Energy ...or lack thereof

It seems that this time of year my energy decreases.  Case in point-- I did not have the energy to get this posted until later than I usual prefer.

There are three things that I can do to increase my energy level.  

1. Eat better.  I've had too many sweets.  
2. Sleep better.  I have been burning the candle at both ends lately. 
3. Exercise better.   Every little but helps and something is better than nothing. 

I'll get started on the list right away...as soon as I take a small nap.  

Computer Woes

My computer is still giving me woe.  I downloaded some malware a while back and I am trying to get rid of it in the least expensive way possible.

During this time I have come to a few realizations:

1. My computer is cluttered with so many files, pictures, and folders.  I have so many things saved that I don't even know what I have.  It will take me years to go through and purge these files. Why do I save so much? 
2. Pictures are a problem.  With digitized pictures I seem to keep every single one, not wanting to throw any out.  I have so many pictures- and they are all sentimental to me. I have pictures of all my extended family and ones of my grandparents and great grandparents from years gone by. I love the pictures, but what will happen if my computer crashes?  Should I have them printed?  Should I save them to a cloud drive--and still have my pictures hidden 
3. My computer has become an important tool/utility in my life.  Not having access to one is difficult.  I rely on it for many things.  

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I solve my computer problems soon 

A Matter of Perspective

So the other day, I ran into some friends that I haven't seen for a long while.  This husband-wife team and I used to run around in the circles, . Our kids were the same ages and we just sort of did life together,  

Then one day over time our circles began to change. While the deep friendship remained, we began to drift apart in life.   We didn't see one another as often.  As the seasons changed so did our season of life.  It was okay. It was good,  It was life.

Back to the other day-- I hadn't seen them together for a couple of years. What great joy there was as we caught up on what we were doing.  But as I left, I had a thought that has perturbed me ever since. They. looked. old.   They looked worn out and almost elderly.

When I think of my friends I see them in my mind as they were--twenty years ago.  I see us both as our younger selves. But the reality is that they are older.  And that means....that I am older too.  

I wonder if I looked old to them also.

June

(June??  How can it be June already? )

June means many things.  In June:

• school bells ceasing and children happy to finish out their school year 
• the heat  of the day becomes difficult as the temperature rises
• pretty flowers bloom in the garden 
• a/c bills increase as the appliance strains to keep the house cool 
• skin reddens and burns if sunblock is not applied regularly  
• swimming pools fill with water and with kids
• vacation season commences --some have short trips and some take longer ones 
• wedding announcements multiply in the newspaper 
• summer school starts --parents are happy to have somewhere to send their children so they don't have to hear "I'm bored!"  
• clothing gets skimpier as the day gets hotter 
• flip-flops reign 
• ice cream becomes a steady dessert
• evenings sitting on the deck with a cool drink 
• mosquitoes enjoying a feast of their unsuspecting human host 

What do you think of when June rolls around? 

Who said Happy Hour?

That's right it is Frappuccino Happy Hour!  Through May 10  (that is today....aww, drats! It's almost over! )  You can get a Starbucks Frappuccino at 50% the regular price.   You must go between 3pm and 5pm.  

I got mine Friday when I got off work (around 3:30) and the drive-thru line was longer than I have seen it at that specific location.   Great minds think alike~ they were all there to get their half-off frappuccino.
 
Caramel frappuccino with light caramel --yum!  One of my favorites.  I may have to go back and get another one~

What is your favorite frappuccino?

U is for Upkeep

Owning a home has the unfortunate consequence of upkeep.  The older the home the more the upkeep there is to do.  And unfortunately, every year my home gets a year older.

Here is some of the upkeep that I need to do this year on my home (I am sure I am forgetting some of it)

• clean out the gutters
• re-mulch the mulched areas of yard
• remove and replace bushes/plants that did not make it through the harsh winter
• change the filters in the heater/air conditioner
• shampoo carpets ( replace carpets within a few years) 
• inspect roof and make any necessary repairs 
• paint inside walls this year or next 

Sometimes I wish I could wave my wand and let everything be done.  

Or twitch my nose like Samantha.  

Then I wake up to reality.  And I do the next best thing.  

I call my son.  

What is your least favorite upkeep chore around the house? 

