Craig's List Scammers - I Am on To You!

A while back I decided I wanted to sell my wedding dress. GASP! I know...While most people I know are very sentimental when it comes to wedding dresses, I decided that I want to remember mine as it was on the day of my wedding rather than see it 20 years from now yellow from time and in a box that cost me $200. And I am pretty sure that my future daughter or daughter-in-law will NOT want to wear this dress, no matter how classic I think it is. Styles change in 20 years and brides will probably be wearing catwoman white suits or wings by then...Who knows??

Also, I would get more joy out of knowing that someone who might not be able to afford this dress at the full price can wear it on her wedding day because she bought it cheaply from me. That seems to me like it makes for a better dress memory than a boxed yellow dress.

Anyhow...the first method I tried was Craigs List. This was clearly a mistake. I have received numerous "inquiries" from people trying to sell the same story: I am not local, I want to get the dress from my daughter/sister who is out of town but the size and cut seem to be a perfect fit; I want to pay through Certified Check and cover the shipping; please give me your address and phone number.

OH PLEASE!! I don't think it takes a rocket scientist to know that this has SCAM written all over it. Who in their right mind would buy a wedding dress from a stranger without seeing it in person? And pay by Certified Check? Who writes those anymore - not to mention that it takes 2 weeks for them to clear so I presume the idea is that once I get the check, they want the dress shipped. By the time I would realize the check won't clear, it would be too late.

So of course, I reply politely that I only deal with locals (which, btw is part of my ad) and that I can only do cash or PayPal transactions. Sure enough, I never hear back from them.

So imagine this - a group of people sitting around in a stinky basement sending such messages to people trying to sell stuff on Craigs List and trying to make an easy buck. PEOPLE, GET A REAL JOB, go to school or do something productive...and maybe LEGAL!

Following this experience, I decided my wedding dress will be sold on a website that might cost me $25 but at least I have a guarantee that I won't have to waste my time and energy with these losers....

Dog Days of Summer

Welcome to August, Virginia! What am I saying? Really, this whole summer has felt like August - hot and humid. And of course, we have the mandatory afternoon summer thunderstorms. Last week, the Thursday night thunderstorm broke a huge tree in our neighborhood, which took down an electric pole - with wires and all. The result? No power for half of the neighborhood from Thursday to Saturday night. Which half, you ask? Our half, of course.

What I missed the most was not the TV, Internet, or AC - but the fridge. When it is 82 degrees in your home, you really want a cold glass of water. But of course, tap had to do. We endured the heat for one night after which we migrated to our sister-in-law's house who was gracious enough to host us (her baby girl Leela kept us well entertained). These days without power really made me appreciate all the things that I normally take for granted: walking into my cool home, turning on the lights, TV/laptop, using our landline phone, and eating ice cream out of our freezer. It is hard to live without these things when you are simply addicted to them.

Other, more positive highlights of our summer include: the arrival of our first niece and Goddaughter, beautiful baby Leela, hosting guests from Austria/Romania, remodeling our master bathroom, attending a great wedding in the Duck, NC, hanging out with friends, enjoying produce from our garden and - of course - next weekend is our fourth annual Asssateague Island camping trip.

Happy Dog Days of summer everyone - and stay cool!

I'm Baaaack!

Happy summer! Only a few days till the "official" summer starts, but Jason and I have already enjoyed our summer vacation. We just returned from a long-awaited visit to Sibiu, Romania (with a detour through Hungary). It's been 3 years since I went home to Romania and this trip was everything we had wished for - and more.

We started our stay with a traditional Romanian wedding of a friend. 12 hours later we had eaten 5 courses, danced traditional Romanian dances and drank our fare share in celebration of the newly-weds.

We spent lots of quality time with my family - had grilling parties and a 3-day-stay at a cabin in the mountains. We ate everything under the sun, which in all honesty is usual for us:). We savored a lot of home-made dishes like sour soups, grilled meats and fresh salads, roasted potatoes with lots of mujdei, a garlic paste that is a specialty of my cousin Cristina; home made cakes and pastries; and in town we ate (almost daily) ice cream and crepes. All this was washed down with home-made wine from my grandma. A nice, semi-dry red with a wonderful aroma. Jason drank his weight in Tuica - he is a man's man. Hey, when in Romania, do like the Romanians, right?

