It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new.
But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful.
There is more security in the adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power.
Alan Cohen
"Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend.
Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read."
Groucho Marx
The doors we open and close each day decide the lives we live.

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

The quiet before the storm

I always have , in the back of my mind, the awareness that while I loll around some days with nothing much to do, nowhere I must go , nothing I must see or even think about ... that these days are gifts.
These days are just the quiet before the storm of busyness that is about to descend on us and I will barely be up for air.

Today we got a hint as to the time of this storm that is about to hit and it is soon .. like starting tomorrow.
Papers to be copied, papers to be legalised, lists, always lots of lists and now there are lists for me and lists for others ! I get to share lists !!

There is suitcase shopping to be done. ( this I like).. there is still hotel room shopping to be done.
Why are we both leaving this out of our daily online search time ?

There is actually airline booking work to be done.
Here it means we actually have to go to the airlines office and make our reservations. We have already been there and sadly, it was not a fun or even cheerful experience.
So I think we might look into travel agents .. saving us the language difficulties and the short tempered , short in patience airline employee...

Then there is the matter of the leak that was fixed yesterday that showed up in a new spot today , it is simple but was not quite fixed, so we get to see our favorite plumber again. Tomorrow.

I have given most of our plants away. My beautiful plants that were small little things and now take a strong person to carry them out .
Kitchen appliances are next.

We will book ourselves into a hotel soon .. the good and the bad ... hotels are good. Have I mentioned that I could live in a hotel. Actually, I came close to it a few times .. traveling for weeks at a time, living in hotels. It never got old and I never wished I was home doing dishes or laundry. I actually missed someone else making the bed and leaving me a chocolate under the pillow.
For some reason, no one else in the house wants to do that .. feh ~

So busy days are ahead ..


Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Yesterday was Monday

Arrrggghhh!
I forgot it was Monday.
I didn't post my Monday Look at this Blog !
I have officially slipped into the realm of Not Knowing What Day It Is.
My husband would tell you I have been comfortably ensconced in this realm for a while  but it seems to have gotten serious now.
I do still remember him and my name and my children's names so I will not panic yet.
I also remember where I live but have no idea where I am going to live.
Or even exactly when I am going to live wherever it is I am moving to.
Life can be quite exciting at times.
As long as I remember my name.
And the days of the week.

My Monday Look At This Blog ... brought to you on Tuesday:

A Country Farmhouse


Sunday, February 24, 2013

Wanderings


Sundays here are like Sundays there, wherever you are, wherever I used to be.
You sleep late, move slowly, read the Times ( online) and basically drink too much coffee and don't get dressed until around noon.
I like Sundays.

It is still pretty warm here.
Last night was an outstanding, sometimes a little scary thunderstorm.
The sky was lighting up with lightening .. sort of behind the clouds ... then in addition to that, a huge bolt of lightning would come down and immediately after , there would be an eardrum breaking, loud crash of thunder then more thunder ... rumbling and rumbling.

Even when you knew it was coming, it made you jump.

OK .. it made me jump.

It was nice to go to bed to the sound of rain and no air conditioning.
For about 10 minutes.
Then the people in the building behind our building had a party, it started after 1:00 am . .  windows open, music really loud and so were they.

We turned the a/c on so we didn't have to hear them .. it got quite cold in our bedroom last night.

Today is glorious .. blue blue skies, white puffy clouds, wind that cools you off just when you need it.

We walked for miles, I took a few hundred ( or so it seems) photos and now we are home.
All walked out.

Tonight we will watch  whatever television shows there are on Sunday nights in the UK.
Or a movie if we can find it.
We will loll around .
I love lolling.
I do it very well also.
And I know that our lolling days are soon going to be over.

So I will loll while I can.

I hope your Sunday is peaceful, fun, happy and whatever else you want it to be ..
Tell me about it. Busy ? Slothful ? Fun and games ? Sleep ? Lolling around ?

Friday, February 22, 2013

Friday Photo

                                     When we are gone  ... I will miss sights like this ..
                                      and this.