T is for Talent

Talent.

I have talent a mile wide and an inch deep.  As a kid I wanted to try my hand at everything.  I didn't actually try everything,  but I did try many things... and I was pretty good at several of them.

But I never stayed at one talent long enough to become an expert.  I always wanted to move on to learn something else.  To become a sort of Jill-of- all-talents.

I danced.  I took tap and ballet classes.  When I became older I added some jazz classes and I also did some ballet on pointe.  I took acrobatics and helped with the young classes.

Then I moved on.

I went the musical way.  I began instrumental music classes.  I chose the trumpet because my grandfather and mother before me had played the trumpet.  My grandfather played gigs in nightclubs as a young man and my mother told me stories of when she played in her high school marching band. I wanted to continue the legacy, so I learned to play the trumpet. I learned on my grandfathers trumpet that had been passed down to my mother and now to me.

Within a few years I decided to learn guitar and I took lessons at a community class given at our library.   Years later when I had children, I bought a piano and made sure they took lessons-- and I learned with them.  

Artistically, I tried my hand at pottery, stained glass, painting, and drawing.  I learned to crochet and to knit.  I did needlework to hang on my walls.  

Athletically, I played volleyball and I swam.  


In college I was known among friends as the queen of theory- I had a good grasp of the several theorists we had to know and their respective theories.  I also had a knack with APA.   When a friend needed help strengthening a paper with theory or had questions about how to cite something they would come to me for advice.  Could that be my talent??  

I never focused on one thing and did it so well to be known for that talent.  Instead I dabbled along and had a well-rounded life doing a little bit of everything and learning an appreciation for everything.

So I have no real talent...just experiences.  But oh, what a wonderful life.

What is your talent?  

R is for Read

I am a reader. 
At my place there is plenty to read. 

I like to read. I teach others to read. 

I read, read, and read some more. 

What do you like to read? 

   

P is for Pottery

In lieu of a bridal shower for my future daughter-in-law (which she was adamantly against), my daughters and I had a little celebration for her at a local pottery studio followed by lunch.  We invited her mom, grandma and a couple other close friends.  

We spent a couple hours trying to be crafty -- some were more artsy than others- while we painted our pottery.  When we finished the pieces needed to be left at the studio so they could be fired.   A few days ago, I went and picked up some of our handiwork and took this picture before I delivered the pieces to the owners.  I think we did a pretty good job if I say so myself.

It was a fun Girl's Day Out and a way to make the bride-to-be feel special in a way that honored her wishes.   Our pottery may not be masterpieces, but they are special because they hold memories of this day.



     

M is for Microwave Popcorn

Have you ever had popcorn burn in the microwave? Leave the little folded package in too long and you have a stinky mess.

Well, this is the story of the day I came home from to find a bag of burnt microwave popcorn on bench outside the front door. 

To set the scene, I had left my 3 children home while I was out—the youngest at the time was 11 years old and his sisters were 2 and 4 years older than him. They were all doing their own  thing that afternoon and  I was gone not longer than 2-3 hours.   The rule of the house is that no one cooks when mom is away. 

After seeing the burnt popcorn bag outside, I was a bit angry because the kids knew not to use the stove when I was not there. I did what any mom would do- I went to interrogate the guilty parties.  My son was the alleged culprit—darn kid said he was hungry!  He decided that using the microwave—especially for 3 minutes or less --- did not constitute cooking.  “Besides,” he said, “technically it was not using the stove.”  His story was that somehow the popcorn burned and it had stunk up the place so he put the bag outside.   I reprimanded him to be safe and responsible and figured no harm done. Case closed. 

Mothers of teens and pre-teens: Always ask the unasked questions!  Always assume there might be more!  My advice is to add on to every interrogation, “….and what else?”  

You see, as Paul Harvey used to say, "Here’s the  rest of the  story…”

A few days later as the family was talking, one of my girls revealed a little bit more. As we were talking, she says…”you know, it was right after the firemen were here.”

Say what? 

Firemen?

Here?   When? 

Oh yeah....they were here.  As the popcorn began to burn in the microwave that day it began to smoke.  The bag actually caught on fire (quickly put out).  It set off our monitored smoke/theft alarms and the sirens began to blare through the neighborhood.  The fire department was automatically called and the firetrucks came sirens on and all to the house. 

