Just a little something to make you smile!

I'm the biggest chicken! Recently David's boss offered him a promotion. At the first sign of a good excuse not to move, I jumped. It's not that I don't want to move. Of cousre I want to. I tried to explain it to David last night, but he didn't really understand. Living on my family land has been my dream for as long as I can remember. I used to have sleep-overs in the "Big House" and dream of how I would make it over into the perfect house. I had and have a very idealistic view of life there. I think I'm allowed that because it's my dream. The fact that I know it's an idealistic view tells me that some part of me knows it won't be exactly as I imagine or maybe not even close to what I imagine. That being said, I'm scared of how different it might be and more than a little sad that this move, while giving birth to many new dreams, will mean allwoing reality to settle in to the cracks of a very old dream.

Etsy

It's taken me a while to convince myself to go for it, but I finally opened my own Etsy shop. I've been thinking about it since I made a necklace for Erin's teacher, but pushed it aside. I have difficulty believing anyone would want to pay for anything that I create. Maybe it's silly, but it's true. I decided to toss inhibition to the wind and go for it. It's a miracle that I didn't put the items up for free, but I forced myself to name a price and thus give worth to something I created. I've been having so much fun creating these necklaces. They take on so much personality that it's very hard for me to sell them. I want to keep them all for myself like a collection of lost treasures. Don't be surprised if you see me stuffing them in my mouth and down my shirt in an attempt to hide them from any would-be buyers. :) (imagine that seen from "The Goonies" where Mouth isn't talking.) Now it's late and my head hurts. My typing is growing increasingly worse. That's my signal to call it a night.

I've been "flickring" a lot lately. (That's not an adjetive I ever thought I would use when talking about myself. A light, maybe, but me flickr?) These are just a few of my favorites right now. There are so many people with such amazing talent. All of these photos inspire me.

1. until tomorrow, 2. Colored Bowls, 3. IMGP5785, 4. Lunar1, 5. बदल रहे है ह्म यहा....., 6. A cup of flower., 7. Black Hole Sun, 8. Fan, 9. Trying to become comfortable in my own skin., 10. La Mariposa., 11. Day 124 of 365 Twirl, 12. How can I stand here and not be moved by you? Would you tell me how could it be any better than this?, 13. Day 11714. Not available15. Not available16. Not available

On A Day When The Wind Is Perfect

by Rumi
from Love Poems From God


On a day
when the wind is perfect,
the sail just needs to open and the world is full of beauty.
Today is such a
day.

My eyes are like the sun that makes promises:
the promise of life
that it always keeps

each morning.

The living heart gives to us as does that luminous sphere,
both caress the earth with great
tenderness.

There is a breeze that can enter the soul.
This love I know plays a drum. Arms move around me:
who can contain their self before my beauty?

Peace is wonderful,
but ecstatic dance is more fun, and less narcissistic;
gregarious He makes our lips.

On a day when the wind is perfect,
the sail just needs to open
and the love starts.

Today is such
a day.

I'm trying to see every day like this. If I will just open myself the love will start. Admitidly, it is much easier to stay closed. My world seems bloated with work, house keeping, child raising, and husband caring. The daily "to do" list threatens to swallow me whole if I don't remember to feed it. So I squeeze in yoga between loads of laundry and pretend to meditate while washing dishes. Then it hits me; the list of things to do is an excuse not to be.

