Hello everyone! Welcome to another issue of the newsletter. I hope everyone is enjoying the month of March so far. Well, I have lots to talk about so lets get right down to business! ~Phyllis
Here's a website to show you how to pick the best fruits when shopping, which will save you money
http://www.sixwise.com/newsletters/07/04/04/how-to-choose-the-best-fruit-in-the-produce-section-a-guide-for-15-common-fruits.htm
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We've all had times when we needed to glue something and for one reason or another it just didn't stick! Perhaps the problem was that we didn't use the right glue for the job. Next time you need to glue something together, log on to this site to find out which glue to use;
http://www.thistothat.com/
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Last year one of my Cool Picks was for Hungry Girl. If you've checked the site out, then you know she has all kinds of tips for "guilt free eating", along with a daily newsletter. Recently her newsletter had tips for things to NEVER feed your dog. I thought I'd repeat her advice here in case you didn't subscribe to her newsletter.
1. Never give your dogs grapes or raisins...they contain a toxin that can cause kidney damage.
2. Don't let your dog eat yeast or bread dough, because it can expand in their digestive system and cause damage.
3. Chewing gum or ANYTHING with Xylitol in it can be fatal to your pet. (Not only did I get this particular advice from Hungry Girl, my dog's vet recently told me the same thing.)
4. Macadamia nuts can upset your dogs digestive and nervous systems.
5. Don't allow your dog to eat chocolate or anything with chocolate in it, because it contains theobromine and caffeine, which affect the heart and nervous system, and can be toxic.
6. Never give your dog food with onions or onion powder in it. They contain sulfoxides and and disulfides which can damage red blood cells and cause anemia. (The same warning goes for garlic and garlic powder.)
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While we're on the subject of pets, let me share this site with you...
http://www.vethelpdirect.com/
Vet Help Direct is a site run by veterinarians. It has interactive questions to help you decide if your pet needs to go to the vet. But remember...no website can diagnose your dog's condition as well as an actual vet visit.
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HEALTHY LIVING
Usually I like to write about diet, exercise and fitness. But this week I'd like to about your skin...specifically about moles and dry skin.
Most of us have dry skin at least part of the time, especially in winter! There are some simple suggestions that could help. First, use mild, unscented soaps and body washes. Avoid HOT baths, because hot water actually pulls the moisture from your skin, leaving it dry, flakey and itchy. Apply a good moisturizing lotion to keep your skin smooth and soft. The best time to apply it is right after your shower, while your skin is still slightly damp. Fragrance free lotions are the best.
Moles are growths on your skin, and they are usually tan or brown. They can appear anywhere on your body, alone or in groups. When should you be concerned about a mole? Just remember ABCDE, which stands for
A...assymetry. Healthy moles should be symmetrical. If you draw an imaginary line down the center of your mole, both sides should look similar.
B....border. The border of the mole should be be smooth and distinctive, not jagged or rough.
C...color. If you have a mole that is more than one color, or a mole that changes color, it should be checked by a dermatologist.
D...diameter. The diameter of a mole should be no bigger than a pencil eraser.
E...elevation. If you have a mole that is raised or has an uneven surface, you should have it checked by a dermatologist.
Always check with your doctor if you have any concerns with dry skin or moles.
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Some pictures of lightning;
http://digital-photography-school.com/15-spectacular-lightning-images
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Learn more about recycling and find recycling centers near you at
http://earth911.com/
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FRIENDSHIP QUOTES:
A true friend is someone who thinks you are a good egg, even though he knows you are slightly cracked.
-Bernard Meltzer
A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.
-Walter Winchell
A friend is a present you give yourself.
-Robert Louis Stephenson
A true friend is one who overlooks your failures and tolerates your success.
-Doug Larson
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COOL PICK
Instead of sharing a cool pick this week, I wanted to remind everyone that this column is open to you if you have an interesting, funny, fun or cool website to share. Just write about what you like about the site, and send it in to be printed in a future newsletter. You can write a little bit about it or a lot! Send it to me at Twofriendsnewsletter@gmail.com
Toni and I welcome and appreciate your input!
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Hello everyone. For the time being here in West Virginia it is feeling very spring-like...but this is March and anything can (and probably will) happen. My Outlook Express mail server is down and has been for several days. I compile the newsletter through Outlook and so this week I'm having to do it a different way that I'm not used to so my part may not be as long as usual. Hopefully my ISP guy can get something done by next week. Well, let me see what I have to share this week... ~Toni
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~Tips from Cheryl~
Organizing Your Credit Cards
Make photocopies of all of your credit cards and store them in a secure place. Also keep your credit cards and a list of the billing addresses, phone numbers or website addresses in one place for calling and bill paying.
Easy Salad Mixing
After you've torn up the greens, and chopped the vegetables and other ingredients, put them in a large zipper-type plastic bag. Pour in the dressing, seal, and shake. Empty into a serving bowl and you'll have no mess to clean up!
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Judging junk. Ask yourself these questions to decide if it's clutter or not:
Does it work? So much of the clutter in our homes is made up of broken things we plan to fix and clothes that might someday fit.
Do I really need it? Determine the impact of this item disappearing from your life.
Do I enjoy it? If this item brings beauty and joy to your life, it is not clutter. Sentimental belongings and things that bring true beauty to our lives should be treated with great care and respect -- not packed away in the attic to be forgotten.
Am I using it now? If it doesn't fall into the 20 percent of things you use on a regular basis, it is suspect.
Will I use it in the next year? If you are not certain you will use it soon, it's clutter!
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Free stuff just for having a birthday? Maybe getting older has an upside, especially when free bowling, dinners, golf, movies, skiing and spa treatments are involved! The list is growing everyday!http://www.freebirthdaytreats.com/
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Michigan
*Michigan is first in the United States production of peat and magnesium compounds and second in gypsum and iron ore.
*Michigan ranks first in state boat registrations.
*The Packard Motor Car Company in Detroit manufactured the first air-conditioned car in 1939.
*The city of Novi was named from its designation as Stagecoach Stop # 6 or No.VI.
*The Mackinac Bridge is one of the longest suspension bridges in the world. Connecting the upper and lower peninsulas of Michigan, it spans 5 miles over the Straits of Mackinac, which is where Lake Michigan and Lake Huron meet. The Mighty Mac took 3 years to complete and was opened to traffic in 1957.
*The Kellogg Company has made Battle Creek the Cereal Capital of the World. The Kellogg brothers accidentally discovered the process for producing flaked cereal products and sparked the beginning of the dry cereal industry.
*Michigan is the only place in the world with a floating post office. The J.W. Westcott II is the only boat in the world that delivers mail to ships while they are still underway. They have been operating for 125 years.
*Indian River is the home of the largest crucifix in the world. It is called the Cross in the Woods. http://pics4.city-data.com/cpicc/cfiles20365.jpg
*Michigan has more shoreline than any other state except Alaska.
*Michigan has more than 11,000 inland lakes and more than 36,000 miles of streams.
*Michigan has 116 lighthouses and navigational lights.
*Standing anywhere in the state a person is within 85 miles of one of the Great Lakes.
*Michigan was the first state to provide in its Constitution for the establishment of public libraries.
*Michigan was the first state to guarantee every child the right to tax-paid high school education.
*Four flags have flown over Michigan - French, English, Spanish and United States.
*Some of the longest bulk freight carriers in the world operate on the Great Lakes. Ore carriers 1,000 feet long sail Michigan's inland seas.
*The Upper Michigan Copper Country is the largest commercial deposit of native copper in the world.
*The 19 chandeliers in the Capitol in Lansing are one of a kind and designed especially for the building by Tiffany's of New York. Weighing between 800-900 pounds apiece they are composed of copper, iron and pewter.
*The nation's first regularly scheduled air passage service began operation between Grand Rapids and Detroit in 1926.
*In 1879 Detroit telephone customers were first in the nation to be assigned phone numbers to facilitate handling calls.
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Here is some excellent ideas for couponing from Sharon:
Want to start couponing?
A Thrifty Mom and the Krazy Coupon Lady offer advice for those just getting started:
~Start small. Start saving and organizing coupons.. Check out http://athriftymom.com/ or http://krazycouponlady.blogspot.com/ for daily updates on special deals, where to find the best coupons and more. Then decide if it's worth your time and money.
~Don't think you're going to get everything for free or half-off the first time you use coupons.
~Stockpile your staples. If a store is having a great deal on nonperishable items such as pasta or cereal, and you have coupons for the same items, buy as many as you can. That way, you won't have to buy cereal again until it goes back on sale.
~Check expiration dates. Don't buy more than your family will realistically use before it goes bad.
~Know your coupon etiquette. Share, play nice and don't wipe out the whole store. Just buy what you think your family will need. Then go back later in the week, and if there's more, buy more.
~"Stack" your coupons. Yes, you can use in-store coupons and manufacturer's coupons for the same item.
~You also can use coupons for additional savings on buy-one-get-one-free promotions.
~No, you're not ripping off the store. Retailers get paid for the items by the manufacturers who issue the coupons.
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Stamp news
You've probably heard that postage is going up soon. The date is May 11. I just wanted to remind you about the rate increase and to suggest that now is a good time to start stocking up on Forever stamps.
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Here's another installment of unusual town names
Arkansas
Bald Knob
Beaver
Biggers
Blue Eye
Experiment
Fannie
Fifty-Six
Flippin
Gassville
Greasy Corner
Grubbs
Hasty
Hooker
Magazine
Moscow
Nuckles
Okay
Pocahontas
Possum
Grape
Romance
Smackover
Strawberry
Toad Suck
Turkey
Scratch
Umpire
Weiner
Yellville
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Frank Winfield Woolworth was born in 1852 on his grandfather's farm, 40 miles from the Canadian border in New York State.
When he turned 19, Woolworth was so anxious to jumpstart his sales career that he offered to work for free at Augsbury-Moore, a dry goods firm.
After two and a half years, Woolworth had increased his salary from zero to $6 a week. He left the company for a dry goods firm that offered an incredible $10 a week, but his employers were not impressed with his performance and cut his salary to $8 a week.
In 1877, his old employer at Augsbury-Moore, who had been impressed with Woolworth's work, offered to match the $10 a week, and he returned. After two more years with the company, Woolworth convinced his boss to lend him the money to open his own "Great 5-Cent Store" in Utica. It flopped.
Woolworth tried again, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. This time, it was a success. He later added 10-cent items, creating the first "Five and Dime." Many imitators were to follow.
A generation grew up buying sodas from lunch counters in "dime stores," a term that is rapidly disappearing as 10-cent items become more and more scarce.
In its heyday, Woolworth had more than 2,100 variety stores throughout the world, but as the 20th century drew to a close, large discount stores such as Wal-Mart replaced the Five and Dime. Woolworth announced it would close its American dime stores.
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Did you know...
There are 18 different animal shapes in the Animal Crackers cookie zoo.
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Everyone knows that hoodwink means to deceive or to fool someone, but the meaning is not apparent from the word’s roots. The hood makes sense enough, but what about wink?
Hoodwink is a bit redundant. Both roots mean to blind. The hood is a reference to a covering of the head, and while wink today usually means to close one eye, it originally meant to close both. The verb, in a literal sense of to cover the eyes, to blindfold, dates to 1562. From An Apology of Private Mass from that year: Will you enforce women to hoodwink themselves in the church?
The sense of to fool or deceive dates to 1610 and John Healey’s translation of Augustine’s City of God: Let not the faithlesse therefore hood-winck them-selves in the knowledge of nature.
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Is blue your favorite color? Here's what the color means around the world:
~In ancient Rome, public servants wore blue. Today, police and other public servants wear blue.
~In Iran, blue is the color of mourning.
~Blue was used as protection against witches, who supposedly dislike the color.
~If you are “true blue,” you are loyal and faithful.
~Blue stands for love, which is why a bride carries or wears something blue on her wedding day.
~A room painted blue is said to be relaxing.
~“Feeling blue” is feeling sad. “Blue devils” are feelings of depression.
~Something “out of the blue” is from an unknown source at an unexpected time.
~A bluebook is a list of socially prominent people.
~The first prize gets a blue ribbon.
~A blue blood is a person of noble descent. This is probably from the blue veins of the fair-complexioned aristocrats who first used this term.
~“Into the blue” means into the unknown.
~A “bluenose” is a strict, puritanical person.
~A “bluestocking” used to be a scholarly or highly knowledgeable woman.
~The pharaohs of ancient Egypt wore blue for protection against evil.
~The “blues” is a style of music derived from southern African-American secular songs. It influenced the development of rock, R&B, and country music.
~“Blue laws” are used to enforce moral standards.
~A blue ribbon panel is a group of especially qualified people.
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From Cheryl:
"When I was a girl of fourteen, my Mother was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the woman around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much she had learned in seven years."
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New product:
Want to try a yummy new peanut butter? Try Smart Balance Natural Peanut Butter. It has no hydrogenated oil, no trans fatty acids and no refined sugar. It is gluten free, lactose free and vegan. It also contains 1000 mg of Omega-3s per serving. And best of all it doesn't need to be refrigerated so it spreads great.
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146 reasons why sugar is ruining your health http://rheumatic.org/sugar.htm
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Ballpoint-Ink Stain
THEN: Hairspray
NOW: Rubbing alcohol
Ink formulations, fabrics, and hairspray ingredients have changed today. To get rid of the ballpoint ink from clothing you launder, place the garment on a towel stain-side down. Lightly dampen a cloth with rubbing alcohol and gently dab (do not rub) the stain.
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Celebrity real names
Nicolas Cage.....Nicolas Coppola
Michael Caine.....Maurice Micklewhite
Dyan Cannon.....Samile Diane Friesen
Kate Capshaw.....Kathleen Sue Nail
Diahann Carroll.....Carol Diahann Johnson
Ray Charles.....Ray Charles Robinson
Charo.....Maria Rosaria Pilar Martinex Moline Baeza
Chevy Chase.....Cornelius Crane Chase
Chubby Checker.....Ernest Evans
Cher.....Cherilyn Sarkisian LePierre
Eric Clapton.....Eric Clap
Patsey Cline.....Virginia Patterson Hensley
Perry Como.....Pierino Como
Bert Convy.....Bernard Whalen Patrick Convy
Alice Cooper.....Vincent Damon Furnier
Howard Cosell.....Howard William Cohen
Joan Crawford.....Lucille Le Sueur
Bing Crosby.....Harry Lillis Crosby
Tom Cruise.....Thomas Cruise Mapother IV
Tony Curtis.....Bernard Schwartz
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"The March wind roars
Like a lion in the sky,
And makes us shiver
As he passes by.
When winds are soft,
And the days are warm and clear,
Just like a gentle lamb,
Then spring is here."
- Author Unknown
Monday, March 9, 2009
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
03.03.2009
March definately came in like a lion here in Maryland! We got our biggest snowstorm of the season on Sunday night...over 6 inches! I think I'll just stay inside and enjoy a nice hot cup of sugar free hot chocolate! (Although maybe I should go outside and shovel some snow. It burns a lot of calories!)
Hope things are warm and cozy where you are!
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FYIEarth Hour is on Saturday, March 2009 at 8:30 PM. To find out more, go tohttp://www.earthhour.org/
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Tips for reducing your energy usage
Most of us know at least a couple of tips for saving energy around the house in wintertime, such as turning down the thermostat or switching from incandescent bulbs. Here are a few other tips you may not have though of:
1. Close your curtains and shades at night to minimize heat loss and to cut down on the cold coming in through the windows. During the day, open your curtains to let the sunshine in to warm your home naturally.
2. Look for drafts in unfinished basements and crawl spaces. Since spider webs tend to accumulate in drafty spots, you can use them as indicators of areas that might need more insulation.
3. Wash your laundry in cold water. Did you know that heating water accounts for nearly 90% of the energy use for washing machines? Most washing machines and detergents nowadays are very effective in cold water. Also, make sure you only use your clothes washer (and dish washer too!) when you have a full load.
4. Plant trees in front of south facing windows. This will allow solar heat to penetrate the windows in winter when the tree has lost its leaves...but also provide shade in the summer, which will reduce air conditioning costs.
5. Unplug your cell phone charger and electronics when you're not using them. Even when they are turned off, if you leave them plugged in they will still draw "vampire" power.6. Reset your water heater to 120 degrees.
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COOL PICK
I'm a big fan of nostalgia. I love reminiscing about my 'glory days'. If your glory days were in the 70's then here is a site you might enjoy.
http://www.stuckinthe70s.com/index.html
From music to movies to fashion, this site has just about everything you remember from a simpler time. Browse through old Tiger Beat and 16 magazines to look back at your teen idols, like the Bay City Rollers or David Cassidy. Check out the fads and fashions of the decade. They even have recipes! So if you have fond memories of the 70's, take a trip back in time with Stuck In the 70's!
