Turn on the Faucet

I know I did a fairly random post yesterday, but I have to do another one today.  I watched a documentary last night (I know... I'm like an old person with all these documentaries lately), and it really opened my eyes about some things.

It's a film called "Tapped," and it's about bottled water.

I had heard a good bit of what the documentary told me.  Plastic bottles have chemicals that can cause cancer and other problems, some companies bottle tap water, and the bottles have very detrimental environmental effects.  However, this documentary showed images that I can't get out of my head.

So many un-recycled bottles make their way to our oceans.  Plastic doesn't break down like organic materials... it takes a very long time.  Plus, it washes up on our beaches.

[source]

Is this what you want future generations to play in when they visit the beach?  It's not what I want.

Those plastic pieces also are being ingested by marine animals and fish.  It's killing entire populations. 

[source]

Is this what you want to find when you eat your filet of fish?  It's not what I want.

It's not even just the environmental effects that are so crazy.  It's the fact that these companies producing bottled water take it from small towns like many of us grew up in.  Did you know that when Georgia was in a very serious drought several years ago (one in which lakes were at the lowest recorded levels) and everyone else was on severe water restrictions that the Coca-Cola bottling company was still pumping water out of local lakes and streams to bottle water--  many of which were sold back to people in Georgia?  How about them apples?

And the politics behind it all?  Oh, it's frustrating.  Politicians are pretty much working for the bottling companies that are bottling our free tap water and selling it back to us.  Does anyone else see something wrong with this?

Now that I've told you some of the juicy tidbits, I should tell you that there's much more.  I highly recommend  that you guys check this film out.  It will change your way of thinking, and you will want to turn on that tap more often.  

Here's the trailer so you can check it out.  The full length version can be found on Netflix, for sure, but I'm sure you can find it other places as well.

On the Brain

Once again, I've found myself without a lot to say lately.  That is partly because the hubs was around for a few weeks, so the computer was at the bottom of my "fun list."  It's also because I've been doing some custom crochet projects and preparing for a few paintings.  All that doesn't add up to lots of excitement to share in a post.  

However, I have had a few random things on my mind lately, and those things are evidenced by things I've found on the ever addictive Pinterest in the recent hours days.

Crochet Stuff

 

Source: dottieangel.blogspot.com via Lindsay on Pinterest

I've been browsing Pinterest for inspiration for new crochet projects, and when I'm finished with the half a dozen custom projects going now, I desperately want to try something with some beautiful granny squares like these.  Isn't this lovely?

Exercise

 

Source: None via Lindsay on Pinterest

Maybe it's some things I've seen on television lately, or maybe I've just been paying more attention to the many unhealthy and extremely overweight people I see all around, but I've been extremely motivated to exercise lately.  I've always loved to run, but sometimes I go through slumps. One of those was just a few months ago.  I'm out of it now, and my love of exercise and fitness is back in full force.  I've even signed up for a course being offered here so I can become a Spin instructor.  I can't wait!

Craftiness

 

Source: kevinandamanda.com via Lindsay on Pinterest

I haven't been doing much random crafting lately, but I'm ready to jump back in with a few projects.  This photo is my inspiration for a project I'm dying to try.  I really need a cool jewelry holder/display for some of my earrings, and I've finally found what I want to use to create it. (Hint:  It's an old drawer.)  As soon as my carpenter (a.k.a. hubby) gets back, I'm going to try to make my vision a reality.

People

Source: etsy.com via Lindsay on Pinterest

This could probably speak for itself, but I'll give a brief explanation.  Lately, I have been noticing a lot of closed-mindedness, a lot of judgmental people, and many instances of people believing that because they warm a pew once a week that they are superior to everyone else.  All of these people seem to belong to the same club.  Now, I definitely believe in God, but I'm having a hard time with how some of his supposed followers are acting.  I can't seem to understand why everyone thinks their way of thinking is the only way of thinking simply because they are brought up that way.  Do people not understand that everyone is brought up in a belief system of some sort and that to them that belief is right because it's what they know?  That a book of any sort can be misconstrued and made to say what the interpreter wants?  I'm really not trying to start a religious debate because what I'm noticing has nothing to do with religion and everything to do with actions.  I just pray that one day people can all respect each other based on morals and ethics and not just beliefs or how beliefs are expressed (as long as those expressions do not harm anyone... think more group worship inside vs. worship with family on a mountain after a hike).  To further see what I'm saying, check out the documentary "Lord Save Us From Your Followers" on Netflix.  It raises so many valid points.

