moved on...visit me elsewhere, please

Okay, I have pretty long since moved on.

Find me here: the duck pond

Or, for fun, here: duckiev pinboards

blog sprint: time travel? grazie, ma non

Today's One Minute Writer: You have a time machine. What point in history will you never visit?

Just about every point, ever. I'm a woman. I have red hair. I like to be clean. I like being able to go to school and read and choose whether to stay at home or go off to work (sometimes that choice is a bit more theoretical, given the current economy, no?).

-----------------

On another note: I figured out how to watch What Not to Wear online. Begin me never accomplishing anything again, ever. I've always loved makeover shows. At the same time, I wonder why "we" buy into it all. And, yes, I totally buy into a lot of what they say. And, no, I don't dress the way they'd recommend. (I do remember they once let one guy shop at thrift stores. That'd definitely be one of my conditions...as if they'd allow me conditions.)

monday music: 'just sit right back and you'll hear a tale' (or, 'because i could not stop for death')

One: Head on over and listen to the Gilligan's Island theme song (cannot embed, alas).

Two: Read some Emily Dickinson. Try some "Because I could not stop for Death" or "My Life had stood -- a Loaded Gun."

Three: Add steps one and two above. Sing to self or others until you can get something else stuck in your head.

You're welcome.

--------------

I learned about this that semester I also learned about YouTube. I'm pretty sure I was one of the last people to know about either. Okay, maybe not, but probably, right?

a lesson in...something

Determination, perhaps?

I am physically exhausted right now (my eyes want to close). I'm about to go get into bed and think about whether I should go to sleep. Yes, it's 7:01 in the evening as I write this.

However, I knew I couldn't go lay down before I posted. But, I only have flitting ideas of topics. Enter: One Minute Writer. Today's prompt: With the Internet at our fingertips, is there too much information available? If so, in what way?

Yes. But, really, that's not what I wanted to write about regarding this topic. (The prompt brought to mind this other thing.)

Sometimes, I come here and ask questions, the answers to which I could find through the google god. But, I don't always want to look things up online. Sometimes I want personal accounts from people I know (or people I "know"). This is why I read so many blogs. I want to know how other people do the day-to-day thing. When I want to know how to cook or bake something, I want to hear about the experience from someone non-random. When I want to decide on a new book to read, I want a suggestion from someone familiar.

When I have a Desk Set-type-question, I want the mental exercise of trying to remember the answer with a friend, not by interacting with a search bar and dealing with the wiki-world and the like. Although I'm using the computer to communicate my queries, I don't always want EMARAC to be the one giving the responses.

nearly ww

I think I actually like the curls-in-progress look better (at least it's kind of weird). Next time, I'll not put my hair up when it's very wet (I did wait a day-and-a-half to take the headband out).

Thanks to Poke for the idea, via Pinterest.

a little look at language: hardcover book, and other retronyms

I am, of course, reading some more "On Language" columns. I'm still over thirty years behind in my reading.

Just as I do with blogs, I am reading through the archives of this column, working my way up to the most recent entries. I'm loving this because it's funny to see how words and uses of language I don't give any thought to were once so debated. I also like to see what we are still arguing about thirty years later.*

Anyhow, I just learned a new term: retronym. I hadn't heard that before, but I know the concept. Retronyms are terms to indicate something that already exists but now also exists in a newer version; the new term is crafted to avoid confusion. William Safire, in "On Language: Retronyms," writes of the creation of "acoustic guitar" to distinguish from the newer electric guitars and of "natural turf" (i.e. grass) to distinguish from artificial turf (i.e. astroturf). Safire goes on: "Other retronyms include 'hard-cover book,' which was merely a 'book' before the soft-cover book came along; 'manual transmission,' which used to be the 'gearshift' before 'automatic transmission' became popular;...."

I also found this list of retronyms. (What the heck is Bush 41? Bush, Sr.? Or, H.W.? Basically an indication that we're referring to the 41st, not the 43rd president?)

And, here's a Daily Writing Tips article on retronyms. You don't need to buy a subscription to check this out. (I can't say the same for the NYT archives.)

