Omaha Beach

My grandfather, Raymond Francis McWhorter, fought in World War II. He did not come ashore at Normandy, but he was part of the war effort in France and Italy. He lied about his age to be able to enlist. My father was born while he was away and didn’t meet him until he was a year old. Fortunately, my grandfather survived the war without injuries. He didn’t tell me much about it, other than how beautiful Paris was, even though he saw it without lights.  I had the sense that the war weighed heavily on him.

When our family planned a trip to France, Normandy seemed like a good destination. We were planning to visit Paris and Versailles. I wanted to see Monet’s Garden, so why not continue east to Normandy (my son has an interest in history and it seemed like something we should see). And so we did. I’ll be sharing our other adventures along the way, but today I

Sculpture at Omaha Beach

want to share about Omaha Beach.

The Beach

I did a lot of reading before we went, trying to decide exactly which beach we should go to. Ultimately I chose Omaha because it was the center of the action for Americans. We arrived at the beach at about 9 am on a week day morning. There is a small parking lot across the street which was completely empty. We walked across the street to the beach. It was a cloudy morning with a cool breeze,which felt appropriate.  The beach is a long, beautiful sandy beach. There are some houses, but I wouldn’t call it developed. There was one man walking a dog. Far down the beach there were some boats being launched (people drive their boats onto

Walkway at the American Cemetery

the beach, dump them on the sand off the trailer, then wait for the tide to come in). Mostly though it was simply quiet except for the surf and the wind.

There is a large abstract metal sculpture on the beach that is roped off. There are a few plaques facing the beach and a concrete memorial just next to the sand. Frankly, given the enormity of what happened here, it is all extremely understated. If the Americans hadn’t landed on that shore it would be part of Germany not France.

Honestly, there isn’t much to see with your eyes here, instead it’s all about seeing with your mind’s eye and your heart. We stood on that beach and looked out to sea and imagined all the boats that filled the horizon. Then we turned and looked at the cliffs where the Germans were entrenched. We thought about the men who first set foot on the sand and the many who died on that sand or in that water. It is a

American Cemetery

place that echoes with bravery, sadness, and silent pride. Although my grandfather didn’t land on this beach, boys like him did and I thought about them as I stood there and tried to feel their determination, their fear, and their victory. If you listen carefully, you can connect to the sounds of that day and breath the emotions that were in the air.

This definitely ranks on my list of “woo-woo” places, locations that somehow speak to me and connect me with the spirit of the people who were there. It is eerie and it is haunting, but it is also simply achingly beautiful. A perfect untouched beach that was once the scene of something incredible.

The Museum

There is a small World War II museum just across the street from the beach. We were the

Cemetery monument

first visitors of the day. This was about as low tech a museum as you can get. There are cases showing photos of life before the occupation and life during the occupation. Mannequins in German uniforms stand among German equipment. Cases hold their hats, their letters, their belongings. They were real people too, caught in a war they might not have chosen. That was something I definitely felt here.

As we moved along we saw American mannequins in their uniforms, with tents, equipment, jeeps, guns and more. Cases hold their letters, their photos and their belongings. The part of the museum that had the greatest impression on us was the models of the military action. A diorama showed all the ships that were in the harbor. There were more than could be counted. This brought home

Maps at the monument

the enormity of the work involved in that day. I walked away imagining my grandfather’s face on those mannequins, sleeping in those tents, and riding in those jeeps.

The Cemetery

Next we drove down the road to the American Cemetery. I had read on the State Department web site that there is an alert out to American travelers that many cars are broken into in the parking lot and the you are advised not to leave anything in your car. This made me paranoid, so we left our luggage at the hotel that morning after we checked out and then backtracked 20 minutes to get it after our visit (our car was untouched fortunately). I can see how this would be a prime spot for theft. The lot has a lot of trees and

More of the lost

shrubs between cars. And many people who come here are in an emotional state. (This was also a wake up call to me: for much of our trip we would be traveling with a car full of luggage, so my husband always parked carefully in highly visible areas and we made sure the luggage was always covered with blankets.)

