Why do women take baths?

I decided today, instead of showering to take a bath. I had Epsom salts here and I heard they are good for detoxing and adding magnesium to our bodies. Apparently almost everyone is magnesium deficient and that's what causes many illnesses. The man is at work, I thought ok , I could do the classic lie in the tub and soak thing women do.

Now I hate baths, Im a shower girl. And I think that's mostly cuz other than the wonderful old fashioned claw foot tub, I hate tubs. NONE are comfy. But I thought I give this a try, Ive never been in the one here in my house.

Its a weird little tub but bigger than I thought. That would have been a good thing normally. It had the stopper on the side which is weird but this is a manufactured home, they do things different. And so I proceeded to get out a big towel, a clip for my hair, I put on soft music, lite my favorite rose candle and got a drink of juice. I also got two books to read so I could spend some time in there.

What a joke!

First it was too hot so I had to play with the water, that's one of those things I hate about baths, water temp doesn't stay steady. So I added lots of cold and was finally able to get my feet in. I'm 60 yrs old now, getting into a tub is hard work. I have to hang onto rails and stuff and hope I don't fall. That ticked me off.

And then I tried to find a comfy spot. Leaning back the wall was cold so I tried to put a dry washcloth back there. Not ez to do, my butt stuck to the bottom of the tub and moving around in there was hard. I got mad , removed the cloth.

Tried to find a way to sit back and relax....ok Ill try the corner......um no, not for long. Just hurt my back. So here I am in more pain than I started, my bottom half is hot and the top of me cold......cuz I cant slide down deep enough to get comfy. grrrrrrrr

So I decide Ill try to read a book, after all Im here to relax (yea right). So I had to sit upright and a bit twisted to the left so I could rest the book on the edge of the tub. Well that position hurts too after awhile and when I tried to move, my butt bones were sore from the bottom of the tub. Never had that happen before. Guess I know where I lost all that weight from.

And so I finally got so frustrated , I decided to just wash and get out . Ladies for centuries have bathed in tubs, lounged in them. They would bathe in all sorts of things,....milk and honey, flowers , even blood to look more beautiful . And I have to wonder why because I'm more cranky and in pain than before I started. Maybe I just don't have that bathing gene.

So hard to speak...

When I got up this morning I had a few things I was going to blog about. I got online and wandered first, like I usually do. I saw on another site someone mentioned Sandy Hook.....and that the lighthouse was damaged from the hurricane. And later on I came on FB and saw my niece say she felt so bad for those at Sandy Hook. I thought that was strange. I know the hurricane hit NJ but did something else happen? And then I saw my daughter say something on her page. This was strange. There is a Sandy Hook beach and light house in NJ. I know, I used to go there.....so what was going on?

And so I googled it and was stunned to hear about the shooting.....and the name of the school. Funny how so many things are named Sandy lately. But as I watched what unfolded, my heart hurt. And so I haven't posted till now.

I told my children and grandchildren online  that I wish I was there to hug them. My arms feel pretty empty atm with this going on. And I wanted them to know I was thinking of them and hugging them in my heart all day. I think many moms, grammas, fathers, grampas, aunts and uncles are doing that today.

Little angels were killed today by a man playing God. Consider yourself very blessed if you can hug yours.

Holidays and linens

When I was married and did a family dinner or a holiday with my ex's family over, I always had a tablecloth on the table with real napkins. I know some people are more casual and some much fancier. But these dinners to me were special so I went all out. My FIL (who has since passed away), grew up as a kid in Hell's Kitchen. He was a hard working man, a good man but rough around the edges.

However he just loved me and the kids. And so when he would come to my house for dinner that's how our table was set. He told me that he loved that I used REAL napkins. I didn't think much of that then.......but over the yrs when I learned about his life and how hard it was, it surprised me that a man would even notice that. .....and that he would even care. Maybe he thought that people who used them were well to do and so maybe he thought he had arrived ......I dont know. I just know he loved to come to our house.

This week my kids were here. Ive been sick and its been hard to get anything done. But I did put a holiday tablecloth on our usually naked table. I couldn't find the matching napkins. I do have a cabinet here tho , with all my freshly ironed napkins in it. And so I just pulled out some cream colored ones since I figure that would go with anything. They were a silky type fabric tho.

And so I feel now Ive come full circle........you see my bf sat down to Tday dinner and didn't like the napkin. He said he wanted a real one......and I laughed. It is real.....so he got up looking for a better one......I pointed him to the cabinet but apparently he didn't want those either. During our weekly dinners we use paper napkins...........that's what HE called a real one........I laughed.

Today while washing the linens I thought of all this......how I started out with real linens and my life has changed so much that real is now paper lol.

