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Friday, April 29, 2011

Zero and Zilch With a Side of Peppers and Petty

 Well, I have come to my very last post in the A-Z challenge.

So, this means I have ZERO posts left to write according to a letter schedule.
Yay!

Zero
Zilch
Nada

Some of the days were kinda tough, but it did make me use my imagination.
Some days it worked well.
Other days, maybe not so much.

I would like to leave this post by sharing with you a couple of my favorite musical artists.

The first is by the Red Hot Chili Peppers- The Zephyr Song. It's one of their more mellow songs.

The second is Tom Petty- Zombie Zoo. I couldn't find an actual video of the song, but it's a great song and worth a listen.





 



I appreciate all who have stopped by and/or started following me.

Thursday, April 28, 2011

Pimpin' the Yummy

I'm going to take this opportunity and the letter Y to tell you about my other blog.

It's Ruth's Yummy Stuff.

It's my blog about yummy stuff. According to me.

I do have some cooking tips but recipes seem to get more views so I mostly do those.

There is also a link to the right with my latest post on there.

In May, I will have been doing that blog for 2 years.

Cooking and baking is my passion.
So, I decided to share the yummy stuff with anyone and everyone that cared to read.

Yummy stuff of all kinds.
Dips
Desserts
Breads
Main dishes

Anything yummy.

Yep

Yummy

That's the stuff!

Me and My X-Ray

Who hasn't had an x-ray at some point in their life?
Even if it's just dental.

I think the worst x-ray was the one of my head.

That was pretty painful.

I was having the worst headache in my life and after weeks it just would not go away.

So, off to the doctor I go and the doctor was thinking maybe I had some sort of major sinus infection.

Which, looking back on it now, I am wondering if they just told me that.

They didn't try antibiotics right off
AND
they didn't seem to see anything infectiony looking in my ears or nose.

They did a flu test.
Which by the way, SUCKS total ass.

Whose idea was it to make a foot long q-tip and stuff it up the nose.
Ugh.

Maybe they've made improvements?
One would hope.

But, anyway, they decide to get my sinus cavities x-rayed.

I wonder now if maybe they were thinking tumor and just didn't want to scare me.

I had to go to the hospital for the x-rays and I had to sit up against the glass so they could take pictures.
Head up, head down.
Eyeballs  pressed to the glass.

My head was already killing me.
Let's just make it worse.

Nothing turned up.
No tumor, no sinus infection.

Than they took blood and no infection and so rather than go with an MRI they figured I had mono.
In my 30's and I had mono.
Lovely!

So, I got to keep my headache that nothing would help for another 2 months.

I will have forget that X-Ray.

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Hi, My Name is Ruth and I am a Washer

I have a problem and I can't stop.
I am a WASHER.

I have to wash.

I can't go to bed without dishes being washed.
If I ever do, I feel so unbelievably guilty that I didn't get them done.

I have to wash all the dishes before leaving the house.
I don't want to come home to dirty dishes.

I have old lady hands from washing my hands and dishes.
I hate wearing gloves.

Honeyman and Kiddo have learned if they take something out of a cupboard, don't set it on the floor and than put it back in the cupboard.
I will go get it out and wash the bottom of whatever and the bottom of the cupboard.

They think I am odd.
But, whatever touched the floor and that isn't sanitary.

At Christmastime, my sister and nieces come to make cookies and I am constantly making sure they have washed their hands, especially when one of them has to text during cookie making.
They laugh at me.

But, you have to be clean.
It's IMPORTANT!

Now, I must go WASH something.

Monday, April 25, 2011

The Vegetable Tales

At my house, we are big vegetable eaters.
Not just your standard peas, beans, and corn either.

We eat lots of peppers and brussel sprouts and broccoli and zucchini.

It's great and we grow most of it ourselves.

Kiddo even loves her vegetables.

