Mind Over Mutter

New Year, New Post

2010-01-03T10:29:00.004-05:00

OK, I wasn't very good at posting to the blog in 2009-- mostly because my life was crazy busy at times. The only time I managed to get anything posted was when I was traveling and stuck in airports and/or hotels.

2009 -- for me, at least, wasn't an "annus horribilis." I know it was for a lot of people, so even saying that makes me feel a little guilty.

Did I make less money in 2009 than I did in 2008? Yep. Did some of my investments do a nose dive? Yep. I was, indeed, living on the planet Earth.

But I have a solid roof over my head. My children and grandchildren are healthy. Nothing terrible happened to me and the people I love.

If I am to celebrate the arrival in our family of the members of the next generation, I have to honor and accept the passing of the members of my folks' generation. Did my former father in law (and the grandfather of my sons) die in midsummer? Yes--and he was a dear man, even if I knew that I always seemed like something of an alien to him--- but he was past 80, and had been very ill for a long time. Has my Aunt Pat begun to show her age? Sadly, yes. She has become much more frail in the past year, and I worry that when I begin this blog next year, that she won't be around to complain that I mentioned her in this post.

2009 brought challenges and joys and new beginnings. George has found his Sarah, and is happier than I have seen him in a very long time. Both boys and their families are settling in to their homes. Nathan turned 3, Olivia turned 5, and Brendan turned 9.

The condo is "getting there" and is starting to feel like it belongs to me. I managed to decorate it for the holidays with only one ladder-related accident. No crutches this time, just a minor concussion and a wrenched shoulder.

Work is insane, but it is never boring. I've taken on so many different and unusual projects that it is probably time to update the resume with all the new things I've gotten to try and learn and do.

Working on 2 projects in Ohio in the second half of the year has kept me closer to friends and family. January saw me working in China-- and wasn't that an experience!

I read fewer crummy novels and more technical books this year. Saw fewer movies at the theater but more natural wonders. Took fewer photos but more short trips just for fun. Spent more time in museums and less time at the mall.

What's my wish for 2010?

I've conquered so many of my mountains in the last few years, that I think it is time to take on the biggest one of all....the one I've been avoiding most of my life.

I need to work on me. I need to find a way to be more personally a part of the world. To be more open. On a professional level, I am confident and assertive. On a personal level, I am terrified and reclusive. This has been my MO all my life. Years ago a shrink explained it to me. But knowing what the problem is has not magically helped me to conquer it. I am confident in my abilities, but painfully unsure of my relationships and my self-worth. I make a good teacher and mentor and consultant because in those roles I can guide and control the interaction. I even make a pretty good student, apprentice, and employee, because I know what is expected of me in those roles.

But I am a complete washout in social situations. I engage, but don't connect. I'm good at cocktail party chit-chat, but it ends there. I am the human equivalent of disposable table linens. Nice to have for the party-- convenient, low-maintenance, etc.-- but not something in which to make a serious investment of time and effort over time.

I need to find a project, an interest, a challenge that will engage me and cause me to interact with people in a new way. I just don't know what that is going to be. I'm open to suggestions.

Manners? Yeah, right.

2009-09-15T07:41:00.002-04:00

Last week I was disgusted by the blatant lack of respect for authority evident in the objections to the Presiden't message to school children. But this week.... I'm saddened and despairing.

The outburst on the floor of Congress by Joe Wilson, the foul-mouthed tirade by Serena Williams during the US Open, Kanye West's drunken show of boorishness at the MTV video awards, the trash-talking at the "Town Halls" accross the country, the "pastor" on you-tube telling anyone who will listen that God hates the President.... the list goes on and on and on....whatever happened to common courtesy and having respect for yourself and others?

Don't these people understand what my mother-- and probably yours-- tried to drum into our heads as children? That behavior like this says more about the person throwing the tantrum than it does about the situation that incited them to misbehave?

Adults who respect themselves don't throw tantrums like 2-year olds. They don't lip off to the folks in charge because they didn't get their own way. They don't disrespect others who are trying to do the right thing-- even when they disagree with them. They don't bully, or demean or threaten.

These high-profile examples of bad behavior make headlines and get sound clips and make noises heard- literally- around the world in this era of instant news.

As Forrest Gump's Mama would have said, "Stupid is as stupid does."

And this week the political, entertainment and sports worlds hit the trifecta of bad behavior.

I'm ashamed and embarassed by my country this week

2009-09-10T07:15:00.002-04:00

The uproar over President Obama's address to the school children of the country mortifies me.

I'm a parent and a grandparent. I read the text of the message. It was perfectly appropriate, particularly as a message from a real-life father with children of school age.

When did Americans get so cynical and stupid? The President asked kids to work hard, study, take responsibility for their futures, wash their hands, and respect themselves and others. It told them that their circumstances are just that-- they are not excuses for not caring, not trying, and not believing that they are capable of shaping their own futures.

It's called self-respect and-- dare I say it?-- old fashioned patiotism, people.

Personal and civil responsibility.

It was a concept that John Kennedy invoked with his famous "Ask not what your country can do for you. . ." (which I clearly remember hearing live--and being inspired by-- when I was a student) and other presidents from Ronald Regan, George HW Bush, FDR, TR, Harry Truman, Jimmy Carter, and so many others from all sides of the political aisle have espoused for as long as we have been a country.

What happened to us?

It's Vacation Season Again

2009-05-20T23:20:00.002-04:00

I travel a lot. In fact, I travel for a living, and I genuinely like to travel when I'm not working, too.
I know that I'm not typical.

Some folks only travel long distances once or twice a year, if that. And, with warm weather and schools geting ready to close for the summer, many of those folks will soon be boarding the same airplanes I do to get to work every week.

So, if you haven't boarded a US carrier for a while, let me bring you up to speed. If you're flying coach, it's neither elegant nor particularly simple. The price quoted to you on Expedia or Travelocity probably didn't include about $40-60 worth of taxes and fees, and it most certainly didn't include baggage charges, refreshments,

Here are some tips to adequately prepare travelers for their summer vacation flight.

Attitude: Don't argue with the airline personnel or TSA. If you have a problem, discuss it calmly. Otherwise you could get booted off a flight or arrested. I'm not kidding. They don't mess around.
Seating: On regional commuter flights there is typically no first or business class. Most airlines now charge a premium for the "better" seats. Kids and the infirm cannot fly in exit rows.
Luggage: There is no such thing as free checked baggage on most carriers any more (in coach-- business and first class are another ball of wax). Please just suck it up and pay the fee for that oversized roller bag, sports equipment, birthday gift, stuffed animal, LCD Projector, baby doll or other item that is too large to fit in the overhead compartment. That's what all the nice, literate people who played by the rules did at check-in.--No, you may not ask the nice person in the next seat to ride with their feet smashed so that you can put it in the space under their seat. It's your stuff, and unless you are paying for their seat, that's their space. (And, flight attendants, do not give the person who refuses that, "What a jerk!" look. I paid to check my bag so that I wouldn't have to be uncomfortable. Unless you want to reimburse me for the baggage fees I happily pay, I want some place to put my feet.)
Getting through security: Find out before you leave what you can and cannot bring on board in your carry on luggage, what kind of ID you need, etc. The answer is HERE Take five minutes and read it, and make sure you follow the rules. The TSA folks will not make a special exception for you, no matter how nice you are, or how much you complain. The people behind you in line will appreciate your consideration.
Decent food in airports? Depends. If you're going to or through some place like Atlanta, you'll have food choices. No matter where you go, it may be overpriced. If you're going to or through some place like Tallahassee or Akron, (regional airports) the choices are very limited. If you are flying before 8 AM or after 10 PM, even in a large airport, you may be limited to the kind of stuff sold at the local gas station---- at two or three times the price. Since 9/11, you probably won't get real silverware in concourse restaurants, so unless you like eating salad with a plastic fork..... Just a heads up.
Gifts: Do not wrap gifts you're taking on the plane. Security officers may have to unwrap gifts if they need to take a closer look. Wait until your destination to wrap them. Gift bags and tissue in your luggage work wonders.
Screaming Kids: If you are traveling with children, their behavior is your responsibility. Screaming nonstop for 2 hours may be an indication that your child is not ready for air travel. (I am a parent and grandparent. I understand your dilemma. I just don't think you have the right to make 100 other people miserable because Johnny or Janie is having a bad day.) Consult your pediatrician in advance for help in mananging your child's inflight behavior. An adult who screamed nonstop for an entire flight would be arrested on arrival. They don't arrest children, but it would be nice if the other people on the plane with could have a pleasant experience, rather than a migraine.
Family Groups: If you are not able to be seated together, make sure that the child you've seated next to a stranger is old enough to be self-sufficient. Other customers are not there to baybysit your kids. If you wouldn't leave them home alone, don't leave them out of your sight here, either.
Baby Hygiene: Even if the seat beside you is empty, that's not an appropriate place to change a diaper. Please use the restroom, and ask the flight attendant to dispose of the soiled diaper properly. Nothing like arriving at your first appointment of the day smelling like a big bag of poop.
Coffee, Tea or....You gotta be kidding--Depending on the airline, there may be NO FREE REFRESHMENTS OF ANY SORT on your flight. This includes water. If you do not want to pay the inflated prices for in-flight refreshments, please provide your own. (Remember that fluids of more than 3 oz cannot be carried through security, so you'll have to pay the inflated terminal prices. Catch 22. To avoid this, I carry an empty water bottle with me when I go through security, and fill it from the water fountain afterward. When you travel as much as I do, those $3-4 bottles of water in the airport shops get annoying.
Climate Control: The A/C and Heating doesn't work properly until the plane is in the air. The longer people mess around trying to get settled the more uncomfortable it gets in there. (another good reason to check your bags) If you're also forced to sit on the tarmac waiting for takeoff or waiting for the gate to be ready to deplane on arrival, it's going to get nasty in there. Please bathe before boarding, avoid overuse of colognes and perfumes and dress appropriately.
Delays and Cancellations- Airlines basically have no responsibility for getting you to your destination on time. Bad weather-- even if it is the weather in a city that is completely unrelated to your travel pairs-- gives them a complete "get out of jail free card" when it comes to delays or cancellations. Even if your flight is delayed several hours due to equipment problems or a late crew, there is no mechanism in place to help you inform others who may be waiting for you of the delay.
Lost Luggage- Don't put anything in your checked luggage that you need immediately upon arrival. Oh, they don't really LOSE things very often, but they do get delayed a lot, especially if you have connecting flights and less than an hour layover. So don't put prescriptions, your car keys, the notes for your meeting, or the clothes that you need to wear to that meeting/ wedding/ party in there. They'll typically get the delayed bags to you within 24 hours. Of course, they sometimes leave them out on the tarmac in the rain, so the contents may be damp/ruined, the wheels may be broken off, and the TSA may have caught your clothing in the zippers when they inspected them. (all of these things have happened to me more than once this year) but they're not responsible for any of that.

