Power 'off-ages' and 'on-ages'

I started writing a post yesterday, to share our marvelous rainy day picnic adventure with you all, but was beset by the Electricity Pixies... not a new girl band but rather the little mythological creatures that toy with the Greek Electrical Power Grid, and will, with no apparent reason, flick all the power off for as little as 10 seconds to as long as 5 minutes.

(For many years, T was convinced that it was the cleaning ladies doing the vacuuming after the staff left, unplugging the power to the city while they plugged their vacuums into the socket, then when they were finished, plugging the city's power back into the socket. I however believe rather that it's the mythological beasties of the island at work.)

As we are also blessed with power cuts that can last up to 6 hours, candles and matches are placed in key locations throughout the house and used regularly.

Unfortunately, when the power goes, the internet, the cordless telephones and my USB back up battery power supply are also affected.

My current USB backup instead of giving me 1/2 hour of electric cover, is so worn down by the constant abuse, I am lucky to get 5 minutes to shut everything down and unplug! (all the while being serenaded with a loud "BEEP---BEEP---BEEP...")

So no internet, as after the fifth time of sitting in darkness for 2 minutes [Me, slowly getting up and lighting two or three candles, while starting to save and shut down programs on my laptop- POOF! The power would come back on! Ha-ha. Me, remembering new years resolution made less than ten days ago, trying NOT to laugh cynically here...] So, I just decided, "enough is enough", and just shut everything down, got a book out and read.

(I read VERY well by candlelight.)




Today I have several times started to write this post only to be plagued with thunder and lightening - and had to stop.

Yes, I know, that probably got a blank look from many of you.

Here on Corfu, when we have thunder/lightening we can have MASSIVE power surges, for why, we do not know. Over the past 10 years, personally, I have had 3 stereos, 1 answering machine, 2 sky boxes, 1 VCR player, 2 televisions, 1 USB back-up power battery, countless cordless phones and 2 laptops murdered by those "thunder/lightening surges". And that was even after we had the whole house grounded!

When we moved in, all the power points (plugs) looked grounded - how can you tell??- but we would get nasty shocks turning on lights or, particularly in the kitchen, doing anything with an electrical appliance and having damp hands and bare feet... (personally I'm convinced that all those little shocks did my heart good, keeping me pumped with tiny surges of adrenalin to regulate my heartbeat!) We had each and every electricity point grounded over the course of 4 full days with an electrician several years ago. We have never regretted that particular expenditure!


We were told once, by someone who also had fried a lot of expensive electricals, that you must be wary of electrical things tied to your telephone line (for instance: your laptop!), as the telephone lines are not grounded and will zap directly into whatever the phone lead is plugged into. (Yet another reason not to dawdle on the phone when it's raining!)

We do not sneer and shake our fists at the sky come storm time.

[I will post more tomorrow, or whenever this little storm front moves out of reach! Of course as I am finishing this short post, the sky appears to be clearing.

My "trying and failing to make herself into a very small" weather-vane dog however continues to cower with her face tucked under my bed (well til I took the picture), so she obviously still hears faint rumbles coming from some far off 'somewhere'.]

Old business, or What happened to the Hades hole in the front yard?

I suppose I should probably finish off some old business from last year, as poor T spent the better part of the four weeks I was away in the States, dealing with it.

Before (when I left...):

After (when I returned!):

It was not "cheap". Basically the cost was about the same as two full price round trip tickets to the states!

So here it is, the "thing in the middle"- (click on picture for detailed view)

and (notice how serious the team is...) fortunately they connected the first septic field to the third septic field. This is what happens when you have an "embarras de champs septique" (or too many septic fields!)

12 to 14 (T lost count) trucks, each poured 4 cubic meters of "fill" into the hole. Then it was topped with "good dirt" so we could grow some grass. (Needless to say, now that the grass is growing the dirt has settled and we'll probably need at least another 4 cubic meters of "good dirt"

Poor T, of course, at the same time, also had to deal with the leaking roof:

that included him spending GREAT quantities of time up there basically repairing all the fissures and holes with 25 tubs of cement (40 kilos each!) and then painting all the tiles with a sort of rubberized sealant (5 tubs of 20 kilos each) to make it as waterproof as possible: for a while, anyway.

Sadly, he's not done yet, meaning there's more to haul up to the roof. (Should I mention at this point that he is NOT fond of heights?)

Anyway, at least things are mostly back together and as we've had two huge storms (with gale force winds!) since I've been back, the roof has not leaked, and there are no new chasms.

We give thanks that currently, the household gods (or demons) are holding off any mischievous new repair challenges!

