Never Too Late

This email is late. I thought I had set it to go out at midnight PST but in my weariness, I forgot to schedule it properly. Sorry about that. Especially to you subscribers who live in the other side of the world. So here’s me doing catch up.

Someone recently asked me if I needed a ghost writer for this email blast. She didn’t know I do everything. I do the collecting, the writing, the illustration — everything … and every Friday. I’ve been doing this for almost 20 years now … 17 years!!! It started with a group of former office mates from my old job (after I was laid off due to the recession). Someone sent me a joke and I enhanced it with my illustration. Then they said I should share it to more and then it just grew. At first it was purely jokes. Then, when Youtube came around, I added funny videos. Then I did a little commentary (like this one). Now this email goes around the world in every continent (except Antarctica … at least to my knowledge) and to many religions and other belief systems. I know I share a lot about my faith and I hope people understand that this is just my perspective. I do not claim to know more or be better than anyone. I do invite other perspectives and you may read some when this email is eventually posted in Traveling Boy (which, I believe, is one of the best online Travel blogs run by my dear creative friend Ed Boitano).  Sometimes I do get into more in-depth conversations but, mostly, I do it on the side.

Why do I do it? Because I can. I dunno. Sometimes I ask myself that question too. This is an ongoing experiment which should have stopped years ago. I do spend considerable time to prepare each week. It sounds like a job but it isn’t. I don’t get paid for this. Sometimes I do get job leads but this isn’t the purpose. I do get pleasure knowing that I’ve touched someone who needed to laugh or who was wrestling with some issues. One big reason is because I pray for you guys. I really do. I pray that whoever reads this will be blessed in some way. When people ask for prayers, I really do spend time asking for heavenly intercession. I’ve prayed with a British nurse who was searching for guidance, a soldier in the middle east who missed his family, several who have lost their jobs or were in the middle of a divorce, lots of people in mourning, lots of intellectuals, lots of spiritual leaders but mostly just regular folk.  It’s like touching people’s souls. Most of you I will probably never see in person. Maybe when we all get to heaven, we will come to a TGIF party and share this Friday experience.

This wasn’t my topic last night. I only share this since I have this opportunity. I share this because I want you to do something more with your time during this lockdown. Instead of binge watching and adding the pounds, why not start something you enjoy? Something you’ve always wanted to do but always had work getting in the way. We’ve already seen those creative videos (more below). Start your own experiment. It might grow into something beyond your wildest imagination. Don’t call it a dream … call it a plan.

Let’s keep our distance and keep our sanity and hold on to our faith. TGIF people!

Joke of the Week

Thanks to Don of Kelowna, B.C. for sharing this joke.

Video: Covid-19

Thanks to Naomi of N Hollywood, CA for sending this video made by her personal friend, Paula.

Video: Toilet Paper Domino

Thanks to Don of Kelowna, B.C. for sharing this video. When you’re stuck at home, your creativity goes up a notch.

Video: When the Rolls Are Back in Walmart

Thanks to Don of Kelowna, B.C. for this performance of an old hymn.

Video: Chinese Actor Donates Fortune to Charity

Thanks to JJ of the Philippines for sharing this quick documentary of a famous actor born in poverty and never got accustomed to his riches. Bless his generous spirit.

Parting Shots

Thanks to JJ of the Philippines who sent this puzzle. I know of a kid who solved it in 10 minutes.

Thanks to Mike of New York who shared this picture:

Thanks to Rodney of Manitoba, B.C. for this face:

The post Murder at COSTCO appeared first on Traveling Archive.

Like a black cat with nine lives in its final countdown, who was this person who couldn’t be killed? Grigori Rasputin, the Siberian peasant-turned-Russian mystic who became a member of Tsar Nicholas II’s inner circle.

Fearful of the powerful influence he wielded over the Romanov court, a group of aristocrats, led by Prince Felix Yusupov, the eccentric son of the richest family in all of Russia at the time, plotted and carried out the murder of the “Mad Monk.”

Rasputin’s bloody and brutal demise took place on December 30, 1916 where it began in the basement of Yusupov Palace, the prince’s estate along the affluent banks of the Moika, and ended in the frigid waters of the Neva.

Along with 22 paying customers, I, a guest photojournalist invited by Insight Vacations (Insight) to experience its Easy Pace Russia journey, meet up with Guyla, our expert guide since we arrived in St. Petersburg, and head straight for the eerie, low-lit basement of Yusupov Palace to view the Madame Tussauds-like exhibition of Rasputin and his assassins. A static display, you still sense the evil that is about to take place down here and just want to bolt. And, we do. QUICKLY.

The gruesome historical footnote now behind us, we breath in the calmer air upstairs on the second floor where the Yusupov Palace — a building of federal significance that was originally built in the 1770s by French architect Vallin de la Mothe and steadily improved over the years — really comes alive on this optional Insight experience.

“One of the very few aristocratic homes of St. Petersburg to have retained many of its original interiors,” Gulya explains in our ear buds, “the palace, once the epicenter of high-society events hosted by the rich and famous House of Yusupov before the October Revolution of 1917, was nationalized, handed over to the educational authorities who then turned the palace into a club for local school teachers.” She adds, “Today, Yusupov Palace has been transformed into a modern museum and cultural center and boasts some of very best 19th century interiors you will find anywhere in Russia.”

Guyla is spot on as we move from one sumptuously rich room to another, down hallways and into large halls, all equally adorned with graceful art, sculpture, portraiture, golden chandeliers, frescoes, tapestries and some finely-handcrafted furniture pieces.

The private, rococo Palace Theatre, where world-class classical concerts and live theatre performances still unfold is stunning; the White-Columns Hall is impressive; and, down on the ground floor, Prince Yusupov’s billiards, study and Moorish drawing rooms are intimate and rich.

Despite the whodunnit, Clue-like atmosphere surrounding Rasputin’s demise down in the basement, upstairs Yusupov Palace is alive and well along the banks of the Moika. This prominent architectural gem of the Russian “Northern Capital” should be a must-see sight for anyone planning to visit the city that Peter the Great built.

I’d like stay and show you more, but I’ve got an ultra-fast Sapsan train to catch as this Easy Pace Russia journey picks up steam (electrical current) and heads for Moscow like a speedy peregrine falcon.

Do svidaniya St. Petersburg!

Go here for detailed information on Insight’s six journeys to Russia, as well as more than 100 other premium and luxury-escorted itineraries around Europe, or call toll free (888) 680-1241, or contact your travel agent.

The post Easy Pace Russia: The Beginning of the End at Yusupov Palace (Dispatch #10) appeared first on Traveling Archive.