The joys of Birthdays!

Well, I’m in a bit of a quandary today ~ by the way, isn’t that the greatest word! ~ I mean I could have said:  I’m in a dilemma, or in a pickle or even in a predicament.  However, as I’m pulled in several different directions, I choose “quandary” on purpose because it doesn’t get used often and it was getting dusty!  And it also rhymes nicely with Safari J 

It’s my buddy’s birthday today and I’m so happy to send her my best wishes!  But for what?

·        “Way to go, you’re looking great for your age”?

·        “Cheer up!  Your Senior’s Discount is only a few years away!”?

·        “Make sure the smoke alarm is disconnected before they light the candles on your cake. AhAh!”

·        “I didn’t see your name in the obits today, so I went ahead and bought you a card!??

No offense meant, Girlfriend, if you read this; however I want you to know what I really mean by singing “Bonne Fête” to you today:

·        I love you every day and celebrating it out loud today!

·        I appreciate the fact that I know you and recognize it today!

·        There is no one else like you and I verbally acknowledge it today!

·        I am so glad you are a part of my life and want you to know it today!

Life is such a gift; I love to honor my friends with a thought for their day.  We are all special in our own way, just knitted differently, to pique everyone’s interest.  There is so much negative stuff out there in the world, which I love to ignore  for a few minutes every day I am given and throw a mental party to recognize the wonderful moments life can also bring us, if we choose to acknowledge them!

Signing off on another snow day, that much closer to my own b-day!

Better be a Little "S" than a Little Less!  J

Can you spell G-L-O-B-A-L W-A-R-M-I-N-G ???

Well, you can say what you want but we don’t often have temperatures in the minus 20’s around here…  so…
People notice!
 And complain! 
And shiver!
Well, Eureka!  I do think I’ve figured out the most excellent way to keep warm !  Keep on reading for this sensational breakthrough!

Picture this:  I am wearing long johns under long pants, 2 pairs of socks and a pair of slippers.  I have an undershirt, a turtleneck AND a fleece on… and I would put my mittens on but I want to show that I am not a wimp, after all, so I pass on that.  I am sitting on a sleeping bag that is covering my futon, and have my electric blanket plugged in to cover me.  The space heater is on High and pointing right at me from about 4 feet away.  I have one dog on my left, another one on my right and a cat on my lap.  Ahhhhhhh!  Toasty! 

Problem arises when I need to move; I mean, one can only drink so much  tea (to keep warm) without having to dispose of it somehow, eventually.

** Non, nein, niet, no!!!    Depends™ are NOT an option, people!   We’re not going there! **

Believe me:  It’s quite the workout to shift my warming  gang aside while I go take care of business and then try to get them back in the same position within a few minutes.  I have actually caught them looking at me with eyes that say:   “Lady!  Make up our mind already!” Honestly,  I kid you not!

And then there’s lunch… another troublesome production unless I invite Mooch and Moochette to share said lunch with me; they would follow me to the end of the world these two for a piece of cheese and a cracker!   

I do thank my lucky stars  for remote controls; without those,  I would be stuck on the same channel for days on end because there is no way I am going to disturb such a carefully created monument to cooperation just for  channel surfing.  One needs to think of all the things that can happen during the next hour or so and improvise solutions as required.  It’s hard work!

And that’s only for when I am inside –you can probably visualize what happens when I have to go outside.   Me and Michelin Man look remarkably alike in shape ~ of course, he’s white and I’m red but otherwise, we could be twins!  So many layers, it’s hard to move!   When I was out there yesterday, a nice young man,  driving a cute little yellow snowplow,  saw how stressed and beat up I looked out there trying to clear a path to liberate my car from the driveway and he took pity on me!  He motioned me to move to the side and proceeded to clear  the way in 10 seconds flat.   I was so grateful for what he had done, I thought of crying for a moment .  However, that is not the best idea when it’s cold;  the tears ice up right away and it is really not that pleasant.  So, I blew him a kiss and gave him a big wave. And he plowed away to another driveway, smiling away.

You know what?  It warmed my heart so much to have been the recipient of such a gift that not only did I get the energy to finish clearing off the sidewalk in front of my house but I also took care of the neighbors’.  Just like the Grinch whose heart grew three times bigger after he got some sense knocked into him except that I am not grumpy.

I’ve heard it’s called PAY it FORWARD and I tell you, it really kept me burning hot for the rest of the day!  Try it, I bet you’ll love it!

Aloha out there to my fellow warmth lovers!   I’m with you!

Signing off to quickly get back to my warm spot ~ my fingers are frozen!

Better be a Little "S" than a Little Less!  J

Time to trade in my vehicle!

♪♪♪ It came to me upon a midnight clear ♪♪♪  J ~ yes, I could not fall asleep last night, I had too much on my mind. 
I have decided that I will trade my Pathfinder SUV for a ….. Snow Plow!   Think about it for a minute!  As an unemployed person, I have to keep all my options open and my creative mind’s wheels turning clockwise at all times.

