Living the Dream @ Deer Run

Recovering

2012-01-29T11:58:00.000-05:00

Within the last two weeks, I've been involved in two separate events on opposite ends of the spectrum, both of which I've posted about. The first, a fashion show in which I was buffed, fluffed and puffed every way imaginable, the second a mud run where anything but buffing, fluffing & puffing was involved. I'm still in recovery from the mud run.

A lot happened at the mud run. It took two days of posting to get through the story of the "must swim" obstacle. After the run, us campers were "treated" to more than the the standard choices other non-camping runners faced: an agriculture shower spray or a hosing down by firefighters. Instead, us campers got "real" showers. Now, I'm using quotations marks here because what one typically defines as a shower is in my eyes was much different than what we faced down after the run.

I think the showers should have been declared another obstacle.

The showers had a wood slat floor which we quickly learned would swallow up our soap, shampoo and anything else anyone happened to accidentally drop. The showers had wooden slat walls which were staggered, so if you went to the edge REALLY became community showers. And, the showers had some type of utilitarian shower heads, I can best describe as a hose attachment. Each shower had 4 of those nozzles, one on each wall, and a "door" which essentially was a gate fixed to the ground, permanently in the open position.

There is a reason I am known around these parts as a city girl.

After stepping into one of those shower stalls along with 3 other soon-to-be of my closest comrades, we were treated to the lowest water pressure ever experienced. In fact, after close to 20-25 minutes of attempting to get mud off me WITH the assistance of friends (what are friends for, right?) I was still covered in mud. The giant handfuls were gone, thankfully, but my skin seemed to have a permanent orange tinge to it. There just wasn't enough pressure to get the mud off. Doing the best we all could anyway, after stepping out of the shower dressed quite sparsely, I took a few steps aside to let the next crew into the community stall; directly into a large fire ant nest. It hurt, but I didn't realize what was going on for a few seconds. When I looked down at my feet, I was in a large puddle of mud, so I basically thought it was just mud itching me. Upon closer inspection, I realized the mud was moving, and moving a lot. They were swarming me, up and over my ankles. Yeah, I began jumping up and down like an idiot, screaming and hollering. Just what I wanted.... calling attention to myself after a shower, barely dressed, with really bad hair issues surrounded by hundred of others. Regardless, I tried to kick them off, it didn't work. I tried to brush them off. It didn't work. My friend D who had just dealt with the same shower situation as I had scrambled off to a nearby low nozzle and called me over. She turned it on, and I tried to wash off the ants. Slowly I made progress, but not before the damage was done.

I have too many ant bites to count.

Its been over one week since the mud run escapade... over one week since the fire ants. The water trauma is mostly behind me, the ant trauma is not. I have welts covering me where the ants attacked, and they itch like crazy. I have awoken in the middle of the night for the last 4 nights in a row, plagued by terrible itching. Nothing helps. I wonder, when will this end?

There are people in the world who devote their lives to creating weapons of destruction. I don't think anyone needs to waste any more time on those issues. Fire ants are natures answer to WMD. I imagine if you get covered with enough ants, those things can do more damage than planned.

I've got another fashion show coming up. I'm hopeful my bruises, sunburn, and fire ant bites will heal by then, but its not looking good on the ant situation. Maybe I'll get to wear boots or something. And, with that said, perhaps I'll wear boots on my next mud run too... or at least for my Apres' run "shower."

MUST SWIM - Part Two

2012-01-26T17:19:00.000-05:00

When I came back up I had a death grip on that line. I don't ever remember feeling terror like that ever before in my life.

The look on H's face wasn't really a good one, I'd describe it as one of deep concern. I looked away from her and fixated on those floats. With my death grip on the rope, I began to sort of pull my way forward. I couldn't touch the bottom, my body kind of just hung as I constantly tried to feel for the pond bottom that simply wasn't there. When I got to the floats, I think I began to cry because there were no handles, nothing. It was a mass of muddy soaked hard slippery plastic. Someone told me to let go of the rope, so I did, and just grabbed for the floats. More panic because it was so slick, I couldn't get up. Someone in my group told me to grab deeper ahead on the floats, I did. They said get a leg up on the floats. I did. I was pulled and rolled up to the plastic dock of floats. I looked behind me, hundreds were still jumping in, screaming about the cold, hollering, laughing, just doing it.

I was in the middle of the obstacle paralyzed with terror.

I had no concept of time anymore, but likely it was only seconds when I realized S was in the water in front of me; he came back for me. I had only moments on the floats before I was back in the black water with S coaching me, supporting me, helping me. Then, I was again back on the floats. It was a blur, I was truly consumed by terror, there's things I probably said, things I probably did, that I just cannot recall.

Now, all that remained was the final third of the pond. No ropes, no floats, nothing. There was only dark, deep, freezing pond water. Any feelings of happy dancing iPod girl were long gone. I was now water terror girl in the middle of an official panic attack. In honest to goodness hero style, S was there. He was in the water, talking me literally off the edge. He said "we're going to cross together." He told me he wasn't leaving without me.

I was completely out of control, unsure of all I said, but I do know I never stopped talking. I know I said I really don't think I can do it. I think I said leave me there. He said he was going to swim me across on his back. He said that I could do it. He was the face of complete calm in the middle of chaos all around him, not the least of which was me completely out of control. And then it struck me I think more than anything that was the problem; control. There was nothing in this situation within my control. I couldn't make the water shallow. I couldn't go back. I couldn't instantly overcome water terror, and I couldn't magically learn how to swim. I looked at the best of the best, S, and knew he would make sure I would get to the far side, so I asked him how did he want me to hold on. He told me what to do, so I did it. We were back in the freezing black water which was deeper than I wished it was, and he was swimming. I was crying. I was apologizing. I remember saying "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry" about a million times as we were swimming. He was under the water, I was not. He would come up for air, and then he was under the water again. I really was sorry. I was sorry that someone like him, the best of the best, had to waste his time for someone like me. I was sorry that I was not up to the challenge. I was sorry that I wasn't good enough, that I wasn't better. I mean all of that when I say it, and I still mean it. I think we should all do our best, and for me my best wasn't good enough. I completely fell apart.

Epic fail on "don't be a weak link" goal setting. Epic fail.

When we got to the far side, everything was slick icy mud. It was, for me, like trying to climb out of a vat of oil. I don't really know what happened next. I know that I began to realize I was out of the water and face planted on the other side of where I started. I got up, crying like an infant. I couldn't control my emotions, I was spent. When I stood up, my legs were like rubber, and I had difficulty walking for no other reason than out of control emotions. My friends were there cheering. I don't know when it was, but I found S and I know I hugged him. I really didn't want to let go. I know I said thank you, and I know he looked at me at some point, and instead of making me feel even more like an idiot, ashamed and embarrassed, he congratulated me on being brave. Seriously? What? I said I was sorry. He said stop it. And, then at some point, he was gone. He was back with his video stick camera, running ahead of all the rest of us crazy girls getting ahead so he would be at the next obstacle to video us. I was on my feet moving away from the black water. Away from the "MUST SWIM" sign.

I was back on the sandy trail, in the sun, I was sort of running, sort of stumbling with my friend M. She who has the magical Airstream camper I called shotgun in. It was M who told me to stop. She is a NP; another angel in the boot camp group who always somehow is there anytime any of us has a spill in boot camp, falls wrong and maybe breaks something, or is breathing not quite right after an anxiety attack in a pond of freezing black water. I told her no, I was ok, I want to keep going. So, she stayed with me as we moved back into a light run on the sand.

The sun felt amazing. People were still passing us commenting, hollering, yelling and screaming how that black water was so freezing cold. It didn't bother me, that ridiculously low water temperature. Keys-girl, sun loving, palm tree worshipping, it-can-never-get-too-hot, girl didn't care and I didn't really grasp why did anyone care how cold the black water was because at least they could swim through it. Actually, those thoughts are kind of stripped down sanitized for this blog, because what when through my head I cannot put here.

I remember I did a lot of audible cursing on that course. I had my hair in a high pony tail so as I became muddier and muddier hair wouldn't slap and stick against my face. That high ponytail repeatedly caught on low barbed wire while I was belly crawling through orange mud, which then would kind of jerk my head back as my body kept moving forward. I remember at that obstacle clawing through the mud just screaming obscenities (sorry don't hate me) and then realizing S was right there smiling and laughing with his video/camera stuck to the end of that 3 foot pole, filming us one by one as we clawed through. I saw that camera inches from my face. I couldn't stop swearing. Nothing clever or poignant coming out my mouth. I wanted to say "don't try this at home kids" but instead far less inspiring pearls of wisdom flowed.

The obstacle I feared most, that wall, wasn't so bad after all. Although it was higher than I thought it would be, and I was correct, there were no knots to help me, I jumped for the rope, leaned back, and began to climb. I was going to climb the wall because I knew the worst of anything was behind me. As I climbed, I heard S say "lean a little further back Jen" so I did. The last thing I remember on the wall was S hollering "that's it Jen!" when I leaned waaaaaay back and dug deep. S was there coaching all of us over that wall, including me. I got to the top, and sat there for a moment, just looking around. People were everywhere. On the ground. On the wall. On top of the wall. Scrambling down the back of the wall. Running away from the wall. Running towards the wall. I had my moment at the top, heaved completely over, grabbed something akin to a plank on the back of that wall, and began picking my way down. As I got closer to the ground, I jumped and there I was. Done with the wall. There was nothing that would be bad now, whatever else came my way, the worst was over. I was sure of it.

Mere seconds passed when someone came rushing up to me and said "H is afraid of heights." I looked up and there was my boot camp instructor straddling the top of the wall. I never knew she was phobic of heights, and instantly waves of empathy washed over me. I ran a few steps closer back to the wall, and joined the rest of our group, hollering encouragement. She waved away our cheers, she needed us to be quiet, we were not helping her situation. So, I shut up and stood there watching her as she watched us. She picked her way over and down, then was back on the ground. She was ok and happy again.

She and I walked together away from the wall. I told her that she probably had no idea how proud I am to know her, how proud I am of her. She said something that I don't remember, but it wasn't really what I wanted to hear, because I know I said to her to stop it. I said don't ever forget that none of us would be there if it wasn't for her, that she is the reason we were there; she is the reason we can do what we did. We were back on the sandy trail, and had a lot of obstacles left. We, as a group, faced them together, laughing at times, cursing at times.

We finished together, various stages of sunburn, blood and bruising. We partied the rest of the weekend, some in tents, some in that camper, but all together in victory.

For the record, if I'm ever confused enough to agree to any more of these crazy events, I'd bring a pool noodle no matter how foolish I may look. I think kicking across a freezing pond with a bright pink pool noodle looks much less foolish than having a complete breakdown while surrounded by hundreds of other people.

Our friend S, he won a trophy for his time in the wave he ran for speed. He was happy, everyone is proud of him, and shares his happiness. For me, there's just not enough (vegan! organic!) coconut waffles in the world that I could make for S to show my gratitude. The best of the best, indeed he is.

MUST SWIM - Part One

2012-01-23T14:17:00.000-05:00

I knew it was up ahead at some point because friends told me about it something like 1.5 hours before I was there. But there I was now, standing in front of a pond of freezing cold black water with a big sign that someone had scrawled in over sized childlike writing "MUST SWIM."

This is the story of my weekend; me, the girl who not only cannot swim, but has water terror.

Last year, some of my friends from boot camp went to a mud run somewhere in the cold parts of Florida. These friends are people who essentially make physical fitness a party in a good way, not to mention that running is a big part of their lives. Included in that small group is "S," retired navy officer and jet pilot. Best of the best. Whenever I am in a boot camp class with S I know I try harder. He sets the bar very high for himself, so I know that even if I cannot do what he does, I need to always do my best. He's a quiet reminder that anytime I think there's something I cannot do, I can do more than I think I can. Not to mention he is always very positive for the rest of us, cheering what seems like meager accomplishments compared to his own physical abilities. He is exactly what you would expect from someone with his experiences... tall, proud, exceedingly polite and gracious. I'd say "still waters run deep" is a good phrase to use because he doesn't talk too much about specific experiences, but I know enough at this point in my life that people like S are absolutely more than a cut above the rest of us, that he is a completely different breed. When he is in boot camp class he is like a machine. I admire and look up to him, although I usually am so in awe of him, I don't just go around saying things like "you're amazing," but of course that is what we all think, myself included.

So, those friends went on that mud run, S included. Somehow at some point, I agreed to go with the group this year. When I agreed, it was about 9 or 10 months ago. I thought the day would never come where I'd REALLY be camping with this group of people, running an obstacle course in a cold part of Florida, far away from home. Imagine my surprise when that day actually came.

There was a lot of planning involved, but the core group is very experienced at traveling for things like mud runs, tris, half marathons, marathons and so forth. They do this quite often. For me this was getting completely out of my comfort zone. I registered for the event, paid, and began my own preparations, which essentially was me asking constantly "what should I bring, what do you need, what can I do to carry my weight."At some point I began to pay better attention to my own physical training, tracking my running times, working out harder, and paying close attention to the fuel that went into my body (bye bye sugar).

At one point a few weeks ago, for kicks I logged onto the event website to see the obstacles. They don't publish them when you register, its a surprise and different every year. So, when I registered, there was nothing specific for this year, but I think it said there were 13 of them spread over a little 5k. I knew what they did last year, it was tough, but nothing to convince me not to join them. When I logged on, I saw a wall. It looked big. I would have to climb up it, over it, and then down the back. I got pretty scared. I don't have good upper body strength, and the picture of the wall showed ropes, but no knots to help. I shut the site off, and never went back on.

I packed gear, food, camping comforts such as they would be, and woke way before dawn the day of departure. Arrangements were made long ago for my absence here; I had my friend K come and handle the kitchen while I would be gone. All that I had to worry about was camping, and doing the event. My goals were pretty simple. Keep up with the group. Don't be a weak link. Finish. Reasonable goal setting I thought.

The group arrived in central Florida early afternoon and we began setting up camp. My friend M, also from boot camp, has a camper. A REALLY nice camper. I didn't ask many questions about logistics before we left. I was happy I called shotgun on her camper last year which meant no tent camping for me. Beyond that I didn't need to know anything, I already was happy enough. As we got about 1 hour away from the destination, on the way to pick up her camper from an RV park in central Florida, somehow it came out that it was an Airstream. Oh my goodness I thought, I have just won the lottery.

Before I knew it, we were setting up camp, and I was actually putting my blanket and pillow lugged from home onto a bunk.... with sheets. There was a fridge and freezer. Running water, and more. Are you understanding why I was declaring myself at that moment the happiest person in camp. Yes, indeed I was.

The night progressed, food, beverages, a campfire. S on patrol, overseeing everything, making sure we were safe and protected. It was so much fun, that night was great. The race was the next day, our wave was scheduled for 12:30.

Morning broke, they had their breakfast, I had mine. Everything was going well. S was running the race twice. First early in the morning for time, then with us, for fun with his camera/video on a 3 foot pole. We all prepared, and off he went. We went to cheer him. You cannot see most of the course, its winding, through some rolling hills, and like I said, it's 5k. We pressed against the "finish" fence which was close to the fire jumping. We saw him coming around a bend. You just know its him.... he runs with perfect military posture and precision. We yelled and screamed, but among thousands of others he couldn't hear us. He came off the line, was cheered by the group, tons of hugs and pictures were taken. Then he was gone. I'm not sure when or what happened, but at some point he pulled our boot camp instructor aside and said "we have a problem." He told H (our instructor) that one of the obstacles was deep water which required swimming. Everyone knows I cannot swim, and its not just an I can't swim situation, its that I have water terror. At some point back in camp after S's wave, and before our wave, I was told about the water. I panicked. I went away, and breakfast also went away. When I got back to rejoin the camp, I decided that a little liquid courage was in order (haters, just don't hate on this one) and soon enough I was happy girl dancing with my iPod. I was told I could walk around the obstacle if I didn't want to go in. I said I didn't want to walk around, I didn't come that far to fail.

I wasn't sure how I would handle the situation, but I'd figure it out when I came face to face with it. Somehow my worries about climbing a wall were no longer worries.

I ditched my iPod and we all headed over as a group for our start time. I was still pretty much happy dancing girl at that point, just without the iPod. It was a pretty big event, thousands of people, loud music to get us all amped up; crazy was the order of the day. We were all herded together, hundreds, thousands maybe, in our wave. The horn blew, and we were off. Running on a sand trail I wanted to settle into my pace, and I was told immediately "slow down." I was ok, and protested. I was told again "slow down." This by one of the last year's runners from our group. So, I heeded the advice. We ran the trail, which was almost entirely sand, and came upon the first obstacle. A pretty deep mud pit. I didn't think it was bad, I stayed near the edges so it only came up just past my knees. Exiting the pit my legs felt double their weight from the mud caked upon my shoes.

We went on.

I'm not sure when it happened, but it was early, maybe even the next obstacle. I came around a bend, the course opened up straight, and there it was. The pond with freezing cold black water. To the left was a large sign with "MUST SWIM" scrawled upon. Then an arrow pointed at the pond. I ran to the edge and stood. I looked down, it was black as oil, not a single inch of visibility. All around me people were jumping in and screaming because it was so cold. Large splashes of muddy black water began to coat and sting me. I ran to the right where I saw a slim yellow rope no one was near. The lifeguard was right there. I said mostly to myself, a little bit to her "I'll just use that rope, it will get me to the middle, after that where the rope ends, I can just hold the sides of the pit and claw my way holding the wall through the second half" or something like that. I was thinking that was exactly what I would do, when my panicked musings were interrupted by said lifeguard. "Its really deep there, really deep." I looked at her. She was young and fit. I said "I can't swim." She told me I could walk around the obstacle. I told her no, I had to figure how to get through the water. She said there was no other way, I had to go in, and it would be over my head. I went back to where I was before, far away from the really deep side. At some point I realized everyone I was with was either across the pond already, or in the water. I really began to survey the entire situation. There were skinny yellow ropes for the first third. Then there was a set of interlocking floats that created a rectangle in the center separating that middle section of water to swim across. You'd have to scramble up the floating dock, plunge back in, swim, scramble up more floats, plunge back in and swim the final leg to get to the far end. The water got progressively deeper, so I was told. Or, you could swim the entire length by avoiding the floats in the middle, but that was the deepest part, thus my plan of clawing my way across the sides wouldn't work. Besides, even though it was mud, it felt more like ice. Slick. Slippery.

Since my plan wouldn't work, I had to figure a different solution. I looked down into the water, and saw my boot camp instructor in the black water calling to me. She said go around, or if I come in, they would help me. I said "how deep, can I touch" she said no, I couldn't touch, but hold the rope, get to the floats, and she stood showing me how deep. She's taller than me, so her head was a bit above the water. She then told me the last bit of info I needed which was "its a straight drop right in."

There I was standing on the edge of the black water pond, surrounded yet completely alone. I looked one last time at the sign. "MUST SWIM." It had not changed by some miracle. I dropped to my ass, swung my legs in, reached out, grabbed that very skinny yellow slick mud covered line, and dropped straight down. The rope of course completely bowed once my weight was upon it and I was under.

Panic.

Thrive, Not Deprive

2012-01-17T18:16:00.000-05:00

Every day I plan to put up a new post, then I get bogged down in chores, and other things. I think mostly right now its the "other things" that are clogging my time. Don't feel bad for me, its nothing I cannot handle, and nothing tragic. I'm planning for something coming up, and it involves some commitment of regular exercise, and diet modification. The exercise thing I can handle (mostly). Just making sure I hit the mark on daily workouts plus running; making sure I don't slack. The part that's been really hard for me is diet modification. Now, if you've ever spent more than 2 minutes with me, you know that "diet" is not in my vocabulary. I said "diet modification," that's something we can all probably do better with, including me.

Any one can just as easily be a junk food or unhealthy eating vegan or vegetarian, as can a carnivore. There's plenty of poor food choices out there for us vegans, just as there are for anyone else. I spend a lot of time in the kitchen cooking and baking. I read a lot, and pay special attention to anything that has to do with disease, chronic illness, and how to reverse such things with diet modification. I understand well enough that too much of anything is not good for us; for me my nemesis is sugar. What I've worked very diligently on lately is removing excess sugar from my diet. Not easy for me, the first couple days I was probably not very nice to be around. I haven't removed ALL sugar from my diet, but its been vastly reduced. The modification resulted, at first, in headaches, irritability, and some fatigue. Workouts were difficult. Through it all, I persevered. As I write this now, I feel somewhat victorious because my workouts have improved, as has my endurance for running.

This modification is driving home the point to me just how important food is, the philosophy of eating to thrive. Thrive. I like that word. In the news right now is a lot of talk regarding Paula Deen and her diabetes. I'm sad to see that she's not taking this opportunity (so far) to grow into a healthier lifestyle with food... to take her devotees on the learning journey that could improve her own health, as well as those of her fans. Instead, she seems to be taking the customary route that so many people take.... drugs. BigPharma. She's going to be a spokesperson for a drug. I read a quote from her that said "no one wants to live on lettuce alone." Well, she right; I love lettuce and don't want to live just on lettuce. Fact is, I don't, and neither does any other person who wants to eat to thrive. There's plenty of better food choices out there than deep fried this, processed that, or nitrite filled other things. She's not going down the plant based and/or low fat road, yet. Maybe she will someday, and I will be watching.

For now, I've taken my own diet modification as a reminder that too much of anything is not usually good for us. I'm eating better, I've got a goal set right in front of me, and I'll report back to you soon to fill you in on the details. The next time I eat a double chocolate brownie (vegan, organic, of course!) or a piece of heavenly organic vegan dark chocolate I will savor every bite, and not have a speck of guilt. I may be eating to thrive, but I'm not eating to be deprived.

Girl Power!

2012-01-12T21:25:00.000-05:00

Boy oh boy, have I been BUSY! In addition to regular obligations and sudden obligations, there's things that I've been doing, and/or planning for, which have been in the works for a while. One of those events took place today. I was in a fashion show.

The event was for charity, a Relay for Life event. Some time ago, my friend J who owns Tickled Pink Boutique here on Big Pine Key told me about a fashion show she was asked to put together as part of a fundraiser for a women's group somehow connected with Relay for Life. J asked me if I'd like to be a model. I'd get to wear some cool clothes from her store, get my hair and make up done, and twirl around in the name of charity. Sounded good to me, of course I said yes.

In all my years, I have never been IN a fashion show. I've gone to many shows as a spectator, but nope, never IN a show. Its a lot different from behind the scenes, trust me.

I was buffed, puffed, exfoliated, sprayed, tweezed, sprayed, poked, prodded, and re-sprayed. My hair was done 2 different ways with 2 different sets of accessories. My make up was even airbrushed on. Seriously! When did airbrushing makeup come into play? All this pancake flipping and cupcake baking has taken me out of the beauty loop for far too long. As a whole team of people were making magic happen with me and all the other models, I actually began to once again feel actually feel empowered by my femininity. Time was being made for me to be beautiful; that just never happens. It's something I shove to the back burner constantly, and I MEAN constantly. I've no time to be a girly girl with this business and all my other obligations. I often wonder why do I even cut and color my hair anymore when it typically gets shoved into a baseball cap immediately upon waking up every morning. Almost every day I also say to myself "as soon as breakfast is over, I'm going to style my hair, and get cleaned up." That almost never happens. Why bother. After chores, I'll go for a run or some other workout, then its time for more chores, then maybe a boot camp class, a walk on the beach, and so on. You get the picture. Do you see anything in this scenario that makes it worth my while to even think about mascara or lipstick?

Me either.

Today was different. Yesterday was different. The last few days have been different. Outfits were planned, accessories chosen, makeup and hair were planned for me, and nail polish was on the agenda.

I, along with all the other models, did our best to do justice to all the work put in by those magic makers who fluffed and buffed us. Those who dressed us, painted us, combed & sprayed us. Jacked me up in stiletto heels, reminded me constantly to stand up tall, smile and twirl twirl twirl.

It was an experience, this I must say. Thankfully it WAS a good experience, as I, along with all the other models, have agreed to do another show in Key West next month for another cause. That show is planned to be over the top glam. I'm looking forward to it, I really am. Someone out there besides me actually gives thought to my appearance. My hair is already being planned, outfits are being chosen, and the magic makers behind the scenes are working hard to get us all sprayed, painted and beautiful for the next show.

I may actually remember to bring a camera next month. Its not too often I've got a crew of experts working to actually turn me into a girl. They pulled me back from the abyss; where runner's feet and a baker/cook's overly washed hands are the order of the day.

Its nice, really nice, if I do say so myself!

Basking Once Again

2012-01-07T19:12:00.000-05:00

The cold front blew through a few days ago, temps dropped into the 60s. We had one pretty cool day and night, and then the temperatures began to claw their way back up. Today we were solidly back in the 70s under a perfect sunny sky. The winds are gentle once again, the seas are calm, and the sky is very clear. Its simply poetry in motion.

My time outside has been limited the last few days. I've had many extra chores to do, lots of extra kitchen work. Despite this, I have made time to walk the beach a few times, feel the sand between my toes, and spend some time with Peri. The street is abuzz with bicyclists, runners and walkers once again. When I run I'm constantly waving "hi" to others as we each pass on our own separate missions.

Its good to be here, really good. I know there's a good lot of people out there counting the days til their own respites at Deer Run. Everything is lining up perfectly, the stars, the moon and the sun. Don't forget to pack your flip flops and sunglasses. You're gonna need 'em!

You Want To Be An Innkeeper?

2012-01-05T12:20:00.000-05:00

Its a romantic idea, isn't it? Being an innkeeper. Many people confide to us happy vegans here that they want to be innkeepers too. They ask us questions like "what's it like being an innkeeper," "did you always want to be an innkeeper," and so forth. No, I didn't always want to be an innkeeper. Somehow I tumbled into this life here, and my philosophy is I'm going to keep doing it until the next best thing comes along. So far, so good.

But, let's talk brass tacks for a minute, ok? The one thing I wish other innkeepers told me before I took the plunge (ok, its 3 things, see below)

1) Keep a first aid kit in the kitchen.

2) Be careful with knives (see #1)

3) Do not disengage any safety devices on any kitchen appliances (see #1). The safety devices are there for a reason.

It was a rough morning in the kitchen. I still have all my fingers attached, however the other happy vegan is lucky that he still does too. He has a bad habit of being in the kitchen when I'm working. I've asked him multiple times to be careful in the kitchen when I'm working. Sometimes I think he doesn't consider my morning cooking is actually work. He's a happy morning person, he wakes up whistling and such. I find that annoying. I've told you before, I am not a morning person. If I could be running a bed & dinner that would be more up my alley. He thinks he knows what I am going to do "next" in the kitchen. He wants to help. Yes, there's been multiple stories of this before. Remember how he "helped" by taking the orange juice out of the fridge and loosening the cap, when all I asked was for the container? Then how I shook the container and in slow motion half a gallon of orange juice ended up from ceiling to floor? Remember how he ramped up the blender speed up, unknown to me, and the lid wasn't affixed properly so when I hit the "on" button an entire Vitamix worth of Celestial Dream smoothies blew all the way into the living room?

Ah, being an innkeeper.

So, today he thought it would help me to turn the faucet on so I could wash fruit. I didn't ask him to do this, and I've reminded him too many times to count that he shouldn't anticipate what I want or need in the kitchen. To no avail.

I had a handful of chopped fruit in my hands, with a paring knife. I spun around from one counter towards the sink, went to reach for the handle to turn it on, exactly at the same time he reached for the same handle. Unfortunately, I had the paring knife in my hand pointed straight out.

Guess what happened next.

So, he went screaming from the room, cursing me and my *$@#% knives while I finished the last minute preparations for breakfast. Then we got into a fight.

Yes, I felt absolutely awful (and still do) for stabbing him pretty badly. But I also got mad because kitchen accidents happen. They happen to me all the time. I'm constantly injuring myself because I work quickly. I almost lost a digit once because I was stupid enough to not use the safety device on my mandoline. I absolutely NEVER misuse any appliance, ever, (anymore), nor do I ever undo safety devices. Back a while I used to work in a place where lawyers were known to be. Product liability law was interesting to me because of the stupid ways so many accidents happened. Why would anyone disengage the safety shield on a saw or whatever was beyond me. But, people did it. Over and over again people were their own worst enemies with equipment. Then I found myself here doing the same thing, albeit not on chainsaws. I don't do that anymore. Despite the fact that I work quickly, I never take shortcuts; anymore.

