Have You Heard From Me Lately?

If you received an email from me, lately, it probably wasn't from me.  Someone hacked my Yahoo email account and sent spam laced emails to all of my contacts.  I didn't even know about it until someone mentioned on Facebook that they had been receiving strange emails from me.  When I looked into my account history, I was shocked to see that my account had been accessed from several other states and countries.  I have no idea how it happened, but I hope I've put an end to it.

I did send out an email explaining the situation.  You should be able to tell it's from me (and not the hacker) by the heading which reads "My email was hacked, delete all recent emails from me".  Sorry about the confusion!

My hand is feeling better and I should be back to blogging very soon!

Willoughby

Brace Yourself, If You Need To, That Is

I'm right handed.  Very right handed.  My left hand is good for a few things.  I use it when I'm typing and for non-dexterous things like holding an object, but other than that, it is simply there to give me a symmetrical appearance.  If I attempt to write with my left hand, it looks like a child's writing.  I can't even imagine using my left hand to cut with a pair of scissors or chop vegetables with a knife.  It wouldn't end well.

My dad is left handed.  When he was in elementary school, it was frowned upon to use your left hand for writing.  Teachers would force him to put the pencil in his right hand even though it felt awkward to him.  For some reason, they believed you chose your dominant hand as opposed to it being predetermined.  It did eventually serve a useful purpose for him, though.  He severed a tendon in an accident while at work.  He had surgery and his left hand was in a cast for weeks.  The company gave him a temporary position that required a great deal of writing which he had to do with his right hand.

My husband, on the other hand (pun intended), is ambidextrous.  He writes with his right hand, but does a lot of other things with his left.  He plays sports left handed (except golf) and uses tools left handed.  With scissors and knives, he uses his right.  Interesting, huh?

Back to me.  Like I said, my left hand is my stupid hand, but it was never an issue until recently when my right hand started to give me problems.  At first, it was a little achy if I was using it a lot.  Sometimes it felt stiff in the morning or sore at night.  I chalked it up to the onset of arthritis and took ibuprofen for the pain.  It helped, so I figured it was just something I had to learn to live with.  Around Christmastime, I started to have problems gripping things and my hand was so sore that I couldn't make a fist.  Soon after, the pain in my hand was waking me up in the middle of the night.  A few times, it felt like the circulation had been cut off and I was afraid to look at it for fear that it would be dusky.  I was beginning to lose function in my hand.

To shorten an already long story, it turns out that I don't have arthritis, I have carpal tunnel syndrome.  I caught it early enough that it appears I will have no lasting problems.  To alleviate the symptoms, I have been wearing a wrist brace to keep my wrist in a neutral position.  For the time being, I am wearing it during the day as well as at night and removing it only when I will be getting my hand wet.  In time, I will be able to switch to wearing it only at night and then, eventually, I won't need it at all if my symptoms subside.

The reason I'm telling you this story is that it can be easy to attribute hand and wrist pain to a number of other things.  Anyone who does a lot typing can be at risk for carpal tunnel syndrome, so that includes my blogging friends.  If you are experiencing pain, tingling or numbness in your hand, fingers and/or wrist, don't ignore it.  If it is, indeed, carpal tunnel syndrome, permanent nerve damage can occur if it is left untreated (click here to see the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome).  It's been less than a week since I started wearing the brace, and it's made a huge difference for me.  I haven't had any pain and I have full use of my hand again.

Willoughby

Sometimes, My Virtual Wanderings Are A Bad Idea

I know, I know, I haven't been around much, lately.  I'm trying to get back to blogging regularly.  Really I am.  It's just that I've been so busy doing important things like developing a plan for world peace, building a perpetual motion machine and writing a literal translation of the quatrains of Nostradamus.  In my spare time I've been studying quantum physics and learning ancient languages.  Yeah, something like that, anyway.

