A Titanic Day

This afternoon I had the pleasure of attending the Titanic Exhibit in San Diego at the Natural History Museum in Balboa Park. What a special way for the family to spend time together! This was one of the most fascinating exhibtions I have attended and I have seen quite a few.  At the entrance of the walk-through exhibit, each person is given a "boarding pass" from an actual passenger listing demographical information, who they were traveling with and details on their journey. At the end of the tour, ticket holders search for their name on a wall to inquire if they perished or survived the catastrophe. In my case, my ticketed passenger survived. The following is some information I found on Mrs. Jennie Louise Hansen.

Mrs Claus Peter Hansen (Jennie Louise Howard) was born 20 December 1866 in Racine, Wisconsin, the daughter of William J. Howard and Edith Dawson. Jennie was a frail woman who had been poor in health for years. She had lived through several catastrophic events in addition to the Titanic.  She was a pastry cook in the Blake Opera House and Hotel which burned to the ground on 27 December 1884. She made the last trip in the elevator before flames gutted the shaft. Prior to the fire by several months, she was found lying unconscious in the kitchen overcome by gas fumes from the stove.

Jennie was married to Claus Peter Hansen on 25 July, 1900 in Racine. They would have no children.  In 1912 Peter and Jennie (then 45 years old) were going to Denmark to visit his family. Before leaving Racine, Jennie told her brother Thomas that she dreaded making the trip, saying that she had a feeling she would never return alive; she even told Thomas the type of funeral arrangements she wanted in the event that her body was recovered (he took this in a humorous vein). The Hansens left for Europe on board the Cunarder Campania on February 14, 1912.


When the time came for Peter and Jennie to return to America, Peter´s twenty-six year old brother Henrik Juul Hansen, decided to leave Denmark and accompany them to the new world. The trio boarded the Titanic in Southampton as third class passengers (ticket number 350026, £14 2s 2d). After the collision, Peter put his wife into a lifeboat (possibly lifeboat 11) with the words: "Jennie, you had better go so that there will be one of us to tell the story back home." Peter and Henrik both perished in the sinking. Jennie claimed that in the crowded lifeboat a sailor was sitting on her lap rowing the whole time!

As a result of the Titanic disaster, Jennie suffered such a shock to her nervous system that she was unable to shed a tear after. She also suffered from severe nightmares and went to stay with her elder brother Thomas and his wife Maggie in Franksville, Wisconsin. Apparently Jennie's nightmares were so severe that Thomas and Maggie had to go and hold her down on the bed.

Eventually, Jennie returned to Racine Wisconsin where she married Elmer Emerson, 19 years her junior, on 25 August 1915. They lived at 1214 Center Street, Racine. Jennie Louise Emerson (née Howard, late Hansen) died on 15 December 1952 aged 85, due to complications of chonic Bronchitis.

Career Corridors

Now that I have settled into the 2^nd phase of my adult life, I find myself seeking paths undiscovered thus far. I have come to the conclusion that I desire different things at 40 than I did at 20. Not so abnormal, right? Things that once ranked high in priority now barely scratch the surface of my psyche. I find myself on a perpetual ride to boredom, professionally speaking. I have worked basically in the same industry for 15 years, albeit under different titles. No matter what position I held, I always held on to my work ethic and went above and beyond what was expected. But I no longer have a passion for the health care industry, no longer look forward to going into work. Time for a fresh start.

I have a master plan and with any luck, I can set the wheels in motion in the very near future. I am setting my sights on a completely different genre of service this time around and I have a gut feeling I have found my true calling. I will have to get my knees dusty, starting at the bottom and I work my way up, but I welcome this challenge. I foresee great things in my near future. Life has no safety net, but I am excited to take this leap of faith.

pasos cortos, visión largo…..Short steps, long vision.

Injustice?

Recently many people celebrated the Easter holiday with friends and family. Typically there are traditional dishes, gathering around a table filled with appetizers, and some species of entertainment. For my family, this meant my Father’s delicious grilled filet mignon, my stepmother’s cream cheese and chutney dip, and golf. Well, the men gathered around the big screen and the females walked the property (several acres that what we fondly refer to as “Raymond Ranch.”)

Being animal lovers, their property has several lush turtle refuges, an impressive chicken coop, owl nesting boxes and a large aviary. In addition, there are fruit trees, trails, and view decks. So as the fellas watched golf, the ladies took a walk around the terrain looking at the new baby birds, picking fruit and collecting a colorful basket freshly laid eggs. The air was fresh and clean, being a good 30 minutes outside of the city proper and there is a certain peace in the atmosphere up there that calms even the most frazzled of nerves. For the most part, it was a lovely day.

Unfortunately this day was also a reminder of an injustice and a topic I find disturbing. I am sure there are people who will disagree with my opinion. Growing up in a law enforcement family, I could not count with all fingers and toes combined how many holidays we had faces missing around our supper table because someone had to work their regular shift at the jail or prison. I find it quite disheartening that convicted criminals are permitted family visits on legal holidays (even the banks and post offices are closed!!) causing sworn staff to miss the celebrations with their own loved ones. On this most recent holiday my stepfather, once again, had to work his normal shift at the jail, checking in guests, assigning visit rooms, and accepting money for the inmate accounts.

Please do not misunderstand… I know how beneficial a visit is to an incarcerated person. I know this because, as my regular readers are aware, I have a brother who is confined behind the walls of a California prison. After our father pays him a visit, his spirits are raised significantly and his letters are more positive and full of hope instead of despair. Said brother agrees with me regarding the frivolous visit schedule. I don’t begrudge a prisoner a chance to see their loved ones and keep the lines of communication open. Ultimately this type of bond to the outside world may help them upon release; closeness to friends and family may encourage them to live within the legal limits of the law.

I believe there is a fine line here. I reckon a law abiding, tax paying, hard working citizen deserves the holiday merriment with their kin considerably more than a convicted criminal.