Thursday Thirteen Things You Should Know About Product Labels (#21)

The source of my green educational Thursday Thirteen this week is Crissy Trask’s It’s Easy Being Green.

Thirteen Things about N. Mallory

1. Biodegradable: The Federal Trade Commission defines “biodegradable” as a substance that has been scientifically proven to break down entirely and return to nature within a reasonably short time after disposal. However, because most detergents and soluble chemicals degrade in wastewater systems, they don’t always completely break down into eco-friendly substances. Read the label carefully to make certain the product is made up of nontoxic, renewable ingredients.
2. Cage Free: While this label guarantees that chickens weren’t raised in cages, it doesn’t guarantee they spent any part of their lives outside.
3. Free Farmed: This label is administered by the American Humane Association and testifies that dairy cows, chickens, cattle, and hogs are raised humanely and under healthy living conditions.
4. Free Range Chicken: Legally, this label only requires that poultry producers allow their poultry access to the outdoors for an unspecified amount of time each day — ie. leave the door open. It does not guarantee that the chicken ever made it outside.
5. GMO Free: Genetically Modified Organisms or, rather, genetically modified plants are the product of scientific genetic manipulation involving introducing unnatural but supposedly “desirable” gene characteristics into plants — ie. animal traits into tomatoes. Some scientists are worried such manipulation could ruin the ecosystem and contaminate the food supply.
6. Green: This hasn’t been defined in standard manufacturing terms. Call the manufacturer and ask them what they mean by it.
7. Natural: Except where beef or chicken processing is concerned, this term is meaningless in legal terms. To qualify for beef or poultry processing, the USDA requires that there be no artificial ingredients and no food coloring.
8. Nontoxic: “Toxic” means poisonous. Chemicals that are Persistent, Bioaccumaltive, and Toxic (PBTs) do not readily break down in the environment and accumulate in the tissues of animals and humans.
9. Organic: Food and fiber grown or produced in accordance of the National Organic Standards Act without toxic pesticides and fertilizers, synthetic hormones, antibiotics, sewage sludge, GMOs, or irradiation.
10. Pesticide Free: There’s no standard definition for this. This label could mean the grower didn’t use pesticides in growing the produce or that there was no detectable pesticide residue when tested. You’d have the grower to be sure.
11. Recyclable: A recyclable material or product is one that, after its useful life, can be manufactured into another useful material or product, therby keeping it out of the waste stream.
12. Recycled Paper: If the three chasing arrows on your product are white on a black background, it means the paper is made from 100% recycled content. However,if the arrows are black on a white background, it is made up of recycled and virgin fiber and the manufacturer is required to note what percentage comes from the recycled fiber. But, wait…there’s more…you also have to consider the source of the recycled content. Paper made from wood shavings from a lumber mill, labeled industrial waste, can be labeled recycled, but buying this type does nothing to help support consumer recycling programs. Look for paper marked “PCC” or “PCW”, which stands for post-consumer content or post-consumer waste, respectively.
13. Sustainable Fishery: A sustainable fishery (a species or stock of fish) is one that has not been depleted or harvested in ways that harm the ocean ecosystem.

Tags: green living, recycle, biodegradable, animal rights, organic, humane, waste, Thursday Thirteen, bloghopping, memes

Thursday Thirteen Vanity Plates I Took Pictures Of This Week (#20)

Today’s Thursday Thirteen is brought to you by the letters W, I, and G, and the numbers 5 and 23.

I found these all in less than seven days. I swear, New Englanders have the most Vanity Plates per square mile.

Thirteen Things about N. Mallory

1. This guy is just “CREWZN.”
   
2. I can only imagine this person is a self-styled “gangsta”. Though, in a Mazda? Probably not very credible.
   
3. This must be a mother.
   
4. I’ve been debating on if this person meant to spell “no duh” or they have no dad. Either way, it’s very sad.
   
5. Obviously this person is clinging onto Boston’s glory. (You know they say that Maine is like Massachusetts’ retarded step-cousin, right? We have no teams of our own but we always seem to glob onto Mass’ victories.
   
