Drinking wine after all these years…What’s the deal?…Does drinking wine increase inflammation?

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The two bottles of New Zealand wine we purchased and savored over this past week, yet to finish both bottles.

It’s hard to say what prompted me to want to try drinking wine after almost a two-decade hiatus. Many years ago I was told by the medical profession that any form of alcoholic beverages could increase inflammation. 

In hearing this bad news at the time, I totally lost my taste for drinking wine. Why consume anything that was destructive to my health when almost five years ago I changed my way of eating to exclude all grains, starches, and sugars? 

Since that fateful day in August 2011, I haven’t had as much of a taste of any foods included in these food groups and have been relatively pain-free from a chronic inflammatory spinal condition that has plagued me for almost 30 years. 

My dear elder sister has laid in bed for over 10 years with this same condition with severe muscle wasting and nerve damage from the same hereditary condition that will prevent her from ever walking or being mobile again.

Medical science is not exact. All I know is that by living in this narrow food bubble, I am pain-free and able to travel the world.  For fear of changing that scenario, I’ve also stayed away from wine, fearing that an occasional glass could send me into a tailspin, reversing all the good benefit from this way of eating.

A pretty flower on a walk.

Scientific data changes. Over the years with the online assistance of Dr. William Davis, who wrote the book, Wheat Belly and many other successful books since that time, he had taught me in personal email communication to test my blood sugar using a glucometer when trying new food, at one hour and again at two hours. 

If my blood sugar didn’t escalate to any degree after ingesting the single item on an empty stomach, then, most likely that particular food wouldn’t be increasing my levels of inflammation. 

In the beginning of this way of eating I tested 100’s of foods narrowing my options to a relatively short list; grass-fed beef, free-range chicken and eggs, wild-caught fish, full fat dairy (in moderation), nitrate-free bacon, and organic non starchy vegetables. 

In the interim, I’ve completely avoided any processed foods, foods containing chemicals, soy, beans, rice, and fruit, all of which can exacerbate inflammation. For me, this way of eating has worked. 

For Tom, this way of eating has completely eliminated GERD and IBS, chronic conditions from which he suffered for years, now completely gone…gone…gone.

Flowers blooming on the farm.

As a side benefit, weight control is easy as we continue to enjoy delicious meals, neither of us ever gaining weight. It’s only when we’re on a cruise or out to dinner that Tom indulges in his favorites; bread, fries, and sweets, often gaining as much as seven or eight pounds on a cruise. Otherwise, we never have any such items in our temporary homes.

Frequently reading medical studies, (many of which are often skewed by money-grubbing sponsors), I’d noticed that drinking wine in moderation, no more than two small glasses a day, may actually be instrumental in reducing inflammation and blood sugar.

Overall, with heredity against me, I’d have full-blown type 2 diabetes if I didn’t follow this restrictive low carb way of eating, another inflammatory disease. My glucose levels escalate on days I may eat too much or too many of the foods I can eat. 

Excess low carbs foods and protein in themselves can exacerbate the production of glucose in the blood along with poor insulin management. This isn’t an “eat all you want” way of eating as many assume. 

Its high fat, low carb, moderate protein way of eating creates homeostasis (definition: “the tendency of a system, especially the physiological system of higher animals, to maintain internal stability, owing to the coordinated response of its parts to any situation or stimulus that would tend to disturb its normal condition or function.)”

Lemon tree growing on the farm.  We have a tree outside the front door from which we’ve been picking and using lemons since our arrival.

No doubt, I could go on for hours on this topic but prefer not to be repetitive from many past posts. If you’d like more information, please email me and I’ll send you a list of easy to read books with information from reliable medical professionals and scientific studies that more clearly define this lifestyle in more detail.  (We don’t sponsor or receive any remuneration from these authors or publishers).

Curious to see if I could drink an occasional glass of wine, two at most on any given day, I recently purchased a new glucometer, test strips, and lancets at a local pharmacy. (My older glucometer had quit working and the test strips had expired).

I began testing my blood after drinking both red and white wines on an empty stomach on separate days (New Zealand brands, of course) to see what would transpire.

As it turned out, my blood sugar went down after drinking two small glasses. This phenomenon, not new, is based on the liver being too busy processing the alcohol to pump out more glucose, keeping the blood sugar relatively low when drinking in moderation. 

This response is different for everyone. Most diabetics cannot drink at all and are advised to completely avoid alcohol. Please check with your medical professional as to what may be acceptable for you. 

We continue to visit the pink cockatoo pair on the farm.  They make lots of noise when they see us.

In any case, when Tom and I shared a glass of wine at “happy hour” a first for us in many years, we couldn’t help but giggle over the enjoyable experience. (Tom rarely drinks at home).

I must admit, I got quite a “buzz” after drinking two 3 ounces (85 gr.) glasses of wine as we languished in the chaise lounges on the deck. Not surprisingly the red wine affected my ability to sleep well that night when the white had no effect at all. Both were very dry wines, a Cabernet and a Pinot Grigio.

I’ve missed an occasional glass of wine. Now that I see no deleterious effect, I feel comfortable trying an occasional glass of white wine with dinner while on cruises and out to dinner. I’ll avoid the red, which taste I’ve always preferred, for the sake of a good night’s sleep, a common side effect experienced by many red wine drinkers.

There are carbs in wine, approximately 3 grams in a five-ounce glass which I’ll factor into my diet on the days I choose to have a glass or two which won’t be that often.

An adorable baby goat tied up at the side of the road in the neighborhood.

Gee…now that I know this I think back to all the wine tasting I’ve missed in our travels. Obviously, there’s no way to make up “for lost time” nor do I want to. However, going forward it may be a delightful adjunct to social events and dining in our future travels.

As we toasted each other at our few “happy hours” over this past week, we made eye contact as we were reminded by our friend Sue in Minnesota who always explained we should make eye contact with the person with whom you’re making a “toast.” Most certainly, this adds to the festive occasion.

Next time you have a glass of wine (if you so choose and it’s appropriate for your health) look into the eyes of the person your toasting, saying “Here’s to you!” We’ll be toasting to all of YOU!

Also, happy St. Patrick’s Day to those who celebrate in the South Pacific!

Photo from one year ago today, March 17, 2015:

A year ago today, while my sister was visiting us in Kauai, we found the elusive Hawaiian Monk Seal, lying on the beach at the Napali Coast.  We were so excited to see this amazing creature. For more photos, please click here.

Birthday dinner in another fabulous New Plymouth, New Zealand restaurant…

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View of Mount Taranaki, while on our way home last night after my birthday dinner.

Thanks to our family, friends, and readers and our thoughtful landlords, Trish and Neil, for the wonderful birthday wishes I received in the past 48 hours.  It means the world to me and I appreciate each and every acknowledgment.

Returning home last night, we found this pretty plant from Trish and Neil on the doorstep.  Wow! 

How is it possible that the relatively small city (compared to many other major cities in the world) of New Plymouth, New Zealand with a population of over 74,000 including all the farm and surrounding areas, has such great restaurants as far as we’re concerned?

Sure, we’ve only dined out twice. But, when perusing the list of 126 restaurants reviewed in the area, we see a general consensus of overall quality food even in many of the more out-of-the-way casual establishments.

A table was set for a large group at the Orangery.

Last night’s choice for my birthday dinner was The Orangery located in the Quality Hotel in downtown New Plymouth. A 20-minute drive from the farm, the scenery along the way is so breathtaking the drive is over quickly. 

The restaurant was cozy with comfortable seating and arrangements.

Nothing in the town is hard to find with the clearly marked road signs with well laid out streets. There’s a number of one-way streets. But Tom’s learned to navigate the area with ease often surprising me as to how well he’s learned his way around.

Tom was looking forward to bread!

