14 days till Cubs Home Opener

Poor Harry Caray! It's just two weeks till he's front and center of the Cubs Home Opener 2009, but today he's freezing in the cold of a spring snowstorm.


Before I can start thinking of baseball in earnest, I guess I could do like these guys are doing and make the best of the March snow. But can I get anyone to pull me UP the hill?


Okay, these guys are just nuts, but I think that's a prerequisite for smelt fishing. If the lake isn't frozen over, these guys (and many more like them) are out there day and night! Crazy!

"If you'd rather give up than fight, then nothing will really be worth it."

Five bucks if anyone can name the movie that line is from.

GalPal and I were BFF throughout high school and college, even standing up in each other's weddings. Not too long after her second wedding (don't ask) and my first, I was chatting with her mother about random stuff. I had stopped by BFF's parent's house to return the crinoline slip that I had borrowed to wear under my own wedding gown (something borrowed, something blue). Having such a long friendship, BFF and I knew each other's families pretty well.

A few weeks go by and I'm opening mail that arrived while I was out of the country on vacation with my husband. It's a letter from BFF. Strange to get a letter from her since she lived only a mile or two away.

In short, BFF decided that we were no longer friends. Apparently, she heard second- or third- hand that I had said something about her second husband not being good enough for her. My mouth dropped open. I know I never said that because I don't remember even thinking that. In fact, her second husband was a distant relative of mine and I'd never even met him until he starting dating BFF. I didn't know enough about him in his pre-BFF days to have much of an opinion at all.

I tried to figure out how this all started and I can't imagine who would've told her such a thing. But we'd been friends for over 10 years at this point so I was sure we could talk about it, clear it up and we'd probably laugh about it in years to come.

No phone call.

Ever.

So just like that, I've lost a friend. I've lost my best friend - someone I could tell anything to. Someone who would laugh so long and so hard with me that we ran out of breath at the exact same time and then started laughing all over again. The first person you call when something fantastic...or horrible...or funny happens. That person.

Executed without so much as a trial.

Years have passed and she's crept into my mind occasionally, wondering how many kids they have (since she's wanted to have a baby ever since we met in high school). I've even come across her name on the internet.

But I've made no effort to contact her. If she had put one-tenth of the value on our friendship that I did, she wouldn't have abandoned our friendship without a fight.

Oh, the line is from "The Wedding Date." Good movie, if only for the music.

The Hello Goodbye Window

I need to preface this by saying that I'm not in love, haven't been in a long time. I haven't been crushed by some random fella either.This is just the observation that resulted from some recent conversation with someone I thought I could trust.

It was the name of a children's book, one of the many I re-shelved tonight on my volunteer night of service. It made me think of all the things we thought we knew when we were young...and stupid.

With age comes wisdom, right?

When you are hungry, you eat. When you are tired, you sleep. When you have to go pee, you go pee. Basic bodily functions that we all understand.

Is sex just a basic bodily function? Just a way to relieve stress, anger, frustration or whatever ails a person at that moment? Nothing more?

Throughout my life, I've met guys who seem to categorize sex as a basic bodily function. No emotional attachment, no intimacy (or as little as you can get away with until she's naked), much less committment. Just something to do for fun and function. Just remember to wear a rubber!

Granted, there are women who feel this way about sex, too. Call me naive, but I think most of them make a ton of money off their attitude. This reminds me of a saying I once heard, maybe you're familiar with it: 'Men give love to get sex. Women give sex to get love.'

I met so many men with the sex-for-fun attitude that they all started to blend into one another, like zebras in a pack. You'd think by now I'd be able to spot one a mile away.

Nope.

Spring? Yeah, right!

So I stopped into my local Subway to grab a quick lunch. I've been to this location several times recently because 1) it's close to my office and 2) I had coupons (yes, I'm all about saving $$ where I can.)

When I ordered red onions on my sandwich, the Subway worker said, 'not kissing anybody today?'

'Not today, not yesterday and no plans for tomorrow,' I answered without missing a beat.

How sad is that?

Signs of spring in Chicago

You know spring has come to Chicago (finally!!!) when...

• The neighborhood Lions Club (or Elks Club or Masons) have all-you-can-eat pancake breakfasts in the local schools.
  
• Girl Scouts (and their mothers) set up card tables outside the usual Saturday errand locales, i.e. the bank, the dry cleaner, the grocery store, etc. Two boxes of Thin Mints are chilling nicely in my freezer. Yum!!
• Baseball can be heard (on the radio, at least)! And pools are aplenty for March Madness college basketball.
• Random strangers will compliment me. The other day while at lunch at Subway, a complete stranger stopped on his way out the door and said, "I just couldn't leave without telling you that you are beautiful."
• Women under 30 years old will see the thermometer creep above 40 degrees F and immediately whip out the flip flops, tank tops and short skirts.
  

How many days till Opening Day???

Micah Hoffpauir takes a huge cut in front of a hot & sweaty crowd in Mesa during Chicago Cubs Spring Training 2009. It was 88 degrees F and a lovely blue sky.



In uniform, the players all tend to look alike (sort of), but this is Sam Fuld signing autographs after a game. Sam had a short call-up to the major leagues two years ago but true Cub fans will remember him for a great play in right field where he crashed into the ivy-covered wall, made the catch and then doubled the runner off first! Fabulous!



