Sunday, March 10, 2024

BLAH BLAH BLAH

     Blah blah blah, what can I say. I am bored so bored. Sewing is fun, games can be too, but that can't be all there is to every day. 

          I think about what kind of job I could be doing that I would enjoy, be good at and wouldn't kill my body on a daily basis. I look around at all the things I have training in and I know I am no longer meant for those jobs. I don't have the strength stamina or even the desire to do those jobs, I don't have the temperament for those jobs either. I look around while out and about and see managers standing around with coffee cups in their hands doing nothing while others struggle around them to get the jobs done even with being short handed. It just isn't for me, I would be fired almost before I got hired, and truthfully being fired would be the high light of my day.

   My last experience with Wawa was enough to say ordinary labor jobs are not for me. I hated every minute I was back with the company. It wasn't the same Wawa that I remember at all. Angry, cold, un reachable managers, short staffing on every shift, unreasonable expectations of the general staff, and a general lack of knowledge of what the company is actually doing to itself and its staff with all the changes and not just the keep up with the Jone's but beat the Jone's attitude , make Wawa no joy to work for. People stay for the stock option and a few other benefits Wawa is known for but the company isn't the same easy company to work for it once was, and I am just not the same person anymore either.

 Being retired sounds heavenly and I would so love to just be there, to be able to say " Why yes I am retired" without feeling a ton of guilt. I do  though I feel guilt, as if for some reason I don't deserve to finally sit back relax and just do and live life to its fullest at my own pace. Money is always going to be an issue and truthfully I don't think there has ever been a time in my life when someone wasn't asking me about money. You know, how you going to pay for that, do you have the money for that, the rent is due, blah blah blah.I don't imagine that money will ever not be an issue.

  I spend so much time thinking, wondering, pushing my brain to its limits trying to figure out just what my next calling will be and I get nothing. Nada, zip, zero, not a single thought or idea comes to mind. I know what I don't want, I am very clear on what I don't want, I just can't figure out what I do want.

  I am paralyzed with fear about SS and medicare, I do mean paralyzed, I know I have to make up my mind and get a plan in action, but every time my mind goes there I panic. SO many people have yelled at me about SS and medicare that I have no idea what to think other then to be afraid. No one seems to be able to just talk about the subject, the passion gets so intense they always end up yelling. Those that don't yell have so much information and it just keeps pouring out of them like water over a fall, leaving me pulling on my hair feeling dumb and even less informed than when I started. 

 Blah blah blah ! that's all I hear when these subjects begin their  dance in my head. No one said old age would be a picnic, but they sure as shit didn't give a hint of just how mind bending entering into the golden age was going to be.

   I wake up happy every day to be here sober and alive enjoying what every new day will bring, but I would enjoy it more if I could turn my Blah blah blahs into actual answers and actions, allowing me for once in my life to relax and just live without questions, demands, and guilt.

 I love to shop, and I am good at it, finding the best deals, knowing who sells what and where. Personal shopper has often entered my thoughts as a possible career path for me. Maybe 25 yrs ago or even 30 yrs ago when I had the original though and every store didn't have on line shopping with delivery, it would have been a good idea. Now I am not so sure.. There are some specialty areas I could delve into like last minute lulu's and those that really can't deal with on line anythings. These thoughts lead to more thoughts and those lead to others and before you know it I have thought myself right out of the idea dismissing it as stupid, lame, out of date, and impossible to get started. Then the thought, as it has for the past 30 yrs comes back and nags at me again. Like it is right now.

  Flowers, photography, quilting, hiking, and dancing, a few of my favorite things, and when a dog bites or the bees stings I do just think of these and things really aren't so bad..... and then reality hits and again I 'm sad. Sad because I can't figure out how to turn any of those things into a living that allows me to have an income and not begin to hate the very thing I love.

  As I said blah blah blah,, and blah. It gives me a headache just thinking about it. What do you do when you're too old to actually start a career, too poor not to have one and too young to actually want one. How do you work and keep your freedom all at the same time? 

  I know I am not alone. Not the only person whose retirement wasn't planned from the day they were born, who worked hard all their lives and did everything expected of them. Only to find themselves in the tuff spot of having no real turn to make or path to take, of just needing to keep trudging forward hoping that soon very soon the answers will come, and the blah blah blah in their head will turn into a bright and cheery 

      Aha, I got this!

