Yellow Magic Madness #8

Paris – Musée d’Orsay: Henri Matisse’s Luxe, calme et volupté (Photo credit: wallyg)

Kraft American Cheese, Sleeping, Anxiety And Yoo- Hoo

Slumber (Photo credit: weesen)

Some people drink when they are under stress, others turn to cigarettes, some to drugs. It soothes their souls and it may take the edge off of their anxiety. The people who drink red wine can boast that it is medicinally beneficial, heart healthy in fact. Others like scotch or beer or ooey- gooey sweet stuff with vodka in it, like a spiked punch. I do none of the above, when I am anxious all I do is get into my bed, surrounded by layers upon layers of blankets and sleep. Really, I do. The only food my stomach allows me to eat is a Kraft (orange) American Cheese Sandwich on soft bread with soft butter or margarine spread and a box of Yoo Hoo to drink. That’s it. I lose weight during this period of anxiety but really, it isn’t any fun and definitely not worth it, well maybe worth it a tiny bit.

There is nothing more relaxing to me than”hibernating” under mountains of blankets, snuggling with my pillows and escaping life’s problems. Do I know what I am doing? Absolutely. Do I choose to do this? Yes. It is my way of dealing with overwhelming stress without any addiction except the warmth of my bed, no alcohol or drugs needed. Sometimes I say I am just going “to rest” and we all know what that means…..

I acknowledge what my problems are, I’m not crazy, this is my coping mechanism. I can’t change the situations at hand for the better so I have to live with them and instead of being the hyper-oh-my-God-what-are-we-going-to-do person that I already have been for 24 hours, I try to balance that with pure avoidance therapy. It’s cheaper than a lot of other coping mechanisms and I can do it anytime I want.

There are only specific foods that I CAN eat when I am that, shall we say, out of sorts? American cheese (Kraft Individualized Orange slices) and bread, soft butter and Yoo- Hoo to drink (boxes). This is my comfort food and I will absolutely have it every single day, it is the only thing I WANT to eat and CAN eat when I am this upset. It soothes me. I can eat it five times in a row, even ten. It depends heavily on the situation. Tonight, I actually ate something different since we were at a restaurant but the only thing that appealed to me was ravioli stuffed with butternut squash. I couldn’t look at my husband’s rare burger though admittedly I did try a bite of my son’s steak. It tasted delicious. My own food was soft, mushy and comforting and it certainly was in the same genre as my American cheese sandwich. Club soda with lemon was definitely no substitute for my beloved Yoo- Hoo. They should really stock that in restaurants, don’t you think?

Things are a little better now, not completely but we are coping. I’m off the complete American cheese sandwich but am still into small portions of soft food like the baked ziti I made today. It wasn’t my exact comfort food but I’m trying to branch out a little. Even I try to be flexible after my 24-48 hours guaranteed American Cheese/Yoo-Hoo Festival. Sometimes. it even works. Sigh. Okay. Rarely.

*my admiration and thanks go out to Kraft and Yoo-Hoo companies.

An Open Letter To The Fribbles At Friendly’s

Friendly’s Fribble (Photo credit: johnwilliamsphd)

Dear Mr. Maguire,

I want you to know that, we the people, are NOT happy that you are changing your Fribble formula yet again. We love the Fribble as it is. The reason we choose the Fribble IS because it is different from regular milkshakes, we feel it’s slightly healthier because you use ice milk instead of ice cream. That said, are you going to take your uniqueness away, use hard ice cream like all the other stores in the country and make the fabulous Fribble a Frappe?

I must have a procedure done in the hospital in about a month, you couldn’t know this but I asked my husband to stop at Friendly’s on the way home to buy me a Fribble. An original or current Fribble. I DON’T WANT A MILKSHAKE. They are way too heavy and hard to drink, you can’t easily sip them through a straw. My only decision was to have a vanilla Fribble or strawberry Fribble, now I need not make that decision. If I want a milk shake, I can get a number of them closer to my house at various brand name stores whose ice cream, ( yes, sorry) is much better than yours. I don’t think I need to mention names but there are a couple of guys from Vermont,  (Yo Ben, Yo Jerry you dudes rock!), a Coldstone Creamery (want mix- in’s sure pick whatever you want) and MANY frozen yogurt stores, (again, not as fattening as ice cream). Do they compare with the sainted Fribble? Not to me, I am FRIBBLE FAITHFUL.

