Archive for the ‘Misc’ Category
Posted by terrepruitt on January 26, 2012
Sometimes there are things I just don’t understand. I find that when I ask I get answers. So my questions today revolve around packaging and waste. I am not meaning to pick on any on particular company but I am so confused as to why, in a world where we are trying to reduce waste and we have to pay for bags in which to put the stuff we just purchased, is it ok to package things like this. To me both of these packages are a waste.
I have a Nia student who always smells great and she told me the name of the perfume. I asked her if she would mind if I bought some and she said, no. It was before Christmas and I thought it would be a great gift idea for my husband to get for me. I love it when people tell me what they want and I try to help him out that way too. Since he was really busy AND there was other things that was on his mind he decided we could just order it online. I was excited. New perfume. But when I opened the box the only thing I was thinking is, “You have got to be kidding me!!!! Is it REALLY necessary to have ALL of this packaging for one bottle of perfume?” As I said, since I am not trying to necessarily bad mouth the company, I tried to take a picture that didn’t directly show the name, but you can see there is a piece of folded cardboard that goes first around the bottle, then that goes in the box, then there is a sheath that goes around that. Why? Just the ONE box would do just fine, I don’t think there is really any reason for the inner piece of cardboard and the sheath. To me the whole thing reeked of wastefulness. I was actually somewhat disappointed in the company because of that.
Then I was at the grocery store and I was faced with this. REALLY?!?!?! First of all prepackaging fruits and veggies sticks me with more than I want and second it seems like a HUGE waste of material. I could have easily used one bag to put my two zucchinis in, but no, I was forced to by five and they are packaged with a papery-plastic sheet, inside a plastic tray, wrapped with more plastic, and then labeled with even more papery-plastic. WHAT IS THAT ABOUT? How is that being responsible and cutting down on waste? FOUR things, instead of one bag? I just don’t get it.
I don’t understand when we are forced to be “green” in some areas, but in other areas waste like this is allowed to continue. This type of stuff confuses me. I am not sure the shiny material that the sheath was made out of can be recycled, but I put it in the recycling along with the rest of the wasteful packaging.
Whew. Ok, thanks, I am done with my rant. 
Do you ever come across packaging of a product that you feel is excessive?
Posted in Misc | Tagged: being green, Christmas gift, going green, green, Nia, Nia student, perfume, recycle, wasteful, wasteful packaging | 18 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on January 17, 2012
I’ve mentioned before that in Nia we think of feeling as emotion and sensing as physical. I mentioned it in Feeling vs. Sensing. The other day I was lying down when I realized when someone is there you want to touch you might sink into it or scoot closer. You might acknowledge the softness of the fuzzy little footsie pajamas along the side of your body and how the bottom of the footies are not as soft on your hip. Even going so far as to hold your breath so the softness of the fuzzy material can rub up and down on your arm as the small lungs fill and empty. There could be a moment when you’re aware of the different textures along the length of your back to your tush. You notice the softness of skin and hair of the arm, maybe the roughness of an elbow then the coolness of cotton or silk. You may have had the chance to observe the sensation of fur of an animal next to you. The animal lies there giving you the impression she wants to be near you. As you stop to appreciate the moment you might shift ever so slightly and you notice the cat (tee hee) has assumed her liquid state and the very tiny bit of couch real estate you shifted from is now full of cat. The sensation of warm furry body never breaking contact from your body. With any small movement you are pushed further off (or up or over) of the couch. You might have been asleep or not paying attention in any one of the similar situations, but once you realized or remembered something was there you allowed your body to embrace the sensation.
You sense the closeness in the situations. You stopped to enjoy the contact from the other being. You stopped to concentrate on the touch. The touch of softness, the sense of warmth, the caress of the movement as breath is drawn in and let out. I was not aware of the cat sleeping next to me when I first woke up. Once I sensed the pressure on my body and realized what it was, I snuggled down into the couch further. I scooted just a tad bit closer. And, of course, I was happy.
