Happy Pride 2025!

Ricky Shakes

In going through a bunch of old videos I found this one from August of 2006 of Rickster Rick performing Shakespeare, at my request.

The Rocky Statue

Back on April 16th 2008, Marina's high school Spanish class took a field trip to the Philly Art Museum to see the Frida Kahlo exhibit. This was during those blissful two years where I was unemployeed and therefore was able to tag along and help out. The kids were well behaved-ish and seemed to have a great time. Especially buying pretend mustaches in the gift shop and trying them out for photos and posing in front of the Rocky Balboa statue. Aside from being blown away by how massive The Two Fridas was, the only things I really remember from that day was when a group of the girls needed to use the loo before we were allowed to enter. I guess it was timed admittance since we were a school group. Always in need of a peepod break, I led the girls up the steps to the front entrance and explained to the guard that we just need to pop in and use the ladies room and then would go right back out to our group. He gave me some shit about not letting us in until it was our allotted time and I suddenly went in to full-on Mom-mode. When I don't get my way, I tend to walk off in a huff and stew. This time I was indignant and was not going to take no for an answer. I said something to the affect of "Well, these young ladies need to use the bathroom and we are going to do just that whether you like it or not." Then I led them to the restrooms and felt a sense of amazement that I didn't back down. Even the girls were impressed, and that is no small feat. But, I mean, honestly, who refuses children access to a toilet? Ridiculous. Oh and I remember that the foot prints for Rocky at the top of the Art Museum steps were wrong. If it was a real imprint of a shoe, then the word Converse and the shoe size would be reversed, but they weren't. It annoyed me so I stood on them and took a pic of my feet on top. 

(The only girl I remember is the one in green and white up front - her name was Brittany or maybe Brianna and she worked at Lena's Water Ice for a bit.)

Meet Candy

Little Miss Lucy texted me yesterday to share with me a Cotton Candy Dragon she drew. Adorable to the max!

The Magic of Ordinary Things

Sometimes the simplest objects can bring peace to one's state of mind. I love to flip through the pages of magazines and admire home decor ideas. The colours, wallpaper, furnishings, and unique touches that make a room into a place of solace. Seeing this chair online, in my favourite colour, with the cool yet warm, almost institutional green walls, plain standing lamp and side table with a matching green vase sent a feeling of calm warmth straight through me. I am forever daydreaming of my ideal home, someplace quiet and secluded that brings that very same calm sensation the moment one crosses the threshold. 

(photo kidnapped from artfasad)

Open Windows

Next Plane to London - The Rose Garden

Young Love - Tab Hunter

Giving Him Something He Can Feel - En Vogue

Baby I'm a Fool - Melody Gardot

One Mint Julep - Sarah Vaughan

Down Bad - Taylor Swift

Let Go - Frou Frou

Why Do Fools Fall in Love? - Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers

Messy - Lola Young

Joyful Girl - Ani DiFranco

You Send Me - Sam Cooke

These Arms of Mine - Otis Redding

Empty Chairs - Don McLean

It's a Man's Man's Man's World - James Brown

Walk On By - Dionne Warwick

This Guy's in Love With You - Herb Albert

Silver Rings - Matt Berry

Lounge Act - Nirvana

Rein Me In - Sam Fender

Back in the Goodle Days - John Hartford

As It Was - Harry Styles

Can't Smile Without You - Barry Manilow

Get Mine, Get Yours - Christina Aguilera

I Used to Be Somebody - June Carter Cash

Jerusalem - Sinéad O'Connor

Black Metallic - Catherine Wheel

All Around the World - Lisa Stansfield

Part-Time Lover - Stevie Wonder

Goo Goo Much - The Cramps

I Go To Rio - Peter Allen

International Love - Pitbull

Can The Circle Be Unbroken - The Carter Family

Your Woman - White Town

Compared to What - Roberta Flack

Total Entertainment Forever - Father John Misty

Here It Comes Slowly - Noir Désir

Highwayman - The Highwaymen

The Hebrides Op. 26 - Vienna Philharmonic

Move Closer to Your World - Al Ham & the Hillside Singers

- April 2025 Playlist

Frozen Coffee

Earlier this year I came across a recipe on IG for homemade frozen coffee. I do NOT like coffee, even though I was an exceptional barista back in the day, but I do love coffee ice cream, so I felt compelled to try it. And now I have a full-on addiction. It is such a simple recipe.

