Sweet Home California

OK. We know the song title was Sweet Home Alabama, rather than California. Also, that when we lived in California our home was in Northern rather than California. And, we only lived in this state for a total of four years. With that said, we always enjoy our visits to California and this time is no exception.

We slept-in this morning as we woke up about 5:45 AM. :-)

We started our day with a nice breakfast at the hotel.

After breakfast we went to the Fitness Center. While not yet on the cruise, we felt like we were in a similar routine as Keith was back on the Elliptical Machine and Anne Marie was on the Treadmill. The fitness center is quite nice with lots of cardio machines and weightlifting equipment.

We took time to catch up on the news through a variety of national and local newspapers. Regardless of newspaper, the news of the day reflects the challenges associated with the current economic situation. Several key economic indicators are of major concern. As bad as the current situation is we know the importance of history as we deal with these challenges. We are first reminded of those who lived before us and the challenges that they experienced. As a young boy, Keith remembers the many discussions that he had with his parents and with his Grandmother who also lived with him, about The Great Depression. And, as a young girl, Anne Marie is reminded about the many discussions that she heard growing up from others including her Grandmother and Grandfather who also lived with them about the challenges that so many faced. On top of this, Keith's parents, and Keith and Anne Marie's grandparents and all of the people of that generation also had to deal with the impact of World War II. . So, we realize that we are not the first generation to deal with difficult times. We also know from our history that although in todays fast paced world that there is less patience for those things that take time to address that sometimes challenges are not resolved as quickly as we all would like. There is an old saying that patience is a virtue.

The current situation also reminds us to be very appreciative of all we have and to remind ourselves that things could be worse.

We were glad to have the opportunity to spend today with family. We enjoyed a very nice day with Anne Marie's Brother, her Aunt and Uncle, along with her Cousin and her Cousin's Husband and their two children. We talked for hours.

When we got back to the Hotel we went to the hotel lounge where we spent hours talking with two people who will be on our cruise. We had an enjoyable time talking with them and look forward to seeing them again.

Keith & Anne Marie