Buying Bliss

Bliss has become a product, like deodorant or shoes, for marketer's to hawk from the nearest street corner or Website. All these products proclaim that if you purchase their products you'll experience nirvana. A quick trip around the web revealed the following sites offering bliss for bucks.

The first site Google found was BlissWorld. Bliss World started as a real world spa and evolved into an online site selling fitness shoes, overpriced body products, and more. They say their " passion is passing that 'glow-how' on to you." Although I firmly believe that a good massage can bring you bliss, I don't believe that a $29 bottle of body butter can bring you anymore bliss than the $5 bottle from TJ Maxx. Bliss rating 2.0 out of 5.0 as it's hard to give a 0 to any company that offers massages.



Bliss Weddings was created by a couple who'd just gotten married to help other companies achieve "the state at which every couple works hard to achieve in their marriage. A feeling of total happiness and harmony." The site offers a ton of advice on weddings and although it does include commercial links, the overall site is bliss inspiring and I'd give it a 4.5 on the bliss-o-meter.

If you're traveling through Clifton, NJ you'll be able to take a trip to the Bliss Lounge. From the pictures on the Website, it looks like an overdone nightclub with meet market tendancies. My personal experience is that bliss isn't to be found in places like this because it's all about keeping up appearances and impressing the opposite sex, which isn't a recipe for bliss. 0.0 on the bliss-o-meter.

Bliss.com appears to be a real estate valuation company selling products to help appraisers valuate homes. At first blush I was going to give them a negative score because using bliss to sell real estate valuation is just crass. However, digging into the site I realized that the company is called Bliss because it was founded by George Bliss, so I'm going to have to give them a 5.0 on the bliss-o-meter because is nothing more blissful than being true to yourself.

The last blissful site I traveled to was Hershey's Bliss and this is the most blissful site of all because even though they're commercializing bliss, you can't really argue with the fact that really good chocolate does elicit a blissful state and almost everyone can afford to buy their taste of bliss when it's going for under a buck a bar. I especially love their tagline "Bliss is everywhere, you just have to unwrap it." How can you argue with that? Bliss chocolate gets a 5.0 on the bliss o-meter.


I have to be honest and say that when I set out to write an article about buying bliss, my intention was to decry the commercialization of bliss and point out that real bliss has to come from inside, but as I explored the Web and the Blissful sites out there, I realized that maybe there were some sites and products that really could help you achieve bliss. I also realized I'd be hypocritical if I gave low marks to sites selling massages and chocolate when some of my own most blissful experiences have come from indulging in those very same products.

Writing this article was one of those weirdly blissful experiences that come from humility. I realized that my arrogant attitude that bliss couldn't be purchased wasn't entirely accurate. Bliss can be purchased, but like everything it has to be buyer beware because purchasing a product won't make you entirely blissful unless you approach it with the right attitude and enjoy it in moderation. For instance, one Hershey's Bliss can inspire a wonderful feeling, but eating 10 will give you a stomach ache and intense guilt about all the calories you just consumed.

Fish Bliss

Growing up in the Midwest, there was no way I could escape being a meat and potatoes kinda girl. The meat of choice was beef and the only time we had fish was when we went to Missouri and indulged in fried catfish. We didn't eat out that often and and when we did it was family restaurants that served the same kind of food we ate at home. The one memorable fish experience I had growing up was after my first semester at college when my dad took me out for lobster saying that everyone had to have lobster at least once in their life.

When I was 23 and working for the Air Force Audit Agency and word came from headquarters that my transfer to Okinawa, Japan had been approved, my coworkers took me out for sushi to celebrate. It was the first time I'd ever heard of sushi and when I discovered it was mostly raw fish, I grimaced and tried it, but quickly retreated into the safer realm of tempura.

I discovered lots of amazing foods during my three years in Japan, but still never fell in love with sushi. Teppan yaki thrilled me for both its flavor and the showmanship of the chefs who made cooking over a hot grill an art form with their running commentary, thrown eggs, and artfully sliced veggies. I'd never been a big fan of squash until I discovered tempura and I was amazed at how wonderful the humble vegetable could taste when battered and fried. Then there was Mongolian. I still remember the first time I had Mongolian at the officer's club on Guam. There was something about picking your own veggies and meats for stir fry and then watching them cooked on the big grill that made them taste amazing. Our favorite Mongolian place on Okinawa was this wonderful restaurant called Genghis Khan that had a waterfall in the window. However, the lure of sushi still escaped me. I went out with coworkers a few times and stuck with the shrimp sushi, which was cooked so I considered it safe.

Sushi and I didn't cross paths again until last year when a team came from Japan to review the status of my project and they took us out for sushi. Apparently they'd been warned ahead of time that I wasn't very adventuresome when it came to food so one of my Japanese co-workers ordered me a steak so that I would have something to eat. It was a little embarrassing to be the only one at the table not eating sushi, but the embarrassment still wasn't enough to convince me to try sushi again.

