Category: DFW Metroplex

I call Dallas TX home and I love it, but the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is also a great travel destination. Come see why!

DESTINATIONS, DFW Metroplex, Restaurants & Bars, Shopping

The Weekend Report

Jane Sadek

TRAVEL HERE – FOURTH WEEKEND OF OCTOBER

Rodeo Goat at The Harbor

The plan was to meet my bestie for lunch after her dance lesson. When she called after the lesson, she was hungry for a burger and a beer. I named a couple of my favorite burgers in Rockwall and Rodeo Goat won the toss, because my favorite Rockwall burger joint, Well’s Cattle Co. doesn’t serve beer. They have amazing chocolate and coconut pies, which beat out a beer any day in my book, but it also doesn’t have the view Rodeo Goat does, so I couldn’t complain.

Before hubby left for a photo shoot that morning, he wondered where we were going for lunch, but we hadn’t planned that far in advance. So he called to let me know when he finished and tell me he was still interested in lunch with his two favorite girls. I told him his timing was perfect and to head to The Harbor.

Deborah got there before anyone and snagged a picnic table on the patio, overlooking Lake Ray Hubbard. I was next and suggested we start off with Cheese Fries. I told the guy there would be three of us and asked which size we should get. Apparently, there is just one size and it is gi-normous! We had enough for everyone on the patio – be warned.

Hubby showed up not long after the cheese fries arrived and even with all three of us working on them, we left a whole lot of them behind – in part, because we still wanted those burgers we came for. I shared a Bodacious Burger with Bill and Deb had the Blue Goat. The Bodacious Burger is sort of a delicious BBQ joint mess. Bill and I polished off it’s goodies, but left most of the bun behind. It was very good. Deb said the Blue Goat, with the Bleu Cheese was her favorite and would remain so. Bill and Deb washed their burgers down with beer, but Rodeo Goat has great margaritas, so I went that way.

Shopping Therapy

I am in the middle of creating a series of custom scrapbooks for a client who was a pageant girl and I needed some pageant-related stickers to jazz up my pages. Creative Memories, which is my go-to supplier, doesn’t have anything which is remotely pageant-related, so Deb and I hit the craft stores.

We first went to Jo-Ann’s, almost out of habit, because in the past we have bought truckloads of stickers and paper there. I am sad to say they are virtually out of the scrapbooking business. I lusted after the Cricut equipment a bit, but I am too cheap to buy it, so we headed to the next stop.

Hobby Lobby is definitely in the scrapbooking business, so it was next. They didn’t have pages of pageant-related stickers, either, but they had crown stickers and some teeny-bopper stuff that would do for Cinderella Girl and Junior Miss pageants. Of course, I didn’t stop there. Nobody can buy just one or two sticker packs!!

Then we went to Tuesday Morning, primarily because Deb just likes to go there, but they also have scrapbooking supplies, from time to time. I found a really cheap book of papers I decided I couldn’t live without. It had nothing to do with pageants, but some people do drugs – I do scrapbooking supplies.

A Quiet Sunday

I confess, I skipped church on Sunday. I needed to be at a family function at noon, so I would have only had time for Sunday School anyway. I decided to go easy on myself and play hooky for once, something I rarely do. The church did not fall down in my absence.

We went to a birthday lunch for our nephew. We have an odd sort of relationship with his in-laws – more like we are the parents, instead of the aunt and uncle. They are delightful people and we enjoy everyone on that side of the family, so while it may be weird to hang out at your nephew’s in-laws, it is a pleasure for us and we’ll be having Thanksgiving with them.

That evening Bill and I watched the new HBO movie, Moonfall. There is a star-studded cast which didn’t shine very brightly, except for John Bradley, playing a megastructurist (someone who believes aliens created and launched megastructures which are now planets, moons, etc.). He was the underdog no one believed, who ended up saving the world and he shone like the sun in the role. Halle Berry and Patrick Wilson did not. There was so much scientifically ridiculous about the movie that you just can’t take it seriously. The whole infrastructure of earth is being wiped away by mega-disasters caused by a moon out of orbit, but somehow their cellphones work – oh, and the moon’s gravitational pull which causing all that on earth somehow allows them to navigate into an opening on the surface of the moon. Un-huh, yeah.

And that, my friends, is that. Stay tuned. I’m continuing my Travel There series on Wednesdays and Memory-Keeping 101 on Thursdays!

DFW Metroplex, Photo Organization, Photo Organization Coach, Photography, Scrapbooking

Digital or Traditional or Both

Jane Sadek

MEMORY KEEPING 101 – WHO ARE YOU DOING IT FOR?

Finding Your Who

What you have and what you want are important considerations for anyone tackling the job of preserving memories. Your time and money budget is a huge factor, too. However, the most important thing to think about as you plan your memory keeping activities is your target audience.

None of us are alike when it comes to the motivation for our memory keeping. Some just want to capture their child’s life to share when they are older. Others are heritage hunters who are tracing their family lines to other places or other times. People who are grieving often want to capture the memories of someone they have lost. There are also those who are looking into the far future, past anyone who is alive today, to someone they will never know, who might wonder about the past. These are just a few examples. Think about what motivates you and then let’s talk about what format would be best suited to your project.

