4/27/2013
Spectacular View
I have to admit, I am fairly lucky. Near where I live is one of the most spectacular views. When you're driving West on I70 into the mountains, 3 exits in (Genessee Park exit) the highway curves and the mountains just open up and there it is.
4/10/2013
Guilty Pleasure - Drop Dead Diva
I have to admit, Drop Dead Diva is one of my favorite tv shows. I don't watch tv regularly, I tend to save things up and watch them in big chunks or marathons when I have time.
I just caught up on Season 4, and I still love the show but I'm angry at the writers. I feel like they were pressured by viewers to go for the 'Prince Charming' fairytale romance instead of a realistic and really great one that had been building for over a season.
The premise of the show is cheesy but cute and very lighthearted.
I just caught up on Season 4, and I still love the show but I'm angry at the writers. I feel like they were pressured by viewers to go for the 'Prince Charming' fairytale romance instead of a realistic and really great one that had been building for over a season.
The premise of the show is cheesy but cute and very lighthearted.
3/27/2013
Tool of the Week: Tea Tree Blemish Stick
You kind of assume that one of the good things about getting older would be at least you don't have to deal with annoying pimples/zits/acne/blemishes anymore. And for the most part that is true. But every once in awhile you can still get one, typically from stress.
The last thing you need when you're stressed, is something to make you even MORE stressed.
I found this wonderful little stick a few years back and it's now an absolute staple of my makeup bag. I can go without makeup completely, and just be happy with good skincare, as long as I have this guy on my side!
The Desert Essence Blemish Touch Stick. Dab this on the minute you start seeing a blemish, with follow ups every few hours. When I do this, the blemish disappears within 2 days!
"Reduces oil that can lead to blemishes. Helps improve and maintain skin clarity. Soothes and nourishes skin. Powerful botanical extracts of chamomile, lavender, palmarosa, wintergreen and calendula are formulated with tea tree oil in a proprietary blend that works to diminish skin imperfections and give your complexion a fresh natural radiance."
It can be found in most Whole Foods and Vitamin Cottage Natural Grocers stores. If you don't have one of those nearby, you can always find it at amazon too! Facial Blemish Stick-Anti-Bacterial with Tea Tree - .31 oz - Stick
Per the UWA Tea Tree Oil Research Group: Tea tree oil is the essential oil steam distilled from the Australian plant Melaleuca alternifolia (unique to Australia and native to Northern New South Wales). Tea tree oil is usually clear to very pale golden in color and it exudes a fresh, camphor-like scent.
Often called a “medicine cabinet in a bottle”, Tea Tree Oil is antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral AND stimulates the immune system.
Also known as Melaleuca, Tea Tree Oil is a natural antibacterial disinfectant that was commonly used as a general antiseptic by aborigine tribes for thousands of years. Recently the scientific community has confirmed that Tea Tree Oil has tremendous medicinal benefits.
It's also known to effectively fight a number of infections that are resistant to some antibiotics! It is an excellent natural remedy for hundreds of bacterial and fungal skin ailments such as acne, abscess, oily skin, blisters, sun burns, athlete's foot, warts, herpes, insect bites, rashes, dandruff and other minor wounds and irritations.
And that's just the external uses!
It can also be used as a mouth wash, since it is highly effective in healing oral candidiasis (a fungal infection of mouth and throat). I don't have first hand experience of this, but I do have very sensitive gums that bleed. I switched to a tea tree oil toothpaste and mouthwash (also found at Vitamin Cottage) and within DAYS my gums stopped bleeding.
*Editor’s Note: This article does not replace medical advice.
The last thing you need when you're stressed, is something to make you even MORE stressed.
I found this wonderful little stick a few years back and it's now an absolute staple of my makeup bag. I can go without makeup completely, and just be happy with good skincare, as long as I have this guy on my side!
The Desert Essence Blemish Touch Stick. Dab this on the minute you start seeing a blemish, with follow ups every few hours. When I do this, the blemish disappears within 2 days!