We also took a 3 day trip to Budapest, Hungary with my mom and had a wonderful time. Jason treated us to a nice stay at a gorgeous Marriott on the Danube and we toured the city and ate our way through it (Gulash is a must, as well as kurtos kalacs, a delish pastry). I highly recommend visiting Budapest, I was very impressed. I also highly recommend visiting my home town, Sibiu, which has become a wonderful, beautiful place that has a lot of festivals going on during the summer.

Now that we are back in town, we return to work and our daily life. We have a few short trips planned for the summer including a 4th of July at our favorite location: Nancy and Bob's in the Northern Neck; a wedding which is expected to be fabulous in the Outer Banks and our fourth annual Assateague Island camping trip.

I also will be travelling a bit for work - next stop: Austin, Texas. Should be fun and I will def. have some BBQ and TexMex.

Here's to a fabulous summer for all!

Food Revolution

My new obsession is Jamie Oliver and his Food Revolution. I didn't know him very well before the show started, just bits and pieces. But after reading up on what he was able to accomplish in the UK, I was thrilled to hear that he was taking an interest in making a positive change in the US. God knows this country needs it - and not to mention how shameful it is that we need a Brit to come get things stirred up.

One of the most shocking things to me about the show was what kids eat at school. Having grown up in Romania, I was only in the US public school system for one year as a senior in high school and I knew how to make good choices for myself. Even so, I gained 13 pounds in one year. I know this was not ONLY due to the school lunches, but I am sure they played a part. When I see middle-schoolers who are obese and eat pizza for breakfast, it breaks my heart. What future are we setting them up for?

This is the first generation that is predicted to have a shorter life span than their parents. This is the 21st century, can't we do better than that in a developed country like the United States? No, dear USDA, french fries do not count as a serving of VEGETABLES!

I strongly support Jamie Oliver and all those who are FOR this Food Revolution, including First Lady Michelle Obama. We need to do better for our kids and ourselves - and in the process other benefits will follow, such as treating our planet better.

Today I found out that Jamie Oliver MIGHT be opening a Food Revolution kitchen in Washington DC in Penn Quarter. Right now it is just a rumour, but here you go: http://pqliving.com/?p=8343.

Here's to Jamie and to all those who want to make a difference in children's lives! Sign Jamie's petition here: http://www.jamieoliver.com/campaigns/jamies-food-revolution/petition.

Happy Earth Day!

Today we celebrate Earth Day and the goodness of what is Mother Nature. It is in fact the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, a celebration that is designed to inspire awareness and appreciation of the Earth's environment. Today it is important to remember that what we have and enjoy today is what we want to pass on to our children.

I will not get preachy but I wanted to take this opportunity to encourage you to educate yourself, your kids, your family and friends about the importance of being conscious of your every day actions. It's easy! Recycle, unplug things in your house that you are not using, reuse things as much as possible, buy local products, drive less. All these things make a huge difference.

Also, take the time to send this educational Earth Day ecard from Make an Impact. Make an Impact is my new project at the Pew Center on Global Climate Change where I work, focused on educating individuals about the actions they can take to make a positive difference for our Planet.

http://makeanimpact.pewclimate.org/earthday

Happy Earth Day everyone and thanks for making your impact today and every day!

Week Away

And by that, I don't mean vacation only. Last weekend Jason and I were in Florida for Todd and Megan's wedding. It was a lot of fun, because the Burkett cousins are awesome. We love visiting with them and hanging out.

The fun weekend was followed by the Pew Center conference that I have been working on for the past 6 months. It was great to see all that work come to fruition. It went really well, without a flaw really. It was incredible.

While in Chicago I also visited two friends: Kate from 'Cuse and Anca, a former high school classmate from Romania. It was so much fun to see both and catch up.

Now, I am home and it is time to plant our garden, so I think that is what we are doing this weekend.

I also want to send a shout out to Lynn and Eric on their anniversary - congratulations and to many many more years ahead.

OMG, the Government's Invading Our Lives. Damned Socialists!

