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Take it or leave it?

16 Thursday Jul 2026

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“Clutter is not just physical stuff, it’s old ideas, toxic relationships and bad habits.” — Eleanor Brown

Since I decided to move to Florida, I have been moving my belongings little by little. 

I didn’t move any furniture, but mostly odds and ends that I like.  The bulk of what I moved was all my mosaic materials and pieces, and all the paintings that my mom and brother have made for me.

I had some pieces of furniture I liked but I made peace with leaving them behind.  Letting go keeps seems to keep getting easier and easier. 

At this point I have only a few items left, including an old trunk.  I believe the trunk is from the 1800s based on the date of the newspapers that were inside the trunk, which by the way I failed to keep.

An old friend, who was a carpenter, was working in an old house and there were some trunks in the attic.  He knew I love antiques/vintage stuff and said he would give me one since the new owner said he could take them all.  Next thing he knows an antique dealer arrives and starts taking them.  He was able to get one for me.  That was over 30 years ago.

The trunk now sits in a small hall between a bedroom and bathroom.  Inside it holds all the crafts that my mother has given me such as macramé towels, embroidered table clothes, and knitted scarfs. And on top of it, one of mom’s painting.

“The more things you own, the more they own you.” — Unknown

I want to lead a simpler life, more nomadic life.  I am still tied down because of work, but eventually I want to travel more and spend every couple of months in different locations.

Michael thinks I am like a squirrel moving nuts around.  He says I keep moving the same items from NY to Florida, then to Brazil and back.  He is probably right.  At the same time that I am not a materialistic person I do not like to throw anything out.  I have to give it away or repurpose them.

My sister will remain in my NY apartment so I can leave it here. I had in mind having with me anything I really wanted, so that whenever my sister decides she is done with NY, I can just list the apartment and don’t have to worry about taking anything.

I have no attachment to anything material, as I mentioned, so getting rid of stuff actually gives me a high and makes me feel lighter.  Sometimes I am envious when I hear of someone that has unearthed some valuable item that they saved from decades ago.   That is not happening to me.   I have only a few items saved.  And those items are getting fewer and fewer.

I have do decide soon, do I take it or do I leave it?  I am hoping the Universe sends me a sign.

May your day be blessed!

“Already, in the last few decades, you have realized the utter futility of of encumbering yourselves with superfluous possessions that have no useful virtue, but which, for various sentimental reasons, you continue to hoard, thus lessening your life’s efficiency by using for it time and attention that should have been applied to the practical work of life’s accomplishments. (The Miracle of the Lily – 1928)” ― Clare Winger Harris

 

 

NY State of Mind Again

10 Friday Jul 2026

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

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“Blessed is he who expects nothing, for he shall never be disappointed.” ― Alexander Pope

The picture above was taken on my last beach walk before I left Florida.   I will be here in NY for a couple of weeks.

It is always fun to spend time with my sister, go to our favorite restaurants and get foot massages. 

Unfortunately, it is not all fun and games.  I have one of those financial audits that I love 🙁 so much due at the end of the month.  Since my accountant retired I have to do them on my own.  I am able to do it, but I miss having my hand held.

I have been trying to forget my disappointment over Brazil’s loss in the World Cup.  I knew they wouldn’t go far, but still I was hopeful.  Miracles do happen. I wouldn’t mind the loss if at least they had put some effort.  The players look lost.  There was no passion.  There was no heart.

At the beginning of the World Cup I said I didn’t care about it.  My heart told me otherwise.  It hurt.  I guess it is more than futebol.  It is one of those rare instances where the whole country is united.  There is no political party, religion, social class, etc.  Everyone comes together to celebrate.  Or in this instance, to cry.

There is always 2030!!

“That tension – between beauty and cynicism, between what Brazilians call futebol d’arte and futebol de resultados – is a constant, perhaps because it is so fundamental, not merely to sport, but also to life: to win, or to play the game well?”
― Jonathan Wilson, Inverting the Pyramid: The History of Football Tactics

May your day be blessed!

