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3D Printing for Us Common Folk
Taking advantage of my wonderful local library, I attended a class titled “Intro to 3D Printing.” This is how it was described on the library website: “Learn to create a small object using ready-to-print files or custom Tinkercad files and the library’s 3D printers.” (Yes, my area libraries now have 3D printers–very cool!) This was a fun introduction to 3D printing. Most of the class involved working on the website Tinkercad. This is a free and easy-to-use website for making 3D printable items. Whether or not you have access to a 3D printer, it is still something entertaining to check out. The site is www.tinkercad.com. You can create your account,…
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Million Dollar Quartet
I love musical theater! I love professional musical theater! I love community musical theater! I recently had the experience of seeing musical history come to life before my very eyes and ears! I recently saw a local professional production of “Million Dollar Quartet.” For those who don’t know, this show is inspired by what happened on December 4, 1956–Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Elvis Presley were together at Sun Records in Memphis for what would be one of the best jam sessions ever! (This really happened!) I didn’t just see but rather experienced this performance at the Marriott Theater in Lincolnshire, Illinois. Certainly, some musicals are great…
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Yogurt Drops
Now that I have officially “put myself out there” with a blog, I am more inspired to try new things on a more frequent basis. When I don’t have time for a large project or have any formal activity planned, I figure that I can just look up a “life hack” and see how well it works. I recently found a life hack on Pinterest (1000lifehacks.com). This is what it said: “Spoon some yogurt into a plastic bag. Poke a small hole in the bottom and squeeze small dots onto a cookie sheet. Freeze for an hour. A great healthy snack.” This seemed easy enough to try. I filled my…
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A-hem, Part 2
I am glad to say that all worked out well in the saga of my attempt to hem trousers using HeatnBond. I promised an update, so here you go! Because my husband is very handy and wanted to make sure that I did not ruin the iron (I did not take offense to this), he lead the iron cleaning task. As mentioned in my earlier “A-hem” post, we found instructions for cleaning the melted on adhesive off of the iron via the product website. (Thanks, Mom, for the fabric softener sheets that we needed! Mom to the rescue!) Take home point: if you have a problem, check the product website!…
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A-hem
I am writing this as much for the purpose of venting as for sharing. Hopefully my experience will help others remember that when you get frustrated and feel stupid trying to accomplish what seems like a simple task, you are not alone. As perfect as so many things appear on-line, reality can get really annoying and frustrating. My daughter and her friend recently wanted to go “Thrifting” –the treasure hunt to see if they could find something really cool for a low price at a thrift store. (They were successful!) I was happy to take them. While at the thrift store, I decided to look for pants to wear to…
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Onion Soup, Take 1
Secondary title: HE LIKED IT! I admit that I am not the best cook. Fortunately for me, I am not terribly picky. A little more unfortunate, though, is the fact that my family members are not huge fans of what I create. (If they don’t cook something, they are going to be stuck with whatever I make.) I do try to get creative with ingredients I have in the house, and, as a vegetarian, most of what I use is not very expensive (thus, I don’t worry as much about wasting money if my creation is not eaten by anyone but myself), and by not using meat/chicken/fish, the chance of…
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To think that I was done with tests
I am testing to see if this post connects to my Facebook account. Part of my “living and learning” is trying to figure out the technical aspect of setting up my blog in connection to social media. As I get more and more frustrated, I have to remind myself that this whole process can “count” as part of my “grand plan” to try new things. This part of the plan sucks.
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Dragon Fruit–Trying a New (to us) Fruit
My son is taking a Gourmet Foods class in high school. (This is a nice break from his AP classes, plus, I know he won’t starve when he heads off to college.) He has always liked eating (typical teenage boy with hollow legs), but he is now showing more interest in trying and plating new and different foods. Today, he and his father picked up some groceries. Included among the typical stuff was a dragon fruit. My knowledge of dragon fruit was limited to “I think I may have heard of that before.” My son and I both independently did a little research so as to know what to do…
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The Emerald City
The Emerald City For this post, the name has nothing do to with gemstones or Oz. As an adult, I have come to appreciate the public library much more than I did as a kid. I recently attended a lecture which was part of a “One Book One Community” program. This program is a partnership between several area libraries to bring a “community read” to the residents. The book chosen was Love and Other Consolation Prizes by Jamie Ford. Several library programs this winter were scheduled in connection to this book. I will start by saying that I did not read this book. (I am currently reading a different book…
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Bernie’s Book Bank
I am extremely fortunate to have something very special–a close relationship with a group of my best girlfriends from high school. For 30+ years (hard to believe it has really been that long), we have done a Secret Santa gift exchange. This year, one of the group suggested that we do something different together. She suggested that we all volunteer together, and a new plan was set into motion! We chose to volunteer for a local organization called Bernie’s Book Bank. I had heard great things about the place, but I had never volunteered there. Bernie’s Book Bank provides free books to low income children throughout Chicagoland, 12 books per…
If it's not illegal, immoral, or blatantly stupid, I am willing to give it a try!
