So sorry I mistakenly sent out a link to a depression blog on this site – I hit the wrong button when meaning to share another’s post via Tweet – wound up on my site – I deleted it but not before email notifications were sent out – my apologies!

Source: Tijuana Flats…not just good food but good people

Check out my latest Hypeorlando post and see where AARP thinks I should travel. Making sure my passport is up to date!

Black Dolphin Inn earns BedandBreakfast.com Top Ten Award.

Too Cold Toronto.

Sorry, my comments on Toronto haven’t made it to the blog yet…making a quick trip to Panama City to visit our son for a few days. Seeing as how it is spring break here, we decided not to stay in our favorite place on the beach, to avoid all the craziness. So, we chose a Holiday Inn Select which seems to be in a 60’s-70’s time warp. No complaints about the important stuff…clean, quiet, comfy bed…but the bathroom decor will wake you up in the morning…bright red shower/bath unit along with a red, push button, phone on the wall.

Charlie said he knows how Don Draper must have felt back in the day, sitting in the john with a red phone at his disposal!

Took a bit of a break from the blog as I picked up a stomach bug and been under the weather, ugh. We had a delightful Christmas Eve dinner with Helena and her godson, Philip, along with his parents, Anne and Patrick. It was a lovely time but, unfortunately a bug got the better of four of us. Charlie and Philip seem fine so far. Let’s hope it stays that way.

I can just now talk about the food we enjoyed…oysters on the half shell, salmon pie, foie gras, ham, a mashed root (kind of like turnip but not) and a bowl of chopped up carrots, beets and other things I’m not sure of. All of this was accompanied by champagne, bordeaux, chablis, more champagne and glog. The lovely Anne brought a trifle for dessert along with a special Christmas cookie that I can’t remember the name of. Helena is from Finland and included Finnish dishes in her menu.

The conversation was varied…they knew much more about the U.S. than we do of Switzerland…heck, they probably know more about the U.S. than we do. They had an interesting take on our country’s politics and we learned a lot about theirs. Anne was surprised that we were even interested in European politics. I think she thinks our idea of them is that they are all a bunch of “socialists”. Gee, I wonder where she gets that idea. They figured out that we were all on the same page in that department and so the conversation remained very civil. Traveling Europe makes one so much more aware that we might not be the smartest country on the planet.

After dinner we had a special surprise of a visit from Santa Claus (Philip mysteriously disappeared.) We were even included in the gift giving. Somehow Santa knew we would be there and I received a box of champagne truffles while Charlie was given a can of pate…both of which were apperciated and will be tasted when my appetite returns. At the moment I’m only consuming broth and water. Not a fun way to lose weight!

The Montezuma’s revenge didn’t hit til the day after Christmas so Charlie and I roasted a small turkey breast and skyped Jess and Ali soon after the boys had opened their Christmas gifts. They were all a bit preoccupied and Jess was fixing breakfast so we weren’t on the call long, but it was great to see all the happy faces. Later we skyped Patty and got to see mom and dad and the rest of Patty’s family. Dad was quite confused through it all but looked happy so that’s what counts. We were able to pan the camera over Lake Geneva and the Alps so they could get the gist of what our living arrangements are like high in the mountains. Patty mentioned that she didn’t realize we were so close to Lake Geneva…close but so far away…as it takes us about 30 minutes to get down there through winding roads and tiny villages.

We hoped to go to Lausanne yesterday but it wasn’t in the cards…hated to waste a beautiful day. Today is cold and rainy…not cold enough for snow though. Planning on going out some tomorrow, that is if this nasty bug doesn’t catch up with Charlie.

Hoping everyone enjoyed a wonderful Christmas and looking forward to a fun New Year. We’ll be off to Paris on Sunday…

We are lucky travelers to enjoy such a hospitable neighbor in Helena. Her house is just above ours..and even though it is so close, it’s a bit of a challenging walk up the path and around to her driveway. The snow and slush have melted due to the ice and warmer temps but there is a stretch in the shade that remains slippery. Helena had us over for a fondue dinner on Saturday night starting with champagne and foie gras, then gruyere fondue with wine, followed by a salad, then an Irish coffee. We also just had to finish the champagne bottle so we were lucky we made it back to our chalet without taking a tumble and sliding down the hill.

Helena’s house feels so much like what you would picture a typical Swiss chalet, looking over Lake Geneva and the Alps. Very cozy with a warm fire and beautifully tasteful Christmas settings. Dinner and conversation were splendid. Helena has had quite the life and we heard stories of her driving a taxi in Jerusalem at the age of 17; taking a road trip from Finland to Bangladesh with a friend (before it was too dangerous to travel through Afghanistan); and, as a registered nurse, taking a trip to the states as part of a seminar to learn more about AIDS in the eighties. She is from Finland with three sons residing in Finland and China, has traveled the world and is full of knowledge, wisdom and humor. We are so happy to have met her.

The next day, Helena took us to a market in Divonne, France, which was full of cheese, meats, fruits & vegetables, textiles…just about anything you can think of.

The scents and sights were wonderful as we wandered up and down the streets filled with Sunday shoppers. A stop at a tea room gave us a break and a chance to try cafe au lait and a donut (unfortunately, they were out of croissants!).

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On the way home we stopped at a French grocery store where Helena and Charlie mulled over which wines to buy…at only 1 to 3 Euros per bottle. It's a secret place she's found to purchase her wines at a great price. We are allowed to take 3 bottles each across the French-Swiss border. Of course, on the path through the small towns back to La Chevrerie, there were no border guards to check.

This morning we woke up to another sunny day with the temps rising and the snow on the roof thumping and sliding to the ground. After enjoying a lazy morning, we drove down to Nyon where Charlie could get in a run along Lake Geneva.

Many of the shops were open, even though it is Christmas Eve, and I was able to find the perfect gift for Helena, as we are joining her for dinner tonight, along with her godson and his parents. A Christmas ham is on the menu and, if our previous dinner is an example, this one will be a culinary experience to remember.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!

Thursday morning we boarded the first train that would eventually lead us to Zermatt. One can always tell which are everyday passengers versus tourists. We are agog at everything we see and the locals just sit in boredom tending to their particular electronic device. We traveled around Lake Geneva with Mont Blanc in sight, through small towns and past snowy fields. Even though the trip took several hours, the time went by in a flash as there was so much to see.

Arriving into Zermatt, we walked to our hotel, The Phoenix, which meant scaling a bit of a hill but the hike was worth the result. Very happy with the hotel and Trip Advisor will receive a top-notch rating. Wonderful view of the Matterhorn, however, we never saw the cloudy peak til we were pulling out of the rail station the next day.

As we arrived late in the afternoon, there was not much time to waste and we managed to hop on one of the last gondolas up the mountain. Several skiers and snowboarders were trying to take one last gasp at the slopes. There are a series of gondolas heading up to a mountain lake, however, we didn’t get up that far. The wind was getting stiff and, at one point when we were changing gondolas, we got hit with a gust of wind and snow that turned us around to head back down to the town.

Breathtaking views that we are just not used to in Florida. The closest we’ve seen to anything like this in the states was Big Sky, Montana.
By the time we hiked back into town we were ready for supper and found a reasonable place that Rick Steves recommended. Turned out it served the best burger we’ve ever tasted…perhaps because we had worked up an appetite with the icy adventure we had just experienced. The cozy warmth of the restaurant coupled with a good burger and beer made for the perfect meal. We’d recommend the Brown Cow to any Zermatt visitors.

After dinner, we had just enough time to visit The Matterhorn Museum, located underground, below a glass dome. (BTW, our rail passes gives us free entrance to all museums in Switzerland.) A lot of the exhibits were authentic artifacts from the first successful climb which resulted in half the team losing their lives in a fall on the way back down. A short movie about the everyday life of mountain rescuers was enlightening. They risk their lives daily to save stranded climbers who might take on more than they can handle.

After walking the snowy hill back up to the hotel, we took advantage of the fireplace in the cozy lobby and enjoyed a Bailey’s coffee. We also were surprised to see three girls from California, who we had met on the train. Who’da thunk we’d be staying in the same hotel. They are studying in Spain for a couple of semesters through their Seventh Day Adventist college in southern Cal and take advantage of their breaks by visiting various parts of Europe. Very sweet girls who seemed to appreciate the beauty and diversity of this part of the world.

The next morning we caught the Glacier Express, which travels at low speed through mountains and valleys of the most overwhelmingly beautiful scenery you can imagine. It’s impossible to capture it with my little Nikon but the memories will last forever. This time we sat next to students from Beijing, studying in Nottingham, England. Their English was sketchy but they seemed to want to practice and were just as gaga over the sights as were we. The whole trip takes around 5 hours and left us at Chur, which is the oldest town in Switzerland. We learned that the man who started the Ritz Hotels had lived in one of the small villages along the way and actually was surnamed “Ritz”…thus the origin of the word “ritzy”.

After an hour in Chur we boarded a train to Zurich, then on to Nyon, then back to La Chevrerie and the snowy walk up to the chalet, which was warm and inviting. Saturday will be a day of catch-up with laundry and chilling out. Sunday we are dining with a neighbor, Helena, after a trip to a market just over the border in France. Toodleoo from snowy La Chevrerie! – More pics to follow – it’s taking a super long time to upload them to the blog, for some reason.

Each night of Advent, several villages participate in open-houses, with a different home hosting an event each evening. The lovely people living in La Chevrerie invited us to their party last night, complete with homemade pumpkin soup and hot wine, among other yummies.

Each time someone arrived, they greeted each person attending with a 3-point kiss…right cheek, left cheek, right cheek. I’ve seen the two-cheek greeting before, but was surprised by trois bussing. Very sweet people and such a diverse group. We stayed until our toes went numb as the gathering was held outside while snow was falling all around us. We have already been invited to dinner by another neighbor when we get back from Zermatt and an invite to be taken to a market just over the border in France. We definitely feel welcome.

Earlier today we took a short train ride to Nyon for some additional grocery shopping. Found a multi-story mall a short distance from the train station with Pere Noel wandered around greeting the children.

Shops were open along the street and the smell of something baking drew us to an oven baking something (we’ve yet to translate what was cooking). At one point the baker popped out and took a tray out, determined the items weren’t done and popped them back in, then returned inside the shop. We’ll definitely return to Nyon to spend a day and find out what was behind the oven doors.

Tomorrow we’re off to Zermatt for a night, then onto the Glacier Express on Friday. Bonsoir!

This is what we woke up to on our first morning in La Chevrerie.

