A Brand New Year

May 2017 be your happiest, healthiest year yet–exceeded only by 2018 and the years beyond.
Last night, I waded through 8 inches of unplowed snow to spend a delightful evening with my neighbors, Bill and Julie.  I should have taken the truck, but I didn’t even consider it–after all, I was only going next door.  
Famous last words.  I wiped out midway between their house and mine; fortunately, with all that fresh snow, I might as well have landed on a featherbed.   I got a little wet, but otherwise, no harm done–I was very grateful that I’d fallen into softness, instead of slipping on hard ice.  As we get older, falling is a bigger issue, and besides, I’m a klutz.  Bill and Julie greeted me with smiles and the promise of a ride home at the end of the evening, and we settled in to visit, nibble tasty tidbits, and discuss our dogs.  🙂  (Mowgli and Tule stayed home, as they are not well-behaved enough to make social calls, though they often accompany me to Mary Ann and Larry’s (the Canadian Wrangler) place, where there are no carpets to mess up.  Anyway, Julie served delicious black-eyed peas, a New Year’s standard, said to assure good luck throughout the coming months, and I truly enjoyed their company and their festive home.  Rose, Bill and Julie’s adorable puppy, a beautiful yellow lab, was allowed to come out and say hello, and I was delighted to see her sweet, squirmy dog self.  At the end of the evening, Bill drove me home–all 800 feet of the journey.  🙂
New year, new enthusiasms–I’ve discovered herbal teas and remedies, and having a ball experimenting with different mixtures.  I’m also making some essential oils–rosemary, arnica, calendula and eucalyptus, for a start.  I plan on putting my food dehydrator to good use this year, and I will be experimenting with fermented foods as well.  Learning Paleo has led me to all kinds of interesting discoveries, including the health benefits of fermentation, and my old standby, Pinterest, is FULL of great ideas, recipes and techniques I’ve never heard of.  I’ve fallen in love with coconut oil; it has so many uses–from skin care to cooking–and I’ve just begun a new program called ‘oil pulling’.  When I first heard the term, I was confounded, and when I found out it involved swishing an organic oil around in my mouth for 20 minutes, I was, to say the least, nonplussed.  As I came across the term more and more, however, I became intrigued.   Supposedly, the process pulls toxins from the bloodstream (hence, ‘pulling’) and whitens the teeth, along with many other good things.  Because I love few things more than an experiment, even if it fails, I decided to give it a try.  Yesterday, I lasted about five minutes, but I am nothing if not persistent (or stubborn), so I tried again this morning.  Well, as my Southern cousin, Doris, would say, “butter my butt and call me a biscuit!”  I made it the whole 20 minutes, and I was absolutely amazed by the results–my teeth were several shades whiter.  Zounds, Batman.  I’m counting oil pulling as the first New Thing in my bullet journal.  
How I love my bullet journal.  I record books I’ve read or listened to, exercise sessions, pages written, blog entries :), meds taken, etc.  This month, I’ve added something, an idea I gleaned from–where else–Pinterest.  It’s called A Doodle a Day, and it was simple to map out.  (I always use pencil when I sketch a layout in my bujo, as those in the know refer to it, in case I want to make changes before adding ink, markers, etc.)  Anyway, I traced 31 little squares, using an inexpensive template from the craft store, and will fill each one with a small drawing.  I’ll be posting pictures soon, here and on Facebook, so keep an eye out.
I’ve been listening to lots of books, and reading, too.  Words in, words out.
That’s about it for Tuesday, my friends.  Thanks for hanging out with me.