Living Simply: Old Timey phrases

     Today, let's just enjoy a few laughs. Here's some fun old-timey phrases you can try out on your friends and family. Either make it a game guessing what they mean, work them into the conversation as if they're normal and watch others' reaction, or just share a few laughs together.

1.  "like a wet sock" - it means a limp handshake; His introduction was like a wet sock.

2.  "happy cabbage" - money that you get to spend on yourself.


3.  "flub the dub" - to avoid or shirk off one's duty or responsibility; Try this one in a political conversation.

4.  "a pine overcoat" - a coffin; as in, "Driving like that the maniac will be wearing a pine overcoat!"

5.  "Don't sell me a dog." - means Don't lie to me.

6.  "fly rink" - a bald head

7.  "sauce box" - another name for a mouth, similar to today's "pie hole".

8.  "swacked" - drunk

9.  Try this one out:  "It's colder than a brass toilet seat in the Yukon!"

10.  "hump the sway" - no, that's not what it means. It means to carry luggage on your back (like a backpack).

11.  "focus your audio" - listen carefully

12.  "being on a left-handed honeymoon" - cheating on your significant other

13.  "cluck and grunt" - ham and eggs

14.  "bloodhound in the hay" - hot dog with saurkraut

15.  "city juice" - water (drinking water, not a lake or puddle)

16.  "jiggery-pokery" - trickery, suspicious activity

17.  "thimble rigger" - like the shell game, one who hid a pea under 3 thimbles and the other person had to guess which one it was under.

18.  "iron my shoelaces" - a polite way to say you have to go to the bathroom

19.  "petting pantry" - a cinema or movie theater (wow, be careful out there)

20.  "Now you're on the trolley!" - similar to, "Now you get the idea" or "now you understand".

Living Simply: Crock Pot!

     In this busy season, what can you do to simplify your life? Drag out your crock pot - you probably got one as a gift years ago and it's been buried in the back of your pantry or cabinet ever since. If not, you can buy them at grocery stores, Big Lots, WalMart, Amazon, just about anywhere. They don't need to be a big expensive one with all useless bells and whistles. Just one basic crock pot is all you need. Get one appropriately sized for you/your family, whether you cook for 1 or 2, or a family of 6, or whatever you need. All you need is a knob that has "off", "low", and "high". Everything else is unnecessary.

     What can you do in a crock pot that will simplify your life? You can throw a few things in first thing in the morning and enjoy a home-cooked meal when you get home after a long, cold, busy day. You can even set it up before bed to make a hot breakfast for a busy morning.

     I would recommend doing Google searches for recipes, rather than having me list them here. I'll give you a few things to search for to get you started:


     Beef Stew, Chicken & Dumplings, Fish or Clam Chowder, Chicken Tortilla Soup, Split Pea Soup, Slow cooked beef, pork, or chicken (then pull it apart for dozens of uses), Chili, Meatballs, Beef Stroganoff, Enchiladas, Stuffed Peppers or Cabbage Rolls; the solutions are endless.

     PS: To make life even easier, look where you buy storage and freezer bags for crock pot liners. When you're done eating, just lift it out and toss it. No cleanup other than the lid.

Living Simply: The Art of Neighboring

     I'm reading this book called the The Art of Neighboring by Jay Pathak & Dave Runyon. I will tell you up front, it's written from a Christian's perspective, to follow what Jesus said when he told us to love our neighbors. I don't want you to be surprised nor offended, but it's definitely worth reading for anyone, anywhere, and here's a few reasons why:

1.  Most of us can't name the closest neighbors to us anymore. Even if we know their first names, or maybe even their last names, do you really KNOW them? What they do for a living, where they're originally from, what their passions or goals are, etc. We just go garage to garage, or driveway to driveway, or maybe covered parking space to covered parking space - with barely a wave and a quick, "Hi!". 

2.  If we knew our neighbors better, it would make a safer neighborhood. People would recognize who should and shouldn't be there. Knowing each other better leads to communication when something looks out of the ordinary. As an example, our neighborhood has a private Facebook page where we can alert others of suspicious white vans parking/lurking in the area, or if something got taken from someone's yard, etc. We've used it to borrow, buy, or sell things from each other as well. It's become a nice little community that's started including group "block party" type events, especially for kids to get together.

3.  When you know your neighbors, no one has to be alone or helpless. If there's a widow, sick elderly man, single mom struggling, someone who lost their job or just had surgery, others can jump in as a group and help out. Maybe it's just babysitting a few hours for a doctor's appointment. It could be mowing the lawn or weeding for someone who can't do it anymore. If someone is sick, just been through a funeral, or just had a baby, others can prepare meals for the family. The possibilities are endless.

     There's other reasons why this book is a great idea, but I understand for introverts like myself, or it seems weird making contact with next door neighbors you've already lived next to for years without previous contact, this isn't easy. Maybe the thought of possible rejection is scary. Just remember, it's probably just as scary to them. There's great break the ice type of things you can do, some as simple as just spend time in front of your home instead of the back. Check it out, this is the PERFECT time of year to have an excuse to say hello, or bake cookies and bring them to those closest to your home.

Enjoy the read.

Living Simply: Photos to capture

     People take a lot of pictures during all the December holidays and activities. Becoming more and more minimalist, I tend to take less photos now since I won't be printing and storing them somewhere, but I do still capture things that are different. So far in December, I captured a few photos of our beach-themed decor and tree, pictures from the first time taking my Mom to see a street nearby that is completely lit up and decorated by every single house, and pictures from a lit-up boat parade at the nearby lake. I post them on social media than either delete them or I'll save them on a flash drive. Less room, keep the memories, and maybe someday I'll put them in a digital photo frame instead of collages that get old so fast. Here's a few things to capture this season - if you want to minimize the excess and maximize the best of the best:

1.  Friends & Family - after someone's passed away, friends and family always wish they had more photos of them to remember them. The memories are in your mind, not just on photo paper, but to focus on the important, take a few pictures of family and friends this season. It could be for Christmas Dinner, Hanukkah traditions being passed down (like Grandfather showing his granddaughter how to light the menorah), maybe it's a Kwanzaa gathering, or some other occasion. Be sure to capture those photos if someone you almost never see travels (or you travel) to be together.

2.  Your family's traditions - is there something your family does uniquely that's part of tradition? Is

there a particular ornament that's been passed down? Do you always attend a particular event, like seeing The Nutcracker? Do you always let the kids open one present (usually it's pajamas in many families) Christmas Eve? Capture what you do that's unique.

3.  Special foods - I know photos of food is sort of ridiculous if you're on vacation or just out with friends, but...what about the one recipe handed down from generation to generation? Get a photo of it to pass along with the recipe for the next time it's passed down. Are there certain foods unique to your culture, ethnicity, or family? If your holidays always includes a few special once a year foods, then capture that.

4.  Did you do something different and special? Did you travel to
somewhere? Drive to a cabin in the mountains to see snow? Venture to a tropical beach to escape the cold? Capture that special holiday.

5.  If there is a special charity you're involved in this year, document it with a few photographs. It could be the beginning of a legacy.

When the kids were small, we were poor, but we took money, went to a dollar store, and bought the best gifts we could for kids - books, toys that weren't cheap and flimsy, like maybe a barbie type doll or action figure, and we wrapped them, and dropped them off anonymously at the local hospitals. We left them to be distributed for the kids who got stuck in the hospital for Christmas. No recognition. No names. Just a gift to kids missing out on their typical traditions.