Venice or Venizia

 I took a photo of the map we each received.  We stayed in the hostel on the little island across from Venice.  So we took the Vaporretto- city water bus, each day to get over and back.

my finger is pointing at Saint Mark's cathedral.
or Basilica of San Marco if you are non-American
Zitelle-is the name of the stop.

Finger on Peggy Guggenheim's museum

looks like a metro map
but is the map to tell you which Vaporetto
takes you where you want to go & the names of the stops

 In case you are like me and have no idea where Venice is in relation to the rest of the world.  I got out the big Atlas and looked it up.  Thankfully the index told me exactly which square to look in as even in my huge atlas it is a tiny spot.  Venezia, as the rest of the world calls it, is a little bit of land off of the east side of the “furry” bit of northern Italy.

Pink post-it note helps you find it:-)

Venice is located to the left of the pink-post-it

This is an attempt to show you where Vienna is in relation to Venezia/Venice.
See the "R" far right upper corner.  Vienna is east of that R.
unfortunately my atlas doesn't have Vienna and Venice on the same page.

Christmas tree

I think decorating the tree is fun as a group event.  I really didn’t want to wait till family started arriving to have a christmas tree. So I invited the Sister Missionaries over for dinner and decorating.  They were really excited.  It was a perfect fit, the 3 of us are homesick and away from home.  I think the finished project is wonderful!  And I really enjoyed the process since I didn’t do the lights this year!!!  One artistic talented sister did it!!  Thank you Sister Chapel!  I feel the light of Christ filling our Vienna Apartment.  

I am happily anticipating the arrival of my family!  Husband arrives on the 13th, then China daughter on the 17th, then youngest on 20th.  And finally Son and family on the 22nd.  Yes, 4 trips to the airport to get them here. If we could blink our English 3 over then we would be all together this Christmas.

Austrian blown glass icicle center right.
& yoyo heart I made in Moscow.
I imagined crocheting a long string of popcorn
each one takes about 30 minutes
so for the past 4 years it has just been random popcorn placed on the tree.

hand painted clip-on Austrian porcelain 

Russian wooden ornament
next to crocheted popcorn

Russian ornaments

This Russian angel is serious

Sober Father Frost

newest Nativity set- Purchased Utah D.I.
love it! thanks Carrie!

A reason to shop!

Recently I was reading a blog in which wearing pink was mentioned.

It reminded me that it was a pink shirt that helped my husband recognize me a second time, which led to our first date and marriage and eternity.

In September 1980 I went to a church sponsored dance wearing a pink velour-velvet T-shirt and blue jeans.  I hadn’t planned on going as I was very sore from auditions for a modern dance company.  So I went and only stayed for an hour.  During most of that hour I was a lonely wallflower.  But a tall guy I didn’t know asked me to dance.  And he was a good dancer, personable and nice.

The following March I again went alone to “Friday night at the Tute dance” wearing again the pink T and blue jeans.  And again was asked to dance by a personable and friendly tall guy who seemed to think he knew me.  He remembered my name wrong, remembered hometown incorrectly, and thought that he had been in an institute class with me.  Very confusing, but he was a good dancer so when he asked me for a 2nd and 3rd dance I said yes.

Two days later I sang on a program in which the tall guy was the MC.  And I discovered in good lighting Tall Guy was Gorgeous! I also saw his name in print.

The following morning there was a huge photo campaign poster of tall guy right outside my dorm, which got me completely hooked on the idea of getting to know him a whole lot more!

Now 30 years later I went to my closet to see if I owned anything that color of pink.

Yes, 4 items, 2 given to me by my husband. A long robe/swim suit cover up he brought me back from Africa.  The other a sunday dress blouse of polyester that is too warm for me most Sundays that he gave me for christmas many years ago. And 2 pink slips. So I went shopping and found this pink T-shirt.  It is not snug fitting or cuddly soft like that long ago pink T.  But it reminds me how very fortunate I am that my guy likes pink!!!  And that he asked me to dance!

I can choose to eat this or I can get healthier and my clothes will fit me better. I choose to eat.

This title was inspired by a Dr. Laura conversation.

Her female caller wanted to conceive and have a family.  Problem- she and her husband still had no baby.  And she needed to lose 100lbs. and get her type II diabetes under control.

Dr. Laura asked the caller to take her favorite candy bar, the kind that she keeps in her car, her kitchen, her bedroom, in her purse, in her closet.......etc.  and break some bite size pieces off.

Then she had her say very loudly. “I can eat this piece of chocolate or I can choose to get healthy and have a baby.  I choose the chocolate.”  The caller reluctantly ate and said the phrase about 5 times.  Dr. Laura challenged her to say the phrase out loud every single time she is tempted to eat something that isn’t healthy for her.

