LifePundit

An Acne Product that Won't Leave You Exhausted

Some of my friends have asked me why I wore myself out getting and keeping Lily on Accutane (and went through more trials and tribulations than I have chronicled here -- at some point Kafkaesque experiences become nothing more than whining). Why didn't I just use a really good over-the-counter treatment?

Well, d'uh. Because that would have been too easy. I'm not a good mother unless I'm suffering in my efforts to be a good mother. Why do something easy and affordable when you can drag your daughter to monthly blood tests, put up with government interference out the wazoo and have your daughter turn into a big flaky itchy scabrous rash that invites sunburn even through the car window?

Maybe I should have first tried an Acne Treatment like SkinID Acne Solution, made by Neutrogena, and spared us a world of frustration and aggravation.  I like Neutrogena products so they have some credibility with me, even if I don't have to suffer to get them.

Lots of people told me I should have gone the Pro-Active route and swore that it worked for their children. Neutrogena's personalized line of products is supposed to work twice as well as Pro-Active. And it's personalized. You go on their web site or call them and they analyze which solution is right for you based on your skin type, your lifestyle and factors such as stress (which you're sure to have a lot of if you go with Accutane). Then they work out an individualized program.

Acne isn't rocket science. Neutrogena's researchers and dermatologists have invested heavily in creating this collection of versatile, personalized treatments.

It might just work. And I'd sure try it before I went the whole government-in-my-business Accutane route again.

I'm Going to be the Old Lady with 60 Cats

Do you know how you end up with sixty cats? Like a journey that begins with one step, it begins with one cat. Next thing you know, you have sixty and you're reading about yourself in the paper. It also helps if you're an old lady who likes cats and just can't turn them away.

I like cats and they like me. They make me sneeze but I still like them. One day, I suspect I will be that old lady in the paper who's been busted for having sixty cats. Cats are not a banned substance, so far as I know, so I'm not sure how this gets you in the paper, but it does. My fifteen minutes of fame will come with fur.

There are probably reasons why it's not considered a healthy thing to have 60 cats but I'll leave that to the professionals. I can have sixty horses, so long as I feed them. Why can't I have sixty cats? I've got a good start on my Old Cat Lady phase. I've got three cats. I'd probably have five if I weren't married.

And I can't leave them (or dogs or anything else) alone so I should go ahead and get a rabies shot. You heard it here first. I expect my cause of death to be rabies. If so, I hope I have plenty of warning. There are a lot of people out there I'd like to bite before I die.

But here's where the difficulty comes. I like cats, so if one shows up and looks hungry, it gets fed. If it hangs around, it gets shots and gets neutered. I think word has gotten out about this last little item because I've had some Toms show up for one or two meals and then leave.

Kindness with cats can lead you to an unmanageable situation. I fed the horses and cats for a neighbor when she went out of town on vacation. She has three locations in her large yard where she feeds feral cats. It started off with her feeding the barn cats from her next-door-neighbor, and suddenly, she has more cats than the shelter. One is her pet. The rest are feral.

She knows all the reasons why this is a bad idea, so don't tell me about them as she and I have already discussed it. It starts with kindness -- and ends with a difficult decision. Unless you're an old lady with 60 cats, it is possible to have too many cats.

Especially when they haven't had their shots, they're feral and one very cute kitten is obviously very, very sick. During the week that I was feeding her animals I tried to lure that kitten closer and closer, hoping and yet not hoping that I could catch him. If I caught him, I'd have to take care of him. If I couldn't catch him, well, I can't tend to what I can't catch, can I? No vet bills, no heartbreak, no dosing with medicines that make him foam at the mouth, no fights with my husband over What Are You Doing With Another Cat? No kitten funerals, either.

When my neighbor got back we discussed capturing the cats with traps that you can borrow from the Humane Society. They have a program where you can take the feral cats in for neutering and shots at a discount. Great plan. I think she and her husband did it. They don't mind feeding all those feral cats. They just want to end reproduction and not catch rabies. (And they feed the feral cats name-brand canned food! My cats may start to go over there. They get Meow Mix dry food here. Crunch crunch.)

