She Thinks My Camel's Sexy!

Old Goa

Hampi

Hello everybody, I am back. I am not feeling well and have tremendous jetlag. I thought I would just post a few of my own pics every day until I get more human. I will let you know when I post a picture of Karens, or if it is a stolen one. Karen took that picture of me on the beach with my camera. Otherwise, these pictures are all mine, betas! Hope all is well in blogland and I will try to get over and visit very soon!

I am really happy to be home, but this picture was taken in Goa about ten days ago. I can hardly wait to get back there, I just loved it. I spent a lot of time lying by the pool, reading. Notice what's so weird about this picture is it looks like I have been added into the shot later, but I was really there, I swear it!

Hard to believe that a camel can carry that much stuff at once. It's animal feed, by the way. Come to think of it, we saw a lot of broken down camel carts along the highway. You'd think they'd ease up on that load a bit, isn't it?

Delhi~Agra Highway * Some people are such flirts!

Sunset in Goa

California, didn't I warn you, I'd be seeing you...

This picture will not move down the page where I want it so you will have to enjoy it here! Taken in Pahar Ganj, but not by me!

Pahar Ganj, Main Bazaar

OK this is my last night in Delhi and I am off to the airport at 10 pm. What a ride, people!
Last night we had to convince the travel desk guys to go out and get us some whiskey because we are staying at the Y and they dont have alcohol here. So Karen and I got pretty smashed in our room while packing, what fun!
Today Karen and I went to Pahar Ganj, a very funky Indian neighborhood in Delhi...walked around, got henna tattoos, bought some tiffin boxes, and some other trinkets, and I kid you not, Karen and I are as poor as street beggars right now! No more rupees, madam!
I am so happy to be coming home because I am tired! And, my pants are dirty and falling off. And I couldnt wash them cuz its cold in Delhi and I didnt have any other warm pants. I have been wearing these jeans for 5 days...will be 7 by the time I get home so if you see a dirty hippie chick in SFO, it's just me! Dont worry I clean up well!
Thank you all for coming to India with me! It's been fun to share it with blogland, and thank you to all who called MR Ratburn for me and got him online!
See you stateside!
Love Susie

FEED MEEEEE!

Cheeseburger with lettuce tomatoes and mustard, american cheese, with french fries.....
Diet Coke...
Romaine salad with ccucumbers, carrots, and feta....
Ice cubes....
Apples...
Pepperoni pizza with chilies....
Sourdough bread with turkey and muenster cheese, mustard and lettuce, please.....

