I just want to say up front that this post has been a royal pain in the butt. I can’t get the HTML to work properly. It’s been eaten twice and I’ve had to re-type whole portions of it. And it’s not even that big. This has been anything but my usual relaxing Saturday morning thread. Why tell you this?
Because sometimes life just throws you rocks, and you keep on keeping on anyway.
See the picture above? Wouldn’t that be an awesome place to be today — fresh orange juice mimosas, a good book, some relaxing tunes on my iPod, and plenty of sunscreen. But the chair would definitely have to be a bit more comfy — something in a lounger with good padding, I think — and a larger umbrella to avoid that lobster girl look that I can get in the sun. Oh…yeeeeeeaaaah.
But instead this morning, I’m fighting my computer (which may be on its last legs…how can you tell if your laptop is dying or if it just hates you?). Watching Chicken Little for the 800th time this week. Hacking up a lung. Blowing my nose for the billionth time in the last two days (it sure feels like that, anyway…). But still being grateful for the nectar that is coffee, and for the adorable peanut sitting beside me here in the kitchen, and for the hubby who got up early and made coffee while I caught an extra hour of sleep.
It’s the little things.
It has been a long week at our house — and here at FDL — so let’s talk about the things you do to decompress. What’s your "Calgon, take me away!" kind of remedy? How do you deal with a "case of the Mondays?" Where is the best place that you have ever gone on vacation? If you could eat any dish at any restaurant on the planet, where and what would it be? If you could pick one song to get you up and dance or to mellow you out on your most frazzled day — or whatever — what song would that be?
What gets you into your comfort zone? And what makes you truly happy?
I originally thought it might be fun for everyone to share some links to their favorite online shopping pages — because I think it can be a blast to find new things that way — but lets broaden that out. I have a couple of dream vacation bookmarks, and I’m sure that others do as well. So share those, too — let’s all have a little fun this morning and take a virtual step into something that makes someone else happy.
Sometimes, it can be beneficial to sit back and think about the things that make us happy in life. All work and no play make us dull and cranky and ever so slightly off. And I’m feeling the need for a little play this morning, even in the midst of this viral ick that I’ve now caught from the peanut. Hey, a girl can dream, right?
Share some of your dreams this morning, and some of the things that say comfort to you. Pull up a chair…
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Treoth!
fitz
You mean I may have finaly gotten the first post? Oh my what a day that will make!
Whoa. I didn’t even think I *could* post from my Treo, much less be first. Is everyone still asleep?
Dang, I knew it was too good to be true.
For me, relaxing and forgetting about the world is standing next to the shore of the lake trying to catch fish but mostly just listening to the sounds of nature.
Just a reminder folks — Jerry McNerney will be today’s Blue America guest. Ought to be a great discussion. :)
Peanut,
You also serve who sit and help your mom.
angrycyclone at 4 — Anywhere near water works that way for me — at a lakeshore or on the beach, so long as I have the space for some solitary walking. A crowded beach doesn’t work the same way for me, which is why we generally go on a beach vacation in the fall or winter, instead of summer. (I fry anyway, even with high-SPF sunscreen, so at least a trip during a colder month means less of a sunburn. lol)
Morning everyone. Sorry to hear you’re feeling under the weather Christy. Hope it gets better soon.
I could go for that beach scene too. Being a former sailor, anytime I’m around water is like heaven on earth for me.
Can’t stay around long this morning. Got to get a haircut today so it looks good for my brothers wedding next week. But I look forward to being back in time for Jerry McNerneys appearance on the shores of FDL.
Well, I just had this all teed up to submit on the last thread, but now that I see how your morning’s treating you, Christy, maybe I’ll just park it here . . .
I’m really not a beach or water person – I’m basically a creature of night and shade, or at least overcast.
But I do like to walk, preferably fast, sometimes even through crowds. I find that relaxing, but it may be my New Yorker DNA.
It’s your New Yorker DNA, Eli.
Good morning y’all, bloody marys anyone?
Twisted Martini @ 11
Now that’s a way to start the day *g*
Twisted, dahlin’!
Well, I started saving for this new house. I only need $38,799,995 more! take a peek:
http://www.choi-realty.com/lis…..index.html
My New Yorker DNA *is* very strong, lotus. I’d say I was overcompensating now that I’m in exile, but I was the same way in NYC – even more so, actually.
See what to mean, twolfie — good luck with your piggy-bank!
Eli at 100 – ahhh, see for NYC, I am more than happy to deal with crowds. Love it. A couple of hours browsing at The Strand bookstore, an afternoon at the Met in the Asian collection or the Impressionists to see some of my favorite Monet’s or to MoMa for something Worhol-ish. And then to Joe’s Shanghai for soup dumplings. Or…well, there’s just SO much to NYC that is a fun escape. Need to get back there at some point soon…
Watching Chicken Little for the 800th time this week.
Now THAT demands some serious, full-on respect from all Firedogs, and I say that with ZERO snark!
Good morning, Christy!
See what YOU mean, twolfie . . .
When I’m in the weeds in the atelier, I put on Dreamgirls in Concert. Listen to the 2 cds straight through. Love it. And I’m always so much calmer after. There’s nothin like Audra and Lilias. Still have my goose-bump experiences like clockwork at the exact same moments.
Hope the same happens with the movie. I’m flying to NYC to see the first show!
twolf1 at 15 — oh wow, now THAT is a house. :) Let me know when you move in and I’ll come by to say hello. *G*
Good Morning early bird Christie.. LOVE the pic… I wanna go there.
Sorry for the double post, but I wanted to make sure the right people saw this…
WOW…. What a day yesterday. I’ve been lurking on FDL for quite a while and I add comments occasionaly. I can not remember a day where we’ve had 1609 COMMENTS in one day… This just goes to show the netroots gave Ned a shot of Nedreneline and His success has in turn given the blogs like this one the legitimacy and political power that it well deserves. I’m so glad that posters like TRex and Pach all the others have added to the content that Jane and Redd… er I mean Christy have so graciously bestowed upon us…
Thanks FDL for keeping the spotlight on the relevent issues that this regime and the CM have been trying to conceal from us..
thank you…
medaka 19 speaks da trufe.
Update: OS’s hubby is clearly a very lucky man, too.
Mornin’, everybody.
Wish I could stick around but I’ve got obligations all day.
Hope everybody can send lots of love to Jerry McNerney this afternoon. I hate to miss Blue America, but will check in when I can.
HopeSAT: Sure good to see you again and relieved Dr. Turtle is safely home.
mornin’ Lotus. How are ya today?Christy Hardin Smith @ 23
I believe it has 2 four bedroom guest houses and parking for 20 cars so all are welcome!
My Calgon moment happens in the automotive tool aisle of the parts store. One of these days if my darlings ever pony up their share of the car insurance premium I’ll buy something.
What makes me happy is Autumn. September and October are my 2 favorite months of the year. The air is crisp, the smell of burning wood is beginning to surface, pennant races are in full swing, the Wolverines are usually losing games they should be winning (oh wait…)
Going to the pumpkin farm with the family on a day in the mid fifties, the sky a cobalt blue. Ride in the haywagon, pick your pumpkin in the pumpkin field.Come back and get some fresh apples with caramel, or some kettle corn.
You know, water is good for me, but more now, it’s what I’m doing now. I’m having my morning coffee and reading online on my laptop in the living room.
But that’s just half the picture. We have old, classic, swing era, big band music on in the background and my partner is reading the paper and eating his breakfast over by the picture window (at the moment, Helen Forrest is about to sing a forgettable but pleasant song with Benny Goodman’s band). This is our morning ritual on weekends. It’s us. Simple time like that with my partner is my centering space.
Oh, and feel better soon, Christy.
I never realized just how good I had it in NYC. Lots of good sushi places too, including an all-you-can-eat one.
I also love a good softball game, or even just batting practice or playing catch (a football works, too).
hey lote, good morning to you too!
I trust you caught my why-i’ve-been-outa-sight comment last thread? …to answer your question to my rude, short drive-by earlier today (your yesterday) …
Time zones: *sigh*
All-you-can-eat-sushi? Naaaw, Eli. Really? ‘Tain’t fair.
Here’s one of my dream vacation spots: Goldeneye. Isn’t it gorgeous? All of the properties listed through this company are amazing, but the Goldeneye one has such a rich writing history that I can’t help but want to go there.
OT, but not really: has anyone seen the movie Tsotsi? We watched it last night; very compelling. Movie night for us at home is a centering thing, too.
Twisted at 29 — oooh, that is a fun one. We’re going to take the peanut to the pumpkin patch this year for the first time. That’s gonna be a kick. :)
Yes’r, medaka — I caught that . . . then hadd bring out all my finger- and toe-petals to try to cipher how many hours ahead of mine is your clock. Took me forEVAH, but I think I finally decided that Nara = New Smyrna Beach plus 11.
‘mI close-ish?
Add me to the water crowd, Christy. For the past almost 3 years I have been fortunate enough to live in a little cabin on a creek in the redwoods. I walk out onto my deck, look down on the creek, and find peace in the simple sounds of birds and water. I watch the birds feeding at my birdfeeder (and the brazen-hussy squirrels try), spying an occasional mama deer and her babies walking by headed to the creek and/or river. Have only gone on one vacation since moving in here and came home early.
Where is the best place that you have ever gone on vacation?
A campground near Sequim at the top of the Olympic Peninsula. Blue skys, cool breezes and the view of the San Juan Islands. I wish I could hop on a plane and go there right now.
If you could eat any dish at any restaurant on the planet, where and what would it be?
The FATTEH BLAHMEH at the Lebanese Taverna in Washington DC. The lamb is so tender you can cut it with a fork.
If you could pick one song to get you up and dance or to mellow you out on your most frazzled day — or whatever — what song would that be?
Anything off of Nanci Griffith’s Flyer Album. It’s my chill out CD.
What gets you into your comfort zone?
Drinking a hot coffee in the wee hours of the morning, sitting out on the deck watching the sun rise when I lived in Washington State.
And what makes you truly happy? Chilling out with a good book or the start of a new semester at college. I really miss the sound of chalk on the chalk board and the scribbling of pencils/pens.
“….some of the things that say comfort to you.”
“Higher Power, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”
Serenity Prayer
Reinold Niebuhr
Pachacutec @ 37
Yes! I have seen that movie and really liked it. If you liked that, you may also like City of God.
