Danielle Steel's Blog, page 47

Lazy Days

Hi Everyone,

I hope that all is well with you and that the summer is rolling out nicely for you, with some time to relax, enjoy your families, take time off (and hopefully read a book or two. I have a new book coming out in hardcover tomorrow, “A Perfect Life”. I hope it will be the perfect summer read for you!!).

As I’ve confessed to you before, among my many confessions to you, I’m a creature of habit, AND I am not good at relaxing. I always love having something to do, and getting me to just sit still and take a vacation and enjoy some down time is no easy task. I always think I should be accomplishing something, writing an outline, helping one of my children, doing spring cleaning, or pulling a closet apart. But in spite of that, I take a vacation with my five youngest children every summer, and it is one of the best moments of the year for me, wherever we are, rivalled only by a week together at Christmas with all of my kids. We have gone to the same hotel every summer—we used to spend three weeks there, but now with all of my kids working, and busy with their careers, we are grateful to have a week together. And in spite of myself, eventually I unwind and actually relax. And it is sheer heaven being with them. We swim, lie in the sun, have meals together, they tell some hair raising stories of pranks and mischief they committed when they were younger, and are thrilled to tell me everything I didn’t know, which they think is hysterically funny now. We share long lazy meals, go to favorite restaurants, play games like Scrabble and cards, and a recent addition called “Catch Phrase”, which I love, it’s a little bit like charades where you have to describe a word, with a timer ticking, while everyone tries to guess the word, and pass the game along before the buzzer sounds.  Some years they come with their boyfriends and girlfriends, or just a friend, and sometimes they come alone. Only one of the younger five is married, and my son in law fits right in with the rest of my ‘kids’ (in their mid and late 20′s now), and is a welcome addition to the group.  It is one of the rare times of the year when we all relax together, enjoy each others’ company, reminisce about old times when they were little and other vacations we shared. And we have gone to the same hotel for about 25 years, all of their lives. Many of the same people still work there, and it’s like meeting up with old friends every year.

I work so hard all year that I never take vacations, and it’s a huge treat for me to have a whole week with my kids, especially since now we live in 4 cities, so getting even the youngest 5 together is a HUGE treat for me. The older 3 married ones with children make their own plans with their families in the summer, it’s too complicated to plan summer vacations with them now.

I start the vacation with a stack of books to read, a note pad in case I want to write, and a briefcase full of work and projects in case I want to work, and by the second day, I no longer care about the projects, don’t even look at my briefcase, and the notepad is still blank and stays that way. And all I care about are the fun days with my kids. We usually manage to go to a disco on one night, and this time danced til 4 am and had a ball. And the rest of the time we spend our evenings at the hotel, except for two nights at favorite restaurants.

The BEST part of the vacation is being with my kids. I’m so grateful they are still willing to spend their vacations with me, and I hope they continue to do so for many years. And impossible to believe, by the end of the vacation, I’m actually relaxed, and it’s actually hard to go back to work. But I’ll get busy, and can’t wait for next summer to roll around again. Other than Christmas, it’s my favorite week of the year. I’ll be seeing them all again for a weekend for my birthday next month, but that’s always more rushed and more chaotic, this summer holiday with them is everything it should be…..lazy days….that are so precious to me, and memories we will cherish forever. I hope you get some time off this summer. You deserve it!!! And it gives one new energy to unhook for a little while!!!

love, danielle

 

The post Lazy Days appeared first on daniellesteel.net.

7/14/14, Paris Fashion

Hi Everyone,

Unlike (ready to wear) fashion week, which is a wild 10 day relay race, as store buyers, press, movie stars, celebrities, and anyone associated with fashion professionally, dash from one venue to the next to see as many as 7 or 8 major fashion shows a day, in 4 cities (New York, Paris, London, Milan), repeating the wild week again and again, until everyone is exhausted and has seen the wares of every ready to wear designer. Unlike ready to wear, Haute Couture fashion shows happen only in Paris, and whereas once upon a time, a dozen or so years ago, and for many years before that, the Haute Couture shows were the Big event, now Ready to Wear is where everyone wants to go and be seen. I guess I’m dating myself when I say that the Haute Couture shows used to be absolutely knock out, and attracted the most elegant women in the world. The front row at the fashion show was every socialite you’d ever heard of, important dignitaries and movie stars, and presidents’ wives, along with well known royals, and the women who attended the shows actually wore haute couture in their daily lives. The shows were beautiful, dignified, the clothes were spectacular and it was a rarefied scene and atmosphere that took your breath away if you loved beautiful clothes. But like it or not, the world has changed. My daughters and I were reminiscing about those shows a few days ago, since I started taking my 5 daughters to them when they were very young, like 7 or 8 years old. And the shows were dazzling then, for them, and for me. I’ve always loved fashion, and the haute couture shows were every woman and young girl’s dream.  All of Paris buzzed with the excitement, and the women who attended them (by invitation only) were stunningly elegant. But that world no longer exists.

For those who haven’t read about my talking about Haute Couture, what defines haute couture from ready to wear, is that every single stitch is hand made. There is not one machine made stitch on an haute couture garment. The seamstresses who worked on them had to be apprentices in the workrooms for twelve years before they were allowed to touch the clothes. The way it works is that there are two haute couture shows a year by the designer, in January (to show summer clothes) and in July (to show winter wear). The designer would put together about 70 designs, complete outfits, a sample of each one is made by hand, and usually famous models wear the samples down the runway in a beautiful show, so everyone can admire the clothes. Appointments are made afterwards for clients to try on the samples, and if they like them, the client will order a dress or outfit, and it will be handmade to her precise measurements. She will then have three fittings, sometimes more (the first one in a sample of the garment made in muslin, not the actual fabric), and about three months after the process began, the haute couture outfit or dress she ordered is delivered to the client. That process is still true today, and hasn’t changed. Haute Couture clothes were always expensive, but not the way they are now. A dress or outfit cost around $10,000 not that long ago, a spectacular evening gown $20,000. A wedding gown 50 or $100,000.  Today those same clothes can easily be 75 or $100,000 for a wool dress, $150,000 for a suit, up to $300,000 for an evening gown, and $700,000 for an elaborate wedding dress. At those prices, there are only a handful of women in the world who can afford them. And not only have the Haute Couture clients changed, but so has the world. I went to two of those shows in the last two days, as I do twice a year, and have for most of my life, as an admirer of fashion (I went to Parsons School of Design and studied fashion design, and three of my daughters work in fashion, so it’s a family passion), and there were no Presidents’ wives at the shows I attended, only one major movie star, no royals, and the famously well dressed women are only a memory now. I occasionally see well known movie stars at those shows (Jennifer Lawrence at Dior yesterday), and have seen Gwyneth Paltrow, Cameron Diaz, and Kirsten Dunst, and Rihanna in recent years, but on the whole people go now for the spectacle, and many to be seen, and very, very, very few are going to buy haute couture. The haute couture client of today is a very different breed. And the world we live in a very different place. Money is tight, jobs are scarce and the economy strained in many countries, the entire world wears jeans and sneakers, some even to work, exercise clothes are considered okay in every public place. Luxury is often frowned on (though secretly envied), men rarely wear ties now, it’s considered fashionable not to shave, and most people have nowhere to wear the fabulous creations of Haute Couture. And all but 3 of the once numerous haute couture designers still produce haute couture collections, which are labor intensive to make and out in the stratosphere in price. Many of the clothes one sees on the runway are then put in the designer’s museum, and never made for any clients. Sadly, haute couture has become an exquisite beautiful, absolutely spectacular dinosaur from another age. A few people still buy it, but most people’s everyday lives, even those with money, just don’t lend themselves to those fabulous creations anymore. And there are sometimes simpler clothes in the collections too, but always at an astronomical price, due to the fabric, or embroidery, or the remarkable labor and expertise that goes into them. I go to look, and am in awe of the workmanship and the creativity every time.

