Dos Idiomas - Two Languages -» A Tale of Two Students in New Jersey -» Page 2

Another New Beginning

Posted by OfeliaNJ on December 5, 2011 at 2:10 pm chicken, dinner, event, Facebook, family, fish, food, Latino, Lesli, salad, school, tropical, Twitter, wedding, wife 3 Responses » Tagged with: chicken, dinner, event, Facebook, family, fish, food, Latino, Lesli, salad, school, tropical, Twitter, wedding, wife

Dec 052011

You may have seen my update on Facebook or Twitter:

It’s not Christmas but Arthur gave me something sparkly.

After Thanksgiving dinner, while the rest of the family lounged over dessert, Arthur suggested we move to the living room. He gave me a beautiful engagement ring, which made me lose my breath and giggle like a little girl. I ran to the dining room and flashed the ring. The adults refused to believe it until Arthur proposed loud enough for them to hear. We all hugged, some of us got emotional. We all floated away from the table happy and excited. I later learned, Arthur had Lesli approve the ring before presenting it to me.

The next morning it started to hit me. I AM GETTING MARRIED! I have to plan a wedding. Correction, we have to plan a wedding. I have to juggle my work schedule while finishing this semester, then Spring 2012, at least, before becoming Arthur’s wife (or as Latinos say, la señora de Arturo). Add in Arthur’s work schedule and we have a lot to coordinate while planning for the joyous event.

There are so many things to be planned, purchased, paid for, positioned. Every time I turn around it seems another item is added to the list.

So far we have decided a few things:

Ceremony location – the place where we met.
Colors – ocean and sand (shush, it’s better than blush and bashful in Steel Magnolias).
Theme – tropical, beach, relaxed.
Wedding date – early summer, after school ends for me and the children we want in the procession.

Invitations and printed items are still to be decided. Call me a digital bride, I fail to understand the need for tissue over the invitation. I also wonder about response cards. So many people call, text or email with questions. Enclosing these extras with the invitation seems a bit unnecessary unless the menu has choices like beef, chicken or fish. Which leads me to:

The reception menu is still to be decided. So far we know we want to share our favorite foods. We both enjoy sushi, barbecue, pasta, rice, seafood, pastries, cakes, you name it. This also leads to another sticky point:

We will not serve liquor during our reception, except perhaps for the toast.

As I mentioned above, so many things I never considered are now becoming important. What seems most important right this minute is to practice the following phrase, maybe use it two times a day during the planning and decision time:

I need to check with Arthur on that.

Been Gone Too Long

Posted by OfeliaNJ on October 18, 2011 at 10:55 am blog, book, church, Facebook, giveaway, Lesli, love, mom, school, Twitter, week 3 Responses » Tagged with: blog, book, church, Facebook, giveaway, Lesli, love, mom, school, Twitter, week

Oct 182011

Too long? Dang right too long! The time is now one month since my last post, and probably my post before that was a month earlier.

Instead of blogging, or using Facebook and Twitter, my time has been spent unplugged. My phone has been on silent or turned off for church, for class, for work. Late nights, early mornings, rushing or taking off my shoes to enjoy the feel of warm carpet.

There have been days where I completely forgot to turn on my computer, respond to emails, open my postal mailbox or check voicemails. On those days, I ask Lesli to do certain things. This is not a perfect system but it keeps me more sane than if I tried to handle every single detail of the day. Not long ago I would have tried doing everything myself, but I learned and re-learned the lesson until it sank in: if mom’s not happy, then nobody’s happy.

I have been mostly smiling – except for the times I giggle like a schoolgirl or get buried in textbooks. I write school assignments in my notebook, then draft blog posts in my head. I have WAY TOO MANY goodies in the house from events I have attended, and scribbles everywhere about how to arrange a giveaway. Or several giveaways. So here I am, starting back at the beginning.

Hi. My name is Ofelia. I started college in the fall of 2010, found love this past summer, then said goodbye to my thirties last month. My days are crazy, and my evenings too. Some days I leave my class notes at home and carry a notebook full of empty pages. Some days I carry too many books because my bag “always feels this heavy” and still manage to forget my calculator at home. Sometimes I carry my bookbag on the weekends because I do not want to go find another bag. I misplaced my lip balm last week so now when my lips feel dry I reach for an almost sheer lipstick.

What do you think? Can you forgive me for being gone so long? Will you be cranky when I disappear again for a while – when exams and papers attack all at once? Do you have any news to share?

