Can You Spot the Typo?

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Honestly, does anybody still know how to spell OR proofread OR edit their work?

This sticker is on every single gas pump–at least in my area, and it REALLY annoys me. If I knew who to call to lodge a complaint and demand a correction, I would, but there’s no company info.

By the way, do you have any idea how much I DETEST pumping gas? I let the tank get down to empty every. single. time. It’s one of the little life tasks that I absolutely ABHORE, and this desecration of a common word irritated the hell out of me yesterday when I was forced by circumstance to find a gas station or push my car home.

I discovered this gem, kinder than I’d be…” In the end, we’re only human, and humans make mistakes. That doesn’t mean we can’t do our best to avoid them. Be aware of common errors, learn from other’s mistakes, and take necessary steps to check your work. As author Randolph Hock warns, “If there are spelling and grammatical errors, assume that the same level of attention to detail probably went into the gathering and reporting of the ‘facts’ given on the site.”” https://www.qualitylogoproducts.com/blog/why-spelling-errors-affect-business/

(Also this, as pointed out by an eagle-eyed friend who questioned this: “Buildup is a noun that refers to an increase in something, like plaque on one’s teeth. Build up is a noun phrase that means to accrue or increase something.”)

Did you spot the typo? Let me know in comments…

I Like Big Rocks and I Cannot Lie

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I never liked that song by Sir Mix-a-Lot ‘cos it seemed sexist and disrespectful but I love hiking and I love big rocks. I also see what appears to be the head of a dinosaur.

#wordlesswednesday

Twisty Cucumber Vine

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Here’s the last of the summer cucumbers trained to climb up and around this singular post that seems to have the gigantic job of holding up most of the second story. Or it’s the third story, cos I can’t really figure out how this tri-level house works.

We had a HUGE thunder and lightening and rainstorm last night and my garden is SO happy. Fingers crossed this means we might have a rainy year and end the drought.

“Are you my Grandma?”

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I got the Covid booster at my local CVS because it was easier and closer than the location my doc’s office was using. I didn’t want to drive home all the way from Del Mar just in case I had another allergic reaction.

**** You can read about that experience HERE: https://enchantedseashells.com/2021/01/23/rainbows-ivs-my-covid-vaccine-experience/ ****

There was a line even though we all had appointments, but I was glad to see so many people getting vaccines and boosters.

The woman behind me had her four-year-old daughter with her and clearly didn’t anticipate a wait so she hadn’t brought any books or toys for her little girl who was becoming slightly impatient. (Me too!)

I’ve learned that sometimes it helps to distract kids by engaging in conversation and told her how much I liked her sparkly shirt and that did it; I had a friend for life! She responded by telling me she loved my curly hair. I showed her photos of my adorable Angel Kids, the one with hair curlier than mine and the other with fiery titian hair.

“Hey, mom, LOOK! She has red hair just like me!”

“Are you my grandma too?

“No, honey, I’m grandma to this little boy and this little girl.”

“Can I see more pictures?”

Her mom nodded approval, so we spent a few minutes looking at pictures of T and C, which distracted her until it was my turn for the vaccine and we said goodbye.

It wasn’t as fulfilling as spending time with my own angels, but it still felt good to share some of my grandma magic.

It’s been an hour post-booster, and I guess I’ll live. I had a very slight allergic reaction, a little throat issue and asthma. They brought me Gatorade and readied an EpiPen but I didn’t need it because my albuterol inhaler helped forestall a severe respiratory issue. Even thought I had forced hydration for the last couple of days, I was PARCHED and drank the giant thirty two ounce bottle in about five minutes.

When I got home, I took Benadryl and Tylenol because I already had a headache and chills which tells me that I still have a robust immune system, nothing that ginger tea and a soft blanket can’t fix.

Oh, and the nice people from CVS gave me stickers for my Angel Kids, so I’m a happy, fully vaxxed grandma.

Another Critter Visit; Preparing for the Covid Booster

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Another critter somehow got in the house and spoke to me all night, maybe to reassure me that I won’t have a similar allergic reaction to the Covid booster I’m getting tomorrow morning that I had for the first vaccine. Honestly, it was kind of scary and I’m not looking forward to a repeat performance.

This time it was a cicada. I’ve heard them before in the garage, but I’ve never had one in the house, chirping ALL NIGHT LONG like a worn out smoke alarm battery.

Of course I had to research it…

Cicadas, for many, represent personal change, renewal, rebirth, and transformation. OK, that’s positive; good to know.

