NOV 26, 22 .. SPIRITUAL POCKET STONES

Well Hello Olga ! Over there in Chita (Чита), how nice of you to be following Patti and myself here on blogspot !

We'll bet that maybe, just maybe, you have forgotten that it was you Olga who gave us the above 'keepsake' that we treasure so very much.

By The Way, for those of you who are not exactly fluent in the language of Russia, in the above photo, Chita is, at the top beneath the Red Bull, 6305 kilometers from Moscow (Москва ) and, at the bottom, 2860 kilomerers from Vladivostock (Владивосток ).

I have a most favorite quote from my most favorite Poet, one Robert W. Service, from his Poem, The Cremation of Sam McGee, that is as follows : 

Now a promise made is a debt unpaid.

Back on May 22nd, 2022, I showed, in a post on babakaps.net ..

https://babakaps.net/?p=45967

a photo of some of the spiritual pocket stones that I like to carry with me and give to others.

Then a few weeks ago, Olga asked me a question about these spiritual pocket stones. Suddenly I discovered, much to my dismay thinking I'd refer Olga to a past Post, that I have never "told their story".

Olga, here is the story of our spiritual pocket stones.

As many as 20 years ago, I began to hand paint messages on stones that I would find. The stones had to be small, roundish and flat. However, by keeping my eyes on-the-alert, I would find nicely shaped stones from time to time and paint a message on one and give it away.

Alas Alak. I never kept any for myself because the entire point of them was to share them with others. However, for reasons I am not able to explain, I recently came across two of them.

A different stone, the same message. The same message is painted on the other side of the stone.

Now we jump back to early February of this year 2022. 

Patti and I were both patients at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, Arizona, and while in the lobby of the Main Hospital, we encountered a close friend, Shelley. Shelley was working in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and had just eaten lunch and was heading back to the ICU. As the three of us chatted, a friend of Shelley's (actually the Hospital Chaplain which accounted for what was about to happen) came up to us. 

Suddenly the Chaplain pulled out a small black bag and, pulling open the top of it, said to Patti and I .. " Please take one of these."

The above and below photos were taken here at our home just for this Post. I did not have a clue-in-a-carload what was coming when the Chaplain presented her bag to us.

So into the bag Patti and I reached and picked (what was to become the very beginning of our spiritual pocket stones ministry) not one, but three of the Chaplain's stones.

" Oh My Goodness ! " I exclaimed to the Chaplain, thinking of my own efforts at hand painting messages on stones .. 

" How on earth did you do these so perfectly ? "

She did not reply because, in hindsight she had no idea what I was talking about, she never had made her own stones.

And off she went. Being a Chaplain in a hospital is one stressful and super busy career !

So after we got back to our motel room in Phoenix, I mulled over these amazing stones. I texted Shelley and asked her to ask the Chaplain where, and how, she got the stones.

Long story short, I never got an answer. Shelley asked the Chaplain my questions and could not get an answer. 

By the way, after I got my supply of spiritual pocket stones going, I gave Shelley ten of my stones to replace the six stones we received from the Chaplain.

So I continued to mull this issue over (for only a day or so because I wanted these stones) and suddenly had a thought. 

"Google them and go explore Amazon !"

B - I - N - G - O !!

Big Otters engraved Inspirational Stones (25 Different Words)

BigOtters Engraved Inspirational Stones, 

25 Different Words Encouragement Stones Amulets 

Gift Stones for Friends and Family as Christmas

 Thanksgiving Gift

TGS GEMS.. Is my preferred source.

Oh My, Oh My, Oh My .. Google and Amazon !!

On February the 13th 2022, I ordered one set from each of the above two Amazon suppliers.

They come in nifty little bags of 25 stones each. Each bag of 25 costs a little over $25 (or $1 a stone). The two suppliers differ slightly from each other as to the words on their stones.

And ?? Oh My, Oh My, Oh My !!

Your Captain was .. to coin a phase .. " Off And Running ! "

I ordered (some of the orders were for three bags) more Spiritual Pocket Stones on February 19th, April 15th, Apr 22nd, May 12th, May 25th, June 11th and lastly July 8th. 