And then I thought of all the linens here in boxes that I probably will never use again. Im thinking I better get Ebaying lol.

I ♥ New Jersey

 

This is how I want to remember home.....

I haven't been here much the last couple days. Since the storm was moving in back east, I was worried about family and friends. And I watched like many on TV as reports came in about how bad it was. I found a few links that I posted the other day for sites that had instant updates from people out there and photos from them too. And it broke my heart to see what was happening to my home state. Ive been sort of in mourning, it just hurts so much.

I was born and raised in NJ. and even tho I left in 1984, I used to go home several times a yr until the last few yrs when money got tight. I am and will always be a Jersey girl even tho I will never move back. I don't know if its just in the water out there or what but.....Jersey people are tough and have attitude wherever they go. Its just part of who they are. And so even tho the last few trips home I realized, I don't belong there any more, it will always be a part of me.

 And so when I woke up yesterday morning and came online, one of the first photos I saw was one of Seaside Heights (the one above) and the massive damage. I gasped and burst into tears. Even my bf asked me whats wrong and all I could do was point to the screen. For those who never lived there, you see it as really bad destruction from a hurricane and feel bad for the people there. I felt that way with Katrina. But I had no connection down south so that's all I could feel.

 Before and after  :(

But like when 9/11 hit, it became personal to me because I had been in that building many times in my life. And my fav restaurant in the world was at the top. And that's how it is with this .......I spent my dating days down in Pt. Pleasant with my now ex husband. I spent time there at his family beach house.

And when we got married and had kids.....we spend many weekends every summer down at Seaside, sometimes at the boardwalk and lots of time down the road from there at the fishing beach. I don't even know if the fishing beach is there anymore. I haven't seen any photos yet of that part. But you had to go thru Seaside to get there. Its a long spit of land with dunes that you needed a 4 wheel drive vehicle for.

We spent many weekends there, the ex fishing and the kids playing in the ocean or up in the dunes. Many memories of bonfires at night with all the campers and trucks round it like wagon trains of old. And many days of fun on the boardwalk. ...its a part of every NJ persons life. My kids were stunned to see this too and heartbroken. What people don't realize who don't live there is what the Gov. said.

Gov. Christie: "All those iconic places you and I visited at the shore when we were kids are gone. We are going to rebuild, but it is going to take time. The shore is not only the heart of our economy. It is the soul of New Jersey."

Everyone went to the shore...and the heart of NJ was ripped out by this storm. Yes I'm sure in time they will rebuild. It will take a very long time tho. If you have seen the pics, then you know just how much is gone. But it will never be the same.

Once you get "sand in your shoes" from the Jersey shore.....you're hooked forever.

Signs in the sky

The weather has been weird here too. Yesterday it poured again. I was going to go to the in-laws but changed my mind when it started to thunder. I figured a big storm was rolling in because we rarely get that. In fact I thought the first rumble was just a truck going down my street, even the dog barked. She does that when Fedex comes here.

And so I got off the computer, sat in my chair and waited for the storm to pass. We never got any lightning tho....which I found very strange.......just lots of rumbles of thunder and tons of rain. And then I fell asleep for two hrs. I know I didn't sleep good the night before so I guess I needed it.

And so I did a few things, and then my bf came home. I made dinner, a Cajun Jambalaya which was pretty good. (which is on my Mermaids Treasures blog) As usual, sometime after that we wander over to our chairs and got comfy , watching tv. My house is on a hill and I have 3 big windows that look out over the hills and the lake. This time of yr the trees are thinning out so I can see much more by the lake. And from that direction, when its dark, I can see cars coming down the road towards town. Their headlights come from the right to the left.

 Out of the corner of my eye tho, a light caught it and it was weird. A long streak from left to right....totally opposite of what I normally see...and it was very low streaking across the lake. ( If you look at the top pic, you might see a tiny star below the moon. That's how low the streak of light was heading down toward the lake. And it was big.)I was stunned for a moment then asked my bf........did you see that? I think it was a meteor. He said he did and said he saw one earlier when he was outside smoking. And then I remembered the meteor showers that were supposed to happen this past weekend. It rained here so we never saw it. I think this might have been part of that. It was awesome tho!

 And then I noticed the moon outside so I got my camera, wrapped up in my blanket and went outside on my porch. It was cold but clear with some clouds passing over the moon. Its not full yet but will be soon. And I love trying to get interesting moon shots. So I took a bunch and these on my page here today were the best. I'm still trying to get the hang of this big camera.

So I came in did my photos and sat back down in my chair. And then it started to lightening! Flashes now and then which shocked me cuz I was just out there and saw nothing. And this time there was just that and NO thunder.

Signs in the sky today for me.........weird.