As for my new years suggested 'evolutions', I have managed to dance to my music every day, without anyone laughing (mostly because I do it when T is otherwise occupied!)

I have also managed to listen to OM for at least a few minutes every afternoon - thus far, the mind squirrels are at bay!

Tomorrow I will be baking - SOMETHING - as we are going to go to a really nice place on Saturday with friends and bringing a picnic lunch along. I will write more about where we're going probably in my next post.

For now, Ciao.


I have included a little app for free web radio (Shoutcast) as the current soundtrack of my life.

Piano music is just lovely and currently playing for me right now... there are a few other channels in the favorites file. (so far this app works well, tho not all the channels seem to be available all the time.)

A few resolute New Years suggestions...

Well, I'm narrowing things down in my mind, from a vast course in self-improvement to wider, gentler, more generic overview type suggestions of an improving nature. So far, after picking the brains of many OTHER bloggers (I've been catching up - slowly-slowly with my vast backlog of blogs I enjoy) I've narrowed the field.

So, I think I have found a few things that may work for me. To date, these "suggestions" (or "evolutions", thank you Lee!) are seeming to resonate within:

- Laugh more - (but try for less cynically)

- Embrace change and the unexpected (re: when it comes from my mother)

- Bake things I've never made, like cream puffs and custard tarts -and try not to eat them all

- Dance way more - shoot for maybe about 15 minutes/day with the headphones and my clever little SanDisk player.

- Go to places that make me feel happy.

- Eat only when hungry, not when curious or bored.


- Spend time with people I really like and less time with people who make me anxious or drained [note to self: Interact more with people.]


Interspersed in there as well are the "suggested resolutions" pushed forward by my tedious conscience (that interior hall monitor with the stern look over the half glasses, and the impatient tapping foot) ie:

- JUST GO THROUGH the bloody boxes, already; yes, in the box room- the ones from our last move ten years ago!
a) speaking of boxes- go through the boxes and look for photographs that are loose and do something with them.
b) (do not burn unflattering photographs of self)

- really clean the kitchen [especially the bookshelves and all the italian tiles behind everything]

- meditate on nothing 15 minutes a day (head off neurotic mind squirrels with Dalai Lama "OM" on SanDisk player!)

- go through the Learning Greek Textbook and listen to the CD's again. (well, give it a shot anyway!)


As for any other things that are needed for self improvement, if I manage to accomplish any of the above I should be well ahead of the game.


~~~

Meanwhile, I lifted a great family Christmas shot from Facebook after perusing the Christmas albums of my son and granddaughter:




a great gathering including all the usual suspects. Missing, of course, is us! (boo-hoo)


... then there's this great shot I couldn't NOT include...




and this one with the 'lion king' obviously taking orders at the restaurant:

So. Peace and resolve to all til the next post...

~~~

[re: 'Soundtrack of my life' and i are currently disagreeing so the only soundtrack I have, are the voices in my head (my HEADPHONES, ok?)

Perhaps we'll manage to reorganize ourselves and insert mixpod back again, but currently it's suspended as it's choosing malaysian music which i am not so fond of...]

Resolutions

For the sake of old times, I suppose thinking about New Year's resolutions is a good idea. Any resolution I have made for the new year has generally been easy to keep, as I had pretty much decided to do that thing anyway. [For instance: the year I decided to quit smoking, I'd already had a two month "trial" period wherein I HAD actually quit smoking, thereby making it much easier to fulfill the terms of the resolution, as I knew I could do it.]

This year I think I will need to actually think about what it is I need to resolve (whoa! OK, limiting it to a few things I may be able to resolve) and accomplish this year while at the same time maintaining a level of well-being I will enjoy and appreciate.

I am guessing this will play out over the next few weeks. I am not rushing into just any fly by night resolution! I sort of like the idea of choosing a physical resolution, a mental resolution and a spiritual resolution. (Except of course I can think of eleventy million physical ones and NO mental or spiritual ones right this minute.)

So. Thinking cap is on... project 'figure out the resolutions' is on the drawing board. (I am open to suggestions!)

~~~

Meanwhile, our Blue Moon evening was delightful. We danced to good live music, and had a meal with good friend and neighbors and toasted the new year in with much enthusiasm.

This morning we woke up without a headache! I can only say "Yay!" and really mean it.

The moon last night was lovely!

We got dressed up and enjoyed ourselves. This is the first time in two years I have actually "danced the night away". My knee behaved and I only have a few little twangs to remind me of last night.

Today I made a turkey and a potato-spinach mash for our holiday lunch (with friends coming later this evening to enjoy a cold turkey and leftovers meal as well!) I made a lovely apple pie... unfortunately we cut it up before I took a picture of it... whine. (But at least you have an idea...)

Last but not least it rained for a while but just before our friends arrived it cleared up with big gusts of wind and suddenly the sun broke through, and we had a marvelous rainbow to launch our new year!

For what it's worth, I'm taking this rainbow as a sign. It's going to be a good year... because I really want it to be!


[Our friends arrived just as I was about to finish this entry. They've only just left which is why I am finally finishing this post a little bit late! I couldn't very well say "Excuse me, I'm writing a blog post about you coming by, and I need to finish it!"]

