Creating! | Peaches Prattlings

{October 27, 2015} Day 11…Barcelona…A Walking Tour…a Cooking Class!

And what did you do today?

Loving the hostel we’re in, we have keys to the front door and keys to the building, it feels like we’re in an apartment. We share a bathroom and have 2 beds below and we’re in the loft. It’s the most relaxing place we’ve stayed. And we’re here for three nights, in one place, imagine that!

Got up before the alarm, relaxed, made some breakfast, took our rain gear and headed out to our walking tour, just a the sun came out, perfect.

We were meeting at The Travel Bar, along with bunch of other people. The guy who arranged it all was very nice and our tour guide Jana was fabulous! Need to do a review on Trip Advisor.

It was a free two hour tour and she was great! We walked the Gothic Quarter, saw some churches, cathedrals, Picasso, Miro, Gaudí, wonderful.

We found out the places to eat and the places to avoid, very informative and entertaining. I’ve often said I would love up move somewhere and become a tour guide and that’s what she did. So there’s still hope for me!

If you’re ever in Barcelona, the free walking tour is worth it and Jana is a great guide. Yes, free, completely. They also do it for free, so if you’re happy with the tour, you let it show with your wallet, sounds fair.

She was also able to set us up with our evening activity, a cooking class! Tell you about that in a bit.

After the tour we had lunch at the Travel Bar, tapas, their mixed plate. It was ok, a lot of fried foods, but an experience.

After lunch we went on the famous street, Las Rambles, which we were told to avoid since it’s crazy with tourists and price gauging, but it was fun to see all the people. We headed to the end to see the tribute to Christopher Columbus and that led us down to the waterfront, what a beautiful area.

Next, it was on the metro to Museo Picasso, which, we have recently discovered, Barcelona is an incredibly walkable city and we don’t really need a Metro pass, we keep ending up around the corner from where we were!

We get to the museum and…it’s sold out! What? Oh well…we now have tickets for tomorrow.

We walked back towards where we needed to be and went to the Cathedral de Barcelona and had a look inside.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barcelona_Cathedral

This was something! There was a choir performing when we got there, a nice thing to see and hear. We toured the cathedral and then found the lift to the roof, that was so worth the entry fee! Wouldn’t you agree?

By now, it was time to get to our evening activity…our first cooking class! We’ve been talking about taking one, what better place than Barcelona!

We met back at The Travel Bar abs meet our chef, Fernando, now you know I started hearing ABBA!

When the group, all 15 of us were there, we headed out to Mercat de St. Josep, Bouqueria, for the fresh ingredients for what we were going to cook, awesome!

We got a small lesson there about what we needed…fresh fruit for sangria, fresh seafood for paella! Then it was off to cooking school!

We got to know each other over our experience and the meal. There were some Australians, Canadiens, Germans and a few Americans, besides us. A good group, ready for an experience.

When we got there, we were served sangria and got a lesson on how to eat tapas, building from the toast up. It turns out that the meat and cheese plates were made by the group from the night before and what we made tonight would be for tomorrow, pretty cool.

Then we were divided into groups, prep and cook. PSM joined the prep where we had a demonstration of cutting vegetables, then preparing the seafood, then cooking!

The sous chefs only had SEVEN minutes to prep, then it was our turn to cook! It took about 20 minutes cooking the veggies and then seafood [muscles, clams, calamari, squid and prawns]. Then the spices, the different cold liquids to cool the recipe down, then the rice.

The paellera, the special pan for cooking the paella was ginormous! This is not something I currently have in my collection, so….wink wink.

We stirred and separated and stirred and circled and repeated the process for about twenty minutes, then there was the sitting on the burners and waiting, but not for us to sit, we learned how to make proper sangria, and how to count…the amount of alcohol going in!

Then it was time to eat. I know you’ve been sitting there wondering…yes, I tried the cheese with bread and tomatoes, I enjoyed it. Yes, I tried the sangria, no, I did not care for it, thanks to my fabuloso boyfriend for picking up my slack. Yes, I cooked and ate the seafood paella, including all the seafood and yes, I liked it. No, I am not going back to eating seafood, it was an experience and I would never say never, but for now, I’m good.

This was such a great experience, I’m so glad we did it and I can’t wait to try again.

We walked a bit, found a placa that PSM had book marked. He had a cerveza, I had a te menta and we shared something sweet.

Back to the hotel to crash, dream about the day and wonder what tomorrow holds.

Dulces senos!

{October 15, 2015} Getting in the groove

When I write I have to be in the groove, find my mojo.

That would be why there are some days I don’t post until the wee hours of the morning! Some days it comes to me, others, its excruciating!