I am always reading and hearing people say their kids won't eat vegetables, won't even touch them to see if they like them.
In the summer, Kiddo and I make our meal by going out to the garden and picking stuff.

When she was in Kindergarten, all the kids were supposed to bring a vegetable to share with the class.
She chose brussel sprouts.
Nobody else liked them.
She ended up eating all that I sent.

Just this last February, we were at a Superbowl party and she was eating and all of a sudden she noticed a tray of vegetables.
And it had red pepper slices.
She got all excited-"Ooohhhhh peppers, I didn't see those."
And proceeded to chow down on them.

I'm really glad she eats her vegetables.
The one thing she won't eat is asparagus. That one's all for me.

Play Me Some Ukulele!

The ukulele is a small four- stringed Hawaiian guitar.

I always think it looks like a cross between a guitar and a violin.

Tiny Tim made the ukulele famous.

Not really sure how Tiny Tim got famous. I always thought he sang badly and had really stringy, greasy hair.

The ukulele comes in four sizes: soprano, concert, tenor, and baritone.

It ranges in length from 13"( soprano) to 10"(baritone)

Ukuleles are still made today, but their popularity goes up and down.

So, that's my U word today.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

I Need A Little Reminder....

... Of why I thought having a child was a good idea.

Redheads are supposed to be stubborn, but I got nothing on this kid.
She got it from her dad.

It is quite interesting when he decides she is going to do something and she decides she is NOT.

She starts high school next fall and got her schedule done.
There is a journalism class and she won't sign up for it.

The kid loves to write.
But, she " hates deadlines".

I went over the requirements for graduation and she needs one Fine Arts elective
which is 1 semester of band, chorus, theater, design/drawing, or journalism.

She doesn't do chorus or band.
She hates being in front of people so theater is out.
She doesn't want to take design.

So, she decides she will do chorus and I point out all the stuff about it that she hates and she keeps giving me the evil eye.

I mention journalism.
AGAIN.

And she informs me in a real nasty tone that she isn't doing journalism.
And walks upstairs.

I don't get it.
She spends hours and hours on her laptop writing stories.

I know journalism isn't fiction, but it's writing

It's going to be a long 4 years.

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Towns Across Iowa

Iowa is a state made up of small towns.

In fact, our large metropolis has under half a million people. That's including all the suburbs and the towns close enough to be a suburb now but wasn't always.

I was born in a small town, grew up in a small town, and currently live right outside a small town.

There are some nice things about small towns
like not as much crime and it is quieter.

But, sometimes it is not always great.

If you don't go to church-Me
you stand out.
Some people think that means you are evil.

If something happens, people know about it.
Seriously, old people and coffee time is code for " did you hear so and so spent the night at so and so's house?"
But, people my age do it too.
" What's his face got so drunk last night up at the bar".

It's amazing what goes on.

But, some of our towns have some interesting names.


Argyle- like the sweater

Beaver- 50 people in the whole town. Somehow I doubt there is a whole lot of beaver there.

California Junction- in Iowa, not sure where that came from

Clear Lake- where Buddy Holly, the Big Bopper, and Ritchie Valens died

Correctionville- no prison so I am assuming it's the capital of grammar state

Cumming- seriously, that is how it is spelled

Crystal Lake- Jason has not been seen

Dike- named before Dike was a bad thing to call someone, I bet

Jamaica-  Not very tropical

Lorimor- interesting because as kids we used to say my sister had a town named after her.

Moorhead- Nowhere near Beaver or Cumming.

Paris- No Eiffel tower

Ricketts- Isn't that some sort of medical problem?

I'm sure all states have towns with interesting names.
Do you have any where you live?

Friday, April 22, 2011

I Saw the Sign



Whenever I go somewhere anymore I try to remember to bring my camera.
You never know when you might see something photo worthy.

I still wish I would have had my camera for the shit on a shingle sign or Congress Needs Funk.
But, what can you do?
So here are a few signs for your viewing pleasure.

