My favorite way to do that is to take an empty windowbox and put some peastone or gravel in the bottom of it, then take the purchased annuals (still in their flower pots) and set them inside the window box. Pack them as tightly as possible, and then fill in around the pots with cedar mulch. My grandmother taught me this method when I went up to the farm to visit her in the summertime, and every time I prepare the window boxes I am reminded of the good times I had with my grandparents on the farm. This method is quick and easy to do, and by swapping out the annuals as they fade I can keep the porch looking pretty for a very long time.

For example, this morning I saw a “fantastic deal” on this jumpsuit. Hopefully the photograph that I’m including will show up. I just can’t imagine how anyone in their right mind would find this jumpsuit appealing, and yet according to the website, the jumpsuit is sold out. I’m wondering if it was sold out because a lot of men that have no taste whatsoever thought that they would buy this as a Mother’s Day gift for their wife, hoping that the wife would be thrilled to pieces. I pray that my hubby has enough sense to never buy anything like this for me! The horizontal stripes on this would make my legs look so fat, and the entire rest of my body too! What do you think about this? Would YOU like to wear something like this?

You may think that I’m being a little bit crazy here, and to be honest I would normally have to agree with you. But when I saw these mailboxes all gussied up like that my mind wandered to memories of wonderful vacations that I had spent in luxurious surroundings. Thoughts of Norman Rockwell settings of a time and a place when life was less frenzied, and more serene. Odd, I know, but there it is!

Well, I came across this silly little toy and for some crazy reason I pulled it aside and put it beside my computer keyboard. Every now and then it catches my attention (it is bright yellow) and I stop and play with it for a couple of minutes. Then I think to myself “what a complete waste of time this is” and put it back down. I can’t decide whether to give it to a thrift store like Goodwill, put it in “the basement” or throw it away. Somehow the pack rat in me keeps whispering in my ear that I should create a toy chest of odds and ends like this so that if and when company comes over with some kids that get bored I can pull it out and let them play with it. I wonder if they would think it was totally lame or if they would like it. What do you think?

Back when I was a newlywed, my husband was taking classes to become a paramedic he brought home some special vials that had hearts on them, and a big heart shaped sticker to put on the refrigerator door. He told me that the idea was people that have medical conditions that emergency response personnel should know about where supposed to put information about that condition in the vials and put the vials in their freezer. The emergency response personnel were trained to look at the refrigerator door for that heart sticker and if they saw it that they would look in the freezer for that medical information. Part of the reasoning for this was that freezers are insulated and would resist burning in a house fire, so that would be a great place to keep something important.

From my point of view that’s a good idea, except that my refrigerator doors are always filled with magnets and shopping lists – I’m not sure that anyone would see a heart sticker on it! But that was back in the 1980′s and I don’t have any idea if the rescue people still hand those out or not. And my hubby at that time is now my ex-hubby and I’m not very inclined to call him up just to ask him about it, so I may never know.

My mother has a very handsome grandfather clock in her living room.  The clock is standing in a corner, lonely and unused. The clock has been there for about the past twelve years now, a silent sentinel, quietly standing watch over the room.

I have told her that I feel bad that this gorgeous clock is not being used. She told me that the ticking sound “bothered her” so she stopped using it. I asked her if I could have the clock for MY living room because I have always found the ticking sound of a clock to be a comfort. I think that one of my other sisters will probably end up with it as an inheritance piece instead – she has always favored them.

The house that I had lived in before I was lucky enough to have been able to design my own kitchen and have all of the cabinets custom built by a master cabinet maker so I had everything exactly the way I wanted and designed it to be. So I have to admit that I was spoiled in that regard, having everything exactly the way I wanted. That’s really hard to compete with, but since we were planning to move about seven hundred miles away we really needed to get a different house.

From time to time I think about how I would redesign this kitchen if I had the chance, and I have to admit that I really don’t know any way to make it better, given the shape and size of the kitchen. Except for that dropped counter.

Not long ago a friend of mine was going to McDonald’s for lunch and asked me if I wanted anything. She told me that they sell large “sweet tea” for one dollar. So I said, sure, I’d like that, and I gave her a dollar ten (the extra ten for tax) and when she came back with my large cup of sweetened ice tea I was quite surprised exactly how yummy that was! Whenever I order sweet ice tea anywhere else it just is not as yummy. Even if I add tons of sugar, it just is not as yummy. I wish I knew exactly how they made it; I’d try to duplicate it at home! And I wish that they had it available in a sugar-substitute form so that it was zero calorie. I’m sure I could drink a lot of this stuff, but I hate to think of the weight I’ll gain if I do!

To make matters more complicated, I can’t seem to find a spice rack that actually holds most of the spices that I use. Spices come in such a variety of boxes and cans and bottles, and different sizes. I’m the kind of person that would like to have all of the spices lined up in alphabetical order so that I could find the spice that I need quickly and easily. But since they are all different sizes and shapes I can’t get them organized very well at all. I’ve heard that the world will beat a path to your door if you invent a better mouse-trap. Well, I would beat a path to the door of the person who created the perfect spice rack!

The first time it happened when I arrived to pick up the pizza I went ahead and paid for it and then they told me that it wasn’t ready yet and it would only be a few more minutes. In reality it was more than an hour before it was ready, and I was livid! So the next time that I ordered the pizza I asked the order taker on the phone if it would REALLY be ready on time, and I was assured that it would be ready on time. When I arrived and it wasn’t ready and the cashier asked me to pay for the pizza I told the cashier that I would pay for it after it was ready and I could inspect it to make sure it was done to my satisfaction, and if it wasn’t ready within ten minutes I was leaving without paying and without the pizza.

You know what? It WASN’T ready, and I left without paying and I walked across the parking lot to Wendy’s and bought my family dinner there. I refuse to be held hostage there again by paying for my food before it is ready.

Well, ever since I worked for a Hotel Bathroom Supplies & Restaurant Supply Company myself back in 1972 and 1973 I have had an interest in where people can go to get those types of supplies at a wholesale price. The place that I worked at did not advertise that they would sell their products to walk-in customers, but people walked in just the same and bought things from the company.

I decided to try to look up the company I used to work for on the Internet, and I couldn’t find them online. I wonder if they’ve gone out of business! I did, however find the website of the PeachSuite Wholesale Hotel Supply & Restaurant Equipment Company and found myself spending quite a long time looking at the different flatware and stemware and thinking about how even after all of these years I am still using the same flatware that I bought back in 1972 from the company that I worked for. I’d say that was a good investment, wouldn’t you agree?