What a busy couple of months in my world and I haven’t had a chance to really sit down and blog about life, LUSO or anything at this point. The year started out with a major stomach bug that flew around our family for a few weeks and finally settled out. Our family business moved our entire operations to our Alameda location and underwent some changes; we celebrated my niece’s baptism and began our LUSO activities again. So yes a very busy first few weeks of the year.
January 16th, my first visit of the year was Watsonville. What a gorgeous day it was to go up into the mountains and near Santa Cruz. You would have thought it was a beautiful summer day. As usual my partner in crime Brienne (as I call her my secretary. The girl has a better grasp of when all the visits are then I do) and my parents joined us this time and we headed out to Watsonville to meet up with all of our LUSO Family. I am sad to say that I have not been there since my presidency in 98-99 but they have been forever etched in my mind and heart. I was excited to see Mr. & Mrs. Machado and to taste their delicious tuna that they serve. We arrived around the same time as our 20-30’s president Anthony, our Queen Nicole and her mother Anna, my cousin Monica who is running for Luso Queen from YC #1 and her mom Linda and Sister Lindsey. Seeing familiar faces or family is always great but it was nice to know that once you walked in the door that no matter how long it’s been since you’ve seen someone they open their arms and hearts to you and make you feel completely welcome. That is exactly how they make you feel in Watsonville. We had a good time, great food and some great laughs.
January 23rd was the Hilmar/Turlock and I’m sad to say that I was unable to attend this one due to my Convention Committee having their first official meeting. I had an amazing turn out and I’m so glad to have them all behind me. I can’t wait for our convention in 2015…and to work with all of them over the next few years. I think I have one of the best team of people ever! We have our first couple of fundraisers coming up in April and June along with our raffle and I’m extremely nervous but I know that without a doubt they will be great!
January 29th, was our first Luso Fraternal meeting day in Dublin. We spent the day in meetings, lunch and then got ready to head out to Beach Blanket Babylon in San Francisco. I’m so glad that the 20-30’s Administration put this social activity together for all of us. What an amazing night filled with laughter, good friends, old and new, Frank Rosa’s Pomegranate Aguardente (don’t know how to spell this..lol). With the Bus Ride (Thank you Rosie’s Tours) and the fabulous show, I commend the 20-30’s Board for doing an amazing job! I look forward to your next social! After the show we all headed to Pier 39 for dinner, drinks or just walking around and enjoying our SF Wharf. Many stayed on the pier but me, Anthony, Frank and Julianna headed to the wharf and had some of the best tasting chowder and shrimp. YUM! I was absolutely stuffed although it didn’t stop us from going into the chocolate store and getting chocolate. Hello Mr. Chocolate covered honeycomb!!! My weakness. Even in the rain and cold weather we all managed to have a great time. We ended our evening at the holiday inn in Dublin and still managed to have the front desk come up to the lobby of the 2nd floor and tell us “please quiet down”.
February 13th, the Martinez Visit. I had not been to the Martinez Visit “the cow palace” in years but looked forward to heading out there and seeing some old friends. We had some delicious tri tip, omg it was so good. We laughed as usual with Jose Da Rosa and enjoyed a nice beautiful afternoon.
While we had a good time there was a black cloud over our Luso Family that day. We lost a member of our society. Our youth director for San Joaquim Michelle sadly lost her husband in a tragic accident the night before and it our hearts were broken for her.
Our sadness did not end there. On Tuesday, February 15th we lost another dear member of the society, she was a past youth director and director of the fraternal board. Margie lost her battle with cancer that week and it was another huge loss for our family.
We also had two of our past presidents Liz Alves and Jr. Correia who lost a grandparent as well.
It was with great sadness that we went through the week with such tremendous losses. My thoughts and prayers to the Morris/Rocha, Correia, Meirinho/Alves and Silveira Families.
While it was a great start to my Luso Journey this year, it was also met with some great sadness.
So I end my blog with this: Remember to take each day as it comes, remember to say I love you to those you care about, remember to forgive those you felt hurt you and remember to smile and enjoy your life. Life is far too short and you never know what tomorrow will bring you.
Till my next blog
Monday, February 21, 2011
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Weight Loss Journey
Weight loss Journey
Part 1
Once again I found myself never wanting to look at myself in the mirror, go shopping, put on makeup, do my hair or even leave the house. It was in Sept of this year as I looked through pictures of a short weekend trip with friends did I realize that I had to change something. Just looking at pictures, not only was I at my heaviest but I truly looked unhappy being me and that for one was not ME!
I can’t remember a day where I did not battle my weight. I’ve been a yoyo dieter for years. Through HS I was usually between a 14 and 18 and after HS the weight continued to creep up until what I thought was my heaviest in 1997 where I started Jenny Craig and dropped about 60lbs and lost an additional 15 soon after just working on religiously. What I remember most about those few years that I kept that weight off was how good I felt and how I stopped hiding behind the fact that I was a big girl or the “Fat girl” of the group. I felt beautiful, sexy and confident. Now why I put on the weight again is still a mystery on some level. I know how to watch my calories and what needs to be done to keep it off or take it off. So why is it that I sabotage myself and put on the weight again. Of course like all yoyo dieters, not only did I put on the 75lbs I lost, I probably added an additional 10-15lbs on top of that putting me at my heaviest in Sept/October of this year.
