International Goodbyes

Saying “goodbye” can be awkward, because it’s hard to choose what the appropriate form of farewell is. In the US, you have three different options and that’s already too many.

Type 1 – If it’s family or good friends, you probably hug.

Type 2 – If it’s a more professional relationship or someone you just met, you might shake hands.

Type 3 – If it’s somewhere in between those, you might bring out the awkward wave (my personal favorite).

Travelers tend to meet a lot of people. They could be your roommates, people you met out in the common area of a hostel or at some social event. You could have been with them as little as one breakfast sitting, or maybe they’ve been your “explore the city buddy” for the past few days. You’ve exchanged emails or are now Facebook BFFs and are about to head your separate ways. As I said previously, I already have three possible goodbye options, but I’m really in trouble when traveling internationally. For instance, Dutch people kiss three times alternating cheeks. Hispanic people often do the same, but only twice. It has also become trendy, in some places, to say hello and goodbye with one cheek kiss. Other cultures value their personal space and don’t want touching to be involved at all.

I have an outstanding ability to be clumsy and awkward whenever possible, so that’s just too easy of a set up for something embarrassing to happen. When someone steps towards you to say bye, are they coming in for a hug or a predetermined set of cheek kisses? How many cheek kisses? On what side do you start the cheek kissing process? You know the awkward dance people do when they’re passing in a hallway and they keep trying to let the other one pass? Then it turns into some sort of really klutzy waltz. Now imagine that in even closer range, but with only your faces as you try to kiss the other persons cheek. It’s the stuff of nightmares.

Can someone with more authority than I possess please come up with some sort of internationally accepted, general goodbye?? I suppose it couldn’t hurt to just ask, “How do they typically say goodbye where you’re from?” but that’s just too sensible.

Am I the only one who’s felt this way before?? Tell me your stories!

Dome Top Steamer Trunk Repair

First, let me start by saying, “What a lot of work!” Especially compared to the first trunk I refinished. Secondly, I am so excited to write this post. I’ve had this thing for months and I’ve only been able to work on it a little bit at a time. Let’s go back to the beginning, shall we? You can see the original in the before and after picture. Apparently someone thought they would try their hand at refinishing it by painting those awful green stripes and white accents. First I tried to see if I could get the paint off by sanding, scraping and paint thinner…

After a good hour of that nonsense, I gave up and decided that painting over it would be the next best option. In the picture above, you can see I’d already given up on getting the green off and started filling in holes and taping off the wood areas. That pretty much covers the next step in the refinishing. I used regular spackling past to fill the holes and larger dents. I left the old leather on the trunk until after I painted it and covered the areas where it had already crumbled off with newspaper and tape. This part was the most tedious. Not only does it take a long time, but it doesn’t get any prettier while you’re doing it…

Things started looking up after the first coat of spray paint, though…

Finally, no more ugly green…

Few things are more satisfying than peeling back clean paint lines. Look at that, what an improvement already. The paper peeled off really easily, but I had to use a box cutter and screw driver to get the leather off. There was also some glue residue left, but a little sanding and scrubbing with a wire brush took it off pretty easily.

Next came the stain. Minwax, Colonial Maple…

Even better, but it needed more shine. I found a gallon of polyurethane for floors at the Home Depot in the secret little scratch and dent section in the back for $9. I googled as much as I could about it, and I couldn’t find anything about using floor polyurethane on projects other than floors. I figured, “What’s the worst that could happen?” It could look absolutely fantastic, that’s what!

After the first coat, some of the edges and knots soaked up the shine, but the second coat took care of that. The last thing that needed to be fixed on the exterior was the feet. I got a 50 cent piece of wood from the scrap section in Home depot and some furniture sliders.

I also used more power tools on this project than I ever have before. First it was my miter saw to cut the scrap wood down to the right size, then electric drills to attach the wood and sliders to the bottom of the trunk. I was pretty proud of myself…

The reason I had to make a new base was because one of the metal feet was missing and I have no clue at this point about how to replace it…

Also, I can’t imagine the trunk sliding around on those metal knobs would be good for anyone’s floors. I thought about adding wheels instead of sliders, but they were all ugly. It seemed like it would just look awkward. This covers everything that I did to the outside. I have some ideas for the inside that I’m really excited about, but that’s for another post…

What project isn’t complete without some help from the cat…

Key West Vines

The Cliff Notes version of my last Keys trip… I love Vine…

Top 5 Things to do in Key West

There is so much to do and see in Key West, and often with very little time, you don’t want to waste time and money while you’re there. Here are my top five touristy things that everyone who visits Key West should do…

1. Take a snorkel tour on the reef.

You can snorkel anywhere in the Keys, but you won’t beat the scenery on the reef. You’ll see so many types of plant and aquatic life. I have been a few times, but this last time was the best. I saw a nurse shark (not as scary as you’d think!), Barracuda (much scarier than the shark), Yellow Fin Tuna, Tarpon, Yellow Tail Snapper, Grouper, Blue Parrot Fish, Sheep’s head and so many more…

It’s harder to find water that is more beautiful than what’s in the Key’s. When you’re passing along the south side of Key West, there’s a really well defined line dividing the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf. It’s pretty cool to see…

Even cooler through one of the deck-hands expensive Costa sunglasses.. The tour costs around $45 per person, plus a tip for the staff. It’s the only thing on the list that is slightly costly, but it’s well worth the money.