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Hey dog lovers! Check out these pictures of seven VERY LARGE dogs!
http://www.gomestic.com/Pets/Seven-of-the-Worlds-Largest-Dogs.559347
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Healthy Living
Sometimes when you start on a weight loss or exercise regime, you are very motivated. You're eating right, working out, and feeling good. But then...something happens to your motivation. It just disappears on you, and you find yourself struggling to stick to your healthy eating and exercise plan. This is what I'm going through now. After losing 25 lbs since November, I'm finding that my motivation is slipping. Instead of focusing on how much weight I've lost, I'm too busy thinking ahead to all the weight I still need to lose, and how much work I still have ahead of me. I need to remind myself of WHY I want to lose this weight, and get my motivation back. If you've ever been in the same boat, here are some tips to help you re-gain your motivation, or "mojo" as I call it.
1. Stick to only one goal. Its too hard to stay motivated when you've got too much going on. Pick one goal and follow it through. If you have other goals, you can always get back to them later.
2. Look for inspiration. For me, this means looking towards people who have accomplished what I want to accomplish. I read blogs on SparkPeople...the success stories there inspire me to keep going.
3. Realize that its normal for motivation to come and go. Don't just throw in the towel and give up. Keep doing the best you can NOW, and eventually you will re-gain your motivation.
4. Ask for help. If you are blessed with family members who are encouraging and supportive, let them know that you need help to get you motivated again. Or join an online diet support community to find others like yourself, and you can motivate each other.
5. Think about the benefits, not the hard work. Instead of thinking about how hard it is to exercise, think of how good you'll feel afterwards, and how it will make you healthier (& slimmer) in the long run.
If your motivation is missing, I hope these tips help you to find it again!
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Here's a fun site for kids...they can create their own comic strip!
http://www.makebeliefscomix.com/
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Ooey Gooey Chocolate Cherry Muffins
This is a healthy, low calorie recipe from Hungry Girl! The recipe makes 12 muffins, with only 131 calories each! (And only 0.5 g fat!)
INGREDIENTS:
1 Box No Pudge Original Fat Free Brownie Mix
1 cup Fiber One cereal (original, the kind that looks like little twigs) crushed
2/3 cup light cherry pie filling
1/4 cup light vanilla soy milk
Preheat oven to 400.
In a bowl, mix all ingredients together. Place batter evenly into a 12 cup muffin pan sprayed with non stick spray (or lined with baking cups, which is what I do.) Bake for 20 minutes. Enjoy!
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I don't go out to eat very often, but when I do, I first check out
http://www.healthydiningfinder.com/
Whether its a fast food or a sit down restaurant, healthydiningfinder helps me plan my meal in advance so I know how many calories I'm getting.
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To check out your 'carbon footprint', go to this site and fill in the blanks on a few easy questions.
http://www.climatecrisis.net/takeaction/carboncalculator/
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We didn't get as much snow as Phyllis did (only about an inch) but still I'm considering March coming in like a lion because of the extreme cold and high winds. All I can say is this has been an unusually long winter and I was happy to flip the calendar page from February to March. I got some wonderfully red and sweet strawberries at the store today so things are at least tasting like spring...hopefully soon it will start to feel like spring. ~Toni
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This coming Sunday is the beginning of Daylight Saving Time. Yay! It is one of my favorite days of the entire year!! Here you can read everything you could possibly ever want to know about Daylight Saving Time--it's history and why we use it plus lots more.
http://www.energy.ca.gov/daylightsaving.html
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John Jacob Bausch
John Jacob Bausch was born in 1830 in Switzerland, one of seven children. When Bausch was only six years old, his mother died.
Bausch's first job was assisting in his older brother's spectacle-making business.
In 1848, the younger Bausch got word of an opening at an optical shop in Berne, so he left on foot for the city. When he arrived, he got the job at a starting salary of 36 cents a day. After only a year however, Bausch decided to try his luck in America.
He traveled to Buffalo, New York, where he worked as a cook's assistant, then moved to Rochester, where he found work as a wood-turner. There he suffered an accident. His hand got caught in the machinery, and he was forced to leave the trade.
Once he had recovered from the accident he tried selling his brother's optical supplies. The business seemed promising, and he convinced a friend to join him in business making eyeglasses. That friend's name was Henry Lomb.
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~Cheryl's Tips~
Cleaning Washing Machine Interior If you notice a residue buildup, left from detergents or hard-water minerals, you can remove them by filling the washer with hot water and pouring in a gallon of cheap white or apple cider vinegar. Run it through one complete cycle and it should be gone. Do this only periodically, so you don't damage the interior surface.
Pasta Boiling Over or Sticking to Pot? End these messy problems simply by greasing or spraying the sides with cooking spray before you put the water in to boil. And of course always monitor the pasta as it's cooking!
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Massachusetts
~Boston built the first subway system in the United States in 1897.
~In Holyoke, William G. Morgan, created a new game called "Mintonette" in 1895. After a demonstration given at the YMCA in nearby Springfield, the name "Mintonette" was replaced with the now familiar name "Volleyball."
~There is a house in Rockport built entirely of newspaper.
~The Fig Newton was named after Newton, Massachusetts.
~The visible portion of Plymouth Rock is a lumpy fragment of glacial moraine about the size of a coffee table, with the date 1620 cut into its surface. After being broken, dragged about the town of Plymouth by ox teams used to inspire Revolution-aries, and reverently gouged and scraped by 19th-century souvenir hunters, it is now at rest near the head of Plymouth Harbor.
~The first U.S.Postal zip code in Massachusetts is 01001 at Agawam.
~Harvard was the first college established in North America. Harvard was founded in 1636. Because of Harvard's size there is no universal mailing address that will work for every office at the University.
~The Boston University Bridge on Commonwealth Avenue in Boston is the only place in the world where a boat can sail under a train driving under a car driving under an airplane.
~The Children's Museum in Boston displays a giant milk bottle on the museum's wharf. If it were real it would hold 50,000 gallons of milk and 8,620 gallons of cream.
~Princeton was named after the Reverend Thomas Prince, Pastor of the Old South Church in Boston, and one of the first proprietors of the town. Princeton was incorporated in 1759.
~In 1908, Miss Caroline O. Emmerton purchased The House of the Seven Gables - built in 1668 - restored it to its present state and, in 1910, opened the site to the touring public. The seven-gabled house inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne to write his famous novel of the same name.
~The Boston Tea Party reenactment takes place in Boston Harbor every December 16th.
~Balance Rock in Lanesborough is named in honor of a 25' x 15' x 10 boulder that balances upon a small stone below it. http://tinyurl.com/acjg72
~The first Thanksgiving Day was celebrated in Plymouth in 1621.
~The first nuclear-powered surface vessel, USS Long Beach CG (N) 9, was launched at Quincy in 1961.
~The USS Constitution 'Old Ironsides', the oldest fully commissioned vessel in the US Navy is permanently berthed at Charlestown Navy Yard. Since 1897 the ship has been overhauled several times in Dry Dock 1.
~The official state dessert of Massachusetts is Boston cream pie.
~Milford is known the world over for its unique pink granite, discovered in the 1870's and quarried for many years to grace the exteriors of museums, government buildings, monuments and railroad stations.
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Phyllis and I don't get together with our newsletter ideas beforehand. She does her half and I do mine and then I put them together. So I guess it's a case of "great minds thinking alike" when we each have a site to share that deals with dogs.
Welcome to Funny Dog Site. We update funny dog pictures on a daily basis. Cute Puppies, Funny Dogs. Hilarious pictures every day!
http://www.funnydogsite.com/
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I am always searching for foods that are free of hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils. My latest discovery is Vinta crackers. Yummy!
http://www.darefoods.com/usa-en/products/crackers/vinta/index.shtml
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From Cheryl:
Interestingly, koi, when put in a fish bowl, will only grow up to three inches. When this same fish is placed in a large tank, it will grow to about nine inches long. In a pond, koi can reach lengths of eighteen inches. Amazingly, when placed in a lake, koi can grow to three feet long. The metaphor is obvious. You are limited by how you see the world.
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Online Multimedia Educational Games for Kids in Preschool, Kindergarten, and Elementary Grades http://www.iknowthat.com/com
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Is green your favorite color? Here's what the color means around the world:
~Only one national flag is a solid color: the green flag of Libya.
~Ancient Egyptians colored the floors of their temples green.
~In ancient Greece, green symbolized victory.
~In the highlands of Scotland, people wore green as a mark of honor.
~Green is the national color of Ireland.
~A “greenback” is slang for a U.S. dollar bill.
~Green means “go.” When “all systems are green,” it means everything is in order.
~The green room of a concert hall or theater is where performers relax before going onstage.
~The “green-eyed monster” is jealousy.
~A greenhorn is a newcomer or unsophisticated person.
~Green is youthful.
~Being “green around the gills” is looking pale and sickly.
~“Green with envy” means full of envy or jealousy.
~A person with a “green thumb” is good at making plants grow.
~A green, or common, is a town park.
~Green is a healing color, the color of nature.
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Savings ideas on everything from banking fees to groceries. This is a very comprehensive list and not all will be applicable to you, but you're sure to find and idea or two. http://kiplinger.com/features/archives/2009/02/print-all-ideas-save-fifty-dollars-day.html
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Miscellaneous trivia
There are 119 grooves on the edge of a quarter.
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Hand Crafted Fun Multi Colored Crayons! Each Crayon is a Work of Art - No Two Are Alike!Made From the National Crayon Recycle Program. http://www.crazycrayons.com/
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FORT PIERCE, Fla. (AP) - Authorities arrested a man who claimed he was justified in stealing candy at a truck stop because he had served in the military. Police said an officer confronted a 31-year-old man at the truck stop early Monday morning. The officer reported finding several packages of candy and nuts, two black T-shirts and a 20 oz. bottle of beer in his pockets.
He said he had paid for all the items, but a clerk denied ringing up any purchases for him.
A report stated that while in the patrol vehicle, the man screamed out the window that he had served in the military over in Iraq and could steal all the M&M'S he wanted.
His veteran status could not be immediately verified.
The man was charged with retail theft and was being held on $5,000 bail.
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Make your next broom your last... Some ideas to make your brooms last longer and do a better job.
1. Always use a holder to keep the broom stored off the floor or store with the broom side up. (Resting on the floor the fibers will flatten and reduce the effectiveness of the broom).
2. Comb out the fibers regularly to remove debris.
3. Brooms can be cleaned with mild detergent and water; this is a good job for your spouse if they forget your birthday.
4. Always sweep gently in order to let the bristles do the work.
5. Push broom blocks have two handle holes (one on each side). Change the sides often so that fibers wear evenly.
6. The correct length for a broom handle is from the floor to the bridge of your nose. Remember to sweep in an upright position to prevent back fatigue. (Note from Toni: I am short and my broom handle only comes to my chin, so I can't figure this one out...)
_________________________
Did you know?
CFL bulbs work best in rooms where they'll be left on for at least 15 minutes. Frequent on-and-off (say, in a closet or pantry) can shorten bulb life, so the replacement cost can outweigh energy savings.
_________________________
Celebrity real names
Lauren Bacall..........Betty Jaon Perske
Pat Benatar..........Patricia Andrejewski
Tony Bennett..........Anthony Dominick Benedetto
Jack Benny..........Benjamin Kubelsky
Milton Berle..........Mendel Berlinger
Robert Blake..........Michael James Vijencio Gubitosi
Jon Bon Jovi..........John Francis Bongiovi
Bono..........Paul Hewson
Sonny Bono..........Salvatore Bono
Pat Boone..........Charles Eugene Boone
David Bowie..........David Jones
Charles Bronson..........Charles Buchinsky
George Burns..........Nathan Birnbaum
Richard Burton..........Richard Jenkins
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R.I.P. Paul Harvey http://www.abcrn.com/harvey/
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"It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold; when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade." ~ Charles Dickens
Hope things are warm and cozy where you are!
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FYIEarth Hour is on Saturday, March 2009 at 8:30 PM. To find out more, go tohttp://www.earthhour.org/
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Tips for reducing your energy usage
Most of us know at least a couple of tips for saving energy around the house in wintertime, such as turning down the thermostat or switching from incandescent bulbs. Here are a few other tips you may not have though of:
1. Close your curtains and shades at night to minimize heat loss and to cut down on the cold coming in through the windows. During the day, open your curtains to let the sunshine in to warm your home naturally.
2. Look for drafts in unfinished basements and crawl spaces. Since spider webs tend to accumulate in drafty spots, you can use them as indicators of areas that might need more insulation.
3. Wash your laundry in cold water. Did you know that heating water accounts for nearly 90% of the energy use for washing machines? Most washing machines and detergents nowadays are very effective in cold water. Also, make sure you only use your clothes washer (and dish washer too!) when you have a full load.
4. Plant trees in front of south facing windows. This will allow solar heat to penetrate the windows in winter when the tree has lost its leaves...but also provide shade in the summer, which will reduce air conditioning costs.
5. Unplug your cell phone charger and electronics when you're not using them. Even when they are turned off, if you leave them plugged in they will still draw "vampire" power.6. Reset your water heater to 120 degrees.
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COOL PICK
I'm a big fan of nostalgia. I love reminiscing about my 'glory days'. If your glory days were in the 70's then here is a site you might enjoy.
http://www.stuckinthe70s.com/index.html
From music to movies to fashion, this site has just about everything you remember from a simpler time. Browse through old Tiger Beat and 16 magazines to look back at your teen idols, like the Bay City Rollers or David Cassidy. Check out the fads and fashions of the decade. They even have recipes! So if you have fond memories of the 70's, take a trip back in time with Stuck In the 70's!
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Hey dog lovers! Check out these pictures of seven VERY LARGE dogs!
http://www.gomestic.com/Pets/Seven-of-the-Worlds-Largest-Dogs.559347
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Healthy Living
Sometimes when you start on a weight loss or exercise regime, you are very motivated. You're eating right, working out, and feeling good. But then...something happens to your motivation. It just disappears on you, and you find yourself struggling to stick to your healthy eating and exercise plan. This is what I'm going through now. After losing 25 lbs since November, I'm finding that my motivation is slipping. Instead of focusing on how much weight I've lost, I'm too busy thinking ahead to all the weight I still need to lose, and how much work I still have ahead of me. I need to remind myself of WHY I want to lose this weight, and get my motivation back. If you've ever been in the same boat, here are some tips to help you re-gain your motivation, or "mojo" as I call it.
1. Stick to only one goal. Its too hard to stay motivated when you've got too much going on. Pick one goal and follow it through. If you have other goals, you can always get back to them later.
2. Look for inspiration. For me, this means looking towards people who have accomplished what I want to accomplish. I read blogs on SparkPeople...the success stories there inspire me to keep going.
3. Realize that its normal for motivation to come and go. Don't just throw in the towel and give up. Keep doing the best you can NOW, and eventually you will re-gain your motivation.
4. Ask for help. If you are blessed with family members who are encouraging and supportive, let them know that you need help to get you motivated again. Or join an online diet support community to find others like yourself, and you can motivate each other.
5. Think about the benefits, not the hard work. Instead of thinking about how hard it is to exercise, think of how good you'll feel afterwards, and how it will make you healthier (& slimmer) in the long run.
If your motivation is missing, I hope these tips help you to find it again!
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Here's a fun site for kids...they can create their own comic strip!
http://www.makebeliefscomix.com/
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Ooey Gooey Chocolate Cherry Muffins
This is a healthy, low calorie recipe from Hungry Girl! The recipe makes 12 muffins, with only 131 calories each! (And only 0.5 g fat!)
INGREDIENTS:
1 Box No Pudge Original Fat Free Brownie Mix
1 cup Fiber One cereal (original, the kind that looks like little twigs) crushed
2/3 cup light cherry pie filling
1/4 cup light vanilla soy milk
Preheat oven to 400.
In a bowl, mix all ingredients together. Place batter evenly into a 12 cup muffin pan sprayed with non stick spray (or lined with baking cups, which is what I do.) Bake for 20 minutes. Enjoy!
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I don't go out to eat very often, but when I do, I first check out
http://www.healthydiningfinder.com/
Whether its a fast food or a sit down restaurant, healthydiningfinder helps me plan my meal in advance so I know how many calories I'm getting.
