Spring Shoe Assessment

Spring is here and I have been looking in the closet seeing what I have to match the clothes I have. With it being spring I am just about ready to move all the dark clothes to the back side of the closet and move the spring and summer up front.   Well, upon looking at my shoes I now realize that it may be time to go shoe shopping. The shoes I wore all last spring and summer are just about worn out.  The support is gone and some are missing design items .They really are worn.  I think now is time to go shoe shopping.  Serious shoe shopping.  All my shoes....well not all....need replacement.  The vast majority of my shoes are all heels. I still have a lot of those heels which will wear well this spring and summer but I think I am going for diversity. I think I will be buying some lower heels and wedges.  I might even have to break down and buy flats.  I have not had a pair of dress flats in my closet for at least 10 years.   I am excited.  Shoes!  Shopping!  What can be better! I find now that shopping on the weekdays are better.  I can avoid the crowds (which I hate)  and the selection is better because the trucks are unloaded during the week.  First choice on the styles.  My size is a bigger size, so most of the time only one or two pairs will come.  So I need to get there first.  Shopping is on the agenda for this Friday.  I am planning to go after cleaning and doing some laundry.  Gotta get those mundane things done first.  Shoes always does a mind and a body good.  Especially the body. If the shoes do not fit, it will be a terrible day! 

  

What do women want? Shoes! ~~Mimi Pond

Whiz, Amber and Baby Makes Three

You know, I have a teen and I try to keep up with what is  happening in her world.  That is a way that we can stay connected.  I know all about the generation gap that my parents and I had. When I was still single and thinking about a family I vowed to try to keep that gap at bay with my own children.  I think I have done that for the majority of the time.  I keep up with the shows the kids are watching on tv, the music, fashions.  I think that any good parent has to in order to keep the bad things that draw young people in away.

For the most part when it comes to music that has been easy.  I am a fan of all sorts of music.  The explicit rap...not so much. Well at Christmas time, my child told me she wanted me to take her to the  coliseum so that she could by concert tickets to see Whiz.  Well, he was one person I had not heard of.  My daughter is apparently a big fan of him and Amber.  Since then I have of course investigated and found out all about him.  She even has a poster of him on her wall.  Well, can we say enough tattoos? 

Well, after hearing that my child followed them both on twitter, I then  had to find out who Amber was.  Well joy to them both.  They just had a new baby! 

Amber Rose has said that she and Wiz Khalifa fell for each other hard and fast, and that's been evident over the past couple of years. The pair officially began dating in 2011, and since then, they've been inseparable. They got engaged last spring, sharing the moment with fans on Twitter, and they welcomed their first child, Sebastian Thomaz, into the world Thursday — but it's been a memorable ride throughout.

Congratulations to Whiz and Amber.  I still only know the surface things but the fact that they are a family unit goes a long way with me.



What do women want? Shoes! ~~Mimi Pond

Scotland....Waiting

Scottish shoes is what i will be needing in about a year or so.  I have the opportunity to go there with our choir.  We will be singing at St. Andrews.  In addition we will be touring several other areas as well...London and Ireland.  I cannot wait! It will be my first trip to Europe.  While we will be going to sing, we will have a chance to explore.  My camera will not be leaving my hands!


I have just checked out the BBC series from the library:  The History of Scotland.  It has been amazing so far.  What a brutal time it was in the early history.  It is a great series.  No stone unturned and well done in great detail.  There seems to be a lot of information on the Visit Scotland site as well.  From the videos and pictures it is a beautiful but forlorn looking place.  The wide open spaces are amazing.

It will be a once in a lifetime trip and I am going.  I missed out on the last one when the choir went to Australia and New Zealand.  I am determined not to miss any more trips like this.  My daughter is going to.  It will be her first trip to Europe as well.  I am excited for her to be going.  And for the two of us to go together.  I cannot wait!  Scotland here we come in the early fall of 2013!!!

I know that I will be able to see Nessie when I come..She will show herself to me!