The feral cats show up here and I have good intentions, but because I don't have a trap, I don't get around to doing what needs to be done (shots, neutering, release into my barn). I'm thinking of getting my very own live traps from Havahart. That way, I'll be ready and can do the right thing, not just think about it. There's more to safely catching a feral cat or other wild animal, so to find out how to do it with less wear and tear on you and the animal, check out their web site.

Making Your Own Photos into Postcards

My business cards are an embarrassment. I won't mention where I got them, but I went to a local chain store, picked out a stock icon, a typeface and a paper color and texture. I paid several hundred dollars (yes!) and within a few weeks I had my business cards and stationary.

Are they ever ugly! People ask me about the icon. "Why do you have a _______ on your business card?" and I explain that it's because I live in the country and that's where I work. It makes no sense whatsoever. I am tired of explaining and may change my explanation to, "Because I'm an idiot, so you probably don't want to hire me for your writing project."

Things have changed, and I may get to change my business card even though I have several hundred of them left. PS Print Printing can print custom business cards much cheaper and faster than the way I did it before -- and their templates will keep me from making it ugly (though I'm not sure anything could keep me from making it say something stupid). It's kind of fun to look through all the options and design it myself. I don't even have to order hundreds and hundreds.

They also let you make affordable, quality postcards from your own photos. We used to send out Christmas cards with Lily's picture on it, but it really did get costly. So, I got "smart" (yet again). I bought a high quality photo printer and started printing my own photos to send in Christmas cards. Holy Mackerel! Those photos really slurped up my ink, and it's $100 to reload the cartridges. End of that idea.

This year, I might try PS Print's postcard printing for my Christmas cards. They make it easy, and they're fast. And so much more affordable than using my aggravating old ink-drunk printer.

I love getting photos of my friends and their lives at Christmas. Now I can return the pleasure by sending photos of Lily, or, if she doesn't feel like cooperating, perhaps the cat.

Where Would You Go If You Could Go Anywhere?

The other day Paul asked me how I would live differently if I knew I only had six months to live. I started on the usual "getting my affairs in order" sort of drivel when he stopped me. "No," he said. "What would you do if you did what you really wanted to?"

Well, it certainly wouldn't be getting my affairs in order. I doubt I could even do that in six months. I was surprised at how easy the real answer was. "I'd go on a cruise around the Greek islands. One of those cruises where they have college professors on board who'd tell me everything about what I was seeing, and really make things come alive. And I'd want to spend some time on a beach and snorkeling, too," I said. "And I'd like to dance, some Greek dance I don't know."

"Okay," he said. "That won't take all six months. What else would you do?"

"Go on a Holy Land tour," I said. We nearly booked just such a trip led by a very spiritual and gifted pastor a few years ago, but then people started shooting at each other (again) in that region and the trip got called off. "But if I only had six months to live, it wouldn't matter if I got killed in Jerusalem. That would be the perfect time to go."

I'm not sure where the conversation got us, because there's certainly been no booking of a trip to Greece or even a trip to the local Greek restaurant. But it did get me to remember how very much I like to travel.

I used to use a travel agent for my trips. But she's gone -- and I get a little lost when I try to figure out how to get the best deal on airfare using all the web sites that promise discounted tickets. Then I found this easy-to-use web site that incorporates and compares Expedia, Orbitz, Priceline, Travelocity -- all the web sites that I use to try to figure out how to get where I'm going and save money, too. If you're planning a trip, either domestically or internationally, you might want look into Cheap airline tickets.

Raise Your Own Ostriches -- Or Just Look Like One

Admit it. At some time in your life you've needed ostrich feathers. How or why or when or where isn't important and I certainly don't want to know about it. You needed ostrich feathers, and you couldn't find them. Not the really good ones, the ones that would really let you strut your stuff.

(Teeth not standard feature.) Or maybe you've considered farming ostriches. They eat like birds since they are birds, and there's some health benefit to eating them if you can catch them. Plus there's all the exercise involved with catching them. They're a full-service, diet-and-exercise bird.  And don't forget the feathers you can wear to your next tea party, or for your next Mummers parade.

