Goodbye 2019

The only other decade that felt bigger was the century turn.  2010 was no big deal.  It's something about the number -- 2020.  It's fun and draws attention.  AND, I think everyone who was an adult in 2000 is FLOORED that 20 years have come and gone since the big Y2K.

P.S. NYE 1999 was a horrible day.  My dad had died suddenly 2 weeks before.  Hubby's mom a month before that.  We were sad and it was punctuated by such a significant year change.  We had family for NYE -- lots of little kids.  Our kitchen pipe broke (emergency fix), one of my nephews broke my entire collection of snow globes while we were fixing the pipe (he thought they were balls to throw), everyone was angry and sad.  We wanted that year OVER.

Quick update -- yep, you can STILL buy iTunes.  So what was the big deal?  Can I buy them forever?  Why all the fuss since iTunes wasn't STOPPED, Apple Music was added?  I'll still be chatting about my new music listening soon.  Kinks are getting worked on.

I worked out and changed back into sweats and sat watching Sopranos the rest of the day yesterday.  I chatted with friends, read a lot and took my last "veg" day of the decade.  I feel yucky and I thought, why not?  Sinus and monthly still in the works.

We are doing exactly NOTHING for NYE today.  So much "nothing," I kind of feel guilty.  Maybe, I'll rally and make a dinner.  I'll see.  I'm sure the stores are no fun today.

I need a Costco run, but I'll need a Costco run closer to Saturday too.  I don't want 2 in one holiday week.  Dilemma.  I'll see what today brings.  My guess is NOPE to a Costco run today.

Hubby is golfing so I'll have some quiet hours again.  I'm stuck on planning for 2020.  I have ideas and lists and whatnot, but it feels blasé this week.  Probably my monthly messing up the works again.

Case in point -- this post.  Last day of the decade and I'm rambling about NOTHING.  I should be going crazy with inspirational thoughts to lead me into 2020.  Instead, I'm sofa cruising, talking like I'm a Soprano and doing very little.  Hormones are acting the fool lately -- I KNOW this is the start of the "big change."  Only 5-10 years and it'll be over LOL.  2030 -- here I come!!

Hope you find inspiration and peace and joy and all the good things today.  Reflect back, plan forward and have a safe holiday.  XOXO

Recommendations (lots) and Updates

Time to copy off of Instagram -- specifically Jamie Golden from PopCast (podcast).  She did a few posts of favorites from 2019.  Thought I'd share.


MOVIES:

I've only seen Knives Out and I loved it.  This excites me for the rest of her recommendations.

BOOKS - FICTION:

I've read Recursion and I liked it.  I'm pickier about books, but this seems like an interesting list.

BOOKS - NonFICTION:

I haven't read any of them, but I own The Next Right Thing -- I'm looking forward to reading it.

The second season of YOU came out.  Eldest watched a couple of episodes and is still undecided about it.  This is absolutely on my watch list though.

I have a friend who's laid up with a foot problem and she asked for TV recommendations.  Here are the top picks:

Chernobyl Documentary on HBO
Virgin River
The Five (Harlan Coben series) on Netflix

I learned an incredible fact yesterday -- apparently you can STILL buy music on iTunes.  I'm trying it today and I'll let you know.

Steelers lost and their season is over.  Household wasn't happy yesterday (aka hubby).  He thought they could squeak it out.  But, look how cute these two look :)

We lost power last night.  You could hear the explosions from the transformer (I think that's what explodes).  I started up my charged (got to keep this charged up) noise maker and went to sleep.  Power came on sometime overnight.  Thank you electric company.  It was a miserable day yesterday -- HUMID, rainy, WARM ... it was oppressive (and depressing).  It should be lots cooler today (haven't ventured outside yet).  Guess the front knocked out power.

I have some sort of sinus thing happening.  Headache, sinus pressure and my right eyeball feels like it's been punched.  Probably sinus pressure.   I'm not feeling great.

I have errands on the agenda today, but they might wait until tomorrow.  I'll see how I feel.  Workout is inside -- probably a power walk on the treadmill and some arms.  My monthly is on the way and I wish it would get here already.  That's a portion of the problem -- always is ...

Last Monday of 2019.  Here we go ... later gators.

Football Sunday

Limbo week -- apparently I'm not the only one who feels like the world has stopped moving.  This between holidays is extra strange this year.  Maybe because the older I get, the less I want to celebrate New Year's?  Who knows -- I think with a midweek holiday, it feels like a lot of extra days because you tag on another weekend.

I'm holding off on sharing the headphone info because the run did not go well yesterday.  Glitches galore -- I think it's Spotify, but trying to trouble shoot it before I talk about headphones and music.

The trail was crowded and I went out way too fast.  I was "about" the pace of a guy in front of me -- a little faster and I caught him.  I wanted to put space between me and him so I ran faster.  Then it happened a second time with another guy.  If these were ladies, I wouldn't have cared -- but I didn't want some random guy following me closely (especially with headphones).  I totally burned out.  Fortunately, neither turned around when I did so I was able to slow my pace.  I was totally spent -- but it felt good when I finished.

I took down ALL the decorations -- yea ME and hubby!!  I reorganized EVERYTHING.  Future ME is going to be so happy next December.  One big bag of trash, one huge bin of donations (or for the kids).  It feels fantastic to be so cleaned up.  I purged stuff that I didn't like or had become worn.  I kept one box of nostalgic items that I don't put out, but I want to keep (it's the size of a big shoe box). I've needed to do this for a few years.

I still need to "redecorate" today.  Since I don't completely remember where everything goes (new house woes), I decided to wait for a fresh day.

I'm not going to Unity.  Pouring rain, foggy.  Not worth it.  We are getting sub sandwiches for lunch -- no cooking AND no Unity.  I decided last night.

CONFESSION TIME ... I LOVE cheese sticks.  I think I've confessed this before.  When hubby decides to "diet" he buys apples, jello AND cheese sticks.  He's sort of dieting.  I found his stash of cheese sticks and can't stop eating them.  New RULE today -- no more cheese sticks.  Not even one.  It's like chips are for some people ... eat one, can't stop.  They have ZERO flavor.  I like the chew texture.  I had to run out to the store to replace his stash.  Had to empty the evidence trash bag.  Yep, this is a real confession.  It's the oddest addiction.

Pigging out on cheese sticks is NOT a warm up for January.  Good lord girl, at least choose something tastier.

I took a break from the running book and switched back to Wanderers -- Chuck Wendig.  It wasn't holding my attention and with 800 pages, I was only about 17% read.  I wondered if I was going to bag it, BUT, it grabbed me again and I'm happily reading.

I asked the kids for books for Christmas but didn't get any.  Probably for the best -- I'm picky and have read a lot (bad suggestion on my part).  BUT, my BFF sent me 3 books and I've read them all.  That's a big bummer.  Not only did I read them, I purged these from my bookshelf when I moved.  They're baaaaacck.