I can tell you it’s no different for me writing resumes, dating profiles, training documentation. You name it, whatever it is, the inspiration sometimes hits after everyone has gone to bed, up I stay!

It’s the same way when I write for work. If I have clear direction, I can run with, sometimes, but if I don’t, I have to wait for the muse or inspiration t strike and I can sit and stare at a blank screen for a long time, which is not as much fun as you may think!

Today, I was on that roll, it was awesome! It started yesterday and if the system had been working properly, I could have worked until 10 or 11pm or later, I love those times!

You’re in the zone, you know what you’re doing and what you want to do and you hit it and there’s no stopping you!

{September 28, 2015} Dating Sites…love ’em…hate ’em

A necessary evil?

Tonight I helped a good friend, HH, set up her profile on a dating app, one I hadn’t heard of until recently. It was fun, I helped her select photos, come up with tag lines, interests, likes, ice breakers, a few other things. I can’t wait to see what happens!

Getting back “on the dating horse” can be stressful, I know I went through it when I got divorced and then between dating after that. Do I join a club? Do I ask friends? Do I go online?

Online dating has changed over the years. In the beginning it was kind of taboo, no one admits to meeting someone online. I remember when I started one guy had a tagline that said “We’ll tell them we met over coffee”. Why do you have to lie? Can’t you tell people you met in an unconventional way? Nowadays, people say it all the time, although, after a recent scandal, people wonder, hmmm.

One of the things I love to do is help people set up their online dating profiles, helping them navigate the site, choosing taglines, but what I enjoy more than anything is writing profiles. I have written some fabulous profiles, for people I know and people I didn’t know, I even wrote a profile for a guy I met on a train, how weird is that! I wrote a profile for a guy I was dating while we were dating. He started it, he asked, “what would you write about me?” so I wrote him a profile and said “If it doesn’t work out, use this”, it was pretty good too. Guess what…I think he met his wife from the profile!

Speaking of that! When ACS’ brother, JS was visiting me in Georgia, I helped him sign up for one of the sites and I wrote him a profile and he used a picture of Jymy, who looks just like his cat and…he met his wife, AS, using the profile I wrote, I was stoked! They are so perfect for each other!

I’ve written a few profiles for friends that have led to marriage, I am so tickled when that happens, it really means a lot and makes me feel good. I use specific criteria that I apply to each profile and work with what I know about the person or what they tell me is important. One friend had someone say they were too good to be true and another had someone tell them “I’m not sure if I want to meet you or the person who wrote this profile!” That was flattering, not what I was going for, but flattering!

It’s tough out there, the unexpected, the new, the unknown, the excitement, the fear, the apprehension, the anticipation. But you gotta get out there, right? Dating sites are like a blessing and a curse, all at the same time.

Like I said, a necessary evil.

So…going to start dating? Need a profile written?

Good luck!

{September 26, 2015} What a day!

Sleeping in, ha! A great breakfast, a trip to the airport, a baseball game, a scratched car, groceries and bad food, whew!

I’ve told you about my friend, ST, my first work spouse, we have worked together at a few companies since 2009 when we started traveling together training on hand held devices. We see each other sometimes when I am in Atlanta and we were talking a few weeks ago and I said come to Bahston for the weekend and here he is!

Last night was Rita Rudner and today was another jam packed day. We slept in, well, he slept in, the bed is oh so comfy, it’s hard not to fall deep into the covers and pillows and…I got some bedding and slept on the couch, you know where I’ve fallen asleep before and then had to decide…get up and get into the bed or stay right here? hmmmm…

So, ST slept until almost 9am and of course, I was up about 6:30, fun. We got motivated, then called CH, my friend and co-worker, who calls me Smurf! and we all headed towards Cambridge. We parked at PSM’s house, thank you, and walked to the Friendly Toast, I’ve told them about it a few times and away we went. We put our names in and the wait was about an hour. Somewhere along the way, I told PSM where we were eating and he and his nephew, JM, met us there and waited with us and waited and waited.

We finally got a table and it was so worth it, both the people watching and the food. I had an egg sandwich with vegan cheese on gluten free bread and a gluten free pancake, OMG! I was happy! Everyone was happy!

After brunch, we went back to PSMs, then headed to the airport to pick up CH’s husband, who had just landed, perfect timing! Then we headed to the hotel to freshen up and change for our next adventure.

Off to the T station to take the train to Fenway Park, for the Red Sox vs Baltimore Oriole’s. A Yankee in Fenway and I didn’t explode! We stayed a few innings, had some food and then we were done, just long enough for ST to get a hat that he now loves, a beer and some treats.