I also keep my knives very sharp. My first culinary arts teacher told me that dull blades are responsible for more injuries than sharp blades. I agree.

I actually paid money to take a short class about innkeeping a year or so before we began looking for an inn. I've also read a few books on innkeeping. I've owned other small businesses, and also worked for others. Yet, I never got the advice I'm giving to you today.

Next time someone tells me they want to be an innkeeper, all I'm going to say is "keep a first aid kit in the kitchen." My next best advice would be "keep one in the garage too."

And He Huffed, And He Puffed, and He Blew the House Down

2012-01-02T20:39:00.000-05:00

The "he" is Old Man Winter. The "huffing & puffing" pertains to the "cold front" blowing through right now, as I clatter along the keyboard. My house is still standing, but hey, I'm always up for a good fairy tale.

I woke up this morning (always a good thing) and flipped on The Weather Channel. I pushed the little red dot on my clicker and up popped my local weather (this is a very cool thing I just discovered on my remote, after all these years). The local weather for my favorite zip code (here) reported that today would be beautiful (of course). It also said a cold front was on its way. Ut oh. That still kind of puts fear in my heart. Cold front. No, its not going to snow. No ice. No hail. No ridiculous things like that. But, they said a big blow was coming, and temps would plunge. Into the 60s!!! We might even see 50-something on the overnight. Brr.

Did I ever tell you that when we first bought the B&B, the other happy vegan set out immediately to "hardening" the inn. Making it more storm secure. He also set about making it much more energy efficient. This included the addition of something neat-o called "mini-split" air conditioners. When the minis arrived for installation, he indicated he wanted the heat option added. Heat? He was virtually laughed out of the room by the HVAC installers. Thankfully he doesn't really care what others think about things like that, and the heat option was installed. Our entire B&B, every guest room and my own quarters, has heat. Glorious heat.

Who's laughing now, eh?

I came home from the gym tonight in my shorts, running tank and sneakers. Plus a sweatshirt with the hood pulled up around my head as tight as possible. This tenderfoot's teeth were practically chattering. I admit it, I'm a wuss. A proud, island living, summer loving, heat loving, wuss.

I become uncomfortable as soon as the temps drop below 75. This is no lie.

I already prepped our current guests not to make fun of my attire tomorrow. I explained that I'm sure I'll greet them in a hat, scarf, long pants, long sleeves, socks and whatever else I can dig out. Down here when a cold front blows through, you can always spot a local. Winter coats pop out. Hats. Gloves. You can also always spot a visitor. Tank tops. Flip flops. Bikinis. It's all too true.

So, Old Man Winter is making quite the racket tonight. My chimes are making themselves known (I think the other happy vegan actually took down my huge heroic chimes already, he's not a fan with winds like this). I'm already plotting and planning my workout tomorrow. The winds are coming north. Whipping off the Bight. I know what to expect, and it's not going to be what I signed up for when moving here. I'm going to get pushed back and forth across the street by the winds. I finally sprung for some cold weather running gear. Special fabrics to run in when its cold. Long sleeves. Long running tights. Basically polar bear wear. Its not here yet. I've tracked it almost hourly. Its "in transit." All that really means is "not on my body." Sigh.

Oh yeah, sure, we're still warmer than the rest of the entire country. Oh yeah, sure this is still the only place I want to be, the only place to be at times like this. But still, my blood has thinned from island living, and never forget that I've donated pretty much every warm article clothing I owned to charity before I moved here.

I'm so happy I sprung for that Sea Shepherd beanie. I wonder how it will look with my magic purple hair. I think I've got the key for tomorrow's successful run.

So the Year Begins

2012-01-01T20:57:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year. 2012. It's here.

If I were going to make a resolution, one single resolution, maybe it would be to always do that which should be done the exact moment I know it must be done.

This would require a few clones of myself. Maybe that could be another resolution. Cloning, work on it. For good purposes only. No evil clones please.

I missed a deadline. Nothing major. Just a fun little side thing I wanted to do with some friends. I finally made the time to get the administration part of it completed, and I missed it. My heart sank.

I've only myself to blame, and life goes on.

A fresh new year, a fresh new chance. Otherwise today wasn't so bad, things got off to a decent start for 2012. But I missed a deadline for something I wanted to do that had potential for fun.

Not enough fun going on.

Maybe there's my resolution. From someone who no longer makes resolutions, this one wouldn't be so bad, to simply have more fun.

Indeed. I'm going to work on that for sure.

Bye-bye 2011!

2011-12-31T10:38:00.000-05:00

I planned to have a post yesterday, so I could do a different post today, but I'm going to combine (sort of) my thoughts for my final post of 2011, as we usher in the New Year.

I don't give too much thought to resolutions any more. Some people do, some people don't. That's ok. But, there's one resolution I hope that more people will consider as we move into a fresh new year, and that is going veg or at least reducing the amount of meat and animal products eaten. In order to encourage this, and help people along, an organization called Mercy For Animals has something called the New Year's Veg Pledge, and is offering free vegetarian starter kits. You can find out about this at www.mercyforanimals.org. MFA is working very diligently to expose cruelties, torture and other atrocities involving the animals-for-food industry. I encourage you to check out their web site.

So, we're saying good bye to another whole year, and honestly I wonder how is it possible that time is passing so quickly. The older I get, the faster time goes. So long ago, every day seemed to last forever. A single day was filled morning to late at night with the wonders of everything. Now it seems like I simply blink and its tomorrow. Maybe the lesson in it all is just a reminder that all we really have is today, so don't waste it.

While our 2011 here at Deer Run was filled with ups and downs, as I reflect on things I mostly remember the better parts of the year. New friends we've made, and old ones that re-visited. I think about the environmental issues we have gotten involved with.... things right here on my street that cause negative impacts on our planet and its inhabitants. There is a small glimmer that there will be some justice, finally, in 2012; that there might be some remediation on some very big wrongs that were done in the past against Mother Earth. This includes illegal seawalls blocking nesting habitat for sea turtles. I'm watching and waiting now, as our part is done for some of these ills.... its in the hands of "officials" and well, we'll just see what happens.

I expect to see much more serious subjects taken on by the other happy vegan and myself regarding environmental issues. Things on a larger scale, subjects that must be tackled and changes made for our community and our planet. We have to start somewhere on all these projects, and although sometimes we don't know exactly WHERE to start, we just have to breathe deeply, close our eyes and jump in ... so to speak. Get started, that's what we have to do. The same way I encourage everyone to move towards a more plant based diet.... just get started. Nothing fancy needed. No special food, no special equipment. Simply reduce something. Meatless Mondays are a great idea, a movement that is spreading to many cities, and maybe that's how you'd like to tackle a more plant-based diet. Just pick a day to NOT eat animals and their by-products.

I really have no idea what 2012 holds. There's many things percolating right now, we're "on the edge" of big events and projects as I write this post. I know that the other happy vegan and I are fully committed to being good stewards. With every passing day the sense of urgency seems to ramp up even more; we will continue to do more to serve our planet, and everyone (and everything) on it. People, animals, planet. Do something positive.

I'll see you in 2012, keeping you up to date on the happenings here in our neck of the beautiful Florida Keys. We're keeping our eye on the prize (the prize being justice, education, and wonderful things like that) and hope you will too. We're big fans of our planet, we're big fans of all environmental warriors out there, we're big fans of the Keys, and we're big fans of Deer Run. We hope you will join us as we move into the New Year and keep your eye on the prize too. Do good, live lightly, dare to care, and become involved with a cause bigger than yourself. With that, how can any of us go wrong?

Happy New Year!

Swedish Fish, my undoing

2011-12-29T14:43:00.000-05:00

Running. If I ever think there will be a time in my life when I'm no longer running, it would only happen due to inability to do so. Santa is working against me.

You know, I don't even celebrate the darn holiday. Christmas that is. But, somehow my house became full of sweets and savories. Way too much stuff that only belongs on the "occasional treat" list. My undoing today has been Swedish Fish.

Damn Swedish Fish.

I love Swedish Fish. I never buy Swedish Fish. Ok, maybe not "never buy," but I can honestly say they only make their way into my house at best once or twice a year. Somehow that diabolical Santa came down my non-existent chimney and deposited a pound of Swedish Fish.

I made it 4 days before opening the bag.

They're open. On my counter. Staring at me.

Who eats ONE Swedish Fish?

I don't admire those Victoria Secret model people. No, not at all. If I read one more story of a size negative 2 professing her "love of food" I'll scream. I'm pretty sure they are not eating. And, certainly not eating Swedish Fish.

I ran sprints earlier this week. Something went "twang" in my hip, and its been slow going since. I'm picking and choosing my workout battles. I have a friend who offered me up her spare Trikke earlier this summer. I haven't had time to add it into my workouts. I think now is the time. Running, which I desperately need to continue thanks to my Swedish Fish fail, is painful. Last time I had an injury like this, it took months to heal. Months? Cannot spare that now.

Damn Swedish Fish! Did I mention?!

Tomorrow I expect to be a first timer on the Trikke. I've been trained on it, but it's a whole different beast when you're out there alone with something like that for the first time.

Damn Swedish Fish. Damn Damn Swedish Fish.

I have to pass the bag when I finish this post. Somebody, anybody, HELP!

Happy Vegan Goes to Sea. Sort Of.

2011-12-26T15:05:00.000-05:00

Christmas Day dawned sunny and warm here. The other happy vegan and I exchanged small gifts. I'm happiest with a tofu press (I've wanted one for years!) and a very beautiful home made apron and headwear he bought for me at one of the local craft shows (honestly they are too pretty to wear, but I am wearing them anyway). He seems happiest with the new Sea Shepherd shirt on the way, and the "butter bomb" messages and donations I made also to Sea Shepherd in his name (you can find info about the "butter bombs" at www.seashepherd.org).

Mid-morning yesterday I went for a run. I put on a sparkly santa hat with my running gear and went outside. It was very warm, I would guess it was 80 degrees. Too hot for a santa hat, but I wasn't going to relent on that issue. With the sun beating down on me in solitude I was treated to nature in all its perfection, and ran the best time that I've run in many months. While I was running, I thought about all the Christmases I had spent in the past surrounded by family. I miss that stuff, I really do. But I also thought about Christmases I spent stuck driving highways covered with ice, shoveling my car out of snow banks, or waiting and worrying for a loved one who was driving to the festivities in terrible weather. Even as I was showered with the sun's rays, it was a little hard to reconcile that moment with how things used to be. This weather, this magnificent, remarkable, glorious weather. I just breathed deeply and soaked it in.

After I got home, I did a few light chores and got the great news that the other happy vegan was going to take me out for a starry sky nighttime boat ride. I should've known that the Universe had other plans.

We went out on the boat. It was dark. Very dark. Very VERY dark. I have not been out on a boat ride at night longer than I can actually remember. Certainly since living here, at night I have never gone on our boat launched from our ocean mooring. But, I put on my water shoes, and stepped into the Atlantic in pitch darkness. At first touch, the water felt shockingly cold. I laughed because really the water was maybe 75 degrees. Warmer than it really EVER got where I used to live. As I made my way slowly across the flats to the boat where Mr. Happy Vegan was waiting I adjusted to the temperature. I couldn't see much, so it took a few minutes to get out there. Once on board, I adjusted my hat and waited. I looked back towards the beach and took stock of my home, and the others on the shore. Some had Christmas lights, some were full with families celebrating, and some were dark. In a few minutes we were off. Heading straight out to sea in the darkness. I watched the shore lights get further and further away. I watched my home disappear.

We continued on.

After a while, I felt it. The boat vibrated. The engine sounded different. I knew something was wrong. He let off the throttle, and I asked "did you feel that?" and "the motor sounds funny." He felt it. He heard it. We both thought the same thing "trap line." So, with a light shining, we inspected for an entanglement on the prop. Nothing.

He throttled it up again, and the back of the boat shook. He said "that's it, we're going back." He pretty much knew what was wrong, but I didn't care. I knew he worked for hours the day before, and for quite a while the next morning to take me on our starry boat ride. I felt badly for him. I also knew that the lives of everyone on the vessel were in his hands, they always are when you board a boat as a passenger. In the pitch black of the Atlantic ocean, that is no small deal.

We gimped back towards the house in darkness. Every now and then a soft salty spray would wash over me. The winds were picking up slightly, and I couldn't see the rollers like he could. Mostly because I wasn't watching for them. Remember me? The girl who hates bridges, cannot swim, and is terrified of water? Yes, me. That's me.

I am not afraid when he is at the helm, but there was a conscious effort on my part to just keep breathing and don't think about anything else.

I saw the lights on the shore come back into view. I saw our turtle friendly lighting set against the lit mangrove, and eventually we were back on shore.

Even though things really didn't go as planned, I spent part of my Christmas night at sea. In shorts. Wearing water shoes. Looking at Christmas lights from the perspective of the ocean. I hope, and I think, that there will be a time years from now where yesterday will be one of the many Christmases I reflect upon. Just as I reflected upon the cold and snowy holidays of years past, yesterday is filed into my memory banks too. That, and the joy I feel to have my feet back on solid ground.

Merry Christmas 2011

2011-12-25T21:27:00.000-05:00

Christmas Day in Paradise

It's That Time

2011-12-24T17:27:00.000-05:00

Christmas Eve. Even for those of us who don't traditionally observe this holiday, it still brings a certain stillness in the air. A special kind of peace.

I'm sitting here writing this post, while the other happy vegan replaces a battery in the boat. He wants to take me out on the water to look at all the houses that are decorated for Christmas. I was surprised when he asked me to do this, very happily surprised. Maybe the boat won't cooperate, I'm not too sure, I'll just have got wait and see. I hope so though.

There's more than a touch of sadness in the air around me this time of year, I've lost too many people that were far too important in my life, at this time of year. Not only is it an anniversary, but for whatever reason, loss seems amplified this time of year. Also, today the other happy vegan and I went to sprinkle some ashes of our beloved friend, Kevin, who we lost just about this time last year. Our friend Kevin, a modern day Renaissance Man. Kevin's friends saved some ashes for us two happy vegans to sprinkle. So, together we went to do this, toast Kevin with some organic tea, and say another good bye. To console myself, I'm eating some beautiful vegan chocolates that were sent to me by a another very special friend up in the cold zone as I reflect on all that I have in my life, and all that I will miss every day until the day I die. And, as I eat these vegan chocolates I wonder also, why have the last four I've eaten been coconut?

Tonight, we shall light candles on our beach in memory of our loved ones not here anymore, and a special candle for all those we love who are facing such dire challenges in their lives. We do this every year, and although it is very sad, it is also very happy because through the tears there is always laughter as we remember them and speak of the best memories, recounting so many fun times.

Memories. Good ones and bad ones. They're here to stay.

Whoops, I just got the bulletin that although the boat will not be fixed tonight, it will be in the morning. That's ok. We're going to take a ride around the island, just the two of us, look at houses and celebrate the blessings that we have here in Paradise.

I wish you a very Merry Christmas, may it be filled with family, fun, friendship, and compassion for our Mother Earth and all who inhabit it. That, and lots of vegan chocolate. Merry Merry.

Like It or Not, Here It Come

2011-12-23T21:32:00.000-05:00

Yeah, definitely, like it or not, Christmas is pretty much upon us. We're still busy here, lots of extra obligations, baking, visiting, hosting, and etc. I took some time for myself today, had a long overdue salon appointment, did a small amount of shopping in our local fabulous stores, then tonight went out to eat with the other happy vegan. It was a relatively calm afternoon and evening in the middle of absolute chaos. As we were finishing our black bean burgers at Parrotdise tonight, I remarked about what I thought was a star now jammed on top of the ocean growing bridge tree. He was game for a ride up (especially since I was doing the driving), so we made the trek up over the bridge. I'm not sure who the light artist was this year, but they really went all out with lights, there's way more than last year. Since the tree that I'm referring to is truly growing out of the old 7 Mile Bridge in the middle of the ocean, there is no stopping to admire the sight. Even at the late hour we made the ride, traffic was surprisingly busy. I didn't see the star lit up. I looked as best I could. Maybe we'll have time to take another drive, and I will be the passenger. I wish I could have a picture to show you. It really is remarkable to see these lights when all you would normally see is black sky set against black water. Its so dark at night down here.

So, here we are days away from Christmas. Remember, I live in a place where it is politically correct to say "Merry Christmas." No happy holidays stuff down here because we know our neighbors, and know who celebrates what. And, thus, some people who are close to me know me well enough to wish me "Happy Solstice" as I was out and about yesterday. I don't hold it against anyone wishing me a Merry Christmas. I wish them the same, and know that happy greetings are meant to be graciously received. And, even though I really don't celebrate Christmas in traditional ways, I have for decades looked upon this time of year as one of a spirit of good will. You can never go wrong with that.

Recapping the last few days, I should let you know that one night as I was driving on the way to boot camp at the gym, I came upon yet another injured cormorant. She was just standing in the bike path. I was running late for class, but there was no way I was going to drive by. So, I grabbed one of the rescue towels I had in my car, and walked right up to her. She didn't try to get away from me, she just let me hood her. It wasn't until she was enveloped that she panicked. She tried really hard to peck her way out of that towel, but that wasn't gonna happen. I scooped her up, took her to my car, deposited her on my lap, and called the other happy vegan. Within minutes I had transferred her to his care, and he was off to Maya. The good news was that initial evaluation led Maya to believe she only had a bruised wing. She would heal, and go home to the wild.

Another rescue that happened the day before was of the gecko variety. As I was brushing my teeth, Lemon was fixated upon the ceiling. Upon closer inspection, when I looked up I saw the Geico Gecko stuck to my bathroom ceiling. It would have been curtains for him if I just left him up there, my cats are determined that any gecko who comes into their zone doesn't make it out unscathed. So, I woke up the other happy vegan, and we tag teamed the gecko. I climbed up onto the bathroom vanity and with a very long pole helped shoosh him towards the safety of a glass, where he then made a graceful exit outside onto our porch. Crisis averted.

I've still got some baking to do. I have some care packages that didn't get prepared on time for friends. I kind of resigned myself that not everything could be accomplished on the appointed self-imposed schedule. So, I think on Christmas Day I will be doing a little more baking, a little more boxing and packaging, and then next week, a little more shipping. On "UNCLE" day those chores were a few of the things that I had to simply let go.

I've given it my best shot once again this year. I cooked, I baked, I cleaned, I worked. I wrapped, I delivered, I packaged, I shipped. I laughed and I cried. I ran, I worked out, I ate chocolate, and I ate biscotti. Sometimes I did all those things in one day, and most of those things in one hour (or so it seems). Its been a blur, and admittedly I didn't take my usual advice to sit back and enjoy the ride. I'm going to be glad when all the hustle and bustle is over. I hope you have had time to enjoy the fun parts of the holiday, and that what you remember most is not the work, but the rewards.

Solstice!

2011-12-22T20:59:00.000-05:00

Happy Solstice to you! How was your day? Did you know today was the Winter Solstice?

Winter Solstice means many things to many people, and nothing to some people. I recognize it as, among other things, a return to light. Days now begin to get longer, we're scraping and clawing our way back to Summer. Remember Summer?

I've been busy. So busy, in fact, that I did not do any special baking for myself or my Solstice loving friends. I'll have to find a way to make up for this on Yule. But, at least I did find time to make some deliveries today. I donned my best sparkly Santa hat, put on assorted other sparkly attire with shorts (yup, shorts... 82 degrees here today), Santa socks and motorcycle boots, and out the door I went with boxes and bags of treats. I drove up and down the Keys making my deliveries for those who observe Christmas. These were not "work" deliveries, these were personal. Vegan, organic delights I've been working on for days for my friends. Those who care for my animals, care for the planet, care for my community, and care for me.

Its been a tough go around here lately. I get crabby, the other happy vegan gets crabby. Long hours, seemingly unending work. When I went out to retrieve something in my car yesterday (after 3pm) it was the first time I had even been outside the confines of my quarters. I was struck by how bright the sun was, and actually how hot it was. The temperature read 81 degrees. It moved me enough to shut off the oven, push aside the mixing bowls and pans, put on some running clothes and get outside for an overdue run. I decided while running that today, Solstice, I would make my deliveries to my friends.

So I spent this morning boxing and wrapping those special treats, got Santa-d up, and went for that drive. No holiday music on the radio, I'm not in the mood, even tropical music wasn't doing it. I went for the best vintage classic rock I could find, and headed up and down the Keys. I'm so glad I made the time. As I was driving over the 7 Mile Bridge (again) and the bridge near Bahia Honda, I really marveled at the color of the water. The winds have been blowing for days, I'm not sure if the sediment stirring has an impact on the vivid color, but the aqua blues seemed even more picturesque today. I flipped my Costas back and forth to check the difference with polarized lenses, just for fun. The color seemed almost as blue (without), but certainly the dimension was not there without those awesome shades.

I wasn't the only person out and about in Santa gear, seems like the everyone really is "in the mood." Like it or not, Christmas is coming, but today I simply rejoiced in Winter Solstice, and the beginning of the ebb back towards my beloved Summertime.

Wishing you a Happy Solstice. Hang in there..... I swear, Summer's coming! And, if you just can't wait, you might want to pop down to Big Pine. Today we topped 82 degrees. Now that's what I call a Winter Solstice.

UNCLE!

2011-12-20T21:20:00.000-05:00

I give up. Well, not entirely, but at least for the moment. I'm not even in the whirlwind of holiday shopping that envelopes the majority this time of year, and yet I'm finished. Cooked. Done. Over it.

I have been on my feet for 14 hours today (so far, except for the time it will take for this post, and bits of computer time today) and I have so much to do, I could easily clock in at least 3 more hours. Not gonna happen. This decision came to me as I was doing an "easy" project of chocolate covered pretzels. Never done them before, but how hard could they possibly be. Open a bag, melt some chocolate, smear it on, and sprinkle adorable sprinkles.

Sounded like a plan.

I coated my pretzels and began to add the sprinkles. Cute holiday sprinkles. Red ones. Green ones. Round ones. Holly shaped ones with cute round berries. They all came in small jars with shakers. Or so I thought. I used 3 of the 4 jars, all had shakers. I came upon my last jar.... those stupid holly sprinkles. I coated my pretzels, opened the cap, didn't look, and "SPLOOSH" holly sprinkles with round berries everywhere. Rolling across the counter, across the floor, into my shoes, and onto the cat. There was no shaker top for those "cute" holly sprinkles with round berries. But, after 14 hours standing, consider if you'd check for a shaker top before applying, especially if the preceding 3 jars DID have shakers

Its been 4 solid days of baking. I missed my run today because I had too many chores. Two trips up and back to Marathon for Pop, food shopping, baking, deliveries. Blah blah blah.

This is nothing compared to what ba-zillions of other people do this time of year. Yet, as I began sponging up holly shaped sprinkles with round berries from every surface in my kitchen, then hauled out the vacuum with crevice attachment for further amusement, I thought it... "UNCLE." I admit defeat. Cutting my losses for the day.

I have more pictures to post, but haven't had them downloaded for you yet. Homes, businesses and people are all decorated for Christmas. On one of my scads of errands today, I saw a bicyclist wearing a Santa hat with a dog in the bike basket, also wearing a Santa hat (I know, I know.... I agree it probably wasn't the best idea for the dog's safety, but at least they were off the main road, on a bicycle path). I also drove over the 7 Mile Bridge (4 times) today and noticed that the big tree randomly growing in the middle of the old bridge now has what appears to be a star, with lights, jammed near the top. I have every intention of making the trek over that bridge in the dark to check it out. Tonight would actually be a good night for that, considering its dark out, and I'm still awake. But, no. My mantra, which I mustn't forget is "uncle."

Let's try again tomorrow, ok?

Christmastime in the Keys.... in Photos

2011-12-16T21:58:00.000-05:00

Here's some more pictures I snapped recently of Christmasy things around the island. Have a cup of vegan chai paired with a tasty vegan gingersnap cookie, and enjoy the photos. There's more to come, I promise!

Sparkly palm tree!

Those sparkles really know how to catch a breeze.

Got lights?

Slow shutter, groovy man.

Peri, basking in the glow. Meow.

A Semi-True Story

2011-12-13T21:58:00.000-05:00

I had occasion to dress up (well, by Keys standards anyway) and go to a Christmas party. I've made a decision to go to as many parties as possible, no small feat considering my job, and all the other responsibilities I've accepted in my life. So, I got dressed up Keys-style and got in my car under a bright sunny sky. Feeling pretty good. Damn good actually. Driving down the Overseas under the warm December sun I channel surfed the satellite radio and ended up with vintage 80s rock. Pounding rock and roll, the kind when "max" on the dial is not good enough.

I continued to drive.

Traffic was pretty heavy. Its high season down here now. This is the "it" place, the place to be. Of course it is. I'm no fool. I was just whining about temps in the 20s and 30s a couple days ago.... I'm back home where its still pressing close to 80 degrees. I rolled down the windows. Wind whipped through my car, and my hair. No need to change the station, the Universe was on my side as the unseen DJ kept playing more favorites. I'm heading south.... my favorite drive. South anywhere is always a good thing when driving. North means cold. South means warm. Here, South also means an incredibly scenic drive.

As I approached Boca Chica I heard them before I saw them. Navy jets. Indeed they were up there. Traffic began to do some pretty squirrelly things. Everybody wanted to watch the Navy jets but they also wanted to keep driving...a bad combination. I persevered, and let off the gas a bit, giving the guy in front of me some extra room in the event there was some exceptionally bad driving. Thank goodness there wasn't. At the same time I also tried to turn up the radio. It was already at "max" but I wanted more. Sunshine. Rock and roll. Navy jets. A good outfit with some great accessories. Wind whipping everywhere. It was just another day, but it was a perfect moment. A feeling of happiness and immense American pride washed over me.

I pulled over, opened my car doors, let the music blast, grabbed the teeny American flag I keep in my car and began to dance, alone, off the side of the road while I waved my flag at the pilots who were doing those unbelievable square side rolls and turns that I usually only see at air shows. At that moment a very large pickup truck pulled up right behind my car. The door opened, and out popped a young man in what I shall describe as military fatigues. He had a hat on and very dark sunglasses. Boots too. Classic young military. Very polite. And very hot. He ma'am-ed me, then joined in my happy dance to the sound of Bon Scott blaring out of my open car doors. I honestly said nothing at all, I was pretty surprised. Before I knew it, the song was over. There were barely seconds between the end of that song and the beginning of the next, but there was just enough space for me to say "thank you!" He smiled, ma'am-ed me again, hopped into his big pick up truck and left. I waved my flag as he disappeared into traffic, then got back into my car and continued my way South.

I was a few minutes late to the party.

Square Peg

2011-12-12T21:36:00.000-05:00

It just feels so good to be back home. Back in the Keys. Back in the warm weather, with sunshine and palm trees. Every time I go back to my ex-home, I feel more and more detached. It's such an odd feeling. There's family and dear friends up there.... I must find a way to get them all to move down here. It's the only solution to my problem.

I don't belong up there anymore. I've mused about this before. I'm a square peg in a round hole when I leave my safety net of the Keys. Here I'm surrounded by square pegs. Here, I think "square peg" is just another way of saying "genius," to a certain extent.

I go up to the cold zone to visit family and friends. That part is great, it really is. Its the main purpose of any of those trips, seriously why else would I even think of going to a cold climate, I don't ski, I don't snowboard, I don't like to drive in snow, and I don't really like hot toddies. So, I go to see people I love. Of course while I'm up there, moments of nostalgia wash over me, but there is truth in the old saying "you can't go home again." At least, I can't. Home isn't there anymore; for me it's here.