"Reduces oil that can lead to blemishes. Helps improve and maintain skin clarity. Soothes and nourishes skin. Powerful botanical extracts of chamomile, lavender, palmarosa, wintergreen and calendula are formulated with tea tree oil in a proprietary blend that works to diminish skin imperfections and give your complexion a fresh natural radiance."
It can be found in most Whole Foods and Vitamin Cottage Natural Grocers stores. If you don't have one of those nearby, you can always find it at amazon too! Facial Blemish Stick-Anti-Bacterial with Tea Tree - .31 oz - Stick
Per the UWA Tea Tree Oil Research Group: Tea tree oil is the essential oil steam distilled from the Australian plant Melaleuca alternifolia (unique to Australia and native to Northern New South Wales). Tea tree oil is usually clear to very pale golden in color and it exudes a fresh, camphor-like scent.
Often called a “medicine cabinet in a bottle”, Tea Tree Oil is antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral AND stimulates the immune system.
Also known as Melaleuca, Tea Tree Oil is a natural antibacterial disinfectant that was commonly used as a general antiseptic by aborigine tribes for thousands of years. Recently the scientific community has confirmed that Tea Tree Oil has tremendous medicinal benefits.
It's also known to effectively fight a number of infections that are resistant to some antibiotics! It is an excellent natural remedy for hundreds of bacterial and fungal skin ailments such as acne, abscess, oily skin, blisters, sun burns, athlete's foot, warts, herpes, insect bites, rashes, dandruff and other minor wounds and irritations.
And that's just the external uses!
It can also be used as a mouth wash, since it is highly effective in healing oral candidiasis (a fungal infection of mouth and throat). I don't have first hand experience of this, but I do have very sensitive gums that bleed. I switched to a tea tree oil toothpaste and mouthwash (also found at Vitamin Cottage) and within DAYS my gums stopped bleeding.
*Editor’s Note: This article does not replace medical advice.
10/30/2012
NaNoWriMo is coming!
I feel like I've spent the entire last month prepping for this. It's a marathon of creative writing!
I've got my story outline, a fun title, some fairly detailed character development for my cast and tons of research on locations and time period.
Now I have tonight to stock up on groceries... high-energy snacks like nuts and seeds, dried fruit, 5hr energy shots... and microwavable quick meals. This is a marathon, not a sprint, so it requires prep work lol!
For anyone else interested in taking up this challenge, I've compiled a list of some helpful guides/how-tos/tips and tricks kind of thing:
And remember, NaNoWriMo could be any month! The challenge is to write 50,000 words in a single month. Just doing it during November gives you the support of other people doing the same challenge.
Book in a Month: The Fool-Proof System for Writing a Novel in 30 Days
@WriMo: A 30-day Survival Guide for Writers
When Every Month is NaNoWriMo
1,000 Character Writing Prompts: Villains, Heroes and Hams for Scripts, Stories and More
And now for my favorite part of the NaNoWriMo website... the forum where people offer up writing prompts, character ideas, running jokes, motivational and inspirational lines to get you writing. All sorts of things to flesh out or inspire your writing! They've even got a thread suggesting different types of murder...
Don't forget to stock up on supplies!
10/26/2012
Halloween - Movie Marathon? Black Comedies
The problem is... what movies to choose? There's alien (Alien), old creature movies (The Blob), classic horror movies (The Mummy), vampire movies (Bram Stoker's Dracula or The Lost Boys), werewolf movies (The Wolf Man, old or new), etc.
Or find a dvd collection of Elvira's movies, they were cheesy schlock horror movies that matched her cheesy schlock schtick! (Sadly this great collection of 12 movies, perfect for a marathon, won't be available until after Halloween, but good to keep in mind for next year, or.. as Ministry says, 'Every day is Halloween').