Some of the most faithful Memory Keepers are like me. We preserve our memories for ourselves. There are no kids, grandkids or great grandkids we are doing this for. We are not famous or even infamous. We just enjoy our lives and treasure those we love, the places we’ve been to and the things we’ve done. We only have to suit ourselves.

Explore the Options

Memory keeping should never be a chore, so while your eventual audience is a factor, it’s not the only thing to consider. Whatever format you choose, you should enjoy doing it or you should find someone to do it for you. The one thing you should not do is leave your mess under the bed or floating around unorganized on your phone. My job is to help you get from your mess, to wherever you want to go.

There’s a very simple reason I prefer traditional scrapbooking. My husband and I run a real estate photography business. He’s the photographer and I do everything else. A whole lot of the everything else part is shuffling photos around my computer and the internet. I’ve tried digital scrapbooking, but it’s far too much like my day job. If digital scrapbooking were my only option, I too would just have a mess rather than shelves of completed albums I dearly treasure.

Example of scrapbooking

I am of the mindset that getting it done is more important than the way you do it and I know, whichever method you use, there are conversion options. I want to see people enjoying their memories and sharing them with others. If, like me, you’d enjoy crafting traditional scrapbooks, then that’s your answer. Create beautiful albums you’ll look at frequently and share them with others. If, at the same time, you think your target audience would prefer digital, don’t feel guilty about working in a format you enjoy. Do the scrapbooks traditionally and then digitize them. I can show you how.

If all the stuff that comes with traditional scrapbooking gives you the heebie geebies and makes you want to hug a tree, then you are a digital memory keeper. There are a variety of ways to embrace paperless memory keeping. If you think digital is your way to go, then you still have a lot of decisions to make. From streamlined online-only albums without any decoration, to elaborately decorated digital pages, there are great tools out there for being a digital memory keeper. Once you’ve done your digital job, then you can easily share it all with anyone having internet access. If any of those people would prefer something they can hold in their hand, then they have options they can pursue using the work you’ve completed for them.

And remember, if you know there’s no way you’re going to have the time, energy or desire to get this job done, regardless of the format, then you still don’t have to live with the mess or the guilt. One of my favorite things to do is take your mess and turn it into whatever memory keeping format you’d like to have. I love the excitement of finishing up one of my own albums and then paging through my completed project, but that’s nothing compared to the day I deliver a completed album. It’s the greatest feeling in the world for me and I’d love to do your album.

A Final Thought About Digital

In some ways, my passion for traditional scrapbooking is out of touch with the times. It’s a craft I don’t think will ever disappear completely, but I confess the results can be burdensome. I have an entire wall of traditional scrapbooks. My husband complains about them all the time and my nieces and nephews, who will have to deal with what remains of my life when its over, will most likely throw my beloved albums away.

So, I have worked out a digital solution for the future. It will transcend any changes in technology, it will not cost a penny for future generations to maintain, it is guaranteed for generations to come and it is also guaranteed safe from those who should not have access to your information and images. It’s not any of those familiar names like Apple, Google, Amazon, Snapfish, Dropbox etc. and we should talk if that’s where your memories are stored.

In the future, I will talk more about my digital solution, but in case my post inspires you to do something online with your mess, I wanted to warn you away from uploading to these well-known sites without being aware of their lesser known consequences. Come back next week and we’ll talk about your investment in memory keeping vs. the price of your mess.

DFW Metroplex, Photo Organization, Photo Organization Coach, Photography

I Don’t Know Where to Start!

Jane Sadek

MEMORY KEEPING 101 – START WITH WHAT YOU HAVE!

What Do You Have?

Where is your mess? Everyone has one.

For some, it is shoeboxes of photos under the bed. For others it’s stacks of home movies, video and slides. Still others have their mess on their phones or computers. Some people have all of those messes, plus photos tucked away in drawers, cabinets and closets. The bottom line is their memories are more of a problem than a treasure. Folks are overwhelmed with what they have and they feel guilty about it.

The first step in starting is to start. Call me up and let’s talk about it. It doesn’t cost anything and you’ll feel better about yourself and your mess when we’re done! Let me warn you, this is absolutely the hardest part, so do not wait. Don’t wait until you see me next time. Don’t wait for a better time. Don’t wait until you are more organized. Rip off the bandage, tell me you have a mess and get that behind you.

How the conversation goes will depend on you. Some people cry throughout our first meeting. Others are strictly business and want a bottom line expense amount. Before we can go anywhere I have to understand your particular mess.

The first question I will ask is, “What do you have?” and the next is “What do you want?” While everyone has a mess, these questions determine the path each of us takes to resolve the mess. Once we establish these two important items, then (and only then) can we begin to talk about what is next.

Your Mess Might Not Be as Bad as You Think!

Another important question I will ask is this, “Do you want to do it yourself or do you want me to do it for you.” Recently I got a call from a woman who had lost her mom, but gained a mess. The mess sat on her dining room table for two years and she’d spent most of the time feeling guilty about it. She’d attempted to sort through some of it, but mostly it just sat there making her feel bad.

