Day 266: Getting My Writer’s Dojo On & Playing Bocce in the Park Blocks

Sunday, June 8

As I had been longing for a full night’s sleep, I was delivered yet another great one.  This time, 9.5 uninterupted hours of glorious sleep.

I got up and got to my routine of warm water in my neti pot with French sea salt, and then 45 drops of my Wellness supplement.  I had two gluten-free buckwheat waffles with raspberries and blueberries, and then I got dressed.

I packed up my novel, my writer’s notebook and my copy of Elizabeth Lyon’s book on writing nonfiction book proposals.  I headed out to the St. Johns neighborhood to work at the Writers Dojo, commencing my membership, only no one was there.  I decided to walk to Starbucks for a green tea latte.

When I returned, the director instructed me to let myself in, I picked out a desk and then got to work on my book.  It was lovely.  I had the place to myself.   It was a perfect day outside, blue skies, sunny.  The windows invited in lots of light and I felt happy.  About an hour into my work, the director and his wife stopped by with their adorable baby girl.

After they left, I was starting to get hungry.  I walked over to vegan market and picked up vegan corn tortilla tacos filled with grilled and curry seasoned vegetables, along with a bottle of Hot Lips blackberry soda – local, seasonal, sustainable, very good!  And all natural.  I brought the food back to the Dojo, and worked on edits.

After, I drove to the Park Blocks and was to meet Susan for bocce.  As I waited, I shot hoops and enjoyed the fact that I had a wonderful day in a writer’s room, feeling like the writer I have been working so hard to become.  Eventually Susan showed up and we played a short game of bocce, about 8 or 10 games, or so.  It was really relaxing and fun.

 

After bocce, we walked up to Andina and shared four small plates, tapas style from the gluten free menu, to include scallops, greens salad, octopus, pimientos stuffed peppers.  I ordered an enchanting pina colada, and later, Susan and I split a gluten free chocolate torte with caramel ice cream.  I finished it with a cup of decaf coffee.  The service, as always, was amazing.  These people are just on it.  I decided to fill out a comment card to let them know how grateful I was for the gluten free menu and for the typical, amazing service.  It made me feel good to write my favorable critique.

It was a gorgeous Sunday.  I was happy and delighted with my Writer’s Dojo time, mostly.  I have a lot of work to do, for my writing.  But I am truly motivated.  I can feel things happening, the wheels turning.   I know I am going to get published.  This is my one true thing right now.  And I couldn’t be more happy for it.

Read Full Post »

Day 265: A Day of Recovery & Then Spotting Cute Men in Portland

Saturday, June 7

Well, for once I broke the cycle of poor sleep, coming out of a week of painful, horrible congestion.  I actually got over ten hours of sleep!  I woke up around noon.  I never sleep that late, but I clearly needed restorative sleep.

I spent the day in front of the television and watched Shakespeare in Love.  I just watched this not that long ago, but I didn’t care.  It’s such a sweet, romantic and clever movie.

I relaxed and used my neti pot when my nasal passages opened a little.  I took my Wellness supplement drops.  I did feel better, but mostly from all of the sleep.

I got a phone call from Carolyn and she invited me to go out.  Her high school friend was in from New York City, along with two other co-workers.  I showered and was grateful for the opportunity to have the steam open me up.  I quickly got dressed and Carolyn picked me up while I was still applying my make-up.  She came in and I rushed to get myself together.

I wanted to pick up my prescription, but when we got to Safeway, the pharmacy was already closed, so we went to Starbuck’s and I picked up a box of Breathe Right Nasal Strips to go with my green tea latte.  I figured, I should probably advertise their product on this blog site!

Anyway, we met her friend, Kathy, and her two co-workers, at the Hotel Monaco.  It was fun to hang out with New Yorkers.  We went to Oba in the Pearl District and grabbed a table in the bar area.  I ordered a Maker’s Manhattan and chips with queso con chorizo.  Susan met us soonafter.  We spent about an hour longer there and after a bitching session over the rising gas prices, we decided it was time to change venues.  Kathy’s co-worker generously picked up the tab.

