Recommendations & Gossip

For those who care about their hands & feet as much as I do, a product I just found at the local Big Lots might be of interest. The website is http://www.frillsbeauty.com. I picked up 1 of their sample packs and have loved every single 1 of the products. The foot baths smell wonderful & have done a lot to make my hands & feet a lot less stiff & sore. That & a lot of the incredible rough edges that have been developing since I took this job at the garden nursery have started to wear away.

Another website / show I can recommend is http://www.globetrekkertv.com. I started watching it a few weeks ago on ETV & was rather impressed. Then you throw in the shopping and I was hooked. The show is just what the title says it is. There are about 4 travel guides who go to various locations around the world and show you what the sights are and give you a rough idea of what to expect from the places you stay and the best ways to get to the sights. The web site also offers the taped shows, music, and various other odds & ends. The music will be something for my ever growing wish list, but what I have listened to on-line is pretty good. At least, by my standards.

Now for the gossip. Yesterday at work I learned something rather bizarre by my standards. Since moving to Beaufort, SC I have been constantly surprised by the price differences from Statesboro, GA. I just had a massive difference pointed out yesterday. Keep in mind that Beaufort, SC is a small Southern town that is a MAJOR tourist spot. As in, we are less than 1/2 an hour from Hilton Head Island & there is LOADS of cash floating around this area. The "quieter" source of community funding is based on the Marine training depot, Paris Island, and the Marine Air Station for its income.

Now, given the 2 extremes of income, you would think there would be a varied supply of housing in this area. Well, I would. Unfortunately, I am wrong, horribly wrong. Examples include this - there is a block of 2-story townhouse's that all have 2 bedrooms, 1 & 1/2 baths, living room & kitchen, on 1/4 acre, approx. That is all that they are. They face the back of a strip mall that consists of a kitchen store, Talbots, & a few similar stores. On the 1 side is a boat outfitter, & I mean the LARGE boats. You know, yachts? And on the other side is a marsh view. Behind them is more housing of similar size. Guess how much they average?

Well, if you guessed over $200,000 each, you would be right!

I would not pay that, but that is just me.

Another example is the house I am living in now. My mom paid around $125,000 for this, a 3 bedroom, 2 bath, kitchen, living room, dining room, enclosed garage on 1/2 an acre (approx.). That is not too bad. More than I'd want to pay, but since there are 3 adults & 1 child, plus 5 animals, it is working. The location is on a small pseudo-penisula along the coast line, so though we are on the "inside" of this mini-subdivision, we still can see the marsh on both sides. We can also definitely hear the Paris Island gun fire & sometimes even the drill sergeants. Thanks to a realtor who has come sniffing around, we now know that these houses, which are all at least 30 years old & need new everything, can sell from any where from $$200,000 to $400,000 depending on how extensive the renovation have been.

This is a small town. There is little to do here beyond attend the local festivals, go boating, and generally be wealthy. The shopping is non-existent. So why on earth is this place so expensive? Oh wit, that's right! Most of the people here are wealthy to the point that spending over $200,000 for a small house is nothing to them. So what if they only use it 4 months out of the year? Sheez!

I really want to get out of this town. I know that I am here and doing multiple good things helping my family. I know my mother & I have had more heart to hearts over the past few months & worked out more issues than we have over the past few years. I know that this is only temporary & when it is the right time, life will fall in to place & I will move. But I really want it to be no later than January 2007. I want a life again where I can take a freaking bath & have candles burning & a glass of wine. I want to go back to my salads & tofu. All things that I can not do while living with others.

Not because they are family, which does play a role, but because this is not my home & most of the bills are paid by someone else. So I have not the right to indulge in my pleasures when I know they can not be shared by my family, nor are they encouraged because they all involve items that are frowned upon. Especially the candles, which blows my mind. Alcohol, though bad, is not as dangerous as candles apparently. Once I figure out why that is true, I'll let you know.