Sea Glass From San Clemente

Greetings from San Clemente! I arrived at my friend Leigh's beach bungalow yesterday via Lake Havasu and my gal pal Jackie's lovely home above West Covina. Beautiful 65 degree sunny weather here with cool marine breeze - a pleasant change from Phoenix. Leigh and I took our dogs Fancy and Maggie down the hill for early morning blue sky walk that has become a ritual whenever I visit. Surf was up and surfers were a-bobbing.
We were back home by 8:00 and celebrated the morning with a glass of Piper Sonoma sparkling wine.

The purpose of this whirlwind trip was to provide the editor of San Clemente Times with some photos he requested of the sea glass I had collected during my cancer treatment/daily commute from San Clemente to LA. Each morning I'd walk along the pounding surf, searching for sea glass. It calmed my fears and filled my heart with joy. I wrote a poem about San Clemente Sea Glass which will appear in San Clemente Times on June 25th as an excerpt from Cornfield Heiress. As soon as I learn to upload pictures, I'll post for all you loyal followers.

Photo shoot went well. Leigh is a great cook and for our dinner, prepared grilled lamb chops, grilled asparagus, fresh corn on the cob, paired with a central coast California pinot.

Tomorrow it's down the coast to San Diego to spend a day with pal Julie and her three children before heading back to hot hot hot Phoenix.

Photo Shoot in San Clemente

Great News! The San Clemente newspaper is going to publish my poem 'San Clemente Sea Glass'. You can find it on page 220 of Cornfield Heiress. The editor asked for some pictures of me,my sea glass, and my friend Leigh, who hosted me while I was undergoing daily cancer treatments in LA. I began each of those many mornings searching for sea glass, allowing the surf to calm my fears while my little glass treasures filled my heart with joy. Sharing the poem with San Clemente residents is my way of saying thank you for an extraordinary gift of sea glass.

Book Review: Cornfield Heiress:A Memoir Of My Lives And Loves

Book Review: Cornfield Heiress:A Memoir Of My Lives And Loves

zzsimonb's rantings: WTF

zzsimonb's rantings: WTF
Thank you for reading and reviewing my book, Cornfield Heiress. I hope others find it enjoyable, too.

One-Armed Inspiration

OK. Several people have suggested that I speak to others about overcoming cancer, the loss of use of my arm/hand. I always wondered why they thought my story would help anybody. What's the point? Well I get it, thanks to the prosthesis department at Scottsdale Nordstrom's. I needed a new prosthesis as mine had sprung a leak. The lovliest,tall blonde salesperson with a smile a mile wide stepped forward to introduce herself as the prosthesis specialist. She was so articulate and positive and beautiful - I thought she might be Mrs America. As she started to help fit my bra, I noticed that her left hand was nothing but a stump. "Looks like you're one-armed challenged as well," I commented. "Oh, I was born this way," she retorted lightly, and on she went with business at hand. I'm telling you, I was touched and inspired and felt hopeful. Why? I guess because she didn't let her handicap get in her way. It's OK to be positive!!! A handicap is not who we are! We must proceed as normally as possible. I get it. Maybe I can help someone else be stronger by sharing how I've overcome my one-armedness. We are a community. We must keep our arms around each other and stay strong, vibrant, alive.

pharmaceutical irresponsibility - Again.

Boniva and Fosomax - bad stuff says my dentist. Thank God I don't take it but my dentist warned me that either of these drugs will make oral surgery almost impossible - apparantly these drugs will prevent healing. You'll never heal from oral surgery if you take these drugs. Why does this country allow such irresponsibility? All for the almighty dollar? Pharmaceutical corporations had it made when they were issuing hormones to every menopausal woman in the world. Never mind that the drug was never properly tested. Never mind that they knew the drug caused cancer - hooray. . . pharmaceutical companies can make even more money treating women's cancers!! Isn't it obvious why so much emphasis is placed on cancer treatment - and not finding the cause???? Way too much money made to stop treating cancer. We should be outraged. I'm outraged.Is anybody out there listening???

HCG Diet Rants and Raves

What a grueling diet! It works, my friends - you lose a pound a day IF you follow the diet exactly. Big IF! Food has been my everything for the last forty pounds - I blame it on giving up men and sex! Nonetheless, food has been my entertainment, my comfort, my delight, my release from depression or boredom - you name the discomfort and I'll replace it with food.
Weeeelllll . . . the HCG diet only allows 500 calorie a day of very specific foods - few of which I like. No breakfast - only tea or coffee with a tablespoon of milk. My lunch is 3.5 oz of lean beef and asparagus. At 3:30, I'm so hungry I start seeing gray, I'm weak and grouchy so I have my fruit - 1/2 grapefruit or a small orange. At 6:30 I have another 3.5 oz meat portion and more asparagus. In the meantime, water water water. When I get home at 10:00, I have a grissini stick and my second fruit allowance which I prefer to be a sliced apple; however the apples down here in Arizona are all cold storage and mushy - yuck! So I have another 1/2 grapefruit. Really tough on the weekends when I want a martini on Friday night and Eggs Benedict for Sunday Brunch!
Easter weekend I decided to forget the diet, had fewer than 5 cocktails, small portions of carbohydrates, some eggs, cauliflower with cheese- and I gained 8.5 pounds in two days! Took me all week to get four of those pounds off!
It is a mind over matter diet and that phrase is an understatement! So for all of my Cornfield Heiress Club members who are struggling with the HCG Diet, you're not alone! Hats off to the perfect women who wear basic beige and sensible shoes - surely this group has no trouble with the diet!
I find myself testing the limitations of the diet all the time. For example, I'll try a potato vodka martini in place of my evening fruit. It doesn't work! I purchased some cigars to stave off the nighttime cravings - that doesn't work either.Why do we sabotage ourselves so? Why can't this be solved with logic? Why can't the hole in the soul get full some happy way?
I got a prescription for Ambien so I could knock myself out at night- it made me eat in my sleep! One morning I woke up to find a martini glass on my bed stand filled with peanuts and maple syrup, for Godsake! And the vodka bottle had been pulled out of my cupboard and at least 1/2 cup was gone from the bottle. In my sleep I did this! I had a terrible headache that morning and could barely get out of bed.
I've decided to try a three week plan next round instead of six - maybe that will make it easier to stay on point - tackle only 10 pounds per session.
What are your experiences? Thoughts?