Life By Kristen

Go, and embrace your liberty. And see what wonderful things come of it. – Little Women

Archive for the category “Random”

18 Feb 2014

Cranky Old Man Rant

I’m just going to rant a little and sound like a cranky old man for a minute.

After about 10 inches or so of snow fell in my neck of the woods Saturday into Sunday, I went out on Sunday morning to dig out from the storm. Q was stuck elsewhere with his own snowed-in mess to deal with, so it left me with shovel and snow blower to get rid of the white stuff (which I’m sick of it, as I’m sure everyone else is too!)

The long and short of it is I couldn’t get the snow blower to start ( trying to start via pull cord almost dislocated my shoulder!), though I did later learn about an electric start option which I will definitely be employing next time if Q is not around to use his man strength with the pull cord. So I shoveled the driveway, the steps, etc. I’m not here to brag about that, but it was a great workout and isn’t what I want to complain out.

My complaint is “that when I was a kid” ( yes, I can’t believe I said that) we would go around asking people to shovel their driveways for a couple of bucks. OK maybe I didn’t offer, but other neighborhood kids did all the time. So as I’m sweating it out shoveling on Sunday, I’m hoping in the back of mind that some teenagers are going to come up and ask me. I would’ve walked to the bank down the street to get them cash if any came around. But alas, none. Where were the punky teenage boys who play kickball with a giant exercise ball at 10pm on a Saturday night and annoy the crap out of everyone in the area? Where was the kid I asked politely to pick up his trash from the street last summer so it wouldn’t end up in my yard? NOWHERE TO BE FOUND. Why not? Don’t these kids need a few bucks just like we did 15-20 years ago? I don’t get it.

I took my complaint to work with me this morning and my coworkers and I all agreed on the topic- no work ethic for this young generation ( ok, now I sound really old). But looking back on some kids ( between 18-22) who have volunteered or worked with us in the past few years, it is definitely clear to see that not many of them go the extra mile or push themselves beyond what is necessary. I know that is a huge generalization and that there are plenty of kids who would ask to do small chores for a few bucks, but they definitely don’t live in my neighborhood!

Anyway, rant over. I’m off to shovel. AGAIN.

P.S. Isn’t doing the same thing over and over with the same results the definition of insanity? Winter/shoveling/snow much clearly is that for me.

Posted in Random and tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment
12 Dec 2013
4 Comments

My Must Watch List of Christmas Movies

With the exception of number one ( which is one of my favorite movies of all time, Christmas or not), these are in random order.

1. White Christmas

2. Little Women ( Winona Ryder version is my favorite and the one I own, but I also like the one with Katharine Hepburn)

3. Muppet Christmas Carol 

4. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (“Lots of sap here!”)

5. Love Actually

6. It’s A Wonderful Life

7. Miracle on 34th Street ( the original with Natalie Wood and Maureen O’Hara, though the newer version with Dylan McDermott doesn’t completely suck)

8. Christmas Story ( but only when watched on the marathon on Christmas Eve to Christmas Day)

9. Charlie Brown Christmas

10. Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer ( clay mation version of course!)

 

What are some of yours?

 

Posted in Random and tagged ,
31 Oct 2013
1 Comment

Blogging Everyday Recap

When I set out to blog everyday in October ( because November is super busy for me, I made my own NaBlogPoMo), I think part of me thought I wouldn’t be able to do it, even though I laid out an organized posting calendar with random topics and ideas. So I’m happy that I was able to complete the task 100%.

It was definitely great to recommit myself to the blog and think about what I want to posting on here. And it was difficult for sure to come up with new topics for every single day and to plan ahead for the weekends, but I definitely fall back in love with the scheduled post.

Many sincere thanks for your comments and kind words- it’s always sort of strange to write things and then hear nothing but crickets, especially when more established bloggers and sites get lots of comments everyday.

Before I committed to blogging every day this month, I definitely was considering shutting down the blog not just because I wasn’t feeling the creative spark of writing, but also because I felt the need to keep so much of my life private and not broadcast every single thing that has been going on. I’ve learned this month that there is a way to write about myself and my life while leaving a lot of the other stuff out. Writing everyday made me remember how much I love doing it, how much I have to do more of it because as with exercise it’s a muscle that has to be maintained and without out, you lose its strength.

