Travel

Over the last 19 days I have spent approximately 30 hours on airplanes…specifically, Delta operated airplanes. Normally I could care less about being on a plane but I've got to be honest…I am so tired of rude flight attendants and rude passengers.

On the 10.5 hour flight from JFK to Istanbul, we had the most incredibly rude flight attendants. Any time we asked for something, they bit our heads off. We ordered vegetarian meals - Delta says they have a whole plethora of vegetarian options - haha! When we got our main courses, there were no sides - no salads, no cookies, no water…nothing! Zip! And then, after picking up the meal service, they completely disappeared.

Returning from Istanbul to JFK was not much better flight attendant wise. I was snoozing, got jostled awake by the male flight attendant who was bringing me my lunch - except it wasn't mind - and, he wanted to argue with me about it! Sorry, I did not order a "muslim" meal! Really! We ordered one "Asian vegetarian meal" and one "dairy acceptable vegetarian meal" - but guess what, they were absolutely the same! I don't mind that they were absolutely the same but don't tell me I have an option for a different kind of vegetarian meal when I don't. Again, we were given little packets of food - no salad (which we had to ask for), no cookies (which we didn't bother with) and…no water!

Okay, Delta, I know you are hurting -that $549m profit (excluding special expenses) must just not be enough! Is it asking too much to hire nice flight attendants? Is it asking too much to make sure your flight attendants are customer service oriented? I am polite, I'm not demanding but really continue to feel like the flight attendants (at least those I have flown with lately) feel like they are doing me a huge favor by even serving me anything at all! I feel like they have got the general malaise I see all over the USA - "what are you going to do for me now?"

My other issue comes from buying tickets, reserving seats and then finding out, when I check in to the flight that the equipment has been changed and my exit row seats are no longer existent. Well they are still there but I do not get to have them, even though I had them to start with. I don't understand why, when you change equipment Delta, you can't honor my seat request. My sky miles status isn't that high (my husband's is) but I am Silver and I do get to access premium seats - at least that's what I think. Preferred seat selection is supposed to be one of the highly touted but few benefits I get for flying at least 25,000 miles a year on Delta. Instead, my exit row aisle seat turned into a middle seat on a plane that even I didn't have room to move around in.

But there were two incidents on my return trip from Minneapolis to Atlanta. A very large man was sitting on the aisle directly across from me; an equally large woman came in and had the window seat; a skinny little guy had the middle seat…about two minutes into the flight, the rude guy in front of the very large man laid his seat back into the man's lap! Unbelievable. This guy had bulkhead seats - plenty of space. He laid right down in the lap of the very large man! The very large man could not move, he could not get up without almost pulling the other guy's seat completely down. When we landed, the guy sitting right behind me opened one of the overhead bins and something fell out and hit a lady in the head. Unfortunate, sure. But the lady wanted the man's information so she could sue him if she needed to! Good for him - he apologized but refused to give her his information. Talk to Delta he said! Haha.

I am going to post stories from Istanbul, I promise. Pictures too maybe one day…

Cassie

We lost Cassie today - we will miss her more than she could ever know. She loved vanilla wafers, Joe, Lesley and Andy. Oh yeah and popcorn!

I don't have a picture of Cassie and Lesley…maybe Lesley does!

The Aftermath

I've been home from Bogota for a week now…unfortunately I have been sick as all get out for a week. Being sick isn't something I do well - but this time I managed to get it all right. Started slow - a little cough/runny nose on Saturday, moving to a fever on Sunday and then by Monday- all hell broke lose. I played tennis Sunday morning - played badly then got in the pool. Probably didn't help my sickness too much.

Spent Sunday lazing around - achy, nasty…Tim was home briefly Sunday. Monday I went to the pool - achy body and all - it was freezing, but felt good. Came home crashed. By Tuesday I was coughing so bad my entire body hurt - my head, my ribs - everything.

On the way home from the pool Wednesday morning I stopped at the grocery store and talked to the pharmacist - he fixed me up with Mucinex DM and an antihistamine. I was also determined to get something to eat - went to my favorite soup/sandwich place all the way down in Buckhead - Souper Jennys - and inhaled a bowl of gazpacho - it was sooo good - just spicy enough, cold. Homemade pitas with sprouts and homemade hummus.

On the way home from lunch, after the 7th hour of straight unproductive coughing, I stopped at CVS and purchased the strongest over the counter cough suppressant available. Sat in the parking lot there and took the stuff. My daughter thought I might have an issue!