Sometimes sensing these types of sensations can elicit emotions. In these particular situations (pleasant ones where you want the body next to you) happiness and joy can be at the top of a long list. Of course, sensation can cause a whole range of emotions depending on the situation. I find it interesting that sometimes a sensation can be happening, but we might not realize it.
Have you ever been talking to someone and someone else comes along and not wanting to interrupt with speech they place a hand on your back and you might not even realize it until you stop talking then you notice? You might not notice the dog at your feet leaning on your leg until you stop for a second and refocus. You might not notice the child tugging you in one direction because you are focused on the conversation you are having. Maybe it is not so much that we don’t NOTICE, it is that the sensation is not the focus of our brain or body at that moment so it is dulled? Then once we give it our attention we can actually really sense the touch?
I know that I didn’t notice because I was sleeping, but it still took me a second to realize that something warm was pressed up against me. Once I realized then I was able to enjoy it. Sometimes we might need to realize sensations more as we move through life so we can not take them for granted and really enjoy them.
Are there any sensations that you can take a moment to enjoy while you are going through your day? Take an extra second to sense and see how it makes you feel.
Posted in Misc | Tagged: emotions, Feeling vs. Sensing, feelings, Nia, sensations | 2 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on January 12, 2012
What? What does THAT mean, right? Well, as you know this blog was originally started to share Nia with the world. But as you also know, I don’t feel that I need to post about Nia and my Nia classes every post. I do feel I need to mention them in every post . . . . just to remind you about it! So where am I going with this title and this post? Sigh. Confession time. Yes, forgive me readers for I am more-than-not-perfect and I want to share with you a habit I have. It is one of those habits that I don’t even know I am doing until I stop doing it and I sense the results of having done it. It is also an unhealthy habit (I am calling it that because in no way does it contribute to my health and well-being). I have been sitting at my computer for the last hour and a half — ha! No, that is not the unhealthy habit I am talking about! I have been doing some work. It is work that is taking a bit of concentration because I am searching for information. I was searching and trying to think of ways and places I can find what I am looking for. So I was concentrating really hard. When I decided to stop I realized my jaw muscles were sore. I stopped and thought about it and I realized I was probably clenching my jaw! I can’t recall if I was grinding my teeth or not, but I KNOW I had to have been clenching my jaw because it is very sore right now. Geez! So that is what I mean by there is no slack-jawed yokel here!
Some of you might now know who THE slack-jawed yokel is. He is a character on the Simpsons. He is one of those people who you feel sorry for at the same time he annoys you because he is so not-smart. But my jaw is tense and not slack, yet I still thought of him. He is Cletus, the Slack-Jawed Yokel. You can click here for his theme song. As you know the title Yokel is not something to use for anyone . . . except maybe a made up character on a cartoon show. So please forgive me if you find this offensive, I do watch the Simpsons every once in a while and he is one of the characters and so his title popped into my head as I was trying to figure out why my jaw was so sore and tense.
After I thought about what I had to have been doing to make my jaw sore, I looked it up. The one site I read mentioned wearing a mouth guard. Since I am thinking I am not grinding my teeth, I think a mouth guard would not solve the problem of clenching my jaw and could make my jaw muscles even more sore. Unless just the fact that I have plastic in my mouth would make me think NOT to clench my jaw. Another comment was about maybe caffeine being a cause which made me laugh because I have not been having coffee daily, but today I had some. But I also have not been working on this project before so . . . . that is something I will have to pay attention to. (Caffeine + project vs. project caffeine-free)
What about you? Do you find yourself clenching your jaw? Do you hold tension in your shoulders and/or neck? Do you have any suggestions to offer?
