Friday, July 31, 2009

Real Bananas




This week on "facebook" I have new-old friends, learned about new games to play on-line and have made numerous posts.  Many of these posts are silly comments to island life; laughing to roll with the punches!  All said, it's been an interesting week.  My proudest moment was harvesting bananas.  We have had bananas before; our little rental house had a tree; I picked those, learned a lot from that event.  (ie; leave them on the tree until they are ready, first lesson!  Second, when they are about ready, cut down the whole bunch and then hang them in your bodega until about yellow!  There are more lessons, but not as important as those :)  

Anyway, so I have this gorgeous bunch on one of my many trees!  Roberto informs me it is time to cut!  We do this  and I can hardly wait!  Within 24 hours, we have huge, ripe yellow bananas!  Colin,  Roberto and I gorge ourselves sick on them!  They are so good, we are besides ourselves!  I send Roberto home with a half dozen, "snicks" he says, instead of "snacks!"  (See why he makes me smile!)  The next day, it is time to start making something with all this fruit.  I start with my famous banana bread, bake 3 loaves, a dozen muffins and a custard cream banana pie  :)   I give a loaf to Roberto, Steve helps himself to muffins, (won't say how many; they are small), another loaf to my girlfriend who has just returned to the island and one loaf into the freezer.

This morning, waiting to see if we have the "scheduled" power outage; we do not, so the baking resumes.  Dozen muffins, one giant loaf and a cake.  Steve has already left for the day and Colin shows up for breakfast looking for banana bread.  As he's eating his first course of breakfast, (a mixing bowl size bowl of granola and yogurt), he is ready for his second course.  Just in time the muffins are ready, he chows down three with a giant glass of orange juice.  (The woman at my grocery/produce store marvels at what I buy these days; she does not believe me when I tell her of my son's appetite!  I should have her over for coffee one morning to witness this ritual!)

The clean-up is complete, breads are cooling and these freshly baked goods will go into the freezer for future dates to enjoy.  We have another bunch getting ready and several more trees that will produce fruit in the next month.  I love this!  Now if I could figure out why my tomatoes are not producing fruit,  I would be most pleased!

Cheers again, and here's to "real" life farm-town-stuff!  :)  (Love you Lisa!)
d

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Dinner


Doing the final clean up this morning from last night's dinner, I decided, I must keep my camera either in my pocket or at my side at all times!  The Kodak/Cannon moments never come back nor re-enacted!  Not that anything out of the ordinary occurred last night, it was my son's reaction to the empty tonic water and wine bottles on the kitchen counter that had me thinking.

Yesterday morning I started off as most days with my dearly beloved "list".  After the limpiaring, (Spanish for cleaning, lol),  I threw a load of laundry in the washer and jumped into the golf cart for a ride into town.  Wait, back up!  Before that, Roberto had to show me the amazing caterpillar he found, (yikes, made me think of the battle a friend is having right now with her passion fruit and caterpillars!  Should I worry about this?),  Colin had a question or two that needed answers,  the dogs needed a pat on the head, the phones ringing,  Pickle under the cart and won't come out!  In other words, a hour later, I was in the golf cart on my way to town!

Now, anyone who knows this place, knows this isn't always the, "Isla Bonita," Madonna sings about!  Madonna never went into town, in a noisy Polaris in the middle of summer, along these dusty roads with her empty 5 gallon water bottles bouncing in the cargo part of the cart!  Her peeps did it, she only heard about it!  Friends of mine are shopping in the states right now and I am so envious, I can hardly stand it!  I love to shop, it is my sport of preference and I can outlast the best of them!  Shopping in San Pedro is a whole other ball game!  Even the pros are left exhausted, frustrated and in need of a shower and cocktail!  The pleasure I once knew seems like a mere figment of my imagination;  did I once know the shoe department of Neiman's like the back of my hand?  Did the cosmetic counters at Macy's feel like an old comfy sofa?  Does Whole Foods really exist?  