Oh... black comedy! I LOVE black comedies. They are dark and twisted and can walk that fine line, making murder (or the aftermath, like what to do with that dead body) funny. Here's a list of some great black comedies dark enough for Halloween, but light enough for almost any psyche and most age ranges (use your own judgement on this if showing to young children). Other lists of darker, scarier more horror-ish movies will follow over the weekend, to rev up for Halloween!
In alphabetical order, since trying to organize them by darkness or comedy would be silly:
After Hours (1985)
An ordinary word processor has the worst night of his life after he agrees to visit a girl in Soho whom he met that evening at a coffee shop. (97 mins.)
Director: Martin Scorsese
Stars: Griffin Dunne, Rosanna Arquette, Verna Bloom, Tommy Chong
A drama critic learns on his wedding day that his beloved maiden aunts are homicidal maniacs, and that insanity runs in his family. (118 mins.)
Director: Frank Capra
Stars: Cary Grant, Priscilla Lane, Raymond Massey, Jack Carson
Big Nothing (2006)
A frustrated, unemployed teacher joining forces with a scammer and his girlfriend in a blackmailing scheme. (86 mins.)
Director: Jean-Baptiste Andrea
Stars: David Schwimmer, Simon Pegg, Alice Eve, Jon Polito
Burke and Hare (2010)
A black comedy about two 19th century grave robbers who find a lucrative business providing cadavers for an Edinburgh medical school. (91 mins.)
Director: John Landis
Stars: Bill Bailey, Tom Wilkinson, Michael Smiley, Tim Curry
Six guests are invited to a strange house and must cooperate with the staff to solve a murder mystery. (94 mins.)
Director: Jonathan Lynn
Stars: Eileen Brennan, Tim Curry, Madeline Kahn, Christopher Lloyd
The Comedy of Terrors (1963)
An undertaker who hasn't had any 'customers' in a long time is forced the pay one year's back-rent.... (84 mins.)
Director: Jacques Tourneur
Stars: Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, Boris Karloff, Joyce Jameson
Dead Man on Campus (1998)
Two college roommates go out and party, resulting in bad grades. They learn of the clause that says, "If your roommate dies, you get an A," and decide to find someone who is on the verge, so to speak, to move in with them. (96 mins.)
Director: Alan Cohn
Stars: Tom Everett Scott, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Poppy Montgomery,
Drop Dead Gorgeous (1999)
A small town beauty pageant turns deadly as it becomes clear that someone will go to any lengths to win. (97 mins.)
Director: Michael Patrick Jann
Stars: Kirsten Dunst, Denise Richards, Ellen Barkin, Allison Janney
Drowning Mona (2000)
When a woman drives a car into the river to her death, everyone in town becomes a suspect. (96 mins.)
Director: Nick Gomez
Stars: Danny DeVito, Bette Midler, Neve Campbell, Jamie Lee Curtis
Eating Raoul (1982)
A relatively boring Los Angeles couple discover a bizarre, if not murderous way to get funding for opening a restaurant. (90 mins.)
Director: Paul Bartel
Stars: Mary Woronov, Paul Bartel, Robert Beltran, Susan Saiger
Fargo (1996)
Jerry Lundegaard's inept crime falls apart due to his and his henchmen's bungling and the persistent police work of the quite pregnant Marge Gunderson. (98 mins.)
Director: Joel Coen
Stars: William H. Macy, Frances McDormand, Steve Buscemi, Peter Stormare
Foul Play (1978)
A shy San Francisco librarian and a bumbling cop fall in love as they solve a crime involving albinos, dwarves, and the Catholic Church. (116 mins.)
Director: Colin Higgins
Stars: Goldie Hawn, Chevy Chase, Burgess Meredith, Rachel Roberts
The Gazebo (1959)
TV writer Elliott Nash buries a blackmailer under the new gazebo in his suburban backyard. But the nervous man can't let the body rest there. (100 mins.)
Director: George Marshall
Stars: Glenn Ford, Debbie Reynolds, Carl Reiner, John McGiver
A girl who half-heartedly tries to be part of the "in crowd" of her school meets a rebel who teaches her a more devious way to play social politics. (103 mins.)
