He's Here!

Joel arrived Sunday safe and sound. I met him in Geneva and luckily all his bags and the bike box fit in the car just fine. It was a joyous affair to bring him back to Neuchâtel after anticipating his arrival here for so long. Monday afternoon we enjoyed a delicious meal of Raclette. Mmmmm. More stories to follow...

Amazing

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Just About Ready to Pee My Pants!

Joel is going to be here in a little over 15 hours. I am so excited I can hardly stand it. This is months and months of planning finally coming to fruition. I don't know if I'll be able to sleep tonight or not.

Today I got everything ready. The fridge is stocked with everything wonderful and Swiss. I have cheese from Aux Gourmets, kirsch, white wine, everything to make a fondue including fourchettes and the table stand with combustible gel. I completed my raclette paraphernalia as well. The wooden boards for resting the hot cheese holders on and the little paddles for scraping the cheese are now in my possession. Take a look in my fridge and it's just like any other fridge in Switzerland - fondue cheeses, raclette, cornichons. I have to say, I really felt like a local asking for my preferred cheeses in grams and then asking the cheese steward to grate it. "Mouliné s'il vous plaît, madame." Then she handed it over in the cute little fondue bag that has a jolly bubbling pot of cheese on it. Mmmm, yum!

Yes, Switzerland is having its influence on me. I can tell the difference between different gruyères, I routinely carry cash and I'm actually quite punctual now. Hard to believe, I know. Switzerland is great, but most of all, it really does make me appreciate being a Yank.

Three cheers for my Yankee arriving tomorrow. Hip! Hip! Hooray! Hip! Hip! Hooray! Hip! Hip! Hooray!

Miss Piggy

I eat too much. I've been wondering lately why over the last couple years I seem to be on a packing trend. As in packing it on. I've gone up a size or two and it just sucks because I used to be able to eat whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted. I had rabbit fast metabolism and now I don't. I'm getting older. Uggh, that word, older. But it's true. I see myself starting to age. Key word starting. So, with a lot of care and good habits, that process can be greatly slowed.

That positive energy is what took me surfing on over to Real Simple's Ditch Your Diet. It's an innovative way of looking at diet and nutrition. I picked the "grazer" plan for myself, because once I eat, I'm hungry again quite soon after. Wow, the plan sure didn't look like that much food. The picture above shows nearly an entire day's worth of eating! You know what that means -- I've gotten used to eating way too much. After all, I did have three slices of bacon, an egg, a piece of toast and a cup of coffee with cream for breakfast this morning. No more of that!

I'll start tomorrow. The food looks really tasty and vacation is the perfect time to start. I've been such a little piggy that this will practically feel like a fast. And I think that's just what I need, so I'm going to look for places to add the yummy drink of hot water, lemon juice and cayenne pepper and walnuts and fish for omega-3 and essential good fatty oils. And of course I will have to substitute wheat-free alternatives where applicable. Hurrah.

I love the end of winter and the feeling of rebirth as spring starts to appear. It's like a call for good health and a reminder that we are always in a process of renewal. Goodbye winter piggy, hello spring chicken!

This is Friday Night

I'm just at home baking some bread and listening to music. It's Ski Holidays now so we have the next week off of work. Ahhhh. And, if that isn't good enough, Joel is arriving Sunday morning and I'm all set to go meet him at the airport in Geneva. It was quite the dilemma that I'll have to describe another time, but suffice it to say that everything worked out beautifully and my instincts served me very well.

I finally bought speakers for my computer today. They're so so cute! I especially love the heat activated volume up and down buttons. And they have really good sound. Honestly, it is like all of my music is new after relying on PowerBook built-ins.

So, here I am. As with every event that is highly anticipated, it's seems it will never come and then it arrives so quickly! Joel will be here in less than 48 hours. I can't wait. But I also have a lot to do before then. Oh yes I do...

Loaf

It burned a little on the top, but I'm so proud of my first delicious loaf of spelt bread. Let's keep in mind that I baked it in a glorified toaster oven that has no temperature settings. I think it turned out great! I added some ground up almonds that made it really moist and give it a bit of protein, too. Baking bread is wonderful for many reasons. 1. It makes your house smell great, 2. It's relaxing and process driven, 3. There's something ancient and biblical about it that makes it an almost meditative act. I'm a huge fan and that's a good thing because I really can't tolerate any more wheat. It's one of the hardest things to cut out of one's diet, especially in Europe, but I'm trying. Still, there will always be irresistible crèpes, fondue and quiches that I don't make at home or just don't taste the same. But I've got toast taken care of!

Tupperware

It's crazy, but I came all the way to Switzerland for my first Tupperware party. I have to say it was great. Robin hosted and we sat around drinking wine and marveling at gadgets and gizmos. Who knew Tupperware had come so far! I am now the proud owner of the "Quick Chef" among other fantastic pieces. Perhaps my favorite is the "CheeSmart," a covered plate for keeping cheese at its freshest in the refrigerator. You can see it all at in German, French and Italian here.

