Happy Birthday to Me!

It happens every year about this time -- the date creeps up and suddenly it's my birthday. Today was the official day, so a birthday celebration with girlfriends at a local French restaurant, hosted by the dearest of friends, was in order. The final party of the year, this one lasted three hours as we laughed, shared secrets and touted the best anti-aging secrets around. Celebrations are an important part of our lives -- and big birthdays, such as this one, require parties that last six days. Mine did.

On Saturday the family met at the race track where we placed our bets, ate, laughed and in most cases, won. The cake was delicious, the Happy Birthday song was perfectly sung, the company exquisite, and the present, extravagant. After several hours of chatting and trying to figure out which Thoroughbred was to be the winner in each of the eleven races, pictures were taken and it was time for good-byes.

Sunday was yet another celebration at a local country club, thanks to a dear couple. Dinner and ice cream sundaes, complete with the Happy Birthday song with a candle, and shared stories of birthdays past, providing another wonderful birthday party memory. And today, June 2, the day, the birthday, was a girls only party -- perfect -- with crepes, French pastries, and Pellegrino. A swim in Val's heated pool made the day even more relaxing. The best part of a birthday celebration is said to be the gifts, yet the cards say a lot about the giver and help create memories, and the friends and family in attendance are what make the entire event unforgettable.

Since birthdays come only once a year, they are celebrated for a long time in this Chicagoland family. For the past six days my birthday has been celebrated in style, starting with a two night stay at the Chicago Four Season's Hotel, and three parties with people I love. What more could the birthday girl ask for? Happy Birthday to me.

Flu Report 2008

The flu shot received last October provided hope that the infamous cold and flu season would not land anywhere close to where I was standing. That hope has now vanished, replaced with chills, a heavy chest, bouts of coughing, a fleeting earache, and of course the runny nose and headache associated with the culprit.

Many have the mistaken idea the word "flu," short for influenza, refers to bouts in the bathroom, with one's shoulders heaving as one goes through the process of emptying one's stomach. Not so. According to the Center for Disease Control, "the flu is a contagious respiratory illness caused by influenza viruses. It can cause mild to severe illness, and at times can lead to death. The best way to prevent the flu is by getting a flu vaccination each year." Although good advice, the vaccination does not always prevent the flu.

Avoiding those who have the flu is always the best way to avoid getting it. If one is ill, one should not go to work. The CDC advises "healthy adults may be able to infect others 1 day before getting symptoms and up to 5 days after getting sick." Ouch.

While the virus is everywhere, as of January 12, 2008, Colorado reported the most "widespread activity." And for those who reside elsewhere thinking they are home free, read on. According to the CDC, for the week ending January 5, "local activity was reported by the District of Columbia and 12 states (Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Carolina Virginia, and Washington)."

What to do if you feel flu-ish? Start taking Zicam asap -- the zinc in Zicam "shortens the severity and symptoms" and I have to agree. The Zicam site actually declares Albany, New York as the worst place for the flu as of 1-11-08. Albanians: wash your hands! Purell hand sanitizers kill flu germs found on grocery carts, door knobs, computer keyboards, and other germy places. Another option is the old time favorite, homemade chicken soup, considered the first course of action for flu fighting due to its medicinal value. Hot chicken soup allows the warm steam to open clogged nasal passages, as well as providing a warm feeling of well-being.

Now on the path to well being: I took the Zicam and will continue to do so; took two aspirin; drinking plenty of water, including Pelligreno. Will hover under the the down comforter (with a dry cleanable duvet for germ killing reasons), and will soon be back to my spunky self. Must sign off before spraying the keyboard and all non-moving objects with Lysol. Stay well.
Photo attribution: somewhatfrank

