My Walk Through Life 4/23/2018

The weather is getting warmer, finally, and it is time to think about outdoor activities, such as camping, fishing, hiking, etc. Here are some tips to help make outdoor life easier.

Store fishing rods in plastic tubing to keep them from getting tangled up.

If your hands are fishy smelling after scaling and cooking, rub them with toothpaste and then wash.

Fill a large jug with soapy water for hand washing at a camp site.

A small inflatable pool makes a great bathtub for kids.

To scrub dirty dishes and pans, use pine cones or wadded aluminum foil.

Hang a shoe bad from a low limb to hold spices, utensils, pot holders, condiments, etc

If you need your flashlight to stand up, stick it inside a roll of toilet paper. (always take toilet paper)

Homemade Bug Spray: Fill a spray bottle 1/2 full with distilled water. Add Witch Hazel to fill almost to the top. Add 30-50 drops of one or more of the following essential oils: citronella, clove, rosemary, tea tree, cedar, or lavender. Citronella is the most effective of the oils, so no matter what other oils you use, add a few drops of it. 

We never went to ball games or any other outdoor activities without taking meat tenderizer. My youngest had bad local reactions to bee and wasp stings. Make a paste with the tenderizer and water. Put the paste onto the sting and let it sit for 10 to 15 minutes. Works wonders!

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MONEY APPS

I have several bank accounts, on and offline, to help me save money, or put it away for specifics, such as my taxes, which I pay quarterly, or my travel dreams. Here are a couple apps to help you build savings...or pay taxes.

Qapital is a free app. It works with apps you may already have, such as a banking app or a fitness app, to help you put aside money based on specific rules you set up. You can tell the app to put away $5 every day that it rains, or charge yourself $5 for every time you splurge on fast food. 

Tip Yourself is a free app. Every time you go to the gym, eat a salad, open a door for someone, etc, tip yourself. You can transfer a buck or two from your bank account into your virtual tip jar. 





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FROM FLYLADY.COM

This week we are in the Master Bedroom, today I want you to spend 15 minutes under your bed! Take this time to get the things out from under the bed that you have shoved under there during a mad stash and dash through the house.

15 minutes might not be enough, but for today just try to put a dent in the stuff that you have put there. Things that just don't belong. If you don't have anything under your bed, then grab a vacuum cleaner or broom and get the dust bunnies that have been multiplying under there.

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My Walk Through Life 4/20/2018

The movie "The Exorcist" was frightening on its own, but there were some behind the scene events that were even more scary. The movie set caught on fire, Ellen Burstyn received a permanent spinal injury when a harness jerked her too hard and she fell on her coccyx, and there are reports that many cast members had bad luck and family deaths. The most frightful of the stories coming from this movie, is that a real-life murderer was one of the extras. Paul Bateson was convicted for one murder, but may have actually been a serial killer.
   Bateson was an X-ray technician at the New York University Medical Center, where the scene of "Regan" underwent a carotid angiography procedure. Director William Friedkin wanted realism, so he used a real neuropsychiatric surgeon and his team for the movie scene. The surgeon's assistant was Paul Bateson.
   March 1979, Bateson was arrested for the murder of film critic, Addison Verrill. No motive was given for the murder, but Bateson's story was that he had picked up Verrill at a gay bar and they went to Verrill's apartment. Bateson crushed Verrill's skull with a skillet and stabbed him numerous times. 
   After his arrest, Bateson started talking about other murders he committed. He admitted that he would pick up gay men and murdered them. He chopped up their bodies, put the body parts in trash bags, and dumped them in the Hudson River. There was never any proof that Bateson was actually the serial killer the police had been looking for, so he was never tried for those murders. The bodies were so mutilated that identification was impossible, but from the clothing and tattoos, it was made positive that they were from the gay community. 
   When the director William Friedkin found out that a suspected serial killer was filmed in The Exorcist, he visited him in prison and after the interview began to direct the Al Pacino movie "Cruising" about a cop looking for a murderer targeting gay men. It is said that Batesman was an uncredited consultant for the movie.
   Paul Batesman served his time for the murder of Verrill and is living in upstate New York. 

