Good ideas for aching neck and shoulders

Okay, when you click over to the link, just ignore the title.

These poses would be great for people who hunch forward a lot during their life.

These are chest openers.

Like I said, just ignore the title.

visual quotes - these are actually photos of quotes I found out and about.

Cords and available space in my iPad

This is the cord store we use. Monoprice.

Charger cords, Ethernet cords, VGA cords, USB cords.

I can't explain what all those do, but we have them and use them.

Oldest says ALWAYS read the comments/reviews posted with a product, on any site, before ordering. True for this site also. Once ordered a cord, with bad reviews, and it was not good.





My iPad told me I had -0- available space in October.

I called oldest who first didn't believe me and then had me pull up the storage information.

We were not surprised when podcasts was listed as the number one thing taking up space on my ipad.  I was collecting/saving them for travel time over the holidays.

My iPad does not have a lot of storage capacity because I do not store things (other than the special occasion podcasts)

I move pictures over to Dropbox and move them to the house computer very regularly. I clean the pictures out of photos and Dropbox each time.

I do not keep any books on my iPad.

But number two on my most full list was email. Which surprised us.

Oldest looked it up and said that while email is out there on the Internet, everything I open (attachments) on email, is also stored on my iPad.

I do almost all my email reading/opening on my iPad. I have a lot of attachments. My brother sends me all kinds of pictures and things. I order things. The kids and my husband all send me things. We use drop box too, but lots on email.


Where ever oldest looked said the only way to clean my email attachments out of my iPad was to delete my yahoo email account from my iPad and then reinstall it. So I was not closing my account with yahoo. I was taking it off my iPad and then putting it back on my iPad.

So, he first asked me if I knew my email password. I did, but he double checked by logging on my email on his computer to be sure I was remembering correctly. I was. Then I took yahoo off my iPad  (settings, mail contacts calendars, yahoo, delete account). And then I added it back on my iPad. My email account looked exactly the same. The only difference is all the attachments on emails were no longer open. But, if I wanted one open, I just had to click the download icon attached to the post and it would reopen.





The screen shots below are all from AFTER I deleted and reinstalled my emails account.

Family pictures into matching card game for kids

I think this is a super cute idea for small children. Especially if they do not see their extended family regularly.

Podcast post

These are the Podcasts I download each week -



The Moth

"Since its launch in 1997, The Moth has presented thousands of true stories, told live and without notes, to standing-room-only crowds worldwide. Moth storytellers stand alone, under a spotlight, with only a microphone and a roomful of strangers. The storyteller and the audience embark on a high-wire act of shared experience which is both terrifying and exhilarating. Since 2008, The Moth podcast has featured many of our favorite stories told live on Moth stages around the country. For information on all of our programs and live events."

Vinyl Cafe

"CBC Radio presents the stories and misadventures of Dave, the owner of the "Vinyl Cafe", the world's smallest record store, where the motto is "We may not be big, but we're small." The show also features Dave's wife, Morley, their two children, Sam and Stephanie and assorted friends and neighbours."

This American Life

"Official free, weekly podcast of the award-winning radio show "This American Life." First-person stories and short fiction pieces that are touching, funny, and surprising. Hosted by Ira Glass, from WBEZ Chicago Public Media, and distributed by Public Radio International."

The first two are new to me and recommended by our oldest. The third, This American Life, is
beloved. If I am ever in a coma, the kind where I might be aware, please have one of my kids buy the complete archives and play it for me, one show at a time, all day, to keep me sane. Really great.

Jennette just wrote about another podcast, Serial.

Still cleaning out pictures -

This is Burn Notice on Netflix, screen shot while I was watching on my iPad. If you notice the metal rack of glasses with leaves on them, on the left side of the picture, behind her, we had the exact same ones when I was little (I am 53).

I did not want to copy her picture. SO -
This is a Shutterbean picture, please click and go look. (Love her weekly recap in pictures.) I think this (son's first day of kindergarten) is one of the all time great pictures. I am showing it because she often includes a 'sign' in her pictures to commemorate a date. Really good idea. Not all the time. But sometimes. This is an actual thing with new babies now..

I bought this lamp at a garage sale. The woman just wanted it out of her sight because originally it had a glass (Tiffany kind of shade) and she broke it. I watched ebay and garage sales for replacement shade. I never had the lamp with me. I never figured out right shape and size. Finally took it to a lamp repair shop, in October, after years of using it without a shade in various rooms. I asked for help in knowing size and shape. Owner of shop said - I think I actually have something that will work in the back. She came out with this, used, $20. Sold. Color and size and style - perfect. 

