Trying New Things, Making New Friendships...

I Must Go Again!

So my neighbor across the street is a retired pilot.  His wife was a retired nurse.  Sadly, she passed away this past year from cancer.  They haven't been in the neighborhood for very long, and being that I work nights, I mostly saw them in passing.  I'm still learning about being a neighbor as most of the places I have lived were fairly scant with people neighborhood wise.  Plus, I'm pretty independent so I try not to bother anyone.  

Anyway, so my neighbor came to me one afternoon before Christmas, asking if I would like to join him for lunch or a dinner sometime, since he's newly widowed and hates to eat alone.  He knows I work nights and that I too, live alone, so he thought he'd throw that offer out there just so we both can have dinner and conversation.  He was quick to say, that it's not a real date or a romantic thing and that he'd be happy to pay, but he just wanted to eat with someone.  

Now, I have always had older gentlemen friends, for whatever reason.  And it's never been romantic.  Just a good friendship and sharing time together.  I kind of like that.  I believe you should have friends of all ages.  It makes you richer in life and feeds the soul.  

So..now that he had returned from his holiday travels, my neighbor knocks on my door Sunday evening wanting to know if I wanted to go to dinner this week.  And so we did tonight.  We went to a French restaurant that he likes and one I've always wanted to try.  And it was lovely.  The restaurant is located in a great old building downtown with a great ambiance.  I must remember to go again sometime.  Maybe for lunch, and sit at the bar as I like to do.  The French Onion soup is a must have again...one of my faves but it's not too smart to make just for one person.  I splurged and got the Cordon Bleu which came with a lovely medley of vegetables and a good firm bread for snacking.  Hell...if you're going to have a fancy dinner might as well go for it, right?  And even though I was stuffed, my companion ordered the Creme Brulee for dessert.  Two spoons.  What a treat.  I think I missed my calling.  I should have been a food critic.  haha...

Regardless, I look forward to joining my neighbor again for a dinner and conversation.  Hopefully he will be open to coming to my place for a home cooked dinner and wine.  And more conversation.  And the bonus is, he won't have to drive and pay for parking.  haha...(insert winking face here. )  Until next time...elizinashe

Yowzers!

What Just Happened? 

Jesus, what a week.  Can I have a 'do over'?  

Retrospect can be pretty powerful.  So can actions and words.  I'm still learning about the cause and effect of that.  It's a life long learning process don't ya think?  At least I hope so.  

Good intentions can backfire.  And when it happens, it's usually pretty crappy.  And I hate the aftermath of it all.  It's an uncomfortable feeling and trying to "right the wrongs" makes it worse sometimes.  I wish there was a handbook for these kind of things.  

There is some hope along the way...and time will eventually heal all things.  I just hate the waiting part.  I'm still learning about that part too.  Guess I need to forgive myself and keep moving forward.  

Okay, I'm done.  I will embrace this past week as a growing experience and just "let it go".  I had seen a bumper sticker earlier this week on my way to work which sums up a lot.  It said "Let Go and Let God".  Think I'm going to put this in his hands now.  No need to carry an unnecessary burden, right?  Until next time...elizinashe.

Music

Yep, This is Mine....

I love music.  I pretty much grew up with it as a kid.  My mother taught piano lessons in the afternoon to school aged kids, plus she played herself so I always had that influence.  I don't remember listening to much rock n roll as they say because my parents didn't play the radio that much.  I do remember listening to John Denver, Willie Nelson and some classical stuff.  Unfortunately, I had suffered through Handel's "The Messiah" twice as a kid.  Ugh...not my style of music not to mention it's a three hour gig of people singing stuff that makes your ears hurt.  At least that is my memory of it.  Never again.  

As I got older, I started to listen to the radio more.  We had a really cool rock station.  KISR it was...I could do without the morning talk, but the music back then was pretty cool.  I remember calling in for requests at a very young age.  My two favorites were The Eagles "Hotel California" and ABBA's "Dancing Queen".  Quite a bit of variety for a 6-7 year old don't ya think? 

Then MTV happened.  Wow...now that was amazing!  All these weird videos and "alternative" English bands.  I was hooked.  I wasn't much of a metal head as they say.  I liked the weird groups.  And the hair.  Oh geeze...the hair was big and the makeup outlandish.  I loved it.  Instead of buying clothes and shoes with my allowance, to which I did on occasion, I bought a new tape.  Yes folks, we're talking about the good old days of cassette tapes.  Who cares about clothes?  I needed music!  And then I moved on to CDs.  And lots of them.  I can't even begin to tell you how many I have.  All I know is that I had tons of them during my move.  And I love each and every one.  I will spare you all the different types of genres I have..but..let's just say it's pretty diverse.  

Loved REM!

High school was heavily influenced by REM and The Cure, to which my parents didn't understand why some man would have unkempt black hair and smeared red lipstick.  But that was a good schitck to make the band noticeable.  REM was a great "college band" that wrote good music and seemed to connect with the collage age crowd.  Road trips always included REM's "Life's Rich Pageant" and The Cure's "Standing on the Beach".  I feel like both of those albums really captured the essence of each band and I knew each song by heart.  And I still do.  Once I went the CD way, those were one of the first two I bought.  Good stuff. 

Oh Robert Smith..how I love Thee...

Nowadays, it's all about "downloading" and iTunes.  I've got to say, I'm pretty proud of myself for not buying/downloading shit tons of music on my music list.  I even stopped buying so many CDs long before the internet way which is a good thing.  It's taken a lot of self control, but really...how much music do I really need?  However, my "to buy" list is always a mile long and constantly growing.  It's just a matter of buying a couple of songs here and there...otherwise, I know I would spend way too much money and way too much time, downloading everything that catches my ear.  But I suppose music is a good thing right?  Who needs new shoes anyway?  elizinashe

Dave is My Man These Days.   Love Him!