Bfth's Boring Blog

I don't like to put too much religion into anything I post, but I can and will proudly say that I was raised Presbyterian, confirmed Presbyterian, have been active in my church since I graduated from college (which is longer than I will admit) and am raising our son in the Presbyterian tradition.  (Note:  My husband is NOT Presbyterian.  Nor is he Christian.  But he does support me and our son and as a result may actual attend the Presbyterian Church more often than some people who might put the denomination   down on a biographical check sheet.)   I don't shout it from the rooftops, but I am proud to be a part of the PC USA.  One of the reasons why I take straight from the PC USA website which states: " God comes to us in free and undeserved favor in the person of Jesus Christ who lived, died, and rose for us that we might belong to God and serve Christ in the world. Following Jesus, Presbyterians are engaged in the world and in   seeking thoughtful solutions to the

It's another gray and gloomy day here in NJ and I find my thoughts are scattered.  If it were a sunny day (like yesterday; I LOVED yesterday) maybe I'd be more focused.  Maybe not.  Maybe I'm just making this all up as I go long.  (The latter is probably the closest to the truth.)  While it's gray and dreary, at least it's not too cold.  I know its winter and all, but the only thing that makes a gray day more depressing is old, gray snow. Since I have no real coherent thoughts today, thought I'd just let myself throw out my randomness and see if anything sticks. I had hope for this year; I still do. (My mantra:  NEVER give up hope.  Repeat:  NEVER give up hope.)  However, January (thus far) hasn't brought much positivity to our world.  As always, I am NOT talking politics.  Although I will say I am not real keen on the U.S. Government right now.  Notice, I'm not saying the office of the President...I'm not dismiss

Two or so years ago when I was working near Clifton, NJ, a co-worker introduced me to a store called Charming Charlie.  I walked inside and I was in heaven!  Purses and handbags in all colors, shapes and sizes!  Accessories galore!  I could have easily bought one of everything in the store and it was difficult to restrain myself.  I don't think I ever walked out of the store empty handed.  Knowing this I limited my visits.  My wallet dictated it! Over the past two years I've bought MANY purses.  (Too many).  The red one I carry for Valentine's Day, the white and navy nautical one that I use in the summer...you get the idea. While I love browsing in my local store, the customer service leaves a little something to be desired.  There is always someone to greet you at the door and offer assistance as you shop, but when it comes time to check out, you're lucky if one of the three registers is manned.  If I shopped for 10 minutes, I'd end up waiting on line for

Up until this week, getting my kid out of bed was a MAJOR hassle, pain in the butt, you name it.  I even wrote about it (which is below), but never got around to posting it.  Then this week things changed. (And maybe I'm jinxing it by saying so.)  But prior to this week, here's what life was like... Sleep.  It's important.  I know you; you know it.  We all want our kids to get enough sleep.  Making it happen is what the real challenge is. Here are the facts for my family.  My son needs to be school by 7:40ish 3 to 4 days a week for music programs.  Don't say that's too early.  Don't say that should be changed to after school.  Just let it be.  It is a current fact that I need to have my kid out the door and in the car by 7:30 on those days.   My son's alarm goes off at 6; 15.  It's not an annoying alarm; it's just a clock radio.  The music/alarm goes on for 30 minutes before it shuts off automatically.  During that I time I continually

Shortly after I was married, I purchased new living room furniture.  At the time we had a sofa and 2 chairs that had been my grandparents.  It was nice furniture, but it was time to get something new.  Something that both my husband and I could live with.  Not an easy task.  My husband and I had very different views on furniture.  I liked traditional; he liked more modern.  He liked leather; I was strictly fabric driven.  You can see the problem. I did find something that I liked while out shopping with my mother at the Jersey Shore.  It was, at the time, her favorite furniture store.  (She had just purchased the shore house a little over a year before so she had gone to several furniture stores.)  Having found what I liked, I later called my husband.  (This was back in the "dark ages" when I didn't have a cell phone, let alone one that could take photos that could send be texted to someone.)  He trusted me.  (Wise man!)  I bought the soft and love seat with the help

Being kind can be easy.  An act of kindness can be as simple as a friendly wave or a smile.  An easy act that anyone of any age can do.  It can be easy and have long ranging effects that you might never be aware of. However, being kind isn't always easy.  Let's face it there are times when being kind is just a downright pain in the you know what.  You don't want to wave that person into your flow of the traffic.  You've got places to go and a schedule to keep.  Rather than letting a person merge into your lane (perhaps a person who isn't even using their turn signal as any conscientious person should), you just want to give them the finger.  Or letting you child take his/her time to put on shoes, coat, hat and gloves.  It would be easier to just take over and do it for them.  It would be easier, but it wouldn't be kinder. Kindness CAN be easy, but it isn't always.  Many times it is just easier to be mean or cruel.  But who benefits from that?  Not t

There's no denying getting older.  June 2016 marked my 50th year on this planet.  That's half a century!  That's frightening!  That's exhilarating! As I've gotten older, I've noticed changes.  I'm the same old me I always was, but when I turned 40 I noticed that line in my forehead.  I can't call it a wrinkle.  Wrinkles are what I have around the corners of my eyes.  (And have only just recently become deeper and more visible.)  It was a giant line.  In the past 10 years it's only gotten deeper and it's found some friends.  Now instead of one line, I have 3.  The top two I can pretty much hide with bangs, but that one original line.  It just stays there and gets deeper as the years go by.  (And yes, I have tried creams, lotions and all sorts of potions.  Most of them have been given to me by my mother.  Thanks mom!) Then I noticed my neck.  Nora Ephron warned me about it.   I Feel Bad About My Neck   is a MUST read for ANY woman of any a

Its mid-January (give or take) and personally I find this time of year to be one of the most challenging.  I don't think I'm alone in the assessment. The holidays are behind us.  The decorations have come down.  (Or at least they should have.  If they haven't they are looking pretty drab and depressing.)  The dream of White Christmas is past and we are left with dirty gray snow.  Snow may be beautiful and white during the holidays, but once we get into the New Year it's a pain in the you know what.  You're no longer dashing through the snow, but slogging through it on your way to work.  With the inevitable snow and ice, traffic conditions get worse (as do tempers). Those New Year's resolutions have had time to be broken.  (Yes, mine has; not that it was all that serious.)  The excitement of a new start in 2017 has worn off.  The year may have changed, but things have gone back to the same old for most of us. I've said it before:  I am not a wint

Here we are in the first full weekend of the new year.  It's time to clean up your act.  Literally. The holiday is officially over:  Epiphany was Friday; the 12 days of Christmas have been completed. Take down those holiday decorations.  Not fun, I know, but it is time. (Your wallet may even thank you, depending on how much extra electricity you used to light up and decorate your abode.)  Pack it up now and clean as you go.  (It's easier this way; trust me on this one.)  Tree down; vacuum not just around the area (you KNOW you'll have to), but the whole room (or rooms.)  Pack up the decorations and dust as you go.  Put away all those pots, pans and dishes that you only use for the holidays and clean up that kitchen too.  And while you're at it; couldn't the bathroom use a scrub too? For many of us, it's a cold, miserable weekend.  So it's the perfect time to wear those comfy clothes and get these unpleasant tasks done.  Maybe there's somethi

It's a new year and time to face the facts...or maybe that should be face the face and the body that goes along with it. It's not attractive and I can prove it.  From top to bottom, it is not a pretty picture.  Let's take an objective view and break it down: Hair:  Baby fine and getting thinner by the minute.  Scalp visible in a few places.  Highlighted to a pleasing blonde shade, but fading and limp now. Forehead:  Are those three large wrinkles or is this some sort of relief map? Eyes:  Not bad, but what is that color?  Blue?  Green?  Gray?  Are those crow's feet or a murder of crows? Nose:  too big and continually stuffed with mucus.  Honking of said nose rivals the sound of geese migrating south for the winter. Cheeks:  Chubby with no bone structure. Mouth; Small, thin lips with no color. Teeth:  Relatively straight (thanks to orthodontics), but an odd color.  Not white; not quite yellow or gray.   Chin:  None o

It was 1/2 an hour to 2017.  The boys and I were basking in the glow of the tree, menorah and tv anxiously waiting for the new year to begin.  The boys were snuggled on the sofa, and I was sitting on the love seat, scrolling through social media and wishing friends far away a happy new year. It was still 2016, but barely, when I saw a post that said John V. had died.  I couldn't believe it; John had been in the hospital for kidney stone before Christmas.  I think he had even spent his birthday day, something that his many friends had commented on.  It had not been easy, but he had gotten out and I had assumed all was well.  I recalled that earlier in the week he had return to the hospital, but it didn't seem all that serious.  After all, he was posting to social media and looking for a charger for a device.  One of his last posts said this:  " So as of this past Tuesday I returned to _______ hospital and it hasn't been easy. I have so many issues about being caugh