper on the seat before he sits down, and more often than not, he puts ear plugs in his ears. He was watching the man with all the bags and as the driver came on the speaker he put his hand in front of the door so that it wouldn't close. Such a simple action, and yet it meant a lot to a stranger.


The man with the bags grabbed his newspaper and ran out the door as they quickly closed behind him. The situation made me smile. Kindness can come in all different forms, even old men who normally like to keep to themselves.


*I'm trying out a new font to go with my new template. I think I like this one better. 


**The ducks are in a fountain at the Los Angeles Central Library.

Free Stuff!

I just thought I'd let my readers know that one of my fellow bloggers is having a giveaway.

One Sydney Road is going to be giving away a bracelet from her friend, Heidi's shop. Go on over and enter!

Sunday to Sunday in the LBC

Starting Friday, April 16 is an event that many Long Beach residents wait all year for. It is when the downtown area is transformed into a raceway for the Long Beach Grand Prix!

It is amazing how the area is changed. There are times when I've been down there that I have no idea where I am in relation to how the area normally looks. Places where you normally walk are covered by bleacher seats, and walk ways are built over the road where you normally wouldn't be able to pass.

The race has been going on since 1977 and it seems like everyone in the city is there. And you can hear the cars racing from miles away! 


This year I won't be able to attend because the boyfriend and I have a wedding to go to, but I'm sure we'll be able to see the remnants of the weekend from the tire marks left on the road for months afterwards.

Cha Cha Cha Changing!

I decided that I needed some spring cleaning around my blog and changed the template and layout! So if you get the blog content through a reader please take a peak at the actual website and let me know what you think!

Thanks!

Safety First

Today on the train...I was reminded about an incident that happened awhile back. I was taking an early train home so there were very few people in the caboose, just me, a mother, her young child, and a young man. I was sitting, a few rows behind the young man, reading when I started to hear a weird scratching noise. 


I looked to where the sound was coming from, and saw the young man crouched over towards the window. At first, I couldn't figure out what he was doing, maybe something indecent, but then I realized that he had a box cutter in his hand and he was scratching into the window. 

(tagging scratched into the wall next to my seat today. I'm probably breaking some gangsta rule by posting it)

I got a little scared because he had a weapon and because there were so few people on the train. I got off at the next stop, which of course was in a bad neighborhood. I wasn't sure if I would have been safer if I had stayed on the train. 


I was hoping there would be sheriffs at the station like there are in the morning, but there was no one in sight. For a second, I considered calling the number the stations have posted everywhere for when you see things suspicious, but since I didn't remember which caboose I had been in and hadn't really seen the young man's face, I decided against it. 


I got on the next train, sitting in a caboose connected to where the driver sits, which is what I have done every time since, just to be careful.


I really think the sheriff and police departments should have a texting system so that if you see something you don't have to call and talk out loud. I could have done that while I was still in the caboose! 

If You're Healthy and You Know it Clap Your Hands!

Today on the train...there were at least three middle aged men with canes. It made me think of all the people I've seen on the train that were in wheel chairs, motorized wheel chairs, or walking with canes. Most of the people I've seen aren't particularly old so it's surprising that they would already been in such deteriorated condition. 

I know health care is a touchy subject in America right now, but I have to think that these people wouldn't be in such bad shape if they had quality health care.


A few months ago, I dislocated my knee cap. I've got a pretty intense pain threshold, but I have to say that dislocating your knee cap is really painful. I went to the doctor and got prescribed some physical therapy, which helped immensely! After six weeks of twice a week therapy, my knee was good to go.


Even though the doctor and the physical therapy were covered by my insurance, what I owed was still pretty pricey. I suppose that someone with chronic health issues and without health insurance would just have to live with the pain as it got worse and worse and worse, leading them to a life with a cane, wheel chair, or motorized wheelchair. 


That doesn't sound like very much fun to me...

What I Did on My Spring Vacation

Remember the good ole days when the teacher would have the whole class write an essay about what they did on their summer vacation? Well, I'm not going to go that far, but I thought I would share highlights of my trip to Yosemite with my family and my boyfriend.


The first night that we were there it snowed! I'm a Southern California girl so I've only seen it snow once before. This snow was so big and fluffy! It felt like we were inside a snow globe. 

(This is the view from our hotel room)

We layered on all our clothes and went out for breakfast at the Ahwahnee Hotel so that we could enjoy the fresh snow from their floor to ceiling windows in the dining room, not to mention their delicious food. Yosemite Valley has an amazing shuttle system. All the buses are hybrids and take you anywhere you'd want to go around the valley. So we simply got on a shuttle and were dropped off at the door of the Ahwahnee.

To work off just a few calories we decided to take a "hike" to some waterfalls. It's "hike" because most of the trails are paved and aren't too strenuous. 

(the boyfriend and me in the upper left hand corner and the sister and me in the lower right hand corner)

We enjoyed the Yosemite museum and as we walked out of the short film Spirit of Yosemite the sun was shining and melting some of the fresh snow. Which revealed that Spring was really trying to reveal itself.

The whole trip was really a mixture of good food, relaxation, family bonding time and appreciation for nature. I can't thank Galen Clark and John Muir and all of the many people that came after them for preserving such an amazing piece of land.