We pulled in the lot at the cemetery and my son reminded us that we were on American territory here (a piece of home in a country far away – I knew I was in America when I used the bathroom and it wasn’t a hole in the ground as it is through much of rural France). We got out of our car and walked past the visitors’ center. The ocean is in front of you as you walk towards the cliff edge and its blue is almost overwhelming in intensity.  There are an insane (really and truly insane) amount of stairs down to the beach here, and it would take hours to go down and up. Instead, we followed the path to the cemetery. At one

Photos from my grandfather’s time in the service in Europe

point, the path curves and ahead of you is the other ocean – the ocean of grave markers. There are more than 9,000 graves (actual graves, not markers for people who aren’t there) here.  They are all white marble and the ones we saw were either crosses or stars of David (are there no soldiers of other religions buried here I wonder?). The cemetery is marked with discrete row numbers and each grave has a number, otherwise you could get lost. There were some people there bringing flowers to graves. Mostly the cemetery was rather empty and quiet.

This was a place that was hard to visit. It was deeply, overwhelming sad to be there. I felt no triumph, no victory here, only grief. I tried to imagine a young man standing at each marker and it was a very difficult visual. All the families, wives, children, and girlfriends who had someone buried here were somehow there too and their sadness permeated the place.

I ran my hand across some of the markers and read some of the names. The smoothness of the markers belie the sharp emotions of this place.

There is a lovely memorial that has maps of the D-Day invasion and a calming pond with lilies near it. It didn’t take the edge off the place or make it any better. It was a very difficult place to visit, but one I am glad I had the opportunity to see.

This was the most somber morning of our trip, but one we will remember for a long time.

My grandfather, Raymond Francis McWhorter, fought in World War II. He did not come ashore at Normandy, but he was part of the war effort in France and Italy. He lied about his age to be able to enlist. My father was born while he was away and didn’t meet him until he was a … Read more →

Ireland is populated with incredible castles almost everywhere you turn. There are tourist attractions (like Blarney Castle which we visited), castles people actually still live in and ruins just sitting in fields. “Yeah, that’s the castle in my backyard.” I think that if you live there you are immune to their magnificence, their stories, and their draw. I live near Niagara Falls and while I can appreciate its power and beauty, it is nothing I wonder at. Since I don’t happen to have a castle in my backyard, we spent a lot of time in Ireland in castles. There are big castles, small castles, dilapidated castles, and luxurious castles to choose from. While I knew we would be tromping through

Entrance

plenty of them, what I really wanted was to sleep in one. I might not have Rapunzel’s hair to let down, but what girl didn’t grow up fantasizing just a wee bit about handsome princes, drawbridges, and turrets?

Hello Dromoland

We decided to stay at Dromoland Castle in County Clare outside Newmarket-on-Fergus. This is in southwest Ireland. It is slightly in the middle of nowhere, but the middle of nowhere is quite relative in Ireland

My friends in the lobby

since everything is so close together. It’s located near  enough to the Cliffs of Moher, the bogs, the Burren, and Limerick to make it a jumping off spot for those places. It’s also located near the tourist craziness of Bunratty Castle, a Disney-fied version of castle life (we avoided this stop!).

Our GPS had a little trouble finding Dromoland, but eventually we pulled into the driveway, which winds its way past the gates, by an abandoned guard house, and through a green golf course, past a small lake and then – gasp – in front of you is a huge, gray,

One of our bedrooms

imposing castle. It’s everything you could imagine a castle to be, with turrets and huge stone blocks, sitting on a giant estate. As you drive closer you find yourself asking in wonder, “Am I really going to stay HERE?”

