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Showing posts from December, 2017

Christmas in Washington State with Bing Crosby, Darren McGavin, Burl Ives, Stan Boreson, and Yogi Yorgesson

Q: What do Bing Crosby , Darren McGavin , Burl Ives , Stan Boreson , and Harry Stewart (Yogi Yorgesson) have in common? A: Washington State...and Christmas! 💁🎅🎄 Here are five famous and fondly-remembered entertainers that my holidays wouldn't be the same without (and maybe yours, too!) who are connected to my home state of Washington.  Map created with Google Maps & information compiled via Wikipedia by Eve Penman .  Following the order on the map above; top to bottom, left to right: TOP STAR   > Burl Ives (1909-1995) best known at Christmastime for being the narrator Sam the Snowman in the 1964 classic Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer ; an Illinois native where he was laid to rest, he passed away while living at his home in Anacortes, WA, in 1995. Find Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer  for listening and watching at Amazon (see disclaimer below) . MIDDLE STAR  > Stan Boreson (1925-2017) best known at Christmastime amongst Washingtonians and/or thos

Housekeeping ProTips: How to Vacuum Happy with Hearing and Hand Protection

Vacuuming literally sucks, especially with my sensitive ears. 🙉 It's not that I hate the act of vacuuming, it's that I hate the sound of the vacuum; I always have. As a kid I would want to hide from the vacuum cleaner just because of the sound -- LOUD. 💢 Ever since learning about misophonia  a few years ago due to my issue with the sounds of chewing, I have concluded that my over-sensitivity to vacuums might be part of it, too; along with my dislike for the sounds of blenders and food processors. 😣 While I haven't always wanted to vacuum, I have never made the sound an excuse not to vacuum. Pure laziness seemed to be a good enough excuse, but maybe my sound sensitivities were subconsciously stopping me, only I didn't know it all those years ago. 💁 It's not that the sound makes me have to cover my ears in order to function, but it is unsoothing to my ears and I do not like it, period, so it does not motivate me to clean, and that's really not good. 😞 I h

How to Find Divorce Forms Online

(Disclaimer: This is not legal advice; this is information on how to conduct online research to find public documents.)  A few things I learned as a court reporter: Divorce happens, divorce is not pretty, and divorce comes with paperwork...lots of paperwork. So, where does one find the paperwork for filing a divorce? Where else in the 21st Century but online, of course; and it's a wonderful convenience, too. Searching for any state's divorce forms is very easy thanks to search engines. > Open any search engine and type the state's name with the words 'divorce forms' after it. For example, I tested it out on Mississippi, a state I have never lived, worked, nor breathed in.  When I typed 'Mississippi State divorce forms' the first non-ad link that came up in the search was the forms page for the  Administrative Office of Courts for the State of Mississippi Judiciary . Under the Statistical Reporting Forms section is the link Civil Case Filing

By Request: Tips and Hints for First-Time Blog Writers

Thanks to the reader who left this curious comment on my blog post Where Do Tote Bags Come From : "Hmm it looks like your website ate my first comment (it was super long) so I guess I’ll just sum it up what I wrote and say, I’m thoroughly enjoying your blog. I as well am an aspiring blog writer but I’m still new to the whole thing. Do you have any tips and hints for first-time blog writers? I’d definitely appreciate it." Thanks for reading and commenting! Sorry for the annoyance of the eaten comment, I know how irksome that can be. Here is my list of tips and hints for first-time blog writers,  by request and in no particular order : > Do not spend money on a blog if you do not know what you are doing. 💸 > There are numerous free blogging platforms for a reason -- so people don't have to spend money! Learning for free is awesome in the 21st Century; take advantage of it. 📚 > The best way to learn how to blog is to sit down and actually do it onc