Author Archives: A Star on the Forehead

“The Scars We Don’t See” by Cassa Bassa

10 Friday Nov 2023

Posted by in Daily Life, Fiction, Reviews

≈ 27 Comments

Tags

, , , , ,

“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.” ― Maya Angelou

I am long overdue in writing this review and the others I will be posting next.  I like to support my WordPress community by buying their books, but unfortunately, I am not speedy with my reading and reviewing of them.  Sorry.

The Scars We Don’t See was written by Cassa Bassa.  She is the powerful voice behind the blog Flicker of Thoughts  https://flickerofthoughts.com/

She has contributed stories to other books, but this is her first published book.   It is micro-fiction, a combination of very short stories and poems.

I have always been a fan of her blog, specially of how she masterfully conveys so much meaning in so few words. This book didn’t disappoint.

I decided not to read the stories in order.  Each day I opened to a page and let it speak to me. And it did.  Some days it seemed to be written specially for me.     

There are so many wonderful stories, that I love for different reasons.  There is some tragedy and some comedy, and beauty in all of them.

In the section entitled “I See You” she shares her observations of the people she meets and the world around us.  In the section entitled “A Little Bit of Me and a Whole Lot of Fiction”, Cassa shares some of her own self intertwined into fiction. 

Cassa is a sweet soul and her stories reflect all her sensibility.  She is authentic, and nothing in her micro-fiction is predictable.  

Below is one of my favorites. 

Keepsake

There was a poet living in poverty.  His only possession was his words.

He was secretly in love with the shoemaker’s daughter.  So, every day he wrote a love poem and whispered to her as a keepsake.

She was born tender-eyed and was not married, even way past childbearing age.  But all the days of her life, she was happy, especially when she saw how beautiful she was in the mirror.

Terrific Tuesday: Love, Compassion and Generosity

31 Tuesday Oct 2023

Posted by in Daily Life, Daily Message

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

Marvelous Monday!

30 Monday Oct 2023

Posted by in Daily Life, Daily Message

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , ,

Wishing everyone an amazing Monday!!

“See if you can catch yourself complaining, in either speech or thought, about a situation you find yourself in, what other people do or say, your surroundings, your life situation, even the weather. To complain is always nonacceptance of what is. It invariably carries an unconscious negative charge. When you complain, you make yourself into a victim. When you speak out, you are in your power. So change the situation by taking action or by speaking out if necessary or possible; leave the situation or accept it. All else is madness.” ― Eckhart Tolle

Blessings!

ps. Comments will be turned off on some posts.  At the moment I am concentrating my efforts on 1. visiting the blogs of my friends, old and new; 2. cleaning my Drafts folder and 3. finishing books from my fellow bloggers.

Visiting Blogs: I don’t want to miss out on my friend’s words – I am always inspired.  I am also enjoying visiting new blogs.  There are so many interesting people out there.

Drafts Folder: When I decided to start cleaning out the folder I had 260 drafts. As of now I have 173 drafts left to review. Progress!

Books to read: I have 6 books to finish reading (those are books from my fellow bloggers only.  The complete list of books to finish reading is over 40)  They are are at various stages. As you can see I have been mastering the art of starting, but never finishing. Will read one at a time now instead of doing a couple of pages of many.

Lastly, I am praying for peace, wishing peace, hoping for peace, praying for peace. Lets love and respect all!

Spending a day Celebration, Florida

22 Sunday Oct 2023

Posted by in Daily Life, Daily Message, Finding Me, Food, travels

≈ 33 Comments

Tags

, , , , , ,

Yesterday, Michael and I spent the day in the very charming community called Celebration.  We had a late lunch/early dinner at Regianno’s and ice cream at Kilwins.

It was my dear friend Kat from lifetreeandcoffee.wordpress.com who recommended it all.  Thank you, thank you!! We loved everything!

The town is so charming and friendly. We chatted with a bunch of local people.

“It is good people who make good places.”
― Anna Sewell, Black Beauty

Here are some of the pictures from the day:

Charming town

Watching the peaceful Lake Rianhard

Next time, we will rent a bike to go around the park

Happy to say we didn’t see any of those

Lovely park

I believe it is some kind of diving duck

Drinks at Reggiano’s

Toasted coconut and pumpkin ice cream at Kilwins

I have some additional pictures on my Instagram https://www.instagram.com/blessedwithastar

Embracing the Florida way of life

18 Wednesday Oct 2023

Posted by in Daily Life, Daily Message, Finding Me, Food, travels

≈ 51 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , ,

“Blessed are the flexible, for change is inevitable. To fulfill our true destiny as spiritual beings we must trust in our divine power to adapt.” ― Anthon St. Maarten

Eight months ago, if you asked me if I would ever live in Florida, I will respond: NEVER!  And now here I am!  And it feels right and good! 

