THE LONGEST & SHORTEST MONTHS

 

Back in dinosaur times when I was a student and personal computers were something out of science fiction, March felt like the longest month of the year. Despite reality, the big holidays seemed long past and summer vacation far away.

The shortest month was August, probably because here in Florida school usually started the last week of that month. One year it actually started almost in the middle. Horrors!!! August was a busy month filled with shopping for school clothes and supplies along with dread of classes that were coming up fast.

After September arrived, it seemed forever until the holidays! Now that I'm a senior citizen all of this is reversed!

Now, once the calendar hits September, the holidays seem to arrive fast and leave even faster. But first we must endure the stress and anxiety of hurricane season which thanks to climate change now begins earlier and lasts longer. I fear that one day year round hurricanes will be the norm! I hope it's after I'm gone!

These days I desperately want to hang onto March; often our last month of wonderful weather before the onslaught of the sweltering heat. I can still open my windows and enjoy free air conditioning as well as breathe fresh air. The nights are cool with delicious sleeping weather while the days are comfortably warm.

Also March is free from hurricane worries!

Florida winters are as delightful as the summers are horrid!

August is now the longest month! Not only is it hellishly humid, hot and bug infested. I live cocooned inside an air conditioned house. One step outside and I am transformed into a fountain of sweat.  August is also the time of the year when hurricane season really starts to ramp up. Everything about it is miserable!

The snowbirds have the right idea! In my previous neighborhood an hour south of here, half my neighbors fell into that category. Six months of the year my family was situated between two empty houses. If nothing else, summers there were quiet and peaceful.

Back then, we lived on the St. Lucie River. Here in my current home, my neighborhood is made up of largely year round residents.

Now at age 70 I want to freeze time or at least slow it down. I want the impossible! That said, the only good thing I remember about 2020 is the entire year felt endlessly long!

A TIME FOR CELEBRATING & REMEMBERING

 

Today is St. Paddy's Day! My first ever trip overseas was to Ireland at age 25. Before that, I'd vacationed outside the country in Mexico, Guatemala, and the Bahamas, plus that one day I'd spent in Canada at age 8.

But this trip was much grander and more special! One of the places I would be visiting was County Tipperary where my grandmother on my father's side was born. Among other things, I would be feasting inside an Irish castle, kissing the Blarney Stone and seeing the famous Rock of Cashel in County Tipperary itself. I remember touring Dublin along with a friend I met on the trip and also standing upon a cliff admiring the view from the majestic Cliffs of Moher.

I've celebrated every St. Patrick's Day since!

Last year right before the lockdown I was planning to celebrate with friend. We scheduled a lunch out together. Unfortunately, her secretary took ill with something uncovid related and my friend was unable to leave her office.

So I decided to celebrate alone. I dressed all in green and wore the necklace with the bejeweled Celtic horn I'd purchased in Galway. I treated myself to my favorite restaurant TooJay's.

The pandemic was already underway and on everyone's mind. For the first time ever, I didn't have to wait in a line. (Sometimes there's one extending out the door!) Inside were only a handful of customers despite the fact it was noon hour. All of them senior citizens like me.

As I left the restaurant a man looked me up & down and then exclaimed, "It must be St. Patrick's Day!"

"Erin go bragh!" I replied with a big smile.

This year I'm unvaccinated and not taking any chances! I'm celebrating at home.

Later this evening I plan to watch The True History of the Kelly Gang on my DVR. Yes, I know this film is Australian and filmed there. However the name Kelly is Irish and that's close enough. You make do with what you've got!

This morning I prepared a special breakfast of blueberry oat muffins, apple sauce with fresh blueberries, and mixed berry tea.

Irish food was awful, I thought! Almost everything except the desserts tasted as if it had been thrown together without interest. I love seafood, but the eel I ate in Killarney was nearly inedible.

However for my Irish dinner here at home I'm fixing oyster stew and buttermilk biscuits. And my dessert will be a colorful slice of rainbow cake. I'll be picturing a leprechaun with a kettle of gold beside it.

SNAKE STEAKS & FRIED LICE

 

Floridians are being encouraged to dine on pythons to reduce the population of this dangerous invasive species. Okay, no problem.

Back in January of 2016 in Thailand, dining on Cobra was the latest fad according to my guide. Had I been offered it, I would have been willing to give it a try. My issue is eating mammals which I refuse to do. After all I am one and so are you!

I've eaten frog legs and gator tail. Growing up there were plenty of cracker cafes featuring frog legs on the menu. My father a Yankee born and raised in Detroit enjoyed them and would share with me. However one place served a platter with the toes still attached. -- That ended it for both of us!

During the 1990's there was a restaurant chain that specialized in gator tail. I ordered a platter. It came served with a dip, without it, the meat was bland.

I've enjoyed more common and popular menu choices that made squeamish family members and friends wince and gag.