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To check out your 'carbon footprint', go to this site and fill in the blanks on a few easy questions.
http://www.climatecrisis.net/takeaction/carboncalculator/
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We didn't get as much snow as Phyllis did (only about an inch) but still I'm considering March coming in like a lion because of the extreme cold and high winds. All I can say is this has been an unusually long winter and I was happy to flip the calendar page from February to March. I got some wonderfully red and sweet strawberries at the store today so things are at least tasting like spring...hopefully soon it will start to feel like spring. ~Toni
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This coming Sunday is the beginning of Daylight Saving Time. Yay! It is one of my favorite days of the entire year!! Here you can read everything you could possibly ever want to know about Daylight Saving Time--it's history and why we use it plus lots more.
http://www.energy.ca.gov/daylightsaving.html
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John Jacob Bausch
John Jacob Bausch was born in 1830 in Switzerland, one of seven children. When Bausch was only six years old, his mother died.
Bausch's first job was assisting in his older brother's spectacle-making business.
In 1848, the younger Bausch got word of an opening at an optical shop in Berne, so he left on foot for the city. When he arrived, he got the job at a starting salary of 36 cents a day. After only a year however, Bausch decided to try his luck in America.
He traveled to Buffalo, New York, where he worked as a cook's assistant, then moved to Rochester, where he found work as a wood-turner. There he suffered an accident. His hand got caught in the machinery, and he was forced to leave the trade.
Once he had recovered from the accident he tried selling his brother's optical supplies. The business seemed promising, and he convinced a friend to join him in business making eyeglasses. That friend's name was Henry Lomb.
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~Cheryl's Tips~
Cleaning Washing Machine Interior If you notice a residue buildup, left from detergents or hard-water minerals, you can remove them by filling the washer with hot water and pouring in a gallon of cheap white or apple cider vinegar. Run it through one complete cycle and it should be gone. Do this only periodically, so you don't damage the interior surface.
Pasta Boiling Over or Sticking to Pot? End these messy problems simply by greasing or spraying the sides with cooking spray before you put the water in to boil. And of course always monitor the pasta as it's cooking!
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Massachusetts
~Boston built the first subway system in the United States in 1897.
~In Holyoke, William G. Morgan, created a new game called "Mintonette" in 1895. After a demonstration given at the YMCA in nearby Springfield, the name "Mintonette" was replaced with the now familiar name "Volleyball."
~There is a house in Rockport built entirely of newspaper.
~The Fig Newton was named after Newton, Massachusetts.
~The visible portion of Plymouth Rock is a lumpy fragment of glacial moraine about the size of a coffee table, with the date 1620 cut into its surface. After being broken, dragged about the town of Plymouth by ox teams used to inspire Revolution-aries, and reverently gouged and scraped by 19th-century souvenir hunters, it is now at rest near the head of Plymouth Harbor.
~The first U.S.Postal zip code in Massachusetts is 01001 at Agawam.
~Harvard was the first college established in North America. Harvard was founded in 1636. Because of Harvard's size there is no universal mailing address that will work for every office at the University.
~The Boston University Bridge on Commonwealth Avenue in Boston is the only place in the world where a boat can sail under a train driving under a car driving under an airplane.
~The Children's Museum in Boston displays a giant milk bottle on the museum's wharf. If it were real it would hold 50,000 gallons of milk and 8,620 gallons of cream.
~Princeton was named after the Reverend Thomas Prince, Pastor of the Old South Church in Boston, and one of the first proprietors of the town. Princeton was incorporated in 1759.
~In 1908, Miss Caroline O. Emmerton purchased The House of the Seven Gables - built in 1668 - restored it to its present state and, in 1910, opened the site to the touring public. The seven-gabled house inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne to write his famous novel of the same name.
~The Boston Tea Party reenactment takes place in Boston Harbor every December 16th.
~Balance Rock in Lanesborough is named in honor of a 25' x 15' x 10 boulder that balances upon a small stone below it. http://tinyurl.com/acjg72
~The first Thanksgiving Day was celebrated in Plymouth in 1621.
~The first nuclear-powered surface vessel, USS Long Beach CG (N) 9, was launched at Quincy in 1961.
~The USS Constitution 'Old Ironsides', the oldest fully commissioned vessel in the US Navy is permanently berthed at Charlestown Navy Yard. Since 1897 the ship has been overhauled several times in Dry Dock 1.
~The official state dessert of Massachusetts is Boston cream pie.
~Milford is known the world over for its unique pink granite, discovered in the 1870's and quarried for many years to grace the exteriors of museums, government buildings, monuments and railroad stations.
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Phyllis and I don't get together with our newsletter ideas beforehand. She does her half and I do mine and then I put them together. So I guess it's a case of "great minds thinking alike" when we each have a site to share that deals with dogs.
Welcome to Funny Dog Site. We update funny dog pictures on a daily basis. Cute Puppies, Funny Dogs. Hilarious pictures every day!
http://www.funnydogsite.com/
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I am always searching for foods that are free of hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils. My latest discovery is Vinta crackers. Yummy!
http://www.darefoods.com/usa-en/products/crackers/vinta/index.shtml
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From Cheryl:
Interestingly, koi, when put in a fish bowl, will only grow up to three inches. When this same fish is placed in a large tank, it will grow to about nine inches long. In a pond, koi can reach lengths of eighteen inches. Amazingly, when placed in a lake, koi can grow to three feet long. The metaphor is obvious. You are limited by how you see the world.
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Online Multimedia Educational Games for Kids in Preschool, Kindergarten, and Elementary Grades http://www.iknowthat.com/com
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Is green your favorite color? Here's what the color means around the world:
~Only one national flag is a solid color: the green flag of Libya.
~Ancient Egyptians colored the floors of their temples green.
~In ancient Greece, green symbolized victory.
~In the highlands of Scotland, people wore green as a mark of honor.
~Green is the national color of Ireland.
~A “greenback” is slang for a U.S. dollar bill.
~Green means “go.” When “all systems are green,” it means everything is in order.
~The green room of a concert hall or theater is where performers relax before going onstage.
~The “green-eyed monster” is jealousy.
~A greenhorn is a newcomer or unsophisticated person.
~Green is youthful.
~Being “green around the gills” is looking pale and sickly.
~“Green with envy” means full of envy or jealousy.
~A person with a “green thumb” is good at making plants grow.
~A green, or common, is a town park.
~Green is a healing color, the color of nature.
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Savings ideas on everything from banking fees to groceries. This is a very comprehensive list and not all will be applicable to you, but you're sure to find and idea or two. http://kiplinger.com/features/archives/2009/02/print-all-ideas-save-fifty-dollars-day.html
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Miscellaneous trivia
There are 119 grooves on the edge of a quarter.
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Hand Crafted Fun Multi Colored Crayons! Each Crayon is a Work of Art - No Two Are Alike!Made From the National Crayon Recycle Program. http://www.crazycrayons.com/
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FORT PIERCE, Fla. (AP) - Authorities arrested a man who claimed he was justified in stealing candy at a truck stop because he had served in the military. Police said an officer confronted a 31-year-old man at the truck stop early Monday morning. The officer reported finding several packages of candy and nuts, two black T-shirts and a 20 oz. bottle of beer in his pockets.
He said he had paid for all the items, but a clerk denied ringing up any purchases for him.
A report stated that while in the patrol vehicle, the man screamed out the window that he had served in the military over in Iraq and could steal all the M&M'S he wanted.
His veteran status could not be immediately verified.
The man was charged with retail theft and was being held on $5,000 bail.
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Make your next broom your last... Some ideas to make your brooms last longer and do a better job.
1. Always use a holder to keep the broom stored off the floor or store with the broom side up. (Resting on the floor the fibers will flatten and reduce the effectiveness of the broom).
2. Comb out the fibers regularly to remove debris.
3. Brooms can be cleaned with mild detergent and water; this is a good job for your spouse if they forget your birthday.
4. Always sweep gently in order to let the bristles do the work.
5. Push broom blocks have two handle holes (one on each side). Change the sides often so that fibers wear evenly.
6. The correct length for a broom handle is from the floor to the bridge of your nose. Remember to sweep in an upright position to prevent back fatigue. (Note from Toni: I am short and my broom handle only comes to my chin, so I can't figure this one out...)
_________________________
Did you know?
CFL bulbs work best in rooms where they'll be left on for at least 15 minutes. Frequent on-and-off (say, in a closet or pantry) can shorten bulb life, so the replacement cost can outweigh energy savings.
_________________________
Celebrity real names
Lauren Bacall..........Betty Jaon Perske
Pat Benatar..........Patricia Andrejewski
Tony Bennett..........Anthony Dominick Benedetto
Jack Benny..........Benjamin Kubelsky
Milton Berle..........Mendel Berlinger
Robert Blake..........Michael James Vijencio Gubitosi
Jon Bon Jovi..........John Francis Bongiovi
Bono..........Paul Hewson
Sonny Bono..........Salvatore Bono
Pat Boone..........Charles Eugene Boone
David Bowie..........David Jones
Charles Bronson..........Charles Buchinsky
George Burns..........Nathan Birnbaum
Richard Burton..........Richard Jenkins
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R.I.P. Paul Harvey http://www.abcrn.com/harvey/
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"It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold; when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade." ~ Charles Dickens
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
02.24.2009
Healthy Living
Here's a tip...season your food to help you lose weight! Researchers from the Endocrine Society assembled a group of overweight volunteers. They asked the volunteers to sprinkle an assortment of flavoring crystals ranging from savory to sweet onto neutral tasting food before eating it. Half of the participants were given crystals that were unflavored.
After a period of 6 months, the results were in...after checking each volunteers weight and BMI, it was reavealed that the ones who used the flavored crystals lost an average of almost 31 pounds! The group with the unflavored cyrstals averaged a drop of only 2 pounds.
What does this mean? Researchers have theorized that having flavorful food enhances our senses of smell and taste, helps us to eat a little less, to savor our meals (and eat them more slowly) and ultimately helps control our weight.
So season up! Just remember to go easy on the sodium!
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Did you know?...
If you wear a pedometer and walk 10,000 steps a day, you've walked approximately 5 miles!
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Just because your shower curtain gets "showered" every day doesn't mean its clean and germ free. It can get slimy, and slime is a perfect place to breed bacteria, like methylobacteria, which can contribute to respiratory problems. So wash your vinyl shower curtain regularly in your washing machine with a bleach alternative detergent.
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Dental care for Fido and Fluffy
Yes, your pet needs dental care, not only from your vet but at home too. Here are three steps recommended by the American Veterinary Dental Society.
1. Take your pet to the vet for a dental exam. Do it now if you suspect a problem, otherwise you can wait for your pets annual checkup.
2. Start a dental care regimen at home. One of the most convenient and effective ways to fight oral disease is to feed your pet specially formulated foods proven effective in combating plaque buildup. The "Seal of Acceptance" from the Veterinary Oral Health Council will appear on products that meet defined standards for plaque control in dogs and cats. (You can get more info on the VOHC at their website.... www.vohc.org )
3. Schedule regular veterinary checkups. This is important in helping your vet monitor the progress of your pets dental health routine.
For more information, visit www.petdental.com
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COOL PICK
Grocery prices are going up all the time, and you definately want to get your money's worth. Convenience foods are, well....convenient! But they don't come cheap. And its frustrating to try a new convenience food only to find its just not that good.. So before you shell out your money on a frozen meal or other convenience food that you've never tried before, why not go to
http://heateatreview.com/
There you will find reviews of pretty much any frozen meal or convenience food out there. Find out what others think of it, and see how many stars they give it, from 5 to zero. Happy dining!
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One thing that really annoys me is automated phone systems. Why can't I just talk to a real person? If you feel the same way, then check out "GetHuman", a database to help you actually talk to a live person!
http://gethuman.com/
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I haven't thoroughly checked this site out, but for those of you into genealogy, this might be one that you'll like;
http://www.geni.com/
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EASY CHICKEN AND BROCCOLI CASSEROLE
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 box frozen broccoli, broken apart
1 can reduced fat cream of mushroom soup
3 Tbsp fat free mayonaise
1 cup reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese
Preheat oven to 350.
Boil chicken breasts until done; drain. When cool enough to handle, cut into one inch pieces.
In a square casserole dish, mix mayonaise and soup. Add broccoli and chicken; mix well.
Sprinkle with cheese.
Bake uncovered until cheese is melted, about 20 minutes.
This casserole makes 4 servings, with only 275 calories per serving.
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Hi everybody! John and I spent today shoveling out from 8 inches of wet, heavy snow. I'm starting to get some real "shoveling muscles". lol I wish I had more to talk about but things have been pretty quiet around here. ~Toni
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Casimir Pulaski Day
On the first Monday in March, kids in Illinois get a day off from school in honor of a man who never set foot in the American Midwest.
Casimir Pulaski (1748?-1779) was a Polish native who became a war hero in two countries. In Poland, he was a leader in the effort to defend his nation against Russian forces in the 1760s and 1770s. When the defense ultimately failed to prevent the partition of Poland, Pulaski fled his country. He was eventually recruited by Benjamin Franklin to help fight against the British for American independence.
Pulaski's achievements during the American Revolution, as chief of cavalry and while heading an independent legion, are recognized in Illinois each year on the first Monday of March. Illinois is home to just under one tenth of the Polish-American population.
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~Tips from Cheryl~
Buying Nonstick Pans? Because they can scratch, they need extra care. When cooking, don't use metal utensils; instead a wood or plastic one will be better to save the surface. Never use abrasive cleaners, instead clean in hot soapy water and scrub with a nylon scrubber. The pans will last longer.
Pet Hair on Clothing, Furniture, Rugs? Remove it in a snap by wiping over the hairy areas with a damp sponge or tape wound around your hand (sticky side out). To get hair off furniture quickly, rub the areas with a clean sneaker with a ribbed sole.
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Americans will have more time to prepare for the the transition from analog to digital TV after Congress passed legislation delaying the Feb. 17 switch until June 12. Despite an extensive government advertising campaign, the Nielsen Company estimated last month that 6.5 million households were unprepared for the change--partly because the government ran out of $40 coupons intended to defray the cost of converter boxes. The President has pushed for more financing to continue the coupon program, including up to $650 million pending in the stimulus package.
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~Marie's Laughter~
A couple goes for a meal at a Chinese restaurant and order Chicken Surprise. The waiter brings the meal, served in a lidded, cast iron pot. Just as the wife is about to serve herself, the lid of the pot rises slightly and she briefly sees two beady little eyes looking around befoer the lid slams back down. "Good grief, did you see that?" she asks her husband. He didn't, so she asks him to look in the pot. He reaches for it and again the lid rises, and he sees two little eyes looking around before the lid slams down. Rather perturbed, he calls the waiter over, explains what is happening and demands an explanation. "Please sir", says the waiter, "what you order?" The husband replies, "Chicken Surprise".
"Ah! So sorry", says the waiter, "I bring you Peeking Duck!"
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Maryland
~The United States Naval Academy was founded on October 10, 1845 at Annapolis.
~In 1830 the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Company built the first railroad station in Baltimore.
~Fort Meade near Laurel became a base because a train engineer delivering soldiers to Meade knew only one Meade, the one in Maryland. He was not aware of Fort Meade, Florida. The confusion happened so often a second base was built in Maryland in an attempt to avoid the confusion.
~Other Major League Ball player besides "The Babe" born in Maryland include Cal Ripken, Jr., Billy Ripken, Lefty Grove, Frank (Home Run) Baker, Harold Baines, Al Kaline, Denny Neagle, and Jimmie Foxx.
~America's national anthem was written by Francis Scott Key a Maryland lawyer. It is believed Key wrote the anthem on September 14, 1814 while watching the bombardment of Fort McHenry in Baltimore Harbor.
~Since May 30th, 1949 the United States flag has flown continuously over the monument marking the site of Francis Scott Key's birthplace. The flag flies at Terra Rubra Farm, Carroll County, Keymar, Maryland as mandated by a Joint Resolution of Congress.
~The National Aquarium is located in Baltimore's Inner Harbor.
~Located in the Chesapeake Bay, Smith Island is Maryland's only inhabited off-shore island.
~The highest point in Maryland is 3,360 feet above sea level on Backbone Mountain in Garrett County. The absolute lowest point in Maryland is a depression, often called Bloody Point Hole, 174 feet below sea level. The area is located approximately 1 mile west-southwest of the southern tip of Kent Island in Queen Anne's County.
~On June 24,1784, in Baltimore, 13-year old Edward Warren went airborne in the first successful manned balloon launch in the United States.
