The Hunger Games

It was Girls' Night Out last Thursday night to see The Hunger Games, the latest teen book/movie craze (think Harry Potter and the Twilight saga).  Imagine a combination of American Idol meets Gladiator in Nazi Germany with costumes from Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland and you can sort of get the idea.  In all honesty, it was not as bad as I had feared. 

The best part of the movie?  A text from hubby from Boys' Night Out at the Seminole Coconut Creek Casino saying he had just won $800. at the penny slots!

;-)

Made For Me

Jennifer finished the matzo cover and Afikomen holder today, the day before she leaves for her home in Georgia and in time for Passover next week!  I am thrilled!  They match my new Seder plate from Israel perfectly and I will treasure them forever.

You can see I'm so excited I've started setting the table already!

;-)

Desert Rose

When Mom married Dad in 1946 she registered for china.  The pattern she picked was Desert Rose* and loving friends and family gifted them with a full service for 12 with lots of extra serving pieces such as the pickle dish and sugar bowl and creamer.  Mom and Dad used the set for Passover fleishadic so seeing the dishes reminds me of every Passover Seder of my childhood and beyond.

After I inherited the set I augmented it with current pieces that became available for "today's" family - deeper dish cereal bowls and stemmed water goblets.  The pieces made in the 40s are painted slightly differently that those from the 80s and 90s but they co-exist wonderfully on my own Seder table.

The pattern is a true classic and remains popular today.  Good things can last a lifetime - and beyond!

*Desert Rose, the largest selling pattern in the history of American dinnerware, made its debut in 1941. It has enjoyed the world's longest period of popularity of any dinnerware pattern produced by a single company. This beautiful handpainted pattern is still one of America's favorite casual tableware patterns. In 1964 the sixty millionth piece had been produced and Desert Rose is now on display in the historical Smithsonian Museum. First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy chose Franciscan Desert Rose for use in the White House. (amazon.com)

Faraway Places

Tonight is a webinar on university teaching assignments in China.  Hubby is on the faculty. 

When I was young I imagined living in "faraway places with strange sounding names" but the second line of that song is "they call me a dreamer, well maybe I am".  "Real life" (42 years of work) kind of put a kibosh on such ideas. 

They say the time to take a year off and see the world is when you are young and have energy and no responsibilities.  But some say the time to do that can also be when you are retired. 

Still a dreamer I guess...

;-)

Shoe Fetish

Every woman (at least every woman I know) loves shoes.  Me too. I have no idea why.

My shoe of choice is the the humble rubber/plastic flip-flop which can usually be scored for $2.00 or less.  It is quintessentially Florida and when I slip them on it's like telling the world "I'm free to be me and so are my footsies".  My favorite pair were an impromptu gift from cousins Harvey and Vi and they have cool palm trees and flamingos on the straps with a bit of leather and cushy insoles.

My collection includes my Big Score from the Old Navy $1.00 flip-flop sale.  So now I have them in almost every color in the rainbow.  My second Big Score was these cool "dress" flip flops with rhinestones and plastic bow.  A find from Big Lots at $5.00!

;-)

My New Career

Rabbi Frazin, retired Rabbi Emeritus, substituted at Friday night's services.  His sermon was on "My New Career" where he talked about "life after retirement" and how some people thrive while others stagnate.  It was very apropos for me as it came on the day I completed four full weeks of retirement. 

With Rabbi Frazin's undeniable vitality and energy, it is easy to see why he is still in demand as a teacher.  But his horizons have been greatly expanded because now instead of only teaching students with names like Avi, Rachel, Joshua, Sarah and David, he is teaching students with names like Juan, Shaniqua, Dong-Sun, Naimah and Gianna.  His message was that retirees need to find or expand our "core essence" and do those things we were meant to do.

I hope that my horizons will expand as well.  At least I have a most excellent role model.

