Carmen Miranda, the lioness

There is something magical about sharing a computer with your child. The kid plays random games on pre-approved websites, but at the end of the day, I really don't pay too much attention to what she's doing. My biggest gripe is the crumbs and sticky finger prints on the keyboard.
And yet, sometimes, this random sharing yields gold. For example, the intriguing bit of art to the left here. I don't know the game, but I certainly appreciate its ability to allow her to save her artwork to my desktop. Because this is awesome.

A light in the night

I find that lately the bane of my existence is nightlight bulbs. I'm replacing them a whole lot. I live a life of regular bulbs and LED bulbs. It's exhausting.
Sure, the LED bulbs are nice and environmentally correct, but some of them make a weird whining noise. Also, LEDs are wider than regular nightlight bulbs, so they don't fit in some of the nifty nightlights I have. If they did, I would happily have them throughout the house, no matter the whining noise. But instead, to keep the other nightlights in the house functioning properly, I need to have the two types of nightlight bulbs in my house.
So I bought more of the two types of nightlight bulbs today, and then wandered throughout my house finding the nightlights that needed bulbs replaced. Good on me, right?
These are the things that keep me occupied during the day. Nightlights, people. Making my nightlight situation better was atop my to-do list for today. So exhausting.
Also, I only have one Thanksgiving-themed nightlight, which is unacceptable.
So, to recap, I need more Thanksgiving nightlights; slimmer LED bulbs so they fit in every nightlight; and longer lasting regular nightlight bulbs so they don't have to be changed so often. Yep, all that so I can have the pretty lights in my house ... while I sleep. Makes no sense sometime.

That which I once mocked, I now do

Maria posted a thing on her Facebook page that I found intriguing. It's the agenda for a 30-day planking challenge, which looks pretty cool, and would probably be an awesome thing for me to do anyway. And I like challenges. Here's the schedule:
Day 1 and 2 ~ 20 seconds ... ... Day 3 and 4 ~ 30 seconds ... ... Day 5 ~ 40 seconds ... ... Day 6 ~ Rest ... ... Day 7 and 8 ~ 45 seconds ... ... Day 9, 10 and 11 ~ 60 seconds ... ... Day 12 ~ 90 seconds ... ... Day 13 ~ Rest ... ... Day 14 and 15 ~ 90 seconds ... ... Day 16 and 17 ~ 120 seconds ... ... Day 18 ~ 150 seconds ... ... Day 19 ~ Rest ... ... Day 20 and 21 ~ 150 seconds ... ... Day 22 and 23 ~ 180 seconds ... ... Day 24 and 25 ~ 210 seconds ... ... Day 26 ~ Rest ... ... Day 27 and 28 ~ 240 seconds ... ... Day 29 ~ 270 seconds ... ... Day 30 ~ Plank for as long as you can.
I'm on Day 2 right now, and I'm loving it so far. The instructions are to do at least one plank rep in that day's time period. I'm doing two reps so far, though I'll soon bump that up to four reps per day.
You know what's awesome? I'm feeling the physical effects of the planking already. Obviously, I'm out of shape. The planking is supposed to help with my core strength, which is something I really need. Also, anything that'll make me stronger is a good thing.

At least it's all about chips

Sometimes, there is nothing better in this world than chips and salsa. So, guess what I had for dinner tonight. Yep, chips and salsa. It wasn't even any kind of special salsa, either. Market Fresh restaurant-style salsa from Target. And you know what? It was yummy delicious. Bit by bit I'm being brought over to the generic Target brand side of things. Not enough to roll with anything less than Tostitos for chips, but the salsa works.
Somehow speaking of chips ...
I miss Jalapeno Jack Sun Chips. *takes a moment to search Jalapeno Jack SunChips on Google* But now I discover that, beyond the missing Best SunChips Flavor Ever, SunChips has managed to piss off a whole lot of customers. They have shrunk their bags from 11oz. to 7oz., and continue to charge the same for them. People on the SunChips Facebook page are PISSED. I don't blame them. Probably if I was still buying SunChips with Jalapeno Jack flavor, I would be just as annoyed. But the company lost my business when they discontinued my favorite flavor. So, no worries for me, except I feel bad for the people mad about the bag shrinkage. I continue to be done with SunChips, in solidarity with the angry people, and because it's making a statement without having to compromise anything.

