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Our last full day in Schengen Europe. Because of this stupid visa we have to leave countries that signed the treaty, which is basically most of the major countries of Europe. I know it is some attempt to control immigration, but really it is unfair to travellers, expecting you to see 16 or more countries in 90 days. So with 89 days down, we headed off to look at the Royal Palace in Palermo. Stopped at the local market area on the way and also found a delightful baroque church, Pieta. Every inch of the interior was decorated, and there was also some interesting inlaid marble murals. The palace has been Norman, Muslim, Spanish and everyone else. Much of it is now the Sicilian parliament, which is an amazing concept in itself. The highlight is the Palatine Chapel, the church of the Kings, a splendid (oh my god I don't think I've ever used that word before) Byzantine mosaic frenzy. Upstairs are the Royal Apartments, though many of the rooms were closed. We then stupidly decided to walk to the Botanic Gardens which turned out to be further than we thought, only to find they cost more than many of the other sites in Sicily. So we got a bus back and cheered ourselves up with gelato and coffee. This didn't cheer our waiter up though, as he hinted to us for a tip as we left. We don't generally tip much anyway, but have done less so in Sicily because of their cover charge, where you pay €1 to €2 per person for the right to sit in their restaurant and give them money. Can you imagine if all small businesses did this, and you had to pay $2 just for going to your local hardware shop? After a rest it was off to a restaurant near the theatre (you can tell we have been travelling a while as I can't be bothered recording the names of every place we ate at any more). It was a nice one too, had a very good pasta and salad there.
Our last morning and we were off early to catch our ferry. We got there just after 7 am and checked in and waited and waited only to find the ferry wasn't even there yet. Even when it did it was another 90 minutes before we finally departed on our way to North Africa. The ferry was very slow, which we had guessed as it takes 10 hours to cover about 100 km. It was pretty boring but sometimes there was an island to watch go past. In fact sometimes the islands seemed to move faster than the ferry. Every few hours it was prayer time on the stairway for the Tunisians on board, some seemed to have a different idea of where Mecca was, but maybe it doesn't apply on the ocean. And so we headed towards the sunset, and the end of our European days. Have enjoyed all the countries we went to. We didn't have long enough for Spain, but we can always go back, and we probably stayed in Malta too long, but overall there's no regrets about how our time in Europe turned out. I'm not even going to pick a highlight. We certainly enjoyed the lifestyle of the French and Spanish, Portugal had a rich history and richer cakes, Sicily was the ultimate for ancient historians, and Malta was quirky and an odd mix of Britain, the middle east and Italy. Everything was cheaper than we expected. 3 months travelling in Australia would have cost us double what we spent in Europe. Of course it still has its tourist traps and rorts, but relative to Australia it's nothing. best thing though was doing it and all with my darling girl, Merrill.
Most people in our age group instantly recognise Marsala as the wine made by Boronia that was liberally added by mum to make meat tastier and a bit fancier.the real Marsala wine was a big money earner in the 19th century for British traders, like the port wine trade in Portugal. The town itself is a busy modern regional centre and an easy day trip from our base in Trapani. We caught the train down which only took half an hour and walked along the waterfront, which looked like Brighton on Botany Bay in Sydney. Actually it was a surprise to see apartments on the waterfront in Sicily. Our destination was the Archaeological Museum, housed in an old British wine warehouse. The collections highlight is the remains of a Carthaginian warship found off the coast of Marsala. Found with the wreck were hundreds of storage pots and urns, ballast rocks, pottery and anchors.. Other treasures of the collection include numerous items grow ancient Marsala, known then as Lilybaeum, and especially a Venus statue dug up not far from the museum. Outside there is a vast overgrown field that was Lilybaeum. Next to the museum is a church that has tombs, mosaics and a well under it. Supposedly the water of the well can give you supernatural powers. We then walked down the main street, passing a Rotary Club conference, a Pommy wedding party, some Carthaginian walls and some nice churches and palazzos. Had a quick snack then back on the train to Trapani. Had pizzas at a family pizza place on the waterfront. We have been very mystified by how much pizzas vary from restaurant to restaurant in Sicily. There is no standard and they have been everything from rubbish to superb. After dinner went to the trendy bar we had seen before with lots of odd shaped couches and giant lanterns. Had cocktails and we're in awe of the procession of people doing the passagiata. It looked like the e tire town was walking by, even after midnight. Next day was a designated rest day so did our usual travel research, diaries, sleeping and channel surfing on cable TV. Even ate at home, omelette and biriyani. Our plans for the next day were to go to the beach at San Vito de Capo which is supposed to be nice but couldn't be bothered getting a bus that far, so went to the local beach instead which was pretty good. For dinner had a fantastic pizza at Popitone, one of the best so far. Next day went to the station for the train to Palermo. Have really enjoyed Trapani, it's a relaxed seaside place and a great base for day trips. Unfortunately the transport system let us down and we discovered we had somehow missed the connecting rail bus for the train to Palermo. So once again we had to forego our train tickets and jump on a bus instead, which we probably should have done in the first place. Two hours later we were in the traffic of Palermo, passing grand sandstone buildings and the bustling port. We found our B and B after waiting a while in a cafe for someone to let us in. It was very cute and we pretty much had the place to ourselves. Went down to the ferry terminal to book tickets but didn't have passports with us so couldn't do it. Had dinner outside a historic church, reasonable pasta but staff seemed more interested in impressing some special guest and the local police. After a ice breakfast we bought our ferry tickets to Tunis. Caught a bus from there down to to the impressive city gates, with the marina on one side and some palazzos on the other.one of these has featured in many movies, of course the Godfather series being one of them. Also passed by a lovely garden with some huge banyan trees which was opposite the Inquisition headquarters. After a trip to the supermarket which was actually fun because it was like leading a normal life, we went to the local market where we had Palermo traditional deep fried food. I had a panelle which is like falafel, and a Mez had eggplant in panini. Then went to the fascinating churches of Marterana, which has amazing Greek mosaics and where we watched a wedding, and Cataldo, a squat mosque like church dating back to the 11th century. The Marterana church also gives it's name to the marzipan fruits sold all over Sicily. Final stop was the famous 4 corners, four large statue decorated structures representing the four seasons, and the inspirations for the pizza variety.. These also mark the four quarters of the city that each had its own culture and identity. Had a South Indian dinner at Poorinams which although not great food, was spicy and a welcome change from endless pastas and pizzas. Caught a bus the next day for Monreale. Waited ages for it and then it was totally packed and crawled up the hill. But it was worth the journey, as we got to visit the amazing church there with its walls covered in gold and coloured mosaics that told stories of the old and new testament. After the church we visited the cloisters next door. These are unique in that the 210 pairs of columns are all different. Had pizzas at a restaurant in the square, watching cats, pigeons and brat Polish children while we waited. Headed back on the bus and had what is known as a happy hour buffet at one of the local bars. For the price of a drink you can help yourself to tapas style food. The one we went to was next door to the odd Australian Aboriginal Internet Cafe, which had nothing Australian about it other than a few photos of Australian aboriginals on the wall. Didn't even have Aussie beer!
Checked out of our apartment, which was quite good value but a bit dark. Hopped on the train and were in Siracusa less than 2 hours later. Took a taxi to our next apartment, which was in the old town of Ortigia, a little island that has been settled since ancient Greek times. Our apartment was a bit different, spread over 3 levels and featuring a large terrace of our own. Went for a wander, stopping first at the spring of Artusa, a freshwater pool that has been a water supply since ancient times as well as a home for nymphs, but now just has resident ducks. Popped into a cafe for lunch, which turned out to be a tourist ripoff place and the only place in Sicily where we have been grossly overcharged. $20 for 2 coffees and 2 arancini. Then again you'd probably pay that in Haberfield, but not in Sicily. Headed down towards the bridge, past lots of cafes, souvenir and craft shops and many ancient buildings. Did some shopping for our apartment then headed back. Cooked enchiladas for dinner.
Set out the next day to explore the island of Ortigia. Out late because of a thunderstorm and talking to Tara. Went to the unusual cathedral, built around an ancient Greek temple to Athena with massive columns along the two sides. Inside was gloomy as it had few windows. Some interesting relics related to saint Lucia, a sad saint that carries a pair of eyes on a plate and has a dagger through her throat. The eyes have made her patron saint of the blind so hopefully she will do something about my eyesight. The piazza was really pretty with nice glowing stone and an semi circular shape. From there we went to the remains of the temple of Apollo, not much remains but it was clearly a large and once important 5th century bc temple. Watched the boats in the harbour for a while before heading back. Dinner at the Shanghai restaurant, so wonderful to have Asian food again and especially tofu. How Italians survive on pizza and pasta all the time I don't know.
Next morning was an exciting one with the RABBITOHS making the Grand final! Mixed emotions as I really wanted to be there and could have easily jumped on the first flight home. But then again I was in Siracusa. Once I had calmed down we went into new Siracusa and stopped first at San Giovannis church and did a tour of its extensive catacombs. These differ from others because the Christians weren't in hiding, and the tombs were once richly decorated. Now all are empty but the tunnels head off in all directions full of cut out graves, sarcophagi and tombs. Very creepy but a bit disappointed as the two best tombs were closed. Across the road is the weirdest church in Europe, only built in the 1980s for a Madonna that cried real tears. Hideously ugly inside and out, and had a freaky display of orthopaedic equipment.. Went past St Lucia ' s other church and a nice octagonal chapel where you could see catacombs behind the altar. Dinner at the Vecchio pub in their nice garden.
