Focused at Fifty

https://www.pexels.com/photo/yellow-banana-fruits-on-brown-surface-5966630/ The article below is reprinted from the January 2020 Savory magazine which I always find in the local supermarket. I forget which one. Anyway, it's a great magazine and they have an online presence at Savoryonline.com .  What are some quick and inexpensive options?   Breakfast helps fuel a busy morning, so try your best to make it a priority. However, as a mom of a toddler, I know how hectic mornings can be. Try prepping your breakfast the night before. Overnight oats or a PB and J on whole wheat bread paired with a piece of fruit are quick, easy, and affordable options. -Holly  Setting the stage for the day with a balanced breakfast doesn't have to be complicated or expensive. Get the day started with toast or a waffle topped with peanut butter and a piece of fruit. Greek yogurt or even string cheese with a piece of fruit are also two great combinations for a nutritious start to your day. -Sarah...

"MORTADELLA!" For my last post for my 49th year and my last post for this blog under the Frazzled at 40 blog title, I will be writing about a new food which I tried during this now SEMI-quarantine isolation phase of my life! I again decided to try something that I went ICK over just because of the name and the look: Mortadella. SMELL! I always knew mortadella was some sort of Italian cured meat. It has white, black, and green spots in it. That's all I knew. As well as the name, which in my grammatically challenged college "D" grade receiving Italian translates to "died of" (Morta Della?).  I pledged my fraternity that semester. LOL.  Well  now I know why I received an A in college beer chugging and a D in Italian. Although ... sidebar, I got an A in Italian cinema watching Fellini movies at 7pm on a Friday night class. I think that's because we snuck in cases of beer with my fraternity bros!  My apologies for I digress; back to t...

One of my favorite amusements during these crazy times has been trying out new foods which I normally would not try. These are various vegetables, fruits and meats which I spy in a supermarket and think to myself, ya know what? I’ve never tried that. Let’s give it a go! I won’t spend hundreds of bucks but if something is within my budget, I’ll give it a go! So bring on the breadfruit, bring on the ugly tomatoes, bring on the sea urchin, bring on the kangaroo! I’ll try ‘em all! Umm… maybe not the kangaroo! Kangaroo is expensive! Haha, I bet you though I’d say the sea urchin! I actually like sea urchin. Uni , as it is known, is one of my favorite sushi. It has a light sweet flavor. It is not for the faint of heart but if you ever try it, you may be pleasantly surprised! I was at a local food store called Bill’s Produce in Schuylkill Haven, PA. It’s known for its cheap affordable produce as well as friendly staff. I spied a small long green pepper which I’ve seen before but nev...

"Sports Antiques from our Collection"  A lot of you may be surprised to find this out but I like sports. After years of watching them on the couch with the Big Ragu, I have really come to enjoy watching them either on TV or live. Like the majority of folks, m ore than likely  it's gonna be on TV. Tickets to any major sporting event are so expensive. Sure you can get nose bleed seats but you always get a better view on your couch and there's no line for food or the head. However, nothing beats the camaraderie of sporting fans up in the nose bleed sections of ANY stadium or sports arena. You can get that live sporting-thrill by going to local little league, high school or college games without breaking the bank on tickets. There are even sporting clubs such as rugby or touch football leagues where you can see some rough action without spending a dime. Just bring your own lawn chair and favorite libation! Unfortunately due to the Novel Coronovirus, all that has ...

(Photo by Anata  Nsg from Pexels.com) I was going through mounds of paperwork several weeks ago and happened upon a folded-up copy of an article from years ago which had been given to me by a close family friend, Marianna. I have wrote about her before, she was one of my Dad's closest friends and went by the nickname Tia. Tia was in the education field, a writer, artist and truly a romantic at heart. She was constantly spouting off euphemisms about living life to the fullest or how love trumps all. She was wonderful to have around and she remained close to my family until her passing.  The article (with no byline) originally came from a Cosmo magazine from 1993 but I modified some of it so that it's pretty fun for anyone. Don't worry dudes, you won't melt just by reading an old Cosmo list! LOL. I do not claim the list as my own and as I stated prior, have only modified it so it may appeal to both sexes or is more in tune with present times. However, a cou...

