Freebie Friday!

 

Welcome to another edition of Freebie Friday, where I tell you what free samples and full sized products I received in the mail and how you can get them too. Someone asked me why I do a "Freebie Friday" each week, so I'll tell you.

A while back I listed all the free samples and wins that I had received that previous year and so many people didn't believe that I could have gotten so many free things. So I decided to prove it by taking a picture every week and sharing the sites that I found the links to the freebies at. So now you too can get great free samples coming to your mailbox each week.

  You can find links to great samples at Hey It's Free and Freebie Shark.

This week I received: 

A postcard with wildflower seeds in it. You plant the card and get flowers. 

A sample of Degree dry spray deodorant. 

3 samples of Phazix gel. 

The Phazix gel makes it easier to swallow pills if you're having a problem. Ken was so I got the samples for him to try. 

I like the deodorant and will plant the wild flower card next Spring. 

Did you receive any freebies this week?

Apartment Life #215

 

This is a new weekly blog post that I'm calling Apartment Hell  Life. I've mentioned a few times some of the crazy things that go on in and around my apartment complex in the past 21 years that we've lived here and people keep telling me I should write a book. But instead of a book, I've decided to share the crazy things that have happened in and around my apartment complex in the last 21 years here in a weekly blog post.

This week I saw a police car near the sound wall and when I stepped outside I saw that white car behind it pull up and it was a guy wearing a vest with LVPD logo on the back and a police shield hanging from his neck on a chair. So I'm thinking he might have been a detective. Right directly across from the police car is the alley for the apartment complex across the street from me and there were at least 7 police cars over there for hours. I have no clue what happened. It wouldn't surprise me if it were drug related though because there's a lot of activity that goes on over there. People actually pull up in their cars, honk their horn and someone will run out and take money from them, run back in an apartment and run back out and give the person in the car something and then they drive off. All day long. 

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We heard a gunshot at 5:30am Thursday morning. There had been a party going on at 2am across the street when I took the dog for a walk so it was probably from them. I'm jut glad I wasn't outside when it happened.

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Ken completed his last radiation treatment on Monday. They gave him a certificate and let him keep the plastic mask that fit over his head and kept his head still. When he went in to see his Oncologist on Thursday the doctor admitted him into the hospital because he's lost another 20lbs in the last month and he's not steady on his feet so she wanted to give him some supplements through the IV. He got out on Friday and met with his doctors and an in home hospice team. Ken has decided not to continue with anymore chemo or radiation because the cancer has spread to his pancreas and spine and there's nothing more they can do. So we met with the in home hospice nurse who came out and set everything up for us. It's not the news I was hoping for but we're going to be able to be there for him right here at home for as long as he has left. 

So that's it for this week's Apartment Hell  Life! Be sure to come back next week for more.

Freebie Friday!

 

Welcome to another edition of Freebie Friday, where I tell you what free samples and full sized products I received in the mail and how you can get them too. Someone asked me why I do a "Freebie Friday" each week, so I'll tell you.

A while back I listed all the free samples and wins that I had received that previous year and so many people didn't believe that I could have gotten so many free things. So I decided to prove it by taking a picture every week and sharing the sites that I found the links to the freebies at. So now you too can get great free samples coming to your mailbox each week.

  You can find links to great samples at Hey It's Free and Freebie Shark.

This week I received: 

Degree dry spray for men. 

Garnier Sleek Shot sample. 

Oxi Clean detergent sample. 

Ken loves the dry deodorant sprays for using in his shoes. lol 

I love that Sleek Shot. I've used it before and you mix it with shampoo and it leaves your hair so silky and shiny. 

I don't usually use powdered clothes soap but they usually work well so we'll see. 

I also cashed out on a game and got a $2 Amazon gift card from Lucky Pusher. My daughter gave me her old cell phone and told me to download some games so we were playing the same one. We played Lucky Pusher and when you racked up enough points, you can cash out for a $2 gift card. It's not much but at least no you know they really will send out the gift card. lol 

Did you receive any freebies this week?

Review: Daily Goodie Box- August

 

The Daily Goodie Box has been around since about July of 2016. I signed up for an account right after I heard about them. They are 100% free, you don't even have to pay for shipping. And for a free box it's a nice sampler box of products.