We arrived after dark and were lucky that Mike, from the neighborhood, was on our train. He knew we were arriving and led us to Jesus and Polina’s chalet. So happy he was there and had a flashlight as it was pitch black outside and we would have had a difficult time finding the path to the house. We muddled through slushy snow and ice, dragging our luggage behind us, finally reaching #20 La Chevrerie.

A neighbor turned on the heat before we arrived but the house had not warmed up yet so we were shivering as we unpacked and found our way around the house. It’s quite rustic and this morning, looking out the window at a heavy snowfall, it’s everything we imagined Switzerland to be, in the middle of winter.

The train shows up hourly just below the chalet and we caught it this morning into St. Cergue where we enjoyed coffee, quiche and danish at a small boulangerie, a short distance from the train station.

We feel we are in another world, having left the Florida humidity for a snowy mountain retreat, where French is the spoken language. However, we did run into an English-speaking Irish woman at the train station in St. Cergue, who was on her way to Milan for an opera tonight. More later, as we heard there is an open house in the neighborhood to which we are invited. Au revoir!

Saw this on the beach the other day. It felt like an omen of our upcoming trip. Found out the little village in which we are staying has 3 feet of snow waiting for us. Suffice it to say we added more sweats to our baggage. The Christmas cookies are baked and now the deadline is near to have all the gifts wrapped and ready to go. The humidity was so high here today, I was sweating while wrapping. Then we got blasted with a super storm, the skies went black at 5 p.m. and we were on a tornado watch. Some 30 homes were damaged about 5 miles from us.  After wind and rain, the temp dropped a little but still in shorts and flipflops but we’ll be trading them for coats and boots soon. The rest of the week will be a blur of cleaning and preparation for our new friends, Jesus, Polina and little Francisco.

So glad there was a beach to walk on today. The north winds are fierce again and the waves are wild but the sun is finally out. Heading back home was a treat to see our neighbor, Sheila, with the doors open and music drifting out to the porch, while MacKenzie photographed her grilled cheese creations. Check out her blog, GrilledCheeseSocial, for some mouth-watering grilled innovations that aren’t your mother’s grilled cheese.

Time to get the rolling pin out and make the pie crusts…

Attempting my usual beach walk today was daunting. At first I reveled in the fact that I was the only one on the beach; and then I realized WHY I was the only one on the beach. The tide’s been up all week, limiting cars and visitors. The weather service says the higher than normal waves and tides are a result of a strong onshore flow, whatever that means. In my case, it means not much available sand on which to walk. Living close to the Atlantic ocean offers a changing shoreline almost every day. Sometimes the tide is so far out we have yards and yards of space to walk, the water might be as calm as the Gulf, and at other times the waves are moving as if driven by a washing machine motor. Today the waves were so far up the beach I could only make it about a half mile to the north before I gave up fighting the wind and water up to my knees.

A “normal” day at NSB

High tide leaving not much space on which to walk

But I did see one brave soul out in the water windsurfing. His strength and control of his craft was amazing, flying over the waves and sailing out so far I could hardly see him. Then he’d steer back to shore as if there were just a gentle wind at his back. My struggles were lame compared to what he was accomplishing out there in the wild waters. (No photos of him because my phone died).

Happy Thanksgiving to all…we’re gearing up for a family celebration at my sister’s place. It’ll be a pie baking marathon at the Young residence while watching the NYC Macy’s parade. Lots to be thankful for! Then some serious planning for our Switzerland trip. Tickets are purchased, plans are being made. All that’s left is a Christmas shopping, cookie baking and a major house cleaning and baby-proofing as our visitors have a newly-walking baby, Francisco. Can’t wait to meet them. More to follow…

This article from the Wall Street Journal sounds like a wonderful option for retirement…

Perigord

The wind gusts are fierce here in New Smyrna Beach, as Hurricane Sandy skirts the shores. Wondering how high the stack of palm fronds will go.  Who needs tree trimmers when all it takes is a windy weather system to do the job. At least we don’t have to worry about huge oak tree limbs crashing into our house…the bamboo and palm trees just sway in the breeze. We’re more worried about flying political signs turning into moving missiles…waiting to see if our Obama sign outlasts the Romney message across the street. Hope everyone stays safe and our neighbors to the north don’t get the storm of the century when a tropical system mixes with a snow event. Meanwhile, we’ll dodge the palm fronds down here!

After years of going to Fodor’s and Frommer’s for travel advice, I was turned on to Rick Steves and his travel books, radio and TV show. He’s extremely thorough in his travel descriptions, especially of Europe, and goes a step further by including out of the way places to visit when you need a break from the typical tourist destinations of a city. He also is not afraid to throw in some of his political views about the country he is critiquing. His recent post about the health system in France is worth checking out…I’ve included the text below.

A Tour Guide’s Experience with Health Care Phobia in France

I believe that, especially with a good guide, travel can be transformative and richly experiential…both a political act and a spiritual act. It forces people to grow, to deal with others who see things differently, to get out of their comfort zones, and to grapple with their own ethnocentricity and hang-ups. While people don’t generally sign up for a tour thinking they are investing in the growing pains of a broader perspective, I encourage my guides — like a loving parent who works to broaden a child’s palate — to thoughtfully set up experiences that can pry open a little wider the hometown blinders of an American traveler. Recently, one of our guides (who happens to be an American) shared this fascinating experience relating to health care in France. Here’s her report:

When I’m leading a tour in France, I always give a talk on the French tax, education, and health care systems. When speaking to a tour group — many of whom are relatively well-off, middle-aged Americans — these subjects can be a little controversial…even taboo. But I believe these issues are essential for anyone hoping to understand contemporary French society and culture.

The French pay lots of taxes for social programs. These taxes allow for “free” universal health care (not socialized medicine, but rather a quasi-private system overseen by the government — rated #1 in the world by the World Health Organization) and “free” education through the university level for all French citizens. Of course, health care and education are not free — they are paid for collectively by the entire society through taxes.

The French, in general, believe this is a good system. As is the case with other Europeans, they are not eager to pay high taxes (the French pay about 30 percent income tax, plus about 20 percent sales tax). But they have high expectations for the programs their taxes pay for, and they generally embrace the system. The French see their tax dollars at work each time they go to the doctor of their choosing and pay only a small co-pay (about $20); when they don’t have to worry whether they can afford their cancer treatment; and when they don’t have to ask, “How will I pay for higher education for my child?” No one in France is in debt because they have cancer or because they went to school to become a teacher.

When I explain this to my tour members, I let them know that I don’t think the French system is perfect, and neither do the French.  It’s expensive. There is abuse. And some people fall through the cracks. But I believe that when our tax, health care, and education expenses are added together, we Americans end up paying more for less. The French, by their communal nature, prefer the collective approach — life with more taxes and without the economic stress that we treat as normal. I graduated from the University of Washington owing $30,000, and my parents owed even more. My 30-year-old brother, who is self-employed with no insurance, fell off his bike and had to wait more than six hours to be seen in the emergency room. He was billed $7,000 for that visit. My underinsured father had quadruple bypass heart surgery and had to file for bankruptcy because he couldn’t pay his medical bills.

Rick Steves groups are filled with people of all political stripes, but nearly everyone is rational, open-minded, and willing to respect (if not agree with) the opinions of others. But on a recent tour, a few of my tour members were angered that I would “talk positively about socialism” (as they put it). One couple (I’ll call them Jane and John) said they vehemently disagreed with everything I said — not just my opinions, which I could understand, but even the facts and statistics I had cited, and the personal French accounts I’d collected. Jane insisted that no one could be happy living in a system where one is responsible for carrying the weight of their neighbor.

The next morning, when I went down to breakfast, Jane and John weren’t anywhere to be found. Finally John appeared looking like he’d seen a ghost — like he hadn’t slept all night. Turns out he hadn’t. Jane had suffered a severe medical problem the night before, but she wouldn’t let John come get me to help — she refused to see a doctor in France. I went to see Jane and convinced her to go to the hospital. When we got there, she was seen within two minutes of walking through the door, they were giving her tests within five minutes, and after ten minutes, she felt comfortable enough with the quality of care that she told me I didn’t need to stay.

I went back when it was time for Jane to be discharged. Fortunately, her condition had not caused long-term damage, and with medication she’d be able to return home to follow up with her own doctors. But John was struggling to sort things out with the discharge nurse. I translated the nurse’s explanation that she couldn’t accept their US insurance information — in fact, there was nothing to pay. John turned to me and said, “Do you know how much this overnight stay would cost in the US? This is crazy! Are you sure I don’t have to pay?” Determined to “pay their own way,” John and Jane took out their credit card. After some convincing, I persuaded the nurse to charge them a small “donation” of about $200.

I’m so thankful Jane was able to walk away from the incident. And I also hope that maybe their experience opened their minds a bit. We don’t need to embrace European social ethics. But we should be open to learning about them and respecting people who choose to design caring societies a little differently than ours.

Keep your fingers crossed! On our trip to Switzerland I may be able to participate in a free trial of a new WiFi system which is being offered internationally by XcomGlobal. While traveling we take our netbook and a Kindle Fire with us, taking advantage of free WiFi signals along the way. However, our recent experience in Germany, missing a train and having to stay overnight in Munich, forced us to pay for coverage so we could scout out a hotel and make reservations while en route. With XcomGlobal’s equipment, a traveler can access the internet anywhere, as long as they are in a country with access. Switzerland is on their list and they are looking for travel writers to test the system and report their assessments.

It will be a boost for the blog as I’ll be able to post while on the road (or rail) rather than waiting til we get back to our home base.

Still working out the kinks as their offer is for 2 weeks and we will be away for a month, but it sounds like they will accommodate us. The offer was made available through Travelwriters.com which describes XcomGlobal as “a leading provider of low-cost wireless internet access rental services for international travelers.”