Ooo, Christy — that glimpse of Goldeneye does it for me.
Anybody here ever been to Mustique? I’ve often wondered what it has that makes it so big with the UK royals.
yes, lotus, that’s it. My non-math mind makes me do it this way: change am to pm, and minus one, and that’s the time there. My 2 AM is your 1 PM.
I hate math. I know that angels are more like music or mathematics than feelings. But I still hate math.
medaka, I sent a short email to your blog.
Any dish at any restaurant? The garlic shrimp at Las Brisas Del Mar, in Veracruz, Mexico. mmmm. The shrimp cocktail is good, too.
If you like beaches, you should try Ft De Soto Park, on the FL gulf coast. And Ft George Island and Little Talbot island near Jacksonville. I spent the summer working on Ft George Island, in the Timucuan Ecological Preserve, and it’s astonishingly pretty.
Well my favorite vaca is a Windjammer cruise. Its not one of those huge ships but much smaller ships which have been converted for tourist use.
link here.
I would be willing to head up one just for FDLers if there is enough interest.
having been blessed with a job providing eight years of travel – been lucky enough to visit most of the tropical hotspots –
Christy – about that chair
in Bora Bora, the hotel provided these molded plastic chaise lounges with no legs – where you were laying almost flat out, just barely propped up – and would place them just inside the water’s edge so the incoming waves gently washed over ya – could spend almost the entire day doing that
of course the attentive, large, rather muscular Tahitian surfer boys bringing guava/orange juice refills rounded out the experience *g*
and when you were done, you went back to your little haole built over the water where half of the room’s floor was plexiglass so you could watch marine life as you drifted off . . .yeah, unreal but true
Where is the best place that you have ever gone on vacation?
Greece.
If you could eat any dish at any restaurant on the planet, where and what would it be?
I’m thinkingthinkingthinking . . .
If you could pick one song to get you up and dance
“Have You Had Enough” sho’ been wearing out my carpet lately!
or to mellow you out on your most frazzled day — or whatever — what song would that be?
Aretha’s “Natural Woman.”
What a great thread idea.
At the risk of sounding silly, every time I see the Golden Gate Bridge, it takes my breath away. It’s so majestic and solemn and beautiful. I love the way the fog embraces it and the creaky sounds it makes as you walk along its lovely path. I love seeing it from the gorgeous Presidio or the miraculous Marin Headlands. I love coming around the bend and seeing it for the first time as you descend into the City. It’s so soothing and inspiring and gigantic.
Flowers, art, film. NYC makes me jump for joy. Finishing a gorgeous pastry object and standing back to enjoy the beauty of ingredients held with the highest respect makes my heart open. The smell of lavender and rosemary wafting through my bathroom. Farmer’s Markets full of vendors sharing their incredible bounty and shoppers grateful for the chance. Oaxaca. Spain. Milan. My friends are the dearest group of people anyone could ask for. Music! So many things to list!
Christy, my favorite tonic when I’ve got that icky cold thing is to roughly chop up some fresh ginger, no need to peel. Toss it in a pan, cover with water and let it come to a boil, then simmer.
Let it steep as long as you want, until it reaches your preferred strength and then strain over a glass. Lemon and honey are good in it, but I like it best straight.
You can keep reusing the ginger until it’s lost its strength and can keep it simmering on the stove all day, just keep replenishing water or ginger as needed. The longer it steeps, the spicier it gets.
Hope you’re feeling better soon!
CHS: Dr. OJS speaking here.
My prescription for you is to destress if you can. Your cold is your body telling you that you need to kick back a little. Begin by taking a few minutes a day, find a quiet spot (if you can when Peanut is napping), then just drop all thoughts of FDL, Lieberman, Bush and the whole wacko bunch. Just sit and pay attention to your own breathing, just following it in and out, and cherish and take wonder in that very thing happening under your nose. When you get up you will feel a lot better. No need for margaritas and stuff…well, maybe a cuppa mocha.
And one more thing: FDL is just another transient phenomenon, like life itself, and don’t take it too seriously. Give yourself, and it, some space. You know, you don’t have to post three times a day. They are all gems, and that is more than us folks deserve.
Hope this helps.
meta nails it.
I used to have a cabin in the Adirondack mountains (NY)- really a relaxing and mellow place to be. No TV; therefore it was always total music immersion time, and you could really listen. The ultimate “high” (literally) for me is that first moment upon arriving, breathless, at the top a mountain after an arduous climb for a bird’s eye view of the world.
Good Morning All from the great Central Valley of California!
As for the best place in the world for a vacation . . anywhere in California to hike, camp, sail, fish, watch the whales, backpack, etc.
Which brings up today’s Blue America guest, Jerry McNerney. Do any of you have an idea just how dangerous Richard Pombo is for our environment? For our beautiful coast?
I hope you all stick around and give Jerry McNerney some love and I will be looking forward to reading all the comments when I get back from . . . phonebanking for Jerry McNerney.
Decompressing? Comfort zone. Two things:
1) Cooking. Go to the kitchen, chop, sautee, simmer, sip, and at the end there’s the extra payoff of eating the activity. Cook double and the payoff lasts for days.
2) Dance. Salsa, merengue, cumbia, bolero. A few hours of pure zen – Be Here Now. This one started a couple of years ago when my kids asked, “How come we have to do some kind of physical activity and you don’t…?” I’m not good, mind you, but I am passionate.
Hey lotus,
Where in Greece? I used to deploy to Hania Crete back in the 90s. It truly is awesome there. Especially in the summer when all of the Nordic people come down and are gorgeous eye candy and go to the beach in skimpy bathing suits. Oh yeah, the food is good too.
Greetings Gang-
I take it from Lotus’s comments that I will have to carve out the time to read last night’s thread.
So glad to know that Hope and her man are back!
My two little kids, and their big kid father slept out in the tree house last night. So we are busy here hauling in sleeping bags, ensolite pads, and all the spent snack material.
I think a clear night spent sleeping outside, in the northern woods of Vermont, approaching Fall (not too many bugs), is a moment in life to be savored.
Have a wonderful day, everyone!
Suzanne @ 39 – That sounds sooo dreamy. I’m so envious.
I have this very smart basset hound named Poncho (that makes me Lefty) and we have a summer Saturday morning thing.
We live in the city of Milwaukee and it just got ranked number 1 on Forbes list for most drunken city. So Poncho and I slip out in the early AM while everyone else is hungover and sleeping in.
We go into the deserted park across the street and I let him off the leash. His relaxation is flushing out the pigeons. My leisure is highlighting the garage sale ads and sipping my coffee mug.
Nobody is around and all I hear are the early morning city birds and Poncho in the shrubs. It is a most relaxing time and I cherish it.
After the garage sale strategy is mapped out we both hop into my Chevy Prizm and do a morning perusal of items and gab with people about family, weather, dogs, and where the best sales are today.
It’s so relaxing and down home American I can’t recommend it enough to anyone who just wants to be free of commitment stress and hang out in the world.
Teuscher Champagne Truffles will cure anything that ails you. It is important to eat them while reclined on the couch with your beverage of choice, preferably wearing some silky jammies. Pure indulgence.
I posted the link to one of my favorite shopping sites but it must have been treated as spam because it’s gone now. I hope I’m not banned as well. I don’t post often but I’d lie to be able to occasionally. I didn’t post spam. It’s a legitimate shopping site that compares prices on all sorts of stuff from accross the web. I don’t have antthing to do with it.
smiley
[Moderator: an unknown commenter posting solely an URL to a broad-range generic shopping site sure looked like spam. It was http://www.bizrate.com . No, you’re obviously not banned, relax! ]
Today my laptop screen is inverted ?? Suggestions? Hard to type upside down.
Hi, lisadawn — I loved it everywhere I went (and ate and gawked)! Didn’t get to Macedonia or many an island, though.
But if I could revisit only one leg of that trip, Crete would get the call.
Heraklion, Mallia, Knossos and all points in between: ooooo.
Mary at 63 — my computer cure-all is to restart and cross my fingers. YMMV on that one, though… *G*
Good Morning:
Calgon Moment: Snuggling with the entire family on the big bed. Reading to/with the kids. Having oldest child bring me hot chocolate that she made by scratch in bed.
Best vacation is always the last one I just took. In this case to Jamestown, New York to show my kids where I grew up. They loved the Lucille Ball museum and I have yet to get tired of my 7 year old doing the skit from Vitametavegamin.
By the by if you had a very expensive, 8oz can of almond paste in your posession what recipe would you use to create something wonderful???????????
Vacations, each has its own unique memory, it’s hard to say which one was the best.
Food, I love a well prepared steak with a nice Cabernet. There used to be a place in Chicago called the Butcher Shop, where you could cook your own steaks. They had the most amazing prime rib I have ever had.
In terms of music that mellow me out, I love soundtracks. Lord of the Rings, The Right Stuff, Gladiator, Titanic, Last of the Mohicans, Moonstruck. and belive it or not (Christy you’ll appreciate this) Spirit by Bryan Adams. It was the first movie I ever took my daughter to by herself, and the music made me really emotional. Still does.
Decompress. Water would be involved. A cool fall morning on the banks of some clear lake at a primitive campsite. An Indian fire percolating coffee, and double stacked dutch ovens cooking breakfast. The aroma wasping from the lower holding the hungry man breakfast is mingled with the drop biscuits coming from the top. The sounds are of the sighing lakeshore, gently lapping in her endless song, providing a backdrop of the cheerful morning birds. Cell phone says no service. Complete and utter solitude shared only with the one(s) you care about.
smiley — I see that — bizrate, yes?
Refresh your browser.
My favorite getaway is canoeing at the break of dawn on a crisp, clear day in September through the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in the furthest reaches of Northern Minnesota.
There is not another soul around for tens of miles and the only sounds one hears is the cry of the loons (our official state bird) and the quiet hiss of the paddle as it sweeps through the water.
After several zen-ful hours of this, one stops to cook up a breakfast over a open campfire, the food tastes like the nectar of the gods even when it is nothing more than toasted hunks of bread with a bit of honey.
Ahhhhhh!