This is so brillian and funny, I had to post. Thanks to a friend on Facebook.

"This morning I was awoken by my alarm clock powered by electricity generated by the public power monopoly regulated by the US Department of Energy. I then took a shower in the clean water provided by the municipal water utility. After that, I turned on the TV ...to one of the FCC regulated channels to see what the National Weather Service of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration determined the weather was going to be like using satellites designed, built, and launched by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. I watched this while eating breakfast of US Department of Agriculture inspected food and taking the drugs which have been determined as safe by the Food and Drug Administration.

At the appropriate time as regulated by the US Congress and kept accurate by the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the US Naval Observatory. I get into my National Highway Traffic Safety Administration approved automobile and set out to work on the roads built by the local, state, and federal departments of transportation, possibly stopping to purchase additional fuel of a quality level determined by the Environmental Protection Agency, using legal tender issued by the Federal Reserve bank. On the way out the door I deposit any mail I have to send via the US Postal Service and drop the kids off at the public school.

After work, I drive my NHTSA car back home on the DOT roads, to a house which has not burned down in my absence because of the state and local building codes and fire marshal's inspection, and which has not been plundered of all it's valuables thanks to the local police department.I then log on to the internet which was developed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Administration and post on http://www.facebook.com/l/d9770;freerepublic.com and Fox News forums about how SOCIALISM in medicine is BAD because the government can't do anything right."

Get a grip people!

STOP Screaming Against Health Care Reform

I normally don't post political conversations on the blog. Not that my political views are unknown, I think I make it pretty clear where I stand. But this ridiculousness related to health care reform in this country is driving me nuts. I am baffled by all those who oppose it - but not so much by the FACT that they are opposing it, but rather by HOW they are doing it.

Health care reform is not easy to do. If it was, another President would have taken it on earlier. We all know that it made President Clinton (not to mention Hillary Clinton) highly unpopular when they tried it. President Bush...well, he had another agenda (can you spell O.I.L and W.A.R?). Candidate Obama ran for President on the platform that he would take on these unpopular issues that no one wants to deal with because they are HARD and divisive - like health care reform, climate change, financial reform. And because they are hard to deal with and have been postponed for generations, we are now living in a country where even though we SPEND the most on health care, we have a VERY bad record of services and care; even though we are the "most powerful country in the world", the financial system is so corrupt, we might as well be living in Russia; and even though 95 percent of scientists agree that humans are impacting our world in a negative way, politicians close their eyes and are ok with not taking action because their constituents are ignorant.

As far as Republicans, well...I think they have been called the PARTY OF NO. And I have to give it to them - a TRULY brilliant PR approach to the upcoming November elections. We OPPOSED everything will be their slogan. But if people were smarter and better informed, they would know that DOING NOTHING will not change a thing. How long do they think they can last on this legacy of doing nothing?

I, for one, I am ready for this change. I don't want to be cut off by my insurance because of pre-existing conditions. I don't want to pay higher and higher premiums because the insurance company CEO wants a yacht in the Bahamas. I don't want to pay the health bill of all those who cannot get health insurance. I don't want children to not have access to doctors. Does that make me a socialist? Or a COMMUNIST?? Well, having grown up in a communist country, let me make it clear. Do some reading on what that really means people before you go out screaming that we are becoming a communist/socialist nation. You don't know what you are talking about.

So here's to health care reform. Get a real opposing platform or SHUT UP! I hope this current bill passes through Congress and makes a positive difference in this country. We deserve it!

The Blind Side

Dear Hollywood,

With everything going so wrong all around the world (wars, global warming, crazy people killing other people) I want to thank you for producing movies such as "The Blind Side". Not only is it a feel-good movie, but it is a real story of a man who endured a tough life, encountered people who could not have been more different than him who took him in and loved him for who he is, and then made it BIG! It is truly amazing to see that those good people are still out there.

Favorite moments: when Sandra Bullock's character does a smack down of the "country-club, I am so much better than you because I have a fake tan and pearls" women. Ohhhhh...how many times have we all wanted to do that??? I know I have!

Sandra's performance was indeed wonderful. I am not sure it was Oscar-worthy, but what the heck. I've enjoyed her in really bad movies too so this was definitely a best-in-career role for her.

