You made it through month 2. How does it feel?

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Already? I have to admit that it hasn’t been consistently a post a day. I think I have missed 4 or 5 but I would make them up the next day, feeling all guilty; “oh no, the teacher will be mad at me for not doing my assignment”. I know that I am beholden to no one on when and how often I post, but I still feel that anxiety in my brain from years of catholic schooling perhaps, I don’t know, but the voice is there “DO YOUR WORK”.

It is harder than it looks, getting into the discipline of writing every day. Having a topic at your disposal makes the task of writing infinitely easier because I can focus on the simple task of developing the daily habit of sitting down and making time just for my blog. If I had to also stress on what to write when I sit down at my computer, who knows if I would get anything out? I don’t think that I am at that stage yet. I’m pretty sure that I need more time to strengthen my habit and gain confidence in my writing ability and my voice.

I am enjoying myself tremendously especially after the post is published and the work is done. I feel a sense of accomplishment and forget it, when I get a comment, oh boy!, those comments make my day. Puts a big smile on my face.

So basically, this feels real good.

When was your last random act of kindness?

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Last year I decided to really try to donate money to the local rescue mission near me. I don’t know why this particular year, but something inside of me felt really strongly about making a contribution. I started donating enough to feed 30 people for Thanksgiving at the local mission and then I received an e-mail from the mission, asking for food because due to the severity of the economic downturn they weren’t nearly prepared enough for the amount of hungry and needy people. So I told my family that I really wanted to go food shopping for the less fortunate and drop off a few turkeys, canned goods and a few pies the day before Thanksgiving. No one complained and we all went together to pick up the groceries and deliver them to the mission as a family. I was so happy to be able to contribute a little something to the people and the thanks that we received were so heartfelt, I felt a little bit of moisture creep into my eyes.

Later on this past December, I received an e-mail asking for old cleaned coats especially because it turned out to be one of the coldest December’s on record. I very gladly went into all the closets and grabbed all the coats that we no longer wear which were in great condition and delivered them immediately to the mission where I know that they will be put to good use. I’m planning to continue donating as much as I can and I hope that whatever little bit I can spare helps someone else and that they know that people do care and do try to help and that they are not completely forgotten.

It is extremely hard out there if you are unfortunate enough to have lost your job, the governments everywhere are on an austerity kick and have forgotten that the have-nots outnumbered the haves by at least 75%. The republicans are hell-bent in eliminating the safety nets without any regard for the hardship that so many are feeling, or so it appears. So I feel compelled to try to contribute as much as I can. I don’t know why but I almost feel guilt, maybe it’s because that with this downturn, it could really be anyone who, through too many months of hardship, may find themselves at the mission dependent on the generosity of others. It is an eye-opening experience and it opens up your heart even more to donating more than just money, it moves you to donate your time and things. It is an easy thing to do and it means so much to those who receive and even more to those who give.

Best road trip the final leg.

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Let’s see where were we, of yes we are at Pelakas, Corfu where the sky is blue, the sea is gloriously clear and the color of sea green, and the food is comparable to ambrosia of the gods. The husband and wife duo in the small restaurant that we frequented every single day never disappointed and our little waitress was a delight. But, as with all good things, our delightful sojourn was over and we were going separate ways. The boys, John, Greg and Bill, were going eastward off to Istanbul, Turkey and we were invited to share the ride. I was so tempted because I really, really liked John; but my sister was longing for France and her friend at Istres, France. So we said our good-byes, exchanged addresses and kissed each other fond farewells. Indeed, parting is such sweet sorrow. Now to get down to the business at hand, the return home and quickly. I don’t really remember much of the journey back to France, it was the return ferry to Brindisi, Italy and then a very long train ride to Monaco where we stopped for the night.We stayed at a nice little hotel and treated ourselves to a very comfortable bed and bathroom. We were so excited about civilization that we took pictures of ourselves jumping on the bed and pictures of the beautiful shower stall and private toilet. We then went back and stopped in Cannes, I have to recommend Cannes in the beginning of September because the weather is equally magnificent as in August and July but minus the tourists. It is paradise. We then took the local train from Cannes to Istres or so we thought. I didn’t check the guide very well and the train passed right through Istres and stopped at the next town over. We got off the train and I thought no big deal we’ll wait for the next train but the ticket operator said that the next train wasn’t for another 6 or 7 hours and I didn’t feel like waiting. So I asked “well how about if we walked to Istres, it doesn’t seem that far away on the map?” The ticket operator said “all you need to do is just walk straight down that road”. I asked my sister if she was up for it, she said o.k. and we were off.