:-)

My Shi Caaaa Go Accent

I couldn't believe it when it first happened but total strangers have asked me "what part of Chicago are you from?"  Do I have an accent??  Apparently I do.

So now here comes a funny commercial featuring the GEICO Gecko speaking "like a true Chicagoan".  Hahaha.  Well, it was nice to see Wabash Avenue (the street that never sees sunlight) again.

I vote for keeping the geckos here in Florida where they belong!

;-)

Seder Plate

The nicest souvenir we brought back from Israel (aside from memories to last a lifetime) was this exquisite Seder Plate, purchased in Mea Shearim, the Orthodox enclave in Jerusalem.

I had given my family's matzo cover/Seder plate to godson Scott a few years ago when he made his first Seder.  I was happy it would be used by another family for many more years.  So this beautiful piece is a most welcome addition to my favorite things. 

But best of all, my wonderful friend Jennifer, a Catholic and a Master Quilter (World Class Plus Plus) wants to make us a matching three-tier matzo cover and afikomen holder!! 

I will treasure her gifts forever.  I am a lucky lady to have her for a friend!

Sweet Wine

I know I will probably sound like a really, really old lady (which I am NOT!!) but I need to make this comment about growing older. Life gets better as you age.  Yes, it really does.  At least for me.

So many things that were stressful in my younger days have ceased to matter.  Of course jobs and career advancement and planning for financial security are on that list, but there are also things like coping with family or friends' problems, big home improvement projects (ugh), acquiring possessions and status symbols, the lack of time to connect with people and have fun, decorating, dieting and questioning "the-path-I-am-on".

I'm not a drinker but I'm told that wine also gets sweeter with age.  L'Chaim!

Kaleidoscope

I will swear I am not a "collector" of anything, but I do own six kaleidoscopes and another would always be welcome.  I have been fascinated with them ever since I was a child. 

By definition they are a continually changing pattern of shapes and colors, a metaphor for life itself. 

My late BFF, a stained glass artisan, made the pink one for me.  Of course it is my favorite. 

:-)

Avraham Shmuel Tzvi (Hersh) Silverstein

AKA my Zayde

"Tzvi" and "Hersh" are the same name meaning "stag" as in deer. One is Hebrew and the other is the same name in Yiddish. I believe he used Hersh as a nickname and that his given name was Shmuel Tzvi. I understand that he took the name Avraham when he recovered from a very serious illness in his youth and as it was the custom to consider yourself reborn, one took a new or additional name.  I wish I could have known him but he died two years after I was born.

I inherited dozens of his books, five of which he was the author.  Sadly neglected, they were musty and some were crumbling into dust.  About a year ago I packed them up in two very large cartons and shipped them to cousin Charles in Toronto, to whom my father had given the family shofar (no one could blow the shofar like my father) and to whom I had bestowed our centuries old Megillah. If Charles had to destroy the books, I know he did it in a reverant and holy manner.

The few books that did not fit into the two large cartons still reside on my bookshelves, along with one of his works from his personal library that was purchased from a private collector right here a few miles from home.

I am named for his wife, my grandmother, Chava Pachter Silverstein, and I'm the only first born daughter of my generation not named for my father's sister Gittel, of blessed memory, a victim of the Holocaust.

Gratitude

I read that there is a scientific study that proves gratitude enhances our well being.  In 2003, researchers at the Universities of California and Miami reported that people who consciously remind themselves every day of the things they are grateful for show marked improvements in mental health and some aspects of physical health.  I believe it.

This comes completely naturally to me.  I am constantly reminded about all the things in my life, big and small, that I am grateful for.  Answered prayers.  An email or Facebook post from the kids or friends with kind words (even a "like" will do).  The glorious Florida weather.  The people in my life.  The moon shining through the palm trees when Dolly has her last walk. The scale being a little forgiving.  A favorite song on the radio.  A good hair day.  The love and support I have known throughout my entire life.

My cup truly does runneth over.  And I never, ever forget it.