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My Walk Through Life 4/1/2018

On this day in 1700, English pranksters started the tradition of playing practical jokes on each other. 
  It is not sure when April Fools' Day actually began. One speculation is back in 1582 when France went from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar. Some were slow to get the news that the new year now started January 1 and they still celebrated during the last week of March through April 1. They became the butt of jokes. One of the pranks was putting paper fish on their backs and being referred to as "Poisson d'avril" or April fish, which symbolized an easily caught fish and a gullible person.
   The ancient Romans celebrated Hilaria at the end of March, when people dressed up in disguises. April Fools' Day is also linked with the first day of spring, when Mother Nature fooled people with the ever changing, unpredictable weather. 
   In Britain during the 18th century, April Fools' Day grew in popularity. In Scotland, it became a two day event. First day was the day of "hunting the gowk", where people were sent of phony errands. (gowk meant cuckoo bird, the symbol of a fool). The second day was Tailie Day, in which people played pranks the involved people tail ends, such as pinning "kick me signs" on them or pinning on fake animal tails. 
   Now in modern times, radio shows, newspapers, social media, and television go to great lengths to fool people. Many of my friends seem to "get engaged" on April 1st. I have seen grapes wrapped in candy paper, raspberries stuck on sticks and wrapped in Dummy sucker papers, coins glued to the sidewalk, toilet seats cover with plastic wrap, and so many more tricks.
   Some of the news reports were elaborate and fun. In 1957, the BBC had a report that Swiss farmers were experiencing a record spaghetti crop and they showed footage of people harvesting noodles from trees.
   In 1996, Taco Bell, announced that they had purchased the Liberty Bell and were renaming it the Taco Liberty Bell. 

   In 1992, passengers arriving in Los Angeles airport were greeted by a large sign on the top of a terminal that said "Welcome to Chicago".

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My Walk Through Life 3/29/2018

I love reading or seeing on the news, people who are making an effort to be kind to others. Here is an article about elementary school children from Michigan. They belong to Blueberry Ambassadors. To be a Blueberry, you have to commit to do three acts of kindness. Here is the article:
Read

Try these three acts of kindness this week:
Be kind while driving. 
Take a walk and pick up litter
Leave change in the vending machine

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FROM FLYLADY.COM

Check the floors in your living room. Look at that two inches all the way around the walls and baseboards that seems to get missed with the vacuum and the broom. Your mission today is to use the vacuum and really concentrate on that area, you can also use a vegetable or toilet bowl brush to loosen the hair and dirt that gets caught up against the wall

My Walk Through Life 3/26/2018

Last week, I shared some of my homemade cleaners. I prefer them because they are not as toxic as some of the products you buy. Now, researchers are also saying, using those cleaners are as bad for your health as smoking. Here are some more healthier cleaners you can use in your home.

Oven Cleaners
  For a fresh spill, wet and sprinkle with baking soda and scrub with a soft nylon scrubber (or a netted onion bag).
  For normal cleaning, make a paste with baking soda and water. Apply to a warm oven. Leave to dry. Clean with a brush or scouring pad and hot water.

Dishwasher Detergent
  (disclaimer: I don't have a dishwasher so this has not been tested by me)
1 cup borax    
1 cup washing soda or baking soda
1/2 cup citric acid
1/2 cup kosher salt
  Mix and store in a container and use as store bought detergent
Use vinegar for a rinsing agent.

Soft Scrubbing Cleaner
Baking soda. I store mine in a Parmesan cheese container and shake it out when needed. Sometimes I add a small amount of scented oil, such as lavender.

Pot and Pan Cleaner
Mix borax with hot water

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MAKE MONEY FROM HOME

It is time to start spring cleaning. Make extra money by selling your unwanted items. 

Here are some forums for you to use:
  Offerup is a phone app you can use to list for local buyers. Make sure you find a public, safe place to meet if possible.
  Sell on ebay.com. There are various fees but a lot of traffic
  Sell on Etsy.com. There is a 20 cent listing fee. The limits are items have to be crafted or vintage. 
  Sell on ebluejay.com. No fees to list. The traffic is not as heavy as ebay, but it is not as saturated. When I list items, I promote them through pinterest and twitter. My items are seen and purchased. 
  Craigslist is also available to sell from. It is a little sketchy so I don't use it often.