What was in the box?

Coco Luxe - Hydration-  I love coconut water and I've had this before and it's so good. If you've ever cracked open a fresh coconut and drank the coconut water inside, then you know what this will taste like. This tastes like it just came out of a fresh coconut. 

Jada Spices - Vegan Chicken Salt-  I've used this spice blend on chicken, vegetables and on pork chops and I really like it. It might say chicken salt but it goes well with all kinds of meats and vegetables. 

Nature Nut - Shampoo- The first thing I noticed about this shampoo was the strong scent. The scent smells like a really strong men's cologne and when I used it on my hair, my hair smelled really strongly of that scent for hours. I think this would be great for men but it's not a scent that I like even though the shampoo does clean my hair really well. 

Wholeberry - Passion Fruit Snack Rounds- These were so good! I love passion fruit and dried passion fruit snacks have such a great taste to them. 

Rowdy Bar - Chocolate Coconut Cashew- My husband ate this because I don't like protein bars but he liked it and said it had a really good taste to it. 

We Are Rugged Beauty - Long Lasting Nail Polish- I received a color called french Beige and it's  very light pink. I like the color and it wears really nicely. I've had it on for 3 days and it hasn't even chipped yet. 

Rejuva Minerals - Sheer Tinted Moisturizer- I love a nice tinted moisturizer and this one has a slight tint to it. Which is nice to wear all by itself. The moisturizer is nice and blends into my skin well. 

NEATsheets - 4-Count Sample Pack- Now these are interesting. They're like large shirt sized napkins with adhesive tabs that you can stick to your shirt. That way if you're eating something messy, you can make sure to keep your shirt clean. 

All they ask you to do is try the products and leave reviews for the products you got in order to be eligible for more Free Goodie Boxes. As you guys already know, I'm a fan of all these types of boxes. I love all the different subscription boxes and it's really nice to be able to try new to me products for free. This is a great box to try for.

Oh and one more thing, if you visit their FB Page, they give away Goodie Boxes to people who interact with their posts. So if you've tried before and weren't able to get a Goodie Box, there's even more ways to get one now.

Daily Goodie Box. It's more than just Free Samples!

Have you signed up? Have you received one of these boxes?

I'm a fan of subscription boxes and love trying new products for free so this was a huge hit with me. New products+free box = Fabulous!

Disclosure: I was given and free box in exchange for a review but all opinions are my own.

Happy Raturday!

 

*Picture courtesy of me*

"Rawr, I'm tougher than a dinosaur"

*Picture courtesy of me*

"Are you looking at my soft fur? You want to pet me, don't you?"

*Picture courtesy of martymousehouse.com*

Apartment Life #214

This is a new weekly blog post that I'm calling Apartment Hell  Life. I've mentioned a few times some of the crazy things that go on in and around my apartment complex in the past 21 years that we've lived here and people keep telling me I should write a book. But instead of a book, I've decided to share the crazy things that have happened in and around my apartment complex in the last 21 years here in a weekly blog post.

There was a domestic dispute across the street this week and several police cars showed up for it. There was a lot of yelling and screaming going on between the two people before and after the police showed up but I didn't see anyone arrested.

So that's it for this week's Apartment Hell  Life! Be sure to come back next week for more.

Freebie Friday!

Welcome to another edition of Freebie Friday, where I tell you what free samples and full sized products I received in the mail and how you can get them too. Someone asked me why I do a "Freebie Friday" each week, so I'll tell you.

A while back I listed all the free samples and wins that I had received that previous year and so many people didn't believe that I could have gotten so many free things. So I decided to prove it by taking a picture every week and sharing the sites that I found the links to the freebies at. So now you too can get great free samples coming to your mailbox each week.

  You can find links to great samples at Hey It's Free and Freebie Shark.

This week I received a full size bag of peanuts from a Twitter promotion. 

Did you receive any freebies?

Happy Raturday!

*Picture courtesy of martymousehouse.com*

*Picture courtesy of martymousehouse.com*

*Picture courtesy of martymousehouse.com*

*Picture courtesy of martymousehouse.com*

Apartment Life #213

This is a new weekly blog post that I'm calling Apartment Hell  Life. I've mentioned a few times some of the crazy things that go on in and around my apartment complex in the past 21 years that we've lived here and people keep telling me I should write a book. But instead of a book, I've decided to share the crazy things that have happened in and around my apartment complex in the last 21 years here in a weekly blog post.