This leads me to a question.  What do you do with gifts you receive and don't want?  How long do you hold them?  The books are easy -- I've read them and I'll pass them along or donate.  I got 2 necklaces from friends (one expense, one not).  I don't like either.  They'll both EVENTUALLY end up NOT with me, but at what point?  The expensive necklace is from a local friend, but it's dressy.  Can I get away with not wearing it in front of her?  I can't exchange it because it's a local store and her daughter works there (and I know she got it on an employee discount since no gift receipt).  The cheap necklace is going straight to the Goodwill.

It's awkward.  I have a drawer full of birthday gifts that I'm not using, but it seems too early too throw away.  What if my friend asks about it?  Or when she comes to visit, wants to see-use-ask about it.  I don't want to lie -- so I keep it.  Hanging out in limbo in a dresser.  Added some Christmas gifts to that stash.

January is another cliche of organizing stuff.  We are still pretty cleaned out, but a few closets need some final tweaks now that we have lived here and know what we're using.  I WANT to purge these gifts, but I don't know if I can.  For now, the solution is limiting this pile to one drawer in a dresser.  The gifts are thoughtful, but not me.  It feels rude to say goodbye to them so quickly though.

The older I'm getting, the more I DON'T want to exchange gifts with friends -- at least not this kind of gift.  Something that is usable or doable -- that works.  Random stuff doesn't work.  It's especially hard with out-of-town friends since I don't see their daily life.  What do they have, what have they read, what do they wear, etc?  (That said, I did get a lot of gifts I love too.)

Okay, I've rambled enough and my coffee cup is empty.  Have a great Sunday.  Later gators.

Wonky Week

Saturday BETWEEN the holidays -- it feels strange.  Christmas and New Year's on a Wednesday is messing with my head.  It's like the biggest, longest, weirdest weekend that goes for infinity.  Stuck in a strange land of some people with house guests, some people still out of town, some people back to work, some people still having holiday parties, some people acting like 2020 started.  There's no routine, no normal.

I cooked a little, read a little, planned a little ... and then crashed for a bunch of Soprano re-watching by late afternoon.  Not one ounce of un-decorating or meal planning yesterday.  I didn't feel great and I decided to relax a bit, take a cold med and watch a little TV.  That became a Soprano's binge and I have NO REGRETS.  Lordy, that show is great.

Anyway ... that's what I'm talking about using this time as a warm-up for January.  Nothing over-the-top and letting this odd time BEFORE 2020 be something strange if it ends up that way.  A mix of whatever.

Eating cleaner, no drinking and focusing a little harder on workouts.  Organizing, cleaning up, un-decorating.  Those parameters met and the rest of the day is up for grabs.  No expectations for anything -- i.e. weight loss, feeling better, etc.

Remembered I mentioned I'm reading a book recommended by RunsForCookies?  Depression Hates a Moving Target -- Nita Sweeney.  She wrote about a time when she was turning 50 -- exactly my age.  She found a style of running that helps with injury -- ChiRunning.  I decided to research it a little more -- I've heard of the concept, but never knew a lot about it.  The website says there are clinics offered from certified instructors.  I looked it up and mainly CA, NY ... big cities into running ... and then, a clinic LOCAL to me (not even in the city).  What?!!?  I'm signed up for a January Saturday afternoon to learn about how to change up running for better recovery and less injury.  Super excited to see if this can help the chronic discomfort from running.  Some nights, I can hardly sleep my IT band hurts so much.

Trying to change things up for 2020 ... evolve a bit ... problem solve.  This fits in perfectly.

I took out my phone to take a picture of Duke curled up sweetly and he grabbed my neck for the BIGGEST mama kiss.  I ended up taking this random selfie and I LOVE it.  My little guy is such a character.  This is obviously during my Sopranos binge LOL.

You can see his tongue if you look closely.
He's a kisser.

Plans for today are very loosey goosey.  Rain is coming tomorrow, so I need to run outside.  Trail run with another headphone/Spotify trial.  I WILL get more information on it all and post about it soon.  The headphones are GOOD (and I'm picky).

I'll work on un-decorating too.  I might not get it all finished, but I'll get a big dent.  Depends if hubby is up for helping.  This is a big football game weekend and he gets to enjoy this strange time between holidays too.

That's it.  I'm NOT going to the grocery store until tomorrow.  I need to figure out something for Sunday dinner by then.  Kids are coming over.  I have no idea what my problem is about cooking in this house.  It's as though I've lost all IDEAS.  I can't seem to think of ANYTHING, ever.  I'll have to troubleshoot that soon.

Today is ANOTHER curly hair, no make-up, no bra (after my workout) day.  Woo hoo!!

I'm adding another cliche to my life and returning to Unity AFTER New Years.  A Course in Miracles starts fresh in January and that's when I'll begin again.  I thought about going tomorrow to catch the LAST class of the year, but I don't think I can go AND grocery shop AND cook dinner.  Hmmmm, I'm saying this and I wonder if take-out is my answer to doing it all??  I'll sit on this for a minute -- it's very tempting.

I also have some scoop from Instagram on best movies of 2019, new shows, etc.  I'll do a post on that soon too.  Fun stuff -- especially the movies.  I've only seen one and the rest seem GOOD!

Hope this STRANGE week is going well for everyone.  Later gators.

Setting Up

Yesterday was a good day.

Productive morning getting bed linens washed and rooms back together.  Cleaning crew came and polished it up.

I ran on the trail -- super sore NECK after the run -- must have been running with stiff shoulders.  I used my new running headphones and free Spotify.  More on this in a few days (I forgot to take a picture of my headphones).  I don't run outside with music, but the trail has no cars, slow bikes only, divided line for direction, only one path (can't get lost) and populated so I didn't feel unsafe.  (That's a lot of criteria, but I'm nervous about zoning out.)  Anyway, lots to tell another day soon ...

I put away about a 1/3 of the decorations too.  I'll slow roll clean up over the next couple of days.  I have quite a bit of decorations that are on the possible give-away list for next year.  I want to rearrange the boxes so I can evaluate for next year-- some possible save for the kids, bunch to Goodwill and some for the trash.  Taking my time -- getting it right.  Future ME will be thankful next December.

I'm in SETTING UP mode over these next 10 days.  I've set January 6 as my focus date for 2020.

This might seem odd -- maybe it is strange.  I feel overwhelmed at the thought of EVERYTHING this week.  I need a warm up.

My overwhelmed feeling are probably a lot to do with too much GLUTEN and too much junk (sugar, alcohol).  I'm also set to get my monthly next week.  The perfect storm of EMOTIONS.  To avoid the overwhelm, I'm using this time to SET UP for a full start in January.  By January 6 my monthly will be over, family party finished and diet fully cleaned up.

