Favorite Photos II

Preening Himself

White Cliffs of Dover, Englnd

Oslo, Norway

Oslo, Norway

A big-ass foot

Full moon over the river

A river in Nova Scotia

Katmandu

Images of Egypt

the fishing boats

climbing the pyramids

Bin Laden is Dead

Nicaragua

Spring 2011

I am on a small ship, traveling through the Caribbean.  Internet access is very limited. So the only news I receive about Bin Laden is the Captain’s written, posted daily update on the situation: “Yesterday, special forces invaded Bin Laden’s house and killed him.  Several other people were killed in the incident.  No Americans were killed”.  That’s it.  That is the extent of information on this breaking news. 

Throughout the day, all of the passengers mention it to each other but in a quiet manner, “Did you hear that Bin Lade was killed?  Did you ever think we would get him?”  And that just about sums up the extent of our conversation on this matter.

That afternoon, we drop anchor in a port in Nicaragua. As others run off to view the sites of the town, I wandered off to find a little outdoor beer restaurant.  I plan on spending the afternoon writing and drinking beer. 

As I consume my beer, I am interrupted by strangers, Canadians as a matter of fact.  They are from the other cruise ship. They came right up to my table and sit themselves down.  They are from Ottawa. Originally, they were from Germany. They are very gregarious and wanted to know all about me and my travels.  The wife does all of the talking and then the husband abruptly announces that he had to get back to the ship.  “The loud music blasting through the public speakers was getting to me. I don’t know why they have to play it so loud”, he complained.  They say their goodbyes and I go back to my writing.

A few minutes later, another elderly couple sit at the table across from me.   That distance did not deter the wife from engaging in a conversation with me.  And her hearing problem did not deter her either. So I order another beer.

“I see that you are writing.  What are you writing? Are you a journalist?” she asks with great curiosity, great interest.

“No, I am just writing a journal about my trip.” I tell her, nonchalantly and a little embarrassed that I didn’t have something more interesting to report to her.

“What did you say?  Say that again,” she shouts back at me. 

It didn’t occur to either of us to join each other at our tables. And so we just continue to shout to each other.  Of course, she want to know about my travels so again I have to give a quick synopius of my travel life to her.  She fills me in on her life as well. The husband sits in his own spaced-out world while the wife tells me about her daughter, the editor of Blackpress.com.

 “She’s a writer, just like you,” she tells me.

Then I ask her for her take on the Bin Laden situation.  She is hesitant at first and I know she is being very guarded so as to not offend me, an American.  So I lead her to what I think is probably her answer. 

“You know, I felt empty”, I tell me.  “What were we really celebrating? Revenge or justice.”  Now she feels confident to speak freely and she tells me that she found some of the celebration distasteful. We exchanged emails and I thought to myself, “wouldn’t it be nice if we were all this friendly to each other.”

They leave and now I am joined by an American couple from Florida and they are about my age.  Again, we are not sitting at the same table but that does not stop us from shouting to each other and now there is a third table of guests who chime in our conversation. And again, we go through the beer talk (and by this time, I am now making my way through my third bottle of beer) and where we have been so far and what we liked about out trips so far.  We offer suggestions to each other in light of the fact that we are on the same travel path but going in opposite directions.

I ask the Florida couple for their take on the Bin Laden’s death.  They are thrilled to discuss this topic.  “You know, most of the damn people on our cruise are mostly Canadians.  There aren’t a lot of us on this ship,” the husband tells me.

I ask for their take on the Canadian perspectives.  “Oh, those fucking Canadians really pissed me off”, the wife says, “They acted like we were making too big a deal over it.” 

That is my cue to leave.  I have had too many beers and I want to leave before I make a faux pas.