The cicada sings by contracting the internal tymbal muscles. This causes the membranes to buckle inward, producing a distinct sound. When these muscles relax, the tymbals pop back to their original position. Male cicadas in the same brood will stick together when calling in order to increase the total volume of noise.

California cicadas aren’t destructive creatures like the Brood X variety, but having one in the house is REALLY annoying!

Cicada appeared over 200 million years ago, all over the world in temperate to tropical climates.

A baby Cicada, called a nymph, remains in underground regions often near trees, waiting until its ready for birth. The pause that occurs before awakening doesn’t seem unusual until you learn the waiting period ranges anywhere from one year to seventeen! Because of this, Cicada became a symbol of immortality, resurrection, spiritual ecstasy, synchronicity, harmony with the Universe, and clever strategy.

The Greeks found themselves fascinated by the Cicada, believing it was sacred to Apollo and Dionysus. Aristotle littered various writing with Cicada meanings, focusing on the topics of rebirth and eternal life. In one of Plato’s dialogues, he and Socrates sit among the Cicada for deep, metaphorical discussion with a strong musical motif. Socrates muses, saying the Cicada are local nymph-like spirits who inhabit the land and sing. Their canticle includes stories of Pan and other Nature Gods filled with joy. The Cicada chorus renders inspiration to people with an ear to hear and even inspires love with lyrical prowess.

Could a cicada be your spirit animal? When the cicada comes into your awareness as a spirit animal, a time of emergence is at hand. You can no longer hide underground or sit on life’s sidelines. It’s time to stand up and work on self-development.

The cicada spirit animal hums to you about the past, metamorphosis, and changes yet to come. It is time for shaking off the restrictions you’ve put on yourself (or imposed by others). Cicada signals shedding your old skin so you can stretch in the way you express yourself. The process will seem a little uncomfortable at first. Examining elements of your past so you understand how they hold you back isn’t easy and requires a lot of honesty. Once you release old ways like the cicada, however, you re-emerge into life and blossom.
https://d2605da9b070c6b91e40be2ab2e53847.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html

Cicada spirit animal challenges you to work on your communication skills while you walk with it. You need to find your true voice.

Whether the  cicada appears in dreams, visions, waking life or synchronicities, it is a sign and message that you are elevating. The cicada represents illumination, empowerment, insight, breaking through, and having a sense of humor with leaving others to figure out their own spiritual means. You are in this life because you are being entrusted to learn what is necessary for you. Forgive others, let them go so that whatever you do not tolerate, they can be that with those who do. You are not responsible for them. https://www.powerfulmystic8.com/sacred-spirit-shaman-blog/2018/6/27/shamanic-dream-symbols-cicada-bug

Thank goodness for Google!

I’m forcing a lot of hydration today to hopefully forestall another allergic reaction to the vaccine, but I anticipate a high fever and headache is in the future for me after that. My immune system is very sensitive to all vaccines. No crystal ball needed.

Bunny Love

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I’m writing this post from the dentist’s office where I’m waiting for the lidocaine to take effect. This time it’s merely to replace the temporary crowns with the permanent ones, but I have time to share a couple of photos from yesterday.

Happy October 1 from a couple of my bunnies.

They LOVE watermelon!

My Beautiful Bobcat

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I took a screenshot off of my backyard bobcat video. I’ve had many coyote sightings, but this is only the second time that I captured proof of what I suspected, that my garden magically attracts all my beloved animals.

Even though this photo isn’t the greatest, you can see that he seems large for a bobcat as they generally weigh between fifteen and thirty pounds. Males are larger than the females, maybe this one is a male. Their body length is twenty to fifty inches.

Bobcats (Lynx rufus) play an important role in maintaining healthy ecosystem function by controlling prey populations. So far my bunnies seem safe, but bobcats eat pretty much the same diet as coyotes, which includes rabbits, squirrels, rats, and gophers. Since I just witnessed a disgusting MOLE come out of a hole in the ground right in front of me, I hope my predator friends add that to their menu, too.

Bobcats typically stay within an established territory and move between resting areas, food sources, or hunting areas. They often travel in predictable patterns.

CDFW stresses that aggressive behavior by bobcats toward humans is extremely rare. Most bobcats are elusive in nature and rarely seen.

As you can imagine, knowing that this beauty visits on a regular basis makes my heart sing!

Unexplained Mystery | Is Anyone HERE?

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The first time this occurred, I paused for a minute, thought it was slightly ODD, but rationalized to myself that I must have done it and forgotten, although I don’t forget much.

THIS time, there’s no rational explanation that I can deduce.