Yesterday evening I was upset, nervous, sad -- for no reason.  This MUST be poor diet and hormones.  In the name of ALLOWING all this, I'm not rushing the process.  Sort of a SET UP, sort of a DETOX.  Purging all the yuck -- from extra water weight to swirling emotions.  Letting it all go.  I turned off my phone and hibernated with my mood.  I missed phone calls, texts, etc but I wanted to sit with the feelings and not have to put on a fake facade.  People can wait until today.

This feels manageable.

Since I ate well yesterday, I was up 5 times to piddle during the night -- water weight is exiting the building.  It's an indictor how "off" I am (spoiler -- 5 is A LOT!!).  And, every time I was up, my mind got frantic about some "worry" coming up.  That was fun hah.

As for TODAY ... hubby is golfing, I'm home alone.  I want to do some meal planning, a little cooking and some prep work for 2020 (reading, meditating, journaling).  If I'm extra motivated -- a little Christmas un-decorate too.  I'm looking forward to a hibernation today -- building up my energy reserves again.

Have a happy day -- later gators.

Another Christmas in the Books

What a Christmas (!!)  Probably one of my favorite in recent years.  We cooked together, ate together, exchanged awesome presents (funny and nice), played games and had fun with four dogs.  Lots of laughing and celebrating and good old-fashioned family time.

I didn't get many pictures but here are a few.

My dogs in ornament form from a girlfriend.
ADORABLE!

Big guy joining the card game.

Little gal SO TIRED she can't keep her eyes open.

Asleep on the table LOL.

Youngest on the floor LOL.

Teaching us euchre (card game)
Fun, but complicated.

Fresh pressed olive oil from Greece from my girlfriend.
I made a simple salad dressing -- delicious.

Christmas is finished and that rounds out the holidays for us this year.  NYE and New Year's Day is like Easter -- make some food and hang out.  We are plenty over going out, going to parties or having a party on NYE -- and I'm over celebratory drinking this year!!  I'll be well asleep by midnight.

We're hosting a big family gathering January 4, but that's AFTER holidays.  I'll be undecorated by Saturday.

Focus is switching to HEALTHY (living my best cliche).  Usually, I take a transition day or two after the holiday bash to get back to better eating.  Not this year.  We are at jean emergency level of tightness and down to very few clothes to wear.  Today is the day.

Yep, I will stomp my feet later on.  Yep, I'll have a headache.  Yep, I'll be grumpy as crap.  It can't matter.

This week is quiet and I'm using the time to start planning 2020.   Congratulations if you DON'T NEED to be the cliche (I wish I was there with you), but I'm joining the masses in riding in a new decade with resolutions, intentions and hope for a better ME!!

The clean up of EVERYTHING begins today.  Cleaning crew (pushed from yesterday) so I need to have a lot of stuff tidied up in a hurry.  Junk food is all finished.   Forced run outside later (I want this like a hole in my head, but it's for the best -- jump back in and with the cleaning crew here, I can't workout inside anyway).

I'm puffy, swollen, tired, achy, bloated.  Ugh.  Enough.

P.S.  I'm NOT doing a Whole30, but I am getting serious about cutting back on the junk (alcohol, sugar, etc).  Cutting back, not cutting out.  More on all that later.

Hope you had and have an amazing day -- later gators.

Christmas Eve

Good morning -- Merry Christmas (!!)  Let the celebrations begin ...

I prepped the dreaded pork ribs yesterday -- it's the worst part.  You have to slice the ribs raw and that's tough -- always a little extra bone piece to maneuver and they are slimy and wet.  I worry about a knife cut every time.  I decided to problem solve some of my dread by doing it the night before.  Makes today feel infinitely simpler.

I also problem solved my craving for pumpkin cake (GF).  I couldn't decide to make it or not and realized what I didn't want to make was the icing.  I made it as a bundt cake and all is solved.  The only bummer is it seems like the outside is a little burnt smelling -- I think I over sprayed the non-stick and it burnt.  That's never happened before, but I can't think of any other explanation.  The rest of the cake seems fine.  We'll see ...  I'm the only one who'll eat it.  Most will get tossed by Thursday anyway.

I LOVE lime and I guess that's why most cocktails I like have lime juice.  I squeezed 2 Costco bags of limes yesterday.  So many limes, my fingers puckered and I have little micro cuts from the acidity. Worth it though -- no more squeezing needed.  We're having Cosmos and Moscow Mules -- yum.  I'm a Cosmo girl today, but the boys voted for mules.

P.S.  I did make a quick run to Costco before it opened because it always opens early on the holiday weeks.  I got a great space, no line check-out and then exited to a MAD HOUSE.  Parking lot I was in was full, other lot was filling fast, people circling.  Yea, Problem Solving ... my new best friend.

Update on the MojiLife scent machines -- STILL loving the big one and the scent is going strong.  I decided to change to a Christmas scent so I opened one of the mini-machines (per the influencer suggestion to use a partially finished pod in the mini) and it's NOT a machine.  The mini is just a holder meant to be placed where air flows.  Well, duh, no wonder is was so inexpensive.  Glad I didn't order a lot of them.  The electric one is where it's at.  I have a mini for my car and that's fine, but I wouldn't want them for the house -- maybe a closet or small bathroom, but not a room.

Also, when I tried the mini I couldn't get the pod in to save my life.  Turns out, it's a defective pod and slightly too big for the mini.  Another one worked fine.  I had to take the pod out of the package to use it.  Nothing major, but worth noting.

Still ... get a big thumbs up from me.  So much better than anything I've used before.

The agenda today is pretty sweet ... trail run with Duke, cook some stuff, make some cocktails, gather the family and MERRY CHRISTMAS.  Easy peasy and FUN.  This should be a relaxed holiday.

Merry Christmas -- hope your day(s) are filled with everything that gives you peace, joy and makes you feel good.  My intention today is to remember all those feelings come from INSIDE and I can choose them whenever I want to feel good.

((As much as I'm looking forward to Christmas, there's a battle with my mother that rearing an ugly head (she loves to stir over the holidays).  I'm choosing to feel good by focusing on all the good around me and letting go of focus on her drama -- trying hard on this one.))

Merry Christmas XOXO

Caught Up

I wrapped it ALL!  3 wrapping sessions and I was finished.  All the Amazon packages have arrived.  Other than a fun gift for my aunt (after Christmas), everything is here.

Stockings are stuffed -- my favorite thing to do.  I got some good stuff this year.  No candy, no scratch tickets (that never win).  I went for useful and fun.  P.S. I was able to stuff them early because the holder can take the weight -- it's working well.

My eating is in the tank.  DIL made AWESOME no-bake cookies (ritz crackers with peanut butter and flush dipped in chocolate) and that sent me on my way.  Ugh.  This week is the last of it.  I'm not thinking about it anymore.  What I want, when I want it -- sprinkle in workouts and some vegetables and call it a HOLIDAY.

Steelers had a tough loss, but I got our grand-dog little chihuahua (Zoey) a Steelers jersey too.  She's the only one who doesn't have one (Parker is age exempt from wearing his).  As usual, no one would cooperate for the photo LOL.

