Apartment Life #342/ Life Update

 

This is a 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 25 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 25 years here in a weekly blog post.

On Sunday night around midnight two people that live at the end of the building across from me were fighting really bad. They were screaming at each other, slamming the door and it went on for a while. The next morning around 10am, I saw these two police cars out front of my building and when I went back in my courtyard, I watched 4 police officers come out of the apartment that had been fighting the night before. I'm actually surprised the people that live next door to them didn't call the police that night. There are two police cars in this picture. One was actually parked the right way by the sidewalk and you can barely see it. One just parked in the street.

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I got my A1C results back this week. 3 months ago it was 10.1 and now it's 8.5. My doctor is so pleased that I am really trying this low carb diet and my blood sugar numbers are better too. My blood sugar used to be 350-400 and now it's around 160-180. So I was happy to hear that. 

My blood pressure is still really high though. It's usually around 197/98 and she's already doubled the blood pressure medication I'm on and this week started me on a Beta Blocker. Hopefully that will help. I had to buy a blood pressure cuff so I can keep track of it because she's worried it's so high. 

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Falcor is back to his old self and I'm still trying to keep him from bouncing all over the place. But at least he's feeling better. 

The high this week was 68F/20C

The low this week was 38F/3C

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

Favorite Song of the Week

 

I heard this song last week and loved it. But the violin really cinched this song for me. This song by Imminence is the first song from this band that I've heard but I really like it. I hope you enjoy it. 

Freebie Friday/Christmas Tree

 

Since I didn't receive any freebies this week, I figured I would show you a picture of my Christmas tree. I put it up this week, because why not. I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving.

Favorite Picture of the Week/ Skywatch

 

We've had some great cloud cover over the past two weeks. Here are a few of the sky pictures that I've taken in that time.

I love it when there's a bunch of clouds in the sky during the day.

I was walking along the sound wall with Falcor one morning until the wall gets smaller and you can see the freeway. I spotted all those clouds and snapped a picture. 

A beautiful blue sky and lots of big puffy clouds sure made the cooler days nice. 

Low Carb Recipe: Chicken Zucchini Patties

 

This is a repost from 2016 but I've made this many times because I love this. And it's low carb which is great. 

 

You will need

1 lb ground chicken

3 TBSP diced Cilantro

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

2 cups grated zucchini

2 diced green onions

1/4 tsp Chili Powder

1/4 tsp Smoked Paprika

salt and pepper to taste

olive oil 2 teaspoons

Add the shredded zucchini to a cheese cloth or clean kitchen towel and twist it to remove most of the moisture from the zucchini. 

Mix together all ingredients and drop by small spoonful's and flatten out into patties, into hot olive oil on pan. Fry on each side for 5 minutes. Serve with guacamole dipping sauce. 

Recipe for Guacamole

2 ripe avocados

1TBSP lemon juice

1 tsp mayonnaise

salt to taste

Peel the avocados and mash them. Add lemon juice, mayo and salt. Mix well. 

I love making these ahead of time and having them as a snack or lunch.

Would you eat this?

Book Review: Fanged and Fabulous by Gemma Cates

 

Book Description

I Wanna Suck Your...

Blood. I'm a vampire. Come on. Then I met Simon and couldn't help thinking: maybe I'm after more than a little nutrition.

He's a runner on a strict diet.

I eat chips and queso as a main course.

He's punctual.

I think five minutes late is on time.

He's an engineer.

I tell stories for a living.

He's human.

I'm not.

One misanthropic vamp (me) meets one commitment-shy human (him) and sparks fly. But humans and vamps don't do relationships...right?

Note from the author: This book contains steamy vampire-human shenanigans, enough naughty words to make someone (not me) blush, and a vampire who secretly (deep, deep, deep down) longs to be loved.

My Review

Becca doesn't like being around people. Most everyone irritates her and oh yeah, she's a vampire. But her friend talks her into coming to a party where she meets Simon. But Simon isn't looking for a relationship since he just got out of one where he wasn't treated well. But they like each other and he doesn't irritate her, so much so that she doesn't mind being around him. 

They end up getting together and she tells him she's a vampire to get his permission to bite him, thinking that she can just wipe his memory of the bite afterwards but that doesn't go as planned and she doesn't know why. 

They end up having a lot in common and she finds herself falling for him but she doesn't think he wants her back the way she wants him. Of course there has to be a little miscommunication in order for them to finally talk and things to work out. 

I liked this. It was a quick, sweet read. 

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars. 

Amazon

Happy Raturday!

 

*All pictures today are courtesy of www.martymousehouse.com*

Apartment Life #341

 

This is a 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 25 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 25 years here in a weekly blog post.

