Getting things done, or not…

 

Reflections on procrastination.

Ah, there are days!

I have a whole day all to myself, something that is rather rare, at least until English conversation at 16:00, so I had great plans for sorting, filing, tossing and the like.

People intervene – and that is my life and I like it!

 

First of all I needed cat food having discovered last night that I had no more wet food. Both cats were looking on and very anxious for their nightly dinner. Fortunately I did have a tin of cat tuna or not quite sure if they would have forgiven me. So needing cat food I debated which store and decided to not cross the border, then remembered that the best store for their brand was one of the three that I hadn’t been to for awhile.  On the way there, I caved (had planned on no lunch dates) and called a friend on the off chance that she would be available as she is sometimes here, but usually busy, but often in Southern France where I really can’t just call and make a lunch date. She was so that’s Date number 1.

 

Finally at the store I promptly ran into another friend, and as luck would have it, she was available for coffee, so we did. Lovely interlude.

 

Home finally just an hour before I need to go back out for my luncheon date and suddenly “work” not quite as attractive, so a few computer games and this blog later…

 

Perhaps after lunch I’ll be more productive? Or not. There are days.

And people will ALWAYS come first in my life – that is what makes it so good.

 

Reflections in the countryside

 

Friends

 

I receive magazines from one friend that I read and pass on to another; I buy magazines that I read then pass on to the first friend, then when I get them back I pass on to another…. Old friends, good friends!

 

So, when in a recent one of said magazines I read my horoscope “You may be changing your social circle. Old friends may be dropping away, making room for new connections that will help you to grow more” I thought, horrors, no, no, no.  At my age I am unfortunately losing some friends to the heavens (sounds a lot better than the alternative doesn’t it – and one doesn’t need to have any particular beliefs to prefer the thought of a heaven to anything else), but so far I have seen no change in the “dropping away”. Have I added new friends – amen, and each addition is enriching.

 

Without my friends, old and new, life simply wouldn’t be as rich as it is. I’ll take them all!

So forget that horoscope and let’s see who my next appointment is, ah yes, that dear young woman who spent a few years here with me at number 15! Yeah. And yesterday it was two friends – the remains of an association that didn’t make it, but the friendship endures. Then it will be…

 

I am blessed!

 

My friends are like these petals: a bright light in my life, and abundant.

 

My social club….

The local grocery store.

I kid you not: today has to be some kind of a record. I went for a coffee as I needed to go to both the pharmacy and pick up some groceries. The coffee shop up on the upper floor by the post office and pharmacy serves good coffee and I was headed that way when I bumped into a neighbour and mother of a son with whom my youngest went to elementary school!

Hadn’t seen anyone in that family for years so surprise number one that we even recognized each other. Caught up briefly and exchanged telephone numbers so that sometime this fall when we are both back from all our travels we can get together. Whilst talking to her I saw another lost-from-view person, but obviously wasn’t so impolite as to interrupt my conversation so we simply nodded to each other.

I did make it up the stairs to coffee and had just settled in when I saw another close acquaintance coming out of the pharmacy. She lives in town and was accompanied so didn’t pop up and great her. Still.

After coffee off to collect groceries where I ran into three other people, again one of whom I hadn’t seen since my older boy’s scouting days!

As I was checking out I also chatted briefly with one of the neighbourhood restaurant owners. Good to see her as I thought that they were closed for a month. Turns out, no, only 10 days. Yeah – a place to eat that is reasonable and that we all like is available.

Tomorrow I think I’ll stay away from my local grocery store – can’t take the excitement.

www.stockunlimited.com/vector-image

Bless the friends

Now generally speaking that phrase can stand on its own: many of us living overseas without family close by have friends that not only are worthy of, but have become “our” family. I have the good fortune to not only have a lovely family, but also many such friends.

Friends have helped me celebrate; friends have helped me grieve; friends have done huge favors; friends have been there when I needed transportation, food, a shoulder to cry on or reason to laugh.

