Sue in Exile

Shanna's kids for Halloween

Maya

Allie, Josh, and unhappy Hannah

lit up paperweights

ranbow over Shanna's neighborhood

Pretty stream that goes through the park I've been taking the kids to

Tessa

me and my charges. Do you think the feedbag way of carrying my purse will catch on?

The lake near us lit by dawn

For their tenth anniversary, Shanna and Ramy flew to Mexico so we have moved into their house to watch the kids. Since they are in school as I type this, I am home getting supplies. They live fairly close. My long run yesterday overlapped a long run path I take from my house. Her neighborhood has the advantage of being absolutely flat despite the word 'hill' in her little town. As a bonus, Maya needed to be watched on the weekend due to her father again being missing in action and on election day so we have four kids most of the time. Daniel and Tessa are excited that we are there but Oliver never misses an opportunity to complain and to tell me how the other grandma is so much better than me.

I have been trying to keep them as active as possible taking them to parks but it is very hard to pull them away from those screens, especially Oliver. Tomorrow I have some art projects lined up as it will be too cold to drag them outside.

I decorated the house for Halloween but no kids came. I will bring Shanna's kids over at some point to amuse them. Halloween was quite cold so I wasn't too sorry I wasn't asked to go out with any of the grandkids. Shanna's neighborhood is the exact opposite of ours: little personal property but a lot of communal land (parks). All houses have front porches to encourage interactions between neighbors. Also each neighbor tries to outdo the next in Halloween decorations. A kid can quickly run from house to house as they are so close. The streets are crowded with kids who come in from other neighborhoods, including Naomi and Maya though they did stop at Shanna's and went out with Tessa. Favorite decoration: a hologram of life sized dancing skeletons. Not favored especially by Maya: a man with a chainsaw chasing kids.

I was sad to see that frost had come while we were in New York. Most of my flowers are dead except, strangely enough poppies and primroses despite them being associated with spring. But we will soon get a 'hard' frost  to finish them off. I spent much time digging up bulbs and tubers and bringing some of the plants into the house or garage. What we need to do is drain the pond and all my water features before the hard frost. I guess that will be Wednesday's activity. I also spend an exciting time organizing my clothes and closet. With so much space, you'd think I would have a space for everything but no, all in a jumble. Removed all the size 10s and 8s.They aren't far away if I am forced to wear them again.

We did have 3 kids but they were spread apart so it isn't like herding cats as keeping the 4 of them happy and on task is, ages 9,8,7 and 5. Shanna printed detailed instructions on what to pack in lunches and where to take them for their many activities. I've been doing homework with Daniel getting a week's worth done but he has a big project due this week so some of tomorrow will be spent on it. I am hoping Oliver doesn't need to be nagged too much to do his tonight. Oliver takes a separate bus to a different school that comes 30 minutes before the other kids'. No problem walking them to the stop. But then Oliver's bus was almost 20 minutes late! Run back to the house to get the other kids to the stop in the opposite direction. If I had my phone, I could have called Steve to do Tessa and Daniel duty. As he seems to be coming down with something, I had agreed to do all outside stuff.

Sand dunes of Coney Island

Who knew Coney Island had sand dunes. We are on the North shore on the west side. The western tip of Coney Island used to be too dangerous to go to but  it is safer now. Still we were the only ones on the beach

One could see the Verrazano Bridge to the north which is where the runners will start the marathon this Sunday. They will climb 250 feet to the mile point in the middle. What percentage of Americans have completed a marathon? Less than half of a percent so Steve and I are among the elite

long exposure of waves

 I collected shells for a while

Then on to get some Italian treats

rainbow cookie cake.  We brought back lobster tails and rainbow cookies which I feed to visitors

Do you want some? Then visit me

figurine store near our coal fired pizza place in Bensonhurst

Manhattan from our car window at 5:30 am. Driving in lower Manhattan to get to the Holland Tunnel was our only visit this time though I guess we were on the Manhattan side of the Brooklyn Bridge

Still some colors in Eastern Pennsylvania

some of the shells I picked up and then put on top of potpourri in our bathroom

Steve had lived on Coney Island from age 9 until he was an adult and then some but never visited the far western end or the north shore, which he did not know there was access. Part of it is gated off but the beach can't be. We took a walk and I collected shells.

