Wednesday, September 15, 2004

Lisa meets Lisa

You have probably been wondering where I’ve been the last five days. Oh, I have been busy! Doing an event in Eugene. Fighting with my husband. Driving to California to meet Lisa.

The highlight of this time, and definitely the only part worth talking about, was the California/Lisa part. For those of you who might not know, Lisa (cw2smom) is an Aol Journaler who lives in California. She just recently lost her dad, after immersing herself in one of the most soul-wrenching, difficult, selfless and ultimately triumphant acts on the planet—helping a loved one die at home. Having done the same with my dad, I had been trying to stick with her through it, and impart what few tidbits of wisdom and insight my experience had provided.

Well, last week, as Lisa was wading through some last loose ends related to her dad’s passing, she and I got to instant messaging one night. She said, "Wait, you live in Oregon, don’t you?" I typed back in the affirmative… She proceeded to tell me that she would be spending a few days with family just outside of Brookings (a coastal town at the far southern tip of Oregon, a few miles from the California border), and it would be awfully nice if we could get together for coffee or something. Well, I live about as far from there as you can get, and still be in Oregon…just a few miles south of the Washington border. Which would seem to have put the kabosh on that idea… But, as luck would have it, we were going to be in Eugene for an event on Sunday… almost half-way there. The next thing I knew, I was planning a five-hour drive south from Eugene, for an afternoon rendezvous with a friend I had never actually met. And yet, I felt so drawn to her, by virtue of our similar experiences with our dads.

Okay, long explanation for short trip. But it was SO fun. The quirky Oregon weather cooperated beautifully. It was sunny and warm…the ocean was, naturally, gorgeous. And Lisa and her friend Trish were SO gracious and made me feel like we had known each other for years. Lisa treated me to a great Mexican lunch, and we sat at the restaurant and talked until we were afraid they were going to kick us out. Then we went down to the harbor and wandered around in the little shops…found a great place where the proprietor made home-made candles, right there in front of the customers. I admired a great pair of glittery tapers, decided I couldn’t really afford them…only to have Lisa hand them to me as a gift when we walked out of the shop!

Our last few hours together were spent at the beautiful seaside home of her aunt and uncle, who were also gracious and sweet. I got to hear her uncle’s story about refurbishing an abandoned lighthouse, which we could see through binoculars from their deck overlooking the ocean. And they showed me the wonderful earrings her aunt makes to sell at craft shows.

Unfortunately, at 6 pm sharp, I had to tear myself away…I felt like Cinderella running out of the ball! But I had a REALLY long drive ahead of me, in my husband’s car (which I HATE driving…but that’s another story.)

So, anyway, here is OUR chapter in the book of "Real Life Meetings of AOL Journalers ." Very much a success. I highly recommend it!

                       

 

10 comments:

  1. wow! what a great story. so glad you had a good time. (and i had been wondering where you were!)

    deb

    ReplyDelete
  2. How lovely that the two of you were able to meet.  Your recollection of the day is fantastic and I love the candles.

    ReplyDelete
  3. It sounds like a wonderful afternoon.  

    ReplyDelete
  4. Very cool.  I wish I had known how close you were when I was in Portland.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I am so glad that you had a wonderful experience!!!!  How neat is that huh?

    Since we live fairly close we ought to try and meet too....

    ReplyDelete
  6. I don't know which is more beautiful, the fact that two journalers met and it was a great experience, or the fact that two journalers were able to provide support for each other based on common life experiences. Great entry! :-) ---Robbie

    ReplyDelete
  7. I'm so glad you had a nice time. :-)  Honestly, I rarely hear of a case of meeting an online friend that doesn't turn out nicely, especially when you're talking about reasonable people who are able to be good judges of character.  

    ReplyDelete
  8. Oh, how utterly cool!  I've met a bunch of AOL journalers, and ya know what?  the sun always does seem to shine!  Hope you 2 Lisas will both consider the convention in Vegas next August.  We're trying to pin down dates now!  (see how the vote progressed in this journal:  
    http://journals.aol.com/cyberdancer1008/Cyberdancing/

    ~~mumsy

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hi Lisa,
    I think thats so great that you two got to meet each other. It looks really nice where these pictures were taken. How nice it would be if all of us that become friends on AOL could meet too. How nice of you to be with a buddy during the most difficult time of her life. I know one day I will be faced with the same and I pray everyday for His strength and guidance.
    Sorry about the fighting with hubby thing. I can certainly relate to that! It seems that all he and I do is fight and fight some more, I hate that. I guess better times will come for us all.
    Take care,
    Gayla

    ReplyDelete
  10. Okay Lisa you had better be up to Rock Creek Tavern  ! HEHEHEE!

    ReplyDelete