Posted in Misc | Tagged: Cletus, Cletus the slack-jawed yokel, jaw clenching, mouth guard, Nia, Nia blog, Nia class, Nia posts, Simpsons, sore muscles, teeth grinding, tense muscles, unhealthy habit | 2 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on January 3, 2012
Whew! For some reason I am feeling pressure about my first post in 2012! I feel I need to write more about Nia. Well, more accurately, I would LIKE to write more posts about Nia and my Nia classes, but I don’t have to start out the New Year with a Nia post. I feel pressure to make some grand announcement about something spectacular I plan to achieve in 2012. I have been looking at people’s resolutions. I don’t typically make resolutions. Some of the resolutions I am seeing kind of strike me as odd to be resolutions, yet, at the same time if people really need to declare these things for a new year, then by all means I hope they succeed. Yet, I am still somewhat surprised that people need to resolve to smile at strangers, encourage people to do their best, say thank you, tell their loved ones they love them, stop and smell the roses, etc. I guess we get busy and we forget to do these things, but to me they are just part of life like brushing your teeth so I don’t need to make a new year the time I start to do these. I was watching TMZ (Yeah, sometimes it is all that is on) and the main guy was saying something along the lines of why make resolutions and do it at the start of a new year when you can just do it at anytime of the year. Made me laugh. This year I am going to put some things at the fore front of my life and make sure they come before other things. So I am going to make two resolutions. For some of you, you will think the same as I did in thinking about the stuff I just mentioned. You might think that these are everyday things, and for some they are, but for me I get busy, distracted, lazy, comfortable, don’t-want-to-be-a-bother, or whatever-my-excuse and I don’t always follow through.
My first resolution has to do with my 31 Day Project. Ugh! I started out pretty good with that, but then I went out of town for a weekend and that killed my momentum along with the fact that in December the house gets rearranged AND things come into the house. There are Christmas decorations and gifts and other things to deal with so December was not a smart time for me to start my project. Although it encouraged me to do a couple of things, I did not get all done that I was thinking. So while one of my resolutions will not be to get rid of or fix one thing a day in the year, it is to get organized and to do or complete some of the projects I have sitting around. Some of the projects have been started and some have not, but I am going to get them done this year. With the completion of some of these projects that will help with the “getting rid of” and the organizing. Because as you may know if you have any projects to be done you might have the supplies taking up space and as soon as the project is done you will have that space open. I will do at least one project a month. I don’t have 12 lying around, but I know I have at least three and there are at least nine more that I would love to do.
The other resolution is to connect with my friends, family, and people in general more. I am a home body. Most of the time given a choice between staying at home with my hubby and my cat or getting up, getting ready, fighting the traffic to go out, I am going to stay home. My couch wins out over putting on makeup and “hard pants” anytime. My cat and her meditative purring ALWAYS trumps fighting traffic. Even domestic chores are better to me than traffic. But when I actually force myself out, I have a great time. Early Monday morning I was reading a friend’s blog (Zebra Sounds) and she asked her readers what they wished for in 2012 and as I was typing in the comment box that I wanted to connect more, I realized that I had just closed the Facebook page on the event without saying yes because I really wanted to be home with my hubby more than get ready to go out in the cold. And I realized that it was silly to say “I wish” when it was ME that was in control. So in the comment I announced I was going back to FB to say yes. I went, and of course I had a great time.
I realize that visiting face-to-face is not always possible, especially with one of my best friends who just moved away. So I am allowing phone calls to be part of my “connecting”. Of course seeing someone in person is often better, but sometimes it is not possible. And sometimes I forego the phone call because I want an in person visit, but we can’t work our schedules out so then I don’t get anything at all. Well, I am allowing phone calls to count as connecting because for some of us that is all that we have. I do understand that sometimes a phone call out of the blue is an interruption so I will not get my feelings hurt when someone can’t talk. But at least I will have made the effort to connect.
I am going to continue, as I always do, in 2012 to be grateful and thankful for all of my blessings, to be more positive than negative , to smile at strangers, to encourage people, and to tell my loved ones I love them, but I am also going to try to find the top of my desk. I am also going to try to make room in the corner of my office that is stacked full of stuff. I am also going to get out more and connect with people. I am also going to allow phone calls to be considered a good connection and use the phone when I can’t get in a face-to-face visit. To all of you that succeed at doing these two things, for those of you that consider that them a normal thing, I applaud you. Maybe you can share with me how you manage to make these things a part of your everyday life and I can learn from your tips.