More later…

So…we didn’t think we would be making another trip this year, especially to Europe again, but….we received an offer we just can’t refuse. A young couple are thinking about relocating to Volusia County…they have friends and family in Orange City. They asked if we would exchange homes for a month over the holidays. After much angst and feelings of guilt, we decided to take them up on their offer. (You only live once, right?!) Their place is just outside of Geneva, close to France (3 hours by train to Paris)…just a short walk to the train. So, we’re committed. We Skyped the other day and they’re lovely people with a 13 month old son. We’re also doing a car exchange so we’ll have a bit more flexibility and won’t be tied down to the trains for short trips. Night skiing is available within 15 minutes of the house and they’ve offered their equipment for us to use. More details to follow…

Finally home to report that our home exchange went smoothly with no problems or issues. Some commented, when told we were exchanging homes with a stranger, that they could never do that and aren’t we afraid of returning to a trashed house? Nope, didn’t happen. Everything was left the way we left it…with a few extras in the fridge. And we left Ruediger’s house in the same shape. The concept really works and the best part is staying in another part of the world for 24 nights free. We never would have taken on this experience if we would have had to dish out the extra dollars for lodging. It’s a win-win. Of course, you have to do your homework and stay in close “email” contact with your host prior to the trip and follow the rules laid out by homeexchange.com.  It doesn’t make sense that someone would pay the annual fee only to trick someone in order to ransack and steal items from your home. Maybe one might be paranoid if they had tons of gold lying around or expensive cars with keys available. But, common sense prevails and it is an adventure worth looking into.  It was only our second house swap but we’ll be pursuing more.

That being said, I guess it’s obvious we found Germany absolutely charming, in terms of countryside and citizens. Something happened to Charlie just days after we returned which might show a fundamental difference in American versus European attitudes.  He was jogging down Peninsula Avenue, as usual, and hugged the side of the road which was shaded; no sidewalk on that side, the sidewalk, on the other side of the street, was being baked in the sun. Not much traffic on that portion of the road and when he heard a car approaching, he drifted off the pavement onto the grassy shoulder. As the car (truck) passed, the drive yelled out…”The sidewalk’s on the other side!” (He was probably also calling Charlie an idiot under his breath.) Jess has run that route, only to be yelled at. I’ve even experienced it while walking on the sidewalk…kids yelling something stupid. We just accept this idiocy and move on; however, I dare say this would never happen in Europe. There is a lot more respect evident within that society. Just standing at a roadway waiting for the little green man to appear, letting us know it was safe to cross…my impulse was to go ahead and cross when I didn’t see any cars but the rest of the pedestrians just waited patiently until the red light turned to green. We saw a lot more respect for the law, for other people and for the environment. Not sure when our country took a turn toward disrespect and intolerance, but it’s made much more evident when traveling to other parts of the world. Does it make me “unpatriotic” to have those opinions? I would hope not…just wishing our country would learn from others in areas where we need improvement.

I know the saying “the grass is always greener” probably comes to mind and we did hear about heavy taxation. We were surprised to hear that each German is responsible for paying into a tax used for reunification after the events of 1990. Per Wikipedia “The “solidarity tax”, a 5.5% surcharge on the income tax, was instated by the Kohl government to restore the infrastructure of the new states to the levels of the western ones. The tax, which raises €11 billion a year, will be maintained until 2019 at least.” When asked how they feel about this, they just shrug their shoulders and say it’s something that needed to be done and they just pay it. I’m sure I’ll hear rebuttals from my far right friends about how we pay for the results of Katrina, etc., (bring it on)…but my point is that our country needs an attitude adjustment.

OK, enough politics…not sure if I’ll keep this blog going. You certainly don’t want to know what I have for breakfast every morning and most of you are not interested in my political rantings so not really sure what to do with it. I started it to document our journey with my parents and their aging issues. Now that they are ensconced into a lovely assisted living facility, our angst is eased. It’s not a perfect situation as mom is not 100% happy with it, but it’s certainly better than their previous situation and help is just outside the door if they need it. Of course, as the sandwich generation, we are all still involved with our kids and grandkids, and when one crisis is resolved, another one seems to appear, so we’re not off the hook yet. Let me know if you have any suggestions for furthering this discussion and/or what direction to take from here on out.

So long for now…

The Neuschwanstein Castle – traveling south to  Hohenschwangau, approaching the mountains, one might feel like breaking out in song…the hills are alive with the sound of music. Pristine green rolling hills with mountain peaks in the distance, windows open in the train car, it’s a beauty that might be individual to the region. The farmers keep those fields green with some pungent fertilizer, however, and occasionally we’d get a whiff that would wake up the nose hairs.

Reaching the town we just missed the bus to the castle and looked like we were going to have to wait an hour, while already on a tight schedule, but found a student from Taiwan who was in the same predicament and shared the cost of a taxi with us so we wouldn’t have to wait. We chose to walk up the wooded path to the castle, which is a bit of a challenge with the incline and takes about 30 minutes. Viewing the castle from the town below makes it look like an impossible climb but there were hikers far older and heftier than us so we figured we’d give it a try.  Much of the building was covered in scaffolding, however, as it takes constant maintenance to keep up, so the photo opps weren’t that great.

Arriving at the castle doors we were glad we made the trip. The vistas were breathtaking and the castle, itself, was a reminder of the Magic Kingdom since Walt Disney patterned Cinderella’s castle after King Ludwig’s design. This one doesn’t date back to medieval times, however, like the others we’ve seen, as Ludwig had it built in the mid 1800’s in his quest to be the medieval king about whom he fantasized. He was a bit unbalanced mentally, lost his monarchy and, in an effort to pretend he was still king of his castle, so to speak, used up all his money, was deemed mentally unstable and was put away by the state, which also took over his possessions when he could no more pay for them. Now it is a tourist destination and a must see if you’re in the region.

Another Radler, this one mixing beer with Coca Cola

Another lovely lunch in a lovely restaurant.

Details of the castle

My husband likes to live on the edge. Instead of spending 25 Euros on a taxi to take us to the Nuremberg rail station to catch our 6 a.m. ICE train to the Frankfurt airport, he’s put together a schedule which includes catching a bus at 5:20, to the underground system which, ultimately, gets us to the Hauptbahnof with 6 minutes to find Platform 7. If we miss the 6 a.m. train, we have to wait an hour for the next one which will put us in the airport barely an hour before our flight leaves…not a smart move with an international flight. So, the day before our departure we decide to have lunch in Nuremberg and practice a dry run of our bus/train combination. The first time we got to the rail station, we went the wrong way and would have missed the ICE by 5 minutes. Retracing our steps we found a more direct route to the platform and had 3 minutes to spare. Of course, the question is, how will this play out on the actual morning of departure? Well, I’m here on the ICE to tell you, yes it worked, even though the underground was on the opposite side of the platform when we arrived and it was just dumb luck we stepped on the train with 4 minutes to spare. Who needs a stress test to check out the status of your heart’s health? Just travel with Charlie.

So it’s goodbye Germany, time to go home. We’ll miss speeding across the countryside seeing fields of corn growing next to fields of solar panels with wind turbines in the distance. We’ll miss the bicycles and tiny cars on the roadways. We’ll miss the friendly people of Bavaria and their willingness to speak our language when we could not find the words in German to communicate. We’ll miss Ruediger and Andrea, Robin, Jason and Belana…our new friends. (Oh, and now we miss our luggage as it did not arrive in Orlando. After doing so much research and homework to make sure this trip would go without problems, we somehow missed the fact that, once in Dallas, we were supposed to pick up our baggage and re-check it in for the flight to Orlando. We were already running late as the flight out of Frankfurt was turned back on the runway due to a fuel pump problem…a bit disconcerting. So we just marched ourselves through customs and up to the gate, leaving our baggage behind. Of course, this was after being up 20 hours straight, so we’re not going to beat ourselves up about it. Happy ending, American Airlines is flying the luggage back to Orlando and delivering it to New Smyrna Beach.)

All in all this was a great trip and the memories will last forever. I’d like to return and visit the places we missed…and Ruediger sounds open to the idea of exchanging homes again.

Rothenburg…a purely Bavarian town that harkens back centuries and preserved in such a way that makes it easy to imagine life when the night watchman walked the protective wall surrounding it. The streets are narrow, lined with shops and restaurants, one of which made for a yummy lunch.

It was kind of hot the day we visited so a Radler beer hit the spot. These are wheat beers mixed with lemonade, sprite, coke, or whatever sounds good. Sounded awful to us at first but so far have tried all three and now we’re fans. The round dumpling-like things on Charlie’s plate are Kloss…a ball formed by cooked and raw potato, mixed with a special flour that holds it all together. Andrea fixed some for our dinner and they were tasty with gravy.

We found a pathway along the wall with tremendous views and walked upstairs to dark passageways with small holes in the wall, presumably to aim guns through, if needed. Another small space along the wall had a bench seat made from stone, with a hole in it to sit upon and take care of business, if you get my drift, which would drop approximately 40 feet below. As if that weren’t bad enough, there were actually two holes, side by side, so one could have company. I guess when you gotta go, you gotta go, even when you’re the nightwatchman.

Rothenburg is know for doughy cake balls called Schneeballen. Word is that they are still edible years after they are made. We opted for ice cream, instead. This town is a must-see if you’re in Bavaria and includes some of the prettiest photo-ops. These people were so creative with their architecture.  There isn’t a dull spot in the city.

I think a lot of the charm of this part of Europe, for us, has been the delightful weather…low temps and humidity. But since Ruediger has returned from NSB, the temps are hot and humid…ugh. Spent part of Sunday roaming the Zirndorf festival with Ruediger, Andrea, sons Robin and Jason, along with the neighbors upstairs, Peter and Aliya. We wound up at the major biergarten for beer, appetizers, beer, main course…and more beer. OK, the beer is finally getting old, but really refreshing on a hot day.

Now we’re up to a full liter!

Andrea, Alya and Peter

Ruediger paying the tab.

Salted radish slivers on the left. German form of steak tartare on the right…only it’s made with raw sausage. (I can imagine Ali and Jess gagging at this one).

On the far right, dark bread spread with cheese and chives. The white stuff on the bread in the middle, is the cold fat you scrape off from the top of gravy mixed with spices…I just couldn’t bring myself to try it and I’ll be looking at the Thanksgiving turkey gravy in a whole new light now.

After stuffing ourselves at the biergarten, we walked to Andrea’s house where she served cake made with fresh plums from a tree in her backyard. Andrea was born in Zirndorf, where her father had a business. That’s Jason on the far left, Andrea, Ruediger and Robin at the top. On the right Peter and Aliya (the tenants above us) and Charlie.

Andrea’s backyard includes a bird and rabbit sanctuary with 40 canaries…tried to get us to take some home but I don’t think customs would allow it.

Spending a couple of days again in Zirndorf, enjoying their festival weekend, beginning with a parade Saturday afternoon. It’s all about the beer here in Zirndorf, with a brewery just up the street (Zirndorfer) and another close by (Tucher). The bands were not made up of high school kids but of mixed ages from young to old.