The remaining old guard Haute Couture Designers in Paris now are Chanel (designed by brilliant German designer Karl Lagerfeld, who is truly a genius), Dior (designed by Raf Simmons, a Belgian designer who has designed the collection for two years after John Galliano retired after his 10 year stint with Dior), and Jean Paul Gauthier. There are several young, lesser known designers of haute couture, but Dior and Chanel are among the greats of fashion history. Some flavor of the original style of each house is maintained, but the designs are new and modern now, and unlike the designs of the past, made for women who could afford them, they are now designed for very, very young women, whose wardrobes are being bought by older wealthy men. The big clients now are Russian and Chinese. I heard Russian spoken everywhere around me at the Chanel show. The big money at the Haute Couture shows is no longer French or European, it is predominantly Russian and Chinese, with a few Americans from Texas, New York and LA. But the elegant middle aged or older woman will find very little there that she can wear, even if she can afford it. The designers are focusing on very, very young clients, in their early 20′s, who are brought to the shows by their very generous men, who are looking to dress them and show them off. In most cases, a woman over 40 would look silly in the clothes now and is out of luck if she’s hoping to buy.

The Dior Show was held at the Rodin Museum on the rue de Varenne (where I lived when I was in my teens). It’s a beautiful museum, and Dior puts up a fabulous tent in the garden. And every inch of the tent’s walls was covered with white orchids that were absolutely stunning. Everything else in the tent was silver and white. And the clothes were very beautiful. There were a few things I could have worn, some simple coats, and slacks, but for the most part the designs, and the clients were very young. There were a number of Asian movie stars I didn’t recognize, and the women in the audience, and even some of the men, seemed determined to outdo each other and were snagging attention and catching the eye in wild outfits, eccentric hats, space age shoes that looked impossible to walk in, and every possible flight of fancy in fashion. The audience was startling more than fashionable, people were looking to shock, and the old Guard had totally vanished. It was a beautiful show, and the look of the audience reminded me that the old days are long gone. These were fierce fashionistas on parade, many more interested in showing off their own style than admiring the clothes that were being shown.

Chanel is always impressively elegant, and here the Russian clients dominated. The show was held at the Grand Palais and I can honestly say that I have never seen so many beautiful young (VERY young!!!) women in my life, almost all with much older men. I’d say the average age of the women there was about 22, with flawless bodies, exquisite faces, perfect teeth, warm, friendly smiles, wearing clothes specially made for them, or from recent haute couture collections. The fashionistas were plentiful here too, one spectacularly beautiful girl wearing a tiny mini skirt, with a full length dyed black alligator skin running down her back, from her neck to her knees, with the sneakers that were part of the last haute couture collection in January. The ladies at Chanel were not as daring and eccentric as those at Dior, but they were visibly style setters in the more recent trends. Almost every woman had either a Hermes or a Chanel bag on her arm, every woman I saw was wearing huge diamonds, many of the young Russian women knew each other. Many wore tiny, chic hats, perched at sexy angles, their faces exquisite beneath them, and their outfits exhibited every recent fashion trend. They weren’t officially chic or elegant, in the old style sense of the couture client, they were wearing the symbols of their ability to buy couture, and the extravagance and devotion of their men, but they were so beautiful and so striking that what they wore almost didn’t matter. The clothes at Chanel were beautiful, but I couldn’t see myself in any of the outfits on the runway, and it’s nice to be able to dream and imagine yourself in at least some of the creations. Haute Couture today appears to be for very, very young girls, accompanied by very generous men. I suppose one could say that most of the women there were trophies for their men. The female clients in the audience really weren’t about elegance, but damn they were beautiful. And I have to admit, after the show, I felt suddenly old and a little sad. I missed the old days when I could fall in love with the clothes and imagine myself in them. But there was very little in the show that I could wear. I felt kind of left out. The haute couture client today is apparently very, very young. But then again, I had my turn when I was younger….now it’s their turn to discover the world of haute couture, and they look like they’re excited to be there, and having fun.

Things change, collections are different every season, and next time there might be lots of things I can dream about wearing and wish I could have. But this time, it was a collection for very young women, and they were as pretty to look at as the clothes.

And whatever the styles for that season, I always, always enjoy seeing the clothes…if you love fashion, it’s sooooo much fun!!! And a tradition worth honoring as long as it lasts. love, danielle

 

The post 7/14/14, Paris Fashion appeared first on daniellesteel.net.

Paris Fashion

Hi Everyone,

Unlike (ready to wear) fashion week, which is a wild 10 day relay race, as store buyers, press, movie stars, celebrities, and anyone associated with fashion professionally, dash from one venue to the next to see as many as 7 or 8 major fashion shows a day, in 4 cities (New York, Paris, London, Milan), repeating the wild week again and again, until everyone is exhausted and has seen the wares of every ready to wear designer. Unlike ready to wear, Haute Couture fashion shows happen only in Paris, and whereas once upon a time, a dozen or so years ago, and for many years before that, the Haute Couture shows were the Big event, now Ready to Wear is where everyone wants to go and be seen. I guess I’m dating myself when I say that the Haute Couture shows used to be absolutely knock out, and attracted the most elegant women in the world. The front row at the fashion show was every socialite you’d ever heard of, important dignitaries and movie stars, and presidents’ wives, along with well known royals, and the women who attended the shows actually wore haute couture in their daily lives. The shows were beautiful, dignified, the clothes were spectacular and it was a rarefied scene and atmosphere that took your breath away if you loved beautiful clothes. But like it or not, the world has changed. My daughters and I were reminiscing about those shows a few days ago, since I started taking my 5 daughters to them when they were very young, like 7 or 8 years old. And the shows were dazzling then, for them, and for me. I’ve always loved fashion, and the haute couture shows were every woman and young girl’s dream.  All of Paris buzzed with the excitement, and the women who attended them (by invitation only) were stunningly elegant. But that world no longer exists.

