Archive for the ‘Helpful Hints’ Category
Posted by terrepruitt on December 18, 2010
As I was getting ready for my Nia class the other day, I thought “How cold is it?” I was trying to decide how to wear my scarf. Then I thought this would be a great blog post because when I first learned how to wear a scarf I was amazed. Then as I grabbed the laptop to type this up I realized that a lot of my readers probably already know this because they are from colder areas than California. Maybe if you don’t live in the Bay Area then you might not know how we wear our scarves so I will be sharing that with you.
A few years back I was getting ready to leave work, I hung my scarf on my neck then grabbed one end and started wrapping. My co-worker saw me and started chuckling when I asked her what she was laughing about she explained that people in California wear their scarves different from people back East. She was from back East and was accustomed too much lower temperatures. I was so curious. I had never thought about wearing my scarf a different way so I asked her to show me. She took my scarf, folded it in half, hung it around my neck and tucked the loose ends into the folded end. WHOA! I laughed. I instantly recognized how much warmer that is.
Here in the San Jose Bay Area – maybe all over California we wear scarves more as an accessory than for warmth. Then when we want to be warm we throw one end over our shoulder. If we want to be REALLY warm we wrap the scarf around our neck a few times. All of these methods leave our lower neck/upper chest area exposed. But when you fold then hang it around your neck then tuck the loose ends your lower neck/upper chest area get completely covered. It is so warm and cozy that way.
I actually wear my scarves these two different ways. Usually on my way TO my Nia class I fold and tuck. On the way home because I am usually hot and sweaty from working out I just throw it over my neck and wrap. This helps me stay a little warm but not as warm as when I fold it and tuck it. So? What do you think? Did you know this?
How do you wear your scarf? Do you wrap? Do you tuck? Do you do one or the other depending on the need?
Folded in half then tucked.
Posted in Helpful Hints | Tagged: Bay Area Nia, California weather, cold weather, East Coast, Nia, Nia class, Nia San Jose, San Jose Bay Area Nia class, San Jose Nia, scarf | 14 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on December 11, 2010
Ok, so every year at Christmas my friends and I get together to celebrate. Today is our 24th year. I am explaining that because I am in a rush but I want to post something. I know if I don’t do it before I leave I won’t do it when I come back. Since I have my injured toe all I was able to do yesterday was teach my Nia class and decorate the tree. It takes me a long time to do anything so my posting is a little rushed. But . . . . I still think this is a great idea . . . .and that is why I am posting it. Its about the Honey Do List.
Are you lucky enough to have a partner that helps with things? Do you make a list? Well, I am lucky enough to have a hubby that does things. He always helps me a lot when I have company coming over and he is REALLY doing a lot because he wants me to rest my foot. I am going to share something with you that I think should be on EVERY Honey Do List all the time.
I think it is nice to let your honey know that s/he is appreciated. So I include that on the list of things to do. Yup. The list might look like this:
Silly, maybe, but I think this is part of wellness. My hubby works hard and I think it is important to let him know that he is appreciated. Everyone likes to know they are appreciated. I think it goes a long way. If your honey is looking at the list of things to do and sees that it could make his/her day. I think happy and positive go a long way. If your partner is running around doing things in a state of “grump” that just adds to the negativity out there. If s/he is running around in a state of “I’m appreciated”, it adds to the positivity out there.
Well, that is my take on it. What do you think?
Posted in Helpful Hints | Tagged: appreciated, chores, Christmas, Christmas celebration, happy vibes, Honey Do list, how to get your honey to do things, Nia, Nia class, Nia Teacher, positive vibes | 4 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on December 2, 2010
For some reason, unknown to me, my hubby does not like medical shows. Medical dramas he will watch, but if I have on a show that is a doctor talking about anything he won’t watch it. So needless to say, I don’t watch those types of shows. I don’t know when they are on, but every once in a while I will turn on the TV when he is not home and there is one on. Like recently when I watched the Dr. Oz show when he was talking about foods that starved cancer. I just think all that stuff is interesting. I love to hear what they learn about the body. It is fascinating. Well, today I sat down for a moment and turned on the TV and Dr. Oz was on. I really should find out when it is on and just make a point to watch it when my hubby is not home because I always learn something when I watch his show.