This reminds me of our parades on Flagler Avenue…lots of candy thrown out to the kids. And in the tradition of The Garlic restaurant tossing out garlic cloves, the garden clubs were giving out vegetables. This lady got the mother of all zucchinis…

And, of course, after the parade, the festival starts with amusement rides, carnie games and biergartens.

Ruediger is back in town and will be taking us to one of the biergartens for a German feast later today. We look forward to trading stories of our discoveries and his experiences in the land of Disney.

A common sight at celebrations, and, also atop new home construction, is the Christmas tree with the lower limbs stripped and the top decorated with ribbons. The Tannenbaum, German for Christmas tree, was, according to some historians, started in Germany when Martin Luther started the tradition of decorating it with lights. This one is towering above the marketplace during the festival.

Notice blue skies without a cloud in sight…temps are rising, though, and might actually hit 90 degrees. When the mercury rises to that point the local weatherman puts out the following warning: “High disruption due to extreme high temperatures!” Ha! This is a respite for us. Low humidity and breezy…feels great.

We’ll be squeezing in two more trips before we leave on Thursday. Rothenburg tomorrow, probably, and not sure of the other. Ruediger is already hinting at exchanging homes again next year so if we miss something on this trip, we might just be back next year for more!

After two days of rest and relaxation, chilling in Ruediger’s house and exploring Zirndorf, we headed to Berlin early Friday morning, as in 6:15 a.m. When we finally got to Nuremburg, we hopped on an ICE directly to Berlin and arrived around noon. Enjoyed our coffee on the train, while watching the countryside speed by at 180 kilometers per hour.

Charlie found a walking tour on Tripadvisor.com which is how we spent the next several hours upon arrival to Berlin. Lunch on the river Spree, more beer, of course, then started our trek past ancient museums, sculptures and cathedrals, making our way finally to the Brandenburger Gate. Difficult to imagine that a few short decades ago this city was split in two. You’d never know now with the hoards of people bustling on both sides of the gate.

Yes, that’s an old VW bug parked picturesquely in front of our lunch spot.

Leek quiche…

Got beer?

Brandenburger Tor

The Memorial to the Murdered Jews in Europe for those who died in the Holocaust was amazing…so simple but so awe-inspiring, 2,711 slabs or pillars of concrete, in all sizes, representing each page of the Talmud. People wandered among them as if in a maze of remembrance for all those who were lost in another era not too long ago.

Went to snap a hot air balloon when this enthusiastic girl popped into the picture.

Across from the memorial park was the Tiergarten which was the main focus of the book In the Garden of Beasts, by Erik Larsen, one of my favorites. Didn’t have time to locate the house from which the stories were told, but one could imagine the events that took place here in the 1930’s leading to Hitler’s terrible reign.

Berlin feels like it’s in a different country from the Bavarian section of Germany, being a large, crowded city loaded with tourists. Interesting, though, that we still have not heard an English speaking American in Germany.

Now to board a crowded train to Hanover for our trip back to Zirndorf. Hoping the crowds subside on the longest leg of our journey back. Yikes, they didn’t! On the 2 hour trip to Hanover, the train was crowded and hot. Managed to get a seat but it wasn’t pleasant. It was the first time we had a not so good experience on the DB. Once in Hanover, however, we were able to hop on an ICE and travel in comfort. Good thing as we had another 3 hours to go to Zirndorf.

OK, time to get on the soap box…what the hell is wrong with our country in terms of utilizing renewable energy? Of course, I know what is wrong…big oil corporations getting huge tax subsidies and using their lobbyists to encourage legislators to vote their way and put the kabosh on any movement toward using the most natural resources of air and sun. But, regardless of your political preference, it just makes sense to use that which is free and abundant when powering our homes and cities. No matter where we travel in Germany, we are passing dozens of wind turbines in addition to the massive numbers of solar panels, both on house roofs and in fields. And this is a country with not near as many sunny and windy days as we have in Florida, especially along the coast. Not to mention the number of people we see on bicycles…bringing them on the trains or parking them en masse outside the stations. We have not seen one large SUV being driven on the streets. If they drive their own vehicle it’s a small, gas efficient car. The only  American auto we see here is Ford, and lots of them, Ford Focus as well as other small models I’ve never heard of. Add VW’s, Saab’s, Audi’s, Mercedes, all of which are small versions of the monster trucks we see in the states (BTW have not seen a truck yet). Of course, their system of trains, regional, intercity and high-speed long distance, are available throughout the country. Even though their diet is made up of mostly carbs and fatty meats, we don’t see too many chubby Germans, mainly because they are walking or pedaling their bikes everywhere. Our country tends to look at Europe as a region we do not want to emulate…perhaps we’re not ready for their socialist method of government but they are the smarter ones in terms of keeping the planet and their bodies healthy. End of soap box…

So after that debacle, we made the one hour flight back to Frankfurt Hahn and bussed to Mainz for the night. Stayed in the popular InterCity hotel, just a couple of blocks from the main train station and a one mile walk to the Rhein River cruise. We were pleasantly surprised with the accommodations and the buffet breakfast was delish but not free. The room was only 72 Euros, tho, so well worth it. Had to catch the boat at 8:45 so headed through the town to the river…beautiful place with vendors setting up a farmers’ market in the center of town next to a cathedral.

Boarded the boat for our 4 hour trek along the Rhein River with several stops along the way. Saw so many castles we lost count…what history this place must hold! The weather was chilly and needed our jackets in the morning, however, it got warmer in the afternoon and the sun forced us inside for awhile.

Made our way to Koblenz where we trekked another mile or so to the train station…another wonderful town…cobblestones, churches, unique architecture…had a great meal across from the station. (BTW, we pre-purchased 7 days worth of German Rail which averaged $59 for the two of us per day. Sounds expensive but it also got us on the KD Rhein boat and unlimited trains for each day…we’ve covered hundreds of miles each day we’ve used it and saved thousands of dollars versus paying per trip and much less expensive than renting a car.)

Arrived back to Zirndorf exhausted and overwhelmed. Need  a couple of days rest then off to Berlin on Friday.

Departing London we were introduced to the reason why Ryanair gets such bad press. They warn you about carry-ons – have to meet certain size and weight standards. I had carefully measured our luggage and it fit the requirements, except for the wheels at the base. Departing Frankfurt Hahn for London, there was a cage-like container where you could determine if it fit. We were told as long as it fit upside down, regardless of the wheels, we were good to go, and it did fit that way so everyone was happy. However, upon our departure from London, we were held up for an extra check of our passport, for some reason, and then told we had to put our bag in the cage to make sure it fit. Followed the previous protocol and placed it in upside down but the attendant insisted it didn’t fit. Of course, this was while we were supposed to be boarding so not much time for negotiating. They refused to let us board with the bag and charged us 50 Euros to check it. Later we wished we would have just emptied the contents into a plastic bag and left the suitcase behind. We paid less than 50 Euros for the damn thing at Marshalls and we didn’t have much in it. So that’s how Ryanair put the screws to us. We will be following up with written complaints but doubt we’ll get anywhere after hearing others having had the same problem. Chalk it up to experience!

Traveling to London was a daylong affair since we chose to fly out of Frankfurt-Hahn airport, which houses Ryanair, the cheapy airline of Europe (and we found out why…later). It takes a few hours on 3 trains, then a couple of hours on a bus to get there. Tiny airport and first come, first seated…one can always pay a few more Euros for priority seating but didn’t see the need so just got in line and duked it out, so to speak. Then they guide us out to the tarmac where we climb on board, front or rear. We’re so spoiled at OIA. Something triggered the scanner which led to Charlie being wanded and me being wanded and pat down. And, yes, it was a thorough pat-down but anything worth complaining about? No! It’s their job and I don’t care if I look like the furthest thing from a terrorist, I don’t mind it for my safety and everyone else’s. That was for you, Jack, end of TSA soapbox. So once on board it’s only an hour’s flight but they try to sell you everything from water to smokeless cigarettes, to handbags and perfume. Flying over the English Channel we saw dozens of wind turbines…can you imagine the power that could be generated off New Smyrna Beach? I vote no for oil drilling and yes for wind turbines off the coast.

Arriving at Stanstet Airport outside of London we borded a minibus and headed into the city where we were dropped off on Baker Street and bussed to Trafalgar Square. Northumberland Street was just off the square and our quarters for the next two nights were just down the street. These college kids have it made here, beautiful historic building in the heart of London and just steps from the Thames, Hungerford Bridge and The Eye. We opted for Sherlock Holmes’ restaurant, across the street as we were tired and hungry and not in the mood to search out something else. We think this is a chain but it fit the bill with comfort food and drink, walked down to the river and saw the lights, then off to bed. Our room was typical dorm fare with the tiniest bathroom I’ve ever seen, but it housed a toilet, sink and shower, which was all we needed. Checked out some Olympic coverage in the common room downstairs before hitting the sack. Why is traveling so exhausting when most of the time you’re just sitting there?

The London School of Economics and Political Science, our home for 2 nights

Next morning grabbed breakfast and found a spot along the race barricade in front of our lodging. The crowds didn’t start forming til around an hour before the start of the race, 11 a.m. Everyone around us was chatty. In addition to the Irish guy mentioned before, on our other side was a photographer from Holland who spoke great English and we had a jolly time with him. (Yes, I’m beginning to speak with an English accent…I’m sure the German accent will return when we get back to Deutchland). The race itself was just too cool. The runners made a total of 4 passes in front of us, the start of the race was only about 1/4 mile away so they were in a bunched-up group the first time, but by the third passing (11 miles) they were spread out and one of the American runners dropped out in front of us – hamstring issues. The crowd cheered every last runner as if he were the first…and there were some stragglers…the last one with a huge grin on his face until the last lap when he looked totally whipped.  We really thought the Kenyans would be 1 and 2 but the Ugandan just kept up and surpassed them in the end. Such a shamethat the last American standing came in fourth. But he said he was just glad he was fourth in the world.

Crowd management was handled beautifully and cheerfully. It was a difficult run with all the twists and turns and by the time it was over I felt like I’d run it myself…we were exhausted but walked the distance from Hungerford Bridge to the Tower Bridge which was an awesome sight. The Thames was so busy with boat traffic, lots of barges and definitely not a place to take a dip. Actually kind of gross on the river bed.

This guy’s sunbathing on the banks of the Thames (yuk) with a microphone, singing while playing the guitar. London’s answer to NYC’s naked cowboy?

