I am surprised that I haven't written a blog on BookMooch before now. I am not one to swoon over websites. Sure there are cool sites that do cool things but it's not really a big deal for me. But when I was introduced to BookMooch, I swooned, and I am still swooning.
BookMooch is a book trading site. I know that all my Quaker friends are going to say, well, I know another book trading site, it's called the LIBRARY! But for book fanatics like me, well, some books I just have to own, especially books about language, linguistics, etc. Besides, being that I'm a mom of two young boys, I rarely can get through a book fast enough to get it back to the library on time. So BookMooch is perfect for me. You enter the site, sign up, create a list of books that you have that you want to trade, then make a list of books that you want to "mooch" and you're off. After you have sent a book, your can mooch a book, or request it. They will also send you an email when one of your books is available, or if you're like me, you can obsessively check your wishlist every hour or so to see when a book you want comes available. Usually people will mail the book to you within a week. There was a spell there where I was receiving one or two books every day. (P.S. I'm also helping to keep the USPS alive, doing my good deed for the country.)
So now I have nearly an entire shelf of books that I have mooched. It's such a wonderful treat for me. Some people have drugs, others sex, others shopping, I have books (and tea, and travel). So I'd like to tell you about one of these books.
Recently, on NPR (where else?) I heard a story on a book about the 100 most influential books of American literature, not the best, the most influential. I was not surprised to hear that Huckleberry Finn was one, but I was a bit surprised to hear that Uncle Tom's Cabin was on the list. So I mooched it and I have begun reading it. Although I am not yet done, I would like to write a review of it.
When I began reading Uncle Tom's Cabin, I was expecting to see some dialect in the dialog. Reading dialect is always slow going, at least for me, so I got somewhat discouraged. But I forged ahead. I was feeling a bit like I just wanted to read the book and get it over with so I could say that I had read it and I would understand all those obscure references to the book that at that time were flying right over my head. I was feeling that it was a bit of a self-imposed chore.
After the first night, I was mildly intrigued with Eliza and her predicament (which I shall not reveal, if you wanna know, you gotta read it yerself) and so knew that I would read more the next day, although I was still not sure that I would finish the book. As I met more characters, especially the Quakers, I found that I wanted to know more. Those Quakers sure were good people (lol) and the way they were represented in the book made me glad to count myself among them.
Well, now I am about a third of the way through the book which tops out at over 400 pages, but I know that I will read to the very last word. The characters are very vividly drawn and the way she depicts daily life is fascinating. I feel like I am really there, sitting in the drawing rooms or in the slave shacks. I can hear it, feel it, breathe it, and live it through Stowe's description. Although the writing is dated (it's over 150 years old after all) I am finding it much easier to read than I expected. It isn't all presented in dialect.
I already understand most of those obscure references that I used to miss and I am astonished to find out how much this book has contributed to our cultural heritage, in linguistic references, character references (Uncle Tom, Simon Legree etc) and historically. The writer of the 100 most influential works stated that Uncle Tom's Cabin did a tremendous amount to push forward the cause of abolition, that it spread the word around the country and the world of the pathetic condition and treatment of slaves in the states and had this book not been written, it could have taken much longer for abolition to occur.
If for no other reason, the book is worth reading to better understand our country at this dire time in its history.
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Happy New Year!!!
Why haven't I said that before now? I guess because I felt like everything was on hold. I had been out of work for a year and I just felt like life couldn't move forward until I had a job or something of the sort. I am glad to say that 2010 may now proceed. I have gotten not one, but three jobs, sort of.
It all started when my counselor asked if I would consider cleaning someone's house. Now that was not the job that I was hoping to get but I had reached a point where I felt that I could not be too proud to clean someone's toilet. I had not earned a cent in a year and I had run out of savings. So I said "Sure, why not?" and was given a number. I arranged to go to the woman's house, explained my situation and was told that I would be paid "handsomely" (isn't that a funny way to say "well") to clean her nearly immaculate little house. Well, I did and I was. In fact, she said that she thought I was working too hard but I explained that I only knew one way to clean a house and that was well. (Just because I don't do it at home, doesn't mean I don't know how to). So I clean her house twice a month. I've done worse work.
The second job is to work part time as an assistant to a friend of mine. She works for a textbook publisher. I do mostly data entry and research. It's only about five hours per week but it is a little something and although it reduces my unemployment insurance payment, it makes me feel like I am earning my money.
