No Place To Go

 Have you ever felt an urge to just move someplace or change your life into something else but have no idea where or what? There must be a name for it. 

Ah! The word wanderlust just popped into my brain. The feeling is along those lines except you don’t feel like traveling a lot. It is similar to feeling burn out. 

Maybe I’m burned out being elderly!? Nah. I think with all the creative things I have to do, I need a hobby focused on self-improvement. I didn’t get far learning Chinese. Maybe trying Irish will help.

Catch Up In September

Recently. An appointment stress slowed me down on blogging. I am glad to report I found a way to manage the anxiety surge by having a spa day like attitude a few days before the appointment. The problem is afterward, I am so emotionally exhausted, I am very sleepy the rest of the day, even after a power nap. 

It’s always something.

Products. If I find a drink, for example, that doesn’t upset my system, give me an acid stomach then I will buy it in moderation until I read the ingredients. The same for packaged food except for cupcakes and such. I know they aren’t the best food but a rare treat is all right as long as rare means once a month or longer. 

Social Media. Jokes go around about too many hours spent watching video shorts, reels and such in Facebook, YouTube, Tik Tok, Instagram. 

From my experience, Instagram is the biggest time devouring monster!

Hours go by. The algorithm is good though because my interests are not assaulted with weird stuff like a sad story from a woman that looks like she fell out of a porn channel or a guy that thinks a bare chest is a hearing aid. Farmers and ranchers working in fields shirtless is task appropriate. 

Not much of note is going on in my life to blog about. The YouTube channel project is progressing well. The first episode is decided. The next step is to record with audio. 

Voice. We all have a variety of voices that sound different but still sound like us. My before coffee can be rugged. My after coffee cruises into bland land. My Bible reading voice is rather elegant. What my audio voice will be is surely going to feel weird. 

The soon to arrive end of summer weighs on my mind with a frosty edge. Stocking up on hot chocolate and broth are on my list. This year I’m making homemade hot chocolate mix to use up the cocoa (before it expires).

Are you preparing for frosty weather?Are you making homemade hot chocolate mix? 

Summer Photograph: Sandals

Sandals well worn into October feels like the report of the last day of skiing. On the day if the first frost, sandal season is officially over. I can wear them longer but it doesn’t count.

The Asters & the Bumble Bee

 Sitting on the porch for a while when I arrive home is what I like to do, no matter what the weather is like. I put the aster plant (i thought was a mum) on the chair beside me. I hear a buzzing going on. This is what I saw.

Common Eastern Bumble Bee

Make-up, Apples & Old Things

At the bottom of a make-up bag, there’s always ancient things I haven’t used in ages. Creams, masques, lipsticks and such have shelf life. If I can’t remember when I bought it or last used it, then in the trash it goes. 

My recent thrift store find is a lovely apple peeler gadget. Dutch apple pie is on my mind. I also want to freeze chopped apples to use instead of applesauce. 

I’ve had that paint scraper tool since early 1990s. I have others in various sizes. That one has an old friend vibe. 

Clearing out things brings with it a lot of memories. 

What is your oldest go to gadget? 

Day 255 of Week 37 September 2025

There is an abundance of news in broad subjects that we can separate into a positive group for each. If we narrow the range, then, I feel, the gathering of good news loses weight. 

A healthy balance, IMHO, requires that the bad news not be so obese that it pulls down our effort to nurture our lives with positive information. 

On day 255 of 2025, the negatives are overwhelming. How do we adjust life for better balance? 

Faith. 

If you have faith, be it with a religion, mindfulness or meditation, having a place to go to comfort your soul might be what you need. 

God Bless America

 

Shopping List Dropping

Shopping has taken a turn for the worse on prices.

I like the place mats from the local Dollar General store. They are easy to use and clean. For a dollar, they were a good purchase. 

This year, the price is $2.00 US dollars. I want the orange ones for fall decor. I am dropping them from my fall decor shopping list. 

On grocery shopping, my list is being adjusted. Condiments, (since my sense of taste is nearly wiped out by the 2022 covid booster), are very limited. Not buying ketchup is the new norm. I buy cream soups for easy recipes. If the cans are any smaller, then I will not buy them. I will make my own. 

To help prevent lost food in the back of the fridge. a plastic tray will be added for meats go until ready to cook. The difficult to get to fruit drawer will be used anyway. 

Small living adjustments don’t feel unreasonable. The issue is why so many are now necessary. I don’t recall ever dropping so many items off my shopping list as I do today. 

Meanwhile, learning to make bread is added to my to do list. 

Have you made a lot of adjustments to your shopping list?

Thinking About Autumn

 Disclaimer: Written before coffee

There are plants that produce every other or every couple of years, like pine cones and some locust.

Most living things, I think, function on a continuous flow with seasonal, ritual and personal time related senses. 

In fall, we fluff up by wearing warmer clothes. In summer, is who cares when it is hot aka no fluff clothes. 

This autumn, I have the feeling that I am going to be cold, damp wind biting cold. I’m not sure if that will be before or after leaf peeper season. I do know that I want to experience the  change of seasons.  

Thinking of ways to enhance the fall experience means being outdoors to feel the weather, not just look at it out a window or doorway. Thus, the title of my Autumn 2025 is:

Ten Minutes Under a Maple Tree

What title would you give 

your fall of 2025?

Summer Photograph: Madras Shorts

 Genuine preppy Madras ( named from Madras, India) is made of multiple squares of plaid that are not color fast. The fabric will bleed (color dye). In high school, 1960s, my favorite skirt was a reversible denim to Madras. A white blouse and Madras shorts outfit is my fashion definition of summer. 

Finding Madras in a thrift store has been very difficult. This year, I bought a fantastic pair of Madras shorts. Thrilled I be. 

Madras Shorts

Meet Pumpkin One of 2025

The fall rituals that I like to follow, this year are pressed flat by the depression episode I am struggling to manage. 

As the deal with it best I can goes, turning a negative into a positive works. Thus, the autumn pumpkin hunt for a country roadside stand also includes: Just buy a pumpkin! So I have. I may also buy from a roadside stand, if I have the energy to do that. 

Pie Pumpkin #1 2025