Princess Diana

I still remember the night I heard about her death.

I just got back from my future sister-in-law's wedding rehearsal dinner on the Hornblower. It was a romantic night. The Hornblower sails around the Santa Monica harbor and we were there when the sun was setting. We had dinner on the ship. It was a long and busy day; we all helped out with the pre-wedding preparation. Back in those days, I was staying at the Vagabond Inn in Redondo Beach. My soon-to-be fiance drove me back to the Inn and I turned on the TV when I got into the room, out of habit. I sat down and was about to change out of my outfit when I heard the announcement on the news.

Initially, it didn't register. Maybe I just couldn't believe it. I called out to my boyfriend (he's my husband now) and told him the news. He couldn't believe it either. He immediately called his sister and told her the news. We were stunned and glued to the TV for the next few hours.

It was a very sad ending to a very amazing story. I was 16 when Diana got married. I saw the wedding televised on TV live which meant I had to get up really early to watch it. I remembered there was a big hoopla surrounding her wedding dress. It was a big secret. When I saw it, I felt it wasn't an amazing dress, in terms of style, but it was a grand dress. She was young and beautiful. I didn't give much thought about marriages in general and I didn't know much about the restricted lifestyles of royalties. No one then ever uttered a word of cynicism. Realistically, how can a 19 year-old girl ever survive in a marriage with a 33 year-old man, especially someone she hasn't spent much time with?!

Anyways, hindsight is always 20/20. At least she died at the peak of her beauty and maturity-- She looked absolutely radiant and beautiful at age 36 when she died. I saw a recent photo of the Duchess of York, Fergie. Although she has aged beautifully over the years, she is looking every bit of 46. Had Diana lived the extra 10 years, she would have looked old too. Her 36 year-old face is now our final image of her.

My heart (and prayer) now is with another Princess--Princess Masako of Japan. From all reports, she is suffering quite a bit living the restricted life of a Princess. I hope her life story turns out to be a happy story, and not a tragic story.

September already?!

As most people are enjoying their Labor Day long weekend, I am trying to get my mind ready for a busy school year. My youngest is entering kindergarten on Tuesday and I can't believe how quickly time has passed. Once a child enters kindergarten, 12 years flashes by and he/she is ready for college!

I am getting ahead of myself here. But as I am scheduling both kids' extracurricular activities, I am also planning my own activities for the coming months. Most pressing is how to get this house organized--I believe de-clutter is the word. I also need a clear inventory of everything I have in this house so I can keep track and not over-shop!

Of course, I need to get a room ready for my daughter. She has been asking for her own bedroom for a long time...and I haven't gotten around to clean out the baby room (my youngest is almost 6) yet. Once it's cleaned out, we can start to order furniture and to decorate it properly.

It's like a chain reaction. To de-clutter one room, I'll need to de-clutter another room to accommodate the overflowing of things from the first room. I have gone to Big Lots and Target and picked up some Sterilite Containers. Hopefully, I can sort through things and put them in their rightful places in the house.

I should have started to do this as soon as we got back from our Vancouver vacation. But I did waste the whole month of August by doing absolutely nothing, except to sleep, eat, and watch TV. Of course, the big organization project was always at the back of my mind. I wish I can put my thoughts into action!