violetismycolor

third day of the New Year...

Ah, 2012...how I have waited for you.  

And what have you brought me?  Stress.

Why, you ask?  Too many things to do, personal panic, messy house...

First of all, Adam left this morning to go back to school and Priya.  I loved having him at home so much.  We got him to the airport on time, after a brief errand to get visa pictures done (for the big wedding trip to India).  Five minutes after leaving the airport, we get a call from Adam...he has forgotten his laptop, at home.  

Off to UPS to send the laptop, and in a separate box, all of Adam's Christmas presents.  Check.

Next up, filling out the forms for the travel immunizations clinic, printing them out, signing them...and off to the clinic for the shots.  ONLY 3 shots needed, thank goodness.  I got shots in both arms but only the left arm hurts.

Home again and filling out the visa forms for India, getting a money order to send with them, then on to Fedex to send them on.  Done.

What to eat for dinner?  Something easy!  Chili dogs...off to the grocery store to pick up the necessary parts.  

Home again to do filing, clean up, etc.  The house is disastrous and I am too tired to do anything about it today.  

Tomorrow, we go off to settle with our friend, Dominik, who is helping with Bonnie's needs once she heads off to Geneva...money exchange, housing, cell phones, and more.  We are so fortunate that his parents are going to settle Bonnie in.

Then, changing all the beds, cleaning, etc are NECESSARY!  Also, putting away the stragglers in the Christmas decoration department.

And Bonnie takes off on Thursday morning, Ross gets sent home to his own digs, and life returns somewhat to normal.  

Welcome, 2012!

Stories...

I love stories.  They give me insights into other lives, lives that I will never experience in any other way.  It's the reason that I have been a TV-addict since early childhood.  

My parents fed my story addiction by taking me to drive-in movies, mostly of the Disney variety.  My first sit-down-in-a-movie-theater movie was The Sound of Music, which was a story of grand scale:  Nazis, singing siblings, the beauty of Austria, romance.  Next up was Help! with the Beatles.  Come on, Paul McCartney and the hilarity of a true chase film.  What's not to love?

I discovered history books in the library at my Catholic grade school.  I became addicted to history, too.   These were stories set in a period when men and women wore beautiful clothes and rode on horses and carried knives and swords.  What's not to like?  

In high school, I found the novel, Gone With the Wind...history, belles in ballgowns, Rhett Butler and a great love story...I read it at least a dozen times.   

Now, I read at least 4 books at any given time, belong to a book club, consistently have a book on CD in my car, have a dozen TV shows programmed into my DVR, and go to the movies when I can.  Story, my favorite thing.  

nibs and nubs...

I went for my annual dermatological exam yesterday and came home with a sore spot and a bandage.  I had a little hard cyst on my abdomen.  The doctor removed and and added a couple of stitches...it hurt like heck all night and today was bothering me, too.  Getting old truly sucks!

We are getting ready for the visit from Priya's parents.  We met them in September, when we flew to San Francisco for a few days.  Mallika, the mom, made us a wonderful dinner...making sure to keep in mind that I was gluten and dairy free.  Everything was delicious and we had a nice conversation.  

Now that we have settled the date for the Portland wedding for April 28, 2012...we have even more to talk about.  Adam and Priya will have the big Indian wedding in March sometime.  We are hoping that we hear what the firm date for that event will be, this weekend.  And we have many other wedding details to work out.  It's exhausting, just thinking about it.

Portland problems...

The Occupy Portland movement is reaching a critical juncture.  The two occupied squares are having increasing problems, with crime and drugs and stench.  Someone described it as moving from the 99% to the 1%, the 1% of the population that is homeless, or mentally ill, or criminal.  There are probably more than 1% of the population that are homeless/mentally ill/criminal, but I get their point.  

The Occupy Movement has been instrumental in getting the country to wake up to the income inequality and corporate/banking malfeasance that has torn at our country's foundations.  It has changed the conversation and I think that that is a blessing.  Maybe even the saving grace for our country.  

But...

A movement without an organization that can move forward, with a structure and leadership, to get ONE or TWO specific issues moving towards resolution and change, cannot succeed.  

Now, our mayor, Sam Adams, has given the Portland Occupy Movement a deadline of clearing out by midnight Sunday.  How will the movement handle it?  Will there be violence, like there was in Berkeley, California?  Will the movement shift and regroup?  Die out?  