~Samuel F.B. Morse reportedly received the first telegraph message in Bladensburg, in 1844, before his famous "What Hath God Wrought" message between Baltimore and Washington. His telegraph wire had been strung along the railroad right of way. Ezra Cornell, founder of Cornell University, lived in Bladensburg and is said to have invented the telegraph pole.
~The Concord Point Lighthouse in Havre de Grace is the oldest continuously operated lighthouse in the State of Maryland.
~Mount Airy is unique because two counties, Carroll and Frederick, divide it.
~On the morning of August 10, 1813 residents of Saint Michaels having been forewarned of a British attack hoisted lanterns to the masts of ships and in the tops of the trees. The height of light caused cannons to overshoot the town. This first known blackout was effective and only one house was struck and is now known as the "Cannonball House." The town has been known as the town that fooled the British since this historic event.
~Maryland gave up some of it's land to form Washington D.C.
~Sixteen of the 23 Maryland counties border on tidal water. The combined length of tidal shoreline, including islands, is 4,431 miles.
~Clara Barton National Historic Site commemorates the life of Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross. The house in Glen Echo served as her home and headquarters for the American Red Cross and a warehouse for disaster relief supplies.
~Annapolis was known as the Athens of America during the seventeenth century and once served as the capital of the United States.
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Do we need a new Internet?http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/15/weekinreview/15markoff.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1
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Unusual town names in Arizona
Bagdad
Boneyard
Bootlegger
Crossing
Bumble Bee
Carefree
Chloride
Floss
Goobertown
Goodyear
Many Farms
Nothing
Show Low
Strong
Surprise
Three Forks
Tuba City
Two Guns
Why
Winkleman
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For the sake of the cleanup, workers could only be thankful it wasn't a tanker truck that crashed. And sorry that they didn't bring marshmallows. An 18-wheeler carrying nearly 24 tons of cocoa powder crashed just outside of Elkview WV, spilling its contents onto the I-79 roadway and forcing a closure on the interstate's southbound lanes for 14 hours. The truck's driver escaped the crash with only minor injuries, but his payload of 47,000 pounds of cocoa was ruined, intermittently catching fire on the interstate as blowtorch-wielding rescue workers attempted to peel back the truck's roof.
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Is red your favorite color? Here's what the color means around the world:
~For the ancient Romans, a red flag was a signal for battle.
~Because of its visibility, stop signs, stoplights, brake lights, and fire equipment are all painted red.
~The ancient Egyptians considered themselves a red race and painted their bodies with red dye for emphasis.
~In Russia, red means beautiful. The Bolsheviks used a red flag as their symbol when they overthrew the tsar in 1917. That is how red became the color of communism.
~In India, red is the symbol for a soldier.
~In South Africa, red is the color of mourning.
~It's considered good luck to tie a red bow on a new car.
~In China, red is the color of good luck and is used as a holiday and wedding color. Chinese babies are given their names at a red-egg ceremony.
~Superstitious people think red frightens the devil.
~A “red-letter day” is one of special importance and good fortune.
~In Greece, eggs are dyed red for good luck at Easter time.
~To “paint the town red” is to celebrate.
~Red is the color most commonly found in national flags.
~In the English War of the Roses, red was the color of the House of Lancaster, which defeated the House of York, symbolized by the color white.
~The “Redshirts” were the soldiers of the Italian leader Garibaldi, who unified modern Italy in the nineteenth century.
~To “see red” is to be angry.
~A “red herring” is a distraction, something that takes attention away from the real issue.
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One cent book sale
This is NOT buy a book at regular price, get the second for a penny. This is a real sale, where the books are really only one cent each. Sale runs three day only, from Tuesday through Thursday, Feb. 24 - 26. Limit two one cent books per customer. Shipping is extra, but cheap. Book list only visible on sale dates.
http://www.bookcloseouts.com/default.asp?N=0&rid=dworsky
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Rain, sleet, snow: These are merely nuisances for Rockport, Mass. postal workers. Turkeys, on the other hand, are proving to be another story. The U.S. Postal Service was forced to stop delivery service to some homes on a local Rockport route when a flock of turkeys began aggressively pecking at one mail carrier. Rockport Post Office Delivery Manager Tim Russell said the flock of about 10 has been attacking postal workers and their trucks for about five months. In mid January, "people had to intervene so (the mail carrier) could get back to his truck," Russell told the Gloucester Daily Times. "He was trying to wave a bag full of mail at the turkeys as he ran when some folks pulled over to shoo the turkeys away." An official with the state Environmental Police has advised the post office to arm its postal workers with umbrellas to fend off the territorial turkeys, saying the large agressive males will interpret an opened umbrella as an even larger, even more agressive turkey.
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Miscellaneous trivia
Scarlett O' Hara, Margaret Mitchell's Gone With the Wind lead character, was originally given the name Pansy.
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Find Your Cheapest Cellular Service Plan
http://cellphones.about.com/library/bl_pt_q1.htm?q=UPT-TAKEAGAIN
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Celebrity real names
Eddie Albert..........Edward Albert Heimberger
Jason Alexander..........Jay Scott Greenspan
Woody Allen..........Allen Konigsberg
Don Ameche..........Dominic Felix Amici
Julie Andrews..........Julia Elizabeth Wells
Beatrice Arthur..........Bernice Frankel
Fred Astaire..........Frederick Austerlitz
__________________________
Here's a tip...season your food to help you lose weight! Researchers from the Endocrine Society assembled a group of overweight volunteers. They asked the volunteers to sprinkle an assortment of flavoring crystals ranging from savory to sweet onto neutral tasting food before eating it. Half of the participants were given crystals that were unflavored.
After a period of 6 months, the results were in...after checking each volunteers weight and BMI, it was reavealed that the ones who used the flavored crystals lost an average of almost 31 pounds! The group with the unflavored cyrstals averaged a drop of only 2 pounds.
What does this mean? Researchers have theorized that having flavorful food enhances our senses of smell and taste, helps us to eat a little less, to savor our meals (and eat them more slowly) and ultimately helps control our weight.
So season up! Just remember to go easy on the sodium!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Did you know?...
If you wear a pedometer and walk 10,000 steps a day, you've walked approximately 5 miles!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Just because your shower curtain gets "showered" every day doesn't mean its clean and germ free. It can get slimy, and slime is a perfect place to breed bacteria, like methylobacteria, which can contribute to respiratory problems. So wash your vinyl shower curtain regularly in your washing machine with a bleach alternative detergent.
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Dental care for Fido and Fluffy
Yes, your pet needs dental care, not only from your vet but at home too. Here are three steps recommended by the American Veterinary Dental Society.
1. Take your pet to the vet for a dental exam. Do it now if you suspect a problem, otherwise you can wait for your pets annual checkup.
2. Start a dental care regimen at home. One of the most convenient and effective ways to fight oral disease is to feed your pet specially formulated foods proven effective in combating plaque buildup. The "Seal of Acceptance" from the Veterinary Oral Health Council will appear on products that meet defined standards for plaque control in dogs and cats. (You can get more info on the VOHC at their website.... www.vohc.org )
3. Schedule regular veterinary checkups. This is important in helping your vet monitor the progress of your pets dental health routine.
For more information, visit www.petdental.com
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COOL PICK
Grocery prices are going up all the time, and you definately want to get your money's worth. Convenience foods are, well....convenient! But they don't come cheap. And its frustrating to try a new convenience food only to find its just not that good.. So before you shell out your money on a frozen meal or other convenience food that you've never tried before, why not go to
http://heateatreview.com/
There you will find reviews of pretty much any frozen meal or convenience food out there. Find out what others think of it, and see how many stars they give it, from 5 to zero. Happy dining!
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One thing that really annoys me is automated phone systems. Why can't I just talk to a real person? If you feel the same way, then check out "GetHuman", a database to help you actually talk to a live person!
http://gethuman.com/
------------------------------------------
I haven't thoroughly checked this site out, but for those of you into genealogy, this might be one that you'll like;
http://www.geni.com/
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EASY CHICKEN AND BROCCOLI CASSEROLE
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 box frozen broccoli, broken apart
1 can reduced fat cream of mushroom soup
3 Tbsp fat free mayonaise
1 cup reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese
Preheat oven to 350.
Boil chicken breasts until done; drain. When cool enough to handle, cut into one inch pieces.
In a square casserole dish, mix mayonaise and soup. Add broccoli and chicken; mix well.
Sprinkle with cheese.
Bake uncovered until cheese is melted, about 20 minutes.
This casserole makes 4 servings, with only 275 calories per serving.
******************
Hi everybody! John and I spent today shoveling out from 8 inches of wet, heavy snow. I'm starting to get some real "shoveling muscles". lol I wish I had more to talk about but things have been pretty quiet around here. ~Toni
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Casimir Pulaski Day
On the first Monday in March, kids in Illinois get a day off from school in honor of a man who never set foot in the American Midwest.
Casimir Pulaski (1748?-1779) was a Polish native who became a war hero in two countries. In Poland, he was a leader in the effort to defend his nation against Russian forces in the 1760s and 1770s. When the defense ultimately failed to prevent the partition of Poland, Pulaski fled his country. He was eventually recruited by Benjamin Franklin to help fight against the British for American independence.
Pulaski's achievements during the American Revolution, as chief of cavalry and while heading an independent legion, are recognized in Illinois each year on the first Monday of March. Illinois is home to just under one tenth of the Polish-American population.
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~Tips from Cheryl~
Buying Nonstick Pans? Because they can scratch, they need extra care. When cooking, don't use metal utensils; instead a wood or plastic one will be better to save the surface. Never use abrasive cleaners, instead clean in hot soapy water and scrub with a nylon scrubber. The pans will last longer.
Pet Hair on Clothing, Furniture, Rugs? Remove it in a snap by wiping over the hairy areas with a damp sponge or tape wound around your hand (sticky side out). To get hair off furniture quickly, rub the areas with a clean sneaker with a ribbed sole.
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Americans will have more time to prepare for the the transition from analog to digital TV after Congress passed legislation delaying the Feb. 17 switch until June 12. Despite an extensive government advertising campaign, the Nielsen Company estimated last month that 6.5 million households were unprepared for the change--partly because the government ran out of $40 coupons intended to defray the cost of converter boxes. The President has pushed for more financing to continue the coupon program, including up to $650 million pending in the stimulus package.
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~Marie's Laughter~
A couple goes for a meal at a Chinese restaurant and order Chicken Surprise. The waiter brings the meal, served in a lidded, cast iron pot. Just as the wife is about to serve herself, the lid of the pot rises slightly and she briefly sees two beady little eyes looking around befoer the lid slams back down. "Good grief, did you see that?" she asks her husband. He didn't, so she asks him to look in the pot. He reaches for it and again the lid rises, and he sees two little eyes looking around before the lid slams down. Rather perturbed, he calls the waiter over, explains what is happening and demands an explanation. "Please sir", says the waiter, "what you order?" The husband replies, "Chicken Surprise".
"Ah! So sorry", says the waiter, "I bring you Peeking Duck!"
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Maryland
~The United States Naval Academy was founded on October 10, 1845 at Annapolis.
~In 1830 the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Company built the first railroad station in Baltimore.
~Fort Meade near Laurel became a base because a train engineer delivering soldiers to Meade knew only one Meade, the one in Maryland. He was not aware of Fort Meade, Florida. The confusion happened so often a second base was built in Maryland in an attempt to avoid the confusion.
~Other Major League Ball player besides "The Babe" born in Maryland include Cal Ripken, Jr., Billy Ripken, Lefty Grove, Frank (Home Run) Baker, Harold Baines, Al Kaline, Denny Neagle, and Jimmie Foxx.
~America's national anthem was written by Francis Scott Key a Maryland lawyer. It is believed Key wrote the anthem on September 14, 1814 while watching the bombardment of Fort McHenry in Baltimore Harbor.
~Since May 30th, 1949 the United States flag has flown continuously over the monument marking the site of Francis Scott Key's birthplace. The flag flies at Terra Rubra Farm, Carroll County, Keymar, Maryland as mandated by a Joint Resolution of Congress.
~The National Aquarium is located in Baltimore's Inner Harbor.
~Located in the Chesapeake Bay, Smith Island is Maryland's only inhabited off-shore island.
~The highest point in Maryland is 3,360 feet above sea level on Backbone Mountain in Garrett County. The absolute lowest point in Maryland is a depression, often called Bloody Point Hole, 174 feet below sea level. The area is located approximately 1 mile west-southwest of the southern tip of Kent Island in Queen Anne's County.
~On June 24,1784, in Baltimore, 13-year old Edward Warren went airborne in the first successful manned balloon launch in the United States.
~Samuel F.B. Morse reportedly received the first telegraph message in Bladensburg, in 1844, before his famous "What Hath God Wrought" message between Baltimore and Washington. His telegraph wire had been strung along the railroad right of way. Ezra Cornell, founder of Cornell University, lived in Bladensburg and is said to have invented the telegraph pole.
~The Concord Point Lighthouse in Havre de Grace is the oldest continuously operated lighthouse in the State of Maryland.
~Mount Airy is unique because two counties, Carroll and Frederick, divide it.
~On the morning of August 10, 1813 residents of Saint Michaels having been forewarned of a British attack hoisted lanterns to the masts of ships and in the tops of the trees. The height of light caused cannons to overshoot the town. This first known blackout was effective and only one house was struck and is now known as the "Cannonball House." The town has been known as the town that fooled the British since this historic event.
~Maryland gave up some of it's land to form Washington D.C.
~Sixteen of the 23 Maryland counties border on tidal water. The combined length of tidal shoreline, including islands, is 4,431 miles.
~Clara Barton National Historic Site commemorates the life of Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross. The house in Glen Echo served as her home and headquarters for the American Red Cross and a warehouse for disaster relief supplies.
~Annapolis was known as the Athens of America during the seventeenth century and once served as the capital of the United States.
_________________________________
Do we need a new Internet?http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/15/weekinreview/15markoff.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1
________________________________
Unusual town names in Arizona
Bagdad
Boneyard
Bootlegger
Crossing
Bumble Bee
Carefree
Chloride
Floss
Goobertown
Goodyear
Many Farms
Nothing
Show Low
Strong
Surprise
Three Forks
Tuba City
Two Guns
Why
Winkleman
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For the sake of the cleanup, workers could only be thankful it wasn't a tanker truck that crashed. And sorry that they didn't bring marshmallows. An 18-wheeler carrying nearly 24 tons of cocoa powder crashed just outside of Elkview WV, spilling its contents onto the I-79 roadway and forcing a closure on the interstate's southbound lanes for 14 hours. The truck's driver escaped the crash with only minor injuries, but his payload of 47,000 pounds of cocoa was ruined, intermittently catching fire on the interstate as blowtorch-wielding rescue workers attempted to peel back the truck's roof.
______________________________
Is red your favorite color? Here's what the color means around the world:
~For the ancient Romans, a red flag was a signal for battle.
~Because of its visibility, stop signs, stoplights, brake lights, and fire equipment are all painted red.
~The ancient Egyptians considered themselves a red race and painted their bodies with red dye for emphasis.
~In Russia, red means beautiful. The Bolsheviks used a red flag as their symbol when they overthrew the tsar in 1917. That is how red became the color of communism.
~In India, red is the symbol for a soldier.
~In South Africa, red is the color of mourning.
~It's considered good luck to tie a red bow on a new car.
~In China, red is the color of good luck and is used as a holiday and wedding color. Chinese babies are given their names at a red-egg ceremony.
~Superstitious people think red frightens the devil.
~A “red-letter day” is one of special importance and good fortune.
~In Greece, eggs are dyed red for good luck at Easter time.
~To “paint the town red” is to celebrate.
~Red is the color most commonly found in national flags.
~In the English War of the Roses, red was the color of the House of Lancaster, which defeated the House of York, symbolized by the color white.
~The “Redshirts” were the soldiers of the Italian leader Garibaldi, who unified modern Italy in the nineteenth century.
~To “see red” is to be angry.
~A “red herring” is a distraction, something that takes attention away from the real issue.
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One cent book sale
This is NOT buy a book at regular price, get the second for a penny. This is a real sale, where the books are really only one cent each. Sale runs three day only, from Tuesday through Thursday, Feb. 24 - 26. Limit two one cent books per customer. Shipping is extra, but cheap. Book list only visible on sale dates.
http://www.bookcloseouts.com/default.asp?N=0&rid=dworsky
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Rain, sleet, snow: These are merely nuisances for Rockport, Mass. postal workers. Turkeys, on the other hand, are proving to be another story. The U.S. Postal Service was forced to stop delivery service to some homes on a local Rockport route when a flock of turkeys began aggressively pecking at one mail carrier. Rockport Post Office Delivery Manager Tim Russell said the flock of about 10 has been attacking postal workers and their trucks for about five months. In mid January, "people had to intervene so (the mail carrier) could get back to his truck," Russell told the Gloucester Daily Times. "He was trying to wave a bag full of mail at the turkeys as he ran when some folks pulled over to shoo the turkeys away." An official with the state Environmental Police has advised the post office to arm its postal workers with umbrellas to fend off the territorial turkeys, saying the large agressive males will interpret an opened umbrella as an even larger, even more agressive turkey.