I can honestly say that I’m an emotional eater, stress eater and a lot of times I eat out of pure boredom. You name it, I could put it down. I didn’t know and still struggle with stopping the madness. But I find that right now I’m more conscious of what I’m doing. At least I try to be. I know that if I’m craving something, its better to have a nibble of something I’m craving then completely deprive myself of something because that is when I will turn around and eat the entire package. But that wasn’t my sole problem. I’m horrible at eating breakfast in the morning, I hate making lunch therefore I would buy out even though I started staying clear of Mcd’s, Jack or taco bell, I reasoned that having a subway sandwich almost every day was healthy. Right? Ok so my reasoning wasn’t always smart but my head and my stomach don’t always work on the same wave length.
On top of my nasty eating habits I was having difficulty with my asthma, sleep apnea and finally having nothing but issues with my knees and feet. I swear there were days that I walked like I was 100. I’m only 40 and yet my body started to make feel double that. I knew when I couldn’t sit comfortably on the floor to play with my nephews and nieces or just struggled to walk even around the block that something had to give and I sure as hell didn’t want it to be my own heart.
Sadly all this isn’t what got me started on the path I am today. Dad had come back from San Diego looking like he was not doing well and asked about a weight loss program that a friend of ours had been doing had already lost about 50lbs. I thought sure no problem, never thought we would actually try and be successful in the last 2 ½ months.
On October 16th 2010 we (myself, my father and mother) started on the Herbalife plan. Did I think I could do it? I was skeptical but gave it 100% . 2 shakes per day and one main meal, I was afraid that this was a set up for me to fail in the worst possible way. What were my options? Surgery and I didn’t want to do it that way. The first few days were a struggle, I had to mentally prepare myself for not having anything to pick up and put in my mouth, outside of my shake that I was drinking or the fruit I would eat as a snack. Seriously it became a mental game that I had to play in order to make myself realize that I was eating and getting what I needed. I mean come on I am drinking a shake that reminds me of Fruity Pebbles…this can’t be hard. After the first few weeks the shakes, the hunger I felt became easier. I no longer felt all that hungry between meals and the shakes became a part of the routine and so much easier and less thinking on my part.
The first 2 weeks we did this with out an actual scale but having had been to the Dr. not long ago I knew about where my weight was and actually I thought I had put on a bit more weight prior to starting Herbalife. But after 2 weeks my approximate weight loss was 10lbs and it had me jumping for joy. Who knew!!! The last 8 ½ weeks have not been easy. There are things in our lives that change the course of our day and mess with our eating plans. The biggest holidays of the year were coming through and I had to figure out how to get through them with least amount of sabotage I could and I had to learn how to stop binge eating when I was in a mood. And the biggest obstacle…SODA!!! I had to learn to curb my need to drink Diet Coke all day long.
Its December 30th, the new year is just a 2 days away and I’ve joined a weight loss support group with some friends from all over the world (Thank you Duran Duran) and had John Taylor respond to my latest status on Face book about my recent weight loss and I was suddenly re-motivated to continue on this path.
Today I’m 28lbs lighter then I was in Sept 2010, I feel healthier, I feel good in my clothes and when I look in the mirror I’m beginning to feel good about me and who I am. This is what I’m suppose to feel like.
My Goals for 2011:
1. Lose an additional 22lbs by April or so
2. Regain my confidence and learn to love me
3. Start moving,
4. Stop hiding behind the “fat girl” syndrome and let people see me.
5. Get closer to final goal of about 150-175lbs weight loss.
I know with the support that I have found through family and friends that this is possible. Every single goal is within reach and I want it. So here I go moving into a new year and making the changes to make my life that much better, healthier and happier.
Happy New Years Everyone!
Part 1
Once again I found myself never wanting to look at myself in the mirror, go shopping, put on makeup, do my hair or even leave the house. It was in Sept of this year as I looked through pictures of a short weekend trip with friends did I realize that I had to change something. Just looking at pictures, not only was I at my heaviest but I truly looked unhappy being me and that for one was not ME!
I can’t remember a day where I did not battle my weight. I’ve been a yoyo dieter for years. Through HS I was usually between a 14 and 18 and after HS the weight continued to creep up until what I thought was my heaviest in 1997 where I started Jenny Craig and dropped about 60lbs and lost an additional 15 soon after just working on religiously. What I remember most about those few years that I kept that weight off was how good I felt and how I stopped hiding behind the fact that I was a big girl or the “Fat girl” of the group. I felt beautiful, sexy and confident. Now why I put on the weight again is still a mystery on some level. I know how to watch my calories and what needs to be done to keep it off or take it off. So why is it that I sabotage myself and put on the weight again. Of course like all yoyo dieters, not only did I put on the 75lbs I lost, I probably added an additional 10-15lbs on top of that putting me at my heaviest in Sept/October of this year.
I can honestly say that I’m an emotional eater, stress eater and a lot of times I eat out of pure boredom. You name it, I could put it down. I didn’t know and still struggle with stopping the madness. But I find that right now I’m more conscious of what I’m doing. At least I try to be. I know that if I’m craving something, its better to have a nibble of something I’m craving then completely deprive myself of something because that is when I will turn around and eat the entire package. But that wasn’t my sole problem. I’m horrible at eating breakfast in the morning, I hate making lunch therefore I would buy out even though I started staying clear of Mcd’s, Jack or taco bell, I reasoned that having a subway sandwich almost every day was healthy. Right? Ok so my reasoning wasn’t always smart but my head and my stomach don’t always work on the same wave length.
