Oops!

 When I worked for Pier 1 for the first time, they had these pretty, clear glasses with a red swirl line going around the glass. I was straightening up the shelves when I turned to fix something. As I turned, the very bottom corner of my apron flipped up and caught the edge of a champagne flute. That small part of my apron managed to fling that flute a good five feet off the shelf and onto the floor. It was my first time breaking something in that job and it was the weirdest too.

(Writing prompt: write about a time you broke something)

Recycle, Reuse, Reduce

 In the news, there are tons of stories of shortages: appliances, cans, heck even wine bottles. Why aren't we doing what we were taught in elementary school: recycle reduce, reuse?

I get that it is difficult to recycle certian things but let's start with something simple: glass. This stuff has already been crafted. A wine company could make a killing by saying that they are doing their part to help the environment. 

You could have local grocery stores do what they did in the 40's & 50's: let people drop off their clean, empty bottles for a small refund. These get packed up and sent to a place that washes and sterilized, then sent back to the vineyards.

It is a win win situation. Empty glass bottles don't get thrown in the dump, people have jobs hauling the bottles from the stores to the wash to the vineyards, vineyards have bottles for their product.

I realize that there may be more to it than what I described but the idea is there. We need to do something for our communities.

Parking Lot Mayhem

 During one of our many random conversations that Lee and I have, we were bouncing ideas around about what we could do with cars that are left in the parking lot running with the keys in it.

Here is the list so far:

Move car to opposite end of the parking lot

Move driver's seat all the way forward 

Move the driver's seat all the way back

Change the radio station

Take the keys out and hide the keys behind the fuel door

Buckle all the seatbelts

Change all the preset radio stations to random ones

Put on the parking break then put the car in drive

Change the climate settings (a/c on in winter, heat in summer

Lean seat back all the way forward

Lean seat back all the way back

Adjust the steering column

Adjust all the mirrors

Got any others for us?

Freedom at Last

The straw that broke the camel's back happened Sunday night. I finally left retail. I couldn't take the mental abuse anymore.  I even quit without giving my 2 weeks notice, which I have never done. 

It was very liberating. I normally get worked up over a lot of things, but not this.  I have worked retail since 2003 and it has definitely increased my dislike of most of the human race.

Yes, I still need to work 2 jobs but at least now, I can work the jobs I want & need, not just need.

They Live Within Us

 February 2021 is when my husband and I had to say goodbye to our sweet, fuzzy daughter. The pain of losing her is still there, it has dulled a bit. There are moments that will suddenly make me think of her and I will smile sadly at the memory.

A friend of mine recently commented how, even after 4 years of her own fur son's passing, it still hurts. It made me start thinking about why.  When we share our heart with them, they share theirs with us. I think that is why it still hurts, even though time has passed since they left us. The good thing is, a piece of them still lives with us.  

Remember, it is okay to be sad about our beloved lost pets but they are still with us, in our hearts.

The picture I use on my lock screen so I can still see her every day.

Ad Oddities

 So, we all know that ads are on social media so that, for the most part, it is free to those that use it. Now, there are mathematical algorithms to put ads with certian audiences.  Apparently, the algorithm is broken on one of my social media platforms. 

Just today, I have had the following:

Medicine for RA, lung cancer, and another I couldn't figure out

Stop smoking

Alcohol of 4 different types

Being a surrogate mother in IL

These are just the weird ones that I have seen today. The weirdest one ever is one saying that I should become a nun in the Catholic church. The algorithm must have really been broken that day since I am active on several new age pages and I am married. 

It just amuses me to see what the algorithms will bring me as I scroll through my newsfeed. What weird ones have you gotten?

Digging In the Dirt

 So my bff Marie has a bit of an etsy addiction, just like I have a bit of a stone addiction. When these two addictions collide, silly fun happens.

To set the scene, my sister & mom came out for a visit. After they left, Marie decided to send me a small gift to chase away the blues of my family leaving to go home. The package arrives and is really heavy.  I open it up to find this:

It is a bit squishy so I figure it is padding. Nope! It is a bag of sand!

According to the directions, the crystals are in the sand. It is up to you to find them. Let the fun begin!

I poured the bag into a bowl and dug it. It took about 20 minutes but I found all the awesome crystals. It was a lot of fun. I'd recommend this to anyone, kids & kids at heart.

After I opened the bag but before digging in the dirt.

My wonderful treasures unearthed