I finally came home from work this afternoon to a lovely fall day. There was very little damage to be seen in my neighborhood, and simply by the look of things you would have no idea that one of the biggest storms in history had passed through less than two full days before.
48 Hours Later
I finally came home from work this afternoon to a lovely fall day. There was very little damage to be seen in my neighborhood, and simply by the look of things you would have no idea that one of the biggest storms in history had passed through less than two full days before.
What a Difference a Day Makes
Yesterday at this time...
NYC had a great and functioning subway system.
I was leaving for New Orleans in three days.
My friends' beach community stood between a bay and the Atlantic Ocean.
The subway system...this is the nightmare that those of us in transportation dreaded. If the equipment gets soaked in salt water it doesn't function. There's no estimate when the system will operate again.
I'm not going to New Orleans. I had pretty much decided my heart wasn't into it. It's hard to be care free when you have many cares. Delta sealed my decision when it canceled my flight. I am disappointed, but it's just not the time.
We're not sure about my friends' house, but when you see the photos of the fire at Breezy Point, that's the place I visited two Sundays ago, with the cute street of houses. We are heart-sick.
Thanks for the prayers, affection and concern. They mean the world to all of us in New York.
Beyond Words
This is a quick update from my phone. I'm okay and with my colleagues in Queens. We have food and power, though I'm not sure when I can get home. The beach community I visited last week is now on fire. So much devastation throughout the city. Please pray for us!
Pepe Wishes You a Happy Halloween
Let the Good Times Roll
Last spring my online buddies and I planned our annual fall get-away. We were in Chicago last year and Memphis the year before. This year (hope, hope, hope there will be flights) we leave on Thursday for the town of beignets and coffee...
Pinterest Pumpkinfest 2012
I had hoped to go with a savory pumpkin recipe for my second pumpkin post and I'd hoped to post yesterday. Instead I am going with just about the biggest, yummiest pumpkin sweet I can find in an effort to deflect my desire to buy and eat a package of pumpkin cheesecake cookies. The bag of cookies looks so good and as, the level of stress is running very high right now in Buttercupland, I am posting a big cupcake to assuage my craving. Here's hoping this little ruse works.
My apologies for a delay in posting, but as Hurricane Sandy comes up the east coast my agency goes into high alert mode. We join all-agency conference calls, I write press releases, I field lots of emails and phone calls and I somehow try to squeeze in lunch. My big excursion of today was a trip to the snack store on the first floor of our building for a diet Snapple. I understand that the governor has declared a state of emergency in New York State, but I am making every effort not to declare a state of emergency in Buttercupland. I stopped in at the grocery tonight and the shelves were still full. The only item that appeared to be running low was ice cream sandwiches, of all things. I am stocked up, including foods to bring to the office over the weekend. Yes, it's going to be one of those weekends. I'm fervently praying that Sandy decides to go out to sea and makes her mind up to do so quickly.
Tomorrow is a quick run to the cleaner to pick up my jacket and then to work. My treat for tomorrow is do some blog visiting. I know the thought of that will help get me through the day. You may see some quick updates via my phone in the next few days.
Pinterest Pumpkinfest 2012
It may be because it's still so warm in New York -- haven't pulled out a scrap of wool yet -- that I have been totally neglectful of posting pumpkin recipes. I have been pinning them for at least six weeks, but it just dawned on me that October is racing by and I have yet to post one pumpkin recipe. Making up for lost time, I will be posting my two favorite new pumpkin recipes, tonight and tomorrow. It's hard to pick. I've pinned about twenty recipes this year and of course, I like all of them. This one seems perfect for a warm night. It's cool and creamy and pumpkin!
Hope you're having a perfect pumpkin pie evening!
Buttercup Gets a Lesson in Geography
On the most glorious fall day last Sunday I visited friends at their beach house in Queens. This is primarily a map of Long Island, but if you look to the left the five boroughs of New York City and New Jersey are labeled. Underneath the label for Brooklyn/Queens there is a thin strip of land. We were to the far left on this peninsula. To the south of the peninsula is the Atlantic Ocean and to the north is a bay. There is a great view of Brooklyn and beyond Brooklyn, the tall buildings of Manhattan. I got totally turned around and kept thinking I was looking at Long Island Sound, which is the body of water at the top of the map, and nowhere near where we were.