On top of my nasty eating habits I was having difficulty with my asthma, sleep apnea and finally having nothing but issues with my knees and feet. I swear there were days that I walked like I was 100. I’m only 40 and yet my body started to make feel double that. I knew when I couldn’t sit comfortably on the floor to play with my nephews and nieces or just struggled to walk even around the block that something had to give and I sure as hell didn’t want it to be my own heart.
Sadly all this isn’t what got me started on the path I am today. Dad had come back from San Diego looking like he was not doing well and asked about a weight loss program that a friend of ours had been doing had already lost about 50lbs. I thought sure no problem, never thought we would actually try and be successful in the last 2 ½ months.
On October 16th 2010 we (myself, my father and mother) started on the Herbalife plan. Did I think I could do it? I was skeptical but gave it 100% . 2 shakes per day and one main meal, I was afraid that this was a set up for me to fail in the worst possible way. What were my options? Surgery and I didn’t want to do it that way. The first few days were a struggle, I had to mentally prepare myself for not having anything to pick up and put in my mouth, outside of my shake that I was drinking or the fruit I would eat as a snack. Seriously it became a mental game that I had to play in order to make myself realize that I was eating and getting what I needed. I mean come on I am drinking a shake that reminds me of Fruity Pebbles…this can’t be hard. After the first few weeks the shakes, the hunger I felt became easier. I no longer felt all that hungry between meals and the shakes became a part of the routine and so much easier and less thinking on my part.
The first 2 weeks we did this with out an actual scale but having had been to the Dr. not long ago I knew about where my weight was and actually I thought I had put on a bit more weight prior to starting Herbalife. But after 2 weeks my approximate weight loss was 10lbs and it had me jumping for joy. Who knew!!! The last 8 ½ weeks have not been easy. There are things in our lives that change the course of our day and mess with our eating plans. The biggest holidays of the year were coming through and I had to figure out how to get through them with least amount of sabotage I could and I had to learn how to stop binge eating when I was in a mood. And the biggest obstacle…SODA!!! I had to learn to curb my need to drink Diet Coke all day long.
Its December 30th, the new year is just a 2 days away and I’ve joined a weight loss support group with some friends from all over the world (Thank you Duran Duran) and had John Taylor respond to my latest status on Face book about my recent weight loss and I was suddenly re-motivated to continue on this path.
Today I’m 28lbs lighter then I was in Sept 2010, I feel healthier, I feel good in my clothes and when I look in the mirror I’m beginning to feel good about me and who I am. This is what I’m suppose to feel like.
My Goals for 2011:
1. Lose an additional 22lbs by April or so
2. Regain my confidence and learn to love me
3. Start moving,
4. Stop hiding behind the “fat girl” syndrome and let people see me.
5. Get closer to final goal of about 150-175lbs weight loss.
I know with the support that I have found through family and friends that this is possible. Every single goal is within reach and I want it. So here I go moving into a new year and making the changes to make my life that much better, healthier and happier.
Happy New Years Everyone!
Friday, December 17, 2010
Adult 3L, Region #2 and YC. #1 Christmas Party.
We had our annual Christmas party on December 12th and like always we had a blast. We all know that it’s the youth that make this party fun, filled with laughter and nostalgia. It’s all about them and Santa and I’m so glad that over the years we’ve all begun to do our Christmas together as a whole versus separately as we had done in years past.
We had our annual Christmas party at the SDES Alvarado, our home away from home. In all the years I’ve been a part of this area SDES has really stood back and supported our youth and adults. They allow us the ability to have a place to rehearse, have parties and are always ready to have the kids dance. 20 plus years and presidents later they continue to help us and while I’m not the youth director or even a youth leader at this time for YC #1 I know I am grateful for all they do for Adult #3L, Region #2 and especial YC #1.
We started our Christmas party with the YC and adults creating cards and putting together donations. Our Youth has always created Christmas cards for Children’s Hospital but this year it was decided that the cards would be sent to the H&S company unit 73679 stationed in Afghanistan. In conjunction with Region #2’s activity of putting together a gift box to send over with small necessities and just things that the soldiers would want to make their day just a little bit brighter, easier. At the end of the day Region #2 shipped off 8 boxes of goodies to H&S Company filled socks, soups, coffee, books, movies, candy, gum, etc. If we could bring a smile to their faces and bring a piece of home for just one minute then it’s what we did. I’m so proud of the turn out the Region had and so proud of Brienne for putting it together and getting it out and shipped. Her friend who is in this battalion is as well as the rest of our soldiers are in my prayers and hope they come soon. The Youth Council also had a toy drive for Viola Blythe and collected a mired of toys and wrapping paper to give to the children who don’t have as much as they do. All in all I felt as though it has been year of paying it forward. I’m proud of each and every one of you for doing all you could to bring a smile, a piece of home and for just thinking about those that do not have all that we may have.
Of course you can’t have a Christmas party without food and there was a ton of food and deserts brought by all of us in the groups. From potato soup to pizza to taco salad to red velvet cup cakes, cookies and so on. We ate well and enjoyed a nice afternoon with friends and family.
