fussypants: This is why I'm Fussy

Attack of the A-list Mommyblogger

.I love the Internet. I love blogging. I love Twitter. I love you! When I first dipped my toe in the blogging water I heard all this talk of "community" in the blog world. I thought it sounded a bit contrived. How could you have close friends that you haven't met? How could you form attachments to people who live in other countries?

Now I know. Now I live it. I worry when children get hurt. I cry when tragedy strikes. I pray for friends during stressful times. I celebrate triumphs. I never experienced ugliness from a fellow blogger until now.

She who will not be named (because I don't want to add to Internet drama & traffic) used the forum of Twitter last night to publicly tell the world how much I suck. I was called parasitic and accused of copying half a dozen original blogging themes from other bloggers.

I was crushed and shocked. I wanted to just curl up in a fetal position, put the covers over my head, suck my thumb and just pretend it didn't happen. Soon my inbox was full and I was forced to face the fact that someone was publicly telling the world how I suck. Bummer.

What better way to address the issues than a post, right? Slowly over the past year I have been sharing more and more from my private life with you. Now when anything happens I immediately think of telling you and the rest of the Friends of Fussy all about it. So here goes...

1) I call myself "fussy" and there is a blogger who has a blog called "fussy" but does not call herself "fussy".

Sheesh, I'm getting a headache from this! My Husband has called me Mrs. Fussy Fussypants for years. He even sings a song to taunt me when I am fussy called, "Mrs. Fussy Fussypants she's so fussy. Stay outta her way." Slowly over the months Mrs. Fussypants has been shortened to Fussy.

2) I photoshop photos like Bossy (and the rest of the world)

I adore Bossy as does the entire western hemisphere. However I did not learn my mad photo editing skills from her. She doesn't put her head on random bodies, that's what I do. I think that there are approximately 6 million blogs that photoshop funny stuff and write words on photos.

I did copy someone's photo tricks. I have owned up to it proudly & repeatedly- Craig from Puntabulous. So if you want to know who I copy for real, go visit Craig. He's the funniest guy I know. Tell him Fussy sent ya. Oh yeah, If I was going to steal someone's idea it would totally be his debates. Best thing on the net, by far!

3) I copy Amalah.

This one was tough. I never heard of her and wasn't told exactly how I was copying her. I checked out her site and she is super popular and seems quite awesome. My twitter pals pointed me to her "advice smackdown" because it was what my Fight the Frumps were compared to.

I googled advice smackdown and found this post. I subscribed. She is really funny. I see why she's so popular. But seriously, nothing like fight the frump. Her posts are actually good!

4) I may or may not be copying Dooce.

Wait, I have never done a newsletter to my child! Maybe I'm like Dooce for my awesome skills as a writer and photographer? Laughable. My pictures are blurry and my grammar is bad. Oh well, not like Dooce at all.

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So there you have it my Friends of Fussy, all the ways I suck. Did you feel silly reading them? I felt silly writing them. I wanted to address it because I love my site, I love you (the Friends of Fussy), and I love our blogosphere. I wanted to hide and cry, but I needed to address it.

Now how 'bout some real reasons to hate me?

I never check my voice mail.
I have 2000 unread emails mocking me.
I am the ADD poster girl.
I can't lose this darn baby weight.
I reply to comments in my head and never by email.
I am messy & disorganized.
I use photos that are off-color.
I smell bad. Kinda like soured breast milk.

If you join the club of Fussy Haters I even have a cute graphic for you to proudly display on your site.

If anyone wants to start photoshopping their heads on people, starting online women's magazines about family life, starting social networks to compliment websites, giving away earrings for contests, etc... feel free. Have fun with it.

Spread the love I say. It is all about having fun and building community, right?

Peace, Fuss

Comments (217)

Oprah, Dr. Oz & Fussy say Stop Poisoning Yourselves!

My homeboy, Dr. Mehmet Oz and his amazing eyebrows, were back on Oprah to teach us how to stop poisoning ourselves.

The show started with two supa-unhealthy people. They followed Dr.Ozzie's instructions on how to ~~stop killing themselves~~ get healthy. Voila, now they are healthier and happier. ~Yawn~ It wasn't exactly titillating, hence the lack of photos for ya'.

The good part was when he gave great tips that we can do immediately to stop killing ourselves! Excited? Good, because this was a good episode after all.

Take Your Shoes Off Inside!

Mothers of the world- pump your fists in the air! Whoop, Whoop! Let's do an 'I told you so' dance.

I always worried about dog poop in the house, but apparently all the toxic lawn care products are even worse. Yikes! Ozzie said that the chemicals get trapped in our carpet. Babies will ingest them, and they become airborne when we walk over them. Dog poop- OK. ChemLawn- Not so much.

Never Heat &/or Microwave In Plastic-

Oh, Sweet Redemption, I've been ~~annoying people~~ informing the masses forever. Plastic wrap over food and heating plastic containers releases chemicals. These plasticizers and PBas are endocrine disruptors. They mimic Estrogen in our bodies.

Only nuke your food in glass! Use a plate to cover the top. Melty plastic wrap that touches your hot food? Yikes, you are just begging for breast cancer. Stop it, now! California just passed a law banning toxic plastics in children's products. Good Job! Hopefully, more will be done to stand up for our health.

Have y'all read my post about plastics? "Exposure in even small amounts (plastic) has been linked in some studies to early puberty in girls, genital defects and reduced testosterone production in boys and impaired sperm quality in men, although the chemical industry disputes the strength of the studies.

Under the new law, any product made for young children that contains more than one-tenth of 1% of phthalates (pronounced "THA-lates") cannot be made, sold or distributed in California beginning in 2009."

Clean Without Poisoning Yourself-

Most cleaning products are full of toxic chemicals that build up in our homes and cause serious damage to our health. Have you seen commercials for Clorox Spray Disinfectant? We are lead to believe spraying that chemical gumbo on our kid's highchair and toys is a good idea? Not only do the chemicals we clean with build up on hard surfaces, but they become airborne.

Dr. Oz also mentioned how it is the teeny tiny airborne particles that do the most damage. Our homes are built airtight and these toxins just build up in the air we breath! We should open up our windows for a bit everyday to release the chemicals and particles we are breathing.

I have found White Vinegar works on my hardwood floors. I also love rubbing alcohol to clean with. Toxic? Don't drink it, but the inhalation of a bit of alcohol fumes aren't carcinogens like you have in household cleaners. Unless you are sniffing it in a closet, you should be OK. If you have been sniffing it in a closet, you have worse issues, go get some help.

Check Your Basement.

Do the smell check. If it smells, then you probably have mold. Toxic mold is some nasty stuff. Go buy a dehumidifier and keep it going.

Also, keeping cans of paint, varnishes, et cetera- are supa-dangerous. If flammability doesn't give you pause, the fact that, even when closed, the toxins leak out into the air- should scare your pants off! If you keep them, then store them in a well-ventilated area, like your garage. Now, go put your pants back on. Yes, you too!

Dry Cleaning Doesn't Have To Kill You-

Normal dry cleaning solvent is a carcinogen. Bring it in your home, hanging it in the closet, and then taking the bags off is the worst thing to do. The out-gassing release of the chemical solvents will just build up in your supa-energy efficient home. Then we breathe in the chemicals for 6 8 hours every night!

I found a "Natural" Nontoxic chemical using cleaner for hubby's shirts. It is no more expensive and he can't tell a difference. Trust me, if it were any different, Mr. Smartypants would know. A quick peek in the yellow pages should show who goes "green" when dry cleaning.

Because ~~I'm avoiding laundry duty~~ of my high journalistic standards, I wanted to show y'all what I discovered in my fridge....

Unsafe plastics-

#3- PVC

#6-PS

#7-Polycarbonate

Look for-

#1-PETE

#2-HDPE

#4-LDPE

#5-PP

Love to all y'all,

Fussy

Comments (29)

Fight the Frump -Hose? Oh Noes!

Warm weather is here, the rules of fashion are relaxed and the livin' is easy. Today I must take a stand against one of the ugliest and most common summer fashion faux-pas, wearing hose with open-toe shoes or even ~shudders~ sandals.