“There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.” ― Ernest Hemingway

 

 

Fun Day in Key West

28 Sunday Jun 2026

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

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“There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.” ― Ernest Hemingway

One of the stops of the cruise it was in Key West.  Originally we were staying in the ship, but later we changed our minds.  I am glad we did.  It was such a fun place.  

 

We are contemplating visiting it again when my sister comes to visit us.  She will probably enjoy it as much as we did.

 

We  decided to stop and have foot massages.  It was glorious. 30 minutes of heaven.

We passed by The Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum, but did not go in.  It was already getting late and we didn’t want to miss our ship departure.

“There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.” ― Ernest Hemingway

It was a charming place to walk with tons of bars and restaurants.  The bars looked so much with some with live music.  

We didn’t go to any restaurants or bars, instead we had ice cream at Kilwins, and then more sugar at The Baklava, of course for baklavas.  

 

“The best people possess a feeling for beauty, the courage to take risks, the discipline to tell the truth, the capacity for sacrifice. Ironically, their virtues make them vulnerable; they are often wounded, sometimes destroyed.” ― Ernest Hemingway

 

 

Virgin Voyages Cruise

25 Thursday Jun 2026

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“For most of history, man has had to fight nature to survive; in this century he is beginning to realize that, in order to survive, he must protect it.” ― Jacques-Yves Cousteau

Michael and I decided to take advantage of the holiday last Friday and go on a quick getaway.  We chose a 4-night cruise from Miami to Key West, then Bimini, Bahamas, then back to Miami on the Virgin Voyages Resilient Lady ship.

I think I had too many expectations, and a lot in life is about expectations.  This was my third cruise, and the most expensive.  The first one was with MSC.  On that one I loved the food, the service and the shows.  The second was a Royal Caribbean.  It was also enjoyable, great service, but the food was lackluster.

Virgin Voyages is an adults-only cruise, with balconies in every room.  The food is not buffet style, it is more like a food court. You have to go to each stand and order what you want.  That sounds great, but in reality, it was bad.  I thought that it would equate with fresh prepared and tasty food, instead it is reheated food.  We got burgers that were sitting there getting cold and paninis that were hot on the outside and ice cold inside.

There are other foods around the ship, like pizza and ice cream, but I didn’t think it was anything special. 

They do have specialty restaurants that are supposed to be great, but unfortunately since this was a last-minute trip we couldn’t get reservations to the best ones.  We were able to get to 2, not the best ones, and they were good, and definitely is the way to go.

This is a picture of some of the desserts, which looked amazing, but only 2 passed my taste test: the Pavlova and macaron(not pictured).

 The service was spotty at best.  Sometimes the servers were too busy talking to each other to help. And when they helped there were no smiles, it was a chore.  I was spoiled with the treatment of the prior 2 cruises.  The attendant for our room was very nice and a couple of the waiters in the restaurant were good.  But as a whole the service was disappointing.

The pools were tiny and super crowded.  Not that I ever go in those pools, but this is the worst I have seen: too small and too many people.  The DJ was too loud, but everyone seemed to be enjoying it, so I guess I grew out of my partying days.  I didn’t expect a party cruise and that is what I got.  This is what I think Carnival would be like.  Again… expectations.

The positive in this cruise is that every room has a balcony.  From now on it will be only rooms with a balcony for me.

We enjoyed walking around Key West and wouldn’t mind going back there to spend more time.   I will have those pictures in a next post.

The safety drill was interesting to watch.  I didn’t think they would put all lifeboats in the water, but they did and cruised around for some time before returning and loading them up again. 

The stop in Bimini was okay.  Beautiful place, beautiful waters, but the beach club was crowded with no available chairs in the shade.  The food served there was the highlight of the day.

 

It was awful? No!  Would I do a Virgin Cruise again? Probably not, but who knows.

