Only three more sleeps

 

Only three more sleeps until I fly to Greece. This will be the 16th time that I have visited this magical country. The first time was in 1973 when we travelled hippie style in a VW van. Next visit was in 1995 with a 13 year old son along as we toured the Pelopponese, Naxos, Santorini, Paros and Syros. During that trip we met Anna who encouraged us to visit "her island of Amorgos". So, in 2000, we finally set foot on Amorgos and have returned thirteen times since then. Our visits have ranged in length from one month to seven months. During the longest visit we managed our friend's cafe bar over the winter months. Ferries have taken us to explore thirty other islands and many special friendships have been forged over the years.

The difference is that this will be my first solo trip. I will be taking some of John's ashes for our Greek family to scatter in the Aegean. Traveling solo is not without some level of anxiety precipitated by the absence of John, Covid, airline problems and aging issues that could impact travel. This is probably my final trip to this Aegean island that has become our second home.

In Athens I will stay in the same hotel that we have used many times and the small apartment on the island is cozy and familiar. I look forward to sharing coffees, meals and stories with special friends.

The blog will be updated regularly on my iPad during this adventure (unless technology refuses to cooperate) and I invite you to join me.

His brushes

 

This morning I opened a package that contained brushes used by my ex-husband.

I often think of the times we spent painting together in his studio.

We were friends for 50 years and supported each other in our creative pursuits.

I am not emotionally ready to use his brushes in my paintings

but their presence will bring me comfort.

John's Celebration of Life

 

Yesterday was very special. We finally held John's Celebration of Life. An early morning scattering of his ashes took place under clear skies. In chronological order we took turns from August, our 12 year old grandson, passing the urn to family members and ending with the 78 year old...me!

Around 10:00am we welcomed family and friends to the Rotary Interpretive building at Derek Doubleday Park. Everyone mingled with beverages and cake in hand. Some had never met, others had not seen each other for years but everyone had known and loved John.

Heather had prepared a beautiful printed piece that memorialized her father.

Adrian wore one of his father's t-shirts while he shared stories and MC'd the celebration.

The t-shirt has John's favorite quotation by Nikos Kazantzakis

"I hope for nothing

I fear nothing

I am free"

Dave Clark, one of John's oldest friends from High School days

provided a few funny stories from their youthful adventures.

Chris, our son-in-law, recounted the experience of having John officiate at their wedding.

There were many other stories from family and friends that included peanut butter, shortbread, broken limbs, fishing trips and long distance friendships over the years. It was a wonderful gathering, spanning generations and full of love. I am grateful to everyone who joined us.

Walks in the HOOD

 

Gorgeous weather means wonderful walks with the air scented from blossoming trees and bushes! My right pupil finally returned to normal size about 48 hours after cataract surgery. It is amazing how much brighter everything around me looks! My paintings are completely different when viewed independently through each eye. Cataract surgery for my left eye will be on June 6th. That is when the eye drop confusion will really be a challenge.

The back side of Brogan's Diner...a Langley City favorite.

Inside you will find Elvis and an inviting stage for performers!

 

Cataracts and toenails

 

Ah!...this aging process is fraught with challenges. Cataract surgery for my RIGHT eye is scheduled for tomorrow. This involves a complex system of administering three different eye drops for a varied number of days...starting two days before surgery! So...I designed a special calendar for the five week period and yesterday morning I dropped the first drop into the LEFT eye! My mistake was easily explained by the placement of the three vials on the lefthand side of my table! So...I moved the vials to the righthand side of the table and, as an extra precaution, made a large sign that reads RIGHT! it seems to be working so far.

An additional complication will happen in two weeks when surgery is scheduled for the other eye. a second calendar will have to sit on the left side of the table with three new vials for the LEFT eye! It is a good thing that I do not entertain because guests would be subjected to my pharmaceutical table of contents!

A visit to the podiatrist yesterday confirmed that the large toenail on my left foot has a fungal infection. He prescribed a solution to paint on the toenail every night for one year! My pharmacist said "This is quite expensive!...$124 for one month of applications". I was stunned! He explained that it would probably last for more than one month because I was only painting one toenail! Can a fungal toenail kill you?

Sad

 

Those we hold in our hearts

never truly leave us.

I will cherish 50 years of shared memories.

Seattle

What a wonderful weekend! My son was at a conference in Seattle last weekend so my niece and I drove down to spend some time with him. It had been almost 5 years since we had visited with each other in Chicago...Covid delayed all plans to visit.

Between Mereille and Mitch they organized every detail of our visit.

UBER was a new method of transportation for me and very efficient!

On Good Friday we wandered down to Pike Street Market

and viewed the tasty displays like GUM ALLEY...

...and fresh produce.

Unfortunately the Art Gallery was closed but this sculpture

outside the entrance was very powerful!

Marika and Adrian joined us on Saturday

and shared the exciting news of their pregnancy!

On Saturday afternoon we enjoyed a fun time

at a downtown Ping Pong game centre.

In the Ping Pong Hall we were surrounded by a gallery

of interesting art that continued into the washrooms.

Downtown Seattle seemed sad due to retail and business closures as well as a large number of homeless people on the streets. When we travelled to other areas it appeared that small businesses were trying to recover from covid. 

The first night we shared dinner at Ron Mai, a small Thai restaurant owned by friends of Mitch in the Capitol Hill region. On our last night we revisited that area for a Mexican dinner at La Cocina Santiago owned by the same family for over 40 years. Both meals were very good! Mitch also took us to Shaker and Spear, a 5 star restaurant in downtown Seattle. The fish and seafood were amazing!!

An ANIMEE conference was taking place over the weekend so the hotel and the streets were full of weirdly costumed attendees. Their conference mandated mask wearing so the combination of costumes and masks created an interesting flow of pedestrians on the street. 

Covid restrictions have been totally relaxed so most people were unmasked. We chose to wear masks in the elevators and in congested public areas. At Spear and Shaker we were asked to produce proof of covid vaccine. I was pleased that mask wearing is mandated in all UBER vehicles...drivers and passengers.

After dinner, in the evenings, we reconvened in the Club Lounge on the top floor of our hotel and shared a nightcap along with stories about covid experiences, family updates and plans for the future. It was a very special weekend! Hopefully we will gather again soon.