So thank you Hollywood for making me feel better about the world.

PS: A shout out is necessary for Arlington Drafthouse, where you can watch a movie for $2 on Tuesdays and order beer and burgers at your own discretion. You rock and definitely add to the feel goodness of it all!

Happy St. Patrick's Day to all!

Update

We found the kitty's owner. All is right in the world again...It was surprising to all that I almost took this cat in, even though I am allergic. I guess I am not that tough with my animal policies when there is a bond:). That kitty knows she can always come back to my door for some yummy tuna fish!

Kitty Cat

I came home last night and found a lost kitty cat in our parking lot. She started "crying" and followed me to our patio. Now, everyone knows I am allergic to cats and not so much a proponent of indoor animals, unless they live in a cage or a fish tank. So, that makes this story even more surprising. I immediately felt I needed to take her in. So I picked her up (gasp...) and put her in our powder room. She started crying really bad so I fed her tuna fish and milk. She calmed down and was pretty content. However, I realized it might be a neighbor's lost cat. So I ran over to a neighbor's house who has two cats to consult her on my next move. Then I called my OPs (other parents) since they are animal lovers to ask their opinion too. Both Allison and the OPs told me to call the Alexandria Animal Shelter and see what they say. Meanwhile, I put the kitty outside in a cat carrier. She was not happy and scratched me up a storm. Ouch...The animal shelter people were very nice and told me that in VA there is no law that prohibits people from letting their cats out, without a tag. So it might just be a cat that is let out during the day but goes home at night. So, I let the cat out of the carrier and after hanging around the patio a few minutes, she went away. I thought - ok, she went home. 30 min later my neighbor Allison called and said the cat was on HER patio now. But we decided to leave her out for the night and observe.

This morning, as Jason and I were having breakfast at our kitchen island, we noticed the kitty cat at our door..crying, probably cold and hungry. So - here comes more tuna fish and sympathy from me. I am distributing posters today and sending an email out through the association. If no one claims her by tomorrow and she is still at our door tomorrow morning, I am taking her to the animal shelter. For some reason, even though I am allergic and not so much a cat person, I would totally adopt this animal...I'm nuts and a softie...but she is so cuteeeee!!!

Postcrossing

A month ago I decided that I needed to scale back my online communications efforts and focus more on in person/phone contact with my family and friends. I am proud to say that I have not touched Facebook for a month on Thursday. And yes, I will go back to being on Facebook because it is a great and easy way to connect with those with whom I would otherwise not connect with. But I will not let it become my number one means of communications if there is an alternative (phone/in person/even email).

Another step I have taken during this month is to become a Postcrossing member. If you don't know what Postcrossing is, check it out. I heard on the radio today that the US Post Office might scale back its delivery days from 6 a week to 5. It is all due to the fact that people do not write letters anymore. All we get is junk mail and bills (unless you are green like me and get everything via email). People don't even write using a pen anymore.

When I started this reconnection effort last month I had to think for a few seconds to remember the last time I actually WROTE with a pen and not with a keyboard. How ridiculous is that?? I decided right then and there that I will not let my hard work in Caligraphy class go to waste, nor the US Post Office run out of business. So I signed up for Postcrossing, a site that allows me to connect with people all over the world by sending and receiving hand written post cards. This brought back so many memories from childhood when I had pen pals all over in Romania and later in the U.S. It was a thrill to come back from school and find a post card or letter from a friend on my desk.

Yesterday I received my first post card frmo being part of the Postcrossing network. It came from a small town outside of Oxford. I was so happy to have something fun between all the junk in my mail box. I have now sent 4 post cards to Germany/Netherlands/Finland and Slovakia - how cool is that?? And I am slowly getting my caligraphic hand back.

I am thankful for all the things that I have realized during my Facebook-less month. Here's to not losing the art of hand writing and not letting the US Post Office go virtual!!

Mărţişor

Happy spring and more importantly Happy Mărţişor everyone! What, you mean you don't know what that is??? Relax, unless you are from Romania, Moldova, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Albania or Italy, you wouldn't know.