Equal parts, such as 1 cup or a half cup:

- water (I used filtered room temperature tap but the original recipe calls for hot water {NOT boiled, just hot})

- maple syrup (the real stuff, not Mrs. Butterworth or Aunt Jemima) 

- instant coffee

In a gigantic bowl, if going with 1 cup of each ingredient, use an electric mixer to beat the hell out of it for at least ten minutes. Watch in wonder as a puddle of mud poofs up and goes from dark brown to a coffee and cream colour. Once fully mixed and reaching the top of the bowl, transfer contents to a freezer safe container with a lid and pop it in the freezer overnight. The next day it will have the consistency of soft serve ice cream and be ready to use. Grab an ice cream scoop and toss one or two helpings into a tall glass and top off with phony milk or real if you are one of those people (lol) and dress it up as you see fit. I like to throw in a splash or three of caramel syrup, some chocolate oat milk, plain coconut milk, and sometimes some flavoured oat creamer just to kick up the texture a bit. Deee-lish!

30 seconds in...

Five minutes in...

Ten minutes in...

It's so fluffy!!

Ready to freeze!

Ready to scoop...

Mmm....time to indulge!!

NOTE: It's even better with some whipped coconut cream. And in a Fishs Eddy glass!

With Nana and Grandad

October 5th, 1994 with the sweetest grandparents ever. Who never judged when their eldest granddaughter messed up in life, gained weight, flunked out and had to go to Summer school twice, shaved their head the day before high school graduation, dyed their hair purple, or basically just never lived up to their potential. They always treated me like I was the greatest thing since instant mashed potatoes and never made me feel like they were disappointed that I wasn't girly or boyfriend-less or had loads of ambition and made something out of my life. They were exceptional grandparents and I miss them and I miss feeling so totally accepted and loved.

Release

June 2025 Donations

The Trevor Project

The Trevor Project’s mission is to end suicide among LGBTQ+ young people.

The Trevor Project is here for you, day or night.

The Trevor Project is the leading suicide prevention and crisis intervention nonprofit organization for LGBTQ+ young people. We provide information & support to LGBTQ+ young people 24/7, all year round.

Prepared and Empathetic Crisis Counselors

All of our counselors are trained to support LGBTQ+ young people nationwide who reach out to our service, whether they need a non-judgmental place to talk, are experiencing a crisis, or feeling suicidal.  Throughout training, counselors will cover topics including counseling skills, LGBTQ+ identity, the Trevor Support Model (the
structure of a conversation on our crisis services), and relevant policies & procedures to prepare them to speak with young people in crisis.

The Trevor Project Phone Number: 

(212) 695-8650

According to Trevor research, when LGBTQ+ young people feel accepted by just one adult, their odds of attempting suicide are much lower. Building a world where LGBTQ+ young people see a bright future for themselves will take all of us, but change starts with one person taking action.

Your contribution today will help LGBTQ+ young people who feel alone as they navigate the dark moments of their lives. For them, Trevor’s trained crisis counselors will always be a call, chat, or text away 24/7/365 — listening with compassion and communicating with empathy.

Please join me in the Low Budget Philanthropy movement and help out your community and beyond in the simplest way - donating any amount to whatever charity or organisation that you care about!

Squigs Celebrates Gay Pride Month

When signing up for Finch, it asked me to choose a gender for my new birb, Squiggles. I couldn't decide because they felt kind of genderless to me. So I went with they/them. Since Squigs is non-binary, I decided they needed to look their best this month with a handful of new outfits to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community. HAPPY PRIDE, Y'ALL!!!

