Triste

It's a sad day for me. I lost my wedding ring. To a thief.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today's Thanksgiving. We are a little nostalgic in the household because D is obviously, American, and he misses spending Thanksgiving with his bigger family, and to me it brings back so many fond memories of dinners with my American friends, where there have been times I ate to the point of getting myself sick (and it only happens with Thanksgiving food - I am a modest eater). I love cranberry sauce and stuffing, and the combination of all that Thanksgiving food, the warmth, the pumpkin pie with a little bit of ice-cream on the side, and the part in the beginning where you give your Thanks to whatever you are thankful for. This year I'm thankful for the abundance of love in my life, having a warm, safe, comfortable and happy place to stay, my family's well-being, the love and acceptance of my new family; and I'm thankful for my ability to float on, coast up and be happy. I hope for more things to be thankful for, without losing sight of the basics.
There are lovely videos on Martha Stewart's website if you're interested in the holiday-crafting with glitters and things.
Today's Thanksgiving. I hope everyone has a good one. Happy Thanksgiving from Turkey!
(image via Martha Stewart)

Why Turks Don't Walk on the Sidewalk

My friend Suzanne brought the issue to my attention years ago when we were out on my street and Suz suddenly headed towards the narrow sidewalk. I suddenly realized I never even really stepped on that sidewalk except when a fast car was driving by. Then after seeing my husband insist so many times that I walk on the not-exactly-existent sidewalk -and myself getting irritated many times- made me wonder why Turks don’t like sidewalks. Except when there is a serious road and serious cars whizzing by, on the little backstreets and alleys all around Turkey, we refuse to walk on the sidewalk. We walk on the part of the road that’s (supposedly) designated for cars. Cab drivers will have to honk at people sometimes, as these ordinary pedestrians are in the way with grocery bags in their hands, occupying the guy’s speed track (now that’s another issue).

And I realized that we don’t like to walk on the sidewalk because the sidewalk either

a- is non-existent
b- gets interrupted all the time, with constructions, small sandhills, piled coal in front of an apartment building as preparation for winter, parked cars, trucks unloading goods to grocery stores, friends who bump into each other, street vendors and whatnot.
c- i think cars parking on the road deserve another mention.
d- is too high and begins and ends too frequently where streets cross, so you have to go up and down too much.

Believe me i could find more of these reasons. But I think it gives an idea of why Turks have developed a negative response to sidewalks, or even why Turks never got used to sidewalks anyway. So don’t give me the why-do-you-walk-on-the-road look, foreigner friend, because now you know that we don’t have it as good as you do . . .

goop

have you heard about goop? it’s gwyneth paltrow’s new project where there’s a website and a mailing list, but i’m not sure what to make of it. the design is surely elegant and simplistic, like ms. paltrow herself. the material seemed somewhat long to sit down and read and digest all at once, and i tried to break it down to pieces, but i couldn’t get back to it once the initial ‘you’ve got mail’-glow around it is gone. so i don’t know. it would have been better if she just came up with a website that one can visit and go around in one’s own time. but maybe she didn’t want to get all the material ready all at once (but that’s why we have blogs, isn’t it?), or she wanted to appear once a week and make people’s days. again, i’m not sure. i’ll observe it a little longer and will be able to post healthier comments.

Veronica Mars

What happened to Veronica Mars? The teen-detective-themed series with the cute, petite, sassy blond, Kristen Bell? Me, my sister, and our friend Baris were religiously watching the show a while ago, and three seasons went by like the wind when we were left high and dry (along with other fans) in anticipation of the fourth season: there would be no fourth season. I have enormous respect for the past, so when Baris came over a few weeks ago -husband having fun with poker buddies, I hang out with Veronica Mars buddy, yay- we popped out a thrilling episode and 3 other episodes followed. Since then, I can't stop watching Veronica Mars -me not working might have something to do with that-. In an effort to keep the husband-wife bonding bonfire alive, even D offers to watch it with me sometimes, and that's OK, but I don't understand why they put an end to such a witty and exciting series with beautiful and fairly interesting people. Sure, the answer to that question starts with an R, but I think the show deserved a second chance. The tagline for the show is given at IMDB as 'Street smart with heart'. Awards? 14 nominations and 1 win. The show has sarcasm and an off-beat humor, the casting fits the roles, in my opinion, except for Duncan Kane, who always seemed somewhat out-of-it to me. Maybe the reason I love VM is that I dig mystery and suspense, but I also like their clever lines and that, unlike me, Veronica always has something to say. Kristen Bell from the show did other shows such as Heroes and Gossip Girl, and I could watch them, of course, but it's just not the same. Call it single-mindedness, but I want Veronica Mars back. All that being said, it's high time I went back and watched one more episode and satisfied my craving for a good mystery being solved.

frugal, baby.