For those who haven’t read about my talking about Haute Couture, what defines haute couture from ready to wear, is that every single stitch is hand made. There is not one machine made stitch on an haute couture garment. The seamstresses who worked on them had to be apprentices in the workrooms for twelve years before they were allowed to touch the clothes. The way it works is that there are two haute couture shows a year by the designer, in January (to show summer clothes) and in July (to show winter wear). The designer would put together about 70 designs, complete outfits, a sample of each one is made by hand, and usually famous models wear the samples down the runway in a beautiful show, so everyone can admire the clothes. Appointments are made afterwards for clients to try on the samples, and if they like them, the client will order a dress or outfit, and it will be handmade to her precise measurements. She will then have three fittings, sometimes more (the first one in a sample of the garment made in muslin, not the actual fabric), and about three months after the process began, the haute couture outfit or dress she ordered is delivered to the client. That process is still true today, and hasn’t changed. Haute Couture clothes were always expensive, but not the way they are now. A dress or outfit cost around $10,000 not that long ago, a spectacular evening gown $20,000. A wedding gown 50 or $100,000.  Today those same clothes can easily be 75 or $100,000 for a wool dress, $150,000 for a suit, up to $300,000 for an evening gown, and $700,000 for an elaborate wedding dress. At those prices, there are only a handful of women in the world who can afford them. And not only have the Haute Couture clients changed, but so has the world. I went to two of those shows in the last two days, as I do twice a year, and have for most of my life, as an admirer of fashion (I went to Parsons School of Design and studied fashion design, and three of my daughters work in fashion, so it’s a family passion), and there were no Presidents’ wives at the shows I attended, only one major movie star, no royals, and the famously well dressed women are only a memory now. I occasionally see well known movie stars at those shows (Jennifer Lawrence at Dior yesterday), and have seen Gwyneth Paltrow, Cameron Diaz, and Kirsten Dunst, and Rihanna in recent years, but on the whole people go now for the spectacle, and many to be seen, and very, very, very few are going to buy haute couture. The haute couture client of today is a very different breed. And the world we live in a very different place. Money is tight, jobs are scarce and the economy strained in many countries, the entire world wears jeans and sneakers, some even to work, exercise clothes are considered okay in every public place. Luxury is often frowned on (though secretly envied), men rarely wear ties now, it’s considered fashionable not to shave, and most people have nowhere to wear the fabulous creations of Haute Couture. And all but 3 of the once numerous haute couture designers still produce haute couture collections, which are labor intensive to make and out in the stratosphere in price. Many of the clothes one sees on the runway are then put in the designer’s museum, and never made for any clients. Sadly, haute couture has become an exquisite beautiful, absolutely spectacular dinosaur from another age. A few people still buy it, but most people’s everyday lives, even those with money, just don’t lend themselves to those fabulous creations anymore. And there are sometimes simpler clothes in the collections too, but always at an astronomical price, due to the fabric, or embroidery, or the remarkable labor and expertise that goes into them. I go to look, and am in awe of the workmanship and the creativity every time.

The remaining old guard Haute Couture Designers in Paris now are Chanel (designed by brilliant German designer Karl Lagerfeld, who is truly a genius), Dior (designed by Raf Simmons, a Belgian designer who has designed the collection for two years after John Galliano retired after his 10 year stint with Dior), and Jean Paul Gauthier. There are several young, lesser known designers of haute couture, but Dior and Chanel are among the greats of fashion history. Some flavor of the original style of each house is maintained, but the designs are new and modern now, and unlike the designs of the past, made for women who could afford them, they are now designed for very, very young women, whose wardrobes are being bought by older wealthy men. The big clients now are Russian and Chinese. I heard Russian spoken everywhere around me at the Chanel show. The big money at the Haute Couture shows is no longer French or European, it is predominantly Russian and Chinese, with a few Americans from Texas, New York and LA. But the elegant middle aged or older woman will find very little there that she can wear, even if she can afford it. The designers are focusing on very, very young clients, in their early 20′s, who are brought to the shows by their very generous men, who are looking to dress them and show them off. In most cases, a woman over 40 would look silly in the clothes now and is out of luck if she’s hoping to buy.

The Dior Show was held at the Rodin Museum on the rue de Varenne (where I lived when I was in my teens). It’s a beautiful museum, and Dior puts up a fabulous tent in the garden. And every inch of the tent’s walls was covered with white orchids that were absolutely stunning. Everything else in the tent was silver and white. And the clothes were very beautiful. There were a few things I could have worn, some simple coats, and slacks, but for the most part the designs, and the clients were very young. There were a number of Asian movie stars I didn’t recognize, and the women in the audience, and even some of the men, seemed determined to outdo each other and were snagging attention and catching the eye in wild outfits, eccentric hats, space age shoes that looked impossible to walk in, and every possible flight of fancy in fashion. The audience was startling more than fashionable, people were looking to shock, and the old Guard had totally vanished. It was a beautiful show, and the look of the audience reminded me that the old days are long gone. These were fierce fashionistas on parade, many more interested in showing off their own style than admiring the clothes that were being shown.

Chanel is always impressively elegant, and here the Russian clients dominated. The show was held at the Grand Palais and I can honestly say that I have never seen so many beautiful young (VERY young!!!) women in my life, almost all with much older men. I’d say the average age of the women there was about 22, with flawless bodies, exquisite faces, perfect teeth, warm, friendly smiles, wearing clothes specially made for them, or from recent haute couture collections. The fashionistas were plentiful here too, one spectacularly beautiful girl wearing a tiny mini skirt, with a full length dyed black alligator skin running down her back, from her neck to her knees, with the sneakers that were part of the last haute couture collection in January. The ladies at Chanel were not as daring and eccentric as those at Dior, but they were visibly style setters in the more recent trends. Almost every woman had either a Hermes or a Chanel bag on her arm, every woman I saw was wearing huge diamonds, many of the young Russian women knew each other. Many wore tiny, chic hats, perched at sexy angles, their faces exquisite beneath them, and their outfits exhibited every recent fashion trend. They weren’t officially chic or elegant, in the old style sense of the couture client, they were wearing the symbols of their ability to buy couture, and the extravagance and devotion of their men, but they were so beautiful and so striking that what they wore almost didn’t matter. The clothes at Chanel were beautiful, but I couldn’t see myself in any of the outfits on the runway, and it’s nice to be able to dream and imagine yourself in at least some of the creations. Haute Couture today appears to be for very, very young girls, accompanied by very generous men. I suppose one could say that most of the women there were trophies for their men. The female clients in the audience really weren’t about elegance, but damn they were beautiful. And I have to admit, after the show, I felt suddenly old and a little sad. I missed the old days when I could fall in love with the clothes and imagine myself in them. But there was very little in the show that I could wear. I felt kind of left out. The haute couture client today is apparently very, very young. But then again, I had my turn when I was younger….now it’s their turn to discover the world of haute couture, and they look like they’re excited to be there, and having fun.