Best restaurant? Wow……um……well, my darling ex and I were in a jeep driving back from Tulum where we’d spent the day frolicking in the turquoise water. We hadn’t eaten much and suddenly realized we were starving. But no food in sight. Then as we drove we started to see these signs for a fish restaurant. The billboard said, “the most beautiful restaurant in the world!” We got excited and stepped on the gas. As we got nearer and nearer, we laughed about how many plates we would order. Then, we approached. Big parking lot. Tons of cars. We worried about getting a seat. We parked and got out and looked around. We couldn’t see any restaurant, so we asked some people heading for their car, “could you point us the way to this restaurant?” Sure, they said. “Just follow that path right over there.”
We walked along for a few minutes and then stepped into a clearing. It was an absolutely gorgeous beach with a little BBQ under a palapa. They caught fish and cooked it up and served it on the beach! I’d never had lobster, so I ordered it a la plancha. Truly one of the best meals I can remember.
Also, anyone ever been to the gorgeous restaurant run by the seven sisters in the little Zapotec village of Teotitlan de Valle? Oh. Maw. God. Regal!
on line shopping -
not really a shopper, but can pass the hours flipping through these 2, either on line or in print. plenty of over the top stuff, but love to flip through the ads in the design mag for inspiration
http://www.christiesgreatestates.com/
http://www.floridadesign.com/w…..design.asp
completely at odds with my simple country gal life
Relaxing place to vacation with small children:
http://www.copamarina.com/
Relaxing place to vacation with grown-ups with lots of money:
http://www.fourseasons.com/lanai/
(f.y.i., when Bill Gates got married there, he bought every hotel room on the island. There are only two hotels on this island. Both are exquisite.)
Not relaxing, but fabulous and not horribly expensive:
http://www.hoteltorreguelfa.com/
(has a 13th century tower with best panoramic view — anywhere).
Them ornery hamsters! smiley, my innocent li’l reassurance to you is now itself in moderation. All will be kewl inna minute or 20, though.
Morning ma’am, pups.
Music and a long drive. I can start the trip full of all the heart-rending news from the day, my mind so preoccupied by mountains of stupidity, deceit and dishonor, but once I slip the CD in, the music starts to take over. My strongest tonic is a two album set of opera highlights — it’s not that I’m an opera buff per se — because the music is such a powerful statement of what is possible for our species. By the time I’m ten miles down the road, the anger, frustration are being overwhelmed by such astonishing beauty that one forgets, for the moment, how awful other parts of the world are behaving. It’s a reminder that all is not lost, that there are still incredibly amazing and wonderful things that people can do, and are doing every day. And then I begin to hope that, even in these awful times, this too will pass.
lotus @ 64 – When in Crete, I remember going to work at 430am and seeing all of the little food shops with their squid hanging out to dry on the clothes line with clothes pins. Man, I knew I was going to have some fresh Calamari that night.
Okay, I have the picture that Christy posted. I live right next to one of the world’s ten most beautiful beaches (according to some guy). I would gladly swap it for a canoe and solitude. And campfire food. And rustling pine trees. Wow. Thanks for the descriptions of the great north. I miss it.
Florida Mom, where do you live?
lotus
St Pete baby and all points in between Tampa and Ft. DeSoto.
Where are you????
I be keepin’ over here by New Smyrna Beach-way, FM.
Lotus! Greece! The food, the beaches, the night life. Santorini, Paros, etc.,etc. I never tire of tomatoes or cucumbers. It was unbearably HOT, though. Geeze!
lotus @ 65
Oh god, stop making me remember how young I once was! I spent two months on the island of Paros one summer, writing poetry and drinking that nasty retsina. I had archeological satori at Ephesus. I lost my virginity on Mykonos.
I got 2 tricks~well maybe a few more but they all support the same thing.
1. The I am somehow so rich that I can do stuff that really makes a difference and do it right fantasy…..(I mean if I have a plan ready, maybe the universe will give the winning lottery ticket….)
2. read Buddhist writings. do yoga. bake (very grounding for me. plus I then get to give it away or I would eat it all)
Oh and really,
read FDL
Oh wow. I love your neck of the woods. I spent some time in DeLand in June. One of my photos was in the Florida Biennial there. I had never been over to Volusia county and am anxious to go back and photograph.
Hey Christy, — if you and the family ever make it down to the middle Keys, I can give you the name of a small quiet hotel on the Atlantic side with a view alsmost identical to the one above, including the umbrella, with much comfier chairs and a small outdoor jacuzzi as well. Just a hop skip and a jump from the 7-mile bridge, where you can get great fresh fish at the Seven-Mile Grill and sip on a cooling Corona with a lime slice —
If you’re of a mind, you can come down the back way – on Card Sound Road and stop at Alabama Jack’s on the way for the best conch fritters in the land.
get well soon, honey – love from Nick in Fort Lauderdale
Christy:
your picture made me wish that the Lake was not just something virtual, but real. I wonder which lake would be the “firedoglake”. Maybe Lake Tahoe or something like that. I would enjoy meeting other firepups at a designated firedoglake.
Hot, true, meta — but with the seabreezes, not so much.
Besides, the heat fit the sensualities of the place so well. Have you ever read John Fowles’ The Magus (first version, I mean, not the rewrite that I’ve never fathomed why he thought necessary)? It really captured this thing I don’t have words for . . .
Moderator: an unknown commenter posting solely an URL to a broad-range generic shopping site sure looked like spam.
Thanks. That’s what I figured. No big deal. I just didn’t want to be banned.
I lived in Washington, D.C. for most of my adult life. When the world was getting me down, I’d hop into the Maverick and drive up Skyline Drive, into the Shenandoah. Just me and whatever music seemed appropriate at the time. I’d spend the weekend just driving thru the mountains, hearing music or birds, whichever struck my fancy. I’d stay in some no-name motel in a little Virginia town for about $10, get up and start driving again as soon as the sun came up. By the time I came back down on Sunday night, I was ready to face the bear again.
I live in Illinois now. No mountains, no trees, no Maverick. I’ve got to find something soon.
Ft DeSoto is really nice.
Oh and may I add that Greece is where I shall retire. I have a photo of the squid drying on the island of Naxos that is unbelievable. Even more unbelievable is I don’t have is digitized to share.
Florida Mom: By the by if you had a very expensive, 8oz can of almond paste in your posession what recipe would you use to create something wonderful???????????
What a great thing to have! One quick thing comes to mind. Simple, homey, but elegant, too. Don’t know if it would appeal to you, but it’s Apricot Almond Bread Pudding. A recipe I developed a couple of years ago for a client who loved bread pudding and wanted it for his birthday.
Heaven is;
Tea For The Tillerman, Court And Spark, Seventh Sojourn, Blue, Late For The Sky, Thick As A Brick, It’s A Beautiful Day, Jim Croce (first album), (any) Kotke …… Drawing without the feeling that I should be doing someone else’s version of me.
lotus @ 88
yeah, what was that wind called, the one from the south that happened every day at noon — was it the meltemi ??
Cleter do you live in Florida as well?
inthe doghouse,
amen on the driving, listening to Opera Highlights thingy
have done it 2 or 3 times on the 2 hour drive to the Central TX Coast – numerous places along the shoreline where for little $$, they’ll bring you 5 pounds of fresh, peel and eat shrimp – they simply dump the bucket on your butcher paper covered table – and when the last little peel hits the table, they bring you a big ol slice of key lime pie – yummers (yes floridian doggies, the tart, not overly sweet version)
lina – Firenze! That place is gorgeous. I want to go. I could see the David again. Sigh.
Here’s a great place to relax
http://www.willowslodge.com/index.php
It’s a spa in Woodenville, WA. Rent yourself a suite with a double size jetted tube, a fireplace, sitting area, large screen tv, another smaller tv by the bed, stereo, FREE STARBUCKS COFFEE in the room with french press and lobby, outdoor jacuzzi, incredible herb garden, and delicious culinary available.
It’s in Washington state wine country, easy access to Seattle and Woodenville is a great town.
I highly recommend it.
Meta:
Yes! Apricots are the bomb. I so want to use this paste for something wonderful and your recipe sounds like the ticket. Thanks.
Crisp Autumn days, a steady fire, and a cup of chai (Indian tea). It involves having the right spices handy, but they’re all available at any Indian grocery store:
Tommy Yum’s Yummy Chai
serves 4 to 6
6 green (or 3 black) cardamom pods
1 two-inch cinnamon stick
3 whole cloves
20 black peppercorns
1 tsp fennel seeds (or a few star anise, whole)
8 quarter-sized slices fresh ginger
2 teabags black tea: Assam, Earl Grey, etc.
Place spices in a large sauce pan. Add 4 to 6 cups cold water. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove from heat; let stand for a minute or so. Add your favorite black tea and allow to steep for several minutes.
Strain with a fine steel mesh and serve with sugar and milk.
Obviously, the proportions are all “to taste.” You’ll find your own combination. Personally, I like it very strong and sweet. Lately I’ve been adding a couple tablespoons slivered almonds and a 1/4 tsp dried orange peel as well–yum!
Black pepper cinnamon and cloves are all considered “warming” spices. Fennel and ginger aid digestion and settle upset stomachs and nausea.
For the waning days of summer, try making chai with assam, lemon grass and mint.
Come on over, FM — I love it here too, but it’s growing way too rapidly for my easiness-of-mind. Maybe this recession/depression — whatever BushCo has caused that’s about to hit us next — will at least slow that down.
Waving to nick in Lahdidah!
Y’all want on the partay list? Have you seen my email addy posted here before?
Florida Mom — hmmm….almond paste. What about a fresh fruit tart — pastry crust in a pie plate, filled with a mixture of egg, almond paste, a little sugar, a little cream, and some fresh, sliced pears fanned out across the top of the filling. Bake and enjoy. (Have made this with apples, pears, and apricots.)
Anywhere in Tuscany, I love Italy, but Florence is magic! Siena Lucca and San Gigminiano. (I’m sure that’s spelt wrong)
Christy:
I like your recipe as well. See I knew I was asking the wrong folks what to do with this can of almond paste. I should have come to FDL alot sooner.
lotus
no I don’t know your email addy. Mine is infoatwillknotdidotcom
Ahhhh, we can dreammmmmmm
On my way out, so I’ll have to read through this later – with a glass of 10-year-old Madeira and a couple of squares of 70% chocolate.
Have always loved Maine. It’s my drivable escape. I try to get up there as often as I can, which is never enough.
Here’s some Maine photos
I guess I’m jammed up in Morgantown WVA all weekend.
info at willknotdi dot com, FM?
