Rhythm

I watched her fold her laundry.  She did it with slow intent, present with every motion.  I watched and I watched, falling in love with this slow beautiful rhythm as each piece of laundry was smoothed, caressed and folded.  It was a poetry I had never seen before.

I knew this woman but I had not always had the kindest thoughts towards her.  She teaches line dancing and she never seemed to be quite on the beat or rhythm, always moving slower than the music.  Such a challenge!  But eventually the class would find some beat to the music that we could all connect to and by the middle of the song we would all be in synch.

You see, she has Parkinson's, a condition which affects the motor system with one of the symptoms being slow movement.  Some of her days are better than others and on a really bad day she will step aside and allow her husband to lead the class.  Her rhythm will be too slow for the faster pace of the music.  But she will watch and step in to help the beginners in the class, slowly going through each step until it is mastered.

There is a different ease to this dis-ease, a presence few of us master in our more fast paced lives. My aunt also has Parkinson's and I wonder if they are here on this earth to specifically show us how to slow down, to slow down our conversations, to slow our actions, to be present in each and every moment.  And to even be more present as we fold our laundry.

3-2-1

The women at the pool talk about food.  They talk about it a lot.  They are the ones that inspired me to use my convection oven for the first time, a good thing, and to buy my first jar of Nutella, not such a good thing.  But they did pass along a recipe that I think should be passed along again.  It is called 3-2-1.

Mix together a box of cake mix (any kind or flavor will do, I chose Devil's Food) with a box of angel food cake mix.  I mixed it all together in a large ziplock which is easier for me to store.

Then here is the simple part:

3 - add 3 tablespoons of the dry mix to a coffee cup or ramekin
2 - add 2 tablespoons water to the dry mix and stir
1 - bake it in the microwave for 1 minute

That's it!  Even I can remember this simple recipe.  Put whatever you want on top.  That is where that jar of Nutella comes in handy.

Coffee Cup

Perfect Little Cake

They told me I can experiment and make up-side down cake or a multitude of variations, but I think I will stick with the original 3-2-1.  Doesn't get any easier.

Only One Rule

Looks Kinda Like This, Without the Ref on the Side

An outdoor swimming pool is my number one requirement for my winter residency.  I love to swim and bask in the sun so an indoor pool won't do it for me.  Gotta have an outdoor pool.

And now I have discovered a new activity...water volleyball.  I don't know how much fun it would be at another park because at this park, there are no Rules.

There may be a set-up from the back to the front; a set-up from the front to the back; a set-up that travels horizontally down the line; one person may hit the ball as many times as they like and your team can hit the ball as many times as it takes to get it over the net.  Just when you think the ball is dead someone will scoop it out of the water and the play will continue.  You may hit the ball under the net while it is still on the other team's side.  No Rules!  I laugh and laugh as it will sometimes bounce off someone's head or get completely lost in the sun and land in no man's land.  There is a lot of floundering and a lot of excuses: "The ball was slippery!", "It was Vic's ball!" "I was setting you up!" "I can't breathe and play at the same time!" and a lot of yelling "It was out!".

I am a die hard and will play on just about any day.  The pool is heated but some days it has been bitterly cold getting in and out with cold temperatures and the wind blowing.  On a good day, the teams can be stacked with 7-9 players on each side.  On one of those cold days, we were happy to have 4-6 on each side.  It is just too much fun to miss one of the two days per week we play and so I am almost always there.

Oh, but there is one Rule.  And that one Rule is, Don't Hurt The Old People.