Multi-tasking? Try the test

The NewYorkTimes Online has a terrific "test" that you can take to see why texting while driving is such a bad idea (as if you couldn't figure that out).
But since so many people can't seem to figure that out ---- and so many others are lured by the ching of the blackberry or cellphone saying there's a message, and they'll just peek --- I'm glad the NYT did this.
Its almost shocking how quickly you deteriorate with this little test.  Scary, really.  And this is what's happening when otherwise responsible drivers start looking at the cellphone rather than you and me who are sharing the road with them.
Try it yourself.

Entertainment Book

We've always been huge fans of the Entertainment Book.  We started out buying just one -- the edition closest to my husband's office and using it primarily for dinners out and hotels.  As time went by, we found it to be such a valuable resource that we moved to purchasing two books -- one edition near his office and one edition near my work.  
I really thought that we got the most out of our Entertainment books.  We use the daylights out of those things.  By the end of the year, they are a dog-eared mess and barely holding together at the binding.  
I know other people who tell me that they are a waste of money and never get any use out of them.  So what do we do differently??

• we team up with two other couples who also have the book.  We have seasons tickets together to a small local theater.  Each month after the play, we go out to dinner using the Entertainment book deals.  We go to very nice restaurants for very little money.  
• we go out to lunch together -- date night, sort of.  When I'm off and can join my husband in the middle of the day, we pull a lunch coupon from the Entertainment book and head out for a lunch date.  We usually end up spending about $10 for the two of us and we have a nice time together.  
• we utilize the coupons for savings on car washes.  Our Entertainment book has a set of coupons for monthly car washes at great discounts.  We alternate which car gets the royal treatment (they vacuum, do the windows, give you a fancy air freshener in addition to actually washing the car).  It keeps our cars looking and feeling great.  We feel richer and more pampered when our cars look great and feel great to ride in. Plus we're never embarrassed by the dog fur or other stuff in an uncleaned car.
• we use the coupons from the grocery stores and convenience stores.  They're not always for things we really need or want --- the grocery store often has a coupon for free bread -- we make our own so I really don't want or need free bread from the store.  But it makes a great take-along to a pot-luck, or fine french toast for breakfast at work, or a donation to our community dinner.
• We take it along with us when we travel.  You just never know what you'll find when you're out and about.  

But even with all of that usage, I just discovered that I am certainly NOT getting the absolute most out of my Entertainment Book.  I stumbled across a terrific e-book on maximizing the Entertainment Book written by Julie Parrish, one of the founders of Hot Coupon World.  Go here and you can download a copy for yourself.
Julie has me outdone by a mile. She actually buys three of these books each year (a total investment of about $60)  She figures she saves over $4,000 a year.   

There is also a deal going on right now that can get you the 2009 Entertainment Book for free!!  When you reserve your 2010 Entertainment Book, you get the 2009 Entertainment Book for free!  Go here to reserve your 2010 book and get the 2009 book as the bonus.  Can't beat that.

Homemade Ice Cream

We tried making ice cream the other night.  It was a little bit messy, but otherwise absolutely wonderful.  Give it a try --- you'll never go back to store-bought again.

Take a quart size ziplock bag (use the freezer strength and don't skimp on quality --- its going to take some handling)
Pour into it:

• 1 cup of whole milk
• 1 and 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 2-3 tbsp sugar
• your choice of fruit -- about 1/3 -1/2 a cup (we used peaches and some chopped up crystallized ginger)

Seal up the baggie and place it inside of another ziplock bag -- this one a gallon size bag.
Into the outer bag (around the quart bag) put about 4 cups or so of ice and 1/4 cup of kosher salt.
Take turns shaking the bag (don't squeeze it!!)
It will feel like nothing is happening -- and then --- all of the sudden the inside bag will puff up ---
Take the smaller bag out of the big bag and wipe it off (salty ice cream is yucky)
Put it into the freezer to firm up a bit -- about a half an hour or so.

Low Flow Showerhead

This project was so easy that even I was able to do it.  Really ---  with no technical or vocational skills whatsoever --- it was that easy.  
The only tool you really need is an adjustable wrench (that's the one with the twirly thing in the middle that makes the opening of the wrench get bigger or smaller depending on which way you spin the twirly thing -- see I told you.  No skills whatsoever). 
So, first you just unscrew the old shower head. 