Things change, collections are different every season, and next time there might be lots of things I can dream about wearing and wish I could have. But this time, it was a collection for very young women, and they were as pretty to look at as the clothes.

And whatever the styles for that season, I always, always enjoy seeing the clothes…if you love fashion, it’s sooooo much fun!!! And a tradition worth honoring as long as it lasts. love, danielle

 

The post Paris Fashion appeared first on daniellesteel.net.

7/7/14, Are we taking technology too far??

 

Hi Everyone,

As a person who has had a war with machines all my life, I can’t help but ask myself that question. Machines have always hated me, and I have to admit, it’s mutual. I hate them back. I have no problem with a light switch or the basics. I owned an electric can opener years ago that I could never operate. It took me 5 years to learn to fax, and longer to figure out how to get my messages off my cell phone. I kept forgetting how to do it. I can however manage a toaster, and now a microwave if it’s not too high tech. And my cell phone is prehistoric.  Smart Phones terrify me, so I have stuck with my old 14 year old battered cell phone that has disco lights that warn me when I have a message. I could give you a list a mile long of the machines I can’t figure out how to operate, and my mistakes on my laptop are legendary. I usually hit delete instead of send when writing a message, and then can’t figure out later why the person didn’t get my message and didn’t respond, when I complain that they didn’t. I write on a 1946 manual typewriter which does not erase my latest book. And I can’t blame the machinery in question, in my case it is ALWAYS pilot error. I can write a 500 page book, but damned if I can send an email without a hitch.

So for me the world of virtual everything and E-everything is pretty scary. In that context, I was told today that there are, or are going to be, computer operated cars that you don’t have to drive yourself, you just program them and they drive you. My home in Paris can usually be accessed by a minefield referred to as L’Etoile (The Star). In the center of it sits the very dignified Arc de Triomphe, there is a circle of traffic that runs around it, and a dozen broad avenues leading away from the circle. Sounds simple, but it isn’t. You take your life in your hands when you enter that circle of frantic traffic, cars going at odd angles to each other at full speed, in a mad dash to go from one boulevard to another, it looks like bumper cars or the destruction derby. And I have friends who have devised elaborate routes to avoid the circle entirely. So how is a computerized car going to navigate that without imploding? Hard to imagine.  And there is an “app” to park your car now. Why? I can actually manage to park my car myself. I can drive without a problem, I just can’t operate my computer.

I am also terrified by surgery performed by robots. I know it’s state of the art surgery at its best—-but what if the computer blows up, or goes haywire, or does something crazy, like my toaster or my microwave? The idea of a surgeon in Cincinnati, eating his lunch while operating his computer, performing surgery on me in Phoenix, or Houston or Miami, scares me to pieces. I can barely get my mouth open at the dentist, let alone stomach the idea of a robot doing surgery. On the other hand, a surgeon with shaky hands after a bad night before isn’t too reassuring either, and a robot presumably eliminates the possibility of human error, but still…

And I learned today that drones will no longer be used for aerial photography in real estate. Why? Did they hit someone? Take off their head? Hit a 747 at high altitude? If they’ve been eliminated in real estate, what terrible thing did they commit to be banned?

And the last straw came when I saw on my computer tonight (while trying to send an email) that there will now be computerized Smart Bras.  Computerized bras? Wow. Now that is impressive and really scary. My current bras are definitely not smart, they just hang there doing their job quietly. They seem to hold things up okay, although admittedly my bra size is small ( okay,very small), so they don’t have to do a lot of work, but my bra has never complained about it, at least not that I know of. What does a Smart Bra do? Do I really want to know? Will it teach my boobs to speak another language, vacuum, do laundry? A Japanese friend has a robot to do housework and vacuum. So could a Smart Bra be taught to do household chores, walk the dog, or feed the children? How smart could our boobs get, and our bras? I’m afraid here I go back to basics. I think I’ll stick with my fancy French bras which do absolutely nothing except decorate the landscape. My daughters once decorated their Christmas tree with fancy multi-colored bras. But a computerized Smart Bra? Maybe it could decorate the Christmas tree all by itself….I’m afraid that technology has left me way behind on this one…..I’m still back in the dark ages wearing a Dumb Bra, not a smart one, don’t have a robot doing my vacuuming, and park my car myself. And the idea of getting into a car that will drive itself is terrifying, what if it gets confused and takes me somewhere I dont want to go, while my Smart Bra gives it the wrong voice commands…..wow, guys, I don’t know about you, but I’m not ready for virtual everything. And if my bra spoke to me, I think I’d faint…unless it paid me compliments….maybe a Smart Bra could be taught to lie….”Congratulations!!! You wear a 44 Quadruple D”…..in that case, maybe it would be okay…..but I guess for now, I’ll stick to basics….have a great week!!! A real one!! Not just a virtual week!!! And watch out for heavy machinery!!!

 

love, danielle

 

The post 7/7/14, Are we taking technology too far?? appeared first on daniellesteel.net.

Are we taking technology too far??

 

Hi Everyone,

As a person who has had a war with machines all my life, I can’t help but ask myself that question. Machines have always hated me, and I have to admit, it’s mutual. I hate them back. I have no problem with a light switch or the basics. I owned an electric can opener years ago that I could never operate. It took me 5 years to learn to fax, and longer to figure out how to get my messages off my cell phone. I kept forgetting how to do it. I can however manage a toaster, and now a microwave if it’s not too high tech. And my cell phone is prehistoric.  Smart Phones terrify me, so I have stuck with my old 14 year old battered cell phone that has disco lights that warn me when I have a message. I could give you a list a mile long of the machines I can’t figure out how to operate, and my mistakes on my laptop are legendary. I usually hit delete instead of send when writing a message, and then can’t figure out later why the person didn’t get my message and didn’t respond, when I complain that they didn’t. I write on a 1946 manual typewriter which does not erase my latest book. And I can’t blame the machinery in question, in my case it is ALWAYS pilot error. I can write a 500 page book, but damned if I can send an email without a hitch.

So for me the world of virtual everything and E-everything is pretty scary. In that context, I was told today that there are, or are going to be, computer operated cars that you don’t have to drive yourself, you just program them and they drive you. My home in Paris can usually be accessed by a minefield referred to as L’Etoile (The Star). In the center of it sits the very dignified Arc de Triomphe, there is a circle of traffic that runs around it, and a dozen broad avenues leading away from the circle. Sounds simple, but it isn’t. You take your life in your hands when you enter that circle of frantic traffic, cars going at odd angles to each other at full speed, in a mad dash to go from one boulevard to another, it looks like bumper cars or the destruction derby. And I have friends who have devised elaborate routes to avoid the circle entirely. So how is a computerized car going to navigate that without imploding? Hard to imagine.  And there is an “app” to park your car now. Why? I can actually manage to park my car myself. I can drive without a problem, I just can’t operate my computer.

