Dining in Bloomsburg

Bloomsburg is small and a college town. The University of Bloomsburg is a 4 year college.

I have heard two rumors about liquor licenses in this town. First rumor, is that there are a limited number; and second rumor is that they are very very expensive.

The people of Bloomsburg are very creative. Not just in the way of having an art gallery, art festival and theatre, but in dining.

There is an Italian restaurant that doesn't have a liquor license. Which technically means that they can't sell liquor. One would think that not having a liquor license would prevent an establishment from "serving" alcohol, but not here. So the wine is free on the house. I was told at the restaurant that everyone enjoys wine with their meal and since they don't have a liquor license they can't charge for it. Like Wow!

There is an amazing Thai restaurant here. My experience upon walking in to make reservations was definitely a "once in a lifetime event". I walked in and said, "I would like to make dinner reservations for Friday." The not-to-happy host asked, "Are you a member?" I said, "No." He pushed this paper into my hand and said, "Read this. This is why you must be a member." and he walked away. It was a front page newspaper article that had been laminated. It said that the establishment only had one bathroom and that a restaurant must have 2 bathrooms. So a way around the bathroom dilemma was to make it a club and not a restaurant. They don't serve alcohol but you can bring your own bottle and they don't have a corking fee. The fee to become a member is $1 for a lifetime membership. I am now a member of Bloomin' Thai! The food is unbelievably good.

A friend, in The Netherlands, asked me how accessible were things for me. Well, they aren't as accessible as Los Angeles. I recently watched a documentary on Roman Polanski and he said that the only thing he liked about Los Angeles was that anything and everything was there at your fingertips, and it is true. However, I don't need or want any and everything. There isn't a Starbucks in town. Most of what I want is about an hour away. Once a week, usually Wednesdays, my guy and I drive that 1 hour and do what we need to do. We make our list all week long and do it all in one shot. I really like it that way, it keeps the impulse purchases to a minimum.

Ciao

A Much Easier Life

So here's what it is like living in Bloomsburg....

The people are super friendly and seem more real.

You see white women pushing lawn mowers and doing yard work.

When moving in my neighbor, across the street, came over with a plate of home baked gluten free chocolate goodies saying "Welcome to the neighborhood. My name is Nancy and let me know if you need anything." The goodies were to die for. In all the times I have moved I have never ever had a neighbor do anything like that. It was like something from the movies.

Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday mornings till about 1pm the Farmer's Market is open. It is 1 block from where I am living. The rules for selling at the market is that all food and flowers must be grown by the seller and be organic. Anything baked must be baked from scratch. You can find flowers, fruits, vegetables and baked pies and cookies. There is an Amish lady who sells the pies and cookies. It's much nicer to give the money directly to the farmer and cut out all of the middle men. Plus you are getting it super fresh, directly from the farm.

People leave there doors and windows open all the time, even when they go away. How cool to live in such a trusting place, without fear. In California an open window is an invitation for someone to sneak in and rob, rape or just terrorize you. That's a sad way to live.

Occasionally I have to have documents notarized. In California I paid $20 per document then I found a place that charged me $10 per document. When I moved to Wilkes Barre I paid $5 to have a document notarized. Yesterday I had to have a document notarized so I walked one block to Main Street and then walked into an office and asked if they had notary services. The girl explained she had just mailed her documents in to be a notary and wasn't one yet. I walked into the next office and inquired about notary services and was told that I could get my documents notarized. The girl notarized them and then I asked her how much I owed her and she said "nothing". I asked, "What?" She said, "I don't charge for notary services." I asked, "Why?" She said, "I personally, just don't want to." I told her that I felt bad not paying her for her service and that in the future I would need documents notarized and I didn't want to feel like I was taking advantage of her good nature by asking her to notarize them. She stood up, put a big smile on her face, held out her hand to shake mine and said, "Please feel free to take advantage of me any time." I was like Wow, could it get any better than Free notarizing!!!

