Tag: blog

Going #Gray(scale)

I struggle with staying off my phone. #everything lives there. I’m not the #techie type, but it has gradually choked out all resistance I once had to keeping up with the times (and #Joneses). Every Sunday, my screen time notification lets me know how much of my life bled into #cyberspace.

This week will be different. It won’t be the ghastly #imnotsaying hours it is every week. Nopity, nope. It will be less. I’m cutting it in half. People say researchers say setting your phone to #grayscale will significantly reduce the amount of time you spend on your phone.

#bluelight #screenaddiction #doomscrolling all of the things will improve. So they say. I had to look up directions, because, you know, the #reel I watched went too fast and there I am, taking another #screenshot to add just one more photo to my 10,000+ collection I carry around every day. How much would that weigh in actual #photos?

Is it the #placeboeffect? I have reduced my time, although not by half. It’s about a third. What I have noticed is I #cantfindanything. My apps are organized just so…by #color. I have slowed my scroll because I have to read my screen. (Funny how I’m always telling the kids “Slow your scroll and #readyourscreen!”)

My bank account is a little happier, but Amazon is not. I’m not clicking on useless items to bulk up my #shoppingcart. I’ve taken less screenshots because I’m not scrolling as much. My messages may be a bit off since I’m struggling to find the right #emoji 😃

I do turn it on for a few minutes, especially if I’m getting (more) photos from family members, but overall, I switch it back. It’s #cumbersome to toggle back and forth and I’m not creating a shortcut. Also, it isn’t hurting my eyes. Well, my eyes don’t necessarily hurt, but it isn’t as jarring.

How long will I maintain this? Who knows. I’m curious to see how much of a difference it makes. I can go on with my life #inlivingcolor.

March 12,2025

Cereal Crunchers

Give ’em a bunch of Cap’ n Crunch so it will scratch off the roofs of their mouths…

“Ahh! Cap’ n Crunch! Who still eats that and why does it hurt to eat it?”

We never got Cap’ n Crunch. We had to settle for government issued King Vitamin. Those did the same thing though, but they’re not nearly as sweet as Cap’ n Crunch.

On we go discussing childhood memories of favorite breakfast cereals. Froot Loops. Toucan was my favorite cereal mascot. It’s the closest to the jungle I could get, reading the back of the box finding the hidden images in the puzzle without checking them off as I found them, milk turning gray. I’m not giving away the answers to my two younger sisters and bratty lactose-intolerant brother, although I’d take a peek at the solution turning the box upside down.

On second thought, maybe Tony Tiger is my favorite. Frosted Flakes were a special treat. Otherwise, we relied on generic corn flakes, add your own sugar. Add it we did, but it didn’t work well as it wound up in a thick layer in the bottom of the bowl after the milk was slurped. Sometimes I added sliced bananas, but overall, it qualified as grown-up cereal. There was a recipe we used to make sweet, gooey peanut-butter bars with too many boxes. In that case, they were grrrreat!

Lucky Charms were fun, without the milk. Anyone else pick out the “lucky charms?” I din’t like hard, shriveled marshmallows, but they were cute. The cereal, re-shaped Alpha-Bits, were tasty. Speaking of Alpha-Bits, I could never scoop up a full word on my spoon. Why were the letters always broken? The magic of television.

Fruity Pebbles were okay, but the best ones were chocolate. Who wouldn’t want chocolate milk after all the crunch was gone?

Honey Nut Cheerios were always so much better than regular, until I started buying them for my kids. Three plain Cheerios on the high chair tray kept them occupied while I cooked dinner, until they perfected the pinscher grasp and began grabbing them by the fistfuls. Three little oat circles were never enough.

I rarely eat cereal now. Occasionally, I’ll crave a bowl of Frosted Flakes, but never enough to warrant buying a box of it. If we have granola, I’ll crunch on a small amount with coconut milk. We have a box of Honey Nut Cheerios on top of the fridge. I don’t remember the last time it was opened. It’s probably stale by now.

Saturday morning cartoons and a bowl of cereal has been replaced with a cup of coffee and a list of too many things to do.

Saturday, March 9, 2024