My Little Time Saver

Here is one of the best purchases I've made in a long time.  My jewelry used to reside in my top dresser drawer - not that I kept it there.  It always ended up in a pile on top of my dresser, scattered all over.  Each morning I would have to dig through the pile to find a matching pair.  Ugh - a disorganized mess.

Then I ran across the following jewelry holder at Ross.  I picked up a pink version for $7, took it home, and spent an evening organizing my jewelry, placing earring pair as well as necklaces into each little cubby.  It's now hanging in my closet and makes my dressing time in the morning so much easier.  I pick out an actual matching pair of earrings without having to dig through a jumbled mess, then after work my earrings are removed and placed back into their own little space.  Prime organization and a key time saver -score!!

Perhaps the Key is Conversation

Conversation appears to be a lost cause, replaced by today’s technology.  While at work, I enter the break room to make my way to the restroom.  Do I see employees visiting, laughing, and joking while eating a snack or lunch?  No…I see employees with shoulders hunched over, ignoring co-workers while they text or read the cell phones in front of them.  On the off chance they are holding a conversation; it is frequently interrupted by the all important text messaging or social media alerts.

Back in the day before cell phones and other portable electronic devices, lunch, or even dinner out with friends or family, meant a time to visit and converse while we broke bread together.  We talked about home life, work life, children, parents, spouses, boy/girlfriends, friends, travel, school, marriage, births, divorce, politics and religion among numerous other topics.

Even further back in the day when there was no television or even movie theaters, a night out on the town meant people talking and conversing about great topics of the day.  Art, politics, war, current events, and community scandal was discussed to find solutions, attempt resolutions, or simply to discuss or debate a topic at length.  Is the younger generation losing the ability to verbalize with each other these same types of topics?  Are they becoming stunted, destined to communicate only via text with abbreviations such as OMG, WTF, BRB, LOL or even simply the Like button?

Unfortunately, my own behavior oftentimes mirrors that of the younger generation.  Instead of calling, I’ll often simply send a text because it’s faster, easier, and less committal.  But in trying to save time, it appears I may be losing out on a personal, emotional connection one can only have with a verbal conversation.  

Lately I’ve mentally scolded myself when I’ve ended up on my phone during dinner with my loved ones.  Aren’t they worthy of all my time rather than the bits and pieces they are given while I scan Facebook and my email?  The conversations I share with my boyfriend, my children, my friends, and my family provide me with improved communication and long-lasting memories; shortening or even declining these personal discussions, replacing them with social media updates from friends I haven’t seen in 20 years is deplorable.

Here’s a toast to setting the phone aside and my renewed committal to increasing verbal, high-quality conversation in my life!  This doesn’t mean my texting or Facebook membership will disappear, it simply means they will be relegated to the bottom of my importance list.

Monday Already??!!

I Love Me Some Saturday!

Sleeping in on a Saturday morning....nice!  Right now I'm sipping my coffee and watching the news all alone at Michael's while his is in dialysis.  I'm debating my plans for this morning while I wait for his return...Walmart for a new CD player, Ulta for browsing, then perhaps Goodwill for treasure hunting.

Last night we watched Fruitvale Station...super movie.  We also watched The Conjuring...I had already seen it but still jumped with every demon appearance.

Have a fun - filled weekend!!

Too Funny!!

A Weekend for Love

There are times in life when, between all the hustle and bustle, it’s nice to sneak in a few seconds of peace and quiet.  Thankfully there were a few of these moments this past weekend.

Friday, along with celebrating Valentine’s Day, Michael and I attended my friend Marie’s wedding. The décor was red and white, her dress was beautiful, and another childhood friend of mine, Lisa, served as her matron of honor.  It was a sweet ceremony and I’m glad we were able to attend.  This morning Marie posted that they were on their way to Jamaica for their honeymoon.  Looking outside at this abundant rain, their excitement to be traveling to a warm spot is understandably enviable.

After getting my oil changed, Saturday found my man and me venturing to the beach to enjoy a weekend away.  We played a little at the casino before checking into our hotel and relaxing.  We then hit one of our favorite seafood places – Alec’s – for dinner.  Following dinner we visited the Shark Gift Shop next door to our hotel, where I picked up an Ocean Shores frame.  Returning to our hotel, we had the All Star games on while we played three mean games of Yahtzee.  It had been a long time since I’d played Yahtzee, which used to be the high point when I was a child, playing the game at my grandparent’s beach cabin.  Thankfully, my skill remained intact because I beat the pants off Michael on all three games!

Happy 19th Sam!!!