While waiting for Santa to make his appearance the Region kept the kids entertained by playing a couple of games. There is nothing funnier than watching 42 kids running up and down the hall and trying to sit on a balloon (some with helium this year) to pop it!!! Classic fun! They also made a Santa’s beard on a fellow team member where they put shaving cream on one persons face in the shape of a beard and throw cotton balls at it. Pretty funny even if some of the bigger boys didn’t really want to get their faces dirty. :p
It wasn’t soon after that the bells began to ring and in came Santa. He must have been on herbalife like many of us because he seemed a tad thin this year. Must remember to send him a package or 12 of cookies. LOL 42 kids, 42 presents later, all kids have had their moment with Santa and some even held on for dear life to their parents for fear of the man in the long white beard. (I mean honestly who could blame them..he is a bit scary when you think about it. An adult man, asking kids to sit on his lap and hands them candy…lol)
Another Christmas party gone by, more fond memories, a lot of laughs and this means the closer we are to the kids beginning their programs for the 2011 convention.
Time flies when you’re having fun!!!
Thank you Adult #3L, Region #2 and Youth Council #1 for being such a wonderful area. I’m proud to be a part of you and look forward to many more years of our family and traditions
Merry Christmas to my Luso Family!!!
We had our annual Christmas party at the SDES Alvarado, our home away from home. In all the years I’ve been a part of this area SDES has really stood back and supported our youth and adults. They allow us the ability to have a place to rehearse, have parties and are always ready to have the kids dance. 20 plus years and presidents later they continue to help us and while I’m not the youth director or even a youth leader at this time for YC #1 I know I am grateful for all they do for Adult #3L, Region #2 and especial YC #1.
We started our Christmas party with the YC and adults creating cards and putting together donations. Our Youth has always created Christmas cards for Children’s Hospital but this year it was decided that the cards would be sent to the H&S company unit 73679 stationed in Afghanistan. In conjunction with Region #2’s activity of putting together a gift box to send over with small necessities and just things that the soldiers would want to make their day just a little bit brighter, easier. At the end of the day Region #2 shipped off 8 boxes of goodies to H&S Company filled socks, soups, coffee, books, movies, candy, gum, etc. If we could bring a smile to their faces and bring a piece of home for just one minute then it’s what we did. I’m so proud of the turn out the Region had and so proud of Brienne for putting it together and getting it out and shipped. Her friend who is in this battalion is as well as the rest of our soldiers are in my prayers and hope they come soon. The Youth Council also had a toy drive for Viola Blythe and collected a mired of toys and wrapping paper to give to the children who don’t have as much as they do. All in all I felt as though it has been year of paying it forward. I’m proud of each and every one of you for doing all you could to bring a smile, a piece of home and for just thinking about those that do not have all that we may have.
Of course you can’t have a Christmas party without food and there was a ton of food and deserts brought by all of us in the groups. From potato soup to pizza to taco salad to red velvet cup cakes, cookies and so on. We ate well and enjoyed a nice afternoon with friends and family.
While waiting for Santa to make his appearance the Region kept the kids entertained by playing a couple of games. There is nothing funnier than watching 42 kids running up and down the hall and trying to sit on a balloon (some with helium this year) to pop it!!! Classic fun! They also made a Santa’s beard on a fellow team member where they put shaving cream on one persons face in the shape of a beard and throw cotton balls at it. Pretty funny even if some of the bigger boys didn’t really want to get their faces dirty. :p
It wasn’t soon after that the bells began to ring and in came Santa. He must have been on herbalife like many of us because he seemed a tad thin this year. Must remember to send him a package or 12 of cookies. LOL 42 kids, 42 presents later, all kids have had their moment with Santa and some even held on for dear life to their parents for fear of the man in the long white beard. (I mean honestly who could blame them..he is a bit scary when you think about it. An adult man, asking kids to sit on his lap and hands them candy…lol)
Another Christmas party gone by, more fond memories, a lot of laughs and this means the closer we are to the kids beginning their programs for the 2011 convention.
Time flies when you’re having fun!!!
Thank you Adult #3L, Region #2 and Youth Council #1 for being such a wonderful area. I’m proud to be a part of you and look forward to many more years of our family and traditions
Merry Christmas to my Luso Family!!!
Monday, December 6, 2010
Annual Luso Christmas Party
Let me be start with OMG what a riot this weekend was. Starting with Friday night through Sunday. I can’t believe the havoc we all caused in Visalia.
Anthony and I started our road trip to Visalia Friday afternoon. It was a fairly quiet ride down with very little traffic and some really good conversation. But then Anthony and I always have pretty good conversations. It was sad that our usual road trip buddies were not with us and we did miss Anna and Nicole being in the car with us. We arrived at the Lampliter Inn around 4:30pm, got ourselves checked in and into our rooms. While we didn’t get to stay in adjoining rooms, Anthony was only a few doors down. The Lampliter Inn is exactly that, a small little Inn on the side of the freeway. Very quaint, well groomed, clean and a tad retro. The rooms were clean and comfy although just a tad hot. Couldn’t seem to get the heater to turn off and that seemed to be a consistent throughout the entire hotel. I still don’t understand why hotels don’t put groups like us all in one area so that we don’t have noise issues at night. I don’t think I ever will. Might have kept the complaints down to a low minimum had they done that.
