Making a Picture Frame from a China Plate

Years ago when my great niece was small, she colored a ceramic plate as a craft project, then her mother sent me the plate. Through all the years, I kept the plate. Now Katie has graduated high school and for her graduation, I broke the plate and made it into a picture frame. Actually, it was a lot easier than the thought of doing it.

This is the original plate she created, both the front side (much more colorful) and the backside (where she spelled her name).

Then I selected an old picture frame I had around the house (I think I picked it up at a garage sale from 50 cents).

Then, I wanted to paint the frame white, front and back but I did not have to be that careful on the front because I was going to cover it. On the backside, I used painter's tape around the edges, and gave it many coats so the white was nice and shiny.




Now comes the fun part -- smashing the plate. How I did it was I put the plate in a plastic bag then a paper bag and I went outside to the cement walk and threw it on the ground. I kept doing this, picking out the best pieces until I knew I had a good selection to choose from.

 Now, I put the selected pieces around the frame. This is my first attempt. I thought some pieces too big, so I took them back outside and smashed some more. (Of course, there are tools you can use to cut the ceramics, but I enjoyed smashing the plate to bits!)


After I had the pieces I wanted to surround the frame, I took a filing tool and filed the rough edges from the plate. (At right).

Then, it was time to glue the pieces onto the frame. I chose to only cover the front of the frame because it is a small frame. I used gorilla glue, but you could use any glue for the material you are using. I was using ceramic to wood.


I let this dry overnight to make sure all pieces were secure. The next morning I picked it up, turned it over and shook. I was good to go. No pieces fell from it.

Then, I got out the grout I selected. Since this is my first mosaic piece, I selected the simplest grout I could find. It is in a powder form and I mixed 1 part water to 4 parts grout powder.

I stirred it until it had a good consistency and started putting it all around the front of the frame and on the sides where the plate piece hit. This was messy but easy. I used an old paint brush for this project, so now I have a grout brush!

I followed the directions exactly, and it said to immediately wipe the excess grout from the piece. I did this a few times with a damp sponge. After I knew that I had it fairly clean, I took a paper towel and went over each piece to make sure the pieces were clean from grout.

I let it sit overnight. You probably would not have to, but I had the time.

I went to the drugstore to have a copy of the original plate made to put inside the picture frame. And today I put it in the mail for Katie to have a piece of her history. She is a Lacrosse player, so I hope she puts many great lacrosse pictures inside this frame.

Until tomorrow...have a great day...

What is GMO?

I see it all the time -- GMO -- and it is always affiliated with Monsanto. But what is it and what about Monsanto?

GMO stands for genetically modified foods -- foods that have been artificially modified in the laboratory to tolerate herbicides and insecticides and allow the product to have a longer shelf life. They say that nutrition is not compromised.

Monsanto is a chemical company and known for Round-Up and Agent Orange (remember Vietnam, people!) What is important here is that Monsanto is the first company to modify a soybean to tolerate herbicides (think Round-Up). It is a chemical company, this is their job.

Is it good to have genetically modified foods? I doubt it, but, hey, people have to eat. Think of it this way - in a few short 25-35 years we are going to need a whole lot more food to feed the world population, and plants are beleaguered with insects that devastate crops. Do you allow the insects to totally annihilate an entire crop specie? That is what was being done in Hawaii with the papaya. Now, it is genetically modified, and we eat papaya. Once again, I have no clue what the long lasting outcome will be for eating genetically modified foods. Some literature says allergic reactions or antibiotic resistance.

Another example is that there are so many people starving all over the world, and many die each year from Vitamin A deficiency. Enter Golden Rice, and this genetically modified food helps here.

I think that the efforts are good in the sense that they are aware the world needs to eat and they are trying to produce the food to feed the multitudes. Today, there are around 7.4 trillion people in the world. Geohive.com estimates that by 2050 there will be 9.5 trillion people in the world. That's 2 trillion more people, but the land and the crops do not increase, so something has to be done.

Foods that have a high risk of gmos are alfafa, canola, corm, cotton (cotton?), papaya, soy, sugar beets, zucchini and yellow squash.

I don't think that you can visually see the difference in a genetically modified piece of corn or an organic piece of corn. So, how do we know what we are eating. Literature says that 80% of corn is genetically modified. 80%.

This means that many if not most of the processed foods contain at least one gmo -- think fructose or monosodium glutamate. I have a simple rule, I read the label, and any ingredient I can not pronounce or have no clue what it is is probably no good for me.

The alternative is to buy local, buy organic (should see a USDA Organic or non-gmo on the product and expect to pay big bucks, sometimes double the price of what I find on the gmo shelf), and always cook at home with products I know have come out of the ground close to where I live. But, I know that is not going to happen every day, so yes, I am going to eat gmos. Do I think it will effect me? Yes, I do. I don't know if it my body is simply changing, but I do know that when I eat, I feel fuller faster. It may have something to do with digestion. We'll find out.

And then I think of the movie "Soylent Green" and it gives me the heebie-jeebies.

For more information about GMOs, go to who.int/food safety (that's the world health organization) and nongmoproject.com

Until tomorrow...have a great day...

Research on How to Make a Website

As I found out earlier this week, I definitely need a website. The thought of making my own website terrifies me, but after a search on how to do it, I may be able to make my own. Who knows, one day I may be a techie!

I found many sites that will help me build my website for a fee, but I know people do it for free, and if I am going to put my time and effort into it, then I don't really want to pay someone for what I am doing.

There was one site that had viable information, but it also said that I could not use the information to tell you about it because it was copyrighted. Too bad because the information was generic enough that I found it elsewhere, so that company does not get a pitch.

I found one site that recognized websitebuilder.com as pretty good to use free of charge, but before going further into the site (which means I would have to join, sign up, and create a password) I briefly scanned the steps and thought, nah.