I finally found out who is flying the drone up and down my street. You can see the white drone sitting on the end of the little fence there. He stalks people with this thing at night. it's loud so I know when it's following me down the street. I see him following other people with it down the street when they are walking around too. He likes to hover right above peoples heads when they are outside.

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Life Update: 

Everything is going as planned. Ken is done with his first week of radiation treatments. One more week to go. 

Here's Ken and our daughter waiting at the radiologists office for him to get his treatment.

So that's it for this week's Apartment Hell  Life! Be sure to come back next week for more.

Freebie Friday!

Welcome to another edition of Freebie Friday, where I tell you what free samples and full sized products I received in the mail and how you can get them too. Someone asked me why I do a "Freebie Friday" each week, so I'll tell you.

A while back I listed all the free samples and wins that I had received that previous year and so many people didn't believe that I could have gotten so many free things. So I decided to prove it by taking a picture every week and sharing the sites that I found the links to the freebies at. So now you too can get great free samples coming to your mailbox each week.

  You can find links to great samples at Hey It's Free and Freebie Shark.

I received: A box from PinchMe. 

A Nexcare Bandaid. 

Biosteel electrolyte Drink mix. 

Yardley Bodywash. 

The bodywash samples smell so good. I loved those. I love that Nexcare sends out bandaids all the time. I can always use more bandaids. The drink mix was not good. 

Did you get any freebies this week?

Reiew: Brax by Athena Storm

Book Description

I am Brax the Unstoppable!

I crack the heads of my enemies in combat.

And now I do dishes…

I’ve been given a chance to be the warrior I was always meant to be.

To fight for honor and glory and do all the warrior-y things that champion gladiators dream about doing when they’re children.

But there’s just one problem.

In order to do get this chance, I must take a mate.

At first I hate the idea. I am an alien savage. A brute. I answer to no one.

But then I meet Bonn Ventara. And she becomes my world.

At first I was an alien gladiator.

Now…I’ll be glad to mate her.

She’s my fated one. She possesses my soul as much as I need to claim hers.

My thoughts revolve around protecting her.

Loving her, forever.

All my glory I bring now belongs to this cute and tiny human woman.

She belongs to me. Even if she doesn’t know it yet.

Together we’ll face an adventure worthy of story and song as we save the galaxy.

But first, I’ll need her help to tackle the most insidious enemy of all…

Housework.

My Review

Brax is like a wrestling star but a warrior too. He's called upon to be the first in a group of warriors for the Coalition against the Alliance. He's bored with the fighting ring so he jumps at the chance. 

Bonn is a companion. She was raised in the academy where they are instructed on how to be the perfect companion. They are then selected and sent off to someone. 

This book starts off really rocky for me because of the whole companion/slave thing. I didn't like that, especially since her last thought before meeting Brax is she hoped he treated her well. But I kept reading, hoping that this story would be alright. Brax didn't want a companion but he was given one anyway and he did seem to like her when he first saw her. She was a lot different than what I thought she would be. I was expecting some shy, mousy girl that did whatever he wanted and got the complete opposite. 

It was a lot of fun to watch them get to know one another because they're both really funny. I expected Brax to be a bit of a bossy caveman but he was gentle and when he was wrong about something, he admitted it and changed. I loved that about him. 

This is the first book that I've read by this author but I didn't feel like I was missing much while I read this book. I'm sure there are things about this series and universe that would be more clear had I read some of the other books but I was able to read this one just fine and understand what was going on. 

When Brax goes on his first mission, he decides to take Bonn with him and what they found was not good. They get into some highly dangerous situations on this mission and when they think the other is dead, they realize just how much they mean to one another. This was a fun read and I plan on going back and reading more of this series. 

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars. 

Review: Bound by Shadows (previously published as The Bear Who Loved Me) by Kathy Lyons

Book Description

Between singlehandedly running her bakery and raising her teenaged nephew, Becca Weitz thought she had a decent grip on "normal." Then her nephew vanishes, and life as she's known it changes forever. Local legends are true: bear shifters exist . . . and her nephew is part of their clan. As is Carl Carman, the sexy, larger-than-life man who has sworn to find her nephew-and the other young shifters who've gone missing.

