‍Part Eleven Acceptance And Change Continued

‍I smiled again before I replied, "Thank you ." Then he asked, "Have you thought about where you will live?" I bit my lip for a few minutes, then I said, "I guess an apartment some where in Simsbury ." He said, " That would be great, I train in Simsbury we can do lunch , or I can pick you up for dinner." I smiled for the hundredth time and replied, "Yeah, that would be fun I would like that." He said, "Yeah, maybe I will be able to help you move in when you are ready to move." I told him I would really appreciate that if he could. He said, "Yeah, I will get some young skaters from the rink to help me, like Andrei , and some others." I said, "Thank you, I would like to meet Andrei , that would be cool."

He laughed and replied, "Then it is settled , now we have to find you a place to live ." Then he added very softly , "Unless, you want to move in with me ." I laughed and exclaimed, "Alexei Yagudin!" He laughed and said, "Just thought I would offer you that option." My face was beet red , and he asked, "Suzanne ? Are you all right? I was just joking , I did not mean to make you feel embarrassed." I said, "Yes, I am fine , I will find a place . My dad and I are going to start looking on the Net after the holidays." He said, "I will look too, after all , I do live in Connecticut , and I want to help my friend ." I smiled and said, "Okay, well, I am getting sleepy ." He said, "All right, Good night , Suzie Q have a safe holiday." I said, "Yeah in Indiana , last year we were caught off guard by a surprise snow storm ." He chuckled and asked, "Really?"

I said, "Oh yes really and we did not have any snow boots, or snow tires for our car, cause my dad insisted we would not need them." He laughed and said, "Oh no, but you were okay right?" I said, "Yes, we made it through but we did go home early." He said, "Good, you have a safe trip back to Indiana , I will miss you ." I smiled and yawned before I replied, "Thank you, so much you have a happy holiday too, and I will miss you too." He said, "Bye, Suzanne , I will talk to you soon ." I said, "Bye, yes I will talk to you soon , at least I hope." He said, "Yes, you will , I hope you have happy and sweet dreams." I said, "Aww, I did last time you told me to ." He said, "Good , take care of yourself , have fun , but not too much fun." I laughed softly and said, "I will , and I won't have too much fun ." We both hung up and I tucked the covers around me, flipped off the TV , but then I remembered to cover Petie. I gave him his good night kiss , then I made myself comfy and cozy before my eyes closed in a sweet dream filled slumber.

To Be Continued  

After lunch, I talked to my very close friend On-line and while I talked with her , I had a surprise come for me .
I excitedly told her about my early birthday present, my mom and dad ordered the Olympic video tapes that I had wanted and hinted about. She was just as delighted as I was. I finished my packing later on that same afternoon, I only had to add the last minute items. We all ate some soup for supper , I talked to other friends On-line until it was time for us to exchange our Christmas gifts. I had more lovely gifts from them for my Christmas presents, a brand new journal with a ruby throated humming bird on the front. They also gave me some new stationery , that had different kinds of pansies on it , with matching envelopes. My most thrilling moment was when I unwrapped my brand , new VCR ! I needed one so badly , my other one was on the fritz. After we finished cleaning up the wrapping paper, I went back to the computer. I shared with my friends what I had gotten for my early Christmas presents. Then all of the sudden, I had an IM window pop up. I was so happy when I saw whom the sn belonged to , none other than Alexei ! He typed, See, I told you we would talk again. I smiled the brightest smile before I typed back, Yes, Hey! I am so happy that I got to see you again before I left! He sent back a   . Then he asked, Are you all packed? When do you leave again?

 To Be Continued

‍Part Twelve Traveling Home For The Holidays Continued  

Sydney showed me a video game she had, and I think I got into it more than she did. I was yelling excitedly, "Get the fish!" "Look , Sydeney there's one , oh get it, get it!" I was practically jumping up and down as I pointed at the sea gull's egg and shouted, "There it is ! Yay we found it!" She looked at me like I was crazy, but I thought her game was very cute, it was called , Kingdom Hearts , and the Disney characters came into it later when the main characters went into this town. Later on that day, I went with Mike to see my sister at the hospital. She had been in a quarantined room , and there were supposed to be a table with masks out side. Mike and I just waltzed in there as if it was a normal room. The nurse came in and strongly advised us to wear a face mask.
We were like, "There were not any masks out there." She said, "Well, I will make sure there is now." We put on our masks that she provided for us, mine was a little big, and I had to hold on to it.

Lynn wanted to know how Sydney was doing and I told her about our day of playing video games. When she looked sleepy, we hugged her or maybe I just blew a kiss and said, "I love you, feel better." Then we left her in peace and I spent another night in the day care. Thursday was Christmas , and it was sad without Lynn there, we just kept the kids and Mike company. Then mom and dad and I went to visit Lynn in the hospital, and she sounded like she was getting a little better.
She even told us, that if she passed the check up tomorrow, she will get to come home. That was wonderful news, they were giving her some strong medicine, and they also found out she just had a very bad and rare case of the flu. Friday to my extreme happiness we spent most of the time at Lynn's house. Sydney and Bryan were getting so anxious to open their presents , that Mike asked Lynn on the phone if they could open their gifts. She gave them her blessing and they were like little tornadoes ripping through the packages , and saying, "Thank you", as they went a long.

After they opened their gifts, we cleaned up the paper and bows, and then they grabbed me to show me their new gifts. Then we ate some lunch and Mike went to pick up Lynn. As the day wore on, we became increasingly worried, because they were not home yet. Finally around close to 7PM that evening they pulled up. I hugged the day lights out of my sister, because I had lost another sister and it began with her missing. But after that scary moment, we all had our traditional Christmas eve together. First, we ate all kinds of food, and I ate my favorite hard candy M&M's by the hand full . Then we all sat around a nice , cozy fire , and watched A Christmas Carol , then we exchanged our gifts to them , and they handed our's from them to us.

I loved my snow globe with the white carousel horse inside that had pretty sparkling snow that came down when I shook it. Then a beautiful song played when I turned the wind up key on the bottom. We finally had to say our good byes and good nights and I had  to return to that room. I fell asleep and rested peacefully until Saturday morning greeted me with bright sunshine, that was nice to see. We had breakfast, just some cereal and then we headed over to Lynn's house and spent our last day with them. I played  video games with Sydney , or just watched her play. My nephew , Bryan cracked me up with his skate boarding game, called, Tony Hawk Underground .

I thought that was the name of it, anyway he created this skater that wore a frog out fit and he called the skater, Mr.Mac.Doodle , or maybe it was Mr. Mac. Ribbit . The game was a hoot , and I had so much fun just watching it. That evening, we had our traditional Christmas dinner, and as always Lynn made me my favorite , Corn Casserole. Sydney and I helped set the table, and clear off the table , and we helped with the dishes while I told Lynn all about my job opportunity. She told me that she was happy for me.

There was a funny thing that happened back at that old basement ,when we were all getting ready to go to sleep. I was laying in the bed, and the next thing I heard was a loud BOOM! Then my parents were laughing so hard, I could not help but not to laugh with them. They both said , "We broke the bed." I laughed even harder, and I called out, "What , you broke the bed?" We all filled the place with our laughter , then we all went to sleep. Once morning came, I mean early morning we got out of there. We drove out of Indiana and into Ohio, and Kentucky, where we stopped for lunch . By Monday evening , we were in Georgia and I started feeling bad, and I was coming down with a cold. I was so happy to be back home on Tuesday, I unpacked and caught up with friends. However, my cold took a turn for the worse, I spent most of my return to home in bed and sleeping. I also watched my Olympic tapes, and tried to gather enough strength just to smile when Alexei 's image filled the screen. He was phenomenal , and I loved watching his winning performance to The Man In The Iron Mask. But after he skated, I had a very hard time staying awake to watch the rest. That night, all I did was sleep when my coughing spells would allow me to . However, it still felt wonderful to be back home and in my own room again.

To Be Continued

Part Thirteen Searching For A New Home

January quickly came , and with the new year came new anxieties because I knew that I only had a month to find a place to live . I finally had gotten rid of my cold, that was good, but my mind was constantly thinking and wondering if I was going to be able to find a new place. I had no idea where to even begin as far as my apartment hunting went. My dad suggested one morning over breakfast that we spend some time On -line looking at the apartments. I thanked him and told him I liked his idea. After I helped mom with clearing the table, and rinsing the dishes before we placed them into the dishwasher, my dad and I began our search. He booted up the computer and he asked me, "Have you thought about what you want to do with your car?"
I replied, "Honestly, no, my mind can not even think about my car , or what I should do with it, I thought I was keeping it." He said, "Well, you could, but it is an older car, I would feel better if you were driving a newer car, and if you put an ad in the paper and on channel 12 , and put it up for sale, then that would help you pay for your apartment." I said, "Yes, I could do that, because, like you said, that would help pay for my apartment." Then we went to Yahoo , and decided to search for Realtors . We did not come up empty handed when the results page showed up. My dad said, "Well, that is encouraging." I smiled and finally felt some relief .

He said, "Okay, now we will narrow the choices down, so that we don't get overwhelmed." I laughed and replied , "Good idea, dad." He typed the word Connecticut , into another little search box on the website that we found. Instantly we were given listings of property available in Connecticut . My dad asked me, "Where have you thought about living, what city?" I thought it over and then I said in return, "Well, I think it would be logical to find an apartment in Simsbury, since the preschool is located there."
He said, "Yes, I think you are right, let's see what we can find there." He inquired information about the apartments that were for sale there. We were given a different list, one that only had the names of the available apartments, he clicked on a name and a map of it's location and picture were shown. I did not think that building was close enough to the preschool . He moved on and then we both were very excited when we saw how close another apartment building was to my new job's location. Dad also noticed that the Realtor's name and contact information was on another page. He said, "Well, let's call this number." I had nervous butterflies in my stomach , because I always hated to talk to perfect strangers on the phone.

I knew it was crazy for me to feel that way, because I easily chatted with Mrs. Snow, but she called me though. I just hated being the one to do the calling . However, I wanted this apartment and I just had to swallow all of my fears and go for what I needed. I honestly needed this apartment , I had to have a roof over my head. I swallowed the large lump in my throat and my dad told me the numbers I had to dial. The phone rang and rang, I was so tempted to chicken out and hang up, but the look on my dad's face silently told me that was not an option.
I just held on tight and continued to listen to the ringing sound in my ear, then finally I heard a click from the other end. A female voice stated, "Century 21 , Angela speaking how may I help you today?" I swallowed a few more times, then I calmly replied, "Hello, my name is Suzanne Jones, and I was looking at your apartments that you have in Simsbury , Connecticut ." She said, "Hello, Suzanne , what apartment did you see?" I took a quick peek at the screen , and I saw the name of the building. I replied, "I was looking at the apartments named, Trade Wind Apartments." She said, "Okay, would you like a tour of the building?" I replied, "I would love to, but I am not in Connecticut at the moment, I live in Florida for now." She chuckled and said, "Well, yes that would make things hard wouldn't it. Did you see it On-line ?"

I responded back to her with, "Yes, I have to relocate to Connecticut for a job I have been hired for." She said, "Ah , I see, okay well you can still take a tour. We have a new feature that allows our On-line customers to take a virtual tour. I think that particular apartment should give you that feature, we have recently added it to the website." I said, "Oh, okay that's great I will look at it right now." Then I remembered my manners and said, "Thank you, Angela ." She said, "You're welcome, why don't you give me your home phone number and I will call you back in a couple of days." I said, "Sure, that sounds good, I don't have all of the time in the world, I have to move sometime in February." Then, I gave her my home phone number, and my cell phone number just in case she could not reach me at my home number.
I hung up the phone and relayed everything to my dad, then we found the camera icon and clicked on it. We compared several buildings , by noticing the outside's appearance, the inside , and we also looked at some of the rooms. In my opinion, the Trade Wind Apartments were nicer than the other ones we saw. The outside yard had trees , and a little area with a play ground for children to safely romp around in. The inside of the building looked very clean and well cared for. I was impressed with the rooms that we looked at, each one had fresh paint on the walls. My dad seemed pleased too, and no matter what my mind was made up . My next item of business was to work on the ad to give to The Daily Sun , and our very own channel 12, where news for events for our community was aired for television viewing every day. Once, I was satisfied with my description of my used car , I turned my ad in to both places . Then I spent a few hours on packing some of my things , just so that I could have a good start.

As promised, I had a telephone call from Angela and we discussed my potential purchase even further. She wanted to know if my impressions of the apartment building had changed since we had last spoken. I told her that I was sold on the place and I was ready to find out what rooms were for sale. She laughed at my enthusiasm , and my eagerness , but she was happy I felt that way. I also asked her if pets were allowed, and that I did not see anything regarding pets. She told me she would check into that, and put me on hold. Then she came back and told me that she had a conversation with Linda , who would be my land lord. Linda told her that she would not mind a small pet , even small dogs were allowed.
I was happy with that news, and she told me that she would call me again and let me know what rooms were available. While I was anticipating her phone call back , I answered phone calls of my own concerning my car. I had many interested callers and they even came to the house to see my car. I had one person, an older man fall in love with the white color, and the maroon leather seats. I had said in my ads that the price was negotiable , I put it up for sale for $2,500 The man bought my car two days later and paid me what I asked for. Everything seemed to be falling into place, because after that happened , Angela called me back and told me there was a room available , and the price of the room was $400, and the down payment or "damage deposit " would be $800 .
I had $2,500 already , but I had to figure out how to come up with some money to buy a new car. I knew, that I could use some money from my personal savings account, but that was going to have to be for reserved for my living expenses. My dad even offered to help with some of the payment, but , then I would want to pay him back . I took all of these matters to my heavenly father in prayer before I went to sleep , the only I did know for certain, was that the search for my home was very close to coming to an end.

To Be Continued

 Part Fourteen Connecticut , My New Home !

The following morning , I woke up feeling very excited but, I still wondered if I could really afford the apartment's rent. I had the down payment , but I still wanted to be sure that I could continue those payments, and I considered, the idea of looking for a different apartment . I made my bed as I thought about the way time was slipping away from me, and how I really could not look for another apartment .
I also thought about the possibility of me having to find another job , and that was the only other solution I could think of. I went through my morning routine as usual , and then I answered the phone a little while later on that morning . The caller was Mrs. Snow, and she told me that Caroline had told her that I passed all of my back ground checks . I tried to sound happier than I felt , and I was a good actress , because she could not tell that I was having second thoughts .
However, my mood quickly took a turn for the better after my dad shared some news with me. He said, "Suz, I have been thinking ." I sat down next to him on the couch and I asked, "What have you been thinking?" He said, "Well, you know that money that grandma Jones sends us for Christmas ?" I said, "Yes, I do ." I had also secretly hoped that he was going to say that he was going to let me have some of that, to deposit into my savings account. Because, part of the money was always set aside for a special gift, which I assumed was used for the computer.

