Monday, August 24, 2020
Ever Wonder?
What happens when your overall presentation doesn't precisely reflect the gender marker shown on your license, and you have an incident involving police when you're on the road?
The short answer often is: "nothing out of the ordinary."
I was sitting at a red light on a side road in another county in Maryland, waiting for the light to change, listening to the radio and sort of daydreaming while staring at the light. While wearing one of my capri outfits with my white sandals and white toe nails gleaming. All of a sudden: BAM - my car lurched forward (but the brakes held), when the driver behind me ran into the back of my car at a relatively slow speed. (Always keep your foot on the brake, as I do, to avoid rear-ending the car in front of you when you are rear-ended. Using "Park" may mess up your automatic transmission.) I looked in my mirrors, and the driver was an older (than me) lady. There were no cars behind hers yet, and no lurking bystanders or passengers in her car, waiting to jump in and hijack my car. So I got out, the lady opened her window and apologized, and asked if there was any damage. Which of course there was, so I called police.
The officer arrived within a couple of minutes, (which amazed the lady). He used no gender specific greetings for me at first, addressed the other lady as a female, my face matched my driver's license, and required papers for me and the other driver were all in order. There was no injury to anyone, and the officer facilitated our information exchange. Then to my amazement, when talking to both of us together, he finished with "Each of you ladies, report this to your insurance company, and they will work it out." Before long, we were both on our way. My car with a dented rear, hers with little or no identifiable damage.
Of course, under different circumstances things with police involvement could turn out wildly opposite...."your mileage may vary." But one's composure and attitude could make a big difference. And handled carefully, it's generally nothing to fear.
Be safe...
Mandy
Monday, June 15, 2020
Happiness is...
Shiny, light pink nails, fresh from a visit to the nail salon!
Finally things opened up enough around here, to be able to allow having my nails done . What a relief to be pleased to let people see properly trimmed and filled finger nails again! I'm sure many of you ladies have had that feeling!
They were following the rules as to mask-wearing, occupancy restrictions and social distancing. It took me 4 days from when I called to make the appointment, till they could do my nails. And I felt right at home there, with the ladies. Though a man did come in with his wife and they both got a pedicure. He didn't get any polish, and as he walked past on the way out, commented about how nice "all you ladies look with your pretty nails." (I was wearing flats, blue capris and a black tee blouse, with my purse by my chair.) And, yes, it's nice to be appreciated!
 |
| A fresh fill and manicure at last! |
A big benefit to my shorter nails: I can type quite a bit more efficiently now... And my wife didn't even complain, since my claws were quite noticeable and these, though pink and shiny, are much less so.
Next step: a pedicure...
Mandy
Visibility
Publish
Friday, April 10, 2020
The Toilet Paper Conundrum
Recently, a television news segment brought the recent continuous toilet paper shortage (here on the Delmarva it still goes on) into complete focus. And it makes sense! Thanks to the reporter who investigated this issue!
Think back to the beginning (January/February), when people were first being told to stay home. People didn't know how long the issue would last, what the rules might be, and they reacted to uncertainty. Yes, it initially may have been a case of hoarding - of the soft, fluffy stuff we all need every day in our homes. And as the situation in the world became more dire, schools and colleges, malls, stores all were being closed, forcing folks of all ages back into their homes full-time.
Hence, consumption hours for the soft fluffy 2-ply toilet paper at home rose dramatically - from being used for 6 or 7 hours of the day to 24/7. That's additional demand, which keeps the shelves at your local market cleaned out. Not necessarily hoarding - when 6 people are home 24/7/31 days per month instead of only 1 person all day all month, something has to give.
Remember that other market for toilet paper: commercial establishments like dorms, malls, stores, schools, factories, etc. You know, that one-ply, stiff, scratchy stuff we're forced to use at work or school. Guess what? There's very little demand for that right now. It's sometimes made by different companies than the consumer product, has a different chain of distribution, is bulky, worth comparatively very little, and takes up lots of expensive warehouse space to store, for currently nonexistent demand. As those stocks are slowly whittled down, it's likely that they will not be replenished and warehoused until the light at the end of the coronavirus tunnel gets much brighter than it is currently.
So to me, it sounds as though the home toilet paper manufacturers never will catch up on home-use demand, though it's not necessarily due to hoarding. Adding production capacity is costly, long-term and futile, given the coronavirus cycle. And meanwhile, once commercial establishments: dorms, malls, stores, schools, factories, etc. someday (hopefully soon) start to go back to normal usage patterns, during the period of market readjustment there could conceivably be overstocks at grocery stores and shortages at the commercial bathrooms. Hence 'out of order' signs at commercial establishments.