As the leader of his clan, Carl is surrounded by enemies. He's learned the hard way that keeping a firm leash on his inner beast is key to survival, though his feelings for Becca test his legendary control. Then danger stalks too close, and Carl realizes he must unleash the raging, primal force within to protect everything he holds dear. But can Becca trust his grizzly side with her life-and her heart?

My Review

Becca is raising her nephew and owns a bakery. Things are going alright until her nephew, Theo ends up missing. She melts down a little bit not knowing what to do until Carl walks in her bakery. 

Carl is a bear shifter and the leader of his bear clan. He's been watching Theo because he knows the boy is a bear shifter from his clan. So he tries to tell Becca about shifters but she isn't having any of it. 

Young shifters are going missing and Carl wants to find out what's happening to them. So when he tells Becca what he is and she doesn't believe him, he still wants to help so he believes he has no other choice but to kidnap her and bring her home so he can show her the truth about him and his clan. 

The more time Becca and Carl spend together the more they seem to fall for one another. But Carl is the alpha of his clan and Becca is a human and he knows that she would never fully be accepted as the alpha's mate because of that. Plus he's seen how his brother who can't shift has been treated by everyone and doesn't want Becca to be treated badly. 

While they are getting to know one another and getting closer, there's also the search on for the missing kids. When Becca finds herself in danger, I could only hold my breath and hope that Carl found her in time. 

This book was a mix of fun, danger, sadness and action as well as a really well done romance. I very much enjoyed this book and can't wait to read the next one. 

I give this book 5 out of 5 stars. 

Disclosure: I was given a free ARC of this book via NetGalley but all thoughts and opinions are my own. 

Review: Something Shifter This Way Comes by Josie Walker

Book Description

What if her dream job is really a nightmare?

I shouldn’t have taken a job I knew nothing about, but I was desperate. My new boss was sinfully hot, and did I mention he’s a billionaire? Too bad he’s also rude and domineering! I tried to ignore my feelings, I wasn’t looking for a relationship... and then he had to go and save my life. He warned me falling in love with him was dangerous, but I might not be able to stop myself. Will I discover the truth about my mysterious employer before it’s too late? (A sexy, fast-paced paranormal romance)

My Review 

Eric Steele is a billionaire and has an ad for a live in assistant so there are a lot of people that come for the job but when he abruptly stops the interviews and sends people home, Crystal is at the end of her rope and barges into his office pleading for the job. To her astonishment she gets the job but he boss is a grumpy jerk. Still, she's up to her ears in debt and has no money so she's happy for the job. 

Crystal's jobs around the mansion seem to be cooking while the cook is on vacation, re-organizing the kitchen pantry, getting the shopping done and any other list of things that Eric gives her. When she gets into an accident on the way back from the market and Eric comes to her rescue, I thought that his gruff behavior would tone down a bit but it doesn't. 

Eric had weird rules and his mansion had murals of death and destruction. At first Crystal thought the place had just been decorated in some sort of gothic manor until weird things started happening and she saw what he was hiding behind the door that he told her to stay away from. I knew this story was going to have some kind of paranormal twist because he told her to stay in her room between the hours of 10pm and 8am. But I had no idea what the paranormal twist would be. I just know that whatever I had been thinking of, I was way off, way off. I really liked the twist that this book came with but it ended kinda quickly, it seemed rushed after the story and sexual tension had built so slowly. I would be interested in reading the next book though because I'm definitely interested to see what else happens with these characters. 

I give this book 3 out of 5 stars. 

Happy Raturday!

*Picture courtesy of www.martymousehouse.com*

Welcome to my weekly blog post I call, Raturday! I've seen Caturday and while that's really cute, I think the rats needs some photo time so everyone can see how cute these little animals are. I've gotten permission from the owners of the photo's to share their pictures on my blog. So get ready to smile because these are cute. 

*Picture courtesy of www.martymousehouse.com*

*Picture courtesy of www.martymousehouse.com*

Apartment Life #212

This is a new weekly blog post that I'm calling Apartment Hell  Life. I've mentioned a few times some of the crazy things that go on in and around my apartment complex in the past 21 years that we've lived here and people keep telling me I should write a book. But instead of a book, I've decided to share the crazy things that have happened in and around my apartment complex in the last 21 years here in a weekly blog post.

