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Friday’s Fresh Five! (5/28/10)

Posted in Travel, tagged , , , , , , , on May 28, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Traveling can be exciting and fun, but it can also be wearisome. Here are a few travel tips that can make your next long trip a little easier. By the way, for those of you who laughed or scoffed at my traveling medicine bag, let me just say that several items in it were needed and used during my recent trip to Greece!

#1 – Have iPad, Will Travel
The cell phone I carry is a generations-old flip phone and I do not own a laptop computer, so when I received an iPad for my birthday, I was delighted! It was the perfect distraction for this restless traveler during the long flights. I played games, read books and news, did crossword puzzles, listened to audiobooks and music, word processed, designed jewelry, and more! I also downloaded these helpful applications to it before leaving: calculator, weather, flight control, currency exchange, Greek translator, and wifi finder. The irony with the wifi finder is that you need wifi to employ the finder! If not for the fact that I had to stand on street corners in Athens to get adequate wifi, I would have enjoyed posting to my blog and checking my email more often. It’s an indulgent toy, but it made my trip more pleasant and my backpack lighter!

#2 – Oh My Aching Neck

I read about this tip in a travel magazine years ago and have since used it many times with great success. Buy a soft foam cervical collar from a drugstore or a medical supply store for about $15.00. It’s smaller, more compact, and offers more support than basic neck travel pillows. When dozing off, your head and neck are comfortably supported – 360 degrees around – in an upright position. Your head can tilt in any direction and your neck does not ache during long flights. Of course, you will need to get over the fact that you’ll look like a whiplash victim!

#3 – No Jet Lag Pills

One of my friends gave me a package of No Jet Lag Pills before I left home. I dutifully doled them out to me and my husband during our flights to Greece as directed. We arrived in Greece after a day’s worth of travel – tired, but still energetic enough to meet my daughter and her roommates for a late dinner and a rainy walk back to our hotel. On our return flight home, I accidentally packed the pills away in my checked luggage and could not dispense them. I’ve felt jet lagged for days now and wish I had taken them! The pills are made from homeopathic ingredients and can be purchased online.

#4 – Socks That Might Make a Difference
Before one of my trips to Asia, my doctor told me to buy compression travel socks and to make sure to put them on before boarding the aircraft. With their gradual compression, these socks stimulate blood flow and eliminate swelling of legs and feet. They are especially good when traveling for long periods of time, because when the muscles of the legs are inactive, blood can collect in the lower extremities and increase the risk of developing DVT or Deep Vein Thrombosis. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, when traveling for more than four hours you should :

* Get up and move around every two to three hours
* Keep hydrated and drink plenty of water
* Reduce alcohol or caffeine consumption
* Avoid crossing legs for long periods

These socks can be found in most travel stores or online.

#5 – The Most Important Trip
The most important trip you may take in life is meeting people halfway. ~Henry Boye

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There and Back Again

Posted in About me, Travel, tagged , , on May 24, 2010| 2 Comments »

As the plane touched the ground, cheers were heard amongst the group of weary travelers. Admittedly, I was one of those cheering to be back on U.S. soil after traveling in Greece for almost two weeks and being in transit for nearly twenty hours. I’m the type of person that the Concorde supersonic jet was built for – the type that needs to get from point A to point B as quickly as possible. Sitting and waiting do not seem to be among my strengths. I was probably one of those kids that sat in the back seat and asked “Are we there, yet?” Now that I’m back on my own terra firma and supervising fifty loads of laundry, I can take pause to reflect upon certain aspects of my trip.

My daughter has truly become an independent, self-assured young lady. She’s always been mature and independent, but her tenure abroad has added a new dimension to her confidence. She bravely went to Greece alone, made new friends, learned to speak and read some modern Greek – which is no easy task, excelled in her five difficult university courses, and with the ease of a seasoned traveler, she navigated her way around Greece, Bulgaria, Egypt, and Jordan. Her extensive knowledge of Greek history was evident as she proved herself a competent tour guide ushering me and my husband throughout the historic sites in the city of Athens. I listened intently as she spoke passionately about the economic and cultural issues of Greece – a country she vows to return to one day.