Homemade remedies were absolutely the freaking best though. Since I blame my disease on travels to South America, my friend recommended a South American remedy: rum, honey and lemon juice. So, the rum was 27 year old Guatemalan rum, the honey was wildflower and the lemon fresh squeezed. The first night my first honey/lemon:rum proportions were off - required more rum. Second night I got the proportions exactly right, which were, of course based on the more rum to honey/lemon measurements…I wanted more. Didn't do it, of course but it was sure good. Other remedy I used was a fabulous hibiscus tea, I was first served at the USAID office in Bogota. Soooooo good.

Its now Friday - I'm feeling 100% better - still coughing, but not nearly so bad. Tim is sick!

Fleas

This time it was the fleas. More specifically, las picaduras de pulgas - flea bites. And, I know my translation is probably not accurate. But I wanted to make sure that I didn't ever forget that phrase. Flea bites!

Yo Mujer has a flea infestation in the residencia. They are in the mattresses, in the bed linens, biting the people who live there. Using the term bite here is relative - it's more like an all out attack, a complete battalion assault.

When I first saw Moise (he's two years old) he was crying and scratching, holding his arms out to his Mom. I don't know if he was telling her he was hurting or if he wanted her to scratch his arms but she pulled the long sleeves of his jacket down over his arms and rubbed them. I asked what was wrong. She said pulgas. (My Spanish is limited and I didn't really know what pulgas were, so I found Carlos, he explained that they were flea bites.) Then she pulled up the sleeves of his jacket, the legs of his pants and showed me the bites, hundreds of them, all over this little guy.

Then she raised the back of her shirt and showed me her bites. Again, hundreds…all over her. Amelia came over to show me her bites - hundreds - all over her arms, her back, her legs. Some of the bites had been scratched so much that they were open sores. Some had become infected. Slowly other women and children came over to show me how they had been bitten. Then they told me that the pulgas were in their beds, and everywhere, that there were so many they were picking them up off the beds and killing them with their finger nails.

This was so disturbing to me - completely devastating. Poor people forced away from their homes, living in a place they don't know, can't afford, with no food, no medicine, no schools - and then fleas.

I didn't know what to do or say! Completely at a loss.

My mind went into overdrive. How would I handle this if I were at home? What would I do?The next day I went to the drogueria/farmacia in Sierra Morena (the neighborhood of Ciudad Bolivar) where we are working and asked for an antibiotic creme. There was none. So, forget about stopping infections. There was Caladryl. I bought two bottles and took it out to Yo Mujer.

When we arrived Moise, obviously becoming a little more comfortable with the strangers who had come to his temporary home, came up to me, crying as he pulled up the sleeves of his jacket. I gave the lotion to one of his aunts for her to put on his arms - I wasn't sure he would trust me enough. She rubbed the lotion on his little arms, pulled his sleeves down. For a while he stopped crying, scratching. I tried to convince some of the others to use the lotion, a few did, a few were not willing to try it.

On the way home we stopped at Exito (the WalMart of Bogota) for some things, among them antibiotic cream, perhaps a different type of anti-itching creme and maybe a bug bomb or spray to use in the residence. There was none. Nothing at all that I could find to eliminate the fleas in the house. Nothing I could do to make Moise's bites go away and to prevent them from returning. Nothing.

That sense of helplessness is something I don't understand. Why is it that people who have already experienced such tragedy and such devastation must be assaulted again? When I even see an ant in my house, I call the bug guy and he comes over and takes care of it. My dog doesn't have fleas because I have her treated at the vet. I have money for solutions, Moise and his family don't.

The images of the faces of these children and their bodies covered with bites will stay with me for a long time. I am still devastated.

Some of the bites

Some Very General Randomness

Today I went to the grocery store. Actually, today I went to two grocery stores. I go to at least one grocery store everyday. I go to the store because I need fresh veggies/fruits almost every day. Today I am making succotash - with corn, fresh beans (lima beans and pink lady peas), fresh tomatoes (they didn't have mixed heirloom cherry tomatoes so I bought mixed heirloom regular tomatoes) - but all that required two different grocery stores. I will probably mix the succotash with some whole grain pasta or grains or some sort. But, I also bought bread that is made from beer.

I've also been hungry a lot lately - I'm trying not to eat as much…constant gnawing hunger. I'm not a skinny girl (no desire to be a skinny one - just a healthy curvy one) so it doesn't hurt me to be hungry. But, it makes me think of those who can't just spend a day to go to the grocery store in search of mixed heirloom cherry tomatoes.

I'm over the summer heat. I shower, walk outside, sweat, change clothes, sweat some more, probably go get in the pool which is tepid at best - but the relief from the heat lasts a little longer than a shower. Unfortunately, I can't spend my entire day in the pool. I could try, I suppose!

