Adventures In First Blog-iversaries
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I’ve been posting on this blog for a year. Wow. At any rate, five random things:
1) I had no idea that I could produce creative work every single week for a whole year. Perhaps that sounds like bragging (and perhaps it is bragging), but what I actually feel is not pride but astonishment. I guess my mom was right when she said, “You won’t know until you really try.” She’s usually right. I’m old enough to be impressed (rather than annoyed) by that.
2) If you (also) have problems with dry, cracking cuticles and brittle, flaking nails, especially in the winter, then I’d like to refer you to this YouTube video which has changed my life. If you don’t want to watch it, I will summarize: after every hand wash, put the smallest amount of oil on your nails (barely any) and just a smidge of cream on your hands. I use jojoba oil and whatever lightweight hand cream I have around the house. If you do it right (SMALL amounts), it will soak in almost instantly and you won’t feel greasy. Anna from The Salon Life on YouTube explains that all you are doing is replenishing the oils that you just washed away with soap and water. Then at night, she recommends using a product called Kerasal on the cuticles…just a small amount. I’ve been using it on my fingers and my toes at night. Honestly, the change is amazing. My nails are growing faster, and as they are growing out, the flaking and splitting is fading away. And my cuticles are so supple and healthy! She also has some interesting videos on why you shouldn’t cut your cuticles…because what you are cutting is live skin, not cuticle. You can find her discussing this subject while doing a manicure on her significant other here.*
3) Over the last couple weeks, I have suffered through the worst cold I’ve had in decades. I don’t know what I got, but I know when I got it…my parents were visiting just before I got sick and all three of us came down with the same nasty thing. I will spare you my whining and just mention that the old methods of treating a cold still work. Zicam regularly at the first sign of sickness, Mucinex as soon as you start having chest congestion, sleeping in a heavily humidified room (I have this humidifier and I love it), LOTS of water, and lots of rest. I know this isn’t cutting edge medicine, but truly, it all does still work. Oh, and if you need an old-fashioned cough remedy to let you sleep at night, a tablespoon of honey with a tablespoon of whiskey (or whatever high-alcohol liquor you have in the house) works a treat. No need to buy expensive cough medicine…
4) If you decide to try Never mind, turns out I don’t want to talk about it.
5) I just finished Scarlet by Genevieve Cogman, the author who also wrote the Invisible Library series. I have to say that while I enjoyed it, it took me about 50 pages to get into it…and the only reason I stuck with it for that long is my respect for the author. In short, this is a story of the Scarlet Pimpernel rescuing French aristocrats during the revolution…with vampires. The vampires, while present in the story, actually account for very little of it. The main character Eleanor is thoughtful and brave, and the plot certainly doesn’t lack for excitement. I can recommend the book, although not as unreservedly as I would recommend the Invisible Library series. It’s not clear to me whether or not Scarlet is intended to be the start of a new series…I rather think not. Nonetheless, it’s an interesting and relatively quick read. If you liked Cogman’s other work, probably you will like this.
*9-14-23 addendum: I have stopped using the Kerasal every day because it was thinning and softening my toenails. It’s still wonderful for occasional use, and does a fabulous job of softening the feet. Just slather it on at bedtime, put in some cotton socks, and wake up to softer feet.