Butterfly Conservatory

2009-05-12T15:32:00.000-04:00

Put me in a city with buterflies and a camera, and I'm likely to go there. Was with a tour and didn't have nearly enough time... shot all of these in less than 30 minutes

http://picasaweb.google.com/jpkabala/OntarioButterflyConservatory#

A visit to the greenhouse

2009-05-12T10:18:00.000-04:00

Click the title or go to http://picasaweb.google.com/jpkabala/NiagaraGreenhouse# to see sone shots from my early morning trip to the greenhouse

Goodbye to Niagara

2009-05-11T11:12:00.001-04:00

Getting ready to pack my bag....this has been a lovely weekend. I'm glad I did this.....

I Like Canada

2009-05-09T18:00:00.000-04:00

Why don't I come here more often? It's not that far, it's pretty, the people are nice, I speak the language (mostly) and there's lots of stuff to do. I could have spent the entire day at the botanical garden! But the trip behind the falls was a complete hoot.

Oh, Canada

2009-05-08T19:42:00.002-04:00

Canada's been on my mind since the last trip to Shanghai. (I had layovers in both Toronto and Vancouver). When it turned out that I was going to make a trip to Toronto, I decided to treat myself to a side trip to Niagara. Good move.
No Motel 6--I'm here during the "shoulder" season, and the rates are reasonable, so I booked a falls view room on the 22nd floor of the Marriott, (the price difference between a parking lot view and a falls view was minmal) and the view of both the American and Horseshoe (Canadian) falls is freaking amazing.

Now, let me tell you about NF, CA. There are several decidedly different ways to do this. If you like crap and/or have small kids who need to be "entertained" there is the whole Clifton Hill scene-- the wax museums, miniature golf, water parks, Ripley's, yada yada. Not my scene. (Have a great time if it is yours.) But at the other end of the falls is the grownup scene--nice restaurants, the casino, elegant shops, gorgeous views, ----less honky-tonk and Mickey D's and more brie and chardonnay. And in between is some of the most beautiful natural scenery, a gorgeous botanical garden, and a fair amount of history to be learned (and/or re-evaluated from a more mature viewpoint.)

Tomorrow is my seriously touristy day-- The last time I was on the Maid of the Mists I was in grade school, so I decided I absolutely positively had to do it this trip. I feel about 10 years old.... I got my car out of the hotel garage and tried to find some of the places I remembered from my first trip here with my parents when I was a kid. Alas, the "famous" Fox Head Inn and restaurant with the horrible food burned down in the 60's. (a family joke for years! Dad called it the Fox's Butt-- well, he didn't say "butt"-- Dad was rather colorful! ) The German restaurant seems a lot more Disney-fied than I remember it being, and the reviews on line aren't encouraging so I decided to pass, but it is still the same place with the same owners. Since I was driving East, not West, I didn't come through as much rural PA, but I'm keeping my eyes open for Goats Milk Fudge and that ungodly sweet maple candy. I remember loving it. A friend sent me some as a joke a couple of years ago--- ugh~ what was I thinking?

Going to clean up a little and hit the casino after dinner. I don't really gamble, so it will be more in the nature of people watching--- and perhaps a Mother's Day nod to my own Mom who LOVED slot machines.

Oriental Pearl Tower and Shanghai History Museum

2009-01-25T22:21:00.002-05:00

Saw Shanghai's iconic tower up close and personal, and Shanghai itself from the top.

Then went to the History Museum to learn about ancient China, the opium wars, the influence of the Jesuits, the foreign concessions, even opium dens, pleasure houses, the cotton trade, the opera, teahouses, the city's extraordinary architecture, and the popularity of coffee in Shanghai....and many other things.... but not a single reference to Mao or the Cultural Revolution. Thought that was ....odd. It was as though time stopped from 1935 through 1985, then just picked back up again without explanation here.

On the other hand, you can spend time in most museums in DC without seeing a whole lot about the Triangle Trade, Red Baiting, Teapot Dome, or Blackwater, so maybe it's not so strange. :-) We all have things we may not want to talk about with visitors.

People's Square-- and a stupidity tax

2009-01-24T12:35:00.004-05:00

OK, I decided after 6 weeks of grueling 15-18 hour work days, that I was going to take a whole day off. After all, I'm in Shanghai, and for all I've seen of it, it might as well be Cleveland or Tampa.

Click the link above for the big album.
a few more pictures from the park at
http://picasaweb.google.com/jpkabala/Peoples_SquarePark#

A week ago I took half a day off and saw some of the old city, but the next day I was so sick that I barely made it to the local equivalent of a Wal-Mart for soup and cold meds before I felt like I'd been run over by a truck. I am still coughing, and my voice is not my own, but today was the clearest, sunniest day we've had since I arrived (the rain has washed most of the smog away for a while) and, though it was COLD and windy, I couldn't stand being cooped up in my high-rise hotel any longer.

So, I bundled myself up, packed the Nikon and lenses in my shoulder bag, and headed for People's Square.

Sounds very Cold-War Mao Era, right? Think again. It is a very capitalistic beehive of shopping, theaters, art museums, and New Shanghai Architecture. It is Chicago's Miracle Mile (Complete with Brooks Brothers, Adidas, Reebok and Nike stores) meets Atlanta's Buckhead. That's been the biggest revelation to this 50+ visitor to China in 2009. For someone who grew up on images of folks in Mao jackets living and working in a "Communist Country" the reality of the PRC in 2009 has taken some getting used to.

The people I've met here are delightful, well-educated, curious about Americans (everyone I've met here has asked me what I think about our new President), gracious, ........once you get past the cultural differences in regard to personal space and what is, and is not, appropriate chitchat with a virtual stranger.

During yesterday's walk around the square, I was repeatedly approached by young couples in their late teens or early 20's. They all wanted to practice their English with an American, and in exchange, would be delighted to show me "their" Shanghai dressed up for the big holiday. ("There is a folk art exhibit over there. Would you like me to explain it to you?" "There are singers performing in the mall. We are on our way. Would you like to join us?" "You should come back to the museum tomorrow morning. There are special exhibits for the holiday, but it takes a long time to see them properly. My friends are coming tomorrow. Would you like to join us? I am an art student, and my friend is studying to be a history teacher." "There will be fireworks tomorrow near the river. If you like, I can tell you some of the best places to stand to see them.")

If I'd been approached by someone like that in an American city, I'd be clutching my wallet and camera a little closer, and looking for the nearest cop. These were just sweet kids who, seeing a fifty-five year-old Caucasian woman with a camera walking by herself, wondered what the heck I was about. When they found out I was from the States, and I worked in IT, and was...well, instructional designer is always a little tough to explain, so I opted for "teacher and technical writer" you would have thought I was a long-lost auntie being welcomed home for the holiday. I politely declined, but the whole process was fascinating.