What do women want? Shoes! ~~Mimi Pond

Kim Kardashian And Kanye West Now Wearing Matching Outfits

Kim Kardashian And Kanye West Now Wearing Matching Outfits

I have never been a Kanye fan.  He has always been just a little too over the top and ghetto for me.  I don;t know...something about him just turns me off.  i do not listen to his music either.  As for Kim Kardashian, well I did not know who she was until a "minute" ago.  It was well after RayJ that I realized who she was.  These two as a couple just do not seem well fitted for each other.

How many men can Kim go through?  Apparently many.  Way too many for me to keep up with.  Maybe I am jaded.  I just cannot get excited about celebrities and their drama.  Celebrity life seems way too trite.  All their money and opportunity does not really help them.  They get caught up in drugs and drama just because they have nothing else to do....too little time and too much fun and excess.  So, Kim and Kanye....who cares if your outfits match? Most of America wonder how they can afford a decent outfit!

Slippery Tax Shoes

Nothing can be as slippery as taxes.  They can be quite a tangled web.  In years past I have done my own and have also had others do them for me.  A few years ago I had considered taking a few tax courses , thinking that if I had the proper knowledge I could do my own and be sure I was doing them the correct way.  I never did follow up on it and make an actual move in that direction but, if you are interested in that, there are courses and classes that will get you prepared to do so.

Under the IRS rules in order to prepare taxes for money you must be qualified and even certified.  FastForward Academy has a course that includes practice exams and questions that will most likely be on the IRS Special Enrollment Exam.  They have a bank of online questions that are taken from past exams to get you ready for the real test.  The questions are current and span several testing seasons.  There is even a money back guarantee. If you do not pass the test on the first time, per request, they will analyze your test results, coach you in the areas you are weakest and provide course materials for the next testing season, at no cost to you.

You cannot get a better class because the results are in the pudding.  There is a 94% pass rate for the majority of people who take this tax class the first time. The course also includes enough information to assist with continuing education hours that are required each year.  Real world examples are used throughout the entire course to give you the focus you need to meet every tax challenge.

If you are inclined to move into the world of taxes, enroll.  The tax season has just recently ended, but you  will have more than enough time to get ready for next year.  FastForward Academy has many happy students.  Be sure to check out some of the testimonials from satisfied students.

What do women want? Shoes! ~~Mimi Pond

Dirty Pirate Popsicles

Here is a great way to beat the heat!  I could use one of these right now!

Dirty Pirate Popsicles

Dirty pirate popsicles 

2 1/2 cups Coke
1/3 cup Captain Morgan Spiced Rum
1/3 cup Kahlua

Instructions:

1.Place all ingredients in a large glass and stir to combine. Pour mixture into popsicles mold.
2. Freeze for about 2 hours or until mixture starts to solidify enough to hold a popsicle stick upright. Insert popsicle sticks and finish freezing popsicles overnight. To release popsicles run hot water on the outside of popsicle molds for a 2-3 seconds.
*Slightly flat Coke will produce a popsicle that stays frozen longer. To quickly and manually flatten out the carbonation, empty out enough Coke from a 2-liter bottle to leave a 3-inch space from top of bottle to top of coke. Place cap back on and shake vigorously for 10 seconds. Set aside to leave bubbles to subside.

What do women want? Shoes! ~~Mimi Pond

A New Purse...Ivanka

I do not need another purse.  I have many and they are all very nice!  Most of them are designer bags as well.  Coach, Dooney and Burke, Brahmin, Louis Vuitton and other really nice designer bags.  I was window shopping this past weekend and saw a few of the Ivanka Trump bags for the very first time!  They were very well done.  She has designed some very cute satchel bags.  If any of mine ever wear out and it looks like they will not...I may consider getting one of hers.  Cute and well made they are!

 

What do women want? Shoes! ~~Mimi Pond

Lost Mayberry Shoes

It has been not so good a week for American Icons.  We lost two in the same week, Nora Ephron and Andy Griffith.  They both did many great things in the time they had on earth.  I was most affected by the death of Andy Griffith.  Why?  I grew up with him.  It was like I was loosing someone I knew.  I grew up watching his show every day after school.  Shows like his were the sitcoms of my youth!  Later I did watch some of the other shows he starred in bu none resonated with my as my as his time in Mayberry.  It was a wholesome show.  Today that seems to be a thing of the past with graphic shows like Jersey Shore being so popular.