Before the souths game, we visited the Maniace fortress at the end of the island. Really interesting fort with large walls, sea views and some unusual vaults and arched passages. In the evening we also went in the tunnels under the duomo, which had some tombs and served as an air raid shelter during the war.
The next day we excitedly headed off to the Archaeological park, a collection of sites all accessible in the same area. Ended up walking there because the little bus (there are 3 routes that run from Ortigia connecting all the tourist sites) was stuck in traffic. Didn't take that long and got to see the main business and shopping street of the new town. In the park we started with the 5th century Roman amphitheatre, mainly used for gladiatorial games and other bloody activities. It is an unusual elipse shape and as big as many modern sports grounds. Next to it was the base of what was believed to be the biggest building in Magna Grecia but is now just a platform, an altar built around the 3rd century BC. The undoubted highlight of the park was next, the 5th century BC Greek theatre, built into a slope facing towards the sea. It was later used by the Romans for games but most of the Greek part is intact, with a large stage and seating. Above the amphitheatre runs an ancient paved street lined with graves cut into the rock like shelving and a gushing spring dedicated to nymphs. A later medieval tower sits above all. Outside the park lies the remains of the ancient city itself, so the park is a sort of ancient entertainment complex. But wait there is more. Down some stairs is a sunken garden facing a high cliff full of caves. The most famous is known as the Ears of Dionysus, a name given to this cave by the larrikin of art, Carravaggio. The Cave was used by the tyrants of Syracuse as a prison, and it was believed that they could hear every word uttered by the prisoners because of the acoustics. After a lunch of spinach pastries that have been a handy lunch for us in Sicily, we visited the Archaeology museum, housed in a spaceship like circular building. Each room was a treasure trove of the numerous findings around Siracusa, from neolithic to medieval times, as well as from other sites in eastern and southern Sicily. It was all fascinating and mind blowing at just how much well preserved relics have been discovered. Glad we went and ignored the stupid comments about the museum by the Rough Guide author, who is really bugging us with her opinionated rubbish. Did some shopping on the way back then had dinner at the MOON vegetarian restaurant, which cooked probably the weirdest vegetarian food I have had, none of it particularly tasty. All the more bizarre was the after dinner poetry reading that brought out the bohemians of Ortigia in force.
Had a lazy day in our flat the next day, skyping, researching and reading. Weather improved so went for a walk and a gelati. Dinner was at Calliope restaurant and was very enjoyable. Following day we went to the little town of Noto, famous for its baroque buildings erected following the big 1693 earthquake. Had to rush a bit to get the train, just making it on. Guard wouldn't let anyone on after us. Walked up the hill from Noto station and wandered down its main street, and majestic as the buildings were it really lacked any sort of atmosphere and was all a bit overrated. Had a pizza slice for lunch then went up higher above town which was a bit more interesting but really it was a bit of a nothing town compared to other places we had been like Segovia and Taormina. Sat in a park and ate pistachios until it was time to get the train back from the deserted station that doesn't even have a seat! Back in Siracusa had pastries from a bakery near the station and also bought a slab of a very burek style spinach pie for dinner. Cooked broccoli and risotto out of a packet which took ages, in fact as long as it would take to make a real risotto.
Next day it was the bus station to get a bus to the beach. Had some time to kill as buses were infrequent, like all over Sicily, so it was delicious gelati at our favourite local chain, Bianco. Eventually the bus left and we got off at Fontane Bianche, which had a nice beach with lovely clear water. Spent the afternoon there but then had a long wait for a bus back, but luckily the shopkeeper took pity on us and let him sit in his chairs while we waited. Once back in Ortigia had best pizza so far in Sicily at the "Sicily" pizzeria which claims to only use locally sourced ingredients.
Wasted part of the next morning at post office, which charged us a ridiculous $4 per postcard! Looked around the little produce market, marvelling again at the good quality, cheap veggies that you never see in the restaurants. Spent some time in apartment then did some shopping before another dinner at Calliope. Have really enjoyed Siracusa and glad we could take our time seeing it.
Finally said goodbye to our apartment, which I had named the "SS Travelpossum" because it's layout was more like a boat. So it was onto the electric bus, walk to the station, on to the train to Catania and then across to the Catania bus station for the SAIS bus to the little town of Enna. After an interesting trip that ends with a winding climb up the hill, we walked to our B&B, with the clouds building overhead. Once there we discovered that there was no one at reception so went to a nice Cafe for drinks, eggplant pie, coffee and a delicious ricotta and pistachio canoli. The storm broke and there was quite a bit of rain and lightning. Eventually someone appeared at reception, the bouncy jolly daughter of the owner, Laura, who bundled us into her tiny FIAT and took us to their other building. Not quite what we booked and a bit dingy, with the bathroom across the corridor. Oh well. Had dinner at a very old fashioned restaurant run by a granny, then back to our room to warm up.
Next morning we went to breakfast, in the other b and b a few blocks from ours. Very nice too, with some yummy almond croissants and cakes. Then it was down to the square to catch the bus to the town of Piazza Almerina. From there you can catch another bus to the Villa Romana de Casale, the ruins of a vast Roman nobleman's house. Well so we thought because when we arrived at the town a taxi driver told us the bus had finished for summer, a common occurrence in Sicily, but our experience of Indian taxi drivers made us wonder if it was true. But we will never know. The timetable the driver showed us said buses ran until the end of October, but a bus driver from another bus told us it was finished. As did the guys in the kiosk. Conspiracy or truth? So we took the taxi, arranging for him to come and get us later. We then spent a couple of hours in total wonder at the highlight of the villas, the incredible mosaics. They are as detailed as paintings and many are huge. One is over 30 metres long. They depict hunting scenes, people at work and play and stories from mythology. They are on the floors of at least 20 rooms and halls, even in the toilet. It is impossible to describe them, you will just have to visit yourself, preferably when the bus is running. When we left, of course there was no sign of the taxi driver, so we had to resort to hitchhiking and being the travelpossums, got lucky with the first car. A French Canadian couple, who gave us a lift into Piazza Almerina (8km). We had a wander around town and it was quite cute and made me wish we had stayed there instead of gloomy Enna. Got the bus back and of course it started raining again so sat in our room and watched the storm. Bought takeaway pizza which we had in our room, not bad either.
Next day we caught a taxi down to the totally deserted station. Our taxi driver obviously felt sorry for us and stayed with us on the deserted platform and we had a great 30 minute conversation using all of our handful of Italian and English words. He showed us some great pictures of Etna taken from his house with flames and smoke erupting from the cone. He has a great view of it, something we didn't see because of the cloud. He was the total opposite of the Piazza driver yesterday. He waved us off and we discovered on the train that we had to change twice. The first change was at Caltanissetta, but we had to wait almost two hours. I wandered down to the bus station and there was an Agrigento bus leaving soon, so ran back and got Mez and we got back in time to catch it, saving us hours and possible missed connections. On arrival at Agrigento a thunderstorm started, so we waited at the bus station for a while but gave up and went to our hotel in the rain. The Hotel Del Viale was quite nice and just off a beautiful tree lined Avenue on the top of a cliff, with views to the ancient sites below. When the rain stopped we went for an explore of the old town, which was quite lively and atmospheric, with nice sandstone buildings and lots of cafes. It also has a theatre dedicated to local boy Luigi Pirandello and some great viewpoints over the valley to the sea. Had an excellent pasta at the Trattoria Concordia. The following day was devoted to the most significant event since 1971, the rabbitohs in a grand final. Up early to test the Skype link. My brother Michael and my plan was to watch the game by pointing the skype camera at the TV. Our test worked and the excitement built. Watched the first half, which was very tense and made more so by skype and wifi dropping out all the time. I dashed down to the pc in the lobby and luckily the Live stream site worked and the picture was better and didn't drop out, so watched the mighty bunnies run away with the game and the trophy 30 to 6. So I have done a great service to all by leaving the country, with the rabbitohs, the waratahs, my soccer team and taras netball team all winning competitions. Maybe if we stay until May, Tottenham might win too!
Celebrated the win at a local pub in a park, as the restaurant we were planning on going to was closed. Explored more of the old town, going up high to the derelict cathedral that is collapsing down the hill, before having dinner at the Opera restaurant which was ordinary. After a reasonable breakfast in the hotel we caught the bus down the hill to the Valley of the Temples. This is an amazing collection of Greek temples from the ancient town of Akrygas, many in almost intact state spread over a few kilometres. We started with the better preserved eastern temples. These were all spectacular, sitting on a ridge above the sea. Truly wondrous. The western site is more in ruins, but contains the remains of one of the largest Greek temples anywhere. Another amazing site that is so little known outside of Sicily. After spending the day here we headed back to town and had another yummy dinner at Concordia, though how we fitted it in I don't know, as for late lunch, we had a huge serving of gelato filled crepes (mine had the best pistachio gelato in Sicily) at the gelateria near our hotel.
Off to Trapani the next day, an interesting 3 hour bus trip across western Sicily. Our apartment is nice and near to the alleged beach. So I had a bit of a swim but the murky seaweed filled water wasn't that enjoyable. Had dinner at the Cafe up the road where we had a snack lunch, but it was crap. My pasta wasn't even cooked properly and Merrill's looked like it was a frozen dinner from the supermarket.
Next morning we did some shopping so we could cook dinner. In the afternoon we caught the cable car up to the old town of Erice. The cable car went for miles up the steep hillside but unfortunately the views weren't great as the windows were filthy and made of perspex. Once at the top we climbed the old church tower for even more impressive views back over Trapani and checked out some other historic churches, some made from the stones of ancient Greek temples that were famous in the ancient World. At the far end of town the were some impressive castles sitting up on high cliffs with more spectacular views. For dinner cooked a vegetable curry and rice which was so good. So nice to have vegetables, spices and no sign of pasta.