The team bursts out of the dugout and the game begins! Can summer be far behind? (Sorry for the thru-the-fence view).




First baseman Derrek Lee is 6-feet-5 inches tall. Aaron Miles, our newest infielder, is.....not.



Manager Lou Piniella (from left), first base coach Matt Sinatro, and bench coach Alan Trammel chill out during the early innings during a Spring Training game. General Manager Jim Hendry (first row behind the wall) is, as usual, on his cell phone, no doubt working on another trade.



Sam Fuld (again) in mid-bubble with one of our many new Cubs faces. So new that I'm not sure who it is?!!?


Outfielder Reed Johnson has been given the nickname "Gumby" because of his tremendous flexibility and athletic prowess. No one wants to stretch out with him. Who gave him that name? Okay, it was me.



Spring Training's a great time to get autographs, even if it's name from a household name. Someone once told me that you take a player's uniform number, subtract it from 100 and that's the percent chance he has of making the team...Well, it was nice of them to sign anyway.



The bright sun and the high blue Arizona sky make for perfect weather to warm up before the crowds arrive.




Early in Spring Training, it's not uncommon to see a lineup where you hardly recognize any players' names. Not today for the Cubs as Alfonso Soriano leads off a team with many familiar faces.

More blood and guts

These photos could be considered just gross or totally interesting, depending on your point of view. Thought I'd be sick looking at my own guts, but found it terribly fascinating once I knew what was going on.


The massive blob on the right is the larger of the two fibroids that was removed in a six-hour surgery. According to the surgeon, who described it as a cantalope, the thing weighed almost one full pound (556 grams). You can see blood vessels all over it including the bulging artery? vein? at the bottom that's wrapped around it. If my doc had damaged that thing, say bye-bye to ever saying 'baby.' Scary shit, huh?


The Grand Canyon of stomach cavities where the evil fibroid blob once resided. Too big to stitch closed apparently, so they did the next best thing (see below).



This is the mesh stuff that the surgeon inserted to grow as a cover for the hole. How they were able to do all this garbage-out, repair materials in I'll never know. But they did and it's 10 days later and except for a ridiculously low energy level (for me, at least), I feel pretty good. My surgeon is a magician!

Favor granted

I've been so busy stressing about this fibroid surgery that I hadn't given any thought to a far more important drama that was taking place in Florida recently.
My mother, from whom I have been trying to hide my medical issues, has been in Florida since before Christmas, watching her only sister suffer from cancer.
Obviously, it's much easier to hide a situation from someone who has no geographical proximity to the situation. Hence, my mom hasn't a clue that I had surgery last week.
In a tiny little corner of my self-absorbed brain, I hoped that my aunt would hold on long enough that my mother wouldn't be flying home while I was still in the hospital. Can one person BE so self-centered? Apparently the answer is yes.
Surgery was Wednesday, I was home on Thursday and my aunt passed away on Friday morning. My mother is staying in Florida for a few more days and then flying home on Thursday. By then, I expect to be adequately recuperated to continue our tradition of Saturday morning breakfasts.
Thank you, Aunt D. We'll miss you.

If you're going to have a first surgery, might as well go BIG!

Pre-Op belly..


NOTE: IF YOU ARE SQUEAMISH ABOUT BLOOD-AND-GUTS STORIES, DO NOT READ FURTHER.

As of one or two weeks ago, I was facing a minor surgery to remove six, count 'em SIX, fibroids. For those of you who haven't Googled this stuff, a fibroid is a non-cancerous growth that often grows inside women over 35. Sometimes they cause problems, sometimes not. They go away on their own when a woman starts menopause. Lovely, huh?

So, you can imagine my surprise when I woke up after a SIX-HOUR surgery that involved removing just two fibroids. No big deal, right? Two is better than six. When the surgeon used the word 'cantalope' to describe the size of one of the fibroids, that's when I really woke up!

Imagine a small football (15+ cm) lodged between a bunch of...let's call them 'girlie bits.' The issue, it seemed was not only the size of the growth, but the fact that wrapped around this offending blob was a crucial blood vessel and another pretty important ligament.

DaVinci robot to the rescue! This amazing bit of machinery helped my doctor to not only disconnect the vital artery without spraying blood all over the operating room, but also to chop up this blob into tiny bits that he could remove through a tiny incision. My doctor is a magician!

I wondered why I haven't been hungry in, oh, a month or two, but it seems this offending mass was pushing everything else out of its way. Ovaries smoooshed to the side, uterus squished to a tiny mass. It wasn't pretty. I saw some wonderfully graphic photos (which I hope to show here) that were taken by the surgeon during surgery. Cool stuff (if you don't puke looking at it) that showed how HUGE this fibroid was in comparison to the normal size of my uterus, liver, ovaries and other things you read about in eighth grade biology.

While trying to chop up this mass, the doctors were concerned they might not only nick the blood vessel but also might accidently disconnect my urethra (tube that allows pee to flow from the bladder outside the body). So, they did what any concientious doctor would do, they dyed my pee BLUE! You can imagine my surprise when I woke up and discovered Kool-Aid in my catheter.

My surgeon further explained that before they could even try to get to this huge growth, they had to blow me up, balloon-style, with a ton of gas to expand my inside and give them room to work. No big deal, except that my belly looks like a beer-swilling trucker's gut. Apparently, the gas also settles into strange spots like my shoulders and my neck so I really felt like I'd been run over by a truck. Weird. Guess I'll have to wait for the flat stomach that I was counting on.