But what I did find was an incredible site -- websitesetup.org (for beginners). The information is not only free, but if you have problems with creating the website, you can email the designer (Robert Mening from Sweden) and he will answer your questions. (There is a place on the website to enter your questions).

From him and his website, I have learned there are three basic steps to creating a website:

1. choose a "platform" -- He said there were 3 most popular -- wordpress, drupal, and joomla.

Wordpress (which I am familiar with since I do have that idiom/cliche blog I am going to resurrect next month on Wordpress) is free, has themes and templates, can be expanded with plug-ins, and works on mobiles and tablets.

Drupal would require me to know a bit of codes (like HTML) which I know nothing about.

Joomla requires the same, a bit of technical coding language.

So, I am satisfied with Wordpress. Choice Number 1 has been completed.

2. choose a domain name and host

The domain name will be my website address, which I will have to choose. That may be the hard part because he said there are 150 million domain names our there. I will have to be very creative with this because I want people to remember the website so they can go on and see what I am doing, and of course, I will probably have another blog on the website about my writing. Later, much later.

The host is a service that connects my website to the internet. There is a cost here -- from $3-5 per month. I think I can handle that! He suggested Bluehost.com as a web hosting and domain register (you get the first domain name free).

When I was at the writing group on Tuesday, the person taking care of their website was using GoDaddy as the host, but from what I understood, she was having problems with it. But, that could have been her. I don't know. There is also NameCheap.

3.  install Wordpress

Here, I am going to choose themes or templates for my site. I know Wordpress has thousands of them and they continually email me with new themes all the time. So it is an ever-expanding process.

Once I have my theme or template, I will check it out on google, the search engine I frequent the most.

It really does not sound that hard, so let's see what it really entails. Will keep you posted on that one.

Have a great weekend...

Mattresses

I have had every type of mattress available during my lifetime. There was one year when I had three mattresses. I worked with one of the dealers who finally gave in and said he had one for me that was by far the best. He was going out of business so I got it for my original cost, and he was right. It was a great bed. It's just too bad mattresses don't last a lifetime.

Today, there is the memory foam, waterbed, innerspring, pillow top, gel, air, and hybrid. But before we get into the types and my experiences with them, let me back up about a thousand years. This "bed" thing is really a new concept.

One holiday my family and I were hiking trails on Hilton Head Island in S. Carolina, and while there we learned that way back, people slept on the needles and moss found in trees. Ouch!. Looking back, the Romans stuffed hay, wood or feathers around cloth and that was their bed. As well as the bugs and varmints. We complain about bedbugs, but guess what folks, all sorts of bugs have been around as long as we have slept. I remember being in England one summer, and we were touring the Dover Castle and it was explained that this castle was a look out point for invaders, and the soldiers slept on the hay with their horses, and probably cows and dogs and any other animal there. Really, in the course of history, it wasn't that long ago.

It wasn't until 1865 when the first coil spring was introduced, then in the 1930s innersprings and upholstered foundation made its way into society. That is not even 100 years ago.

Probably, the most common bed bought is the innerspring mattress -- the more coils the mattress has, the more support it is going to give your body. Here is a picture of an innerspring with a pillow top.

I have had these types, both with the pillow top and not. Unless if you pay a heap, my medium of the road bed lasted a few good years. That is what I have now, and after only two years, I am looking for another bed.

That best bed ever I mentioned was a pillow top, and then on top of that I but a feather bed, and believe me, I wanted to stay in the bed. I would imagine I had a top of the line bed from the man who was going out of business.

Then, there is a hybrid -- a mattress with both coils and foam. Haven't tried one of these, so I can't give a first hand account.


Then, comes the foam. Ahhh, memory foam. I had one of these in Illinois, and believe me, it was worth the few extra dollars. Once again, I got the medium of the road, but one of my co-workers splurged on the top of the line, and she loved it. What is great about this mattress is the foam contours to your body, and when you sleep it helps reduce the pressure points. I would buy another memory foam mattress.

I do use latex foam as a topper to some of my beds as they age. It gives me a couple more years of use.


I have had a waterbed when it was all the rage, but after years of rocking and rolling, I wanted more support when I slept, but I did enjoy the mattress when I had it. I guess now they have waveless waterbeds.

I have an air mattress for my extra guests. Actually, they are not that bad. I slept on my air mattress for three weeks when I first moved to Florida while I waited for furniture.



And now I am looking at a sleep number bed. Oh my!

I have no idea the final cost of this type of bed, but as I read the brochure (these pictures are from the booklet I sent for from the company), this bed comes with everything. Of course, the bed on the left is more traditional, but take a look at the one on the right. This bed has an adjustable base where you can raise both the head and the legs. I could have a massage in bed and it has a timer! Hello. You know how much I love massages. It says I can float like zero gravity and if I want to read in bed there is a night light.Then, with a remote and a timer, I can return to my favorite sleeping position (you know, when I fall asleep reading). Problem with this bed, I may not want to get out of bed. Kinda like that first wonder bed.

I need to find one of these showrooms and lay for awhile. Actually, I have an idea for the mattress business, if they really want us to have an experience, they should throw slumber parties for us serious customers to try out the beds. Kinda like a musical chair thing, only it's musical beds.

We have come a long way, and in recent history, I have tried most every bed out there. I can say, I should have spent the extra money when I moved here and got the best of bed because my lower back is killing me, even with the foam topper. My guests say the guest mattress is comfortable, so that is good. And, I'm sorry, but this girl has to have her beauty sleep. So, I know that expense is coming.

Until tomorrow...have a great day...

I Have the Darndest Time with Furniture

I am not really a shopper, but I can tell you I go through chairs, sofas and mattresses more than I go through clothes.

When I moved to Florida, I got new "big" furniture -- sofa, mattress, and chairs. Out of the sofa, mattress and chairs, the only piece of furniture that is comfortable is my sofa. That is it. After a short period of time, the mattress started to sag in the middle (I am talking less than a year), so I bought a foam topper for it. Now, I need to replace it after a year or so of use.

