Plans

I should really know by now that you can not make plans to do anything. I have just finished putting my bread up to rise the second time. Yesterday was a total wash on all my plans except going to the gym. Sophia came in with problems and had to talk to her to try and reassure her. Even though he is gone Stephen is still causing problems!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But last night I sat down and made a to do list of 20 items and so far I have accomplished only nine and we are having company for dinner so I will not finish the list today.

I had an exciting time today in the gym--------or let's just say everyone knew I was there today. I was riding the stationary bike and trying to email Brendon for a favor of a friend of ours. Out of the corner of my eye I thought I saw a black "ball" go under the bike next to me, which a trainer was riding. (The trainer is a great guy. He has a physical handicap but still is a hard worker in the gym and he speaks very little English) Well I just keep typing my email and I see the "ball" go toward the window and hopped right back out and head straight for me-----yeah it was a black mouse!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Needless to say I threw all my things and stood on the bike and scared the life out of the poor little trainer. He kept trying to say calm down and shout for help because he didn't see the mouse he had no idea what had happened. Real entertaining for everyone but me. They took me to the free weigh area and captured the mouse under a treadmill. I would have broken my neck if I were on that!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bill and I are having Claudio, the new Operations Engineer, over for STEAK tonight. We are being generous because we know we are going to the USA soon and can bring more. HA

Yikes just smelled burning green beans I was making a green bean casserole but there again PLANS CHANGE!

Still have not learn to post pictures right but will post of picture of Pranil (on left), me, Claudio(on right). Pranil is the Operations Engineer we were supposed to get last year but because he is Indian he didn't want to work here. He came on a emergency job. He is a great kid (Nicholas's age) and is getting married on November 30. Bill and I are going to the wedding. I am so excited. That was one thing on my list to do today ---booking rooms in Baroda for the wedding. (Not accomplished) I know a little about Indian wedding and am excited to witness one. His future wife wants me to wear a saree. Yeah right.

Bill is home from work so I better plan something else to go with the steak.

See ya

White Zinfandel

Here is a picture of the other homemade item I have tried. My friend, Sylvia gave me the recipe and of course I had to try. HAHAHAHAHA

Need more things to keep me busy.

Take care

Jealous

These are some of the trainers here at the gym. Bhakti is the one of the left.

This the first sour dough bread I made -----really don't know how to post it where i wanted it but you can read about below. Well it is almost perfect!!!!!

This morning I read a post from a friend in Africa -- Malawi to be exact. They have a Seven Eleven and BBQ Fritos I am able to find alot of things but have to search all over town for them. It does pass my time but now with a new driver who doesn't speak English IT IS DIFFICULT to say the least.

I am glad we did fire our first driver---he was difficult and always stirring up trouble and asking the other helpers to lie for him. He should have been gone after our leave in January but he did have two small daughters and of course we felt sorry for them. I really think that he thought he was secure because he spoke English but enough problems are enough.

Today I am making pimento and cheese ----from stratch of course and baking sour dough bread. This is my third time to bake the bread. The first time was perfect so I had my confidence up and the second time it was a flop! Don't know what I did but it didn't rise at all . Hopefully today will be a repeat of the first time. The pimento and cheese will be my first time. I found pimento at the dollar store here. It isn't a dollar store really because every thing is 99 rs. about 2 dollars HAHAHA. Now the pimento was 66 rs ($1.56) so not quite as expensive . I never liked pimento and cheese until I went to work at BHS and Mrs. Bonnie made it all the time for lunch and shared with us. I love her pimento and cheese and am going to try to copy it.

Got to get busy so I can make it to the gym for cardio today. Yesterday was suppose to be cardio but my trainer, Bhakti, called and rescheduled it for today. She will be taking her first aid class today so I did backs, traps, and biceps yesterday. I am loving this and hope that I will continue with the gym when I go home.

First Post

I have had this blog established for a while but my husband thinks it is crazy thing to do but I have decided to go ahead with it. I have had many memorable adventures here in India and will more than likely go back to things I have saved and add them to this blog later.
I am getting excited. I go to the USA in two weeks. I will go on Oct 7 to Huntsville, AL to see our youngest son, Ryan. Ryan is working as a Victory Field Director for the AL Republican Party. He LOVES his job. He is always exciting to talk to and talks ninety miles a hour so I have to ask him to slow down at times. I think I will enjoy volunteering for him and also cooking him some meals to put in the freezer to eat when I am gone. He is a great cook but is too busy to cook. On Oct 12 I will go to Jackson, MS and hopefully be met by my two other sons and daughter-in-law. I am excited to see them also. I have not seen Nicholas and Juliana since they left for their honeymoon but then again I have not seen any of the guys since the wedding and leaving to come back. seven months ago. Brendon is always fun to see and really can't wait to see my baby, Rivers and his pal Brinkly. I know that I will have a great time at home and can't wait to cook for these guys also even though they both cook extremely well also. I guess they learned to cook so they would not starve when they were teenagers and I got very slack on my cooking.
Today I am going shopping with my friend, Nancy. We are going to Old Ahmedabad to get nice sheets made and some embroidery done on some gifts I have bought. This afternoon it will back to gym for cardio.

Take care

Startup This Was Supposed to Be My First Post

Sorry I don't know what I am doing with the pictures. This is the front of the house before we moved in. This was the first time we saw the house. Does not look like India!

Today I decided to start a blog site.

I have been married to my husband, Bill for 31 years. I must love him to quit a job I loved and move half way around the world and away from my family for him. I am the mother of three wonderful young men. Nicholas, 30, just married the love of his life, Juliana, on March 1, 2008. He works for Halliburton and enjoys his job every much. Juliana is a nurse in the Intensive Care Unit .They have purchased land not for from our home in Mississippi and plan to build a house one day there. They are currently living in our home in Mississippi. Brendon, 28, is an Assistant District Attorney. He lives next door to my parents and takes good care of my baby, Rivers and Brinkley. Ryan, 24, is a recent graduate of the Masters of Political Science Department of Mississippi State. He has just gotten his first "big" boy job working for the Victory Party of Alabama. He is in the process of moving to Alabama.

I have had many fun and frustrating moments here in India and really wanted (needed) to share with people. We have been living here in Ahmedabad, India for about 15 months. It was difficult at first but has settled down to a near hard now. I am learning to do things I think that my grandmother did. I have learned to clean a fresh chicken----although I have never had to de-head one I have had to clean fresh corn out of it-----gross. I can make my own cornmeal (no not from the corn in the chickens) and have learned to cook with plain flour instead of the convenience of self-rising flour (or as they say here self-raising flour and not easy to find).

People ask how I spend my day----- well it is very laid back now. I get up take my coffee and computer outside (one of the hardships here ---- no good Internet ---because we live on the wrong side of the highway!!!!!) check my email, im my boys and read all the news and sports from the US. I feed the various animals that we might have visiting at the time. Most days it is just peacocks and chipmunks but occasionally we have monkeys to visit. I will post pictures later. My house help ( Sophia and Arun) arrive around 9:30. We talk about what we need to do for the day. I will lay out the things for supper and Sophia will "clean" them for me and place in the refrigerator for later cooking. Some days I will meet a friend for lunch and shop but most days I like to stay at home and read, scrapbook browse the Internet. I try to go the gym around 3 to workout. I have a personal trainer, Bhakti, who is also a good friend. I love the gym here. I never had time or took time in the US to go to the gym regularly. The people are so nice and really make the time go by fast. I hardly ever notice the time when I am there. Yeah right ---just can't wait to end the pain. HA After the gym I run a few errands and home to fix supper. Bill gets home from the office usually around 5:15 . We have become like Indian ---we usually eat late. Not the normal for us because we usually eat around 6-7 in the US now it is 8-9 before we eat. Not good for the weight. Oh well that is why I go to the gym. So that is the typical day in the life of an American Indian housewife.

People here have a five minute rule every time you go somewhere they say I can have it in five minutes. Waiting for food, waiting to have haircut, manicure/pedicure everything five minutes please.

Getting back to the five minute rule----the other day as we were going down the highway (no I do not drive. We have a driver, Stephen.) I noticed a man (pulling into our lane) stick his hand out the window and hold up five fingers and closed them and reopened them. I ask Stephen what does that mean. It means he will go first and in five minutes I can come. The rules of the road!!!! HA