The third job is working as a contractor for my old boss at IBM, of all places. Well, I'm not really as surprised as everyone else. I knew that there was a good chance that I could contract for them. My old boss had told me about it in the first place. It's also not really what I want to do, but it will tide me over until something better comes along, maybe right here in Tucson. And if not in Tucson, at least somewhere where I would like to live in California.
So, when it rains it pours, as they say. Now I can get back to some sort of "normal" life and we can stop talking about moving imminently. It's not that I don't want to move, it's just that I want to move when I want to move, not when I have to move.
Thanks again for all your support. You have all really helped me get through this last year, especially thanks to the folks at Pima Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends.... You guys are Absolutely Awesome!!!
It all started when my counselor asked if I would consider cleaning someone's house. Now that was not the job that I was hoping to get but I had reached a point where I felt that I could not be too proud to clean someone's toilet. I had not earned a cent in a year and I had run out of savings. So I said "Sure, why not?" and was given a number. I arranged to go to the woman's house, explained my situation and was told that I would be paid "handsomely" (isn't that a funny way to say "well") to clean her nearly immaculate little house. Well, I did and I was. In fact, she said that she thought I was working too hard but I explained that I only knew one way to clean a house and that was well. (Just because I don't do it at home, doesn't mean I don't know how to). So I clean her house twice a month. I've done worse work.
The second job is to work part time as an assistant to a friend of mine. She works for a textbook publisher. I do mostly data entry and research. It's only about five hours per week but it is a little something and although it reduces my unemployment insurance payment, it makes me feel like I am earning my money.
The third job is working as a contractor for my old boss at IBM, of all places. Well, I'm not really as surprised as everyone else. I knew that there was a good chance that I could contract for them. My old boss had told me about it in the first place. It's also not really what I want to do, but it will tide me over until something better comes along, maybe right here in Tucson. And if not in Tucson, at least somewhere where I would like to live in California.
So, when it rains it pours, as they say. Now I can get back to some sort of "normal" life and we can stop talking about moving imminently. It's not that I don't want to move, it's just that I want to move when I want to move, not when I have to move.
Thanks again for all your support. You have all really helped me get through this last year, especially thanks to the folks at Pima Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends.... You guys are Absolutely Awesome!!!
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Long absence
So the new year has finally begun and I was hoping for some better luck. On the 21st, it will be one year that I have been looking for a job, with a major gap in the middle. Nonetheless, I feel like I have been looking for a job for a year and that's hard on the morale.
I have been thinking a lot about what my options are. I have not wanted to leave Arizona because the boys' dad lives here, likes it here, and doesn't want to leave. But I am running out of money and I am running out of options. Part of me thinks that I should just suck it up and do anything. At this point I would, but I can't find "anything" probably because I am overqualified. The other part of me wants to do what I know, what I am reasonably good at, and what I am used to doing. I must be getting old because I never would have said this ten years ago.
Anyway, aside from the job search, I have to decide what I am going to do to make the money stretch. I have already eliminated as many extra expenses as I can, although I may be missing something, like canceling the cell phone. I am now thinking about the house and feeling like, if I can't figure out some alternative, I may have to put it on the market. I was hoping to hold on to it a bit longer because I am just not ready to pack all my stuff up and move to a studio apartment but that may be my best alternative.
I am so amazed to find myself in this situation and I thank God every day that I have a support network around me that won't let me and the boys end up on the streets. Nonetheless, there are people who have been out of work less time than I have who are getting their food at the community food bank. Sure glad that I have supported them all these years.
So I am once again applying for jobs in Arizona, California and Oregon. If nothing pops up soon, I will expand that search to include Washington, Nevada, Utah and Colorado. After that, the whole continental US will be up for grabs. I hate the thought of moving farther away from family and friends, but we can always come back. We just have to get back on our feet.
Please keep myself and the boys in your hearts and minds, think of us every day, and send all your positive energy (and prayers if you believe in that) our way. Thank you and peace to all.
I have been thinking a lot about what my options are. I have not wanted to leave Arizona because the boys' dad lives here, likes it here, and doesn't want to leave. But I am running out of money and I am running out of options. Part of me thinks that I should just suck it up and do anything. At this point I would, but I can't find "anything" probably because I am overqualified. The other part of me wants to do what I know, what I am reasonably good at, and what I am used to doing. I must be getting old because I never would have said this ten years ago.
