Merry New Year, Wonderfuls!

As we wind down this year; a year of tumultuous upheaval, of answered prayers, of love and tears and laughter, of incredulity and hopeful joy, of the unexpected in its best and worst forms, let us not forget:

1. Those we have loved and lost to time. That we may remember all of the best things they imparted to our lives. Raise a glass of pink lemonade to them and celebrate that which they have left with you.

2. That disappointments are temporary; whatever you are feeling, it is sure to pass, so breathe a little deeper and cry to release the pain from your heart when you need to, but realize it will change given time. The best part of being at the bottom is that you only have one direction to go: Up.

3. So, too, is joy temporary. Allow yourself to feel each enjoyment to its fullest. Smile from your soul. Laugh, literally out loud. Cry to release all of the happiness that is overflowing from your heart. Acknowledge the wonderful you experience and stop for a moment to feel it fully. Joy recharges one's proverbial batteries. Hope is residual joy and the belief that you will attain it again.

4. The unexpected will happen. Facing it with open positivity is often the difference between the best and worst-case scenarios. Finding any upside to the unexpected has the potential to change its trajectory.

Number 4 is easier to do when you...

 

5. Take the time to really learn yourself. You and only you are going to walk through your life and experience. Learn you. Work on recognizing triggers and managing them. Quantify your likes and dislikes *hot tip, if you haven't done this before, start with something simple like food and work into bigger stuff like personality traits in people*. Have your natal birth chart calculated and find out what it says. If you scoff at astrology, this may change your tune. It's an excellent tool for recognizing oneself. Take a free personality test online and read about your type. You may wind up feeling 'seen' for the first time. Take a career assessment. You may be in the wrong field for you and fighting yourself to even get out the door every morning. If you're the type of employee who's late three or more times a week, this may be your wake-up call.

6. And finally, Wonderfuls, remember that what you put out there inevitably returns to you. Be merciful, kind, generous, thoughtful, gracious, and loving regardless of the situation you are facing, and your life will be vastly improved by this time next year. And yes, I know it is easier said than done. We are all human and works in progress. We aren't great every day. Sometimes we aren't even good. But we can strive to be better than we were yesterday. It's the only goal that is both worthy and attainable for everyone.

🎄MERRY NEW YEAR!🎄

Remotely Attempting To Ruin Your Life

 

Beware the hackers, Y'all! 

If you apply for one position and you get an email saying that it's closed, but there's another position you would be perfect for, CALL THE COMPANY directly and ask to speak to the email sender or whomever they mention by name in the email.

The emails are usually in a very basic font (sans serif, etc.), may or may not have additional contact information, and tend to copy and paste the "about" section of the company's website.

I was lucky not to have given up any personal information that wasn't public knowledge, but I did turn down two other offers, thinking I had secured employment. The attachments I was sent to secure my position were on company letterhead.

However, one of them was another scam, and the letters, after comparison, were very similar minus the names and company information.

Some company somewhere is actually hiring for remote workers, but it sure wasn't either of them. When I returned to my 'applied' in the 'my jobs' section and attempted to return to them, the listings were also missing.

I'm so discouraged by the amount of lying, scamming, and hacking I've found since applying on LinkedIn and Indeed. My phone is on permanent 'do not disturb' with certain numbers allowed around the DND.

I cannot begin to tell you how much I miss morals and ethics being the norm. Not having to assume that everyone is lying until they prove otherwise. For people (like me) who don't operate that way, it's nauseating and thoroughly disheartening to be out here in this employment search climate.

Texas Trash Pie Recipe

1 10" pie crust

1 stick (8 Tbsp) salted butter

1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk

Now, in one of these measuring cups, not the glass kind: 

1 Cup of each:

***measure pretzels and graham crackers after crushing***

Crushed pretzels (any shape, but crush to 1/2" or smaller pieces)

Crushed honey Graham crackers (some larger pieces, not all dust)

Chocolate chips (your choice of sweetness)

Caramel bits

Shredded coconut (sweetened or not, I've used both; for more coconut flavor, use sweetened-  for less, use unsweetened)

Finely chopped pecans (the kind for pecan cookies- it will say that on the package)

1. Start with a cold oven, and pre-bake empty pie crust at 375 for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let crust cool on a rack while making filling. 

2. Melt butter in a microwave-safe container.

3. In a very large bowl, combine butter and condensed milk. 

4. Add the rest of the ingredients and combine as thoroughly as possible - it's a very chunky mix!

5. When you're satisfied the ingredients are mixed well, pour (dump) it into the cooled pie crust and even out the spread of the filling across the crust. 

6. Bake on the center rack of your already preheated oven at 375 (like the crust) for 30-35 minutes and remove promptly to the cooling rack.

The top should look very lightly browned. It will continue cooking (and weirdly: browning! IDK, but it does!) while it cools for at least 30 minutes. Overcooking will cause the pie to be dry inside.

Good alone, with whipped cream, or a dollop of vanilla ice cream.

A cup of coffee or a HUGE glass of milk is recommended.

Recommended for nearly all holiday gatherings (maybe not a large group of diabetics or a Weight Watcher's meeting - yes, they are different things).

 HAPPY HOLIDAY'S, WONDERFULS!