Spending time with the family

Today, Good Friday, I began to prepare for the large family gathering that I will be hosting this year.  I will be surrounded by family, friends and traditions based upon faith and love.  I know memories will be made and recorded through photos that will be taken on Sunday for those of us today to remember, but most importantly, so those of tomorrow can have the proof of Traditions!  Famiglia!  Carrying on legacies is a responsibility and by repeating certain traditions, we keep those we have loved and lost close at hand, as I witnessed today.  For the very first time, I decided to pull out a recipe that had been my grandmother's, but my mother inherited it and made it every Easter.  It is called Sweet Pie.  It is made with ricotta cheese, eggs, chocolate and maraschino cherries and baked in a pie crust.  I fondly remembered helping my mom make this pie.  My chore was to dice the cherries.  I also got to watch the pink mix master bowl spin around and around as it blended the cheese and eggs.  She skillfully made her own crust for the pie and rolled out the dough with ease.  She would have flour in her hair and on her forehead.

Today, as I worked in my kitchen, I could feel her presence all around me.  I felt as if gentle hands were guiding mine to cut up, mix up and blend it all just so.  I felt the presence of my grandmother, as well, helping me lift the heavy pink bowl to pour the batter into the pie plates.  Yup, the very same one my mother had used.  Everything on Easter Sunday will be loving prepared for my family just as I had been taught.  Life goes on, things change, we grow up, we grow old, we nurture and continue to show our love.  Some things will never change or be forgotten.  What a great day I had with my mom and grandmother today.  Tonight, I continue to scrub my fingers that were stained by the cherries and smile as I remember doing that many years ago too.  Today, it finally dawned on me why my mom gave me the job of cutting up the cherries! 

Sunday, I will sit back and watch my family enjoy what I have enjoyed for so many years: edible love!  Happy Easter. 

Retired

According to The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company, updated in 2009, published by Houghton Mifflin Company, all rights reserved, the following is the definition of the word "Retirement:"

re·tire·ment



Emily Dickinson, recluse



n.

1. The act of retiring.

2. The state of being retired.

3. Withdrawal from one's occupation, business, or office.

4. Withdrawal into privacy or seclusion.

5. A place of privacy or seclusion; a retreat. See Synonyms at solitude.

Some other words and phrases that fit the description are: hang up the ax, swallow the anchor, call it a day and put out to pasture. 

In light of the aforementioned descriptors, I will choose number 5, "A place of privacy or seclusion; a retreat."   However, after I looked up the synonyms for solitude, I came across these mostly depressing words:  "confinement, desert, detachment, emptiness, isolation, loneliness, loneness, lonesomeness, peace and quiet, privacy, quarantine, reclusiveness, retirement, seclusion, separateness, silence, solitariness, waste, wasteland, wilderness, withdrawal."  Wow, whoever is writing these things about retirement is surely trying to scare anyone away from making that big decision to leave the active workforce.   Thankfully, I didn't look up the word before I chose to "remove myself from employment!" 



I have been retired almost one month now, but have been out of work due to surgery for almost three months.  I have worked since I was 14 years old and, for the last 25 years, as an "Administrative Assistant," (AKA secretary) for the local school district.  I have yet to become bored, confined, detatched, empty, isolated, lonely or silenced.  I haven't experienced waste, wilderness or withdrawals.  So far, I am quite enjoying this moment in time.  I cherish each morning I awaken to a new day full of things to do, but soon I realize that I can always do them tomorrow.  That's when I make that second cup of coffee and watch the birds and squirrels in the backyard, brush my cat, check my emails and perhaps soak in a long hot tub.  After the bath,  I need to check the calendar to figure out what day of the week it is, and then I decide upon what I will actually undertake for the day.  It might be to cook a meal for a friend, bring items to donate to Little Orphan Animals, run someone to a store, meet a friend for lunch or dinner, or cook a huge meal.  No one is asking me questions or looking for answers. 

I love, love, love taking care of the house, my number 1 best friend and love, and my cat, Lucy.



My #1 guy



Actually, I am enjoying the antonyms of solitude:  "companionship, friendship, togetherness."  As soon as I get bored, I'll blog about it.  But for now, Tuesday, March 22 (or is it the 23rd???), Life is Beautiful, just like Miss Lucy Lu. 

Miss Lucy Lu

Spring has Sprung

I heard my first robin a couple of days ago and thought it strange that it was still quite cold for the first "sign of spring" to be making such an early appearance. But, low and behold, I saw two of them today, wandering around the yard, looking to see where I've moved all their food and water sources. It is so interesting to see how the robins pair up and stick together throughout the mating, nesting, egg laying, hatching and feeding stages. Their teamwork is something most humans should emulate.

As much as I love robins, my favorite species of bird is the finch. Finch are around all year long. In summer, some are light greenish-yellow to bright yellow. In the cooler weather, they fade to a brownish green. Their sweet sound and diet preferences make them a welcome addition to my backyard. Fince mainly eat thistle, which most other birds, except for junkos and mourning doves, do  not eat. Since I don't offer wild bird seed, I limit the more aggressive birds, like jays and crows. Now don't get me wrong, I have a great respect for those tough, canabilisic types, but I really don't want them ravishing the robins' nests or bullying the beautiful finch. Not in my backyard!