Back to Mexico

Just a quick review of my last two and a half days in Mexico. The weather on Saturday and Sunday was still hot but a little less muggy and the sky was perfectly clear. Saturday was spent by the pool or the beach. One thing I forgot to mention was how dirty the ocean water was. They said it was because of all the rain and the fact that in the particular area we stayed there were several rivers that entered the ocean. Whatever the reason, the brown murky water kept us from spending any time in the ocean. On Saturday we played water volleyball and beach volleyball. We hung out at the pool with some new friends we made. There was a very nice couple from Austin who had just gotten married and another couple from Kansas City who had been married a week. We also met Earl and his wife Kim. I'm not sure what Earl's real name was, that's just the name Laurie gave him. They were quite a pair. Very rough around the edges, but hilarious too. Saturday evening Laurie and I went to dinner at Paradise. After dinner we had talked about going in the pool, but we were both tired so we called it a night.
Sunday we took at trip to downtown Puerto Vallarta. Everyone warned us about taking taxis and how crazy they drove. They do drive crazy, but not so crazy that we felt unsafe. We went to the flea market downtown and did a little shopping. Laurie is the best negotiator I've ever met. She told me to tell her the price I wanted to pay for something and that is the price she would get. This skill did get the two of us into trouble when she mentioned to another shopper that he didn't need to pay full price for an item he was looking at. The vendor asked her if she was the guy's friend and when she said no, he told her to shut her f$@*ing mouth and get the hell out of there. I was at the vendor next to his and had no idea what was going on. She just came up to me and said "We need to get out of here.". We made our escape with the pissed off vendor yelling obscenities until we were out of hearing range.
We walked along the Macelon looking at shops and snapping pictures along the way. We stopped for ice cream at a cute little ice cream parlor and soaked up the atmosphere of a different country. In small glimpses I saw the beauty of Puerto Vallarta. The roads are cobblestone and the streets are decorated with Spanish accents. It is very much an old world being taken over by a modern one where a mom and pop potery shop sits next to an Internet cafe. If our trip had allowed I would have loved to have visited the older parts of the city and experienced more of the culture. Perhaps there will be other trips to Mexico in my future.
After our trip to downtown we returned to the hotel where Laurie played tequila volleyball and I got a sunburn. I was so careful to avoid this my entire trip but in the end the sun was the victor. Even with 50 SPF slathered on every hour, my arms and back turned a nice shade of red.
At 5:30pm we had appointments at the spa where we had a 50 minute relaxing massage with a facial and pedicure. It was bliss.
After our massages we headed back to the room, but were stopped by an amazing sunset. On our last night in P.V. the sun put on an amazing display as it settled into the waters of the Pacific Ocean. I ran up the stairs to our room and got my camera. I ran back down the stairs just in time to snap a few pictures of the sunset. Once the sun disappeared, we went back to the room to get ready for dinner. Our plan was to do crazy hair and makeup for disco night at Club Nitro. We also had reservations at the French restaurant. Unfortunately we were a little late getting ready and then couldn't find the restaurant so we ended up being too late to eat. :( It was very disappointing. To make maters worse, I got sick and had to return to the room which left Laurie on her own for dinner. I felt really guilty, but was so sick there was nothing I could do. Laurie ended up eating dinner with Victor, a very nice guy who worked at the hotel, and going dancing at Club Nitro where she busted out the lawn mower and sprinkler. I was really disappointed to not be able to go, but that's life.
Monday morning before we left for the airport we relaxed by the ocean and took some more pictures. We said goodbye to the friends we made. We were both feeling a little sad about leaving, but were excited to get home to our families.
We met a really fun couple at the airport who was heading back to S.F. as well. We chatted with them for a while before we boarded the plane. The flight home, as all flights home do for me, seemed to take forever. When we finally arrived I was surprised to see that Erin was home for her trip to L.A. and met me at the airport with David. Vacations are a wonderful thing, but nothing beats comming home!

Puerto Vallarta is a lovely place. The people are friendly. I would probably visit Puero Vallarta again, but in the cooler months and with my husband. I didn't like being away from him one bit! I would also do a little more research and try to stay in a place where I could experience more of the unique culture of Mexico and less of the "spring break" atmosphere.

