Flat Tire * Your Daily Brain Vitamin v8.31.14

A bad attitude is like a flat tire.  You can't go anywhere until you change it.

 

Nothing Can Substitute * Your Daily Brain Vitamin v8.30.14

Be Brave. Take Risks. Nothing can substitute experience.

 

Your Friday Quickie * Pour Some Sugar On. . . The Dog????

It's exhausting being this cute while recovering.

It's Friday!  And not just any Friday.  It's the Friday of a three day weekend!  Can I get a "whoop whoop!" from everyone?  The Hubbs and I will be celebrating by going to see Lyle Lovett and His Large Band with some friends tonight at an outdoor concert after partaking in this week's Whole (craft)Cocktail recipe by The Whole Smiths.
But before we get to all of the festivities and frivolity, it's time for your Friday Quickie.  

Maybe it's just exhausting being this cute all the time.

As some of you may know, it's been a crazy month at Casa Callahan.  There was the water issue (yet to be resolved).  The crafting extravaganza (tie-dyes, coozies and Clorox).  And our Irish Setter, who goes by many nicknames (The Red Dog, Boubbs, Smitters, Smitts, Smitteroo, Smitty) but who's official name is Smithwick Ronan Callahan (after the Irish Beer Smithwick's), had surgery to remove part of the end of his tail.  

I have no idea how that is comfortable, but apparently it is because he sleeps like this ALL the time.

He had something the vet called "Happy Tail."  He would get so happy when someone came home or something exciting was going on, that he took his whip-like tail (it's been known to leave not only a welt but also a bruise when you get hit by it) and whacked is on whatever was near (a wall, his crate, his dog-sister Lark). So much so, that he'd worn off the hair at the end and weakened the skin.  Which resulted in it popping open almost every time he hit it on something.  I swear if CSI were to come Luminol our house, they'd be convinced there had been a murder there.  The tail would pop open and he would wag blood EVERYWHERE.  

Curiosity about what goes on in that tub thing and Lark photo bombing.

It was getting pretty bad and we were worried about infection (and running out of peroxide to get the blood out of everything), so we finally gave in and agreed to have a part of the end amputated.  We thought it would be a slam dunk and he'd be back to good in no time.  That's what the vet said.  Piece of cake.  Nope.  No such luck.  It got infected and we've been battling to save what's left of his tail and more recently to get good healing at the wound site.  

One of the many attempts to keep him from banging it on stuff.  Under the wrap is a pool noodle.

We've made lots of trips to the vet and given up on the crappy vet hospital that originally did the surgery (they SUCKED and the vet YELLED at him several times during check ups.  What kind of vet yells at a scared, hurt dog?!).  We've found a new vet hospital that we LOVE (not the use of not only bold but also underline and italics - yup.  We love them that much) and we love both of the vets there (Thanks, Shiloh Animal Hospital and Drs. Alley and Kleisch).  Not only have they saved Smitts' tail but they've done great things for our lab-mix Lark who has horrible allergies (remember, she's the one I made the homemade dog food for).
The latest trick they've given us is nothing short of miraculous.  The wound was healing slowly and not as well as we were hoping and so on a follow up visit with them, Dr. Alley suggested we try a sugar wrap.  I knew that sugar was considered a holistic healing tool and had antimicrobial properties but it never occurred to me to use it on the tail.  

We dunk the end of his tail at the wound site in regular old white sugar and then wrap it up each day and the transformation has been amazing.  What had been inflamed and raw is now healing nicely.  So much so, that we have hope for the first time in a month that things may return to normal for poor Smitteroo.  

Our patient resting quietly (for once).  Note the contraption taped to his tail to keep him from whacking it on stuff and his "frankencone" because he's so bendy and can reach his tail in a regular cone.  

You can read more about using sugar on wounds here and here.  Dr. Alley said she first heard of it being used in nursing homes to treat bed sores.  Apparently it's been used as a healing tool for more than a thousand years before the time of Christ.  People call me weird and tell me I'm a tree hugger, but I continue to say there's something to these old time remedies and we shouldn't count them out.  