The finch brighen up the back yard and their small and dainty appearance are a delight to watch. I love the way they fly up, up and away. I even read that aviators study their flight patterns, which, if you catch a glimpse, are quite facinating. Remember to stop and smell the roses and while you are at it, look up to watch the birds soar.

Christmas Toys for My Boys

Every year when Christmas time rolls around, I try to find gift ideas for my two grown sons. This year, I was able to come up with some fun ideas for my younger son, the chef. I gave him some spending money for his favorite toy store, "www.ChefCentral.com," a great Italian cookbook and some special cooking herbs from a flea market in Union Square, NYC.

My older son, the one who works the educational field, is the harder one to find unique, fun-filled gifts. However, this year, I put a smile on his face by sending him his long-ago, long-wished for, never-to-have-received (and thus scarred his sweet childhood memories), TRAPPER KEEPER.

While attending a family wedding, we had a conversation (after a couple of glasses of wine) regarding childhood disappointments and he mentioned that he never received a Trapper Keeper. I couldn't believe that was the first thing that rolled off his tongue. I didn't hear that he didn't get a brand new 10 speed, or a great video game. No, not my poor, deprived son. He didn't get a Trapper Keeper. Solution? Ebay. One "new in package" 1980's version of his childhood desire. I think I had more fun bidding on it, winning and then getting to give it than he did receiving it and explaining to his kids what it exactly was and why he had wanted one so badly. Santa struck again!

Facebook Freak Out

Oh well, I knew the day would come when I would finally freak out over Facebook. I HATE Facebook. I never wanted to join FB, I only tried it to search out my old friend, Roseanne Fusco. Instead, a bunch of people from the 70's, most of whom didn't want to be my friend way back then, started to send me friend requests. I truly believe they only wanted to see if I had gained as much weight as they had after all these years. After awhile of FB'ing, I decided that I actually have enough friends. I can hardly keep up with my "non FB" friends' birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, grandchildren, etc.....and even my own, so how can I have 176 friends who expect me to comment on their FB status, remark about photos of their kids, accept a martini, or help them get a cow for their farm? I can't do it.


I've received about five friend requests lately that I haven't responded to. One is from my 68 year old aunt! OMG. I hope she isn't into Farmville. I hope she doesn't get insulted that I won't "friend" her. I like her just the way she is....I don't need to know anymore about her than I already know. Same goes for my daughter-in-laws. I don't need to know that they "friended" my ex-husband. However, I think I was friends with them first.


The second time I re-upped with FB, I had an issue with the amount of info I was throwing out there. I can't figure out the privacy settings, so I decided to be non-descript. I updated my profile and changed my relationship status and in doing so, started a chain-reaction that crossed from the Pacific to the Atlantic. My daughter-in-law called to ask me what was going on? Did I break up with my long-time boyfriend and not tell her? She had received 6 inquires about my "status change" and she had to get back to everyone. What didn't make any sense is why didn't anyone just write on my wall to ask me?


Another thing that bothers me about FB is that just because we might share the same last name, it doesn't mean we are related....I use my maiden name hypenated with my married name.....You can't be my relative if the married name is the same as yours. FB people, it doesn't work that way.


FB people, I am bored to hear of your travels and I don't care that you shopped all day and are tired (hey buddy, I work with you...didn't you call in sick today?) I don't need to know that you got dozens of Mardi Gras beads. I don't care if you are married 17 days, 1 month or 13 weeks. Same goes for your kids. If I am required to buy a gift, I only want to know when they are completing a full year.


So, I have quit FB. I've quit before, but had to go back because my brother's cat friended me and he was just so cute that I couldn't resist....After all, I guess we are actually, sort of related. But this time, I am quitting for sure. I mean it...No more!


Today I heard that 26 year-old Mark Zuckerberg was anointed Time's Man of the Year. Damn you Mark Zuckerberg for making me feel so old!

Another one to love....

Lola Maria arrived on Wednesday, June 16th! She is my fifth grandchild, my fourth granddaughter, and second child of MY second child, Michael.

She wove a strand around my heart just like the other four have and attached herself firmly within the mesh of love that resides there.

I believe she looks just like her daddy on the day he was born. She seems to follow his eating and sleeping patterns as well. She is beautiful beyond belief, perfect beyond our prayers, and loved beyond her imagination.

 

I cannot believe I am a grandmother of five. I don't feel that old and don't believe I look that old...but then, the face of today's grandmothers has changed. Just look around you. Today's grandmothers no longer have white hair and canes. Good thing for me, because it ain't easy keeping up with five grandchildren aged five and under!

School's Out For Summer!

Today marked the first day back at work since school let out for the summer. The kids finished up on Thursday, the teachers Friday, and today......Monday, June 28th, was a "clean up" day for me. I discarded schedules, lists and the left over programs from the ceremonies I had been planning since March. They were executed without a glitch. They should be flawless since I have been organizing them since 1991. If I havent' mastered it yet, then I should really hang it up.


Thursday, the 1st will mark another year down and counting towards my long desired retirement. I predict this will have been my last full year.

I will be on "vacation" until after the 4th of July. This vacation will consist of catching up on a host of chores I have been putting off for "when I get a chance." My list consists of visits to family and friends, a stop at my favorite craft store, cooking a few home-cooked meals, planning a "real" vacation and spending some quality time with my kitty, Lucy.

No more pencils, no more books, no more teachers' dirty looks. Humm. The saying applies to secretaries, as well as kids!