On American Idol

I know this has been talk about ad nausium but WHAT ARE THEY THINKING?? Do these people have no one in their life that cares enough to speak the truth? Have they never heard a song on the radio let alone live? Now, I like to sing. In fact I love to sing.  I sing quite a bit... much to the dismay of the people around me. I can remember a high school friend casually raising the radio volume in the car as we drove and I was singing. I remember a beautiful little 4 year old girl in a VBS class I was teaching look up at me with the most innocent of eyes and ask me, "Mrs F, Why does it sound so funny when you sing it?" Ah, out of the mouths of babes (I failed the kid.)  My brother kindly (?) recorded my voice to show me what I sounded like. Now I can see the kindness in it, otherwise I might have turned out to be like one of those fools standing before "the Triad," causing viewers to cringe and hurting people's ears all over the world. All of this said, I have to admit that the show is much more interesting with all these wackos standing up and singing. I Just end up feeling upset for them, how hard it must be to have a dream, a delusional dream but a dream nonetheless, and to have it blasted so soundly. At least for me it would be, I am amazed that I can still be surprised as people leave the audition room and talk about how the panel have no idea. I am not sure but I might want to live in their world, it might be nice to be so sure of myself and my talents that I can ignore the opinion of professionals and go on with my dream.... Maybe they are not so crazy after all. Let Simon, Paula and Randy have their crooners... I am a newfound fan of the croakers. Keep on watching, I just might show up on the show next year- as long as I can ignore their age limit along with my lack of talent.

Namibia

I had my first meeting last Saturday with the group going to Namibia this June. I cannot believe I am really going to be able to go and talking with some of the others who have already been there just got me more excited, if that was possible. First off, travel will be a drag. You know the old bit, a person is up in New England and stops to ask for directions and the answer they receive is, "You can't get there from here (pronounced with an accent of course)." Well I think they were talking about Namibia. So far the tentative schedule is this, We meet in Phila. airport at 3 in the afternoon, fly over night to Frankfurt. We arrive in Frankfurt at 8 am and then don't leave Germany until 10:30 that night (I get a day to play in Frankfurt.) We fly overnight and arrive in Jo'burg, South Africa at 8 am and leave there at 11:30 am finally arriving in Windhoek, Namibia at 12:30 pm. From there we will travel a bit around the country visiting a few different congregations. One of the main things is visiting with the sister churches to our churches in NJ. We will get picked up by someone from the congregation we will be visiting and taken to their home. This can mean a short drive on a highway or a few hours ride off-road on dirt trails. Any questions I am hoping to go off road? One of the regions someone will visit is where their language is one of the ones where they use clicking of their tongue along with words. I am so hoping to go there. I heard that when they are singing praise it is like they are being accompanied with a percussion instrument. I hope I get assigned to that region. Another cool thing is that we will be able to go a safari for a day at Etosha Park, one of the top game parks in all of Africa. Can't wait for that. We will be visiting an orphanage- there are more than 1/4 million children in Namibia who have been orphaned by AIDS. UNICEF has reported that if things don't change drastically in Namibia that by the year 2021 it will be a country run by children. The ELCA in NJ has been supporting the orphanage that we will be visiting. We will also be visiting a seminary school and encouraging the students there. After close to 2 weeks of traveling around and visiting with people, we will head for the airport and deal with the travel back home, but after looking at our schedule, I think I will be sleeping the whole series of flights home. 

Its official

OK, If I haven't said this enough let me say it again, Jay is the best husband in the entire world. He always supports me, even when it is hard to do so. This morning I wasn't expecting any gifts- I have my new MacBook after all- but there was a card sitting on a chair waiting for me. In it Jay wrote that he feels that I need to go on this mission to Namibia and we will find a way to finance it. He also said that he knows the school in Ghana is something close to my heart to and that he is giving me some money to help the school out there. It was more than I ever expected and made me cry. He is such a good man, one who always tries to do the right thing. I am so grateful to be married to him. 