Never think there is no hope. Because there it is. That way.
These convenience stores are all over Des Moines. I have heard it referred to ejaculate and evacuate. And in this one you can do it without touching.


Do you see anything wrong with this sign?

Interesting name for a company, don't you think?

OK, this isn't really a sign. But, I just kept thinking if this person keeps this minivan long enough, they could enclose the perimeter of the license plate with the registration stickers.
What part of bottom left corner is so hard to understand?

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Red is Rad

I am a redhead. A real, natural born redhead.

I love my hair.

It isn't as vibrant a red as it used to be, but it is still beautiful.

I didn't always love having red hair.

I used to hate it with every fiber of my being.

Growing up in the 70s, having red hair was an anomaly.

Add to that my Buddy Holly glasses and my old lady name of Ruth and I had the trifecta for getting picked on.

So, I wanted to be a blonde.

Nobody made fun of blonde girls.
Or so I thought.

Than I got older and got the whole
" Why don't you show me if you're a real redhead or not?" ;)
Please.

Just look at my eye brows and my freckles.

Later on, I learned some guys really had a thing for redheads.
Really weird after growing up feeling really out of place cause I was the only one in my whole town with really red hair.

It made me feel good.

Now, I don't care if you like redhair.

I like my red hair.

And if I have my dad's hair genes, I'll have this hair color til the day I die.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Q on Cue

If you don't know Q, than you should. Because he is AWESOME!

Q is a member of the Q continuum and the Q pretty much can do whatever the hell they want.
In the Star Trek world, of course.

So Q is part of the Q.
Got that?
Good.

I just love Q.
I'd like to be Q.
Hell, I'd LOVE it!

Q just snaps his finger and he can be anywhere he wants to be, whenever.
He can also move people or things to wherever he wants, whenever.

Let's forget his arrogance
And the pesky detail of him introducing the Borg to the Federation.

Yeah, let's just focus on the coolness of Q.

You don't want to deal with someone?
Boom, they're gone.

You want to take a day trip to another galaxy?
Boom, there you are.

Sure there are rules in the continuum.
But, Q doesn't care.
He does what he wants.

The entire universe is his playground.

Now, wouldn't that be awesome?
How could it not be?

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Pondering the Demise of the Pom-pom

Remember the pom-pom?
Those huge, huge pom-poms cheerleaders used to cheer with.
They were so big, they were like hula skirts with handles.

They just got smaller and smaller until they went away.

Now they have these spirit balls or cheer balls.
Oooooh, fancy.

You can still find actual pom-poms with handles.
But, they are the same size as the spirit balls/ cheer balls- whatever.

The so called large pom-poms are not that big.

A REAL pom-pom is a pom-pom that is so large a small child could play hide and seek in one and get lost.

How can one get all worked up into a cheering frenzy by shaking little itty bitty cheer balls?

You can't.
Cheering isn't dignified so why try to make the accessories look so?

Let's hear it for the big-ass pom-poms!

Monday, April 18, 2011

Ode to an Outhouse

Yessir, I gots me an outhouse.
It's a great outhouse too.
It's a TWO seater!

AWWEESOME!

Just in case you need company to take a dump.

It's stuck right on to the side of my garage.
Not sure why the builder of the house didn't put it right outside the backdoor
so as to not have to go to the garage in the dark.

But, I guess that might be too close to the well.

Possible shitty contamination.
And that wouldn't be good.

Also, the cave is right behind the house.

Not many people can claim to still have their very own outhouse.
What can I say?
It came with the house built in 1914.

We have to keep it, you know.
What if the well goes dry OR we loose electricity and can't flush the toilet?
We gotta go somewhere.

But, than we'd have to clean it out.

As you can see, there is junk piled in front.

I'd show you the two-seats.
But, A- I am too lazy to move the stuff from in front of the door.
AND
B- once I did move that stuff, there is tons of more junk inside.