Oh man, I am so hungry! When I get back to California, I am going to eat like a pig! Speaking of which, I sorta felt like a pig last night when I saw the room that I was staying in in Agra. "Presidential Suite, AC Deluxe" it said on the door...HAHAHAHA! Dont make me laugh! OK I have been in a lot of hotels in India, and I have learned to expect freezing cold showers, warm beverages, and traffic noise all night long, But nothing has ever come close to the pig stye we stayed in last night. Much to our horror, the room came complete with its own set of filthy towels, grungy bed sheets, and its very own mosquito and fly colony! Furthermore, the bathroom window didnt close and I was sure some naughty little hotel boy was watching me shower.....
Uh wait, did I say shower? More like, squat on my knees under a waist high tap with semi warmish water trickling out. Ok then, Karen and I were freezing our buns off, keeping all of our clothes on while attempting to sleep in this hell hole. To amuse ourselves, we made monster shadow hand puppets on the ceiling as we dictated into her MP3 recorder our night of horror. Funny thing, when you are in hell, how hard you will try to make it all better.
Then I have to confess, earlier on our trip, Karen and I started flinging cookies at each other, just to be silly, and that evolved into toast flinging. Last night, I flung a piece of stale toast at Karen, hitting her square in the mouth, causing a fat lip! I didnt mean it really! You are probably wondering, why carry around stale toast, why fling it at each other? Hey, we have been in India together nearly a month, and we are getting a little batty!
Besides, if you were as hungry as I am, you would carry around stale toast too!
Next time I will eat it instead of flinging it at Karen.
Ok I am forgetting to tell you that we went to the Taj Mahal yesterday! Sorry, sometimes survival events surpass even the Taj Mahal! Ok ok no problem madam, I am getting there. We started out our day in Delhi by being picked up by our hired taxi driver, who took us on quite an adventure on the Delhi\Agra Highway....five hours of passing camels, bicycle rickshaws, villagers, pigs, buffalo and cows! Hold on, what a wild ride!
Anyway, went to Taj Mahal just in time for sunset and my camera batteries died. Also the four FRESH batteries that I had in Bangalore turned out to be completely worthless so there I was at the Taj with NO camera.
Good thing Karen had her fancy camera with her! I managed to coax a couple of nice sunset pictures outa my camera and then we headed out of there..but wait, theres more! We had the esteemed privelege of getting to come back to the Taj for a full moonlight viewing! How did we do that you ask? Tiger Paw.com betas! In India, it definitely is who you know! This moonlight viewing was so awesome, even without camera, but first, we were fully frisked, not once, not twice, but three times, crotch included, then escorted into the Taj Mahal by way too many armed security guards. I probably woulda cried about this camera situation, but you know what? Just about everyone in there was having difficulty getting a shot with their fancier than thou cameras.
Not so for Karen...she soooo got some cool shots which will appear on this blog when I get back, betas!
Ok sooo that esteemedness lasted but a mere 30 minutes when we were then escorted again by armed security guards back out of the Taj, where we walked back to our fleabag hotelhell, and climbed up to the MOUND to watch the moon rise and take more pictures.
Ok its time to rat out this hotel! If you are ever in AGRA do NOT stay at the Taj Khema, I said DO NOT! But the one and only thing they have going for themselves is the MOUND, the best view of the Taj Mahal from outside of the gates, bar none! We also got some wonderful sunrise pics from said mound, but not til after paying 300 rupees for two AA batteries...that's $7.00 for you non desis, yaar!
Ok but I forgot to tell you about going across the street to the incredibly overpriced sareee shop and hanging out with some lovely Russian people (run run russians!) No seriously, these were nice, and not drunk at all.....
Ok soooo the men in the place were whipping sarees across the floor as only a saree wallah can do, but I didnt like the sound they were making at all...NO NO NO these are NOT silk sarees, they are making the wrong sounds! (Trust me, I know this stuff) Then I noticed that the men did not know how to wrap a saree and it was time for Susie to step in. I wrapped up that beautiful Russian woman like a pro, while 15 people stood and watched and applauded and cheered! Man, I loved that! I was so proud.
One man told me, "I think you want to be Indian" And I said "sometimes yes I do!" So I stepped out onto the front porch to take a saree wrapping break and had a chat with the Russian husband, telling him, those sarees are not silk and do NOT pay what he is asking. We discussed prices and he went in and skillfully bartered, getting three sarees for little over the price they had originally asked for ONE! Well done, sir!
Ok anyway.....this should be all about the Taj Mahal...but it's more about the fresh hell we found ourselves in, and if you want more, please go to Karens blog and read her take on the day from hell.
We have just two more days here in Delhi, and I have some serious shopping to do... remember my post about Dilli Haat? It's time to pay a visit! Also have to get to a music store for something for the Ratburn.
Ok i'm out, but first, can I have a bite of that what you are eating there? I'm starving!

Holy Macaroni Batman!

