some rambles.

Lately I am back up to two cups of coffee a day. It seems that the health experts go back and forth about the healthfulness of coffee and caffine...it used to be bad for you, but recently I read that caffine helps metabolism, energy, that is ok to drink coffee before going to the gym (and coconut water after...don't forget "agua de pipa," which has finally reached the masses). But I find that coffee after five PM is still a bad idea for me, and I still adore tea. My latest discovery is Earl Grey Green tea, which is a tasty alternative to plain Earl Grey and plain Green, neither of which have a very appealing taste. But TOGETHER! It is quite a cup.

Weather here lately has been driving me nuts. Last week it was in the 40s and rainy, and two days later everything melts and then Friday there is a winter storm in the evening...then we have a sunny weekend and everything melts, and then we have rain one afternoon and snow the next. I don't know if I should wear my parka or my raincoat, honestly. Hat? Or scarf? Maybe an insulated umbrella would be a good idea.

What is going on this year...?? I see neon colors on one page and pastels on the next in magazines. Trends are so silly, really, though I do admit to falling for some. As of yet I haven't spent money on those wedge sneakers, though I have been sorely tempted. More and more often my certianty is reinforced...buy clothes for the life you live, not the life you WANT to live. And wear what makes you feel good, not what everyone else tells you to wear, or what people around you are wearing. Neon green? Probably not for you. Leggings? Unless you have the legs, they should probably not be part of your wardrobe. Boots? Yeah, every girl in the USA has been brainwashed into wearing riding boots when all she rides is maybe the highway in her car. They are not cool anymore, they are common. (Kicking myself for buying some, even though they were a cheapie thrift store find) Be you, not the model on the runway, women!
I admit that I am probably biased based on my constant exposure to a specific demographic of women on a college campus. The homogenous look just bugs me! Ohio bugs me. The midwest bugs me. I belong somewhere more metropolitan, or somewhere where people just look more different than alike. The sameness is what drives me nuts.

VINO! I have tried some good wines lately, inspired by some suggestions from a friend. Being a fan of white wines and particularly sweet whites, I tried a moscato and a reisling and was impressed with the taste and smoothness of both. Hmm, the trick I think is to try and turn my palate to more red wines, which are heart healthy ( though who knows, the experts may change thier minds on that one next month) and go better with dinner. A bottle of wine a week? A glass with every evening meal? That isn't awful. Just remember, all things in moderation.
Last week I was fortunate enough to go with some very good friends to Sonoma, CA...Napa's equally delicious and cheaper cousin, California wine country. Valley of the Moon was a beautiful vineyard, and the wine was delicious! We tried some 15 wines, at $5 per person for 5 wines. A great deal!! The whole experience brought me back to the days of my college wine tasting course, and it was so much fun to share it all with such wonderful friends. Wine...it can be called the blood of truth, friendship and health! I would not mind settling in Sonoma, that is for sure. California dreaming....!! As the Beach Boys sang.

Ok, I think my rambles can be paused for a while.

PURA VIDA : )

the kiss of sunshine!

In a little over two weeks I return home to my beloved, adopted country: Costa Rica.

I cannot wait to put on my flip flops and feel sweat running down my back as I walk under the sun through the streets of Esparza, doging pot holes, ignoring cat-calls and pushing my sunglasses back up the bridge of my nose.

I cannot wait to eat mango, platano, to make gallo pinto and to taste Salsa Lizano and cilantro again. To watch El Dia and read La Nacion. To sweep the white tile floor of my little home and watch cable tv. To hang my clothes on the clothes line and shiver under the cool water of the shower in the morning.

Mostly, I cannot wait to embrace my husband, extended family and friends again.

PURA VIDA....!!!

Raindrops

If all teh rain we have had in the past few days had been snow, we would be buried by now with drifts as high as the garage door! But it seems we are in a warm spell, and instead of winter January has turned to spring... I wish we could see more snow.

The weather reminds me of Monteverde, with the cold rainy season that dampens clothes and spirits and makes drying laundry nearly impossible. It reminds me of the puddles that line my street, how the rain drums on the metal roof of our little home. It makes me wish that I was back in the humid wetness of Costa Rica, and not in the nasty cold wet of a sleepy Ohio winter.
But what can one do? My Mom still needs my help as she continues treatments, and my hubby is still working away from home.

I am better here with company, with family, than alone in Costa Rica right now.

NYE 2012 with amigas!

welcome to the future...2013

So along with most of the population, I am going to make some resolutions... they are as follows:

-visit at least one new country
-forgive more readily
-start writing more...at least one short story a month!
-be more relaxed/ pura vida (because sometimes I still get myself really worked up over things that do not matter, and that is silly!)
-put money INTO my savings!

The reality is that only about 8% of people actually follow through with resolutions...But I think that all of these are feasible, possible changes that I can make and things that I can do in my life, so I am going to try my  best.

Good bye 2012...the good the bad, happy and sad...and hello 2013, hope you are bringing blessings and good things!

PURA VIDA

winter in the midwest

I am as pale as paper.
Every day I can see more and more how my complexion is changing, becoming lighter and more white, like a reflection of the snow outside. Now it is really deep winter here, with a good snowfall and the winds that make your hands chapped and your nose run. The air is dry and my hair, face, skin is feeling it.

Christmas was a fun time this year, with my brothers all home, my uncle in attendance at every family meal and our gift exchange, and I invited a graduate student who did not have plans, and she stayed with us one night and saw what Christmas is like in a typical North American household.

My Mom is still recovering, slowly...she has started another round of chemotherapy and radiation, and is still fighting, though some days can be really rough. I cannot imagine her going through this without me, and I don't know how much longer she will need me. As long as it takes!

Right now I am missing Costa Rica.
I miss the humidity and the rain, the laundry hanging on the clothesline outside, the smell of cilantro in the supermarket, dogs barking at me as I walk down my street, the sway and exhaust of the buses, and the heat. The delicious sunlight on my shoulders, the feeling of sweat prickling my scalp, the smell of my hands after making dinner. I miss, miss, MISS IT!  Especially while I wait out the winter and brave the cold here in the frigid winter of the midwest.

Pura Vida

baby it's cold outside...