So you wear a uniform?

While some would say the uniform for a blogger is pajamas, which to be honest is probably my usual attire when I am able to work from home, many of you have to wear some sort of uniform as a part of your employment. A favorite brand for many is cherokee workwear, it's marketed for it's price and it's durability. They have a variety of uniform items, including the popular scrub wear.

The stone of your birth

I've always been a fan of birthstone jewelry, not necessarily my birthstone though, my second engagement/wedding set was the birthstone of that particular husband instead of a diamond. In part because the size of the stone was much cheaper in an amethyst than a diamond, but also because it seemed like a romantic thing to do at the time. My birthstone is the aquamarine, thankfully I'm a fan of blue, one of my daughters hates green, as luck of the month would have it, her birthstone is a green gem. However, for those who love the stone of their birth, there are many different jewelry creations you can show it off in.

I'd inhale

Cigars are still popular with some of those I know, including several friends who are women. Yet as a decade long cigarette smoker, the few times I've tried a cigar I've found it difficult to resist the years of the inhaling reflex. Even something as smooth as a camacho triple maduro is not meant to be inhaled. Though ironically some of those I know who smoke cigars used to smoke cigarettes and managed to give those up, yet still enjoy an occasional cigar. Perhaps it would take more time and a bit more practice.

:-)

On labeling

Most times labeling is not something that is supported in our society, yet when it comes to paying attention to clothing lines, that is an area where some in our society place a high value -- an example those who cherish blac label clothing -- The virtues of placing importance on clothing labels is also one that creates discussion. Yet no matter your opinion on it, it is a part of a free market society and marketing strategies are designed to try to enhance the desire related to owning a particular label.

Say I love you with flowers

You can right now from your computer tell someone you love them, you are thinking of them, you are sorry or just because you want to brighten their day -- order flowers. Websites like proflower.com make it easy to pick the exact type of flower, vase, or other specialty arrangement you want. I've actually used them to send flowers to my oldest daughter and the flowers that arrive look like the ones pictured ... It's that simple.

Save when you can...

It never ceases to amaze me when I see friends go out and buy something expensive without doing any type of research or price checking. It's their money to do with what they want, but just a few moments of checking what the Best Buy is online or what stores might have a particular item, like a computer or a flat screen television on sale, could save them hundreds of dollars. That could be spent on something else...Or perhaps even saved...

Scrubs is really the wrong word...

The word "scrubs" has been given a negative connotation when used to reference a person. Yet the concept of surgical scrub clothing is far from being "scrubby" -- the professionally designed wear for doctors, nurses and other health care professionals has gone main stream outside of the medical facility because it's comfortable.

The days of the green scrub pants may still exist in some medical settings, but for the most part, in the outside world of consumer wear, there are bright colors and a variety of patterns.

Beyond comfort there is cost, cheap scrubs can be found, at times even with holiday themes for those of you looking for a bit of pizazz with your scrub wear. My personal favorite has bats on it. I love October since it's the one month I can wear them out of the house without getting strange looks.

:-)

New table...new lighting

Yesterday we were given a new dining room set, so I was finally able to get rid of my table that had become a favorite item for our cats to sharpen their claws on. The two worst culprits are now in kitty heaven so the chances of this newer table not being destroyed is good. The new look has made me start looking at new lighting, I like some of the offerings by Kichler lighting though, the current lighting includes a ceiling fan and that is a feature I'd like to keep since our home does not have air conditioning.

Approaching the birthday season

Most of my families birthdays happen during the Fall and then in the Spring, which makes it a challenge at times to figure out what to buy for them without turning to the gift card solution. I like personalized gifts since it makes it more difficult for sibling A to "borrow" something from sibling B and then claim it was theirs to begin with. It's also handy in avoiding situations where you buy the same item for more than one child, mine were prone to breaking something then claiming it was the other child's item that was broken. I used to use a labeling gun, but they figured out how to get around that...

Pudding versus fruit....

There are times when feeding this family of mine, I think I should get some type of a wholesaler discount when it comes to the volume of food they consume. I've also noticed though that things that are healthier cost more. Recent example? Pudding versus fruit. They are fans of individual serve portions, evidently the mere aspect of having to put something into a bowl is too much for them. Four pudding cups is a dollar, four cups of diced pears, $1.68 for the store brand, $2.00 for the name brand. I bought an equal number of pudding cups and selected fruit cups on Friday. Today? Three pudding cups remain, lots of fruit...Though the strawberry applesauce seemed to be a popular fruit selection.

Christmas shopping in August?

I shook my head when I read about the promotion of christmas apparel deals taking place right now. I realize some do have this whole "Christmas in July" attitude and you can probably get some really good deals on gifts if you shop early. However...I am a last minute type shopper who resists Christmas and Christmas shopping until I absolutely must acknowledge it needs to be done. For those of you who are more fiscally responsible? Happy shopping...

:-)

The mattress mangle...

Evidently when our house was built, people did not have anything other than twin or full size beds, it is not humanely possible to get a king or even a queen size bed mattress upstairs or into the basement. It is possible depending on the type of queen size mattress to mangle it into what we've called the "taco bend" to get it upstairs, but it's not possible to have a queen sized box spring upstairs. Thankfully the explosion of access to platform beds has made that not a huge issue. We spent the first several months with just our queen size mattress on the floor until we found a reasonably priced platform bed.

With sadness I put away the red boots...

While I love summer and the warmer weather (as long as it's not too warm) the downside for the summer months is my favorite pair of red suede boots is no longer appropriate or functional for regular wearing. I've managed to keep the same pair in good shape for three winters and falls now, in part because I love them and despite looking each year for a possible replacement, I've yet to find a pair that comes close to them. Here's hoping that next year will be a successful year four...

Why I'd want an Xbox

I'm not into gaming anymore, my days of playing video games beyond having fun on some of the Facebook games is over but one of the things I really like about the xbox 360 that my youngest daughter and her boyfriend have is it connects to the internet, so they can watch Netflix movies on their television in their room as opposed to how I have to watch it in my room, on the computer. Granted you can buy boxes to hook up to the tv, but realistically the Xbox is more affordable and if I ever had the desire to kill a few zombies to relieve the stress of the day? I could do both...

:-)

My friend named Zed...

I don't know why but recently I've had to deal with acne again, perhaps menopause is finally arriving. One pimple on my chin won't go away, and it's large enough that today I decided to name it. Zed...The downside is of course next week I film my Rant & Rave for FOX Toledo. Yet despite trying several different acne solutions Zed appears to be determined to stay...

What's funny is people don't want to mention how "angry" the pimple looks until you joke about it. Then they start sharing their tales of pimples past...Which means while it's not fun to have at the moment at least myself and my co-workers can laugh about Zed...

Get that stainless steel look...

I fell in love with some of the metal tile designs I looked at on this website. I could spend hours dreaming about which type of tile, a stainless steel look or a copper look I'd love to have in the kitchen that exists in my mind. I wonder what mixing and matching stainless steel look appliances and one of the copper designs would look like, that way giving me both looks...

Or using one of the aluminum tiles that mixes the look of silver and copper...

If I had a spa, it would not be bare...

If I should ever get to the point where I have a spa, I would invest in a spa cover, because it does extend the time needed between cleaning. We have a small pool in our yard and while it's great for the kids to cool off when it's hot, it takes more time to keep the leaves, bugs and other material out of the pool than seems worth it. The downside of course to covering a small pool is it creates algae and heats up the water, which defeats the purpose of having a pool if it is as warm as bath water. Hence? No cover for the pool, but a spa? You want to have warm anyway, which is another plus of a cover when it is a bit colder, it helps keep the heat in longer.

:-)

Think of your mail carrier when it snows...

We had a rather spirited debate on one of my other blogs related to people not shoveling their sidewalks and how that created unsafe conditions for children walking to school. It also creates problems for our mail carriers, many of whom have walking routes delivering on foot to Residential Mailboxes and in some parts of the city to Commercial Mailboxes.

This conversation also led me to think about the different styles of mail boxes when a friend told me her's was frozen shut. If yours is in a location where water can drip down and then freeze, perhaps considering buying one with a bit more of a protective overhang should be something you consider. If it's frozen shut, it's more of a struggle for mail to not only be received but delivered. Considering the over 2,500 different types Mailboxixchange has, you should be not only able to find a design you love, but also one that works for all seasons...

Does thinking Spring help?

When it's really cold outside, a snowy and blustery day, does it help to think about Spring? For me at times it does take my mind off the weather conditions outside, especially when I start looking at some of the different types of flowers and vegetables I could plant once winter is on it's way out. Unfortunately I have not had very much luck with Indoor Planters. In part because of the cats though I have tried several times to use a Garden Planter mini type greenhouse system to start my plants.

I've learned by trial and error that it has to be sturdy enough to be able to take a cat deciding to sit on it, one year all of my seedlings were crushed by one of the household felines deciding it looked like a promising place to sleep. I've had much more success with Outdoor Planters despite the occasional nibbling from one of the many wildlife in our neighborhood, at least none of them have decided to sleep on the plants. Not yet anyway...

:-)

Someday perhaps a real living room...

It's not uncommon for me to dream about living room sets in part because our living room is too small for most living room groups and it's being currently taken over by one of my daughters who prefers to sleep there than in the basement where her bedroom once was.

Which would mean for most their idea of sofa collections were not adorned with pillows and fleece blankets. My husband dreams of leather collections in a living room or den, I think of our cats and dogs and know that will never happen. Even reclining groups while tempting create flash backs to when one cat was trapped in a recliner and stuck there for hours before we returned home to locate him after hearing the pitiful meows as we entered the door...