I only saw a few minutes but it was really interesting. He was saying that it is important to change your home’s filter, ya know for central heating, every three months. I know we don’t do it that often, but after what he said I think it might be something to consider. I have always known that it helps trap dust and pollen and things floating around in the air that might help to aggravate allergies. But I never really thought about insect parts. Ewwwwww. He said that insects and their parts are a very common allergen. YUCK. Not something I really want to dwell on, but one of those things that I like to know, deal with, then forget about, ya know?
Also he has said that certain foods; onions, apples, and citrus contain Quercetin. Quercetin acts as an antihistamine. Which is something that most allergy sufferers take in pill form. It is awesome to me to be able to get some anti itch help from the food I eat!
The information I am seeing as I look around also states that Quercetin is also considered an anti-flammatory agent . . . and a lot of allergy symptoms are from inflammation so something that acts as an anti-flammatory is amazing to me.
I am very happy to have come across this information. I don’t always EAT white or yellow onions, but I do put them in food for flavor. I am starting to eat the red onions they tend to be less sharp. I do eat apples, but I don’t believe I eat them as often as I should, so I will step up my apple consumption. Although I like oranges, I don’t eat them that often because it is difficult to find good flavorful ones in the store, but I will work on that too. If these foods will help quell my allergy symptoms . . . . I am there!
Have you heard of Quercetin before? Do you eat onions? What about apples and oranges? Do you have hay fever/allergies?
Posted in Helpful Hints | Tagged: Allergies, allergy sufferers, allergy symptoms, anti-flammatory. heating filter, cancer, Dr. Oz, inflmmation, medical dramas, medical shows, quercetin | 7 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on November 30, 2010
After my Nia class this week, my students told me soak my toe in an epsom salt bath. I had actually been told about them before. They have been around forever. Ya know one of those things that used to be used in simpler times when there wasn’t something fancy to take its place. It is a natural mineral, magnesium sulfate.
I had originally been told about them for sore muscles. In fact a lot of bath salt products on the market contain magnesium sulfate. The instructions on the container state to use two cups of the salts in a tub of water and soak. The mineral is absorbed into the skin and it helps reduce inflammation and soreness. This can help with sprains and strains and muscles that have been exercised. A soak in water with epsom salts can also help relive itching of some illnesses or issues.
Epsom salt is thought to help relax the body as well as the mind and draw toxins out of the body. Soaking one’s feet can help both neutralize foot order and make the skin soft. Soaking in water with salts in it can help soften the skin, but the salts themselves can also be used as an exfoliator. Rubbing the skin while wet then rinsing throughly. Also the salts can be used to help with acne and breakouts.
Now that I actually have a container of them I might start using them more often to soak my feet and exfoliate them. How about you? Have you used them before?
Just as a note: Table salt is sodium chloride it is different substance than magnesium sulfate.
Posted in Helpful Hints | Tagged: acne treatment, epsom salt, epsom salt bath, natural mineral, Nia class, Nia students, skin softener, sore muscles | 9 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on November 11, 2010
Recently in my San Jose Nia Class we used elbows as our focus for the class. The intent was to sense the connection that our elbows have to our entire body. As we moved we connected them to our hips, our ribs, our thighs, our knees, even our toes. An easy and almost automatic connection is elbows to shoulders. Well, for me, this focus allowed me to move my joints to a state of complete and utter looseness. I felt very loose and relaxed all day long.
That same evening I went to an Ecstatic Dance class and I almost felt as if I could bend like a contortionists. Notice I said ALMOST. In reality I could not bend like that, but I was sensing a greater flexing in my joints than normal. Since I was actually aware of this and sensing it I decided to move with caution. When I get the opportunity to just Free Dance with others that are doing their own thing I really end up moving. I work up a sweat and get a really great workout. But this time since I felt my joints might be able to bend more than normal I kept reining myself in. I didn’t want to end up injuring myself.