Thanksgiving Left-overs

It was a wonderful day. Four vehicles arrived from various Chicagoland and southern Wisconsin locales. Ten adults, a happy two year old boy and his somewhat sleepy 10 week old sister, combined a total of two grandma's, four mothers, three fathers, five sons and four daughters, all together for a grateful Thanksgiving dinner on a blustery cold Chicagoland day. A parade, a few football games, several new children's books, a lead-free toy or two, far too many snacks, and loads of conversation contributed to successful and certainly not fat-free holiday. Photo sessions for the upcoming holiday card were completed and new bottles of wine and Pelligreno were opened and consumed. After two days of preparation, the linens are again clean and put away, the china, crystal and silver has been carefully washed and returned to the china cabinet for another month of rest until late December when a similar group will reconvene for another holiday.
Photo attribution: somewhatfortyplus

Thanks For Everything

The old adage, "if you have your health, you have just about everything," suggests at least one blessing to be thankful for when people across the US celebrate Thanksgiving on Thursday. Families like mine who are able to be together can reconnect over the traditional Thanksgiving dinner of free-range turkey, stuffing with ground sausage, garlic mashed potatoes and gravy, cranberry sauce, green beans with onions and feta cheese, sweet potatoes, and of course red raspberry jello with suspended fruits. Dessert, though rarely eaten on other days, offers additional culinary delight in Door County cherry pie, pumpkin pie, apple pie and strawberry chocolate cheesecake. Six cans of heavy whipped cream stand ready in one of the refrigerators. Wine of many colors and origins, Johnny Walker Black Label, Pellegrino, and coffee add to the festivities.

Many are tolerating a first painful Thanksgiving sans a spouse or loved one. While this might not be as joyful as it could be or once was, allowing yourself to celebrate what you still have to be thankful for, not what is missing or different from the past, will bring comfort to an aching or healing heart. Each future holiday, from this one forward, will be better, somewhat easier, and somewhat more joyous. You are in our thoughts and prayers.

For my three healthy and happy children, I give thanks. For my husband, who recovers from a health setback, I am grateful. For Milly, who visits and continues to be a healthy and prosperous woman, I am happy you are here. For friends, far and near, I continue to be grateful for your love, support and interesting acquaintance. And to all my readers from across the world, in New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Turkey, China, Canada and the far east, as well as in the United States, especially those who read today from Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and Ohio, I am grateful. May those who are celebrating be filled with love, understanding, and humor. A final thought: your day will end better then the turkey's. Happy Thanksgiving.

Photo attribution: somewhatfortyplus and Jack, for the clay turkey made twenty some years ago. Somewhatfrank, for the moss and leaves outside my window.

Pellegrino

I drink a lot of things, most of them water. I wake up in the morning only after a cup filled with Folger's Coffee and heart-stopping real cream has made its way past my lips. A second cup accompanies two eggs, over easy, with a half slice of heated pita on the side. On the way to work I guzzle a bottle of Ice Mountain, to keep me moisturized. During the day I stop ever so often for a gulp from a second Ice Mountain. Lunch, something Sonoma Dietish, is washed down with an Ice Mountain chaser.

Once home, I am finally able to let myself go and indulge in the best this world has to offer: chilled or room temperature San Pellegrino, sparkling natural mineral water, bubbling all the way down. I love Pellegrino water and drink it all the time, or as often as I can at home and away, as my preferred beverage. Each time I am at a cafe or restaurant, and the waiter asks that question my family has come to dread, "Can I get you something?" I wonder if they have Pellegrino, and while some do, most don't. I am visibly disappointed and settle for water, regular water with a twist of lemon or lime. I feel deprived.

Though I have never run out of Pellegrino, and have four cases in waiting at the moment, I dread the day the cases would be empty. Each case holds twelve large green glass bottles -- each bottle holds 25.3 fluid ounces and lasts three hours. I have four bottles on my granite counter at any given moment, waiting for me. I am always ready for the sparkling effervescence of this remarkable beverage that contains 12 % of my daily calcium requirement per bottle. I am ready to treat myself to the joy others experience from wine, but I can't drink wine--I get migraines--so Pellegrino is my wine.

A bottle of Pellegrino is a work of art, holding a remarkable treasure, only found in Milan, Italy. And while a case is costly, it is worth it, one gulp at a time.