Who needs a good thrashing?

Supposedly it is Fall here in the mountains of Western North Carolina but it is still as humid as all get out! We have been trying to cut costs by not using the air conditioner unless absolutely necessary. Yesterday when we got home from work, the hubster decided to turn off the AC and open the windows. Normally I am ok with this, I love fresh air, however as the temp inside the house climbed to 79 degrees, I was at my limit. Being a big girl as I am, in the midst of menopause, I do not tolerate the heat as well as others. So, there I was, huffing and puffing as I washed the dinner the dishes. Sticking my hands in hot soapy water in a 79 degree house has always been my idea of a good time. NOT!

Hubster walks in and says, “What’s wrong with you?”     “It’s hot in here.”    “No it’s not. Is this another one of your heat thrashes?”   
Heat thrash?! Granted, the guy learned English in a foreign country but that one about killed me! Heat thrash. If you think about though, it sums it up pretty well. I know when I get one of my dreaded hot flashes the first thing I want to do, (If I am not able to get completely naked and stand in from of an industrial sized fan) is to thrash something, someone, anyone! He did make me laugh though. And the house did start to cool down……..

Blood Types and Memories

My son and I were talking about our blood types last night and it sparked a memory of how I found out what my blood type was, waaaaaaay back in 8^th grade Biology. We all had to prick out fingers with those evil little metal lances and put a drop of our blood on a glass microscope slide. While I do not recall the exact process, we all got to find out what our blood type was. Pretty cool, huh?! (Mine is O+ in case you are wondering.)

The Biology teacher looked like an elf and he always wore horribly colored plaid golf pants with a white belt and shoes. Although it was the early/mid 70’s, it was still really tacky! He was an odd little man.

We had the usual biology experiences, dissecting large earth worms and then frogs, all heavily saturated in formaldehyde, but there is one particular experience that stays very fresh and vivid in my mind.

It started out as a normal school day in sunny San Diego as I took my seat in the back of the class. No, I was not a really cool kid, or trying to be. Eighth grade was one of my “Dark Years”. I was a bit of a loner and just wanted to be left alone and blend into the woodwork.

Well, anyway, I took my seat and after the class got settled, that happy little elf, errr, teacher, came to back of the class to show us his new prize, I mean experiment! Right smack dab next to my chair was a galvanized garbage can with a lid on it (Thank you for at least putting a lid on it!) He proudly opened the lid to show us his treasure. Low and behold, it was a hammer head sharks head in the can which was filled with MAGGOTS! You could actually hear them “working”. I do love science and I have a pretty high tolerance for grossness but this was a bit much.

If I remember correctly, I skipped class the next day and told my parents they had to get me transferred out of there. I do not remember the why’s or how’s but I was not able to get a class transfer. I spent the next few tortuous weeks sitting next to that disgusting can, which of course he would remove the lid from during class time, so we could “witness” biology in action. (I told you he was odd!)

Thankfully we moved to another school district not long after that so it was a blessing in more ways than one. I got out of that crazy man’s class and I got to attend a new school where no one knew me and I could blend into the wood work really well!

*Sigh* The teenage years are such a traumatic part of growing up.

Commission Work!

I have been commissioned to make a T-shirt memory quilt! And there is a possiblilty for more T-shirt quilts in the future. I have also been asked to make a wall hanging for another person! I will be spending the weekend, trying to do some materials and time/labor calculations so I know what to charge. That is the hard part.

Could it really be happening? Am I starting to see a twinkle or a glimmer of light? Maybe it is time to seriously look into getting that business license I have been putting off. This could turn into something someday! Woo Hoo!

Can you tell that I am excited?

Monday ~ A new week, a new month, a fresh start

First, I would like to thank you all for the encouraging comments (both private and on my blog) on my "bare my soul" post of last week. It means alot to me and I promise to see my doctor and fill her in on all the "loveliness" that is going on in my life. 

Until then, I am starting a new way to pack my lunches for the work week. I got a new Bento box from Lock & Lock and I think I am already in love. (For those of you who do not know, bento boxes are a traditional Japanese lunch box. They are proportionately sized for the individual and are typically filled with artistically prepared food. I am skipping the artistic approach and just using this as a way to limit/monitor my food intake.)