The road was nice and straight; a fine country road, beautifully paved and not too much car traffic. We came to an overpass after a while and there was no other way to go except up the side of the overpass which we did. When we got to the top, it was an overpass for the train, the one that we weren’t waiting for so we looked both ways and ran across. That was easy enough, on the other side of the train tracks however were a huge patch of briar bushes all the way down the path and we couldn’t get around those briar prickers. I did have a trusty Swiss army knife and boy did it come in handy though my sister, since she was behind me as I was cutting us a path through the briar bushes, got pricked every time a branch would slap back from being cut. She wasn’t too happy about that one. We were finally free of those horrible bushes, when we got our breath back and started walking again after a while we came across a river. That river was separating us from the road we needed to follow to get to Istres. The river was running fairly swiftly and I couldn’t see how deep it was, so I looked around for a stick and the first one I put in the river got swept away so I looked for a sturdier stick. Found one, measured the depth of the river without letting it go this time and found that I could walk across without too much trouble, I thought. I figured I’d take the backpacks over first, one at a time to make sure they didn’t fall in and get wet. That done, I came back for my sister, who at this point didn’t want to get wet so I told her to get on my back and I carried her over. She’s smaller than I am so it wasn’t to difficult.

There, we are back on the road and walking and walking and still walking. It must have been a good 12 to 15 miles that we walked until we finally got to the center of town. I must say that I was happy because even though I’m a fan of walking, I was scared that my sister was going to pull a mutiny because she was not happy with me, to say the least. We passed in front of a cute hotel and without saying a word to me, she went in and at the desk asked for a room. I followed and said” but we are so close, we can call and stay with them (the brothers) and save money” to which she replied “call them and tell them that I’ll be staying in room 300 if you want to see me”. There was no changing her mind so I called them, they came and picked me up, she stayed at the room, slept and showered and after that we spent a peaceful week with the two bothers and their family in Istres, and finally we went back home to Bordeaux where we spent the last two weeks with our family before flying home to the States and school and work.

The best vacation of adventures, sightseeing, freedom and just fun.

What keeps you up at night?

Honestly, I don’t have any trouble sleeping, either falling asleep or staying asleep. When I used to be plagued by sleep problems I was also drinking and trouble sleeping is an unpleasant side effect of drinking too much and too often. I would be woken up in the middle of the night (in my mind it was all the stress that would keep me up at night, hence the justification for the drink) and I would crack a bud open and gradually I’d fall back asleep. I didn’t realize until I was honest with myself and sober that the thing that kept waking me wasn’t stress but my body craving more alcohol. These days I have just as many worries as I used to, I worry about my two children (normal mother worry stuff), I worry about the economy, I worry about our bills and our savings which are being slowly depleted by the weak economy, I worry about the future of the democratic party in this country, I worry about what is going on in the world, I worry about my health and all these worries don’t keep me up at night or interfere with my sleep. I think in part because I exercise everyday and I write everyday and both provide me an outlet for all that negative energy and it doesn’t get pent up and fester.

What gets better with age?

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I am stumped with this one. I am a 43 Caucasian woman and I’m starting to feel the effects of aging, nothing major of course. I lead an osteoporosis weight class with another older lady and if she heard me complain about aches and pains, she would slap me. I just think she has forgotten that it’s a rude awakening when you experience the onset of those aches and pains especially when you had the luxury of never having any in your 30′s.

So, I am thinking the aches and pains won’t get better with age, I’ll probably just get used to the creaks and cracks of my many joints. Right now, for the past year or two, I’ve been dealing with memory loss, as far as I know it’s to early for my genetic brain condition to manifest itself and I’ve been told by my gynecologist and a few of my older women friends that with the wonderful onset of menopause, memory loss is par for the course and not to fret over it. This too shall pass eventually. Menopause is just a woman’s cross to bear and once you cross that bridge life gets easier. It will be very nice to remember things and not feel that there if this huge space in your head filled with fog where your memory used to be.