I am also terrified by surgery performed by robots. I know it’s state of the art surgery at its best—-but what if the computer blows up, or goes haywire, or does something crazy, like my toaster or my microwave? The idea of a surgeon in Cincinnati, eating his lunch while operating his computer, performing surgery on me in Phoenix, or Houston or Miami, scares me to pieces. I can barely get my mouth open at the dentist, let alone stomach the idea of a robot doing surgery. On the other hand, a surgeon with shaky hands after a bad night before isn’t too reassuring either, and a robot presumably eliminates the possibility of human error, but still…

And I learned today that drones will no longer be used for aerial photography in real estate. Why? Did they hit someone? Take off their head? Hit a 747 at high altitude? If they’ve been eliminated in real estate, what terrible thing did they commit to be banned?

And the last straw came when I saw on my computer tonight (while trying to send an email) that there will now be computerized Smart Bras.  Computerized bras? Wow. Now that is impressive and really scary. My current bras are definitely not smart, they just hang there doing their job quietly. They seem to hold things up okay, although admittedly my bra size is small ( okay,very small), so they don’t have to do a lot of work, but my bra has never complained about it, at least not that I know of. What does a Smart Bra do? Do I really want to know? Will it teach my boobs to speak another language, vacuum, do laundry? A Japanese friend has a robot to do housework and vacuum. So could a Smart Bra be taught to do household chores, walk the dog, or feed the children? How smart could our boobs get, and our bras? I’m afraid here I go back to basics. I think I’ll stick with my fancy French bras which do absolutely nothing except decorate the landscape. My daughters once decorated their Christmas tree with fancy multi-colored bras. But a computerized Smart Bra? Maybe it could decorate the Christmas tree all by itself….I’m afraid that technology has left me way behind on this one…..I’m still back in the dark ages wearing a Dumb Bra, not a smart one, don’t have a robot doing my vacuuming, and park my car myself. And the idea of getting into a car that will drive itself is terrifying, what if it gets confused and takes me somewhere I dont want to go, while my Smart Bra gives it the wrong voice commands…..wow, guys, I don’t know about you, but I’m not ready for virtual everything. And if my bra spoke to me, I think I’d faint…unless it paid me compliments….maybe a Smart Bra could be taught to lie….”Congratulations!!! You wear a 44 Quadruple D”…..in that case, maybe it would be okay…..but I guess for now, I’ll stick to basics….have a great week!!! A real one!! Not just a virtual week!!! And watch out for heavy machinery!!!

 

love, danielle

 

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6/30/14, Heroes

Hi Everyone,

I hope your week has gone well, and had some nice surprises in it. We can always use some sunshine in our lives, an unexpected gesture from a friend, or even from someone we barely know, a kind comment, or a thoughtful touch. It can change a week from mediocre, or even lousy if things are going wrong, into a special moment we didn’t expect, and turn everything around. So I wish you good surprises in the week ahead.

I had an interesting experience this week, and was discussing World War II with my beloved editor. It always surprises me in France, when you talk to very old people, who look extremely meek and frail, or when people talk about their grandparents who are no longer here—-to discover that they played some vital part in the Resistance during the War, when the Germans occupied France. People whom you would never suspect of heroic acts, did remarkable things during the war, saving others, rescuing children, hiding families, taking enormous risks, or blowing up supply trains when they were young. Too often, I think we dismiss old people, never realizing who they were and what they did when they were young, or what they were capable of. Few of us have lived through a war on home turf, particularly in the States. But for those who experienced the Occupation of France, and other sectors of the war, they were pushed to the limits of bravery, far beyond what even they knew they were capable of. And even in normal life, people we know have done heroic acts, to save a life, a friend or a stranger, at the site of an accident, or during a plane crash, or even in daily life. Opportunities for courage present themselves in everyday life, and we often surprise ourselves by how brave we can be, or those we know.

One of my favorite war stories was of a friend’s grandmother, a countess in France, whose husband was in the Resistance and taken away by the Germans. She had to get to Paris, I can’t remember why, and had no way to get there. So she borrowed a tractor from a farmer, and assured him she would return it, and told him who she was. And she headed for Paris, from the South of France, on the tractor, and encountered another young woman along the way, and gave her a ride on the tractor. And soon they met another young girl on the road, also on her way to Paris, on foot, and gave her a ride too. Because they were just a bunch of young women on a tractor and looked like farm girls, the German soldiers didn’t stop them along the way. Apparently, by the time they got to Paris, there were 5 or 6 young women hanging onto the tractor. All got there safely, and none had the travel papers they needed for the journey, and miraculously, they were never stopped. The young Countess did eventually return the tractor to the farmer, and she was in the Resistance for the remainder of the war, and was decorated for bravery afterwards. I love the image of all those young women arriving in Paris on the tractor, totally ignored by all the soldiers they encountered as just a bunch of silly farm girls. It was very brave of them to undertake the trip in plain sight!! And must have made quite an impression when they rolled into Paris on a tractor!!! Whatever works.

In the same vein, while talking to my editor, she mentioned that her husband was a prisoner of war in Germany during World War II, a fact I had never known. The subject came up over Memorial Day, when she mentioned that he had been in a parade. He is 91 years old, American, and was with the US Army in France and Germany during World War II. He was taken prisoner by the Germans, and put in a prison camp with terrible conditions, along with other Allied officers, British, American and French. And during a rescue mission organized by General Patton himself (to rescue his son in law who was a prisoner in the same camp in Germany), my editor’s husband escaped the camp, and participated in an incredible mission. The Germans outnumbered them in a fierce attack, and he was sent to another prison camp in Germany. It was close to the end of the war by then, and he was liberated from that camp by the allies. He had written a book about his war experiences, which she referred me to, and I was fascinated to read it. Her husband is a very interesting, intelligent, erudite man. He was in publishing himself, is great to talk to, and very knowledgeable. He loves to sail, and we’ve had conversations for 30 years, but I never suspected his astounding heroism during the war. He was one of the few survivors of the raid to liberate the first camp he was in (Patton’s son in law survived it too, although injured and very ill). I loved the book, and it reminded me of how little we know of people at times. The most ordinary people sometimes have led fascinating lives and done amazing things. One of my good friends is married to a very quiet, mild mannered man, who was one of the most decorated fighter pilots in Viet Nam, and a top gun. And people we know have often committed other acts of bravery, not in a war, that would astound us if we knew.

We all make a lot of assumptions about people, and it’s so easy to dismiss much older people if they appear frail and are no longer in the mainstream of life. Perhaps if we took more time to talk to them, we would learn of bravery and heroic acts that would astound us. I had immeasurable respect once I read of my editor’s husband’s war experiences. I can’t even imagine courage like that!!!