On Tuesday I opened my door to take Falcor out an there were 4 police officers at the apartment right across from me. So when I went outside I took a picture of the cop cars near the sound wall. I don't know what they were talking to the guy that lives there for but they stayed for about 20 minutes and then left. The guy is quiet most times so I have no idea what the police were there for. 

On Friday night I took the dog for a walk at 4am and there was some guy banging on the drug dealers door 4 doors down from me. Ken got up and stood outside to make sure I was alright because this guy started banging on a bunch of the doors and woke a bunch of people up. When the drug dealers wouldn't answer their door, he started yelling that he was going to kill them. On his way out he stopped in front of Ken and just stood there staring at him for a second. He passed me on the sidewalk and when he was just a few feet from me he started screaming at no one in particular and I couldn't make out what he was saying. 

That same night someone broke into a bunch of the mailboxes for our apartment complex. Our neighbor came over in the morning and told us to go check our mailbox to make sure it wasn't one of the ones that were broken into. Thankfully it wasn't. I told you guys a few years ago that my mailbox had gotten messed up and it's really hard to open and close and I put in a work order for the usps to fix it. They never did even though I called several times so now I'm wondering how long it will take for this to get fixed. 

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Life Update: 

Ken went to have eye surgery on Monday. They said it could be a couple of things but wouldn't know for sure until they got int here. He came through the surgery fine. On Tuesday he went back in for a check up and was told the bad news. It was retinitis and the surgery didn't work. There's nothing more they can do for that and so he's permanently blind in his right eye. Not good news this week but he's doing alright. I just feel bad because so much more keeps getting piled on him all the time it seems. He starts radiation treatments on Monday for the 11 brain lesions he has. He goes 5 days a week for 2 weeks. 

*Ken with his eye patch after surgery.*

One very nice thing that happened this week though was my daughter mentioned on her fb page that I was getting the run around with the doctor and the DME place to get Ken a shower chair. I've been waiting 3 months for them to deliver it and was just going to buy one at this point. One of my daughter's old teachers from high school saw her post and bought this shower chair and brought it over to us. I thought that was so nice of him. 

So that's it for this week's Apartment Hell  Life! Be sure to come back next week for more.

Freebie Friday!

Welcome to another edition of Freebie Friday, where I tell you what free samples and full sized products I received in the mail and how you can get them too. Someone asked me why I do a "Freebie Friday" each week, so I'll tell you.

A while back I listed all the free samples and wins that I had received that previous year and so many people didn't believe that I could have gotten so many free things. So I decided to prove it by taking a picture every week and sharing the sites that I found the links to the freebies at. So now you too can get great free samples coming to your mailbox each week.

  You can find links to great samples at Hey It's Free and Freebie Shark.

I received a free Wok from the Spark Reviewer Program. 

It's been a while since I had a Wok but I really like how deep this one is. It's big too, a really nice size. I can get a lot of vegetables i this one. 

I don't have a link for the Spark Reviewer Program because it's an invite only program. 

Did you receive any freebies this week?

Review: Walmart Beauty Box

The Walmart Beauty box is a subscription box that comes out 4 times a year. You sign up for it and it comes automatically every 3 months. These boxes are free and you just pay $5 for shipping.

What was in this box?

Hello charcoal toothbrush. 

Hello toothpaste. 

Calm drink mix. 

Head and Shoulders conditioner. 

NYX lip oil. 

Biore facial cleanser. 

I've received the Calm drink powder before and I didn't like it plus it did nothing, so in the trash it went. I can always use a new toothbrush and this one has activated charcoal built right in the bristles which is interesting. It had no taste so why not. The toothpaste is one that I've tried before and liked so that's a plus. 

My favorite things though are the lip oil which is more like a slightly tinted lip gloss, the conditioner which makes my hair really soft and the Biore cleanser which works great and smells really good. These boxes have either been a hit or miss for me most times but this one was a good one. They said they won't be sending a Summer box because they are re-doing the boxes to make them better and will have it out after that. But for $5 this was a good box. 

Did you receive this box?

