Recommendations

 I've been compiling a mental list of things lately that I LOVE and would recommend to anyone.  So here it is.  Randomness at it's best.

1.  Mandolin.  This is an app that I have VERY little experience with, but what experience I HAVE had with it, I've absolutely loved.  So, a few weeks ago, my favorite band of all time (Of Monsters and Men) put on FOUR live concerts in Iceland celebrating the 10 year anniversary of their very first album.  Before they performed the first of four concerts, they announced that these concerts would be available on the Mandolin app to view (for purchase of course).  At first I was a bit hesitant, because I have never used this app before and wasn't sure what to expect.  So I made an account, signed in, and purchased 'access' for their four live concerts.  There were options to only purchase one or two or whatever, but I knew I wanted to see all of them.  So I bought them.  And it has been AMAZING.  Basically, OMAM (Of Monsters and Men) performed these 4 concerts in Iceland, and like two weeks later, they were available for viewing on Mandolin.  But not all at once.  So for the past 3 Wednesdays, I have enjoyed these concerts greatly.  The final one is on the 22nd of this month.  The great part is that I can watch it Wednesday night, and then it's available for replay the next day until midnight.

The first two concerts I watched twice.  The third concert I watched 3 times.  And then at midnight it's gone.  :(. Boo.  But it's AMAZING.  Fantastic quality.  I probably will only ever use it for OMAM because I am not a big 'music' person.  But being able to watch them perform their first album (plus more) with different concerts has been amazing.  I would highly recommend it if you love a band and want to see their concert but can't be there physically.  They aren't available indefinitely, it's a set date, and then like the 24 hours after that you can replay it.  But it is still totally worth it.  

Although I did tell my husband that if they ever do this again, I'm flying to Iceland to see them in person again ha ha.  (I'm serious).

It's so funny because their songs are all in English but they speak Icelandic in between.  :). 

2.  Wyze.  I believe they were a kick-starter company that hubs supported a few years ago, and now they have grown by leaps and bounds.  Anyways, we have MULTIPLE products from them and I am a HUGE HUGE HUGE fan.  For example....they have a cordless vacuum that I choose over my Dyson cordless vacuum all the time.  And the Dyson is like twice the cost.  I LOVE the Wyze vacuum.  Our video-doorbell is Wyze.  We have Wyze 'smart' plugs for all of our lamps.  And, probably my most favorite thing is my noise-cancelling headphones which hubs got me.  They are amazing.  Especially for watching the OMAM concerts.  The great part about all of these things is that they are affordable.  I will never buy a Dyson vacuum again.  I think the Wyze cordless vacuum is $149?  Maybe?  The Dyson is like $250?  I will never again by a Dyson.  Anyways...they make great products.  So if you're in the market...just check them out.  They also tie-in with Alexa, so all of our Wyze products are connected to our Alexa app so we can talk to Alexa and tell her to turn on our outside string lights (that are Wyze) and she'll turn them on.  Technology is amazing!

3.  Mint Mobile.  This is our mobile provider.  We don't have Verizon or Sprint or anything.  Well, I take that back. We do have T-Mobile for mine and my mother-in-law's iPads each month...I think we pay $40?  But for all of our phones and everything else...we use Mint Mobile.  It's Ryan Reynolds company.  I'm not kidding.  It's amazing.  And super affordable.  I guess they use multiple 'towers'.  Like it uses Sprint and T-Mobile towers, kind of whatever is available in your area.  We've been using them for years.

What's super funny is that every now and then we'll get random voice mails and actual mail from Ryan Reynolds (he is hilarious).  Our most recent piece of mail was like a 10" cutout of him standing on a platform with a note that said to use him as a replacement for the popular 'elf on a shelf' that is everywhere this time of year.  Ha ha.  Anyways. If you're in the market for a new cell phone provider, check them out. Totally worth it.

4.  Neutrogena Hydro Boost.  Okay I know this is not groundbreaking.  But I have problem skin and always have, and my dermatologist here has recommend Neutrogena Hydro Boost products since I've moved here in the land of no rain/no humidity and my skin is doing great in this incredibly dry climate.  So it's pretty much all I buy, with the exception of this for my 'after-shower' lotion:

https://www.amazon.com/OGX-Creamy-Coconut-Miracle-Moisture/dp/B01MCTTDJS

Not sure if that link will work and I'm too lazy to check, but it's the OGX Coconut lotion.  I get it at Target.  Along with all of the Neutrogena Hydro Boost products.  They are amazing.  Hubs uses them too.  It actually simplifies things greatly by sticking to just one brand.

