Member of the Week! Update from a Past Member

Sue recently sent me an update and I thought I would share with everyone! And she also participated in the "Member of the Week" questions that I sent her. :)

Hello all,
Attached is the link to the most recent photo updates of our travels. This includes 15 new photos from our winter vacation in Paris and Chamonix, France. We spent our New Years Eve at the foot of the Eiffel Tower with a bottle of cheap French Champagne. A few days later I was able to convince Sue for a 700 step climb to the middle of the tower our last night in Paris. After Paris we went by train to Chamonix, at the base of Mont Blanc. This small town is a winter paradise and is where the first Winter Olympics was held. The views from the top of the Alps were made possible by the Augille du Midi telecabine, a suspended cable car that took us to the top, we did not climb it. At the top of the peak the photos try to reflect how cold it was by showing that the snow would freeze sideways on to any stable object. The temperature was roughly -30 Farenheit with the wind, quite cold.
In the near future you should be seeing some photos from Tuscany, but until then enjoy these.

Photos - http://www.panoramio.com/user/2761632

Enjoy,
Garrett and Sue

Hi Karina,

How are you? Sorry it took me forever to get back to you, but hope you and all the book club girls are doing well. I miss being able to talk about books with all of you. I enjoy getting the blog updates, especially because I've been working at the library on the base and a lot of your selections end up being requested by the library patrons soon after. It kind of gives me a heads up!

Actually, the two most recent books that I read I would like to recommend to you: Sick Puppy by Carl Hiaasen and Push by Sapphire. Both are really good reads. Things here in Italy are going well now that I've been here for almost a year. By way of an update (and because it was fun reading everyone else's answers) I'll answer the questions that all of you girls did. I also think I sent some pictures to your work address, so if you can use them in the blog, go ahead. If not, let me know. It doesn't matter to me which ones you pick.

Thanks for thinking of me!

Sue

• DO YOU HAVE ANY PETS? One cat, Lolita (my husband is a Stanley Kubrick fan). It was a challenge getting here here from the U.S. but I'm really glad we brought her.
• DO YOU LIKE TO COOK? I didn't used to, but I'm getting better. This isn't really cooking, but I'm good at making my downstairs neighbors' limoncello recipe. It's surprisingly easy and there's never a shortage of lemons in Naples.
• HAVE YOU EVER LIVED IN ANOTHER COUNTRY? Before now, no. I had some major culture shock when I first moved here because of the more relaxed Italian lifestyle. It can be surprisingly hard to get what you want when you want it.
• HAVE YOU EVER MET A FAMOUS PERSON? When I worked for the Symphony I met many of the guest artists, but most recently I met Adamo, the wine cellar guy from the Rick Steves "La Dolce Vita Tuscany" episode. He says, "Io sono molto famoso in America".
• WHAT DO YOU DO ON SUNDAYS? Nothing in Italy is open, so if anything I usually take a walk or visit friends. Lago D'Averno is near my house and has a nice walking path around it. It also happens to be Dante's entrance to hell.
• WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO IN LIFE? I don't really have one, but if I had some unsolicited life advice to give, it would be to be open to new experiences.
• WHAT ARE YOU BEST AT? Music. Recently I've been playing with my husband's band when I can and I'm also involved in the community theater group on base, which does a lot of musicals.
• WHO DO YOU RESPECT THE MOST? Besides my family and friends, probably those military families who are forced to be separated for long periods of time and manage to lead happy, normal lives anyway. I don't know how they do it.
• ARE YOU A MORNING OR NIGHT PERSON? I can stay up all night, just please don't ask me to wake up early.
• HOW MANY TIMES DID YOU MOVE AS A CHILD? None, which is kind of ironic considering the life I'm living now. My parents still live in the house where I grew up.
• IF YOU COULD LIVE ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD FOR A YEAR, WHERE WOULD IT BE? I think Germany, just because it is so different from Italy as far as punctuality and efficiency. Also, my ancestors are from there.
• WHAT SUPER POWER WOULD YOU MOST LIKE TO HAVE AND WHY? Teleportation, so that I could visit my family and friends in the U.S. without the long flight.

Thank you Sue for sharing your adventures abroad! We're excited to hear more of your travels! Don't be a stranger and feel free to post more book reviews and reading recommendations (let me know if you need "posting" powers). :)

Hope reading is going well for everyone! Remember to share your other books (that I know you read) on the blog... because people do read the blog!

Smiles,

Karina