One of the people I adore most on this planet said to me on this trip something along the lines of "I was driving around today and I wondered what do you think about it here when you come to visit now?" It was an interesting question, and also ironic. Ironic because for so much of the trip I was snapping pictures of my environment. Most of the photos were taken from the car since that's where I spent so much of the trip. I had just scrolled through the camera to review pictures the morning I saw my friend who had asked that question.... and noted that 90% of the pictures were bare trees and freeway construction.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

I used to love living up there. Its not that way anymore. My friends and family are not happy living there. It is crowded. When I asked friends to describe what its like living there, they said "angry," "lonely," "dark," "sad." It's a shock sometimes when I stop and think. All I loved, all I ever knew, was right in that airspace. My beaches are still there, they are waiting for me, and I will see them again. But, it doesn't seem to be enough for those who remain. This contrasts starkly with being here. No situation is perfect, that's not realistic. But not one single person I saw in the cold zone was following their bliss. No one. Another stark contrast. I'm surrounded by people who are doing just that; following their bliss. Be it spending days on the beach weaving palm fronds into hats, playing the guitar and singing for supper, running a soup kitchen, or spending hours on end playing with muffin tins and measuring cups in a kitchen with a cracked tile floor.

I was the square peg because I was not living my life "stuck." There were catalysts in my life which jolted me into an awakening of sorts. I used to be "stuck" like many of us can be. We can be "stuck" in lots of things.... jobs, relationships, places. Sometimes we find a way to break free, while other times fear paralyzes us and we don't take chances. What a shame.

I wish I could create a magic potion for everyone I love and wash it over them so they could see the forest for the trees. Instead, I use words. I tell them "anything is possible." Its not much, but its all I have. And, as the square peg in the round hole up there, maybe those words don't carry much stock in a dark, sad, lonely, angry space. Also because up there "square peg" does not mean "genius." Nope. Up there, all it means is "girl with unsuitable winter wardrobe unhappy with the weather."

Its different down here. I'm surrounded by square pegs, and lots of us understand that anything really is possible. Must be the sunshine and palm trees knocking sense into us. That or a falling coconut. Whatever it is, I'm in.

Where To Begin?

2011-12-11T17:45:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year again…. hustle, bustle, cold zone time. We went, we survived, and are back.

As I sit here typing, the pounding in my head overtakes the clacking on the keyboard. The schedule we keep when doing the rounds up north is exhausting.

We were cramped into the tiniest seat I have ever seen on a commercial plane, ever, in my life. We measured roughly 14 inches of leg room. The seats no longer recline either. And, our flight was delayed 3 hours on our trip up. 3 HOURS. Add the 3 hours seated on the tarmac to the 45 minutes ahead they boarded us, the 2.5 hours flight time, and then a few extra minutes as we taxied to the gate upon arrival and that all made for one extremely unhappy tin can full of people.

As we bolted off the plane and got our rental car, all we could each think of was "food!" Being that it was after 2am by this time, prospects were slim. We managed to find a WaWa which has a 24 hour sandwich shop, and within less than 10 minutes each of us were scarfing our veggie sandwiches as we agreed that the weather wasn't "that bad" it was about 40 degrees. Pouring rain, but no snow. This was do-able. By 3am we pulled into the hotel and simply crashed.

The rest of the trip was essentially driving around 2 neighboring states for visits. It was not easy. We placated ourselves with food, and lots of it. The biggest saving grace of the entire trip was food. Everywhere we went, any time of day, food. Vegan food. One of the places we stayed was purposely selected as it was across the street from a Whole Foods Market. Yes, with multiple hot & cold food bars, soups, daily vegan baking, and just about anything I could ever want… and then some. One day we were in there 3 times.

The weather didn't cooperate for part of the time, it was raining for I think 3 straight days before I saw a glimmer of sunshine, and towards the end of our trip it got cold… really cold. Think 20s to 30s. I trudged around the states wearing almost every article of clothing I brought…. 2 scarves, socks, tights, 4 shirts, jeans, and my Sea Shepherd magic beanie. I even had to break down and buy boots. I was cold, and never warmed up til the plane landed back in Florida about midnight.

I took lots of pictures, and will post some random ones. They're not here now because one of the other things that happened was our hard drive crashed. Dead as a doornail. Now I'm on a new computer with all sorts of things I have no idea how to use, including picture downloading and retrieval. I'll get to it all, I promise.

So, I'm home, the other happy vegan is home. The cats are re-adjusting to life with us, I can see the mangrove twinkling at night, Peri is sleeping on the back deck, and we are solidly back in more proper winter weather of mid to high 70s. Sounds like December to me.

She's So Shy

2011-12-07T14:04:00.000-05:00

You don't know her, but she's here too. Her name is Elsa. She is Peri's sister. Those who visit Deer Run invariably meet Peri. He's very gregarious, very social, and very "in charge" of all things on Long Beach. Elsa, however, is a whole different story. Elsa was a rescue as well, and she was initially living in Miami. Another big city girl. She must have experienced some bad things, as winning her trust takes a lot of time and patience.

When she first arrived, I only heard about her, never saw her. Kind of like the legend of Big Foot. The other happy vegan began to win her trust after months of giving her some kibble regularly, but for me, she would never do anything but run as soon as I appeared. This was distressing for both her and me.... I would never hurt an animal, and really wanted her to know this. I persevered, and won some trust.

She stuck very close to Peri for a long time. Then one night about 3 years ago, a terrible fight happened. Peri and Elsa were dueling to the death it seemed. Blood was involved, and horrible screaming. We intervened as best as possible, but Elsa ran away. She did not return for a while. Peri had scrapes too, but he went on with life as usual. Finally Elsa returned, she healed, yet she and Peri were no longer friends. Through the passage of time, thankfully that has changed. They are now thick as thieves. When Peri went on walkabout a few weeks ago, Elsa seemed distraught. Not eating right, listless. Lonely. I knew how she felt. Peri came home, and she was a perky gal again.

Elsa is still very shy. She does not "hang" with the guests. If you look at her the wrong way, she runs and hides. I am allowed to pick her up for a few seconds when I feed her, and that's her limit. I do not chase her for hugs, no, that is all wrong. I just always give her a quick hug & kiss on her terms to help keep her social and knowing she is safe at our place too. Little girl that she is, the Universe is big... she is small. Elsa is loved, but shy and we accept this. Her angelic presence is welcomed at Deer Run... she too likes to tan on the deck, but admire her from afar, otherwise you will not admire her at all... the invisible kitty that she can be.

Our Mangrove!

2011-12-04T21:38:00.000-05:00

Without further delay, I present our mangrove:

Peace.

See you soon!

Hellyeah, VEGAN BONGOS!

2011-12-03T20:41:00.000-05:00

I got the mangrove shot tonight! But that will have to wait til tomorrow, I've got something way more exciting to report.

We went to the Sugarloaf Craft Show today at the Sugarloaf School. The few times I've missed this show for any reason results in me spending the rest of the year moaning that I missed the show. Its a great one, with a totally homespun flair. This show brings out some great local talent, and I found a new fave today.... Mr. Bongo Man. Ok, that's not his real name of course, but that's what I'm calling him.

Mr. Bongo Man makes drums & other percussion instruments completely out of wood. I was looking at all sorts of arts & crafts when I realized I heard live percussion playing along to some jazzy/funky music. When I looked around to find the source, I saw Mr. Bongo Man grooving to music playing a pair of hand made bongos. I ran right over, couldn't help myself. I was totally excited. You don't know this, but I've been searching for vegan bongos for a couple years. I guess I don't really need bongos, who does, right? Then again, I could say who DOESN'T need bongos.

Finding vegan bongos is no small feat.... 99.9% of what I've found have animal skins; a huge "no way" in my world. About 2 weeks ago I found a guy on line who makes very fine percussion instruments out of wood. They're very beautiful, and very unaffordable for me as someone who wants vegan bongos for no reason. So, imagine my glee today when I met Mr. Bongo Man and his hand crafted wooden percussion. He had me hook, line & sinker and I simply could not have been any happier. This is what I chose today:

My vegan bongos and a shaker too!

You purists out there may take issue with me for calling these "bongos." Technically they are actually called "cajon" drums. Box drums. I actually knew this even before I began chatting with Mr. Bongo Man. But, let's just call them bongos, for the sake of my own happiness, ok?

I've been bongoing up a storm today. The other happy vegan has been pretty good natured, but he did have some issues when I was bongoing in the car. I switched to the shaker for a little while... believe it or not he found bongoing in the car a little distracting (that's a nice way of saying he was becoming extremely agitated and annoyed with me).

I found some other really cool things at the Sugarloaf show today, and saw some old friends too. I love meeting the craftspeople at shows, admiring their wares, complimenting their hard work, and choosing unique, artisan crafted special gifts for those I love.... even for me! My vegan bongo quest has come to a close. I think we could end a few wars if more people had some vegan bongos. There's nothing like it in the world, they're AWESOME!

Let the Pictures Begin

2011-12-02T22:23:00.000-05:00

For the last couple days, I've had my camera at my side every time I've gone out. I figured this would help me get some of those cool holiday shots I want to, but its not that easy. Traffic is an issue (its so not cool to stop in the middle of the highway and shoot photos....), timing is an issue, and my ability to get the camera actually ready for the perfect shot seems to elude me a bit.

I went outside last night to photograph our lit mangrove. It was too dark. I slogged into the sea thinking that would do the trick, to no avail. I couldn't get the shot. So, I figured I'd simply take it at dusk when the lights show and there's still some natural light left. But, that didn't work out tonight, as I was preoccupied doing something else. I did get a few photos taken today, check them out!

Christmas tree shopping, Keys Style.

A local business here on Big Pine, all decked out.

Old Bahia Honda Bridge.

Yes, I realize this isn't a holiday shot, but isn't it beautiful anyway!

See you tomorrow!!!

Bye Bye 2011 Hurricane Season! Hello Jingle Bells!

2011-11-30T10:37:00.000-05:00

Today's the last day of November. Thanksgiving is behind us, and we're full throttle into the Christmas season. My happiest note though is that today brings the "official" end to the 2011 hurricane season. Buh-bye, so long, see ya! We made it through another year without serious storms in this area. Ahhh.... I am happy. Looking ahead, I still see palm trees and massive amounts of sunshine, but I also know tomorrow I turn the page on the calendar, it will be December.

Although I don't celebrate Christmas, I do enjoy looking at the spruced up homes & businesses with wreaths and lights. I always love stumbling upon the unexpected, like last year's drive across the 7 Mile Bridge and seeing lit Christmas lights strung on a tree growing out of the old bridge in the middle of the ocean.

I was out last night for a friend's birthday celebration. We went to the Square Grouper on Cudjoe Key. My meal was just wonderful, and the service was great, never a small feat when dealing with a large group of revelers. On the way home I noticed that many businesses have already decorated for Christmas. There's trees decorated and lit, buildings all trimmed out, and even the business district light poles have decorations on them. When did this happen, I have no idea, but it seems quite a few elves have been hard at work.

This past weekend, I asked Mr. Happy Vegan for a favor. I asked if he would string our solar powered LED lights onto the mangrove in front of our house. In the Atlantic Ocean. I love looking out upon the inky black ocean showered by a starry sky (and most nights the Milky Way thanks to the fantastic star gazing conditions here) to see those teeny tiny lights twinkling on the tree. He was way ahead of me... when I asked him about the lights he told me that he already had them sitting in the sun to be charged, and planned on getting them on the tree that day. Indeed, he did.

I never forgot a question/comment a guest said a few years ago, asking what's Christmas like down here. He said something along the lines of "it's probably like it doesn't even happen, it just doesn't seem like a Christmas-y place." I think I understood that he probably meant it doesn't snow here, its not a Norman Rockwell kind of place when you think of Christmas. But, indeed the majority of people here do embrace Christmas in many traditional ways, as well as the unexpected. Traditionally, there's places selling real Christmas trees, traditional Christmas music plays in the stores, churches have special things going on, and stores are decked out trying their best to entice us with their offerings. Unexpectedly, I've seen the Salvation Army bell ringers dressed like pirates & wenches instead of Santa, seen steel drum players wearing Santa hats playing Silent Night, and seen lit Christmas lights on a tree growing out of a bridge in the middle of the Ocean.

I've decided to take a little time this week and photograph some of our local holiday sights for you. I'll post them for you to enjoy. As the season wears on, I'm sure I'll see lots of interesting things, so I'll do my best to keep the pics coming through the month. I shall have my camera at the ready, at least that's the plan.

Although my toes seem to curl every time I hear Christmas music (unless its played a la tropicale'), there's a lot for me to enjoy this time of year too. I hope you there is for you too.

I'm Fine, Thank You Very Much

2011-11-27T15:32:00.000-05:00

I posted recently about my little struggles with the conventional food associated with the Thanksgiving holiday... about the cruelty issues, and lack of nutrition that is in so much of the "food" available. Well, I'm feeling much better today, thank you very much.

I'm working out my issues by finding solace in my own kitchen, as well as with our wonderful our guests. I like to write about how great our guests are overall, and they really are, but sometimes I find even more exceptional kindness and compassion. It really is people like that who help me find balance.

So, I'm in the kitchen a lot lately. I'm working on a few new things, and baking up some old standbys. I've been practicing my cake decorating skills a little bit more, and have made 7 more cakes in the last few days (that's a lot of cake!) I feel better doing this. Sure it can be chaotic in the kitchen when I'm working on so many different things at once, but at the same time its very soothing and relaxing. Mixing batters, creating frostings, baking all these donuts, cakes & cookies. I'm reminded how good food really is, and what its purpose is. Oh, don't get me wrong, I'm not passing off my baking as health food, but it is pure food. Ingredients you can pronounce and recognize, plus not an ounce of cruelty. I also felt better after I made a delivery to the health food store, just the 15 minutes or so I spent in there was completely uplifting. It smelled good when I walked in, people were smiling and laughing, and there was music playing. It was definitely a good thing.

Amidst all the nuttiness in the world, I'm regrouping and stopping the pity party. There's much work to be done.... cakes to bake, cookies to invent, chores to do, cats to visit with, and an ocean to gaze upon. Not to mention the fact that I'm always busy changing the world, one vegan bite at a time.

Happy Thanksgiving, A Day Late

2011-11-25T12:46:00.000-05:00

The other happy vegan and I hope you had a nice Thanksgiving holiday. We had a nice day here. We did our usual morning work & chores, plus some other work tossed in for good measure. I played with the kitties, visited Peri, and did some paperwork. The other happy vegan and I came to an agreement about dinner and dessert; he would actually help in the kitchen, we were going to cook together! He made some stuff, and I made some stuff. I think the star of the show were the candied sweet potatoes. I scored a bunch of organic sweets at the Help Yourself farmer's market in Key West on Monday, no special plans, I just happen to love them. But, on a whim I decided to make them candied, which I haven't had in decades. They came out amazing, absolutely amazing. I tossed in a few vegan marshmallows for good measure. Tasty morsels.

The other happy vegan and I gave thanks yesterday for a very long list of things. As I've said, I live in gratitude every day (ok, I'm only human and do have my moments, just putting that down in case Mr. Happy Vegan reads this entry on a day I'm melting down about something......), but Thanksgiving is just another day to be thankful.

We're moving forward full steam to the jingle bell season. I'm going to try my best and ignore all the hustle, all the bustle, and simply stare into the sea at night and find peace within. For now, enjoy your tofurkey leftovers, and lots of that vegan pumpkin pie. For the record, my "turkey cake" was probably one of the tastiest cakes I've had in years, and I don't even really like vanilla cake. It was, as they say, amazaballs. Happy Thanksgiving!

Peri, Peri, Our Sweet Peri

2011-11-23T21:38:00.000-05:00

I don't have much imagination today of what to write as I stare at the blank screen. I did lots of stuff today, and thought many thoughts. I cooked, baked, cleaned, worked out, and so forth. I played with the kitties, visited with some friends, and did the usual things with the usual suspects. But, I think my favorite thing today was visiting with Peri. I've given a couple stern of lectures his way since his return, but they've been balanced as I lavish him with love. Peri seems a bit tired the last day or so, since his return from walkabout. I wonder what he did during his time away (no tom catting around, that boy is properly fixed), but he just won't share where he went, or what he did. He seems a bit more patient with me too, as I've frequently been picking him up and giving him all those extra hugs & kisses. Peri hasn't really liked to be a snuggle bunny for the last few months. I mostly chalk it up to the fact he's wearing a fur coat and its 80-90 degrees often, so why should he want to snuggle. My kitties inside seek the sunny patches, while Peri outside seeks the shade. Things are cooling down a bit, mid-high 70s, along with the occasional low 80s. That seems to be enough for Peri to let me be his main squeeze every hour on the hour.

Peri. I love him so much. I'm so happy he's back on patrol. I keep running out the back door just to get a glimpse of him, he hasn't wandered far since his return. He's been here for snacks, naps, hugs, kisses, and of course to break new guests in upon arrival. Our sweet Peri, on loan from the Universe (and our nearby neighbors). He brings peace, he brings his own form of wisdom. Sweet dreams little Peri, I'll be waiting for you when you awake...snacks and kisses are on the menu.

Vegan Thanksgiving

2011-11-22T20:18:00.000-05:00

T-minus two days til Thanksgiving Day. Admittedly its not what it used to be for me anymore. Mostly because I think I live with much more gratitude in my life than before, so I don't really need a special day to reflect and be thankful, I already am. Yet, Thanksgiving brings other things to the forefront for me, mostly about violence and cruelty towards animals to satisfy the selfish wants of some. This is a bad time of year to be a turkey.

I went to the supermarket today, had to get groceries for Pop, so I got my supplies for the next week or so. People were in the store buzzing like bees. Everyone blindly grabbing food and tossing it into carts with, in my opinion, not very much thought. No thought to the source of that food, no thought as to the likely genetic modifications the food was subjected to at some point, no thought as to the pesticides or herbicides sprayed on the food, and no thought to the suffering of the animals for the non-vegetarian choices. It became a bit overwhelming for me. I did my shopping as quickly as I could, while proudly wearing the other happy vegan's Sea Shepherd sweatshirt. I got a lot of looks, but no comments on it (this time).

While I was looking at baked goods (you know I don't buy the "store" goods, but I do like to keep current as to what is "out there") I found a cake in the shape of a turkey. The ingredients were long, with many chemicals and preservatives I honestly could not pronounce. It was also made with very cheap ingredients. The cake looked cute, but it was a horror show of things no one should eat. But, I snapped a pic on my cell phone, came home, and made my version of the cake, which is pictured above. I'm gonna give myself some props on this one. This cake was made "on the fly" without a plan really. It is entirely organic except for the non-aluminum baking powder. It is vegan. Even the food colorings are organic. So, maybe its not fluorescent orange and neon red like the one at the store, but I kinda wonder what MAKES that red so neon, that orange so fluorescent. I didn't do much planning with the colors, I could do better, and will next time. But, its the point that this cake is one that is cruelty free, organic and actually will taste amazing. There's way better choices in my cake with things like organic pure maple syrup for sweetener, and real organic fair trade vanilla beans for flavor.

Vegan Thanksgiving. I'm frustrated because I'm tired of stuffing my thoughts and feelings when someone feels compelled to tell me how "wonderful" their cholesterol laden, unhealthy, cruel meal was. I don't want to re-live that meal of yours, trust me, I don't. I work very hard to find balance with my personal beliefs and dealing with the public. On this holiday I have no good thoughts about the food being offered up, and I have no small opinions about the horror show that is known as factory farming. It's absolutely despicable.

It doesn't have to be this way, it doesn't. It shouldn't be this way. Cruelty should not be on the menu. I don't see this as something to celebrate, not at all. Too many food conglomerates are passing off items that are called "food" but really don't fit the technical definition of food. Food is supposed to nourish our bodies, it is not supposed to cause suffering; not supposed to cause disease, illness, or poor nutrition. But, so much of what is offered up is doing exactly that. Major boo hiss.

We are having a cruelty free vegan dinner on Thanksgiving, just me and the other happy vegan. It will not be extravagant, nor elaborate, but it will be healthy, tasty, and pleasing to look at. We will not be making too much food so that excess goes to waste. Absolutely not. Instead, we will be picking up some groceries for the local food bank over the weekend, and donating them for distribution. And, those groceries will be cruelty free, and healthy too.

I honestly feel like I'd like to just join Pink Moon and hide under the covers til its all over, but that's not an option. Instead, I'll just have to deal with all this, and you'll just have to deal with me til I get myself back on balance. I do hope you'll find yourself making some compassionate choices with your food. A lot is at stake, and ignorance is NOT bliss.

He's Back!

2011-11-21T08:04:00.000-05:00

Peri is back! You say you didn't even know he was gone? Well, that would be correct. I didn't want to panic the planet. He went on walkabout, but came home in the dark this morning.

Peri had gone walkabout one other time a few years ago. I vaguely remember it, his trip lasted about 3 days give or take. I say I vaguely remember mostly because I want to black it out, not remember a time that he wasn't here.

Peri is not our kitty. He does have a very good home, food, love, shelter and medical care. Peri is micro-chipped, tagged, collared and vaccinated. Yet, if you've been to Deer Run, you know he spends a large portion of his time here. Sure, he's a child of the Universe, but he's still "my boy" and I love him dearly. He is one of the most complicated, expressive, loving felines I have ever met. I absolutely adore him, I don't remember life without him.

Two days ago Peri did not show up for dinner. Unusual, yes, but he sometimes comes late after he's had about 6 other dinners, including at home. It wasn't until yesterday morning when he didn't show for breakfast that I began to panic. His sister Elsa came, and seemed lonely. She ate, but not as well. I banged the dish but no response. I waited about 1/2 hour and sat to read the paper, but couldn't. I was too worried. I shot an email out to his main family to see if they'd seen them, and the other happy vegan phoned over there. No, they hadn't seen him either.

I hoped on my bike and pedaled up and down the street calling for him. Looking for him. Listening for him. No response. I ditched my plans for the flower show. I couldn't really do anything until I knew Peri was ok.

All day long yesterday I would walk the beach, the street, and through neighboring properties calling for Peri. "Peri! Peri! Winkle, where ARE you?" Nothing. All day. All night again. I woke up about 4am-ish, restless. I wanted to call for Peri, but its so darn quiet here I knew it would disturb sleeping guests and neighbors. So, I tossed and turned fitfully until I got back into a light sleep. Suddenly the other happy vegan burst into the bedroom, it was still dark out, before 6am "PERI'S BACK! HE'S HERE NOW!" I dashed up and out of bed (I swear, a true miracle for a non-morning person) and bolted outside to the deck. There he was in all his glory, chowing down on his first, second, third, or fourth breakfast of the morning. Or, maybe not... maybe he hadn't eaten at all while on walkabout. He wouldn't say.

I lavished him with praise and words of love. I petted him and cried while he ate. He didn't care about my joy, he cared about his food. I didn't disturb him too much, its never right to disturb an animal while eating (nor a happy vegan while she's eating, for the record). I just knew I had joy in my heart to touch his soft grey fur, to see his tiny little self.

While Peri was away, everything around here reminded me of him. He has entrenched completely into Deer Run, this place breathes Peri. My deck is his tanning bed. The sea oats are his shady retreat. My back walkway is his dining room, and the beach is his playground. I see him everywhere, and that is why yesterday was so painful for me. I saw him everywhere, but he was not there. It was difficult not to become overwhelmed with grief simply by his brief absence. It was a very difficult day for me.

Peri is back. His parents are happy, we're happy, Elsa is happy and even the sun seems brighter this morning. Welcome back Peri, and don't do that again!

Creature Comforts

2011-11-19T10:21:00.000-05:00

I spent the better part of yesterday in bed reenacting Cameron's pseudo-death scene from Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Unfortunately for me, The Cameron Scene means I was out of commission for a day. Boo hiss.

It was coming on for several days, this I knew. I ramped my Vitamin C intake up to a level I won't confess to in these writings, and complimented it with Zinc. Then I reduced my Zinc because a wise friend told me I was feeling foofey in the tummy because of too much Zinc. Once I got that under control, there was a brief moment of stability, then it all went south. That's where the Cameron pseudo-death scene came into play, and my day ended.

I watched about 11 episodes of Sex in the City, a couple hours of home shopping, a cupcake show, a few minutes of vintage "Pop Up Video" (who knew that was even still in rotation?!), an infomercial, as well as a laundry list of other shows on the idiot box. I was miserable, and there wasn't much for consolation. Until I realized I was surrounded by my cats. Not even surrounded, I was actually enveloped by my cats. They knew I was unwell, and offered me comfort.

I had 3 of the 4 cats with me all day yesterday. Even Pink Moon, my "invisible kitty" who spends 95% of her waking daytime moments under the covers, was out offering me comfort. She sat quietly on me for hours as I watched tv to a backdrop of palm fronds swaying outside in the sunshine. Luciana and Lemon stayed for the day as well, but they did find the need to do more frequent "patrols" around the room than Pink.

Creature comforts were offered up in full effect yesterday. I'm moving around today better than yesterday, and am considering a road trip down to the Key West Flower Show today, the one that Sue used to take me to. Last year's efforts to find a proper planting in honor of Sue didn't go so well. The Key deer nudged the cages aside, and dined on the "Sue plants" as if they were baby greens mixed just for them. I didn't have the heart to stop the deer, after all they were here first, and have more rights out there than I do. So, maybe we'll head down to the show today after all.

I'm a bit of an optimist, and hoping that if any scene from Ferris Bueller is going to happen at my house today, its the "what AREN'T we going to do today" clip.

Vegan Morsels In the Keys

2011-11-17T18:22:00.000-05:00

This post started out as an ode to the powerboat races, with pictures. When I attempted to load the photos, something happened. Sigh. I guess the "something" that happened was me and my pathetic grasp of technology. No photos uploaded. I spent something like 1.5 hours downloading photos from my camera, then uploading them to the computer. Something went wrong. What a surprise. They're gone. Well, they're still on my camera at least, its not like the Key deer photo disaster from a couple months ago wherein all the photos simply vanished. But, 1.5 hours are wasted, and I'm beyond frustrated.

Instead, you'll have to be content with my miscellaneous musings of another day.

Thanksgiving is on my mind. This is not a happy time to be a turkey. I've already got my Tofurkey stashed in my freezer, and I'm planning our little Thanksgiving celebration with lots of cruelty free delights. So, I've been really focused on food lately. And, being focused on food leads my mind to wander to other like-minded people in these beautiful Florida Keys. I'm gonna give a shout out to some of my most favorite peeps, right here, right now.

Good Food Conspiracy on Big Pine Key. Our oasis on Big Pine. A health food store with full service juice bar. From behind that juice bar comes an amazing array of daily nourishment, both for the mind AND body. Fresh organic smoothies, organic salads, wraps, soups made fresh daily, always a gluten free offering, always vegan options. Almost any kind of juice you could imagine, vegan "burgers", raw options, pestos, on and on. This is my home away from home. I am in there usually at least 6 times a week. Inside that oasis is my newest venture, a bakery case which has a daily selection of my fresh baked organic, vegan goodness. If Good Food wasn't here, I cannot even begin to imagine how different my life would be here. Good Food has been in the same location for going on THIRTY YEARS. At the helm is Rev. Marney Brown, captain of all things good. Marney is a driving force for the real food movement down here, and she has been since Day One. As a total bonus, I also meet some of the most interesting and diverse people I've ever come across right at her wonderful community gathering place.

Help Yourself in Key West. An organic restaurant. Small, but divine. What comes from that kitchen is mind blowing. Not only is Help Yourself tops in Key West, but they're EXPANDING!!! I'm so excited I want to shout with joy. Help Yourself also sets up an organic farmer's market once a week in their parking lot. They are so important to the community that I actually scratch my head and wonder how did we even manage before they were here?

Food For Thought in Marathon. Ah..... Marathon. Home of the Turtle Hospital, one of the best places in all of the Florida Keys. For far too long it was a nutritional wasteland then along comes Elin who breathes new life into Food For Thought at the Gulfside Village Plaza. Poof, Marathon is transformed. Elin has brought superb healthy, nutritious and great tasting food to that region which was sorely lacking. She scrubbed, buffed, sweated and probably cried as she transformed the Food for Thought health food store into a true gem. Her beautiful shop offers groceries, gifts and a juice bar that beckons to me. The food coming out of that tiny kitchen is worthy of awards.

Sugar Apple. Key West. Hello my peeps at the Sugar Apple. You are there for me in ways you'll never know. How about the time 2 years ago when I had someone with severe allergies, yet I needed to fake something oniony. I called you begging for Asafoetida and you HAD IT IN STOCK! How about the time I needed Irish Moss Flakes for an obscure recipe I was in the middle of making, and you HAD IT IN STOCK! How about that slam banging VEGAN KITCHEN you have at your store where I can go in and order absolutely everything off the menu knowing full well it is 100% completely cruelty free, and delicious! And, how about the fact that you are the only store I know of in the whole Florida Keys who stocks "Sammie's Cookies" which are by far and away so addictive that each time I buy them, I full well know the box contains 1 serving and 1 serving only....because I cannot stop eating them once I open said box (even though I probably spelled Sammie wrong). Ah... Sugar Apple.

And, I could not forget "The Cafe, A Mostly Vegetarian Restaurant" on Southard Street in Key West. As the name says, it IS a mostly vegetarian restaurant, the only one in Key West with a beer and wine menu, plus lots of nifty vegan options cranking along on the menu. Oooooo, The Cafe is getting ready to officially add Daiya to their menu. They've got it, and have begun working with it, experimenting in their kitchen. When the other happy vegan and I were there (twice in the last week) we got super-secret info that Daiya was in the house (sorry Keith, maybe its not so super-secret now....) So, as we rejoiced and ordered our Daiya filled meals, then subsequently scarfed down every last morsel on our plates, we pondered how we survived before Daiya.

So, there's my props to some peeps. Without these places, my life down here would be much emptier in so many ways. I would also be A LOT hungrier without these amazing places to feed me and nourish both my body and spirit. There is almost never a time when I walk into any one of those places, and don't bump into someone I know, or make a new friend, thus leaving that much more enriched.

Anyone who wants advice for cruelty-free options over these holidays, please reach out to me. You can find my email on the "contact me" link at my web site. I'm here for you, and pledge to be another link in the long chain for making this world a better place, one tasty vegan bite at a time!

What's New?

2011-11-14T12:02:00.000-05:00

Just a quick note to make sure you know I haven't abandoned you. The weekend is finally over, and I have just a few minutes to fill you in, and promise you that more will follow and photos too.

Mr. Happy Vegan's first born got married this weekend. Here in the beautiful Florida Keys. Remember they moved here not too long ago, so their wedding went from a "Keys Destination Wedding" to a "You Bet We're Locals" wedding. I think the wedding was magnificent because the bride was truly a breathtaking vision, and her groom was as handsome as you'd ever wish. They got their wedding by the sea as hoped, with many loved ones to witness and wish them well. I hope it was everything they both hoped & dreamed for, and I will post a few snaps when I get the chance.

Also, as mentioned the Superboats were in town for the World Championship in Key West. There were 3 fatalities during races. I wish I didn't have to write this, but to not mention this I think is disrespectful to those who perished, as well as to anyone involved in the sport. We were at the races on Wednesday and saw Big Thunder's wreck. Both the driver and throttleman died. We were not at the races on Friday when Page Motorsport's boat wrecked. The driver survived, but the throttleman succumbed to his injuries. We attended the full day of racing on Sunday, and saw many tributes to those racers, all the boats had special decals on them, and there was a plane flying a banner in memory of the 3 racers too. Our thoughts truly are with those families and friends of those who wrecked.

The races went forward on Sunday, we had VIP tickets and front row seats for the competition. It was a beautiful day, and the boats were magnificent. I will post photos when I get a chance.

Last week the Parrotheads were in Key West for their annual festivities, Jimmy Buffett showed up for a "secret" concert on Duval Street. We heard he was performing, but thanks to our work, could not go. I'm sure all those who made it had a fantastic time. Only wishing I could have been there too.

As you can see, in addition to the day to day obligations of life, a lot has been going on. Now that the wedding is over, I think things will calm down a bit and we can move into our regular pace of things for high season. Its hard to believe its the middle of November when I'm staring at blue skies and palm trees, but here we are. That's the story from sleepy old Big Pine Key (or maybe just sleepy old me), and I promise to post a few snaps asap. I did take over 800 photos at the races, I'll share a couple of my favorites as soon as I get them off the camera and onto the computer.

Until next time, enjoy every day where ever you are. Life's too short not to do good deeds, live with compassion, and appreciate all that surrounds you.

Cake Update

2011-11-10T20:01:00.000-05:00

Can't this cake just be finished already? Pretty please with sugar on top?

The cake with the missing weird circle piece is not finished. It's very close to completion, but not there yet. Conservatively, this cake clocks in at 35 pounds. That's a lot of cake. And mousse. And frosting. And flowers. Lots of flowers. Too many flowers.

Flowers are why I'm clattering away at the keyboard instead of working on finishing said cakey goodness. Flower fatigue has set in. All that's left is the flowers on the top, a few more dots of white icing, and then the sprinkling of the edible glitter pink hearts across this cake. I should be in there, just finish it already. But no, flower fatigue, as I said.

This was the largest cake I've ever made so far. I even put some of those wooden dowels in so it wouldn't collapse. Now I'm just worried that the server will whack pieces of wooden dowel in the served cake, then someone will choke on one. Being only a 2 tier cake, the dowels are pretty short. The other happy vegan didn't think I should put them in at first. Now that he's carried the aforementioned cakey goodness in and out of the fridge for me no less than 8 times so far, I think he understand why I was so determined to use the stability dowels. 35 pounds of cake. Holy farking un-cow.

I have a few hopes with this cake. The first is that it makes it to its final destination in tact. That's a biggie. The next hope is that no one chokes on a dowel. Another biggie. I hope the people who I made this case for enjoy it and will always have good memories of their party and their special cake. That's a huge hope. And, of course, I hope I survive this evening without putting my elbow, finger, or any other body part in the frosting (again) requiring emergency repairs (again).

There's been a steep learning curve on this cake for me. And, even though I already had a huge level of respect for bakers and cake decorators, this cake has taken my amazement for their craft to a whole new level. Don't ever argue with a cake artist about price. Take it from me. There's no way any of them can charge enough for their final product to really make anything more than a small profit. Its a labor of love for them, it has to be. No matter how good you are, there's still so much extra love and attention that gets poured into occasion cakes that they could never really charge for it all.

I salute you in all your cakey goodness you bakers and cake decorators out there. And, may your wooden dowels always be long enough so that no one is surprised by them in your cakes. Bake on.

Superboats Are In Town!

2011-11-08T13:43:00.001-05:00

I appreciate machines, I really do. Doesn't matter if its a pink Kitchen-Aid mixer, or a 40' offshore raceboat. They're both fine machines.

And, speaking of powerboats... the Superboats are back in the Keys for the 31st annual offshore powerboat races. These races are for the World Championship. I'm pretty sure this is my favorite event of the year. Here's a picture I took of one of the boats at a race I attended a prior year.

How gorgeous is THAT?!!!

I expected to be hearing some offshore powerboats passing by my house over the weekend. I was waiting for them, yet heard nothing; saw nothing. I kept checking.... listening. Nothing. I was a little disappointed about that. I had my binoculars at the ready. Its kind of like a Pavlov's Dog thing with me and and offshore powerboats. I hear the motors and instinctively go running for the binoculars. I guess it was a blessing in disguise that I didn't hear any this year. I would have accomplished much less around the house if they were dashing by every few minutes.

On my two rides down and back to Key West over the last two days I did see a fair amount of powerboats being trailered down. I also saw a huge trailer and motor home making its way down the Keys all painted up with one of the team names and logo splashed all over them. That was nice to see.

Yes, I know this is a guilty pleasure, powerboating, being that I'm all about the eco thing. But, its not me that's out there, so try and have a little compassion for me on this, please?

We've got some passes for the events over the course of this week. Our plan is to get down there tomorrow and check things out, meet some people, marvel at the machinery. When the boats are racing, there is a thunder that is unbelievable. You can hear nothing else, except the "shuke shuke shuke" sound of the helicopters following the boats at a very low altitude. Its a pretty big adrenaline rush as a spectator, I can only imagine the feeling the throttleperson and driver have in the races.

It's all so very good.

You may wonder why a pink Kitchen-Aid mixer kind of kicked off this blog post which is mostly about the offshore powerboat races. I couldn't help myself, I've been working in my kitchen for a few hours now making triple batch after triple batch of vegan white not-buttercream frosting for the big cake with the missing weird circle piece. My Kitchen-Aid is amazing. I wish I had a larger one because I use it so very much, but my small pink mixer has yet to fail me once after all these years. Its been humming along nicely for long stretches this morning, and hasn't complained once. So when I think of awesome machinery, I think "Kitchen-Aid mixer" and then of course the superboats. See, I'm an appreciator of all the Universe has to offer. I can just as easily admire my mixer as I can admire a boat that easily costs more than triple the last house I owned.

So, I'm running my mixer, still listening for the faint sound of a powerboat going past my slice of heavenly ocean. If that fails, at least I take great comfort knowing I'll be in Key West tomorrow to see them, and then I'll be front and center for the race finals this weekend. Another slice of awesomeness in the Keys.

See you there!!! Vroom Vroom!

A Weird Circle Piece

2011-11-07T21:44:00.000-05:00

I've been mentally preparing for a special cake. It started out larger than probably needed for the final count, but right now I'm still not completely certain of that. All that basically means is I made too many fondant flowers, no big deal. They last.

I have very little knowledge and training about working with fondant. Actually I had one very unorganized class which was exceptionally basic. It was so poorly run, I never went back for the other classes. And, of course within only a few days of that decision, it popped into my head that I'll make a cake for a special event and surprise that someone special at said special event. Sounds like a plan.

Today I baked the cakes. Multiple layers. Big layers. Things I'm not really accustomed to doing, but was confident enough after lots of planning that I'd be fine. And, I was. There were, however, 2 glitches. One my fault, one not. The first glitch was me flipping a layer before it was cool. Bad idea, very bad idea. As I had this giant layer crumbling on my counter, I felt crushed. It was then that I turned off all the lights, cleaned up what I could, and went to lay down and think. Within a few minutes, I heard Mr. Happy Vegan walk into the kitchen, then enter the bedroom to ask "what happened, did the cake break?" Seriously. So, with rapier wit I informed him that no, everything was fine, I had no idea of that which he spoke. He was not amused, but then again neither was I.

After he left the room, I continued to think about how to re-engineer this cake with what I now had.

After a while, I had decided how I would make the major repairs so I went back into the kitchen and began to fit the puzzle pieces together. It went ok but one piece was missing. Not a small piece, not a large piece, it was by Goldilocks standards "just right" in terms of size. A perfect circle actually. You see, I had used heating cores for every layer of the cake. One perfect circle was missing. I slid things under the cake to see if maybe the perfect circle was trapped under the giant broken layer (it wasn't). I looked through everything on the counter (nope, not there), on the floor (not there, thankfully), and even opened up all the drawers in case one had been a little open when disaster fist struck. Nothing. It was then that Mr. Happy Vegan re-entered the kitchen to ask what was I doing. In a moment of clarity, I asked him "did you eat any of this cake?" He said "no, only a weird circle piece."

ONLY A WEIRD CIRCLE PIECE?

I guess I took it particularly hard that he ate the "weird circle piece" because a few days ago he spilled the beans about the surprise cake. I've spent a lot of time on line looking information up about quantities, decorating ideas, and planning. I had to make 2 trips to Key West to get what I needed for this cake, and I actually have a pretty well stocked kitchen. Two extra trips is a lot in my world. So, when he admitted he ate the weird circle piece, I took it badly. My freezer is chock full of cookies, donuts, cupcakes, and more. He could have had any one of those items, but he chose the weird circle piece. It was more than I could take.

I cleaned up the kitchen yet again, and pushed the cakes aside, instead taking my emotions to the gym for boot camp. Good decision.

I will work with what I have, and some lucky soul will get a giant glob of mousse and frosting where a weird circle piece should be. I guess its no big deal, but if you had been rolling fondant for about a week or so, making gum paste, royal icing, and flowers (all vegan, of course!) til the wee hours on a regular base, you'd miss your weird circle piece too.

Another day in the baking world. I should have expected this.

She's Got Herself a Little Piece of Heaven

2011-11-06T19:43:00.000-05:00

The "she" referenced in today's title would be me.

The weather here today was as close to perfect as could possibly exist. Not only was the weather perfect, but today was the 2nd best day of the year (the 1st best day of the year being, of course, the first day of Summer) because it was the "fall back" of the "spring ahead, fall back" rule. This gave me an extra hour to myself this morning. I used it wisely... staying in bed to the very last second.

When I got up and flipped open the shutters, the sun streamed in and woke up the cats (well, ok Pink Moon was already up and bouncing across the room and everything in it because breakfast was already 1 hour late, but the others seemed just fine with things). I gathered myself together and wandered into the kitchen for work. I finished morning chores ahead of schedule, did a quick run, had a visit with Pop, and then headed down to Key West for errands.

As I drove south, I popped in one of my most favorite cds of all time, and let the music flow as the wind whipped through my open windows. Today was a day where "max" volume on the stereo was woefully inadequate.

The sharp blue sky set off the seemingly unreal aqua blues of the water, so much so that it just seemed like a dream. Or, for lack of a better word, some type of heaven.

I sang. I car danced. I didn't care who may have noticed.

I've got my little piece of heaven, here in these beautiful Florida Keys.

I Confess A Fatal Flaw

2011-11-04T14:56:00.000-04:00

It's been a busy week. I haven't written yet about lots of goings on, but I promise I will.

Meanwhile, my time is getting eaten up by out of the ordinary things. I've had some shopping to do, some cake decorating to work on, and other things too. We had that slight cool down a week or so ago, it warmed right back up (doors slammed shut again, ac on due to monster baking sessions), and I've also been pouring through my closet yet again, getting rid of things. This most recent clutter bust had to do with shoes.

I used to have a shameful amount of shoes. I wore them all at various times. I love shoes, and would buy a ridiculous amount of them, boots too. When I moved here, I kept several pair that I thought I loved too much to give up. None of them are flip flops, that would be too practical. Instead, they are lovely dress shoes. Pretty snazzy ones.

Those multiple pair of pretty snazzy shoes have sat in my closet since I moved here, collecting dust. Worse yet, none of them would work with that ever-so-fancy dress I've got for that big event coming up in the very near future. I grabbed my step ladder this week, and pulled them down from that top shelf that I could not reach. I opened every box with care, and marveled at how pretty they are. As I was admiring a certain pair, a receipt slipped out of the box; the receipt for the shoes. I looked at the date, and was shocked to see how much time had passed since those shoes entered my life. As I read the receipt, I remembered the event I wore them to, and remembered all the friends who were at the party I wore them to. I remembered my friend who first found those shoes, it was the same friend who was kind enough to run to the end of the State I lived at the time to fetch them for me. That friend was, of course, also at the party when I wore those shoes. That person and I are no longer friends. It's been a long time. As I found myself surrounded by shoes, it was almost as emotional as going through photographs of days gone by.

I attach too much sentiment to objects. I admit this has long been one of my fatal flaws that even I am aware of. So, that fatal flaw reared its ugly head as I was admiring long lost shoes. I didn't want to get rid of my shoes. I lugged these shoes to the tropics from the cold zone, but have never worn them once since moving here. I began to feel ashamed... guilty. Its like these shoes, none of which were particularly pricey or anything special, were little works of art. But, they were like works of art that had been stolen by some thief, and sold on the black market. So, the art is stolen, and sold illegally, and thus cannot be displayed for all the world to see, as would be just and right. Art is made to be appreciated, if it is not, it is wasted. At least in my eyes.

So, I took one last look at those pairs of shoes, wrapped them up in my best recycled tissue paper, re-boxed them and carted them out the door to be sold, to be worn by someone new. To be appreciated.

They're gone.

When I look at the top shelf in my closet, there is space instead of boxes. I am still thinking about those shoes, and realizing that part of me still wants them to be there. Its embarrassing. I don't think I even really understand. But, they're gone, and I am not going to change my mind enough to retrieve them

They will stay gone.

I cleared out more space in my closet thinking I was simply going to get rid of some shoes. Instead I found myself surrounded by a flood of memories, and the realization that time is passing much quicker than I want it too.

I think the only thing to cure this ill will be some shoe shopping. And soon.

Vegan Goodness in the Keys

2011-10-31T21:46:00.000-04:00

Remember my post not too long ago about our tiny vacation in Key West, 2 nights, with a Gift Certificate we had? That it rained, constantly. That streets were flooded, and that I woke up our 1st morning to watch kayakers paddling down the street in front of my hotel? Well, there was a bright spot (well, a few bright spots, but let's concentrate on one, shall we?) Food.

Vegan food to be precise.

Ah, the joy of being vegan. Eating real food, with no death involved. Its a wonderful thing, really it is. Here, in photos, are some of the wonderful meals I had while in Key West. I forgot to take pictures at some places, and other times I was sans camera. But, for your viewing pleasure, here's a glimpse in photos:

Here's a picture of a lovely bibb lettuce salad I had our first night at Hot Tin Roof. I'd never been there before, I'm more a creature of habit, going where I'm used to getting vegan food. But, we had a gift certificate for Hot Tin too. I'm so glad we went! The salad was delicious, some type of light & creamy vinaigrette on there too.... but look at the entree' below!

Now you're talking! The chef gave us choice of 2 completely vegan options, we chose this. Tofu over roasted potatoes, with balsamic reduction, onions and oh jeez, I don't know what else. It was so fantastic, no room for dessert (indeed!)

This slightly out of focus picture shows my "to go" breakfast from Help Yourself, located on Fleming Street in Key West. I do believe they are the ONLY place to get a true vegan breakfast in Key West, and never have I been disappointed. Ever. Here is my vegan french toast. Huge slabs of multi-grain mango bread, toasted a la french, with fresh organic fruit and an organic maple-y non-dairy butter of sorts (sunflower butter perhaps?) on the side. Absolutely delicious (even eaten in the car ride back to Big Pine Key to check on the kitties....)

See! I TOLD ya it was good even in the car!

Ok, I know this isn't food, but look at this beautiful archway. We stopped at The Porch located in the Porter House Mansion during a break in the monsoon rains our 2nd night in Key West. The Porch is a craft beer and wine bar offering organic root beer on tap. Although that night they were out of the root beer (insert big frown here) I managed to have some other fizzy drink while sitting on The Porch's porch. And, I found myself wondering how many birds have built nests on the shelf of this very arch in the over 100 years the mansion has been there. So, I took a picture and thought about baby birdies.

I never tire of Italian food, it's my favorite. Our 2nd night we decided to eat at La Trattoria on Duval Street. I have never had a bad meal here, and the service is always attentive. This, coupled with a great wine list, I'm a happy vegan gal. Here's my salad, before the other happy vegan dumped all his hot peppers on my plate too.

Here's an example of me forgetting to take a picture before dinner. This was a plate of penne arrabiata. A really good plate of penne arrabiata. If the other happy vegan would have tried to sample my dinner, I think I would've forked him in the hand. Just sayin'.

And, although I had no room for dessert, I always love a good espresso after a nice Italian meal. Tasty!

Ah.... back to Help Yourself for morning #2. Another plate of vegan french toast. This time with organic apples & organic grapes. The maple stuff was already added, since it wasn't "to go." Yes, that's right, the morning we were leaving to go home, the sun came out. We ate outside on the picnic tables at Help Yourself. When in Key West, if you want some straight up damn tasty ORGANIC food, this is THE place to go. Bliss once again.

Yay! Lunchtime arrived, and we followed the painted bananas to The Sugar Apple's ALL VEGAN cafe! That's my reusable grocery bag on the pavement, maybe I should've removed that for the photo?

Here's the Sugar Apple sign. I think the paint job on the building is cool!

Yay! Here was my lunch on day #1 rainy day, from Sugar Apple. Smokey tempeh on multi grain, with a beautiful salad. Eaten back at the hotel, on my rain soaked balcony, overlooking the windswept Gulf, a beautiful pool (with nobody in it due to lightning) and their rain soaked outdoor bar. Still, lunch was tasty!

So, there you have a bit of what we experienced eating our way through our rainy mini-vacation. Don't ever let anyone tell you vegans are pasty lentil eating freaks. We're foodies through and through! Its a beautiful thing to know that no animals were harmed, tortured and killed merely to satisfy my desire for a sandwich. Not to mention the health benefits that go along with this....do YOU think we were deprived of anything at all while eating? Hardly! And, we even had cookies. Go veg, and no one gets hurt. xo

Ready for the Crazy Train!

2011-10-28T19:21:00.002-04:00

~~The stockings were hung by the chimney with care...~~ Forget that, rather "the costumes were hung in the closet with care!" Yeah baby, we've finished our costumes for the big festivities tomorrow night in Key West's Fantasy Fest Aquatic A-frolic parade.

As I wrote earlier, the other happy vegan and I are "teaming" for a costume this year. Usually both he and I find "couples costumes" annoying, cloying with cuteness, and a bit juvenile (sorry to those who I've offended). But, we've struck a happy medium this year on the "good cop/bad cop" theme. He's going as Capt. Paul Watson. I'm going as the evil do-er... a whaler/poacher who has been arrested by Capt. Watson on behalf of Sea Shepherd.

We had a few loose ends to tie up for the costumes today, and a need for some other supplies down in Key West. Neither of us had the desire to go into the city, so we were keeping fingers crossed we could get what we needed on the fringes of town, and we did. I managed to score the last vials of fake blood probably in the whole City, and he managed to get his "theatrical hair" needed to channel Capt. Watson.

We came home, and immediately set out to finishing our costumes. Admittedly there was a little blip when I discovered he had removed a piece of plastic I put inside my whaler's pantsuit to stop the paint from bleeding through... he was "helping" and I didn't realize it. So, the red paint bled through to the front. All I can say is there will be a little extra blood on the front of my poacher's jumpsuit. Such is life. While in Key West, we even managed to find an inflatable whale (yes, seriously, an inflatable whale) for my harpoon.

My costume is not nice; I'm the REALLY bad cop on this tag team. But, the illegal hunting of whales being done by a certain country in the name of "research" is not nice either. As the REALLY bad guy on this couples costume, I shall be dressed in a poacher's fishing jumpsuit which has the words "under arrest!" and "crimes against aquatic a-frolic sea creatures" painted in red & black across the back. I'll have my whaler's ship ID tag on the front, and be covered in the blood of poached sea creatures, carrying a harpoon covered in blood, with that inflatable whale attached. And, through all that, I'll be wrapped in chains, under arrest, since Capt. Watson was able to catch me and stop any more evil deeds I might contemplate.

My costume is shameful. I wish there wasn't so much truth in what I'll be representing. A saving grace of this whole costume in my eyes is that we are spreading the word about the horrible deeds being done, which are of course illegal and disgusting.

We support Sea Shepherd and all their efforts. Our costume, which keeps in theme of the festivals "Aquatic A-frolic" tag line, might not be what most people would think of for a sea party. And, that's the point.

There's a great saying I like to use every now and then on my "quote of the day" part of the daily breakfast menu that goes "think occasionally of the suffering of which you spare yourself the sight."

The other saving grace is that I've got a mask, a hood, and a head band. No one will know who I am (unless you read this, haha) while I'm walking the streets in shame as a whale killer.

So, there it is. Our costumes are hung in the closet with care. We're going down with a group of people on a bus chartered by our friends who own another business on the island. I'm not sure what to expect when we get on the bus, but I have a very good idea of what to expect in Key West. Maybe it's more appropriate than ever that all I can hear is Ozzy Osborne's "Crazy Train" as I picture the bus pulling into Key West. Hm, maybe I'm just thinking of Ozzy because he says he's gone vegan after watching Forks Over Knives. Either way, he got inside my head today.

"All aboard, ay ay ay ay.... we're going off the rails on a crazy train."

Wish us luck!

An Homage to Sea Shepherd during Fantasty Fest!

2011-10-25T12:33:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone! How are you? I'm just fine and dandy. If you didn't know it, Fantasy Fest has arrived in Key West.

The festival kicked off last Friday with Goombay Fest, a nice 2 day street fair celebrating Caribbean heritage. Actually, we love Goombay, and planned on going. I lost track of days (happens all the time to me!) and thought Sunday was really Saturday, thus when we arrived in Bahama Village for Goombay all we found were street sweepers and the regular stuff, since the fair was Fri/Sat. NOT Sunday when I arrived (thinking it was Saturday). Of course in the Keys, if you want to be happy, you go with the flow, make lemonade out of lemons so to speak. As long as we were in Bahama Village, we stopped in a few of the shops, then popped into Blue Heaven's bar (an extra "thank you" to our bartender Jen for the great conversation, and as well as an extra "thank you" to Chef Dave for bringing us a taste of his fabulous VEGAN home made nut cheese, seriously, that was fantastic!)

While in Key West, we also stopped to see a friend, who happened to mention he was riding in that evening's "Zombie Bike Ride" through town. He invited us to participate, we had to decline because of dinner plans. But... on the way out of the city, we were treated to the sight of hundreds of bike riding zombies. The event was sponsored by Re-Cycle Bicycles on Stock Island. All the cyclists dressed up like zombies, we saw bride & groom zombies, princess zombies, and so much more. I swear, I love it here in the Keys.

But, I'm getting off track. Sorry....

This year's Fantasy Fest theme is "Aquatic A-Frolic." You don't have to stay in theme, but its a nice idea, don't you think? We're going to the parade this year. Not IN the parade, but as spectators. We received a really nice invitation to watch the parade from a spot upstairs on Duval Street, prime viewing. I simply wouldn't turn this amazing invitation down. And, I feel obligated to dress up, initially much to the dismay of the other happy vegan. But.... I began thinking.... and thinking.... and thinking.

Mr. Happy Vegan is dressing up as Capt. Paul Watson of Sea Shepherd. I am dressing up as a poacher. I've illegally poached whales and then been arrested by Capt. Watson! This keeps in theme of the whole event, pays homage to Sea Shepherd, and spreads our own message of conversation, preservation, and compassion to animals. Now Mr. Happy Vegan is delighted to be dressing up, considering he gets to pay tribute to a true environmental warrior.

I happened to be in Marathon late this morning, so I stopped at West Marine. Its so awesome that I live in a place like the Keys where I shop for my Halloween costume at a boat store! I popped in for a captain's hat for the Mr. and a jumpsuit for my costume. As I was paying, I began chatting with the gal at the register. We began talking about the pet parade in Key West tomorrow (another of the daily festival events) and she said she was going to enter with her dog, but needed some Mardi Gras beads (here, they are just "beads"). I laughed, and pulled out several strands of beads from my handbag and handed them over. She laughed as she said THANK YOU!!! and we both just laughed really hard because where else but here in the beautiful Florida Keys would someone just happen to have beads in their handbag, and be able to share them with a stranger. Nowhere... which is why this really is paradise. And, besides, none of us are really strangers here in Paradise. Strange maybe... but not strangers.

So, everyday there's some fun things planned for Fantasy Fest in Key West, and we're making a point to get down there a few times to have some fun and participate. We don't do this every year, work gets in the way. But, we decided "work be darned, we're having fun!" and so we are.

Shopping at the boat store for costumes, beads in handbags for dogs, Sea Shepherd tribute, and fun in Bahama Village. Fantasy Fest has only just begun, and look at all the fun! Hope you'll join the party (parties!!!) See you there, for sure!

Sun! Glorious Sun!

2011-10-21T09:01:00.000-04:00

The sun is back! We're basking in some of the best weather we have had since last spring (by traditional standards). I say "by traditional standards" because as you well know, for me the hotter the weather, the better the weather. Here its not too hot right now. Its not too cold. It is as Goldilocks would say "just right." The humidity is gone, just gone.

You'll have to excuse my jubilant behavior right now over this seemingly benign event. We had a string of rainy days. Even on wet season, we don't see weather like that for days on end, its unheard of.

So, we had a gift certificate we were high bidders on at a fundraising event for our local animal shelter. The certificate was for a 2 night stay at a hotel in Key West, and dinner at a pretty nice restaurant also in Key West. Due to our own scheduling limitations, we decided to book the trip now, because we were worried we wouldn't get to use it later since we're now moving back into "season" down here. Translation: very VERY little time off for the happy vegans. We booked the trip before the forecasters revised their predictions for mushroom-ville. We ended up going on our "vacation" at probably one of the worst weather times we could have chosen. Sadly, it reminded me of a trip we took many years ago to the Bahamas. On that 8 day trip, it rained literally for 7 days. On the last day, the sun came out as we were driving back to the airport. It was not the fault of the Bahamas, but I have never been back, and probably never will. I was so desperate for beach I actually found myself wrapped in a blanket on the beach in the pouring rain for an entire morning, sogged through to my bones practically. It was miserable.