You pull the car up to the imposing steps at the entrance and a friendly gentleman in a morning coat rushes out to unload your bags and welcome you. He shook hands with all four of us, even my teenage son, and managed to contain himself at the sheer ridiculous volume of our luggage. A

Bathroom

walk up the steps brings you face to face with the huge wooden double doors that look like they’ve kept out Attila the Hun. Once through the doors, two suits of armor let you know you are indeed in a castle. The lobby was small but regal, with a huge table with a guest book, a few chairs and lots of red. We found the desk staff to be friendly and welcoming.

The Rooms

As you head to your room, you leave the definitive castle feel of the lobby and enter hallways built at odd angles with steps up and down at unexpected places. It’s clear the whole place has been retrofitted to meet modern expectations. When the door swung open on one of our two connecting rooms, I caught my breath for a moment. There no stone walls with torches here. Instead, you find yourself in a large, comfortable room that feels

The gardens

elegant, regal, and comfortable. Since I am a girl of the 80s, I was enchanted with the pastel color scheme, including the creamy white furniture, delicate wallpaper and soft draperies. A dressing table that had electric outlets conveniently located with it made getting dressed a real joy. There was also a sitting room and a large armoir in addition to the bed, nightstands, and a bench. There are no TVs.

Our windows looked out on the lake. The bathrooms were huge and thoroughly modern with double sinks, towel warmers, and marble. This may have been the most comfortable place we stayed in all of Ireland. The beds were perfect, in contract to the boxes

More gardens

of plywood we encountered elsewhere.

There was no air conditioning, but with the windows cracked just a bit (no screens though!), we were completely comfortable on our August stay. A lovely little breeze brought us the perfect amount of coolness to feel comfortable. I also suspect the thick stone walls keep the inside quite cool.

Turn down service involved chocolates (by this point I was over the moon) and a little engraved card reading “In Ireland there are no strangers, only friends you haven’t met before.” That is precisely how this room made me feel

The lake

– welcomed, cherished and pampered.

The Grounds

While the rooms were enough to make me want to stay inside, the lure of the grounds got me on my feet.  The castle is surrounded by acres and acres of lawns and woodlands for guests to explore. While the golf course (with a little putting green available for guests at no charge) takes up a lot of space, it felt like a tiny fraction of the estate. We wandered to the walled rose garden which had a water feature, a pergola,

What fish?

lawns, and flowers. It was peaceful and fragrant, a place to linger.

Our next adventure involved the lake. The castle has rowboats, life jackets, and fishing poles available for guests at no charge. It was a tad inconvenient to have to walk over to the golf course clubhouse to get the equipment and the go-ahead to take a rowboat (can you tell by this point I truly felt like a princess – why couldn’t my footmen handle this terribly inconvenient chore?) then we headed back to the lake. The rowboats were

Breakfast

quite large and our family of 4 fit well. My husband used to row crew, so he was quite comfortable behind the oars, rowing us all around the lake. The staff assured us the lake was stocked with fish, but had no bait for the poles, only lures called “spinners.” We dropped our lines throughout that lake and didn’t get a single bite, but it was simply perfect to be floating on a row boat on a quite, glassy lake with this huge castle looming over us. A few swans floated silently, avoiding us at all costs. We happened to go boating in the late afternoon when

More breakfast

Ireland becomes oddly warm (dare I say almost hot) for a few minutes between 4 and 6 pm in the late summer, so we enjoyed our quiet time floating in the warm sun, knowing we were going to be sleeping in a castle.

The castle provided us with a map of the grounds, so we couldn’t resist heading out into the woods to look for the small Roman temple, lily pond, and river. The only thing that disappointed was the river which was mostly a dried up ditch. We passed some people taking archery lessons

Dining room

and a family heading out for a falconry experience (we did this elsewhere in Ireland and I’ll be writing about that separately). Skeet shooting and horseback riding are also available. The castle has a fitness center in the golf club with a pool, but we were too lazy to have to walk across the grounds to use it.

The gift shop was a major disappointment. They had a few golf shirts with the name of the property on them, a few baby items, some books, some candy and that was about it. I’m not a millionaire who is jaded about staying at 5 star properties so I was really hoping to buy something with the castle logo on it, but clearly that marks me as “not one of us.” (I did smuggle home the paper coaster in my room that has an outline of the castle with its name).

