One Mans Junk

It was that time of year again. Twice a year, people here in the city can take their big trash to the side of the road for free pick up. It’s called road side pick up. Call me frugal or call me trashy, I don’t care, but I look forward to this. 

Nick asked me if I would like to go for a walk. “Road side pick up is in the morning so people will be setting there junk out today” he said. I threw on my tshirt, shorts and walking shoes and we headed out. The temperatures were in the 70’s and it was nice. 

As we walked around the neighborhood, we didn’t see a lot of junk. I usually look for small tables, stools and planters. Last year I found a vintage step stool that I refurbished. You can see it HERE.

As our walked continued, we were two blocks away when I got excited. “Oh this girl is fixin to have a patio swing!”. That’s right. Someone threw out an almost perfectly new swing. The only thing we saw wrong was that the awning was missing. We looked it over. “Oh I want it”, I said. Nick replied, “You do not need that”. We continued our walk. While I pouted, he tried to talk me out of wanting it. “Where would you put it?” He did not want to have to always cut around it when he did yard work. I had already planned to put it on the small patio out back. “What if it don’t fit the patio?”, he said.  I replied, “We can try it on the patio and if it don’t fit, I can either put back out on the side of the road or asked the next door neighbor if she wants it”. 

Nothing else was said and we finished our walk. Once we got back to the house, he told me to grab his truck keys. My pout turned into a big grin. We drove back down to where the swing was. I was afraid it would be gone because thirty minutes had passed and the metal salvage truck was stalking the neighborhood. The swing was still there. We looked it over again one more time and I helped him put it in the back of the truck. I jolly rode all the way back. 

Guess what. 

It fit the patio. I took off the cushions and gave them a good wash and scrub in the bath tub. They were in great shape and cleaned up well. 

I am so happy to have a swing. And a free one at that!. 
Now all I need to do is pressure was the patio, add some plants and I will be all set. 



“One mans junk is this girls treasure”




Air Fryer Banana Bread

This past Sunday I was feeling a little groggy and due to some heath issues and the cold rainy weather, I skipped church and stayed in my pajamas half the day. I hooked up my echo dot to my blue tooth and listened to the live streaming of the sermon. 
I was lazy all day but I did manage to vacuum and get a couple loads of clothes washed.

As I was cleaning up the kitchen I started to throw away one banana that had ripened. Then I thought, “ I could make a banana bread and just cut my moms recipe in half and make a small one. The original recipe calls for two bananas. I only had one. So I pulled out the other ingredients I needed and started mixing.

1 cup self rising flour.
2 Tablespoons butter.
1/4 cup of sugar.
1/2 teaspoon vanilla.
1 small egg or 1/2 large egg (Ill let you figure out how to half an egg.).
1 ripe banana.
1/4 cup of milk.
Nuts (optional).

Mix well and pour into a greased mini loaf pan.
Preheat air fryer for about 5 minutes at 325 degrees.
Bake for 20 minutes or until done. (I used the tooth pick test).

I wanted to try making this banana bread in my air fryer. The small disposable loaf pan I had was slightly too big for my air fryer basket so I bent it in a little to make it fit. 


I sprayed it with some cooking spray and poured in my batter.
Perfect!

20 minutes later, I had the perfect little loaf of banana bread. It was over enough for the two of us to enjoy after dinner. 



Did I mention how much I love my air fryer? It’s like an adult Easy Bake oven. 



Many ask what kind of air fryer I use. I uses a Ninja Max.


I got mine at Sams but you can find this one also on Amazon HERE.



As an Amazon Affiliate, this post may include marketing links,

 which means I make a small percentage on the sales 

but it in no way affects the price a buyer may pay.



Finding My Triggers

If you know me, you know I suffer with a vestibular disorder. It all started in 2016 when I began having loud ringing and fullness in my left ear. A couple weeks later I woke up one morning and the room was spinning. I was sweating so bad that my clothes were soaked. My husband helped me to the bathroom where I spent almost 4 hours throwing up and dry heaving. I was not sure what was going on. I figured It was the way I slept or something I ate. After the episode, I slept most the rest of the day. I was exhausted. I have only suffered 3 of these violent attacks. All other times, I am just light headed and always feeling on the verge of a vertigo attack. It’s crippling. 

I have went to the doctor about it and he suggested it was just allergies. He sent me to an ENT. There, I was quickly told me that it was not allergies. They did the hearing test, checked inside my ears and asked several questions. I checked off all the boxes as having Meniere's Disease but they would not diagnose me with it until I went through a series of testing. After learning there is no cure for it, I refused all the expensive testing. So here I am without closure to what I’m going through. No one can see it and I don’t look sick. It’s now sort of just a my secret invisible illness I keep with me.

Two years ago, my symptoms, except the ringing, stopped all of a sudden. I thought I was free and could live normal again. Until it flared back up just last month. I have not suffered the violent vertigo attacks, but the anxiety I get from the fear of it happening at work or while driving keeps me on edge.
The Tinnitus (ringing in the ear) is constant. Sometimes it’s low, sometimes it’s high. I also have lost hearing in my that ear. All I can hear from my left ear is the ringing and whoosing sounds that come from within my head.

It’s weird that even though I lost hearing, I am super sensitive to certain sounds and tones. Restaurants are the worst for me right now. All the background noise causes to much stimulation in my ear and I feel like my head is closing in and headaches start. Same goes for any place I go where there are multiple people talking. It’s miserable. Sound sensitivity is a new one right now. 
Is it sounds that trigger my symptoms?

I notice on rainy days I feel worst than when it’s a sunny day.
Is it the biometric pressure triggering my symptoms?

While listening to Meniere’s Muse podcast, I heard a guest mention that WeatherX earplugs were a big help for her. They look like normal earplugs but have a small piece of ceramic inside that protect your ears from pressure changes in the weather. There is also a WeatherX app you can download and it will notify you when there an incline or decline in pressure so you can pop the earplugs in. 
Why not try? It couldn’t hurt.



Did they work for me? 
Yes. They are a win win. I think they work for both weather changes and sound. When I feel pressure building up in my ear and head, I put them in. However, the app is no use to me as my body tells me when to put them in. They do not completely close out sound, so I can still have conversations with people. They block out a lot of background noise and make me feel comfortable and in my own little zone. Now I do not have to stick my finger in my ear to balance out sounds. Listening to the paster on Sunday was a lot more comfortable. 



I have come to the conclusion that I will continue having bad days and good days so I try and make the best of it. I have hopes that It will go away again since this time isn’t as bad as it used to be, maybe I will grow out of it. 
I am learning to handle the episodes of lightheadedness and pressure by trying to relax and accept the fact that its just part of me now.
I have decided to just live with it and stop feeling sorry for myself. I’m tired of explaining to people how I feel. Unless they have had this condition, they will never understand. I plan to make some healthy changes in my self. Now if I can just find my triggers. I can do this.


As an Amazon Affiliate, this post may include marketing links,

 which means I make a small percentage on the sales 

but it in no way affects the price a buyer may pay.