All Things EARTH... part 2

You're the best Margaret! Can't wait to see you!

Anita, it sounds like you have such great plans for your trip. Based on how I read your last few posts, this will be next week, correct? I can't wait to hear all about it. Pictures would be fun too, if you take them!

Living in New York State, I think most people would assume I've been to NYC quite a few times. The fact is, I was there once. For a day. I've been wanting to go back there for so long now. The cost can really make it difficult. If I don't want the hassle of driving - because that is a HUGE hassle - flying can be super cheap with Jet Blue. I have thought about taking the train as well. Both are inexpensive.

I think part of the issue is that when I add up transportation, hotel, food and entertainment, I find that I can usually plan out a cruise. I've gotten some great deals on short cruises, even with the airfare. For those of you that have traveled there, what are your suggestions for keeping the cost down? A few people have told me to stay in New Jersey because it is cheaper, but I wasn't sure how convenient that was.

The one time I stayed in NYC for one night, we stayed at the Edison Hotel and it was sooo close to everything. Unfortunately, we were not there long enough to do very much.

I think I've mentioned having wide feet. It is always so hard to find good fitting shoes. I'm not one to wear tight shoes though, so sometimes it takes quite a while to find good fitting shoes.

Earlier in the week, I got out of bed and felt the worst pain through my foot. I hobbled around, thinking it was a cramp of sorts, and that I could walk it off. I get very bad foot cramps during the middle of the night all the time, so I thought this was some sort of variation. I couldn't walk it off though, and went to put on my shoes for work, and literally dropped everything I was hold on to. Wouldn't you know it, I was by myself and my husband had dropped off his car for an oil change. He couldn't even swing home to take me to the doctor.

I sat there a bit, trying to figure out what to do. I found I could walk on the heel of the foot, but not the front. The pain was the bottom front. When it felt well enough, I made an appointment and drove myself to my doctor, who is literally a few minutes away. It turned out to be something called Morton's Neuroma. I had never heard of it until this. For whatever stupid reason, I then went to work and hobbled. It was better Thursday, much better yesterday, and seems pretty good today.

I get a burning sensation, and this weird, pinching type feeling in the bottom of my foot. I'm going to a hockey game tonight, so wish me luck! The Syracuse Crunch are in the playoffs, so it's a big deal for us here. Parking is downtown so there is a lot of walking.

I am now on the hunt for a good walking sandal for the different things I do, just so that I don't trigger this issue all summer. Come to think of it, I've had this before off and on, just never severe. And I signed up for Corporate Challenge next week too. 3 1/2 miles or running, jogging or walking. I think I'm walking! I wanted to jog, since I'm not a runner, but really, it's best I walk for my hips anyway.

I forgot to mention that I think I know what triggered my foot. We had a bit of an invasion of bull thistle, a horrible prickly weed over the past year or two. We have huge gardens in the front, and they were taken over. We have spent a week working in the garden, and I've been using a big shovel to dig them up. So I think the repeated foot to the shovel thing did it.

These are the beds.

The last one shows you what we are dealing with!! Isn't it awful? We have that bed and another one left to do.

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Laurie, Morton's Neuromas can be nasty, pesky things. Sometimes requiring surgery. On sandals, I'd recommend Chacos, Vionics & the new Sketchers Reggae. The Sketchers are definitely the least expensive & a good way to find out if they work for your foot. Chacos are expensive, but last forever (very casual tho). Vionics have some lovely, dressy styles. I'd see a podiatrist to make sure it really is a Morton's. There are inserts you can use in existing shoes. I've had 4 neuromas, but none have been Morton's. good luck. Your gardens are lovely. Melody

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Laurie, Your yard looks great . Sorry about your foot problems . I have travelled to New York City several times and I have always used Hot wire or Priceline for hotels .I have never been disappointed . I also have had great luck using them in Washington,DC and Boston. The website bidding for travel tells you what hotel you will probably end up . It is usually a Hilton or a Sheraton but occasionally I have gotten very nice boutique hotels .New York City is still expensive but there is so much to see and do.

Here's the start of our yard . The spinners are mesmerizing (like the ocean). Melody

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Looks beautiful, Melody. Is the one a clematis? Everything looks so good considering you had snow so recently!

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Laurie, the one that has my fingernail in it is clematis, the pink is pink honeysuckle & purple is salvia. I like perennials. Our flowers are always better when we've had heat & then a heavy snowfall (sinks the fertilizer into their roots)

Margaret, I thought of you when I saw this sofa (Lazy Boy) . The bottom sofa (I didn't realize mine had snuck into the picture -- not enough coffee this morning!) Love the arms & 3 seat cushion but not huge. Melody

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For those of you that have had leather sofas, do you like them? I love the look, but I am not too enthusiastic on the feel. Of course, it gets really cold here in the winter, and really hot in the summer. I do not have air conditioning, so the time I tried a leather look sofa, I was sticking to it a lot.