So, go ahead and have fun during these last few Dog Days of Summer (I couldn't resist).  And if you get a little scruffed up, just throw some sugar on it.  
Thanks to all of you that have already visited the new "This Is The Life I Have Chosen" storefront.  There's all kinds of good stuff on there now.  Gear for men, women and kids, as well as pets, electronics and even your home (I'm in love with the "If Not Now Then When" lamp).  
Have a great holiday weekend and as always, you're welcome.  

 

You Can Be Pleased With Nothing * Your Daily Brain Vitamin v8.29.14

"You can be pleased with nothing when you are not pleased with yourself." -Lady Mary Wortley Montagu

 

Fryin' It Up In Healthy (Allergy-Free) Solidarity

I think I might be Puerto Rican.  Or Cuban.  Or Dominican.  The signs are all there.  Brown hair.  Brown eyes.  Skin that tans easily (yes, be jealous).  And plantains (or as my brethren in cuisine call them, tostones).  I have a love of plantains.  A VERY strong love of plantains.  But, now that I live in BFE, there aren't any Latino restaurants around that serve them within a 30 minute drive.  My plantain consumption has suffered quite a dry spell.  
Last night, I had a eureka moment though.  I had purchased a plantain to make a chocolate donut recipe I'd found on Pinterest via The Paleo Mom (yay Pinterest helping with dietary restrictions - but, I miss real donuts).  However, my plantain had gotten too ripe.  What to do with a perfectly ripe plantain? <tapping finger on my head then light bulb goes off>  FRY IT!

When I lived in Chicago, I had a Cuban restaurant nearby that I frequented.  My favorite thing to order was fried plantains and a side of black beans and rice with goat cheese.  My mouth is watering right now just thinking about it.  

Well, last night I got half way there. Yesterday was a long day.  There was work, the release of the blog's storefront (just click "Shop! Shop! Shop! at the top and you'll be zipped off to the store), an unscheduled vet visit for the Crazy Red Dog (that's a blog post in an of itself - we had to have the end of his tail amputated several weeks ago and it's been quite an ordeal).  By the time I got home I was beat.  The Hubbs was at the oldest bonus daughter's first cross country meet, so it was just me and the pups trying to figure out dinner.

But I still needed to do something about the plantain, since we were heading out of town for the weekend this morning.  On the way home from the drug store, inspiration struck.  Fry it!  Fry it!  Fry it!  I got home, got the dogs fed and settled down and got to work.

Frying plantains is really very simple.  Here's what you need:
1 ripe plantain (most standard grocery stores have them in their "exotic" produce section).    2 Tbsp of Coconut Oil pinch of salt sprinkle of powdered sugar

Peel your plantain.  It can be a bit harder to peel than a banana, even though they look very similar.  Once you have all of the outer peel removed, slice it into 1/8" - 1/4" wide slices.  Melt your Coconut Oil (it's a solid at first) in a non-stick pan over medium-high heat.  Once it's starting to pop a little bit, lay your plantain slices into the oil.  Sprinkle your pinch of salt over the top and let them cook until they start to brown on the bottom.  

Once they get golden brown on the bottom, get a spatula and turn them over.  Repeat on the second side.  While they are frying up, get a plate out and lay a paper towel over the plate so that you can drain the plantains to get some of the oil off after you're done.  

Lay your plantains out on a serving platter and sprinkle the tops with the powdered sugar and serve (I sprinkled mine on while they were still in the pan, but think it's better if you wait until after).  

I ate mine with the Whole Foods sushi that I bought post-vet visit.  Easy and quick.  But I dreamed of black beans, rice and goat cheese. <insert dreamy music here>  And of living closer to a Cuban restaurant   One day.   
You're welcome.

 

Mother Theresa Keepin' It Real * Your Daily Brain Vitamin v8.28.14

Mother Theresa didn't walk around complaining about her thighs or worrying how many carbs she'd eaten that day.  She had shit to do.

 

The Big Reveal! I'm Letting You In On My Little Secret.