We headed to the bar at the bar and grill next door and decided to have ourselves a drink while we decided on dinner….All I can say is that the bar closed at NINE pm…WTH..I found thought odd that a bar would close at 9 but who am I to say different. We headed out and met up with a bunch of ladies from SPRSI. I didn’t really know many of them but was glad to meet them that night. They were nice enough to invite us to join them for dinner and we headed out to Big Bubbas Bad BBQ. Nice place, great atmosphere and really did seem like a great place to take your family for birthdays, or just to have a good night. We managed to get Julianne and Hilary on the bull, sang, laughed and got to know each other. Again reminded that Fraternalism is important, that it was important to set aside differences and remember that we are all out for the same goal, to keep Luso going and enjoy our culture and our friendships. After dinner we headed back to celebrate Tish and Erica’s Anniversary and I learned to play Beer Pong which I was immediately fired by Anthony because I couldn’t make a shot..lol Good times people…good times.:-)
Sadly I spent the weekend nursing a cold and ended up heading up to bed early that night and spent most of Saturday morning trying to get a handle on the stuffy head, ears and nose. After the Education Foundation luncheon, Luso Federation meeting we all got ready for the Christmas party that was hosted by Visalia Convention Committee for Mr. Tony Sozinho, who is slated to be Luso President in 2012 in Fresno, CA. The hors d'oeuvres were delicious, the drinks as always great but most of all it was great to see old friends that we only see maybe once a year or at a visit.
The food was great, desert and a shotzinho of Porto followed by a Portuguese group from the HS dancing folklore then followed by dancing thank you to Frank Rosa’s Iphone. We laughed, we drank, we danced, we drank some more, we danced more and just had a great time all in all. When the party was over we moved to the hotel where I believe we were chased out of a total of 3 rooms by the Visalia Police Department. Don’t these hotels know that when Luso and SPRSI come together they need to lump us all in one building…so that we only disturb our own!!!! I am not all together sure the Lampliter or Visalia wants us back again! Good times and thank you to Visalia and the Convention Committee for the wonderful holiday party!
Sunday started off with a fraternal meeting and then we were off to Tulare for Council 29B’s Breakfast Brunch and Toy Drive. What a great idea and wonderful turn out. I had never been to Nielson's Restaurant but had already started hearing nothing but good things about it. The brunch was delicious especially their biscuits and gravy.omg..yum! It was a great way to sit with friends, get our bellies nice and full before our 4 hour trek home that afternoon.
Anthony, Anna, Nicole, Joe, Lenor, Marilia and Americo headed home around 1pm. WE may not all have been in the same car but managed to share in some laughs as we trekked down 99 heading back to the bay. Thank you Anthony for letting me bum a ride from you and Thank you everyone in Visalia and Tulare for an amazing weekend filled with laughs and some amazing memories. I’m very glad that I was able to attend this year’s Christmas Festivities.
I wish you all a very wonderful Holiday filled with love, family, friendships and fraternalism! Merry Christmas Everyone and Happy New Year.
I’ll see you all at our first official visit of the New Year on January 16th in Watsonville!
Anthony and I started our road trip to Visalia Friday afternoon. It was a fairly quiet ride down with very little traffic and some really good conversation. But then Anthony and I always have pretty good conversations. It was sad that our usual road trip buddies were not with us and we did miss Anna and Nicole being in the car with us. We arrived at the Lampliter Inn around 4:30pm, got ourselves checked in and into our rooms. While we didn’t get to stay in adjoining rooms, Anthony was only a few doors down. The Lampliter Inn is exactly that, a small little Inn on the side of the freeway. Very quaint, well groomed, clean and a tad retro. The rooms were clean and comfy although just a tad hot. Couldn’t seem to get the heater to turn off and that seemed to be a consistent throughout the entire hotel. I still don’t understand why hotels don’t put groups like us all in one area so that we don’t have noise issues at night. I don’t think I ever will. Might have kept the complaints down to a low minimum had they done that.
We headed to the bar at the bar and grill next door and decided to have ourselves a drink while we decided on dinner….All I can say is that the bar closed at NINE pm…WTH..I found thought odd that a bar would close at 9 but who am I to say different. We headed out and met up with a bunch of ladies from SPRSI. I didn’t really know many of them but was glad to meet them that night. They were nice enough to invite us to join them for dinner and we headed out to Big Bubbas Bad BBQ. Nice place, great atmosphere and really did seem like a great place to take your family for birthdays, or just to have a good night. We managed to get Julianne and Hilary on the bull, sang, laughed and got to know each other. Again reminded that Fraternalism is important, that it was important to set aside differences and remember that we are all out for the same goal, to keep Luso going and enjoy our culture and our friendships. After dinner we headed back to celebrate Tish and Erica’s Anniversary and I learned to play Beer Pong which I was immediately fired by Anthony because I couldn’t make a shot..lol Good times people…good times.:-)
Sadly I spent the weekend nursing a cold and ended up heading up to bed early that night and spent most of Saturday morning trying to get a handle on the stuffy head, ears and nose. After the Education Foundation luncheon, Luso Federation meeting we all got ready for the Christmas party that was hosted by Visalia Convention Committee for Mr. Tony Sozinho, who is slated to be Luso President in 2012 in Fresno, CA. The hors d'oeuvres were delicious, the drinks as always great but most of all it was great to see old friends that we only see maybe once a year or at a visit.
The food was great, desert and a shotzinho of Porto followed by a Portuguese group from the HS dancing folklore then followed by dancing thank you to Frank Rosa’s Iphone. We laughed, we drank, we danced, we drank some more, we danced more and just had a great time all in all. When the party was over we moved to the hotel where I believe we were chased out of a total of 3 rooms by the Visalia Police Department. Don’t these hotels know that when Luso and SPRSI come together they need to lump us all in one building…so that we only disturb our own!!!! I am not all together sure the Lampliter or Visalia wants us back again! Good times and thank you to Visalia and the Convention Committee for the wonderful holiday party!