His next statement let me know that I had the correct assumption . He said, "Now, your half went towards the new computer, that you will get to take with you." I said, "Okay, I thought so ." I told myself to forget that idea, then he continued on by telling me, "However, there is still some money left over, and your mother and I have been talking about giving it to you ."
At first, I could not believe my ears , and I asked, "Did you just say that you will give me the money?" He smiled and gave me a hug as he said, "That is what I said, because you will need all of the money you can have once you get there." I hugged my dad back and I still could not believe that I would be able to afford living there . Then he asked me, "You have $2,500 from your car being sold right?" I replied, "Yes, I do ." He said, "The deposit was what $800 ?" I said, "Yes, and the apartment was $400."

He said, "Okay, we will go to the bank and cash the check grandma gave us." I smiled brightly at him and I gave him another big hug and thanked him. Then, I told him about how I was having second thoughts about whether, or not I would be able to afford living in that apartment, and how I was thinking about having to get another job, or even looking for another apartment complex. My dad gave me a hug , and he said, "Suzanne, you are just afraid of this change, the apartment was reasonable, it was one of the most reasonable, that we had seen, you will be fine, because you are very responsible with your money."

"I know that you will continue to be responsible, that you will make a living in Connecticut, just take things one step at time." I gave him another hug, and I told him that I felt a lot better. Then, after our talk I had a call from Caroline and she told me more about the job . She told me that I would have four and five year olds, and that I would have two groups with the other teachers that I would assist. One group would come in the morning, and one group would come in the afternoon. I would be working the whole week, and I would earn $6.00 an hour ." However, I could get a raise depending on how well I do. I thanked her and told, that everything sounded great. She told me that she was looking forward to seeing me and meeting me. I told her the same and then we hung up .

I was busy from that moment on, I worked on packing the rest of my things in my room. We all decided to put my day bed up for sale , since I only had space for one bed in my new room. I was paid a pretty penny for it, although I was a little sad to see it go. My dad also decided that we would fly , since it was in the middle of the winter months. We booked us a flight on the Web. We also looked for a moving company , that went out of state . Once we did find one, we moved all of my belongings over into a storage area.
The rest of January , went by fairly quickly and on the night before my big move, I packed all of the clothes I could into my suitcase, while the others hung up on hangers in big, long, boxes . I sent Alexei an e-mail to let him know that I was coming his way. I assumed that since he was very busy with the tour he had being in Stars on Ice, that he probably had forgotten his offer to help me move in. I was okay with that, because I had my mom and dad ,and we would manage just fine with the three of us.

Although, I would have loved to meet Andrei , I probably would have gotten another chance.
I told all of my friends On -line , that I was packing up the computer and leaving in the morning for Connecticut . I went to sleep that night in my sleeping bag, but I was too excited to sleep. I read a little bit before I finally nodded off to sleep. The following morning, I spent some valuable time with Petie, as I slowly changed his food , and his water, and I cleaned his tray. I also explained to him, that he would be coming to Connecticut and how he would join me in our new home. Before, I kissed his cobalt blue tummy, and choked back the tears.
Then I got his area prepared for my neighbor Brenda. I ate a bowl of cereal , gathered my suitcase and placed it in a corner in the kitchen. The moving truck arrived, and I greeted the movers , and even helped them load some of my boxes. Once everything was loaded onto their truck, they headed on down the road. Then my mom, dad , and I were taken to the airport by Ken and Brenda. Before I knew it, I was boarding the plane that would take me to Connecticut , my new home.

To Be Continued

 Part Fifteen On My Way





The plane touched down on the runway, I eagerly looked out the window. I was finally there well at least I was in Connecticut . I
noticed the snow on the ground and I made sure that I pulled out my heavy winter  coat from the over head compartment. The cold, bitter, wind hit me as I
exited the plane.  I took a deep breath and went into the airport, and we all found our luggage. My dad headed over to the car rental place and he rented a car
for us to get around in , while we got me settled in . Before I went out to wait on
our car rental shuttle to pick us up, I pulled my gloves on and snapped my coat's hood.




We waited for at least 5 or 10 minutes before the van pulled up. A nice young man gave us a warm greeting, and my dad handed him the papers. We
drove up the road for a ways then he pulled in and said, "Okay, let's see your car
should be in this space right over here." We all looked out to see a  nice car that was a Pontiac Grand Am. He said, "Here you are, the keys are in the ignition , the tank is full and you have no limit on how many miles you use." We thanked him and he helped us un load our luggage , then my dad asked, "Where can we find a good place to eat?"




The young man told us that if we turn to our right , we will find an  exit . Then he said, "Hold on, I will get you a map ." He gave us a map
and toldus to just pull the car up to that window over there and we would be on  our way. We thanked him again and quickly got into the car, and my dad
turned on the heat and warmed the car up for a few minutes . After the car was ready  to go, mom and I helped him by telling him that our way was clear, and
if any car was coming. He drove up to the window, handed the woman the papers, she gave
him a sticker and then we were on our way.




We located the exit that the man told us about and pulled off the main
high way. My mom and I looked on the left and right sides of the road. I
said, "There is a Mc.Donalds over there , but I don't really see any
thing else that we would be interested in. " Dad replied, "I am
hungry, let's just go there." Mom said, "Yes, sounds good to me too." My
dad turned on his right turn signal, as we told him if he could
pull in or not. Once some one let him in we went down the hill , and
parked the car.




I was so hungry, I told dad that I wanted a 20 piece chicken mc.nugget,
but then I changed my mind and said, "No, wait, I want a Mc. Grilled
chicken sandwich. " My mom ordered a fish sandwich and we all had a large fry.
The fries tasted so good, they were very hot, and not too salty,
everything was so good. We enjoyed our meal and talked about what we would be doing over
the next several days.




The moving truck was supposed to arrive in two days , three at the
latest. After our lunch was over, we cleaned up our trash and threw it
away. My mom gave my dad directions to the next nearest town. We were going to stay in a
hotel , for two days until we would meet the moving truck in Simsbury at
my new apartment.  My dad drove for the rest of the afternoon, and that evening we stopped
at a town that was fairly close to Simsbury. However, I was asleep when
we arrived , so I did not know the name of the town. We checked into a little hotel and
the clerk was very nice to tell us where we could get a decent supper.




We settled into our room first, then we went to the restaurant . The
waitress seated us and we looked at the menu. My dad said, "Hey Suz,
they have a fried chicken dinner ." I asked, "Where do you see that?" He said, "On
the back where they have dinner specials." I said, "Thanks, dad , that sounds very good." Although, I also noticed a
chicken and noodle meal that looked very delicious. I said, "Yum, I
think I will have the chicken and noodles instead, I miss grandma's already."
Mom and dad ordered a fish platter, and I had the most delicious ,
tender, chicken and noodles , just like grandma's . The noodles also came with
creamy mashed potatoes, a sweet roll, and a small dinner salad. While we
ate we talked about how we were going to get Petie there with me. Dad told me
that when the weather gets warmer up here, that they would come and
bring Petie to me.




After our very satisfying dinner, we went back to the hotel and spent
the rest of our evening watching the television . Then we all went to
sleep , although I really was too excited to sleep. I just had to force myself to sleep.
The following morning, we ate some breakfast that the hotel provided,
then we checked out and went in search of another hotel to spend the rest of our wait in
. I thought about Alexei, and I also hoped that my computer was going
to be okay. Our last move shook our old computer up pretty bad. I could not wait to tell
him that I was finally in Connecticut , and that I was on my way to
starting a new chapter in my life .

To Be Continued 

Part Seventeen Getting Settled In



After I moved into my new apartment, the next several days were spent unpacking more of my boxes. We also got my computer up and
running again. I was very happy to have it with me. This time , the computer arrived safe and sound, also all in one piece. The monitor looked really good too.
The only thing that was missing, was my Internet. I wanted to stay away from dial up , if I could have that opportunity. However, I also wanted to be back
On-line as quickly as I could. Before my mom and dad had to leave me, my dad helped me shop around for a new provider.




He even called my old Internet Provider , they were very helpful and we were informed about a service similar to theirs. I called the number,
that theysuggested we should call. A young woman answered the phone and started helping me create a new account with them right away, after I answered
some questions and then I had a new account ready to be activated. A team of experts  came to my apartment , and quickly installed my new service. My dear
On-line friend was very happy I was back On-line. We talked for hours that afternoon, as she got me caught up on news of Alexei.




That was news I gladly wanted to always keep informed about. She directed me to some wonderful reviews .I realized in that moment, that I
really missed him like crazy. After I read the reviews and saved some great pictures of him onto my computer, I helped mom , as she showed me how to prepare a
meal. I always had helped her , but tonight on the night before they had to leave, we wanted a special meal. We went to work in the kitchen. First of all , we
washed our hands using warm water and soap. Then as Mom always showed me, we gathered all of our pots bowls, and pans needed to cook in.




Then I grabbed the bag a flour , one egg, and some salt , and garlic powder. We used two glass mixing bowls for the flour and egg. I cracked
the egg open intoone of the bowls, then mom poured flour into the other one. I cut the  package of the thawed chicken open and I pulled the chicken out.




After washing my hands again, mom and I pulled the parts of the chicken apart. Once that was done , we washed our hands again . My dad peeled
the potatoes forus. I also got out another bowl for our salad. My mom and I sprinkled some salt and garlic powder onto the chicken , then I helped her dip
each piece into the bowl with the egg and then the other bowl with flour.




We got out our big skillet , or frying pan and we poured in a cap full of vegetable oil . Once the burner turned red hot , we carefully placed
the chicken intothe sizzling grease. Dad came in and said, "Potatoes are peeled." Mom gave him a kiss and said, "Great Hon, can you put them in that glass
dish over there?" He replied using a silly voice as he said, "Certainly." I smiled , as I secretly hoped that when I did meet the right man for me,
we would be just as loving towards each other as we grew older together, as the first day we met. Just like my own parents , they loved each
other through the ups and downs of their lives.




Dad placed the potatoes in the glass cook ware . Mom said, "You can go  on ahead and start your famous mashed potatoes." I laughed at that , I
had to admit , they were good, but only because I had learned from the best, and she showed me what to every step of the way. The chicken started
to fry , and the aroma was heavenly. I loved home made fried chicken. Then I took a knife and I sliced the potatoes into the glass pan, before I brought the
sliced potatoes over to the sink. I covered the potatoes with water from the tap. After the potatoes were submerged in water, I put the pan on the stove and I
turned the stove on, and allowed the water and potatoes to come to a boil.




I checked on the potatoes progress often and kept on stirring them with a spoon, to prevent any of the potatoes from sticking to the bottom of
the glass pan. Once the potatoes started feeling softer, I drained the water, and left a little to keep them moist. Then I grabbed a tablespoon from the kitchen
drawer , and I chopped them up into even smaller pieces, or I pre-mashed them so to speak. Before, I added a tablespoon of butter , and I poured a little
bit of milk. After I added the milk, I took my electric mixer and beat the potatoes until,  they were smooth and creamy. I sprinkled some salt over them and stirred
the potatoes.




My dad did a taste test for me, as he blew on the spoon , and took a bite . Then he said, "They need a little more butter." I smiled and
replied,"Okay dad, I'll add some more." I skimmed a tiny amount off from the top of the butter , and shook it off from the spoon. I announced, "The
mashed potatoes are done." I put a lid on the glass pan , to keep them hot.




I got the rolls ready to be put into the oven, and I rinsed the lettuce off and broke it into pieces. Dad peeled an onion for the salad , as I
chopped up the green peppers. My mom made a request for some tomatoes as well. Then I  poured the shredded, Cheddar cheese over the green lettuce. We added an
Italian dressing , made of an Italian seasoning and olive oil . Mom and I set my little table in the dining room. I still could not believe , that I had
a place of my own. I went back into the kitchen and checked on the rolls in the oven. I
also checked on the frying chicken , and mom said, "Those are done now,
these are the last pieces that need to go in."




We placed the cooked chicken pieces on a platter. When everything was ready, we sat down and ate our meal, after we thanked the Lord for our
food. We all complemented each other for the job well done . After we were finished, I cleared the dishes from the table , and washed the dishes. Later on
that evening, I talked to Brenda on the phone, to see how Petie was doing. She told me that Petie was doing great , and that he missed us, but they have been
getting along. She wanted to know how things went for me. I told her about moving in and  getting settled .




She wished me luck with my new job, I thanked her and then I hung up. We spent our last night playing a game that we all enjoyed, called Rummikub.
Thegame was fun, but it also was very challenging , because we had to place numbers in a certain order and sequences. We all had a hard time,
just laying down numbers that added up to 30 points, to even be able to start! However,
we still had a lot of fun and shared a lot of laughter that night.




The next morning was bittersweet, as I went with my parents back to the air port. Because, I had to say good bye to my mom and dad. I gave them a
hug, we all cried this was quite a change for us. I watched them get in line to  board the plane. Dad told me that he would call me, when they arrived
back in Florida. I watched the plane , as it made its way down the run way, and if flew up  into the sky. I called a taxi, then I sat down and waited for it to
arrive. The taxi pulled up , and I gave the man directions to my apartment .




When he pulled up to my building , I smiled and said, "Thank you." He  told me how much cab fare I owed him. I gave him the correct amount and
got out. As I looked at the apartment building, the realization that I was really alone hit me. No one would be with me, I was by myself. I went
inside and went up to my apartment. I tried not to let the loneliness , that I was  beginning to feel surround me , or pull me down.




Instead , I got busy with unpacking some more boxes, then I watched sometelevision. Talking to friends On-line certainly was a life saver. I
also found twopictures of Petie , I placed one in a frame that I would keep by my bed, then I decided to have one with me at the computer. I missed him the
most, he was my best friend, he was more than just my pet. He had seen me during happy times, and he patiently listened to me as I told him about the times I
had a broken heart. He was also my room mate , and a very good one. I hoped that  winter would go fast, so I could see him , talk to him, and pet his
tummy. His picture did help him feel closer.




Later on, I had left overs from last night for supper. Mom and Dad did  call , and they let me know how Petie was doing. That helped me , to
know that he wasdoing well. After I hung up the phone, I had a call on my cell phone. The voice I heard on the other end, almost made me drop the phone! I
excitedly said, "Alexei!"




He asked me how I was doing. I replied, "Much better, now." He wanted to know what was wrong, and I shared with him about the move , and that I
also was feeling lonely. He told me that he could understand. I asked him  about the tour, he told me about his experiences and gave me a sense of
renewed hope.




He told me that I was not really alone, and that he would give me a call every once in a while , and check to see how I was doing. He also
apologized for not keeping his word. I forgave him and joked with him, by telling him that I would save a few boxes for him to unpack. Later on that night, I gave
Petie's picture a kiss and I went to sleep, finally feeling like I was getting  settled in.



