Hello NaBloPoMo: A Considered Approach To Participation In Said

November 1, 2012August 28, 2018 / Ally Bean / 18 Comments

“Good news of long-awaited event will soon arrive.”

~ first Chinese fortune cookie that I opened at lunch

“Relax and enjoy yourself.”

~ second Chinese fortune cookie that I opened at lunch

– • –

It’s that time of year again. The time of year when bloggers everywhere around the world decided whether or not to participate in NaBloPoMo.

This year, thanks to a change in my November travel plans, I’ll be doing NaBloPoMo again. But this year, unlike last year, I’m going to participate in a lighter way. A more “just throw something out there” sort of way.

Because while I enjoyed the amazing sense of accomplishment that came from posting every fricking day for one month, I did not enjoy the stress of focusing on the details of my life every fricking day for one month.

So, I’m going to use some quotes + photos + flapdoodle as filler. Kind of like those shiny glass gems that you put in the bottom of a hurricane lamp so that the candle inside it will stay in place & continue to burn, while not falling over & catching the house on fire.

That’s how I’m going to do NaBloPoMo this year. And you?

– • –

The “Ten Things You May Not Know About Me” Meme

October 25, 2012October 25, 2012 / Ally Bean / 16 Comments

I may not be the fastest when it comes to doing things, but I am one of the most sincere– which must count for something. Sorry that it took me so long, Polly….

Last June, Polly at caughtwriting gave me the Beautiful Blogger Award. I knew that I wanted to participate, but just didn’t feel motivated to think about it until this week.

So without further delay, and only a few months late, please allow me to:

thank Polly for thinking of me;
tell you, my gentle readers, what I’m supposed to tell you about myself; &
suggest that six of you bloggers out there do this meme, so that I might pass this award on to you, too.

###

1. I minored in Political Science in college.

2. I’m a fan of The Big Bang Theory. But then, who isn’t?

3. My current favorite lip color is Spicy Honey Almost Lipstick by Clinque.

4. I like Zagnut candy bars. [If you only click on one link here, this is the one to pick. Funny old commercial.]

5. I use our Kindle more for playing games than for reading books.

6. I don’t suffer liars easily. [Good information here about “the most reliable indicators of lying.”]

7. I don’t like the current trend of wearing lots of bracelets on your wrist.

8. I’ve managed to keep the Christmas poinsettia that I bought late last November alive all year.

9. I’m not now, nor have I ever been, a floozy.

10. I am learning how to make origami cranes. So far, not so good.

I Need New Eyeglasses

October 18, 2012October 19, 2012 / Ally Bean / 17 Comments

{ Via* }

What is a blog if not a place to ~~whine about~~ discuss something that one wants, but for various reasons, has yet to get? ‘Tis the essence of blogging, imho.

So, here’s the skinny. I am sitting here all squinty-eyed looking at my lovely computer screen because I need new glasses. I’ve known this since July when it dawned on me that I was leaning in very close to the computer screen to see what I’d just written.

Bad posture + squinting. Not good.

But here’s the thing: I can’t get my eyes checked by the doctor until the weather turns cold. Very cold. Freezing cold. Because I need all the nasty pollen and mold spores to die. So that my itchy, red, inflamed eyes will be able to accurately see all those letters on the eye chart.

The key word is accurately.

Past experience, and the eye doctor himself, have taught me that until the allergens that cause my eyes to be irritated disappear from our environment, there is no point for me to try to get my eyes checked. The results of the exam will be wrong.

That would make me not happy.

So instead of charging forward [term used in both physical movement sense + paying for something expensive with a credit card sense], I am sitting here perusing the intertubes looking at photos of eyeglass frames so that when the magic day arrives for me to get my blurry eyes checked, I will have some idea of what frames I might want to go with. The choice, as I see it [pun intended], is between rimless frames OR dark plastic frames.

Sarah Palin or Wolf Blitzer?

Yep, that’s what it comes down to: granny or grump? Continue with my rimless look or give the hipster look a try? Spend oodles on another pair of Kazou Kawasaki frames or spend less on a pair of Warby Parker frames? All the while knowing that no matter which style I choose, I’ll initially dislike them because that’s what I do after buying new glasses.

I fret.

• Bobbi Brown’s The New Tortoise Shell Collection, eye shadow specifically for women who wear glasses

• Makeup Tips for Women With Glasses, how-to photos to achieve natural yet polished look

• Makeup for Girls Who Wear Glasses, article geared toward women who wear bold frames

• Revenge Of The Nerds: Makeup Lessons For Gals With Glasses, video showing makeup applied to make your eyes pop

[*Original Source for image here. Just realized that I linked wrong above. Mea culpa.]

Odds & Ends

October 16, 2012 / Ally Bean / 21 Comments

:: ON SUNDAY I MADE a Ratty Apple Pie. That’s my name for an apple pie made from a mix of not so good-looking apples. My pie included 2 Melrose, 1 Granny Smith, 2 Red Delicious + 1 mystery apple [Gala?] that was in our frig. Then I put what my Betty Crocker cookbook describes as French crumb topping on the pie. The pie was yummy.

:: I READ AN ARTICLE in the Sunday paper about the increase in incivility in daily life. It rang true with me. I know that in the last few years I’ve encountered rude drivers, indifferent sales clerks, one incredibly hostile bank manager, a couple of ill-mannered [former] friends, and countless offensive individuals shrieking about politics.

My guess is that after watching violent movies, viewing rude tv shows & absorbing the hostility inherent in extremist political views these annoying people are so desensitized that they don’t know that they are, indeed, rude & uncivil. The sad part is that I’ve come to realize that sometimes being rude right back to an uncouth person is the only way to accomplish anything because these. people. do. not. get. kindness.

:: WE HAVE AN INFESTATION of icky miniature fly-like bugs in our house. The man who washes our windows was here yesterday. He told me that the bugs, which are coming into the house through the holes in the mesh of the screens, were from the Hackberry tree.

[Having never heard of a Hackberry tree before I googled it. Natch. I learned that it is sturdy; produces tiny dark-red colored berries for the wildlife to munch on; provides a safe haven for birds in the winter; was cultivated in 1636; & in pioneer days was used for making barrel hoops.]

As for getting rid of the icky little bugs– not going to happen until we have a hard frost, the window washer man tells me. Seems that the dumb little bugs are impervious to all types of removal– including my withering gaze and vacuuming the screens.