I be lotuslanderATcflDOTrrDOTcom.
years ago I was out of work but there was an almond glut and were incredibly cheap. I had lots of time so I made almond paste from scratch and then made marzipan candy and nougat — expensive treats homemade with then-cheap ingredients…
When I’m frazzled, I put on the DVD “The Triplets of Belleview” and wait for the part where the dog climbs the stairs everytime the train comes.
Christy, among many, many other things, I love that you bake.
Yay, it’s our birthday boy!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, *ILSON !!!
(Now, since you know how and I don’t, please render that in appropriately major, rainbow, blinking font!)
Good morning. I’m glad you got some sleep, Christy.
I like to take photos. Landscape, mostly. Here is a baker’s dozen I took this year. We were living across the road from a corps of engineers-built lake (yes, I love water too). The child is my grandson, one of the great loves of my life.
walking the streets of Moscow (near the Lenin Library) on a warm spring night. having a summer meal outdoors at a restaurant near Salzburg. Or Christmas at the Hotel Pariz in Prague ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,.
I live on Lake Placid Florida, Hometown USA, in the City of Murals and “The Caladium Capital of the World”. I absolutely love to wake up in the morning on the weekends and watch all the action on the lake. Waterskiers, jetskis & skidoos, and that one guy who drives his three Irish Setters on the bow of his boat with their long ears blowing in the wind. There’s another guy with a seaplane that leaves late in the day and an airboat that goes out frogging at night and you can watch him shining his light out there. Late afternoon otters swim at the foot of the pier and quickly depart whenever the 4 ft. gator makes an appearance. Bluebirds galore, doves and last weekend watching that vulture on a tree branch eating a turtle. My next door neighbor has three golden retrievers and they bathe with their yellow tennis balls floating around them in the lake daily. That is really fun to watch. Today, the family down the street will tie a 12 ft. round float to the back of their boat and load up the kids. That thing actually leaves the water and flies! There is another guy that has a FIB. A flying Inflatable Boat. It sounds like an airboat but when he gets up to about 30, he pulls a throttle and up up and away he goes into the air. It goes up to 10,000 feet. Only trouble is he can’t get insurance because they haven’t determined whether he is a plane or a boat. There are pictures of it at my flickr. They were taken at Crystal lake in Lauderdale though. He took my son for a ride and next thing I know, my son is flying over 1-95 in a boat. I needed my vapors but my son loved it. Across the street are nothing but acres and acres of orange groves. The smell of the blossoms is heavenly. As far as night life, there isn’t any. No movies no nightclubs and no fine dining and no traffic. There are two traffic lights and you are out of town. It is a very small town with less than two thousand people. Anyway, the small town is called the city of murals. All of the stores throughout the town have murals painted on them. For instance, the big Winn Dixie has the whole side of the mural painted with a scene from a cattle drive. They actually have outdoor speakers and you can hear moos and thunder as you load your groceries into the car. This weekend is the annual Caladium Fair. Everything caladium, homemade jams and sauces, woodwork. I swear, living here is a hoot. I’m going down there later and I’ll post some flickr’s of the affair. You cannot believe the holiday parades either. Real hometown America. All the garbage cans throughout town are surrounded by wooden crates and each one is painted differently. For anyone thinking of retiring, this place is great and very very reasonable home prices. I think there are over 100 lakes in the area. My idea of relaxation is hanging out on my patio watching the lake wake up on the weekends or taking a ride through the caladium fields.
This is my view out my window: http://www.flickr.com/photos/9…..225181181/
And, for those really bored, here’s a link to all the murals. I mean, people get off buses to takes pics. http://www.htn.net/lplacid/murals/murals.htm
cbl — that sounds like a nice drive. I remember Padre Island as a teenager, zillion years ago.
For those of you in No. California/Oregon, there is a state park long Highway 1/101 near the border. There’s a small turnout in the road, in the middle of a modest Redwood forest, and the start of a trail head. The trail weaves down through the redwoods, ferns, rhododendrons, and as you make each switchback, you look up and back, at the light filtering throught the trees and mist. Every look takes your breath away. The trail passes through about four climate zones until it reaches the coast at the end of a rain forest area, with huge banana slugs, and ends with tide pools where there are lots of interesting thingies clinging to life, if you look real close. Wonderful place to take the kids.
meta @ 96
Yes, David alone is well worth the trip. But don’t forget to stop off in Rome for a Bernini fix.
meta at 112 — baking and cooking are great stress relief for me, when I have the time to do them well. You should see my poor kitchen at Christmas when I go cookie crazy. *g*
OOPS! This is the right starting link.
Morning everyone.
Hope you can stay kinda quiet and nurse that cough, Christy. Maybe Mr. Reddhedd would be so good as to trot to the video store & find another kiddy flick to entertain peanut while you climb back under the covers…
My favorite things?
It’s utter heaven for me to put on snorkle gear and “hang out” quietly in a tropical lagoon or over a reef. Never did learn scuba, but I swear I could get so relaxed I’d practically fall asleep, just floating along looking at the critters in reef nooks & crannies & among the turtlegrass. If you’re quiet enough, you can see more and more “regulars” come out and resume normal life, right under your nose.
Ditto, standing in a quiet forest. Much of my most successful wildlife-watching has been done simply by staying still and letting the critters forget(?) I’m there. I once even had a 1/2-hr. “conversation” with a woodchuck, in HIS language, from distance of about 12 feet – me rendered “invisible” by just holding a branch in front of my face. I have NO IDEA what it was I said, other than whistling back to him, but apparently he thot I was kinda cool. Egad! [it helps to be nuts…..]
Music? Okay, here’s my major de-lurk I’ve been hiding since I arrived at FDL. I “rock” most happily to Bach, Telemann, Handel & Mozart, original versions. THERE! I said it! Now I’ll go back into my shell and let you guys enjoy your own tastes. It takes ALL of us to do this thing we’re doin’, eh?
BTW, a little hint for people who have expressed dismay at feeling left out when some “regulars” indulge in mini-group enjoyment of their own favorite music, movies, etc. If I come upon a thread like that, I may just take a pass and wait for another, but I certainly don’t see any harm in that, nor any need to interrupt the comraderie of the participants.
This is a VERY inclusive-style group at FDL. If you don’t like what you’re reading, wait 5 min. and try again, or go find a thread you like better, & see if the moderators know it’s still “live”. heh heh. I suppose the mods will glare at me for that one. Still, scouting EPU’s can be kinda interesting, sorta like that reef-lurking thing I mentioned to start. I figure, if the mods don’t like it, they can close out the thread. But they might miss some real gems by doing that too too soon. Just sayin… *g*
Now, I’ve babbled way too long already.
NEXT?!?
Gettysburg Battlefield
Gettysburg PA
Wonderful pix, LindyH!
twolfie, I get one really interesting one on your link — the white dome-looking structure above fog — but how do I get to the others?
John Casper @ 119
before you go, get up early and hit the Saturday morning market at York.
Lotus:
You have mail with a photo of Greece attached. Enjoy! FM
ya beat me to it Lotus!
Hap, Hap, Happy Birthday Wilson !
you’re that cool guy down the street everyone on the block likes – where if you moved away the neighborhood would lose some serious character
enjoy your day!
ps – loved the Fidelito update last night, was just wondering after the little guy
meta @ 81
when were you there?
go to Santorini in April. Tuscany likewise, or late September……..
A nap with mu cat, Brat. he’s a snuggle-boy and will snuggle and sleep.
Dive in and get busy. Sometimes it gives a real sense of accompplishment just to get through it productively.
Please see The Delbert Cruise
The sampler at Prejean’s restaurant in Lafayette, La.
“It’s Hard To Kiss the Lips At Night That Chew Your Ass Out All Day Long” by the Notorious Cherry Bombs.
Being with the peple I truly care for, making good music, that is to say, good ol’ American Roots Music.
The Delbert Cruise – the most fun you can have with your pants on!
Hope you’re feeling better soon.
lotus @ 121
Click on the thumbnails or there should be a set of buttons in the lower right (i know they are hard to see)
To Suzanne at 39, your lucky to water in your creek. I have a creek here with such a small flow, we’ve been having a drought this year. But every March thru April it is so exciting, beforee the ice goes out. The wolves run the creek ice, and the fishers and otters, the bald eagles and osprey fly it. Every year I have a ice breaking party with the kids and grandkids, they break off huge chunks, one year my youngest and a grandkid went floating downstream. What fun they have.
I wish I had a bathtub, a shower does cut it all the time. The lakes are to dirty. Happy today, no kids or grandkids. No I’m hungry all the time, or wet towels, dirty clothes. Peace and I finally scrubbed my kitcken floor yesterday.
Christy if it doesn’t improve, NyQuil at night will give you some rest.
Efcaristo, FM!
There: you just heard 50% of my Greek.
I second Gettysburg.
I spent 5 days at a Canadian Lake Huron beach house the week before last.
Ate too many donuts, grilled sausages and drank too much wonderful Canadian beer (it really is much better there).
End result… I lost 10 pounds.
(Of course that might have a lot to do with long beach walks with the dog, and chasing the 6 year old around in the lake for hours on end.)
I also managed to finish 2 summer novels.
I am thinking of writing the Beer and Donut Diet book, which hopefully will fund my ability to make a permanent lifestyle change.
Thanks lina.
Have a great rest of the morning everyone. This was a nice start to great day. The rain has stopped so am off to canvass and put up lawn signs.
Florida Mom
lotus @ 128
O gosh. I hope that was some nice Greek.
Sometimes when I’m in my office pretending to work, I go to escapeartist.com and fantasize for a while. I’d love to live in Edinburgh one day. It’s the most hearbreakingly beautiful city I’ve ever been to in my life.
I “rock” most happily to Bach, Telemann, Handel & Mozart
Psssst, Adie. Don’t rat me out here, okay, but me too.
WOW! Christy, that picture looks almost exactly like the one I have displayed prominently on my mantel!!! Mine is on the cliffs of Negril in Jamaica. I have gone there six times, twice for fun, and four times for ‘work’ (which really was a vacation…just had to teach a few folks some tennis at all-inclusive resorts), I would take up residence in my chair, on the cliffs overlooking the wide expanse of turquoise sea, while having fresh shrimp and overproof lemonade brought to my perch. Now THAT was Heavenly! Whenever I get crazed, I close my eyes and ‘travel’ to that one perfect spot where the rest of the world does not exist.