FROM FLYLADY.COM

This week we are in Zone 5, The Living Room and I want each and every one of you to go into your living rooms and stand there. While you are standing there I want you to look around you and look at the flat surfaces (end tables, coffee tables, tops of tv's/entertainment centers, bookcases, mantles, etc)

What do have on these surfaces? Are they the same decorative things that you have always had? Do you really love them? Are they cluttered up with too many things? Too many ducks, bunnies, candles, cows, precious moments etc? I am not condemning those things but asking you if they still bring you joy and do you still love seeing them in your living room? Or are you just used to them.

What about the piles of magazines and papers? Do you NEED those? You would be amazed at how much neater your living room will appear by just removing a few things.

How much easier would it be to dust these areas without all that stuff?

Your mission is to get rid of the stuff that is cluttering up your living room. Take 5 minutes to let go of some things. I am willing to bet that more of you will find you do want to get rid of some things because they do not bring you joy and you are just used to them being there.

Have fun!

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My Walk Through Life 3/22/2018

One thing I have noticed on social media is the mean things that are written. When you talk to people face to face, you usually use filters. Either you don't want to hurt feelings, start an argument, or get punched in the face. With social media, filters seem to be removed. You can say anything. I sometimes wonder if the same people really talk like that to other people. 
  I had to quit reading the comments under local news articles. Whenever something horrible happens, the bullies come out. I am amazed by the hateful things that people say. 
  Politics has brought the worse out of people. I was always taught to keep religion and politics out of your conversations, and I do try to live by that. 
  I always wonder, are we just a world of bullies and hate? Have we always been this way and just knew when to keep our mouths shut? 
  If we all start being kind, use our personal filters on social media, quit talking politics and religion, and quit being bullies, our world will become easier to live happy in. 

Kind things to do this week:
  Don't say anything mean on facebook. 
  Buy some cat/dog food and take it to your local pet shelter
  Call and talk to a friend who you haven't talked to in a long time

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FROM FLYLADY.COM

This week, we have been tackling clutter in our bedrooms. So, today we are going to clean off the nightstands! Get the tissues, cups and stuff that has piled up, toss and put away. Then grab a feather duster or dust rag and dust the surface. Place a pretty candle or picture there. Something that is new to that spot that you love to see.

Waking up and not seeing a pile of things on the nightstand and a pile of clothes will make your morning a little brighter!

FlyLady Rebecca

My Walk Through Life 3/21/2018

I love music and go to concerts whenever possible. Location and price of tickets put a damper on that most of the time, but I have seen some great shows. My first concert was in the Aloha Stadium in Hawaii: Cecelio and Kapono, Kalapana, and Country Comfort. top Hawaiian pop performers of the 70s.
  The first rock concert was set to go on this day, 21 Mar 1952. No one had heard of a rock concert and rock and roll was still trying to find its place in the music world. 
   In Cleveland on the AM radio station WJW, there was a legendary disk jockey Alan Freed, the host of the "Moondog Show"
Freed started as the host of a classical music program, but a record store owner, Leo Mintz, realized that his young customers were extremely interested in the rhythm and blues music of the black artists. Mintz sponsored a three hour spot on WJW and Freed was given the job of host. Freed changed his radio persona to fit the music, using hip lingo and coined the phrase "rock and roll" to describe the popular music.
  As the show became more popular, Freed and Mintz decided on a promotion stunt that had never been done before. They decided to hold a live dance event that featured artists that were played on the radio program, such as the Rocking Highlanders (a black instrumental group that performed in kilts), Tony Grimes, the Dominoes to name a few. The dance was called "The Moondog Coronation Ball". The demand for tickets became the undoing of the event.
  An estimated 20,000-25,000 fans showed up for the dance. This was due to ticket counterfeiting and overbooking by the sponsors. Unfortunately, the arena held only 10,000. The overflow of the crowd broke the barrier gates and the police had to move in to stop the show, in less than an hour. 
   The next evening, Freed apologized over the radio to the listeners that tried to attend the cancelled event. He said "If anyone..had told us that some 20 or 25,000 people would try to get into a dance---I suppose you would have been just like me. You would have laughed and said they were crazy."

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From Flylady.com

Wednesday is Anti-procrastination Day. We are going to straighten up the floor of your closet! Are the shoes piling up and you can't find two shoes that are a like? Do you think you have too many shoes? While you are lining up your shoes; pick two pair to give away or throw away. The next time you are looking for the pair of shoes that match your outfit, you will smile because you will be able to find them without getting down on your hands and knees. This will put another smile on your face and keep your hair from getting messed up.