Is she a Jersey Girl? Wordless Wednesday

Posted by OfeliaNJ on September 14, 2011 at 1:12 pm landmark, New Jersey, New York, school, walk, ww - Wordless Wednesday 3 Responses » Tagged with: landmark, New Jersey, New York, walk, ww - Wordless Wednesday

Sep 142011

I know for some this will be controversial, but that makes zero difference to me.

As a child I remember a school trip, where we walked up all the stairs to the top. For a while it was almost impossible to even stand next to her. Now you can make plans to visit her.

I tell people the reason New Yorkers can see her so well is because she is on the New Jersey side of the Hudson River. Of course, my friend Chela knows the technical details of the Supreme Court decision establishing jurisdiction, something about underwater or dry land was involved in there.

Where do you stand? Is she a Jersey girl, a New York landmark or (fill in the blank)?

Jersey Girl - Photo from McDonald's Billboard

The Phases of the Moon

Posted by OfeliaNJ on September 10, 2011 at 10:37 am fresh start, week No Responses » Tagged with: fresh start, week

Sep 102011

I know, a few weeks have passed since my last blog item. I have a giveaway post – and a box or two of goodies – to share with you. While I get my thoughts and shipping materials together, here is a guest post.

In the past, the moon was my companion on many late nights when I couldn’t think clearly. Now I look up and see the moon smiling at me. My favorite thing is how the phases of the moon are predictable, including a renewal and fresh start. I think this is a great post to share on my birthday!

Read below for what to call the different shapes and phases of the moon. Hint: None of them are “skinny moon”!

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

This was written by PsychicSource. Since 1989 this trusted psychic network offers variety of readings from a tarot reading to a past life reading to people in need of life advice, spiritual guidance and various other questions. Their online psychic chat is available 24/7.

Lovers do it, sailors do it, and children do it too. It’s called Moon-gazing. Our attraction to the moon has gripped us since the beginning of time. But the moon does more than just sit pretty in the sky. It’s busy orbiting the earth, and while doing so offering different views for us to enjoy.

As the earth and its moon rotate around the sun, the sunlit portions of the moon display the familiar shapes of the full moon, new moon and the crescent shaped moons.

Throughout its revolution around the earth, the moon goes through eight stages within roughly a 28-day period. The eight stages of the moon are as follows:

New Moon
At all times the sun is illuminating exactly half of the moon. With a new moon, the entire portion that is illuminated is on the backside of the moon, the side we cannot see. At this point the moon is positioned between the earth and the sun.

Full Moon
At the full moon, the moon is positioned between the earth and sun just as it is during the new moon but on the opposite side of the earth. The sunlit part of the moon is facing us while the shadowed portion is hidden from view.

First & Third Quarter Moon
Half moons, both the first quarter moon and third quarter moon, occur when the moon is at a 90-degree angle with the earth and sun. When this happens we see exactly half of the moon illuminated and half in shadow.

Waxing Crescent
The waxing crescent phase is when the moon is less than half illuminated and expanding in illumination giving it a crescent shape. This waxing moon occurs after the new moon.

Waxing Gibbous
The waxing gibbous moon is when the moon is more than half illuminated. It occurs after the first quarter when the sunlit portion is increasing.

Waning Gibbous
After the full moon, the light continually decreases. The waning gibbous phase of shrinking or decreasing in illumination occurs next.

Waning Crescent
The waning crescent moon follows the third quarter phase. During this time the light becomes less visible until it is gone and a new moon appears.

The moon’s orbit about the earth varies approximately 5 degrees from the earth-sun orbital plane. Subsequently, a full moon does not block the sun. However, a solar eclipse occurs when the moon, during a full moon phase, blocks the sun or part of it. A lunar eclipse occurs when the earth casts a shadow on the moon, which can also only happen during the full moon phase.

When is the last time you looked at the moon?

Say What 4 – Not Quite Bilingual – Wordless Wednesday

Posted by OfeliaNJ on August 24, 2011 at 6:50 am mom, New York, walk, ww - Wordless Wednesday No Responses » Tagged with: mom, New York, walk, ww - Wordless Wednesday

Aug 242011

This past Saturday, I spent the day with Ruby of Growing Up Blackxican. It was a mommys-only outing, and we giggled about all kinds of things. We walked and talked, spotting people and things that are so very “only in New York”, such as an extravagantly dressed man in the subway (we raised our eyebrows) and a truck full of antiques (we got photos).

What got my biggest laugh was this psychic’s signs – because “reader and advisor” are fancy words even before the font change. So I got this photo for Wordless Wednesday. How many mis-spellings can you find, aside from the one I copied?

Say What 4

Older Entries Newer Entries