A Few of My Favorite Things
So I used to do my Favorite Things list every year around this time when Oprah puts out her list. Because you know, me and Oprah...well. She has her things and I have mine. Mine are probably a bit more affordable than her list. Anyway, I haven't done this for a few years, so thought I'd get back into the swing of it. Click on the names for direct links to Amazon for more info.
So now imagine you're sitting in Oprah's audience (in this case, Michele's audience) and...you get a car, and you get a car! Well, no, not really, but you know. Here are a dozen things that I absolutely love this year and (mostly) can't live without.
ICE CHIPS
I just discovered these a few months ago. They are sugar-free and made with Xylitol. Xylitol is good for your teeth, don't you know. And they taste awesome! I like the Root Beer flavor, as well as the Sour Cherry. I can usually find them at our local whole foods co-op store, but you can get them at Amazon too. A little spendy for a tin of candy, but they last a long time, and they are good for you if you're trying to cut down on the sugar, but still want to feed your sweet tooth.
BETSEY JOHNSON JEWELRY
I adore her jewelry. It's quirky and weird. Kinda like me. I collect it, but I don't like to pay a lot of money for costume jewelry. You can usually find Betsey at a great price at Nordstrom Rack. Or, this is what I do. I put the piece I want on my wishlist at Amazon. Generally it will go down in price within a month or two following that. So I keep an eye out and if it goes down (sometimes a $60 piece will get marked less than $20) I grab it. I don't like to pay a lot for the fun stuff. And I'm collecting the skeleton girl necklaces like the one above (which my daughter gave me for Xmas last year—score!).
MEDICINE MAMA'S SWEET BEE MAGIC
I am not much for moisturizers and skin creams, though, heaven knows, my dry skin can certainly use the help. I have sensitive skin and break out easily so I have to be very careful what I put on my skin, and generally only the organic stuff works. When I discovered this recently, I was so excited. I use this stuff everywhere. On elbows, legs, arms, even my face. It works. And it's not greasy or slippery. And the cool thing? If I put this on in the morning, by evening, my skin still feels soft like the cream is still there and working. Haven't had problems with breakouts yet, either. It's a little spendy, but well worth it for me since I'm not a scooper and more of a glider (when it comes to getting the cream out of the container).
ORPHAN BLACK
OMG, if you haven't watched this, I just don't know what you've been doing. This is a well-written series that is different, interesting, fast-paced, and always forward-moving. It's about clones, and Tatiana Maslany, who stars, does such an amazing job at acting out all the clones. There was a scene with 4 clones in it, and I swear I forget I'm watching the same actress. They all seem so different! I know it's available on Amazon Prime. And Felix! Did I mention how much I adore Felix and Alison? "Fetch me something gay." Just. Watch. It.
THE MUSKETEERS
Tie for my favorite TV series this year is THE MUSKETEERS. If you know me, or have been reading any of my stories, you probably know I'm a huge fan of Dumas' musketeers. (Side note: my story about Athos, THE UNFORGIVEN, is out next Feb!) Anyway, this is a BBC series that only just recently became available in the US. It rocks. No, it doesn't follow the book too closely, and that's ok, because if it did, it would be over in one season. I love that they kept Athos quite close to the book's depiction of him. And I'm a little upset that Aramis is not more like the book Aramis, but I'll survive. The costumes rock. So do the weapons and leather armor. The settings are gorgeous. And the series doesn't take itself too seriously, which is in the spirit of Dumas. If you can find it, watch it.
KITTY SHOES
My birthday present to myself this year. I adore these cute shoes, and I intend to wear the crap out of them. They come from a UK company, and while I usually take a size 7.5 they did not come in half sizes. I ordered an 8 and they fit quite well with minimal heel slippage. The day is so much more fun with kitties on your feet.
BLUEBERRIES
I try not to go a day without eating blueberries. I love them, and they have all the good stuff like antioxidants and are good for like every part of you. I put them on my toast, in oatmeal, on other fruit, in smoothies, or just eat a handful plain. It makes me happy to start the day with them. Find 'em at your grocery store for $3-$4 dollars. Sometimes Target has a two-for-one sale!
1989
Taylor's Swift's new album is awesome. Yes, I like Taylor Swift! Her songs are fun and make me want to do the chair dance when I'm stuck before the computer screen all day chasing after vampires and werewolves. Sometimes I just need to Shake It Up!
