That Time Of The Year

So yes, I have declared Reba McEntire to be my ultimate favorite of everything. I can’t help it. It is like we are secret sisters…or something! No, obviously and sadly we’re not, but it is a thought that crosses my mind and brings a smile to my face sometimes! Why am I talking about this? Because maybe I am talking about another favorite today too. What is it? I’ll get to it, hold your horses.

  The kids are heading back to school soon, if they haven’t yet already where you live. That means one thing…our favorite shows will be back on! Reba has a new one coming out on ABC. I am not very enthusiastic about it because every show I like on that station seems to get cut. *sigh* But, its Reba! If anyone can do it, she can. Football season is starting. I like football too. My favorite though is hockey. THAT is what I am ecstatic over. Hockey season soon follows new shows and football. I cannot wait. What is that? You don’t know hockey, or follow it? Say it isn't so! Maybe with a little persuasion from me you might change your mind. See, my second book is about a hockey player. So I had to do a little…er…research. 

  Sometimes a nice picture or two helps to describe certain attributes of a character. Hey, it's always nice to have a picture to reference back to, right? Well, let me show you instead of telling! If you don’t become a hockey fan by the end of this then there’s no help for you!

 Did it work? Did that interest you to at least watch a game? Do you follow any sports? What interests you? Can you see why I LOVE to write?

Stop,Thief!

  I have worn many hats in my life. No, I’m not talking about cowboy or baseball hats either. I am talking about jobs. To say I’ve had a few would be an understatement. Sometimes I had even considered myself a wanderer of the employment world. I truly wish I was one of those people who knew what they wanted to do since they were twelve. But I wasn’t. I wandered, and actually, I’m not really sad that I did. I took a piece of every job with me, which is cool in a way because I can relate back to those experiences if I needed to for say, a book, or a…blog.

  So one stepping stone on my way to writing (heh J) was a security officer stint. I wasn’t just any security officer though. I was an armed one! The company I worked for had a contract with a huge discount store. This store had everything from perfume to cigarettes, and we watched over it all. It always amazed me what people stole, or attempted to steal. Cigarettes were a high theft item. We would catch people stealing one, one pack, one carton, or more. I even caught an older lady attempting to steal a tube of lipstick. It always amazed me what people tried to get away with. Actually, when I sat back and thought about it I always got a little sad. It is sad to me that people have to resort to that sort of thing.

  If you follow me regularly then you know that a couple of months ago I got chosen to sit on a jury. The defendant had been accused of stealing forty seven boat batteries. You read that right, forty seven. *smh* Long story short he was found guilty. Yet once again I felt a slight bit of empathy toward the defendant. I don’t know why.

  Jump forward to this week. I got a nice email from my bank stating my debit card had been compromised. I scratched my head. Immediately I got online and went to my bank expecting to see nothing left in my account. To my surprise everything was kosher. All transactions I made were showing, and no questionable ones were to be found. Phew. Catastrophe avoided, right? Wrong. Within an hour my lovely bank called me stating the card was compromised and they would have to close the card out. Now my red headed roots started to make my blood boil a little. They went through all the recent transactions, which were not made by anyone but me. Still, they had to close the card out. I understand and should be thankful that they were being safe. But I’m not. I’m a little mad still. See, this is my luck. We are leaving for a little get away Saturday. The Charmed One has a big birthday on Monday, and well, you can see where this is going. Yes I have credit cards, but I don’t like to use them. I personally hate writing a check. Oh, and what is that four letter word...cash? I hate to use that too, rather I hate to carry a large amount with me. So now I have to make time to go to the bank and get a temporary card. Can you see my frustration? I can’t even feel empathy toward any person because I don’t know if my card was actually compromised or if it was because I used it more than normal. It possibly could be my own doing. :-| Either way it has me pulling my hair out.

  So you can see how my stepping stone with a security job has led me to at least this blog! I hope I don’t have to reach back and grab anymore from it again!

  Has someone ever stolen your credit or debit card information? Have you had any quirky things happen before you took a trip somewhere? Are you a career person, or have you had a few jobs?