Whereas my daughter wants to be a world traveler, I discovered I really don’t enjoy traveling for extended periods of time. I am good for about ten days and then I start to get weary of the hustle and bustle and the lack of a good night’s sleep. Having been fortunate to have traveled a bit, I acknowledge that I’ve seen sights and sounds in parts of the world that other people only dream of. I would never trade my memories of visiting my dad’s village in China or of my first glimpse of the crystal clear, cerulean blue waters surrounding Bora Bora or of the charming little towns of Italy’s Cinque Terre, but at some point during all of these trips, the overall strain of traveling and sightseeing starts to overshadow the wonderment.

Dorothy said in the Wizard of Oz, “If I ever go looking for my heart’s desire again, I won’t look any further than my own back yard.” This morning as I sipped my tea, I gazed out of my kitchen window and looked at my backyard. With gazania, geranium, and begonia blossoms painting the garden with vivid splashes of color and carpet roses cascading over boulders like an undulating ribbon, I indulged myself a few moments to take it in. The scent of citrus blossoms wafted through the window and the sounds of water trickling from the fountain welcomed me home. Greece was wonderful to visit, but to me there’s no place like home.

Adventures in Greece – to be continued . . .

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Greek Adventures

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , on May 13, 2010| 1 Comment »


“All my bags are packed I”m ready to go . . .” and so goes the Peter, Paul
and Mary song that’s played in my head for the last several days as I prepared for a trip. In my head I must have packed my suitcase a dozen times, but In reality, I waited until the last minute. Packing light has never been my forte, but I was determined to be more of a free spirit this time. How much stuff do you need in Greece, anyway? Wish I had the “Devil may care” type of personality that allowed me to throw whatever into my suitcase and just take off. The packing “one” theory does not work for me, either. You know, one suitcase, one wrinkle proof jacket, one pair of perfect pants, one pair of comfortable, yet stylish shoes (isn’t that an oxymoron?), etc.

Shoes are always an issue for me. My whole wardrobe, whether it be for work or vacation, revolves around my feet. I’m a difficult fit to begin with – flat arches, thin as pancake feet, splayed and long toes, and narrow heels. So, in order to pack light, I had to jettison a lot of clothes and accessories, but I’m off to Greece with only one small suitcase and five pairs of shoes!

I’m hoping to write some short posts for my blog while I’m out and about discovering Greece through my daughter’s eyes. As they say in Greek, “Yah sahs!” or good bye for now! I’m leaving Boston now on a jet plane . . .
– Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Location:Boston,United States

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The Traveling Medicine Bag

Posted in About me, Health, Helping Others, Organization, Parenting, Travel, tagged , , , , , , on May 10, 2010| 1 Comment »


Pepto-Bismol? Check. Ace bandage? Check. This is me mentally going through the contents of my traveling medicine bag. Whenever I travel long distances, I grab my plastic travel bag that contains medications and first aid items. I’ve learned that when traveling you can’t always buy medications when you need them. For the most part, my medicine bag is ready to go at a moment’s notice; I do, however, review expiration dates before I leave and replace any items that have expired. Most of the time the contents of my medicine bag does not change, but it may vary depending on my destination.

Obviously I’m a detail-oriented person, but I’ve learned a lot about packing from my mother. Once when I was preparing for a trip to China, my mother told me, “Throw in some strapping tape and an Ace bandage.” I mumbled to myself, “Why do I need those things?” Being a dutiful daughter, I threw them into my bag. Traveling in China during the 1980s was restrictive. You could not deviate from the schedule and most certainly could not leave the tour group to run to the nearest drugstore to make a purchase. So sure enough when someone in my tour group fell down and sprained her ankle, I stuck my hand up in the air proudly and said, “I have an Ace bandage!” And later during the tour when someone’s suitcase tore, I volunteered, “I have strapping tape, if you need it.” Two out of two – never again have I doubted my mom’s packing advice!