I’ve decided to keep the blog going for now and keep to a fairly regular posting schedule of at least once or twice a week, though I will warn now that my November is filled with conferences, family, and a pretty packed work schedule that may leave me a bit brain tired more often than not. But I like having my own little space in the interwebs and will maintain it as I can, realizing that I’m blogging for myself and to be a part of a community and not compare myself to others. I’m not trying to get a book deal from the blog (pipe dream for sure), I’m just trying to have a spot where I can vent, share, comment, and explore life and all its musings.

Onward to November, the best month of the year!

And WOOOOHOOOO for the Boston Red Sox!

Posted in Random and tagged
21 Oct 2013

Monday Musings

My brain can’t seem to organize enough into a clear thought process to write a coherent, thought provoking or interesting post today, despite several attempts! I’ll blame it on Monday.

It’s going to be chilly and cold here in MA/RI beginning Wednesday. So today I’m celebrating the last of the 60 degree temp range with probably the last bare legged day of the year. This isn’t something I ‘celebrate’ as much as realize that getting dressed in the morning just had 3 minutes added to prep time, as well as the additional need to be on top of laundry and matched socks for the foreseeable future.

This weekend there was a parade in my town celebrating the 40th year of the Musictown Festival which is a big celebration of the music program in the town, which used to be this amazing thing. I’m sure the program still is great, but the marching band ( of which I was a member on the color guard/rifle squad) was so much smaller than when I was in it. It was such an odd thing to be watching the parade as an adult, especially since I marched in it pretty much my entire childhood as a Girl Scout and then in my teen years in the band.

With the chilly weather coming, I cannot wait for the first cold, rainy Sunday where I don’t do much but cook, watch movies, and read. I love having a day every now and again where you wake up and change from sleeping PJs to comfy lounge clothes and maybe never step outside all day. There’s a t shirt I’ve seen on Pinterest a few times- coffee, books, and rain– which pretty much describes one of my favorite kinds of days.

I was sick last week and into the weekend, even taking a half sick day last Wednesday, which is super rare for me. I did sort of a Hail Mary with the medication I was taking to help with the cold- I took zinc pills after reading it helps alleviate symptoms and cut cold duration in half. I definitely think they helped, but I’m wondering if it was more mind over matter in this.

If you have Netflix, watch the BBC show Luther with Idris Elba. It’s got some heavy stuff and there were more than a few scenes that were a bit graphic for me, but it’s an awesome show. Highly, highly recommend.

I

 

 

Posted in Random | Leave a comment
20 Oct 2013
3 Comments

Death of Google Reader

I, like millions of others, am still very sad/mad about the death of Google Reader. Mostly because I find that I’m not reading/engaging with blogs anywhere near as much now as I was before with Reader. Anyone else find this too?

I switched both to The Old Reader and feedly when Reader died back in June. After a few hiccups with The Old Reader, I’ve stuck with feedly. I’m not super in love, but it does it purpose ( for the most part).

I was, like every other internet thing, late to the blogging reading world ( and even later to the ‘being a blogger’ world). Google Reader was my place where I was able to organize blogs I read for work, fun, and to follow people I was finding online. It opened my world up to new museums, new people who changed my life, and so many delicious ( and some not!) recipes.

I read blogs throughout the day, but they are a huge part of my morning routine both during the week and on the weekends. They have been my constant companion during work lunchtimes at my desk. When I received my iPad for Christmas, blog reading became even more fun and accessible.

All of that hasn’t changed for me now that Reader is gone. I still love blogs, but I find I’m not reading as many of them as in the past, missing a lot of posts by some of my favorite bloggers, and definitely not engaging/commenting as much as I used to. Some of it I think is because of feedly’s format and how easy it is to scan the blog articles by title without seeing more of the post and pictures. I’ve also stopped following some food related blogs because the content is often duplicated on Pinterest, the spot I’ve designated for organizing my online brain. In general though, feedly and some of the other blog reading aggregators just don’t feel as useful, good, or fun as Reader. Change is hard and when it’s your favorite online tool that goes away, it’s tough to throw yourself into the new thing in the same way.

