January 2021 – Write From Karen

February Bullet Journal Cover

January 31, 2021January 30, 2021 Karen

So – January is gone – POOF. Eleven more months until Christmas. You may smirk, but ya’ll know you’ll be pulling your Christmas decorations out within a few blinks. It’s amazing how fast time flies.

And January 2021 is over, never to return.

Only 47 months to go until Biden is gone. Assuming he leaves. Please God, MAKE HIM LEAVE.

*ahem* Anyway …

Time to move on to February, As usual, I didn’t get much done in January. My work life … it consumes me. I wish it didn’t, but it has. The big question is, how do I NOT allow it to consume me? I’m still working on that one …

Here is a glimpse of my sorry bullet journal pages this month:

I didn’t do as well with my steps this month. You can definitely tell when the weekend comes around – I barely hit 3000 steps. But whatever. I’m cool with it. However, I DO need to get back to walking and NO I didn’t get back to walking this month.

Is anyone really surprised?

I’m not doing a productivity tracker this month. One, I don’t have room because I just couldn’t make myself not use the remaining pages in my journal and two, my productivity trackers are boring. I don’t really DO anything and it’s always the same stuff. I think I’ll give it a rest this month. I like the tracker, it’s just depressing to look at it. Care to count the number of YouTube icons?

Yeah, me neither.

Self explanatory. We had three snow days and one ice day in January this year. I’m the only one who cares to remember that.

Not crazy about the mood/writing trackers – mainly because the writing side looks pathetic. Might do something different next month. I may have to break down and just draw some books as opposed to using the stencil – it depresses me that I’m not filling that up anymore. Four books this month – wow. And not wow in a good way.

The majority of my pages are journaling and of course, I don’t want to post the details – I get pretty raw and uncut in my journal but I wanted to put this in because look Ma! A quote! (Side note: that calendar sticker I bought from a little side shop and though I really like the girl, it took two months, TWO MONTHS, to get my order. Dude – come on!)

I started a book review section in my journal. I’m really digging it. It helps to look back on my impressions when I go to write my reviews. I will definitely be continuing that.

Here is this month’s best plan-with-me video, in my opinion. I think this girl needs WAY more followers. She’s so creative and imagine the patience it took to make this pop-up!

There is NO WAY I could ever do something like this. I’m just not creative enough and there is NO WAY I would have the patience to try this but wow, it is so fun to watch her do it! Have you ever attempted a pop-up in your journal?

random stuff

What Does Your Sleeping Position Say About You? Also, Naps are Good.

January 30, 2021January 24, 2021 Karen

Video Summary:

1. Fetal position – comfort, safety, shy, sensitive and introverted – kind, soft hearted

2. Stomach – skydiver position – open, playful, fun loving, brash, straight forward, take risks, bold, sociable, sensitive to criticism

3. Back – sleepy soldier – strong, silent personality, disciplined, hard working, structure, take themselves seriously, perfectionist.

4. Side – the log – talkative, charming, friendly, trusting and warm, gullible and naïve

5. Back, arms overhead – starfish – amiable, mild-mannered and easy to get along with, supportive, good communication skills, loyal.

6. With leg raised – unpredictable and adventurous personality, emotional, temperamental, moody, driven, competitive and charismatic, leaders, center of attention

Me? My sleeping position is actually not mentioned here. I sleep sitting up.

I know, weird! But it’s comfortable for me and I breathe easier sleeping up. There will be nights that I will jerk awake and am STILL sitting up nearly six hours later. When that happens, I know I got some deep sleep. I also sleep on my back, (but wake myself up snoring so I don’t keep that position for long), side and with my leg raised. I NEVER sleep on my stomach, (that’s actually not a great position for your back) and rarely in the fetal position because it makes my legs sore.

Video Summary:

1. There are different types of nappers
A. Habitual
B. Planned
C. Emergency

2. One bad nap can throw your entire sleep cycle off

3. Naps cannot fully make up for lost night sleep

4. Naps have an ideal duration
*Experts suggest drinking caffiene before a power nap since caffiene takes approxmately 20 minutes to kick in.

5. Your body has an ideal nap time
*Best time to nap is in the middle of your wake cycle

6. Naps can improve your immune system

7. Naps have a positive impact on your memory

8. Naps – full night’s sleep for learning

9. Naps improve alertness and performance

10. Naps can lift your mood.

11. They are good for your heart
*Decrease blood pressure

12. Naps have a positive impact on your physical health

I thought the naps information was interesting. I used to take a lot of naps, not so much anymore now that I am drinking caffeine on the weekends and taking iron. (Iron has REALLY helped my fatigue). I also found it extremely interesting about drinking caffeine, then taking a nap allowing the caffeine time to kick in by the time you wake up. I’ll have to remember that.

So how about you? What is your primary sleeping position and do you take naps? Why, or why not?

Podcast

Podcast: Hospitals Overwhelmed?