While traveling with my children over the years, I’ve learned that unexpected issues can arise and it’s always better to be prepared. Because of this I’ve had to add items to my traveling medicine bag. I’ll never forget this experience: It was a lovely day in Hawaii and my husband, children, and I were enjoying a day out on the beach. My oldest son was building a sand castle when he stepped on a bee and got stung underneath his big toe. I grabbed my room key, which was a plastic credit card-type, and gently scraped across his skin to remove the stinger. As his foot began to swell, I reached for a chilled can of soda from our day pack and held it to the swelling. Once back in our hotel room, I applied hydrocortisone cream to the area and gave him a Benadryl tablet. Since we were in Hawaii, we could have easily run out to a drugstore, but having these items on hand, I was able to attend to his swollen foot without delay and prevented his symptoms from getting worse.

Like prescribed medications, I keep this medicine bag in my carry on luggage. To make the traveling medicine bag lighter, more organized, and more compact, I remove all medicine from their boxes. Then I dismantle the boxes until they are flat and make photocopies of the important information on them. I cut out the photocopied information and put them into sandwich-sized Ziploc bags along with the medication. Blister packs of medication work well, but If you have bulky pill bottles or Costco-sized containers, pour some pills into labeled (medication name, # of mg/per pill, dose, expiration date) small, jewelry-sized plastic bags before placing them into the sandwich bags with the instruction sheets. All sandwich-sized Ziploc bags then get placed into the traveling medicine bag. I probably would have made a great Girl Scout, because I am always prepared!

Linnell’s Traveling Medicine Bag:
Ibuprofen (Advil)
Acetaminophen (Tylenol)
Pepto-Bismol
Antidiarrheal (Imodium)
Decongestant
Antihistamine (Benadryl)
Hydrocortisone cream
Antibiotic ointment
Alcohol wipes
Assortment of bandages
Ace bandage
Blister pads or Moleskin
Digital thermometer
Dramamine or Sea Bands
Eye drops

If traveling overseas, I might add:
Antibiotics
Dental repair kit

Always read and follow the accompanying instructions on medications and always check with your doctor to see if there are any contraindications for any member in the family to take these drugs.

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Cookies to Go

Posted in In The Kitchen, Recipes, Travel, tagged , , , , , , on May 3, 2010| 1 Comment »

With airline food what it is (or isn’t) these days, I always pack my own food to eat when I travel. I used to take peanut butter and jelly sandwiches because of their nonperishable nature until I came across a “no-peanut flight.” All passengers on that flight, including my family, were asked to not carry aboard any food that contained peanuts or peanut butter, because a passenger with a severe peanut allergy was going to board the plane. Most people seemed to comply, but many were not too happy, especially when after boarding, bags of opened peanuts were found in seat pockets all over the plane! Someone forgot to tell airline housekeeping about the “no-peanut flight!” That said, my favorite travel fare usually includes some of the following: sandwiches made without mayonnaise, apples, oranges, beef jerky, granola bars, homemade trail mix, and always homemade cookies.

These buckwheat cookies with cacao nibs are among my favorite cookies to eat whether I’m traveling or not. I like the texture and taste that the buckwheat flour lends to the cookies. Because buckwheat is low in gluten, it works like cornstarch does in shortbread cookies; it produces a more compact and crunchy-textured cookie. As for the cacao nibs, small pieces of roasted cocoa beans, they give these cookies a nice crunch and a hint of chocolate flavor. An added bonus of these nibs is that they won’t melt during your trip like chocolate chips normally would. I purchase cacao nibs at Whole Foods. I like to add chopped walnuts to this recipe because they add protein and fiber – good things to have when traveling!

There are many variations of this recipe on the internet, but most seem to originate from the cookbook Pure Dessert by Alice Medrich. Here’s my adaptation of Ms. Medrich’s recipe:

Ingredients:
1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup buckwheat flour
1/2 lb. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/3 cup cacao nibs
1-1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, optional

Directions:
1. Whisk the all-purpose and buckwheat flours together in a medium bowl. Set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, with the back of a large spoon or with an electric mixer, beat the butter with the sugar and salt for about 1 minute, until smooth and creamy but not fluffy. Mix in the nibs and vanilla. Add the flours and the walnuts; mix just until incorporated. Scrape the dough into a mass and, if necessary, knead it with your hands a few times, just until smooth.