Well, in a nutshell that's what's been going on in my head lately.  Anyone else had similar things going on in their brain?  What has been on your mind this week?

P.S.  All of these images came from Pinterest.  For some reason the source links are wanting to hide behind the images... silly blogger.

Tail Wagging Tuesday: Special Pup Feature- Josie

This week's Tail Wagging Tuesday special feature pup belongs to one of my sweet readers.  Adriane wrote me and said she would like to share her little Josie's story.  I was so excited to read the interview, and now I'm super excited to share it with you guys. :)  Here's what Adriane has to say...

What kind of dog is Josie?  How old is she? 

     I’ve estimated Josie to be 10 months old from when she got her big girl teeth a couple months back. So her birthday will be celebrated with mine in November! We are still very stumped about what Josie actually is! I’ve spent hours and hours searching the internet, but I haven’t come any closer to figuring her out. When we adopted her, we were told by one person that she was a Spaniel mix, another said she was a Lab mix, and someone said she was a Collie mix. Our vet said she has German shepherd in her. She is very much a mutt, but she is probably the prettiest, most regal looking mutt I’ve ever seen! I was never a fan of black dogs (no idea why!) before we adopted her, but I think she has helped me to see past the color because now I can’t get enough. Because of her, we’ve started fostering black labs for a rescue!

Where did you get Josie?  What's her story?

      Josie is my first rescue baby. One day I was on facebook looking at impounded dogs (an animal-lover I know of dedicates a page to the local animal shelter and posts all of the dogs needing homes everyday), and I came across the sweetest face. Underneath the picture there were dozens of comments indicating that she was going to be put down soon (our Animal Control is a high kill shelter, and kills 80% of the animals that they intake), and concerned facebookers were asking if anyone could just foster her until they could find her a home. I half-heartedly showed the picture to my boyfriend, Steven, saying "aw let's go save her!" but we had said it half-jokingly about many other dogs we'd seen online. It wasn't that we didn't want to save them; we just weren't if we could make the commitment since we are both college students, I have a job, boyfriend is in the National Guard, and we have very busy schedules in general (somehow it works though!). In the end, there was just something about this picture that made me drive all the way down to Animal Control to at least meet her. When I got there, she wasn't there! I looked through all of the enclosed areas about 3 times over looking for her cute face. I finally asked someone, who told me she had just been adopted! I was happy she was saved but a little disappointed since I’d been getting used to the idea of having a puppy. When I got home, I went back to the picture and read that the person who had adopted her was just going to foster her until they found her a home. I immediately messaged the person, saying that I wanted her, and a couple hours later she was mine!

How did Josie get her name?

      I wish there was a better story behind her name, but the simple fact is, I CANNOT make up my mind when it comes to naming anything! I was afraid we would have to go days with no name for her, so I asked a friend of mine. She suggested Josephine, which is a name that I have always loved, and it is one that can be shortened! We have never called her Josephine, since dogs respond best to 2-syllable names, and Josie is just easier anyway.

What are Josie's favorite things to do?  Things that make her unique? Crazy quirks or special sweet things she does? 

     Josie will chew on pretty much ANYTHING. “My dog ate my homework” is a scenario that could very likely happen in our house! In fact, paper and cardboard are her favorite things to eat. Toys do not last very long with her. I have not yet found a toy that can withstand her destruction, and believe me I’ve tried all of the expensive ones! I’ve lost many pairs of leather sandals to Josie, a laptop cord, and most recently, my debit card! She doesn’t seem to like chewing up Steven’s things as much, but she LOVES to put holes in his army socks. Besides causing mayhem with chewed up debit cards (haha), one of Josie’s favorite things to do is play chase. She will play fetch, but she thinks being chased is WAY more fun. Something funny, that I guess you could say is unique about Josie is what we call her “poop” bark. She definitely lets us know when she REALLLLLY has to go, and I never tire of hearing it because it is SO hilarious! I joke that Josie has trained US, because she does things to get her way. She will bring her bowl to you if she thinks she needs food or water, and sometimes if we are watching TV or doing homework, she will purposely walk by with something in her mouth (that she isn’t supposed to have) so you will pay attention to her instead.

  

What makes [Josie so special to you and your family?  What does she mean to you?

      Josie is so special to us because she is our first fur baby. Having this new responsibility really made mine and Steven’s relationship grow in good ways, and I really feel like our love for this pup has brought us closer together. I cannot imagine life without her, she brings so much happiness and laughter into our tiny apartment! One of the biggest reasons coming to college and being away from home was so hard was because I didn’t have my dogs. I will always be a HUGE lover of dogs (Steven is as well), and I think life is just so much better with them! Coming home is one of the greatest parts of my day, whether I’ve been gone for 10 minutes or 3 hours, because no matter what Josie will greet you as if it’s been 10 years! She keeps me company when Steven is gone, and she always cheers me up when I need it. She is just such a great companion for the both of us and we have become a family with her!

If there's anything you think should be shared and it wasn't asked in a question, share it here.  :)

      Josie has a foster brother! Having Josie has brought me in contact with other people who love animals, and I’ve become aware of the vast amount of dogs that need homes in our shelters. The reality is, most black dogs do not make it out of the shelter, and Josie probably wouldn’t have if there weren’t people out there who cared. Because of this, we decided to foster dogs. We took on 2 black labs (in addition to Josie) in our apartment, and it was hard in the beginning but SO worth it!  We have since found a home for one of them, but Josie still has Mongo as a playmate. Fun fact about Mongo: He absolutely LOVES car rides and will jump into any car with a door/window open! When he gets really excited, he does a little dance trot with his feet. He is one of the sweetest dogs ever and we will miss him when he goes to a new home! (Mongo is the dog on the right in the picture)  

Thank you so much Adriane for sharing Josie with us!  This story is just one more reminder of how incredibly wonderful shelter dogs are.  Remember them the next time you want to add a furry member to your family. :)

Just as a reminder-  I donate $10 of every sale in my shop to an animal charity.  Do a little Christmas shopping and find a crochet hat or scarf for someone special.  It'll benefit you and some animals in need!

Decorating for Thrills and Chills

It's finally October! (Okay... It has been for like a week, but whatever...)

As I've said before, I love October!  Back home, I love the changing colors, that crisp feel to the air, and the beginnings of all the holiday festivities.  Here on the island, I just have to settle for the fun decorations that go along with the holiday festivities since the weather and the colors don't really change. Sooo....  I've been decorating for Halloween!

Hopefully, I'll be headed home to be with my family this Christmas, so we may not go all out on Christmas decor.  However, I didn't want to miss out on putting up lights and outdoor decorations, so I thought Halloween was as fantastic an excuse as any.  Here's a little bit of what I've been up to the past few days...

I've got a light up pumpkin in my window, spider webs, a foam bat that I made with leftover materials from my wreath (tutorial here), lights around my door, a carved pumpkin, and skeleton lights along my path to the door so far.  I may play around and add some more, but with limited space for storage here on the island I don't really want to have a huge holiday decoration supply.  Even these few things put a smile on my face, though.  I feel like I'm getting into the spooky fun of Halloween, and I love it!

How about you guys?  Any fun decorations for Halloween?  Does your family go all out?  I've been browsing Pinterest lately, and there are lots of fun decorating ideas, so I may have some more fun things to share soon... I hope.

Oh... In case anyone was wondering why my carved pumpkin has green eyes, it's because it has an LED light that changes colors inside.  I happened to catch it when it was green. :)

Wifey Fail

So I had one of those days yesterday...

One of those days where not a whole lot goes as planned.  You know those kind?

It started out okay.  Kent and I went to go workout together (well, he would be offended if I said "together," it's really more like we rode to the gym together and did our own thing).  That was a great start to the day.   Then, I did a Wal-Mart run where I picked up a few things, including some cute costumes for my furry buddies (Can't wait to show you!!!) and went to the grocery store.  

Since Kent was thinking this would be a week where he didn't have to go into work all that much, he's been a little bummed to have to go in all day for the past few days.  To make things a little better, I thought I'd make a nice pot roast (wish sweet potatoes, onions, and french onion soup mix... yum yum) in the slow cooker, along with a pecan pie that he'd been hinting at for a while now.  

Unfortunately, I didn't get back from the store until noon to put it all together.  (Mind you, in the past they have cooked much faster.  I'd put them together in the morning and they would be ready by about 1:00pm.)  I guessed, according to previous experience, that it would be ready by 7 at the latest.