ADORABLE!

They have something against sitting next to each other.

Feeding circle.

I planned an early morning to get to Costco as it opened, but I realized I have the entire day to do my shopping and prepping.  It's still pouring rain, heavy wind -- I decided to take my chances and go with the masses.  I might regret the decision, but there's no turning back (I slept in -- cold, rainy morning before the holiday -- it was an easy choice).

As I'm sitting here thinking (and possibly regretting my decision) ... I could problem solve it and go to Costco BEFORE I workout and shower.  It's an indoor lifting workout so I can do it a bit later.  Hmmmmm.  I might be onto something here.

Weather is crappy, but beautiful weather on the way for Christmas Eve and Christmas day.  Perfect weather for outdoor runs which ALWAYS make my mood happy.  I'll take Duke on one of the runs -- mommy and doggie bonding time.

Since we can't put presents under the tree -- the dogs will steal (Duke), mark (Zoey) and open looking for dog toys (Parker) -- I put the gifts on our bookshelf and it looks so festive.  I should do a bit of arranging to make it look purposeful.  I think that's what I'm going to do from now on.  It'll make handing out the gifts so much easier than bending over (yep, I'm old).

I'm working on my January list for all things 2020 and turning 50.  Yep, it's a cliche and I don't care.  I like numbers, I like fresh starts and I like setting intentions.  This year is BIG for our family and I will make it a fantastic year.  Lots and lots and lots of fun things happening and I want to be in my best space to enjoy it.  I'm excited to get it going.

Anyway, before I get all excited about 2020, I have a week of Christmas to enjoy.  Before I have a week of Christmas, I have to make one more Costco run -- I'm going in un-showered and ready to zip through.  I need to remember to keep PROBLEM SOLVING high on my 2020 list.

I'll leave with a picture of Junebug enjoying my knitted blanket.  So much for "no dogs" on this blanket -- it's the favorite of them all.  Later gators.

She looks like a stuffed animal :)

I'm a Day Off

In my head, I keep saying Christmas is Wednesday -- I have until Wednesday to be ready.  True, not true.  We do our big dinner Christmas Eve -- what was I thinking?  Now I'm in a bit of a grind.  Not worried about the food, worried about getting the wrapping done.

Kids are over today for football and I agreed to cook -- again, what was I thinking?!?

I'll have to bag out and do some wrapping while they're here.  I've got some back breaking days ahead.  I need to split the cooking and wrapping up as much as possible to help my back.  Many Christmas Eve dinners, I've been barely able to sit at the table because my back was so tired.

Anyway ...  the winery.  Fun day.  The performer was as good as last time and we had a great table.  I tried the mulled wine (perfect for a cold day outside).  We brought Duke which attracted the farm dog who ended up joining us for the day.  What a good boy -- big, unaltered and totally calm.  He had Duke settled down in a few minutes and they were buddies.  He followed us around when we walked Duke -- so cute.  He didn't even make fun of Duke's scarf LOL -- guess he's used to the preppy little dog visiter.

We met the singer's mom -- super lady.  The room was filled with a graduation party and they shared the WHITE cake with WHITE icing -- yum!  I skipped the icing because it was the fake kind, but the cake was perfect.

Hubby, Duke
and Shooter Ray

Since we were bringing Duke, I decided to take him on a trail run to get his energy mellowed.  Boy, this dog can run.  3.2 miles of GO.  Never stopped, never looked around ... just ran.  It's hard to pace him because he's faster than me.  He loved it.  I haven't been taking him in the neighborhood because he's got some bad habits of treats at certain points, marking on certain bushes, etc.  He stops and crosses my line too many times.  One of us will get hurt -- I've come close to stepping on him, tripping over him or wrenching my back stopping short.  On the trail he has none of that distraction.  It's a paved and wood-plank trail in the woods -- about 12 feet wide.  I think I'll take him occasionally.  He was exhausted in the best way last night.

All the employees at the winery were dressed for the holidays -- elf costume and the likes (Duke was scared of them).  I decided to go festive myself.  Remember the MN painter, Ashley Mary?  I have one of her paintings now.  My introduction to her was admiring some earrings -- vintage yarn made into balls.  You can never buy them online -- they sell out instantly.  Anyway, I found similar homemade ones on Etsy.  Not vintage, but fun.  I bought red to wear at Christmas and almost forgot to wear them.  I also got red readers to have for the holidays.  Here's my "look" in front of her painting.  I need to figure out a better selfie pose and FACE -- maybe that's just my face (!!)

If you look closely, you can see the earring balls.

I'll leave with a couple of random pictures of my dogs.  Did I already post the one of my son and his chihuahua?  I can't remember so here it is again.  We are on the final countdown -- be well, my friends and take care of yourself too.  Later gators.

Happy little dog.

I can't love this more.

Dreaming of Santa Paws.

Movies, Cookies, Music, Books

MOVIES:

Knives Out was GOOD!!  See it -- certainly a good one for a home watch too, but pay attention.  It's unique and funny and suspenseful.  It's about a murder -- Clue style -- lighthearted, tongue-in-cheek, but interesting.  At first, I was wondering if it was going to be silly -- as in opposite of smart -- characters that are exaggerated can put me off.  Nope.  It worked.


COOKIES:

I made a batch of Sour Cream Softies cookies (I made them GF).  My Gram used to make these all the time and all of a sudden I had a huge craving for a cookie I haven't had in 30 years.  They do not disappoint.  The recipe that comes up searching the name IS the recipe she used (my sister sent it to me too).  The reviews say it all -- you love it or hate it.  Soft, plain, cake-like ... yep, yep, yep.  One reviewer said half her family loved them, the other half hated them.  That's about right.  They are tangy and soft -- totally unique, mild flavor.


MUSIC:

Headed to our favorite winery again.  The young kid who sings cover songs is back and he's awesome.  I've become a groupie LOL.  I saw him play the first time he played at the winery -- and he's back again.  We're bringing a picnic and Duke and having an afternoon of it.  The other performers that play at the wineries are good, but they sing their own music.  I enjoy cover singers a lot more.  It's going to be cold enough for mulled wine.


BOOKS:

Wanderer is really good so far.  I'm excited -- I love a good, long book that you look forward to reading.  I think this is a winner.  I love cold nights -- getting in bed with hot tea, a good book, my dogs and a fluffy blanket.   I hope the book stays interesting.  Long books have to be something special to hold my attention.  Either I can't wait to have it over or I'm sad that it ended.  Pillars of the Earth -- one of my favorite long books and I missed it when I was finished.  War and Peace -- couldn't be finished fast enough -- lordy, what a boring book, but it was on my bucket reading list and I'm glad I NEVER need to read it again.