London as a whole was a bit dirty. Comparing it to NYC, I’d choose NY. Granted we didn’t have time to visit all the museums, other than walk by them, but London just didn’t ring my bell. Perhaps, if we had more time to explore we’d appreciate the city more. We were ready to return to Germany. More later…

Not able to upload photos right now but lots to come. Got a lot of video of the marathon, up close and personal. These athletes are so amazing that they can continue a pace after so many miles. The made four passes down Northumberland and by the last lap the final runner was still receiving a much cheer as the first. Of course, the biggest noise went out for the British marathoners. One of our USA runners dropped out right in front of us.

Silly thing happened right before the start – a couple of security cars would make a sweep of the street before each lap and caught a guy jumping the barricade with a huge keyboard and suitcase…he plopped himself down on the street as if he were going to serenade the runners. They swarmed him and scooped him and his gear into one of the cars off they took him to a thunderous cheer.

All in all, though, it was a happy crowd…we met a 72 year old guy from Ireland who has run over 100 marathons since he was in his 50’s. He now organizes races for charity in his home town. Gave us an application form for an upcoming race. Nice people. But I’m not too impressed with the cleanliness of London, probably because of the crowds but didn’t appreciate someone urinating in the street in front of  me – too much ale I guess!

Now that the race is over, off to see the sights. Cheerio!

Today’s plan is to ride the Black Forest Railroad through farmlands, valleys and little towns full of great architecture, green grass and whatever else we might see.

We’ve even seen fields of solar panels, then you’ll see a wind turbine, or several, next to a cluster of houses, always with a church steeple peeking through. Ruediger told us about a “million roof initiative” with the end result of many more than a million homes with solar panels providing their electricity. Don’t know the details yet of monetary incentives for purchasing themand they are not only on the larger homes, but also smaller houses. Seems like a no-brainer – why aren’t we doing this? We have more wind and sunshine than Germany so why aren’t we utilizing it?

Our main route is from Offenburg to Singen then the Bodensee – beautiful Black Forest homes/farms. For Ali and James, we saw an Aldi. Must be 30 tunnels. We’re taking 9 different trains from 9 am to just after midnight. Every one on time, smooth , quiet and scenic. Between the larger stations are farmlands and homes with colorful flowers. Met a nice woman who spoke broken English – visited the states once before as her aunt lives close to Seattle. We originally meant to get off the train in Singen, hang out an hour or two, get a bite to eat and head back for the 5 hour return trip. However, she said Sengen was not a pretty town (she was actually getting off there to visit her daughter). She told us to go to the next stop – 7 minutes further – and we could check out the Bogensee then head back – we’ll see how that works out.

The Bogensee was beautiful, definitely worth the stop – huge lake loaded with boats of all kinds, hills on the other side and a cool little town with great restaurants. But we’re a little off kilter with our train back so we’re hoping against hope that we make the midnight train to Zirndorf from Furth. We might be spending the night in a train station!

OK, update on train situation…we did miss the train and wound up in Stuttgart at 10:30 pm with no train to Nuremburg. So Plan B has us heading 2 hours to Munich and staying overnight. We planned on getting there at some point and looks like it’ll be tomorrow. Good thing I brought the contact lens cases and cleanser. Of course, didn’t bring anything else, not even a comb. We’ll look lovely tomorrow. At least the hotel gave us toothbrushes and toothpaste. We managed to get online and find a place a few steps from the main train station..decent review in TripAdvisor and reasonable. Got there around 12:45 and dragged our butts up to the tiniest room I’ve ever seen. But the bed was comfy and that’s all that mattered. Couldn’t leave the window open because of partying on the street below so got a little stuffy but we were too tired to mind. The hotel advertised free breakfast adn we weren’t expecting much but were wonderfully surprised at the selection of fruit, yoghurt, mueslix, pastries, juices, coffee and a whole buffet of bread and lunchmeat and cheeses. Turned out to be a good choice and they were so sweet accomodating us when they found out we had missed the train and didn’t have any overnight stuff.

Got back safe and sound…tomorow London bound.

Spent part of the day in Nuremburg in the Old Town which is surrounded by a huge wall and moat along with a castle on a hill, and ancient cathedrals interspersed with modern shopping areas and biergartens. It’s overwhelming to think of the history here and I won’t bore you with it, but following are photos which cannot capture the beauty of the architecture…

This one’s for Patty – yes, that’s George in a Williams-Sonoma type kitchen shop.

Our mode of travel for the duration – this is a regional train…super smooth and quiet. Also, taking the ICE trains, even faster with fewer stops.

Wish I could bring all these flowers back for Isaiah!

So many nasty gargoyles hiding in the architecture of the cathedrals. Scaring off the devil?

Amazing sculpture…

More of the same amazing sculpture…

…and the X-rated side of same amazing sculpture.

More to come…it’s getting late here and too pooped to add more.  Tomorrow we’ll be on the train all day getting to and through the Black Forest via rail. Night, night…

Our travel day was, for the most part, uneventful…everything went as planned. We only missed one train, due to our error of boarding a first class car by mistake, and upon realizing it, hopped off but by the time we reached the second class section the train was closing up and leaving the track. Not to worry, another one arrived within 30 minutes which took us from the Frankfurt airport to the center of Nuremburg. The ICE train is so quiet and smooth we got a little too comfy and kept falling asleep during the 2 hour trip. After very little sleep on the 9 1/2 hour plane ride, fatigue was starting to settle in but upon arrival we perked up when we found Andrea who drove us to the house in Zirndorf, a mere 15 minute drive. She is Ruediger’s girlfriend who lives only a few blocks from Ruediger’s place and showed us all his electronic gadgets and how to make coffee, which requires checking the Google translate site to remember her instructions. Several areas of the house have motion detectors which automatically light up as we’re walking through. No need for screens as threre are no bugs to worry about and it’s cool enough to leave them all open.

Everything we need is within walking distance…grocery, restaurants, etc., so explored and ate in a little Italian place – pizza is very popular over here, just don’t order one with pepperoni as that word has a different meaning and you will get hot peppers – if you want the pepperoni we are used to, order it with salami!

We forced ourselves to stay awake til 9 and then crashed, sleeping almost 12 hours. This morning we feel fine, no jet lag, and ready to roll. Looking forward to exploring Nuremberg and the old town this afternoon after a leisurely morning of coffee and Olympics.

A couple of notes about the flight…a little disconcerting when we were delayed a bit out of Dallas as someone’s bags had been loaded but the passenger was nowhere to be found so had to wait til their luggage was taken off the plane. And, this will sound ageist and sexist, but do you remember when flying was kind of glamorous? Remember the Braniff flight attendants (stewardesses), cute, stylish…I swear all four of the flight attendants were older than me (meaning older than dirt)…one even reminded me of my mom with grey hair, curly perm…not that they don’t have the right to work but really felt bad watching them struggling with the food/drink carts up and down the aisles…and this was American Airlines with American attendants. Maybe I could have a second career as a flight attendant…they were even a bit short and pudgy so maybe I could get away with it!

Ruediger and Belana arrived early Friday morning (2 a.m.) as their flights were delayed…so we were all ready for bed as soon as they got here. We’ve been showing them around the beach and helping Belana with her English…very sweet girl. Ruediger brought gifts (the beer is already gone!) and loves our heat and humidity, ugh. We’ll be taking off in the morning, Sunday…ready to get out of their hair.

It’s time to dust off this dormant blog and get it back in circulation. We’re leaving for Germany on Sunday as part of a home exchange with a family from Nuremberg and will use this as a central portal for pictures and journal entries. Our German visitors are Ruediger and his 9-year-old daughter, Belana, who will be arriving Thursday night. The rest of their family couldn’t travel this summer but they have a second home in Zirndorf, which is where Charlie and I will be staying til the 23rd of August. They are experienced travelers and love the U.S. but have always stayed in hotels. The great part about exchanging homes is the ability to live like a native. They’ll use our location as a central point for all of their vacation destinations and be able to enjoy the beach on their days at rest. We’ll be staying in their condo, just a short walk from a train station, which will be our transportation of choice for our entire stay.

At the moment we are frantically putting the finishing touches on deep cleaning the house, clearing out closet and drawer space, and putting together instructions on appliances and electronics. It’s amazing what you’ll put up with until faced with strangers living in your abode and it’s a good excuse to get rid of “stuff”. Friday and Saturday we’ll be showing them around, introducing them to the neighbors and giving them a chance to settle in and get over jet lag. Then Sunday we’re out of here and they’re on their own.

Our former neighbor in Thornton Park is letting us park our car there for the duration…a bus to the airport is around the corner so we’ll pick that up for the start of our trek. Then we head west to Dallas for our 9.5 hour flight to Frankfurt, hop on the 2 hour ICE train to Nuremberg where Ruediger’s wife, Andrea, will take us to the condo. Then we’re on our own. We’ve already planned several day trips via train and bus, a cruise on the Rhine, castle spotting, Black Forest Railroad, Alps, etc. We are also sneaking in a quick trip to London to catch the men’s marathon on the last day of the Olympics.

If anyone’s interested in following our journey, subscribe to the blog and you’ll be notified when we update it with, hopefully, fun times and pics. And if any of you have visited Germany recently and have “do’s and don’ts, let us know.

Gesundheit!  Susan & Charlie

Aargh…another month goes by without a blog entry. If I were making resolutions, my first would be to post more…but then, I’m not making any resolutions, just going to try harder.

Below is an excellent piece from Caring.com about just that subject…

Check out my Living in the Middle column in the Hometown News Forever Young December publication…

Check out my new monthly column in the Forever Young insert of the Hometown News (page 8)…Life in the Middle. It will be about dealing with the many layers of the sandwich generation in which many of us find ourselves. A new edition is published the beginning of each month.

On a sad note, the print editions of The Observer, New Smyrna Beach, have stopped, after over 90 years of publication. The paper will still have a presence online, however, so Liberal Lines  will continue on an irregular basis, when the inspiration moves me. There is so much craziness, politically, going on lately, that it will not be difficult to stay inspired!

Recently I jumped at the opportunity to attend my forty-fifth high school reunion. Orlando in the late sixties was a much different place in which to grow up than it is now. Weekends would find us at the Orlando Youth Center, which is still a viable
community gathering site in the middle of town. What better place to reunite
than the building in which we boogied to the rocking sounds of Louie Louie and
experienced the highs and lows of teenage romance, and/or angst.

A lot of changes take place in the span of forty-five years and no one can prepare you for the in-your-face realization that, yes, you really are sixty-three years old. However, my car found its way to the parking lot without using the GPS, and it was like time stood still and froze in the year 1966.

The hours went by in a blur of catching up with long-lost friends and, upon reflection of the evening’s events over the days to follow, some tips come to mind, which might help ease others into the crazy world of the high school reunion…

• For those ladies who have packed on the inevitable extra pounds, leave the Spanx (a girdle by any other name) at home and dress comfortably. The majority of your classmates have grown into the same weighty issues.
• Make sure your name tags are large enough for everyone to see – you’ll be surprised at how many people will not recognize you (am I that forgettable?), and vice versa (who the heck was that?). Don’t hesitate to ask them to remind you who they are; chances are they don’t remember you either.
• If you don’t recognize the face or the name, just listen to them talk. We all
  agreed that the voice was one thing that did not change with years of physical
  changes. The inflection and tone of one’s speech, and the facial expressions
  that accompany them, made all the years melt away.
• Unless you married your high school sweetheart, leave the spouse behind. Your partner in life will thank you for it and you will have a much better time not worrying about them. It also saves the embarrassment of having to introduce someone, whose name you cannot recall, to your husband or wife, whose name you may have also momentarily forgotten.
• Exercise those facial muscles in advance of your gathering. You will find yourself smiling like a fool for hours on end…still smiling days afterward.
• Be prepared to deal with clueless dummies who might rush up to you and bring up an embarrassing event from the past by blurting out, “Are you the one who…(fill in the blanks).” Yes, that really happened and we can only hope his excuse was that he suffered a medical incident somewhere along the line and lost the brain cells associated with tact, which would explain his rudeness.
• Leave any discussion of politics at the door. I learned the hard way that those of us in our sixties are very opinionated and, unless you want to witness fisticuffs and name-calling among a group of baby boomers, just don’t mention anything regarding the Tea Party, Occupy Wall Street, or the upcoming presidential election. Trust me, you will lose Facebook friends by the droves.
• Did I mention, don’t talk about politics? Add religion to that mix. Our class was from a small Catholic school so we all had religion embedded into our psyches at an early age. Many of us have strayed, however, to every religion, or
  non-religion, in the book. Better to just not talk about it, or be ready to
  have your arthritis pain or extra pounds handled with scripture verses…true
  story.
• Leave the pictures of the grandkids behind. No one really cares that you have a
  budding Einstein. They will just counter you with pictures of their little Dwight Howards. Admit it, you don’t really care, either.

All in all I had no regrets in my decision to join this group of aging hippies, reuniting to celebrate a time which shaped our futures.  Happily, the feeling I experienced upon walking out of that night’s time warp was that, yes, I really am sixty-three years young.

I met Don at a columnists’ convention last year and, even though we don’t share the same politics, I like his latest column…

Baby Boomer’s Method to Occupy Wall Street

October 2nd marked dad’s 87th birthday. We all celebrated at a favorite restaurant where they know us from numerous family gatherings. Mom and dad used to frequent the place a lot til mom got wary of driving so far. Dad remembered the restaurant but didn’t remember the menu and had a difficult time choosing a meal. He finally settled on a shrimp combo but insisted it wasn’t what he ordered when it was presented. We talked him into trying one of the shrimp and he liked it (but ate only the shrimp).

My sister and I put together a book of old and new photos, in an attempt to trigger memories, especially of mom, when he doesn’t seem to recognize her. We scanned the old pics and created a book through SnapFish (which is a great way to consolidate vacation pictures, too). He didn’t quite understand the concept, at first, as he kept running his hand over the pages expecting the photos to be somehow attached to the surface. He seemed to remember most of the photos with the exception of one on the page we set up displaying some of the cars he owned over the years. He had an accident with one, decades ago, and the pic portrayed the wrecked front end of the car. He insisted he did not ever have an accident like that and rebuffed our memories of it. (Subject was dropped!)

We featured a picture of them in 1947, the year they were married, on the first page, then ended the book with a picture in 1997 at their 50th anniversary.

Looking back, we probably should have given him the photo book at home, without all the noise and hoopla at the restaurant. It was quite noisy and I think he was overstimulated by it all. Afterwards, when everyone was leaving and wishing him a happy birthday, he said he didn’t know why everyone was wishing him a happy birthday. Sometimes, I think these celebrations are for the benefit of those around the celebrant, especially when the birthday boy forgets it’s actually his day to shine.

This is good advice for those who cannot help but take personally the words of their spouse or family member. It’s easy to say “Just let it go”, but not so easy when you are the target of the verbal abuse.

By Paula Spencer Scott,  Caring.com senior editor

There’s a tricky underbelly to caregivers’ intense relationship with their care receivers: A can’t-always-help-it tendency to take situations too personally.

Why? Caring.com senior medical editor Ken Robbins, a geriatric psychiatrist, explains that caregivers tend to be a special personality type: Big-hearted, sensitive, responsible, well intentioned…people who are motivated by and take deep satisfaction in doing right by their loved one…and people who, when unpleasant things happen, therefore, are prone to blame themselves, even for situations beyond their control or irrelevant to what they say or do, or fail to say or do.

Consider these six situations:

When your loved one is gruff and cranky
Even when cross behaviors are directed straight at you, you’re not usually the
underlying reason. More likely the outbursts are your loved one’s expression of
anger at the disease and the situation. For someone with even mild dementia,
outbursts reflect disease changes at work. You’re just the easy target.

When your loved one with dementia doesn’t recognize you It’s not because you’re no longer important to him or her. It’s not because you’ve failed to “imprint yourself” on him or her forever through the quality of your care. Failing to recognize friends and family, even primary caregivers, is an effect of the disease.

When your loved one vexes you with annoying behaviors (asking the same question over and over, leaving disrespectful messes, moving so slowly) Remember how the person “used to be.” In that context, it’s easier to see that illness, not an intention to be hurtful to you, can usually explain irritating actions.

When your loved one has an accident It’s not because you’re not managing incontinence perfectly. Accidents happen.

When no one says thank you It’s not because your actions don’t deserve thanks. More likely: You’re so effective at what you do, it’s practically invisible to family members.

When your loved one doesn’t say thank you Especially if he or she has dementia, the person’s ability to be aware of how much you’re relied upon becomes lost. Your loved one is so dependent, he or she literally doesn’t know thanks are in order.

I’m not saying feeling slighted isn’t a perfectly legitimate reaction to scenarios like those above. Nobody could blame you for sulking a little. But then — move on. Dwelling on imagined slights is energy-sucking and leaves you feeling needlessly sad. Re-framing these situations as having a bigger context helps you take them less personally. They’re not about you — they’re terribly unfortunate bumps that are about the road itself.

My friend, Tory, passed this article along by John Shore, whose blogs appear
on johnshore.com along with his writings for Huffington Post… 

15 Ways to Stay Sane While Caring For an Elderly Parent

One of the most emotionally complex and difficult things a person can experience is taking care of an elderly parent. I recently spent time tending to my aging, widowed father, and thought I’d pass along these 15 points, each of which I found to be significantly helpful during this phase of my own life. (You can read of my experiences taking care of my dad at Mad Dad!)

1. Accept that things have changed. When a parent starts in any way
   depending upon their child, a world has turned upside down. Be prepared for that radically new paradigm. Old roles may not apply; old
   methodologies may not apply; old emotions may not apply. Be
   prepared to work from — and write — a whole new script.
2. Take it slowly. Taking care of an elderly parent is
   generally a marathon, not a sprint. Don’t rush it. You and they both are
   in uncharted territory. Let the process reveal itself to you; to the
   degree that you can, let whatever happens unfold organically. As much as
   you lead what’s happening, follow it.
3. Expect nothing emotionally. At the end phase of their life,
   your parent might open up to you emotionally and spiritually; they might
   express for you the love that, for whatever reason, they haven’t before.
   But they also might not do that; your parent might even more tenaciously
   cling to their crazy. If as you care for your aging parent you bond with
   them in a new and deeper way, of course that’s fantastic. But going into
   caring for them expecting or even hoping for that to happen is to wade
   into dangerous waters. Better to have no expectations and be surprised,
   than to have your hopes dashed.
4. Expect their anger. When you start taking care of your
   parent, they lose the one thing they’ve always had in relationship to you:
   authority. That’s not going to be easy for them to give up. Expect them,
   in one way or another, to lash out about that loss.
5. Give them their autonomy. Insofar as you can, offer your
   parent options instead of orders. It’s important for them to continue to
   feel as if they, and not you, are running their lives. Let them decide
   everything they can about their own care and situation.
6. Ask their advice. A great way to show your parent
   love and respect — and, especially, to affirm for them that they are
   still of true value to you — is to sincerely ask them for advice about
   something going on in your life.
7. Separate their emotional dysfunction from
   their cognitive dysfunction. Insofar as you can, through your conversations and interactions with your parent, learn to distinguish between their emotional and cognitive dysfunction. The patterns of your parent’s emotional dysfunctions will probably be familiar to you; those, you’ll know how to deal with. But their cognitive dysfunctioning will probably be new to you. Track it; react to it gingerly; discuss it with your parent’s health care providers. Mostly, just be aware that it’s new, and so demands a new kind of response. This is a part of the process where it’s good to remember point No. 2.
8. Love your health care providers. During this phase of your life, you
   don’t have better friends than those helping you care for your
   parent. Cleaning person, social worker, physical therapist, nurse, doctor,
   caring neighbor — treat well each and every person who plays any role
   whatsoever in caring for your parent. When they think of your parent, you want everyone involved in their care to have good, positive thoughts; you want them to want to care well for your mom or dad. Steady
   kindness, and little gifts here and there, can go a long way toward
   ensuring that’s how they feel.
9. Depend upon your spouse. You may find that your parent is
   more comfortable relating to your spouse than to you. Though that can
   certainly hurt your feelings, don’t let it. It’s simply because your
   parent doesn’t share with your spouse all the baggage they do with you;
   mainly, they’ve never been the dominate force in your spouse’s life. Your
   spouse and your parent are peers to a degree that you and your parent can never be. Let that work for you. Depend upon your spouse to be as
   instrumental in the care of your parent as he or she wants to be.
10. Protect your buttons. No one in this world knows your emotional buttons like your mom or dad does. Surround those buttons with
    titanium cases and lock them away where your parent couldn’t find them
    with a Rorschach test. Unless he or she is an extraordinarily loving and
    mature person, your parent is bound to at least once try to push your
    buttons, if only to establish their erstwhile dominance over you. Don’t
    let them do it. You might owe them your care, but you don’t owe them your emotional well-being. With your parent, let “No buttons for you!” be your motto.
11. Prepare for sibling insanity. Expect the worst from your
    sibling(s). For perfectly understandable reasons, many people go
    positively bonkers when their parents start to die. Money, childhood
    mementos, furniture and possessions from the family house, money,
    diversified assets, money, the will… you get the idea. Prepare
    for the coming crazy. Do not participate in it yourself. Insofar
    as you must, of course protect yourself. But no amount of money on earth
    is worth your dignity.
12. Take care of yourself . It’s so easy to surrender to the care of your aging parent more of your life than you should. But you serve well neither yourself nor them if you fail to take walks; to stretch out; to eat right; to make sure you spend quality time away from them. Make taking time to rejuvenate yourself as critical a part of your care routine for your parent as you do cooking their meals or making sure they take their meds. Your life still needs to be about you.
13. Talk to a friend. If you have a friend with whom you can regularly meet and talk, or even chat with on the phone, do it. During this time the input and love of a friend is invaluable to you. Sharing what you’re going through with someone not immediately involved with it can be like a life preserver when you’re bobbing in the ocean. As soon as you get involved with tending to your parent, call your best friend, and tell them that you’re going to be depending upon them to do what friends do best: care, and listen.
14. Have fun. One of the things we most need in life is the one thing we most readily jettison once we begin caring for an elderly parent: fun. Fun! Have some! Have lots! Rent a Marx Brothers movie. Wear a goofy hat. Make your parent wear a goofy hat — when they’re sleeping, maybe. Whatever it takes. But remember: A day without fun is like a day where you almost go to jail for pushing your old mom or dad down a stairwell. Whenever, wherever and however you can, truly enjoy.
15. Pray or meditate. Life doesn’t offer a lot more emotionally salient or complex than caring for an aging parent. Accordingly, then, open yourself up to God, whatever that might mean to you. Be sure to with some regularly get down on your knees, or sit comfortably in a quiet place; close your eyes; breathe deeply and slowly; and wait to come over you the peace that surpasses understanding. What you’re undergoing with your parent right now is bigger than you, your parent, or anyone else involved. Do not fail to avail yourself of the great and mighty source from whose perspective it has all, already, been resolved…