To be a little bit punny; perhaps it all Depends! (I know, bad joke, sorry.) Or - carry your own when you can.
Mandy
Thursday, April 2, 2020
IT WAS ANOTHER DAY OF...
….invisibility.
Becoming visible requires getting dressed and going out and about, or posting something new on the internet. With “the virus” wrecking lives, careers and families, my greatest goal for the day was to stay home with my wife and avoid anything which might lead to catching the virus. So I have to settle for the internet.
Today my wife had to make a grocery run for a large order…I have been doing the small “milk and bread orders” as needed. The grocery store has senior hours where they try to keep the younger folks at bay to avoid cross pollution.
My hair is in need of some color…but the hair salons are closed. And my gel-coated nails need a fill and a trim…but the nail salons are closed. Fortunately…my nails are light pink. I have been keeping them relatively invisible with a light filing at the place where they grow out, and some very light pink polish. But they are getting long. I wore them longer than this several years back, but since the salons won’t likely re-open till May, they may get a lot longer. Since they look OK , I don’t plan to do anything to them unless I have to. (Despite their negative impact on my typing…)
I wonder if they’ll end up this long again:
Note that the French Tip color was white, and the nail tech made its length appear less than the free growth area, to reduce the “apparent length” of my nails. She thought long nails looked elegant, and wanted my hands to always look their best. They did…and I often got compliments on them “as a lady,” even in androgynous (translation; everyday) mode.
But, as ladies with long nails find out, having pretty nails come with limitations. No, one of them was not breakage. More specifically, movement limitations. As in; typing, pushing buttons, opening car doors, picking up things from the floor, being careful inserting contact lenses, etc. I had to work to avoid doing damage to them (or myself) in everyday life. And strangely enough, my wife never complained about them back then. (That came later…)
I doubt they'll get as long as in the above picture – that took several months to achieve. And they currently are not the French style, But with the virus keeping salons closed for at least the next month, they will get quite a bit longer…and probably not look as nice!
No problem!
Hugs,
Mandy
Becoming visible requires getting dressed and going out and about, or posting something new on the internet. With “the virus” wrecking lives, careers and families, my greatest goal for the day was to stay home with my wife and avoid anything which might lead to catching the virus. So I have to settle for the internet.
Today my wife had to make a grocery run for a large order…I have been doing the small “milk and bread orders” as needed. The grocery store has senior hours where they try to keep the younger folks at bay to avoid cross pollution.
My hair is in need of some color…but the hair salons are closed. And my gel-coated nails need a fill and a trim…but the nail salons are closed. Fortunately…my nails are light pink. I have been keeping them relatively invisible with a light filing at the place where they grow out, and some very light pink polish. But they are getting long. I wore them longer than this several years back, but since the salons won’t likely re-open till May, they may get a lot longer. Since they look OK , I don’t plan to do anything to them unless I have to. (Despite their negative impact on my typing…)
I wonder if they’ll end up this long again:
Note that the French Tip color was white, and the nail tech made its length appear less than the free growth area, to reduce the “apparent length” of my nails. She thought long nails looked elegant, and wanted my hands to always look their best. They did…and I often got compliments on them “as a lady,” even in androgynous (translation; everyday) mode.
But, as ladies with long nails find out, having pretty nails come with limitations. No, one of them was not breakage. More specifically, movement limitations. As in; typing, pushing buttons, opening car doors, picking up things from the floor, being careful inserting contact lenses, etc. I had to work to avoid doing damage to them (or myself) in everyday life. And strangely enough, my wife never complained about them back then. (That came later…)
I doubt they'll get as long as in the above picture – that took several months to achieve. And they currently are not the French style, But with the virus keeping salons closed for at least the next month, they will get quite a bit longer…and probably not look as nice!
No problem!
Hugs,
Mandy
Monday, March 30, 2020
Advice needed!
Interestingly, the above picture taken 3.29.20 seems to confirm what I've seen in the mirror...my breasts seem to be growing, even though the scale says I've lost a little weight. You can see a dark area above each breast in the above picture, from a little bit of protrusion. It's more noticeable in the mirror each morning than here. But i guess it means that one of these days, I should seek to be professionally measured for a properly-sized bra.
