Thursday 3/6/25
Celebrate:
Alamo Day (Did you remember??)
Nametag Day
National Dentist's Day
National Dress Day
National Frozen Food Day
National Hospitalist Day
National Oreo Cookie Day
National White Chocolate Cheesecake Day
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Spring cleaning season is coming up, so here's a question: Could you get rid of a THIRD of your stuff and not know the difference?
The average American says 34% of the junk they own is stuff they don't really need, or rarely use. But it depends on how you define the word "use."
21% of it is stuff we don't want but haven't gotten rid of yet . . . 10% is other people's stuff we somehow ended up with . . . and 13% is "pure junk."
But 27% is stuff we're hanging onto for sentimental reasons. And 29% of it is collectibles or other items that "spark joy." So that's not really "junk."
The poll also asked people to name the WEIRDEST stuff they collect. Answers included 200 oil-burning lamps . . . 300 coasters from breweries . . . lots of vintage handkerchiefs . . . porcelain pigs . . . clowns . . . and one person said fingernail clippings.
20% of us currently have a storage unit to hold our junk, and 10% are still keeping some of it at their parents' place. The average person said they'd pay $1,300 to have all their unwanted junk magically disappear.
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It's getting confusing in the Scream franchise. "Scream 7" will now see the return of three dead characters, now that David Arquette has signed on.
His character, Deputy Dewey Riley, was killed off in "Scream 5" by future Oscar winner Mikey Madison. There's no word HOW they're bringing him back.
But he joins Scott Foley and Matthew Lillard in "Scream 7". Foley's character, Roman Bridger, was killed by Dewey in "Scream 3".
And Lillard's character Stu Macher was one of the killers in the original movie. He was offed by Neve Campbell.
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There's a thread on social media where people are talking about "old person" habits they've adopted because they're actually really good ideas. And here are the best ones:
Doing weekend errands before noon to beat the crowds.
Eating early dinners. You get better sleep if your food is properly digested.
Ignoring the clock. "Eat when you're hungry, sleep when you're tired."
Using lap blankets. And heated blankets.
Switching to comfortable clothes indoors, like slippers and sweatpants.
Wanting to stay home. Others can come to me. Someone added, "Same, except I don't want them to come to me. I don't want to see anybody."
Using "closed captioning" on everything you watch.
Picking up sewing, crocheting, and knitting as a form of meditation.
Buying pill organizers on Amazon. They're convenient even for vitamins.
Having paper printouts of stuff like vacation itineraries. Sure, everything can go on your phone . . . but you're always digging through apps trying to find it.
Having a plastic bag . . . full of other plastic bags. "You never know when you'll need one, and somehow, it just feels responsible."
Lowering the volume while you're parallel parking. (or looking for an address)
Having a box of tissues in every room. (for me it's reader glasses...everywhere)
Wearing those straps on your glasses so you can wear them around your neck when you're not using them.
Complaining about young people.
Collecting cats.
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Did you wake up on the wrong side of the bed this morning? Something on this list might be why. Here are eight morning habits that can make you miserable.
1. Immediately reaching for your phone. Give yourself a chance to wake up, and maybe go start a pot of coffee. Your phone is full of stressful stuff. So it's not a great way to start your day.
2. Dwelling on yesterday's problems or mistakes. Try thinking of each day as a new chapter, or a new chance. Dwelling on stuff can make your days blend together into one big stressful experience that never ends.
3. Starting your day with complaints. Try not to roll out of bed and start complaining about the weather, or how much you don't want to go to work. It sets a negative tone that can stick with you all day.
4. Not taking time to be grateful. Take five minutes to think of stuff you're thankful for. Maybe it's something general, or something specific that happened the day before. Studies show we're happier when we take time to be grateful, mindful, or even meditate.
5. Rushing through your morning without fuel. They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day. But one in four Americans skip it. If you're cranky by noon, eating something small and healthy in the A.M. might help.
6. Engaging in negative self-talk. It goes hand in hand with starting the day off with complaints. Don't let your inner monologue drag you down with thoughts like "you're lazy" or "you're messing up." It can be a self-fulfilling prophecy.
7. Avoiding all physical activity. You don't have to be one of those people who jumps out of bed and runs five miles. Even some light stretching or a short walk can release endorphins and boost your mood.
8. Not having a goal in mind. We tend to be happier when we do. It could be a personal goal, a work goal, or something more long term. If you don't have some sort of goal in mind, it can feel like you're stuck on autopilot.
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A kitchen blogger recommends taking caution with your wooden spoons.
She suggest sticking them in boiling water “for 10 to 15 minutes, let them hang out and then when you take them out you dry them completely.”
She then recommends you rub them with olive oil, “not wood oil so that they don’t crack.”
Teresa then shows the water where they boiled the spoons with tons of residue. This was the grease and food particles trapped inside the spoon according to Teresa.
Experts say not to do it all the time, maybe 2 or 3 times a year and to use mineral oil to help them not crack.
While we are on the subject of cooking utensiles...check your spatulas. If the head can be removed, do it and check to see if it's not gross!!!! I have gone to one piece spatulas now.
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Today's Useless Fact of the Day - The word "gymnasium" comes from the Greek word "gymnazein," which literally translates to "exercise naked."
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