Musings on Window Treatments

I was talking to a framily member about curtains recently.  She doesn't like curtains and doesn't have many curtains in her home because she doesn't see the need.  I told her that hanging curtains is like putting on lipstick.  You know your outfit is on point.  Your hair is on point.  Your eyes are on point and then...BAM!  Add lipstick and your look is finished!  GO YOU!

She'd never thought of it like that.  

I'm having a curtain quandary currently in the living room.  The curtains we had in the living room at 13700 are too long and too wide to use here.  The windows are MUCH smaller as is the room.  I need curtains to "finish" the room but I don't want to spend the kind of money I spent on the curtains I already have because I'm unsure as to if I'd be able to use them once we leave here.  The window placement is in the center of a wall.  I can't decide if I should use panels or...if I should just put up valances.

With panels I could give the illusion that the window is larger by positioning them on either edge of the windows and stretching them across the wall mostly.  See...covering any portion of that window is going to make the windows look smaller than they already are.  I'd have to move that piece of wall art to do that which wouldn't be a problem I suppose if I find something with enough color to make that wall pop.

If I go the valance route, I could position them so that they drop down over the top of the windows only by a few inches and well...they'd look okay I suppose...I just don't think they'd add much to the room.

And...what color do I go with?  I found these on JCPenney and I'm thinking...Hmmmmmmmm...

The first set I like because of the color but I'm wondering if the print will clash in that room because of the chairs.  The second set (NOT WITH THE VALANCE AND TIE BACKS...PANELS ONLY) will give the wall more color but I wonder if they are too "heavy" for the colors in the room?  I wanted to stick with citrus colors.

I think I'm going to replace those icky plastic blinds with a scalloped roller shade.  I'd like the look of that much better.

The only valances I've found so far that I MIGHT like are these:

Valances only.  The room wouldn't support both valances and panels.

Well?  Whatcha think?  I need to make a decision soon so I can order something or do I need to keep looking?

What's YOUR personal take on curtains?  Do you like curtains?  Do you have them in every room?

 

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My Bags, My Life

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Rue La La contacted me and asked me what do I keep in my bag.  Um...kinda personal huh dude?  I was all frown-t up and then clicked on this handy link they sent me and I realized that...whoa...I have a problem since I have multiples of all the styles in their style guide.  *sigh*  

The Style Guide

And this is even after, during the move, recently getting rid of a LOT of bags because well...we all know I used to have the worst bag problem in the world!  Needless to say, the recipients of the bags I got rid of were very, very happy!  LOL!

Now I'm not saying that I have a problem with having this particular problem because...BAAAAAAAAAABY...a girl and her bags are important parings.  IM.POR.TAN.TE!

I only had one of the 6 containers of bags in the house (the other 5 are in the garage from the move and it's cold in the garage and I'm totally not unpacking a single thing today because yall...I'S TIRED!) but this container is the one I will probably use the most of while here.

A long time ago, I was having back problems and couldn't figure out why.  My doctor picked up my bag to move it off the stool in front of me in the waiting room and diagnosed my back problem by saying, "WHAT DO YOU HAVE IN THIS THING?????"  From there, he prescribed a very scientific remedy for my back pain, "Start with nylon bags and put less stuff in it."

*sigh*

Funny guy.  Ha-ha.

But...the solution made sense even though my options, at the time, seemed limited.  

The best thing I've ever done to make changing purses easy and stress free?  I use this Sonia Kashuk purse organizer I bought at Target.  I keep all of the things I must have with me at all times in it.

Now...in answering Rue La La's question, however, I realized that I'm a tad bit (okay...A WHOLE LOT) special once I dumped the contents of the bag out:

And that's not all I keep in my purse.  That's just the things I keep in the purse ORGANIZER.  The rest won't fit.  o_0

This doesn't include my water bottle, phone, handkerchief and random bits of receipts and coupons that I always forget to use when I get to the check out line so they stay in there and get all crinkle soft and expire.  (What?  Like you don't do that too!)

Sitting back and looking at this, I realize that I am clearly expecting to have to fight off zombies when I'm away from home and that, because of the world we live in, someone will have a video camera and I will want to make sure that I have moist (THERE'S THAT WORD AGAIN!!!!!) lips, a neat ponytail, and juice for my phone.  Oh...and nothing stuck between my teeth.  The only thing I can't explain is the Monopoly house.  I gots nothing there.  The Prince CD?  Don't even try it.  It's Prince.  I might want to listen to the crisp clarity of the CD inside the house as well as in my truck.  So there.  Leave me alone.  Oh...and the dime?  Maybe I expect to travel back in time and will have to be re-courted by The Robinator and I will need a dime to put between my knees 1950's style.

*BLINK*

This exercise has made me feel bad about myself.  I have issues I'm still not working on.  *sigh*

I am doing some things right however, according to Rue La La.  I store my bags properly!  GO ME!  I always clean them completely and wipe them down with a lightly damp towel.  Then I stuff them with paper and generally store them back inside the dust bags they came in.  I then put them inside large clear storage containers.  