We played tennis yesterday - mixed doubles. First round of playoffs. Tim and I have not had a very good season this year. We have won twice and lost three times. I'm thinking that we should not play together next season. But I don't know who I should play with and I'm not sure who Tim would play with. He gets frustrated with me, I notice it and it gets in my head. I hate when that happens. It was so hot on the tennis court yesterday and I was sweating so much that one time I was going to hit a ball and had a big stream of sweat roll right in my eyes. It was impossible to see the ball. It took me the entire day to get over the heat, the sweating…I went in the pool, that helped, then I spent the afternoon in the house, in the air conditioning.

Cassie is doing well. She is moving great, still sleeping most of the day, diarrhea basically under control. She's a funny lady. I had dog/house sitters come to take care of her when Tim and I went to Minneapolis. She did fine with them. I'm sure she enjoyed having someone here to visit with. Sirpa came over and took Cassie out in the afternoons. I'm trying to get a handle on Tim's schedule so that we can coordinate dog care - if I'm gone and he's gone we need to have someone here to help Cassie!

Gonna go cook.

Cassie

Cassie has been sick, again. She had diarrhea over the weekend, I stopped giving her the duramaxx (the meds she takes for arthritis) and switched her back to a very gentle diet - remember the BRATY diet (bananas, rice, applesauce, toast and yogurt) that we gave our kids when they got diarrhea? Monday morning she was her great usual self - outside for a walk, breakfast. But by Monday afternoon, she couldn't walk. She had a huge limp - seemed to me like it was on her front right side. So, in order for me to get her outside I have to pick her up and carry her out. I'm kind of strong, but she's 65 pounds and not too happy to be picked up so, I'll say it's a challenge to carry her out to go to the bathroom. She was able to walk a little. But clearly was out of sorts. I called Lesley - sad meltdown. She called Joe - but he pretty much already knew because he has been here all summer and he and I have talked about Cassie's situation and how to tell when it's time. Lesley finally got Andy and they decided that they felt very very very strongly about being here if I was going to put Cassie down. So strong in fact that they had decided they wouldn't talk to me if I put her down without them being here…not a good thing (well, or maybe it could be a good thing!!! - haha).

By Tuesday morning, when I went in to get Cassie early (I have pilates early on T/TH mornings through this week) she was really out of it. I picked her up, took her out to pee and she tipped over and rolled down the hill…it was so fucking sad. I had to go right her and bring her back in - no pee. She couldn't stand up at all. I went to pilates, came home, hoping for a miracle - there was none. So I called the vet, I couldn't control myself and was crying as I was trying to talk to the lady at the vet's office. They got Cassie in right away. I picked her up again, put her in the Escape and drove her to the vet with the complete intention of putting her down. Again, the emotion of it all just had me a complete mess. I sat in the floor with Cassie, brushing her with my hands and collecting all her fur. Figured that if I did end up putting her down, then I would have lots of puppy fur to send to Lesley and Andy - maybe then they wouldn't be so upset with me. Doc comes in - we talk about Cassie - he takes her temp and she has a fever - he felt that maybe she had an infection. I asked him what he would do…we talked some more about Cassie's demeanor before Monday - she was up, she was around, going for her walks, etc. He thought we had several options - I chose the one where we treated her with an antibiotic, fluids and a shot of rimadyl for her hips. Long day yesterday - she was listless, lethargic, not peeing, not eating…I went to the store and bought ground chicken breast, cooked that and some rice. Joe handfed her some of the chicken and some mini nilla wafers (I swear there is something restorative in those mini nillas). Still no success with getting her to pee and she was still unable to walk - Joe carried her out once and then I tried again…nothing.

This morning she barked to tell me it was time to get up. I bought puppy "wee wee pads" - that's really their name - she had peed - fortunately on the wee wee pad - and was anxious to get up and go outside. She is still hobbling but I didn't have to carry her and yea, she peed outside! I'm talking to the vet right now to see what he wants me to do today. Hopefully he will give her one more antibiotic injection and one more rimadyl injection. And, vet says yes - so I have a 9:45 appointment!

Andy and Lesley are coming home this weekend to see her. I'm physically trashed - my shoulders, upper back, lower back…all incredibly sore and tight!

Joe leaves today.

cassie

Tonight I took my dog Cassie for a walk as I have done almost every day for 14 years. Well, except for the time that my daughter was home and she took over the evening dog walking chores. As I helped Cassie get up, to get all four feet under her, she knew we were going for a walk and she was excited. She moved quickly to the rug at the front door, waited patiently for me to put her leash on and then we both went out the front door. We used to go out the back door but Cassie doesn't like going down those steps any more. The front steps are a little gentler on her. As we got down the steps her back hips sort of zigged of their own accord. But she used her tail, very effectively I might add, as a rudder to right things.