To Be Continued  

Part Eighteen Starting To Know One Another

The phone conversation that I had with Alexei , really helped me. The doubts that had hovered around my head, like little rain clouds , disappeared . The sunshine outside helped too. I was going to be fine, and I was ready to face starting over. I was never a stranger to starting over, I had to start from the beginning when I made the move with my family to Florida. I had worries and fears then too, but I finally got myself adjusted to the new lifestyle. I think that step helped me make this move to Connecticut a little more possible .

However, today was a big one, because I started my new job. The rest of the weekend went by fairly quickly, as I unpacked more boxes. I also kept my promise to Alexei , and saved him a box to unpack. Sunday night, I looked for the right outfit to wear the following day.  I did not want to be too dressed up, and I did not want to be too casual . I even asked Nina, my dear On-line friend , what she thought I should do. She advised me to wear a nice sweater and a long skirt. Just to be on the safe side . She also told me that , I would have a better idea once I saw what the other teachers wore.

So now, on this very important day in my life, well one of them , I was looking for the right sweater and skirt combination . I finally decided on a light, blue sweater and a black skirt with light, blue flowers on it, and my black flats. I was satisfied with my choice, and I quickly got dressed. After I got dressed, I applied some make up , and a little bit of lipstick , but not too much. Then my next choice was what I would have for my breakfast. I looked around the kitchen , and I thought a steaming bowl of oatmeal sounded really good.

I popped a piece of toast into the toaster. I read the instructions on the packet , as I added the measured amount of water, and I poured in the instant oatmeal. I placed the bowl in the microwave and set it to the microwave to the required minutes. My toast came up with a POP! I buttered my toast and then I heard a knock on the door. I ran to the door, and looked through my little peep hole. I asked, "Who is it?" A male voice said, "I'm one of your neighbors , Ben Stiltson ." I slowly opened the door , and I saw an older gentleman that had steel, cold, blue eyes.
I cautiously said, "Hello, nice to meet you Ben, I am Suzanne." He smiled and when he did, I noticed a happy twinkle in his eyes. I believed that he really was a kind older man and I had no reason to fear him. He replied, "I know, I just wanted to welcome you, and give you this apple crumb cake , the other neighbors baked for you." I smiled in return, and said, "That was very nice of you, thank you."

He handed me the cake and asked, "Did you know when the trash comes?" I tried to recall if Linda had told me, and I could not remember. I said, "No, I don't." He said, "The trash gets collected every Tuesday , we have a big dumpster around back." He answered my next question, just from his reply. Then he added, "Just make sure you have all of your trash in the dumpster by tonight." I smiled and replied, "Thank you, for letting me know, I will do just that." He replied, "No problem, Suzanne , if you need anything knock on my door, it's right down the hall."
I said, "I will be sure to do that , have a nice day Ben." He smiled once again, and said, "Thanks, you too, young lady." He walked off and I shut my door. I saw the time on the clock , I was still on schedule . The cake smelled delicious, but I was good and placed it in the fridge. My oatmeal finished with a Beep! I let it cool off for a couple of minutes , while I set myself a place at the table. Then, I put the butter and sugar into my oatmeal and carefully carried the bowl to the table.

Then, I poured myself a glass of milk and added some chocolate syrup to it. I said my prayer of thanks to the Lord. Then I ate my breakfast , after I cleaned my bowl and cleared the table . I had my devotions and during my prayer time, I prayed for my family, friends, and my first day of my new job. Then I noticed that the time for me to go had come . I put on my coat , and I grabbed my purse , I also made sure I had everything I needed, then I headed out the door. I went to the elevator and rode it down to the main level. I made my way outside into the cold morning air. At least there was no ice on the side walk, that was taken care of by the salt. I hurried along my way, until a car pulled up by the the side walk, and I heard a female voice say, "Excuse me, but you look like you could use a ride." I turned to look at her and the car. I said, "That's okay Madam I am only going a block, I don't need a ride , thank you for the offer." I could not help but notice, that she looked oddly familiar . I was trying to figure out where I had seen this woman.

She had blonde hair , that came down to her shoulders . She also had sunglasses on , so I really could not see her eyes. Yet, her voice sounded like one I heard before , it had an accent a very thick accent. I could tell that she was not going to give up, so I finally accepted the ride and got into her car. I said, "Thank you, I hope you don't have to go out of your way for me." She asked, "Where are you going , dear?" I smiled , I liked this woman . I replied, " Little Tikes Preschool ." She said, "Ah, that is on my way." Then she asked, "Are you new here, dear?" I replied, "Yes, I moved here from Florida." I also added, "My name is Suzanne." She said, "Nice to meet you Suzanne, you may call me Tatyana." After she told me her name it hit me, I knew why she sounded so familiar to me. I was also very honored that I was given a ride by Tatyana Tarasova !

She broke into my thoughts when she said, "Ah, Florida is nice, but the weather is a little too warm for my liking." I smiled and replied, "It is a lot better than Indiana, in the winter time it has a lot of snow and not very much sunshine." She pulled up her car in front of the school, and she asked, "Would you like to have ride home?" I thought her offer over and replied, "Yes, that would be great, I mean if you can." I told her that I got out at 2:30 PM, and she told me that she would be there waiting for me. She also said, "I hope you have a very good day." I smiled and replied, "Thank you Tatyana , I wish you the same." She drove off, I looked at the building in front of me and took in a deep breath of air. I walked towards the office, once I went inside. I finally got to meet Caroline . She looked like a kind woman, she had brown hair that hung down on her shoulders. She had warm brown eyes , and she wore a red sweater with black dress slacks. I was given a friendly handshake , and she led me into another room.

She gave me the forms that I needed to fill out, for the preschool's own records. I worked on filling those out and then I handed them back to her, before she led me down the hallway and to the room where I was assigned . We walked in and she greeted a young woman, as she said, "Good morning , Anna I would like for you to meet the other new assistant, this is Miss. Suzanne."
She smiled at me and I smiled in return. She said, "Nice to meet you, Miss. Suzanne and welcome to Little Tikes." I smiled again and replied, "Thank you, Miss. Anna , or is it Mrs. ?" Miss. Anna replied, "It is Miss, you had it right the first time." I laughed with a very nervous chuckle, and I also tried not to blush. I thought she was very pretty, she had auburn colored hair that was pulled into a bun. Her eyes were the color of hazel . She had on a light purple sweater with light colored slacks. I made a mental note to myself, Can wear slacks. Another woman came in and said, "Good morning Caroline."

Caroline smiled at the woman and replied, "Good morning, Sandra." I said, "Hello, I am Miss. Suzanne." Sandra smiled and my shook my outstretched hand. She replied, "Hello Suzanne . Welcome to Little Tikes." I smiled, as I observed her. She was tall, with blue eyes. She wore a pink sweater and dress pants. She seemed friendly, she asked me, "For your name tag, what would you like to be?" She held up a blue dolphin made out of felt. She said, "Our morning group are dolphins , and the afternoon group are whales." I said, "I love dolphins." She wrote my name on the felt dolphin , and then I pinned my dolphin on, while she explained to me, that the other teacher , Michelle had to leave, she had a rare form of cancer, before Caroline excused herself and left the room. I gasped and said, "Oh, I am so sorry."

She informed me of a collection they are taking for Michelle in the lounge. I told her , that I would be sure to bring in some money , that I was a little low on cash today. She smiled and assured me that every little bit counts. Miss. Anna started to take the chairs off the tables, and I jumped in to help. She placed a sticker on the back of each chair, with the child's name . I also saw a bowl where all of the children's name tags were, a fish bowl to be more exact. Sandra said, "The morning group should be here any minute." Anna and I both replied, "Okay." and laughed for saying the same thing at the exact same time. I sprayed the two tables, and wiped them clean. Anna asked me , "Miss. Suzanne, could you help me with these carpet squares?" I smiled and said, "Sure, Miss. Anna." We walked around the circle time area , and in a strategic way placed them down on the floor.
The first few arrived , I smiled at them , and I said, "Hello, Good morning." Sandra directed the children over to the carpet squares. Anna grabbed the fish bowl and we made our way over as well. All of the boys and girls had a seat on a carpet square. 

To Be Continued

 ‍Part Eighteen Starting To Know One Another Continued

‍Anna and I sat down too. I had to tuck my legs under my skirt, to the side. I listened to Mrs.Parker , that was Sandra's last name. She had been married for over a year now. She said, "Welcome back, everyone, you probably are wondering who these new faces are , right?" The children responded back, "Yes." She gave them a reassuring smile and said, "Well, your other teacher is very sick, she can't be with you anymore, but you have new teachers. My name is Mrs.Parker, and these young women with me today are your teachers too." Anna and I joined Mrs.Parker, when she motioned for us to come where she was sitting.

She announced, "This young lady over here on my left is Miss. Suzanne." I waved and smiled , as I said, "Hello." Miss. Anna was introduced , then Mrs.Parker said, "We are all starting a new semester together, and we need to learn each other's names." She asked , "Miss. Anna could you go and get the fish bowl for us?" She replied, "Yes, Mrs. Parker I will." Sandra continued with, "We have a fish bowl , that has all of your names on felt dolphins."

"Miss. Anna and Miss. Suzanne , are going to ask you, your name and help you get your name tags on." Anna and I decided to divide the name tags, and I was told to take the boys. I grabbed all of the dolphins that had the little boys names on them and headed towards the first boy. He had blond hair and very pale blue eyes. I knelt down to his level, and I asked, " What is your name?" The little boy replied, "Alexander Robinson." I said, "Okay, let me see which one is your's." I looked through the stack of felt dolphins, that I had. I quickly found his dolphin and I said, "Here you are," as I smiled. The little boy , excuse me, Alexander Robinson, gave me a big grin back. I noticed that he just lost one of his front teeth, he was cute. He replied, "Thanks, Miss. Suz .....Suz.... ," I smiled  and said my name slowly for him, "Suz-an-ne." He repeated after me, as I said, "Suz-an-ne." He smiled and exclaimed, "Miss. Suzanne!" I clapped my hands and I said, " Very good, Alexander!"

He beamed back at me, and then I asked, "Do you need help getting  your dolphin pinned on?" He said, "No, I will get it." I smiled and said, "Okay, let Miss Suzanne know if you do."
He said, "Okay." I moved onto the next little boy, he had brown hair , and big brown eyes . I smiled and asked, "What is your name?" He looked at me kind of with a shy expression. I gave him a warm smile, he whispered, "Mark Miller." I whispered back, "Okay, Mark let me see if I can find your dolphin." I found his dolphin right away and I said, "Here you are, would you like some help?" He nodded his head, and I said, "Okay, let me get this pinned on you." I carefully stuck the opened safety pin into the material of his shirt, pushed it through , and close the safety pin.

I said, "There you go, and look Mark , the blue dolphin matches your blue number 24." He looked down at his name tag , and his shirt and smiled a small shy smile. I smiled in return , and then I turned my attention to the next little fellow. He was a nice African American boy, I said, "Hello there, what is your name?" He said, "Nathan Peters." I pulled his dolphin out right away, because his just happened to be on top! I exclaimed, "Wow!, Nathan , your's was on the top!" He smiled and replied, "Cool!" I asked, "Do you need some help with the pin?" He quickly replied, "Nah, I'll get it Miss. Suzanne, thank you." I replied, "You're welcome."

I had three down and seven more to go. The next little boy, had bright red hair , and green eyes, with freckles on his nose and cheeks. I said, "Hello , what is your name?" He shouted loudly, "Charlie Brown!" I tried not to laugh, while I found his dolphin , before he grabbed it from me." He exclaimed, "Thanks!" I chuckled and replied, "You're welcome." The next little boy , that I approached had sandy blond hair, and hazel eyes. I asked him, "What is your name?" He looked at me and replied, "Timothy Thompson." I pulled out his dolphin and said, "Here you go, Timothy ." He smiled at me brightly and replied, "Thank you!" I smiled and said, "You're welcome." I thought out loud to myself, "Okay, five down, so far there is Alexander, Mark, Nathan, Charlie , and Timothy." I moved on , and I smiled at the child in front of me, and I asked him, "What is your name?" He thought about what I had asked him, and replied, "Peter Parker." I located his name and handed him his dolphin. I noticed that he had big blue eyes , and he had brown hair with long bangs.

His bangs came down into his eyes, and he kept on flipping them up. He pinned on his dolphin and I had four more boys. The next little boy told me his name right away, and his name was Thomas Thorton. I replied, "Thank you, Thomas." He wore glasses, and his sandy brown hair was swept back and gelled. I thought that he was well on his way to becoming our next president. He had a great amount of sophistication for a little boy his age. He promptly replied, "You're very welcome , Miss. Suzanne." I had three more to go now, and I just could not wait to hear all of the little girls names. I asked the little boy next to Thomas, "What is your name?" He looked at me with light brown eyes, and said, "Ivan Wills." I picked his dolphin out of the three left, and then there were two. He needed a little help with getting his dolphin pinned on, and I gladly assisted him.

I was surprised to discover that my last two boys were identical twins! Now I understood why two of the dolphins had the same last name . I asked the first boy, that had wavy brown hair and sharp green eyes, "What is your name?" He said, "Evan Ellison ." I handed him his dolphin , and I asked his twin brother , "And you're Ethan?" Evan answered for his brother, as he replied, "Yes, his name is Ethan, I am the oldest one." I chuckled and asked, "Really?" He said, "Yeah, I was born first!" I laughed a little and replied, "I can sort of tell." He smiled at me and I asked Ethan, if he was going to need help with his name tag. Evan replied, "I'll help him, Miss. Suzanne." I smiled and said, "Okay Evan, that is very nice of you." He said in return, "I have to, I am his big brother." I nodded my head and replied, "I see." I found a place to sit down again in the circle, and I scooted over to make one for Miss Anna. She whispered, "My head is spinning." I quietly laughed and whispered back, "Mine too, and we will have more names to learn this afternoon."

She laughed and replied, "You still have to get to know the girls names." I put my head in my hand and said, "Don't remind me." She laughed and I smiled. Then Mrs.Parker said, "Okay, now we are going to play a fun game, to help our other friends learn our names." I wondered what game we were going to play. She continued to explain, "This ball, is our talking ball , when you hold the talking ball you can talk, today our talking ball is going to help us in our game, I am going to roll the talking ball to one of you." "We are going to play a game where we are going on a trip."
"Have any of you ever played it?" Some of the children raised their hands. She smiled and replied, "Wonderful, you can help your other friends that haven't." She got out of her chair , and sat down on the floor, and she asked, "Can everyone spread their legs out like this?"

All of the children had their legs spread out. She said, "Excellent." "All right, let me see who I am going to roll the talking ball to." She rolled the talking ball over to Alexander, and she said, "Ok, now you are going to say your name , like this repeat after me." "My name is ......... and I am going on a trip and I am taking .........with me."
Alexander repeated , "My name is Alexander and I am taking apples with me." She said, "Very good, ok Alexander roll the talking ball to some one else." He rolled the talking ball over to a little girl, with blonde pig tails. She said, "My name is Bethany, and I am going on a trip, and I am taking bananas with me." Sandra asked, "Bethany, can you remember what Alexander was taking ?" Bethany replied, "Alexander is taking apples." Sandra said, "Well so far, we are taking very healthy food , and that is very good."

