Sheron Long's Blog, page 14
June 19, 2018
A Dog’s Tale of Travel Adventure
Halfway between Auckland and Wellington, Mt. Ruapehu is
the center point of New Zealand’s North Island.
© Joyce McGreevy
Lost and Found in
Ohakune, New Zealand
This is the tale of a little toy dog, a New Zealand forest, and the power of Kiwi kindness.
Once, a Traveler took a journey through New Zealand. While traveling south by train, she visited Ohakune.
Why Ohakune? asked a man from A Big City. The Traveler wasn’t sure. She only knew it would break up the 12-hour rail journey.
It’s the wrong season, said City Man. Ohakune is a ski town. Do you ski?
No, said the Traveler. She could see that this was the wrong answer.
Accompanying the Traveler was a little toy dog that mature types might call a “travel mascot.” The Traveler called him Bedford.
People with a sense of fun enjoyed meeting Bedford.
Bedford studies the map of Ohakune, Ruapehu, New...
June 11, 2018
Ultimate Paris Elegance: The Secret Dinner in White
How do you keep a party of 17,000 secret?
© Meredith Mullins
Cultural Traditions of Dîner en Blanc
To the north, the Grand Palais glows in the twilight. To the south, the golden dome of Invalides dominates the sky. To the west, the Eiffel Tower peeks out above the trees. And, in a 360-degree panorama, everywhere there is a sea of white elegance.
Where are we?
We’re at the 2018 Paris Dîner en Blanc.
Surrounded by Paris history
© Meredith Mullins
Shhh. It’s a Secret
Just an hour before the dinner began, the secret venue for this annual adventure was revealed. The groups that were waiting in various gathering spots around the city were told where the fashionable event for 17,000 would be held.
Let the party begin—this year at the Esplanade des Invalides.
A “neighborhood gathering” on the Esplanade des Invalides
© Meredith...
May 29, 2018
Walking New Zealand
Glenorchy in New Zealand’s South Island is a gateway to many spectacular hiking trails.
© Joyce McGreevy
The Wordplay of Pathways
Everyday English reflects the wordplay of pathways. We speak of “getting off track,” or taking “the path of least resistance.” We express disappointment as being “led up the primrose path.” We tell new friends, “I’m glad our paths crossed.”
Glenorchy’s boardwalk takes birdwatchers into the wetlands.
© Joyce McGreevy
In New Zealand, a walker’s paradise, pathways crisscross language and the land like skeins of light. Ancestors of the Maori walked the entirety of the country naming landforms and waterways. Today, walking is the Kiwi way, from short local bush walks to the 1,900-mile Te Araroa (“Long Pathway”).
Kiwis Walk the Talk
Here, walking is no mere footnote. Surveys show that for New...
May 21, 2018
Ten Fun Facts About Chocolate
The appeal of chocolate . . . worldwide
© Viennetta/iStock
Cultural Traditions of a World Favorite: The Cocoa Bean
There is nothing better than a good friend, except a good friend with chocolate.—Linda Grayson
Chocolate is high on the favorite list of many people. It soothes stress, is a weapon against depression, heightens awareness, elevates mood, and rouses passion. It is the choice of many as the answer to “What one thing you would take with you if stranded on a desert island?”
The art of chocolate (artisanal pieces from Joséphine Vannier in Paris)
© Meredith Mullins
However, we rarely stop to think about the labor-intensive international process that brings chocolate to our ready-and-willing taste buds. And few of us know about its 4000-year-old dramatic history and the legacy of its cultural traditions.
So, here are some “Oh, I see”...
May 14, 2018
The Lucky Language of Fortune Cookies
What wisdom can a cookie bring?
© Comstock Images/Stockbyte
Can Cookie Proverbs and Sayings Change Your Life?
We are often drawn to a peek at the future, whether fueled by fact or fantasy, proverbs or sayings, instinct or reason.
We shake the Magic 8 Ball to answer our important YES/NO questions and get answers such as “Signs point to yes,” “Outlook not so good,” or the annoyingly evasive “Reply hazy. Try again later.” (Was this a forerunner to sassy Siri?)
We sit in silence between worlds with our Ouija board and call on the spirits to guide us. We have our palms read or consult our horoscopes.
Many ways to glimpse the future
© iStock
We study the colorful tarot cards for a glimpse of meaning about the past, present, and future, with messages from The High Priestess, The Hermit, The Magician, or The Wheel of Fortune.
Perhaps the most common oracle in...