2. Mallory Square

From costly to free! Mallory Square has a sunset celebration that happens every evening. The Square is right at the end of Duval Street and very easy to find. Just look for the crowd of people with random jugglers, tightrope walkers and acrobats popping up throughout them…

“Look, Mom, I’m a lamppost.”

The cat show is great, but also bizarre. You should also see Dr. Juice’s tumbling show. He’s been performing on Mallory since I’ve been going, which is well over a decade now. The tightrope walker is also a permanent fixture on Mallory. The rest of the performers rotate pretty regularly but they are all very good. It’s also a good place to buy souvenirs, with several artists selling locally made goods. The best conch fritters in Key West are sold there too, so order half a dozen and don’t forget a side of spicy mustard!

3. Paddle Boarding

Despite being an island, Key West only has one tiny beach. The beach itself isn’t particularly exciting, but Sunset Water Sports has a booth where you can rent all kinds of things like paddle boards, kayaks, mini sailboat things and beach chairs. The paddle boards are only $22 an hour and they’re so much fun! It’s hard at first, but once you get the hang out it, it’s pretty easy.

Until your mother “accidentally” pushes you off…

3. The Cuban Chugs Exhibit

I already wrote a post about it, but I think it’s worth mentioning twice. It’s really eye-opening to the hardships that other people are dealt and made me really thankful to live in the country that I do.

5. Get some good Cuban food!

There are so many delicious places to eat in the Keys, especially Cuban places! Being only 90 miles from Cuban, I’d say it’s pretty close to the real thing. Sandy’s Cafe is one of my favorite places, but there are plenty of options and trying them all out is the best part…

So there you have it. Those are my top five! Beyond that, the jet ski tours are a lot of fun and the ghost walks have a lot of interesting history. Really, you can do anything while you’re there and it will be great. You’re in Key West which is better than where you’d be if you weren’t on vacation!

Bucketlist Item #218

Bucket list item #218 is to make a list of my favorite quotes. I love a good quote and a good picture, so why not put the two together for my bucket list?

With that, I give you the first two quotes…

Kitten Crazy Level: Plastic Wrap

I’ve been a little silent recently because I’ve had a monumental amount of school work. Recently though, I was able to make a trip to Ikea (love that place!) to buy some mattresses. Their mattresses come in impossibly tight rolls covered in plastic. I ended up with four pieces of plastic and a large blue tarp, from the box spring, all in one big pile. For most people, that’s just a big pile of garbage. For Kitten, that is heaven. Crazy, Cross-eyed Heaven. So to apologize for my absence, I give you a few pictures of my immensely adorable Kitten…

Just. Tired.

Forget “Happy as a pig in mud.” Now it’s “Happy as a Kitten with plastic.”

Ready for a ride in the C-A-R

Having a dog around is a lot like being around a little kid, you end up doing a lot of spelling. C-a-r.  B-o-n-e.  C-a-t.  W-a-l-k.  B-a-t-h.  Those are words that can only be said, instead of spelled, if you are trying to elicit some response from the dog. Almost all of those words are met with jubilant responses, apart from b-a-t-h and c-a-t. “Bath” makes him run to the farthest corner of our backyard and bark awkwardly. He never barks so it sounds very silly and unnatural.

Rides in the c-a-r are normally his favorite thing, so if you are wondering why he is making such a ridiculous face… There is a perfectly good explanation..

If he only knew getting in the c-a-r is the last thing the c-a-t wants to do…

Take a Cat Video They Said…

After watching WAY TOO MANY cat videos online yesterday, I decided I would try to film one myself. I didn’t really have a plan, I was just going to film and see what came out of it. As you can see from the above video, he was less than cooperative. Every time I would start to film, he would move to the most inconvenient spot…

Ordinarily he is the least cuddly cat you can possibly imagine. Try to take his picture though, and he becomes ridiculously clingy. I did get a few decent shots in, before giving up..

I’m very sad that this last one was blurry, but I still love it.

Have a good Caturday, everyone…

#friendsnotfriends

Happy Caturday, Everyone. I just wanted to point out how absolutely ridiculous cats can be. These two can’t stand each other, and yet they insist on always being together. For example, sitting together on the back patio..

Catching bugs… together…

One sleeps on my shoe..

The other watches from a few feet away…

All this bonding time but if they both try to walk through the doorway at the same time, there will be an all out war. It would probably be complete with flying fur and those bizarre noises only cats can make… They are so strange… but I love them…

Kitten Crazy Level: Finals Week

I am in the middle of studying for my Spanish final and Kitten jumps on my desk, lies down and proceeds to use my hand as a pillow. How am I supposed to move my hand and keep working when he is this cute? Apparently, it was all an act of love and sympathy, because when I did move my hand and attempt to adjust the keyboard, I was met with some resistance…

Was he saying, “No. Go take a nap!” ? I think so. Sweet, thoughtful Cat.