"Bethany, you may roll the talking ball over to one of your other friends now." Bethany pushed the ball over to a little girl next to her. The little girl with brown hair , pulled back into a long pony tail, said, "My name is Christy, and I am going on a trip, and I am going to take a cat with me, Bethany is taking bananas , and Alexander is taking apples."
Christy rolled the talking ball over to another little girl with bright , red, hair, she said, " My name is Dawn, and I am going on a trip , and I am taking my dog." All of the kids laughed , and Mrs.Parker said, "My goodness, let's hope the cat and dog can be friends." Dawn said, "Christy is taking a cat, Bethany is taking bananas, and Alexander is going to take apples." She rolled the ball over to Ethan, and I hoped with all of my heart , that Evan would allow his brother to answer for himself.
Ethan took the ball and he looked like he was thinking, then he said "My name is Ethan , and I am going on a trip, and I am going to take a elephant with me, Dawn is taking her dog, Christy is taking a cat, Bethany is taking bananas, and Alexander is taking apples."

To Be Continued

 ‍Part Eighteen Starting To Know One Another Continued

The children laughed again, but I was very proud of Ethan . Mrs. Parker said, "Oh my we are starting to take a zoo! Great job, Ethan , now roll the talking ball ."
He rolled the ball , to another little girl, she had brown hair pulled back in a head band. She grabbed the talking ball, and she quietly said, "My name is Fran, and I am going on a trip, and I am taking a friend with me, Ethan is taking a elephant , Dawn is taking her dog, Christy is taking a cat, Bethany is taking bananas , and Alexander is taking apples." She passed the ball or , rolled the ball over to a little girl , she had blonde hair and blue eyes. She said, "My name is Gretchen, and I am going on a trip, and I am going to take my grandma , Fran is taking a friend, Ethan is taking a elephant, Dawn is taking a dog, Christy is taking a cat , Bethany is taking bananas , and Alexander is taking apples." Sandra said, "Wow, we are taking a lot of neat things on our trip, ok Gretchen you may roll the talking ball now." Gretchen rolled the ball over to a little girl , with glasses.

She had pretty green eyes, behind those glass frames, she also had long , silky, brown hair. She held the talking ball in her lap , and she said, "My name is Hannah , and I am going on a trip, and I am going to take a ham with me, Gretchen is taking her grandma,  Fran is taking a friend, Ethan is taking a elephant, Dawn is taking a dog, Christy is taking a cat, Bethany is taking bananas , and Alexander is taking apples." Mrs. Parker said, "Okay, we almost have our first group ready to go the table , Hannah please roll the talking ball over to another friend." Hannah looked around at the children seated, in the circle. Then she chose to roll the talking ball over to Ivan. Ivan picked the talking ball up, and said, "I am going on a trip, and I am going to take ice with me, Hannah is taking ham, Gretchen is taking her grandma, Fran is taking a friend, Ethan is taking a elephant , Dawn is taking a dog, Christy is taking a cat, Bethany is taking bananas , and Alexander is taking apples."
Mrs. Parker said, "Ivan could you give Miss. Suzanne the talking ball please?" Ivan obeyed her and handed me the ball, and she said, "Now, if I can remember every one's answers, I will call them out, and if you had that answer please stand up." She asked, "Who was going to take apples?" Alexander raised his hand. She said, "Great, Alexander would you stand up and start our line?"
Miss. Anna moved away from the circle , and she went to stand by Alexander. Mrs. Parker asked, "Who was going to take bananas?" Bethany raised her hand, and she stood up to join Alexander and Miss Anna. Then Mrs.Parker asked, "Who was going to take a cat , and a dog?" Christy and Dawn raised their hands, and went to stand in the line. I was afraid of how Evan would react to his brother being in a different group.

However, Ethan joined Fran and Dawn, then the three of them went over to Miss Anna. Then Gretchen left after she raised her hand. Hannah followed and then Ivan was the last child to leave for the table. Mrs. Parker said, "Ok, now you are going to play again with Miss. Suzanne." I had the children scoot in closer to each other, then I rolled the ball over to Charlie, because he was eager to have a turn, and said, "Pick me, pick me", all through out the other game. He exclaimed, "My name is Charlie and I am going on a trip and I am taking a clown!" We all laughed, and he laughed too. I said, "Very good, Charlie, we will be sure to have fun with the clown. Okay, Charlie roll the talking ball now." Charlie rolled the talking ball over to Evan. Evan said, "My name is Evan, and I am going on a trip, and I am going to take a eel." The children and I had a good chuckle over that one. Then I said, "Okay Evan, pick a friend." Evan rolled the talking ball over to a little girl, with auburn colored hair, and smoky blue eyes .

She said, "My name is Jessica, I am going on a trip and I am taking jam, Evan is taking a eel, and Charlie is taking a clown." I smiled said, "Great, Jessica , now roll the ball to some one else." She rolled the talking ball over to a little girl , that had light brown hair, and baby blue eyes. She said, "My name is Leah, and I am going on a trip, and I am taking a lily with me, Jessica is taking jam, Evan is taking a eel, and Charlie is taking a clown." She rolled the ball over to Mark, and he came and sat with me. I asked him, Do you want me to help you?"  He quietly nodded his head. I whispered back, "Okay, we'll do it together." I said, "Our friend Mark, is feeling kind of shy right now." Then he whispered into my ear. "My name is Mark, and I am going on a trip, and I am going to take muffins." I repeated to the rest, "Mark is going on a trip , and he is going to take muffins." I asked him, "Can you remember what the others were taking?" He nodded his head and whispered, "Leah is taking a lily, Jessica is taking jam, Evan a eel, and Charlie a clown." I repeated what he told me , and he rolled the ball over to Nathan. Nathan said, "My name is Nathan and I am going on a trip, and I am going to take a nectarine, Mark is taking muffins, Leah is taking a lily, Jessica is taking jam, Evan is taking a eel, and Charlie is taking a clown." Nathan rolled the ball to another little African American girl.

She was cute as a button, with big brown eyes. She smiled and said, "My name is Olivia , and I am going on a trip, and I am taking a octopus, Nathan is taking a nectarine, Mark is taking muffins, Leah is taking a lily, and Jessica is taking jam." She took a breath and finished with, Evan is taking a eel and Charlie is taking a clown." Olivia rolled the ball over to Peter, and he said, "My name is Peter, and I am going on a trip , and I am taking pickles with me, Olivia is taking a octopus , Nathan is taking a nectarine, Mark is taking muffins, Leah is taking a lily, Jessica is taking jam, Evan is taking a eel, and Charlie is taking a clown."  Peter pushed the ball towards a little girl with freckles, red hair, and hazel eyes." She stated, My name is Reanna and I am going on a trip, I am taking a rhino, Peter is taking pickles, Olivia is taking a octopus, Nathan is taking a nectarine, Mark is taking muffins, Leah is taking a lily, Jessica is taking jam, Evan is taking a eel , and Charlie is taking a clown." Then, Reanna brought the ball my way, I laughed and said, "My name is Suzanne , and I am going on a trip, and I am taking sandwiches, Reanna is taking a rhino, Peter is taking pickles, Olivia is taking a octopus, Nathan is taking a nectarine, Mark is taking muffins, Leah is taking a lily, Jessica is taking jam, Evan is taking a eel , and Charlie is taking a clown." I rolled the ball over to Thomas , and he said that he was going to take a thermos.

Timothy added trail mix , then we made our way over to our table. Miss. Anna gave us some white construction paper, and a container of special designer scissors, that helped cut fancy patterns. I figured that our next activity was going to be an art project , and I was right. All of the children were to make snow flakes. Miss. Anna told me that we would hang up their snowflakes to decorate the room.
I said, "Now we are going to make some snowflakes, to hang up for decoration." I passed out the white sheets of paper, and the scissors. Then I folded my pieces of paper, or maybe it was two put together. I was very rusty with making the snowflakes. But, I began cutting some slits, and the children followed my example. Charlie proudly held up his and exclaimed, "Look at mine, Miss Suzanne!" I smiled and replied, "That's a pretty snowflake, Charlie." I noticed some glue and silver, gold, and red glitter. I said, "We can also put some glue on our snowflakes, and sprinkle glitter on them." The children and I loved doing that, after our snowflakes were finished, the boys and girls took turns washing their hands, before we had a snack. I helped Mrs. Parker and Miss. Anna with pouring the milk, or juice for some of the children that could not have milk due to allergies, or being lactose intolerant. Then each child was given a handfull of some Chex Mix. During our snack time , I read them a story about a frog , that was learning how to dress himself, his name was Froggie. After snack time, we had our play time.

To Be Continued

 ‍Part Eighteen Starting To Know One Another Continued

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However, it was too cold outside to play, so we stayed in and played, Duck, Duck Goose. Charlie picked me, and I chased him around and around the circle , but he sat down . I could not catch him, I took my turn and I tapped my hand on Mark's head and said, "Goose!" Mark chased me, then Miss. Anna scooted over and I dove in for safety. Mark had fun, he even laughed, while he chased Olivia . I made a place for him to come sit next to me. The children wore us out, but we were happy that Mark was coming out of his shell a little more. After our play time was over, the children spent some time at the computers. Some of the children played a game where they had to match shapes and colors. Some of them drew pictures , that were printed later on, for them to take home. Then before I knew it, the time came for my little dolphins to go home. The three of us waited outside , as the parents came to pick up their precious ones. I was very glad , that I was able to meet Mark's mom, and tell her how well her son played with the other children today.

The smile on her face , was very priceless . She hugged her son and told him how proud she was of him. He smiled and I smiled. Once the children were gone, we had our lunches, and talked about the morning session. Miss. Anna and I both confessed , that we were tired of going on a trip. Mrs. Parker laughed and she put us to work on another idea she had for the afternoon group.
She gave us a list of the names of the children, that are in the afternoon group. She told us that she had a board, or chart that she had used in the past. Our job was to draw objects, that had the same first letter in each child's first name. We also had to write their first name , and cut those out. Miss. Anna and I gladly went to work on what needed to be accomplished. We looked at the list of names , and we made some construction paper signs with the names on them. Then we drew some shapes, animals, and other objects that matched the first letter. Before we left the lounge, I dropped $2.50 into the bucket used to collect the donations. Then we went to the school's laminating machine , and had our lovely art work laminated. Then Mrs.Parker stuck some sticky tacky on to the back of the game pieces. We went back to the room, and we arranged the carpet squares.

Straightened the chairs, and we placed a teddy bear sticker with the boys and girls names on top of each table. After that was done, we got the children's name tags ready. The whales were made out of grey felt. Our mighty whales arrived , and just like this morning , the children went to the circle area and sat down. Mrs. Parker had the chart hung on the wall, and she also held two containers. One container had the shapes, and animals, and other objects. Mrs. Parker explained to the children what they were going to do. Then she took a capital letter out, and as she held it up, she asked, "What letter is this? "

"Does anyone know what letter this is?" A little girl with blonde, curly , hair and blue eyes said, "An A." Mrs. Parker replied, "Very good, this is a capital A, now whose name or names begins with a capital A?" The little girl raised her hand again and replied, "Mine does." Mrs. Parker asked, "Would you like to come up here and place the A on the board?" The little girl went up to the board and stuck the A on the board. Then Mrs. Parker asked, "Do you think you could find something in here , that starts with an A?" The little girl dug around the inside of the container, and she pulled out a red apple.

Mrs. Parker smiled and exclaimed, "Great job!" Then she asked Alexandria , if she could her name and place it by the apple. Alexandria found her name and stuck that beside the apple . Mrs. Parker said, "Wonderful , job Alexandria. Class can you say her name, Alexandria?" The class repeated, "Alexandria ." Alexandria smiled and went back to her seat on the carpet square.
Mrs. Parker pulled out another letter, all of the children told her that was a capital C. Then she asked, "Does anyone in here have a name that begins with a capital C?" A little boy raised his hand, and he came up to the board. Mrs. Parker had him look for the animal , shape, or object that started with the same letter. He picked out a black cat , and he stuck the cat on the board and added his name . Another little boy, got her attention and said, "My names begins with a C too." Mrs. Parker had him come up and put his name with Caleb's. She asked, "Can everyone say Caleb and Christopher with me?" Everyone repeated the two boys names , and then the two had a seat. She wanted to make sure that no one was left out, as she asked, "Anyone else?" No one else responded , so she moved onto D.

A blonde haired boy told her , his name began with a capital D. He went up and found the brown dog, and his name , then he added them on the next row. The E was next, and a boy and a girl came up , and matched their name with the elephant , as they stuck it by the E on the board. She brought out the next letter, that was G. Another pair of children came up. Grace and Gregory stuck their names , and the bunch of purple grapes next to the G. Mrs. Parker said, "If you have already had a turn, then you may go on with Miss. Anna to your table. Our H went pretty fast too, because there was a boy and a girl with the same letter. Hillary hung their names , while Harry got to put the hippo up. We all laughed , because two more children owned the J as well. Jacob placed the names next to the J , while Josie put the jar of jam on the board. The yellow kite was hung by Kevin , and Kaytlynn put the names under the others. Luke was by himself, but he did not seem to mind to hang his lion and L , along with his name. Then Matthew and Mackenzie split the duties once again for M. The monkey hung around on the board. Nancy added her's and her brown nut.

Then, Ragine enjoyed showing off the rainbow with her R. Shelbie went last and she hung her squirrel. All the rest of the children came to the table, and got their whales pinned on to their shirts. Then for the next half hour, we made hearts to go on our windows. We all loved that glitter and glue, as our hands became very sticky. After we all washed our hands, we had our snack time. The children listened to the story that I was reading them. This time the book was about a little girl's first day in preschool . They chowed down their Chex Mix , and then we had our play time, the children just picked out different learning centers in the room to play in. I played with Caleb, as he had me help him put together a cat puzzle. After our play time, we all pitched in and cleaned up the toys, and the centers around the room.

We put away the puzzles, games, dolls, play house items , and made the room look organized again. Then the children gathered their coats and back packs, before we sat in the circle area, and used a small, soft, cushy, ball to play Hot Potato . One by one the children started to leave. Before, I left I helped Miss. Anna put the chairs back on the table, and put the carpet squares away, and we placed the whales back in their fish bowl. I was exhausted, but I told Tatyana all about my first day of preschool. She laughed when I said, "I am just going to curl up on the couch and take a nap." She dropped me off, and we arranged for her to come up and see my apartment tomorrow morning. I took a nap , the minute I saw the couch, but I woke up and had some hot potato soup, along with a sandwich for my supper.

After supper, I got myself bundled up , and I took my trash out to the dumpster. Before I went to bed, I had another pleasant surprise . Alexei called to see how I did on my first day. I told him the hi-lights and about Charlie Brown , and he found that very funny. We shared another laugh when I recalled the funny moments, like the children coming to the board two by two. We said good night to each other, and then I went to sleep, ready to face the rest of the week. The week went fast, as we were all starting to get to know one another.