Next, we went to the new Deschutes pub.  There were a lot of cute guys at the bar, in particular a guy who looked like the love child of Rob Lowe and Brad Pitt.  He was hot.  I drank a glass of our Pinot gris.  I flirted a little with the hot Robrad (you know, Bennifer, Tomkat, etc.) model and his friend.  I knew he was a model because I overheard his friend mention it to another girl.  Which was lame, of course.  But, he was too pretty to stop looking at, especially after he removed his jacket and immediately became the poster child for tight, black t-shirt.  WOW. 

I also kept smiling at this very cute guy in a brown argyle sweater with a light beard.  He reminded me of Graham from The Bachelorette.  Yeah, I’ll admit I let that show on when I’m busy doing other stuff.  I sometimes look up just to see the abs on the dudes the bachelorette gets to date.  It’s not fair.

Anyway, Susan and I decided we have to come back to this place.  As I had suggested many times before, we have been going to all the wrong places.  The foodie places we love to frequent are corners of Portland where straight men pretty much fear to tread with their buds.  No.  The single men are at dive bars, sports bars and Rogue or Deschutes – the real pubs.

I had a nice conversation with the Neopolitan surgeon from NYC, one of Kathy’s co-workers.  We talked about 9-11, NYC, being Italian, and we even spoke in Italian.  Just some fragments, really.  But it was a fun night.

After Carolyn dropped me off, I ran upstairs.  It was freezing out.  In fact, we had spent much of the evening complaining about the dark, gray sky and cold, cold weather.  It was more like March than June.  Carolyn told me that I must have picked up what she, her husband and kids had – a really bad cold of massive congestion and sore throats.  Mystery solved.  I forgot about hanging out at their house last weekend, and her 18 month old little girl sneezed on me – a chunk of green phlegm splatted on my jeans.  I just got a rag and wiped it up, no big deal.  Most kids have snotty noses, runny eyes and coughing fits, anyway.  That’s normal.  It didn’t occur to me that I would pick up whatever they were passing around.  At least I knew that I wasn’t getting some crazy sinus infection for no reason.

Anyway, I fed my kitties and got ready to go to sleep.  After rinsing my sinuses with my neti pot, I prayed that I would be able to sleep.

 

Read Full Post »

Day 263: News Report – Why Men Fear Marriage

Thursday, June 5

Wait.  Is this really June?  Really?  Well, so far this June sucks.  It’s more like March.  It’s cold out.  It’s cloudy and gray.  Oh yeah, it’s Portland.  Where did I think I was when I woke up?

Anyway.  I could rant on and on about how messed up the seasons are out here.  But when it’s good, man, it’s unbelievable.  Portlanders have to hang on to that, grasp it like a dream, else crazy takes over.  Seriously.

Anyway, I woke up groggy.  But I got out of bed and took a warm shower – it was like an Irish Spring commercial.  Well, not really.  But I have some amazing aromatherapy body scrubs and washes (in ginger, lemongrass, citrus, rosemary and sage) that seriously do invigorate.  Won’t change your life, but will get your butt to work.

Again with the neti pot and Wellness supplement.  That’s been my sinus infection exit strategy.  So far, so good.  And by the time I left the house I was feeling better, or at least clear.  But about mid-commute I was getting congested.  It’s so weird, the way of my nasal passages.

I got to work and took a Claritan-D.  I then made a cup of Yogi Chammomile tea and got back to work.  

Oh, and for lunch I had the best gluten free sandwhich I have ever had, to date.  I cut two slices of Whole Food’s Honey Oat gluten free bread, which is amazing.  The trick with gluten free bread is to stick it in the microwave for a few minutes.  This minimizes the typical crumbling.  I added organic smoked turkey breast (no nitrates or hormones, etc.), fresh, organic Romaine lettuce, organic white cheddar cheese slices and mustard.  I also had an organic dill pickle.  It was a great lunch!

My co-worker was so sweet to bring me a gluten free chocolate cookie she picked up at Whole Foods.  I had it with some fresh cherries I brought.  The cookie was more like a brownie.  So good.

But by 4:15 I was feeling like I was going to pass out.  I very suddenly got tired and started to get warm.  Then I began to sweat a little.  Then I was hot.  I knew I had a fever again.  My co-worker gave me an Aleve and I went home.  I was done.