Anyway, aside from the job search, I have to decide what I am going to do to make the money stretch. I have already eliminated as many extra expenses as I can, although I may be missing something, like canceling the cell phone. I am now thinking about the house and feeling like, if I can't figure out some alternative, I may have to put it on the market. I was hoping to hold on to it a bit longer because I am just not ready to pack all my stuff up and move to a studio apartment but that may be my best alternative.
I am so amazed to find myself in this situation and I thank God every day that I have a support network around me that won't let me and the boys end up on the streets. Nonetheless, there are people who have been out of work less time than I have who are getting their food at the community food bank. Sure glad that I have supported them all these years.
So I am once again applying for jobs in Arizona, California and Oregon. If nothing pops up soon, I will expand that search to include Washington, Nevada, Utah and Colorado. After that, the whole continental US will be up for grabs. I hate the thought of moving farther away from family and friends, but we can always come back. We just have to get back on our feet.
Please keep myself and the boys in your hearts and minds, think of us every day, and send all your positive energy (and prayers if you believe in that) our way. Thank you and peace to all.
Saturday, December 5, 2009
A healthcare letter to my state senator
Erin Cizina
7222 E Calle los Arboles
Tucson, AZ 85750
5 December 2009
Senator John Kyl
6840 North Oracle Road, Suite 150
Tucson, Arizona 85704
Dear Senator Kyl,
I was laid off from my job as a technical writer at IBM in February 2009 and I have been paying for COBRA since then. For many months, my COBRA payments were reduced, for three months by IBM and then for 6 month by the government. Now I am responsible for the entire amount.
Currently, I am receiving $795/month in unemployment. In order to cut costs, my sons’ father was able to put one of the boys on his health insurance but I need to cover the costs for the other son. The insurance costs are going to be $755/month beginning in January 2010. Unfortunately, neither my son nor I are eligible for other insurance due to the fact that we both have pre-existing conditions. I have had two occurrences of breast cancer and my son has pulmonary arterial stenosis, an extremely miniscule hole in an artery that pumps blood to his lungs. His doctors have not seen him in two years and state that this should NEVER affect his health. My son is not eligible for the state funded children’s health insurance program because he must be without insurance for three months in order to qualify. How could a state require that a 4-year old child be without insurance before they can qualify for the state funded insurance? How could a country like ours allow children to go without insurance for even one day? That could be the day that they are involved in a life-threatening car accident.
It makes me so sad to be in this situation, for my children’s sake. I have honestly thought of moving to Canada, as many others have, just so that I don’t have to worry about my children’s access to healthcare.
Please do whatever you can to pass the healthcare bill. It won’t come soon enough for us, but maybe it will come soon enough for someone else.
Sincerely,
Erin Still Cizina
7222 E Calle los Arboles
Tucson, AZ 85750
5 December 2009
Senator John Kyl
6840 North Oracle Road, Suite 150
Tucson, Arizona 85704
Dear Senator Kyl,
I was laid off from my job as a technical writer at IBM in February 2009 and I have been paying for COBRA since then. For many months, my COBRA payments were reduced, for three months by IBM and then for 6 month by the government. Now I am responsible for the entire amount.
Currently, I am receiving $795/month in unemployment. In order to cut costs, my sons’ father was able to put one of the boys on his health insurance but I need to cover the costs for the other son. The insurance costs are going to be $755/month beginning in January 2010. Unfortunately, neither my son nor I are eligible for other insurance due to the fact that we both have pre-existing conditions. I have had two occurrences of breast cancer and my son has pulmonary arterial stenosis, an extremely miniscule hole in an artery that pumps blood to his lungs. His doctors have not seen him in two years and state that this should NEVER affect his health. My son is not eligible for the state funded children’s health insurance program because he must be without insurance for three months in order to qualify. How could a state require that a 4-year old child be without insurance before they can qualify for the state funded insurance? How could a country like ours allow children to go without insurance for even one day? That could be the day that they are involved in a life-threatening car accident.
It makes me so sad to be in this situation, for my children’s sake. I have honestly thought of moving to Canada, as many others have, just so that I don’t have to worry about my children’s access to healthcare.
