Why did they stop?
Stone fetuses – abandoned, bewildered, eternal.
The ships carrying Europeans arrived. Excitement at the new? The artist carved a picture of the ship on the belly of his creation.
Then carving and moving stopped.
Blog
Free yourself by counting pennies? Book review Your Money or Your Life
Readers of all income levels have used this to free themselves:
Do you want to track every penny? Sounds awful, but look at it this way:
“A Spiritual Discipline
Religions, ancient and modern, as well as the personal growth workshops of the human potential movement all have techniques for training the mind to be here now, “in the moment.” These practices take many forms and include such techniques as watching the breath as it goes in and out; repeating a phrase over and over in order to focus the wandering mind; concentrating on an object…To this list we add another discipline designed to sharpen awareness—one that is indispensable to the financial program and perhaps more easily accepted by our grounded, materialistic Western mentality than some of the more ‘esoteric’ practices. Instead of watching your breath, you watch your money. This practice is simple:Keep track of every cent that comes into or goes out of your life.”
Learn how to equate time, money and life energy.
“A shift will take place in the realm of values as your handling of money increasingly comes into alignment with what really matters to you.”
- Make choices, not sacrifices
- Choose simple pleasures
- Work for money, maximize, save, and finally, “cross over”
- Escape the hidden costs of working
- Be a better friend, neighbor, family member, citizen
Quick link to Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Your-Money-Life-Transforming-Relationship/dp/0143115766/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_y
From alpaca and insects to textile arts: Peru
Quechan weavers travel from villages to demo amazing, traditional textile art:
The village master weaver is respected and very important:
She has 72 intricate patterns memorized.
Sonesta Posadas del Inca in the Urubamba Valley (otherwise known as the Sacred Valley), offers beautiful, ranch-style rooms with dark wooden doors, dressers and closets that contrast appealingly with adobe walls. Throw rugs warm terracotta tile floors and the renovated bathroom offers a deep, luxurious tub and fresh air from a sash window. The Peruvian staple of corn finds honor on the grounds:
And, yes, they serve coca tea in the lobby all the time and at the breakfast buffet.
Snow-scented air blows down from the Andes:
Yarns come from alpaca like these cuties (plus one llama):
Red comes from bugs visible on Urubamba cacti. Cochineal, a kind of aphid, are black on the outside. Covering the prickly pear cacti, they appear white like fungus. Ground up, they are deep red.
To this red, add varying amounts of lemon salt to produce bright red, light red, reddish purple, or carrot orange.
To make purple, add… urine. Guide says must be the child’s urine, before puberty… and start of pisco drinking. (Joke)
How did they invent these dyes in the first place?
Date: June 2012
Tour: Trafalgar (via sister company Grand European Tours), Highly recommend
Guide: Angel Cardenos, very highly recommended
Cider donuts and Utopia: Vermont
Rainy September days:
Farmers market:
Foliage reports on the local news:
Making homemade pizza and comparing techniques (chives from the garden):
Winning pizza:
An apple orchard where you can pick your own apples:
Or have cider donuts hot and fresh (they melt in your mouth, have 2):
And drive through a quaint covered bridge:
Pictures worth thousands of words, sethsnap re-blog
These pictures and captions are so evocative, stories leaped to mind as I viewed the images and words.
28 (food) reasons to love Manhattan
Trip dates: 9/15 – 10/13/12
Pushkin Brasserie (near Museum of Modern Art),
Add to Pushkin Brasserie ambiance this and a spiked cappuccino and you’ll recover from exhausting museum going:
Share these from Crumbs Bake Shop:
(upper west side, 97th/Columbus.)
“Wine-dark in a shallow lemon sea, pelted with capers, the curl of octopus ($16) looked messy and primeval, as if just plucked from the deep. It is the dish that a Greek restaurant lives or dies by, simple yet exacting. Tenderness should be victory enough. But the octopus at Boukiés had gone a step beyond, the flesh undoing itself, achieving a texture, at its core, close to nectar.” Ligaya Mishan, New York Times 9/21/12
Looked scary, tasted heavenly:
For less money and a different though not lesser pleasure, a hot pretzel in Central Park: 
Do you love cheese? There’s a name for that.
