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Jane: Things on my list before my trip to Botswana

Thursday, January 5th, 2012

Oops, I was supposed to post this for Jane as she was flying off to Botswana with Josie to visit her daughter, but I had too many things on my list this past week. So, here is Jane’s post - just a little late! Annice

Tell me again, whose idea was it to schedule a surprise birthday party for her husband’s 60^thbirthday one week before Christmas? It was worth it—I’ll say that. The party was a blast. Tom was surprised beyond my wildest hopes. Our friends and relatives came from far away places. My wonderful niece and her husband came from Virginia with their two baby girls to complete our workforce made up of Lizzie and Janson (her fiance), Josie, and my wonderful friends Heather, and Nora, her daughter. Together they decorated, cooked food, took pictures, arranged the room, welcomed guests–and generally made it all possible. And Sadhvi gets an Oscar for her acting job that led Tom into the room “to borrow chairs for the weekend.” Josie made an incredible 4-tier cake with the theme of “A Man For All Seasons” (with a season on each tier). I got so wound up from seeing so many people I love in one place that I’m still having trouble unwinding! It made turning 60 seem like a great thing, and I’ll let you know about that in a few years.

Tom, Josie, and the Birthday Cake!

But whose idea was it to schedule a trip to Africa 3 days after Christmas? This trip promises to be an adventure, and, most importantly, I’ll get to see my baby girl instead of missing her for another six months! But, needless to say, I’m not ready for Christmas, and I’m not ready for Africa. I’m guessing it will all come together, “one way or t’other,” as my mother used to say.

Here is what remains to be done today:

1) Shop for about five things that are still missing for Christmas

2) Find a plug that can convert to African power, so that I can plug in my C-PAP machine and sleep at night while I’m traveling around Botswana

3) Buy wrapping paper and wrap presents

4) Get international texting put on my daughter’s phone so that we can let my husband know that we arrived safely in Botswana

5) Call my credit card company to let them know I will, in fact, be in Botswana, so that they don’t kick out every transaction I try to do

6) Find the passports that I stored in a safe place for the trip

7) Get one of those passport holders you can wear around your neck

Go to the evening service at our church for Christmas Eve

Jane and Josie

9) Breathe deeply

10) Pack for Africa

11) Clean the house

12) Bake Christmas cookies.

I have a feeling that numbers 11 and 12 are probably going to go down the tubes!

Happy Belated New Year to all of our readers! Off to Botswana!

Tags: feeling overwhelmed, midlife journey, oops50humor, women's journeys, womenwritersover50
Posted in Family, Friends, Journey, Love, Main, Parenting, Travel | 1 Comment »

Sadhvi Sez: It’s beginning to feel a lot like…

Monday, December 12th, 2011

SADHVI

I’ve started to get into the Holiday spirit.

It started with the first snowflakes last week, the Christmas songs I’ve been playing while baking the things that I love to send to my family, and the tangible joy I feel when I roast chestnuts as a street vendor with my husband.

This year there are more and more people who are trying chestnuts for the first time. And loving them.

Knowing that they aren’t nuts, that they are a complete protein (you can live on them), that they’re alkaline, and they contain very little fat might be the reason. Or could it be that they’ve been growing all summer in Italy, so that you are, in fact, eating “Italian Sunshine”?

HOT ROASTED CHESTNUTS!

Without chestnuts, I don’t know if I could handle winter. I’ve made a simple Chestnut soup for dinner tonight. I like easy, simple, and satisfying.

For my family who are far from me every year, I used the recipe that I have for making my Swiss Linzer Torte. But instead of rolling out the dough for the torte, I just pinch off some pieces and roll it in a ball, press down in the middle with my thumb, and fill with raspberry jam, if I have it. And some other kind if I don’t. I bake them for about 15 minutes, and then sprinkle with some of the ground almonds. Everyone loves them. You will too!

“Swiss Linzer Thumbprint Cookies”.

SWISS LINZER COOKIES & ST. NICK

Tags: chestnut soup recipe, Chestnuts, chestnutsroastingonanopenfire, easychristmascookies, linzer, womenwriters
Posted in Family, Living, Love, Main, Recipes/Food, Relationships, Sadhvi Sez | 2 Comments »

What I am Thankful for this Thanksgiving

Wednesday, November 23rd, 2011

Here are 10 things I’m thankful for this year:

1) We have wonderful friends who make us feel thankful to be alive and sharing this planet with them.

2) Our daughter Becky in Africa is feeling better, so maybe she doesn’t actually have dengue fever or some other horrible tropical disease (what I immediately assumed upon hearing that she had a fever and muscle pains). And our daughter Josie does not have a stress fracture on her leg—just shin splints! Yaay! And she’s going with me to see Becky soon.

3) Our daughter Lizzie has Janson in her life—a thoughtful, loving guy—and Janson may even have a job soon, thanks to some great folks who read about him in the paper and decided they wanted to go out of their way to help a Marine veteran!

4) Our son, Parker, is very happy at Bard College—and, even though he won’t be home for Thanksgiving, he gets to have turkey dinner with Janet and Jerry, our wonderful friends in New York.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING FROM OOPS50!!!!

5) I have three powerful and loving sisters (and a host of wonderful blood kin) and terrific, loving in-laws (how lucky is that?).

6) Tom can still, after 28 years (is that possible?), make me laugh so hard that I risk embarrassing him in public (but I never really do).

7) Obama is still in the White House.

Even though I’ve gained some pounds and need to get rid of them, I’ve managed to keep off most of my weight loss.

9) Our dog Tater loves to chase a laser around our floor—over and over again—without ever getting bored or tired.

