February Photo Dump

In February, we finally FROZE here in central/south Jersey (I never know where it begins or ends)!

The end of January brought the first snow that actually covered the ground. Then there was a Super Bowl blizzard that at least brought some excitement to the day. And another snowstorm that forced me to break out the shovel.

I’m happy about it all. I can enjoy one or two good snows per season. Any more than that and I’m out of here.

There was a Valentine’s/Galentine’s Day partner yoga workshop (Hot or Not Yoga).

I ordered myself some special treats from a new local businesswoman (One Board Blonde).

I hadn’t eaten all day until 1pm, so I ate the whole charcuterie tin in one sitting and I have ZERO regrets!

I took some chilly beach walks.

And met my dad and sister for skiing in PA.

The winter sunsets continue to be a humbling reminder to stay present and grateful.

And now we’re on the cusp of another month. Winter in LBI is much more lively than I expected. I’m frequenting How You Brewin, The Local, the new Agnello Market, and occasionally The Port Hole. The swarm of people staying on the island all year (including me!) is apparent. And, of course, I’m still waitressing at Kubel’s where we’ve had a steady pace of regulars and travelers… and a few back-to-back Covid testing experiences that are getting to be an eye roll, but which I’m still reminding myself to take seriously!

I’m always missing summer, but I haven’t hated the winter here much at all. I just completed the opening ceremony of a March challenge that I’m doing with my friend Pixie, so I’m planning to be focusing, writing, and posting a bit more on here in the coming month. It feels like a fresh start.

<3

The Whale

Like for many families, Covid interrupted our normal plans for holiday gatherings this year. We skipped the annual pierogi-making when we would spend a day at our Cousin Debi’s house making Polish pierogi for Christmas Eve dinner. She spends weeks drowning in flour, making them for family, friends and coworkers, so we pretend to be helpful and join for the day—but we probably require more help and time than she could do it expertly on her own!

In fact, there would be no family Christmas Eve dinner at all this year. We usually go to my dad’s cousin’s house and join multiple generations in a traditional feast, and recently added less-traditional jello shots. Some of us have skipped a year or two (me for gallivanting in Nicaragua or Australia), but we always come back. When I missed last year, I had no idea it would be two years before we reunited again. 2020 was the first year since my grandma started the holiday gathering that the whole family would not be together on December 31st.

I made the decision to go to my hometown to my dad’s house. We’ve all kept pretty isolated in our communities, for the most part, so it was a low-exposure risk as far as the virus was concerned. My sister, on the other hand, had to skip for the first time ever since her boyfriend is a doctor working with coronavirus patients. My uncle, too, a regular member of the household at Christmas and in the summers, decided to stay down south and avoid the travel and higher case numbers in New York.

This year was different, and didn’t feel completely like Christmas, but we made it work. My dad and stepmom put together awesome meals; we saw some snow before the rain melted it away, and we opened presents from under the Christmas tree.

Back at my other home (in LBI), I used the downtime and cold as an excuse to do three rounds of cookie baking. I gathered the few decorations that my mom left here and that I have saved from various apartments combined with the pre-lit tree my sister lent me to create a little bit of holiday spirit.

On Christmas Day, a whale washed up on the beach near where I work. Leave it to a small island town to let everyone know about a beached whale in a day by word of mouth. Of course, I had to trek out past the light house to have a look.

It’s always sad and disheartening to see any deceased animal, but I’ve never seen a whale alive or dead, so it was also cool and felt like a once or maybe twice in a lifetime opportunity to get so close. It almost didn’t look real. They’ve since buried the whale in time for the new year.

Fall

Hello! I’m here, more quiet and still than in a usual year. But, as we know, this is not a usual year.

They tell me island life is busier than in most years. I’ve never been here for this long, so I’ll have to take their word for it. The temperature has dropped, but things feel… strangely normal.

I’m lucky now, because the past 9-10 months have been anything but normal. Somehow we’ve been allowed to keep operating and I’ve managed to build a sense of routine that feels steady, but could always be gone in the blink of an eye.

Yoga has moved from the beach and the turf to indoors (thankfully for me, because I can’t handle the cold). Restaurants and gyms are still open, so I can continue life as it was going in the summer. That gives me a nice sense of stability and I’m sorry if you’re wanting to do those things and cannot.

I’m still dreaming of kicking off a Zoom yoga class before the end of the year so that we can all practice together if you’re not here.

I’ve started teaching at another studio here, and there still has been time for restaurant life, sunset views, and a quick trip back home to take in the fall foliage.

And a small-sized Thanksgiving with my sister and her boyfriend. And when I say small, I mean the number of people; the menu was most definitely regular-sized.

We enjoyed making the most of a weird and distanced holiday.

I’ve officially become a New Jersey resident (gasp), which include not one but TWO trips down to the shortest line DMV in Cape May. The first time I was turned away for not having all the right materials, but I turned it into a beach day instead. The second time was more successful, and I visited Lucy on the way back:

This is the longest I’ve stayed in one place for a while. It feels safe and like some sort of a home. I’m waiting to discover next steps, but right now I’m happy to be here. And the sunsets have still been amazing, in case you were wondering.

The Best Laid Plans

This past weekend fell far short of my expectations.

My sister, Elayne, and her boyfriend, Will, were supposed to come visit me in Austin. They bought their tickets months in advance. I planned out our itinerary. I borrowed, inflated, and dressed an air mattress. I hung up tapestries and scarves over the windows of the "guest room" since the only mature adult home dweller has left and took her curtains with her. I went against all known habits and packed my suitcase to NY a week before departure. We even bought tickets to do yoga at the local cat cafe. My sister is a yogi, a cat mom, and a vet-to-be, so you can imagine her excitement about this event.

On Saturday morning, Elayne and Will drove to the airport. They waited and waited, hoping against more delays, until the icy weather canceled their flight. These are savvy travelers and problem-solving people, so they shrugged it off and got on another flight later in the day. On 0-2 hours of sleep, they waited, and, somewhat less patiently, waited again. Their second flight was canceled. With confidence, they booked themselves on a flight the next day and drove back to Will's apartment to catch up on much needed rest and sanity. The next day, they drove to the airport again, and waited, and sent me text messages of increasing annoyance, and waited some more. Their third flight was canceled.  They braved the swarms of irritated travelers and resisted urges to cuss out customer service employees, and were rewarded with spots on the list of stand by passengers headed to San Antonio later that night. After another day spent at Newark Airport, they stood at the gate, eager to find out if two empty seats would miraculously appear. They didn't. One did, and, like any kind and loving sister, I told Elayne to send Will on his own. He was most excited about good barbecue and breakfast tacos, which are far more scarce in this world than cats and yoga.

So, instead of putting in more hours on hold and in long lines, they decided not to risk another day in the airport for a one day visit to Austin, and I cannot blame them. I laid in bed, rolled around on my fascia-releasing tune up balls, drew cartoon pictures of pugs, and did all the stuff I normally do if I have extra free time when carefully drawn out activities go to waste. Sometimes our longest awaited visits and our most planned out fun never comes to be. The three of us counted our blessings, them building a stronger bond and having time to visit the tree at Rockefeller Center, and me going to cat yoga by myself. Then we started counting the few days til Christmas week when we would all be together again.

I can only hope that your winter travels go much more smoothly than theirs. Happy holidays to all!