5. Essence Mascara.  This is like an Amazon cult-favorite.  I didn't believe it until I tried it.  I'm a fan of Benefit products (foundation and mascara and brow products) but after seeing incredible reviews of this $5 mascara on Amazon, I thought I would give it a try.  And I will NEVER again pay $20+ for Benefit mascara at Ulta.  I am a huge fan.  

https://www.amazon.com/essence-Princess-Effect-Mascara-Cruelty/dp/B00T0C9XRK/ref=sr_1_2?crid=15AGGY50AEAOQ&keywords=essence+mascara&qid=1639711870&s=beauty&sprefix=essence+mascar%2Cbeauty%2C127&sr=1-2

I'm still fan of the Benefit foundation and their brow stuff, but I'm never buying their mascara again after using this $5 from Amazon.

6.  Wild Basin.  If you are in to spiked sparkling water, this one is the best.  I've tried them all.  It beats White Claw and Truly and all of the other brands....no contest.  The flavors are unique and actually have quite a bit of taste (for sparkling water).  I believe they are all 100 calories.

That's all I can think of for now.  :)

What I Bought

Shopping in California is always nice.  There always seems to be just the stores I want all at the same place.  I went to an outlet mall in Petaluma and they had GREAT stores.

I ended up buying 2 things at the Michael Kors outlet:

I’ve wanted another MK bag for a while (I have one, but it’s about 13 years old).  But I will NEVER EVER NEVER EVER pay full price for designer handbags.

I mean, come on:

$400???  Seriously?  No way.  I will however pay $75.  Which is what it was marked down to.  It’s all leather, the lining is great, it has shape and look at the color!!!

Same with the wallet.  

$168??  NO. WAY.  It was on clearance and I paid $35 for it.  Again, all leather, and it will last forever.

I am not into designer clothes, shoes, makeup, hair, nails, etc.  But I do love a good handbag.  And I use them all.  I am constantly switching them out (sometimes daily).  I carry my planner, my pouch that holds various things, and my wallet.  So it’s not like I’m transferring a ton of stuff each time.  I LOVE my new bag.  I’ve gotten so many compliments on it already.  😊

At Hamilton, I bought a mug that says ‘Wait For It’.  I love it.  And it has the words on the box!!  It doesn’t take much to make me happy ha ha.

And I bought a hoodie and a t-shirt from Bergin University.  All of the proceeds go to raising and training those amazing puppies.

And that’s it!  Oh, I did buy one other thing….a tie on clearance at Old Navy for .97.  Worth it.  😊 

Home Chef

A few years ago, I got a meal-box subscription to Blue Apron.  Meal-box subscriptions were a new thing at the time, and Blue Apron was the one that started it all.  Once a week, I would receive one box full of all the ingredients to make dinner for the week.  The box came with everything needed and detailed recipe cards.

I LOVED it.

But eventually we reevaluated our budget and decided to let it go.  And I started meal planning our dinners again for a few years.  Meal planning is necessary, unless you are one of these people that don’t mind going to the store every single day.  It’s nice to have a plan for the week so you can go to the store, get your ingredients, etc.

BUT.  There are sooooo many things I dislike about the whole process.  Figuring out what to make.  Actually shopping for the ingredients.  Not finding what I need while I’m shopping and having to go to TWO (or more) stores.  Buying an entire bottle of a certain spice for $6 when all I need is ½ teaspoon.  Not making good use of the ingredients and throwing out stuff every single week because it goes bad.  Busy stores with clueless people who leave their cart in the middle of the aisle while they browse elsewhere.  I could go on and on.

Work is busy.  Life is busy.  On a typical day, I leave the house at 5:40 a.m. armed with at least 3, sometimes 4 bags (gym bag, purse, lunch bag, and my computer bag if I’ve brought work home the night before).  I then go to Barre, then shower at work (hauling all the bags inside), work for 8-9 hours, and then leave (hauling all the bags back out to the car) around 4:00 or 4:30.  Sometimes, if I’m really ambitious I will take the 4:30 Barre class on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  So I get home anytime between 4:30 – 5:45.  And then even later if I have to go to the store. 

