Festival

I think if I won the lottery (difficult since I've never played) one of the first things I'd do is head for the Festival Flea Market with wads of cash to buy "stuff".  No place has better "stuff" than this Jewish Princess wonderland of unique and trendy clothes, jewelry, shoes, tchatshke, Judaica, as-seen-on-TV, beauty supplies, pickles, specialty foods and other necessities of life.

Strolling the Festival is great fun even without wads of gelt and the best time you could have on a rainy South Florida day!

The Circle of Life

Laura and Jason and the grand-god-children - Cameron, Preston and Leila - are here on vacation.  Nothing makes one feel quite as old as trying to keep up with frenetic 32 year olds and their wacky, energetic family! 

It is weird to see people that you knew as screaming little kids chasing after their own screaming little kids.  It is weird to see the friends you knew in school grow older, become grandparents, slow down.  My late BFF called it the Circle of Life, from the Lion King song, and it helped her face her own mortality with grace and acceptance.

It is easy to see the Circle of Life being played out from the perspective of one's 60's.  So amazing, this cycle of growth and renewal in all living things. 

100 Places

There is a fun app going around on Facebook called  "100 Places to see before you die".  I must say there are a goodly number of places on this list that I have no desire to ever see!  

How is it that Jerusalem, the ancient cradle of the world's three major religions is not on this list??

Here's the list in no particular order with my own places visited shown in red:
1. Los Angeles  2. Lake District  3. Ngorongoro Crater  4. Loch Ness  5. Republic of Seychelles  6. Ibiza  7. Patagonia  8. Great Barrier Reef Whitsunday Islands  9. Nine Hells  10. Ring of fire volcanoes  11. Stockholm  12. Bermuda  13. Atacama Desert   14. Ayers Rock  15. Bali  16. Kazakhstan | Asia  17. Douglas  18. Madeira  19. Kerala Waterfalls  20. Greek Islands  21. La Paz  22. Leaning Tower of Pisa  23. Seattle  24. Puerto Rico | Caribbean  25. Space | Virgin Galactic  26. Singapore  27. Easter Island 28. Darwin  29. Havana  30. Key West Florida  31. New Orleans  32. Democratic Republic of Congo  33. Melbourne  34. Whistler  35. Prague  36. Iguazu Falls  37. Goa  38. Angel Falls  39. Perth  40. Grand Canyon  41. Spitsbergen  42. Walt Disney World | Florida  43. Bora Bora  44. Edinburgh  45. Maldives Islands  46. Dublin  47. Victoria Falls  48. Krakow  49. New York  50. Dead Sea  51. Washington DC  52. Seoul  53. Rome  54. Niagara Falls 55. Martinique Island  56. Bhutan  57. Paris  58. Hong Kong  59. Amsterdam  60. Taj Mahal | India | Asia  61. Panama City   62. Auckland  63. Colombo  64. Republic of the Fiji Islands  65. Petra  66. Republic of Cape Verde  67. Barcelona  68. Tibet  69. Buenos Aires  70. Madagascar  71. Chichen Itza  72. Machu Pichu  73. Las Vegas  74. St Tropez  75. Venice | Italy | Europe  76. Giza  77. Ulan Bator  78. Galápagos Islands  79. San Francisco  80. Nairobi  81. Toronto  82. Reykjavik  83. Athens  84. Jakarta  85. Waikiki | Honolulu  86. Mumbai (Bombay)  87. Bangkok  88. Marrakesh  89. Nuuka  90. Beijing (Peking)  91. Juneau  92. Dubai  93. Mexico City   94. Moscow  95. Tokyo Metropolis  96. Cape Town  97. London  98. Sydney  99. Rio de Janeiro  100. Angkor Wat Temple Cambodia

Cafepress

Cafepress is a cool site where you can design your  own t-shirts and other stuff or pick from thousands of designs created by some really creative people.  They get a royalty for everything they've designed that gets sold. 

I've wanted a t-shirt that says "MEMBER OF THE TRIBE" for awhile, ever since I saw one at Traditions, the big Judaica store at the Festival Market.  But alas, they didn't have any size I could reasonably wear.  So today I decided to browse the offerings on Cafepress.

Big mistake!  So many great choices!  How could I possibly resist this cute SCHLEP bag??  Or a t-shirt saying KISS MY TUCHAS, SCHMUTZ HAPPENS, JESUS SAVES BUT JEWS INVEST WISELY, YOU LOOKED BETTER ON J-DATE or CHAI MAINTENANCE??

OY! How can I choose? WHAT WOULD MAIMONIDES DO?