Sunday started off with a fraternal meeting and then we were off to Tulare for Council 29B’s Breakfast Brunch and Toy Drive. What a great idea and wonderful turn out. I had never been to Nielson's Restaurant but had already started hearing nothing but good things about it. The brunch was delicious especially their biscuits and gravy.omg..yum! It was a great way to sit with friends, get our bellies nice and full before our 4 hour trek home that afternoon.
Anthony, Anna, Nicole, Joe, Lenor, Marilia and Americo headed home around 1pm. WE may not all have been in the same car but managed to share in some laughs as we trekked down 99 heading back to the bay. Thank you Anthony for letting me bum a ride from you and Thank you everyone in Visalia and Tulare for an amazing weekend filled with laughs and some amazing memories. I’m very glad that I was able to attend this year’s Christmas Festivities.
I wish you all a very wonderful Holiday filled with love, family, friendships and fraternalism! Merry Christmas Everyone and Happy New Year.
I’ll see you all at our first official visit of the New Year on January 16th in Watsonville!
Friday, November 19, 2010
Harry Potter 7 Pt. 1 - Deathly Hallows
Its noon on the 19th of November and I’m walking around in a haze of lack of sleep. Who knew that I would have been standing in line lately to see the midnight viewings of any movie? Heck I don’t even really stand in line for concerts much less a movie. But over the last couple of years I’ve seen a few movies at 12:01 just to say that I did. Last night was no exception. I saw Harry Potter Deathly Hallows Pt. 1 at 12:01 at the Hayward Cinemas with my friend Galyn, her partner Doris, Laura and Cassidy.
We started our evening out at Buffalo Bills across the street, which I’m glad we did as I have never been there before (and it’s been there for as long as I could remember) and we dinner and drinks. The Pear Cider and the Portabella Sandwich was awesome as was the company. We headed over to the cinema around 8ish and began the agonizing wait in line. I’m really too old for this stuff.lol There were people of all ages and I loved that some of them actually came dressed the part. We saw many scarves, wands, books, people dressed up in Azkaban shirts and so on. I thought Twi-Hards were intense…Potterheads are just as bad.
We finally got into the theater around 10pm and it was great to have the opportunity to get comfy. Problem with that is that too comfy makes you want to sleep. Lol So that’s what I did..I napped slightly while we waited for the previews to start and really honestly till the movie started and then I was wide awake.:-)
From the first scene to the very last scene the movie kept me interested, engrossed and waiting for the next new adventure. It was great to see so many of the characters from past movies and sad to say good bye to a few. Someone had mentioned that it seemed like a long camping trip for Potter and gang and while yeah I can see that I found the movie to follow the book pretty good with just a few extra things.
With some laughter, some intense moments, some tears I found the first installment of Deathly Hallows leaving me with wanting more. I think I yelled no at the last scene because as much as I hate to see this series end, I really wanted the movie to keep going.
I’m really glad that I got into the series before the last of the movies. It took me a while but after reading the entire series in 30 days I now know what the mystique about Harry Potter was all about and I loved it. Absolutely loved the book and love the movies. I’m looking forward to Harry Potter, Deathly Hallows Part 2 in July 2011.
If you haven’t read the series..DO IT. You won’t be disappointed.
We started our evening out at Buffalo Bills across the street, which I’m glad we did as I have never been there before (and it’s been there for as long as I could remember) and we dinner and drinks. The Pear Cider and the Portabella Sandwich was awesome as was the company. We headed over to the cinema around 8ish and began the agonizing wait in line. I’m really too old for this stuff.lol There were people of all ages and I loved that some of them actually came dressed the part. We saw many scarves, wands, books, people dressed up in Azkaban shirts and so on. I thought Twi-Hards were intense…Potterheads are just as bad.
We finally got into the theater around 10pm and it was great to have the opportunity to get comfy. Problem with that is that too comfy makes you want to sleep. Lol So that’s what I did..I napped slightly while we waited for the previews to start and really honestly till the movie started and then I was wide awake.:-)
From the first scene to the very last scene the movie kept me interested, engrossed and waiting for the next new adventure. It was great to see so many of the characters from past movies and sad to say good bye to a few. Someone had mentioned that it seemed like a long camping trip for Potter and gang and while yeah I can see that I found the movie to follow the book pretty good with just a few extra things.
With some laughter, some intense moments, some tears I found the first installment of Deathly Hallows leaving me with wanting more. I think I yelled no at the last scene because as much as I hate to see this series end, I really wanted the movie to keep going.
I’m really glad that I got into the series before the last of the movies. It took me a while but after reading the entire series in 30 days I now know what the mystique about Harry Potter was all about and I loved it. Absolutely loved the book and love the movies. I’m looking forward to Harry Potter, Deathly Hallows Part 2 in July 2011.
If you haven’t read the series..DO IT. You won’t be disappointed.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Luso Weekend (Newark and San Jose)
Luso Weekend! (running a bit behind on this one! :-)
This weekend was truly what I would call a Luso filled weekend with quite a few Luso functions. My weekend started out at the Wine Tasting Event for the Councils of Newark, Adult 19B, Region #16 and YC #30. Once again I was escorted by my Mom and we met up with my cousin Michelle Da Silva, past 20-30’s President and currently Chair of Youth Directors, her son Logan and her father Henry. The hall was decorated in fall colors and people were already sampling the delicious wines and food. I am always impressed by this group because their Youth is always knee deep in helping, serving and getting things together for their functions. I also saw many others from different councils such as our President John Perdigao and his family, Marielia and Americo Pereira, Joe and Lenor Pio, MaryJo and Arnold Rodrigues, Mr. and Mrs. Rosa and so many more I could list. To see such support during these tough economic times is great. The food was great, YC #30 performed their 2010 program and the danced followed with Chico Avila. It was a great night had by all. Thank you Newark for putting on such a great fundraiser.