Whether you want to do it yourself or you want me to do it, budget is always a consideration. When I quoted my pricing to this particular customer, she couldn’t hire me fast enough. As a professional who was paid by the hour, my fees sounded like a real bargain to her. She couldn’t wait for me to come pick up her stuff, but from a couple of jokes she made, I could tell she was a little concerned about my hourly rate for curating. Not that it was an unreasonable fee, but that her job could take months on end. Remember, the photos had been sitting on her dining room table for two years.

The first day of the project I emailed her to let her know my progress and to let her know I would be giving her updates along the way. That seemed to relieve her and she asked specifically to be kept abreast of the number of hours I was accumulating on her project. A few days later, I sent an update and told her I had about another three hours of curating to go. She was both astounded and pleased. She had no idea I would be able to complete the job in such a short time.

I went from three boxes of unsorted photos and memorabilia to being ready to start in about six hours, over a matter of days, not weeks. I had a few photos I needed her to identify and a few questions my curating had raised before I could actually start, but I had accomplished in 6 hours what she hadn’t been able to do in two years. The point is this, your mess might not be as awful as you think it is, so give me a call and let’s talk about it.

More to Come

I’m congratulating myself on getting this post ready for publication. Scrapbooking is my passion, but it’s also my side gig, not my livelihood – at least not yet. Projects have trickled in over the last year, almost of their own volition, but I’ve wished for time to reach out with an occasional post, to encourage people to think about their own scrapbooking projects and how I could be helping them.

As with scrapbooking, starting is the hardest part and now I have. Over the coming weeks, I’ll be blogging about other aspects of my passion – from general information about memorykeeping, like this post, to the coolest news toys and innovations available from the companies I represent.

So, if you have a mess, a passion for scrapbooking or another form of memorykeeping, keep an eye out for my posts or subscribe to my blog and the posts will show up in your email.

ART, Attractions, DESTINATIONS, DFW Metroplex, Museums, Restaurants & Bars, Road Trips, TRAVEL

The Weekend Report

Jane Sadek

TRAVEL HERE – THE SECOND WEEKEND IN OCTOBER

A Dancing Lesson

Saturday was a day in Fort Worth with my bestie, but we had a stop to make before we got there. Deb, who dances ballroom competitively, had a lesson with her new partner at Dancesport Training Center in Addison. She’s been dancing for many years, so I have gotten to know her teacher and many of her fellow dancers. I knew I’d be hearing a lot about the new partner, as they prepared for competitions in the spring, so I wanted to observe.

I have to tell you, I love to go to the competitions and as I see Deb float on the arms of a tuxedoed partner, I think, ‘that would be fun.’ Going to observe a lesson reminds me why I have no interest in ballroom dancing. It’s a lot of work. Over and over and over I watched them practice the same series of steps, not even an entire dance. Granted, they’re new partners, so there are basic logistical adjustments to figure out, but seriously, it’s like watching paint dry.

Not for Deb! She left exhilarated. She thought it was a great lesson and was full of enthusiasm about social dances at a new studio, taking lessons from her partner’s teacher and maybe doing rhythm at the silver level. Which reminds me of the other reason I’ll never be a competing ballroom dancer. It’s unbelievably expensive. You pay weekly for lessons, often multiple lessons, and then you pay to compete and then you pay to have your pro there when you compete and if the competition is not in your area, then you pay for your pro’s travel. And those beautiful dresses Deb floats by in during the competitions? Thousands of dollars each. Yep, I’m staying in the audience.

Lunch Café Modern

Did you know there is a Wolfgang Puck-ish restaurant in Fort Worth’s Museum of Modern Art? Not to worry. Most people don’t and until this visit to Café Modern, we didn’t realize the Wolfgang Puck trained-chef part. We’ve been before and loved it, but as most of you know, when I get to Fort Worth, I usually go to Joe T. Garcia’s. This time, we’d been to Joe T’s recently and decided to do something a little different.

You need to put this on your list. It was 12:30 on a Saturday afternoon and only a smattering of people were enjoying the wonderful atmosphere and great food, which was surprising to me, since special events were happening all around the museum area. Almost everyone was on the patio taking advantage of the great weather and we joined them, but the interior is quite nice. We ate there last time during a winter visit.

Deb got the Cubano Sandwich, which she loved, while I ate Chinois Chicken Salad. It was good too, but think more salad than chicken. It’s mostly green stuff with strips of cooked chicken thrown in, not chunks of chicken, fruit and nuts I love best. The service is good, but not fast, so we each had a couple of glasses of wine. Prosecco for Deb and Sauvignon Blanc for me. We split the bill paid about $50 each including tip. Not a bargain, but a great meal in a wonderful space.

Murillo at the Kimball

The Kimbell’s own Murillo from the Exhibition App

A few weeks ago we went to the Dallas Museum of Art and happened upon the last day of the Cartier and Islam exhibit. I was both happy I got to see the exhibit before it left and mad that the DMA, for which I pay a membership, didn’t manage to communicate it to me in a way that made me aware of the exhibit. You can interpret this to mean they probably sent me emails along with the 50 thousand others I get in a day and I missed it. If you really want me to know something an email blast probably isn’t you best bet – especially with the summer I had.