Breakfast

Breakfast was included in our stay (as it was everywhere we stayed in Ireland). We wound our way through many hallways with velvet wallpaper to enter a very formal and imposing dining room with crisp linens, heavy wallpaper and draperies. We were carefully scrutinized by the members of the

From turn down serivce

Butler family who hang on the walls in portraits, the ancestors who owned Dromoland.

As in much of Ireland, the waitstaff was from other countries (often Poland) imposing a language barrier in a country where you wouldn’t expect one. We found the waitstaff to be a little stiff and unfriendly here. Breakfast was a buffet of fruits, meats, cheeses, and pastries with hot items made to order from the menu (also included). Service was a bit slow we felt. The food was good.

We were sad to pack our bags and leave Dromoland. It’s a perfect place to go and stay for a few days to simply relax. It is not an ideal location as a base for

Hallway

sightseeing, but staying in a castle is definitely a dream come true. I’ve saved the sticker shock for last. Two rooms for one night with breakfast included cost us $1274 total.  Certainly not a bargain, but for a once in a lifetime experience, it was worth every penny.

More from the lake

Ireland is populated with incredible castles almost everywhere you turn. There are tourist attractions (like Blarney Castle which we visited), castles people actually still live in and ruins just sitting in fields. “Yeah, that’s the castle in my backyard.” I think that if you live there you are immune to their magnificence, their stories, and … Read more →

I haven’t been posting as much as I’d like, but I am expecting to get back on track next week once school starts and my days are my own. I have so many posts in my head from our trip that I will get to. I also have to admit I’ve been feeling really uninterested in cooking. Usually I come home from a trip excited to be in my own kitchen again, able to make exactly what I want. This time I just came home tired. I’ve been making really simple dinners lately, mostly because I can’t get to the kitchen before 5 or 5:30. The only thing saving me at this point is the CSA produce. It’s an automatic infusion each week of veggies that I then try to use up.

Last night I made this simple squash casserole from this week’s CSA produce. It’s a recipe I learned from my mom. It’s incredibly easy to pull together.

Easy Squash Casserole

 

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Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1 small onion, thinly sliced
• 1 small yellow squash thinly sliced
• 1 small zucchini thinly sliced
• 1½ large tomato thinly sliced
• salt and pepper
• ½ teaspoon Italian herbs (dried but you can absolutely chop up some fresh)
• beef broth
• ¾ cup shredded mozzarella

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray an 8x8 glass baking dish. Layer in half the onion, squashes and tomato. Season with salt and pepper and half the herbs. Layer the rest on top, add more salt and pepper and the rest of the herbs. Pour in enough beef broth to come halfway up the dish. Sprinkle the cheese on top and cover with foil. Bake for an hour and a half, until the squash is tender. Drain off as much of the beef broth as you can. Serve.
2. Note: You can use vegetable or chicken broth if you prefer, but I like the flavor the beef broth gives.

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I haven’t been posting as much as I’d like, but I am expecting to get back on track next week once school starts and my days are my own. I have so many posts in my head from our trip that I will get to. I also have to admit I’ve been feeling really uninterested … Read more →

What to do with all those tomatoes? I make tomato pie a few times each year during tomato season and it’s always a satisfying dinner. This is also good the next day. Sometimes I  will take it out of the fridge the next afternoon and just eat it at room temp after it warms up. It’s also easy to reheat in the microwave.

5.0 from 1 reviews

Tomato Pie

 

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Ingredients

• 1½ cups seasoned breadcrumbs (I used gluten-free)
• 4 large tomatoes, sliced thinly
• 1 small onion, chopped
• salt and pepper to taste
• fresh basil leaves (10-20 depending on your tastes)
• 2 cups shredded Swiss cheese
• 3 eggs, slightly beaten

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
2. Spray a square 8x8 glass baking dish and sprinkle half the breadcrumbs on the bottom. Layer half the tomatoes onto this. Sprinkle half the onion and half the basil leaves (ripping them as you do so). Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with half the cheese.
3. Repeat layering tomatoes, onion, basil, salt and pepper, and cheese.
4. Pour the eggs over the dish. Top with remaining breadcrumbs. Spray the top with cooking spray.
5. Bake for 50 minutes, until the top is brown and the eggs are cooked. Allow to rest at least 10 minutes before serving.