And if movements like this die out or take a break for the winter months, will the conversation shift again to less important topics?  I hope not.  I think we need change and it is going to take hard work and sacrifice from all of us.  I hope we can all pitch in and make this a better country before it gets worse.

 

My 55th birthday...

And I want to write every day and talk about something important to me.

First of all, my family.  Awesome birthday.  Adam, Bonnie, and Ross all called and expressed their love and support for me.  Could I ask for anything more?  No.  

My friends:  Coffee this morning brought gluten-free cake AND presents!  

Adam and Priya will be having their wedding reception at Portland City Grill and I went in and signed the contract and paid the fee to hold the space.

So much joy in the making.  

Heading off to the City Club of Portland lunch. Our friend, Ted Wheeler, is speaking about the state of the Oregon economy. Ted is the state Treasurer and is doing an amazing job. I am hoping that he has some great ideas to push us out of this big economic mess we, like most other states, are in.

Your best friend calls you and tells you he/she's really sick? How do you show you care?

I offer to make my homemade chicken soup, drive it over, and have a short visit, if he is up to it.

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finding another book to LOVE!

How to Live: A Life of Montaigne in One Question and Twenty Attempts at an Answer by Sarah Bakewell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I am still reading, though I am more than halfway through. I am loving this book so much I am actually going to buy a copy for my library.

This is a wonderful philosophy text, biography, AND history book. How is it possible that it could be all three, I ask myself. I find myself a kindred spirit to the man and his philosophy of life. I love the historical perspective on life in the latter half of the 16th century, as I am most widely read on the first half. The writing is interesting, not your standard dry history text, but full of little details that help me see, hear, and smell what Montaigne's life was like. Excellent, excellent book!

View all my reviews

Father's Day

We had brunch at Meriwether's...our reservation was at noon but we weren't seated till 12:45 and with my MIL being 97, that wasn't cool.  The restaurant comped all our meals, though, so that was nice.  The food there is great and it's a restaurant that I like to go to for special occasions.  Ross came along.  It was nice to have one of the kids at home.  

Adam and Bonnie both called and said Happy Father's Day, and we had good conversations with both of them.  

After that, I went for a walk:  a 4-miler, with Cookie.  When I got home, John said he wanted to go out and see the new X-Men movie...we called Ross, who whooped and said, "Heck ya" of course he would love to go.

The movie was wonderful and a real must to see on the Big Screen.  Ross knows tons about comics, so is a wonderful resource for this sort of thing.  

We had dinner before the movie at Burgerville.  We ordered milkshakes and found out that there are 800 calories in a milkshake...holy cow, indeed.  John had a strawberry one and Ross had chocolate.  I had a few sips of John's and joked that my 4 mile walk probably compensated for the few sips of shake!

Great Father's Day, over all...

 

Niccolo...sigh...

Gemini by Dorothy Dunnett
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have finished re-reading The House of Niccolo series and now I am so sad. I am going to miss Claus/Niccolo/Nicholas/Nicol/etc., the brilliant, tough, resilient, tender man who I have come to love, as I love few characters in fiction. This novel was so intense, bringing to an end (most of) the mysteries of Nicholas and his life. We find out who the ultimate betrayer-of-trust of these books, how Nicholas comes to stay in Scotland with his family, how the machinations of politics and war bring the Scots together. The series built my knowledge of history, time and place, character development, and more...the most brilliant set of novels I have ever read.

Now, on to the Lymond Chronicles...

View all my reviews

more fave Venice pix....

There were so many pictures of Venice that I loved.  

***Click on the photos to have them enlarged***)

We stayed there for 3 days and it wasn't enough.  It was incredible.  From the views out onto the other Venetian islands, from our water-taxi:

 

 

To to views of the Grand Canal:

 

 

 

 

The lovely old doorways and docks (sometimes with lovers sitting there...):

 

 

San Marco and the Square were as magical as they seem when you imagine them:

 

The interior of the Cathedral is all in real gold:

 

Yep, Venice...

Venezia...

I don't think anything can prepare one for the beauty of Venice.  In some ways, it reminds me of Holland...so flat and so much water.  It is awe-inspiring.

 (click on images to see a larger version)

We got to the bus station and started to wander off in search of our Bed and Breakfast, which was called Campiello Zen.  It was enchanting...very small, only 3 bedrooms...and run by a young couple and their year-old son.  The breakfasts were wonderful, their service was impeccable, and it was away from all the crowds.  Only about one water-taxi stop from the Station, it was only steps from the Grand Canal.  