So, this weekend, we went to the Kimball, where Deb is a member, only to discover they were having a 50th anniversary celebration with all kinds of stuff happening. Their lawn between buildings was full of tents, chairs and a stage. They were having a concert that evening of some sort. We went directly to special exhibition area to see the Murillo exhibition.

I was very surprised, because it was free and there was absolutely no line. The Kimbell permanent collection is always free, but you have to pay for the traveling shows. For this special weekend, the Murillo exhibition was free. It’s an amazing collection of paintings and you should see it, but few were taking the Kimball up on their offer of free.

If you’ve been to the Kimbell before, then the image above is familiar. The woman with the glasses haunts me and I enjoy speculating about her and the other three images in painting. This exhibition expanded my knowledge of the artist. His portfolio is wide, from landscapes with religious subjects to the dark portraits I identify with Spanish portraiture to whimsical paintings of everyday people.

Please go over to Fort Worth and see this beautiful collection of paintings and learn more about Murillo. He was a humanitarian and one of his goals was to sneak meaningful messages about charity and morality into his gorgeous paintings, hoping as they adorned the walls of his patron’s homes, the message would sink in. You’ll like him and you’ll enjoy his work.

Not much more to share. Sunday morning was given over to church and since it was my weekend to stand in the breezeway and greet people, I had a marvelous opportunity to enjoy the weather. Once home, Bill and I took more time outside, sitting on our swing next to the pond and having a coffee break in the sunroom. Then it was time to go pick up a new scrapbooking project from a client. I’m so excited to start working on it.

Come back Wednesday for some more travel stories from Las Vegas and perhaps another Weekend report later in the week.

DESTINATIONS, DFW Metroplex, Restaurants & Bars, Road Trips, Shopping, TRAVEL

The Weekend Report

Jane Sadek
Photo Snipped from The Republic website. Link below.

TRAVEL HERE – THE FIRST WEEKEND IN OCTOBER 2022

Happy Hour at My Place

We don’t entertain much. We’re busy people and when we’re not busy, we relax. It’s a shame in some ways. Our home just begs for a big party and I’ve inherited pretty much every serving dish and implement known to man, including 36 place settings of Gorham Chantilly sterling flatware. Salad scissors anyone?

However, the completion of the sunroom was a milestone, so we decided to have at least a few neighbors in. Since the sunroom is a small space, we decided to do it in phases, inviting a pair of couples in at a time – this end of the cul de sac one night and the other end the next night.

Invitations sent and accepted, I woke up Friday morning, did the necessary tasks for our business and then Bill and I went errand running. Bill went because he’s always afraid I will overbuy when we entertain, and sometimes I do. I had a list ready of what we needed and a set of priorities, as well as reasons for my priorities. I had to take that list, tear it up and throw it away. Bill rearranged everything in the exact opposite order I had planned and threw in a trip to Costco for our Covid boosters, which hadn’t been on my list at all. Only wives will understand.

Aldi and Costco

Aldi is not my go-to grocery store. Heck, out here in Heath, I don’t have a go-to grocery store. I remember fondly the days in Dallas when I could get to one of virtually everything within five minutes – Central Market, Whole Foods, whatever, but Market Street was MY grocery store.

When I go on a normal grocery run, I want to go to someplace that will have everything on my list. My mom spent her life chasing bargains and would visit several grocery stores in a week. That is not my life and that’s the reason I am not a regular at Aldi, because they will not be able to fill my whole list. However, I’ve learned, when I entertain, Aldi has more of what I want, in the quantities I need, for amazing prices.

So, we went to Aldi and found what we needed. Three different exotic deli meats, sliced thin, all in one package. Two cheeses. One of those boxes of fancy crackers with several varieties in it. Some hummus and Bill picked up some flatbread thing he wanted. He’s a bigger shopper at Aldi than I am. He loves their chocolates and their kettle chips, so we got those, too, not for the party, but we were there, right?

Along with our Covid shots, we picked up wines at Costco. My next door neighbor loves Aldi’s Winking Owl wines, but for wine, Costco is the go-to for us (when we don’t have time to get all the way to Trader Joe’s). I picked up Prosecco, which is what everyone ended up wanting and Bill chose a few other things for those who might not.

Bill drops me at home, so I could get things and myself ready for our guests. One of the things I needed to get ready was my nails, so I ran off to the salon for a new set. By the way, my go to is Signature Nails, next to Kroger, here on the south side of town. That’s when I got a text which threw my party plans in the air. I’m trying to resolve them via text with the hubby, who is determined to wait until I get home.

When I got home, we did resolve the issues, probably to no one’s satisfaction, but the show for Friday night went on and who knows when we’ll get around to the rest of the street. In spite of the storm in my teacup, Friday night went well. It was one of the first times we’d connected socially with our neighbors since the pandemic. It felt like we’d redeemed one more chip of our lives.

Working Weekend

So, Saturday was given over to work and making a trip to the discount fabric stores on Harry Hines. We’d borrowed a tasseled tieback from an upstairs room for out Friday night soiree, but needed to get one. If you’re decorating, I hope you know about the discount fabric stores. On Midway there’s Childress Fabrics and Cutting Corners. Over the years we’ve been successful at both, but for the sunroom, the drapery material came from Cutting Corners. However, we never buy any fabrics until we’ve been to the corner of Harry Hines and Perth. The names change, but the savings all along Perth Street stay the same. Need fabrics – go there.