For the fire. 

Of course by the time they got there all they found was a scared young boy, his teenage sisters, and a burnt bag of microwave popcorn. 

Had my girls not slipped and let it come out in natural conversation, I might have never known the fire department had been to the house that day.

And that is the rest of my microwave popcorn story.

Have firemen been called to your house over popcorn?  

L is for Lipstick

What do you notice with the picture above? 

If you noticed there are three shades of lipstick, you would be right.  

If you noticed that 2 lipsticks are nearly used and 1 still has a good amount, you would be right.  

If you noticed a frustrated consumer sitting at the side, you would be right.  You would also have super-hero sight.  

Why do cosmetic companies insist on changing their shades and not continuing with the hues that they have already developed?  It seems with each new season companies roll out a new line of colors and get rid of last year's shades.  

By golly,  I LIKE the shade of lipstick that I use.  And every year I have to find a new shade!   

Granted all three of these lipstick shades are very close in color-- but not quite.  And that "not quite" can change a whole way that one looks.  How would you like it if the closest you can find to "yummy plummy" is "mauve mania" or some other cousin in the same color family --"magnificent mauve"?   Worse yet --- what will be waiting at the counter when it is time to replenish my stock?   

So if I were a beauty queen and asked the question of what I wish for the world-- you just might hear me say "Consistent Lipstick Shades that never retire."  

After World Peace of course. 

  

J is for Jury Duty

Jury Duty.  Not exactly on my list of favorite things to do.

What does it conjure up ?  LA Law, Perry Mason, maybe Law & Order ?  Do you want to be sequestered?  Sounds possibly exciting.  

The last time I was called to be in the pool for jurors was several years ago.  I didn't get chosen to sit on the jury, but I did have to listen to the prosecutor and defense lawyer explain the upcoming case.  It was actually quite interesting.  A man went to a dancing bar and got angry with another over a girl. He left the bar and went out to his car where he had a bat.  He took the bat and beat the other man with it as he left the bar.   Almost a county song.

After being questioned by the lawyers, they chose who they wanted to sit on the jury.  I didn't get get to sit--but I was okay with that.

Now the opportunity was back again.  Ugh,--- don't get me wrong.  I appreciate our system of justice in the United States and I realize there needs to be a jury of peers for it to work. I just don't want to be one of the peers.  I don't want to take off work to be available.  [They do pay us $7.50 per day for our trouble Whoo Hoo! ] I don't want to hold the fate of someone in my hands, especially if the alleged crime is severe.

But I got the notice to serve.  To do my civic duty.  Show up or have a warrant put out on me.

For one week I called the courthouse every evening to see if I needed to go in.  Thankfully each night I got the message that there were no trials scheduled for the following day. Yay!

So...I was a good citizen and did my civic duty.  I served my time as a potential member of the jury pool.  And now I am done--without ever having to actually go in.   Hopefully it will be several years before my turn comes up again.

Have you ever served on a jury?   

Cable TV

After many years of having and enjoying cable TV, I have now opted out. Definitely there are some good things about cable TV. For example, besides educational programming sometimes you can only see certain sporting events or pop culture shows if you have a cable subscription. But for me and my household, we will be finding our entertainment elsewhere.

These are some things I do not like about cable TV and the companies that run it:

• being lured by short term discounts that are tied to 24 month contracts
• having to pay outrageous prices
• having 200+ channels but regularly watching only 5-6 at most 
• dealing with a customer service department that, more times than not, is lacking 
• having to buy a whole tier or package of channels that you aren't interested in because there is one channel out of the 30 that you do want  
• feeling pressured to bundle with other services if you want to save money 
• experiencing intermittent outages in service, especially during storms or the Word Series
• discovering that being a loyal customer is not valued - to get the really good deals you must be a new customer

There are times when I miss having cable, but with an antenna in my area I can pick up three national networks.  There is always the option of looking into satellite service, too.  However, I am finding that I really don't watch the television much anymore. 

Someday I may go back to cable. By then I will be a new customer again and be able to cash in on some lucrative deals.  Then again-- I probably won't ever go back to cable TV.  

How do you watch television? 