And in some small way, we each commit heroic acts and remarkable feats almost every day, even a gesture or a word, or an act of kindness that can change someone’s life. It’s a good thing to think about on an ordinary day. You never know when you’ll be called on or have the opportunity to make a difference in someone’s life, maybe a huge difference, that could change the course of their life, or yours.

So I salute all of you, as the heroes that you are, in big and small ways!!! Have a great week!!!

love,  danielle

 

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Heroes

Hi Everyone,

I hope your week has gone well, and had some nice surprises in it. We can always use some sunshine in our lives, an unexpected gesture from a friend, or even from someone we barely know, a kind comment, or a thoughtful touch. It can change a week from mediocre, or even lousy if things are going wrong, into a special moment we didn’t expect, and turn everything around. So I wish you good surprises in the week ahead.

I had an interesting experience this week, and was discussing World War II with my beloved editor. It always surprises me in France, when you talk to very old people, who look extremely meek and frail, or when people talk about their grandparents who are no longer here—-to discover that they played some vital part in the Resistance during the War, when the Germans occupied France. People whom you would never suspect of heroic acts, did remarkable things during the war, saving others, rescuing children, hiding families, taking enormous risks, or blowing up supply trains when they were young. Too often, I think we dismiss old people, never realizing who they were and what they did when they were young, or what they were capable of. Few of us have lived through a war on home turf, particularly in the States. But for those who experienced the Occupation of France, and other sectors of the war, they were pushed to the limits of bravery, far beyond what even they knew they were capable of. And even in normal life, people we know have done heroic acts, to save a life, a friend or a stranger, at the site of an accident, or during a plane crash, or even in daily life. Opportunities for courage present themselves in everyday life, and we often surprise ourselves by how brave we can be, or those we know.

One of my favorite war stories was of a friend’s grandmother, a countess in France, whose husband was in the Resistance and taken away by the Germans. She had to get to Paris, I can’t remember why, and had no way to get there. So she borrowed a tractor from a farmer, and assured him she would return it, and told him who she was. And she headed for Paris, from the South of France, on the tractor, and encountered another young woman along the way, and gave her a ride on the tractor. And soon they met another young girl on the road, also on her way to Paris, on foot, and gave her a ride too. Because they were just a bunch of young women on a tractor and looked like farm girls, the German soldiers didn’t stop them along the way. Apparently, by the time they got to Paris, there were 5 or 6 young women hanging onto the tractor. All got there safely, and none had the travel papers they needed for the journey, and miraculously, they were never stopped. The young Countess did eventually return the tractor to the farmer, and she was in the Resistance for the remainder of the war, and was decorated for bravery afterwards. I love the image of all those young women arriving in Paris on the tractor, totally ignored by all the soldiers they encountered as just a bunch of silly farm girls. It was very brave of them to undertake the trip in plain sight!! And must have made quite an impression when they rolled into Paris on a tractor!!! Whatever works.

In the same vein, while talking to my editor, she mentioned that her husband was a prisoner of war in Germany during World War II, a fact I had never known. The subject came up over Memorial Day, when she mentioned that he had been in a parade. He is 91 years old, American, and was with the US Army in France and Germany during World War II. He was taken prisoner by the Germans, and put in a prison camp with terrible conditions, along with other Allied officers, British, American and French. And during a rescue mission organized by General Patton himself (to rescue his son in law who was a prisoner in the same camp in Germany), my editor’s husband escaped the camp, and participated in an incredible mission. The Germans outnumbered them in a fierce attack, and he was sent to another prison camp in Germany. It was close to the end of the war by then, and he was liberated from that camp by the allies. He had written a book about his war experiences, which she referred me to, and I was fascinated to read it. Her husband is a very interesting, intelligent, erudite man. He was in publishing himself, is great to talk to, and very knowledgeable. He loves to sail, and we’ve had conversations for 30 years, but I never suspected his astounding heroism during the war. He was one of the few survivors of the raid to liberate the first camp he was in (Patton’s son in law survived it too, although injured and very ill). I loved the book, and it reminded me of how little we know of people at times. The most ordinary people sometimes have led fascinating lives and done amazing things. One of my good friends is married to a very quiet, mild mannered man, who was one of the most decorated fighter pilots in Viet Nam, and a top gun. And people we know have often committed other acts of bravery, not in a war, that would astound us if we knew.

We all make a lot of assumptions about people, and it’s so easy to dismiss much older people if they appear frail and are no longer in the mainstream of life. Perhaps if we took more time to talk to them, we would learn of bravery and heroic acts that would astound us. I had immeasurable respect once I read of my editor’s husband’s war experiences. I can’t even imagine courage like that!!!

And in some small way, we each commit heroic acts and remarkable feats almost every day, even a gesture or a word, or an act of kindness that can change someone’s life. It’s a good thing to think about on an ordinary day. You never know when you’ll be called on or have the opportunity to make a difference in someone’s life, maybe a huge difference, that could change the course of their life, or yours.

So I salute all of you, as the heroes that you are, in big and small ways!!! Have a great week!!!

love,  danielle

 

The post Heroes appeared first on daniellesteel.net.

Feast or Famine

Hi Everyone,

Wow….busy times here, and I hope that all is well with you.

Oddly, I always find that my social life is very irregular. In New York and San Francisco, I very seldom see friends, and try to spend as much time as I can with my kids. They always have the priority when I’m in their cities. And given the nature of my work, I tend to hole up and disappear whenever I’m writing. Everyone has their own style, and I’m always impressed by writers who have a regular pace and schedule, write for a few hours in the morning, and then go out, see their friends, play golf, or whatever. That sure doesn’t work for me. When I’m writing, I can’t deal with any distraction, I don’t see anyone, talk to anyone (except my kids if they need me), I don’t even read phone messages or mail. Anything distracts me from the work, so I lock myself up in my office and don’t leave my house for weeks at a time. My writing style is to keep my foot on the gas, and keep it there until I finish whatever I’m working on. It can keep me locked up in my house for weeks or a month at a time, with no contact with the outside world. If I interrupt the writing to go to dinner with friends, it can take me days or even a week to get back into the book afterwards. So I don’t do that, and stick with the story, and usually write 20 or even 22 hours a day at a time when I’m working on a first draft, sleep for a few hours, and then go back to work. I’m very energized when I write, and hopefully excited about the story, and don’t want to think about anything else. (I used to have to be more civilized about my writing schedule when my kids were young and at home, but now that they’ve grown up, I can indulge my preference to stick with the story). And coming back from a long writing binge like that is like returning from a trip. I catch up with everything I’ve missed, return calls, open mail, and get back to real life. It makes for a somewhat erratic social life, since I don’t accept invitations to anything while I’m writing. And I find that one’s social life can be erratic anyway, even without writing, since people kind of hibernate in winter and don’t entertain much except for holidays, or everyone goes their separate ways in summer, and then catch up with friends in the fall. And I’ve found that there are times when I don’t go out socially for a long time, and then I get a bunch of invitations and go out every night. And for the last ten days, it has indeed been a feast of seeing friends, and fun invitations, and I’ve been out every night, which is very unlike me. But friends have come through town, childhood friends have surfaced after years of losing touch, and I’ve just had a bunch of fun activities and invitations, and even did a little work, though not serious writing, at least not this week. I’m always working on something!! But it’s only when I’m in the heat of the first draft of a book that I disappear. The rest of the time, I can edit or correct or work on an outline, and not go at it 22 hours a day, and manage to do other things.