It was a comment by my boss and a trip to Miami that convinced me that maybe there was something to this raw fish thing. My boss made the comment that I played it safe when it came to food and that ticked me off just enough to make me want to prove to him that I wasn't a culinary clod. Seafood abounds in Miami and it was there I discovered cerviche. Cerviche is raw fish that has been "cooked" in lemon juice. It has the most amazingly delicate flavor and I realized that if cerviche was this good, maybe I should give sushi another try.

I dabbled in sushi for about six months, periodically testing the waters to see if I really liked it or I just liked the idea of having a sophisticated palate. It was during a trip to Chattanooga a few weeks ago that I realized I really did like some aspects of sushi. A really good friend of mine from our Memphis facility had gone out for sushi the day before with some coworkers from Miami and was raving about how good it was and how she wanted to go out for sushi again. We packed up the van and headed to another sushi restaurant to indulge. There was something about her enthusiasm that made me want to really explore sushi. It also helped that our Latin American friends were very knowledgeable about sushi and were able to order things they thought we'd liked. We ended up eating our way through two sushi boats and then some and I came away with a deeper appreciation for sushi. I also learned that sushi doesn't necessarily mean raw fish. Sushi actually refers to vinegar rice topped with other ingredients and since that trip I've been exploring various types of sushi.

Since I came home from Chattanooga, I've been craving sushi and heading out to Sushi Station at least once a week for lunch. The cool thing about Sushi Station is that they are a rotating Sushi bar that lets you see what the various rolls look like before you purchase them. My favorite is Philadelphia rolls (cream cheese, salmon, and avocado) and I'm not sure what it is about that combination that makes them so yummy, but I seem to crave Philadelphia rolls.

One thing I've noticed since I've been eating more sushi is that I seem to have more energy and am feeling better. That makes sense since even Philadelphia rolls are fairly low in calories and both salmon and avocado are good for you. I also think fondly of my friend from Memphis every time I eat sushi and maybe that's part of the reason I enjoy it so much.

Roasting Bliss

Summer brings to mind long ago summers where my family would spend a week traveling through the countryside and camping out in state or national forests or local campgrounds. We'd usually spend three or four nights camping and then spend one night in a motel to clean up and reconnect with civilization.

There is something magickal about sitting around a campfire out in the woods watching the stars and the fireflies. Campfires seem to invite sharing stories and wisdom and we did a little of both around our fires. Camping also seems to create communities of strangers as kids and parents let down their guard and get to know the folks at the next campsite. I remember shared meals where we'd each cook our own meals and then sit together to commune about where we'd been and where we were going.

There always seemed to be marshmallows at those campfires and in the days before fancy storebought roasting forks, the kids would be sent out into the woods to find sticks that were perfect for roasting marshmallows. The perfect stick was thick at the bottom and thin, but not too thin, at the top. A stick that was too thin at the top would dump your marshmallow into the fire and one that was too thick would leave you with a marshmallow that tasted like wood.

Then there was the great debate about brown or black. Some folks kept their marshmallows far from the flame and turned them slowly so their marshmallows turned a beautiful amber. Then there were those of us who plunged our marsmallows deep into the center of the fire and ended up with a charred black nugget that had a sweet crispy coating and a creamy melted center. I've always been a burnt marshmallow type of gal and I'm not sure exactly what that says about my character. I choose to think that it means I'm brave and courageous and jump into the thick of the fire and then enjoy a sweet reward.

Campfires aren't the only way to roast marshmallows and I remember when I was about ten sneaking out of bed to get a treat and finding my dad holding a fork over the flame of our gas stove roasting a hotdog. A little light bulb went on over my head and I realized that the flame of our gas stove would be a perfect place to burn (I mean roast) marshmallows. My dad indulged me and let me roast my marshmallows over the stove, but made me promise to never do it when he wasn't around and to never tell mom. It's funny, but the small flame on the stove invited the same types of conversations that roasting marshmallows around a bonfire did and my dad and I talked about work, about school, and about life.

At forty plus, I'm not quite ready to break out the sleeping bag and head out to the hills to camp, but I do miss the confidences and magick of campfires. Fortunately, I do have a gas stove, a bag of marshmallows, and some forks and believe it or not, it still conjures the same magick of those long ago campfires and makes me realize that sometimes the simplest things like burning food over a fire really are the best.

Bliss Mountain

I've spent quite a bit of the last month traveling, but the best traveling was the three days my daughter and I spent wandering around the South. I spent a week in South Carolina for work and she flew down to Atlanta to meet me. We had no set agenda, except to see the sites and enjoy each other's company.