If I was to get myself a snow plow, I not only would be able to take care of my own snow dilemma but also of everyone else’s!   What a feel good situation!   Firstly:  My clients  feel good about me as a person because they can watch me do the work from inside, all warm and cozy = intrinsic reward for me ~ I’ve helped them as human beings;  Secondly: since they have hired me to do the job = extrinsic reward for me ~ they feel so good about me that they actually pay me to do it = dollars to deposit in my bank account!  Why didn’t I think of this before?    What a waste of the last 3 snowfalls.

I am very disappointed in myself for constantly complaining about the weather:  Wah, it’s too hot; Wah, it’s too humid; Wah, it rains too much; Wah, it snows too much…  Time for me to take the bull by the horns and do something about it instead of sitting there, moping around and blogging about it.

Noooooooo!  I won’t take it anymore!
Noooooooo!   No more frozen fingers ~ the guy in the snow plow that just drove by my house was wearing a T-Shirt in his little cabin!
 Noooooooo!  No more frost bitten toes, it’s bound to be toasty in there, probably can wear my slippers, for crying out loud!  Yesssssssssssssss!

From now on, no more tears when I hear of snow being forecasted! Time to rejoice!  I get pumped just thinking about the next snowfall!    Snow Days?   A walk in the park!  I tell you, I will make so much money,  I will be rich!!!!!!  Yesssssssssssssss ! ???   Well maybe rich when it snows but what about when it just rains? And when the sun is shining and no one needs a plow?    What if this Global Warming thing is for real and that the temperature warms up enough that it never snows again?   What’ll I do then? What will WE do then?

Well, that’s a topic for another day!  I obviously have some more pondering to do.

Salut to all you snowbound people out there!   Help is on the way!  J

Signing off  to put my mittens back on!

Better be a Little "S" than a Little Less!  J

What’s with this white stuff???

You know you should be walking to work when it takes you longer to get the snow off your car than it takes to drive there… J

Ok, kids, you can stop praying now!   Please!!   We’ve had enough!  Let snow be on the mountain where we can go enjoy it if we feel like it…. There is a place for everything on God’s green (I mean white) earth! Hey!  Maybe Jesus wants us to celebrate his birthday longer this year, so He’s keeping us in the “white” to remind us? 

Well, as for myself, I am very happy I did not take my Christmas decorations down last week!   Seems I was right, for once.  I was smart (or lazy… pick one) and decided to continue looking at the beautiful display for a little while longer – I can never get enough of it.  It takes a long time to get it all perfect, i'm not going to put it all away yet.    

Don 't you agree that there is an inner child in all of us who loves snow days?   This little one longs to be out there making snow angels; trying to swallow the flakes as they fall.  Be cautious today though, the snow is very dry and fluffy; you might get engulfed in a sea of it if you’re not careful. Not wet or sticky enough to be building snow-people, or to have a snowball fight.  However, it’s the best scenery, Christmas card worthy,  looking out the window, sipping a cup of tea, sitting by the fire.

Just so you know, Nicky and Bella are thrilled!   They shove their muzzle in the snow and make like a snow plow!  It’s hilarious!  Well at least until it’s time to come in and get them to stay still while I try to dry them!   That is another story entirely!  Missy could not care less from her spot on the headrest of the couch (she whispered to me:   “This weather is for the dogs!” and she was right!)  J

Salut to all my fellow snow buddies/bunnies out there!  How do you feel about all this?

Signing off – and don’t forget the Tip of the Day:   Don’t Eat the Yellow Snow!!!!

Better be a Little "S" than a Little Less!  J

About Therapy...

This morning I started my "blue" light therapy which is supposed to get me through the winter blues. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is the name the specialists have chosen for a life-event that  occurs at the same time each year, to otherwise mentally healthy individual (please, no comments from the peanut gallery) , and causes depressive symptoms. In my case it is because of the decrease in periods of sunshine I experience daily.  I miss it so much, my neurotransmitters go on strike!  So i'm hoping that a daily 30 minutes session of basking in blue light (blue summer sky) will re-energize me enough to keep away the grumps in these grey months.  We shall see.

I was also reading about "red" light therapy, which is supposed to stimulate collagen and elastin production thus reducing and even reversing the effects of aging on our skin.  WOW!  The Fountain of Youth finally at our fingertips! I really want some of that too but it's probably too late to write to Big "S" about it now. 

Now what I need to find is some sort of "green" light therapy I can put into action on my lawn.  I'm thinking it could use some type of treatment where the green color would stay all summer long, without the need to water it or even more IMPORTANT, without growing so I won't have to cut it!!! 