Happy New Year everyone! I am going to tell you about last night.....you will think I am exaggerating, but I am not.
Now see, Goa becomes an insane asylime (heh) this time of year, so the streets and beaches are filled with cops. The streets become packed with partying people and it just gets crazier and crazier until it is just not safe out there.
So, our hotel has a party every year around the pool, and we decided this was our best option. We had met a very nice English couple and their son, Simon, and so we invited them to join us at our lonely table. You know how it is when you get to a party, where you dont know anyone, and you scan the room desperately looking for someone to talk to....so when Simon and his parents came down to the party, we snatched them right up and brought them to our table. We had a wonderful buffet style Indian dinner...was so delicious...and the funniest thing was that they had arranged a bunch of banana stalks and leaves in the center of the table, standing up, and toothpicked giants prawns all over it for our dining enjoyment. No no not me...I never eat seafood! But I did enjoy this lovely vision, the Prawn Tree!
Ok so thankfully the alcohol began flowing and people started to have a little fun. Now the center of attention was this group of young Russian women, dressed in all sorts of Saturday Night Feverish slinkies...can you say GAUDY? But at least, they kicked off the dancing, and someone always has to be first right?
Now I drank so much whiskey last night that I just can't believe it! I think it's the most I have ever drank in one night....too fun! One of the fun things about this party was that all the boys and waiters and hotel managers joined us for the dancing and fun! And, you have to understand, men outnumbered women about 15-1...was I a dancing queen? You betcha!
I don't know what it was, but maybe it was my quick little dancing self, I was not groped pinched or otherwise the entire night...my poor madam Karen was not so fortunate.....I told her, "dance faster madam!" LOL
So at one point, and I kid you not, I am dancing with 15 Indian boys and one married Indian lady while her husband watched. It was totally fun, and like I said, keep moving madam, keep moving! How many times can a barefoot little mistress be spun around a dance floor before the room spins? I lost count!
Now that was just insane!
At some point in the evening, we misplaced the key for the cabinet that we had locked our valuables in in our room. We began a serious discussion on hacksaw aquisition, since key did not turn up. However, in the course of the night, we had returned to us, two pieces of jewelry that had fallen off of us during the mad dancing frenzy!
OK then at midnight, we were given giant Indian sparklers for the women only. Now I will tell you this, and dont you ever forget it, dont ever play with giant Indian sparklers while you are bare footed! I've got blisters to prove this....not to mention the fact that a spark landed in my hair, and I kid you not, I was hopping around on burned little feet, while at same time, trying to put out the fire in my hair...You think Im kidding dont you? Go ask Karen......she saw it all....I have more than one witness to this hair fire should you still not believe me! (OK but I have lots of hair so you can hardly notice the singed scalp! :P)
After the hair fire I danced some more! Crazy drunk Indian waiters swirling around doing their best Bollywood dance moves.
I think it is safe to say, that Karen and I were simply the life of the party! How can you go to a party and sit there all night on your ass? No you simply cannot!
Ok then, slowly slowly people started leaving the party until there was but a handful of us left.
Simon and Karen and I were going to venture out into the streets when an English couple told us of the groping and pinching and robbing going on out there...absolute madness. They practically begged us not to go...so we stayed, out came the vodka...and always, not far behind the vodka came two very very drunk Russian young ladies.
Out came Karens mothering instincts as she started making them drink lots of water. They were so drunk they were blabbering in Russian to us, although the onyl Russian word I know is VODKA!
Then I became the mom too, as these girls clothes were literally falling off. Now how many times have you Lime, or you Logo, or Snavs, seen a young girl in their low cut jeans with their butt hanging out and wanted to go over and pull up their pants? I lost count a long time ago on that one, but last night, I finally had to do that! Besides pulling up their teeny minskirts for them, we also had to remind them that they were showing their down unders as well, thank goodness they were not doing the Brittney last night! I think we also might have had to pull one of their tops up a few times, and her assets were clearly visible. Funny how you become all protective of vulnerable young women when you get in that position.
Anyway, we attempted to chat with them, but it was just impossible. Simon, Karen and I just sat back and watched them blabber on, while administering waters.
I guess it was about 4 am when we decided to call it quits, and felt we must walk these two Russian girls to their rooms. So the semi sober trio of Karen Susie and Simon got these girls into their rooms safelty, or so we thought.
On the way up to the room, I saw a very drunk Indian man sitting in his room with his door open, his key dangling from the lock, clearly he was unaware of anything other than his spinning head. So, being in mother mode, I took the key out and brought it into his room, handed it to him, and told him to lock his door, which I then shut behind me. I'll betcha he didnt lock it..as his 45 degree lean showed me he was clearly not all there at that point!
OK so we get to our room, and start frantically looking for the other copy of the lost key, which we thought surely was locked inside the locked closet. But hurray, I had not locked it in, it was in my backpack by the TV! Yay! Inside cabinet we found madam Karens very fancy camera safe and sound..and all was well, but then we heard screaming from the Russian girls rooms down the hall.
Mother Mode! Karen, lets go! And we ran down the hallway to their room and it sounded like they were having a cat fight! So, we pounded on the door until they let us in...and out came the drunker of the two, wrapped only in a bedsheet, still totally wasted and slumped in the hallway screaming stuff in Russian that only her friend understood. Of course a naked little Russian girl in the hallway at 4:30 am caused quite a scene, and soon half the hotel staff was there as well. But you know, we felt we needed to handle this, because imagine if these two girls had gotten arrested by Indian cops, or tossed out of the hotel in the middle of the night with drunk crazy people wandering the streets. Karen and I stayed with them and tried to find the drunk one some clothes, all she had was that little minskirt and tiny top so she was better off in the sheet.
SO we got em back into the room, and went to our room, and the screaming started again.
Mother Mode! Karen, let's go again! This time I brought one of my tshirts to put on the drunk Russian girl but she was locked in the bathroom screaming.
We told them, stay in your room and dont come out and lock the door, but apparently the really drunk one tried to leave a few times in the night and thankfully our hotel security guards talked her into staying until it became light out. I seriously dont think she would have made it had she gone out into that drunken crowd in that little outfit...
Ok whew! Still with me?
So then, there's this empty field by our hotel where kids play cricket, and it had become a parking lot for the night.....now there were thousands of people with no hotel rooms just sleeping in their cars, or playing cards on a mat on the ground, or just chatting while waiting for daybreak. The moon was setting over the Arabian Sea as we watched more crazy madness from our balcony. FInally we fell asleep near 5 am, only to be awakened by the workers downstairs at 7:30 am, loading a truck with chairs and tables from the party. Oh lucky me, the truck parked right below my balcony, so I guess 2 1/2 hours of sleep was all I was gonna get last night..erm this morning.
It really happened folks, Im not making it up. I just wanna know one thing? Who drank all my whiskey? I'm sure it wasn't me!

