People Need To Give A Damn

I was taking my afternoon walk through my small town of Charleroi On Mon and I've come to the conclusion that the poorer you get, the less likely you are to care about how your home looks.

My town's median income is below the poverty line...go ahead google us.

The rental properties all look like hell. The lawns are full of toys and are just messy. The curtains and blinds look like they've seen better days, if in fact they have them, and not just a blanket or something hung over the window to keep out the light. WTF people.

If not for my mother I wouldn't have much, but I still take pride in my home. I don't want to live in a hovel. I like my things to look nice. I may not be able to have expensive things, but I want to be proud of what I have.

I truly can't understand why anyone would want to live in filth.

There are places where you can get curtains or any decorations to pretty up a place cheap. Seriously, Big Lots, Dollar General, Family Dollar...I could go on.

If you don't have any pride in your living area, how can you have any pride in yourself. Which makes it hard for anyone to pull themselves up out of poverty.

You have to care.

It sucks to be poor, but there's no excuse for living in a pigsty. Cleaning products are sold at Dollar Stores.

It really isn't hard to clean up after yourself and make your space in the universe look decent.

New Required Reading

I have been a fan of historical fiction since I was in junior high. Jean Plaidy's novels about the aristocracy of Europe as well as the Kings and Queens always topped my list of must read books.

I think in the age where history is being so distorted, more historical novels should be read in schools. Novels that make the reader want to learn the history of the countries in this world.

I say this because I am reading My Dear Hamilton right now.  I've not had the chance to see the musical and likely I never will, because those tickets will be a hot commodity for years, even as the show starts to tour.

My Dear Hamilton focuses on his life, but is told through the eyes of his wife. The book is written by Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie who also wrote America's First Daughter, a novel about Patsy Jefferson.

I've found that books like this have given me a new appreciation for history, and it also shows us that the crazy political world that we live in, hasn't changed. It has been this way from the very start of our nation.

My Dear Hamilton focuses a lot on the politics of the time. It also paints a picture of the founding fathers in a way that you don't really learn in school. You learn the presidents and what not, but reading this book, you got the clue that these men that shaped our nation were often at war between themselves and that getting our constitution ratified wasn't as easy as history books make it out to be.

I think these are the kind of books that inspire people to think and learn more. I also think that some of them are more important reads than those by the authors of the classics, which can definitely come across as dry and boring to many readers.

I dream of a world where books become truly important again.

Before Starbucks Was Cool

Back in the 90s when I was a mall working mall rat, there was a coffee chain called Gloria Jean's. These shops weren't everywhere, like Starbucks is today.  Go to any city, and I dare you not to find one, every few blocks.

Heck, on the PA turnpike, all the travel stop plazas have a Starbucks.

That wasn't the case in the 90s.

Back then, at the cool malls, Gloria Jeans ruled the roost.

At least for me.

If you like Frappachinos, there is a thing called a Chiller there. They still make them, if you can find a store.

When I worked at Kaufmann's from 1996 - 1998 I lived for the times that I could get a Coco Loco.
Dear God, that was one heavenly cup of sugar!

It really is a wonder that I have any teeth left.

Talk about a caffeinated sugar rush!

I didn't even know the shops were still around until I saw a recipe ad from Keurig that used Gloria Jean's coffee, which made me wonder if the stores were still around. To my great delight, two of our local malls still have a shop.

Now I need to go to the mall.

A Few Of My Favorite Things: Foodie Edition

I have a love for simple sandwich salads. If you are ever in the Mon Valley and can get to Cox Market or to Finleyville to Trax Farms, you will find the best chicken and turkey salads you'll ever taste. Trax's turkey salad has dill and it is just fabulous on a good cracker. Cox's chicken salad is made with shredded chicken and I've been making wraps for the last few days for lunch. Yum!

I don't like a lot of fancy stuff in any of my sandwich salads. My own egg salad is just egg, mayo and dijon mustard, sometimes a little dollop of a good relish, and a shake of pepper.

That's why I really love the chicken salad. It's chicken, mayo and celery. I occasionally like a southwest chicken salad, but I'm never one for fruit or nuts in my salad, especially if its going on a bun, croissant or in a wrap.

I'm a fan of simple foods and casseroles and depression era fare.

My mother used to make a macaroni dish that was basically just elbow mac, ketchup, ez melt cheese or some other good melting cheese and then buttered breadcrumbs. Its absolutely fabulous. Another favorite casserole is ground meat with rice and cream of mushroom soup and chicken noodle.

So, I'm not a gourmet, though I like good food, but I'm really a no frills kind of girl.

Oh and best thing ever...Cheesy egg toast ...easy, yummy breakfast..

Now I'm hungry!

I Need To Stay Off Facebook

There was a photo on a group page that I follow that showed children on crosses, blaming certain groups for abuses caused to them. The last photo showed a child on a Ronald McDonald cross, blaming fast food for childhood obesity.

So yeah, the anger in me grew and I had to comment. (And I found that stupidity lurks on both sides of the political spectrum)

Shall we blame restaurants for our kids being fat, while not placing any blame on computers, video games and phones that keep our kids on their butts, instead of out doing stuff.

I grew up when McDonald's had all the characters and the cool Happy Meal toys. I also grew up in the sugary cereal era. YUM.

I played outside. I was inside with Barbie's and my books.

My parents knew better than to feed us McDonald's on a daily basis, no matter how much I wanted the happy meal toy, or the cool glass, or whatever.

To blame a company for childhood obesity is insane. Its there business to get people in their restaurants to eat.

I don't recall seeing a Happy Meal commercial any time soon. Hell, I don't remember seeing a cereal commercial for anything tasty or even a toy commercial in ages on tv?

McDonald's doesn't grab your kid and pull them in and force the food down their throat. It is the parent's decision to take them there.

So if your kid if obese, do something about it, but don't place blame.