H&R London dresses
I love the flared swing dresses that this company makes. So fun and cute. I have this one with the hearts and roses (it's my Romance Author costume, don't you know) and I added a black tulle underskirt to really have some fun with it. Hey, I can shake it up with this one! (Tattoos not included)
THUG KITCHEN COOKBOOK
It'll be difficult to write about this one without utilizing the F-bomb, but here goes... I adore this trashy-mouthed cookbook. They tell it like it is. So if you're bothered by swear words, don't even touch it. But if you like the humor of it, then you can have fun with this one. It's meat-free and dairy-free, and I've made a few of the recipes so far and loved them. Eat like you give a f*ck!
CLOSE-UP CINNAMON MOUTHWASH
I like to swish after I brush, but I don't like the mouthwashes with alcohol in them (it burns!) and I really only like cinnamon flavor. You CAN NOT find cinnamon mouthwash in stores anymore. It's virtually impossible. And yet, I can find this one at the dollar store. I usually stop twice a year and grab 6 bottles each time. That's all I ever get there. But seriously, this stuff is alcohol-free and sugar-free. It's made with Xylitol, which, again, is good for your teeth (noticing a theme here?). So here's to the cheap stuff. I linked to Amazon but it's very pricey there. But hey, if you can't find it anywhere else, it's your best bet.
PINTEREST
Yep, I liking pinning. A lot. I have over 100 boards that reflect my interests and as well I have a board for each hero/heroine featured in my books. So if you've read any of my stories and are interested in seeing some of the pictures that inspired them, check it out! And if you wonder what other things I like, such as food, clothes, rocks, succulents, menfolk, goth-stuff, music, books, etc., then you'll want to take a look too. I'm addicted to Pinterest. I like having those virtual scrapbooks because I am a very visual person. Some people love FB and Twitter; I don't know what I'd do without my nightly pinning ritual.
iPHONE
Okay, so I had to list one fancy thing, a la Oprah. Although, right now, you can get the iPhone 5c very cheap. I got mine for less than $20 at Target, and I've even seen ads featuring it for a penny. I finally got rid of the flip phone this year and came into the 21st century with the smart phone. I still don't use it to call very often. I like my landline too much to ever get rid of it. But I like this phone for the camera. You have seen the pics it takes because I post them on my FB page. The quality is awesome! I also like having the texts right there close at hand, and it syncs with my iPad. I can read texts on the iPad, or did you know if your iPhone rings and you're in another room with the iPad you can actually answer the phone on the iPad? I love that! I also love that when I tell Siri to 'take me home' he does. I get lost frequently when I drive into Minneapolis or St. Paul so it's nice to know I've got Siri with me. Heh. Does that sound weird? We sort of have a thing going, me and him. Just wish he had a French accent. ;-)
I hope you enjoyed my Favorite Things! What were some of your favorite things this year?
Michele
So now imagine you're sitting in Oprah's audience (in this case, Michele's audience) and...you get a car, and you get a car! Well, no, not really, but you know. Here are a dozen things that I absolutely love this year and (mostly) can't live without.
ICE CHIPS
I just discovered these a few months ago. They are sugar-free and made with Xylitol. Xylitol is good for your teeth, don't you know. And they taste awesome! I like the Root Beer flavor, as well as the Sour Cherry. I can usually find them at our local whole foods co-op store, but you can get them at Amazon too. A little spendy for a tin of candy, but they last a long time, and they are good for you if you're trying to cut down on the sugar, but still want to feed your sweet tooth.
BETSEY JOHNSON JEWELRY
I adore her jewelry. It's quirky and weird. Kinda like me. I collect it, but I don't like to pay a lot of money for costume jewelry. You can usually find Betsey at a great price at Nordstrom Rack. Or, this is what I do. I put the piece I want on my wishlist at Amazon. Generally it will go down in price within a month or two following that. So I keep an eye out and if it goes down (sometimes a $60 piece will get marked less than $20) I grab it. I don't like to pay a lot for the fun stuff. And I'm collecting the skeleton girl necklaces like the one above (which my daughter gave me for Xmas last year—score!).
MEDICINE MAMA'S SWEET BEE MAGIC
I am not much for moisturizers and skin creams, though, heaven knows, my dry skin can certainly use the help. I have sensitive skin and break out easily so I have to be very careful what I put on my skin, and generally only the organic stuff works. When I discovered this recently, I was so excited. I use this stuff everywhere. On elbows, legs, arms, even my face. It works. And it's not greasy or slippery. And the cool thing? If I put this on in the morning, by evening, my skin still feels soft like the cream is still there and working. Haven't had problems with breakouts yet, either. It's a little spendy, but well worth it for me since I'm not a scooper and more of a glider (when it comes to getting the cream out of the container).
ORPHAN BLACK
OMG, if you haven't watched this, I just don't know what you've been doing. This is a well-written series that is different, interesting, fast-paced, and always forward-moving. It's about clones, and Tatiana Maslany, who stars, does such an amazing job at acting out all the clones. There was a scene with 4 clones in it, and I swear I forget I'm watching the same actress. They all seem so different! I know it's available on Amazon Prime. And Felix! Did I mention how much I adore Felix and Alison? "Fetch me something gay." Just. Watch. It.