I have two dogs and a cat. Kitty does not like the family room, so back when I had the leather look sofa, she was never on it. The boys were though. They are small dogs, but they loved to bring their toys up and play with them. They actually made a mess with the Nylabones and destroyed the fabric. But that won't apply to you, Margaret. :) And I stopped giving them Nylabones after. Maybe it wouldn't have been an issue if it weren't for those.

I am sooooo focused on my cruise. I'm always excited, but I am literally planning out outfits, and I have just over three months to go. I still have not figured out the beach yet. St. Kitts and Curacao I have plans for already. But with St. Thomas and Aruba, I do not. As I mentioned before, I was thinking one of those could be a relaxing beach day, provided I find something with food, drink, a bathroom and shade! I like the idea of heading over to St. John, possibly, just wasn't sure about the beaches there. I wish the info was more readily accessible. Once I figure that out, then I can move on to whichever port is remaining and make plans.

Seeing that I'm gettng antsy, I may take some pictures this week of potential outfits and post them, because I can't help myself. Dresses are mostly up on the air right now, but I have two that I really want to bring and I have one formal night dress that is definite. Once I get back the current group of dresses from the tailor, I will send the next group. So it there is something I have at home that's too big and I want to bring it, it has to go in the next batch. Some things I can and will alter myself, but when there is a lining and a lot of work to take apart the dress, I will usually bring them to Sharon because I don't have a lot of time, and she always does such a good job of getting them just right.

Anyone have any upcoming weddings or dressy events? I have one wedding. I don't think it will be overly formal. I have a few ideas for what to wear. It's one of those things where you aren't sure about the formality, but you want to be safe. The wedding is at 3:00, with the reception to follow directly after at the same location.

Boston is just two weeks away. Now that we are starting to get closer, we are thinking about what to explore on Friday when we arrive. We haven't decided when to leave yet, but it's about a 4 1/2 hour drive so if we leave say, 9:00 and make one stop on the way, we will get there around 2:00. We also have quite a bit of time on Saturday, since the game is at 7:15, I believe.

We tend to have so much to do all the time, that we like to be a bit more spontaneous while on vacation. I am a planner by nature, but what I will do is get a bunch of ideas together and research them, then we will just decide once we are there and head out to our adventure. In other words, I don't usually say, I am going here during the afternoon, then here in the evening, and then this place for dinner. I get the options together, and when we are ready to head out the door, we pick.

We aren't looking to venture too far. We love the idea that the train is right across the street from the hotel. From what I have heard, it is a very convenient way to to go to the game and to see the rest of Boston from. I think that is really the only thing we have planned - taking the train.

Laurie , There is a woman called MITSUGIRL who does reviews usually on NCL or Carnival . She is very focused on beaches and has been to all those ports . I would read her review of the Southern Caribbean from San Juan . I believe she was on a Carnival ship. She goes into great detail on how to get to the beaches and what amenities they have .

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2396178

We are also traveling in Sept. We are going to Cuba . I have already reserved a tour in an old convertible and bought tickets for a show at night featuring Buena Vista social club .

Laurie. I have leather & we get cold & hot. Make sure you get good leather, it breathes. I have Italian Natussi leather, I'm never cold or hot sitting on it. I have microfiber sofas in our upstairs living room & it's great in the winter but way too hot for me in the summer (& we have central ac).

I'd look at Eagle or Palm Beach in Aruba--both are great beaches with amenities. We take a cab to/from cruise but you can take a bus

Emerald Beach in St Thomas is lovely. Not as commercial as Maegens Bay

Sally can't wait to hear about Cuba it's on our list. Melody

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Sally can't wait to hear about Cuba it's on our list. Melody

 

 

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A friend of ours just got back and she loved it and this friend has been absolutely every where .

I'm going to be off the forum for about two weeks. I'm having retina surgery on Tuesday & I'll have my eyes patched for about 10 days after (won't that be a party). Laurie, have a great time in Boston. Melody

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Melody , Good luck with your surgery .

I will keep you in my prayers, Melody :) Hope you have a speedy recovery!

Good luck, Melody! Heal up fast!

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Anita and me in Times Square!

DH and I had such a fun time at brunch with Anita and her lovely family, then a sightseeing walk around midtown. It was so nice to talk IRL and share a bit of our exciting city with them. I'm looking forward to hearing about the ballet and the rest of her trip north. :)

I'm in Michigan again because my mom took a turn for the worse and I had to move her to a skilled nursing facility. She's right across the street from my Dad, so he walks over to see her several times a day. Things seemed pretty dire when I arrived on Tuesday, but they got her stabilized and today she even said "hi sweetie" to me and gave me a hug. So sweet. But, we know her time is short unless she starts eating again. I'm heading home tomorrow night to get through finals week next week, then I'll probably come back again.