What is it? Who is it? Has a portal opened into another universe? Is someone trying to communicate with me? Or has some creepy sociopath gained access to my bedroom?

About a month ago, I was changing the bed linens, something I regularly do on Sunday. I found a Shungite crystal under my pillow. I don’t have any recollection of lifting my pillow and placing it there. It’s not something I would normally do, as I have a pretty bowl of crystals close by on my bedside table.

I forgot all about it until yesterday when I changed the sheets and discovered another rock perfectly centered under the pillow on the other side of my bed. This was a pretty little sparkly round rock I found a while ago on a hike in the PNW.

VERY STRANGE.

I’m at a loss to figure out how this happened and what the message could possible be conveyed….can you?

Vegan Banana Buckwheat Pancakes w/Homemade Almond Milk

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This turned out to be a drizzly and dreary Sunday morning, perfect for my famous buckwheat pancakes.

I had a couple very ripe bananas, so I figured that would be a great flavor enhancer but I didn’t have any liquid (just juice and wine haha) and didn’t feel like going to the store.

In vegan recipes, nut/oat milk is interchageable with cow’s milk and eggs aren’t really necessary. I didn’t have any plant milk but I did have raw almonds.

I’ve never made my own “milk” but this seemed like a good time to try. It’s super super easy. I was thinking of separating this into two posts and I still might, but since the recipe for vegan pancakes needed plant milk, I combined them.

Almond Milk

First, soak about one cup of almonds in bowl with four cups of water. The recipes recommend soaking for a minimum of four hours to overnight, but I’m impatient so I only waited a couple of hours.

Pour all of it into a high powered blender. This is when you can add a bit of salt or vanilla if you wish. Blend until it’s creamy and smooth.

Use a nutbag or strainer to separate the nuts from the liquid. I didn’t have a nutbag so I used a doublemesh strainer and then I squeezed the last bit of liquid with my very clean hand.

Cover and store in refrigerator. Definitely save the leftover pulp for baking.

Soak

Blend

Strain

Chill and enjoy!

Time for…

Vegan Banana Buckwheat Pancakes

Preheat griddle or pan

2 very ripe bananas
1 cup almond (plant) milk
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon brown sugar or agave
1 teaspoon vanilla
Pinch sea salt (optional)
Mash the bananas with a fork. Add milk, oil, sugar, vanillla.
To the liquid ingredients, add all at once
1/2 cup all purpose or whole wheat flour
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder.

Stir by hand until combined. Don’t overmix or pancakes won’t be fluffy.

When the griddle is hot, use a small amount of vegan butter to coat the surface.
Ladle the batter and watch for bubbles on the surface of the pancake.

When air bubbles start to rise to the surface at the center of the pancake, flip the pancake. Cook for another 1-2 minutes, or until nicely browned.

Serve with organic maple syrup or agave or jam. YUM. Super moist and fluffy!

DIY: Embellishing the Ordinary

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When I’m sad or melancholy, I shop. When I’m happy, I shop. It’s an all purpose panacea that works for me, no matter what. They don’t call it retail therapy for nothing.

I was out and about browsing in all my usual haunts from Ross to TJ Maxx to the Rack.

I didn’t find much except for a pair of Laura Ashley slippers. I love to wear slippers; I have a closet full of them from animal print to sequin-studded to a couple pairs of Hello Kitty slippers that were gifts. I don’t have any babouches, those flat Moroccan slippers, but I have mostly every other style.

I brought home these pillow-soft, ballet-pink slippers and determined that something was missing. They’re super soft and comfortable but they needed some enchanted style embellishment to become perfect.

The white bow didn’t work for me. It seems to me that Laura Ashley could have really taken it up to another level if they had given it a bit more thought.

I removed the bows and drove to a fabric store.

I was thinking about a pompom to look like a little bunny, but then I spied a fabric flower with a rhinestone center. I had to have it.

Luckily, there were two, so I brought them home. Even more fortuitous for me is that they already had a pin mechanism on the back so I can take them off when I throw the slippers into the washing machine.

HAPPINESS!

After I attached the flowers, I was feeling satisfied with myself and I know I’m a little strange, but I felt like a princess walking (still limping) through the house with my adorable slippers.

In fact, I love them so much, I created a little photo sesh with different backgrounds. Definitely fit for royalty.

On animal print.
On a soft and furry blanket.
Draped in pearls and gems.

Low cost fun for me. Slippers: $7.99
Flowers: $8.00 for the pair as they were on sale.

My joy: priceless, because I’m easy to please.

Embellishing the ordinary is my special talent. There is beauty all around.

LOVE!