New Page------New Day

Cricket and I met a new dog in the neighborhood. The newbie is a Poodle mix just like Cricket,only larger.The owner was most impressed with the fact that these mixed poodles don't shed. I guess, like us, he has had his share of dogs that shed. Our late, great Wally would shed clumps of hair. So much hair that we didn't have to vacuum, we would just pick it up. We shaved Wally once, but he was so embarrassed that he didn't want to go outside. We never did that again.

Shedding dogs don't seem to live in Florida. At least I haven't met any. The dogs I see are shot coated breeds. I like hairy dogs. I've been keeping Cricket coat a little longer. but I think I have to let the groomer give her a puppy cut.She gets so hot. She doesn't like summer (she doesn't like winter either, she doesn't like sand, she doesn't like wet grass, she doesn't like rain). She likes air conditioning and soft pillows. We used to take our other dogs to Colorado in August. They walked some paths with us and they often ate some things that I would rather they hadn't and they would roll in some natural products that we would come upon on these paths.They loved the outdoors. For some reason, I can't see Cricket enjoying any of this. She's a JPD, a new classification--Jewish Princess Dog. I just realize that it's never too late to blame Cricket for our not going to Colorado anymore

I saw an ad on TV for a Psychic. $1 a minute. I have never done anything so crazy as to go to a psychic or to a medium or do anything other than count "yes, no" with the blocks of tile or other such nonsense. I do that when I am waiting to get the results of something important. I did it when I was in school waiting to get the results of an exam, or when I was waiting for the results of news about a new job for a kid. Yes,they get the position, no,they don't. I'm just explaining that I do some of these things, sometimes. I called the psychic. It was affordable and it sounded like fun. I gave my name and date of birth. That's all I did . Except when she asked me why I called, and I said that I wanted to know about health issues and what was in store for me, my destiny,so to speak. Well, right off , she said that she didn't do health. That"s Ok. maybe I didn't want to know. Then she told me some things that made me cry. In her Tarow cards, which she said she was using, she saw a wonderful bright sun, me happy in a different location, maybe another country and there was someone who was going with me, although that person had to be chipped away at to make the move with me. Can you believe this information that was coming over the phone from someone who doesn't know me or my dream. ? She said she saw in her cards that I was doing a blessing, that I was being called home. She said the message was very stong with a lot of energy. I freaked out. The rest of my day was ruined. How could someone know this from my birth information. Did she have some kind of a search engine that pulled my name up and learned all about me ? True or not, it was fun and it only cost a few dollars. But it focused my thoughts on what I want and who I want to do it with. Will I call the number again. maybe, because it is never too late to hear what I want to hear. Even if I'm not quite sure I believe in magic.

I just discover You Tube. Why hasn't anyone told me that there is so much to see on You Tube. I had watched it to hear pieces of music that I was practicing for my orchestra, but for the rest of it, I had no idea. I spent over an hour this morning listening and watching videos about making Aliyah. I watched this young lady run a marathon and I even commented on it in my blog.

But I never knew that I could put in an interest and somebody had a video about it.

I bet I can find videos on beer making. I just looked and there are more than I want to watch. Some are pretty funky. My Grandson will sending me some sites . I will use the You Tube for my next step in my beer making. I have 6 more days of fermentation and then the big reveal. I only have to sterilize the bottles and fill them with the brew.Right now, I have 24 bottles soaking in the bathtub to get the labels off. I have a crimper to put bottle caps on them after they are sanitized and filled.. I can't wait to do that. The crimper is a bright red and looks very official . Next ,I let the bottles rest a bit and lastly, refrigerate them. Drink and enjoy (I hope).

It's never too late to keep learning from new technology and You Tube is just so cool.

I was watching a video on You Tube. It was by a beautiful young woman ,from Toronto, who made Aliyah 3 years ago .She was documenting her life in Israel. She went as a nursing student and I guess by now, she is a RN. But what I found so interesting is her reporting on the Israeli mentality. She recieved many benefits, but to get them, she had to stand in lines, be dissappionted by offices not being opened when they were supposed to, by banks who use a different system of banking and how in general, you have to exercise great patience. This attitude surprises me because Israel is so high tech. In this young woman's video, she remarks that one of her "official" acts to get some papers that she needed for school tuition, took 3 hours. There were 90 students in line with 2 people to process them. I am thinking that I better get used to waiting in line. I haven't stood in line since I went to Disney World a few years ago. And there I could do that pre-reservation thing that they have. You get a timed ticket, and come back at that assigned time. High tech at Disney.

