Happy Birthday, Margret Atwood!

King Charles River, 1963

Happy Birthday to a favourite Author and fellow Lady Scorpio!!!!!

I just love Margret Atwood's writings. I get lost in her novels like no others, the more I read the more entranced I become by her words. I've never read more complex thoughtful insightful stories. She's a living legend and her body of work is beyond impressive; an inspiration of all time.

I've read these:

The Edible Woman*

Handmaiden's Tale

Oryx & Crake

Cat's Eye*

The Blind Assasin*

The Year of the Flood*

Robber's Bride*

Moral Disorder

*I have these books here with me on my bookshelf.

Happy All Saint's Day!

Greetings from Guatemala on All Saint's Day (Dia de Todosantos)!!! We'll be in the cemetary today for sure. This is a special day here. Families gather in cemetaries; they clean and decorate their family/loved ones graves and picnic there all day. The traditional dish of the day is a funky mix of up to 50 ingredients called, Fiambre. Flying kites is a popular past-time on this day; creating a link between life on earth and the lives of those that have passed to the other side. This will be our 2nd year participating in the tradition. =)


These giant handmade kites are just amazing.

Fiambre. Putting a 'blue flower' on top is super popular fancy!
We've yet to have the pleasure of sampling some local Fiambre.

(Already walking around today more cars than not that have gone by me have someone with a big ol' dish of 
 Fiambre in their lap! It's kind of awesome! )

a personal trick to summon super-power

Me & Mike in our Superhero states of being.



When I find myself in a situation where I need to really bring it and be intimidating (you know, like when I feel like I am being scoped out by some street urchins or banditos or something); I imagine that I am that guy above and Mike is that hyena! It totally works!! I just project as much as I can that Mike and I am them. This image serves us well. I think they are the perfect superhero duo flip side for Mike and me.



Mike & Me at any given 'regular' moment.



pink house!

I've seen a million different pink things raising awareness for Breast Cancer (pink m&m's, kitchenaide mixers, cars, ribbons out the wahzoo) but, the all time coolest thing I think I've seen is the White house lit up pink in honour of October being Breast Cancer Awareness Month!

Breast cancer sucks....pass it on.

My super power: I disappear when I read!

I remember very clearly in grade school being assigned my first book report. I can see it all in my mind like an old movie; standing next to my mom at the kitchen table going through Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary together with her telling me what was important about the story. Of course, that's not when I first starting reading and being thouroughly sucked into books like a vacuum. That happened when I was 14 and got Chicken Pox for a 2nd time, lucky right?! It was the middle of a stiffling hot Florida summer and all I wanted to do was escape. That is when I discoverd the ultimate escape for me is reading. I get lost, I go away, I don't exist here, I live in the story. I stayed buried in books* for those miserable two weeks and have since then used books as my true hiding place. It's amazing and am grateful beyond belief that I have reading!
                                                      

*books I read during my chicken pox summer o' hell: The Stand by Stephen King, The Dead Zone by Stephen King, Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell, The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway, and finally The Shell Seekers by Rosamunde Pilcher which I have re-read countless times and given as a gift time and time again. It just has to be one of my all time favourite books on earth. It's even my Nana's favourite book and I think my mom's too.

                                              

flowers all the time.

I've finally gotten into the habit of always having fresh flowers in the house. And I've gotten so good with it, I usually have them in more than one room. My favourite places are in the kitchen/eating area and in our main hang-out room that just happens to have a really nice skylight.

Besides it's a blast looking at all the random flowers for sale in the markets. I've gotten such a range so far and there's always a bunch of flowers that I haven't seen before. I love having so much new information in the way of plants, flowers, trees, fruits and vegetables here.

It helps that my darling boyfriend brings home flowers from the market ever-so-often. And lately I've been snipping wild poppies on our walks which has been so nice! I'll def be doing that regularly.

What I am trying to say is that regularly having fresh flowers around the home makes a world of difference!!

moon over miami

I just had the pleasure of spending a long weekend in Miami with a decade-long bestie. It was balm for the soul. We went to the Russian Bath House on Miami Beach; a wonderful, wonderful experience.
Miami is such a beautiful city. I am happy that I had the pleasure of living there for 4 years and would live there again for sure! Last weekend I admired the gorgeous Miami sunsets and even found myself staring in awe at the moon over the city every night I was there. It's one of those affairs one has with cities/places and this city has its tethers in me. I just love so very many of the houses and structures there...riding around the Gables is so easy on the eyes and just sends me into endless daydreams....I think Miami is just dreamy.