Sorry, double post
Uhm….me too on the Bach.
Florida Mom, here you go. The bread I list is a commercial bread found in this region. Not sure if you have it where you are. It’s a challah type cinnamon bread, so it’s light and not sweet.
Apricot Almond Bread Pudding
1 loaf Semifreddi’s Cinnamon Twist bread
4 oz Almond paste, cut pea-sized
1/2 C dried apricots
1/4 C (or so to cover apricots) Rum
3 eggs
3 egg yolks
1/2 C sugar
2 C milk
2 C heavy cream
pinch salt
2 T orange zest
1 t vanilla
1 T Grand Marnier
2 t Kirsch
1/4 t almond extract
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 t cinnamon
Butter a shallow 2-quart baking dish.
Plump apricots in rum until liquid if mostly absorbed.
Cut bread in 1/2 “ thick slices.
Whisk together eggs, egg yolks and sugar. Add milk, cream, flavorings and spices.
Line dish with one layer of bread, sprinkle evenly with almond paste and apricots, and pour a little custard mixture just to moisten. Add another layer of bread, fruit, and almond paste. Pour remaining custard over all and let sit for 1 hour, pressing down on bread as needed.
Sprinkle the top with granulated sugar and bake @ 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes until set. Cool, wrap, and chill overnight. Best served at room temperature with a dusting of powdered sugar. Ripens well over time.
What’s Gettysburg like? I’ve never been.
I was born in Miami Beach so I am drawn to the water like a sailor…
I want to retire in Porto Fino Italy….
http://www.jaysteinke.com/images/portofino_a.jpg
THANKS META!!!!! I’ll let you know how it turns out.
jeebus! almost forgot to add
the recurring daydream these days is to sit with any of you, all of you and talk away the hours – anywhere
off to work
have a lovely progressive day all
lotus @ 136
Yeah. Most recently discovered treasure: Hillary Hahn, performing Bach violin partita. Works at home or driving. Just saw her at Tanglewood.
Best vacation recently . . . Monterey Bay Aquarium with The Kid. Between watching the fish and watching The Kid watch the fish, it was a fine, fine two days.
Decompressing . . . walking in the woods. Growing up, it was oak trees, now it’s redwoods.
Food . . . way too many options here. OFGs comments above made me think of early mornings by the lake, with a skillet of fresh bass (like “just off my line” fresh) and a side stack of flapjacks over an open fire. And coffee – lots of good coffee. Yum!
Later, all – gotta hit and run today!
The greatest piece of music in the world, for me, is Bach’s Goldberg Variations, as played by Glenn Gould on the CBS Masterworks recording from 1990….found here at amazon, if you’re interested.
Absolutely phenomenal. Gorgeous music, great performance.
SaltinWound @ 141
Huge meadows. Overpowering silence, but you can feel the souls of tens of thousands who died there, reminding you that war is something to be avoided.
SaltinWound
It’s hard to describe. You know that sort of goose-bumpy feeling you can get at a really historic place? You get that at Gettysburg. It’s also a really beautiful spot. The drive there–depending on what route you take–is also really beautiful.
I adore Bach, and Debussy and Chopin…and pretty much anything with a cello. I also love acoustic guitar, especially of the Spanish variety. Or piano. Or…well, there really isn’t much music that I don’t like. Lately I’ve been loving Yo Yo Ma’s Silk Road Journeys (or something like that…amazing music) and listening to a lot of Loreena McKinnett — great writing music.
Lotus, heres a more browser friendly version of the Maine photos
Maine slideshow
As my coffee is a brewin’ I would like to send out my first positive thoughts to Christy and Peanut. Get well Mrs. Smith. You are an amazing part of my humble life and I am thankful everyday.
First I want to say how happy I am to be here in the Ozarks on this fine day.
Four places popped into my mind when you asked about eating. I don’t know why. I would start the day out with coffee and pastries at perhaps my favorite bakery of all time. On the back side of the Island of Paros (iirc) in the Greek Cyclades. It had no name and was the only bakery in the village. Moma made the best foods with more love than one would ever think they might knead.) We stayed in that village for several extra days because of her food.
Dinner at Wild Ginger in Seattle. OMG! A bottle of Grey Monk, as many shared dishes as possible and the marvelous finale with perhaps the best ice cream evah!
I could sit for a week in Cafe Gilli in Firenze.
But the photo takes me to a beach in Jalapa, MX. One can only get there by boat from Puerto Vallarta. Main street is a burro trail. One Christmas Eve at the country club, a friend of ours (who is a famous local diver / fisherman) with a spear in the mighty pacific, caught the best (red) tuna I ever dreamed of. We dined that evening for about eight hours with the legs of our table and our bare feet in the surf.
Saltin, imo, the more you understand about the battle itself, the personalities involved, the political context, the more the place comes alive.
Geologically, Devil’s Den is pretty cool, but not unique. I think the National Park Service has done a great job with Gettysburg. You can drive through, stop, and walk wherever you want, plus there are plenty of excellent tours and guides. It was a three-day battle where 50,000 Americans died, so it’s pretty sprawling. You can make the same mile walk that Picket’s men did. It’s hallowed ground.
cleter at 148 — it is a gorgeous drive. And standing on the battlefields? You can almost feel the clash, and hear the agony of the soldiers who died there…even on the quietest of days. It is both humbling and painful, and always, always moving. If you haven’t been to Gettysburg, you should go at least once.
Morning, everyone. Happy birthday, *ilson, and Christy, chicken soup may not be a cure, but it couldn’t hurt. Adie, I’m with you on snorkelling — I even have a prescription mask so I can see underwater — and baroque music. Favorite vacations? That’s hard. Ykos was as close as I have come to a real one in years, but I loved New Zealand, Tahiti (not Papeete, which is French cement with palms, but the other islands) and Fiji before the coup. These days, decrepit as I am, I dream of less energetic travel. This is my favorite “someday” site: http://www.cruisecritic.com/ As for on-line shopping, I prefer the real thing (KathryninMA and I spent a delightful afternoon at the mall in Las Vegas), but I have found QVC very useful.
Sitting alone with my daughter in the ruins of a 1000 year old abbey in France, on a 7 day, 3000 shoestring road trip with my 21 year old daughter that overflowed with wonder, frustrations and these few moments of awe. We sat in the ruins on top of a hill which we climbed through thick undergrowth to reach, and watched the sun set over beautiful green fields. There was a wonderful scent that at first I couldn’t identify, until I looked down and realized I was sitting in a patch of thyme. I pinched off a sprig, crushed a few leaves to inhale, and put the rest in my journal and smiled….sitting in thyme in the middle of a 1000-year-old abbey with my wonderful daughter. It doesn’t get better than that for me.
inthedoghouse @ 115
Sounds like you are talking about Fern Canyon, about 50 miles north of us.
http://www.redwoodvisitor.org/…..asp?id=476
My favorite things are to break out the old classical guitar and play long-forgotten tunes that only my fingers remember, cooking almost anything; today it is huckleberry muffins; my sister picked them deep in the redwood forest yesterday (while watching out for bears!)
We haven’t been east of Denver in many many years, and since we retired we restrict ourselves to local vacations: three hours to the south is the wine country of Napa, Sonoma, and Mendocino counties. Three hours to the north is the beautiful southern Oregon coast, with it’s broad sandy beaches and huge rocky outcroppings. My wife does her photoshop magic on pictures we have taken around our Victorian town and along the coast and among the redwood forests.
twolf1 @ 107
Wonderful photos!
Tea ‘healthier’ drink than water
I smile at the graphics that you and Jane use. Yesterday’s boy with balloon capturing the “wonder years” and your “blue skies/blue waters” tell a story without words. Some I suspect you photograph yourself…the close up ones of maybe a coffee cup. Whatever way you arrive at them, keep them coming. They are a true pleasure.
John Casper, thanks. I have the big picture but will study up on some of the details before I visit. A piece of music I never fail to feel moved by: the main theme from Ken Burns’ Civil War documentary.
LindyH – Thanks. I always feel the photos just never seem to do the beauty of the area justice.
*ilson, per everyone else, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
You are such a gift to this community, not just for the moderating, but also for your incisive comments, encyclopedic knowledge, and timely links.
I’ve been lurking at FDL for a while now–love the site; keep up the good work, Christy and all!–but this is my first post. I agree with Twisted–fall is the best time of the year, Oct. in particular. I hate being hot, and Oct. is when you begin to feel the cold of winter on occasion. Put on that sweatshirt, sit outside with that nice Spanish hand-rolled cigar, a good history book, and Miles on the iPod, watch the wind blow the changing leaves, leave the 14-year-old in the house–now THAT’S my idea of a Calgon moment.
Best food: no-brainer–paella from any restaurant in Barcelona.
Best mellow tune (tie): Frank’s “One for My Baby” and Miles’s “Surrey with the Fringe on Top”
Best vacation spot: Istanbul/western Turkey. Ver-r-r-r-y mellow, very historical, very different.
Thanks, Christy, for the wonderful post!
*ilson-Happy Birthday, peace and good health in your new year.
*ilson, it’s your birthday? Happy Birthday! You’ve been a light to our lives.
Sofistic — Fern Canyon sounds worth a visit, but the trail I mentioned is not in a canyon and not flat. It starts at the Highway several hundred feet above the coast line, and weaves down. Coming back up is slightly strenuous, and unfortunately, it is not wheel-chair accessible. But others nearby are.
I envy your guitar talents.
twolf1, thanks for the great link on tea.
*ilson — Happy Birthday — and what John C said.
Chopin is my reverie. Flamenco! Gino D’Auri’s Flamenco Mystico makes me want to fly into the air. I once took lessons but after a while, your ankles just turn to ground chuck.
Christy, have you tried lysine for your infection?
I like to be with my friends (including selected relatives). Specific geography is less important. If I can find a way to make somebody’s face light up, I’m happy. The rest is detail.
Christy, I know it’s rough working when you don’t feel good. What works for me in the moment is stepping back and being aware of breathing in and out. It’s really very simple. Best “vacation” I’ve ever had and no rushing to the airport or jet lag. Well, have an early client but will be back later…meanwhile, here’s Hafiz:
Even after all this time,
the sun never says to the moon,
“you owe me.”
