Ann Carol Goldberg

“About face”, this is our new emergency directive. Not news, we are all redirecting our lives to stay healthy and assure the health of those around.  Lately people have been messaging their boredom, their cabin fever and trying to cope with habit changes and life style changes. “Think positive” is my response. We have no choice but to continue to live every day to the fullest.  For us, there are just the two of us in our motorhome to consider.  So it is a bit easier to plan our days. For me, this is the time to do things beyond the “pale” so to speak.  Paul and I are doing some things together, exercising, walking, cooking, and we plan to read books and *poetry to each other, play scrabble, re learn cribbage and Zoom link to friends and family. We will try Zoom group happy hours with friends in the RV park.  I am savoring more books to ingest, more films to watch, hobbies to catch up with and projects to continue or begin. (I intend to write  my blogs featuring books, music and movies I have enjoyed to share and to have you share back. During a crisis like this focusing on favorite things helps us through)

I do not loose sight that we are among the lucky ones, having traveled (Our Panama tour cut short but that is trivial in light of this crisis.)

Images;  Panama Canal traffic                  Embra Village dancing, beautiful people

We do not have any illness in our greater family to date, we can meet our bills, order food and more on line, we have a roof over our heads and too many items of clothing too wear.  So many do not or cannot see their loved ones in a nursing home, hospital or out of town or access adequate medical care. Many have a houseful of youngsters at home without their friends nearby. We can send money to help causes, we can inquire of our neighbors as to any needs or problems they have. Each of us must let go of our former ways of thinking and start new habits. Perhaps start that diet they have intended to follow, call people you have meant to call for so long, catch up on the many things we” intend to do someday.” It is also the time to do things on a whim that you have rejected so many times.  Heck, live it up, have your favorite food for breakfast–pizza, steak, ice cream, chocolate, champagne, wear that old pair of jeans or sweater that you are embarrassed to wear “in public” let down your hair and dance fast and furious in place. 

*Look for Knopf Publishers annual poem a day in April and sign up at

http://knopfdoubleday.com/knopf-poetry-signup/

This favorite poem; “Daffodils” by William Wordsworth (1770-1850)

I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o’er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed—and gazed—but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

My Message in a Minute blogs are back I have been so busy that I have not taken time to send my short and hopefully sweet blogs for many weeks.  Here I go again and as always welcome your feedback and comments.

I am addicted to keeping lists and data bases. Several of my blogs have been devoted to sharing some of my favorite reads with you and enjoying your feedback with titles of your favorites as well. Thus another installment.

My lists include (dating back to 2005 or so) books I have read and I choose to  occasionally share my favorites with you in trade for your favorites. I am now starting my books I have read, volume #6.  Each log gets so long that I add new lists favoring the genres of Historical fiction and literature, classics, poetry and non fiction on themes of biography, autobiography, medicine, civilization, history some fantasy and mystery.

Here are a few titles to share;

The History of Rain by Niall Williams, a woman, destined to be bedridden in her father’s home reads through his library of over 3000 books, sharing the titles and stories related them to stories to keep you glued to the page.

The Lost Girls of Paris, by Pam Jenoff; it is a tough read set in the UK and Paris during WWII. It features, bravery, espionage, Nazi torture, relationships, ego, loss, gain, love and hate. 

Two by Nicole Krauss;

Forest Dark: a Novel and The History of Love, a novel

An Autobiography, Dust Tracks on a Road by Nora Neale Hurston written in 1942. What a story, what a life she led. Always a favorite author of mine.

When we Believed in Mermaids by Barbara O’Neal.

A new addition, a discovery and my current read; A Giver of Stars, by Jojo Moyes; Set in Depression in a small Kentucky Town. It follows five woman who take on the challenge of setting up a traveling library under the edict of Eleanor Roosevelt. They travel, by horseback in a town of Misogynists, tough times and rise slowly to the challenge defying the nasty leaders of the town. Disasters and perils are non stop but their will and strength rules in the end. As several of the other stories listed here, many books are mentioned in the book.

Next read for me? Off to my data base list entitled Books I want to read and my wish list on Amazon Kindle. Too many books, too many films and docus, too many countries to cover in a lifetime. Making choices is a challenge. 

Please, let me know what you are about. 