Listing photos taken and tasseled tieback bought, it was time for a late lunch. We went to Republic Texas Tavern on Inwood Road near Forest. I’d been for a business meeting once and saw enough to think it was worth another visit. As we sat admiring the restaurant, my husband, (who I claim will try to tell God how to improve the streets of gold) asked, “Guess what I don’t like about this restaurant.” I confess, I rolled my eyes and asked what. “Nothing.” That’s high praise folks!

He had a beer and I had their version of a margarita, which is Texas Ranch Water. He loved his Pastrami Sandwich and I enjoyed their Truck Stop Burger. Every sip and bit was delightful. We’ll be finding reasons to go back, even though it is on the other side of town. You should go, too.

Casa Mama

So, after church, Bestie and I wanted to grab some lunch. It was a late lunch, because Deb sings in the choir and it meets Sunday afternoon. My criteria were Tex-Mex and a patio. Deb sort of leaves the choices up to me, because she says I make more exciting selections.

After cataloging the usual possibilities in my mind, I remembered there was a new restaurant downtown. Anything called Casa Mama was probably Tex-Mex and I knew they had a patio, so that’s where we went.

Deb loved it. She raved over the choices on the menu and thought the brisket enchiladas with spinach were delicious. I was a little more picky. The patio is right on the main road, which even on a quiet Sunday afternoon meant it felt like we were eating in the street. My cheese enchiladas were good, but not the ridiculously gooey mess I love at El Fenix or El Chico. (Yes, I like El Fenix and El Chio – that’s real Tex-Mex with lots of Dallas tradition on top.) The interior cheese on my Casa Mama enchilada was melted but not runny, gooey. Some people might consider this an improvement, but give me the goo.

Their margarita made up for any lack of gooey cheese and yes, I will be happy to go back. I will not sit on the patio and I will not have the cheese enchiladas, but I will go back and you should visit, too.

So, this is the Weekend Report. This one’s a little longer than most of them will be, because it was a busier weekend than most are. I have challenged myself to do this every week as a counterpoint to my Travel There series on Wednesdays, but I can’t promise I will always make it, nor which day I will post it, but keep an eye out! I have also challenged myself to start posting scrapbooking tidbits, but that’s not ready to roll out.

So, the next post I can promise is on Wednesday and we’ll be in Las Vegas!

DESTINATIONS, DFW Metroplex, Photography, Rockwall

Your Memories Are My Media

Jane Sadek

KEEPING MEMORIES: JANESADEK, SCRAPBOOKING ARTIST & PHOTO ORGANIZATION COACH

I’ve spent the last few years helping my husband build a thriving real estate photography business, but even though I loved doing it, I wasn’t living my dream. Over the last few months I began to think about what it would mean to live my dream. What would that look like? For those of you who follow me on one of my social channels, you already know how I chose to pursue my dream, but it’s time to catch my blogging friends up with my latest endeavor.

Scrapbooking Is One of My Things

I love to plan trips. I love to travel. I love history. I love to write. I love to scrapbook. These are not separate things. They are deeply intertwined with one another and each is a part of the rest. Anyone who has read my blog for any length of time is not surprised by any of these declarations. They are all a part of what I share here.

However, they were no part of my career choices, because that’s not the way you did things in my day. I have worked hard most of my life. My writing skills have helped me in my marketing career, but all the things I love to do were never on my resume or in my consideration when looking for work.

Looking back over my career, there’s been lots of success and I have enjoyed many aspects of the jobs I held, but on this end of my life, it was finally time to think about what most young people consider the most important part of their career search: What do I want to be when I grew up?

As I sat in my scrapbooking studio creating my scrapbook for 2019 I came up with an idea that sounded good. I wanted to create albums for other people. I knew people who built scrapbooking careers by teaching classes, selling supplies, holding events or even opening a scrapbooking store, but that wasn’t really what I wanted to do. I wanted to create albums for people who didn’t have the time, talent or interest in doing so themselves, not just sell them stuff.

I chewed on that for awhile, did some research and tried to figure out what a career in scrapbooking would look like. How many people were out there who would hire someone to create an album for them? Were there enough to keep me busy? What would people be willing to pay for the service? Would they want traditional albums or digital ones? How many albums could I actually do in a month? In a year? Could I build a profitable business out of that?

And what about people who did want to make their own albums, but they needed training or encouragement or just some tools and supplies. Then there were the people who really needed help saving their memories, but they didn’t want albums at all. Could I help them?

A Business Is Born

As I talked to myself, I thought, “I want to help people get their photos and memorabilia from wherever they are to whatever solutions the people want, traditional or digital, and I don’t care whether they want me to do it for them or they just want me to help them do it. I just want to help people get their memories organized and into a format where they can share them with others, now and in the future.”

It just so happens that our real estate photography company is called Spot On Images. Instead of inventing a whole new entity for the scrapbooking and photo organization, I decided Spot On Images would work. I just had to do it.