I ordered some chicken Pho for dinner for take out.  I was still congested.  Great.  As I sat back and ate my dinner, I heard a news report on why men are supposedly afraid of getting married.  They fear the marriage will end badly, with a bitter divorce, leaving them in financial ruin. 

On one hand, I can see their point.  But, on the other hand I find this incredibly demeaning and depressing.  First, it makes me think of nothing but greed.  I guess it really is all about money.   But, I even stated in one of my recent posts that so many marriages today are less about love, respect and companionship, and are more like business transactions.  Mergers.  Or sometimes acquisitions.  If men keep this fear or greed, or whatever you want to call it, in the back of their minds when they are making a commitment to a woman, then they are pretty much doomed, as far as I’m concerned. 

It seems to me if these men were more confident and competent in making a choice for a mate then they shouldn’t be worrying about divorce – and believe me, I know it goes both ways.  I’m just saying that a thoughtful, mature man (or woman) should be able to make a sensible decision in who he (she) chooses to marry.  And it takes a lot of hard work to make a marriage last.  

I think another part of the problem is with people who marry too young (before 30, in my opinion), as they have more than 50% chance of falling to a fate of divorce.  I think people who marry in their 20′s are a little crazy.  It seems to me that for those who grow up and live an independent adult life in their 20′s, well, they’ll have more time to become financially secure (both men and women), to figure out who they are and what they have to offer, and to discover what it is they really want out of life and a partner.  So, if you give yourself ample time to learn those very important things, by the time you’re in your thirties, and older, you are better positioned to make sensible decisions in selecting the right kind of partner and securing an enduring, strong marriage.  Statistics will teach you that.  And statistics don’t lie!!

If, I mean when I become a successful writer, and if, I mean when I meet ‘the one’, am I going to have to get him to sign a pre-nup?  Now that I know that men fear financial ruin from divorce, I don’t want to make myself, or my hard-earned financial success, fall to ruin, either.  Still, that’s so unromantic to me.  Perhaps practical, but unromantic.

It often seems like there’s no room for faith in love and marriage in today’s world.  The disease of divorce spreads too quickly like a pandemic.  It’s shocking to me how many men in their thirties are divorced in Oregon.  I’m not really sure what’s going on with the women, but I’ll assume they’re the other halves of that.  These are the guys who married in their 20′s, the guys who seem to really fear financial ruin if they marry a second time.  And who can blame them?  And if the divorce was their fault (cheating, abuse, addictions) that is likely to cost them more in a divorce, I imagine.

I guess if there’s any fear going into a potential marriage, wheather its rooted in finances, lack of self esteem, lack of trust – whatever – there’s a red flag.  And that person should know when to walk away.  But too many people settle and find themselves in less than desirable situations.  And live to regret it, in one way or another.

So, I don’t know how to resolve this issue, not that I’m trying to resolve it.  But, I think it’s silly for men to mope around with fear of marriage because they don’t want to fall to financial ruin.  If you end up making a really bad decision, especially the obvious ones, like marrying a golddigger just because she’s hot, or cheating on a sweet, devoted wife – you’re setting yourself up for financial ruin!   And I think you’re upping your chances for it, too, if you marry when you’re still a kid.  Hint to yourself -you probably shoudn’t marry if you can barely balance your checkbook

Seriously.  What is the rush??  If you meet the person you’re supposed to be with forever, then wait.  If they’re really the one, they’ll still be there when you’ve grown up a little.  Because you’re meant to be with them forever.  Right?  It’s a good test to see if you’re with the right person. 

By the time you’re in your 30′s you don’t necessarily need the same kind of test.  It’s funny.  I actually laugh when I think about my twenties.  Now.  At the time, well, my twenties were full of all kinds of growing pains.  Learning how to be fiscally responsible, figuring out what I wanted to do with my life, learning to live on my own.  These were incredibly important.  Equally important was putting myself in debt, travelling to Europe where I had a couple of amazing love stories, and chasing my dreams.