Caught a ferry the next day to the island of Favignana. Well it was actually a hydrofoil, probably the worst form of water transport, bumpy, noisy, and stifling inside. We felt quite queasy by the time we reached the Island. Headed off to the beaches in the south of the island, passing trough a very plain looking town. The beach wasn't much better, nice soft sand but more seaweed and a gale force wind. Lasted about an hour there before heading back to the town for a drink and then sat on a rocky headland for a while. Caught the car ferry back which was the best part of the day trip, nice and slow with great views of the other islands and the port of Trapani. Had nice dinner at the Popitone restaurant. I had the local dish of busciate with pesto trapanese, caterpillar shaped pasta in a tomato and almond sauce, and Merrill had chicken marsala seeing as we are only 39km from Marsala.
Next day caught the bus to Segesta, the last of our ancient wonders of Sicily tour. There's only one bus each way, so we had to make sure we got on them. The temple was quite impressive, with all its columns still standing high up on a hill with nice views over the valley. Higher up, a bus takes you to the ancient town, agora and a pretty Roman theatre with views to the sea to the north. A pleasant little excursion.
On our our last full day in Catania we decided to do the train trip around Mount Etna. You can do tours to the top, but we weren't so keen on that, given it is a very active volcano. We caught the funny little metro to Borgo station ( the metro only has 6 stations) and only just made it onto the little Ferrovea Circumetnea, the line that runs around the volcano. This was because the timetable had changed only the week before and hadn't been added to their website. We rattled along through the outer suburbs of Catania, then into hilly country with some deep valleys. Along the way it became the school train. We hopped off at the medieval town of Randazzo. We had a few hours until the next train but kept ourselves busy strolling the rough stone block streets, with its unusual old churches. We headed up the hill and finally got a decent but brief view of Etna from behind someone's block of apartments. The clouds soon enveloped the mountain again, so we headed to the station Cafe for drinks before hopping on the train for the last leg of the circuit. This was the prettiest part, with the famous pistachio groves of Bronte, some pine forest, vineyards and orchards and even black grotesque patches of cooled lava. The journey ended at Reposto, where we swapped back onto the train to Catania. Had dinner at Carboneri again, with the usual indifferent service but nice food. One annoying thing in Sicily is the cover charge, where you have to pay a fee for the privilege of eating in their restaurant. This has ranged from 1 to 2 euros per person. So as far as we are concerned it means no tip!
Started the day with a delicious breakfast at Cafe Mazzini, including a huge custard bun and cipollini, onion, tomato and cheese pastries. Had time before our train to also check out the castle, now surrounded by apartments but once was on the coast until lava surrounded it. Also went to the local market, full of beautiful, fresh produce at amazing prices. Bought some bananas, grapes and even broccoli, because it is such a rarity on restaurant menus in Italy. All of this cost us half of the equivalent in Sydney
Landed at Catania airport after a very short flight from Malta. Caught a meandering bus into the city, passing from broad avenues to narrow busy streets and tunnelss of dark buildings built of lava from Mount Etna. Checked into our apartment in Via Politi in an old 18th century mansion. Headed off for a walk and in only minutes we had found a cake shop so had yummy creamy cakes and coffee from a friendly guy that looked more like a wrestler than a pastry chef. Continued on up the hill to the impressive Garabaldi gate where the piazza was in party mode. Back past more bakeries and pizza shops and "tavola calda" bars that are pubs, cafes and lounge rooms combined. After a rest it was dinner near the cathedral, where we had the famous Sicilian dish, "alla norma", pasta, eggplant and salty ricotta cheese. Next morning grabbed a coffee and cake at the "banco" or counter of a fancier pasticceria which we didn't enjoy because of the rude staff. Started at the cathedral where mass was in full swing with a really dull priest droning on. The cathedral houses poor old St Agatha ' s relics (look her up). The church's main feature is it's use of lava blocks mixed in with the marble, a result of its rebuilding after the earthquake of 1693. Wandered up Via Etna, the volcano itself totally hidden by haze, and sat in the pretty Bellini gardens for a while before wandering down a road lined by mansions and numerous baroque churches. Did the tour of St Benedicts convent, which was interesting. Also looked at the remains of the amphitheatre, believed to be second only to the Colliseum in the Roman world, but now mostly covered by buildings. On the way back to our apartment I visited the Roman theatre, which anywhere else would be a major attraction, but compared to other Sicilian sites it is ignored, tucked in behind a scaffolded building on Via Victor Emmanuel. I thought it was pretty good and it is pretty big, seating 5000 in its time, but the high entry charge and lack of information probably deters visitors. Had a nice dinner with typical crap service at the Carbonari restaurant near the Bellini theatre. The carbonari were apparently a secret political society that had lots of secret meetings but never actually did much, like some of Australia's minor parties. Anyway our pizza was pretty good.
Off to the station early for a day trip to Taormina, playground of the rich and famous and home of o e of the first film festivals. Had a coffee from the caravan outside the station, then onto a comfy train. From Taormina station we caught the bus up the winding toad to the town, high on a ridge above the sea. Of course it was straight to the Roman theatre, built on a high slope above the sea facing mount Etna, that is if you could see the volcano. The theatre is very big, but rather split by all the seating and stage added for the summer concerts. The views were however quite spectacular. The theatre was built on an older Greek one, but little remains of this. The rest od the day was spent strolling the main street, with some more ruins, exposed Roman mosaics, old churches, craft and pottery shops and overpriced restaurants.we were very surprised to chance upon the granite sign that is on the cover of our guide book, especially as Rough guides don't even say where it is. Had pizza for lunch and a delicious chocolate canolis for sweets. Caught the bus and train home, and had a quick dinner at the local kebab shop. Taormina was a fun day trip but glad we didn't stay up there.


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2- Webber, P.T. (2001). Breakthroughs in bracing. Rehabilitation management, 14,20-22
3- Palisano, R.L., Campbell, S.K.,&Harris, S.R. (2000). Decision making in pediatric physical therapy. In S.K. Campbell, D.W. Van der Linden, & R.J;.Palisano (Eds.) Physical therapy for children (2nd ed., pp. 198-224).
4- Boyd R.(2000, February 1). Conservative and surgical options in the management of the motor problems in children with cerebral palsy: An evidenced based medicine approach. Paper presented at the American Physical Therapy Association combined sections meeting. New Orleans, Louisiana.
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subset: commoncrawl


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The snap - In the dark - femininity in words.
It has been quite a while since I wrote my last short story and tonight for some unfathomable reason i feel like writing one. Something experimental and exiting st the same time. Like may be having sex for the first time.
A story too short to read for a while but with too strong a message to last for a while. Like being hit by a bullet.
Attempt 1 - The girl in love. (no of sentences - 7 )
She still loved him, loved him deeply and fervently and it was that love that carried her till now. And now that she had finally killed him, she loved him even more like the earth that tries to retain the kisses of the rain in the drought of the summer. But she had to do it. Had to kill him. No other go. After all it wasn't a crime of passion, it was a crime of reason and the reason was as simplistic as it could get. The drought was getting worse and she had to feed her child.
Attempt 2 - The drunken stupor. (no of sentences - 5 )
She was so much in pain, a white, hot and sheer blunt pain that no amount of alcohol seem to numb her suffering. She went to the same pub every single day, got drunk till her hilt every single day, and made a fool of herself every single day blabbering gibberish nonsense that took the fancy of her troubled mind. Not even one soul tried to stop or question her behavior. They were simply too happy to see that there are still people who cry out their losses without regard to what others may think. After all in the modern society, people are defined by what other people think of them.
Attempt 3 - The oppressed. (no of sentences - 3)
Coming from the segregated flock of humans, who were suppressed for so long in the chronology of time that god himself must have shed a few tears, she had no choice but to defend herself and her opinions even if she herself knew that she was wrong and for having that basic survival instinct, she was named a virago. A pity but she will last as did her feminine ancestors till date. After all she is the birth giver - the women.
Attempt 4 - The lost and found. (no of sentences - 1)
May be her virginity was lost when she was raped but the rose plant doesn't cry over fallen flowers nor the moon over its the fading whim but she will cry, cry out dark bitter tears until she succumbs to the same dry tears and dies or until she realizes that she can still bloom and that the flowers that bloom the second time are the most divine of them all.
The End.
Note -
I have tried to write the stories by reducing the number of sentences in each one progressively. I have tried to maintain a streak of connectivity with all the three stories the idea being to explore the different facets of the modern women. Do tell me what do you think???
Curious, questioning, Imaginative, Brutal, Possibly Rhetorical - A salvage of ideas and words, Often as stories - Sometimes as musings.
Monday, March 23, 2009
A few jabs at story writing - a short story
4 comments:
- nan said...
DUH so poignant and your experimentation paid off ;)
- March 24, 2009 at 4:04 AM
- introspection said...
very good attempt. First time here.
good stuff. will be back to read more, if I may.
- April 8, 2009 at 8:37 PM
- muthu said...
@ nan - thanks... :)
- May 2, 2009 at 3:37 PM
- muthu said...
@ introspection - yup.... do be back... :)
- May 2, 2009 at 3:38 PM
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text:
DOI: 10.19102/icrm.2017.080403
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Here, several experts discuss the case of supraventricular tachycardia presented by Drs. Chaudhari and Olshansky.
