West Asheville, and more....

We are coming to the conclusion that West Asheville, where we are located, is an old community populated by longtime residents and their families. We have made just one set of friends in the cul-de-sac, and they, too, are fairly new residents! The old timers see us and take note of us, but are not friendly.

R & R just moved into a rehabbed house just down the hill from us. They have a 5 year old son. She brought us a plate of cookies on Saturday!

Our most recent trip to Asheville was the week of our birthdays, mine on the 7th and his on the 9th. We had a wonderful time. We hiked three of the four full days I was there - cool, fragrant woodland trails. We drove to Mt. Mitchell - 6684 feet above sea level, and to Mt. Pisgah. Mitchell was very high, with altitude stunted trees and a view for MILES! Both days were beautifully clear, quite rare in these mountains.

On the trail at Mt. Pisgah, inspecting the wild blueberries.

The Captain at an overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Wind-gnarled trees near the summit at Mount Mitchell.

The furniture arrived on my birthday - dressers, nightstands and a sofa table. We had bought a bookstand to house the TV at Target, but after 4 attempts at assembling it, I gave up and asked R to try his hand at it. He installed our towel bars, too, as I left my drill in FL. New dresser and chest.

Roxy came with me this trip. I stopped overnight in Charleston on the way north and she made a good adjustment to the changes. It was a bit harder in Asheville, probably due to having to endure to a second car trip. But ultimately, she made herself completely at home!

The Closing

We closed on the NC home on May 11th. On Wednesday, in all the heavy smoke from the Georgia wildfire, the Captain and friend Art loaded up the 10' rental truck they would come north in on Friday. My friend Jean and I drove the 490 miles on Thursday, bought a 32" flat screen TV and a DVD player, as well as a microwave that night before falling into bed early. Friday morning we had to get verification of insurance, so hunted up the agent's location and headed to the beautiful old but remodeled building where the lawyer had his offices. The closing was a bit bumpy. The title was temporarily missing, and that was our backer's ONLY requirement. He also insisted that his Park Avenue lawyer speak with the NC lawyer before the signing of documents. While corrections were being made in the spelling of the street name, the two lawyers spoke. Then I signed what was necessary and my realtor came with us to the trailer, where she discovered that she could not open the lock box. We went to buy two queen size beds, so everyone would have a place to sleep that night. The requirement was they be delivered that day - and we had to confirm that because NO ONE wanted to sleep on the floor! We did find the beds, in stock, and able to be brought to the trailer and set up that day!

Meanwhile, Captain and Art were lumbering along in the truck. The lawyer had insisted Anthony sign the papers on Friday afternoon, or we could not take possession till Monday! The hustled north over the mountain pass and arrived at 4:10. We raced to the lawyer's and he signed!! Then we all unloaded the truck into the 80 degree house (the air was struggling to cool it down on a hot day) and when finished, we went out to eat in a little Mexican restaurant on Patton Avenue. We had to pick up some supplies as well, but that was fairly quick.

What a good foursome we made! We had wonderful and interesting conversations ranging from polygamy to homelessness, from St. Augustine to the Bahamas and to the NY metropolitan area. Jean and Art each took a very quick shower. Did I say that the hot water was not yet working? The well water was icy!

We had the electrician in the next day and got the hot water working. We still couldn't fire up the stove (powered by propane) so we were eating rotisserie chicken from the Ingles up the road (did I mention we are 5 minutes from THREE big supermarkets?)

On Sunday, we drove up the Blue Ridge Parkway to just over a mile high Craggy Gardens. Then we came down a wonderful dirt backroad to Barnardsville. The end of that road in the Park was a community of trailers with cars on blocks, etc. That was kind of surprising, as the whole Asheville area has an urbanity and sophistication that is at first surprising and then one of the characteristics one comes to expect. But more about this, later.

It was really a lovely trip. On Saturday afternoon, Art went downtown to explore, and we all joined him later for a quick walking tour and dinner. Sadly, he ate something spoiled and spent the night sick from food poisoning!

On Monday we drove back to FL.

On Sunday, we were sitting on the front deck and a bank of clouds moving west over Asheville, darkening the city below, seemed about to plow into our little home! We were almost above that bank of clouds. How wonderful!

Our Mountain Sanctuary

It's Been a Long Time Coming...

But I'll be posting news and photos very soon.

Asleep on my Feet

Last night was the last night of Italian Cabaret was for this season. I am practically asleep on my feet, after that performance, church this morning, and ALL THOSE REHEARSALS last week. And this afternoon is one more performance - the Saint Augustine Singers under the direction of KVB. There are about 30 of us in the group. I have a neat little solo in a South American lullaby called Duerme Negrito.