  When I started writing this I had hoped that by the end I would actually have a Aha moment . It didn't happen but I did find a new font and a new text color that both bring me more joy than they should, so it wasn't an actual waste of time.

Tuesday, January 2, 2024

Nail Polish

  NAIL POLISH



        Other than color and price we rarely think about nail polish.




 Lately I have been doing my own nails to save money, and nail polish now gets a thought or two from me. Manicures, just a basic manicure with no acrylic or gel can cost as much as $30.00. For many that may not sound like much, but $30.00 a week for me is like having another bill. On top of that the polish peeled and chipped and more often than not my nails cracked. The added discomfort from manicurist in a hurry and being careless, pretty much made me feel like I could find better ways to spend $30.00 a week.

  The first thing I noticed is not all nail polishes are alike, and you can't judge a polish by its packaging, or even price. Some of the prettiest most expensive bottles have the worst color coverage and ability to last the week. Brand names don't guarantee a satisfactory result either. 

          Some of my favorite brands are under $10.00 and one of my most favorite is actually under $6.00. I have a few requirements for a nail polish brand to become a favorite. Price is of course first and foremost, then since most polishes are well over $10.00 a bottle, long lasting and chip resistance are very important qualities too and they do compete for first and foremost. Even smooth coverage is very important and some polishes either go on so thin they need 3 coats just to get an even fully covering coat, or are so thick that they don't spread nicely leaving you with a bumpy dull textured surface. Then there is the most frustrating of all, the ones that dry before you finish polishing the nail. Colors are a factor in my choices, but it isn't a big part, because most companies make the same colors with different names. More important than any of these qualities and a real deal breaker for me, is the brush. 



Some brushes are too fat, too thin, too long, too short, and then there are a few brushes that are fitted perfectly to the nail and the hand. By hand I mean the hand holding the brush doing the painting. Sometimes there is just no comfortable way to hold the brush, and get a good stroke going. A steady comfortable hand is extremely important to giving yourself beautifully painted nails.

When it comes to colors, I quickly learned to stick to the basics and even then the choices seem unlimited. I have learned that while the bright lime green, or lemon yellow and other colors that are bright iridescent and loud call my name, they don't like me. On my hand they are garish and cheap looking. They also aren't forgiving to any mistakes or un smooth  nail surface. So leaving them on the shelf makes sense to me. After all, home manicures are about saving money right. Along with the standard pinks, tans, creams, and a red, I have a selection of blues, greens and a few metallic ones for holidays and such, I even keep a bottle of black on hand for halloween. 

Essie

     Is a brand I have used forever. It is pricey and I believe considered a designer brand, and can be worth the money. The brush and bottle are easy to use, I find the brush the perfect width for my nail bed, I get full coverage without overlapping on the sides. Essie offers a variety of types of polish, some are gels not requiring a light just a base and top coat, others are a basic  polishes, while others are high shine. The color range is large and always changing, up dating. I find the gel polish to not be as long lasting as regular polish and it gets dull quickly. I do dishes, wash cloths, sew, and do house hold chores daily and the gels chip almost immediately upon doing a dish, every time. Their normal or regular polish does last better but still chips too, sooner than many other polishes. I find I only buy Essie now if I see a color that really calls to me. While you can get Essie in salons and beauty supply stores, I also find it at CVS and other big chain stores.

O P I

 Also a brand I have used forever. I first became aware of OPI when it was used in the salon. It wasn't even available in stores. The design of the bottle and brush are excellent and as far as I know they haven't changed in at least a decade, maybe longer. The bottle is easy to hold and the brush allows for good even coverage without overlapping on the sides. I really enjoy the color selection and as much as Essie can be pastel, OPI is completely on the other end of the spectrum. They both over lap in colors but when I think Essie I think pink, mint green or baby blue, and OPI I think plums and roses, and rich warm autumn colors. Again OPI is pricey and considered top of the line  Nail Polish. It has a fairly good long lasting wear. There can be chipping and fading but it takes a some wear and tear for that to happen. I like the clear strengthening polish in their line and buy that faithfully, I do feel like it helps my nails keep the strong healthy feeling. I find OPI in CVS as well as beauty supply stores. I have not really seen it in the large chain stores I frequent.

