Life in the city

Our taxi found the Japanese Ambassador's residence a bit early so we strolled up and down Nebraska Avenue eagerly waiting for the evening to begin.  The November air was crisp but warm enough to enjoy the walk.  Just before 6PM the modern wrought iron gates to the residence opened.  After checking our invitations and IDs we were allowed to walk down a perfectly manicured path to the entrance.  The public entrance expanded into a ballroom of light wood panels reaching from the soothingly pale carpets to the white ceiling 25 feet above.  The room was brightly lit with the most delicate chandelier that ran the length of the room.  We sipped wine with other invitees, chatting about the films we had seen over the past year at the Japan Information and Cultural Center (JICC), and gazed out into the garden in the center of the complex.  We had been transported to Japan.  It was a special night.

Exactly at 6:30, doors on the inside wall opened.  We were ushered into another slightly smaller room with ~100 other guests of the Ambassador.  He warmed the room as he welcomed us.  The backdrop was a massive Japanese screen covered in gold cloth.  It's subtle circle pattern revealed itself as the lights dimmed  and the evening's speaker Artist Koji Kinutani took the stage, his art displayed on a large screen on our left. 

Kinutani is a fascinating man.  He takes Japanese art to a new place working in gesso, the tradition of Leonardo De Vinci and other Italian greats.  He translates traditional themes into modern paintings that tell stories in symbols.  His command of Italian and French failed him with this audience so he spoke in Japanese, having a translator communicate his words to us.  Some of the audience knew Japanese so they laughed a bit ahead of the rest of us.  It was fun to be so engaged.  Kinutani reveled in our excitement.  Like our artist friend Judy Southerland, he does a lot of work with children, helping them learn expression through making pictures.  And, like our friend Judy, he gets great satisfaction and pleasure from working with young people.

We finished the evening with a sushi buffet and a pleasant thank-you and handshakes with the Mr. Kinutani and the Ambassador.  Life in the big city is good! 

Life by the Numbers

Today I turned 68.  There was only one other kid in my class as old as me, so Happy Birthday Joanie!  There were at least a dozen fellow classmates and other folks I've known though the years who posted birthday wishes on my Facebook page. Even an ex-husband wished me a "Happy Birthday."  What else can a girl ask for?  I thank everyone for all those good wishes. My daughter sent flowers to home and my husband sent flowers to work.  My sisters called and cards arrived.

But this year is different.  I can't just ignore the fact that I'm 10 months away from leaving the world of school  and work I've lived in for 50 years.   It's time for an accounting.  I found it revealing - both enlightening and silly.

• Children 1 - She's the girl I always wanted  even if she didn't pop out of my body.
• Grandchildren 3 -  Ages 18, 16 and 3.
• Books published 2  and book unpublished 1 - It's a whole lot easier to write about business than fiction.
• Degrees 3 - Guess I really liked the going to school gig.
• Husbands 4 - As a shrink once said, "Dorine, you certainly can't pick'm, but you sure can't leave'm."  The nice thing is I've reconnected and reconciled with the first three in the last few years.
• Longest relationship 22 years - With husband #4.  He let's me think that I am in charge. And, most importantly, he loves to shop and learned to sail even if he can't swim a stroke.
• Careers 5 - Airline attendant, corporate climber, consultant, business owner and professor. I either love variety or am totally unable to focus.  I don't count the time I sold shoes at Nordstrom's for six weeks. 
• Most embarrassing personal moment as a kid 1 - The cops caught me with my high school sweetheart, naked, parked in a corn field in his dad's red Dodge station wagon in 1966.  There are just some things one never, never forgets. And, no, I won't provide details and I'm sure he won't either.
• Most embarrassing as an adult 1 - My boss finding out that I was having an relationship with her boyfriend back in 1972.  In my defense, I didn't know it when the relationship started. But, in retrospect, it was a wild time, those 70's.
• Most accomplished sport 1 - I could beat guys with bad knees at racquetball.
• Job firings 2- lost two clients for stupid stuff in the 1980s.
• Most exciting adventures 2 - Sailing off shore to Block Island and living on a boat in  Bahamas for six months.
• Most thrilling event 1 - Being at my daughter's side with my son-law when she gave birth to her second son. 
• Most memorable description of me 1 - Coined by my friend since first grade  as I left the Midwest for the east coast in 1971--"Determined little dumpling."  She's always had a way with words.
• Regrets 0 -  I'll never say "I wish, I could of."

All of that and more makes me one happy person as I prepare for the next stage of my life.  What's the most exciting time of my life -- Now and what's lies ahead.

Getting the feel of it

Out of bed at a very late 7:30AM.  I read a bit of the Times while I drank my normal morning coffee.  Instead of dressing for work, I dressed for the gym and found myself running on a treadmill, not driving into the office.  It could not have felt better.  Sweaty from following my trainer's instructions and feeling somewhat righteous, I escaped the gym, stepping into the morning air -- it was all crisp and sunny.  "I could get used to this!"

By noon we were on our way to the marina to check Forte Vento's last set of repairs.  She is looking very good again--finally.  No more tress cracks.  However, we can't let her sit there in the marina for very long.  A severe winter is ahead of us.  At least that is what John and the long range weather forecasts he reads. So we made the decision to leave her on the hard (aka on solid ground) to be shrink wrapped in a cocoon of white plastic for the duration.  Her deck and cockpit will be sealed from the winter weather.  Snow and rain will run down this tenting before it can harden into ice.  No worries and no emergency trips to dig out the boat from under the weight of accumulated snow -- except of course that she will be up on those testy "sticks" (jack stands) holding her upright.  Let's keep our fingers crossed.

Today, the drive between the marina and DC reminded me of New England.  Bright sun warmed my neck as I drove.  Brilliant orange, red and yellow leaves glittered in the light wind.  Our 50 minute trip took us through one of the many bucolic areas in Southern Maryland.  Lots of rolling hills, plowed fields and winter crops just laid in.  Civilization is stuffed behind tree lines.   We turn off Route 4 (it eventually becomes Pennsylvania Avenue) at Suitland Parkway and continue to enjoy the ride until we cross the Anacostia Bridge and pass the Nationals (Nats - our baseball team) stadium.  It's only then that the reality of the city smacks us in the face.  But today it's a gentle smack because its pre-rush hour.  All is well.  "I could get used to this."

I now had three hours to spend doing whatever. What to do?  I've never had three hours to just be (on land).  I found a few little tasks to tidy up the place, but then I came face to face with leisure.  OMG!  Determined not to nap--I cannot waste the day-- I paced a bit, then read -  a WHOLE DAMN magazine.  WOW!  Decadent.  What an experience! It was so astonishing that I just had to write about it.  Hence, this blog entry.  "Can I get used to this?"  If I learned to sail, I can learn to relax.  I am determined!  Ok everyone, you can stop laughing now :-)