Happy New Year to all of you, and especially to my Little Rita and Mister Ratburn!
We have one more day and night in Goa and then we are off to Delhi, Agra and the Taj Mahal!
YYYYYYYYYYY

Subh Nava Sal from Goa!

Hello everyone! It's New Years Eve in Goa! Last night Karen and I got an early start on the celebrating by hanging out in the hotel bar for .....erm.....5 hours watching football (yeah yeah thats soccer!) I watched Liverpool slay London, and while I was the only Scouser fan in the bar, I still survived! See that Ian, I rooted for L'pool..but when I told them you were an Everton fan, they told me that was impossible!
This hotel is full of Brits, and we just had the best time chatting with them. I find the alcohol capacity of some people to be absolutely amazing, as I was seriously having a tough time balancing myself on the bar stool after a short while. Note to self: never sit crossed legged on a bar stool after 2 shots of Whiskey lest you forget you are a lady in a sundress! Don't worry, I was shortly reminded! Heh!
This morning I got up at 8:30 and went out to the beach to watch fisherman and Indian people swimming in the ocean with their clothes on! And we think that having sand in our bathing suit bottoms is a problem!
I saw some lovely shells that I thought I would bring home to Little Rita. So, I picked one up, and a little set of crab legs wriggled out from inside.....I let out a little squeal and dropped that puppy back in the sand and watched him crawl away. Then every cool shell I picked up after that was also occupied! I tickled some of their legs and watched them run away.
Today I plan to relax and shop and then tonight we are going to party like it's 1999! We met some nice English lads who we hope will let us tag along to some other parties as I guess our hotel party will be more like the over 55 set....no no no i'm not there yet, betas!




I hope you all have a lovely New Year, and I thank you all for being around.....it's so fun to blog this trip and I promise I will come back to your blogs as I return to California on January 7th.
Best to you all, and hugs and kisses to Mister Ratburn and Little Rita, I hope you had fun at Disneyworld!
YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

Goa!

Lookit! Another little happy doggie! Hee hee!

Hello from sunny Goa! If you are reading Karens blog, you already know that we got bumped off our flight and had to get "very firm" with those Jeyairways people who informed us that we should just hire a car to bring us to Goa and that no we wouldnt be getting a refund for our flights that they bumped us off of. Thye actually thought we were just going to walk away?

Well, Jetairways didnt know that SUSIES THE BOSS! Of course we got a flight to Goa, via Mumbai~ So here we are. (actually, Karen, Susie and my pal Kishore all had to be bosses in this situation in order to get out of it~ here is a case where too many cooks were definitely needed!)

Once in Goa, I promptly bought two sundresses and I am not covering up my cute little self anymore! I am wandering the streets in my beachdress and I feel cool and comfy now! I really want to get to that pool and read my book!

Tomorrow we will visit old Goa and have fun doing that..... Goa is really really giant and we are on the south end, and we need to get to the North end so we can see some of that action. We will do that tomorrow.

I hope everyone is well and enjoying your holiday festivities! Hugs and kises, Mister Ratburn and Little Rita! Stay away from those alligators my little one, you are much too tasty!

YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

Mangalore

Have you ever sweated so much that you thought the only thing left of you at the end of the day was going to be a big puddle of water on the floor?
I have.
I looked down, and my body was still here, though! Surprise surprise!
We are off to Goa tomorrow and I am really looking forward to getting into this book I have with me, House of Sand and Fog. I am sure you have seen the movie. I have read the first chapter, and I know I am going to love it. A good book, a Kingfisher and a lounge chair by my pool in my overpriced hotel in Goa..that's what I am looking forward to!
By the way, I think I am finally not sick anymore. I think that the lovely swimming pool here at Summer Sands was the perfect thing to finally break the fever.....4 days having a fever was starting to worry me. But I think I will be ok now.
Time to go reduce my body temperature again, by falling into the pool!


This is our little bungalow at Summer Sands. This morning, three nice dogs came onto our porch for a little shade, and laid down for a little visit. I think I am attracting nice doggies right now, because I miss my Rio. Thank you for the little bit of love, sweet Mangalore doggies!

Take care betas, miss you Mister Ratburn and my Little Rita! YYYYYYYYYYYYY

Happy Happy Happy Bangalore!

Good morning from Bangalore, it's Christmas day....too weird, I am sitting at the computer in my hotel lobby, this totally Charlie Brown Christmas tree next to me....skinny little Santas running around the streets...people wondering why I am not at church...nope, not me.

