Dunkin and Wawa got it right

October 27, 2020Angel Ackerman 2 Comments

I finally got to taste the Dunkin Spicy Ghost Pepper Doughnut. I’m very glad I haven’t tried it weeks ago because it was delicious.

I was a little disappointed that it wasn’t as pretty as the photo, but such is life.

The doughnut itself was their basic glazed doughnut without the glaze. More moist than their basic cake doughnut.

The ghost pepper was incorporated into a sweet icing with little bits of decorative red sugar. The pepper flavor was present from the first taste, then came the sweet icing, then the finish was a heat that hung in the throat pleasantly but didn’t destroy your mouth.

YouTube: Tasting the new items

My business partner wanted to stop at Wawa so I got an iced coffee and opted to try the French toast flavor. I loved the vanilla and cinnamon notes, and while I’d like to dial back the sweetness I can tolerate it as made. Wawa doesn’t allow as much customization of drinks compared to Dunkin.

Update on the Roman Pride

October 27, 2020October 27, 2020Angel Ackerman Leave a comment

With Apollo and Zeus of the Greek Pride on display (hoping for an adoption) at Chaar, working on brother Hermes’ fear of human hands, integrating 2 new adult cats in our personal household, and the addition of the Fluffy Norse Pride, the world has not heard nearly enough about the tuxedo kittens we dubbed The Roman Pride.

We’ve had them about two weeks and the teenager is nervous that we don’t spend enough time with them.

I spend 30 minutes to an hour with them each time I feed them. They are in the mud room with the garbage and recycling can right off the kitchen — so we see them every time we throw things away and they hear all the kitchen activity.

But the teenager wants to bring them to the bedroom with the others.

Meanwhile… Let me tell you about them.

All four can be handled.

Jupiter — was originally the most docile and willing to be cuddled. Has grown more shy over time, now the last one to the food bowl. Has an adorable white snout with a black blob in the middle. Make.

Mars — the spunky one. Has a white line on his nose and one black nostril. Male. Has started making strides in the playing with and eating with humans. Video: Mars playing with me

Minerva — I thought she was the runt. But it turns out Vesta is smaller. Minerva is the first to investigate the other cats when they visit and the first one to the food bowl every morning. I love to cuddle her.

Vesta— Vesta is very timid and she often comes to the food bowl and then runs back to the corner feeling exposed and unsafe and then comes back. She has a beautiful stripe on her face. Very narrow.

Video: The Romans meet my cats

Video: Jupiter and Mars

Embracing crazy cat lady

October 26, 2020Angel Ackerman Leave a comment

This morning I discovered this video on YouTube (Cat Indoor Playland) and thought I’d found my dream house.

The owner of the house starts listing all his cats and I start thinking, “Oh my! How many cats does he have?! That’s insane.”

At the time of this video, he had 15. Because of my fostering work, I have 14 in house and 2 at a nearby pet store.

Ready— in age order— Oz, Opie, Venom, TJ, Misty, Fog, Hermes, Mars, Jupiter, Minerva, Vesta, Fenrir, Loki and Vale.

When I first started fostering I met a woman (whom I lovingly and admiringly refer to as my foster godmother) who had a cat room in her house, outdoor cats and cats in cages in her garage.

A lot of cats.

I have come to understand that the cage cats are transitioning back to life as outdoor cats, many of whom will be relocated to a barn or farm.

But this man is right— cats don’t usually congregate together so when they do it is special. And there’s usually one or two interesting in what you are doing.

So I’m officially becoming a crazy cat lady, but I love seeing them move on to new homes and seeing their growth.

What I’m watching

October 25, 2020October 25, 2020Angel Ackerman Leave a comment

It’s time for an update on What Angel is Watching. Other than foster kittens. I watch them eat, I watch them sleep, I watch them look at me suspiciously. The Roman Pride kittens ate THREE cans of cat food in front of me today. For breakfast.

They must be going through a growth spurt.