A post-pumpkin, pre-turkey calm

It took me most of the day, but I got the Halloween decorations down and put away. I'm so neurotic about them. All the decor needs to go into their proper bins, labeled for their rooms. And with a new house, and new placement for all the stuff, all those bins needed to be repacked. So, because sometimes I'm ridiculous, it took me hours to get the bins straight.
This, in consequence, is why the Thanksgiving decorations aren't up yet.
Tomorrow's agenda:
Thanksgiving decorations ~ I would say that this should be quick and easy, but I've got a few new things, so no doubt I'll be walking around my house with random bits of autumnal prettiness for hours until I find the exact right place for them.
Actual work ~ Yes, I am still doing the social media job. My account list has shrunk, but that's okay. It should only take me a few hours to get next week's posts done.
Brownies ~ I've been tasting for chocolate for several days now, in a way that Halloween candy can't fix. I had some hot chocolate from Dunkin' this morning, and it was delicious. I think I'll get some tomorrow morning, too, but still ... brownies.
Book reading ~ I still hold out hope that I'll get something read over the next few weeks. Might as well keep it on the "agenda."

It's November; need a new avatar

...
...
Nope. Still not ready.
But it is November, and I can never completely neglect the blog.
So, here's for this month.
Maybe tomorrow.
I'm sad.

Back in the saddle again

When all else fails, go hang out in Barnes & Noble for a while.
Then, I added three books to the already too tall To-Be-Read Pile.
Also, I discovered that it is indeed the cupcakes that are giving me acid reflux throughout the day and into the night. Eat one, suffer for hours. There is no large supply of cupcakes anymore, but the four that I saved will be tossed out tomorrow.
How is it possible that cupcakes have turned against me?
Have I killed too many of their brethren?
Why would the frosting feel the need to cross me so?
My heart is breaking ... for this set of cupcakes.
I'm sure the next group will be just fine.

I love that autumnal weather

It was a lovely day to eat lunch outside. It will be tomorrow, too. Happily, the next day, Wednesday, it might feel a bit too cool to sit outside.
I say, Welcome autumn! We've missed you!
Is it a terribly bad move for a mother to leave the windows open in her house when the temperature gets down to 50 degrees or so? Will my dogs get too chilled? Will my daughter require more than a sweatshirt? I am eager to find out the answers soon.
I know it's all autumnal in Boston, and somewhat in Houston, but I'm looking forward to the season here. Only a few trees turn color, and even fewer lose their leaves, but crisper air is a welcome indication of the change of seasons.
If I could pick only one season to live in Boston every year, it would be autumn. It was my favorite time of year there, and the switch from summer always makes me miss that town.

Dinosaur cakes are the best

ITEM!: So we had our first birthday party with classmates today. (How awesome that we managed to get all the way to seven without having to host one, right?) We booked the space at our local pizza place, and sent out the invitations. Sydney was nervous all morning, but also super excited. We got to the pizza place early, and the kids arrived. This was, I think, one of the most expensive 90-minute time periods of my life. Those tokens add up like no one's business. Still, Sydney had a good time, and the kids had a good time, and that is all that matters.
ITEM!: I still feel like I'm not ready to take Sydney to a party and then leave her there while I run errands. Several of the parents of our party guests did that today. Granted, a bunch of those kids are older than Sydney, but still, I was kinda surprised that so many were like, "Okay, this is so-and-so. I'll be back later!" I mean, there's a lot of freedom in that, of course, but I'm still not there. I'm super untrusting, I suppose, but it doesn't feel right to me.
ITEM!: People should give the bakers at Albertson's some super props, and not think that as a grocery store, their stuff is less than awesome. Because we got a fantastically awesome dinosaur cake that was delicious, and happy, and made my kid go through the roof with glee. I love the bakery products from grocery stores. They've got real frosting that's not fancy; good cake that's not fancy; and creativity that's underrated. This lady's work made our day.
ITEM!: Even though, or perhaps because of, the parents not being there, these kids were incredibly well behaved. Tons of "please" and "thank you" for everything, and no issues at all. Of course, with only seven kids, there's not a lot of room for craziness. But still, I was pleased.
ITEM!: The whole thing cost a whole lot more than I thought it would though, so we may be changing our tactics for next year. Maybe two or three friends on a cool outing or something. Or like, a make-up and hair person at the house to fancy them up for funsies. Or maybe even a sleepover. Thank goodness I've got another full year to think about it.