Her flight landed right on time and I was thrilled to see my so-grown up daughter get off the plane. Even though she is 17 and has flown several times before, I was so nervous about all the things that could go wrong between when her dad put her on the plane in Chicago and I picked her up in Atlanta that I breathed a deep sigh of relief when I saw her get off the plane.

We started our adventure with a trip to the Pendergrass Flea Market, which bills itself as Georgia's Largest and the World's Largest Flea Market. I can't speak for it being the largest, but it was certainly a change for a girl who grew up believing flea markets were grungy affairs where people sold left overs out of the back of their trucks. There was an amazing array of goods at the Pendergrass Flea Market from necklaces to pigs. We spent a relaxing hour or so looking at stuff we didn't need before we decided to head on our way.

I'd given Caitlin the option of mountains or the ocean and she chose the mountains. We headed north toward North Carolina. As we passed through the tip of South Carolina, we decided to stop at Oconee Station to see what was there. Deep in the SC woods we found a small ranger's station and two old buildings. One had been a house in prior days and the other an outpost. Although it was a beautifully sunny day, there seemed to be a chill in the air when we stepped into the dwellings and it was as if the ghosts of the past were speaking to us and urging us never to forget the atrocities that had taken place in the peaceful hills of the South.

As we were about to leave the station, we saw a sign for the Station Cove Falls. Inquiring at the guard station we were told the falls were an easy 30 minute walk. The hike was easy for my very in shape daughter, but very out of shape me struggled with the ups and downs of the mountain hills. Caitlin walked ahead and it took me over an hour to catch up with her and by then she was walking back from the falls because she'd gotten worried about me. She told me that once I got there I would have to walk down and over hills and she advised me to turn around because she could see I was already pretty worn out. I heeded her advice and started walking back, dreading the long and hilly walk back. However, my sweet and brave daughter knew I was physically exhausted and dehydrated and she walked all the way back and got the car and then met me at a way post. I was so proud of her because even though she is 17, she doesn't have her license and has less than 10 hours experience behind the wheel. She explained to me that she drove very slowly and watched the road carefully. I'm just glad this happened in the backwoods of South Carolina and not downtown Chicago.

After this adventure, we stopped at a fruit stand and bought some of the best nectarines and blackberries we'd ever had and called that lunch. We spent the next few hours driving through the mountains and talking about life, college, and a host of other things. It was refreshing to listen to my daughter talk about her goals and realize that her dad and I had done a pretty good job raising her. We stopped for dinner at a quaint little restaurant overlooking some falls. I had trout and Cat had what she declared was the best veggie lasagna that she'd ever had.

We also stopped by a little shop selling crafts from local artisans and we bought some beautiful glass jewelry. After we left though, Cat and I talked and we both realized that we'd gotten a really bad vibe from the lady running the store as if she was taking advantage of the local artists. Neither of us is sure why we felt that, but it was interesting that we both had the same feeling.

We rolled into Asheville, NC around 8 pm and there wasn't a hotel room to be had unless we were willing to pay $150 a night, which we weren't. I pulled into the parking lot of the local Chik-a-filet and started surfing the net and making calls to find us a room. I finally found one in Greenville, SC so we got back on the road and drove for another hour before bedding down. I spent some time before we headed to bed figuring out where we'd be the next two nights and making reservations so that we didn't hear "no room at the inn" again.

Breakfast the next morning was a dozen Krispy Kreme donuts. The Krispy Kreme by us closed about six months ago so we were both ready for our donut fix. Driving around Greenville we came upon this beautiful park built around a waterfall. There was a magnificent suspension bridge and an amazing park full of people running, playing, and enjoying life. We got out and spent some time enjoying the serenity before we headed north to Asheville and the Blue Ridge Parkway.

The Blue Ridge Parkway is known as "America's Favorite Drive and I can see how it got that name. It is an incredibly beautiful parkway through the Blue Ridge Mountains. We drove up mountains, down mountains, and through tunnels all the while enjoying some sweet bluegrass music and the amazing scenery. The first hour or so we stopped at every scenic overlook to take pictures, but then we realized we'd never get to Johnson City, TN if we kept stopping so we vowed to only stop when we got to the top of the mountain. Mount Mitchell was definitely worth stopping for as it is the highest peak east of the Mississippi. I felt as if I could see forever. We made Johnson City by 6:30 pm and after a meal at Caitlin's favorite restaurant, Waffle House, we turned in early so we could drive back to Atlanta the next day.

Our last day in the South we spent driving through TN, NC, SC, and GA. We got to the hotel by 7 and after a quick meal, Caitlin turned in and I went to return the rental car. All too soon our journey was over and it was time to return to the mundane world of work, bills, and the like, but I know I will always carry memories of this special trip in my heart as I felt like I had three wonderful days with my daughter outside the bounds of everyday life. I've always loved my daughter, but in those three days I learned what an incredible, independent, vivacious, and wonderful young woman she really is.