Also known as Princess Rosebud! MIDlifestyle blog. Mom of Professor Angel Boy and Grandma to Angel Boy 2.0 and Angel Girl 2.0. Love to camp and hike. I've been in a few films, am obsessed with seashells, sea glass, and rocks; gardening and baking, Hello Kitty, Chanel, Leon Russell, and anything sparkly. Veg since 1970 and an ardent animal activist forever. Fashionista...veganista...animal activista. I'm still trying to find the perfect shoe!
I don’t care if it’s become a commercialized celebration or not; I LOVE Valentine’s Day and always have.
A gifted seashell or a Chanel brings the same amount of joy; it’s the thought that counts.
Just in time for Valentine’s Day, we’re in the midst of February’s Full Snow Moon. While we’re enjoying some much needed rain so I can’t actually see the moon, I know she’s up there, shining her light on us. This is a time to step into personal power, trust in the shifts that are happening, and believe that everything is aligning for a better, more fulfilling future.
From Leon Russell’s album, Moonlight & Love Songs, here’s the standard, My Funny Valentine. I love Leon’s arrangement, his voice, the song, the Nashville Symphony– everything about it!
The album features Jim Price, Edgar Winter, and Bruce Hornsby.
I hope everyone enjoys a day (and life) full of love. 🎩 💕
UPDATE: Haha, I know that the Philadelphia Eagles won! I didn’t watch it but I’m happy that the appearance of that orange POS caused the Chiefs to lose!
This is probably the first year since 1980 that I won’t watch the Super Bowl.
I don’t care about the commercials, especially not the ones about DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) from Muskrat, the half-time show, nor the actual game.
The Kansas City Chief’s quarterback Mahomes is incredibly unlikeable, as is his magatrumploving wife.
Travis Kelce is OK and the Taylor Swift connection is interesting, but that’s not enough to get me excited about the game.
During the regular and post season, I believe referee favoritism and the officials’ bias made some terrible and questionable calls in favor of the Kansas City Chiefs that caused the other teams to lose.
That’s totally unfair.
Some believe it’s a full-blown NFL conspiracy to boost TV ratings with the presence of Mahomes and Taylor Swift. Others think it’s the subtle bias that allows star players to get favorable whistles.
Another benefit to NOT watching the Super Bowl is not having to listen to the nasal whinging of plastic man and maga Tom Brady — NOT a fan.
Whatever. I won’t watch, but I hope the Eagles win.
P.S. Getting back to reality, we’re fully immersed in a constitutional crisis along with the death of democracy, which I feel is more important than the distraction of a possibly rigged sporting event.
Confession: I’m a hoarder, not crazy enough to be featured on an episode of that TV show, but I really, really hate to throw things away and I love to acquire STUFF.
For example, I have a lovely collection of empty boxes because YOU NEVER KNOW when you’re going to need one, right?
I don’t know if this is true where you live, but here, there’s a local group that gives all kinds of things away FOR FREE, which is total crack for a hoarder. Did I mention that it’s FREE?
They give away everything from furniture to clothing to toys to appliances. In many cases, the gifted items are valuable, like the cashmere scarf I received, also a set of Russian lacquerware.
Since I joined the group, my ratio of receiving to gifting is about 90 to 10. It’s REALLY difficult for me to relinquish anything because, exactly like those boxes, what if I want or need it again some day in the future? But I do and have posted items, especially things the kids no longer need; highchairs, baby clothes, stuff like that.
It’s equally difficult for me to not bring home everything that’s offered because I like to think I’m rescuing whatever it is from being discarded. I often initiate a conversation with myself (not out loud, IN MY HEAD) about whether I reallyreallyreally NEED what’s offered, or if can I live without it. Most of the time, I’m rational haha, but not always. (The very act of talking to myself sounds kinda crazy if I think about it.)
I’ve brought home lots of plants, planter pots, and other garden items, little boxes similar to what I already collect, a giant dollhouse for the Angel Kids; also toys and even bicycles for them.
Recently, we re-gifted the dollhouse. The Angel Kids and I had a discussion about the future of it. They both said they had enjoyed playing with the house but it was time to give to a new home and other children, so I did, with their blessing.
This time, someone was giving away milkweed seedlings SHE had rescued from our local community garden. Another gardener was going to toss them out, but she saved them and transplanted into little cups.
Photo by EnchantedSeashells
This kind woman posted on the site that she had plenty to share and I responded. There were enough for multiple people which is great because we all care about helping butterflies.
Photo by EnchantedSeashells
The woman messaged me her address which was literally only about three minutes away and I headed over there.
Here’s the problem: She lives in a new housing complex with a million apartments. Her very detailed map didn’t help me as I get typically become hopelessly lost in similar situations. I drove around and around for a while and couldn’t find the location where the plants were waiting for me at the front door.
As I usually do, I became a bit disoriented when I get lost, and dejected, I drove home. My navigation skills are sorely lacking and I felt incredibly stupid. I messaged her my apologies and reason for not showing up and suggested she choose another person.
Instead of doing that, this woman that I don’t know — a complete stranger — offered to bring the milkweed to me! It was such a kind gesture that it blew my mind.
I gave her my address and she came by a couple hours later with the plants and we had a lovely chat.
With all the horrible news coming out of our nation’s capital, it’s heartwarming and affirming to realize that there are still good people in the world, those who will go out of their way to help a neighbor AND help save butterflies.