We all have different life styles so our resolutions really can be very different. Somethings that are everyday things for some of us are resolutions for others. Did you make any resolutions? How about goals? Did you set any for 2012?
Posted in Misc | Tagged: 2012, 31 Day Project, Christmas, Christmas decorations, Christmas gifts, connect to friend, face-to-face, Facebook, New Year, New Year's Resolution, Nia, Nia Classes, Nia post, organizations, projects, Resolutions for 2012, special people, Zebra Sounds | 8 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on December 31, 2011
Not all of my posts on my list of Year End Review Of Terre’s 2011 Important Posts are Nia posts, but some of them are, Here are the remaining four of nine that I thought were important enough to re-share. This is the second half of my Year End Review Post. When I wrote it as one post, it just seemed too long so I split it up. Thanks for checking in. As with the first half, I am just going to give a little summary so you can have the main point right here and you don’t have to go to the original post. But if you WANT to go to the original post (and comment even) please do! I am listing these in order of when they were posted.
I think of this post Muscle Weighs More Than Fat as being something we all need to be reminded of. Muscle DOES NOT weigh more than fat. The saying that muscle weighs more is one of those things that a lot of us say, but it is not correct. A pound of muscle weighs as much as a pound of fat. A pound of anything cannot weigh more than a pound of something else. A pound of muscle will take up a lot less room than a pound of fat as you will see in the picture on this post if you click over. 
If you are interested in a dance class that is pretty, a class that produces a performance then Nia is probably not what you are looking for. Nia Might Not Be Pretty — To Some. Nia is about authentic movement. Nia is about moving the body the way it was designed to be moved. Not everyBODY can move the way it was designed. There might be injuries, defects, tightness, or just plain ol’ non-use involved so it might not be pretty as we learn to move. But it is beautiful. This post reminds you that it is what it is and what it is not is a performance. A Nia class is freedom of movement, something to be enjoyed from the angle of the participant and not someone watching.
I have a post about listening with love, but the title is Let Love Be Your Ears. Ya know sometimes titles need to intrigue a potential reader, I was hoping that is what this title was. But the post is about listening with love. We all have heard and some of us might try to live by the old “if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.” But LISTENING with love is different. Not that common of a “golden rule”. We are not always taught we need to love ourselves, so we might not listen as if people are talking to us with love and not accusations and criticisms. This might be something we have to practice. Also listening with love can include giving the person talking a lot of “benefit of the doubt”. Trying to see where they might be coming from.
Another post is about dance being exercise. It is a reminder that you can have fun and get exercise at the same time. Nia is just that!
So that is the last four on my list of posts I think really could use repeating. I know I picked a few because I need to work on some of them/it myself. I hope that you enjoyed either the summary or the posts themselves. I thank you very much for taking the time to read this. If you have been reading my blog and you recognize some of these I thank you. I really appreciate you taking the time to read. If you take the time to read and comment, I am really grateful and I very much appreciate it.
And, of course, I wish you a very happy and safe New Year’s Eve. I wish you many, many, many opportunities to embrace happiness and experience joy in 2012. Happy New Year.
Posted in Dancing, Misc, Muscles, Nia | Tagged: 2012, 30 minute meals, dance exercise, fat is light, Happy New Year, listen with love, muscle is heavy, New Year's Eve, Nia, Nia balance, Nia class, Nia exercise, Nia freedom, Nia is for everybody, Nia Movement, Nia participant, Nia posts, Nia Practice, posts about Nia, ten minute exercise, the body's way, Year End Review | 2 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on December 29, 2011
Many bloggers are posting end of the year posts. Some posts are the best, some posts are their favorites, everyone has a different take on it. Some are a review of the year, either in posts or pictures. I thought about doing a post about my favorites, but I was afraid they would all be my Nia posts. As I was going through my posts from the last year I came up with an eclectic bunch . . . . just like my post. I can’t say they are my favorites, but I can say they are ones that I want to point out again. I actually found twenty-three posts that I wanted to re-share. TWENTY-THREE! But that is way too many to summarize and share. I narrowed it down to nine. These nine are ones I think are the most important of the ones I’ve posted this past year. I still think nine is a lot so I am going to do this year in review in two parts. I am just going to give a little summary so you can have the main point right here and you don’t have to go to the original post. But if you WANT to go to the original post (and comment even) please do! I am listing these in order of when they were posted.