I hope you are all having a wonderful day...as you know it is not Christmas there yet...Santa must be making his way to your house as I write this!

My only plans for today are to rest and then Karen and I may go over to Mahesh and Sushmas house later for a little Trivial Pursuit. That boy, he just wants to play so he can kick all of our asses, he's totally a trivia master. I'll bet there are no textile topics in his game, and he probably went in and took out all the art q's before I get there!

Tomorrow we fly to Mangalore to visit some rascally pals. I cant wait to lie on the beach and check out the newest FabIndia in Mangalore! Hear that, Kish and Mamta, FabIndia you are taking me to! And that Co-optex place with the sarees that went out with the Grateful Dead, we are going there too! See you two tomorrow!

Yesterday Karen and I had a billion errands to do just like every other Bangalorean, so we did spend some time sitting in traffic in the rickshaw. Only in India can you have a 5 minute conversation with the guy onthe motorcycle or in the other rickky next to you...hilarious! We are having a lot of fun, and Karen is making me rest...I just keep getting every germ imaginable! But I am ok..do not fear!

SO now I will try to steal the picture that is on the front page of the India times this morning, a sadhu and a santa...let me see if I can find it...it's hilarious...nope still trying but this will do for now...see you all and have a lovely day!

I especially want to wish my Little Rita a wonderful Christmas day! That poor little kid, her mom runs off to India, and her dad takes her to Florida where his family celebrates Hannukah! What a good sport you are, little Rita, I love you so! Have fun at Disneyworld my sweet little girl! Kisses to you Mister Ratburn!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!

Rocket of a Surprise & Guest HNT

Here is the long awaited video. I hope you enjoy.

The HNT guest used to be found here!

Mysore! Mysore! Mysore!

Mysore Palace, which is lit up every Sunday night! (stolen pic)

Well kids, I made it to Mysore and I think I am going to survive this Delhi Belly thing....but mannnnnnn I was a bit worried for a few days! I am even more skinny now, thankyou!
So, Mysore...what to say...used to be a mellow little town and now it's hustlng, bustling noisy and crowded. I was sorta looking forward to some peace and quiet but that is not gonna happen!
We are waiting for the palace to open, as it is closed in the afternoon because it is so hot. Just like siesta in Mexico.
I am listening to Tori Amos' Scarlets Walk, my favorite c/d to have in India. Wow, it really does fit well for strolling...what? Tori for India? Well it was my most comforting music for my first lonely visits to India, and even now, when I listen to it in the US, it still reminds me of India. Pick out your cloud, babies!
OK what else.....if you run over to Karens blog you will get pictures...I just dont have the patience for posting pics in India, it takes forever.
Tomorrow I will ride the tiger....I mean the elephants at the palace. That was a Pixies reference for those of you that dont know...:P
Leave it to Youtube to change the video posting to blog format as we were coming over here, so I have no idea how to make that happen now! I hate changes! However, stay posted as very soon I will have a little movie on my blog to show you...getting help with that of course.
Since I cant post my own pics I will steal another...brb!

Nandi the Bull at Chamundi Hills

I give good steal dont I? Heh! Ok people, that's about it for now...more tomorrow after the elephant ride and Chamundi Hills, which has 1,00o steps to the top, Nandi is about halfway. No NO I shall not walk UP the hill, only down! That alone is enough to increase your calf size by an inch for a day! Pump you up!

Take care betas!
Special kisses for Mister Ratburn and Little Rita! Clean that hamster cage missy!
XX

Runaway Train Never Coming Back......

I did not take this picture, I stoled it off the internet, thank you to whoever I stole it from!

Greetings from Bangalore, home of DSL! LOL........Just got off the train from Hampi.....10 hours in a sleeper car. I was a bit nervous to take the train, but it was totally fine....at first we were in the wrong car which smelled like urine pretty badly, and Karen and I almost turned right around and went back to our hotel in Bangalore, but we realized that we were in the wrong car, the pee pee car...how do people sit in the stench for 10 hours? I dont know, but I guess it was all they could afford...our proper car did not smell at all, and we met some wonderful Indian people on the way there and back. Note to the Karnataka state railway....PINESOL LYSOL COMET AJAX SCRUB BRUSHES MOPS WATER....need I say more?

OK so, Hampi was awesome, I got some totally fun and ORANGE hippie clothes, and a ghandi tshirt hurray!! I looked pretty bright in my orange capris with purple embroidery and mirrors, lime green tshirt and magenta shoulder bag! I think maybe I even might have blinded some people! I loved my orange pants so much that I had to have more....after searching I found one green and one orange pair. The green pair were too large so the lovely man that sold them to me altered them while I waited. While waiting, I chatted with the wife of this tailor, and discovered she had 7 daughters. This woman was just 29. Her daughters were aged 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 10, 12! SO do the math! Yes, it is very common in Hampi for women to be married at 14 or 15.. If you are wondering, this lovely lady looked older than me....and you all know that number!

