Sunday, October 21, 2018

MIND GAMES & SOME OTHER STUFF

Every year I host a Veterans Yard Sale, and even though it's for a worthy cause, there are some crazy things that go on throughout the event that make it rough to keep the frown lines at bay.  Girls just wanna have fun!

So there were 9 tables of merchandise, and a lady stopped at the table with the hygiene items.  I turned my head for a second to answer a question, and when I turned back around  I noticed this lady switching the price tags on the Men's Schick Hydro 5 and the Barbasol 5Pk Twin Disposable Razors. Once finished shopping, she handed me her items, and I politely advised her of the total, and that I had seen her changing the prices.  There was denial of course, as she demanded I give her the cheaper price.  Never mind that almost all of the items were brand new and I was practically giving them away. I calmly stood my ground, and she ended up throwing them  back on the table, purchasing just 2 items.  As she and her husband were leaving, she called me the "b" word.

Fast forward 2 hours later and there were 9 razors left on that table priced at $1 each.  A customer picked them up intending to purchase them all.  The she told me she wanted to pay $1 total for all 9 of them, which I politely declined.  Ugh...(lol)  There's a lot more I could share, (lol), but overall it went pretty well.

WHAT'S IN A NAME
RO is a shortened version of my real name, so I decided to look up what it means.  Ironically, my real name and RO start off by saying I'm unique and a law unto myself which made me giggle with glee.  However, someone with my real name is supposedly tolerant and eager to help humanity, which I thought was kind of cool. But I should also mention that there is a tendency to procrastinate, and yes, that would be definitely be me.(lol)I hated my name as a kid and lived with another nickname that I changed because a close friend told me it was totally ridiculous.(lol)  Once I got older and used my real name, everyone pretty much butchered or mispronounced it, so I just shortened it.  Here are a few others:

Sophia - great wisdom                                  
Philip - lover of horses                
Adam - earth
Felix - happy                                
                 
Phyllis - foliage
Sylvia - inhabiting the woods                      
Ursula - little bear
Vincent - Conqueror                                     
Chandler - maker of candles
Elizabeth - oath of God                                 
Anna - full of grace


SAVE TIME
The best time of the week to head out to grocery shop is Wednesday, but try to go before you head into work.  Going after can increase shopping time by 5-7 minutes.



SAVE MONEY
One of my fave hobbies is deal hunting, and you can find deals, coupons, promo codes and more at department stores, supermarkets, and online, just by visiting www.SundaySaver.com.  

If you prefer paper coupons from the newspaper, check out this site which tells you which coupons are available along with the date.  https://www.sundaycouponinserts.com/coupon-preview/

If you want to score name brand merchandise sometimes as low as just $1, you've got to visit www.hollar.com.  You'll truly be amazed at how inexpensive most items are!


ELEPHANT LOVE
How many times have you seen Dumbo?  Do you collect any elephant figures? Did you know this beloved character has been around since 1941, and was Walt Disney's favorite from all of the films that were made.  Like all of our faves, it seems this classic is being remade and released as a LIVE Action Film in March 2019, starring Michael Keaton, Danny DeVito, and Colin Farrell and directed by Tim Burton.




CHAMPIONSHIP
Do you play chess?  I could never figure it out, but 27 year-old Norwegian Magnus Carlsen, who has been the reigning champ since 2013, will defend his title once again from November 9 - 28 in London, England.  His net worth is a little over $8 million.

The 1st official championship began in 1886, but chess was played many years before that.  The most famous American to win was Bobby Fischer when he was 29 and kept the title from 1972 - 1975. 

APPLE-CRANBERRY CRUMB CHEESECAKE BARS

INGREDIENTS
1/2 Cup Butter
1 Package Yellow Cake Mix
2 Eggs Divided
1 Tsp Ground Cinnamon
2 Pkgs Philadelphia Cream Cheese
1/2 Cup Sugar
2 Gala Apples, peeled and chopped
1 Cup Frozen or Fresh Cranberries
1 Tsp Vanilla Extract



DIRECTIONS
Heat oven to 350 degrees, then line 13x9 inch pan with foil, with the ends of foil extending over the sides.Microwave butter in microwave on high for 1-1/2 minutes or until melted.  Add dry cake mix, 1 egg and cinnamon, beating with mixer until blended. Press 2/3 of the dough onto the bottom of the prepared pan.




Beat cream cheese and sugar with mixer until well blended, then add the the remaining egg, mixing well.  Spread over crust, then top with fruit.  Pinch small pieces of the remaining dough with your fingers, pressing into cream cheese layer.

Bake for 40-45 minutes or until the center is almost set.  Cool completely, then refrigerate for 1 hour. Lift foil handles from pan, then cut into slices.


If you like pumpkins, Friday, October 26 is your day!


If you've been reading this blog, you may  have seen some posts about "gaslighting" which can be abusive tactic used in domestic violence.

The original movie, Gaslight was released in 1940 with Ingrid Bergman when her husband tried to make her go mad.

But for all the young people who may not have seen that one, a modern day version would be The Girl on the Train with Emily Blunt, released in 2016.  The movie didn't go over well with critics, but we have a chance to see how the nightmare really unfolds when this happens to someone.

