Ottoman: a Piece of Furniture

Photo courtesy of Turnstyle Interior Design

I had an interesting conversation with one of my favorite people today. She said that the use of the word ottoman for a piece of furniture is no longer politically correct, as the word Ottoman refers as well to people of the Ottoman Empire, or Turkish descent. I think I heard this once or twice before, and call me old-fashioned, but I like the word ottoman way better than for instance, footstool. A footstool is some ugly thing my mom used to have in our house in Ohio.


So in my typical fashion, I had to do some research. I typed ottoman in Google search and hundreds of ottomans, poufs, storage cabinets, footstools, floor pillows and floor cushions appeared with hundreds of images, as seen
here ...

Gemini Chocolate ottoman from Ashley Furniture

Cubit Salsa Ottoman from Ashley Furniture

From Wikipedia ...

Ottoman Empire

Ottoman (furniture)

I got to thinking about all those words that have two meanings like the word for doll and wrist in Spanish, muñeca. I would love to know the history of that. What other words can you think of that have two meanings? 

Regarding ottomans, do I really need to start calling them footstools or poufs? Historically there is a reason why the ottoman has that name. It came from that part of the world, which is now Turkey, and represented a time when the people of the world were just beginning to discover other cultures. Back then, an ottoman was a much larger piece of furniture, almost like a divan or could even cover three sides of a room, almost like a banquette. The history of the ottoman (furniture) can be found here and I find its history fascinating. What do you the reader think? Can we continue to call this wonderful piece of furniture where we like to rest our feet an ottoman? I hope so!

Christmas Memories: Then and Now

Driving in the car this morning, Moises shared his regrets for not making it out last night. He had a fever and was in bed by nine. But we went this morning and had a Christmas breakfast with his mom and sister and family. It was lovely. Daisy, my sister-in-law, lovingly prepared the turkey (pavo) and pork (pierna), both totally delicious. We bought the French bread to make sandwiches and grabbed some bags of chips at Bodega Aurrera. We ate a four course breakfast with family, and that is what Moises said too as we drove home, that Christmas is about family. Thinking about it, Christmas is about family and friends who have become like family.

me and my three brothers at Christmas

So I would like to share my Christmas memories with you, my blog readers. In my mind, like snapshots, I think of Christmases past. I remember that my dad liked pork roast on Christmas, not the ham that my grandmother prepared. Christmas was crowded around the antique table for fourteen in my grandma’s little dining room, with the oversized chairs that came from Uncle Joe, my grandmother’s uncle. I remember Uncle Joe’s huge ears and the way his house smelled, like moth balls and faded memories. I remember how my grandma always invited strangers who had nowhere else to go, and my father didn’t like that either, grumbling about why he had to spend Christmas with somebody he didn’t know. Grandma invited them anyway, the widow from down the street, a distant cousin we barely knew. The scents of my grandma’s stuffing, her spaghetti with cheese and the turkey my aunt brought from her house. The cookies and the hugs and all the laughter. I also remember my parents in true Mad Men style, they drank cocktails while Uncle Rich chain smoked cigarettes. I miss those Christmases, but all those relatives are now gone to Heaven, never to be played out again. My mom, dad, grandparents, Uncles Rich and Ron, my mom’s sister Peg. I can hear you playing the piano and singing Christmas carols still, Aunt Peggy.

me at Christmas 18 months

Left are my cousins and Uncle Bud in Ohio, my brother in Tampa, my nieces scattered in England and California, so far away for the holidays. Mom, I will never forget how you decorated the day after Thanksgiving, the hundreds of ornaments and figurines you had, the way you loved Christmas. I remember after Mike (my brother) died, Christmas was never the same. My dad cried every year, but you didn’t, Mommy. Even when the Huntington’s disease left you unable to walk or eat properly, you still loved Christmas … and your family. You never forgot me like your sister did when she got sick.

me and Denise at Christmas 8 years of age

So we missed the big celebration last night, but it is now Christmas Day. So filled with promises and hope, and I truly love the way my husband’s family, a true Yucatecan family, never holds grudges or resentments. We didn’t go last night, but we were welcomed this morning. And I realize something; this is my fourteenth Christmas in Cozumel. So now I have a whole new list of Christmas memories … our first Christmas here when our house was new and our dogs just arrived from the states, the year the rains came so strong we could barely drive down 30^th Avenue to get to Daisy’s house, the year my husband went to Merida for the holidays (2011), and I celebrated both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with good friends. But we swore we will never be apart again as long as we can be together, and Moises said that too, that he did spend Christmas with his family last night, me.