Waters Wisdom

Saw this on IG a while back and it's a great reminder that life was NOT better when we were young. It was just different. So get out there and have some stinkin' fun!

Springs End

Another hit out of the park from Vegan Treats!

May 2025 Books

* The Forgotten Door ¹ by Alexander Key - I first read this book back in grade school. It was one of the few that I checked out of the school library and read. I liked to own the books I read, so I could see them like a trophy and also go back to them whenever I wanted. I'm still this way. The Forgotten Door is still a good story, all these years later.

The Clue in the Old Album by Carolyn Keene - This one was probably my least favourite of the Nancy Drews by Mildred Wirt Benson. It was a so-so story line but it involved a group of travelers, most of whom were the baddies and the word gypsy was used a lot (which I actually really like as a word, but apparently it's a slur against the Romani people and I try to steer clear of hate speech). I get that it's an old book, and times have changed a bit, but it made me a bit uncomfortable. Although I did like that Nancy actually said that not all of them are bad and tried to dispel the myth that the Romani people are thieves. Anyway, I'm not sure I'll keep this one and I won't be re-reading it.

* The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman - I fully believe in the whole five love languages thing and this book went a bit more in depth on it. (In case you're wondering, my love language is quality time.)

* The Ghost of Blackwood Hall by Carolyn KeeneThis was my last never-read-before Mildred Wirt Benson Nancy Drew book. It was really good and I'm sure in a couple years I will completely forget the entire story and re-live it all over again. 

♥ Better Living Through Birding ¹ by Christian Cooper - I saw Mr. Cooper on an episode of CBS Sunday Morning and he seemed like such a good guy and I made a note of his memoir. I'm not a bird watcher by any means, but I do love people with passion and Christian Cooper had me in the palm of his proverbial hand with all of his stories of birding and traveling and living a great big beautiful, simple life. So glad I listened to this fabulous audiobook! Can't wait to binge his series, Extraordinary Birder (which I just this minute bought off Apple TV!)

♥♥ The Goliath Bone ¹ by Mickey Spillane and Max Allan Collins - Quite possibly my favourite work of fiction of all time.

* The Clue in the Velvet Mask by Carolyn Keene - I had forgotten much of this story and really enjoyed re-reading the last of my Nancy Drew books. Next up - The Hardy Boys!!

¹ - audiobook
² - abridged version
* - liked
♥ - loved
Any unmarked titles were, in my opinion, so-so.

Laundry Dogs

Third puzz in one month and going strong. This was another fun one, especially since I got to name the puzzle pups.

Araminda

Blanchard

Felice

Miz Alabaster Skum (Ala for short) and York

Toodles and Doofy

Crumpie and Segal

Boo-Boo, Sniffles, and Lara

artwork by Jialei Sun

My Winnings!

After lunch at Bertucci’s with Kay (we gorged ourselves on carbs, had a fabulous chat, and sat in front of an absolutely gorgeous man who was literally head to toe tatted-up), we popped over to Goldie Fishtown where, hurrah!, both Janine and Morgan were working! They gave me my big goodie bag, comped us three tahina shakes (Turkish Coffee for me and Chocolate Pretzel for Kay, and Kenny). I got hugs from each gal and they hinted that they saw my name on the list of potential winners and recommended me. Morgan even said that the stickers from the Christmas card I sent her were up at her desk. The best was that they snuck in three rad stickers as a bonus, two Soom coupons, and even a mini Goldie beach ball. Oh how they spoil me so!!

And now my falafel and shake pins are side by side with their fry pal!!

POST SCRIPT - June 21st: I had mailed out two cards in one envelope, with bonus stickers, to Goldie for Janine and Morgan to thank them for championing me to win the Goldie Goodies and for just being such warm and wonderful people. This was the message I saw this evening on Instagram from Morgan: