The Firm, NBC

Don't forget to watch the 2-hour series premiere of The Firm tonight at 9 on NBC. The regular slot will be Thursdays, starting January 12. Helen Shaver directed Thursday's episode and produced the 22 episode series. It follows a 22 episode arc, like the chapters of a book, based on a followup to John Grisham's novel and film by the same title. It is 12 years later. The heroes have returned to their professional lives. It sounds great! Can't wait to see it.

2012 New Year Resolutions

Sunday, January 1, 2012
New Year Resolutions

(1) continue to rediscover self
(2) continue to tick the bucket list
(3) maintain family, friends, and professional contacts for us and Mom
(4) travel together, alone, and in groups to new places, for interests, for fun
(5) dance and play - tango and ukulele, classes and practice - plus French - get Rosetta Stone, join a bilingual MeetUp
(6) repair body as well as possible through healthy diet, exercise, and with medical help
(7) write one hour daily minimum: blog, tweets, fb, mail, email, stories, & songs
(8) sort house one hour daily minimum: Sun Playroom, Mon Office, Tues Gable Room, Wed Bedrooms, Thurs Bathrooms, Fri Kitchen, Sat Basement
(9) resume tracking WW Points Plus and weekly meetings
10) budget and plan for me, us, family, and future

the Cat's Cupboard: Holiday in St. Lucia

the Cat's Cupboard: Holiday in St. Lucia

Holiday in St. Lucia

Here it is the week before Christmas and this blog has been silent since Thanksgiving. I will fill in the details for the past couple of months in a future blog. Today, I had more to write about our holiday in St. Lucia than I could fit in a tweet. After four gloriously sunny days, rain clouds rolled in over Smugglers Cove last night bringing us intermittent downpours throughout this Friday morning. The advantages are two-fold: it encourages us to take it easy after yesterday's exhaustive and exhausting tour of land and sea (more later), and the rain also brought out the land crabs. The tunnels that house these creatures have been intriguing us since our arrival and this morning we finally found them perched at the openings of their houses along the gardens and pathways of the resort. They range in size from 2-4 inches, grayish to bright orange. The slightest movement sends them dashing underground so it took a great deal of stealth to photograph them.

Smugglers Cove Resort and Spa is on the north west end close to Castries, the largest city. It is situated on an estate of 65 acres of well-kept gardens, six pools, and is self-contained within the cove with a sheltered sandy beach including a snorkeling reef. The all-inclusive services offer bars, lounge, band and stage, a large buffet restaurant for all three meals plus three table service restaurants for dinner reservations. The fresh fruits and vegetables are in endless supply. The dinner menus have been very good - my favourite so far being the 10 spice duckling at Cafe Asia. I had anticipated a lot of shellfish, which I love, but surprisingly that is not the case. The fish is barracuda, tilapia, mahi mahi, and other meaty fish. Chicken and pork dominate the menu, and I love the spices used. The water is luxuriously warm and buoyant for swimming even when the breakers are too rough for snorkeling or small boats. The heat and sun assist the sensation of slowly melting into a healing stupor as the day passes: breakfast, walkabout, beachwear before lunch, lounge chair and reading under a tree or umbrella before a swim in the sea, stroll up to the top pool for the swim up bar and a drink by the cascade fountain as the sun declines, shower and dress for dinner, drinks and entertainments, collapse in sleep to prepare for the next taxing day. All in glorious surroundings of flowering plants, palms, and birds. Too sweet.

We have been overwhelmed by the beauty of this little island nation. The flag is blue for sky and sea, I believe, with three triangles overlapping - the smaller for Petit Piton is yellow as the sun, the next largest for Gros Piton is black, and the largest for the tallest peak Morne Gimie is white. These colours represent the St. Lucians themselves. The land is lush with indigenous and imported plants, agriculture largely bananas for export to the UK, industry the production of rum and cocoa. The shore is a convolution of cliffs, bays and coves, perfect of the development of resorts, spas and hotels for the ever increasing tourist industry. We experienced most of this during Thursday's Land and Sea Tout. We hit the highlights in Castries and two fishing villages enroute south to Soufriere. We drove through rainforests as we crossed over mountain passes, stopping at breathtaking outlooks to take photos, buy fresh coconut and souvenirs. We drove into the volcano to survey the smoking sulphurous centre, visited waterfalls, and botanical gardens. When we arrived in the harbor at Soufriere, we boarded a boat which transported us to a secluded beach. A generous and delicious lunch awaited. On to a beach between Pitons where we snorkeled and sunned for awhile. As the sun descended, we boarded again for the final leg of the tour, a boatride back up the coast to Castries. On the way, we stopped at a bat cave, Marigot Bay, and the tunnel of love used in Pirates of the Caribbean. The tour began at 9 am and we arrived back at Smugglers Cove after 7 pm! What a fabulous day.