So, there we were on our vacation in Key West. Really nice hotel, overlooking the open water of the Gulf, their pool & spa, bar and so forth. Staring at the pouring rain, watching the lightning bolts fly through the sky. Ugh. We made the best of it, for the most part. We ate like royalty for the time we were there. In fact, I took photos of almost all our meals, and plan to post them on the next entry. Our second day at the hotel, the water was so high, we watched kayakers paddling down the street. I did not take a picture of that, you'll just have to use your imagination.

So, imagine my glee when yesterday dawned as a sunny, bright day. The same day I'm leaving to come back home. To get ready for season, to get ready for no time off. Sigh.

It IS a beautiful day here. We have a forecast that indicates a stretch of amazing dry weather, a bit unusual for this time of year. Its warm, we will touch 80 today. There are puffy clouds in the perfect blue sky, little birds are singing, big birds are soaring, and I have a feeling today is going to be a really good day.

I know you're all heading back to the Keys, its that time of year. We are looking forward to seeing old friends who come year after year now. We'll take good care of all guests, new and returning, that's a given. I'm here to tell ya'..... the weather is here, and our idea of fall folliage involves rustling palm fronds. Stop by.

Into Each Life, a Little Rain Must Fall

2011-10-17T22:53:00.000-04:00

It's raining.

Something nasty stalled over the Yucatan Peninsula. When I look at my radar, I see giant blobs of red and yellow covering from Cuba to somewhere I'd say near West Palm Beach. Smack dab in the middle of all that nastiness are the Lower Keys. My home. My super-saturated home.

We've been getting more rain the last couple weeks or so than I think we've had for this entire wet season. This year, the wet season has been drier than I'm accustomed to. Eventually things picked up a bit rain wise. Then, this past Friday night it began in earnest. Rain. Pounding rain. On my metal roof. The last 2 places I've lived, they've been homes with metal roofs. If you've never lived in a home with a metal roof, its something to experience at least once. The first drops of rain typically hit like bullets. When a storm really opens up, the noise can be so loud, you simply cannot hear much else. I suppose some people would veto a metal roof for that reason alone. Let me tell you though, if you live in a hurricane prone area, you really should re-think that philosophy.... I practically worship my metal roof.

So, Friday night I woke up (yes, I was finally sleeping!) to the sound of rain pounding on the roof. It was so loud it overpowered the TV, and finally I lost my satellite connection thanks to the rain. No TV= no possibility of sleep. Boo his. I got up, patrolled the living room, had some water, checked what was in the fridge (nothing of interest, sadly) and then played with the cats. Eventually the satellite TV came back on, so I was able to toss & turn for a couple more hours of semi-sleep.

Saturday came. It rained all day. It rained so hard, I didn't run. The water began creeping up the garden, up the driveway, and even the pool overflowed. My road had flooded in places too. Winds were whipping hard, and whiteout conditions came and went the entire day. Night began to fall. The rain did not let up.

When Sunday morning broke, it was still raining, but not as hard as Saturday. My friend "J" and I had tentatively made plans to go to Miami (I know, I know... how can that be? I was literally just there on Friday. Its a long, boring story). We decided to give it a go, and if the rain got too bad, we'd turn around and make our way home. We picked our way up the Keys, stopping a couple places to eat and shop. Each time we stopped, we evaluated the situation; "keep going" or "go home" was the topic of discussion. It wasn't so horrible, we kept plugging on, and eventually found ourselves smack dab in the middle of mega-mall hell in Miami. We concluded the entire city was at the mall. Not any mall... the mall we were at too.

We spent way more time in Miami than either of us anticipated. It was dark by the time we were ready to leave. Still raining as we made our way to the car, but not a whiteout. Yet.

"J" has a nice shiny iPhone thingamajig that people get all excited about. She pulled up the radar just before I was ready to leave the parking lot. The entire screen was a huge red & yellow blob, everywhere except for a pin size hole where we were. Within seconds the conditions went from not-too-bad to total whiteout.

I used to drive a lot, long distances, fast highways. It got me in trouble a few times, but never enough, thankfully, to cause bodily injury, or jail time. I no longer drive a lot nor do I drive long distances or fast highways. I make it a point to not get on the Florida Turnpike, no longer do distance night driving, and I never drive freeways in the rain anymore. Never. It was the trifecta of bad last night... whiteout raining conditions, freeway, and nighttime.

The entire drive home, from the Turnpike, through the Stretch, all down the Keys, and into my driveway, it rained. We went through a series of no less than four bands of whiteout rains, in between were "only" driving windswept rains.

We made it back home, and I was so emotionally spent that I ended up staying in bed until exactly 8:30am today (I wasn't late for breakfast, not at all... this was a day off for me, yay). The sound that finally pulled me out of bed was the still pounding rain on my metal roof.

All day today it rained. I went out and had lunch at Good Food in the pouring rain. I drove to get Pop some groceries through flooded streets, and a parking lot with water up way up past my ankles. I got home and continued to listen to the sound of the rain pounding on my metal roof. I went to boot camp tonight, there was a lull, finally, without much rain. Just sprinkles. The sky looked even bright. I was optimistic, but was quickly informed by the other bootcampers it was just a space between rain bands. "More to come" they all glumly said.

They were right.

Its raining now. Pouring. My metal roof tells me so. I hear rain pouring through the gutters spilling into my already full rain barrels. The tree frogs are singing so loud, I hear them over the rain on the roof, and over the sound of the clicking on my keyboard. My neighbor's yards are flooded, the lowlands near me are spilling forth with brackish water, and I haven't seen a Key deer in 2 days at my house. Unheard of.

Rain Rain Go Away

Come Again Another Day

Little Vegan Wants to Play

Rain, Rain Go To Spain

Never Show Your Face Again.

Sweet Smell of Success

2011-10-15T17:35:00.000-04:00

Do you smell something? I do... it's the sweet smell of success. I have found a dress.

The cost of this dress cannot be calculated in the price tag (well, ok, part of it can be). Instead, I calculate it in hours of my life, and then use my own multiplier. When I roughly calculated the hours I spent searching for this dress, and inserted the hourly rate multiplier of how much my time is worth, I have come up with a number that shocked even me.

I have this thing I do, the other happy vegan here does the same. Whenever either one of us has something we are contemplating getting involved in, we estimate how much time it will take, and place an hourly rate on our time. I'm not going to say what ours is, his rate is different than mine. We don't sell ourselves cheap, we're each in triple digits. Did I just hear someone out there gasp? You shouldn't, unless you are gasping because you think we under calculate. Don't undervalue your time and yourself. This is an important lesson, I learned it well and quite a while ago (thanks again Dad!)

Just because the working world assess wages in trade for work does not mean we are to value our time at the same rate, not at all. Fact is, our time is priceless. Its the one thing we really own. When it is traded for something, that investment should be carefully considered. The true value of you should be placed on those hours. This is how I approach a lot of things, and is a great help also when deciding to hire out for a job too. Can I get it done at a better value than if I did it myself? Will the quality be just as good, or better, than if I did it myself? All things to be considered.

I placed an hourly rate on my dress shopping just for purposes of proving my point. If I was in a different location where there were different shopping options, things may have been different. I tried for months to go the vintage route for this dress I need for an upcoming important event. Its been 8 months of shopping, as I said from Key West to Ft. Lauderdale. I ended up with things I didn't need, weren't quite right. Finally that last road trip to the mainland to a mega-mall did the trick.

I admit I bought a new dress. At that mega-mall I was overwhelmed. There were too many stores than I had time to even think about going into. I chose an old faithful from days past, went to the evening attire, and pulled every single dress in my size which even remotely appealed to me. In that first store, the store of my days past, I found a dress I love. It is well made, and it fits almost perfectly (eh,what's a tiny bit of alterations, right?) It does not have feathers, cut outs, plunging fronts or back, or any other quality I have deemed inappropriate. At that mega-mall, I walked into a store, tried on almost the entire dress stock, and walked out with something as close to perfect as could be (not perfect because its not vintage). I didn't have to go to any more stores, thus the clock was shut down on how much it really cost me, in time, to find that dress.

It would have been great if I would've found something vintage, I would've felt better about making such an important purchase. I tried, honestly I did. But, I think my carbon footprint was becoming one to cloud the entire planet by my frequent trips to the local shops, and increasing trips to the mainland (this vegan rocks a Prius, but still it does need fuel!)

So, there it is. Somehow, the House of Fashion has redeemed itself at the last minute. I saw many things I didn't like, would never wear, and think shouldn't have even been manufactured, but swimming in that sea of fabric I found the one dress made for me. I'm going to keep it for a long time. And, you know what.... I've got the perfect tiara to go with it.

I finally will be funky funky, but chic. At least for a few hours. Ah, the sweet smell of success... and good fashion sense.

Funky But Chic

2011-10-12T21:59:00.000-04:00

"Let's get on down to the boutique
Let's bring back something that's funky but chic."

Today's post is dedicated to the death of good sense in the fashion industry.

Have you heard the screams, but not known the source? Don't worry, it was only me in various fitting rooms from the mainland to Key West.

Forget all the skills I have, all the schooling I've had, and all the jobs/careers I've had so far. I should've just gone to design school. What passes for fashion today is pathetic.

I've looked for months, from Ft. Lauderdale to Key West. Malls, thrift shops, designer boutiques, internet shopping. I need a dress for an event next month, I've blogged about it before. Flip flops and shorts won't do. This is something where I'll get hair and make up done, and pull on "real world" clothing. The waters are rough, yet strangely familiar. All those years anguishing over perfect outfits; lusting for certain shoes, boots, clothing or jewelry seem to have involved someone else, not me. Yet, I look at old photos and I'm proven wrong... it was me. How did I end up where I am and how I am, I'm not so sure. But, the me of today is at odds over the fashion of today. Not good.

I've come up with one dress I bought as a back up, now at the seamstress, and another thing that the other Happy Vegan told me not to buy, but I did anyway. When I ran it past 2 friends in the fashion world, essentially they affirmed the "what were you thinking" thought bubble that Mr. Happy Vegan wouldn't say, but I knew was there.

The dresses I've found have feathers, cut outs, plunging fronts, plunging backs, nasty colors, too big, too small, too this, too that. Nothing fits, nothing is nice, nothing is appropriate.

"You funky but, funky but, alright, alright, alright."

Sigh.

Another road trip is percolating. I'm cringing at the thought. My friend J says she'll go anywhere with me to find a dress, now THAT'S friendship. But, I'm not sure time is on my side anymore. Its not working out. Eight months searching for the dress. I gave it a good shot, I really did, but its down to the wire, and its only a back up dress. I still don't have shoes, and ugh, jewelry is a whole other issue.

"My momma thinks I look pretty fruity but in jeans I feel rockin’"

If only it were that easy.

Rainy Day Ramblings

2011-10-08T17:38:00.000-04:00

It rained all last night, and all morning today. We got a break for about 1 hour or so, then it started again and has not let up once. I cannot recall the last time I've seen rain like this down here.

I'll agree that we need the rain. This has been a very "dry" wet season down here this year. But today was supposed to be my "fun" day. A day that the other happy vegan and I planned to spend outside. I was supposed to run, then we were heading out on the boat. Neither has happened. There's been too much lightning to run, and too much rain to boat. Boo hiss.

So, what's a happy vegan to do? I cleaned out the fridge, reorganized a few cabinets, and poured through some recipes. I've got some new baking plans, and new baking items to experiment with... things I've never done before. I'm on a cake pop kick, so I've been planning my pops. I've got some good ones planned, but no sticks, so maybe next week. Another boo hiss.

Tomorrow I'm walking with "Team Cupcake" for breast cancer awareness, I'll be up and out the door just after 7am. I've got my pink outfit planned, but haven't seen my decorated pink bra yet. I won't see that til I get on site tomorrow. I couldn't make it to the bra bedazzle party, so I left my pink bra in the capable hands of other Team Cupcake members. I said "no feathers" (you know they're not vegan... RIGHT?) but other than that left it all up to them. I've got pink hair, pink socks, pink jewelry, pink lipstick, and that super secret (as of now) pink bra on the attire list. I'm walking for 3 friends who all are cancer survivors, 2 actually are undergoing active treatment. Insert biggest boo hiss here, but with a "YAY" for what I know will be great outcomes.

Rain makes me crazy when there's no end in sight. The walk tomorrow is rain or shine. The forecast is not good. Matters not, we'll be out there in our best pinky pink. I think I'll bring a camera.

Ow, Ow, Ow

2011-10-07T08:24:00.000-04:00

I told you I was going to be "back on the beam" so to speak. After a couple weeks off the wagon of running and working out, I went back to it this week. My prediction was pain. I was right.

I woke up last night with a sneezing fit, no reason why. The sneezes weren't the problem. It was the after effect of each sneeze. The way it felt, I would've thought I've got several broken ribs or something. But no, it's just aftermath of working out after not working out.

I've been running, I've been back in boot camp, and I've been doing strength training. All this "good for me" stuff is probably going to kill me. Presently, at the very least its interfering with my already less than satisfactory quality of sleep.

Years ago, one of my workout buddies and I would have frequent conversations about exercise. We pondered together the pre-eminent question on our own minds about exercise; that being if exercise prolongs your life, what if it only prolongs it for the exact amount of time we spent in the gym. Hey, I didn't say we were GREAT thinkers, just thinkers.

In another day or two my pain will be a faded memory. Its hard to believe that my brief hiatus has this much impact on my aging body. I can only say that the proof is in the sneezes... that and "ow, ow, ow."

Sugar Kisses Aren't So Sweet

2011-10-02T20:33:00.000-04:00

Incredibly we're already two days into October. Its still hot here, but all around I'm reminded its fall. Even the local supermarket down here is selling cinnamon brooms. Its all you can smell when you walk into the store, and I don't like it. Not at all.

Pumpkins, spices, foliage, and sweaters are the order of the day in many parts. Not here, no way. Ok, I've succumbed just a wee bit to the pumpkin & spice thing as far as baking, but as for anything else, not a chance.

It has been 2 weeks since my last run or work out. Instead, I have been tethered to the kitchen for a monster volume of baking. There's more to come on that, but suffice to say, today was another day with hours in the kitchen.... cupcakes, cookies, donuts (yes, donuts, VEGAN donuts; baked not fried!) and more. I think sugar now courses through my veins instead of blood. I'm feeling it, boy am I feeling it. My body is craving salad and vegetables, but I haven't heeded the call quite enough just yet.

There's been a couple mini-road trips over the last 2 weeks too, one of which resulted in a pit-stop at a Starbucks (ugh) for a pumpkin soy latte (double ugh). I'm just not a fan of Starbucks, the coffee never agrees with me. The latte tasted delicious, but I shouldn't have had it, I felt sluggish immediately after. Caffeine, sugar, flour, chocolate. All these things have been lobbed at me lately, even though they're organic, I've had more than enough... these too many sugar kisses are no longer sweet. I had intentions of starting a cleanse yesterday, it didn't work out. I knew this weekend would pass by in a blur with hours in the kitchen, and I was correct. No running. No cleanse. Shame on me.

Tomorrow is Monday. My baking is done (for the moment) and I've got a bit of help for some chores tomorrow. There is no way I'm not getting out on the street for a run... sadly with every fiber of my being I'm dreading it. Maybe not the actual running, but more what I know I'm about to go through for the next few days as I get myself back in order with nutrition and exercise.

As usual...no pain, no gain. See you on the asphalt!

Turtle - The Movie

2011-09-30T20:46:00.000-04:00

As you know, its been a slow turtle nesting season down here in our neck of the beach. We had one nest, which although it was predated, produced 97 live hatchlings. The walks still continue, but truthfully none of us really expect any more crawls or nests; although we'll keep our fingers crossed til the last day of nesting season.

Today we went to see a movie at the lovely Tropic Theatre in Key West, called "Turtle, The Incredible Journey." The story traces the life of a female loggerhead from hatchling to full grown adult. The cinematography was truly breathtaking. There's some animatronics in the movie, but you'd never know that unless you're told ahead of time. Whatever portions they animated were seamlessly blended with the actual footage, it was gorgeous.

As I munched on my popcorn (seasoned with Spike and nutritional yeast, hooray for the Tropic snack bar!) eyes fixated on the screen, I kept thinking over and over of the saga of so many turtles that begins on the beach where I live. I watched the tiny loggerheads spring forth from the sand (although the movie showed this happening in daytime it really almost always occurs at night, one of the only things I found kind of inaccurate) I was on the edge of my seat. There they were, showing the reality of the plight of the turtle. She entered the world, had to get to sea, but between her sea and the sand were predators like ghost crabs and birds. Then when she got to sea, they showed how the hatchlings can end up as "washbacks" still at the mercy of the predators. All through the movie, they touched on real life for the turtle. The beauty of the sea they inhabit, along with the mayhem that humankind brings to it with issues like pollution, contamination, overfishing and more. They also showed an act of mercy and kindness (although it had to do with long lining, which should be banned).

By the end of the movie, I found myself crying as the turtle hauled out of the sea to the beach she was born on, wanting to lay eggs, only to find a vastly different land, one full of shoreline hardening and light filled condos and offices beaming forth their "artificial stars."

Despite all the obstacles, the message of this movie remains one of hope for the turtles. Can't argue with that.

I read some reviewers felt the musical score is overly dramatic, and the narration at times the same. The reviewers obviously have never been to a nest excavation, seen a turtle lay her eggs, or found themselves involved in a sea turtle rescue. For, if they had done any of those things, they would have thought that the movie is very pointed in the realities of the plight of the turtle.

If you get a chance, go see "Turtle, The Incredible Journey." It was a great way to spend a slice of my afternoon.

Time Flies When You're Having Fun

2011-09-28T22:42:00.000-04:00

Wednesday. Today is Wednesday. The last post I did was last Friday. So, where did Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday go? I've looked around, but couldn't find them. I've asked a few people, no one had an answer.

Its been a good few days here. I've been tethered to the kitchen for a string of days, so its kind of a blur. Don't feel sad for me, I'm not crying the blues. I've been baking up a storm, and a good storm it has been, yes indeed. I'm having fun. My idea of fun may not be YOUR idea of fun, but I guess right now my only explanation for the mysterious evaporation of several days of my life lurks within my kitchen. My kitchen with the cracked tile has been my bestie the last few days. I'll report more on that soon enough.

To make up for my little posting lapse, here's a photo for you. I went outside to put a can in the recycling, and this is what I saw.

Yup, a double rainbow. And, the main rainbow went from the ocean to the Gulf. Don't you wish you were here now too? Enjoy the rainbows. I'll be back on schedule soon, I promise. Don't forget.... life is short, have fun no matter what you do!

Another Equinox

2011-09-23T17:28:00.000-04:00

The Autumn Equinox is upon us. Some know it as "Mabon", a time to give thanks for an abundant harvest, and celebrate the changing seasons. A celebration of dark and light, for the space today is equal. Some people I know celebrate this equinox simply for the abundant pumpkin lattes that are available for a short time at their local coffee houses.

Here today the temperature hit 91. Now that's what I call autumn.

I won't rehash what I've already blogged ad nauseum about... you know I'm not a fan of cold, that I live here in the Keys partly for the beautiful paradise weather. But even I could've told you about 3 days ago that fall was in the air. Sure, we're still in the midst of the "wet" season down here, I watch the tropical updates daily, scanning for information on storms that are swirling out there, or in the process of being formed. Despite all this, about 3 days ago I felt something different in the air. Not a chill, not a smell, but this time it was a feeling. The humidity had dropped. It was enough that I felt the big change in the air. I went out for a visit with Pop and was sitting outside with him when I realized the air was different. I mentioned it to him, he agreed it felt different. His take on the situation? "Even more beautiful than I'm used to." Pop sure has a way with words.

So, here I am still enjoying temps in the 90s, but feeling what will eventually come my way to usher in the change of seasons, that beautiful dry air. I love living here. I love it whether its hot & sticky or warm & dry. As long as its not snowing, its paradise for me... here in the Keys they sure know how to welcome autumn.

Enjoy your pumpkins.... I've got to go pick papayas.

Animal Antics

2011-09-22T23:10:00.000-04:00

My friend Mr. Sandman wants to visit, but my cats are keeping him far at bay.

What is it that makes my felines rise at 4 in the morning to do whatever it is they need to do, which isn't really anything that cannot wait til a more human hour. The cats are tormenting me lately. I only narrowly averted disaster overnight last night by less than half an inch. Lemon was sleeping near my head, which is relatively common. Pink Moon was preoccupied by something in the bathroom, which I believe was a baby gecko (I guess this because I found said baby gecko -- alive -- behind a jar on the bathroom counter when I got up to investigate). Pink Moon is a gecko spotter. There's almost no doubt when she's got one in the crosshairs; she is relentless in her pursuit. So, when I see her like that, I intervene. Last night however, here was no chance of that, it was dark, I was half asleep (it was after 4am) when I heard glass being shoved on the bathroom countertop. At first it was just a small noise, but it was enough to wake Lemon, which in turn made me semi-conscious. Then it happened, the perfect storm. Pink Moon made another shove of glass on the countertop, I turned over towards Lemon, and Lemon became spooked. These 3 things happened all at the same time. In an instant Lemon was leaping up, using his hind feet to shove off my face. It wasn't even my face actually, he shoved off my eyes. Yup, he dug his back feet directly into my right eye. Being that I was only semi-conscious in the middle of turning over, my eyes weren't yet full open, just slightly. So, that fluke averted a disaster. It was awful. His leaping really spooked Pink Moon who freaked out totally in the bathroom and everything on the countertop came crashing down on the bathroom floor, which freaked out all the cats, and the humans in the room.

Animal antics. I wish they'd happen in the daytime, not after 4am; not when there's a good chance some misplaced clawed paw will end up skating across my eye(s). It was a rude awakening, and I've been awake since then. The positive of all this? I got up and rescued the little baby gecko and sent him on his way back outside where he belongs.

Almost bedtime. I'm beginning to think goggles might be appropriate bedtime attire.

Sara's Day - In Photos

2011-09-18T17:58:00.000-04:00

I admit, I am not a strong picture taker. In fact, in most areas involving technology, I certainly have my ups and downs, usually more downs than ups.

I'm posting some pictures I took at Sara's release. I knew when I was there I was limited in my ability to take good photos. The crowd was large, press was there, and most importantly I didn't want to obstruct anything involving her release. So, I took a back seat so to speak, figuring I could obtain copies of better photos from other people.

Dr. Doug (the hero veterinarian who saved Sara's life) was there for the release and was shooting pictures like mad. But, he was also directly involved in the release, so for a time his camera was turned over Mr. Happy Vegan to continue that photo shoot. I did get a disc from Dr. Doug with some very nice photos, however I have had trouble uploading them to my computer. This is why I haven't posted anything, I was struggling and hoping the problem could be resolved. It hasn't. Without further adieu, here's Sara's release, in photos:

This poster explains what happened. It was an act of unbelievable cruelty. The reward is still in place.

Here is Dr. Doug, Turtle Warrior, Saver of Lives.

This is the face of a hero.

This is a close up of Sara in the tub prior to release.

See that big circle near her eye? That's where the very long spear entered.

1/4 inch in either direction would've meant certain death. Even so, its a miracle she was found alive.

Here is Sara in the tub.

Closest to the camera is Richie Moretti, Turtle Hospital founder.

Also shown is Tom, another dedicated turtle warrior from the hospital.

More warriors; more heroes.

Richie is very serious and passionate about sea turtles. His vision has saved the lives of hundreds of sea turtles, MANY thousands when you figure in the hatchlings that have been rescued and released through the years.

Sara is carried down to water's edge.

Look! Look! She's peeking up over the edge!

She can smell the sea air! She can see her home!!!

She's now seconds away from release!

The tub is gently lowered......

She springs forth from the tub into the sea!

As her flippers hit the water, she gets her first taste of her ocean home since being rescued.

She swam so fast, she was actually "snow plowing."

She is jubilant!

Rejoice! Rejoice! Rejoice!

Everywhere I look, I see Sara in the sea.

Sara is home.

Isn't she beautiful?

Yes. Yes, she is.

Sara's Day

2011-09-14T21:16:00.000-04:00

She is free, swimming in her ocean home. Sara, the loggerhead turtle who was intentionally shot through the head with a spear, was released today with help from healing angels at the Turtle Hospital, and Dr. Doug Mader, the warrior veterinarian who did the surgery to remove the spear.

I will post pictures hopefully tomorrow. I just didn't want you to wait... wanted you to know, it really did happen.

Today was Sara's day. She swam fast and free as soon as her flippers hit the water.

It was truly a beautiful sight to see.

Thank you Universe.

Really Big News

2011-09-13T19:49:00.000-04:00

I cannot hold this news in until tomorrow. Remember Sara, the sea turtle who was intentionally shot through the head by a person (or persons) with unimaginable cruelty last month via a spear gun? She's going home to sea.

Tomorrow, 11am here in the beautiful Florida Keys, The Turtle Hospital will transport Sara to a beach and then immediately be taken to the edge of the Atlantic Ocean where she will then be able to go to sea. Back to her home, right where she belongs.

The perpetrator(s) have not been caught. There is a reward for money and services well over $16,000 for information leading to the capture of the person who shot Sara. Sara's story is available on line at The Turtle Hospital web site www.turtlehospital.org

Sara's story, although rooted in abject cruelty and torture, has turned into an incredible tale of teamwork, courage, compassion and hope.

We're going to watch her release tomorrow. I'll do my best to take a picture for you to see. We're very excited, she's being released close to our home. Maybe someday as I'm out on the water turtle spotting, it will in fact be Sara who I catch a brief glimpse of as she dives and frolics in her beautiful ocean home. Even if its not really her, I will imagine it is.

Keep your fingers crossed for a smooth transport for Sara, the beloved loggerhead sea turtle. She, like all other sea turtles, needs all the good wishes we all can muster.

"It Was Epic"

2011-09-12T21:26:00.000-04:00

There was a recent gathering. It was to celebrate birthdays in September. Not just Virgo (me), but Libra too, because a friend has a birthday the end of the month, so he's Libra. And, I got to thinking. Which led me to planning. A gathering, yes we'll simply call it a gathering.

I wanted to go to a nightclub in Key West to celebrate being a September birthday. I wanted to see a show, I wanted to dance, I wanted to get all dressed up (in heels!) and paint the town red. So, I began plotting and planning, and getting a list together of those who wanted to go.

When the dust settled, there were just over about 20 of us. I made the reservations, and outfits were planned. Me in my best platinum blond fake hair with a tiara and fishnets, Mr. Happy Vegan in his coolly casual tux shirt with silver sequined scarf and black fedora tricked out with a rim of silvery studs. And both of us in the coolest accessory eye wear we owned. Off we headed, picking up the other September birthday guest, and my friend "K." "K" came down the steps of her house with an incredibly cool outfit including pink head wear of the kitty persuasion. Yes, you had to see it all to believe it. When the other birthday person entered our car, I "crowned" him with his headgear for the night, yes as stated, a crown. Off we went, Mr. Happy Vegan as the designated driver for the night.

I can't say much more, I just can't. We did stop for a quick bite to eat before heading to the club. After that, we walked our way to the nightclub, noticing several people taking our pictures as we strutted down the streets. I honestly didn't care because I knew for a fact no one would recognize me, I was absolutely in disguise with the outfit, glasses and wig. Once we made our way inside, the show began, the drinks flowed, and all sorts of craziness began. After the show, the tables and chairs were pushed aside, and dancing began for hours. I found myself on stage at one point with my friend "K" dancing and scanning the crowd. It was a mass sea of humanity in the dark, glow sticks, glow necklaces, beverages and heat. It was kind of crazy, an experience I will never forget.

I overdid it, that's a given. Many of my friends overdid it. I know my friend "K" overdid it. Never go out as a birthday girl and let others buy you drinks. It doesn't end well.

I'm back with the land of the living. When I saw my friend "K" today, she pronounced the night as "epic." It was, yes it really was. It was worth all the after effects, but I can honestly say I've turned a corner. I'm too old for that kind of party stuff, and even though its probably been 10 years since I had a party night like that, if I fast forward 10 years and that ever happened again, I don't think I could survive. Yeah, I'm pretty sure it would be borderline at best.

So, there was an epic night. I solemnly swear never to be "epic" again, yet the memory (best as I can tell) lingers. Absolutely.