Once the blob was gone, the surgeons realized that they couldn't just sew closed the remaining hole (too big). So, I have a sheet of some kind of mesh that they attached to the gap. How they were able to move all of these materials into and out of me with only the tiny holes remaining is pretty incredible. Kinda like moving a king-size bed through a car window.
Here...look.

No MJ, just me

We had just arrived at the United Center and found Section 122, Row 5. I couldn't help but think that 10 years ago, I could've sold a kidney and not gotten these great seats. Of course, back then, Michael Jordan was shaking powder off his hands right there at the scorer's desk Ahhh, those were the days!



A few months back, I went to a charity event and bid on a few silent auction items. I love to check out the options and scribble my name and a nominal bid, just to get things started. One item really caught my eye. It was titled 'Sports Lover's Dream' and it included (get ready for this), tickets to the Cubs (baseball), Sox (baseball, I guess), Blackhawks (ice hockey), Wolves (more ice hockey) and Bulls (basketball).

How many women do you know that would drool over a silent auction item like this? Seriously, stop and think about it...I'll wait.

Okay, you know at least ONE! (or, in this case, three)



The Bulls were able to make free throws. It was the shots from the floor (while moving) that gave them a bit of trouble.



I think it's very cool to see how high these guys can jump. Where's he when I need something off the top shelf?


This the greatest toy I think I've EVER seen! And he lives in the rafters of the United Center.

A first time for everything

Turns out, I'm going to be having surgery. Just as an aside, if anyone reading this knows my family, please do NOT tell them. I'll explain why in a few minutes.

First off, it's not major. In fact, it's out-patient (but I don't think the hospital will let ever-independent me take a taxi home, so I'll have to work on that). It's 'a girl thing' and I'll just leave it at that. NO! I'm not pregnant! You have to have sex for that, if I recall the details of Health Class correctly. Trouble is, there's a two-week recovery time.

Oh, did I mention that this will be my FIRST EVER surgery?? Yep, I've survived life on this planet without so much as an appendix scar. No broken bones, no sprained ankles. The worst 'injury' I've ever had is chicken pox. I figured God was saving up all of my aches and pains and then when I turned 50, I'd get hit by a truck!

Anyway, the organized side of me is trying to make sure my job responsibilities are covered. How f'd up is that? Anyway, the woman that filled in for me during my Australia trip said she'll be available. Probably. Since I haven't scheduled this yet, she's not positive.

My regular doctor told me about the recovery time, but I haven't spoken to the surgeon yet. (Geez! How grown-up this all sounds!) I have a few things to ask him since I'm new to this whole 'operation' thing.

Anyhow, one of our new colleagues has offered to pick me up from the hospital and tuck me in at home and even check up on me. She's only been at the company a few weeks, but we've really hit it off, even going to the Bulls game together the other night. And since she's in my age group, single, a Cubs fan and lives about a mile from me, this could be (borrowing from Bogie), 'the beginning of a beautiful friendship.'

So the ride home is covered (and I can take a taxi to the hospital, no worries there).

The Tour Guide suggested I ask my gay neighbors to keep an eye on me while I'm recuperating and I think that's a fab idea. I'll grab a bottle of wine and stop over in the next few days to see if they'll be around.

Even my Mexican friends who work at the neighborhood breakfast joint have offered to go grocery shopping for me while I'm down. How great are these people?

Why am I not letting my mother take over the mom-ing part and just stay at her house for the entire recuperating time? I could be waited on hand-and-foot for two whole weeks! This is the kind of thing my mother LIVES for!

Well, she's been in Florida since pre-Christmas caring for her terminally ill sister (her only sister). Do I really want her to have to choose between her dying younger sister and her temporarily-incapacitated youngest daughter?

Nope.

Because my Mom might just choose incorrectly and fly home to care for me. And if (while watching me sleep on her sofa) her sister dies, how is she going to feel for not being there to say goodbye?

Getting the picture?

The second choice would naturally be one of my sisters who happens to be a nurse. Yep, she'd be the perfect advocate, talking medical stuff with my surgeon and making sure I'm propery drugged up. Couldn't ask for a more perfect sibling in this situation.

Except that she would rat me out to my mother the first chance she got. Why? Because she's like that.

I've already got books, magazines, cable TV, the internet and new Google phone to keep me busy, but I'll let you know when the big day is. Stay tuned.

