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 |  My Blog. Generally Intended for Reading-Not Eating!. |
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Rose-Tinted Ramblings ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** A Little of What You Might Expect & A Lot of Everything Else that You Don't!. My writing style for my blog is invariably 'snarkastic'. This is because I am a nice, unassuming and quietly-spoken person IRL-and this blog is where my innermost moments and torments happen. Trust me, I am no exception to that delightful rule. Greetings! Welcome to my THIRD blog here on WDC. A re-incarnation of my earlier version of my Blog, here "Insanties and Sensibilities" this v.03 should prove to be equally...challenging and hopefully, entertaining. That said, life often weaves through our writing in mysterious ways, and this Blog will probably prove to be no exception to that. We are very likely all quite different, yet the same, us writers and our collective little whims, fascinations and insecurities. |
| ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** On The Face of It 09.02.08 Welcome to the (somewhat belated) Summer Edition of “On The Face of It”. It’s been a while, but that’s because I spent two months of the U.S summer, lurking at the bottom of the world. There, it was every severe Winter weather ‘event’ that can be imagined, which left little for me to do, except to sit around and eat…and to try and stay warm. With Summer fading fast in the U.S, skin, hair and body questions re-emerge and re-invent themselves. Probably, the simplest advice is the most enduring of all: a simple cleanser, followed by a daily moisturizer with an SPF of 15. Applying body moisturizer within three minutes of stepping out of the bath or shower helps, too. All of those extras, like eye creams, anti-wrinkle serums and q-tips are mostly just that-optional extras. As an everyday moisturizer, I enjoy an olive oil, cocoa butter combination. It’s very softening without being overly-irritating. Tips and Trends: “Goth-style” dark lip-colors and metallic eye-colors. If this past Summer was an 80’s flashback with green and blue color cosmetics, then this Fall is shaping up to be something of a 90s re-invention. Black lipsticks and nail enamels are the trendsetter’s new ‘Little Black Dress’. Old news to me, but trends being what they are… On a related point, with Halloween rapidly advancing, I decided to pass on the KoD (Kiss of Death) waxy-doll-like lip-colors ($1.99 ea), but I was easily enchanted by NYX’s glitter selection. Because glitter can really become a nightmare, their glitter mascara wand is probably the more sensible option ($3.99). I like “Funky Diva”. “Mousse” and ‘cream’ blushes-yes, the old-fashioned rouge pot is back as a cosmetic counter feature. However, what’s marketed as a mousse and the actual consistency of this type of blusher can vary a lot (similar to the tinted moisturizers). From powdery, to tacky, to liquid, there is a vast selection. Beware, too, as the color in the pot, may not be at all representative of what this blush looks like on your skin, OR, how it wears. Mineral makeup marketing has really rocketed upwards for the past two seasons, and this coming Fall will be no exception to that particular trend. Most department store beauty brands have now re-vamped themselves accordingly. For fresh and fun color cosmetics, “Flirt” Cosmetics offer an interesting, varied and pretty palette at a not unreasonable price (US$9.99-12.99). I’ve heard suggestions that Flirt has somewhat of a reputation for making cheap knock-offs of Canadian make-up masters, “MAC”. Regardless, they caught my eye (available at “Kohls”). Their glosses are true to color, texture and form, for a fraction of the price of SO many others on the mainstream market. Much as I don’t like the woman, per se, Victoria Beckham’s signature scent for women isn’t too snobby a sniff, even if it is $24.99. One for my Christmas list. Yeah, I mentioned the dreaded C-word, already. It gets earlier every year, I swear!. Be beautiful!. |
| Whether the Weather be: 60s (F) Sunny and windy, again Events of Note: Remembering, or a lack of. In the Nudes: Helen Mirren (actress) admits to experiencing 'date rape' and to taking cocaine.  Strange 24 hours. Left my pocketbook at yesterday's function, and my husband can't retrieve it till tomorrow....oh, well...Before I'd found out what had happened to dear old Spot, I'd created two, new, late-Summer plantings of Wildflowers. These will now become his instant memorial garden-unofficially, because my husband thinks that remembering dead people and pets that way is both creepy and morbid. I've been feeling quite drained, myself. Barely managed to crawl into the tub, last night, but it felt delicious just to deal with basic personal care rituals.  Have been reading extended excerpts from my paternal grandparents love letters, written in New Zealand in 1925/26. Quite illuminating and especially well-written and colorfully descriptive, as a personal memoir and as a fascinating record of social history, and daily documentation of what it was like to ... survive in early colonial N.Z in the 20s.  Had a crook guts-something I ate?, Maybe. |