We are since back home. It has been two days since the terrorist drove down a running path and killed 8 people maiming more. I ran up and down that running path when I was staying in Chelsea 12 years ago. And if things went the terrorist way, he planned to mow people down on the Brooklyn Bridge walking path though I am not sure how he could get a truck up there. A different scary world.

It was hard to relax in NY as back home various disasters were unfolding. Maya's father left for 2 weeks for work without telling us in advance oblivious to Naomi's work schedule, which is made well in advance.  He just assumed we'd be around to watch Maya I guess. She scrambled for childcare. We came back early for the second day. Meanwhile, one of Josh's daughters was hospitalized for croup. She had difficulty breathing. They would treat her with epinephrine  and she would be fine for 3 hours. But the drug would wear off and back to struggling to breathe.

But aside from the phone calls, it was good to be there and visit with his brother and his wife. Much warmer there than at home. An unexpected (by me at least) frost had hit in our absence destroying most of the flowers I had left out. I had taken in the more sensitive ones already. We went out one night with his cousin and wife at a good Italian restaurant. I got to try a few ethnic delicacies over our visit. I ran a lot. The bit of weight I gained is now gone. Now if I could just hold steady, I would be happy. At night we watched movies, something Steve and I never do together.

Back to gray coldness.

Bridges of New York

I started the day running along the 5 mile path along the straits of Verrazano under the Bridge. A nice path though bumpy in spots. Steve and I ran across the bridge during the NYC marathon in 1985

Later a walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. The drizzle didn't seem to scare away the tourists

The deck is above the traffic. Using the Live feature on the iPhone I can take a long exposure turning the cars into a blur. Of course one needs a steady hand

let's see it in black and white

When we did the same walk almost 3 years ago, the bridge was covered with locks. They have since discouraged this

Manhattan Bridge. Other bridges we have run across: Queensboro, Henry Hudson Parkway, George Washington, Willis St bridge, 3rd avenue bridge: all in various races. Also some bridge that goes from Brooklyn to Queens

the husband

As tall as I am, I look small under the tower

me with messy wet hair. Perhaps it is too short

I have run across the Gowanus canal on small bridges. A cesspool that they are trying to clean up. This is from a parking deck of a fancy Whole Foods

Alternate Street Parking

How many times have I run up and down the 2.5 mile boardwalk? Lots

The Parachute jump which has not been operational for at least 60 years. Steve's mom was hoisted via pulleys to the top and then allowed to fall saved at the last second. In the 80s, I was afraid to run west of it as the area was crime infested

view from the pier

mural outside of the aquarium with the top of the cyclone peaking up

Used to have a huge rocket on top of this building full of grungy Coney Island treats

Aquarium mural message: plastics in the sea are deadly to fish

Creepy Steeplechase guy head is all over

Steve lived in Trump Village, the high rises to the right. The Cyclone seemed to be right below his window

So far Blogger is behaving itself today but it still needs to keep up with all of iPhone's many updates. On Tuesday morning, we drove through torrential rain in NJ. Fortunately it stopped by the time we crossed over to NYC. We saw the least amount of traffic ever. Crossing the Verrazano Bridge is free heading east but very pricy going east so we leave going  the free way through Manhattan. We have an EZ pass from Ohio that gives us discounts, especially in Ohio just to come into NY though handy for going to DC too. Not good at all on the West coast.

Parking is at a premium on the city streets. Making things worse is that they street clean twice a week so you have to plan your parking carefully. During the 1.5 hour street cleaning sessions, one can find no parking though double parking seems to be tolerated on the 'good' side. Where else is double parking tolerated? Last year, we found a spot good for most of our stay. Steve refused to leave it which was very annoying. He had his brother drive us everywhere. I convinced him twice to leave our spot which he did with much complaining. On our last day he refused so I had to run in the neighborhood dealing with aggressive drivers on cross streets though the path along Ocean Parkway is smooth and pretty.

