And on the fourteenth day...

...the rains stopped, the sun came out, my fever broke, and it was good. I think I hear the "Hallelujah Chorus" playing and it is truly music to my ears.

Tis the season...

...for gift-giving and merry-making. I have been busy working on custom pieces for some local orders and also gifts to ship off to friends and family.

In the meantime, it seems one of my students brought me an unwanted holiday gift: the flu. At first a temperature of 39.5 C didn't sound that bad. Then I converted it to Fahrenheit and realized I have a fever of 103.1 F. No wonder I feel like microwaved Spam (i.e. disgusting. Make that uber disgusting, particularly since I am a vegetarian).

I promise to finish listing new items in my shop as well as post blog updates as soon as I vanquish this vile virus.

Orders will still go out on time and as promised.

Kitty kibble kills

There was a time in my life that I considered becoming a veterinarian. It was brief. I love animals so much, and I very quickly realized that it actually hurt me to see them in pain. Animals are so beautifully innocent. They don't lie or obsess about meaningless matters. They live in the present. Right here, right now. All too often, they suffer at the expense of human cruelty, ignorance and neglect.

A year and a half ago, my best friend's dogs [in the US] were poisoned when they ate Alpo Prime Cuts canned food as a special treat. We came to find out that the cans were laced with melamine, a toxic substance that falsely raises protein readings in laboratory tests. The pet food industry is indeed a very sinister one. Despite round the clock emergency vet care, Susan's one dog went into kidney failure and died. The other held on until this past weekend. I am thankful that they are no longer suffering.

I remember thinking at the time that my cats were safe back in Greece (yes, they moved to the Med with me!) eating their dry kibble. Every vet I have known until recently stated that dry food was best for their teeth. Now I have come to learn that this is absolutely not the case. Cats are obligate carnivores with a low thirst drive. They require a moist high-protein diet, not dry processed carbohydrate crap which contains grains and dehydrated by-products. Such diets contribute to feline diabetes, kidney failure and perhaps even thyroid disorders. For the last twelve years, I have been feeding my two furry lovelies premium dry food, all the while thinking I was providing them with the very best. It wasn't until my Symba was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism a couple of weeks ago that I learned the truth about what we are really feeding our companion animals.

Recent research states that a raw diet is the best form of nutrition for dogs and cats. I still squirm a bit when I hear that, but it makes major sense. There is some excellent information available on the web. Before switching to a raw diet (or even a partially cooked one if raw is not possible), it is recommended to slowly phase in an all-natural canned food. Unfortunately, my cats do not like change. Not one bit. Hopefully the situation will improve little by little...

It's the little things...

...that make my day. I went to the post office this morning to mail off two orders from my Etsy shop. Hooray! It is always a treat to find that people admire my creations enough to actually purchase them. So, I hoofed it down the street (Yes, I walk everywhere. One of the advantages of leaving the US was selling my car. No more insurance payments, no more gas guzzling) in the sunny but windy weather. When I arrived, the line was literally out the door. After a few years here, I have learned to accept that not everything happens instantly. Life is an exercise in patience. Within two minutes, three different people entered the premises and sped to the head of the line to "ask a question" while everyone else glared at them. The Self-Important Ones know no geopolitical boundaries; they live in Greece, too. They were promptly pointed to the end of the line, and we all resumed waiting our rightful turn.

When my turn came, my favorite postal worker waited on me. She is always kind to me, even when I can tell she has had a rough day. I don't even know her name, but she knows mine from reading the return address on my packages so many times! Today, she suddenly stood up from her cubicle, stroked my cheek and said "Jennifer, how are you, sweetie? It is so good to see you. How nice that you always have a beautiful smile on your face, my doll." This lady is probably only a couple years older than me, but it felt like the gesture of a kind old grandmother to pat my cheek and make such heart-warming comments. Such physical contact would never fly in the US, I know, but people here have a different concept of personal space.

When I got back home, I proceeded to photograph some new jewelry in the garden. I like to photograph everything in natural light, and I wanted to take advantage of the sunshine since the skies have been stormy the last few days. After a while, I looked up and saw the most interesting cloud formations in the sky. I have never seen anything like it. Hopefully you can see the photo above.

So, those were the lovely little things that made my day today...I guess good things come in threes as well!

I have joined the ranks...

After much hesitation, I have finally decided to start blogging. I have never even kept a diary (except for two days when I was a little girl and my brother managed to expose the inner workings of my nine-year-old mind), so this is a big step for me. I still refuse to join Facebook.

A few months ago, my muses finally decided to start waking up. After so many years in academia, I had all but killed them, poor things. Sorry, ladies! Between the requisite jargon, conference presentations, teaching, office hours and stacks of compositions to grade, it was impossible for my squelched creativity to seep out. Then I packed it up and moved to Europe. I honestly cannot believe that was almost four years ago. Even though I still teach English, French and Greek here part-time, I recently decided to pursue some artistic endeavors. Enfin! I am now selling fine art photographs and handmade jewelry on Etsy. It is a great venue for displaying my work as I get my creative juices flowing again. Have a peek at: www.jenjensirene.com

Now that the insane renovations have stopped on this apartment building (after more than two months of mind-rattling jackhammers, endless dust, noxious paint fumes and total lack of privacy), I will be posting more photos and jewelry to my site, and working on writing as well...