I arrive in town, wave to the familiar faces along the way and get to my first destination not to find a space to park the beast of all golf carts!  I circle the block, OMG!, used to do that in my sleep at the mall back home, no problemo, (Spanish for not a big deal!), and after a couple close calls of tourist wandering aimlessly in the streets, dodging the enormous electric company truck, (ew, maybe I should have hit that?!), "bingo" I get a spot a block from the store!  Once inside,  I tick away at the list, proud of myself for remembering to bring the styro-foam egg carton to save 35 cents BZ (!), I realize, damn-it, my water jugs are unsecured in the back of the golf cart!  (They are worth more empty than full or $25BZ each!)   Do I go out there, fire the cart up and try to move in closer to the front door of the store?  Do I go out there, make an attempt at tying them in?  No, don't want to attract attention, I'll get out of here fast!  Shopping like a pro, I finished in record time!   Cramming the bags into the small storage unit under the passenger seat, start the cart and away I go to the next stop.

Around, around I go, trying to find parking!  I could go a few blocks to the, "parking lot" that only the owner of this property and few select others know about, because there is no sign and taxis are usually blocking the entrance.  Better not,  a few blocks away,  but I have $100BZ worth of unsecured water bottles in back and groceries in the storage compartment.  Must find something closer.  Around and around again, I decide I am a frequent customer at another retailer and I will bloody park there!  (A lot of my British ex-pat friends use this "bloody" expression; it seems to fit well in many circumstances, I like it!)  Okay, I park, give the security guard a little friendly wave and across the street I go to the next store.  

This little gem of a produce market has just about everything else on my list and it's fully air conditioned.  The owner and I have become friends, I glide through this tiny establishment feeling relaxed and at ease.  Standing in line, (which, by the way is a new concept here!  Very few, except tourists, stand in a line and wait their turn!  A major pet peeve for another blog:),  I wait patiently for the tourist ahead of me to finish her story, her trials of the day, her excitement of being on the island.  The owner and I trade glances,  roll our eye balls and it is now my turn.  I pay my bill, collect my parcels, exchange nicey-nicey's with my friend and away I go to the next stop.  Keep in mind; the narrow streets, roaming-picture-taking tourists, hot blazing sun, 95% humidity and a golf cart that should come with it's own "Bose" noise- cancelling head set!  To sum this up, 3 or 4 more stops to go!   Chats with neighbors along the way,  a lot of smiles and hand waves, (tourists feel compelled to wave), finally, back home.

When I arrive, no one is around to help unload, (I'm thinking Madonna would have her staff unloading this cart in the noontime sun!)  Instead,  I have 3 dogs jumping to lick the sweat dripping off my face, while juggling bags,  looking for my keys.  Inside the kitchen, I scrub the dust off my hands, arms and face, to begin  the task of preparing tonight's meal.  My husband has invited two friends whose wives are off island, to dinner.  We love to have friends over and these guys are dear and make me laugh!  I begin the chopping, cooking and preparing of this meal.  It's simple, prosciutto and melon, salad, lasagne, garlic bread and zucchini/coconut/pineapple cake.  By the time Steve steps in the door, I have finished cooking and tend to the table and the last of the limpiaring.  He's on the sofa snoozing when our first guest arrives.  (How does he do that?)

Now we get back to the, "dead soldiers" on the kitchen counter this morning!  Excited to see his friends, Steve starts pouring drinks.  I put our first guest's lovely appetizer on a pretty plate, get out the perfect utensil and the party has officially begun.  Next bachelor arrives.  I place his bottle of wine along side the first guest's bottle and offer him a piece of melon.  Steve soon realizes, we need more tonic and ice, (maybe the sofa time should have been spent checking on the bar supplies?),  Colin just happens to walk in upon returning from his third work out of the day!  (Another blog topic, later!)  Convincing our son, these are drastic needs, he gets into the golf cart for another trip to the store for tonic and ice.

Colin returns, the boys are ready to eat.  I serve everyone, glasses clink in the "cheers" and the manga (I talian for let's eat!) begins!  Your husbands, girlfriends shopping, are true gentlemen.  Polite conversations, most acceptable table manners and generous compliments to the chef, (moi; french for me!)  Seconds go around, bread is gone, another glass of wine, open another bottle and dessert.  We enjoy each others company, exchange stories, tell some jokes, update the latest island gossip.  It is about now that I go looking for a camera.  Steve is going on and on about his high school athletic career, Colin is desperately trying to get some training advice and I realize, my camera is not where I thought I left it!  They now miss me, have left the table  and have moved outside.  I did not mean to stop the party, I just wanted to take a photo to send to the wives stateside.  Darn it, cannot get those moments back nor the momentum.  So, the boys talk some more, I am limpiaring, again and before I know it, Steve is horizontal with all three dogs in the bed!