There was a day back in February when I left Barre at 5:30 p.m. and then went to get groceries and bought maybe 8 bags worth?  When I got home (around 6:30 or 7:00) and opened my trunk and saw my grocery bags and all of my other bags that had to be hauled inside and unpacked and dealt with and THEN knowing I had to make dinner on top of that I literally started crying.  And yes….I realize these are not first-world problems.  But I was so incredibly overwhelmed with it all the time. 

So I first looked at our budget and looked what we were spending each month on groceries.  I talked to husband.  He said if I can make it work with our current grocery budget, then to go for it. 

I started researching.  There are probably 15 companies out there (Blue Apron, Freshly, Plated, Home Chef, etc.) and I did a comparison of ALL of them.  I initially thought of going with Blue Apron again, but some of the Blue Apron meals were VERY time consuming.  Like more than an hour for one meal, which is just too long.  While I was doing my comparison, I was looking for freshest ingredients, tastiest recipes, EASIEST recipes (aka less time-consuming), and flexibility with meal choices.  

I checked multiple websites, food bloggers, etc. and hands down the winner was Home Chef.  So that’s the one I signed up for.  The recipes take anywhere from 15 – 45 minutes (30 minutes  usually) to prepare from start to finish.  The ingredients are fresh.  There is minimal prep work.  You do have to chop all of the vegetables, but that’s not an issue.  The meat comes uncooked obviously, but there is no chopping of meat.  If the recipe calls for diced chicken, they send you fresh uncooked diced chicken (be still my heart!).  You can also choose what type of plan you want.  I chose the ‘mostly low-carb’ meal plans.

I signed up for the 2 person, 3 dinners a week plan (6 meals).  Each week you can go into the app and select your dinners.  This is the best part…there are 14 different meals to choose from.  I LOVE that.  Also, you can skip weeks if needed.  When my sister-in-law was visiting, I skipped my delivery that week.  And we’re traveling in a few weeks, so I skipped that week as well (and will obviously not be charged).  They charge by the week.  You can also skip meals…like if you only want 2 dinners that week instead of 3, you can adjust that as well.

As you can imagine, these meal boxes are not cheap:  9.99 per meal.  $60 per week.  $240 per month.  Yes, it’s a lot.  But I don’t care.  I worked it into our current grocery budget.  And here’s why:

1.       Portion sizes.  All of the reviews I read said that Home Chef’s portion sizes were generous.  And they were right.  We always get at LEAST 3 meals out of a 2-meal dinner, and sometimes even 4.  So we’re guaranteed at least 3 extra meals per week (9 meals instead of 6).  This brings the price down to $6.66 per meal (not bad for a generous portion of food that tastes like it came from a good restaurant!).

2.       They have taken the stress out of figuring out that horrible question ‘what’s for dinner’ completely.  And yes…I realize that the box is only 3 dinners and there are 7 days of the week.  But we usually go out once a week, and then for the other 3 nights we do leftovers of some sort or something easy (like tacos or spaghetti or grill out or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on meeting nights ha ha).  I made a list of ‘go-to’ easy dinners for our in-between nights. 

3.       They have done all of your shopping.  I hardly ever go to Target anymore (which is a big money saver especially with impulse purchases). 

4.       They send you things in individual containers that are the perfect portions.  There is no measuring.  EVER.  The only thing I had to do one time was cut a pat of butter in half ha ha. 

5.       I actually enjoy cooking now.  This is HUGE!  This is what I remember the most about Blue Apron.  It made me enjoy cooking and I felt like a fancy chef.

6.       The food is GOOD.  We have yet to have a ‘stinker’ meal.  And here’s what we’ve made so far:

Marsala mushroom chicken skillet with broccoli and peas

Korean pork noodle bowl and green beans and Fresno chile

Sirloin steak with balsamic sauce and fingerling potatoes and Brussels sprouts

Steak with garlic-herb butter and buttermilk-cheddar mashed potatoes and zucchini

Cajun chicken thigh & Italian sausage dirty rice with poblano pepper

One-pot creamy chicken chowder

Everything has been delicious!  My stress level regarding ‘what’s for dinner’ is completely non-existent now.  I’m going to continue with Home Chef for as long as I can!

