I Thought Love Would Just Be in Books or Movies Until She Came and Made It All Real

Questions to Her

On Our first date…
On our first date, I was very nervous to meet him. He was due to fetch me at my brother’s house since I was dropping my car off there because I had to drive 2 hours to meet him and we decided that he’d drive us around for the day. As he arrived to fetch, I hardly had a chance to look at him as he flew to open my door for me, which shocked me a bit. As soon as I got out the car he gave me a big hug, which helped calm the nerves. As we drove to our destined date spot, we immediately hit it off in the car, with us chatting non-stop and to his horror I had brought with a fun game for us to play on the way, which was the “Harry Potter flavored jelly beans”. The game defiantly broke the ice and I felt completely comfortable with him, even though I still feel bad about getting him to eat all those gross flavored beans, it was still a great experience to have together. The rest of the day was amazing, with him taking us to a nice restaurant on the beach, where we shared a dessert and spoke non-stop. We went on to spend the whole day and night together, with time feeling like it had stood still. I could not have asked for a better first date, with it ending in us having our first kiss and becoming a couple. Throughout the date, I knew that Jay was special, with him making my heart skip a beat every time he looked into my eyes. Continue reading “I Thought Love Would Just Be in Books or Movies Until She Came and Made It All Real”

Care of Wild Baby Mice

If for some reason wild baby mice have been placed in your care, I have included a few tips on caring and feeding to help you give them a chance at life. Please be aware that even in the wild, mice have a 50% chance of surviving beyond 5 months of age, given a normal upbringing. The mice that do make it can live up to around 5 years if healthy. A pair will have a better chance of survival than a lone mouse.

As soon as you have your baby mice, it is important to keep them safe and warm. You can use a small pet carrier, large plastic tub or any other suitable box in which you can put them. Layer the bottom with a towel and place the mice on top. Then, use another soft material to lightly cover the mice like fleece. Place the box in a warm place, ensuring that it isn’t hot; otherwise the mice will become dehydrated. A heater on the lowest setting may be all that is needed. Test the towel the mice are laying on so that it feels cosy and warm to your hand. Continue reading “Care of Wild Baby Mice”

How To Create Your Property Into A Whitetail Paradise

I will be sharing with you on how I made my property into whitetail paradise, and what still needs to be done. I own 150 acres in southwest Michigan, which I bought in 1989. Up until 1995 we, me, family, and friends shot every buck that gave us a opportunity and did not shoot does. All that change in 1995 when I shot a buck that scored in the 120’s. After that day I stared doing research on how to get bigger deer.

The following season I started putting in new ideas and concepts into my property. My first rule was if you shot it you had to mount it. This took care of the people that just want to shoot anything. I placed 20 acres in a safe zone. We also started to shoot does. After a few years we started seeing a lot more 2 1/2 & 3 1/2 years old and were killing nice bucks every year. I then went to neighbors and tried to get them on board. Continue reading “How To Create Your Property Into A Whitetail Paradise”

Spanish Food – How To Prepare Boquerones

Whilst on your travels in Spain and pausing to take a breath from site-seeing, you have surely experimented with “tapas” at a welcoming bar.

If this is the case, it is more than likely that you have come across the small, tasty filleted fish, preserved in olive oil, sliced garlic and chopped parsley, and highly popular throughout Spain. This delectable dish is usually known as “boquerones” but, depending on the area, can also be called “anchoas”.

Boquerones are small, fresh anchovies. Accompanied by crisp, fresh Spanish bread, a glass of ruby-red wine or refreshing Asturian cider, they are a delight to eat. Moreover – as with many traditional Spanish dishes which comprise the renowned Mediterranean Diet – they are extremely healthy.

Continue reading “Spanish Food – How To Prepare Boquerones”

Excuse Me, Are You Visiting or Have You Moved In? The Freeloader Nightmare

Shanty towns or squatter communities known as “Hooverville’s” during President Hoover’s term as President (or back in the day as my son might say) began to sprout up all over the United States because of the fallout from the Great Depression. These ragtag “communities” were composed of people who had been evicted from their homes or their farms. These individuals, labeled hobos, were forced to live a degrading existence among grotesque piles of accumulated trash, made of discarded public scraps of food they had to eat or of various items of value that they could sell. The poor and disposed would cook their meager portions of food in tin cans over open fires, covering themselves with old newspapers while wearing Hoover shoes with holes in the soles. The only scenery was blurred by dust in the summer and mud in the winter as they inhaled the stench from all of the trash and the extremely unsanitary dilapidated outhouses. These poor Depression era hobos, though, are no comparison to today’s modern freeloaders, lazy, selfish people who are calculating in their tactics, and who by no means suffer as much as those displaced victims of the Great Depression.