Lending Library for kids on a neighborhood street.

A really great idea - a toddler safety seat next to the baby changing station in a women's bathroom. Middle and I saw these once, her iPod battery was dead, so we could not take a picture. Months later she was in another town with her boy and saw them again and this time got a picture.

"You'll always be my best friend, you know too much." On the pillow on the back of the couch. My therapist's office.

A weekend when we had a houseful including our little 6 year old. Yes, when we have a houseful, you can tell by the living room. You can also see just a peek at all things gaming to the left of the picture. That is a wooden water buffalo stool with the wii on it. There are two TV's and a whole host of electronics in that corner. Sprite bottle is either middle or youngest, on occasion helps with stomach. This is the puppet theater middle and I found at a garage sale the summer before last (I think). You can see a pile of puppets behind the theater and also a bin of them near the horse. That silver light (right side, on table) is from Walmart, has a nice heavy base and is great for detail work like painting. Pottery piece in far right corner of the picture is bust made by middle in high school art class. 

A corner of middle's room at college. Those elephants are cut from extra scrapbook paper. One is going the opposite direction, on purpose. The light fixture is from a garage sale. Have to have super low watt bulbs in it or it gets HOT.

This is also in middle's college room. It is the same one we give for Confirmation gifts. That is decorative washie tape (I think) around the light switch. Very middle.

Bag Lady

Remember the Halloween costumes post?

It took several days for me to think of a spot, in the house, to take those pictures. 

There are really no blank walls. And I needed a hook for hanging.

Our back door is rarely closed. So, I only see the garage side of the door and the screen door to the garage.

I realized the house side of the back door, rarely seen, would be a blank spot for taking pictures.

There was even a hook in place. (I used to have a wreath hanging on the door.)

Evidently, at some point in the past, I removed the wreath, turned the hook around to the house side of the door, and hung .   .   .

Yes, I hung bags from that hook.

At the point, getting ready to take Halloween costume pictures that day, I closed the door and saw the bags, I had absolutely no idea what was in them.

The brown paper bag had sewing supplies to be donated to a local high school that still has sewing classes. I delivered that bag.

The rest, the plastic bags, were (mostly) odds and ends that not even GoodWill would want.

Old mismatched socks, old headbands, a child's coin purse, a couple (now old) bottles of scented lotion, etc. 

There were 4-5 bags with just a few things each in them. 

From what I saw, dust, children's sizes, I think those bags had been hanging there for many years. 

I am sure my original intention was to pass on those items. 

Where I do not know, but I am sure that was the idea. 

I try very hard to donate or rehome rather than pitch. 

And if I had put the bags in the passenger seat of my car, I would have taken care of following through on whatever my plan was. 

If I had set the bags on the rug by the back door where I had to walk over them to get out the door, they would have gotten out to the car.

But because they were set in a slightly obscure place, the wrong side of the door, they went into never get done land.

Quite honestly I pitched everything but the socks which went into the puppet making bag.  One never knows when we might feel the need to make sock puppets.

But finding that hidden cache of junk, made me wonder what else I have sitting around, walk by daily, and just don't SEE.

And yes, I thought of Mrs. Dorfman.

Leaves

My husband sent these pictures (I was out of town) this week.
He just happened to catch all the action -

Each of the separate piles, at the ends of our driveways, were larger than a car. So, first the street sweeper comes and puts all the piles into one big pile that fills the culdesac. Yes, street is barely passable at this point. 

I think they leave the men there, working, just so we do not panic that they are leaving us boxed in our street.

Then, the big machinery arrives to actually remove the leaves. This process happens 2-3 times on our street each fall. People pulling into our street, with the leaf piles, larger than cars, in the street at the end of our driveways are sort of mind blown. We have to put the leaf piles in the street, otherwise the machinery would be up on our lawns. 

To be honest, we are so used to the piles we do not notice them. I didn't even really click with the fact that they were all gone when I pulled in the driveway on Friday. But as I said - middle's boy, youngest's carpool mom, friends just can't get over the size of the piles each year.

This is a picture from 2012 when the piles were just getting started. 

Refurbishing site, fun

I found this site, BetterAfter, by accident.

Middle and I went back through all the archives the week middle was home (after the hospital).

Some really cute things.