THE MUSKETEERS
Tie for my favorite TV series this year is THE MUSKETEERS. If you know me, or have been reading any of my stories, you probably know I'm a huge fan of Dumas' musketeers. (Side note: my story about Athos, THE UNFORGIVEN, is out next Feb!) Anyway, this is a BBC series that only just recently became available in the US. It rocks. No, it doesn't follow the book too closely, and that's ok, because if it did, it would be over in one season. I love that they kept Athos quite close to the book's depiction of him. And I'm a little upset that Aramis is not more like the book Aramis, but I'll survive. The costumes rock. So do the weapons and leather armor. The settings are gorgeous. And the series doesn't take itself too seriously, which is in the spirit of Dumas. If you can find it, watch it.
KITTY SHOES
My birthday present to myself this year. I adore these cute shoes, and I intend to wear the crap out of them. They come from a UK company, and while I usually take a size 7.5 they did not come in half sizes. I ordered an 8 and they fit quite well with minimal heel slippage. The day is so much more fun with kitties on your feet.
BLUEBERRIES
I try not to go a day without eating blueberries. I love them, and they have all the good stuff like antioxidants and are good for like every part of you. I put them on my toast, in oatmeal, on other fruit, in smoothies, or just eat a handful plain. It makes me happy to start the day with them. Find 'em at your grocery store for $3-$4 dollars. Sometimes Target has a two-for-one sale!
1989
Taylor's Swift's new album is awesome. Yes, I like Taylor Swift! Her songs are fun and make me want to do the chair dance when I'm stuck before the computer screen all day chasing after vampires and werewolves. Sometimes I just need to Shake It Up!
H&R London dresses
I love the flared swing dresses that this company makes. So fun and cute. I have this one with the hearts and roses (it's my Romance Author costume, don't you know) and I added a black tulle underskirt to really have some fun with it. Hey, I can shake it up with this one! (Tattoos not included)
THUG KITCHEN COOKBOOK
It'll be difficult to write about this one without utilizing the F-bomb, but here goes... I adore this trashy-mouthed cookbook. They tell it like it is. So if you're bothered by swear words, don't even touch it. But if you like the humor of it, then you can have fun with this one. It's meat-free and dairy-free, and I've made a few of the recipes so far and loved them. Eat like you give a f*ck!
CLOSE-UP CINNAMON MOUTHWASH
I like to swish after I brush, but I don't like the mouthwashes with alcohol in them (it burns!) and I really only like cinnamon flavor. You CAN NOT find cinnamon mouthwash in stores anymore. It's virtually impossible. And yet, I can find this one at the dollar store. I usually stop twice a year and grab 6 bottles each time. That's all I ever get there. But seriously, this stuff is alcohol-free and sugar-free. It's made with Xylitol, which, again, is good for your teeth (noticing a theme here?). So here's to the cheap stuff. I linked to Amazon but it's very pricey there. But hey, if you can't find it anywhere else, it's your best bet.
Yep, I liking pinning. A lot. I have over 100 boards that reflect my interests and as well I have a board for each hero/heroine featured in my books. So if you've read any of my stories and are interested in seeing some of the pictures that inspired them, check it out! And if you wonder what other things I like, such as food, clothes, rocks, succulents, menfolk, goth-stuff, music, books, etc., then you'll want to take a look too. I'm addicted to Pinterest. I like having those virtual scrapbooks because I am a very visual person. Some people love FB and Twitter; I don't know what I'd do without my nightly pinning ritual.
iPHONE
Okay, so I had to list one fancy thing, a la Oprah. Although, right now, you can get the iPhone 5c very cheap. I got mine for less than $20 at Target, and I've even seen ads featuring it for a penny. I finally got rid of the flip phone this year and came into the 21st century with the smart phone. I still don't use it to call very often. I like my landline too much to ever get rid of it. But I like this phone for the camera. You have seen the pics it takes because I post them on my FB page. The quality is awesome! I also like having the texts right there close at hand, and it syncs with my iPad. I can read texts on the iPad, or did you know if your iPhone rings and you're in another room with the iPad you can actually answer the phone on the iPad? I love that! I also love that when I tell Siri to 'take me home' he does. I get lost frequently when I drive into Minneapolis or St. Paul so it's nice to know I've got Siri with me. Heh. Does that sound weird? We sort of have a thing going, me and him. Just wish he had a French accent. ;-)
I hope you enjoyed my Favorite Things! What were some of your favorite things this year?
Michele
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