I finish what I want to do in the kitchen, turn off the lights, check the gates, say "goodnight" to our son, turn in for the night.  This morning, I have a quick walk with the dogs, greet Robert and notice Steve is moving painfully slow.  I look closer and he cannot be feeling  great.  Looking at my kitchen counter to finish up last night's clean up,  I understand his angst!  His is the face of too many rum and tonics, throw in some red wine and whole lot of food(!) and this is the face of pure misery!  Thus, the photo of empty bottles, (maybe I should go through the trash for the other empties!  Naw!)

So, ladies shopping, I don't know how your guys are feeling today?  I was busy getting food out to notice the drinking until it was too late!  It really wasn't that much!   Sorry about that, but I think they had a good time!  I am sure Steve will hit that sofa again after working today!  I am also sure he will be happy with a grilled cheese sandwich and some soup!  Let me know if I should take something similar over to yours!  :)  Cheers...

Sunday, July 26, 2009

Power

Roberto and plants
Dogs snoozing and waiting for the birds!
Pippi, one eye open in case a bird lands!

I have not blogged in a while, mostly because I have been busy with day to day life.  What a change!  Anywhere else I would understand this, but here, day to day life throws some real curve balls and tries one's patience!  The latest trial of patience has been power outages!  
These so called, "scheduled" and "unscheduled" power outages have been a real pain! (We had an "unscheduled" power outage the day before last for 5 hours!  and, more outages the weekend prior!)  I have tried to find the humor in it, but it is a real inconvenience!  Thank goodness for my son who has kept me entertained, and of course,  Roberto who always makes me laugh.  During the outage yesterday; 8 hours versus the 6 hour "planned outage!?", we kept ourselves busy and tried desperately to find the humor in it!

I started my morning by getting up well before the 6:00 a.m.  start of the "scheduled" outage so I could have my beloved cup of coffee, (this is a religious experience for me; very difficult to get through a day without this small routine to kick start it!)  After the brew was complete, I poured this steamy pot of wonderful into a thermos to be able to enjoy it hot throughout the morning.  Then out into the yard and beach.  I had my usual pair of snippers in my pocket and began taking note of what needed trimming, repotting, moving and removing, (this will keep me busy for hours!), but, Roberto sees me trimming and studying,  he loves this kind of work and  soon takes over!  Okay fine, let him have his fun,  I have plenty to do.  Out to the dock with new coffee and the dogs.

On the dock,  we watch the bonefish chase the small sardines and the pelicans dive for breakfast.  The dogs believe it is their job to bark and announce the pelican arrivals.  They go absolutely nuts over any bird coming near their territorial dock!  They bark and jump out of their minds at these odd looking creatures and pride themselves when the birds keep flying by.  Sort of as to say, "look, mom we did it,  they're gone!  Can we have a cookie now?"  They never cease to make me smile.  I marvel at the daunting task they have taken upon themselves!  These adorable animals seem so completely pleased with themselves and content to follow me around!  Of course, they know I will reward them for being so damn cute; their furry faces are the sweetest and really should be professionally photographed for a doggy calendar or coffee table book!  :)

Speaking  of coffee, I am out!  Back to the house for doggy treats and something else to do.  Roberto is busy chopping, dogs are chomping and it is 7:15 am and hours to go before power!  That is okay, I have a long list of "to-do's"!   I "limpiar" aka clean,  (big LOL's; I get a "Spanish" word of the day from an internet site, wonder what today's word is?).  I sort through Steve's paper trail, take the laundry downstairs, get that ready to go and plan tonight's dinner.  8:00 a.m!  What?  4 more hours!  No internet, no "facebook", no fan, no air conditioning and no power also means the water pump does not work either!  Okay, it is an adventure, find the humor in all this,  my friends back in the states say they would trade places with me at any time!   Into the pool!

After the cool swim, there is no hiding from the sun there, upstairs again; it is now 8:30 a.m!  This is ridiculous, normally the hours fly by, why is today taking all day?  Any other day, these hours would have passed unnoticed and I would be marveling at how quickly they have flown by and can it really be lunch time!   My god!  I look around, everything is as neat and tidy as I want it.  It is hot, humid and I need to be outside in the breeze.  To the porch swing with a crossword puzzle;  they do not require electricity and pass the time as well as exercise the brain!  I do a few of these and now I have had enough!  I want to get that laundry done, I want to start pulling stuff out of the freezer to cook, bake and do some checking!  I would like to finish a small embroidery project for a new customer!  I would like to turn the water faucet on and get some water!