Martisor is a beautiful tradition in celebration of spring. The name Mărţişor is the diminutive of the name for March (Martie, in Romanian), and thus literally means "little" or "dear March". It is also the folk name for this month.

Mărţişor is a name for a red and white entertwined string that usually is attached to a small pendant and worn by women during the first 12 days of spring. In today's world the Mărţişor is a sign of friendship and love, while in the past it carried the meaning of a talisman: whoever wears one will be healthy and happy for the year to come.

I am wearing a Mărţişor today - and will wear a different one for the next 12 days - thanks to my mom, who brought a shoebox full of martisoare two years ago. I have about 100 of them - some dating back to my early school years when it was VERY fun and exciting to receive a martisor from the boy you liked in class! I had so much fun going through all of them last night, it brought back a lot of dear memories from home.

So here's to long and beautiful spring and a healthy and happy year to come! Happy Mărţişor !

We Are Officially Famous:)

Check us out (and the Make an Impact Web site) here: http://makeanimpact.pewclimate.org/. I feel so fortunate to work at the Pew Center on Global Climate Change where people try to make a difference every day. And...not in the money-making way, either.

Early 2010 in Pictures

The newest addition to the Americano-Romanian crowd - and already the life of the party!

















Family and friends in 3D








At the Reading Terminal Market in Philly with Uli.










In Philly with the Ulis.












People were skiing on Van Dorn Street during Snowmagedon 2010...















Fun snow days.

Time Square after watching West Side Story on Broadway.

With great friends in NYC.

Philly

We spent time with our German friends, Uli and Uli, in Philadelphia this weekend. The City of Brotherly Love. Or so they say. While we really enjoyed the food and sights, we didn't so much enjoy the people we encountered. There were a lot of rude people. More than I ever met in NYC. Is that possible??

Regardless, one of the best places we spent time in is the Reading Terminal Market. It is an amazing indoor market where you can find anything from hot pancakes and freshly roasted turkey sandwiches to lobsters, cheese, Amish bread and baby books. All in an enclosed space that beautifully mixes together the smells of a European-style market. We browsed through the stands and enjoyed an Amish-made brunch.

I highly recommend this place if you ever stop by Philly. Oh, and don't forget the cheese steak. We had one downtown and while I felt my arteries clogging it was so worth it!

Here's to the City of Brotherly Love - and to friendlier inhabitants in the future.

Ready for Spring

Jason said I got what I asked for: a lot of snow this winter. We played in it, we ate it, we made snow angels and we cleaned it off our cars and patio (a few times). Now I am OFFICIALLY ASKING FOR SPRING! Thank you.

A Few Things

1. Life will be tough once the Olympics end. Jason and I are addicted.


2. My mission organization continues - I have organized all my greeting/birthday/Xmas/note cards and have a few glass jars to fill for the pantry. It makes my life make sense. If everything else fails, I really think I could dab into being a professional organizer.


3. I am giving up sweets for Lent. As my husband highlighted, it will be ROUGH. I have developed a sweet tooth since the holidays and it is time to nip it in the butt. So, along with spiritual cleansing, I am attempting a physical cleansing too. Plus, we have a wedding to attending FL at Easter, so how perfect would it be to be in bathing suit shape by then? That might not be the point of lent, but it I think it helps with the motivation!

4. We are headed to Philly this weekend to spend time with our German friends - the Uli's:). Guaranteed fun!

5. We'd like to send a shout out to Baby Claire, Tom and Colleen's baby girl who was born this week. Welcome to life, it's a crazy ride!

Here's to a great weekend for all and an easy Lent.

A Week of Snow

Many records have been broken in the past week in the DC area: amount of snow, days of closed federal government, and maybe even consecutive days spent at home with hubby, doing nothing but eating, watching TV, playing in the snow, and doing legit work on my new laptop. It was fun while it lasted! We were fortunate in that we did not lose power - except for 3 minutes last Friday (long enough to throw me in a panic and to receive obscene text messages from neighbors).

Now it's back to the grind - although we are looking forward to a long weekend that will be spent recovering from snow, Jason's cold and enjoying Valentines Day. Oh and looking forward to yet another long weekend next week when we meet our German friends Uli and Uli in Philadelphia.

2010 is off to a great start!