~~~


the soundtrack of my life remains the same - we still have a blue moon and I'm still singing along with Elvis...

Once in a Blue Moon

Seems like an appropriate title for my next foray into blog posting.

Of course, the irony is, that tonight IS that "blue moon" night... an event that happens (on New Years Eve) only once every 20 years!

The term "blue moon" traditionally referred to an extra moon in a season: if a season had four full moons (rather than the more common three), then the third of the four moons was known as a blue moon. A season in this sense begins not with the months, but with the solstices and equinoxes.

However, personally, I like the mistaken definition of a Blue Moon being the second full Moon in a calendar month, just because it's easier to figure out and name.

A Variety of Meanings (a very clever article)

In fact, the very earliest uses of the term were remarkably like saying the Moon is made of green cheese. Both were obvious absurdities, about which there could be no doubt. "He would argue the Moon was blue" was taken by the average person of the 16th century as we take "He'd argue that black is white."

The concept that a blue Moon was absurd (the first meaning) led eventually to a second meaning, that of "never." The statement "I'll marry you, m'lady, when the Moon is blue!" would not have been taken as a betrothal in the 18th century.

~~~~~

Meanwhile, the life and times of my blog are at a crossroads!

Though there are many fascinating things about Corfu left to share, I am having a hard time buckling down and getting to writing about them!

So, what is wrong with me???

My trip to the US dislodged my patterns and that certainly made a difference. Coming home also meant reclaiming my life here, and that made a difference too. Getting back into the habit of writing "blog posts" like before, though, it seems is the harder part of this blogging thing.

Sigh. I will continue to post about Corfu, because I love the topic of Corfu, and we are constantly rediscovering wonderful things about living here. But...

There will however be moments of "blog fail" when the parallel universe of my 'other' life will overlap.

Currently, though we are happy as grigs (whatever grigs are) living on the magical island of Corfu, we are also concurrently trying to move my 84 year old mother from one side of the United States (New Mexico) to the middle of the United States (Chicago), all while pretty much being in Greece.

Except for the frantic bits that will come to pass this Spring, when we'll return to the US to physically pack up- the part with the actual move- we are keeping in touch with her by phone a couple of times a week as well as with my sons (through email as well as phone calls). We are also in contact with the lawyer in charge of her trust as well as the retirement community.

Juggling all this is sometimes NOT so easy to do. My mother is becoming more easily "distracted" and often she doesn't prioritize necessary things the way she used to, meaning that confusion results.

When we first decided to move to and remain in Greece, we recognized that there would be challenges regarding being so far away from family. We've encountered pretty much every one of them. We have had major surgeries, accidents, job losses, divorce, birth, and deaths (along with lingering illness requiring longer stays). We also sold a house.

We have moved a son to an new house, and my mother to a retirement community after her partner died, but now it seems we will need to move her one more time.

Fortunately, I am blessed with sons who relish the thought of having their grandmother near enough to visit weekly, which is what she needs now more than all the other things she might make use of in the place she's moving to in Chicago. Having her in Chicago means that she'll spend time with her great-grandson, which she will enjoy so much. It will also mean that T and I will be able to maximize our visits back to the US and spend more time with our sons (and of course grandchildren!) as well as my mother.

Having spent a month in the States, I recognize both the good things about living in the US, but also the good things about living here in Greece.

When I was a child growing up and going back and forth between my grandmother in Belgium and my mother in Michigan, I remember feeling homesick in both places, no matter where I was.

I feel the same thing now only it's all mixed up with adult things like worry and the stress of forgetting something important that needs doing. I call them mind squirrels. On top of that is the very real frustration that I want to just enjoy my life in my own home with my husband and enjoy my things!

That's sort of what has happened to the blog.

So I will leave on that note and say that I plan to have a very happy New Year- we are going to a neighbor party in Vatos, and T will be wearing a tux and I will be dressy too. Perhaps I will even post a picture of us in our elegance. Tomorrow I will fix a turkey, and perhaps bake an apple pie. (I may even take a picture of the apple pie, if it turns out!)

For now I will sign off and wish all who stop here a wonderful New Year. Thank you very, very much, for reading my posts and becoming a part of my life. I DO really appreciate all the input and comments you have made over the past six months.

Again, thank you and Happy Holidays!

PS... the soundtrack of my life is currently playing:

Blue Moon - The Marcels
Blue Moon Of Kentucky By Elvis Presley
Toby Keith - Does That Blue Moon Ever Shine On You
Richard Rodgers: Blue Moon
Once In A Blue Moon By Earl Thomas Conley

and for a change, a foray into the bizarre with a Japanese Bluegrass rendition of
Is The Blue Moon Still Shining

'Tis the Season...

Last night we drove into Corfu town to see it all lit up with holiday lights. Last year the municipality needed to trim some large trees in the park and near the Liston. In doing so they had to finally cut down the branches that had all the lovely lights stuck in them for the last 8 years or so. When we got there the park and Liston were dark! We were surprised that they didn't replace them at all this year. Ah austerity, it bites in the strangest places.

Still the walkways and the shopping area streets were well decked out.

And the good news for all the merchants, was there were a fair amount of people out shopping.

On the way home we stopped in Agios Ioannis to see what the village had done. The decorating committee had chosen the bandstand as their staging ground. The only thing missing was snow... and I don't miss that at all!

Happy Winter Solstice Day

Today is officially the shortest day of the year.

The Winter Solstice occurs exactly when the earth's axial tilt is farthest away from the sun at its maximum of 23° 26'. Though the Winter Solstice lasts an instant in time, the term is also colloquially used like Midwinter to refer to the day on which it occurs. For most people in the high latitudes this is commonly known as the shortest day and the sun's daily maximum position in the sky is the lowest. The seasonal significance of the Winter Solstice is in the reversal of the gradual lengthening of nights and shortening of days.

Watching the sun rise across the eastern sky over the course of the year is fascinating. This morning it seems to rise almost from the south east.

A lovely morning sky.

Welcome to Winter!

In ancient Greece there were celebrations at this time of year.

The exclusively female midwinter ritual, Lenaea or Lenaia, was the Festival of the Wild Women. In the forest, a man or bull representing the god Dionysus was torn to pieces and eaten by Maenads. Later in the ritual a baby, representing Dionysus reborn, was presented.

Lenaion, the first month of the Delian calendar, derived its name from the festival's name. By classical times, the human sacrifice had been replaced by that of a goat, and the women's role had changed to that of funeral mourners and observers of the birth. Wine miracles were performed by the priests, in which priests would seal water or juice in a room overnight and the next day they would have turned into wine. The miracle was said to have been performed by Dionysus and the Lenaians.

By the 5th century BCE the ritual had become a Gamelion festival for theatrical competitions, often held in Athens in the Lenaion theater.