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What to do with all those tomatoes? I make tomato pie a few times each year during tomato season and it’s always a satisfying dinner. This is also good the next day. Sometimes I  will take it out of the fridge the next afternoon and just eat it at room temp after it warms up. … Read more →

We just returned from a two week trip to France and Ireland. If you’re familiar with this blog, you know that I love to shop while traveling. I’m all about finding unique, locally made items to bring home that will make the memories of the trip a concrete part of my home and my life.

There are some places where I just know I’m going to hit the mother lode. Hawaii was one of those places. Ireland was definitely another. I knew before I went that I would like find many treasures that would appeal to me and I was right. Finding the treasures is the fun part. Getting them home safely takes some thought and planning.

Ship Your Shopping

One of the first rules of travel shopping is to have the store ship your items when possible. This is especially true when buying breakables – they wrap it properly and it’s insured. You don’t have to worry about how it will fare in your luggage. In Ireland, shipping ended up being free at a few places and at others it was the same amount as our VAT (sales tax) refund. In fact, one clerk told us shipping to the US was cheaper than to the EU. If I’m not buying something fragile or not buying a lot at one store, we bring the items home ourselves.

Shipping Revelation

As my purchases began to pile up, we realized we just weren’t going to have enough space in our luggage. We stopped at a Mailboxes, Etc. in Ireland, intending to ship some items home. The cheapest rate was 380 Euros, which is about $500. Yikes. Definitely more than the value of what I’d bought. We came to the realization that it made far more sense to buy an additional suitcase (50 Euros=$66) and pay the $100 airline fee for an extra bag. In the future I will likely do this again. It made the most sense.

Tips from the Packing Master

There is a clear division of labor in this family. I do the shopping and my husband does the packing. The man is a genius. I brought home many breakable items. Not a single thing was damaged this trip because he is so careful. Here are his secrets:

– Bring bubble wrap with you. It’s light and adds no weight to your luggage on the way there. It is essential for bringing home delicate items. Layer sheets of it in your luggage.

– Never throw anything out. This was a lesson well-learned when somehow in Puerto Rico a necklace my son bought for his girlfriend disappeared. We think it got thrown out in the bag it came in since it was light. So the rule following that debacle was that my husband brings home every single bag. He uses them as additional wrapping materials or layers them along the bottom and top of the suitcase (when the suitcase is lying down since this is the way they are stacked by the airline) to provide additional cushioning.

– Make a bubble. My husband uses clothing to completely surround the items he is packing. Fragile items are wrapped in bubble wrap then cushioned in the center of this clothing bubble. Nothing fragile is near an outside edge of a suitcase.

– Use double zipper bags. After last year’s Italy trip when one of my daughter’s bottles of limoncello burst in the suitcase, the rule is that anything liquid must be double bagged in a zipper bag. This year she brought olive oil and jelly home from her study abroad session in Croatia. The olive oil leaked, but it was double bagged so we were fine. My husband also recommends tightening screw caps to make sure they are sealed and wrapping tape around the cap if possible.

– Use boxes. If the item you buy comes in a box, use it. It is tempting to think it is just taking up space in your luggage, but it provides stability and prevents crushing. He uses socks and underwear for extra padding inside the box if needed.

– Get cardboard for art. I always buy inexpensive prints or a small piece of original artwork that depicts the place we visited, but getting unframed art home is a challenge. My husband asks for cardboard at the store and layers the art between the layers of cardboard, which he then tapes together.