I think I'll take a break from the Mexico review to tell you all how incredably excited I am to be moving to Pennsylvania in just over a month. Am I neverous? Of course! Scared? Just a little. Do I have questions and doubts? Milions of them! For the most part, I am excited. I can't wait to live close to my dad, grandma, cousins and aunts so that we can share our lives again. I miss so much of the simple way they live. I can't wait for dinners at grandma's house, eating soft serve ice cream in the back of the truck while we sing silly songs and laugh at each other's ice cream moustaches, fishing with dad at the pond behind his house, and family outings to whatever crazy landmark my aunt can find. The ability to be outdoors just by stepping out my front door and not having to drive to a park or nature reserve is also giving me the warm fuzzies. I'm ready to learn the secrets of home made chicken noodle soup and canning from my grandma. I'm excited for Erin to experinece all of these things too.

After a very late night on Thursday we were in no hurry to wake up on Friday. We were supposed to be at the marina at 9 a.m. for our boat tour, but we didn't wake up until 10. Instead we took the day to sight see in down town Puerto Vallarta and check out a tattoo shop we had heard good things about. We visited the tattoo shop and after an hour of going over designs and the entire process of tattooing Laurie made an appointment and put down a deposit. When we left Chapas Tattoo, Laurie wasn't feeling well so we walked the streets of P.V. until we found a supermarket where we purchased crackers, pepto, water, baking soda, and vinegar. The baking soda and vinegar were to get the green out of my hair and the crackers and pepto were to get the sick out of Laurie. She sat down in the middle of the isle to eat a few crackers and choke down the pepto. I prayed that no one would think she was trying to steal and cart us off to jail. I wanted to see Mexico, but not the prison side of Mexico. After several minutes Laurie started to feel a little better so we caught a cab back to the hotel where we took things easy lounging around the pool and staying in close proximity to a bathroom for Laurie. Later that evening we had dinner reservations with our two lady friends Lisa and Renee and three guys we met Brad, Gram, and Jason. We went to the room to get ready, but half way through Laurie knew she wasn't going to make it. She insisted that I go without her. I had taken the time to get ready and was sporting my new black dress, so I went, but only with the understanding that I would only stay if the two girls were there. No way was I going to have dinner with three guys all by myself. (This is the part where I tell you my most-feel-good-moment of my Mexican vacation.) I walked downstairs to meet up with the group. The guys were there, but the girls were running late. I walked up to say hello and let the guys know that Laurie wouldn't be able to make it. When they saw me they almost simultaneously all said "Wow!". And their jaws dropped in unison. I am not one to gloat or to even feel that such a thing was warranted, but I was dressed up and feeling pretty fine so I don't mind gloating just a little. :)
The dinner was great! We all ordered flank steak which was delicious and a full round of sexy coffee because only two of us had seen the presentation before. The conversation was good for the most part. It did stand to confirm that I don't think like most people. How it is that I manage to see the world and people in such a different light than my peer group is beyond me, but I do.
I ended the evening after sexy coffee so that I could check on Laurie. She was still feeling pretty sick so we called it an early night.


I did snap this picture of the sunset on my way back to the room with the hope that at least one night of our vacation would present us with the amazing sunsets sported in postcards.

Sexy Coffe for Aola

From what little I know about sexy coffee, I think this is the same recipe although this was titled Spanish Coffee.

Ingredients

Lime Juice
1 1/2 oz Kahlua
1 ds Triple Sec
1 oz 151 Rum (2 Tablespoons)
Coffee To Fill The Glass
Granulated Sugar for the rim of the glass
Whipped Cream To Garnish
Nutmeg
*Cinnamon was used in the version I had. A dash of it was thrown on the flame for effect and it was sprinkled on top of the whip cream for flavor.
*One version used Bailey's Irish Cream. You can experiment and see what you like best.
*One version added a whole spoon full of butter. I didn't care for it, but I guess it would add a rich flavor.
Directions
Dip the rim of an 8- to 10-ounce glass in lime juice and then in sugar. Add the rum and Triple Sec. With a long match, carefully light the liqueurs, swirling the glass to melt the sugar on the rim. Pour in the Kahlua and then add the coffee. Top with whipped cream and sprinkle with nutmeg. Serve immediately. ( Be careful it's HOT!)