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Small Things That Lift The Heart

One of the sad things that one sees in any large city with millions of people, is the homeless.
I am sure all cities in the world have their share, where we live there are a series of huge parks, with benches and trees and people who sleep on the benches and pretty much, live there.

At night no one is allowed to stay in the parks and we think that everyone goes to shelters somewhere.
There is an old frail, incredibly wrinkled old woman who sleeps on a bench or just sits with the pigeons all day, in the park, but at night she packs up her things and walks out of the neighborhood.

The next day, we often pass her on the sidewalk, with her belongings, all neat and clean and on her way back to her bench in the park.

Some people resist the feeding and washing and care.
They are the ones who really need more, they need medical help, mental help.
They are the ones we sometimes steer clear of, avoid any eye contact with and hope that something doesn't send him into a rage as we pass by.
And then there are those who just break your heart.
The quiet ones who sit in their spot and wear whatever it is they have , and they don't move, they don't make a sound, they just sit there.

There is one such man who has always been around our parks since we moved here.
He is actually handsome, his face is good, he has wonderful bones, he could have been a movie star.
His hair is about shoulder length and jet black and thick and although we always saw him dusty and unwashed, he has a dignity about him that few of the street people have .
We used to feel so bad, seeing him wrapped in garbage bags, sleeping in the grass, winter or summer.

Today we had some things we had to do and as we hurried along the sidewalk, talking about this and that, we realised that we were walking behind this man.
Except he was different.
He was all washed up and clean and dressed normally and even had on what looked like Keds.
His hair was clean and luxuriously long and wavy and we could see how really handsome he is, all clean and healthy looking.

As we passed him, we heard it.
He was humming.

We walked on and my husband said to me, "Hearing him humming makes me so happy" ...

It is the small things .. small to one person, huge to someone else ~

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Rainy Days

A Rainy Day used to mean something else for us than it does now.
We walk everywhere, there was a Pup to walk several times a day and we don't love being cooped up in the apartment.
We quickly got into the habit of walking for miles every day here,.
Upon arrival we had to visit various officials for stamps here and there, letting the police know our address and getting some paper or other stamped, it was 3 years of stamping and early morning visits to dreary old buildings full of immigrants.

Pup was the constant in those days.
He had to be fed and he needed his walks.
Our schedule was his schedule or the other way around.
We were a little threesome and a happy one.
If not for Pup we would not have met so many nice people, he was that sweet friendly ambassador that made people talk to us, pet him, wave at us as we walked by and even now, people mention him to us, they miss him too.

The rooms are a bit empty, the walks seem to be missing something, the park looks different without that curly brown dog sniffing and checking on everything and everyone.
Even the homeless lady in the park who doesn't like people, liked him.

When it rained, we had to get our raincoats on, grab the umbrella and try to walk as close to the buildings as possible, keeping him as dry as we could.
We would walk him to the area under the huge tree ( a Banyon sort of tree ) where he would be completely dry while he sniffed around and did his business.



















Then we would walk home where I would spend the next half hour, at least, drying him.
Poodles supposedly shed water, Pup held it.
I would throw his towel over his head, he looked like a sheik from a cartoon and off he would run, through the house, laughing and keeping just ahead of me, so I couldn't grab the towel.
(Yes, Pup laughed ,well, he  smiled a really big smile )
It would all end with the two of us , resting , me tired, he all fluffy and soft and ready for another go at the towel tug of war game.

It is raining today ...

Monday, February 18, 2013

Monday, Look at this Blog

Neutral Heaven



Take a look and see why this is the Monday Look at this Blog.
Wonderful images, wonderful ideas ... I am going to be over there at that blog a lot in the coming months .. new home, new style etc.


