Creativity

Making A Cup of Excedrin

/ still a dreamer

Perhaps you didn’t know … I only found out yesterday by chance … there was a massive recall in January of all Excedrin products by their manufacturer Novartis, as well as a recall of Bufferin, No-Doz, and Gas-X.

Yesterday, I woke with a screamer combo sinus/migraine headache. My go-to med is Excedrin. I have two scrips – one makes my heart race and the other knocks me out, though both are effective, just not if you want to have a pleasant day, or a day at all. Excedrin does the trick as a rule, but wanting to take it with food, I waited, and then happened across the recall information. So first I panicked – now I might have small pieces of other drugs in my Excedrin – even though Novartis’ web site says there have been no reported incidents and that it was a precautionary recall. Forget that I had two bottles and had already used a fair amount from both. Now I was in trouble. I checked the web site for lot#, but mine had been 2 bottles in a box and I no longer had the box. Maybe I escaped this fate! I called Novartis. Nope. My bottles were on the recall list. Crap.

So let’s forego the logic that the Excedrin I had on hand were OK so far. Now I eyed them suspiciously. I decided to try an experiment. I would make my own Excedrin.

Checking the amounts on the bottle for each tablet, I made up the equivalent by combining Tylenol, aspirin and a cup of coffee, (Yes, I looked up how much caffeine was in a cup, etc.) I took it all together, and wouldn’t you know … it worked!  It took a little longer than Excedrin alone as the delivery system was somewhat compromised, but still …

So if you’re stuck with a recalled bottle, make yourself up a cup of Excedrin! Or … use the ones that have already proven perfectly safe, or buy a generic/store brand in the supermarket. That’s what I did this afternoon, and they may work out every bit as well. But really, I prefer coffee.

p.s. A note for all you Excedrin takers:  According to the woman I spoke with at Novartis, the Excedrin that were not part of the recall and definitely safe were those that come in packages of 2, 4, 8 or 10.  So if we can find them, she said these are OK.

Trees …

/ still a dreamer / 2 Comments

Spring brings a particular delight to many who suddenly really notice the trees in their new, colorful finery. The weeping cherries, flowering plums, dogwoods and magnolias literally herald the season and confirm the retreat of winter. But for those of us who feel deeply connected to nature, trees are magnificent in all seasons. They are equally as beautiful in their fresh Spring blooming as in their Fall brilliance as in their Winter bareness, where the most basic structure of their being proudly holds forth.

Many authors have written about the wonder and beauty of trees over the centuries. In an earlier post I even took a turn on writing about trees myself. However, two lovely things have crossed my path in the last few days about trees … one a video, and one in the book I’m reading by Dr. Wayne Dyer, (Wishes Fulfilled.) He quotes 18th century poet, William Blake:

“The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a Green thing that stands in the way. Some see nature all Ridicule and Deformity … and some scarce see Nature at all. But to the eyes of the man of imagination, Nature is imagination itself.” – William Blake

And with this in mind, passed on by a friend, an absolutely magnificent video of trees called Listen with Your Heart …

 

The Package Arrived — It’s Books!

/ still a dreamer

Surprise! It’s books! Hardcover, too!

With the annual Hunterdon County Library Book Sale just around the corner, (details here, if you want to go – you won’t be sorry), and with a decent size stash still waiting to be read, I almost … that’s almost, but not totally … don’t feel entitled to purchase brand new books. But alas, it is one of two indulgences I’ve allowed myself in this life, (the other being music), and so the books arrived. If you are reading this post currently, you will see them to the right. If you visit this blog regularly, you will note there are always two books there – one a novel, be it adult, YA or MG, and the other a book of an enlightening, metaphysical/spiritual nature. And so goes my reading. Picture books go too fast to even warrant a spot, but I may write about them here.

How to Save A Life kept popping up at me from different places and sounded terrific, so I got it. More on that when I read it. And then, while flipping channels last week, I came to a halt on Wayne Dyer and a PBS special, Wishes Fulfilled, also the title of the book. He is so on the money, and who doesn’t want their highest good manifested? So I’m starting on that, too.

But first, a word on Click. While waiting for said package to arrive, I felt drawn to read this again. It is a continuing story told chapter by chapter by different authors from the USA and the UK, each highly accomplished. It’s a great concept with each new chapter a revelation that could only result in the story being told this way. It starts off with Linda Sue Park, and then continues Chapter 2* with David Almond, one of my favorite authors. His chapter was so amazing and magical, I could have stopped right there. But I’m more than halfway through and want to enjoy the rest before I start my new choice.

In addition to these wonderful authors bringing the tale of Grandpa Gee, photographer and worldwide traveler, his family and those he encounters in his journeys to life, they have also contributed their book sale proceeds from Click to Amnesty International to save a few lives themselves.

*Here is a quote from Chapter 2 of Click by David Almond:

“I’m Annie Lumsden, and I live with my mum in a house above the jetsam line on Stupor Beach. I’m thirteen years old and growing fast. I have hair that drifts like seaweed when I swim. I have eyes that shine like rock pools. My ears are like scallop shells. The ripples on my skin are like the ripples on the sand when the tide has turned back again. At night I gleam and glow like sea beneath the stars and moon. Thoughts dart and dance inside like little minnows in the shallows. They race and flash like mackerel farther out. My wonderings roll in the deep like sails. Dreams dive each night into the dark like dolphins do and break out happy and free into the morning light. These are the things I know about myself and that I see when I look in the rock pools at myself.”    — David Almond

New French Bulldog Notecards

/ still a dreamer / 4 Comments

If you enjoyed the image of the little French Bulldog with a flower hat that I posted a short while ago, you’ll be happy to know that you can now send her adorable little self out to friends, family or anyone with whom you’d like to share a smile.

Yup, this is the image that first appeared in Just Frenchies magazine and earned me a spot as a finalist for excellence in Illustration/Painting in the 2011 DWAA (Dog Writers’ Association of America) awards. (Read more.) This was big news! So I thought you might enjoy a visit from this little pup. She’s ready to travel!

10 adorable notecards with matching white envelopes for only $15.00 plus shipping, and you can buy them right here!

Note: All illustrations, drawings and photographs are © Jeanne Balsam and may not be reproduced in any format without written permission. Thank you!

Catching the Light – Part II (the Cats)

/ still a dreamer / 3 Comments

Although spaced much further from the earlier Catching the Light post than I’d intended, here we have, not what … but who … was catching the light.

What is so wonderful about making art is that chance or happy accident that occurs during the creative process. Now we’re not talking about that flash of inspiration which takes us in a new direction in what we’re writing or painting, but the unintended change in direction from what we’d planned. I suppose that could be the same thing in some cases, but right now I’m referring specifically to capturing an unexpected moment in time, and the excitement of it happening in photography. (Hmmmm …. I am suddenly remembering an e-mail filled with moments such as those, but that’s not where I’m going today.)

Back to that warm morning sunlight streaming through the front window. Claude, pictured above, often takes this position in the morning after breakfast and basks somewhere along the back of the sofa, though this particular spot is preferred. I took a bunch of shots of him, always marveling at how elegant and sophisticated he appears in his photographs when in fact, he is one of the goofiest animals I have ever known. I had a nice selection of Claude, the sun worshipper, to choose from.

The unexpected shot came when Gypsy Rose wanted to see what was going on. Happily, I was able to quickly switch gears and capture that moment of cat curiosity. Not much time to adjust camera settings, to account for the darkness of her coat, etc. but then this was about the moment.

Even if we have no intention of taking photographs, our eye can easily be trained to find and appreciate those amazing moments where, in just one second, the view changes. Camera not needed; call it a memory.