Don't get any ideas Little Rita, you are not getting married til you are 30! :D I bargained my way down to 100 rupees apiece for those pants, but when I met the lovely mama and her 7 daughters, I just gave them 500 rupees and told them to keep the change. She then started to cry....ohhh!

We got hennah tattoos on our hands, and saw some amazing ancient ruins, met a wonderful ricky driver named Ramesh, and if you ever come to Hospet/Hampi you must find this young man to help you. He is a marvelous guide, honest fair and sweet. Ramesh wouldn't tell us how much to pay him, he said you pay what was fair...so we gave him 1200 rupees for two trips to the train station (18 kms) plus 5 hours of touring the ruins! He even let Karen drive his rickshaw, but I couldnt since I dont know how to shifty shift! But it was hilarious! When we gave him the money he started to weep...I guess we were quite generous. We left alot of money and "school pens" behind in Hampi....which is what you should do for a town that only gets tourists 3 months of the year.
When I asked Ramesh what did he do the rest of the year to survive he said it is very difficult and he must budget his three months earnings to last the entire year.

I am all weepy right now thinking about the beautiful people of Hampi, how generous, how lovely, how wonderful.
Now, the food was also quite delicious, however, I am sick sick sick! I guess after 4 times to India it is my turn for the Delhi Belly......somehow, Karen is totally fine....yet we ate the same things.....I dont know what happened....but arghh!!

Anyway, we are back in Bangalore, and tomorrow will go to Mysore....that is If I Can! Eeek! Hope all is well in Bloggyland, and Mr Ratburn, Little Rita, Heather, Michelle, Snavybean, big hugs to all of you!

PS For more adventure of the fearless twosome, go here! I have also linked Karens blog and its on my sidebar called Mobilus In India!

Mwah!

Dial up only, Madam!

HI everyone! It is nearly impossible to post visuals here in Hampi as they have only dial up! Sheesh I thought I was behind the times!
Anyway, if I cant post the pic I have planned, then you can always google Hampi and see what it looks like...an ancient city of Hindu, Muslim and Jain architecture...totally mind blowing!
Today I was surrounded by kids wanting me to dance for them so I did my best Bollywood lightbulb/doorknob dance for them! Before we knew it, we were surrounded by about 40 kids all wanting pictures and more of my dancing! Finally we had to escape!
I got some lovely henna tattoos today and did take pics although.bla bla bla you already know...
NO VISUALS! Ack!
It is dusk and I am seriously not prepared for the mosquitos so I am outa here.....I'd better get back to my room and apply the repellant and some more clothes.....
More later, betas!
Hi Mr Ratburn and Little Rita! I love you both!
S

Friends in Bangalore

With Mahesh and Sushma at Peco's drinking beer and eating popcorn - happy to be hanging out together!

Adje Nachle!!!

Greetings from Bangalore! Here is a totally in action picture of Karen and I in an autorickshaw in Bangalore. Notice that I am hanging on for dear life! That is part of the fun of India! Hope all is well in blogland, stay tuned for a rocket of a surprise very soon!
Namaskar! Click click for big big!

My traveling companion also has a blog about our travels, and is not at all hindered by these sticky keyboards! Run on over to her blog quick quick to read more about our adventures!

Chalukya Ahoy!

I am here!!! How can I make a post without visuals? It's just not heard of on Susies The Boss! Well it will have to do!
I am in Bangalore its 85 and very humid sunny, noisy and vibrant!
More later.....Indian keyboards are very sticky! Take care, bloggy peeps!

Heaven Must Be Missing A ......What?

Someone thinks I'm an angel!

The wonderful and talented BS made this picture for me. Isn't it just awesome? Just in case you think he's confused, BS once turned me into a devil as well! Thank you BS, I love it! BTW BS, what beach am I on?

Ok I sent Lime some plastic pickles for crapola and look what I got back! Hurray! It's so cute! Thank you Lime!

Lime has posted more pickly information today as well. For the full picklish rundown, head over to her place!

To start a tradition that surely will last

Here's a short story about the pickle of glass.

The night before Christmas it's hung on the tree.

While everyone's sleeping it's done secretly.

And on Christmas morning when you arise.

The first one to find it, will get a surprise!

Lookit what Logo sent me for my birthday! A cool makeup bag/purse filled with super fun beauty products. She even got the EXACT color of nail polish that I only wear on my toes.....perfect shade for hiding the dirt in India! Thank you Logo, I loveeee it! (Special foldable nail file/buffer already packed! No more splitty thumbnail for me!) Now if I can just keep Little Rita from running off with fuzzy handled little makeup box!