The history of handbags was pretty cool to read too.  I'm not a style blogger so I've never read up on the history of bags.  Pretty interesting stuff.  The only bag I've ever wanted to own, I don't own.  The bag you ask?  A Chanel anything.  LOL!  I actually bought one once and it sat in the box and bag for exactly 14 days in my closet before the guilt consumed me and I returned it reluctantly.  One day though...ONE DAY!!!!!!!!!!!

MAYBE.  

What's in YOUR bag?  What would we be surprised to find in your bag?  Do you carry a bunch of stuff around like I do?  What is wrong with me?  Why must I stuff FABULOUS bags with so much stuff?  

Oh...and no need to pretend you weren't surprised I didn't have a flask or a half bottle of wine in there.  Frankly...I was too.

 

Epically Southern! Fried Green Tomatoes

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The one thing I don't have to worry about moving down South are veggies.  My mommy-in-law drove up here last week with a cooler full of frozen veggies and all sorts of other fresh veggies.  We won't have one problem with organic veggies.  

I have a basket of green tomatoes and didn't want them to go bad so we had some fried green tomatoes with dinner tonight.  Tomorrow I'm going to make green tomato salsa.  GO ME!

The only thing I was missing was, of course, buttermilk.  I don't keep milk in the house because we don't drink it so I always keep organic dry milk on hand.  Just add water and MILK!

 

To make the fried green tomatoes I needed buttermilk so I had to add a tablespoon of vinegar to a cup of milk and let it sit for 10 minutes to thicken.  Excellent buttermilk substitute!  Whip a couple of eggs up in that, soak tomato slices and then dredge in flour and cornmeal mixture that has been seasoned.  Fry on one side until browned and turn over.  

Drain and enjoy!

Do you eat fried green tomatoes?  Do you ever make them?

THOUGHTS? - "I'm Not Gay No More!"

A man is "delivered" from homosexuality during the annual COGIC Convocation in St. Louis, Missouri. He says "I'm not gay no more. I am delivered. I don't like menz no more. I said I like women." Thoughts? Follow me: @DevlinHuxtable

So...the above video has been making the rounds on social media.  When I first saw it...it was spliced in with a comedian's reaction and I laughed.  Bless his poor little heart was my thought and then I kept it moving.

Later on, I started noticing honest and frank discussions about the young man's obvious desire to no longer be gay.  I mean...he seems to MEAN that when he grabs that mic and starts his testimony.  One of the conversations I noted brought into question something I hadn't thought about.  I mean...I have, what I consider, pretty basic views on being gay.  Either you are or you aren't.  I don't believe it's something one chooses.  Of course there are certain situations that could gray this thought process such as a child being molested by someone of the same sex prior to them being ready to explore their natural sexuality and i'm sure there are some quacks out there who, for whatever reason, decided to try it just as one would try drugs.  Just to see what the fuss is all about.  HOWEVER...fundamentally I believe that you can't STOP being gay.  

“Seems like everyone has an opinion in regards to the young man that made the “controversial” statement, at the COGIC Convocation, that he was no longer gay and had been delivered.
(This post isn’t to argue the point of the possibility of him changing his sexual orientation, because ultimately I don’t give a hoot of what anyone’s opinion is in regards to that. )
The question that I’d like to pose is where does society’s double standard come from? If a man, or woman, makes the decision that they no longer want to engage in homosexual activities and instead would like to pursue a heterosexual lifestyle, the majority of people are up in arms, shocked and appalled. Saddened because this person has decided to “stifle” who they really are. However, on the flip side, if a man or woman who has an established heterosexual lifestyle [spouse, kids, etc.] decides that all along they have lived a life that was not the “real” them, and make the decision to pursue a homosexual lifestyle, they are supported and congratulated by the majority of people for “having the courage to be themselves”. Why is that? Why not offer support on both sides?
‪#‎FOH‬ ‪#‎AllOfYallAreFickle‬ ‪#‎ThisTheKindaStuffThatPissesMeOff‬”

That status update sparked this conversation and it was very interesting to note what the people who supported this line of thinking said.  Basically they just church pulpit-ed it.  

"PREACH!"

"THEY AIN'T READY!"

"DO YOU BOO!"

And well...I thought about their responses too which came from, apparently, very religious people who want the best for anyone who no longer wants to be gay.  

I have issues with religion and sexuality.  I feel like all the gay Catholic boys back in the day were forced into the church to change their "heathen" ways against God.  Because they were forced to deny who they were...they hid it but couldn't stop their natural desires.  Those natural desires started manifesting in trying to get those desires satisfied in the most secret way possible.  By manipulating and sexually abusing children entrusted into their care in the guise of making them good shepherds.  

Had those priests not been forced to deny who they were...would they have been able to manipulate those they manipulated using God's forgiveness as their bandaid?  Would they have simply grown up and met a man they could love and who could love them without shame?

I guess we'll never know.

I also have a problem with not wanting to be gay and then getting married to a woman, having a family, etc.  I know of two instances where this went way wrong and the wives and children were destroyed when it all went down the way these things tend to go down.  Is that fair?  

I guess my question is partly what the above status update touched on...would people who no longer want to be gay be successful at it if they had the support of those around them to no longer be gay?  Are we "fickle" if we don't believe it's possible?