Good luck fellow September birthday people. And, remember, when you're going to be epic, ALWAYS have your designated driver. You simply have no business being epic without a designated driver.

We Remember 9-11

2011-09-11T18:58:00.000-04:00

Where I Belong

2011-09-05T21:01:00.000-04:00

I couldn't muster the energy to run until early evening today. My mojo has been off for a few days. I'm still getting out there, but a few days have been more grueling than I'm used to, when I run mid-day, my times are slower and, well lately there's been a lot on my mind and its been draining at times.

So, knowing I didn't want to miss a day, but not "feeling" it, my run didn't get rolling til after a wind storm passed through this evening. I trudged down my steps and out on to the street. Within seconds I began to be pelted with raindrops. I then realized how hot it still was, and decided that rain was actually quite nice. I got going, it took all I could muster up inside to do this. As I was going through my paces, I heard thunder rumbling consistently over my iPod. I looked around and saw the black cloud almost over my head, but still only felt refreshing drops, nothing major coming down. Yet. I didn't see any lightning either, and I noted quite a bit of blue sky among all those clouds. Then I looked to the ocean and I saw a rainbow. A really big rainbow. It looked like it was growing out of these really odd shaped wispy clouds. It was so beautiful and a shock all at once.

As I was running and looking at the rainbow, I realized another one was forming off to the left. I couldn't believe it, and had to stop and study the spot. But, it was true, another rainbow began to form.

Sometimes when I see rainbows, I think they are messages from people I love who have left this Earthly plane. Its not really a message, is it? Probably not. But, its some comfort to me, and for some reason certain people pop into my head when I see a rainbow, and its like they're saying "hi, I miss you, I know you miss me, so this is for you" and I begin to have conversations with them in my head.

I kept running.

I kept playing the music, hearing the thunder and seeing the rainbows. Then, I kid you not, I saw another giant rainbow. A different one than the others, but this one was already a double. So, now there was 4 rainbows going all at once. I shut off the iPod and began to really look around me as I moved into a very fast walk instead of running.

I heard the hum of a plane somewhere above me, I looked and saw a seaplane making its way over the Bight. It was high enough that it sounded like white noise. And I took note of all the Key deer around the road. It was close to dusk, they're pretty active at that time. I saw too many to count tonight. I didn't interfere with them, and I channeled messages to them begging them to stay off the roads, and away from people. I saw all sorts of birds doing their thing, perched on wires, flying, diving, and playing in the sky. As all this is going on, I rounded a bend and saw, yes, with no exaggeration, another rainbow. Five rainbows.

Five rainbows? I began to think "what does this mean?"

I'm not much of a thinker, that stuff usually gets me into trouble so I'm a fan of quieting the voices in my head. Instead, my mind jumped again to "double rainbow guy" from YouTube. Do you remember that one? That video went viral, and I found myself chuckling as I watched it I guess sometime last year. But, double rainbow guy made his way into my head as I asked "what does this mean?" I drowned out double rainbow guy with a quick flick of the iPod "on" button, and shifted back to running.

Four of the 5 rainbows faded by the time I hit my turnaround, but one lingered. In fact, that last rainbow watched over me almost the whole way home.

All it meant was, I was exactly where I was supposed to be, for exactly those moments. A victory for me today. Considering all the turmoil we all go through just to survive, I found great comfort in knowing I was finally where I belonged for once in my life, even if it was just for a run.

If anyone knows double rainbow guy, maybe you can clue him in too.

But What Can I Do?

2011-09-04T14:28:00.000-04:00

So far today has not gone as planned. Its OK though, I've accomplished more than I anticipated. And, as soon as I finish this post, I'm going out for a run. But first, I have something important to share.

I set outside this morning to pick up a piece of trash that washed in on our freshly picked up beach. As I went to retrieve it, I looked to my right and saw that there was enough trash that had washed in on nearby lots for me to want to grab a trash bag, change my shoes and do what I though would be a quick task. It wasn't.

As I got involved, I noticed that there was, for some reason not known to me, a lot of tiny pieces of plastic mixed into the wrack line. Plastic is killing our sea, our land and all that lives on it. So, I began picking up hundreds of tiny pieces of plastic that I couldn't even see until I was almost literally upon them. It took a long time, and I started to become frustrated. I began thinking.

What I was thinking of was the need for all of us to do more than we are already doing to help reduce pollution. And, as I was thinking of this, words came into my head that one might ask "but what I can do?" about this trash problem. Here's my thoughts, and a couple ideas.

When you go shopping, ANY kind of shopping, bring your own bag. Also think about the reusable bags you buy before purchase. A good washable canvas bag will last years, and can be laundered over and over without damage really. Many "reusable" bags that are sold at registers don't have a long shelf life, and aren't washable. They'll end up in landfills too soon themselves.

When you go shopping, buy in bulk. When you look at an item, really think about the packaging it comes in. Is it recyclable plastic? Do you really need that item in the plastic baggie? Is there a better way for you to acquire that item? Take for example tomatoes. If you bring your own small string bag, you can buy loose tomatoes, put them in your own sack, and the cashier can remove them to weigh them, then put them back in your own string sack. This, as opposed to the pre-packaged tomatoes that come on a Styrofoam tray, wrapped in cellophane. Those loose tomatoes are nicer anyway, you can inspect the whole fruit, whereas packaged items you can't see what its being hidden by the tray. Just a thought.

How about juices for the kids? This is a sore subject for me. You can buy juice in bulk, or better yet some of you make your own juices. But, many people understandably need convenience so they choose something called a juice box. Now, they are not all created equal. Where I live, juice boxes, soy milk boxes, and things like that are recyclable, hooray! What's not recyclable are those horrible foil lined pouches juices come in. I'm going to call them "Capri Sun" pouches. Why? Because Capri Sun is the brand that I literally find most often on the beaches down here washed up as trash. I hate Capri Sun for this. Those pouches are probably cheaper and more convenient for the manufacturer, but they are totally bad news for the environment. So, call your local town recycling center, and see if juice boxes are recyclable by you, and if so, begin recycling them, and quit buying those nasty pouches.

I think recycling and such begins before we even make our purchase; before we spend our money. Let's put our money where our mouth is. Look at what you are buying, and think about it. Can you buy beverages in cans instead of glass? If so, consider that. Why? Aluminum is recyclable, and has cash value for haulers, while glass is usually either not recyclable, or only "down-cyclable" meaning it can be crushed and used for things like roads, but it cannot be remelted and used again for another bottle. Instead, a recycled can will be used over and over and over countless times for the same thing.... another fresh can.

When dining out, bring your own packaging from home for leftovers. You don't really need that foam container the pizza place is going to put your leftover slice of pizza in. Leave a stash of clean containers in your car so you have them on demand whenever you want.

And, lastly do not buy beverages in plastic. Ever. Usually they are made with BPA (bad, banned in some countries already) and when they are exposed to heat (like during shipping) chemicals will leach into the product. And, after you've enjoyed that nasty bottle of heated and cooled water, you dump it and most likely it will wash up on a beach somewhere, despite your best efforts and intentions. Instead, get a nice metal bottle, or a BPA-free plastic bottle that you can wash and use over hundreds of times. Bottled water is not a status symbol any longer, it is a sign of ignorance.

So, there it is. Without even setting foot on a beach 2000 miles from where you live, you can have a positive impact on helping that slice of sea and land, and all creatures that depend on them. You can do it, I know you can. Give it a try, won't you? Thanks!!

Welcome to September

2011-09-01T16:53:00.000-04:00

Turn the page, September's here.

For many, September means back to school, back to work, back to routines. It means apples and pumpkins, mums and cinnamon. Not for me! September means my summer really begins to finally get in gear. Its overdue, and I'm busting at the seams to get things started! I've still got crates of fresh organic peaches in my kitchen, and papayas falling off my trees. The smell of tanning butter is in the air and everywhere I go I hear reggae. Endless summer is in full effect in my world.

We're also in the season of Virgo. Yup, another birthday will soon be upon me. Again this year I've decided to roll with the punches and embrace it. I'm tired of fighting it I guess. Last year was pretty fun, and I think this year will be even better. A little gathering is being planned in honor of those of us who have birthdays in September. So far, there's only 2 Virgos representing, but there's a host of people coming along for the celebration. I shall be in my tiara, the other Virgo shall be wearing a crown. I'm in the middle of a very important decision of what color hair to step out in that night.... magic purple or fluorescent pink. I'm sure once I settle on the color of sparkles I'll wear for the occasion the hair color will be easier to choose.

The biggest thing missing from Virgo season down here will be our friend Kevin. He was Virgo, and it was this time last year I was busy baking my best chocolate cake with my best chocolate ganache for his birthday party. Today's soup at the store was the thai coconut Kevin was known for, which was always my favorite. That was the soup he made for me after my dad died, in his effort to help me heal from that huge loss. I don't really even eat that anymore, it may sound silly, but I just can't. Instead, I've found other new favorite flavors there. Something as simple as soup has become emotionally confounding for me, go figure. Anyway, somehow we'll find a way to remember Kevin as we get our party on, yes, we certainly will.

Sorry for all the folks who are in cold zones where summer is having its last hurrah. I'm telling you this, no matter where you are, take every single warm day and live it as if it were your last. And, when that's done, book your flights and get down to the Keys, because here we're just getting started.

See? September isn't so bad after all!

Water Water Everywhere

2011-08-30T16:40:00.000-04:00

Irene is gone, her legacy is still being carved.

I didn't understand until today the amount of devastation that hit from North Carolina all the way to Vermont and beyond. I am only now just beginning to understand.

I don't think media is really putting it out there how much damage was done from this flooding. I got a call from a friend in North Jersey today who really broke it down for me, admittedly I was shocked. So much so that I spent some time today reviewing videos people have posted on the internet.

I lived most of my life in areas that are presently suffering from massive floods. One town in particular where I lived has suffered over and over and over; and will continue to suffer more floods in the future. The town is in place it doesn't belong. Its surrounded by water, and has a tendency to flood. Not those once every 100 year events, but major flooding what now seems like at least every 5 years. To see pictures of the same homes, businesses and streets under water is heartbreaking.

People like me live in places like that because its where we were born, and don't know any different. Many of us wonder "where would I go anyway" so some of us stay. I'm not sure what possessed me to stay so long once I was old enough to make my own decisions. I did love having drastic extremes in nature; mountains 1 hour this way, shore a quick drive that way. City just over there, park right next door. Was that why? I even bought a home way too close to a major a river. I had water in the basement a couple times, nothing major. I am sadly convinced this time around my beloved ex-home is full of water. I also had a business on a street near another river. I know that property is swamped today.

Right now I live in a structure less than 50 yards from the Atlantic ocean. Talk about crazy, right? Yet, oddly, here I am in one of the highest risk areas (according to insurance companies) for destruction from hurricanes, and today I am among the most fortunate around. Sitting in sunshine, gentle breezes, and watching birds soar above. Such a stark contrast to the roads caving in, dams breaking, homes and businesses being swamped, and people without water, power or other services. Or, worse, people who have paid the ultimate price.

We'll be making a donation to the Red Cross, designating it for these new flood victims. It seems like so little, but right now its all I can do. My heart is heavy with sadness for the towns all up and down where Irene visited and left her mark.

One day, may the good people who live in these areas which suffer again and again and again, somehow find a way to rebuild their lives, hopefully in an area that was planned better than that which is there now. It was only a roll of the dice that this time around it wasn't me. I'm not taking anything for granted, and to all the victims, my thoughts are with you.

HATCHED - WELCOME TURTLE BABIES!

2011-08-28T21:50:00.000-04:00

The one and only nest on our beach so far this year hatched last night. There's 97 new hatchlings in the world today that weren't here this time yesterday.

Mr. Happy Vegan was on patrol this morning, and noted what appeared to be 2 dig holes at the site of the nest. This is a sign of predation. He thoroughly searched the area for remains of hatchlings, and any other evidence of predation. There was none.

He made calls to all the surveyors, and decided to excavate the nest this evening due to the risk of predation. Upon arrival while waiting for other surveyors, I began a beach clean. This is the frustrating part of our turtle walks. We usually feel more like glorified (barely) trash cleaners than turtle nest surveyors, especially on a year like this when there's been so little nesting activity on our assigned beach. But, its necessary if you want to be a good steward for the planet.

In 20 minutes I collected roughly 80 pounds of trash, most of it fishing debris like rope from lobster traps/buoys, bait boxes, tarps, and light sticks. Just add this as another reason to go vegan if you ask me.

When the other surveyors arrived, Mr. Happy Vegan began the excavation. First, he measured the depth of the holes which were dug from most likely raccoons. Then he had to decide where to begin to dig, its not an exact science locating the nest... I think it comes with experience being able to target the site. He's very good at that, and was spot on once again. He began ever so gently sweeping away small handfuls of sand. You must be patient doing this work, you cannot just dig in deep or rough. There are so many times exhausted hatchlings are stuck inside, and they need gentle care.

Within a few minutes, Mr.Happy Vegan discovered a hatching who was trapped under a plastic lid that was buried under the sand. Another example of why its so important to collect trash when we see it. The hatching was very weak, and his teeny shell was slightly concave due to pressing against the lid, trying to get to the surface. While the excavation continued, I took the bucket we had on site in case of a discovery just like this, and we collected a bit of sand from around the nest site, put just a splash of sea water on top, and gently lowered the hatchling inside. The bucket was covered with a towel and the excavation continued.

By the end of the event, 3 more exhausted hatchlings were rescued. 93 turtles had hatched and were gone. We hope that all 93 made it to sea, there really is no way of knowing if any were taken by the suspected predators.

Out of this nest, a total of live 97 loggerhead hatchlings emerged. 4 were transported to the Turtle Hospital for evaluation. We are hopeful they will survive and be released quickly.

The turtle hatchlings are the reward for all the other work done.

Trash is collected, sorted, recycled or disposed of more responsibly. Training is taken, and a commitment of time is made by any volunteers. Paperwork is required, and reports must be filled out. Sometimes the turtle walks are done in the rain, sometimes its blistering heat & humidity even in early morning; other times its a battle against gnats & mosquitoes. Of course, the walks are always done early, sometimes as the sun is just rising. While others are sleeping or waking to the taste of a first cup of coffee, turtle walkers are out in force all over the world, including the Florida Keys, every day during nesting season. All so that we can have some small part in helping these threatened and endangered species survive.

Hope is not lost, it can never be.

There are 97 more loggerheads in the world tonight that weren't here last night. Let's take this small victory, its the only one we've got so far this year.

Tomorrow more turtle walks will occur. More trash collected. More rope, monofiliment line, and other extreme hazards will be collected. That will be more likely the order of the day instead of another nest, but we still have hope. If we didn't, we wouldn't be out there searching for nests. Its not easy, but tonight the rewards spilled forth in a priceless way. Priceless indeed.

Welcome to the world little loggerheads. Swim free, swim deep and swim fast. But, no matter how you swim, just keep as far away from humans as possible.

Holding Our Breath

2011-08-26T17:27:00.000-04:00

We're holding our breath. Everyone down here is. It's all about the mid-Atlantic and the Northeast right now. Irene is making her way up, heading for the Carolinas, then through the mid-Atlantic, and likely through the Jersey shore. Who knows where after that.

So many of us down here have connections to the threatened areas. I like to say "great minds think alike" when it comes to appreciation of wonderful things. Things like the sea, coastal living, and beaches. Many of us from down here used to live coastal where Irene is heading. So we still have family and friends up there. Here at Deer Run we meet thousands of people every year from all over, but of course many are from our old coastal stomping grounds.

What possesses us to build homes and businesses at the edge of the sea? Love is the only answer I can come up with... crazy stupid love. Love of that same sea that so often wants to chew us up and spit us out.

We're worried for almost everyone and everything in the path of Irene. We wish there were stricter construction codes and less complacency when it comes to these things. The shoe is on the other foot right now, instead of our phones and emails going mad, we're the ones desperately seeking information on far away areas. Instead of being riveted to our own barometer, we're scrambling for updates on NOAA and TWC. Trying not to watch too much mainstream television as the only purpose they serve is to induce panic. The talking heads on the news are bad... makes you think Apocalypse now, yikes.

So, here we are somewhere about one thousand miles away from Irene, yet its all we are thinking about, all we are talking about. Our hearts and thoughts are with everyone in Irene's path, all we can do is hold our breath and hope she zigs, instead of zags.

We're with you in spirit.

Dodged a Few Bullets

2011-08-24T09:34:00.000-04:00

We've been following Hurricane Irene since her formation. We watch the tropical updates daily. I know more than I wish I needed to about convection, warm water fuel, and tropical waves. So, Irene was born, and we watched. And waited. Mercifully, the Keys are out of her path. Worrisome, however, is the path she's presently on puts many friends and loved ones in her path.

So the waiting and watching continues.

Over the weekend, preparations were made around the inn. All the trees were well trimmed, and all the coconuts taken down (seriously, coconuts are like cannonballs in the wind, never realized that until I moved here). I didn't have to really get into the nitty gritty of interior preparations, thank goodness, for when I do, its massive. All exterior clutter is taken down and stowed. Everything on all the porches is taken in and stowed. Shutters come down. Food and water is stockpiled. Crates and cages are readied for the animals.

I am picturing all that work going on all along the coast north of here.

Thing is, many places in the path are not ready. The construction codes are so poor, there is no chance if there is a direct hit from a major hurricane. I'm not attacking residents who live there for that, its simply a fact of life. I know this because I used to live in one of those areas. When we lived someplace else, Mr. Happy Vegan did a major reno on a house we lived in. It was coastal. On the water, thisclose to a bay. As he began pouring money and effort into the house with things like special roof strapping, category 5 metal roofing and so forth, people were like "why?" And we both were shocked that question would even be asked.

Its not like that here. There's strict construction codes, most of it came after Hurricane Andrew which I think was in 1990. A direct hit on the mainland by a Category 5 hurricane. It was a disaster. So, better codes came out of that, at least for South Florida.

The rest of the country is on its own learning curve.

We've been enjoying some beautiful weather this week. Hot, breezy, sudden bursts of thunderstorms providing incredible lightning. Other places still suffer from the threat of a hurricane, continued flooding, continued crippling drought, massive tornado recovery and even a small earthquake (!!) on the East Coast. Yikes.

I'm never one to be complacent, no, we are as prepared as we can be for a predictable disaster. Yet, I do find it ironic that I'm living in one of the "highest risk" areas for bad weather right now, and still enjoying essentially tranquil beauty.

I'll take it as long as I can get it.

There Was A Road Trip

2011-08-20T18:11:00.000-04:00

There was a road trip. I was not involved. The other happy vegan here, and one of his chips off the old block, went north with a pickup truck, big empty trailer, vegan snacks, and energy waters. They had a mission, but I was the ultimate benefactor. I shall explain.

I mentioned in a prior post or two that Mr. Happy Vegan's first born and his fiance' are moving here. For keeps! So, we're all happy about this, but we know what it means.... the dreaded "loading of the stuff." It ain't pretty, never is.

Many moons ago, I moved 4 times in one year. The first move I was like "oh, this used paper plate has sentimental value." By the time the 4th move rolled around, I was pitching and giving away a huge amount of stuff. The thought of packing, moving, and unpacking any extra stuff was more than my fried brain could handle at that point. However, these kids, well I'd have to say this is their first really big move. And, yes, its big indeed.

There was a lot of stuff.

The boys headed up north, leaving the womenfolk to fend for ourselves on the island. They drove through many states, day & night, rain & sun, food and no food. The "loading of the stuff" was accomplished, and from description I can only picture a scene from Monty Python's "The Meaning of Life." You know, the one, right? We ALL know the scene.... huge guy at the restaurant, although sickeningly full, is convinced to eat "just one more mint." What happened next was hilariously sick & funny. Gotta love it.

The truck and trailer were quite like that. The "just one mint" comes in with my request.

Jersey corn. I wanted it bad. I figure if I'm left behind to hold the fort down, the least that can come out of it is a teeny request for corn, right?

Not only did corn show up in the middle of the night last night, but so did a few stray Jersey tomatoes. Oh, yes, the boys showed up too. Safe and sound.

After the other happy vegan already put in what amounts to a full day of work, he is presently napping. I am under strict instructions for a 3pm wake up call so he can work some more. I've gotten just a few bits & piece stories about the road trip, but I do know there were a few tire blowouts on the trailer due to weight.

You don't suppose it was the minty corn, do you?

Ack, Too Much Stuff

2011-08-16T22:46:00.000-04:00

Ha ha, poor Mr. Happy Vegan. He has to live with the aftermath of me when I watch too many episodes of "Hoarders." Its true, that show is my new guilty pleasure. Not that I take pleasure in the misery of other people, not at all. Instead, what I mean is television in general (often referred to as "the idiot box") can be an overall waste of time. So, watching television is in itself, a guilty pleasure for me.

So, I'm watching too many episodes of Hoarders. What this translates to is "ack, too much stuff!" So, I spent many hours yesterday working on a large closet full of supplies, pulling out that which is unnecessary, and re-organizing that which is needed. I have several piles in my living/dining room right now destined for various local charities. Mr. Happy Vegan returned home yesterday in the middle of my "too much stuff" freak out and began surveying the lay of the land. "Why are you getting rid of this?" "We should keep this" "I can use this" were words I just didn't want to hear as he pulled thing after thing out of my piles. The poor guy, I put up with it as long as I could, but finally the freak out escalated even more and my "TOO MUCH STUFF" tirade was more than even he would bear. He backed off pretty quickly.

So, I'm on another tear through this place. Nothing is sacred, no space shall be overlooked. I'm really working the "ack too much stuff" angle pretty hard. Any time I feel the urge to keep something, I can pretty much be assured another episode of "Hoarders" will be running, and I'll tune in to keep my momentum going, then get right back to the work.

Its not easy living right where you work, organization skills must be sharp. I'm organized, I have a system for everything. But YOU try living and working in a small space with your partner... he who tends to keep more stuff than even me (he'll deny it, oh how he'll deny it!) If anyone ever told me I'd be paring down my possessions to what they actually are now, and then get rid of even more, I would have said "no way!" But, here I am. Letting it go. Happy to push it out the door. I actually have EMPTY cabinets in my office right now. Completely empty. I open them periodically just to bear witness to the fruits of my labor. THEY'RE EMPTY, YIPPEE!!

If you don't hear from me for another day or two, you can trust that I'm buried elbow deep in another closet, filling box after box with stuff to go from this place to another place. Mr. Happy Vegan is keeping a very low profile right now, I'm telling ya, he's pretty sure he's going to be packed and loaded into a trailer next. He doesn't really need to worry too much. As long as he keeps his mitts off my "to go" pile, he is safe. If not, I am not responsible for what might happen next.

A Quick Catch Up

2011-08-13T22:14:00.000-04:00

My bad, I've been busy. This little flip of a dog named Rio occupies much of my time. She's irresistible. You'd feel the same way. This is our last night with Rio, her parents return tomorrow. She will have to go home. I'm going to miss her immensely, this little dust mop running all over my house.

Over the last week there's been a lot of action in the area. Diana Nyad tried, but couldn't complete her long distance swim. She suffered from asthma and shoulder pain, which coupled with rising seas, made it too much to bear for her. She swam for something like 29 hours before being pulled out of the water on her own decision. We still say kudos to you Diana. You've done well, and you've got our respect in a big way.

The turtle that was shot with the spear through her skull is continuing to improve. The reward is pushing $13,000 now, plus other donations of in kind services. She's been named Sarah, and you can read about her and the updates at www.turtlehospital.org.

We have had no more turtle nesting action on our beach. We are disheartened, but not hopeless. There are still a few more months that turtles are nesting in our area, and we're simply hoping for a busy second half to the nesting season. Guests continue to sight turtles while snorkeling, diving and swimming. They're there... they're just not HERE.

We have a full moon tonight, and I was out there playing with my rocks & crystals in the sand. Some people I love need help. I've asked the Universe to step up and do its thing. I don't ask for miracles very often, but I'm rooting for one now. A few candles, incense and crystals never hurt in the equation.

I gave a helping hand to another friend who is moving. This friend has suffered tragic loss within her family, and is leaving the Keys for a while to be with a family member on the mainland of Florida. No one knows what the future holds, but she's hoping to be back home in her beloved Florida Keys maybe in a year. We'll all be waiting for her, and until then, we'll all be holding good thoughts for her and her nephew. Its good to have family when needed.

Speaking of family....Mr. Happy Vegan's first born and his fiance' are relocating from there to here. They're on the road tonight, dogs and all. They should be arriving sometime tomorrow night, and they'll be settling into their home and jobs. Its a big transition. Been there, done that. But, I'm very confident they're going to love living here in the Keys, and both Mr. Happy Vegan and I are delighted. For the next couple weeks, I'm pretty sure chaos will be the order of the day until all is tucked in as it should be. Thankfully they've got youthful energy on their side along with palm trees and sunshine to help too. All that, and a whole lot of vegan muffins & cookies being tossed their way.

Its really going to be nice having some family close by.

Her Name is Rio

2011-08-11T13:46:00.000-04:00

Meet Rio!

Has she stolen your heart yet too? She's got mine, boy has she ever.

Friends are on a mini-trip visiting family. One thing lead to another, and we volunteered to care for her while they are away. Rio is teeny tiny, 3.6 pounds at last weigh in. Actually, she looks like a puny dust mop to me, and I'm constantly looking down as I walk to make sure she's not an accidental football. So far, so good.

Its been years since I've been around a dog on a regular basis. When we moved here, in my plans was the adoption/rescue of a greyhound or two. The flaw in that sentence is "my plans." Its not feasible to me or any dog to adopt while running this business, I realized that when I got into the nitty gritty of daily life here. Too much of my time is eaten up, there's just not enough time for a greyhound, or any dog for that matter. Rio is another story though. She's tiny, and I can handle her.

She's quiet. She doesn't bark much. She probably hadn't even found her voice until she met my cats. Aggie and Luciana skulked off under furniture, and Rio just wanted to say hi and "let's be friends." The kitties wanted none of that, so Rio decided to tell them in woof-speak "please, let's be friends." Otherwise, she hasn't spoken much. My cats look like giants compared to her, its funny to see them so confused by such a very small animal.

Rio is happiest when she is with someone. She gets lonely quickly, and tends to mope a bit when she thinks she's alone. Her happiest moments are in the morning when we get up and she sees us for the first time of the day. She wiggles so much its hard to even pick her up; the whole back half of her body is wagging, not just her tail.

Rio is a fan of dancing, and that takes up a lot of our together time (she's a fan of VanHalen too!) She tires out quickly because she's so small.

Rio is a sweet girl. My house is turned upside down with fun things for her, her little pink bed, her pee pads (she still learning that.... I'd say she's running about 50/50 on percentages during her time here so far), and so forth. I looked at my living room and decided this is much like having a new baby in the house. Play pen in the living room, toys scattered about, special food in the house, and neither of us wanting to leave for too long because we'll just miss her too much. Its bliss.

Rio is only here at doggy B&B for a few days. I'm going to miss her bunches when I have to relinquish her back to her parents. Until then, I'm getting in as many dances as possible, along with as many puppy kisses as I can. I completely forgot the joys a dog brings into life. Woof.

Another Clutter Bust

2011-08-09T15:17:00.000-04:00

Just when I think there couldn't be more clutter to bust, I am proven wrong. I've been working in my office for several hours today. Organizing things. It started out as a small project, but now as I look around, I've got boxes everywhere, step ladders out (2 to be exact), closed shelving open, open shelving closed, boxes to donate to charity, and on and on and on. Ugh.

I had to take a break; I was done in by photos. It happens to the best of us, the mountains of photos. I haven't gone through them in years, in fact I probably really haven't snuck a peek at most of these boxes since I moved here and plopped them down on shelves. But, going through everything today I had to open the photo boxes, look inside, see what's there. What did I find?

I found that the 80s were amazing for huge hair and fluorescent clothing (although I still think I rocked both pretty well). I found that Mr. Happy Vegan had more hair than I ever remembered. I found that I too had more hair (albeit in terms of size), and also learned that Mr. Happy Vegan wishes I still wore my hair like that (look out gals of Jerseylicious). I found pictures of my entire family at birthdays, graduations, and just regular days. All of us. Together. Its difficult to look and see. I cannot believe how young we all were, and how young they were when stolen off this Earth.

