Home & Garden

Rude people aggravate the heck out of me!  I know sometimes we’re all in a rush or abrupt without meaning to be and even when I encounter a truly rude and obnoxious person, usually I just think I hope I’m never that person and go about my business.   But this woman took the prize this morning.  The tire dealer opened at 7:30 and when I called my good friend (since first grade) who works there yesterday, they asked me to have my car there first thing this morning.  My brakes were making a funny noise over the weekend (of course, they didn’t do it yesterday after I called) and my tires were a bit past due for a rotation.

This is the tire dealer I always used when I lived here and I measure all tire dealers against them and most do not measure up!  These guys are nice and helpful and honest and trustworthy and did I say my friend since first grade works there? 

Anyway, people get there first thing so there were already 2 guys sitting in their vehicles waiting when I got there about 7:20.  The doors open at 7:30 and about 7:26, while everyone else is waiting in their cars or trucks, this woman comes driving up, jumps out and runs up to the door so she can be first in line.

Yes, I know . . in times of war and with people having cancer and Toyotas with sticking accelerators, this isn’t the end of the world but it’s downright rude!  Almost always whoever was there first, gets waited on first when the doors open.  Not with this woman!  She rushed up to the counter, told them what she needed, went to the waiting room where eventually there were five of us and got on her cell phone.  She explained to whomever and everyone she could think to call that (1) she had no appointments today, nothing to do at all so she decided to get her brakes checked and the van aligned (so why the big rush to be first in line if she had no fires to put out?) and (2) she was so mad because her parents had canceled their call waiting and caller id just to save $23/month.  She went on and on and on and I wanted to say “Woman, shut up!!”

Everyone there in line had something they’d rather be doing and while I didn’t have anything really urgent, I knew there was an update with more Bugga yarn going to be posted at The Sanguine Gryphon and you know how badly I need yarn.  The tire shop has wireless internet but I thought about it before leaving home and decided I really didn’t need more yarn so I left the laptop at home.  As I sat there in the waiting room, the longer I sat there, the more desperate I became to try to get some of the new yarn.

Since the rude lady was first in line, she was first to leave and then I was very glad she had cut in line and was gone.

My brakes were fine, my tires were rotated and I was out of there in no time . . back at mom’s in time for the yarn update.  Yes . . I got some . . too much but I love that Bugga yarn!  And I figured that since I’ve put 82,000 miles on my car and my brake pads are only halfway worn, I deserved a treat.  Afterall, Vince would have had to pay for the brake job so he should be happy he’s only paying for a few skeins of yarn.  Somehow, I’m betting he won’t see it that way!

Don’t you wish I could get my act together and put everything in one blog post?  Never going to happen! 

If you have Dollar General stores around you, that’s where we got the Vitamin E Cream.  Other places have it, but that’s where the lady who gave me the recipe said she got hers and that’s where we got ours.

If you’re lucky, and if you love lavender like I do, you can find lavender baby lotion at Wal-Mart or Walgreens — some of the larger type stores.  It’s actually called “bedtime lotion” . That’s enough to give the lotion a good lavender smell.  When I’m home and making a batch for just me, I’ll probably add a drop of lavender E.O., but if you use the regular pink baby lotion, it will smell a bit like a baby.  In fact, when we came home with the container the lady had given me, my niece’s 6 year old smelled it, looked at her 2 year old brother and said “Hey, he used to wear this!”

There’s an unscented baby lotion, one with aloe and Vitamin E, a cucumber/melon, one with shea and cocoa butters . . and more!

And, if you’re looking for cute containers, be careful of the size of the hole at the top.  Some of the ones I got have a hole too small and if I use the smallest of funnels, the hole in the funnel is too small to get the lotion through.  I’m going to save all my empty pump and squeeze containers from soaps and creams I have at home and they’ll be great for my use as well as for giving away.

Now  . . I’m off to a quilt show all day! 

Sometimes those taking my classes bring me gifts.  Gifts are never expected but are always appreciated .. especially the ones that have special meaning . . like things people who read the blog know I collect.  Homemade gifts are always special too.

Last week a lady gave me a little Glad container of homemade hand cream.  This may be TMI but my feet crack . . badly!  It’s probably because I hate wearing shoes and am almost always barefooted.  I even have a prescription cream for my feet because they crack and bleed and it hurts!  I’ve been putting this lotion on my hands, my feet, even my face instead of my usual night cream and I’m telling you . . it’s the best stuff I’ve ever used!  My feet feel better than they’ve felt in years.  That one little tub of hand cream has been passed around and mom and dad have fallen in love with it too.

The lady gave me the recipe for it and mom and I made a batch last night.  Here’s the recipe so you can make some too:

Homemade Hand Cream:

16 oz. baby lotion
8 oz. Vaseline
8 oz. Vitamin E Cream

Mix with electric mixer til  it resembles icing.

Put in containers.

So easy to make, inexpensive and wonderful!

They didn’t get me this time!

Out with their wimpy light bulb, in with my own!

And, if that isn’t enough, I brought my pendant light.

No reason why I can’t get lots of handwork or knitting done late into the nights.

It’s been over two years since I’ve had crawfish.  I love crawfish!  I was so happy to be in Louisiana for crawfish season this year, dreaming of lots of fat, spicy crawfish, like these from two years ago .  . .

This year, due to cold weather and maybe “biological” reasons, crawfish are scarce and expensive!  Here’s the local news heading:

Not good, huh?  I’ve decided that this weekend, some way, somehow, I’m getting crawfish . . I hope!

OK . . here’s my story!  I am away for a few days.  This all actually happened on Monday before I went to the quilt shop yesterday.  I got to the hotel and realized I didn’t have any knitting with me.  Can I possibly go for a few days without knitting?  Doubtful! Grabbed the yellow pages . . looked under “yarn”, found a knitting shop.  They didn’t tell me it was halfway to the next state but I went and got some sock yarn and yarn to make a scarf I’ve been wanting to try.

Without my knitting bag, I had no needles so I had to buy more needles!

After having left all my makeup and having to buy new everything – scrub, night cream, day cream, mascara . . everything.

Oh . . if you notice the photos are kinda blurry . . I forgot the charger for the camera battery so I’m now taking pictures with the cell phone.  Thank goodness I have the charger for that . . I hope!   Guess it wouldn’t matter if I had the camera charger anyway because I forgot the adapter for the Sony memory sticks.

This may well be the worst job I’ve ever done of packing!