The thighs they are a-burnin'

So I move a little more gingerly lately, what's the big deal? And if I use my hands to steady myself as I sit down, so what? Occasionally I might groan when crouching to pick up something. No big deal.
I've started on '30 Day Shred,' the evil, mean-spirited, torture DVD put out by Jillian Michaels, one of the trainers on 'The Biggest Loser.'
I'm not fat by any measure, but I'm bigger than I want to be and that's enough for me.
In all honesty, Level 1 was a TINY bit easier on this second workout. I thought I would pass out the first time I did it, but tonight's efforts didn't make me want to fling the DVD out my window. I actually appreciated Michaels' comments of encouragement (although they were mostly drowned out by my own internal commentary that consisted of stuff like, 'quit bitching and just do it, you cow!')
There are a total of nine of us women at my office doing this workout routine (or maybe just me, most of the others have been on vacation for Christmas and New Years.) If everyone else is walking around like the Tin Man without his oil, then I'll know we're on the right track.
As for the DVD, it's broken down into three levels. You advance whenever you feel ready (which I guess means when you don't feel like puking after the workout). The first level is divided into three parts: 3 minutes strength training, 2 minutes of cardio and 1 minute of abs. Doesn't sound like much, does it?
Having a small clock on my computer screen alongside the exercise demonstrations is quite helpful. The entire workout is 20 minutes (three times the three-part routine plus 2 minutes of warm-up and cool down). There is NO, I repeat, NO stopping during the workout.
A few things I've learned about myself and exercise:

• I can't drink water before I exercise or I want to throw up during jumping jacks
• I need to use the toilet before I start or else....
• I'm not hungry when I finish the workout. Thirsty? Yes, but not hungry. Weird.
• A four-year-old photo of myself in a bikini posted on my refrigerator is a wonderful motivator.
• Writing my level of workout and time exercised on a calendar posted on my wall is showing my level of dedication. To no one but me, but I'm just saying..
• Leaving my hand weights and workout mat in the middle of my living room floor is a not-so-subtle reminder to myself of my obligation.

Once I can walk without impersonating an arthritic senior citizen, I will attempt to do these workouts on a daily basis, rather than every other day. I'll keep you posted.

Payback is wonderful!

A knock on my door had me scrambling for my bathrobe as I had been online shopping in my jammies. My neighbor was standing there holding my Pyrex dish. I had given him and his partner the dish full of the delicious beef stew that I had made almost two weeks ago to ward off the cold of the Chicago winter.
Since I hadn't seen my dish since then, I figured they might have dropped it and were now guiltily searching for a replacement. It seemed heavy in my hands...and cold.
"I made you flan," my neighbor said as I looked down into the creamy dessert goodness.
I LOVE having gay men as neighbors!

A made-for-tv life

After my first week back at work, I was too tired (from the office Christmas party on Friday too!) to go out Saturday night, so I found myself channel surfing. Stopped when the TV screen was full of ocean waves. Yep, images of warm, foamy salt water will usually keep my attention - - if only momentarily.
Travel Channel?
No.
Lifetime. (For my foreign pals, it's a female-oriented cable station that features lots of romantic and dramatic movies.)
Anyway, the made-for-tv film featured a single woman in my age group who goes on vacation alone to Hawaii (thought I was the only woman who goes on vacation alone?!?!) and meets up with a handsome surf instructor who is SEVERAL years her junior.
Of course my thoughts went to Tour Guide and the lovely hot, sunny weather in Darwin.
Is it completely unfair that the lead character--the 'older woman' - -in this show was played by Heather Locklear?

I did go to Australia and I have proof!

Low Isles, about 30 minutes off the coast of Australia near Port Douglas. You can snorkel right off the beach. Several tour groups anchor off the coast and send their charges via glass-bottomed boat to the beach where we don equipment and hit the reef - - not literally!



So many fish, so little time to see and snap them all! Went snorkeling at the Low Isles on my birthday. How fun!



Raise your hand if you spotted the GIANT clam in the upper right corner of this somewhat hazy underwater photo.



Breaky with a view. Does it get any better than this? 9am Monday at the Soul 'n' Pepper in Port Douglas.




Not the average souvenirs at Market Day in Port Douglas, no sir!



Aboriginal paintings at Nourlangie Rock. Very interesting tour all around.



What a beautiful little instrument of death, huh?



Sunset at the Wharf in Darwin. I watched the sun rise in Port Douglas and it setting in the Northern Territory. Life's pretty good.



If you don't know this building, you seriously need to get out more.



This was my view from my apartment at the Archipelago in Port Douglas. Is there any question as to why I abandoned the crappy weather in Sydney to go back there?



Despite the loud screeching and 100-mile-an-hour rocketing past my balcony, I really loved these guys.



Market Day in Port Douglas brings out vendors in all shapes and sizes, even those bearing no trinkets to sell. If you have hands, you're a customer.



I'm taking my row boat and going home!



You can keep your drive-through liquor stores, I'll take the belly-up-to-the-counter type.



Can't get much fresher than buying the just-picked produce at Market Day.

If you want to see more photos, go to www.mjs.smugmug.com

First awkward steps back into reality

I walked out of the elevator and tried to remember which key fits the deadbolt on the door of the condo I've owned in Chicago for more than six years. It felt weird coming home after almost a month in Australia. I'd really immersed myself into life there and now I didn't know what to expect.
Dropping my bags in my living room, I walked to the kitchen and tentatively open the refrigerator like you would after a friendly host tells you to "just make yourself at home." Nothing much to eat.
Where to start? Since Thanksgiving is a postal holiday, I knew I wouldn't have mail waiting for at least a day or two and laundry could wait.
Too tired to think about getting anything done, I got ready for bed. Couldn't for the life of me remember how to turn on the bedside lamp and thank God I didn't have to set an alarm.
Woke up in the middle of the night and knew I had to pee. Muscle memory took me to the bathroom, but I really wasn't surprised to find myself fumbling around on the top of the toilet tank for the half-button to flush. (We have a lever on the side.)
This is home, huh?