Now,  it’s not that I am lazy or anything BUT, I am trying to maximize my days by doing only important actions that can only be done through my unique genius mind!  Imagine if I did every little chore that comes to mind, I would never have enough time for the crucial and essential things which must be done such as picking up dog hair and blogging.

I'm so excited about my idea... Sorry, must run now. Gotta go retrieve my old green Christmas lightbulbs I just put in recycling. Can't blame me for trying- that would be the greatest invention since... well ... moldy sliced bread!

That's it for now! Salut!

Better  be a Little "S" than a Little Less J

about Movember

Now, you might think I’m a month late with this subject but I  respectfully request that you consider that I am 11 months early instead!  J

One of my best friends in the world came up with a great idea:   Since guys get to forego shaving for the entire month of November , why wouldn’t us  gals do the same to show our support!  She suggests us ladies not shave our legs for a month – but of course, I am no specialist so I consulted with my panel of experts:

A:  My boss:  “as long as we can’t see the stubble sticking out through your stockings , you Go Girl!
B:  My Significant Other:   I don’t have one so it’s a moot point (for me)  J
C: My Mom: “Yes, good idea! Maybe you’ll have time to get started on your Christmas cards in time so we receive  them before Valentines’ Day” .  MOOOOOM!!!  ;
D: My dogs:   “The hairier the better!”
E:  My neighbors:  Just kidding, I did not ask them J
F :  My Day-Timer:  November has come and gone so it’s easy to commit when I don’t have to act on it for another 11 months  J 

And the final answer is:   Looks unanimous to me or at least, I’ve got a quorum!

Now I’ve decided I can be a “Mo Sista”, by using my leg-shaving time in a fulfilling manner such as:  

1.    writing my Blog;

2.    vacuuming my floors;

3.    get back to my exercise Wii Zumba;

4.    taking my dogs for an extra long walk.

How does this help promote Men’s health you ask?   Well, every time someone will comment on my furry legs, I will take a minute to prompt a conversation around the often ignored (on purpose)  issue of men’s health, and hope that no one will want to duke it out or change sides of the street when they see me coming!

Of course, just like  Woman’s health is so very critical, why should Men’s health not be?  We need our men healthy all over; we know how to help with their headaches, colds, flu, aching muscles… why should we not be able to recommend how they can help themselves with other potential health problems which seem “embarrassing” to them?  And women, please don’t quit after November 30^th!   We need our sons, fathers, brothers, boyfriends, husbands healthy ALL YEAR long!    Do we only get Mammograms and PAP smears one month of the year?    Do we ignore blatant symptoms that make us uncomfortable 11 months a year because it doesn’t feel right and we are not ready to overcome our embarrassment?
To be healthy and knowledgeable is empowering to all of us.  I’d rather be embarrassed and healthy than comfortable and sick ~ (is there such a thing?)  ~It’s like going tanning to look healthy as we suffer from skin cancer! ~

That’s it for now !  Salut mes amis!

Better be a Little “S” than a Little Less  J

About Learning Other Languages:

I have always been intrigued by the different languages of the world.  When I was in school, one of my dreams was to become an interpreter for the UN.

So I started with English, which came easy for me because my dad was already bilingual and we had so much exposure to songs and TV shows from the USA that it was hard to miss . I also took a couple of years of latin; no, not too useful for everyday use, however, very rewarding when we play Trivial Pursuit because the root of so many words come from there that I got to rock at it BIG time!  J  Spanish was a good follow through and I had a great time with that one!  …. Then came German…. mmmmmmmmmm – not so much fun.  We all spent so much time laughing at me speaking German with a Spanish accent, that we wasted a lot of time– I’m actually surprised they did not kick me out of the class!
Now my sister and I are teaching each other Russian words ~ not that we know how to pronounce them but at least we can spell them! ~  Very rudimentary but still a lot of fun.

In the last year though, I have encountered another dialect which I cannot make heads or tails of… here is an example of a conversation I heard:

- “I’m ready to go,” he said, patting his camera.  “I got the new D3 with the 200-400 f.4 VR  AF-S.  Good ISO up to 6400, I can go to 12800 if I have to, but there’ll be some noise.  Twelve megapixels so we get plenty of resolution.  With this baby, you can really reach out and touch somebody.”
-“That’s great,” she replied.
-“… and I’ve been out shooting a little wildlife, to familiarize myself with the whole system.  The white balance and auto-focus is as good as I’ve seen.  I tested it against a 1DsIII  and the D3 is better.”
?????????  Quis est is?  Was ist los?,  Qu’est-ce-que c’est?, No comprende ????????
I’m afraid I need an interpreter for that one , or…. maybe it’s a secret code that I’m not meant  to make sense of…  What do you think?

Salut!
Goodbye!
Vale!
Hasta la vista!
Auf Widersehen! 
Do Svidanja !

Signing off – don’t forget  to  Point and Click!
Better be a Little "S" than a Little Less!  J