------------------

* For some reason, I keep thinking of the older (definitely not very old) cookbooks I have that say something like, "If you have a microwave oven, you can use it to melt the butter" or what-have-you. (Hey! Microwave oven -- another retronym!)

makeup; or, i might as well apply a thick layer of lead to my face

I don't have nice skin. I think I maybe did, pre-eleven-years-old, but definitely not since then. I would like to hide behind makeup, but, geez, makeup can be scary. I only own powder foundation. (I'm so ill-versed in makeup that I'm not even sure that's what it's called. I always have to look it up.) And, I only wear it days I work outside of my home, which means rarely ever.

For the last several years, I've been using Bare Minerals. One container of powder lasts me a good, long while, so I don't have to worry about buying new makeup often. As my little container is almost empty, though, I have to worry about it now. I thought I'd be an informed consumer/user, so I turned to Environmental Working Group's cosmetics database to perhaps find a less expensive, but not terrifying, makeup. First, what I'm currently using has a moderately high overall hazard, including occupational hazards (what the what?!). Second, yes, makeup is scarier than I thought. I'm glad I don't wear it much more often. Why do we poison ourselves for vanity's sake. (I don't even know how the manufacture of all of this stuff affects those doing the manufacturing or how it affects the environment.)

I might go with Physician's Formula (this specific powder), which I know I can buy at nearby stores (as in, I don't have to buy my makeup online). Still, reading even those stats kind of freaks me out.

If anyone has feedback regarding makeup that won't cause my face to fall off, I'd love to hear it, please.

nablo: between

So, the guiding idea for NaBloPoMo this month is "between." Two things popped into my head, both songs, both of whose audience is children.

Anyhow, I'm not officially signed up for NaBlo this month, but I know I'm not getting a picture posted today, so "this moment" will have to wait until tomorrow. Which leaves me sharing with you what's been stuck in my head for over a week now.


"Between the Lions: 'Between the Lions' Theme"

And:


"Sesame Street: Wayne Brady Demonstrates Between"

You're welcome, I'm sure.

{this moment}

{inspiration: SouleMama}

{this moment}

{inspiration: SouleMama}

baking soda! and other stuff

Okay, so this post will probably not be exclusively about good ol' bicarbonate of soda, but it will play a starring role.

I've been working for a very long time on gradually making more things at home that I might once have purchased ready-made. This coincided with becoming a bit quietly tree-hugger-ish/crunchy/whatever. This started when Pic was really a wee one. I was thinking about all of the things we used that might end up harming her: toilet cleaners, floor cleaners, surface cleaners, ecc.

A while after that, I also started thinking about the items that I use that might have a negative impact on my body and on the earth.

I started out very simply by stopping use of disposable cleaners (those toilet bowl scrubbers or whatever they were, disinfectant wipes, so on), plug-in air fresheners (we went through a weird phase of being somewhat obsessed with these...why?) and fabric softener sheets.

I switched from bottled window cleaners and surface cleaners to white vinegar and water solutions. Much later, I began adding baking soda in as a scrubbing agent. I switched us to "green" laundry detergent and dish detergent. I bought us some reusable bags (which I still forget to bring sometimes) and reusable water bottles. I started collecting canning jars and then buying glass storage containers for our food storage needs.

More recently, I've focused more on myself. 2009 seemed to be a year of change for me. I stopped using shampoo and I started using cloth pads. As for shampoo, I started using shampoo bars. In May of that year, I tried to go the no 'poo route (please note the placement of my apostrophe). The article I read indicated that it might take anywhere between two and eight weeks to adjust to that. I waited five before I got really tired of my hair being constantly greasy and gross and switched back to shampoo bars. At some point, I stopped worrying about buying specifically-marked shampoo bars and started using whatever bar of soap looked good to me.