Dr. Katritsis explains
The prolonged AH that allows for 1:1 conduction is presumably due to a shift in the activation of the left nodal extension (as a slow pathway) to the right (as a slow pathway), which is longer. The mechanism for resumption of 1:1 is either due to the use of the right-sided atrial input, which is longer than the left (Figure 2), or it could be due to prolongation of conduction in the same atrial extension (slow pathway) that allows for 1:1 conduction down the His-bundle. Furthermore, atrioventricular (AV) block during atrioventricular nodal re-entrant tachycardia (AVNRT) without any visible recording of the activation of the His-bundle can also be explained by proximal Intra-Hisian block.
Demosthenes Katritsis, MD, PhD (London), FRCP, FESC, FACC
E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
Department of Cardiology
Athens Euroclinic
Athens, Greece
Figure 2: The occurrence of AV block during AVNRT without any recording of the activation of the His-bundle can be explained by proximal intra-Hisian block.
Drs. Verma and Knight comment
The original report of 2:1 AV block during AVNRT was published over 40 years ago.1 This phenomenon has been demonstrated in approximately 9% of adult cases, and up to 17% of pediatric cases.2,3 The likelihood of this occurring in the electrophysiology laboratory appears higher than spontaneously, perhaps because of the artificial means of induction.
There has been a debate with regards to the mechanism and location of block in these cases. In up to 60% of cases of 2:1 AVNRT, a His-bundle potential can be recorded on non-conducted beats. This led to the argument that in cases with no His-bundle potential, the mechanism was AV nodal block, while in cases in which a His-bundle potential is seen, the mechanism was intra- or infra-His-bundle block.
The lack of a proximal His-bundle recording shown on the non-conducted beats does not rule intra-Hisian block to be proximal to the recording. Resolution with a pacing stimulus (or premature ventricular contraction (PVC) in this case) strongly supports function block in the HP system, rather than rate-related 2:1 block in the distal AV node region.
However, the elegant study by Man et al. convincingly demonstrated that the location of block in all cases was at or below the His-bundle.2 The mechanism appears to be functional block due to a "long-short" sequence into the His-bundle. Atropine, which improves AV nodal conduction without affecting His-bundle conduction, never resulted in the restoration of 1:1 conduction, arguing against AV nodal block as the mechanism. However, an appropriately timed single ventricular extrastimulus resolved the 2:1 conduction in all cases, including those without a discernable His-bundle recording. This results from retrograde depolarization of the His-bundle (or below) to resolve the functional block and allow for 1:1 conduction. Resolution of 2:1 conduction in this manner would not be expected to occur in the setting of AV nodal block. This is especially true in the setting of a His-bundle refractory PVC, as in the above example, as there is no AV nodal depolarization. Though 2:1 AVNRT is uncommon, it is an important entity to recognize, since failure to do so could result in errors in mapping and ablation, resulting in significant harm.
Nishant Verma, MD
E-mail: email@example.com
Division of Cardiology Department of Medicine
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Chicago, IL 60611
Bradley Knight, MD
E-mail: email@example.com
Division of Cardiology Department of Medicine
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Chicago, IL 60611
Dr. Jackman comments
I agree completely with the explanation from Drs. Verma and Knight. During slow/fast AVNRT with 2:1 AV block, one can essentially always find a tiny, very proximal, His-bundle potential, indicating block distal to the AV node (Figure 3). However, it often requires careful positioning of the His-bundle catheter to find the tiny, rounded proximal "H" potential. In Figure 1 (found in "A Supraventricular Tachycardia: What Is It? Where Should One Ablate?"), the His-bundle catheter is probably positioned too distally (sharp ventricular potential and far-field atrial potential on the proximal His-bundle electrogram), and is likely recording the proximal right bundle branch. The sharp part of the normal "His-potential" is generated by the proximal right bundle branch, usually recorded at around 12 ms after the onset of the tiny, rounded His-bundle potential.
Warren Jackman, MD
E-mail: email@example.com
Heart Rhythm Institute
University of Oklahoma College of Medicine
Oklahoma City, OK 73104
Figure 3: Slow/fast AVNRT with 2:1 block distal to the most proximal His-bundle potential, recorded in a 19-year-old woman with a 1-year history of episodes of supraventricular tachycardia. (a) During the blocked complexes, the two most distal His-bundle electrograms record a tiny, far-field His-bundle potential. This potential may be easily overlooked to suggest that block occurred proximal to the H potential. (b) Repositioning the His-bundle catheter allowed for clear recording of the proximal H potential during the blocked complexes.
Dr. Tchou discusses
I am not sure that the PVC has anything to do with the recovery of conduction. Typically, when 2:1 block occurs during AVNRT, it is a block that occurs within the His-bundle, though the exact site may vary. This is certainly what is happening here with the 2:1 block. When the 2:1 block is resolved with a PVC, the PVC must pre-excite the His-bundle just distal to the site of 2:1 block. This would shorten the His-bundle refractoriness distal to the site of the block and allow for the next His-bundle activation to conduct.
The mechanism of the 2:1 block has to do with the long cycle length below the block site, which keeps the His-Purkinje action potential there long enough such that the short cycle length of the blocked beat coming down meets refractory His-Purkinje tissue distal to the site of the block. What happens when a PVC occurs is that it propagates retrogradely into the His-Purkinje system (HPS) (if it is not too premature). This propagation shortens the cycle length of the HPS just distal to the site of the block, thus shortening the action potential duration (and refractoriness) of the HPS distal to the site of the block. This shortening then allows for the next beat that would have blocked to instead conduct and resolve the block. In the example shown in Figure 1 (found in "A Supraventricular Tachycardia: What Is It? Where Should One Ablate?"), the mechanism of resolution is likely due to slowing of the cycle length of tachycardia, as well as a component of spontaneous resolution of 2:1 block that frequently occurs. Several observations suggest that PVC has nothing to do with resolving the HPS system refractory period. These are:
1) There is spontaneous slowing of the atrial cycle length (CL) that can be seen beginning with the fourth atrial beat on.
2) The PVC does not conduct retrogradely, even to the distal portions of the His-bundle recording site, so it is unlikely to have influenced the HPS near the site of the block, which is high, above the site of His-bundle recording. The His-bundle recording is more distal, as there is virtually no A on the electograms. During the blocked atrial beat, there is no His-bundle recording at all. So, the 2:1 block site is above the recording site of the His. The PVC does not influence the antegrade conduction of the His (seen after the Vof the PVC). In fact, that His-bundle recording occurs just in time. The HH interval is equal to the corresponding AA intervals (in that the second and third visible H interval is the same as the corresponding AA interval, even though the CL slows a little). Thus, the blocked His-bundle (the third visible His-bundle) is blocked below the recording site of the H because of interference from the PVC that blocked distally in the HPS (i.e. persistent refractoriness in the distal HPS because of retrograde penetration of the PVC into the distal HPS.)
3) The fourth H should have been the blocked beat (per the 2:1 pattern), but it conducted past the site of the block (which is up high, above the site of His-bundle recording.) Since the PVC blocked retrogradely very distally in the HPS below the His-bundle recording site, it likely did not influence the site of antegrade block, which was quite high above the His-bundle recording site.
4) The likely cause of the resolution of 2:1 block is 1) these occur spontaneously all the time; and 2) there is a slowing of the AA cycle length that may allow for the resolution to occur when the beat is now outside of the HPS refractoriness.
Everything considered, this is a very interesting tracing. At first glance, I thought that it was a standard resolution of 2:1 conduction during AVNRT brought on by a PVC. But on further examination, the timing of the PVC and its retrograde conduction characteristics would likely not have allowed it to influence the resolution of the block. So, I would call this spontaneous resolution of the 2:1 in part facilitated by slowing of the tachycardia. The PVC is a bystander in this case.
I agree with Dr. Katritis. I am not sure that I am convinced that there is a visible atrial activation on the His-bundle recording, but perhaps the ablation recording is at the mid-septum. Shifting from one slow pathway to another is certainly a possibility when there is a changing AH interval. Prolongation of conduction down the same path is also possible.
I agree with Dr. Jackman that 2:1 block in AVNRT is always due to Hisian block. The physiology of nodal conduction tissue would make it unlikely that it can generate 2:1 functional block that would resolve with a premature depolarization. This is quite feasible with the electrophysiology of the HPS.
I agree with Drs. Verma and Knight, except when they suggest that the "His-bundle refractory PVC" is the proximal cause of the resolution of 2:1 block. This PVC blocks very distally in the HPS. So, it is unlikely to affect the His-bundle refractoriness by premature activation at the site of antegrade block, which is well above the His-bundle recording site (in that not even a far-field His-bundle is seen). Even if one were to propose an electronic effect, the site of retrograde block of the PVC in the HPS and the site of antegrade block during tachycardia are separated enough to make that unlikely.
A His-bundle refractory PVC typically has to propagate up the HPS system and collide with the oncoming His-bundle activation of a conducted beat near the site of the block. In that manner, the retrograde activation pre-excites the portion of HPS distal to the site of block. This pre-excitation result is the peeling back of the refractoriness distal to the site of the block because of earlier activation and because of the cycle length-related shortening of the action potential duration.
Thus, the following beat would find the HPS distal to the site of block no longer refractory. In this case, if there is a collision at all of the PVC with the antegrade His-bundle, it is very distal and not anywhere near the site of block. I think spontaneous resolution of the 2:1 block, in part facilitated by a longer AH interval, is the cause of block resolution in this example.