Back to the train, get to the car and found a giant scratch down the side, what? It took multiple tries to get through to someone at Avis to report the issues, geesh. Tomorrow, we’re doing something pretty cool, I’ll tell you about it then, but we needed supplies so to the liquor and grocery store went.

We get back to the hotel and realize we forgot something…lottery tickets, the jackpot $267M, think that’s worth $2? Oh yeah! So, out to the gas station to get tickets, then we went in search of food and went to a local pizza place that is supposed to be good. I was excited, gluten free dough! My order…gluten free crust, olive oil and garlic, no cheese and a few veggies on top, broccoli, spinache and grilled eggplant. What happened when we get back? Tomatoes. Really? Did I say tomatoes? Maybe I should have told her that I was allergic to tomatoes, didn’t know I had to. That’s why I repeated garlic and olive oil only, oh well…I called and they refunded the money. Someone might enjoy the pizza.

Now, we’re crashed out, in our jammies, can you say that about a guy? ST in the bed and I’m curled up on the couch ready to crash, we have a very early day tomorrow, can’t wait!

Until then…sweet dreams.

{September 22, 2015} If I have wronged you…I am sorry

That is the way you reach out to friends and family, loved ones, at this time.

Tonight is Erev Yom Kippur, The Day of Atonement, the holiest day of the year and part of the High Holy Days, along with Rosh Hashannah.

We observe by spending time with friends and family for the last meal before our 25 hour fast, sundown to sundown. We fast so that we can focus our thoughts where they should be on who we are, what we have done, how we will repent and on g-d. Some people begin the holiday, like my sister and I, going to Kol Nidre. “Prayer services begin with the Kol Nidrei prayer, which is recited before sunset. Kol Nidre is a prayer that dates back to 9th century Palestine. It is recited in a dramatic manner, before the open ark, using a melody that dates back to the 16th century.”

After services we go home to reflect and then in the morning we will go to services most of the day. As fasting brings our focus where it is supposed to be, spending the day in temple helps, with our focus, and not focusing on the fact that we are hungry!

“On Rosh Hashanah it is written and on Yom Kippur it is sealed. Who shall live and who shall die. Who shall prosper and who shall perish and the list goes on. We hope to have our names in the book of life on Rosh Hashana and sealed on Yom Kippur.

I know you noticed that I opened with “If I have wronged you” this is something we say to friends and family, asking for forgiveness for wrongs I have committed willingly or wrongs I have committed unintentionally. And hopefully they will say they forgive you and hope you feel the same way.

So, I will close with this…

If I have wronged you in any way this past year, I ask your forgiveness and hope you can forgive me. Amen

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yom_Kippur

{September 21, 2015} A very special request for Antie J!!!

Tonight, I got a very special phone call.

I thought it was GES, but when I answered, I heard MGS’ little voice saying hello and guess what! She has a loose tooth!

GES said that the first thing she said when she got home was “I have a loose tooth, can we call Auntie J, I need a tooth fairy pillow!” Did that send my heart soaring? What do you think!

so, what would she like on the pillow? A rainbow, two flowers and her name, I think that can be done. I did ask if this one comes out sooner than I can finish it, could she use EJS’ pillow? EJS, would that be alright? EJS said yes, what a good big sister!

The pillow in the picture is the same one I made for EJS when she was losing her first tooth, so the pressure is on!

Oh, but how I love these moments, they mean so very much to me, can you tell!?

Sigh…

{August 28, 2015} Happy Anniversary GES

My sister is a survivor.

You can’t imagine how much I LOVE saying that!! The image below is the same one on the t-shirt I got her after she became a survivor.

When I say Happy Anniversary GES, it’s the anniversary of her last chemo treatment! The treatment that killed the cancer that tried to kill her, but…let’s face it, we come from a long line of strong, stubborn women, no way was it not going to work!

Happiest of happy anniversaries to one of the strongest, hardest working and hardest fighting women who is an inspiration to all of us, those who are related by blood and by heart. Anyone that meets her is touched by her strength and her perseverance and never failing positive attitude through all of it.

Happy Anniversary GES, I love you.

{August 26, 2015} Accomodating

Tonight was interesting.

As you know, I’ve been doing some testing to find out why I’m nauseous 24/7, well, this coming Friday is the next test, a glucose breath test. If this is anything like the other test, this is where they give me 8 ounces of glucose, then I get to blow into a bag every 15 minutes for 1.5 hours, fun huh?

So, part of the preparation for this test is to be on a very strict diet for 48 hours prior to the test, that means starting this morning no fruits or vegetables, what? What are you telling a vegan! I can eat any non-dairy “milk” products, rice, eggs and tofu. Yum…

This morning was easy, a nice omelet with eggs [real] and cheese [fake], it really was good and tasty. On the way in, I stopped at Dunkin Donuts and they have almond milk now, so almond milk/decaf tea, mmmmm.