Looks like everyone's hit by the saving wave these days. Last night I was looking around on the internet for extra saving tips when I discovered a whole new blogosphere on frugal living.
For some reason I can't get my thoughts together this morning (could it be that I haven't had coffee yet?). But basically, this lady called Dawn started a post titled '25 ways I save money' on her blog Frugal for Life (unfortunately she lost all her older posts recently), and personal finance blogs like Getting to Enough, The Finance Journey, A Path to Simplicity, Frugal Upstate, Zen Habits, Like Merchant Ships, The Good Human, Neat & Simple Living (oh God, there is more), Tired But Happy and Mighty Bargain Hunter followed suit along with some others. It was good to see how other people are handling the stressful financial times, as well as finding out we're not doing too bad saving-wise (save for some eating out, we're trying to cut down on that). What else do I do? Well, I try to make good use of leftover food, I shop for outfits off-season, we try not to take cabs, we don't drink or smoke or go out to ridiculously expensive clubs, we get our work-out by running on the waterfront so we don't have to pay for gym memberships, I switch off unnecessary lights, and we don't spend money on watching movies, and we watch them streaming. I'm sure I do a lot more things without knowing since I'm the daughter of the daughter of a World War II witness who was raised by World War I witnesses.
As for the frugal blogosphere, I added them to my Bloglines, and now I have personal finance blogs to follow alongside my astrology and design ones!

Recipe: Broccoli Noodle

This is a recipe I came up with after researching online to cook something new. After all, I'm at home now and I should be able to welcome my husband with a table ready for dinner... that's not what happened last night. We went to the store together and got some groceries, but I was wise enough to remember the broccoli in the fridge and I made up this new recipe, which turned out to be really good. It's worth a try.

Ingredients:
6-7 Broccoli roots, chopped into their smaller roots
a handful of pine nuts
5-6 garlics
juice of half a lemon
butter
olive oil
salt to taste

Melt some butter in a pan and add some olive oil as well. When the oil is hot enough put in the pine nuts and saute a little. Then add the broccolis, give it a stir, add a little bit of hot water and cover the pan with a lid.
Crush the garlics with salt, and add the lemon juice. Stir this mixture in with the broccoli and leave it to cook, with the pan covered.
In another pan, prepare the noodles with salt and a little bit of olive oil in the boiling water.
After the broccolis turn a lighter green, drain the noodles, and mix them up in a bigger bowl. Sprinkle some soy sauce if you will. Enjoy : )

observations

So far, "working from home" is going very well. As long as I've got something going on, it beats every other job I've ever worked at. I cook, I keep my home clean & neat, I do my translations, I organize (my life, my computer, the closets, our move), I go out for walks (ehm, on the water) at unexpected hours of the day, it's just been wonderful, knock on wood. And I realize just how much more I can do with my time. I still try to wake up early, but haven't been quite successful at meeting my targets, target being 8; my entry into the breakfast scene being 9.30. ish. In the end, I like owning the day-to-day in my life. I went to Nisantasi today and ran into so many people. Am I really popular or is Nisantasi popular? I ran into Eylem, then this girl I met a few weeks ago at a brunch at J&S, Mark (that's no surprise though, House Cafe is his cafe-office), and last but not least, Teri and her sister and friend. It was a great afternoon, with familiar places & people, chatting and coffee.

On the way back home, I saw a woman and her daughter who was not a day old from 9 in twin chadoors (kara carsaf as we say) sitting in a bus stop. Just sitting side by side like two crows, only their eyes and noses showing. This is not the outskirts of town or forgotten neighborhoods on the Asian side. This is Emirgan. I wish I had a picture to prove. I know I don't need proof, they are so common now that most of you don't need proof to believe me, but I just had to document that (mental note: take your camera with you everywhere, not just to daytrips with your husband). I have so much to say about this but I will censor myself until I'm out of here.
So I'm back home, about to start putting together some dinner for my husband and then getting ready for tonight's girls' night out. I hadn't done this in a while so I'm happy, we're going to have a great time. Will take camera.

sufi

bugunlerde mazhar-fuat-ozkan'a kesin donus yaptigim icin sufi'yi ne zaman dinlesem icime bir heyecan doldugunu farkettim. melodiden midir, ritmden mi, temadan mi bilemedigim icin biraz arastirdim. sufi hangi yilda cikmisti, o zamanlar hangi evde oturuyorduk, kac yasindaydik, nasil bir insandim, bunlari dusundum. sonra isin icyuzu anlasildi. sufi sarkisiyla 1989 yilinda eurovision yarismasina katilmisiz. o yillarin eurovision heyecanini, mazhar-fuat-ozkan'in her zamanki naif sevimliligiyle birlesince, bende derin bir heyecan birakmis.
sonra neydi o karsidaki kulubun adi? bu tarafta da subesi olan? cubuklu hayal kahvesi. orada konserlerine gitmistik, ne cok eglenmistim.