10) Ultimate Ice Cream (in Asheville, NC), especially the Coffee Heath Bar (perhaps this last one should be avoided).

Tags: africa, family, food, giving thanks, oops50 women, Thanksgiving, womenwritersover50
Posted in Family, Friends, Humor, Love | 4 Comments »

Aging & Gratitude

Monday, November 7th, 2011

Dee Charlton

I’m grateful to be one of the lucky, reunion re-connections that formed over the past 18 months with Annice, one of the co-founders of this wonderful blog Oops50.com. Our friendship goes back to 6^th grade summer camp, and if my math is right, that’s 47 years ago. The camp was devised by the school district to facilitate kids from several grade-schools to meet and spend time together prior to the major transition into the adult world of 7^th grade! We became fast friends. We were 12 years old.

October 23, 2011 – I turned 59. How strange it feels to be writing for this blog and and saying, I’m almost 60 !! How did that happen? The Bonnie Raitt song; “Nick of Time” keeps playing over and over in my head, especially the lyric; “… no matter how I tell myself – it’s what we all go through, those lines are pretty hard to take when they’re staring back at you..” In the Nick of Time You ain’t never lied sister Bonnie!

My husband, Scott and I have been traveling the country in our motor coach since April. We just returned to beautiful Sarasota, Florida Nov. 1^st, and I’m sitting in front of the computer looking at our wedding photo taken in Italy.

Dee's wedding in Italy

Next to that is the photo we had taken last month in Las Vegas, it was our 5^th anniversary – wow. What a life, what a journey this has been! I can’t say I remember what I wanted my life to be when I was younger except that I wanted to be independent and travel, and now I can say yes to both of those goals.

I’m also feeling how fortunate I’ve been to experience the wonder of this country – the canyons, the mountains, the Bad Lands, Death Valley, White Sands, Alaska and hot air balloon festivals. I’ve even jumped out of an airplane and para-glided off a mountain. I’m grateful for it all, and for Scott.

Next - Pilot's license

Back to my birthday – it was harder than I expected it to be. All day, I was fighting back tears. I know I’m not afraid of death, I’ve been faced with it on more than one occasion. So what was tearing me up? Aging? Vanity? Am I that vain? I guess I am, but is that worse than death??

I think it finally hit me when I texted Fran (my wonderful step-daughter) something my mother said to me on my birthday: “Welcome to the last year of your 50s!” Thanks Mom. Her stand-up routine could use a little refining, but I love her anyway. And thank you Fran for letting me cry on your long distance shoulder. For every year that passes me by, I come one more year closer to losing my Mom, and that hurts a lot.

Dee with Mom

Honestly, I’ve just gotten to know my mother well about seven years ago, and I cherish her as my real best friend. I am a lucky 59 year old woman in so many ways!

Born in Collinwood (Cleveland) OH, Dee’s family followed what she likes to refer to as the Italian Migratory Route from Little Italy in Cleveland to the ‘burbs where her mother still resides.

After graduating from high school, she struck out on her own in her first apartment, later to be hired by the same people who built, owned and managed the complex.

Her career in Property Management took her to New York, New Hampshire, and finally Florida, a place she wanted to stay. In the early 90’s, Dee was hired by a national company and traveled the country promoting motivational speakers to help people get rich quick – just like they did. It wasn’t unusual for her to come home with half a million dollars in her briefcase. Eventually, Dee settled down in Sarasota.where she met her husband, Scott, and married in Santa Maria di Castellabati, Italy, just south of the Amalfi coast. Today, they live in Sarasota during the winter months and travel the rest of the year in their motor coach.

Tags: aging gracefully, beautifulwomenover50, bonnieraitt, midlife journey, women over 50, women over fifty, women's journeys, womenbabyboomers, womenwritersover50
Posted in Aging, Family, Journey, Living, Love, Main, Other Voices, Relationships, Spirituality, Travel, World | 4 Comments »

Why I plant Zinnias

Friday, October 21st, 2011

Every autumn, it’s the same thing: it takes me a while to get used to the idea that all the leaves will fall from the trees, it’s going to get cold, and winter is coming.

I have never lived in a place where there were NOT four seasons, so why does it come as a shock each and every year?

Maybe it’s simply because I don’t like to be cold!

Here’s a joke that I find funny ever time I read it:

On a small iceberg, somewhere near the North Pole, a little bear goes up to his mother and asks, “Mom, what kind of bear am I?”

“You are a polar bear, son,” replies his mother.

“Are you sure I am not a brown bear?” he asks.

“Quite sure, son,” she replies, “you are a polar bear.”

But the little bear is not satisfied. “Mom,” he says, “maybe I am a grizzly bear?”

“What are you asking these questions for, son?” asks his mother. “You are a polar bear.”

So the little bear walks across the iceberg to his father.

“Pop,” he says, “am I a panda bear?”

“No, son,” says the father, “you are a polar bear.”

“Not a koala bear?” asks the baby bear.

“No, you are a polar bear,” says his father. “Why are you asking all these questions?”

“Because,” moans the little bear, “I’m cold!”

So postponing the inevitable is why I like to have as many Zinnia’s around me as possible. They seem to continue to bloom and flower until the first hard frost, which around here can be in November. They require nothing more than putting some seed in the ground once the Spring frosts are behind, and then continue to sow some in little corners until mid-Summer. Oh, and deadhead when needed, saving the spent flowers to use for next year’s blooms.

Remembering to do this is not hard, once you’ve experienced the joy of their colorful blooms.

Wishing you Well,

Sadhvi