Hilton Orange County/Costa Mesa

... verticals twice. I enjoyed the work, the peers, the management the company and especially the clients--but it was a matter of time before the other shoe dropped. If not in reality, then definitely in my estimation. I was on borrowed time.<br><br>SO...rather than wait for another restructuring or to get "staff reduced", Drea and I took the leap. I quit IBM to crew a sailboat. For real.<br><br>Initially, it felt like I'd jumped off a cliff. I won't lie ...

... moves quickly and we are in in a matter of minutes. As we get past the gates, I take one look at the entry and burst into tears. I am here after over 35 or so years of dreaming as a little girl, snuggled into her jammies on a Sunday night, watching The World of Disney on TV and wishing with all my might that I could be one of those kids whizzing around on the teacups and saucers. Well this little kid has made it finally........... We ...

... doesn't work due to voltage differences. Luckily it only cost 20 bucks and is quite a good one. After din dins we went to the bottle-o, correction, bottle shop - no one knows what a bottle-o is over here. I was amazed at how cheap alcohol is over here!! I bought a bottle of Smirnoff 1ltr vodka vanilla naturally) for $16.99. What could be better than that?!? The thing that confuses me over here is why they don't include the tax into the price of ...

... were happy. Don't ask me to explain any rules other than the little black thing has to go in the net.. and not our net, their net :) Oh.. and apparently, you're allowed to fight and the entire crowd eggs you on. To my amusement, the kid behind us was saying that they get suspended at school if they fight - hah.. parents explain THAT! More Disneyland tomorrow.. bring on Space Mountain!

... Always is, we take our vacation this time of the year and for Taco-Man! it's the time of the year that business starts picking up. Anyway, I digress... Got to LAX and surprisingly it wasnt' that bad. I mean LAX is a usually a Zoo 24/7 but on this Cinco De Mayo Saturday it was eerily calm.. Got the luggage unloaded and shlepped it to the Hawaiian Airlines ticket counter where there was no wait! Stepped right up and got things sorted. Was actually able to ...

... see some of the movie star homes. I was surprised how many of them are right on the street and not hidden behind 15foot walls. Paris Hilton's was the closest we got but we also had a great view of Sylvester Stallone's, Peter Falk's and, of course the home used in the "Fresh Prince of Belair" as well as all four Halloween movies. We caught glimpses ...

... Monica Youth Hostel and does great food in even greater quantities, American style. Mexican food is in abundance here due to the large number of Mexicans coming over the border looking for work. Over 40% of Californians speak Spanish which I think is incredible, good for us as the food is unbelievable. Los Angeles is one third roads and due to the history of earthquakes has limited high rise buildings this makes for a spread out city and a hard time to ...

... longer than 23 days outside of the country at one time. The thought of missing my birthday, thanksgiving, and numerous other celebrations with friends and family is on my mind as I struggle to spend time with everyone before I leave. As I tie up loose ends it's YOU I think of and thank the Lord for providing me with such a great support network and wonderful friends!

... sometimes with the water edges right below the window, and subsequently giving way to gorgeous views of fertile wine valleys, dense forests and snow-covered mountains... To continue reading this travelogue, please go to: http://www.freewebs.com/onghy3/travels1 0_us1_west1.html For other travels, visit my homepage at: http://www.freewebs.com/onghy3