Terrell, A Happy Fish.

This is my Siamese Fighting Fish, Terrell. I bought him for my desk at work and never took him there. I fell in love with him and come Monday there was no way I was going to take my lovey Terrell to that lame arsed office!!!

I named him after my Great Grandfather. I know he's just a fish but, I had to use that name sometime, it's just too great of a name not to!

Terrell has become quiet the social little fish. He does mad jumping flips when I feed him. Overall, he's a total delight!

Calcium! Get it in you!!

I am supposed to have a ton of calcium a day. I am sure most people especially women are. I am not good at remembering to take a calcium supplement and am picky as all get about supplements anyway. It just seems much more legit to eat calicum rich foods. I think my body will recognize a food and know what to do with it as opposed to a calcium supplement! AND...not to mention dairy products most especially milk mostly suck (see my link for mucho information on the subject!)

Here are some really good tips for eating calcium rich food from Dr. Weil!!

Don't like milk - or can't digest it properly? You aren't alone. The good news is there are plenty of non-dairy foods that provide calcium:

1. Calcium-fortified beverages. Orange juice and soymilk are good choices. Read the labels to see how much calcium is in each serving, and how big the serving size is, as well as how much one serving contributes to your total daily percentage of calcium. Look for products containing calcium citrate and malate, which may be better absorbed than tricalcium phosphate and calcium lactate. A six-oz serving of calcium-fortified orange juice usually provides about 20 to 25 percent of your daily value (DV); an eight-oz serving of soymilk contains anywhere from eight to 50 percent of your DV, depending on the brand.
2. Cooked greens. Turnip greens, kale, and spinach are just a few examples of natural sources of calcium from the greens family. A half-cup of cooked spinach contains about 12 percent of your DV of calcium, one cup of cooked kale has nine percent, and a half-cup of boiled turnip greens offers 10 percent.
3. Canned salmon with bones. The bones of this fish are softened in the canning process, making them edible—and an excellent source of calcium. You'll get a whopping 18 percent of your DV of calcium from three ounces of canned salmon (including bones). Choose canned salmon from sources in the wild (not farmed).
4. Broccoli. When eaten raw, you'll get two percent of your DV of calcium from a half-cup of this versatile vegetable.
5. Tofu. Read the package label to make sure calcium was used in its preparation. If so, a half-cup of firm tofu typically contains 20 percent of your DV, while the same amount of soft tofu provides 14 percent.

You may want to consider adding a balanced calcium-magnesium supplement to fill in any dietary gaps, as well (Dr. Weil suggests women take a supplement with 500-700 mg daily, for a total daily intake of 1,000-1,200 mg from all sources, while men should get no more than 500-600 mg daily from all sources, and probably do not need to supplement.)
For additional calcium intake without the dairy, use molasses and sesame seeds-simply add them to your favorite recipes for a healthy calcium boost.

I by no means claim to be vegan but, I am not a fan or consumer of typical bovine products!!

Sunny Park Day in Seattle

If you look very closely, across the pond to the right up near the tree line you can see a wooden sign thingy. Well, we had the bright idea to take a 'timer' photo of us. Todd was put on duty!

Below is our first attempt and the 2nd photo is our successful one! (Erin and I counted down the 10 seconds out loud! I love how chill hanging out we look!!!)

What a perfect park day!! 

And they say it's always crappy & overcast in Seattle. Pssshaw!

Road Trip-Seattle or Bust #1

We are finally all prepped and ready to head out on our adventure across our great big country!

We made it out of the Carolinas!

Our first spotting of ice! Yikes.

We stopped in Nashville for the night. Super cool town! Found some good eats!

Erin was feeling a wee bit camera shy after being on the road all day.

An Adventure:

I am flying up to Charlotte, North Carolina to Erin's.

Lucky Duck Erin got a new job in Seattle! 

We will be packing up all of her big stuffs and having it moved. (Thank goodness!)

Then we will pack ourselves in her cute little car and drive to Seattle!

I am just so looking forward to spending a big ol' chunk of time hanging out with Erin!

Trés hookery awesomeness!

Pretty much going from one corner to the other and back. 

I can't help but, to think of all the killer thrift stores along the way. Hmmm...

little things

for as long as i can remember i've coveted small things. i've always collected them. some have been with me most of my life. lots come and go without me remembering them at all. it's interesting to see this far along in my life which ones have stuck around.

here's a mix of a few favourites.