Sunday, February 17, 2013

Tomorrow

It has been too hot to be outdoors.
It has been too hot to move much indoors.
It has been too hot for eating or shopping for anything other than water, fruit, watermelon, and coffee.
Our meals have been a variety of combinations of lettuce, tomatoes, onions and avocado.
Bread now and then and sometimes a ramen noodle. Cooked in the microwave. There is no cooking allowed in my non-air conditioned kitchen.
I grew up in the South (USA) ... this reminds me too much of those summers.
Time to get packing, the cool NorthEast USA is calling.

House-hunting online is beginning to pale.
I am now seeing things that just get me crazy. I want to be there, see it, walk through it and imagine myself living in it. Photos online just don't do it.

Maybe tonight we will look at cars.
We will buy a new auto right away.
This could be exciting or it could be ... not exciting.
Our old cars used to be in the world of German sports cars.
Now I see us in something that dogs, children and firewood might fit in.
I have to study photos of ladies dressed well, in some sort of lovely Town & Country auto.

I have been studying the on-line magazines for decor, furnishings and whatever else I can spend time looking at while ignoring the unbearable heat and humidity and slow moving calendar.

So I spend time thinking about our near future and all the things we have in store for us ...

So .. what is it like at your house ?
Cooler than here, I am sure.
What kind of car do you drive ?
Dog ? Cat ?
I am liking Siamese cats right now.

We used to have an Abyssinian .. I loved him so much. He died at the age of 18.
Pup was a Standard Poodle . I don't know if another poodle would suffer by comparison.
I like Alsatians   and my husband jokes about getting a Doberman or some sort of Wolfhound.
Then we would have to shop for a mini bus or a Rover .. so I think we have to curb our enthusiasm for large doggies ..


I also plan my gardens. I see homes with gardens already started and I know I can just move in and add to them and make them ... more.
Hummingbird feeders  ... oh the fun we will have ..

Now I have to figure out tomorrow.
There are shops to be visited. And I hear the temperatures will drop tonight, perhaps we will walk , miles again, stopping at the Evita Museum Cafe for a drink .. or maybe something else.
We will think about that Tomorrow ~

Friday, February 15, 2013

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

What the Day Brings

Another quiet day in Buenos Aires. Another holiday in Buenos Aires. 
Another hot day in Buenos Aires.
But it is early yet, we will see what the day brings.
(to be continued)

Sunday, February 10, 2013

Summer / Winter Blues

I know, most of you are up to your necks in Winter misery.
Our family is snowed in, in their various homes in various parts of NY.
They have gotten all of my advice that they need.
It sounds something like this - Stay inside, stay warm, send me photos, be careful.
BE CAREFUL.

Mom's .. what can I say ~

I want to talk to my sister in law who lives alone.
I want to hear how she is  and I will ask her if she is building a snowman .. this will make her laugh.
I hope.

So enough about you .. what about me ?

It Is SOO Hot here.

We took a walk.
The birds were lying in the shade, panting.
We saw a lady dragging an overweight Old English Bulldog along.
The dog was definitely going to have a stroke.
The sounds were not of this world and then the lady stopped , pulled out a big bottle of water and started squirting it in the dogs mouth and face.
I could not control my laughter, it was the best funny dog sight I have seen in a while.


Last we saw of them, she was trying to pick up the dog .. it probably felt like I do.
In fact, if I spoke dog, I would have known the dog was saying, just get me inside with some a/c !

Which happens to be where I am and I am not leaving until a big storm or winter breaks this misery.


So the pigeons and doves are lolling around in the grass.
There are no squirrels here, that took a while to adjust to ... but the rest of the park wildlife were hiding in the shade and fanning themselves.


There were very few people out.
Seemed like most of them were carrying City Maps and cameras and trying to figure out which street to take.

I got to visit with my favorite baby in the corner market then scurried home to the coolness of shady rooms and air conditioning .

So how is it where you are ?
How hot ? How cold ? Miserable ? Fun ?
Do tell ...


Saturday, February 9, 2013

Holding Pattern

So ... while I sit here trying to wake up , not having slept that well, dreams of blizzards fighting with dreams of spiders in the bed ( yes, dream time in my head is not always about shopping) ..
I imagine what it will be like to be back in the US.