So, even though I am job hunting and now have four volunteer responsibilities (foster kitten mom for FURR, communications director for ASPIRE to Autonomy, trustee at my local library and now member of the drug and alcohol board at the county level… and an informal member of the social justice committee at the YWCA of Bethlehem… so maybe 5…) and have two teen girls at home who also participate in marching band, I occasionally have time to watch some programming usually while folding laundry or late at night waiting for the dishwasher to finish.

This is what I have recently watched or tried to watch:

The Social Dilemma — I already came to the conclusion that Netflix makes boring documentaries. This one is no exception. Well, except maybe they finally have watched some of their own documentaries and know how truly dull they are. I say this because they added a dramatization of a fake family to demonstrate their point and made some elaborate “Matrix” vibe scenes when discussing the effects of social media. It makes the awkward sensation of watching a Netflix documentary even more uncomfortable. The content of course is good, but if you hadn’t thought about how social media manipulates you and your life, well you must either be one of the brainwashed masses or live off-the-grid.
The Kitten Lady— since we work with feral kittens, we’ve been watching The Kitten Lady on YouTube to gather some new techniques on socializing our fosters.
Jackson Galaxy/Cat Mojo— Another YouTube personality with more cat information. Both of these people are a little vibrant and off-kilter.
Diana: In her Own Words— Another slow-paced Netflix documentary I didn’t finish. This documentary uses recordings of interviews done with the princess in secret. Fascinating and compelling topic but dry in execution.
Fight the New Drug (Human Trafficking stories)— These 5-10 minute videos were recommended on YouTube and I enjoyed their presentation, though the content is sad. I didn’t research the organization to see how they put together these shorts.
Real Families: Thalidomide Disaster Survivors Share their Fight to Get Justice— This is a feature-length documentary on YouTube about the Thalidomide babies of the early Sixties. I found it much better done than anything on Netflix.

The Highlights

October 24, 2020Angel Ackerman Leave a comment

The last two days have involved trying to deal with the demands of house and health, applying for jobs, and keeping the pets alive and hopefully happy.

Today I learned county council passed a resolution appointing me to the Drug & Alcohol Advisory Board.

Yesterday and earlier today, I exchanged text with some of my peers volunteering with Feline Urban Rescue and Rehab. One person is updating Zeus and Apollo’s pictures on the web site and report that the pair are “playful” and becoming more outgoing. And as usual, Zeus is the attention hog.

I miss her so much. I haven’t stopped St. Chaar Pet Supply since Tuesday because it makes my heart hurt.

This morning I got my monthly Ipsy Glam Bag. It was due between October 6 and 16. So I was getting impatient. Especially since this is my last one until I get some income.

Ipsy Unboxing on YouTube

Later in the day I got some grey cat cuddles.

The teenagers had to go to Marching Band and record their performance for competition.

So in the afternoon, I worked on posts for Lucha Bella’s social media. (Lucha Bella_skincare on Instagram)

Finally, the teenagers are off doing laundry and homework with the estranged husband at his parents’ house. I used the last $20 of my GrubHub gift card to order Taco Bell. I chose Taco Bell for several reasons:

With a $15 order you got a free taco and free delivery (delivery is $3.99 plus $3 service fee plus tip)
The food is cheap, so even with all those fees you can still get food for $20.
My last two orders got screwed up— I blame the app not the restaurant. I don’t want small independent restaurants to be penalized for problems caused by the app and fault’s in GrubHub’s design. Ironically Taco Bell is the only order that came out right.

So finally, here is yet another video. Nala and I have Taco Bell

Tasting everything

October 23, 2020October 25, 2020Angel Ackerman Leave a comment

If you’ve read this blog at all you already know several things.

I love to try new grocery items.
I love to save money while shopping.
I love The Grocery Outlet.
I make a lot of ridiculous videos that combine all of these things.

So today, I hope to enjoy some “brain off” time by tasting things and making silly videos. Here is the first one: Birds Eye Cauliflower Buffalo wings vs. Morningstar Popcorn Chicken

Later in the day I did a taste test of doughnuts — Giant Bakery vs. Maple Doughnots at Grocery Outlet. Fog crashed this video so you can get the cat’s opinion, too.

