weekly photo challenge: in the background

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Oman, postaweek2013, United States of America, weekly photo challenge

Saturday, May 25:  Friday’s WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge is In the Background: The places that we pass through day after day, or even once in a lifetime, leave in their small way, echoes and traces of themselves upon us. But so often when taking self portraits or pictures of friends, the places themselves become a soft blurred mush of indistinct semi-nothingness, the limelight stolen by our smiling faces. In today’s challenge, let’s turn the tables. Take a picture of yourself or someone else as a shadow, a reflection, or a lesser part of a scene, making the background, or — as in the example above — the foreground, the center of attention.

I’m not sure I really “get this” challenge, but here are a couple of attempts.  Adam, with his mouth watering, is the blurry background with the tofu sandwich as the center of attention.

there’s Adam, all blurry in the background, mouth watering over his vegan sandwich

In this one, taken at the Sahab Hotel on Jebel Akhdar, the blurry background of the Sahab is shown upside down and in the foreground, in the glass of wine.

The Sahab Hotel in the background, and again in the foreground, upside down in the glass of beer

Alex is in the background, covered completely by the glass, but you can see his face in the foreground in the glass of beer

And finally, in this picture of a vintage shop window in Carytown, Richmond, Virginia, it’s hard to tell the background from the foreground.

Vintage Shop window in Richmond, Virginia

And finally, in Dubai, UAE, the Burj al Arab in a mirror, though we’re still in the foreground!

Us in the mirror with the Burj Al Arab in the background

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sunday post: mother’s day

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Life, Sunday Post

Sunday, May 12:  Today is Mother’s Day in the USA, and Jake has given us a challenge to post something in honor of mothers everywhere (Jakesprinter’s Sunday Post: Mother’s Day).  He writes: Mother’s Day is a celebration honoring mothers and motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society. It is celebrated on various days in many parts of the world, most commonly in March or May.

Here are some mothers I’ve encountered in my travels.

a mother and her son in Pokhara, Nepal

A mother bathes her child in Bhaktapur, Nepal

a mother and her children at the Lalibela Saturday market in Ethiopia

Indian mothers at the Lotus Temple in Delhi, India

my Korean friend Julie and her two children

And finally, in honor of my mother, who died over 10 years ago: Happy Mother’s Day!

My father and mother and their four children (one was still to come!)

travel theme: beaches

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travel theme

Saturday, May 11: Ailsa’s Travel Theme for this week is Beaches. Here are some beaches I’ve encountered in my travels.

Let’s start at the beginning.  Here is the beach of my childhood, on the York River in Yorktown, Virginia.  I spent many of my teenage years hanging out with my friends on this beach.

Yorktown Beach with the York River Bridge in the background. This is my hometown.

In general, I prefer deserted, quiet, peaceful and unpopulated beaches, NOT beaches packed with people and umbrellas and chairs and tents and inner tubes like Guryongpo Beach near Pohang, South Korea or Patong Beach in Phuket, Thailand.  Most beaches in South Korea are crowded, as Korea is a tiny country with a huge population of 48 million people.  Haeundae Beach in Busan is nice enough in early April, when this picture was taken, but it’s usually quite crowded.

the crowded Guryongpo Beach near Pohang, South Korea

another crowded beach in Phuket, Thailand

Haeundae Beach in Busan, South Korea

It’s not so bad if the beach is set up with mostly EMPTY beach chairs and umbrellas, like this beach in Plakias, Crete, Greece.  At least it’s on the Mediterranean, and what could be better than that?

Plakias Beach, Crete, Greece

Plakias Beach in Crete, Greece

Sometimes it’s nice to hang out at a hotel beach, like this beach at Shangri-La Resort near Muscat, Oman. It has a huge pool and a lazy river, so you can dip in the fresh water and wash off the salt and sand from time to time.

Beach at the Shangri-la Resort near Muscat, Oman

Beach at the Shangri-la Resort near Muscat, Oman

Some beaches in Oman are quite deserted or are used mainly by fishermen.  Every time I’ve been to these beaches, they’ve been so extremely hot, I don’t find them enjoyable.  Some of the beaches are so deserted they’re used only by campers.

As Sifah Beach near Muscat, Oman

Omani fisherman at Al Musanaah Beach, Oman

Seashells on the beach at Al Musanaah in Oman

a deserted beach where people camp on the east coast of Oman

This beach on the Dead Sea in Jordan is quite small, and it’s really impossible to swim in the water because of the high salt content.  No matter what you do, you end up in a position like you are sitting in an armchair, with your arms, legs and head floating on the water’s surface.  Only your rear end sinks in the water.

beach at the Dead Sea in Jordan

Some beaches are just little strips of sand situated on a lake shore, like this beach at Lake Langano, Ethiopia.

a small beach at Lake Langano, Ethiopia

Luckily, there are some picture-perfect beaches like Sangju “Silver Sand” Beach in South Korea.

Sangju “Silver Sand” Beach in South Korea

Sangju “Silver Sand” Beach, South Korea

To see more beaches, check out Where’s my backpack? Travel Theme: Beaches.

happy birthday to sarah!

Tags

Life, United States of America, Virginia

Friday, April 26:  Today is my daughter Sarah’s 29th birthday!  I wish I could be there for this special day, but since I can’t, I will have to do a lot of making up for lost time when I return home.

Sarah works as a waitress at Joe’s Inn in Richmond, Virginia while also attending school at Virginia Commonwealth University.  She lives in a row house in Richmond’s Fan District with two close friends and her dog named Bagel.  She’s a wonderful writer and wants to write for a living one day.  She’s got a great sense of humor and a sharp wit.  In high school she loved drama and she played the part of Alice in Wonderland in a school production.  She also has run a half-marathon and a number of 10k runs.  She loves healthy food, wearing dresses, and collecting cute things for her house.  We enjoy going out together to eat at Richmond’s many great restaurants and going shopping at her favorite stores, including Target, anthropologie and Urban Outfitters. We also enjoy toasting each other with glasses of red wine. 🙂

Happy birthday to my little red-headed munchkin.  All my love goes to her on this special day.

Click on any of the pictures below for a full-sized slide show.

Sarah in Richmond 2011

Sarah’s high school graduation picture

Sarah riding a fire engine??

Sarah in Richmond

Sarah, Alex and Adam in Hilton Head, South Caroline

Sarah playing the part of Alice in Wonderland in high school

Sarah and Adam

Me with Sarah at Christmas 2009

Sarah and her snowman

Sarah and her bubble lawnmower in Richmond, Virginia

Sarah

Sarah in 2009

Sarah at Christmas

having a picnic

Sarah, Adam and Alex

Sarah changes her name to “Sal” at summer camp

Sarah at her Nana’s house

Sarah plays dress up

Sarah rides a pink shoe

at her Nana’s house at Christmas

Sarah in her Nana’s garden

Mike gives Sarah flowers after finishing his triathlon

Sarah in 2009

Sarah as a baby

Sarah in Richmond 2011

Me with Sarah in Richmond, Viriginia Around 1987

Alex, Sarah and Adam

Me and Sarah drinking some wine in Richmond

Sarah as flower girl at Mike’s and my wedding

Sarah gets flowers after her performance of Alice in Wonderland

weekly photo challenge: change

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postaweek2013, United States of America, weekly photo challenge

Sunday, April 14: I have been struggling for three days now to come up with something for the WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge: Change.  I first thought I would post a picture of my children and how they have changed, but I realized that would take hundreds of pictures.  Then I thought of posting about how my life has changed since I decided to live and work abroad, and still, that would have taken too many pictures.  I thought of posting one photo of me in my graduation gown accepting my Master of Arts degree. Or at my first wedding.  Or my second.  Or, I could have posted pictures of the change of seasons, flowers growing, leaves dying, snow falling.  The possibilities were endless.

The problem, of course, is that EVERYTHING CHANGES.  Every minute of every day, change happens.

Finally, after spending hours looking through my archives for something that would inspire me, I decided to show something that is ALWAYS changing but NEVER changing.  This is my friendship with four women, Louise, Martha, Rosie and Charlene, that has spanned decades.  Four of us met in 6th grade, in 1966, when my family moved to Yorktown, Virginia and I attended Yorktown Elementary School for the first time.  I moved from the “big city” of Newport News to the rural Yorktown, and it was a rude awakening.  I arrived on the scene wearing a plaid dress with layers of crinoline, delicate lace-bordered ankle socks and patent leather shoes.  The girls I met at Yorktown Elementary wore A-line skirts, button-down shirts, athletic socks and tennis shoes.  My friend Louise always tells me she can never get that picture out of her mind of me arriving in that dress with those black shiny shoes.

Louise & Martha have been my friends since that time.  I was elected to be Vice-President of the SCA (Student Cooperative Association) in 6th grade, and Rosie was elected President.

I’m on the left as Vice-President of the SCA, and Rosie, second from the left, was President.

When we merged with another elementary school in 7th grade, at Yorktown Intermediate School, we met Charlene.   Though I had known Rosie ever since I arrived in 6th grade, our friendship didn’t solidify until we were in 10th grade, at York High School.  Since then, the five of us have been good friends.

Yearbook staff at York High School: bottom row: Louise, Rosie, me, Martha, and Charlene standing back, second from the right.

Rosie, Josh, and Charlene in 1973

Rosie, Martha, me and Louise at a party in 1973

me, Rosie, Louise and Charlene at Lake Gaston, 1973

partying in 1974. I’m the one with my mouth open. Rosie’s sitting beside me

Building pyramids at York High School, 1974. Me top tier on right, Charlene and Louise middle tier on left.

Charlene, Mickey Mouse and Rosie at Disney World, Spring 1974

me, Donald Duck and Louise at Disney World in Florida on our senior class trip

Louise and Gary, me and Paul in 1974

We have each constantly changed: married, divorced, had children, had grandchildren (except me), and moved to different parts of the country and the world.

At Charlene’s bachelorette party: Rosie, Louise, Charlene and me

me and Louise (and our mothers) at Charlene’s wedding

Our bodies have gotten older and chubbier.  Yet.  Despite all the changes we have gone through, one thing has remained constant: our friendship.  Despite 40 years, we are still best of friends.  Whenever we get together, it as if nothing has changed, even though, in reality, EVERYTHING has changed.

Louise, me and Charlene in New York City

Rosie and Charlene in New York City

me, Rosie, Charlene and Louise in Yorktown, September 2007

Louise, Charlene, me and Rosie in Yorktown in February 2009

Rosie, Louise, Martha and me in Yorktown in April 2009

Charlene, Rosie and me in Yorktown in June 2009

Rosie, me and Martha at Rosie’s brother’s house in August 2009

Charlene, me, Rosie and Martha in May 2011

Louise, Rosie, me, Martha and Charlene in May 2011

Martha, me and Rosie in front, May 2011 at a York High School reunion. (Standing in front of a port-a-potty, not the best choice for a photo!)

I know without a doubt that our friendship will be something we’ll have for the rest of our lives.  🙂

happy birthday, alex!

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Birthdays, United States of America

Sunday, March 10:  Today is my oldest son Alex’s 22nd birthday.  He is a kind and gentle soul who loves bananas, difficult gymnastic moves, history and heavy metal. I wish I was home with him today to celebrate his birthday, but since I’m not I thought I would do a little photo collage to celebrate his big day.

Click on any of the images below to see a full-sized slide show.

Alex and Adam at Stribling Apple Orchard in Virginia

Adam and Alex with long curly hair

Pebbles and BamBam, aka Elizabeth and Alex

Alex

Alex and his best friend Elizabeth

Alex at Deep Creek Lake in Maryland

Alex and I play Ticket to Ride in Daegu, South Korea

Alex tries on hats at Home Plus in Daegu, South Korea

Alex at the Boseong Tea Plantations in South Korea

Alex does a handstand at Swallowtail Falls in Maryland

Alex signs autographs in Chojeon Elementary School, South Korea

Alex in Jeongju, South Korea

Alex in Jeongju, South Korea

Alex at Maisan, South Korea

Alex does a handstand at Al Alam Palace in Muscat

Alex does one of his gymnastic move at Al Alam Palace

Alex at the Silk Road in Muscat

Alex in Daegu, South Korea

Alex and me at Camp Al Areesh

Alex in Ibra

Alex at Camp Al Areesh in Sharqiya

Alex at Wadi Shab

Alex at Kargeen in Muscat

Alex on the left, Adam on the right at Mutrah Souq

Alex and his gymnastic bars in the backyard of our Oakton, VA house

Alex does his gymnastic moves

Happy birthday, to my sweet darling Alex!  All my love ~ Mom ❤

feeling sick in nizwa ~ and a “brothers & sisters” final season marathon!

Saturday, February 2:  On Tuesday, January 29, I started feeling all achy and tired and sick to my stomach.  It almost felt like I imagine Chronic Fatigue Syndrome feels, with stomach troubles thrown in for good measure.  It came upon me by degrees on Tuesday and lingered Wednesday morning.  Wednesday afternoon, I thought I was feeling better and then WHAM!  By Wednesday night, I went progressively downhill and was totally wiped out.  Every cubic inch of my body was aching, I had a throbbing headache and piercing neck pain, and my stomach was in total disarray. Utter chaos. After having read about the diseases one could catch in Nepal, I had a temporary panic attack that I had contracted spinal meningitis!! Or Amoebic dysentery.  However, there was no fever, so I reassured myself that meningitis could not be the problem.  I treated myself by barely eating anything, staying in my pajamas from Wednesday through Friday night, and drinking lots of fluids to avert dehydration.

I rarely EVER get sick.  However, I have to say, in some bizarre way, I relished having an excuse to stay in my pajamas and in a reclining position all weekend.  I have been continually on the go since January 1, when Mike and the boys arrived, until I returned home from Nepal on January 25, where I was constantly cold and uncomfortable.  I think my body just decided to put a stop to all my shenanigans and knock me out for a few days.

Since I barely felt like doing ANYTHING, I just lay on the couch and alternately read a new book of Nepali short stories I bought in Kathmandu AND watched episode after episode of the 5th and final season of Brothers and Sisters, which I had the boys bring me from the U.S.

Sometimes those Walkers got on my nerves!! Big time!!  It frustrated, even infuriated me, the way they put every other person who came into their lives on hold, ALWAYS, as they attended to family business. Or family crises. I couldn’t understand how beautiful French Luc put up with being constantly ignored and belittled by Sarah. Especially as Luc was FABULOUS!!  And why every relationship Nora had always fell by the wayside as she sacrificed her own happiness for her self-centered children.  And why there was nothing sacred, or private, between any of them.

Overall, I loved their messy but loving family, the family that stuck together throughout all tribulations.  My family of origin, the Birdsong clan, used to be like this.  I can see, in the Walker family, how we used to be back in the day, before my brother died in 1988 and my mother died in 2002.  My brothers and sisters were, and still are, the most fun-loving, most intelligent and witty people I have ever known. I enjoyed our family gatherings immensely.  I felt at one time that I was the glue that held us together after my mom died, but then my sister took over holding us together as my family fell apart.  My other sister lives in California and doesn’t like to fly, so it’s been years since I’ve seen her.  And my brother has gone missing from our lives because he’s going through struggles of his own.  We barely ever see or talk to each other any more.

The Walker family in Brothers and Sisters kept growing and changing and morphing into this motley and crazy collection of people.  Yet.  I found, as I watched episode after episode, I didn’t want to tear myself away.  I felt like I was part of their family.  Surely Nora Walker would welcome me into her home; after all, she called her dead husband’s mistress, Holly, a “friend;” she accepted basically any misfit who tumbled into the midst of their family.  I found myself getting teary-eyed as Kevin and Scotty tried to cobble together their own family from a foster-home-adopted Olivia to their surrogate-conceived son Daniel, during the last several episodes. As Kitty finally got pregnant and decided to try to have the baby despite the risk to her own health.  As Luc reconciled with his mother.  And as Sarah and Luc celebrated the wedding of a lifetime.

me, Joan, my mom, Rob, Stephanie, and Dad over 20 years ago!

I found myself missing my extended family.  Of course, I miss my own family, especially my children, but what I missed while watching this marathon was my bigger family.  In all their craziness and uniqueness.  And their messiness.

At the end, at Sarah and Luc’s wedding, Nora Walker quoted from George Eliot:

“It’s never too late to be what you might have been.”

Maybe we can’t be the Walkers, but I believe it’s never too late to be the Birdsongs we might have been.

the boys arrive safely in oman

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Oman

Tuesday, January 1:  After a 23 hour trip from Washington (2 hour early check-in, 16 hour flight, 3 hour layover in Frankfurt, and 2 hour transition through immigration to my Nizwa flat), my 3 boys arrive safely tonight in Oman.  They’re smiling and ebullient.  We hug and hug and I shift my mind to our new paradigm, being together as a family in a foreign land.  The boys are relaxed and confident; they’ve been here before and they’re pros at this.  Adam tells me he’s happy to be back:  “I feel like this is my second home!”  Their dad looks exhausted.  He tells me he’s only slept 5 hours since Sunday because he’s had so many loose ends at home to tie up: work, packing, taking care of our dog, household stuff.

Mike, Adam & Alex arrive at Seeb International Airport in Muscat

I try to see my world through their eyes.  I remember the first time I came to Oman in September of 2011.  At that time, I arrived late at night.  It was sweltering and humid even at 11 p.m. at night.  Everything seemed surreal, with the haze of humidity in the air, the long curvaceous road to Nizwa in the dark, the mountains sporadically looming up beside the road like solid alien sentries.  I know for Mike, it must seem this way, dreamlike and bewildering. Though it’s not hot now on January nights, there is a haze of dust in the air that lends a strange aura to the landscape.  On the other hand, I sense a whole different experience for Alex and Adam.  They’re comfortable; they feel a kinship with this place.  They carry a memory of our shared experience and now they look forward to sharing it with their dad.  As do I.

Our drive to Nizwa is filled with reminiscences about last January, when Alex and Adam were here with me.  They talk about where they want to go again while here: “Wadi Shab!  Camp Al Areesh!  We should make Dad drive through the Empty Quarter to Salalah!!”  There’s a debate about the treacherous drive over the Hajar Mountains: Alex felt car-sick and uncomfortable the whole time and doesn’t want to do it (this might have to do with the fact that I almost killed all three of us on that drive!). I tell them there is plenty to do, and they can do anything they want.  I tell them our plan for the weekend.  They’re enthusiastic to embark on our new adventure.

They point out the Omanis parked along the highway, sitting on the ground in the dark, hanging out with their friends.  Adam says, “That’s so cool.  I want to do that!”

I love having them here.  It will be fun to see Oman anew with their enthusiastic eyes.  Stay tuned for the coming adventure. 🙂

RESOLVED 2013!!!

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DPchallenge

Tuesday, January 1, 2013:  Thirteen is usually my lucky number, so I’m hoping this will be a good year.  Despite my mixed success at achieving my resolutions in 2012, I am always hopeful that if I aim high, I at least will achieve SOMETHING!!  I’m sure you all have figured out what a Type A personality I am… sorry!  This I cannot escape…

“It was amazing how you could get so far from where you’d planned, and yet find it was exactly were you needed to be.”
― Sarah Dessen, What Happened to Goodbye

Tada!! My resolutions for 2013:

1) Finances:  PAY DOWN MY DEBTS substantially (…by 50%). Save $6,000 for trip this summer to Spain, Portugal (& Morocco?).  Don’t spend money on anything other than travel unless it’s absolutely essential!

2) Health & Fitness: Exercise 4x/week!  Walk, do The Firm aerobics weight training video, or ride the exercise bike at the gym.  Bring healthy lunches to work.  DRINK WATER!!!  Keep track of my eating on myfitnesspal.  Lose 13 pounds and KEEP IT OFF!! (Current weight 66 kg/145 lb; goal: 60 kg/132 lb.) When I get back to the USA, ride my bike outdoors at least 2x/week.

I’ve had a membership at this gym for 3 months and have only used it twice!!

3) Writing: FINISH AND PUBLISH MY NOVEL.  THIS IS MY NUMBER ONE PRIORITY FOR 2013!! (I finally read it in its entirety in November & December of  2012, and after 10 years of not looking at it, I couldn’t put it down!!  I was surprised that I actually wrote it… 🙂 )  Revise it, cutting out 150 pages and fixing all the problems.  Within the year, send it to an editor and then to publishers.  If no one will publish it, self-publish!! Once this is done, begin my next project.

Blogging: Continue to write my Oman blog until I leave Oman at the end of June. Commit to a 52 week blogging project: one contemplative photo with accompanying journal entry per week.  On this one day a week, I should do some spiritual type of walk, pilgrimage or meditation, journal about it and post an accompanying photo.  I’ll aim to do it on Fridays while in Oman and on Sundays once I return to the U.S.

Finish my Cairo blog (what I can remember from 5 1/2 years ago!).  Edit my Korea blog to show more and larger photos.  I have some beautiful photos from Korea, but the blog doesn’t showcase them well.

“The new year stands before us, like a chapter in a book, waiting to be written. We can help write that story by setting goals.”
― Melody Beattie, The Language of Letting Go

4) Photography: Learn to use the manual settings on my camera and experiment with photos.  Get a photo editing program and play around with photos.  Take a photography class when I return to the USA in the fall.

5) Language and Knowledge Goals: Try to read a bit of the Quran each night to gain an understanding of Islamic culture.  Study Arabic: Complete Level One of the Rosetta Stone Arabic.  Review Chapters 1-12 in Al-Kitab.  Study 1/2 hour 5 nights/week.  I’m serious.  Really.  (I didn’t do this all last year, and really, I’m not that motivated to do it this year, especially since I will be leaving the Arab world at the end of June. However, I’ll still keep it on the back burner as a goal I’d like to achieve.)

6) Travel goals:  IF we get a semester break in January, go to either Sri Lanka, Kathmandu, Zanzibar, Morocco or Prague.  Go to Spain, Portugal & Morocco (a kind of Moorish adventure) this summer for 5 weeks.

In Oman: I only have 6 more months in Oman, so my goal is to see everything of significance that I haven’t seen. On the list are: Ar Rustaq, Ashkara Beach, Little Snake Canyon, the Oryx Sanctuary, Persian steps of Izki, the Damaniyat Islands (snorkeling), Sumail, Wadi Ghul and Al Khitaym, Safari Desert Camp in Wahiba Sands, Sinkhole Park (in Hawiyat Najm Park), Wadi Abreieen, Wadi Dayqah Dam, and Barr al Hickman beaches.  Visit the Chedi for a day at the pool.  I’d also like to see the Arabian horses in Adam.

In the region: Visit my new friends in Abu Dhabi.  Take a weekend trip to Al Ayn in UAE.  If we have a long weekend, visit the Islamic museum in Doha, Qatar.

Back in the USA: Take weekend trips around Virginia, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland and Tennessee.  Try to save for a trip to California to visit my sister and Jayne over the Christmas break.

One thing I really want to do on my travels is to linger and be more observant.  I want my trips to be a kind of spiritual pilgrimage, where I am totally present to each moment.  I want to be aware, keep a journal rich in details and take time with photos, learning about and experimenting with the manual settings on my camera.

THIS IS THE FUN STUFF THAT I CAN EASILY “ACCOMPLISH.”

7) Family goals: Have my husband Mike and my two sons, Alex (21) and Adam (20), come to visit me in Oman for 11 days. (They arrive January 1!)  Try to talk online more regularly with the boys and Sarah in the next 6 months.  When I return home, spend quality time with each of my family members individually and together as a family.

When I return home to the USA, spend time with my daughter Sarah (28) in Richmond.  If Mike is open to it, work on our marriage. Reconnect with my father, my sisters and my brother.

8) Social: Cultivate new friendships with great discernment. Cultivate at least one new friendship in Oman and one in Virginia. Make more of an effort to talk to my close friends regularly.  Invite someone somewhere once a month, either to come by for dinner or a movie, or to go on an outing. Reconnect with my old friends in northern Virginia and Washington.  Plan a get together with my old high school friends.  Attend the fall York High School gathering.

Finally, DON’T attend a single social gathering unless my heart is really into it.  Forget about making an appearance unless I REALLY WANT to do so.  And, don’t let any person disturb my peace of mind with his/her criticisms, unsolicited advice or intimidating tactics!  I have fought hard for my independence and self-esteem over the last 5 years.  Guard them relentlessly.

9) Cultural: Visit the museums in Oman that I haven’t seen.  Go to 1 show during the spring at the Royal Opera House.  Get involved in more InterNations activities.  Keep an eye out for other cultural activities.

the Royal Opera House Muscat

When I return to Washington, attend Jazz in the Sculpture Garden on Friday evenings.  Visit the museums and art galleries in Washington.  See good movies in American cinemas!! Find new places to listen to live music. Explore the rich variety of ethnic restaurants in Washington and northern Virginia:-)  CAN’T WAIT FOR THIS!!

me at Jazz in the Sculpture Garden a couple of years ago… 🙂

10) Home sweet home: Move back home to Virginia, after my Moorish adventure, by early August.  Reacquaint myself.  Settle in.  Learn to see my old home with fresh eyes.

11) Work:  Finish up my job with University of Nizwa by June 26.  Begin working at my new job in the fall semester.  Apply to teach at least one class in international relations (using my hard-earned Master’s degree in International Commerce & Policy) as an adjunct, in addition to ESL classes.  Apply, once again, for a job at USAID or another AID organization.

12) Eliminate at least one bad habit:  SPENDING MONEY on unnecessary things.  Yep.  I keep trying this one. I have high hopes on this for the coming year. 🙂

13) Spirituality: Begin a meditation practice, starting with at least 10 minutes a day.  Read books about Buddhism, pilgrimage, spirituality, along with my other reading. Read The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying.   Start reading books about the Camino de Santiago and prepare to do some kind of pilgrimage in 2014.  Attend some services at Washington National Cathedral.

14) LOVE: Open up my heart.  Invite LOVE to find me…♥♥♥♥♥♥  (Still remaining hopeful on this.)

NOTE TO SELF:  You have the day ahead at your disposal.  Don’t think in terms too great.  Think about only what you can accomplish in a day.

Here are some books on my reading list for this year:

Vagabonding: An Uncommon Guide to the Art of Long Term World Travel
Nixon under the Bodhi Tree and other works of Buddhist Fiction
Bohemian Manifesto: a Field Guide to Living on the Edge
Cutting for Stone ~ Abraham Varghese
Video Night in Kathmandu ~ Pico Iyer
Daring to Trust: Opening Ourselves to Real Love & Intimacy
The Language of Flowers
Driving over Lemons: An Optimist in Andalucia
The Memory of Running
Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail ~ Cheryl Strayed
Midnight’s Children ~ Salman Rushdie
The Road to Santiago ~ Kathryn Harrison
The Pilgrimage ~ Paul Coelho
Any good books I can find about spiritual awakening, being present to the moment, meditation or pilgrimage. I’m sure I will add many more to this list in the year ahead.

____________________________

The WordPress Writing Challenge: New Year’s Resolutions (Doompocalypse Redux), asks us to do the following:

Tell us about the three things you’d most like to change about your life, and make a bold, I-don’t-care-who-knows-it-because-there’s-a-meteor-a-comin’ assertion to the world that you are going to get these changes made. And that you’ll have at least started making them happen by March. When, erm, you’re probably going to wind up as dust.

Since I already wrote all the resolutions above, I will add that, of my 13 resolutions, the THREE things I’d MOST like to change by March, are: 1) Finances; 2) Health & fitness; and 3) Spirituality.  I also need to make substantial progress on my novel, revising at least 12 of my 50 chapters. See above for more details. 🙂

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL MY BLOG READERS! 🙂

“I love stupid plans.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The Queen of Attolia

weekly photo challenge: my 2012 in pictures

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postaweek2012, weekly photo challenge

Friday, December 28: Inspired by Robin at Life in the Bogs: Time in a bottle, and by the WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge, I put together a collage of my life during 2012.  All in all, it was an amazing year.  It started with getting a new flat in Nizwa, at the Abu Nooh Building, in January.  Soon after, my sons came to visit me in Oman for nearly a month.  We explored from Muscat to Nizwa, and even to far-flung Salalah.  It was a great experience for them and helped us establish a special bond of shared experience.

Developing a close friendship with Mario was one of the highlights of my year.  We both love photography and exploring Oman, so we have spent countless weekend days gallivanting around the country.  We have driven through flooded wadis to Wadi Dam, through Wadi Mistal to Wekan, across the Hajar Mountains through Balad Sayt, to Muscat and other places along the coast.  We went on a botched trip to Masirah Island, and ended up in Sur instead.  And we’ve taken too many walks to count on our favorite Jebel Akhdar, ending with a shared bottle of wine at the Sahab.

In August, I went back to the USA for a month, and had a fabulous time reconnecting with my family and home in Virginia.  I spent precious time in Richmond with my daughter Sarah, and our family spent a week at Deep Creek Lake in Maryland. I loved this time together and resolved that I need to be back home with my family.

I returned home to Oman for one day, repacked, and then spent two amazing weeks in Greece, exploring Athens, Crete, Santorini, Meteora, Delphi and Epidaurus (greek wanderings).  On my birthday, October 25, I flew for the Eid holiday to Ethiopia, where I spent a week visiting my friend Ed.  We explored Addis Ababa, Lalibela and Lake Langano (african meanderings {and musings}).  For the Islamic holiday weekend, I took a short trip to Abu Dhabi, about a 5 1/2 hour drive from Nizwa.

Click on any image below for a full-sized slide show.

a green garden at one of the Meteora monasteries in Greece

the Acroplis, Athens, Greece

Kayaks at Deep Creek Lake, MD

happy times at the Sahab Hotel, Jebel Akhdar, Oman

life vests and canoe paddles at our cabin at Deep Creek Lake, Maryland

plantations at Birkat al Mouz, Oman

the Bahla Mosque with the gardens in front ~ Oman

Oia, Santorini, Greece

Malcolm & Sandy at the Turkish restaurant in NIzwa, Oman

onions in Balad Sayt, Oman

Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi, UAE

the rock-hewn masterpiece church of Bet Giyorgis in Lalibela, Ethiopia

St. George & the Dragon: the patron saint of Ethiopia

“Come forth into the light of things, let nature be your teacher.”~ William Wordsworth (Wadi Muyadin, Oman)

rock-hewn church at Lalibela, Ethiopia

my sons chillin’ at Ziyara in Muscat, Oman

my wanna-be “garden room” with its fake plants (the one on the left is real)… 🙂 Nizwa, Oman

a hand reprimanding a goat in the Hajar Mountains, Oman

the fisherman haul in the nets, Al Musanah, Oman

Jebel Akhdar, Oman

Me on the edge of Bet Giyogis, Lalibela, Ethiopia

Alex in front and Adam in back in the BIG boulder-strewn Wadi Tanuf, Oman

Franciscan Monastery, Athens, Greece

following the endless steps to the top of Wekan’s gardens in Oman

a little ruined room in Birkat al Mouz, Oman

a chess game by the sea in Sohar, Oman

Alex and Adam the intrepid explorers

seashells by the seashore, Al Musanah, Oman

asleep at work ~ Nizwa souq, Oman

the incense burner on the hill at al riyam park in Muscat, Oman

Santorini, Greece

Alex stands on the edge of a falaj in Wadi Shab

near Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, USA (Alex, me and Adam)

“The river delights to lift us free, if only we dare to let go. Our true work is this voyage, this adventure.” ~ Richard Bach, Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah (Oman)

an Omani boy at Nizwa souq

the young man from Balad Sayt, Adam & Alex in Oman.

Oia, Santorini, Greece

Mario and our bottle of wine, Sahab Hotel, Oman

colorful fishing boats in Sur, Oman

swingin’ in the trees at wadi darba, Salalah, Omant

up & up the steps through the garden at Wekan, Oman

the sheikh zayed bin sultan al-nahyan mosque in abu dhabi, uae

the boys at the entrance to wadi bani khalid in oman

Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, USA

the 21 Bronze Age tombs of Al Ayn with the jagged, comb-shaped Jebel Misht behind ~ Oman

Joanna Lumley and me at the Radisson Blu in Muscat, Oman

Omani men at Nizwa souq in Oman

drinking coconut juice at a Salalah fruit stand ~ Oman

the village and the gardens of Balad Sayt in Oman

Bailey near Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, USA

The village of Al Ayn on Jebel Akhdar

Life is an enigma. Fira, Santorini, Greece

some intrepid Omanis dare to cross the wadi of all wadis near Ibri, Oman

boarding the dhow in Musandam, Oman

Oia, Santorini, Greece

stylized palm trees on a hill in Oman

fruits of labor in Birkat al Mouz, Oman

passageways through old Bahla, Oman

Entoto Raguel & Elias Church in Addis Ababa

Mohammed, Mario and Atrium Torres Merlot at the Sahab Hotel, Jebel Akhdar, Oman

the entrance to the University of Nizwa, Oman

FRUIT!!!! Salalah, Oman

the Acropolis, Athens, Greece

Me at Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, USA

me on top of the ridge overlooking Khor an Najd in Musandam, Oman

painted walls in one of the ruined houses at Wadi Bani Habib, Jebel Akhdar, Oman

me at the Agora, Athens, Greece

a rainbow of flowers and the Sultan’s palace, Muscat, Oman

Oia, Santorini, Greece

Royal Opera House Muscat

one boy’s grandfather and his sardine catch of the day in Al Musanah, Oman

Sarah and me in Richmond, VA

Thuraya, Shayma, me, Badr and Saud in January, University of Nizwa, Oman

Franciscan Monastery, Washington, DC

a camel in Wadi Darbat, Salalah, Oman

Oia, Santorini, Greece

my favorite “sport” ~ hiking anywhere scenic and gorgeous… 🙂 Juniper Tree, Jebel Akhdar, Oman

to infinity and beyond! Al Bustan Hotel in Muscat, Oman

My two “Omani” boys at Mutrah Souq, Oman

pomegranate at Wekan, Oman

Street scene in Athens, Greece

my living room in the Abu Nooh Building, Nizwa, Oman

Alx and Adam at Deep Creek Lake, MD

Adam & Alex in the Empty Quarter, Oman

Street scene in Athens, Greece

part of the Door Series (?) by Abdul Majeed Karooh at Bait Muzna Gallery, Oman

Alex, Ahmed and Adam stand on the falaj going down to Wadi Tiwi in Oman

I love the dramatic setting of this mosque in Salalah, Oman

my excellent student, Badr, on the left and his unknown friend driving near Birkat al Mouz, Oman

Adam at Deep Creek Lake, MD

more goodies at Mutrah souq in Muscat, Oman

Time in a Bottle ~ Jim Croce

If I could make days last forever
If words could make wishes come true
I’d save every day like a treasure and then,
Again, I would spend them with you

But there never seems to be enough time
To do the things you want to do
Once you find them
I’ve looked around enough to know
That you’re the one I want to go
Through time with

Though I have no “you” that I can “go through time with,” no romance and no prospects of romance, there is still never enough time to do the things I want to do, once I find them.  I still like to save every day like a treasure, in my memory.  Though it’s been a solitary year, it hasn’t often been a lonely one.

I’ve learned to be content by myself, and though I want to reconcile with my husband, I don’t know if that will happen.  If not, I will keep my heart open for whatever the universe flings in my direction.  I know I will be returning home to Virginia in mid-summer of 2013.  So after this year, my living abroad days will be on hiatus, at least for some time.  What comes next in my life, I don’t know, but I’m ready for a new adventure.