We had hoped to see a dear friend while here, 95-year-old Betty, our Thanksgiving guest for 10 or 12 years before she moved here permanently four years ago to join her daughter's family. They are a branch of the Devaux family that stretches back to the eighteenths century. We have been privileged to meet and be hosted by Betty's granddaughters. Her daughter Pam gifted us with a book by Robert Devaux OBE, her husband, an island historian. They Called Us Brigands is the saga of the freedom fighters at the end of the 18th century who inhabited the rainforests and mountains in the interior of the island, claiming their emancipation in opposition first to the French Aristocracy and the Royalist planters and later to the British conquerors who sought to reestablish slavery. Very interesting, putting the place names and the creole language into clear context. We also came away with Pam's homemade cookies and a jar of chutney. Thank you, Robert and Pam! Well, that was Tuesday at Gayle and Carlos' lovely home and clinic, where we met granddaughter Tracy as well as a number of great grandchildren and other family and friends. Gayle and Carlos are naturopaths who also produce in house the NatMed line of natural treatments and the Caribbean Blue Naturals cosmetic products. I am looking forward to trying the lovely soaps they gave us. On Saturday, we are invited to cocktail hour at Maran and Richard's where we hope that Betty will be able to join us. If not, I will print out and send the pictures I brought for her on my iPad and be happy with having met most of her wonderful family. Otherwise, this week is one to kick back and relax.

I did a bit of a spa day on Wednesday with a back and foot massage and facial. And tonight we plan a trip into Gros Islet for the Friday night street party that has been ongoing for 21 years or more. It is reputed to be a blast. I will have to work on staying alert long enough to get there. We leave Sunday morning, to arrive back in TO on Christmas Day at about 6 pm. Fortunately, the usual dinner bunch are occupied elsewhere this year. We are ordering in Thai for them on the 27th this time around. We will be at the big family gathering at Mom's on Boxing Day, thankful that we do not have to deal with jet lag after this trip. In the meantime, we wish all of you the best of Seasons Greetings whatever your mid-winter celebrations, and of course, a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Thanksgiving Sunday Dinner

We hosted Thanksgiving Dinner on Sunday - Husband and I, our two daughters and their guys, our two grandchildren (7) and (2), two sisters, one brother-in-law, one niece, one great-nephew, one cousin about to join his wife and baby son in Moscow, and one neighbour friend. We switched the living and dining room furniture to accommodate everyone around the table. We had sun and shirtsleeve weather. So we visited outside and in the porch before and after dinner.

I had snacks/light lunch waiting at 2:00 pm: a bowl of seasonal fruit and a platter of dried fruit and nuts, a cheese and cracker board plus a variety of nachos and flatbread with antipasto, a plate of raw veggies, plus a stunning loaf-shaped pie with a chestnut mushroom onion sage and cranberry filling. Beer, wine, tonic, pellegrino, juice, limes etc for drinks.

Then for the dinner feast:
A 23.5 lb beautiful turkey, savory stuffing, gravy (proclaimed 'epic' this year)
Individual baked savory stuffings for vegetarian sister and daughter plus a large casserole of the delicious sweet stuffing for everyone (butternut squash, maple syrup, onion, sage, toasted pecans, dried cranberries, dried bread cubes, vegetable broth: yummy!)
Mashed potatoes
Sister's roasted veggies and tahini sauce, and her green beans and almonds
Daughter's new wonderful beet salad plus her kale recipe to which we added to my garden chard
Cousin's fab salad and dressing
Neighbour's little biscuits and butter
Other sister's pumpkin pies and whipped cream
Niece's lemon squares and incredible vegan hazelnut cookies

On Tuesday, I made broth from the carcass so the freezer is stocked and ready for soups and stews. Meanwhile, I don't have to cook for the rest of the week because there are so many leftovers. Well, Wednesday I did make my mom's easy leftover turkey casserole which we will finish tonight: layer turkey, leftover veggies, potato and/or stuffing; pour on the leftover gravy/broth and put in hot oven; when bubbling, unroll Pilsbury crescent roll dough and cover casserole; bake as per crescent roll directions. Husband and I just got over bad colds so I am all for an easy week. Otherwise everyone is fine, including our son's family out in Victoria. Mom is having a few health issues. But she is getting some physiotherapy this week and we hope she will be fine soon. Of course, she is 98. We also heard from our Thanksgiving friend who moved to live with her family in St. Lucia a few years back. She is 95, and still remembers to get in touch with us every year. We all have fond memories of sharing Thaksgiving with her. That is what Thanksgiving is for, isn't it? Sharing the bounty.

Thanksgiving prep

The first week of October was almost completely wiped out by a virulent cold that came on after I had an upper respiratory reaction to having the house sprayed for carpenter ants on October 1. All attempts other than pest control failed to get rid of them and they eat your house so we had to do something. At 9:00 a.m. we drove down to our old home town to see some dear friends. Twelve hours later, three times the necessary absence, we arrived home and by midnight my head was stuffed and my throat scratchy. Nonetheless, we went down to NOTL on Sunday to meet niece, grand nephews, and great grand nephew and niece for a tasting at Hillebrand and lunch at Corks. It was cold and rainy. I tried not to breathe on anyone. Otherwise a grand time was had by all. Monday was a complete write-off...down for the count.

On Tuesday night I took the postponed trial tango class at Blueheel dance studio. My teacher, CIro, was very good. I don't think he gets that I want to study tango not to be able to dance at parties, but to get moving and to study the form. Anyway, I signed up for four more private lessons and two practice sessions over the next two months. I hope he didn't get the cold.

For the rest of the week, I was too fuzzy-brained to do anything. I could not go near Mom, of course, and my granddaughter was sick too. No dance class for her on Thursday. I tried to shop late on Friday afternoon. However, I just spent hours in grid-locked traffic in this little burg. What the heck was going on? Holiday weekend traffic, I guess. That made it imperative for me to do a major shopping on Saturday. Well, this is how that day of Thanksgiving prep unfolded:

Started laundry
Showered and dressed.
Harvested the garden for butternut squash, tomatoes, sweet & hot peppers.
Drove to the market - argh! No cash. Off to the bank - Back to the market for tomatoes, Bosc & Bartlett pears, northern spies & gala apples.
Next stop, Bulk Barn for salted & plain roasted almonds, walnut pieces, a few licorice cigars & candy pumpkins, dried apricots & rolled oats.
Canadian Tire for sealer jar lids & cleaning products.
On to ECS Coffee for a variety of Tassimo cups & Koo loose teas.
QEW to Costco for the great deals on old cheddar, goat cheese & Brie plus a few other necessaries.
Last stop Longo's to pick up the turkey. Ordered 18-20 lbs but it came in at 23.5 lbs. Filled the cart with fruit and veg, crackers, ice cream, whipping cream, coffee cream and various other items indulged in only for holidays.
Came home to finish landry, put the groceries away, and had a cup of tea, feet up.
Took a break for an hour at Carrigan Arms, to say Happy Thanksgiving to buddies there (" No hugs! I may be contagious").
What did we have for dinner? Hmmmm. A freezer pizza and a bit of leftover chicken, I think.
Saturday night, I had a little burst of energy and actually cooked something - a pie baked in a loaf pan, filled with a mix of finely chopped onion, mushrooms, chestnuts, sage & cranberries. It turned out beautifully. I set it to cool in the sunporch and went to bed.

More to come...

Quick September Summary

It seems impossible that I have reached the end of my first month of real retirement. Not only did it pass disturbingly quickly but it was also a bit of a chilly vacuum. Most of that feeling springs from a kind of decompression that was necessary for me to go through in order to even begin to feel retired. And to the lousy weather that we have had this particular September - really more like November or mid-October at best. Still and all, it was also a busy month when I did have things to do, and often a lot of fun. Here is a brief run-down:

The month began with the Burlinton Rib Fest, chilly weather and a lot of rain. We skipped our usual Saturday outing as did the friends that have attended with us for years. That gave me extra time to prep the pulled pork and peach pies for the neighborhood Contra Rib Fest on the Sunday. Lots of people came and we made it through the feast on the Penney's front lawn before getting rained out with an evening downpour. Even that didn't put a damper on the event as people retreated to a number of porches and open garages. We hung out until the night chill and the mosquitoes drove us home. Monday afternoon was clear enough that we met a few friends for beer and cider down at the Rib Fest where we listened to Jack de Keyser's Blues Band.

