Remodeling to Add a Bar

Our home model had a space for a bar in the great room, but the people who first bought the home opted not to finish it out.  Basically, there was an indentation in our great room with a set of upper and lower honey-colored cabinets that looked like a laundry room.  It was odd and […]

Al Fresco Dining Set Up in 15 Minutes

Al fresco dining sounds so fancy, but for me it’s the most casual and friendly way to enjoy friends and family around the table. We use our patio quite a lot, but there is still some prep work involved in taking the party outdoors.  I think I have it down to a science and can […]

My Top Uses for Decorative Hooks

I am a sucker for a pretty hook.Ā  I know, isn’t that crazy?Ā  I love to have unruly things organized and have found that using hooks helps me round up things in a pretty way.Ā  I’m sharing my top uses for decorative hooks. Ear Bud Round Up After using earbuds, I like to coil them […]

Quarantine Work Arounds

This blog is about enjoying life, because of the few things I do well, that is one of them.  I always wanted to share my tips and tricks for making an empty-nest or retirement lifestyle the best.  Now I find myself struggling to be upbeat.  Everyone is inundated with negative right now and I don’t […]

The leaves are budding out in the park

A New Week in Quarantine

Anyone else feel super energized and ready to take on another week in quarantine? Um, no? Too much pantry time, TV time and cocktail time? Yep, me too. But, here’s a wrap up of my last week and hoping this week in quarantine is a little more productive. What I’m Reading CorineAtoZ is a participant […]

My Favorite Detectives (and Honorable Mentions)

Mysteries are by far and away my favorite reading genre and I have so many favorite series detectives.Ā  I don’t care if the novels are violent and trashy, bring it on!Ā  Strangely, I don’t like that in movies, but in books, I do.Ā  Go figure. To qualify as one my top favorite detectives means that […]

Spring has Sprung

There is a very good reason why I moved to a place that has hellaciously hot summers.Ā  It is for the short winters, of course.Ā  We in Arizona are rewarded with falls that are more like what I call summer-lite – hot days and cool nights.Ā  Spring generally starts early here and I can generally […]

Is Valentine’s Day Child’s Play?

Isn’t what makes romantic love special the fact that it’s exclusionary?Ā  It’s different from familial or friendship love because you love that one person differently from all others and it is conditional rather than unconditional.Ā  So how in the world did Valentine’s Day become a day when little children send cards to every other child […]

Do the Math

I absolutely love math. Ā That is either a crazy affirmation statement that makes me hope someday I will supernaturally be good at it or it’s the biggest lie I’ve ever told. Ā I don’t love math, but I love the ideaĀ of math. Ā I’ve seen movies about math. Ā A Beautiful Mind, Enigma, The Theory of Everything, Hidden […]

Seven Tips for a Quick Cleaning Day

For some, this season of life is retirement, for others it’s more empty nesting.  I know many of you are caretakers of elderly family members or are still really involved with children or grandchildren, so you are part of the sandwich generation. I guess for me it’s really pre-retirement.  I got a small taste of […]