Last night I teased you all with a short sneaky post, dangling a big secret that would be revealed today.  And guess what?  It's today!  And since we're BFFs and all, I'm cluing you in.  I've been MIA the last couple of days, but I've been REALLY busy.  And it was all for you.  Well, mostly.  
In all of my recent craftiness, I decided to make myself a pair of leggings that said "This Is The Life I Have Chosen".  If you're not familiar with Zazzle, you can upload images/artwork and they will screen or imprint them on to myriad different things and send them off to you. Things like leggings. I do yoga a lot.  A LOT.  And I practically live in leggings, so I figured why not advertise my little blog a bit for an hour and a half on Thursday nights or Friday mornings at the Kerr YMCA in Kelly's class or Tuesday mornings in Monica's class, or as I'm getting the oil changed in the car. . . . you get the point.

So, I made my leggings online, ordered them and they should arrive today (very excited!).  But then my bestie that I've known since eighth grade took a picture of a shirt she owns and she told me she loves the saying on it, but she's not very giddy about a pink bow that sits right above the phrase.  She asked if I could tie-dye a shirt for her with that saying on it.  And I thought, "Sugar, I can do one better than that.  I can make you a totally cool shirt with a totally cool original photo on it and your saying on top of the photo." And so I did.  That's the shirt at the top of this post.  And then I made this notebook.  Because I love the quote and I love the picture I took on a London street just before Christmas last year (even if I did have a really awful blister on the bottom of my foot from walking so much.  It's still a great picture).

And then that little light bulb in my brain went off.  There are tons of products available through Zazzle, just waiting to be customized with my cool pics and some sayings.  I have both!  And maybe, just maybe, other folks would like some of this stuff too.  
So, I got to work. And created my own "storefront." It's easy to get to. On my newly formatted blog website (if you haven't checked it out and you only read my posts via your email inbox, you really should go take a look - Tanya at TheArtSheMakes (on Etsy) did an amazing job!), you'll find a tab at the top that reads Shop! Shop! Shop!.  If you click on it, guess what happens?  You're whisked off into cyberland right to my store!  And there you could find this coffee mug.

And this iPad case.

Or this hoodie.  

Or this dog sweater (sorry - they didn't have cat sweaters, or I would have made you one).

And even this makeup case.

Annnnddd this t-shirt I made for myself (seeing a pattern here?  The Hubbs is.), which I then decided to share with everyone.  I mean, why should I hoard the shirt and not let others spread Buddha's wisdom?  He was a pretty smart guy.

This stuff is just the tip of the iceberg (just ask The Hubbs - I've made him look at EVERYTHING I've created so far) and if you give me a couple of more days, there will be stuff for dudes and kids and a really cool bumper sticker too (soon, Dan Weinman, soon).   With only 119 more shopping days until Christmas (and fewer until Hanukkah and Kwanzaa but many more until my birthday) you need to get cracking on that shopping list.  Some might say I've just made the holidays that much easier for you.  You're welcome.  
And thanks for checking out my store!

Unexpected Success * Your Daily Brain Vitamin v8.27.14

"If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours." -Henry David Thoreau

Shhhhhh. It's a secret.

I know.  I know.  I've been MIA the last two days.  Nothing but #DailyBrainVitamins to keep you going.  I've been working hard behind the scenes   And I'll let you in on a little secret.  Tomorrow there will be a big announcement. But for now I'm just going to give you these three photos.  And a hint: Shop! Shop! Shop!

If that's not enough, you'll just have to wait until tomorrow.  Oh, and there are only 120 more shopping days until Christmas.  Shhhhhh.  And you're welcome.  

Truth * Your Daily Brain Vitamin v8.26.14

If you always tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything.

Kids Are Wonderful People * Your Daily Brain Vitamin v8.25.14

"You do not have to make your children into wonderful people.  You just have to remind them that they are wonderful people.  If you do this consistently from the day they are born, they will easily believe it." -William Martin

 

Wasted Days * Your Daily Brain Vitamin v8.24.14

"The most wasted of all days is one without laughter." e. e. cummings

 

Shine On * Your Daily Brain Vitamin v8.23.14

I admire people who choose to shine, even after all of the storms they've been through.