That leaves a really ugly pipe sticking out of the wall.  
Take a bar of soap and rub it on the pipe in the wall -- sort of like when you rub a bar of soap on a stuck zipper -- it lubricates it (don't let that technical talk scare you -- I still know NOTHING)
On the package of the new low-flow showerhead there should be a diagram of all of the parts (there's only a few, don't panic) Stack everything up in the order shown on the diagram -- 
Then just screw the new shower head onto the really ugly pipe jutting out of the wall.
Ta da!!  That's all there was to it --- done.  
Seriously --- the benefits to this little home improvement project are several fold: 
1.  You get a new showerhead -- spring for a semi-fancy one -- We are riding on the coattails of luxury after all -- I went for one with the "rain" setting -- it doesn't feel like rain to me at all, but its a lovely relaxing shower.
2.  You do something really, really good for the earth.  As Americans, we use far more than our share of the earth's water -- this cuts that down a little bit without impacting your lifestyle, sense of hygiene etc.
3.  You save money, honey.  Nearly a quarter of the water that you use in your home is in the shower -- if you save that water --- voila, your water bill goes down. If you're like me, you like your shower hot rather than cold.  That means you're heating that water and paying for the gas or electricity to heat it.  If you heat less of it --- voila -- your energy bill goes down too.  

Soothing the Savage Beast

I've always believed that music has an amazing ability to calm both us and our animals.  Our current little terror, Hurricane Ginger, is certainly soothed by her favorite Tim Janis .   We kept it playing in the house during the early days when she was truly terrified by life in her new home and even played it in the car during some of those early rides in the crate.  I've joked several times that I need to figure out how to hook up the Ipod for walks and for obedience classes -- can you put earbuds on a dog??
Now, Paras Lakhani M.D. has gone and proven me right --- The study didn't use Tim Janis (sorry, Tim) it used Handel's Water Music (another lovely piece).  It found that the heartbeats of humans actually dropped to match the pace of the music -- in the case of Water Music -- about 60 beats per minute -- far slower than most of our regular heartbeats these days.
And according to the study -- this has a surprising effect:  it makes concentration and learning easier.
Who knew??

Cheap Chic Daily

I stumbled upon this website recently and its quickly got its own bookmark in my browser --- every day they post some chic little item that is well within the budget of those of us who don't live in Richville.  Some of the picks are a little trendy and youthful for me -- but there are some great finds and fun ideas in the mix a well.  I love the striped Sephora makeup bag -- adorable, chic and only $7.00.

Free Hermes Bag

This is too cute for words --- I read about it here at one of my all time favorite blogs "A Femme d'un Certain Age"  Firstly, I love that phrase in French --- it is a delightful discreet way of referring to those of us who quite clearly are NOT twenty-one anymore. Secondly, this lady blogs beautifully about her life and her sense of style.
In any event, her blog is where I came across this cute, weird Hermes thing ---
Go to the Hermes website --- go there now --- try not to get sidetracked by all of the gorgeous scarves that you cannot afford, please.... Do not click on the online boutique icon --- instead choose the "travel the world of Hermes" icon ---
Once there, click on "I want it, I'll have it" --- and voila, the templates for the Hermes bags will appear --- they're adorable.
I have a wedding shower later this summer --- I'm thinking that this might be the most lovely favor --- depending on how difficult the cut and paste assembly actually is.  Each lady could go home with her own Hermes bag --- maybe a cute scarf (not Hermes) tied to it???  Classy, cute -- and not too expensive.  Very on the coattails.

Sparkling Lemonade

Ah! The joy of simple food (and drink).  This is so simple and easy -- and yet I'm always astounded by how impressed my guests are by it.  I've already made two pitchers of sparkling lemonade this season.  The first was for the Memorial Day picnic at our house.  The second was for a family gathering this past weekend.  The family is well accustomed to my sparkling lemonade (although they all seem to think its far more challenging to make than it really is), so not too many oohs and aahs there.  

This is one of those emergency treats that turns any simple summer meal into a party.  We take it to Tanglewood with us in the summer (almost time!!) and we take it to the beach.  Unless I make it for just the two of us (yes, sometimes) - there are never any leftovers.  By keeping the two primary ingredients in the pantry and freezer, I can throw this together any time on the spur of the moment.  

Sparkling Lemonade

1 can frozen lemonade concentrate (the cheap store brand will be just fine)

1 bottle (2 liter size) seltzer

1 lemon, sliced thinly

That's it --- pour out the frozen concentrate into a pretty pitcher.  Gently pour in the seltzer (try not to let it fizz overmuch or it will get flat quickly).  Gently stir/mash the lemonade concentrate so that it dissolves nicely.  Add the lemon slices to make it look pretty.  

All done!! 

This lemonade is lighter and less sweet than what you might associate with frozen concentrate lemonade.  That's partly because we're using seltzer, which has that tiny bit of bitterness to it.  But its also because we're using more liquid than is generally called for by the directions on the can.  Its light, nicely sweet, but not overly so, fizzy and wonderful.  

A Free Mini Facial from Origins

I'll be phoning on this one quickly.  I'm sure they'll go fast.  Origins is product I actually like and use.  