– Toss to make space. If your suitcase is too full or over the airline’s weight restrictions, throw out things like shampoo, contact lens solution, shaving cream, etc which you can easily replace when you get home. At the end of your trip, these bottles are likely nearly empty anyhow, so it’s not that much of a loss. I also leave my travel guide books behind in the hotel room since they are quite heavy. A shirt I brought on this trip snagged on a fence and tore – that got left in the hotel room as well since it was not repairable, so why bring it home?

– Bring a tote bag. I have a big fabric Vera Bradley style overnight bag that weighs almost nothing and completely flattens. We always bring this in a suitcase as an emergency carry on. Sometimes you may think you are fine with space and weight only to weigh your bag the night before your flight and discover you have a problem. This tote is perfect for this emergency. I stuff my purse or wallet in my regular carry on and bring this bag for my two pieces of on board luggage. We also often use this tote to manually carry items we are very concerned about. I’ve carried framed art work, pottery, and glass home in this bag. Pad it well with bubble wrap and clothes and place it in under your seat if possible. If it has to go above you, carefully wedge it between the wall and another carry on of your own, so no one else can shove something up there and damage your items.

We just returned from a two week trip to France and Ireland. If you’re familiar with this blog, you know that I love to shop while traveling. I’m all about finding unique, locally made items to bring home that will make the memories of the trip a concrete part of my home and my life. … Read more →

Ok, I’ll admit it. I don’t really love kale. Yeah, I know how great it is for you, but I just can’t come to grips with eating it. I bring home lots of kale from the CSA. Fortunately, my son’s tortoise eats some of it. I like kale chips, but I don’t want to eat them all the time. I don’t want to waste it, so I cut off the stems, boil it, drain it, food process it and divide it into sandwich bags. I add some water to each, so that it will freeze like the block of chopped spinach you get at the store. I freeze it and then I use it throughout the year in place of frozen chopped spinach in recipes. You would never notice the difference. It’s particularly great in lasagna.

Ok, I’ll admit it. I don’t really love kale. Yeah, I know how great it is for you, but I just can’t come to grips with eating it. I bring home lots of kale from the CSA. Fortunately, my son’s tortoise eats some of it. I like kale chips, but I don’t want to eat … Read more →

We’re getting ready for our big summer trip. We do a lot of walking on our vacations, so having shoes that don’t hurt is crucial. That is easier to say than to achieve for me. I’ve got wide feet, a high instep, and a Morton’s neuroma (basically a bundle of nerves between the first and second toe inside the foot that screams if it gets squished). I also am at the point in my life where I am simply not ready to suffer for beauty. That doesn’t mean I don’t want to look good, but I’m just not willing to sacrifice comfort for looks. I want a compromise. All of this presents a challenge when finding good travel shoes. Here are my criteria:

• Comes in wide or double wide
• Does not pinch my toes together
• Has a very solid cushion on the ball of the foot
• Is not hard, rigid, rough, or sharp anywhere
• Has some give
• Has room for my high instep
• No heels. I can’t walk in heels
• Offers the comfort of a sneaker without being a sneaker

While this is a long list, you would think it would be achievable, particularly since there are quite a number of companies that now specialize in travel shoes. For some reason Clark’s and Tevas never fit my feet, so I don’t even bother to try those on anymore. Birkenstocks hurt my feet. Dansko clogs are fantastic for standing, but not for walking long distances, so they don’t work for travel for me.

In the past, Propet was my savior. I always buy Propet athletic shoes and those still work for me, but all of their “fun” shoes have been redesigned so now I’ve got issues with them. The past few weeks have seen a flurry of Zappos boxes at my door and I also made a trip to the Easy Spirit store as well as Famous Footwear. I continue to fall into the trap of a shoe that feels fine at home, but when I take a walk, about halfway through I realize it’s not going to work. The result is I still have no shoes I feel 100% comfortable with. This is the tale of 8 shoes. And let me be honest, I know I sound like a crazy, uber-picky lunatic, but there is nothing worse than trying to spend an entire day walking in shoes that hurt or give you blisters.