What will tire me out today is all the standing and the need for strong focus and attention.

Next Sunday is the Mozart Requiem, with rehearsals Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, plus my regular teaching schedule.

YES!!!! I love to sing!!!!!! And I don't mean to whine, but I sure wish things could be spaced out a little! I think I will try to sneak in a little nap, now.

Thursday Thirteen - Famous or Infamous People Who Share My Birthday

Yes, I know it's Friday. Sometimes Thursday's jobs have to be done on Friday.

This is a fun topic. There were listings for baseball players, jurists, Nobel Prize laureates, prime ministers, and even one for a Jewish Rapper!!! Starting with the oldest entry in Wikipedia:

1529 - Étienne Pasquier, French lawyer and man of letters (d. 1615) - I have no connection to this one, but is was nearly 400 years ago, which is rather cool.
1778 - Beau Brummell, English fashion leader (d. 1840) - Whoa! A fashion plate!
1848 - Paul Gauguin, French painter (d. 1903) - I like Gaugin!
1897 - George Szell, Hungarian conductor (d. 1970) - I add this one because he is one of Captain Classics' favorite conductors.
1909 - Virginia Apgar, American physician and childbirth specialist (d. 1974) - The doctor for whom the Apgar scores were named.
1909 - Jessica Tandy, English-born actress (d. 1994) - Jessica Tandy is one of my favorite, very classy actresses.
1929 - The Grand Wizard of Wrestling, Wrestling manager - how could I fail to include THIS ONE!
1937 - Neeme Järvi, Estonian conductor - Another conductor for the Captain.
1940 - Tom Jones, Welsh singer - What's new pussycat, whoa-oa-oa-oa-oa!
1952 - Liam Neeson, Northern Irish actor - Schindler's List, Rob Roy, Philadelphia, and the list goes on.....
1954 - Louise Erdrich, American author - I LOVE Louise Erdrich's books. She writes mainly about Native American themes. She went to Dartmouth, which is in Hanover, NH, my home town. She wrote Love Medicine, The Beet Queen, and with husband Michael Dorris, A Yellow Raft in Blue Water and The Crown of Columbus. I like it that we share the same birthday!
1958 - Prince, American musician
1976 - Necro, Jewish American rapper

Beginning of the realization of our dream

The Captain found 2 boxes outside our front door on his way out. "What's this?" he asked. I helped him bring them into the house. The small box he held in his hand was surprisingly heavy. "It's cutlery for North Carolina," I replied. The tape on the big box was partly opened. Inside were packages and boxes containing a bath sheet, 2 tubmats, a set of 3 purple plastic mixing bowls, a toaster, two sets of purple towels, and an oval braided rug.

Such excitement! If we are buying furnishings, it must really be happening. Time to start packing - my sewing machine and fabric, with my Nanny's birds-eye maple dressing table, which I have long used as a sewing spot, will also go. Cold weather clothes will begin to live in Asheville, too. All those mugs that crowd the cupboard, threatening to fall to the ceramic tile floor and break, can be divided between our northern and southern homes.

We still need 2 beds, a futon for the living room, 2 televisions - one for the living room and a small one for the guest bedroom, a DVD player, a dining table and chairs, some end tables, and a dresser for the master bedroom. This is fun, planning and dreaming.

Sometimes it all seems too good to be true! As a firm believer in the dangers of hubris, I occasionally worry that my joy and my pride will lead to my downfall. Put into print, that sounds silly and superstitious, and probably is, in truth. So I vow not to be negative about this. It IS a dream come true, but sometimes they can! How blessed I feel!

Italian Cabaret is TONIGHT!

Our newest show opens tonight. I am singing in many numbers, including That's Amore!, La ci darem la mano (duet from Don Giovanni), Libiamo from La Traviata as Violetta, Quando m'en vo (otherwise known as Musetta's Waltz) from La boheme, Noi siamo zingarelle (the Gypsy chorus from La Traviata), Italian Street Song as a duet, and the Finale (which combines Torna a Surriento/Arrivederci Roma/and Addio from L'Elisir d'Amore. I've been busting my butt all week to memorize everything, something that grows more difficult with age. We should have a nice crowd and it will be a fun and high-energy evening. I 've sung the Don Giovanni duet dozens of times; did the Violetta in English, so just need to remember the Italian; I'm a little worried about the Gypsy chorus - lots of words; but I am premiering (for me) the Musetta, and I want it to be wonderful.