So, I guess I’ll revisit this post in about 10 years because believe or not that is how long menopause can take before it has run its’ course. It actually is exciting that I’ll be back to normal in my early 50′s and this is just an adjustment my body is making preparing for the next stage of aging. So as of right now my answer is NOTHING gets better with age and I’ll check back in if and when things start getting better. See you then.

Best road trip part 3

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I left the saga in Rome. The girls and I were walking through the train station and Jennifer recognized 3 guys calling them over and Fiona and Natalie also chimed in with the happy hello’s. They in turn introduced my sister and I to John, Greg and Bill, the Canadians. We spent a pleasant hour speaking with them and upon saying good-bye, everyone gave their itineraries. We were separating from the girls, they were heading to Germany and my sister and I were heading to Greece. The boys said that they were headed towards Greece also and they were planning Corfu as their destination in Greece. John very nicely invited my sister and I to join them in Corfu, in the little town of Pelakas. We both thought that John, Bill and Greg were really nice guys, we felt very comfortable with the idea of joining them so we decided that we meet in Pelakas 2 days hence.

Needless to say, the day we said our good-bye’s to Jennifer, Fiona and Natalie, there was the exchange of addresses and phone numbers and of course we all cried. We had shared such a wonderful time together, I cherish those memories of the girls, I’ll never forget them. Now getting ourselves to Greece was an interesting adventure.

From Rome, we boarded the train to the port town of Brindisi, Italy. Brindisi was interesting because aside from the ferry service to Greece and other destinations there isn’t anything else. We arrived in town in the morning, went to the port office and found out that the ferry left at 10 p.m that evening. Now, to save money I purchased 2 spots on the deck because I figured it was stifling hot in Italy and Greece so we’d be fine sleeping under the stars on the ferry-boat. So, here we were with a whole day to wait before we could board the ferry. It was a long, long day and I want to say that we met about 8 Italian sailors, but it would be more accurate to say that they met us, more precisely, my sister. She is quite a beauty, thick blond curly hair and beautiful green eyes. She stuck out in Italy and also later on, in Greece. Now by this time, I was quite good with Italian so I was playing referee between the sailors and my sister, it was challenging because they wanted me gone so that they could flirt in peace with her but I was not having it, she is my little sister for goodness sake. This wasn’t the first occurrence and it wasn’t the last.

9:00 p.m. finally, we lined up and start to board, believe it or not it’s still light out, the sun doesn’t set until 10:00 p.m. We get to the deck and I have my sister use the bench and I set up on the floor. Once we head out to sea and the sun had set, it starts to get cold and we are frozen so we layer up with our t-shirts and bundle up with our beach towels. My sister is mumbling under her breath, that she can’t believe how cheap her sister is, that I wouldn’t even spring for tickets inside, she finally fell asleep. I wake up like an arrow in a panic feeling as if I’m about to miss something, well I was right, we were about to miss our port of call. We had arrived in Corfu, I grab my sister, rudely waking her up and dragging her off the ferry. She spies a port cafe, plops her backpack, sits herself at a table and says that she is not moving until she gets food and something to drink. Coffee and eggs it is, while we are eating, I’m trying to figure out how to get to the town of Pelakas. The waiter was very helpful and told us to go to the town square and take the green bus. When we got to the square, the dilemma was which green bus? I went to one of the green buses and asked the driver if his bus was going to Pelakas, he said sure go to the square and I’ll pick you girls up. I said sure, so my sister and I put on our backpacks and wait at the square, the bus starts up and the driver goes around the square, passes us and keeps going. My sister and I start running after the bus, yelling “Stop, you forgot us!” He must have laughed all the way to where ever he was going “Stupid tourists Ha, Ha”. Finally, there was a bus going somewhere so I decided we getting on and I’ll figure it out when we get where ever. The bus heads into Corfu town down the main street, another bus is coming in the opposite direction. Believe it or not, the 2 buses got stuck together, it took a few hours to get unstuck, it was a little difficult to get enough body weight (every one was thin) on the opposite sides of the buses to unlatch them, but it finally worked. The bus left us at the crossroads between Pelakas and Glyfada, where I thought that we would just walk up the mountain until we hit the village of Pelakas. We were walking up the road and my sister heard a car coming up the road, saw that it was a taxi and jumped in front of it screaming stop! The first thing she asked was “are you going to Pelakas?” The man said yes and I said but “how much” and my sister got in and said “I don’t car, just get in”. In the taxi, the guy told us about a pensione that he knew and drove right there. Which was fine, except that I had wanted to have the option of finding where John, Bill and Greg were. The lady at the pensione was nice but as soon as my sister went to the bathroom to take a shower, she was not happy, there was no lock on the door, the shower was completely open and water went everywhere all over the floor. When she was done and I was released from guard duty, I told her to relax in the room and I would bring back food.