Friends are what make one’s life worthwhile and I hope that I am as good a friend to mine as they are to me.

But although the large things are appreciated, in the end the stepping stones of friendship are yet again, as I have been want to often say, are the little, everyday acts of kindness: the regular tea or coffee meetings, the e-mailed joke, the lunch together.

Then there are the even smaller bits of information: one of my friends called me this afternoon to simply let me know that the store in the next village over again had crumpets!

I am now set for the coming weeks and have a very warm feeling for that particular person.

My inspiration for the day

Or should I say inspirations as there were many.

Sometimes we simply need to sit back and enjoy life; enjoy what we come across. Today was one of those days.

I set off to the new tearoom for breakfast, as is my want on the weekends, not knowing if M would join me (we often do have coffee together of a Saturday morning, but her husband was having the company’s yearly dinner last night and she might need to sleep in) or not.

I ordered a drink of coffee and milk that here in the French-speaking part of Switzerland, is called a “turned over” or “tipped upside down” and lacking my usual sandwich settled for a roll of grains with one pat of butter. Lovely way to start the day even if I was on my own.

Then it was pick up the mail and make a trip to the grocery store in anticipation of baking Christmas cakes and cookies. Looked at tins, but prevented myself from accruing any more as I certainly have enough for this year’s giveaways (they were very tempting though so there is no guarantee that I might not crack later in the week).

Lunch was leftovers after I un-thawed the upstairs freezer (see, feeling productive always improves the mood), then I had time – and the need – for a “pause” (my husband always refused to call them naps or siestas and he was right).

Then it was off into town for a lady’s coffee at I’s house: an occasion never to be missed – I would even return early should I be elsewhere as she is from Vienna and makes and bakes everything herself. I didn’t care to interrupt the feeling of friendship and joy as we first enjoyed a glass of champagne followed by canapés of all sorts, then coffee or tea and home-made strudel and a nut cake specific to Vienna covered in chocolate.

not my friends - her's was even better!

In amongst all that there were beautiful views of the Jet d’Eau – I got plenty of inspiration for continued enjoyment of life.

Dec.10 around 15:30

Dec. 10 around 19:30 Blue for the UN's day of Human Rights

Subject lines

If my husband was renowned for his capacity to think up slogans or other witty and fitting jokes/advertisements etc., I often note that any particular phrase or set of words coming out of the mouths or pens or e-mails of those around me make very interesting subject lines. Some are good enough to write a whole book around: unfortunately most are forgotten as soon as they are remarked.

A friend with whom I shared an evening at other friends used the following in the subject line of her e-mail:

“Leonard and S and Brussel sprouts”

One could make up some very good stories about that line: die Leonard and S have an evening of Brussel sprouts only? Did Lenard deal with the Brussel sprouts and S with more Brussel sprouts? Did the Brussel sprouts become the main feature of a song, story or meal???

I, of course, knew exactly whom she was speaking of and actually even probably why by simply reading the subject line: anyone else would be clueless, but someone with imagination could develop the subject. Anyone up for the challenge?

All photos below are from Google Images

Leonard Cohen

Cooking

Brussel Sprouts

Family and Friends

The most important people in the world.

Many months ago in one of our regular skype sessions K and I got to talking about her upcoming “big one”. Now to the outside world she is known as my sister-in-law, but within the family she is our sister and as such was going to enjoy the tradition started when I turned 60: the possibility of choosing the weekend getaway or activity.  This was even more important in light of the fact that we didn’t get to do this for my “little” sister.

She had always wanted to take a cruise, my brother less so. I had not been able to take a cruise the year we went to Alaska so that was my first choice – one with which she readily agreed – now to sell it to her husband. Persistence and the fact that Alaska is much more of a “natural” destination with sightings of wildlife and beautiful scenery led him to agree.