The original chairs that I bought turned out to be too low. You would think that I would have learned from that, but sometimes it takes me many tries to learn my lessons. This past winter I bought a recliner and it fit great, felt great in the show room, but once home, once again, it is too low.

But the sofa was just right. This is the sofa (notice the lower back of the sofa, it rolls forward while the top of the sofa angles back). What I have found great about the sofa is the back part and the seat cushions can be moved to give support on who you are and how you sit. Actually, I love this sofa and would rebuy it. And everyone who sits on it agrees, and when my great-nephew visits, he wants to sleep on it. It is cushy as well as firm. Very important.





I liked the chair, and I fit well in it, but it is just a bit too low for me. Through the years, I have found that I like to sit straight up in a chair, and this chair does let me do that. So, what have I learned? My sofa is 18 1/2 inches from the floor to the top of the cushion. I am comfortable with this measurement. It is easy to sit down and easy to get up. Both the chair and the new recliner are 16 inches from the floor to the top of the cushion. I never would have thought that those two little inches make a difference, but they do.

I love cushy seats, you know, the kind you sink into and don't want to get out of. But, that's just it, I have to work at getting out of the. Too cushy. Those I can eliminate at the showroom, but I do love them.

Then, there is the leg part -- I am short and my legs are proportional to my height, which means that my leg from the knee to the hip is short; therefore, the depth of the chair can not be deep. It's when your knee to hip is long you need a deep seated chair.

So much to think about and learn just to buy a chair.

Then, there is the back. When Al was with me, he was a big and tall guy, so we had different furniture for both of us. It was his torso that was long, so we had to look at the back of the chair -- it had to support his shoulder blades. When I sat in his chair, my shoulder blades hit the middle of the chair! Actually, the best fit is to have the back 3 inches higher than your shoulder blades.

Then, there is the decision to have arms on the piece of furniture -- of course for me. And the arms need to feel right, which is when I sit in the chair or sofa, does my elbow and lower arm feel comfortable on the arm rest.




And pillows, don't forget the pillows. Yea or nay.

For me, a nay unless it is a back support, which I use a lot. But, I know many people who love their pillows, so it is a personal choice.






All of these considerations are so important to feel comfortable in a chair or sofa. The other small tidbit is that when you select the right size chair or sofa for you, you don't have to keep buying them. I know soon I will be on the prowl for another chair, but believe me, I'm going with my tape measure and take my time until it is just right. And then I will never have to spend another cent on a chair. My work will be done.

Tomorrow will be all about the mattress.

Until then...have a great day...

A Writer's Platform

When you are becoming a self-published author, you are going into business. This business has nothing to do with the creative side and everything to do with the business aspect of getting your work out there. This is what major publishing houses used to do, and from my understanding, today the major publishing houses like to see that you have a platform before really looking at you.

I attended a new writing group today, and they talked about the publishing side of this art. I took note on two aspects: making a website and making myself known via a writer's platform.

I do not understand that much about making a website yet, so I will put that aside for another day. But, I do want to talk about the platform, which includes a website, Facebook and YouTube. There is Instagram, too, but this was not a focus. It was a mention.

One of the first ideas to remember is to use key words about your creative piece (and really, this can be used for any idea from writing to painting to sewing to crafting to anything, really). Since I am into writing, that will be my examples. So, let's say I am writing a murder mystery about a detective (of course) and a serial killer (ho-hum, boring) but there is a twist, the serial killer takes the guise of a super hero -- you know, characters like IronMan, Superman, or Spiderman, those guys (more interesting here, I may perk up a bit). So, I have written the book and am starting to publicize it.

My key words would be heroes, serial killers, murder mystery.

I am going to do a search for the most searched words of my key words, and once I get the list (I would imagine a very long list on that one), then you look at the words that have the lowest competition  -- let's say "serial killer heroes". Since these words are highly googled it is a good thing, then if the phrase has little competition, like there are few serial killers who are considered heroes.

Please note not to use the actual character's name, such as Superman, because that could be a copyright infringement. You could write the company to see if you could use the name, but I would make up my own super hero's name, like Halbeast. As you write more and more books in the series, or if you paint and you paint a series of Halbeast paintings, you would then have that name as part of your key words.

That is the preliminary and very important for your name to be associated with that specific writing.

There are three major components of publicity, or what we could call a writer's platform as mentioned above. The website, Facebook and YouTube. They link together.

The website gives all your information, what you have published, how you are known, maybe a blog domain on the website, your shop, and links to your Facebook page and your YouTube videos.

I have a social media page for Facebook, and I asked how do I write for Facebook, and the moderator said that she has three Facebook pages -- personal (I have), an author page, and a fan page. On the author page, I might write about one of my characters, or some research, or ask for help on which cover to use or ideas about a twist in the book. (I would have my profile linked to my website and YouTube with all my necessary information under the "about" link).

Then, there is YouTube. I should make 15 seconds of video with maybe a reading of a scene, or maybe a visual scene and once again ask for input. This is also linked to my website and the author's page on Facebook.

I do have a lot to learn, and even more so, I have a lot to do. Getting my stories to the public seems to be quite a bit of work that has little to do with creating them. But, I am willing. So, it looks like I am going to be doing a lot more of this









Than this.






And dreaming of this

I need a vacation before I start all this. Think I will go to Alaska....

Until tomorrow...have a great day....

Omega 6

I think I am catching on to this nutrition "thing", and guess what folks, our diet in America is killing us. And if you are poor in America, it is really killing you.

Omega 6 is basically found in all oils, the different oils have varying amounts of Omega 6 fatty acids, such as safflower oil contains 75% Omega 6 and no Omega 3 vs.canola oil at 20% Omega 6 and 9% Omega 3. We can control what type of oils come into our house (I use extra virgin oil, but I have heard some of that may be mislabeled), but usually when a person goes to the grocery store they buy what they can afford, and the bad oils (safflower, corn, sunflower oils) are usually the cheapest.