I thought of my former dance teacher who used to do very deep stretches with her legs. Since she COULD stretch so deep she would do it all the time thinking she was doing her body good. But it turned out that all of that stretching ended up putting too much strain on her ligaments. She ended up having to have several surgeries on her knee. She was double jointed or had knee joints that hyperextended. If you are double jointed it is good to use caution when moving because just because you CAN move like that doesn’t mean it is good for you to do so repeatedly. The focus of this post is more about loose joints and not double-jointedness.
It is very important to stretch and be flexible, but there sometimes is a point when we are too loose or more accurately too loose to just let loose. We need to know when to rein it in and take it easy. Listening to our body and using body knowledge and awareness we can help from allowing ourselves to get injured. If you normally cannot do a particular move but today you sense that you can, stop and think can you really? Is your body ready? If you are sure then by all means do it because doing what we couldn’t do before but can do now, is how we grow and progress. But if you are not sure then maybe you want to wait until you are certain because you don’t want to end up having to start all over if you injure yourself. If your joints are not used to a deep stretches then work slowly into it. If you have done a juicy yoga class or Nia has all your joints open and saying “Ahhh!” but your joints are not always that loose – proceed with care doing any additional exercise. Be sure to enjoy the sensation of happy joints.
Have you ever sensed the sensation of loose joints?
Posted in Helpful Hints | Tagged: dance class, Dance Workout, dance workout class, Ecstatic Dance, flexible joints, focus and intent, joints, Nia class, Nia class focus, Nia class intent, San Joe workout, San Jose Nia class, San Jose Workout class, San Jose Yoga, San Jose yoga class, workout class, Yoga | 4 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on October 12, 2010
The other day when I was doing something besides Nia :-), I realized that there was a “rule” involved with it. Do you have “rules” in your house? “Rules” that you or your spouse has instituted? I am not saying you have to agree with the rule or even understand it, but it is just something you might do in order to make your spouse happy (or not upset) and vice versa?
Maybe there are rules you have come up with together?
Here are some of our house rules. Following these rules just makes life easier. In no particular order.
-Never leave an empty coffee pot. After the coffee is done, always leave water in the coffee pot. At least six cups.
-Never leave a door to the outside or the garage open. Never!
-Do not touch the cheese with hands. Better to not touch anything that touches the cheese with hands.
-Do not let anything touch the coffee maker–ever. (As in a dish towel).
I would imagine that with kids in the house there are a whole other set of rules both for them and for the adults. 😉
Well? Do you have any rules that the family abides by that helps make your household run more smoothly? I would love to hear. I bet there are a few that would help our house.
Posted in Helpful Hints | Tagged: coffee maker, coffee pot, happy spouse, house rules, Nia | 13 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on September 21, 2010
Nia teaches me a lot of things. So does my husband. He is my computer technician. As you probably know with computers when something isn’t working correctly it isn’t always an easy fix. When he suspects what the issue is he can plan for it and figure it out and fix it. But sometimes something comes up that is not familiar. The first thing he asks me is “What have you done?” The second thing he asks is if I “Googled it”. Two times within the last nine months something has been troubling my computer. The first thing was an “Active Desktop”. The second was a HUGE e-mail. They annoyed me enough I was desperate to find relief. This time I remembered that whenever I have something wrong with my computer my techno-geek asks me if I Googled the problem. So that is what I did.
The Active Desktop “thing” happened when I wanted to save a picture from an e-mail to my computer. It was a Nia e-mail and a Nia promotional picture so I wanted to save it so that I could help in promoting the Bay Area Nia event. When I went to save it my computer asked me if I wanted to make it an active desktop item. I believe I was in so much of a rush I didn’t read the whole question, I saw “desktop” and said yes. I was thinking it was just asking if I wanted to SAVE it to my desktop. When I said yes it caused this “thing” to continue to happen with my computer. Every time I clicked from icon to icon or from document to document or webpage to webpage, my screen would go blank for a second then it would flash back up and continue on with its task. I put up with that for months. Every time my monitor went blank, my stomach would sink because I thought my computer had died. But then it would flash back up. At one point I did “Google” how to fix it, but the directions did not match with what I was seeing in my files. But after feeling sick for months I finally decided that I couldn’t take it any longer and if I broke my computer worse than it was so be it. I looked at the directions again and just kept looking and poking into my system until I found what the instructions were telling me I would find. I fixed it.
Then a month or so ago, I tried to send an e-mail. I didn’t realize it was as big as it was until my e-mail program kept showing something in my outbox. Well, it wouldn’t send it, it wouldn’t delete it, it wouldn’t do anything with that one e-mail but the rest of my e-mail was working fine. So for about a month I just put up with it, thinking there was nothing to do. But . . . I did it a second time. (Eyes rolling). As I was scanning the document I thought, “Remember to check it before you send it.” But as always when I am on my computer I got distracted and by the time I finished typing the e-mail and pressed send I had forgotten to check the size. It was huge and it wouldn’t send. So it was stuck again. Now I had TWO stuck e-mails.
So again I turn to “Google” and I found something that explained what I had to do. Now . . . keep in mind that I am pretty much a chicken when it comes to messing with my computer because I know if I break it I will be without it. So I only do things that I am confident about. The solution to fixing the e-mail was to disconnect it from the internet. I was completely comfortable with doing that because when I had a corporate job I used to do that all the time in order to connect my work laptop. So . . . .I disconnected the internet from my computer. My e-mail program had no way to try to send the e-mail (that was too big to send) so it allowed me to delete it. Yay. No more e-mail that can’t be sent and a message coming up saying “Do you want to exit with an e-mail yet to be sent?”
So . . . my point is there are things in life you can “Google”, especially if it has to do with a computer problem. Did you know that? It took me years to learn that many people post answers to computer issues. Its awesome.
Posted in Helpful Hints | Tagged: Active Desktop, Bay Area Nia, Bay Area Nia event, computer problems, computer problme, computer technician, Google, google a problem, Nia, Nia Bay Area, Nia promotion | 9 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on July 17, 2010
While I was doing Nia today, I was thinking of that yummy mango-cucumber salad (have you tried it yet?). I had a thought about the lemon leftovers. If you have seen a few of my posts you might have noticed that I really try not to be wasteful. I think that as a society we are pretty wasteful so I know I do my share, but when I can come up with ways that allow me to re-use something I like it. Guess what, you can do a few of things with the lemons that have been used for the salad.
You can zest the lemons. The outside colored part of the lemons can be used for many things. (Hmm, I think I see another blog post at of just that.) I would think it would be easier to zest before you squeeze all the juice out of the lemon, but that is just me.
You can use what is left of the lemon to try to “bleach” stuff. For me I use it to lighten any darkness that might be on my kitchen grout. It doesn’t always work on a dark-dark stain, but on anything light it usually does. Often times I leave it for a few hours, but remember it is an acid so it might eat through some of the grout . . . so like most things you are trying for the first time test it in a small unseen area to make certain you can live with the results.
Or just take the lemon portion that has been squeeze and run it over your counters or your sink—-provided the surfaces can tolerate something like that. Then wipe it down with a damp towel you might have the fresh sent of lemon in the kitchen. I have tile on which I do that, but I do not do it on my granite.
Then when you are all done using as much as you can out of that little lemon put it in your garbage disposal. As long as your garbage disposal works well at grinding rinds that helps clean it and leaves a fresh sent in the kitchen. Especially if you run the disposal at the same time you run some warm/hot water–it fills the kitchen with lemony scent.
What else can we do with the lemon “leftovers”?
Posted in Helpful Hints | Tagged: leftovers, lemon scent, lemons, mango-cucumber salad, Nia | 4 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on April 17, 2010
I love that not wanting to be wasteful is called “green” now. Yeah, I am finally not “cheap” or “frugal” (which isn’t bad but it sounds too much like frumpy). I am finally doing something that is “in”. I really have always tried to not be too wasteful. I mean, I admit, I am sometimes wasteful, it is just the day and age we live in, but we can do little things to help. It could be that I have this engrained in me because when I was young we had a drought which seemed to last forever and back then water was associated with electricity so we tried to conserve both. Then there was the gas shortage when we could only get gas on the day that matched your license plate. Remember that, if your license plate ended (or was it started?) with an even number then you could get gas on even numbered days, and it the number was odd, you could get gas on odd numbered days.
