Posterous theme by Cory Watilo

Deb & Gary's Excellent Adventure

A tour of the year, short videos, and various Nystrom fun doings

The Year in Photos, Deb & REVELN Consulting, Gary, Friends, Family 2011

It was QUITE a year, full of new things, adventures, better business and some challenges.  

You can see it with captions on Flickr.com by clicking the link below the slideshow.

 

via flickr.com
  • Reorganization and business office change for Gary, new supervisor
  • There were great gatherings with friends around the country, including Canada
  • Ian's 3rd Year at St. Olaf, and a 100th Anniversary Music Festival, simulcast in Theaters - and WE were THERE at St. Olaf with Ian, friends Sue & Jack. 
  • Ian heads to New Zealand to work the farms & enjoy himself, scuba adventure & all, this January 2nd.  Then off to his environmental science semester abroad with St. Olaf classmates and his professor, in Australia.
  • Janelle applying to MFA poetry programs, and a special new someone in her life.
  • There was some good business growth for Deb and traveling.  REVELN looks to be doing fine for 2012.
  • There was so much adventure going on for Deb this year, she started a web page just about it.  The flying, 1st cruise Key West parasailing / snorkeling & horse experience was a special treat!

Best of the holidays to you & yours,

Deborah

 

 

 

 

 

Cooking with my Great Friends & Family, Sharing is Caring circa 2011

St. Patrick's Day or week or month, for that matter, as it is an Americanized holiday and glee fest, is a community affair at our house.  Here's the photo story that goes with the previous post about what cooking was like in the 50's, and how it affected women, and what it is like today. Lamb stew with lots of veggies (low carbs).  Salmon and sour cream sauce.  Karl's home made key lime pie with bits of lime zest in it.  Marti's delightful appetizer plate, a feast for the eyes as well as to eat.  Colcannon.  Of course.  Irish whisky?  Caught in a photo.  Fun for all.  Yes!

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It's great to enjoy long time friends.  Cooking is a great way to have fun together, but not in a 50's style way, rather, the new millenium way.


 

What is "the good life" for a mom? | Eva via AnnArbor.com

 Eva & I were co-working when we both chortled, and then sneered at the ad pictured below.  Why do advertisers think this is what women want?  Cooking together can be fun, but those old roles from the 50's have NO nostalgia in my book  Here's why:

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Deb Nystrom (from Reveln Consulting) and blogger Eva Johnson share a moment laughing at this absurd ideal...

This photo in Eva's blog post and here. that's me.  I'm was born on the tail end of the 1950s, I experienced some of those "good old days" growing up.  Discrimination against women, wolf whistles, common-place tolerance of bullying which is more common with women.  The norm that you had to be in dating relationship or with men to be "ok" or "cool

I have two beautiful adult children. Neither of them feels this pressure today.  What a change.

Celebration:  In the year 2010-2011, I also saw my first "clip art" view of a MAN with a BABY and a BRIEFCASE!    I regularly see in town, men with babies in strollers.  The best yet, now I see men and work with men who cherish their children, spend quality time with them, change their jobs to have time to BE with their children while they are growing up.  And I see couples enjoying their children TOGETHER, and traveling with them EVERYWHERE.

It's a new day.  Sometimes nostalgia DOESN'T sell.  The new Volkswagen.  Ok.  New Crayola colors.  OK.  Back to Mommies of the 50s, no.  R.I.P.

Excerpted from FitMommy

Apr 15, 2011

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The Original Advertisement...

Advertisement for Willow House (http://www.simplysharingwillowhouse.blogspot.com)

Flipping through a recent fitness magazine, I found this advertisement for some company called "Willow Tree:Simply Good Design," where I saw the ad pictured. Ahhh, the joys of working at home, right? You will have time to don your mother-daughter matching outfits and bake together. No stains will hit your "perfectly pressed" dresses as you mix and share loving glances with your kids.