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Miscellaneous trivia
Scarlett O' Hara, Margaret Mitchell's Gone With the Wind lead character, was originally given the name Pansy.
__________________________________
Find Your Cheapest Cellular Service Plan
http://cellphones.about.com/library/bl_pt_q1.htm?q=UPT-TAKEAGAIN
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Celebrity real names
Eddie Albert..........Edward Albert Heimberger
Jason Alexander..........Jay Scott Greenspan
Woody Allen..........Allen Konigsberg
Don Ameche..........Dominic Felix Amici
Julie Andrews..........Julia Elizabeth Wells
Beatrice Arthur..........Bernice Frankel
Fred Astaire..........Frederick Austerlitz
__________________________
Monday, February 16, 2009
02.17.2009
Hello! I hope you all had a very romantic Valentines Day! ~Phyllis
Got a pair of old glasses that you don't want or need anymore, but they are still in good, useable shape? Donate them to
http://www.neweyesfortheneedy.org/
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COOL PICK
Wondering what to do with your old, nearly obsolete electronics? You can't just toss them in the trash, since the toxic metals used to make them will end up contaminating groundwater! Instead, why not trade them in for a gift card from Best Buy? Go to
https://www.bestbuytradein.com/bb/
There you will be able to get an estimate for the value of your item. If you are happy with the estimate, then complete the transaction, pack up the item, print out a pre-paid shipping label and send it in. In return you will be sent a Best Buy store gift card for the agreed upon amount, usually within 2 weeks.
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To help out schools in your area, check out;
http://www.donorschoose.org/about/about.html?zone=112
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you've ever gone on a diet, you probably know what a plateau is! Its very frustrating to be exercising and eating right, and yet the scale is no longer moving DOWN. Instead of giving up, why not try some of these tips for beating the plateau?
1. First make sure you're not eating too much. This is where keeping a food journal really comes in handy! If you are being honest and writing down everything you eat (including little "tastes" here and there) then you'll be able to see if you are really eating within your calorie range, or if you are going overboard..
2. Don't underestimate the importance of drinking water. Hydration promotes muscle building, which boosts your metabolism.
3. Change your workout. If you're doing the same type of exercise every day, then your body will become used to it and you'll stop losing weight as quickly. If you're at a plateau, try doing a different exercise for a couple of weeks, and the scale should start moving again.
These three tips will usually do the trick for beating a plateau. Remember to check with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Are your kids (or grandkids) into creative writing? They might enjoy Tikatok! Tikatok is 'where kids channel their imagination into stories.' They can create their own books....cool! A very fun site for kids up to age 14.
http://www.tikatok.com/
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Here's a site for kids of all ages (that means you too!)
http://www.cardtricksite.com/
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Kitchen sponges are perfect...for spreading germs, that is! Because it is porous, a sponge is great for bacterial growth, especially if you use it to wipe up juices from raw meat. You can spread salmonella or e. coli!
Here's how to keep your sponge clean and germ free. After wiping up your spill, wash the sponge with soap and HOT water. You should also regularly put it in the dishwasher to disinfect it. If you don't have a dishwasher, you can sanitize your sponge by getting it damp and microwaving it on high for a minute or two. Be careful when removing it from the microwave because it will be very hot.
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Here's a tasty, low calorie recipe that your entire family will like.
Low Fat Cheeseburger Pie
Ingredients;
1 lbs extra lean ground turkey
1 cup nonfat cottage cheese
1 egg
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, chopped
3/4 cup Kraft 2% shredded cheddar cheese
2 tbsp worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup water
3/4 cup Heartsmart Bisquick mix
4 slices of tomato
Preheat oven to 350.
Brown turkey, onion and garlic in pan.
While meat mixture is browning, mix Bisquick and water to form dough. You may or may not need to add a little more water as you mix. Use a rolling pin to roll dough flat and put in a pie tin. (You may have extra dough.)
Mix worcestershire sauce into meat mixture.
In a bowl, mix cottage cheese and egg.
Pour meat mixture over the Bisquick crust in the pie pan.
Pour cottage cheese and egg mixture over the meat.
Top with shredded cheddar cheese, then place tomato slices on top.
Bake for 30 to 40 minutes.
YEILD: 8 servings at around 165 calories each, with 4.5 grams of fat per serving.
****************
Hello everyone. Thought I'd lay this out differently this time and see how it looked. Last week our temperatures got up to 70 two days in a row which was a welcome treat for February. Warm weather in February is seldom free though and this time we paid with a wind storm. We didn't have any damage locally for which I am thankful. We lost power for one day, which was mild compared to things I saw on the news that had happened in other places. Gas prices are going back up here; last time I was out it was $2.05.
_____________________________
I had some positive feedback last week with the unusual town names, so I'll try to include a different state each week.
Unusual town names in Alaska
Chicken
Deadhorse
Eek
Lefthand Bay
Nightmute
Unalaska
___________________________
More great tips from Cheryl
Furndents? If there are dents in your carpet where furniture has been placed and you've moved it, get your steam iron out. Hold it an inch or two above the carpet (do not let it touch the carpet) over the dent and press the steam button several times. Allow the steam to hit the carpet dent. Then fluff up fibers with your fingers.
How to Store Bananas If bananas need a fast ripening, put them into a plastic or paper bag. When they've reached ripeness, place them into the refrigerator. Although the skins will darken, the fruit will be okay for about a week or so.
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Maine
~Eastport is the most eastern city in the United States. The city is considered the first place in the United States to receive the rays of the morning sun.
~In Wilton there's a cannery that imports and cans only dandelion greens.
~Approximately 40 millions pounds (nearly 90 percent) of the nation's lobster supply is caught off the coast of Maine.
~Maine produces 99% of all the blueberries in the country making it the single largest producer of blueberries in the United States.
~Acadia National Park is the second most visited national park in the United States.
~West Quoddy Head is the most easterly point in the United States.
~Mount Katahdin is the state's highest point at 5,268 feet above sea level.
~90% of the country's toothpick supply is produced in Maine.
~The skating scene in the movie "The Preacher's Wife" was filmed in Deering Oaks Park in Portland.
~With a total area of 33,215 square miles the state covers nearly as many square miles as the other five New England states combined.
~The coastline boasts so many deep harbors it is thought all the navies in the world could anchor in them.
~Numerous lighthouses dot the Main coast including Fort Point Lighthouse at Fort Point State Park in Stockton Springs and Grindle Point Lighthouse on Isleboro.
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was considered the most influential poet of his day. The writer was born in Portland, on February 2, 1807. His most popular works include "The Courtship of Miles Standish", "Evangeline" and "Hiawatha".
~Maine contains 542,629 acres of state and national parks.
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Miscellaneous trivia
The Caesar salad is not named after Julius Caesar. It is named for its creator, Caesar Cardini, who first prepared the salad in his Caesar's Palace Restaurant in Tijuana, Mexico.
____________________________
~Marie's Laughter~
One day the first grade teacher was reading the story of Chicken Little to her class. She came to the part of the story where Chicken Little tried to warn the farmer. She read, ".... and so Chicken Little went up to the farmer and said, "The sky is falling, the sky is falling!" The teacher paused then asked the class, "And what do you think that farmer said?"One little girl raised her hand and said, "I think he said: 'Holy Mackerel! A talking chicken!'"
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$2 off coupon
http://www.bizstainfighter.com/
____________________________
Cleaning Vinyl Floors
Vinyl floors generally only require warm water when cleaning. We don't use a detergent on vinyl floors because it always leaves a sticky residue and does not rinse clean. We use a 50/50 water and vinegar solution which is residue free and deodorizes at the same time.
If you find your vinyl floor requires a deeper cleaning, you can try using ivory dish liquid. This detergent rinses clean and leaves no sticky build up. It is inexpensive and works very well.
Damp mop your floors on a regular basis, using 1gallon of water and a mild pH neutral cleaner.
Wet the floors with your cleaning solution and wait a few minutes to allow the detergent to soften and loosed the grime, then wipe dry with a soft dry cloth.
If you work on harder and more stubborn girt or grime you can scrub your floor with the white nylon-backed sponge.
To mop your vinyl floors we use just warm water or water and vinegar at a 50/50 ratio. Do not allow water to sit for long periods at it may damage or loosen the glue around the edges.
___________________________________
HubbleSite--out of the ordinary...out of this world! http://hubblesite.org/
______________________________
Digging shallow Unlike some taxpayers, one Queens, NY property owner probably won't need to reach too far into his pocket to foot this bill. Victor Serby, who owns property in Queens but lives in Woodmere, NY received a bill from New York City's finance department in the amount of 23 cents. City officials say the tiny charge was one of 10,000 bills the city mistakenly sent out trying to collect amounts less than $5. According to city records, the finance department will book a minus -62 percent return on investment considering the 60-cent capital cost of postage, paper and processing per bill mailed. And, though the Long Island patent attorney paid his back taxes all at once, the city's installment plan could have allowed him to mail in a 12-cent payment in January and the remaining 11 cents in April.
____________________________
Word of the Day
pogonip
Pronunciation: /PO-gan-ip/
n : a dense winter fog containing frozen particle that is formed in deep mountain valleys of the western U.S.
"As the hikers descended from the mountain peak into a frigid pogonip , a frozen mist blotted out the trail and made breathing painful."
__________________________
New stamps:
The public is welcome to attend the Feb. 21 National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Board Meeting in New York City, when the Postal Service immortalizes the courage, commitment and achievements of 12 civil rights leaders. The dedication ceremony will take place at 10:15 a.m. in the New York Hilton Hotel and Towers’ Trianon Ballroom, 2nd Floor, 2335 Ave. of the Americas.
Art director Ethel Kessler and stamp designer Greg Berger, both of Bethesda, MD, chose to approach this project through photographic montage. Pairing two pioneers in each stamp was a way of intensifying the montage effect.
Mary Church Terrell (1863-1954) Throughout her long life as a writer, activist, and lecturer, she was a powerful advocate for racial justice and women’s rights in America and abroad.
Mary White Ovington (1865-1951) This journalist and social worker believed passionately in racial equality and was a founder of the NAACP.
J. R. Clifford (1848-1933) He was the first black attorney licensed in West Virginia; in two landmark cases before his state’s Supreme Court, he attacked racial discrimination in education.
Joel Elias Spingarn (1875-1939) Because coverage of blacks in the media tended to be negative, he endowed the prestigious Spingarn Medal, awarded annually since 1915, to highlight black achievement.
Oswald Garrison Villard (1872-1949) He was one of the founders of the NAACP and wrote the “Call” leading to its formation.
Daisy Gatson Bates (1914-1999) She mentored nine black students who enrolled at all-white Central High School in Little Rock, AR, in 1957. The students used her home as an organizational hub.
Charles Hamilton Houston (1895-1950) This lawyer and educator was a main architect of the civil rights movement. He believed in using laws to better the lives of underprivileged citizens.
Walter White (1893-1955) Blue eyes and a fair complexion enabled this leader of the NAACP to make daring undercover investigations.
Medgar Evers (1925-1963) He served with distinction as an official of the NAACP in Mississippi until his assassination in 1963.
Fannie Lou Hamer (1917-1977) She was a Mississippi sharecropper who fought for black voting rights and spoke for many when she said, “I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired.”
Ella Baker (1903-1986) Her lifetime of activism made her a skillful organizer. She encouraged women and young people to assume positions of leadership in the civil rights movement.
Ruby Hurley (1909-1980) As a courageous and capable official with the NAACP, she did difficult, dangerous work in the South.
________________________________
100 ideas to save money...http://tinyurl.com/yw5lqm
________________________________
The grass is not greener on the other side; the grass is greener where you water it.
Got a pair of old glasses that you don't want or need anymore, but they are still in good, useable shape? Donate them to
http://www.neweyesfortheneedy.org/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
COOL PICK
Wondering what to do with your old, nearly obsolete electronics? You can't just toss them in the trash, since the toxic metals used to make them will end up contaminating groundwater! Instead, why not trade them in for a gift card from Best Buy? Go to
https://www.bestbuytradein.com/bb/
There you will be able to get an estimate for the value of your item. If you are happy with the estimate, then complete the transaction, pack up the item, print out a pre-paid shipping label and send it in. In return you will be sent a Best Buy store gift card for the agreed upon amount, usually within 2 weeks.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To help out schools in your area, check out;
http://www.donorschoose.org/about/about.html?zone=112
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you've ever gone on a diet, you probably know what a plateau is! Its very frustrating to be exercising and eating right, and yet the scale is no longer moving DOWN. Instead of giving up, why not try some of these tips for beating the plateau?
1. First make sure you're not eating too much. This is where keeping a food journal really comes in handy! If you are being honest and writing down everything you eat (including little "tastes" here and there) then you'll be able to see if you are really eating within your calorie range, or if you are going overboard..
2. Don't underestimate the importance of drinking water. Hydration promotes muscle building, which boosts your metabolism.
3. Change your workout. If you're doing the same type of exercise every day, then your body will become used to it and you'll stop losing weight as quickly. If you're at a plateau, try doing a different exercise for a couple of weeks, and the scale should start moving again.
These three tips will usually do the trick for beating a plateau. Remember to check with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Are your kids (or grandkids) into creative writing? They might enjoy Tikatok! Tikatok is 'where kids channel their imagination into stories.' They can create their own books....cool! A very fun site for kids up to age 14.
http://www.tikatok.com/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Here's a site for kids of all ages (that means you too!)
http://www.cardtricksite.com/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kitchen sponges are perfect...for spreading germs, that is! Because it is porous, a sponge is great for bacterial growth, especially if you use it to wipe up juices from raw meat. You can spread salmonella or e. coli!
Here's how to keep your sponge clean and germ free. After wiping up your spill, wash the sponge with soap and HOT water. You should also regularly put it in the dishwasher to disinfect it. If you don't have a dishwasher, you can sanitize your sponge by getting it damp and microwaving it on high for a minute or two. Be careful when removing it from the microwave because it will be very hot.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Here's a tasty, low calorie recipe that your entire family will like.
Low Fat Cheeseburger Pie
Ingredients;
1 lbs extra lean ground turkey
1 cup nonfat cottage cheese
1 egg
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, chopped
3/4 cup Kraft 2% shredded cheddar cheese
2 tbsp worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup water
3/4 cup Heartsmart Bisquick mix
4 slices of tomato
Preheat oven to 350.
Brown turkey, onion and garlic in pan.
While meat mixture is browning, mix Bisquick and water to form dough. You may or may not need to add a little more water as you mix. Use a rolling pin to roll dough flat and put in a pie tin. (You may have extra dough.)
Mix worcestershire sauce into meat mixture.
In a bowl, mix cottage cheese and egg.
Pour meat mixture over the Bisquick crust in the pie pan.
Pour cottage cheese and egg mixture over the meat.
Top with shredded cheddar cheese, then place tomato slices on top.
Bake for 30 to 40 minutes.
YEILD: 8 servings at around 165 calories each, with 4.5 grams of fat per serving.
****************
Hello everyone. Thought I'd lay this out differently this time and see how it looked. Last week our temperatures got up to 70 two days in a row which was a welcome treat for February. Warm weather in February is seldom free though and this time we paid with a wind storm. We didn't have any damage locally for which I am thankful. We lost power for one day, which was mild compared to things I saw on the news that had happened in other places. Gas prices are going back up here; last time I was out it was $2.05.
_____________________________
I had some positive feedback last week with the unusual town names, so I'll try to include a different state each week.
Unusual town names in Alaska
Chicken
Deadhorse
Eek
Lefthand Bay
Nightmute
Unalaska
___________________________
More great tips from Cheryl
Furndents? If there are dents in your carpet where furniture has been placed and you've moved it, get your steam iron out. Hold it an inch or two above the carpet (do not let it touch the carpet) over the dent and press the steam button several times. Allow the steam to hit the carpet dent. Then fluff up fibers with your fingers.
How to Store Bananas If bananas need a fast ripening, put them into a plastic or paper bag. When they've reached ripeness, place them into the refrigerator. Although the skins will darken, the fruit will be okay for about a week or so.