Then, there are the fast food joints. I did a brief search on what kinds of oils used when frying the french fries at fast food joints, and I did not see any olive oil (monounsaturated fats) which is considered the healthiest fat to eat. I did see a lot of the unhealthy oils as their cooking oil.

Then, there are all our processed foods -- you know, the cookies, cakes, etc. that have to be cooked some way with fats. I am sure when you are cooking for the masses, you are not thinking of cooking with the best of oils.

So. Why is Omega 6 oils bad for us. Basically, because we have too much of it in our diet. Omega 6 is essential for our health, it's just that we have too much of it. The big thing is that too much produces inflammation, and with all the information out there, we now know that inflammation causes heart disease, cancer, arthritis -- you know, the big ones. When there is a 1:1 ratio of Omega 3 (remember nuts and salmon) to Omega 6 (oils), we are okay because the Omega 3 counter balances the Omega 6, and inflammation is kept in check.

So far, I keep seeing that eating the Mediterranean Diet is the best way to eat. I need to check that out. I do know that cooking at home is the safest way to eat because I am in control of what I cook and how I cook it.

Also, while I was doing the search, I found a statement that needs to be checked out more -- that canola oil is mostly a gmo (genetically modified oil) -- I need to learn about this. Stay tuned on this one, I will pass my info on.

If you want to learn more about Omega 6, Lifeextension.com/magazine and University of Maryland Medical Center have noteworthy information.

One of the items they discuss, but I am not in the least qualified to discuss, is GLA Omega 6 (gamma linolenic acid) which is plant derived and they are finding very beneficial to fight diseases. Check it out.

In between time, stay healthy.

Until tomorrow...have a great day...

The Making of a Writer

The other day I was talking about writing to a friend of mine who lives in Montana. He told me that he recently met a woman, an attorney, who is writing a series of books under a pen name. Interesting concept. Even though she has a day job, she has another life, she is making herself into a writer. As an attorney, no one may even know that she pens stories by night. Good for her. That is a story within itself.

I may have had the training and experience as a journalist and editor, but I am now making myself into a fiction writer. It has always been a dream, and it is coming true. I feel that I am in a make-believe world because I am doing exactly what I have always dreamt of doing -- writing fiction for me, not writing what a boss or a company wants. This is mine and who I am. And believe me, it is delicious. I know how this woman feels because I have been there, but in my day there was not this thing called internet or self publishing, so when I wrote, the stories sometimes got accepted into literary journals, but most of them were put in a file drawer. I love technology.

This is how I start. A blank sheet of lined paper and a pen. Not an unlined sheet of paper, not a pencil. It has to be a piece of lined paper and a pen.

Of course, I have lots of ideas about a story, and I start writing. The scene may come in the middle or end, but mostly I start from the beginning. I also write in my head before I put the words to paper. This is especially useful as I get into the story and need to develop the scene. In my social life, I may be talking to someone, but little do they know that I am really going over the scene in my head. I fall to sleep thinking about a scene, and wake up with the scene. Sometimes, not often though, I will wake up in the middle of the night knowing how to proceed with the scene (I am a very good sleeper so this does not happen often).

I am getting ready to start another story. I have been living with the idea for a bit now, and will begin writing in another month or so. (I need to get the short story book publishing under way before I really get into another story, but I can start with ideas, outline, and research.)

I love research. Love, love, love it. I learn so much, and sometimes it is hard to sift through what I want to include and what should not be included. Right now I am researching careers that are close or similar to an engineer. It should be fun to see what I end up with. Hmmm. Who knows, the career may not even resemble an engineer, but that is what I am starting with.

My stories take a life of their own. I am writing away, the majority of the research has been completed, and all of a sudden the story takes a turn that I never expected. Then, there may be more research, more writing, more scenes that are played out in my head. My life. I love my life.

Before I started this transformation, this Chapter 14 of my Journey, I saw a towel that had a saying on it -- "live the life you've imagined". I bought it and have kept it close to my heart since. And when I look at it, I say, I am, I am. I hope you do, too.







Until Monday...have a great weekend...

One Last Word about Volunteering Abroad

I have known many people who have volunteered abroad through their church, helping medically or building houses. I know of another family who travels to Guatemala to help build houses. I know one woman who has started an outreach program in Africa and empowers girls and women to learn technology or start their own business. I know some people who have gone abroad to teach English, but those are paid positions.

There are now the gap year, international internships, summer projects, family projects, high schoolers, summer help, 50+ers, working professionals, and group trips. I have heard of one university that requires students to spend one semester abroad helping others. Also, I have found that there are some companies that allow time off for their personnel to volunteer (check with your human resources department for this, I am sure it is not widely publicized). And. of course, there are those who study abroad whether at the high school or college level.

My search was focused on teaching English because that is where my experience lies -- shoot, I am a writer and a former English (composition) teacher. I have also started a blog on idioms and cliches, put it aside and going to resurrect it next month (after the Alaska trip). I have also tutored Spanish speaking people as they enter our country. I can do this job, would love to do this job. And I will prepare for this by taking the TEFL certification course.

But, could I do other jobs?

There is child development where I would go into child care centers or daycares and help those children who have been abused, abandoned, or who are vulnerable.

I think this would be too heartwrenching for me. I would end up tearing up most of the day.

There is also girls and women empowerment projects.


There is the health field abroad, and if I wanted to do this I would not have to be in the medical professions; rather, I would work alongside the health professionals. There is also an HIV/AIDS program to help destigmatize the disease as well as provide support for those who suffer with the disease.

Still working with people, I could help those who have special needs, and I can imagine there is a huge need here because people with special needs are discriminated against. I know that in some cultures, when I child is born deformed they are basically abandoned. Which means that those children have felt few hugs in their lives, let alone any other human contact or experiencing daily living skills.

