Being in Sandwich Generation Aint Easy!

Today has been a tough day. Too many people needing me and I feel like I don’t have anything left to give. It’s not easy being in the sandwich generation when you have to care for your parents and your kids.

I feel like I’m often a bad mother and a bad daughter and everyone is getting short changed including me.  I’m not a natural caregiver. At least not for people. I am for animals. That brings up a whole another can of guilt. Why should I care more for animals than I do people? I don’t know. I was just born feeling very close to animals, specially dogs. Of course I love my family more than my pets but it just seems like such a physical & emotional struggle to care for people and it doesn’t for animals. I’ve accepted that in myself and if that makes me a bad person, well so be it. I don’t know how to change it.

I do try to be a good caregiver, most the time.  But then are times when an elderly parent is specially demanding and I think if I have to do this another day, I’m going to lose my mind. But then, I get up the next day and do it again. I keep myself sane  by telling myself that it’s not forever. To appreciate the time I have left with them. And I have my fantasies of living in a log cabin, on a lake in the country with no responsibility to anyone but myself. That’s what keeps me going.

I know I’m not alone out here. There are many of us in the baby boomer generation that are struggling to keep it together caring for surly teenagers and elderly, ill parents along with homes, relationships and jobs or businesses. You don’t hear too much about us, probably cos we are just too tired and busy to make waves. But we are a silent army, trying to keep our families together and ourselves in one piece.

Ok, I feel better now that I had my little rant.  I can face another day. I guess I’m lucky this blog is new with not many readers. LOL.

Today’s life tip:

If you have a problem with toenail fungus and can’t afford the very expensive prescription that takes many months for it to even work, there is a simple alternative.  Alot of folks have had luck with Vicks Salve, something you can buy very cheaply in any drugstore. Just slather it on and under your tonenails at night before bed and put cotton socks on to sleep. You can rub some in, in the morning too before you put your shoes and socks on. You should see an improvement within a month or two.

25 Random Things About Me

Kelly McCausey over at Spakplugging’s WAHM 2.0 has tagged me for the “25 Random Things About Me” meme that has been making the blog circles.  So here goes:

1. I have lived in 6 decades since I was born at the tail end of the 50′s! Wow, I’m old.

2. I have had 14 dogs in my life along with 3 cats, 1 snake, 8 hamsters, 1 gerbil, 2 rabbits, 4 guinea pigs, & untold amounts of fish. Can you tell I’m an animal nut?

3. I have been married twice (both disasters). The first was for 7 months to my high school art teacher. The second, over 20 years.

4-I am 1/4 Cherokee Native American (I know I don’t look it) along with English, Irish & German. In other words, I’m a mutt!

5-The first real home that I bought all by myself was this little old mobile home. I fixed it up really cute and still miss it sometimes (although I never want to live in a trailer again!)

6-I don’t think I have ever truly been in love. Sad huh?

7-I am double jointed. I can put my legs around my neck & I use my feet like hands to pick up stuff.

8-I worked at CBN and have talked to Pat Robertson several times. Boy, I could tell some stories…..

9-I have been on TV probably about half a dozen times (mostly CBN).

10-My first television experience was when I was 8. I was on a local TV kids show called “The Jim and Tammy Show” that was hosted by the later notorious Jim and Tammy Faye Baker (Remember the PTL scandal?)

11-My 2 daughters’ birthdays are 3 days apart (and 3 years).

12- I have always been artistic. As a kid in school, I use to draw pictures in class & sell them to the other students for a quarter.

13- I am a descendent of Captain John Ratcliffe who sailed here in the 1600′s (watch Disney’s Pochohantas if you want to know who John Ratcliffe was, although he wasn’t really a bad guy.)

14-I am also 3rd cousin to Elvis Presley.

15-I actually do believe in the Law of Attraction. It’s not woo-woo. It’s science. And although the New-Agers have claimed it, it’s often talked about in the Bible.

16-Before I die, I want to try para-sailing.

17-I actually took Disco dance lessons in the late 70′s. I still love listening to Disco.

18-I am totally not athletic at all but I do love swimming and could live in the water!

19-I am a total sci-fi nut. I love “Ghost Hunters”, old “Twilight Zone” shows, “Lost” & anything Star Trek.

20-I rarely watch TV anymore. I usually listen to podcasts or read instead.

21-I LOVE to read and wish there was some way I could make that a career. I’m usually reading 2-3 books at any given time.

22- I sometimes don’t think I’m feminine enough. I don’t like to shop, don’t care much for clothes, decorating or celebrity gossip. I’m not very emotional. I tend to gravitate and feel more comfortable around men at parties.

23-I don’t consider myself psychic but I have had times where I just knew things before they happened. My mom is the same way.

24-The doctors always told me I had a body that was made for bearing children. All my pregancies were easy, I delivered exactly on the due dates, & even though I had big babies, 8 pounds to over 10 pounds, my labors were very fast at about an hour or so.

