Farmacy

Bizarrocomic.blogspot.com

Glynn had to make a quick visit to our doctor for a re-fill of his blood pressure meds which he has taken for years. As she reviewed his chart, our doctor commented incredulously, 'You are 55 years old and only take one medication?!' Glynn expected to see her begin rubbing her hands together in glee as drug names such as Lipitor, Viagra and Fosamax flashed across her visual cortex. (She attempted to raise his regime by one drug.)

The above comic caught my eye because there is much truth in it. I sat in a seminar recently during which the presenter showed an article on her power point presentation that outlined 12 incredible breakthroughs in cancer treatment in 2008. Every one of the breakthroughs involved a pharmaceutical drug. Nowhere in the article was there a suggestion of diet or lifestyle change for the prevention of and/or treatment of cancer.

Please know that I do appreciate the life saving value of pharmaceutical drugs. My gripe is the industry wide attempt to convince the general public that popping a pill is a healthy, easy alternative compared to the hard work of changing one's poor dietary and lifestyle habits.

I'm not naive enough to believe that eating a combination of tomato and cucumber will keep the cancer cells from multiplying. But it's sure a good start.

Week 6: Gratitude

I am thankful for a clean house.

Thrifting

Every once in awhile, I get a thrift store itch. An organized Goodwill or Value Village will not satisfy. I want unorganized chaos where one's hands get dirty...

I headed out to Shelton and found 3 such stores. And I scored! I'm on an ephemera collecting binge and was happy to dig and find some treasures.

I bought this 1958 appetizer cookbook for the people art, not the recipes.

Who would eat this? Proscuitto with melon.

Or this unnamed alien fodder???

When I arrived home, a box of ephemera was awaiting me, generously sent by Kathleen. She and I are similarly caught up in an obsessive state of creative bliss.

Give yourself a heart

To all my female friends....

Give yourself a valentine this year.

We often forget how awesome we really are. In the process of nurturing our mates, our children, our extended family, and our friends we become cooks, maids, teachers, nurses, chauffeurs, psychologists, and then some.

As we flop into bed at the end of the day we realize that we had no time for self care. We promise ourselves that tomorrow we'll reserve time for that cup of tea and magazine or a pedicure or a bubble bath. Yet tomorrow never comes...

So, dear friend, wrap your arms around your torso and give yourself a huge hug. Find a mirror, look deep into your eyes and remind yourself of the many awesome attributes that describe your incredible, loving, giving nature. Pucker your lips and give yourself a hearty smooch.

Love and adore yourself.

What a day!

I played hooky from work today so I could spend part of it with my friend, Kathleen. We went out for a hearty breakfast then came back to my house where we sat by the warm fire and yakked 'til our jaws hurt.

After Kathleen departed, the day was just too glorious to spend doing mundane tasks so Otis and I bundled up and headed to Tolmie State Park. It has a small stretch of beach with glorious views of the Olympics. In spite of the mid 40 degree temperature, a young family was sloshing around barefoot in the water while I was trying to keep warm bundled in my coat & gloves!

Otis and I met a new BFF, 'Creamy'. She was wandering the beach, siding up to anyone who would give her a pet. What a love! Had she looked thin & forlorn, I would have been very tempted to incorporate her into our household as Otis' sister. But she had plenty of meat on her bones, a current license tag and, when a concerned man called Animal Services with her license number, we discovered she had a home in the neighborhood.


I arrived home to 4 valentines in my mailbox.

'She would show him naughty....'

'The Great Romance - you are the girl in the story....'


'To the world's best aunt and uncle....'

I feel loved and cherished Kim, Kathleen, Chloe & Sophie!

Storage ephemera

When a storage unit is auctioned off due to non-payment of rent, the buyer of the unit must leave behind any personal belongings; paperwork, photographs, etc. The owner of the personals is then notified that he/she has six months to claim them. If the personals remain unclaimed after six months, they are discarded. (In 15 years of owning/managing a storage facility, only one tenant has ever reclaimed his personals...)

As I sift through these personals, looking to destroy paperwork with social security numbers, etc., I realize I have access to a goldmine of ephemera! I have found (and kept) turn of the century photographs, greeting cards, ledgers, children's school papers, maps and stamps. I have a stack of partially used notebooks and a pile of lined paper. (I recently found a mass of blond hair that gave me the creeps. I'm not talking a sweet curl from baby's first haircut... This was a huge clump of hair! Needless to say, I wear gloves when I sift through these boxes.)

Vintage, turn-of-the-century photo album.

Below is a little canvas I first covered with a piece of ephemera 'recycled' from a box of personals. It's the spelling test of a first or second grade student. I put a thin wash of pink acrylic paint over it before adhering the other elements to the canvas.

I have half a dozen boxes of personals waiting to be purged. I wonder what treasures await me?

This and that....

Glynn is 'purging' his shop of items no longer used/needed. I found this box laying on his garbage pile.

Although "one man's trash is another man's treasure", you'd think that after nearly 30 years of marriage he'd know better than to throw away a wood box with cubbyholes! (Actually, he's likely paying me back for the time I made his plaid, polyester pants disappear in the early 80's.)

Otis, practicing good posture.

I find myself petting Cooper's hair which seems to continually stand at attention.


Free babysitters.

Superbowl fatigue.