It was an interesting weekend with mom and dad staying with us at the beach. We picked them up Saturday, stopping for lunch along the way back, with plans for a “Back to School” barbeque on Sunday. Dad was in pretty good form throughout, with no “phantom pains” popping up. He was engaged with mom, in terms of knowing who she is and talking to her. His sense of humor is still intact and he came out with some zingers that had us all in stitches. Mom still overreacts to misstatements and would probably do better by just leaving him alone, rather than telling him he looks like he needs a pillow, a blanket, a sweater, yada, yada, yada!

At one point he did ask mom if “those people” were still at their apartment, and it was evident his reality changed the minute he was back home. Shortly after we dropped them off, mom called asking if we’d stop back because dad was refusing to take his meds and she didn’t want to fight about it anymore. Turns out he did actually take his meds but was balking at taking a vitamin, which is part of his normal routine. We were too far away to go back but Patty took over and he didn’t remember fighting with mom about it. Seems like he’s most confused when he is at home, which is odd, but he’s convinced there are more “women” in the condo and they’re not Marie, his wife. When he’s around the chaos of the whole family together, he’s less confused. He’ll get mixed up with the names but seems to get great delight from the great-grandkids, not to mention our cat. Whenever Ricky’s in the house, dad is talking to him and teasing him…we, of course, have to worry about the cat getting under foot and tripping one of them, but dad looks like he gets great pleasure from watching him. There is no way that they should take on the responsibility of a pet, however, I can see the benefit of having cats and/or small dogs as part of a long term care facility…they always seem to bring a smile to the faces of those who don’t have a whole lot to be happy about.

Dad’s getting a kick out of his great-grandson, Carter’s, newfound ability to sniff a straw wrapper and make it look like a mustache.

We all got together for my husband, Charlie’s, birthday and Patty’s impending birthday on Tuesday. Everyone behaved…sort of…

Obviously getting a loved one tested for dementia early is important. But it’s a touchy situation convincing them they might have an issue with memory. We took the “sneaky” approach mentioned in the Care.com article, “How do I convince my dad to get tested for dementia?” By giving his doctor a “heads up” about our suspicions, he was able to cognitively test dad and, ultimately, take the car keys away, without knowing that we were the bad guys.

Patty and I took mom to a Caregivers’ Support Group meeting at the Winter Park Library, yesterday. Only one other person attended so mom got much needed attention from Linda, the facilitator. She shed a few tears, which was a good thing, and was reminded that she has to take care of herself as well as dad. We all went over the following Caregivers’ Bill of Rights…

The right to live our
own life, to retain our dignity
and sense of self.

The right to choose a
plan of caring that accommodates our needs and the
needs of those we care about.

The right to be
recognized as a vital and stabilizing source within our
families.

The right to be free
of guilt, anguish and doubt, knowing that the
decisions we make are appropriate for our own
well-being and that of our loved one.

The right to love ourselves enough to have the confidence to do
the best we are able.

Linda talked about  “choosing our own battles” and letting some issues go, unless they result in a safety problem. A perfect example of this presented itself the other day when dad got out of the shower with his hair in disarray (more than usual). He had the bottle of shampoo by the sink and obviously had not rinsed it out of his hair. Mom kept trying to tell him he needed to get back into the shower and rinse it
out, but he refused, stating he needed to put more in. After much wrangling, he finally figured it out and begrudgingly got back in the shower. As crazy as it sounds, if he would have continued to argue the point, what would it really have hurt if he had just gone to bed with a head full of un-rinsed shampoo? It wasn’t a life-threatening issue and he probably would have realized his mistake upon waking the next morning. It’s kind of like raising children…how many times have you heard, “Choose your own battles”?

The other person in attendance is in an interesting situation. One week a month, she lives with, and cares for, her sister’s mother-in-law. Figure that one out…her sister’s husband’s mother. Several in the immediate and extended family devote a week at a time, 24/7, to care for this woman so she can stay in her own home. There is funding for this through her long-term care insurance and they receive $100 a day to care for her. It’s an interesting concept and one that might become more popular as more and more “boomers” have issues with mental and physical problems requiring full time assistance.

Linda suggested mom keep attending, sometimes alone, I’m guessing so she might open up a little more without my sister and I in the same room. The dynamics of a family make it difficult to really empathize with mom as he is our father…not the same as being her husband. I’m hoping she’ll keep going back to the group, with or without us, as it seemed to have a positive impact on her emotions and mood.

The Orange County, FL, Commission on Aging offers a free monthly email newsletter  summarizing the activities of the COA and other initiatives in the community.

Each month the COA informs citizens about senior transportation issues, scam alerts, events scheduled in the community and tons of other useful info. If you would like to subscribe to this information just send an email to  Officeonaging@ocfl.net.

Happy Monday…waking up to a blurb on the Today Show about 30 somethings dreading the fact that they are turning 40. Sorry, can’t relate, until you fast forward 30 years later…I’m trying to enjoy my sixties as much as I can, in anticipation of my seventies looming down the road. It’s all relative. Just enjoy the moment!

The latest drama engulfing my parents’ living with dementia, is dad misunderstanding a quarterly financial statement from his broker. Standard stuff but he’s becoming paranoid and thinking money is being stolen from his account. This has prompted arguments with mom and a phone call to his broker (who has been with him for decades). Said broker has been notified of dad’s memory and cognitive issues – call hasn’t been returned yet, as far as I know. Dad lashes out at mom when she tries to explain it to him and she reacts with more lashing out…lovely scenario. This will last until the next crisis evolves or when one of us can remove the statement from his sight and mind. Meanwhile, keep repeating the mantra “Don’t Argue!”

It’s birthday extravaganza month with 5 birthdays and an anniversary in the family within the next 3 weeks. Our oldest daughter is turning 30 and her little sister is turning 28 this week. I can remember the surprise party held for my 30th like it was just yesterday…it was yesterday, right? What? Thirty-two years ago? Surely you jest! At the time, my friend, Nikki, gave my parents a plaque officially pushing my age back so they would feel younger…I could use one of those right about now.

As mentioned before, I won’t bore you with what I ate for breakfast, however, I am happy to announce that the South Beach Diet resulted in a loss of almost 5 pounds last week. Let’s see if I can handle another week of no sugar, no flour and no cocktails (I did sneak in a glass of Grand Traverse Reisling the other night, however, and it was well worth it). Now I just have to keep from tasting the plethora of celebration cakes and desserts tempting me over the next few weeks, starting Wednesday.

So many of our kids don’t want us to invade their Facebook privacy…here’s the reverse from Huffington Post…

OrlandoSentinel.com
Law should allow choice of death over dementia
Mike Thomas
April 25, 2011

We need a physician-assisted suicide law in Florida.

Only we should go beyond the laws approved by voters in Washington and Oregon.

They allow people with terminal diseases to obtain a lethal prescription of drugs from a doctor.

This does not include dementia patients. Our law should.

Individuals should be able to choose now that they would rather die with dignity than be shipped off to die of end-stage Alzheimer’s in a for-profit Medicaid warehouse.

This is not a sensational or even unreasonable sentiment.

Florida nursing homes were a national scandal in the 1980s. They were warehouses. An Orlando Sentinel investigation found countless cases of neglect, infected sores, sexual abuse, malnourishment and deaths. All too often, the victims were incapable of reporting the crimes. Despite numerous infractions, the state allowed some of the worst homes to stay open.

Legislators promised to “clean up the hellholes,” while the hellholes demanded protection from lawsuits.

Gov. Jeb Bush seemed to resolve the situation with this compromise. He put limits on how much a jury could award in lawsuits while increasing funding to beef up staffing at the homes.

Things seemed to get better.

But in 2004, Florida TaxWatch reported that nursing homes here, while ranked third nationally in staffing and 11th in overall quality, faced Medicaid cuts that threatened to undermine quality.

The report spelled out why this is important.

“Almost anyone that is working or middle-class will end up in a Medicaid-funded nursing home, due to the great drain on personal resources required,” wrote Tim Lynch, the author of the report. “It’s not just the poor. It’s you and me and our parents we’re talking about.”

Seven years after Lynch’s report, the situation is much worse.

The way it works if you go to a nursing home is that you start out on Medicare. When that runs out, you burn through your life savings, and then end up flat broke on Medicaid.

The Legislature is proposing deep cuts in Medicaid funding for nursing-home patients. This comes on top of federal Medicare cuts to nursing homes.

The homes have long used the higher reimbursement rates from Medicare patients to offset their losses on Medicaid patients.

Now there will be bigger losses and smaller offsets.

The homes argue their budgets will be so thin that they can’t afford the cost of litigation. They say the money spent fighting lawyers and paying abuse claims will be money taken away from patients. So lawmakers are pushing more tort reforms that basically will eliminate most of this litigation.

Unfortunately, as imperfect a system as it is, litigation does serve to keep the homes somewhat honest.

With that check ending, Gov. Rick Scott and lawmakers also have moved to limit state oversight of the homes in the name of deregulation.

We are bringing back the hellholes.

To pretend anything else is an exercise in seeing no evil and hearing no evil.

It’s only going to get worse as baby boomers age and put more pressure on the system.

The cost of Medicaid is projected to grow much faster than tax revenues. Those with the smallest voices, those without the lobbyists, will get left further and further behind.

I can tell you who they will be.

About 75 percent of nursing-home residents suffer from dementia. Most are poor elderly women. Those who do not have nearby family members serving as their advocates will be prime candidates for neglect.

Nationally, there now are about 4.5 million people with Alzheimer’s disease, a number expected to grow to 14 million by 2050.

Alzheimer’s makes up a little more than half of the dementia cases.

So you can see the scope of the problem, particularly with Florida’s aging population.

I’m not blasting Rick Scott or the Legislature. I’m not arguing that we pour unlimited funds into nursing homes. Our plundering of the next generation has to stop somewhere.

All I want is an opt-out clause in my living will.

If I become incompetent and my family no longer can care for me, I want to move on. I should be free to set up my own death panel of family and friends.

With my advanced and very strict instructions, I would trust them to make the call.

If you chose to hang around, I respect that and good luck to you.

mthomas@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5525.
Copyright © 2011, Orlando Sentinel

This informative article was published on Medhelp.org, explaining the difference between the terms “dementia” and “Alzheimer’s”…

What is Dementia?
When large numbers of nerve cells in the brain to stop functioning and lose connections with other neurons, thereby disconnecting parts of the brain that normally work together, dementia is the result. It’s not a disease in itself, but rather a blanket term for a set of symptoms relating to loss of brain function. These symptoms may include:

Published April 12, 2011

The Daytona Beach News Journal published a thought-provoking article about baby-boomers trying to make their own ends meet while tending to ailing parents. “Of those caring for someone aged 65 or older, the average age of caregivers is 63, with one-third of the caregivers in fair to poor health themselves.”

It’s a local take on a national issue…

Check out this article in the Daytona Beach News Journal about our daughter, Alison, and her experience with Epilepsy. If you’re in the New Smyrna Beach area Saturday, the 9th, join us for our annual Walk the Talk event to benefit the Epilepsy Foundation of Florida.

The Orlando Sentinel columnist Scott Maxwell’s take on slashing the Ombudsman program in the state of Florida.

This, mostly volunteer, program costs the state very little and has done so much good for those seniors who cannot defend themselves from abuse. This issue is so worthy of the effort of calling and/or writing your congressmen/women. If we’re lucky, we’ll all be old someday and wouldn’t it be nice to know there is a program out there looking out for us!

Jacksonville, FL – ElderSource announced that it is now accepting applications for ‘SNAP,’ the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, for elders 60 years of age or older. SNAP, more commonly known as food stamps, is not welfare but a program that helps stretch your food budget without taking away from any other benefits. In order to be eligible for the program, you must have a net monthly income of less than $903 or a combined income with your spouse of less than $1,215; you must be a U.S. citizen or qualified non-citizen; and have countable household assets of less than $3,000 (not including your home, vehicle or life insurance policies). To apply for SNAP benefits over the phone, you will need to have ready your income statements, information about your assets, and proof that you are a Florida resident. Once you have gathered all of this information please call ElderSource at 1-888-242-4464 and ask to speak with a SNAP operator. Serving as the state-designated Area Agency on Aging and the Aging Resource Center for Northeast Florida, ElderSource’s mission is to empower individuals to age with independence and dignity by providing leadership, direction, advocacy and support for a comprehensive coordinated continuum of care. ElderSource serves as the focal point to which elders, their caregivers and the general public can turn for information, referral, assistance and answers related to aging issues. To reach our helpful staff or learn more about our elder care resources, please call (888) 242-4464 or visit our website at http://www.myeldersource.org

If you can afford assisted living care, why not use that money and live on a cruise ship? After returning from a recent cruise, my husband and I decided we are not really “cruisers”, so to speak. We enjoyed our vacation and the ports of call; however, we found ourselves kind of bored during the “sea days” and realized we had an issue with sitting on a lounge chair on the deck and just chilling. We tried and it felt good for about thirty minutes but then we found we had to be in motion…of the two-legged kind, not just the motion of the ocean. Of course the ship was so huge there was plenty to see and experience but it was a “been there, done that” kind of vacation. The week was definitely a good value, however, as everything was taken care of…the food was beyond excellent, constant entertainment and the cabins were very adequate.

Even though we are happier with a more active vacation, we could see the value for someone older who might require some help in their everyday life. Compare a cruise to an assisted living facility, for example, and the cruise offers the same benefits at a comparable, or sometimes reduced, price. There is a medical team always on call; the food is phenomenal with healthy choices as well as indescribable desserts. Extra charges were for alcoholic and soft drinks, but if you’re a fan of iced tea, coffee or lemonade, you can drink all you want without any extra fees. On our particular cruise, tipping was added to the bill at the end, at the rate of $10 per day per person. That means travelers are not constantly looking at a beckoning open hand and feeling obligated to tip with each service.

There was a terrific spa on board with all kinds of state-of-the-art workout equipment, along with opportunities for massages and the like. There’s no excuse not to get some quality exercise while onboard, regardless of the weather.

The ship’s employees got to know us by name within a day or two so imagine staying on the same ship for months at a time. Being assigned a table at one of the dining rooms, your servers greet you by name and seem to have a great attitude about their job. The housekeeping staff is equally affable, also showing an appreciation for the fact that they have a job, not to mention the unique aspect of working on a floating city. We always felt safe on board which a senior would particularly appreciate.

We opted for the cheap way out and reserved an inner cabin, which means no windows. The size was perfectly adequate with a great shower in the roomy bathroom. Not having a window meant not wanting to spend much time in the cabin, however…for a few hundred more a porthole, or balcony would have been great. If one would decide to spend several months on a ship, we think a window would be necessary.

Pricewise, our trip started at $600 per person for a 7 night trip with 3 ports of call in the Western Caribbean. Add another $10 per day per person for tips and you have $670. That’s about as cheap as you can get for a weeklong cruise. However, once you’ve taken your first cruise, the cruise line will give you all kinds of bennies to get you back onboard. We had the option of putting $100 down on our next cruise, fully refundable and you didn’t have to decide on a date, with the bonus of $200 shipboard credit. That’s a big bonus if you like to drink or want to avail yourself of the extras. So you’re looking at $2,680 a month. You can’t buy a whole lot of time in an assisted living facility for that kind of dough.

Of course, one has to be quite independent and pretty much able to get around on their own. We saw several passengers in wheelchairs so the ship is wheelchair-accessible if needed. It sounds like a great way to while away your final years. No worry about the yard, housework, cooking…and the entertainment is great and always changing. If you’re a social butterfly, even better…think of all the new friendships you could make…your Christmas card list will be bursting at the seams!

This is an interesting article about various new markets that have been generated by our generation…

http://www.aarp.org/work/work-life/info-02-2011/boomers-mean-business.html

Whether or not you’re part of the “Sandwich Generation”, you’ll love this Grilled Cheese Social website – when you need some comfort food, go with grilled cheese sandwiches. McKenzie’s website is full of yummy recipes…some bizarre…but all are creative. We are lucky to be neighbors of her parents, Sheila and Brett, and get to witness her creativity on their porch from time to time.

 We’ve all heard of the ‘Sandwich Generation’ but we might take it one step further and call it the ‘Dagwood Generation’. When you are squeezed between aging parents, children and then add grandchildren to the mix, you might feel like you are getting lost among the layers of needy family members. Are there times when you just want to escape to Tahiti and leave it all behind? You know you do….but we are all grateful to have our parents still alive and love those grandchildren…so we make ourselves available to all and put our future plans and travels on hold for a while.

However, we need to take time for ourselves, get away from all the drama and come back refreshed and ready for the next crisis. I am lucky to have a very supportive sister who shares helping with our parents’ issues.  She, however, bears the brunt of the burden as she lives only 10 minutes away and we are located an hour from their house. We try to make it into town at least once a week to take mom out shopping or get them to an appointment but Patty is on call if there is an urgent need to drop everything and get over there.

A little background with our parents’ situation…mom and dad are in their mid-eighties with dad suffering from vascular dementia. We suppose he’s beyond the early stages of this disease as sometimes he mistakes my mother with his sister, who passed away last year at the age of 93. Last week my sister and mom walked into the doctor’s office with him and he announced he was being escorted by his two sisters!

This is a man who did not graduate from high school, joined the army during WW II, and went to TV repair school upon his return, working on the first television sets to be sold. Several years later he found himself getting his high school diploma, bachelor’s degree and on to his master’s degree when he was in his fifties. He is an inspiration to me as I also finished college late in life, which was, what I consider, one of my life’s major accomplishments. Now, he cannot keep his bank account straight and, when asked how old he is, might say 56, instead of 86. This sometimes causes problems in the bedroom as he thinks he is still sexually active which mom nips in the bud, so to speak.

Next week my mom, sister and I will visit an attorney’s practice which specializes in elder issues. We met with them before mom’s open heart surgery last summer to obtain a Power of Attorney in case she was incapacitated by the procedure. Unfortunately, we could not get one on dad as the attorney questioned his ability to decide matters for himself. We were impressed with their firm and are now returning for a lengthy visit to figure out the next steps. They suggested we do not bring dad as he may be confused by the whole episode. Lately he has been ranted to mom that the three of us are just waiting for him to die so we can get his money. Five years ago he would have blanched at the idea of making such a claim and we have to realize that he is not in his right mind. However, it is difficult for mom to let such comments slip by without a retort. The one thing I learned while studying aging issues was to never, ever, argue with someone dealing with dementia.

I’ll continue to update our progress through this journey with our parents and will appreciate any and all comments and advice. We hope this blog will help others going through this painful search.