Best Of

I just saw a news article that says Mondelēz will be bringing Sugar Free Oreos to retailers nationwide next month (Jan 2026).

Yeeessss!!!  There are only two types of packaged cookies I especially like and Oreos are one of them. The other is shortbread, like Lorna Doone.  I am super excited.  I hope their taste and texture is close to normal Oreos.

Thanks! @short+sassy Sending you good vibes as you start looking and applying. 

@levioosa, good luck on your interview!  I know you've been unhappy in your current job for a long time.

@charlotte989875, I highly recommend a "veg mental health day".  I'm sorry to hear you've been feeling especially overwhelmed.

I spent the whole weekend completely ignoring that my job ends in a few weeks.  But I need to make an extensive "to do" list, especially regarding our move and selling our properties here.  I started talking about it a little bit with my H last night.

One of our challenges, which has always been true, is our first move to Cincy will be a temporary and smaller place until we buy our next house.  We don't want to do the typical "one year lease" for a rental because we'll probably buy a house before then.  We need to give a good bit of thought to "what's going to storage" and "what needs to stay with us".  With the caveat that what stays with us will need to fit into a 1-bedroom apartment and maybe even an extended stay motel, which are studios and really small.  Yikes!  I am not looking forward to that process.  

With that in mind, I want to be extremely organized with the boxes/things going to storage.  Numbered boxes with a master list on what is in each box.  So if there is something we need in the meantime, we can easily find it.  We also talked last night about the large items we are/aren't taking with us.

Operation 1:  Make lists.

Operation 2:  Donate or sell as much as possible.  Less stuff is a big priority!  But easier said than done for me.

What a week. Yesterday I had an interview. It went well and I have an on site interview next Monday. I am still very torn on what I will do if it goes well and they offer me a position. It does sound promising. Also depends on if they offer per diem vs full time. Work today is super busy. I am "off" Thursday and Friday but have our work party on Friday, then H has a holiday party on Saturday. 

Otherwise yesterday I went to the mall and knocked out a bunch of gifts. I think I just have a couple left for H, some work gifts, and I wanted to get 1-2 more things for my parents. I'm trying to get in the Christmas spirit but it is hard. I'm also trying to keep up with wrapping so I don't hate my life two days before Christmas when those chickens come home to roost. 

Overall I am tired. Ever since thanksgiving my sleep schedule has been a mess. I just can't fall asleep any earlier than 12/12:30 and that's wreaking havoc on me during the work week. Boo. Anyways, SSDD.

I'm doing alright.  Still a bit sore and tired from the tooth pull.  I did take some pain meds and it's helping with most of it, but I just have a low grade headache that is sticking around.  I'm sure it's b/c of the pressure I felt in my face; I seriously felt like he was going to break whatever is behind my nose at once point.  The spots where he gave me the numbing shot are still sore too, especially my soft palate.  But overall healing well and I'm glad for that.  

I talked to the vet re: getting Harley's teeth cleaned.  She said there's no higher risk for Harley than for cats overall going under anesthesia.  I just have such an awful feeling about it, I'm going to hold off for another year.  I brush her teeth, her breath doesn't smell and she's just a bit over 3 years old, so hopefully I'm making the best decision for her.  I've had a friend lose their dog during a teeth cleaning and I know that's making me nervous.

Other than that, SSDD.  Just grinding at work to get things caught up from being unexpectedly out yesterday and then today's tasks.  I'm pretty much finished; I've got 3 things to do I'm saving for after lunch.  Then hopefully I can just kind of veg until it's the end of the day and then go to bed early again.

Also behind here and feeling like a perimenopausal grinch.

Today I'm drawing a line in the sand w/ Chiquita.  She should have fencing practice tonight and has a list of missing assignments.  She's not going until they're done and I have proof.  Last night I asked if she had homework and her 15yo self wrote a check with her mouth that she can't cash as she snapped at me. 

Good luck with that.  You need me to drive you to the extracurricular activities and that comes with meeting the minimum requirement of getting work done.   It's time for the idle threats to stop and I'm done.

I’m so behind on shopping. I have a few things for the boys, something for H, ideas for my mom but that’s it. It all just snuck up on me so fast! 

Oh Tuesday, Oh Tuesday. Hope everyone is having a good one

@VarunaTT, one of my shocks when I first moved from SOCAL to the NOLA area is the mall closest to me had a daiquiri store in the food court.

Companies are also allowed to give out free liquor/beer/wine samples in grocery stores here.  I had a great paying gig job doing that about 15 years ago.  My favorite grocery store to work in was the one in the downtown area, which is also the closest one to the French Quarter.  On my shifts, I usually had a few interactions with tourists who were stunned to see it.  I understood the surprise!

It wasn't a free for all, though.  I didn't have a tray of samples out, like you normally see for non-alcoholic items.  I poured the sample when requested and had to see their ID first, no matter how old they looked.  The customers also couldn't have more than one sample of each type I had.