Well, I just habitual do things that some people think are cheap—but now its GREEN. Sometimes these things stem from accidents. Like dryer sheets. Have you ever thought of re-using a dryer sheet? If you use it for more than one load of clothes it probably won’t work well. But have you noticed that after it has gone through the load it is kind of rough? But not REALLY scratchy rough, but it might just be the perfect rough you need to scrub something? This happened for me quite by accident. I was in the garage and I need to wipe something up and I didn’t want to go in the house to get a paper towel so I thought about a dryer sheet. I looked in the dryer and sure enough there was one, so I used it to “scrub” what needed scrubbing and it worked perfect. Or sometimes I just want to wipe something while I am in the garage, and I am always lucky enough to find a dryer sheet in the dryer.
Now honestly I don’t save used dryer sheets for this purpose, but sometimes they are just lying around (or does that only happen in my house? Seems like they stick to the towels and sheets and end up all over the house) and it comes in handy that there is one to use. That just happened right now so that is why I am typing this post.
I am sure some will argue that NOT using dryer sheets at all would be more green. I would say that I only use the dryer for my towels and sheets. And if they are going to be used why not get TWO uses out of them.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the dryer sheet people have this on their website or some other helpful hint website has it on there, but I thought I would share it with you on MY blog. For once I just sat down and started typing and didn’t look all over the internet to see if I was copying someone. At this point, I don’t care. I thought of this myself and I am sure someone else has but more than one people can have a thought and share it, right?
Do you use dryer sheets for anything else?
Posted in Helpful Hints | Tagged: cheap, drought, frugal, gas shortage, green, helpful hints dry sheets, wasteful, water shortage | 4 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on December 17, 2009
As you know I post about things other than health, wellness, exercise, and working out. I do try to post helpful things.
Recently we got a box of wrapping paper down and I opened it up and there was a pile of folded kind of crumpled paper. I pulled it out and set it aside. I figured that I saved it to use to re-use for wrapping. But it was so crumbled I didn’t have the heart to try to deal with it at that moment. So as I was wrapping over the next couple of days it dawned on me what that pile of paper really was for—-packing. A couple of years ago I started saving paper that had been used. If it was pretty or I really liked it I save it.
I use my shredder to shred the wrapping paper. When I use those handy gift bags I use the paper shredded instead of using tissue paper. I also use shredding wrapping paper when I am shipping packages (usually in addition to another recycled packing product). I really like this idea of re-using the paper. Other paper that works is the paper that is too small to use to actually wrap a gift. It all looks really pretty and festive once it is shredded. It works really great when you have two sided paper.
I love wrapping paper, but I think it is a huge waste, so if I can re-use something I love it. I save bows to re-use them. Drives my husband crazy It used to drive my husband crazy, but I save them and re-use them. Please don’t be offended if you ever receive a gift from me with a bow taped on the package. That actually means that I recued that bow from being thrown away then loveing stored it and saved it until it had the perfect recepient.
I also don’t usually write on the gift bag or put the stick name tag directly on it. I usually stick the tag on the shredded paper or stick it to itself over the cord/handle of the bag. That way the recipient can use the bag again.
Sometimes these bags can become family traditions. You can use a gift special back to swap back and forth. For years my family had a bag going back and forth. It was a sea of white cartoon rabbits with one rabbit dressed in red and white. It lasted a long time, but eventually it tore and we moved on, but it was fun while it lasted.
Bags, tissue, bows, and shredding aren’t meant to last forever, but if they get more than one use, that is a great thing.
If you really want to be resourceful and “green” you could always give one of those reusable grocery bags as the gift bag, “wrap” the gift it that!
Do you have any wrapping re-use ideas? What works out for you and your family?
Posted in Helpful Hints | Tagged: exercise, family tradition, gift bags, green, health, recycle, recycling, shredded paper, wellness, workout, wrapping paper | 13 Comments »
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