For my 21st birthday I tried Escargot (snails) at the Petite Marmite in Palm Beach.  I also enjoyed it later in Paris. Both times, all I could taste was garlic butter!

And I've eaten and enjoyed Calamari (squid) and also raw oysters on the half shell many times.

Recently I read that shrimp are considered the cockroaches of the sea. This is due to the fact that they are omnivores and feed on trash in the waters. -- Seems I once read something similar about oysters. However I plan to continue enjoying both!

Iguanas are another invasive species here in Florida. They'll be next! In some countries they're considered a delicacy and referred to as "Chicken of the trees".

I firmly believe that in another couple generations eating insects and reptiles will be the norm thanks to overpopulation and climate change. However by that time I will be gone and forgotten. But I'll probably be chowing down on them in a future life, just like everybody else.

PERIWINKLE & SALMON, SERIOUSLY?

 

I pride myself on having the esthetic eye possessing the ability to put things together beautifully. I've even written a budget beauty manual on how to look your best for less. But lately I've been stumped. 

Two years ago I purchased an elegant periwinkle cardigan with long gathers like dove wings from the shoulder down to the wrist. It's a treasured find from a consignment store. And I got it for a reduced price due to a winter clearance.

I planned to wear it at a Birthday Tea a friend was throwing for me at her house. But I realized I had nothing to pair it with beyond a black camisole & black pants. However I wear so much black someone once accused me of being a practitioner of the dark arts (I am not!) Also now that I'm gray I prefer to go with more vibrant colors. At my age I'm starting to associate black with funerals.

So I consulted Google. They suggested navy blue or (gadzooks you've got to be kidding) SALMON! I didn't have a navy blue top fancy enough. And I hate salmon! -- The color not the fish! Salmon is quite tasty and pleasing to the palate.

Photos were on display of periwinkle & salmon worn together. To my eyes, these colors not only clash, but look hideous together! By that I mean vomit inducing puke ugly!

As fate would have it, I happened to be watching a Lifetime movie I'd recorded when I noticed the heroine, a 20 something was wearing a pull-over periwinkle sweater with salmon pants for about one third of the movie. To me, it looked like something a clown would wear! -- But then I feel exactly the same about ripped jeans. Even if I was 50 years younger I'd never defile my body with those!

Liberace once said: "I dress up to me, not down for other people." That's my philosophy as well and more people need to embrace that.

Weeks later I noticed a reporter on the evening news was sporting a periwinkle jacket paired with gray. And she cut quite a smashing figure in that ensemble!

I ended up wearing an exotic purple & pink pants outfit along with big earrings to my Birthday Tea.

Later I found a navy blue camisole online worthy of my periwinkle cardigan. I combined both with my dark gray slacks. If I do say so myself, I look sharp enough to die for! Now all I need is a fabulous place to wear this.

MISCELLANEOUS MUSINGS & MEMORIES

 

Don't even mention summer to me. I HATE Florida summers!!! They're hellishly hot, humid and bug infested. And don't get me started on hurricanes and all the stress and expense involved. I wish it could be winter forever!!!

Seems immediately after the holidays I start receiving catalogues filled with lots of beautiful winter clothes on sale, prices slashed, and many great bargains. As I reach for my credit card I stop myself. Suddenly I realize I seldom go anywhere anymore.

Even after the Covid ordeal is over, I doubt that will change. Many of my favorite restaurants are gone forever, friends are scattering, and the theatres around here remain closed. I don't need a cute outfit to visit a doctor/dentist or go the supermarket.

Sigh, but I am enjoying a variety of movies at home.

Recently I watched Dark Waters, a true story of one man's battle to expose the DuPont Chemical Company of deliberately poisoning people and animals for profit. Shamefully our government does nothing to stop this reprehensible practice because they are in DuPont's hip pocket. And surprisingly many of the people being screwed by DuPont are embracing it. -- This certainly explains the Trump phenomenon!

Believe it or not, I was aboard the DuPont yacht! It was back around 1977 or 78. We had a wedding chapel attached to our florist shop. Dad performed most of the ceremonies and for an added fee he was mobile. The Captain of the DuPont yacht was getting married and wanted the ceremony performed out in the ocean. I came along as a witness in the event there wasn't one.

My father and I were given a grand tour of the yacht before we set sail. It had every luxury imaginable onboard! The DuPont family was no where around. But the Captain and his crowd were very nice and included us in the wedding party.

I should note that we were among the first in the country to have women perform weddings! Not all our customers were pleased with this. Usually it was the bride who objected! I know because I did the scheduling. Often my father had to come in on this day off.  

He and our ladies were notaries who had the power. My father also got a mail-order minister's license and Doctor of Divinity certificate because it made some more comfortable.

The 1970's were my peak traveling abroad period. Every year I took a vacation outside the country to an exciting new place. I miss that!

As fate would have it, I made the right decision not to expatriate. My two countries of choice are not faring well in the pandemic. Had I expatriated I might very well be dead now. -- Or perhaps not since both countries have healthcare I could actually afford.

