Living It With Lisa

Where were YOU five years ago?

Where are you NOW?

Take a minute and look back 5 years ago.

Where were you in your life?  What were your goals and dreams?

Now, take a snapshot of your life today.  Have you been able to check off some of those dreams and goals?

Are you driving that dream car, living in the dream home, taking the exotic vacations, or are you settling and barely surviving?

What are you going to DO today?

Start planting your daffodils today!

Go Green:  Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants. They eat it, take it “home”, can’t digest it, so it kills them. It may take a week or so, especially if it rains, but it works and you don’t have the worry about pets or small children being harmed!

If we could shrink the earth’s population to a village of precisely 100 people, with all the existing human ratios remaining the same, it would look something like the following.  There would be:

57 Asians

21 Europeans

14 from the Western Hemisphere, both north and south

8 would be Africans

52 would be female

48 would be male

70 would be non-white
30 would be white

70 would be non-Christian
30 would be Christian

89 would be heterosexual
11 would be homosexual

6 people would possess 59% of the entire world’s wealth and all 6 would be from the United States.

80 would live in substandard housing

70 would be unable to read

50 would suffer from malnutrition

(ONE)1 would be near death;

(ONE)1 would be near birth;

(ONE)1 (yes, only 1) would have a college education;

(ONE)1 (yes, only 1) would own a computer.

When one considers our world from such a compressed perspective, the need for acceptance, understanding and education becomes glaringly apparent.

And, therefore . . .

If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep, you are richer than 75% of this world.

If you woke up this morning with more health than illness, you are more blessed than the million who will not survive this week.

If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish someplace, you are among the top 8% of the world’s wealthy.

If you can attend a church meeting without fear of harassment, arrest, torture, or death, you are more blessed than three billion people in the world.

If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation, you are ahead of 500 million people in the world.

If you hold up your head with a smile on your face and are truly thankful, you are blessed because the majority can, but most do not.

If you can read this message, you are more blessed than over two billion people in the world who cannot read at all.

As you read this and are reminded how life is in the rest of the world, remember just how blessed you really are!

First DON”T boil your egg!  You will have rubbery whites with dry yolks that have a gray/blue edge around the yolk.  That is your clue you have overcooked the egg.  See the post on how to make a Perfect Hard-cooked Eggs or the blog post on how long you can keep eggs.

After  your eggs are done, drain the hot water from the pot used to cook the eggs and shake the pot back and forth to crack the shells. Then plunge them in enough cold water to cover the eggs until they cool down. The water seeps under the broken shells, allowing them to be peeled without a struggle.  Start peeling from the large end of the egg, which has an air pocket. This lets you get under the membrane without digging into the white.

This information was in The New York Times several weeks ago as part of their “Spotlight on the Home” series that highlighted creative and fanciful ways to solve common problems.

1. Cucumbers contain most of the vitamins you need every day, just one cucumber contains Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B3, Vitamin B5, Vitamin B6, Folic Acid, Vitamin C, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium and Zinc.

2. Feeling tired in the afternoon, put down the caffeinated soda and pick up a cucumber. Cucumbers are a good source of B Vitamins and Carbohydrates that can provide that quick pick-me-up that can last for hours.

3. Tired of your bathroom mirror fogging up after a shower? Try rubbing a cucumber slice along the mirror, it will eliminate the fog & provide a soothing, spa-like fragrance.

4. Are grubs and slugs ruining your planting beds? Place a few slices in a small pie tin and your garden will be free of pests all season long. The chemicals in the cucumber react with the aluminum to give off a scent Undetectable to humans but drive garden pests crazy and make them flee the area.

5. Looking for a fast and easy way to remove cellulite before going out or to the pool? Try rubbing a slice or two of cucumbers along your problem area for a few minutes, the phytochemicals in the cucumber cause the Collagen in your skin to tighten, firming up the outer layer and reducing the visibility of cellulite. Works great on wrinkles too!!!

6. Want to avoid a hangover or terrible headache? Eat a few cucumber slices before going to bed and wake up refreshed and headache free. Cucumbers contain enough sugar, B vitamins and electrolytes to replenish essential Nutrients the body lost, keeping everything in equilibrium, avoiding both a hangover and headache!!

