PNewL PNewS 24.2, June 2016

PNewL PNewS 

  Volume 24 Issue 2      “All the pnews that phits.”               June 2016

Namibia!

       One of the reasons I often say that I went to Namibia was because I wanted to be able to say I had been there. I have found many people don’t know where it is and have a bit of a hard time pronouncing it. But really, the main reason I went was because some seasoned travelers I know or met on the road said it was their favorite trip... ever. And then Betsy, my smart strategic travel mentor said she was going and I asked if I could come. And I went—and I am glad.

       I have a very hard time saying “Favorite Trip Ever”—it’s like picking a favorite child or pet. They are all my favorite though some were better in different ways than others. It’s complicated. This trip was incredibly satisfying in so many ways; it’s hard not to list it at the top of or close to the top of a list, if I had one. Namibia is a crazy amazing gorgeous friendly country—and our guide Orlando, voted #2 in the world by Wanderlust World Guide Awards in 2015 (and former captain of the national soccer team), is a national treasure and really a great ambassador for his country.

       We started in Windhoek (pronounced kinda like vendhuck), which is the capitol, and located pretty much smack dab in the middle. We headed north to a game preserve that works with AfriCat, a big cat (and a few wild dogs) rescue organization. They have some stunning lodgings and almost 50,000 acres for wandering. We had cheetah outside our outdoor shower and warthogs in the front yard. We were upgraded and our room was a lovely maze of dressing room, kitchen, two large comfy beds with big fat squishy duvets and windows facing the animals, gorgeous art, and a bathtub surrounded by candles. This was going to be hard to beat. 

       Continuing north we spent a couple days driving around Etosha National Park where we saw lions and though no tigers or bears, we saw a lifetime supply of springbok, oryx, zebra and a good number of elephant, red hartebeest, jackals, two hyena and a rhinoceros, among others. Very satisfying time of it. This is a pretty unforgiving landscape with boreholes to create some of the life saving water holes that attract the animals. Orlando drove to one specific waterhole at 9:30am in search of elephants. They were running a little late—arrived around 9:40. They are apparently creatures of habit, like many of us, and they need their morning bath and water. Watching the parade of elephants of many different ages was really awe-inspiring—and like everything in Namibia, they were accompanied by a cloud of dust.

       From Etosha, we headed west to visit Himba folks at a settlement a wee bit off the beaten track. These types of visits, to tribal people living a very different life from ours, are always awkward to me but it was pretty, their lifestyle IS different and it was brief. From the Kalahari, we headed west and south into a land that reminded me a lot of southern Utah—red sand, large rock formations, great sunsets. Damaraland. Oh my. The sunsets. And the desert adapted elephants! And, oh just everything.

      Continuing south and west to the Shipwreck Coast and Swakopmund. Love that name. En route, we passed the area where “Mad Max: Fury Road” was filmed. After filming, the crew removed everything related to the shoot and even hired locals to rake the desert so that you would never know they were there. This is a delicate environment and their tire tracks would have lived on for generations.

       Swakopmund is a charming seaside town (which provided an opportunity for some “retail therapy”) surrounded by large expanses of sand dunes. To the south, it goes on for hundreds of miles. We flew over those sand dunes and it was fascinating. The dunes towards the ocean are…well, sand colored. As we went further inland, the sand was “cooked” a reddish-bronzy-orange. The views from above were breathtaking.      

       Oh my, how I do go on but I can’t stop here—some of the best is yet to come: we drove into the sand dunes of Soussusvlei at dawn as the light was gorgeous and before the winds got so fierce we couldn’t see through the blowing sand. We got sand in our teeth but wow. Just wow. And then we walked into the desert for two nights of sleeping under the stars in our own little sand dune suites in one of the darkest places in the world—they are a “Gold-tier International Dark Sky Reserve.” I have never seen the stars like this—I would wake up in the middle of the night and just watch. The Milky Way was muddy with stars—in a good way! One shooting star looked like a piece of popcorn rather than the usual streak we see here. And we were introduced to some of the little critters who make the desert their home and how they manage under these incredibly challenging conditions. (Most of them are truly little, as in bugs, but there are mammals and birds as well. Gotta appreciate their chutzpah!)