Anyone else feel like their blog reading/experiencing has changed since the death of Google Reader?

Posted in Random and tagged , ,
12 Oct 2013

Lately

Lately I’m loving…

– The way the sun looks right before sunset

– The changing leaves.

– my short hair that lets me stay in bed ten extra minutes in the morning because it doesn’t need long to style after my shower.

– The abundance of native vegetables in my kitchen. This weekend I’m cooking up the last batch of late season tomatoes, some yummy spaghetti squash, green beans, and local apples.

– The feeling of getting rid of things from the house. For a single gal living on her own, I’m equally ashamed and amazed at the amount of THINGS in the house.

– The return of nightly hot tea or hot chocolate.

– Audio books

– The League ( a show I never thought I’d like, but it’s hysterical and we’ve been binge watching on Netflix)

– The end of another great season at work and the beginning of my busy time in the off season. It’s nice to have down time to work on other projects, but I miss the busy work feeling.

– I’m also loving the not busy-ness of my out of work life. It’s such a huge contrast to how my life was when I was married and it’s so clear to me that part of my uncomfortable nature in that relationship was that the running around, always having plans and going places thing is definitely not my cup of tea. I’m so happy to be happy with my calm, quiet life.

Posted in Random | Leave a comment
05 Oct 2013
2 Comments

No One Tells You v1

A few of my friends & I get a kick out of listing the random things of adulthood no one tells you about when you’re 16 and dying to be adult.

Here are a few- would love to hear contributions from you too!

  • You’re going to spend a significant portion of your precious weekend time doing needed adult things like errands and cleaning.
  • And the further irony is that most of these places are open only until noon and all hopes for a Saturday spent sleeping in gone.
  • You get heartburn from raw red onions ( or maybe just me!)
  • You get excited by buy one, get one free chicken at the supermarket ( oh, just me again?)
  • Every now and again you say something that your parents ( or grandparents say) and you can’t believe what just came out of your mouth.
  • Staying in becomes more exciting than going out ( um bottle of wine in PJs versus crowded bar- DUH!)

 

Posted in Random
13 Aug 2013
2 Comments

Pinterest Posting

I have a strange relationship with Pinterest ( is it weird to even call it a relationship?) I’ve been on the site since 2010 and honestly use it so much that I forget what I used to do to organize random stuff on the internet ( and what I used to do when procrastinating haha).

For me, Pinterest is a place to organize recipes, ideas for the house, inspiration for clothes, etc. I have boards for gift ideas, things to look at when I need a pick me up, and so on. I love that there is one spot on the internet where I can go for meal ideas and Christmas gifts. Before Pinterest, I would save links, email recipes, print them out for a kitchen binder– and almost never make/use any of it.  I love that I find random things that I would not otherwise, especially new blogs. I frequently use it for work research too because there are a lot of really great vintage clothing boards and a bunch of museums use it too to showcase their collections, exhibits, and programs.

The complicated/strange aspect of the relationship comes with the amount of pinning versus the amount of DOING/GOING/SEEING from pins. Last year I tried to do/make/see something from Pinterest on a weekly basis and I was somewhat successful with that, in particular with meals ( it’s been hugely helpful in my successful meal planning). I have also made or purchased items from my Christmas gifts idea board two years in a row now.

But that’s pretty much been it. I have so much stuff on my boards that I will never buy or use, but I persist in my pinning pretty pictures and ideas. There has been a bunch written on the internets about how Pinterest is just feeding the consumer culture and has people making boards for the life they wish they had, instead of living the life they want and currently have. I definitely see aspects of that- I have an entire board of just gorgeous shoes, another for handbags, another for jewelry- many of these are WAY out of my price range, but I still pin them. Why? I think it mainly is about having an appreciation of these things/images/ideas, but also because I think collecting and organizing pins is an interesting way to think about life and what we want. Even though I’ll probably never own a pair of amazing shoes that cost $500 ( and really, why would I!?), I appreciate the beauty of them and want to see that frequently.

