Monthly Archives: May 2019

Beauty Misadventure: The No-Show

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Ladies (I presume you gentlemen will not have an opinion), I could use your advice.

I’ve been seeing the same esthetician for several years — A tints and shapes my brows and tints my eyelashes — and she usually does a terrific job so I’ve stayed loyal, even after she left the salon where I get my hair done to go out on her own. It’s less convenient but I like her.

Today I was scheduled for an appointment that had been rescheduled when A got sick a few weeks ago.  I’d received an email reminder as well as an auto-generated text confirmation, so I had every reason to expect business as usual.

I show up at A’s studio, which she shares with a Pilates instructor in a funky older house.  Something is off.  There’s still a painted sign on the curbside stucco ledge advertising Pilates, so I haven’t gone to the wrong address.  But I do seem to have wandered into the Twilight Zone. The doorbell is taped over and dangles from a dingy cord. And not only is A not there, there’s no sign of life inside.

Peering through the frosted glass door I see that the studio on the left has been dismantled. In place of benches, free weights and exercise bands there are several  washers and dryers — is it turning into a laundromat? A’s room is in the back of the house so I can’t tell if it’s operational. Surely she would have said something…. like maybe yesterday?

I text, and then call, thinking maybe A is working out of her apartment, as she’s sometimes done in the past. But I don’t have that address and she never responds.  After waiting a half hour I leave one more message, give up, and head back home with unkempt brows, faded lashes, and no time to get them fixed before we go out of town this weekend.

As of tonight, I still haven’t heard from her so I’m concerned. Has something happened to her? To her beloved dog? Someone in her family? This is most unusual, even though hers is not a completely untroubled life.

But here’s my more selfish question:  This is now the second time in recent weeks that our appointment has fallen through. To be honest, it’s becoming a pain in the ass. Should I give her one more try? Or maybe start getting these services done at a salon where there will be back up if someone runs into a personal issue?

What would you do??

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Good News Monday: Pretty Delicious

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ruby-chocolate.jpg (5184×3456)There’s a new chocolate in town and it’s a natural Millennial pink. I learned about this from blogger Sandra Wood, who also offers up an interesting post on the color most likely to land you a job.  (Hint: It’s not pink.)

But, I digress. According to Wikipedia,

Ruby chocolate is a variety of chocolate introduced in 2017 by the Callebaut cocoa company. It’s been in development since 2004, but was only recently unveiled to the public.

The chocolate is made from the “ruby cocoa bean“ (possibly, unfermented cocoa beans, which can be naturally reddish pink), with a taste described as “sweet yet sour”, and having “little to none” of the cocoa flavor traditionally associated with other types of chocolate.

In April 2018, Kit Kat announced the release of the ruby chocolate in the UK — have any of you UK readers tried it yet? — and we can expect to see ruby chocolate soon in the US.

Trend? Or a new staple we never knew we needed?

Good News Monday: How To Avoid a Speeding Ticket

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Is there anything more stressful than seeing a rapidly-approaching/lights-flashing/siren-howling police car in your rearview mirror? Here’s some great advice for the best possible scenario if you’re ever pulled over.  Happy Memorial Day, everyone, and drive safely!

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The Curmudgeon Chronicles: Is It Art If It Needs Subtitles?

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Maybe it’s an age thing.  But it seems to me that art — be it visual, musical, literary or what have you — should stand on its own without relying on accompanying commentary.

Last night we attended a gallery opening of paintings and sculpture by two artists, one of whom is married to a colleague of a mutual friend.  The manifesto that accompanied this work was quite beautiful and actually much more interesting than the work itself, which felt derivative and rather banal. Which got me thinking….

We don’t expect margin notes on the pages of a good novel.  Or a running crawl in a film to explain what the director had in mind.  Are paintings and sculpture more compelling because of an artist’s backstory — in this case, gender identity — , even when the images have nothing to do with that struggle? 