This box is proportionately sized so it will be hard to overeat, (unless I pack lots of extras, which I do not intend to do). It comes with two stacking boxes that will hold a total 700 mil or a whopping 24 oz of food. (the set also included collapsible chopsticks with a case that fits inside the bag- not shown)

Today's lunch consists of a little meatloaf - last time a made meatloaf, I baked some of the mix in a muffin tin and then stuck them in the freezer - a bit of potato salad and some black cherries in the first tier. The second tier holds some green salad. (Dressing packed separately)

It all packs nicely into this adorable red lunch box. I felt so spiffy carrying this in to the office today!

I also packed separately, a greek yogurt for my afternoon snack. I will definitely be ordering more items from Lock & Lock. I may order the same set with the water bottle. I don't really need the water bottle but the bag is taller so I will be able to put my dressing and yogurt inside the bag, in place of the water bottle.

I did some sewing over the weekend and that is always good for my spirit. I hope you all had a great weekend as well.

Have a wonderful day!

Dawn

I'm still here..........

Not really sure I want to lay this out there but what the heck! It’s been heavy on my mind and I need to “talk” about it.

My life has been a train wreck of late, which has caused a lack of crafting/sewing and a lack of the will to blog. I have been kind of depressed lately.

Along with what seems to be the usual financial and family issues, I have come to the realization that I have an emotional eating disorder. I eat when I am depressed, anxious, lonely, stressed, bored, you name it. Food is my tool of choice for comfort. Of course, the benefits of emotional eating are that you get to become morbidly obese and have various health and mental health issues including depression and very low self esteem.

You have to love yourself to take care of yourself and this is something I am going to have to learn, somehow. I don’t think I have loved me in a very long time. We all have issues in our childhood and our past that have left emotional scars and I can certainly think of quite a few. What I do not understand is how a person can recognize what is wrong and why things are the way they are but is still incapable of “fixing it”. If you know what your inner demons are and why they are, then why can’t you make them go away. The monster in the closet goes away when exposed to the light, so why don’t the demons go away when they are figured out? There should be some sort of closure, right?  

Hubby is very supportive of me but he was raised with the mentality that you can just have the will power to get over things without doctors, drugs and therapists – those are for the weak. Therapy might as well be a four letter word in my house.

I am not really sure what the next step is that I need to take but I do think that writing about it will help to a certain degree. I have found others online that are battling similar demons and some have conquered them. Maybe I should give myself a deadline – if I cannot overcome this by my own methods by the end of this year, then perhaps the next step has to be therapy…*Gulp!*

Have a wonderful weekend Dear Ones. I will do my best to keep my nose out of the fridge!

Soap Sack

What do you do with all of the little bits left over from your bar soap? Do you try to smoosh them onto the new bar? Do you throw them away? That can be costly in the long run.
Well, yesterday I decided to crochet "soap sacks" for hubby and myself.

Now we can put our bars of soap in the bag and use it similar to a wash cloth and we can use up every little bit of those bars of soap. They have a draw string at the top for easy "loading" which also serves as a hanging string so we can hang them in the shower and allow them to drip dry.

What did you do this weekend?

Time for the World Cup game! Go USA!!!

Dinner - 7/15/11 Yummy Burrito/Taco Filling

I was inspired to make a yummy taco/burrito filling here - http://notexactlybento.com/?p=328

I made a few changes but not too many. First, brown 1 pound of lean ground beef along with 1 cup chopped onion. I had red onion on hand so that is what I used. I added copious amounts of chili powder, garlic powder and a pinch of S&P while it was browning.

 Drain the fat off of the meat/onion mixture. Add 1 cup of frozen corn, 1 cup of Salsa and 1 can of drained black beans.

Simmer for 10-15 minutes, until the corn and the beans are tender.

Put a healthy spoonful on a tortilla (or taco shell) of your choice, top with your favorite topping (I used guacamole) and enjoy!!

Nom Nommy goodness! I am sooo full!