As a passenger, I pay little attention to how we get to a specific location than the interesting scenery on our way. Last night’s drive to town was no exception. Before we leave “home” Tom takes a quick look at an online map, finds the location and without hesitation finds our destination. His innate ability to find most locations always adds to the ease of our travels. 

Wearing the same clothes as in many photos.  I’ve noticed little holes forming in this top and sadly must say goodbye soon.  Does this mean I get to buy something to replace it? Tom will cringe at the thought of going to the mall.

Of course, I’ll give him credit for having a great sense of direction when I’m totally inept in this area. I can get lost in the grocery store. It’s not that I’m not capable. It’s merely a matter of paying attention. With a short attention span, I really have to focus to find my way anywhere. 

This serving cart was rolled to our table in order for Denise to make Tom’s entrée tableside.

Luckily, as a couple, we fill in the blanks for one another even when dining out: Does he want to eat his salad or vegetables when he’s focused on the potatoes, meat, and bread?

At The Orangery last night, although we ordered different main courses, he supplemented my lack of starch, sugar, or grains by handing over his salad. As usual, with no premade salad dressings work for my way of eating when they’ve been made with soy or vegetable oil, which I don’t consume. 

Diane fired up Tom’s Steak Diane Flambé using Pernot and white wine while I took this shot. 

I usually order a cup of full-fat sour cream to which I add my liquid sweetener (which I carry in my pocket in a tiny bottle), salt, and pepper for a delicious tasting dressing I use almost every day. I’ve given up trying to find mayonnaise or salad dressing when all are made with soy, “seed” or vegetable oils, none of which I consume. 

Last night’s ordering was a little tricky when many items were made in sauces using flour, corn starch, or sugar.  After handing the food list on my phone to our conscientious server she showed it to the chef, who suggested I pick out a protein source I’d like and he’ll make it befitting the list.

Tom’s main dish included a side of mashed potatoes (not shown here) and a salad which he handed to me.

The food was wonderful, fresh, perfectly prepared, and served. Tom ordered the Steak Diane Flambé served tableside with mushrooms, garlic, onions, mashed potatoes, and a side of bread. I ordered the prawns sautéed in garlic butter, a side of avocado in place of veggie, and a mixed greens salad. Adding Tom’s salad to mine I had enough to eat between the salad, avo, and prawns.

Guess who ate this entire loaf of bread with special New Zealand butter? I tasted the delicious unsalted butter.

The biggest problem for me when dining out is the prospect of leaving hungry. Without bread, potatoes, or any starches, a portion of protein, salad and a small serving of a suitable vegetable may not be substantial enough to fill me up. 

Based on the fact I don’t eat any more often than once every 22 to 24 hours due to my commitment to a ketogenic, (LCHF – low carb, high fat, moderate protein) intermittent fasting way of eating, once I begin eating the one meal, hunger kicks in. It’s funny how that works.

My fluffy dish of sour cream and sliced avocado. Tom’s huge bowl of mashed potatoes is beside his plate.

As it turned out the meal was satisfying and I left feeling comfortable, not too full. Tom, on the other hand, was stuffed and uncomfortable. It’s funny how that works.

We had a very pleasant dinner in the lovely décor of The Orangery heading home before dark when we were able to take the above main photo of Mount Taranaki. Upon driving up to our cozy temporary New Zealand home, we noticed a beautiful flowering plant with a card from Trish and Neil wishing me a “happy kiwi birthday.” 

The combination of Tom’s salad and mine created an ample portion.

These thoughtful owners have made this experience on their alpaca farm memorable with their “over the top” consideration and kindness. We couldn’t be more grateful. When I wrote a heartfelt thank you email, I promised to diligently care for the blooming plant to ensure they can enjoy it later when we must leave it behind when we fly to Sydney on April 15th.

It was a happy birthday in many ways; hearing from loved ones, many messages by email with more wishes on Facebook than I can count. Tom’s sweet message on Facebook, a public declaration of his love, also warmed my heart. 

My prawns sautéed in butter were cooked perfectly and well seasoned.

This morning we left before 9 am to head to the Farmers Market Taranaki for eggs and produce including a trip to the grocery store. Thus, the late posting today.  When we returned “home” we spotted Miss Jessica looking our way from the paddock. Yes, it’s a good life in New Zealand…a very good life.

Photo from one year ago today, February 21, 2015:

A year ago today we headed to Waimea Canyon but the “vog” was so thick we couldn’t see a thing. For more details of our Kauai overnight road trip, please click here.

Romantic Valentine’s dinner at “Table” Restaurant at “Nice” Hotel in New Plymouth…Wonderful year ago video at end of post!

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A portion of the outdoor dining area where we dined last night at Table.

Yes, Table is the actual name of the restaurant where we dined last night to celebrate Valentine’s Day, located at the Nice Hotel, its actual name. Quaint.

The well-stocked bar at Table.

It was our first meal in a restaurant since we arrived in the Taranaki area almost a month ago. Having enjoyed the abundant offerings in the variety of markets in New Plymouth, we’ve had little desire to dine out.

There’s a wide array of wines on the menu.

The month of February brings Valentine’s Day, my birthday on the 20th, with our wedding anniversary on March 7th.  Within this three week period each year we often dine out for all three occasions ensuring we try a few local dining establishments.

Perusing reviews on TripAdvisor’s site, making a decision as to which restaurants to choose seems to work best for us.  Asking locals for their preferences works well for casual dining. 

Several massive bouquets of flowers adorned the restaurant.

However, we often find locals prefer the more casual and familiar dining experiences where they can mingle with friends and neighbors as opposed to tourists and celebrants of a variety of occasions in the more “fancy” local restaurants. 

The front dining area.

TripAdvisor seems to provide a varied range of diners, many who have traveled extensively having visited many of the best-reviewed restaurants in various popular tourist locations plus reviews from an array of locals who’ve frequented such restaurants on special occasions.

As soon as we walked in the door of the boutique hotel we entered into the restaurant area which encompassed a plethora of separate dining choices easily befitting any dining experience one could desire; a romantic dinner for two, a business meeting, a wedding party, a groom’s dinner or a gathering of friends.

Another more secluded dining area.

For the couples, like us, there were several areas from which we could choose to be seated.  Arriving early we were able to select the table, we preferred in the outdoor dining area. 

Before leaving the house I’d applied repellent as I do a few times each day to avoid thinking about sandfly bites when the restaurant is located only a few blocks from the ocean. Much to our surprise during dinner our flawless server Amy, brought a spray can of repellent to our table to see if we needed a spray or two. This was a nice touch  Already prepared, we declined.  Tom, who rarely is bitten, never uses repellent.

Pretty service area near the kitchen.

The food was exceptional, especially when the chef reviewed the food list on my phone and had no problem preparing my luscious massive filet mignon without any floury sauce or sides. Amy was extremely helpful in ensuring my meal was befitting my restrictions. Tom ordered the same entrée inclusive of all those items for which I had to pass.

Here’s my Valentine’s Day date, smiling as always.

We’ve found it amazing that most menus in New Zealand and Australia include choices of multiple courses, more than we’ve seen in other parts of the world, as is the case at Table. Please click here for the menu.

It was fun to be out to dinner.

Neither of us ever has room to order multiple courses, other than perhaps a side salad for me and “fries” for Tom as we’d each ordered last night. Tom, picky about desserts and often stuffed after a huge entrée as in the case last night, ordered an extra plate of beer-battered fries but had little interest in even reviewing the dessert menu.

Tom’s potato amuse bouche.

Since it was Valentine’s Day, we each were served champagne flutes with pink sparkling wine.  I drank half of my glass, pouring the remainder into Tom’s glass. It tasted good to me but I detected way too much sweetness in the wine which in general keeps me from drinking wine or any other alcoholic beverages.