Sunday found us sleeping in then returning to the casino.  That afternoon we visited our first Irish restaurant – Galloway Bay.  Michael enjoyed a large piece of fish while I couldn't resist ordering Shepherd’s Pie. Our dinner was served with Soda Bread….not to Michael’s liking (too sweet) but to die for in my book.  That night we watched the All Star game while Michael gave me my just deserves by beating me at three games of Yahtzee.  We toyed with the idea of one final tiebreaker game but this gal was just too tired to continue.

Monday after the hotel breakfast we drove home, stopping at Walmart to pick up a cake and card for Sam, who celebrated both his 19^th birthday and President’s Day all on the same day.  Arriving home we were beat!  After a short nap, Michael packed up and returned to his place.  Following a pizza dinner, we celebrated Sam’s birthday with cake then I promptly went to bed!

Another great weekend filled with celebrations, love, and relaxation!!!  

Happy Valentine's Day!! (And TGIF!!)

Happy Valentine's Day to all!!!

And especially to my love Michael:

We will be spending our Valentine's Day celebrating my friend Marie's wedding tonight then escaping to the beach for the weekend.  Wishing you all an abundance of love on this Valentine's Day!!!

It Doesn't Hurt to Express One's Opinion!!

Back in the day, my Mom wouldn't hesitate to write a letter to a store or company in order to express either her happiness with a product or areas where improvement was needed.  I distinctly remember her suggesting  a cartoon character to the Fig Newton company that would be entertaining, similiar to Mr. Peanut.  They never put a Fig character in place, but they did create a Fig Newton patch and sent it to her.  After Mom passed, sister Julie made a booklet for us with copies of the letters that Mom had mailed, which was very entertaining.

And now a little bit of Mom has rubbed off on me.  I'm frequently in Target and I noticed a few months ago that their plus-size women's clothing section was getting smaller and smaller and the clothes were getting uglier and uglier.  What was up with that?  So I got on line and sent them an email, outlining the fact that large print floral maxi dresses were simply not flattering for a plus size woman!  And this customer market deserved more than three racks tucked away behind the maternity clothing, which has been growing by leaps and bounds. They responded that they will work harder to add more acceptable fashion to the plus size section.  I then noticed Target had posted a sign that stated a newer and greater amount of clothing would be in soon.  So perhaps my email did make a difference.

Last night I sent an email to Coty, the owners of NYC New York Makeup.  I found a great eyebrow pencil from NYC, which only runs about $1.99.  I tend to sharpen the pencil every day; when I first began using it I noticed that when I got to the halfway point of the pencil, the color was gone.  So there was this long, lengthy pencil one would assume was filled to the end but which turned out to end at the halfway point.  I thought perhaps I had purchased a dud so I picked up a few more.  All were the same - long pencil which stopped halfway with color.  I had to take action so I sent the company an email outlining my dissatisfaction with their misleading sale of supposed full-time product.  Hopefully it will make a difference because I really like that color of pencil!



Update - yesterday I received an email from Coty where they apologized for my eyebrow pencil. They also are sending me a $6 coupon for future purchases. Unexpected but appreciated!!!

RIP Shirley Temple

Shirley Temple, that vision of childhood innocence who entertained all of us throughout her life, has passed away at 85.

Happy Two Years Babe!!

Happy two year anniversary Michael!  From our first dinner at McGrath's to our variety of trips to our multitude of long-distance phone calls, it's been a memorable two years!!  I can't wait for many more!!!

No No to the Snow Snow!!!

Okay, enough is enough....meaning snow that is!  There's a big difference between choosing to stay home all weekend and being forced to stay home because you are unable to leave due to safety concerns of driving on snowing and icy roads.  Ugh.  Yesterday will now be referred to as Lame Movie Day - watched three movies, snacked, and cleaned my room.  Rather than being productive, it was boring; rather than feeling relaxed and rejuvenated, I'm suffering from a severe case of cabin fever.  I may have to pull my boots and jacket on today to go for a walk simply to get out of the confines of my house!!!

TGIF and Bring On the Snow!!

Well, the snow has arrived!  Yesterday at work it was cold but nice and clear with no snow.  It wasn't until I was driving home after 5pm that I entered treacherous territory.  Traveling south, I exited Chehalis and began to see snow swirling on the freeway.  My car began to slip some so I slowed down....way down..., stayed in the middle lane, and followed the tracks in front of me laid by a big rig.  Even while the snow became thicker and more compact on the road, cars were zipping past me, oblivious to the icy road danger that lay in wait. At one point, several cars had taken an exit and for a time I was the only one on the freeway traveling south...dark, no clear lane marks, and alone.  Thankfully God was on my side as he guided me home.  I passed several cars and trucks on the side of road - left by themselves crunched into ditches or surrounded by police, taking statements and extracting drivers from their now totalled cars.  At one point I passed an SUV that had been traveling north but lay upside down the median hill onto the south bound side. No cops had arrived but a fellow car had stopped to help.  I continued on my way, going 25-30 mph in the slow lane. I was so hopeful when I passed Castle Rock, which meant my journey was almost over.  A wave of relief swept over me when I opened my garage and crept inside.