It all of a sudden dawned on me that, all things said, I'm watching my dog as she is entering the last phase of her life. I thought of that book I've heard of that I always thought was very poignant but incredibly silly - the lessons you learn from your dog - you know the one about unconditional love, always ready for a walk, faithful…

I realized that my hope is that when I enter the last phase of my life that I am as full of grace and clever as she is. She barks at us when she wants attention, when she wants me to get up with her in the morning. I get irritated that it's a little too early but when I walk into her bedroom (she sleeps in the laundry room) there she is, happy, tail wagging. She struts out the front door looking, sniffing - catching all the new scents of the morning. I still get the puppy breakfast dance when we come in and she's ready for breakfast. During the day, at least once of twice, she comes to find me in my office, or the kitchen - or she starts barking because she wants to know where we are and I suspect she realizes that her barking drives us crazy and that we will come to find her to see what's going on. If she's in pain, you wouldn't know it - it doesn't make her cranky or stop her from wanting to be a part of everything - including lying right smack in the middle of the kitchen floor during dinner preparations so that, without a doubt you have to acknowledge her presence as you try not to step on her. If she's in pain, she's not willing to miss out on our walks. If she's in pain it doesn't show when she wants to greet everyone that walks in our home with a sniff and a tail wag - sometimes a bark.

Tonight as we walked, she sniffed, I admired the amazing fireflies and one of those Georgia nights that you can feel smell. Our walk was slow. We met a friend, chatted for a while - Cassie laid down and waited patiently for us to be finished with our conversation then we returned home. Walking slowly, Cassie sniffing all the great spots on the way home using her tail as her rudder.

I hope I am half as pleasant as my Cassie. I hope that I have the grace my dog has when it's my turn.

Breaking Down

I think my body is breaking down, slowly…First my left hip (already almost 6 years ago), then my knees got sore from too much biking, then left shoulder from overrotating from down dog to plank, then my right foot started hurting from too much tennis and too much walking, which developed in to a bone spur, plantar fascitis and tendonitis, now my right shoulder has decided to go to hell in a hand basket!

I promised myself that I would not think of these injuries in terms of age. I am 55.5 (that's pretty good) but I don't want to get into the habit of thinking "well now that I'm that age." I accept that eventual deterioration is inevitable. There's no way that my body can do today what I did 25 years ago (even though 25 years ago I wasn't doing much exercise but having way fun). I'm convinced that age is 99% mental. But why is it that the 1% left over is the part that is such a problem. I've decided to address the physical with a little more physical and a lot of mental (is that possible).

So my program involves pilates three times a week - that's two mat classes and one reformer class (which I start tomorrow night). Svaroopa yoga at least twice a week - svaroopa is a yoga that is propped on blankets, pillows and involves release starting from the sacrum up through the spine, but includes hips, neck, shoulders. And apparently my shoulders need a whole boat load of release. I am also doing deep water aerobics through the summer - that's twice a week. And, just for the heck of it, I'm spinning at least once a week, doing some other cardio activity once a week and playing tennis at least once a week.

Back to Mango Tree Foundation fundraiser work!

Working Out

Today I went to an 8 a.m. spin class. It's now 6:03 p.m. and I'm exhausted! The usual instructor wasn't there but the sub instructor was very good. I keep trying to figure out how much longer, how many more spin classes, I will have to go to before I am completely whipped on the days I spin.

Tomorrow is "pilates for hotties" and yoga and Mango Tree Foundation kinds of things! I am still trying to get some silent auction donations. People don't seem to want to give but they seem to be missing the point - you give something cool, people start talking, people come to see you and spend money at your business. At least that's what I think the deal is. Maybe it's just me.

Ha, how many times have I said that - maybe it's just me!

Sunday

I made paella last night - didn't really think it was awesome. Rice didn't get a crust, shrimp were overcooked, almost bland. I just wasn't too excited about it. It looked beautiful and I really like my new paella dish. Bought it yesterday at Crate and Barrel along with Bomba rice. The bomba rice was kind of expensive and I'm not sure it was really worth the price - is it that different from arborio rice? I guess I need to keep working on a paella recipe that I really like.

Tennis match yesterday. Tim struggled in the first set - sore wrist, sore knee. We played like rock stars in the 2nd set. I had one entire game that I missed all my volleys - like badly - and, it was pretty weird.

