Hi Ladies, been a while

I love the idea of blogging, and I love to write but some how I have lost my way. Maybe it was the coming of twitter. Or the new business, but I MISS writing and am making my rounds through my writing outlets and touching base again.

The last year has been quite a roller coaster. one year later I am in debt, a lot, and working my way to trying to figure out how to make my new business sustainable and how to manage money better in general.

Cleaning, decluttering and simplifying are my current goals. I feel like if I have less stuff I will have more time.

On the upside of the coaster, I love my little company, I am doing lots of cool project stuff, my new puppy is a joy, and I have more ideas for writing than I have in a long time. But I still feel like I lack any idea of what balance means. Walking every day is helping but this week it has gotten so hot that even that has become harder to do.

still i feel hopeful, how about you?

Be stupid

I feel so old. Today, I was looking at a magazine and came across the new Diesel Jeans ads. Has anyone else out there seen them? The theme is, be stupid.

Like we haven't already dumbed down our society enough as it is with the inane coverage of balloon boy and Heidi someone's multiple plastic surgeries, and Tiger's love affairs and...now someone out there is blatantly saying it--be stupid. Maybe it is better to have them clearly stating their purpose instead of hiding it behind something else. But it just makes me feel old because obviously they are going after a young market, and I'm sure the campaign will be successful, but I hope it fails miserably, and I don't understand the attraction of being stupid, and I can't imagine a meeting where someone said, here's my idea and then they pitched it to supposedly smart people, and then those smart people said, yeah, it's a great idea. So, I guess that means I'm out of touch. And then I look at my rant about dumbing down society and sounds like some old person complaining about the youth today, but I don't feel old, so...I don't know where I fit in.

I know it is just an ad, but ads reflect something about society--either what is accepted or what is pushing the edge. Is it possible that promoting stupidity is acceptable, and if not, then how is that pushing the edge, I mean what is it aiming for?

You can see the whole idiotic campaign here
http://adhunt.blogspot.com/2010/01/diesel-jeans-be-stupid.html

I guess the only plus is that if people act as stupid as the people in the ads, the average IQ of the population will actually increase since only the smart people will live long enough to propagate.

Linda

I love a good snow day but....

I'm not much for cold weather (anything under eighty degrees), but I'm a sucker for a snow day
The sun reflects off the snow making everything is bright and beautiful. Gary and I greet an unexpected day off like a couple of six year olds. I guess it's leftover from childhood. A snow day just feels like stolen time.

But, the novelty wears off (no worky no money). We have about 40" of snow on the ground. 28"from the weekend and 13" fell yesterday. For the second time in a week Delaware is in a "state of emergency" and driving is banned in the City. Banned!? I think anybody who can get their car throw should receive a special commendation.

We've embraced the snow day activities - sledding (makeshift with, what else, plastic lids of storage bins - thank goodness for kids who share sleds*), baking - zillions of cookies, apple cobbler, cooking - pot roast and goulash. We're going to roll out of this place ten pounds heavier.

Then there's the mismatch of clumsy people and ice. Not good. One minute I was getting out of the car with a bag of lovely jar candles, and the next I was looking up from the ground with a lovely bag of broken glass. Gary's fall was especially impressive considering it was inside on the stairs (not down the stairs.) While attempting to take out the recycling he stopped at the top of the stairs to pick something up and thud. He's still a little mad at me for laughing, not just a little - full hysterics. This is what cabin fever does. And, by the way, they have stopped picking up the trash and aforementioned recycling due to snow. They don't tell you that in the brochures.

*I think the kids greased the loaner sled because I've never experienced anything like it in my life. Greased lightning. Totally airborne several times. One gust of wind was so heavy with snow I couldn't see a thing while careening face first toward the street. It was like being caught in a wave and not knowing which end is up. It was great while been very disconcerting.

A ranting and mixed review. I'll blame the cabin fever. It's my birthday today and it would be nice to get out. There's always the weekend.