But shopping in Shanghai is still very stressful for me. Oh, I've mastered the currency and the exchange rate, but even when I have my Mandarin-speaking friends along the bigger issue is the Chinese sense of personal space-- they don't believe in it. In shops and on street corners, absolute strangers crowd right up against you. And if I hang back a bit to allow some space between myself and the person in front of me, three people squeeze into the gap. I'm sure I must make people nuts here. I leave what they would consider way too much room between myself and other people in the grocery, or on escalators -- and- oh, God, elevators. I never realized how freaked out I would be by this. The other day at the office I found myself shrinking back against the back wall of the elevator because there were so many people in the small confined space with me.

But now for my "stupidity tax" story.....

I thought I had mastered the "I don't speak Mandarin, but I need a taxi" deal. I had the bilingual guys at the concierge desk write out the places that I wanted to go for me, and I put them in my pocket. To get back to the hotel, I had that nailed, too! The hotel provides little business card-sized things that have "Please take me to the Ramada Plaza Pudong" in several languages on one side, and a street map with landmarks on the other. This process has worked very well.... up until today.

After spending a few hours wandering around People's Square, I hailed a taxi to go back to the hotel. I handed my little card to the cabbie. He smiled and started to drive. Suddenly, nothing looked familiar. I thought maybe he was taking a different route to avoid traffic at first, but the sun was in the wrong part of the sky. I tried, unsuccessfully, to make him understand that we were going the wrong way. But his English wasn't any better than my Mandarin. 45 minues later, we pull up under the porte cochere of the Ramada Pudong Airport. Thank heavens, the bellman there spoke flawless English, and I asked him to explain to the taxi driver that we were at the WRONG Ramada. That I needed to be at the other side of the Pudong district. The cab from People's square should have been about 45RMB ($6.50) Instead, it cost me about 150 RMB to get to the wrong place, and another 100 RMB to get back to the right hotel. Not the worst thing that ever happened to anyone, but a good reason to learn to speak more Mandarin.

Off to Explore

2009-01-23T22:56:00.002-05:00

Going to try to do a little exploration today- without the buffer of my Mandarin-speaking colleagues. They are both off to visit their families for Spring Festival (Chinese New Year) Could be liberating, or terrifying... but when I have I ever been afraid of a challenge?

So the Nikon and I are off to see Shanghai my way. Slowly, thoughtfully, silently. With time to change lenses and worry about the angle of the light. :-) It's pretty cold and I'm still kind-of sick, but I'll take it slow and see what occurs.

Wish me luck.

Work, work, work

2009-01-22T16:54:00.002-05:00

Exhausted. Burned Out. Sick. My days start before 6 am and end after midnight. Demands in Shanghai, demands in the States. And the pressure to be all things to all people is unrelenting. I'm doing everything I can and it is still not enough-- for them, or for me.

No one who hasn't walked in these shoes can really understand what it's like. I've gone from having one body and 2 full time jobs to one body and 4 full time jobs - well, make that closer to 5- in incompatible time zones. Merchandising, SC, Services, Administrative stuff ..... And the demands for my time and help and just plain presence in a specific place at a specific time are simply overwhelming.

When I get home, all I want to do is have some silence and privacy. No e-mail, no people, no phones, no conference calls, no Skype.

Lord, I've come to hate Skype with a passion. I know it is a necessary evil, but it feels so intrusive. I get up at 5AM so that I can find a little time to work and think without interruption, and, because I'm a walking zombie from illness and exhuastion, I forget to change the default to "unavailable"-- and before I can write the first paragraph I have four "chats" and a phone call popping up because it is 3PM in the States and everyone wants to check in before they leave the office.

By the time I get all the Skype stuff answered and get back to what I got up early to do it's time to check my e-mail. Outlook here is a nightmare. It can take as much as 2 hours to get through the typical overnight volume of mail from work, and I have 2 other accounts to check- my Pittsburgh office account and my (gasp) personal mail. I connect to the client Outlook system and hit the shower while the mail trickles in. I wrap a towel around my hair while I sort the messages into "deal with this now," "deal with this later," and "I can't think about this right now." If the phone doesn't ring again while I'm trying to dress, I access the other 2 accounts while I do so. I still haven't written a paragraph of the work I got up early to get done.

I'm finally dressed and my hair is semi-dry, and I sit back down to write a little before breakfast. But I notice in my "deal with it now" e-mail that overnight, I've received 3 or 4 urgent meeting requests overnight from the states-- all before noon, because they are on the other side of the planet. OK, deal with that stuff.

By now I want to scream. But I'll settle for walking away from my electronic leash long enough to eat the only normal meal I'm going to get today. (Lunch, I know by now, will either be a pleasant but chaotic communal affair or something grabbed quickly and eaten enroute to somewhere. Dinner will either be very late, or soup and noodles in my room eaten with one hand while I type with the other.)

I take a book to breakfast, hoping to read a little and calm down while I eat-- but am typically joined by one or more of the folks from the project. So now I have to be social before caffeine. Not my finest hour of the day. I still haven't written anything.

I grab my laptop and head for the office. My first phone call of the day is the states. "When are we going to see the stuff you've written?" I resist the desire to put my fist through the screen. I reply as politely as I can, I'm working on it, but things are a little chaotic here. "You know you have due dates." Yes, I do, and as soon as I figure out how to manufacture some time and space and privacy to write, I will let myself think about how far behind I am.

I finally carve out a block of time to write. I finish something that's only about a week late. I try to upload it to the server so that people in 6 different time zones can read and approve it. THE FREAKING SERVER WON'T LET ME UPLOAD THE FILE. I break the file into smaller parts and try again. No such luck. I try to e-mail it. Have I mentioned that Outlook is a nightmare? No such luck. I've now wasted an hour and a half trying to get the completed file to the people who are waiting for it. In a fit of creativity, I pull out my credit card and buy some space on a commercial server , do a little notepad HTML coding, and voila! folks in five countries can now get the file. But that takes another hour I don't have.

This is insane.

The Spirit is willing.....

2009-01-19T02:34:00.002-05:00

...but the flesh is weak. My voice started turning raspy on Thursday, and by Friday COB, was decidedly gravelly. Saturday I was hoarse, and by Sunday afternoon, my voice was completely gone.

A part of me wants to believe, since I have never felt "sick" (just really worn out and crappy) that this is some sort of allergic something or other, but, without being too gross, there are some indications that this is an infection. So Sunday night I haul myself off to the local Superstore to try and find some cough syrup and cough drops. Thankfully, I had Dina with me, because while Crest, Nivea and Tropicana all have made the Pacific crossing painlessly, Robitussin and Halls have not.

So I meet the Chinese herbalist. Dressed like a pharmacist and working behind the pharmacy counter, she is a woman perhaps 10 yesrs my senior, and radiates calm and confidence. Through the interpreter, she asks me what is wrong. I tell her that I have no voice, but I am not really coughing much and I have no pain in my throat. She think a moment, and hands me a slip of paper and points toward the cash register. I am charged the equivalent of $2.25, and I receive a yellow box with 400 small black pills blister packed inside. I am supposed to take 6 of the pills, 3 times a day.

Figuring that there are 1.4 Billion Chinese who have been using remedies like this for generations, I make a leap of faith and try it. I am here to teach, and I cannot teach without a voice.

I think the stuff just might work. I definitely sound better today, but whether that's the herbs or the tea with lemon and honey and chicken soup (**my** grandmother's cure) I've also been downing? Can't be sure. The congestion in my chest is better, and if I don't yet sound like myself, I do have a voice that can be hear d by other humans.

Shopping and Sightseeing in Shanghai

2009-01-18T03:15:00.001-05:00

Pictures from yesterday's sightseeing and shopping excursion

How Suite it is!

2009-01-16T14:03:00.003-05:00

Some pictures of my suite on the 30th floor of the Residences at the Ramada Plaza Pudong

Adventures in Food and Drink

2009-01-14T13:14:00.003-05:00

I've actually liked most of the food I've tried here, (even some strange stuff that initially looked less than appetizing has tasted pretty good) but yesterday.... ummm.... it was a mixed bag.

The first food-based discovery of the day was all my own fault. At Carrefours with Dina the night before, I picked up a 1.5 liter bottle of Kirin orange juice. They had Tropicana and Minute Maid, but I wanted something more "authentic." Every day, the breakfast bar at the hotel has several juices, but none of them are orange, and Floridian and citrus lover that I am, I was missing my daily OJ. Note to self: just drink the grapefruit juice and move on. Lisha has confirmed that OJ here is not even remotely like OJ in the States. Kirin OJ? Think watered down Sunny Delight.

Breakfast at the hotel is great. I've discovered that I really like hot, steamed soy milk and all these cool little steamed dumpling things filled with meat or vegetables, and there was a bread and egg custard stuff that is similar to an unsweet bread pudding that I thought might be the ideal way to start a day. Not too eggy, not too sweet, not brick-like or grossly runny and gelatinous. (I'd think it would be completely perfect in a savory version with herbs or a just slightly sweeter version with no more sweetener, but using currants or leftover raisin bread). I'm also a fan of the Chinese take on yogurt, which is drinkable and unflavored and unsweet.