One of the most important things I have posted about is Balance. The post is called Nia Balance and I was sharing about how balance was challenging because of my injured toe, but the main point of the post is that balance is really important and that our Nia routines are full of opportunities in which we can practice our balance. Since balance is so important you can practice it throughout your day without really changing the way you do things too much. Balance is so important, especially as we age.
It’s Out There is my post about how great Nia is! Ha, ha! Well it is a little bit about Nia, but a lot about the fact that there are many, many, many other movement forms out there. There are so many different forms of movements that there really has to be something for everyone. Nia is for everyBODY as it was created to move the body in the body’s way, but it is not for everyone. There is something out there for everyone! If you look you can find a class for you!
I posted about Feeling Vs. Sensing. Feeling is emotion. Feelings are how you FEEL. Sensing is what your body does. You FEEL happy. Your body senses heat. You FEEL sad. Your body senses cold. Knowing the difference can help you give your body and/or your emotional self, your spirit the workout it needs.
I made up a list of ten exercises that can be done in ten minutes. There is actually a lot of different ways you can do the list of ten exercises, but the idea was to get a full body workout in ten minutes. The hope was that the ten in ten would be an inspiration and a catalyst for actually doing more.
This past week I had company and they were here through the dinner hour. I didn’t know that they would be here that long so I didn’t have anything planned for dinner that would feed all four of us, but I still wanted to feed my husband when they left. So about the time they were talking about leaving I went into the kitchen. I was in the kitchen all of seven minutes. I washed the rice, turned on the rice maker, chopped the end off the asparagus, rinsed them, put them in a pan then put them in the oven, and dumped the marinated chicken in a pan and put it in the oven. I then set the timer for 20 minutes at which time dinner would be ready. I achieved a 30 minutes meal. All because when I froze the chicken I made a sauce for it at the same time. So when I took it out to defrost it was already marinating or doing so as it defrosted. So it really took seven minutes for me to make dinner. My friends didn’t even miss me because I was only gone seven minutes. This post is about Shopping Step to help Dinner Prep. After shopping before you freeze the meat make your marinade right inside the bag. It has really helped me get dinner ready much faster! Love it!
So this is five on my list out of nine post I think really could use repeating. I hope you check back Saturday to see the rest of the list. I thank you very much for taking the time to read this. If all of these or some of these are “repeats” to you, then I really thank you. Thank you so much for being here. I really appreciate you reading and if you are a commenter . . . I appreciate you even more!!! See you back here on Saturday for the rest of the review of my Year End Review!
Posted in Food, Misc, Nia | Tagged: 30 minute meals, dance exercise, fat is light, listen with love, muscle is heavy, Nia, Nia balance, Nia class, Nia exercise, Nia freedom, Nia is for everybody, Nia Movement, Nia participant, Nia posts, Nia Practice, posts about Nia, ten minute exercise, the body's way, Year End Review | 4 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on December 24, 2011
It is Christmas Eve and while I never really take time off from Nia and being self-employed, I am posting about decorations again. Another post inspired by yet another blog friend. My friend shared her snowmen with us on her blog and I told her I wanted to share ours. I wasn’t sure how, but I took pictures anyway. I was just going to e-mail them to her, but then I thought I should just post them on Facebook. But then I decided that snowmen would be a nice little Christmas Eve post. Some of my favorite decorations that we have are snowmen. We have one set in particular that I always receive compliments on. They were our first set and they are simple and sweet. They always go in the same place every year. Some of our other snowmen migrate around the house. Sometimes I forget where I put what so things are not always the same. But these ones always go in the same spot — basically. They might end up on the left or the right or the center, but they are always on the same shelf.