Bunnies

This little bunny lives by me.  I'll call her Betty.  Who knows?  She may be related to the Easter Bunny! Betty has left evidence in my yard as she burrows for her home. Little tufts of fur can be seen occasionally floating on the wind or stuck on some nearby weeds. Once when moving some fallen leaves away from my house, a handful of baby bunnies no bigger than my fingers scurried away.

Here are some facts about bunnies:

• More than half the world's population of bunnies live in North America
• A female bunny is called a doe, a male bunny is called a buck
• Baby bunnies are called kits 
• A bunny has 28 teeth and those teeth never stop growing 
• Bunnies are recognized as symbols of fertility & rebirth and often associated with Easter and spring 

Betty and I can peacefully coexist as long as she does not bother me or chew on my plants too much. Bunnies may be cute and cuddly to some, but to me-- the best bunny is a chocolate bunny!  

Do you have cute and cuddly creatures living in your yard?  

Who has the Right to a Parking Place?

 photo credit

 

 

 

I made a big mistake.  I went to Walmart on the Saturday before school starts. The place is full of college kids getting their groceries, dorm supplies, college needs, and other wants in addition to our local parents gathering their children's school supplies, new school clothes, and groceries for the start of the new school year.  For one who does not like to shop-  this is NOT the time to go.  But I survived, made my purchases, and proceeded to walk all the way to the end of the parking lot row to my car.  Along the way I noticed a dilemma that makes me wonder - who has the right to a parking place?  

Obviously, the parking lot was full. Cars were crawling along trying to find a place that would be reasonably close.  Drivers would scope out the shoppers leaving the store and follow them to their parking places, waiting for them to leave.  This created some traffic jams.

As I walked up the row to my car, a lady near the beginning of the row ( and therefore a premium parking place) was just opening her trunk to put her cart of purchases in.  A car stopped to wait for her and thereby get her parking place. Before too long there were 3 more cars lined up behind the first, all waiting on the woman to finish before they could move.

I reached my car and was putting my own purchases in my trunk when I noticed the passenger of the waiting car get out and walk up to the woman's car.  The woman was nowhere in sight.  Although I could not hear her, the passenger's body language of flinging arms at the cars waiting revealed she wanted the woman to hurry and pull out of the parking place.  

I want to know : Who has the right to a parking place?  Is it the car who occupies it?  Or is it the car who is waiting for it?  

The waiting car ended up leaving without the parking place. The cars behind then could move and soon the parked car pulled out.   This all transpired within 10 minutes from the time I left the store, so the parked car driver was not being unreasonably long. 

 So who has the right to a parking place? Would you ever get out of your car to tell someone to hurry up and leave their parking place? 

 

Working Retail

I work a few hours a week in a major retail department store.  It is an interesting job that I like because there is always something humorous, quirky, tragic, interesting, pretty, weird, or [insert other adjective here] that amuses me.  But isn't that the way any time you deal with people?  We humans are such an interesting lot. 

As one of the gatekeepers at this department store, everyone who has to pass by me or by one of my co-gatekeepers.  We finalize the purchase transactions.  That's right - we take the money, check or  credit card and we put your merchandise into handy sacks to be carried out the door which is close by.   Even those people who decide not to buy anything have to walk by us as they make their way to the door and leave.

Working retail has its advantages and disadvantages.  As a person who is not that fond of shopping myself, I find it very helpful to help people check out their purchases.  I get to see all the merchandise and the sale prices close up.  If I see something I really like or need, I do not have to shop around for it.  I know just where to get it, how much it costs, and what department to find it in.   Sadly, the flipside of this is that I have spent a lot of my paychecks as I make them.    

Sometimes Things Are Easier Than We Make Them To Be

O Happy Day!

 



 

On one of the routes I take when walking, I pass this cheery sight.  What a way to make a positive statement in a neighborhood.  It's like saying to each who pass by, "Have a nice day !" 

No More Hello Kitty

 

Xavier "Kitty"

 

1996 - 2012

 



 

 

That's all I can say for now.  I am sure I will write about him at another time.  His absence is felt. 



Lucky Day

I went to fill my gas tank up today and this is what I came upon--



See a penny, pick it up.  All day long, you'll have good luck.

Alright  luck--- I'm awaitin'!