THE CON MAN & HIS CULT

 

Is anyone really surprised by the storming of the Capitol! How could you NOT see this coming! For four years now President Bone Spurs has been playing these suckers like a harpsichord. Of course Trump didn't want to lose power -- his big stinky posterior is likely to end up in prison now that he's out of office. This desperate despot would resort to anything to avoid it, no lie was too outrageous, nothing was!

And sadly, we have plenty of fools eager to buy into him. The first to come to mind are the Proud Boys. Boys are the right word for them! If you need a gun to be a man, you aren't much of one! They are a sorry lot. Unfortunately these are dangerous dumb asses.

Why are we even talking prison terms? That's NOT the way to deal with insurrectionists & traitors! They should all be hanged or shot starting with Trump along with anyone within the Capitol walls who aided them! -- That's exactly what they planned for all opposing them!!! Journalists and the media were actually referred to as "soft targets".

Trump didn't even step in and try to stop them as they searched the Capitol for his own Vice President to hang on their makeshift gallows outside! These are Banana-Republicans whose antics are straight out of a Third World playbook!

And did you notice that not one of these dupes was pardoned after doing the con's bidding? -- The joke is on you, SUCKERS!!!  LOL

First, they were idiot enough to give allegiance to a sleazy con like Trump rather than their own country. Second, these domestic terrorists didn't even wear masks while committing their crimes. And third, they took selfies! These cretins are too stupid to live anyway!!!

Plus they're deranged as well! -- Hillary Clinton never ran a child porn ring out of a pizza parlor!  It's naive to believe these wacko cultists can be deprogrammed. Any concept of unity with this half-wit scum is airy-fairy, pie-in-the sky nonsense! If they were dogs we'd shoot them!

But I seriously doubt they'll ever receive what they truly deserve. Biden has the same flaw as Obama, he's too nice! And that just doesn't cut it when dealing with people of this caliber. Unfortunately it places Biden and the current administration as well as journalists and others under constant danger. This is unacceptable!!!

NEW YEAR, BIG MINOR CHANGES

 

Since I don't own a cellphone to take selfies for social media, every birthday that ends in a 5 or a 0 I have a professional portrait taken. And one with a tremendous zero was fast approaching!

I hired Photos by Martina. She is a beautiful woman who looks more like someone who should be walking a runway in Paris or Milan rather than behind a camera. I first met her 10 years ago at a Business Networking Luncheon.

I was delighted to learn that her home studio is only minutes up the road from me. Martina told me that her sister lives in my neighborhood. Well this gave me pause!!! -- I sure hope she wasn't that woman with Trump's name plastered all over her body who knocked on my door. The one I swore at and told to get off my property!

Moving right along, before my photo session another tooth cracked and broke off. I couldn't get a dentist appointment until 2 days after the shoot. Fortunately it was a back tooth but still visible when I smiled wide. I had to constantly remember to angle my head so it wouldn't show.

After the updated photo was posted on Facebook I deleted the majority of my photo albums there. I left ones from business networking luncheons, plus a few from the 80's and my childhood. I want to put an end or at least reduce strangers snooping! Other than what's posted on my Timeline no one has any business going there. Yet plenty do and it always creeps me out!

I can't fathom a person whose life is so dull and empty they would need to ferret thru a total stranger's photographs. Plus I don't like pushy or nosey people!!! The excuse always given is, "I wanted to see what you are all about." That's B.S.!  If they were honestly interested they would be reading my blog, not going thru my photos!

Well this is a brand new year, new decade, thankfully we have a new and improved President, and I just hit age 70 last week so I'm starting fresh from here! In my life at least the past is over and gone!

I'm working on a new novel (a supernatural thriller & mystery) I hope to publish in 2021.The plot consists of several stories within a story, but it all ties together at the end.

I'm keeping the previous photo on my business page because it looks more authorish.  -- That's not a word, but it should be. This is the photo I will use on the book cover.

Finally I made a sacrifice I was avoiding! I cut my newspaper delivery to Wednesday & Sundays only to save money. I read it online the rest of the week now and this is an adjustment. I miss my pre-dawn stroll out to the end of my driveway in the fresh morning air along with spreading the pages out on the floor and reading them under my bedroom window. But at least I'm left with 2 days for that.

Thankfully the online version has larger print and is easier on my now impaired vision. That's one good thing! Besides all the flashes, floaters, and the big shadow in my left eye; I now have 2 more floaters to drive me straight up the walls! One is high up on my left eye & is always flying around like an annoying gnat. The other flashes across my right eye like a comet.

Seems I'm spending most of my time (too much) online now.

I'm just hoping there won't be numerous power outages in the coming year and beyond. But then, this is Vero Beach where they refuse to bury the lines, so I'm not optimistic. That's one thing that will probably never change!

And the mystery of the Egyptian Mau has been solved! The kitty belongs to a new neighbor.