Tom’s entrée of steak filet with mushroom au jus, Bernaise butter and small cup of fried potatoes.

As a result of this complimentary offering, Tom didn’t order a cocktail considering the 25 minutes drive back to the farm. One certainly wouldn’t want to fall prey to a DUI in a foreign country (or anywhere for that matter).  He only drinks alcohol when were out and I’ll drive home. Lately, not driving on the opposite side of the road with ease, that wasn’t a good option, although if I had to I certainly could and would.

My entrée (or main as referred to on the menu), steak filet, broccoli, flourless au jus. I ate both mine and Tom’s Bernaise butter with my steak. I ordered a small side salad of fresh greens without dressing.

Our total bill for the lovely meal was only NZ $86, US $57. It was hard for us to believe how reasonable it was.  Then again, without ordering “starters,” an entrée, (we ordered from the “mains” choices), alcohol or desserts, our bill didn’t add up as it may for others.

Back home slightly before dark (its summer here in the South Pacific) we spotted Trish and Neil outside by the mating paddock. They’d been to an alpaca show and had won several awards for some of their herd they’d brought along. We chatted at length sharing the stories of our “babysitting” over the past few days and the joy we’d experienced in doing so.

Tom’s side order of beer-battered fries.

Having moved the alpacas to a side paddock, we won’t have easy access to them as we’ve had these past many days. The paddock had to be vacated to allow the grass to regrow especially with a lack of rain over these past weeks. We’ll miss them being that close at hand. But, a 50 meter walk out the front door brings us back in close proximity. No doubt, we’ll be heading out the door many times each day.

As promised in yesterday’s post, we wrote a review on TripAdvisor this morning before posting. Although they’ve acknowledged receipt of our review, its yet to be published on their site as its being approved by their staff, a usual step in the process that may take several hours. As soon as it’s live later today, you’ll be able to find our review at this link. We’ll also re-post it in tomorrow’s post.

For those in the other side of the International Dateline, one day behind us, we wish each of our readers a very Happy Valentine’s Day. 

Photo from one year ago today, February 15, 2015:

It was one year ago today, we posted this video of the amazing albatross in Kauai, Hawaii where they nest each year to have one chick. They’d shown in our video celebrating their lives, the hatching of their chicks, practicing for future mating and happy to be together. What an extraordinary experience for us! For more details, please click here.

Fresh fish from the fish guy…Cooking in a new land…Sharp knives and gadgets…

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Early morning cloudy view of a mountain with sun peeking through the clouds.

Yesterday morning I was up at 5:000 am busy preparing the day’s post. Our hope was to head out the door in time to make it to the Farmers Market Taranaki before all the fresh-caught fish was sold. 

The prior week, the fish guy explained we’d need to arrive by 9:00 am to ensure we’d be able to purchase fish when it often sold out in the first half-hour. Tom doesn’t care for fish unless it’s fried and thus, the purchase was exclusively for my dinner last night.

Preferring not to freeze any fish, we only purchased 500 grams, 1.1 pounds, of Red Cod, a fleshy fish cut into several boneless fillets, priced at NZ $15, US $9.72. With taco salad for Tom’s dinner for three nights, this portion would last three nights for me, which I’d use in my equivalent of a taco salad.

My salad was made with a few tablespoons of beef mince mixed with chunks of the sautéed fish added to lettuce, red peppers, avocado, celery, feta cheese, onion, tomato, lettuce, and tossed with my homemade sour cream dressing. It was delicious and I’m looking forward to tonight’s “rerun”.

As the clouds quickly moved, seconds later the view changed.

Tom’s taco salad includes the beef mince with taco seasoning (I can’t use the seasoning mix due to gluten and sugar), sliced olives, diced tomatoes, diced onions, lettuce, and grated “Tasty” cheese (NZ’s and AU’s version of cheddar). He also enjoyed his salad immensely.

Usually, when I make a meal requiring a lot of prep, chopping, and dicing, I make enough to last three nights.  In the case of the above meal, I’ll cut fresh tomatoes and lettuce each day with all other ingredients prepped on the first day. This way, I get a two-day break in spending lots of time in the kitchen. 

When we go out and about during these periods, the dinner is ready to go with only a few minutes of prep time.  My days of spending hours in the kitchen are long since passed. As for the above, when I have a good knife (which I borrowed from Trish a few days ago) I can do most of the prep in an hour with another half-hour required for cooking and seasoning all the protein.

Recently, we noticed a food processor tucked away in an upper cabinet.  I hadn’t used such a contemporary kitchen appliance in over three years. Tom pulled it out and we proceeded to hand wash every part in hot soapy water. 

Unfamiliar with all these varieties of fish, the fish guy suggested the Red Cod, which we purchased. He wrapped the fish with a small packet of ice and then in a newspaper. We placed it into our insulated bag to which we added a blue (injury type) ice pack. When we returned hours later, the fish was still ice cold.

In our old lives, I’d often use a Cuisinart food processor when I was cooking big meals when we frequently entertained. Since the onset of our travels, I’ve struggled with cooking never having access to any chopping gadgets of any type, let alone a sharp knife.

Early on in our travels, we carried a few sharp knives in our checked baggage which were later confiscated.  At that point, we decided to ask the property owners for a sharp knife or purchase one to leave behind. 

It’s the same with a cookie sheet and two 13×9 baking pans which we purchase when available leaving them behind, most often able to buy all three for under NZ $23, US $15 with the lower prices in most countries.  Purchasing these few items enables us to make meals with greater ease. 

If the pans aren’t available, we’ll purchase tin foil pans which are easily found in most countries although finding a cookie sheet is another matter (which we use to make sugar, grain, and starch-free coconut macaroons, a frequent evening snack for Tom). When unavailable, I’ll butter the bottom of a baking-sized tinfoil pan to use for baking the cookies.

This is apparently a more contemporary version of this item many of us used decades ago.

In this wonderful house in New Zealand, we’ve been thrilled to have the availability of many modern conveniences and gadgets although we’ve still purchased the three pans, none of which were available. Most tourists staying in vacation homes don’t bake, dining out for most meals. As a result property owners see little reason to include baking pans in their litany of household goods.

As a side dish to the salad, I made our usual mushroom casserole after I’d already washed and dried the food processor. Preferring not to have to wash it all again, I dug into the gadgets drawers to find this old-fashioned hand mixer. I hadn’t used one of these in years. It worked well for beating the eggs and thickened cream for this recipe.

We were thrilled to get this food processor cleaned and working.

After our delicious meal, we watched the second to last episode of Downton Abbey on my laptop. Tonight, we’ll watch the series finale. For some reason, our HDMI cord won’t work on this flat-screen TV.  All the ancillary TV equipment is synced to the satellite and we can’t find a TV remote to set up the use of the cord. Any suggestions out there to avoid un-syncing the TV setup?

After our trip to the farmers market, we explored a historic site in New Plymouth on its final day of public viewing due to the necessity of earthquake-proofing which we’ll share with photos tomorrow. Please check back! Carpe diem!

Photo from one year ago, February 1, 2016:

One year ago, I wrote: “Do I recognize this scowl, similar to Tom’s when driving in traffic?  Just kidding, honey!” For more details, please click here.

Farmers Market Taranaki…a Sunday only visit…Eggs and other great things…

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The tiny free-range eggs we purchased at the grocery store the day we arrived compared to the eggs we purchased at the Farmers Market Taranaki on Sunday. This morning, during the football game I made Tom nitrate-free local bacon and three of these jumbo eggs, scrambled with cheddar cheese (referred to as non-processed Tasty cheese in both AU and NZ).

We’d heard and read in a local paper that there’s a farmers market downtown on Sundays only from 9 am to noon. Busy posting each morning we weren’t certain we’d get done in time to visit.

