Cheerio!

I always thought I should have been British. I was born in Germany to American parents, but I've always felt a connection with all things British. I love rainy days, I love the accents, I love tea. I've never been a coffee drinker, it's always been tea. I adore mysteries, Agatha Christie topping the list, and I love British literature (hello there, Charles Dickens).

Recently, I've started watching some British television shows on Netflix and they are so great, I have to share.

The first series I watched was Doc Martin. The show centers around a top-notch London surgeon who develops hemophobia, a fear of blood. He retreats to Port Wenn, a tiny village in Cornwall where he becomes the General Practitioner (GP) for the little town, which is plagued by all manner of viruses, bacteria, and odd diseases. It's also plagued by all manner of interesting characters.

Doc Martin is a fish out of water in the fishing village, with his brusque and rude attitude. And yet, the town

comes to like, if not love, the GP who seems able to diagnose any disease on the spot and fix any and all maladies. The Doc takes a liking to Louisa Glasson, the resident girl next door and head teacher of the primary school in Port Wenn. Their relationship is fraught with more peril than seems possible, mostly due to the Doc's inability to express his true feelings.

The show is fantastic and just one of those fun mixes of lighthearted humor and serious storylines. Definitely worth watching! The first five seasons are on Netflix with the sixth slated to premiere in Fall 2013.

The second show I started watching this weekend is Call the Midwife. Based on the life of Jennifer Worth, a London nurse and midwife in the late 1950s, this series follows four nurse/midwives and the nuns they board with. The nuns are also midwives and nurses and the convent is located in London's East End, in a city called Poplar. The city is very poor and the nurse/midwives serve the people of the city who otherwise could not access medical care.

This show will make you laugh, cry, and realize that life is truly a gift. The nurse/midwives help bring people into this world, ease them out of it, and take care of all the needs of life between birth and death. These women worked behind the scenes, making life just that little bit easier for those around them. When the hospital was too far, when the night was long, they labored along with their patients, helping to bring new life into the world and easing the departure out of it.

And the patients were heroes too - women living in the poorest of conditions who soldiered on, raising their children, who sometimes numbered into the 20s because birth control was not yet invented, condoms being the only option with the women at the mercy of men who refused to wear them. And yet...they kept on going, making the best life for themselves and their families in sometimes deplorable conditions.

This series shows us that our preconceptions about the poor are really misconceptions in a lot of cases, that love is not an easy concept to understand or to live, and that life is never black and white. The rules are not simple, life is not simple, but if you have your health and you have someone there for you to hold your hand when you come into this world and when you leave it, you are truly blessed. And that is what these nurse/midwives did for their fellow human beings - they were there. And that is a true gift.

Monday Musings

1. Sometimes I get mail for people who lived in my apartment before me and I wonder what their lives are like, where they are now and so on. 

2. There is something very comforting about the fact that my precious dog likes to sleep so close to me. Before lights out, she's usually on the bed with me, but when the light goes out, she snuggles as close as she can. It's very sweet and I feel so loved!

3. Today, I finally dumped five frozen dinners I had in the refrigerator. I don't like three of them and the other two have been in there forever. I feel bad when I do that because it's a waste of money, but at the same time I feel good because I'm letting it go and then I have room in there for the stuff I really will eat.

4. Frozen green grapes are awesome! I buy the grapes and freeze them overnight. Perfect snack for the hot days that are soon to come in Houston. Do not do this with the purple grapes though. They are not good frozen.

5. There is something very satisfying about getting small things done like finally sifting through all the paperwork that piles up on the nightstand or folding a load of laundry that has been sitting there for a couple of days.

6. Sometimes I miss the days when we didn't have Internet (or cell phones) and we were forced to go outside, ride bikes, go to the library to check out books (as opposed to downloading them) and so on. I love the Internet, don't get me wrong, but I do yearn for the days when you didn't spend half your time at a restaurant having to listen to someone on the cell phone. I also miss the days when you went to a party and actually interacted with people instead of seeing them on their phones "checking in" on Facebook. I think we've lost a lot with the advent of technology sometimes.

