Every Little Bit Counts

I enjoy music, podcasts, Howard Stern and YouTube videos throughout my day, but I really like audiobooks (to the tune of one every week or two) because though I do not have a college degree, I do think that with a high school education, interesting life experiences and a hell of a lot of reading about every stupid little thing, I have some significant knowledge on a wide host of subjects. I am okay at Jeopardy too, ask my mom. My current book is called The Zero Waste Home by Bea Johnson.  I'm really enjoying it and feeling inspired to try new things, but I also am realistic about how it fits into my life.  This lady is married with two children and she has managed to get her family's disposable waste for one year into a 1 quart container. I, on the other hand am having a hard time getting a week's worth of recycling into one car to take to the bottom of the driveway.  My husband and I will never get to her level. I have no intentions of spending six months of my life trying to formulate homemade shampoo that he and I can both use for our two very different hair types.  I am trying to make some positive changes though, and to my surprise, I have found that they have not only been embraced but have been a source of inspiration for others. When I went to the grocery store today, I decided to pack my reusable shopping bags with plastic containers and previously used index cards. When I showed up at the store, I had my open containers on the counter and without hesitation I requested that they put my cold cuts into my dishes because I don't like single use plastics.  They cut up my stuff, weighed it and packed it into my containers and I applied the lid. She printed out my label and applied it to the paper. The girls at the deli not only found this to be a cool idea, but they expressed interest in doing it themselves.  I told them that I was enjoying it so far and nobody has given me any crap about my out of the norm request.  "Well, I'm a manager here so if anyone gives you crap in this department, let me know because I think this is great".  This was a new concept with the checkout girl too, but one I explained my system, she was on board.  Putting the groceries away when I came home was slicker than snot on a doorknob because everything stacked nicely into the refrigerator.  This is not a huge money savings nor will I be receiving any thank you cards from the polar bears, I just like it. The tiny difference makes me feel good, and when it feels good, it is sustainable.  Next thing to go at my house is the paper towels and disposable napkins- I have tons of fabric napkins, towels and handkerchiefs that  ones I never use. Again, this is not stuff that is going to change the world, but it works in my world. That will have to do for now. 

Hey stranger.

Your true traveller finds boredom rather agreeable than painful. It is the symbol of his liberty - his excessive freedom. He accepts his boredom, when it comes, not merely philosophically, but almost with pleasure. – Aldous Huxley

Well, it certainly has been a while hasn't it?

I would like to think that I'm a little older and wiser, but I've moreso found that I'm more battle-hardened, introverted and set in my ways, like a proper almost 40 year old who feels 60.  My days are spent with stupid to the point of manic amounts of hobbies and interests (I put in an Amazon order today for additional homemade deodorant supplies), voice lessons with my friend Allison (a year and a half and I still avoid Karaoke Night), housekeeping (reading everything I can about the uses of castile soap), cooking Weight Watchers friendly meals (twenty five pounds down), shooting groundhogs in the ass with a BB gun to keep them out of the yard (woodchuck is not listed in the WW app, hence my nonlethal methods) and trying to get the bills paid off and get the beach house built so that my husband can retire sooner rather than later.  I live in a new house, I have new dogs, I have new step-grandchildren.  It's still summer, so I am drinking beer more than wine (in moderation- Weight Watchers afterall).  Instagram (@emgeraci) is cool, I get to post photos of my food and hobbies.  Nothing scandalous, so of course that makes it pretty boring in the social media world.  It's all about the stuff that makes me happy.  I spent too many years whining and focusing on things that make me miserable.  I have Twitter, but I find it uninteresting.  Everything is now so sterile; its too damn difficult to say something that someone isn't offended by. 

"Today I went shopping with my best friend and I got a new hat!"
"My sister doesn't even have a head, you insensitive bitch!"

It makes for extremely boring posts. 

There are worse things than being boring.  I prefer to think of it as unlimited potential for growth.  I'm never bored, and what others think of me is none of my damn business.   It's also none of my business if your sister has no head.  Bottom line: if you continue to check in, I may occasionally talk about something that you're interested in.  At least it can help pass the time...