Month: November 2023

Organizing My Fridge

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organizing bins

Some exciting weekend plans here! Organizing my fridge is on the docket.

I’ve noticed that a lot of things are messy and not so easy to see in the vegetable bin. Because it’s just an open space without any sections, I’ve wasted food because I forgot what was there. The key is being able to see what I have and use it before it goes bad.

The freezer is the same. A lot of things are piled up and toppled over. It doesn’t look very cute either. Not sure why I didn’t think of getting these bins before, but I was inspired by watching a few YouTube videos. I can do better! Hopefully these storage bins will help my food organizing.

The plan is to clean the fridge as well, then cook a lot of what’s in there. I may do some baking this weekend too. It’s been a while!

Before on the blog, I would sometimes share pictures of the inside of my fridge. If I can get it looking ship shape, I may do that again.

The Golden Bachelor

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The Golden Bachelor

Are you watching The Golden Bachelor? When I first heard about this new spin on the series, I was intrigued. I watched the first show and liked it, but wasn’t sure that I’d keep watching. By the second episode I was hooked.

I’ve watched these shows over the years a few times, but had not watched it in several years. I wondered how most people would receive the show. I think it’s done a great job at breaking some stereotypes about aging. The Bachelor, Gerry Turner, is very likeable and seems to be a  genuinely good guy. He’s fun, kind and quite easy on the eyes.

Overall, I’ve liked all the women on the show, except for one. Theresa Nist has caused unnecessary drama and I’m not happy at all that she is part of the final three. I like the other two, Leslie Fhima and Faith Martin, and at first I thought they were the same person. They look so much alike! Or is it that they have a similar vibe? I hope that he picks one of them!

Tonight is the Women Tell All, episode of The Golden Bachelor and I will definitely be watching!

The CHANI App

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Chani App

This may be the first time that I’ve written about an app. I use quite a few of them, but only the free versions, except for the CHANI App.

When the CHANI App for Android users was finally available this summer, I downloaded the free version right away. This app was created by Chani Nicholas, an astrologer that I’ve written about before. I loved her book, You Were Born For This. I look forward to Mondays, so I can listen to her Astrology Of The Week Ahead podcast. Generally, I absorb her content in any way that it’s available.

I really enjoyed using the free app. After hearing about how many users listened to the daily guided meditations, only available with the premium subscription, I decided to do the 14-day free trial. I started listening to the meditations and actually changed my morning routine to incorporate it. Chani has a very soothing voice and the meditations remind me of the ones during a yoga class.

After the free trial ended, I started paying for the premium subscription. I like some of the more detailed information available about my personal chart, but I’ve realized that I don’t use that most days. I’m really paying for the meditations.

Then I started noticing that the app seemed a bit glitchy. I received a couple of crash notifications about it on my phone. Also most days now, when I’m listening to the guided meditation, it will just stop. So I have to restart the app to continue. Sometimes a couple of times. The meditations are about ten minutes, so having to keep stopping during that time is not calming or soothing.

I wondered if these issues were just because of my phone. It’s a few years old and doesn’t have a ton of memory on it. Also the app is new and it may take time to get everything working correctly. But then again, wasn’t all the time that we Android users waited for, so that it would work correctly?

When I looked up the app on Google Play, I noticed that one of the recent reviews mentioned having a similar issue with the meditation stopping and needing a restart. The review was rather harsh and I don’t agree that the app sucks. But I am wondering why I am paying for this app now and whether I should continue.

The information on the free CHANI app is very helpful and maybe that is all that I need. With taxes, I’m paying $12.74 a month. That’s not a ton of money, but it’s more than I’m paying for Netflix, with commercials, where I get a lot more content. Over a year, that adds up to $152.88, which is a fair amount of money.

However, Netflix is a huge corporation. I feel no sense of happiness supporting it. Chani has a smaller woman-owned business that I like supporting. I love that she has a salary floor of $80k for all her employees and offers incredible benefits. And I love that she partners with her wife’s business FreeFrom, where they employ survivors of domestic abuse and put them on a path to building wealth and financial security. I love the work that they are doing. They are changing the American workplace and making such a positive difference.

But I also need to make good financial decisions for myself. I just paid for this month, so I have a month to decide* if I should go back to the free version.

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*Updated 11/12/23: I ended up downgrading back to the unpaid app.

Screenshot: Google Play

A Change for Quincy?

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Quincy City Hall

Today is Election Day! A few hours ago, I dropped off me and my mom’s ballots at Quincy City Hall. Polls close in less than hour as I write this post.

Quincy could have a newly elected mayor if Anne Mahoney wins! Finger’s crossed that Quincy will have a change.

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Updated 11/8/23: Unfortunately, Anne Mahoney didn’t win. According to The Patriot Ledger, Mayor Thomas Koch was reelected to serve his seventh term.

Pumpkin Spice or Peppermint Mocha?

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This past Saturday, instead of ordering my groceries online and picking them up, I went into the store. This is how the man gets you! I fell prey to seasonal flavor temptations. But did I get the season wrong? Is it still all about pumpkin spice? Or has that ship sailed and peppermint mocha is now the favorite? Enter the battle of the seasonal flavors.

What did I buy? I got Kellogg’s Frosted Mini Wheats Pumpkin Pie Spice and Bolthouse Farms Pumpkin Spice Latte, with the tagline, “Made For Sweater Weather.” The tagline got me. It felt so cozy! Also, I like Bolthouse Farms in general, so I often get something from them if it’s new.

As I was linking to these items, I noticed that the pumpkin spice latte is no longer available. Now the season items are Holiday Nog and Peppermint Mocha.

When I was shopping, I kept noticing the Christmas items and peppermint mocha flavored goodies. But it seemed too soon and I still wanted my pumpkin spice fix. But today, I received a Starbucks Rewards email giving me some seasonal instructions.

“Have a very merry martini — Introducing the new Peppermint Mocha Espresso Martini, available exclusively at our Starbucks Reserve® Roasteries. Made with Starbucks Reserve® espresso and topped with peppermint-infused whipped cream and candy-cane sprinkles, this cocktail is perfect for holiday happy hours.”

Maybe my seasonal flavor consumption has gone awry. The cereal is really good. I haven’t tried the latte yet.* So pumpkin spice or peppermint mocha? I think it’s whatever you like. Both seasonal flavors are good, but soon pumpkin spice will be gone for the year.

Stores are ready for us to do Christmas shopping and want us in the mood. So they set the tone by switching flavors. It’s interesting that Starbucks created both flavors. Peppermint Mocha in 2002 and Pumpkin Spice in 2003. Then the rest of the world followed.

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* Updated 11/7/23: I tried the latte. It’s neither strong nor sweet, and I prefer both strong and sweet. So that is especially disappointing. I had hoped to taste a more robust coffee flavor and some nice spice. I didn’t taste much of either, so I don’t recommend and would not buy again.