Helping the elderly is also a huge project in some parts of the world, especially the third world countries. Here I would help serve meals or partake in activities with them.

Then, there are marine and wildlife conservation. There are tons of projects here, from rescuing animals to caring for them after the rescue.

Along these lines there are environment and conservation projects when you like to get your hands dirty and work with the earth.

Don't forget the building projects.


There are arts and music projects and sports, community development and fundraising and grant writing and teaching technology. You name it, there is a project to volunteer for.

I have only skimmed the surface of this vast field to help others around the world.

When I was doing my initial search of how to help, I did come across one other project that I would be interested in -- volunteers go to restaurants and get leftover food and then come back to a site and store it to be given away. Kinda like a food pantry here.

Am I going to do this? A BIG FAT YES! Next year I plan to go to Ireland and while I have paid for the ticket to go there, I might as well go somewhere on the other side of earth and get my feet wet. And yes, I will go to Laos to teach the novice monks, and while I am in that part of the world, I might as well teach in China for awhile. That flight is so long, I would definitely stay for more than a couple of weeks. Problem is, if I really like this lifestyle, I may never want to live a "normal" life again. Whatever "normal" is.

It looks like my life continues to evolve. I love it.

Until tomorrow...have a great day...

p.s. -- all photos are from Pixabay.

More on Volunteering

The more I research about volunteering abroad, the more excited I become. Today, I am going to stay with the idea of teaching English abroad, but this time it is actually teaching or being a helper in a classroom. Yesterday, I wrote about conversational English situated in a hotel with professional adults, where today it is in a typical classroom with school age children. Mostly.

Once again, I am going to report on three organizations but each one of these charge for your volunteer work. (I believe the expense is tax deductible.)

1. crossculturalsolutions.org has volunteers in 10 countries ranging from Brazil to Morocco to Ghana to India. I chose to look at volunteering in Costa Rica (Cartago).

Here, I would assist the teacher and also help with lesson plans and activities. This organization and all the others I researched include accommodations and meals as well as airport pick up and orientation for the price. But, this price is steep -- very steep. For one week in the classroom as a volunteer, it would cost me $2687, not including air fare and spending money. A very expensive week to help others!

Because of the expense, I also looked at Peru (Lima) and found the program similar to Costa Rica with the same cost. Too much for my pocket book, but they said the volunteer could raise funds to help pay for the cost. I don't particularly care for that idea. Remember, I am a baby boomer, and I was raised not to take anything from anyone -- so you are asking for charity to help. Doesn't make sense to me.

2. gviusa.com has 150 volunteer projects in 25 countries. Wow, we are helping the world! Also, this site boasts that if you are a student and you volunteer you could get academic credit for the work. Cool! Why didn't they have anything like this when I went to school? Darn.

I looked at three countries: Laos, Fiji, and India.

Laos was really cool. I would be volunteering my English with Buddhist Novice Monks. Really! That excites me -- what an opportunity! According to one of the websites, boys enter the monastery to escape poverty, and they get an education too. This program is from 2-24 weeks in duration. Two weeks cost $1890, and it goes to $7390 for 24 weeks (approximately 6 months). This cost is not bad, ranging from $400/week (24 week program) to $950/week (2 week program). This is something to think about.

Fiji is one country I would never have thought about. In the middle of the Pacific Ocean (I believe it is the Pacific) I would be assisting the teacher with lessons and activities. The cost here ranges from $2290 for 2 weeks to $7390 for 24 weeks.

India (Fort Kochi) would be a tough one! Here, I would go into the slum schools and help the teachers. I understand that some of the children were taken from the streets, and all the classrooms are overcrowded. If anything, these children learn academic curriculum as well as speaking English so they could obtain employment. This would be the most challenging, and I think the most frightening to me (because of the location) and probably the most rewarding. The cost here is $1700 for 2 weeks to $6100 for 24 weeks.

This organization includes cost, but reasonable. Once again, it includes accommodations, meals, airport pick up, orientation, etc.

3. volunteerhq.org is probably my favorite for paying to volunteer. They are headquartered in New Zealand and the cost to volunteer is minimal with the same accommodations, etc covered by the cost. I looked at three countries for teaching English: Argentina, China (bound determined to get there), and Laos. For all the countries, there is a $279 registration fee. Okay.

I want to go to Argentina, too, and Uruguay (a neighboring country), so I looked at teaching in Argentina (Cordoba). Here, I came to a roadblock. They want their volunteers to have at least an intermediate level of Spanish. That is a no-can-do for me. Yes, I can speak minimal Spanish, can read it better, but have a hard time understanding it because they speak so fast. The site said I could take Spanish lessons once there, but I still need an intermediate level of Spanish. So, that is out. But, how cool to go to Argentina and learn to Tango on the weekends!

If I could speak semi-fluent Spanish, I would be helping them with their English as well as other academic subjects, taking the role as a tutor. I could do any of that. The cost here is $325 for 1 week, $490 for 2 weeks up to $2015 for 12 weeks. Very doable.

China was a definite to look into. Located in Xi'an (Terracotta Warriors country) there is a desperate need for English speaking volunteers in this country, and the English lessons would be conversational English and/or helping the classroom teacher, who from the research can also use a little help with English. Now, I'm getting excited. Real excited. China. The vast country that is soon becoming a super power, if not already (I'm not that familiar with politics, but I do know how important China is to the world). I really, really want to see this country and to learn a bit about its inhabitants. I have taken a Chinese course and it was fascinating. I want to learn more.

I do think that is what volunteering is all about. Those people who I volunteer will get to know me a bit and what I represent from my country, but I am the one who will learn.

Back to China. The cost is $280 for one week, $440 for 2 weeks and $3960 for 24 weeks. I can afford volunteerhq.org prices.