SO all that's there's left to say is, " I am going to Namibia!!!!!"

Merry Christmas

Christmas was a little different this year. First off, the gifts under the tree were a little on the sparse side- Shelby had already gotten her two big gifts and Kyle wasn't asking for anything. Gone are the days of a ton of toys or whatever and stacks of gifts so big you can't get near the tree. Secondly, Kyle was working Christmas Eve so he only arrived home at 7 am and needed to get some sleep. I spent the morning making baked french toast, bacon and sausage and only Jay came down to eat it. At 10 Shelby and I went to church. After church Janet came back to the house and we finally got Kyle out of bed and it was gift time. 

Kyle was surprised to find he received a box of cash! Since he will be traveling this SPring break and over the summer we gave him a box filled with singles. When I said he could use it on his trips he made some kind of comment that he was going to Mexico and Greece, not a stripper club (The mom in me breathed a sigh of relief.)
Shelby is a Beatles fan and was happy to get a dvd of some interviews and all from the early Beatles years.

Drum Roll Please..........

I just received a letter that begins, "Welcome to Namibia." Yep, I have been accepted to the delegation heading for Namibia this June for 2 weeks. Now all I have to do is get Jay to think it is a great idea for me to go. The majority of this relies on me selling a lot of uppercase living expressions (Care to write on your walls?) But I am going forth in faith that somehow I will find a way to finance the trip, who needs to eat anyway?

And if you are looking to learn a little more about Namibia just watch Anthony Bourdain's episode showing today about his visit there. I will say that Jay's eyes lighted up just a bit as he watched the kinds of things Anthony was eating there. I think he would be totally on board if he could be guaranteed that they would be serving the same kinds of things to me... any seconds on the warthog anus, Dorothy? OR how about some ostrich egg omelet cooked in the hot African dirt? I think I will be bringing some power bars.

Christmas Party

Well Last night Jay and I threw our first Christmas party in many years. I am not quite sure why we didn't have parties but somehow they just didn't seem to happen. So a few weeks ago we were talking and decided we needed to throw a party. It always sounds good a few weeks in advance. But somehow, as the day approaches, the thought of, "what the heck was I thinking" comes in but by then it is too late.

Invites went out by way of Evite- one of the best creations ever. I had someone do an evite for her uppercase living party and I was hooked. I became an evite stalker. I could go on at any time of day and see who was coming and what they were thinking about coming. Its even better when they are your friends and its your party. And no annoying phone calls at 10:30 at night, just after I have fallen asleep.

Jay began cleaning out the garage 2 days in advance... If I ever want work done around the house all I ever need to do is invite Jay's friends over... Let me tell you, you could eat off the floor of his garage, or off of his car, or off of his motorcycle by the time he was done.

By Thursday night, Jay and Shelby went out to get the Christmas Tree... Our house was not looking very Christmasy at the time. While I partied the afternoon away at my office's Holiday dinner party, Shelby got the nativity set up and you could almost realize we were Christian and not Jewish.

Friday Kyle came home with 2 friends and they got roped into decorating the tree while I made some food for them (Dinners by Design came to the rescue with a Phillie cheese steak roll.) A few more decorations were put out and Fa La La La La we were looking festive. 

Saturday evening came and so did our guests. Here is my question of the hour, Why is it that no matter how big a house is, how many rooms there are, people will all pack into the kitchen? For the first 2 hours of the party, everyone jammed into the kitchen, all the other rooms were empty. From time to time Jay would get some of the guys out to ohhh and ahhh over the garage and the wall of fame (this wall deserves a whole blog spot on its own at a later date) but for the most part sardines was what we were.