However, after wakening very early yesterday, we uploaded the post by 10 am and headed out the door to the Farmers Market Taranaki. By the time we made the 20-minute drive to the quaint, charming, and easy to maneuver New Plymouth downtown, we found a convenient free Sunday parking spot and walked the short distance to the market.

The eggs are so big, the crates won’t close.  We’ll save the crates to return them to the farmer next week.

The Farmers Market Taranaki is located on a side street closed off on Sunday mornings only, with many bordering shops open, also hoping to sell their wares. Smaller than we’d expected with no more than 20 stalls, once we started perusing the products we realized two things; one, next time we’ll arrive at 9:00 am, when by 10:30 almost all of the produce was gone; two, many of the products they offered were right on target for our goal of a healthy lifestyle.

The market was unquestionably geared to unique health-type products with our greatest find, the free-range eggs. Over the years, we’ve become discriminating when buying eggs. Here’s a chart from the US Humane Society describing the differences in purchasing eggs:

Buying eggs may be confusing, even when fully aware of the details of this chart.  We feel most at ease when buying eggs in countries where food regulations are high, such as in Australia and New Zealand or in countries where we know the eggs are organic when buying from certain local farmers recommended by the locals.

Although a lot of plants were still available, most of the produce was already sold by the time we arrived, 90 minutes after opening.  Next time, we’ll arrive at 9 am.

Is consuming regular eggs from chickens squeezed into tiny spaces, fed chemicals, injected with drugs, ultimately dangerous? We can’t imagine it’s safe to eat chemically treated caged eggs, especially when eating as many eggs a week as we often do. 

A band was playing during the farmers market.

The USDA and FDA allow “regular” eggs and other food products to be sold which is no assurance of safety in today’s world when people are becoming ill (with many deaths) from listeria, salmonella, and other life-threatening conditions from poorly managed food processing and handling. (No, I won’t get out my soapbox on this topic). 

Of course, there’s no guaranty that buying organic eggs or other foods from local farmers is entirely safe. But, the odds are greatly improved without added chemicals and drugs and, with less handling and transporting.  We’ve opted on the safer side when possible.

Tom eyeballed the bread and pastries and as usual, was able to resist.

When we discover a friendly local egg farmer at the Farmers Market Taranaki with some of the finest looking eggs we’ve seen in a while, we couldn’t resist purchasing four dozen at NZ $6, US $3.89 each, an excellent price. 

Prices are reasonable for the baked goods when based on today’s rates the NZ $1 is equivalent to US $.65.

What surprised us the most was the size of the eggs after the tiny organic eggs we purchased at the supermarket when we first arrived when no other options were available at the time. Out of the first dozen of the store-bought “organic” eggs, four or five eggs were bad. Although able to handle seeing and touching gross things in general, I cringe and almost gag when cracking open a bad egg.

The organic guy was busy consulting with a customer taking time to handle our two purchases, Himalayan salt and raw walnuts.

These free-range organic eggs from the local Carpe Diem Farms were not only huge, as shown in the above photo, compared to the supermarket eggs but they were fresh after using several when making last night’s dinner and Tom’s breakfast this morning. We never encountered a single bad egg.

Excited over the eggs, knowing we’d return for all of all future egg purchases, we continued perusing and buying more products as we walked along the two rows of vendors.

We purchased finely ground Himalayan salt for cooking and brushing teeth at NZ $10, US $6.49. I couldn’t resist a 500 gram (over one pound) bag of raw organic unsalted walnuts at NZ $30, US $19.47. Plus, we bought two bags of tomatoes, one acid-free and another bag of regular tomatoes at NZ $5, US $3.25 each which we had with our homemade Asian burgers (no buns) last night.

A variety of vegetable and fruit plants and trees were offered for sale. Its summer here (comparable to July in the northern hemisphere).  Soon, more locally grown produce will be available.

With our yellow Costco bag almost filled to the brim, we stopped at the last vendor booth to find a treat I’d never expected to find; organic, flavored without sugar, coconut butter. Samples were provided and after tasting each of the four flavors offered, we purchased three flavors; toasted coconut, chocolate, and vanilla. Its texture is comparable to eating peanut butter out of the jar. What a treat! 

It’s a rare occasion that I can have something that naturally tastes like a dessert. Last night after dinner (a rare dessert-like dish) I filled a small bowl with a square of leftover homemade sugar-free, grain-free, starch-free coconut cake, topped with this amazing coconut butter, a dollop of full fat sour cream and a handful of the raw walnuts. 

To the left are the organic acid-free tomatoes with organic regular tomatoes to the right, all priced at NZ $5, US $3.25 per batch as shown. We purchased both for comparison for future purchases. So far, the acid-free are winning at the same price.

My after-dinner treat was comparable to eating a fine dessert!  Then again, this may not appeal to everyone when my taste buds have adjusted to living without much sweetness. Most nights, I don’t eat anything after dinner.

We spent a total of NZ $110, US $71.40 at the Farmers Market Taranaki, much more than we’ve ever spent at any farmers market when in most cases we only purchase produce and eggs. Prices are often higher for organic specialty foods. Next week, we’ll make a point of arriving by 9:00 am to ensure we can buy the fresh fish (our favorites were gone) and produce which was cleaned out by the time we arrived (except for the tomatoes).

These jars of coconut butter, priced at NZ $12, US $7.79 each, are delicious, low carb, gluten-free, sugar-free, and starch-free with a texture similar to peanut butter. The Himalayan salt was NZ $10, US $6.49. The organic raw walnuts were NZ $30, US $19.47.

This isn’t a poor area by any means. Whereby in Fiji, the local farmers, desperate to earn a meager living, worked the farmer’s markets almost daily selling their products at very low prices. Most of the produce in the grocery stores is organic but prices are considerably higher, which we expected. 

With the help of the staff in the produce department, we’ve been able to determine which veggies to buy that are provided by larger local farms that don’t use pesticides/herbicides on their crops. We do the best we can, based on what is offered locally.

Four baby alpacas hanging out together close to our driveway, all born in the past week.

Tom’s busy watching NFL football which started at 9:00 am today. I’ll be busy making dinner and taking photos today. Last night, Trish and Neil moved the alpacas to our side yard to give the other paddock rest for a week.  Now, these adorable creatures are visible from where I’m sitting now only a few feet outside the sliding door to the wraparound veranda. Wow!

To all of you in the US have a great football day and to those in the rest of the world, enjoy your other forms of football (footy in Australia) which are equally popular if not more.

Photo from one year ago today, January 24, 2015:

One year ago, we were thrilled when we began to experience a social life, many thanks to our new friend Richard whom we’d met at the golf club. Here’s a view while crossing a bridge on our way to Hanalei Bay for more exquisite scenery in Kauai. For more details please click here.

Romance at sea…A night to remember…

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Last night, in the Martini Ice Bar on dress-up night.

Often the most memorable of occasions are those which we don’t plan or anticipate. Last night, was such a night, one we’ll always remember as special and meaningful.

Is it possible for a couple, together 25 years, constantly in each other’s presence 24 hours a day without any time apart, to find romance especially living a life as complex as ours?

The answer is a resounding “yes!” Last night was hardly the first time and will hardly be the last. Without forethought or active speculation, we each may contemplate the following points from time to time:

1. How do we manage to keep the spark alive in a long-term relationship?
2. Is keeping the romance intact necessary for happiness?

In response to the first question, we consider the facts that all couples have their own unique dynamic. Some thrive on chaos, disharmony, and ultimately making up and others flourish in a state of calm and consistency.  Then, there are all of those in between.

The Martini Ice Bar has an ice-covered bar top intended to keep drinks cold.

