How Do You Look To Others?

My looks aren’t mine. I could tell you I look like Jacquelyn Smith with blond hair or Diane Sawyer with short hair or Jamie Lee Curtis with better movie choices, but my looks depend on how others see me. Technically, I look like the combination of my mother’s egg and my father’s sperm; but because they didn’t look like Janet Leigh and Tony Curtis, that’s not much help. I have a standard poodle. If people look like their dogs, I look like I’m having a good hair... Read more »

Does Every Litter Bit Hurt?

PAT is my personal system for handling litter. No, not the stuff that’s thoughtlessly strewn along streets and highways and is dropped in parks and on beaches. PAT, which stands for Put Away Things, is for the litter in my house. PAT is what keeps casual living from turning into chaos. Dirty dishes in the sink, the morning newspaper in sections across the sectional sofa, laundry that didn’t make it into the washing machine - that’s some of my litter. My husband’s litter... Read more »

How Old Is Your Car In People Years?

I’m not in the fast lane. What’s in and what’s on the road pass me by. My car is thirty-eight years old. In people years that’s five hundred ninety. I’ve had my car for twenty of its thirty-eight years. In DMV years twenty is at least four times I haven’t had to register a new car. A new car starts depreciating as soon as it leaves the dealership. My car’s appreciating, which I appreciate - especially as I didn’t know how expensive it was going to... Read more »

Who’d Like Four Rats?

Once, in the name of science, I let my younger son buy four rats. The rats were for a science project and he agreed to take them back to the pet store IMMEDIATELY after the project was finished. In spite of this agreement, I wanted to return the rats the next day - or as soon as I caught them. Finally I did; and in spite of looking like I’d finished last in the rat race, I felt sorry for them. I told them it could be worse. They could have been breakfast for a boa constrictor. The project’s... Read more »

Oh No! Help Find The Way

Contacts are available for daily wear or extended wear. Well, what does this mean? Extended lenses can be worn from two to four weeks due to the material they are made of. These contact lenses allows more oxygen to reach the cornea of the eye, where as soft contact lens are made of materials that incorporate water. Extended lenses are soften by water and this makes them to be more flexible allowing more oxygen to reach the cornea of the eye. Most individual’s choose to wear their extended contact... Read more »

What Couldn’t You Do Without?

Post-its - what would I do without post-its? The older I get, the more I need them. Although they come in a variety of shapes, sizes and colors, the basic, yellow square covers everything for me - literally. Post-its are on the refrigerator, of course; but they can also be found on my computer, the TV, my bathroom mirror, my husband’s calendar and the front door - inside and outside. Frankly, there are enough post-its posted in my house to qualify my decor as post modern. The post-its on... Read more »

Have You Found A Penny Recently?

If finding a penny is lucky, I must be luckier. I found a quarter and was lucky all day - especially when I didn’t hurt my back bending over to pick it up. Traffic lights turned green for me, parking spaces appeared where I wanted them and the police car with the blaring siren that was quickly approaching me on the freeway sped past me. If it had been my husband who found the quarter, he wouldn’t have had to finally admit we were ” a little off course” and have to ask for... Read more »

Does It Have Your Stamp Of Approval?

Two cents here - three cents there - and up goes the cost of U.S. postage. Some of the increased revenue pays for change of address cards, which are free at the post office. When we moved, I sent these cards to friends and relatives I couldn’t notify by e-mail. Yes, Virginia, there are people who don’t believe in e-mail. That I’m sure about. What I’m not sure about is the Postal Service itself. On many occasions I’ve waited so long for an expected letter I’ve... Read more »

You Do Not Need Stain Remover To Remove Stains From Carpet

Sometimes removing stains is not as complicated as most professional carpet cleaning companies would like you to think. Before you run out and buy a really expensive stain remover or hire a professional carpet cleaner. Try this simple process to remove stains and you just might be pleasantly surprised and at a much lower cost. The first thing to do if you have a spill of liquid is to get a soft white cloth, even better if it is cotton and blot it dry. Do not rub and scrub as this will just embed... Read more »

Expecting The Unexpected?

The best thing about unexpected guests - yes, there is a best thing - is that you have no expectations. Until a few years ago I thought a phone call announcing the imminent arrival of an unexpected guest qualified as an obscene phone call. Now I can be ready in minutes. First, I postpone the arrival of the guest until after dark. Then the dirt on the windows won’t show. Second, because dust is less noticeable on light furniture, I dust only the few dark pieces we still have. If I know the... Read more »