I found mementos of loves lost, and love found. I cannot believe some of the things I've actually saved.

I found photos of all my beloved companion animals through the years from kittenhood to days before they left me.

Its all so overwhelming.

Time has gone by. It has gone by so quickly.

Time continues to go by. Its all happening too fast.

Surrounded by boxes, bags and drawers of stuff, I'm making my way through. Of course I'll never toss any photos that I have kept. I've done that before. The answer to any bad breakup or editing of my life was to run photos AND negatives through shredders or better yet have a bonfire (yup, did that). I don't regret having gotten rid of those photos, but what it leaves me with are absolutely the cream of the crop, my treasures, the best of the best. My family, and my friends who are the equivalent of family. As soon as I finish this post, I'm getting back to the sorting. I'm not organizing any photos, and I'll try really hard to stop looking at them. Just put them in boxes, re-label them and move on to the next pile.

The clutter busting never ends it seems. With each effort I make, my space is more open, and I feel lighter. This office was the last room that felt overwhelming. After today, I don't think I'll be bothered with that feeling, not at all. Its all going, and what's left will be boxed, labeled, filed and organized. At least, that's the plan.

Swim Diana, Swim!

2011-08-08T13:06:00.000-04:00

I'm snug as a bug in my home right now while rains are pelting my island. Not just my island, but much of South Florida. Seems that Emily, although now just a rain event, is all over our area.

As I write, my thoughts are with a lone swimmer out in the Florida Straits by the name of Diana Nyad. Remember her? She's an endurance swimmer. I remember her from when I was a child. Back in the 1970s she attempted an open water swim from Cuba to Key West. Back then, she swam for close to 50 hours in a shark cage, attempting the same thing. She didn't make it, currents put her off course and she had to abandon the swim.

Diana is now 61 years old, making another attempt. This time she's not in a shark cage, she in open water. For the record to be considered valid, she must complete the swim without a wet suit. Also, she is not allowed to touch the boats or crew that are around her for nutritional and medical needs.

Diana jumped into the sea off the coast of Havana before 8pm last night. I've been checking the internet through the day seeing how is she doing. Updates say that she's swimming strongly, no mention has been made on anything I've read about the rains moving through impeding her progress.

I admire Diana Nyad. She's trained hard for this event. She's pushing boundaries of what's "expected" of people's capability at her age. She's a role model in my opinion. If the currents happen to bring her landing to my beach, she will receive a heros welcome (and some darn tasty morsels).

We hope Diana completes her journey. Although she's out there as a lone swimmer, she has captured the hearts of MANY people, and we're all rooting for her. Go Diana, go!!! Swim strong & conquer!

In No Particular Order

2011-08-06T20:29:00.003-04:00

The turtle with the spear intentionally shot through her skull is doing well. She has been named "Sarah." You can read about Sarah and her story at http://www.turtlehospital.org/ on their blog. A few more people have stepped up the reward money offered for capturing the abuser. Sarah is the talk of the town down here, none of us really can understand why would someone do such a horrible thing to such an innocent creature. She was found not far from where I am, just off Big Pine Key. I'm optimistic someone will come forward with information.

Things here are moving along ok. I didn't get out to run today. We keep getting these thunderstorms randomly rolling through the area, and its messing with my schedule. Tomorrow I'm running and biking, no matter the weather.

I thought about baking today, just for fun, but the force wasn't with me. I'm not sure what deflated my sails in that department because the day started off like gangbusters. After breakfast I made a pot of soup for a friend who wasn't feeling well yesterday (I made my "get well quick" miso soup with 'shrooms, chick peas, tofu, baby spinach and ginger). After making deliveries, I spent a fair amount of time surfing the net looking for some specific information I've been seeking for a while. I've put a few more feelers out there for what I'm looking for. Sometimes I wonder why are people so lazy. I've sent out email after email, asking for what I need, and I'm obviously willing to pay what it takes. No responses. Is the rest of the world that well off that they can just ignore paying requests for their services? Maybe so. I keep filing away in the back of my mind all the people who are ignoring me as I go through my efforts. Its not a good feeling to be ignored. Maybe someday I won't be so cryptic about what I'm going through right now, but for today, I must be. I will definitely remember anyone who has helped me, and gone out of their way for me. I will return the favor when needed. I will definitely remember those who have chosen to ignore my pleas. Such a pity.

Oh, the one really great new recipe I made this week was a vegan fruit filled pastry. I'm not a fan of cooked fruit, I say that all the time. But, I forged ahead with the recipe anyway, and I'm happy I did. I'm going to turn them into "minis" I think they'll be really cute and tasty. Mr. Happy Vegan says the pastry was a little too thin in some spots, so I'll make sure not to do that again. Otherwise, I don't listen too much to him with cooking issues. Tonight I planned on making another nice Italian dinner for us, complete with homemade sauce (ok, the tomatoes were organic from a can, but all the rest of the ingredients were fresh), vegan "meat" balls, fresh made salad dressing and so forth. You know what? It didn't happen. As I pulled my cookbook out (Veganomicom, thank you very much), he came in and said "you can't make sauce, I'm going to the store." After I nearly fainted from that remark, he then said "here's tomato paste, you can use this, I'll show you how to do it." I promptly closed my book, shut off the pots & pans, put the tomatoes in the fridge, and walked out of the kitchen to play with the cats. I invited him to make his own dinner, I would be having cereal. Sure, he said he was sorry, but I got annoyed anyway. He realized the error of his ways quickly, but once words are said, they just can't be taken back, can they? No, and that meant I was off the hook for dinner.

Everything turned out fabulous; I had peaches on my cereal.

Angels Among Us

2011-08-04T20:29:00.004-04:00

Some days I have better stories to report than other days. Today was a rough day in the Keys animal kingdom. Here's what's up.

Early this morning we learned that a loggerhead turtle was brought to the Turtle Hospital in Marathon with a spear shot through its skull. We learned this when Mr. Happy Vegan happened to call the most amazing and wonderful vet, Dr. Doug Mader, of Marathon Animal Hospital just to ask a question. Dr. Doug, his wife, Dr. Gerri, and their staff donate their services to the Turtle Hospital http://www.turtlehospital.org/ (and many other wildlife rescue organizations) when needed. And believe me the need is frequent.

Anyway, Mr. Happy Vegan happened to call Dr. Doug this morning to ask him something. By simple good fortune, that call was placed in between Dr. Doug starting the turtle's surgery, and him rushing home to get additional tools because he at that point couldn't remove the spear. As he told the story of the turtle to Mr. Happy Vegan, of course the question comes "was this an intentional act" the answer came swift and without question... "absolutely."

So, all day I've been wondering about the turtle who some violent abuser had intentionally shot with a spear through its skull. As I was driving home from the gym, just minutes from home and being able to find out about the turtle, I saw "something" on the side of the road. "Something" sticking up on the grassy area past the deer fencing on Big Pine. I looked back in my rear view mirror and saw the "something" kind of move. All thoughts of the turtle went by the boards as I pulled over waiting for traffic both ways to clear. As soon as I could, I wheeled the car back around in the other direction, and pulled over near the "something." It was another cormorant, in almost the exact same location I rescued "Hope" not too long ago. This time I didn't have my magic purple hair on my side, all I had was a large towel.

I got out of the car with the big towel and began a very slow walk to the bird. Now a small string of traffic was coming up the other direction, lead by a large white van who was speeding. Speeding is common on Big Pine, I'm sorry to say. I'm constantly passed on the double yellow line, tailgated, and so forth as I obey the speed limits here, especially at night when it drops to 35 mph. I saw the bird panicking on the other side of the road, and she bolted right out in the path of the white speeding van. The guy had to be doing 50-55mph. I screamed, and cringed. I couldn't watch. He didn't slow down, he didn't swerve. Nothing. He didn't care. I waited for the thud. It didn't come. I looked over, and saw the bird made it to the other side, and was smashing himself against the deer fencing, trying to get through. This was a terrified animal. I ran to him, and threw the towel over him, as I did so he began screaming and tried to attack me. I knelt down to him and covered him well with the towel, hooding him completely. He calmed enough so that I could pick him up. I ran to the car, and off to Maya's I went. When I got there, a very quick assessment was done. He was bleeding, but didn't seem to have a broken wing (thankfully). His foot was probably broken though, and I don't know what else could be wrong. I spoke briefly with the angel who was going to help this bird, and left. http://www.floridakeyswildliferescue.org/

I cried the whole way home.

When I got home, Mr. Happy Vegan asked how was the bird. He knew what happened because I called from the car. After I got past my "I hate people who don't care" ranting, he told me the turtle survived! Dr. Doug has removed the spear! It didn't go through his brain, and he saved the eye that the spear almost destroyed. The turtle is resting in an antibiotic bath as I type this, and it is expected (listen closely) that this turtle will be a candidate for release in just 3 short weeks. From a spear in his head this morning to being released later this month. There is a reward up for information leading to the capture of the abuser who shot this turtle.

There are angels among us.

Through all this, I guess now is just a good a time as any to tell you... one of the 2 surviving stranded pilot whales was transferred very recently to Sea World where he will live out the rest of his life. In captivity. At Sea World. I understand the intentions were all good to save this pilot whale's life... it is a life worth living, a life that has value, this I believe. However, to think of that soul in a tank at a sea park is heartbreaking to me.

As for the other pilot whale, he's still critically ill, being worked on at the Marine Mammal Conservancy. People are trying to save him. I just wonder what will his life be like? Can he ever go free? These animals simply do not belong in captivity. Do a little reading on cetaceans and you will begin to see that these highly intelligent creatures do not belong as exhibits in parks on any level. Some reading this may not agree, but these are my feelings.

So, there it is for today. Angels are among us. If you want to donate to Maya at Wildlife Rescue, or The Turtle Hospital in Marathon, I've given you the links. They're the "real deal" of charities, and your donations are tax deductible for both of these organizations.

A Labor of Love

2011-08-02T17:19:00.005-04:00

I spent the majority of Monday in the kitchen. Baking. Lots of new recipes. I am pretty convinced that what goes on in my kitchen is not atypical of what goes on with other people's baking episodes. The baking marathon of new recipes of course means new ingredients, different ingredients. By the time I got my multiple new recipes on track yesterday I had ground flour, juiced vegetables for dye, toasted nuts, sliced, diced, measured and liquefied too many ingredients to count, all before I even thought about combining anything together in a recipe. My friend "K" was working here on Monday, not in the kitchen, but in the next room which opens to the kitchen. She saw most of the baking events unfold that day, and simply said "geez Jen, talk about a labor of love."

There are very few things that are simple when it comes to my kitchen and baking anymore. It is without a doubt as K said "a labor of love."

I watched a baking challenge show a few months back that pitted several cupcake bakers against one another through various taste and presentation challenges. One baker, however, was a vegan baker who baked "allergen-free." No soy, no wheat, no dairy. Probably no corn, and who knows what else was on the "no" list. She was competing against conventional bakers. The deck was clearly stacked against her. Other bakers simply had to measure flour and other "normal" ingredients and throw them in a mixer, while the specialty baker had to make many adjustments, as well as prep many other ingredients, to get the basic recipes comparable to conventional, and then move on to the other parts of the challenge. I identified with her through the show.

I would love an assistant. That, and a bigger kitchen. My kitchen is the same as any other mere mortals apartment. It is what's called a "galley" kitchen. After we moved here, the kitchen needed help immediately, it was unworkable. Adding to my frustration was the fact that the kitchen I had just left was my dream kitchen. Mr. Happy Vegan designed it according to my specifications. Fancy schmanch, dreamy stuff. Beautiful appliances, double wall ovens, granite and tiles of my dreams. Trying to work in the kitchen here when we arrived was just not feasible, burners didn't work, the dishwasher leaked, and lots of other not so fun stuff. As a mini-makeover began, I dreamed of double ovens, granite countertops, and fancy tile, but ended up with white countertops, one regular oven, and floor tile which began to crack within the 1st month it was placed down. My one extravagance was a warming drawer, which ended up to be among the best money spent in the kitchen, and really wasn't extravagant at all.

So, my little galley kitchen with the cracked tile floor and I were best buds for about 8 hours yesterday working on new recipes. Of them, 2 were "keepers" and will go in to rotation at a new enterprise I'm working on. I consider that not too bad at all, in fact I'm almost willing to call the day wildly successful. This despite the fact that one entire bowl of home ground organic flour had to be composted. When I ground the oat flour, I measured what I needed in one bowl, and poured the rest into an identical stainless bowl right next to it. I sifted and measured the ingredients for that 1 recipe, and didn't bother to move the bowl away with the extra random flour. Of course in a baking induced stupor when I poured the liquids in the dry, I poured them in the wrong bowl...the bowl with the extra random flour, managing to ruin all the extra flour, plus all the liquid ingredients (which happened to contain 1/4 cup fair trade organic vanilla extract... see what I mean? I'm a complete baking fool). Compost walk of shame.

When I woke up yesterday, I was still finding random beet juice stains on my counter, all the attachments for my Champion still air drying on the counter, and flecks of shredded coconut materializing everywhere. Not even mentioning the extra pots, pans, tins and containers that seemed to be overflowing waiting to be put away.

The price to pay for a labor of love.

Intervention on the Way?

2011-08-01T10:13:00.003-04:00

We went to Key West for dinner one night recently. LaTrattoria has opened an additional location, this one ocean front. I've been stalking their opening for weeks, and was happy to hear they've arrived. We headed down, and had a great meal. I would go back.

As we were eating, we made our plans for desert (The Cafe) and then another cocktail for me at Virgillio's (next to LaTrattoria on Duval). None of those plans came to fruition. After dinner, we were walking around when I realized I wanted to be back home. Home. With my cats. With the Key deer. With my backyard beach, palm trees and setting sun. The winds were soft and warm, and Big Pine was whispering on them.

We got to the car and began the short drive to the edge of the city when I saw that the Borders Express was going out of business. This is sad news indeed, as Key West is drying up for bookstores. Why? A city with a long rich literary history should be paved from end to end with bookstores. But, sadly no more. The internet, I think, is killing many types of storefronts, including bookstores. There will be 2 independent book sellers left in Key West now, that's it for the whole city.

I'm a gal who loves bookstores. I love being surrounded by the sweet temptation of books. Roaming from section to section, not knowing where will I end up. The smell of a bookstore is like no other. Besides, I'm not "techy" and at least for now you won't see me with one of those e-readers many people seem to find so trendy.

Anyway, this bookstore is going out of business. I said to Mr. Happy Vegan "hey, stop, let's go in there!" So we did. After a few minutes browsing, I ended up in the cookbook section (small surprise, right?) I began looking through the shelves, and found about 3 shelves full of vegan cook books as well as general healthy eating. Mecca.

I looked instantly for the 1 cookbook I desperately want, but haven't bought. They didn't have it. So, I looked more closely at what WAS left. I started to get woozy.... too many choices. Then, I sat down on the floor. Mr. Happy Vegan sighed heavily, for he knew I would be there a while.

Pulling book after book off the shelf, I began to chat with a woman next to me. Turns out she is from Italy, but now lives in Key West. As we chatted off and on, she gave me a recommendation for 1 book, and I gave her my recommendation on one she had in her hands that was a favorite of mine. In what seemed like just seconds, the store dimmed its lights.... closing time! WHAT? How the heck did THAT happen?

It was the moment of reckoning... time to choose. After practically swearing on my life after my last purchase of 3 more cookbooks (only a few short weeks ago), I found myself heading to the register with 4 more cookbooks. Mr. Happy Vegan just looked at me, hanging his head.

After swearing off cookbooks, 4 more have incredibly made their way into my home. For the last couple days I've been reading them cover to cover. In no particular order. Skipping back and forth. I feel like a kid in a candy store, combined with being the kid who ATE the entire candy store. I'm flipping book to book, recipe to recipe. Feeling all giggly and giddy. I've already tried 3 recipes, only 1 of which was a partial fail (which was my own fault). Today I've got several more experiments on tap, and a few more hours of reading.

Poor Mr. Happy Vegan. He's probably secretly planning an intervention for my book buying. Either that, or simply worried that he'll be the next thing I toss out on a clutter busting day to make room for even more books.

Peaches!

2011-07-30T11:08:00.003-04:00

They're here. Peaches, that is.

I'm peach fan. Fresh off a tree (ever had one like that?) is the best, at least in my mind. But, there's almost no way to prepare a peach that would make me unhappy. I've had them cooked, grilled, roasted, fried, and raw. Sprinkled on salads, over cereal, and with beans & rice. I've had peach pie too, but (hoping I don't make any enemies now...) that is my least favorite way. Overall, I don't like my fruit cooked, somehow peaches can be the exception for me. One of my best-ever friends made peaches one time, years ago. They were, to this day, the best peaches I've ever had. I don't know what she did, she couldn't really remember. But, she cooked them somehow with some brown sugar syrup (I think), and to the day she died, I interrogated her about those peaches. To her, the master cook that she was, no recipe was ever used, it all was done on the fly. So, her on the fly peaches went to the grave with her, the memory (of both her and those amazing peaches) did not.

Being that I'm all about the peaches, I've been greatly aided by the produce manager at the chain grocery store I shop at in Marathon. His name is Chuck, and he's a great guy. Its been years since I've been treated so well by anyone at a big store like he treats me. And, the most wonderful thing is, this isn't special treatment for me. He treats everyone this way. He's smiling, he's chatting, he's helping people out. Trust me, I don't think he has an easy job, I've seen him there early morning, and very late some nights. He's running from here to there, never, ever have I seen him really resting. So, Chuck is a wonderful connection for me when it comes to getting USA grown USDA organic produce. And, being that its summertime and all, Chuck is getting me cases of USA grown USDA organic peaches.

Its just after 11am right now, and I've had 3 peaches already.

I'm buying these organic peaches by the case, 2 at a time usually. This is on a one to two times weekly situation. That's a lot of peaches. So, what am I DOING with all these peaches? I'm slicing them and serving them for guests over pancakes and french toast. I'm dicing them and sauteing them with vegetables and beans to make frittata filling. I'm serving them fresh, cut up with my raw vanilla cashew cream. And, I'm freezing bag after bag of them, stashing them away for smoothies, cobblers, and muffins.

Before any of us know it, winter will be here. We'll be stuck with the usual suspects in the produce department... squash, apples, potatoes and so on. Me? I'll be pulling sunshine out of my freezer some of those days.... those organic peaches will be winking me a "hello baby" while the rest of the country languishes in a deep freeze.

Peaches, peaches, peaches. I'm not alone in my love affair with peaches. Lots of people write songs about them, cute little ditties about peaches, millions of peaches.

The peaches are perfect today... my 2 current cases are just perfectly ripe now. I'm stashing some in the fridge for the next few days, and the rest are going to be cut up and frozen in just a few minutes. Then, come Tuesday I'll be back in Marathon, asking smiling helpful Chuck to order me 2 more cases of beautiful peaches.

Peaches for me.

Pedal to the Metal!

2011-07-27T20:35:00.004-04:00

It's a pretty sure thing that I did something today that no one else on the planet did! I went for a ride with a 102, going on 103, year old man on an open-air golf cart that goes 25 mph. Awesome!

Mr. Happy Vegan and I had to go to Key West this morning. On the way down the street, that other happy vegan had to stop at neighbors. I took the opportunity to walk through the woods to see Pop for a moment. When I arrived, he was sleeping on his "Rocket Rover" as he has so dubbed his flame-throwing golf cart. I ran up the drive hollering "WAKE UP, WAKE UP, WAKE UP!!!" He did.

Pop hollered a robust "you rascal" as I jumped on the cart and sat next to him, planting a kiss on his cheek. I told him I had fresh baked muffins for him at my house but didn't bring them with me, and now I was stuck going to Key West so I couldn't bring them til later. His response? "How about we go for a ride, honey?"

In a flash, there we were zooming down the street at full throttle. Admittedly I was constantly scanning for hazards, thankfully there were none. The wind was rushing through my hair as I yelled a few "YEE-HAWS" and did a few fist pumps with Pop. We got to my house and I ran up the back stairs, retrieved the muffins and ran back out to the cart. As I was just barely getting seated, he screamed "PEDAL TO THE METAL!" and we were zooming back down the street. More fist pumps. We thought we were hilarious, and couldn't contain ourselves... "THIS IS SO AWESOMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" we both hollered at almost the exact same moment.

I left the muffins on the dash, and ran back through the woods. Mr. Happy Vegan was none the wiser, and I'm still smiling.

Thanks For Nothing, Rudyard

2011-07-26T21:44:00.000-04:00

I took Pop to Marathon today (hopefully I'll remember the story of the ride to share with you in another post...), and then did his food shopping. When I got home, I had a lot of chores ahead of me. I completed them and managed to change into running clothes. I casually looked out at the ocean, and saw the sky was absolutely black. I ran out to the porch, picked up the linens and things off the tables, stacked the chairs, and went in to apply sunscreen for my run. The rain always comes from the back side, never the ocean. In theory I had nothing to really worry about. Unfortunately, the exception was the rule today. In the short moments it took to apply the sunscreen, there was a whiteout of rain, and it all seemed to be pouring into my ocean side porch. That never happens. Never. Mr. Happy Vegan appeared, secured the blinds and so forth. But, I was absolutely soaked from helping secure things. I was mad. I wanted to run.

In this relentless heat, its been difficult for me some days to get a full run in. I do my best most days, but recently I found that 4 days had passed, each one "too hot" to run. I'm back in the routine a few days now, its not easy, I am forcing myself. The fact that the rain was pouring down into my house was simply annoying and interfering with a goal I set.

The whiteout subsided. It tapered to a more normal rain. I grabbed my iPod and headed out the door. The sky over the Bight was black. What had just passed me was now crossing the island. To my right I saw more storm clouds rolling in across the ocean. In between there was a teeny tiny Lorax-like patch of blue sky in front of me. "Just keep moving" I thought.

The rain continued to fall. A crack of thunder drowned out my iPod. "Yikes and just keep moving." I turned the iPod up, and hit my stride immediately.

The road was steamy, puddles were immense and everywhere. I looked for the animals that come out after a rain... snakes, turtles, and crabs out of their hidey-holes. But, there were no animals, which I took as a bad sign. Animals know when its over, and when its not. "Turn back, turn back" I thought as I was being pelted by rain. I demanded silence of the voice in my head, and turned up the iPod more.

Over the music I could hear my feet "slap-slap-slap-slap" against the soaked roadway. With that slap-slap rhythm, a poem I had to read in front of classmates decades ago began to take over. "We're foot-slog-slog-slog-sloggin' over Africa." All to the exact cadence of my iPod and my stride. What is this? Why are these words running through my head???? Turn up the iPod, drown out the poem. Just keep moving.

More thunder. A bolt of lightening. More rain. Don't stop running. Don't stop moving. "Don't--don't--don't--don't--look at what's in front of you." iPod is now at full volume. Command voice in head to stop reciting poetry, listen to the screams of Roger Daltrey on the iPod, drown out that poem.

Nothing stops the slap-slap-slap-slap. Nothing stops the poem. "Boots--boots--boots--boots--movin' up an' down again."

I ran the whole route, I never stopped, never broke stride. Not once. Even though I ran in the rain the whole time, the heat was oppressive, the humidity was like a living thing. And, nothing could stop that poem either. I have no idea why.

Sea Shepherd Needs Help - EMERGENCY

2011-07-25T10:19:00.003-04:00

As I finished a post for the blog earlier this morning, I clicked on a link I found on line about Sea Shepherd. What I read was so alarming, I shelved the post for today, and am writing about this instead.

I hope you already know about the Sea Shepherd and the crucial work they have been doing for decades, but in case you are not familiar with their mission, here it is:

Established in 1977, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS) is an international non-profit, marine wildlife conservation organization. Their mission is to end the destruction of habitat and slaughter of wildlife in the world's oceans in order to conserve and protect ecosystems and species. Sea Shepherd uses innovative direct-action tactics to investigate, document, and take action when necessary to expose and confront illegal activities on the high seas. By safeguarding the biodiversity of our delicately-balanced ocean ecosystems, Sea Shepherd works to ensure their survival for future generations.

Indeed, they are doing amazing work, while effecting major change.

So, this morning I came upon something online informing me that the Steve Irwin, one of Sea Shepherd's vessels, has been detained by the UK courts because of a civil lawsuit brought against Sea Shepherd by a Maltese company: Fish and Fish Limited (F & F). This is due to Sea Shepherd's actions that saved 800+ illegally caught bluefin tuna during Operation Blue Rage 2010.

Unless Sea Shepherd immediately posts a bond for USD$1,411,692.87, the Steve Irwin will be held or possibly sold.

We're sending an emergency donation to Sea Shepherd to help them post the bond. If you can help, please go to http://www.seashepherd.org/ and learn about this emergency.

I hope you can help. Even if you cannot donate, you can share this information, and the link, with other people. We've got to do everything possible and get the Steve Irwin back into action NOW.

Always remember... "Individually, we are one drop; together, we are an ocean." Do your part, there's not a moment to waste.

Welcome New One!

2011-07-21T16:10:00.004-04:00

I guess I was kind of waiting to put a new post up until I had something worthwhile to say. Sure we're doing all the usual and regular things around here running the place and living in Paradise. We're still dealing with some tough issues on regional environmental concerns which are plugging along slowly, and I'm hopeful someday I'll share better news there. But today driving out to run an errand, I saw a brand new baby Key deer in the scrub. She was very tiny, her spots were brilliant bright white. She was beautiful, just beautiful. This is something worth sharing.

The babies are growing up so fast, their spots are fading quickly. Some of the fawns don't even have ANY spots left at all. So, seeing the brand new baby made me really happy. I won't go back up there with a camera, she's too small, her mommy was very close by and I hope she will come to fear people instead of embracing humans. No good usually comes from humans interacting with endangered species.

Another great thing recently was a mom and baby dolphin cruising past the inn just offshore a couple days ago. I was shocked at how close they were to the shoreline, even though it was high tide. I scanned the ocean for a while after watching them go by, hoping to see a whole pod, or even catch a glimpse of just one more. I didn't see anymore that morning. But, I thought about those 2 all day, and still am thinking about them. So beautiful.

I've seen a few white crowned pigeons lately, and one day when I woke up last week, I saw over 2 dozen shore birds picking through the sea grass and fishing the flats. There were at least 5 different species of large shore birds including great white heron, a yellow crowned night heron, tri color heron, egret, and both adult and juvenile ibis. That's not even mentioning all the little shorebirds like pipers and so forth that were running here and there.

I love living here. It is Paradise in my eyes. I never get bored, I never need to be entertained, and I very rarely lose my focus of what is important in life in the long term scheme of things. And, I really love sharing it with you.

Persistence Pays

2011-07-17T15:47:00.003-04:00

As written, we had family in town for a while. I wanted to make a nice Italian dinner for their last night, so I did. Menu plans included home made focaccia. I never made that before, but have eaten enough of it to know I love it. Figuring it would be "no big deal" to make my own, I set to it. I found a recipe called "simple rosemary focaccia" read it through, decided it WAS simple. I am so delusional when it comes to cooking and baking sometimes that I surprise even myself with my fantasies.

I tried four times to get the yeast to fizz. Nothing. This is the same yeast I use for my french toast bread, I knew the yeast was ok. Was the water too hot? With every new attempt, the water was more and more lukewarm. You didn't expect me to actually pull out the thermometer and check, did you? So, 4 failures (one of them epic as I had mixed all the ingredients together) were under my belt. I was not happy.

We had our nice Italian dinner without "simple rosemary focaccia." I dragged a frozen leftover loaf of bread out of my freezer, and made garlic bread. It was ok. It wasn't focaccia.

As of this morning, I was officially obsessed with focaccia. You know, I don't even LIKE rosemary. But, I scoured the internet, looking for another recipe. I then dragged out my own cookbooks, and began reviewing them. In between all this, I made bread for french toast day tomorrow. With the same yeast that failed me and my focaccia. It was now confirmed the yeast was NOT the culprit, instead it was the operator.

About 4 hours ago, I began my efforts on a different recipe. Still using rosemary (I wonder why I did that), I took the initial steps for my "I hope this isn't epic fail #5" focaccia and crossed my fingers as I sprinkled that same yeast over the lukewarm water. It fizzed. Good start.

