police and soldiers

I was thinking about how police officers and soldiers have a lot in common. They are both fighting to protect and uphold the laws of the land. They both have to use all kinds of tactical gear every day. They both put their lives in danger every day. I certainly can’t help but respect that.

money

I have been studying more and more about how to make money online. I’ve been lazy as of late, but I think I am going to try to “redouble” my blogging efforts, and earn more money. I want to be able to purchase contacts again, plus of course I want to pay my bills, save money, and so forth. I’ll let you know how it goes.

hilton head

I have a friend who used to work at Hilton Head. She loved it. She still talks about the beautiful summers there. She also convinces her family to visit Hilton Head and the Hilton Head rentals fairly often. I hope I can visit there one day – now that I have heard so much about it, I want to see it for myself!

exercise equipment

Just today I ordered a new piece of exercise equipment. We’ve been shopping for this for quite awhile. We wanted a good piece of equipment that would work for us, and we had to choose between an exercise bike, a treadmill, an elliptical, or another type of exercise equipment. I settled on a sort of a peddling gizmo. Hopefully I’ll be able to post a photo when it gets here.

credit card debt relief

I am amazed by the amount of credit card debt in our country. It is just shocking, how many people owe so much money. It is really almost selfish. I have worked hard to avoid debt. I hope I never need credit card debt relief. That is a good option when you get into debt, but it is best to avoid that situation altogether!

walk in tubs

When I’m awake late at night, I always see annoying commercials for stuff like chairs that will help you stand up and walk in bathtubs. Plus of course there are commercials for stuff like the scooters and power chairs. It seems like all the stuff is for older people. Why do those commercials always seem to take advantage of older people? There’s something so wrong about that.

an interesting comment...

I received a comment on the last post that I find very intriguing. I don't think it is comment spam; I think it is a comment from a non-native English speaker. His blog appears to be in Portuguese. I could be wrong - it could be Dutch or German - but I think it is Portuguese. Now, his blog does seem to be filled with ads and kinda spam-y. But it is mildly entertaining nonetheless.

snore ring

So I was given an opportunity to test the "Snore No More" anti snoring ring. Yes, it is a ring that you wear on your finger. Stop laughing.



It sounds absolutely crazy, but the Snore No More ring is a ring that is worn on your left pinky finger. It uses acupressure to prevent snoring.

*Disclaimer*: This ring is not meant to treat sleep apnea or any other sleep disorder. See your doctor if you believe something is wrong.

Anyway... I am a snorer, but I decided to get the ring to fit my father. My father snores MUCH worse than me (think freight train!!!) and my poor mother is often awakened by his nighttime noise.

Amazingly, the Snore No More ring seems to work! Believe me, I was as skeptical as you are, but with the ring my mother said she got a fantastic night's sleep!

I do have one complaint: The Snore No More website makes it very difficult to figure out which size of ring to purchase. The ring is offered in sizes small, medium, large, and x-large, but those sizes do not seem to correspond to jeweler's ring sizes.

time change

Daylight savings time stinks. Period. I can handle the extra hours to sleep, but losing an hour has really thrown me off. And statistics have shown that Daylight Savings Time may not save much, if any, energy, like it's supposed to. So why do we put ourselves through that torture every year? I certainly don't know. If I had a good answer, I'd be in bed...

mesothelioma

To my knowledge, I’ve never known anyone with mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is caused by exposure to asbestos, though, and I’ve witnessed many remodeling projects to remove asbestos. When I was in college, my university had a fairly large asbestos removal project during my junior year. There were numerous dumpsters, and a large area that was covered on all sides with tarps and signs warning not to enter without the appropriate protective gear.

California home schoolers?

Just days ago, a California judge ruled that chilren can only be homeschooled if Mom or Dad has a teaching degree. I disagree with this ruling, but I must say I can't disagree with the spirit of this ruling.

I know lots of homeschoolers who thrive in homeschooling. Homeschooling is a perfect fit for those parents and children. However, I know lots of other homeschoolers who are not doing well in homeschooling, and the only person to blame is the parent. To be a homeschooling parent requires patience and dedication. You cannot just take a day off. If your child is not thriving under your instruction, you must be wise enough to send your child to a public or private school.

I can think of one parent, in particular, who is dooming her child to a life of menial labor because she is too lazy to teach her child during the day. This infuriates me like you can't even imagine.

A good homeschooling parent doesn't need a teaching degree. In fact, they don't even need a degree. However, a parent could have many degrees and still be a horrible homeschooler. I see what the judge is trying to do here. Even if he went about it in the wrong way, I'm glad he is at least trying.

zenn

A few days ago, I learned about the Zenn electric vehicle and a nearby Zenn dealership. At first, the Zenn sounds pretty interesting. It is 100% electric, no gasoline, so you would plug your Zenn into the wall at night. It's "zero emissions, no noise". The battery lasts three to five years. It costs significantly less to operate than a vehicle with an internal combustion engine.

HOWEVER, the Zenn can only go about 35 miles on a single (8-hour) charge. It has a maximum speed of 25mph. I suppose if you live in a very densely populated area, this vehicle might be a good choice for you. But in the Midwest, even in major metropolitan area, it's nearly impossible to get anywhere without driving on a highway or even a street with a speed limit of 45mph for a few miles. Plus you will probably go a lot farther than 35 miles in a day! Sorry, Zenn. It just doesn't work for me.

coins

When I was young, I had a coin collection. My collection was very simple – a folder containing pennies and nickels and dimes from different years and different mints. However, dedicated coin collectors (numismatists!) can collect a much more complicated group of coins. There are many different types of coins from the United States alone, and if you collect foreign coins, your collection can take on all new shapes and sizes.

For those numismatists out there, you can check out Monaco Rare Coin of the Monex family of companies. Monaco can help you build your collection of gold coins and rare coins, cost-effectively, and with access to reliable live online trading.

housing crisis

I'm annoyed by this "housing crisis". There are so many people who took out subprime mortgages, loans that they couldn't afford, and then complained when they couldn't make their payments. I am very sorry for these people - foreclosure is never pleasant - but really, they should not have taken out a loan they couldn't afford to begin with. They brought it on themselves - and I really don't like the thought of my tax dollars going to help these people.

And for those of you who fear a repeat of the Great Depression, take heart: the 1930s were at least twice as bad as the current housing crisis. Some historians and economists estimate that it was three or four times as bad. So even though the economy may be bad right now, it's not as bad as it once was. We're going to be just fine.

today's escapades

I went to the library this morning with my family, which is always enjoyable. I could just about move into the library. We ate lunch at Wendy's on the way home. Right now, my parents are going to Micro Center across town. My dad wants to get more memory for my mom's computer. I love going to Micro Center but I decided to stay home. I just don't need anything right now, and I can't afford anything right now. But it is certainly tempting...

yoga dvd

This week, I received this yoga dvd to review:



This DVD features Zyrka Landwijt leading you through a yoga practice. Honestly I can think of only positive things to say about this yoga dvd. I’ve tried other yoga dvds before, but none were as easy as this one. This one included a pose guide, which helped me understand how to do each pose properly and get the most out of them. It also includes six different routines. Zyrka understands why we are doing yoga, and that is, more than anything, to be healthy. She will guide you through these routines and make them feel so easy that you won’t even realize you are working out.

primaries

Primaries, primaries, primaries... I am seriously starting to get fed up with all this primary information. The republican nomination was never a huge argument, and I'm relieved that now it is settled. But the Democratic nomination has been a back-and-forth now for months. First it was February 5, "super tuesday", and that was going to decide the winner. But it didn't, and then it was hard fought each day. Then yesterday was supposed to decide the winner. Now they are saying this could go on well through the spring. I think I'm a little fed up!

naked naturals naked hair

I have a confession to make…

I do not use regularly use conditioner in my hair.

I have very thick and ridiculously healthy hair, and quite frankly, I find it to be just a nuisance. It takes long enough to shampoo my hair and successfully rinse out all of the shampoo.

Recently I was asked to review Naked Naturals natural shampoo and conditioner. Naked Naturals sent me a sample of their Awapuhi and Lavender Shampoo and Conditioner. Using Naked Naturals Shampoo was a real treat. The shampoo and conditioner smelled WONDERFUL. My shower turned into a lavender sauna. It was WONDERFUL!



After my shower, as I pulled a comb and (later) a brush through my hair, it felt fantastic. My hair felt strong, smooth, and shiny.

The Naked Naturals shampoo and conditioner are all natural, which I think is just fantastic. Naked Naturals includes extracts that can make your hair up to seven times stronger. Nature knows what’s best, so there’s nothing better to use in your hair!

I have only one complaint about Naked Naturals. It’s not cheap! You can buy it online for $9 a bottle, plus shipping. I found it at Walgreens for $7.99 a bottle. Now, if you struggle with hair issues – like dryness, oiliness, brittle hair, etc. – I can understand why you may want to pay more for your shampoo. My older sister has dealt with seborrhoeic dermatitis for years, and buys a shampoo that costs $6 a bottle. However, because my hair is fairly healthy, I generally always buy the shampoo that costs $1 or $2 a bottle.

I would LOVE to use Naked Naturals all the time. I would LOVE to wash my hair in Naked Naturals daily. But I just can’t justify spending $8 or $9 on a bottle of shampoo, particularly for my hair type. However, if you have struggled with “hair issues” like brittle or dry hair, I encourage you try Naked Naturals.

starbucks

I am eagerly awaiting Starbucks' free wifi. It has been years - literally - since I have had a drink from starbucks. Free wifi will come none too soon! Not to mention, I'm parsing out a few different story ideas right now that will hopefully turn into novels. Wouldn't it be fantastic to write a book AND drink a Starbucks every day? I can't think of anything better than that.

*cufflinks*

I’m a girl so, obviously, I don’t wear cufflinks. In fact, since I grew up in a family of (mostly) girls (me, my sister, my mother, and my father), most of my knowledge of cufflinks comes from old novels! Today I heard about cuff-daddy.com, which prompted me to learn a bit more about cufflinks. Cufflinks are generally worn by men who want to look very professional. You can get cufflinks that are a bit gimmicky (think white elephant gift), or you can get a pair of very dignified cufflinks as a gift for the man in your life. Cuff-daddy has a wide selection of cufflinks so that you can find the perfect pair of cufflinks for your man.

leaping

Yesterday was leap day, and today is March 1. Leap years are the funniest thing. We have a leap year every year that is divisible by four, except for the years that end in “00” (1800, 1900, 2000, etc.). In that case, we only have a leap year if the year is divisible by 400. So 1900 was not a leap year, but 2000 was. Then there’s also the leap “days”. I’ll have to look up the science surrounding that. I believe we have a leap day every 100 years, and I think an extra hour is built into the calendar. All this leaping is very confusing!