Another extreme version was shown on an episode on Blue Bloods called Mind Games on 10/12/18.  Even though Danny(Donnie Wahlberg) arrested the culprit for shooting her husband, he has a feeling that something isn't right about their relationship.  


Eventually the detectives find out that the husband has not only been cheating with another woman, but they gaslighted her to make her think she was crazy.  They even went so far as to drug the wife, then framing her for shooting her husband, (the mistress did the actual shooting while the wife was passed out) all with the intent of having her arrested so they could be together and to get her money.  Thank goodness the wife was finally cleared, but the husband and mistress were locked up.

This is not a made up term, and really does exist causing a person to experience a living hell.  It can also rear its head in many subtle ways or stages, eventually making you doubt your own sanity.

Seek help as safely and as promptly as you can if you're in an abusive relationship.  You deserve better.

From Psychology Today:

Gaslighting is a form of persistent manipulation and brainwashing that causes the victim to doubt her or himself, and ultimately lose her or his own sense of perception, identity, and self-worth. ...Gaslighting can occur in personal relationships, at the workplace, or over an entire society.







Monday, October 8, 2018

MORE STUFF YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW

Usually my spammy comments on the blog invite me to reach out to spiritual advisors, voodoo doctors to cure my barrenness, guaranteed riches, or to cast a spell on a nonexistent cheating spouse.  When I say usually, it means I'm bombarded with pretty darn lengthy instructions that I have to delete fairly regularly once I've stopped laughing.


Recently things took a slight turn in topic when Cristina Trevor from Italy included me in a plea for boys and girls to join the Porn Industry by sharing a few naked pics at beatenblood2@gmail.com.  If you click on Cristina's name, you'll see what looks to be a fake picture on Google with close to 1200 views, and I was tempted to send an email  with a picture of a cat to see what would actually happen. (lol) Meanwhile,  even if I looked like  Beyonce, Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman) or Sofia Vergara, that would be a hard NO THANKS, Cristina.(lol)

HALLOWEEN DECORATING
It's Season 8 of Halloween Wars on The Food Network, and once again I'm shocked and impressed at the amazing ways these artists come up with frightening ways to scare us and the judges.  Can you imagine actually digging around inside of a humongous pumpkin like this one? (lol)
Six teams each consist of a sculptor, sugar artist and cake decorator as they work on winning the grand prize of $50,000.  No calories here, I promise.(lol)  Are you good at carving pumpkins?

SOUTH DAKOTA
Mount Rushmore started being sculpted in 1927, and was finished in 1941. That sure is a long time, right? The cost to build this famous piece was a little over $1 million dollars, and every year is visited by 3 million people.



Walt Disney World opened for the first time on October 1, 1971, and they were slammed with a little over 400,000 visitors!  It's unbelievable, but admission back then for adults was just $3.50, and kids were only charged $1.  These days, if you don't score discounts or package deals, prices can be as high as $105 per adult. YIKES!

BEST KEPT SECRET
If you like to play quick mini games(nothing major or time consuming) AND win name brand prizes, one of a kind merch and cash, you're going to love this app that not many people know about.    With a 4.5 out of 5 rating, almost no one has anything bad to say about this Apple app.  Download Suprize, and win concert tickets, jackets, baby items, beauty products and lots more which "drop" all day, every day.  Be sure to come back to tell us what you won!

LOVING THE LIBRARY
Are you like me, and can't get enough of books?  You can save yourself lots of time, space and money by downloading  https://meet.libbyapp.com/. This app lets you borrow thousands of ebooks or audiobooks without the need for any extra equipment.  It even keeps track of your books, and allows you to sample a book first.   All you need is your library card, a comfy couch and a yummy cheeseburger to set the mood.


FARMERS RULE
Do you have a Farmer's Market where you live?  If so, wait until it rains to head out for a visit and to really save.  A Farmer's market probably doesn't have refrigerators to keep all that produce fresh, and their time is limited to sell it all.  So instead of letting it go to waste while waiting for dry weather, they can still make some income by selling it to customers at a discount.


KUDOS
My friend Elizabeth has once again shown off her artistic talent and creativity by sending me  all this adorable black and white washi tape that I simply adore. Most everyone knows I love Washi Tape, but great designs done in black are hard to find. I'm already working on using a black, white and silver theme for the month of January in my 2019 Planner! Can you see me doing the Happy Dance and thanking Elizabeth?
Hey There Elizabeth and thanks again!

Santa Clara Police Department
KINDNESS IS KEY
Sixteen year old Rhami Zeini of Santa Barbara California was definitely raised properly and understands the importance of doing the right thing.  




On September 16 while driving home from school, he spotted a purse lying in the middle of the road.  He got out of his vehicle, checked the bag for identification, and received the surprise of his life.  There was $10,000 cash inside, which was the largest amount of money he'd ever seen at one time.  He took it home to show his parents, then they all delivered the purse to the local police.  The police did find the rightful owner, who rewarded the 11th grader with $100. 
Rhemi said that if the roles were reversed, he would hope someone would do the same thing.  The owner believed that she had left her purse on the hood before driving off, and was very grateful.

If you need a quick snack with low calories, hold out until Wednesday, October 10, and celebrate National Angel Food Cake Day, all day long.  Of course, if you don't care about calories, add all kinds of chocolate sauce and other treats too! (lol)