Young Adult Urban Fantasy – Reverse Harem
And now for a lighter post. This last winter, I used my Christmas gift from Grandpa to buy several plants and a ton of seeds. I'll have to take photos of the basil and mint garden. Just walking past it is aromatic and delicious! Here are the potted ones! I introduce you to my Coffee, … Continue reading Coffee, Tea, and Stevia, Oh My!
On my previous post, you might have noticed that our grocery budget is RIDICULOUSLY small. Like, below the USDA Food Estimates by a lot. You can find them HERE. For clarity: On their cheapest plan, they expect us to spend $90 a week or $390 a month for both of us combined. But our budget … Continue reading Rice, Beans, and Paranoia
Since I'm losing my job on September 30th, my husband and I have cut back on our spending to fit within his budget. Yes, I TOTALLY get that we're privileged enough that we can get by on just his income. I've noticed that while there are a TON of how-to-cut-back-on-your-spending-you-heathen advice, not many people are … Continue reading Let’s Talk About Budgeting
I've been having a lot of work related nerves lately, but my husband sat me down. He pointed out that THIS IS MY CHANCE. Working part time and healthy, this is my chance to be a SERIOUS WRITER. Get that book finished and revised and PUBLISHED. I have a cheap content editor available. (Was part … Continue reading Being a Serious Writer
I've mentioned that my Job Has Been Eliminated, and so I'm looking for work. It's possible, at least for the near future, that I'll be working with my dad and husband in their business. Which is super exciting. And TERRIFYING. See, when I was at my sickest, I worked with my dad. And my work … Continue reading Nerves, All the Nerves
My husband and I traveled to LaCrosse this weekend, along with my dad and brother, and we went to a family get together! There were family members in from out of state as well as a Birthday. We did photos together, which of course I won't share because I don't show anyone's face but my … Continue reading We Had a Party!
This is a book that was suggested in one of Ask a Mortician's YouTube videos. I was intrigued so bought a used copy from Amazon. 'Heavenly Bodies: Cult Treasures & Spectacular Saints from the Catacombs' This is NOT an affiliate link, just added for your convenience to find the book easily on Amazon. It came … Continue reading Book Rec Just for You: Interesting Bodies
So I had an ex that I lived with for a while, and he had this amazing jean quilt his grandmother made for him. I adored. The relationship ended, and he, of course, kept the quilt. I wanted one SO BADLY. I saved my jeans for close to ten years, always meaning to make a … Continue reading Brand New Jean Quilt!
This photo is a place holder from last year because, who's the fool who forgot a camera this year? Yeah, that would be me. Tundra had a ton of fun, and my husband walked around following him to keep him out of trouble. He was well behaved though! Tundra can't swim though, so he … Continue reading Puppy Pool Paddle 2019
So this is a mini rant. I don't think I've ever done one here, actually, but I was pretty steamed. Your favorite author releases a book. Great! Now, what do you do? Do you: Buy/borrow it, read it and leave glowing (or not) review about the contents of the book Not buy it and leave … Continue reading Rant: Don’t Be THAT Book Reviewer
So this conversation happened recently: Husband: Where is Lord of the Rings? Me: What? Husband: I want a bull dog clip Me: That's not lord of the rings, that's the Lone Ranger Husband: *retrieves appropriate tin* I maaaybe have a tin storage addiction. I have either 11 or 12 Lord of the Rings tins and … Continue reading I May Have a Tin Addiction
I had the opportunity to guest post on Jami Gold's writing blog, and I was SUPER STOKED. So, I'm letting you know! The post is a rewrite of an old post a made - but after all the writing and editing they're barely recognizable as the same post. You can find it HERE. We talk about … Continue reading Guest Post on Jami Gold’s Blog
I go to bed pretty early which means my room is bright when I go to bed despite having curtains. So I was cuddled with the husband and trying to fall asleep, and it was just. Not. Working. I felt around on the shelf and couldn't find my eye mask, meaning it probably fell behind … Continue reading Eye Masks EVERYWHERE!
I've discovered in shell salted peanuts, and I'm loving them. I had never actually had them before, but we had them one night at my in-laws so I bought a bog. Now, Tundra ADORES peanuts and peanut butter and peanut flavored anything. So I tossed him a few (shelled) peanuts. They bounced off his face, … Continue reading Peanuts
I've been playing more with the water color paints I just bought - I've decided that I prefer the Prang to the fancier ones because the fancier ones are grainy and don't always mix well. So boo at that set. Anyway, here she is! Color corrected on my computer because the scanner scans blueish: This … Continue reading New Artwork – The Dancer
We went to California last fall, and one of the things I bought was a sequoia kit for growing them at home. This spring, I set up the kit, stuck the seeds in the fridge for the required 21 days, and then transferred them under my grow light. Two of them sprouted. And they're growing! … Continue reading Growing Baby Sequoia!
I used to go to my grandparents' cabin, did this for two or three summers, and they had this painting on the wall that I would sit and stare at. I wanted this painting, but of course it was my grandparents. My grandfather passed a few months ago, and when I went to the interment, … Continue reading That Painting I’ve Always Wanted
My mom and I celebrated our Birthdays this weekend (not on the actual days because life) and the week was a whirlwind of Birthdays! Both my mom and my father-in-law were born the same day. I was born two days after and share my father-in-law's dad's birthday. Basically I was my mom's birthday present, and … Continue reading I Was My Momma’s Birthday Present
I worked on a new watercolor with a reference photo to make it more realistic. The photo was nude, so I gave her some clothes. *smile* If you're interested in knowing what photo I used, I can dig that out. It was from a book of female nudes. Again, I had to color adjust because … Continue reading A More Realistic Watercolor
I hadn't talked about this before, just thought about what would be appropriate to post. I was definitely down the week I discovered this and didn't want to say something stupid or too down. I'll be losing my job in September. It was limited term employment, but they were expecting to renew. Instead, office politics … Continue reading Losing My Job
I've been watching a lot of watercolor YouTube videos lately, and when I got my wellness initiative from work, I bought a few things to try them out. Since it's summer, the first one I did was a Kitsune with the red thread of destiny in a swim suit. I love Kitsune and the legend … Continue reading New Watercolors
One of my friends has earned her PhD in Computer Science, and I'm super excited for her! She's married and has two wee children, and her husband watched them and worked from home while she worked on her Masters and then her PhD. It was a TON of work, and she struggled at times, but … Continue reading Congratulations to My Friend
So, this is kind of my husband's story, but he gave me permission to post it on my blog. My husband was driving to work early last week, when he saw a deer at the side of the road stomping on something. He beeped his horn, the deer bolted, and he got out to check … Continue reading We Rescued A Kitten… From A Deer?
Here's our last photo of our three cars together. My husband's is the blue Subaru Legacy Sedan, my current car is the green Subaru Outback Wagon, and in the background is our sad Subaru Forester. The SF generation of Subaru's have problems with blowing head gaskets, which our lovely Forester did. This was especially frustrating, … Continue reading Goodbye Forester
I know I've posted a lot of YouTube links lately, but I'm really not doing so hot, had some bad news that has us off balance and scrambling, and I really just want to veg and read or watch YouTube. Today's is Emily Artful's Channel, and while I don't care for most of her art, … Continue reading Interesting Things Just For You: Emily Artful’s YouTube Channel
This last winter, we fed the birds because the snow got a bit crazy, and I was worried the little feathered mooches would die. So we bought a bag of sunflower seeds and a bag of mealworms. We eventually used up the sunflower and stopped feeding them. I stashed the mealworm bag under my desk … Continue reading Mealworms, Mealworms Everywhere!