I've been opting for the Chinese breakfast dishes, because a lot of the Western stuff that the hotel does for the business and tourist crowd is amusingly "just about one bubble off plumb"- Sometimes really good, sometimes so-so, never awful, but never quite what you are expecting when you bite into it. Take breakfast sausage links. They look like the stuff at the local Bob Evans or Waffle House, and they're not bad, but whoever made them has obviously never had breakfast in the States. The seasoning is entirely too subtle for someone conditioned to being bludgeoned with pepper and sage. :-) Imagine biting into what looks like an apple and finding out it tastes like a plum. Not bad- sometimes really yummy- just disconcerting. That's what eating some of the Western food here is like. Since I have no preconceptions about the local dishes, I can take them at face value.

For dinner, I convinced Lisha to take me someplace that had real food that a real local would eat. So the responsibility for what transpired is entirely mine.

It was...interesting. Local color, off the radar of the western-influenced businesses that circle the business park and expat hotels and apartments. Families dining in what was clearly a neighborhood joint. Everywhere I go, I seek out places like this, but in China, it really helps to have someone who speaks the language in joints like this. Bad enough I'm big and blonde and ever-so-Western, being illiterate wasn't going to be a plus. I felt it was important to my understanding of Shanghai and folks who live and work here to get out there in the real world.

So it was an adventure . What it wasn't was yummy. The only reason I don't feel like a wuss is because Lisha's typically low key comment at the end of the meal was, "I don't think I'd rush back here."

The fish with sweet and sour sauce and topped with pine nuts sounded good in theory. I like sweet and sour sauce, I love pine nuts, and I'm determined to learn to eat more fish because of the health benefits. But when this fish arrived, it was grimacing at me as though it was pissed off to be dipped in pink sauce. Creeped out by the intact head and tail, it took me a while to get up the courage to taste it. I eventually got a piece into my mouth. It didn't taste bad, but the texture was very strange. Choking it down, I moved on. Not since college and Liane's mother's scary Vietnamese food or the marathon dinners with Steve-the-Jerk-From-Mitsubishi (the pretentious bozo I dated in Atlanta for a while) have I relied on my will to remain polite at the dinner table in quite the same way.

The vegetable dish was actually quite good. I like vegetables, and nothing about them can creep me out. There was some sort of dark green leafy stuff mixed with what I believe were rice-based noodles. Tasted like kale or mustard greens, something I rarely need to be compelled to eat. Unfortunately, I was a complete klutz with the slick red plastic chopsticks, so unless I wanted to wear it, I was in trouble. (Note to self. Suck it up and put a fork in your purse. It will save on dry cleaning)

The boiled chicken in skin, served cold with a soy-based dipping sauce was innocuous enough, but I'd had a similar dish, much more attractively and tastily prepared, the night before, so the best I can say for it is that it was inoffensive protein. When hacked into strips with a cleaver, they'd shattered all the bones, so there was no particularly elegant way to eat it. Bite, chew, spit out bone fragments. Lather, rinse, repeat.

I'd ordered hot and sour soup-- which is something I very much like. Hey, tofu, vegetables and spicy broth. How could I go wrong? (The other soup on the menu was chicken blood soup, and I couldn't go there.) I like all those things. It was OK-- neither the best nor worst I've ever had. Unfortunately, it was about 2 degrees above room temperature, so it was a little like eating hot and sour aspic.

Figuring that, since I was freezing, a cup of tea sounded good, I ordered one. The presentation in a clear 4-ounce glass reminded me of the Russian restaurant in Little Odessa in MN that I stumbled into one day, but the comparison ended there. The fact that the glass was nearly half full of tea leaves was a surprise. Not awful, not warming, and not what I was expecting.

So yesterday was a food fiasco day, but if that's the worse thing I can say, I'm doing pretty well.

Happy New Year, Pooh!

2009-01-14T13:09:00.001-05:00

I think these are a complete hoot! Pooh in traditional Chinese garb, Eeyore munching on a scroll, Tigger decked out for a dragon dance ...And, yes, kids I am bringing these home for you. (and maybe even one for you, Dorrie!)

A different perspective- Day 2

2009-01-14T12:25:00.001-05:00

Shanghai, day 2:

Click the title for more pictures.
Click the picture to enlarge.

Yesterday, I took a number of photos from the smokers balcony of the BBY office building. Today's shots are of the BBY office and our Pudong neighborhood from my hotel room.

On the left side of today's index photo, you will see a gray and green office building. Look carefully at the far upper right corner of that building and you'll see the familiar yellow and black BBY tag logo. For the past couple of days. my desk has been just a few feet from that logo, on the fifth floor of that building.

Look carefully again, and follow the fifth floor across to the left, and you'll see a couple of orange spots. Those are the umbrella tables on the smokers balcony-- the spot from which I took yesterday's photos.

Clearly, my hotel is just a quick walk from the office.

Despite the fact that the Chinese call the holiday that surrounds Chinese New Year on the 26th the "Spring Festival," you can see from the barren trees and brown lawns that it is still very much late winter here. Weather has been in the 40's - certainly doable, compared to the Arctic conditions that our colleagues in Minneapois and Cleveland, but hardly balmy and springlike.

I topped off my day yesterday by falling - HARD- on the concrete and pebble path that surronds the lake. I really bashed my knee and scared Lisha when I couldn't immediately get up, but I'll be fine. I had Neosporin and Band-aids in my suitcase.

The city is beginning to become awash in red-- the lobby of the hotel now features a tree festooned with red envelopes. The park workers were hanging red lanterns in the branches of the trees that line the path to the office. The entrances of buildings are draped in red and white lights, and red is everywhere, everywhere in shop windows and displays. Even on the Disney New Year's tissue packages I couldn't resist at Carrefour

First Shots from Shanghai

2009-01-13T16:32:00.000-05:00

I haven't had a lot of playtime since I arrived, and I have yet to break out the Nikon, but here are a few shots taken with my tiny pocket Sony.

Since one of the reasons for me to come here early was to make connections and "win hearts and minds" I have to be careful to be sensitive to local sensibilities and to appear focused on my task, so I haven't been on a serious photo shoot since I got here. But I did escape the office for a few minutes yesterday afternoon, and stepped out on to the "smokers balcony" of the Best Buy building to make quick snaps of the surrounding architecture and the lake that sits in the center of the office park in which I am working.

The tall building on the left here is my hotel- The Ramada Plaza Pudong, and the one on the right is a very striking building which appears to have both residential and commercial tenants. (a bank, some apartments, and some others.)

The most of the skyline in this part of town could be Atlanta or any big city anywhere, but when you get down to street level, you know you are nowhere else on earth. Major streets and large businesses in this part of town-- dominated by expats and visiting Western business people-- have signs in both Chinese and pinyin, and many have English signs as well. The logos on the buildings are those you would see in any corporate park in the US - Not just Best Buy, but Kodak, Jack Daniels, etc. But don't look up too intently-- or you'll be nailed by someone on a motorbike driving with absolutely no regard for traffic laws.

Things that surprise me here--
The fact that smoking is not the cultural anathema that it has become in the States-- There are lovely crystal ashtrays and boxes of matches everywhere in my suite, and restaurants have smoking sections. Instead of forcing smokers to huddle 50 feet from the entrance to the building, there is a redwood deck with a view of the lake and umbrella tables at the office.

And I still have yet to see a vending machine-- for anything. Well, there are ATM's, but I haven't seen a Coke machine, or a newspaper box, or a machine to purchase a bottle of water or a snack--- though those items are readily available in shops that range from Carrefours (an experience not to be believed-- think Sam's Club meets a Flea Market meets Filene's basement-- on steroids) to small Mom and Pops that remind me of the corner bodegas you'd find in any urban area.

Chinese food is not what most Americans think of as "Chinese Food"- It's a huge country, so there are enomous ranges, of course, but it is not typically the obnoxiously salty or overpoweringly spicy stuff found in your local take out place. The dishes I have tried so far are basically simple-- but there is a facinating and often baffling array of condiments served with these simple preparations of chicken or meat or seafood or vegetables that allow the diner to create a one-of-a-kind meal from the standard offering. I've also learned to close my eyes and taste, rather than judge things by their appearance. Some things that look unappealing actually taste really good.

And I love the fact that breakfast here is not the maple-syrup covered sugar fest or eggs and pig-of-some-sort cholesteral fest that it often can become in the States. Though those things are certainly available. (But why would I travel to Asia to eat the same stuff I can eat in the Residence Inn in MN?) Yesterday I had the most amazing savory vegetable-filled bun. The bread was not unlike challah- a rich, braided egg bread- filled with mixed chopped vegetables. And fruits that I didn't recognize, but thoroughly enjoyed. (a black and white relative of the Kiwi that neither Lisha nor Dina had a western name for). Since I've never been a big fan of traditional American breakfast food, this is a delight.

