Something #17

I opened another something the other night. By the outside of the envelope, I had a pretty good idea of what I was going to find inside.

A recipe!

YUM!

We are entering the last few days of being here in the apartment, and what also could be known as our salad days, simply because we have been eating so many salads and dishes that don't require too much effort on my part. It's time to start going through the cupboard and eating the food we already have on hand, and I happened to have a package of pasta that needed to be eaten. We always have cherry tomatoes on hand, same for arugula and garlic. Salt & pepper - check. Olive oil? Well, there's enough to finish the bottle.

The only ingredient that I didn't already have on hand was the goat cheese, so I decided to pick up a bottle of wine. Wine is ridiculously inexpensive here, and it's not bad either. Belgium is in such proximity to France, Italy, and Germany, it's not nearly as expensive to import. I picked up a nice bottle of Italian white for €4.95, about $6.50. More on that later.

I set my past to boil and added all of the ingredients in a bowl.

Added my pasta when it was done. I didn't rinse it by the way, I just scooped it from the pot and added it to the rest of my ingredients. So easy!

And delicious! 

This is the wine I bought.

Orvieto Classico by Cardeto.

I think it's just a white table wine. It's pretty good, but the reason I bought this wine was the label.

The picture is of the Duomo di Orvieto, and I was totally there!

I looked through some of Jon's photos from Orvieto on Flickr. If you have time, check them out as they are really great as usual. There are some gorgeous shots, but he didn't get one of the cathedral façade from the front. Which is a pity, because the façade is beautiful. It has the most gorgeous craftsmanship and artistry that I have ever seen. The Duomo began construction in 1290, and I sat all three nights in Orvieto in front of this wonder, just staring at it.  

I am so excited that you will be traveling soon, and especially to such far away destinations. It does amazing things for your soul. It will transform you and you will absolutely love it.

I played around with Photoshop today. Here are some more pics from the Duomo di Orvieto.

My first attempt stitching the Duomo - maybe a B- ?

My second attempt - much better. Definitely an A.

Last month Orvieto got a mention in GOOP. Even Gwyneth loves it!

xoxo

~LYMI

Something #16

Ooops! I can't believe it's been 6 months since I last opened or posted another Something.

I am sorry. 

Seems like so much has happened in the past 6 months, and in both of our lives!
First, I'd like to say congratulations on your job! Second, I'd like to say Woah! to your blog transformation! It's really cute and fun to read, and I can't wait to go thrifting with you when we get back to Dallas. Jon is really ready to get some new clothes and thrift stores will be the first place he hits, maybe you would like to help with this endeavor? But, I know you are a busy girl.

In the last post, I wrote that there were only 7 Somethings left.  This may still be true, but I think that there are two more that I documented opening, but never posted.

Het spite me (I'm sorry in Dutch). 

The good news is that I plan to remedy this in the remaining month.

Our last month here in Europe.

For now...

We'll see what the future has in store.

Want to see what I picked out to open today?

I love the textured sticker and glitter hearts. This taxi is headed in the right direction and sparkly love is flying out the back!

I like to think that this is symbolic of Jon and I (me?) when we are back in Dallas. We will be sort of wondering around aimlessly. We will be looking for a place to live in the beginning. We also hope to travel around in the United States, checking out a few places to see where we want to settle in the future - Dallas is not in the plans, but in this life I've learned that you never can know what life will bring you.

There are places we want to check out:  we hope to make it to the west coast to see friends - Jon has a friend getting married and we have friends in the San Francisco area that we owe a visit. Jon has never been to New York, so we would like to combine a trip takes us to NYC, Boston, New Haven, Philadelphia and Annapolis. It would be nice to do this in the fall as the leaves change, something I witnessed here for the first time here in Leuven last fall. I also want to go to Chicago to see about the Art Therapy program at SAIC. I am scheduled to enroll fall, 2011. And then there is the question of where we will live in the future... Jon wants to check out Detroit. There could be a lot of opportunity there. These are all dreams and possibilities at this point. We'll see how these all pan out.

Je suis désolé (I'm sorry in French). I've digressed.

 I opened the envelope.

This makes me smile.

You can't really make out this couple, but I immediately recognize them and their possibilities as I think about Jon and myself.

Is he wearing sunglasses?

If you remember, tell me about this photograph. Where did you get it? Why did you include it in my little package?

I turn the picture over to see if you've written anything on the back...

Nope, but there is the number four. This is perfect for today, as it's the 4th of August. It's also our last Wednesday in Leuven. Next Wednesday we will be in Amsterdam, then Vienna, then Munich, then on September 1st - Dallas. Jon thinks I am dramatic, but really I am just sentimental.

Ok, maybe also a bit dramatic.

Ok, maybe a lot.

xoxo

~LYMI

Something #15

I have delayed on opening this something for a few reasons.

1. I am running out of somethings!

Look! Only 7 left! :-(

2. Things are pretty good here! I mean, my life is not perfect, but I am pretty pleased with the way things are going. Even if they are not going, life kind of gets stuck in a rut sometimes...

wash

wear

repeat

etc.