Occupied our minds in a very positive and fun way.

A good recovery activity.





Yes, there are a few things where I absolutely cringed that the wood had been covered by paint.

But mostly great ideas.

There are very few sites where I subscribe to their automatic feed, but this is one where I do.

Fun to get her new posts, always mostly pictures, in my email inbox.




Middle has now requested her boy take a woodworking class.

He was all for it if he can find one.

Actually, if you think about it, great idea for young people in general - a basic electricians class (not for wiring a house, but for things like rewiring a lamp or making a new one from odd things) and a basic woodworking class (enough to make shelves or refurbish the odd garage sale piece) and maybe a basic ceramic tile class.

As you know, middle is pretty creative. She really enjoys unusual things. And after I was garage saling this fall and saw the variety out there, for such low prices, we have talked a lot about these types of projects.

My dishwasher and I now have a peaceful relationship, no little signs needed

I try to live as hassle-free as possible.

Big things happen, little things happen, but if a habit or system can be set in place to take away the daily hassles, I am all over it.

If you open my dishwasher, at any time it is not running, the dishes are clean, always.

So we do not need a little sign that says "clean" or " dirty".

Unless you see all the lights and hear it running, the dishes are clean.

Any kid, at my house, knows they can open the dishwasher and get a clean item, if they are looking for something specific.

I have a long history with dishwasher filters getting built up/dirty. So all dishes are thoroughly rinsed and often scrubbed with a brush before they go in the dishwasher. Everyone at my house, including middle's boy, knows how I like the dishwasher loaded. They can do it. But honestly, I like to do it myself. So, I am happiest with the system where dirty dishes are left in the sink. Dirty dishes go in the sink, rinse first please. Set to soak if needed.

We eat mostly from home, we have a busy house. It is not hard to round up a load at any given time.

I empty the clean dishes. Then I either leave it empty, or refill and run immediately.

And I am no longer trying to fit as much as possible in the dishwasher.

If it is mostly full, I just go ahead and run it.

Sometimes I send my husband to hunt for odds and ends of dirties around the house. Sometimes I throw in a fruit/veggie dish from the island. I can always add a Kleen Kanteen or two. But if it is just mostly full, I just go ahead and start it. It makes things flow more smoothly, less stressful.

Because dishes are a constant around here.

If they were a frustration, it would be a constant thing. 

More dresses

The first post is here.

I ordered a few additional things to try.

I basically ordered all the Nine Wests with 3/4 or long sleeved that were warm (thick for cold weather which is now here). Because I now have a track record with Nine West, I only ordered smalls. In the other brands, I tried to order both small and medium, of each item, to try both sizes for comparison.



First, the rejects -

Way too much going on with this dress. Neither middle nor I liked it at all. 

This one is sort of the opposite (pattern placement wise) of the other reject (above), but it still did not work. We think we do not like the "belt". Even though the belt is part of the pattern, and is not an actual detached belt, it just doesn't work on me.

The Keepers -

Loved it. 

This was only available in a medium. And the medium fit just fine.

Ordered in a small and a medium because I was not sure of how this manufacturer fits me. It was the small that fit. This is the thinnest of all the dresses pictured (down to this point in this post) but I really liked it. Because it is long sleeved and I will wear with heavy tights or leggings, it is still warm.

Remember the Vera Wang from the last dress post?

Great dress. Still trying to decide. If I need a dressier winter weight dress, this would be a good one. If I just need more practical winter weight dresses, then I am not sure how durable this one will be. 

The second denim jacket ended up being a cold weather solution for me.

I wrote about winter weight dresses earlier in the week.

I wrote about my second denim jacket months ago.

Those two posts merged on Tuesday.

I discovered the slightly larger, squarer, second, denim jacket works perfectly over heavy weight dresses. Perfectly.

I had my alteration lady add inside pockets to the second jacket, when I discovered there weren't any.

I seriously, truly love these pockets for daily life around town (car fob, cell phone). And for travel (hotel room key, cell phone, money, passport, airline tickets). I very rarely carry a purse.

The more substantial second jacket felt a little bulky with summer weight dresses, tops and skirts. It is perfect with heavier winter clothes.

So I have my original jacket with the mended elbows for half the year and the new one for colder months.

I almost never wear denim (skirts, dresses, jeans), so the denim jackets go with most everything I wear (dresses mostly) and are definitely my GO TO items for every day life.

Yes, I wear other jackets. But not as much as I wear my denim ones.