Venturing out yesterday was CRAZY.  People are crazy.  Stores are crazy.  I thought I wasn't going to get a parking space for the movies.  One Costco run next week (I'll go when it opens -- in and out like a flash) and a couple of grocery store runs.  Not heading anywhere near the retail areas if I can help it.  This is when I'm glad we're in the country.  Yesterday ... roads gridlocked, parking lots gridlocked -- 30 minute wait time for Starbucks mobile orders ... wow.  When Christmas falls mid-week, people party it up over the weekend.  I saw multiple Santas walking around, people dressed up in costume like apparel, people fancy dressed and tons of groups of friends gathering before family obligations (can't blame them on that!!).

Hopefully, today will be a stress-lite day.  Music, hot wine, outdoors and home to start wrapping gifts.  Later gators.

Book Feast

Feast or famine with my reading list.  I found a FEAST yesterday.

First -- I finished I Am Watching You (Teresa Driscoll).  The book read super quickly and was suspenseful.  The ending wasn't up to snuff though -- kind of lame.  She added little tidbits to the story that didn't seem to fit and those were the clues to wrap up the ending.  No spoilers.  It was fast and okay.  I guess the ending wasn't horrible, it was more that the book was so good, I expected more.  Good read for the beach or the plane.

I read the blog, Run for Cookies, and she recommended a running story, Depression Hates a Moving Target (Nita Sweeney).  I like an inspiring true story and since I have some running goals for 2020, thought this would be a good one to read.  I started it yesterday and I'll read it with my other fiction stuff.  I STILL can't comment on other people's blogs and it's driving me nuts.  One day, I'll call the Apple Ladies and figure out what changed on my settings.  I wanted to thank her for the recommendation.

Popular book ... Educated (Tara Westover).  Everyone has read it.  Everyone is talking about it.  I'm late to the game, but finally downloaded it.  It doesn't sound interesting to me, but it gets fantastic reviews.  I'm caving to peer pressure.

Bargain book ... Where The Story Starts (Imogen Clark).  Suspense book recommendation from Melissa Urban.  I was going to "send a sample" to remember the title, but it's only $1.99 on kindle right now.  Couldn't pass that up.

Big mama book ... Wanderers (Chuck Wendig).  800 pages.  Epidemic hits the world -- survival kind of book.  Awesome reviews.  I started this one last night.

From my bookshelf ... Just Mercy (Bryan Stevenson).  This is the true life legal book.  Sounds interesting and I have no memory of how it ended up on my bookshelf.  I think this will be a hard read given where we are in the US right now.  I'll add this to my January reading.

Also, from my bookshelf ... The Other Side of the Bridge (Mary Lawson).  Two generations in a small town ... this kind of emotional story.  Also have no idea when I got this book or why I never read it.

Lots of reading ahead and I'm here for it.  I was having such a tough time finding books I enjoyed.  I'm on a good streak.  Lots of interesting books.  Lots of variety.  Sometimes when the list is long, I get distracted by shiny new titles and never finish the list.  I'm going to try to get all the way through this one because they all seem really good.

__________________________________________________________________________

Today is movie day -- Knives Out.  I heard it's good, but don't know much about it.  At any rate, I LOVE going to the movies during the day.

We were all set to see the Mr. Rogers movie and it's only playing at 9 IN THE MORNING!

I'm a morning person, but who goes to the movies at that time?  I didn't even know they were open that early.  Roll out of bed and into the movie seat.  Interesting.  Better than 9 pm, but still ...

My movie review coming tomorrow -- in case you're dying to know what I thought.

Have a happy Friday.  Last weekend before the big guy comes -- it's going to be a zoo out there.  Stay safe, stay sane, stay jolly.  Later gators.

Random Things

GNI was totally canceled last night.  No one wanted to last minute host or go out and that was music to my ears.  My friend tried to get it going because she was disappointed.  She couldn't host (long story) but was hoping for something.  Everyone else took it as "found" time a week before Christmas.  The bummer was this month's host was suppose to do our Christmas party and bagged on that -- "too busy."  People were disappointed and had she let peeps know, someone would have stepped in and hosted the party.  Then she cancels the regular night too -- oops.  I'm glad she didn't push through and welcome us to her GERMS though!

BTW, I'm going out with this disappointed friend tomorrow for a movie and dinner.  Otherwise, I probably would have met her for something.

This leads me into the coaching call.  Bare with me it's a little convoluted.  We talked about energy and group social events, etc.  I'm handling that reasonably -- at the very least, becoming AWARE of what works for me and why.  I mentioned that CHANGING plans still gets me up in arms -- last night, for example.  Having this up in the air is the worst possible scenario for me.  Are we going out, aren't we?  I also mentioned that my new group of neighbors likes to change things last minute too.  Walking, nope.  Coffee, nope.  Lunch, yep.  And it messes with me.  If I know we're going to lunch ahead of time, I'm okay.  It's the rapid, last minute changing that is frustrating to me.

I read that introverts like to plan out their day and have a schedule.  I mentioned that it's frustrating because it's NOT that I'm busy and CAN'T change plans.  So why does this bother me so much?

After describing a few scenarios in detail -- what changed, what I needed to change to accommodate, etc., Holly said this was also an ENERGY thing.  I plan out my day so I can manage my energy needs (downtime, space, etc) before something social.  A last minute change doesn't always allow time to change the energy needs.  A walk in the woods with one person is a different than lunch with 6 people.

Yes!!

Not knowing whether we're going out last night made me hold my plans for the afternoon.  I needed to "hold" time to have downtime before I went out.  This type of social setting is a big drain and I need full tanks going in.  I ended up texting my friend to say I wasn't going -- no matter the decision. It was canceled so that didn't matter, but I freed up the afternoon to do other things -- including long rescue calls (which take a lot of energy).

Also, I complain all the time that GNI is boring.  Standing around eating, drinking and doing NOTHING.  I enjoy the "project" nights the most.  Focusing on the craft lets me break from the social energy fest all around me.  I can concentrate and block out conversations, etc.

Learning about ENERGY is interesting.  It's giving me insight into WHY I do certain things, like certain things, dislike certain things.  Knowing WHY allows me to prepare, make better decisions and problem solve situations that might be sticky.

Another great coaching call!  We also chatted about 2020 and forward stuff too.  Our next call isn't until mid-January and I'll be in the swing of stuff again.

While I was baking cookies, I listened to a podcast - Oprah's Super Soul Conversation with Joel Osteen.  It was a good one.  She had him discuss a sermon she heard him give about "I am."  He said "what follows 'I am' comes looking for you."  You repeat "I am" statements all the time -- be mindful of what you are saying aloud because your ears are hearing those words.  Worth the quick listen.

CONFESSION TIME:  I might be a tad bit burned out from Christmas music this year.  What?!?!  I guess starting in October WAS too early?!?  Dang.  I hate to admit it.  Car, house, workout -- it's a little much.  Next year I'll pace myself better.  Starting in October is FINE, but I need a little moderation LOL.

