Humor, Tater Tots

Screw It, I’m Eating Tater Tots- Episode 34

Writer McWriterson

If you’re new to my blog, welcome! Here is an explanation of the tater tot post.

Ch-ch-chia

Never let me get a chia pet again. I’ve tried and failed to make them grow before. But I figured that as a plant whisperer, I should be able to handle a simple chia pet. Right?

RIGHT?

Take my money, Richard Simmons.

This is why I cannot go shopping the week of Christmas.

He looks like he’s getting a perm.

I hadn’t been out of the house in over a week due to a cold*, so I was giddy to be out among the people. Then I was among the crowds and I realized how much I disliked being in crowds. So, I needed to reward myself by purchasing a Richard Simmons chia pet.

I will alert you with any “hair” growth.

Nothing good ever comes from Branson

At the beginning of December, my husband traveled to Branson, Missouri, for a work function. A few days later, he caught a cold*. I caught the cold* a week later. My oldest daughter caught the cold* a week after me. Thankfully, my youngest daughter was spared.

This time around.

In 2010, we took the girls to Branson. We drove the 10 hours there, and Ella, who was only a toddler at the time, had explosive diarrhea while we were out and about the next day.

Without a diaper change with us.

Nothing good ever comes from Branson.

*We’ve since wondered if it was Covid and not a cold we all caught. I took a Covid test before Christmas and it came out negative. But I’m still skeptical, because nothing good ever comes from Branson.

Photo by RODNAE Productions on Pexels.com

I got high with my dogs

My friend dropped off a cupcake from Wake and Bakery while I was sick with my cold*.

I shared it with Anna. I had no idea she’d given some to the dogs.

I was feeling considerably better an hour later.

So were the dogs.

Do you have a word of the year?

I’ve never done a word of the year before. But this year, my word came to me.

Nourish.

There are many different definitions of nourish, but here are some of the words that I found to define nourish:

sustain

foster

strengthen

build up

provide

grow

And I wondered, how can I do those things to benefit myself in the coming year? How can you do those things to help yourself in the coming year?

What I’m reading

Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur

Reconciliation: Healing the Inner Child by Thich Nhat Hanh

Humankind: A Hopeful History by Rutger Bregman

What I’m watching

What I’m laughing at

What I’m listening to

What I’m clicking on

12 Ways to Beat the Winter Blues

Perimenopause can trigger high anxiety. Nobody told these women that it’s normal

A Woman Went Viral Offering House-Cleaning for People With Depression

Outback Red vs. Forenza – Battle of The Limited’s Brands

Diverse-Owned Bookstores You Can Support Right Now

A Boston Marriage: When you’re more than friends but less than lovers

120 Things To Remove From Your Life

22 Tiny Mental Health Habits That Can Improve Your Life In 2022

What I’m quoting

Here’s to 2022…

38 thoughts on “Screw It, I’m Eating Tater Tots- Episode 34”

  1. Kari! You’re back! Happy New Year! I missed you!

    Sorry you spent part of break with a cold*. Do ch-ch-chia pets work anyone? (but yays for good commercial jingles.) Hope you guys are all feeling better.

    Under “watching” at my place… Die Hard. From the eighties! The hair! The office decor! The hair! I’d forgotten all the funny lines so it was almost like a new release! There was even a window crash scene somewhat reminiscent of The Matrix! Some bits were cringe but oh em gee did I appreciate the lack of spastic editing. You could count to 6 or even 10 before the camera cut to a new perspective or scene. Well paced editing I HAVE MISSED YOU!

    Nourish is a wonderful word of the year. I have been doing a lot of Recall and Remember and Savor but also Nourish. Calling relatives I love and simply chatting about nothing (young people – call your elders bc they miss you!). Buying my childhood favs (retro UNO!). Sitting with the cats and telling them nice things about themselves (this is oddly comforting and I don’t know why?). And today I’m going to go outside and enjoy the snow blizzard* (*not a real blizzard by Midwest standards) that has followed the insane wind/rain storm we just had.

    Happy to be here in 2022 with you my friend! It is WINDY and snowy and we are going out to play!

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    1. I’ve missed you too!

      I’d love to hear from someone who has had success with chia pets. Maybe I should google chia pet success stories. Would make for an excellent coffee table book

      My husband considers Die Hard to be a Christmas movie. I never argue with him. 🙂

      I love hearing about your appreciation for the things from our childhood, and how you take the time to do the things that older generations would appreciate. We need to practice more kindness and compassion in our every day. That is something I intend to bring into my weekly practice in 2022.

      Uno! I love Uno. Have you ever played Skip-Bo? I might have to dig around for it to play. We’ve been playing more board games lately, especially when we get together with family and friends.

      We had two snowfalls this week. It’s so nice to have snow on the ground again. Enjoy the snow and have fun playing in it! 🙂

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      3. Ha! Die Hard was my husband’s Christmas movie request! 🙂 And honestly I think it was my fav this year. Partly bc it was fun watching him watch one of his childhood fav movies. This Christmas we were so exhausted over, well, *everything* that I think we wanted to immerse ourselves in happy memories and family. I know the real world is still out there but humans were not built to live on high alert 24/7. So we totally cocooned & regressed (safely bc we could stay home).

        Monday was such a bummer (except for the snow!). Way to be harsh Reality.

        I’ve never heard of Skip-Bo! But I am here for your fabulous suggestions. You always recommend the best stuff Kari. I’m just getting to your rad links….

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      4. Yes, to being on high alert 24/7. On January 5th, I’m already over it.

        Thanks to other bloggers, I’m able to find the best stuff. Thanks to my friend Rita, I recently discovered another blogger who, in addition to her lovely words, shares amazing links. I think you’ll enjoy her blog as well. Her blog is called A Thousand Shades of Gray.

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  4. This post made me smile repeatedly. (Especially the dog and cupcake story.) Thanks for that. I think “nourish” is a great word for the year. It can mean so many different things, while meaning one pretty specific thing. I like it better than “self-care.” And I watched that Debra Winger trailer and now I think I need to re-watch it again, 15 years or so after the first watching. Think it might be a necessary part of my Julia Cameron work.

    Wishing you a happy new year. 🙂

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    1. Thank you for that movie recommendation. It was so good.
      Thank you also for the Julia Cameron book recommendation (It’s Never Too Late to Begin Again). I just got a notification that it’s waiting at my library. I might even risk the 19 degrees and omnicron to pick it up tonight. 🙂

      Happy New Year to you as well, my friend. 🙂

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  5. Kari! I am reading Humankind right now too! And Rupi Kaur, although Home Body is the collection I’m reading. Twinsies! Also, I am dying about the Richard Simmons chia. I had no idea such a glorious thing existed and I am going to look for one myself.

    Love the idea of nourishing yourself. I think a chia pet would nourish my soul. Also, doing nice things for myself – that is my goal this year. Who am I kidding, I kind of do that every year.

    I think of all the emotions, jealousy is one of the most toxic ones. Although, I’m jealous of your Richard Simmons, what does that say about me. Hmm, maybe I’m more envious than jealous because I really hope yours grows hair. I am HOPING FOR YOUR SUCCESS.

    This comment is going off the rails. Sorry, not sorry.

    The recipe blogger! Lolololol. Amazing.

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    1. I just added Home Body to my TBR list a few days ago!

      So, last night, I discovered Richard has some growth on the top of his head as well as on his neck. I wasn’t anticipating chest hair.

      A chia pet would definitely nourish the soul, in my humble opinion. I do these kinds of things every year too. I believe it’s beneficial for everyone to do so.

      We all are guilty of jealous emotions. Even harmless chia envy. Thank you for rooting for my chia success. 🙂

      These are my favorite kinds of comments.

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  7. I’m here, I’m here. Taking on more than normal in my daycare which is impacting my blog reading, but I’M HERE!

    Maybe Richard needs some air, is suffocating him under a plastic bag necessary in the process? I’ve not owned a Chia Pet, but yours makes me laugh. I do hope you have some success, even if it is patchy. I’m looking forward to the updates.

    Nourish IS a great word.

    Envy – ick. I grew up with this largely because of the favoritism shown to my brother in our family. It is so unhealthy, but yet – hard to cope with when you are young and feel glossed over. Fortunately, Coach and my kids SEE the favoritism, even now. It helps to have people in my corner. At long last. I mean, I may have brain washed them to be in my corner, but I’m still counting it.

    I hadn’t heard of this Where is Debra Winger movie, or documentary or whatever it is. I enjoyed the trailer and I might need to look into watching it.

    We (older kids and I when Coach is asleep) are THOROUGHLY enjoying After Life with Ricky Gervais. So very funny. It’s naughty and full of bad language, but per my last name, that’s how I roll. Wink, wink.

    Sorry about the cold that hit so many of you. My young charges dragged a NASTY cold into my home mid November. My family members were not happy. I didn’t get it and I think it’s because I’ve already gotten all of their germs. Coach read an interesting thing about covid tests yesterday. I’m paraphrasing – something like, you could test positive one day and not the next just because of how strong the virus is one day and by the next it might be a little less vibrant. *all wrong wording here, but it was interesting, Maybe google will explain it better than me.

    Poor tourism department in Branson. I see them scrambling to recover from your experience.

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    1. I was just thinking of you today because of Mini, and I was wondering how all of you were feeling. I also had a dream about you the other night that I was commenting on your blog when you dropped off a cat at my house. Figure that one out, Freud.

      So, according to the chia pet instructions, I’m meant to cover Richard’s head with a bag. I know it appears that I’m suffocating him, but this is all part of the chia pet agenda.

      Envy is really difficult to overcome. This is a lesson I’ve had to learn the hard way, which is why I’m starting off 2022 with those quotes. We’re getting rid of that shit this year. We can do it.

      I’ve heard that about this variant. I’ve heard it also a shorter incubation period, which probably explains why it’s spreading everywhere. I’ve also heard it’s not expected to hang around as long as Delta…so here’s hoping.

      I definitely should not be working for the Branson tourism department. Or should they reach out to try and persuade me to change my mind?

      Still no.

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  8. It was most likely Covid… because it seems like every other possible illness has taken a back seat. My wife is test paranoid. On a brighter note my cousin went highschool and was friends with one of the members of The Lumineers.

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  9. Great tot post – so much to comment about!

    Chia pet…they still make those? Had no idea. A Richard Simmons one is perfect. You’ll have to let us know how it turns out!

    Wake & Bakery…love it. What a clever name. I’ve recently been trying gummies and it’s been…umm, interesting. Long story. Best told in person. lol

    No word of the year for me. I tried the past two years and totally forgot about it – and even what word I chose – by the end of January!

    I was listening to the song, Beautiful Life that you posted and his voice and the music reminds me of Simon and Garfunkel. Will have to look up more of his music on Spotify.

    The link, 12 Ways to Beat the Winter Blues…love the website, Cup of Jo. She has some really good articles.

    Be More with Less blog looks really interesting…bookmarked it to look at it all later.

    Also loved the article you posted from Huffpost about 22 Tiny Mental Health Habits. There was a reminder to start a gratitude journal. I’ve been meaning to do that. I’m going to start tonight. They also mentioned a light therapy box for SAD. I do have one but I’ve only used it once this winter. Another habit I need to get back into. I did try it last year on a consistent basis and didn’t notice any difference, but I’m willing to try it again. And they mentioned acupuncture for anxiety…yes! I actually went to acupuncture this morning for nerve pain I’ve been having in my head (another long story…jeez, we need to get together and talk in person!!)…we also talked about my anxiety. Just one treatment and I feel so much better already. Going one more time next week. The downside? Insurance doesn’t cover it. Lastly, the article mentioned Qigong meditation…my First Best Friend recently told me she’s been doing this for about six weeks and absolutely loves it. I was going to look at some youtube videos to give it a try.

    Gaah, I didn’t mean to hog your comment space! xoxo

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    1. Richard is blooming. Ella is fascinated that chia seeds bloom. It’s been a fascinating science project.

      The good news is that Wake and Bakery is legal everywhere. So anyone may order their goodies online and have them shipped anywhere. I don’t believe people are aware that there is legal marijuana in their state. It’s just called something else (delta).

      Acupuncture, massage, and reiki MUST ALL BE COVERED. Our healthcare system needs to change. It is been shown to work and is preferable to taking medication. I didn’t enjoy acupuncture when I first tried it for my migraines years ago, but I believe it was because of my acupuncturist. I’m willing to give it another shot, not for migraines, but for other reasons.

      You never take up too much space by writing. 🙂

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      1. Delta-8 is known as weed lite because it’s mostly extracted from hemp CBD. The reason it’s so popular is because it’s legal in most states and isn’t heavily regulated like “regular” THC – Delta-9.

        I totally agree with you that acupuncture, massage and Reiki should all be covered by insurance. You know why they aren’t? Because insurance companies don’t make any money on wellness. They make money on people being sick and running to expensive doctors and having expensive tests and then taking expensive drugs. If people stay well by natural means, then where’s the money in that? It’s ridiculous.

        Acupuncture is great for so many things. It’s amazing how clear I felt physically and mentally after my treatment. I had sinus stuffiness when I went yesterday morning and was totally clear when I left. I was very relaxed, too. Give it another shot sometime! Look up online reviews. That’s how I found the place I went to. 🙂

        xoxo

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      3. Speaking of massage, Brian’s going today for one. He’s been experiencing a lot of lower back pain recently, which he rarely gets. I’m overdue for a massage too – think I’ll get one in Feb. You can keep your mask on the entire time and as long as the massage therapist wears one too, I don’t worry about Covid.

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      5. My favorite massage therapist moved to Chicago – too far! The one Brian went to today did not wear a mask (he wore his)…he said no one in this wellness center was wearing one! Interestingly enough, when I went for acupuncture a few days ago, the employees there weren’t wearing masks either. What is up with that?!

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  11. I’ve never been to Branson, but we’ve all had colds and explosive diarrhea. To be clear, it was a toddler with the explosive part.
    Well, since I’m home with a cold* I think I need to watch some of your choices. The Coopers look really cute!
    Searching For Debra Winger was eye opening!

    Happy 2022 my friend. XO

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  12. Has Richard sprouted?!?!?!?! We had a Hello Kitty (or Hiyo titty if you recall) one and she looked great until she got straggly (but that goes for most of us really I guess). I am loving the new Bridget Everett show Somebody Somewhere, but I want it to be longer each week-like a movie! I hate waiting and want more!

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    1. LMAO. I’ve never been to Texas, but I’m not hearing good things lately. I’d like to go to San Antonio and Austin someday. Just not during a pandemic. 😉

      Don’t let my stories distort your judgment of Branson. I never want to get in the way of someone’s bucket list. I must say that the scenery surrounding Branson is beautiful, and that alone is reason enough to visit.

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