Wish me luck or pray for me. In the opera world you say, "In boca al lupo", which means "into the mouth of the wolf." I respond with "Crepi il lupo", which means "to hell with the wolf!"

Fun Monday!

Sorry for being so S L O W! Went to Cardio Rehab this morning and the took the Captain out for new shoes.

What is your favorite word?

• Almost anything in French or Italian, I love how they feel in my mouth and the beauty of the spoken vowels.
• Also, "sweetheart" when the Captain says it.

What is your least favorite word?

• Telephone

What turns you on (creatively, spiritually or emotionally)?

• A book like Ahab's Wife, with exquisite prose and an interesting story line.
• A brand new needlepoint canvas.
• Walking in the woods near my son's house in Chester, NY.
• My gorgeous purple iris, or lilies of the valley.
• Singing a song I love.
• My kitties doing anything cute or loveable.

What turns you off?

• Generalizations, especially about people's behavior or personality traits.

What is your favorite curse word?

• I blush to admit this secret sin - it's the Anglo-Saxon word for copulation that practically every character in the Sopranos uses at least once a night. Often called the F word.

What sound or noise do you love?

• My kitties talking or purring.
• Certain pieces of music, like Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet, or the 2nd movement of Schubert's 956 quintet.

What sound or noise do you hate?

• People talking in a movie or live performance.
  

What profession, other than your own, would you like to attempt?

• Crime scene investigator

What profession would you not like to attempt?

• Lawyer

If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?

• "Well done, good and faithful servant." Can't think of anything better than that one, Mama!

Odds and Ends

This is a "round-up" post. Yesterday was a really blissful day - I had my teeth cleaned (I am one of probably 3 people in the world who LIKES going to get my teeth cleaned - if you are one too, please let me know!) and then I went to REHAB (no, it's nothing so trendy as where Brittney Spears went - just a bunch of old farts who have had heart "episodes" and their spouses who come three times a week to walk on the treadmill, etc, and lift dumbbells), and THEN I went with my dear friend to A Stitch in Time (if you want to buy a great needlework store, it's for sale). (What a long and confusing run on sentence!)

After a long period of frugality, I had decided to pick up the new Mindy canvas I had on layaway and also the 3rd of the three Twelve Days of Christmas squares I've been working on. I also needed thread for the Mindy iris canvas. Here are pictures of the new canvases.
by captluci
I came home from the store feeling really fine and happy and fell asleep for 2 hours! Woke up feeling great, and stitched as I watched old Oprahs and Dr. Phil's that I had recorded and not had time to watch.

The lovely and highly unusual nap meant I could not fall asleep last night! I was awake till two. The cats came to find me, to see if they could get me to go to bed, all 23 pounds of lynxpoint Siamese Roxy lying in front of the computer monitor in a mound. After awhile, even they gave up and sacked out near me in the computer room, where I was surfing away on sites for furnishings for NC.

Finally, and most uncharacteristically, Chino left me a little present on the bathroom rug (whew, did it stink!) - and that made me uneasy, because he has always been good about his bathroom habits.

Today, when finally crawled out of bed, still glowing from my wonderful day off, I realized I needed to put together the program for our upcoming production - Cabaret - Italian Style! I have been creating the programs for as long as First Coast Opera has existed, but it was supposed to have been done by someone else this time. I know I am my own worst enemy in this regard; my standards are so high that I don't really, truly trust other people to tackle it. Who knows, a word might be misspelled, or something equally intolerable!!!

So, of course, by default, I am making the program again. There were a few glitches, such as, not knowing who is singing the Abbondanza Trio, and not being sure which composer wrote the Core Ingrato that Roger is singing, but otherwise, it was not terribly painful OR time-consuming. The real problem wsa that, CHAMPION PROCRASTINATOR that I am, I had planned to use today to really learn all my music. 'Course, I could be doing it now, too. It will be rough during rehearsal tomorrow. But I will get it done by Saturday's performance.

I did find time to look out the French doors in the living room that over look the garden and the pond. A gorgeous all PURPLE IRIS was unfurled. I grabbed the digital camera - what could be more photogenic than a purple iris on a sunny day. Upon stepping out the door I found another surprise. There are good things about Florida!

Check out my Slide Show!

What I was doing at midnight at the end of Friday the Thirteenth!

WOW!

We are getting the largest tax refund ever this year, mostly because of the Prius, our

sweet little hybrid car, that came with a $3100 tax CREDIT, and incidentally, gets 50 mpg! We are excited to be able to settle more comfortably into the role of homeowners of TWO homes, i.e., payers of TWO mortgages, TWO homeowners insurance premiums, TWO utility bills, etc. You get the picture.

