“PLEASE MR. PRESIDENT”

Last Saturday, I participated in an amazing charity event. CHILDREN MENDING HEARTS is a global arts exchange between at-risk children in America and children living in African conflict zones. CHILDREN MENDING HEARTS educates, empowers and encourages children to have a voice. It also inspires them to a sense of empathy and a desire for world peace.

Check it out at: www.childrenmendinghearts.org

We started the first of many "PLEASE MR. PRESIDENT” workshops early Saturday morning in a large gym at the Union Rescue Mission downtown. URM is a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving poor and homeless people in downtown LA with services including: food, shelter, clothing, medical and dental care, recovery programs, transitional housing, legal assistance, education, counseling, and job training to men, women, children, and families.

The plan for the "PLEASE MR. PRESIDENT” workshop was to work with at-risk children all over America writing letters and drawing pictures to be included in a children’s book in the future, as well making jewelry making and painting T-shirts to be brought to kids in the Congo later this year. Since this was the first event, we weren’t sure exactly what to expect (how many kids, age range, reading and writing levels), but we were prepared and excited.

I ran the letter-writing workshop. I created a simple and fun lesson plan to guide the children in sharing their stories, their lives and their hopes and dreams for the future.

As the families started to fill the gym, an 8 year-old African American girl approached my table. She openly talked to me about how she lived in the Mission because, “her dad hated her mom and left them with nothing.” She told me and wrote in her letter about how he would hit her and that she knows the world would be better if there was no violence and no guns like the one that shot her brother. I was beyond touched by her honesty and her sweet nature. Kids are FABULOUS!

I wrote letters with many kids (little ones to teens) and adults throughout the day. Some wrote touching, deep letters about their lives that brought tears to my eyes, while others stayed light. One sweet Mexican American 6 year-old girl wrote that she thinks the president should give toys to all the poor people because then everyone would be happy.

As the day progressed, we danced, made jewelry and painted t-shirts to be brought to the kids in the Congo.

Next, the program will move to New York, Chicago, New Orleans, Washington, DC and finally to the Congo. I’m not sure I will travel and continue to participate, but I am so very glad I was able to be a part of the very first event here in LA. I was touched by the kid’s stories, their openness and love. Working with organizations such as this reminds me how fortunate I am and how extremely important it is to give back.

Children Mending Hearts is FABULOUS.

CATALINA

Guess what? I’ve met a guy… a sweet, funny and extremely handsome man who treats me like a princess. It’s still new, but this weekend we went to CATALINA. He whisked me off for a romantic weekend and the trip was FABULOUS!

CATALINA is just an hour and half from Marina Del Rey by ferry. Saturday morning, we took the 9:15am and arrived in the town of Avalon with a whole, fun filled day ahead of us. We couldn’t check into the hotel till 3:00pm, so we rented a golf cart and toured the island. We took a scenic drive through the mountains and snapped pictures at every turn. The view of the ocean was spectacular. Who knew this treasure was so close to LA? I instantly felt like I was on vacation.

We ate lunch over looking the harbor at a spot called Busy Bee (just like me), then checked into the Hotel Metropole. It’s still off-season, so we got a great deal on a garden view room with a fireplace. Once we were all settled, we made our way down to Descanso Beach where we sipped beers while laying in the sand. The weather was less then perfect, but we made the most of it. We finished the afternoon with a dip in the hotel’s rooftop Jacuzzi.

That evening, I got all dolled up and we hit the town. We ate the most delicious dinner at Steve’s Steak House (I ordered a juicy steak and he got fish), then we hit El Galleon bar for karaoke. I sang two songs (I Will Survive and Let’s Hear It For The Boy), while he cheered me on. We finished the fun filled night by getting our groove on at the very cheesy Chi Chi Club.

We were supposed to leave Sunday afternoon, but there was so much more we wanted to do. We made a deal that if we woke to clear blue skies, we would stay another day (and deal with the consequences at work). Sure enough, when we opened the shades, the sun was shining and the skies where clear! The hotel had to move us to a different room, which was even better with a Jacuzzi tub, fireplace and king size bed.

As soon as we were settle in our new room, we ate breakfast, then rented jet skis. Jet skis are SO FUN! We speed across the ocean, jumping wakes of boats and looking for dolphins. Sadly, we didn’t spot any, but we did see two seals (not Seal and Heidi Klum, but the cute aquatic mammals). We spent the afternoon basking in the sun at the beach in full relaxation mode.

That afternoon, I bought a new dress at a cute little surf shop (I had only packed for one night) and got dressed for another fun filled evening on the town. Sunday was mellower than our first night out. We ate a delicious Italian dinner at Villa Portafino (I had the yummy chicken piccatta and he had the halibut piccatta. DELICIOUS!) We watched the end of the Lakers game, played pool (which I won two out of three, but only by default because he scratched the 8 Ball), challenged each other to an air hockey tournament (which he won) then hit the hay at a decent hour.

Monday the weather was cloudy and cool again. We wanted to go paddle boarding, but the water was too cold. We opted instead for a relaxed day, cruising the shops, hot tubbing and golf carting.

We hopped the ferry home at 5:00pm with smiles on our faces. He was the perfect travel companion. We laughed till our stomachs ached and really enjoyed each other’s company while getting to know each other better. I couldn’t have asked for a better two-day mini-vacation. CATALINA was FABULOUS! Now, back to work!

BUSY BEE

I’m so sorry for the delay in blogs and late posts. I truly appreciate all of you that tune in each week to check out my adventures.

Recently, I have been a bit of a BUSY BEE and sadly this blog is the one thing that keeps getting neglected. I’m working on another re-write of my book (boy, is this publishing process WAY longer than I would’ve ever imagined)! I’m starting a business with a friend from college (more info coming soon). I’m working with an amazing charity called Children Mending Hearts on an awesome project happening June 20th (which I will write a blog about for sure) and I continue to do random odd jobs to pay the bills (I teach music to toddlers, write for an online magazine, host events and help with marketing for a beverage company). I’m a BUSY GIRL!!

Don’t worry! I will continue to post weekly, however I am giving myself a little leeway and making things a little easier on me by devoting one post a month to sharing something I love without commentary. I will share my favorite quotes, youtube video links, poems and more that I think you will enjoy. One post a month will still be a video blog showing a quick glimpse into my world, which leaves two posts to my writing.

I thank you for continuing to check me out each week. I think YOU are FABULOUS!

A quote for this month:
We ask ourselves who am I to be BRILLIANT, GORGEOUS, TALENTED and FABULOUS? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small DOESN’T serve the world. THERE IS NOTHING ENLIGHTENED ABOUT SHRINKING SO OTHER PEOPLE WONT FEEL INSECURE AROUND YOU.
- Nelson Madela ‘94