Going 'home'

SYDNEY, AU - -I've got a little bit of time before the shuttle comes to take me to the airport to fly back to Chicago. I should say 'back home', but it's getting harder and harder to leave Australia because it feels so much like home to me. I guess seven visits in as many years will do that, huh?
Of course, in a bit of finger-wagging, Mother Nature has given me a very beautiful day to leave. Jeez! Couldn't it rain or be windy or something like that? Even the infamous Australian flies aren't bothering me today.
I must say, I did have a nice sendoff last night with two German colleagues who are doing business in Sydney this week. We had a nice dinner and then moved up to the Horizon bar on the 36th floor of the Shangri-La hotel for drinks. What was really the perfect ending for the evening was when we downshifted to the Observer Hotel (really casual local place) and heard some nice live music. My colleagues saw a bottle of whiskey that looked interesting and decided to try it. Turns out, Slate whiskey is from Chicago!

Last day in paradise

PORT DOUGLAS,AU - - I've just finished my last breakfast at the Soul 'n' Pepper. Okay, you caught me, I ordered a strawberry smoothie as dessert after brekky simply because I didn't want to leave yet. Nothing like a 2-hour breakfast to start your last day off right.
There was something about the bright orange flowers on a nearby tree set up against the backdrop of a fresh green coconut palm and a baby blue sky that made me want to pack a bag and move right in.
As you may have guessed, now the melancholy has started to set in.
My flight to Cairns leaves tomorrow morning at the ungodly hour of 5am! On Wednesday, I fly back to Chicago. Back to a reality that has nothing I want in my life (okay, maybe my family...and the Cubs, but that's about it).
As abrupt as the hemispheric change will be, I guess it's a good thing that I'm spending one day in Sydney before leaving for Chicago. I don't expect it to be warm, but it certainly won't be freezing like my home. Long pants? Yes. Gloves? No.
When I get home, I think I'll start planning my next trip. How many days till Spring Training starts?

Back where I belong

PORT DOUGLAS, AU - -Yep, I did it. I flew back up to Cairns and shuttled back to PD. I couldn't help it. Here I was in Sydney, one of my favorite cities in the world, but I was absolutely miserable. Granted, it could have been the weather (chilly, windy, rainy) or it could have been the traffic (I wasn't driving, but I couldn't sleep for the car noise).
It was raining when I flew out of Sydney and raining when I landed at Cairns, but in Mother Nature's wonderful way of agreeing with my choice, the rain in Queensland provided about a half a dozen waterfalls for me to enjoy on the ride up to Port Douglas. And it stopped raining just as we pulled into the Archipelago (my hotel). Take THAT! Sydney!
While it has rained a few brief times since I've been here, the temperature is averaging about 10-12 degrees C warmer than Sydney so I don't really care about precip! Today, it's crazy hot with a scalding blue sky so I'm quite happy. I may even book another trip out to the Great Barrier Reef or maybe up to the Daintree Rainforest, I can't decide.
As for TG, I considered going back to Darwin, but decided against it because 1) it's terribly expensive and 2) it could be considered stalking since we only knew each other a short time. BUT, he did invite me to be a friend on Facebook (so I've got that going for me!)
The Central Hotel (tavern and hotel) had a free screening of "Fool's Gold" last night in its backyard garden patio. The movie was filmed in Port Douglas last year when I was here (but I sure as hell didn't see any movie stars ;-((. I almost cheered when Matthew McConaughey's(sp?) character walked into the front door of the Central Hotel to get a drink. Later on, he was on a speed boat that shot past the waterfront restaurant Soul N' Pepper and it really made me proud to be here. Guess I'll have to buy the DVD so I can look for more locations.
Too beautiful outside to be indoors on a computer, so I'm outta here!!!

Tour guide

SYDNEY,AU- - I'm writing this from Sydney, but my mind is still in Darwin (even my cell phone refuses to change timezones).
When I called Tour Guide, I got his cell phone voicemail so I told him that I'd love to have drinks with him and he should call me. After I hung up, I realized that he might have trouble calling me internationally and he might not remember what hotel I am staying in and he might not know my last name! Yeesh!
This guy is smart. Not only did he keep the tour manifest from my trip (so he had my last name and my hotel), but he saved money by just calling me at the hotel!
We met at my hotel (he said if he met me at a bar, there would definitely be 'some other bloke' already sitting with me) and walked about a block in the hot Darwin night.
Great conversation filled the evening with talk of the Cubs (yes, he'd LOVE to see a professional game as he's played softball in Australia); travel (he's only been to the US one time and that was as a camp counselor in upstate NY); rugby (he told me the basic rules and the difference between rugby union and rugby league...can't remember now, though); and how much he loves his job.
What made the evening so wonderful (for me, at least) was the amazing fact that this was finally a guy who ENJOYED CONVERSATION with a woman! I didn't have to ramble on like an idiot just to fill the void. TG was very attentive, keeping eye contact with me all evening. (Of course, I found out later that he didn't want to let me see him checking me out!) This was by far the most comfortable evening I'd spent with a man in...I don't know how long!
Since we traded turns buying a round of drinks, I wasn't sure if this was, in fact, a date. I guess I'm old-fashioned in American ways where the man pays for everything. But when he walked me back to my hotel (after both of us admitted we didn't want the evening to end) and asked if I didn't mind getting 'picked up' by a bus driver, I knew there was definitely interest beyond casual conversation.
Since I consider this a 'family' blog, I won't tell you how the date ended (or when), but I got an email from TG and it definitely made me smile. Did I mention that TG is 28 years old?!?!?!
Oh, one more thing: I've been in Sydney for less than 24 hours and I've heard the name of an Australian town that TG mentioned (new to me), heard an old song from the Blues Brothers movie (exact song that TG and I talked about) and the Jetstar customer support person who helped me book my flight to Port Douglas had the same name as TG.
Strange, huh?