Another thing that really caught my attention in her video was that she ran the Jerusalem marathon this year. She did the 10 K part. That made me want to do it ,too. I might be a little put off by the hills of Jerusalem, especially training in flat Florida .But I have a few years to work on that. And I would love to have the distinction of being the oldest runner in that event. It's never too late to want to be singled out for something special, even if it to be the oldest woman in a running event. Go figure.

Everyday starts for me by my writing my blog. The next thing that I do is go to the Nefesh B Nefesh site and see what is going on as it relates to those of us who want to, or have made Aliyah. I see enticing ads for rental apartments. There are ads for wanting to summer swap homes . They are usually for New York, though. I can't understand why no one wants to summer share in Florida. I would love to be in a position to go to Israel for the summer. It just isn't happening fast enough for me. I have to be patient and wait for the right time. The right time will be when I can go for a few months, rent out my condo here and then return after a few months. I'd like not to do this round about way, but since one of us isn't as enthusiastic about leaving here, this will be the way we start our journey. I visualize myself in Israel. I don't see myself as a tourist, but as someone who goes to the market , who cooks and actually lives in Israel. Except for observing Shabbat, I don't particularly see myself going to a Synagogue. I will be identified as a secular Jew. Maybe that will change, but that is not what I see when I see myself there.

I see myself meeting other exPats. I see myself speaking English more than Hebrew. I see myself joining groups that have people like me in it. I imagine my looking for a violin teacher who understands my ability. Still day dreams. But that works for me now. It is never too late for visualization,it's gotten me over the finish line in many a Marathon.

I am a really good sitter. I have great qualifications and a lot of experience. For years, I sat on our deck at our Michigan cottage. I sat from the time the kids got out of school for summer vacation, until they were ready to return to school in September. Our deck looked out over our beach and lake. On that deck , the whole family sat. We raised a bunch of sitters. But we also studied for MCATs,MBA's,and RN degrees sitting on that deck.

We watched fire flies and fireworks . We ate on that deck, three times a day from June to September. We would move our picnic table from one side of the deck to the other,depending on where the sun was. We had a hammock on the deck and it was first come, first napper.

I remembered how much fun sitting was when I just sat on our couch today and did nothing , but sit. I advocate a period of sitting for everyone. It doesn't cost anything, it clears your mind and it refreshes you. There were things I could be doing, but I just so enjoyed sitting ,that that is what I did.

Sitting brought back those wonderful days when all six of us sat on our deck. Since this is Memorial day week end, we would have put in our raft, and then probably collected fire wood for a night time bon fire. We'd have the marshmallows ready with Hershey bars and graham crackers and a few cans of bug spray near by, plus a bucket of water to quench the embers. And we brought down flash lights, so we could see to get back up our steps after the fire burnt down. The only light we had was from the stars and we couldn't always count on them. Oh well, it was a good time , but so is now. It's never too late for memories that were made on that deck

I was recently reading about an older person who made Aliyah. At the time , he was 100. He made Aliyah from Brazil, where he had immigrated to at the age of 18. What he liked best and appealed to him the most about living in Israel, is the observance of Shabbat. Me too. I am easily impressed, but having a whole country, religious or not, shut down for 25 hours is impressive. I've talked before about how I feel about observing Shabbat. I half do. I acknowledge the day as special, but I don't completely refrain from activitities. I half do. I spent several Shabbats in Israel and they were special. On one,when I visited my grandson at his high school, the kids did a service. I don't know how the service unfolded, but the service was moving. I remember that. Then there was the service that I attended with my daughter and son in law. Men in the front, women in the back. Men praying, some women praying, but many kibbitzing . Even though I wouldn't be able to communicate, I got a warm feeling that they accepted me. I was Jewish and that was enough for them.

Another visit, I went to a Conservative Synogogue. Why did I think that because it was Conservative I would understand better? I was in Israel and Hebrew is the language. I asked some woman when I entered the shul where I could sit. She told me to sit anywhere. I did. A few minutes later a lady came up to me and said that she always sat in that seat. I just laughed and moved.Just like it was in New Orleans where everyone had their "seat".

I look forward to Shabbat. I experience it in my own way. Someday, I hope to experience it more completely, in Israel. It's never too late to still have the dream of Shabbat's in Israel.

My supplies came today to make my favorite New Orleans treat, Creole Cream cheese. And as long as I was at it, I decided to try to make mozzarella cheese. I have a Kindle ebook with the recipe, I have most of the ingredients, so why not. It did cost an extra $25 to go to the grocery store and buy a candy thermometer, a special glove that I can use to put my hand in water that reaches 170 degrees. and not get burned. and I also had to buy a gallon of whole milk. This amount doesn't count the supplies that just came in the mail. I made the mozzarella cheese. I got about 1/2 lb yield from one gallon of milk. I don't think I will make it again, but it was good to know that I could.