     It is a country worthy of all of these superlatives. I could go on some more--just writing this brings it all back in such a warm and fuzzy way--but I am sensing your eyelids are getting tired and your minds are drifting back to the here and now so my final words to you, should you have an interest, opportunity and amazing good fortune:

     Go to Namibia! See the animals. Experience the environment. Breathe the sand.

Things I am Learning

& Miscellaneous Observations

• One of the charming things about elephants is the way they look like they are smiling. Now that I think of the animals that we are naturally drawn to—dolphin, manatee, elephants, otters—they are all smiling.

• I had a great birthday this year. I may have learned something about creating my perfect day or, in this case, weekend—doing what I want rather than allowing myself to commit to something ahead that I may not want to do by birthday morn. This year, I went to a blacksmithing festival with Pam and mid-way she said, let's see if we can get into this restaurant, which I have always wanted to go to…and we got a table! And the neighbors mowed my lawn, and my other neighbors say they are going to plumb my new shower and I had dinner with a high school friend and her husband. Birthday Eve, I went out with two guys from across the road and had a lot of fun and in the afternoon, went to Hot Springs for a hot tub. And the day after my birthday? NOTHING. A perfect weekend.

• A month after the remodelers left—I found a sandwich to go box under the table in my sewing room, which I apparently had put there while storing lots of other stuff. The sandwich was long gone (thankfully) but most of the potato chips were still there. Stale, thankfully.

• In case you were wondering, I don’t like to be called Peg. Seems to be coming up a lot lately so I thought I would mention it.

• Two minutes in the life of a puppy: Jump up on the chaise notice bone and settle in get up take the bone to the other chaise (hopping, always hopping) stop look what was that noise turn around in circles remember bone hop where’s Roger oh look a thread chew on it tug on it bite into the cushion was that a noise is it edible jump down and go to find oh look a toy that squeaks once twice three four five a bug I think that might be edible and it’s moving stops moving under paw bite the table leg no let’s gnaw on it oh look Roger wants to play bite his foot ear roll over when he growls play non-alpha dog bite him again let’s play let’s run what’s that let’s bite it green leaves of plant ick chew and drool bone take it to the chaise and repeat.

• This new strategy of orgs sending out duplicate emails saying the same thing and wondering if maybe I missed reading it the first time is annoying. Just stop. Grrrr.

• Foster dog #6: Josie came to stay for a little over two weeks. She was a puppy, I admit it, and she was a doll baby. Started a little rough with a lot of biting and scratching and chewing, but soon I was attuned to it and had toys at the ready. She was self-confident and funny and she loved Roger. She learned fast, including how to escape through the fence. She was smart and funny and settled in quite quickly. Roger took a little bit more time but not much. When I dropped her off at the spay clinic which was going to be the last time I saw her, I had a moment’s pause…should I be a foster failure and keep her? Two days later, she was off the adoption list. She had found her forever home. Here’s to a good life little buddy!

• Roger is still limping but he uses his leg more often than not so I am trying to be optimistic. Which is hard.

• Forgot to mention: I got to see flamingos in Namibia! Flamingos--twice in one year! How am I going to top that? Hmm. Better start working on it…

• Outdoor showers are the best—and mine is up there with the greats. You have an open invitation. Bring your own towel.

These two quotes are from an interview on On Being (NPR) with Kevin Kling. 

The first was said to him by a friend.

“You can survive anything with a sense of humor and a sense of self.”

“If you are able-bodied, it’s only a temporary condition.”

PNewL PNewS 24th year, 1st issue!

  PNewL PNewS

Volume 24 No. 1                            “All the pnews that phits.”                       March 2016

First Quarter Update

It has been a bit of a roller coaster start to the year at my house. Roger tore his dog’s-equivalent-of-an-ACL while romping in the snow as neighbors were building a snowman. Fun afternoon resulted in a long-term pain in his leg. We are sleeping on the floor so Roger doesn’t get inspired to jump up on the bed. Next, the nice crew (and they were nice) of men came to install new flooring. (I am trying to do some things to the house to enjoy for years rather than home improving in time to move. I am not moving anywhere that I know of but it’s time to bang out a few jobs and now this one is done.) It was painless—they installed the floor around us. The guys were fast and pleasant and yes, flooring is crazy expensive, but I am very happy.