W.P.I. -   Proper placement of shrubs is critical for your enjoyment and their long-term survival. Before planting your shrub, consider the shrub's mature size. When the shrub nears maturity, will it be too close to your house or other structures? Be considerate of your neighbors as well!

Catching My Eye

    I have been experiencing some good and bad lately. My bet is that most of you could probably say that. I’m hoping that your good outweighs the bad. If it hasn't then maybe this one will at least take you out of bad and into good for just a little bit. At least I hope it does. 

  I will start with some good. I have been able to get some half way decent pictures of some of my favorite summertime things. I put a hummingbird feeder outside of my living room window. Now, I should have been thinking and used a newer feeder, but I didn’t expect to find myself standing at the window trying to get a picture of one of my favorite feathered friends. So here are a couple…

  The other day I was walking in the yard and something in the grass caught my eye. It was white. Curiosity got the best of me so I bent down to pick it up. I quickly pulled my hand away from it. After another minute I decided to become a little braver. I thought what a good picture it would be for some of my friends. So up on Facebook it went. Then, for some crazy reason I thought you all might like to see it too. No your eyes aren’t deceiving you, it really is that big.

  Something else kept on distracting me. It seemed that every time I sat down to type I would see something out of the corner of my eye. Finally I let myself take the time to figure out what it was. It was this beauty! I love butterflies, and this one was friendly. It did not care at all that I sat on the ledge of the deck and snapped picture after picture. At one point it even almost landed on me. I felt its wings tickle my cheek. Isn’t it purdy?

  Do you see a pattern of a good story, and then a bad one right after? Well, here’s another bad (more like wacky) one. Just a couple of nights ago I sat in my recliner typing away when the strangest look appeared on the Charmed One’s face. It was a look between horror and wonder, if you can imagine that. When the Charmed One told me to look what was crawling up the screen I nearly let out a scream. What the??? I don’t know either, but all monstrous bugs have decided to descend upon us over the last week. Lucky us!

  Had enough bug stories? Me too. I am going to shake it up a little. I’ll tell you another bad, but end it with a good one. Always end with a good story! Come on, I am a happily ever after sort of girl! Okay, the bad. I bought a book on my ereader. I was going to start reading it, but saw it was almost 1500 pages long. Sheesh. I started reading it anyways. It was a pretty good book, and the reading went fast. Before I knew it I was on page eight hundred and something. It seemed like the end of the book was coming up, and I thought, “It can’t be.” Well, it was. It just stopped. The end. The rest of the pages were all previews to other books by that author. That has been the first book that I have read in ages that I would not recommend. On the upside I have read some other great books. I have read All Summer Long by Susan Mallery, Exposure by Susan Andersen, Secrets of the Lost Summer by Carla Neggers, Last Summer by Holly Chamberlin, True Colors by Kristin Hannah, Lucky in Love and At Last by Jill Shalvis, and The Garden of Happy Endings and The Secret of Everything by Barbara O’Neal. All of these were great reads that I would highly recommend. They were all great escapes! I could only hope that one day someone may like my books as much as I liked these.

Has anything caught your eye lately? Did it end up being a good or bad thing? When is the last time you read a book you didn’t like? What’s the last book(s) you read?   

eCard Mania

  Years and years ago the rock band Tesla remade a song. The songs name was ‘Signs.’ Do you remember it? It talked about wherever you go there are signs. Apparently these signs blocked the view, and told you what to do, etc. Come on, you remember, right? Today I think that song could be remade. Instead of the word signs we could use the word ecard.

  Yes I’m on Facebook, and I am on Pinterest as well. Every day I am overwhelmed with how many ecards there are out there. I just posted one on Facebook before I started to type this. Usually when there is so much of one thing out there I will tend to not like it, because it gets overused. I have not really got to that point yet with these…ecards. Let’s face it, that hasn’t happened yet because there are like a million of them out there. Some are in good taste, some…not so much. So today I am going to be a little short on words, but heavy on ecards that make me laugh, and hopefully they do you too! 

                                  

                                               With apologies to some friends and family...

                                                 Or how about...

There are also some non ecards that make me smile too...

Or...

  Okay, so I had a ton of fun with this one! I hope that you enjoyed it as well.

If you are on Pinterest or Facebook are you tired of seeing these signs? If you could make a sign what would it say? (Keep it clean, please!) How long do you think this trend will last? What is the funniest one that you have seen?

W.P.I.- Herbs are generally best used freshly gathered. Intensity varies considerably, so only use a little at a time to begin with. Leaves are not the only parts that can be eaten whole or added to dishes as a seasoning. Many flowers have a unique and subtle piquancy while roots and stems are prepared in many inventive ways. Try nasturtium petals in a salad or horseradish sauce, but always remember to only eat herbs that you can positively identify as an edible variety.

Downsizing The Past

  It is an ever so popular word used today. Most people cringe when they hear it, but I am going to use it in a fun way. The word is downsizing. Now I am not talking about it in a job sense. I am talking about it in an I-refuse-to-be-thought-of-as-a-hoarder sense!

  That’s right, I am downsizing. I have things that I have had for years and years. Will I ever use them again? Probably not. But they keep on being moved from place to place, collecting dust everywhere they go, and it’s time to say goodbye. Sadly, I just moved two years ago, and didn’t do it then. So one might ask, “Why now?” Well, I have a little more time now, and I’m preparing myself because our new digs in Savannah will most likely be smaller than what we have now. What kind of “things” am I talking about? Thanks for askin! Let me tell ya!

  Many, many moons ago I was a licensed massage therapist in New York state. So needless to say I purchased a massage table. Even though I haven’t practiced massage therapy in years I still lug that table with me every time I move. If you’ve never been fortunate enough to receive a massage let me say that massage tables are not small. They are rather large, and tend to take up some room. Last week I posted it on Craigslist. Last week I sold it! Yes, one item off the list.

  One time I went through a big country music phase. It was the line dancing every Friday and Saturday nights sort of stage. Of course I had to have the correct apparel. I had the jeans, and a few nice shirts. A lovely man I was dating bought me a beautiful cowboy hat. Sadly I thought it was too nice to wear to most places we went. It stayed in its box for years. I have long since moved on from that relationship, but that hat remained with me. I sold that this weekend too! One more “thing” taken off the list!

  The next one is tough. I feel like each and every one of these is a child of mine. It will be very hard to get rid of them. I am talking books. I have so many books that I have read throughout the years that I have held onto. Now I need to say goodbye. So this week I will go to the local library and see if they would like any of them. I feel happier just thinking it is one more step toward Savannah!

  So it wasn’t that bad was it? Downsizing my way has become prosperous, and fun!

Have you had to deal with downsizing lately? Was it a voluntary downsize or no? Have you thinned out your belongings recently? What is the best thing you’ve let go of?

The Tastes Of Home

  Morning came. Being only half awake I stumbled to the coffee maker. Sleepily I eyeballed the water and put in a filter. Then, sadly, I screamed when I went to measure out the coffee. We were almost out of it. Melodramatic much? Sometimes. But this was not one of those times. You see, some people like Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts, which can be found pretty much anywhere these days. Not us, NO! We have to be absolutely addicted to Tim Horton’s coffee. Supersadly, Tim Horton’s is found in some northern states, and Canada. Not in North Carolina.

  I admit there are things I miss from where I used to live. Mostly I miss family and friends. Then I miss the food. Don’t get me wrong there are some good foods here in the south, but I was born and raised on these particular tastes from home. Sadly we are about out of all of our provisions. An emergency trip may be in the works.

  I would just have my mom ship us more coffee if that was all we needed. I know, you are probably thinking, how much good food does Buffalo, NY have to offer? Let me tell you. TONS. Obviously Buffalo is known for chicken wings. They also have some other great dishes like Beef on Weck, and Pizza. Restaurants also offer up some great fish fry’s.

  Of course we can’t get those things. The supplies we need are Chiavetta’s barbeque sauce, Bison Chip Dip, Weber’s Mustard, Miller’s Horseradish, and pure maple syrup. We need coffee, and we need real hot dogs, sausage and peirogi. *Sigh* I’m getting hungry all over again just typing this! (Hey, don’t judge!)

  There are a couple of other things that we need that aren’t on the market either. My mother makes some awesome pickles. We are down to our last jar. She also makes a killer chili sauce. We just so happen to be on the last jar of that too. L Think we’re in trouble or what?

  It’s funny how much food we actually bring home from…home. I have to see if anyone within our families is planning a trip. If not you’ll find us cruising up to the western portion of New York in the next couple of weeks. Supplies are needed. Heaven forbid that Kelly be without her coffee! Nobody will want to be around her then!

  Is there any product that you can’t do without? Are there any certain foods that your city/town is known for?

W.P.I. - If you plant the same vegetables in the same spot every year, disease can build up and be ready before your plants have much of a chance. Keep the element of surprise against your disease foes and try to plant your crops in different parts of the garden each year.

Because many closely related plants are affected by the same diseases, avoid planting them where their relatives were the year or two before. Two of the biggest families are the tomato family (tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, and eggplant) and the squash family (squash, pumpkin, cucumber, watermelon).

Family Competition

  Competitiveness. I believe we all have at least a little bit in us, don’t we? I will be the first to admit that I am competitive beyond belief. Throughout the years I have tried to mellow out. Just when I think I am doing better it sneaks up and bites me. At times I even feel bad for being so…spirited. Yea, that’s a good way to put it, spirited!

  I will use my nephew as an example. When he was younger I made sure to beat him at every game we played. I beat him at cards, board games, sports, and even go cart racing. We took him to Clifton Hill in Canada one time. Clifton Hill is right on Niagara Falls, and is a huge tourist trap. Needless to say it caters to families so there are all sorts of games everywhere. I do believe that my nephew did not beat me at one game that day. I even think my mom pulled me aside and asked me to let him win. To this I raised an eyebrow. I never recall that being said to any of my brothers growing up for I never beat them at anything. So WHY would I let up on my nephew? I am so nice, aren’t I? Of course, later on that day I felt bad for my actions. I would try to get him to play cards with me with full intentions of letting him win, I swear. Unfortunately he didn’t know this and wanted to watch a movie instead. Bad Aunt. Bad Aunt.

I'll never tell if that is really him or not!

  I thought for many years that maybe I had a problem with this outrageous behavior. What if it was just me, or my family, that acted like this? What kind of ludicrous people were we? Would we ever be forgiven by those we acted so ridiculously upon?

  Never fear, my worries were put to rest this past April. My two families vacationed together in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. Our days were filled with touristy things such as Dollywood, and Pigeon Forge. (I of course kept an eye out for Reba everywhere we went. Hey, you never know!)  Our nights were filled with hanging out in the cabin. That cabin was furnished with a foosball table, air hockey table, and pool table. And if that wasn’t enough we brought our own games like Apples to Apples, and Bananagrams. It was during a game of Bananagrams that I realized I was not the only one to display a horrendous competitive streak.

  Bananagrams is a game kind of like scrabble, but with no board. You get x amount of tiles and have to use them to form a grid of connected words. The first one to use all the tiles yells ‘Split’ and everyone takes another tile. This continues until all the tiles have been used. The winner is the first one to successfully use all the tiles. All words must be legal, real words. After very little explanation on how to play from the Griswold’s we began our first game. As we went along I started to grasp the object and of course-ole reliable competitive snuck up on me. Suddenly, my little buddy, (my twelve year old fan) announced she was done, declaring herself the winner. Her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Griswold, looked over her words. Mother Griswold announced one of her words was not a real word and made everyone continue on. The look on twelve year old fans face was priceless, as was the look on mine. I was ecstatic to learn that I was not the only one!

Are you competitive to the point of losing family? Has there ever been a time when that competitiveness made you feel guilty? Want to tell me about it? Come on…spill!