The Doughnut Debate on YouTube

And of course the teenager wanted to try something so she tried the ranch flavored Pirate Booty.

Review of ranch Pirate Booty: YouTube

And now as I mentioned in an earlier blog entry, I am mixing the Positive Beverage Cucumber into a gin cocktail and chatting with one of my Sarahs.

Mixing a cocktail: recipe here

Gratitude Photo Shoot

October 22, 2020October 22, 2020Angel Ackerman Leave a comment

For the last couple of days I’ve wanted to spend as much time as possible taking photographs of all the things in my life that I encounter on that day and compile them into a gallery for a blog entry.

If I did it today, these are the things that made me happy and they would have appeared in my photos:

Kittens, kittens and more kittens
Coffee
My house is so full of food!
My teenagers
That Dunkin had a $1 coffee because of the Eagles playing
Streaming services, today I started a documentary on Netflix
Cozy blankets
My cat Fog
My make up
Cantaloupe
I tried a chocolate chip cookie dough Chobani Flip
Socks. I do love compelling socks
My budget book
My journal
My pink lamp

What day is it?

October 22, 2020Angel Ackerman Leave a comment

I believe I was talking to my traveling companion M about life with my teenagers and we were discussing how it’s impossible for anyone to develop a routine when basic public school looks like this:

MONDAY, TUESDAY: asynchronous learning online, students must fill out an attendance form by 10:30 a.m.

WEDNESDAY: students have Zoom classes from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

THURSDAY, FRIDAY: In-person school, 7:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m., though the teenager #1 leaves school somewhere around 11:20 a.m. on Thursday because her last class of the day is a study hall.

And MARCHING BAND is Tuesday 6 to 8:30 p.m, and Wednesday, Thursday 6 to 7:30 p.m. and often Saturdays 2 to 4 p.m.

Not one single day is even similar to another. Mondays and Tuesdays are totally self-directed and then Wednesdays are super-regimented.

And then by Thursday we actually have to get up and go to school.

I spent yesterday primarily in a meeting with someone who may end up being our new editor-in-chief for the revived, repositioned and redesigned Lady Boss Magazine, a publication of the Lady Boss Women’s Entrepreneurial Club/Network.

The most recent edition in the old format came out last month. Visit it here: Lady Boss on Issuu.

We have started planning some exciting content (and I hope my new client Merri of Lucha Bella Skin Care and Body Waxing and my step mom can get involved). And something about an Italian master chef who ended up with her own shoe line???

Speaking of Merri, she’s gotten her first original content off the ground, appearing on Instagram and Facebook today:

So please follow Lucha Bella, and of course, me!

Positive Energy (drink)

October 20, 2020Angel Ackerman Leave a comment

I bought this drink at Grocery Outlet and decided to try it today since I wanted something different, something refreshing but something without caffeine.

At first I thought Positive Beverage sparkling zero calorie crisp cucumber healthy electrolyte beverage tasted like a syrup, similar to those syrups used to flavor Italian sodas. But the more I drank it, the more it tasted like a fancy cucumber cocktail.

And it was fortified with calcium and B vitamins.

I would definitely love to buy some more.

Cats and a rainy Tuesday

October 20, 2020Angel Ackerman Leave a comment

I woke up grumpy and frustrated and irritated.

I had my first dental cleaning in close to nine months— and it had me on edge but luckily I got my favorite hygienist. It was a relaxing visit after all with no issues.

I went to the bank to deposit the $127 I had collected over time. It was 9, but they didn’t have the door unlocked so I used the ATM. I get unrealistically nervous that the machine will eat my money.

It did not.

The tellers unlocked the doors at 9:10 a.m. a I pulled away.

After the dentist, the teens and I went to Chaar to see our fosters, Zeus and Apollo, on display there. It was delivery day so we couldn’t get too personal.

Also a note about yesterday, Nan, the teens and I went to Lidl where they had pet carriers for $15 and the teenager bought a new cat toy for $10.