And I've had 2 excellent guides to understanding local culture- Lisha and Dina. I need to go now, but perhaps later or tomorrow, I'll talk about going to Carrefour with Lisha and some of the folks from the office at lunch time, and then going back after dinner with Dina to do some shopping. Dina was almost beside herself with delight over this very Chinese experience, laughing out loud and smiling from ear-to-ear at the readily available treats and staples that she remembers from her life here, but cannot readily find in the US. And Lisha's personality is more reserved, but it is clear that there is the same sense of "coming home" that I feel when I land in Philadelphia, find myself surrounded by real cheesesteaks and pretzels and water ice-- all the treats of my childhod there-- and not their "mall food" version cousins.

This trip has been a chance to see Shanghai through their eyes-- but also to wonder how Minneapolis and LA look to someone who doesn't really thik of them as the "standard."

Post Debate Thoughts

2008-10-04T02:12:00.003-04:00

Well it's over, you betcha. (wink wink)

Sarah sure is a maverick, huh? (wink wink) Oh, not in the sense of an iconoclast or revolutionary thinker, but in the original sense of the word--She's an unbranded cow, her origins murky and her fate in the hands of whomever lays claim to her.

You know, I'm going to a kids soccer game in the morning, and I bet if I asked any parent there with an IQ over 70, they'd tell me she's an insult to professional women everywhere. (wink wink)

It was clear that she was coached by W's debate people--- he can't pronounce nuclear, either.

If I were Geraldine Ferrarro, I'd want to bitch slap her. If I were Hillary Clinton, I would do it. Oh, I'd make it look like an accident, but I'd find a way.

And I'd like to give a shout out to the kids in my grandson's second grade class.... He asked me tonight what a Vice President did.... and I told him even if he didn't know the answer for another 35 years, he could probably be one some day. But just in case he wanted to be, he'd better learn to wink. Apparently, that's a primary job skill.

In truth, she wasn't as awful as I expected her to be. She reads and memorizes answers well.
But as a former competitive debater and debate coach, it was clear to me that that is exactly what she was doing.

Her cutesy mannerisms and folksy BS got on my nerves, and if this was a scholastic or collegiate debate, my notes on the session would have told her to leave the coquettishness and simpering at the door, to show the opponent and the moderator some respect, and act like a professional asking for a $100K/yr job, not the head cheerleader trying to get elected to prom queen.

(Jayzu, even ninth grade debaters would have known to tell Katie Couric that they read Time, Newsweek, US News, the Wall Street Journal and the NY Times and Washington Post. )

Here's the thing, Sarah (can I call you Sarah?) I know you think your constituency is "Joe Sixpack"-- --but you're asking for a job that's the professional equivalent to the vice presidency of a multinational corporation.... and there aren't a lot of folksy Hockey Moms and good-old-boy Joe Sixpacks in those board rooms.

You probably were a pretty good mayor. You might have been a decent governor to one of the smallest states in the union (by population, not land mass). But you're completely out of your league now, sweetie. You're asking for a job that will frequently make you a most visual representative of the US, and I can't help wondering if you are even vaguely up to the challenge. Your unrehearsed speech is often all but incoherent, and you clearly don't understand the background or nuances of many of the issues a VP is asked to deal with.

I'm afraid to say that you make Dan Quale and Spiro Agnew look like geniuses, Sarah. At least they didn't think everything could be (lip) glossed over with a wink and a smile. You betcha.

OK, I admit it....

2008-10-02T17:18:00.002-04:00

Sarah Palin bugs the ever-loving crap out of me.

She reminds me of all the small-minded, self-righteous bozos I have spent a lifetime avoiding,

It's not just her stance on a woman's right to have control over her own health care. It's not just because she thinks shooting animals from helicopters is a fine way to spend a family outing. It's not because she thinks that governmental censorship of ideas is not a gross abuse of the First Amendment. It's not because she shares a scary us-and-them mentality when it comes to people with different belief systems than her own. It's not just because she hasn't a clue what is happening in the world beyond the borders of her small-town existence.

It is because she is closed-minded, ill-informed, and ignorant--- and she's so damned proud of it.

From day one, I have found her snide "humor" and smarmy BS irritating, but the more I hear her, I realize that she is not the clueless deer in the headlights that so many in the media would have us believe--- she's a socially (if not politically) savvy little witch who is using her gender to get away with things that we would not tolerate in a male candidate for half a second.

The Katie Couric interview was just plain sad. Palin's an insult to all the bright women in and out of politics who are far more qualified to speak to and for the American people.

I hope Joe Biden hands her her head tonight, but I'm afraid he won't.

Mike turns 30 today.

2008-07-08T20:00:00.002-04:00

It's official. I'm old. My baby, the son of my mind, heart and body, turns 30 today.

He has grown into a man to be loved and admired, trusted and respected. He is a far better son than I was a parent. Hell, he is even a far better parent than I ever was. Kinder, more patient, more present, more mature.

They both are, my sons. They are good men. Honorable men.

Unlike my own mother, I am not shy about telling them these things.

But that is probably the key theme in my parenting-- I did it as much unlike my own mother as I could. My mother wasn't a bad person--- over the years I came to understand that she was probably scarred up inside herself and didn't understand how badly she hurt me, but I always knew that I wasn't the kind of daughter she wanted me to be. That nothing I would ever do, or be, or accomplish would ever be enough. My successes would never balance out that primary failure. The self-loathing and self-destructive behavior that led me to the edge began in that house. I vowed that that was one cycle that would end with me. I might not be able to figure out how to fix myself, but my sons would know that I loved them without conditions.

Some of those reactionary decisions had to have been good things, but others were pretty damned stupid and awful. So, I didn't make Mom's mistakes. I made my own. And some of them were doozies.

So, where am I tonight? Half a country away, as usual. In a hotel room pounding on a computer, alone. As usual. This is the way it is, the way it has been for a very long time, and the way it is likely to be for the forseeable future.

24 years ago, just before my own 30th birthday, I looked at what my life had become, and I knew I had to change some things to survive. I guess maybe tonight I've got a raging case of the "be careful what you ask for's."

Tonight, on Mike's thirtieth, I'm wondering if the choices were the right ones. No, that's not it. There are no absolute "right" or "wrong" choices, even someone as crazy as I am knows that. But I'm wondering if it is time for yet another radical housecleaning in my life. Have I become too set in my ways? Too closed off? Have the deliberate behaviors I've cultivated in my life to get me to this point become dysfunctional now that I'm here?

Tonight I am looking at my life with the same eyes that said, at 30, "If this is as good as it is ever going to get, I've got to get out of here." I'm wondering what it is I ought to be changing to reshape the next (last?) 30 years of my life. I've made some huge changes in the past couple of years, but they were largely surface things--- I changed my geography, changed my job, I even finally bought "grown-up" furniture--- but I'm still the same isolated loner who can't seem to connect with people, except in a professional way. I get to the end of a work day or even a happy day spent with family and friends and all I want is the silence and the solitude that I have come to accept as my "off-duty" life. Even I know that's a bit odd.

So, I'm wondering... what do I do now? How do I fix what is broken before my time runs out?

A trip to the zoo with Olivia

2008-07-08T18:05:00.000-04:00

George and Elisha and I took Olivia to the zoo last Saturday.

She was THRILLED with the new jellyfish exhibit, but less enamored of the starfish touch tank.

But her most photogenic moments came when she encountered the bear statue in the play area. All day long she had been actively hiding from the camera, but suddenly she wanted to pose like the diva she is destined to become some day.

Nathan Turns 2

2008-05-20T16:01:00.000-04:00

Our beautiful boy Nathan turns 2 today. We celebrated on Sunday with a Choo Choo Thomas cake and friends and family. Pictures of his party, and his new John Deere are here

Airplane Shots Gallery

2008-05-20T15:17:00.000-04:00

Click the link HERE to see the shots taken on the return flight-- including some shots of the awe-inspiring snow-covered Rockies

Home Again

2008-05-17T17:24:00.000-04:00

It was nearly 2am local time when I got home, and there is one last gallery of photos from the trip--- some killer aerial views of the snow-capped Rockies taken from my plane. I'll get those posted after I get caught up on my mail and my laundry. Here's one as a teaser.

Thursday:Mission San Juan Bautista

2008-05-16T09:15:00.003-04:00

I needed to leave the Carmel/Monterey area before the mission at Carmel was going to be open to visitors for the day... but, as I was driving from Monterey to San Francisco, I saw the sign for Mission San Juan Bautista (John the Baptist).

See the pictures HERE.

If I lived in California, I think I'd have to make a project out of visiting and photographing all 21 missions along the Camino Real. While the adobes and the churches are interesting, the added surprise is that they all apparently have amazing walled gardens.