A busy busy life: I have been traveling and filling my days with wonders and not writing Blogs. I am back and hope you enjoy my brief and hopefully to-the-point messages. This one is appropriately named About Time;

1. that I am back to blogging

2. The topic, a film named “About Time.”

The film copyright is 2013 but we just came across the film and enjoyed the 2 hour 3 minute film, a coming of age tale of relationships, time travel and romance. The production is filled with color, characters of all ilks and set in the UK, Ireland and Scotland. Red haired people, dark haired people, blondes, fab sets and costumes to admire,  babies, humor, moms and dads, girl friends and boyfriends, it is a delight. The film comes of age as it rolls forward keeping up with the coming of age of the characters. Check it out and get your popcorn popped, your feet up and enjoy, forgetting all of the cares of our crazy world. 

URL; https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2194499/

Another periodic entry with my take on a book to share. The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates, a wonderful, tough but down to earth writer  (Between the World and Me, an Autobiography and many more.)

In a brief overview, the book is engrossing , tragic, well researched, describing slave labor and treatment; the unwarranted  torture of communities and families being harshly split asunder (still happening today) and enlightening the reader about the philosophy and methodology of conduction, working to set people free via the Underground Railroad. As usual, Coates in his narrative is brilliant, dense and requires great pause to take it all in. Read it with care, the narrative is fully packed, the characters and their treatment stays in my mind even after finishing the book. 

Briefly The “surrealistic” story is set in the pre–Civil War South, “concerning a superhuman protagonist named Hiram Walker who possesses photographic memory, but who cannot remember his mother and is able to transport people over long distances by using a power known as “conduction” which can fold the Earth like fabric.” (Wikipedia; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Water_Dancer).

I remember, as a kid growing up in Rochester, NY there was a house, a large colonial style house with “secrets.”

We knew it was haunted, no live person seemed to live there. We crept by it carefully but bravely. As we grew older we heard stories of the Cobb house being a refuge for the underground railroad which we understood to be a road to freedom for freed slaves in the 1800’s. (the process referred to as “conducting” in the book). We took those facts for granted never questioning the tough process of making this a reality. I thought I knew something about their methods until finishing this startling novel. How juvenile I was in my thinking. The process was thoroughly developed, people were trained without their even knowing exactly what some of their sufferings of torture, stress, uprooting and expectations were to mean. Harriet (Tubman) is quietly introduced as she played her huge role in the stories of rescue. 

Reading this book takes concentration, perseverance, a vivid and visual imagination and will “haunt” the reader after its completion. 

Further reading: The Underground Railroad by, Colson White and other titles obythis author.

The Last Runaway by Tracy Chevalier. Underground Railroad by William Still.

A tale of great entertainent:

Dateline; Sun Oct 27; Place, the Gus S. Wortham Theater Center, To hear the Houston Opera Company perform, Saul, an Oratorio by George Frederic Handel (1685-1759). Our arrival was in perfect time to hear the pre talk, giving us an overview of the history of the oratorio, the tasks, problems and solutions faced in the mounting of the Oratorio and some about the singers and dancers and painting a picture of the brilliance of it all.  What a winner this theatre experience was. The Oratorio SAUL by Handel was composed in 1738 and is his telling of the Biblical tale after David  slayed the Giant Goliath.  the performance lasted 3 hours with 1 intermission. We sat in the loges on raised stools perched 4 rows from railing edge. We could see the full orchestra with  continuo instruments, organ, Celeste, and more. The Overture was in 4 parts; Allegro, Largo, Allegro, Minuetto with the curtain going up at end of the 2^nd movement. The scene was glorious, chock full of the 40 chorus members and 7 dancers sitting on a huge banquet table laden with a celebratory feast and silently doing a “ballet” in their places with hand and body movements, each person sustaining many different poses. How colorful, charming, humorous and fetching. The whole performance was filled with dance, movement and action, not a concert performance and not a fully fledged traditional operatic performance. Two large rectangular white clothed tables become stage characters throughout the performance; placed horizontally, vertically, horizontally with space between for action. The final act was done on a bare stage but covered with black sand that is actually an insulation product we found out from the lead playing SAUL, Baritone Christopher Purves in post concert talk.  The stage is not flat but raked at quite a big angle. David portrayed by Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen with an impressive bio including an intensive musical background and Jewish Studies. His Contra Tenor voice is rich and stunning!  The costumes are reminiscent of Handel’s time not Biblical-like garb.They are colorful and then change to all black garb or all white, enhancing the drama.  The 7 wonderful dancers performed innovative, award winning modern dance. The long performance was flawless and beautiful as was the singing, dancing and acting. Saul depicts the story after the slaying of Goliath and a humbled David, an angered King Saul, his son Jonathan and Saul’s daughters and the love, hate and mental anguish suffered by the King and his family and followers. It is hard to summarize properly. Enjoy a synopsis at:  https://www.houstongrandopera.org/saul?gclid=CjwKCAjwo9rtBRAdEiwA_WXcFiL1xuiOZnezwQCa0jPY10EfezmO3t7asrFVrOHWCsFhE1rhIJcyEhoCUEEQAvD_BwE

