Fine, fine, fine. I will do you a flavor. But just this once. Actually I suppose I will be doing it annually from now on because I don’t want to miss out on the fun. Truth be told I am more of a Pringles or Doritos kind of gal. Lay’s are generally too salty, thin, and do not contain an even amount of flavor per chip, no matter the variety you choose. But recently Lay’s has gotten my attention with its annual contest “Do Us A Flavor”. Each year Lay’s searches for the next great, creative flavored chip that will win the coveted first spot, giving the genius behind the idea a prize of one million dollars (or one percent of the net sales in the first year, whichever is higher). The idea of putting the chips back into the hands of those who consume them might just be the greatest marketing strategy of our generation. It all began back in 2012 when the winner was “Garlic Bread”. This made me wonder, what if every company took this approach? Would this draw in more

Well I held off as long as I could. No really I did. Sure there were a handful of tweets but mostly I was trying to not get swept up in the emotions that lie at the corner of chronic and invisible illnesses. I was trying to prevent becoming my own migraine trigger which is a pain the ass. But now I am over it. The more I read online and hear from other people who do not have a clue what they are talking about, let alone in jest has made my blood boil. So I write this now for me as a way to get it off my chest and hopefully educate those who want to do better. I really try to avoid these feelings at all costs. To avoid upsetting myself I try to breathe and let it go but enough is enough. Once I crack the vault open and allow the rage to flow I fear it may never retreat back to its hiding place. Living in that angry, hurt, mindset is not a place I can function in for long. I have to get myself back on track which can take a minute. I have to feel it to release it. This is why

“In the long run, we shape our lives, and we shape ourselves.  The process never ends until we die.  And the choices we make are ultimately our own responsibility.” ― Eleanor Roosevelt    I have officially returned to my life although after several hours during these past few days I feel more like taking a nap than anything else. Last week was probably been the worst of my life and I am not exaggerating. Of all of the migraines and stomach issues I had had living as someone with chronic illness I have had more than my fair share of bad days. Days of pure pain that felt more like torture that would not end. There were the times during those many days where I seriously prayed for death as that appeared to be the only thing that would ever rescue me. Then, March 7th happened. All bets were off. My alleged twenty-four hour stomach virus accompanied by a fever lasted five straight days. When I finally came out of it alive, surprisingly, it took two more days jus

Poor Kermit, if only he had the wisdom to have some Irish friends to take him out for St. Patrick’s Day. Maybe he would have had better self-esteem. But I understand, see green really isn’t my color either. In fact I do not own anything that is that color. Not a sock, t-shirt, pen, or anything. I never realize this until it is St. Patrick’s Day and I see everyone all decked out. So this year I had to buy myself a little something. Plus I liked the saying. Besides my niece and nephew who will of course be the cutest kids on the planet on every holiday, I like coming into the city and see drunk people who have ventured waaaaay past the parade route and are stinking drunk at 10 a.m. I can find this amusing because I no longer work in Midtown where the parade route is so I am not swamped with enormous amounts of traffic trying to get around. I was never a girl that went out to celebrate St. Patty’s Day. I feel like I was always in school or at work especially when it falls

I have this very vivid memory of being somewhere between ten and twelve years old, hanging out in my backyard under the tree in my driveway on a crazy hot summer day chatting with my sister-cousin. We were showing each other the flavors of Kissing Koolers we had. If you don’t know what a Kissing Kooler is than I feel sorry for you. I also will take a point from the lyrics of “Block Party” and tell you to Google it my little Juans. While we had this very adult conversation we began discussing our collection of dolls designed as the original boy band “New Kids on the Block” ( http://thequeenoff-ckingeverything.blogspot.com/2013/06/for-night-spent-hanging-tough-new-kids.html ). Thanks to her father I had the complete “street” clothes version and she had that as well as the “stage” versions. I was always so jealous. There is never a day you don’t need to see your favorite NKOTB member dressed up and down. Naturally my favorite was Donnie. I would s