I’m begging you now to PLEASE review this crazy marketing scheme of yours. People do NOT want more fattening items, they want items that taste fattening but are not worse for our figures. Do you really think this idea is solid? (get it? Solid, ice cream….) I think you are making a huge mistake and I am asking you to reconsider.

If you insist, you could always have your hard ice cream Frappe and have the original Fribble for your brand loyal original fans. What do you think? Please let me know. Go back to grilled cheese, fine, go back to the little hamburgers and french fries but please keep the Fribble and then add a new product if that is what you want. Please think about it. I would be happy to work with you for flavor testing or anything you need. I am the taste of America and I love Fribbles.

Thank you very much.

Laurie, THE ULTIMATE FRIBBLE FAN

Related articles

• the names of all the ice cream places are not my own and are used for entertainment purposes only. that and because I truly love them.
• Friendly’s changes Fribble recipe for a third time as part of broader redesign (bizjournals.com)

Here, there and everywhere (Carry on Tuesday)

Woman with natural red hair (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Every day one makes hundreds and hundreds of decisions. Moira had never thought about it like that. Like the red freckles on her very freckled face or the stars in the galaxy we make decisions that affect our lives all the time. You might think that you make one decision here or there like what to wear or what to make for dinner but there are decisions to be made in every specific detail of your life. You probably just don’t realize it.

In less than an hour, Moira, the young beauty with the red hair and freckles decides when to get out of bed, changes her mind and goes back to sleep. At some point she will wake up, actually move her sleepy feet to the soft, gray carpet, get out of bed and decide whether to shower. She will pick out clothes, (should I wear pants or a skirt?) for college and get dressed. Moira still hasn’t left her yellow and white-flowered patterned bedroom. She heads to the loo to brush her teeth and wash her face and tries to put on a little make-up with little success.

After she has decided what to wear, she gets dressed and heads down to the kitchen because she decides she wants a lovely cup of tea. She puts on the kettle, selects the tea she wants and sits down to slowly sip her tea. She looks at her wristband watch and sees she has twenty more minutes before she needs to leave for college. She makes toast with orange marmalade and relaxes for 10 more minutes. Then, she decides it’s time to leave, gets her jacket and purse and heads out the door.

You think you don’t have any control in your life? That you make no decisions and that people make decisions for you? This is just one hour in our young Moira’s life. Decisions on what to do are everywhere; keep your eyes open and be aware of them. You are in control of your life, as much as anyone is: just break it down into little moments, like the individual strands of the fiery red hair that surround Moira’s beautiful, porcelain face.

Haiku Heights – Fortitude

FREE MYANMAR 2012 – I give you my smile – Ich zaubere Dir ein Lächeln (Photo credit: alles-schlumpf)

How I feel, appear

strong, confident, sparkling-gold

Inside I crouch, wilt.

***

A lonely corner

a pink crumpled little girl

Will not show her tears.

***

Inside, she is steel

Stubborn, rigid, eyes black- gold

Blonde, sweet, smiling curls.

Someone Should Kill Punxsutawney Phil (Oh Relax, Not Literally)

groundhog (Photo credit: Greencolander)

AN OPEN LETTER TO MR. PUNXSUTAWNEY PHIL

Dear P. Phil,

What the hell were you thinking? This has been the nastiest winter not to mention the longest winter that we have had in years. What happened to the early Spring you promised us? Nothing, that’s what. It’s freaking freezing and we are in the third week of March with no tell-tale signs of budding flowers and warm temperatures. Why don’t we just get rid of this stupid tradition? I’ve never believed in it anyway but this year, I admit, I was longing for some good news so I thought four more weeks isn’t bad at all, I can handle that.

For me, a person who hates the winter in the first place, prolonging snow and freezing temperatures makes me feel that much worse. Hey Phil, did anyone teach you about sticking to your word? I am not, in any way, amused. In fact, I’m angry.I happen to know that I am not alone in my anger. I know many, many people who feel the same way. Another snowstorm in the forecast?  WHY NOT, I’ve stopped counting, we have all stopped counting because who can keep track?

