Posted by Karen of Scottsdale on February 8th, 2010 in family
One of my beloved nieces is turning 13 this week. So I ask myself, would I want to be 13 again? No way! I have no fond memories of that year. I was in eighth grade and I did not like anything about myself or about school. I’m not sure what happened when I was 13, but I think that’s when I got my ears pierced. The only reason I got my ears pierced was so people would know I was a girl. Yes, 13 was not a good year.
For my niece, however, I think she’s going to have a great year. She’s intelligent and pretty and talented athletically. She’s also a very nice young woman who is fun to be around. I wonder what she would like for her birthday? I know she enjoys texting all her friends. A thermal printer like the tm-t88iv would come in handy for printing out all those text messages to put in her scrapbook. Does anyone do scrapbook anymore?
Perhaps I should ponder this more.
Posted by Karen of Scottsdale on February 4th, 2010 in entertainment
Just the other day I realized that we’ve had our HDTV for over a year now. The quality of the picture is so much better than what we used to hare, even though I was happy with our old TV. Our TV cabinet was designed for an old-style television, but we’re still using it with the new widescreen. Yesterday, with the help of a friend, we made some adjustments to our TV viewing. To make it better and to save a little money, we used a couple of old cinderblocks from the backyard to raise the TV at a better level for our viewing. Last night I enjoyed watching TV at its new height. Tonight I’m looking forward to watching Fringe and CSI: Las Vegas.
Posted by Karen of Scottsdale on January 23rd, 2010 in food critic, gimp girl life
For over a month I’ve been dealing with major dental issues. The last couple of weeks it’s gotten worse to the point where I can only eat mushy food. Chewing on either side of my mouth is just not possible because of molars that need root canals. Dental work is very expensive and so I am having to put it on hold until I can figure out how to pay for it. Weekly trips to the grocery store have become a game of looking for things to eat that don’t require chewing. Because it’s difficult to eat I don’t need any help with weight loss supplements. I want something very filling and nutritious but it’s difficult to find.
My favorite things to eat these days include mashed potatoes, French onion soup, refried beans, Hormel tamales in a can, avocados, sweet potatoes, pumpkin pie, spinach artichoke dip, chocolate pudding, yogurt and Naked Juice protein drinks.
I hope one day soon I can go back to eating regular food, especially raw vegetables and meat.
Posted by Karen of Scottsdale on January 23rd, 2010 in life in Scottsdale, life with Norm, weather reports
This week we saw the gamut of weather with lots of rain, wind and now very cold temperatures. I live in the southwest because I don’t like cold weather, so days when it’s rather cold and windy I don’t enjoy going out. (Don’t even ask what the temperature was, it doesn’t matter, it just feels cold to me.) Yesterday we had errands to do and so I braved the cold wind. Today however I decided that Norm could handle things on his own at the store. He was kind enough to bring me hot chocolate from Starbucks. I wonder if that counts as thermogenic fat burners? Probably not, but one can always convince themselves of anything.
Posted by Karen of Scottsdale on January 23rd, 2010 in faith
As I’ve said before we had some wicked weather this week. Most of the time it was very gray, overcast and rather gloomy outside. Kind of like living in Seattle. Sunny days are my preferred type of weather and when it gets gloomy for days on end I begin to feel like I need some anxiety depression treatment. Days when I feel sorry for myself or very down in the dumps are few and far between for me. I learned many years ago that those days may come occasionally, but the secret is to find joy. God has given me a joyful spirit. On days when I feel low I put on music and I sing. It’s not long before God lifts my spirits and those feelings of depression or even anxiety are gone. I know some people struggle with anxiety and depression on a regular basis that had some sort of a biochemical connection. I think even they can benefit from peaceful music and surroundings. It’s good to be around what makes you happiest. I guess that’s my not so secret.
Posted by Karen of Scottsdale on January 23rd, 2010 in miscellaneous stuff
One of my friends was telling me about her son who’s been looking for a job for 10 months. Finally he found one and he’s so excited because he’s making more money than he’s ever made before. He used to be in middle management and I think he was willing to take anything that came along like store clerk or sales jobs. Instead he’s doing factory work where she puts components together for computer circuit boards. It’s mindless work that he really enjoys it because he’s free to listen to books on tape all day long. What a great way for college kid to continue his education and make money at the same time.
Posted by Karen of Scottsdale on January 21st, 2010 in high-tech stuff
Last weekend I was in the mood to play games but there was no one around to play with, so I went online looking for computer games to play. I’m cheap so I only play the free ones, but that means you have to put up with advertisements. Sometimes you’ll see ads for things like Taco Bell or a cell phone company like Verizon wireless or for cosmetics like murad reviews. Usually I just ignore them but occasionally they can be quite creative and eye-catching. What’s really funny is when the ads are more interesting than the game you’re playing. Maybe some of those game companies should hire the people who designed the online advertising.
Posted by Karen of Scottsdale on January 21st, 2010 in entertainment
Last night I was watching mindless television. What Not to Wear was on and they were helping an overweight frumpy looking cello player from the Bronx learn how to dress appropriately. As is the case with most people who have dealt with being overweight, she never felt that she was beautiful enough to bother dressing nicely. That’s just sad. Anyhow, she felt being overweight made it impossible for her to find attractive clothing. However, the hosts of the show encouraged her to forget about her weight and focus on making the most of her features by wearing the right kind of clothing. It was amazing to see the fast weight loss that occurred when she wore the right kind of jackets, blouses and skirts that accentuated her features. Wearing the right clothes definitely made her look attractive.