First off are my trusted white walking sneakers. They’re comfortable and I can go long distances in them. However, I want to look somewhat decent in Paris. Therefore, they are being packed to wear in the countryside but not in the city. Next up are the shoes that saved my butt last summer.

These blue shoes are Propet Travel Walkers. I wore these all over Italy. They are lighter than my sneakers, more breathable, and at least are not glaringly white. Fantastic. Except one shoe leaks up through the sole when it rains. So I wanted to buy a new pair.

Which brings us to the Propet Travel Walker IIs. Yes, they changed them. I had to order a double wide in this and they made the toe cap a little bigger and of harder plastic (see how it’s shiny?). Therefore, my big toe rubs against it. I am certain I will get a blister if I wear them for a full day of walking.

These blue suede shoes were last year’s purchase. They’re comfortable, but aren’t perfect for a full day of walking. The bottom of my foot rubs and gets irritated. I can wear them with one of those little nylon stocking footie things and do ok, but it’s just not ideal.

The black Skechers are also from last year. I’ve turned to these shoes when my bad foot really hurts because they are well-formed and keep everything in place. They’re not good for long treks though. Too tight.

These black Mary Janes with white soles are Propet shoes. Cute, light, breathable – everything good that the Travel Walker I had, however they have the same toe cap as the Travel Walker II and thus my toe rubs when I walk.

In an attempt to expand my horizons, I ordered these Easy Spirit Escape shoes. They had everything I wanted. I wore them around the house for a day and was pleased. Then I wore them on a walk and I realized that in the right shoe (my problem foot) the inside of the toe part of the shoe is coming apart, so it catches my big toe and pulls. Only the right shoe is defective. Unfortunately, by the time I realized this, I could not get a replacement in time. Interestingly, the shoes that Zappos sells are apparently old styles because this is no longer sold at my local Easy Spirit store.

I went to the Easy Spirit store anyhow, hoping to find something – anything. My apologies to the saleswoman who brought out about 20 different shoes for me to try on.  By the time we were done she thought I was the pickiest person she’d ever met, I am sure. I ended up buying these shoes. I had buyer’s remorse after the fact. They are low cut in the back, like a mule or a clog and so when I walk, that slaps against my foot. I can’t imagine dealing with that during a full day of walking. I also realized when I got home that they really do look like sneakers. Sigh.

So where does that leave me? Honestly I don’t know. I am packing as I write this and I will probably bring several of these shoes along. I will likely give in and wear my Travel Walker Is since they are so comfortable and if I get wet, I get wet. The new flapping Easy Spirits will likely come also and the blue suede shoes. And there is no doubt my white sneakers will be packed. I wish I had cute shoes to wear in Paris. Maybe next year I’ll find something cute and functional. If you have wide and difficult feet what brands work for you for travel shoes?

Update: I ended up taking the white Propet sneakers, black Skechers, blue suede shoes, both Easy Spirit shoes, the blue Propet shoes from last year, and a pair of sandals to wear to dinner. I determined that the white Propet sneakers are making my hip click – I’ve been wearing them for 6 months without a problem but they must be worn out, so those stayed in the suitcase. The Easy Spirit Escape shoes cut into my heels and gave me sores. I wore them for several days and I couldn’t get past it. The black Skechers are not good for walking, but I wore them a few times at night to dinner when my feet hurt. The blue Propet shoes worked ok, but irritated one toe so I couldn’t wear them every day. The new Easy Spirit slides at first made my toe hurt, but eventually became broken in. They were probably the most comfortable, however after several days of wearing them without socks they smelled pretty badly. The blue suede shoes are comfortable but don’t have a lot of padding on the bottom, so they aren’t ideal for tons of walking. They were great for days when we weren’t walking all the time though. The end result? None of these were perfect.