So funny . . . now that I am actually looking at them while cropping the picture, they aren’t really even snowmen, are they? They were labeled snowmen when I bought them (I think) so I think of them as the family of snowmen. Well, whatever they are they are cute and sparkly!
You might notice that a few of our snowmen are snow angels. I really like that. They are so cute. I actually didn’t put up a set of our hanging snow angels. I didn’t put up a lot this year. When I was decorating I allowed the fact that our tree was dead three days after we bought it to put a damper on my Christmas decorating spirit. I didn’t put as many ornaments on the tree as usual because the more it was touched the more the needles just fell off. I was afraid it wouldn’t last until Christmas. With this being our first Holiday Season without John’s mom, the whole tree thing made me sad. Then since we weren’t going to have anyone over during the Holidays I decided the less I put up, the less I will have to clean around and the less I will have to take down. I do have a goal of “Christmas everywhere you look” so I did that, it is just not as much as usual. But it is just fine. I do “tests” and turn my head this way and that, and YUP! still Christmas wherever I look so it’s grand!
There are snowmen in various spots of the house. I believe last year these (the ones directly to the left, pictured in front of the sleigh) were our latest addition. I do not collect snowmen, nor do I particularly fancy them, there are just some that I see and I like. But I don’t like all snowmen. I like sparkle, glitter, shine, and blue. So I really love that they make so many Chanukah decorations because the color scheme for that seems to be blue! So yay, more blue!
Do you decorate for Christmas? Or for the Holidays that you and your family celebrate?
I wish you a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and peace and joy throughout the year!
Posted in Misc | Tagged: angels, Chanukah decorations, Christams Eve, Christmas, Christmas decorations, Facebook, Facebook Friend, Hanukkah, Hanukkah decorations, Happy Holidays, Nia, snow angels, Snowmen, Snowpeople, Twitter | 10 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on December 22, 2011
I first want to say that Nia in San Jose is on it’s regular schedule even with the surrounding Holidays. Next, I want to say with so much holiday stuff around me it is more fun to post about decorations, cards sent, cards received, gifts given and received, Christmas Trees, ornaments, lights, and the cheer, than about how to exercise “off” those extra calories you might be consuming. It is better to avoid eating too much than to try to work it off. Many websites give you advice on how to avoid over indulging at parties, I posted one myself last year. They are articles of advice on how to keep motivated during the holidays everywhere you turn. As you know I like to post about other things. I love Christmas and all of its decorations and cheer that it brings. I love how people get creative with gifts and decorations. When I first saw this I wanted to post about it. But I often hesitate because I do also want to post about exercises and working out, but this kept popping into my head. I love it that much.
I have a friend I know through blogging. I believe I “met” him on another friend’s blog. I forget exactly how the timeline went but we started following eachother on Twitter and we are friends on Facebook. He is one of those people that seems to be everywhere. I don’t know how he does it, but he comments or “likes” my posts and my photos on several sites. He is one of those people that is very supportive. He is always there to support me in my internet dabblings.
He takes great pictures. I am always amazed at the shots he gets on his morning walks. But the latest photo that had me clapping with glee and I just can’t get out of my head is the photo of his book tree. I keep thinking, “Who would think of that?” Well, the answer is a man that works in a bookstore, but still, I love it. It is so cute and so imaginative. Really why can’t you decorate anything, right. I also kind of think of it as a bit of a joint effort. He, of course, came up with the biggest part, putting it together and stringing it with garland. I just make a tiny suggestion of using paper clips (or a strong wire) to hang the ornaments.
This is one of those things that just makes me happy. Do you have simple things in your life that make you happy and make you smile? This is one of them. Simon is often making me laugh and smile, but I really loved this one and wanted to share. I received permission to post his picture here. You can see it here (click) on one of his blogs.
A note to Simon: Simon, my friend, you are a constant source of smiles and laughter to me. I appreciate how you are always so supportive with your “likes” and comments. I think you are a great photographer and look forward to the pictures of your morning walks and all your pictures. Thank you for this lovely book tree, it makes me giggle when I think about it.