3. Form the dough into a 12 by 2-inch log. Wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or, preferably overnight.

4. Position the racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Line the baking sheets with parchment paper.

5. Use a sharp knife to cut the cold dough log into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Place the cookies at least 1-1/2 inches apart on the baking sheets.

6. Bake until the cookie are just beginning to color at the edges, 12 to 14 minutes, rotating the baking sheets from top to bottom and front to back halfway through the baking. Cool the cookies in the pans on a rack, or slide the parchment liners carefully onto the rack to free up the pans. Let cool completely. The cookies are delicious fresh but even better the next day. They can be stored in an airtight container for at least one month.

Makes about 2 dozen cookies

Note: After the cookies have cooled completely, I wrap them individually in plastic wrap, put them in a Ziploc bag and freeze them. Just before I leave the house, I grab them out of the freezer, throw them in my carry-on bag, and they’re good to go!

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Friday’s Fresh Five! ( 4/30/10)

Posted in Gardening, Handcrafted Cards, inspiration, Pets, Travel, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , , on April 30, 2010| 2 Comments »


With the temperatures warming up outside, it’s time to put on the sunscreen, drag out those tattered garden gloves, and sharpen those rusty shears. Picture how good it’s going to feel to reestablish those short sleeve and ankle sock tan lines while working up a sweat in the yard! Yeah, well maybe not today. Just got an iPad an hour ago and it’s redirecting my best intentions!

#1 – Time to Plant!
It’s that time of the year again when little vegetable plants nod in the breeze as we walk by them in the garden center. It can be confusing to know when the best time is to plant each type of vegetable, but The Garden Helper can help answer those types of questions. This site has a vegetable planting guide and tons of growing tips that are helpful to novice gardeners and experienced ones, as well. For someone like me, who could not live off the fat of the land, every little bit of advice helps!

#2 – Poisonous Plants
Last week I addressed foods that your pets should not eat. This week I’m focusing on plants that are potentially poisonous to your pets, cats and dogs specifically. The Humane Society of the United States has an extensive list that you can download as a PDF. Review the complete list so that you are familiar with plants in your yard that could be a potential problem. Here’s a short list of a few that are more commonly found in yards:

Azaleas – entire plant
Bird of Paradise – pods
Caladium – entire plant
Carolina Jessamine – flowers, leaves
Common Privet – leaves, berries
Daffodil – bulbs
Daphne – bark, berries, leaves
Day Lily & Easter Lily – entire plant is toxic to cats
Delphinium – entire plant, especially sprouts
English Ivy – entire plant especially leaves and berries
Foxglove – leaves
Iris – leaves, roots
Lantana – foliage
Laurels – leaves
Lupines – seeds, pods
Morning Glory – seeds, roots
Narcissus – bulbs
Oaks – shoots, leaves
Oleander – leaves
Philodendron – entire plant
Rhododendron – leaves
Sago Palm – entire plant, especially the seeds
Wisteria – pods, seeds

#3 – Eating at McDonald’s Around the World
My daughter recently told me about some meat-flavored potato chips she had in Egypt. That reminded me of this site which features McDonald’s cuisine from around the world. It’s interesting to see how McDonald’s caters to the local crowds.

#4 – The Snail’s Drink of Choice
I was reading a gardening article in my local newspaper and learned a few things about snails I had not known before. Did you know that snails can devour 30-40 times their weight, that they are hermaphrodites and thus can impregnate themselves or their partners, and last, but not least, that they love to drink beer? It seems snails are attracted to the yeast in beer, so go ahead and put out some shallow pans of beer so that those little guys can drown their troubles. But, beware, if you put out the wrong kind, they may not take the bait. According to research done at Colorado State University, snails tend to favor Kingsbury Malt, Budweiser, Bud Light, and Old Milwaukee brands. Light beer? Snails watch their weight?

#5 -Has Your Soul Bloomed, Yet?
If you’ve never been thrilled to the very edges of your soul by a flower in spring bloom, maybe your soul has never been in bloom.  ~Terri Guillemets

Today’s the last day of April which means tomorrow is May Day! Go ahead and dance around the maypole if you feel like it! Enjoy your weekend!

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