Santa was very generous to me this year. :)  (my own pic) With New Years Eve quickly approaching, I thought I would voice my opinion and subsequent endorsement for some of my favorite booze. Santa was very generous to me this year, bestowing upon me 8 plus bottles of various spirits. My friends and family know me so well. 😊 And with a good 20+ years of hotel, bar, and restaurant experience I've learned a thing or two about fine spirits. When I worked at the Ritz-Carlton Philadelphia, I took a professional spirits course with my good friend and boss, John Waldbillig. John was the Director of Purchasing and I was the purchaser, his right hand man so-to-speak. The course was held at the Four Seasons Hotel, our competitor, but they were gracious hosts and so professional in their service (as they should be to try and compete with the Ritz-Carlton!) LOL Sterling Spirits held the day long course on the ins and outs of various typ...

Hikers Marc and John! (No, I'm not giving you the finger.) John and I spent Thanksgiving again up at World's End State Park as we have done so for the last several years since my Mom passed away. It has become a nice break before the craziness of the holidays ensures. One day I do plan on joining my sister out in San Diego at my brother's for Thanksgiving but for now, this has become a nice tradition. So the holiday was spent hiking, cabin camping, feasting on smoked turkey, toasting marshmallows, drinking some fine ass bourbon and smoking Cohibas cigars. I love getting back to nature and believe it or not, having no cell service. Well, at least for a while. LOL Sporks aplenty!  Kelty sleeping bag Awesome coffee pot It's pretty funny walking into one of the local bars up there with WiFi and having your phone start pinging madly a dozen times with notifications from any half a dozen social media websites I am a part of. My fav mug ID holder ...

BART So a while back, I went to a Starbucks at the tail end of a head cold, just wanting some good coffee. I placed my order and the barista asked my name. I said Marc and in her cheerfully effervescent voice, she exclaimed my drink would be right up and to pick up my coffee at the end of the counter. I went down to that area and waited. I picked up my coffee and on my cup was written "Bark."  YUP, as in tree BARK. Like someone would be named BARK?? Wouldn't you even question it??? Like, "Sir, did I hear you correctly, is your name Bark?"  I mean i know I had a very stuffed nose and my "M'"s sounded like "B'"s but geesh! Way to give a guy a complex!! I guess I should be happy she got the "K" on the end, even though it's actually a "C". Another Starbucks, another coffee and on my cup was written "Bart."  There is NO "T" in my name!!! UGH! BERT Fast forward to a week ago and ...

http://www.riversideodds.com/ I decided this year to make an effort to do things outside of my comfort zone. There are things which give me a certain amount of angst. I have never done them before or just not in a long while. Certain things I will not do, including bungee jump or sky jumping. No thanks. :)  Others ... maybe with just a little bit of a push I will. My buddy Darren Walbridge, as I've stated in previous blogs, is the drummer of the Philly punk rock band, the Riverside Odds. It is a speed punk band with (off of their website) RW Griswold on lead vocals, Matty Terror on guitar/backing vocals, Tim Griswold on bass guitar/backing vocals, Dan Neswick on lead guitar, Darren on drums, and the classic beer PBR for inspiration(!). How awesome is that?! My punk experiences were in the 80s and early 90s listening to bands such as the Sex Pistols, the Smiths, the Clash, Siouxsie and the Banshees, the Violent Femmes, the Cure, the Ramones, Fishbone, and Meat...

I have experience with medicine cabinets. I had a lovingly neurotic mother who had each medicine cabinet in our childhood home stuffed to the gills with various medicines and toiletries. We could've opened a CVS Pharmacy out of our home. Mom wasn't a hypochondriac. She just liked to be prepared for ANYTHING. When I catered in Philly for upscale families way back in the early 90s, I used to go through my their medicine cabinets in their powder rooms just out of curiosity to see what they had. I know, I know, it was completely rude and an invasion of privacy. Move on. I got it. I'd mostly find outdated various pills, scented soaps, old high end makeup and perfume. Pretty boring stuff. Every now and then I'd find something pretty interesting like the odd embarrassing cream or Rogaine which clearly wasn't working on the man of the house. I once found someone keeping their toenail clippings in a baby food jar. Now THAT was pretty gross. Cool Wise Old Dude I n...

Image Link Throughout my 45 years, I've learned a couple of things along the way. There are things in your life in which you absolutely should invest in. They can extrinsic in nature such as better, higher quality objects including clothing, tools, household items, and your car just to name a few. They can also be intrinsic investments. These are related to your inner self, your morals and values. These type of investments tend to foster not only your physical health but your mental health as well. A lot of them have long term benefits. Now there are certain things in your life that you can cut corners on. For instance, while shopping at a Rite - Aid or CVS, chances are that their products are just as good as the name brand ones. Vitamins or over-the-counter medicine for instance, look at the ingredients label and you will see that the drug store brands contain the same ingredients in usually the same order. Then there are other things which you cannot cut corner...