Magical Moment 155, "Gaga for Erica"

Today I woke up at 4 am, walked for blocks, and stood in line for 5 hours to watch a concert in the pouring rain. My little sister, Erica, and I were squished like sardines in a crowd of over 18,000 hoping to catch a glimpse of the fabulous Lady Gaga. And on top of everything, we wore blue and purple wigs all over Manhattan just for the occasion. I told Erica months ago that Lady Gaga would be playing Rockefeller Center the Friday she was in town and to my surprise, she was hell bent on going.

When all was said and done, we ended up behind the stage, across the street, and around the corner for the duration of the performance. I snapped one very fuzzy picture of the entertainer from a half-mile away. And even the enormous Today Show sound system and speakers didn’t have enough juice to pump adequate volume as far back as we were. Yet, we stayed for hours. And when it rained, no, down poured, we still stayed. Through pushy rude crowds, cranky children, and stuffy humid weather, we stayed until the bitter end.

I love New York. I love a good concert. I love good music. But I started to think these circumstances were too high a price to pay for anything. I thought, as I sat in my one by one square foot of personal space, “The only person I would want to do this for EVER, is Dolly Parton (my absolute favorite singer).” But as it turns out, there are TWO people I would do it for. And the other, is my sister.

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Magical Moment 625, "Thailand - the Elephants"

Needless to say, my favorite part of our Thailand vacation, was our week long volunteering at Elephant Nature Park ! The logging industry was banned in Thailand in 1989, leaving thousands of elephants unemployed. These elephants are now used for tourism. You may have heard of elephant shows featuring the animals playing soccer or painting pictures with their trunks. They are no doubt amazing to watch, but the sad truth is that these elephants have gone through a series of torture and abuse to "break their spirit" by their trainers. This short clip is very hard to watch, but it will give you an idea of what the elephants in captivity in the country of Thailand go through. The only elephants in Thailand who do not endure this, are the very few baby elephants who are first generation born in "safe captivity" at places like Elephant Nature Park. Every other elephant at this park has been brutally abused. Some have been blinded by their owners, le

Magical Moment 620, "Lilac Garden"

Eddie and I visited the Lilac Gardens at Ringwood Manor in New Jersey, a pristine and beautiful state park with 8 species of lilacs and several varieties within. We went on a rainy afternoon, which turned out perfect because the rain stopped for us when we got there, and began again as soon as we left. It also decorated the plants with gorgeous rain drops, adding to their beauty. And now for a quick game of "Where's Elizabeth?" And "Where's Eddie?" ~~Have a great weekend! ~~

Magical Moment 280, "The Eleventh Hour"

The Veterans Day Parade, NYC On July 29, 2001 , five exceptional men were honored by the President of the United States for their remarkable military service. They were involved in a top secret mission that required unfathomable intelligence and as a result, literally won a battle which was instrumental in winning the war. Not the war that was happening in 2001, not even the Gulf War. It was World War II, and they were the Navajo Code Talkers who were largely responsible for winning the bloody battle of Okinawa. The only problem with the ceremony was that just 5 remained of the original 29. Our country was too late in thanking the other 24, and nearly too late in thanking those 5 men. On March 10, 2010, three hundred women won the Congressional Gold medal for their outstanding war service. Unfortunately, 800 received the award posthumously. These were the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) of World War II, who devoted themselves to flying military aircraft like the B-26 and B-

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