This video gives a quick demonstration on how to make the coffee. The caramelizing of the sugar on the rim is no small thing. The taste of the caramelized sugar mixed with the coffee is delicious! I don't think the drink would be the same without it.


This video shows the amazing presentation. One of the times we had sexy coffee they waiter pored rum in the saucer he sat our glass on and lit it on fire and served it to us with the flame still burning. It was really amazing!



Enjoy! And if you burn your house down, blame YouTube! :)

I got the name of the club wrong in my previous post. It was actually Christine's Disco tech and it's supposed to be one of Mexico's premier hot spots where the high and lofty of Mexico rub elbows with the Joe schmoes. Whatever the name, the club sucked! I'm not much of a club person myself, but Laurie wanted to dance so I agreed to go. Sending her alone wasn't an option. A group from the hotel met in the lobby at 11pm so we could all go to the club together. The fee was $35 bucks and included entrance to the club and an open bar. (It's a really dumb idea for someone who barely drinks to pay for an open bar, but again Laurie wanted to dance and it was her vacation too.) We get to the club and no one is on the dance floor. So we wait and wait and wait. At midnight there was a huge laser/pyrotechnic display that scared the crap out of both of us. No one had bothered to warn us that it would seem like the building was going to explode. Then the music started and the dance floor was packed within seconds. Laurie and I made our way down and started dancing or at least I attempted to dance. The music was Mexican techno and was so loud I couldn't hear myself think. We danced and laughed and danced some more. Occasionally freezing cold air would pour down from the ceiling which was a nice relief. All the while we are waiting for some American music which we had asked several people if they played and everyone told us yes. It never came. Two boys who were just barely old enough to be in the place asked us to dance. Reluctantly I agreed. (The things I'll do for my sister-in-law.) The guy I danced with was named Douglas. He had a head full of curly hair and braces and was completely wasted. When I told him how old I was he stepped back in astonishment. :) He kept telling me I didn't need to be close to my friend and asking me if I wanted a drink of whatever he was having. Obviously I declined the drink and pushed even closer to Laurie. He turned out to be harmless, but it's always better safe than sorry. After an hour of dancing Laurie and I were tired so we returned to the area our group was sitting. Laurie complained that there was no American music so one of the guys from our hotel took her to talk to the DJ. She told him his music sucked and asked him to play American music. He said he couldn't because the crowd was mostly Mexican. He did squeeze in one American song. (gee thanks!) We hung around for a little while longer, but it really wasn't our kind of fun. There were two married women making out with two of the local boys who were the same age as their kids. The men continually flirted with us and tried to grope us. One even tried to give me a lap dance. (Don't laugh too hard Aola!) I'm sure that my face was every shade of red possible. I just kept thinking, "Please get me out of here!". Finally, at 2:30 in the morning we decided to leave. We returned to our hotel with the above mentioned women and decided to go for a swim. The water was warm and it was nice to only hear the waves of the ocean behind us and no loud crazy Mexican techno. A security guard tried to kick us out of the pool but changed his mind and told us we could stay as long as we were very quiet so we were. Around four in the morning it started to rain. It was amazing to see the heat lighting and hear the thunder all while relaxing in the pool. The rain cooled us down a little too much so we hopped out of the pool and ran back to our room where I took a nice warm shower and hit the sack.