May 7, 2018
Time Travel Adventures
There are many ways to fly to Queenstown, New Zealand.
© New Zealand Tourism
Finding New Perspective
in New Zealand
Do you remember Tuesday, April 3, 2018? I don’t. I never experienced it.
No, I didn’t forget to set the alarm.
© iStock/WebSubstance
Nope. Wasn’t in a coma.
© iStock/Astrid860
I just had one of those time travel adventures.
Crossing the Line
Every day, thousands of westbound airline passengers leapfrog over an entire day. They take off from, say, Oakland on a Monday and land in Auckland on a Wednesday.
Yet only 14 hours have passed.
Which really crosses a line.
No, really. It’s what happens when you cross the International Date Line. The line is imaginary, but the effects are real.
Global Gazing
Remember when everyone’s home had a globe? In the 1960s, advanced technology meant that through the magic of electricity and a...
April 30, 2018
Healthy Recipes for Your Body and Spirit
A tribute to healthy eating: Spinach and polenta gratin
A Cultural Encounter with Healthy Eating
Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you who you are—Brillat-Savarin
Our eating habits and cooking strategies often reveal something about us.
Since I find this revelation to be true for myself, I’m sharing a story about inspiration . . . and how eating and cooking patterns can be influenced after experiencing life-changing OIC moments.
Wild herb soup—made with nettle, dandelion, and wild garlic
© Meredith Mullins
A Fasting Tale
Full disclosure. I am not a cook. I am also not a particularly healthy eater, which I conveniently blame on genetics. However, twice a year I go to the Buchinger-Wilhelmi clinic in Germany for a cleansing fast. (See OIC story.)
I come away with much more than a new lightness of being (physical, mental, and spiritual), a rested digestive...
April 24, 2018
The Dogs on the Bus
Dog’s Rule! is a (p)awesome bus service based in Sullivan’s Gulch, Portland, Oregon.
© Joyce McGreevy
Creative Thinking for Canines
in Portland, Oregon
Driving with a 12-pack isn’t usually the smartest idea. But when the “12-pack” is a dozen adorable dogs, it’s genius.
Meet creative thinker Meg Vogt, affectionately known as the Dog Bus Lady of Sullivan’s Gulch. When Meg launched Dogs Rule, a bus service for dogs in Portland, Oregon, the locals really got on board.
The dogs on the bus go woof-woof-woof all around the town—en route to leash-free parks.
© Ryan LaBriere @LabrierePhoto
Dogged Devotion
Throughout her life, Meg has solved canine challenges that would overwhelm most people.
Consider Mr. Diego.
Viciously attacked as a puppy, Mr. Diego was soon making his mark on the world—specifically on its inhabitants....
April 16, 2018
Glass Floats? Finders Keepers!
Several times a year glass floats like these are hidden along Lincoln City’s shoreline.
© Joyce McGreevy
A Cultural Tradition on the Oregon Coast
No one sees them, but dozens of Float Fairies roam this seven-mile stretch of the Oregon coast. Several mornings a year these anonymous volunteers stroll the shores of Lincoln City, carefully placing glass treasures among driftwood and seagrass. Soon, the Float Fairies blend in with us mere mortals who have come in search of these treasures.
Finders Keepers, a popular treasure hunt for handcrafted glass floats, originated in Lincoln City. Now in its 19th year and inspiring imitators, the event grew out of a cultural tradition.
Finders Keepers runs from mid-October to Memorial Day.
Treasures may include glass sand dollars, shells, and sea stars.
© Joyce McGreevy
Today, visitors come from all over, seeking their own...
April 9, 2018
Meet the Challenge: Escape Rooms of the World
Everyone loves a challenge.
© demaerre/iStock
Cultural Encounters, Adrenaline, and Life Lessons—All in a Day’s Fun
I couldn’t help but get excited. Maybe a little nervous. I’d heard about it. I’d read about it. People had described the experience in a way that was seductive and sense-heightening. It was time to go for it. To see for myself.
Of course, I’m talking about escape rooms—the newest game phenomenon taking root around the world and offering cultural encounters of the mind-challenging kind.
Escape rooms are more than just a game, though. They’re theatre, mystery, teamwork, logic, puzzle solving, deciphering, intellectual sport, and, most of all, real-life fun.
Sherlock’s violin sets the stage.
© Richard Green/Exodus Escape Room
You’re Sherlock Holmes, Harry Houdini, Indiana Jones, Nancy Drew, Inspectors Poirot and Clouseau,...