Awww, and look at the lovely little cut out .
It'd be cooler if it were the crescent shape of a moon, don't you think?

Saturday, April 16, 2011

Naps are My Friends

Little kids don't know how good they have it.
They hate going to sleep.
Either down for the night or down for a nap, they are just so afraid they will miss something good.

Little do they know that naps are AWESOME!

I am not into those power naps.

Sleep for 10 minutes and you will feel so refreshed!

Who came up with that nonsense?

It takes me that long to fall asleep
and if I do doze off for 10 minutes I wake up feeling all disoriented and really crappy.

No, a real nap should be at least 2 hours.
That's just the way it is.

That would be a siesta, right?
That's really the part of Latin culture we need to be implementing.

Maybe I like my naps so much because I don't drink coffee or much caffeine at all.

I don't really get many naps, but I sure love them.
Course that can leave me not getting everything done.

Sometimes you just gotta say WTF and take a break.
A sleep break.

Well, that's my N word for today.
Who says the N word always has to be bad?

Friday, April 15, 2011

Mmmmm-Morels

Morel season is almost upon my good state.

If you don't know what a morel is, it's a type of wild mushroom.

This is a big yellow morel my nephew found last year.


First the small gray ones pop. In a couple weeks after that the big yellow ones will arrive.

When I was a kid, my dad went out by himself.
Now, it's a family thing.

Me, Kiddo, and Honeyman hike off into the woods with bags and mushrooming sticks and search for the little buggers.

A mushrooming stick is to keep the brush pushed aside as you walk through.
It is also in case one happens to some across a snake and you can fling it with that stick.

Sometimes we get a good haul.
Sometimes not.

I love them.

I fix them all kinds of ways.

Batter fried
Stuffed
Sauteed

I put 'em in casseroles and on pizza.

I just love 'em.

Last year was a lean year.
Here's hoping for a good one this time around.

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Living Life

Sometimes we all spend so much time just getting through life's obstacle course.
We forget what it's like to really live and not just exist.

It was so much easier to live life to the fullest when I was younger.

No husband.
No kid.
No house that seems to suck the very life out of me.

From the age of 19 to about 25 I was a nomad.

I moved whenever to wherever I wanted
whenever the hell I felt like.

People may have called me a slacker
But I never stayed at one job for more than 6 months.

I worked.
I just got tired of the place of employment.
So, I found something else.

I did a lot of stupid shit.
Also known as the salad days.

I think my parents were shaking their heads
and wondering what was going to become of me.

I didn't care.
I was living my life on my own terms.

Sometimes I miss the old life of no responsibilites.
But, I can't turn back the clock.

And I am not sure I'd want to.
Some of the stupid and thoughtless things I did make me cringe.

Getting robbed at coffee- point is something I will never want to relive.( story for another time)

That or my unintended pregnancy/miscarriage.

Currently living my life consists of getting up at the ungodly hour of 6 am and trying to think why.
I also try to find something to laugh about every day.

Life should be about having fun.
There doesn't have to be anything meaningful or deep in our existence.

If you aren't enjoying life, you are not really living.



"People who see life as anything more than pure entertainment are missing the point. "- George Carlin

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

My Kid- The One and Only

I have one very special 14 year old daughter.
I always refer to her as Kiddo.

Even back in my teens I figured I would only end up with one child.
I remember telling my mom that and also that if I didn't have a kid by age 30 I didn't want one.

I figured I would be too set in my ways to raise a kid.

Well I had one kid at age 25 and she is totally enough for me.

Not sure why, but some people think people should want kids- in the plural.

If a couple doesn't have any, some people think it's odd.
Those same people seem to think it is odd to stop at one.

When Kiddo was about a year, I was asked by another mother about having more.
I told her that I didn't want anymore.
So, she asked if I had bad labor.
No.
She just looked at me oddly.
It was as if she couldn't fathom me only wanting one.