11:00 a.m,  back to the pool, another dip, swim, a little exercise.  Back to the dock.  Ready to give up, I move the lounge chair into the shade and  fall asleep.  Lulled by the sound of the waves breaking against the pier,  birds chirping, dogs snoring, cool breezes off the Caribbean sea and why had I not thought of this sooner?  Napping!,  the most excellent way to pass the time!  And, that it does,  when I awake the power is still not on, but my attitude and mood are back to my cheerful self.  The dogs want to play, Colin is hungry and  peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are perfect!  He and I sit outside and chat about old times, old friends and family, tell a few jokes.  We enjoy each other's company and make some plans for our trip back to the states next month.  OOps, back to the electricity problem, we need the internet to book those flights and makes those calls!  When is the power coming back?  It is now past noon!

Around 2:00 pm., the power finally returns and we all slip into our daily routines once more.  Laundry is done, dinner is made and the a/c is blasting!   The airlines were all too happy to make our reservations and the emails to let our friends and family know we are coming in get sent.   Somehow in the middle of it, we managed, we relaxed, we laughed and we survived!  Not a big deal, another adventure in paradise!  Happy day!  :) 

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

California dreaming


Steve and Colin are still in the states.  Now, they are in California, beautiful San Francisco and then on to LA.  Envious?  Just a little!  Last night they had dinner with my dearest, oldest girlfriend!  (Since she knows restaurants like no else I know, I know they had a fabulous meal!)  Today, after touring a couple schools, they drove the coast south to Los Angeles to visit our daughter and to see the Occidental campus.  I will see my boys in a few more days and later this summer, I will see our daughter, but, it's not the same!  I want to be there too!
It is a day like today when I question why we did this!  Yesterday, our land line and internet phones were not working.  Nothing I did seemed to fix the problem.  By some miracle, everything is up and running today!?  The problem of the day is the golf cart not working!  I even got out the hammer and tried  hitting things underneath to get it going!  (Ed and I laugh that a hammer is all you need here to fix anything and everything!)   Nothing!  I could try the noisy Polaris, but then I would have to move all the stuff Roberto packed into the other cart for me and there is no guarantee that vehicle will work; it gave me trouble yesterday.  ( I swore to myself  then, I would not drive this cart until Steve returned).
I feel like a spoiled child; but is it really too much to ask that your phone work?  We pay for the services!  There is gas in the cart, the tires are not flat, why should that thing suddenly not work?  Who is messing with me?  (My nemesis neighbor!  I love blaming him!)
Oh well, I am on a beautiful island and the sky is blue and the sunset will be spectacular.  A shower or swim, a glass of wine and a piece of cake!  My dogs company, a wave to my sweet neighbor, not the demon next door, and all will be fine.  (I saw there is something really good on television tonight!  Something else to do and look forward to!  Pathetic, I know!)   Bored, maybe, I miss my kids and my husband.  The dogs do not talk back and they eat whatever I put out for them, but so does my family, usually!  Have fun in sunny, cool and bug free California!  I'll bet driving a rental car is pretty nice right now too!  A real car, I forget about that on some days!  Cannot wait to hear your tales of adventure!  Bring me home a little something!  A real newspaper would really be sweet!  A big thick one with a lot of sections!  That will keep me entertained for days!
mom :)