25-My grandparents lived in a huge 6 bedroom old Victorian with 4 porches in Athens, WV. We were all convinced the place was haunted from the weird stuff that would happen there. I still have nightmares about that house!

Ok, hope that wasn’t too boring for you. On to today’s business tip:

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Funny Internet Video

I love this video! I can SO relate:

Ok, today’s life tip: If you still get your newspaper the old fashioned way (in your driveway) you may be wondering what to do with all those long skinny bags the newspaper comes in. Well, here are some uses:
Put a few in your diaper bag to wrap up those stinky diapers.
Wrap a few around your dog’s leash to use to pick up poops on dog walks.
Use a bag to cover the cast on your arm when showering.
Keep one under your sink & use it to pick up and hold food waste in your sink.

Government Health Insurance?

I don’t know how the people in other countries like their free government  health insurance but I’d be curious to find out. Sometimes I feel like it might be a good thing for this country to have. Of course when I worked outside the home and actually had health insurance through my work, I was horrified at the thought of the government forcing us to use their health insurance.

Things are quite different now. I no longer have insurance since I work for myself. I’m in reasonably good health with the only health problem being hypothyroidism but I’m not getting any younger. And then sometimes accidents happen. Like this morning, one of my silly dogs hid his toy under an area rug & I tripped over it and fell hard on my knee. My whole body is sore but my knee has swollen up twice the normal size and it’s quite painful. Man, would I really like some health insurance right now….

Ok, on to today’s business tip: If you need pictures for your blog or web site you can find them on PicApp.com and also google images. You can even use flickr but you have to give the photographer credit.

The South Calls to Me!

It looks like old man Winter has returned. It won’t even reach 50 today, and 55 is normal here for this time of year. I comfort myself in knowing Spring is just around the corner. I am SO not a cold weather person. When I don’t have the responsibilities I have know (kids still at home and caring for disabled mother), I plan to move further south to a warmer climate. Funny thing is, alot of snow birds from up north move to this area for the same reason.

So where should I move? I was thinking Atlanta since my best friend is there, I have several other online friends who live there & it seems to be the hub for internet marketers there with lots of conferences going on through out the year. The problem is, the weather is about the same there.  So I’m thinking further south in Georgia or South Carolina. I love Nashville too but then again, the weather is the same. And I want a small town or even the country this time. I’m over city life with the crime and the crowds and the high living expense.

You know, that’s the good thing about working from home in today’s world. With the internet, we can work anywhere so we can live anywhere. How cool is that?

So where would yall move to if you were a single, middle aged, thin blooded gal who wants to be less than a day’s driving distance from her kids once they get out on their own?

On to today’s tip: This is a life tip and maybe it’s something that most of yall already know but it didn’t occur to me until about 6 months ago. This is a great tip for your teen who may be struggling with pimples or even if your an adult like me who still has break outs.

Last summer, I burned my hand on my oven and could tell it might leave an ugly scar. So I bought some of that creme from the pharmacy that is supposed to reduce scars as it helps the wound heal. It did the job perfectly and there’s no scar there. I was dealing with a breakout at the time in an area of my face that is prone to breakouts and has previous scars. So I used the creme there too and not only did it keep the current scar from healing, it greatly reduced the previous scars! So now, I keep a tube of it with my face wash, astringent, and moisturizer and use it religiously!

See ya tomorrow!

February Flowers and a Social Network Tip

Don’t these guys know it’s February?

The past week has been so warm in Virginia Beach (and lots of other parts of the country) that these poor little flowers think Spring has arrived. I’m afraid they will soon have a rude awakening!

Today’s tip is a business tip that follows the 80/20 rule.  On twitter, Facebook or other social networks, give 80% useful info (like I’m doing now   )or be social and just let your personality shine through. Then the 20% of business promotion will be tolerated by your followers.

Bye til tomorrow

Welcome to my newest blog!

Hi there! This is my first post on this blog. I actually have 4, no 5 blogs I think but I really wanted one that I could just let loose on and talk about my life.

I can hear you yawning out there. That’s ok. I would too. Let me clarify. I won’t just be talking about my life per se. I’ll be adding free and cheap business resources as I find them and giving you tips for your life and business too.

Ok, I know what you are thinking. “What makes her so smart that she can give ME advice?” Well, I’m not so smart. In fact, sometimes I feel like the village idiot. But I’ll be 50 on my next birthday. I have raised 3 children + 1 step daughter, and I’m surviving and happy flourishing as a single work at home mom. I have been in business since 1992 although most of the time, it was part time. I also do have extensive knowledge of pets, specifically dogs.  That old saying is true, “with age comes wisdom”. I have learned a few things  over the years and have a few tricks up my sleeve.

So let me tell you how I’m going to wor this. I’m going to try to post every day and just make it part of my routine when I post to my other blogs. If I don’t have time or don’t have much to say, then I’m at least going to try to post a tip or give an URL to a great resource once a day.

So please come back & visit and tell your friends!

Bye now,