© irene waters 2017
Welcome. Come and join me for a coffee or tea at Jaspers. Today is my birthday but I had early chores to do so I didn’t arrive at Jaspers until a bit later than normal. As a birthday treat I decided to have a raspberry and white chocolate muffin. Yum….I’ll sit awhile to give you time to join me but today I have a lot to do.
If we were having coffee I’d tell you I have been busy packing most of the week and now just have those difficult things to pack. The boxes are piling up and I feel as though the place is a total mess but that it reminds me that the reason for cupboards is to hide the mess and my cupboards are now bare. I have left only enough plates , glasses and cutlery for one meal but those are interesting in themselves as I have packed the cooking equipment.
If we were having coffee I’d tell you the lack of cooking equipment hasn’t been a problem yet as we went out Thursday night for a romantic celebration of both our birthdays. We went and had a Maltese meal at a resort and sat overlooking the pool. The sunset on the way there was to die for.
© irene waters 2017
Friday Mum took us to the Boat House at Cotton Tree, one of my favourite eateries, for the same purpose. Great meal and no need to eat Friday night.
© irene waters 2017
© irene waters 2017
Today I am finishing off the packing and going dancing tonight. Should be a good night.
Blogging — there is a new Times Past prompt on dental experiences. I also posted a review of Shoe Dog – the story of Nike and its creator – and another about the meals on the cruise. This week we stop off in Auckland. That is we stop off if I have both the time and internet. I have spent hours on the phone organising electricity and telephone but I still don’t know if I have managed to get the internet connected although I am sure it is being cut off here. If I am absent for a few days that is the reason. Unless I review a book I have read awhile ago a book review this week will not happen either as I just haven’t had the time to open a book. I may also miss coffee next week as I am going to the Gold Coast for my nursing reunion – 40 years since we graduated. It is so hard to believe.
© irene waters 2017
I’d better stop talking and let you get a word in. How has your week been. Are you warming up or cooling down? It is our best time of year now with the days perfect for any activity but the mornings and nights have turned cooler making it perfect to sleep. Have you read any books? Seen any films? Done anything?
Thanks to Nerd in the Brain for hosting our coffee mornings. For others opening their doors for a chat over a beverage.
Reflections and Nightmares- Irene A Waters (writer and memoirist) 
Happy Birthday!! Birthday Celebration sound grand!!
Well as for the weather in New York yesterday Thursday it was 60 degrees and sunny and today Friday the temps dropped down to the 30s and it snowed in the morning. I believe New York City weather is Bi-Polar and we have a bad case of Global Warming!! I’m looking forward to spring and summer because I really dislike the cold, snow, ice and freezing temps. Not good for my achy joints!
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Thank you Deborah. I think we are going to get more of this weather – you becoming colder and us hotter. From what I have read with the polar ice caps melting the cold water is going into the gulf stream which normally moderates your temperature but now cooler you are getting hotter. You might have to move south if you hate the cold and it sounds like your joints would appreciate it.
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Happy Birthday!!!! Sounds like you had a great time so far. Hope your move goes smoothly. Where are you moving to?
My week has been busy. My hubby picks up my grand daughter after school every day, she is in the 4th grade at St. Ambrose and her sister is in preschool. She wasn’t feeling well yesterday so I watched her all day. I was exausted when their parents got here to pick them both up. They do make us laugh with their antics though and we do spoil them a bit, well maybe more than a bit. Tomorrow the older one has a flag football game so we will be rooting for her team and I am sure the younger one will keep her mom busy running all over the park. Other than that our week has been quiet. HA….Oh yes we did take them to MacDonalds lots of fun, for them. It was also my daughter-in-laws birthday, however they live in New York so although we didn’t visit with them we did send her a card and spoke to her on the phone. She is a darling and we love her to pieces.
That’s it for now. Looking forward to our next visit and another cup of Tea. Have a great weekend. ☺☺
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Thank you. We are just moving around the corner. The time had come to downsize – unfortunately we had to move into a rental between moves so this is our second move in three months. I’ll be glad when it is over.
How wonderful that you can have such close contact with your grandchildren. You see things so differently through a child’s eyes and what are grandparents for if not to spoil them. I don’t know what flag football is- it is amazing how many different kinds of football are played in the world. Hope her team did well but if not it is a good part of life’s learning to learn how to survive loss. Amazing how many people are born in March but I probably only notice it because I am. Look forward to our next coffee. Have a great week. 😄
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Happy birthday!
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Thanks Beth
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Happy birthday from Utah!! Your evening looks grand 😍😍
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Thanks Didi. It seems so strange – several years ago I would never have expected to receive birthday greetings from Utah. Its lovely that the world is getting smaller. Have a great week. 😀😀
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Happy birthday, Irene! A raspberry and white chocolate muffin sounds like a perfect cake for a celebration. Enjoy the dancing! Best wishes for many more wonderful celebrations.
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Thanks Norah. A muffin was a great size for a celebration. Dancing was good. Hope you have a good week.
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Thanks, Irene. You too!
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Happy Birthday!
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Thanks Trent.
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Happy Birthday, Irene. Beautiful sunset.