On Monday morning Falcor had hurt his back by jumping off the couch or my bed. He was in obvious pain and I didn't know if he had a broken rib or something so we took him into the Veterinarian's office right away. He's fine, he just pulled a muscle in his shoulder and back by leaping off the bed or the couch. He's 8 years old and even though he still has lot's of energy, his old bones and muscles aren't up to all that jumping and leaping he does. So they gave me some pain meds, told us to keep him calm and don't let him jump on anything for a week. We went to VCA Animal Hospital, they were so good with him. The vet even called me the next day to ask how he was doing.

The pain meds really helped and he was so much better the next morning. But I had to keep him off all the furniture all week so he wasn't doing any jumping up or down and that was a full time job.  A couple of times he jumped up on the couch and I would pick his bed up and sit it next to him, he would crawl into it and I would pick the bed up with him in it and set him on the floor. He had his own elevator service a few times. I didn't want to pick him up and hurt him so I did it like that. But he quickly learned not to jump on anything for the most part even though he was feeling better. I kept a bed in the living room during the day for him to sleep on when the pain meds kicked in and he got sleepy and then took the bed back in the bedroom for him to sleep in at night. He's used to laying on the couch or the chair and I didn't want him jumping up on anything. It was hard. Poor baby.

That's also the reason I didn't get around to leaving many comments on other blogs this week. I need to catch up on that now.

But he's much better now as you can see here. One of the dogs that run around off leash all the time came running up to him and they started playing a couple of days ago. 

Update: I got a call from the vet yesterday and she told me that based on the radiology reports he had a slipped disc in his neck that was causing the pain. She said he also has IVDD, or Intervertebral Disc Disease and so I need to keep him from doing too much jumping and call her right away if he seems in pain or has trouble walking. But hopefully he'll be fine for a long time and won't have anymore pain as long as he doesn't slip a disc again. Something I'll have to watch for from now on.

Some of you might remember that I've said I have Agoraphobia and Social Anxiety. So getting in a car and going to the vets office was a bit difficult for me and my daughter actually went with me because this was only the second time I've been in a car away from my apartment complex in the past 10 years or more. But I went and got through it for Falcor. 

That car furthest away at the top of the picture is a cop car. The police were around my complex and across the street again this week. I saw 2 more police cars go into the alley behind the apartment complex directly across from me and this police car was out by the street. They were there for a long time. I also saw a police car parked in front of my building that night but because it was night time I didn't get a picture with my phone. 

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On Wednesday night drug dealer started making weird remarks to my daughter about how they should get a room together, they should go out ect. This man is 50 years old and my daughter is 31. Later that night he had the balls to come to my door and ask her if she wanted him to tuck her in. 

So the next morning I saw him outside and this was the conversation.

Me: Hey, do me a favor and stay away from my daughter. 
Drug Dealer: Your daughter? What did I do to your daughter?

Me: She's not interested. 

Drug Dealer; Interested in what?

Me: She's not interested in you. You're too old. You're old enough to be her father. 

Drug Dealer: *Stares blankly at me because he's high as hell* I don't know...

Me: Look, I know what went on last night. Stay the #uck away from my daughter and my door!

Then I turned around and walked away and he stumbled back to his door. 

I'm not gonna put up with this nasty old man making snide comments to my kid. I still have no idea if he's actually getting evicted or not. 

The high this week was 64F/17C

The low this week was 36F/2C

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

Favorite Song of the Week

 

I've been a fan of Coheed and Cambria for many years. The lead singer has a unique voice but I had to share this song since I love it so much. I hope you like it too.

Freebie Friday!

 

Welcome to another weekly Freebie Friday post, 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:

I won a $25 Ulta gift card from Batiste Nation. 

I bought two bottles of body wash that smell so good. Ulta has some really good products. 

Did you receive any freebies or wins this week?

Favorite Picture of the Week

 

This time of year brings a lot of dark clouds and overcast days. Not that I'm complaining at all. I love  days like this. We didn't get any rain from any of these clouds.

That cloud formation was a lot bigger than it looks.

This was taken at noon and it was so dark. 

Low Carb Recipe: Cauliflower Toast

 

This is a repost from 2017 but I've changed it a little so I thought I would share it again since I've been eating this to stay low carb.

So this recipe was pretty simple but like with most recipes, I changed it to suit my taste. 

What you'll need:

2 cauliflower florets

2 eggs, divided

1/2 an avocado 

1 tsp. lemon juice

pepper to taste

McCormick Grill Mates Chipotle and Garlic seasoning

McCormick Roasted Garlic and Herb seasoning

2 TBSP oil

1 Tsp. butter

pinch of season salt

Pinch of salt for guacamole

1 tsp. mayonnaise

What to do: 

Grate the cauliflower add one egg, a pinch of salt, other seasonings, and pepper. Stir until mixed well. 