Well, it can...... Here everyone grows stuff and so you walk out of the hardware store and there is a shelf that says "FREE" and there are cucumbers, tomatoes, corn, etc. Someone who worked at the store had too much in their garden. We were driving down the street yesterday and saw a table along side of the road with a sign that said "FREE" and there were tomatoes and corn on it. How cool is that?

Ciao

What Have I Been Up To?

I have been busy trying to simplify my life. It has been a process that I have been working on for quite a few years now.

Several years ago I told everyone I knew two things:

1) Please do not give me anything that I can't wear or eat. I don't dust or collect things.

2) They say you spend the first half of your life collecting things and the second half of your life getting rid of them. That is soooo true. Any gifts given will be something that I previously owned.

What I am not giving away I am selling on eBay. I wanted to have a lot of stuff eliminated from my life by the time that I moved from California. However, moving became more important than anything else and so I left with a lot of stuff that I didn't have time to get rid of. I did give a lot away... just not nearly enough.

Now that I am unpacking I have begun to put stuff up on eBay. I have found that making a video of something (where you can show the entire item - front - back -sides and bottom) and then posting to YouTube and then putting the html link in your item description to be the most efficient way to show your item without the additional cost of multiple pictures. This process is a bit time consuming, but worth it to me.

A bit more about Bloomsburg. The hottest it gets here is in the mid 90's. Yes, we have humidity but nothing like Florida has. I actually prefer the humidity to the dry heat. The moisture feels good on your skin and is good for your skin. Today we'll be in the high 80's. This is normal. I heard it was 108 in California this week. That my friends... is not normal. I hope I never experience heat like that again. Keep in mind the hottest I have experienced was 119 in Woodland Hills, California in August 2006. I also hear that Houston is experiencing heat in the 100's.

With the rain comes life and the bugs are out. I took a walk the other evening and felt nibbling on my arms and legs. I thought to myself "Wow, I haven't felt anything like this in the last 23 years."

Ciao

What Flies in Bloomsburg

This is the first time I have seen a red cardinal up close and personal. I saw blue jays when I lived in Louisiana. I saw hummingbirds in Woodland Hills, California. The cardinals aren't really small birds. They are literally right outside of my front door.

The other thing that I see flying around in the evening are bats. The last time I saw bats flying around was December 25, 2008, on Hayman Island in Australia. Standing on the beach as the sun was setting I saw them. I don't recall ever seeing a bat in Louisiana or California.

On another note.... I am starting to see some headway in the unpacking and getting things organized. Each room is about 87% complete. Within the next 10 days all the unpacking and putting away should be done. Yipppppeeeee!

Ciao

Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania

I am finally here! Last Thursday night was the first night I stayed here. It was so incredibly quiet. I slept like a baby.

A bit about Bloomsburg.... population about 15,000 people. Small town feel... without small town mentality..... because there is Bloomsburg University here.

I currently live in the Historical District. Lots of beautiful Victorian homes, like the one in the picture.

For 75 years, in the 19th Century, iron was the ruling industry here.

I am in walking distance of every single thing I need. The post office is literally 1 block away.

Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday the Farmer's Market is open in the town square (just a couple of blocks from me). Anything sold there must be grown or baked (from scratch) by the vendors. The Farmer's market runs from June through October.

There's a tiny airport and I am going to go and check into taking flying lessons. I think that's probably the next best thing to wanting to be a bird.

I am also going, this upcoming week, and register at Bloomsburg University. I have to take the Math placement class. I know I am going to have to take Remedial Math (which you don't get any credit for). Which is okay, because my special guy is a Mathematician, so I got the tutoring thingy handled. Math was the thing that put the breaks on me finishing my education at Santa Monica College. Now, instead of putting it off till last.... I am going to make it the first classes that I take.

Over the next couple of days I will write more about Bloomsburg, which will include the winged things that fly around here, friendly neighbors and more.

Ciao