By the way, my sister despite being vocal about how cheap I was and how I overdid the whole hiking thing, she has promised me through the years that she did have fun. She was right, I was very frugal and with my eating disorder, I did make us walk obnoxiously long distances. That was just a little aside, for those who might be wondering if my sister had a good time because I loved it.

Anyway, back to the saga. Right then on my way to find food I walk into John, Bill and Greg. I don’t know why, I didn’t know them, but I was so happy to find them. Especially, John, all 3 of them were handsome, but there was something about John. They showed my the best place for a quick bite to bring back to my sister, escorted me back to her and we made plans to move out of where we were to their room the next day. It was 7 of us in a small room, there was a nice American girl and an Austrian guy also sharing, but we were cozy and all got along. The landlady was adorable, the typical Greek grandmother, all maternal towards us. We spent 5 glorious days there, we found the most wonderful family restaurant, run by a charming couple and their 10 year old daughter was our waitress. We ate there for lunch and dinner the whole time. John and I grew close, oh I forgot to mention that John, Bill and Greg were musicians and they were playing their way through Europe. They were really talented and John would serenade me at night, it was a beautiful summer romance. We wrote to each other for a year and than I forgot why we lost touch but we did. I still have great memories of Greece.

This is the first half of the great road trip and for now I say good night and I’m sure that I’ll continue this tomorrow or the next day.

If you could have anything to eat right now, what would it be?

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At this instant, I am being interrupted by a phone call which is annoying the petunias out of me, but I have to listen to this person. As I am listening, I’m trying to decide would it be a dessert item, or an appetizer item, a flavorful vegetable dish, a delectable fish dish and then I need to decide which cuisine I’m in the mood for; French, Spanish, Thai or Vietnamese. Finally, especially if calories and fattening were non-issues, what about junk food?

I have been released from the phone, hallelujah!! Now I can really focus on what I would eat right now. I am hungry and I am alone so I could really pay attention to my meal and savor every taste, sensation, texture and aroma. I know what would be perfect right now, I haven’t had this dish in about 8 years and it is one of my absolute favorite things to eat.

I would be having Thai cuisine this lovely evening. The object of my desire is crabs with special sauce, it’s a specialty seafood dish from a lovely well-known Thai restaurant named Jaiya in Rosalyn, New York. One of the things that I love most of all Asian cuisine is that eating the food in question can be done with your fingers and that is exactly what I do as soon as the beautiful blue crabs swimming in the most delicious special sauce are put in front of me.

The crabs are cut up in pieces and simmered in this thick slightly spicy brown sauce that has sliced scallions for freshness, beaten egg for flavor and a thicker consistency, tamarind paste for a rich sweetness, garlic and onion and everything else is a mystery, but I do know that the crab roe is a vital part of the overall flavor. I can’t describe the taste exactly, but I can describe how I become a hedonist focused exclusively on every sensation as I pick up the first piece of crab, dipping the claw into the sauce for a good coating and sucking on the claw and then breaking it into pieces and yes the plate is all mine, no sharing, so I can double dip all I want. So I go through each piece of crab, dipping the piece intact into the sauce, sucking the sauce up, breaking the crab into pieces and dipping those pieces again sucking up the sweet crab juices that are now combined with the delectable sauce. At this time, I am oblivious to anyone at the table, the only sound coming from my body is the sucking sound I am making on the poor little crab carcass which is serving as the vessel getting that beautiful sauce into my tummy. When I run out of crab, which sadly enough does happen, the rice becomes the vehicle which transports the sauce once more to my mouth where oh it is nirvana.