Just click Origins and you'll find an invitation for a free facial (Let it play, its pretty).  And, yes, it's okay that I'm giving it to you --- there's a "pass it on" button right on the page --- and besides, Champagne Living passed it on to me!!  (She really does find some great deals on froufrou stuff.) So, give them a call  -- and enjoy a free facial. What do you have to lose? 

Pampering Bag for My Desk

I was putting together a mini bag for my desk drawer ----Here's what I'm thinking about putting in it:

1.  Wisp Toothbrushes from Colgate

2.  Soap leaves (I'm thinking Crabtree and Evelyn?)

3.  A set of good tweezers -- the ti

ny kind

4.  Burt's Bees Lemon Cuticle Cream

5.  Paul Mitchell Tea Tree Oil Styling Cream (love this stuff -- its made for guys, but the minty smell from the tea tree oil is so terrific when I need a pick-me-up.  Plus, it works like nobody's business to control whatever the weather has wrought with my hair -- frizzies, a chunk sticking out somewhere, flatness -- it tames it all with a quick slick with the fingers)

6.  A few of the Olay Daily Facial cloths

7.  Lavender inhalation beads

Anything else I should consider?  I want it all to fit in a small cosmetics bag (the half moon kind) and take up just a tiny bit of space in the desk drawer.  

Just the thing to reach for when I need a quick refreshing before a presentation or a stressful meeting.  Not too much, but not too little either.  

Worldly Matters

It has often been said that the mark of class is knowledge and understanding of the world at large. Educated and upper-class people (and for years those two have gone hand in hand) have always been aware of the world and involved in the world.
I've been actively working on keeping myself abreast of the world beyond my own little life. Its so easy to become myopic and hyper-focused on my own issues and forget about events and people beyond myself.
I've become addicted to NPR on my morning commute and that helps alot. But I've also been building the habit of taking the daily news quiz at the BostonGlobe every day. The Crickler puzzle works like a crossword (sort of) and gives you a daily check up on your knowledge of what's going on in the world.
There are twenty blanks in short summary statements about national and international news stories. You fill in the blanks -- letters from one word automatically appear in the other answers in which they appear (that's the crossword-like part). Generally about 8-10 stories are covered. They range from the mundane and silly to budding international political crises.
How much trouble I have with the daily puzzle gives me a good idea of how in touch I've been with the news. Some days, I move quickly easily through the puzzle (this morning was like that). Other days, I struggle and need to click the Owl for a hint (he's not a nice owl --- don't ask for too many hints --- he scolds!). When that happens, I know I need to pay more attention to the news -- I'm getting myopic and I need to start re-focusing myself.
Its a nice check-up.

Spicing Up Water

Okay, so I'm back and I'm working both blogs now. And I'm back to really working the cheap chic lifestyle --- and I'm back to losing the 10 pounds that have crept back up on me ----
So, obviously, one of the first steps I'm taking is to replace a significant amount of my beverage consumption with clear tea or water. Frankly, that gets a little bit boring really quickly. So, here's my plan:
1. Plain old clean, fresh water. But I'll spice it up a little. I'm thinking of adding

• a lemon wheel -- I think these look so much prettier than just a wedge of lemon. If I cut a slice of a lemon early in the day and let it float around in my water bottle, that should look appetizing, fresh and refreshing.

• mint leaves --- I'm growing mint again -- this time in the AeroGarden -- so its easy to clip a few sprigs and float them in the water bottle. I love the fresh taste of mint, so this should be a delight.
• cucumber -- I'm thinking that I'll cut this as a spear rather than as rounds. We'll see how that looks and feels. I just want a really different feeling with each change of what I'm doing with the water. The whole idea here is to make this interesting and appetizing.

• strawberry slices --- Or maybe a whole strawberry partially sliced and fanned out?? I'm not sure that this won't get yucky after a few hours in the water. We'll see.

2. Seltzer -- I love the fizzy stuff!! And it comes in so many flavors. One of my favorites is the Polar Seltzer Vanilla flavor. Its a bit like drinking unsweetened creme soda --- all of the pleasure of creme soda without the sicky-sweet taste. It won't need a thing added to it to be delightful. Its tricky to find (ShopRite had it for a while, I'll check back there) which is why I stopped drinking it so much. It just was too difficult to find and keep handy. It only came in the 1 liter bottles (I prefer the cans for taking to work) and most stores didn't stock it at all.

3. Unsweetened Iced Tea -- this should be an easy one. There are so many excellent flavors of tea out there. Fortunately, last year I splurged on an iced tea maker from Target. It has a lovely glass pitcher and it makes excellent tea. We've become fussy at my house, so we start with bottled water now. Believe it or not, it really makes a huge difference!

So, I'm off to begin some heavy drinking ---- join me??