To read more stories, check out:   bkmemoirs.blogspot.com

 or  bkmemoirs.wordpress.com

Celebrating The Small Things

Celebrating the Small Things

I’ve been fortunate to have had lots of big moment s in my life.  But it’s the small moments that get me through the mundaneness of my daily life.  Here are some things that consistently bring me great pleasure in life:

• Ø  Sitting in a bar, all afternoon, drinking beer, with friends on a rainy day. On a sunny day I like to sit outside and drink beer all afternoon.
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• Ø  When the hummingbird comes into my yard, it stops me in my tracks. I become mesmerized

• Ø  Sitting on my beach on a sunny day. My beach is very small but it’s mine and it’s quiet and secluded and a great way to spend the afternoon.
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• Ø  Going to the movies. I could go to the movies every day. When I go to the movies I don’t buy any popcorn or sodas or candy. The movie is the main event, the only event. I like to be there to watch every preview and the entire movie but I also like to watch the credits. When I go to the movies with my friend, Darcy, we try to guess the name of the best grip boy. We have challenged each other to this contest for 25 years and to date neither of us have guessed the correct name of the grip boy.
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• Ø  Once a Pileated Woodpecker flew past me while I was driving. I stopped my car and got out and look for him for 10 minutes. I never saw them but every time I passed the spot I slow down and look for him.
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• Ø  I have a small wood burning stove. In the winter I had a fire every night. I love that moment what I strike the match and the fire starts.
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• Ø  Crossing the Causeway Bridge that leads into Long Beach Island, NJ. I look to the right as far as my eyes can see and hope that I see my parents. My family went to this beach for over 30 years. Every time I cross that bridge, I think of my parents.
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• Ø  The week pumpkin ale is released in late September is my favorite week of the year. I love the first pumpkin beer of the season the best. It sends me on a quest to find “the best pumpkin ale” of the season.
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• Ø  Howling at the full moon.
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• Ø  Reading a good book. I love to be immersed in a good book.
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• Ø  Sitting at a friend’s kitchen table, having coffee and she brings out half-and-half. I hate 2% milk or that big powdery shit as a cream substitute.
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• Ø  Spending time with my nieces and nephews.
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• Ø  A crisp fall night, the first moment I realize I have to wear a sweater.
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• Ø  That moment at the Springfield Dance Marathon when the announcement is made as to how much money the students raised. I am always overwhelmed with pride.
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• Ø  A hot shower.  in my travels I’ve had plenty of cold showers and they’re so distasteful.
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• Ø  Sitting at a friend’s house, watching movies on a rainy afternoon. On these days, I’ll eat popcorn.
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• Ø  Going out to dinner. I could go out to dinner every night.
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• Ø  Eating pizza or Chinese food or seafood or pancakes or corn beef sandwiches or chicken dumpling soup or breakfast foods.
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• Ø  Taking photos. Some days I just picked a destination and take photos all afternoon. in my mind I think that I’m working on assignment for National Geographic magazine.
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• Ø  That day that I get to wear flip-flops for the first time in the season. Flip-flops are my favorite shoes.
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• Ø  Engaging in good conversation with family and friends.
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• Ø  When the lilacs return.  I notice their fragrance first and then I notice that they have lured the butterflies back in to my yard.
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• Ø  I love coming into my house after it’s been cleaned (by someone other than me). I love the fresh smell.
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• Ø  Floating in the warm water of the North East River.
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• Ø  Writing. I like to write everyday.
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• Ø  Be connected to so many of my former students on Facebook. It’s been great to see how they’ve grown into mature adults. I wonder when I’ll be a mature adult.
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• Ø  Packing for trip; it fills me with excitement and anticipation.
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• Ø  Going to the landfill with my trash and recyclables. I feel unburdened when I leave there.
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• Ø  Going to library. I have a great library. It’s so nice to to sit there and write and read and listen to music. Nobody shushes me. Everybody seems happy to be there. It’s such a pleasant environment.
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• Ø  Watching my blue bearded irises bloom. They come up every spring and I wait for them in great anticipation. They’re so stunningly beautiful but I’m sad when they melt away and leave me for a whole year.
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• Ø  Herons and egrets are birds I could watch forever. They are so prehistoric yet so graceful in flight. I have captured them on photo hundreds of times and that’s still wasn’t enough.
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• Ø  A long road trip in my car. I listen to books on CDs when I’m on the road and this is a pleasant way to pass time.
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• Ø  The first moment after a blizzard when I go outside and inhale that cold, crisp air and feel as I am in a winter wonderland.
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• Ø  After a long trip, coming home to the comforts of my world.
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• Ø  The moment when I emerge into my hot tub. The air is so cold and the water is so warm and it feels like heaven to slide into this pleasant sensation.