The doctor mentioned breast growth as a possibility a while back, so i wouldn't be surprised if it happens as a side effect of one of my meds. (No, I'm NOT on HRT.) I didn''t outwardly cheer, but I wanted to. I couldn't be so lucky as to need an A-cup bra!
A rear-view of the 3/29/20 outfit, above:
Below is my holiday outfit, taken several years ago. Barefoot of course, as I typically am around the house:
Would any of you be willing to hazard an opinion as to whether outfits like these look attractive enough to actually wear on some of my trips? (With sandals or ballet flats, of course.) It would give me so many more options in my wardrobe, and laundry wouldn't be an issue as they are already laundered regularly at home.
Thanks in advance, girls...
Mandy
Sunday, March 29, 2020
B-O-R-I-N-G
We live on the Delmarva, where, unlike Washington DC/Baltimore areas and their suburbs, there are only a few cases of the new virus. And public schools throughout Maryland are all closed until the end of April. Out of an abundance of caution, we're following the published rules of social distancing, and only going out for visits to the grocery store and pharmacy. (Needless to say, the gasoline bills have shrunk significantly.) Mom's nursing home is locked down, thus no visiting. Fortunately they have had no cases of the virus thus far.
Walking around the neighborhood for exercise is permissible if we maintain the required separation, and we have done that a few times. Anything to alleviate the boredom...the telly isn't all that much help! Too much coverage of the virus...there IS other news! And home shopping doesn't help much, either.
As for Mandy, there hasn't been any Mandy time lately, and with the virus lurking out there in the wings, there simply aren't any excursions in the planning stages, nor any safe excursions to plan for. A trip to TN to see the kids is certainly on our to-do list, and I hope it can be taken in the near future. But cases are increasing rapidly there (a nursing home near Nashville was just evacuated due to the virus), and we will take no chances until the all-clear is given for MD, VA and TN. We don't need to get stuck in quarantine for 14 days when we cross state lines, when we arrive there, or when we get home.
My posting may be less frequent till things start to ease up, so please bear with me...
To all my readers: please follow all instructions given. By all means, be safe - and well!
Hugs,
Mandy
Sunday, March 15, 2020
What is it with Toilet Paper?
WHAT IS IT WITH TOILET PAPER?
For some time we've been planning a trip to visit our son, DIL, granddaughter and the in-laws in TN. Were to leave this morning (Sunday.)
Late last night, we got a call from our daughter-in-law in, who advised us they just found out that Saturday at work, her dad came into contact with an individual who is symptomatic and is likely at the very least COVID-19 positive. The whole family - including herself, our son and granddaughter, her parents, and her brother who is visiting - faces possible quarantine, and if we go, we would be included.
Since we'd be 'camping' alone in their partially finished "new" old house (fortunately finished kitchen, bathroom, HVAC and full electricity, but minimal furniture and no TV or internet), we decided with much sadness and regret, it's "game over. - trip postponed for now." We are both over that age which would expose ourselves to added risk. :-( So we'll be staying home, and FaceTime them instead. At least, till things improve. Someday soon? Hopefully. (But we're far from confident about that.)
However, we had earlier received a call from them, that all stores in their town are out of soft goods such as tissues and toilet paper. Tissues? Those I can sort of understand, since they're not terribly useful unless one is sick. But TOILET PAPER? Same thing occurs whenever snow is forecast - even as occasional flurries with no accumulation. At that point, the hot items are "milk, bread and toilet paper."
As perishables, milk and bread are sort of understandable. Even we don't keep a huge supply of milk on hand. (Bread - well, yes, in the freezer.) But, once again, TOILET PAPER? Is it universal that nobody buys toilet paper till using the last 4 sheets of their last roll? And that the mere forecast of three flakes of snow is enough to cause folks to clean out every roll in every store within 50 miles?
While we don't need any soft goods (had purchased TP and tissues ahead, to take some to the kids anyway, which is now added to our usable inventory), I checked while at the store, to see that the stocks of milk and bread were still fine. I did manage to buy some other perishables to restock our supply at the house. (Apparently ice cream and prepared dinners are the other hot items, as their supply on both was down. But don't need them, either.)
Here's what I found in the soft goods aisle of our favorite store in a nearby town;
Here's what I found in the soft goods aisle of our favorite store in a nearby town;
Basically, if you need anything except rolls of paper towels, you're out of luck. Good thing our supply is adequate for a while!
Mandy
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