Ink Pen Refills - I Use 'Em

Pilot Dr. Grip Retractable Gel Ink Pen, Ice Blue Barrel (Google Affiliate Ad)Pilot Dr. Grip Retractable Gel Ink Pen, Ice Blue Barrel (Google Affiliate Ad)Pilot Dr. Grip Retractable Gel Ink Pen, Mauve Barrel (Google Affiliate Ad)

I'm not sure if a lot of people do this, but I refill my ink pens instead of throwing them away and buying new ones. I'm not sure that it makes a difference for the environment. It doesn't make a huge difference in my finances. I'm not really sure why I do it. It's not like I'm making a statement or I really believe in it. I just do.

It might be because when I find a pen I like, I tend to hold on to it. Maybe it is because of my affinity for office supplies. Maybe it's because I like the challenge of actually being able to use all of the ink from a pen before it breaks or I lose it. Maybe it's just because I'm weird.

See how the pink pen is very nearly out of ink? I'm prepared with a refill. I'm not a serial ink pen refiller. These are the only types of pens I refill, and I've been refilling the same ones for years. Both the pink pen and the blue pen are from 2004. The pink one is a Pentel and the blue one is a Dr. Grip. I don't even think they make the blue one anymore. I haven't seen it around lately anyway... you know what else?

I liked it so much that I bought the matching mechanical pencil, which I also keep refilling, but I don't think that's as uncommon.

I'm Happy with My Kia Soul

While I was car shopping and reading car reviews, I noticed that they were all written by people who had just recently bought their car. I saw a lot of reviews that read, I've had this car for 2 weeks / 1 month / 3 days and I just love it! Well, pardon me, but I am looking for something with a little more insight. I want to know what it's like when the honeymoon is over. Maybe even after you've made a payment or two.

Here is my 2 month review on my Kia Soul... The gas mileage is awesome, but I'm not saving any money! The reason is that I keep driving to the beach and the mountains and going on tons of adventures hundreds of miles away because the gas mileage is so good! Plus, the car is really roomy and comfortable so I am always the one who ends up driving. I'm gonna start making my passengers chip in for gas now that I think about it!

The built in bluetooth is still as awesome as ever. Sometimes my phone goes black and unresponsive when it's connected and I have to do a soft reset. I wish it had A2DP technology, or that it worked with my voice activation on my phone. I still keep my Jabra Cruiser in the car because it's easier to use with the iPod function on my iPhone4. I understand the point behind making the iPhone / car connection slightly less functional is so that Kia can sell a $40 cable to make the dash control the iPod/iPhone - but I still want voice activation... is that so much to ask for?

The handling is ... well, it's okay. The traction control feature is totally necessary. I feel it kick on even when I am doing something simple like turning on a gravel road or taking a freeway on ramp.

I had read a few articles about the paint chipping. My paint has chipped, but to be fair, I work in an industrial area and drive on gravel roads a lot. I also take a lot of road trips to out of the way places that require dirt and gravel encounters as well. It's hard for me to say whether or not the average person would experience paint chipping, but I'm not surprised that it happened to me.

So that's my 2 month review. I plan on writing another one in a month or two as well, but by that time the 2012 Kia Soul might just be obsolete.

Just a Touch of the Sugar

I have recently learned that I have what we called in the South, "just a touch of the sugar." That means that I don't actually have "The Sugar" yet. So for you Yankees, by whom I am now surrounded, that means that I don't quite have diabetes yet, but I have pre-diabetes.

A touch of sugar might be a sweet sounding way of saying it, but everyone in the South knows that The Sugar isn't sweet at all. The Sugar killed my Paw Paw, and many people in the South suffer from Diabetes. I don't have any statistics, but you don't need statistics to see why. Cooking with lard, battering and deep-frying anything you can get your hands on, overly hot weather makes it hard to get outside and be active, and many more things contribute to Southerners being plagued by diabetes.

Lucky for me, this was caught early. I now have a chance to turn things around. I have an appointment with my Primary Care doctor today to discuss some things and I am being referred to a nutritionist so that I can get even more information about how I can make myself healthy and avoid this totally avoidable disease.

Orchid

I am determined to keep this orchid alive... but that hasn't saved any of the others, so I am not sure how much hope this one has.

Journey to Healthy

I don't think I blogged about it, but I quit smoking in September. Just cold turkey quit. I had tried so many different ways before, and would sometimes quit for a little while. I started again while I was going through the stress of splitting up with my husband and I knew I didn't really want to be a smoker.

I think it was just time for me, and I couldn't be happier. I'm healthier and happier. Sometimes I get a small craving, but it always passes. Now I have some friends who want to quit, too. One of them in particular has tried several ways of quitting.

She has tried the patch, nicotine gum, and tapering down. In one desperate attempt she even tried making herself sick by smoking an entire pack of cigarettes as fast as she could. Nothing has worked. This time she is trying Electronic Cigarettes. They come in all kinds of flavors. She is a coffee freak, so she is starting off with "Java Jolt", a coffee flavored electronic cigarette. She has ordered them online, and hasn't gotten them yet, but they should arrive soon.

Her brother says that if they work well, he is going to try them also. He would probably get the mint flavored blucigs because he smokes menthols now and likes that flavor.

African Violet on my Desk

While my plant collection is not yet complete, I am taking a lot of pride in the plants I have. These African Violets seem to be doing very well and they haven't stopped flowering.

It's also growing new buds right now! So it must be super happy, right?!

Moo.

I think it might be because I have been planning our family trip to the county fair, but I fell in love with this screen saver when I saw it!