;-)

Nose Job

I sometimes kid around that I need a nose job.  Trust me, this is just me kidding around and I have never ever seriously (or even fleetingly) considered going under the knife for a rhinoplasty. 

I read an article that Barbra Streisand also never considered changing her (substantially larger than mine) nose either.  The reasons stated were pain and that she actually likes the bump on her nose.  

My mom once told me she was glad I did not inherit my father's ample shnoz but rather got a slightly larger version of her own cute nose. 

I never felt the need to alter my appearance so drastically.  But if I had produced a child that wanted a nose job, I would not have hesitated a moment to provide it  ;-)

John Edwards

John Edwards is in the news again and not in a good way.  I personally never had good vibes about the guy.  He was awfully good looking and gave off a slippery, used-car-salesman, not-quite-a-real-person vibe.  And anyone who got $400. haircuts to give speeches about "two Americas" and folks living in poverty (his big issue) just HAD to be a two-faced goniff.  I gave him the benefit of the doubt because I figured if Elizabeth Edwards loved the guy, he must be OK.

And of course, my suspicions proved true. 

Super good looking people scare me a little.  Decades ago, when I was dating boys, I suspected the really gorgeous ones would break my heart and dump me for a skinny cheerleader with a tiny little nose.  An unfounded bias and a bit of "profiling" on my part.

My bad...

Today's Horoscope

Today's harmonious alignment between the willful Sun and action-hero Mars in your sign is a harbinger of good news. No matter what kind of complications are making your life difficult, the resistance is finally fading and you are at the edge of making significant progress. However, if everything has been going well, your life should only continue to improve. Don't worry about the past; it's time to turn the power of now into a strategy for a successful future.

Sometimes when I'm feeling kind of directionless I start the day by consulting my horoscope.

Today was such a day and I'm encouraged by the fabulous news above.  "Everything" has indeed been going well so I am happy it's only going to get better!

 

;-)

Born Again

Charles Colson, Nixon henchman and Watergate bad guy, died yesterday at age 80.

He was the poster child for being Born Again, having seen the evil of his ways and devoting himself for the rest of his life to preaching a Christian ministry.

Are you a tad bit skeptical?  So was the rest of the country who saw Mr. Colson's repentance as a ploy to get his prison sentence reduced and provide some kind of gainful employment after his release. 

The famous line at the time was "If Mr. Colson can repent his sins, there has to be hope for everyone." 

Let's hope that is indeed true...

The Beginner's Goodbye

I'm listening to The Beginner's Goodbye by Anne Tyler, the story of a man who loses his wife in a freak accident (an ancient tree falls on her as she sits pouting in their sun room). The new widower is an editor for "The Beginner's" series of informational self-help books so if it helps, you can think of the book's title as "Goodbye for Dummies".

I think I can relate to Aaron's subsequent desire to be left alone and his lack of concern about his own health or anything else and his confusion and mind games and his just-going-through-the-motions. What is so interesting (to me at least) is that his wife, the object of his love and devotion, is gradually revealed to be an unattractive, unsympathetic and generally un-likable person. Not a bad person, not an unstable or dumb person, just not the person you would think would inspire Great Love.   Yet there it is, 100% believable.

Why did he love her? To him, the traits that others might find nerve racking were her most endearing. Her physical imperfections were his "turn ons".  Even her cold bedside manner with her patients (she was a doctor), he saw as an asset.

Lucky for us mere mortals, we don't need to be "perfect" to be loved.

:-)

Cabi Canary

Woo Hoo!  Next door neighbor Marilyn has invited me to a ladies-only "ultimate shopping experience" party on Sunday where I can "experience affordable LUXURY straight from the DESIGNER in the comfort of my (her) HOME".  I am actually looking forward to meeting the other neighbors she has invited and of course seeing girl-stuff is always fun. 

I checked out the website of the DESIGNER and see it offers tips for "age appropriate" dressing and accessorizing - in your 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, all the way up to one's 70s!  Instead of looking at the collections under each decade (Engage your age and you’ll see maximum potential in all aspects of your life…especially your wardrobe!) I have decided to pick the collection of stuff I like the most and declare myself in that age group.  Guess what?  I'm in my 30s  ;-)

Retirement Recap

I've been retired for 8 weeks now.  These are the things I wrote that I was worried about right before I retired:

Boredom. Nope!  I have been busy every minute, so much so that I have to caution myself to slow down and stop and smell more roses.

So much togetherness with hubby will result in mutual annihilation. Nope!  We seem to have fallen into an enjoyable pattern that gives us both enough "space". 

Snacking all day to the point of fatso-ness. Hmmm.  I certainly have not lost any weight but so far I'm holding my own ;-)

The loss of my so-called identity as a productive member of society.  Hahaha, not even the tiniest twinge of remorse here.

The mind-rotting wasteland of daytime TV.  I doubled my Netflix subscription to two at a time so there is always something halfway decent to watch.  And I am patronizing the library more than ever.

Losing the joy of tyrannizing my hapless subordinates into doing my bidding (they have my number so that rarely works anyway). Surprisingly, I do miss the day-to-day office chatter and my team the most.  I especially wish I could hear my boss tell me the words I love to hear: "You were right about everything Ev"!

Money.  For decades this of course was my biggest fear about retiring.  Incredibly, it is not a concern and I think about it less than I ever did.  This is because I know I did the best I could to plan and save for retirement and there is nothing more I can do at this point.  What will be will be and I will live on whatever I have and be happy no matter what.

I can honestly say retirement has exceeded my expectations! So much so that I wonder what on earth I ever was worried about.  ;-)

Yom HaShoah

Today is Yom HaShoah, the Day of Remembrance commemorating the Holocaust, the most heinous crime ever committed against humanity in the history of the world.

The Holocaust is never far from my mind.  It is built into everything I am and it haunts the deepest reaches of my psyche.  Whenever I do hard physical work, I remind myself that it is nothing compared to what my people were forced to endure.  I will not buy anything made in Germany or from a German company if I can possibly avoid it.  I will not (cannot) watch movies depicting Jewish torture and suffering.  Visiting Yad Vashem and the Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C. brought me to tears.  I am verklempt with emotion thinking of my three living and two deceased relatives who bear tattoos on their arms and of my Aunt Gittel and Cousin Rifka who were murdered at death camps.  I pray every Friday night (well almost every Friday night) for all who perished without anyone to say Kaddish for them.

My only comforting thought, my only way of mitigating this horror, is to think it took 6 million lives to establish today's State of Israel and end our long exile in foreign countries.  A homeland for the Jewish people is built upon their ashes. 

May their names forever be a blessing.

Her Greatest Gift

My home is filled with dozens of gifts from my late Best Friend of 40 years.  I cannot glance around any room in my house without seeing at least one. The Hotei-san and Japanese Fisherman statues she bought for me in 1969 from a head shop.  Her handmade stained glass windows and my kaleidoscope.  The red apple cookie jar that has been a mainstay in every single one of my kitchens.  The sterling silver dreidel that plays "I have a little dreidel".  The precious illustrated Torah and Haggadah.  The art glass in the breakfront.  Her diamond hoop earrings in an antique filigree she knew I'd love, her last gift to me.

Her Greatest Gift?  No not the generous monetary bequest that blew me away. Her Greatest Gift are her children, Scott and Laura, and the five grandchildren she never lived to see.  Thanks to them, I am "Bubbe". 

Just before she died she told me "take care of the kids".  I told her "Honey, I think I need the kids to take care of me".  She said "no Ev, they need you". 

I guess we all need each other.

Re-invent

There's a new buzzword going around - re-invent.  I think it means to take a product that already is working fine and try to re-vision it as even better, as if it was never invented in the first place.  

I'd like to re-invent U-verse so it is more user friendly and can record wish-lists and I'd like a re-invented coffee maker that doesn't use paper filters and a re-invented Roomba that knows NOT run out of juice whenever it is under the bed. 

I suppose everyone wishes they could slightly re-invent almost everything (and everyone?) in their lives just a little...    ;-)

Woman's Work

Hilary Rosen, Democratic strategist, made the unfortunate comment that Ann Romney has "never worked a day in her life".  I have not raised children but I am pretty sure that raising five boys to manhood and fighting MS and cancer counts as "work".

On the "hard work" scale I rank being a stay-at-home Mom with a financially secure, supportive spouse as less onerous than being a single Mom who also works outside the home (hardest job ever!).  I rank my own career doing work I loved as far less arduous than having a "menial" job where I'd probably watch the clock as each boring minute slowly went by.  So my Big Conclusion is this:  a woman - or man - doing a job whether inside or outside of the home is W-O-R-K-I-N-G.

I am proud of my life's work and I will unashamedly give myself an attaboy for suceeding in a "man's field" and doing my part to put a crack in the glass ceiling. .

;-)

Grandma's house

Grandma and Grandpa built their two bedroom house around 1910 as young newlyweds and lived there the rest of their lives. My mom was their only child and she lived there with them until she married Dad at the almost-spinster age of 30.