Saturday, the 6th was not only my little sister Carla’s birthday but it was also the Luso Sales Agent meeting. We spent the day working on ways to make our society stronger and really show people that we have products that can benefit not only adults but our children as well. We are currently offering 6% on Single Premium Annuities (min 10,000 deposit) for the first year and we also have a great Educational Savings Account that is great for your children and grand children. Current interest rate is 4% and can be used not only for College but for Private Schools until the child is 30!!! So act now and start saving for your child’s future.
Sunday, the 7th we headed out to our last visit of 2010, San Jose 47-B, Region #1 and YC #2 of San Jose. It wasn’t the prettiest day of the year, but the turn out at the visit was fabulous. Everyone battled the rain and gloom to surround themselves with their Luso Friends. I headed down alone this time and met up with Brienne and her boyfriend Randy and we found a quiet spot for us to sit back and enjoy the afternoon. We were later joined by Anna Bettencourt, Judy Allen Dias, Judy Teixeira, Americo and Marielia Pereira, Jason, Cynthia and Madison Weekly and of course Lenor Pio (Anthony’s mom). Of course also there was President John Perdigao and family, 20-30s President Anthony Pio, Youth President Matthew Teixeira and Queen Nicole Bettencourt.
I continue to be amazed at the amount of friendships that are created by the Luso visits. You truly don’t realize how many people you have met, how long you have known them and how much of a good time you have until you see each other again. Many of us only see each other at Convention, visits or some random festa that we just happened to be at. But as I continue my journey in Luso (god help me 28 years and counting) I realize that I have been doing this same thing, year after year, visit after visit and seeing some truly amazing people. We grow up, we watch each other get married, have children, watch their children grow up and follow in the footsteps of our parents, grandparents and so on. How amazing is it to look up at a head table where the 20-30’s President‘s Father was a 20-30’s President in the 90s, the Youth Presidents older Brother was just Youth President a few years ago, our MC’s were non other then Joseph Vieira and his youngest son Ethan and Josephs older son was sitting at the head table as a youth officer. To me this is what Luso is about; it’s about traditions, our culture and continuing what our fore fathers have done before us. I commend 47B for making sure their Youth and 20-30’s were very much a part of their special day.
To Region #1 of San Jose, Congratulations on reactivating! I look forward to seeing you all again throughout the year and can’t wait to see you accept your first Rim Award and maybe getting someone in the 20-30’s State Line. I think you all have an amazing opportunity to build your region and really continue to build the bridge between the Adults and the Youth. I see a lot of potential here and I can’t wait to see you all flourish! If there is ever anything you need please don’t hesitate to contact me. I love watching new councils be reborn and created.
Thank you Adult 47B, Region #1 and YC #2 for a wonderful afternoon, delicious food and wonderful memories. I enjoyed spending the afternoon with old friends and making new friends. I look forward to continuing to build all the friendships and to see you all throughout the year.
Next road trip…Visalia for the Luso Christmas Party…See you all there!
This weekend was truly what I would call a Luso filled weekend with quite a few Luso functions. My weekend started out at the Wine Tasting Event for the Councils of Newark, Adult 19B, Region #16 and YC #30. Once again I was escorted by my Mom and we met up with my cousin Michelle Da Silva, past 20-30’s President and currently Chair of Youth Directors, her son Logan and her father Henry. The hall was decorated in fall colors and people were already sampling the delicious wines and food. I am always impressed by this group because their Youth is always knee deep in helping, serving and getting things together for their functions. I also saw many others from different councils such as our President John Perdigao and his family, Marielia and Americo Pereira, Joe and Lenor Pio, MaryJo and Arnold Rodrigues, Mr. and Mrs. Rosa and so many more I could list. To see such support during these tough economic times is great. The food was great, YC #30 performed their 2010 program and the danced followed with Chico Avila. It was a great night had by all. Thank you Newark for putting on such a great fundraiser.
Saturday, the 6th was not only my little sister Carla’s birthday but it was also the Luso Sales Agent meeting. We spent the day working on ways to make our society stronger and really show people that we have products that can benefit not only adults but our children as well. We are currently offering 6% on Single Premium Annuities (min 10,000 deposit) for the first year and we also have a great Educational Savings Account that is great for your children and grand children. Current interest rate is 4% and can be used not only for College but for Private Schools until the child is 30!!! So act now and start saving for your child’s future.
Sunday, the 7th we headed out to our last visit of 2010, San Jose 47-B, Region #1 and YC #2 of San Jose. It wasn’t the prettiest day of the year, but the turn out at the visit was fabulous. Everyone battled the rain and gloom to surround themselves with their Luso Friends. I headed down alone this time and met up with Brienne and her boyfriend Randy and we found a quiet spot for us to sit back and enjoy the afternoon. We were later joined by Anna Bettencourt, Judy Allen Dias, Judy Teixeira, Americo and Marielia Pereira, Jason, Cynthia and Madison Weekly and of course Lenor Pio (Anthony’s mom). Of course also there was President John Perdigao and family, 20-30s President Anthony Pio, Youth President Matthew Teixeira and Queen Nicole Bettencourt.