Please do whatever you can to pass the healthcare bill. It won’t come soon enough for us, but maybe it will come soon enough for someone else.
Sincerely,
Erin Still Cizina
Monday, November 16, 2009
Belated update
It has now been almost 5 weeks since my surgery. I am quite belated in blogging mainly due to the fact that I spent almost a month recovering, too tired to work online at all. Then as soon as I was better, my schedule was chock-a-block full of appointments and events. I have been so busy that I haven't even had time to nap.
My mom came to stay with me before I went in for surgery. It was so reassuring to have her here to care for me. She cooked, cleaned, mended and organized. She was available for me at all times and prevented me from living on PB&J and cereal for a month. In fact, her cooking was quite good and I think I even gained a bit of weight, which I am now struggling to drop. It was especially good to have her here the day I took one of my kitties, Po, in to the vet. Quite unexpectedly, the vet informed me that Po had what he thought was a tumor and that he would recommend an exploratory surgery. He called me an hour later to tell me that there was cancer all through his system and he recommended that we put him down immediately. I did that and was broken hearted. Po was only just over a year old.
My father joined us for the last several days of my mom's stay. It was good to see him since he had recently suffered a fall and four broken ribs. I have missed him a lot and it was good to have him here in person. We read, did puzzles and drank tea all together. We had a lot of quiet time which was just what I needed. I was really sad to see them go.
A few days after their departure, my younger sister, Tracy came to visit. She stayed for 4 days. I was feeling more active so we went shopping, went to the All Souls Procession and enjoyed a dinner out with the boys and Oscar. She is such a sweetheart. I got rather grumpy and mopey during her last day here and it wasn't until after she left that I realized that I was grumpy because I dreaded her departure and going to miss her and all my family so much. I was distraught over the lack of plans for the holidays and I fell into quite a funk.
Then just a few days later, my oldest sister, Faith, called to say that she would like to visit in a few weeks. That brought my spirits up and when Tracy called to say that the family wanted to pitch in to pay for our airfare to California for the holidays, I finally exited my depression with such happiness over the upcoming holidays. It was a relief too, because I knew that the boys would really enjoy our visit.
I am now doing well. I have almost complete mobility and except for my continuing tiredness, I feel well. All the scars have healed and I am adjusting to my new body. It is not that bad, actually. The scars are relatively minor, except for a blackness to the scar on the left due to some dye that was injected during surgery. Apparently, that won't go away. I also have some severe skin damage from the radiation which will make any future reconstruction a rather complicated affair.
I am not feeling inclined to pursue reconstruction at this time so will get some prostheses. They will make my clothes fit better and will allow me to wear most anything. At this point, I am rather limited in my clothing choices and that can be rather depressing.
I hope to be better about updating my blog in the future but since I am still looking for a job, I am rather bogged down with that. I am also taking a course in International Leadership online and I must keep up with the assignments. Nonetheless, I do appreciate your comments and feedback and I feel so fortunate to have so many people concerned for me and the boys' welfare. Thank you all so much. I love hearing from you.
P.S. Please excuse me for my formal language but I am multi-tasking, working on my blog while watching Sherlock Holmes. It seems that the show has had a bit of an effect on my writing.
My mom came to stay with me before I went in for surgery. It was so reassuring to have her here to care for me. She cooked, cleaned, mended and organized. She was available for me at all times and prevented me from living on PB&J and cereal for a month. In fact, her cooking was quite good and I think I even gained a bit of weight, which I am now struggling to drop. It was especially good to have her here the day I took one of my kitties, Po, in to the vet. Quite unexpectedly, the vet informed me that Po had what he thought was a tumor and that he would recommend an exploratory surgery. He called me an hour later to tell me that there was cancer all through his system and he recommended that we put him down immediately. I did that and was broken hearted. Po was only just over a year old.
My father joined us for the last several days of my mom's stay. It was good to see him since he had recently suffered a fall and four broken ribs. I have missed him a lot and it was good to have him here in person. We read, did puzzles and drank tea all together. We had a lot of quiet time which was just what I needed. I was really sad to see them go.
A few days after their departure, my younger sister, Tracy came to visit. She stayed for 4 days. I was feeling more active so we went shopping, went to the All Souls Procession and enjoyed a dinner out with the boys and Oscar. She is such a sweetheart. I got rather grumpy and mopey during her last day here and it wasn't until after she left that I realized that I was grumpy because I dreaded her departure and going to miss her and all my family so much. I was distraught over the lack of plans for the holidays and I fell into quite a funk.
