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  • Home
  • My World - blog
    • The Daily Brat
    • My writings
    • Where I've Been
  • Untangling the Knot - Field Goal Vlog
    • Training Log
    • Sneak Peak at Untangling the Knot
    • Kicking and Patriot Photos
  • The World of my Books
    • Book Reviews
    • Molto Mayhem - Favorite Italian Recipes
    • Betting Jessica's Character World
  • Author's World
  • Contact Info

Overheard at . . .   The DMV

5/13/2014

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Overheard at . . .  the DMV

“I got all the hardest ones.”

I suppose we probably all feel this way after cramming for half an hour and then taking the written part of the driver’s exam. But, in this case, when I heard some of the questions the young girl had faced I had to cringe. I know I couldn’t have answered them. For example she got what she called the horse question.

If you see someone riding a horse with their hand raised in the air what should you do?

I’m not sure what the multiple choice answers were- but I imagine they went something like:
a. Wave back
b. Signal your passing direction with your turn blinker
c. Stop and wait for them to pass
d. continue to drive slowly, the rider was just letting you know they saw you.


If you answered ‘c’ you would have been correct. If you shrugged and said  ‘who cares’, you should probably stay away from roads in Montana, Wyoming and most of the middle of the country.

So, since I had no idea on this one I decided to look up a few more and test my readers knowledge of such things. I also went out to look up some of the weirdest driving rules around the world. Let me know your score after you’ve finished taking…

DEANNE’S DRIVING TEST

1. In addition to cushions ahead, to the side, and behind, there are some drivers to whom you should give lots of room. These include? a. Drivers with their windows fogged up.
b. Near driveways
c. Anyone from Boston
d. All of the above.


2. You have a disabled parking permit but all of the spaces are occupied. Do you . . . a. Wait for the next available spot.
b. Park in the yellow striped area next to the disabled parking spaces.
c. Park in the open spot next to the disabled parking space.
d. Start yelling obscenities at the huge Cadillac SUV without a disabled parking permit showing who has taken up two of the spaces.


3. Brown road signs point to? a. A very muddy road.
b. Safety corridors
c. Historical, cultural or recreational areas
d. A horse crossing.


Answers: 1. = d 2. = Not sure, I made all of them up and 3. = c Sooooo, how did you do? Ready for part two?  Here are some interesting International rules of the road, courtesy of Smartertravel.com.

- As long as you don’t get drunk, you can sip a beer while you are driving in Costa Rica (wh-a-a-a-t?)
- On the other hand, eating or drinking anything, even water, while driving in Cyprus is a big no-no
- People in Crimea better watch out. You can be fined for driving a dirty car in Russia. (I hear they are looking for new sources of revenue, so expect a crack-down on this rule.) There're more… so check out the full article.

But of course the number one rule on Deanne’s Driving Test is
Stay safe and enjoy every Journey Inspired by Love.
Cheers,
Deanne


p.s. Don't forget to check out my free story on Free Reads from the Genre-istas. (Link Here).
Part 1 of THE BIRTHDAY PROMISE is available now and Part 2 will be posted this Friday. Enjoy the Journey!


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Overheard at... home

11/14/2013

4 Comments

 
[Loud groan] “You can’t put frozen packaging in the recycling bin.”

The concept of recycling, while super beneficial to society, appears to be entirely too complex to apply. How else to explain the number of times I have, (patiently, I believe, though he might argue), had to explain the nuances of what gets recycled to my otherwise amazingly brilliant husband.

Admittedly, it can get confusing. Some plastic is okay while some is not. Cardboard might look fine, but any waxy stuff on it and there is nooooo way it can go in the bin. I understand that it is enough to make a grown person call it quits and simply throw anything and everything into recycling (seriously… tin foil???)

In the olden days, when life was simple, we just had reuse, repurpose, or refuge. Canning jars got reused. Old t-shirts were repurposed as cleaning cloths. Horse manure made great compost. And broken wooden toys got throw in the fireplace. With progress, though, came the ability to create stuff so durable that it could outlast everything but a two year old. What to do with that two foot synthetic stuffed animal that no longer had eyes or an arm? Throw it away, of course.

Except…. Imagine a dump filled with odd assortments of items a two year old has destroyed. It would not be a pretty site. In fact, it would  probably be the stuff horror stories are based on. Magnified by our use of synthetic material on everything and that dump has gotten out of control.  

I’d like to think I try to make a difference. But in fact, I am as much a part of the problem as anyone. The water bottles alone that I dump  each year could probably fill my backyard. And though for a while I tried to use a reusable water bottle, the hassle factor eventually wore me down so that I continue to use and toss as I had been doing.

But while I continue to strive to be better at using less and recycling more, the real problem I am fighting is figuring out which stuff can go in which bin. Organizing, in general, is sort of an obsession with me. So, you can see where this issue would both peak my interest as well as overwhelm me. It would be like giving me something that looks and acts like Tupperware, but then telling me I can’t store it with my other containers. The complexity of organizing would be unmanageable.

So I understand where my husband struggles, really I do. If I could, I would live my life in my favorite store, New Seasons. There they have simplified the process of throwing things away. Pictures to tell me what goes where, canisters for each thing, limited choice of containers to only those that go into one of the bins they make available and pictures they show: this is how I would like to live my life.

I suppose the moral of the story is that more choice isn’t necessarily always a good thing. It would be fine if all of that waste didn’t add up to an earth overcome with garbage; but it does. So although I refuse to put pictures of all of our different types of garbage on my refuse and  recycling bins, I do think it is time to simplify the challenge. If it is too difficult to decide where to throw the empty ice cream container, well then I suppose I will have to stop buying ice cream for the family.

And then, we’ll see how long it takes my otherwise perfect hubby to catch on to the fact that frozen containers don’t go in recycling.

Where are you on the spectrum of recycling? Do you have a good way to remember what goes where? I love, love, love to hear your comments, so please leave me some. No, really! And to prove how much I love hearing from you (and I know you are out there, because I get statistics on how many people visit this fun blog:>) I will donate $10 to the charity of choice for one lucky commenter in the month of November. Simply leave a comment and then check back at the end of the moth to see if you won.
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    About Me...

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    Deanne Wilsted

    Link here to Betting Jessica on Amazon.com

    Background - Overheard While Writing
    It's hard to explain, but 12 years ago, when I started to write seriously, the only place where I could get my work done was at Starbucks. 

    Since then, 4 manuscripts and 4 favored Starbucks later, I sill find myself drawn to a cozy corner and a half-decaf Americano.... not to mention the many friendly faces that greet me when I arrive.

    And, while I try to stay focused, there are some times when the conversations or interactions that surround me draw my attention away from my own characters, and into the world of life's own characters. 

    This BLOG captures some of those funny, sincere, inspiring moments. Maybe they will give you a reason to write as well.

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