Trying New Things

Or who the heck thought this was a good idea?

If the above wording makes little sense to you, you're in for a real treat. I tried some new food and drink this past weekend, and have come to mixed conclusions.

Dew S A, also known as the three color Mountain Dew drink. I've been avoiding this drink for a little while since I first saw the cans come in their boxes to the end of the aisles at Walmart and Tops. I wasn't sure how I would feel about them mixing together 3 flavors of their drink.

This weekend we had the bravery to get one bottle, as you see to the left. It's not a huge sample size, but as I am only one person testing the flavor and deciding how I felt about it this was an adequate size. Besides I didn't want to be stuck with 11 cans if it was gross to drink.

The verdict was that it was alright. It's not really unique in my opinion, having more of a berry flavor than anything else.


The next new flavor actually shocked me. It was honestly a surprise to see it at the store on the shelves.  Sweet Corn flavored potato chips.

UTZ you have seriously got a winner here. As someone who has had to give up eating corn on the cob because it bothers my stomach, the taste of these combined with the texture as you chew them mimics corn on the cob surprisingly well. I have to say that out of the three new food and drink flavors I'm sharing my experience with, this would be the winner. These were wonderful.

But I will say they might not be what everyone expects. They truly taste like sweet corn. Where often potato chips have a chip flavor still, these lost that completely somehow, and nothing could have been better for them.

My third new experience was Pepsi FIRE. This was ... unique? It's not quite what I expected. I assumed it was going to be like Dr Pepper but with a slight cinnamon taste. Instead I got something completely different.

Pepsi Fire is akin to drinking a liquid cinnamon altoid. If you haven't eaten altoids, think of those little red cinnamon candy buttons, pretty much the same thing. Does this mean it was unpleasant? No... but it does mean it left me unimpressed and with little reason to purchase again.


So the verdict on a whole, is that the only product here that I would purchase again is the UTZ Sweet Corn flavored potato chips. Kind of sad really, I expected so much more from big brands like Pepsi and Mountain Dew. But today I have to say the winner is the potato, with the big taste. Definitely a great flavor and I hope they keep it, even if it's only seasonal.

Music Monday : Don't Be Bitter

Today I was torn about what to post. I won't elaborate, but I am sending a message out that isn't necessarily staying true to the message in the music I've selected. Sometimes being bitter about something comes with the territory. As we age we have experiences that may be good for us, but they may be a hard pill to swallow or accept.

I've been having a little trouble accepting something, even though in the long run it doesn't matter anymore. What does matter though are the people in my life now, the things I have the opportunity to do now, and the adventures that life is continuing to bring my way.

Let your life be magical, don't let bitterness make it sour and gray.

Bea Miller - This is Not an Apology

Nikki Cleary - Hated

Sheryl Crow - If It Makes You Happy

Michelle Branch - Are You Happy Now

Fall Out Boy - I don't Care

Please Be Safe

This coming weekend for many people is a weekend that they spend celebrating and visiting with family and friends. There are often barbeques, water balloon fights, and drinking. But I want to remind you to make sure that everything you're doing is done safely.

Some of you know what it's like to lose someone to drunk driving. It's a shock, and it leaves a hole that doesn't necessarily ever go away. Please don't let it be a downer, just keep it in mind if you choose to drink this weekend. DO so safely, and know your options. If you're not sure that this is an issue that can concern you please take a moment to look over the information available to you at DrinkingandDriving.org.

.Here's another warning for you, as it's the holiday weekend I'm sure there will be a number of police checkpoints. So you don't even necessarily have to worry about being careful. If you do choose to drive drunk and you come up on one of the checkpoints it won't matter how careful you think you're being. So please just have a designated driver or another safe option available to you.

Have a great weekend and we'll see you next week.

Just a Personal Update

I know that last week seemed a bit odd, since I pulled out some older writing of mine to share with you. But the thing is sometimes it's fun to look at the old pieces and compare them to the style of the new ones. The same goes with some of the crafts I've been working on for the crafts swaps I'm participating in on instagram. I thought maybe you'd be interested in seeing some of the pieces I've been working on lately, I'm a little proud of how some of them are progressing.

So one thing I have finished lately is a necklace that I've titled Greenman #2. I started this piece over a year ago, along with another that I have yet to get a good photograph shot of. Both pieces are different, but feature the metal greenman face pendant.

I found the pendants in my travels, and picked up what few were available at the time squirreling them away until the inspiration would hit me. When it did last year, the piece I'll call Greenman #1 dragged. It wasn't cooperative, and it felt stagnant to work on, so I stopped putting them all away until a later date.

But now my muse is back and my inspiration has let me finish not just #1, but #2 as well. I think I have 2 more of the pendants, but one is already spoken for. The one seen here is mine, because while it may look very long, it's shorter than I intended for it to be.



Another project that I'm working on is something that is completely new to me. You can see my progress to the right. (Don't mind the needle and thread in the picture) It's a Nightmare Before Christmas inspired wreath, sort of.

While I may not usually be the sort to make wreaths this one has been coming along a little bit at a time, slowly. There's little details that you can't exactly see clearly in the image, such as the pinking sheared outer edges of the Burton-esque toe pincher casket shape.

The current status of this project is unfinished though, I still need to add a few more flowers, and maybe a couple of large bells if I can get my hands on any. Unfortunately as far as I have found so far, they're not in season. Not the large ones anyway.

 The last project I'll share with you today is my cheshire cat painting. While I know it appears to be non-traditional, I did my best to try and utilize the source material in a manner that would let the character be seen.

I tried to merge the grey and blue version of the cat from the live action films with the purple and pink cat from the classic animated film that Disney had released. The result as you can see is a bit odd. But I'm happy with how it's come out.

It's not just paint though. It's actually a mixed media painting. There's sharpie, acrylic, pencil, and watercolor used in order to express the image I had seen in my mind. It's not a perfect expression of what I imagined, but I find the result pleasing enough. Not that it's something to worry about I suppose. I still need to seal it to prevent any possible running.

There are some other projects that I am working on, but as of yet they're incomplete and I don't feel comfortable sharing them with you. Thank you for your interest and patience, hope you're having a magical week!

Music Monday : Think Outside The Box

This weeks challenge is to think outside the box. Don't let the choices of the people around you limit your decisions. Be unique and special. Don't be a square. Not that being a square is a bad thing. But by being creative you may find something you thought you were missing.

I hope you have a magical week, and the song choices this week are fun and hopefully they help break up the monotony of your day.

Van Stephenson - Modern Day Delilah

Patty Smyth - Goodbye To You

King Charles - Bam Bam

My Chemical Romance - Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na)

Carrie Underwood - Starts with Goodbye