With this all in mind, I spend a good portion of time in the past few weeks ( I’ve been procrastinating about a lot lately haha), reorganizing my Pinterest boards to work for the life I have now. I went through all the food related pins and organized them by how I cook and plan for meals ( looking by ingredient or course), took out duplicates and things I would never make, and really tried to create the boards that I will use in life. Of course I’ll continue to pin cute photos of animals and gorgeous earrings, but I’m definitely trying to use it as a tool for life instead of just being the place where I lust after all the things I don’t — and won’t ever have. And anyway, I love my Sunday morning with coffee and looking at pretty pictures and ideas too much to give it up!

Do you use Pinterest? Do you find it helpful? Are you over it and onto something new?

 

Posted in Random and tagged
01 Jul 2013
4 Comments

Random Musing- Health, Body, Life

I’ve been struggling to write lately- not just on here, but with some work projects, my journal. I’d like to blame it on the heat and humidity, and maybe that’s part of it because the weather (especially where I am in Southern New England) just seems to want to make me lay around and read, watch movies, and eat popsicles.

I use that excuse of it being too hot, or too cold, or rainy, etc. for exercising too, but as I was looking at my calendar with this new month, I realize I have  my yearly physical coming up soon. Unless I want to hear the yearly lament from my doctor about weight, cholestorol, and blood pressure, I guess I better get my act in gear.

And there it is again– this thing I do ALL. THE.TIME. Make excuses, say I’m going to do something, and then the action is JUST NOT THERE. Or it lasts for a week. Some people could say that I don’t do the action because I don’t really want the goal/result ( substantial writing that leads to something, losing weight/getting in shape, etc.) Maybe that’s partly true. Part of the weight debate is that with the exception of blood pressure that is sometimes a bit high ( as in maybe once a year and often caused by a doctor who has kept me waiting over 30 minutes) and some bits that are far more soft than they were 2 years ago, I’m not in BAD health. I don’t eat junk food except for a weekend indulgence in a piece of cake or ice cream; I don’t drink soda or eat a lot of processed anything, and my diet consists greatly of fruits and veggies, seafood, and lots of water. But when it comes down to it, I just don’t move enough.

So what am I afraid of? Working hard? Making lifestyle changes? Actually applying myself to something? I don’t think it’s the last one because with so many things in my life, I make a decision and go with it ( going to grad school, my career, getting a divorce, etc.)

I don’t want to lose weight for anyone but me and my health/future so it’s not like I feel the pressure from people ( other than my judgy doctor) and honestly, I’m not unhappy with how I look. I realize the cruves are there for many reasons ( genetics being the biggest), but also  because my body is at the age where it’s thinking about babies ( which is good since I HAVE THE FEVER). It really comes down to the feeling good part of life– the days I walk or exert myself in some way, I sleep better and feel less blah about life. Maybe I’ve given myself the excuse of heat, exhaustion, or just plain not in the mood, but I’m also denying myself the thing I know will make me feel better and overcome those three things too. The same could be said for writing, or painting, or cooking more ( though honestly, cooking in the heat is one of my least fav things ever).

I’m not going to make some empty promise or set some July intention to walk four times a week. I’m not going to say I’m going to be more mindful of food or being active. I’m just putting it out there to float out of my head and into the world to germinate as a thing that I’m musing about, with the hope that doing it will bring something on my part.

Posted in Random and tagged ,
04 Jun 2013
1 Comment

5 Things I Don’t Ever Want To Do

Inspired by these two ladies!

1. Help someone with massive wound(s) and blood loss– and with my weak stomach, I’m pretty sure in a bloody crisis you don’t want me around either.

2. Have to sit for hours in wet shoes, socks, or jeans.

3. Get up super early for Black Friday shopping deals- nothing is so cheap or  worth it to wait outside on a cold November morning and have to fight people for it.

4. Times Square on New Year’s Eve- not a single ounce of interest in this, plus the amount of crowds and people making a big deal over a non, anti-climatic event would make me ring in the New Year with nothing but snarky annoyance and criticism.

5. Sky dive: I’m sorry, but I just don’t enjoy the feeling of my stomach being in my throat. And see above about weak stomach.

Posted in Random

Post Navigation

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →