For the love of god! I mean dog...

If there is one thing Europeans know how to do, they do know how to live. Like buying only what you need to eat for the day. And in some places, closing in the mid-afternoon for an afternoon siesta. Dinners are meant to be enjoyed leisurely. You don’t find servers dropping off checks when they notice you are at the end of a meal. In fact, you have to ask them, practically jump up and down in your seat to get their attention, for the check. Once you sit to eat, that table is yours until the rooster crows the next day if you wish. Almost literally as the culture tends to dine into the wee hours of the morning with the delightful entertainment of live music.


If ever I go back again, Porto and Paris are a must to see once more. These places got me daydreaming of finding ways to become a permanent resident.


I can imagine living in one of those kaleidoscope apartments, buying food for the day, washing only the necessary clothing because space to hang dry is so limited on a balcony, watering my little garden oasis amidst buildings and pavement and satellite dishes.

In the end, what I would really go back for is a visit with a little dog named "Maddie". Really, the only reason why I wanted to go in the first place. Oh yes, and also to eat at Casa de Castelli!

Shuck me, suck me, eat me raw!

Now don't get any dirty thoughts! And I wish I could take credit for such a witty play with words, but I must confess, it was a bumper sticker catch phrase that I saw.

Apparently, oysters rate low on the aphrodisiac list. Although loaded with zinc, which is key to producing testosterone, a single morsel is hardly enough to get a rise. If you know what I mean...heh...If it gives anyone any sort of a rise, it is a rise in temper and muttering curses at this tight lipped reincarnation of a virgin.

After 2 butter knives (because there had to be something wrong with the first one after it proved difficult to pry open them suckers) and 1 hour I was able to feed myself a dozen of these mollusks.

These three took the first half hour, but after that, I was a prying fool. With a little lemon juice and cocktail sauce, I was good to go. AND good to give up on doing this for myself ever again! These babies cost a little more than a buck a pop. I think next time a craving comes upon me, I'll just opt for Happy Hour at Ivar's with their 6 shooter special for a third of the price. And no risk of stabbing myself.

Year of the Pig

This little piggy went to the market, and this little piggy stayed home, and this little piggy had roast beef, and this little piggy...err...I think this is the piggy who had too much roast beef.

For the Chinese New Year, Bainbridge Island hosted a parade and put on a Dragon's dance performed by the local high school students. It was incredible to see so many people not of Chinese ancestry, be a part of this cultural celebration.

The streets were lined with red paper lanterns and crowds stood in line to have their names written in Chinese. Steaming pots of Chinese cuisine filled the air with mouth-watering smells.

This year, for those born to the year of the mud lovin' swine (like my hubby), it is a year to be filled with impatience, mobility, and change. If we're lucky, that means he's going to get a promotion and a fat raise. Then maybe I can be the lazy dog that I am.

Snow, snow, and more snow...

Again, we've been hit with more snow, and the temperatures ahead are not suggesting warm weather enough to melt this stuff away. So what is there to do on a day like this??? So far, I've

1.) thrown the cat outside to get a photo of her in the snow. She hated it!

2.) I've eaten two breakfasts!

There's always the never ending duties of house cleaning, but now it is impossible as the cat has decided to burrow in for a nap on my lap for the afternoon.

Maybe I should take a hint.

A Japanese New Year

Only having seen Taiko drumming on the telly for a 2 second bit in a car commercial, my curiosity was peaked. So it was incredible coincedence (and fortune) to stumble upon finding out about the free performance at the annual Mochisuki Festival for the Japanese New Year.Words cannot describe the excitement and exhilaration that courses through your entire being as drummers move their bodies into each powerful swing. It feels like a symphony of thunder, with each crack causing you to hold you breath. And when all goes quiet, all you can mouth in amazement is "Whoa", like Keanu Reeves. Not Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure "Whoa". More like the Matrix, "Whoa", when jumping tall buildings.

Not only was this a treat for the ears, but also for the belly, eyes, and spirit. This beautiful tradition of making mochi was held on Bainbridge Island amidst nature's setting. It was explained that the Shinto believe each grain of sweet rice represented an ancestor's spirit. Pounding the rice was to join the spirits and a time to self reflect on the previous year. Once a rice cake was completed it was offered to the Gods on behalf of what it represented ~ Community.

Unable to get close enough to take photos of the "striking" of the sweet rice or of the rice cakes, (Since I tend to think with my belly and not my head, I gobbled my rice cake before taking a pic crossed my mind.) These last 2 photos were found on a couple of websites. Hope it's okay to share.

All I needed to learn, I learned from a dog

On our holiday quest to find places that were open on New Year's Day, we discovered that many places had not closed. So there wasn't much of a need to log any of these places for next year's "Where the heck are we going on New Year's Day?" list. In fact, I bet this is the busiest day for most restaurants that open to serve breakfast for all of those liquor disabled folk. (But a big boohoo for the liquor disabled employees.)

Well, in honor of New Year's Day and making resolutions, it was watching this doggy, happily chewing on his yellow, beat up ball, inviting all passersby to give him a pat on the head, that inspired my only resolution...

"Simply...Be Content"