Unfortunately, my Sam had a bumper crunch during his travels in the snow.  Rounding a corner, he slid into a curb (as opposed to cars), beat up his hub cap and damaged his wheel.  Thankfully, he was okay; later last night, his buddy and his father were able to help him out by driving his car home and it's now parked in the garage.  We'll deal with the wheel situation later but for now the car is parked until the snow melts.

No work today because common sense told me to not tackle the icy, snow-packed commute.  Which means...housework!  Ugh!  Perhaps I'll pull on my boots, dress Stubbs in one of his doggie sweaters, and go for a walk in the snow to avoid cleaning.  However you spend your Friday, in the snow or out, I hope you have a good one!!!

View from my window this morning

Seahawks Celebration

Sunday was a Hurry Up and Wait type of day.  After donning our Seahawk shirts, Michael and I, along with Jordan and Sam, watched football clips all day leading up to the start of the Super Bowl.  I also cooked up a bunch of football food - wiener wraps, clam dip, korean beef and rice, mac and cheese, and iced tea - to snack on throughout the day.  This was the first year I ever sat down to watch and participate in the Super Bowl and, to be honest, it was pretty exciting!

Finally kickoff began and what a start!  After expecting a rough, brutal battle, the Seahawks appeared to glide easily into winning.  And what a great victory it was!!!  I almost felt sorry for the Broncos and their humiliating loss.

Here's a pic of Michael with Stubbs dressed up in his Seahawk colored kerchief.  So cute!!  So much so that I sent this picture in to Good Day Oregon to run in the morning pets section.  I've sent so many pictures of Stubbins in to their station and his picture has never been chosen so I'm hoping this one will do the trick!!

Win It Hawks!!!

Guacamole, Gresham, and Game

Friday night Michael and I were lucky enough to be included on a surprise birthday party for my friend Lisa, who also turned 50.   After a day of lounging (I took Friday off to recover from my milestone birthday on Thursday) we met up at a local Mexican lounge for drinks and dinner.  The last time I had been to this location was years ago -  it was a local beer joint and I remember drinking Corona and crooning Patsy Cline's Crazy during karaoke.  Now it had morphed into a great Mexican restaurant. We arrived early so to stave off hunger we ordered a peach margarita to share, bean dip and this fabulous chunky guacamole, filled with diced avocado, onion, cilantro, tomato, and lime.  It was beyond yummy!  After surprising Lisa when she entered the lounge, we celebrated her birthday while splitting dinner because we were so full from our chip and dip appetizers.

Happy 50th Lisa!!

Saturday arrived too early as we got up at 5am to roll out of bed and make our way to Portland for Michael's dialysis appointment.   We entered the clinic, which was a room full of dental-type chairs lined up similar to pedicure chairs.  Next to each chair  was a large machine which processes each persons blood.  The nurse got Michael hooked up and we watched TV before napping.  Waking up I decided it was time to....shop!  The clinic is located close to Cascade Station so I left Michael to rest and hit the road for Target. I've got a gift certificate burning a hole in my pocked from Target; alas, nothing drew my attention so I left the store empty-handed.  My next stop was Ross then Lane Bryant before returning to the clinic to find Michael all done and ready to go.

After the clinic we swung by Michael's apartment before stopping at downtown Gresham to have lunch at one of our favorite restaurants, Nicholas.  Hummus, hot tea, and a shared gyro hit the spot before we hit the road for home.  I also took a batch of the hummus home for Superbowl Sunday.

Once home, we relaxed and watched movies, Skeleton Key and Bad Grampa, with Sam and Jordan.  In the afternoon I whipped a batch of clam dip, also for Superbowl Sunday.  Stubbs became my target Saturday afternoon as I trimmed him, clipped him, then gave him a bath.  Whew - after rising so early it was a very long day, recapped by falling asleep by 9pm.

And today is the Super Bowl.  I have never been a fan of football; however, now that Michael has clearly explained it to me and the fact that our very own Washington team is playing in it, this year I'm excited to watch it.  I've painted my nails team colors and even wrapped a blue and neon green bandanna around Stubb's neck to celebrate the occasion.  Go Hawks!!!

I would sooo rock these!!