Category Archives: friends

care package

28 Thursday Jan 2010

Posted by in birthdays, friends, health & happiness

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This is apparently “make az feel totally special” week. My buddy Taliesin has been re-building my online store, (he also came up with the BEST new header this week!), and yesterday I got an amazing birthday care package from Sledpress, which you can see above.

First of all, more BioFreeze!  Sled had sent me a couple of tubes a while ago when I had a serious “back outtage”, and now I have even more. I just love this stuff, which is not available in Spain. It’s freezing hot and does wonders for clenched tense muscles.

Also, a chokecherry & blackcurrant antioxidant supplement that I’m very interested in trying out (I seriously cannot deal with goji berries) … I’ve been given a 60 day supply so I shall report back mid-March. It looks like very serious stuff.

And what looks like tiny purple Japanese sandals are actually “massage thimbles” – how cool is that??? I think these are actually for Peter, who very kindly gives me a short foot massage most nights before I go to bed in order to help with the awful neuropathy I still have from the last bout of chemo. And can I tell you? OMG!!! P tried them out on my poor  suffering feet last night and it was … well, it was kind of like aaaaaaaaarrrgh!, but I also didn’t want him to stop. Heaven.

The pièce de résistance is that little spiky blue ball, which I believe is going to become either my best friend or worst enemy, and possibly both (this is best explained over here). All I need now is a rug!

Sled … muchísimas gracias, amiga.

azahar rising

27 Wednesday Jan 2010

Posted by in art, cancer, friends, health & happiness, hope, love

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Just yesterday I was telling you how I am constantly overwhelmed by the generosity of my friends, and then this came in the mail … a paper collage made by healingmagichands. Not only is it beautiful, but I could feel the love and caring that was put into creating it and it made me feel very special indeed.

This piece has been in my mind for several weeks, but it took a long time to gel. I don’t know that I necessarily need to explain this work, but my “artist’s note” would say something about the power of will and strength overcoming shadows & ill health. The vine along the left side is sort of the continuity of life as the struggle goes on, growth does not necessarily stop and in fact, the struggle may even nurture grown. At any rate, the vine gains in strength as it rises.

I call this “azahar rising”.

Thanks so much, Ellie.

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under construction

26 Tuesday Jan 2010

Posted by in change, computers, friends, geekiness, internet, sevilla, websites

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I’ve been having the best time working on my new store project with my old h2g2 pal, Taliesin. He came to my rescue the other day and has not only moved my old website for me, but is helping me design the new version. What a guy!

I’m hoping to have the store fully functional by March 1st … I think that should give Tal & me enough time to finish the design and techy stuff, as well as get the stock and shipping side of things organised. There’s a lot to do, and I will probably just start off with a few choice items, but along with English classes and possible tapas tours & wine tasting evenings, I might actually end up with something resembling an income.

Meanwhile, this is all so exciting and also very interesting. Tal is doing all the “heavy lifting” for this move and new set up, but I’ve been helping out here and there and also learning A LOT, which is always fun.

The generosity of my friends continues to overwhelm me.

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25 meals

17 Sunday Jan 2010

Posted by in change, food & drink, friends, home, hope

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It came as a shock when Nog & I realised it was time to do our monthly “big shop” at the supermarket the other day … and then also realised that there wasn’t enough money! Nog has lost some students over the past couple of months, and I have not yet been able to rebuild my student client base since starting back to work – I only have 2 classes a week. In the end I had to use a credit card I keep for emergencies only (my other one is maxed) and we were able to stock up for the next while or so. And it got me thinking it would be better to stockpile some meals, also using what had been in the freezer … so two days and many hours spent slaving over a hot stove later, the result was about 25 single serving meals. How cool is that?

Yeah, I know. I should have used the gift donations over Christmas for more practical purposes, but as they were given for the explicite purpose of going out for tapas (and I also wanted to get more photos for Sevilla Tapas) that is what I did.

Anyhow, check it out. Clockwise from upper-left: spicy chicken burrito sauce, bolognese sauce, pork & veg stew, pork & spinach garam masala, and chorizo & prawn risotto. Of course, by the time all this was made neither of us felt like eating it, so last night I made some beer-battered prawns and chips with the left-overs …

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beam me up, scotty!

14 Thursday Jan 2010

Posted by in christmas, friends, gadgets, home

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Nog finally got his Christmas prezzie yesterday!

It’s very cool. A flip-top Nokia mobile phone (named Hamish – geddit?) to replace the five-year-old beater he’s been using. But what an ordeal to get the thing. I first saw it in November and tried to “purchase” it then – I was going to use my mobile phone bonus points to buy it. But after much faffing around the salesclerk informed me that I couldn’t use my points again until January 10th. Bummer. So on Christmas day I gave Nog a photo of his upcoming-prezzie instead, and went to pick it up last Monday. No way. There was some problem with the place that approves the point system thingy … and so finally last night we managed to get it. The sales clerk laughed when I handed the package to Nog and said “Feliz Navidad!”, and then joined in the fun, wishing Nog the best of the season. Ha.

It’s the first time Nog has had a mobile phone that did more than just, well, phone people. This one has a camera and a radio, and some other doodads that he’ll probably never use. But what the heck. The best feature on this phone is the flip-top thing, as Nog always carries his phone in his pocket (with keys, coins, etc) and so this will protect the screen better. Plus it’s rather nifty looking, doncha think? And it was fun having another Christmas.

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