We had the thrill of a post performance talk by the Baritone Christopher Purves, playing Saul, a brilliant performer as were all of the characters.We will be floating on the memories of this performance for weeks to come and forever more. I can’t share the photos I took, they are secured as I found out and I can understand the reasoning.  However, if you follow this URL hopefully 4 images will appear, 2 of the Paley staircase, one of the curtain call and Christopher Purves speaking. https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipO-ACISLIGJOPJmnVMl7fwDqif-hf7pCSXC5Bw44xFe7psOswHOmmjeUuyrVKTPNg?key=ZmNfUXd3OVZiMWZ2eWVhZ3hCVHdWcG1RNzladUhR

We were delighted to see the beautiful staircase enhanced by Albert Paley’s sculptures. He is the Metal artist from Rochester, NY, our home town and done in 1987. What a joyous day. 

Yes, last April 24th I fell on a crumbly cement walk and broke my good hip, the left. It happened in Van Horn, TX and I was hustled to El Paso for surgery and rehab. (not new news just a recap for reference.) Paul and I are domiciled in Texas, therefore, that is where we are registered to vote, licensed to drive and the rest. At April’s end I was discharge from the rehab hospital and we drove directly to the DMV to renew. Paul’s application process was quick and was renewed on the spot. He had prefilled out the form making it ready to go. My form was on the rig, forgotten, so I filled one out anew. 

My name was called before I could finish so the woman started filling the form out at her desk. Then she looked up and in a mean kind of tone said, “I see you need a walker, your application will state you cannot drive until you have a driver’s test in Texas. As we were heading east for months, I was devastated. I hobbled out of the DMV bemoaning the fact that I will face a driver’s test sans written test at least.  I have been driving for 60 years and drive a truck; 36′ motor home with tow. But bureaucracy was starring me in the face. The woman did not even smile or say anything nice, just; “next.” All summer I have lost sleep worrying about the driving test so far away even though a few years ago I took the test in the motor home with high praise from the tester in Livingston, TX our home state. Here we are back in Livingston 

before the renewal deadline of course. Off to the DMV we went, Paul at the Jeep controls. It only took an hour but seemed much longer.

The staff person, Brittanie (who sports an Irish sounding first and last name stated that she “doesn’t know why mom spelled it this way and furthermore, I have no Irish family in my background. My parentage is German and Cajun”) took a look at the situation and at my agile movements and said this is nonsense. She asked how well I could move and I rattled off several of the dances that I do regularly: Salsa, Zumba, modern dance, aerobics, line dance, Jitterbug, The Twist . She insisted that “she can’t dance” and was impressed by my well being. I offered to give her Salsa lessons  after we finished. She giggled and said, not me, no, not me.” Off she went to call Austin (headquarters) and after 15 minutes returned with permission to deep-six the driver test. I now am a pleased and much relieved licensed driver with a temporary license, sporting a terrible photo as license photos are destined to be. I drove with a big smile on my face. 

Both of us have been sharing our stories with you as we traipse southward via Motor home on our beloved Natchez Trace Parkway offering such an enticing history and sites to explore.

Entering from Nashville heading south, passing mile 65 on the Trace, it happened. We were deep into our Audible book (book #14) by Laurie King and her irresistible stories of Sherlock Holmes and Mary Russell. This one entitled The Murder of Mary Russell.

Paul was the wheel when he got a message on the dashboard: stop engine, check transmission; So unexpected since we had just been in Red Bay, the home of Tiffin RV, to have simple shade and awning problems fixed.  Pull over we did, but not quite able to get fully off the road. We called Coachnet, our excellent road emergency-response group. After many hours, they summoned up a tow truck on the way from 75 miles south. Meanwhile at least a dozen passers-by stopped to ask if we needed help. Some even stopped again on their way home up the Trace. So kind. A ranger and then a police officer came to help, waiting until the tow truck arrived. The tow could not handle our big rig and reversed his journey after accompanying us along with Hugh, the officer to a safe and lovely rest stop called Hurricane Creek 

(at the slow pace of about 5 MPH.)

We slept in comfort on our motor home and awoke the next morning to await the proper tow truck. Parker Trucks Co. with owner Ricky and John aboard arrived, hooked us up and drove us to Magnolia Diesel service in Columbus, Mississippi.