Then just a few days later, my oldest sister, Faith, called to say that she would like to visit in a few weeks. That brought my spirits up and when Tracy called to say that the family wanted to pitch in to pay for our airfare to California for the holidays, I finally exited my depression with such happiness over the upcoming holidays. It was a relief too, because I knew that the boys would really enjoy our visit.
I am now doing well. I have almost complete mobility and except for my continuing tiredness, I feel well. All the scars have healed and I am adjusting to my new body. It is not that bad, actually. The scars are relatively minor, except for a blackness to the scar on the left due to some dye that was injected during surgery. Apparently, that won't go away. I also have some severe skin damage from the radiation which will make any future reconstruction a rather complicated affair.
I am not feeling inclined to pursue reconstruction at this time so will get some prostheses. They will make my clothes fit better and will allow me to wear most anything. At this point, I am rather limited in my clothing choices and that can be rather depressing.
I hope to be better about updating my blog in the future but since I am still looking for a job, I am rather bogged down with that. I am also taking a course in International Leadership online and I must keep up with the assignments. Nonetheless, I do appreciate your comments and feedback and I feel so fortunate to have so many people concerned for me and the boys' welfare. Thank you all so much. I love hearing from you.
P.S. Please excuse me for my formal language but I am multi-tasking, working on my blog while watching Sherlock Holmes. It seems that the show has had a bit of an effect on my writing.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
My emails from Spain (better late than never)
Hi All
I have arrived safely and I am enjoying my time in Cordoba. I had quite a trip to get here but it was worth it. I am staying in a cute little boutique hotel right in the center of the Juderia or Jewish district. My room is crooked and tiny and blue. There is an old wooden door that looks like it´s about 500 years old. They keep the AC on all the time so I had to use extra blankets but I love it. I wandered around a bit last night and then tried to get to bed at a reasonable time. It was about 10:30. I had a bit of trouble sleeping but finally dropped off only to wake up at 1:00 PM the next day to a phone call. Alison called assuming that I had been up and about for several hours. I was horrified. My plans for the day were shot.
Actually, it was a good thing. I have spent the day wandering around and getting my bearings. I visited the old synagogue, from the 1300´s and I drank some fresh orange juice. I am going to write some postcards tonight and have a late and light dinner. I can´t seem to eat much now after not eating hardly anything for 4 days (2 days of the flu and 2 days in transit).
Tomorrow I will visit some more sights and then meet Alison at our new hotel, which is a bit more luxurious. That´s good because I really want to taka a bath and this hotel only has showers. I would imagine in a building as old as it is, I´m lucky that it has indoor bathrooms!
Well, I should get out and enjoy the evening. That´s when all the tour groups leave and the souvenir shops close and it´s much quieter.
Love to all,
Erin
Hi All
We finally arrived at the Parador after a rather round-about trip to Sevilla and then 18 km back to Carmona then a hike up a hill. But it is lovely here. The view is marvelous, so much open space and the beautiful pool at the bottom of the hill. The building is quite spectacular, an old alcazar from a long time ago, not sure when.
Yesterday we spent wandering around the Jewish district and we visited the Mexauita or mosque. It was quite impressive. It had been a church but when the moors came they converted it to a mosque. Then when the moors were ousted, it was converted back to a church. It does look rather odd to walk in to what was obviously an islamic structure and to find altars and chapels all over the place. There was a beautiful ¨treasure¨there, made of silver, gold-plated silver and gold. It was about 5 feet tall shaped like successive crowns with a figure of St Theresa in the center. They also had the working from the tower clock from 1747. The tilework was quite impressive and the multitudes of columns throughout were kind of dizzying. One area was made up of all frescoes all over the walls and pillars and arches. They were really beautiful, especially with the afternoon light slanting in the windows. That was pretty much all we did that day but it was enough.
The funniest thing happened when we left the last hotel, the Hotel Bailio in Cordoba. When I arrived, a bit before Alison, I told them about her reservation and they showed me to the room. They said that we had been upgraded and I didn´t complain. When I was shown the room, it was amazing. It was huge with beautiful 16th and 17th sentury style frescoes on the walls. It was all a bit garish but amazing nonetheless. The bathroom was all done in black marble and it was so comfortable. I was quite impressed, especially considering the price we were paying. When we went to check out, we were give the price and it was NOT what we had been quoted. We showed her our reservation and she looked into it. In the end, she honored our reservation price even though we had received a TRIPLE upgrade. We paid for a standard room but were given a SUITE!!! Their rooms go in the following order, standard, delux, jr. suite, suite and 3rd floor. Apparently, someone at central reservations upgraded us twice and then the hotel upgraded us when we arrived. Can you imagine? We have no idea how it happened.
Anyway, we went down into Carmona today, walked across town and visited the necropolis, the place where the Romans buried the dead. It was just for the rich and well-known citizens from the 1st and 2nd centuries. There were lots of holes in the ground and doorways and niches where they put the funerary boxes full of ashes. It was quite extensive and although there wasn´t much to look at it was strange to think of people being there in that place with the dead buried underground. It is on the outskirts of town with a view out over the valley. Across the street there is an amphitheater. We didn´t get to see it but it´s not in very good condition.
We also went up in the tower of the city gates and got to see the view of the city. It´s not big but it sure does have a lot of churches and passing one of those churches on teh way back to the Parador, we saw a wedding. The women were really dressed to the nines, not quite in a style that we would consider tasteful,. but it was interesting anyway.
Tomorrow we are off to Sevilla. I´ll write more from there.
Love to all,
Erin
A bit about Sevilla:
We stayed at the most wonderful hotel in Sevilla. It was an old building with 2 courtyards and fountains. There was the bright yellow and blue tile throughout. Our room was another suite. It was lovely and well stocked with free goodies.
We had a ball in Sevilla. We visited the Alcazar which I thought was the best I had seen next to the Alhambra in Granada. The cathedral was the 3rd largest Gothic cathedral in the world after St Peter's and St Paul's. It was kind of bizarre because it was built around the original mosque so it had a lot of pillars and such and there were many altars all over the place but it was fascinating.
We ate a lot of tapas in Sevilla and there were gazillions of good places to eat. We enjoyed the food here so much. But the best part of Sevilla was going to see the Flamenco shows. We went to one early on our last night there and it was for tourists. It was OK but not really satisfying. So we went to a free show later on. It didn't start til 10 and it was jammed but it was really really good, not just for the dancing but especially for the singing, which was remarkable.
Alison left the next day and then I took off for Madrid.
Well, I had a nice few days in Madrid. I got my chocolate con churros and it was delicious. I had it at the most well known chocolate con churros cafe in Madrid. I also went to the oldest restaurant in the world, the Restaurante Gijon. It used to be frequented by Hemingway and even though I was alone it was a wonderful dinner. I drank so much sangria that I staggered back to my hotel.
The next day I went to the Thyssen museum and it took me all day. I didn't even see the whole collection but what I did see what amazing. I am glad that I got to see some art because I was really disappointed to miss the Museo de Bellas Artes in Sevilla. Who ever heard of a museum opening at 2:30 in the afternoon?
The morning that I left the hotel, I saw a real live prostitute. She walked out of a room at 4:45 and was not dressed in business attire. She had on some major stiletto heals. Then she didn't know where the elevator was. I showed her and she walked out of it ahead of me on the ground floor and tried to steal my taxi. The guy at the front desk was pretty rude to her and told her she could go outside and get her own taxi. I bet it really bugs them to have hookers hanging around especially when there are paying guests standing right there.
I sure was glad to get home and I was tired of the airplane. That's going to keep me closer to home in the future. It's just really tough on the body to be in transit for almost 24 hours.
Please forgive any oddities in this posting. I cut and pasted the info from a variety of emails that I sent home while on my trip. But it gives you and idea of what I was up to.
My next posting will be about what I have done since I got home.
Take care and thanks for the thoughts and support.
I have arrived safely and I am enjoying my time in Cordoba. I had quite a trip to get here but it was worth it. I am staying in a cute little boutique hotel right in the center of the Juderia or Jewish district. My room is crooked and tiny and blue. There is an old wooden door that looks like it´s about 500 years old. They keep the AC on all the time so I had to use extra blankets but I love it. I wandered around a bit last night and then tried to get to bed at a reasonable time. It was about 10:30. I had a bit of trouble sleeping but finally dropped off only to wake up at 1:00 PM the next day to a phone call. Alison called assuming that I had been up and about for several hours. I was horrified. My plans for the day were shot.