Life is good.

I get to stay in Belgium, can leave the country and now come back in! Jon is deep in research and his thesis. I am try to respect his study time and it's pretty quiet around our place in the evenings. We've been eating vegetarian and feeling great as a result. We still eat meat, I just haven't prepared it at home since the new year. The sun is starting to set later, and there is still light after 6 p.m. That makes such a huge impact on things. Spring is coming!!!! Really... it's the little things.

3. I've been very sick for over a week. I missed a few days from work last week and spent the weekend on the couch - so I was not one for productivity or conversation/blogversation.

I think I've been saving them also, afraid to run out.

I like the color of the envelope I selected. I pick it up, feel it... Not sure what's inside, but I especially like the drawing.

The drawing is the main reason I chose this something, because of the raft and the blue flag with my initial.

It's my boat! Where am I going? When I was in college I worked on a series of slab constructed canoes for ceramics class. They all had different textures and glazes on them. I had a pretty good body of work going for me at the time. I would like to get back into it some day. (sigh) Boats are my thing. I like the symbolism - cast your cares to the sea and set yourself adrift. Sometimes we encounter rough seas on our voyage, other times it's smooth sailing.

Anyway, let's open this baby up...

Can you read that?

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did. So, throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. "

Mark Twain

I love this quote.

When I stop and think about things right now, I can honestly say that I have no regrets for the life I am living.

I intend to travel more. I am sad realizing my days here are on the decline. I still have time, but fewer than 180 days.

We are going to Binche, Belgium next Saturday to experience Belgium Carnival and hope to get pelted by oranges. I leave for Amsterdam on Tuesday, and I hope to get to Paris again next month. I love Paris.

When are you going to come see me?

xoxo

~LYMI

Something #14

It was my birthday yesterday. I had been waiting on opening up a little something for a week and a half. I knew which something I wanted to pick out. It was the large one, that is kind of flat, but looks fun because it has pink polka dots on it!

You know it?

It was kind of thick, but flat. I could squeeze it, and it would spring back to form.

It had practically opened itself. I think the radiators have something to do with that.

Ah!

Awesome!

What great inspiration to get me to the fabric store!

I have been dreaming a lot of fashion. There are so many cute simple things here, but I can't bring myself to buy anything because I am set on not spending extra money. I am saving my money to travel, but when I land back in the US, you bet I will be sewing up a storm. I've got a sketchbook full of ideas and I'm excited about that.

But who knows, I may give sewing a try here... Someone I know has to have a machine, right?

I do love the paper. I've seen lots of cool projects using old pattern paper, but I can't bring myself to tear it/cut it up.

I had a great birthday, and it was great to talk to you!

xoxo

~LYMI

Something #13

I hope you had a good day today... Tell me about your holiday!

I opened some presents this morning. I got a necklace, a scarf, chocolate truffles, oil and vinegar, a digital picture frame with pics of the fam and..

A trip to Paris!

Although that's not all, since I was opening all of these packages, I thought it quite fitting to keep going, so I thought I would open a little something.

But first, a pic of the remaining little somethings... There are still quite a few.

So which one should I pick today?

Ultimately I decided to go with the one with the prettiest paper. It's red. white, blue and green and very Christmas-y.

I can already imagine the cranes I will make with this one.

Oooh! I will make two pretty cranes!

A nice flat package.

What's this?

Who?

What?

When?

Where did you get this?

Why?

It's lovely as it is. As soon as I return for my trip, I am hoping to place it in a frame with a black mat, kind of like this photo here. What do you think?

M e R r Y c H r I s T m A s !

~xoxo

LYMI

Thank you Internet!!!

La loca:

Congratulations on Crystal City 1969!

Avatar

I just saw this movie in 3D here in Leuven.

It was A M A Z I N G ! ! !

Absolutely stunning!

This is the future of movies. I am curious to know what you think.

Yes, it has been snowing here, it's so beautiful. Jon has the camera cord, otherwise I would post photos. Soon. I promise.

I think we are going to a country that rhymes with:

romance

and

dance

for Christmas.

Yay!

Jon is the best!

Something #12

Last Friday, I pulled a little something off the shelf as I walked out the door. This day was going to be tough, Maggie was breaking her big cancer news to her class.

By the way, I snapped this shot for you of the center of Leuven. You had asked if it was getting Christmas-y here.

To which I say, yes, it is!

This is the little something I pulled. I like the sun.

Actually, I LOVE the sun. I miss the sun. It's been a dark time here, just a little rough with the constant gray clouds and also the situation in the classroom. Maggie is preparing to leave, and I ache for her. I am so sensitive, I can identify what she is going through to a degree and feel like there is nothing I can do. And there is impending change... I feel that I don't do well with change. (Even though I should be an expert at it by now.)

I waited until the end of the day to open this little something, because Jon and I were going to the Christmas Market in Brussels, and also... it was FRIDAY!