Unfortunately, yesterday was not the best day to be photographing a garden... or doing anything outside. A freak heat wave had temperatures over 100 F-- the first really awful weather of the trip. (10 days- one less than perfect? I can handle that!)

By noon, spending any real time out of doors was unpleasant and exhausting, so after I finished shooting the mission, I finished my drive up to the SF area and did a little shopping for gifts for folks back home and called it a day.

Well, it's Friday, and in a few hours I need to get on that plane and head back to Ohio. I hope to be able to shoot the Rockies and a few other things from the plane, but by and large this gallery is probably the last major installment of the Mental Health Tour.

The trip did what I needed it to do-- it re-aligned my vision, gave me new insights and things to think about, and was just plain fun. I saw so many things that amazed and delighted me. From newborn fauns and calves to breaching humpback whales. From tiny wildflowers to mighty redwoods. Chaotic and noisy San Francisco to the silence and majesty of Big Sur. Rough adobe missions to wedding-cake cathedrals. Urban sophistication and timeless miracles of nature.

There were things on my original itinerary I never got around to doing. I never walked up Telegraph Hill or spent time in Japantown. I went sailing in the bay instead. I never spent time in the Aquarium in Monterey. I went whale watching and spent time photographing a wild seal pup at play instead. But at some point I had to decide if I was here to relax and enjoy myself, or if I was determined to check off all the "must sees" on some list.

I have enough things I'd still love to do to justify another trip someday. But this has been a wonderful journey, and one I'll remember for a very long time.

Wednesday: More Monterey Sunset

2008-05-15T10:26:00.004-04:00

A small gallery of shots from Sunset Rd. (which is actually in Pacific Grove on the Monterey Peninsula.) Pacific Grove is a lovely quaint little town, and, oh, what a pretty waterside park! I'd love to come back here in the fall-- it's a stop on the Monach Butterfly migration. Click HERE to see the shots.

Wednesday- Big Sur - Carmel - Monterey

2008-05-15T03:02:00.001-04:00

A glorious end to a glorious day ... Went to Big Sur and Carmel today, then looped back to Montery to witness one of the most glorious sunsets ever. That photo is largely unedited. The color was actually more intense than that.

The PCH drive from Monterey to Big Sur was so beautiful-- but you have to experience it North to South, because the return trip, while pretty, doesn't begin to compare to the series of jaw-dropping vistas that you see as the road twists and turns between the coast and the mountian ridge... but be warned, your cell phone service will probably drop out shortly after you leave Carmel, and won't return between there and Big Sur. Not a day trip to take if you're waiting for an important call.

On the other hand, what you should make time for is a meal or a drink at Nepenthe-- a cliffside jewel that melts into the landscape as though it was formed by wind and rain--- but was actually designed by one of Frank Lloyd Wright's proteges, Rowan Maiden. Redwood, glass and adobe, the top level restaurant boasts a killer wine list (alas, since I am my own designated driver and the road demands your full attention, I stuck to iced tea) a small but respectable menu (you're not really here for the food) and an "oh, my, lord!" view from the terraced galleries. It's relatively pricey, but don't be scared off by the price tag. There is a more-affordable deli/bakery on the second level called Kevah, and the view is the same. On the first level is a gift shop named Phoenix, which has everythig from elegant to fun and funky things.

If you're planning on exploring Big Sur State Park, dress for serious hiking. This is a very rugged park with limited auto access, and trails are not for those who are looking for a casual nature stroll. Also (and this is the first time I've written this, even after hikes in Muir Woods and Sugarloaf in Sonoma County) make sure you have some insect repellent on hand. I've always carried it in my camera case, but on this trip needed to surrender it at the airpoint checkpoint, and I was forced back to the trailhead because I was being eaten alive.

Stopped in Carmel to see the mission on the way back-- the gates were closed, but the gardens are lush and diverse.

Wanted to be back in the Monterey area by sundown, because I'd read online that Sunset Rd. and Oceanside Dr. were the best places to watch the sunset. So, there I was, Nikon in hand--- and Mother Nature delivered up a sunset that locals said was extraordinary even for the Monterey Peninsula.

Checking out of my Monterey hotel this morning and drifting back north so that I'll be closer to the airport on Friday. Saw some things on the drive down from San Francisco that I want to explore on the return trip.

Click the title link or click HERE to see the pictures.

Tuesday: Monterey Bay, Pebble Beach

2008-05-14T10:51:00.004-04:00

Monterey/Carmel/Pebble Beach is a great destination. What Jamestown or Plymouth is to the East Coast, Monterey is to the West Coast. So there's miles and miles of beach, tons of history, cool animals, great things to do....(there's even nightlife). Even the city parks and cute little mom-and-pop shops and restaurants are interesting.

Went out on a whale watch boat this morning, Saw several humpbacks. Gave me chills, they were so huge and so amazing. (and so close-- a baby humpback passed about 15 feet from the boat-- imagine seeing a wild whale the size of a schoolbus on the other side of your family room.) My pictures don't do them justice. I was so in awe of them I was often too slow in pressing the shutter.

Not a trip for the faint of heart or weak of stomach, though. Monterey Bay sure isn't Tampa Bay-- the first hour of the trip out to the feeding grounds was one continual roller coaster ride. Should have listened and taken Dramamine beforehand. Didn't get sick, but it was touch and go for about 20 minutes. And I don't **get** motion sick. Left at 10 AM, got back just before 1PM. The marine biologist on the boat was a complete hoot. Not only did she have the skinny on all the animals we saw (whales, seals, otters, murres, cormorants, turtles, etc.) but she was really funny. Told her she needs a new title- "Whale Diva"

Then I drove the 17-mile Drive through Pebble Beach along the coast to Carmel-- Passed the pupping grounds for the seals and sea lions--- Spring is definitely the right time to be here. The whales are migrating, the seals are out in force, the sea otters are reappearing, the deer and their fauns are out in the parks, the Monarch butterflies are passing through, the wildflowers everywhere are gorgeous....

This place is just too cool. Even without San Francisco itself, this would be a powerful and full itinerary. Add in the city to Muir Woods, Point Reyes, PCH, Sonoma, Napa, and now Monterey and Carmel.....I could spend a month here and just barely scratch the surface of stuff to do. And, I'm madly in love with the seals and the otters. They are too cute.

This trip was a gift from me to me---a little self-indulgent, probably, but I have loved every single moment of it, and I'm finding it hard to regret anything about it. I haven't really followed my original itinerary, but the spur of the moment changes (even the occaisional wrong turn) have all been great fun.

Tuesday's pictures are HERE

Monday: Monterey

2008-05-12T21:30:00.002-04:00

Checked out of my Sonoma hotel and drove back across the Golden Gate Bridge to Monterey and Carmel.

Spent some time at the Old Custom House and the Old Fisherman's Wharf, but most of the photos were taken at a pretty little park that runs along the coastline.

The photos from Monday are HERE

That's where I saw this little guy who completely stole my heart. Clearly a juvenile, and "playing" all by himself, in an area about a football field away from the rest of the sea lions. Climbing on and off the rocks, floating on his back, "waving" his flippers in the air.... He was kind of a klutz-- but seemed to be having a great time.

Californians probably take this stuff for granted, but the whole concept of sea lions and seals just being there, like seagulls or pelicans, just blows me away. THEY'RE FREAKING SEALS, (or, in this case, sea lions) right there! How can you not be jazzed by that?

It's not that I'm unused to the beach--- I've probably spent at least part of every year of my life close to salt water of some sort. Growing up, my grandparents lived a couple of blocks from the Atlantic coast. And then my parents moved to th Florida Gulf Coast, and I eventually moved there to take care of my Mom when she became ill. Working and living in the Tampa/Clearwater area put the beach minutes from my home and office doors. When I lived in landlocked Atlanta, trips to Savannah and elswehere recharged my batteries, and when I was living in Tallahassee, I escaped to salt water whenever I could-- whether that was St. Marks, St. Augustine, Jacksonville, or Sandestin and the Emerald Coast......trips to Boston, Miami, the Carolina beaches, Delaware beaches, the Chesapeake Bay.... from Maine to New Orleans, I've eventually made my way to all of them......so I've seen my share of marine life---- dolphins and manatees, sharks and billfish, rays and shorebirds.......but the Pacific is so very different from the Atlantic and Gulf coasts. Dramatic shorelines-- sheer cliffs that spill down to beaches strewn with boulders the size of houses, outrageous swaths of wildflowers in red and pink and yellow and lavender....

Still trying to decide on an itinerary for Tuesday. But it's a safe bet, there will be some salt water in there someplace.

Sunday: Valley of the Moon

2008-05-12T10:06:00.004-04:00

They call this part of Sonoma and Napa Counties "the Valley of the Moon"-- which I find outrageously romantic-sounding. In truth, it is miles and miles of vineyards, the odd ranch with horses or cattle, an astronomical number of rose hedges, all surrounded by mountains that are deceptively "soft and friendly" looking- (Having decided to drive/hike to the top of one of them, they're a great deal steeper and less human-friendly than they look.)

Also took a trip to Glen Ellen (home of both wine and Jack London) ... Um, nice, but not someplace I'd rush right back to. First of all, I hesitate to admit that I never really liked Call of the Wild and White Fang, or any of the rest of London's stuff. Uber-macho like Hemingway, but without Hemingway's understated intellect. But, because my younger son has this thing about wolves, I thought I'd go see if I could find some cool wolf thing.

Ummm..no. Though my visit to the local historial society did introduce me to a topic I might want to explore more fully: early women vintners in Califiornia.

Fewer pictures than I'd like-- great scenery, but finding someplace to take the photos FROM was a challenge. It was, after all, Mother's Day, and there was more traffic on California 12 than I'd have liked. But there are a dozen or so images HERE

Saturday: Sonoma County Beaches

2008-05-11T00:39:00.001-04:00

I drove the PCH again, this time from Bodega Bay to Jenner. Incredible views! And those strange-looking lumps are sunning harbor seals that inhabit the beaches where the Russian River empties into the Pacific.

Even my biggest lens wasn't quite enough, but I was so jazzed at seeing them-- there were at least 50 of them-- I had to take the shots. Sometimes photography isn't about making art-- it's about documenting a moment in time.

See the rest of the pictures-- including some breathtaking Pacific scenery, and more shots of my seal buddies-- HERE

Friday: Point Reyes

2008-05-11T00:20:00.002-04:00

After I left Muir W0ods, I drove along the PCH to Point Reyes.

There were 1000 OH MY GOD moments between the 2, but, unfortunately, no place to pull over to get out the camera. I never wished more for a driver!

But when I drove all the way out to the lighthouse (which was closed) I certainly wasn't disappointed. Not only was the scenery incredible, but Mother Nature delivered up some special treats: A newborn calf being watched over by his Mama at one of the Point's 8 working dairies, a long line of cows creating a traffic jam on the Point's one and only road, and a group of at least a dozen deer cresting the hill and heading for the tall grass.

But the wind was picking up and it was getting brutally cold, so I reluctantly headed back inland toward Sonoma.

See the pictures HERE

Friday: "The (Muir) woods are lovely, dark and deep..."

2008-05-10T13:17:00.002-04:00

Robert Frost's words were echoing through my mind as I wandered through Muir Woods on Friday. Two older women on the path were trying(in vain) to remember the words of Kilmer's "Trees" but, despite the lack of snow, it was Frost's "Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening" that kept my company on my hike.

"The only other sound's the sweep,
Of easy wind and downy flake.
The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep."

I've always loved that poem, and it seems appropriate for the restless traveler in me.

The redwoods here are magnificent, but it is impossible to truly convey the sense of scale in photos. I stopped in the bookshop when my hike was over, and even the grand masters of the craft don't know what to do to express the size and wonder of these ancient trees, so I don't feel too embarrassed by my own efforts.

Click the link HERE to see my photos of the hike, including a deer so unafraid of me that she let me get within about 5 feet of her, (though her faun stayed hidden in the brush) redwoods towering into the sky, an egret fishing for dinner, and Queen Anne's Lace with blooms the size of dinner plates.

Later, I'll post the photos from the second half of my day, my travel up the PCH to the Point Reyes headlands.

Saints and Sinners-- and Sanity Checks

2008-05-09T12:23:00.001-04:00

Interesting view from my hotel room-- the cathedral, Alcatraz, the Coit Tower, and a few "adult" entertainment venues--- here they are, shot at twilight---- all in all, not a bad metaphor for a city that embraces, if not celebrates its less-than-mainstream and colorful history, from the Barbary Coast Trail, to the "earthy" lives of the Gold Rush Era, to the Haight and the Castro in modern times.

This is a city of glorious churches and pristinely-restored architecture... and backstreets that give even-urban-landscape-loving me more than a few moments of hesitation.

I admit to walking several blocks out of my way last night to avoid using what my street map said was the shortest route-- because the shortest route didn't feel safe to me, and a very wise man one counseled me to trust my instincts in situations like that, even when I can't pinpoint what is making me uneasy. That sometimes your subconscious picks up on things that you can't quite identify.

I'm not a chicken, but when you're a woman walking around in a strange city visibly carrying a high-end camera and lenses, walking five or 6 blocks out of the way (or taking a cab after dark) isn't cowardice, it's common sense. I won't let fear keep me from doing things, but I do take reasonable precautions.

Ironically, I've never really had a dangerous moment on the road-- but I've been robbed at knife point outside my branch bank and had my home broken into while I was inside-- both when I was "safe" at home. I've never been physically hurt by a stranger, but there have been people I thought were "friends"..... but that's a story for another day. Maybe another lifetime...

Well, it's time to pack up my bags and move on to the next leg of JP's Mental Health Tour. I need to go pick up my rental car and head North, then East. then South, then West, then North again.

Thursday: Golden Gate Park

2008-05-09T06:50:00.001-04:00

More Images from Thursday

OK, I finally got some FTP software on this laptop, so I can upload galleries directly.

Golden Gate Park- tea garden and misc.

A day with a Japanese flavor- Conservatory pics

2008-05-08T22:00:00.001-04:00

My day began and ended on a Japanese note.

My first stop was the Japanese Tea Garden at Golden Gate Park, and my last was a tea tasting at the Imperial Tea Court, and in between there were flowers, butterflies, music, art, and an homage to my hippy-dippy past with a walk through the Haight-Ashbury.

There is an album of some of my photos from Thursday hosted on Picasaweb-- see link below.

Conservatory- mostly orchids

Wednesday: Fisherman's Wharf and SF Bay.

2008-05-08T13:27:00.001-04:00

There are 2 galleries of images from May 7 Here and Here -- mostly Sea Lions, Fisherman's Wharf, and views from the water of the bay.

San Francisco, the Mental Health Tour

2008-05-08T12:52:00.001-04:00

Yesterday was my first full day in the city. And I do mean full.

While I cruised Chinatown on Tuesday afternoon and evening, my day had started at 3:30 AM East coast time, and by 8PM West coast time, I was exhausted. Too tired to even think about a serious dinner, so I picked up a snack at a Chinatown shop and went to bed. (Besides, I had to get up at 4:30AM Wed. to make a call to be received in Florida at 8AM-- a piece of business that had to be taken care of immediately)

But in true JP fashion, I not only hit the streets of SF with a camera Wednesday, but I found a boat with sails to take me out into blue water.

After walking from the Financial District, through Little Italy in North Beach, down to the piers and Fisherman's Wharf, I had an early (8AM local time) breakfast at the Boudin bakery (hard to screw up toast, fruit and coffee) and shot some pictures of the California Sea Lions that live in the bay, then boarded a 55 foot catamaran for a trip around Alcatraz, then under the Golden Gate Bridge and beyond. Absolute heaven. (well, except for the slight fog that made some of the images less contrasty than I would have liked.)

Arriving back at the Marina, I hiked up the hill to Ghirardelli Square, (and ironically, the ony chocolate I bought was a gift to be shipped to my Aunt for Mother's Day. I hear they have great ice cream there, but ice cream and I do not always get along very well, and the last thing I want is to get sick on this trip) then took a slightly different route back through North Beach, stopping at an adorably tacky tiny Italian restaurant called Franchino's on Columbus Ave.

The place had about 8 tables, (well, 13, if you counted the ones on the sidewalk) and Pop was the Maître D, Mom ran the cash register, and some other family member was in the kitchen cooking. It was like going to a relative's house for dinner-- without the family feuds. :-) The place was decorated in early fleamarket kitsch, but the food was amazing (or maybe I was just starved, since there had been no time for lunch) I had a killer salad topped with thinly sliced eggplant chips and fresh asparagus and a veal and chicken and whole wheat pasta dish that defies description. Decidely yummy.

After dinner, I walked a few blocks over to the City Lights bookstore (once home to the Beat Poets like Ginsburg and Keroac and Ferlinghetti) to prowl the stacks there for a while. It was a surreal experience.

There is the sense of history you feel when you step inside a place like Independence Hall in Philadelphia-- a sense that something important happened here-- but it happened to other people in another time. And then there is the sense of history you feel when you touch the sculpture outside Taylor Hall in Kent-- a sense that something important happened to **you** here.

This was closer to the second experience than to the first. My thoughts and opinions and ideas were changed by the people who made this place important. I clearly remember the first times I defied teachers and parents to read the books on which this place was built. I remember the sense of validation I felt when I realized that others were as conflicted and passionate about ideas as I was. (The fact that Bruce, Keroac, Ferlinghetti and Ginsburg were my parents' contemporaries, rather than my own, was even more delicious. These were not crazy kids, they were grown-up intellectuals)

Then back to the hotel for the evening "concierge floor" get together which was a California wine and cheese tasting. (Good prep for my trip to wine country later this week) Talk about a culture shift. Geniuses of the counter-culture to yuppies in full-blown pretentious mode. The people were uninteresting, but the wine and cheese was good and that event wrapped up at 9, and by then I was ready to crash, because my body still thinks it is on East Coast time, and it felt like midnight.

Ibis in the morning

2007-11-20T17:12:00.000-05:00

Patience, my a$$, I'm gonna kill something

2007-11-20T17:01:00.000-05:00

Animal Planet? I'm ready for my Closeup!

2007-11-20T16:47:00.000-05:00

Not saying it's busy at work....

2007-07-30T09:43:00.000-04:00

but this is the sign over my desk

Brendan Fielding Grounders

2007-07-29T20:42:00.000-04:00

The little slugger

2007-07-29T20:41:00.000-04:00

Nathan Alexander

Beach House Brigade

2007-07-29T13:29:00.000-04:00

Porker, Piggy Bank, Dr. Pepper

2007-07-29T13:27:00.000-04:00

all pretty in pink (say that three times fast!)

Yes, that's the pilot dressed as a banana..

2007-07-29T13:25:00.000-04:00

Peekaboo

2007-07-29T13:21:00.000-04:00

Pillar of Flame

2007-07-29T13:20:00.000-04:00

When Irish Eyes are Smiling.....

2007-07-29T13:15:00.000-04:00

The name of this balloon shot at the Jackson Balloon Fest is "Hidden Shamrocks" because those smiling Irish eyes are only visible when you are in the basket!

All Boy!!

2007-05-05T20:45:00.000-04:00

Brendan the Engineer

2007-05-05T20:34:00.000-04:00

Nathan loves the Zoo

2007-05-05T20:31:00.000-04:00

Fast curves adjustment and noise removal

2007-04-23T09:26:00.000-04:00

Less noise, more frog

2007-04-23T08:23:00.000-04:00

Bee and Bottle Brush, take 2

2007-04-23T08:13:00.000-04:00

See what happens when you have real tools?

Bee is for Bottle Brush plant

2007-04-21T22:58:00.000-04:00

Unrestrained Beauty

2007-04-21T22:55:00.000-04:00

Potential

2007-04-21T22:47:00.000-04:00

Blue Allemanda

2007-04-21T22:40:00.000-04:00

I think that's how it's spelled, anyway.

If these images look cruddy on your computer, it's because I'm posting them via Picasa from my...less than graphically sophisticated...work laptop. I'll probably cringe when I see them at home in a real editor. Picasa tends to add more than a little noise to RAW NEF files at times.

There's a little green frog, ....

2007-04-21T22:34:00.000-04:00

.... swimmin' in the water, a little green frog, doin what he oughter.

Now, this is an eagle shot

2007-04-21T16:29:00.000-04:00

Well, it would be if blogger was working correctly.... It refuses to display the photo.

I have been so busy and so tired lately, I was teetering on the edge of burnout. So this weekend I took a couple of days for myself. I went to the coast, holed up in a hotel with a spa, and just chilled out.

I've read a book and a half in the past 2 days--nothing useful or technical, just total trash pop fiction. It felt nice.

I've taken long, leisurely soaks in lavender-filled whirlpool tubs. Lavender's supposed to be calming and help to reduce stress and anxiety. I'm not sure the lavender really does anything, but the warm water and peace and quiet certainly help.

If I were home, I'd feel like I had to be doing something. Since I'm paying for the hotel room, I figured I ought to use it for a while. I took a nap in the middle of the afternoon today. It was only about 45 minutes, and I'm still seriously sleep-deprived, but it was a start.

And I haven't picked up a camera just for the joy of it in ages... that stopped this weekend, too. This morning I got up early and spent a few hours with the cameras--- I've just about got the hang of the D200, and the weight of the thing is something of a factor (harder for me to hold it still for longer exposures in low light) but going out to play with it was utterly self-indulgent. I wasn't entertaining anyone, I wasn't doing it for profit, or any other "good" reason... I was just having fun. Amusing myself.

I'm no Mother Teresa-- I'm pretty good to myself when I can be, but too many back-to-back weeks of 70 billable hours, trying to keep up with friends and family, learning a couple of new software packages, a bout of bronchitis/pneumonia, lousy weather, a holiday that wasn't a holiday because I had to sandwich it in between work marathons and a few other goodies had run me ragged.

The only word I can think of to describe the way I was feeling is "brittle." I was snapping at people, impatient, cranky, unable to concentrate on anything but work, not sleeping and so tired that all I could do when I came home at night was stare blankly at old movies-- ones that I knew the story and the ending, so I wouldn't get frustrated if I fell asleep or couldn't concentrate on the plot.

That's no way to live. I can't be creative when I'm struggling to just keep on going. I need to take better care of myself and set better boundaries. The client deserves my best... and I can't deliver it if I'm half dead.

Now I've just got to convince them of that.

Olivia's Easter pictures

2007-04-13T09:25:00.000-04:00

http://picasaweb.google.com/jpkabala/OliviaSBreakfastWithBunny07

Every time she smiles, my heart melts. I have waited a lifetime for these moments
with the munchkins. So much so, that I almost forget to take out my camera.

Livvy is growing up

2007-04-13T09:02:00.000-04:00

I haven't had a lot of time to blog lately-- work has been a killer, and 70-hour weeks don't allow a lot of time for photos and blogs. I can barely keep up with things like paying the bills, picking up my dry cleaning, and the occaisional hot meal and convertsation with my kids.
But last week, I took Olivia to breakfast with the bunny... and moments like that make everything that I have done to make being here worth all the hassles.

Seeing Mike and George's kids growing up is worth EVERYTHING. I missed too many moments when the guys were small. You don't get second chances in life... but you can stop making the same mistakes over and over again.

Not my best eagle shot

2007-01-22T18:55:00.000-05:00

But he was way cool!

Armoured and dangerous

2007-01-22T18:54:00.000-05:00

Once upon a time there were three elephants....

2007-01-22T18:48:00.000-05:00

A Mommy elephant, a Daddy elephant and a little Baby elephant.....

We're ready for our close up, Mr. Demille!

2007-01-22T18:44:00.000-05:00

Peel Me A Grape, Dahling!

2007-01-22T18:41:00.000-05:00

Tampa Buddies

2007-01-22T18:39:00.000-05:00

I visited my orangutan buddies at the Lowry Park Zoo for the first time in about a year. I still think they're amazing!

A trip to Leu gardens

2007-01-22T18:33:00.000-05:00

I had business in Orlando this week, and I made a quick stop a Leu gardens on the way to the airport. The camellias were in bloom and my favorite variety, Pink Perfection, was particularly lovely.

Cake Time!!

2006-12-17T10:38:00.000-05:00

Mike and the boys...

2006-12-17T10:37:00.000-05:00

Standing up for himself!

2006-12-17T10:36:00.000-05:00

The gang!

2006-12-17T10:34:00.000-05:00

Safari Sam

2006-12-17T10:33:00.000-05:00

Dropped by to say Hi!

Lightning McQueen

2006-12-17T10:31:00.000-05:00

made a guest appearance

The theme was..what else.. CARS!!

2006-12-17T10:30:00.000-05:00

All (Birthday) boy

2006-12-17T10:27:00.000-05:00

Brendan and buds celebrate his 6th Birthday

Geez, how long is THIS going to take?

2006-12-17T09:58:00.000-05:00

Clothes, girl toys and no cake yet. Boooorrrrr---ing.

George and Olivia

2006-12-17T09:50:00.000-05:00

DAD!!!

2006-12-17T09:48:00.000-05:00

Quit telling everyone I look like Curious George!

Olivia's favorite toy....

2006-12-17T09:46:00.000-05:00

is Daddy!!!

Baby dolls and Chapstick

2006-12-17T09:44:00.000-05:00

Livvy is definitely a girly-girl

Princess on her throne

2006-12-17T09:43:00.000-05:00

Olivia and Bear in her new chair

2006-12-17T09:41:00.000-05:00

Joy

2006-12-17T09:39:00.000-05:00

Generations

2006-12-17T09:37:00.000-05:00

Hey, George... I have toes!

2006-12-17T09:35:00.000-05:00

Uncle George and Nathan

2006-12-17T09:33:00.000-05:00

Birthday Girl

2006-12-17T09:32:00.000-05:00

Oh... other people get some, too?

2006-12-17T09:31:00.000-05:00

Cake?

2006-12-17T09:29:00.000-05:00

Pig...Sheep...Cow....

2006-12-17T09:28:00.000-05:00

FROSTING!!!!

I think I'll just ...

2006-12-17T09:26:00.000-05:00

...have a taste while I'm waiting....

There are animals on my cake!

2006-12-17T09:24:00.000-05:00

"Blow candles???"

Olivia blows out her candles

2006-12-17T09:20:00.000-05:00

The princess in the family turned 2 last weekend.... this is my favorite shot of her from the day!