Month: June 2003
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To SARS or not to SARS
When the threat of Sudden Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) descended on Asia and splashed across the headlines, some travelers asked, “To go or not to go, that is the question.” We had no question about going. We had plans and we were going. To mask or not to mask, that was the question many passengers…
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Skin tax, being white in dark society
I felt sleek and sophisticated as I boarded the plane to fly to Indonesia to see my son spiritually united with his future bride – then I met the China Air flight attendants. Tall – for oriental women – they all appeared to wear about a size two uniform, a perpetual smile and the most…
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Little things add up
We got up early and packed lunches before my sisters, cousin and I toured the Grand Canyon earlier this year. As hunger and thirst struck us during the day, we grabbed our prepared food packets and kept on trucking around the Canyon because we didn’t have to stop to hunt down a restaurant or drink…
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Are you my mother?
No matter where my mother lived, three of her five children were always on the other side of the country. As the years went by and the family grew in number and size and grandchildren enrolled in sports, Scouts and summer camp, family reunions became increasingly difficult. Instead of the weekly visits with grandparents, that…
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Ants, heat, poison ivy
I used to enjoy an afternoon out in the woods – “used to” being the operative phrase here. As a young girl, I joined my teenage cousin as she laid out tanning. She stood up after two hours with a beautiful tan. I, on the other hand, had burned fiery red. I never gave the…