Next there was surgery and for a couple days, good drugs to keep Roger quiet. The shave job was dramatic. A few days later, I went to Mexico and Roger recuperated at Puppy Camp with Bonnie, our angel and the one who makes my travel possible. This was another trip with Grassroots International who I traveled with to Brazil a few years back. We went to Oaxaca and Chiapas, travelling around to meet their partners. It was inspiring and charming. The relationships are deep and meaningful. The respect on both sides is visible and heart felt. David, who had been on the Brazil trip, said “They knocked it out of the park again.” Indeed! I was so pleased to be a part of this delegation and to see these beautiful parts of Mexico too. Then, I went off on my own for a few days to the Yucatan where I drove! Saw some ruins! And even better: Flamingos! It was good fun.

When I came back, Roger had not made much progress towards healing and when I finally convinced the vet staff that things really weren’t going well, they let me come back in and the vet said, “I was afraid of this—it didn’t feel quite right at the two week check-up” and I wish they had let me come in a week or two ago and we would be a week or two ahead of where we are now which is recovering from surgery NUMBER 2. For an unexplained reason, the band (whatever that is) loosened and his drawer movement (whatever that is) was not right. Now we are on the road to recovery and he is walking a little on his leg (slowly, on a leash) and I have some hope, though walking slowly on a leash is not something either one of us is good at. 

Then the painters came and they were fine though said they’d be here early and never were. I am pleased with the paint and the clean crispness of the way things look. Everything is still in boxes though I am making progress there, we are still sleeping on the floor, the mess and inability to find anything is annoying to me who has a high tolerance for this sort of thing, and I have moments of self-pity that bore even me. But as the saying goes, this too shall pass and it has and the sun is out, leaves are leafing, flowers are blooming and all is well.

Bring it on, 2^nd Quarter!

Diet Update: 

Just thought I should report on the time since Day 12 when last I was telling you about the Whole 30 (The people who wrote it are Hartwig and Hartwig, not Hartwick and Hartwick as I wrote in the last issue.) 

After Roger trashed his knee, the diet became less of an issue. I wasn’t going anywhere so I wasn’t tempted by much. One of the ideas of the Whole 30 is rebooting habits, eliminating cravings and snacking. It can get confusing because they do allow some energy bars and nuts which to me fall into the snacking category. These are the things one worries about when sleeping on the floor and worrying about a hopping dog.

One of my favorite parts of this process, along with losing weight and getting my numbers in the right place was the new recipes. I can get into a rut and now I have two new cookbooks and a long list of new websites to rely on to eat “clean.”

A couple months out, I am trying to stick with the restrictions at home. It works pretty well. I find I do better with the restrictions because I am really not good at saying “when.” Saying No is easier than saying, I’ll just have a few of those cheese crackers, thanks Robin! I learned that big time. I also learned that paying attention to what I eat is the key to doing it right—it’s pretty much the same as what I just said. Being mindful is really a great idea…when I remember. And the most practical thing I learned is that if I put a bed of spinach or other greens at the bottom of a bowl of soup or stew or under protein or well, anywhere, I sneak in another dose of vegetables. Ta-da!

Things I am Learning & Miscellaneous Observations

• As I am waiting for the printer to print out tax-related documents, I opened up the online guide to the cell phone I’ve had for over a year and learned a few things I wanted to know. Yippee.

• Don’t you hate it when a recipe says you can get this in most grocery stores and you can’t get it at any of your usual haunts?

• I often pull out pages from the newspaper to save til later—the pages I am actually going to read, since there are plenty I won’t or more accurately don’t need to. Recently I found a page I had pulled out from October 2015 (hey, that’s nothing. I’m still toting around some NY Times magazines from 2013…). The main article is about the new Family Justice Center—a one-stop location for victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse. It “streamlines services,” bringing together representatives from a bunch of different organizations to one building so an already traumatized person doesn’t have to wander all over town, from one office to the next, to get help. Smart, eh? I am in a giving circle that is focusing on groups working on everything from sexting to elder abuse, including sexual assault, domestic violence and human trafficking so we are really excited about the FJC. That’s the do-gooder part of my story. On the same page in the newspaper, there is the newspaper poll, which is a daily question and then a pie chart illustrating the responses. October 2^nd’s question was “Would you buy moonshine locally?” Yes: 74%, No 26%. This was of interest to me: would this question show up in the paper of any other place I have lived? And the 26% Nos…is it that they want to go elsewhere to buy moonshine or they would never buy moonshine or they don’t have to buy it because Bubba is making it out back? The person at the liquor store told me that moonshine is going to be available in small bottles starting in May—that’s when they introduce new products at the ABC stores. Mark your calendars.