A choice of Schmears (upper west side, Broadway):
Oyster bar in Grand Central Station:
Spinach and kasha knishes from Yonah Shimmel’s Knishery on East Houston Street (lower east side):
Pastrami and corned beef sandwiches at Katz’s Deli (near Yonah’s, lower east side):
Tiny cupcake:
Cappuccino in Tribeca:
Comfort food at The Eatery after a show (The Phantom of the Opera).
Elevation of a bagel:
Peruvian cuisine on the upper west side at Flor De Mayo (Broadway around 98th):
Simple repast at The Boathouse (Central Park):
Good for skiing… New Rules of Lifting for Women by Lou Schuler, book review
This book will take 6 months to a year to thoroughly review. Stay tuned for the results.
What’s to love?
- Learn to cook better.
- Eat more! (And take fish oil pills.)
- New home-fitness toys.
- Bigger, stronger muscles… hopefully! (Check back in 6 months.)
- Less cardio.
What’s not to love?
- More calories do not come from alcohol.
“I suspect you don’t need me to tell you that Kahlua and cream won’t make you sleeker.”
You can have some, though. Red wine is best. We’re talking 4 ounces here, folks. 4. Four.
Not every day. Remember all those beers you saw in the skiing-lunch photos???? Not on the plan.
Then again:
“You’d think that the people who drink the most would weigh the most, but studies haven’t shown a connection between weight and calories from alcohol. One study showed that the most indulgent drinkers are more active than those who drink less…”
Interesting. BUT
“My overall goal is to make sure one special evening doesn’t extend into two or three special evenings in a row. Inevitably, I can feel it on my waistline.”
Oh heck, we know this already. - More calories in the right ratios means more cooking.
- “More calories” doesn’t refer to chocolate-chip cookies.
- If you don’t like to work out, you won’t like this book. But if you do, and you’re a woman, and you’re frustrated about working really hard only to get tiny muscles and a slow metabolism, check this out. I am just beginning but a friend of a friend had fabulous results, and she didn’t even do the eating part.
- Getting 30% of your calories from protein is challenging (but kind of fun) and pretty much requires whey powder (not too great tasting, kind of expensive, though Costco has it. Cytosport is a pretty good deal there.)
Note: I have used myfitnesspal.com (MFP) (it’s free) for 18 months. It’s a good foundation with this program so you can eat your own stuff and track whether you are “hitting your macros” (macro nutrients, protein, fat and carbs) instead of following the menu (just use it for ideas). You’ll need to modify the default MFP settings a little to 40 percent carbs, 30 percent fat, 30 percent protein.
Link to book: http://www.amazon.com/New-Rules-Lifting-Women-Goddess/dp/1583333398
Please, hold me up at customs! Love to Declare by Charlotte McClain… book review
This short story from The Wild Rose Press is quick and fun.
Being detained by U.S. Customs turns from sour to very sweet when Jake Harrison helps out. Yummy.
You can get it here:
http://www.thewildrosepress.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=0&products_id=3981
It will set you back US .99.
Enjoy!
5 favorite things from this ski vacation
1. Catching stepdaughter and her fiancé hugging. A few times.
2. Skiing with awesome husband:
3. Sharing this run today with a friend:
4. Having someone actually benefit from my skiing tips.
5. Learning the phrase, “How much you packing under foot?” (Refers to width of ski under the boot.)
Achilles… toe? 8th day skiing, Squaw Valley
Arrive at 11 AM, park in furthest lot from the lifts:
Temps cold enough to allow snow to act as sign board:
First run, trees on Red Dog. Pep talk to self: It’s okay to be afraid as long as you keep your hands forward.
Second run, Siberia. Must pause for photos.
Too cold! Head to Solitude. Ahhh…
Time for lunch! Greek salad plus tasty brown ale at Fireside Pizza:
Back to Solitude for final runs.
Take transport lift over terrain park. Observe fun being had.
Mountain Run, what the crowded parking lot looks like on the slopes:
Achilles’ weak point was his heal. For me, it’s my toe after too many days pounding bumps:
But, no complaints. Don’t want to flunk retirement.
Nicci Carrera 