We’re getting ready for our big summer trip. We do a lot of walking on our vacations, so having shoes that don’t hurt is crucial. That is easier to say than to achieve for me. I’ve got wide feet, a high instep, and a Morton’s neuroma (basically a bundle of nerves between the first and … Read more →

Now that it has cooled off and we’ve gotten some rain, my garden is looking better than ever.  The only failure is the day lilies. There is a whole line of them, but they are under some pine trees. Our peonies were there also and last year I performed a rescue mission to move them since they were not getting enough sun. The same thing is happening with the lilies – and someone has been snacking on the leaves. There was one flower, but I didn’t get to it with my camera soon enough.

Black-eyed Susans

I was excited to see my black-eyed Susans up and awake. We’ve had trouble with these over the years. Twice people have tried to pull them out, thinking they were weeds. I’m happy to see they are making a comeback. They always make me think of a restaurant on Nantucket of the same name!

My hydrangea is out of control as usual.

Hydrangea

Now that it has cooled off and we’ve gotten some rain, my garden is looking better than ever.  The only failure is the day lilies. There is a whole line of them, but they are under some pine trees. Our peonies were there also and last year I performed a rescue mission to move them … Read more →

I planted lemongrass in the herb garden this year and have been enjoying using it in a variety of ways. Recently we grilled some trout that I had sprinkled with chopped lemongrass. I also seasoned it with salt and pepper. I grill it on a little grill tray so it won’t stick. While it was grilling, I browned 2 tbsp of butter until it was a lovely brown color. When I took it off the heat, I squeezed in the juice from half a lemon (careful – it might spatter!). The result was a piece of fish that tasted rich and wonderful – as if I had worked very hard to make an intricate sauce.

I planted lemongrass in the herb garden this year and have been enjoying using it in a variety of ways. Recently we grilled some trout that I had sprinkled with chopped lemongrass. I also seasoned it with salt and pepper. I grill it on a little grill tray so it won’t stick. While it was … Read more →

I spent a lot of my time as a child at my maternal grandparents’ house.  My grandparents were there for me when my parents were at work, and then when I started school, I came home to their house every day off the bus. I have an incredible stable of comforting happy memories from those times. Most importantly, each day was a reminder that I was loved and cherished. Even though my grandparents were stoic (I tell people it was very American Gothic in some ways) and not prone to effusive words, the time and attention they devoted to me showed me how important I was to them in a way words never could.

My grandfather owned a greenhouse business next door to their home and I have many childhood memories from the greenhouse: the deep, overwhelming smell of the mountainous dirt pile in a garage; the green, alive smell of geranium leaves, the slivers I got when I brushed the benches the plants were on; and the heavy-lung warmth of the greenhouse in winter. My favorite memory involves both my grandparents. Like most agriculture businesses, the greenhouse had a resident cat: Mama Kitty. Every spring Mama Kitty would have kittens and she always chose the warmest, safest, coziest place she could find: next to or underneath the giant boiler furnaces that heated the greenhouses. My grandfather would let us know when kittens were born, and when their eyes were open, my grandmother and I would take her deep basket, cushioned with a dish towel, over to the greenhouse. My grandfather would then climb down into the boiler space and somehow fish those kittens out for me. He would put them in the basket. I would carry the basket home, trying to keep the kittens from climbing out as we followed the path home (the older they got, the more impossible that became).

When we got home, we would go into the three season sun porch, put a blanket on the floor and I would play with the tiny kittens, admiring their needle-sharp nails, tiny eyes, short tails, and multi-spectrum fur.  My grandmother often sat on the floor with me as we cuddled them, one by one. Then we would pack the kittens up and take them back to their boiler home until my next visit.

This same basket is what we used when we packed picnics in the park, scurrying away from the nasty geese who tried to chase us away. My grandmother pushed me on the swings and even ran to make the manual merry-go-round spin me endlessly.

Today this precious basket is in my family room and is one of my most special possessions.

I spent a lot of my time as a child at my maternal grandparents’ house.  My grandparents were there for me when my parents were at work, and then when I started school, I came home to their house every day off the bus. I have an incredible stable of comforting happy memories from those … Read more →