Patrick Tchou, MD
E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
Section of Cardiac Electrophysiology and Pacing
Department of Cardiovascular Medicine
Heart and Vascular Institute
Cleveland Clinic
Cleveland, OH 44195
Dr. Efimov provides insights
I agree with what has been said. However, this case highlights an idea that we have presented based on both molecular and functional data. Hucker et al.1 presented three-dimensional reconstruction of the human AV junction labeled with Cx43 antibodies. This study presented evidence of strikingly differential expression of Cx43 between the slow and fast pathways, which persisted along the AV conduction axis, including the compact AV node and the bundle of His. A subsequent study from our group demonstrated that His-bundle electro-gram amplitude and morphology differed greatly depending on whether the slow or fast pathway served as the entry point to the longitudinally dissociated AV node, and corresponding domains of the His-bundle.2 This study suggested that not all His-bundle responses are equal: the bundle of His comprises at least two distinct domains (Cx43-positive and Cx43-negative) developmentally and electrically coupled to the slow and fast pathways, respectively. The difference in His-bundle electrogram amplitude produced by the two domains could differ by an order of magnitude. High resolution electrophysiology mapping is needed to define the two domains of the His-bundle, as the two different domains could have different conduction properties and/or refractory periods; additionally, perhaps only one of them is in fact safely coupled to the ventricles. Moreover, quantitative three-dimensional immunohistochemistry of the human AV junction, in combination with CLARITY methodology, will help to dissect the human AV junction as well as its structure and protein expression.
Igor Efimov, PhD
E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
Department of Biomedical Engineering
George Washington University
Washington, DC 20052
A superb discussion from the Masters!
2:1 AVNRT can mimic atrial tachycardia or atrial flutter, but it is important to recognize it and treat it with ablation lesions directed at the correct location. Beware, as it may be important in your next ablation. We hope the comments from the experts provide insight into the phenomena seen here. We welcome your comments, and look forward to your upcoming Unicorn contributions.
Brian Olshansky, MD, FHRS, FACC, FAHA
Professor Emeritus
University of Iowa
Cardiac Electrophysiologist
Mercy Hospital-North Iowa
Mason City, Iowa 50401


text:
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text:
If you like my music…
…I'd love your vote!
Each vote raises $5 to fight breast cancer! It's free! (And for a GREAT cause! I love participating in anything that's for a good cause!)
Just click here to vote: http://bit.ly/SjKdbY
…I'd love your vote!
Each vote raises $5 to fight breast cancer! It's free! (And for a GREAT cause! I love participating in anything that's for a good cause!)
Just click here to vote: http://bit.ly/SjKdbY
My mind is still blown by how much the Babes4Breasts group has done for our families and communities… They've inspired me to write this song.
Please visit http://bit.ly/SjKdbY to vote and my local mall will donate $5 to our Regional Cancer Foundation.
Thanks so much…
*In memory of Me Mere….
I'm sure you've heard me say this a million times, but SERIOUSLY. Everything happens for a reason. When I performed at Crazy Horse to raise money for the Canadian Women's Foundation, I made a personal pledge to always find a way to support a good cause when performing. When you have an opportunity to reach out to so many people, to me, it makes sense to use that opportunity to raise awareness and support a cause.
So I was shopping for my little brother's 7th birthday gift (and I mean 7th as in age, not as in gift quantity… lol!) at the St Laurent Centre in Ottawa… it had the closest Toys R' Us to where we were headed, otherwise we probably wouldn't have stopped. Walking through the mall, I saw a sign for a contest called "Be A Babe".
I passed by, took a double-take, took a step back… it was a contest to support breast cancer and the Ottawa Regional Cancer foundation! You submit a video and for each vote you get, the mall donates $5 to the charity! The top 10 get to compete for a slot to perform at the Babes4Breasts concert!
…oh and the grand prize winner gets a $500 gift card for the mall. … 😀
Whether or not I win, I hope to collect as much as I can for this amazing cause! I encourage all artists in the region to participate!! You have until September 30th to submit your audition!
Voting begins October 1st!
😀 😀 😀
Songwriting. It's like a 6th sense you can't control. The melody or lyrics will come to you out of nowhere. And they do not care what you're doing at that moment. They're coming, and if you don't catch them quick, you might lose them.
Seriously, I could be knee deep in laundry, baggy sweater and pants on, hair thrown up into a messy bun and the lyrics to a love song pop into my mind.
Like C'MON brain. I'm busy. Jeez.
And you can try and keep going, simultaneously repeating the lyrics in your mind over and over again… but then the more you repeat it, the more it changes—or the more you think it changes—you start over-analyzing. Then you're not sure if it's the same as when it first popped into your mind. Then you get frustrated, focus on what you were doing and…
POOF. It's gone. Bye bye #1 hit. (lolz).
So, to avoid this disaster, I frantically lunge for my songwriting book (which I keep on my person at all times now)… slippers falling off, tripping over laundry… (ps, I'm pretty on top of laundry. I can see how it may now sound like I have mountains of it that I slave over. I don't. I'm just being dramatic :3)… I also have to make sure I use my songwriting pen. I'm really anal about my songwriting 'gear' I s'pose. The husband has gone to use the pen a couple of times and I'm like "NOOOOOO you can't it's sacred!"
Husband gives me a sideways look, looks a little concerned for my mental state and says, "Ooookay then…"
I'm so lucky he's still married to me. Hah.
Anyway, sometimes, you don't accomplish much in a day because you're busy songwriting and EVERY moment you go to do something else, more lyrics happen to appear… and you can't lose them. So the husband will come home and ask what I did today, surrounded by PILES of dishes, laundry, dust-bunnies (I'm seriously kidding) and I say,
"Not much, but I wrote a FANTASTIC SONG!!!"
*Super hero pose*
Don't forget to 'like' your fave artist from last night's episode on the CMT website! You have until Wednesday next week to 'like' your favourites as many times as you want 🙂
And if you like my youtube videos, share them with your friends! 😀 Maybe they'll like them too 🙂
Thanks for your ongoing support xox
They say you're your own worst critic. Sometimes I wonder if that's worse than someone else criticizing you… I think it's easier to ignore negativity when it's coming from others than it is coming from within yourself.
I was anxious for the show to air. I knew my performance wasn't where I wanted it to be, but it all happened so quickly that I couldn't really remember how far off it was from my scale of "acceptability". Well, it was off. Way off. And no matter how much the people around me cheered me on, I couldn't get past it.
I received tons of emails and notifications about my appearance on the show… I was so happy and thankful to have so many people supporting me… but the side of me that was still kicking myself wasn't allowing me to enjoy the experience to it's fullest.
Not one person had a negative comment. No one except for me.
You know that Taylor Swift song called "Mean"? The one she wrote about that critic who was a complete jerk and belittled her for her performance at the Grammy's? I was that guy last night—to myself. I can't be that guy. I had the opportunity of a lifetime and there I was, getting upset about one measly performance. The exposure that I got from this experience is the biggest shot I'll ever get at making this a bigger part of my life.
I am so thankful for everything this show has brought to my life. It helped me learn who I was as an artist and grow into a stronger vocalist and grow my confidence. I mean, I gotta give myself a break here. I hid away my passion for this for years, and the first time I sing my own material was on a CMT show. That's pretty freaking awesome.
I think one day I'll look back at this and laugh.
"Someday, I'll be living in a big ol' city, and all you're ever gonna be is mean.
Why you gotta be so mean?"
The show airs TONIGHT on CMT Canada at 7 pm ET! So excited (and nervous that I totally messed up haha jk)!
I wanted to have an original up for everyone. It's far from perfect, but it's me (with a somewhat raspy voice in the morning!)
It's called 'Just Be You' 🙂
DON'T FORGET!! You can start 'liking' your favourite artist as soon as the show starts! Have your laptops/cellphones/ipads READY!!!
I love Miranda Lambert and her voice… she's fantastic! Did a cover of one of her songs based on a friend's suggestion 🙂 Decided to do 'Over You'—reminded me of my grand-mother who passed a few years back. Miss you Memere xo
Super shy about this first video… :3 It's a cover of one of my fave Taylor songs called Tim McGraw
No matter what you go through, whether it be…
…a fight with a sibling
…a bad day at work
…having a bad sandwich
…your best friend will always be the one to help you get through it better than anyone else. Best friends have a magical way of making solutions seem so obvious. Kinda like one of those high school moments where you realize, "Oh, so you mean he won't like me more if I look him up in the phone book and call him pretending I'm a telemarketer?"
Just saying—that never happened. *Ahem* moving on.
You also get to tell them about the great times like…
…passing your driver's test (miracles happen)
…successfully cooking an entire meal for more than one person (without killing anyone :3)
…throwing a crumpled up piece of paper into the garbage on the first try (after 3 practice shots)
…and they get just as excited about it as you do.
Best friends are awesome.
All best friends are like this, right? Or am I just really lucky? :3


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Do you live in a democracy? Are you American? Are you a female? Are you of African or Caribbean origin? Do you live in a country that manufactures goods?
If you can say yes to any one of those seemingly random questions, then you've almost certainly been massively affected by Birmingham, a British city that you might never have heard of.
Ask most people in the UK about what they think about Birmingham, and you'll probably get numerous negative responses. The reason for this is that Birmingham has the unfortunate stereotype of being an ugly, uncultured place filled with people with "annoying"and "thick" (for those of you unfamiliar with British slang, this means 'stupid-sounding') accents.
But it wasn't just the Industrial Revolution that came from Birmingham. So much more that affects everyone around the world has come from the city.
Know the answer (yes, there is just a single answer) to these questions?
|A recently created monument
- Where did the resistance against slavery stem from?
- Where did the idea behind equality in British (and potentially European and American) society come from?
- Where did the 18th century Age of Reason and Enlightenment in Britain come from?
You got it -- Birmingham. Seriously.
If there's a British city outside of London that has had the biggest influence not on only on the UK, but the rest of the world, it is undoubtedly Birmingham.
|The 'Lunatiks':
Matthew Boulton, James Watt and William Murdock
These Lunar Men were an immensely important group of people because they shared the urge to question everything that society took for granted. They queried why it was that the nobles and gentry were seen as superior to the 'commoners', why women were regarded as creatures created only for breeding and why the colour of skin made a difference to how people were treated. From France to North America and from British town to town they corresponded and encouraged people to stand up for real democracy.
The famous Benjamin Franklin, the drafter of the US Constitution, befriended the Lunatiks through his friend, Dr Richard Price, who was a campaigner for women's rights. These radical thinkers attracted allies from across the West to whom freedom mattered. Even Erasmus Darwin, who laid the foundations for the theory of evolution for his grandson, Charles Darwin, was a Lunatik.
The Lunar Society even tackled the seemingly impossible task of eradicating slavery. Although the Lunatiks could not abolish slavery through the power of words, they did manage to do it through the powerful combination of technology and economics. They invented machinery which produced goods on an enormous scale through the use of steam power which meant that slaves did not make economical sense any longer. It was in this way that slavery became far too expensive and so owners had no choice but to free the slaves.
In the 19th century, due to the city's advances in technology, Birmingham was known as 'the workshop of the world' as all of the world's metal trinkets were created in the city's factories (and at the time, metal was the equivalent of today's plastic, so you can imagine how big the industry was).
Not only was Birmingham a place of industry and development, it was becoming highly cultured, too. The 19th century musician Dvorak wrote home to his family:
Am here in this immense industrial city, where they make excellent knives, scissors, files...and music too!...It's terrifying how much these people manage to achieve.
|Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery
Alongside the other factors, in terms of importance, Birmingham is the second largest city in the UK and it also boasts the NEC (National Exhibition Centre), the ICC (International Convention Centre) and the NIA (National Indoor Arena) which makes it a very regularly visited place by people across the country.
Yet people are still ignorant enough to say that Birmingham's not a great place. Woah.
Any opinions?
What do you have to say about where you live? I'd be really interested to know :)


text:
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Another "push" is underway—this one involving emails to everyone who has a large email list. For the past year or so, every time I got a mass email, I noted whether or not the person was sending it to a ton of people. ("A ton" is hereby defined as "more than twenty.") For a while I was actually recording all of those addresses, with the thought that I would send out a notification to all of them, but then I realized the line between advertising to friends of friends and spam is very thin indeed, unless I happen to say "I'm also a friend of Andrea's," in which case they will write angry notes to Andrea and say, "Why are you giving out my email address to spammers?" (Yes, this is a shout-out to Andrea, my first official fan; by "official" I mean "actually subscribed to my blog!") So I'm sending requests to these friends and asking them to spam their own friends. Spamming your friends isn't considered spam, unless you're sending out a "Send this to 12 people and your entire life will change!" note. That is definitely spam, regardless of the sender.
So I've been not-spamming my friends and asking them to not-spam their friends, and one of my alumni lists sent out a notice also. And lo and behold, this might actually be working.
So...thanks to the people who have put me in the five digits! Now let's shoot for four....
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Happy Two Days After Thanksgiving
It was sixty degrees in New York that day, which is almost unheard of. I walked to my friends' apartment with a jacket on, my early-fall jacket, thinking, "I don't need to be wearing this." But the temperature dropped that afternoon, and by the time I walked home that evening I wished I had more on. Yesterday was freezing. I expect today is, too, but I have no plans to go outside unless I manage to convince myself to go to the gym.
Book news: none. I've done six interviews thus far (and recorded three, so at some point in the not-too-distant future I'll decide to figure out how to download those recordings and make them available) and the video website is finally up, though it's not really what I wanted. I wanted a customized site, but as the programmer quit, we don't get a customized site. Sigh. I've been recording friends' tributes to their angels, but none of this is as easy as I'd like it to be. I've been sending out my news to various friends, asking them to send it to all their friends—also all the list serves I'm on for school, etc—and nothing really has impacted sales. On Wednesday my Amazon sales rating skyrocketed, from about 600,000 to 33,000, the very highest it's ever been. I got excited. First I called my dad, to see if he'd bought books that day; that's always my immediate question. But he hadn't, and I thought, "Is it the interviews finally kicking in?" but since Wednesday the ranking has steadily fallen, so I think it was a one-time Christmas gift purchase by one of my friends. I'll see him tomorrow and ask. Not that I mind, of course; but I'd rather it be strangers deciding to buy it because of the large amount of money I've spent on a publicist.
It's been a productive weekend, so far. I have done all the small, easy things on my to-do list, which seems logical but there are often weekends in which I don't even get those done. Now it remains to be seen if I'll actually tackle the new book at all. I want to devote one day just to working on it. Unfortunately, I haven't yet figured out the trajectory of the new book. I have an inciting incident, and I have characters, and I have a vague idea of what is going to happen. But I don't know the purpose, and that is bothering me. I don't know the character arc of the main character, and what happens to her as a consequence of her actions in the first 20 pages. I imagine the consequence is large. But I don't know…. The good thing about my new book is, I don't have any happy marriages in it. I had to write a happy marriage in my Angels book, and that stressed me out. I am not even a dater; what do I know about happy marriages? I literally had to sit down with a married friend and ask questions like, "What do you think they would talk about here?" or "What kind of thing would happen when they're doing x and y?" None of that now. I have had plenty of bad marriage examples flit through my life, so I am writing that this time instead.
So this Thanksgiving, I am thankful for marital unhappiness. A big Happy Thanksgiving to you.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
thank heaven for actual "usable form"
The real upshot of this website being up is that I can now start emailing all my friends and family about the book. Please look at the website, upload your videos, get some buzz going, send it to your friends! And maybe even buy some books in the meantime...
Thursday, November 15, 2007
No more "Usable Form"
The designer is devastated; he feels worse about it than I do. And he is determined to make it right, which ups him in my esteem. (Let me never meet Justin.) He has been looking around for solutions, and quick ones, since I have another two interviews scheduled for next Tuesday. (These I will do from home, so these I will record and post onto the site. Hopefully I won't be a stammering fool.) He seems to have found something, which might even be a better option than having someone do all that programming and cross-referencing and platforming (I got lost after "programming"). I don't know the technicalities, but it involves the videos being posted onto my site but hosted on YouTube, even though the user can't really tell he or she is using YouTube. The only reason I know this is a good thing is that someone at my work, the guy with a master's in computer science, had told me back in August that we ought to host the videos on YouTube. Hmm. I would have brought that up to Justin, and even fought for it, maybe, if I'd just known what it meant. I still don't, but the words are the same. I assume that makes it the same thing.
Interestingly, with this new method we're going with, the site will likely be up in 48 hours. I have no idea how far Justin was from completion, but we are, at this point, 2 months overdue...and now you're telling me we could have just whipped it together two months ago and had it finished in 48 hours?? Sigh. I am making this the silver lining. We don't know yet if we'll be able to have written stories, but...hopefully the videos will catch on. YouTube highlighted the fact that about every third American has a camera phone, right? Its popularity didn't come out of nowhere.
I got a good review on Amazon yesterday, from a retired work acquaintance who read the book and loved it. She completely made my day that day; she phoned at 1:30 in the afternoon and said she had just finished it, and hadn't been able to do anything all day long except read the book. She then said, "This is one of the best books I've ever read." I related this to my boss, who knows her. My boss said, "You know who your competition is? Carol reads Dickens and Dostoevsky and Melville! You're up there with the classics!" I was flattered. (Carol emailed me at 6:30 that night and said she couldn't stop thinking about the book and she almost felt like she was in a trance. I am not making this up.) The practical application to this is that she's telling a lot of people it's a great book and now people at work are actually starting to buy it. Yay! (One or two have asked if they could just borrow one of my copies. I have stood firm.) Carol is now emailing me telling me to write more books. I have started one, but I'm not sure where it's going so it's not clipping along at any brisk pace. My boss said, "If Carol were here, she'd be giving you deadlines." Maybe I need her.
I'm also working on another screenplay. I should emphasize this is not scabbing, for anyone following the WGA strike. We are not under contract with any studio; no one is waiting for this to be done. We started in September, long before the strike began. It will not be pitched to anyone until after the strike is over. It will not be finished until long after the strike is over. It's very interesting and fun to write, but it deals with scientists. I anticipate writing some drafts where the dialogue says, literally, "SCIENCE SCIENCE SCIENCE" until I can actually speak with a scientist who can write that part for me. Science is not the focus of the story—relationships are—but world-renowned physicists and mathematicians aren't talking about tea parties, you know?
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
What is "usable form"?
We also discussed the website, and he asked me when it would be up. Parroting what I have been told by my designer, I said, "A few days." Now, the dirty secret is, I've been told "a few days" oh so many times...first it was "two weeks," then "another ten days," then "in a few days." I just got an email from my designer that indicates that it's going to be many, many more days, not a few. I am not techno-savvy enough to know exactly what is going on, but it seems the programmer is a lot more interested in security and "cross referencing" than in, say, getting the site into a "usable form." It is currently nowhere near a "usable form" and he just can't figure out how long it will take to put it into "usable form," at least not any more specifically than "a few days."
They're working on it. I know they're working on it. But I also know that I started this project (the website) back in MAY and I'm wondering why only now in November are we thinking about putting it into "usable form"? I am doing radio interviews. (Barbara's aired last Friday.) I am telling show hosts, "The website will be up in just a couple of days! Just a few days!" because that is what I have been told. Meanwhile I have no way to gauge if anyone has even visited the site because IT IS NOT IN USABLE FORM. I don't know if this whole "radio tour" was a stupid, bad idea and colossal waste of money. I don't know if the website itself was a stupid, bad idea and colossal waste of money, because no one can get to it so I don't know if anyone has tried to get to it because...say it with me...it is not in usable form.
Meanwhile my stats on Amazon are slipping, slipping, slipping. A week ago I was at 500,000...today I'm at 700,000...and a book called "Fur Trappers" dealing with the mountain men of the 1800s is at roughly the same spot. Sigh. I know my dad hasn't done his Christmas shopping yet, so that's one positive, but...sigh.
Thanksgiving is rapidly approaching, and it seems as if the Utah tour will not accompany it. This is fine. I will get some peace and solitude and, if all goes well, some writing done. I have several projects I can work on—just pick one! But it's getting increasingly difficult to write. I think it's a phase (I've been in them before) and it will pass, but it's frustrating when it's happening. The good thing is, at work we get Friday off, too, so I will have a glorious long weekend. I am thrilled. Even if I don't write, I will sleep...I know it, because I don't have to get up in the morning, and late morning is when I know I can sleep.
Hopefully I will not dream of anything in "unusable form."
Thursday, November 1, 2007
What are you thankful for?
Yes, it's the day after Halloween, and no, this post isn't going to talk about Halloween. I have no children and don't like to dress up myself (for a Halloween party on Saturday, I wrote "CAT" on a piece of paper and pinned that to my sweater), so Halloween is a non-event for me.
A real event: I had my first radio interview today. (The "first" was scheduled for November 20, as I mentioned in my previous post, but we scheduled a couple of others in the interim. ) If you missed it, fear not! It wasn't live; it'll be broadcast on Friday, November 9. In Athens, Georgia. Something tells me all my New York and Utah friends will miss it.
It was an interesting experience. I had drawn up a list of questions I thought she might ask, and equally drawn up what I might say. As I have mentioned before, I am not a part of the world where people can come up with snappy, articulate responses right in the moment they need them. I come up with the responses about 10 minutes later. Great for writing, not so good for a radio interview. "Wait, can I go back to that first question? I just thought of a funnier answer." The spirit of the stairs. So, happily, I had anticipated most of these questions and had some decent answers. The hostess, Barbara Dooley, was perfectly nice and inquisitive and positive. A good first experience. The interview lasted 10 minutes. I hope they don't cut it up, because it's not that long to begin with.
I now have two interviews currently scheduled for November 20 and one on December 3. I believe I will have a few more in the interim, just not presently scheduled. I will have a running list on the "Media" section of my kathrynmaughan.com website. (At some point I hope to upload the actual interviews so people can listen to them. We'll see if the technologically-challenged author actually can figure out how to do that.) I am also floating the idea of a Salt Lake City-based set of interviews, both on radio and television. Ideally this would happen right around Thanksgiving, so I could do a two-in-one trip: get in some local press coverage, and eat turkey with the family for the first time in years.
Thanksgiving is not my favorite holiday. I like to eat, of course I do. But think about it: hours and hours of preparation in order to sit down and eat one meal. Maybe, if your host/grandmother is traditional, you'll all have to say what you're thankful for first, but really, people, it's...just...a...meal. Flying five hours, fighting crowds and traffic and getting bumped, to have dinner? Stay two nights on your old bed and then fly another five hours, fighting crowds and traffic and getting bumped?
My mother did not understand the first time I decided not to come home for Thanksgiving. She was hurt, even. I tried to explain my logic to her, and I figured, hey, she's a practical woman (to a fault)—she'll understand. She'll be grateful she doesn't have to fight the traffic and airport crowds. I was wrong. That year I chose to go to Paris instead of home, and I celebrated Thanksgiving in the Louvre eating quiche Lorraine. (That was a meal for which I was willing to fly hours and hours.) She told me it was stupid. I think she was referring to the expense, but still. Didn't make me go to Utah the next year. I went my first year of grad school, and had three major projects hanging over my head and instead of the mattress they've had since I was 8 I decided to sleep on their "deluxe" bed in the guest room and probably slept a total of 15 hours over 4 nights. I have not gone home for Thanksgiving since. At Christmas, I sleep on the old bed.
If I lived closer to home, I would be willing to go home for it. If I didn't have to fly, say, or the flight were one or two hours, that would be a different story. But New York to Utah for a piece of turkey no longer computes. On the other hand, New York to Utah for a few interviews and a piece of turkey...that's another ballgame. That could potentially involve financial gain, and financial gain is something I would not mind at all.


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Location = Carlisle, MA
The woman on the phone is frantic. I have come to expect this being in pest control. I can certainly understand why people react the way they do with pests but that does not mean I don't find the situations funny. The woman was screaming to me about her cat bringing chipmunks inside the house alive & letting them go. There were at least 3-4 chipmunks running wild all over the house. Her teenage daughter was screaming her lungs out as she stood on the table, a safe distance from the floor. I do not blame the chipmunks for acting crazy, you ever hear a teenage girl scream??? I guess the cat was not done playing as he was chasing the chipmunks all over the house. Did I forget to mention the dog? Well the dog was chasing the cat, the cat was chasing the chipmunk, the teenager was screaming at the top of her lungs, the mother was trying to remain calm as she pleaded with us to do something. I guess you could imagine that the background noise sounded like World War III.
What can EHS do about this? Being a mom I am battle tested in most house dilemma's, granted not to this extent but close. 1) Put a leash on the dog & put him in the bathroom. 2) Put the cat in the travel kennel. 3) Open every door in the house so the chipmunks can leave on their own. 4) Take your daughter to go get a latte then sit outside in your yard and relax. After 1-2 hours your house should be back to normal….maybe not normal but the way it was prior to the Wild Kingdom episode.
Melissa Charnitsky
Customer Care Specialist


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There are a couple of television celebrity cooks … chefs… people out there that I simply adore. We share the same mindset in cooking, and I find that refreshing in what's becoming an overcrowded attack on the senses. I think Laura Caulder is sublime – I love her simple, carefree attitude with cooking and her unfettered approach to French food. Nigella Lawson.. is a goddess. She cooks what she wants, eats what she wants, and damn the naysayers. I'd pull up a chair to her table any day.
It's funny… I post my personal recipes across several different platforms on the web, professional and not – so professional. Some I lay claim to.. If I'm pushed for a deadline and I throw something together… you probably wont see my name on it.
But when I do, often times people will write, tell me they tried a recipe, and either say how well they liked it (occasionally) or that they didn't care for it so much (more often than you would like to think). But then there was a reader in Oklahoma that wrote to tell me that "… her family absolutely (explicit removed) loved it and ate it all up!".. and then went on to tell me she didn't use pork, and she didn't like the peppercorns so she used Montreal Seasoning, and she didn't have any chicken stock but she had a can of cream of chicken soup… .. .
I'm sure it was probably very good; her family seemed to enjoy it. And I do thank her for telling me she tried it… but, It really wasn't my recipe. Part of me was puffed because she had utilized one of my creations, but I was also a little hurt because they changed the recipe… but that's what this is really all about, isn't it? All of us writers out here, in our varied communities, are simply giving other people the inspiration and the courage to go into that room that you just spent $50k renovating and do something more than heating up a pizza in the microwave.
Which brings me back to my opening foot kissing. While I do find these two women kindred spirits, it doesn't mean I love everything they do. Spice blends and flavorings are a pretty personal thing, and no one really shares your own penchant for piquancy. So, It's no real secret by now that I play around with almost every recipe I use from someone else.
I came across Nigella's Buttermilk Roast Chicken several months ago while I was thumbing through her Nigella Express book. And although I was intrigued…. it just didn't sing off the pages, for a couple of reasons:
1). I liked the buttermilk marinade, but it was going to come off a bit bland for me because I don't do maple in anything savory. Personally, it's gag inducing…. but that's just me – I know.
2). She only works with the legs and I typically work with a whole chicken. (it's more economical for me to buy a whole carcass, butcher it down and use the scraps, bones, giblets in other areas.)
3). I thought the marinade time was on the slight side… even for dark meat. So I needed to adjust the marinade time to accommodate both types of meat to provide ample butter-milky goodness to permeate the muscles.
My intention was to use that recipe for the Cookbook Sundays group…. but by the time I monkeyed around with the recipe to my satisfaction – it bore very little resemblance to the original… other than that there was chicken.. and buttermilk.
So, here now is my take on Nigella Lawson's Buttermilk Roast Chicken…
… I don't think she would mind
Buttermilk Roast Chicken
Serves 4 to 6
1 Whole Chicken – butchered into 10 pieces. (you can find the how-to for it HERE)
2 Cups Buttermilk
2 Tablespoons Oil
1 Tablespoon Shortening
2 Cloves Garlic – Crushed
1 Tablespoon Pink Peppercorns
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cumin
1/2 Teaspoon Poultry Seasoning
1 Teaspoon Salt
1 Packed Tablespoon Dark Brown Sugar
1/4 Cup Chopped Parsley
1 Large Zipper Bag
Butcher Knife
Cutting board
Large Cast Iron Skillet (big enough to hold 10 pieces of chicken)
- Butcher the chicken – Remove the backbone, tip the wings, and cut the rest to make 2 short breasts, 2 wishbones, 2 thighs, 2 wings and 2 drumsticks (We're cutting into 10 because I want the breasts smaller so they will cook at the same time as the rest of the pan. Creating the wishbone cut also give you the added bonus of 2 extra juicy pieces of white.)
- Place the chicken in the bag
- Add to the bag – Buttermilk, garlic, poultry seasoning, peppercorns, cumin, salt and brown sugar
- Seal the bag and squitch all the pieces around in the milk to make sure everything is blended and well coated
- Place in the fridge for 2 DAYS, turn the bag over a couple of times a day… if you remember
- Place the skillet in the oven and Preheat the oven to 450
- When the pan and oven are screaming hot, add the shortening to the pan and let melt
- Open the bag and shake the marinade from the chicken pieces and place skin side up in the hot fat
- Drizzle the remaining oil over the tops of the placed pieces
- Fish out the crushed garlic and add to the pan
- Roast uncovered at 450 for 30 minutes… or until the skin is brown and bubbled
- Remove, top with the parsley, and serve immediately with a boatload of napkins. (The chicken is also great at room temperature for a picnic, or even chilled for a late night snack)
You can find Nigella's original recipe HERE


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Cross-Eyed Lefty Bomber Release
April 15, 2017
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This blended Saison is truly a unique beer. Multiple barrels and mixed fermentations were used to create an easy drinking Saison that finishes with a touch of funkiness. Multiple Saisons were brewed with French, Belgian, and Sake yeast strains. A mixed variety of red wine and tequila barrels provides a range of complementary barrel characters of fruit, oak, and earthiness. 6.8% ABV.


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It doesn't seem like it has been four years since my first blog in which I posted a call for papers for the 33rd annual Southwest Texas Popular/American Culture association's conference, held in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It was my first turn as the Area Chair of James Bond, Espionage and Eurospy studies and I was nervous taking the reins of an area of study that has been both glorified and vilified.
Over the four years, I became submersed in the spy/espionage genre, and about two years I gained the courage to step up to an acquisitions manager and pitch a book proposal. I was fortunate; it was picked up and within a month, I had contract in hand. And, last November, the James Bond and Popular Culture: Essays on the Influence of the Fictional Superspy (McFarland & Company) was released. It is still a surreal moment in my life and one I had been working towards for many years.
Over the years, I have met fascinating individuals associated with James Bond, either academics, authors, or in show business. Through my associations, my anthology essayists, and most recently my series Bond 365, I have gained a deeper appreciation for Bond and the genre as a whole.
To commemorate fours of Spyfi & Superspies, I thought I would pick four of my favourite posts. I hope you enjoy my picks and if you have a moment, it would be wonderful to hear your favorite moments from the James Bond universe!
Monday, March 3, 2014
I'm a huge fan of the television show, Person of Interest, and while watching "Bury My Lede" (Season 2, Episode 5), I was struck with profound inspiration to spoof John Reese's bogus profile on Match-Heart.com that Harold Finch creates so that Reese can meet the target for that week's episode. I need to pick up and continue watching this show!
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Released by Illuminati Films and Eros Entertainment in 2012, Agent Vinod remains one of my favourite spy-oriented films from India. Directed by Sriram Raghavan and starring Saif Ali Khan, this is a slick film with toe-tapping/head bobbing music. While there are still the customary songs, they are integrated into the action of the film rather than obviously set apart. I believe this is a decidedly Western film and as such, box office receipts were a disappointment and sadly, no Agent Vinod II is on the sun-baked horizon....I'm a sad spy girl.
Wednesday, July 23, 2014
It was a dream come true to see my name on the cover of a book that I had worked on for over a year, bringing together several voices from around the world into a cohesive anthology to talk about the influence of James Bond in popular culture. In this post, I pealed back the veneer and explained the process of putting together this collection with all of its peaks and valleys. And, I have just started down that road again, this time with the tentatively titled Essays on Space Horror in Films, 1950s – 2000s, due out late 2016.
Tuesday, August 18, 2015
The concept for the Bond 365 series was born out of a challenge to myself to be seriously committed to Spyfi & Superspies and what better way than showing up everyday with a new post. Except for a three-week hiatus because of back-to-back conventions (one being the San Diego International Comic Con) and the sad passing of one of my beloved felines, I have shown up and honestly, I have learned so much the people involved with James Bond whether in film, television, radio, comics, books, video games, etc. There were so many posts to choose from, but I decided on this recent on about Peter Fleming, Ian's older brother. Their life choices were similar in many ways and others, completely different, but they remain utterly fascinating.
I hope my posts have been interesting, enlightening, and entertaining over these past four years. As always, I value you for stopping by and I hope you'll bookmark Spyfi & Superspies and make it a regular stop. I have some plans brewing for 2016 that will be solidified in the coming months. I'll be revealing more by the end of the year. So, come on back and put some James Bond into your life!
© Copyright. Michele Brittany. 2011 - 2015. All rights reserved. All text, graphics, and photos are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without written permission.


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You know you're getting close to a new series when there's enough news happening that we need to dust off this old format. Here's a handy round-up of everything that's happened since our last news update on Friday lunchtime, in order of how-much-we-have-to-say-on-the-topic.
WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE WOMAN, SHE'S SFX MAD – Today saw the latest issue of SFX hit the newsstands, featuring on its cover a photograph of four really familiar-looking men. It was never going to be as prolific as last year's coverage, so there's no little booklet this time round, but there is an eight page feature on the show with contributions from all four cast members and both Naylors. The bulk is taken up by the cast answering fans' questions, most of which will be familiar to convention-goers, and are more often about the show's past instead of the upcoming series. The only new information of note comes in this answer to a question about whether they'd like to see the Cat people return:


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ATTENTION: Please, attach your abstracts on word format in addition to poster submission system.
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The mini Versailles of Los Angeles, vineyard included!
Kim Kardashian and Kanye West may be putting their Bel Air mansion on the market, but it's only because they found this $20 million Hidden Hills estate to call home. The place is basically the mini Versailles of Los Angeles: It has a vineyard, two pools (one with fountains), and a very chateau look. Tour the hallowed halls of Kimye's estate, here.


text: Description : When a brilliant and driven neurosurgeon's career is cut short, she turns her unrivaled medical skills toward solving murders. Every body has a story to tell and Dr. Megan Hunt will find out wha... [+]moreWhen a brilliant and driven neurosurgeon's career is cut short, she turns her unrivaled medical skills toward solving murders. Every body has a story to tell and Dr. Megan Hunt will find out what it is. Dr. Megan Hunt was a top neurosurgeon until a car accident ended her career as a surgeon. Now that she can no longer help the living, Dr. Hunt is Philadelphia's most notorious medical examiner. Although she's amazing at her job, Dr. Hunt's reputation of being difficult precedes her wherever she goes. She's never encountered a boundary that she wouldn't cross. Her powerful boss tries to protect her as long as she doesn't step too hard on the wrong toes. Although he grudgingly acknowledges her skill, seasoned police detective Bud Morris is not as enthralled with her methods. Luckily, Dr. Hunt does have a few fans. Her junior medical examiners rely on her expert advice and her investigative partner, Medical Investigator Peter Dunlap, accepts her unorthodox behavior. Maybe that's because he's the only one who knows that Dr. Hunt's challenging personality is partly rooted in guilt. Before she gave up neurosurgery, Dr. Hunt accidentally killed her last patient. Add in a touch of bitterness from a hostile divorce that awarded her ex sole custody of their teenage daughter and you have one sad social life. You see, when it comes to understanding the dead, Dr. Hunt is amazing. But when it comes to her relationships with the living, she has a lot of work to do. From executive producers Matt Gross and Christopher Murphey comes a fascinating new procedural built on a strong and compelling female lead. Each week, as Dr. Hunt and her colleagues close a new case, she will come a tiny step closer to letting other people into her life.


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Today you can find the rubRiga with some striped inspiration on Clarissa blog "La Stanza degli Armadi"
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Celia is walking around
Pubblicato da Cecilia a 5:56 AM
Etichette: DWG
5 comments:
thank you. It is not necessary to work hard, follow your heart and have fun! Have a nice day too!ReplyDelete
Claudia you're so right! But I have so many ideas for my posts and I feel guilty when I have no time to work about them! I'd like to have 48 hours a day!Delete
I also fight with the time problem. But I learned to feel guilty is no solution, I am sure we do our best every time.Delete
Happy weekend,
Che belli i foulard di hermes!!! Magari poterci giocare cosi!!ReplyDelete
I really adore the picture! I think you did such a great job on it! Perfectly sweet!ReplyDelete
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December has been, as always, a pretty crazy busy month for me. It's been a lot of work (which I love) and a lot of Holiday parties.
With Christmas just around the corner, and New Year's just after that, I'm definitely not having the easiest time keeping track of my healthy goals. That's not even to mention all of the Holiday parties that are now mostly behind me. But since they're not, there's still something to be said for trying to keep track and make sure that you don't gain weight this time of year.
After my healthier eating for Thanksgiving, I knew that I could tackle this one, too. That's not to say that it was easy. Work parties, friend parties, family parties… it can all add up really quickly. Check out my tips on how to keep healthy this time of year!
Read 10 Ways to Not Gain Weight During the Holidays on Latina.com >>
How do you plan to not gain weight this Holiday season?
Want more Healthy Latin Food? Follow me on Twitter and Instagram, become a fan on Facebook, or sign up to receive e-mail updates. And if you have any questions about cooking healthy or weight loss, please don't hesitate to e-mail me. Thanks for reading!