When things are as bad as they appear to be here in the US, and with growing anxiety every day, sometimes all we can do is breathe and reach for the light wherever we can.
Light is the thing we seek Within the darkest of day, let it show us the way.
Little words by Athey Thompson “Reaching for that Star” by Florian Ceglarek
It’s becoming more and more difficult to ignore that absolute shitshow that’s going on in this country since that orange POS and his puppet master muskrat defrauded the election in November.
And yes, I truly believe that his “winning” was not the will of the people; with muskrat’s help and maybe aided by a foreign government, there is a growing fear that the vote was tampered with.
I can’t imagine what the rest of the world thinks about us. The deteriorating relationships with our friends in Canada and Mexico is hard to believe, but it’s all real.
We are living a worst case scenario.
While all this is going on, yesterday my local congressman posted smiling pics of himself in my city having a cup of coffee at a local place like democracy isn’t burning to the ground. Talk about not reading the room! You should have seen all the comments telling him to get back to DC and DO SOMETHING to stop this madness.
As much as I try to stay away from watching the news and becoming overwhelmed with dread, THIS can’t be ignored, no matter how hard I try:
From the BBC (as I no longer trust most US based news sources):
The Trump administration has given Elon Musk’s deputies access to the federal payments system that controls the flow of trillions of dollars in government funds every year, US media report.
[From Enchanted Seashells: To clarify, this includes Social Security payments, social security numbers, and banking information for those who get direct deposit.]
Reports suggest members of Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (Doge) – which is not a government department, but a team within the administration – have been granted access to sensitive personal information of millions of Americans.
Two officials at the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) were reportedly placed on leave after a standoff with Doge members over access.
I’m trying to distract myself from all the horrible events going on in this country — too many to talk about — with memories of beautiful Bandit, who still visits me in my dreams. She was the real princess, not me.
“Hello, my love…”
Little Ghost Cat, Sometimes, I hear your gentle purr And feel the soft touch of your fur. Then, late at night, old memories stir Of the friend I loved and lost.
Little Ghost Cat, By moonlight, now you come and go Unseen and like moving water flow O friend I loved and lost.
(I believe this poem is attributed to Barbara Parkhill Hall)
For the first time in about nine months, it rained, and it rained HARD. So far we’ve had about an inch of rain and the forecast predicts a bit more. There was similar rainfall in Los Angeles which prompted flash-flood and mudslide risks for the wildfire burn scar areas through this afternoon.
Photo by Enchanted Seashells
This deluge reminded me that I had started writing a post about an unsettling, recurring leaky roof dream where bits of the ceiling fall all around me and no amount of buckets can ever stop the catastrophe in my living room, no matter how hard I try.
I had the same exact dream a few days ago. It’s not a pleasant feeling to be powerless to avert a disaster so I did my usual research and learned that it’s a common dream theme.
Potentially, it’s not as dire as I thought. It could mean…
–A heavenly transition of divine blessings. The heavenly waters are descending down, as a cleansing release.
— You will be flooded with relief as blessings rain down upon your life.
— Your dream is an expression of pure giving that represents grace in life and personal growth in prosperity.
— The dream is from a spiritual part of your soul. The rains are a sign of a beautiful future filled with growing abundance; spiritual and material gifts.
— The presence of heavy rain and water in your dreams may symbolize emotional cleansing, a need for spiritual renewal, or the flow of energy and creativity in your life.
On the other hand, a recurring dream about a leaking roof might symbolize a feeling of vulnerability, insecurity, or a sense that something important in your life is falling apart. The leaks represent emotional distress or overwhelming issues that you feel unable to fully address.
Things to think about…
Severity of the leak: A small leak might represent a minor concern, while a large flood could signify a major issue.
Your actions in the dream: If you are actively trying to fix the leak, it could indicate that you are attempting to address the underlying problem in your waking life.
Your emotional state in the dream: Feeling anxious or panicked about the leak can further emphasize the sense of vulnerability.
I wish I had paid more attention to the other times I had this same dream; I could have kept track of the date and all the other details to figure out if there’s a pattern — I’ve dreamed this same scenario more than a dozen times in the last couple of decades. I know it’s not related to the failure of my actual roof, so it must be psychological or emotional. At least I memorialized it THIS time and will observe any future recurring dreams.
No matter what my dream meant to me personally, the actual sky water made my gardens very happy as they had been parched for such a long time.
This is such an easy recipe — just a few minutes mixing and cooking in the microwave.
Since I have zero impulse control when it comes to being able to STOP eating chocolate, and since I was literally dying for some chocolate cake, and knowing my propensity to eat the whole thing, I decided to try a recipe for a single serving microwave chocolate cake.
I choose one of my favorite Grandma mugs…
I have to confess that my very first mug cake was way more delicious than I anticipated! What a pleasant surprise! I will definitely make this again. But to be completely honest, those few bites weren’t quite enough to satisfy my cravings.
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon oil or melted vegan butter
3 tablespoons plant based milk or half plant based milk and cold black coffee
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons dairy free chocolate chips (I didn’t have any in the pantry.)
Add the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, salt and baking powder to a mug. Whisk to combine. Pour in the oil, non-dairy milk and vanilla into the mug with the dry ingredients and stir well with a spoon. If you have them, sprinkle the chocolate chips on top. Cook in the microwave for 40 seconds. It will likely be a little undercooked in the middle at this point, but if you want it cooked more, microwave another 10-20 seconds. Serve immediately.
Enchanted Seashells | Princess Rosebud 