But first, a few shots as I walked to the gare (train station) in Waterloo.

I stopped in a chocolate shop and who should appear?

SINTERKLAAS!!!

And the sun came out!!!

Albeit for a minute, but STILL!!

I hopped on a train and went to Brussels to wait for Jon. We had a date and I was really excited. We planned to meet in a brasserie in Grand Place. I told him about my day and then pulled out the little something.

I asked him to take pictures while I opened #12, but he mistook that for, "open #12." So in this picture you actually see Jon's hands opening it up...

Tropics on the brain...

Yes indeed. I keep thinking about a certain sun...

"Whoa!"

Which cracked me up, I think he thought it was a nude photo.

But it was a thoughtful, sweet photo of you looking out across the ocean in Jamaica. I turned the photo over and read the note:

My co-worker Bethany and I planned this trip while working over a weekend on Raising Helen. They were repaving the road outside the editing rooms, BUT the editor INSISTED we work through. SO, Disney put up thick insulation over the windows and we worked all weekend in extra dark rooms with the low rumble of jackhammers outside. It was so ridiculous and unnecessary to work through the construction - all we could do was book a trip to the Caribbean! Ha ha!

I have several pictures from Mexico, and Something #12 prompted me to look through them all, which may explain the delay of this post.

You see, there are good parts and bad to that time in Mexico. Sometimes it is difficult to look at the past, but here is the good news: my finger has become friends with the delete button and I am not feeling guilt or pain as I select and edit. It's quite cathartic.

I think that there is a lot of editing and deleting that I need to do in my life.

I'm sure you've heard the quote, "time the great healer."

While it's always nice to put distance between events and people in life, it's a false comfort if you have not bid adieu to the situation. I am finding in these dark days in Belgium and as the first decade of the new millennium comes to a close that I have not really kissed a lot of these events and people properly good-bye.

That is a hard thing to admit.

I love this photo:
This is from my 32nd birthday that I spent all alone in Mexico, and was one of the best days in my life. That is a little dock about 20 yards from the shore. Isn't that so romantic? That day I wished someone was with me... to take a picture while I sunbathed by myself! Haha! No, seriously, I wished for what I have now.

This was my daily indulgence:
This was the show every night around the corner from my little studio apartment. I am glad that I took advantage of that time every night that I could.

Ok, back to reality. Back to Belgium, back to Brussels.

Here we are at the Christmas Market. Did you check out the post on my blog?

Jon took these photos. You should check out his Flickr page...

One more photo from that night that I wanted to share:
This is an installation from French photographer Thierry Bouët. It's from his series The First Hour where he took 50 portraits of babies in Paris the first hour that they were born. Check it out on the web, there are photos of babies everywhere if you google his name.

By the way, I do want to see those photographs.

Thanks for your patience, I hope you get a golden ticket because I would love for you to come visit.

xoxo

LYMI

Something #12

I had meant to get to this earlier, but it's already past midnight. I will post more tomorrow.

Goodnight and Happy Sinterklaas!

xoxo

LYMI

Full Moon Over the Red Light District

On the way home last night.

North BLX.

Something #11 LMAO!

LMAO! I really detest acronyms like that, and LYMI for sure, but this little something had me laughing on a day when I really needed it.

I arrived in Waterloo ready to ride and take on the day, only to discover that my bike had been "tagged" with red permanent marker (no photo, sorry) AND I had a flat tire. Do you think these two incidents are related?

I walked my bike unsuccessfully through town only to discover that the air valve will not fit the valve on the air pump at the Auto Shop. (I am not even sure I am using the correct terminology.) AND I do not speak a lick of French! This all made for an interesting morning.

Also, school is kind of a bummer these days. The teacher I work with has just been diagnosed with breast cancer. She hasn't told the kids yet and she will have surgery two weeks from today. She is young, kind, a wife and mother. She is going through so much emotionally. We talk during the day and I've shared my experience with her, but she will soon find out for herself and have her own experiences.

When I talk with her, it all comes back to me and I wince at times from my memories of -

the sores in my mouth
the weakness
the aches
the nausea
the 30+ pounds I gained from the steroids

the two years it took to loose them

the chemical burns on my skin

the constipation
the hair loss

my cold head against the pillow
the fear
the constant tiredness
the exhaustion of people telling you everything will be ok over and over because it makes them feel better.

But I do hope everything is going to be ok...

Jon had a late night tonight, and I went to the International Short Film Festival in Leuven.

I wish you could have been here with me, but tonight's selection was so morbid and melancholy. The best short I saw was Wes Anderson's Hotel Chevalier.
Did you know it's a prologue to The Darjeeling Limited? Another film I saw out of the US, in Mexico...

I also saw this short:

I was a little depressed as I walked home tonight, not to mention I was FREEZING!

Thankfully, I had this at home to make me laugh:

Oh Steph! What did you do to this poor child?!

Just look at those cheeks!

I'm still cracking up...

xoxo

~LYMI