Fast forward a few hours...

Garbage disposal clogs.  Luckily, I am persistent and my dad's daughter, so an hour later I fix it myself.

I then realize I forgot sugar at the store, so I have to pedal down to the mini-mart to get some to make my pies.

Pies finally cook successfully.  Score one for me.

Kent's home around five, and he's hungry... However, the pot roast isn't ready to cooperate.

Boo!

Nearly two hours later, the pot roast still isn't done, and we're starving.

The solution:  order pizza.

Yep, I felt like a bit of a failure.

It was okay though.

At least we got to finish it off with a pecan pie that did turn out okay...

It was kind of yummy, even if I do say so myself. :)

Plus, we get a really good meal tomorrow, and I don't have to cook it! (Perhaps the best part of it all!)

Oh, and Murphy man and Duke got to beg for food all day because of the crazy food smells in the house all day...

It was a little hard to resist those faces. 

Do you guys ever have days like that?  Where things just don't want to go your way?  Sitting back and finding the positive sure helps. 

Happy Wednesday!

Tail Wagging Tuesday: Special Pup Feature- Jasper the Dachshund

It's time for another Tail Wagging Tuesday!  This week I get to share with you a sweet pup that belongs to one of my childhood friends Carli.  She was sweet enough to agree to an interview so we can meet her sweet Jasper. :)

What kind of dog is Jasper?  How old is he?  
Jasper is a Standard dachshund. He is 2 years old. Turned 2 on September 30.

Where did you get Jasper?  What's his story? 
Brent and I were building our house and the man that was doing some work was late one morning because he had to help his dog deliver her puppies. He asked Brent if we wanted one and Brent said no, but later what kind or they? The man said dachshunds, so Brent said yeah we'd take one. We got first pick, and we chose Jasper.

How did Jasper get his name?  
I didn't have a name for him for close to 2 weeks.  Then my friends and I went to  dinner before seeing Twilight New Moon and I said Jasper! Im going to name him Jasper. Brent liked it too so thats what we named him.

What are Jasper's favorite things to do?  Things that make him unique?  Crazy quirks or special sweet things he does?  
Jasper is with me everyday. He goes everywhere with me if I can help it, so when I get ready to leave he runs to the door, gets my flip flop and throws it at me.  He is the only dog I have ever had that eats ice like it's a dog treat. 

What makes Jasper so special to you and your family?  What does he mean to you?  
In 2006 my husband Brent got a dachshund from the animal shelter and named him Carlos. They only had him a few years and he got hit by a car. It broke all of our hearts and Jasper helps us feel better because he looks just like Carlos.  To me, personally, Jasper keeps me company. When Brent and I first got married, for the first 8 months he worked from 4:00pm-12:00am so having Jasper here gave me someone to talk to.  Plus he is always with me everyday, so he's like having a baby to take care of. 
 
If there's anything you think should be shared and it wasn't asked in a question, share it here.  :)

From the day we got Jasper Brent and I have thought that his paws smell like Nacho cheese doritos.  We always joke that we are going to call the dorito company and get him on a commercial.

Thank you Carli for sharing Jasper with us!

If you have a special pup, kitty, or any other furry or feathered friend you'd like to share, please let me know!  I'd love to feature your pet!  Just e-mail me at TailsToTell [at] Live [dot] com, and we can set up an "interview." 

A Few Things from the Weekend

I didn't have a super eventful weekend, but it was a pretty good one. :)

I thought I'd share a couple of photos with you guys...

We had a date night Saturday, so we took a few photos before heading down to Honolulu.

(It's kind of nice having an extra person around to take a few photos every once in a while.)

Of course, Kent had to bring his John Wayne coffee mug along.  He loves John Wayne... hence the pose in the first photo.
 

I also decided to hop in a photo with my two furry boys.  I love those guys.

Our date night was fun, and we had a nice dinner at a restaurant called The Chart House, which overlooks a nice sunset over the ocean and lots of sailboats.  Oh so lovely... I only wish I had brought my nice camera.

Sunday morning, I got super excited because I had an appointment with my friend Sara to cut my hair!  (You know how that always makes your day!)

Now I'm excited to start the week with a new shorter do. :)

Anything exciting happen for you guys this weekend?  Happy Monday!