The house had a front porch with a swing and a piano in the living room and a cast iron claw foot tub in the one bathroom.  It had a cellar filled with Grandma's canned preserves, made with fruit gathered from the apple, plum and cherry trees in the back yard and the next door neighbors' apricot tree.  There was an entrance directly into the cellar from the back yard and a garage that opened with two side hinged doors.  I'm told that in its younger days, the maple tree in the front yard produced real maple syrup.  The yard was filled with lilacs and hollyhocks grew wild along the property line.  The home burned wood for heat until Grandma converted it to gas in the 1960s, thus skipping coal fuel completely.

Some of my happiest memories are visiting Grandma and Grandpa in that sweet, sweet home.

Fifty Shades of Grey

I have not read any of the "Fifty Shades of Grey" trilogy so I cannot speak from first hand knowledge about the hottest new book series that has captivated women everywhere. 

The reviews are scary!  The books are described as either erotic fantasies or pornography in which an innocent virgin is either 1) raped or 2) led into sexual servitude or 3) willingly submits to a dominant/slave relationship with an older, richer, sophisticated man.  She signs a contract that allows her to be submitted to her lover's (I use the term loosely) every sadomasochistic whim.  And she is pleased because he is happy after she is whipped, gagged and subjected to pain!  Somehow this is described as mesmerizing, can't put it down reading.  Maybe this was written by a man who thinks this is "what every woman wants"??

Decades ago, a popular author, Barbara Cartland, penned hundreds of "historical" romance novels where the women were blushing virgins and the men were charming, wealthy, protective, alpha males.  Her romances did not put her characters into suggestive situations, oh no, no, no.  I am sure Dame Cartland (1901-2000) is turning over in her grave about now!

;-)

Happy and Gay

Yesterday Rick Santorum, champion of ultra conservative social issues, withdrew from the process for the Republican nomination for President.

With all the problems in the world and the economy today, you would think gay marriage and contraception would be the last things on people's minds. This IS a free country & if you don't like the way other people are living their lives live your life differently and deal with it!

There are a world of things I would not do in my own life and of course I have an opinion on what the "right'" way to live looks like.  But I have not walked a mile in everyone's shoes and I have not had their unique experiences and I am the first to say I have been blessed with a wonderful start and most excellent people in my life.

I for one did not think re-reading the Constitution before the start of the new session in Congress was a bad idea.  We all need a reminder that our freedoms came at a great cost and need to be treasured.

Flowers

Flowers are a great pick-me-up and an almost sinful indulgence if you buy them for yourself.

Occasionally my garden blesses me with a beautiful rose or a Bird of Paradise and of course the ever present cascade of bougainvillea.   My absolute favorite of the outdoor flowers are lilacs, sadly not to be had here in Florida.

These are Alstroemerias, a great choice because they last all week and come in beautiful colors and can be procured at Publix or Winn Dixie for a mere $3.99 a bunch.  Cheapest pick-me-up around!

Thomas Kincaid

Thomas Kincaid, painter, multi-gadzillionaire, bankrupt business person and DUI criminal, died at the early age of 54 this week.  I'm sure I'm like a lot of people when I say this news was bittersweet.

Some People have riduculed his paintings, saying they were formulistic and of places that never were and never could be.  But Some People saw Heaven and the Light of Jesus in his paintings.  I saw a talented artist and I liked his work until it started to appear on coffee mugs, night lights and mouse pads.

Mr. Kincaid, I hope your demons have been put to rest and you are now in the Heaven portrayed in your paintings.

Me, Blogger

Someone commented that it must be a chore or stressful obligation to blog every day.  Nothing could be more untrue!  It's incredibly easy to find something to write about every day and once I have the topic I always, always have something to say about it.  Haha there is nothing I don't have an opinion about!

How to find a topic?  Easy.  What unbelievable news story did I hear today?  Did I find a new app?  Who called?  What did someone post on Facebook?  What's for dinner?  What story caught my eye on Yahoo while retrieving my email?  What do I see glancing around the house? What's the latest TV commercial selling?  Who died?  Am I happy or sad today?  What came in the mail?  What offhand comment did I overhear? You get the idea.



I'm reminded of this quote from the first book of poetry Dad gave me, A Child's Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson: "The world is so filled with a number of things, I'm sure we should all be as happy as Kings"

THANKS DAD!!

