5.28.2015

The problem with nasal passages...

Friday morning and can't move off my bed... My normal routine has been to get up and head straight to yoga class but today I can't seem to move. I've got some sort of sinus thing going on, or I'm not sure actually.  For the past month the air conditioner has been on in whatever room I'm on.  Basically it's a necessity. Survival really. I'm not used to living this way and don't like it.  I think the AC can make people sick.  My unit seems old and like it needs to be cleaned out.  Anyway, for a few weeks now I've had a lot of phlegm in my throat just hovering around.  Not really going away, but not really dragging me down either. Gargling with warm salt water, Neti Pot, whatever. Nothing works. This shit is holding tight... I hate the AC. Evil, evil monster.

Last night though it dragged me down.  I was at my favorite Mexican restaurant here drinking Margarita's with my friend who was visiting from a little town in the desert north of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.  We were catching up on old times (Tunisia) and new futures (both of us getting out of the Middle East).  I was already spinning a bit, but when I got home my nasal passages were getting out of control.  All I could do to prevent feeling miserable was pass out, which I promptly did.

So now here I am, Saturday morning wishing I was in yoga class right now, but I'm not.  I'm in my bed with the AC on typing... Shit happens.  Must keep remembering that mantra. I'm looking forward to not needing AC ever again in a living environment.  Yea, that's right. Shift happens too!

In other news, last week I got excited a little early, so started to take apart my life in this apartment for the past 2 years.  Yes, in one afternoon it just about all came down and got packed away.  I've got four large suitcases full of my life here that awaits my life in Istanbul. The kitties sure were curious.  They were, and continue to be so, in various stages of lounge behavior on every suitcase.

I did a one last deep-cleaning (my style of deep cleaning) as well.  That was exhausting.  I see why everybody has cleaning people come to their houses to do this stuff.  I wasn't able to bring myself to do this though.  It seems weird honestly.  It's also weird taking an entire morning/early afternoon to clean.  Definitely not enjoyable, even while listening to heavy metal...

So my house is bare and I'm officially on bare-bones living.  Feels good.  It's only another month... Yes, I got a little too excited a little too early, but no matter.  It's done now and I don't have to deal with it in the coming weeks.  Better this way. Now I can just cruise.

I was busy yesterday making plans for an Aegean excursion with L-Fezz. We will seek out our new go-to spot on the Aegean Coast of Turkey.   Now that our hippie camp has been sold on the Mediterranean, we need a new go-to spot. It's going to be epic.  The 3Hs: hiking, hangovers, hanging (at beach). Yes, this is what I do. I'm still an amateur at one of these endeavors, which makes dealing with the other 2 a little dicey, at times...

Well, since I've dealt myself a guilt trip for not making it to yoga this morning, I think I'll check on the pool; if it's still tolerable to go in, I will.  Likely the water is already too hot to partake in this activity though... Ugh, my last Middle Eastern summer. Period. Unless I was ever to move to Oman in the future... Again, LOVE THAT COUNTRY, in spite of how hot it is there.  Yep, IMHO, the only place to live in the Middle East (for me that is). Bahrain is sweet, but small.  Too much like back home on Maui in that respect (and only that respect).

Okay, carry on


5.08.2015

"normal" is the new black...



Well folks, it's nearly 3pm here in the Middle East and this is not normal for me to be blogging at this time.  Perhaps because I've had such an abnormally normal day today... Who knows.  It feels right, even though I don't have my steaming cuppa joe right here next to me on my bed (swapped that out for a smoothie I made from bananas, blueberries, red grapes, brazil nuts, Macha Powder, Spirulina, flax seeds, chia seeds, Omega 3 oil, almond rice milk, dessicated acai berry powder and powdered vitamin C... Yes folks, THAT is normal for me... Is it normal that I cart most all of this stuff around the world from Hawaii so I have access to only the purest blends of superfoods?  YES. Completely normal, in my world. The only thing that would make that smoothie more normal would be if I had my Vitamix here to blend up all the ingredients. Unfortunately the Vitamix had to stay back in Hawaii- for 5 years now...  It's got a good home though. I do miss that machine-0-power!

The kitties are next to me in their various stages of sleep. Although it's already pretty bloody hot here, they seem to make-do and adjust.  Of course my bedroom is always blacked out... The rest of the house is sunny, but my bedroom always has to be cave-like...always.  Most definitely it's the coolest spot in the house, in more ways than one... Again, very normal HollyMissBerry behavior.

My day started off heading to BaYoga in Juffair. BAM. Afterwards we headed to the beach for some fun in the sun.  Again, this is all very normal for a day in my life- even here in the Middle East.  I have to say, I do tend to seek out the normal anywhere in the world that I live.  I can't always find my most favorite normal ingredients, accoutrements, but I make-do and  adjust... For example, I drink gin & tonics now to compensate for another normal that I can't often find here... No biggie. That abnormal might just be normal in Istanbul- the next chapter... In fact, I know it will be...

So, the beach (more like a lagoon actually) was calm. No one else was hanging out in a bikini (normal for here). No one else was really on the beach- except for a few residents/renters lounging about on their decks, etc. We did get to see a black stork descend down to the shoreline and hunt crabs and little fish. This kept us occupied for quite a while.  As well the buoyancy of the water.  You can float forever here in the Gulf. It's like there's no possible way to sink.

So, that's about it folks.  That's my day thus far.  Now it's time to turn on the A/C- a soon-to-be normal every day occurrence for the rest of my time here in my tiny island host nation.

Oh yea, napping is normal now as well...

Peace