Then there is my creole cream cheese . That's what started this whole cheese thing. I made it and now it is in wait mode doing its bacteria thing . I will know in 24 hours if the recipe works.

If I have to remake it, at least I have all of the supplies in the house.

This reminds me of a friend who wanted to make her first apple pie. She drove to Michigan to pick apples and came home with a bushel of them, went to Walmart and bought a pie pan and a rolling pin. Then she went to the grocery store to get flour, shortening,sugar, cinnamon and what ever else she need to bake one pie. I think she told me it cost her close to $75 for that first pie. I feel like that right now.

It's never too late to have a fun food experience, I may even get my fill of creole cream cheese.

I have a bit of a problem. I want to share my last batch of home brew beer, but I don't want to not have any left for us. I have 3 gallons fermenting in my "beer room". It won't be ready for weeks. I have only 3 liters of beer, ready to drink, in the fridge. Do I share those three, or wait until I have enough to share ? I want to share because I would like people to enjoy what I have made. It's like cooking a meal and sharing it with friends. That settles it. I'll share. Well maybe . On the other hand, if I share , I won't have any left for me until the big batch is ready. I feel conflicted.

I have this large batch brewing. It's the largest amount that I have ever made. Considering that this is only my third attempt, this is the first brew that I am making from scratch. I stumbled a little with the first steps. But I figured it was just like following a recipe, which it is. I hope this batch turns out as well as my first two which were made from a mix did. It's never too late to keep my hopes up that this batch of beer comes out good enough to share with my friends.That would sure resolve this conflict I am having with myself about sharing.

I Kindled yet another cookbook today. I purchased it solely on this inscription,"We cannot go back in time. Instead, we must reinvent life for ourselves". How do these statements keep turning up for me ? Is it because I am so into reinventing ,that these quotes just pop up and attract me. I had to buy the cookbook to validate my interest in reinventing me. The name of the book is "The Homemade Pantry". Since I do make most of my dishes from scratch, I figured that I could use some of the recipes. And I found a source for an ingredient that I have been looking for, for several years, in the back of the book. I love,creole cream cheese. This is a delicacy that is only made at a few places in New Orleans. It doesn't travel well, so it has never been offered out of this small area. It is a very rich ,creamy cottage cheesy,creme fraiche sort of dish. I love it with sugar, but most people eat it with salt and pepper. I have spoken about my favorite N.O. restuarant, Commander's. Well ,in their CB there is a recipe for creole cream cheese, which I have made, when we had a vacation condo in Gulfport, Mississippi. I was close enough to N.O. to get the one ingredient that I need, rennit. Trader Joe's ,Whole Foods,  and Richard's  here in Paradise can't get it. I found a source for it in the back of my new Kindle book. My order is in the mail.I am so excited to be getting it. The price of the Kindle book will be worth it if I can make this wonderful creole cream cheese. It is never too late to get excited about recreating a dish that brings back so many happy memories of growing up in New Orleans.

I read in a egroup email from Nefesh B Nefesh,my go to for information about making Aliyah,of this wonderful sounding retreat. It's a three day silent meditation in theJudean Hills. The group will concentrate on "quieting, awakening, connecting and becoming who you are when you are fully awake." Doesn't this sound wonderful. I get this feeling that the organizers think that I have been walking around asleep. I have never been patient enough to meditate. I look at it as a skill I haven't wanted to master. The part I like about the retreat is the silence. I don't think I could really do that either. But it sounds good. I've never been silent for 3 days, much less three hours while I was awake. I'd like to go to this retreat because of where it is,Israel, and the fact that they feed you healthy meals and the premise of quieting,awakening,connecting and becoming me is something that sounds interesting. It sounds positive and if you take away the meditation part and the silence, I could learn more about myself.I think that there are parts of me that I haven't explored yet, perhaps talents that I haven't let explored. Who knows, even at 78 and 5 months, it is never too late to learn who you are

The sky was particularly beautiful this evening. I tried to count the different shades of blue that I saw, but I couldn't give names to the colors I was seeing. I came up with blue, blue-purple, grey blue , light blue, grey ,whitish blue.The sky was outstanding. I appreciated it more since I was aware that other parts of the country were having horrific weather, specifically tornedos. We are so lucky to be having this wonderful weather. It's warm and there are some little buggy things , but how can I complain.