~

So, this is where I get off the bus for awhile.

No! Not that bus!

You know which bus I'm talking about. Tomorrow I leave for India. I want to thank each and every one of you for your lovely birthday wishes, and also for your love and support during this hard time losing our beloved family dog, Rio. I knew that if I ever needed, you would ALL be there, and this was so. Thank you so much. Aren't bloggy peeps just the best?

Namaskara, naanu Bengalurige hoguttiddene. Kelavu dinagala avadhiyalli hindirugi baruttene. Nimagellarigu namma shubhashayagalu.

That sorta means, blessings, i'm outa here, see you all when I get back. At least thats what I'm told. My Indian pal is such a rascal, it might very well say something naughty! Heh, just kidding!

Happy Holidays everyone! If you need to find me, go ask Mr Ratburn!

6 Weird Things About Mr Ratburn!

I've been tagged by Spitty, Evalee, and um, I think, Jillie, and probably about 6 other people to do the weird things list again...well, I have done it twice, yes twice....and so, I present, instead, 6 weird things about Mr Ratburn.

1. Mr Ratburn has been known to hunt down barristas with partners in crime, at closing time, forcing them to surrender prime coffee beans, even pounding on the glass window to get them to open the door. Fortunately, he and said partner in crime are good tippers!

2. When Mr Ratburn eats, he must have 3 items on his plate. If there aren't three items on his plate, he will get up and scour the kitchen for a third item, a pickle, a slice of bread, a carrot, whatever, but there has to be three! (or more, cuz he has the fastest metabolism in the west!)

3. Mr Ratburn cannot sleep if the dishes are not done. That is his job, I don't do dishes. For me, this wierd trait is a very good thing!

4. All items on Ratburns desk must be either perpendicular or parallel to the desk edge. He now has a desk that is shaped like an egg...but somehow, he has still managed to find right angles. (I love to run by and mess up his desk when he is not looking!)

5. Every night, Mr Ratburn sets out his "little outfit" on a hanger, complete with matching socks, which either Little Rita or I must help him select, because he is color blind. (I like to run by and mess up his "little outfit" when he's not looking!)

6. Little Rita has a real stethescope.....often, I will come into her room to find Mr Ratburn listening to his stomach, heart and bowel sounds while he and LR read together. Why does he do this? I have no idea, but now, when I hang out on Little Ritas bed with her, I find myself looking for the stethescope!

Ok that's just too weird! Not tagging anyone...play if you wanna...and I forgot all who tagged me, but erm, wow, I really feel extra weird now!

"We're not weird, but Mr Ratburn is!!!!"

3 India

Goodbye My Sweet Girl.....

Run wild and free my sweet sweet girl.

~

This is a John Hiatt song. It is about his wife, she was too good for this world.

But to my family, it has always been a sweet song about a lovely dog, and so, I place it here for my Rio.

Thank you for letting me be sad today, you know I don't like to do this on my blog, but this time I need to.

~
Dust Down A Country Road

Could not get to sleep
It was on my wedding night
I was tangled in the sheets
And I was dreaming of a light
Pouring from her window
Coming up through the floor
Lifting up the darkness
Crashing through my kitchen door

Down to that old oak table
I went to take a look
And my whole life flashed before me
Just like a story book
She used to make me breakfast
Or sit around and talk
Have another cup of coffee
Or maybe take a little walk

Dust down a country road
Blowing in the wind
Behind an old truck load
Up before the rooster crowed
There's an old dog staring
At the dust down a country road

And that truck is going somewhere
I just can't be sure
When tomorrow's just the day
After all that's gone before
And I always thought of leaving
I never could stay too long
Now her memory's catching up
And our sweet dreams are all gone

Dust down a country road
Blowing in the wind
Behind an old truck load
Up before the rooster crowed
There's an old dog staring
At the dust down a country road

If I had a bullet I'd put it in this gun
And I'd catch that old dog napping
And I'd shoot him before he runs
Cause he ain't much good for nothin'
Except staring at the dust
Lord I wonder what he's looking at
Sneaking up on us

Dust down a country road
Blowing in the wind
Behind an old truck load
Up before the rooster crowed
There's an old dog staring
At the dust down a country road

Yesterday...

4 India

55 Flash Fiction Friday

I can't do this today....but, Lime has written a lovely 55 about her middle child ....run over there and tell her I sent you.
Thanks Lime for keeping the 55 going......may I ask you to be the 55 host until I get back from India?

The loveliest Logo has a really awesome post today too about her new bike, her awesome kids and a very cool Richard Thompson video.