Look what happens with a love like that,
it lights the whole sky.”
FM, I dearly hope that Efcaristo = Thank you.
chharriett, your vignette of Negril reminds me of another one of my favorite moments in Greece.
This was a sunstruck afternoon in — I was going to say Nauplia, but I think that’s wrong (maybe what’s right will come back to me later, not that it really matters) — in a steep village in the Peloponessus, looking down on a Venetian fort taking up most of a tiny island in a bay.
Anyhow, tired of just basking by the little hotel pool, I started up a trail that led higher up the cliff, eventually reaching a tiny cabana-like snackbar sort of deal — just a few square feet of space snugged-up to the rock face, an awning over a little table or two, a chap about my age (24) in a white coat with the hotel logo.
I asked for one of the few things I knew how to say — souvlaki — and went back to soaking up the exquisite view. In a few minutes, he set before me a little plate with two skewers of lamb just off the grill, a hunk of bread, and a chunk of lemon that glittered in the sun against the backdrop of the sea and the island so far below.
And even without language, the courteous waiter understood why tears sprang to this American girl’s eyes.
wrt music, my all time favorite is Yo Yo Ma doing Bach’s suite number one for unaccompanied cello. But we are really eclectic at our house, so that may be followed by Chubby Carrier’s Who Stole the Hot Sauce?
zenji, 149:
Absolutely phenomenal. Gorgeous music, great performance.
I don’t want to spoil your pleasure, but please check out Gould’s earlier version of the Goldberg from Columbia, done in 1955 when he was 22. (Also available at amazon.)
Died from a stroke at age 50, a great loss.
God, you people are all so incredible!
twolf1, you have a stunning talent. I love the composition and sense of color of each one. Have you ever been to Big Sur?
Love Loreena McKinnett.
Must get to Gettysburg.
what makes you truly happy?
Being completely centered, politics-free, alone in the wilderness of northern New Mexico.
Realizing that my individual spirit lives free and whole apart from any primitive identification with party or country.
Writing something I want to read over and over.
Playing a perfectly-tuned chord on my 12-string guitar.
Those mornings when I wake up too early & can’t get back to sleep, I love to listen to the earliest birds start chirping with absolutely no tv or radio noise. We had very few hummingbirds for most of the summer but in the last few weeks the numbers suddenly increased (maybe a new generation) & we can’t keep the feeders filled fast enough. They are so entertaining with their bickering over the feeder perches.
I feel blessed to live in NE Minn & not have to battle freeway traffic after a stressed day at work. It’s just a short ride home to the country surrounded by the woods.
We have noticed when returning home from traveling (by car) that there is a different feeling when we reach the northern regions. When we get to northern Minn, Wisc & Mich, we can just feel a lightening of spirit. It’s hard to describe. It’s quieter on the highways. There is much less “development” by humans. You see a lot more wildlife. I would rather live out in the “boonies” than anywhere else. It’s fun to travel but it’s great to get home.
orangejs – agree on the GG recordings. Guy couldn’t hum worth a lick, though.
LindyH @ 158
Maine rocks, we spent a week in Ogunquit back in July and had a blast.
Something ese that I find relaxing but don’t do enough of is golf. Find a remote course and just hang out and chat. A little beer, a little cigar, and it’s all good. Except my game.
i can really enjoy a lot of different kinds of places. the only place i’ve been and really didn’t like was Sudan. even that wasn’t too bad in December and January.
two of the best:
Moscow, walking in the neighborhood near the Puskin Museum on a summer night.
St, Petersburg, in February, when it was so cold the hoarfrost stayed on the trees all day. It looked like a fantasy. The Hermitage Museum there is not to be missed.
Florida Mom @
95
Yup. UF.
meta @ 175
Ahh, Big Sur. We haven’t been down that way in about four years, but have lots of pictures. Gonna have to remind my wife of that stash for her latest photoshop adventure. BTW, you can upload your pictures to Costco and have big prints made for very little money.
meta – thanks for the compliment. I haven’t been to Big Sur… yet. I haven’t had a chance to do much traveling in the western half of the country except for the Tucson area. I drool every tome I see photos from western National Parks.
Going to Big Sur? Consider taking the bus up the mountain to the Hearst Castle. The first time I visited as a kid of twelve, all I wanted to do was jump in the outdoor swimming pool. Bug Sur is absolutely fab!
It’s *ilson’s birthday? Let’s see if I can do both parts of the Sha-Na-Na version of Happy Birthday all by myself:
Happy bithday!
Happy-happy birth…
(Gettin’ old!)
Happy bithday!
Happy-happy birth…
(Gettin’ old!)
Happy bithday!
Happy-happy birth…
(Gettin’ old!)
Happy bithday!
Happy-happy birthday!
Hap-hap-hap-hap-hap-hap-hap-hap-hap-hap-hap-hap-hap…
(Gettin’ old!)
Happy bithday!
Happy-happy birth…
(Gettin’ old!)
Happy bithday!
Happy-happy birth…
(Gettin’ old!)
:: fadeout ::
OMG, the hamsters just gave me SUCH a turn! Tapped out a whole big revery, hit Submit, and it disappeared. Now I see it’s just in mod — whew!
Happy Birthday *ilson.
Oklahoma kiddo–I went to Hearst Castle when I was about 12. I too had to resist the urge to jump in the pool.
Bug Sur? God, save me from my teepos.
ROUND OF APPLAUSE for al-SCOOTS, y’all!
Man, have to get up mighty early California-time to catch these threads…
My refuges:
-Saturday morning breakfasts with geeky friends
-A hot soldering iron and a table full of projects
-A couple of cats who can’t stand to be away from me for one minute
-The joy of producing crazy sounds on crazy instruments
*ilson, I’m wishing you a dreamy birthday full of love and laughter. Resolve to have only the most delicious morsels in your life.
We’ve been some exceedingly lucky kids so far, haven’t we?
My best place is always on or by water– waves lapping or crashing on the shore just centers me.
To be perfect, it would be with my family and friends.
That picture does remind me of our last vacation to Negril– I love Jamaica very, very much and have been lucky enough to visit just about every island in the Caribbean. Did not like the Dominican Republic, though– the officials from the govt were nasty– the real people were nice. Costa Rica totally rocks and I do dream of having a hideaway there…
Food? Pasta Nostra in South Norwalk CT. Anything on the menu will satisfy me beyond my expectations, but if the fresh figs with melons and prosciutto is featured, somebody better hold me back. That dish, with a glass of their excellent wine and their crusty, crunchy, warm bread and heaven scented olive oil…
mmmmmmmmm.
CHS…There are a hundred things I could list that make my day, and many have already been posted here, but I’ll just add that FDL is on top of the list. I love the writers you post and community you have gathered. Keep up the great work and get well soon.
THANKS to ALL. PEACE!
Happy Birthday *ilson! (pretend that’s blinking in purple)
Up until now.
Best historic site on a vacation. Ephesus, Turkey
Best place for a sense of Life on earth without humans. Glacier Bay, Alaska
Best grand excursion, yet quite rustic. Copper Canyon, MX
inthedoghouse @
117
Which state park I wonder? I love a walk through redwood climes.
Christy, I hope you feel better soon. I’m thinking you should come sit at my computer, where the birding scope is set up right beside me, looking out the window at an immature osprey who has become my new neighbor. He and mum are on their way to venezuela I guess, she leaves him and fishes during the day, and he sits there in the middle of my tiny town, chirping “Are we there yet????” Don’t know how long he’ll stay, but he’s a fun neighbor for a while.
Hope is the thing with feathers…
orangejumpsuit @
177
I don’t want to spoil your pleasure, but please check out Gould’s earlier version of the Goldberg from Columbia, done in 1955 when he was 22. (Also available at amazon.)
Died from a stroke at age 50, a great loss.
i think he made two recordings of the Goldberg Variations, the second one in Salzburg or Moscow. Since he died in ‘82 that ‘90 release must’ve been either the second one or a remaster. I like the ‘55 one also, but then so did Hannibal Lecter………
Heh! I may be (who knows) the current champ in mod — two of ‘em at once. Last time I felt this adept, I had two crabs on the same fish-head at the end of my string.
Lookout — lotus be goin’ for three!
lotus @ 191
And a round of a applause for ALL SCOTS, too! A round of scotch, perhaps, for us and for Bonnie “Annie Laurie” too.
inthedoghouse @ 181
A world class eccentric, he would show up at the recording studio in the middle of summer with coat, muffler and gloves to keep himself warmed up. He had a Saturday morning talk show in Canada on which he often interviewed himself. Stopped performing publicly while still very young (30’s?) and devoted his life to making recordings.
Perhaps one reason he gave up public performances was when he played the Brahms Concerto with the NY Phil., and Lenny Bernstein told the audience before the performance that he, Bernstein, was disassociating himself from Gould’s interpretation, but would play it anyway. Not one of Lenny’s greater moments, but in truth, playing with an orchestra was not Gould’s forte. He was best alone with the ivories. A solitary man, he died solitary. A unique human being.
Shucks — couldn’t get that third.
test
Here’s one of my favorite shopping sites. The magazine itself is extremely helpful for any parent, by the way. Best of luck!
http://www.mothering.com/secti…..guide.html
Now how fine is that. Pretty much FDL in a nutshell.
Christie — had that miserable rhinovirus last week. No fun. Get well soon!
I’ve seen some of the things that bring comfort — music (for me, Bach, Miles, Joni, Caetano Veloso) and food (cooking my own and enjoying it with friends) — but what can relax me faster than anything is being in mountains. Even visualizing mountains can reduce my pulse rate by about 5-10 beats per minute (thank you heart rate monitors).
Mind you, I love the water, and being on a beach is great fun. But I’d rather be hiking in the mountains.
Working in the garden (always a relaxer). Then, when the sun is just starting to set and the shadows are all angle-y over the lawns, taking a walk with my husband through all (three acres, formerly poison ivy) we have created. Or sitting on the porch swing with a cup of coffee (or whatever) and watching the birds splash in the birdbaths and talking and just looking at it all. We have the most glorious sunsets either of us have ever seen: each night is special.
Shrink in SF @ 198
If you live in the City, take a trip to Armstrong Woods, a state park on the way to Guerneville. Hard by the Russian River. Redwoods and more redwoods and ferns and smells of pine.