I continue to be amazed at the amount of friendships that are created by the Luso visits. You truly don’t realize how many people you have met, how long you have known them and how much of a good time you have until you see each other again. Many of us only see each other at Convention, visits or some random festa that we just happened to be at. But as I continue my journey in Luso (god help me 28 years and counting) I realize that I have been doing this same thing, year after year, visit after visit and seeing some truly amazing people. We grow up, we watch each other get married, have children, watch their children grow up and follow in the footsteps of our parents, grandparents and so on. How amazing is it to look up at a head table where the 20-30’s President‘s Father was a 20-30’s President in the 90s, the Youth Presidents older Brother was just Youth President a few years ago, our MC’s were non other then Joseph Vieira and his youngest son Ethan and Josephs older son was sitting at the head table as a youth officer. To me this is what Luso is about; it’s about traditions, our culture and continuing what our fore fathers have done before us. I commend 47B for making sure their Youth and 20-30’s were very much a part of their special day.
To Region #1 of San Jose, Congratulations on reactivating! I look forward to seeing you all again throughout the year and can’t wait to see you accept your first Rim Award and maybe getting someone in the 20-30’s State Line. I think you all have an amazing opportunity to build your region and really continue to build the bridge between the Adults and the Youth. I see a lot of potential here and I can’t wait to see you all flourish! If there is ever anything you need please don’t hesitate to contact me. I love watching new councils be reborn and created.
Thank you Adult 47B, Region #1 and YC #2 for a wonderful afternoon, delicious food and wonderful memories. I enjoyed spending the afternoon with old friends and making new friends. I look forward to continuing to build all the friendships and to see you all throughout the year.
Next road trip…Visalia for the Luso Christmas Party…See you all there!
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Los Banos Visit
21B Los Banos – Region #15 Gustine/Los Banos – YC#18 Gustine/Los Banos
We celebrated Halloween with Adult Council 21B Los Banos, Region #15 and YC #18 on Sunday October 31st at the St. Joseph Parish Hall in Los Banos. I was joined by my Dad Carlos, LALIS Director and Assistant to the President Brienne Peixoto this afternoon. The morning to be honest started off rough as I had injured my knee in the Halloween festivities the night before at the Portuguese hall dance and was having a really rough time just being mobile. But I managed to get ready and head out to this visit with a smile and ready for more memories.
We arrived at the St. Josephs Parish just as mass was letting out. As we got there we were greeted by Arnold and MaryJo Rodrigues who had just arrived as well and walked into the hall to see some very familiar faces. The decorations were absolutely adorable. Mrs. Machado did a wonderful job with the festive center pieces made out of Cotton branches and candy!!! It was a free for all with some of the best Halloween candy. Just as expected everyone was very warm and welcoming.
It’s always good to see our Presidents and their families. We continue to create more and more memories as we all travel through the state visiting all these councils. I see you all and it brings a smile to my face and the laughter begins almost immediately. I’m having such an amazing time traveling with you guys.
My hats off to the Council of Los Banos council for a delicious lunch and Mr. Machado’s beans were as expected delicious. We had kept hearing how we all had to try them and they were correct, they were delicious! Congrats to YC#18 of Gustine for their 3rd place Trophy at the convention this year. You guys did an amazing job and thank you for performing for us again at the visit. It’s always wonderful to see so many youth participate in the Visit and throughout the year.
Thank you again to Los Banos for their fabulous luncheon, good times and wonderful memories. I look forward to seeing you over the next few years as I continue to my journey.
See you all at the Wine Tasting for Newark Council 19B and the San Jose Visit!
We celebrated Halloween with Adult Council 21B Los Banos, Region #15 and YC #18 on Sunday October 31st at the St. Joseph Parish Hall in Los Banos. I was joined by my Dad Carlos, LALIS Director and Assistant to the President Brienne Peixoto this afternoon. The morning to be honest started off rough as I had injured my knee in the Halloween festivities the night before at the Portuguese hall dance and was having a really rough time just being mobile. But I managed to get ready and head out to this visit with a smile and ready for more memories.
We arrived at the St. Josephs Parish just as mass was letting out. As we got there we were greeted by Arnold and MaryJo Rodrigues who had just arrived as well and walked into the hall to see some very familiar faces. The decorations were absolutely adorable. Mrs. Machado did a wonderful job with the festive center pieces made out of Cotton branches and candy!!! It was a free for all with some of the best Halloween candy. Just as expected everyone was very warm and welcoming.
It’s always good to see our Presidents and their families. We continue to create more and more memories as we all travel through the state visiting all these councils. I see you all and it brings a smile to my face and the laughter begins almost immediately. I’m having such an amazing time traveling with you guys.
My hats off to the Council of Los Banos council for a delicious lunch and Mr. Machado’s beans were as expected delicious. We had kept hearing how we all had to try them and they were correct, they were delicious! Congrats to YC#18 of Gustine for their 3rd place Trophy at the convention this year. You guys did an amazing job and thank you for performing for us again at the visit. It’s always wonderful to see so many youth participate in the Visit and throughout the year.
Thank you again to Los Banos for their fabulous luncheon, good times and wonderful memories. I look forward to seeing you over the next few years as I continue to my journey.
See you all at the Wine Tasting for Newark Council 19B and the San Jose Visit!
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