This call turned my mind back to the plateau I seem to be stuck on.   I lost 26 pounds and reached 146lbs. in April 2011.  Since then I’ve pretty much stayed at around that point,  but mostly 150.  I gain some or lose some but settle back at the 150 mark.  I know that the only way I will get back down to my Weight Watchers goal weight of 136 is if I exercise vigorously 3 times a week.  Do something really active a couple of times a day-to get my heart rate up.  And say NO! to extra portions.  Say NO! to big portions of dessert.  (I will have some kind of dessert every day or will fall off the wagon and be back to 175 in no time)

I’ve tried saying “I can choose to eat this or I can get healthier and my clothes will fit me better.  I choose to eat.”  or “I can choose to eat this or I can get healthier and my clothes will fit me better.  I choose to go for a brisk walk until the craving goes away.”

I am having some success.  I have curbed my night-time, "I’m lonely and missing my husband bingeing".  I have stopped myself several times from giving into an un-necessary snack.  I hope in time it will get easier.  I hope in time I will love exercise once again!!

Till then I’ll keep reminding myself it is a matter of choice.

A Saturday work out

Saturday I decided to cash in the 10% off coupon from the store down the hill from our house.  I trundled my black shopping cart with re-usable bags to the store taking Sasha along for the fresh air.  I went to strap Sasha to the dog post when I realized that I had taken off her dog collar the night before.  I created a choke slide loop out of her leash and hooked her to the post without her dog collar.

I filled the store’s shopping cart with tins of food, some pricey items that I normally don’t buy and my weekly items thinking the 10% off would justify treating myself a bit.  Part-way through my shopping Sasha started to bark and howl.  I walked to her, the slip loop had widened and was around her shoulders she could have easily stepped out of her leash and come found me! I patted her, reassured her that I would soon be finished and left her there. Still she moaned and whined something she never ever does unless I am in the store with other family members.

I hurried to check out, frantically bagging as fast as I could, (no bagging services offered) to get finished and get my suddenly surprisingly loud dog away.  I handed the coupon to the cashier, no good, only my husband with his card can use the coupon.  Argg!!!  If I didn’t shop in this store a couple of times a week I would have just walked away and refused to pay. told them ........ lots of things....but I just laughed at myself as I paid the full amount, and hurried out of the store.  It was then I saw my neighbor!  She was in the store.  That was what Sasha had been trying to tell me.  Jan was in the store and she wanted us together!

Then I started what felt like really long walk, -pulling my cart back up the hill when it had the heaviest load of its life.  Disappointedly I had to stop 4 times and put the bags in my arms down and take 5 deep breathes before recommencing the walk. I really didn’t want to injure myself.

Arrived at the apartment building and discovered the elevator wasn’t working!!! ARGGG!  I carried all the bags up 4 flights of stairs.

I am grateful for an elevator that normally works. I am also grateful the store is “normally” a 1 minute walk from my house. And Very thankful that the next day my arms felt perfectly ok!

Cart filled to overflowing
bags on floor the ones I had to carry while I trundled cart home.

Time consuming projects

This summer I decided I wanted to finally improve my piano playing.  I found a teacher, a newly baptized member of our church.  We set up a time for the lessons.  And I launched myself into a challenging goal of practicing the piano at least an hour a day.

My first lesson I played very little, instead reviewing and learning theory.  I went away after 3 hours with my head ready to explode.  Each lesson after that there was theory and playing of scales and drills in which I would go home with throbbing and aching hands and forearms.

My hard earned progress has been painfully achingly slow.  I have a few primary songs that I can play almost as fast as the children sing it.

At least 12 hours spent on this project weekly.  When people ask me what I’ve been doing, and I wonder where my time has gone, why some of my projects stay in the still-to-be-done pile, I remember that I’m working on a project that is not visible to anyone that enters our home.

The sad fact is I can’t practice the piano and mop the kitchen floor at the same time.....so lately the kitchen floor has been skipped.

my two piano teachers
 husband and professional musician-teacher

Dean’s fundraiser- Ghostly walk in Vienna

There is a committee at my husband’s work that needs to raise some serious money.  Everyone has been brainstorming on possible fundraisers.

An idea hit my husband.  He remembered all the fun “Guided Ghost walks” we took friends and family on in York England.  Why not do one in Vienna?  Surely there are plenty of ghost stories in such an ancient city.  He proposed the idea and went to work.

The work was rather intensive.  Read German stories of hauntings and spirits, translate them into English, work them into a do-able walkable route,  (His first planned route took him one hour of walking to visit all the buildings he had chosen. Not a route a crowd would want to do on a cold night) publicize event, then finally tell the stories to a crowd of people in a hearable entertaining way.

The project was a huge success!  50 people came, at 10 a head his fundraiser contributed 500euros to the committee.

The Guided Ghost Walk has been applauded by everyone attending.  And they are begging for more.  These photos were taken by a friend who attended the walk.  Sadly I was in England at the time and missed it.

Holding them spellbound

There have been requests for a kid free one with really scary stories.