Life

Friday 5: Looking like a snack

March 10, 2023

Happy Friday, friends! I took today off of work to basically kick around and do nothing. It’s delightful.

Here’s the Friday 5! This week’s theme is Looking like a snack. Right up my alley.

calendar page that says march 10
  1. What do you usually reach for when you need just a little bite?
    I’ve been buying the dark chocolate peanut butter cups from Trader Joe’s and they are great for a little sweet pick-me-up in the middle of the day. I try to keep it to one or two at a time. For a larger snack, I make popcorn.
  2. How frequently do you visit convenience stores?
    Wawa is considered a convenience store even though they are much larger than the 7-Elevens and Cumberland Farms stores of my youth. I hit Wawa about once a week for a sandwich and maybe a hazelnut coffee with hazelnut creamer.

    Back in 2020 when I was afraid to leave the house, WM would mask up and go to Wawa for breakfast occasionally and bring home a hazelnut coffee with hazelnut creamer and call it a homemade Covid test. Because you can smell that coffee/creamer combination a mile away.
  3. What’s your favorite chip?
    Do you even need to ask? Cool Ranch Doritos. For. Life. Occasionally I will dabble in Ruffles Cheddar and Sour Cream chips, but I will always come home to my true love.
  4. What’s your favorite candy bar?
    My favorite candy bar is Three Musketeers; however, they’re not always easy to find so I default to my second-favorite, which is Twix.
  5. What are some hard candies you especially like?
    I’m still all about Jolly Ranchers, mostly watermelon and strawberry. Never green apple. I think the Jolly Rancher is GenX’s version of Werther’s.

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Life

February Goals – how did I do?

March 6, 2023

On New Year’s Eve I decided not to make resolutions, but instead to make some personal goals for the year. Nothing unattainable, just some goals that I can take smaller concrete steps toward each month.

Here are my goals for February, with the mental health ones redacted. I don’t blog everything. 😉

a planner page with goals on it
Improving my handwriting is not a goal.

Home:
Clean garage – Success! I didn’t mean the whole garage, just the garden table area, which I succeeded.

Plant seeds – Success! I started my tomato and pepper seeds. My tomatoes are sprouting but the peppers haven’t yet.

Financial:
Low spend February: Success! In February I spent a total of $233.23, but included in this was my replacement carry-on bag from Kipling. It was $148.21. (Of course it’s on sale today.) The $85.02 balance was spent on snacks at Trader Joe’s, a packet of sunflower seeds, some card supplies at Michaels, and a tee-shirt. I’d call this successful, but the only lesson I learned is that I miss shopping when I don’t do it. I may do another low-spend in April.

Look into cancelling a music service: Success! To my embarrassment I was paying for three music services: Amazon Music Unlimited, Sirius XM, and Spotify. I cancelled Amazon Music Unlimited and as I can play both Sirius XM and Spotify content through Alexa, I don’t miss it at all.

kim donating blood. There is no blood in this photo.
Proof of blood donation

Health:
Gym 2x/week: Nope. I’m not there consistently yet. This is a recurring monthly goal.

Water daily: Success! I pledged to drink at least 17 oz of water a day (that’s what my bottle holds) in addition to my usual morning coffee, evening tea, and the occasional afternoon soda. I’m not aiming for 64 oz a day, because I’m a little suspicious of the science behind that. This is a recurring monthly goal.

Vitamins: Success! I take multivitamins and vitamin C daily. This is a recurring monthly goal.

Yoga/Murphy walk: I think I was going to either practice yoga OR take Murphy for a lunchtime walk every day and I did not do that. This is a recurring monthly goal.

Colonoscopy appointment: Nope. The followup from January’s mammogram trickled into February and that was enough medical for me. Moving this forward to March. All I have to do is make the appointment.

Mental Health:
I succeeded at 2/4 of these goals.

Safe/Loved/Warm: (refers to my core values from 5 1/2 years ago)
Send 30 Postcards to Voters: Success! At this time of year we write in support of progressive candidates in smaller, local elections. One candidate won their race, the other’s election is this week.

Donate blood: Success! I want to donate twice a year, so I’ll bring this goal back in August.

Looking at all of this I think the resolutions would have been easier.