Bully 2012

No doubt about it, bullying has become an epidemic in American schools.  It would scare me to be a parent these days and to have to send my child to school, especially if that kid was a meiskeit or nerdy or uncoordinated, which, let's face it, any child of mine would almost certainly be.

A new movie, Bully, is going to be released on March 30 and I'm disappointed Netflix has no knowledge of it, not even to "save" it for when it's available on DVD in the future.

Bullies. Child suicides. School shootings.  Metal detectors in elementary schools.  Teachers that are closet perverts.  Yikes!  Were they always there or was my generation living in another world?  :-(

The Real Me

OK so I'm reading the book I told you about, How To Retire Happy, Wild and Free, and of course a lot of its 150 plus pages are a bit repetitious but this gem did make me pause and think.  The chapter was "You Need To Create A New Identity Because Your Old One Won't Do" and the author makes the point that whatever you thought you were for the last 30 plus years is not who you really are.  Being an accountant or a sales professional or an I.T. Director is simply a fiction that you either made-up or were led into by circumstances and that you eventually came to believe was your primary identity. 

OK so who are we?  We are, at our essence, the sum of our spirituality, sense of humor, generosity of spirit, creativity, spontaneity, peace of mind and our passion for new experiences and learning.

I recently re-connected with some FB friends who had known me BC (before career).  I was reminded again that the girl I was then is still the me I am today (maybe a little wiser I hope).  I guess that was and is the Real Me.

Solitude

I have a full schedule this weekend - dinner and shul with newest friends Steve and Jean Shulman tonight, the Coral Springs Festival of the Arts with cousins Morry and Barbara tomorrow and dinner at Bella Luna in Miami with cousins Jean and Marek on Sunday night. Three of my favorite couples!

Next week though will be a different story.  Hubby is off for four nights to a colloquium in Virginia and I will get to experience living alone with no job to fill my day.  Solitude can be either heaven or hell, or maybe a little of each. 

When I was growing up, my mom worked outside the home. Being an only child, I was used to being "home alone" and left to my own devices.  During summer vacations and school holidays, I would fritter the time away by walking, reading, window shopping, sunbathing in the backyard, talking on the phone and yep, even napping.  I see myself doing the same things next week.
I guess I survived then so I can surely survive now especially since now I have Dolly, Facebook, Zynga games, the DVR, Netflix and a car!

:-)

My Peeps

In two and a half hours I will meet my Peeps (former staff) for lunch at China Hollywood (my fav, they hate it).  Can't wait!  I surely don't miss work (surprise, surprise) but yes indeed I miss my Peeps. Yep, all of them. 

I'm thrilled they even want to see me again, after all I did ride them for less-than-perfect deliverables, missed deadlines, coming in late and anything else that bothered me at the time.  How silly!  They were (and are) all good people and I hope we can keep in touch for a long time.

Denis' baby is in the hospital (again).  Alessandro's four kids - never a dull moment  - and he and his family have included me in so many family times I feel like a 3rd grandma.  Leonid (he was my intern at the County and came to work for me at the City) makes me laugh with his unique sense of humor.  Donald never has a dull moment in his life either and I feel for him because he is probably The Best Person in the whole world.  And when Angie said we can now be girlfriends cause I'm retired and not her boss anymore I was thrilled.  I miss them all, Sheila and Cathy and Bill and Ricardo and Maria and Willie too.

Happy Me  ;-)

Night Out

Tonight is a rare Big Night Out at the fabulous Broward Center for the Performing Arts to see Dudu Fisher in concert. 

I will glam up with full make-up and hair mousse and slither into my slinky black dress (one piece smoothing undergarment required) and high heels. I'll slip into another world while the incomparable Dudu lifts me away with his soulful voice, songs of Israel and old Jewish melodies and Broadway musicals like Les Miserables.

And of course, my favorite, Bring Him Home, a father's prayer for his son at war. Tissues  will be required... 