Laos was the third country I looked at because it, too, offered teaching English to the novice monks at a monastery. I could either teach English to primary grade students in a classroom or the monks in a monastery where I would teach basic English skills. I would be responsible for my own lesson plans. Since I think that teaching monks would be an incredible opportunity, I would like to do this. The cost here is $270 for one week, $370 for two weeks up to $1220 for 12 weeks.

Just a couple more things before I end this part of volunteering abroad. First, the weekends would be mine to explore the area and take short trips. What a way to see the world. Helping and learning about other cultures and seeing the sights they are known for.

The second is while it is not necessary, I would take the TEFL course to help my teaching English to foreign students. It can be done online, is less than $400, and I have seen where it is from 100 hours to 130 hours in length.

What do you think about volunteering abroad? If you are thinking why not here at home, I have thought about that, also, and another week I will go into what I have found there. But, right now it's all about the world. And I want to see it and I want to be a part of it.

Tomorrow, I am going to give an abbreviated version of all the different projects that people can help with around the world. Teaching English is the one I zeroed in on, but there are tons out there.

Until then...have a great day...
   
   

Volunteering Abroad

As you know, this blog is about change. I started with moving across country, then getting settled in my new state of Florida (which I am still doing), then getting involved with crafts (still doing). Since then, I wrote a book of short stories (and am now in the process of self-publishing) and I have traveled some (Bahamas and Barcelona).

I am now considering adding volunteering abroad to my list. Over the next three days, I am going to write about what I have learned, and what I think I will try first.




The information I have found is so exciting. EXCITING. I love to travel, love to teach and love to write. I have found an avenue to do those three all rolled into one. So far I have found three agencies that promote speaking conversational English to people abroad for the price of an airline ticket.

How it works is you apply and once okayed, you will meet with a group of English-speaking volunteers where you are transferred to a hotel where you will be for approximately one week and you will be required to talk. That's it. Talk. Of course, there is one-on-one talking, but there are also planned activities throughout the day. You sleep there, eat there, talk there, and explore the countryside with new found friends. The following are the three programs I have found:

1. Diverbo.com PuebloIngles will set you up in either Spain or Germany for approximately 6-8 days. You will be talking for about 12-15 hours a day, so be prepared to learn about other cultures as well as to share your culture with the "students". It profiles these "students" as business people who have come for you to help them with their conversational English.
     Once you go online and check out the site, you can see where you will be staying and the calendar of when you may be needed.

2. Angloville.com/teach-english/ will set you up in either Poland, Hungary, Romania, or the Czech Republic. for approximately 1-2 weeks. It operates basically the same as PuebloIngles.
     I have also seen on this site that they do a 3-10 day immersion of conversational English in Dublin, Ireland. The conversationalist would stay in the dormitory at Dublin City University, and the same rules apply. Talk, talk, talk. And I bet there would be a bit of lifting that ale to a conversation about pubs! I am definitely going to do this. Next year. (This year is planned.)


3. Gocambio.com is different from the above two. You go to the website and they have hosts who want to learn something -- from learning Spanish or English to cooking to photography to technology. You then pick out who you would stay with (own room) in their house and you barter your expertise with their desire to learn a skill. To me, it seems like more of a way to make friends because they could show you around, etc. There are many, many countries to choose from, so go, check it out. It would be a great way to help someone learn something and for you to immerse yourself into a new culture, and possibly even meet a new friend or two.

These three are different from teaching English (and that is what I would do when I volunteer around the world) in the fact that the only thing you do do is talk. And talk. And talk. (I can do that!). Also, what sets them apart from the other programs I have found is these are free. The only money you put out is for transportation to the country. You will get free transportation to the venue, and you get a free tour of the major city in the country you have chosen, such as Warsaw or Prague.

Personally, I think this is a great idea to volunteer and see a bit of the world that a tourist does not see.

Tomorrow I am going to go into the agencies that cost.

Until then...have a great day...

Omega 3s and My Favorite Salmon Recipe

Omega 3s are essential for a healthy body. They reduce inflammation in our body and so far I have heard inflammation is a culprit for many of our health issues from heart to cancer to the brain.

The problem is that our bodies do not make Omega 3s -- we have to eat them.

Basically, there are three parts to this essential fat -- EPA, DHA, and ALA

You find most of the EPA and DHA in fish:

Anchovies           Bluefish          Herring          Sardines          Sturgeon          Lake Trout
Tuna                   Salmon (wild is best)            Mackeral (but this has higher levels of mercury)

The ALA is found in:

Walnuts               Canola Oil       Soybean Oil   Flaxseed and Flaxseed Oil

Some people I know take fish oil supplements, but then you may belch the supplement for the major part of the day. The more I learn about food vs. supplements, I am leaning toward getting the vitamin, mineral, fat, etc. from the source. Since I am doing this, I have come to love salmon -- actually crave it at times.

Wild is the best salmon you can get. Here, it is hard to come by (usually it is farm raised, which is not the best choice), but I have gone online and know that you can order it from Alaska and the company will freeze ship it to you after it has been flash frozen. So, even though I have not ordered this yet, I am after I get back from Alaska (which is coming soon). While there, I will eat all I can and pick up all sorts of recipes.

Preparing salmon is easy. Super easy. When you shop for a cut of salmon, choose the center cut because it has the most fat.

When you are preparing to cook the fish, heat the pan at 475 degrees by putting some butter in the bottom of the pan. While the pan is heating and the butter is melting, season the salmon on the flesh side with your favorite seasoning (dill, basil, tarragon, what you like). Then, when the pan is ready, place the salmon in the pan skin side up. Bake it for 4-5 minutes (salmon is only baked for 10 minutes per inch of thickness). Pull it out of the oven, and with a sharp knife, pull the skin from the flesh. If it does not come off easily, put the piece of salmon back in the oven for about 2 minutes and try again. Once the skin easily comes off, flip the piece over and season the other side. Bake it for another 3-4 minutes.