• Today, I called the nice man up the road who has heavy equipment (I don’t know what it’s called—a four year old probably would know). I left a message that the driveway got bunged up in this winter’s rains and I would love it if he could come down and straighten it out. He called right back and said he was on his way. He fixed it up. He kept going down the road and returning with loads of dirt and gravel—he said it was our tax money that paid for it when they graded the road and the rain washed it down where no one was using it. Then he got down for a chat. First he apologized for not calling me back (wonder which time it was he was referring to). He said he remembered two weeks later and by then he was kinda embarrassed. His memory isn’t quite what it used to be. He had all kinds of stories about places he used to grouse hunt that are now covered in houses and the roads that used to be dirt and are now busy paved thoroughfares. It was a gorgeous day and neither of us was in much of a hurry. Another example of why I like where I live.

• I am hunkered down in the sewing room while the painters rummage around the house. Roger is still recovering from his second knee surgery. The floors are in (old dog pee carpet is a distant memory)...I believe we are on the far side of this mostly self-inflicted pain but it couldn't end soon enough. Yesterday I put the laptop cord somewhere and can't find it. Laptop's dead. My passport disappeared into some box and I am going to need it soon. My calendar is MIA—and I really don’t have a brain for dates any more. (Editor’s note: All of these were found…eventually. The passport was the final one to reappear and it was just in time. I was getting really nervous.)

• The worst part of dog ownership is not being able to explain stuff to them. The other worst part is their life expectancy. Everything else is perfect, well, mostly.

• One of the funny parts of traveling alone is I wind up listening to a lot of other people's conversations (it's a mixed bag). I don’t often wish I were part of them.

• When the vet told me that Roger had to have a second surgery I realized he's afraid of me (the vet, not Roger)--I told him he could just shoot Roger and I rather than make us go through this all again. I have to remember I can't say those kinds of things to people who don't know me very well!

• There was a house fire on my road. I know the people whose house it is—or should I say was? It’s 40-50% damaged—tragic, though thankfully no one was hurt, not even the cat though the house sitter may be in a world of hurt along with the homeowners. I can't imagine how they are feeling. Meanwhile, several people heard about it on the news. I realize I may be missing something by only listening to NPR and not having TV. Didn't hear the fire trucks, smell smoke or see it on the news.

• I had to go to the County Travel Clinic to get a prescription for malaria meds and to see if I needed any shots. I did. Typhoid expired three months ago, tetanus too, and while we’re at it, let’s go for flu shot and Hep B. Ouch. But I have to say, it’s a pretty cheery spot. Everyone there was so friendly to each other and me. I had some time to listen to the conversations. There was a new guy who was being introduced to his fellow employees and everyone was so welcoming. And the woman who talked to me about shots and mosquitos was hilarious. They don’t move fast but they sure are pleasant to hang with.

Nothing is so common as the wish to be remarkable. Shakespeare

PNewL PNewS 23-5. Happy New Year!

PNewL PNewS

Volume 23 No. 5                         “All the pnews that phits.”                                January 2016

               A New Year, a New Obsession

What’s the best way to follow a pretty unhappy holiday season? Change your diet…drastically. It will take away all memories of that hot sticky unhappiness and set you on a new course for the new year. It will distract you beyond your wildest imagination. It will make you feel worse before you feel better. It’s a major rollercoaster of a way to start 2016, both physically and mentally. Remember this is all about me—you don’t have to do it, because I am. And it is all of the above and more.

