Sunday, April 27, 2014
Clones
Can I just say how excited I am that Orphan Black is back on again?! Today I watched the second episode of Season 2 and man on man was it good! The writers hit the ground running on it. And for those of you who have never watched it, it's an amazing show which stars Tatiana Maslany - and boy does she do an incredible job. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend that you watch Season 1 NOW before you start watching Season 2. It's a BBC show, it's a bit sci-fi, but it's not about aliens and outerspace. Seriously, watch it. You'll get hooked. And you kind of owe it to yourself to watch something fantastic.
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Free Advertising
More than likely you haven't noticed that I didn't post an entry about my march Birchbox. That was intentional. I doubt I'll blog about them each month. I might, however, decide to share the items I receive in them that make me super happy. Items or product that I am excited about... whether discovered through Birchbox or tv, or people I know.
Now let me tell you about a few items.
Snapea Crisps - My sister bought a bag at Costco. Or maybe my mom did. It doesn't really matter WHO bought the bag so much as it does that there was an open bag when I was over there around the time of my birthday. I decided to try them. Oh man are they delicious! Before you get excited about them being super healthy for you, they aren't. I mean, they are better than potato chips, but it's not like you're eating a straight snap pea. Talk about a wonderful snack though. And if you know me at all, you know I like snacks. I don't have a Costco card so I've placed an order for the next trip, for their big bag. Meanwhile when I want some I get them at Safeway in the veggie/fruit area. Usually they are on display below a display of fruit or veggies. The bags are a lot smaller, but that's okay.
Tea Forte Minteas - Lemongrass Yuzu. These were found in my March Birchbox. They are so refreshing. I don't eat them all the time, but when I do, it's a nice little treat.
Julep Tada Quick Dry Drops - I received these drops a while back as part of a mystery box I purchased through Julep. I think I mentioned in a previous post that I have a monthly Julep subscription. I have an array of their nail polishes and this has become a favorite product of mine. I even got my mom a bottle of it for her birthday because she mentioned how she liked it so much. It does have a strong smell, but it's not a bad smell. And it certainly helps with the drying process.
O'Keeffe's Working Hands Hand Cream - You may have seen the commercials for this stuff. In my case it was a co-worker who told me about it. I went through a spell back in the fall/winter where my hands were so dry that they were starting to crack and I just couldn't find anything that would help with it. And then I was told about this. If you go online you can find places that carry it. I bought it at Home Depot. It was in the paint department. It's supposedly known to people who work with their hands or wash their hands a lot - mechanics and nurses alike. I bought some and boy did it work. Once you get passed the waxy feeling on your hands, you realize that your hands feel so protected! I would apply it once in the morning before I left for work, and once before I went to bed. Within a week or two my hands felt back to normal. It has no scent, and a little bit goes a long way. It will sting a lot if your skin is cracked open, but boy does it heal!
Now let me tell you about a few items.
Snapea Crisps - My sister bought a bag at Costco. Or maybe my mom did. It doesn't really matter WHO bought the bag so much as it does that there was an open bag when I was over there around the time of my birthday. I decided to try them. Oh man are they delicious! Before you get excited about them being super healthy for you, they aren't. I mean, they are better than potato chips, but it's not like you're eating a straight snap pea. Talk about a wonderful snack though. And if you know me at all, you know I like snacks. I don't have a Costco card so I've placed an order for the next trip, for their big bag. Meanwhile when I want some I get them at Safeway in the veggie/fruit area. Usually they are on display below a display of fruit or veggies. The bags are a lot smaller, but that's okay.
Tea Forte Minteas - Lemongrass Yuzu. These were found in my March Birchbox. They are so refreshing. I don't eat them all the time, but when I do, it's a nice little treat.
Julep Tada Quick Dry Drops - I received these drops a while back as part of a mystery box I purchased through Julep. I think I mentioned in a previous post that I have a monthly Julep subscription. I have an array of their nail polishes and this has become a favorite product of mine. I even got my mom a bottle of it for her birthday because she mentioned how she liked it so much. It does have a strong smell, but it's not a bad smell. And it certainly helps with the drying process.
O'Keeffe's Working Hands Hand Cream - You may have seen the commercials for this stuff. In my case it was a co-worker who told me about it. I went through a spell back in the fall/winter where my hands were so dry that they were starting to crack and I just couldn't find anything that would help with it. And then I was told about this. If you go online you can find places that carry it. I bought it at Home Depot. It was in the paint department. It's supposedly known to people who work with their hands or wash their hands a lot - mechanics and nurses alike. I bought some and boy did it work. Once you get passed the waxy feeling on your hands, you realize that your hands feel so protected! I would apply it once in the morning before I left for work, and once before I went to bed. Within a week or two my hands felt back to normal. It has no scent, and a little bit goes a long way. It will sting a lot if your skin is cracked open, but boy does it heal!