We have come across the following words on the stones:

Accept, Believe, Blessed, Clarity, Courage, Desire, Dream, Faith, Family, Friends, Freedom, Focus, Happiness, Healing, Health, Honor, Hope, Inspire, Joy, Kindness, Laugh, Love, Nature, Nurture, Passion, Peace, Relax, Strength, Success, Trust, Wealth, Wisdom.

And ?

Below are photos of them. They are very proud of  themselves !

Well Olga, there you have it.

Now you know .. The Rest Of The Story about our spiritual pocket stones.

Lots of Smiles Olga ..

Cap and Patti

And now a fun .. Rest Of The Story ..

I was giving Lopez, one of my buddies, one of my stones. Lopez looked it over, and smiling, reached into his own pocket and gave me one of HIS stones.

Smiling I said to Lopez, obviously a rabid Boston Red Socks basefall fan .. 

" Lopez ? How about year 2004, Game 4 of the American League Championship Series, the Red Socks were down 3 games to none against the New York Yankees ! They won game 4 in the 12th inning and went on to sweep the Yankees going forward to the World Series which they won sweeping the St. Louis Cardinals in four games !! "

Oh Yes .. This really bonded Lopez and myself. Spiritual Pocket Stones and baseball fans par excellence !

JUN 4, 22 .. TO RUSSIA WITH LOVE .. OLGA'S RESTAURANT IN ROYAL OAK, MICHIGAN

Our little gift to you Olga !!

Patti and I have a very wonderful friend in Chita, Russian Siberia, that we have known now for three years. Her name is Olga and we are in contact with one another fairly often (almost daily). And we often say to one another how often we think of each other.

Well, very close to our home here in Royal Oak, Michigan, is a restraurant that we pass often. 

And?

When we see Olga's Restaurant, I ask you Olga, how can we not think of you over in Chita?

So here's to you Olga. Enjoy some photos of 'your' very own Restaurant here in Royal Oak, Michigan.

OLGA'S RESTAURANT 

In the first two photos below, we are looking at Olga's Restaurant as viewed from North Woodward Avenue, just South of 13 Mile Road, in Royal Oak, Michigan.

We turn a little closer.

Two photos showing Trafford Road, the side cross street with North Woodward Avenue, beside Olga's.

Let's park and get out of our truck and snap some closer photos of Olga's Restaurant.

Olga's Restaurant is sparkling and very attractive.

By the way, the red pickup truck in the below photo is Danny's, our friend of 30 some years, who has loaned it to us during our visit. THANKS DANNY.

Olga's front entrance.

Olga's is on-line!!

The time has come to step inside of Olga's.

Olga! Come on over and go to work at Olga's Restaurant here in Royal Oak, Michigan.

Olga's is a very pleasant venue.

Guess What Olga? Your restaurant has a wonderful outdoor dining area!

Looking at your outdoor dining area from the inside entrance to it Olga.

Well Olga, there you have it! A loving celebration of your very own restaurant here in Royal Oak, Michigan, in the United States of America!

Wouldn't it be wonderful if you could come over and visit it?

Smiles from Cap and Hugs from Patti

Post Script : Because of the Covid-19 virus, Patti and I have opted, for the time being, not to eat out at any restaurant.

DEC 20, 21 ( 2 / 3 ) .. THE EDGEWATER HOTEL AND CASINO .. LAUGHLIN, NEVADA ..

Many times Patti and I have expressed how much it means to us to remain 'connected and in touch' with friends that we have made in other countries during our travels.

One of our special friends is Olga, who lives in Chita, Russian Sibria. Olga follows us here on blogspot and always asks us the most interesting questions. By the way, when Patti and I were in Chita, Olga was our translator! Olga also teaches English!

So? The point of this Post is twofold : 

First, we want to post more photos of the Edgewater Hotel in Laughlin, Nevada.

Second, we want to answer a question posed to us by Olga :

"Cap and Patti, why is a Hotel, located in the Southernmost Nevada Desert of the United States, named the Edgewater? The name implies the hotel is on the edge of water!"

Great question Olga. This Post will answer your question.