I remember every year on Cozumel Island as a year having a whole new family to love and care for. I do regret not being able to stop at a friend’s Open House last night or seeing the baby at her first Christmas,  but there will always be next year, and my continuing new Christmas memories of Cozumel.

Merry Christmas to all!

Baptism Joy

Moises and me with our precious Godchild

Moises and I were honored to be asked to be Godparents to Moises' niece nine month old baby. She was the oldest and biggest of the ten children being Baptized last Sunday at the Corpus Christi Church.

Godparents, parents and baby Isabella

Isabella's gown was made in Merida by hand. My sister-in-law, Karla, supervised and took care of the making of the gown. It was completely handmade and had different types of embroidery. She looked gorgeous in it!

Definitely a Gerber baby moment

Isabella took it all pretty much in stride. In fact, she was actually coming dow with a cold or was it from the cold water poured over her head again and again? She had enough when the below photo was taken, but for the most part, she was a perfect angel.

Isabella after the Baptismal water

The priest that officiated made the occassion very special. He is such a lovely and spiritual man. Thank you, Father!

Good Luck Ironmen Cozumel!

Photo courtesy of Facebook La Perlita Cozumel page

Ironman competition in front of El Cantil Condominiums 

Swim is complete. Now they are on the bike competition. The photo above was taken by local professional photographer, Armando Alentado. Many locals and tourists alike are waiting for the run portion of the race.

Photo by my friend Heather Bryan

Results soon. Go Ironman competitors! More info on the Ironman Triathlon can be found on wikipedia here. There is also a tracker where you can check on your favorite competitor here. Good luck!

Some of Our Comfy Sofas

Zia Salsa group

We have had great success with our sofa groups over the last 8 years we have had The Magic of Design Furniture & Interior Design. Most of our sofas and chairs are imported from the states. It makes for comfortable seating. I think these sofas will go really well with the new rustic furniture we are having made in Puebla.

CEN-23 coffee table with drawers in Naples Turquoise finish

We also have chairs that coordinate with our sofas as seen below.

Riley Slate

Riley Slate Accent Chair

Lucinda Quartz

One of my new favorites is the Lucinda Quartz sofa, which will be arriving in a few weeks. I think I would like to combine it with the Hacienda Dining Chair and the Dos Pedestales Dining Table.

Hacienda Dining Chair in Chocolate Finish

Dos Pedestales Dining Table

Varicose Veins Update

me August 2013

I went for my first treatment yesterday for the hidden varicose veins. The bad news is that it hurt like hell. Dr. Morales Bravo said that people with narrow veins feel more pain with the injections. Also the smaller the vein being treated, the more I would feel it. So the spider veins are more painful to treat than the larger veins. The good news is I have no swelling, no bruising, my legs look better already and I slept reasonably well. 

After twenty injections (I counted the band-aids as I took them off), my legs felt like a bit of a pin cushion with various aches and pains last night. But this morning, other than a general tiredness, I feel pretty good. The amazing news is that the spider veins are already going away on one leg. The other leg, where he did four injections close together, is still full of spider veins - but they should fade with time. The most pain I have is in in right calf where he treated the one vein that was really hurting beforehand. 