Menu for those interested? Shrimp cocktail, Barbecued meatballs, Mexican cheese dip, Artichoke dip, Hot crab dip, olives, cheese and breads (as I type this now I realize I had a ton of other things to pop into the oven that I forgot about.) There were a bunch of wines, beer from various breweries, soda and the hot of the party was the Belinnis! Babs gave me her recipe (Prosecco, Peach nectar and the Juice of a lime) and it was fabulous. I found a special peach sugar to use on the rims of the glasses and when all was said and done I wished I liked alcohol cause the drinks looked so good.  Desserts were a pumpkin cheesecake, caramel apple crisp, chocolates and cream puffs. There were just a few leftovers so I would say the food was a success.

But more than that we all had such a great time. I loved having the house filled with people laughing and talking. I loved seeing Jay so happy surrounded by friends. And I really loved catering to friends who cater to me through out the year, letting them all know just how special they are to me. 

Now that the dishes are washed and things are mostly put away I am already thinking about the next time we can have people over.

Playing with my MAC

My new MacBook has some fun things to play with. I love the photo booth application. Shelby and I played around with it last night so here is cartoony Shelby

And I look like something out of the 60s with the thermal shots

Women's Bible study group

A number of years ago we decided to start a women's Bible study group to meet during the week. We have gone through so much together as we have learned more about our faith. A couple of years ago joined us and now we are sad that she be leaving us. This next month Maria will be moving to West Virginia and we will miss her. We went out for a lunch, gift exchange and to get our portrait taken. The photography place was all booked up and I had my camera with me so we grabbed a passerby to take a shot of us. 

Homebuilders

For the past 15 or so years Jay and I have been a part of a couples' Bible Study. It is the offshoot of a Christian Marriage Weekend Seminar that a few of us went to. These people are some of my favorite people in the whole world. 

Every Christmas we have a gift exchange where the gifts are more funny than real. We look forward to this all year. This year the top gifts were a hideous Christmas tree with terrible ornaments on it and a pair of bathroom plaques with and old man and woman on them using the toilet. Thankfully Jay and I only ended up with the Christmas tree.

I am glad I thought to bring my camera to our get together this year. It is rare to get a shot of us all, even Maggie and Rick's dog Maddie

Can it get any better than this? I love my ugly tree but have you ever heard about the flamingo lawn ornaments? One morning you wake up and head out of your house and find flamingos. Well, I think it is time to give a Christmas tree a little bit of the glory. This next week, one of my unsuspecting friends will wake up and head out to find something new in their front yard. Stay posted to see the pictures of the fun.

Peter was the lucky winner of the toilet plaques. He lives in fear that Sesle will actually hang them in their bathroom. I hope I will be visiting the day she does it.

The saddest thing is that now I have to wait for a whole year for another gift exchange!

Let it snow

Today is a true snow day. A half day at work, and afternoon of baking cookies, reading a book, drinking tea and watching a lot of TV WHoo HOoo I just love snow days... until I have to go out and shovel.

What visit to the city at this time of year would be complete without a visit to see "The Tree."

When Jay and I arrived at the NY Public Library I wanted to go in, In all these years I had not been in there. As we walked up the steps I saw this woman sitting off to the side, feeding the pigeons. I loved her face and wanted to take her photograph, but I am very shy about taking people's pictures, so I just headed into the museum. The biggest surprise at the Library for me was that I didn't see any books. Maybe in some of the rooms upstairs you can find books but to me all it seemed like was that I was in a museum. I check out the great exhibit about Jack Kirouac. They have his scroll there and is worth a visit if you are a fan of his. Even if I couldn't find books the library was a great photo op- what beautiful architecture and lighting. Upon leaving I walked and saw my lady was still out there and I mentioned to Jay that I wanted to photograph her. He said, "Go ahead, take her picture." I can't just do that, I went up to her and asked if she would mind me photographing her. She graciously said, "Yes, but I don't smile." She had some real problems with her teeth. So she looked up a little and I took a few shots. I just loved her energy, she seemed so kind and peaceful. I am glad I got bold and asked her,

The doors of the library are beautiful although I am not sure why they have snakes curling around the handle.