If ostriches have been out of your reach, or out of your mind, in the past, that can change. You can get your  Ostrich Feathers, whether you want them at wholesale or retail, just by clicking on the highlighted link. And for your inner ostrich farmer, this site also has all the information you need about farming ostriches.

You Can Get Your Pets Insured -- Even Your Hamster and Rabbit!

We've had about six hamsters over the last few years and it never, ever occurred to me that I could get hamster insurance. The hamster(s) was replaced by a rabbit, and it never, ever occurred to me that I could get rabbit insurance. Hamster insurance would have possibly saved me from having to figure out euthanasia options when one of them developed cancer. Very disturbing business that I've already blogged about so no need to talk about putting sick hamster in a double-ziplock bag and running over it in the car. (I didn't do this -- a vet suggested it to me. Want to be clear on that.)

And what about cat insurance? I've run over two of our cats in the driveway (both fully recovered). I wonder if that's covered? (When you have a Prius, things can't hear you coming. Even if they're asleep under the car.)

In the people insurance marketplace, Europe tends to set the trends for specialty insurance products. That appears to also be the case in the pet insurance market. The more I read, the more I realize that for some people it could really be a good choice. By clicking on this pet insurance link, you can visit a U.K. site that allows you to compare insurance companies, learn about the different kinds of pet insurance and even get online quotes. I didn't know you can get insurance that covers advertising in case your pet is lost or stolen, or covers boarding expenses if you get sick and can't care for your pet, or covers cremation expenses. They seem to have thought of everything.

And while you're there, you might also want to do some comparison shopping on credit cards. You can compare the many kinds of cards available and shop for the best one for you.

Saving Money on Groceries

Have you ever stood in line at the grocery store only to watch in disgust as the person in front of you saved lots of money using coupons? No, I haven't seen it either. But I've heard about people like that. They probably have their four pairs of socks arranged by color, too.

I'm not good at saving money. I'm better at spending money. But really, if I'm going to spend money, should it be by paying too much for cereal, aluminum foil and toilet paper? These are things that should be free because they're just so dull. But they're not free, and they're getting less free all the time.

Every now and then I'll try to go through the coupon section of the newspaper to do better in the grocery store. But even if I find coupons for stuff I want, I'll never make it to the store with them. I'll find them three months after they've expired, crushed in the bottom of my pocketbook.

So I'm going to try something different. Searching for Free Grocery Coupons online at sites such as the Penny Pinchers Gazette. I can find coupons for things I actually buy, print out the coupon and stick it with my grocery list (not randomly in my purse for some future date when I happen to remember I have a coupon and I'm buying that item). I'll save money by shopping from a list (and not get distracted by the end-of-aisle-impulse-buy displays) and having the coupon right there. They also have budget recipes and advice on healthy eating.

Gates and Gate Openers

The only automatic gate openers we have around here are the horses. They have lifted the hay gate off its hinges to get in, have stretched open the links on the chain that locks the gate to break into the hay, and are waiting until I'm not looking to break out of the pasture gate into the garden -- or maybe just the neighbor's greener grass. Or maybe the next county. Not good.

The other automatic gate opener we have is Lily, and she doesn't always do it with a smile. We could use an automatic door opener for the cats, but they'd probably wear it out.

While I don't see an automatic gate opener in my future, I wish we had gates to our subdivision with automatic gate openers. Entirely too many beer cans where romantic couples have been parking -- thinking they're in the country. Hey! That's not the country! That's my front yard.

I'm as startled as Gomer Pyle would be when I see automatic gates on businesses and in other communities in action, whether they "open sesame" to a code, a device installed on the car or a handheld remote. It's enough to make me want to put in a gate just so I can watch it open. And close. (I'm as bad as the cats.)