For the first time this year, our neighborhood has been setting off fireworks, and this has been going off for most of two weeks. Tundra hates them. He whines and paces and tips over every water dish in the house. Repeatedly. Then he whines because he's thirsty, and if you fill the dish again he'll … Continue reading The Floof Hates Fireworks
There are, I feel, remarkably few things as Zen as watching someone put on make up. I love looking at theatrical or costume make up, but PONY Syndrome's channel caught my eye because of the sweet commentary and a more subdued Asian style of make up. Most of her more recent videos have subtitles, and … Continue reading Interesting Things Just for You: PONY Syndrome YouTube Channel
Asian Boss is a channel that interviews in Asian on a variety of topics. Some are asking the general public questions, and some are serious interviews with an expert on the topic. These are subtitled, and I feel they're both accessible and respectful to the people interviewed. Quite a few of them are in Japanese, … Continue reading Interesting Things Just for You: Asian Boss YouTube Channel
I had the last week off, and I swear all I did was watch YouTube videos. Here's one of my favorites! Lioba Bruckner does artwork in a variety of mixed mediums, including my favorite mixed medium of watercolor and pencil. I really enjoy watching her images progress, and her narration is generally light and cheerful. … Continue reading Interesting Things Just for You: Lioba Bruckner YouTube Channel
This watercolor channel is one I've been watching because I am SO BAD at watercolors! And, come on, is this not Bob Ross's long lost brother? He's super chill and the videos have English Subtitles, so he's fun to listen to while he's painting! If you like Bob Ross, you will like this man. I … Continue reading Interesting Things Just for You: Watercolor by Shibasaki YouTube Channel
Here's Jenna Drawing! This YouTube is a guilty pleasure of mine. I don't do a lot of drawing anymore, but her style is SO appealing, and watching her paint is fun. Her voice over is cheerful and entertaining, something that I need a lot of right now. Her style is unique, and I would love … Continue reading Interesting Things Just for You: Jenna Drawing YouTube Channel
I got some bad news this last Friday, and I'm not doing so hot, so the next few posts are entertainment only, focusing on the YouTube channels I've been binging this weekend. The first is Ask a Mortician, and I've actually been watching her channel heavily for several weeks now. I absolutely love how direct … Continue reading Interesting Things Just for You: Ask a Mortician YouTube Channel
Recently, I was put on a new medication, and I had two follow up calls with my psychiatrist, and then a meeting this last Wednesday. It's actually going very, very well. Not that I want to invite trouble! But this is the best I've felt in a very long time, with more energy than normal … Continue reading New Medication Going Well
Originally written Jun 3, 2016, here's a post from my dad! Today was the last day for the ugly old red lawn tractor. In 14 years, I've replaced just about everything except the ignition key on it. The list of failing parts is epic, and I'd already decided to nurse it along and replace it … Continue reading The Grump: All Good Mowers Come to an End
I know it's common to give cash or useful gifts, but I'm a Downer. When my relatives graduate, I give them THIS BOOK. Dave Ramsey's Complete Guide to Money. (Not an affiliate link.) Why? Because NO ONE talks about money. After High School, you're just left to fumble around trying to pay your bills and … Continue reading What Do You Give Newly Grads?
We went to a relative's high school graduation party, and it seems like there were parties EVERYWHERE. Which makes me a bit nostalgic for the summer after High School Graduation where I was finally DONE with Day Care (I mean High School) and eagerly looking forward to college. I had no real responsibilities, and everything … Continue reading Just a Little Bit of Nostalgia
I got out of my car recently, and about four bunnies jumped out of my garden and darted into the neighbor's debris from cutting down their tree. One of them ran to the end of the garage and turned the corner... but I could totally see its butt hanging out there. So I ran/stomped over … Continue reading Bunnies, You Are Not Subtle
I follow various snow dog rescues, wolf dog rescues, and such, and I'm always looking at different dogs. I may like them, but I don't usually do more than gush about one and show my husband. Then I don't think anything more of it. But... I saw a dog at a shelter a reasonable drive … Continue reading We WERE Going to Adopt a Dog
UGH. I was doing SO WELL on the meds I was on, fairly stable, rarely swinging full manic and a livable amount of depression. But I made the mistake of mentioning, at my most recent psych appointment, that I was lactating from the Invega. My doctor immediately wanted to know for how long. Four years? … Continue reading Everything Was Stable So Time For New Medications: Let’s Talk About Weight Gain
This is a little older, but I wasn't able to get the photos my family took from it until now. I had a close friend, who is military, drop by my parents around Thanksgiving. She has been having a hard time, and I remembered that she loved making Gingerbread Houses, so I picked one up … Continue reading Puzzling the Neighbors – Gingerbread House Edition
You would think that, since every other nursery waits to ship, that the Camellia Forest Nursery would also wait until reasonable weather to ship their plants. Nope. It was 25 degrees yesterday when I found the notification that my tea was being delivered. I was at work. 45 minutes away from home. Cue frantic call … Continue reading Oh, Beauteous Day, My Tea Plant Is Here!