A couple months ago I was at the doctor’s and we were talking about my health and he said, we can fix a lot of that through diet…but (I don’t remember what he said—something like) it’s going to be big. After a bit of back and forth, I asked where wine fit in, he looked at me funny: “It doesn’t—not for a while.” I knew it was going to be big. He told me to get these two books, one of which I have not managed to read and the other I’ve read most of—a lot is recipes so that was easy reading. The recipes have almost all been good. The rest of the words make a lot of sense.

            So I practiced on the recipes, quit wine during the week, in preparation for a January 1 start date. We figured starting even before sad holidays would be setting me up for a possible disaster. Even making the small changes made my clothes fit better. I was intrigued.

            While I was in Florida, I kept reading the book (Whole30 by Hartwick & Hartwick) and telling Gini about it. She’s a science-oriented person and the more research she did on it, the more she thought it made sense and the more she wanted to do it. She wound up starting a day ahead of me. She cleaned out her freezer, fridge and pantry. I shoved everything “non-compliant” aside. I did remove things I thought might present temptation down the road.

            A short version of the idea behind it (this is short and though hopefully not inaccurate, it is incomplete and it is my interpretation): Eliminate a lot of food options to encourage my body to use fat for fuel rather than sugar. It’s a habit reset, a detox of a variety of food habits/addictions. And the stuff eliminated? Dairy, grains, legumes, sugar (alcohol), soy, very limited vegetable oil, (there must be something else—I never seem to be able to list all the Nos in one list). It’s Paleo plus (or minus). Apparently in Paleo there is some room for desserts, breads etc if made from the right ingredients. Whole30? None, nada, never. In the book and on the website, there is much discussion of pancakes. Apparently folks want to figure out how to make a compliant pancake and the beast doesn’t exist. It is not allowed. Ever.

            So I got home and went through my kitchen. I did throw out anything in the freezer from 2013 and anything I didn’t recognize. I emptied the top shelf of the fridge and one shelf in the pantry. And then I went to the store. This is an epic experience. I hope it gets easier. Reading labels is crazy. Reading labels during the week between Christmas and New Year’s annoys just about everyone, especially at some place like Trader Joe’s. Ask me how I know. Sugar, wheat and soy is in EVERYTHING including supplements. After spending a bundle at TJ’s and the healthy grocery store and a little at the regular grocery store, I was ready to go, and it was only December 30^th. I had a martini (or two) and decided to start the following day. I was a wreck.

            And I was a wreck for about four days. I was totally obsessed with cooking and meal plans and cleaning up (which is not my strong suit), and reading labels (still, just in case. I did find some sugar in a TJ’s spaghetti sauce I had read was okay. Dang.) In the book, there is a timeline of how you are going to feel each day based on thousands of others who have done this. It has played out pretty accurately so far. I am writing this on Day 12 and the timeline says I could be having weird food dreams and I did have a food dream last night but I only vaguely remember it. It also says this is the time for weird cravings. I am not sure of that but I do find when I hear something—a woman in the book I am listening to took a heckuva long time to make a martini yesterday which made me think about it—it sounds kind of interesting but when I come up with things on my own that I used to eat a lot, it doesn’t always sound tempting. Wine does not sound interesting at all. Weird, eh?

            Day 12 of 30, and then re-entry when I leave for Mexico, the land of beans and grains. Is this sustainable? I don’t know. It’s not all that fun when I go out into the world. I don’t like being the person who grills the waiter about the recipe for the meal, but maybe I will. Patsy and Ernie and I go to a restaurant all the time and I have been thinking about stopping in and asking some questions before we go there. I admit, despite a slight headache right this very moment (probably from sitting at the computer too long), I do feel better in general. For the first time in a long time, I think I may need a belt (as in around my middle, not at a bar). My psyche feels lighter – yeah, I’m not sure what that means either, but go with it. I haven’t yelled at anyone on the phone. It all feels right to me. We shall see what the future brings.

This would normally be where my “Things I am Thankful For” and new year’s resolutions reside. If you really miss it, read last year’s edition. Same same. Here’s to you for reading this!