The plan is to inject more fun and life into my days.  I plan to work remotely from Florida, Brazil, and other possible traveling locations. 

Right now I am in Florida for a couple of weeks. So far working from here has been perfect. My computer, monitors, etc, all arrived and are working perfectly.

Our condo is in a golfing community. It has been quiet and calming.  In NY I am surrounded by huge building constructions, with the noise starting at 6am, Monday through Saturday. This silence has been a welcomed and desired change of pace.

We arrived on Saturday and the weather has been absolutely perfect – warm days and cool nights.  We are not right on the beach, we are a 25 minute drive from it. Most evenings will either drive to the beach for long walks or walk around where we live.

This new life is amazing!  I am so blessed and I know it!

Always a Delta fan – well, will see how it will go with the new changes to their rewards program.  We were upgraded to First Class.

Great meal for a 2 and half hour flight – it tastes so much better than it looks.  Even if I am not hungry I will always accept the meal/snack, as I am always curious, and afraid I will be missing out.

My view while I work.  I look out of the balcony and hear birds and see palm trees.  I could get used to this.

My new mode of transportation.  We don’t normally use it, other than to make sure that it continues in good working conditions.  We are not golfers, and normally opt to walk, instead of ride.

New Smyrna Beach at sunset.  A gorgeous cool evening.  Along the walk we encountered a couple of people only.

New Smyrna Beach – This life feels like a vacation.

Lonely bird fishing at night.

“With change being an inevitable element in our lives, we have only two options. Either embrace it and live life to the fullest or be stuck in the comfort zone of a compromised life.” ― Mohith Agadi

Key Word: ACCEPTANCE

10 Tuesday Oct 2023

Posted by in Daily Life, Daily Message, Finding Me

≈ 35 Comments

Tags

, , , , ,

“Some people believe holding on and hanging in there are signs of great strength. However, there are times when it takes much more strength to know when to let go and then do it.” ― Ann Landers

I have been cleaning up my Drafts Folder.  There were 260 posts just sitting there waiting to be rediscovered.  

I am  reading every single one and deciding either to delete or to save them to be polished and published.

I have gone through about 40 so far.  All from 2012 – the year I started blogging.  It has been interesting to read my unpublished thoughts for that year.

At the end of 2011, the world as I knew it came to an abrupt end.  I found out my then boyfriend was cheating on me.  He never acknowledged the cheating and callously told me to move out.  I thought I would die from the heartbreak.

I didn’t die. Today I can see that he did me a favor by letting me go.  His life at the moment is in shambles, and I would be embroiled in that mess right along with him.  (I know his situation because I was contacted by the woman that has been living with him since we broke up – I am going to save that story for the future.) 

“For after all, the best thing one can do when it is raining is let it rain.”
― Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

I wanted to have a blog for many years prior to that, but never followed through on that.  Until the pain in my soul was so intense that I needed an outlet to get it out.   Well, the pain and my sister.

My sister told me that she was fearing for my sanity.  She said I had become obsessed with all things him. It was only then that I realized I was making her crazy with the multiple phone calls to talk about the breakup. 

This blog saved my sanity and hers.    I don’t think I drove anyone crazy here :-), instead I made many friends that provided me with words of comfort and support.

“Understanding is the first step to acceptance, and only with acceptance can there be recovery.” ― J.K. Rowling

Anyway, one of the main themes on the posts for 2012 is ACCEPTANCE. 

I spent a lot time trying to come to terms with the breakup. The turning point was when I saw the need to just accept the situation.

Things changed when I decided to accept the situation as a fact.  I stopped denying what had happened.  I stopped fantasizing about a reconciliation. I stopped second guessing my actions and trying to assign blame.

When I stopped trying to control the situation, it not longer controlled me. I simply accepted it. 

Well, perhaps not so simply.  It took me years to get over that breakup.  I realized the pain was not about him, but about the fairy-tale I created in my mind.  I didn’t want to lose the fairy-tale.

I struggled most with understanding why I thought he was the one, and why he did what he did. Until the day came that I realized that I would never understand it, and further more, I didn’t need to understand it.  I just needed to accept it.

“Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.” ― Lao Tzu

Die with Zero: Getting All You Can from Your Money and Your Life

21 Thursday Sep 2023

Posted by in Daily Life, Finding Me, Reviews

≈ 36 Comments

Tags

, , , , , ,

“What Good Is Wealth Without Health?”

I am attempting to read all the books that I have sitting around my apartment. I will be posting very short reviews as I finish them.  I am not sure if I should call them reviews.  I will be writing about what I personally get from each book.  What did the book make me think about and how it applies to my life, if at all.  It is not meant to describe the whole book.

I just finished “Die with Zero: Getting All You Can from Your Money and Your Life”, by Bill Perkins.

Main book ideas for me:

  1. Stop accumulating money to spend when you are older; start using it now. Spend money on the things you love while you are young and healthy to really enjoy them.  Most people wait until retirement to start spending money on what brings them joy.  By that time, they may not have the health and energy to fully enjoy the activities they dreamed of.
  2. Confronting our mortality.  We have a finite time on this earth.  What we take from it are the experiences we have, and the memories we make.

I realize I often choose saving over spending. I do spend money on essentials, some travel, and on family and friends.  In that last one, I will spare no expenses to help or treat them. I rather spend money on my family then on myself, and I often do.

“Think about what you really want out of this life in terms of meaningful and memorable experiences.”

I have always thought about making sure that I have money in case of an emergency, if I lose my job, or if my family ever needs anything.  Coming from nothing, I want to make sure that, my family and I, will never want for anything in life.

Yesterday, while catching up with my first boss in the US, she said: ‘You were always a saver.  Even when you were just a teenager, you never spent any money.”

Funny, that I really never thought about that.  I will spend money on myself but cautiously, mostly with traveling. I used to spend with nails, hair, massages, etc  but lately I am not even doing that.  I will get a massage every now and then.  For hair and nails, I always become impatient waiting for those services.  Plus some of the NY prices are crazy.

As far as clothes, I want to have less.  I never cared for material stuff, and I am having less and less interest in anything material. I want a life freer and simpler, but with enough money to do whatever I want.  I want to spend a lot time traveling and not maintaining stuff.

“The business of life is the acquisition of memories. In the end that’s all there is.”

Reading this book now, when Michael just came into my life, makes me more inspired to live more.  Michael saved money while young, with the aim of retiring at 55 years old, which he did.  He has been enjoying his life since then.  He is now 61.  I want to enjoy life with him. I want to spend more money and time acquiring experiences and memories, and not items that will weigh me down.

I cannot retire right at this moment for a couple of reasons.  My company needs me, and I need my company, for the health insurance and for the good salary.  So this book is perfect for me, as it reminds me not to wait for retirement, but live it up now. So, the planning for more fun, more travel, less working days is already in motion.

This book is also perfect for the person that has been over-saving, so focused on savings for the future that he forgets to live in the now.  Still, I believe and advocate balance in all areas. One cannot forget about making sure one has enough to live well in old age. The worst thing that could happen is to have to come out of retirement because one has ran out of money.

“What’s the takeaway here? Being aware that your time is limited can clearly motivate you to make the most of the time you do have.”

*all quotes are from the book

so this became very long, but if I edit, it will never be published, so here it goes.  Sorry for typos, etc

Change is necessary, and it is always good!

19 Tuesday Sep 2023

Posted by in Daily Life, Daily Message, Dating, Fiction, Finding Me

≈ 69 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , ,

“It’s only after you’ve stepped outside your comfort zone that you begin to change, grow, and transform.” ― Roy T. Bennett

Happy New Week!

Every Monday feels like new start. A chance to start a new project, or follow up on old plans.

One of my plans is to write more.  Well, not write more; publish more. 

I do write often, but my writings rarely see the light of day.  The problem is, I edit and edit until a post becomes too dated.  I have written about this problem before.  I still have not managed to make a change.

The posts that I manage to publish, are the ones that I decide to forgo all the endless editing and just hit publish.  Believe me, it takes a lot effort for me to be able to do that. I feel anxious, as if I am going out in my pajamas, or if I am serving someone an unbaked cake.

When I look back at old posts, I see so many typos and grammatical errors.  I see a lot wordiness.  I see improvements to be made.  It feels unfinished and, as if I am not presenting my best self.

But, right at this moment, I rather publish a post with errors, than not to post anything at all.

I look at my Drafts folder and it is overwhelming.  As overwhelming as all the books around the house that I haven’t started yet, or worse, that I have not finished yet.

I decided to do something about all of the unfinished in my life.  I plan on reading all the books that I have started. And then, start on all the new books that I have bought from my fellow bloggers that have become published.  I am so proud of all of you! Please give me time and I will eventually get to read your books and will write a review. 

Never finishing a book, is like holding on to a gift and never opening it.  What if there is something really wonderful in there and I never get to it?

Getting back to my posts, I plan on tackling my Drafts Folder and going through each post.  I will either hit publish or delete.

I also feel I need to give this blog a direction.  This blog was started as an outlet to the pain of my broken heart and the devastation of being cheated on.   Then, it became a journal of my dating adventures, and misadventures.

What should it become now?  There are no more dating adventures, since Michael has been elected The One!

Is happiness boring?  Failed dates are more interesting to write about.  Plus, I don’t want to be bragging about how blessed Michael and I feel to have found each other. Perhaps I can make blissful life interesting.

Write about work? This commodities brokerage industry is one crazy industry, and I do have a lot of stories about it. That is an idea.

Write about travels? Well, I need to be traveling more to actually write about it.

The direction will take shape as I write more and more, I mean, as I post more and more.  I decided, boring and all, typos and all, that I will post something every day. 

Perhaps I will have a schedule and every day of the week there will be a different theme, but I am not there yet.  For now, there will be days that my post will be very short, or just a photo, or just a 1 sentence review of something read, seen, eaten, etc.

Please note, I am visiting more of your blogs, but I still cannot hit like on any post (thank you WordPress! NOT!)  And I do suspect that not all my comments are being seen or received.  I write a comment. It appears to be published, but when I go back to the post, it is no longer there.  I am considering changing blogging hosts, once I have researched my options. Suggestions welcomed!

Hang in there, as I grow and my blog changes.  Thank you for being here!

“Don’t Just

Don’t just learn, experience.
Don’t just read, absorb.
Don’t just change, transform.
Don’t just relate, advocate.
Don’t just promise, prove.
Don’t just criticize, encourage.
Don’t just think, ponder.
Don’t just take, give.
Don’t just see, feel.
Don’t just dream, do.
Don’t just hear, listen.
Don’t just talk, act.
Don’t just tell, show.
Don’t just exist, live.”
― Roy T. Bennett

Sunday at The Met Cloisters Museum

30 Wednesday Aug 2023

Posted by in Daily Life

≈ 37 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , ,

The Met Cloisters Museum

“Don’t go to a museum with a destination. Museums are wormholes to other worlds. They are ecstasy machines.” ― Jerry Saltz

On Sunday, we went to The Met Cloisters.  The Met Cloisters is a branch of The Metropolitan Museum of Art.   It is located far from the other museums in Manhattan.  It sits atop a hill in Fort Tryon Park in Washington Heights in Upper Manhattan.

I have been living in NY almost 40 years and had never been there before.  It is just 25 minutes from my home.  I don’t go to museums often.  So, when I go, I go to the usual ones for me, such as Museum of Natural History, The Guggenheim, and the Museum of Modern Art.  And, now that I think about it, it has been a long time that I have been to any of those.    

When Michael came to meet me for the first time, he had suggested we go there.  We didn’t.  Since then, he has been mentioning it.  I am glad that we finally went. 

Annunciation Triptych (Merode Altarpiece) ca. 1375-1444

On Sunday, we got there very early, so there were plenty of parking and no lines.  The building is gorgeous, designed in the medieval architecture.  I love castles, so I really enjoyed the architecture. I am just disappointed there was not a single suit of armor in sight.

“The Unicorn Rests in a Garden” Tapestry -ca. 1495-1505

The museum mostly displays works from Western Europe. Besides paintings it includes sculptures, stained glass, manuscripts, tapestries, wood and metalwork. There is also an outside area with an herb garden, with more than 250 species of herbs cultivated in the Middle Ages.

“Arm Reliquary” ca. 1230 – container for precious remains of a saint. It probably held remains of a saint’s arm.

I like that it is a small museum and can be seen in a couple of hours.  They have a very small café in the courtyard.  We had scones and coffee, and an almond tart that the vendor convinced me to get.  The tart was delicious.

“Nativity of the Virgin” ca.1480 – Saint Anne with The swaddled Virgin Mary

After visiting the museum, we walked in the park outside for a while.  It overlooks the Hudson River and the Palisades, a line of steep cliffs along the river.

They don’t charge an exact ticket amount.  One cannot donate whatever they wish.  The ticket can be used to see both museums in one day.  We decided one museum was enough for us for one day.

It was a great day there, and I hope to go back.  Now I am excited to see other museums.