I walked Cricket tonight because Bob was watching "Sixty Minutes", his favorite TV show. Right away, we met a dog walker and her so sweet golden lab. She wanted to know why I was walking Cricket, where was Bob. That's good to know that people recognize Bob and are concerned about him. Then we went on our walk. That's when I looked up and saw this beautiful evening. I may have to go on evening walks too ,look what I have been missing. And I noticed that Cricket walked faster. Was it me that was making her so slow in the morning. Maybe she just isn't a morning dog. I've offered her a cup of coffee, but she won't take it.

My walk with Cricket was special because I got to see this sky. Now all I need is a rainbow. It's never too late to be thankful that I can see this beautiful sky and live in Paradise,too.

How could what was supposed to be a simple purchase turn into 60 miles of driving, being late to feed Cricket and some moments of stress. I thought that it would be good for my violin playing and something for Bob to do. So I decided to get him an electronic keyboard so we could play together. I used to like it when he corrected me , but really, I am getting a little touchy about it . Besides being able to spell anything, he has the gift of a perfect ear He knows when it should be a flat or a sharp. How does he know that ? Another thing that makes him different is that he sees notes in color in his head. There is a name for this, but I can't remember what it is. I made the decision to get the keyboard when I was playing "Deck the Halls" and he didn't recognize it. I was playing the notes but my timing was off. With a piano, I could have an accompaniment, him.

That's not the end of my story. We went the 15 miles to an electronic store, found a $400 electronic piano reduced to $101 and then for some reason , I got a 10% discount. We tried it out in the store, repacked the whole thing and drove home. Got home, unpacked and the electric cord wasn't put back when we were trying it out in the store. Packed up,drove back, found the cord sitting on a box in a corner, took it, returned home. 60 miles.But when we got our act together, feed Cricket and found an extension cord, we played "Deck the Halls" and it sounded pretty good. It's never too late to get ready to play Christmas carols.

When we lived our other life in Evanston,Illinois. we got delivered, every Thursday, the "Evanston Review". The big attraction to this weekly was the estate sale section. For some reason that was a big thing. We neighbors got the kids off to school and went to estate sales. And they were great. That was in the era of ,and location of real estates. If you didn't go to buy, you went to see the interior of the homes. That's something I miss here in Florida. There are garage sales,yard sales, rummage sales and I have seen a few signs for estate sales. But I think that just means that the last person in the house died and they are selling everything for the estate.I miss those estate sales.We used to also go to country auctions. Often we got carried away and bid more than we should have. Sometimes I was relieved that I didn't have the top bid. I still have a couple of the $1 bids that I "won". I still don't know why no one else wanted these treasures. I guess they are now declared stuff that I should think about getting rid of. Maybe next rummage sale.It's never too late to reminisce about a time long ago.

My package of beer supplies came today, and I am happy to report that the box was discretely wrapped. Inside the box was all kinds of beer making ingredients. I have never been to a store that sells the raw ingredients for beer. Now that I see my mystery bags , I am thinking that the store is a bit like a health food store with bins of loose grains. Inside of the box was also six pages of hand written instructions from my Grandson. The instructions were a little confusing for me, so a phone call later I went over it line by line with him. I will just follow his instructions while he will be on call for me when I make it this week end.

While I was waiting for this package to get to me, I made another batch of beer from a kit. We had the first drink tonight. Another winner. But the real thing is what I am waiting to do. It's the difference between making brownies from a mix or from scratch. Both good, but the from scratch gives you that feeling of accomplishment .It's never too late to go for the real thing

This week has been wonderful. Three of our five Grandsons either called or emailed me. A lot is going on with the three older ones. One is getting married in a month, one just bought his first home and the third is my beer instructer. As my go to person for beer, there have been a lot of phone calls. I'm expecting a box in the mail from him. I really hope that the box is in a plain wrapper.The last beer supply shipment that I received had no wrapper and BEER was promoniently printed on the box .I think that in this package I will have hops,yeast and 8 pages of written notes on what to do next in the beer process. He is a very focused Grandchild.

I finally decided on the outfit I will wear to my grandsons wedding. I raided a friends closet and will borrow a dress. I had borrowed a dress from this friend when I went to Israel. She has good taste and I love to wear other peoples clothes. I wonder what size shoes she wears?

I will see all five of our Grandsons at the wedding. That will call for a lot of Kodak moments. It's been awhile since we were all in the same space at the same time. I hope that I can remember how to use all of the features on my digital camera. I haven't used it since I went to Israel. I also have that camera feature on my iPad. The first time I tried to use the camera feature on it, I kept taking a picture of myself. I couldn"t figure out how to reverse it so I could take a picture of what was in front of the lense. When I did figure it out,I gave myself a head smack.Dummy.

It's never too late to look forward to having my camera work, the beer turn out drinkable , my borrowed dress coming back to the owner without spots on it and my five above average Grandsons around me.