Thursday, July 9, 2009

The Dog SAGA

Toby and Pickle
Our visiting friend
Our little girl, Pippi and her new boyfriend!
I am on the verge of tears; a friend sent me a link to the local humane society.  The, "Pet of the Week", is a sweet dog I, "dog sat" for 3 months.  His owner went back to the U.K. for a visit and needed someone to watch his pet.  I volunteered, I am a sucker when it comes to animals, especially sweet and needy dogs!   This dog was a hand full.  Although, he easily fell into our routine and made quick friends with my female puppy.  Truly a pleasure to watch them play.  But my alpha male did not care for him,  he is too small to really have an opinion, he just growled and showed his displeasure by being naughty every chance he had, (peeing indoors!)  My other male, really disliked this dog and no matter how hard I tried, this particular dog did not want "new" dog around.  My dog loves me so much, I could tell he was really tring to deal with this situation.  We plodded along for 3 months, trying our best to make this work.
"New" dog also brought with him a host of gifts during his stay.  The funniest, yet intolerable gift was,  jumping up to the kitchen counters to chase the cat!  Imagine, a 40 pound, hairy, sand- filled dog jumping across your kitchen counters chasing a terrified cat!  I had never seen anything like it!  (Neither had the cat!)   She was used to the dogs wanting a bit of her and she would leap to her sanctuary to the upper cabinets.  I am sure if I had not intervened, this dog would have been walking across the rafters in my kitchen to get poor kitty!  Crazy!
Another character trait this dog has;  on our daily walks off the yard, down the road to our favorite empty lot/beach,  he would chase and bark senselessly at any bicyclist or golf cart that happened to drive by!  And, god forbid it were an innocent jogger!  I tried and tried to train this dog to behave.  Nothing!  Then the worst occurred; he would react to the passerby and my dogs started acting like idiots too!  Now I had 4 dogs, a pack really, chasing bikes, cars and joggers!  It came down to, limiting who got to go on the walk or no walk at all!  They were all disappointed and me too!  (On these walks, I always found interesting items that had washed ashore during the night!  It was my early morning treasure hunt and quiet time, usually!  Another story, later.)
Now, my least favorite contribution from my friend who came to visit!  If you haven't guessed by now, I like things tidy, neat, organized, clean!  (I took the "facebook", "What Mental Disease are You?  I'm OCD!  Always knew it, LOL!)
My little hairy, furry friend brought into my house and gave to my beloved 4 legged friends, TICKS!  I have been a dedicated pet owner and follow instructions from my vet to the "T".  My dogs and cats get their vaccines, heart guard, flea and tick medications!  Until this doggy came to visit, I had only seen ticks on the internet or on other people's dogs!  My house and dogs became infested!  They were everywhere: our sofa, bed, floors, walls, behind pictures and not to mention, on the dogs!  In one night, I pulled 20 gross ticks off one dog!  Panicked, I called and emailed everyone I knew who had any knowledge about dogs/pets about what to do!  The troops came in and sprayed, bathed and dipped the dogs.  Then went about inspecting the house and yard.  More sprays!  This went on and on....
My little visitor left our home to the happy arms of his traveling owner, a month and a half ago.  Last weekend,  I had the house and yard sprayed, the dogs bathed and dipped again.  4 months of monthly, expensive treatments.  Happy to say, we are tick-free in the, " Casa Amarillo" residence!  The day this dog left, it was like a black cloud left too!  Every furry friend here went back to normal!  They knew he was gone!   They went back to being un-aggressive and obedient.  They took up their old "posts" in their doggy world and the state of "calm" came back!
So, with all this said, I cannot go and adopt this dog!  As much as I would like to; I would be asking for disaster!  I suppose I could ask a professional to come in and train the dogs and me, but this expense is something I cannot afford now and why really?  Then the monthly chemical treatments!  I cannot stand the smell and poisoning that causes.  The monthly, or as needed baths will continue, but the flea/tick drops should be enough!
Somebody, adopt this little boy!  He has had a very traumatic life and yet is a cartoon character to watch!  He's full of energy and just needs attention, training and a lot of love.  He truly does adapt to any circumstances and surroundings;  he needs a kind, dedicated and loving home with a fenced yard!  An owner without pets or maybe a young, spayed female dog would work too!  And, I believe with hard work and daily baths,  the tick problem could be under control.
Now that this is off my chest, I still feel a bit guilty for not calling the humane society to take him back.  As I look at my little ones; they are all resting quietly, they have barked only to let me know our caretaker has arrived.  The only bugs I have seen today have been mosquitos and moths.  Errrrrrrr, got to stop, he cannot come back!  I will convince someone else to adopt him and help with the baths and training,  THAT, is what I will do!
Make a donation to your local humane society and better yet, go in and adopt a furry face of your own!  Please do not let my rant/story discourage you!  4 out of the 5 pets we have, are adopted.  They are sweet, gentle and dedicated.
xox, d :)

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Birthdays

The kids all grown up and seemingly "normal",  and Steve polishing one of the many motor homes we've owned.

