Sunday, March 4, 2012

This, That and The Other

Posts have been a bit sparse lately, mostly because life is plugging along pretty much as it always does and nothing much has inspired me to write.  Instead, here's a roundup of the minor things that are bouncing around in my head:

Nook:  Loving it!  I have become one of those annoying people who is never seen without an electronic gadget in hand - but rather than a smart-phone, it's a Nook.  I use it for everything - grocery list, calender, notes on books, phone #/addresses, entertainment (Words With Friends - user name mrschupa - let's play), email, Twitter . . . oh, and I can read books on it, too!  It has made time on the treadmill much less torturous.  The convenience of purchasing books with a touch is, perhaps, a bit TOO convenient, but I've managed to keep myself under control for the most part.  I recently signed up to review mystery books for Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tours, and the ease of receiving the book via an e-mail within minutes of scheduling the review is far preferable to waiting for a hard copy to arrive and then rushing to read. Naturally, a few weeks after I bought mine, B&N dropped the price by $50 and the tablet is now available for the same price I paid for the Nook Color.  I'm told the only real difference is speed, so I'm good where I am.  

Nutrisystem:  Speaking of time on the treadmill.  We are almost to the two month mark in our Nutrisystem journey and still doing well.  That is amazing for me - who has never stuck to a weight loss plan for more than three days. I'm not a chronic weigher - in fact I don't own a scale - so I'm not sure of the current number, but I do know I can breath and button my pants at the same time, and a couple jackets that wouldn't close are now at least closer.  I'm not going to carry on about the details, but if anyone has questions about the Nutrisystem program, I would be glad to give answers, information, or encouragement via e-mail (hcl_tami@yahoo.com) or Twitter (@mrschupa).

American Idol:  Are you an Idol watcher?  I'm not a fan of the audition shows - too much time spent on backstory and drama, and I HATE that they let applicants who obviously can't sing get through to the judges so we can laugh at them (can you say "schadenfreude" ?*) - but now that we're down to the Top 13, I'm intending to write a short weekly post about the competition and my favorites.  So far, I'm rooting for Shannon - 16-year-old girl with a great big voice, who sang "Go Light Your World" by Kathy Tricolli.  That has been a favorite of mine for many years and I thought she was brave to choose an older, less known song, and one with a Christian message.

Crafts:  I have always been a crafter, beginning when my mom taught me to embroider many, many years ago.  She had multiple pictures on all of her tea-towels to supply me with projects.  I later moved on to cross-stitch and did some pretty major projects - including Christmas stockings for each of our kids and for Dave.  My plan was to continue that tradition with the grandchildren. I purchased a kit when Amy was expecting her first, but then our little angel, Tali, was stillborn just two weeks before her due date.  Amy asked me to complete the stocking as a keepsake, but I just couldn't get myself to work on that one, so I chucked it and purchased a kit featuring adorable angels.  It's still sitting in the package.  I purchased two more kits when the boys came along, and Treyvin's is approximately 3/4 finished.  Zerrik's is out of the bag, thread colors separated and a half-a-dozen lonely stitches taken, but I just don't enjoy it any more.  A large part of my frustration with it is eye-sight, and carpal tunnel doesn't help.  Anyway, I made the announcement this past December that after seven years of taking a few stitches between September and Christmas, I'm giving up.  I'm assuming (hoping) that there will be more grandchildren down the road and it's obviously a tradition I just can't keep up with.

     I took up quilting eleven or twelve years ago, and have enjoyed making a few simple projects.  When I went back to work full-time in 2005, I set the quilting aside and haven't touched it again until yesterday.  I still love quilting and want to continue, but it is a high dollar craft so I'm looking for other projects to fill some time and creative energy without emptying the pocketbook.  I've tried scrapbooking, but that also runs into money and it's just not my thing.  I am ordering a couple felt sewing projects - Christmas ornaments - to see how I like that.  Anyone have other suggestions?  I would really love to hear what you enjoy creating.


Gardening:  I'm looking forward to our second attempt at raising a garden.  Last year had mixed results, but we learned a lot so this year will be better.  In fact, as soon as I finish this post, and Dave wakes up from his nap, we're going to get our tomato and pepper plants started indoors.  It's about eight weeks to the average last-frost date in our area, so it's time to get things sprouting so they'll be ready to go in the ground in May.  Do you have gardening plans?

That's a roundup of life at Green Acres.  Now you see why I haven't been inspired to write much lately.  What's going on in our world?

* Schadenfreude - A malicious satisfaction obtained from the misfortunes of others.

3 comments:

  1. When I'm reading something on my Kindle, I carry that thing around like a preacher with their Bible. It's such a great thing but I have been making myself read print books lately too.
    I never watch Idol or X Factor or the like. I can't stand seeing people making fools of themselves just to be on TV. (Though Teen Mom is oddly fascinating to me.)

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  2. I've been on the fence about a Nook for years. I really only thought of it as a very expensive was to read books and perhaps newspapers. I had NO idea they were capable of doing all of those other things, too! That's it - a Nook has now become my must-have Christmas present. If my husband complains, just know that I'm completely blaming you, Tami!

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  3. That's great that the Nook is your new best friend! ; )

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