I'll post something tomorrow....it will make you cry...I am sorry in advance......

5 India

Big Fat Losers HNT!

I have a confession to make:

I am a total loser!

That's right, and while we are at it, AndyT13 is a loser too! In fact, you know who else is a loser? Tommy Gunn, that's who!
Just take a look at us.....

Andy before:

Here's me; fat, drunk and happy with the woman of my dreams at 200 lbs in Aruba last April.

Here's me; skinny, sober and miserable at 174 lbs all alone in frigid, gray, awful NY. Any questions? (Hurray Andy made it! Wowee Andy you look HOT!)

~

I've lost a lot of things this year. One of them, or should I say, two, are my love handles, thank goodness! How did I do this, you ask? I had to lose something else first, my beloved Dr Pepper! Yes, I was drinking two of those ...20 oz, I think it is, Dr P's a day...and it shows too! It took me a year, but I have lost 35 pounds!

Now here we have Tommy the Loser! Tommy has lost an astonishing 50 pounds since he reached what we losers like to call "suicide weight". As in, if I ever get to (fill in the blank)----- pounds, I am just going to kill myself!

Here is Tommys before picture, and while he does have a bit of a tummy there, I still think he looks dashing, dont you? (Nothing like a man in dress clothes...)

And, now here we have Mr Tommy Gunn after his 50 pound weight loss! Ooh Mr Gunn, looking super fine, sir! You Tommy, are without a doubt, a loser!

Now, here's an important thing I wanna say, and I am sure Tommy and Andy feel the same: We are all fantastically wonderful no matter what size, and as a fat person trapped in a skinny body, I really, really mean that!

Happy Happy HNT to all of you from Tommy, Andy and Susie, who is the boss!

PS Thank you, Mr Ratburn for allowing me to post these two sexy guys on my blog this week! I even got to be in the middle, woo hoo! You know you are the sexiest of all! Mr Ratburn, by the way, is NOT a loser...why, he had a 28 inch waist when I met him, and we have spent 20 years trying to fatten him up a bit!

6 India

I took these pictures of apple harvest in October. It's 20 degrees outside right now, and sooo some warm sunny pictures are in order!

Have a lovely day, people!

8 India

Monday.....12/04/2006

"Do you have any homes in my price range?"

"That would depend- How do you feel about cardboard?"

This is one of my favorite cartoons. I've had it on our refrigerator for 3 years. We even showed it to a couple of realtors who struggled mightily to find us a house that was under half a million bucks that wasn't falling down, in a bad neighborhood, or termite ridden.
They didn't think the joke was so funny. They also didn't sell us a house!

~

I want to thank each and every one of you for all of the wonderful birthday wishes! I really mean it guys, I feel the love! And, after all of your wonderful comments, I sure as heck don't feel old, either! Bloggy peeps, you are the best!

As you can see, I've got just over a week left before I go to India. Yes, I am getting nervous, and thinking about leaving my family....that's the only bad part, I have to tell you. Well, that, and my Rio. That will come too, this Friday. My poor old doggy is not doing so well, but this week promises to be warm and sunny and beautiful, and I think, made just for doggies to lie in the grass and enjoy. I think I will need to feel much, much more love this week too, bloggy peeps!

(PS Yes, Lime and FG, it's happening again....I'm turning into the traveling crybaby! Heavens knows, you've both seen it enough times before!)

~

Have a great Monday!

India 9

Happy Birthday HNT!!! and UPDATES

Hope you get lucky and get lots of snuggling! Tony

Y
Today is my birthday! I am going to leave my HNT up, and just keep updating today!

Thank you all for your wonderful birthday greetings! I just feel so special! Come back a lot today to remind me how much you love me! Hee hee hee!!!!!

Y

(Even Os came, and I wasn't even naked!)

Y

Be sure to POP on over to Hijacked and see what Lime got me for my birthday, but don't knock on my yurt door, i'm busy!

YYYYYYThanks, Lime! YYYYYY

Now this is the kind of email I like to receive on the morning of my birthday! YYThanks RennyBA! YYY You're the best!

On December 1st, I will be 46 and ya know what? I do not mind one bit, cuz I feel fabulous! I had this elaborate plan to become a mermaid for my birthday HNT, but my real life has really gotten a bit serious right now, and I didn't have time. Mr Ratburn took these pictures about 20 minutes ago....we are hurrying, and I am sweating my ass off! (oh, and had TWO shots of Jack too! It's my birthday, I can!!!)

Just in case you were wondering, I AM butt naked under 14 yards of mermaid organza! Happy Birthday to me!!!

Happy HNT everyone!

What's that Mr Ratburn up to this week?

12 India