This business will make you enough money to not only enjoy the good housewife life in a large home, but it will be complete with all the latest and beautiful kitchen appliances.

Oh, puh...lease!

This is not the life of anyone you know. EVER! If this mom is enjoying all of this money, she is probably paying a housekeeper, chef and nanny! If she does like to bake, I highly doubt it will be in a beautiful outfit!

...What do you think? What is the good life for a mom of today?

Eva Johnson is an ACE (American Council on Exercise) certified personal trainer, who isn't going to wear an apron today while cooking, just for the sake of being rebellious. She lives in chaos with her husband and two boys. To see her complete blog about how to stay sane and in shape in the real world, visit www.fitnessbyeva.com.

Read the full post via annarbor.com

 

The Grand Scandinavian Feast, Goose, Beet Jello and All!

Dishes served included swedish meatballs, creamed herring, smoked salmon, herbed brie, cheese puff pastry straws, fruit soup (swedish style), poached salmon with cream sauce, roast goose, stuffing, gravy, scalloped rutabagas & turnips, turnip greens, beet jello (actually pretty darn good!), picked cucumbers, red cabbage, rice pudding with raspberry sauce and the magic almond, glogg (cream) for coffee.

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Enjoy a Laugh with the Kopes! Christmas AND Deb's Social Media at King of Kings in December

This was just too much fun to pass up posting here.  Enjoy a good laugh and some December cheer with the Kopes and Deb. These are photos from both the Social Media December event at King of Kings (Jitterbug phones anyone?) and Christmas Day photos, a small selection, 2010.

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Janelle crochets "gauntlets" - not for boxing, but for stylin'!

Gary's Swedish fish!

Pearl, 1.5 year kitty cancer survivor.

 

--Deb

Historic Trinity Decked Out for Christmas, Detroit, December 5, 2010 | DebNystrom's LifeStream

via debnystrom.posterous.com

This was originally posted in the DebNystrom Lifestream blog. We had an opportunity to be at Historic Trinity twice, once for Karl Osterland's anniversary celebration as music director and organist (he was a music director at the age of 13 in his childhood church), and once again to sing four pieces as a sometimes member of the choir (when Lois lets us get away from Ann Arbor's King of Kings.)

Piers Gorge, Top 20, Michigan - a set on Flickr

via flickr.com
Gary & I have been enjoying discovering the U.P. after dropping Ian (or his stuff) off at St. Olaf.   This Sept. trip included a beautiful gorge trail walk in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, near Norway.  The gorge included attractive rock formations and many mini-falls, often citrine-colored, jewel-like. These are the top 20 photos and one video clip from a bigger set. Enjoy!
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Excerpted: One of the most scenic and popular natural attractions in the river corridor is Piers Gorge. It contains some of the fastest-moving water in Michigan and Wisconsin. It is not navigable for general canoeing (class IV to V white water), but still offers beautiful scenery and good wildlife viewing from shore. It has become one of the more popular destinations for expert class kayakers in the eastern U.S. An undeveloped foot trail parallels the gorge for ½ to 3/4 of a mile. Source: www.dnr.state.mi.us/publications/pdfs/wi ldlife/viewinggui...
via flickr.com

 

Sand Point Lighthouse, Escanaba, Michigan 2010 | A photo set on Flickr - DebNystrom's LifeStream

Gary & I really enjoyed this tour of the Michigan Upper Peninsula.  Many other treasures were in store, this trip,delightfully unplanned, was of a couple hours in a lovingly restored lighthouse and nearby museum on a crisp, summer to fall breezy day.

Bud Stegath, with Ann Arbor connections, was managing the lighthouse side of things. You'll see his photo last in the series.

If you are thinking about a Fall or next summer get-away, the U.P. is beautiful, was uncrowded this Labor Day weekend, and is well worth the very reasonable vacation dollars. Gary & I found some amazing restaurants, which I will also post on this blog. Enjoy!!

Originally posted via debnystrom.posterous.com