Beautiful poem that makes me want to buy her book 100 Poems

If we are seventy percent water

then I suppose that even though

I'm sitting here, most of me is actually

swimming in the ocean

and falling from the sky.

-Jen Campbell

Almost February

Today is my husband's birthday. He's working, and that kind of makes me sad.
He's not one for cake, so I made homemade pretzels last night, and plan on making more today. He loves homemade pretzels. Really though, who doesn't? (Just need to walk to the store and pick up more yeast, but first, coffee.)

Having Mondays and Tuesdays off has resulted in being my default blogging days. It would be too much of a commitment to say that I'll definitely write in here every week, but attempts will be made.
January is nearly over. The other two new year resolutions are going alright, I suppose.

Generally speaking, I wear the fitbit to work, then take it off so that I'm not wearing it too much. (I don't want another breakout on my wrist.) Working 8 hour days as a processor clocks me in around 20k 'steps'. Not too shabby. (Still need to walk more on my off time.)

As for reading, I've become a rather avid reader. Current tally is 6 out of 40 on my 2016 Goodreads goal. My seventh book will be Now You See Me, which I picked up based on both ratings and synopsis.
 Mystery/thrillers are a reoccuring favorite, the trouble is finding books to enjoy. Goodreads is awesome for this reason alone.
I used to love Patricia Cornwell, but her books unfortunately started to go downhill.
Here's to the Lacey Flint series.

Coffee & Sunshine

I felt a need to make another blog post because I am feeling much better. Started feeling better just a few hours after writing my last entry.

Dinner was a 10/10. Rice, slow-cooked meatless meatballs and roasted broccoli and brussels sprouts. I made the brownies and they weren't half bad.
My husband was understanding, and super supportive, like always.

Then, out of the blue, my son made a Facebook post about how he was grateful. How he notices, now that he works with the public, how some people feel like they never have enough, then there are others that are grateful. And how he feels grateful.

I can't really put into words how happy that made me. Enough for me to take a screenshot of his post to have forever.

Have some tea, light the candles

Another week has past, and it sure was a tiring one. Fitbit counted nearly 20 thousand steps just yesterday.

._. 

Here it is, my first of two days off for rest, and I feel like doing absolutely nothing. 

I poured two bags of meatless meatballs (from Trader Joe's) into the crock pot this morning, along with a bottle of hot pepper raspberry chipotle sauce from Robert Rothschild Farm. Not sure where I picked that up, but I was glad to see it in the pantry.

Making brownies was also on the agenda. Mainly because it is currently 1 degree fahrenheit, and on cold days, warm, fudge-like brownies is one of the best aromas to fill the indoors. I'm not much of a baker, but brownies are easy, and we all love them.

I'm tired, though. 

I'm also sad, and can't be bothered. Even though I know that I'd feel some sort of happiness once the pan was cooling off on the counter.

Sometimes it takes just one small, upsetting incident (which I won't bring up online) to darken all else.
 I'm currently struggling to brighten my mood. 

 I called my grandmothers, both of which are not in the best shape. 

My heart goes out to them. 

Nanny has had a cough since Thanksgiving. She sounded annoyed, but like always, asked about her boys; meaning my son and husband.

Since the holidays, she's been to see doctors, including lung specialists, eight times!?!
None of them know what's wrong, and are sending her to see an Allergist tomorrow at 1pm. Here's to them finding out the cause, and easing her suffering.

I'll call her tomorrow afternoon, I told her. 

Granny said she was doing 'pretty good'. But, she was in pain, and waiting for the shift change. 'Waiting for a pain pill', which was over an hour away. Waiting for her favorite aide, a woman from India named Dawn. I'm glad that she has a favorite. Someone there to brighten her day.

Granny seemed pleased to say that she talks with her her daughter, my mom, nearly everyday. And, I can tell that she misses her, as she is now staying in a place which is a far drive from where mom lives, and they don't see one another as often as before.