Sometimes, when I'm online doing research for said activities, I get sidetracked.  Today, I got caught up in Twilight Zone trivia.  You probably know what a Twilight Zone fan I am, so you can understand how all things TZ are interesting to me.  I love to know what inspired a particular episode or get some behind the scenes scoop.  It started out innocently enough, but I was in too deep before I knew it.  Way too deep.

Alongside trivia about the original 1960's series was information about the 1983 production of Twilight Zone: The Movie.  I was aware that a tragic accident happened during the filming, but I did not know the specifics.  There was a segment that was supposed to take place during the Vietnam war.  Actor Vic Morrow was to run across a river carrying two young children.  All around him explosions would be going off and a helicopter would be flying overhead.  Evidently, the special effects explosions caused the helicopter pilot to lose control and crash, which crushed one of the children to death and decapitated Vic Morrow and the other child actor.

I clicked on a video, thinking it was a clip from the released version of the movie.  It was not.  To my horror, it was the accident as it took place.  A number of cameras were rolling at the time and it was captured on film.  I immediately stopped the video when I realized what I was looking at, but it was still sickening.  All I really saw was the helicopter crashing to the ground and the blades of the propeller shearing off......but still......just knowing what was happening within the fire and smoke.....so upsetting.  It was several hours ago that I watched it and I'm still shaken.

Like I said, sometimes my virtual wanderings are a bad idea.

Willoughby

It's Just Not Christmas Until Something Catches Fire

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house,

Not a creature was stirring, not even my spouse.

The stockings were hidden in the closet with care,

Because I was sure that no one would look there.

The children were upstairs, sleeping away,

Too old to be looking for Santa and his sleigh.

Mr. W had fallen asleep watching TV,

So the only one conscious in the whole house was me.

Out of the corner of my eye I spied quite a sight,

From the star shaped decoration that held a tea light.

The soft mellow flame had grown quite a bit higher,

As the small cup of wax began to catch fire.

I blew and I blew, but it did me no good.

The air did not extinguish the flames as it should.

Mr. W woke from his short Christmas nap,

And rushed to my aid as quick as a snap.

He blew, just like me, which made matters worse,

Unsure what to do, we started to curse.

Mr. W grabbed the star, fast as a wink,

And rushed the whole mess right to the sink.

When he doused it with water, flames only jumped higher,

As the wax in the cup continued on fire.

It finally died out, with a sputter and hiss,

And we were able to return to our holiday bliss.

No damage was done, which was lucky, no doubt,

The fire could have spread had we not put it out.

When the ordeal was over a lesson was learned,

If you decorate with candles, you just might get burned.

Willoughby

*I should clarify, while I referred to this as a "decoration", it was a table top candle holder and not a tree decoration.  It was sitting on a side table when the fire started.  I would never have a lit candle hanging anywhere near the Christmas tree!!

Announcing The Winner Of The Novica Giveaway

Sorry, this announcement is a little later that I intended it to be. 

The names of all participants were put in a hat and shuffled around thoroughly.  Mr. Willoughby then randomly drew one name.  The winner is Joanna of The Fifty Factor!  Congrats, Joanna!  Have fun shopping!

Thank you to everyone who entered my Novica giveaway.

Willoughby

It's Time For A Giveaway!

I am excited to announce that Novica has, once again given me a $50 gift card to award to one lucky winner.  If you're not familiar with Novica, they work in association with National Geographic to bring the work of talented artists and artisans around the globe to the rest of the world via the internet. Shopping their website is a unique experience as you can view information about each artist along with the works they create.  It gives each item a very personal feeling.  In the Keepers Of The Arts section, you can watch videos of the artists at work.

I love Novica so much that I could go on and on telling you how wonderful their website is, what great customer service they have and, especially, how talented the artisans are, but it would be much more fun for you to see for yourself.  Before you head over there, though, let me give you a sneak peak of some of the wonderful things you'll discover (and maybe help you find some unique Christmas gifts).