For us, the mix of an occasional visit by Mr. Overly Grumpy (rarely directed at me specifically) and my Ms. Overly Bubbly (always lurking), seems to create enough tension to make the relationship challenging and exciting, never knowing for sure what the day will bring. 

The lack of knowing moment by moment exactly what to expect has a magical way of presenting opportunities for lively banter, playfulness, including hilarious name-calling and frequent laughter precipitated by our own foibles and occasional self-deprecation.

Humility plays a big role for us, but oddly, it’s coupled with a keen sense of confidence while feeling secure, safe, and revered.  Trust is omnipresent, never faltering. How do relationships survive without trust? They don’t.

In response to the second question; many couples say they are utterly happy without romance. I’d assume, most often, they are couples who never made romance a priority early on in the relationship. Many lifelong partnerships are happily maintained without romance with only an occasional celebratory situation bringing it back into the forefront.

For us, the eyes locking across the room while we’re at a social occasion has always made our hearts flutter.  Tom, who swears he’s not romantic, has a side few others can detect, where he makes “overly romantic” me know I made the right choice in my remaining-years-of-life love and companion.

For me, romance is not about the occasional bouquet of flowers or a gift, wrapped in pink tissue in a “Victoria’s Secret” bag. It has nothing to do with a candlelit dinner with a crisp white linen tablecloth, fine dinnerware, and a fancy meal. 

Patricia, the lovely woman we met last night at the bar traveling with her 18-year-old daughter.

It has everything to do with a state of mind encompassed in finding your partner appealing both in both their imperfect physical state of being and their imperfect mental state of being, whatever that may be and however that may fluctuate as the years waft by and everything changes.

Can we love and accept the wrinkles and belly fat wrought by age and lifestyle and still see the beauty and handsomeness of what appealed to us in the first place so long ago? If yes, that’s romantic in itself. 

From this perspective, last night we found ourselves late in getting to dinner on “lobster night” after engaging in a lengthy fabulous conversation with a delightful woman we met from Costa Rica (where we’ll be living for three months in 21 months), at the Ice Bar on Deck 4, our usual hangout before heading to usual reservation-free dinner (never wanting to feel pinned down to a specific time).

Realizing we should arrange a reservation for the lobster night, the only available times were 5:30 or 8:45 pm.  We chose the latter, preferring not to dine so early in the evening.  (I’d actually had a light breakfast anticipating a late meal knowing food wouldn’t arrive until 9:15 or later).

After considerable fun at the bar, we said goodbye and headed to check-in for the reservation at 8:30, hoping to get in a little earlier. Given a pager, it was impossible to get a “shared” table so we decided to wait for the beeper.

My dinner last night; a Cobb Salad with chicken and two lobster tails.

By 9:00 pm, we were seated as the only patrons at a table for seven. As always, in consideration of others, we decided to wait to order until the table was full. Our usual playfulness and banter had started between us while at the bar, if not earlier in the day.

As we sat alone at that table with not another person or couple seeking a shared table entering the restaurant after us, we finally resigned ourselves along with our wonderful waiter Kundeep, that we should order dinner and proceed with the evening. 

From there, the fun between us escalated, the compliments flew back and forth, the knee grabbing under the table elicited fits of laughter, all the while holding hands, staring dreamily into each other’s eyes. I don’t drink alcohol and Tom had very few cocktails. It wasn’t alcohol talking. It was happiness. It was love. It was romance.

We hardly noticed our food although it seemed to disappear off our plates. The cruise line’s head food manager stopped by to say hello and giggled when he asked if we were newlyweds and we answered that we’d been together almost 25 years but are happier now than ever, in this life we live.

Tom’s dinner last night of Beef Wellington and lobster tail with veggies.

Our wonderful waiter gabbed with us. The hostess that oversees my food stopped by along with several other staff members and managers, perhaps noting we were alone at the big table needing some attention. We didn’t. We appreciated it nonetheless. 

The hours whizzed by and finally, it was time to leave. It was late and we decided to head back to our cabin, unable to wipe the coy smiles off our faces. No one ever joined us at our table. We didn’t care.

This morning, renewed and refreshed after a great night’s sleep, we still can’t stop smiling. Perhaps, the special evening further reminded us of how lucky we are, how blessed we are, and how much we appreciate each other and this peculiar life we live. 

It’s ironic that one of the most fun evenings we’ve had aboard the ship was spent alone at dinner together, reveling in this gift we’ve been given to enjoy our lives, fully engaged in the moment and…in the next moment to come. Who could ask for more?

For today, with only two days to disembarkation, once again we’re enjoying every moment left on the ship with the same enthusiasm we expect we’ll be feeling in a few days living in our new home in the Taranaki Region of New Zealand. Life is good. And, at times, life is romantic.

Darn, I should have saved this story for Valentine’s Day which is four weeks from today! Then again, we don’t need a Hallmark-inspired day to make us happy!

Photo from one year ago today, January 17, 2015:

We were excited to arrive in Kauai, Hawaii for a four-month stay in Princeville. Little did we know how much we’d love the island with a robust social life thanks to our new friend Richard Turner, whom we met only a few days after arrival. For more details, please click here.

Another possible medical emergency a few hours before boarding the ship…Thank goodness for a previous posts saving the day!

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The ship is still decorated from Christmas.

Yesterday morning, shortly after I uploaded the post, Tom told me his tooth abscess had returned overnight.  While in Fiji we’d decided dealing with it other than with the use of antibiotics was not necessarily the best course of action after our visit to the dentist’s office. We feared their equipment may not have been up-to-date and the most sanitary.

In November, when Tom was treated for the abscess at the dentist office in Savusavu for a fee of FJD $6, USD $2.78 with two free antibiotic prescriptions and a dose of Ibuprofen, we thought if he could last until we arrived in New Zealand, he’d visit a dentist shortly after we arrived.

Most likely we’ll find a good dentist in the nearby town of Taranaki which appears to have several dental offices.  Of course, we’ll ask the owner of the house we’re renting for a recommendation.

This wonderful chemist saved the day!

With only two hours until we had to vacate the hotel room, after requesting a late checkout, we knew we’d better come up with a plan. An abscessed tooth could become serious while on a two-week cruise. We didn’t have enough time left in Sydney to make an appointment to see a dentist and follow up with any treatment or prescriptions.

The previous day, we’d visited a local chemist for toiletries and a variety of preventive over-the-counter meds, meeting Peter, the most friendly chemist on the planet. 

Yesterday, after Tom finally told me about the abscess returning we decided to go back to see him, a short walk in yet more rain, a few blocks from the hotel. Our plan…ask him to refill the same antibiotic prescriptions Tom had taken in Fiji which seemed to work within a few days.

The tiny chemist shop had more products than one could imagine would fit in the tiny space.

Our plan to get him to agree to refill the prescriptions without a new prescription from a local dentist was simpler than we anticipated. Once we arrived at the store, we’d ask him to bring up our website in November 10, 2015, where we’d posted a photo of the pills he’d received at the Savusavu dentist. Click here to read that particular post if you missed it. 

Below is the photo we showed Peter which he accepted as a valid prescription worthy of being refilled. We couldn’t have been more relieved. Immediately, Tom said it was “safari luck” that we had the photo on the post to refer to in order to show the chemist we had a valid prescription. 

Luckily, Peter was able to read the labels on these two antibiotics enabling Tom to take another emergency round to last until we arrive in New Zealand in a few weeks.

This photo would never have been accepted in the US as valid proof for a refill. But, in Australia which is still relatively strict with prescription laws, this case precipitated a solution with kindly Peter accommodated since we’d already built a connection with him on the previous day’s visit. He knew we weren’t buying the medications to resell them.
 