Feng Shui

Have I mentioned I love my home?  It's not professionally decorated but it IS filled with only things I love.  If I don't love it it's GONE!  Sometimes I look around and ask "what's THAT doing here?"  Hahaha, then its goodbye-Charlie!

I read this decorating tip online today:
IN THE ENTRYWAY
1. Create a feel-good focal point. The first thing you see when you enter your home should be something you love, whether that's a piece of art, a vase of flowers, or a special souvenir, says Stephanie Roberts, author of Fast Feng Shui: 9 Simple Principles for Transforming Your Life by Energizing Your Home. "A beautiful first impression helps you relax from the get-go."

I adore my foyer!  Note the genuine signed Salvatore Dali numbered woodcut print (bought for a song way before he died), the antique wood mini-dresser (a gift from my late BFF), the crystal lamp with new red shade (a gift from my late mother-in-law), Mom's cut-glass bowl filled with my favorite candy, a wedding picture of us laughing (in a lovely glass frame that my boss was throwing out) and the incredible mezzuzah that I mounted incorrectly but that can be seen from the whole room.

Yep, Feng Shui by the boatload!  ;-)

Chag Sameach

Today is Passover, an incredibly moving Holiday for me and for Jews everywhere.  Cousin Jeannie sent me this link to a short message from the Chief Rabbi of South Africa on the importance of Passover.  Wow!

This quick video reminded me that being Jewish is more than a religion, more than our prayers or quirky customs or odd cuisine. It is millenniuims of a shared history of hardships, persecution, struggles and undying faith.

Chag Sameach! Let us rejoice and be happy!

Not My Problem

It's surprising to me but I am truly enjoying retirement much more than I ever expected!

The reports back from the office are that they miss me and that stuff I told them would happen when I left have come to pass. Sooo happy that these things are Not My Problems.

I have not been bored for a minute. There are books to listen to and TV shows to watch and DIY projects and my new anti-gravity lounge chair to sit in by the pool.

 

;-)

My Hands

It's been said that women-of-a-certain-age (like me) can keep their faces free of wrinkles and their figures free of unsightly bulges but that their hands will give away their age in an instant. Certainly my hands proclaim to the world that I have never been afraid of hard work, harsh chemicals or chipped nails.

Cousin Barbara periodically gifts me with attractive rubber gloves to entice me to take better care of my hands.  This ploy does indeed work.  I especially love this newest pair because the brand name are her initials - BW.  A little Jergens lotion (love the smell) also helps...

;-)

The Ten Plagues

The real ten plagues include things like lice, vermin, boils and hail (poo-poo-poo). 

The ten plagues of this South Florida Retiree are:

10. I'm out of diet cream soda
9.   It's too overcast to sit by the pool
8.   My snowbird friends are going home for the summer
7.   I'm #34 in line for a best seller and the library has 2 copies
6.   The skin doctor can't see me 'til Thursday
5.   Gas is over $4.00 a gallon!
4.   They don't need me back at work (actually they do)
3.   My farshtunkena U-verse contract is not up until August
2.   The maid is not coming

And the Number One Plague is
1.    Actually there is no maid  :'-(

Friends of Friends

I have a new group of people in my life.  They are Friends of Friends. 

Some of my best friends these days are Friends of Friends.  I have never met these folks in person.  But some friend of mine knows this person and even then, they may not be quite sure where this person came from.  Some similar interest or one of us deciding "hey I really like this person whom I've never met" prompted a Facebook invitation to be a "friend".  In some cases a mutual friend "suggested" us, kind of like a matchmaker.

When my cousin Terri in California (who I have not seen in 40 plus years) and my friend Jill in Chicago, who I met as a friend of a "real" friend (who I had not seen in 40 plus years) decided they were both menschs and "friended" each other, I kvelled like a real shadkin.  I did warn them however that they were on opposite ends of the political spectrum.  Their answer?  Viva La Difference!

April Fool

Today is a favorite for all the folks who love practical jokes.  Not so much for those of us hapless, trusting, gullible souls!   

Broward Sheriff Al Lamberti wrote this on his Facebook page this morning:
I was thinking about doing a little something for April Fool's Day but decided against it. It seems that my Facebook posts are read by millions and even the smallest joke is turned into a national headline.

I kind of feel for the Sheriff, trapped in a world without humor.  I love to inject a little humor into my texts, emails, Facebook posts and conversations.  But sadly, they are not always interpreted perfectly. Making a joke that no one gets is pretty pathetic and does not do much to add to your friend count.

I'm bored being retired, sitting around the pool all day or running around with friends or shopping.  I think I'll go back to work. 

Ha Ha April Fool's!