Snowpocalypse!

So for the second time in about 6 weeks, I'm hunkering down for 2+ feet of snow. The first storm came on December 19. I'm not a snow lover, but we hadn't had a snow like that in several years, so it was actually sort of fun. I stocked up with lots of food and drink, DVDs, good books, and had a couple projects around the house to tackle. My neighbors and I let our dogs run loose through the neighborhood since there was no traffic, and shared hot toddies and wine while we watched it come down and then later shoveled out. It took me 3 hours to dig out my car and a couple days after that before I really felt safe driving (major roads were ok, but side streets were a nightmare). Most of it got washed away with rain during Christmas week and by the time I returned from my vacation December 30th, the streets were back to normal.

We got another 8" last weekend (though they'd only called for a 'dusting') and then 5more inches Monday night. I wasn't thrilled with those snows, but they were pretty easy to deal with and didn't affect my ability to get around.

This weekend's snow will be a different story. They're calling for 24"-30" of snow with blizzard conditions. I'm concerned about losing power as a result of heavy snow and 30 MPH winds. I have a crazy fear of my roof collapsing under the weight of that much snow. But I'm mostly worried about losing my mind. I've got movies to watch, books and magazines to read, and two house projects on tap. I also have plenty of food, including stuff to bake bread and cookies and fixings for vegetarian chili. I also stocked up on plenty of good beer and wine. I don't think I'll be bored or without any necessities, but I already feel slightly panicked about being stuck at home for 2, 3, or even more days.

Does anyone else get this way, or do you love being snowed in?

Hey guys,

Try this game. The rules are below, as are my answers. You can add your answers by copying and pasting into the comment box.

Rules: USE THE 1ST LETTER OF YOUR LAST NAME TO ANSWER EACH OF THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS. THEY HAVE TO BE REAL PLACES, NAMES, THINGS. NOTHING MADE UP! TRY TO USE DIFFERENT ANSWERS IF THE PERSON IN FRONT OF YOU HAD THE SAME 1ST INITIAL. YOU CAN'T USE YOUR NAME FOR THE BOY/GIRL NAME.

1. What is your last name? Gould
2. A 4 Letter Word: Goat

3. A Boys Name: Gary

4. A Girls name: Gertrude (I love this name, even though it is weird, old-fashioned and I wouldn't want to be strapped with it myself)
5. An Occupation: gardener

6. A Color: green

7. Something you wear: g-string (okay, the next blog post should be whether any of us wear these things)

8. A Beverage: guava juice

9. A food: gravy
10. Something found in the bathroom: germs

11. A place: Germany
12. A Reason for being late: got sick

13. Something you shout: Golly!

Giving up something you love

My post title says it all, have you ever had to give up something you love?

Right now I'm in the process of showing my horse Beau to prospective buyers. I know selling him is the right thing to do- we've found Gerry's perfect trail horse (mule actually) and I have my Dallas. We don't have enough time for Beau and keeping would put strain on our finances. But it is killing me.

I'd really like to hear your stories.

Resolutions Anyone?

Well, 2009 is finally over! Thank the gods!

anyone make any resolutions this time around? I usually don't but this year I am going to try a few simple ones.

Decluttering! major work done by the end of January
Better money systems and assessment
Work on writing again

get some of the stress out of life, especially by doing 1 & 2 above.

How about all of you?

Another reason why my mother in law is a jerk

Okay, I know some of you hear my regular complaints about my mother in law in private emails. But I just have to share this one publicly.

Obama came to Japan on Saturday, and Lauren, as chair of Democrats Abroad Japan, negotiated some tickets for a few DAJ officers and members to attend the speech. We were 7 rows back, front and center from his podium, and he even addressed us in his speech by pointing to our section and saying, "There are even a few Americans in the crowd." You all know I'm not very sentimental, and we've all met famous people in our line of work, but I have to say, the whole thing was pretty cool. When I came home, Tim was on the phone with Molly and he told her all about my experiences. I don't know what her reaction was, probably nothing since Tim didn't say anything to me. But today, I get this email, an invitation that she received last year--no explanation, no words at all, just the attachment. And you have to know that since this summer's debacle, Molly and I have not corresponded by email. So this is the first email I get from her since this summer.

