Emergency Surgery 101
Surprise hernia surgery present, Stanley the Gonk This week we made the executive decision to cook a big pot of soup to last us most of the week. It’s been over a decade of dinners and we have never opted to rely on left-overs. On Tuesday morning, hubby sent me a text that he developed bouts of nausea and excruciating stomach pain. He was convinced he had food poisoning. Within the hour he was convinced that it was appendicitis…thanks Dr Google! Inguinal hernia, source Within minutes of that message, he informed me that he had left work an…
An artist statement...
It has been over 2 decades since I penned my first/last artist statement. But the time is at hand. I love the idea of truth and sharing my truth. This is it, in about 500 words: Born in the eastern Caribbean leeward island nation of Antigua and Barbuda, I was predicted to become a doctor or engineer by my dad. Having moved to the US to finish primary school, I found that alongside an affinity for programming, maths, and literature, I possessed a passion for drawing. Eight-year-old Simone exclaimed “I shall be an artist” in response to learnin…
Good Fare Revisited
I trekked to Camden Town and revisited my favorite Italian restaurant, just off the high street. The joint was jumping at 3pm! Before I get to the food, I must say that in the borough of Camden there are more package places (FedEx, mailboxes etc.) than in previous visits...likewise Mexican restaurants about (but none of them seem to have any customers still...it's interesting because I have met more south American people here this time, and zero Spaniards. Another pleasant surprise is the abundance of eco/bike/human-powered delivery ser…
Grad-School Second and Third Thoughts...
When school started in August, I scrambled to cancel everything I had planned for the fall and early winter. On this list were monthly sound bath sessions with a couple beloved clients, one-off sound bath sessions with brand new clients (schedule months before) , a weekly sound meditation class, that I had contracted to teach at a local university, a handful of routine (and not so routine) medical appointments that I'd scheduled months earlier, visiting family and friends (alongside that is an imperative to visit with an old acquaintance …
We 2 DINKS...
Our DINK Philosophy My husband and I met and fell in love before learning the full depth of our dreams, goals and desires; as it should be. When the romantic dust settled, we learned that we both saw a child-free, non-car, living-within-the-means existence as the way to go. He's 20+ years into his profession and comfortable with his financial place in the world. I am 5+ years in to my professional life and content with mine as well. We've chosen to live in an urban setting where we can walk or bike to food, entertainment, w…
Kojo Talks Bout Single Folks Today!!!
Unmarried and Childless by Choice Selfish or Sensational The URL to catch this conversation is: http://thekojonnamdishow.org/shows/2015-04-27/spinster (seriously). Kate Bolick, author of the book "Spinster: Making A Life of One's Own." PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE For the first time in history, more than half of American adults are single, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. While single men are often lauded as “bachelors,” single women are sometimes derided as “spinsters” or “old maids.” We talk with people livin…
Productivity: There's an App for That
Actually, there isn’t. Image Source : Owl ToDo List by BoyGirlParty, www.etsy.com/listing/61988820/owl-to-do-list-notepad-yellow-by Building my weekly to-to list has never been a chore. As I’m the first person in the office, I take 30 minutes on Monday of each week to compile, audit, and edit my list before moving on to the next 60 minutes of social media management, then the next 60 minutes of research, then a snack, then an afternoon of graphic design, or trainings, or trouble shooting various software, etc. before my bike ride home…
No Impact Week's Impact
Yesterday, the most beautiful fall Sunday in history, I spent the day with family and friends. I didn’t text, surf, or blog on that day of reflection. I took a break from it all. Today, I want to talk about the impact of No Impact Week on me. In facing this week I tried to live each challenge for the full seven days, counting my garbage, recycling what I could, eating locally sourced food, conserving water, reflecting on my personal impact on my community and the larger world. This has been an eye-opening week: This time last week I w…
Simple Pleasures
It's no big secret that hubby and I generally travel by bicycle. However, when the weather turns cool, we make a trip out to the wilds of suburbia on the local Light Rail system. This Saturday excursion allow us to shop in a couple large department stores, eat at chain restaurants, and mix with the people we'd never mix with otherwise. It's pretty traumatic so we limit this outing to three times a year, or so. The best part of our mini-shopping spree is the opening ceremony; a cup of coffee and possibly a dessert at the Caribo…
How I Know I Chose the Best One...
...we share everything and he'll eat the things the freak me out--like blood pudding...
Best Restaurants: Our top 5 Faves
If you know anything about our DINK lifestyle, you’ll know that we love to dine out regularly. In town, we tend to frequent the same restaurants because we love the food, ambiance, and service. These places make us feel comfortable, have decent wine and competitive prices. Here’s our personal short list of the Best Restaurants in Baltimore, and maybe an honorable mention: City Café is one of the places where we fell in love (there are about a dozen such places). We tend to frequent this midtown mainstay in the warmer months; when w…
DINK-iest Cities in The Union
Listening to WAMU a couple weeks ago, I caught this story: Washington, DC was recently outed as the No. 3 in a list of the 14 Best U.S. Cities for Child-Free Living in the real estate blog, Estately . Do these findings really support the notion that D.C. is a hub for couples without kids? Um,yeah. Where there's smoke, there's fire. Just over 17% percent of DC residents are under the age of 18, according to the most recent Census data. That's a full 6.1 percentage points below the national average. Estately's list is b…
Added to the List: Little Green
Walter Mosley is one of the 20/21st century's great mystery writers. I picked up one of his Easy Rawlings paperbacks at the Baltimore Book Thing four years ago, and got hooked. In the last Easy book, Mosley plunged the colorful protagonist over a cliff to his apparent death. In shock I read this on a flight returning from Costa Rica; it crushed me! Mr. Mosley surprised me again by giving me a new Easy Rawlings book to get lost in this fall--Little Green. I'm so excited. In a recent interview on PBS, he read a bit from the opening of …
Knowing When to say Yes
I recently read a blog post on idealist.org about saying “No” without committing career suicide. It’s a good read. Check it out. Today I want to talk about the opposite side of that coin: When faced with the chance to say no, weigh your options and see if you have a better reason to say YES. In a previous job I never had the choice to say yes or no to office social events; company picnics, birthdays, baby showers, and the like. Attendance to all such events was mandatory for those in my department. This came from the VP in charge …
Pinterest may be my new favorite thing
Just found this fantastic outfit on Pinterest--as I was looking for a hairstyle for the wedding when I came across this cute outfit on a board. I've not yet made any conscious efforts at color-blocking (I'm still on patterns, but this look is so clean and fresh, I may want to try it out later this year. Fantastic! Source: collectiveforusall.tumblr.com via Maria on Pinterest
Our D.I.N.K. Philosophy
My partner and I met and fell in love before learning the full depth of our dreams, goals and desires; as it should be. When the romantic dust settled, we had time to talk we learned that we both saw a child-free, non-car, living-within-the-means existence as the way to go. He's 20+ years into his profession and comfortable with his financial place in the world. I am 5+ years in to my professional life and content with mine as well. We've chosen to live in an urban setting where we can walk or bike to food, entertainment, work, and…
listening to : Nina Simone
I love music. This week, I've been listening to Nina Simone 's funky 1965 classic " See Line Woman " One of her many classic gems! Nina Simone - See Line Woman
living a glamorous life . . . it's what you make it
The public radio recently touched upon the topic of childhood obesity, through the lens of family activity and lifestyle. Late in the segment, they interviewed a woman who chose a lifestyle that many in the USA don't follow. This is the chosen lifestyle in my house. In my home we've found the key to living a healthy and sustainable life: Lose the Car: I got rid of my car in 2005 and my husband-to-be got rid of his over 2 decades ago. We walk to lunch, brunch, and museums on the weekends and have a joint car share membership for t…
hair of the year : afros for everybody
Natural hair is making a comeback. Around the world, women are embracing their kinks, curls, texture. Today, I bid a long-awaited welcome back to the afro. These women in America are making it work: Beautiful!
10 Things About Me
1. I'm an admitted shopaholic, but I try to temper that with making charitable donations . Yes I know, it's apples to oranges. 2. My bike is my primary means of transport 3. I recycle all the paper that crosses by doorstep 4. I aspire to get a green thumb 5. I'm in LOVE with elegant graphic design 6. I prefer ginger cookies to chocolate 7. My boyfriend is my best friend 8. I love my job and can't imagine doing anything else 9. I want to know more 10. I enjoy helping others
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