And Then It Was Time For Me To Say Goodbye

September 30, 2025 / Ally Bean / 272 Comments

The following may come as a shock to some, less so to others, but after bouncing around in the blogosphere since 2004 I’m ending The Spectacled Bean, an almost 15 year old blog*. I feel it is time for me, a free spirit, to move on.

I need a change of scenery.

Something simple and new.

Without a doubt I’ve enjoyed being here, sharing my flapdoodle & twaddle, chatting in the comments, learning about how other people live their lives, introducing bloggers to other bloggers. I appreciate the support and attention that you, my gentle readers and kind lurkers, have shown me.

Thank you. You are awesome.

But you know that, right?

Truth is I don’t know what I’ll do next online. Maybe another personal blog with a different name and focus? I’ve seen that done successfully. Maybe a Substack? They’re a thing now. Maybe I’ll join former bloggy friends who currently post exclusively on Instagram? That’s another possibility.

No need to rush into anything.

Something will pique my interest when the time is right**.

And with that I shall formally say goodbye knowing that this little corner of the blogosphere is the best. A smart place where ideas flow and solutions abound. A magical place where dreams unfold in real time. A fun place where cool people hang out.

Do good. Play nice. Take joy.

Later, kids.

* First post here.

** Leaning into one of my favorite sayings: when the student is ready the teacher will come.

[PLEASE NOTE: I’m aware that WP comments are glitchy again. I feel this is providential, a confirmation that it’s time for me to end this blog. It’s like WordPress is saying don’t let the door hit you on your backside on the way out. 🫤]

Every Leaf Is A Flower: 6 Links To Share As Autumn Begins In The Northern Hemisphere

September 23, 2025September 25, 2025 / Ally Bean / 207 Comments

I am nuts. I woke the other morning and the first thought that drifted into my mind was “crisp and clean, and no caffeine.” That’s a 1980s slogan for 7-Up. I haven’t had a 7-Up in years, nor have I seen any ads for it lately. So why was I thinking about it when I woke up? This is worrying me more than it should.

I am amused. I watched the Netflix TV series Nobody Wants This starring Kristen Bell and ~~Aidan~~ Adam Brody. It’s a predictable romantic comedy about an agnostic podcaster [Bell] and single rabbi [Brody] who fall in love despite their differences: families meddle, miscommunication happens, hilarity ensues. It is Bridget Loves Bernie updated for 2025. Funny, yes— but also filled with stereotypes.

Little me not smiling for the camera.

I am vindicated. I’ve never liked having my picture taken. As a child I considered a camera an intrusion into my little world, a way to slow my roll. As an adult in our selfie-obsessed world, I am an outlier who doesn’t take selfies. So imagine my joy when I read about a photographer who doesn’t ask girls to smile in their pictures. Not everyone wants to smile for the camera and don’t I know it.

I am empowered. As a kindhearted person who struggles with how to deal with some [shall we say?] willfully disagreeable people in daily life, I found this short YouTube video, Forgive Assholes | Have a Little Faith, inspiring.

The premise, as explained by Pastor Nadia Bolz-Weber, is based on the idea: “What you did is so not okay that I refuse to be connected to it anymore.” After acknowledging this, you get out your metaphorical bolt cutters and intentionally break the chain that tethers you to that person/situation. It’s wisdom with a skoosh of badass attitude.

One orange fish drawn by adult me.

I am tickled. Have you tried this online dealio where you draw a fish then make it swim? Doing so is fun and silly and the perfect diversion when daily news gets to be too much. Some people draw beautiful fish. I am not one of those people.

I am chuffed. In honor of the arrival of autumn I made a pie using this Easy Sweet Potato Pie recipe. It was outstanding, if’n I do say so myself. My change to the recipe: I didn’t use the rum substituting 1 Tablespoon freshly squeezed orange juice + 1/2 teaspoon orange extract. Because Cool Whip is the work of the devil [my hill to die on], I topped the pie with homemade whipped cream.

QUESTIONS OF THE DAY

If you drink soft drinks, which carbonated beverage is your favorite? Do you remember its advertising slogan from the 1980s?

As a child did you like posing for a picture? As an adult do you like having your photo taken, either by yourself or others?

Can you draw a better fish than the one I drew?

Where do you stand on the controversial issue of Whipped Cream versus Cool Whip? [There is a right answer.] What culinary issue is the hill you’re willing to die on?

+ • + • +

Do Tell! Answering Your “Why Do I” Questions + A List Of Fun Friday Bloggers

September 17, 2025 / Ally Bean / 214 Comments

Answering Your “Why Do I” Questions

• WHY DO I rarely shop at Walmart?

While you may assume I don’t shop there for some political reason because many people have strong opinions about Walmart, that is not the case.

The mundane reality is that for me to get to one I have to drive by many other grocery stores: 2 Krogers, 1 Fresh Thyme, 1 meijer, 1 ALDI, 1 Target, 1 Costco, and 1 WHOLE FOODS MARKET before I am there.

This drive takes about 20-25 minutes each way if traffic is with me. Therefore, and I’m sure you’ll understand my reasoning, in order to save time, gas, and swear less about idiot drivers, I avoid going to Walmart.

Makes sense, right?

~ • ~

• WHY DO I keep my blog post photos separate from the photos I share on Instagram?

I do this because I figure that the people who follow my blog do so for the wordy stories I tell, the wordy information I share, the wordy questions I answer. After all my tagline here is: Tales, Thoughts + Tribulations of a Free Spirit in Suburbia.

Meanwhile on Instagram [find me HERE] I have a different bunch of followers, although there is some overlap. I only publish photos there when one fits my stated tagline, my thesis statement so to speak: Life is in the details. Here’s what I spy with my bifocaled eye. Patterns. Colors. Words.

Different accounts, different goals, different followers.

~ • ~

• WHY DO I not write book reviews?

I majored in English Lit in undergrad. I did this because I knew I’d get to study abroad in England. I spent a term at the University of Exeter which means I accomplished my goal.

However, the downside of being an English major was that I had to write book reviews about the books I read. I HATED writing book reviews. Writing them filled me with dread because I didn’t feel like I could trust my own understanding of the book.

Even though I now trust my personal assessment of what I’ve read, I refuse to make the effort to write a book review because it reminds me of my collegiate angst.

So guess what? I don’t.

~ ~ • ~ ~

A List Of Fun Bloggers Who’ve Made Friday Their Own

What will you do with your one little spark of madness today?

Robin Williams asked that and it might be the best writing prompt ever. It frees you to embrace your own muse by doing your own independent thing, which is what the following bloggers do on Fridays.

Their posts are varied & fun— and I’m there for ’em.

Enjoy!

📌 Friday Fleurday – brought to you by Lynette at In the Net! – Pictures and Stories of Life

📌 Fridays Funnies – brought to you by Linda at Linda Lou’s Life

📌 40 things for Friday – brought to you by Laura at Riddle From The Middle

📌 TGIF – brought to you by Stephany at Stephany WRITES

📌 Happy Things Friday – brought to you by Elisabeth at The Optimistic Musings of a Pessimist

📌 Five for Friday – brought to you by NGS at The Time for Change

📌 Friday Randomness – brought to you by J at Thinking About…

~ ~ • ~ ~

QUESTIONS OF THE DAY

Where do you primarily shop for groceries?

Do you share the same photos in your blog as you put on Instagram? Why or why not?

If you have a blog do you write book reviews? If you’re on Goodreads do you put them there? On Amazon? Other?

Do you, like me, look forward to posts from bloggers who write using a self-created prompt on a specific day of the week?

Any more questions you’d like to ask me? I’ll probably answer them in the comments below.

~ ~ • ~ ~

What To Do, What To Do? A Simple Way To Make A Decision + Kate’s Five Things

June 3, 2025July 1, 2025 / Ally Bean / 239 Comments

I’ve heard it said that when you need to make a decision and you find yourself stumped about what to do, your answer will become clear by asking yourself: what would make my 7 y.o. self proud and my 80 y.o. self grateful?

Today I’m asking myself this proud/grateful question because on the surface of it I have nothing to write about. Not that I don’t do things, but what I do to stay busy isn’t necessarily interesting to anyone else, me thinks.

I mean, I got a new prescription for my glasses & I planted some zinnia seeds & I discovered that a snazzy new-to-the-area convenience store, Sheetz, carries my favorite difficult-to-find candy bar, Zagnut. Thus I am seeing clearly & hoping for some late summer blooms & grooving on yumminess.

I’m happy, my bliss is buzzing as they say, but I can’t help but pondering: shouldn’t there be more to this blog post than a few random glimpses into my daily life?

And you know what?

Both my 7 y.o. self and my 80 y.o. self say YES!

Thus I’m answering Kate’s Five Things questions. They are a weekly feature on House Call WITH KATE ARENDS who you may know from her blog Wit & Delight.

Her questions + my answers are as follows:

• When did you feel most at home this week?

Answer: in the kitchen while I made a new delicious recipe, Raspberry-Ricotta Cake. I enjoy baking and I enjoy bouncing around in the kitchen creating a mess while following, but also tweaking, recipes. [I added 1/4th teaspoon lemon extract to bring out the berry’s citrus flavor.]

• Where are you moving forward?

Answer: in the last few months I’ve come to appreciate how organized I’ve become since March 2020, the official beginning of the Covid-19 Pandemic. Not that we were living in chaos before but I’ve come to realize that I didn’t know what we had + where it was, and this was causing me to feel a low level of anxiety. Now I feel more in control, proactive, rather than at loose ends, reactive.

• Where are you stuck?

Answer: I’m not a person who enjoys learning about technology. Recently I moved from an iPhone 8 to an iPhone 16. I’ve become overwhelmed and bothered by its newness: too many different ways of doing what I used to know how to do + too many new computer-y fiddly bits, none of which I asked for, that I now must contend with.

• What did you consume that was regenerative?

Answer: I read The Cat Who Saved Books by Japanese author Sōsuke Natsukawa. It’s a short novel, a fable, about the positive power of books and the types of people who disabuse this power. The protagonist, a lonely teenage boy, follows a cat into different realms to [you guessed it] save books. It’s a charming tale, insightful, gently pointing out flaws in human nature.

• What question are you asking?

Answer: Does this matter? And if so, where is the story?