6. Blue Heaven or Haven?
   
7. This was sitting next to the above car.
   
8. Awwwwwww…as if college didn’t cost enough… (By the way, the MSU Mom really drives this SUV.)
   
9. Here’s a two-fer. This car has been sitting in the parking garage for six months. People have written in the dust, as you can see. Obviously someone cared about it at one time…enough to get a vanity plate. I’m even betting the guy is tall, kind of pale, maybe a little bald.
   
   
10. Apparently, the cost of college is worth a “W”.
    
11. I don’t think this person is sticking around.
    
12. And this one ain’t from around here.
    
13. At least this one has the right idea about living life every day.
    

Tags: vanity plates, photo blogging, thursday thirteen, meme, bloghopping, license plates, automobiles, cars, parking lot, parking garage, Maine, New England

Thursday Thirteen Things I Wonder About (#19)

My mind works in strange and mysterious ways…

Thirteen Things about N. Mallory

1. How often do other people change out the underwear in their underwear drawer? I mean, so they schedule a regular amount of time? Twice a year maybe to go through and throw out all the ratty old underwear they wouldn’t wear on vacation or on a date or in front of their cats and replace them?
2. Speaking of underwear, am I the only one who’s ever bought new underwear just so I didn’t have to wash clothes? Or whole new outfits even? Or a couple of days-worth of clothes?
3. What do other people think about during their commute to work? Do they just space out and not remember how they got to work? Do they think about the AIDs issue in Africa, last night’s Daily Show, what they’re going to make for dinner? Am I the only one who has whole imaginary conversations and arguments with myself that I might have with other people that just piss me off further when I’m already pissed off or help convince me more that I’m right about something?…What?
4. Do other people worry that they might look up and find someone staring in their window at them, especially at night? Every night? Even on the second story? Or driving in their car? Especially when looking in the rear view mirror?
5. Why can’t someone invent a spray that discourages my puppy from poo-pooing on my rug? They make stuff to clean it up. They make stuff to “neutralize” the smell. Can’t they make something that makes him sniff that spot and think “naughty!”?
6. Why can’t all my pets learn to use the toilet like me? Is it really that difficult? I mean, they’re always watching me, studying me when I use it. Surely by now they’ve figured it out.
7. Why do people think South Park is funny? Seriously. I just don’t get it.
8. Why don’t Target or WAL-Mart carry white floating shelves? Do people really only decorate in dark colors anymore? Don’t the people who order stock for them watch HGtv or TLC at all?
9. Was my old apartment building filled with mold like my crazy old neighbor claimed and was it making me sick? I have to say that I’ve had a reduction in headaches since I moved into the house. Though before I moved into the apartment, I suffered from chronic migraines for 20+ years. However, the fibromyalgia did become a problem while I was in the apartment and it’s been better too. Granted, I’ve been eating my strict pseudo-vegetarian diet and doing aquatic physical therapy. It’s hard to tell. But the mildew problem on my furniture and in my kitchen is gone now that I’m in the house. (The allergist said I wasn’t allergic.)
10. If my mom isn’t coming for my gall bladder surgery, who is going to drive me to and from and take care of me and is it wrong to be annoyed at my grandmother for taking up my mother’s time? My grandmother isn’t actually physically ill, but she is bipolar. She has to be watched because she won’t take her meds or eat like she should because she’s decided she doesn’t want to and she didn’t like the nursing home she was in. She demanded that my parents take her with them from Ohio to New Mexico for a visit after Thanksgiving and she shows no signs of wanting to go home. My dad shows no signs of wanting to take care of his own mother so it falls on my mom. So, now that I have surgery scheduled in February, I don’t have my mommy to take care of me and I’m a little disappointed. Does that sound too selfish?
11. Has TNT been showing a 3rd season of The Closer and I’ve missed it? I think I missed this season of Monk too. They don’t seem to be showing them regularly. When will there be a new season of Eureka? There are simply too many shows I like now. It’s too much to keep up with and they’re all on at odd times and their seasons are all weird and even the DVR is getting confused.
12. Has anyone else noticed that Amazon’s Prime shipping is not worth the price anymore? Very few things are covered as “free shipping” and very few things are included in their “expedited” 2-day shipping either. I almost always am paying added shipping costs even on some books and for standard shipping, some things aren’t shipping for weeks, even two of the books I ordered (that I don’t have time to read). Since I usually buy $100-worth of stuff at a time, I don’t understand why I never qualify for free anything. Why am I paying for this extra service?
13. Do people only come here to read the Thursday Thirteen? My uncle told me that one of those news channels said that most blogs have only one reader. Am I posting to myself the rest of the week?