At the end of the short conversation, she was struggling to talk since some aides with big mouthes were apparently too close by, so I told her I'd call back tomorrow evening.

I need to call both of them more. I should probably be calling my mother as well. We don't talk much anymore.

Maybe I will make those brownies. 

    This photo was taken this morning. 

One of many beautifully embroidered cloths
from my grandmother's collection. 

☕ Three Day Weekend

Having three days off of work in a row is really wonderful.
I'm always off on Mondays and Tuesdays.
Two days off is amazing but knowing that I still have one more day off after today is making me quite happy.

Especially after yesterday.
 Bowie's passing took something out of me. Sadness took over the morning, then lingered in my thoughts until my husband came home from work.
He was thrilled I agreed to make lentil pie.

I love that he loves it so much.

Essentially, it's Shepard's Pie with lentils substituting the animals. Earth Balance in the mashed potatoes. Sage & Thyme. Garlic and onions. Layered in a casserole dish, then broiled under the hot broiler until the mash crisps up nicely.

Coffee. Reading. A bit of cleaning. More coffee. More reading. Ahhh. :)

 Finished reading A Court of Thorn and Roses. That link will take you to my not so nice review.

3 books down, 37 to go to reach my 2016 goal. ^_^

Currently reading another fantasy, Wild Seed (Patternmaster #1), which looks amazing!

We have plans to visit with the in-laws this evening.
We also have plans to watch Making a Murderer, which my boss has talked about, making me super interested. Well, most everyone is talking about it.
 I was 10 minutes into watching the show when I thought to ask my other half if he wanted to watch it with me, and he said yes, so I'll read instead.

Fuck cancer. Fuck AIDS. -_-

David Bowie and Freddie Mercury A Cappella

Just so sad.

Loyalty Talk - Slightly Inebriated

On the subject of being true to oneself, I'd like to write about loyalty.

My husband and were sitting on the couch, him drinking a cold beer, me sipping Irish whiskey over four ice cubes, watching Better Call Saul.
Slippin' Jimmy made a come back on that last episode of the first season, and it reminded me of my childhood best friend, D. Sadly enough.

I love D. She was my girl, and I followed her around everywhere throughout our childhood.

I've always been a follower, and she's always been a strong leader.

From age 8 till not every long ago, we were practically inseperable. Over twenty years.

D. and I have had a lot of really good times. Ridiculously fun, crazy times.
 I would have fought for her because I had her back. I was loyal.

Some songs play even now, and they bring me straight back to the days when we'd be doing some crazy-ass shit, having the time of our irresponsible lives.

But, then one day out of the blue, she'd left me hanging...

I'd call and call, but she didn't answer. This went on for over a month.
She staunchly ignored me, refusing to respond to my phone calls, both to her and her mom.
Imagine that. We were inseparable. So, I found this absenteeism really upsetting.

When I knew for sure that she really had been ignoring me, that it really wasn't the hundred and one excuses that I had made up for her in my head, I was devastated.

I was scared when the realization hit, my heart was at the pit of my stomach, much like when I'd viewed my first horror flick.
I felt sick.
When I'm friends with you, I really mean it. And, that must not have mattered much to her at the time.

Well, eventually we made up.

Over the years, she'd revert to pretending that I didn't exist from time to time, and I became less and less interested in her as a friend.

She's had problems with drugs. Pills, mainly. But, I always held out hope.

This last time was the last time, though. What, a little over a year ago. maybe?

Better call Saul's last episode made me tear up a bit, thinking of old times with D.
How, if she and I were to share an afternoon together, we could easily slip back into a comfortable space.
Sad thing is, is I am loyal, while she is only conveniently loyal.

A few hours of reminiscing would be cool, but honestly, I'm done.

The love I have for my childhood best friend will never be entirely gone.
Wishing D. the best.

Hunting Vs. Meat-Eaters-Against-Hunting

So, I've just finished reading Not a Drop to Drink by Mindy McGinnis, and currently reading A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas. Both featuring strong female main characters. Both happen to be hunters. Which reminded me of one big thing that makes me different from many other vegans, and meat-eaters-against-hunting.