Bourbon.
new thread
*ilson happy birthday! Treat yourself to some Scholars Inn this morning.
Speaking of crabs Lotus, the lobster bisque at Fjord Fisheries in Greenwich CT is absolutely to die for.
Bach, Miles, Joni, Caetano Veloso
Oh yeah, scory.
I’m not sure this would nessessarily relax me, but it sure would make me laugh.
Picture the scene from AIRPLANE when passengers line up one by one to slap a screaming woman passenger into silence.
Now, transpose that into a picture of Lieberman sitting in a chair and having all the “other” Dems (Reid, Clinton, Dodd, Kerry, etc) come up to him and each slapping him once to concince him to get out of the race.
Won’t happen, of course, but it is amusing (sort of!).
Fahrender, sorry you didn’t like the Sudan. I was there for two weeks once, almost 20 years ago, and I was lucky to meet so many wonderful people that it made what had started out as a pretty challenging trip into something much easier. The only trouble I had was with the heat, since it was June!
My favorite vacation is going somewhere where it’s off-season. Not many think of Brussels as a vacation spot, especially in the summer, but that’s when EU and NATO employees clear out, hotel prices drop dramatically and, for me, there’s nothing nicer than chocolates, frites, local beer and mussels in Brussels!
I recently discovered this “shopping” blog, mightygoods.com –it doesn’t sell anything, but hightlights lots of fun products and links to where they can be purchased.
And Happy Birthday, *ilson! Thank you for all the hard work you do behind the scenes.
Oh, and for gosh sakes! Christy, I was in such a hurry not to get EPU’d (still trying to get the hang of sharing my thoughts in time), I *totally* forgot to sympathize. A sick child is no fun, and it’s got to be extremely difficult to tend to her needs when you’re feeling rotten from the same thing. Add in all that achy pain, PLUS US, and, well, I don’t know how you do it. But please know how extremely deeply you’re appreciated. And, of course, what you’re doing is more than just tending to an (extremely large, and growing mightily) extended family: hopefully, we will regain the country we all love (and miss!) so deeply.
op99 @ 54
Yesssss – Blue Mountain Lake in the Adirondacks. We tried the Cape this summer and it was horrible – will only go back there in the winter.
Nothing like a cool mountain morning in the Adrirondacks
Oh and I just have to say that being at my sister’s house in Frisco NC cannot be beat by much. Pure peace– no teevee just books and waves and NC shrimp and crabs…
My parents had a house on the water in Denmark and that has a special place in my heart, too. omg what a view!
So does their place on the Rappahannock…
Big brother has a gorgeous place on the water in Juneau… have not been to visit yet.
(stupid, I know)
Feel better, Christy! Take care.
lotus @
206
Thanks lotus, and inthedoghouse i love armstrong rewoods, and am planning an adventure there actually soon. One odd fall day I was at jenner when the fish were running or something, and the sky was thick with osprey. Over 100 diving into the waves. It was veryyyyyy wonderous and strange! Wouldn’t have wanted to be a fish that day.
Caetano Veloso?
oh wow, a blast from my past.
(((applause)))
Shrink in SF — I wish I could remember the name of the state park. We just always knew it when we saw it. (another life)
Sophistic’s map link is a place to start (I’ll check), and as there are several state parks in the same area, it’s probably near the Fern cited there. But it starts right on the Highway right next to and above the coast.
Happy Birthday *ilson!
My favorite vacations were visiting my grandparents in Denmark. Any excuse to walk to the harbor and around the causeway to the farmland and back and then swing by the ice cream vendor…
http://www.lemvig.com/billeder/Struer.jpg
Hey GuitarPlayingGuy- who knew Delbert had a cruise? Neat!
Caetano Veloso, yesssssss. Shakira and Wyclef just came on the speakers with Hips Don’t Lie. That will make you jump.
Lotus – my criteria is that if the music can move me to tears (of joy), it’s in. So far, that’s the club.
Ok, I’ll give it a short shot:
Where I could have stayed another 100 days version 1:
Angkor Wat. Angkor Thom. Tha Prom.
Where I could have stayed another 100 days version 2:
Pagan, Burma. Plain of 10,000 stone temples, dozens and dozens
of which are the size of European cathedrals.
Where I could have stayed another 100 days version 3:
Luang Phabang, Laos.
Where I could have stayed another 1000 days:
Tulameben, north coast of Bali. The green volcano of Gunung Agung
towering over everything, the electric fish swirling everywhere
once you plunge beneath the waves.
Where I could have stayed FOREVER:
Bodh Gaya, Bihar, India.
Without a doubt, the absolute center.
Where the Buddha sat until he got it.
And when you are there, you just know it.
Crap angie, whyn’t you fix the computer before you left! That 221 was me
What’s your “Calgon, take me away!” kind of remedy?
Reading my favorite 4-5 novelists, sleep, loud (but not too loud!) music.
How do you deal with a “case of the Mondays?”
Same thing I do for a case of the Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, or Fridays. Plow ahead.
Where is the best place that you have ever gone on vacation?
New York City.
If you could eat any dish at any restaurant on the planet, where and what would it be?
What do they have on the menu at Le Cirque?
If you could pick one song to get you up and dance or to mellow you out on your most frazzled day — or whatever — what song would that be?
These days, Lou Reed doing Bob Dylan’s Foot of Pride.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VD_b7m7FHaY
What gets you into your comfort zone?
Chocolate chip cookies.
And what makes you truly happy?
I’m not going to say.
oops, sorry Dru :>)
It was kinda scary to see me post without lifting a finger…
But thanks for capturing the very picture of Denmark that is in me brain.
Shrink in SF — try this source for Redwood trails in Nor. Cal. The trail I remember looks just like that picture, only weaving down the hill from the highway to the coast (which you can’t see or hear for the first several hundred yards). It’s like a temple.
http://www.redwoodvisitor.org/…..sp?id=2169
Welcome, NatTurner. As a long time reader, you know the rules. Once a commenter, always a commenter.
For everyone else here who loves classical music, do you suppose Howie Klein might have a source for classical CDs and might be persuaded to offer them as an option (she asks wistfully)? Heaven knows I don’t want him to go to any more trouble than he already is — I love the Blue America sessions — but perhaps he doesn’t realize how many of us have been concealing our preference for Vivaldi? Just askin’.
Oh, Mad Dog, the Boundary Waters — God’s country. I went to camp up in Ely and my husband spent his boyhood near Aurora, though we didn’t meet until years later. Went back to commemorate, though — before the great storm hit it so hard — and spent a week of utter bliss: bear, moose (or was it elk, I can’t keep them straight), bald eagles soaring overhead and, oh, the sound of the loons again. And did I say fly fishing? I thought I did. Heaven.
Vivaldi’d be good!
medak, I just googled Bodh Gaya. Wow. Just wow. I have friends who are going to India for the first time in December. I will tell them about this place, too. One on my closest friends spend a couple of months recording sound in Varanasi for a big project and he would send me the most amazing emails. He kept saying if there is one thing I want you to do it’s to come here right now.
Angie 230- it was creepy feeling like an imposter, but at least the picture was awesome.
inthedoghouse @ 217
Ahem, that is sofistic, my friend. About 12 years ago, I started a project on the history of philosophy – that was a dumb idea – and the name “sophistic” was taken on my old ISP, so I just changed it to have an “f” instead.
Anyway, I suspect the place you are referring to is fern canyon, about 50 miles north of Eureka. Pictures cannot do it justice; you have to be there to appreciate this little canyon with all the walls covered with many types of ferns and a little creek running through it. Truly mystical.
Good Morning, FDL. Hope you feel better Christy, I think I’ve already recommended Miso soup for the “creeping crud cold”
I slept in this morning, which felt like such a luxury, it was a little cool and I had all my wool blankets out, all big and fluffy.
One of the things that helps me recharge my creative juices is hanging out with people that share my interests. I’ve got some friends from the SCA coming over tonight for dinner, and we’re plotting out a sort of mongol tent wall made of felted wool. That should get me good and recharged. And we might end up plotting out a matching rug as well. (Of course adding this to the embroidered tunic and calligraphy project, well…I’m nuts, really)
If I could have a meal anywhere that is perfect, it’s a toss up between theBlomidon Inn, in Nova Scotia (A chicken Elizabeth that is perfection on earth); Or The Lucerne Inn in Maine, where the rooms are wonderful, the scenery spectacular, and the chef is a wizard. Or finally Cafe Du Monde in New Orleans (which as we all know is the center of the universe)
twolf1 @
164
I know that feeling, and I’m not a pro. Just a wannabe with digital cameras.
Medaka – Super cool recs! Will google all of them!
Angkor ? Cambodia?
Barbara B – You are such a sweetheart!!
inthedoghouse @
231
Thanks for the link. I’ll check it out. September is our month to head for mendocino, where we canoe the best rivers from the sea to the redwoods (Navarro, Albion, Noyo and Big River….otters everywhere, great blue herons, the occasional minklike thing and once a beaver!) I love to hike the fern canyon trail at Van Damme, which sounds similar to the one you describe,it ascends through lush redwood forest on up to a dry exposed “pygmy” forest. I’ll keep hunting for your place though…
lotus 138
GET. OUT!!!
and most definitely Vivaldi. (had to stop somewhere…)
Sorry I dumped & ran earlier. Hubby needed the toobz. But I’m back, savoring everyone’s wonderful comments. No surprise it’s a strong group. Wonderful “visions” from all over.
Speaking of which:
HAPPY BIRTHDAY *ILSON! Good at ya! And just how many spanks-worth would that be, perchance?! Or is that a state secret?
Hey inthedoghouse and sofistic is this it?Prairie Creek Redwoods Check out that panoramic viewer
Its so good to be home (even if it is Texas). Listening to ‘Singers and Standards’, Judy Garland right now, ‘The Man That Got Away’, one of my favorites. Have coffee but the Mimosa sounds good.
Dr. T incredibly enough is at the hospital. How can they put someone back to work less than 24 hours after returning from such an awful rotation? But at least he’s back in the States.
Christy. I swear by this remedy: fresh grated ginger, juice of a lemon, hot water, honey to taste. It knocks out the symptoms for a few hours.I’m sending healing energy your way.