To Be Continued

Part Nineteen Time To Meet Nina

A couple of weeks later, after I finally had a feeling that I was adjusted, my mom and dad gave me another surprise , during a phone call conversation . Dad had ordered four tickets to see Smucker's Stars on Ice, in Orlando, Florida . Nina and I had been talking about going to a show together. Well, I also found out that she sent my parents money for her ticket! I was so shocked , but very happy. The only problem was going to be asking for a day off. I was very nervous about that, although this weekend was a four day weekend due to Monday being President's Day.  I already had that off, it was Friday that I needed to take off. The following morning, I timidly sat in Tatiana's car. She asked me what the matter was. I told her how a special friend , and my mom and dad had surprised me with tickets  to see Stars on Ice .

But, I was scared to ask my director for Friday off. Tatiana replied, "Ah, I see , maybe if you explain the situation , she will understand and let you have it off." I smiled weakly and said, "I sure hope so." She dropped me off, and I walked into Caroline's office. I had a seat , and waited for her to come .  She came in , and I gave her a warm greeting. She asked, "Can I help you with anything, Suzanne?" I said, "Well, I am afraid to ask, because I just started working here."  She said, "Okay, well don't be afraid to ask." I swallowed the lump in my throat and I said, "Last night, I had a phone call from my mom and dad." She smiled and replied, "That's very nice, do they want you to visit?" I smiled and exclaimed, "Yes!" She laughed and said, "Please continue." I said, "Well, they surprised me , they bought four tickets to see Stars on Ice, in Orlando , Florida for this weekend."  She said, "Ah, that's lovely , but what is the problem?" I said, "My special friend, that I have only known On-line for two years , is coming with us, and I really want to see my favorite skater, Alexei Yagudin ." She smiled , and replied, "Are you trying to ask for a day off?" I shook my head up and down , as my only reply. She asked, "What day?" I shyly asked, "Friday?" She thought over my request, and then she handed me a pink, piece of paper.

She said, "Okay, fill out this little slip for me, and give it to Sarah, she handles the scheduling ." I smiled and thanked her, and I quickly filled out the pink slip. I walked out of her office , and I gave my request to Sarah. I devoted my time and effort to the children, Sandra, and Anna . Sarah walked in , while we were closing down for the day. Sarah handed me another piece of paper, it was blue. I loved the words that were written on it. They said, Time off granted. I was very happy , I thanked her and I excitedly filled Tatiana in on the way to my apartment . She stayed for a little while to have a cup of hot tea with me. We talked about her students , and I could not hide my wide grin, when she brought Alexei up. She smiled and asked, "Are you Lyosha's fan?" I smiled even brighter and bigger, and I replied, "Yes, I am a very big fan of Alexei."  Then, she gave me a wink, when she noticed that I could not stop smiling.

Tatiana even surprised me when she asked, "Do you have a little crush on Lyosha?" I laughed , and prayed that my cheeks would not turn pink and betray me. I calmly replied, "I admire him greatly." She just winked at me again, and gave me a knowing smile. I just smiled back, and brought my tea cup up to my lips again. She finished her tea , and she said, "I have to get back to the rink now." I stood up and walked with her to the door.  I said, "Thank you so much, Tatiana ." She gave me a big hug and she said in reply, "Don't mention it, dear, I enjoy your company." I smiled and replied, "When I get my car, I promise I will repay you." She held her hand up and said, "No, you don't have to."  I said, "All right, but I am going to pay you back for your kindness." She smiled and I told her to have a good afternoon. She thanked me and left. I closed the door, and locked it, before I went to work on rinsing the tea cups out and putting them in the dish washer.

After that, I swept the kitchen floor, and then I booted my computer up, and I saw that Nina was On-line. I anxiously told Nina , that I had Friday off. She was very happy to hear that I had the time off.  The rest of my work week went very fast, and on Thursday evening, Nina and I talked on the phone to agree on a meeting place at the Bradley International Airport . We both thought that meeting in the front entrance would be best. The rest of that night, I just got myself prepared for the trip home.  Friday morning, very bright and early , I got ready to go to the airport. I ate a bowl of hot cereal , then I called a taxi service and arranged for a taxi to come pick me up. I gave the man my address. I gathered my luggage, which was one , medium , sized , navy blue , suitcase. I waited in the warm lobby until the bright, yellow, taxi pulled up. I opened the taxi's door and I had a seat, after I put my suitcase in the trunk. 

To Be Continued

 ‍Part Nineteen Time To Meet Nina Continued

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I told the cab driver, "Bradley International Airport, Please." He said, "You got it." We drove off, and I complemented him on his safe driving. He thanked me and told me that I made his day. I smiled and told him in return that I was happy to make his day. We pulled up in front of the airport, and I paid him the cab fare. I told him to have a nice day. He wished me the same. I pulled my suitcase out of his trunk, and I went inside.  I had a seat on the bench, that was near by. As I sat there , I looked at the photo that Nina had sent me and that I printed. She looked a little older than me, I thought she was very pretty. She had reddish brown hair, and her eyes were hazel, with a little bit of blue mixed in. I continued to wait from where I was seated, and I watched the busy passengers standing in line to get their boarding passes. The doors suddenly opened , and a cold wind blew over me.

I started getting chills, and that caused me to look up and see who had come in. Then I saw her, my dear, special, friend I had an On-line friendship with for two years. We shared one common bond, and that was our support for Alexei. She was all bundled in a tan winter coat, with a bright, red scarf over her head. However, she pulled the scarf down once she took down her hood.
Her beautiful hair was pinned up into a bun. I smiled and exclaimed, "Nina!" She ran over to me, put down her suitcase, and grabbed me . We hugged each other tightly . She said, "I am so happy to finally meet you." I smiled and replied from over her shoulder, that my head rested on, "Me too, Nina." We pulled away, and just smiled at each other, then we moved into the back of the line.
She said, "I packed my Alexei button." I smiled and exclaimed, "Great!" Nina and I both had matching Alexei buttons, she sent me mine in the mail two years ago. She was such a sweet lady.  I looked up to her as a mother at times, a sister at other times, and mostly just my best friend . I could not wait , until we could spend time together in Florida. As the line slowly moved, I asked her, "Did you have a safe trip?"

She replied, "Yes, I did , thank you for asking, dear." I said, "You're welcome." She said, "I am so tired, I had to get up so early." I said, "Awwwwww, well I will let you sleep on the plane." She smiled and replied, "My husband had to go in early to work."  I replied , "Awwwww." She said, "I am just so happy , to finally be here." I eagerly nodded my head and replied, "Yes, me too." Our turn finally came, and I gave the man my boarding information, that my dad had sent me in an e-mail. He weighed our luggage, and put the flight identification tags on the their handles . Then we carried them over to the first check in point. The woman took our suitcases, and then we headed towards our gate. We went through the second security check points. We had to take our shoes off, and just made sure we emptied our pockets , and placed all of our belongings into those plastic tubs.

After we walked through the metal detector, and picked up our things , we located our gate. I asked her, "Are you getting hungry?" She replied, "No, I am fine." I said, "Okay, I am not very hungry either." She wanted to look in the shops, so we did. Then we sat down and waited for our plane to arrive. I started to read my book , she wanted to know what I was reading.
I smiled and showed her the title , which was Sunsets , by one of my favorite Christian Romance authors, Robin Jones Gunn . She read the back cover and discovered that my book was about a young woman named Alissa , and that she was a travel agent from  Pasadena , California . Where she met a young man named Brad Phillips and he turned out to be her next door neighbor.   Eventually God brought the two of them together, I told her that I have read this book at least a dozen times. She smiled and replied, "Then it must be a very good book , if it keeps your interest in it time and time again." I smiled and replied, "Yes, I love this story, and you will soon discover that I have many books on my shelf back in Florida."

She smiled again and said, "That's wonderful ." I added , "Yes, I love how God is in the center of the relationship between Alissa and Brad." She smiled again and I went back to reading my book , until we were called to board. Once we got on the air plane, I told her that she could have the window seat, but she told me that I could have the window seat. We stored our coats , purses, and bags into the over head compartment.  We got ourselves settled into our seats, and listened to plane's safety features, and other very important instructions, and learned more about the air craft. Then after that presentation, we took off , and before Nina went to sleep , we talked about Alexei, and the rest of the cast that would be performing in the show.  After that Nina fell asleep, and I read another chapter in my book. I silently chuckled at something funny that Brad had said. I also just gazed out the window, and watched the clouds as they floated by, and then I fell asleep too. Before we knew it, the plane had touched down in Florida , Orlando to be exact. We waited for it to come to a complete stop. Then we unbuckled our safety belts, and stood up , after Nina woke up.
We slowly headed off the plane. We walked through our arrival gate, and people watched us as we went past them. We got on the monorail and rode that to the main part of the air port and where our luggage would be. We got off the monorail , and followed some more signs to locate our luggage carousel. Once we located the area where our luggage was going to come, we also met up with my mom and dad.

I introduced Nina to them, and they helped us find our suitcases. After we were reunited with our luggage, we all went out to the car. On the way home, Nina and I talked more about Alexei and the past shows she attended to watch him skate which was, a topic that I never got tired of discussing with her. We came home , well to my house at least. Nina liked our home, after I gave her a little tour. Then, I had to see my Petie! He saw me enter into my old room and he hurried to his cage bars, I exclaimed, "Petie!" He chirped and I gave his cobalt , blue, feathered tummy a dozen kisses. I introduced Petie to Nina, he was well behaved , and she did not seem to bother him . I was so proud of him, usually strange people in the house scared him , but this was not the case with Nina . Nina changed into some cooler clothes, and I did too. Then, we unpacked our suitcases. Mom brought in the bed that inflates. I told Nina that she should sleep in my bed. My mom and I got the other bed fixed up , it was comfortable , I had slept on one like it before. Once the sleeping arrangements were made, we left to go eat. I surprised Nina when she discovered that we were eating at a place that had a K.F.C , along with a Pizza Hut and a Taco Bell .
 
She loved the buffet , and I really enjoyed spending time with loved ones. After we were finished eating, we came back to the house and Nina revealed another surprise she had for me. I was so shocked , when she presented me with some videos of Alexei . We watched them until it was time for us to get into our pajamas , and then Nina went and washed her face, and took her cold medicine . I washed my face, brushed my teeth, and combed my hair. Then I covered Petie's cage , after giving him a kiss. Nina climbed into my bed, and I laid down on the inflated mattress. We talked a little bit before, I turned off the light, and we went to sleep.   The following morning, I woke up with huge butterflies fluttering around in my stomach. Because I was nervous about seeing Alexei again, and I also wanted to look my best for him. My mind was just running through thoughts a million miles a minute.

To Be Continued

 ‍Part Nineteen Time To Meet Nina Continued

‍I barely could eat my egg, toast and sausage patty . My mom and dad were concerned, and Nina calmed their fears when she said, "She is nervous about the show tonight." They accepted that, and after breakfast , I was told to take a shower and get ready for the show. I took their suggestion , and I had a nice, refreshing, shower. Then I asked Nina 's opinion on what I should wear. I showed her a sweater, I had that was a peachy pink color, and I added my white knit top. Then to finish my outfit , I showed her my white jeans. She liked the out fit , and my mom and dad did too. I got dressed and then I cleaned the bathroom. After I was finished , with that I cleaned Petie's cage . Then I had some time to read my Bible.  Right after that, Nina and I watched the rest of our first video of Alexei. Then we took a lunch break, and ate a sandwich , grapes, chips, along with some soda pop to drink. Mom came in and watched the video with us, and we all talked about how handsome he was, which only made my heart take flight .

Then, I decided that I had better get myself ready, by putting on my make up, and I came out of my bathroom and asked Nina if I should pull my hair up into clips. I let her see how my hair looked down, and I also pulled my hair back . She wanted to see the back of my hair, so I turned around. She told me that I had lovely curls and waves in the back. I asked her, "Would Alexei like my hair pulled back in clips?" She told me that he might think it's pretty, and that my hair would be different. I returned to my bathroom and I pulled my medium in length brown hair into two gold clips.
Then, Nina and I took a picture together, then I assisted her in finding the Alexei button she packed. We looked in her luggage, and in my room. Then, she suddenly saw it, and we hugged, because she found in the pocket of her carry on, safely tucked away in a corner, I was very happy that we found her button, and I pinned my Alexei button onto my sweater, and then it rested against my heart. We went to car, and on the way there, Nina and I talked about my preschool children.

I was also very hungry, and it did not help me when the car was passing by every fast food sign on the planet. Nina was so kind to share her jerky , or meat sticks with me. They tied me over, until we arrived.   Once we did arrive, we got our purses, and the plastic trash bag out from the car's trunk. My stomach was doing flip flops, and my heart was pounding in my chest , while we walked towards the many rows of steps . Then, we went through the security check point, after the man checked our bags and purses, and then he told us to enjoy the show. We thanked him, and walked up some more steps, where a head usher was waiting to scan our tickets. After, she scanned our tickets, Nina and I hurried through the doors.

Then, we made a bee line for the first food stand we saw. Nina wanted caffeine , and I needed my nachos! She ordered a hot dog with a Mountain Dew, I had a Mountain Dew with my nachos. Then, we walked around to the other side, because our seats were there. We finally came down to row G, and I realized how much closer I was to the ice, even though I was a little further back this time around. Nina and I wasted no time eating our food. I dug into my nachos with reckless abandon, after I noticed , that time was getting away from us, and I refused to eat , while the show was in progress.   I exclaimed, "Nina, try some of my nachos!", after I had seen the error of my ways, and she was finished with her hot dog, that only took her 3 minutes to eat. She tried one of my nachos ,but she did not like the flavor. So, then I gave them to my dad. My dad took my nachos off my hands, and my attention went to getting ready for the show to begin .

We had 10 minutes to show time, and I laughed at the funny comments. Then finally, the lights went out, and my heart sped up, as I watched the black skaters' tunnel, near me for any sign of the beginning of T.I.M.E. Yuka Sato skated out, then Elena Berezhnaya, Jenni Meno, Jamie Sale, Kyoko Ina , Todd Eldredge , and Paul Wylie .   Then Todd Sand, Anton Sikharulidze, John Zimmerman, David Pelletier , then I screamed and cheered , once Alexei came skating out! My eyes could only focus on Alexei, but I thought that the cast did a wonderful job, skating together.
The lights were also very cool , as yellow sunshines with orange rays danced on the ice. The cast's footwork was in perfect harmony, Alexei looked he was happy and relaxed, which made me happy to see him so happy.  Sunrise was a beautiful opening number. I yelled, "Go Alexei!", after he did some impressive Russian split jumps. The men all landed perfect triple jumps . When the cast members were announced, I stood and convinced Nina to join me.