Sunday, April 13, 2014
Jolt
It has been 3 months since I've had any caffeine. No wait, that's not completely true. I should say it's been 3 months since I've consumed any large amount of caffeine. I have had chocolate (which has small traces) and I've had a decaf fancy latte (which has a small amount of it, too) and I did partake in about 3 sips of a Dr Pepper one day last month when I had a headache that just would not go away. I was desperate and thought a jolt of caffeine might just do the trick. But otherwise, I haven't had my regular weekend Starbucks drink. I haven't had my usual morning tea at work. I generally don't drink enough soda to worry about caffeine, but the few times I did, it was ginger ale or rootbeer... oh, and I did splurge with some grape soda (delish, btw). I've done this before. I've just stopped cold turkey. This last time I had the help of getting sick though. And when I get really sick, I avoid caffeine like the plague. Personally I don't think it's good for your body when it's already doing it's best to fight off germs as it is, to try and give it a boost like that. I have done no medical research on it, it's just a personal opinion. It's like how I don't believe mixing Red Bulls with alcohol is smart. One revs you up and the other calms you down. Why confuse your body like that? Anyway, I'm off subject now. So yea, it's been three months. I can't remember how long I went last time I did this. Probably not for this long. But now? Now I'm doing it because it makes me feel better. I like not feeling the need to rely on caffeine to get me going in the morning. I do miss drinking my green tea though... for other beneficial reasons. I know it's a matter of when, not if, that I go back to indulging. But I have to say, for now, it just feels good to say no to it.
Hidden Blessings
This month I went in for my eye exam. It's been a year since I've had one. Normally I can go two years without needing to go in and get glasses. Not this time around. I've been noticing that I can't see as far away and things just aren't as crisp. I was hoping it was a figment of my imagination. I was hoping I just had a couple of hard days on my eyes. Nope. Turns on my astigmatism in my right eye got a little worse and my left eye didn't feel like working as hard as my right eye. Go figure. My old arrangement with work was that they would reimburse me $200 every two years towards new lenses/an exam. But last year I was lucky enough to get VSP. That means the new glasses I have to get right now - are free. I don't have to pay a thing for them. But, if you wear glasses full time then you also know that you also need to redo your sunglasses too. These aren't free. I do get 20% off the final total of them when I get the lenses and frames all at once so it saves me a tiny bit. I wasn't expecting to fork out almost $400 dollars for new sunglasses with a new prescription, but that's what I'm doing. Thank you very much small tax return. The funny part is when I was talking to the sales person helping me, I was telling her how I was grateful for my insurance but I had been wanting to put that money into savings for a rainy day. She looked at me and said "I know you might not want to hear this, but it IS a rainy day." Yes, it had been literally raining all day. It also made me think though. She's right. That's the whole point of saving money. You save for important things that come up so that when they do you can be better prepared. I'm fortunate in the fact that I had the money to cover the cost of this. Hidden blessing.
Of course when it rains, it pours. Or in this case the water pump in my car blows and I also have to change the timing belt. Who knew the timing belt should be changed at 60k, and 120k miles. I am at 153k miles and I hadn't changed it once. Go MAZDA! And while I first thought I'd be car shopping this week (what was originally thought to be a problem with the connecting rod - which would mean a new engine which would essentially mean I'd be buying a new car instead) it turned out it was the pump. Fixable. It's still more than anyone would like to spend at one time, but in the grand scheme of things, if it buys me time to save more money for a new car... well, I'm in. I also asked very nicely if he'd be willing to match the price of the place I was going to be taking my car into that weekend for an oil change and tire rotation - you know, since they have to keep my car throughout the weekend and thus causing me to cancel that appt - and surprisingly he said he would. Woohoo! Hidden blessing #2. Then I went to pay for it all and it was cheaper than the quote he had originally given me... like 600 less. YES! Hidden blessing #3.
Next, though bittersweet - my sister and I were supposed to plan another trip to Palm Springs for later in the year. Because she just got a new job (GO HER!!!) she won't be able to take a vacation quite so soon. So the money I was planning on using to pay for my share of the trip... was now to be applied to the aforementioned items. Hidden blessing #4.
And finally, I still have a bit of $ left from my tax return to put towards a purchase for myself. One that isn't so much a need as it is a want. After all that, I still get to treat myself to something without having the resounding guilt it could have brought me. Hidden blessing #5.
Of course when it rains, it pours. Or in this case the water pump in my car blows and I also have to change the timing belt. Who knew the timing belt should be changed at 60k, and 120k miles. I am at 153k miles and I hadn't changed it once. Go MAZDA! And while I first thought I'd be car shopping this week (what was originally thought to be a problem with the connecting rod - which would mean a new engine which would essentially mean I'd be buying a new car instead) it turned out it was the pump. Fixable. It's still more than anyone would like to spend at one time, but in the grand scheme of things, if it buys me time to save more money for a new car... well, I'm in. I also asked very nicely if he'd be willing to match the price of the place I was going to be taking my car into that weekend for an oil change and tire rotation - you know, since they have to keep my car throughout the weekend and thus causing me to cancel that appt - and surprisingly he said he would. Woohoo! Hidden blessing #2. Then I went to pay for it all and it was cheaper than the quote he had originally given me... like 600 less. YES! Hidden blessing #3.
Next, though bittersweet - my sister and I were supposed to plan another trip to Palm Springs for later in the year. Because she just got a new job (GO HER!!!) she won't be able to take a vacation quite so soon. So the money I was planning on using to pay for my share of the trip... was now to be applied to the aforementioned items. Hidden blessing #4.
And finally, I still have a bit of $ left from my tax return to put towards a purchase for myself. One that isn't so much a need as it is a want. After all that, I still get to treat myself to something without having the resounding guilt it could have brought me. Hidden blessing #5.
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