She's so petty. How did Tim turn out to be so great, I wonder?

So I know some of you have similar relationships with your mother in law. Care to share? Any one have a good relationship?

Linda

Public Porn

I just read an article in the Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/11/AR2009111127404.html?wpisrc=newsletter) about people watching porn in public places on their laptops and iphones and such. The article mentioned that it is so prevalent on subways, in airplanes, and in libraries! I have to ask you all if you have encountered that kind of thing and what you did? If you haven't encountered it, what do you think about it? Read the article if you want to see how some people handled it.

I don't know. Not that long ago, someone I used to work with sent me a link to a porno site and asked if I thought the girl in the pink teddy looked like me. I'm not a prude, but I was sooo put off by that. First, why would someone ask me to watch that? Second, are they getting off on the idea that I may be watching a porno video? And what did they expect me to say? Yeah, that's me, I used to do porn; yeah, that does look like me, so now you can think of me whenever you watch this; no, it doesn't look like me, and why are you thinking of me when you are watching porn? I told Tim about it and we agreed that I wouldn't even respond to that person's email or any subsequent emails. It is just inappropriate, so how much more inappropriate is it to watch that in a public place.

Linda

Pre-Race Prep

I just finished off a big plate of pasta and bread, along with my 12th 16-ounce glass of water of the day. I've spent most of the last 24 hours mentally and physically (or, really, organizationally) preparing for tomorrow's running of the Marine Corps Marathon. This will be my 7th marathon in as many years, but I am a nervous wreck. Probably just as nervous as I was the night before my first race. (At least this time I don't have bronchitis to contend with and I'm not in a different time zone.)

Yesterday afternoon I headed to the DC Convention Center for "packet pickup" to get my race # (I'm 16929), my timing tag, a (very ugly) MCM shirt, and all sorts of other things that the race sponsors threw into the goodie bags. I also purchased a great running shirt that says "I know I run like a girl. Try to keep up." I can't wait to wear it! The pre-race expo was really great - there was an energy and excitement that really got me pumped. It made me realize that, after months of training, it's really race time. There was also fun stuff to do - sampling free beer (in the name of carb-loading, of course) - and see - more running gear and equipment than you've ever seen anywhere. My favorite thing this year (other than my shirt) was a pair of toe socks. Shoeless running is apparently really taking off, so you wear these socks instead of just going barefoot. I'm skeptical, but I'm hoping to see someone on the course tomorrow with them on. Especially the rainbow striped ones! (Last time I ran this race I did meet a barefoot runner who told me he's never worn running shoes and runs a marathon every weekend. Perhaps there's something to it...)

I started today by gathering all my gear for tomorrow. And, boy, is there a lot! I've got the stuff I'll wear to run, plus sweats to wear to the race since it'll be cool tomorrow morning, gloves just in case, power food for breakfast and along the course, Body Glide to prevent chafing, Gatorade, gum, Band Aids, Advil, and flip flops for the way home. I always tell people that one of the reasons I love running is that you don't need a lot of equipment. Today made me question that rationale!

After getting my gear together, I was still a bundle of nervous energy. I set out to distract myself. I cleaned and did laundry, grocery shopped, went out for a protein-and carb-filled brunch, reorganized a closet, took my trash and recycling out a day early, cleaned the cats' litter box, and even ordered a couple Christmas gifts.

I plan to turn in early tonight since I have to get up before 5:00 tomorrow for the race. I just hope I can sleep. I've already mentally run the race about a dozen times today and have gone through every possible scenario of what could go wrong - I get a flat tire on the way to the start, I wake up sick, my hip (which has been giving me trouble) locks up, I lose my way along the course, I collapse and die from a heart attack which happened three times over in last weekend's Detroit Marathon. Yikes.

