Musings
-
Z is for Zero
As in, I have Zero idea what to write about today. I could tell you why I hate Zebras (short answer, don’t watch nature programs if you don’t want to suddenly hate an entire species. Also orcas, same reason.) I could tell you that I am not the biggest fan of Zucchini, because it can be bitter (like me after watching a nature video with Zebras), though if it’s cooked correctly and generally if the Zucchini are smaller, this isn’t an issue. There’s a place nearby that has pretty amazing deep fried Zucchini that they serve with ranch dressing, though in that situation I could probably just eat the fried…
-
Y is for Yoga
Yoga has been a big deal in my family, specifically for my step-mom and my mother-in-law. My step-mom, Julie, was in college in San Francisco in 1968 when her first husband, Bruce, was killed in a helicopter accident in Vietnam. She was 21, and was unmoored by the loss. She felt that she had to get out of the Bay Area, there were too many memories here, too much pain. So she did some backpacking in Europe for a while, and then moved to Portland, Oregon. She started taking yoga classes to help her calm her mind and get through her grief. At some point she was asked if she…
-
W is for Worth It
There are some products that are extra money or extra effort, but they are worth it to me. Today’s quick post is about a few of them. Eggs – I am very picky about my eggs. I like a dark orange yolk with a rich taste. I started buying pasture raised eggs because I felt bad for the chickens, not having room to run around and be in the sunshine, and then I found I much preferred the taste too. Pasture raised eggs come from chickens that have a more varied diet, and live a better life (I think), than chickens kept in cages. My brand of choice is Vital…
-
V is for VIP
Imagine my surprise recently when checking out at the grocery store, when the checker got a message in the computer that I was a VIP and they needed to bring me a gift! What? Me? A VIP? The woman behind me was hilarious and bowed down to me in an ‘I’m not worthy’ way. Of course, the whole VIP thing locked up the computer and we had to wait for someone to go fetch my gift and unlock the computer, so I’m glad that the people behind me were amused and patient. My gift, as you can see above, was cheese related. It included a lovely cheese board, some cheese…
-
U is for Updates
This whole NaBloPoMo thing has been great, and my idea of using the alphabet prompts has kept me very organized. I pre-loaded a lot of the posts, so I could spend more time coming to your blogs and reading. This has not always worked, since life does get in the way sometimes, so I’m a little behind in the commenting and reading department, but just like all of us, I’m doing my best. For today though, I thought I would catch you up on what I’ve been up to. I took a very quick trip to Portland a couple of weeks ago to say goodbye to my step-mom’s partner, Tom.…
-
T is for Things I Miss About Mulder
Yesterday was 6 months since our sweet boy Mulder died from Lymphoma. We all miss him so much. He was such a joy in our lives, and such a good boy (except when he was being a butthead). In honor of Mulder, then, here are some things that I miss with him gone, and a few that I don’t. Things I Miss Things I Don’t Miss Things I Shouldn’t Miss, but I Do
-
S is for Self-Care
Back in September, my BIL took Ted and me down to Paso Robles to do some wine tasting. On our way down, sitting in the back seat, I listened to an episode of the Ezra Klein podcast with author and psychiatrist Pooja Lakshmin. Ezra was out on book leave at the time, so the host was Tressie McMillan Cottom, and they were discussing Lakshmin’s new book, Real Self-Care. Lakshmin says that the externalization of self-care and the wellness industry haven’t done anything to actually reduce stress in our lives, and that what is needed is real internal work, as well as societal change. She argues that there is nothing wrong…
-
Q is for Quiet
One thing I love about cooler weather is that we sleep with our windows closed at night. Our bedroom is on the second floor, and faces the full afternoon sun, so in summertime it can be pretty warm. We don’t like to sleep with the air conditioner on (our electricity bill is high enough without doing that!), so if it’s cool outside, we sleep with the window open. I love the delicious feel of the cool air when I’m sleeping, but boy, it gets loud. We live in a pretty busy part of our suburb. You can hear the freeway noise, plus the noise from the busy road nearby, and…
-
P is for Paris
I’ve been to Paris three times now. First on my honeymoon, pictured above. Then I went with Ted and Maya in 2018, celebrating her graduation from college and our 25th wedding anniversary. The third time was last year when I went with my cousin. Every time, I love Paris more. I haven’t traveled all that much in my life (it’s expensive!), but so far, Paris is my favorite city. So much beauty, so much art, such a cool vibe, such delicious food and wine. The picture above is of the Palais Garnier, which is called the Opera house, but now is mostly where the ballets are held, since they built…
-
N is for Normandy
I’ve spent a few days in Normandy, France. Both times I went to Monet’s Gardens in Giverny, to Rouen, and to Mont Saint-Michel. In 2018 we also went to the coast to see Omaha beach, one of the beaches where the Allies came ashore in World War II. When we stopped at Omaha Beach, preparations were underway for the June anniversary commemorations, so there were ugly fences and bleachers up, but I got some good pictures. The fields of poppies always make me think of World War I, even though Flanders is not French. In the historic center of Rouen, between Omaha Beach and Paris, there is a lovely square…
-
M is for Mornings
I’m a morning person. I tend to wake up relatively early, and once I’m awake, I’m up. I’ve never been a person who likes to lay about in bed for 1/2 hour or whatever. My morning routine on a work day looks like this. I wake up – sometimes I am woken by my daughter getting up to get ready for work. She wakes up at about 5:15. Sometimes I sleep through that, but not often. Sometimes I wake up before her. Come downstairs, make a cup of tea, and do my Wordle. I love doing Wordle. I always start with the same word, PRICE. Why? I don’t know. When…
-
I is for Incredible!
Today’s post is a ‘guest post’. My sister Maya and her family built a garden house in their back yard in Portland a couple of years ago, and she posted about it recently on Facebook. I asked her if I could share her post here, because I am so amazingly impressed by the entire endeavor. That they did the work themselves, that they used mostly recycled materials, that it came out so beautifully. Truly incredible. I wish I had these powers, but alas, I do not. Without any further ado, here’s my sister’s post. ***** The summer of 2021 a wish/dream of mine came true. The kids had long outgrown…
-
H is for Horses
I’ve written about my love of horses before, how I love their beauty and strength. How I’m not much of a rider, and think it would be wonderful to have a horse as a companion pet. Maya and I have decided we want a miniature horse, and we will name it ‘Clip Clop’. Clip Clop would trot around our little townhouse, probably doing damage to our laminate flooring. Clip Clop would come upstairs and sleep at the foot of the bed. Our neighbors would be outraged at first, but then would fall in love with Clip Clop and his/her adorable antics. I would take Clip Clop for long walks and…
-
G is for Giverny
Giverny is the village where Impressionist painter Claude Monet built his beautiful gardens, which he painted over and over again. I’ve been fortunate enough to see these lovely gardens twice, first in early June of 2018, and then again in late September of 2022. It was lovely to see the difference in flowers, between late spring and late summer. The first 3 pictures above are from my 2022 visit, and the bottom 3 are from 2018. Here I am last September in Paris, at the Musée de l’Orangerie in Paris, which in addition to these huge paintings of his water lilies also houses a lovely collection of impressionist art. Not…
-
D is for Decor
Elisabeth recently redecorated her daughter’s bedroom, and posted wonderful pictures of the final project. This brought to mind one room we have redone in our home, the downstairs bathroom. Back in 2018 we had a leak under our home that caused a lot of disruption, due to re-piping the downstairs from under the slab to through the walls. You can read about it, and see pictures of the open walls and pipes, here if you’re so inclined. When they re-piped the bathroom, they took down the horrible huge mirror, and tore open the wall behind it, to get to the pipes. After they closed everything up again, the room needed…