What a team they were as we arrived after the drive with just some jumble aboard. A free day ahead–a Sunday (breakdowns always occur on a weekend). In our Jeep, we took off to tour Columbus not expecting much. HA. Tennessee Williams was born here and his home serves as the welcome center. There are many other wonderful sights; Blues was born in this town the stars recording and playing in Catfish alley (named after the odor of catfish cooking nearby.) Several late 18th and early 19th century homes are open for touring,

Many churches are found here and a lovely synagogue with an unexpected  history found on this First Methodist Church plaque.

Congregation B’nai Israel in Columbus MS

as well as beautiful old neighborhoods with decades-old homes and buildings still beautifully maintained. The downtown is colorful and wonderful; population about 760,000 people  in 2019. Wow. A discovery and delightful place to find. We even conversed with a woman who had attended The University of Rochester, our home town. Small world it is.

Relic, where is the barber shop?

Statue depicting the Confederate State

We eventually returned to our rig, did some cleaning and straightening, had a great dinner and read into the night hoping the Diesel Service staff can get us on the road again as we are anxious to continue westward. What fun we have with good the bad and the people who make it all wonderful.

It is Monday, an addendum the technician had diagnosed the problem, a lack of communication between the Throttle Control Module and the engine. We don’t yet know the cause and await further information. Yesterday was warm and sunny, today it is mid 60’s and wet. But cozy and happy are we in our move-able home. 

Soon to leave Rochester, I had two more doc appointments on the docket before heading west. The first at 9:15 AM with my “hip doc” for a follow up and a 10:30 with my primary for a follow up as well. I arrived at the hip doc 10 minutes early and checked in. “You are set, we will call your name.”

I waited a while, looked around to see if I knew anyone in the waiting room–no, not this time. Then I noticed it, a magazine in the chair next to me folded open to a story. I flipped to the cover to check it out; Smithsonian, Dec. 2014. “Hmm,” I buzzed to myself, but all of the other magazines were back issues as well.  I returned to the exposed page then rubbed my eyes in wonder. It was a long article on King Tut. We had just returned a week ago from our fabulous journey to Egypt and the tomb of King Tut, hearing the stories and visiting the museum devoted to Howard Carter’s discovery of the tomb. 

I skimmed the long article and viewed the very items and photos we had taken just a couple of weeks before. Of course, this ancient story does not change, what a coincidence that the magazine was lying there “for me to find.”  If you wish follow the link below for more. 

The Controversial Afterlife of King Tut

A frenzy of conflicting scientific analyses have made the famous pharaoh more mysterious than ever

2. I continued to skim the magazine. Every article was of interest to me for various reasons and it kept me entertained and engaged for 40 minutes. Still, no one called my name. I read about Mount Baldy, a strange and unique sand dune in Indiana along the shores of Lake Michigan. I remember driving in the area did not explore this strange and challenging piece of landscape. The story involved a 6 year old boy who fell into a deep hole in the dunes. He was miraculously rescued and healed but what an ordeal. The scientists still remain baffled about the cause and existence of these holes that go deep into the dunes. For more; https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/mystery-why-dangerous-sand-dune-swallowed-boy-180953404/ 

                                                                                   photo by Ariel Sabar

4.  Story, Monkeys The fate of the lion-tailed macaque, found in just one small pocket in India, an how they are tied to its disappearing habitat.  More topics;

Twin Stars about Scott and Mark Kelly the twin astronauts who traveled in space, Unsafe Passage, building a controversial new canal through Central America, Ninja Warrior, the Stealth plane SE-71 and its fate. We had watched this beautiful plane fly at the Indianapolis 500 in the 80’s. 

To view the stories more deeply follow;  https://www.smithsonianmag.com/issue/december-2014/#MtwAUKXIuvPGPxhb.99

My “nutshell” summary version reads like this: 3 fast paced weeks, running at full speed. Temperatures 95F-112F with full sun and blue skies, sand sand sand, visiting every Pyramid, Temple, Coptic (means Egyptian) Church, man made dam at Aswan, wonderful people and  cross section views of days in the lives of many Egyptians, Caroline our wonderful (OAT) guide, Papyrus relics and artworks, jewelry both ancient and new, museums galore, the incredible Library in Alexandria, Nile Valley, top to bottom, public markets in every town and on premises of some venues, glorious foods and mouth watering presentations and over the top restaurants, talented chefs, artisans of all genre and again wonderful people.