Today I am tired - I wonder how many times I have said that in the last year. My left hip hurts, my knees are a little sore, my feet are tired. After tennis ran errands, came home cooked - finally ate about 8:30 last night! Too late, too much work and not that good…interesting.

Yoga this afternoon, CAN later this afternoon.

The reality is that I'm tired today. We had a great weekend but it resulted in two late nights. Both nights until about 12:30-1. I don't nap so it means I'm getting about 5-6 hours of sleep a night. I could have slept in but Cassie started barking at 6:30. She wouldn't stop barking. Oh what I could have done with just another hour of sleep - like my hubby's getting today and, oh yeah, yesterday too. Plus a three hour nap yesterday afternoon.

I hate being tired. It stops my brain and makes me grumpy. I'm thinking I'm going to just chill today - maybe I will go to the pool with my book…

Friday Randomness?

Where am I supposed to buy gas now that I refuse to buy gas from BP? Guess I need to do a little research. My massage therapist suggests Texaco because they're from Texas. Interesting, right?

Its Friday. Swimming in the a.m., lunch meeting, phone meeting…pizza making. Hopefully the rain will stop so we can play on the deck tonight. There were men out there last night playing bridge. They were quiet - I don't now if they had fun.

Massage therapist also said I should probably spend more time practicing yoga and meditating than lifting weights and spinning. I still need cardio workouts - I know I do. My heart isn't going to stay strong without it - especially as I begin to get older. I'm trying to be kinder and gentler to myself, I really am. So here's the new plan - pilates 2x a week, spinning 2x a week, lifting 2x a week, swimming at least 2x a week, yoga and meditation at least 2x a week (preferably 3), walking when there is time. Even with my challenged math skills, that's 11 activities over 7 days. Hmmm, wonder how that will work out for me?

All I Wanted Was a Cookie

For three days I have been craving a cookie - a mexican wedding cookie with pecans and powdered sugar…I was going to make some alternative cookies, but Tim only likes weird cookies and I don't need to eat more than one cookie so I finally went to the big Publix and bought one mexican wedding cookie…it was sooooooo good.

This morning I went to one of the local sporting good stores that specializes in women's apparel (Lucy). I was shopping for a teal top for the Ovarian Cycle on Saturday. I bought one, bought the next size up because I wanted to be extremely unworried about the top fitting too well and paid $57 for it. Then I went to Target…found a different shirt for $12.99!!!!! I bought that one. Tomorrow I have to take the expensive shirt back. In my mind, I could afford the more expensive one but I really can't justify the expense because all I'm going to do in the shirt is trash it…I'm going to wear it to get sweaty, really sweaty. So why pay a bunch for a shirt to get sweaty in.

Cassie, my old lady dog, got me laughing outloud this morning. She peed and her tail went crazy - waving right to left and up and down - with such purpose. It was like she was trying to fan herself. Too funny.

Last training ride today - Ovarian Cycle on Saturday. Will be an interesting ride. I feel like I'm sort of prepared. The last long endurance ride was 4 hours and it felt good. The last hour was hard but not as bad as it could have been. I've been really training diet wise this week (except for my cookie today) - veggies, grilled chicken, beans, beets, salads, whole grains.

Tomorrow I return stuff, work on MTF taxes and rest. David Wilcox tomorrow night at Eddie's Attic. OC Saturday. World Malaria Day event Sunday. Ready to collapse on Monday.

Foot stomping swearing hissy fit...

I really wanted to have one last week. Not because I was mad but because I was just tired and the entire week was so, well, freaking challenging. There was good and there was bad. There was great and awful! How can any regular person like me reconcile those extremes!

I am training for a 6 hour virtual century bike ride done indoors on spinning bikes. Because I have let myself get a little out of shape - well that's not really true - I didn't really "let" myself get a little out of shape - I've been struggling with some injuries that have made me rethink and rework my exercise regimen. Last Saturday, April 10, we rode for 3.5 hours. I had only been able to make one spin class the week before so doing 3.5 hours was tough. Came home, showered, ran some errands and ended up at my favorite mexican food restaurant in Atlanta, Pure, for margaritas and oysters. Exactly what I wanted but not enough food. Came home with our dinner companions, opened a bottle of wine, and lazed around on the porch with cheese, crackers and wine!

Tim was up really early on Sunday morning, woke me up in the process. I was tired all day. Had a tennis match, won. Sunday night I was really tired. I had to get up at 5:30 Monday to go down to McDonough to work on a Habitat project packing up 13,500 emergency shelter kits to be delivered to Haiti. I was on the tarp crew. I lifted 42 lb boxes filled with tarps, opened the boxes, took the tarps out and send them down the conveyor belt to be stuffed in to really large buckets. I did that for 7 hours! And, guess what? I was tired that night too!