I need to try some of the others, such as Norwegian, Celebrity and Viking. And perhaps I need to lower my expectations.

We arrived back in Miami at night instead of the morning due to someone having a medical emergency.  The view of Miami at night was gorgeous:

“There is one spectacle grander than the sea, that is the sky; there is one spectacle grander than the sky, that is the interior of the soul.” ― Victor Hugo, Les Misérables

 

“My soul is full of longing
for the secret of the sea,
and the heart of the great ocean
sends a thrilling pulse through me.”
― Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

 

A snob is out and about

23 Friday May 2014

Posted by in Daily Life, Dating, Finding Me

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Life continues to be amazing!  I am just so happy to be alive and to be able to continue to remain upbeat and positive even when facing adversities,  no matter how big or small.  A positive attitude makes all the difference.  Even a forced smile can change a day around.  I fell like welcoming challenges so I can rise upon them (yes I am crazy like that some times)

After Mom left I spent a couple of quiet weeks, now I am back trying to get out of the house.  I am just so content staying in my apartment that sometimes it takes a real effort to get out of the house. I love having all the curtains closed, I love the dark.  Even I find that strange for someone as upbeat as me.  I find safety in the dark.

“Get busy living or get busy dying.” – Shawshank Redemption

In the past several days I have hardly been home though.  I have seen Kinky Boots on Broadway.  I thought the show could have been a little better.  Then again, I have seen a lot shows and have high expectations.  After I that I had dinner at Triomphe, a French restaurant.  The food was great, but not amazing.  I wouldn’t go back based on the food alone.  The staff and service were impeccable, so I would definitely go back based on that.  I think truffle oil is over rated!

I went to Jazz Standards and saw the Steven Kroon Sextet. They were awesome and extremely talented.   Before the jazz I had dinner at Blue Smoke, the BBQ place next door. The ribs were delicious.  I could have the Warm barbecue Potato Chips with blue cheese and bacon dip every single day of my life (and I don’t even care for blue cheese) – they were crazy good.   I was a bit disappointed when the dessert menu came. I noticed that the Sticky Toffee Pudding cake was absent.  The waiter explained that they take it off of the menu for the summer. 🙂 I was so disappointed I decide not to get anything.  Oh well, I guess I have to go back in the winter!

I also had dinner at a few different restaurants in my town.  All different cuisines: Mexican, Peruvian, Italian and Indian.  All awesome and within walking distance from my apartment.  I am a lucky girl!  My outings were a combination of entertaining clients, being with friends, and dates.

“A good place to meet a man is at the dry cleaner. These men usually have jobs and bathe.” ― Rita Rudner

There were 3 dates in total. All 3 very different from each other but all great guys.  I didn’t click on a romantic level with any of them.  I wouldn’t mind seeing them again as friends, but nothing else.

At my last date I found out I can be a snob.  My date chose to skip the knife and use his fingers to scoop the food onto the fork.  That annoyed me.  But…I am pmsing big time so every little thing annoys me. I think that if we had clicked perhaps I would have been more forgiving.  Perhaps I should stay away from meeting new people in the middle of PMS.

I felt really bad for being so focused on that and not on the real important things!  I should be looking in the qualities that matter…and I know what they are!  Instead all I can remember about the date was his way of using the utensils! I used this opportunity to look at my own way of eating.  After all it is normally the case that we are guilty of hating in others what we ourselves are guilty of doing.   Truth is I love touching my food and don’t mind picking things up with my fingers (I do use a knife though when necessary though, and don’t push food on the fork with my fingers).

“A judgmental heart keeps listening to the things that annoy.” “― Toba Beta, My Ancestor Was an Ancient Astronaut

Another thing that came to mind is that perhaps I am, once again, trying to sabotage possible relationships.  Am I looking for things wrong so I don’t have to get involved again?  I say I want a relationship, but do I really? Why didn’t we click?  He was the guy that I had the most fun with, did I choose not to click?