I restarted my no 'poo affair in May of this year. I have a much better (for me) system now. I use one of Pic's old shampoo bottles (I still use Burt's Bees baby shampoo/body wash for her...when she deigns to bathe herself). I put some baking soda (really, this is how I measure...if I had to guess, I'd say I use about a tablespoon, maybe a bit more because I have a big head) in the bottle and then add warm water when I get in the shower (I don't enjoy mixing it beforehand and having it waiting because then it's too cold). I shake up the bottle, turn off the water and squirt the solution over my scalp. I rub the solution onto my head for a good while and let it sit until I'm finished washing and rinsing the rest of my body. After my shower, and after I get the excess water out of my hair, I spray an apple cider vinegar and water mixture onto my head in nice big puffs. (I tried using straight apple cider vinegar, but I'm pretty sure that ruined two spray bottles. Either that, or I bought really cheap bottles. Now, I use about two parts vinegar to one part water.) Then, I comb my hair and think about doing something with it. And, seriously, for the first time I can remember, I can wait a day (or maybe even two!) before I wash my hair again. This, coming from a person who used to sometimes use industrial cleaner on my hair. (Oy with the poodles. I really do try to block that out.) This, coming from a person who used to wash her hair twice a day because it was so greasy.

As for my cloth pads: I love them. I know the very idea freaks some people out, but, well, obviously not me. I bought twelve pads from an etsy shop two years ago and have been very happy with them ever since. I would like to have some cloth pantyliners also, but I keep telling myself I'll learn to sew and I'll make those myself. Recently, I bought a Diva Cup. I was very nervous about using it, but it worked for me. Seriously, though, for either of these, you have to not be squeamish about what your own body produces (and then rejects when it realizes there's nothing growing in your uterus). (Oh, and there're instructions for "women's cloth" in Handmade Home if you're interested in making your own.)

Last May, I also started using baking soda to wash my face. I keep a little jar of it in the shower and a jar of it on my bathroom counter. I just pour a little in my hand and add a teeny bit of water to form a paste and scrub that on. About a year ago, I started using witch hazel as an astringent, thanks to the recommendation of some friends. Recently, I started trying to use coconut oil on my face also, but I'm still undecided on whether that is doing any good. And, I can't use it during the day because, although it supposedly is absorbed into your skin in fifteen minutes, my skin refuses to absorb it in anything less than four thousand hours (or something).

This May, I also finally got around to making my own deodorant. I stopped using antiperspirant a little more than three years ago because I got all paranoid about its ingredients. I was mainly using Tom's of Maine's deodorant, sometimes Trader Joe's. However, with both, I still had to carry deodorant around with me because I was seriously stinky. The homemade deodorant? I freaking love. So much. Definitely. It is not antiperspirant, but I'm already used to my sweat. But, oh. my. gracious. I don't smell. The first few days I used the deodorant, I kept sniffing my underarms, constantly reminding myself of Otto.

A couple of notes on this deodorant: while I didn't smell unpleasant, I did smell chocolately; it's weird to smell chocolately from my underarms. Here's a big duh statement: have a short jar or container handy. I didn't have one the first time I made this and ended up putting it in a jar that was too tall for me to easily get to my deodorant. Pain in my butt. Cardo made his first deodorant recently and he poured the liquid into his old deodorant container and that's worked for him. I use two little jars now. I divide the liquid into the jars and keep one in the bathroom and one in the refrigerator until I need it. (My deodorant has tangerine essential oil and Cardo's has lavender essential oil.)

The deodorant has baking soda, among five other ingredients.

I also make our laundry detergent. It's been something close to two years since I started that. I am happy with the results. I would like, however, to make a small amount of liquid detergent for when I handwash (which, um, I kind of never get around to). I also occasionally make air freshener. I just started doing that because we already have the essential oils for the deodorant. I pour a bit of baking soda on a saucer and add a few drops of whichever essential oil (the lavender is stronger).

I also use baking soda and vinegar for cleaning just about everything in our home: toilets, counters, the oven. I occasionally get around to using vinegar as a fabric softener, but I can almost never remember to add it to the rinse cycle. I use vinegar and water to clean mirrors and the non-carpeted floors. Oh, I have also used baking soda on the carpet if it smells (sprinkle on before vacuuming).

So, I'm pretty sure I've mentioned baking soda about a lot of times here. (Oh, yeah, I've also used baking soda paste to soothe sunburn. And, I've used it to brush my teeth, although it tastes awful and I'm still not sure if I need fluoride so I haven't yet moved to making my own toothpaste.) So, yes, when Cardo asks if I really need that much baking soda, I do. I even use it to bake once in a while.

All of this seems like a lot, but really, I started making these changes almost seven years ago. I'm all about gradual change, letting myself ease into new things. And, there's so much more I'd like to do, so much more I'd like to make here and so many different ways I'd like to use less new and/or disposable stuff.

In my dreams, I cook and bake much more and I make our clothes (sometimes out of the clothes and other materials we already have on hand). Maybe I'll work on that over the next seven years.

------------------

A couple of notes: I have been meaning to post on some of this for quite some time, so I crammed it all here in one post because otherwise I'll never get to it. But, geez, this post is long and took me forever to slog through. Also, can you tell who does most of the cleaning around here? At some point, I hope to be able to replace a lot of those "I"s with "we"s.

another bit, another bob

Earlier, I started to enter into my interweb address bar an address that starts with 'b' and my computer suggested that I might be looking for a baked doughnut recipe on 101 cookbooks. Thanks ever so. (It turns out that I saved that recipe so long ago that I don't even remember it now. Not worry, because someone does.)

--------------

I was sent an e-mail for a discount on language software. The discount? '-25%' What? So, I have to send them 125% of the price. What kind of deal is that? (I totally see how that's a deal for them. Not so much for me. I'll pass.)

musical monday: 'this is the fresh prince's new definition of summer madness'

"Will Smith- Summertime (High Quality)"

I know it's still going to be warm for a while, but I still feel like summer is slipping away. It's still a month until autumnal equinox and another two until the cold, right? Why doesn't it feel like it?

---------------

Also, just read this post on the shift in the seasons and I'm right there, too.

{this moment}

{inspiration: SouleMama}

on pinterest (and telephone gossip)

O, Pinterest, how I really am thoroughly enjoying you!

Some observations:

* I feel like I'm revealing so much more about myself through Pinterest, in such a cavalier* way (yes, I'm book-obsessed, which I know was obvious, but is now even more so; look at the sites I frequent most...frequently; you can definitely tell what fills my daydreams)

* I could spend something like a lifetime just pinning stuff

* Is it really okay to pin something from someone's site when they ask that you keep their words/images where they've been posted? Should I be asking permission of these other bloggers? Or, is this more like visual links that are clearly attributed?

* Why did it take me so long to realize that the site is posted on the pins for me, so I didn't have to keep typing in addresses (except for the etsy thing, wherein I still find that I like to post the name of the actual shop/seller)

------------

* You should definitely look this word up; it has such a specific (archaic) meaning.

------------


"Telephone Hour - Bye Bye Birdie (1995)"

or


"Musical Number: Bye Bye Birdie - Telephone Hour"

or...one of thirteen thousand other versions, no doubt.

'that's fire, beats everything'

Pic has recently discovered Rock, Paper, Scissors. Right now, we just play it to play it. We don't yet use it as the challenge that leads to the winner earning some pre-selected prize. ("Rock, Paper, Scissors, Go!" "I win! Now, I get to sit here and ponder life's mysteries while you sweep the floor."*)

I just read this article on winning strategies for Rock, Paper, Scissors. (Seriously.) I didn't know, until I read it, that there is a world championship for the game. Wow. Best three...hundred out of 301?

I have yet to introduce Pic to the more eccentric possibilites in the game:


"Friends-1008: TOW The Late Thanksgiving (rock-paper-scissors)"

------------------

* Actually, I'm quite pleased to say that when I sweep the floor, Pic usually grabs her broom and helps out. And, yes, I just knocked on wood.

news about an old move

Okay, so a bit back, I moved. No, I don't mean that we once again have a new physical address. This is a virtual move.

I've recently begun exploring and getting comfy(ish) in a couple of other tangles of this web: stagno per anitre and Pinterest.

At about the time I started trying to play around with the format here, I finally got up the nerve to move the pond to another space. However, I've done barely a thing with that space. I was to spend a lot of my alone time today packing up here and unpacking over there, but my alone time was pushed until late this evening and it has, therefore, been greatly constricted. I'll not be making a big move today, but I think I'll start composing new posts at the TypePad blog.

I can't even remember at this point how long ago it was that I started asking about which blog platforms people preferred, but I am guessing it was well over a year. I made the decision to move, but, at the same time, I didn't see the point. I have something like one regular reader, so it's not like I'm moving due to audience demands. I kept thinking that I wouldn't move until I really started putting my bloggy self out there and started building a community, but I think the time has come. And, there we have it: I have a bit of time right now. Also, I still have that hankering to occupy new space in the ether.

I have a hankering to do a lot right now and I am starting to pile up the projects and reading and learning and commitments. At the same time, I'm striving to become a more calm, kind and accepting human being. And, I am working to expand my scope of experiences.

In all, I feel about on the verge of bursting out of my skin to see how brightly I'll let myself shine. (And, yes, I know that image can be somewhat hugely disturbing, but I am imagining it as such a positive thing.)

So, as I start to figure things out for myself, as I start foster some real personal growth, I'll slowly be moving from here. I don't feel I need a completely new start (else, I would not bother moving all that I have here), but I do feel that I want to try to figure out a new set of interwebby-bloggy-workings. I think my very own learning curve with this will be steep, but I am also feeling like I'll be up for the challenge here within the next couple of months.

For all who have TypePad experience and expertise, I would appreciate any feedback, help and/or advice.

Please, feel free to visit me at my TypePad incarnation of stagno per anitre.

Also, please feel free to check out what I'm pinning over on my Pinterest boards.

I have a the always-ab fab Poke to thank for the invite to the latter site. I have only just begun to turn my bookmarks folders into boards over there. I think you'll not be surprised that much of what I've covered thus far is books I'd like to read at some point in this lifetime. I'm basing my boards on labels I use here.

Right now, though, before I pin up anything else, I'm off to expand my mind in an again different direction.

happiness is...

A la Poke:

1. date night: g'bye Harry, Ron, Hermione, et al (I not-so-secretly still prefer the books, but I'm glad we got out to see the movie)
2. (other people's) babies
3. briefly seeing dearly beloved friends and their family
4. fabulous homeschool park day
5. Will Smith

blog sprint: organization procrastination

One Minute Writer from Monday: What do you need to organize?

I definitely need to organize oh-so-many things in my life. Foremost: my thoughts. I am feeling too tired and scatterbrained to write much today, although I had a topic planned (perhaps I'll return later this evening).

I also need to organize the many, many piles of PAPER!!! stacked up around our home. Oh, with the papers already. (Yes, that was me screaming on the screen there.)

I would like to organize my whole bit of the bloggy universe. The pond is currently a mess and is a little split in two right now. I have been thinking about moving, but the thought of moving everything is just daunting.

Finally, for now, there's a great, big, gigantic, titanic cupboard of art and game stuff staring at me right this very moment. And, if I took two steps around the desk here and opened the doors of that cupboard, its contents would grab me and swallow me up. I only just got away the other day when I was trying to find the laminating stuff I bought years ago and used precisely twice. I'm ready to use it again, dang it, so where is it?

All right. That is all. That was more than one single minute.

Now, off to...rest! Ha, no organization today!

Ah, well.

laff track and a possible weekend outing

I actually laughed out loud when I read the label on the third cake in this Cake Wrecks post.

------------

All right. I'm off. Cardo is reading The Deathly Hallows, so I cannot right now. Which reminds me, who wants a fabulous six-year-old for a good long weekend so Cardo and I can indulge in an HP movie marathon? (I said I'd finally watch all of the movies with Cardo because he will have read all of the books. And, I kind of want to see them all now.)

Pic is watching some good old Alvin and the Chipmunks episodes.

I...? I might be about to head off to rest as we had a looong and broilingly-hot day yesterday and not enough sleep last night before another long, but much better, day today. Tomorrow and Saturday will also be pretty full.

I am too worn out to even catch up on what's been going on in blogland. Ah, well. Summertime...and my brain is all melty.

------------

However, before I rush off: If anyone is interested, Capt'n Jack Spareribs is making appearances at local (Washoe County) libraries. We're very much looking forward to seeing this show.