Interestingly enough, I could have been married twice in my twenties.  And I was soooo in loooove.  I was convinced that I was mature enough and ready for it.   I am so glad that I didn’t do it.  I’d either be divorced now or very unhappily married.  I am a totally different person than I was back then and it truly is a blessing that I got to have that precious time to learn so much about myself.  I really do have so much more to offer someone now at this age (34) than I ever could as a 20-something girl.  And that means I’m looking for a totally different kind of man to share my life with, as well.  But… that’s just me.

Anyway.  For those who are afraid of financial ruin from divorce, whether they were married and divorced before, or if they’re over 30, guys, lighten up and maybe get some therapy.  Everyone needs therapy, so don’t feel bad.  But, seriously, you guys need to talk to someone about those fears.  And if you’re that afraid, perhaps you’ll need a prenup to feel secure.  Nuff said.  I think I’ve beaten this dead horse beyond inhumane cause for imprisonment.

 

 

 

Read Full Post »

Day 262: Reclaiming My Health, Dating Mad Proper Style & Celebrating Redwings Victory!

Wednesday, June 4

Thank God.  I got a good night’s sleep – 9.5 hours worth.  I still decided to work from home because I needed to get this sinus infection out of my system.

I immediately flushed out my sinuses with my neti pot and then I took 15 drop of Wellness supplement.  The antibiotic seemed to be working.  And my temperature was back to normal.

I ate a gluten-free raisin bagel with whipped cream cheese, a cage-free, organic egg scrambled with a trio of Italian cheeses, and a glass of light, organic orange juice.  I had a cup of hot Matcha green tea with orange blossom honey.  It’s like I have a regimen for reclaiming my health!

I opened my laptop and got to work, checking email and following up on requests, general communication, scheduling appointments, etc.

Meantime, I had the television on in the background.  The Tyra Banks show came on and featured a young, good-looking lifestyle coach from New York City, Jared Matthew Weiss, who’s company Mad Proper was created to help people reach their full potential.  The topic of the show was ‘get off your butt’, and Weiss gave women all kinds of helpful tips to a number of life situations.  This was a repeat program that was originally aired back in January.

Weiss addressed a woman who complained there were no single men in her hometown.  He told her that there were single men in her town, but she was holding herself back.  He explained you have to figure out for yourself what’s holding you back from meeting someone?  It’s usually something within.  He then gave some useful tips for women to meet men, beginning with his 3-step program.  He said when you see someone you find attractive (at a bookstore, in the grocery store, etc.) you should first find out if they are single, then find out if they like you, then ask them out.  Then, he demonstrated how you do this in a role reversal roleplay with Tyra.

Hottie Weiss (pretending to be Tyra):  Hey there.  I was wondering if you are single?
Lucky Tyra (pretending to be Weiss):   Uh, yeah??
Hottie Weiss:  Cool.  Because I think you’re really cute.  My name is Tyra.
Lucky Tyra:  Oh, hey.  I’m Jared.  You know, you’re pretty attractive, yourself.
Hottie Weiss:  Cool.  Well, maybe we could go grab a cup of coffee sometime.
Lucky Tyra:  Let’s skip the coffee and go right to dinner… (or something to that effect)

But the point was he told women out there to get over their fears or old-fashioned ideals and ask a guy out!  In fact, Weiss challenged all the single women in the audience to ask out three men every month.  That doesn’t seem too difficult…I think. 

I saw the cutest guy at Powell’s on Sunday and I just didn’t have the confidence to say or do anything.  I just stared at him while he was seated in the home improvement section, flipping through a book, looking so cute in his army green cadet/military style cap.  My first thought was, wow, that guy can fix things.  Then I told myself the dude must be married.  He’s too cute and he’s in the home improvement section.  Taken already. 

But I did exactly what Weiss said we need to stop doing!  Stop assuming the guy out there is married, or must have a girlfriend because he’s so cute, or wouldn’t be interested in you because you’re  too short.  Go introduce yourself!  I wish I had seen this episode before seeing this cutie in Powell’s.  The challenge for me will be to see if I can actually take Weiss’s advice and approach a cute guy in this kind of situation.  Not my comfort zone.  I am traditional, old school, I like to be courted.  But, whatever.  I can change.

Then the day seemed to fly by.  At 5:00 p.m. I tuned into the Stanley Cup game.  It was an exciting game.  Meantime, I was on the phone with my mom who for the past two days had been in and out of the basement closet with my dad and our dog, Cricket, during tornado warnings in the mid-Atlantic.   Crazy!

I made a Glutino brand gluten-free personal sized pizza with spinach, feta, ricotta and mozzarella.  I drizzed some olive oil on it before baking it on the top rack.  It wasn’t very good.  I think I needed to let it bake a little longer.

The Red Wings ended up winning the game and, thus, won the Stanley Cup.  

 

Read Full Post »

Day 261: Responding to a Sinus Infection

Tuesday, June 3

I was sick just three months ago!  What’s going on??  I believe when we fall to illness it’s a sign that something’s wrong. 

I once read that when you have a sore throat it’s your body subconsciously responding to withholding something you need to tell someone, or when you’re not feeling like you’re being heard, and your throat is holding what’s backed up, literally what’s unsaid, and your immune system reacts to it the same way it would attack an allergen or toxin that enters your body.  There was a term for it, that’s slipping my mind…

There are many health challenges for those living with an autoimmune disease.  You’re more at risk for getting sick.  I haven’t been taking my one-a-day vitamins, I really haven’t been getting enough sleep each night, and I haven’t been taking my other immune enhancing supplements, like my probiotics.  What’s worse, I have been stressed.  Put all those variables together and I should not be surprised that I got sick.  Clearly, I need to get balanced.

I never went to sleep last night.  It was probably one of the worst nights of my life!  I continued to get so congested that my whole face, jaw and teeth hurt!  I couldn’t get comfortable and it’s just impossible for me to sleep when I cannot breathe.  I began to feel like I was suffocating.  What could that mean?  I mean, if a sore throat is the result of not able to say what you want to say, then does suffocating mean you couldn’t reach your prana* in yoga class?  (*prana is sanscrit for “breath” and is similar to “chi” in Chinese – it’s the life energy that runs through all things).

Anyway.   I kept getting up to drink water, then to go to the bathroom, then to go back to bed, over and over again.  Until I called my mother at 4:45 in the morning (it was 7:45 east coast time).  I just needed to hear her comforting voice.  I don’t do sick very well.  I admit I morph into a mamma’s baby.  I need to be taken care of, I need the comfort and sympathy.  I can’t help it.  That’s just me when I’m sick.

But mom didn’t sound super concerned and told me that I should just try to get back to bed, and try to sleep for a couple of hours.  So that’s what I did.  I tried.  And I managed to squeeze in one meager, hazy hour of moderate sleep.

I finally gave up and went downstairs and made myself a nourishing bowl of gluten free oatmeal and a cup of Yogi India Spice tea.  I turned on the Today Show and then called a doctor’s office within our insurance network to try to get an appointment.  I was still very painfully congested.  I administered 45 more drops of the Wellness supplement.  It’s important to keep that going.  At some point over the course of the wee hours in the morning, I tried out a sample of Nasonex that my allergist gave me.  It didn’t do a thing.  So I needed some serious relief.

I managed to schedule an appointment for the afternoon, the nurse actually squeezed me in, and then I got to work.  I checked email, responsed to a bunch of emails, worked on editing brochure copy, and wrote up a draft for a press release on the winery construction project.  I actually got a lot of work done, considering I was feeling like road kill not yet dead.

I eventually left for my doctor’s appointment and headed over to a nearby cake decorating shop to pick up a cake top decoration for a co-worker’s birthday cake.  On my way back home I stopped by Safeway and used a gift card my mom had sent me, which was so nice.  I bought some essentials, including KleenEx with aloe lotion and cocoa butter cream with vitamin E for my very raw and irritated nose and upper lip – thanks to all the rough tissue I had been using.  I also picked up more Riccola losenges.   And then more orange juice and fresh cherries.

I had called in an order of chicken pho with rice noodles from Pacific Breeze.  I brought it home and enjoyed the super comforting heat and flavors of the soup.  And then it was back to work, checking and responding to emails.  I took my first antibiotic for my sinus infection.