And honestly, I should take my other favorites in for an alteration lady consult, because inside pockets in all of them would mean greater happiness.

Inside view of both jackets. Original, lighter weight jacket is on the left. The newer, heavier jacket is on the right. Original pocket on left, added pocket on the right. Tall, skinny pockets. Deep. Really love them.

Aromas and smells

Jane mentioned being assaulted by an aroma opening a bag for work.

I have mentioned being really annoyed by restaurants who pump their aromas (what seems like it must be on purpose) out into the areas around their locations.

One restaurant, attached to our shopping mall, exudes such a strong scent that I do not park/enter on that side of the complex.

I think I mentioned previously, one business in our area with either a grill or a smoker had the surrounding neighbors take them to court over the aroma. I think the guy might have died (unrelated) during the process, so there was no decision. Or there was a decision, but he was gone around the time it came.

There is a big bakery, downtown, and I totally avoid the shops in that area because of the baking smells.

I worked at a donut shop when I was in high school. Just one summer I think. And did not eat a donut for years and years. The smell became nauseating by the time I left that job.






If you remember, I changed grocery stores, after decades of being a loyal customer, because they had too many sampling stations, every day of the week.

That was several years ago.

This same, my new, rarely sampling, grocery store added a big, hot pretzel station a few months ago. This is just like one you might see at a mall, major baking station.

I had three (self help) options:
1. Switch stores again.
2. Shop late at night when the station was closed.
3. Acknowledge it was there and then ignore it.

When I need something, I need something, I like to settle down for the night early, the late night thing seemed too disruptive. I did not want to shop at Walmart and that was really my last option. I decided just to not let it impact my life any more than the cookie aisle or the pop aisle or the crunchy snack aisle.

I have to admit, I was pretty annoyed the grocery store added this station.

There are two of these stations at the mall, not located in the food court, and that annoys me too.

But I was not interested in making each shopping trip an angry event. So, I just got over it.

And now I entertain myself by seeing if the grocery store pretzel stand is busy. Youngest does this too. Instead of wishing for a pretzel, we look to see how many employees, how many customers, and if the employees actually have any work to do. We suspect business is not good.

I notice the aroma of the pretzel stands at the mall. I do not at the grocery store. So, either I am used to it, or perhaps there is a volume difference. The stands at the mall are super busy so they are probably always baking. The stand at the grocery, not so much.

Notes and winter dresses

Made myself a list on Sunday of things to get done on Monday.  Got the two biggest things done on Monday, one right after the other, and they were several hours each, so that was good. I do like projects.

This was one of the projects. As you might remember, I was looking for ways to help middle. This was pure busy work - making pattern, getting paper, tracing patterns on to paper so kids could cut and assemble. Really cute. The site is listed at the top of the picture. 

Tuesday morning ran several time consuming errands (exchanging air filter at Target, it stopped working, I did not have receipt, they made it right and gave me new one, but it took awhile) of things middle needed. Then, Tuesday afternoon, middle's boy met me part way to get stuff middle needed. Reduced my travel time hugely.

Still on Tuesday, realizing the weekend was coming quickly, I ordered box to be mailed to our seminarian. All Saints Day. (Youngest's suggestion instead of Halloween). I did not want to send junk or candy. I realized if I had it sent from Amazon, no shipping cost at all (Amazon Prime). I checked with the mother of another seminarian - do we send things just like we would to any other college kid? The answer was - yes. So, I sent Monopoly card game and Phase 10 card game.

Wednesday's Therapy appointment was cancelled. Luckily it was cancelled late Tuesday night in time to turn off my alarm. Slept in and then tried on dresses. I returned the rejects when I went to pick up high school carpool.

I had ordered dresses in two sizes (small and medium, I never know about my shoulders) from Macy's and Kohl's. I needed the small in each of the dresses shown below, whether I kept them or returned them, it was the smalls that fit.  But I might have need the medium, better to be safe and have two sizes to compare. I used to order everything in three sizes. I like to try on things in my own home, at my own pace.

First the things that did not work -

Even in a small, this was baggy in the back. Just a little too sack like for me. 

LOVED this dress, but somehow, in ordering, had missed that it had wool in it. Very allergic to wool. Very. I would have ordered one in each color if there had not been wool. Perfect dress to wear under a jacket or with a great scarf. Really sad.

Now the things that worked and I might add I was looking for WARM in all that I ordered  -

I did not expect to like this because of the metallic, but I did. Will be great with leggings or heavy tights. 