I decided to get my ducks in a row and introduce my new business venture on February 15th. Perhaps you already know that was the day the big ice storm hit the DFW area. So, if I was looking for omens, I might have quit that day. However, the official kickoff might have been February 15th, but I’d already been talking to people. One lady had already hired me to do an album for her. Others were ready to be my customers for scrapbooking supplies and events. I even had people interested in digital solutions to their photo dilemmas. So, I wasn’t looking for omens, I was already in business.

Since Bill and I already have a thriving business that we want to keep going, I’ve been rolling things out in phases. I knew back in February, I still had a few more posts on my blog to catch everyone up to date in my travels and adventures, so I put off this phase of my introduction. Consider yourself up to date and this your invitation to look into my new venture.

If you wonder exactly what a scrapbooking artist and photo organization coach could do for you, then you should follow this link: Why Do I Need Jane? If you’re interested specifically in scrapbooking, you should look at this page: SCRAPBOOKING. If you’re wondering what kind of digital solutions I offer, then this is your link: PHOTO ORGANIZATION.

Next week I will be kicking off National Scrapbooking Day with a 3-Day Celebration and Workshop in the amenity center of my neighborhood. If you are in the DFW area, I’d love for you to join us. We’ll be memory making in traditional and digital formats while having a whole lot of fun. Just give me a call or text at 972-971-5263 or email me at janesadek@gmail.com.

If you really don’t care and just want to read about my next adventure, then come back next week. I’ll tell you about it!

Architecture, ART, Attractions, Cruising, DESTINATIONS, DFW Metroplex, Museums, TRAVEL, Travel Planning

Naples Excursion Planning

Jane Sadek

The Isle of Capri
The Isle of Capri

TRAVEL THERE: NOT DOING UNTO OTHERS AS I WOULD HAVE THEM DO UNTO ME

Naples is a lovely city.  A traditional bus tour of the city with various stops would be a lovely way to spend the day.  However, besides just being a lovely city, Naples is the gateway city for so may lovely attraction.  Sorrento, the Amalfi Coast, Positano, the Isle of Capri!  How does one choose which Celebrity Shore Excursion to enjoy?

What I Wanted

If I had done exactly as I wanted to, I would have hired a private guide and spent the day taking in Pompeii and Herculaneum.  It would be hot, it would have been crowded and I would have been walking all day long.  I would have also been in heaven.

Two cities from ancient history preserved for posterity by an extraordinary volcanic eruption, lovingly researched and restored over centuries.  If I had to choose between the two cities, I would have opted for Herculeneum.  Pompeii is the most famous, an entire city frozen in time, but Herculaneum had been a sort of ancient Riviera-type playground for the rich and famous.  The frescoes and tile floors were supposed to be out of this world.

What I Considered

I’m not crazy.  I know if you drag a bunch of people around to a bunch of places they don’t care about and wear them out at the first port of call, you are not going to be the most popular person on a cruise.  I needed something a little more engaging to transition my group into the swing of things.

What I really needed was a sort of overview of the whole thing.  I checked into the cost of a personal guide for the day, but in order to have sufficient space in the vehicle for all six of us, along with a driver and/or guide, was prohibitive.

What I Booked

Hoping to kick things off with a bang, I decided on something that didn’t have a very exciting title, but promised a wide variety of activities – sort a something for everyone smorgasbord.  Capri, Sorrento, Pompeii didn’t grab me right off, but then I read on – jet foil to Capri, funicular ride, lunch in Florence and guided tour of Pompeii!  First day planned.

Booking Nightmare

This is where the booking problem came in.  I told you several blogs back that when I first looked at shore excursions, they were one price, but had gone up significantly a month later.  I was new to Celebrity as a cruiser, so I had not antisciapted the  shore excursion sale, but the Bagley’s had cruised with them many times.  They let me know when the next promotion came along – 20% off all shore excursions.  It was booking day.

Booking day lasted all day and into the next as I tried to guide everyone onto the same excursion at the same time.  In the end, we were all going to the same excursion, but Jim and Melanie had been forced into another time for it.  Not an auspicious way to start, but the hunt was on.

Frustrations be damned, we were booking excursions.  Come back next week and let’s explore the opportunities in Florence.

 

DESTINATIONS, DFW Metroplex, International, Road Trips, TRAVEL

It’s Time to Go

Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: HEADING HOME IS ALWAYS GOOD

Just a few hours and Egypt will be in our rear view mirror.

Final Moments

When we left Mokattum Mountain, Izzat dropped us off in Bill’s sister’s neighborhood.  Mona had made one of her feasts for us to enjoy when we dropped by to say farewell.  We had a sweet visit with her and then it was time to go.

Somewhere along the way on that final day, I managed to leave my hat behind.  Perhaps it was in the Uber vehicle we took to get back to the Fairmont.  I sincerely regret that, because it had been a loyal servant on the Danube cruise and on this trip.  I’ve missed having it for several trips since.  I also donated my prescription sunglasses to the country earlier in the trip.

I’ve already shared the frustration of our last night at the Fairmont, so no need to revisit that.  Izzat was there the next morning to take us to the airport.  I felt like I was saying good-bye to an old friend.