Continue reading “Excuse Me, Are You Visiting or Have You Moved In? The Freeloader Nightmare”

Leftovers Makeover

People have no consensus about leftover food. Yet, leftovers are a fact of American life: Is it a good meal to be experienced again, or an economic necessity to eat it once more? Only one other choice remains: Waste the food by tossing it out.

Personally, I welcome leftovers for another meal. I microwave them in under two minutes, plus there are no pots and pans to clean up. The flip side view: After you pack leftover food back into your refrigerator, it stares you in the face each time you open the refrigerator door: “Eat me; bon appetite!” I know someone who refrigerates leftovers to avoid the guilt of throwing out good food. Yet, she will not eat them. Her decision to throw them out a week later is made for her because she sees (or imagines) fuzz and smallpox-like appendages on the leftover food. “Yeah, I had throw them out. They went bad on me.” Continue reading “Leftovers Makeover”

Land of Morning Calm – 50 Years Later

Over 400 Korean War Veteran’s names in the U.S. were drawn from as many as 5700 applications to attend the 50th Anniversary Commemoration of the signing of the Armistice, July 27, 1953 in Panmunjom, Korea. My husband Doyle was one of them. They could take any guest they wanted but would be required to pay the guest airfare. All other expenses would be covered in Korea. This event was sponsored by the Federation of Korean Industries (businessmen) who planned tours for about 1,000 veterans and guests (worldwide) representing the 21 countries whose veterans served in Korea from 1950-’53.

Doyle and I(wife)boarded American airlines in Kansas City for a flight to Chicago’s O’Hare Airport on July 23rd, 2003 where we transferred to an International 14-hr non-stop flight aboard a Korean Air 747 to Seoul, Korea. The sun never went down as we flew Northwest over Canada and Alaska, the Arctic Ocean and the tip of Russia, then down over the Sea of Japan before turning westward to Seoul. Continue reading “Land of Morning Calm – 50 Years Later”

Negotiate Like an Egyptian

When in Egypt, you had better negotiate like an Egyptian. Be sure to leave your cowboy hat at home since the rules are very different in the Middle East.

Egyptian culture has five thousand years of recorded history, so I won’t be giving a history lesson today. Let’s just say that every aspect of life in Egypt has a special meaning and a reason why they do things as they do. If asked why something is done a certain way, they will likely recite history from thousands of years ago.

Egypt is a high context culture which means that a lot what is communicated is transferred implicitly with body language, silence, eye contact, and oblique words or phrases. For example, it is considered impolite to deny a wish to someone. Instead of saying “no”, other phrases are used to describe an inconvenience, which implies that the answer is no. When an Egyptian says “yes”, he or she may actually mean “possibly”. Communication can include intense eye contact and frequent gestures for emphasis. Continue reading “Negotiate Like an Egyptian”

Massage Therapists: Aloe Vera – Best Remedy for Sunburn

A sunburn, the literal burning of the top layer of the skin by overexposure to the sun’s rays, is best remedied by a liberal and frequent application of Aloe vera gel. It’s a natural product, provides immediate, soothing relief and promotes the healing process. It’s also a natural addition to any massage or bodywork therapist’s practice whether you live in a sunny resort area or not.

Vacation destinations that are far more sunny than where one lives, more often than not lead to painful sunburns. It’s just a fact. This is true despite the preponderance of public service announcements warning against the risk and imminent danger of skin cancers, and an overabundance of sun blocks and sunscreens available in almost every store to help prevent sunburn. Yet and still, the most frequent and unexpected souvenir brought home from a sun-filled vacation is, quite literally, a blistering sunburn. And of course, no sunburn is complete without unsightly peeling, flaking and itching skin as the epidermis recuperates from the damage. Continue reading “Massage Therapists: Aloe Vera – Best Remedy for Sunburn”

How I Lost 25kg in 100 Days

A few years ago I was diagnosed with an autoimmune condition and Fibromyalgia that has been both debilitating and life changing. Apart from the fact that it took over a year for a diagnosis, I felt like I rattled when I walked with the number of medications I was taking. Apart from becoming inactive after years of regular exercise I was taking medications that contributed to my excessive weight gain.

Over the course of time I put on an excess 25kg, more than a quarter of my total body weight, it was depressing and uncomfortable to say the least and I wasn’t looking like losing any of it soon. After viewing some photos from a holiday with friends I made a decision that something had to change and the weight had to go. Continue reading “How I Lost 25kg in 100 Days”