__________________________
Maine
~Eastport is the most eastern city in the United States. The city is considered the first place in the United States to receive the rays of the morning sun.
~In Wilton there's a cannery that imports and cans only dandelion greens.
~Approximately 40 millions pounds (nearly 90 percent) of the nation's lobster supply is caught off the coast of Maine.
~Maine produces 99% of all the blueberries in the country making it the single largest producer of blueberries in the United States.
~Acadia National Park is the second most visited national park in the United States.
~West Quoddy Head is the most easterly point in the United States.
~Mount Katahdin is the state's highest point at 5,268 feet above sea level.
~90% of the country's toothpick supply is produced in Maine.
~The skating scene in the movie "The Preacher's Wife" was filmed in Deering Oaks Park in Portland.
~With a total area of 33,215 square miles the state covers nearly as many square miles as the other five New England states combined.
~The coastline boasts so many deep harbors it is thought all the navies in the world could anchor in them.
~Numerous lighthouses dot the Main coast including Fort Point Lighthouse at Fort Point State Park in Stockton Springs and Grindle Point Lighthouse on Isleboro.
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was considered the most influential poet of his day. The writer was born in Portland, on February 2, 1807. His most popular works include "The Courtship of Miles Standish", "Evangeline" and "Hiawatha".
~Maine contains 542,629 acres of state and national parks.
___________________________
Miscellaneous trivia
The Caesar salad is not named after Julius Caesar. It is named for its creator, Caesar Cardini, who first prepared the salad in his Caesar's Palace Restaurant in Tijuana, Mexico.
____________________________
~Marie's Laughter~
One day the first grade teacher was reading the story of Chicken Little to her class. She came to the part of the story where Chicken Little tried to warn the farmer. She read, ".... and so Chicken Little went up to the farmer and said, "The sky is falling, the sky is falling!" The teacher paused then asked the class, "And what do you think that farmer said?"One little girl raised her hand and said, "I think he said: 'Holy Mackerel! A talking chicken!'"
____________________________
$2 off coupon
http://www.bizstainfighter.com/
____________________________
Cleaning Vinyl Floors
Vinyl floors generally only require warm water when cleaning. We don't use a detergent on vinyl floors because it always leaves a sticky residue and does not rinse clean. We use a 50/50 water and vinegar solution which is residue free and deodorizes at the same time.
If you find your vinyl floor requires a deeper cleaning, you can try using ivory dish liquid. This detergent rinses clean and leaves no sticky build up. It is inexpensive and works very well.
Damp mop your floors on a regular basis, using 1gallon of water and a mild pH neutral cleaner.
Wet the floors with your cleaning solution and wait a few minutes to allow the detergent to soften and loosed the grime, then wipe dry with a soft dry cloth.
If you work on harder and more stubborn girt or grime you can scrub your floor with the white nylon-backed sponge.
To mop your vinyl floors we use just warm water or water and vinegar at a 50/50 ratio. Do not allow water to sit for long periods at it may damage or loosen the glue around the edges.
___________________________________
HubbleSite--out of the ordinary...out of this world! http://hubblesite.org/
______________________________
Digging shallow Unlike some taxpayers, one Queens, NY property owner probably won't need to reach too far into his pocket to foot this bill. Victor Serby, who owns property in Queens but lives in Woodmere, NY received a bill from New York City's finance department in the amount of 23 cents. City officials say the tiny charge was one of 10,000 bills the city mistakenly sent out trying to collect amounts less than $5. According to city records, the finance department will book a minus -62 percent return on investment considering the 60-cent capital cost of postage, paper and processing per bill mailed. And, though the Long Island patent attorney paid his back taxes all at once, the city's installment plan could have allowed him to mail in a 12-cent payment in January and the remaining 11 cents in April.
____________________________
Word of the Day
pogonip
Pronunciation: /PO-gan-ip/
n : a dense winter fog containing frozen particle that is formed in deep mountain valleys of the western U.S.
"As the hikers descended from the mountain peak into a frigid pogonip , a frozen mist blotted out the trail and made breathing painful."
__________________________
New stamps:
The public is welcome to attend the Feb. 21 National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Board Meeting in New York City, when the Postal Service immortalizes the courage, commitment and achievements of 12 civil rights leaders. The dedication ceremony will take place at 10:15 a.m. in the New York Hilton Hotel and Towers’ Trianon Ballroom, 2nd Floor, 2335 Ave. of the Americas.
Art director Ethel Kessler and stamp designer Greg Berger, both of Bethesda, MD, chose to approach this project through photographic montage. Pairing two pioneers in each stamp was a way of intensifying the montage effect.
Mary Church Terrell (1863-1954) Throughout her long life as a writer, activist, and lecturer, she was a powerful advocate for racial justice and women’s rights in America and abroad.
Mary White Ovington (1865-1951) This journalist and social worker believed passionately in racial equality and was a founder of the NAACP.
J. R. Clifford (1848-1933) He was the first black attorney licensed in West Virginia; in two landmark cases before his state’s Supreme Court, he attacked racial discrimination in education.
Joel Elias Spingarn (1875-1939) Because coverage of blacks in the media tended to be negative, he endowed the prestigious Spingarn Medal, awarded annually since 1915, to highlight black achievement.
Oswald Garrison Villard (1872-1949) He was one of the founders of the NAACP and wrote the “Call” leading to its formation.
Daisy Gatson Bates (1914-1999) She mentored nine black students who enrolled at all-white Central High School in Little Rock, AR, in 1957. The students used her home as an organizational hub.
Charles Hamilton Houston (1895-1950) This lawyer and educator was a main architect of the civil rights movement. He believed in using laws to better the lives of underprivileged citizens.
Walter White (1893-1955) Blue eyes and a fair complexion enabled this leader of the NAACP to make daring undercover investigations.
Medgar Evers (1925-1963) He served with distinction as an official of the NAACP in Mississippi until his assassination in 1963.
Fannie Lou Hamer (1917-1977) She was a Mississippi sharecropper who fought for black voting rights and spoke for many when she said, “I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired.”
Ella Baker (1903-1986) Her lifetime of activism made her a skillful organizer. She encouraged women and young people to assume positions of leadership in the civil rights movement.
Ruby Hurley (1909-1980) As a courageous and capable official with the NAACP, she did difficult, dangerous work in the South.
________________________________
100 ideas to save money...http://tinyurl.com/yw5lqm
________________________________
The grass is not greener on the other side; the grass is greener where you water it.
Monday, February 9, 2009
02.10.2009
Hello. We are currently out of our deep freeze here in West Virginia! We have had snow on the ground for weeks and now it is finally gone. Like I posted on my MySpace page, "under all the white, it's green!" ha I think by the weekend it's back to winter weather, but this break has been wonderful for as long as it lasts. It was warm enough that John and I were able to wash the car and truck today. I love playing with the water hose, so I had a super time. Happy Valentine's Day to everyone ~Toni
________________________
~~Phyllis~~
Hi everyone! I didn't do my part of the newsletter last week because I was on vacation in central Florida with my two grown sons. We had a great time and the weather was perfect...sunny and in the high 70's! It was nice to have a taste of warm weather, although it made it hard to come back to cold Maryland!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Here are links to two of the places I went to when I was in Florida. We didn't go to DisneyWorld...we prefer the "old school" type of tourist attractions such as GatorLand and Silver Springs. GatorLand was established in 1949 and is still going strong today. They have shows, (including a gator wrestling show), a nature walk and lots more. They even serve alligator ribs at the food stands for anyone brave enough to try them!
http://www.gatorland.com/
Silver Springs is home to the famous "glass bottom boats" and the beautiful, clear spring waters that pump out over 500 MILLION gallons of water a day...enough to supply New York City! They also have animal shows, a jeep safari ride and beautiful gardens full of tropical birds.
http://www.silversprings.com/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
February is black history month. Since I went to Silver Springs last week, that got me thinking about Paradise Park. Segregation was a way of life in the South in the 1940's, and Paradise Park was an example of how one of Florida's biggest tourist attractions handled it.
Paradise Park opened in 1949 right next to Silver Springs. It was billed as "Silver Springs for Colored People." There were glass bottom boats there, along with animal shows. Fortunately, Silver Springs became integrated and Paradise Park closed in 1956.
To read about Paradise Park and to see an old brochure for it, click here
http://www.lostparks.com/paradisepark.html
-------------------------------------------
HEALTHY LIVING
The way to lose weight is summed up in four words; eat less, move more. Sure it SOUNDS easy, but losing weight is hard work. Here are five tips to help you lose weight once you are mentally ready to begin the effort.
1. Drink plenty of water!
64 ounces a day is recommended. Every organ and tissue in your body needs water for good health. Drinking more water not only helps you feel better, it also helps break down fats after exercise.
2. Eat protein.
Protein is more filling that carbs and fats. It also helps keep your metabolism revved up. Meat is the obvious source for protein, but if you're a vegetarian (like me) you can also get protein from eggs, peanut butter, beans, lentils, tofu and cheese.
3. Pay attention to your portions and eat slowly.
Take about 20 minutes to eat so that your body has time to alert your brain that you are full.
If you don't like to take the time to weigh and measure your food, try this; divide your plate mentally into 4 quarters. One quarter should be filled with starches, one quarter should be filled with protein, and the other half should be fruits and/or vegetables.
4.Eat more fiber.
Fiber is a great way to keep yourself full. You can get fiber from fruits and vegetables, or from high fiber cereal.
5. Be sure to exercise.
To lose weight, you need to burn off more calories than you are taking in. One pound equals 3500 calories. Don't use exercise as an excuse to "reward" yourself with food. Just because you work out doesn't mean you can eat more and still lose weight.
------------------------------------------
Here's an entertaining website for the youngsters
http://www.totlol.com/
Powered by YouTube, Totlol is a video website designed especially for kids.
_____________________________
Meeting up with some friends? Go to
http://www.happymedian.com/home.jsf
and you can find a place to meet halfway!
________________________________
COOL PICK
This weeks cool pick is
http://www.getridofthings.com/
This site does just what it says...it tells you how to get rid of things! What kinds of things? Pretty much everything, from Spyware on your computer, to odors in your home, to age spots! The info on the site is written by "poor college students" and has plenty of humor and sarcasm mixed in with the advice. It is meant to be useful and entertaining. So if you need to get rid of something, take a tour of the site.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Another way to get rid of things is to Freecycle them! Freecycle is a great way to find free things or to give away things that you no longer want/need, but are still useable. Its a green concept because it helps keep things out of landfills.
To find a Freecycle group near you, go to
http://www.freecycle.org/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Here is an easy, healthy, low calorie recipe
SLOW COOKER CHICKEN
1 medium onion, chopped
one 16 oz can of black beans
one 16 oz can of kidney beans
one 16 oz can of corn, drained
one 8 oz can tomato sauce
two 14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes with chiles
one 1.25 oz packet of taco seasoning
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Mix everything together in slow cooker except for chicken breasts. After everything is well mixed, lay chicken on top and cover. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours. In the last 30 minutes of cooking, remove chicken breasts and shred them. Place shredded chicken back into slow cooker and stir in.
This makes 14 servings (serving size is 3/4 cup) at only 120 calories per serving! Even if you eat two servings, you'll only have 240 calories.
_____________________________
~~Toni~~
Print a one day FREE pass to Sam's Club http://www.mysavings.com/free-samples/Sams-Club/8171/
________________________________
More tips from Cheryl
Want Family Members to Eat More Salad?
For dinner, create a salad bar. Put out several kinds of greens, bowls of veggies like carrots, celery, chopped mushrooms, bowls of beans like kidney and garbanzo, and bowls of sliced chicken or beef, etc. Let each family member create his or her own dinner salad. Provide a couple of dressing options and also serve with crusty bread.
Refreshing Pillows
Pillows smelling a bit stale? Pop them into the dryer with a fabric softener sheet. Let them tumble on the air cycle for about 15 to 20 minutes. This will fluff them up and they will have a fresh aroma.
Need A Quick Meat Marinade?
Use bottled Italian dressing or an oil and vinegar salad dressing. These will tenderize meat (and chicken), give flavor and are much quicker than taking the time to make your own.
______________________________
Louisiana
~The Battle of New Orleans, which made Andrew Jackson a national hero, was fought two weeks after the War of 1812 had ended and more than a month before the news of the war's end had reached Louisiana.
~Louisiana has the tallest state capitol building in the United States; the building is 450 feet tall with 34 floors.
~Louisiana is the only state in the union that does not have counties. Its political subdivisions are called parishes.
~Louisiana is the only state with a large population of Cajuns, descendants of the Acadians who were driven out of Canada in the 1700s because they wouldn't pledge allegiance to the King of England.
~In Louisiana, biting someone with your natural teeth is considered a simple assault, but biting someone with your false teeth is considered an aggravated assault.
~The Saint Charles streetcar line in New Orleans and the San Francisco, California cable cars are the nation's only mobile national monuments
~In 1803 the United States paid France $15 million for the Louisiana Territory. 828,000 square miles of land west of the Mississippi River. The lands acquired stretched from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and from the Gulf of Mexico to the Canadian border. Thirteen states were carved from the Louisiana Territory. The Louisiana Purchase nearly doubled the size of the United States.
~Louisiana's first territorial governor, William C.C. Claiborne had great admiration for the awkward bird that inhabited the Gulf Coast region. The pelican, rather than let its young starve, would tear at its own flesh to feed them. The Governor's great respect for the Pelican led him to first use the Pelican symbol on official documents.
~French speaking Acadians in the mid-1700s settled the Lafayette Parish region of south Louisiana. The Acadians were joined by another group of settlers called Creoles, descendants of African, West Indian, and European pioneers. At the time of the migration, Louisiana was under Spanish rule and authorities welcomed the new settlers.
~The City of Ponchatoula is the oldest incorporated city in Tangipahoa Parish. Ponchatoula derives its name from the Choctaw Indian language meaning "hair to hang" because of the abundance of Spanish moss on the trees surrounding the area.
___________________________________
Sue saw this site advertised on TV. I've checked it out and it has lots and lots of great use ideas as well as info on how bleach affects the environment. http://www.cloroxbleachuses.com/
________________________________
Did you know...
In 1898, John Breck, a fireman with the Chicopee, Massachusetts, Fire Department, became the youngest fire chief in America.
Personally, however, Breck was troubled. He was only 21 years old and was already losing his hair.
In those days, there was no Rogaine, no Hair Club for Men, not even even much shampoo. Most Americans washed their hair with the same bar of soap they used on their bodies.
Breck was unwilling to accept his hair loss, so he began taking chemistry classes at Amherst College in his spare time, determined to find a cure.
He earned a doctorate, and opened a scalp treatment center where he used his own liquid shampoo.
Breck never did discover the cure for hereditary baldness, but he did introduce modern shampoo to the American public.
___________________________
Just a random fact...
Because the orange roughy grows slowly — the average fish is between 30 and 50 years old — the New Zealand government has imposed fishing restrictions. Consequently, the fish is not as abundant in stores as during the 1980's.
____________________________
John and I tried Orville Redenbacher Natural Buttery Garlic popcorn. I could barely taste the garlic and really I think that was only because I was looking for it. It was a good butter flavor, but if you're wanting a real punch of garlic, you will be disappointed.
______________________________
Here you can find an exhaustive list of abbreviations and codes for text messaging or IMing. http://www.jimhern.com/html/text_message_decoder.html
_____________________________
~Marie's Laughter~
There were two buddies, one with a Doberman Pinscher and the other with a Chihuahua. The guy with the Doberman Pinscher says to his friend, "Let's go over to that restaurant and get something to eat." The guy with the Chihuahua says, "We can't go in there. We've got dogs with us."The buddy with the Doberman Pinscher says, "Just follow my lead."They walk over to the restaurant, the guy with the Doberman Pinscher puts on a pair of dark glasses and he starts to walk in. The bouncer at the door says, "Sorry, mac, no pets allowed. "The man with the Doberman Pinscher says, "You don't understand. This is my seeing-eye-dog. "The bouncer says, "A Doberman Pinscher?" He answers, "Yes, they're using them now; they're very good and protect me from robbers, too. "The man at the door says, "Come on in. "The buddy with the Chihuahua figures, "What the heck," so he puts on a pair of dark glasses and starts to walk in. Once again the bouncer says, "Sorry, pal, no pets allowed."The guy with the Chihuahua says, "You don't understand. This is my seeing-eye dog. "The bouncer at the door says, "A Chihuahua?" The man with the Chihuahua says, "A Chihuahua?????? They gave me a Chihuahua?!"