7. There's a real beauty in letting go of things and accepting them as they are. So many people get riled up and wonder why such and such a person won't do this or that or whatever. You know what? For better or for worse, they are who they are. If it bothers you, stop interacting with them and definitely stop expecting them to do whatever it is you want them to do. History shows it's not going to happen. Move on and make peace with it.

8. I totally stole this musings idea from Karen over at A Peek at Karen's World. Go read her blog. It's worth it!

VOTE TODAY PLEASE!!!

Kimberly with one of her creations.
She's an artist folks!!

VOTE HERE!

Short and sweet (in more ways than one). I am asking all of you to vote for my friend, Kimberly, in this small business contest. Voting is easy - no sign-up involved, no personal information, it's literally one click and done. 

You can vote from multiple devices every day. There are only two days left so please vote and please ask your friends to do so. 

About Kimberly, which you can also read on the voting page:

"I own a small bakery. At first, it was just for fun and "play" money. Well, my husband was recently diagnosed with Neurosarcoidosis at the age of 39. He is now paralyzed and blind. He was also a small business owner and we lost the business due to his illness. He is living in a rehab/nursing home trying to get more function back. I am the "family" breadwinner now. I would love more marketing material as well as more equipment. I have never advertised yet stay very busy. It would be nice to hire some help as well as have more pans, mixers, and other baking supplies."

GO HERE TO VOTE!!

Viva La Fiesta - Photo Edition!

The fish protecting The Alamo

Flowers at The Alamo

Dad at an Alamo Memorial

Flags at the Fiesta Gartenfest

Dad under the archway of Market Square

One of the floats we saw in the street heading for the parade

Dad and Peanut in front of the Brackenridge Eagle train

Brackenridge Park river.

The family at Brackenridge Park

Entrance to the Japanese Tea Garden

Waterfalls at the Japanese Tea Garden

Beautiful flowers in front of the Japanese Tea Garden

Viva La Fiesta!!!

It's April in Texas and that means it's FIESTA in San Antonio!! My dad lives just west of San Antonio and he grew up in SA so it's his hometown. Since 2003 (I moved to Texas in summer 2002), we have gone to Fiesta events. It's one of my favorite times of the year. We have a great time together going to the different events.

This year, I drove up on Wednesday, April 24th, with Peanut in tow. Peanut loves my Dad's house as do I. We have our own room and bathroom here. My Dad always makes us feel comfortable and welcome. It's a wonderful thing.

So, here is a recap of our Fiesta week events:

Wednesday, April 24th, 2013

Arrived at Dad's house around 4:30 p.m. Had tacos for dinner. SO DELICIOUS! My Dad makes the best tacos ever.

Thursday, April 25th, 2013

We went to The Alamo and toured it and the grounds. Very beautiful. Then, we stopped to talk to some Marines who were set up outside. There was supposed to be a Marine band playing outside The Alamo, but they didn't show up, so we decided to head to my very favorite Fiesta event - NIOSA (Night in Old San Antonio).

Sign at Sauerkraut Bend

NIOSA has tons of vendors with different food and music. The area is divided into countries. We visited Irish Flats where we got excellent potato skins. Then, we headed to Sauerkraut Bend where we indulged in some German food. I had bratwurst on a stick with mustard and Dad had the same, plus a bratwurst in a bun with sauerkraut. We then moved on to the Mexican food outside where we had pork tamales and I also had a burrito. We headed over to a music area where I spotted some ice cream and had that. Then we headed to China where Dad got some Chinese Apple Pie, which was apple pie filling in the same stuff they use to make won tons. He shared some with me. It was delicious. We then returned to the pork tamales.

I then spotted some corn on the cob and ate that followed by a snow cone. Yes, I was feeling rather full after all of that, but that's NIOSA and it's delicious! Dad and I took a rest on a bench after consuming all of this before making our way to the car and home for a much needed rest. We watched Murder in Suburbia on Netflix, which was a very funny and good mystery series.

By the way, I do not normally consume that much food in a single sitting, just for the record. But all bets are off once a year at NIOSA :)

Friday, April 26th, 2013

Menu at Fiesta Gartenfest

We headed over to St. Mary's University for the Jazz Fest. We listened to some good music, talked a bit, and Dad had a hot dog while I tried the popcorn. We then headed to Fiesta Gartenfest, which was a German festival. We way over indulged there, but it was easy to do. We had bratwurst on bread and German potato salad. Then we hit up the pastries. We had German chocolate cake, Dad had apple pie and apple pastries. I had white cake with frosting and ice cream. It was so good, but we were absolutely stuffed when we left. We felt we wouldn't need to eat for days.

Saturday, April 27th, 2013

We slept in and relaxed in the morning. In the afternoon, we headed to Bill Miller's BBQ and had some great brisket and sides. We then headed back home to collect Peanut and take her to Brackenridge Park and the Japanese Tea Garden. Peanut loved the park and the tea garden! She had so much fun exploring new territory and walking the trails.

Japanese Tea Garden

I rode the Brackenridge Eagle, which is a miniature train that goes around the different park areas. It was a lot of fun! And then Dad and I walked with Peanut through the park. We ended the day at the Japanese Tea Garden, which is very beautiful. Our last stop was a quick visit to Alamo Stadium, which my Dad remembered from his childhood. It was a very cool stadium, they are doing renovations right now, but I can see how great it once was so I look forward to seeing the completed renovations.

After visiting the stadium, we headed home making one stop for me to get a snow cone. I love them, but do not eat them that often so I'm taking advantage of this mini-vacation to indulge. We got home and watched Murdoch Mysteries on Netflix, which is a very good show.

Sunday, April 28, 2013
We slept in and started the day with a great breakfast of Belgian waffles and sausage. Delicious! We headed to the 10th Street River Festival, which it turned out was already over although it shouldn't have been since it was advertised to last until midnight tonight. Oh well, no problem, we went over to Market Square, which was really hopping! We walked around, looked at some shops and just browsed through the vendors. Then, we headed to San Jose Mission Fest. On the way, my Dad pointed out some places from his childhood and young adult years in San Antonio. He also stopped at a snow cone booth we saw, which was very sweet  (pardon the pun) since I love snow cones as previously stated. My Dad knows I love them so he stopped and bought me one when he saw the stand.

At the San Jose Mission Fest, we walked around the booths and heard some great music. We watched the kids play in the child area for awhile and it was fun to see them having fun. Then we headed back home, stopping at Subway for a double grilled chicken salad, which was delicious. We arrived home and I took a refreshing shower before settling down and watching some Charlie Chan and Nero Wolfe. My Dad and I share a love of mysteries in general and we both love Charlie Chan and Nero Wolfe. It was a perfect way to end the last day of Fiesta.

Peanut and I are not looking forward to going home tomorrow. We love hanging out with my Dad. I am so blessed to have a fantastic father in every possible way!!

Work It!

We all have sites we visit often such as Facebook or Youtube. But there are some other cool sites out there that I visit so I thought I would share these in a post. These are work-related except for the last one and could be helpful to others:

1. Ask a Manager. This site is written by a former manager of a non-profit and she answers business-related questions about everything from resumes to office politics. Other readers respond in the comments as well so it's a good site to get some advice on everything work-related.

2. Small Business Blog. Several business owners write in different blogs on this site about business-related issues. Interesting to get work-related insight from the top. 

3. Not Always Working. Stories of bad customer service, bad bosses, and bad co-workers.

4. Salary.com. Great articles on workplace issues.

5. Overheard in the Office. Funny site of things people have overheard in their offices.

6. Lifehacker. Tips and tricks for getting things done!

Suspect

I’m going to go ahead and say it – please remember that the man they've arrested in Boston is a SUSPECT. He has not been found guilty of the bombings. I am inclined to believe he did it, but then I've also seen innocent people convicted by overwhelming circumstantial evidence. I know as a lawyer and a former journalist that all the facts are not often revealed and some of what is reported is totally false.

SO…I would urge everyone to calm down and take a breath. Let’s not convict anyone in the media or in our own minds simply because we want to feel like we’re once again safe