I am so comfortable alone. I have been enjoying my freedom so much.  I am also thinking I am going as far as avoiding exercising and I am eating all the wrong stuff so that those pesky 10/15 extra pounds continue to stay around and ward off potential mates.  Who wants to be naked in front of a new guy with extra pounds?? Not me!!

And the learning and growing continues…

Here is to becoming aware of and confronting our actions,  patterns and emotions that may be holding us back!

“I don’t want to be at the mercy of my emotions. I want to use them, to enjoy them, and to dominate them.” ― Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray

 

 

Whistler Blackcomb Skiing Vacation!

09 Sunday Feb 2014

Posted by in Daily Life, Finding Me

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Whistler Blackcomb Mountain

Whistler Blackcomb Mountain

I am back! It is hard to believe that is has already come and gone!

The trip was a success, even if I have returned with a bruised ego and shaky confidence in my skiing.  I will save my bruised ego details for the next post.  I am happy to say, that on the other hand, my confidence in travelling alone has not only returned, it has skyrocketed!!

I took an Air Canada flight and everything went fine.  It is just annoying that they don’t allow even one free piece of luggage, if you want to take anything you better be prepared to spend $25 each piece.  I find that almost insulting after paying so much for the flight.

Crystal Lodge

The Crystal Lodge

I stayed at the Crystal Lodge in Whistler, very close to the Gondola and lifts. Skiing is an uncomfortable sport so I really try to maximize my comfort by staying as close as I can to the mountain.  There was originally a mix-up with my room but once I complained they quickly gave me a much better one.  I had a balcony and a view of the mountain from it and from the other window a view of the village.

View from my room

View from the balcony of my room

The weather was a letdown.  I had been there twice before and both times the entire village and mountain was covered in fresh snow.  This time there was no fresh snow and it was extremely cold.  The consolation was that it was very sunny and also the mountain made snow non-stop.  It is also a good thing to ski under different types of conditions as I learn.

Sunny and Beautiful Cold Days

Sunny and Beautiful Cold Days

The below picture shows the temperatures on my last day there, which was already getting warmer than the previous days.  This coming week will be warm and there will be several snow days ahead, of course! lol  I am not complaining about the cold, I am stating the fact.  I had many layers and was not cold at all.

BRRR COLD!!!

BRRR COLD!!!

As I had mentioned I went alone. I put an ad on Craigslist and ended up meeting a guy from Montreal, that was in a similar predicament as I was: skiing alone for one week.  We skied 2 days together and had various meals together.  There was no romance, and that was not the intention of the ad.  The aim of my ad was for a dinner companion.  Whistler has amazing restaurants, I wanted to make sure to eat at some of them and I didn’t feel like eating alone.  I have made a friend. (of course I got all sorts of response to my ad, rude, crude, etc.  I want to make sure that I am in no way recommending Craigslist or any online medium. I am extremely careful and don’t ever meet anyone until I am certain that I am safe, and always meet in a public place. So being safe is key, online and otherwise).

Peak to Peak Gondola

Peak to Peak Gondola

I also made several friends in the lifts and in the classes I took, I exchanged emails with them and even got invitations to visit Australia and Japan.  I actually spent very little time alone and could have used more time alone as a matter of fact.

Whistler Mountain

Whistler Mountain

I am so happy for having done this trip and I am already thinking of the next one.  Looking back I don’t know why I procrastinated for so long.   Whistler is beautiful and majestic.  I love the little village and love that I know my well around it well.  I am sure I will return many times over.  I am blessed and I know it! I am grateful!

“Every person needs to take one day away.  A day in which one consciously separates the past from the future.  Jobs, family, employers, and friends can exist one day without any one of us, and if our egos permit us to confess, they could exist eternally in our absence.  Each person deserves a day away in which no problems are confronted, no solutions searched for.  Each of us needs to withdraw from the cares which will not withdraw from us.”― Maya Angelou