I'm still on cloud NINE thinking that I can escape the Florida summer heat, which gave us a slight preview with a temperature of 88 yesterday.

The Negotiations

The caller ID showed an Asheville area code, so I eagerly answered the phone. Karen said hello and then reported that they had 2 inches of snow, "The day before Easter!" All I could think was what must the view be like when it snowed on Jacob Lane.

"So, is there news?" I queried.

"They accepted your offer," Karen replied.

The joy I felt at her words was indescribable; it was followed immediately by the conviction that I would work hard to keep this in my life. Then came the gratitude - to the sellers, to Karen, to Anthony, and to our ANGEL who is making this possible.

Asheville

Photobucket Album

Our Little Home in Asheville!

I found it! After a miserably disheartening first day of searching mobile homes that reeked of cigarette smoke, urine, and despair, I found sanctuary!

We have made an offer, and now await the response. I just love it there. When I walked into the house, I said, "This feels like HOME!" There are two big rose bushes, as well as assorted other flowers planted, and several large raised beds for vegetables, herbs and flowers!

The altitude is 2315 - high enough to catch the mountain breezes, and to see to the range that lies beyond Asheville. The inside is bright, and clean, and even has a gas range. It has a gas stove for extra heating and atmosphere. It even has cable - I hope it has high speed, too.

I see myself gardening, hiking, exploring, sewing, stitching, reading, and enjoying the peacefulness. We may even close very soon, if the offer is accepted. If you want to see pictures, click here.

Going to Asheville to Find a 2nd Home

Pray for me! Even if you are not a great believer in prayer! I need all the spiritual, emotional, universal support I can get! Tomorrow morning I journey to Charleston to pick up my Little Mother, and then together, we go to the Asheville area to look for a place for me to escape to when the FL weather threatens to undo me! This is really important to my life.

The longer I live in FL the more I dread June to November, or Tropical Storm/Hurricane Season. It's like NOTHING I ever knew in the Northeast! I fear the storms, and the devastation that accompanies them! My head knows how irrational this is, but I am consumed with a visceral dread of the storms.

Not only do I need mountains for my soul, but I need respite from this dread!

And how I miss the hiking, being in a natural world that feels like home to me. Forget the notion that all the natural world is home! I need my woods! I'm so torn by this issue.

Whatever power there is that can divine and untangle our souls, I am in need of for this. For years, I have espoused the Lakota saying, "Mitakuyasin" - translated as "we are all related: or "all my relations". But the FL natural world seems forbidding and alien to me. I need my "Piney Wood Hills".

I just want a small place near to the mountains that will allow me to find hiking trails and natural woodland spots where I feel at home. No matter whether that even seems rational! It's my fondest wish and prayer!

Big Changes Are in the Wind

We may be buying a small place in North Carolina soon!!!!!!!!!

There are angels at work, and I may not have to endure the oppressive heat of a Florida summer for all of June, July, August, September and October. I may even have a small place to escape to with my kitties. I know it gets hot in NC, too, but usually the evenings are sweet, as are the early mornings. I am so excited. Next week will travel up there and check out some properties.

Hooray!

Finished gathering and sorting for the "tax man". Now it's up to him to get it in the forms and on its way. We are getting a $3100 tax credit for purchasing the Prius!

Taxes and Other Financial Headaches

$

We have a wonderful tax return coming this year, thanks to my beloved hybrid car. I can't really figure out why I have been procrastinating in getting them done! It's not even as if I prepare them - we hand the necessary documents to the accountant! At any rate, I think it's probably a symptom of the general lack of focus of my life just now. Perhaps now I have posted about it, I can get it done! Wish me luck!

$ $ $ $

Ugh!

I've been sick the last few days, actually since the Captain left on his trip to Arkansas. So basically I have done only what had to be done, like feed the cats and clean the litter boxes (UGH), sleep, read, stitch, only going out twice to replenish supplies. It's been kind of restful, but also disappointing. I missed out on a big teaching/earning day yesterday, though it's doubtful if I had either the stamina or the voice to give all those lessons.

With the scary news about the high school kids who died at school in the Enterprise, Alabama tornado, and our area being under a tornado watch for most of yesterday afternoon and evening, the day took on something of a surreal quality. Add to that, that I slept most of the night propped up on the couch, because lying down I was unable to breathe, and you have a recipe for disorientation. Having a fever didn't help either.

I think I am coming out of it now. I can actually taste things, and I can breathe without nose spray.

This is all meaningless drivel. But I feel somehow relieved to set it down on "paper". Maybe it means I am emerging. Strange how just a couple of days can seem like perishingly long time!