Director: Michael Lehmann
Stars: Winona Ryder, Christian Slater, Shannen Doherty, Lisanne Falk
Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949)
A distant poor relative of the Duke of D'Ascoyne plots to inherit the title by murdering the eight other heirs who stand ahead of him in the line of succession. (106 mins.)
Director: Robert Hamer
Stars: Dennis Price, Alec Guinness, Valerie Hobson, Joan Greenwood
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)
A murder mystery brings together a private eye, a struggling actress, and a thief masquerading as an actor. (103 mins.)
Director: Shane Black
Stars: Robert Downey Jr., Val Kilmer, Michelle Monaghan, Corbin Bernsen
The Last Supper (1995)
A group of idealistic, but frustrated, liberals succumb to the temptation of murdering rightwing pundits for their political beliefs. (92 mins.)
Director: Stacy Title
Stars: Cameron Diaz, Ron Eldard, Annabeth Gish, Jonathan Penner
Five famous literary detective characters and their sidekicks are invited to a bizarre mansion to solve an even stranger mystery. (94 mins.)
Director: Robert Moore
Stars: Peter Falk, Alec Guinness, Peter Sellers, Eileen Brennan
Novocaine (2001)
A dentist finds himself a murder suspect after a sexy patient seduces him into prescribing her drugs. (95 mins.)
Director: David Atkins
Stars: Steve Martin, Helena Bonham Carter, Chelcie Ross, Laura Dern
Parents (1989)
A young boy living in 1950s suburbia begins to wonder where his parents get their meat from... (81 mins.)
Director: Bob Balaban
Stars: Randy Quaid, Mary Beth Hurt, Sandy Dennis, Bryan Madorsky
A sweet mother takes a little too much at heart for the defence of her family. (95 mins.)
Director: John Waters
Stars: Kathleen Turner, Sam Waterston, Ricki Lake, Matthew Lillard
A Shock to the System (1990)
Graham Marshall already celebrates his anxiously awaited promotion in an advertising company, when he learns that Roger Benham... (91 mins.)
Director: Jan Egleson
Stars: Michael Caine, Elizabeth McGovern, Peter Riegert, Swoosie Kurtz
On a long-distance train trip, a man finds romance but also finds himself in danger of being killed, or at least pushed off the train. (114 mins)
Director: Arthur Hiller
Stars:Gene Wilder, Richard Pryor and Jill Clayburgh
So I Married an Axe Murderer (1993)
A San Francisco poet who fears commitment has a girlfriend who he suspects may not be who she appears. (93 mins.)
Director: Thomas Schlamme
Stars: Mike Myers, Nancy Travis, Anthony LaPaglia, Amanda Plummer
Suicide Kings (1997)
A group of youngsters kidnap a respected Mafia figure. (106 mins.)
Director: Peter O'Fallon
Stars: Christopher Walken, Denis Leary, Sean Patrick Flanery, Mark Watson
Very Bad Things (1998)
A prostitute is killed during a bachelor party and the attendees turn on each other as the wedding approaches. (100 mins.)
Director: Peter Berg
Stars: Christian Slater, Daniel Stern, Cameron Diaz, Jon Favreau
What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice? (1969)
As Aunt Alice, Ruth Gordon applies for the job of housekeeper in the Tucson, Arizona home of widow Claire... (101 mins.)
Director: Lee H. Katzin
Stars: Geraldine Page, Ruth Gordon, Rosemary Forsyth, Robert Fuller
The Wrong Box (1966)
In Victorian England, a fortune now depends on which of two brothers outlives the other... or can be made to have seemed to do so! (105 mins.)
Director: Bryan Forbes
Stars: John Mills, Michael Caine, Ralph Richardson, Jeremy Lloyd
9/27/2012
Retro Cell - Old Is New Again
So I treated myself to a present recently. It was 60% off and that was too good to resist.