Review: Alpha Turned by KB Alan

Book Description

Not all men are bad…

Strong, independent, and happy on her own, Hillary has grown from the naïve person she was four years ago after a brutal rape turned her into a werewolf. The normal life she’s made for herself is only upset once a month when the moon calls to her and she has an uncontrollable urge to turn furry and chase small creatures. And she doesn’t need a man for that. Until she finally meets another werewolf, this one a gorgeous, sexy guy who is determined to change her mind about one furry man in particular–him.

No, some men are very, very good…

The minute Zach scents Hillary he knows she’s the mate he’s been searching for. Though both the wolf and the man are itching to claim her, first he has to convince her that he’s one of the good guys, and that there are certain benefits to being an alpha werewolf. And there’s no better way of making Hillary see that, than giving her himself—body, mind, and soul.

My Review

Hillary had thought her boyfriend was just taking her home to meet his family but once there things took a violent turn. She was assaulted by not just her boyfriend but some of his family members as well. She was bitten and turned into a werewolf against her will and when she didn't shift, she was left outside to die. But she did shift after everyone had left and now years later she's making furniture in a small town and holding her own. 

Aaron Jenner orders a custom table from Hillary for his brother and when he comes to her shop to take a look at it, she can smell right away that he's a werewolf and is instantly angry and fearful. He can smell what she is as well but is confused by her reaction. They agree to meet somewhere else to talk but when they meet they are both ready to change forms and run...or fight if necessary. It doesn't take long for Aaron to figure out what happened to her and figure out why she's so wary and isn't part of a pack. 

Aaron goes back to his alpha who is also his brother and tells him about her. But as soon as Zach smells her scent on his brother, he knows that Hillary is his mate and that changes the entire situation. Aaron and his mate are so nice and try to answer all of her questions and make her feel safe with them before meeting other pack members. Zach is sweet, gentle and takes things slow with her even though Hillary can feel the pull of the mate bond right away. It takes only a couple of days of getting to know Zach to know that he's nothing like the monster that turned her. Because he's her mate and she feels it and feels somewhat safe with him they fall into bed pretty quickly. Meeting the pack and starting a life as an alpha packmate is all new territory for Hillary but she does great. 

Then they have to contact the werewolves in charge and let them know what happened to Hillary and how she had been turned. Those in charge make sure to find out what's going on in that pack and make sure the member's of that pack are brought to justice. 

This book was so good. Yes, right from the beginning there's a terrible assault and if that bothers you, then don't read this but the book is really about Hillary and Zach finding each other and making a life together and dealing with the other pack. 

I give this book 5 out of 5 stars. 

Happy Raturday!

*Picture courtesy of martymousehouse.com*

*Picture courtesy of martymousehouse.com*

*Picture courtesy of martymousehouse.com*

Apartment Life #211

This is a new weekly blog post that I'm calling Apartment Hell  Life. I've mentioned a few times some of the crazy things that go on in and around my apartment complex in the past 21 years that we've lived here and people keep telling me I should write a book. But instead of a book, I've decided to share the crazy things that have happened in and around my apartment complex in the last 21 years here in a weekly blog post.

More police cars on my street but it looked like they were just there talking to each other. I didn't see them get out and go anywhere. They were there for about 20 minutes and then they left. The police seem to like to stop in this area to sit and talk. Other than this, it was quiet in my neighborhood. 

-----

Life Update: 

Ken went to the Radiologists office and got fitted for the head mask and they did the CT mapping of his brain so they can start radiation treatments. They told us that it would be everyday for 10 days and then he'd be done with the Radiation on his brain. In a few weeks he does another round of chemo and he'll probably have to stay in the hospital for a few days for that again. On Monday he going to the hospital to have surgery on his right eye. He's blind in that eye because he hit his head when he fell down and blood coagulated in his eye blocking his vision, but the eye doctor is confident that he can clean that out and restore his vision. 

*This is Ken with the mesh mask over his face getting the CT mapping of his brain for radiation.*

I just want to thank all the people who donated to our fundraiser for funds to get him back and forth to all these doctor appointments. We don't have a car so he's taking a taxi or the Paratransit bus back and forth to all of the appointments and we really appreciate the help with paying for all of these rides back and forth. 

So that's it for this week's Apartment Hell  Life! Be sure to come back next week for more.