We bought lunch at a little grocery and sat in this plaza and ate it:

On the left is a lovely church, one of many in this city.

John decided it was time for a nap, but I decided to have a little wander, and here is what I saw:

A gorgeous wall covered with Trumpet Vine:

 

 

As I got close to the Station again, I saw this beautiful church, Santa Maria di Nazareth:

This is just ONE church...and there are tons of them...it's hard to get your head around all the money that has been spent on them, how many years it took to create them, how many people have passed through them.  Mind boggling.

I will leave you with one last shot, the our water-taxi stop.

                            

 

 

Finally, the vacation recap...

I know....you're thinking, "Didn't she take that Italian vacation in September 2010?"

Yep, that's right...and I have finally gotten around to going through the trouble of actually processing some of the 2000 pictures I took.  That's right...2000!  I am not mistakenly adding a zero there.  This is what happens when you give a girl a digital camera.  No discipline.

So, we started out with a 24-hour visit to Holland.  We got such a deal on the airfare IF we stayed overnight in Holland...and so, my lovely cousin, Rosemary, agreed to put us up overnight.  

We visited some cousins of my mother's.  They were so welcoming and told me some things I didn't know about my dad's dad...Cousin Bets was a friend of his and would visit with him whenever he went on visits back to the Netherlands

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Rosemary and her sister (my cousin, Mariette) took us to an interesting outdoor art show.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then, we wandered around the beach at Noordwijk, near her home in Noordwijkerhout. The weather was sunny and warm.  We saw this interesting McMansion...lovely, and with a thatched roof but in Holland?  We are seriously infecting the world with our need for these big houses!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There was an interesting Sand Sculpture event going on...one example is shown here:  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We didn't do much more in Holland besides go out for dinner and then CRASH...Rosemary even got up with us at 4:30 in the morning to make us breakfast!  Then we headed to the airport for our flights to Rome/Venice.

This mini-trip to Holland reminded me of how much I like this country...we seriously need to go back and do a proper vacation.  Having my incredible cousins there makes it even a bigger treat.  

Tomorrow:  Venice recapped

'dislike'

My friend, Marilyn, wrote 'dislike' after I noted on Facebook that it sucked to be back on antibiotics and prednisone.  Thanks, Marilyn, I couldn't agree more!

Went to the ENT's office with the following complaints:

1. my left ear is ringing
2. my left ear has 'feedback', like a bad phone
3. my sinuses are totally inflamed
4. my left tearduct leaks into my eye
5. I am coughing up green gunk
6. I am coughing
7. when I blow my nose, my ear makes popping noises...though luckily it no longer makes the room spin

I am certainly glad that modern medicine can help me here, but I hate having the side effects of the meds.  I am hoping that it will NOT be a problem this time.

 

 

Shakespeare and words...

I listened to a wonderful edition of RadioLab last week, and it was all about language.

 (http://www.radiolab.org/2010/aug/09/)

   There was a segment on Shakespeare and how he changed English.  I was interested to hear him likened more to a great chef or a great chemist than to a great writer.  It was the way he used words, tossing them together and using the incredible combinations that came out:    

    madcap

    ladybird

    eyedrops

    eyesore

    eyeball

    He was the guy who used "un" like no one else ever had.  Here are a list of some of the words he created with the prefix un-:   

    unnerving 

    unaware

    uncomfortable

    unearthly

    unhand

    undress

    uneducated

    unmitigated

    ungoverned

    unpublished

    unwillingness

    unsolicited

    unswayed 

    unclogged

    unappeased

    unchanging

    unreal  (my personal favorite!)

    These words had never shown up in English before he wrote them into his plays and poetry.  Cool, huh?  

    There's more.  He also could toss words together to make unforgettable phrases, like:

    the truth will out

    what's done is done

    crack of dawn

    dead as a doornail

    a dish fit for the gods

    a dog will have his day

    faint-hearted

    fool's paradise

    forever and a day

    foregone conclusion

    the game is afoot

    the game is up

    greek to me

    in a pickle

    in my heart of hearts

    in my mind's eye

    kill with kindness

    knock, knock, who's there

    what the dickins 

     i could go on and on

    something wicked this way comes

    a sorry sight 

    in stitches

    I have long been a fan of Shakespeare, thanks to my really-cute, freshman-year-in-high-school English teacher at my high school in California...who had us reading and analyzing The Merchant of Venice and who told me about the Oregon Shakespearean Festival.  I vowed to go to Ashland one day and see for myself, which I did while in college at Oregon State.  I have been back many times and have loved it every time .

    Hearing this podcast made me love Mr. Shakespeare even more!

 

 

 

tiger mom...

Apparently, I am not alone in talking/writing about The Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mom.  I want to put my own position out there.  I think Amy Chua is the kind of mom that drives her kids into therapy.  I think she puts her kids into a one-size-fits-all package.  I think she has been terribly cruel to her children, though I have no doubt that she loves them.  I think her kids may have the idea that her love is conditional on their accomplishing what she wants them to accomplish.

That said, I do think that many parents coddle their children too much in America.  I think that many parents don't have high enough expectations for their children.  

I have three kids of my own.  As anyone with kids knows, every child is different from the other.  My own opinion is that to get the best out of your children, you have to work with that child's individual attributes.  That means spending time really getting to know and understand your child and what makes them tick.  

I am a believer in unconditional love.  I love my kids no matter what.  That doesn't mean that I wouldn't be devastated if they committed a crime or became drug addicts or something like that.  But I believe I would still love them and let them know that I love them.  I think that I would let them know that they were harming themselves and others, and I would try to help them to correct, if they would let me.

I am very lucky in my marriage, my life, and my children, and I know that.  I hope that I have raised my children to be great human beings, great friends, great parents, and great spouses.  I am prouder of them than anyone can possibly imagine and hope that they continue on their (so far) very successful life paths.  

I hope the same for Amy Chua

 

 

sorting it out...

I am constantly amazed by how much 'stuff' we have lying around...like the already-ancient-when-he-bought-them golf clubs that John got for Adam about 12 years ago, like the 6 athletic seat pads we never use, like the leftover yarn from my old store (Spindleshanks Yarnworks)...well, you get it.  I am busy sorting the stuff to give to Goodwill and whoever else wants it.  We have been living in this house for 26 years, we have 3 kids who use our house as a storage facility, and we can be packrats.  The results are too-full closets.  

I am also trying to get myself more organized.  I have things that should be grouped together all over the house.  This sorting process will take some time but I hope it makes my life less chaotic, eventually. This is part of my plan to simplify my life.  Will it work, do you think?

Time long past...

Hard to believe it has been so long since I have blogged. How did I get out of the habit? I am going to try to be better.

Really.

John and I went to Italy last September. It was one of my favorite trips, ever. I think it is only surpassed by our trip to Fiji for our 25th wedding anniversary. Italy has such incredible beauty. We experienced so much while we were there, I could hardly get my head around it.

We were in Venice, Verona, Portofino, Cinque Terre, Tuscany (esp loved Volterra, Montepulciano, and Assissi...well, Assissi is actually in Umbria), Rome, and Pompeii. We were there for two and a half weeks. Amazing.

Here it is January and I am finally processing all my photos. John thinks I should start by deleting tons of photos (I took over 2000), but that's not the way I work. Many look bad at first glance, but with cropping/straightening/photo filters/exposure changes/etc. they are not only save-able but really lovely. So, I slowly work through them I am up to Montepulciano...I try to do one city a day.

I didn't actually get to it today, since I had my gym time today, followed by a few hours of cooking. I had Ross and Jean (my MIL) over for homemade turkey chili, corn bread, and bread pudding. It was really, really good. I sent bunches home with Ross. I love to spoil him with good cooking. It makes me wish that the other two lived in town, too, so that I could spoil them all AND get the pleasure of their company for supper.

garden helpers...

  Any time I spend time in the garden, I have little elves 'helping' me...well, not elves but my pets, Biscuit (above) and Cookie (below).  Biscuit helps by taking dainty bites out of my catmint, thus 'trimming' it for me.  Cookie fertilizers the garden with her own unique bits.  Cookie has not yet figured out that I don't like her to walk across the plants, but around them.  Hmmm...maybe better training of my assistants is in order.

i'm walking on sunshine...

We had rain and hail and wind today.  But I got lucky enough to have my walk, with Cookie of course, in total sunshine...4 whole miles!  I was going to get into the garden again, but that rain/hail/wind stopped me so I puttered around the house, instead.  

Boring post, but posted!  I'll do better tomorrow...