_____________
I hope you all enjoyed his little book tree. I hope that no matter what holiday you celebrate at this time of year you are having a happy and peaceful time. Thanks for being here!
Posted in Misc | Tagged: a book tree, a tree made of books, Christmas, Christmas decorations, Christmas Ornaments, Christmas Tree, Facebook, Facebook Friend, holiday stuff, Holidays, Nia, Nia San Jose, San Jose Nia, Simon's Book Tree, Twitter | 6 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on December 20, 2011
Last Monday on the way home from my Nia Class I stopped at the store to buy a huge bunch of veggies. I was wondering what I was going to cook them in. I needed a new pan. I think that it is perfect acceptable to give pots and pans as a gift — when one asks for it/them. Last Christmas I asked for a pan. A 14 inch fry type pan. I had a really difficult time finding one. I really wonder why it is so hard to find such a large pan. It is not as difficult to find a 12 inch pan and everyone; every store, every brand, EVERYONE has a 10 inch pan. But a 14 inch pan is really difficult to find. Once they go over 12 inches they start measuring by quart it seems. Last year I had to search and search and search but I finally found one. It was great.
A lot of my pans spin on the glass top. The other ones wobble. When pans don’t lie flat on the glass surface they don’t heat very evenly. My 12 inch pan is a wobbler AND a spinner. And it is not as large as I would like. I wanted a 14 inch pan, and as I said I had finally found one. I was so happy when I found it that I asked for it for Christmas. It was 14 inch, it was non-stick, it was affordable. So that was one of my Christmas presents last year. I used it all the time. It was heavy enough that it didn’t spin on the glass top. It was also flat so it didn’t wobble. I used it all the time. A lot of the pictures on my blog of food are in that pan.
But it was affordable and maybe on this side of cheap because after a year it is rusting. This pan did NOT go in the dishwasher. Things that say they are dishwasher safe don’t always last as long when they go through a washing with the tough detergent that goes into dishwashers. Plus I am not even sure this pan would have fit in the dishwasher. So it never went in the dishwasher. Well, it started rusting anyway, so now I can’t use it.
I was on a quest for a new 14 inch pan. I could get another one same as the one I got last year, but then would I be having to buy a new pan every year? Probably. I could get one to match my really nice set, but they are not cheap. So I debated. Buy it not, buy it. I have always wanted it, but it is difficult for me to spend that much on a pan, but once you do, they really last forever. I decided that I would ask for it as a Christmas present. Not a traditional gift. A lot of money for just one thing, but I figured if you added up all the other stuff it would equal about the same.
So, I am happy to report that I will be getting a 14 inch all-clad for Christmas. Just the thought makes me happy. The other day I wanted to cook a huge pan of veggies. As I was adding more and more vegetables, I kept hoping they would all fit. I kept wishing I had a bigger pan. I kept thinking . . . . why is it so hard to find a 14 inch pan? Doesn’t everyone want to cook AT LEAST 14 inches of veggies? I mean a pan full of veggies with a little bit of rice is a great meal. The larger the pan the more veggies. Oooooo! That is exciting! More veggies.
Can’t wait! Can’t wait! Can’t wait. I am so like a kid at Christmas. I love getting surprise gifts. I love getting gifts I know are coming. I love getting gifts I will use all the time. And you know I will use that pan all the time. You know it will become a regular feather on my blog.
What about you? Are you one to ask for something practical for a gift? Are you ok with getting a small appliance or cookware for Christmas?
Posted in Misc | Tagged: 14 inch pan, AllClad, Christmas gift, Monday Nia class, Nia, Nia class, non-stick, practical gift, small appliances | 10 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on December 17, 2011
I am so impress I have to share AND comment:
I love the list of 25 clever ideas to make life easier. So amazing. Some of the ideas I have seen before, some of them were new to me. The are all pretty awesome. I love the straw and strawberry idea. Kind of funny using a straw to “pit” a strawberry. Saves you from having to buy a tool for it. Someone try the walnut on the wood and tell me if it REALLY works. And for how long? I mean I am thinking that it is just the oil from the walnut that moisturizes the wood so the scratch is concealed. I bet you could use any oil to do that. Regarding the TV, I guess if you HAVE to get crayon marks off a TV or computer screen you would be desperate enough to try WD-40. Otherwise no way. I can’t imagine putting WD-40 on a monitor.