Today is a pedicure appointment.  I was holding off until after the holidays, but my big toe nails are too long.  If I wait, they will break, pick off and be problematic in the corners.  I do this too often.  Don't need to be fussing with ingrown nails.  I don't have a color in mind -- anything BUT red.  Red doesn't stay nice on my toes.  Shine rubs off, chips on my little toes.

I have to run to Target too.  I somehow ran out of saran wraps of all kinds.  This is unheard of -- usually I have at least 10 waiting in the wings.  I don't remember the last time I had to buy it ... guess that's the problem.  Do better!

P.S.  The scent machine is going strong and I still LOVE it.

Later gators.

Countdown: ONE Week

Swapping and changing things up.

I made 4 cookie dough recipes yesterday and am set to bake them today (double batches on 3 of them).  I decided to nix MY cookie recipes in favor of making a pumpkin cake (GF) with cream cheese icing.  Seems easier and then I won't have temptation hanging out for a week.

Hubby canceled golf today -- ugh.  His buddy canceled for cold weather and now he's following suit (it's cold early, but warms right up). Whenever I NEED my time ...

I did get some down time last night -- a little.  Hubby went out with the men's dinner group.  I spent some of that time dealing with my sister's trust paperwork (I'm the trustee) and the west coast peeps who expect immediate action.

The rest of the evening I read -- I Am Watching You (Teresa Driscoll).  It gets great reviews and is really reading quickly.  Each chapter switches narrator which I usually don't like, but it works for this book really well.  I have a "serious" book I pulled from my bookshelves, but I wasn't ready for a true story of legal injustice.  Somehow fictional murder is much lighter.

I won't get to read tonight because I'm heading out to GNI.  We're making ornaments out of legos for a charity.  Every ornament made gets a donation from this organization -- you tag them in social media.  I'll give you the scoop when I know more details.  This is my old next door neighbor and I'm not a big fan of her; however, she does good craft nights.  She teaches private classes for jewelry making, sewing and knitting.  I'll also get to check out the old house.  Gated community so I never get to do a drive-by.  I'm actually looking forward to going -- SHOCKER!

EDIT:  Just checked my email -- host CANCELED tonight.  She's not feeling well.  Maybe alternate plans, maybe nothing.  Oh well.

Coaching call this morning and I'm at a loss.  I probably should have taken December off.  My focus is so holiday centric, I'm not really doing much in the way of personal work.  Maybe I'll talk about plans for next year and I'm going to push the next call off until into January.

Needing some good baking karma today.  First cookies in my ovens.  Need a back massage too LOL. (Hmmmmm, maybe I do ...)  Happy Hump Day.  One more week.  Later gators.

Oops ... a little rant

No break yesterday.  Coffee became lunch and errands took ALL day.

Then I spent an hour on the phone with Pottery Barn over the SAME billing issue that has plagued me since May.  They billed me for $1200 that I didn't spend.  The problem is no one can "see" all the information at once.  Billing can't see the items purchased, PB can't see the billing and the dispute department can't seem to understand the problem (ma'am, they don't have phones so you can't talk to them).  To add to the problem, the website changed and now I can't see the furniture order placed in the store -- where the entire problem started.  I told them to send it to collections.

Without my "space" I'm not handling STRESS well.  This didn't help matters.

I swear this is true (and not just my mood) -- whenever I'm edgy (PMS, needed space, etc) -- hubby likes to get extra picky, extra prickly.  I used to think it was me and my grumpy perception, but over the years, he has mistakenly thought I was PMSing and I wasn't.  As soon as he found out I wasn't, he stopped picking.  Poking the bear.

He's in full poke-mode.  I'm ready to burst.  I won't have SPACE until tomorrow when he's golfing.  He senses my edginess and is adding to it -- egging me on and then acting shocked and hurt at my rebuttal.

Want one example?

Bathroom exhaust fan.  He SUDDENLY thinks I run it too long when I'm getting ready in the bathroom.  He opens the door and turns it off while I'm getting ready (BTW, getting ready is on average 30 minutes).  When I turn it back on, he says I'm wasting copious amounts of energy and this can't continue.  Where did this come from?  I've ALWAYS had the fan on while I get ready, ALWAYS.  He won't let it go and I'll be damned if I'm changing -- I like it on.  I also think it should run after a shower for more than 5 minutes.  P.S.  I take quick showers -- he stands for 15 minutes to help his back.  I've never complained about it.

See?  This is ridiculous.  Honestly, he's playing with fire and this is one example of a line of examples.  He won't let it go.

Not hard to tell, I'm in a grumpy mood.  I need downtime -- that will fix life.  The more I need TIME, the more hubby fights giving me time.  It's a never-ending source of issue for us.  Having him home all the time brings the issue up regularly now.

Goodness -- this turned into a SUPER RANT.  Onto something else ...

I'm almost completely finished with Christmas shopping.  Thank the lord above because it's nuts out there in store-land.   I'll have one more Costco run before Christmas for the ribs (the dates meant I'd need to freeze them and I don't want to do that).  That's a bummer, but I'll go early and go quickly.  I have all the baking stuff and am ready to start.

Today is a mix of chores and a little baking.  I'm going to do one batch of a new cookies just for fun.  I'm making 2 cookies GF so I can eat without worry.  I thought about doing none GF so I wouldn't eat them, but who am I kidding -- I'll totally eat them anyway.  The ones I'm making GF are my favorites and the ones no one else likes.  Soft pumpkin with icing and a cinnamon twice baked cookie (like a soft biscotti).

Tomorrow is my coaching call and I don't know what to chat about.  I don't want to spend the call complaining (that's not productive), but I'm not in a forward kind of mood.  Stay tuned ... usually, it works out.

Later gators.

A Little Hibernation Time

We went to the neighborhood party last night.  The "mayor" is the hostess with the mostest and everything was perfect.  Decorations, food, drinks, etc.

Yet, I couldn't wait to leave.  Crowded, loud ... too much for me.  I wasn't interested in talking or standing or kind of much of anything.

Part of the issue was me -- not wanting to put in an effort.  You practically had to shout to be heard and I needed to lean in to hear people talk.  I kept sitting by myself and then people came over -- probably felt sorry for me LOL.

That was the last of the holiday BIG stuff and I'm really glad.

I went for a trail run yesterday.  Super proud that I took the time, made THIS effort and got it done.  The weather isn't going to cooperate most of the week for an outside run so yesterday was kind of IT. Even though I ran the day before -- I pushed myself to do it.  Small thing for a big win.

Another small thing for a big win was sending the spaghetti and meatballs home with the kids.  I LOVE cold pasta and I know that would've called to me last night and today.  I don't need the GLUTEN and subsequent joint pain and sad mood.

Another win -- we were directed to take a dessert goodie bag last night -- truffles, cookies, candy, fudge.  Some made by her sister, most store bought.  I threw it out this morning.  I'm getting ready to cookie bake this week and I'm SUGAR up to my eyeballs.  I don't need to eat cookies from Costco.  I tried to decline them, but she's The Mayor.  I know by this afternoon they'd be calling to me and NOT WORTH it at all!

My aunt called yesterday and we're hosting a family gathering on January 4.  My aunt and I take turns (my cousin usually sits the rotation out) -- we are due to host again.  This one will be fun and relatively easy.  This side of the family is HORRIBLE at cooking with the exception of my one aunt -- the bar is low hahaha!!  The only issue is the 10 zillion food sensitivities.  I have a "standard" meal that works for the group -- no wheel inventing needed.

As far as this week -- a little fun, a little work and a lot of baking.  Today, I'm going to coffee with the birthday friend and her mom.  I need to give her our gift -- we didn't take it Saturday night because I was worried it would get lost.  Small group socializing -- that's more like it.

I searched for a new book last night and nothing stood out.  I might "shop" my bookshelves.  I have some I've never read.  I also want to carve out some quiet time for me.  I feel a strong hibernation urge.  That might not happen today, but should happen tomorrow -- fingers crossed.

Happy Monday that feels like a Sunday.  I'm already a day off and the week just started.  Later gators.

Dress Up

Before I chat about the party, let's talk all things ME.

It (I) turned out well enough ... everything from hair, to dress, to shoes, to my 1950s vintage clutch.  My hair held (the wind died down a lot by evening) and I got a lot of compliments on it.  The dress was comfortable (also a lot of compliments).  I wore the boot-shoes instead of my glued ones and they looked nice (fashion forward) but they hurt my big toes.  I think that's becoming an issue for me (story for another day).  I used the clutch I got last year from ETSY -- silver 1950's.  Fun to carry vintage.  I wore big girl glasses since readers wouldn't work on top of my head.

Closet picture

Always a selfie.

About half the crowd was holiday dressed up.  The rest was holiday casual.  We fit in fine.  It was a fun night chatting with neighbors, meeting our friend's family.  The invite said dancing, but there wasn't even music.  Guess that fell through.  The great thing about the room was CARPET!  So easy to walk on with heals.  Since there wasn't any dancing and the bar switched over to CASH after 9 o'clock, things wrapped up pretty quickly.  We were home and in bed by 11:30 -- not too bad.

She seemed surprised and not surprised -- kind of well acted.  I think she suspected, but will probably never tell to ruin the fun of it.  The food was really good -- filet, shrimp, salad and an awesome coconut cake.  I had THREE slices -- yep, not sorry at all.  I ate mine and hubby's (he doesn't like coconut) and then another person at our table left his cake.  Hubby rolled his eyes, but that didn't stop me.  Waste not, want not.  It was a perfect vanilla cake with very little icing and just a hint of coconut.  Gluten be damned.  (P.S. the slices were small -- in my defense.)

Switching gears hard today -- family coming over.  I dug in the freezer for meatballs and making an easy pasta supper (not exactly football food).  We have the neighborhood party tonight, so I won't be eating it.  I have a feeling it might be a pasta dinner at the party -- easy to feed a crowd.  I'll have to be careful -- 3 pieces of cake was pushing it LOL.

I'm not going to Unity this morning.  I figured it was too much of an unnecessary push this morning.  I'll go next weekend unless something comes up for a late Saturday night.  January starts A Course in Miracles from the beginning and that's a great time to get back to going regularly.  Weird right?!?!  Starting something in January - haha.

Another not-in-my-sweats night tonight, but this time I'm ready.  I have a deep red dress and boots -- almost a cowgirl feel.  It's my go-to holiday outfit.  It'll be in rotation for the next 10 years.  Easy and comfortable.

Later gators.

Afternoon Hair Update

Oh boy -- hair emergency (!!)

My only request -- make it full in the lower back.  The hairstylist showed me what it looked like and it was pretty.  Then she said she had to redo it a little and secure it harder because it was falling out.

The final hair was CRAP.  She secured all the volume out of it and smooshed the bottom.  I ran it by my girl clan and no one liked it.  I sent a picture and said ... what do you think?  Not one good response -- it was so bad, they couldn't pretend.

There are days I hate being a girl and when it's time to dress up, it's usually one of those days.

I will give it up to my girls though -- they all know this is not my THING and everyone checked in to see how I was doing dressing myself LOL.  That's the good part of being a girl -- girlfriends :)

I took it out (after paying $$) and redid the entire thing.  I should've looked again before I left -- never expected it to be that different.  My bad, my lesson, triple UGH.

Dying for pictures??

BEFORE:

This is the opposite of FULL

Weird flat lands over my big head.
The profile looks like I have no hair.

AFTER:

My try at it ... no idea if it will hold.

STRESS!!!

Hair is important to me.  I wear the same makeup everyday -- no matter the occasion (because I suck at makeup).  I wear pretty much the same jewelry -- always the same stud earrings.  This is the ONLY thing I've got going for me so I get nutty about it.  It's the only thing that changes for me.

At least I can say I did my own hair tonight.  Of course, she prepped it with product, etc., so it wasn't nearly like doing it on a normal day.  Pretty please let it hold -- it's super windy today and I've got a 50-50 chance.

More pictures tomorrow if I think to take them.  I about ready to get dressed.  That's an entire OTHER thing.  Can't wait to be back in sweatpants.

I Got Skills ...

Blanket making.

Mine is AWESOME!  I'm not doing humble very well because crafting is not my strong suit, yet, here I stand again with another well done craft so humble isn't possible this morning (lol).

Here's the thing ... I know I'm not a skilled crafter.  These crafting events draw the non-crafters of the world.  But in THIS world, I'm not half-bad.  I tell myself I'm TOTALLY bad and can't do crafts.  I'm amending that statement to "I'm an awesome crafter -- with a supervised craft (!!)"  Let someone else explain it, buy the materials, have the tools, etc. -- then watch me craft :)

My blanket is even stitched, no dropped stitches, perfect rectangle and this was NOT the case with a lot of the blankets.  Well done, ME (and my girlfriend -- we were both superstars hah).

Enough pre-story, here's the beauty in all her comfy glory.

It's so SOFT!

The instructor took our picture
for her social media too
because ours turned out so well.
Teachers pets.

The beginning ...

A casual toss ...
or a totally staged picture LOL.

Here's the bummer.  This wacked my back in a big way.  Leaning over the table, bending at the neck -- for THREE hours!!  I'm still "off" this morning.  Me and my girlfriend are both hurting.  Guess blanket making can be added to things-I-can't-do-regularly.

We didn't go to Fun Friday.  Hubby wasn't feeling it and my back was hurting.  We bagged.  We're social losers.  I never officially said I was going so I didn't back out, but I feel kind of bummed we didn't make it.

Tonight's the PARTY.  Hair, fancy clothes, big shoes, late night ... it's got it all.   My hair will be finished by noon and then I have to stay home to "protect" it.  The salon is only open mornings on Saturday.  I have a bunch of rescue calls to make ... killing time before the big night.