Tuesday I was supposed to have a training ride…didn't make it. Orthopedic appointment to have my right shoulder examined and I was worried I would be late if I went to my training ride…so I went to the doctor and didn't train My doc's appointment was 2 - I finally got in about 4! Two hours waiting. We decided I should get an MRI. Had to rush home to shower and change to go to a Heifer International reception for the interim ceo and one of the executive vice presidents. That was awesome. Home and in bed by 11! Not so good.

Wednesday I met Danelle for lunch by Piedmont Park. We were going to go for a nice walk around the park but I had scheduled my MRI for 1. Lunch was fun, conversation was great. Arrive for MRI - they're running 2 hours behind…sucks!!!!! Finally got in about 3, finished by 3:45 then on toWhole Foods for something for Joe for dinner. Home and then tennis at 7:30. Tennis was fun and awful - all at the same time.

Thursday up early to get to the doctor by 9. Doc finally showed up at 10 - just as I was walking out the door. I simply refuse to wait more than an hour anymore. I had rearranged my entire schedule to accommodate these appointments and it really screwed things up. So, bottom line with my shoulder: three options - prescription anti-inflammatories and exercise, aleve and exercise, or outpatient surgery. I chose aleve and exercise. Do not want to have surgery for any reason…unless, of course, it's a matter of life and death. Which I'm not at right now. Chronic pain is a problem though. Dinner Thursday night with Amy and Liz - awesome - Shaun's…need I say more.

Friday conference all day. I was 15 minutes late getting to the conference and left after lunch. Too freaking tired. Stopped at grocery store, came home and went to bed. Made pizza, waited for Tim - fell asleep, he got home, we ate pizza. I went to bed.

Saturday up early to get to gym for 4 hour bike ride. Ride was good, I was tired in the 4th hour but not totally whipped. Home, shower, Avenue for return, then grocery stores…waiting for Tim again, falling asleep, Tim comes home, we cook dinner (salmon on the plank on the grill with mustard and capers and broccoli slaw. In bed by 10 - slept like a log - deep and heavy.

Sunday - tennis - we lost. Three sets - sucked! On the court personally for over 2 hours. Team on the court until past 6:30. Fixed salade nicoise - with chicken. Tim was on the courts - he heated the potatoes and meat up for dinner - no salade nicoise for him! I had salad. Yummy.

Didn't sleep a wink last night - wake up this morning totally exhausted. Gym for an hour, errands, working.

I was on the verge of a couple of melt downs last week - not too sure why - tired, frustrated - felt emotional all week and that was not too fun. I want this emotional stuff to go away…I can't handle it. I am trying to keep my calendar a lot more flexible this week but already stuff is stacking up. I've got a to do list a page long…so, I deal with it by writing a blog! Haha.

Catching Up

Tim and Joe are both out of town this morning, we are having snow flurries so its cold, I'm waiting to buy Van Morrison tickets at 10 this morning so I have a little time to "catch up" because things have been pretty interesting.

Tim's father passed away last week; on Sunday, March 14, 2010. He was 86 years old. We knew it was coming, had been expecting it anticipating it but when the call came in at 3:45 a.m. (or 4:45 a.m. if you had reset your clocks appropriately) we had mixed emotions. We were happy it wasn't a call that something had happened to one of our kids but we were so sad that Tim's dad was gone. He was a good man. We've lived away for almost 15 years so our visits were limited. At the end, Tim was able to get up to see him at least once a month. It was weird about two weeks ago we were getting phone calls and emails that Bill was really declining. We decided to go see him. Booked our flights, and the week we were leaving, Tim's last living uncle passed away. Bill had wanted to live longer than his brother! We had a great visit with Bill, he was in a good mood, he was alert, we played cards (yes, I even played cards and not too badly!), talked - he got to attend his brother's wake (almost a dry run for his own wake), we took him sausage and biscuits from Hardee's (?) to him on Monday right before we left. During the next week he began a final decline which ended on March 14.

We were able to get the kids, after some serious haggling with Delta, to the funeral. Tim and I left on Wednesday, flew to Minneapolis, picked up a car and drove to Winona. We spent the evening with our friends Kris and George, had a wonderful meal and wonderful conversation. We picked up Andy on Thursday morning and drove up to Minneapolis. Joe and Lesley arrived around 1ish, shared a rental car and drove out to the funeral home for the wake. Tim and I are unbelievably lucky in that we have some amazing friends who chose to come and pay their respects to Tim and his family. It was very touching. Mike conducted the funeral service and he did an excellent job. It had to be challenging for him but I can't imagine someone better than him for the job.