7. Looking to fight off that afternoon or evening snacking binge? Cucumbers have been used for centuries and often used by European trappers, traders and explores for quick meals to thwart off starvation.

8. Have an important meeting or job interview and you realize that you don’t have enough time to polish your shoes? Rub a freshly cut cucumber over the shoe, its chemicals will provide a quick and durable shine that not only looks great but also repels water.

9. Out of WD 40 and need to fix a squeaky hinge? Take a cucumber slice and rub it along the problematic hinge, and voila, the squeak is gone!

10. Stressed out and don’t have time for massage, facial or visit to the spa? Cut up an entire cucumber and place it in a boiling pot of water, the chemicals and nutrients from the cucumber with react with the boiling water and be released in the steam, creating a soothing, relaxing aroma that has been shown the reduce stress in new mothers and college students during final exams.

11. Just finish a business lunch and realize you don’t have gum or mints? Take a slice of cucumber and press it to the roof of your mouth with your tongue for 30 seconds to eliminate bad breath, the phytochemcials will kill the bacteria in your mouth responsible for causing bad breath.

12. Looking for a ‘green’ way to clean your faucets, sinks or stainless steel? Take a slice of cucumber and rub it on the surface you want to clean, not only will it remove years of tarnish and bring back the shine, but it won’t leave streaks and won’t harm your fingers or fingernails while you clean.

13. Using a pen and made a mistake? Take the outside of the cucumber and slowly use it to erase the pen writing, also works great on crayons and markers that the kids have used to decorate the walls!!

The incredible edible egg!  The simple and classic boiled egg, is one of the finest and easiest edible delights known on earth, with just 70 calories, and full of nature’s most perfect form of protein.

According to the American Egg Board, the terms “hard” and “soft-boiled” eggs are really misnomers, because boiling eggs makes them tough and rubbery. Instead, these eggs should be “hard” or “soft-cooked” in hot (still) water, better known as coddling.

To create your perfect Hard-Cooked (Boiled) Eggs:

How many times have you had a rubbery egg? Boiling an egg should be simple and it is!  After reading different opinions I have discovered, through trial and error the following easy method that yields great results. Boiling an egg toughens the whites whereas coddling does not and it also gives the yolk a lighter texture.

1. Start with eggs that don’t have any visible cracks.
2. Do not add salt to the water.  Salt raised the boiling point of the water making the egg whites rubbery.
3. Use Eggs that are 3-5 days old.  Fresh eggs are too hard to peel.  The fresher the eggs, the harder it will be to peel because the white membrane will not release as easily from the shell.
   1. Check the sell-by-date on the carton to find out how fresh they are.
   2. Still not sure?  A simple water test will answer the freshness question for you. Place the egg in a bowl of water; if it sinks to the bottom,  it is very fresh. As it ages, the air pocket inside the egg grows, which buoys the egg up so it stands on one end. If the egg floats to the top and lays on its side, it is ready for the trash.
   3. The eggs that ‘stand up’ because of the extra air on one end.  That is a better egg of boiling and for peeling.
   4. If you know you are going to boil eggs, buy them several days ahead of time.
   5. Now that you have the best eggs selected, place them in one layer in your pan and cover them completely (about 1 inch) with cold water from the tap.
   6. Turn burner on to HIGH heat, bring water to a rapid boil.
   7. As soon as the water reached a rapid boil, remove the pan from the heat and cover it tightly with a lid.
   8. Set a timer for 13 minutes for large eggs.
   9. After 13 minutes, remove the lid and drain off the water.  This will stop the cooking process.  Shake the pot back and forth to crack the egg shells.
   10. Then plunge them in enough cold water to cover the eggs until they cool down.  The water will seep under the broken shells, allowing them to be slipped off without a struggle.

10.Let the eggs cool for at least 5 minutes in cold water, then drain.

11.To peel the egg start from the large end of the egg, which has an air pocket.  This lets you get under the membrane without digging into the white.

NOTE:  Remember to watch the cooking time carefully.  Overcooking causes that ugly greenish gray layer to form around the yolk.

Check out my other blog post if you are not sure how long to keep eggs.