Magic Number

Planning for retirement would be a lot easier if we all knew exactly when we would pass away.  But I'm sure if given the choice, none of us would chose to know.

Why am I on such a gloomy topic today? I think it might be due to the sad numbers associated with recent deaths in the news and in my life: 66, 48, 53, 60, 43.*

Back in the early 1990s my BFF, a single, fortyish, newly unemployed mom, cashed in her 401k payout check to buy the latest fad, a big screen TV. I was flabbergasted but she said "by the time I retire in 25 years it won't matter". She was right, she passed away about 15 years later...

A bit of Sha-La-La-La-La-La Live For Today is not such a bad idea!

*Davy Jones, Whitney Houston, Dr. Andrew Edelman (colleague), Robert Hegyes, Andrew Breitbart.

Eyelashes

Aren't they pretty???  The latest fad - eyelash extensions!  Formerly known as false eyelashes.  I used to love them in the 60s (see picture below) and they're back!  Only better I hear.

Will I try them??  You betcha!  I think....

Me in the 60's caught napping

Never Too Old

A hearty Mazel Tov to Dick Van Dyke and his new bride!  At  86 he's proof you are never too old to fall in love.

Who doesn't love DVD?  His new 40 year old bride, Arlene Silver (could we be related??) is a lucky lady.

;-)

How To Retire

I have crunched the financial numbers a zillion times and even made my own retirement calculator (I am a computer programmer after all) but I will be honest, the non-financial aspects of retirement scared me. 

Somehow I found this cool book and am looking forward to the Broward County library sending one of their two copies to the Stirling Road branch for me.  I think it might have some good advice, especially the sections on "create a new identity because your old one won't do" and "you are never to young to retire".

But the most intriguing thing I saw on the table of contents (kindly provided by amazon.com) was "not writing a book can be more difficult than writing one".  I emphatically Do Not plan to write a book but writing does make me happy.  I love my silly blog and seeing the kaleidoscope of my thoughts and feelings take shape on the "printed page" (computer screen).

And of course, I do plan to retire Happy, Wild and Free ;-)

Pink Slime

Breaking News! It's in 70% of all the ground beef sold in the country!  What is pink slime?  I hear it's beef-by-products purified by spraying on a healthy (pardon the pun) dose of ammonia to kill the bacteria and now used as filler in our ground beef instead of as dog food which was its former use. Pink Slime is a term coined by Gerald Zirnstein, a former US Department of Agriculture scientist.  I'm guessing he's probably Jewish.

I'm also guessing he's buying Kosher from now on.  I know I am....

Rainbow Bridge

I confess, I am not the best parent to my rescue dog Dolly.  She however is the best little companion I could ever ask for. 

A young FB friend lost his beloved cat yesterday and I must admit I was a bit surprised that such a  handsome, talented young man with oodles of friends and family and a doting girlfriend would feel the loss so deeply. It made me vow to better appreciate my cute and loving friend who wants nothing more than a cuddle, a thrown tennis ball and a walk.  Maybe a treat - or several!
 :-)

The Whole Megillah

It's Purim, a fun holiday one could liken to Halloween with happy children dressed in costumes and lots of noise and hamentaschen (small triangular cakes filled with poppy seeds, prunes or apricots).  It is also time to read the Megillah, the Book of Esther. This year I am without the centuries old Megillah (see picture) belonging to my ancestors.  I passed this incredible heirloom to cousin Charles, grandson of my father's sister Gittel who, along with my first cousin Rivka and many other family members, perished in the Holocaust.  Charles has four fabulous children, all observant, and I know the Megillah will be well preserved and honored by our family's future generations.

I would like to thank my friend Shel, who painstakingly preserved the memory of my family treasure for me in the form of a carefully pieced together .pdf file. 

I heard Benjamin Netanyahu's speech Monday night warning of the dangers of a nuclear armed Iran.  He reminded us to honor Esther, who saved us from an evil Persian centuries ago.  As they say, in every generation....