Vapor Trail to Nowhere

This morning I got in a total huff over the communication hurdle I can't seem to get over while being abroad. When I went to France to study abroad, it was really easy to maintain communication because it was short lived. I made and received phone calls, left and got messages, sent and received emails, care packages and letters. All the while anticipating my return home. But, now it's different. I moved to Switzerland, entered the daily grind and there's no end in sight. Everyone at home is in their daily grind, too and when daily routines don't overlap it's very easy for lots of time to go by and feel like the distance is growing further and bigger and more pronounced.

Sometimes I start to feel like I have to solicit every bit of communication I have with people back on the other side of the Atlantic. In other ways, I know that I'm busy and doing my daily thing and that's what everyone else is doing, too. Being so sick and missing an entire week of work it was like everything just stopped. I was not busy or doing the daily thing at all. I had no TV, no radio, just the internet and a couple of English books and magazines that I've already read. Time slowed way down and all I could do was lie in bed and watch the occasional vapor trail of a plane make a line across the sky. I wondered if some of those planes were going to New York.

This morning, in my huff, I sent off an email to the people I miss the most haranguing them with mixed fonts, colors and text size for not being better communicators. Later I felt guilty. It's not about them, or their communicating. It's about my missing them and missing being around them and wanting to be able to share the everyday stuff that I now experience in a different orbit than they do. I sought comfort and justification in that fact that I'm still on the Earth and that the internet, cell phones and cheap calls have made the Earth small and communication effortless. But I'm living in another world from everyone I love and care about and that's just something I have to deal with.

Respite

I made it back to work today after my relapse Tuesday and Wednesday. It felt odd to emerge from my apartment and join the world again after so long being inside. My new best friend, Domino's, made it so I didn't even have to venture out for more groceries, or stand so long as to cook a meal. In Switzerland Domino's is so organized that you can order online and in my somewhat limited, but recent experience they arrive way before the guaranteed 30 minutes. Best off all, they have a "Carte de Fidelité" or in English, "Faithfulness Card" so after 5 deliveries the 6th pizza is free! What a deal.

This morning I found respite in the increase in light. While the sun was not yet up when I left the house, the sky was a beautiful crepuscular glow and it felt like morning, not like I had decided to go out in the middle of the night as per usual. By the end of the month, the sun will be up by the time I leave the house and from there it just gets closer and closer to Spring. See for yourself.

To be completely honest, I love the snow and the cold in Winter. It's the darkness that I have a difficult time with. So, hurrah for the return of the light.

Well, it's back to bed for me. I made it through the school day, but it used every ounce of energy available. I'm just not at 100%. So I'm listening to my body tell me that I'm exhausted, I acknowledge the pain in my shoulders and neck and I recognize that those pesky flu viruses are trying to maintain their hold on me. It's not over. And if I don't listen, I fear it never will be.

Well Being Friday

All set up for watching "Paris, je t'aime" surrounded by pillows, warmth and a cup of tea.

I am learning - slowly - that working with children means you'll be awarded an express ticket to having pneumonia in the hospital if you don't take care of yourself. Listening to one's body is a lot different from knowing that one should listen to their body. Taking care of oneself is all about listening to what the body has to say.

I've always forced myself through sickness. Dragged myself out of bed, gotten through the day despite the fact that I was in pain. This is the stupidest thing a person can do. It is so wrong, wears the body down, makes a person weaker and ultimately more susceptible to further sickness - like me lately. After several days of doing just that I went to the doctor Thursday short of breath, fearing I had driven my poor self to pneumonia. I don't have pneumonia, but I do have a bona fide case of the flu and a doctor's note that I stay in bed until Monday. By the time I had left the doctor's office, bought some soup and was waiting for the bus home, I felt that familiar surge of adrenaline kicking in, my tired heart and weary body thinking it needed to gear up to get through another day. I thought to myself, maybe I'm not that sick after all - clearly was not listening! By the time I got home, back into bed and relaxed I felt worse and worse and worse and even worse still by the time I got up today. Mind over matter is a horribly dangerous thing. It puts such undue stress on one's adrenals, heart and immune system. I am finally starting to understand what it means to listen to my body. And all this time I thought I knew...

Keeping the house calm and serene for optimum relaxation.

I'm going to be a lot more serious about my health from now on. I'm going to eat things that make me feel good and avoid the things that don't, I'm going to listen to my body, rest and manage stress healthily, truly take care of myself. All of the small decisions I make now will affect my enjoyment and energy now, how I age, the health I am able to pass onto my children during my pregnancies with them and ultimately my longevity and theirs. It's all important. Now and then.