I know that it must be astounding that 8 years have gone by and I haven’t had the chance to indulge my desire but when you move out-of-state you must part with things that cause you regret and sorrow.

How do you decide when a post is ready to publish?

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When after reading it through for punctuation and spelling and I don’t feel that I left anything out or unexplained that is when I usually feel confident that it is more or less done. I say more or less done because the beauty of word press is that I know that if after the post is published I can go back and re-edit once more, or trash it if upon re-reading I think wow that was horrendous! This site is great because unlike a physically published piece where you can not go back and fix it, here you can. So here goes nothing, on to publishing heaven you go you little post.

Best road trip taken Part 2

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We arrived at Monaco, the train station is right in Monte Carlo which lives up to its’ reputation. Spectacular, classy and gorgeous. A jewel in the Mediterranean. According to my trusty guide book, the most economical place to stay was the Princess Stephanie youth hostel which we found without any trouble. I thought the accommodations were clean, sparse but clean. I told my sister that we weren’t there to hang out in a room, we were there to explore Monte Carlo. I do have to say that when you don’t know anyone in a rich and fancy city like Monte Carlo, there isn’t much to do aside from walking all through the streets, visiting both old and new Monaco and laying on the beach. Walking along the port was interesting because all the yachts were filled with laughter, you could hear the champagne bottles popping, the glasses clinking and smell wonderful aromas wafting on the summer breeze. We were on the outside of all that like two little waifs standing on tiptoe looking over an imaginary barrier to another world different from our own. That night when we were back at the hostel, my sister provided me with some entertainment. She went to take a shower expecting a nice normal shower and all of a sudden I hear cursing like I’ve never heard from her mouth, shower is …… cold. I can’t believe this…… I told her that we were leaving early the next morning for Florence, Italy and it’ll be nicer, I’ll pick something more upscale, don’t worry. With that we went to bed and after grumbling for awhile, she fell asleep.

Early, next morning, I woke up like an arrow, dragged my sister (not a morning person) out of bed, grabbed the 2 backpacks and hauled our buttocks to the train station to grab the train to Florence. I had assumed that we would be able to grab something on the train for breakfast but I learned that assuming is never a good thing to do when you are traveling in a foreign country. So, my sister is giving me looks because she is hungry, grouchy and tired. I did get her a seat on the train while I sat in the corridor next to 2 Italian boys. My sister was in a compartment next to an older lady and 2 other people. Around 10:00 a.m. the old lady pulls out this picnic basket and pulls out a very nice sandwich which starts my sister salivating. Next to me the 2 Italian boys pull out their own sandwiches which smell quite heavenly at this point. One of the boys offers me a sandwich to eat and I’m about to say no thank you when my sister chimes in and says if you don’t say yes and thank you. I’ll kill you. So I thanked him and gave the sandwich to my sister and his friend offered me one and they were delicious. The 2 boys were really nice and it was the first of many conversations I had in French/Italian which was really challenging but we always managed to understand each other.

It was on this train that we met the most lovely Australian girls, Natalie, Fiona and Jennifer from Brisbane, Australia. The 5 of us got along so famously that when we arrived in Florence we decided to bunk together and we found the most quaint old youth hostel. It had been converted from a catholic hospital and the beds had mattresses that felt as if they were a foot thick. The bathrooms were in the old Roman style, absolutely beautiful. We spent 5 days in Florence, by day we kept out of the heat in the room just talking and getting to know each other and by night we would explore the city. In southern Europe, everything really happens at night, we would hit the gelateria, visit the Duomo, walk along the Ponte Vecchio where people would be selling trinkets illegally and you could be haggling over something but if the policia showed up you had better make sure that your money was either in your hand or that you had the trinket you wanted in your hand. Because those street vendors ran really fast. Loved Florence, during our stay there, we did leave for a day trip to Pisa, Italy to visit the leaning tower of Pisa. What was amazing about Pisa, is that you arrive at the train station, follow the signs for the tower, turn the corner and there it is. It is quite unsettling to see it just leaning, back then there wasn’t any scaffolding, it was just as is. You take pictures and turn around and go back to Florence. Next stop on our trip we decided, now it was the 5 of us, was the great city of Rome, Italy. That train ride was a whirlwind, we had so much to talk about, the time just flew by.

Upon arrival into the great train station of Rome, it is awe inspiring, it is that grand. We had the best panini sandwiches ever, I lived off them throughout the 5 days we spent in Rome exploring the city. Initially, the 5 of us had a good scare during our first hour in Rome. We were getting our map out to get a feel for the lay out of the city when a man said that he knew of a good youth hostel and he would direct us for free. I had a bad feeling about it but the girls were confident and they had been on the road for much longer so I ignored my feelings of trepidation. Well he led us through all these side streets turning this way and that and finally into this creepy old building, up these flights of stairs; I pulled Fiona aside and said that we had to cut loose and run, this was getting scary. She agreed, gave the signal to the others, we turned around at once and hauled our buttocks out of there. By that time it was getting late and we needed to find a clean, safe place to stay. We got to the hostel but it was booked solid so I said let’s try a pensione, kind of like a B & B but no breakfast. We had the ultimate luck, the first one we tried was owned by a grandfatherly figure, who took us in and was so kind, he didn’t speak anything other than Italian, but I was able to make conversation with him. It was great staying at his place, it was clean, comfortable and safe. Literally, like a home away from home. We didn’t spend much time there because Rome as a city is one of the best walking cities in the world. It is so large in area and there is so much history, architecture and sights, 5 days is not enough. One of the highlights, was the tour we got from 2 Italian boys we had just met in their car. It was an eye opening tour because driving in Rome is like driving in the Indy 500. You are taking your life into your own hands, actually being a pedestrian and crossing the street is a similar experience. The boys took us up the mountain outside of Rome and stopped at an aerial view parking place. The view of Rome from the distance is more stunning than can be imagined, the sun setting down on the Basilica of St. Peter, the image is a work of art. Looking back on that day I don’t regret experiencing that but it was risky, we didn’t know those boys and we didn’t think twice about getting in the car. It turned out fine but still; the follies of youth.

Next for the saga, meeting the Canadians boys and saying good bye to the girls. To be continued in part 3 see you tomorrow.

How long can you go without a shower?

I know this one. Back in 1995, I was living in the house from hell. An adorable cottage in the summer time but not fit in the least for winter time living. My husband and his mother thought it would be a perfect house to rent to see if we liked living in the country. My husband worked for a general contractor and he was often on the road building CVS pharmacy in Connecticut. During the week, it was just myself, my 3-year-old son, my 9 month old daughter and our little puppy. One day I get up and there is no water, now since we are renting I needed to get the landlady’s permission to fix anything and she was spending the winter down in Mexico. I called her son down in Texas, who called her in Mexico to tell her that we had no water and if it was alright to call a plumber. He calls back the next day to give me the go ahead and to make sure that I call him with the estimate before the plumber actually fixes anything. Long story short after all the back and forth with the estimates and asking permission to do the work. My children and I went 10 days without running water, my husband had stayed in the hotel in Connecticut working overtime (which was fine with me because he would have made the situation worse by complaining). Honestly, the worst part of it was not washing my hair for a week, I suffer from really dry hair so it doesn’t get greasy and it was in winter, so I wasn’t getting hot and sweaty. I had my mother-in-law drop off 2 liter bottle of water so that I could use wash cloths to clean the babies and I. Another good thing was that I was the only adult in the house, the two in pull-ups and diapers made the toilet situation a lot easier. The washing of the dishes wasn’t very pleasant because I would go out and collect the snow, melt it on the stove-top and wash the dishes in the melted snow.

So in pioneering circumstances, 10 days but in my comfortable daily lifestyle 2 days tops. I know I can do without but having done without, I’d rather do with. It is so much nicer.