Practically jumping for joy with relief we quickly made our way back to the hotel, prescriptions in hand, to load up our gear and head out the door to the ship.  Oddly, we could see the pier across the street from the chemist but, it was too difficult a walk with all of our bags in the rain and attempting to maneuver down a steep flight of stairs.

The doorman hailed a taxi and for a fare of USD $14.33, AU $20, the driver dropped us off at the Port of Sydney with our two large bags, one medium bag, one duffel, one Costco bag, rolling cart, and computer bag. (We’re able to maneuver the load a short distance on our own with careful stacking and use of the rolling cart). 

Busy Sydney Harbour.

Somehow, in these past months, we’ve lost our bungees making securing the rolling cart difficult. Once at the pier, we had a relatively long line in which to handle the bags were normally at most ports, the moment we step out of the taxi, our bags are tagged with our cabin number and whisked away by port personnel too much later be delivered to our cabin.

In less than an hour waiting in various lines for check-in, customs, immigration, and security, we were on the familiar ship, the Celebrity Solstice, excited for the 14-day journey itself to New Zealand, and for the upcoming three months we’ll spend living on an alpaca farm.

By 2:00 pm, we’d dropped off our carry-on bags in our cabin, our hands were free and we roamed about the same ship we sailed on September 23, 2014, when we cruised from Vancouver, British Columbia to Oahu, Hawaii.  That seems so long ago in one way and like yesterday in another.

The ship was being fueled, maintained, and dumping sewage.

The day and evening were even more enjoyable than expected.  We met many other passengers, mostly from the US and the UK. There seem to be considerably fewer Aussies than anticipated. As a result, there are no “Shed” meetings for Tom to attend, but he’s rather content with all the people we’ve met so far, engaging in lively conversations. And, as always, we’re having lots of fun together.

The abscess is already improving from a few doses of the antibiotics. We’re not thrilled he has to suffer any potential ill effects of taking antibiotics twice in such a short time span. But, we had no alternatives other than to cancel the cruise or risk a more serious infection, building over the upcoming few weeks. 

Last night’s dinner was OK. Since it was my first meal in the Epernay Dining Room they had few options available for me other than a tiny plain shrimp cocktail (no sauce), a Caesar salad without dressing, a steak, and a few steamed veggies. I ordered sides of New Zealand seasoned butter and full-fat sour cream, dipped everything on my plate for added flavor. 

All other entrees had been prepared in advance using vegetable oil, sugar, soy sauce, starches, flour, and other items I can’t have. Last night, I ordered my meal for tonight and this morning’s breakfast of two hard-boiled eggs, smoked salmon with capers, and crispy streaky American bacon. It was fine.

Last night we experienced rough seas during dinner subsiding later in the evening. As always, it had no effect on either of us, although it certainly was noticeable.

When we returned to our cabin for the night we noticed Tom’s suitcase hadn’t arrived yet. We’d received all the other bags in the late afternoon. 

We spotted a message on our phone. Within minutes, we headed to Level 2 to security to respond to their request to show up if we wanted his bag which had been confiscated due to a power strip. They tagged it, made him sign for it, stating we could have it back at the end of the cruise. This wasn’t the first time this has happened. We’ll manage just fine in the interim.

Tom’s busy “trying new things” which we’ll share in our photos to come.  With the slow WiFi on the ship, we’ll only be able to post four to six photos per day. He always surprises me when he suddenly decides to be adventurous with food and beverages. After all, his inclination toward adventure is certainly pleasing to me regardless of what he decides to eat!

Happy day!

Photo from one year ago today, January 6, 2015:

One year ago, daughter-in-law Camille and granddaughter Madighan had a chance to pet one of the chickens at a local resort where they stayed for one night when Madighan had an allergic reaction to something in the house we were renting. The next day, they left for Kona to get ready for their upcoming flight to the mainland. For more details, please click here.

Merry Christmas to all on the opposite side of the International Dateline….Pigging out at the buffet…

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Hmmm…prime rib and spice drops. Tasty combination, Mr. Lyman!

It proved to be a good day although it was rainy, hot, humid and we were without power. We decided to bring our laptops, an adapter and one set of plug ins so we could recharge our laptops while at the resort, if at all possible.

The band was excellent singing many familiar songs.

As soon as we walked into the lobby of the Pearl Resort in plenty of time for our 1:00 pm buffet reservation in the Riviera Restaurant, I scoped out the plug in options finding there were plenty of possibilities. 

This was my entrée and dessert…delicious seafood.

Asking at the front desk if we could sit in the lobby and plug in our equipment after our meal, they happily obliged saying we could use the outlets and stay as long as we’d like.

Octopus, a favorite, although rather chewy.

The thought of relaxing with power after the upcoming big meal was appealing, especially with the massive doors opening to the bay offered a cooling breeze. 

The meat station had prime rib, ham and turkey. Tom had all three but I chose only the prime rib.  Tom said the ham was great.

After checking in for our reservation, I wasn’t thrilled with the table selected for us with our name imprinted on a plastic coated card. It was too near the entrance to the dining room, the band and people coming and going out to the deck. It was noisy, making it nearly impossible for Tom to hear a word I said, with his bad hearing made worsened by background noise.

Check out the size of those slabs of prime rib and prawns. It was the most tender beef we’d had in months.

We decided to make the best of it and kept the selected table when we noticed the only other available table was too tiny for two diners, my camera and our computer bag on the floor. 

This was my single plate, piled high. I didn’t eat the relatively uncooked green beans but found everything else terrific.

Immediately after we were seated, I scoped out the buffet for photos and to check my dining options. A white hatted chef was behind the food stations happily pointing to each item I’d be able to eat that didn’t include starch, sugars, grains or flour. There were more options than any buffet we’ve visited since the onset of our travels. I felt like a kid in a candy store!

Tom sure enjoyed his first plate and every other plate to come.

Back at the table, I suggested Tom get his food first while I stayed behind to watch the camera and laptop bag.  In no time at all, he returned with a small plate of meats from the carving table and alas, a large pile of candy spice drops. I couldn’t stop laughing. All of those wonderful dishes and desserts, and he had meat and spice drops!

Yum, baby octopus. Those heads are a bit tricky to chew. I ate four of these, less one head.

Of course, he went back many times sampling more and more meat and seafood items and eventually a few desserts. But, each time he went back to the buffet he returned with more spice drops. Love that guy! Five plates of food and candy? I didn’t say a word, smiling over how well he does at “home” when our daily meals deprive him of many foods he loves and yet, keeps him lean and healthy. 

I didn’t feel the least bit embarrassed when my plate was piled higher than any other diners as they left food stations. However,  a single plate was my plan piling everything I could possibly eat to fit on my plate. (I savored almost every morsel leaving only one small octopus head that was particularly chewy and several undercooked green beans, too crunchy to get down).

Tom’s second dessert plate with caramel and apple pies, brownie and more spice drops.

It was a wonderful meal. As it turned out, half of the food on my plate consisted of a variety of fish shells and I wasn’t overly full and uncomfortable. When eating only veggies and protein I never seem to get uncomfortably full, nor do I eat until a point of feeling miserable. That’s never been my thing, nor is it healthy for me when too much protein or vegetables in a single sitting can exacerbate inflammation and raise blood sugar.

A portion of the dessert table. Tom must have eaten one of those entire containers of spice drops.

Once we finished our meal, we sat quietly at the table for a while sipping our water (Tom didn’t order a cocktail when he doesn’t drink alcohol with sweets) while he munched on his spice drops.

Notice the yellow pudding to pour over the brownies or whatever else one may choose.

Finally, we asked a waitperson to find our server. After 15 minutes, we asked again. Finally, after a total of 40 minutes, we managed to see our server who experienced difficulty having us pay when all the other guests were staying at the hotel and had only to sign the slip. Service at this bar and restaurant was certainly less ideal than the impeccable service we’d experienced in the Seduce Restaurant on Tom’s birthday. Fiji time.