| August 31, 2008. Whether the Weather be: 66 (F) Sunny and very windy. Events of Note: Trying to work... In the Nudes: "Mother" of all storms... Thank-you so much to everyone here for their messages of love and support following the death of Mr. Spot. To Nada   a special, heartfelt thanks - especially and because she always knows how to give the 'right' sort of gesture at the most appropriate moment!.  Unfortunately, I had to work last night. My heart wasn't in it. Even if it was simply baking 3 batches of sheet cake-fairly formulaic, thankfully. Have to get dressed to work today, too. Nothing for it but to get going. Have a wonderful Sunday on my behalf!. |
| August 30, 2008. Our dear cat, Spot, is dead. We just had it confirmed a few moments ago. He was hit by a car, and the people who hit him never stopped. Rest In Peace, Blue Eyes |
| August 29, 2008. Whether the Weather be: 70s (F) Sunny Events of Note: Mr. Spit Spot is still missing. In the Nudes: Palin-who's she?. After continued, fruitless searching and much sobering discussion, it has been reluctantly concluded that our beloved cat has been snatched by a fox. For my sweet husband, this is a bitter realization, because Mr. Spot was his constant companion all throughout my husband's bachelorhood. It's difficult to imagine how much unwanted, flea-carrying predators have somehow invaded our otherwise private space and can just take whatever they choose at random. The law says that we cannot trap them and move them elsewhere -and "Beanie" was attacked by a raccoon recently. If something is hurting and harming my child, and I cannot do anything about it because of some predator protection law, then the law is an ass, in my opinion. I'm all for live and let live, but there are limitations to that.  I washed a shirt, yesterday. A shirt that I have owned for ten years, and never washed. It was a shirt by a particular company that originated out of San Francisco. It was what I purchased the morning of my sexual assault-actually, it was the last electronic transaction I made that day, in the city, before I was taken. The police had asked me to hold on to the shirt, just on general principles-since I'd had it with me that day. That same shirt also happened to be the one that I was wearing when I gave my police statement the following day. It had been sitting in my cupboard in New Zealand since, underneath all of the formal police and justice paperwork related to my case. So, I hauled it out, and have since provided that same shirt with a kind of witness protection re-location and re-invention, of sorts. I still prefer that shirt. I like it perfectly well, thanks. I hold no bitterness, nor bad feelings toward that shirt. Today, I received some more (new) clothing made by the very same company. I'm extremely happy with it, too. Full circle.   "Beanie" is in the midst of a "Princess" phase. Everything has to be glittery and fairy-tale-like. As we're heartily dis-inclined to stereotype and classify our child into any particular cult-like activity-following - she can do and be whatever makes her happy. Today - princess. Tomorrow - pauper. Yes, we live in interesting times... |
| ...oh, and it gets better... Our fleas are back-en-masse-I'm beginning to loathe them about as much as I dread head-lice. My skin is acting up something wicked-I'm a walking rash!. Have to trim my fingernails before I scratch myself to ribbons, completely. Oh, and my absent 'friend' has re-appeared (and, no, I'm not talking about the ruddy cat, either). My solitary indulgence was a blitz in online commerce, this afternoon. Commercial relief. Mere mortals call it shopping. Marketers squeal, "Save" when what they really mean is "Spend". Consider yours truly suckered-in more ways than one!. Not as suckered as my sweet husband though, -he got stung by a yellow-jacket, tonight-right on his bum. Brings new meaning to the phrase "Honey-Butt"!  Ahh-the world is truly a cruel and unusually warped place. This Little Mrs Whiney-Butt is headed to bed, before anything ELSE happens!. |
| August 28, 2008. Whether the Weather be: 70s (F) Fine, fine, fine. Events of Note: A slow-motion, tortoise-like kind of a day. In the Nudes: McCain's nomination for V.P. Today has been the sort of day that has left me wondering whether or not I should have simply gone back to bed and started my/our day over again - several consecutive times. Our old grey-haired tabby cat, Mr. Spit Spot is missing. He likes to mooch off the neighbors rather too frequently-nevertheless, still likes to return home regularly to double his food consumption (a severe addiction to cupboard love). However, he hasn't put in any sort of an appearance for DAYS - most strange and out-of-character. He's an old, grumpy cat: an exemplar of Gumby Cat style. He's close on 16 cat years old. As I see it, there are three possibilities: 1. He's been cat-napped by his adoring fan-club and groupies, a.k.a the neighbors and he hasn't annoyed them sufficiently enough yet to be kicked back home again. 