Thank you everyone for the wonderful, thoughtful and cheerful birthday wishes!   I usually like to have my birthday pass by quietly but somehow, and now with "facebook" it gets a broadcast!  I believe my birthday broadcasts come from the few years my dear, sweet, adorable husband truly forgot my birthday and when friends heard of this incredibility, it has now become  a day everyone in my small circle knows about.
My two favorite, "Steve forgot my birthday" stories start like this.  The year is sometime in the mid 1990's, our children are small and we are traveling to northern Michigan with friends to their cabin on a lake for the 4th of July holiday weekend.  Being the proud owners, at the time, of a motor coach, we all load in.  Picking up our friends along the way, they board with their luggage, groceries and some "presents".  Once the excitement settles,  kids are buckled in, snacks are dispersed, Steve asks our riding guests, "who are the presents for?"  In horror, my girlfriend looks at me, I look at her, she looks at her husband, he looks at Steve, and answers, "they're for Denise and Dana!  It's their birthday's! "  (Dana is their daughter and her birthday is July 1st, and mine is July 6th).
The color leaves Steve's face, I roll my eyes and think, "it's okay, I don't need anything, I just want him to remember, kiss me and say 'Happy Birthday'."  Our friends are laughing and wondering if he, Steve, really did forget!
We get to the cabin, unpack, get the kids fed and settled in; after a 9 hour drive with many stops, no one feels like doing much besides sleep.  The next morning, the children are outside swimming, catching tadpoles, running and chasing each other and I notice the men are missing.  Oh well,  Steve and Al are off doing something, better they keep themselves busy!  Caren and I begin the preparation for the birthday dinner.
 Dinner,  I recall it being delicious,  Al is a great cook and Caren and I are the sous chefs.  Cake is brought in, "Happy Birthday" sung and a joint venture to blow out all these candles!  Now for the gifts!  For the life of me, I cannot remember what we gave little Dana that birthday but I will never forget what Steve gave me!
Steve hands me a box with an apology, saying, "Sorry, it was all I could find!  I shopped everywhere, ask Al!  I couldn't find a thing, not even a piece of jewelry at the only jewelry store in town!"  We are in the upper peninsula of northern Michigan, in one of the many national forests.  If you are here to shop, you will be disappointed!  There are a few stores,  mostly bait shops, gas stations and bars!
After this, "amuse bouche"-teaser of an introduction, I can hardly wait!  I open the box to find, a flannel shirt!  The crowd around the table goes wild, I look at it and at Steve and cannot believe my eyes!  Are you kidding?  He is dying of laughter and so is everyone else!  I don't know what to say.  But that birthday has never been forgotten by our children, friends or Steve!  Don't recall ever wearing that shirt or what became of it!  Oops!
This next one, is not the last time Steve forgot my birthday, but it too brings back memories and makes me laugh!  
Our daughter Lauren, is 12 the year of this story.  She has insisted on going off to camp for 2 whole weeks!  I simply cannot believe this and am worried sick about this whole ordeal.  Steve being an "eagle scout", loves this idea and is eager to get his young daughter out into the wilderness and camping!  I, in the meantime, have researched this "camp", have shopped for everything on the "list" and more.  I have packed, labeled and sorted her belongings.  Once again, we pack up the motor coach, (a new and expanded version of the last one!) and away we go.  Driving through the Chicago northern suburbs into Wisconsin and north to the border of the upper peninsula, we are in familiar territory and it is beautiful.  The camp is gorgeous and there are children running, playing, horseback riding and swimming all around us.  I,  of course, want to arrange her foot locker, make her bed and set out her "camp outfit" for the next day.  Steve says, "no, let's go, she can do this, it's better we leave!"  OMG! again, here we go!  Hugs and kisses all around, I double check into the eyes of these counselors hoping not to see any signs of "what?" I don't know?   They are all smiling, bubbly teenagers, eager to meet and get started with their new "campers"!  
We leave, I am upset, in tears that my little girl is so grown up, she doesn't need me anymore and I feel my world crumbling in!  (Drama queen, remember!)  Colin's is jumping up and down, glad to be moving and Steve settles into the drive.  We drive about a hour down the road toward home and Steve announces he's hungry and would I like to eat here!  We have pulled into a truck stop in the wilderness of northern Wisconsin and it's my birthday!  AND, my daughter has left my side to be with her friends at a beautiful, exciting camp without me on my birthday!!
Once again, the color leaves Steve's face, as I explain to him that I would rather starve than eat at a truck stop the day my daughter goes off to camp for 2 whole weeks without me, ON MY BIRTHDAY!
I see the full humor in this now, as I come to my senses.  I see a panicked Steve shopping the truck stop gift shop for a trinket for my day.  Coming back to the motor home with an ice cream bar and a card, he wishes me, "Happy Birthday" and assures me he had not forgotten, he just thought it was tomorrow!  Giant LOL's (we didn't use "LOL" then, but I did LOL!), tears wiped away and hugs and kisses from my two favorite guys and I am fine!
So, once again, thank you honey and everyone else, for all the birthday wishes!  I am glad to be here, happy and healthy, I could not want or wish for more!
And, although Steve is in the states for this birthday, he did call several times and is very excited about the gifts he has purchased!  LOL, love this stuff!    D;)