The Year of Many Doctor's Appointments

This year was an interesting year medically for me.  I had surgery in February.  Because of that surgery, I met my yearly out-of-pocket maximum amount that I had to pay for my insurance.  Which I believe was either $2,500 or $3,000.  I’ve already forgotten (more like I’ve tried to block it from my memory ha ha).  Which, all things considered, is not that bad.  My surgery (without insurance) was almost $30,000.  And my E.R. visit that led to my surgery (without insurance) was almost $8,000.  The cost of health care is just unbelievable. 

Because I paid my yearly out-of-pocket maximum, that means everything else for the year is free.  EVERYTHING.  I don’t have to pay co-pays, I don’t have to pay for meds, I pay NOTHING.  Until January 1^st. 

So I started making appointments like crazy.  

I got a mammogram, which would have been free anyways (preventative).  My next one will be in January.

I got a colonoscopy, which would have been free anyways (preventative).  My next one will be in 5 years.

I saw an allergist for the first time in years.  I knew I had seasonal allergies, but I didn’t take anything for them other than Benadryl (which is ineffective long-term).  So they did a bunch of breathing tests (I also have mild allergy related asthma) and then they did skin testing on my back, and THEN they did skin testing on my forearm (for the allergens I reacted to on my back).  I ended up being allergic to a bunch of New Mexican weeds, as well as cats AND dogs.  Lovely.  Anyways, he put me on a prescription for my allergies, renewed my inhaler, and gave me a bunch of samples for Xyzal (similar to Claritin, Zyrtec, etc, except this one actually WORKS).  I’ve been sleeping much better, and my allergies are finally under control.

AND EVERYTHING WAS FREE.

Then I got myself established with a new General Practice doctor.  I don’t go to a ‘regular’ doctor often.  I saw my former GP maybe once every 2 years, but then his practice stopped taking my insurance.  So I had gap where I didn’t have a GP.  However, this wasn’t really a problem, because I used a combination of my gynecologist (who once prescribed me seasick patches before we went to Alaska ha ha) and a family friend who is a physician.  He gave me antibiotics once and also put me on an inhaler (we were over at their house for dinner and he heard me wheezing ha ha).  But I figured it was time to get established with a new provider.  So I did!  She did a physical and asked all about my past medical history.  I don’t have to have a PAP smear done EVER again.  But she’ll do a physical and blood work each year. 

Then I went to the dermatologist.  I have not seen one in years.  My skin is kind of all over the place (I have combination skin…it’s either super dry or super oily).  But mostly I wanted to get a full-body mole check.  I’ve never had one.  And since I’ve been living in the land of 300+ days of sun each year for almost 9 years now, I figured I should get checked.  I wear a facial sunscreen every single day, and during the summer when I’m outside I wear sunscreen (plus a hat).  But still…better safe than sorry.  And there were 2 moles that looked funny to me that I wanted her to check out.

She was SO NICE.  And of course she’s leaving the practice, so that stinks.  But anyways, she did a full body check (and warning…if you’ve never had this done….they check pretty much everywhere.  You can keep your underwear on, but there’s really no point ha ha.  I mean…she checked between my toes).  And all of my moles were just fine, including the two I was worried about.  She was very thorough.  Then she talked to me about my skin care routine.  She was no-nonsense and said that all of those super expensive products do not work.  She recommended Panoxyl 4% (for mild acne…can be found over the counter at Walgreens for $12) once a day, Cetaphil daily wash at night (you can get a big bottle at Target for like $8), and Neutrogena Hydroboost moisturizer for night.  The most expensive thing was the Neutrogena Hydroboost.  It was $14.99 at Target.  She said fair-skinned people should have a full-body mole check once a year.  Done.

AND EVERYTHING WAS FREE.

I have an eye appointment at the end of the month.  And I’m going to try to get in to see my therapist (yes, I see a therapist, actually she’s a psychologist…she prescribes my depression/anxiety meds) before the end of the year.

BECAUSE EVERYTHING IS FREE.