At the airport, some of the towel-clad pilgrims we’d seen on our arrival were also departing Egypt.  I’m not sure what the trip was supposed to imbue them with, but love and respect for their wives doesn’t seem to be one of results.  I watched a man and a boy in their white terrycloth outfits stand to the side with their arms folded as their mother/wife pulled huge suitcases, too large for her to handle, from the security table to a cart and then struggle again to get the cart going in the right direction.

I would have sent Bill to help her, but he was already on a mission of his own.  A group of giggling ladies in pilgrim caftans and hajibs needed his help with the elevator.  They’d never been on as escalator or an elevator.  They were terrified of the escalator, but baffled with the controls of the elevator.  I was proud of him for helping them, but wished he could have embarrassed the towel-clad men by assisting the floundering woman.  The pair had looked so smug.

Traveling Companions

Miriam and Bassem were taking the same flight as we did to the States.  Bassem wanted back-up in case Mariam had any trouble in Customs.  We breezed through the London airport with no trouble at all.  At DFW, US Passport Control did bring Mariam in for a short interview, but it was very cursory.  Then they grabbed a rental car, because no one sedan was going to hold all the luggage for four people, especially when one of them was moving here.

And then we were home.  My bestie had kept my cat for me, so we were eager to go claim her.  Mariam and Bassem stayed with us a few days, because Bassem had only bought tickets back to Dallas, not on to LA.  Too soon they’d made arrangements to go home and we were all alone – just us and the cat.

It was quiet and a bit lonely after so many days around our dear family members.  It was a little boring too, after three weeks of activity.  It had been a great trip and like all good trips it had changed me.  I had stronger ties with my nieces and nephews and their children.  I’d overcome my fears and traveled to places the US State Department said I should stay away from.  I’d been in one of the poorest neighborhoods I’d ever visited and discovered that its inhabitants were more joyful and thankful than my affluent neighbors in my golf course community. We will probably never travel to Egypt again, but that’s OK, because now Egypt is in my heart.

ART, DESTINATIONS, DFW Metroplex, Restaurants & Bars, Road Trips, TRAVEL

Hanging Out at DFW

Jane Sadek

TRAVEL HERE: INTERNATIONAL DEPARTURES AT DFW

20160414_143617I’m not exactly a fan of DFW, but if I have to go out there I hope I’m flying out of terminal D.  For one thing, that means I might be going out of the country, which is always good news to me.  For the other, it is by far the best terminal from which to depart.

New and Improved Travelers

There was a time when my husband tried to push the travel envelope to the very edge.  He wanted to find out just how close he could cut it.  It seemed every trip we were the passengers breathlessly running aboard as they closed the door.  Unfortunately, I had been raised by a father who considered earliness to be next to godliness.  That race for the plane thrilled my excitement junkie hubby, but I would go into pure panic mode.

Over the years we’ve both mellowed out.  This is a good thing, since these days, travel is a very different endeavor from what it was twenty years ago.  Anybody pulling a last minute maneuver, like some we did back in the day, would find themselves cooling their heels in some TSA holding space.

Nowadays we get to the airport with hours to spare.  We treat the terminal like a tourist attraction, tasting the local treats and checking out the souvenirs.

A Plug for Park &’N Fly

When we fly, our car is parked at the Park ‘N Fly facility on Park Lane.  We drive in.  A bus pulls up and a nice driver pops out to help us with our bags.  Frequently we are driven directly to our terminal, but even at busy times we get from our car to our gate lickety split.  The nice driver offloads your bags and you’re almost done.

Over the last year, we joined Costco and guess what!  Park ‘N Fly, which is already a bargain at full price, has discounted rates with Costco coupons.  You buy 5 day blocks of tickets for $35 and we’re talking discounted.  The price is so cheap that we saved money with the coupons even though we had to buy and extra day.  The coupon never expires, so we’ll jut hold on to it until the next trip – maybe the one we’ll make to visit our new friends in Oregon we met aboard the Viking Tor.

Our driver for this trip may just be the most charming we’ve ever had.  He was filled with the joy of his salvation and was listening to a sermon on his sound system.  He politely asked if that was OK with us, but we just amen-ed with him and said a few hallelujahs.  He asked where we were headed and when he found out about our cruise on the Danube he really wanted to go along.

Hurry Up and Wait

At the Lufthansa check-in we stared down the kiosk and tried to determine which number or piece of paper it preferred, but we were grateful when someone came to assist us with the check-in, especially since I had already theoretically done that online.  It seems to me that all this digital stuff just makes more work.  Used to be you called up your travel agent to buy your fare, got a hard copy ticket, took it to the desk and were checked in.  Now you dabble online to find a ticket, get a virtual ticket, check-in online, get a virtual boarding pass, fritz with the kiosk at the airport, get pieces of paper and still have to report to a live agent to check-in your bags. Convenience, schamenience!

The line for the TSA security check was not too bad and then we were in, with a couple of hours left to kill.  I had visions of sitting down over a good meal at Cafe Izmir, Cool River Cafe, III Forks or Sky Canyon.  Then I made the mistake of allowing Bill to see the directory of restaurants and ended up at Popeye’s.  You may think I’m kidding, but it’s the truth.  Bill loves Popeye’s and since we’re usually trying to eat healthy we stay away.  With all food being calorie free on vacations (wink wink) he wanted to get some.