The week my husband went skiing was one of the scariest times I have been through in a long time. Again, (what a surprise) the forecast was for a huge storm calling for a foot of snow and 60 mph winds, certainly enough to tear the power lines down to the ground like angry whips. It was terrifying. It was just the dog and me and our dog knew about as much as I did on how to figure out the nine page document that my husband left me to TRY and explain the mini generator. The man had given me graphs and diagrams, even flow charts and arrows. That rather long dissertation made me as crazy as the storm itself. Did he not remember who he has married for 24 and a half years?

I climbed the stairs, flashlight in my pocket, candles strategically placed around the house with matches nearby and climbed into my bed piled high with blankets. I felt like Laura in “Little House On The Prairie” except I was missing Ma and Pa to tucking me in and telling me everything would be alright. I really missed them. I went to bed early because what else was there to do? I prayed. In the morning I woke up to 12 inches of snow but we still had electricity. I was SO happy.

Punxsutawney Phil, as many of us now in mid-life are looking to start different careers,  may I suggest you do the same? I’m sure you can do some different things, you should look into as many options and career choices as possible because I think, as we all agree, you stink at this one.

Yellow Magic Madness # 7

Yellow Billed Stork – Lowery Park Zoo – Tampa Florida (Photo credit: Axel.Foley)

Yellow doesn’t have to be showcased primarily, sometimes just a hint of yellow will stand out and bring joy. When you love the color yellow, like I do, you tend to notice it right away. Center stage or just one detail, yellow will perk up any part of a picture (at least for me.) Happy Yellow Week to one and all.

Plinky Prompt: Which Author Would You Want To Write Your Biography?

Anna Quindlen addressing the Barnard Class of ’74; she is the head of the Board of Trustees. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

• If you could have any author –living or dead – write your biography, who would you choose? See all answers

• Edit answer |
• March 22, 2013 by hibernationnow

• Real Life
• There is something about the way Anna Quindlen writes that I’ve always admired. She is straight forward, doesn’t exaggerate, yet manages to let you feel the emotions without going overboard. She doesn’t need to knock over the honey jar or melt the butter into the syrup. Get it? She captures real life as it is, not as people want it to be. For that reason, I’d be honored if Anna Quindlen wrote my biography. Or even if she just wanted to have coffee….

Plinky Prompt: Happily Ever After?

• 

  Bride and Groom Toppers (Photo credit: mags20_eb)

  

• “And they lived happily ever after.” Think about this line for a few minutes. Are you living happily ever after? If not, what will it take for you to get there? See all answers

• Edit answer |
• March 18, 2013 by hibernationnow

• Happily Ever After
• Happy Enough.
• “And they lived happily ever after” is why Disney invented movies. You don’t see Jasmine worrying about her unemployment check and obviously Cinderella does alright at the end, marrying her prince. Aladdin doesn’t get laid off from work, ever. But, no one stays in that state of ecstasy of being a newlywed forever. It’s a fantasy. I’ve been married almost twenty-five years. I think that is a wonderful thing. Has it been easy all the time? No. Have we gone through rough patches? Yes. Not everyone wants to work through them, for some it’s just a quickie divorce. Marriage is a serious commitment: to each other and to our children. My husband and I are great friends, we have the same values; we love and like each other. All the time? That makes me laugh. Most of the time? Absolutely. Here’s to (at least) another 25! Congratulations to US!

Plinky Prompt: Describe your dream job

• 

  French Pastries In Paris (Photo credit: Xiaozhuli)

  

  English: Hostess Twinkies. Yellow snack cake with cream filling. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

  Describe your ideal job — where would you work? What would you do? See all answers

• Edit answer |
• March 18, 2013 by hibernationnow

• The ideal job
• HELP WANTED: FOOD TESTER/CRITIC (Anonymous)
  Requirements: Love of eating food (cooking skills NOT required)
  Not necessary to eat the following: salmon, oysters, caviar and raw fish
  Helpful: Flexible to eat junk food i.e. Twinkies and compare to gourmet French pastries.
  This job requires traveling first class to wherever the company sends you. Must be willing to travel extensively. The company will also pay for a companion ticket. EXTRA BONUS: Writing and blogging about your experiences at the various restaurants/hotels where you have eaten/stayed.
  Enthusiasm and being exactly on time rewarded.