________________________________
Just for fun, some unusual town names in Alabama
Aimwell
Bobo
Burnt
Corn
Eclectic
Intercourse
Muck City
__________________________
Now for a look at the lighter side of Abraham Lincoln, who made many humorous quotes and jokes in his lifetime:
~It has been my experience that folks who have no vices have very few virtues.
~When I hear a man preach, I like to see him act as if he were fighting bees.
~If I were two-faced, would I be wearing this one?
~Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.
~Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.
~Whatever you are, be a good one.
~He can compress the most words into the smallest ideas better than any man I ever met.
~When you have got an elephant by the hind leg, and he is trying to run away, its best to let him run.
~You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time.
~Whenever I hear anyone arguing for slavery, I feel a strong impulse to see it tried on him personally.
~If this is coffee, please bring me some tea; if this is tea, please bring me some coffee.
~Labour is prior to, and independent of capital. Capital is only the fruit of labour, and could never have existed if labour had not first existed. Labour is the superior of capital, and deserves much the higher consideration.
~No matter how much cats fight, there always seem to be plenty of kittens.
~The man who murdered his parents, then pleaded for mercy on the grounds that he was an orphan.
~Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.
____________________________
Ingredients
3/4 lb red potatoes
6 unpeeled large garlic cloves, flattened
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary, crumbled
salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Cut potatoes into 1-1/4" wide wedges. Combine potatoes, garlic, oil, and rosemary in 8-inch square baking dish. Season generously with salt and pepper. Roast until potatoes are tender and crusty, stirring occasionally, about 45 minutes. Discard garlic; serve potatoes hot.
_____________________________
Chocolate Fluted KISSES Cups
Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups HERSHEY'S Mini Chips
Semi-Sweet Chocolate or 1
HERSHEY'S Milk Chocolate Bar (6 oz.), broken into pieces
24 HERSHEY'S KISSES Brand Milk Chocolates
PEANUT BUTTER FILLING (recipe follows)
Instructions:
1. Line small muffin cups (1-3/4 inches in diameter) with small paper bake cups.
2. Place small chocolate chips in small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at MEDIUM (50%) 1 minute; stir. If necessary, microwave at MEDIUM an additional 15 seconds at a time, stirring after each heating, just until chips are melted when stirred. With small brush, coat inside of paper cups with melted chocolate.
3. Refrigerate 20 minutes; coat any thin spots. Refrigerate until firm, preferably overnight. Gently peel paper from chocolate cups.
4. Prepare PEANUT BUTTER FILLING; spoon into chocolate cups. Cover; refrigerate before serving. Remove wrappers from chocolate pieces. Before serving, top each cup with chocolate piece. About 24 servings. PEANUT BUTTER FILLING 1 cup REESE'S Creamy Peanut Butter 1 cup powdered sugar 1 tablespoon butter or margarine, softened Beat peanut butter, powdered sugar and butter in small bowl until smooth. About 1-1/3 cups filling.
___________________________
I hope you will indulge me, since hubby is one of our readers......Happy Valentines Day, John. Thanks for keeping my heart safe another year.
________________________
~~Phyllis~~
Hi everyone! I didn't do my part of the newsletter last week because I was on vacation in central Florida with my two grown sons. We had a great time and the weather was perfect...sunny and in the high 70's! It was nice to have a taste of warm weather, although it made it hard to come back to cold Maryland!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Here are links to two of the places I went to when I was in Florida. We didn't go to DisneyWorld...we prefer the "old school" type of tourist attractions such as GatorLand and Silver Springs. GatorLand was established in 1949 and is still going strong today. They have shows, (including a gator wrestling show), a nature walk and lots more. They even serve alligator ribs at the food stands for anyone brave enough to try them!
http://www.gatorland.com/
Silver Springs is home to the famous "glass bottom boats" and the beautiful, clear spring waters that pump out over 500 MILLION gallons of water a day...enough to supply New York City! They also have animal shows, a jeep safari ride and beautiful gardens full of tropical birds.
http://www.silversprings.com/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
February is black history month. Since I went to Silver Springs last week, that got me thinking about Paradise Park. Segregation was a way of life in the South in the 1940's, and Paradise Park was an example of how one of Florida's biggest tourist attractions handled it.
Paradise Park opened in 1949 right next to Silver Springs. It was billed as "Silver Springs for Colored People." There were glass bottom boats there, along with animal shows. Fortunately, Silver Springs became integrated and Paradise Park closed in 1956.
To read about Paradise Park and to see an old brochure for it, click here
http://www.lostparks.com/paradisepark.html
-------------------------------------------
HEALTHY LIVING
The way to lose weight is summed up in four words; eat less, move more. Sure it SOUNDS easy, but losing weight is hard work. Here are five tips to help you lose weight once you are mentally ready to begin the effort.
1. Drink plenty of water!
64 ounces a day is recommended. Every organ and tissue in your body needs water for good health. Drinking more water not only helps you feel better, it also helps break down fats after exercise.
2. Eat protein.
Protein is more filling that carbs and fats. It also helps keep your metabolism revved up. Meat is the obvious source for protein, but if you're a vegetarian (like me) you can also get protein from eggs, peanut butter, beans, lentils, tofu and cheese.
3. Pay attention to your portions and eat slowly.
Take about 20 minutes to eat so that your body has time to alert your brain that you are full.
If you don't like to take the time to weigh and measure your food, try this; divide your plate mentally into 4 quarters. One quarter should be filled with starches, one quarter should be filled with protein, and the other half should be fruits and/or vegetables.
4.Eat more fiber.
Fiber is a great way to keep yourself full. You can get fiber from fruits and vegetables, or from high fiber cereal.
5. Be sure to exercise.
To lose weight, you need to burn off more calories than you are taking in. One pound equals 3500 calories. Don't use exercise as an excuse to "reward" yourself with food. Just because you work out doesn't mean you can eat more and still lose weight.
------------------------------------------
Here's an entertaining website for the youngsters
http://www.totlol.com/
Powered by YouTube, Totlol is a video website designed especially for kids.
_____________________________
Meeting up with some friends? Go to
http://www.happymedian.com/home.jsf
and you can find a place to meet halfway!
________________________________
COOL PICK
This weeks cool pick is
http://www.getridofthings.com/
This site does just what it says...it tells you how to get rid of things! What kinds of things? Pretty much everything, from Spyware on your computer, to odors in your home, to age spots! The info on the site is written by "poor college students" and has plenty of humor and sarcasm mixed in with the advice. It is meant to be useful and entertaining. So if you need to get rid of something, take a tour of the site.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Another way to get rid of things is to Freecycle them! Freecycle is a great way to find free things or to give away things that you no longer want/need, but are still useable. Its a green concept because it helps keep things out of landfills.
To find a Freecycle group near you, go to
http://www.freecycle.org/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Here is an easy, healthy, low calorie recipe
SLOW COOKER CHICKEN
1 medium onion, chopped
one 16 oz can of black beans
one 16 oz can of kidney beans
one 16 oz can of corn, drained
one 8 oz can tomato sauce
two 14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes with chiles
one 1.25 oz packet of taco seasoning
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Mix everything together in slow cooker except for chicken breasts. After everything is well mixed, lay chicken on top and cover. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours. In the last 30 minutes of cooking, remove chicken breasts and shred them. Place shredded chicken back into slow cooker and stir in.
This makes 14 servings (serving size is 3/4 cup) at only 120 calories per serving! Even if you eat two servings, you'll only have 240 calories.
_____________________________
~~Toni~~
Print a one day FREE pass to Sam's Club http://www.mysavings.com/free-samples/Sams-Club/8171/
________________________________
More tips from Cheryl
Want Family Members to Eat More Salad?
For dinner, create a salad bar. Put out several kinds of greens, bowls of veggies like carrots, celery, chopped mushrooms, bowls of beans like kidney and garbanzo, and bowls of sliced chicken or beef, etc. Let each family member create his or her own dinner salad. Provide a couple of dressing options and also serve with crusty bread.
Refreshing Pillows
Pillows smelling a bit stale? Pop them into the dryer with a fabric softener sheet. Let them tumble on the air cycle for about 15 to 20 minutes. This will fluff them up and they will have a fresh aroma.
Need A Quick Meat Marinade?
Use bottled Italian dressing or an oil and vinegar salad dressing. These will tenderize meat (and chicken), give flavor and are much quicker than taking the time to make your own.
______________________________
Louisiana
~The Battle of New Orleans, which made Andrew Jackson a national hero, was fought two weeks after the War of 1812 had ended and more than a month before the news of the war's end had reached Louisiana.
~Louisiana has the tallest state capitol building in the United States; the building is 450 feet tall with 34 floors.
~Louisiana is the only state in the union that does not have counties. Its political subdivisions are called parishes.
~Louisiana is the only state with a large population of Cajuns, descendants of the Acadians who were driven out of Canada in the 1700s because they wouldn't pledge allegiance to the King of England.
~In Louisiana, biting someone with your natural teeth is considered a simple assault, but biting someone with your false teeth is considered an aggravated assault.
~The Saint Charles streetcar line in New Orleans and the San Francisco, California cable cars are the nation's only mobile national monuments
~In 1803 the United States paid France $15 million for the Louisiana Territory. 828,000 square miles of land west of the Mississippi River. The lands acquired stretched from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and from the Gulf of Mexico to the Canadian border. Thirteen states were carved from the Louisiana Territory. The Louisiana Purchase nearly doubled the size of the United States.
~Louisiana's first territorial governor, William C.C. Claiborne had great admiration for the awkward bird that inhabited the Gulf Coast region. The pelican, rather than let its young starve, would tear at its own flesh to feed them. The Governor's great respect for the Pelican led him to first use the Pelican symbol on official documents.
~French speaking Acadians in the mid-1700s settled the Lafayette Parish region of south Louisiana. The Acadians were joined by another group of settlers called Creoles, descendants of African, West Indian, and European pioneers. At the time of the migration, Louisiana was under Spanish rule and authorities welcomed the new settlers.
~The City of Ponchatoula is the oldest incorporated city in Tangipahoa Parish. Ponchatoula derives its name from the Choctaw Indian language meaning "hair to hang" because of the abundance of Spanish moss on the trees surrounding the area.
___________________________________
Sue saw this site advertised on TV. I've checked it out and it has lots and lots of great use ideas as well as info on how bleach affects the environment. http://www.cloroxbleachuses.com/
________________________________
Did you know...
In 1898, John Breck, a fireman with the Chicopee, Massachusetts, Fire Department, became the youngest fire chief in America.
Personally, however, Breck was troubled. He was only 21 years old and was already losing his hair.
In those days, there was no Rogaine, no Hair Club for Men, not even even much shampoo. Most Americans washed their hair with the same bar of soap they used on their bodies.
Breck was unwilling to accept his hair loss, so he began taking chemistry classes at Amherst College in his spare time, determined to find a cure.
He earned a doctorate, and opened a scalp treatment center where he used his own liquid shampoo.
Breck never did discover the cure for hereditary baldness, but he did introduce modern shampoo to the American public.
___________________________
Just a random fact...
Because the orange roughy grows slowly — the average fish is between 30 and 50 years old — the New Zealand government has imposed fishing restrictions. Consequently, the fish is not as abundant in stores as during the 1980's.
____________________________
John and I tried Orville Redenbacher Natural Buttery Garlic popcorn. I could barely taste the garlic and really I think that was only because I was looking for it. It was a good butter flavor, but if you're wanting a real punch of garlic, you will be disappointed.
______________________________
Here you can find an exhaustive list of abbreviations and codes for text messaging or IMing. http://www.jimhern.com/html/text_message_decoder.html
_____________________________
~Marie's Laughter~
There were two buddies, one with a Doberman Pinscher and the other with a Chihuahua. The guy with the Doberman Pinscher says to his friend, "Let's go over to that restaurant and get something to eat." The guy with the Chihuahua says, "We can't go in there. We've got dogs with us."The buddy with the Doberman Pinscher says, "Just follow my lead."They walk over to the restaurant, the guy with the Doberman Pinscher puts on a pair of dark glasses and he starts to walk in. The bouncer at the door says, "Sorry, mac, no pets allowed. "The man with the Doberman Pinscher says, "You don't understand. This is my seeing-eye-dog. "The bouncer says, "A Doberman Pinscher?" He answers, "Yes, they're using them now; they're very good and protect me from robbers, too. "The man at the door says, "Come on in. "The buddy with the Chihuahua figures, "What the heck," so he puts on a pair of dark glasses and starts to walk in. Once again the bouncer says, "Sorry, pal, no pets allowed."The guy with the Chihuahua says, "You don't understand. This is my seeing-eye dog. "The bouncer at the door says, "A Chihuahua?" The man with the Chihuahua says, "A Chihuahua?????? They gave me a Chihuahua?!"
________________________________
Just for fun, some unusual town names in Alabama
Aimwell
Bobo
Burnt
Corn
Eclectic
Intercourse
Muck City
__________________________
Now for a look at the lighter side of Abraham Lincoln, who made many humorous quotes and jokes in his lifetime:
~It has been my experience that folks who have no vices have very few virtues.
~When I hear a man preach, I like to see him act as if he were fighting bees.
~If I were two-faced, would I be wearing this one?
~Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.
~Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.
~Whatever you are, be a good one.
~He can compress the most words into the smallest ideas better than any man I ever met.
~When you have got an elephant by the hind leg, and he is trying to run away, its best to let him run.
~You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time.
~Whenever I hear anyone arguing for slavery, I feel a strong impulse to see it tried on him personally.
~If this is coffee, please bring me some tea; if this is tea, please bring me some coffee.
~Labour is prior to, and independent of capital. Capital is only the fruit of labour, and could never have existed if labour had not first existed. Labour is the superior of capital, and deserves much the higher consideration.
~No matter how much cats fight, there always seem to be plenty of kittens.
~The man who murdered his parents, then pleaded for mercy on the grounds that he was an orphan.
~Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.
____________________________
Ingredients
3/4 lb red potatoes
6 unpeeled large garlic cloves, flattened
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary, crumbled
salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Cut potatoes into 1-1/4" wide wedges. Combine potatoes, garlic, oil, and rosemary in 8-inch square baking dish. Season generously with salt and pepper. Roast until potatoes are tender and crusty, stirring occasionally, about 45 minutes. Discard garlic; serve potatoes hot.
_____________________________
Chocolate Fluted KISSES Cups
Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups HERSHEY'S Mini Chips
Semi-Sweet Chocolate or 1
HERSHEY'S Milk Chocolate Bar (6 oz.), broken into pieces
24 HERSHEY'S KISSES Brand Milk Chocolates
PEANUT BUTTER FILLING (recipe follows)
Instructions:
1. Line small muffin cups (1-3/4 inches in diameter) with small paper bake cups.
2. Place small chocolate chips in small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at MEDIUM (50%) 1 minute; stir. If necessary, microwave at MEDIUM an additional 15 seconds at a time, stirring after each heating, just until chips are melted when stirred. With small brush, coat inside of paper cups with melted chocolate.
3. Refrigerate 20 minutes; coat any thin spots. Refrigerate until firm, preferably overnight. Gently peel paper from chocolate cups.
4. Prepare PEANUT BUTTER FILLING; spoon into chocolate cups. Cover; refrigerate before serving. Remove wrappers from chocolate pieces. Before serving, top each cup with chocolate piece. About 24 servings. PEANUT BUTTER FILLING 1 cup REESE'S Creamy Peanut Butter 1 cup powdered sugar 1 tablespoon butter or margarine, softened Beat peanut butter, powdered sugar and butter in small bowl until smooth. About 1-1/3 cups filling.
___________________________
I hope you will indulge me, since hubby is one of our readers......Happy Valentines Day, John. Thanks for keeping my heart safe another year.
Monday, February 2, 2009
02.03.2009
Hello and happy February. West Virginia's French Creek Freddie did not see his shadow Monday morning. I know this is supposed to mean an early spring. However, since the reason he didn't see his shadow was because the sun was covered by thick snow clouds, I have my doubts about his prediction. Freddie's famous cousin, Punxsutawney Phil, did see his shadow and I think Phil has been at this longer than Freddie, so...
~Toni
______________________
I thought it was strange that it worked out this week for our state to be Kentucky since they were hit so terribly hard by last week's ice storm. Sure do hope that power will be restored to everyone there, and other areas that were hit, very soon so that things can get back to normal.
~Mammoth Cave is the world's longest cave and was first promoted in 1816, making it the second oldest tourist attraction in the United States. Niagara Falls, New York is first.
~Kentucky is the state where both Abraham Lincoln, President of the Union, and Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederacy, were born. They were born less than one hundred miles and one year apart.