I do know how to get crayon or wax off the carpet. It might even work for other fabric. Use an iron and a paper bag or any type of rough paper. Put the paper bag over the crayon/wax and then run the hot iron over it. The heat from the iron melts the crayon/wax and the paper absorbs it. If it is a lot of crayon/wax it is not a quick fix, but it works. I had a melted candle spill onto carpet once and I was able to get it all up with this method. But it took me a couple of weeks. I didn’t sit there for long, long periods of time. I would probably do a bag at a time. Eventually it all came up.
I love the apple idea. I can’t wait to try that. Seems like that would work. The old, “put lemon (or citrus) on it” doesn’t work for me because it DOES leave a lemon taste. I don’t care for my apples to taste like lemon. Wouldn’t it be fabulous to pull out a pillow case full of the entire sheet set? I like that idea, but my hubby does do the sheets like shown here and he gets them completely flat. I have mentioned before how I can’t tell the difference between the flat sheet and the fitted sheet.
The bowl does kind of help the volume of the iPhone. But you may know I have a little blue speaker, so I don’t need a bowl. Ingenious use of a wet-wipe container–storing plastic bags in it, but I just use a plastic bag to store my plastic bags and it works pretty good too!
I really want to hear from you to know if some of these things really work. Can you really get sand off your skin by using baby powder? Then how do you get the baby powder off? Sand? Or water? Which you could have just used to get the sand off in the first place, right?
I would imagine that putting a velcro strip on the wall could help store a lot of things besides just soft toys in a child’s room. Ok, I LOVE the wrapping paper idea. It is pretty smart to use the ceiling of a closet to store wrapping paper, but my closet ceilings are REALLY high. I actually have a wrapping paper holder that hangs in my closet.
I have heard of using a nylon over a vacuum cleaner hose to find stuff. GREAT idea! I recently heard of cutting Xs in a shirt box to make a cupcake holder. Another GREAT idea. I love the magnetic strip for storing bobby pins, but I honestly didn’t realize that other people used bobby pins any longer. Shoes in a shower cap. Great idea. I use plastic bags. The ones that the newspaper come in. Or ones that might be around certain product you buy.
Plastic cups in a muffin tin held in place by a magnet as a craft caddy . . . . dare I say it? That is pretty crafty! Love the use of bread bag closure things as power cord labels. That is smart. But my bread comes with wire twists. I have seen the ice cream cone cup cake thing before. Have you ever tried that? I have a friend that told me about popcorn in a regular paper bag in the microwave. However I don’t buy paper bags and I have never wanted to put my food in one that I might have gotten from a store purchase. A tension rod to hold spray bottles is a nice idea, but my cupboards aren’t that tall. Are yours? Mine could have hanging bottles AND stuff on the “floor”.
If I made hard boiled eggs, I would so try making them heart shaped. But I don’t. I also don’t have such fancy muffin tins. But I bet it would work with regular muffins tins. Aloe Vera in ice cube trays. Oh my. Will someone remind me of this when I get a sunburn? This is GREAT. Think of how wonderful that would feel. I hear angels singing. Gutters as planters. Nice idea. And it is brilliant to use egg cartons to hold ornaments. Fantastic!
So that is my take on the list. What about you? Have you tried any of these ideas before? Are you going to? I really want to know about the walnut and how long that lasts.
Posted in Helpful Hints, Misc | Tagged: clever ideas, cupcake holder, Daily Buzz, get wax pout of carpet, hard boiled eggs, how to fold a fitted sheet, iphone, keep apple from browning, pit a strawberry, velcro, WD-40, wrapping paper | 10 Comments »
Terre Pruitt