I'm sure the race will be great and even though (because of my hip) I've pretty much given up setting a personal record, I am still really excited. I can't wait for the gun to go off tomorrow at 8:00 a.m. and set off on another 26.2 mile journey with 30,000 other people who, like me, have just one goal - to finish.

It Really Does Take a Village

While I was at home today, I heard some odd noises in my carport, then Sparky started barking. Before I could get to the window to see what was up, I heard a little, weak voice at my door saying, "Sensei." That's teacher in Japanese, and it was one of my students who is about 7 years old. He said he had fallen on his way home from school and showed me his injuries on his hand and his knee. I had to look really close to see anything, but sure enough, in both places there was a little scratch; no blood, and the skin barely broken, but I sat him down with Sparky, ran to the back of the house for neosporin and bandaids, then fixed him up.

The reason this is such a cute story, though, is because his house is about 5 minutes from mine, but my house, I guess, was the first one where he knows someone, so he stopped here for a quick fix. Tim says this is the perfect example of how we are living the "It Takes a Village" life here. And this is the second time this has happened, although the last time, the girl really had fallen and cut herself. I really like that the kids feel so comfortable with us that they see us as being just another part of the community. You may all take that for granted, but as a foreigner here, we aren't always so welcome. At least the kids and their moms have embraced us.

Linda

Don't you love, love, love this time of year?

I am soooooo happy that fall is here. Right now, the sun is shining, the sky is crystal, the leaves are starting to turn, I am not sweating, and I feel energized.

On top of that, Halloween is almost here (my favorite holiday), I'm working on a haunted house for my English students (and loving it) and planning for the other events coming up. And except for the fact that I have a cold, I don't feel tired. IN fact, I feel like I could do more, more, more!!

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this time of year.

What do you think of David Letterman's situation?

What do you think of the scandal? I have always liked Letterman but thought the announcement was a bit weird. The audience obviously thought he was kidding. There hasn't been any mention of when he had sex with these women. I assume it was while he was married or it wouldn't be such a big deal. Or, maybe he pressured an employee(s) to have sex. The news reports seem to focus on the simple fact that there was sex. Anyone else think that's strange?

Sue

P.S. Last time I tried to post it appeared as someone else's post. Perhaps we're using the same password. I'm not listed as an author and don't know how to be.

So its September, what's on your list?

Ok, I admit it, I'm a list person- I have the big in my lifetime list, the this year list, the this week list and the today list. Oh, and of course, there are two sets of these lists- personal and business.
So my personal list (abridged somewhat lest I make you guys way too bored) for September through December.
1. Finish writing my online and face to face to classes for Wilmington University.
2. Lose 5 pounds- I've given up thinking I'll lose what I really need to lose, right now I'll settle for five freaking pounds.
3. Plan trip to Florida - bless my horse trimmers heart she and her husband are going to let Gerry and I use their Orlando, FL condo the week after Xmas and they are only going to charge us peanuts, so it will be a relaxing vacation that won't break the bank.
4. Ride, ride, ride - find more time to ride.
5. Figure out a way to do Xmas without spending three months getting ready- there has got to be an easier way, would love some ideas.
6. Try to carve out some time to spend in the studio- I've got so many ideas for new jewelry designs and no time to try executing them.

OK, ladies, that's my list, what's on yours?

Is Anybody Out There?

I can't believe the summer is almost over. And I can't believe how much has happened this summer--good and bad. In fact, I've thought about three times a week of things I wanted to write here, then didn't. I guess the rest of you are like that, too, huh? Well, now that summer is almost over and I'm getting back to a regular schedule of some sort, I'm going to try to post here more regularly.

For starters, here is how my August went.