I'm a bit jealous of everyone's tidy yards. I am so behind on getting our yard ready for the summer because we've had a steady diet of rain and wind all through May. By the time it dries out enough for me to do anything, it starts raining again. We have a bit of a jungle effect at the moment. The birds and bees are very happy about it, though. Our lake's resident great heron has been using our dock often.

Well, Melody, you just got your feet back and now another ordeal. I hope everything goes well and we hear from you soon. Perhaps you can have your DH come here and give us an update now and then. I bet you have some good books on tape all ready to go. Sending you healthy thoughts and best wishes for a speedy recovery.

Wishing we could all get together for wine and conversation IRL!

Margaret & Anita you both look like you're having the time of your life!

Margaret, I'll say a prayer for your Mom & Dad. It's such a hard thing to go through.

Thanks for all the well wishes, the retina doc thinks that some of the titanium "sludge" (his word) that was removed from my foot escaped & took up residence in my eye (the timing is definitely right). He expects to "vacuum" it out & expects a good outcome. I'm just really not looking forward to sleeping face down till this heals! Melody

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What a wonderful picture. You both look so happy and beautiful!!!

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I just have to say it again...I love that picture, Margaret and Anita. The outdoors create such beautiful, natural light.

Your shirt appears to be a beautiful ivory color, Anita. As you know, I'm always trying to wear that color and sometimes it works, and sometimes it does not. I am thinking that with you being a soft autumn, that is probably right in line with a lot of the other colors in your group.

Margaret, that print shirt is very pretty. I love how your earrings look with it too. I would love to meet all the ladies on this thread in real life! Someday!

I hope your mother is feeling better, Margaret. It sounds like she was picking up a bit, based on what you were saying.

I picked up my dresses that were being altered today, and dropped off a few more. I was so excited to try them on. It was like getting 4 new dresses or something. This got me thinking of cruise clothes, so even though I have three months to go, I was toying with what I want to wear. I will often find myself looking for variety in color and style, but when I was looking today, I was simply trying to pick favorites. I found that I have an alarming amount of love for orange. :D Pictures to come...

I have one formal night set. I can say this easily, as even though I am altering my dresses, there is one dress that is a clear favorite right now, one of my newest purchases. It's the long orange (tango, I believe it is called) dress. With the higher neckline, it calls for a nice bracelet and earrings. It's funny, I choose earrings last most of the time. I love them, but they don't love me. I have very sensitive ears. If I wear them off and on the week before the cruise, I should be able to wear them on the cruise itself with no problem.

Anyway, here is the orange dress, with some of the accessories I am thinking of.

This is always a lot of fun for me. Yes, I have a lot of jewelry. It is all well used though!

I thought the multicolor gem bracelet was fun. The dress has a simple elegance to it, and this just seemed to be very ideal. At the same time, once I have it all on, it may seem a bit blah, so I am thinking about the other bracelet I posted a picture of. That was a gift to me from my husband a few years ago, because I really like it and it was what I wanted to wear with a certain dress on a cruise. It is very beautiful.

This is a purchase I made last week. Tags are still on it. It's a really nice dress, and I like that it isn't full or baggy. Because it is a print, something I don't necessarily wear a lot of, I think very differently about accessories. I think I need a necklace, but I don't like competing with the dress so it will need to be very simple. There really isn't much black in the dress, but because it is next to brown, it tends to come off looking like a lot of black so I'm not certain if I'm keeping the dress. But I think I am, and I think it will be worn on the cruise as well as a few other times over this summer.

Now, you may recall that I got this dress at the same time as the tango one. I like that it has a loose, casual feel to it. At the same time, it's a charmeuse, so it has that satin like effect. This is the kind of dress that can be made to look very different but simply changing the jewelry, so I was having some fun with that. Based on the neckline, I wouldn't wear a necklace at all.

I started with the idea of flat sandals, because that keeps it kind of smart casual maybe?

But I'm not so sure I want to wear those sandals. I am thinking whatever I wear with the dress, will probably be worn with the maxi. So here is another pair of sandals I was thinking about:

Which leads me to this dress, because I wanted to wear those sandals with this dress. I will look for another picture, but it's a high low dress that fits so great now!

Isn't it amazing how much you can change the feel of something by what accessories you choose? The fun thing is, I have had some of these necklaces for years.

I have two more dresses I worked with too, but I'll post those pictures later. This is enough for now. I'd love to hear what you think, and if some choices are better than others.