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Thanks Tena. Yes it was quite dramatic the sunset and the colours just lovely. Have a good week.
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First, a very happy birthday to you and to Roger. IF you can’t indulge on your birthday, well, you simply have to. Then, please tell your mum how beautiful she is – really, a very pretty and classy lady. As for no pots and pan – cooking at home is so over rated and that’s why there are restaurants. BTW – what is Maltese food like? I’ve never had this fare.
And last – the car, 18 years old and cranky – was at the mechanic shop last night, and the grands spent the night with us so their parents could have an evening out. That meant I couldn’t drive them anywhere but I asked if they’d like to walk to a nearby restaurant and so we did. The shopping center offers many choices and the kids picked a favorite Italian place. We each picked a pasta and a sauce of our choice, then bought a few groceries for breakfast this morning.
On the way we passed a man who asked us for nothing but sat on an outdoor chair, looking sad, dejected, tired, homeless. I have so many bills, an old falling-apart car, a house in disrepair on many fronts, but so much wealth in many ways. I walked back to him and asked if he was hungry. He nodded but remained silent. I gave him a bill. He looked, and when he realized I’d given him not a one but a ten dollar bill, his eyes lit up. He was nearly in tears and could barely speak but asked my name. I told him and asked his, then told him to please get something to eat. He nodded, still grasping the bill.
I know he may have bought a cheap bottle of booze but I can’t stop people from destroying themselves if that’s what they choose. I can only choose my own life, and last night I chose to give a stranger, an old man, a small lifeline. I hope he ate something hot and good for him and I choose to think he did.
My grands were so sweet the whole evening and this morning, and so grateful that they spent the night here. I am angry, distressed, and deeply frightened about the man in the White House, and am now certain he is mentally unhinged and dangerous as hell. But my choice is to continue to do as much good as I can in this world.
So, a very good week for me despite the falling apart car for which the mechanic shop is having a hard time finding the part it needs to fix it, despite the fact we do not have air conditioning for the summer coming up, and despite that the floor in the kitchen and the bedroom remain ruined after two different broken pipe floods. It is worse for many and very good for me.
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Thanks Sharon for the birthday greetings. I will pass on your compliments to my Mum. She is not bad for eighty eight. Frail physically but still interested in life. The Maltese was not that different. There was a sardine bruschetta followed by a seafood pasta and then a dessert which I know was yummy but I have forgotten what it was. Too much food has passed my mouth since I ate this.
Sharon you are such a beautiful person and your grandchildren are lucky that they have you as an example on how life should be lived. As you say, you may not have much and things may be falling apart around your ears but you have a wealth that cannot be measured. You made that man’s life immeasurably brighter with your generosity and demonstrated how humanity should work to your grand children. With lots more people like you, the man in the White House will fail, as I agree with you that he is unhinged and dangerous as a result. We have had more than one example in the past (as your race well know) and I hope that many will stand up before he gets to that point. And you stood up.
A quick question – am I right in saying race in relation to Judaism? Or should I be saying religion? There are so many questions you don’t even know to ask until you get into conversation.
I’ve missed a week with no internet connection after moving but hope you have a great week this week as well.
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Hello there, happy belated Birthday! Enjoyed the pictures, thanks for sharing!
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Glad you enjoyed pics. Thanks for birthday wishes
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Happy Birthday! I hope you had a wonderful day. Enjoy your reunion next week!
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Thanks Lauren
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Happy, happy birthday to you! I hope it was an absolutely amazing day (and will be an amazing year ahead)! 😀
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Thanks. So far it’s good. 😊
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Loved your nursing photo and your caps!!! Mine looks like a small french fry box! Happy Birthday and I hope the move goes smoothly for you!
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Thanks. Apart from not having internet the move went well. Now surrounded by boxes. I’ve seen your style of cap. I was amazed a couple of women still have their uniforms and will wear them to our next reunion five years on.
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I still have my student nurse uniform. It is pink striped and we were called candy stripers. When we graduated all of us signed each other’s uniform so it would be quite odd to wear them now! Ha ha!
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What a great idea and such a good momento. I have heard of candy stripers but didn’t really know what they were.
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Happy birthday!
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Thank you
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Happy birthday! Oy… what a way to celebrate! Glad you were able to go out to eat. The one good thing about unpacking boxes is that you can put stuff exactly where you want them…
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Thanks Dale. We lost internet with the move so my apologies for the late response. Yes unpacking boxes for me is like Christmas and I love nesting.
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What a delightful birthday sunset and meals out. It’s staggering, the number of boxes that add up. While the east coast braces for a blizzard and most of the US is cold and rainy, it’s warming up on Mars in the southwest.
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I thought I’d done a good job downsizing but already one bedroom has become a storage room. I think I’d prefer the warmth to the blizzard so Mars is where I’d prefer to be.
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I thought I had downsized too, then I realized I was still married, lol! His stuff is more than mine! The lizards like this heat, too.
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LOL. The difference between our stuff is mine is packed tidily and I know exactly where everything is – his is packed haphazardly to say the least with nothing to be found. Glad the lizards are happy.
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