Small world

SYDNEY, AU - - Here I am in one of my favorite cities in the world and I'm depressed. Okay, it could be because it's overcast, cool and windy here. But I know that's not it. I feel like there's a great party going on somewhere nearby but I can't go. Or at least I thought I couldn't.
I've just booked my return flight to Port Douglas TOMORROW! I didn't bring enough springlike attire to stay in Sydney with this definitely-not-beach weather, so I'm outta here. Also, I have friends there (and also in Darwin, which I'll get to later), so I'd rather be there.
As I walked into this internet cafe to download my flight confirmation, I saw a work colleague from our home office in Frankfurt! Small damned world! He said another colleague will be here next week so we made tentative plans for the three of us to meet for dinner the evening before I leave for Chicago. Nice to see him, but I really didn't want to think about work yet.

Kakadu...or however you spell it

DARWIN, AU - -No, I did not get eaten by a crocodile but I did see HEAPS of them! In addition to being scary as shit, they're really beautiful (even from 3 feet away!) I took a boat tour and was in the midst of about half a dozen (that we could actually see in the murky water) of the man-eating creatures. Fabulous!
Things I learned today:

• This area is called The Top End, the NT or the Northern Territory (which is pronounced by EVERYBODY as 'Northern Territree')
• A billabong is a pond. But I really don't think the creators of "On Golden Pond" ever considered adding crocodiles, adders and poisonous snakes to their movie.
• Kakadu National Park should be spelled Gangaju but some stupid European spelled it wrong. Figures!
• When an Aboriginal person dies, his/her name and or likeness are not to be used for a period of time. Apparently, doing so prevents his/her spirit from moving on from this world.
• The white-breasted eagle (another beautiful creature!) is the animal that the Aboriginal people believes carries the dead person's spirit to the next world. Therefore, these are highly respected and valued animals.
• Another Aboriginal bit: in their lore, evil spirits have four fingers, good spirits have three. Just so ya know!
• Termites know how to live right. They build fabulous cathedral mounds.
• Electrical lines are strung not on wood poles, but on steel ladder-type poles because 1) aforementioned termites, and 2) when the annual burning is conducted according to Aboriginal tradition...um, oops! wooden light towers go bye-bye!
• How can you NOT love a country with a city (a small one) named Humpty Doo.

Oh, did I mention the tour guide wants to talk sports with me? Apparently, he'd love to go to a baseball game. I have his number.

The Top End

DARWIN, AU - - Tomorrow I'm off to Kakadu National Park. Wish I could tell you what I expect to see but I haven't the faintest idea. Which is a very much how I feel about Darwin so far. Haven't the faintest idea.
It does remind me of Perth (which I visited a few years ago). It's a small town with not much tourism and pretty much no sophistication whatsoever. Not to say it's a bad place. I mean, how can you dislike a place that has a bar called "Duck's Nuts"?
It seems most of the tourism here revolves around crocodiles (which are apparently all over the place despite the fact that I haven't seen one). I did see a fantastic shirt with fake blood all over it and read "I survived a croc attack in Darwin." Just lovely!
Oh, did I mention that it's hot here? Yes, it was hot in Port Douglas, but Darwin is missing the lovely tradewinds that kept things wonderfully pleasant and liveable in PD. Darwin is drink-tons-of-water and don't-worry-about-a-shower kind of hot and sticky. Deodorant manufacturers must make a mint here!
Oh, speaking of Port Douglas, it seems I'll be making a return trip. I've been checking the weather in Sydney (my next planned city) and it will be CRAPPY! We're talking about cloudy and cool pretty much EVERY day! I certainly didn't fly all this way to bundle up in long sleeves and jeans. No sir! I've been checking the flights and I can skip town (back to Port Douglas) for about $140 USD.
I'm soooo there!

Something to be said for presentation

PORT DOUGLAS, AU - - "Eggs and toast" was the listing on the menu at the Soul 'n' Pepper restaurant. Simple, but just what I wanted this morning after my birthday.
What arrived was much more than the basic greasy-spoon dish. A huge pile of fluffy yellow scrambled eggs decorated with a touch of fresh chopped parsley sat aside two inch-thick squares of raisin toast. Nearby was a tiny grape tomato split in two and a sprig of dill (?) for decoration. In the corners of my square white plate were dustings of paprika that illuminated the shape of the dish and drew attention to the food within its boundaries.
Maybe it wasn't the food so much as the view just past my plate (sorry, no picture yet). As I looked past the eggs, toast and my flat white (a mix of expresso and silky smooth creamy foam), I saw that what was just a few individual rocks dotting the beach a few minutes before became a rock-filled bay as the tide roared out. No crocodiles in sight, despite the sign warning of their presence (in English and German). A tour boat heading out to the Great Barrier Reef sent a fresh froth of wave into the tiny bay that formerly featured a tiny beach.
Sitting under the multitude of coconut palm trees and sail canopies that make up the eating area of this establishment and enjoying the plumeria-scented tradewinds, I felt no reason to leave...ever.
That is brekky as brought to you by the Soul 'n' Pepper restaurant in Port Douglas, AU.