When I got my tubes tied when Kiddo was 18 months, my mother-in-law tells me "it's OK, it's reversible".

My primary doctor asks me " What happens if your daughter died?"
So, maybe she dies and I can just have another kid and all better?

We went through tough times and when things got better a friend told us that now things were better we could have another kid.
Nope.
That ship has sailed.

Once when Kiddo was about 4 I thought it might be nice to have another baby.
But, I didn't really.

I am really glad in so many ways I stopped at one.
Kiddo has had so many health problems and I can't even imagine trying to take care of another one or two more or figuring out who can watch them because she had an EEG that day or surgery.

I just don't have the patience for more than one.

I did a good job with the one I got and I am happy.

My kid.
My Kiddo.
My one and only.

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Just a Thought

I'm

Just a Girl.

Sometimes I want to

Just Dance.

Honeyman

Just Got Paid.

But, it seems like it will be only me.
Honeyman hates to dance.

He tells me, if you want to go,

Just Go.

But it costs money and I am not good spending money on me.
Even if dancing feels

Just Like Heaven.

I know its

Just For Tonight.

and I should

Just Chill.

I should

Just Breathe
Just Push Play

and  be

Just a Guy

and go out and have some fun.


Songs

Just a Girl- No Doubt
Just Dance- Lady Gaga
Just Got Paid- Johnny Kemp
Just Go- Lionel Richie
Just Like Heaven- The Cure
Just For Tonight- Vanessa Williams
Just Chill- Travis Barker
Just Breathe- Pearl Jam
Just Push Play- Aerosmith
Just a Guy- BC Jean

Monday, April 11, 2011

In an Instant


We live in a world of instant.
We want it when we want it.

We have the internet and can find out news in an instant.

Most people have cell phones so they can call in an instant.
I say most since, if you've read some of my early posts you may recall, I don't have a cell phone.
Technically I do, I just have no service attached so it is useless.




  We live in the world of NOW.




 We just have to know everything right now.
 We have to get 'er done.


 We have to know we have help instantly and always.


Everything has to be now and we shouldn't have to wait.
Something can be said for waiting.

The anticipation of something good.
Things like homemade chocolate chip cookies over Chips Ahoy!.
Some good quality time ;) over a quickie.
Filling up the swimming pool so you can swim whenever you want.

Some times bad things happen in an instant.
Accidents.
Death.
Disasters.

So while some things are nice to have in an instant, it also can be great to savor the moment.

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Hmmmmm........

So, I'm trying to think of an H word.

Hmmmmm.

I thought of home or house, but I see people that already have that.
Mine would have been a variation on the theme.
Home Dump Home-cause my home is dumpy.
But, it's still about home.

Hmmmmm.

I thought about writing about my experiences with hippies.
Yes, I have known some.
True honest to goodness hippies.
Not some Wanna-Be's.
But, I didn't know in which direction I wanted to go with that.

Hmmmmm.

Happy is just too easy.

Hmmmmm.

Hello?


I don't know. Hmmmmm.

I am just completely stumped on this one.
Cause I really don't think people want to read about hippos.

Friday, April 8, 2011

That Certainly Was Gratifying

Every time I pay a bill, I get a sense of gratification for getting that bill paid and one step closer to the end of the payments.

At the same time, I hate having to make that payment.
I just want to keep that money and spend it on ME.
Or save it to fix my house, whatever.

Gratifying is the sense of satisfaction from doing something.

I don't know if I ever have a total handle on that.

I love eating all my homemade jam and salsa but the gratification doesn't come until after I have it all done.

Parenthood is not all gratifying.
Many days I just feel an enormous sense of frustration.
She is a teenager- nuff said.

I have a good kid.
She is responsible and kind to others
so I do feel gratification from that.

But, once again that is after I went through all the crap to get her that way.

Whatever happened to feeling it in the moment?

I think I may have missed the seminar on how to do that.

