Where Yvette Goes

As we edge further and further into the Fall, one of my favorite things to do on a breezy Sunday afternoon is to curl up under a light blanket and take a little nap.  There's nothing quite like sitting in the sunshine, warmed in the sun's rays. Just like a cat, to drift off into a nothingness, even for just a little while.  Or it's the perfect chance to do something we loved to do when we were children ... nap time in kindergarten. So I got to thinking about what napping really is.  Is it the length of time and a lack of depth?  Light and dreamless?  No alarm clocks?  Perhaps the tv on a quiet noise level ... something to keep us from going into the arms of a true slumber? I've seen people nap on the deck of a ship.  A book or magazine in their hands, suspended for the reader and then it slowly creeps lower, towards their laps as their eyelids get heavy.  Next thing you see, chins settled on chests.  Or how about sitting quietly on a train, hearing the wheels go

There is a quote that says "We do not remember days, we remember moments." and it's one of my favorites but if I was allowed creative license, I would rewrite it in order to personalize it and say "I remember moments because of the meals I've enjoyed." When I was a little girl, my Mom hosted these fabulous dinner parties pretty much every Saturday night.  There were no restrictions as to who would be there, but after the word got out at what a fabulous cook she was, everyone vied for an invitation!  Whether it was a co-worker, boss and his wife, even a Brazilian businessman who was in town, all were welcome.  The expectations were good food, good wine and good conversation.  There were no other children, I was the only one.  I wasn't banished to read or watch tv in my room.  I was welcome at the table just as everyone else was.  Who would have realized back then what an impact it would have on who I would become as an adult.

Remembering is something we do every day.  We have to remember to stop at the market on our way home from work, remember to return phone calls, remember a friends birthday, remember the smallest things.  Does this diminish the importance of remembering?  I ask this as I wonder if that is why when it comes to September 11, people say "don't forget".  In sales training, we were taught that to use the word "don't" at the beginning of a sentence or a presentation, you were pretty much guaranteeing that someone would do the exact opposite of what you wanted them to.  For example, don't think of a pink elephant.  Now I ask you, what picture is in your mind right now?  Yep, a pink elephant. When it comes to the events of September 11, I prefer to say "always remember".  And tonight, I want to share some of my day, September 11, 2001. When someone asks "where in the world were you on that day", like everyone else, I can tell you where I wa

A few years ago my friend Joy gave me a very special gift.  It wasn't big and expensive, it wasn't outrageous or extravagant.  It was so simple but in its simplicity, it opened my eyes to the subtlety of whispered messages surrounding me.  My gift?  A simple seashell, but not just any seashell.  One of Joy's favorite things in the world is the beach.  Hailing from Bulgaria, they don't have the pristine beaches that Florida has and after spending many sunny days and sunsets there, Joy finds much "joy" and solace in the sand and surf.  My shell had been found on the beach in Naples, FL one day and Joy decided that I had to have it.  A seashell is a seashell is a seashell or so most of think.  Remember that tongue twister from your childhood?  "She sells seashells by the seashore." But the truth is that a seashell is not just a seashell.  It once held a creature so delicate that it had to build itself a wall so thick that only a fisherman's knife

As a child, I was lucky because my Mom raised me to eat food that I enjoyed, never forcing me to eat something just because someone put it down in front of me.  For example, Mom wasn't the one who forced me to eat brussel sprouts for the first and last time, that was my Grandma. Gosh, they were so awful that even the dog Fritz wouldn't eat them! Forced to get creative, I found the easiest thing to do was to cut them up into small pieces, pop one into my mouth, pretend to chew and then spit them back into my milk glass (I know, totally gross).  This I could get away with because as kids, we were the ones who cleaned up after dinner, so I could hide what I did and just flush it down the garbage disposal.  Thank God I never got caught!  I swear, Grandma would have made me drink that milk and chew up the brussel sprouts.  She was a "clean your plate" kind of Grandma but gave good hugs, for those of you who might be thinking she deserved to wear a witches cap.   But on

One of my favorite activities on board a cruise ship has always been The Newlywed Not So Newlywed game show, hosted by the Cruise Director.  Whether it was me hosting or keeping score, the couples and their answers have, for the most part, been fun and entertaining and it was rare that we would get a "dud" couple.   For those of you who have never been on a cruise, you may remember the TV show The Newlywed Game that made its debut in 1966.  I don't know who the original host was, but host Bob Eubanks is the one who gets the most air time in re-runs or clips, but he was the man who coined the phrase "make whoopie" to avoid censorship.  After holding a microphone and hosting/mc'ing shows for 14 years, I can well understand the need for this, finding words to communicate intent without offending anyone.  When you have as diverse a canvas of an audience that we have, you should be politically correct - although I will add that the gloves have come off which i

"To be a star, you must shine your own light, follow your own path, and don't worry about the darkness, for that is when the stars shine the brightest." Before heading to Hawaii for Chris and Nikki's wedding, I decided to Google the top 10 things to see and do in Kona, comparing my list of what I had accomplished in the past, when I was in Hawaii with Holland America Line . The list included: Volcano national park and helicopter ride Rainbow Falls Banyan Tree Mauna Loa Macadamia Nut Factory Swim with the dolphins Sunset at the telescopes on Mauna Kea Out of curiosity, I went looking for the telescopes and found an ad for the Mauna Kea Summit Adventures , see paraphrased description:   While acclimatizing and dining at the Mauna Kea, home to the world's largest telescopes, visitors center, we issue parkas and gloves ( the warmest available ) and engage our four wheel drive for the steep 1/2 hour drive to the summit area. On the summit, see the obs

A Sunday in Middle Tennessee can be absolutely spectacular simply seen from the balcony of my house, however the icing on the cake is getting out and enjoying good food and beautiful nature. Food: Fido in the Village My first choice was the Pancake Pantry (a Nashville tradition).  I've been home for over two months now and still haven't made it there - not for the lack of trying, I assure you.  My order was ready and my taste buds watering with the dream of two eggs scrambled and two sweet potato pancakes, however 10 am on a Sunday is still not the time to go unless you want to stand in line for an hour and a half.  Yes, it's a Sunday and you would think that most people would be in church, but then again, summer school at Vanderbilt and the U2360 concert the night before, would have a lot of people in town and nursing hangovers.  And what is better to absorb the leftover alcohol?  Pancake Pantry pancakes!  It seems that I was not the only one who had the idea to go and