~~~


And so. I am returned from Chicago and parts West. It's good to be back home though I feel a bit of a fish out of water. I am not nearly "up to speed" for this holiday.

Fortunately I don't have to do too much preparation as we are graciously invited to spend Christmas dinner with our good friends. (all I have to bring is a cheesecake!) We're also covered for Boxing Day and will be spending a lovely afternoon with good friends and their family members. (I get to bring quiches...)

I am still assimilating all the changes of the last couple of months. I am still a bit out of synch with "my world" whatever that may be!

Alls well that ends well though, and it's great to be home.


[I include a selection of traditional soothing Christmas music to inspire a holiday feeling.....]

Car Shoes

They have become the new "Bear Shoes" ...

Which may be an inexplicable concept to most people reading this blog. Dearest baby grandson had become fixated on his "bear slippers" which his parents had dutifully bought to the largest size possible. Sadly tho they were getting worn and they didn't come in a larger size than his foot was rapidly growing into!

When my mother arrived she brought him a gift - unbeknowst to her, his most favorite cartoon character of "all time" (how long IS all time to a two year old??) is the red car in the movie Cars (Lightening McQueen voiced by Owen Wilson).

So here are a few rapid shots of grandson speeding around in his new CarShoes...

note the sadly ignored regular shoes now left behind to keep the bear shoes company...

grandmother- great grandmother and of course elmo muppet grandson...

The yankee doodle dandy gets ready for bed...

And blows a kiss to his many fans...

Random photos of life and times...

Lake Michigan calm as a pond... NOT typical in November...

miles and miles of empty sandy beaches- of course the temps were a bit nippy!

Amazingly clear fresh water lake.

Stopped to stretch our legs at the beautiful Sarett Nature Center on the way back to Chicago.

We surprised a beautiful white tailed deer just a few feet from us, but she was long gone by the time I got the camera focused...

Back to the city though in time for Thanksgiving holiday preparations!

Everyone enjoyed the turkey!