 PERFECT length with heavy tights or leggings. If I buy something that is supposed to be a tunic style, it feels to short for me. But many of the shorter dresses are perfect. 

I bought a Nine West dress at Macy's last year that I loved (picture below). Loved the geometric print of this one. Again, will wear with leggings or tights. 

Ditto on Nine West. This dress is very snug fitting. Very. I can wear snug fitting. But would not want to wear this with any extra pounds, or the rolls would make me really unhappy. This would be a good dress to wear to an occasion where I wanted to be mindful of every bite. I will wear it as a dress with thinner tights (I do not wear hose anymore). Probably a dress up dress.

This is the (first) Nine West dress I bought last year at Macy's. It is listed on their web site, now, as "new". It is not new, I bought it last year. It is heavy weight, sort of like wearing a sweatshirt that looks very put together. Really love it. It is A lined. My favorite sweater type dresses are A lined. I wear with tights.

I bought a blue Vera Wang sweater dress at Kohl's last year. Can't find a picture. But really love it. A lined, simple, great. I saw this one, new this year, I think and ordered it. It was on sale, I had a coupon, I had Kohl's cash, there was free shipping. Great price. It is nearly the same color blue, but a different dress. And I love it. If anyone happens to run into Vera, please ask her for some great chocolate brown dresses.

I ordered this one to try. Has not arrived yet. Not sure I will like Pointelle, but we will see.  

Thursday I was very smart. I was waiting for middle's GI phone nurse to call. I had made a long list, so I was efficient on phone, then while waiting for return call, worked cleaning pictures off drop box. So I filled pictures and added pictures to various posts (including this one).

More Halloween Costume Stories - what was the greatest Halloween Costume you ever wore?

Click to enlarge the image. These are from the October 2012 issue of Real Simple. Clicking on the Real Simple label at the bottom of this post, will bring up more of these stories. Clicking on the Halloween label will bring all things where I have mentioned Halloween. 

The story of the Halloween Costumes

We, my husband and I, are not big on Halloween. When middle left for college, we (husband, youngest, and I) decided to go dark on 10/31 each year. Outside lights off, no house lights showing from the front of the house. Really happy doing that. The doorbell is hard on me. We do not like giving kids candy. We do not like having candy in the house.

If we had grandkids, different story. If middle was home on 10/31, different story. Middle is big on Halloween. I am sure her kids will be too. Youngest would dress and participate if she had something to attend, just is not big on answering the door on Halloween.






The story of the costumes goes back many years.

I happened by a good quality costume rental place going out of business, many years ago. I bought cowgirl and Indian for middle.

Later, we found a 60's girl from a Goodwill. We added princess dresses. Penguin. Swiss Girl.





Then last spring I happened on a series of baby/toddler dinosaur costumes, in really great shape, like new, at different garage sales. Just a few dollars each.  I bought them. They washed beautifully.

This fall, looking for classroom stuff for middle, I happened on a house with five costumes hanging on a rack - dinosaur/dragon, bear, lion, tiger, frog. Toddler to younger grade school sizes. When I asked the garage sale guy he said they were gone, a woman had said she was coming back for all of them. I asked if she had paid. When he said "no", I left my name and number and said if she did not return, to call and I would be right over. She was a no show. When he called at 8:30pm, I went flying out the door with a hoodie over my pj's and youngest in tow. $6 each. Had never been worn. Really happy.

I found a Lady Bug at GoodWill a couple weeks ago. The costumes at GoodWill are usually very used looking. This one was like new.

I am picking ones where sweats/major clothes can be worn under them.

Over the weekend, our little 6 year old wore full clothes, and a raincoat under the tiger (same tiger costume pictured above) and was very happy. The costume showed, the raincoat was under, umbrella was over. Costume got a little wet, child stayed dry and happy.

When they got home, middle's boy set up a fan in the garage and put the tiger on the (pool duds) drying racks. He went out every so often and flipped the costume so all sides dried.







When middle saw all of them, each time I found them at sales, she was really pleased. The week of the baby/toddler dinosaurs, they were lined up, on hangers, in her closet drying. The week of the jungle animals, they were hanging in the kitchen.

Middle said - are you going to keep collecting?

I said yes.

She said -  so we will never have to do costumes? We will be able to say - go to grandma's and pick out what you would like?

Yep, that's the idea.

Very, very fun.