My social whirl began with the White Dinner I told you about, which is the top and my favorite of my social activities every year. It doesn’t get better than that. I went out the following night with friends, saw my Godchildren over the weekend, and went to the ballet recital of my youngest Godchild’s ten year old sister. And the ballet recital was truly fabulous!! Before that, I had brunch with friends and their kids last Sunday. On Monday, friends from San Francisco came through town, so I had lunch with friends, and then dinner at a fun, small Italian restaurant with my American friends. I actually had lunch with friends every day in the past week, which is more than I usually do too. But everyone wanted to have lunch last week. And on Tuesday night, I went to a very elegant dinner event at the Louvre museum, with excellent food and opera singing after dinner. I’m not a huge opera fan, but the woman’s voice was lovely. The day after, friends arrived from Belgium so we had drinks at my apartment, and then went to a very fun dinner party together at a friend’s apartment. And dinner the following night with my American friends again. We went to a fabulous restaurant I had never heard of, and the food was spectacular. Before dinner, I had gotten a call from a friend I went to nursery school with, and we were best friends in school until we were 9 years old and she moved away, and hadn’t seen each other since, and she wanted to get together. So I invited her for tea, and it was sooo wonderful to see her again. We were best friends as kids, and she has grown up to be a really lovely woman. She brought a photograph of us together when I was four years old, and we discovered that we still share many of the same interests (she is very involved with helping the homeless population too, in the city where she lives). We spent an hour together, and then I had to leave her for a business appointment, and the dinner after. Lunch with a friend today in a bustling Paris restaurant with a sidewalk cafe. Then I went to exercise at Aqua Bike, which I love and hadn’t done in months. And tonight, as I write this, I will be dining at the home of friends tonight, who celebrate “Shabbat” every Friday, light the candles, and sing the traditional Jewish songs that go with it. I love going to their home, with the warm family feeling and traditions. Tomorrow I’m going to the flea market to see something I liked, for a second time, to check it out, then going to see the end of school year play of my Godchildren, at their school. And I was invited to a dinner honoring a major TV personality from LA, given by some American friends. And on Sunday, my Godchildren are coming for a movie and pizza at my home. And on Monday, I am going to a cocktail party to meet with the salesmen who sell my books, 50 of them, they sell them to the bookstores, and I try to meet with them every year to thank them. So you can see what I mean about feast or famine. I have been crazy busy for 10 days and really enjoyed it. My usual social life in Paris usually consists of one or two dinners out per week, in small quiet restaurants, on a very informal basis, nothing fancy or elaborate, and very discreet, with a couple of friends. But for the past 10 days, I’ve been to children’s activities, a grand gala at the Louvre, the fabulous and unusual White Dinner, and have been out every night with friends. I feel like I haven’t stopped running for a week. But sometimes it’s good to get out, see people you know and enjoy, and meet new ones. I’m shy by nature, and work almost all the time, so pretty soon I’ll be hibernating again, either to write, or just because I need some quiet time, often to plan and think about the next book.

So it has been an amazing mix of experiences, with old friends and new ones, childhood pals, and fun events. I’m a little tired after all of it, and have to figure out what to wear every time. But the variety of what I’ve been doing has been wonderful….and sooner or later, it will all give me something to write about!!! Stay tuned!!….

love, danielle

 

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Not Magic But Fun

Hi Everyone,

I hope that all is well with you. Yesterday was one of the nights that I wait for with excitement all year. Kind of like the old movie “Brigadoon”, where a whole town appears once a year, or once every hundred years, and then disappears again. In this case, the magic happens once a year and it was a little less magical this year, but fun anyway. I’ve told you about it before, it’s the White Dinner in Paris, an extraordinary event that began in Paris about 26 years ago. It has been emulated in other cities since, with some variations. But the original real deal is in Paris. It began when a naval officer and his wife celebrated their anniversary in June, by setting up several folding tables with friends, and served an elegant dinner on white china, with a table cloth, in front of one of the monuments of Paris. They invited a few friends, the husband wore his white summer naval uniform, as did his friends, the wife wore a white dress, or perhaps all the women did, I’m not sure. They had a fabulous meal in an incomparable setting, right on the streets of Paris, in the setting of their choice, I’m not sure which of the monuments they chose, but there are many spectacular ones to choose from. And they loved the evening so much, that they returned to do it every year, and invited more and more friends. Eventually it grew to an event of several thousand. And it is still a remarkable event. It is organized by a committee of six men in Paris, the entire event is by invitation only (a greatly coveted invitation in Paris every year), it is free, no money changes hands (in Paris, i believe that in some of the cities where they have imitated it, they charge to attend the event). And once invited, the location of the dinner is kept secret until 2 hours before. Sub heads or group leaders are assigned lists of people to notify. The rules are that you must wear white clothes from head to toe; each couple must bring a folding table, 2 folding chairs, china, cutlery, a white table cloth, and all the equipment to serve an elegant dinner for two. You bring your own food for two, people bring silver candlesticks and flowers to decorate the table, and at 7pm the night of the event, you are notified of where to meet at 8pm, and you arrive dressed in white with all your gear. It is a deep secret where the dinner will be held, and thousands of people arrive at the meeting place, filled with excitement, wondering where they will actually be dining. There is a celebratory atmosphere, people are excited as they gather and wait to hear where they will go next. The final location is a few blocks from wherever you meet, because you have to carry your folding table, 2 folding chairs, and a pull cart/caddy of some kind with everything for the table and the food. Outfits range from white jeans and casual clothes, to some very sexy white cocktail dresses and high heels. (I opt for flats and white jeans myself, because walking across the cobblestones in high heels, pulling a caddy full of plates, cutlery, glasses, and food, doesn’t make a lot of sense to me, but the women in elegant white dresses look great.) Men wear everything from white suits to white jeans too; everyone wears white shoes, and respects the rules of white from head to toe.

