Getting into the Groove

Just dropped the boys off at a 120-acre Nature Center for a day of Outdoor Survival Skills camp. Lots of earthy-looking parents and very granola kids. Do you think the kids of hippies rebel by growing up to work on Wall Street? They leave home, chop off their hair, start eating junk food and focus on making money?

Last night we went to a BBQ. Very warm and interesting people with lots of daughters. The boys were shy at first, asking where the other boys were, but after an hour they were running around gleefully chasing the girls. Our host grilled tofu and veggies. Not a dead animal, can of soda or potato chip in sight. It was the healthiest party I have ever been to in my life. I do not think there was one chemical in the whole home. We had a fun time, meeting other families, faculty and local professionals. So far everyone I have met is purposeful, lifestyle focused, and has beautiful open minds…

Time is on my side

I have noticed that people here have a lot of that precious commodity...time. Everyone slows down to look you in the eye, talk, ask questions, and point you in the right direction. My neighbors have been systematically coming over to introduce themselves, colleagues and associates or friends of friends have gone out their way to give us information, tips and invitations. We have been amazed by the people in line at stores, in restaurants, and food markets. The assistant manager at the hotel invited us ice fishing on the first freeze of winter.

By far the most fascinating so far, oddly enough, is my housekeeper. I noticed her last April when we were here house hunting. She was working in the hotel, cleaning rooms all week. I really liked her and asked if she wanted a job taking care of a big, crazy house and enough laundry to sink a ship. She did! She is from Tibet and was a Buddhist nun for 18 years. She went to the convent when she was 10 years old, and left after 18 years, got married and now has a son who is 12 years old. I have been given many gifts--she is definitely one of them!!

I have been unpacking for 3 days straight. Obsessive compulsive disorder comes in handy during moves like these. Other than Sam running around naked for half the day and Charlie charging me for organizing Sam's room, I am feeling like I have everything under control.

We were treated to an afternoon thunder and rain storm. You can see the lake from the back of our house and it is really something to watch the storm roll in...now the sun is out and the wind has softened into a perfect summer breeze...

We're Heeereee

We arrived late last night. Saw two deer at the tiny Ithaca airport, and then two more on our new street. I thought it was so enchanting until the boys asked me about hunting. I told them they have to eat every last bit of anything they kill. And I do not do venison...

My cat still trusts me which shocked me. I thought she would be hissing and pissing for weeks after kenneling her for a week in SD and then drugging her and dragging her on two flights across the country. But the minute I laid down on the bed last night after I let her out of her carrier, she jumped on my chest and wanted sugar. So much for worrying about kitty revenge...

So far Ithaca is Gorges! We are surrounded by lush green trees, fields, blooming flowers, country roads, incredible lakes, gorges, cool locals, kids who stayed for summer...and of course, the Cornell campus just begs to be walked, jogged, rolled, picnic-ed...

Contemplating my summer wardrobe. Will I need to retire my hoochie mama Vix bikinis and order some L.L. Bean one pieces in order to fly under the radar at the Ithaca swim club? Will I look like a Hollywood tart instead of a professor's wife? At least I have my Birkenstock's...