1) Returned from the States on the 5th, said good bye to Tim on the 6th. Okay, maybe you all already know this kind of thing, but I'm slower than the rest of you. I really missed my husband this summer. Of course I've always loved Tim, but for the first time, I understand what people mean when a spouse dies and they say there is a hole in their lives as a result. In the 16 years of our marriage, Tim and I have never been separated for more than a day or two. It was weird Whenever something happened, he wasn't here to tell, when I read something of interest, he wasn't there to share it with, we didn't have our long discussions about politics or kids or work or whatever, he wasn't around to make us laugh, and he wasn't here to hook up the computer to the TV! There was literally something missing in my life, but it didn't have the permanency with it that a death or divorce would entail, so it was like being in limbo. And then, when he came back, everything just fit back into place. It was a real eye-opener for me.

2) I had another fight. This time with some jerk involved with Democrats Abroad. Maybe it was because of my trip home and all the emotions that went with going through some old papers that included the emails, memos and missives that Jeff and I sent back to each other, but when this guy with DAJ started acting like a jerk and making accusations, I just latched on and went after him. Maybe I over reacted, and quite honestly, most of you don't even know what I'm writing about, but the details don't matter, because the thing that bothers me is that I, once again, got involved in a fight/discussion with someone that was not that important. I always say that when someone (like Molly) always has similar relationship problems or recurring fights with someone, then that person should look to themselves to see how they are causing and/or contributing to the problem. Well, that means me, too. Tim always tells to be a duck, let it roll off, and that is a good philosophy, but when I feel something is unfair or just wrong, I can't do that. This guy wrote to a bunch of people insinuating that I and some other members involved in DAJ were acting unfair, undemocratically and unethically. It sounds like something that needed a response, and had he sent it to our membership, then it probably would have required a response. But it was to a small group of people, in the overall scheme of things, it wasn't that important, but at the time, I couldn't let it go. Not because I was offended or angry, but because it was just wrong and I hate passive aggressive people who insinuate and imply things and dirty a situation with negative, subtle undertones. I guess that is why I hate Molly so much. So the real question is, did I take out on that guy all the frustration and negative emotions that I brought back to Japan from my stay with Molly? The simple answer would be yes, but then since I often jump at the same bait, I'm not sure the answer is so simple. Anyway, maybe this is all a little too personal for this kind of blog, but thanks for letting rant/vent. You should have heard my internal discussions two weeks ago--they were NOT so reasonable or logical.

3) All kinds of weird things have happened to me this month. I got a weird, weird, weird, sexually suggestive email from a person who I admire and respect but who is a work contact, and I still don't know how to respond to this. I waited until Tim got home, but now I'm afraid to talk to Tim about it because he knows this person. I found out that a friend of mine, who broke his neck two years ago actually did it by crashing his head through the wall of his apartment and then he had to lay there, with his head in the wall and unable to call for help, for 26 hours until someone stopped by to see why he wasn't answering his phone. Another person who I don't know that well ask me for a lot of money. My leg still hurts...

4) Enough of the bad stuff. On the plus side, I soooooooo enjoyed seeing my friends again this summer. You all have a life full of each other and your dear friends, but it really meant so much to me to be able to spend time, even of only a few hours, with all of you. It's the thing that helped me get through all the other crap that happened while back home. Laura and I had a wonderful time together doing girly things, I started a new hobby of making beads I'm uploading pictures of them next time), and Laura and I are hooked on Project Runway. We saw Tim Gunn on the Daily Show a couple of weeks ago and checked out season 1. We just finished season 2 last night, and I don't know if we'll have time to watch anymore, but it was a fun thing for us to do together. And I was elected again to be Secretary of Democrats Abroad Japan. Those things don't have as much to write about, but they are the things that daily life is made up of, and the things that we'll remember much longer than the bad stuff.

Linda

Earthquakes and typhoons

I don't usually have long term trouble with jet lag, but I've been home now for a week and am still not sleeping properly. I've been waking up at 4/4:30 every day, and since I'm wide awake, I just get out of bed. Laura has been having a hard time falling to sleep, but the little devil sleeps until 9 or 10 in the morning.