Decorations and imprinted name tag at our table.

The bill resolved, we headed to a seating area in the lobby, close to outlets while Tom proceeded to set up our laptops enabling us to send more Christmas wishes to family and friends throughout the world. We’d recharge the laptops sharing the plug in back and forth with a plan to head home by 5 pm when hopefully, the power would be back on.

Most diners were hotel guests, not outsiders like us.

We only lasted until 4:00 pm. The cushion-less wicker chairs cut into our legs and backs making sitting nearly impossible. We decided to call the taxi and head home, although Tom’s laptop wasn’t yet charged. My was at 98%. If we had no power throughout the evening, at least we could watch a few shows in the dark.

Tom wrapped up his meal eating a couple of candy canes. 

Walking into the house we were thrilled to see the fans whirring. The power was back on. The power also went out twice during the night awakening us both each time, lasting for a few more hours, making sleeping fitful without a fan or the wall AC unit running.

Tom didn’t have any dinner last night, although I had a few items ready in case we were hungry. By 7:00 pm, I ate a cup of salmon salad while I spotted Tom snacking on a paper napkin filled with spice drops he’d placed in his pocket. I laughed. 

The deck on the bay at the Pearl.

It was a good Christmas Day especially when we had a chance to talk to some of the family on Skype with more today, had a good meal and managed to end the day with electricity.

Today, Christmas Day in many parts of the world, we wish everyone a blessed holiday season and New Year.  May life bring each you the fulfillment of your goals, dreams and wishes, all filled with love.

Photo from one year ago today, December 26, 2014:

This was one of our favorite scenery photos taken on the Big Island, so clearly illustrating the power of the surf at the houses we rented for the family visit.  For more details, please click here.

Power outage…Christmas Day in the South Pacific…Dining out midday…Merry Christmas to all..

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Another boat heading down the Qaraniqio River.

Oh, another power outage…on Christmas Day. Wonder when it will come back on. 

In yesterday’s post we failed to mention the cost of the fine dinner at Seduce Restaurant at the Pearl Resort on the evening of Tom’s birthday. Including the meal, the gratuities and the bar bill for his Margarita and my bubbly water, the grand total was FJD $256, USD $106. 

Had we been dining in many other countries such an evening could easily have cost well over USD $200, $FJD $427. As the Fiji dollar changes daily as is the case for currencies worldwide, our round trip taxi fare was FJD $4.68, USD $10 including a 20% tip. When we leave Fiji in 10 days, we’ll give Alfaan a more substantial tip as we often do when we have an opportunity to work with one special driver.

The pebbly road for part of our walk later turned into a paved road.

Yesterday afternoon, when the rain stopped for a period, we ventured out on an ambitious walk through the neighborhood. A dog living two doors from us, followed us during the entire almost hour-long walk, making every turn we made continually watching us for our next move.

A house in the area with a commonly seen stucco-type exterior and tin roof.

It reminded me of our old lives when walking our two dogs (Tom didn’t walk in those days) on a vigorous walk in the neighborhood often every day, including the cold winters unless it the temperature was too cold for their little paws walking in the winter’s snow and ice. There was more than one occasion during which I had to carry one or both of our little dogs home when the tiny pads on their feet were too cold to continue on. 

The walk, in addition to working out almost daily at the local fitness club provided me with ample exercise.  Now, with pelting rain most days and no access to a fitness center, a good walk as often as possible brings considerable energy and a sense of well being. 

A vacant lot in the neighborhood collecting debris from an adjoining building site.

In a mere 12 days I’ll be working out on the ship in an attempt to rebuild my fitness level after this lengthy hiatus without much exercise. I haven’t belonged to a fitness center since living in Trinity Beach, Austalia from June to September, 2015.

Another vacant lot behind this neighboring house.

Soon, living in Taranaki, New Zealand with several nearby fitness centers (within 20 minutes), I’ll be back at it again for another three months. At this point, I have no idea what I’ll do once we arrive in a remote area in Bali, there again, perhaps unable to find a fitness center which has been the case in Fiji.

Today is Christmas Day here in the South Pacific. After a delicious dinner and  movie last night, we wandered off to bed, content for another good day. Sure, it doesn’t feel like Christmas without all the festivities associated with the holiday celebrations we experienced in our old lives. 

Finally, we reach the paved road making walking easier.

There are no twinkling lights on the houses in the neighborhood, no front lawns littered with lighted snowmen, reindeer and Santas and few Christmas trees visible through living room windows. We’ve become used to the lack of hoopla, decorations and festivities as a normal part of our life, without disappointment or a sense of loss. 

A fairway on the Pacific Harbour/Pearl Resort golf course only steps from our house.

Instead, we revel in the spiritual aspect of Christmas easily appreciating life, our good health and the health and well being of those we love and the many blessings we’ve been given.

At 2:00 am this morning, we were startled out of bed by outrageously loud fireworks in the neighborhood. Fijians sure love their fireworks, day and night. Wide awake after the heart racing awakening, I decided to listen to a podcast on my phone to lull me back to sleep which often works better than reading.

We’ve often seen these boats heading to scuba diving on the reefs.

Yeah, yeah, yeah…I know about “sleep hygiene” that bespeaks reading and listening in bed impedes quality sleep. I tried over and over again to break the habit, often spending night after night lying in bed wide awake unable to fall back to sleep. Ultimately, the total combined amount of sleep seems to suffice to keep me alert all day.

There are many homes in the area with Qaraniqio River frontage property, docks, and boats.

When I couldn’t connect to the house wifi to download a podcast, I got out of bed to reset the router, necessary every four or five days. Once back in bed I was able to get download a few podcasts and listen to two 40-minute broadcasts. Finally, I fell back to sleep awakening at 6:30 anxious to get the day underway.

With solar power here and no sun in well over a week (its raining now as I write), its not unusual for the shower to be cool in the morning. Susan, the owner, explained there’s a switch on the wall in the master bedroom to turn on the electricity to heat the water heater. We often turn it on for an hour in the late afternoon when the water is cold for Tom’s shower and for washing dinner dishes. 

The bridge over Qaraniqio River we cross on our walk.

Preferring to shower upon awakening and not wanting to waste power overnight, my showers are often cooler than I’d like. So it goes. I guess its part of life living in the tropics, including the near-constant rain often preventing us from daily walks.

As many walks as we’ve taken since our arrival almost three weeks ago, we’ve yet to experience a single walk on a sunny day, as shown in our cloudy day photos.

A scuba diving boat heading out to sea via the Qaraniqio River in Pacific Harbour.

With today’s upcoming buffet lunch at the Pearl at 1:00 pm, we hesitated about making tonight’s dinner. I rarely eat during the day and most likely won’t feel like eating again later in the day. This low carb way has a tendency kill the appetite, only feeling hungry every 24 hours or so.

Tom, back at the carbs again during today’s buffet and perhaps after eight more slices of bread or bread-like items, most likely will be hungry by 7:00 pm. With this in mind, I’m making a few items just in case. By 1:00 pm, when Alfaan picks us up, I’ll have everything prepped and ready to complete later in the day when we return from the Christmas lunch.

Hibiscus, prolific year-round are the most commonly seen flowers in tropical climates.

Its a good day, this Christmas Day 2015. The love we feel from family and friends from afar, the love with share with one another, and the joy we experience each and everyday, making this day as special and as meaningful as all the rest.

May all of our readers and their family and friends have a joyous Christmas Eve and Christmas Day filled with love and wonder. We feel all of you with us, each and everyday. We appreciate each and every one of you for sharing this life with us. Have a beautiful Christmas!

