All sounds EXCITING Venus :)

Sisyphus, I believed was doomed to push the rock uphill for eternity and every now and then it would roll back down on him. The point I am trying to make is that this can become a metaphor for gradual recovery from alcoholism or other addiction. Relapse is more likely in the early years of recovery and after quite some time the body regains its natural stability and enters what I call the "cube" phase. It is still possible to dislodge it and send it back down the slippery slope, but less likely. On the other hand if a relapse does come it is likely to be very serious.

W

You get to have a Thanksgiving dinner in the US! How cool is that??!! It's one of my favorite holidays...all about gratitude.

Yes we do need to connect. I'm am going to need to figure out a way to get to San Fran. I will be in Fresno on business on Nov 17, but that is too early. Doh! So close...yet so far.

I have Skype credit.....it costs almost nothing to call anyone. So if you like, you can PM your number....I will be discreet.

And I'm thinking I can get to you Lillian. :) :hug:

Great news, Suze! Turkey day is my favorite holiday. Lots of eats and (hopefully) no family drama.

At Thanksgiving do the Aussies roast a kangaroo instead of a turkey? If you take a Roo on a flight does Security require her to empty all of her pockets? Xray the kid for concealed weapons? Take her shoes off? If it flies Economy, how does she fit her tail into the tiny seat?

W.

Kangaroos are kind of precious to me Bill. :hug:

No, we don't have Thanksgiving here at all here, so it really will be lovely....hopefully it will work out. :hug:

They are precious to me too, along with Koala Bears. But I have not yet developed a fondness for crocodiles nor they for me. Rather like the "Dream People".

Didn't realize that you were staying in the U.S. as long as Thanksgiving. That's Nov. 24. New England specializes in that kind of thing and the leaves are hopefully still lovely. Keats at his best. Hope you can find your way to Boston! When it comes to turkey, I like the stuffing the best, then the cranberry sauce, then maybe oysters, creamed chestnuts, mashed sweet potatoes with marshmallows on top. Pumpkin pie is boring. Instead of turkey, Honey baked ham is good. Traditional Virginia ham, unless honey baked, is too salty for my taste. The Virginians didn't seem to mind that maybe because they could wash it down with wine and brandy.
They say the Pilgrims sat down with the friendly Indians but a recent author suggested that Miles Standish, a bloodthirsty little fellow, may have skipped dinner to go shooting them like deer. I had an ancestor who favored hunting them with dogs but was concerned only about what breed to choose. Rather like Tasmania I would think.

Bill.

Bill ~ I am definitely coming to see you. I just need to organise it with you love. :)

And I will be in the US until Dec 5.... ♥

Hee hee - this is exciting! PM sent.

:) :) Number saved. And yes it is.... ♥

I think I just might be organised. Possibly. Because surely this cannot be true.
I do have good organisational skills, but it has been YEARS since I have seen them. :)

My pattern for so so long has been....was I guess, procrastination. I want to, but I don't know how, or I'm scared so I talk myself out of it. Or I take so long to get into gear that I miss the proverbial boat. And then rationalise why it wouldn't have worked out anyway.

That was the old me. That was alcoholic me, addict me. That person lived in a state of confusion for the most part of 30 years. It is a miracle I managed to think clearly enough to find my way to SR.

And now, this trip is the adventure of a lifetime, as well as being the first time I have been anywhere (really, anywhere) in 30 years.

Talk about taking a leap...and it's most definitely a leap of faith.
And it is happening because of my sobriety, my program and all of you.

Thank you. ♥

Suze! That' great to hear! And I'd also enjoy meeting some of your New England friends, as well as that famous motorcycle enthusiast, The Goat! Tell Goat I'm "sheepish" about riding on any buddy seat though!Hope to die painlessly in bed. Don't really fancy heavy metal rock but have some deafness and can turn down my hearing aid.Don't have any tattoos. :tyou

Bill and Boz (he's English. A real toff!)

^^^ Absolutely brilliant Bill!!! :roflmao

I'd never eat Skippy :hug: in the Uk it's become a bit of niche to have some pubs & other places serving up Kangaroo steaks or ostrich & thats in supermarkets too im getting more conscious about eating meat overall

Love you Suze x

I ate ostrich once in Utah with no serious emotional misgivings. I guess that, emotionally I just had my head in the sand. That is not so with roos and koala bears. Here in the U.S. some folks start to cry if the chickens served to them are not "free range". What about milk from cows hooked up to those forbidding milking machines? Now I'm so upset I can't go on with this! As a recent commentator likes say, "That's so disgusting!"

W.

Me too wolfie love ~ my morality dictates that I be a vegetarian, but I really don't like the food. :(

:hug: ♥

V

San Francisco is a lovely place to visit. Perhaps, you can talk them into a drive up to see the redwood woods

https://www.nps.gov/redw/index.htm

Thank you darling Captain. :hug:

I can do all sorts of tours if I want while I'm there....and I will have my international driver's permit....so I can pretty much see what I want. I am really open to any suggestions any of you have....Aussie chick with no clue here. ;) ♥

This is a must while you're there

San Francisco Fisherman's Wharf | Visitor information, Tours & Attractions, Things to Do

Thank you!! :) :hug: ♥

That is most definitely on my list.

Nice redwoods just north of town. An easy drive over the Golden Gate Bridge.
Try to avoid earthquakes My wife's grandma was in the early 20th Century quake with Caruso, who complained that it made him "nervous".:dee
Why not stop off and see the Grand Canyon? "Pretty big hole!" said Calvin Coolidge.

Bill

Good morning Bill. :) :hug: ♥

Don't forget Niagara Falls. Someone told me about a kid who looked at the Grand Canyon and said, "If you think this is a big deal, you ought to see Niagara Falls!" (See the prophet Amos. "Let Justice roll down like the waters! And righteousness like a mighty stream!") Travel insurance will not cover you if you go over the Falls in a barrel. Same thing for tightrope walking.

Bill

That observation deck on the Grand Canyon is on my bucket list

Grand Canyon Skywalk

I'm very excited for you, Suze. All these sound like great suggestions. :)

Yep. And while you're at it take in Yellowstone and Glacier Parks! Why not visit the Greenbriar Hotel down in West Virginia. They've got a wonderful big basement fallout shelter in case of a nuclear attack. :dee Would Tasmania be safer?

Bill.

The Greenbrier! My husband and I went there for our 25th anniversary! The place is magnificent. I especially recommend the spa. The bunker was mainly what we came for--but you can only see a few preserved rooms (a bunk room, a cafeteria, the infirmary); the rest has been bought by a railroad company, which now uses the majority of the space for data storage.

When we were there 7 years ago, a van drove us right through the massive steel doors underneath the main resort; however, I've heard that they don't do that anymore.

So if I were going back today, I wouldn't put my hopes in the bunker. It's a vast old resort that is amazing to explore. The spa, as I've said is out of this world ( I loved the Scotch Spray). The food is excellent--and now apparently they've transformed what was an abandoned nightclub from the 1960s into a classy casino.

So I definitely recommend it--but sadly, no longer for the bunker.

Note: it's a budget buster. Kiss those dollars goodbye! :scared:

I've been to Niagara Falls a couple of times. If you go, make sure to see the Canadian side. Just watch out for these guys: