man, they don't make 'em like this anymore...

my summer has slowed down now and is the reason for my now weekly posts.  i apologize. landscaping has finally begun on the house.  we have BIG plans for both the front and back yards. and since i sadly have no job or other obligations this summer, i've been tasked with overseeing the work and making sure the workers do their job properly, which i suppose is an unfortunately necessary but terribly boring precaution, primarily because i can't leave the house.  to pass the time more enjoyably, i've been reading several books--some good, some regrettable.  perhaps i'll post my thoughts on some of the good ones later.  in an interesting side note, i apparently look like i'm 12 according one of the workers.

anyway.

to make matters worse, i even won't have a car for the next few weeks because my mother got into a accident the other day. thankfully, it was a minor one, but while her car is being fixed, she's driving my father's car and he's driving my car.  sigh...i was planning on getting a haircut and making it out to the contemporary arts museum some time this week, too.

even though the damage to the body appears minor, the fact is that the engine fan that sits directly behind the grill was damaged enough to cause it to stop working.  the result of which was that while my father was driving it to the shop, it overheated, causing me to have to pick him up.  while we were waiting for the tow truck to arrive, i walked into a curious home accessories store nearby called modern worth, and  i must say i was pleasantly surprised.  my favorite item was probably these bar soaps from portugal.  now you may be thinking, what's so special about soap?  as a germaphobe and self-proclaimed connoisseur of hygienic products,  a lot of things.

for one, these bars are more than twice as large as your standard dove or ivory springs bar. bigger soap, bigger cleaning power; it's a fact--everybody knows.  ever try to take a proper shower when your bar soap's become smaller than the size of your thumb?  exactly!  recipe for disaster, let me tell you.  these soaps are advertised to last at least 3 times as long as your ordinary bar, and they're milled seven times so they won't crack or split, which is very important for a soap bar.

also, the soaps come in 16 fragrances and are packaged in these rather ornamental wrapping papers that, for the more creatively inclined, could be put towards other uses.  you can check them out for yourself here.  apparently, they made it onto oprah's list of favorite things. truthfully, i never thought much about oprah.  i suppose most people would say she has good taste.

i have good taste, too.