Australia - -beautiful country and more ways to kill you than anywhere else!

PORT DOUGLAS, AU - - Christel (who, along with her husband, Wolfgang, owns the lovely little hotel where I'm staying) and Bronwyn (the housekeeper - -yes, they only have one) and I were sitting around discussing travel in Australia.
During a tiny break from her usual online work, Christel looked up the hotel where I'll be staying in Darwin when I leave Port Douglas on Thursday. "Very nice," was Christel's comment. She had traveled to Darwin years before ever meeting Wolfgang and has always wanted to go back.
"You know you can't swim up in Darwin," mentioned Bronwyn, very matter-of-factly. "Because of the crocodiles."
Ya gotta love Australia! Always something to keep you on your toes!
And, yes, the hotel does have a swimming pool.

Potential stowaway

PORT DOUGLAS, AU - - Okay, now I'm in one of my favorite towns in the world (even though it's changed some since Hollywood discovered it last year while filming "Fool's Gold.") It's been an unusual trip so far, I must say.
I'm having a harder time than usual down-shifting from 'work mode.' I still walk entirely too fast for a beach stroll and I can't help but think of what's happening at my office.
Another odd occurence will happen tomorrow. Okay, it's not odd that its my birthday. I've grown accustomed to that. What's strange is that for the past three or four years, I've been fortunate enough to be able to spend my special day snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef and I might not be able to do that this year. I must say, though, that visiting the lovely rainbow-hued fishes doesn't suck. In fact, there aren't many better ways to spend one's birthday. Not in my humble opinion anyway.
The Wavedancer, the boat that usually transports me and about 50 other people out to the Low Isles, is out of commission (maintenance) until well after I leave Port Douglas. Strike one.
Sailaway, another tour offering to the Low Isles, is booked up with a private party. Strike two.
Tallahook, a third tour operator with a lovely 25-person maximum party size, accepted my booking this morning and confirmed that I would be picked up at 8:45 tomorrow morning. And then, at 4:15 this afternoon, they called to say that since they didn't have enough people (I guess it would've been a VERY private tour), they were cancelling my trip. Strike three...
Or is it?
I've decided that I'm going to pack a bag for a boat tour, stroll down to the marina, and jump aboard any boat heading toward the reef.
Wish me luck!

A latitude adjustment

SYDNEY, AU - - Perspective can be a funny thing. In Chicago, if I have to wait five or 10 minutes to have my order taken in a restaurant, I get all pissy. In Australia, it's just 'island time.' (Okay, it's a BIG island. Work with me, people!)
I just had a late breakfast at The Gumnut, a funky little cafe with an adorable courtyard dining area. 'Adorable' being defined as full of fallen leaves and dead flower petals; a corner garden that hasn't been pruned or watered since the last typhoon; and uneven tables that, in a past life, were ancient Singer sewing machines. Oh, did I mention that said garden includes ants and the occasional tiny-but-quick iguana? It's a tiny place but just gorgeous!
Oh, and another thing...it's about 62 degrees and gray skies. But do I care?
See what I mean about perspective?
Gotta go get a bet down for the Melbourne Cup (biggest horse race this side of the equator) and then tonight I have a massage scheduled.
It's called VACATION!

Long time, no see

I know, I've been a bad blogger. Missing in action. AWOL.
Usually, that's because there has been nothing in my life worth reporting, but I don't have that excuse. In fact, maybe it's because too much has been happening to have time to write.
My apologies.
After watching a personal-record 56 regular season Cubs games at such cities as Washington, DC, Pittsburgh, Toronto, St. Louis, Miami and Milwaukee, my baseball watching is over for 2008. Okay, the playoff games are on TV in my living room as I write (but I'm not watching!)
My Cubs, who had soooo much fun playing a little boy's game for so many months, took everything much too seriously and got swept out of the playoffs in the first round by the Los Angeles Dodgers. Having been a Cubs fan for about 25 years now, I have grown a thick skin to their disappointments. This year has been strange, though, with the number of people offering their condolences. But I'm over it...probably because I've had too many other things on my mind to wallow in misery over baseball.
My employer, for whom I've been an external consultant for more than 10 years!, has decided to make me 'internal.' The plusses, as my boss so carefully explained it, are the fantastic benefits (okay, the health insurance is incredible), potential educational benefits and job security. I had to choke back a laugh when she said that last thing because...um, did I mention that I've been in this job for more than 10 years?!?!
The minuses, as I see them, are a MUCH lower salary, fewer vacation days, and a job title of "office administrator." Seeing as I have been called the 'office manager' for 10 years, I certainly wasn't signing a contract that lowered my title. What kind of bullshit were they trying to pull?
Trouble is...the internal position wasn't just an option. It was the ONLY option if I wanted to stay employed there. The prior contract (which both my boss and I knew was totally illegal) was formally declared illegal by the company's legal representation so now something had to be done.
I lost the war on the salary, won the war on the job title, did get a signing bonus and I am eligible for both the year-end bonus and also the annual cost-of-living increase for 2009.
Then there's the small matter of vacation. Having collected about a billion frequent flier miles, I finally buckled down and booked what's quickly becoming my annual trip to Australia. I say 'finally' because I normally book my November trip in March or April, but I held off (see Cubs activity and job status) and didn't book it till July.
Since my internal status officially began Oct. 1, I don't qualify for all the vacation time that I've already booked. My boss (in an unusually generous mood apparently), added five vacation days to the six I would qualify for and two sick days so I don't get clobbered with unpaid time off. She was quite clear that the additional vacation days are for this year only.
Which brings me to the only really fun news that's kept me from posting and that's my annual run-away-from-home!!! There's something about getting an email from the other side of the planet saying how 'happy we are that you'll be here' and 'we'll catch up over a couple of bottles of Australian wine' that really warms my heart.
Why is it that the people I've worked with Monday through Friday for 10 years treat me like shit, but the people I see for one week per year only four or five times ever can make me feel so special?