I highly recommend Dr. Morales Bravo and this treatment. If you have any symptoms of circulation problems - like heavy legs or leg cramping at night, see spider veins on your legs or get swollen legs or ankles - it is definitely worth a visit to your GP. He or she can check the pulse in your foot to see if the blood is flowing properly. If not, you could go to Cancun or any vein specialist. I am really glad I took care of it now before it got worse. More information on the treatment I had, sclerotherapy, can be found here on Mayo Clinic's website. For information on Dr. Morales Bravo in Cancun, click here.

Old Lady Road Map

Courtesy of Dr. Morales website (definitely not me.)

If you had asked me at twenty whether I would want an Old Lady road map, I probably would have said no. Why worry about tomorrow? That’s how I was in my teens, twenties and even in to my thirties. Even at 58, I talk myself in to believing I am still young. I ignore the crow’s feet and laugh lines around my mouth. I look in the mirror at times and wonder who that person is that stares back at me, but I convince myself that I don’t look all that much different.

I try to eat lots of fruits and vegetables, chicken and seafood. I limit red meat and pray I get enough fiber. I lost thirty pounds two years ago and religiously keep track of my carbs, protein and fat. I get my blood work done to know my cholesterol and triglycerides readings. I am checked for sugar and blood pressure and it all looks really good. I feel for my age, I am a healthy person. But once again since I have no Old Lady road map, a health issue has come along that surprised me.

Having sore legs the last few years really didn’t come as a shock. I work on my feet, run around all the time and almost never sit still except while doing computer work. Even then, I get up a lot and try to stretch. I go to the gym and attempt to work on cardio. I do like to walk. Then last month due to some canceled flights, I ended up on seven flights in five days. When I got home, my legs felt heavy and weird, swollen. Everybody told me to keep my feet up and drink more water. But I do drink water, probably at least three liters a day. I don’t drink anything else. No soda, juice or alcohol. But it didn’t seem to help.

Finally after a month of this, I went to Dr. Cruz and he ran all the blood work to make sure it wasn’t something serious. It wasn’t my kidneys, liver, sugar or blood pressure. All normal. He checked the pulse in my foot and said it felt weak. So he suggested I go to a vein specialist to see if I had a blockage from all that travel. He was concerned for thrombosis or a clot.

My appointment was yesterday. The doctor, Dr. Morales Bravo, in Cancun, a vein and vascular surgeon, looked at my veins with a type of ultrasound and showed me the problem. I have hidden varicose veins. Can you imagine my surprise? I know I had ugly spider veins, but I don’t have varicose veins, I screamed. You are confusing me with my grandmother, who had the gnarly, ugly beasts sprouting from her calves. He told me that he needs to do six to eight treatments of sclerotherapy.

It was quite disturbing when I read about it that the doctor actually kills off the vein that is varicose, and he reroutes the blood to another vein. Who knew that we have 400% of the veins we need in our bodies? Again something that would be helpful to explain in the Old Lady road map.

More info on this procedure can be found here from the Mayo Clinic.

The good news is I had no blockage or clots. I spent last night going back and forth if I should do the procedures. Since I have symptoms, it seems I really have no choice. By the way, it was not due to any lifestyle choices, but purely genetic. Varicose veins run in families. 

After reading both Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic’s websites, they both recommend the procedure I am getting for my problem. I also got a personal referral from a neighbor, who has been going to Dr. Morales for four years. She could not have recommended him more highly.

So my post is two-fold. One is introduce the idea of the Old Lady road map, that I think a lot of us could use and would be happy to buy. Now somebody just needs to write it. The second reason is to alert other women my age about this problem. Since I saw no veins popping out of my skin, I assumed I was fine. Varicose veins start long before, hidden away undetected to the normal person. It turns out one in five women over 50 will have some type of problem with their veins. Since we have all become so much more attuned to tracking our blood pressure and diet to arterial hypertension, it is probably a good thing to also know about this type of hypertension. If you have spider veins, there is a good possibility you could have varicose veins hidden away, espcially if you have a family history of varicose veins. My suggestion is to get the ultrasound in Cancun, especially if you have any swelling or heaviness in the legs, as I did. The visit costs $600 pesos. You can find out more information on Dr. Morale’s website, here.