Heat oil and butter in a pan and add cauliflower mixture to hot pan. Shape into thin patty. Fry on first side for about 4 minutes or until golden brown. Flip and fry for 4 more minutes. 

In a small bowl add avocado, lemon juice, pinch of salt and mayo. Mash avocado and mix well. 

When cauliflower is done, fry 1 egg in the hot pan. 

Add avocado mixture on top of cauliflower patty and fried egg on top of avocado. 

It was an interesting idea but you have to make sure to season that cauliflower really good other wise it's pretty bland. That's why I added a couple of seasonings from the first time I posted this recipe a few years ago. I've made it a few times and it's not bad.

Would you try this?

Product Review: Daily Goodie Box- November

 

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?

Mastiqe - Mastiqe Peppermint Gum- I liked this sugar free gum. I've been buying sugar free gum to chew on my walks with Falcor since diabetes gives me dry mouth all the time. I liked this gun, it has a good flavor but the flavor isn't too strong. I liked this gum and would buy it again. 

Lil Bucks - Clusterbucks Superfood Snacks- I really liked these a lot. They were snickerdoodle flavored and they tasted great. They were crunchy and had a great taste to them. They reminded me of granola. 

Heat Holders - Thermal Hats- If you like beanies for the Winter this one is so nice and warm. It has a fur-like material on the inside that is so soft and will really keep your head warm. 

Zolli Candy - Zollipops Halloween Bags- These Zollipops are Keto friendly and sugar free which is good for me since I'm diabetic. I love getting these Zollipop candies since I can eat them. They taste great and have great flavors. 

Ellas Flats - All Seed Savory Crisps- I was not a fan of these seed crisps but my daughter liked them and she ate them. She really liked them and said she would buy these if she saw them in the store. 

I.E Green Tea - Organic Liquid Tea Packets- These have some great flavors but I like my tea to have some caffeine in it. These are not bad if you liked green tea but it's not really my cup of tea. You see what I did there?

Owl in a Towel - Balsam Fir Hand Cream- I was seriously on the fence about this hand cream when I first tried it because of the scent. It's an Evergreen/Balsam Fir scented hand cream. I thought the scent was a bit strange at first but the scent diffuses out after rubbing it into you hands and after a while I didn't smell it as strongly. But the best part is the hand cream is really good and helped soothe my dry skin. So even though I don't necessarily like the scent as much as I would like, the hand cream itself is really good. 

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!

 

*All pictures this week courtesy of martymousehouse.com*

Apartment Life #340

 

This is a 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 25 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 25 years here in a weekly blog post.

The guy right across from me has had hella traffic at his door lately. He doesn't usually let the people into his apartment like drug dealer does so I've been seeing the drug deals going down right out in the open in front of his door.

They stay for a few seconds or a minute and then they leave after getting something from him.

And then drug dealer was at his door for a few minutes too. 

Unbelievably, it's been mostly quiet around here this week. 

The high this week was 59F/15C

The low this week was 38F/3C

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

Favorite Song of the Week

 

This is a new band for me but Hammer King has a great sound, the lead singer voice is something else. This video is all kinds of creepy goodness too. I hope you enjoy.

Freebie Friday!

 

Welcome to another weekly Freebie Friday post, 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:

6 perfume samples. 

A sample of Lancôme Genefique Youth Acetifying Serum.

I like everything I received this week. 

Did you receive any freebies this week?

Book Review: Alien Commander's Mate by Ava Ross

Book Description

An alien warrior has made me an offer I can’t refuse. In exchange, he can do what wants with me for one week.

I want a child, but that’s impossible now that Earth men are sterile. Then a ping from a distant planet reaches us. Aliens are real, and they’re interested in getting to know Earth women better. The Xilans fall into an insatiable urge once every three years, called the Slaking, and there aren’t enough females to give them what they need.

Like many Earth women, I sign up. For one week, I’ll make an alien happy and in exchange, I get a child. As long as I keep my heart of out of the equation, things should go fine, right? But when an intergalactic war erupts, we must fight for our very survival.

Alien Commander’s Mate is Book 1 in the Fated Mates of the Xilan Warrior Series. This book offers aliens who look and act alien, heat, and a guaranteed happily ever after.

My Review

Lydia signs up to be with an alien for a week so she can get pregnant and have the baby she's always wanted but can't with a human male because they are all sterile now. She is tested to make sure she is healthy enough to have a child and be with one of the aliens. She is reassured that all the aliens have been vetted and will treat her well and not hurt her which eases her mind a bit. While it was a bit weird to have to stand in a room with a bunch of alien males and wait for one to pick a female, it was also kinda hot. Especially since the alien who picked her is big, blue with a tail and horns. I only wish we had a whole face on the cover because I wanted to see those horns. I really dislike these decapitated torso pictures. I want to see the face. 

Gorok is the commander of a ship and after having a bit of a battle with other aliens, he and his crew go to a space station where they will pick a human female to be with for a week. A lot of females on their planet were killed in a war and there aren't enough of them now. But right as Gorok and Lydia are getting to know each other, the space station they are on is attacked by other aliens and if they capture Lydia, it won't be a good time for her. The aliens attacking the station are giant spider-like aliens that wanted to implant their egg sacks in her. Sounds like a nightmare to me. 

It was fun to watch Gorok and Lydia get to know one another better and fall for each other as they fight for their lives.

I had so much fun with this story. There's a droid and a cat like animal called a catrush both make this story so much fun. 

I give this book 5 out of 5 stars. 

Amazon

Low Carb Recipe: Banana Pancakes

 

You will need: 

1 large ripe banana

2 eggs

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

butter or oil or fry the pancakes in

Mix together all ingredients until smooth. Heat a little bit of oil or butter in a nonstick pan. Pour about half a cup of mixture into a hot pan and let cook on first side before turning to cook on other side. I ate them with a little butter but you can add whatever you want to them. They were good.

Have you tried this?

Book Review: Unwanted Mate by Jade Marshall

 

Book Description

Sapphire

Every shifter longs to find their fated mate. It's one of the greatest blessings the Goddess can ever give to a shifter. But sometimes even the Goddess can get it wrong. When your mate is your childhood bully, there must be a mistake.

Marc

I started to believe I would never find my fated mate and had already accepted it as fact. Then I found her. But the woman I want to claim is a grown-up version of a girl I tortured when we were children. I wish I could go back and change things but the past is set in stone. Is there any way for me to make this right?

My Review

When Sapphire goes back to her pack, she is hoping to have some quiet time and just get a long nicely with everyone. She, like other wolves hope to find their fated mate but when she runs into her old bully, Marc and realizes that he is her mate...she has a choice to make. She can either forgive him for how he treated her when they were kids or she can refuse him as a mate. If she refuses him as a mate, there's no telling whether or not she will find another fated mate. It's happened before but the odds aren't good. 

At first she is just mad and is still hurt because of the way he treated her when they were kids. But after giving him a chance to explain himself and realizing that they both felt something for each other even as kids, she agrees to get to know him better before giving him her choice. 

I can understand not being able to believe that the bully who was so terrible to you years before is now your fated mate and having to come to terms with that. I think I might have said no right away in that predicament. But fated mates are a blessing from the Goddess so she has to consider that as well. I liked watching these two try to get to know each other better and explain away how they treated each other as kids and why. I'm glad she at least gave him a chance to explain things. This was a fun, quick read. 

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars. 

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

Amazon

Happy Raturday!

 

*All pictures today are courtesy of martymousehouse.com*

Apartment Life #339

 

This is a 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 25 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 25 years here in a weekly blog post.

This week the police were at the end of the street for some reason. I see them going to the apartment complex next to us all the time. 

So this is the overflow drain for my building. When the main line for my building backs up, the top on this will pop off and the excess sewer water will drain right out of this on to the sidewalk and surrounding grounds. 

The picture didn't really come out great so here's a video to better show you what was happening. Yes, that's toilet paper on the ground by the pipe. This is raw sewage and if you've been a reader for a while, you know this isn't the first time this has happened. 

Thankfully, maintenance did come out the next day and clear the drain so it stopped leaking. But they didn't clean up any of what came out of the drain but they almost never do. They let it dry up and blow away in the wind or wash away the next time it rains. 

---

Out by where the homeless people congregate and sleep, they had pulled two couches from the trash cans and had been sleeping and sitting on them for a few days. On Monday I noticed that someone had set fire to them. 

I didn't see the fire dept out here and there was no signs of water so I think it just burned until it went out. 

Even the wall behind it is singed. There was nothing left of the couches but the frames. I wonder if it was intentionally set or if one of the homeless people were sitting here hitting the crack pipe and accidentally set the couches on fire. I had seen a couple of different people passed out on the couches after doing drugs so it's possible it was an accident.

---

I'm sorry I didn't get around to anyone's blog for a few days. My internet and phone went out and it took a few days and several phone calls before someone finally came out and fixed it. They were supposed to be here the first day I called but never showed up. 

The high this week was 79F/26C

The low this week was 41F/5C

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

Favorite Song of the Week!

 

I am loving this song by Nevertel this week. I hope you enjoy it too. 

Freebie Friday!

 

Welcome to another weekly Freebie Friday post, 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:

Two samples of TruSkin vitamin C serum. 

Samples of a foundation. 

Sample of Estee lauder night repair cream. 

I liked all the samples I received. 

Did you receive any freebies this week?