The famous lions guard the museum's entrance and for the holidays they are adorned with a big red bow

A Weekend with my hubby

This weekend was a Jay and Dorothy weekend. Shelby was away at the Model UN program at Harvard (Yes, my daughter was enrolled at Harvard, even if it was just for the weekend,) and Kyle was at school so we were free and easy. 

Friday night was spent with a quick dinner at the diner and then a visit to Palisades mall to do a little Christmas shopping- funny thing is, I realized that very little of my gifts do I need to get from a store in the mall and we ended up just walking around playing more than anything else.

Saturday morning Jay took me to the Muddy Brook Cafe for breakfast- a great little cafe run by an Irish family. I just love a place that serves you brewed tea- I hate getting a cup of hot water with a tea bag on the side, just a peeve of mine. I loved this place and can't wait to get back there.

After breakfast we headed out to the city. We spent the day walking around, taking pictures and just having fun together. We went to see the tree of course, and then walked down 5Th Avenue. After hitting some stores we went to Virgil's for some down home barbecue. 

We just had so much fun walking around without any schedule, It was a great day

Things they are a changing..

Many years ago... in the dinosaur days of the computer... Jay and I had an Macintosh computer, a SE model with a 10K hard drive. I loved that Apple computer. Then at some point we decided to go with a PC, programs were just too limited for Apples. I was relatively happy with my PC and then I got my first laptop... an IBM Thinkpad. I really loved that computer. That thing was a tank and would hold up to any abuse, well almost any abuse. It seems that a cup of tea, dropped onto the keypad was just a little more than that computer could take. So, off I went to the computer store and got myself a HP Pavillion and threw myself into laptop hell. First off, I went big... really big for a laptop. The better for working with photographs I felt. I never considered how cumbersome carrying that laptop around would it. Then there was this weird thing with letters being dropped as you typed, and all of a sudden everything would become capitalized, even though I never hit the Caps lock key. I just figured it was all going back to my inadequacies with typing. But it was making me crazy. Then I found out my sister, who has the same computer, was having the same issues. OK, it wasn't just me, there are whole long lists of people online who are complaining about this. The final straw for me (or really for Jay who was tired of listening to me complain about it all) was when my computer just decided it wouldn't acknowledge my internet signal. Just didn't feel like going online with me. "That's it!" Jay said, "We'll just get you the Macbook... happy birthday and merry Christmas, and Happy Valentine's Day, oh yeah, and Happy Anniversary!" And so that is my long way of introducing my very first blog post with my new little, cute and very friendly MacBook." What's old is new and I am back on a MAC!!

Out of control

Earlier this week my friend emailed me something her brother sent her. He had "Elfed" her and her family on www.officemax.com I laughed so hard and had to go on and try it myself. I have made many of them but this one has got to be my favorite, so click on the link and enjoy my elfen husband and his biker friends
http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=9582892627

Photo Walk at the Steinhardt Private estate and Gardens

November 1st I had the most amazing opportunity. As I posted earlier, I signed up to do a Photo Walk at the Steinhardt Private Estate and Gardens. This is a beautiful 50+ acre estate in Westchester County, NY and home to some beautiful gardens. A wonderful couple have been overseeing the work on these gardens which inspired the book, The Landscape Diaries: Garden of Obsession by Gayatri Carole Rocherolle. After spending the day there I can see why obsession is an appropriate word. I know I could spend a lifetime wandering this property trying to see all that it has to offer. What also made the day so special was being able to share it with people I love to be with, My friend Anat, her husband Marc and another friend , Alyse. What a gift to spend a day walking around with them with the sole task of photographing to our hearts content.



We were all much more awake by the time I took the group photo...below I caught Marc and Alyse getting prepped as dawn's light was breaking.

Fall Flowers

One does not immediately think..Ah, November, what a great time to photograph flowers and yet there were some beautiful shots to be had.

The hold out. in a sea of dead flowers and leaves this one, lone flower hangs on to it's color

Pathways