Those shows are just trash...plain and simple.  They have none of the family values that were instilled and demonstrated as you watched the happenings in Mayberry.  Andy influenced a great many people.  Just all the posts on FACEBOOK prove it. Most of my classmates had something to say about his passing and what an influence his shows had on their childhood TV watching.  The good thing is that you can still watch his shows.

When I mentioned his name, my child did not know who he was.  I suspect that will be the case for many kids today.  They did not grow up with wholesome shows like that.  They had power rangers and ninja turtles and smurfs and soon after that, the age of computes really kicked in and soon even the tv was left behind for x-boxes and Nintendo 64 games.  TV back then was of a different time never to be seen again.

Sleep tight Andy Griffith.  Rest. You had a positive influence on  a great many people.  When we pass on we only wish that we could say that we had that sort of good impact.  Rest in Peace!

What do women want? Shoes! ~~Mimi Pond

A Shoe After My Own Heart

I look at my daughter and I think I have raised her right!  She is a shoe lover so the apple did not fall far from the tree!  I did not realize it until yesterday.  She wanted to go the mall so I took her.  She had been wanting a pair of Toms for a very long time.  She finally selected a pair and they were the pink ones here.  She was very excited that her purchase would be helping a child in a country very different than ours.  We were shopping at Journeys.  That is one of her favorite places to shop for shoes.

Since she has been in middle school she has had a passion for Vans!  She has about three pairs of Vans already but she had had then since freshman year of high school.  She takes good care of them but they are looking a bit worn.  She saw a pair of lime green and black that she had to have.  Lime green is her favorite color and right now I cannot tell you how many lime green t shirts, or hoodies she has.  She loves that color. Now she has a pair of shoes.  They are bright but they are HER style.  She wore then to work to day.

As we were tallying up her purchases, a pair of red glitter vans caught her eye.  I had seen them when we first came in and I thought to myself that I wanted a pair of them.  She tried them on and had to have them as well.  It turned out to be a three pairs of shoes shopping trip!  Good for her!  Right now that is the only thing that she loves to buy and really gets excited about....SHOES!  She had a good day and spent several minutes at home modeling her new shoe for me.  I remember doing that when I got new things when I was much younger.  Especially things I had bought myself and purchased with my very own check!  I am glad that is one of many things that we have in common!

What do women want? Shoes! ~~Mimi Pond

Calgary Real Estate

Looking for a home can be very stressful.  I have a friend who just had a baby and is in the process of trying to find a home now.  She cannot find anything that she likes.  That tends to be the way it is now with the economy.   Things are improving.  It appears that the housing market is slowly making an upward turn.  That is a good thing.  All those houses that have been for sale for so long will little by little begin to move.  

If you are in the market in Calgary, the best option for buying or selling is to use a professional Calgary Realtor .  Cliff Stevenson is just the person to do that.  He has been in the real estate market for over five years and is part of a four person team that  is committed to providing excellent service that has made him one of the top realtors in Calgary.  In addition he has won numerous industry awards and has trained many of his colleagues in using technology to advance business in real estate. 

The Calgary Realtors site has many tools that available to everyone to assist with the purchase of a home or even the selling of one. One key tool is the search tools.  You have the options to search neighborhood, address, Calgary MLS number or even the google map.  With those online options, you can view homes from the comfort of your own home.  Another tool to make the process easier is the Calgary real estate listings.  Cliff Stevenson has wonderful maps of over 200 listings and with the click of a mouse, you can easily pull up the area in which you future dream home is located! He even has a blog that he keeps updated with trends and other helpful information. 

If you are in the market to sell your Calgary real estate , there are many options there as well. There is an online tool that can begin to discover the value of your home in today's marketplace.  Once that is done, a marketing plan is developed as part of the seller services offered by this company.  Take a look around the site.  In addition to tips and a host of buyer and seller tools, there is even information of commissions and email options to keep you informed.

Calgary Realtors is committed to redefining service in real estate.  They are there to serve, offering a professional staff, expert advice and ease in selling or buying.  Just check out some of the testimonials.  I do not think you will be disappointed.