THE EDGEWATER HOTEL, LAUGHLIN, NEVADA

The below photos look out upon the Nevada Desert from our room.

In the below photo, out in the distance, is the Tropicana Laughlin Hotel and Casino.

Olga, we don't see any water anywhere! What a great question?

Oh My! 

When we checked into our room we were dead tired after being up very early (3 o'clock in the early morning) in Anchorage in order to go to the airport, to check in and then go through security, to await boarding our flight, to board, to fly to Seattle (3-1/2 hours), deboard, get to the boarding gate for our flight to Las Vegas, wait to board, boarding, flying to Las Vegas (2-1/2 hours), deboarding, getting all of our luggage out of the airport into our truck (Thanks Detroit Tiger Tom for meeting us!!), driving to Laughlin (1-1/2 hours) and checking into the Edgewater Hotel.

Get it? Got it? Good!

We then crashed and went to sleep.

And? We did NOT take photos of our room before we crashed because we were totally exhausted.

So?

As we left our room on December 10th, after our ten night visit, we snapped the below photos. Our room is not in the pristine condition it was when we first entered it, but the below photos will give you an idea of our room. 

Oh My! Did we love the counter space in our bathroom!

OK Olga, the time has come to answer your question as to why the Edgewater Hotel, in the Nevada Desert, has its name.

But first Olga, we will show you a few photos of one of the other hotels very near our hotel.

Whoa! The Riverside! In the Nevada Desert in Laughlin, Nevada?

Olga! What is going on here? The name of the Riverside Hotel implies that it is beside a river!

Well here is your answer. This first photo looks out from our room. In the distance is the Tropicana Laughlin.

Olga, if you go out from our room, walk across the hallway, and go into a room on the other side of the Edgewater Hotel, below is the view you will see.

Panning from left to right. Olga, please notice, in the background, across the mighty Colorado River, we are indeed in the Nevada Desert!

Do you see the Nevada Desert across the river Olga?

Because the Edgewater and the Riverside Hotels front the mighty Colorado River, they derive their water names.

Olga, for all and more than you may want to know, below is a Wikipedia link that will tell you about the Colorado River.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_River

Now for some photos of the Colorado River that show that the Edgewater, and Riverside, and a number of other hotels here in Laughlin, Nevada, front the Colrado River.

We will begin by viewing the Colorado River from the highway bridge that you see in the first two photos below. This bridge across the Colorado River connects the states of Nevada and Arizona here in Laughlin, Nevada, and Bullhead City, Arizona. Nevada is on the East side of the Colorado River and Arizona is on the West side of the river.

Viewing the above bridge looking at it from further down the river.

Now Olga, we are going to get on the above bridge, and show you in the following photos that, yes indeed, these hotels in the desert are indeed close to water.

The first hotel on the right is the Riverside Hotel. The most distant hotel is our Edgewater Hotel.

And now I am going to walk down beside the Colorado River (on the left side of the above four photos) and shoot photos from that viewpoint.

Come along with me for a photographic look, from across the Colorado River, at the above hotels.

We will begin with photos of the Riverside Resort Hotel and Casino.

Let us, allow us, to tell everone reading along here, all of these hotels border on, in our opinion, being beautiful even magnificent.

Now we will focus upon our Hotel Edgewater.

In the below photo, our Edgewater Hotel is on the far left. The (what appear to be two hotels) Aquarius Hotel and Casino Resort are to the center and right.

In the below photo, our Edgewater Hotel is on the right. In the center is the Colorado Belle Casino Resort.

On the right edge of the below photo, in the distance, is the Tropicana Laughlin. A significant hotel here in Laughlin.

"Dad! I know you have several very nice photos of me! Won't you include me in this Post?" /s/ The Tropicana Laughlin.

Oh Yes Indeed Tropicana! I sure will include you in here!

"Thanks Dad!" /s/ The Tropicana Laughlin

To wrap this up, from the left, to the center, to the right, are the Colorado Belle, The Edgewater and The Aquarius Hotels and Casinos. And, in the far distance, to the right of The Edgewater, is The Tropicana.

Well Olga, thanks for your excellent question. 

Smiles Cap and Hugs from Patti