January 2023

Today’s Resolution: Get to Know Yourself

With the revitalized interest in genealogy brought to the public’s doorstep by popular websites such as ancestry.com and television shows such as “Who Do Think You Are?” discovering more about your ancestral roots is becoming easier. In many cases, someone else has taken care of the digging for you and is more than willing to share their family heritage.

Sometimes it’s pure curiosity that drives people to seek more about themselves. For others, they might need vital medical history. Perhaps you are an adoptee seeking more information to understand your heredity.  Whatever it is that drives your interest, brainstorm a list of what you want to know. Talk with people in your family especially older family members. Utilize free search websites and databases. It might only take one small detail to open up a whole new world to who you are!

Today’s Resolution: Be a Yankee Doodle

Do you know the answers to “What was the name of the boundary that separated the Middle Colonies from the Southern Colonies?” or “Who was Anne Hutchinson?”

How much do you really know about the history of the USA? We celebrate the birthday of the United States with fireworks, cookouts, and social gatherings. Adding a little trivia to your 4^th of July or testing if you are smarter than a 5^th grader might be fun. There are numerous apps and websites to access for easy to challenging questions about America. You might learn something while adding a little relish to your hot dog.

Today’s Resolution: Achieve Match, Point, Game!

Photo: We don’t always match, but when we do, we take photos and post them on the interwebs.

No, we’re not talking about Wimbledon. We’re talking about that black hole that seems to absorb our matches whether it is from our sock drawer or jewelry boxes. Instead of just overlooking and ignoring those singletons, make a concerted effort to gather up the forlorn socks, earrings, gloves, etc. Put them all in a box or other central location.

Explore all rooms, closets, drawers, and even the car. When you are done “excavating,” you might get lucky and find some matches in your box. If you aren’t so fortunate, make the hard decision to get rid of the leftover items or re-use them. Cotton socks make great glass cleaning rags!

Today’s Resolution: Infuse the Water Works!

Are your plants looking a little brown around the leaves? Sometimes it’s a challenge to remember to water household plants or garden greens. Designate a day each week to be your “Water Works Day” and take care of several water-related tasks at once. If you have a pet, check the water dish (of course, do this every day, but you can add it in to your “Water Works Day” too!).

Have a swimming pool? Check the water level to be sure it is high enough for the filter to work efficiently. Have you had your 8 glasses of water for the day? Fish bowl looking a little cloudy? You get the idea. Get out the hose, the watering can, or a bucket and make a splash with the H20.

Today’s Resolution: Beat the Heat; Conquer the Cold

Regardless of where you are geographically, the thermostat can exercise its control over us whether you live in a warm, cold, or temperate climate. Turning the air conditioning up (or the heat down in cooler months) even just a degree can help in decreasing monthly costs for energy.

Have a finished basement? This can serve as refuge from the heat. In many cases, basements are naturally cooler and no air conditioning is needed. Other things you can do to conserve energy: check windows to be sure they are completely closed when using the air conditioning or heat, close shades and curtains in unused rooms, and dress comfortably. It doesn’t cost anything to strip down to a t-shirt and shorts or to throw a blanket around you.

Today’s Resolution: Be Happy That You’re Happy

Last week I read the most jaded article on love, life and family. It said that the person that you marry is your partner, and you move forward together, but that life isn’t meant to be fun. It went on and on about work and hobbies and how marriage is basically just to have comfort and security when you’re done with that work and those hobbies. I understand the emphasis on personal interests, but not complete separation because although I think that often happens, why does it need to be ideal?

I don’t know about you guys, but I’m ridiculously happy having fun, working alongside my partner in crime and sharing my hobbies with him too. Having an awesome boyfriend / girlfriend / fiance / wife / husband is like having a built in best friend and I can’t believe that anyone would feel like they’re just meant for end-of-day couch potato-ing and bitch fests.

So today’s resolution is to look around at the awesomeness that is your life. You’re ridiculously awesome partner in crime, your kids, your family, your friends, your pets, your hobbies or anything else that makes you deliriously happy on your best days. If nobody else in your life “gets it”, then that’s OK because we all have our own perceptions of happiness. Just don’t push what makes you happy on anyone else, and try to laugh away anyone who tries to do the same to you. 🙂

Happy day everyone!

Today’s Resolution: Save Your Ears & Sanity By Going Silent

I learned a few things this week about sound. First, an ex-retail employee used to dealing with crowds and noise told me that any constant sound over 75 decibels for an extended period of time (like being a retail employee at an extremely busy small store) can cause hearing loss or damage.

Then I read that “Nonstop exposure to low-level background noise (like people yakking, phones ringing and distant horns blaring) doesn’t just drive you nuts — it’s also stressful to your nervous system and can dampen your mood by 40 percent”, suggests researchers at Cornell University.

So today’s resolution is to take some time away from the noise for as long as you can. Find a silent place, or use the earplugs we recommended in yesterday’s resolution and take a sound break.

Today’s Resolution: Figure Out Your Nutritional Deficiencies

Last week Patrick and I got our blood analyzed. Apparently we’re the only youngin’s they’ve seen in a while because everyone was very excited to see that we’re so interested in our health.

We basically sat down, got our fingers pricked, and then got to see our blood up on a screen. The wellness consultant that was there, a pretty nerdy/smart health dude, was awesome about telling us everything there is to know about how our blood looks. My blood was very different from Patricks and vice versa.

What we discovered is that Pat needs a liver cleanse, BAD, and I need digestive enzymes (not probiotics), BAD.

See, you walk around thinking “I feel OK” and “I’m still young”, but our bodies are the only things keeping us alive and well, so we should really take care of them. Supposedly after taking digestive enzymes (different than probiotics) which help break down excess protein, I should also be less affected by allergies, depression and fatigue too, so that’s a plus!

Today’s resolution is to get your own tests figured out. You can actually analyze your blood under a microscope just like we did, or you can get SpectraCell testing done locally. Or, like us, you can look out for similar blood tests like we found at our local health food / vitamin store!

Today’s Resolution: Make Friends With Your Neighbors

Knowing the people that live around you can be very helpful in emergency situations. It’s also great way to meet new friends. Today, strike up a conversation with your neighbor. Amanda & I have been weathering Tropical Storm Debby for the past couple of days. We’ve made friends with our neighbors which has been helpful since we are new to the Florida area.

Today’s Resolution: Make a Go Bag

Having an emergency go bag is really handy thing to when you know what hits the fan. Today, make an all purpose emergency bag that you keep in a handy place. Amanda and I got caught in Tropical Storm Debby. Luckily we didn’t need to evacuate but we learned the importance of having a go bag.

You can create your own go bag, 72hours.org provides a helpful list of items for your go bag. Or you can purchase a prepackage one, like this 4 PersonGrab `N Go Deluxe Backpack. (aff. link)