I just do because it needs done and than I can feel satisfaction or not about it later.

I think I may need to practice my inner Buddha and just be peaceful and serene with whatever it is that I am doing when I am doing it.
No matter what it is.

Not sure that will lead me to gratification of things while I am doing them.
It really couldn't hurt.

Gratification- it's where it's at!

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Free Baby Stuff

I found this site where you can sign up for free baby stuff.

I thought I would share.

This is for pregnant women and anyone that has had a baby in the last 11 months.

Babytobee.com

Fairly Frugal

I am probably one of the most frugal people you will ever meet.

If I can find another use for something, I will not throw it away.

I save ice cream buckets to put rice, sugar, and flour in. Wash first!
I save screw on lids to use with my canning jars when I just want to store things in the fridge.
I save grocery store bags and use them for my small trash cans.

I even save those little plastic closures(not twisters, the other kind) for use on my non-stick pans. They make great scrapers. And I don't have to buy the plastic scrapers or scratch pads.
When they break, just grab another. I have plenty.

I will not wash and reuse baggies like my mom does.
Nor do I wash out straws. You can't dry straws so moisture stays forever and icky stuff could grow.

I grow a HUGE garden but if someone offers to give me some veggies from their garden I will take it and freeze or can it.

Being frugal is a big part of who I am.
Because I am frugal my family lives on one income. Honeyman makes good money but nothing truly spectacular.
I do extra income earning online to help out and have fun money.

Contrary to what so many people say, clipping coupons is not the secret to frugality.
Not my secret anyway.
I hardly ever use coupons.
The coupons available to me are usually for higher priced brands that I never buy anyway.

It does work for some people.
Depending on where you live and what you buy.

I really got to be frugal when Honeyman and I were just starting out and it has served me well.
When he lost his job at Maytag and had to back to school, frugality saved me.
Especially when the only job I could find was $6/hr making pizza at Casey's.

We've had financial people tell us they don't know how we do it.
That tends to make me feel good about myself.

People may look at me and think I have the makings of a pack-rat.
Nah, I'm just FRUGAL.

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Experiencing Evil

Do you think people can be evil to the core?

I always try to think about people's motives for doing some of the things they do.

Do they do awful things due to mental illness or because they were treated horribly as a child?
Or is it in their DNA?

Because two people can go through the same experience and come out of it completely different.

I really looked for a clip from the movie "Constantine" where the woman tells the man that it isn't the demons that make people do evil things, that people are evil.

Couldn't find it though.

It just makes me wonder.

I remember reading about Ted Bundy and how when he was little he laid knives along side one of his relatives in bed.
And you know what became of Ted Bundy.

I had a friend with a son that put glass in his stepfather's bath water.
The kid was 2.
I haven't seen her in over 15 years.
I wonder what became of the boy.
What was going on and what made him do something like that?

Buddha said that we all have good seeds and bad seeds in us and it is up to each one of us which ones to water.
I believe that.

All of us have the capacity to do evil things.

Everyone one of us has likely loved someone they would kill for or hurt severely.
We may say it is justified.
Others would call it evil.

Everyone just a different idea of what evil is.
It can be an action.
Hateful words.
Maybe it is a lifestyle.

I don't know if some people are truly evil or not.
Many people do really, really bad things.
Many people are incredibly selfish.

Some people just want what they want when they want it
and to hell with anyone else.

Some people are mean because it makes them feel good to have power over someone else.
I don't know if it's evil.
It seems kind of evil.

Maybe it's the primitive parts of man coming out.
OR
Maybe it's the demons.
OR
Maybe those people just didn't water the right seeds.

I am not sure I will ever really have the answer to that question.
I do know that I am not evil so that's gonna have to be good enough for me.

Do You?




I do.

I really DO.

I'm a doer and that's what doers do.

What do I do, you ask.

I do .....

THINGS.


Great THINGS
Important THINGS
Responsible THINGS

That's me.