Being with the kids, all of us together, was a little bittersweet. My kids are amazing! They are intelligent, passionate, beautiful/handsome people. I enjoy their senses of humor, their ability to conduct a conversation and meet complete strangers. Their strength is so amazing! But watching their faces as they faced the death of their grandfather was sad. I don't know all of what they were thinking but I know they were somewhere deep in their heads about this loss. Lesley managed to put a copy of Madeleine in the casket with her grandfather (after we loosened his tie and Greg put in a deck of cards). Then Lesley had to go to the airport, Andy and Joe went together for a cigar, Tim took a nap and I read my book...

Joe is in Philadelphia - ended up getting in really late last night - for an interview with the Temple University School of Podiatry. He was in New York City last week for an interview with the New York College of Podiatry.

I'm leaving for New York on Thursday with my niece for her 10 year old birthday trip. I've got a little shopping to do before I get away.

And, then there are the Van Morrison tickets - May 7. Can't wait!

Irritated

I am on a bit of a tear today. I am so frustrated.

I'm a volunteer. For some dumb reason, I have believed that the donation of my time is incredibly valuable to an organization. Apparently that's not the right way to think of it. And, I'm finding something different. I find that most organizations tend to be very self-centric - or donor centric. If you donate money to a organization, or I should say if you donate a sizable amount of money to an organization, they treat you like royalty. Donate 20 hours a week of your time and you are barely recognizable and completely disposable. It's not that I think I'm invaluable but I do believe I am valuable. I am the face of your organization in the world. As a volunteer, I pay my own way - meals, airfare, gas, cabs, hotels. I am expected then to bring some friends along and they too are expected to pay their own way. I volunteer to work whenever you need me - sometimes putting in some pretty long days and doing some pretty physical things (moving tables, etc). I frequently rearrange my schedule to accommodate last minute requests for meetings, etc. I don't ask for anything because I am committed to the cause. I don't ask for recognition but I do want to be recognized and respected. Sometimes it would be nice to be treated like I was an important financial donor. Maybe given a VIP opportunity.

Maybe I really need to rethink all this. Maybe I am not being honest with myself and with others about what it is that I want from volunteering. One of the things that is really important to me is that when I volunteer I am getting to spend time with people who think like I do. It's nice to feel like you have a place where you belong. Last year, I attended a couple of conferences for women that I paid for. I didn't belong in those groups - their focus was so different than mine. That was frustrating. So when I volunteer one of the things I enjoy is the time with friends - people I have come to know and trust and people whose company I really enjoy. All very important to me. Maybe volunteering is just a social opportunity - but I don't really think so.

I need to think about this. Obviously.

I did sent out the first Mango Tree Foundation newsletter - we misspelled Colombia on the first line!!!!!!!! I think it's because someone else typed the first draft and I didn't think at all about checking the spelling - I knew what I had written was correct. Even funnier that all the Mango Tree partners looked over the email!

Going to see Half the Sky Live tonight. Should be fun.

Snow

It's snowing in Atlanta for the 2nd time this year. Its so beautiful but it makes me so miserable. I don't hate snow, I just hate the weather that comes along with it. Wind, freezing temperatures. Plus, its March 2 here...no snow in March. This just reminds me of how depressed I would get when we lived in Minnesota and it would snow 6 feet in mid-March. Or how when it was Easter there was sometimes snow...contrary to all I grew up with in Texas, that's for sure.

This has been one long nasty winter. Perhaps I have just re-adjusted to the wonderful balmy weather of the south. Perhaps as I get older (I know I promised not to use that phrase or word) I just can't tolerate it too well.

I was in Bogota February 16-19. Very productive trip. Working with a new partner - INPlazados. They are a wonderful organization of young Bogotanos who are completely committed to working with Yo Mujer and to helping solve some of the issues of the desplazados. It's so awesome. I'm so excited. Trying to write about that trip as well...check out the Mango Tree Foundation website - www.mangotreefoundation.org. Maybe sometime soon I will be able to put something on that website. If you're a MTF fan, look for a newsletter, soon.

My dog has gone absolutely crazy these days. She is getting older - her ears and eyes are not so good. Her hips work because she has good puppy drugs. Every morning she has decided it is her responsibility to wake us up. By 730 she is in full tilt barking mode. And, she won't stop until we get up and come get her. Sometimes there are puppy surprises in her room, sometimes there aren't. I take her out, every day, just like I always have and it seems like she is forgetting what she is supposed to be doing!!! She will walk in the house after a nice walk and leave little puppy surprises all the way down the hall. Fortunately, it's manageable. Helps that we don't have carpet anymore downstairs. That way, it's just a wipe and a spray of some kind of cleanser. While I do think her quality of life may be slipping, she seems so happy.