Right now it would be pretty cold and seeing all that snow would be kinda fun.
I am sure the fun part would fade quickly, I never did like that snowed in feeling for long.
It was quickly replaced with that Bored Kids Will Kill Me feeling, followed by Take Me Somewhere Warm feeling.

Having lived in South America for about 6 years now, I admit with no shame that I still have trouble with the seasons and often , quite often, forget which day it is.
Senility may have something to do with it , but I prefer to blame the idea that all my life, December and January were freezing cold and often contained things like snow and well, Blizzards.

Now it means I have to remember sun block, I live with fear of the air conditioning breaking down and I hide from the sunlight so I don't have yet another little spot removed from my poor body which will soon have permanent polka dots all over it.

When you don't work, when there are no requirements made of you, you tend to drift a bit.
Now that Pup is gone, I am not required to get up and feed or walk him ... my poor sweet husband is so wonderful about not being demanding, he will eat anything easy to make and or take me out or call for delivery.
Nothing is required of me.
Which sounds great and feels wonderful for about a month or so then you begin to feel useless and you start to drift.

So it has been great, all of it .... but I am now in the Holding Pattern.
I am neither here nor there.
I have lost interest in most of the things around me ... I see them as Temporary now and I am too anxious to be house hunting , buying a car and driving again after 6 years !!
If you are out on the road in the NY/Ct area, I want you to be particularly careful in the coming months ..

If you have any questions about housing or the market based on Trulia . com, I am the one to ask.
I have become a devotee of Trulia .
How we ever found a house in the past, is beyond me.
It is a miracle that we were able to find, buy and enjoy living in houses that I just saw one day .. in real life.
Now I know these houses inside and out, I know their measurements, their cost and I know what they look like from a Birds Eye view ... thank you Trulia.
You have made such a difference in my life when I needed it.

So my shopping for bags, shoes and fashionable city girl wear are coming to an end.
Car dealerships, houses, neighborhoods, antiques , furniture  shopping ... all await me.
And a Pup and a Cat will be there too...

I will be blogging up until the last days here but then most likely there is going to be a quiet spell, while things are quiet in blog land, I will be doing Everything mentioned above and one day will tell you all about it. ... whether you wanted to know or not.








Friday, February 8, 2013

Friday Photo

The entrance to Recoleta Cemetery. Resting place ( for a short time) of Evita Duarte Peron and final resting place to many Argentine luminaries and families.
It is almost as wonderful as Pere Lachaise in Paris .. amazing tombs in the most beautiful Art Nouveau, Bauhaus , Art Deco and everything other kind of design. There are quite a few stories about the people who are buried there.. many are fascinating.
And then there are the cats. I am not sure how many cats live there.
They are fed and cared for by the ladies of Recoleta, who make sure they are fed and if anyone needs a vet,  they are caught and taken care of .
You can take a tour or you can do what we do , just walk in and wander .. it is like a museum.
Leave a donation when you go.
And do not forget your camera !

Thursday, February 7, 2013

Summertime, Buenos Aires,

We are in the midst of the "dog days" of Summer .. you remember those, don't you ?

Hot, humid, the  nights are no relief and the big weather excitement comes when there is a thunder storm and the wind blows and it cools off for an all too brief spell.

Walking down the street, we hug whichever side is in shadow, staying under awnings and close to the walls, avoiding any more sunshine and freckles and other things that tend to be worse when it comes to skin exposed to relentless sunshine.


We go into stores that   we might  never be interested in but they have good air conditioning and they are a welcome break on the walk to the bakery.
I can often be found, loitering in the frozen food department in the super mercado.
If I actually bought something, it would be thawed out by the time we got home. A block away.

Flowers in the sidewalk vendors kiosk are all wilted and sad.
They were much happier out in that field with a breeze and less exhaust and heat coming off of streets, sidewalks and from cars, buses and taxis.
Not to mention, the quiet.
Even a flower will wilt when there is so much noise.