Here's to a continued good year and Happy Valentines Day to all!

Too Connected or Not Connected Enough? Aka the Facebook Disease

For the past few days my sometimes-long/sometimes-short drives to and from work (depending on traffic) have allowed me to think about how I connect with people.


This topic has long been on my mind. Having grown up in a society where your best girlfriend knows EVERYTHING about you (bra and panty size included) and you are connected at the hip, whether you are young or old, I now live in a society where most people are more reserved and private. And yes, while there are still those who have those relationships, most people have a lot of friends and acquaintances with whom we share a somewhat diluted closeness level - very different than what I am accustomed to.

One thing to add to this is today's electronic world. I have never been a phone person myself, preferring in person contact. But adding email and texting into the mix and lately I myself obsessed with checking email, Facebook and blogs - all electronic ways of feeling connected...but not really. While it is fun and definitely important to know what the most popular chick in high school is up to nowadays (waitress??), I know it really does not add any value to my life or to my existing relationships. I think I am connected, I feel like I am connected, but in reality that is very far from the truth. Nothing can be said on Facebook that cannot be said in person or on the phone. It might not reach all those people, but ... do we really need it to reach all those people??

So, as of tomorrow, Feb 4, I am taking a pledge to call people more and visit in person, rather than stalk online and send emails/text messages. I also pledge to not use Facebook unless it is for work (yes, we have two Facebook accounts people!) for a month. The point of this is not to be disconnected, but rather to try to be TRULY more connected with people.

What do you think, will I make it??

The Help

While I was in school I admit that most of my reading was school-related. Both my undergraduate and graduate work was done in reading-intensive topics (international studies, public relations/communications) so reading for fun just was not an option. But since graduating into the 9-5 world, my passion for reading has transferred to fun/educational/self-picked reads. I have participated in several book clubs and really enjoy reading at least a few pages before bed every night.

The book I just finished (on loan from my OM, Lynn) was really enlightening so I decided to write a few lines about it.

Titled "The Help" and written by a first-time novelist Katheryn Stockett, it portrays the life of white people and their African-American house help in Jackson, Mississippi during the civil rights movement. I found this book fascinating for two reasons:

- first, I grew up in Romania, a country made of 99.9% caucasians, with very little to no exposure to other ethnicities and cultures. This books made me feel like I was a fly on the wall of that time, providing insights not only into the life of whites and how they treated their African-American help, but also into the lives of the African-American community at the time.

- the second reason that makes this book interesting is that it is written in the voices of three women: two amazing African-Americans (Aibileen and her best friend Minny) and a white, country-club-raised young woman named Skeeter who chooses to break the mould of the time and tell the stories of these women who raise children, cook, clean and make the world go-round in the white community without even having access to the same bathroom. What mostly stood out for me is the love that these hard-working women felt for the white children they took care of every day, most times at the expense of their own children.

This book is a GREAT read and I highly recommend it. It is smart, well written, painful and beautiful all at the same time.

A New Level of Organization

This morning I watched a video on CNN.com about Leslie C., who has planned her family's dinners for the whole year. EVERY NIGHT FOR A YEAR! I call that impressive. Not only has she been saving money on groceries, eating out less, but she also doesn't feel the panic that comes across women around 4 pm when they are trying to figure out what to feed the family for dinner.

This made me think about my own habits and I realized that I am not as organized in my meal planning as I would like to be. For the past two weeks we have been eating salads every night in an effort to lose a few holiday pounds. But regularly, I like to keep things a bit more diverse.

So, I am embarking on renewed effort to be more organized in this part of my life. Starting today, I will plan meals 1 week in advance. And since I usually shop on the weekends, I will make my lists/plan on Thur/Fri for the week ahead.

Sunday night:
Home made everything pizza and salad

Monday
Broiled fish with lemon/onion/tomatoe topping and veggie medley

Tuesday
Asian chicken with red peppers and onions
Rice
Salad

Wednesday
Leftovers as burittos
Salad

Thursday
Slow cooked pulled pork sandwiches with pickels

Friday
Leftover pulled pork over rice and veggie medley

Saturday
Friends dinner out

Here's to hoping that it sticks!!