I am doing some serious thinking about the food we eat around here. Both Tim and I have put on some weight. Part of it is our lifestyles are so centered around working and being on the computer. Part of it is that we have been trading injuries lately. His back, my foot, his back, my shoulder, his shoulder, my back. It seems to be nonstop. I have really been out of things since early January - my foot was such a mess. Knock on wood, but I think the worst is over. I went to physical therapy with an amazing therapist(Karen Davis Warren), increasing massages (from one every six months to one a month!), got orthotics, got new orthopedic (Darren Newfield), got new shoes and basically quit doing anything "ballistic." And anything "ballistic" includes walking, tennis...all those things that I enjoy doing. So, I have gone back to the gym - lifting weights, cycling, yoga...hopefully figuring this out. I did get to play tennis last night - for an hour only. It felt good - I didn't do a lot of running...but it was nice to hit the ball.

Okay, so I got a little distracted...there's been a lot of talk lately about the quality of the food we eat, we, not just me and my family but the world. A very good friend of mine has been posting on Facebook Michael Pollan's "Food Rules." They are so sensible, and are a great way to try to change or diets. I get frustrated with the "organic" rules...how are we sure that what we're buying is really organic an that it's not just a marketing ploy. I feel like so much of what we hear in the news, read in the paper, etc is just marketing. I have gone back to reread a book I first read when I was 18 and the doctor first detected an irregular heart rhythm..."Diet for a Small Planet." It's an interesting read - plant based diets. Then I went to Borders to investigate some current literature..."The Omnivore's Dilemma," "Animal Vegetable Miracle" - both managed to find their way into my hands and up to the checkout counter. While I havent had the chance to read them yet, it's just a matter of time. (In fact, I expect to get a lot of reading done over the next month because I will be traveling some - planes are a great place to read.) If you're looking for some interesting reading, I suggest you check out Michael Pollan, Barbara Kingsolver and Frances Moore Lappe. I don't think you will be disappointed. Plus, the big movie for foodies these days is "Food, Inc." I'm nervous about watching that - not really sure I want to know how my food comes about but I'm certain that I must watch because I need to know how my food comes about. Anyway, food for thought!

Haha - winter storm warning in Atlanta - 1-5" of snow. Crazy, so crazy.

January 1, 2010

Today is New Years Day - January 1, 2010. I am snuggled up by the fire, wrapped up in a beautiful peacock pashmina that Lesley gave me for Christmas and trying to make heads and tails of the new technology I received for Christmas!

I made my New Year's resolutions on my birthday so I do not have to worry about it today! Resolutions always seem to be the same - focus on physical health, mental health and emotional health. But, as always, unfortunately, I have a lot to work on! Ha, ha!

Physically speaking, I am having some issues - intense pain in my right foot. I went to the orthopedist (saw the PA) and she told me I have plantar fascitis. Prescription: Take aleve, get some heel cookies (which no one knew what they were) and use my boot to sleep in. Oh yeah, rest it! Rest isn't an option, heel cookies don't exist, the boot is great to sleep in if I am not having hot flashes and aleve, well aleve is troublesome on a daily basis. I have decided to wear the boot all the time when I am at home and I guess when I am sleeping. The pain is intense and it is starting to affect my mental attitude.

Went to a friend's home for dinner and New Year's celebration last night. It was a lot of fun. This morning we went to another friend's home for the third annual "hangover brunch." That too was a lot of fun. We have some good friends in our neighborhood and have been having a lot of fun with them.

Holidays were crazy. I felt like I was soooooo busy from the week before Thanksgiving through, well, today! I went to Texas before Thanksgiving to drive with mom back here and to see Dad...Dad and I got to have lunch together - I had hoped to go up to the country but he had just come home from there after meeting Lowry, et al. Funny thing - the weekend after I was in town he went back to the country! Mom and I drove back to Atlanta on the Sunday before Thanksgiving. She stayed through November 30...that makes 13 days with my Mom. We spent the week cooking, cleaning, cooking, cleaning and running errands. We drove back on November 30 and I spent two more days in Texas then flew home.

Started to deholiday the house yesterday...only have to finish taking the tree down. It's the last year for this tree - we have had it since we moved to Arizona in 1995. The top was falling apart. And, the thing just smelled musty.

Just got back from taking Andy to the airport. He is flying back to Minneapolis today. Sad to see him go. I am crossing my fingers for him this semester. Kid is really smart but doesn't have the grades to back it up...good thoughts. I know he can do it.