That's it. Salmon continues to bake after you pull it out of the oven, and it is best not to overbake it. You will know it is done when it is firm to the touch.



My favorite salmon recipe is:
I spray a pan with olive oil, then I do things a little different. I put the skin side down on a rack covered with tin foil. Using very little, I take a butter knife and very thinly spread Dijon mustard on the flesh part. After this, I even more sparingly spread sugar free syrup on top of the mustard. (Once I used too much syrup and I ruined the piece, so use sparingly.) Still use the 475 degrees for about 10 minutes. Keep an eye on it. It should look like the picture to the left, which is actually one of my favorite meals, salmon and green beans. The skin peels off once it is finished baking.


I cook salmon many different ways. I love garlic, so when using the above recipe with the favorite seasonings, you can bet I have added garlic to other seasonings.

On another note, Omega 6s are also essential to our body's health, and I will go into that next Monday. Here, Omega 6s  promote inflammation in our body and according to many researches, we have plenty of this fat in our diets already, so stay tuned for next Monday.

Until tomorrow...have a great day...

Writers, Actors, what do they really want?

I've thought a lot about yesterday's post -- people in the movie industry selling themselves as a product vs. the ones who are not selling themselves as a product. I then wonder about writers.

Writers work in solitude, sometimes fretting for hours or days or weeks about the next sentence, the next scene. Long ago, in Johnny Carson days, writers did come on the show and they interacted with the other guests. I do remember seeing Jacqueline Susann ("Valley of the Dolls"), Truman Capote ("In Cold Blood"), and Irving Wallace ("The Prize") to name a few. Once again, the audience was able to see the personality instead of the product (although I am sure that there was some sort of pitch for the best-seller of the day). I do not recall recent talk shows, especially day time talk shows, introducing writers, even best selling writers. The hosts may mention a book, but how many authors have you seen on television?

Community actors, professional stage actors, writers do not produce for fame (well, maybe some do), they act or write because they need to -- they need to express themselves in one way or another. Actually, most writers do not like to give interviews unless they need to. Very few want to be seen on national tv., they want a private life (I am thinking of Harper Lee and Stephen King here) I am sure the same holds true for community actors and professional actors. We want someone (our audience) to see our work, to read our work, to react to our work. That is our fame. That is our glory. Not the 15 minutes of fame.

Have you ever read a book that was so good you told everyone about it and passed around your copy? Have you ever seen a play that was so good you told everyone to go see it?

That is our glory. At least, I can say that.

Thinking back to Matthew McConaughey on The Talk, most of his work, his acting is a cut above. I wonder how he feels to have to go out there and plug a movie for a minute then be cut off. I know if I had to plug a book, I would want people to ask me about my story, where did it come from, how much of it is real, is it a part of me, what was my purpose? The questions are endless. I would want to give my audience substance.

Simple thoughts to ponder.

Until Monday...have a great weekend.

Epiphany!

When I was younger, Johnny Carson was THE person to watch at night. Then, before I knew anything and mostly about how the world really works, I wanted to be on Johnny Carson. It was a goal. Didn't know how the world really worked, and I was especially sad the day he retired. I knew then I would never achieve that goal.

Then, in those younger days, Carson would introduce movie and tv stars and they would sit around and talk and then talk some more with other entertainers Carson introduced. You, the audience, would get to know these people by their actions, reactions, talents, feelings, emotions -- in other words, I felt a connection to these people. Not like I really knew them, but I knew if I would feel comfortable sitting next to them. It's like I knew that I could never sit next to Hemingway although I love his writing. I knew his presence would intimidate me. I also knew that Jerry Lewis was a good guy and he valued his privacy. So, when I stood next to him at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas at the valet service, I never said a word. But I did ask the valet if that was indeed Jerry Lewis, and he did confirm it. I respected his value of privacy.

Now, jump forward a few years today. I may have mentioned before that I like to watch The Talk when I am home. Watching it yesterday, Matthew McConaughey was on promoting his new shows. It made me think of all the people they bring on for just a few minutes, that the only thing they do is promote their business, whatever it is, and leave. Epiphany! Talk shows do no more than promote a creative person's business. It's one business promoting another business.

Gone are the days when I will feel intimidated by someone's presence just because that person is so talented it takes my breath away; gone are the days when I find that someone values his privacy and I respect that value.

How can I feel anything for these talents? There is no connection to the person, only a product.

Stars no longer stick around and talk with others on the show. It's a simple 5 or 10 minutes plugging their product, and adios amigo. They, the stars, are nothing but a brand selling a product. Maybe this is why the paparazzi follow them. Haunt them. They -- the entertainers -- are nothing but a product. And in our throw away society, you know what we do with our products.

Interesting, though, that there are some entertainers who seldom do the circuit -- thinking of Meryl Streep. There's another line of thinking here. Meryl is not selling a product, she not only is a household name, but she is respected for her roles, her acting ability.

What do you think? Am I way off in my thinking or does this make sense?

Until tomorrow...have a great day.

Humans Needed

I have seen it all.

On Facebook's ads to the right of the page there was an ad where we could have

Experiences with Humans

Experiences with Humans! -- the last time I looked I was human! The people I know and talk to and with are human (or at least I think so), I feel human. I have human hands, human feet, human feelings, human thoughts -- so exactly what was the ad referring to if we can experiences with humans?

Are there beings around us that are not human? Does the creator of the ad feel that she or he is not human and wants an experience with a human? I think the creator of the ad has been watching too much "Ancient Aliens", 

True, there are many unexplainable occurrences in the world, and maybe we do originate from another planet -- who knows -- but, unless I am blinded by my humanness, most people (humans) I know look the same. We all have two eyes, two ears, one mouth, and well, we all look the same. Sure, you might be able to identify a person coming from an Asian country or African or Moorish or Indian  or...but we all look the same. Earth is our planet, and as we study how we have evolved, there are explanations on how and why we look different depending on our locale. We (most of us anyway) probably want the same -- to be safe with a roof over our head and food on the table, to feel that we are cared for by at least one other person (human) and we care back.