Tags: Thursday Thirteen, blog meme, meme, bloghopping, WAL-Mart, Target, the puppy, South Park, underwear, The Closer, Monk, Eureka, T.V., Amazon.com, mold, mildew, fibromyalgia, migraines

Getting Ready For 2007

So, thinking about my “Things I’d like to do in 2007,” I decided to get a head start.

• I took the To Do lists — daily, 2x a week, weekly, biweekly, monthly, quarterly, 2x a year, annually, etc. — and assigned the items dates or days of the weeks. I put them all into my Palm Z22; the to do program has a repeating functionality which allowed me to do all sorts of neat things. I am giving myself permission to go ahead and check things off even if I don’t complete things, accepting they’re there for reminders, not punishment.

  However, after a few days of doing the daily things on my list, I had an “Ah-ha!” moment. It suddenly occurred to me that even if you start with a big mess, if you do a little every day and maintain the clean part every day, eventually it’ll all be done and the clean section will be easy to maintain. Right now, my kitchen is so easy to keep clean. I just have to keep following the daily maintenance and not let it slide back into chaos. It’s easy if you break things up into manageable pieces.

• Using the Now Reading Wordpress Plugin I already had installed, I created two pages and linked to them in my sidebar on the right — N’s To Be Read Book List and N’s Finished Books List.  I haven’t figured out how to only do a 2007 Finished Books List using the plugin yet, but this is a good start, I think.  It’ll be a good way to keep track.  The TBR list lists the books I’ve currently started and the books I’ve bought and are in the wings waiting to be read.   I expect that list to get longer when I sort through my books to put them in some sort of actual order in a few weeks.

  Here’s an interesting question: Where do you keep your TBR books?  Do you keep them where they will end up or in a pile somewhere separate?  Is there a special place for books that haven’t been read yet in your house or do they mingle with the books you’ve already finished?

• I actually knitted 5½ rows on my scarf!  It’s hard to decide whether to read or knit.  Has anyone figured out how to do both? –  and no, I don’t want to “listen” to books.

Tags: Thursday Thirteen, knitting, reading, books, housecleaning

Thursday Thirteen Things I’d Like To Do In 2007 (#18)

So this is the time of year when everyone is doing New Year’s Resolutions. I prefer not to do “Resolutions” because they’re generally broken and joked about by the middle of January and forgotten by President’s Day. Then, next January, they’ll be resolved again.

So, instead, I usually try to use the time to reflect and think about the things I’d like to work on in my life, changes, improvements, and so on. I don’t make myself any impossible promises though. I know my limits and I know physics. There’s no way I can lose 60 lbs in 2 months, for example; nor is it likely that I’ll be getting up at 5am any time soon to exercise 3 times a week.

Anyway, here is my list of things I would like to do in 2007, no promises, but I’m working on it. More

Tags: Thursday Thirteen, bloghopping, meme, New Years Resolutions, gardening, knitting, debt, weight, health, writing, Green Living, housekeeping, dysfunctional family

Thursday Thirteen Favorite Christmas Decorations (#17)

(I apologize if some of the pictures are a little dark. I tried to use natural light because the flash washed them out. I’m much better at taking landscape photographs.)

Thirteen Things about N. Mallory

#1 & #2:
Tigger and The School House Rock “I’m Just A Bill” ornaments.
(It even plays part of the song!)

#3 & #4:
Scooby Doo (entangled in lights) and Spiderman (delivering presents) ornaments.

More

Tags: Thursday Thirteen, bloghopping, blog meme, Christmas, decorations, ornaments

Thursday Thirteen Things That Have Gone Wrong Today (#16)

Today is a Murphy’s Thursday Thirteen.

Thirteen Things about N. Mallory

1. I overslept.
2. I forgot to take my morning medicines.
3. I was out of both fruit and granola when I went to make breakfast.
4. When I got in the car to drive to work, I realized I was out of gas.
5. When I got to the gas station, I realized I had no purse.
6. When I got home to get the purse, I sideswiped my side view mirror on my garage.
7. I picked up regular instead of Diet Pepsi at the gas station.
8. When I finally got near work, traffic was backed up 1½ blocks in front of my parking garage.
9. My stomach is very upset.
10. I’m trying to not get a migraine.
11. My fibromyalgia pain is up today.
12. I was going to write a TT about things I actually don’t mind having in common with my family but my website was down.
13. And I couldn’t think of thirteen things I have in common with my family.

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

Tags: Thursday Thirteen, blog meme, bloghopping

Thursday Thirteen Famous Movies I’ve Happily Never Seen (#15)

Feel free to try to convince me to change my mind.

Thirteen Things about N. Mallory

1. Gone With The Wind — Though I did read the book. I absolutely couldn’t stand Scarlett or Ashley. I did love Rhett Butler, of course, the rogue. Still, I’m not sitting through a technocolor movie of the story.
2. Pulp Fiction — Gratuitous violence. Well, I think that’s what it is. That’s what it seems to be from the descriptions I’ve garnered from my male friends who’ve seen it and the commercials. It just seems to glorify violence and after seeing Natural Born Killers in the theater, I can’t stomach that kind of glorification anymore. More

   Tags: Thursday Thirteen, meme, bloghopping, movies

   14 comments See also in My Life, Books, Music, Movies, & T.V., Geekery, Blogging & Other Blogs, Thursday Thirteen, Memes

Thursday Thirteen Geeky Buttons (#14)

I’m a geek. O.K. I’m a roleplaying geek. Many of my friends are roleplaying geeks. About 15 years ago, we were on this kick where we’d keep track of the really off-the-wall things we said, usually during roleplaying games. Sometimes, the quote was something we overheard somewhere else and repeated because it “sounded” like something we’d say — you know something “geeky cool”. Then if the quotable was worthy enough, I’d have it made into a button at the next sci-fi convention I made it too.

As I was packing to move into my house, I rediscovered my stash of buttons and couldn’t help wandering down memory lane. I’ve picked out thirteen of my favorites to share here and I’ve decided that sometimes they’re funnier without the background story, but feel free to ask — though I’m not entirely sure my memory is up to recalling all of the details of way back in the day.

Thirteen Things about N. Mallory

1. Lately, I’ve been packing a helicopter with my underwear.
2. Thwarting Evil is a good thing!
3. Remember, unless it’s confirmed by God, it’s probably a joke.
4. It’s hard to look innocent when you’re holding a loaded crossbow.
5. Now we have to break in another dwarf!
6. Warning: Amnesiac Gullible Pyrokinetic Pyrophobic Witch
7. Why do I always have to jump out the helicopter?
8. It started with the orange juice…
9. I don’t like being dead. It’s quite annoying.
10. Another common area bites the dust.
11. Be quiet! I’m plotting!
12. Who’s Roleplaying?
13. Which Unreality are we in now?

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants
Thanks to Denise for the Pug graphic!

Tags: bloghopping, meme, Thursday Thirteen, geek, roleplaying, buttons

Thursday Thirteen Things To Worry About (#13)

I’m a worry-wart. I worry about all kinds of things and I can’t turn it off. I worry about whether or not my cats hate me. I worry about whether or not my co-workers are talking about me. I worry about whether or not the world is going to blow up today or if my house is going to burn down or if my headache means I’m getting a brain tumor.

I’m in therapy. At least I’m trying to get a grip, but it turns out that there are a lot of people who worry about a lot of things out there. Some things are worried about far more than they need to be and some things aren’t worried about enough. That’s what this week’s theme is.

Thirteen Things about N. Mallory

1. Don’t worry so much about getting a brain tumor. Apparently there’s less than a 1% chance that you’ll develop a cancer originating in your brain. If you must worry about cancer, worry about lung cancer; it’s the leading cancer killer of women. (Check out cancer.gov)
2. Don’t worry so much about being in a plane crash. As big a deal as I make of it here, the fact is that as few as 18 people died for every 41.7 million who flew on U.S. air carriers last year. The truth is that most people’s fear of flying stems from a fear of lack of control (like mine). The odds of you dying in an automobile accident are one in 237 over your lifetime, compared with one in 1.25 million over your lifetime for a commercial plane crash, according to the National Safety Council in Itasca, Illinois.
3. Don’t worry so much about having a miscarriage. One out of five pregnancies that is confirmed in a doctor’s office ends in miscarriage. Most miscarriages occur because of chromosomal abnormalities in the fetus and not because of something the mother ate, drank, or did.
4. Don’t worry so much about having bad breath. Only about one in seven people suffers from chronic halitosis. You wouldn’t know it from the gum, mint and breath freshener advertisers. Apparently the advertisers are winning because up to 1/3rd of the patients who see their doctor about chronic bad breath don’t have it.
5. Worry a little about being in a car crash. Motor vehicle accidents are the number-one cause of accidental death for women and the number-one killer of women under the age of 35. (whew! Just missed me!) Each year, 40,000 Americans die on the road. In fact, fear of vehicular death is unbelievably low in this country because Americans are familiar with cars and think they’re “in control” — so “in control” that one in five Americans still don’t wear a seat belt.
6. Worry a little about becoming disabled. One third of all Americans between 35 and 65 will become disabled for more than 90 days, according to the American Council of Life Insurers in Washington, D.C. A 20-year-old worker’s chances of becoming disabled are approximately twice as great as her chances of dying before retirement age, yet only 28 percent participate in group long-term benefits. (My mother was surprised to learn that I always carry both short-term and long-term insurance in case something happens to my hands or arms. Can’t imagine what a programmer would do without them.)
7. Worry a little about getting breast cancer. One in 13 American women will be diagnosed with breast cancer (one in eight if their mom or sister has the disease). It is the second-leading cause of cancer death in U.S. women, after lung cancer. But 94% of new cases of breast cancer are in women age 40 or older. My grandmother and great-grandmother both had breast cancer. I’m not waiting for my mother. If breast cancer runs in your family, find a doctor who will begin regular mammograms as early as 30 or 35. (To learn more, go to BreastCancer.org)
8. Worry a little about contracting diabetes. Diabetes is the fifth deadliest disease in America. The death rate due to diabetes has increased by 45 percent since 1987, due to the rise in type 2, the kind traditionally developed later in life — only more and more kids are getting it now. It’s also the leading cause of blindness, amputation and dialysis, and increases a person’s risk for heart disease.
9. Worry a little about going blind. An estimated one in 200 Americans is legally blind. Sixty-seven percent of blind Americans are female, mostly because women live longer, but other factors, such as genetics, sex hormones, and lifestyle differences, may put women at increased risk.
10. Be very afraid of getting skin cancer. Cancer of the skin is the most common cancer. One in five Americans will develop skin cancer, including nonmelanoma cancers, which are more common and rarely fatal, and melanoma, which accounts for the majority of skin cancer deaths. The rate of nonmelanoma cancers, including basal cell and squamous cell varieties, has nearly tripled in women under 40 in the past 30 years.
11. Be very afraid of contracting an STD. Your lifetime chance of getting an STD is greater than one in two. How scary is that? Made me cross my legs when I read it.
12. Be very afraid of having a heart attack. Two in five women will die from heart disease. And women are less likely to make a big deal about it while it’s happening.
13. Be very afraid of being in a fire. You have a one in 1,179 chance of dying in a fire from exposure to smoke or flames. Fires in homes caused 82% of fire deaths in 2004. Less than 1/4th of households have a tested escape plan, and almost a third think they’d have at least 6 minutes to escape. Most likely you’d only have two or three minutes. (For more information, go to NFPA.org) This one is particularly timely for me as I prepare to move into my first home with thoughts of my friend’s housefire on my mind. You can bet your wet-willies I’ll be making extra certain to fire-proof the house.

Source: Self, August, 2006.


Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
View More Thursday Thirteen Participants Thanks to Denise for the Pug graphic!

Tags: Thursday Thirteen, meme, bloghopping, risks, accidents, health, cancer, fear, interesting trivia

19 comments See also in Interesting Trivia, Geekery, Blogging & Other Blogs, Thursday Thirteen, Memes

Thursday Thirteen Things Most People Don’t Know About Me (#12)

I moved to Maine 2 1/2 years ago, leaving my old life behind.  Most people up here and most people online don’t know many of these things from the first 33 years of my life…

Thirteen Things about N. Mallory

1. I was a Stand-up comic in New Orleans for about 2 years after college.  I loved it at first, but it’s very hard to be a clean comic and the guy who booked our shows kept booking us into the sleaziest of places.
2. I lost 55 lbs in 2002.  I’ve gained it back since moving, but I was well-known in certain circles in New Orleans as being the Queen of Nutrition and was a role model, something I was proud of but also there was a lot of pressure with it.
3. I’ve written two novels.  One I wrote in high school and one I wrote last year for NaNoWriMo.  Believe it or not but the latter is the better of the two.  The high school one was really bad sci-fi.  Last year’s was semi-autobiographical.  No one will ever see either again.
4. I haven’t been on a date since the beginning of 2003.  Possibly why my mother thinks I’m a lesbian.
5. I am still good friends with my last three serious boyfriends.  Like help move a body good friends.  Though, I think only one of them might actually ask.
6. I was once mugged on a first date.  We were in the driveway of a police officer’s home.  The mugger told us not to call the police.  We were standing next to the patrol car.
7. He’s the only one I considered marrying.
8. I have seen and talked to ghosts, but I don’t believe in extra-terrestrials.  However, Signs scares the shit out of me every time I watch it.
9. I was sent home from Vacation Bible School for wearing a skirt to short.  I was the art teacher.
10. I also got girls banned from the Church choir my senior year because I “danced” while singing.
11. I was on the Student Council for the Baptist Student Center in college.  I know this comes as a surprise to those who know I have trouble with the Church.  Believe it or not, I did try to work with the system for many years before my Faith in God suggested I should stop upsetting the natives with my questions.
12. I sold Pampered Chef products — and despite having quite the comic personality for it, I hated hunting down friends and family with a catalog and calculator to beg them to buy stuff.  However, I have quite the enviable kitchen collection of stoneware and pots and pans.
13. After I lost my job 12 days before Christmas 2003 in New Orleans, I took a job in Maine in April 2004 and moved 1700 miles away from everyone and everything I’d known my entire life of 33 years.  Some people have told my I was courageous.  At the time I considered it desperate.  Today, I consider myself lucky.  It’s clear to me that God knew it was time for me make a change and that I wasn’t going to do it on my own.  He knew I would never have mentally survived Hurricane Katrina and that as a Healthcare IT worker I would have been in the midst of it per my job’s requirements.  Everything might not be perfect, but it could be worse; that much I’m aware.

Tags: Thursday Thirteen, meme, bloghopping

Thursday Thirteen Discombobulated Worries This Week (#11)

My brain is way too scattered and full of anxiety to focus on one particular nifty topic this week. So, now you get to see the really true discombobulated, highly anxious me.

Thirteen Things about N. Mallory

1. What if the sale on the little red house falls through and I don’t get it?
2. What if the sale on the little red house doesn’t fall through and I do get it and it turns into a money pit?
3. What if those nice flippers are taking advantage of me because I’m a naive first time buyer and I don’t know what I’m doing?
4. What if my dog is depressed? He’s been lethargic and hasn’t been eating at home, but the doggie daycare folks say he’s hyper and playful there. Maybe he just hates me.

More

Tags: Thursday Thirteen, meme, bloghopping, anxiety, home buying, acid reflux, IgAN, autoimmune kidney disease, discombobulated, the puppy

14 comments See also in My Life, Geekery, Blogging & Other Blogs, Wellness, Discombobulated, Anxiety/Depression, The Puppy, Acid Reflux/Gastro B.S., Thursday Thirteen, Memes, Little Red House, IgA Nephropathy

Thursday Thirteen House Hunting Ponderings (#10)

This week’s post obviously is the result of my recent house hunt wanderings. Clearly I have my own opinions and sense of style. None of my comments are meant to insult so please take this post in the spirit of the Thursday Thirteen meme — an opportunity to get to know each other…here’s me. Feel free to comment and opinion right back. I’d like to get to know you too.

Thirteen Things about N. Mallory

1. Seriously. $500K is a bit too much to be asking if you have the pinkest bathroom ever and a Space Shuttle mural in the living room.

More

Tags: Thursday Thirteen, meme, bloghopping, house hunting

24 comments See also in My Life, Geekery, Blogging & Other Blogs, Thursday Thirteen, Memes

Thursday Thirteen Neat Things I Wish Someone Would Buy Me (#9)

This week’s list(posted early due to my medical stay) is stuff I’ve found that I think is really cool but I just can’t justify buying for myself (and I don’t play the lotto), but seeing as I’m single and live alone, there’s not really anyone around here but the animals to hint at that I want it other than my parents and, well, let’s just not go into the whole online-wishlist-ordering-online-fiasco thing…

Thirteen Things about N. Mallory

1. Birding Company Maine Bay Window feeder — Can you imagine what fun my cats and my dog would have with this little beauty? I just think it would be better than television.
2. Knit Lite Knitting Needles — Knitting needles that light up in the dark. How cool is that? I mean, I have a problem with lighting because it tends to trigger headaches with me — something that not all doctors get (it’s like my face gets flushed on the side that the light is coming from and then if I stay that way to long, a headache with develop and if I don’t treat it, a migraine, etc.). If I had these, I could keep knitting even after I’ve had to turn the lamp off maybe.

More

Tags: Thursday Thirteen, meme, bloghopping, shopping, wishlist, Amazon

20 comments See also in Geekery, Blogging & Other Blogs, Thursday Thirteen, Memes

Thursday Thirteen Favorite Recipes (#8)

O.K. This is both a cheat and a shameless plug for The Weekend Chef. I am neither ashamed nor apologetic. I love cooking and I love sharing my recipes. So, this week this is what you get.

Thirteen Things about N. Mallory

1. Aunt J’s Easy Crispy Sweet Pecan Granola — I recently visited my aunt and she made this fantabulous granola for breakfast. It was so fantabulous in fact that I just couldn’t wait to try it out for myself and was completely surprised at how simple and easy it is to make. Now I have homemade granola to mix in with my homemade yogurt every morning.
2. Baked Ziti Casserole — I picked up this one from a Weight Watchers cookbook. It’s low-fat but full of wonderful flavor and texture. Plus, it’s simple and easy to make.
3. Puttanesca Sauce — I first had puttanesca sauce in a restaurant in New Orleans and couldn’t resist hunting down a recipe so I could have it whenever I wanted it at home.
   

   The name originated in Naples after the local women of easy virtue. Pasta Puttanesca means “The way a whore would make it”, but the reason why the dish gained such a name is debated. One possibility is that the name is a reference to the sauce’s hot, spicy flavour and smell. Another is that the dish was offered to prospective customers at a low price to entice them into a house of ill repute. According to chef Jeff Smith of the Frugal Gourmet, its name came from the fact that it was a quick cheap meal that prostitutes could prepare between customers. [Wikipedia]

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Thursday Thirteen Most Recently Watched Netflix Movies (#7)

Update: For some reason Nov. 9th’s Thursday Thirteen is coming here. It should be going to: Thursday Thirteen Things Most People Don’t Know About Me.
So, here they are in reverse order from watched sometime in the Summer to mailed this very Monday…the last eclectic thirteen movies I watched through my Netflix account and even what I thought about them.

Thirteen Things about N. Mallory

1. Casanova
   

   Lasse Hallstrom’s witty romantic comedy stars Heath Ledger as Jacamo Casanova, the infamous and dashing player of 18th century Venice who holds the key to every woman’s heart — all but one, that is. Francesca (Sienna Miller) detests the lothario’s conquering approach to matters of love and rallies against him in her writing … which only makes her more alluring. But to win her over, Casanova must first decide what kind of man he truly is.

   I thought this was a rather charming movie, reminescent of Shakespearian mistaken identities and misunderstandings. Certainly it has a touch of Taming of the Shrew but with a less distasteful ending for those of us who thought Kate was a little too submissive at the end of William’s version.

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Thursday Thirteen Inalienable Truths I’ve Accepted (#6)

Accept certain inalienable truths.

Prices will rise, Politicians will philander, you too will get old.

And when you do, you’ll fantasize that when you were young,
prices were reasonable, politicians were noble, and children respected their elders.

[…]

Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it.

Advice is a form of nostalgia; dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts, and recycling it for more than its worth.

Thirteen Things about N. Mallory

1. A nap is always a good use of time. This I’ve learned mostly from my cats, but my puppy seems to subscribe to this philosophy too.
2. Use a pencil when writing in your life’s planner. I never in a million years would have thought I’d be living in Maine 3 years ago and now I’ve been hear 2 1/2 years. In fact, I was packed to move to Alabama the month before I moved to Maine…so make sure that pencil has a large eraser.
3. Doing what’s healthy for yourself may feel somewhat selfish and awkward, but in the long run, you’ll be better for it. If you’re a people pleaser, it’s not always easy to put yourself first and do the thing that protects you or fills your needs, but practice makes perfect.
4. Parents don’t always realize they aren’t being supportive. Oh, many think they are; they really do. They think they’re looking out for you, trying to help, etc. They’re critical words probably aren’t meant to be critical but guiding, etc. First try talking it out and if that doesn’t work, ignore and let go. They’re being supportive “in they’re own way.” Take it for what it is.
5. I am never going to look like those models in the magazines. ‘Nuf said.
6. Draw a crazy picture,
   Write a nutty poem,
   Sing a mumble-gumble song,
   Whistle through your comb.
   Do a loony-goony dance,
   ’Cross the kitchen floor,
   Put something silly in the world
   That ain’t been there before.
   -”Put Something In”, Shel Silverstein
7. It was easier to make new friends at five than thirty-five. Maybe trading PB&J and playing Barbies had something to do with it. Or it could just be that everyone seems to be in such a hurry these days to get from one place to another so we can all rush home to our families, televisions and internet-connected commputers, myself included.
8. Politics is the new racism. Not that the old racism has disappeared, but there does seem to be a lot of hatred these days directed between the politically-minded, most of which are just shouting insults and rhetoric at each other without discussing anything of any real import anything worth listening to anyway. It makes me wonder how long it’ll be before we have separate water fountains for liberals and conservatives. Wouldn’t want their spit to mix.
9. There is no magic pill. Apparently there’s no magic pill that will make me skinny, healthy, or happy. These are all things I have to work at. Apparently, the journey is worth it.
10. You do not need six spatulas. So sayth the personal organizer. She let me keep my favorite two. Honestly? I haven’t missed the other four in the last six months, so I guess she’s right.
11. Sometimes you just have to dance in the rain. Embrace nature, enjoy her. She feeds you, gives you life, heals you. It’s good to be reminded every now and then that we came from nature instead of rushing from our cars to our homes afraid to let ourselves get touched by a single raindrop as if it might ruin us or melt us.
12. Sit in silence every now and then. This is another trick I learned from my wise if somewhat neurotic cats. In this day and age, it’s hard to get away from the static — there almost always seems to be some sort of something blasting it’s way into our minds these days between the televisions, the satellite and regular radios, CDs, DVDs, podcasts, iPods, and on and on. Sometimes it’s good just to sit in silence and soak it in. It’s a strange kind of noise really, very relaxing. It helps if you stare at a blank spot on the wall.
13. The past was never as good or as bad as you remember it. We all rewrite the past just a little “bigger” than it was. Take some comfort that the tragedies weren’t nearly as tragic as you think they were and ignore the fact that your glories weren’t nearly as glorious as you think, but keep in mind that some of your glories may been someone else’s tragedies…and vice versa.

Feel free to add you own truths to the comments section or comment on mine.

Tags: Thursday Thirteen, blog meme, bloghopping

Thursday Thirteen People I Hate (#5)

In keeping with my generally depressed and pissy mood, even though I’m kind of happy to be leaving to go out of town today, even though flying and travelling completely freak and stress me out, I’ve decided to go with pet peeves for this week’s Thursday Thirteen. In particular, I’m focusing on pet peeves involving people since it’s people who’ve been irritating and hurting me this week.

I think this will be a good, healthy outlet for the pain.

No. Really.