We shouted for Alexei , when his name and accomplishments were called out through the loud speakers. After that, everyone skated back into the black tunnel. I quickly jotted down some notes for my review, the whole cast did a wonderful job, however I knew the fans at the AYMB would be more interested in hearing about Alexei .  Nina really enjoyed Yuka Sato , and she whispered to me, "She skates like a dream, doesn't she?" "She is so soft and graceful." I whole heartedly agreed with Nina's observation. I did see some people stand up for her, I definitely knew that Nina gave Yuka a standing ovation . My dad enjoyed seeing Jamie and David skate again, those two were his favorites to watch .

Todd Eldredge was one of the crowd's favorites ,and Nina along with myself thought that he deserved the applause that the audience was giving him . The whole arena seemed to love Todd. Oksana Baiul was given a very warm welcome, when she skated out.  I thought it was great that she was back on the ice. She was wonderful , as she skated and danced in an upbeat program called, Ain't It Funny. I bopped my head and up down too, the tune was very fun and it had a fast beat.  Then,after Oksana's bows to the energetic crowd, John Zimmerman and Todd Eldredge told corny jokes as Kyoko was behind fake bars. John said, "She's doing time, get it doing time?" I laughed , but I knew that the dark , shadowy, lone figure, quietly gliding to the other side was Alexei .  Memorial was powerful , Alexei was marvelous, he truly skated with his heart, he had very thoughtful expressions , and they were also very moving, reflecting , and touching. I had tears in my eyes, I was so proud to be his fan, and his special friend as well. I thought to myself, You can't cry , because then you will have mascara running down your cheeks.

I just smiled and admired his courage , and his determination instead. Alexei launched himself into the air for a triple Axel , that he landed with a solid THUD! a sound I always loved hearing very much.  His foot work was so fast, and the snow was just flying and they shot off his blades. I also loved his dramatic ending pose. His arms were lifted into the air, while his head faced up towards the heavens . My heart soared out of my chest, as I smiled and clapped my hands. Then Nina and I stood up and clapped even harder, as he bowed to each section. I was a very proud friend and I loved him even more as a fan, then I enjoyed watching TGIF was a fun and energetic number, it was time to party . They skated to Steppin Out , Is She Really Going Out With Him, ,and Fools in Love.   Alexei joined the cast again in , I'm the Man. I laughed when he pretended to be a charging bull, with his fingers pointing out from his head. I could see Alexei's sense of humor really shine. All of the men were just showing off and having fun. I liked I'm the Man , but I became nervous when the fellows flipped and tossed Alexei back and forth, and all around.
J

umpin Jive , was just a swinging good time . Alexei could really cut a rug, as he jumped and jived with his cast mates. He was also very playful , he had a ball with all of them. Joe Jackson was a very catchy song. At the end Alexei ' jacket was off both of his shoulders. I could not help , noticing how nice his shoulders looked, and of course I loved the blue shirt, in my opinion he always looked good in blue. I also saw that his hair was light brown again, and I really adored his hair that way. I was in heaven already, but I had no idea that I was going to find a place much higher, and sweeter than my heaven.   Intermission came, and Todd Eldredge walked out with a microphone in his hand. He asked us if we were having a good time, and if we were enjoying the show . We all replied to him with cheers and screams.  He said, "Well, we have some great acts coming up in Act 2 , so you all have not seen anything yet, so you don't want to miss it, after our 15 minute intermission."   After he left there was an announcement , "Be sure to take this opportunity to check out the SOI merchandise booth." Well, my mom and dad left, before Nina left, so I decided to go and check out the merchandise.   I politely asked my seat mates to excuse me. I finally made it up the stairs , and to the booth. I saw a beautiful autographed picture of Alexei from Memorial, but I purchased a picture of the cast ,because Alexei had a great smile in that . Then, I went back to my section , just in time to see the Zamboni finishing up.

To Be Continued

 ‍Part Nineteen Time To Meet Nina Continued

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Nina came back and my dad came back. I was starting to get concerned about my mom, but I found out the bathroom line was very long. She came back, and that was a very good thing, because a few of the crew members came out pushing the ACME time clock, to the section right next to ours! I got very excited , because the show was about to resume.   The lights faded into darkness, the second act was beginning. I began to cheer loudly for the men, that came out in cute cover alls. They skated in a straight line , there was Todd Eldredge, David Pelletier, Alexei , and John Zimmerman . They also kind of marched , or stomped their feet. While their arms moved up and down. They all were carrying time cards in their right arms, at least it looked that way from where I was sitting.  Then the guys put their time cards into the slot one by one. I thought that Alexei looked so adorable . The guys handed each other their brooms. I loved Work n Time , and I also thought this number was very creative and funny at other times. There was one point when Alexei was in the middle of two brooms , he kind of sat in them.

He was being taken for a ride, as he waved to the other side of the crowd, and he just loved his free ride. He was also tossed into the air, and then the men showed off by doing cartwheels, or flips over each other and the brooms. When all of the guys were sweeping in a circle. I suddenly yelled out, "Work that broom , Alexei !" , before I anxiously thought to myself, Did , I just yell that ?!  I can't believe I just yelled that!  Then at another point , the brooms became linked together, and the guys kind of went underneath them, and then they switched brooms. Alexei missed his, and it looked like he did that on purpose. He was cute when he made an awwwwww shucks motion with his hand. I really enjoyed this number , and Alexei really swept Nina and I off our feet . We stood proudly and gave the fellows , but mostly gave Alexei a standing ovation .  Yuka Sato , David Pelletier , John Zimmerman, and Todd Sand gave all of us some timely advice, as the lights brightened the ice, like a sunny day at the beach. This number was popular with the Orlando crowd , because we were called the Sunshine State .  Sunscreen gave me some very good words of wisdom. I felt that I could apply the advice to my life . We were all told to lighten up, have fun, live life to the fullest, take chances, but still take care of ourselves, don't get too caught up in our own looks. The most important thing was always wear sunscreen. At the end, Yuka put on her shades, and got a nice tan, while she sat in a beach chair .

Then, Kyoko Ina skated out, and she was dressed like an usher. Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze were shown to their seats, which was the center of the ice. I never saw that one coming, but I did figure out that it was another transition number. After Kyoko left, Elena and Anton gave us a taste of a traditional , Russian song.   I really could not see the title of the program, because it was dark. However, I still loved the music, I joined the audience in clapping along. Anton and Elena did some beautiful lifts and jumps. One of the jumps was a side by side . I continued to clap and smile, the music just lifted my spirits , and I wanted to dance!  At the end, I gave them a standing ovation. Then Oksana Baiul took me back to her special night , the night she won the Olympics. Swan Lake was so beautiful , she was so graceful, as she floated over the ice, and looked like she was flying. She was so peaceful to watch, and she truly was a lovely ballerina.  She even landed her jumps, that were a few triples and a triple Salchow. She was just perfect, I really lost myself in her wonderful skating , as I remembered watching a young girl, skating in a white swan like costume, on my TV, and I thought it was truly amazing opportunity for me to see this program live, right in front of me.

I had a lot of fun with some of the members in the cast, as they gave all of us a Rock Lesson. First , we all bopped our heads up and down, at least I did. Then we pumped our fists into the air . The third move was kind of hard for all of us to do in our seats. We all watched the cast, as they moved their leg and forth, along with  one arm. I did move my arm with them. Until, Alexei came skating out ready to rock and roll !  He was rocking , with his head going up and down. The crowd went a little nuts at this point. Alexei poured on his charm, he did some movements with his hips that were very daring. He even ran his hand down the shoulder of a girl in the audience. He landed his triple jump , and triple Axel . He had a blast in Ain't That A Shame. Then he moved his hips in more illegal ways, so illegal I dared not to repeat what he did. However his knee slide was awesome, he also played a mean air guitar , he strutted his stuff, then he showed off his muscles. I did have to start fanning myself , through some of the number. I loved his shirt , that was all black , with a cool hand print on the front. His jeans were black and nice. I yelled for him , and he did some slow push ups. He was just fantastic . The only problem was that this number was too short.  Nina and I stood up, even though I was completely dazed, as I shouted as loudly as I could, "Happy Valentine's Day Alexei, We Love You!" He bowed and waved to each side of the arena then he was gone. Jamie Sale and David Pelletier calmed us all back down , and made us all laugh with, Ballroom . Because they were very funny.

When they faced each other, there were these voices of a man and a woman saying, "Whew , what did she have for lunch?", "Whew, what did he have for lunch?" Those two made quite a pair, and they were a very big hit with the Orlando crowd, I even stood up to give them a standing ovation .  Then ,Nina did not believe me, but yes the end of T-I-M-E  was upon us. I watched Alexei and Todd , they did their mirror jumps, death drops, and sit scratch spins. The two guys were right on, with all of their movements. The whole cast looked elegant in white. However, I had to confess , that my eyes were glued to Alexei. Each cast member's name was called once again. I cheered for him some more , and Nina stood up with me for him again. When he saw us, he blew us a kiss. I left planet Earth after that. I walked out mumbling, "That was wonderful, that was wonderful!" I also had this huge smile on my face.  My eyes probably had stars in them, I was still soaring over the moon, and I really did not think I would ever be able to come down. I was still in my own little world, and I raved about the show, as I said, "That was so awesome! Alexei was amazing," with yet another big smile on my face.

Nina stopped at the merchandise booth, and I showed her the autographed picture of Alexei . She bought his autographed picture, and then I noticed another picture of him that was not autograhped from his other number, so I could not resist buying that one . Then, we went out to the car, and loaded our goodies into the trunk. Then, mom told us that she was hungry for ice cream. We stopped at this diner , that was attatched to the Holiday Inn , and it was close to the TD Waterhouse Centre. We walked in , and we were under the impression that this place had ice cream, because of the giant sundae on their frosted, glass doors. We went and found a seat, and tried to see if they had a selection of ice cream. We asked the waitress , if they had ice cream. We could not believe her reply!  She said, "No, we do not have ice cream here." We left that place in a hurry, and we got a little lost on the way back home.  Dad just made a wrong turn , when he exited , from the restaurant. We finally got home , and after we got into our pajamas , I knew that I was just too hyper to sleep. Nina and I stayed up and talked about the show and Alexei, and more about Alexei. I did not need any ice cream, I already was on a sweet, Alexei high. However, we finally did go to sleep.

The following morning, we had waffles for breakfast, we relaxed , and started working on our reviews. I was looking at the program, and I said, "Look , Nina,  Alexei autograhped his picture in here, Awwww that is so sweet, he is so sweet." Nina just smiled, and replied, "You are in love." I just hid my face behind my program, while I asked, "Is it that obvious? Do you think he knows too?" She laughed and said, "Oh yeah it is, and he probably does." I put the program down, and buried my face in my hands before I replied with, "Oh. No."
 

 

To Be Continued  

 ‍The Conclusion Of Part Nineteen Time To Meet Nina

‍She just laughed about it a little more, and said, "Don't worry, I bet he thinks it is sweet, and that you are sweet, he might think you are adorable too." I just whispered to myself, "I have to try harder to hide how I feel."  That evening, we took a break from writing our reviews , and we went out for supper at an Italian place, my dad had been told about. I was still up in outer space, so I could not remember what we had to eat. I do know I had some kind of meat ball sub thing. Maybe mom and dad tried the spaghetti . The food was very good, we had a very nice dinner together.

We came home and I showed Nina some old video tapes of my old Starliter's competitions. She had a better understanding of what I was talking about , when I brought up Starliters . Then while she and I watched The Lion King , I worked on a surprise for one of my other friends.  I also got up and demonstrated the Hula dance that Timon did in one of the scenes. She even joked about us doing that dance when we go to see in live shows. I just laughed and replied, "Let's practice some more."  We went to bed a little earlier, that night because we had morning flight back to Connecticut the next day. I smiled in my sleep, while I was remebering the wonderful times that Nina and I shared. Then when I finally did get into a deeper slumber , I had more sweet dreams of Alexei, and of when I would be seeing him again .
 

To Be Continued  

 Part Twenty
Rediscovering Lost Chances

Monday morning came, Nina and I packed our suitcases, then we had a nice breakfast with mom and dad. We had french toast and bacon to eat. After breakfast, I cleaned Petie's cage for one more time, before I said, "Good bye , Petie."  Then, my heart broke , when he started to chirp excitedly, as if he were pleading for me to stay , or to bring him with me. I wanted to take him with me, but all I could do was cry on Nina's shoulder, while we stood in the garage. She held me, and patted my back until my sobbing subsided. On the way to Orlando , we worked on some more of our reviews,as we recalled Saturday night. I was still floating in the clouds, while I was still in an endless dream world like state of mind. After we arrived at the Orlando International Airport , my dad gave me a hug , and he gave Nina a hug as well .

Then we went inside , and waited in the line , that was not too long. I showed the tall man behind the counter, my flight information. He told us what gate we needed to go to. We went through the security check points, rode that lovely monorail to our gate. Then we located our gate, and we decided to eat some lunch at the Mc. Donalds there, since the time was going on noon.
I had a grilled chicken sandwich with a small Sprite and fries. Nina tried the chicken mc.nuggets and a Diet Coke . Later on , while we waited on the plane to land, and for the the boarding call , I actually had some of my beginning pages for the review written down, and I continued to write until, we were called to board. While Nina rested on the plane, I went back in time and wrote down more details.

I did take a break to eat my pretzels, and drink my Sierra Mist. Then, a while later, the plane made a smooth touch down on a rather snow covered run way. Nina woke up and she asked me, "Did I sleep during the whole flight?" I smiled and replied, "Yeah, pretty much." She just could not believe that she did. I told her that she was catching up on her sleep. Because , we did have a very busy weekend, it went very fast almost like a whirl wind.  Then I showed her my progress on my review, and she seemed impressed , then the plane pulled into the gate's terminal , and came to a complete stop. I stretched my arms and legs for a little bit, then we gathered our belongings , and exited the plane. The wind gave me a cold slap in the face to remind me where I was. I did think it was unfair to be given such a rude awakening .

I pulled my hood up and snapped the buttons to keep the hood held in place. I said, "Well, Nina something tells me we are not in Florida anymore." She just walked quickly through the tunnel, and I was not too far behind. At least the heated air inside the baggage claim gave us a little relief from feeling frozen . Our suitcases arrived, and after we politely took them off of the revolving belt.
I looked at my watch, and realized that we were really early. I said, "Let's go get some coffee, or hot chocolate, hot apple cider, hot tea, just something hot to drink." She laughed and replied, "Okay, dear we can do that." We looked for a place that served any thing of that nature on their menu. Nina asked me, "How does hot apple pie and hot chocolate sound?" I removed my gloves, and I said, "That sounds great where did you see that ?"

Nina replied, "That sign over there." I tried to see the sign, that she was talking about then I exclaimed, "Mc.Donalds again!" She said, "Beggars can't be choosers." I laughed and replied back, "They do have good apple pies, and hot chocolate."  She agreed with me, and we walked under those golden arches , that were part of the sign. Luckily , the line of customers was pretty small . Nina paid for the hot chocolate, and I bought our apple pie, before I found us a seat, then we laid down some napkins to set our pies on. I was delighted when I discovered the apple pie was hot. I had to blow on it, before I had my first bite. I also had to be careful , when I took a sip of my hot chocolate, but my bones were a lot warmer. Nina and I enjoyed our visit as we continued to eat our pie and drink our hot chocolate.  After we were finished , we threw our trash away, and went back to the area , where we first met up, on last Friday morning. While we were seated on the same bench, I had sat upon just a few days ago, Nina asked me, "Would you like for us to give you a ride , dear?"

I thought about her question for a few moments. Then I asked, "Would your husband mind?" She took a few minutes to think that over, and I started getting a little nervous. However, she finally broke the silence around us. She said, " I will ask him, for you."  I smiled and replied, "Thank you, because I don't want to be a bother , or an intrusion to him." She smiled back at me and replied, "You are not any of those things, Sunshine." I smiled , and I began to feel relaxed . When she noticed Bill's car pull up and park, she got up , and went outside.
I watched them talk, and I bit my lip, while I started thinking that I should just get me a cab again. However, I saw her turn around , and make a motion with her hand, for me to come out , I smiled and grabbed my luggage. I did not waste any time going out to their car.  Nina and I placed our suitcases into the trunk , of her car . I climbed into the back, of her car. Bill turned his head towards me, and I said, "Hello, thank you so much for giving me a ride." He gave me a tiny grin , then he replied, "No, trouble just let me know how to get there, once we enter Connecticut."

I smiled and said, "I will , be sure to do that." Nina gave me a comforting smile and I smiled back. Bill made small talk with me during the ride, then our conversation changed into directions. Before I knew it, I was back home, well back to my apartment . I thanked Bill for his generous ride.  Nina got out and she walked with me to the double glass doors. We shared one more hug, and I held back my tears, as that lonely feeling hovered over me again. I was still sad over having to leave Petie. I thought about him crying out to me , when I left, his heart was broken. I came to my apartment , and I went inside. Winter just seemed to dragging on, it was starting to snow again, as I looked out my window. I sighed , and then I tried to keep myself busy, while I unpacked my suitcase. Then, I decided that I had better take the trash out to the dumpster earlier.

When I came back from doing that, I had a seat on my couch, and I turned my television set on. I flipped through the channels, and stopped on Family Feud, and I remembered that for the whole week the cast would be on the show.  I started feeling a little better, some of their replies made me laugh and smile. I made myself something to eat for supper , some kind of frozen dinner. Then, during another commercial , the telephone rang. I said, "Hello?", then I smiled , when I heard Nina's voice.  She replied, "Hey Sunshine, I just wanted to call and let you know I made it home all right." I said, "I am so glad, to hear that , Lily. " Nina and I had given each other special nick names, mine was Sunshine , because she told me I was cheerful and made my friends happy. I called her, Lily , because that was one of her favorite flowers, and I felt that she was a beautiful person , like a lily.

We both said, "Goodbye", and I hung up the telephone. I finished my supper, and spent some time on-line. I typed my review , and posted what I could for that night on the OWS.   Before I went to sleep, I looked for an outfit to wear to work the following day. I woke up the next morning, I guess getting back into my routine did help. Because , I knew that I would be too busy to be feeling lonely, or even empty.  I did not want to go back to that place again, so I thought of family, friends, and loved ones. Winter would eventually come to an end , and Petie would be with me.  That would be a big help, just to have some company. I also missed Alexei, even though I just him the weekend before. I wondered, if we were going to get to spend some time hanging out as friends.
However, I felt my feelings for him changing , and that scared me. Because, when my feelings changed in the past, the friendship always grew awkward , and I just did not know how to act.  Then, usually after that happened, the guy ended up hurting me , or I just withdrew from the friendship, and went back into my shell of protection. Tears filled my eyes, as I continued down that painful road, and I recalled another guy, that was supposed to be my best friend.

To Be Continued  

 ‍Part Twenty Rediscovering Lost Chances Continued

‍

When I let him know in an e-mail , that I was moving to Florida, he told me in his reply back , that we would hang out. I moved , and we got in touch On-line, he told me to call him and gave me his phone number. I did, and not only once, or twice, I could not even remember now how many times I had called him.   He never called me back, he even changed his e-mail address without telling me. I found out he did , when I sent him a Christmas card, just to let him know I had no hard feelings . However, how he acted was confusing , he always used the excuse that he was busy.
He worked at the happiest place on earth. I had a dream to work there as well, I was hoping that he could have showed me around , being a new resident to Florida . However, all he really did was hurt me, when I took another chance with calling guys, because I don't.  I had always tried calling up guys I liked, and I never had positive results. However, I did like getting calls from Alexei, and I was happy , that I did take that opportunity to call him .

I still thought that was a big step in the right direction. Then I noticed that my trip down memory lane , caused me to lose some time. I scolded myself, while I quickly got ready. I knew that if I did not hurry, I would miss my ride with Tatiana . I made myself some breakfast, and went out the door , as soon as I was finished. Although , the time on my watch told me, I could slow down. I just walked faster. Then, I came to a sudden stop when I heard a honk. I turned and saw Tatiana's car catch up to me. I gave her an apologetic smile, she smiled back. I got in and said, "Hello, Tatiana ." She replied, "Good morning , Suzanne." I buckled my seat belt , and she said, "You looked like you were in a hurry."  I replied, "Yeah, I thought I was running behind on time." She replied, "Ah, I see, how was my Lyosha?"  She did not have her sunglasses on, and I saw a hint of something, in her twinkling eyes. I smiled, I was happy to change the subject.
I exclaimed, "He was wonderful , and he looked so happy!" She smiled and said, "Good." Then I told her about my time with Nina. She said, "She sounds like a great friend, I am happy she is your friend."   I smiled and replied, "Tatiana, I consider you my friend too." She got this soft , tender , expression on her face. She replied, "If I were not driving right now, I would be giving you a big hug."

I smiled , then I saw the school, and said, "We are here."  She replied, "I think of you as a friend as well, dear." She pulled up and I exited from the passenger seat, after I said, "You have a lovely day, my friend."  She smiled and replied, "Thank you, you too, have fun with the children." I laughed and said, "I am sure, I will." I waved at her, and she waved back , before she drove off. The wind blew a little harder and pushed me towards the preschool.  I grabbed my scarf , and held it around my nose, and noticed that Sandra was in front of me, and  that she had opened the door for me. I took the scarf down, and said, "Thank you, Sandra, I am not ready for this weather."

She laughed and asked once we were standing by the heater inside, "How was Florida?" I sighed and replied, "Warmer than here." She said, "Yes, the change in the weather must be a shock for you." I groaned and yanked off my gloves, so that I could warm my hands over the heater. Then I said, "Yes, I think it is unfair." She said, "Well, we don't have too much more of winter to go."  She said, "Spring will be here soon, Suzanne just dwell on that." I replied, "I will." We left the warmth of the heater, and headed for our room. I said, "At least , we do have heat and shelter." She agreed with me and replied, "We are blessed."

A little later on that morning Miss. Anna walked in , and she asked me, "Suzanne are you cold?" I looked down and noticed that I still had my coat on. I exclaimed for my reply, "Yes!" She laughed and said, "Tell me me about your show in Orlando ."  I smiled , and then I started feeling a little warmer, just from thinking about Alexei again. I unzipped my coat, and hung it up in our coat closet. Then, while we were getting the carpet squares arranged on the floor I said, "The show was amazing, I loved every minute of T.I.M.E. " She gave me a wink and asked, "How did Alexei do?" I wondered why she asked me that, and then it did not help when I began to blush! I just replied, "He was wonderful, and I was so happy , because he was so happy, and he was smiling."  She smiled said , "That's great, I could tell, that Alexei was very special to you, because last week , when you told us you got to have Friday off, and that you could go, your eyes lit up." I covered my face in my hands and mumbled through them, "Oh. No." She pulled my hands down , and she gave me a little side hug. She told me, that she thought I should not be afraid to show how I feel for him.

But, she did not know , or understand what had happened the year before. I had to keep the friendship between Alexei and myself , just only between us. However, Tatiana saw something more , and now Anna , I was letting information leak out , through my emotions. But, I just could not help it, no matter how I much I tried to hide the new feelings , the more stronger they became.  I have always been told, that people can read my eyes like an opened book, especially when I cared for some one or was in love. I was in love, I had to admit that to myself at least. Anna kept on trying to convince me that showing my feelings was not  a bad thing.  I could only imagine , what Alexei saw in my eyes last weekend, were they saying to him, "I love you, Alexei Yagudin ?" Tatiana must have seen that, shown in my eyes, my eyes were the traitors , not my cheeks. I started to panic inside, I knew that I had to keep a tighter lid on these bubbling emotions, I had to, I just had to.

The children in our morning group arrived, that really helped , because we became too busy to talk about the show, or Alexei. My cheeks cooled off and I put my energy into the children . Many of them told me they missed me, and were happy to have me back.  Some of the kids asked me where I was. I was honest with them and shared a little about my show I saw . The children that I told were impressed, and they gave me a big hug. We all had a very busy morning, they worked on learning numbers and counting. We all played a game, where we sat in a circle , and one person said, "1 , 2," while we clapped our hands one or two times, and so on. Bethany had me help her play a game on the computer, during her free time.  I helped her count and find the objects when she asked me if I would for each picture, like for one picture , she had to help a fire man find his four red, fire, hats. She was encouraged by me, and I only gave her hints when she became frustrated. After the free time was over, and we all cleaned up each activity area, we had our circle time. I sat next to Miss. Anna and Christy.

To Be Continued

 ‍Part Twenty Rediscovering Lost Chances Continued

‍Sandra said, "Miss. Suzanne was not with us last Friday, when we had two guests with us." I raised my eye brows, as I tried to figure out who the guests were , that came. She asked, "Can some one tell her who our guests were?" Ethan raised his hand, and he said, "I can."  Sandra smiled and she said, "Great , Ethan." He said, " A lady and a guy came and saw us." I chuckled, then I immediately thought of Tatiana. Then Sandra replied, "You are right , Ethan , we had Tatiana Tarasova , and she brought a skater with her." Miss. Anna added, "He told us just to call him Andrei."
I was still a little lost , until Sandra said, "We were invited to come and see them, let's all tell Miss. Suzanne , what we will be learning to do next month." Everyone shouted, "Ice skating!"   I was shocked, and very scared, but I also realized , that I was being given another chance to try something , that I always I wanted to do. Even though , my mouth still dropped, and my eyes grew wide.

Anna laughed, I just gave them a small smile. Sandra said, "For the next several months, we will spend an hour each week at the International Skating Center Of Connecticut." The news was still sinking in , as I helped the two of them pass out permission slips to children , before their parents came to pick them up. While the three of us ate our lunch, Anna asked me, "Suzanne, why did you look so scared?"  I replied to her question with another question, "Was I that obvious?" She laughed and replied, "Well, yeah you were." I said, "Okay, I have a confession to make, I have never ice skated before." Anna said, "Wow, really?" I replied, "Yes, really I had an opportunity to go ice skating when I was in high school." Sandra wiped her mouth, after she took a bite of her sub. Then she asked, "Why didn't you go ?"

I replied, "Well, it was my senior year in high school, and I had this very important presentation to make the following week, in one of my classes." Anna asked , "But, you wanted to go skate right?" I replied, "Yes, I was supposed to go, and on that Saturday morning , my friend called me and told me that they might not go to Fort Wayne, there was a huge mall that used to have an indoor ice rink."  "Well, since I thought they were not going, I spent some time with my partner, at the public library ." Sandra said, "Awwww, I am sorry , you did not get to go." I said, "Oh, there is more, when I came home, I found out that my friend had called again, and she told my mom to tell me that, they were going." Anna asked, "They left with out you?" I just nodded my head, and went back to eating.

Sandra said, "That was not right, Suzanne they could have chosen another time for you to go." I said, "Yeah, well that is why I need to take this chance." Anna smiled and replied, "Yes, you should, ice skating is fun, you should try it." I said, "Okay, I will give ice skating a chance." Sandra agreed and stated , "You need to give yourself this chance." I said, "Maybe, I should try to roller skate again."  Anna asked me, "You used to roller skate?" I laughed and said, "I tried to roller skate, when I was little, I had a small pair of roller skates, but I fell a lot." Anna said, "We all fall, that is a part of learning." I said, "Then I went as a young girl with a friend, she was determined to help me learn, I held on to her , until I felt confident enough to skate by myself." Sandra said, "She sounds like a nicer friend, she gave you a shot , and wanted to help you."

I replied, "Yes, it was fun and I did fall , but I got right back up , however when the boy I had a major crush , came to roller skate , I left the roller rink's floor , and took my skates off, I did not want to skate and fall down in front of him."  They both asked, "So, you gave up?" I said, "Well, for that time being I did, but then like two years later, my church's youth group went roller skating one Sunday evening."  Anna asked, "Did you skate?" I replied, "Yes, and I was having fun, I even was gliding with out worrying about falling, but another guy , that I had a serious crush on, came up behind me , and pushed me pretty hard."   Sandra shook her head and whispered, "Jerk." I said, "Yeah, I was moving way too fast, I tried to get the wheels on my skates back under control. While I screamed out to the other people skating,' Watch out! Sorry!' , then I ended up hitting one of the carpet covered walls."

Anna gave me another hug, as I said, "I was so embarrassed, I spent the rest of the night sitting out on the other side , but I kept my roller skates on." Sandra said, "That mean jerk, I wonder why he did that." Anna said, "I think he liked Suzanne, but he was not too sure how to express it, that he did like her, and he tried to flirt, but his lousy attempt , only resulted in Suzanne getting hurt."
We both just stared at Anna , then I said, "Wow, that might have been the case, but things improved later, I mean we remained friends." Sandra asked me, "How old was this guy?" I replied, "He was in high school, but only a few years older than me, and I was in middle school, in the eighth grade."  Anna said, "That sounds like that was the case to me, maybe he was afraid of how his peers would feel, if they found out he wanted to go out with a girl in middle school." I said, "Yeah, you could be right , let's change the subject like I said before it was years ago." Anna said, "Okay, but if you ever need to talk, you can come to me."

To Be Continued

 ‍Part Twenty Rediscovering Lost Chances Continued

‍I smiled and I replied, "I really appreciate that , Anna, it did help me to talk about these moments from my past." Sandra said, "Well, I think before you ice skate , that you should roller skate again." Anna eagerly nodded her head then said, "Yeah, you should , I know where we can go ."  I silently agreed, by nodding my own head. Anna added excitedly , "We can go over the weekend!" I said, "Okay, but you have to realize it has been years since I wore a pair of roller skates." Anna laughed and just replied, "I love a challenge!" I held my hands up and said, "I surrender." Anna clapped her hands and Sandra smiled, then we all got up and threw our trash away.

We turned our attention , to the little ones in our afternoon group, and just like our Dolphins, the Whales were very excited about ice skating, or learning how to ice skate. At the end of my day, Tatiana came to pick me up. She asked me about my day , and she wanted to know if anything interesting happened. I told her, "Yes, I found out that I will be learning how to ice skate."
Tatiana pretended to be surprised , she replied, "Really?" I said, "Yes, I am serious , and scared to death ." She said, "Don't be afraid , Suzanne just try." I explained to her about my adventures in learning how to roller skate. She laughed at some points, the funny ones , then she said, "I agree with Anna , you need to use this experience to your fullest advantage."
I replied, " I know, and she is going to help me get back into my roller skates, and I think once I feel comfortable in roller skates, then I will be ready for ice skates." Tatiana nodded her head, and said, "That makes sense, just don't worry about falling down, because we are human, we fall ."  I smiled and said, "Alexei said something like that in an interview , during the 2002 Worlds broad cast." She smiled and replied, "Lyosha is a very wise young man." I could not argue with that, and I just said, "Yes." Then we arrived at my apartment, I looked at the time on the clock , on her dashboard.

She said, "Goodbye dear, I will see you in the morning." I said, "Okay, I have to hurry Family Feud starts in a couple of minutes." She gave me another wink, I thought to myself, Oh yeah, she knows. I smiled and waved to her, before I hurried as fast as I could to the elevator and went up to my apartment. I unlocked the door , and threw the door open, and I quickly pulled my coat and gloves off. Then, I rushed over to my television set, then I grabbed the remote to the VCR , and the one to the television set, and I pushed the power button on the television set . After that, I pressed the record button , once I saw the beginning of the show. I had a seat on the couch , with my feet curled up underneath my quilt , I was feeling a cold , after I took my coat off. I warmed myself up, as I watched Alexei on Family Feud .

I recorded every minute of it, with out the commercials. Like always, seeing him on the show only made me miss him, and I wanted to see him again, I had it bad, but I still had to figure out what exactly I was feeling, it felt like love, even though I never honestly felt love before.  I had many times, when I was so sure I was in love with this guy , or another guy. One thing I did know , and that was that Alexei made me happy. Although, his answers never made the survey board, he still made me smile and laugh. After the show ended, I stopped the video tape, and I turned the television off. Then I closed my eyes, and ended up falling asleep, I slept until I heard my stomach grumble and growl. I opened my eyes and noticed how dark the room had become. I stretched and yawned, before I looked at my watch. The time I saw, told me it was supper time, I got up and looked for something to eat to eat in the kitchen. I looked around , and I did not take long to discover that I had to go to the grocery store. I also knew that I was in a jam, I was in trouble, because I did not have a car. I wondered if a taxi would take me to a store, and then I realized , I was not too sure where a store was!

I felt like crying, I was so frustrated , and the tears began to fall unchecked down my cheeks. After I finished my crying spell , I went to the folder, that was given to me on my first day of work. I hated to bother Anna, but I was in need , and she seemed like she wanted to become my friend. She really did help me to see the light today, when she explained about the behavior of a past crush.  However, I only shared a small piece of that whole situation with that past crush, like the smallest tip of the ice berg, the rest of the story ran deep , very deep. I was not comfortable with going down to the deepest depths, even though I did believe that Anna could take me there.

But, I knew she would also walk with me all the way through each painful step. Then I stopped those thoughts, I did not need to cry again, I knew I had to call Anna instead. I dialed the phone number , that I saw in black type on one of the pages. I waited for the other end to be picked up.  Then I heard a click, and then a sweet voice say, "Hello?" I said, Hi, Anna, this is Suzanne." She exclaimed, "Suzanne! " I smiled , because she reminded me so much of my friend back in Indiana , Shellie . I replied, "Sorry for calling you." She said, "Don't be, I am glad you did."
I said, "Oh good, well I have a problem , three problems , actually ." She asked, "What is wrong?" I said, "I found out that I have to make a trip to the grocery store, and I also realized that I don't really know where a store is , along with not having my own car."  She said, "Oh, well , I would be happy to show you around." I asked, "You would?" She replied, "Yes, I'll come pick you up. I know where your building is, but you will have to help me find your apartment. "

I said, "No problem, I will be waiting down stairs , in the entrance , thank you so much." She said, "Don't mention it, I understand your situation , I was there once myself , and I will treat you to some dinner too." I smiled and said, "Awww, I would love that, I am starving."  She laughed, and said, "Then it's settled, and you know you can't shop for groceries on an empty stomach." I laughed and replied, "No, you're right."  She said, "See you in a few minutes." I replied back, "Okay, I will be waiting." We both hung up at the same time, then I scurried around the room , cleaning up the small mess. I also touched up on my light layer of make I was wearing, and added a little bit more of my lipstick . The next thing I did , was make a list of the food and other items I needed to buy, and then I got myself bundled up again to go out.   Before I went out the door, I snatched my purse from it's secret hiding place. While I walked to the elevator, I saw Ben coming down the hall, he said, "Hello, there young lady." I smiled and replied, "Hi Ben."

He smiled back and then he made me laugh when he asked, "Do you have a date?" I shook my head and replied, "No, a friend is taking me grocery shopping." He said, "Okay, have fun."   I said, "Oh, I will," while I rolled my brown eyes, and that made him laugh. I rode the elevator down, and then I waited a few more minutes , before Anna's dark, blue, Pontiac Grand Prix pulled up to the curb. I rushed out into the cold night air, as I waved to her. She quickly pushed the passenger's , side , door open for me. I smiled and said, "Thank you, again Anna." She said, "You're welcome, Suzanne." I had a seat and buckled my belt, then she asked me to tell her to look on my side for on coming cars. I pulled my hood down, and looked out my window on my side. I saw one car coming, and I said, "After this car passes, you can go."   She said, "Thanks." The car went past us, and she carefully pulled the car out away from the curb. I told her that she had a nice car, and that I loved the blue color. I also shared with her , that I had always wanted a blue car too. We talked about various topics, as I explored the surrounding area with my eyes.

She said, "We are almost there, I am taking you to a Wal-Mart Super Centre ." I replied, "That sounds good, to me." I continued to pay very close attention to every turn her car made, and the stop lights that were on each street, I also tried to memorize the name of the streets. However, Anna threw in a little curve ball, when she said, "We are going to go to my favorite pizza place first."
I said, "Okay, sure , I love pizza , and I have not had a pizza pie in ages." She pulled into the parking lot of Pete's Pizza , and as we walked in , I could smell the spices, the tomato sauce , everything in the air smelled delicious. We sat down in the booth,  and ordered a pizza with sausage and onions on it, and I had a glass of Sprite to drink.
While we waited, on our pizza we had some soft, steamy, chewy, breadsticks to nibble on , as we got to know each other even better. Our pizza arrived , and while we ate a few slices, Anna told me about the times , she had ice skating. She made her experiences sound like so much fun. Then she suddenly asked me, "Do you have any other plans tonight?"

To Be Continued

‍The Conclusion Of ‍Part Twenty Rediscovering Lost Chances

‍

I thought about my plans for the rest of the night, and I replied, "No, after grocery shopping, I am free." She smiled and said, "Great, I will help you put the groceries away, then I would really like to take you to the rink tonight."  I said, "All right, that would probably be good." She replied, "Yeah, you can watch me skate, and maybe we will be able to see one of the top skaters train, it's still early." I smiled and said, "That would be great, I would really like that." She got up , and we split the cost of the bill, even though it was her treat, I still insisted on paying for half.
We went back out to her car, and she told me how to get to Wal-Mart, and she also let me know that she would draw me a map. We arrived at Wal-Mart , and Anna helped me, by showing me me around. Because, I have discovered , over time that each Wal-Mart had everything arranged in different ways.   I checked each item off my list, as we filled the cart with canned soups, fresh fruits like apples, and bananas, and vegetables , along with some meats from their deli, like sliced ham, and smoked turkey. I also added some cheese, then some bread, and a carton of milk, then I bought some fresh fish, and poultry, along with some frozen entrees, for the nights when I really don't have time to cook.

We went through the check out lane, and I paid for my purchases . Anna said, "Yay, we still have time , it is only 6:30 ." I looked outside and I replied, "Really?" She said, "Yes, see?", as she showed me her watch.   I said, "It looks later, than that." She just helped me carry my bags out to her car. We quickly placed all of my shopping bags into the trunk, and she drove me back to my apartment. I led her up to my floor, and then we went inside, and I gave her a little tour. She thought that I had a nice apartment. I pointed my cabinets out to her, and she helped me put my groceries away. I realized , that I was still wearing the skirt I had on from work . I excused myself , and changed into a pair of jeans. I came back out, and saw her looking at the picture of me with Alexei. She asked me where it was taken, and I replied with a smile, "Worlds in Washington D.C. , that was a wonderful day for me." She smiled and said, "I think he felt the same way, he is really smiling."

I laughed at her, and replied, "He has smiled that way with other fans before." She wanted to argue against my statement that I made, but instead I said, "We better get going ." When we went out the door, I was afraid that she might have flipped the frame over to the back, but then I remembered that the number was hidden by the piece of cardboard . While we waited on the elevator to come back up, she said, "I read what he wrote to you, I have not seen anything like that before." I laughed at her again , and replied, "Cut that out." She said, "Okay, I will , but I still think he liked you, and I can't help feeling, that maybe he still does." I laughed even harder at what she said, but my heart was pounding so hard at that moment, I hoped she could not hear it.

We stepped into the elevator, and the air inside felt like it was going to suffocate me. She asked me, "Are you all right?" I said, "I am fine," while I coughed into my hand, and cleared my throat. She said, "I am sorry, for upsetting you, but anything is possible." I covered my mouth and coughed again. She still had no idea, how uncomfortable this particular subject was making me feel.
She never would understand why either, this secret was too big and what I would lose if the secret was uncovered, was just too precious to me . The elevator doors opened, and I was happy to set out again, and feel the cold wind sting my hot skin. I inhaled with a few, deep, cleansing breaths, then I got into her car. The ride to the, International Skating Center of Connecticut , was a very silent one. I was lost in my thoughts, and she was concentrating on her driving.

When we pulled into the parking lot, my heart almost jumped out of my chest, as each beat skipped and thumped wildly, because my nerves had just been kicked into high gear. Anna pulled her ice skates, out from the trunk . I stood by the car and studied the structure in front of me. Anna asked me, "Are you nervous?" I replied, "Oh, maybe a little , okay I am very nervous."
She said, "Don't be nervous, it will be fine." I smiled and I replied back, "I know, I have always wanted to do this, well you know see the ice up close, in a rink." She said, "You will get you get your wish, tonight." We walked in, and I was in complete awe of my surroundings. I studied the countless , pictures of various skaters. Then it was Anna's turn to show me around .  We entered one of the rinks, and I continued to look around. I noticed that there were some people in the stands, and some were on the ice, skating . Anna got excited , and she exclaimed, "Andrei is here!" I smiled and replied, "Great, do you think I could , maybe meet him?" She nodded her head and said, "Yes, he is so nice and very sweet." I said, "Okay, but if he is skating, then I don't want to bother him."
She just linked her arm with in mine, and pulled me a long. I smiled , when I saw Tatiana, but I did not want to disturb her. Anna introduced me to some of the parents, that were watching their children , or other loved ones skate. I had a seat, and Anna laced up her skates. She stood by the boards, and I watched Andrei, as he skated. He amazed me at one moment , when he launched himself into a giant quad.

Everyone in the stands screamed, "Go Andrei!" I joined in, and he gave us all a big smile. I smiled back at him, then I heard Tatiana shouting excitedly, because she was so happy. Everyone was still clapping, so I clapped a little while longer. The air around me , was charged with excitement, but it also had the energy collected from the fans, I could feel their anticipation for Andrei to succeed.  Anna made her way out to the ice, and my eyes became glued to her figure and her movements, as she effortlessly glided across the ice. I also became aware of Tatiana, I could hear her voice , as she spoke to Andrei in Russian . Then I turned my attention back to Anna, and just like the other skaters , she made ice skating look so easy. I wondered if , I would , or could ever skate with the same confidence some day.

I was not paying attention to the conversation, so I had no idea , that I had been spotted by Tatiana. Until, I heard a voice say, "Hello, Suzanne." I jumped out of my skin, and even screamed a little . Tatiana chuckled, and I looked up at her, as I said, "Tatiana , you scared me." She replied, "I am sorry, are you going to skate?" I shook my head and said back, "No, not tonight, I am here with Anna." Tatiana's glance turned over to the ice, and she said, "Ah, Anna , she is good." I replied, "Yeah, everyone is, I am going to make a fool of myself when I come with the children." She said, "Don't care about falling, falling is the step that helps you improve." She patted my back, and she said, "Listen to me, I am a coach , I have trained the best, and I am still training the best."
I replied, "I know, you are a very successful coach, and I am listening to you, but my fears are talking louder." Tatiana said, "Don't let your fears talk, dear." I replied, "That is a lot easier said than done." Anna gave me a wave, and I waved back. Tatiana asked , "You want to skate, right?" I replied, "I do, I have always wanted to try, to see what would happen." She said, "Then you should embrace that dream, and silence your fears."

I nodded my head and I asked her, "Are you telling me to put ice skates on, right now?" She asked me, "Do you want to?" I laughed and replied, "I think, I have to face my fears at the roller rink first." She smiled and replied, "That sounds very wise, I think once you show yourself , that you can stand up on roller skates, you will be ready to put the skates on, and stand firmly on the ice."
I whispered, "I hope so." Anna changed back into her shoes, and then she sat down and joined me. She asked, "What did you think?" I said, "Well, a part of me wanted to ice skate too, and another part of me wanted to stay in the stands ." She smiled , and I  added, "However, you did make it look fun." She said, "Oh , it was, and Andrei came out too." I smiled and nodded my head.
She asked , "Do you still want to meet him?" I said, "Yeah, only if he has some time." She did not reply, instead she just went over to Andrei . Then, they both came back over to me, Anna said, "Suzanne, this is Andrei, and Andrei , this is Suzanne." I said, "Nice to meet you, Andrei." He smiled , and replied, "Glad to meet you, Suzanne," with a strong Russian accent.

I noticed that his eyes were green, and his hair was a little more blond. I smiled and shook his hand. He asked me, "Are you going to come here and ice skate." I replied, "Yes, I am , with the preschool." He smiled at me and said, "That's good." Then Anna completely shocked me , when she decided to ask Andrei to roller skate with us!   I laughed , and she said, "We will be there to support you." I said, "I am sure, he is busy, you know training." Andrei replied, "I want to come, I have a pair of roller blades." I finally smiled , and said, "Okay, fine." Anna said, "Great, this Friday night is going to be so much fun."  I smiled and said in return, "Yeah , it will be." Anna took me back to my apartment, and when I went to sleep, I had dreams about taking the chances , I lost and found once again.

To Be Continued