Saturday, July 4, 2009

Sweepstakes


Yesterday, after I saw Steve and Colin off to Belize City, I stopped in to check our little rental house.  The renters had vacated the day before and I wanted to begin getting ready for the next tenant.  I stripped the beds, got the laundry started and began sweeping and cleaning.  While the first load of laundry was drying and the second load started, I headed out the door to the neighborhood grocery store to restock the essentials.

First load finished and folded, second load drying, I sat down with the local newspaper, a diet coke and some plantain chips, (love, love, love these!)  Reading the paper, something else I love to do, I read a full page, 4 color ad for, " Beat the Hardtimes Sweepstakes"!  (Another something I love, contests/raffles, etc.)

I read this ad and reread it!  I couldn't believe it!  This was a contest sponsored by the friendly Belizean tobacco companies.  The entry rules are easy, if you're a smoker!  Buy the sponsors cigarettes, save the coupon inside the packs, "don't destroy them", the ad says and wait for the drawing!  The drawing is sometime in November 2009.  Still under the, "I cannot believe what I am reading" spell,  I continued.  Grand prize; $1000BZ a month for 12 months!  Yeah, I'd take that!  Second prize;  "Fuel efficient Honda Scooter"!  Not bad, Colin might like that!  Third prize; $100BZ worth of free groceries a month for 12 months from Brodies!  I like that store, and easily spend that when I am there, I'd take that prize too!  Fourth; $1000BZ worth of FREE clothing or household products from Brodies.  I can always use more "stuff"!  Fifth;  $1000 worth of gasoline or diesel from a station near you (!)  Wondering if SP Caribena qualifies?  Now we get to the real good stuff!  Sixth prize;  Free Dos Pinos milk every month for 12 months!  and the last prize, my favorite!  Twenty pounds of Free Rice every month for 12 months!!!!

I swear to holy heaven!  This ad cracks me up so much, I posted on "facebook" about it, I have it on my refrigerator door now and think I should send it along to school with my son to show his teachers!  Did these companies that are sponsoring this contest, not get the memo about the tobacco companies getting sued in the states for millions?  Did they also miss all the information from the Cancer Federation?  Clearly, this is not the USA, but come on folks, sponsoring a sweepstakes and encouraging a strapped economy to smoke cigarettes to win prizes is really in bad taste!  Now, I'm outraged by this ad!

I can remember my parents talking about these sort of contests in the states back in the 50's or maybe sooner than that!  Back before they (?really?) knew how horrible cigarettes are!  For awhile,  I believe the tobacco companies even had trading cards of sports heros inside the packs!  Well, this sort of contest mirrors that kind of stupidity!  Asking people to buy their products, save the coupons with the possible winning  numbers from the inside these said packages and holding on to them until sometime in November, is so outrageous,  I want to scream and hold a protest and boycott these idiots for such a disgraceful campaign.  Being a middle aged adult, I do not smoke cigarettes, I have preached to my children about the dangers in doing so and I try to limit my exposure to second hand smoke.  (Difficult to do sometimes, as unlike the states, smoking is still allowed in public places in Belize.)  I base my decision to not smoke on the facts about the dangers and addiction to these products, but mostly on seeing a dear uncle and my beloved grandfather die of lung cancer!  Both men were fairly young by today's standards!  Both men suffered horrible deaths and left behind young children in my uncle's case and a frail widow of my grandmother, who really never recovered from her husband's death.  If someone can die from a broken, lonely heart, my grandmother did.

So, my lecture/post of the day!  This the 4th of July!  Happy Independence Day to the US and happy independence from tobacco companies to everyone else.