For the rest of the year there is so much going on at work and personally.  At work, there may be changes if we lose half of our small group – contract negotiations can go either way.  I will know in two weeks. 

As far as my personal life, there is so much to do, trips to take and visitors to host.  This weekend my sister and I will be going to the Jersey Shore.  We are staying at friend’s house.  This was planned before Michael, so he staying home. 

Then there are visitors coming from Brazil.  First my brother and his girlfriend, then some friends.  I need to go to Florida and set my office in Michael’s house.   The plan is to live in both places. There are also additional trips to plan, and other projects to handle.

Life is busy, and a bit stressful at times; but so good and always so blessed!

“I’ve become like one of those people I hate, the sort who go to the museum and, instead of looking at the magnificent Brueghel, take a picture of it, reducing it from art to proof. It’s not “Look what Brueghel did, painted this masterpiece” but “Look what I did, went to Rotterdam and stood in front of a Brueghel painting!” ― David Sedaris

George Washington Bridge

Leaving Iceland and getting back to NY

28 Monday Aug 2023

Posted by in Daily Life, Finding Me, travels

≈ 36 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , ,

 

Downtown Reykjavik

Downtown Reykjavik

“The traveler sees what he sees. The tourist sees what he has come to see.” ― G.K. Chesterton

The fifth day in Iceland was the day we were leaving.

The day before, Michael had driven over 10 hours.  By the time we got to the hotel he was exhausted, as expected, so we didn’t go out and went straight to bed.

He had hiccups that were persistent and kept getting in the way of his sleep. We Googled and tried some of the techniques recommended to stop hiccups. They would work for a while, but then would return.  Eventually we fell asleep.

The next morning, I wanted to have breakfast first and then leave for the airport.  Michael wanted to skip breakfast and leave right away.  Our flight was at 11:30am.  In the end, I agreed with Michael, we still had to stop at the gas station and fill up the tank.

His hiccups came back again, on and off.

We stopped at a gas station to get gas, and made it to the airport with a lot time to spare.   We checked in, and then got breakfast.  There was not a lot to choose from, so we got croissants and coffee. 

We had to take a bus to get to the plane, I haven’t had to do that in a long time.  It was an uneventful flight.  To eat, they gave us a choice of chicken sandwich or cheese platter.  I got the chicken, and Michael got the cheese.  They were both good, but he barely touched his.

We both have Global Entry, and our bags had priority tags, so it took minutes to get out of JFK airport and into an Uber.  They were handing out Covid tests, and for a moment I thought about stopping to get some, but decided that we needed to just get home.  We got home it was only 2 pm, 6pm Iceland time.

“The most poetical thing in the world is not being sick.” ― G.K. Chesterton

As I was unpacking, Michael said: “I think I should take a Covid text”. What? Seriously? Why? He answered: “because persistent hiccups can be a symptom of Covid”. He had just Googled and found that out that it can be a Covid symptom, although rare.

I got a test, and lo and behold: He was positive.  It was shocking to me.   Who knew hiccups can mean Covid?  It turns out the fatigue he was feeling was not only about the driving.

I tested negative. The next few days I woke up with a scratchy throat. Five days later we tested again. He was still positive, and I was still negative.  On day 10 we both tested negative.  I never got it, so I think my scratchy throat was just a cold.

By now he is already feeling back to himself, and back to the gym. I finally came back to the office.  Because I had been exposed, I made sure to stay away from the office. 

“One of the advantages of being disorganized is that one is always having surprising discoveries.” ― A.A. Milne

Back to the trip.  To summarize, it was a wonderful trip.  We did a lot in 4 days.  In hindsight, we would do some things differently, such as staying in hotels throughout the country, so we wouldn’t have to do too much driving in and out of Reykjavik.  I would have researched restaurants and coffee shops and already have a plan of times and places to stop to eat. 

But then again, it is fun not to have everything so planned.  It can be fun to just leave room for discovery.  Beautiful things can be found in the unexpected and unplanned.

As far as being an expensive place as everyone say, it is!  But with planning, it doesn’t have to be.  We bought our tickets and hotel just one week prior, so we probably overpaid.  There is an airline called Play Airlines that flies out of Stewart Airport, about 1 hour from me.  They sell tickets to Iceland for around $500.  Actually, I just checked and it is now $299.00.  We didn’t want to take a chance since we were going for only 4 days.  But when I retire, we will perhaps take a chance on budget airlines.

Iceland is gorgeous, clean and safe.  They even recommend hitchhiking!! I may go back at some point, but only after I crossed off some other countries off of my list first.  Well, I better start making that list then.