Important however to also visit my other sister in California so we all met here for a weekend.  Bless my sister as she organized for us – me in particular – to see some of her best friends and people to whom I have become close over the years. Yesterday was a day of sun (we are in California in June), of friends, of family, of laughter along with a few tears, of remembering, of bonding, of strengthening our spirits.

Today we played tourists and went to “the city”. Brunch with my nephew and his wife and the, to me, grand-nephew dog, outside in the sun, then on to a part of the shore that I had never explored “Shore Point” and the fort built there in 1861. Wisps of fog, a slight breeze, more fun and laughter – family and friends: the best part of one’s life!

Golden Gate Bridge, June 12, 2016

Fine Food, Fine Friends

I may have had a bit of bad luck in breaking my arm; a bit of a slow-down-and-take-it-easy forced on me by circumstances beyond my control (you don’t really think that I did it on purpose do you?); have had to learn patience, yet again, but in my “malheur” (bad luck) I have been extremely lucky.

I have been taken out, accompanied out, taken others out (they drove), had food delivered on a regular basis, even had a friend cook an entire meal and bring it to me so that we could enjoy it together – and she had to travel by bus across town!

I have not lacked for food – some days had three offers to take me grocery shopping and other days it was who is available or whom haven’t I “let” help me yet.

To say that I am blessed doesn’t cover it, especially when one considers that this has been going on since mid-January.

The latest in a long line of wonderful support, chocolate covered almonds from one particular store’s line of “Fine Food”.

My friends are not only fine (Forever Inventing New Events), but wonderful beyond what one could reasonably expect!

New Year’s Resolutions

Basically I refuse to make any New Year’s Resolutions, as when I did so in my childhood, I was incapable of sticking to them for more than a week. Even if, as a teenager, I did marginally better, I have long since learned that they are rather pointless especially as in the euphoria of the moment one tends to make rather unrealistic ones.

However, one of my close friends did come up with one with which I will have to heartily concur: A moratorium on death! http://theexpatwriter.blogspot.ch/2015/12/moratorium-on-death.html

However, following a very pleasant gathering at my home of friends on New Year’s Eve and a January 1^st continuing along the same lines, I have decided that a good one for 2016 might be: continue the year as I ended it – with friends! I will thus strive in 2016 to catch up with my friends, see those who live near more often, keep in better touch with those who live far away and in general try and be a better friend myself.

I could do worse.

Friends for over 60 years!

Hotel Julia

Remember back earlier this year when I declared Hotel Julia closed? I did mention that anyone who had ever stayed was not subject to this arbitrary closing, nor did it apply to family members regardless the distance of the relationship (i.e. fifth cousin? Not a problem). I have only broken that rule once this year.

I have recently discovered an exception that I am willing to allow: anyone who not only proposes cooking a meal, but then does so in such a manner that it is a gastronomical experience, can apply for the waiver of the rule!

When one of my former visitors (former across-the-hall-renter of my housemate who promptly became my friend during her first visit years ago) called and said that she and her new husband were going to be in town and wanted to see me whilst they were there – they would be looking for a small hotel – I replied “no you won’t, you’ll be staying here”. Not only is she lovely, but I was going to lose housemate and husband that week as they needed to get back down to Southern France for the visit of her daughter, and I had no one for the cats. What could be better: I get cat and house sitters, they get free lodging?

Well actually there was and is a BETTER: both cook superbly well. We had barbecue with all the vegetables and potatoes grilled as well as homemade hummus and tabouli. Along with the good conversation, champagne (provided by R – many thanks) and laughs a night to be remembered.

As I had to spend Sunday there as well (unplanned) we got to continue the party and I was treated to another glorious dinner that night. In fact the company and the food were so good that I am going back a day earlier just to enjoy both again before they return to Paris.

So exception number one comes into existence – all gourmet cooks may apply.

Actually forget to take individual pictures of the hummus and tabouli but both were present on the table.