Tuesday, August 6, 2019

Musings - July 2019


This was a slow month, but it goes by quickly and with it the summer brushes up into fall - just a hop, skip, and jump from the end of the year.


And, the garden is in! I've got segregated the eds a bit - an herb bed (image), a strawberry patch (image), several tomatoes and a crazy amount of hot peppers. Three beds in total. I did not even try cucumbers or squash due to the late start. I officially bought plants July 1st and put it in July 2nd. By July 3rd it had tiny thumbsized hop-toads bopping around the plants. 


 In contrast, we put in Isy's garden over a month ago. She and I already did our first weeding and a garden adjustment session on July 4th. She's already eating strawberries from her garden, and we've planted her blackberries for next year. She also found raspberries on her new property and those are producing as well!  

 I did manage to do a tiny harvest from our wild blackberries and the strawberry patch (image). The tomatoes have been slow but we're harvesting herbs already - and one jalapeno.


 Books: I've officially finished out all the currently available Lainwich Witch books - a 21 book series from the improbably named Raven Snow. (These are the book equivalent to Schitts Creek - light, entertaining, and not like your life. Bless her for writing them. ) Kindle Unlimited is the bomb. Boom.

 Also on Kindle Unlimited I started a new series by Ashley Beasley. Excellent world building. Bramble and Blood. Birdsong and Bone.

 Next up, via the Kindle Unlimited, Olivia Swift did a series of cozy mysteries - 6 total - called Blooms, Stones & Bones. Easy reads. I made it through the first 2 one weekend. Enjoyable. Although I do wish the author - who is British and lives in France - wouldn't set them in the US. Her English is very English and sounds quite off in a number of places to an American reader. Her geography is also a little wonky.

 Create Your Own Luck by Susan Hyatt was my inspiring read of the month. I love Susan's podcast so this was fun to read. My beach read was from the Little Free Library, Priam's Lens by Jack L. Chalker (pictured top with the other beach read I didn't finish) which was not his best work. 

 Gratitude: Cold showers on hot days. Catalpa trees blooming still in July (such a slow summer!). Cardio drumming. Fireflies and night skies. Beach passes. Mohawks on puppies (image). The Henry Ford Museum - which rocks.

 Listening: Dave Ramsey. Don't Quit Your Day Job podcast. Rich Coach Club podcast. And all the cardio drumming songs which have invaded my head in an endless loop!

 Perfume: Most days were still Ofresia by Diptyque - until I killed it off mid-month. And I've been working in a little of the Willow and Water from the Library of Flowers - both creme and spray. I need something new - and at a friendly pricepoint - soon.

 Random: Guilt trips only work when you let the travel agent book them. Decline the trip.

 Recipes: I've made that chocolate chess pie at least once a week. And triple fruit cobbler 3x a month. But nothing new.

 Self-Care: I swear the last week of June, the switch just flipped and now it is full on SUMMER. Hot. Humid. This has meant some changes in skin care routine.

 Day - I started using the Boxwalla box from 5Yina - the Lucent Beauty Duo I got last month for days. And I love it. It's completely perfect for the hot sticky summer months. I'm adding Farizad's Veil from Earthwise Beauty to the oil as my first line of sun protection. Some people may not like a mix-in, I adore that I don't have to layer on another product or skip something I like so I don't over-layer products. 

 Night  - That has been a toss-up. It really depends on how much I've been sweating (did I work in the garden, did I go to the beach, did I do cardio drumming) that day. After a cleanse with either my Miscellar Water or a coconut cleansing balm + face wash....
- For sweaty days, I've been using the Siam Seas' Sai Clear Skin Serum  (all over) I got a few Box Walla boxes ago with the April box's FlowerSpice Soothe and Repair Daily Moisturizer around the eyes and on the neck. I love the whipped texture of the Flowerspice product and how it sinks in. (And Flowerspice's Midnight Beauty oil is now on my wish list!) The Siam Seas is a little gritty and as the amount in the bottle lowers, it's gottten harder to pump out - but it's light and does a nice job keeping the skin clear.
- For beach and regular days, I've been using the African Botanical's Cell Recovery Serum  all over plus Fleur d'Afrique Oil (same brand) around the eyes and at the neck.

 And we wait for someone to mistake my age -  by a lot.....

 Stress: Relationships are still hard. (And here's the thing with that - sometimes the problem is in your mirror with all those expectations. Beans, I hate that!)

 Things 12 said: Not 12, but 19. I asked her what she wanted for dinner - she said, "The blood of my enemies." I could NOT stop laughing because she's always the peacemaker.

 Watching: Binged with 19 on Umbrella Academy. And finished Season 2 of Star Trek: Discovery. The new Charmed - killed of Season 1 -  less engaging than the original and the writing seems scattered. The Good Witch - all the seasons which are less "witch-y" than I'd expected. (And I've never seen the movies - so I'm a little out of sync.) Basically, it's Stars Hallow with coincidences. 

 Take- away - Time goes faster than you think. Make sure you are spendign yours in a way that you'll enjoy remembering. 


Original musings posts you may enjoy:


All photos by moi! And you can tell...

*Juice Beauty is a staple in my beauty cabinet. I stray, I try other things - but it's my favorite "foundation" (I used the CC Cream) and great skin care. If you like Juice Beauty too, here is a link. I do get a small commission (at no cost to you) when you use these links which helps support this blog.

- Skin Care by Juice Beauty
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