January 29, 2021January 24, 2021 Karen

This was published 11-29-20

Sorry, it’s a little blurry. We’re still learning. We are currently using three cameras so that’s why the lighting is off. There is a camera on me, a camera on Kevin and a camera on the both of us. I’m still not sure how I feel about filming our podcast but here we are, in all our flawed glory.

Please be patient as we (and by we I mean Kevin) works through camera issues. He’s getting better and better and he learns a little more each time. He is playing around with transitions and I think he taught himself how to insert pictures/graphs.

Our channel is Right From Us on YouTube. I know at some point he’s going to make an account on Rumble simply because we can’t trust YouTube to eventually find us and censor us as we’re right leaning and obviously critical of radical left wing agendas. I’ll link that account when that happens.

Anyway. I hope you enjoy two mature (ahem) people shoot the breeze about today’s politics. We are working on making our podcast more lighthearted and fun as we don’t want it to just become a bitch fest. And we’re also working really hard to challenge ourselves to think objectively and present ALL sides to an issue, not just OUR side.

Thanks for watching!

Politics

Can Congress Impeach a Private Citizen? Let’s Hope Not

January 28, 2021January 28, 2021 Karen

Are you paying attention? Biden has been in office for one week, ONE WEEK, and he’s already signed close to 30 executive orders. Who needs congress when we have a dictator that takes things into his (her – because let’s be honest, Kamala is behind this push, too), hands? Who needs the people when we have a dictator that knows what’s best for the people? Who needs jobs when we have a dictator, and his minions, who simply tell you to “find another job?” Who wants to be energy independent when we can get our energy from foreign countries so they can blackmail us into doing what they want us to do in exchange for said energy?

Biden has “fundamentally changed” America is less than one week. On the surface, this is alarming but let’s be fair, let’s see how this is actually going to translate in the coming weeks. But I’ll be honest, this is a lot in a little time and if that doesn’t make you nervous, it should.

And this whole impeachment thing with Trump? Still? MOVE ON PEOPLE. I swear, some of these left-leaning Democrats are obsessed with Trump and they’re having a hard time letting go of him and their obsession. Newsflash – YOU WON. Let it go! That’s like winning a tennis match and then immediately jumping over the net to beat your opponent to a pulp. It’s petty and disturbing. Trump is no longer a threat to you and your radical agendas. You have a commander-in-chief who is making decisions on your behalf, isn’t that what you wanted? Isn’t it all you dreamed it would be?

Trump is a private citizen now. You can’t, and/or should not, be able to impeach a private citizen. And if our crazy left-leaning radicals pull this off, then every American should be scared because then they’ve set the precedent to come after YOU. Or anyone who disagrees with them. ME.

Senator Rand Paul gives a scorching argument against impeaching Trump. We must have rules in this country – our constitution is our rule document. We must abide by her because if we do not, then the United States is no longer a free country. And judging by Biden’s executive order frenzy? I’m beginning to think we’ve already lost a lot of that freedom.

Paul, with sound logic, rightfully called out Democrats on the unmistakable double standard of the impeachment charade.

Since when did rhetoric from politicians become ripe for unprecedented actions such as a post-presidency impeachment trial? More importantly, as Paul noted on Tuesday, “Democrats insist on applying a test of incitement to a Republican that they refuse to apply to themselves.”

Arguably, the left’s campaign of harassment, intimidation and violence, as well as the progressive advancement of cancel culture, helped lead to the events of Jan. 6 as much as anything. Yet the Democratic Party has absolved itself of years of inflammatory rhetoric that has left millions of Americans feeling pushed into a corner.

In their attempts to undercut and oppose Trump, elected Democrats uttered words and took actions that defied the civility they now claim they want to restore.

But when looking at the incursion at the Capitol, their selective memory on political violence and inflammatory rhetoric shows that they are after what they’ve always been after — the destruction of Trump as a political force and the demonization of all those who supported the former president.

Those loyal supporters supported Trump even in the face of threats, violence and the potential cancelation of their livelihoods.

Democrats are playing the role of victim after years of stoking civil unrest.

The hypocrisy isn’t lost on Paul. It shouldn’t be lost on anyone else, either. Source

Annoyances

Things That Annoy Me #1

January 27, 2021January 24, 2021 Karen

I promise you, I’m not that easily triggered. Sure. I have things that annoy me, but I do what every one else does – I deal with it.

However, when I was looking for blog posts ideas, (by the way, here is a really good list of ideas if you’re struggling), and saw pet peeves was on the list and then Googled pet peeves – wow. There are a lot of things that annoy people.

Not all of these things truly annoy me, but I thought it would be fun to tackle them, one at a time.

(Also, can we just take a moment to appreciate this little girl’s face? Ha!)

Let’s break them down, beginning with the first one on the list – Talking during a movie.

I took this one step further and expanded it to include, “interrupting me when I’m trying to focus on something.”