We got into the city around noon. I thought I smelled gas as I entered the apartment but who knows, someone could be cooking cruciferous vegetables. My sister-in-law smelled this for 2 months and complained to the landlady who sent a plumber to investigate. No leak he said though he didn't have a detector, just an old man's nose, which turns out to be very unreliable. No one else could smell this gas until I came. She called the gas company who quickly sent someone out with detectors. Yep there is a leak but someone else would need to fix it applying for permits, getting inspections, a lengthy process. At first they shut off the gas to everyone in the building but then decided only to target my in-laws. It is much warmer in NYC than in Michigan so they keep the windows open saving their lives as it turned out. They use the gas for heat, the stove and oven and the hot water heater. And eventually it will get cold there too. Hard to take cold showers though an alternate shower spot was offered. A huge process to get this fixed with lots of red tape. I felt bad.

New York is full of tasty ethnic restaurants, NOT good for my plan on top of exercising less. Lunch at a deli; Middle Eastern for dinner. I picked up a very fancy mushroom pie at a Russian bakery the next morning. Another day, roast pork dumplings at a third of the price they would be any place else. Italian one night with his cousin and wife. Steve's favorite Italian restaurant has closed but we found this to be a suitable substitute. And Italian baked goods. I had a mini baba au rhum. We brought back lobster tails (Italian pastry, not the crustacean) and rainbow cookies. Another night my sister-in-law made a delicious dinner despite having no gas. In the meantime, she bought some electrical devices so they can at least cook something besides microwave. And per usual, too much wine for me especially in the Italian restaurant where I discovered I was the only drinker out of 6 after ordering.

We were lucky with the weather as it much less rainy than predicted. A bit of drizzle one day but it was warm. The first morning we walked along the boardwalk near Steve's old apartment and then in the very heavy Russian Brighton Beach Avenue. How the stores have changed! Cyrillic alphabet has replaced Hebrew. In the afternoon, my sister-in-law took me to Prospect Park to run. Very pretty with a bit of fall colors. Also hillier than I am used to but practically flat compared to my run in Pennsylvania.
More in the next day or two

A Night in a Winery (Whinery?)

I am having a hard time with Blogger now. First I can't use it anymore on my iPhone and now even its web based application is all messed up. Can't edit anything. Can't add captions. What is going on? I'll try tomorrow. Back from a week of fun which I may be able to share once I figure out what's wrong with this stupid Blogger. Come on Google, fix this.

The grapes beyond one of our many windows. I did have a tasting of their four wines. Only the one made from wild raspberries was very good. I would have bought it if I could find any of the staff the next day

The place was very old modeled on a Tuscan estate. This fountain doubled as a hot tub, which I visited later

At night the place had zillions of rotating fairy lights. Looked like lots of fireflies. Also music, Italian opeara, was piped in all around even into the rooms

Our room had a chandelier, two sofas, a huge TV, a fireplace and a grand piano

Fortunately it was in the 70s at night. That's me and my wine

It is a day later. After shutting down the computer, I was able to make a few edits before I could not make them any more and then had to shut down the computer yet again. We were on our way to NYC to see Steve's family and  decided to stop on the way to see something new. I looked at places and found this though it was south of the area generally known as the Poconos closer to the Delaware Water Gap near a tiny town called Mount Bethel. We did not go the most efficient way but it was pretty winding through the fall colors along the river with its slate steep cliffs. If it were not raining, I would have stopped for photos. I thought we could take them the next day but visibility was zero then. The rain stopped by the time we found the inn perched on top of a hill on a very winding road.

For me the place was perfect  Large, comfy interesting room with lots  interesting rooms to explore full of  eclectic antiques. Flowers, mainly roses, were still in bloom. Paths led into the vineyards. Lots of places to sit outside including a large stone porch with rocking chairs where we ate breakfast the next morning. We went for dinner in the small town 3 miles away. Very tasty. Houses in the town are built with no front yards. One false move and a car could drive through a house. Roads twisted every which way. No grid to follow as in Michigan. Before dinner, I had some of their wines. One was terrible, two OK but I would not buy them and the raspberry wine was very good. I had brought my own wine which I had a glass of as I relaxed in the hot tub. It was warm enough outside for Steve to sit comfortably near me. I thought the night was magical with Edith Piaf in the background and little lights flickering all over like twinkling stars but Steve was grumpy feeling dysphoric from coming off his meds for the shingles and later complained about little things like no toilet paper holder in the bath room and a fly found in the   room. Can't he ever enjoy anything?

Heavy rain was forecasted for the next morning. Could I get a run in? I left in darkness hoping I could see potholes though the road was smooth. I did not pack my lights. Fortunately I could jump out of the way for the little traffic. It was very hilly and windy. As it was not getting any lighter, I was afraid I would get stuck in a storm but the weather held for awhile. Very pretty and it felt good to be moving after a long day in the car. The day before was the first time I had taken a day off in 7 months. I could have run a bit that day but drank wine instead. We had to wait for a break in the torrential rain to pack our car and off in the pouring rain to The City.
Below is the lobby and hopefully a close-up of an interesting chair

fish eye view of the lobby

Learning to read

Autumn leaves placemats

folk angel way on top of my cupboards. Wooden flowers net to her were purchased years ago at a street fair in the Loire Valley

giant marigolds finally blooming from my cheap seed collection

The blossoms were pale yellow when I bought this hibiscus last spring. Now they are orange. Have to bring in all, the orchids and hibiscus in this weekend as it might freeze while we are gone

Maya is to read every night for at least 15 minutes. She is a first grader though one of the oldest in the class at 7 as she spent two years in kindergarten. She is very behind. Recently her ADHD drug was increased. Apparently the lower dose was enough to stop her excess activity but not enough to have her focus on a task. She does know the alphabet and can identify all the letters. She knows what most sound like. What she can't do is remember from one moment to the next what a given word is even though she had sounded it out (painfully slowly) just the line before. The shape of the words aren't entering her short term memory much less her long term memory. 

I worked with her some the other night. Very frustrating and scary that she may never get it. Finally we went on a bike ride together, which is how I got her to try to read in the first place. We went two miles and would have gone further if it wasn't getting dark.

Indian summer continues with beautiful sunrises and sunsets but next week, it will be rainy. Josh is in Florida at a wedding. Two of his good friends are getting married on the same day but in different places. He would have preferred to go to the Brooklyn wedding but is closer to the friend in Florida. We will be in Brooklyn in a few days ourselves. Hopefully it won't rain the whole time.

Four egg omelet

An assortment of eggs my friend's chickens provided for me. I used 4 of the bantam eggs, tiny, for an omelet

new watercolor for my flower room

my hair dresser's chickens Alas only the big black hen is old enough to produce eggs. My friend's Labrador saved her from a fox who was carrying her away. My friend sewed up her wounds and she is fine now

She hangs in our doorway for now but will go out on the porch. any motion near her sets off a hideous scream

New hand blown glass bowl. Orange and blue.

On a bright sunny day, I drove through fall colors and two alpaca farms out in the country to finally get my hair cut and colored. In the past, I have been provided with fresh eggs from my hair dresser's chickens but fox , eagles and hawk decimated her old flock. She bought another dozen chicks last spring. soon they will be laying eggs though she thinks one might be a rooster.

There was a gap of time between my hair appointment and my cooking class. Do I drive all the way home  and then half way back for the class? nope. I went out to eat by myself, a rarity. I hadn't had sushi in a while. Then on to a few resale shops. I am getting much more selective these days. I toyed with getting a beautiful wool rug covered with orange calla lilies that would look better in my living room than the Art Van special I have. But the other color in the rug was green, not blue. I did get the glass, a folk angel hanging in my kitchen and some jeans marketed by a clothing pyramid scheme for $110 new but in the resale shop, $5.

Since my TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) tested low recently indicating that I was taking too much replacement hormone, which makes sense since I continued taking the same dose after losing more than a third of my body weight, I was asked to skip one dose a week. Maybe now it is too low as my heart beat is only 50bpm and I am feeling cold when normally I would not. My fingers are cold just hanging out in the house. I have to give it a few weeks before I am retested. I don't like this dose readjusting.

Cooking with herbs was the subject of our class. If you provide lots of flavor with herbs, perhaps you won't be tempted to add the dreaded salt I don't worry about salt myself as I assume I lose lots of it with all my exercise. Our instructor is a bit too accommodating to all the modifications demanded by some of my classmates. I understand that some have genuine allergies or that chemo causes their digestive system to be sensitive to spiciness but others are just big, whiny babies. 

I see more and more deer on my runs. And now I come across a turkey flock near my house.