Yes, Friends of Fussy, it does still happen. Every weekend the nations churches and synagogues are filled with beautiful women, dressed in their best attire and looking beautiful, but then you see the feet. The feet have hose (which I love when worn correctly) and open toe-d heels. As I researched this post I found 'fashion' advice saying that this is acceptable as long as the toe is not reinforced. OK, Hello, No. It is NOT OK. Anyone that says this is OK must be off her style-deprived rocker.

I needed pictures of this dreaded fashion don't. It was very hard to find. I found this picture that is supposedly stylish.

Stylish to whom? I can't imagine.

So then I found a huge Flickr photoset full of nifty hose & open toe heel pictures. I was struck by how lucky I was that so many of the pics were on my topic.

"Wow, this person must be concerned about this fashion faux-pas also. How dandy!" Then I realized that it was probably some weirdo who has a thing for feet. Ewwwww. I had to go bleach my eyeballs.

Anyhoo, a blogger has gotta do what a blogger has got to do, I need photos of the atrocity known as 'Hose? Oh Noes!' Just try to forget the origin, k?

I did not know this trifecta of bad taste could even exist- mules, Shiny hose and an ankle bracelet. Really? Someone thought this looks good? Really?

First of all, if you are like me, you fall off the heel of your shoes anyway (shut up, you do too). Can you imagine slippery hose in some mules? Impossible.

But the worst offense in this photo is the ankle bracelet. If you have one please never tell me. I'll be so disappointed. Just dispose of it quickly. Then never speak of it again.

Every gal loves a fun night out on the town. We love to dress up and go out with our lesser halves. We love wearing cute strappy shoes and reveling in the freedom of not having a toddler on the hip, a baby nursing or a teen rolling his eyes at us. However, you must be careful not to go too far. Strappy shoes with high gloss hose gives one impression- trashy!

So what can we all agree on? Whether you are kicking your heels up with the girls, out on a date with Hubs, or singing praise on Sunday morning; never ever wear hose when you show your toes!

Now it is your turn. Be sure type your name & the post's topic on the first line and link your specific post's URL on the second. Use the Fight the Frump button, link back here in your post and have fun!

Love, Fussy

Comments (40)

Peek into my Life

"cocoon of love"

I am in love with the asian style babywrap. It is the first time in 10 years the babies don't hurt my back. Pure bliss.

"me, cheese"

"calm after the storm"

After the tantrum comes the nap.

"cause and effect"

I am unable to look at this without yawning.

"overwhelmed"

Our house finally sold after eight months.Yay! We have 8 more days to pack. It makes me sad to pack up and go. Mr. Smartypants is still interviewing & flying out this week for even more. We're having a hellacious time finding a hospital with the right salary range. The immediate future is still up in the air. But the good news is the post-partum hormonal roller coaster is smoothing out. Double yay!

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"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to give you a hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you," ~Jeremiah 29:11-14

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Hope you are having a great Saturday. I'll be here packing, babywearing, and catching up on my reader.

Love, Fussy

Comments (42)

Linkapalooza -Fussy, but still with no pants

Marcy's -The Glamorous Life is adorable. We are kindred spirits.

Hee, hee, Motherhood's new clothes. Absolutely adorable.

Rookie Moms is a great site for new mommies that I found through my comment section.

Sam had a beautiful baby boy. Congrats sweetie.

Great round up at the Houston Chronicle.

Sweet story of redemption and healing in marriage.

"Heeerrre Camilla-Camilla-Camilla!"

Congrats to Jeanette!

~snort~ Keep it clean and short to win. Voting will start Tuesday.

Wow, thank you so much for your sweet words about baby fuss's new photos. I'm having a really tough week (hormones, slow physical recovery, hubs will be traveling for job interviews, impending move to who knows where, and generally overwhelmed with life) and your love, kind words and support mean so much to me. For all you prayin' Friends of Fussy, please remember our family. Things are tough lately.

I love you all!

Love you, Fussy

PS -Couple more things. Do you like the June layout? I added a twitter balloon in the top left corner. What? You don't twitter? Go do it now, k?

Jennifer, my homegirl from Playgroups are no place for children, is guest posting tomorrow. Be sure to give her some love.

Comments (21)