November 2017: Five Fabulous Finds on the Fifth
Several years ago, I used to do a “Five Fabulous Finds” blog post at the end of every month. I shared a list of five things that I encountered during the month that I found to be fun, useful, interesting, or perhaps just odd. Every now and then, some of the things may have even been fabulous, but I used the word fabulous more for its alliterative quality rather than its descriptive one. I am going to revive these posts beginning today, only this time, on the 5th of each month. This way I can get one more “F” word in the title. 🙂
I am a fairly simple person and am easily amused, so many of the things that I include in my list of Five Fabulous Finds on the Fifth may seem less than fabulous…or not especially fun or interesting…to you. That’s OK. The opinions expressed here are totally mine and mine alone. I get nothing in return for sharing my thoughts. Please feel free to do with them what you will, including completely ignoring them.
Here are the November 2017’s Five Fabulous Finds on the Fifth
It has been years since I have watched a series on TV regularly. In fact, I would go as fara as tocall myself culturally illiterate when it comes to current television. One morning over the summer, I was watching old episodes of The Chew while on the treadmill, ABC ran a commercial for a new series starting in the fall of 2017, The Good Doctor. It piqued my interest. When I did watch TV more regularly, it was the medical shows to which I was drawn. My penchant for such programs goes back to Emergency! in the 70’s. Yeah, I had a fan crush on Kevin Tighe. He’s 73 now! How the heck did that happen? I also watched Marcus Welby M.D and The Bold Ones as a kid. As an adult, ER and House grabbed my attention. Since both of these series ended seven or eight years ago, that gives you an idea of how long it has been since regular TV viewing was a part of my everyday life.
I decided to give The Good Doctor a try. I went as far as to put the season premier on my calendar (See #2 below) so that I wouldn’t miss it. I am now hooked.
Without a question, I can say that I throughly enjoy the show. As an added bonus, I y intentionally sit down in one place at the same time every week and don’t move for an hour. This is something that my body and my mind need, have needed for quite some time. While watching The Good Doctor, I also knit. That is bonus number two. I do watch The Good Doctor by myself because my husband doesn’t “do” blood and guts. Perhaps the alone time is yet another plus to my TV watching time.
I still keep a paper planner. I like to write things down. I like to be able to flip through the pages. I like to stick sticky notes on the pages. I like to use different colors of pens. I like to put stickers on the pages. I am one of those people who once I write something down, I usually don’t forget it. That is not true when I type things into the calendar on my phone. A digital calendar just does not work for me.
I have jumped on the Erin Condren Planner bandwagon. Is it all a little over the top with regard to its “cutesie” factor. But, adding stickers and using different colors of ink keeps the pages looking cheerful when my schedule itself is overwhelming and not cheerful in any way. I have discovered that you can go down the Etsy “rabbit hole” when it comes to buying stickers to decorate the planner. This iss a simple pleasure, definitely not a necessity. I suppose there are worse things on which to spend my time and money.
3. Stitch Fix
Fashion is not my thing. Period. The end. I am happiest in jeans and t-shirts during the warm months and jeans and flannel shirts or sweatshirts in the cool months. My “style” in far from sexy, but it is comfy. And comfortable is what is important to me. I am thankful to have a job where dress is not an issue! I can wear jeans every day if I choose to do so. Most of the time my casual clothing works for me, but every now and then along comes an occasion for which I have nothing to wear. I tend to think like Thoreau when it comes to these times. “I say, beware of all enterprises that require new clothes, and not rather a new wearer of clothes.”
My daughters convinced me to try Stitch Fix, . a mail order personal shopper of sorts After a few months of my girls’ insistence, I reluctantly agreed. I have trouble finding clothes that I like and that fit when I am picking them out myself and can try them on before buying. How on earth is someone who doesn’t know me at all and who has never even seen a picture of me going to select clothing for me? I went into this whole adventure anticipating that it would be a dismal failure. My first box was, but that was my fault not theirs. I liked the style of the pieces that were sent, but they were all too big. I adjusted my profile information online. I have since received three more shipments. Each box contained five items, either clothing, shoes, or accessories. Of the fifteen items in these latest three “fixes,” only one did not work for me. And, my daughter liked that piece so she took it off my hands. On a side note, I do find it rather humorous that my twenty-seven year old daughter and I have received several of the same pieces in our boxes.
I have received items that I probably would not have chosen for myself; not because I don’t like them, but because I gravitate towards the same styles all the time. It’s easier that way. With Stitch Fix I can enjoy having someone else do the shopping work. Each month when my Stitch Fix box arrives, I feel like a kid opening surprises on Christmas morning. It’s kind of crazy!
I am a carbohydrate addict. Carbs are my go-to food when I’m in a hurry, when I’m tired, when I’m upset, even when I’m happy. They seem to be more readily available than high protein foods. Colleagues will leave cookies or chips or doughnuts in the workroom at school. No one ever leaves a meat and cheese platter. The vending machines at school are filled with carbs. Every now and then one will have a bag of nuts, but that’s it for any kind of protein.
Over the summer, when I was carefully monitoring what I ate, I was surprised to learn that I often did not eat enough protein during the day. Discovering P3 Portable Protein Packs helped me to remedy that imbalance. Yes, They are a pre-packaged food; bu,t they are healthier than most of their kind. Various combinations of the P3 protein packs are available. My favorite is turkey cubes (with no preservatives added), Colby-Jack cheese cubes, and almonds. That, with baby carrots and fruit, is a perfect lunch for me. For a snack, I like being able to reach for a P3 rather than my habiyual carbs.
5. Taproot
I used to be a magazine junkie. In the last seven or eight years, however, I have stopped reading all but a couple as they have become too difficult for me to see. Because magazines are ad driven, the majority of the space is given over to ads and the print in the actual articles has gotten smaller and smaller, and often there is a background image making it impossible for me to see. The magazines that I do still read, I read in digital format on my iPad. It’s the only way that works for me. These difficulties, however, don’t stop me from picking up magazines in the grocery store and thumbing through them to look at the pictures…and decide if there is anything in them that is worth the extra effort to try to see.
On once such “thumbing through” expedition, I picked up a magazine called Taproot. I had never heard of it before, but the cover caught my attention. As I thumbed through, the pages were nice and clean, beautiful pictures, white space, and no ads! Upon noticing that, I gave the magazine my full attention.
The subtitle of Taproot is “the magazine for makers, doers, and dreamers.” It is filled with all the things that appeal to me…recipes, knitting patterns, gardening tips, how-to articles for making everything from beeswax candles to extracting essential oils to making rope baskets. I placed the magazine in my grocery cart. When I got home, I read it cover to cover and immediately ordered a subscription. Will I make or do everything in each issue? Probably not. Bu,t there are many things I will do and maybe even a few articles that will encourage me to step outside of my comfort zone and try some new things. This is definitely my new favorite magazine!
There you have it. The first of my new Five Fabulous Finds on the Fifth.