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Reading

Read: Bridgerton Series #1 and #2

March 5, 2023
covers of the first two bridgerton books

Dearest Readers,

Like many, I watched the Bridgerton program on Netflix. I adored Season 1 (Daphne/Simon) but did not finish Season 2 (Anthony/Kate) because the slow burn was too slow.

For the last few years reading has been difficult for me to concentrate on and make time for, so I figured I’d tuck into the first two Bridgerton books to see how they held up next to the show. And, gentle reader, know that I’m not one to make these sweeping proclamations; however,

THE BOOKS ARE EVEN BETTER THAN THE SHOW.

I did (and do) enjoy the show, but I almost wish it was a stand-alone program with entirely differently named characters. Because many of the characters are completely different critters from their book versions. ShowDaphne is gorgeous and the “Diamond” of her debut year. She expertly plays and writes music and everyone adores her. BookDaphne is in her second season, a bit of a wallflower, and kind of plain. ShowAnthony is a complete asshole for the majority of season one and part of season two, trying to marry Daphne off to a jerk and trying to nab Edwina as a bride just to check boxes off of his to do list. BookAnthony is much kinder and has an easy relationship with his siblings. ShowEdwina is merely a pretty squishmallow but BookEdwina is smart and funny and perceptive.

I understand that you need more than one plot to move a television program along, but without the extra drama of Queen Charlotte (who doesn’t exist in the books so far), the Featheringtons, and Lady Whistledown’s identity, the book allowed me to spend more time with the couples and their families, which is all I really wanted.

Although I do miss the sexy boxer from Season 1.

Three stars for both books.

(I keep track of my books on Goodreads.)

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Life

Friday 5: Celebrations

March 3, 2023

Happy Friday, which also happens to be National Employee Appreciation Day and National Unplugging Day. Yesterday was National Hospitalist Day, which our Comms staff at TNP worked very hard to establish in order to appreciate our members.

Happy (hopefully) second-to-last scheduled blood test for Murphy which was earlier this evening. If his red blood cell count comes back normal, maybe he’ll be done with the steroids. He’ll probably be on the aspirin the rest of his life. Maybe his IMHA was a fluke and he’ll live healthily forever. Hope is built on the back of the word maybe.

And happy tomorrow-I-get-my-hair done day.

Onto the Friday 5! This week’s theme is Celebrations.

Some of these questions really hit home how little I see people outside of my family in any kind of social way. Because I’ve stared at this list off and on all day and I am still stumped on questions 1, 3, 4, and 5. I spend the majority of my weekdays sitting in my office with just the dog. High fives, clapping, and cheering are all reactions that happen on Zoom. The weekends are spent choring around and maybe going out for a meal, but it’s with WM and we’re not exactly applauding and high fiving each other on a regular basis.

calendar page that says March 3
  1. Who was on the other end of your most recent high five?
    No idea.
  2. To which movies, television shows, albums, or books have you recently given thumbs up?
    Movie: Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent – it’s absurd but I loved every second of it.
    TV show: We’re currently watching Battlebots shows from January and it’s cheesy fun. I enjoy when the robots catch on fire, which says a lot about me…
    Album: We hit the library last weekend and WM checked out Mozart for Morning Coffee. Even though classical music isn’t my personal jam I really enjoyed it. It was very playful and bouncy. Are those hallmarks of Mozart’s music? Who knows?
    Book: Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi – this magical realism book is a quick read and even though I guessed a plot point almost immediately, I didn’t care.
    Podcast: I started listening to On Being – it’s not bad.
    Sports: The New Jersey Devils hockey season. It’s been a fantastic, fun year.
  3. What’s happened to you recently that others would cheer about?
    As a reaction to not having answers to many of these questions, I impulsively signed up for a six week in-person watercolor class starting in April. Taking a class was one of my 2023 mental health goals so that will check that box, get me out with people again, stop me from complaining about never going out, and maybe give me something to show off.
  4. What have you most recently and literally clapped for?
    No idea.
  5. When has someone recently given you an encouraging word?
    Probably Mom or WM at some point. Honestly I have got to stop being a hermit.

Oh my gawd Kim pull it together! End this navelgazing mess with some fun, willya?

adding some fun into this navelgazing mess..

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