An Authentic Life

A palliative nurse who's comforted many at the end of life (Bronnie Ware) wrote a book "The Top 5 Regrets of the Dying." Number one on the list of regrets? "I wish I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me."

Let's learn this lesson before it's too late. Are you living a life "true to yourself"?

Another Reason To Travel

Until recently, I'd never heard of Victoria, a small city on an island off the west coast of Canada. Because I know friends there, I travelled to this faraway destination. Now, I'm suddenly seeing references to Victoria everywhere.

The New York Times travel section just published a big spread on Victoria and my favorite motorcycle magazine (Rider) describes riding a motorcycle through the place.

Now that Victoria is on my radar, I'm "seeing" these articles. If I hadn't gone, they probably would have passed beneath my notice. Which is a reason to get off our butt and travel -- it opens our eyes to the world!

Victoria Mermaid

Shopping with Sheila is the equivalent of attending a master class in fashion. She knows and can teach you so much. Sheila opines on the quality of clothing. She discusses its fabric, the reputation of its brand, and its aesthetic style. Lately she's personally interested in asymmetrical pieces, which is an advanced choice.

Sheila taught me that many items have hidden statements on the label saying when the piece was made (e.g., Fall 2013). She touches clothes on the rack to assess the quality of their material. She can recognize obscure brands and tell you how they run in size (something which varies widely among brands).

I bought a dress and skirt while in Victoria. Here is the dress. It's a style I've never worn before. Pretty but a little plain so I spiced it up with a big, colorful mermaid necklace. Some may say the jewelry is too large or overwhelming for the dress but their combination expresses my personality. I'm a plain gal who likes to present herself with some flair. Personal accents make clothing and life more interesting!

Mermaid Ally

My closest friends know I have a totem, a spirit guide. An archetype that connects to me on a deep level. My totem is the mermaid.

A dear friend, Suzanne, just sent me the mermaid item shown above. It delights me. She also sent me a mermaid pin. Friends like Suzanne are precious gems: they see you for who you are and offer real support.

Tomorrow I'm going to wear a dress found shopping with Sheila in Victoria. To accent it, I'll wear a big, colorful mermaid necklace. The dress is pretty but plain; the necklace spices it up to the max. Their combination expresses me perfectly.

The first known mermaid stories appeared in Assyria around 1000 BC. Goddess Atargatis, mother of Queen Semiramis, loved a mortal man and accidentally killed him. Ashamed, Atargatis jumped into a lake and took the form of a fish -- but the waters could not conceal her divine beauty. Thereafter, she took the form of a mermaid, human above the waist and fish below.

Do you like mermaids?

The Only Way To Fly

I never thought I'd own my own private jet -- but that was before Bitcoin. Now I don't have to endure crowds, airport lines and waiting with the hoi polloi.

Just kidding! My friend Jason is a commercial pilot and today he showed me one of the places he works (Republic Airport in Farmingdale). Jason escorted me "behind the curtain" into restricted areas open only to those with visible credentials. We inspected a variety of private aircraft and had lunch. Jason is one of the coolest dudes around and knowing him has perks. :)

Sheila's View

Sheila did a nice blog-post on her view of our time together. It's here. Go take a look.

More Victoria

Canadians give me hope for the future of our species. In public, they are polite and behave in civilized manner. This morning a group of teenage rugby-players in my hotel lined up at a coffee-stand. They paid attention and made sure everyone was being treated fairly. The idea of cutting the line (which would have been easy to pull off) was inconceivable to them. Such a contrast to many of my country's citizens.

Sheila is continuing to demonstrate her superior tour-guide talent. With supernatural ability, she reads my mind about what will make me happy and steers me to those places and activities. It's uncanny.

A delight of this trip is the wide range of experiences I'm having. Seeing natural beauty, encountering wildlife, visiting natural history and art exhibitions at a phenomenal museum, and socializing with a group of friendly Canadians introduced to me by my generous host. The trip is a home-run. Or, more appropriately, a hockey goal!