FREE TIP:  I must say the cocoa butter was the best thing I had ever used on a sore, raw nose from too much tissue action!  I used to use Nose Better, but it would sting and it was too gooey.  The cococa-B plus v-E not only did not sting, but it soothed almost immediately.  My face is less red and irritated because of it.

I was slowly opening up, the congestion still there but not quite so bad.  And my throat was still sore, but again, not like the night before.  I was able to use my neti pot, with salts from the south of France, now that my sinuses were opening up.

Later, I made myself Amy’s Kitchen Tamale Verdi in cheese.  I had a few gluten free flax and corn chips.  I drank a cup of Matcha green tea with orange blossom honey.  I felt like I got an even balance of healthy food and plenty of fluids, sustenance rich in antioxidants, omega 3s, the kind of stuff that boosts your immune system and helps fight inflamation. 

But by the evening I was really hot and dazed.  I took my temperature and had a 100.8 fever.  I only had two Tylenol, which expired in May.  I was tired and groggy.  I had some fresh cherries and a cherry-raspberry popsickle, which was soothing to my burning, raw throat.  I then took three flax seed oil supplements and another dose of Wellness herbal drops.

On the news, Clinton simply stated in her speech tonight that she would make no decisions tonight.  She didn’t concede, nor did she indicate whether or not she would accept the Vice Presidential candidate for Obama’s ticket.  18 million votes was pretty amazing.  I was proud of her.  It wasn’t an easy campaign and she did really well.

I tried to meditate and clear myself a little so that I could get some restorative and much needed sleep.

Read Full Post »

Day 196: Springtime Allergies, Baseball Movies & Mississippi Pizza

Sunday, March 30
10:15 p.m.

I woke up very congested.  I don’t know if it’s from stress or allergies, or both.  There is pollen fallen from my peace lilies upstairs in my meditation room.  I feel the most pressure and itchiness in my eyes when I’m at home.   Oh yeah, all that along with killer sneezing.

I didn’t feel great and didn’t motivate to go to church.  Instead, one of the television networks was doing a baseball movie marathon to get ready for the baseball season opener.  First, I watched A League of Their Own.  I had forgotten how much I loved this movie.  After, I watched The Rookie, another feel good movie.

I then did some laundry and cleaned my bathroom upstairs.  I showered and got dressed, put on some make-up, and got ready for my friend’s birthday party in the Mississippi neighborhood.

For dinner, I made myself a scrambled egg wrap (mixed with cheese, red onion, orange bell pepper and topped with orange tomatoes) in a corn tortilla with a side of organic salt and pepper fries.  I ate and then headed out to the Mississippi Pizza Pub. 

When I got there, a Cuban band was just getting started.  While the group enjoyed many beautiful pizzas and pitchers of beer, I ordered a small spinach salad and a rootbeer.  After we ate, we went to the back room, a very cool smaller bar area.  We could still hear the band, which was really good.  The music made me think of Miami.  I missed the warm beaches and sexy atmosphere of Miami – back east, I used to open and close my summers down in Miami Beach.  Ay carumba.

I decided to have one drink.  So I had a Manhattan with Makers Mark and orange bitters served straight up with a lovely orange peel curl.  I sipped on it.  And when the birthday cake was cut, I took a corner piece and only ate the icing.  I knew I was being a little risky, with gluten all over my plate.  I shouldn’t have gone for the cake icing.

It was nice to catch up with friends in the wine industry and I met a handful of new people.  When I got home, Shadow was waiting patiently at my door, mewing as usual.  I pat him on the head and went inside for some food.   After feeding the cats, I went upstairs, put on my pajamas and pulled out my neti pot.  It’s been a long time since I’ve needed to pull out the neti pot.  I added several dashes of sel gris, ran warm water into the pot and tried to clear my clogged nose and ear passages.    It worked a little.  I took my last Claritan-D a couple hours before, but it wasn’t clearing me up.

But, I did get significantly more congested when I got home.  I think I should vacuum up the pollen that’s fallen from the peace lily.  And I still think I would benefit from an air purifier.  

 

Read Full Post »