As Joseph was growing up he has wondered … sometimes… just how I knew certain things.  I never revealed my secrets!  As a Mom you just ‘know’ certain things and have enough life experience to figure out the rest.   Yes, he did figure some things out as time went by and he got older … but until he has a child of his own … my secrets are mine!

I could NOT resist sharing this here because you mom’s out there will totally get it and remember the many times that you got the point across without a confrontation.  Game Over!

Enjoy!

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HAVING MOM OVER FOR DINNER

Ben invited his mother over for dinner.  During the course of the meal, Ben’s mother couldn’t help but notice how beautiful Ben’s roommate, Jennifer, was.  Ben’s Mom had long been suspicious of the platonic relationship between Ben and Jennifer, and this had only made her more curious.

Over the course of the evening, while watching the two interact, she started to wonder if there was more between Ben and Jennifer than met the eye.

Reading his mom’s thoughts, Ben volunteered, ‘I know what you must be thinking, but I assure you Jennifer and I are just roommates.’

About a week later, Jennifer came to Ben saying, ‘Ever since your mother came to dinner, I’ve been unable to find the beautiful silver gravy ladle. You don’t suppose she took it, do you?’

Ben said,  ‘Well, I doubt it, but I’ll send her an e-mail just to be sure. So he sat down and wrote:

Dear Mom,

I’m not saying that you ‘did’ take the gravy ladle from the house, I’m not saying that you ‘did not’ take the gravy ladle.  But the fact remains that one has been missing over since you were here for dinner.

Love, Ben

Several days later, Ben received an email back from his mother that read:

Dear Son,

I’m not saying that you ‘do’ sleep with Jennifer, and I’m not saying that you ‘do not’ sleep with Jennifer.  But the fact remains that if Jennifer is sleeping in her own bed, she would have found the gravy ladle by now.

Love, Mom

LESSON OF THE DAY -

“NEVER LIE TO YOUR MOTHER”

A little humor, a little truth and some that don’t apply in my case … but I am sure you will get a chuckle or two as you too remember!  Happy Mother’s Day!

Mother and her darling daughters

1.   My mother taught me TO APPRECIATE A JOB WELL DONE.
“If you’re going to kill each other, do it outside. I just finished cleaning.”

2.  My mother taught me RELIGION.
“You better pray that will come out of the carpet.”

3.  My mother taught me about TIME TRAVEL.
“If you don’t straighten up, I’m going to knock you into the middle of next week!”

4.  My mother taught me LOGIC.
“Because I said so, that’s why.”

5.  My mother taught me MORE LOGIC.
“If you fall out of that swing and break your neck, you’re not going to the store with me.”

6.  My mother taught me FORESIGHT.
“Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you’re in an accident.”

7.  My mother taught me IRONY.
“Keep crying, and I’ll give you something to cry about.”

8.  My mother taught me about the science of OSMOSIS.
“Shut your mouth and eat your supper.”

9. My mother taught me about CONTORTIONISM.
“Will you look at that dirt on the back of your neck!”

10. My mother taught me about STAMINA.
“You’ll sit there until all that spinach is gone.”

11. My mother taught me about WEATHER.
“This room of yours looks as if a tornado went through it.”

12. My mother taught me about HYPOCRISY.
“If I told you once, I’ve told you a million times. Don’t exaggerate!”

13. My mother taught me the CIRCLE OF LIFE.
“I brought you into this world, and I can take you out.”

14. My mother taught me about BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION.
“Stop acting like your father!”

15. My mother taught me about ENVY.
“There are millions of less fortunate children in this world who don’t have    wonderful parents like you do.”

16. My mother taught me about ANTICIPATION.
“Just wait until we get home.”

17. My mother taught me about RECEIVING.
“You are going to get it when you get home!”

18. My mother taught me MEDICAL SCIENCE.
“If you don’t stop crossing your eyes, they are going to freeze that way.”

19. My mother taught me ESP.
“Put your sweater on; don’t you think I know when you are cold?”

20. My mother taught me HUMOR.
“When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don’t come running to me.”

21. My mother taught me HOW TO BECOME AN ADULT.
“If you don’t eat your vegetables, you’ll never grow up.”

22. My mother taught me GENETICS.
“You’re just like your father.”

23. My mother taught me about my ROOTS.
“Shut that door behind you. Do you think you were born in a barn?”

24. My mother taught me WISDOM.
“When you get to be my age, you’ll understand.”

25. And my favorite: My mother taught me about JUSTICE.
“One day you’ll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you.”