Actually, it was a good thing. I have spent the day wandering around and getting my bearings. I visited the old synagogue, from the 1300´s and I drank some fresh orange juice. I am going to write some postcards tonight and have a late and light dinner. I can´t seem to eat much now after not eating hardly anything for 4 days (2 days of the flu and 2 days in transit).
Tomorrow I will visit some more sights and then meet Alison at our new hotel, which is a bit more luxurious. That´s good because I really want to taka a bath and this hotel only has showers. I would imagine in a building as old as it is, I´m lucky that it has indoor bathrooms!
Well, I should get out and enjoy the evening. That´s when all the tour groups leave and the souvenir shops close and it´s much quieter.
Love to all,
Erin
Hi All
We finally arrived at the Parador after a rather round-about trip to Sevilla and then 18 km back to Carmona then a hike up a hill. But it is lovely here. The view is marvelous, so much open space and the beautiful pool at the bottom of the hill. The building is quite spectacular, an old alcazar from a long time ago, not sure when.
Yesterday we spent wandering around the Jewish district and we visited the Mexauita or mosque. It was quite impressive. It had been a church but when the moors came they converted it to a mosque. Then when the moors were ousted, it was converted back to a church. It does look rather odd to walk in to what was obviously an islamic structure and to find altars and chapels all over the place. There was a beautiful ¨treasure¨there, made of silver, gold-plated silver and gold. It was about 5 feet tall shaped like successive crowns with a figure of St Theresa in the center. They also had the working from the tower clock from 1747. The tilework was quite impressive and the multitudes of columns throughout were kind of dizzying. One area was made up of all frescoes all over the walls and pillars and arches. They were really beautiful, especially with the afternoon light slanting in the windows. That was pretty much all we did that day but it was enough.
The funniest thing happened when we left the last hotel, the Hotel Bailio in Cordoba. When I arrived, a bit before Alison, I told them about her reservation and they showed me to the room. They said that we had been upgraded and I didn´t complain. When I was shown the room, it was amazing. It was huge with beautiful 16th and 17th sentury style frescoes on the walls. It was all a bit garish but amazing nonetheless. The bathroom was all done in black marble and it was so comfortable. I was quite impressed, especially considering the price we were paying. When we went to check out, we were give the price and it was NOT what we had been quoted. We showed her our reservation and she looked into it. In the end, she honored our reservation price even though we had received a TRIPLE upgrade. We paid for a standard room but were given a SUITE!!! Their rooms go in the following order, standard, delux, jr. suite, suite and 3rd floor. Apparently, someone at central reservations upgraded us twice and then the hotel upgraded us when we arrived. Can you imagine? We have no idea how it happened.
Anyway, we went down into Carmona today, walked across town and visited the necropolis, the place where the Romans buried the dead. It was just for the rich and well-known citizens from the 1st and 2nd centuries. There were lots of holes in the ground and doorways and niches where they put the funerary boxes full of ashes. It was quite extensive and although there wasn´t much to look at it was strange to think of people being there in that place with the dead buried underground. It is on the outskirts of town with a view out over the valley. Across the street there is an amphitheater. We didn´t get to see it but it´s not in very good condition.
We also went up in the tower of the city gates and got to see the view of the city. It´s not big but it sure does have a lot of churches and passing one of those churches on teh way back to the Parador, we saw a wedding. The women were really dressed to the nines, not quite in a style that we would consider tasteful,. but it was interesting anyway.
Tomorrow we are off to Sevilla. I´ll write more from there.
Love to all,
Erin
A bit about Sevilla:
We stayed at the most wonderful hotel in Sevilla. It was an old building with 2 courtyards and fountains. There was the bright yellow and blue tile throughout. Our room was another suite. It was lovely and well stocked with free goodies.
We had a ball in Sevilla. We visited the Alcazar which I thought was the best I had seen next to the Alhambra in Granada. The cathedral was the 3rd largest Gothic cathedral in the world after St Peter's and St Paul's. It was kind of bizarre because it was built around the original mosque so it had a lot of pillars and such and there were many altars all over the place but it was fascinating.
We ate a lot of tapas in Sevilla and there were gazillions of good places to eat. We enjoyed the food here so much. But the best part of Sevilla was going to see the Flamenco shows. We went to one early on our last night there and it was for tourists. It was OK but not really satisfying. So we went to a free show later on. It didn't start til 10 and it was jammed but it was really really good, not just for the dancing but especially for the singing, which was remarkable.
Alison left the next day and then I took off for Madrid.
Well, I had a nice few days in Madrid. I got my chocolate con churros and it was delicious. I had it at the most well known chocolate con churros cafe in Madrid. I also went to the oldest restaurant in the world, the Restaurante Gijon. It used to be frequented by Hemingway and even though I was alone it was a wonderful dinner. I drank so much sangria that I staggered back to my hotel.
The next day I went to the Thyssen museum and it took me all day. I didn't even see the whole collection but what I did see what amazing. I am glad that I got to see some art because I was really disappointed to miss the Museo de Bellas Artes in Sevilla. Who ever heard of a museum opening at 2:30 in the afternoon?
The morning that I left the hotel, I saw a real live prostitute. She walked out of a room at 4:45 and was not dressed in business attire. She had on some major stiletto heals. Then she didn't know where the elevator was. I showed her and she walked out of it ahead of me on the ground floor and tried to steal my taxi. The guy at the front desk was pretty rude to her and told her she could go outside and get her own taxi. I bet it really bugs them to have hookers hanging around especially when there are paying guests standing right there.
I sure was glad to get home and I was tired of the airplane. That's going to keep me closer to home in the future. It's just really tough on the body to be in transit for almost 24 hours.
Please forgive any oddities in this posting. I cut and pasted the info from a variety of emails that I sent home while on my trip. But it gives you and idea of what I was up to.
My next posting will be about what I have done since I got home.
Take care and thanks for the thoughts and support.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
I got results!
It has been ages since I wrote a post but that is simply because I have been coping with an overwhelming lack of energy. Today is the first day that I have felt enough energy to work at the computer rather than take a three hour nap. I completed my radiation treatments last Monday, two days early due to extreme skin irritation. Actually is was burning. My skin was peeling off and blistering so badly that I could not continue. Now, a week later, I am healing and I see a light at the end of the tunnel.
Not only am I healing but I once again have money from my unemployment insurance. The letter that I wrote to Gabrielle Giffords actually got some results. I was so shocked. I mailed the letter on Friday and by the following Tuesday, I had gotten a phone call from someone to whom my letter had been forwarded. She was in charge of working out unemployment insurance problems (I know that this is vague, but that is the way I felt at the time). She asked about my claim and the problems I was having. I told her the story and she said that she would look into it and that a UI rep would get in touch with me and if I did not hear from someone in a few days, I should call her back.
On Friday, she called me and asked if I had heard from UI. I said that I was not at home and could not check my messages. She told me that she spoke to my rep, got my problem worked out and that my payments for the past seven weeks would be in the bank by the next week. And they were!!!!!
When I wrote that letter, I never expected to actually see any results from it. So now I know that if you make a stink, someone just might listen to you. So if you have a gripe or a concern, be sure to let someone know about it. And if you do it in a polite and diplomatic manner, you just might see some change.
Next up, a letter about healthcare, although it is long overdue.
Not only am I healing but I once again have money from my unemployment insurance. The letter that I wrote to Gabrielle Giffords actually got some results. I was so shocked. I mailed the letter on Friday and by the following Tuesday, I had gotten a phone call from someone to whom my letter had been forwarded. She was in charge of working out unemployment insurance problems (I know that this is vague, but that is the way I felt at the time). She asked about my claim and the problems I was having. I told her the story and she said that she would look into it and that a UI rep would get in touch with me and if I did not hear from someone in a few days, I should call her back.
On Friday, she called me and asked if I had heard from UI. I said that I was not at home and could not check my messages. She told me that she spoke to my rep, got my problem worked out and that my payments for the past seven weeks would be in the bank by the next week. And they were!!!!!
When I wrote that letter, I never expected to actually see any results from it. So now I know that if you make a stink, someone just might listen to you. So if you have a gripe or a concern, be sure to let someone know about it. And if you do it in a polite and diplomatic manner, you just might see some change.
Next up, a letter about healthcare, although it is long overdue.
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