On day two in Mexico the sky was overcast, but that didn't seem to help with the heat or humidity. We woke up early and met our timeshare friend in front of the hotel at 8:30 a.m. He was there with the money and they taxi just like he had promised. We took the taxi to Paradise Village in Nuevo Vallarta where we met Matt from Canada. He went through the presentation with us. The resort was beautiful. They have a wild life habitat on site where they rehabilitate injured animals as well as their own water purification site (a big plus in Mexico, and their own shopping center and golf course. When we got to the pool, I started kicking myself in the ass because I realized we had almost booked this hotel package but didn't because the one we booked was adults only. Paradise Village made our hotel look like the Super 8. Oh well, such is life. We'll no better for the next time. Back to the adventure. After the presentation in which we pretended to be single, (It was a lot of fun trying to remember I was not married.) there was a small push for us to purchase one of the points package. The smallest package was $10,000. Of course we declined and they sent us on our way. We went to the gifts department where we picked up our vouchers for 35 minute relaxation massages at the spa on site. The spa was fabulous! The treated us like princesses. I was a little freaked out when a really cute guy called my name for my massage. I'm not much of a touchy feely person as it is, and having a guy give me a massage would have been the most uncomfortable feeling in the world. Luckily a girl stopped him in the hallway and said she was supposed to give my massage. The massage was phenomenal! I felt so relaxed afterwards that I could barely put together a complete thought.
After our massages we called for a taxi (did I mention that the taxi's drive like crazy men?) and asked to go to the Mayan Palace which was the resort where we had booked our original time share. We presented Elvis with our boat trip tickets and asked for our money back. One thing you learn very quickly in Mexico is that a little flirting from a white girl goes a very long way. Within five minutes we had our money back and an invitation for two personal massages from Elvis himself. We took the money and declined the massages.
We returned to our hotel a lot more relaxed and a tiny bit more rich than when we left and immediately jumped in the pool where we swam and floated and drank just a little.
For dinner we ate at Salvador's. There is a dress code at this and one other restaurant so it was an excuse to get dressed up, and it was so much fun even though I hadn't brought anything to wear that matched the lovely shade of green the pool water had turned my hair. I just pulled it back and went with it. For dinner I had sashimi, salmon in champagne sauce, and coffee creme for dessert. Our waiter Juan made a wonderful drink called sexy coffee at the end of our meal. It was something I had heard about from several people and was anxious to try. It's a wonderful drink with an awesome presentation. Baily's and rum are lit on fire and poured from glass to glass. At the end of the presentation Juan shot whipped cream in my mouth. Laurie was nice enough to get this picture of it.


And here is a picture of the two of us together.



After dinner we went to Club Nitro which is the club where they perform cheesy Broadway type shows. It was Hollywood night and it was hilarious! There was some obsession with the girl performers wearing g-strings that we didn't understand, but it was still funny and completely g rated as there were families there.

Stay tuned for stories from Christy's night club.

Day one of my vacation to Mexico started off hot and humid (muy caliente). From the second we stepped off the plane our skin was coated in little droplets of sweat. If you're ever planning a trip to Mexico, I don't recomend this time of year. The first thing I noticed other than the heat and humidity was how nice everyone was. The second thing I noticed was their reason for being nice. The airport exit is full of people whose job it is to get you to visit a time share. Although we were warned about these people, we were still sucked in. We ended up getting a great deal from a very nice lady. She offered us two massages and two boat tickets that normally cost $80 each for $25 each to go and listen to a 90 minute presentation while enjoying a free breakfast. It sounded like a great deal until we met Hector on the beach. Hector offered us a deal we couldn't refuse, the $25 we spent on the boat tickets back, two boat tickets at no cost, two massages and free trasporation. It was a deal that sounded too good to be true, but we took it anyway. The worst that could happen is that he wouldn't show up the next morning to take us to the presentation and we would stick with our original plan.
The rest of day one was spent relaxing by and in the pool. We were too late to make dinner reservations so we ordered room service close to midnight and almost fell asleep before it got there.

On the eve of my 28th birthday my husband sent me to a 60 minute massage. It was bliss, even for me, a person who is normaly repulsed at the thought of being touched by a stranger. I can't say that I allowed myself to relax 100%, but I tried. Initially all I could think about was if I would get a ticket for parking my big ol truck in a compact space and how pissed I was at the gps unit for not being more clear about how to get to the spa. Slowly all of those thoughts melted away and I relaxed. I don't know that I'll become a massage addict, but It's something I will treat myself to again. Perhaps next time I'll go for the hot stone massage.

I do love this man of mine. :)