Blazing Star

Last Sunday, my husband and I headed up north to the Jennings Environmental Center near Slippery Rock for a guided walk. The occasion was the blooming of the Blazing Star. While not all flowers were blooming yet (they never bloom entirely, but bloom from top to bottom), at least 30 or more people had turned out for the walk. Apparently, they had all read it in the newspaper like we did. There was a lot to learn about glaciers, Ice Age animals, the Massasauga snake, and temperatures on the prairie and how plants and wildlife adapt to them. A breeze kept the air temperatures tolerable, but prevented me from taking many pictures.
After making a stop for ice cream, we headed home and are pretty sure that we'll plant a Blazing Star in our garden next year.

My Travel Bag

When I travel overseas, I need a big tote bag. Nowadays, passengers need to bring along their own food in case the airplane fare is inedible for dietary or other reasons. I, for example, won't touch rock-hard buns or cold-as-ice desserts. So, I bring along cereal bars or a muffin. And then I need to take water, a camera, a cell phone (in case the plane is delayed), an i-pod, a book, money, boarding passes and itineraries and all the other hundred gadgets that make a long day a little less long.
For years and years, I've been taking my trusty tote bag along. It has lots of zippers and other pockets for the above mentioned gadgets. And it has lots of miles on it. In fact, if bags could get frequent flyer miles, my bag should earn me a free flight overseas.
Imagine my surprise when I walked through a sandwich restaurant at Cincinnati Airport and a woman said to me, "I like your bag!" She had the exact same bag I had. Hers was in much better shape than mine, but then mine gets kicked around airplanes a lot more than hers, I bet.
Some day I'll have to buy a new one, but I doubt it will last as long as this one did.

Lost Memories

A depressing aspect of my recent trip to Germany was that my mother didn't recognize me. She seemed convinced that I had a traveling companion, a woman I met on the plane. I was never sure whether she was talking to me or my "companion." She also didn't recognize my friends who came to pick me up.
She is in the early stages of dementia and changes in her memory came on so gradually that no one noticed at first - until I showed up. I also learned that she doesn't drink much and that dehydration can cause dementia. When her doctor returned from vacation I made an appointment for her. Needless to say, her reply was something like, "I'm old. Whatever do I need a doctor for?" Did I mention that she is very, very stubborn?
But I was undeterred and my brother and I took her to the doctor. Now she'll have to see a neurologist in a few weeks (it's vacation time). I'm glad I got the ball rolling after observing my mother all day long and am anxious to hear what the neurologist will find out.

Looking back - Part 2

I have already mentioned that I met many old friends during my recent trip to Germany. We had lost track of each other after school, pursuing our different career and life paths. Most of us married, some have a partner, many have children and others - like me - don't. One chose traveling over having children, having been to every continent except Antarctica. Two of us emigrated to another country. I came to the U.S. and a friend emigrated to Australia. Needless to say, she was not at the reunion.
I also saw members of the club my brother and I belonged to in the late Seventies, early Eighties. We had weekly meetings, often followed by a trip to a dance or guesthouse. I was treasurer of the club for seven years and therefore very involved in our annual ball and other fundraising activities. A core of our club was a folk dance group. We practiced and performed at area festivals and took trips to the United States, Sweden, Hungary, France and any place in between. It was awesome to see so many foreign places at little cost for me since we stayed with host families. The club disbanded eventually when everybody got married and had kids.
Now they are meeting again several times a year for dinner and reminiscences. The Internet helps staying connected between meetings. Somewhere along the way, my friends have become respectable citizens. Two are judges and township council members and another one just got elected to her town's council. Eleven of them turned out to see me, which I take as a great compliment. While we all have had our ups and downs (health problems being at the top of the list), our years together have forged a bond that lasted over decades.
I don't get to do much sightseeing, but my trips to Germany would be a lot less enjoyable if I didn't see my friends.

Looking back

I've returned from Germany a few days ago. It's difficult to sum up my trip in one blog, so I'll break it up.
The best thing about my vacation was reconnecting with old friends. There were some faces that I had not seen since the early 70s and early 80s. Now that their child-rearing years are over, my friends have time to socialize again--and socialize we did. There were two "mini-reunions" from grade school, one from business school, one from a club my brother and I belonged to, and a couple of meetings with individuals. And I saw one friend (we go back to kindergarten, which begins at age 3) four times. Add to that visits to relatives and I can honestly say that I met everybody I wanted to meet. One girlfriend joked, "I'm glad you live in the States. Otherwise I would never see you!" It is gratifying to know that I brought people together, using my visit as an excuse for a meeting. Saying good-bye again so soon was the hardest part.
Another quest was visiting as many Italian ice cafes as possible. My favorite is spaghetti ice. It consists of whipped cream covered with vanilla ice cream pressed through a press, strawberry syrup and grated white chocolate. I skipped the whipped cream for health reasons, but the ice cream itself agreed with me. After I left the cafes probably noticed a dip in their profits. Ah, what would summer in Germany be without outdoor cafes?