Vacations? Well, I did just spend 3 days and 2 nights in Paris with my true love during the ‘quietest’ time in the summer. It was pretty good. We had several excellent meals and I feel like I’m home when I’m in Paris.
sofistic at 177
I hear ya! Talkin’ eclectic. One of our sons, now a classical oboist by trade, recently confessed to us he used to make his reeds during his high school years while, thru his earphones, listening to his favorite heavy metal bands.
Please everyone, cross yer fingers for the lad and his parents. Some heavy-duty auditions comin’ up. If one pays off, you’re gonna have to endure some wild fireworks from this-here momma&poppa team. We’ve been attending this quest ever since our Siamese kitty yowled an answer to the kid’s first squawks as a middle schooler. Who knew!?!
Hug those kids, and help ‘em follow those dreams….
bad link here is a better one? Prairie Creek Redwoods
Pfifferling (#217):
I spent most of 3 years in Khartoum but never in the summer! I have friends who were there in the summer and they didn’t enjoy it. So, you know, it just wasn’t for me. It was the heat and the dust mainly. I also met some really great people there but, overall, i couldn’t get into the culture either. the goverment now is a different one than it was 20 years ago and certain less than positive influences have come to the fore. sound like another place we know? so it goes……..
inthedoghouse 182
1st 707 of the day!
Maybe 1st classical 707 ever at FDL(?)
WOO HOO! YESSSS!
Best meal ever: that stuff I ordered in a little hole-in-the-wall place in Florence. My primitive grasp of Italian was sufficient for identifying that it was gnocchi. It turned out to be gnocchi with fresh black truffles. As TRex would say, Uh Mah Gawd. My son kept stealing forkfuls, even though whatever he was having was really good too.
My Calgon is either getting on my hands and knees deep in the garden and pulling weeds, or putting the kayaks in the river and going for a long float past the herons, eagles, and many other wild things that congregate there.
Neither shopping nor travel.
Just some Hippie Nonsense:
http://grouper.com/video/Media…..id=1435332
:-)
HopeSpringsATurtle @ 244
HopeSaT! Welcome home!
Fahrender,
The dust! I remember I was there when the haboob (sp?) sand storms were raging. I think I can still taste the sand all these years later.
HSAT @9:14,
I also love fresh ginger when I’m sick. I posted it above, too :o). And welcome home.
lotus 196
I’m thinkin’ FDL have a world-class group of folks who know how ta make scrumptious lemonade, eh?
Hey. in re yer problems wit da toobz ta mawnin’, the cankerqueen idn’ campainin’ nearby, perchance? That’d foul up anybody’s hamsters.
twolf1: nice pictures of Maine. I share your passion for that wonderful state – the coast and the woods. In fact, my favorite scent conjures Maine: a mixture of salt air, spruce and woodsmoke.
I love that mixture as well, reminds me of autumn.
Thanks for the ‘welcome home’ all. You guys are the best. Really.
My way to destress? A long walk through the woods and back field, then more woods and the back back field; my dog Lou racing ahead, his whole body radiating happiness; and my son either running ahead with the dog, or bending over some discovery in the woods, perhaps murmuring an apology to a fern that he accidently stepped on.
Ocracoke…its an island on the Outer Banks south of Hatteras…has a small harbor with a tiny bohemian community of arty shops and restaurants…a small herd of wild ponies farther north, in the wilds…but what attracts me most is the miles and miles of gorgeous, mostly deserted beaches…tons of shells and fiddler crabs. We go to the fresh fish market and buy whatever just came off the boat, grill it and serve with drawn butter. Heaven.
As per Gettysburg, nearby Chickamauga ( I live near Chattanooga) is also beautiful meadows and peaceful woods, but that indefinible SOMETHING is in the air, and then you realize that thousands of men died, not that long ago, on this very spot. I never tire of walking those fields and feeling the echoes.
Lastly, Christy, considering the time of year and your location, I wonder if your sinus problems are not allergies related to ragweed? We have so much pollen in this part of the world, and ragweed is the very worst. I stumbled across a preventive cure some years back and shared it with family and friends and they all have gotten considerable relief from the seasonal allergies, either ceasing to have problems at all, or else having much milder symptoms. I take daily (some friends take it only during the season, but I take it year-round) doses of denatured garlic. I think any kind would work, but Kyolic formula 102 seems to work best for me. I used to get horrible sinus problems in the spring and fall (like everyone else in East TN) but in the years since I began taking the daily garlic, I have not had a single problem.
I enjoy reading FDL…everyone here is so erudite and full of common sense. Keep up the good work and know that you are very much appreciated.
Hi Shilohcat!
I think the most wonderful vacation my husband and I ever spent was a week on Ocracoke a few years ago. It was late September, so the beaches were empty, but it was still hot and sunny. Absolutely perfect. I can’t wait to go back.
Ahh, what a nice thread to start the weekend…
Christy, as usual your sense of rhythm is striking. May I join others in sending you flowing waves of Get Well Soon! I’m amazed at how busy you’ve kept round here given the cold and all.
orangejumpsuit, I love your Dharma posts. What with peony, zenji, lotus, I’m starting to feel a real Sangha contingent round here… ;-D
Oh, and on Glenn Gould: I actually didn’t know the anecdote about Bernstein’s disavowal of his interpretation, which is unfortunate (though Bernstein was far from alone in this regard). But hey, Lenny got lots of other things right, so I suppose he deserves a break. In my mind, they’re both towering giants in the contemporary music scene.
Peace.
Ocracoke is hunky dory.
Ocarakokaradoke it how we refer to it lovingly.
Miss that gorgeous expanse of water and beaches and sky in NC so much.
Driving mid-week over to Broad Beach in Malibu with my Ridgeback and letting her run free. It’s like a National Geographic moment. And sometimes there’s a dead bird on the beach and if she gets to it before I get to her, she rolls on it so that horrible dead smell is all over her and she’s ecstatic. Yes it makes for a nasty car ride home but seeing my dog passed out from exhaustion in the back seat, smelling God awful, with a smile on her face me euphoric.
druidbros @ 47
Sign me up.
I’m headed here: http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/…..ky03.shtml.
Unfortunately, it’s 2006 and the area is still not protected as wilderness (mostly because of logging interests), but there’s still plenty of hiking to do.
Adie @
245
Oh, Adie, tell him ‘break a leg’ for me, and pls tell us about the gig when it happens.
Shrink in SF @ 243
Oops, that link went off to some html tutorial. To answer your question, it may be prairie Creek, but I have been there many times and I don’t recall lots of ferns. Lots of black huckleberries and an elk heard, though, and a steep path that leads down to a beach with agates all over it. (or at least there used to be until it was discovered by the tourists)
To add to the music list, how about Beethoven’s sixth? I used to listen to it with outside speakers while gardening. Nature and all, ya know.
The most beautiful vacation spot I’ve ever visited was Vevey, Switzerland, on the shore of a lovely Swiss lake, swans swimming and Chateau de Chillon in the distance as if in a fairy tale, green lush mountains seem to rise directly out of the lake in their steep vertical ascent, the traces of gray clouds hanging around after the morning rain, a lovely walkway leading to a breakfast of coffee and croissants. The peacefulness seeps right through the pores.
I was surprised to read in previous posts that I by coincidence shared a little of Pachutec’s and Christy’s favorites this morning. I spent some time playing my old favorite Chopin and Debussy on the piano this morning, and then put on my Rod Stewart “Great American Songbook” albums, singing the wonderful songs of the 30’s and 40’s (I recommend them). The piano is my Calgon get-away for sure.
I love reading everyone’s contributions here. It’s become a Saturday ritual for me.
In rare cases, Death Valley will put on an unforgetable flower show. Such was the case in March 2005. Take a look here:
http://www.montereybay.com/cre…..Mar05.html
HB to ilson…. and I am outta here for the cool crisp NC mountains…. try finding me in Banner Elk or Boone or Lake Watuga….. look em up and be jealous~~
I walk on the edge of Lake Taupo and pick up smooth glass fragments, worn down by the immense amount of pumice in the lake. I draw labyrinths and Roman mazes. I crochet and embroider (sometimes listening to books on tape….last was the fabulous The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time).
I’m sure you have all moved on, but still, I want to include links to the webpage with the image gallery and the webcam where I now live…the webcam often malfunctions and the perspective on the mountains is off,but you get the idea. If you look at the webcam and see people barefoot and in short-sleeves, remember that Kiwis are strange that way. I see barefoot kids when there is frost on the ground.
Lake Taupo, NZ (the largest freshwater lake in the Southern Hemisphere…those are three volcanoes across the lake)
http://www.laketauponz.com/lakecam.cfm (
click on the image gallery on the right…some of the sunset pictures are my favorites)
webcam: http://www.taupodc.govt.nz/Abo…..WebCam.htm
Hotflash 264
Thanks. He’s cool as a cucumber, but we’re nervous wrecks. Breaking into the field is l-o-n-g h-a-r-d trek. Gotta have the “right stuff” AND be stubborn.
Wonder where he got that last part from…*g*
lotus…just reading the comments, and feel a definite kinship as the ONE PLACE I dream of visiting is Greece!!! Always have, always will. It seems that I must have lived there in a former lifetime as whenever I see pictures, or someone describes what they’ve seen there, I feel like it’s home. I do not know if I will ever be able to go there, but I can dream… So, Negril must be somewhat similar, because I love it so much!
Impeachment Happens at 261 — my dachshund does the same thing when we take her for a walk around the neighborhood, although we usually find small sparrows or squirrels that have fallen prey to neighborhood cats. Our doxie gets that same cheery, dreamy little look on her face. Clearly it’s a dog thing. *g*
Meta at 50, I went over the Golden Gate Bridge for the first time this year. I fulfilled a lifetime dream somehow, for although I’d been in NO CA on numerous occasions before, I’d been from Sacramento or Arcata or just gone back east over the Bay Bridge in my hitch-hiking days. I aah-ed and commented out loud and everyone on the Airporter bus turned and welcomed me.
Your message and Suzanne’s, well…….I’d move to NO CA in a breath if my husband were willing, and I already have a great life in Maine. Can I say the grass is always greener……
CBL, do you know that coming to the lake is also heaven for me, especially before or after a hot bath. And wouldn’t I also like to meet more of us in real time…
Pfifferling @
258
Pfifferling @
258
If you go further up the island from Silver Lake, the beaches are mostly deserted year ’round.
I’m glad y’all liked it.
Thanks for the tip, shilohcat!