I feel really, really good about my health this year.  I mean…I still have a long ways to go, but I feel like I’m finally in control and in charge of my health.  I'm glad I got these appointments out of the way, and I'm especially glad I didn't have to pay for most of them.

I already have appointments set up for next year:  mammogram, allergist follow-up, dermatology follow-up (which may not be necessary, but they wanted to get me on the schedule because they’re super busy), and my yearly physical.  

Make a list of questions for your doctor(s).  Don’t let them get away with rushing through your visit.  And, I cannot stress this enough, ASK FOR SAMPLES.  My allergist gave me a bunch of samples of Xyzal.  It’s over the counter, but it’s pricey.  They over-ordered their stock and guess who benefited????  ME!  I asked for samples of the Neutrogena Hydroboost at the dermatologist, and they gave me four little bottles, the perfect size for my gym bag.  ASK FOR SAMPLES.  They have them.  And they usually will hand them out willingly IF YOU ASK.

Take advantage of your health insurance!  You pay for it!

(Oh, and the picture at the top of this post?  That is me.  After watching 15 seasons of Grey’s Anatomy multiple times, I feel like a doctor.  Just kidding.  Kind of.)

Black Friday

I was solo at Black Friday this year.  Because of this, I got done earlier than usual (usually we don't get started until about 9:30).  This year I started at 5:00 and was home by 8:30!!

On Thursday morning, hubby and I have the tradition of going to Village Inn for breakfast (it's the only thing open).  We first buy a newspaper, then go to the restaurant and go through the ads during breakfast.  I make a list.  

This year was a bit different.  A lot of the stores are starting their Black Friday ads deals online.  So...on a few items, you can order online starting at a certain time on Thursday.  This is good and bad.  Good, if you're aware of the process.  Bad, if you expect to go the store and find a hot ticket item in the ad and it's no there because the store's stock has been sold out online.

This year, there was an exceptional deal on Playstation 4's.  It came with a Spiderman game and was more than $100 off the original price.  It was at Target and Walmart and I believe Best Buy.  I KNEW this would be an item I would have to get in line for.  So I read the fine print on the ad, and saw that it was available for order online.  I checked Target...sold out (both online AND in stores).  So (while we were sitting there at Village Inn), I ordered it online at Walmart for store pick-up.  I had to wait about a week before I was able to pick it up, but I got the exact unit that was advertised for the exact price.  And I didn't have to stand in line.

While I was at Target, I overheard a few people asking about the PS4 in the ad and the employee said they had sold out of those before the store even opened.  Which is really not fair.  I mean...they should reserve SOME to keep in stock.  But oh well.  I was just glad I didn't have to wait in line for it, ESPECIALLY at Walmart.  Ugh.

And my husband's PS4 broke down like 3 years ago and we haven't replaced it until now.  I'm glad it all worked out.

Then, I noticed a great deal on Dyson vacuums in the Target ad.  I LOVE LOVE LOVE my cordless Dyson stick vac.  LOVE it.  But, it's a few years old and is temperamental sometimes.  It still works great, but I just have to clean it a lot more (like, take it apart, wash the filter, etc.) than usual.  So when I saw Target was having a sale on Dyson stick vacs, I ordered one of those online as well.  It was delivered a few days later.  Of course, husband checked Consumer Reports on all cordless stick vacs first.  And guess who won....Dyson!  

We're going to keep the new one for upstairs use.  The current one is mounted on the wall in the laundry room.  The plan for the new one is to mount it in the small storage room located in our library.  But there's no electricity in that little room at the moment.  So for now, it's hanging out in my closet.  (and yes, we have a mini fridge in my closet):

So around 5:00 I headed out to the actual stores.  First I went to Gamestop and got husband two video games he's been wanting.

Then I went to Target (my biggest haul).

Pyrex!  Couldn't pass this up, especially since I hate plastic storage.  $18 for this boxed set.

A few movies/TV on DVD.  I haven't seen the 3 movies, but I HAVE seen the 2 TV series.  :)  The TV seasons were $10 and the movies were $6 and $4.  Not too shabby!  They are all movies I've been wanting to see too.