Photo from one year ago today, December 25, 2014:

I wish we’d taken more family photos last Christmas when family was visiting. When I was preoccupied with everyone being there, I just didn’t take many photos of “people” always one of my photo-taking downfalls. We all spent Christmas Day at a picnic at a beach park in Hilo, Hawai’i, on yet another cloudy day. For more details, please click here.

Credit card compromised…How to handle…Out to dinner with friends in Fiji…

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Danny, Samantha, me, and Tom, standing outside our house in Pacific Harbour, Fiji.

Handling our five credit cards requires a certain amount of attention other than merely paying off the balance each month. The vast amounts we charge on the cards often including rents for three months, full cruise fares, pricey airline tickets, long term car rentals, groceries, and dining out. The new statements can be well into the thousands in a given month.

Keeping an eye on these expenses for their accuracy and for any potential unknown expenses, excess fees or instances of fraud drives me to check online every few days. 

With a tile for each credit card company on my touch screen desktop in Windows 8, it takes only seconds to log in and check each of the five cards with the fact they’re all from only two banks making the process easier. We seldom find an error.  When we do, we contact the toll-free number on the card and get to work to solve the problem.

Last year around this same time, one of the credit card companies had contacted us by phone and email to notify us of fraud charges that hadn’t yet posted in “pending transactions” making it impossible for us to see online. 

Danny’s curry dinner, which he said was good.

The credit card company’s system is sophisticated enough to be able to pick up “test” charges used by credit card fraud companies and individuals to determine if they will in fact be able to use the card for larger purchases.

Over the past year, most of our cards have been replaced with the supposedly more secure cards containing “computerized chips.” However, having these cards with chips hasn’t prevented fraud on the cards.

A few days ago, we received a fraud alert to which I immediately responded with a phone call. Yes, Tom’s card number with a chip that replaced his compromised card last December was compromised and charges had started rolling in, first in “test” charges for $1 and then hotel bills and fuel charges in Kansas City, Missouri, USA. 

How did this happen? This occurred both last year and this year (in December) on the card, we use most often when Tom usually handles the checking-out using that particular card when we’re dining out and purchasing products and groceries. 

We’ve been in Fiji for almost four months. Most likely at some establishment where we’d paid using the card, the number was noted and “sold” to those who conduct such illegal behavior across the globe. 

The upper portion of my plate contained the salad with the entrée on the bottom right. There was a tiny portion of squid, perhaps a tablespoon. To balance my meals carbs and protein, I must eat a larger portion of protein at least 6 ounces. Thus, I ordered a small steak, which worked well. (The plate appears larger in this photo).

The fact that we’re in Fiji didn’t necessarily create a greater risk. This transpires throughout the world with billions of dollars each year. No one is exempt from the potential risk.

It may surprise some, but when this happens, it’s not a personal serious situation. It is definitely not as serious and destructive as “identity theft” when a person’s entire credit profile is compromised, which may result in the life-changing destruction of one’s entire creditworthiness. A compromised credit card is a simple process for the customer:

1.  Immediately respond to the email and/or phone card from the credit card. Those with late payments or a poor credit card history may hesitate to return the call when they may assume the call is for collection purposes. Failure to respond to the inquiry can, in fact, create a more difficult situation after the fraudulent charges have been posted.

2. The quicker one returns the call, the better, using the phone number on the back of the card (for added security). The bank’s fraud department wants to decipher which charges the customer actually made as opposed to those charges made fraudulently to avoid further fraudulent charges. When doing so, the customer will not be charged any amount for the fraudulent charges. The concept that you’ll only be charged the first USD $50 is not true unless you are aware of some obscure stipulation in the bank’s regulations that allows for such a charge.  It’s unlikely.

3.  Carefully review all the charges you’ve made with the fraud department representative We’ve read online that there have been a few rare instances whereby customers of less than ideal ethics attempted to pass off some of their own purchases as fraudulent when they were not, hoping they’d “go away” during this process.  This behavior, in itself, is fraud and may result in termination of the card, bad credit ratings, and possible legal charges. 

4.  Upon the bank’s recommendation destroy the card from which the charges were made and any other cards with the same number. The card will no longer work after the company has posted the number as compromised. We usually cut the card into tiny pieces and dispose of the pieces. Even if the card could be pieced together as in a puzzle the fact the number has been flagged, it would never work anyway.

Tom and Samantha had the burger topped with egg and fries.

5.  When the new card arrives in the mail, immediately sign and activate the card which has a new number.Visit every website where you may have stored the card for frequent purchases, and change both the number and expiration date which will also be new, or the next time you make a purchase it will be declined. The three or four-digit number of the back near your signature will also have changed. Use your best judgment, only releasing this number of highly secure and reputable sites.

Done and done. When chip technology is used on a shared account, Tom and I each have a separate number as opposed to sharing the same card number. Thus, my card, a different number, wasn’t compromised. Until we receive the new card in an upcoming supplies shipment while in NZ, we’ll use other cards or my same card for this particular account.

While traveling, every 60 days, we contact the credit card companies either by phone or online to notify them of “travel alerts,” specifically in which countries we’ll be using the card including when we’re in the US in May 2017. The alerts only last 60 days. This information prevents the card from being declined when rightfully making purchases while traveling. This must be done each time one leaves their home country to avoid the resulting embarrassment and delays.

Feel free to contact us if any of this is confusing, or better yet, your credit card provider with specific personal inquiries.

On to the second part of today’s post. First off, our newly made friends, Samantha and Danny (he’s from Minnesota, she’s from Wisconsin, small world) have left Fiji to return to their new home in Seattle, where Danny returns to his medical residency (sure, Tom asked if Danny worked at “Seattle Grace”) and Samantha to her social work practice.

We noticed the lily pad flowers close at night as darkness fell while we dined at Oasis Restaurant.

You may ask, “How do we refer to people we met for short periods as “friends? Doesn’t a friendship require time and nurturing?”

In this life, with access only to short term relationships, we prefer to call those with whom we especially connect and interact in social settings, as friends. For us, these short-term interactions possess a special meaning often staying in touch for years to come. 

Dinner at the Oasis Restaurant at the Art Village was enjoyable with the lively conversation between the four of us. Tom enjoyed his burger, as the best of the three burgers he’s had to date in Pacific Harbour. 

My entrée was tricky; the portion tiny although tasty, a spicy squid and vegetable stir fry (no sugar, starch soy sauce or rice). It was no more than one cup of food with a small side salad without dressing. 

As an “intermittent fasting” advocate consuming one meal, no snacks a day, a one-cup portion of food with a salad without dressing won’t cut it. After the small entrée arrived, I ordered a steak, which was quite good, cooked to perfection. 

We shared a taxi ride home, hugged goodbye, and had the driver take today’s main photo of the four of us, once outside our house. It was wonderful to spend time with this lovely honeymoon couple and we’re grateful to our host Susan who encouraged our meeting.

Last night, we dined at Baka Blues in the Arts Village, which we’ll share photos and stories in an upcoming post in a few days. For today, we’re content to stay in on a rainy, hot, and humid day preparing enough of a dish to last for a few upcoming meals and to freeze the balance for a later date, as we wind down the time in Pacific Harbour, Fiji.

For our readers, take a break from the busy activities of the holiday season, grab a cup of coffee or tea and read our posts as they’ll continue through each day of the season with Tom’s upcoming birthday celebration on the 23rd, Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve.

Photo from one year ago today, December 20, 2014:

Tom is at the far left.  TJ is in the middle and Jayden is on the far right after they decided they also needed haircuts. Three generations of Lymans having haircut simultaneously. Too cute! This was the last day, the hair salon was taking customers. They were closing the next day for the arrival of the lava flowing from Mount Kilauea. For more info and close up photos, please click here.