I also registered my younger granddaughter for Modern (Limon) class at the Canadian Contemporary Dance Theatre (CCDT) formerly the Canadian Children's Dance Ensemble. They've been around for 30 years so they have grown and are wonderfully professional. Thus I have begun my weekly pilgrimage to TO to lunch with my mom and to take my granddaughter to her class. We have established a routine: on our way she has a 6-inch plain Italian Subway sandwich, vegetarian with extra cheese, lettuce, cucumber and green peppers with a bit of salt and pepper and no sauce (not bad at all for a seven year-old!), chocolate milk and two cookie combo. If she needs something after class, there is a gelato place close-by. We have tried cabs and streetcar, but really, the fastest route is my car via the Gardiner and Parliament. So
as much as I love GOing and TTC, I may drive on Thursdays, especially in inclement weather. The timing is right for quick highway traffic and there is parking right in front. She is loving it and so am I.

During TIFF I was delighted to be taking in films with friends and sisters on school days. I saw seven films over three days: three on Monday, two on Tuesday and two on Friday. In order of seeing them with a brief review: 1) The Silver Cliff from Rio in Portuguese was good but did not have enough content in places - it would be better cut as a long short than as a feature; 2) Anonymous from England in English was fabulous, loved it; 3) Lena from The Netherlands in Dutch and Polish was excellent; 4) The Oranges from the US in English with fab cast was intriguing and hilarious, loved it too; 5) W.E. was Madonna's directorial debut about Wallace and Edward with excellent performances but something off about the pace of the story development which made it good but definitely not great; 6) Union Square from the US was a small budget indie starring Mira Sorvino and great little cast about the relationships between sisters and their families, excellent; 7) The Turin Horse from Hungary in Hungarian was not only a massive disappointment but quite possibly the worst film I have ever seen at TIFF, excruciatingly devoid of any story even though the programmer described the director as the maestro of storytelling, soundtrack like nails on a blackboard and we finally walked out after two hours and twenty minutes, something I never do. I love TIFF and finally became a member. Got a lovely mag in the mail with interesting film articles and a program of events giving me a list of too many things that I would love to do from the Grace Kelly exhibit to her movies to Hitchcock's films.

Since TIFF I haven't done much. I spend a lot of time with my feet up, TV on, playing solitaire. This is my way of decompressing. The miserable weather kept my gardening efforts to a minimum, but I did manage to harvest tomatoes enough for a batch of a secret family recipe for Tomato Marmalade. My grandmother and my mother made it every year. It has its own unique delicious taste. Mom was delighted to get a little jar. I also saw more of my sisters than I ever have in one month. I stayed with Jean a few nights, went to TIFF with Jean and Mary, visited Helen's new digs - I'll see Margaret at Thanksgiving and Evelyn the week after. Yay for sisters! We also started a new tradition of rotating family dinners, just the immediate family, with the first delicious one at Erin's. Our Victoria branch keeps in touch via phone and fb. Yay for family! My new freedom has also allowed for more time with friends: TIFF with Sandy, Val and Mavis and chats with Aileen and other neighbours. I even canvassed half the street for The Arthritis Society (something I put off to the last moment making it clear that this is not a task for me). And perhaps the most important bit, I tied off the tiny frays of the loose ends from work, completing and submitting long overdue reports. This gave me an excuse to drop into CALC and say hi to a bunch of folks there, and to enjoy Private Lives at the Royal Alex with Pam, a colleague, without any school pressure hanging over my head.

I bid September good-bye with new colour and cut at Atelier, and a pedi at Salon Soleil. When it turned out that my appointment for a free Tango trial at Blueheel Dance Studio had been double booked, I was disappointed but rebooked for early October. A whole new month stretches ahead, with fewer items on the calendar and adventures waiting to unfold.