My father's place in the country could use such a thing to keep the riff-raff out, though then I wouldn't be able to visit. If my father could work his computer to surf the Internet, I'd tell him he could find every major manufacturer at GateOperator.net, including Viking Access , which offers commercial and residential gate openers and is known for being innovative. He might prefer U. S. Automatic, a company that works very hard to keep their good reputation by thoroughly testing their products before they hit market. And he'd also be interested Apollo and their many different kinds of gates and gate mounts. As an engineer, he'd enjoy just watching them work. Maybe even take them apart and not be able to put them back together.

I guess you can tell I'm from the country. I get a special delight going through an automatic gate. There's that moment where I'm a little unsure that I remembered the password (or was really invited), and that small thrill when the gate starts to open. Yes. It likes me. I'm in!

Maybe I need to get one for our entrance (otherwise called a driveway). Just for my own self-esteem.

A Desk of One's Own

This is a Tonda desk from the web site linked below. Nice. I'm sure that everyone has something they are convinced was missing from their childhood. Fortunately, mine is nothing more damaging than that I didn't have a desk. But how I longed for my own place to work, or as Virginia Woolf might say, "A desk of one's own."

My older brother had a desk. I didn't. It may have been because I was a surprise and there really wasn't room for a desk in the space my family made for me. I thought it was because I was a girl. It was probably all that and more -- and less. What did I need a desk for? As long as my grades were good, I was left alone with my school work.

I was a homework nomad. The kitchen table was good for a short while until it had to be set for dinner. The kitchen counter, even with its barstools and the inviting presence of my busy mother, was never good unless you liked food and grease spots on your papers. The dining room table was  forbidden. My books and papers didn't fit on my dressing table so there wasn't room to work, though lots of exercise from picking everything off of the floor again and again after it fell. To this day, I don't know how I got my homework done as I moved from unsatisfactory spot to unsatisfactory spot.

Can I have a desk, please?  It proved much easier to get a pony.

So, when I became an adult one of the first things I got for myself was a desk. I paid $100 for a used metal desk with a damaged Formica top. I used refrigerator paint to make is presentable. One drawer wouldn't open and close and another was missing. The way I loved it you would think it was owned and blessed by Shakespeare.

And almost before our daughter Lily could scribble with a crayon, you can bet she had a desk. (Of course she does her homework at the kitchen table. Wouldn't you know it?)

My home office is a cobbled-together collection of what I could find mixed with what I could afford. There was no Internet when I shopped for office desks, so I wasn't able to take advantage of well-designed, durably made desks such as Inter County's Price Point line. They must have seen people like me coming when they made these desks with  double-reinforced legs to keep the desk from sagging under the weight of all my un-filed papers and works in progress. And after getting my clothes snagged on chipped Formica for years, I could go for their thicker edging and extra thick desktops. And what if I had all the drawers I wanted -- and they actually worked? These Price Point desks come with an eight-year guarantee.

I've got folding tables, cabinets from a cabinet-makers home show display and even laundry baskets to help me keep my business organized. I was so happy to get the desk -- maybe I should look into getting real office storage. Maybe I'm disorganized because laundry baskets were designed for laundry, not writing projects.

They've got some great looking chairs and bookcases, too. If my computer chair didn't usually have a fully clawed cat perched on the back while I worked (she hangs on when I make quick movements, which hasn't done great things for the fabric), I might consider one of their real, grown-up office chairs you can find in office furniture.

Would I know where I am? Would I know what to do if my home office was set up like an office? It would be fun to find out.

Dryers Really Do Eat Socks

Saintly Brother's wife couldn't figure out where all the socks were going. She'd put them in the dryer and they'd just disappear. Dryer jokes aside, her dryer was stealing their socks. Turns out there was a part missing. The dryer took the socks and other small items and shot them out into the backyard. Mystery solved.

I've got a laundry basket full of divorced, lonely socks. I keep hoping their mates will show up and they can reconcile. I think I hope in vain. Yes, I've checked in the yard. Nothing there but a little lint. Did it chew up my socks and spit them out as lint?

I don't think so. But I'm about to ditch the swingin' singles socks I've got and get some new, more monogamously inclined Socks at Hue. Sometimes you just have to admit that things aren't working and start over.

It will feel really great to dump that laundry basket of singles. That is until the dryer coughs up their mates.