Read Books and Be Nice to Each Other

I've doubled down on the belief that if people found work, hobbies and/or interests that genuinely fulfilled them, they wouldn't have the need to focus on negativity and being unkind to others.🤷 The following books are stories I found interesting and recommend for those looking for something new to read. Enjoy, and be nice to each other. 💓

Wasted Words by Staci Hart: Cam has convinced herself that everyone, very much including herself, should always date within a prescribed “shelf” she has assigned.  Super handsome jocks should only date beautiful leggy girls, nerds should only dates geeks & so on & so on. She could never consider dating her best friend & roommate Tyler and doesn’t believe that he would ever be interested in her anyway.  Only, he just might be.  And even if they do make a go of a relationship, could she rise above her insecurities and believe that that two people that don’t belong on the same “shelf” could actually be together?  Loved this story. Felt frustrated at times (in the best storytelling way), but loved the whole story journey. 

 

 

1996 by Kirsty McManus (90’s Flashback Series): This is a multiple book series and I don’t know what to say about it without giving any spoilers. I think it’s enough to say that the story follows Anna through her adventures and let’s just say she finds an unconventional way to make sense of her life and make more renewed and informed choices. I really enjoyed this selection. I’m not sure I’d want to go through what Anna goes through, but it’s definitely intriguing. And boy, do I root for Anna’s happiness, but her journey is filled with all kind of emotional (and I guess physical) twists and turns. I feel like if I say anymore, I’m going to give it away, so find this book & read it.  It’s fun!   

 

 

 

Just Neighbors (Blue Beech) by Charity Ferrell: Chloe didn’t have it easy growing up. She had a neglectful, drug-addicted mother and a sister that didn’t fall too far from that tree. But she focused on her studies and made a goal to achieve in order to leave her circumstances. She had a massive crush on Kyle, but he broke her heart. She didn’t fair too well in other romances. But then Kyle comes back in her life and somehow finds a way to involve himself in her life & they find themselves entangled in a relationship of sorts. Kyle even gets along with her nephew and niece whom she practically raised. But just around the corner, secrets, revelations & circumstances are bound to come to light that will change the course of their lives. I actually cried at a certain part reading this book. It is amazingly written.  

 

Seems simple enough.

 

As an avid reader, there's always time for it.

 

Product Review: Trader Joe's 4 Cheese Pastry Rolls

These cheese rolls can be found in the freezer section and can be baked from frozen. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees and cook for about 26 mins (give or take depending on the strength of your oven). 

People that typically know and love cheese rolls in Southern California hold an expanding popular Cuban bakery as the standard for these pastries. I also equate cheese rolls to Filpino offerings as they are available at some mom & pop local shops. In comparison to those cheese rolls, I would say these offerings are a pretty good alternative, especially since they're easy to acquire and prepare while the Cuban bakery boasts long lines and not everyone can easily access their locations as well as have access to Filpino or similar bakeries. Are they necessarily better? No. But they're ok and still pretty tasty.

After preparation, the outside is flaky and the inside is soft with a mild flavor of the cream cheese. It's not overly sweet. Also, make sure you don't over-bake it as the bottom will burn and ruin the flavor of the whole pastry.  If you like cheese rolls, I believe these can help curb the craving if you can't get to a bakery or don't want to tackle making it from scratch. I feel like these are worth trying and recommend it. 3 1/2 out of 5 stars.

 

Ignore the Labels

When I started to read this story, I thought it was going to be a "don't be a bully" theme which I always support. But I love the ultimate message just as much--bullies suck, no question about that, but YOU have the power to rise above the ugliness or the toxicity of their behavior. I feel like it's natural to just follow the labels people and/or society put on you, but to have the will to ignore it and do what is right or better for you (physically, mentally, emotionally etc.) is one of life's biggest struggles. Also, to expect loyalty from others, and love yourself enough to know that being alone is better than being with people who don't support you is, in reality, harder than it sounds. Again, it's the journey of life and growing and bettering yourself is something that doesn't just happen over night.  What you know then, is less than what you know now--I mean, at least that's the hope. 

This story is beautiful in more ways than one. It's hurtful, but it's hopeful. It's a story full of wisdom and I hope it gives whoever needs to hear it, some inspiration. Just in case you needed a reminder--you are amazing! 😘  

 

Taken from Slice of Life on Facebook (check the page out).

During a prank, a student stuck a paper on his classmate's back that said "𝗜'𝗺 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗽𝗶𝗱", and asked the rest of the class not to tell the boy.

Thus the students began laughing on and off...

Came afternoon math class started and their teacher wrote a difficult question on the board.

No one was able to answer it except the boy with the sticker.

Amid the unexplained giggles, he walked toward the board and solved the problem.

The teacher asked the class to clap for him and remove the paper on his back.

She told him: "It seems that you don’t know about the paper your classmate has pasted on your back."

Then the teacher looked at the rest of the class and said:

"Before I give you a punishment, let me tell you 2 things:

First, throughout your Life, people will put labels on you with many nasty words to stop your progress.

Had your classmate known about the paper, he wouldn't have gotten up to answer the question.

𝗔𝗹𝗹 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗼 𝗶𝗻 𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗲𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻, 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳."

"Second, it’s clear that he doesn't have any loyal friend among you all to tell him about the sticker.

It doesn't matter how many friends you have - it is the loyalty you share with your friends that matters.

𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗱𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸, 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘄𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂, 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘂𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳𝗳 𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗲."

Always have each others backs.

 

 

The Helpful Guy at the Home Improvement Store

 

The Huz is our resident handyman--he's not professional and learns everything he needs to know when he needs to know it. And more often than not, it's a lot of trial and error and when he gets something done (which he always does), we celebrate and he feels accomplished and proud (as I always am of him). He's the DIY king even though he's busy and has a full schedule. 

So when our kitchen faucet started acting up, it was time to once again dust off his handyman hat and get to figuring out how to replace our old-style faucet which he pre-ordered because it's nearly impossible to find it available in-store. Then, he had to figure out how to install it properly--hey it may sound easy, but I'm glad it's not put on me to do it and he actually has some idea how to do this stuff. 

We went to our home improvement store and we may have highly likely possibly looked clueless, because this kind gentleman came up to us to offer his knowledge on installing faucets. He shared some truly useful helpful hints The Huz actually needed and The Huz responded to him with enthusiasm and understanding.  I, to be honest, was just smiling and nodding because none of it made sense to me. LOL! But I hope my grateful energy shown through because that was sincere and authentic. It turns out he's a handyman by trade and offered us his number if we needed any more help--which we gladly took.

The Huz ended up installing the faucet successfully using some of the valuable tips he was given and we didn't end up needing to call the Helpful Guy for any extra help. But we have his information if we ever need it. Was he helpful out of the kindness of his heart or was it a tactic to gain business?  For me it just doesn't matter. He helped us. And whether or not he had ulterior motives for his kindness, the result was that he shared his knowledge with The Huz and the information helped. And if we can throw business his way at any future time, we'll do it. 

Good things happen at unexpected moments. Sometimes, kind strangers lend a helping hand. And I'm thankful to be on the receiving end of kindness. 🙏