So, since I've been home, we've had two earthquakes and a typhoon. The epicenter of one earthquake was just about 20 miles from our area so it was felt pretty strongly. Have any of you felt an earthquake? It is a weird feeling. I get a momentary rush of adrenalin, then depending on the strength of the quake, either sit still and wonder if I'm going to have to rush to a doorway or I immediately rush to a doorway. The kids always seem to be asleep when we experience a quake, so then I worry about whether I'll be able to get to them in the case of a severe quake. Yesterday, morning, I was sitting in my undies, so then I had the added worry about whether there were any clothes nearby to jump into in case the quake was severe. Anyway, all of that is the mental part. Then, it is a freaky feeling to have your house shaking. If you live in a high rise, I imagine it must be an awful feeling to see everything swaying so much. My legs get wobbly and stay that way for about a half hour after the quake stops. And my brain feels the same way after a short quake (yesterday's was about 20 seconds, the night before about 10) as it does after an afternoon of sailing. In other words, I feel like the ground is still moving.

Before I moved to Japan, I always wondered how people could live in a place that has such frequent quakes, where they know that it is inevitable that they will someday experience a big one. But now that we live here, I realize that you don't even think about it until it happens. I mean, we may think about the possibility of a quake when we put breakable items out on a shelf, or when moving furniture to make sure heavy things aren't over the bed or anything, but otherwise. I never think or worry about the possibility of a big quake. Even after the earthquakes, as soon as the physical symptoms disappear, I don't think of them anymore.

How about you all? For those of you who live in Japan, do you worry about them? Has anyone else experienced a big quake or natural disaster that upset you mentally and disturbed you physically?

Linda

Sorry to Be Absent

work on the wine bar and catering kitchen continue!

here- take a look at our new logo. We are going for art-deco 1920's-30's Japan.

More about siblings

I was talking with Jocelyn the other day about sibling relationships. We were talking about how our parents handled or didn't handle sibling rivalry and how that may have affected our later relationships with our siblings. This is important to me because my parents, as I recall, never really stopped me from teasing my sister, and didn't really talk to me about respecting my younger sister. And to this day, I don't have a close relationship at all with my sister. I can't help but think that my disrespecting her when we were young has had some impact on how we relate to each other as adults, and maybe even how she relates to people she does have relationships with.

Because of my own experiences, Tim and I try really hard to talk to our kids about their treatment of each other. Despite years of talking about it, there isn't any visible difference in their behavior to each other, but Jocelyn said she thinks it will make a difference later in life.

I'm curious what you all think about this. Did your parents leave you all to work it out for yourselves or did they try to explain how respect for each other is important because it will affect future relationships with each other and those you love? Do you feel there is a relationship between how your parents handled your arguing with siblings and your current relationship with them? Do you think that the way your parents handled sibling rivalry has had any impact on how your love and friendship relationships have gone?

Linda

Insomnia

Over the last 10+ years, I have suffered from bouts of insomnia. Sometimes episodes are triggered by stress but other times - like now - I have no idea what brings them on. I'm busy but not stressed at work, I'm looking forward to vacation in just over a week, I've been working out like mad (marathon training does that to you!), and eating well. No clue why I can't sleep.

I used to lie in bed, tossing and turning and waiting to fall back to sleep but after years of experience I've learned to get up and try to do something productive. So tonight (this morning, actually) I decided to post to the blog!

Anyone else out there deal with sleeplessness? And if so, how do you cope?

(Interesting side note - I was searching for an image to use with this post and almost all of the images I found under "insomnia" or "insomniac" were of men. And yet all of the insomniacs I know are women.)

Cookbooks

I am looking for some new cookbooks as we plan the wine bar menu. Anyone have any favorites or seen anything good. We are especially looking for some nice tapas and appetizer type books. Thoughts?

I am enjoying "Surreal Gourmet Bites" a fun one, but a bit too short.