Lunch was a little more difficult, I brought eggs and veggie hot dogs and coconut milk yogurt. I actually only ate the yogurt.

Tonight we had a team dinner, I know, “JJ, not another team dinner! Oh my! ”

Well, I called them to find out if they could accommodate me and my dietary restrictions. I mentioned eggs, rice and tofu. They said no problem, they didn’t have tofu, but could accommodate the rice and egg, great!

We get there and I introduced myself to the servers and said, “I’m a problem child” and we were all set. Eventually, I added an order of deviled eggs as an appetizer. The deviled eggs came out when everyone else was getting their entrees and I asked if they knew where my meal was. Oh…let me go check on that for you, hmmm…

“I’m not sure what’s taking so long”. “They are just waiting on the rice” What? I called earlier in the day to tell you of my dietary needs and it was the simplest food…So, everyone was about finished and here comes my food. I’m glad I ordered the deviled eggs, I was hungry! Finally, when the food came, it was very pretty, rice mixed with egg and tofu on top. How nice was that! And it was brought out by a manager, fancy.

So, all in all, I was quit pleased and full! And…I have lunch for tomorrow!

{August 25, 2015} Facebook can hurt

It’s true, what you see can elicit reactions.

I was looking for a different image and found this one and it was so fitting, especially when I got divorced, so my post is taking a different turn tonight.

After I got divorced, I was dealing with things, getting my into my life full swing, well, after a while anyway. I finally paid some attention to my Facebook account, just like everyone else was at that time. I think I had started it a few years earlier, but hadn’t done much with it. I was working my business, reconnecting, you know how it goes.

I wasn’t friends with the wasband, but I hadn’t blocked him at the time, I thought I could avoid looking. I can’t remember if I was friends with my son at the time, C had an account, T didn’t at the time. Well, I would check out C’s page and pictures of he and his friends and his girlfriend at the time, I think she and I were friends. I was friends with his best friend, BC and his best friend’s brother and step dad, you know how that goes.

Well, I would go through my son’s page and pictures, I guess I was friends with him, now that I think about it, and then I would see pictures of his dad and her and then I would “accidentally” click on his dad’s page, really? What was I thinking? I wasn’t, I was still a wee bit raw. That’s also how I got confirmation that he had gotten remarried, I clicked on his new wife’s page and her name was surprisingly the same as his. Any takers on how all that affected me? muwahahaha!

So, I promptly blocked the wasband and his wife, it was much easier that way!

That happened so long ago and I really am past it all, but let’s be honest, are we ever completely past it all? It’s part of who we are and what makes us…us. When I saw the photo I couldn’t help but laugh, where was that warning when I was “accidentally” clicking on the wasband’s pictures?

Of course, as they say, the best revenge is to be happy and guess what folks…

{August 23, 2015} Happy birthday…mom

Today, August 23rd, my mom would have been 68.

I guess technically she would have been 69 since she passed before her 59th birthday, but it’s my blog, so she would have been 58.

I know I’ve only told you a few things about my mom, just something I keep close to my chest. My mom was quite the woman and since this is her birthday, I’m going to tell you what celebrations meant to her.

My mom loved to celebrate, it didn’t matter what it was, she made it great. I almost said my parties, but it was our parties, GES and I, as kids, they were some of the best parties ever, always so original. Until we were about 9 or 10, could have been younger, when we decided we wanted things like skating or bowling parties, we would have parties in the backyard or basement.

In the backyard, I remember an art party, she put up newsprint pads on easels or attached to the fence with paints and we had our own gallery. If it rained, we went to the basement and played games, all different stations set up and there were prizes for the winners, of course everyone was a winner!

I don’t remember the food, hot dogs, hamburgers, pizza, but I do remember the cakes. Until we got them from a cake shop, they were home made. What more could you want?

Those parties were what inspired me for my kids, I made sure every birthday was special. There were parties with friends and then parties with just the four of us, I made a special cake and decorated the house, so much fun. GES does the most amazing things for her girls, I know they were inspired by what our mom did for us.

She was funny too, on my half birthday, she would sing Happy Birthday, but half the song. “Hap Bir T Yo!” Silly, right? well, it’s just what she did and I loved it.

I guess that’s why celebrating birthdays is so important, especially with the person I’m with, she and dad instilled that in us, value those you are with and let them know how much they mean to you, how much better the world is with you in it.

Happy birthday mommy, I love you.

And to my cousin JFS, my mom’s first cousin and 20 years apart to the day, I wish you the bestest birthday ever. We don’t talk often, but you’re always in my thoughts. Happiest of happy birthdays. XOXO

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