Here I am a little over 4 hours into the experiment, and I've got a nice pan of steamy homemade rosemary (ick) focaccia. I made mine with sea salt, sun dried tomatoes, artichokes, and black olives topping it. My whole house smells like an Italian restaurant. I'm pretty excited, for I have sampled the wares, and I am smiling.

If you read my blog, you know life around here revolves around food, and animals (obviously NOT as food). Can you blame me for being so excited about my first home made loaf of rosemary (ick) focaccia? Mr. Happy Vegan didn't seem as excited. I told him I was making him a nice Italian dinner tonight, to which he replied "fine. FINE? That's IT? After getting over that tidbit, and then working 4 hours on a single loaf of rosemary (ick) focaccia, I presented it to him for the expected accolades. His reply? "Artichokes? You put artichokes on there? I hate artichokes!" Now, I know he hates artichokes. I meant to only put them on half of it, but they flew out of my hand too fast for my brain to process more than an "oops" about that. So, what I've got for a day's worth of meal planning, along with a few hours of bread making is a "fine" and "I hate artichokes." So, instead of that nice Italian dinner, I plan on having my focaccia with a supersized glass of wine. Its not worth the effort for that nice Italian dinner tonight, its just not.

Mr. Happy Vegan can scrape off the artichokes (there's not many on there), as I've indicated, and next time, he can make his own focaccia (as I've also indicated). Maybe he'd prefer cereal anyway. I've got my own problems since I've got a lot of rosemary to scrape off too.

Another day in the life of this happy vegan.

Hi There

2011-07-15T15:37:00.002-04:00

Hi there, I'm back. I'm not really sure where time goes, but it goes. We had family in town for a visit, and when that happens I just can't be responsible for accounting of my time, that's impossible. I have no idea what I've been doing for the last few days, but here I am back at the computer like it never even happened.

We're still working on the environmental injustice issue I've spoken of, and although I'm not overly optimistic, I'll simply say what can be done has been done as far as notice. Where the chips may fall I do not know.

Remember those pilot whales? Two are left. Another was euthanized about 2 weeks ago. Of the two survivors, the "experts" have determined that one is a calf that will not be able to survive in the wild, ever, so the search is on for a permanent home in captivity. How sad. The other adult whale is still being rehabbed, and has quite a way to go before health is restored, if health can be restored. The handling of the stranded whales as far as being rehabbed has polarized people. I'm not really sure which side I fall more on. I want them to survive, to thrive, but the thought of a wild animal in captivity for life makes me very sad. There's really no right answers. Its subjective. I can honestly say that so many people simply wanted to help save lives, nothing more complicated than that. Once scientists and such get involved, there may be some different intentions. But, what has happened, and the handling of it, are things way beyond my control. I do wish things were different. Who wouldn't.

I suppose I should not have saved this last tidbit for last, but here it is. Finally there is a turtle nest on our beach. The first of the season. Can you believe there's only been 1 other crawl? What's going on? I'm not sure. Ask 10 different people, you'll get 10 different answers, not even counting the "experts" and their opinions. But, the nest is here, at least we think it is. It SEEMS to be a nest, although there is a small doubt that it is maybe just a false crawl. We've all decided to be famously optimistic about this.... that it IS a nest, and of course it was surveyed (drawing, mapping, measuring), marked, and calculations are done for the hatch. Keep your fingers crossed.

That's it for today. I'm a bit on the tired side, but I'm not sure why. I've been behaving myself in the sunshine, and not taxing myself too much with work. I suppose I'm sad the family has come and gone, all so quickly. But, I'll be back on my everyday routine now with chores, eating (I admit... cake AND pizza all in the same week?!! YIKES!), and of course running (eh, I fit it in almost every day, so no big complaints there. It has, however, been boiling hot when I am available to run, and that takes a lot out of me). See you next time, same bat channel, same bat time.

A Respite

2011-07-10T22:18:00.003-04:00

Yesterday afternoon, and this afternoon, brought a respite our way. Boy, did we ever need it.

You know with all the negative going on regarding the nearby illegal shoreline hardening, we've been wearing down. I admit it, yup, being an environmental superhero can be draining. I just don't feel the need to re-cap the story, you can get the gist of it on my last post.

So, Mr. Happy Vegan and I, well, we've been drained. The antidote? Get out on the water. Even for a water fearing, non-swimmer like me, the water is the antidote.

Mr. Happy Vegan took me out for a boat ride yesterday afternoon. Just the two of us. A lot was going on in our neck of the woods, ocean-wise, yesterday. It was the annual Underwater Music Festival at Looe Key yesterday, afterwards was "Wetstock" out at Picnic Island. We didn't go to either event, but I did listen to probably the best music of the year on our local radio station for the 4 hour simulcast of the Undersea festival. It was fantastic, absolutely fantastic. So, for the afternoon we were out on the boat. We tooled around and checked out Wetstock, it was packed. We heard the music as we drifted by, but we didn't stay. Instead, we went to a more remote spot, and watched the water change color ranging from deep aquamarine to the faintest most watery version of teal you could ever think of. I didn't see any turtles swimming in the ocean yesterday, but I saw lots of terns and pelicans flying around, and quite a variety of fish.

We went back out on the boat today with family in tow. Had a good time. Didn't venture too far from home. Didn't need to. The water was bathtub warm, the waves barely noticeable. Lots of sea life was skittering by the whole time checking us out. No need to worry about sun poisoning. Believe me, I was blocked head to toe in SPF 10,000. No piper to pay this time.

As we drifted, floated, and motored across the ocean the past couple days, I was reminded WHY I care so much for our Mother Earth and what is at stake in our crusade. I had time to play in the sea, nourish my soul, wash away my cares. The sea is a mystery. The sea is my comfort. The sea is a gift to us all.

These Happy Vegans have steeled our resolve even more. I am not alone, for Mr. Happy Vegan has dug his heels in, ready to fight even harder for what is right. We may not always be popular, but you can't please everyone. I've dedicated the latest round of wrangling for righting the environmental wrongs to my little 6 year old nephew who played in the sea for a short time with us today. It's all new to him, this amazing colored warm sea, filled with strange sea life. He watched in wonder as all sorts of birds twirled above his head. He didn't always know what to make of it all, but these happy vegans did promise him we'll do our best to leave him the best planet we can.

The respite was the antidote. Its a new week, and a full agenda. We're at the helm, on the job. Wish us luck, we're going to need it.

An Injustice is Happening

2011-07-06T16:15:00.001-04:00

When you see someone doing something wrong, I mean REALLY wrong, are you willing to take a stand and become involved for justice? Are you willing to do so, even if you know from past experiences the wrong most likely won't be "righted," that your efforts will be met with resistance, finger-pointing, stone-walling, cover-ups, or worse?

I do not like conflict. Not at all. I do not do well with it, and I don't invite it. Yet, conflict seems to find these happy vegans. Let me tell you what is going on here on our beautiful Long Beach.

There is someone who seems hell bent on destruction of environment, in order to "beautify" their property. Isn't it interesting that one buys a property for this unbelievable location, then sets out to do whatever they can to change it?

A property on Long Beach was purchased a few years ago by a prominent developer who promptly set out to re-develop the property. We learned that lots of things were done at the property without permits, instead something called "after the fact" permits were granted (better to seek forgiveness than ask permission down here?) During one holiday weekend a few years ago, while the property was owned by that developer, we witnessed with our own eyes dozens of concrete trucks back up onto the flats in the Atlantic Ocean and pour load after load of cement onto the hard bottom flats of the ocean. After that, we watched as a large rock wall was built accommodating said property owner's "extension" into the ocean, and then again as even more trucks back filled the fresh concrete with sand. Whoop-te-do, said homeowner then had lots more "beach front property." Did I mention this all occurred on a holiday weekend, when no code enforcement was around? Did I mention that despite reports to Feds, State & local authorities, the only remediation for said offenses were a modification of the rock wall wherein 1 layer of the boulders were removed. They got away with it, yes they did, with it with another one of those "after the fact permits."

There's a saying down here that goes "better to ask forgiveness then ask permission" when it comes to permitting.

The developer sold the property. The new owner seems to have a similar mindset as the last owner, as during last summer's endangered sea turtle nesting season, on this stretch of beach called Long Beach where endangered and threatened sea turtles come to nest, located within the National Key Deer Refuge, within the Coupon Bight Aquatic Preserve, lying within the confines of a National Marine Sanctuary, an illegal rip rap wall was extended onto said already illegal rock wall. Yup, our same county biologist approved an extension of the wall EXACTLY where an endangered sea turtle had crawled up the beach in a nesting attempt shortly before the illegal extension of the wall had begun. Wow. An endangered species had come onto that exact site to nest, yet a biologist employed by the county I reside in saw fit to give the blessing to an after the fact permit for an illegal rip rap wall. Odd, I thought endangered and threatened species had some protection extending to their habitat. Do you think its as weird as I do that we have endangered species nesting on this beach, yet shoreline hardening projects are still going on at the places they're trying to nest, making it impossible for them to nest?

My mind wonders again... "better to ask forgiveness than to ask permission."

Guess what. Over the last few days, we are bearing witness to more unbelievable activity at the same property. Now, a pier is being installed. Perpendicular to the already illegal after the fact permitted rock wall. This is happening during sea turtle nesting season, which are threatened AND endangered species. The scaffolding for said construction is being left out night after night after night, which we have been told is illegal. The scaffolding has been set directly over growing mangroves in the ocean, another protected plant. We have filed reports with FWC, Monroe County (amazingly, code enforcement didn't even return Mr. Happy Vegan's phone call on this issue yet a full day, going on TWO days since his phone call was made), DEP, Growth Management, and any other department, and law enforcement agency there is.

The work continues. Its like a hot potato, many agree there seems to be a problem, yet no one takes responsibility to stop the madness. An "investigation" is ongoing. That is what we're being told. However, the code enforcement department has not as my fingers hit these keys, returned our phone call. This is what we deal with here in the Keys.

Again little voices speak to me saying "better to ask forgiveness than to ask permission."

I am privileged to live where I do, on one of the most environmentally sensitive islands of the entire Florida Keys chain. Yet, there are weak links in the chain of protection for our planet, from local, to State to Federal governments. True story: when I moved here, our County set out to determine that our business sign, which had been in the same place it had been for 20 plus years, was a threat to the environment and we had to move it 10 feet. We moved it. We did what we were told. However, we sit here and have watched heavy machinery cross county owned property, born witness to mangroves being mowed down, cement being poured into the ocean, and now more machinery driving poles and soon to set pilings in the Atlantic Ocean, adjacent to a documented endangered sea turtle nesting beach. This is legal? This is permitted? This, our County Biologist, has determined is not a detriment to the environment?

We knew when we started the formal complaint process it would likely result in "business as usual." But, both of us happy vegans here agreed that we HAD to get involved anyway, can't just sit by and idly do nothing.

We are not doing this for us. Mr. Happy Vegan and I, well we realize we're "temporary." The future belongs not to us, but to the next generations. We are doing this for the next children, the next endangered sea turtle who tries to swim up the beach, for the next fish who will die as a concrete is poured into a sleeve for a piling. We're fighting folks, but justice may not be served.

We saw an injustice and got involved. It costs us our money, it costs us our time. But, we got involved. My main motivation when I see something "wrong" is a simple quote that rings constantly through my head... "all that is needed for evil to prevail is for good people to do nothing."

Living Dead Girl

2011-07-05T09:06:00.003-04:00

I'm back. Did you miss me? Did you even notice I was gone?

I was among the ranks of the living dead for the past few days. Not exactly sure how things got so bad so fast, but they did.

Sun poisoning clobbered me. Took me down for the count. Fever, rash, severe pain, itching. No sleep. NO SLEEP. NONE. I was a zombie vegan.

I just don't get sick. I attribute this mostly to my relatively healthy lifestyle including a vegan diet heavy on fresh, unprocessed foods, and regular exercise. Throw in a generous dose of OCD hand washing, and overall I'm good to go with the "I don't get sick" claims. Flashback to 8 days ago.... happy vegan on the roof with beverages, iPod and teeny clothes. With a prescription from a doctor that can cause photo sensitivity, which I completely and totally forgot that possible side effect.

By the end of last week, I was barely functional. This was all the more tragic as we had a long standing mini-road trip planned, which we went ahead with in spite of my aftermath. We went up to Ft. Lauderdale for a dinner at Sublime (which as always WAS Sublime) and some shopping for the inn. I did toss in a hefty dose of shopping for a dress for that upcoming special event this fall. By the time we were in the car returning home, I had not slept for 2 days (you can ask Mr. Happy Vegan, he will confirm this as my constant writhing and moaning in pain caused him to have minimal sleep). Come Sunday I was flattened in bed. I barely began to rejoin the ranks of the true living yesterday, and this morning when I awoke I actually feel thisclose to normal (whatever normal is anymore for any of us).

So, here I am. Feeling pretty good, albeit pretty contrite. I have apologized profusely to my body for the abuse it took in the sun. I have pledged to never be as foolish again. I do have the best of intentions when I say that. I'm grateful I didn't end up in the hospital (although perhaps I should have been for a moment or two?) and I'm grateful I'm back from the land of the living dead.

I'll catch you up on the details of our road trip as the days go on, including my take on the shopping experience which I'm ill equipped to deal with very well as a full fledged island girl. I'm back, and it's good to be here. Even if you didn't miss me.... I DID miss you!

Ice Ice Baby

2011-07-01T19:26:00.002-04:00

Oooo, I was so excited to chuck it all the other day, sit in the sun wearing teeny clothes, jamming with my iPod while my cabana boy brought me frosty beverages. The next day was paying the piper, but the price didn't come in full effect until the last couple days.

Sun poisoning. I've got it, and got it bad.

I think I've had one other instance of sun poisoning in my life, which I had blocked out until reminded today by a friend. Back in high school. I vaguely remember it. It was nothing like this. Nothing.

The ultimate irony is that I think the root cause of this aftermath is actually from a prescription skin care cream. Although the offending cream is applied in tiny amounts only on a very small area, it warns me not to go in the sun, as there may be that wonderful side effect called photo sensitivity. The cream obviously is absorbed systemically into my body. I didn't give it a second thought, or a third and forth thought for that matter. I no longer am a tanner, I no longer sit in the sun. Every time I go outside for a run, beach cleaning or any other reason, I've got my sunblock with me. Its rare I forget it. Skin damage is serious issue down here, and now that I live in an almost constantly sunny climate, I heed my doctor's advice.

I had my sunblock with me, and used it on the sun worshipping day of this weekend past. Its true, however, I have not been in the sun like this for years. It wasn't an entire day, not even a half day, just maybe about an hour and a half. Too much.

So, the better part of today has been spent with cool compresses, ice packs, drinking gallons of water and occasionally blotting cool chamomile tea bags on my wounded skin. The damage is localized. If you look at me, you wouldn't know what I am secretly enduring.

I thought about titling today's post "A Cautionary Tale" because that is what this really is. Its summer, in the Keys. Latitude 24. Closer to the equator. My own father got sun poisoning on one of his first visits here years ago. My dad, a man with very dark Mediterranean skin left here with one of the worst cases of sun poisoning I ever witnessed. My poor daddy.

Anyone out there contemplating a visit to the Keys, or any tropical climate remember this: heed the warnings on your medications, slather the SPF 3ba-zillion on, and never, but never sun bathe.

I am not looking forward to the next visit with my dermatologist. Not by a long shot. For now though, my thoughts simply return to my trusty ice pack, which beckons as I write.

Rain! Glorious Rain!

2011-06-29T10:40:00.002-04:00

It's raining! Well, ok, not at this EXACT moment, but it rained a significant amount yesterday, and the forecast today is for more.

I've never been a fan of rain. It depresses me. Or, at least it did in the past. Not really anymore. When I moved here, from there, I realized I'd have more sunny days than ever before possible in my life. I also saw abundant evidence that the rain was needed by the animals (and us humans), as here we are very drought prone. This year has been one of the driest on record, and we're at record lows in the water levels. Our water comes all the day down from mainland, Florida. Through tiny pipes. We have rain barrels on every gutter (4 at last count) and wish I had more gutters just so I could have more barrels.

Yesterday even though it was raining, the Key deer were out. Lapping the water off plants, drinking out of ponds & puddles created by the rain, and out of any trough or device that could collect water. My rain barrels are full, spilling over. As I ran down the rainy street, I saw snakes slithering, birds who seemed to be dancing in the air, and tons of land crabs. I think the crabs are flooded out of some of their hidey holes, there were some big ones I saw crossing the street.

This rain does not depress me. Its making me happy. Happy the plants will enjoy new growth so the animals will have fresh, desperately needed, food. Happy the reservoirs are filling up even if its only just a bit. Happy to see the animals get a break from the heat, and happy because I'm going to see rainbows (yes, rainbows. remember them?)

Rain, glorious rain. We've got a rainy day. The animal kingdom and I are celebrating.

Paying the Piper

2011-06-27T16:25:00.002-04:00

I hate the proverbial piper. He's no fun. I'm paying him today for my antics of yesterday.

This happy vegan got sunburn.

I haven't had a sunburn in ages, and certainly not since I've moved here. No, I'm "smarter" than that, plus the words of my dermatologist (usually) ring loudly in my ears when I'm going outside.

I played yesterday on my rooftop sanctuary. Frosty beverages. Teeny clothes. Music and sunshine. I had my sunscreen, but I got carried away. Obviously. By the time last night rolled around, there was no consoling me, and there is still no consolation now. Every twist and turn is painful. The one saving grace is that I didn't burn areas that are particular "no fly" zones, especially my face. At least I have that one little victory at the moment.

I've got to pull myself together (literally.... with Spandex) and head out to the gym. This is my punishment indeed. I'm paying that mean old piper. The next day or so will hopefully be burned into my mind as well.... don't play in the sun without SPF 3million. That, or a suit of armour.

Feel my pain?

I Confess

2011-06-26T15:34:00.003-04:00

You know I had a l-o-n-g list of things to do today, you knew it, I knew it. I still know it. I have a confession to make.

I chucked it all today to make way for fun.

I couldn't help myself, it was a force beyond my control.

When I woke up, I had chores, cooking, baking and another round for my virtual 5k on tap. I did the morning chores, all according to plan. Somewhere afterwards, I derailed. The 5k bit the dust today (its ok, I shaved just seconds below 4 minutes off my time yesterday, I'm submitting it, so there), and all other chores have fallen by the wayside. Is it the sunshine? The perfect sky? The REALLY bad runners tan? What caused this lapse in my usual responsible self? I don't know, and it doesn't really matter. Before I knew it, I found myself on my rooftop sanctuary, in teeny clothes, with frosty beverages & an iPod. My cabana boy (aka Mr. Happy Vegan) has kept the drinks flowing, and I have done things worshipping the sun gods today that would make my dermatologist's toes curl.

All in the name of a good time.

I don't care, I needed this. Behind the scenes here we're dealing with lots of stuff; paperwork, schedules, plans, and the continued failings of the Gulf Coast Claims Recovery Fund with BP issues. Awful, just awful. Why should I let another perfect day pass? I shouldn't, that's what I decided.

Friends are in town for a short while visiting from my old stomping grounds, and we hope to see them tonight. Included in that will be some laughs, a few drinks (you know I'm not designated driver, right??!!), and so forth.

I have to go. I've got at least 45 minutes of prime skin damaging time left on my roof, and I just finished lunch. Afterwards, I'll have just enough time to clean myself up and dress for dinner & drinks.

Carpe Diem.

Success!

2011-06-25T10:38:00.003-04:00

I did as planned yesterday... took control of clutter, purged more things, did lots of laundry, and began to reorganize my life behind the scenes here. I feel pretty good about this.

One of the things I also did yesterday was my first official 5k. I don't know why 5k's are so popular. People seem to travel far & wide for them, but it's only 3.1 miles. This is something I do almost every day. Admittedly, I typically do not run with a time in mind, and I also tend to toss in a fair amount of strength training in on the run. But, my trainer at the gym told me about something called a virtual 5k to raise money for diabetes. Lots of the people I know at the gym are runners. They travel all over going to destination runs, including half marathons, whole marathons, 5ks and a few other wonderful events. That is just not for me. Between the issue of having to leave here (almost impossible due to work obligations) and the fact that those events are almost always starting early in the morning even locally (again not do-able due to work obligations), I just never joined in any of those reindeer games. However, a virtual 5k? All I had to do was register, pay my entrance fee (a donation towards diabetes research), and run 5k sometime over 3 designated days. After the run, you submit your time. Easy enough, and I decided why not.

So, I ran.

I didn't get out there until almost noon yesterday, the heat was incredible, and my last half mile was one of constant bargaining ("If I make it to that next mail box running, I can walk after that." When I made it to the mail box, I would re-bargain "you can run a little more, just to that tree... ok?" You see what I mean by bargaining, right?) I turned in a time I'm not too ashamed of, including a 10 minute first mile (wow, that's stellar for me) but there was no way I could keep up that pace. No way. With every breath I took, the air felt too heavy, my body wouldn't cooperate. I finished in 39 minutes. The 2nd mile was slower than the first, and that third mile was even slower than the second. But, I thought I could do better. So, plans are to time myself on today's run, and tomorrow's too. I will submit the best time. At least, that's the plan. I know if circumstances don't allow me to get back out today or tomorrow, I did participate, I will submit my time. I'm satisfied.

I've got a list of things to do today as long as my left arm (which is longer than my right arm, so there), and I better get cracking. I have a nagging feeling that I should be trying a new recipe or two today, but no, I'm shoving those evil time-eating thoughts aside. I'm going to concentrate on continuing the re-claiming of my life, getting rid of more "stuff," and spending some quality time with the kitties. That, and hopefully another timed 5k..... can't hurt, might help, right? Have a great day all!

Stuff

2011-06-23T20:26:00.004-04:00

Woe is me. Minimal sleep last night, boo hiss.

Yesterday, despite the fatigue and pain, I made my way through chores, cooking, baking and so forth. Ditched the running, just to be on the safe side, but went to boot camp. Did ok. Got home, made a little salad, and went to bed. Somewhere between channel surfing and dozing, it happened. Pink Moon used my neck as a springboard. I practically saw stars. Pink was no better off either, as my reaction sent that little anxiety riddled feline into a panic. It was quite a while before I saw her again last night. I didn't really care about her anxiety for a change, as the after effects from the incident stayed with me through the night, and into the morning. Thus began last night's "sleep."

Typically things move a little slower down here in the summer. Not lately though. Demands on my time, as well as Mr. Happy Vegan's time, are unusually heavy lately. I've decided to put most of any new experimenting in the kitchen on hiatus, just for a little while. Something's gotta give. Even though I have 2 brand spanking new vegan cookbooks (which in less than 1 week I've managed to try 4 new recipes from), today I set them aside. Had to do it.

I'm planning on getting my life back in order. Chaos is the order of the day in the laundry room, and my dining room table. I'm not alone with these issues, am I? Mail comes in, I sort it, yet piles of paper accumulate on my dining room table. I have an office, yet there is all this paper. Both of us in-patient happy vegans here are victims of the paper monster. Shifting things from "here" to over "there." How come? We do so much of the work on line to save paper, yet poof the piles are there. Yikes.

Then there's my personal laundry. That stuff is always secondary when running a B&B. The inn laundry must take priority, so days lapse before I get a crack at the machines here..... socks & running clothes ooze out my closet, so many, how is that possible?

I can't take it, all this disorder. Tomorrow is another busy day, but I'm going to take back order in my own home. This is not a complicated task, but why do I have such trouble getting it done? Once I get like this, nothing can really save me except getting inside the nitty gritty of closests and drawers and performing another purge of objects. That's on the list tomorrow.... getting rid of "stuff."

I'll feel better this time tomorrow night. I'm sitting here right now imagining all the wonderful piles I'll have of stuff, all labeled for different destinations. Some things go to the animal shelter, some things go to the wildlife rescue, some things go to Habitat for Humanity, and other things will go to the Salvation Army Family Store. Ahh, the beautiful piles of things going away. I feel better already.

Getting rid of "stuff" along with a little bit of sleep will go a long way. That's my plan. Keep your fingers crossed.

Cats Have Staff

2011-06-22T12:14:00.003-04:00

Although its been probably years since I've slept well, the last few nights have been worse than usual. I'm blaming the cats. They've been especially rambunctious lately, especially at night. Using my body as a heliport in the middle of the night has become relatively common. The howling, running, and jumping at imaginary things seems to have amped up lately though. This behavior matters not in their world. Their food is still plentiful, their litter pans are cleaned, their toys are still scattered about, and things are as they should be in their world. They've got naps, sunny patches, catnip, and warm laps. Their antics however, do not insure a peaceful world in my reality though.

Two nights ago when I went to bed, I had to pick Lemon up and move him aside. He was sprawled across the entire bed, I'm not sure how a 14 pound cat can find a way to inhabit an entire king size bed, but he did. I moved him and plunked myself down. He became indignant, and plunked himself down on me, as I was now in "his" spot. In minutes, the rest of the crew arrived, and I found myself completely fenced in by felines. This included my pillow. I "slept" for hours as a contortionist. I paid for it the next morning. Pain.

The next night came and went, and it was pretty much a repeat of the same thing. But, now there was a cumulative effect from the sleeping contortions. So much so that when I got up yesterday, I found myself in pretty bad shape. By mid-afternoon yesterday (yup, my Solstice happy day) I could barely hold my head up. The slightest movement caused searing pain to shoot partly down my arm, partly down my back. What is this I wondered. It got worse.

Nothing worked. Ice, essential oils. massage, and finally a too high milligram dose of something I rarely take.... real medication. It didn't work either.

I went to bed last night in excruciating pain. Every movement on the bed, every paw print on the sheet caused that white hot pain. When I tell you that I have not slept, I MEAN that I have not slept.

When I dragged myself out of bed this morning, I found myself having difficulty doing the simplest of tasks. This eventually resulted in a kitchen mishap at way to early an hour, and me wondering aloud "is this what today will be like?"

I have decided I do not want today to be a washout... let's turn it around I affirmed.

I've been steamrolling through the pain to get my chores done, and then I'm going out to do some errands, visit some friends, do some shopping, and then see if by later tonight I can make it through a boot camp class. Mind over matter I've decided.

I'm not completely sure about this mind over matter philosophy for today. But, it sounded good, and as I look outside I see an unbelievably beautiful blue sky. I'm convinced I just cannot let today go by in a pain induced stupor.

It all boils down to the truth in the quote "dogs have owners, cats have staff." Indeed.

Summer Solstice!

2011-06-21T12:08:00.002-04:00

In less than one hour's time, Summer Solstice will be here.

If you're new to the blog, let me explain that today is one of the most important and best days of the year in my world. Summer Solstice is when we honor the gods of the sun. The holiday is also known as Midsummer, and Litha. A day important enough that even Shakespeare centered his famed tale around the holiday.

Summer Solstice was important to me even before I was following the current path I'm on. If you're not new to the blog, then you may recall that the first day of Summer was one which my dad used to count down, beginning almost from the last day of Summer the year prior. Because I used to live in a colder climate where winters were actually wintry, the first day of Summer represented many different things to me. It represented vacations, sunshine, happiness, and fun times. Summer brought parties, friends, family and bbqs (tofu dogs anyone? YUM!)

Even though I now live where its summery year round, the first day of Summer is still magical. Its a day to be especially grateful (which I am). This is a day to celebrate, a day to party!

Through the Summer, I rejoice in the pictures my friends post on line sharing their summer vacations, the beach, the Jersey shore, and whatnot. I love hearing the stories of parties which happen over sultry Summer nights, and love the simple fact that my friends and family are basking in the glow of sunshine and heat, instead of scraping snow & ice from a driveway or car. I'm simply happier when those I love are happier. Summer makes that happen.

Today, being Summer Solstice, I made lemon raspberry muffins as part of our guests' breakfast at Deer Run. I like to make something sunny & lemony on the first day of Summer. Later today I have big plans to honor those rascally sun gods by sitting somewhere in my own sunny patch with a frosty beverage, and reflect on all the beauty there is surrounding me. My mind wanders constantly to my dad today, and all the good times we shared especially over the summertime months. This is an important day for me, but those seeds were sown decades ago in the shadow of my dad and his own little calendar countdown.

Happy Solstice. Happy Summer. Enjoy this day, and let's all have a great Summer!!