Behold, the fabulous Bluetooth Retro Handset from thinkgeek.com:
I downloaded a new ringtone to my phone to go with the handset from here (it's the Classic British ring).
I received it in the mail yesterday and waited 6hrs while it charged. My boss walked into my office today while I was talking on it and she started laughing.
Alexander Graham Bell will be envying everyone with this handset!
Ahhh the fun I will have with my new toy!
Behold, the fabulous Bluetooth Retro Handset from thinkgeek.com:
I downloaded a new ringtone to my phone to go with the handset from here (it's the Classic British ring).
I received it in the mail yesterday and waited 6hrs while it charged. My boss walked into my office today while I was talking on it and she started laughing.
Alexander Graham Bell will be envying everyone with this handset!
Ahhh the fun I will have with my new toy!
9/24/2012
Mondays
I love Mondays... Mondays are great for beginnings. You can start anything on a Monday, or a Sunday, or the 1st of the month, 1st of the year, etc.
It's all about beginnings.
Today I signed up for this year's NaNoWriMo, started this blog, and am getting back on my favorite health routine: ACV shot, a salad for lunch, and working out for at least 30 minutes after work.
ACV shot: in the morning you mix 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar, 4-8 drops of extreme cayenne pepper extract, a dash of organic honey and then enough pomegranate juice to kill the taste of everything else. Drink that and you'll have energy, lose weight/waist, drink more water and just generally be healthier.
Bragg's
is the best apple cider vinegar, it's organic and unprocessed and has the 'mother' in it which is cloudy gunk that settles at the bottom but is actually live enzymes that can balance your ph, help your digestion, help your body detox, clear up your skin, boost your metabolism, etc etc. It's practically miraculous.
The cayenne extract boosts your metabolism and gives you energy, but it's also an anti-inflammatory AND amazingly good for your heart. I read that one doctor who wrote a book on natural health remedies said that if he could get a patient in the MIDDLE of a heart attack to take some cayenne pepper in a glass of warm water, it would automatically stop the heart attack.
Honey is just good... it's always good. It's a natural antibiotic and tastes wonderful.
I can honestly say I took this shot 1x a day and drank a good 8 glasses of water a day, and within 3 weeks I dropped an entire pant size AND had more energy to boost. I did this for a few months and felt great, but then life got in the way and I missed one day, then another... the next thing you know, I'm drinking sodas and my new pant size is feeling a little tight. So back to my ACV shot and lots of water! Starting today.
It's all about beginnings.
Today I signed up for this year's NaNoWriMo, started this blog, and am getting back on my favorite health routine: ACV shot, a salad for lunch, and working out for at least 30 minutes after work.
ACV shot: in the morning you mix 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar, 4-8 drops of extreme cayenne pepper extract, a dash of organic honey and then enough pomegranate juice to kill the taste of everything else. Drink that and you'll have energy, lose weight/waist, drink more water and just generally be healthier.
Bragg's
is the best apple cider vinegar, it's organic and unprocessed and has the 'mother' in it which is cloudy gunk that settles at the bottom but is actually live enzymes that can balance your ph, help your digestion, help your body detox, clear up your skin, boost your metabolism, etc etc. It's practically miraculous.The cayenne extract boosts your metabolism and gives you energy, but it's also an anti-inflammatory AND amazingly good for your heart. I read that one doctor who wrote a book on natural health remedies said that if he could get a patient in the MIDDLE of a heart attack to take some cayenne pepper in a glass of warm water, it would automatically stop the heart attack.
Honey is just good... it's always good. It's a natural antibiotic and tastes wonderful.
I can honestly say I took this shot 1x a day and drank a good 8 glasses of water a day, and within 3 weeks I dropped an entire pant size AND had more energy to boost. I did this for a few months and felt great, but then life got in the way and I missed one day, then another... the next thing you know, I'm drinking sodas and my new pant size is feeling a little tight. So back to my ACV shot and lots of water! Starting today.
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