Tropical Acres Update #2

Anything that endures 62 years (like me) deserves a special tip-of-the-hat especially if it's a family owned restaurant that's faced competition from the likes of Cheesecake Factory, Longhorn and Outback Steakhouses, and a bunch of other wannabes.

There is only one Tropical Acres (thank goodness) and a visit there will take you back to a time when eating out meant great service, a piano playing softly in the background, a candle on the table, a tablecloth and great food at reasonable prices.

Tropical Acres is re-opening tonight having weathered a fire and a theft of the replacement appliances (they caught the bad guys!)   A great Old Florida tradition continues.  Welcome Back Tropical Acres!

Retirement Week Deux

Ok Dear Diary, I admit it.  I was a bit of a washout at Week One of Retirement.  I ran around like a meshugannah and tried to cram an entire retirement into one week.  I stocked up on food and supplies, ran down my list of home improvement projects, finished scanning and cataloging a decade's worth of 70's slides, started and finished a book, cleaned stuff that has been untouched for years and even (gasp!) cooked up a storm.  I did manage to clip a couple of roses from the garden and even bent over to smell them.  Once.

It is tough to switch over from being a Type A to a Type Z overnight...

I solemnly vow this week will be different. 

Kathy Bates

I watched About Schmidt with Jack Nicholson tonight. I usually shy away from movies with "redeeming social value", much preferring cop shows, thrillers, mysteries or legal dramas. But the premise was timely for me - a newly retired mid-level insurance executive comes to the realization that although seemingly successful in career, marriage and parenthood, he is actually a total washout. His most important life accomplishment is sponsoring a child in Tanzania for $22. a month.

But the biggest (pardon the pun) message of this movie comes from Kathy Bates, who, at 62 or 63, bared her plus-size authentic body to the world with a saucy "yep I'm beautiful" swagger. You go girl!

Life

I have a copy of the Life Magazine published two days after I was born, in the period many refer to as "the good old days".  I am not one of those people.  

I am quite fond of the progress made in the last 62 plus years including safer cars (seatbelts!), medical breakthroughs, civil rights, cable and satellite TVs, the end of back-street abortions, my beloved iPhone and computers in general. 

I can't wait to see what's next!   ;-)

Tightwad Gazette

I guess many new retirees start off thinking about ways they could save money.  Even though this should not be a concern for me, I too have vowed to shop the sales and the thrift stores, scour the paper for coupons and free activites, and brush off that old adage: Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.  I've even unearthed my old copy of the Tightwad Gazette featuring ways to stretch your family dollar by using everything available except dryer lint.

Of course when the kids called yesterday to say they were tacking a three-night Disney cruise on top of their visit in April my first thought was "wanna go too!"  We'll see how well I do here...
;-)

Retirement Card

Cousins Harvey and Vi sent the cutest "Best Wishes On Your Retirement" e-card and it really hit my sweet spot.  One of the things I fretted about was what I would do all day but these cute little cartoon people have showed me the way!  They are so adorable I've played the card a bunch of times and hope it doesn't get deleted anytime soon. 
Their simple schedule is this:
Up at 7:00 a.m. (I've added an hour and a half to my working wake-up time of 5 am but still need to get to 7)
Morning run at 8 a.m. (substitute longer walk with Dolly)
Shopping at 10:30 (no problem there)
Lunch at 12:30
DIY at 2:30 p.m. (Yep, I certainly have a list of DIY projects which have so far included (but not limited to) cleaning the silk plants on top of the cabinets, scanning slides from the 70s, painting the rusted  metal flamingoes in the back yard pink (I still need to dot their eyes with a black Sharpie), cleaning the car's chrome exhaust pipe and spray painting white plastic "palm frond" fan blades in the guest room a soft green.)
Dancing at 7:30 p.m. (substitute a Netfflix movie.  I upped my subscription to 2-at-a-time.)
"Early Night" at 10:30 p.m. (still working on making it to 10:30!)