Betsy's Blog

         Are you pleased with your facial features? Do you have your favorite face creams, lotions, and foundations? Have you considered facial improvements with surgery or botox? We are surrounded by beautiful faces in the media and wish to improve our own. We want to look like air-brushed models with perfect eyes, noses, cheekbones, and lips. There is a new trend called 'face positivity ' that is encouraging women to revert to the 'au naturel' look.     When I was growing up, my mom had a subscription to "Vogue Magazine." She loved to look at the latest fashions on the chic models on slick pages. I did too and wished I looked like the tall, sleek models in beautiful outfits with perfect skin. There were no freckles, blemishes, or scars to be seen. The sophisticated models posed in perfect outfits on Fifth Avenue, New York City, and on yachts in the Caribbean. They ran through leaves at countryside mansions or walked their poodle past skyscrapers. I w...

    Please find me a ticket to your upcoming "Eros Tour" Taylor! I don't want to have 'Bad Blood' over the ticket scarcity. Even though I am a grandma, I have followed you since you were young. I know every word of your songs and my children give me your new albums as birthday presents. I even know your middle name is Alison. No, I am not a stalker. I am just a loyal fan who would love to see you perform in Las Vegas where I reside. I am originally from Michigan where you are performing too. Fans can't buy tickets on Ticketron there either. or anywhere. It is national news. I went on Ticketron early today and signed up for the special announcement when tickets would go on sale. However,  the Ticketron system crashed with your overload of pre-sale ticket requests. I am frustrated and losing sleep over this. Today they posted a message that they are working on this issue. It says that I can send a message to Ticketron to get on their waiting list. Guess what? I ...

                Each city in Thailand has  its own personality. Chiang Mai is one of my favorites. It is a historic city in the central part of the country with scenic canals lined with ancient stone buildings. Tonight is the ancient celebration of the Northern Thailand lantern festival "Yi Peng".  This "two full moon day" corresponds with the full moon day in the second month according to the Lanna lunar calendar.  It occurs on the evening of the November Full Moon. This ancient Buddhist festival is celebrated for the purpose of merit-making. Releasing the lanterns into the sky is believed to represent the end of one's misfortune. This is especially significant this year after being canceled twice during the Pandemic. The ancient stone-walled canals are filled with candles floating in the colored paper on the river. Everyone makes wishes for the new year as they light a lantern and place it in the canal. It is a magical sight ...

      Is it true that more than one night in this magical Southeast Asian city will change your life? It just might and I encourage you to try it for at least one night as the song says. The country of Thailand recently reopened after the Covid-19 Pandemic over two years ago. My husband and I used to work here for five years before the world turned upside down. We wondered if this amazing country had survived the worldwide lockdown. Would it still be the same? Would the people still have smiles on their faces? Well, it is still the 'same same' as Thais say, but yet a little different. Masks have always been the norm in Southeast Asia. Now, they are no longer mandatory, but most Thai people still choose to wear their masks all day long. The only places that still require masks are on the Sky Train, airplanes, and other mass transportation. The shopping malls seemed more crowded than normal if that is possible. Some restaurants even have waiting for lines and traffic jams r...

                      Have you ever heard a singer whose voice can fill a theater? Do you picture her in a long, flowing white dress and barefoot? Can she play the guitar and also write her own songs!? Does she live on her grandma’s farm in Iowa? She goes by the nickname Lissie for Elisabeth. I was fortunate to see her perform last night in the Troubador Theater where she first performed in downtown Los Angeles. My husband and I went with a local couple that we have known for over thirty years. When she started out, I am sure it was a cool part of the city. Lissie thanked the Theater Stage Manager and crew that she has worked with for years. There is still a 50’style music club next door with red leather booths where we had dinner before the concert. Homeless people hung around outside the theater and assured us the theatre doors would open soon. Most of the store windows were boarded up, and a few vintage shops had wind...

       I will never attend a Timeshare sales presentation again. Repeat, I will never attend a Timeshare sales presentation again. I didn’t expect to enjoy this event but thought it might be tolerable with the reward of a BBQ restaurant lunch coupon. The process began with a harmless spin on a roulette wheel at the Las Vegas Renaissance Fair. Beware! We didn’t win a prize, but my husband and I were invited to a timeshare presentation instead. This quick session was held at a fancy Las Vegas Hotel on the Strip with a free lunch afterward. Well, let’s just say that nothing is free or quick in Vegas. We showed up early at the fancy Jockey Club on Las Vegas Boulevard. We were seated in a Roman-style waiting room with white pillars and marble floors. Our own special sales representative in a Hawaiian shirt was an expert at small talk and offered us a bottle of water. Then he personally escorted us into the conference room and sat beside us so we couldn't leave. There w...

  Did you ever wonder what the dark side of the moon looks like? Roger Waters did and produced a 1973 album by that name with his band "Pink Floyd". That was quite a while ago and now he is back on tour at the ripe old age of 79. Recently, I was fortunate to see him perform at the Allegiance Stadium in Las Vegas with a crowd of blue-jeaned baby boomers in black T-Shirts at his concert. My husband actually saw him perform in 1972 in Denver, Colorado. I didn’t know what to expect, but Waters worked his magic again. He managed to keep the stadium crowd entertained for three full hours. Clearly, he thrives on writing and sharing his music.  Roger grew up in Surrey, England where I lived many years ago. Waters started his band, Pink Floyd, in 1965 and was named after two blues musicians. His controversial politics have appeared in the press over the years. We didn’t know what to expect until the concert began with a personal message displayed on the stage screen. Waters basicall...