I've been a vegan for four years, and I'd prefer a skilled hunter to an 'animal lover' supporting factory farming.

My support comes with one huge exception- I am against inhuman contraptions meant for trapping, such as snares; against anything in which keeps a creature suffering for extended periods of time.
Any and all inhumane procedures like those infuriates me as I am completely against the savagery of putting anyone through a slow, painful death.
It pains me to think of anyone (animals including humans) living in sheer agony.
I am against suffering. Period. But, sometimes, we have to chose between the better of two sad situations.

If a hunter is a great shot, killing creatures quickly, I'd rather their practice than how M-E-A-H finance the industry of factory farming, which is infamous for their torturous procedures and practices.

My husband just informed me that Mark Zuckerberg only wanted to eat what he killed. I looked it up, and here's a quote I agree with wholeheartedly-

"I started thinking about this last year when I had a pig roast at my house. A bunch of people told me that even though they loved eating pork, they really didn’t want to think about the fact that the pig used to be alive. That just seemed irresponsible to me. I don’t have an issue with anything people choose to eat, but I do think they should take responsibility and be thankful for what they eat rather than trying to ignore where it came from." - Mark Zuckerberg

Earthlings has a lot of footage of such happenings, and is the movie which turned me vegan

Some people are still ignorant to factory farming practices, and they carry no fault. To be real though, the majority have been enlightened, but choose to keep themselves locked away in the depths of denial.

Pretending to be unaware of where these animals have come from, and what their levels of torture were, while also being against hunting? Well, that makes no sense.

In a perfect world, we 'animals lovers' would leave animals alone.
In our less perfect world, we can only try our best to do the best we can, because nobody is perfect.
Everyone is on their own path, and just about everyone loves animals.
I just think more people should face the realities of who and what they support. Financially and socially.

2016 Health, Books & Blogging

These roses were thriving on our Christmas visit to Northern Virginia.
The temperature was over seventy degrees, and humid. Yuck!
(I hate humidity.)

Happy New Year, yes?

Only a week has passed, so starting fresh is still a possibility.

Here's to 2016 goals! ^_^

My husband and I were gifted fitbits for Christmas from his parents! Yay! We were contemplating buying Microsoft's version, because they're cheaper, so these are a welcomed gift. 

Living healthier is number one on my New Year resolution checklist. 

Reading more books than I did  last year is number two. 

Writing in my blog instead of using Facebook as a one stop shop is my third goal.

I have a crappy habit of starting blogs, then abandoning them before they really begin, so this resolution is really exciting to me.

 I want to use Facebook a lot less. 

It's so easy for me to get caught up in the abundant personalities and beliefs that litter the common place. I'm guilty of correcting people when they post things that are untrue, or morally/ethically unsound.

 After many experiences, it's my opinion that leaving long responses is  usually futile. A quick retort would be better in most cases. And, if I really needed to get something off my chest, I'll write it out in here. 

Being a strong willed,  opinionated woman is rather awesome most times. I love expressing my beliefs. My personality is just a bit too much for social media. 

I've deleted over four Fb responses and posts in just the past week. Hushing myself sucks.

To wrap this up, it's a relief knowing that if people really wish to read my rants, raves, and general thoughts, they can find me here. Because I'll be writing. 

Fitbit Broke Me Out -_-

We just ordered from my favorite restaurant, India Palace.
 I deserve a down day, but honestly, if the fitbit hadn't broken me out, I would have walked around the lake at least once.  (the bubbles are small, but I was disheartened.)

Fitbit automatically shows results, which I greatly benefit from. I like seeing results. And, instant is the best type. This thing gives me tons of motivation!

Until I can coat the back of it with something to protect my skin, I'll wear it only when I'm working/exercising. It's so cool to monitor my pulse and steps through the day.
After only a few hours, it feels really weird without it on.