If I could drop everything and travel for the rest of my life, I would consider myself the luckiest person on the planet. And this list surely helps. Here’s where I’ll be eight months out of the year, the rest I leave up to impulse 🙂
I have settled on a trip to Italy late September, early October this year, as my annual destination in Europe. And, although I have been to the country every year for the past decade or so, I cannot get enough of it. Alternating cities every year or not, making the trip always memorable. So here is what I am thinking: Venice, Verona, Florence, Rome, Sorrento, Positano, Capri with a few Tuscan cities in between. I haven’t done this combination nor been to the southern Italy for a while, so I am excited. Of course research is always fun, and I have found some interesting articles to keep the momentum, and set the mood. {featured image credit }
I don’t adapt to what’s trending. I create my own, and what I believe makes me feel alive. This year, it happens to be pink. Just so you understand, in 2010 I started this game, RED being the color that year, I decided to paint my bathroom walls a deep red, took a photo of myself with a red backdrop, bought tops and lipstick in shades of red, and even utensils and coffee mugs, and my dog’s water bowl, all red. Then in 2012 I switched to green, juniper, moss, seaweed or sage, incorporating the color into my bookshelf accessories. Wardrobe of course, work coffee mug, adding indoor plants to my living spaces. Until I fell in love with shades of yellow, daffodils, Tuscan sun, and honey, buying a bouquet of flowers in those colors was all I did with yellows. Shades of blue for 2014, arctic or sapphire, changing my bedding to the calming colors was the best thing I did that year. And now, in 2016 pink is in-at least for me. Let’s …
I have a bucket list I feel I may not be able to complete by the time I am 75 or 80. Which, in my mind, is the limit to pushing the limits. Unless of course, I create a more ‘mature’ bucket list for 75 and beyond – first thing to add to that list is dancing on the Seine River Bank from Jun-Aug every year (I laugh picturing myself doing that in my old age). Until then, one of the items I have on the bucket list is to see the Northern Lights– maybe from a plane, if that is even possible, and hopefully from the ground which is most doable. I just need to hunker down and plan that trip. Check out this video. {photo credit}
On Sunday I needed to simply unwind after the busy Friday evening holiday party I hosted/coordinated for 200 guests. The venue Sir Francis Drake – San Francisco. The party was very successful, and the entire evening I was asked to partake in selfies. Which I am not a fan of since I don’t consider myself very photogenic, nor an expert in taking successful selfies. Anyway, on Saturday it was the same selfie nightmare. I went for my Super Bowl host training program at the Masonic Center Nob Hill and one of the exercises was taking a selfie and posting the picture on the Superbowl50 site, as well as hashtag-ing it on Facebook. I did neither for the same reasons. On Sunday, after household chores and grocery shopping, I decided to play with the new toys I received for Christmas. An entire artists attache (case) from Restoration Hardware, plus a box of crayons, and coloring pencils, watercolors and sketch pads -I suppose someone wants me to reconnect with a hobby I had years ago – drawing. So …
So much is going on, and in a way I like it. I enjoy busy. A calendar full of events and chores and such, taking up most of January for me. We are starting the new year with a company party, happening this Friday in the city of course, at an old classic hotel near Union Square. Details of which I will mention after the fact. I’ve been busy with the last-minute details, play coordinator-host to a 200 plus gathering of co-workers. The program for the evening cocktails, dinner, raffled gifts and dancing. This is the only time I get to see my co-workers in formal attire. Normally at a software dev company in San Francisco jeans is the norm, a Giant’s cap if you happen to be a fan, and a funky T-shirt expressing something not offensive to anyone. Saturday I begin my training for the Superbowl 50 volunteer program. Yes, I have volunteered to work during the weeks leading to and including the Superbowl. San Francisco as you may know plays host …
Another year has gone by. And we are all right back where we started. Setting new year resolutions we wish to achieve. Losing weight in America always a priority, possibly getting a better job, or finding that special someone, or even leaving the one you are with, hoping to find happiness in the most unusual ways. And then there are weddings to attend, babies to be had, and unfortunately loved ones to lose – all of them realities of life. Coping, and finding solutions is the best way to move past the unforeseen. Planning and being organized is the way to deal with the known. Saving ahead and strategizing is surely helpful when seeking a new career. And as for love, relationships or marriage, that is something that requires nurturing, compassion, and determination to make it happen and to keep it lasting. These are a few things I plan to keep in mind well into 2016. In the meantime, I want to share with you my 2015 :
Merry Christmas from me to you. I hope this holiday seasons brings you much happiness, genuine joy, and the best of memories to fill a lifetime.
I will admit I spend a good amount of time on Pinterest, collecting on my boards dozens of ideas, photographs, quotes and puppy photos – just to name a few of my favorite things. 🙂 Recently, while I was searching for ideas for our company Holiday Festivities week at work, I stumbled upon some great themes to incorporate, and even use for friends get-together gift making & champagne party.
The best Focaccia bread I’ve had, was in Portofino, Italy at any of the number of bakeries aligning the narrow pathways leading to the water’s edge. One in particular was Panificio Canale. I stuffed my face at one sitting or standing actually since there is no space to take a seat inside. And then brought some to go – which hardly lasted past the night. In San Francisco I often search for the best of Focaccia in our Italian neighborhood, North Beach, and although I find them here and there worth a try, they are not the same as the ones in Portofino. For this holiday season I decided to contribute to the get-togethers with home-made Focaccia, hoping to capture a little bit of Italy here .
rawsilkandsaffron.com 