20160414_143058Murdering Time

After our chicken we roamed the terminal and looked at all the places we could have eaten and checked out the shops.  Along the way we saw some interesting art installations spread throughout the space.  We really began to feel like tourists.  Many of the most beautiful installations were mosaics on the floor which photograph poorly.  We also found this interesting public interactive.

We decided it was getting close enough to departure time that we should get to our gate.  They’d decided to start boarding early to beat some turbulence, so getting there early had been a good thing.

If you’re coming through Dallas or leaving from our airport, I hope you’ll get to enjoy Terminal D.  If not, you’re stuck with the usual.  Maybe if you’re stuck there long enough on a layover you could take the train over to D and dine in style.

On Wednesdays I’m sharing my Viking River Cruise, the reason we were at the airport in the first place.  Please check back and share the adventure.

 

Cruising, DESTINATIONS, DFW Metroplex, Road Trips, TRAVEL

Cruise Report: The Return

Jane Sadek

OK, so I am an addict!
OK, so I am an addict!

TRAVEL HERE: NO MATTER HOW HUMBLE, THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME

Most folks who travel will tell you one of the best parts of the trip is coming home.  I have to agree with them.  I loved my recent cruise on the Danube, but sleeping in my own bed has its advantages.

What Did I Miss Most?

What I always miss most during my travels is Diet Dr Pepper.  No airport in the world has my beverage of choice.  A few airlines will offer it, but very few and certainly not Lufthansa or United.  Soda machines outside Texas rarely have it and locating a six pack of it at my American destinations can be somewhat of a challenge.  Finding any Dr Pepper product along the Danube was not going to happen, so once a day I would settle for a Coke Light to get my daily dose of caffeine.  Coke Light is the European answer to our Diet Coke.  Coke Zero?  Forget about it!

Other Things I Lacked

I missed my bed and most particularly my top sheet.  The mattress, though smaller than the one we sleep on at home, was perfectly comfortable.  The contour sheet, pillow and pillow cases were all very well and good, but the only cover we got was a comforter.  It was a very nice comforter, but I really missed having a top sheet.

Another thing wrong with the bed was that it was attached to the boat and at 3 AM in the morning, when the captain put the pedal to the medal, everything on the boat would vibrate.  When I was a kid I thought it was cool to put a quarter in the hotel bed and enjoy the vibrations, but I giggled all the way through the “massage.”  On the boat I would come awake wondering what was happening and then figure out that I’d been wakened by the boat’s vibrations – again.  Of course, then I’d toss and turn.  I was too hot with the comforter on and felt weird without a top sheet, so I’d usually stay awake until it was finally time to get out of bed – not by choice, of course.

When I did get up, I immediately regretted the tiny bathroom in our cabin.  While the length of the shower was more than sufficient, for my money, I’d have preferred a little more elbow room in the other direction.  I’m not a fan of showers, so I stood as close to the showerhead as I could, to get the most of me wet or I’d get a chill.  Hence, I was stuffed into the front of the shower stall banging into the walls and doors – a far cry from my large soaking tub at home.  Sitting on the toilet was particularly claustrophobic, but there was enough room for the brushing of teeth.

I moved the rest of my ministrations into the main room, taking over what I think was supposed to be a desk, but it made for a great vanity table – with the exception of the light.  To turn on the light above the mirror, I would have had to turn on all the lights in the room.  Not a good idea with Bill enjoying his final moments of sleep.  (He had no problem with the vibrations, for which I was glad, but a little envious.)  So, I would crack open the curtain of the sliding glass door which was right next to me – the benefit being that I put on my make up with natural light.

All Is Forgiven

In truth, I know these are minor irritations.  While I struggled with the bed and bath, I was not cooking meals or washing dishes.  A maid showed up to make up the bed and restock the linens.  I didn’t fight the crowds at the grocery store or worry about traffic.  In fact, I didn’t worry about anything.  I didn’t know or care who was ahead in the election process or if anyone had been blown up.  Even if I was missing my Diet Dr Pepper, having a bottomless glass of wine at dinner certainly made up for it.

20160422_213554
Sorry, you have to imagine the frog voices.

As much as I love traveling there was one very priceless moment as I arrived at our home.  The night was pitch black except for a brilliant full moon.  I couldn’t wait to get out and take a picture. As soon as I opened the car door I could hear our frogs.  They were all singing their welcome.  I’ve identified three types of voices, the basso bullfrogs, frogs with a clicking sort of song and the sopranos screaming at the top of their voices.  Thankfully the sopranos only sing a few nights out of the year, but they were out in full force when we arrived.

The picture didn’t come out very well, but I’ve shared it anyway.  In the coming weeks I will share all the wonderful things we did on our cruise and all the amazing things the crew did to make it a memorable experience.

So, I’ll be changing things around here on the blog again.  Mondays will remain Travel Here stories about things to do in the Metroplex.  Wednesdays will return to Travel There stories where I’ll tell you all about the cruise.  Travel Bug Tales, which were started as a sort of filler, have become very popular, so they’ll replace At Home in Heath on Fridays and if I have Rockwall County things to share with you, I’ll include them on Mondays.  So I hope you’ll join me Wednesday for my first installment on the cruise.