Now you don’t think that Vic will be going without a wardrobe makeover do you?  Everytime a box arrived I told him that his stylist had some things for him to preview.  So here we go for the three Derby Events that we will be attending…

THE OAKS - Since pink is the color theme, Vic loves it.  Pink he says is his power color. He will wear his Black Sports coat with a pink shirt and gray slacks.  His tie will be black with small pink daisies.   I found the pink shirt and tie at Nordstrom’s.  Since the gentleman’s attire should compliment the ladies … I think this works!

THE GALA – Vic decided that he would finally buy a tuxedo since packing a rental seemed silly.  He informed me that he needed 140 wool.  Seems that the higher the count the lighter the fabric.  So I decided to order one online.  I found a site that had lots of tuxedo styles and had 140 wool or better.  I ordered one that was traditional styling in 150 wool and the other was a mandarin collar.  I knew that Vic would LOVE the mandarin collar, because one of he favorite shirts is collarless.  I had to take it away from him, but that is another story.  When the box arrived it was time to check it all out.

Here is the backstory.  Vic does NOT wear anything that has polyester in it.  He says it is too hot. Cut to him checking out the mandarin color tux.  He really liked it.  I wasn’t sure what the fabric was because it didn’t say what it was online.  As I was telling him that we checked out the fabric … 100% polyester!  I knew that was going back … but to my AMAZEMENT Vic thinks that it will be ok!  HELLO??? Where did my husband go and who is talking to me!  I knew he would love it … but that was a shocker.  Plus all the tuxedos were 50% off, so that made them very reasonable.  We did keep it and sent the others back.

You can wear this style with either a wing tip shirt or a traditional shirt.  I really wanted the wing tip but could not find an ascot tie that I liked fast enough.  A matching tie and vest were supposed to arrive on Tuesday but did not, so he will wear the traditional shirt with a traditional tuxedo tie.   The twist will be …shoes.  We are going for his boots instead.  I love that look.  Go figure!  LOL

THE DERBY – Vic needed a couple of new shirts so he sent me to his favorite online retailer, Paul Frederick.  In my web search I had not come across them yet.  So I parused their site and found sale after sale.  I just had to buy some other things, just to check it out.  Knowing that finding Big and Tall sizes are NOT easy and the selection in the stores are slim picking.  I found a light gray suit on their site that I just had to order for $138 !!!  When we got it, we were both amazed.  That turned out to be the deal of all deals. Vic wasn’t in the market for a new suit but at that price and the fact that DARK is not the desired color … remember Seersucker?  Well this is as close as Vic will get to that!

I found a pale gray shirt and a tie that will look great with his Italian Borsalino fedora should he decide to wear a hat.   Then I started to worry about his shoes.  Now Vic will be the first to tell you that he owns more shoes now, that he has had in his entire life pre-Lisa!  And I say YAY!  is that a problem?   Other than black there were no choices in his closet for a light gray suit.  So when I was in Austin, I was at Nordstrom’s Rack (their outlet store) and low and behold I found a Calvin Klein white loafer.  Joseph saw me pick it up and said “I have those shoes.  They are the most comfortable shoes I own”.   I stuck my foot in them and he was right.  The felt like pillows.  SOLD!   Now to ease Vic into the notion!

Last night I pulled them out and he stared at them for a solid 30 seconds.  Looked up and said “and for $99 down and $99 a month, you too can drive away in this car!”  We were laughing so hard.  He did try them on and sure enough very comfortable.  Reminding him that he needs to change shoes for each event…wearing the same shoe all day long equals sore feet.  (He’s done that in the past.)  So we went over the attire list and the shoes have found a new home!

Vic’s Derby Attire, DONE!  check!

You know what this has reminded me of?  Putting together a wardrobe for the Miss Texas Pageant!  Now that is a blast from the past!

We are off to Louisville.   So stay tuned for pictures of us cavorting about Churchill Downs.