I finished Lying Next to Me -- Gregg Olsen.  It was a solid OKAY.  I guessed the who-did-it by about 3/4 of the way and that plot wasn't horrible.  The very ending was though -- how it all finished up with the bad guy -- that seemed complicated for no reason.  It was a quick, easy read though.  Good enough for the beach or the plane.  I have no books waiting in the wings.  Need to start my search ...

I'll leave with a picture of my Duke loving the blanket -- like a horse to water.  This boy has never met a blanket or a pillow he doesn't love.  Later gators.

Craft Day

This morning is the chunky blanket making class.  I'm taking my girlfriend for her birthday.  Wish me luck -- it's all the rage lately.  To make, to buy, to use.  I hope this is worth the $$ and effort.  Either way, it should be fun.  Being creative, hand-eye coordination, patience (lol) and connection with people.

Tonight is our neighborhood Fun Friday.  It's at the craft ladies house and she's super nice.  We have new neighbors (I met the lady on our dog walk yesterday) and this will give us a chance to get to know them a bit.  Good to socialize with the neighborhood again -- we've been lazy.

I got another chunk of Christmas online shopping finished.  I decided to head to the stores today since I'll be in the neighborhood -- save me the trouble yesterday.  I have a store credit to use for some stocking stuffers ... men's socks.

I finished the 3rd season of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and it was fantastic.  I want to say something about the last episode, but NO SPOILERS yet.  If you've watched it, YOU KNOW exactly what I'm going to say.

I watched 1 1/2 episodes of The Crown and I don't love it at all -- not the actors, not the story, nadda.  Maybe it gets better.  I wish they held onto the other actors for this season.  It was clever how the first episode introduced the new actor playing the queen though.  Reviews are good, so I need to push through a few more before I decide to stop.

My suspense book is in full suspense and I'm almost finished.  It'll all come down to the ending -- has to be good.  I have a theory ... hope I'm wrong and it has me guessing until the end.  Then I'm on the hunt for a new book.  Stay tuned ...

Still LOVING the scent machine.  The intensity died down after a couple of days -- new pods are strong.  Now it's just a nice light scent (i.e. hubby stopped complaining).  I'll let you know how long it lasts.  I run it all day.

Not a lot to say today.  Full weekend ahead though - pictures coming.  Later gators.

Picture Updates

I "fixed" the stocking holder.  Much better.  A couple of changes and rubber bands did the trick.  Now I can see them on the rack.

BEFORE

AFTER

The Mary Ashley painting came yesterday.  Here's the quick backstory.  I was at RISE in Minneapolis and noticed someone's earrings.  She said they were from a locally known artist, Mary Ashley.  I followed her on Instagram and was drawn to her paintings.  The earrings are impossible to get -- they sell out in minutes every month.  I watched her paintings for months.  Her commissioned artwork is ridiculously expensive though.  Something about it is really interesting to me (even though this is way out of my usual taste).

Fast forward to October and I was looking for artwork for our living room.  There was a section of hand-painted (made-to-order) art from various semi-known artists.  Guess who was one of them??  I was able to get (and afford) one of her painted pieces (not a print).  It's signed and perfectly artsy.  It's like I went into her studio and bought something.  She does multiples of some of her works (this is one of them, of course).  Still, I love it and it feels personal.  I hung it where I get to see it everyday (by the garage and side door).  All her stuff has this look -- chunky, simple.  

I have no idea why this artist drew my attention and continues to "show up" around me.  But, I have my own and I love it and I totally don't care that people think it's strange, overly simple art.

Anyway ...

Today is a twist of a day, again.  I was supposed to go on a big hike to a waterfall with a friend and when I texted her to confirm yesterday, she cancelled.  Annoying because SHE made the plans and is now "too busy."  I'm not exactly twiddling my thumbs over here.  Also, when was she going to let me know?  I got an immediate text back so she had no plans to hike -- didn't even need to think about it.  Honest engines ... when did this kind of thing become the norm?  I don't care if plans need to change, but there's a way to do it that is respectful to the other person.  

Rant over, because true confession time ... I'm glad she canceled.  Hubby is golfing all day and then going out to dinner with some former work buddies.  I have the entire day and evening to myself.  Glorious.  

I'm doing some online shopping, some store shopping, reading and watching Prime.  The hike would've been nice too, but I don't mind Plan B either.  This weekend is full and a little quiet time feels about right.

Have a great day -- later gators.

Stockings Were Hung ...

... on the hat rack because there's too much electronic junk on the mantle.

It works okay.  Probably a little better once the stockings are full.  Maybe straight arms would've been more useful.  Everything you hang falls to the center pole -- I could probably put rubber bands on the posts to stop them from fully sliding.  I like where I put the rack though.  Out of the way, but visible.  Also, the rack can take the weight of full stockings.  It's a keeper and we have storage areas so we don't need to disassemble this after Christmas.

See what I mean?
Fuller is probably better.
It's hard to see the stockings.

We gave up Christmas cards a couple of years ago (this is the 3rd year) for a few reasons.  It's such a time suck -- so hard to get the picture ready and mailed.  Our kids are grownups.  Everyone sees us on social media.  And ... we thought the money was a nice holiday donation to our dog rescue group.

I'll send out a facebook message reminding everyone we aren't sending cards -- don't want anyone to think we nixed them from our list.  I took some pictures for the post.

Neither is happy LOL

Parker singing along ...

Handsome boys.

Hubby HATES the scent machine FYI.  Fair disclosure and all.  He has absolutely no say in it though.  He put his nose up against it and said it was too strong.  Of course.  It's meant to scent a large space.  I still love it.  I woke up this morning to a lightly scented kitchen and family room.  Maybe a little more benign scent would be more appealing to him.  This is an obvious scent of fall.  I have some of the regular ones to use at some point.  Little does he know I bought more than one machine LOL.

I'm taking a long power walk this morning with my neighbor.  I was finally able to run yesterday.  The race left my shins so sore I couldn't do much.  Longest, steepest hill I've ever run -- it was the downhill that killed my shins.  This afternoon is NAILS -- boy I need this appointment.

This weekend is a powerhouse of social stuff.  We have our neighborhood Fun Friday and we're going this month.  It's time we started being a little more social.  We're starting to feel like outcasts.  Saturday is the big surprise party and now Sunday is a neighborhood dinner party.  The mayor is throwing it and, per her usual, wants no one to bring anything.  This is actually kind of nice -- makes going easy -- hostess gift and wine.  We got the email invite with one other name ... I think we were afterthoughts to the list.  Oh well.  In the name of being a little more social, we're going to that too.  I'll probably need to host something in the new year.  I've been a grumpy hermit for too long.

BTW -- the shoe glue seems to have fixed my go-to winter shoes.  You can see the split line, but who will look that closely.  Phew ... hope they hold up at the party (I'll bring the backups in my car).

I started watching The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (season 3).  LOVE it.  So smart and laugh-out-loud funny.

Happy Hump Day -- later gators.