real simple: life made easier

I love real simple's website. They have so many solutions for everyday life, and such good suggestions. It really makes life 'real simple' to tackle every day, and be content and happy with what you are achieving on a daily basis. Because that's something I value so much in life. To be able to enjoy the mundane details in life. Of course, this shouldn't mean that we should enjoy the mundane so much that we don't go out looking for new, bigger challenges that will give us more out of life. It is just to say that there is a lot to enjoy in real life as well, as opposed to a life that is all goals and fantasies and aspirations, and in fact, every day of every person you can imagine is made up of those small moments that are 'simple' and, well, mundane. . . Going back to real simple, look at their forms & checklists section, for instance! It's awesome, they have 'Essential Travel Information Worksheets' (checking that out RIGHT now), lots of checklists about wedding planning, printable shopping lists, and even inventory worksheets for your basement, attic, family room, et-ce-te-ra! All this sounds amazing to me. It opens the doors of a whole new world, since in Turkey people are not too big on getting organized.
and I love their illustrations.
and they have a life & soul section.

I just made it my homepage.

vefa

vefa kelimesinin ingilizce karsiligini bulamadim. loyalty, trueness, gibi seyler diyor sozlukler. benim aradigim karsilik o degil. arayip sormak, 'orada olmak', aylarca ortadan kaybolmamak gibi bir seydir benim bildigim veda. sadakatle karistirmamak lazim. senelerce ses vermeyip de hala anilara sadik olan insanlar da var. sonuc olarak, nedir vefa ingilizcede?

First Day At Home

Observations: I work so much harder when I'm at home. There is no time to procrastinate, in a strange way. When I don't have work at hand (work being translations), I go do housework. Before that is over they call me for new work.
(Doug just said it's only 5.45. It's true! And we just came back from a walk to the forest, took deep breaths and saw a flock of birds burst out and fly in front of the moon. Beautiful.)
I also find that you need to be planned, organized, and keep yourself in a schedule when you're at home. Otherwise, you may not know where you're going and what you're supposed to do. My suggestion is to wake up at 8 every day, go for a walk/run, and then be home at 9 and start the day. I'll tell you how that goes!
One day is so long to sit in an office. There is so much to do in life. Day #1, I'm happy. But it doesn't stop there. Let's push it further, self.

sunday post #2

most of the time, i talk to people inside my head. i have long talks where i explain myself and my standpoint, why i do the things i do and why they should take my advice. these conversations never happen in reality, no one is convinced, and i keep living in my own world. in real life, i don't like talking that much, because i can't get my thoughts together on the spot. in my inner monologues, my thoughts are together, i'm poised and everything is in order. i wonder if i'll ever have a similar conversation in real life. probably not. it's like assigning a certain persona to a celebrity in your fantasy, a persona that has a readiness to find you cute and attractive.

yine mi sikayet?

Evet.
Bu Turklerle ilgili bir sey mi bilmiyorum.
Doug'in dizi cekimi icin gittigimiz dizi setinde bizden baska herkes, istisnasiz herkes sigara iciyordu. Saat gecenin ikisi, ortalik dumandan gecilmiyor, acabilecegimiz bir pencere yok ve yorgunuz, ama herkes sigara iciyor. Hatta sigaralari bitiyor ve yeni paketler aldiriliyor, onlara baslaniyor. En son, ugur yucel ve ozan guven (tabii ki onlar da tiryaki) yeni sahnenin provasini yaparken reji asistani 20 yaslarinda bir kizin, tutmasi gereken kagitlar varken elinde hala tutmaya calistigi sigara yuzunden zor durumda kalip, sonra da sigarayi masadaki kulluge koymak zorunda kaldigini gorunce, 'eh yani' dedim. Basrol oyuncularinin prova yapmasina yardimci olurken 20'lik bir tipin elinde de mi sigara olabiliyor? Hic mi is ahlakimiz yok? Sigara icilmesi yasak degil diye, herkes, her an mi icmeli? O an Doug'la birbirimize baktik ve ikimizin de yuzunde 'bu ne bicim is' der bir ifade vardi.
Muhtemelen daha once de gordum isinin basinda hala sigara icmeye calisan tipler (ki sokak saticisi olsa bile alisveris yapmam oylelerinden), ama galiba bu kadarini gormemistim.
Sonuc olarak bol bol duman soludum, filmcilikle ilgili bir sey yapmiyor olduguma cok sevindim, ozan guven ve ugur yucel'le ayni mekanda ve cogunlukla ayni odada 10 saat vakit gecirdim, hatta karizmayi cizip ozan'la fotograf cektirdim, ve sabah 4'te evime gelip uyudum.