Or...is our world becoming so computer driven that people do not interact with other people (humans) and they feel a need to interact with other people. Maybe, then, it is time to turn off all electronics and step outside and say hello. A simple Hi should gather at least a smile, and possibly a Hi back.

I am on the computer a lot, but I also interact with humans a lot. May we never forget our humanness.

Until tomorrow...have a great day...

It's 11 p.m. and Life Just Went By

I would like to know how I am retired and I am so busy that all of a sudden it is 11 p.m. and the day is done?

It seems that my time flies by. I get up at 8 a.m., get ready for the day and be out the door by 10. Then, before I know it, it is time to eat and only because I am hungry. That is usually around 8 p.m. If that small thing like food did not come into the equation, I doubt if  I would notice the time until midnight. This just baffles me.

I thought retirement was for leisure and I would have all the time in the world. That is not true. At least, for me. There is so much to do and I barely get done what I want to do for the day or week. Most of my friends who are retired experience the same.

The other friends who are still working are experiencing the feeling that they can not keep up with work and their daily life styles.

When I was in my prime, I edited a magazine during the day, was adjunct faculty in the evening, and still had time for a social life. Plus, I maintained a home and everything that goes along with that. As I aged, I do remember giving up the evening work. But I had time for everything else my entire life. Then, I retired, and today I don't know where I would fit in an 8-hour day job. Just don't know how I could do it. And for those who are working, it is the exact opposite, they fit their job in, but many of the other life styles go by the wayside. I just think this is a phenomenon that I am trying to make sense of.

So, my day is done, and I am in question, Where has my day gone?

Until tomorrow...have a great day...

It's the 4th

Today is tradition of cook-outs and fireworks. It is also the most important day in America's history. After fighting with Great Britain about taxation and general treatment from the mother country, in April of 1775 Britain decided they were going to take our guns and ammunition away. That was the catalyst needed. Hostilities ensued and the Revolutionary War began with fighting in Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts. Our fight for freedom began.

Our founding fathers, such as Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, and Franklin to name a few, were working on a declaration to Great Britain for our separation. Actually, Jefferson was the writer of this document (but other members did have a hand by tidying up the document) named the Declaration of Independence and it was voted to declare independence from Great Britain on July 2, 1776. On July 4, 1776 the declaration was signed. Thus, the day we celebrate.

In honor of Thomas Jefferson and his words, I would like to reiterate the first paragraph and the most famous line from the Declaration of Independence:

"When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bonds which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness."...



We in America have many different views and opinions. We continue to fight over guns and ammunition, and to fight over life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, but we persevere to celebrate one more Independence Day. May we never feel the need to separate from each other.

Until tomorrow...have a great day...

Three Different Types of Publishers

In my quest to publish my book, I am looking at all the angles. The first to be excluded is the traditional publisher. It's just too hard that way. First you have to have an agent, and usually an agent does not want to talk to you unless you are published, so it's a catch-22. And you lose! Also, I went to a writer's conference a few years ago and what I observed about the agents was not good. I always learn a lot in public bathrooms (figure that one out!) and at this conference women were coming into the restroom and crying. Crying. They had to pay for the agent to speak to them and then the agent didn't really want to be bothered with their pitch. Not fair. To reinforce this behavior, I was staying at the same hotel as the agents and during breakfast, the agents huddled together and were definitely unapproachable. Another negative with agents was that after I saw this I was in a workshop when I mentioned to an agent that I was simply going to self-publish. I got a very stern tongue lashing!

That was a few years ago, and times are changing. I haven't been to another conference but I plan to attend again next year, and I think agents will have rethought their tune. I hope so, anyway.

So, traditional publishing is out. For now anyway.

Then there is the vanity presses. These are basically the same as self-publishing, but they cost a ton of money, and the ones I have looked at do not support ebooks. First, I do not have a ton of money, and secondly, I want my books to also be ebooks. Stories I have heard about vanity presses make my wallet faint. One story from a long time ago is this doctor in town wrote a children's book and he spent about $50,000 to have it published. Needless to say, he did not even recoop a portion of his outlay. Another is more recent where I know a woman who published a cookbook, and she has not seen a minute fraction of what she put out.

So, vanity presses are out. More than likely, always will be.

Then there is self-publishing. Here, I can have both an ebook and a paperbook-on-demand. I don't have the final figures yet, but I am expecting to spend a couple of thousands to get the book published. Since I knew I was going to pursue this, I have been saving for this project. I have to do most of the work to get it published, and the only part that I do not know anything about is the reformatting of the manuscript for the publisher's specifications. I have a friend who self-published a book for Amazon, and I believe he said he spent under $1000.

I have looked at the different publishers that publish ebooks, and I believe Createspace is winning hands down. Createspace.com is owned by Amazon, and I have not heard anything negative about the process or the outcome. I have a lot to learn, but slowly I am learning.

So, self-publishing is for me. And more than likely will be forever more.

The difference between traditional publishing and self-publishing is with traditional they do the work; self-publishing the writer (or who the writer hires) does the work. There are two other big parts that separate the two. The first is with traditional, they have an in-house public relations/marketing team to help promote your book; with self-publishing, that public relations/marketing rests on the writer. And from what I understand, if the writer is to hire a PR person, it is very expensive. The second is with royalties. Usually, with traditional the writer gets about 10-15% of the price -- let's say it equals to about $1.00/per copy sold. With self-publishing, not the ebook, but any paperback books sold equals about 30% of the price, so we will say $3.00/per copy sold. But remember, the author is also paying to have the book printed. With the traditional publisher, they are investing in the writer as a commodity. Interesting, huh!

So, in my quest to be published, it appears that Createspace has won.

Until next week....have a great weekend...