As people chat and greet each other in the meeting location, finally it is 8:45 pm, and your ‘group leader’ tells you where the dinner is, always an amazing location, and people are thrilled as they head to the dinner location a few blocks away. And in a radius of a few blocks around it, people flock to one of the remarkable Paris monuments, and people fly in for this event from all over the world, so you hear every imaginable language around you. You arrive at the dinner location at exactly 9 pm, and in a matter of minutes the huge crowd is directed to their exact spot, in neat rows, and your assignment is to the inch of where you unfold your little table for 2 and set up. And once the tables are up, you are in long, long rows of tightly packed tables, in most cases, with men on one side and women on the other. Out come the candles, the candlesticks, the flowers, the china and chrystal, and within minutes, an elegant outdoor dinner is set up. Astoundingly, fourteen thousand people now attend this event, and it is totally orderly, remains friendly, orderly, and well behaved. People help each other set up, and offer each other some of their wine or food. Also amazingly, there are no crashers, bystanders gather and watch, but no one tries to fake an invitation or claim a place they weren’t assigned. Also interestingly, the event is technically ‘illegal’ because there are no permits requested for a group of this size dining in a public place. But the event has become a Paris tradition now, and the diners are left alone to have their fun. Music appears later in the evening, and before that, it is timed so that everyone has just settled into their seats at sunset, as the evening sun glimmers on whatever monument you are dining at (at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, the Place de la Concorde, in front of the Louvre, or Notre Dame, or whatever the location of the year. Some years the group is divided between two locations, because of its size.) And as night falls all the tables are candle lit, as the diners in white celebrate their favorite (and mine) night of the year. Sparklers are handed out late in the evening. And at 1am, like Cinderella, they pack up everything they brought, are instructed not to leave a single shred of food or paper, everyone takes away their own garbage (in white plastic garbage bags of course), and fourteen thousand elegant white clad dinner guests disappear into the night, hoping to be invited again next year. It is a magical event. Although occasionally real life intervenes, a few years ago it rained (though it rarely does on that night), which thinned out the crowd a lot. Only the die hards stayed.

This was my third year of attending the White Dinner (Le Diner Blanc), the first year it was in front of Notre Dame, the second year, last year; it was in front of the Louvre. And both were among the most beautiful nights of my life. I was overwhelmed by how spectacular, magical, and how much fun it was. I went with 15 friends, invited by a friend, and I had a ball. They were both absolutely unforgettable nights, the memory of which I will cherish forever.

Last night it was held on the huge lawn that stretches for many blocks, in front of the tomb of Napoleon, Les Invalides, and other people were assigned to six of the bridges over the Seine, and under the bridges as well, which is close to the lawn where most people were. It was different this year, because our host was more ambitious and had organized a bigger group, of 80 people, which is a lot of people to organize, and he had decided to spoil us and hired a caterer who provided the tables and chairs, and the food, so we arrived with empty hands. And although it was a generous gesture, those of us who had been before (and the host himself) decided that it took some of the fun out of it, we missed carrying our tables, chairs, table decorations and food, and setting it up ourselves. The friend I went with is a fabulous cook and was disappointed not to cook for the night, and offer some of it to friends. And although the lawn is a beautiful location, with the gilded dome of Napoleon’s tomb in the background, it wasn’t as pretty as Notre Dame and the Louvre. But some years are like that, so it was a little less magical, but I was still thrilled to be there, we all were, and grateful to our host for inviting us.

Last year, the friend who came with me surprised everyone by bringing a mysterious box, out of which he produced, later in the evening, Chinese paper lanterns, with a little wick at the bottom that you light with a flame, the lanterns fill with hot air from the flame, and when full of air, you release them, and they sail into the night sky like a million stars returning to Heaven. You’re supposed to make a wish as they sail off. He brought a hundred of the lanterns with him, and we were all like excited children as he helped people light them and send them aloft. He brought even more this year, and thrilled the crowd again. All fourteen thousand people were watching the lanterns sail away, and he delighted the entire crowd again. He was the hero of the night!! And this year he brought light up ‘eyeglasses’ as well, that glowed in the dark, so we looked silly but had fun.

It is a very special evening that I look forward to all year. I’m thrilled to go, and dragging my own food and supplies next time, as in the past, I’ll be there if I’m invited again…..I hope I will be. It’s my favorite night of the year!!!

love, danielle

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More courage

Hi Everyone,

I hope you had a good week last week. Mine was one of those roller coaster weeks of personal, business and family ‘stuff’. I knew by mid-week when my best day was the day I went to the dentist (and I’m phobic about the dentist) that it had not been my easiest week. But I got some good results for my efforts, and I’m grateful for that.

I’ve been really busy trying to finishing up some work, so I’ve been working hard, and making plans for the summer.

And I noticed something perhaps interesting last week. I don’t know why, but I tend to jam all my ‘difficult’ appointments into one week, on the theory that it gets them over with, and then when I am faced with a really challenging week of my own making, I wonder what I was thinking. Sometimes, if everything else is stressful or challenging, I decide that I just can’t deal with one more stress, so I cancel the appointments that scare me or worry me: like the dentist, which always scares me, and then I reschedule for another time. At other times, I just plow through it, and am usually glad I did, to get it done and behind me. But I noticed something this week that I hadn’t thought of before. I’ve had some challenging weeks, and lo and behold, last week was one of those weeks when I had scheduled not only the dentist, but a medical appointment that I had been putting off for months. Nothing too serious, but just one more stress I didn’t need. And for some reason, I thought oh what the hell, just do it, so I did. So I went to the dentist, took care of the medical appointment which was nothing and went fine. But what I realized is that when I am courageous with my life, which I have been lately, oddly it makes me brave about the other things I have to do. I actually talked to my dentist this week, like a normal human being, instead of feeling sick before I went, skulking into their office, and then cowering in the chair wanting to refuse to open my mouth, and then wanting to hug everyone in the elevator when I leave, because I survived. But some courage in my daily life creates the courage to face difficult things, or just the ones that scare me. And having handled the dentist easily, it then gave me the courage to do the medical appointment (not a big deal, but just one of those things we all worry about: my annual mammogram, which was fine. I’ve never had a problem with it, but always worry anyway, because I’m a natural born worrier!!). But I realized that courage breeds courage, and when we face one of our demons, we face the others more easily. And similarly, when we let ourself off the hook and allow ourselves to be chicken, suddenly we get chicken about other things. At least it works that way for me, although sometimes we need to give ourselves a break. I noticed the same thing years ago when I had a really harrowing delivery with my son Nick, and having survived that I decided to take a fear of flying class right after, like a month later, confronted my fear of flying, took the class, and have been flying easily ever since. We need to go easy on ourselves at times and not pile too much on. But when we do muster up some courage, it makes us brave for other things.

What do you do when you’re scared? It’s a recipe that works for me, but it’s not for everyone. When the sh– hits the fan, I try to remind myself that God loves me, even if others appear not to. And I find Joel Osteen’s books incredibly encouraging and uplifting, and they’re very practical and down to earth. I just re-read “It’s Your Time”, which really boosted my spirits and got me feeling better and empowered again.

And I love these words of Winnie the Pooh, by AA Milne, “There is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” What could be better than that? So Onward!! Have a great week!!!

love, danielle

 

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