Cubs clinch Central Division 2008

Think I'll just let the pictures tell the story...

A good laugh

While enjoying a Chicago Cubs' comeback win over the Phillies, I happened to get tapped on the shoulder by a guy from Texas. He asked, "Are you Jenny McCarthy?"

No, he didn't seem drunk.

(Google her.)

I'm on Fay's side

MIAMI, FL --Yes, the Cubs won two of three from the Florida Marlins while I was in the Sunshine State (where they delayed the start of Sunday's game because they thought it might rain!)

I saw the Cubs play at the Marlins last year, too, but several things must've slipped my memory or I might have reconsidered the trip this year:

• The Marlins have cheerleaders (never a good sign for a baseball team).


• They play in a stadium built for and named after the local professional football team.


• When you go to the concourse to get food and/or drink, there is no radio play-by-play to listen to while you order your $10 chicken tenders and chips. The TVs at the concession stands have video of the action but no crawl at the bottom to tell you how many outs or the inning or the score!


• During the break between innings, all of the scoreboards in the stadium shift from baseball info (i.e. score, number of hits, errors, lineup, etc) to advertising. ALL OF THEM!

BUT

• As I mentioned, my Cubs won two of three games.


• While staying up in Hollywood (about 20 minutes northeast of the ballpark), I spotted one of our second basemen and a centerfielder coming out of the ocean. And, yes, they look every bit as good as you'd think.


• The Marlins have a group of seriously overweight fellas called the Manatees who dance to some crazy music between innings. Very minor league, but pretty funny just the same.


• You can get a pretty decent selection of food at Dolphin Stadium, you just have to know where to look. It seemed that practically every concession stand had a different selection including pizza, hot dogs, italian sausage, chicken tenders/wings, rum runners, wine, beer, dippin' dots, etc.


• Despite the preparations for tropical storm Fay, my flight out of Miami went off on time!

Farewell Scooter!

From August of 2007 until June of this year, Scott Eyre was as solid a relief pitcher as any team could ask for. In fact, Eyre put together a Chicago Cubs club-record 33 straight scoreless appearances.
And now his days in Cubbie Blue are numbered. And I don't understand it or agree with it.
The left-hander was designated for assignment today to make room on the roster for Kerry Wood. Teams have seven days to pick up the remaining $1 on his contract. There are no doubts that some smart general manager will sign him as good lefties always find work.
Eyre knew he was on the chopping block last week at the trade deadline. I think we all knew it, too, when a televised game showed him sitting in the bullpen looking like someone just ran over his dog.
He didn't get traded then and I don't understand why the Cubs are releasing him now.
Yes, we have two powerful left-handers in Neal Cotts and Sean Marshall. But when the going gets tough (i.e. playoffs?), do you want an inexperienced pitcher who will probably try to throw the ball through the batter or a mature hurler who can handle the pressure?
And let me say something about chemistry and how important it has been to this team this year. We've got good guys who enjoy working together and it shows. Eyre was always a 'good clubhouse guy.' He didn't mind when then-new-manager Lou Piniella called him 'Stevie Ire' all last year. In fact, Eyre was so disturbed by the reality of leaving his buddies that he broke down during an interview with Comcast today.
Teams are allowed to expand their rosters in September and I don't understand why we couldn't find somewhere to hide him till then. Send Ronny Cedeno down to AAA or Neal Cotts.
I'm really afraid that we'll need a dependable left-handed pitcher and we won't have one in the bullpen. Because we let one get away.
It's wrong.
Very, very wrong.

Ms. Fixit

So here I am in my tiny galley kitchen, hand-washing my dishes, when I hear a CLUNK! Apparently, I did not fully close my garbage/recycling pull-out drawer because the weight of the can at the very end of the track fully dislodged the one remaining screw and POP! went the whole unit.
If I was my mother, I would be looking around for the nearest X/Y chromosomes owner to remedy the situation. But, alas, I live in the world of independent women (of which I am the queen, by the way!)
Instead of curling up on the sofa watching the All-Star Home Run Derby like I planned, I crawled into the bottom cabinet to investigate. After removing the garbage and recycling cans as well as the front door of the cabinet and wiping down the inside of the cabinet door and floor (I AM my mother's daughter ya know), I re-attached the two wayward screws and added two more for extra security.
TA-DA! One fixed cabinet.
Now to see about that dragging shower door...