Lovely, lovely ladybugs

I didn't know that ladybugs would ever gather together like this. I'd never seen anything like that before I saw this. It reminds me a whole lot of Nantucket and Cape Cod. It just seems very Cape Cod-ish to me. I wish I had downloaded the higher resolution image though, because this would make an awesome cover photo for my Facebook page. But alas, it will be an awesome blog photo instead (which isn't a bad thing at all, either).
I wonder: what is the word for a group of ladybugs? ... Well, it seems as though there's some misinformation about that. Of the several places I just checked, only two agree on what a group of ladybugs is called, and it is a "loveliness." That's almost too cute to be believed. I'll roll with it, but I'm disappointed I don't have an encyclopedia right here that I can read and verify that.

Sweet as a cupcake ... I wish

Lately, I'm sure, you guys are all, "Yeah, but how's she doing?"
Well, I am getting teary eyed at every little thing. I've got the zits. Today, I almost broke out in tears because I couldn't decide what I wanted to have for lunch.
Such is the state of me right now.
And it's bugging me.
This lack of estrogen is messing with me in every way.
I feel like I need to soldier through it for a couple months though, just to see if my body will settle in with it. Seems fair, you know, to torture myself for a while. That way I can really appreciate all the changes my body is going through now that I'm 40.
So, we might have a few of these ridiculous, emotional blog posts over the next several weeks.
Then, I'll admit that this wasn't a good idea, and go back to the regular-level birth control pills, and all will be well again.

Imagine lavender; go to sleep

I'm warm and uncomfortable. My dogs are asleep, which is cute and soothing and everything, but I'm still wide awake at 12:13 a.m. I need to put down the computer, and go to sleep, too.
I have acid reflux from my leftover pizza from dinner, but I lack Zantac, so I'm suffering through it.
And when is it going to start getting cold here? I got so jealous looking at all those people in the cold weather in Boston on television tonight. They were wearing hats and gloves for pete's sake.
I changed the estrogen levels in my birth control pills, and I think it may be affecting me negatively. I'm so weepy and agitated. Also, I'm breaking out, which puts me in a super bad mood. Zits f*ckin' suck, and I'm the queen of them right now.

Five of the six are mysteries

I have a great plan for the next six weeks: I am going to read one of the books on my To-Be-Read Pile every week. The week shall start Monday morning, and will end Sunday night when I go to bed.
This week though, is already off to a poor start. I had optimism because I knew I would spend Monday morning at the car doctor's place ... but then there was nothing wrong with the car, so I couldn't get started. Since then, I've been catching up on last week's television, and just mucking around instead of reading.
I honestly haven't read anything since before we left Houston, and I remember that the pile was growing even when we were there. My summer of reading was a bust, I admit. So the list is back to the "Books in my To-Be-Read Pile." I'll pull one off the pile and put it alongside my bed as soon as I'm done with the blog, so it can guilt me into remembering my goal, and I'll get started on it. I mean, they're all good books, I'm just having a hard time motivating my reading mind to get started. I thought that the plan was a good one, and I suppose I still do. I just need to dig into it.

2910 miles to Honolulu, so you know

I think, when I have the opportunity to give Brian a random outdoor decor project, I will request one of these many-places signposts. I will figure out the cities and points of interest, and their distance from our backyard. We'll paint the arrows ourselves, and make it cool and artsy, just like this one.
I am, all of a sudden, very, very interested in doing this. I'm excited, and I want to get started on it.
Cities to be listed: Camarillo, Boston, Sierra Vista, Juneau, Sydney, Hong Kong, Beijing, New York, Honolulu, Dublin, Paris, and London.
That's all for now, but rest assured, I'm composing more of a list in my head.

You're smart; it's not about the girl

I'm bugged by that "glossophobia" advertisement on the television. You know, the kid who does all the research on speaking well in front of an audience? The point of the ad, I thought, was that the child does all the research, and practices, and is prepared, so he can perform well at his speech. But apparently, it was all for a higher, and even more mighty, cause: he was able to impress the girl in his class.
Whatever happened to kids doing well in school being its own reward? Why is the opinion of the girl in the class even relevant? Why does Google (or whoever it is; I don't even know, which makes the ad that much more worth it for them) make such a big deal about young love in what is supposed to be a victorious ad about conquering one's fears about speaking in public?
Why do advertisers insist on romanticizing and sexualizing every little thing on a commercial? The kid should be happy with himself because he did well on his speech, and end it right there. It shouldn't be about the girl who smiles at him because he does his speech so well.
The only way this could bother me even more is if the genders were reversed, and the advertiser dumbed down the girl's experience, and made it all for the smile from a boy. (That's vaguely sexist of me, but I'm more concerned with empowerment of girls than boys, for obvious reasons.) But still, this kid should be proud of his achievement and all the self esteem improvements that go along with that, not encouraged to do it just to make the pretty girl smile.