My out of  “the nutshell” version; The cities; broken pavement, dirty streets, the result of eons of blowing sand and LITTER in piles. the youngsters happily play in their neighborhood streets often in the sand, muck and garbage but seem as happy, robust and healthy as other youngsters seen around the world. Most of the building facades appear corroded, decaying, pockmarked from sand and salt-sea air and in danger of destruction. There are no modern structures of glass and steel as elsewhere in the world (maybe that is a plus). 1/2 of the structures appear to be under construction others  under destruction or on hold. The metal building

material Rebar grows vertically on top of half finished buildings as prolifically as the numerous trees in the forests.  It is common to see apartment structures built a floor at a time; the lower apartments occupied by grandparents, parents and families. Newly married sons and daughters move into the same building after the parents build up the next floor above for them, thusly the explanation for the spikes of Rebar vertically awaiting the next level apartment and family expansion. We have seen this in other parts of the world as well.

Speaking of families; we visited many families, enjoyed home hosted meals, learning so much about the daily life of citizens from all levels of life, education and occupation. What stands out in my mind the most is the love and devotion of families units and their deep regard, hungry quest for education and the hope to better the lives of the next generations. Young people and many middle aged folks want to attend college, many abroad and some move away from family to pursue careers and futures far away.

 We sailed on the Nile river boat Asiya Dehabeya, for 5 nights, a 16 passenger, 15 crew two masted sailboat with engine. So comfortable, what a crew.

Such smooth sailing it was with Captain Mohammad.

The Egyptian cuisine is Mediterranean with differences.   I will share the Egyptian version of Moussaka; SO DELICIOUS; a recipe shared with us by our glorious chef on board the river boat. EgyptianMoussaka  Restaurants vary from simple pizza and subs, to highly upscale and sophisticated dishes. We dined like kings and queens, too much food, large portions but delicious. The Egyptians love baked goods and they are works of art. Every other shop seems to be a bakery. 

The historical sites. We saw everything intimately, from crawling through the Great Pyramid, do it if you go, to all of the renown Pyramids and tombs, the Sphinx, Temples, monasteries and Coptic (meaning Egyptian) Churches.

We had opportunities to learn Hands on to make and buy chairs and tables and bamboo mango boxes for shipping, by the lead artisan age 88 and to make and purchase parchment and papyrus papers and drawings, jewelry, clothing, accessories in upscale venues on the street or in the many markets.

We were indeed hounded by vendors begging us to buy. Either you are interested in buying or you walk by, protecting yourself as they beg you to “buy from me” and make no eye contact as you continue to your destination. 

Summing up 3 weeks of full days and nights is hard. I haven’t discussed Luxor, the Aswan Dam, light shows on site, the camel ride, rescued temples, the social and economic picture, the political situation which seemed to be escalating during our visit and continually was denied by our leaders. More stories will come out in the weeks to come. What a memorable tour it was.

Needless to say, I am very excited about our upcoming trek to Egypt. Things I know; I did not think that we could ever go to Egypt considering our last  the name. But, it is real, we are off soon. The long reach back into the history is monumental, breaching on differentiating actual historical events from myths and conjecture. Since we Jews all met at Sinai having fled Egypt, I hope we do not have to part a sea to depart again. I will savor every day of the 3 week adventure and assume we will be allowed to depart on time via airplane, not through the mud of the seabed. I am sure I will be reluctant to have the adventure end. 

What do I anticipate and what will be realities of life in modern Egypt? My preconceptions of most of our destinations have always been a bit off base, incorrect and out of date. How I learn each visit, modernity has that global reach and country has its delicious,unique and  indigenous flavor. That is, big bustling cities, too many high rises, too many Western world chain shoppes, crime, social dilemmas, too much traffic (whether cars, trucks and buses or motor scooters, bikes and goat carts).  There are people hurrying to their destinations, and yet  those people are continually friendly, willing to help a stranger, informative and will stop and chat, often at length. We get to know each other, take photos and depart good friends. What a joy is travel.

I wish to learn and will become supersaturated with the adventures, only to be sorted out in the months and years following the trip. About the long history, I will try to absorb so much in the museums, galleries, Monuments, Pyramids and floating on the Nile.

Guides always ask us to state our goals for the trip; I wish to learn about the school curriculum broaching the vast, perhaps overwhelming history of the country, about present realities of their politics, religion, economics, social treatment of citizens and services available and try to understand the current political currants of our times. I hope to interact with Egyptians of all ages, view the art world, music world, the workings of the government, treatment of women, addictions and savor and taste the foods of Egypt, in my case from the vegetarian end, which I understand is very vegan and veggie friendly. Nothing new in the above list but I will try not to anticipate or preconceive the facts and learn, learn, learn. I also know I will shoot TOO MANY PHOTOS, but try hard not to see Egypt only through the view finder. A hard task, but I am ready to take off, check off another bucket list entry and spend weeks contemplating the experience.