This is ultimately the problem I have with most political art: Take away the message, and what are you left with? Picasso’s Guernica? Unfortunately, mostly not.

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Good News Monday: Woman Reunited With Lost Purse — 65 Years Later

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(From the May 8th broadcast of the Today show)

Martha E had forgotten all about the purse she’d lost back in the 50’s. Then construction workers rebuilding her high school found it – with all its contents intact.

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One can only imagine what turned up under the bleachers.

(Images from Pixabay.com)

Booze News

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In honor of the coming weekend, and on the off chance that alcohol may be involved, here are a few items I found interesting this week.

First up, I’m sharing a hack from KellysDIY blog on improving the taste of cheap vodka.  Haven’t tried this myself but it’s an intriguing idea:

Pour your cheap vodka into a water filter pitcher.  It will remove the impurities that make inexpensive vodka taste, well, cheap.  

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Another great tip: Baking soda removes wine stains.

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Speaking of wine, the industry’s latest annual report cited some millennial trends that will impact not just this age group (currently 23-38) but the rest of us, too, as winemakers take notice. Cheers to healthy wines at a reasonable price!

Millennials:

  1. Tend to prefer craft beers, spirits (e.g., whiskey) and/or cannabis to wine
  2. Less interested in accumulating “stuff”; experiences mean more
  3. Health oriented (wine’s competing with kombucha, for heaven’s sake!), which means a preference for wine that’s organic, sustainable and local
  4. Don’t have a lot of money. They’re still dealing with fallout from the 2008 recession, student loans, and establishing themselves in their careers
  5. Want their drinking experience to be fun (hence the appeal of inventive cocktails and entertaining mixologists), not precious or snobby
  6. Turned off by pretentious tasting rooms (and high prices) they associate with their parents
  7. Inclined to reject “safe” choices like pinot and chardonnay in favor of something unexpected. (Barrel-aged sauvignon blanc, anyone? Oenologists describe this rare specialty as having a creamier texture and more rounded lemony/crème brûlée flavors than flinty Sancerre or herbaceous New Zealand offerings.)

Are you a millennial? Do you agree with these general observations?

Incidentally, did you know that rosé is the fastest growing wine segment in the US?  If you’re of the generation that grew up on Mateus and have shunned them ever since, one of Oregon’s lovely, fresh, pinot noir rosés will be a revelation.

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(front) Crowley Wines; (back) Coleman Vineyard’s Cherry Cove

And finally, some fun facts:

  • Milkshakes originally contained alcohol.
  • Red wines have higher alcohol content than white wines.
  • Moonshine accounts for around 30% of the world’s alcohol drinking.
  • A bottle of champagne contains 90 PSI of pressure — three times the pressure in your car tire.
  • A gin & tonic will glow under a UV light because tonic contains quinine, which is UV light reactive
  • Fear of an empty glass has a scientific name, Cenosillicaphobia.

 

Good News Monday: One Duck’s Happy Mother’s Day

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When a family of baby ducklings became trapped under a storm drain, a road crew in Des Moines, Iowa, came to their rescue. Waddle it be next?!

Click here for the full story and adorable video of the reunited family.

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Hump Day Hacks

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These two ideas are simply genius.

  • Prevent silver tarnish:  Don’t toss those little silica packets that come in bottles of  vitamins, supplements etc.  Instead, put one or two in a closed bag with your silver. The desiccants help prevent corrosion by absorbing the moisture which reacts with sulfur in the atmosphere to create tarnish. This hack also helps keep gold jewelry shiny and bright.
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  • Easy jar cleaning: When you’re stuck with jars of sticky stuff like peanut butter and honey, try this process:
    • Scoop out as much as possible
    • Add a teaspoon of baking soda and fill jar with hot water
    • Put the lid back on and shake vigorously
    • Let it sit for 10 minutes, then dump out the dirty water.
    • Reuse or recycle!
teapot and teacups with tea and honey on tray

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