Yes. I get super annoyed when people start talking during a movie. The whole purpose of watching a movie is to watch the movie – you can talk later. Or if you can’t, then leave the theater, or the room, and continue your conversation away from others. That’s the polite thing to do. But I think a lot of people don’t even think of it as being rude because I believe a lot of younger people have not been taught to think outside themselves.

Kevin and I don’t watch movies anymore. In fact, we don’t watch a lot of TV. Now YouTube is a different monster, but it could be applied here. Please do not interrupt me while I’m focused on … anything. Because I’m in the zone. I’m focused. I’m concentrating. My wheels are turning and my wheels don’t turn very often – so respect the moving wheels! 🙂

I try and do this as well, especially at work. When I see my doctor is staring intently at his computer monitor, that means he’s studying an image of someone’s brain or spine and that is NOT the time to ask him a question. Let the man do his thing. Or. My nurse is in the middle of writing something down, or doing something on the computer and I have to tell her something RIGHT NOW (it’s not really an emergency but in my mind, it is), and I have to tamp down on my very important thing to tell her and say, “Let me know when you’re at a stopping point and I’ll tell you what I have to tell you.”

It’s called courtesy. It’s called respect. It’s called being polite.

Something else that annoys me is when people don’t pay attention to something said in a meeting, or their thoughts wonder during a show and to play catch up they look to me and say, “What did he/she just say? Who is that character? Why is that character doing that?”

*sigh* If you had been paying attention, you wouldn’t have missed it.

Or, when something exciting happens in a movie (back when we watched movies) and I’m all hyped up and I look over to Kevin to comment on the exciting moment or comment on the revelation, (wait a minute, now I’M talking during a movie), only to find him, slack jawed, eyes closed and softly snoring.

Rude. lol

All of this to say, respect your fellow human’s space and if he/she looks like he/she is focused and there is steam coming out of his/her ears, give it a minute before interrupting. I promise, what you have to tell that person can wait.

Unless the house is on fire, then you might want to interrupt in that case.

What say you? How annoyed do you get when someone talks to you while you’re focused?

TBR

February To-Be-Read Stack

January 26, 2021January 23, 2021 Karen

Hello readers!

I didn’t get as much reading in January as I would have liked, but four books is on course for my 55 book goal this year, so I shouldn’t be too disappointed. It’s nothing like the eight books a month average I had last year, but if you couldn’t tell, I’ve been blogging more and that definitely takes more of my time and I want to devote more of time to writing so I shouldn’t be as disappointed in myself.

(I feel like I just talked myself into a corner there).

You can tell which book I’m currently reading by the Goodreads widget in the sidebar.

I’m all about Kindle e-books. I’m a hard core e-book reader. I haven’t read an actual book in quite a long time and I find that when I hold an actual book, it feels large and clunky. I much prefer my Kindle e-reader than an actual book. With that said, I get all of my books from Kindle Unlimited – I rarely, if ever, spend money on a book – it all goes into the $10 dollars a month I pay for Kindle Unlimited.

So, if you’re interested in reading lesser known authors and want to save a ton of money in books, join me!

I rarely read anything lower than a four-star review on Goodreads – I’ve come to trust the reviews of Goodreads readers. I stopped reading for a long time simply because every book I read was stupid, or disappointing and ultimately, a waste of time. (I feel the same with movies – haven’t watched movies, or TV, in about a year). I’ve had great luck sticking to this philosophy and most of the books I read are pretty good.

You can see my book ratings on my Goodreads account.

Moving on, here is my February TBR stack:

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
The Arrangement by Miranda Rijks
The Girl Beneath the Sea by Andrew Mayne
Elsewhere by Dean Koontz
The Professor by Robert Bailey

ARC (Advanced Reading Copy from NetGalley)

Happy Reading!

Podcast

Podcast: Where Do You Fall on the Oppression Matrix? Marxism For Everyone!

January 25, 2021January 23, 2021 Karen

Antiracism comes to the heartland – Marxism is knocking on our back doors and our teachers are being forced to find where they are on the “oppression matrix.” Our world has gone truly mad. Also, why is everyone so obsessed with skin color? What happened to the content of our character? This obsession will not promote unity. This week’s book review is “Trust No One” by Debra Webb. (Which perfectly describes our political environment right now). As always, I end the podcast with some story ideas, along with a prompt for romance, horror and mystery.

Mentioned in podcast:

“Antiracism” Comes to the Heartland

Trump Opens Up His DC Hotel For Men and Women In Uniform

COVID narrative shifts with Biden’s inauguration

Chelsea Handler Goes Topless To Celebrate Joe Biden Officially Becoming President

Biden’s 17 Executive Orders and Other Directives in Detail

Joe Biden ditches mask at Lincoln Memorial — hours after mandating them

Book Review on Write From Karen

Intermission Music:

Warrior by yoitrax | https://soundcloud.com/yoitrax

Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com

Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License