First Strike at Businessland
I had met a representative from a company that does monetizing at BlogHer and had the link she had sent me. When I went to the link I realized what's being proposed is a lot more serious than my little blog. They asked for three business references and my W9 tax form. This may work later in my blogging life, but not at this time. I then turned to Google AdSense. I was approved immediately and clicked the check off to add ads to my sidebar. Voila! I was now in business.
I hit preview and saw my first two ads at the top of my sidebar. One was for a political candidate and one was for an organization that wasn't one I would choose. Nothing wrong with either, but I have worked hard to keep Buttercupland open to all, with no partisanship. There are enough places to discuss one's political opinions and this is not the place. I clicked and reclicked and the ads disappeared. My dreams of turning Buttercupland to Businessland also disappeared for now. I'd love input from anyone who is monetizing about their experience and also from those who have chosen not to.
On a totally different note, here is my new favorite New York City beach. I'll post more pictures tomorrow.
Secret of the Wings
Please Get the Popcorn...It's Movie Time!
A Halloween Treat...
Leaves for Leontien
Today I am participating in a blog event, Leaves for Leontien. This is to let our our blog buddy, Leontien, who has melanoma, know that she is in our thoughts and prayers. Friends from all over blogland are sending prayers and the beauty of the autumn leaves to Leontien. I am honored to be part of this. Leontien, my prayers and hugs are going out to you. This photo was taken a few years ago at a visit to Hyde Park, Franklin Delano Roosevelt's home in New York State.
If you would like to participate, please visit Leaves for Leontien. Let's show Leontien our love and our prayers.
I'll be back tonight with the winner of the Glitterville giveaway. Yes, two posts in one day, and it's a beautiful fall day in New York City. Autumn hugs and prayers to all of my blog buddies!
(Maybe) When I'm 64!
I am a tremendous fan of the Beatles, and often Beatles' lyrics swirl in my head. Once I entered my sixties "When I'm 64" frequently buzzed in my brain. I was in my teens when I first heard this song and 64 was light years away.
One of the things that's been most in my mind for the last year has been the thought of retiring from my job. When I had my surgery in the spring I was sure that I would retire this fall. I would go back to work for a few months and tidy up some projects and then retire -- Now! As now is coming and going I realized several weeks ago that I had done nothing to retire. I'd made none of the appointments I needed to make. I'd done none of the paperwork and actually had no interest in doing so. It was an astounding realization. I felt better (thankfully!) and I wanted to keep working. I really wasn't minding it at all.
I also realized I had few plans beyond this hazy idea of retiring. Most of it was not knowing how I would feel and how much energy I would have. My surgery was a big hiccup on the road. Not planning isn't like me. Generally I am a good planner and now I've jumped back into making plans. This is probably the best sign of recovery. I bought a theater ticket, made medical appointments and put in for a week of vacation this winter. I'm even thinking of a vacation for next winter (2014!) Anyone interested in Antarctica?
The future can hold many things we can't foresee, but for now imminent retirement is shelved and my next goal is retiring in two years from now..."When I'm 64."
There is no Joy in Mudville
My post on a great visit to the New York City Ballet has been pre-empted by a news flash. Derek Jeter, captain of the Yankees and a favorite ball player in Buttercupland broke his ankle in the twelfth inning of last night's play-off game. Things don't get much sadder in baseball.
Mom, This One's for You
Halloween Glitterville Giveaway
I'm a Halloween fan. Love the pumpkins, love the candy and love the fun dressing up. My dressing up days are long past, but the memories are very dear. We moved when I was seven and had the good fortune to live next door to two girls who became my best childhood friends. Diane was my age and Laurie was a year older. We spent infinite hours together and one of our favorite days was Halloween. The three of us would go out together to collect our treats. It was a different universe then and we safely roamed the two blocks surrounding our houses, without an adult with us. The neighbors knew us and the older kids on the block kept an eye on us, and yes, we had the best time!
At BookExpo I had the wonderful fortune of winning the Glitterville Halloween collection bag pictured above. Glitterville has the most amazing fun holiday and celebration decorations imaginable. This was in June. At the time I thought it would make a great blog giveaway. I put it away and almost forgot I had it until just a few days ago. Happily I remembered it and it's the second of three October giveaways.
The entry rules are simple. Please post who the lucky winning trick-or-treater will be and please be a follower of Buttercup's. Easy Peasy! The contest closes at 11:59 on Tuesday, October 16 and I will post the winner on Wednesday, October 17. I'm so glad I can share my good fortune with the citizens of Buttercupland.
Life in Buttercupland is sweet. This morning's rain turned to a perfect autumn afternoon and I'm feeling a spurt of energy. Here's to autumn in New York and autumn cheer everywhere.
Just the Day for a Cup of Coffee
The grand prize winner is Betty Rubble, who will receive a box of Nescafe Memento, a coupon for a bottle of natural bliss and a coffee cup coaster. Susie, Saturday Night Fever, Kendrah and Kathy Pease will be receiving a coupon for a bottle of natural bliss. I'm having trouble linking to the posts, but I will be emailing this evening to get everyone's address. Thanks, all, for leaving your comments. I've found some great new blogs and am so appreciative of everyone visiting Buttercupland. This was the first October giveaway and there will be two more this month. I will post the next one tomorrow -- another yummy giveaway! -- and I hope there will be lots of visitors.
Please stop by and visit A Rural Journal for the weekly Sunday Best photographs. I will be adding a favorite phone of mine for this week and it's a wonderful group of bloggers.
Happy 100th Sweet Goo Goo Cluster
Yours Sweetly!
As of yesterday afternoon this looked like a quiet, but fun weekend. Tomorrow I planned to be at services in the morning and see a movie with my friend, Mary, later in the day. My plan for Sunday was to get a pedicure -- using the gift certificate I won at BlogHer -- read the NY Times and go blog visiting. In between there is the usual laundry and grocery shopping and cooking for the week. Then I saw a note on facebook that one of my all-time favorite confections was celebrating its 100th anniversary in New York City tomorrow afternoon. I'm still going to go to services and see a movie with Mary, but tomorrow afternoon is a sweet fun celebration.
I'm omitting the name of the candy until tomorrow when I post pictures, but I am so excited to celebrate my favorite Nashville food find. No names yet, but can anyone guess this venerable and terrific Tennessee candy? No prize, but the winner gets a special mention on tomorrow's blog post.
I'd Like to be Your
No-Spending October
In January I was horrified at the state of my apartment. There was too much stuff. I made a conscious decision to buy nothing that wasn't immediately useful and to clear out all the things that had accumulated over the holiday season. I loved my no-spending January, and followed it with low-spending February. I did well until my health issues began in April and both no-spending and decluttering went on the back burner to focus on surgery and recovery.
I am still in a recovery mode -- I will be seeing a rehabilitation physician in two weeks -- but I am back to working full-time and being much less conscious of how I spend money. Though my thoughts in the summer were very much turned to retiring from my job, in the last few weeks I've put those thoughts aside for the next few months and plan to work indefinitely. As I get back to a much more routine life I've also thought of another no-spending month, especially to get my apartment neater and more organized before Thanksgiving, Chanukah and Christmas.
My only planned purchase for this month is a new printer cartridge. I do want to have one of my winter jackets spruced up -- it's missing a snap and needs cleaning -- but that saves the price of a new jacket. My boots are good from two years ago and I bought new shoes in the summer. I have shampoo, toothpaste and dish soap and if I run out of conditioner, it's time to use the samples I've accumulated.
My goals -- I'm going to prune a dozen books from my library, donate two bags of clothes and shred two bags of paper. I also want to once again go through drawers and closet and find what's no longer wearable. There's nothing like public accountability and I will report back here on my efforts on November 1.
I'm taking the motto at the top of this post as my motto for the month and focus in many ways on what's important. Hugs and good wishes, dear friends, for October!