Wool Belt "Black Night Bouquet"
in Accessories

Leather Laptop Case "Executive Finesse In Black"
in Men's Accessories

Obsidian Cufflinks "Night Magic"
in Cufflinks

Wood Walking Stick "Mermaid"
in Walking Sticks

Cotton Scarf "Timeless Purple"
in Women's Scarves

Peridot Cufflinks "Jigsaw Riddle"
in Silver Cufflinks

Now that you've seen some of the beautiful items available at Novica, are you ready to enter my giveaway for a $50 gift card?  Here's what you need to do:

Entry Rules

1. You must be a follower of This Stop Willoughby, or become one. 
2. You must click on the one of the category links listed in the captions of the photos above, browse the items in that category, and then come back and leave a comment on this post telling me about one of your favorites.
3. You may leave an additional comment on this post (one per day) telling me about a favorite item from any category.
4. If you would like to earn a bonus entry, mention my giveaway on your blog along with a link to this post. Please be sure to leave a comment (with link) letting me know that you've done so.
5. This giveaway is not limited to the United States.  If you have followed the above rules, you're eligible as long as Novica can ship to you.

The deadline for entries is Sunday, December 11, 2011 at noon Eastern Time.  The winner will be drawn randomly and announced by 3:00 Eastern Time.  One entry per day as well as one bonus entry allowed.   Please be sure to include a way for me to contact you should you be the winner of this giveaway.  If your email is not linked to your blog, please include it in the comment you leave here.  If I am unable to contact the winner, a different winner will be drawn at random.

Good Luck!!

Willoughby

Trying To Get The Feeling And Some News About A Giveaway

I'm just not feeling it this year.  Christmas, I mean.  Any enthusiasm I'm able to muster is pretty much forced.  I'm not entirely sure why it doesn't seem to hold the same excitement for me that it used to, but it just doesn't. I feel badly about it.  Christmas should be a magical time.

Maybe it's the weather.  I dread winter.  I have no interest in dealing with months of snow and cold, and driving on icy roads get old really quick.  We've only had a light dusting or two so far, but December marks the beginning of four or five months of bad weather.  It's likely colored my outlook on Christmas.

More than that, I think it's that the Christmas push starts earlier and earlier every year.  My local supermarket started putting up their holiday displays in September.  By now, I've had my fill of Christmas and it hasn't even gotten here, yet.

I find the advertising more obnoxious than usual this year, too.  One store is telling you that you shouldn't give any gift that isn't a name brand (so much for that scarf you spent the last month knitting), and another is encouraging you to make a chump out of Santa Claus by out-gifting him.  Worst of all, in my opinion, are the advertisements for a certain car company.  How many people do you know who can afford to give a $30,000 gift for Christmas?  In an incredible stroke of irony, I happened to see that ad just after the commercial for Save Our Strength where they tell you that one in four kids in America goes hungry every day.  Puts it in perspective, doesn't it?

We haven't done much of our Christmas shopping yet, and I'm not too psyched to start.  Every time we've been in a store lately, it's been a bad experience.  In one store, the cashier threw away our gift card (even though it still had money left on it) and then gave us an attitude when she had to go through the trash to retrieve it.  In a home improvement store, we left our cart full of wood at the end of the aisle because it was too difficult to maneuver (we're renovating our home office, but that's for another post) and a cashier took it without telling us.  When we finally found it, she was pre-ringing our items because she said it would save us time.  It's a long story, but in the end, she rang everything up wrong and charged us twice for the whole order.  It took an extra 45 minutes to check out and we ended up having to go back to the store to get the second charge removed.

My plan is to do as much of our Christmas shopping online as possible.  I'm trying to stay away from the big store's websites and purchase gifts from places like Etsy and Novica, where I can be much more connected to the artisans who create the items they sell.  I've also been eyeing the adorable sweet and savory petite bites at Alchemy by Carla Hall (remember her from Top Chef?).

How about you?  Are you feeling all warm and fuzzy about the holidays?  Where are you doing your Christmas shopping this year?


Giveaway

One thing that always makes me happy and puts me in a festive mood is having a giveaway.  Come back tomorrow and I'll announce the fantastic giveaway that I'm having!

Willoughby