Usually I get sheets each year at Walmart, but this year, Target had them.  1200 thread count sheet sets for $25 (any size).  We got a King size bed earlier this year and I only have 2 sets of sheets for it, one of which is not in great shape.  Animals are HARD on sheets!!  Anyways...I got 2 new sets of sheets for our bed and one full-size set for the guest room (Amy's Room). 

Some little lotions. They were BOGO.  I like the little ones for my gym shower bag.

One sweater.  They had loads of sweaters for $10!

A throw.  $10!  It's super soft.

Then I moved on to Walmart. 

Slippers for hubby.  I get him new slippers almost every year.  These were $7, marked down from $20.

 Loungewear...pants and hoodie set for $12.

An oil diffuser set for the man cave.  It came with 6 little bottles of oils.

And some fun little slipper socks.  :)

And that's it!  It was fun, and it was nice to be home at 8:30.  It put my husband and mother-in-law's mind at ease, especially because I was by myself amongst the crazies.

Now to start putting away a little bit of money each month for next year!

Random

*Costco has started selling SKYR!!!!!  It’s not widely found in the United States.  We have found it at Sprouts and Whole Foods, but it is way expensive.  We LOVED it when we were in Iceland and it was one of the few grocery items that was affordable.  We get 2 cases of it each time we are at Costco.  It’s 4 Weight Watchers points for one container.  15 grams of protein.  There are other products out there (Siggy’s, etc.) that claim to be Skyr, but they’re not.  This one is the only one available in the US that contains Icelandic Heriloom Skyr Cultures (from Iceland’s oldest farmer-owned dairy).  It was a happy, happy day when we discovered it.  It’s the little things in life, you know?

*I’ve pretty much given up TV.  I watch maybe 1 hour on the weekends.  That’s it.  And sometimes not even that.  And when I do watch, it's usually something I've watched before like Parks and Rec or Downton Abbey.  And you know what?  I don’t miss it.  I’ve been READING LIKE CRAZY.

 

*We went back to English.  We talked and prayed about it for months now and felt it was the right decision for our family.  I am relieved, but I am also heartbroken about leaving our French family.  We truly are a family.  And it’s going to be hard to find that again.  But at the same time, English has already given us a huge spiritual boost.  And our new congregation has lovingly welcomed us.

*This hairbrush has changed my life.  Well, not really, ha ha.  But again…it’s the little things.  I LOVE it.  It’s the Conair Ceramic Porcupine Cushion Brush.  My hair takes less than a minute to brush out as opposed to 10 minutes ripping through it with a wide-toothed comb.  I don’t know why I waited so long to switch to a brush.  I got it at Target….I think it was $9?

 

*Monsoon season is still going strong.  This is the heaviest monsoon I’ve seen since I’ve lived here.  My mother-in-law says the same thing and she’s lived here 20+ years.  It’s been raining almost every night.  I love it!  The dog…not so much.  The picture below is from abqjournal.com.  It is a very accurate portrayal of monsoon season.  This is looking East (the Sandia mountains are right behind the rain) and the Rio Grande is where all the green trees are in the middle.  We live on the East side (so basically, right where the rain is dumping).  Anyways...the sun will be out, then all of the sudden one part of town will look VERY ominous and there will be an isolated monsoon that dumps a crapload of rain for a good 15-20 minutes.  Streets flood, traffic comes to a stop.  And then the next day, there are traffic crews out cleaning up the rocks.  Because there isn't a lot of grass here, there are rocks in it's place.  And when there's a tremendous amount of rain, the rocks get washed into the street. 

I just have to give a shout-out to my washer and dryer.  Ha ha.  I do at LEAST one load of laundry per day, sometimes more (gym clothes, work clothes, meeting clothes, towels, bedding, etc.).  They are LG Front Loaders.  I love them!!!!

I'm working from home today.  He is not making it difficult AT ALL: 

Kindle

I am a fan of books in all form.  Real books, audio books, and e-books.  While I use my apps (Hoopla, Libby) linked to my local library a LOT for audiobooks, I don’t use them much for e-books.  There’s a reason for that.  In the past, I read e-books on my iPad.  Have you ever read a book on your iPad?  Maybe it’s different for people who don’t stare at a computer screen for 8+ hours a day.  But it is incredibly hard to stare at a glaring iPad screen to read a book.  It’s hard on the eyes.  It’s easy to get distracted. 

But there are SO MANY advantages to reading e-books.  First, you can get LOADS of them free from your library.  It’s so easy!  And if you are an Amazon Prime member, there are loads of free e-books as well (I believe you can have 10 free books at a time….there’s no time limit, but you can only have 10 free ones at once).  And….buying e-books is so much cheaper than buying real books.  I subscribe to 3 websites (Goodreads, Book Bub, Book Riot) that send out an email every day that list the best e-book deals that day (they change daily).  Most of the books they post are newer and/or best-sellers and they are usually $2.99 or less.  Most are $1.99. 

You can also buy brand new e-books on the date of their release.  A brand new hardcover new-release book at a bookstore will be $27.00.  That same book in e-book format will be HALF that cost.  Or less! 

But I haven’t been taking advantage of these deals until recently, because I do not like reading from my iPad.  But I got a Kindle Paperwhite!  What is the difference between a Kindle and a tablet?

1.  The screen.  The iPad uses a touch screen LCD display (the same as laptops and other PCs).  However, the Kindle uses e-ink technology that looks like paper.  While the iPad is all color, the Kindle is different shades of grey.  And most importantly:  because of the e-ink, you have ZERO eye-strain from reading on a Kindle.  There is also no glare.

2.  You can only do like 3 things on the Kindle:  read books, download books, and look at Goodreads.  That’s it.  No apps, no web surfing, etc.  It is great because you can’t get distracted!

3.  The battery.  The Kindle only needs to be charged like every 2 weeks.  Amazing!  I’ve had mine for 13 days and it still has ½ of the battery life left.

4.  The size.  The Kindle is much smaller (about the size of a Mass-Market Paperback).  It is super lightweight, even if you have a case on it (which I would highly recommend getting a case for it).

5.  You can highlight any passage from any book and it will save them for you in the ‘My Clippings’ section in your library (that's an ad at the bottom).  

Here are a few of my highlighted passages:

The Light of the Fireflies:

“There’s no creature more amazing than one that can make it’s own light”

The Bell Jar:

“I thought I would swim out until I was too tired to swim back.  As I paddled on, my heartbeat boomed like a dull motor in my ears.  I am I am I am.” Note:  I Am I Am I Am is also the title of Maggie O’Farrell’s memoir (taken from this passage in The Bell Jar)

“Wherever I sat, on the deck of a ship or at a street café in Paris or Bangkok, I would be sitting under the same glass bell jar, stewing in my own sour air.” (talking about depression)

“If I was going to fall, I would hang on to my small comforts, at least, as long as I possibly could.”

“I took a deep breath and listened to the old brag of my heart.  I am, I am, I am.”

The Bookshop on the Corner:

“Because every day with a book is slightly better than one without, and I wish you nothing but the happiest of days.”

“Some people buried their fears in food, some in booze, some in planning elaborate engagements and weddings and other life events that took up every spare moment of their time in case unpleasant thoughts intruded.  But for Nina, whenever reality, or the grimmer side of reality threatened to invade, she always turned to a book.  Books had been her solace when she was sad, her friends when she was lonely.  They had mended her heart when it was broken, and encouraged her to hope when she was down.”

You can also make your own notes on what you highlight.

There are so many other great things about it….you can travel with literally hundreds (thousands) of books.  I wish I would have had mine in Iceland.  I loaded up my iPad with books and then didn’t read any of them because it is just so hard to read on an iPad.  Such a strain on the eyes.

I’ve been reading on my Kindle every night.  I’ve pretty much completely stopped watching TV.  The only time I watch is if I’m folding laundry.  Or meal prepping (I’ll have my iPad on the counter with something on).  But at night?  I’m either reading in the man cave or outside, and when I go to bed I’m reading.  You can read in the dark on the Kindle too.  The screen adjusts to the light in the room.  It is wonderful!  I’m a fan. 

Ductless

When I first moved to New Mexico, there were a few terms that were new to me.  Like ‘swamp cooler’ and ‘evaporative cooling’.  And ‘refrigerated air’.  What the heck?  And ‘air conditioning’ or ‘central AC’ are not terms used here AT ALL.  Weird, right? 

Refrigerated air is the same as central air.  A swamp cooler (or ‘evaporative cooler’) however, is an outside unit that is hooked up to water and it uses that moisture to cool your house.  That’s what most people have here.  There are pros and cons.  The pros are that it is inexpensive.  And….that’s pretty much the only pro.  The con list is much longer.  It doesn’t completely cool.  You can’t control the temperature at all.  There are literally just switches (they look like light switches) to flip it on and off.  That’s it.  Well, I take that back.  There’s a ‘high’ and a ‘low’.  Those are your options.  It will cool the house down somewhat, but when it’s 100 degrees outside, your house is going to be about 80 degrees inside with the swamp on.  I’m not kidding.  And upstairs?  Hahahaha…..much warmer.  The other con is that every year, you have to ‘prep’ the cooler.  So when it’s fall and you don’t need the swamp cooler anymore, you (or one of the many companies around town that will do it) have to drain it, unhook it, cover it up, etc (honestly I have no clue what is involved).  And then when summer starts, it needs hooked back up, etc.  Kind of a pain, especially if they’re on the roof (which most of them are).  You have to leave the windows cracked for it to work.  So if there’s heavy pollen in the air, or ANY kind of smoke (in the land of wildfires), that will come into your house.  As well as dust, dirt, the occasional lizard, etc (I’m not kidding).  So it’s not ideal.

When we bought our house, we knew it had a swamp cooler instead of refrigerated air (Central AC).  Most houses here have swamp coolers.  ‘Refrigerated air’ or central AC is a luxury.  For dry climates, most places have swamp coolers (because they don’t work when it rains).  And it makes sense that they used a swamp when they built the house….our house is ginormous and to cool it via Central AC would be an astronomical cost each month.  At first we looked into converting the swamp to refrigerated air, but that still didn’t make sense.  Because with refrigerated air, you don’t have much control.  You can close certain vents in rooms, but that air is still going to try to force it’s way in.  And there’s a few rooms in our house that we just don’t use on a daily basis.  So why pay to cool those rooms every day? 

Because hubby researches everything (bless him), he decided on ductless heating and cooling units.  With ductless units, you can control the temperature of every room in the house.  So we can completely shut off the heating/cooling in Amy’s room, the gym, the library, the dining room, the front room, etc (the rooms we don’t use much).  We can just turn units on as we need them.  Or….you can leave them on always, but set the temperature higher if it’s a room that you rarely use.  There’s little remote controls for each unit.  There’s a unit in each room (except for bathrooms/hallways) and then we have 3 larger ceiling units:  one for our kitchen, one for our master bedroom, and one for my mother-in-law’s kitchen.   

Ductless systems are the primary systems used in Europe and Asia and have been for the past 30 years or so.  Once again, we are way behind the times here in America.

The initial equipment and set up is insanely expensive (we budgeted it in with the addition build-on).  But after that….it’s incredibly efficient.  Our electric bill should lower as well as our gas bill in the winter.  We won’t be paying to heat and cool our 4,000 square foot house when we only use like half of it.  The maintenance is minimal.  Each unit has a filter, however they are re-usable.  Once every couple of months you just remove the filter, wash it, and pop it back in.

The installation was quite the process though.  First, they had to pull out all of the existing duct work.  Then they had to wire everything for the new units.  There were random holes in the walls and the ceilings with various tubes and wires coming out of them.  Then they had to install the large units outside.  We have 3 of them.  One is on the side of the house, and two are on the flat part of our roof (you can’t see them and I forgot to take a picture of the one on the side of the house…it’s not large though).  Then the tubing for each unit had to be connected to one of the larger units.  I think.  I’m not exactly sure how it works, can you tell?  Ha ha.  But what I DO know is that each unit is controlled individually.  Which is amazing.  And they are whisper quiet. 

It was an interesting experience though.  I never knew what I was going to be coming home to.  Every day there would be various holes in the walls with various things coming out of them.  I wish I was exaggerating.  It was interesting and unsettling and kind of comical.  It took about a week and a half.

See?

Right now we are in the process of getting the holes where the existing vents and ducts were all sealed up, patched over and painted (to match the existing paint colors).

But the house is COOOOOOOOL!  It’s soooooo nice.  My library upstairs is no longer an oven!  And bye bye window air conditioner units!

I’m officially a fan of the ductless cooling.