Revlon

We all know how Long Revlon has been around and as far as I can tell they update and remake their polish line to keep up with the times. All brands now carry a verity of styles, like gel and so on and Revlon is no different. This isn't my favorite brand and it never has been really. Depending on the bottle style, and Revlon has a few different styles, that dictates the brush and for the most part I find them, long and thin making control almost impossible and achieving an even coverage isn't easy. I always get drawn in because of colors. Revlon knows how to do red. Their reds are always the most eye catching on the shelf. I am however more often than not disappointed in the results when I use this brand. Slow to dry, spotty coverage, and worst of all the trace marks left behind when my nail drags across different surfaces. Unless the color has grabbed me and won't let go I normally leave Revlon on the shelf. 

          This is the royal blue you see in the photo. It isn't more then 2 days on my nails and as you can see the wear and tear I put on my hands has the tips fading off. I love the color so I wear it anyway.




Then I found Revlon's Ultra HD Snap, the newest addition to their line, I think. The brush is better and it wears very well, dishes and all. Even the red impressed me, drying nice with a pleasant finish and no color trails left behind. You won't find Revlon in salons or beauty supply stores but all drugstores and large chains normally carry a large selection of Revlon products. If like me you are ruff on your hands and nails I strongly urge you to try the Ultra HD.

Sally Hansen

  Has been around as long as I have and this line has come a long way baby. I remember this polish being a top name in drugstore nail care when I was too young to wear polish. I remember hating it when I first starting using polish. It just had no staying power and seemed to not help strengthen my nails. I don't hate it any more. The gel line like all the other gels out there is less impressive than you would hope. It chips and dulls out much quicker than any of their other lines. Sally has a Vegan line that I like a lot and find wears well the entire week. They have a line called " Color Therapy" I really enjoy this one. I only have one bottle of it and every time I use it I get incredible results. This one is a pearlized frosty one and it wears so well.


 

I applied the polish on Dec 30 in the AM today is Jan 2 late afternoon I have done dishes, baked, colored my hair, and scrubbed a floor or two. Not a single chip and my nails feel good. 





I do have to note that in all brands that I use, I notice frosted colors wear better and pearlized polishes give the nail a stronger feel to them.

Nails INC 

  This a relatively new company to me. I have only found this brand in one of the beauty supply stores I go to, Sally's. They have a few different lines, no gel that I saw, but some other fun stuff like glitter polish, polish that changes color according to your body temp, a quick drying gloss and a basic polish as well as a vegan line. The colors are some what limited, but I am sure with time it will grow. This polish has not disappointed me once. Long wearing, bright and shiny the way polish should look. I like the brush, but am not a fan of the lid and top of the brush. I like the look of the bottle but the design of the lid is less than desirable. It is priced around the same as Essie and OPI  and worth the cost. I am impatiently waiting for some new colors to come out, except for the vegan line I have all the colors on Sally's shelf.

 Now last but absolutely not least, is on of my newest favorite brand of nail polish. I just discovered it this past year on the sale table at Sally's. I make of point of looking for this now.

ASP 

Long Wear Polish, It says it right on the bottle in large capital letters. The bottle is simple, plain, old fashion even. The brush borders on being a big no for me because it is a little long, but it flattens out and fits perfectly to the nail bed. As I said I found it on the sale table for 2.50, there was only one color a neutral tan that looks different depending on the light. I will never regret giving it a try. Regular price is under 6.00 and each time I go back the brand seems to be expanding its lines. I now see a gel line and more colors becoming available and that has me very excited. The Gel will stay on the shelf, well maybe one bottle just to see, but as you may have noticed the Gel line in every brand fell short of actually living up to the cost.

There are so many other brands out there that I either haven't tried or didn't actually care for them when I did try them and I never used again. Every brand I talked about today I have in my closet and there is at least 2 if not more bottles of each brand. I love trying new brands and finding more go too's for my closet, it is like getting a present when it isn't even your birthday.

 As you can see my home manicures are not mistake proof, and I have a few imperfections showing on my nails, but it gets better with every manicure, and the health of my nails is improving as well.






Wednesday, November 16, 2022

Whats for Dinner, and a little bit of the Pocono's

  



Hey you all,

     I have noticed lately that when I go to a food blog for a recipe I am interested in, I don't read the blog, and I don't stop at all the photos. I like to see the finished product, but I already know what it looks like to beat an egg or oil a pan, so I skip right to the recipe, or I just hit copy me that and avoid the blog altogether. I know great advertisement to get you to read my blog, but I am hoping you read mine anyways. 

  I haven't done what's or dinner in a long while, and I have been aching to get back at it. So lets get back at it.

    Whats for dinner, well if you know me ,this will not be a surprise. Dessert, that's what's for dinner. I was barely able to keep myself from cutting into the cake before I had dinner made. Somehow I refrained and had dinner before the cake. I ate the first piece and then I ate the last piece ( it was no small piece either) and hubby was none too pleased with me, he had plans of his own for that piece of cake, and my eating it wasn't a part of them. 

  The recipe is called Crazy Cake, also known by a few other names including Depression Cake. The recipe I found is what I believe to be a slightly modified recipe of an old recipe from the Depression era. Modified to work with products we have on hand now as opposed to what was on hand during the Depression. Like olive oil instead of shortening , simple things like that, butter to grease the pan over bacon fat, you get the idea. There is no egg, or milk in this cake so with a few more adjustments this would make the perfect vegan cake.



  I followed the recipe exactly, and this will be my go to cake recipe from now on. It was moist, full of flavor and just plain melt in your mouth wonderful . I could not believe how easy this cake was to make, from mixing, to baking , right up to and including the clean up. The perfect cake for a novice baker.

Crazy Cake

 Since I topped the cake with a frosting I found on line you are going to get 2 recipes for the price of one. I followed this recipe exactly as well,( well almost) and I got a light airy incredible tasty peanut butter frosting that paired perfectly with the chocolate cake. Now this recipe has milk and butter so that would end the vegan option, but you can just leave the frosting off, or choice another.

1/2 c butter, softened

1 c creamy peanut butter

3 Tbsp milk, or more as needed

2 c confectioners' sugar

  Cream the butter and peanut butter together until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the sugar mixing everything together, add the milk a little at a time to get the texture and thickness you desire. Beat for 3 more minutes to make the frosting light and fluffy. Spread on a completely cooled cake.

  Note #1, that made enough frosting for 2 cakes, also I like a heavier peanut butter taste so at the end I added more peanut butter to the mix.

Note #2 I found this recipe on the Just A Pinch web site, shared by a cook named Bunny. 

  I am not a big frosting fan, but I am of this one. I swear it was as good as the cake. It was hard to decide what I liked more the cake or the frosting. I still haven't decided .





 As always October is the month we take a little time for ourselves and we get away, even if only for a few days. This year we took a long weekend and went up into the Poconos in PA. We stayed in Tannersville, in a resort at the base of Camel Back. A beautiful mountain with a ski resort sprawled across the top and sides. 

Camel Back Ski resort with zip lines


   I hiked a little, and relaxed a lot. The view out our hotel widow or door was breath taking and the weather it couldn't have been better






   I was absolutely fascinated with the swans living in the pond outside our room. I took hundreds of photos, ( don't worry I won't share them all) and had the nerve to be upset when people stopped along the road to feed them or admire them and take them out of my camera view. No worries I got over it quick enough. 

 







 We went to Bushkills Falls, where I did a little hiking and saw 1 and a 1/2 of the many falls there. The climb up and down to get to the falls is no joke so I chose to enjoy the ones less high up.





The falling leaves were so much fun to watch 






  And you know I had to go to the top of Camel Back and hike around there. I cheated a little and was driven to the top, where I could wander to my hearts content without so much climbing. The view was spectacular, with so much color as far as the eye could see, and the trails were rugged and rustic making it even more fun.











 our hotel 




 Some of the sights were less about nature and more about people enjoying the same sights as me.


Me




 And I can't go anywhere that I don't find at least on railroad track.

 




   BowD and Bill enjoyed themselves too. Their favorite spot being our little porch over looking the walking path and pond.





 Thanks for stopping by I hope you enjoyed your visit, and I hope you enjoy the cake even more. 

 Morning Moon