2. He's been hit by a car and we simply haven't found him yet. 3. He's somewhere on the property, as yet undiscovered, having gone off to hide and die by himself. "Beanie" is perturbed. In her mind, a cat is entirely at the behest of her every command, wish, whim and fancy. Sort of like that Kitty law, where cats think that THEY are "God". How DARE that bad boy vanish on us!. I don't know which is more disturbing-Mr Spot's flagrant dis-regard of our ongoing hospitality and good graces, or my being pissed at the neighbors for having the audacity to smuggle our cat for such an extended time, when they know that such a disappearance is breaking my "Beanie's" little heart. That's it-I'm off to the neighbors. Just wait till I get him home! Update: The neighbors haven't seen Mr. Spit Spot for DAYS, either-they even left his favorite food outside their door for consecutive days, and it remains untouched. If he was in trouble, and still on our property, we would hear him, as he's a real "wussycat". Our mood has transformed almost instantly, from mild bemusement to distress and anxiety. We just want our Cat-Boy to return home to us. |
| August 27, 2008. Thank-you to everyone who commented on "Beanie's" most recent picture. Physically, I suspect that she's experiencing yet another growth spurt. Socially, she's beginning to have her 'moments'. Emotionally, she still needs us around, and is usually a sensitive and very caring little girl. A cheeky side emerges periodically, generally intended to remind us that she's no fool, and that it's absolutely no use in us pretending otherwise. Yesterday was a brilliant day-we awoke to the smell of freshly-baked cranberry scones, and brewing European coffee. After an usually chilly mountain night, our morning was warm and mild-perfect for consuming a light breakfast outside, before preparing to go to the lake. "Beanie" was especially excited by the thought of us launching a new water raft in her honor, "The Good Ship Strawberry". Driving down to the lake itself is/was an experience all by itself-the dry roadside covered in ivy thistle and poison oak  twists and turns alongside the enormous lake dam before revealing the spectacular lake itself, which yesterday, was a calm, yet deep, vibrant emerald green. Quite striking. Our cove had a small serviceable jetty, and several small sandy beaches. The lake edges themselves were invitingly shallow, but then the drop-off was surprisingly deceptive, so watching "Beanie" carefully was a real imperative. The previous night, the 'growed ups' sipped on triple Rum and Cokes, while watching the political cheer-leading competition happening in Denver. Afterwards, we changed tack more than somewhat and re-watched George Clooney's doco: "Darfur-Sand and Sorrow" (which also featured Obama, interestingly). I went swimming, surprisingly. Generally, it has to be exceedingly warm before I'll concede that it's Summer, and therefore, warm enough for swimming (and not just for paddling). I really, really like the sun. The lake was beautifully warm, once you became used to it, that is . We drove home in our old Chev truck, which rattled, heaved and clanked noisily, drawing testy looks from a lot of people. But, we were perfectly contented. As we turned the corner into our street, my husband commented in a weary voice, "Here we are, livin' in the city, yet we still live like country people, in a weird, warped sort of a way." How true. And, we couldn't be happier for it Pics to follow... Have a great "hump' day!. |
| ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** (Summer, 2008) Note: Is this a cheeky grin and wave, or what? |
| August 24, 2008. Whether the Weather be 65 (F) Fine, sunny and breezy. Events of Note: Lazy, hazy Sunday morning In the Nudes: "Tamiflu" proving to be ineffective against some mutant viral flu strains (WHO) My repertoire of chores to get through before we head up to the mountain and the lake, tomorrow, is not small, by any means. In addition, we are taking our Chevy truck (ex Forest Service) so that we can take a load of sawdust and decorative rock up to my in-laws, who are in the midst of many inspiring renovations to the mountain house. In addition to battling fleas, I'm trying to cope with some form of contact dermatitis, so I'm presently existing on a diet of equal quantities of liquid anti-histamine and painkillers-which makes my sleep disturbed. Determination, as a personality trait, seems to have been something that has served me well enough throughout my life. Once, in a peer appraisal exercise, when I was training in health and human services, we had to write the main traits of our peers on little affirmation cards that we exchanged with one another. My main characteristic ended up being, "Determination". What makes someone determined?. Is determination a part of self-determination?. Is it possible to be determined, while not being strong-willed as well?. My determination is often fueled by always having something to look forward to. It need not be a goal, a specific end-game, or an aspiration - it can be as simple as promising myself an ice-cream after surviving a physically challenging day. Or, looking forward to hugging "Beanie". She is a great hugger, and really knows how to hug according to different emotions. We are each determined, in our own way, I think. And, I do think that levels and manifestations of determination are linked to our sense of self.Have a determined, if relaxing Sunday!. |
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