I DO THINGS.

I'm a doer and that's just what doers do.

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Contemplating the Compliment





I am not always so good at receiving compliments.

Unless it's about my cooking.
I can say without conceit that I do that fabulously!

Some days I just feel like people are just telling me what I want to hear.
Unless it's about cooking.
Did I tell you I do that fabulously?

The one and only compliment I remember getting from my mother as a teenager was about my pie crust.
What an odd thing to get a compliment about.
But, it's true.
I do a great pie crust.

I am smart.
I am reasonably attractive.
I can refinish furniture like nobody's business- unless that is your life's work, than never mind.

But, I don't always feel completely comfortable hearing it.
They make me feel great.
Who doesn't love a compliment?

I know.
The weird people.

But, since that's not me.
I love compliments.

So go ahead.
Shower me with compliments!
I promise not to feel uncomfortable.


I would like to thank all my new followers.
I'd also like to thank Sylvia at Word Doodles for awarding me the Stylish Blogger Award.


Saturday, April 2, 2011

The One About the Birds

As you may or may not know, I live out in the sticks.
As a result of being out here, we get all kinds of animals coming around.

The glorious, but somewhat stinky, skunk.
The beautiful, but pissy, mink.
Cute, wittle bunnies and big beautiful deer.
We've even found tracks of coyotes in the yard.

Sometimes we are lucky enough to get some pictures of the animals we see.

I thought I would share some of the bird shots we have gotten.


Here is a sea gull just hanging out in the backyard.


Here is an bald eagle taking a break in one of the trees out back. I took this from our bathroom window.


Bobolink out in the pasture.

These are a couple wood ducks that decided to pass some time in the tree right next to the back door.


Close as I can tell, this is a tufted titmouse.
Not too up on my birds, but I looked it up and it looked pretty close.
There were a bunch of these right in the frontyard.


We used to have barn swallows build a nest on our front porch every year.
Than they just quit.
Either something happened to them or they were displeased when the porch got painted green.

That's OK.
Nice to see babies hatch,
On the other hand, no big piles of bird shit on my porch.

We used to have a pair of barn owls in the trees.
They didn't live here- just came at night to hunt.
They haven't been here in a while.

One day there was even a turkey buzzard in the backyard.
Those things are HUGE.
Alas, that was before my digital camera so no photos.

One year we had a dove that loved to strut to music.
Put on the rock tunes in the garage and he'd come out of the tree and go back and forth across the driveway bobbing his head to the music.

We've had so many kinds of birds, I couldn't name them all.

Hope you enjoy the photos.

Friday, April 1, 2011

Aqua, Aqua!



I have embarked on a journey of health and hydration.

Lots of fruit and fiber.
And the all important water,i.e. aqua.

I have been drinking aqau almost exclusively for the last couple of weeks.
Frankly, I am about all aqua-ed out.

I used to drink tons and tons of iced tea.
With sugar.

And than I got to figuring out how much fluid I was taking in and deciding I needed to drink more.
And to be healthy, it has to be straight up aqua aka watah.

No caffeine.
No sugar.
No flavor.

Just boring water.
Excuse me, aqua.

I have tried putting in lemon juice.
Is it just me or does the lemon juice sink to the bottom?
I stir and at first it's OK.
Than I hit the bottom 1/8 of the glass.
And Ew!

Plus, now I am wearing a path in the floor between the computer and the toilet.
Maybe I should just move to the bathroom.

I have an outlet for the computer.
The toilet.
A sink to get more water, ahem I mean aqua, to drink so I can use the toilet again.

Fool proof plan.

Except for no food and no bed.

I was hoping to see a bit of weight loss from drinking all the aqua.
So far it just ain't happenin'.

But aqua is good for me so I will keep drinking and hoping that it will make me thin and fabulous.
Skin radiance is supposed to be another benefit, isn't it?

OK, I want that too.

Cheers!