A new Subte (subway) line is going in ... under the street that runs in front of our building.
We see nothing, feel nothing, hear nothing.
They are way down deep by now.
But walk a block or two in either direction and there is so much traffic , the cars above make much more noise than the work below.
I wonder if it is cooler down there .. hmmm.

Thanks to a President who seems to think that People will like her if she gives them enough holidays, there have been three and four day weekends since before Christmas.
And now with Summer holidays, the city is much less crowded, traffic is not as horrible and it is actually very quiet on Sundays.
More shops and stores are closed too.
I saw a bag in a shop window.
Went home and mulled it over.
OK ... I obsessed over it for a day or two.
Then decided to go back and take a really good look at it, feel it and hopefully buy it.
I walked over there and the shop is closed, Vacaciones ..
She went on vacation for 3 weeks !!
What nerve .

I quit cooking.
I will make a salad and will put together a sandwich.
If it requires cooking, it is not happening in our kitchen.
It is acceptable for someone else to do the cooking , in their kitchen, but not here.
My kitchen opens in the Autumn.

Wherever you are, remember, there is a place where the parrots squabble high up in tall palm trees, tiny birds hop around on the ground catching crumbs that ladies with scones like to throw for them, Mounted Police Horses like to nap under the tall trees in the park, street dogs ( and people) like to nap under those trees too  and doves sit in nests, high in trees ( outside of someones windows) and feed their teeny tiny babies .. in the Summer time .





Monday, February 4, 2013

Monday Look At This Blog

Thanks to Carla Coulson   , I have a new and wonderful blog to follow.
And probably, the way we think here at my house, a new place to consider..
visiting, living .. whatever~
Please do take a look and tell me how much you love this blog and the photos !

Baroque Sicily  with Jann Huizenga

Wonderful photos !!
Tell me when  you will be  flying  to Italy  to visit .
Or if you are like me, figure out how you would like to live there ~

photo: Jann Huizenga



Sunday, February 3, 2013

Sunday , the day of rest

We were very slow this morning to get moving.
To even get dressed .. well, maybe I shouldn't say "we" .. I am getting slower and slower.
I will soon be passed by the much speedier sloth and probably a snail zooming by will give me whip lash.

I can't help it.
As my Grandmother used to say, especially in summer ... My "Get Up and Go ", Got Up and Went.

I drink quite a lot of coffee, with quite a lot of sugar in it.
I am trying to cut down.
( why is it all the fun/good stuff eventually has to be cut down ?? )

So with a tiny bit of caffeine boosting my ever so slothly ways .. ( I know- there is no such word as slothly but you knew what I meant, didn't you ?)  we took off for a nice long Sunday walk.
I had my camera, my hat (today the sun was not going to fry my head ) and I only had to come back upstairs once to change clothes.
( This is happening more often, soon I will get up at 9 am and be ready to leave , having tried on everything in the closet 100 times, by 10 pm. )

It is one of those days where it is hot in the sun, cool in the shade. Perfection.
We walked up a slight hill .. walked down a flight of steps .. walked a few more blocks and I suddenly realised that I was struggling to continue walking.
All I really wanted to do was lie  down.
Preferably in an air conditioned space .. quiet and dimly lit would be nice ..

I needed sugar , that must be it.
We bought scones.
They were so bad, we didn't even give them to the pigeons.
All of the cafes were packed, the city is quiet, everyone who could leave, went away for the long weekend. The rest are in the cafes.

I forgot what the long weekend is about this weekend.
They happen so often now- the queen , er, Presidenta keeps declaring holidays.
Must be nice if you get paid vacations.
It is nice because it is quiet, there is very little traffic and I am a cranky old woman.

So now we are home and my next big project is ..... what are we having for dinner.

First I need a nap.

How is your Sunday going ? Restful ?

Friday, February 1, 2013

Friday Photo

I will miss walking out that door each day... but I am full of anticipation for the new doors we will be walking through.
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sunset in Buenos Aires

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