Every year, companies ( particularly in the diet, finance and house organization fields) promote their goods and services that appeal to the most common new year resolutions — lose weight, save more money, get organized. Meanwhile, the news media remind us of the failure rate of new year’s resolutions. For years I have looked at different […]
2016 Intention: Balance Read More »
For the last several months I have been pouring over landscaping plans. I’ve been debating between simply removing and replacing the concrete patio, or installing a new deck. I’ve debated between going basic (cedar) or upgrading to ipe. I’m seriously considering installing the deck right on top of the existing (ugly) concrete patio and creating a
Up-cycling and the “Maker” Bug Read More »
We went to a lecture last night by a science journalist who has written a few books for Scientific America on brain health. There are many myths out there about the brain, and some interesting areas of research on the elements of healthy brains later in life. Here were my takeaways in terms of what
A few weeks ago I discovered and joined an online Facebook group focused on Azores genealogy. It’s a very active and helpful group with some very knowledgeable people. Years ago I asked my mom to write down as much as she could about my Nunes & Avila ancestry–names, dates, places. I still have her hand-written
The past, the future and being present Read More »
There is a cherry plum tree outside our window that is flowering early this year. The unusually warm spring-like January has confused a lot of the trees and flowers. As soon as the pink blossoms appeared, though, the weather cooled down and we’ve had several days of high winds and heavy rain. This happens most
It’s been three weeks since the contractor completed the last of the punch list items, and I’ve been slowly, very slowly, moving things back into the house in Napa. In packing up the house, I purged a lot of things for charities. And now, in moving back in, I purge once again. I have tried
The Road to Urzelina Read More »
I received word this morning that the contractor has completed my punch list and I’m fully ready to move back into the house! I did manage to get a little jump start last week with the sofa, a floor lamp, dining table and chairs, and a media stand being delivered. MA went up with me
Contractor crews officially *finished* Read More »
There is a trend on Pinterest that features “dupes” for make-up—colors of lipstick, blush, eyeshadow, etc., at less expensive stores like Target that look nearly identical to the more expensive brands at department stores like Macy’s and Nordstrom. It’s an interesting exercise and argument for shopping around. For the last few months I have been
Furniture Dupes—Extendable Dining Table Read More »