Things I am Learning

& Miscellaneous Observations

• I forgot to mention in the last PNewS that I actually bought a new car. As I mentioned in the issue before that, it was a huge decision because I was attached to my old car in an emotional way. Actually, it was pretty easy. (Well, it wasn’t really because I went to two different dealerships that paid us little attention. One did not have the car I wanted and the other didn’t seem interested in showing me any of the gobs they had on the lot. What’s that about?) Once I found the car I wanted, I drove it, signed some papers, gave the folks a pile of money and drove away. It occurred to me the last time I bought a car (new 1992 Toyota truck), the newest innovation was cup-holders. Cars have come a long way, baby.

• My wonderful neighbors came to me and said they were planning to do some clearing on the property behind my house. They wanted me to know exactly what they had in mind. It is their property and really, they can do whatever they want but it was so kind of them to keep me in the loop. Susan said they wanted a project—I know that feeling. Jeff said they are putting in a mobile home park, a tasteful one. Sure Jeff.

They hired a nice man with a lot of big equipment. In the way that contractors probably get sick of hearing, I said, “As long as you are here…” and soon, the hump in the middle of the backyard was gone! That hump, which I had tried to put steps up to the top, turning it into a garden, was in the way. When I was buying the house, we joked that Ray had buried his ex-wife there. Then somehow I got it in my head there was a big tree stump that Ray had buried rather than pull out. Turns out there was a rock the size of a kitchen stove under there. I missed its removal but we all loved the idea of Ray sitting up there shaking his head and laughing. He knew what was under there and why—it weighed a ton. But it’s now at the entrance to the future Big Rock Mobile Home Park & Jamboree and my backyard is wide open and ready for…a project.

• I got new glasses recently. I am tired of taking off and putting on readers. And as the woman who sells me glasses likes to point out, there is correction in the other part of the glasses. I’m on trifocals/progressives. Proof that I am old. I really like ‘em but I feel like my eyes are getting lazy (or maybe just old). I can see perfectly fine without them but when I take them off and, say, try to watch TV, well, it all gets a little warbly.

• Fostering update: Over Thanksgiving, I took on two foster puppies. I know, I know. I said, no more puppies. And then I got two--because they are small? Because two keep each other company? I am bleeping nuts, I agree. Anyway, they were “black lab mixes/eight weeks old” (all black shelter dogs are lab mixes and all shelter puppies are eight weeks old), and they needed a home between vaccinations…over the holiday. This was yet another challenging situation. They were nowhere near house trained—despite going out every 15 minutes whether we needed to or not, they pooped, peed and threw up constantly (often while looking right at me…who me?). They could climb out of the pen I had set up in the kitchen and they were strong and determined. They harassed Roger mercilessly so that he wound up spending most of the 12 days on my bed. And they were hilarious and cute. I have to nudge myself to say all the annoying parts because they were funny and that part is easier to remember.

     I was going to name them Mutt and Jeff but when I got home, four-year-old neighbor Henry was hanging out and I thought he might like naming one. He picked Hagrid because that was the name of his grandmother’s old dog, so they were Hagrid and Jeff. The woman at the shelter who checked them back in liked the names. Meanwhile, I am in the process of removing the carpet and replacing it with liquid resistant flooring. I am prepared for the next invasion, but not quite yet…

• I spent Christmas on Sanibel. I am not going to go into many details as it was not my favorite experience there. Man, it was hot..and humid…in December. One of my favorite parts was the 75^th birthday party we threw for Carol. Gini, I think, had this idea to collect 75 things to give her. We asked the folks who were coming to look around for things to add. Carolyn said, I’m in for ten. Soon, we had more than enough. When we told the checker at Bailey’s what we were doing, she donated a re-useable grocery bag. It was hilarious the things people had in their homes that they were willing to part with. We laughed…a lot.

• I am getting a little tired of auto correct. Now I need to proof a msg not just for my mistakes but the crazy things that Safari decides to do with my typing.

• I think the reason AARP exists is to prepare you for being a Senior--they hit you up long before you are ready and soften you to the idea that it's coming. I don’t know what the definition of Senior is but I feel like it’s coming a little early. I called the company that delivers propane and during a conversation about something else, I asked them what the 6+ on my bill was for. She said “senior discount.” I don’t mind discounts but, I am not 6+…or am I? I am thinking I may try coloring my hair.

“Yours is the harder course, I can see. On the other hand, mine is happening to me.” Philip Larkin