~Cumberland is the only waterfall in the world to regularly display a moonbow. It is located just southwest of Corbin. http://d21c.com/moonbud/moonbow.jpg
~Christian County is wet while Bourbon County is dry. Barren County has the most fertile land in the state. (I love this one!)
~The song "Happy Birthday to You" was the creation of two Louisville sisters in 1893.
~Bluegrass is not really blue--its green--but in the spring bluegrass produces bluish purple buds that when seen in large fields give a blue cast to the grass. Today Kentucky is known as the Bluegrass State.
~The public saw an electric light for the first time in Louisville. Thomas Edison introduced his incandescent light bulb to crowds at the Southern Exposition in 1883.
~The radio was invented by a Kentuckian named Nathan B. Stubblefield of Murray in 1892. It was three years before Marconi made his claim to the invention.
~In the War of 1812 more than half of all Americans killed in action were Kentuckians.
~Middlesboro is the only city in the United States built within a meteor crater.
~The world's largest free-swinging bell known as the World Peace Bell is on permanent display in Newport.
~More than $6 billion worth of gold is held in the underground vaults of Fort Knox. This is the largest amount of gold stored anywhere in the world.
~The Lost River Cave and Valley Bowling Green includes a cave with the shortest and deepest underground river in the world. It contains the largest cave opening east of the Mississippi.
~Frederick Vinson who was born in Louisa is the only Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court known to be born in jail.
~Pike County the world's largest producer of coal is famous for the Hatfield-McCoy feud, an Appalachian vendetta that lasted from the Civil War to the 1890s.
_____________________________
Tips from Cheryl:
Jewelry Turning Your Skin Green? To stop it, paint clear fingernail polish on the part that touches your skin, such as the inside of a bracelet, ring or watch band. You also can have a jeweler coat it.
If a Casserole Gets Runny You can thicken it quickly by adding shredded or grated cheese, instant dry potatoes, crushed potato or tortilla chips to the casserole. The chips would add flavor to a Mexican casserole, while the potatoes would be good in an Italian casserole.
___________________________
New stamp issue
The 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s (1809-1865) birth will be recognized on four commemorative stamps Feb. 9, in Springfield, IL. The 10 a.m. dedication ceremony takes place at the Old State Capitol Historic Site, Representative Hall, #1 Old State Capitol Plaza, in Springfield.
The stamp art was created by Mark Summers, who is noted for his scratchboard technique, a style distinguished by a dense network of lines etched with exquisite precision. Each stamp features a different aspect of Lincoln’s life. Summers worked under the art direction of Richard Sheaff of Scottsdale, AZ.
Rail-Splitter The stamp showing Lincoln as a rail-splitter includes the earliest-known photograph of Lincoln, dated 1846, by N. H. Shepherd, and depicts Lincoln as a youth splitting a log for a rail fence on what was then the American frontier. When he was a candidate for president in 1860, the Republican Party used the image of Lincoln as a “rail-splitter” to enhance his appeal to the workingman.
Lawyer The stamp featuring Lincoln as a lawyer includes a photograph of Lincoln, dated May 7, 1858, by Abraham Byers, and shows Lincoln in a courtroom in Illinois, the state where he was a practicing attorney for nearly 25 years.
Politician The stamp of Lincoln as a politician includes a Feb. 27, 1860, photograph of Lincoln by Mathew Brady, and shows Lincoln debating Stephen A. Douglas during their 1858 campaign for a U.S. Senate seat from Illinois.
President The stamp featuring Lincoln as president, includes a Nov. 8, 1863, photograph of Lincoln by Alexander Gardner, and depicts Lincoln conferring with generals Ulysses S. Grant and William T. Sherman toward the end of the Civil War. The depiction is based on “The Peacemakers” (1868), a painting by George P. A. Healy.
_____________________________
I wanted to do something since we celebrate the anniversary of his birth next week, so here are some quick and interesting facts about Abraham Lincoln:
~He was born on February 12th 1809, and died April 15th 1865 at the age of fifty six.
~His home state is Illinois.
~His party was Republican and he was president for four years from 1861-1865, when he was assassinated.
~His wife was called Mary Todd Lincoln, who was brought up into a very wealthy family.
~Mary’s parents disagreed with her marrying Abraham because he had a poor background.
Abraham had four children, Robert Todd Lincoln, Edward Lincoln, Willie Lincoln, Tad Lincoln. Only Robert Todd Lincoln survived into adulthood.
~Abraham was an unaffiliated Christian as he never officially acquired church membership.
~He created a national banking system with the National Banking Act in 1863, resulting in a standardized currency.
~He was the first president to be assassinated.
~He had deep depression, even though he would frequently tell stories and jokes to friends and family.
~He was the tallest U.S president at 6ft 4 inches.
~He patented a system to alter buoyancy of steamboats in 1849.
~His birth mother died from milk sickness.
~His father remarried a widow, and Abraham was very close to his step mother.
~He ran a store in New Salem.
~Even though he was strong, a talented wrestler, and proficient with an axe, Lincoln disliked killing and harming animals, even for food.
~Lincoln proposed to Mary just one year after meeting her in Springfield 1839.
~He was the first president to have a beard.
~Lincoln, one week before his death, had a dream of someone crying in the White House, when he found the room; he looked in and asked who had passed away. The man in the room said the President. When he looked in the coffin it was his own face he saw.
____________________________
A completely new way of choosing which books to read...http://www.whichbook.net/
___________________________
Did you know...
Chester Greenwood was born in Farmington, Maine in 1858. A grammar school dropout, he invented earmuffs at the age of 15 (1873). While testing a new pair of ice skates, he grew frustrated at trying to protect his ears from the bitter cold. After wrapping his head in a scarf, which was too bulky and itchy, he made two ear-shaped loops from wire and asked his grandmother to sew fur on them. He patented an improved model with a steel band which held them in place and with Greenwood's Champion Ear Protectors, he established Greenwood's Ear Protector Factory. He made a fortune supplying Ear Protectors to U.S. soldiers during World War I. He went on to patent more many other inventions. In 1977, Maine's legislature declared December 21 "Chester Greenwood Day" to honor a native son and his contribution to cold weather protection.
Farmington Maine is now the Earmuff Capital of the World. There is a parade that celebrates Chester's birthday the first Saturday in December, with local police cruisers in the parade decorated as giant earmuffs.
Another of Chester's inventions was the steel-tooth rake - U.S. patent #2066036, issued on December 29, 1936. Chester Greenwood accumulated over 100 patents in his lifetime.
______________________________
Your kids should file a tax return. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) doesn't care how old they are. If they earn more than $5,450 in a given year (in wages and/or interest income), they have to file--even if you claim them as dependents. And if they make less than that, they should still file because they'll get back all the money their employer withheld. Help them fill out the paperwork. It's a great learning experience that may earn them some extra cash.
_____________________________
Young love
The average age of a first marriage for German men is 32. For German women it's 29. But don't tell that to 6-year-old Mika and 7-year-old Anna-Lena of Hanover. The two sweethearts reportedly decided to elope to Africa early on New Year's Day and brought along Anna-Lena's 5-year-old sister as a witness. With their belongings packed and their parents asleep, the three children walked to a local tram stop, took a tram to the central train station, and waited for a train to the airport. Security guards at the station spotted them and heard their story, convinced them they wouldn't get far without money, and contacted their parents. But all is not lost for Mika and Anna-Lena, police spokesman Holger Jureczko told the AFP news service: "They can still put their plan into action at a later date."
____________________________
This site has the coolest stuff if you're looking for gifts for kids, teens or people like me that enjoy science stuff. I thought this terrarium was especially cool and a good deal. Lots and lots of other things besides the terrarium of course.
http://scientificsonline.com/product.asp_Q_pn_E_3082567
__________________________
Soon it will be Valentine's Day, which makes me think of candy, and wow here is a fantastic candy site that even has old time favorites! Check it out.
http://www.economycandy.com/
____________________________
Sue shares this joke with us:
A man was sick and tired of going to work every day while his wife stayed home. He wanted her to see what he went through so he prayed: Dear Lord,I go to work every day and put in 8 hours while my wife merely stays at home. I want her to know what I go through, so please allow her body to switch with mine for a day Amen.
God, in his infinite wisdom, granted the man's wish. The next morning,sure enough, the man awoke as a woman. He arose, cooked breakfast for his mate, awakened the kids, set out their school clothes, fed them breakfast packed their lunches, drove them to school, came home and picked up the dry cleaning, took it to the cleaners and stopped at the bank to make a deposit, went grocery shopping, then drove home to put away the groceries, paid the bills and balance the check book. He cleaned the cat's litter box and bathed the dog. Then it was already 1pm and he hurried to make the beds, do the laundry, vacuum, dust,and sweep and mop the kitchen floor. Ran to the school to pick up the kids and got into an argument with them on the way home. Set out cookies and milk and got the kids organized to do their homework, then set up the ironing board and watched TV while he did the ironing.
At 4:30 he began peeling potatoes and washing vegetables for salad, breaded the pork chops and snapped fresh beans for supper. After supper he cleaned the kitchen, ran the dishwasher, folded laundry, bathed the kids, and put them to bed. At 9 P. M. he was exhausted and, though his daily chores weren't finished, he went to bed where he was expected to make love which he managed to get through without complaint.
The next morning he awoke and immediately knelt by the bed and said, "Lord, I don't know what I was thinking. I was so wrong to envy my wife's being able to stay home all day. Please, oh please, let us trade back." The Lord, in his infinite wisdom, replied, "My son, I feel you have learned your lesson and I will be happy to change things back to the way they were.You'll just have to wait nine months, though. You got pregnant last night."
_______________________________
Last week's riddle Take a five-letter sign on certain doors, remove its first letter, and you'll have a word meaning sign. Remove the new word's first letter and it's a sign on nearby doors. Can you guess all three words? Answer: women, omen, men
____________________________
Here are two well-respected websites where you can find medical information:
http://www.medlineplus.gov/
http://www.mayoclinic.com/
_______________________________
If you've never tried Breathe Right Nasal Strips and have wondered do they work and are they worth the price, allow me to tell you that I love these things! I have a lot of nighttime congestion and these are just the perfect thing for that. John informs me that when I don't wear one at night I snore, although I can't imagine that is true. However there is no doubt that HE snores and I have tried for years to get him to use the strips. Finally he tried one and it was the most restful night of sleep I've had in years.
You can read more about them, and get coupons too, at their website.
http://www.breatheright.com/
____________________________
Travel, history, Old West, Route 66, ghost towns, treasure tales and more...
http://www.legendsofamerica.com/
_______________________
From Cheryl:
The difference between 'involvement' and 'commitment' is like an eggs-and-ham breakfast: the chicken was 'involved'--the pig was 'committed'.
~Toni
______________________
I thought it was strange that it worked out this week for our state to be Kentucky since they were hit so terribly hard by last week's ice storm. Sure do hope that power will be restored to everyone there, and other areas that were hit, very soon so that things can get back to normal.
~Mammoth Cave is the world's longest cave and was first promoted in 1816, making it the second oldest tourist attraction in the United States. Niagara Falls, New York is first.
~Kentucky is the state where both Abraham Lincoln, President of the Union, and Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederacy, were born. They were born less than one hundred miles and one year apart.
~Cumberland is the only waterfall in the world to regularly display a moonbow. It is located just southwest of Corbin. http://d21c.com/moonbud/moonbow.jpg
~Christian County is wet while Bourbon County is dry. Barren County has the most fertile land in the state. (I love this one!)
~The song "Happy Birthday to You" was the creation of two Louisville sisters in 1893.
~Bluegrass is not really blue--its green--but in the spring bluegrass produces bluish purple buds that when seen in large fields give a blue cast to the grass. Today Kentucky is known as the Bluegrass State.
~The public saw an electric light for the first time in Louisville. Thomas Edison introduced his incandescent light bulb to crowds at the Southern Exposition in 1883.
~The radio was invented by a Kentuckian named Nathan B. Stubblefield of Murray in 1892. It was three years before Marconi made his claim to the invention.
~In the War of 1812 more than half of all Americans killed in action were Kentuckians.
~Middlesboro is the only city in the United States built within a meteor crater.
~The world's largest free-swinging bell known as the World Peace Bell is on permanent display in Newport.
~More than $6 billion worth of gold is held in the underground vaults of Fort Knox. This is the largest amount of gold stored anywhere in the world.
~The Lost River Cave and Valley Bowling Green includes a cave with the shortest and deepest underground river in the world. It contains the largest cave opening east of the Mississippi.
~Frederick Vinson who was born in Louisa is the only Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court known to be born in jail.
~Pike County the world's largest producer of coal is famous for the Hatfield-McCoy feud, an Appalachian vendetta that lasted from the Civil War to the 1890s.
_____________________________
Tips from Cheryl:
Jewelry Turning Your Skin Green? To stop it, paint clear fingernail polish on the part that touches your skin, such as the inside of a bracelet, ring or watch band. You also can have a jeweler coat it.
If a Casserole Gets Runny You can thicken it quickly by adding shredded or grated cheese, instant dry potatoes, crushed potato or tortilla chips to the casserole. The chips would add flavor to a Mexican casserole, while the potatoes would be good in an Italian casserole.
___________________________
New stamp issue
The 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s (1809-1865) birth will be recognized on four commemorative stamps Feb. 9, in Springfield, IL. The 10 a.m. dedication ceremony takes place at the Old State Capitol Historic Site, Representative Hall, #1 Old State Capitol Plaza, in Springfield.
The stamp art was created by Mark Summers, who is noted for his scratchboard technique, a style distinguished by a dense network of lines etched with exquisite precision. Each stamp features a different aspect of Lincoln’s life. Summers worked under the art direction of Richard Sheaff of Scottsdale, AZ.
Rail-Splitter The stamp showing Lincoln as a rail-splitter includes the earliest-known photograph of Lincoln, dated 1846, by N. H. Shepherd, and depicts Lincoln as a youth splitting a log for a rail fence on what was then the American frontier. When he was a candidate for president in 1860, the Republican Party used the image of Lincoln as a “rail-splitter” to enhance his appeal to the workingman.
Lawyer The stamp featuring Lincoln as a lawyer includes a photograph of Lincoln, dated May 7, 1858, by Abraham Byers, and shows Lincoln in a courtroom in Illinois, the state where he was a practicing attorney for nearly 25 years.
Politician The stamp of Lincoln as a politician includes a Feb. 27, 1860, photograph of Lincoln by Mathew Brady, and shows Lincoln debating Stephen A. Douglas during their 1858 campaign for a U.S. Senate seat from Illinois.
President The stamp featuring Lincoln as president, includes a Nov. 8, 1863, photograph of Lincoln by Alexander Gardner, and depicts Lincoln conferring with generals Ulysses S. Grant and William T. Sherman toward the end of the Civil War. The depiction is based on “The Peacemakers” (1868), a painting by George P. A. Healy.
_____________________________
I wanted to do something since we celebrate the anniversary of his birth next week, so here are some quick and interesting facts about Abraham Lincoln:
~He was born on February 12th 1809, and died April 15th 1865 at the age of fifty six.
~His home state is Illinois.
~His party was Republican and he was president for four years from 1861-1865, when he was assassinated.
~His wife was called Mary Todd Lincoln, who was brought up into a very wealthy family.
~Mary’s parents disagreed with her marrying Abraham because he had a poor background.
Abraham had four children, Robert Todd Lincoln, Edward Lincoln, Willie Lincoln, Tad Lincoln. Only Robert Todd Lincoln survived into adulthood.
~Abraham was an unaffiliated Christian as he never officially acquired church membership.
~He created a national banking system with the National Banking Act in 1863, resulting in a standardized currency.
~He was the first president to be assassinated.
~He had deep depression, even though he would frequently tell stories and jokes to friends and family.
~He was the tallest U.S president at 6ft 4 inches.
~He patented a system to alter buoyancy of steamboats in 1849.
~His birth mother died from milk sickness.
~His father remarried a widow, and Abraham was very close to his step mother.
~He ran a store in New Salem.
~Even though he was strong, a talented wrestler, and proficient with an axe, Lincoln disliked killing and harming animals, even for food.
~Lincoln proposed to Mary just one year after meeting her in Springfield 1839.
~He was the first president to have a beard.
~Lincoln, one week before his death, had a dream of someone crying in the White House, when he found the room; he looked in and asked who had passed away. The man in the room said the President. When he looked in the coffin it was his own face he saw.
____________________________
A completely new way of choosing which books to read...http://www.whichbook.net/
___________________________
Did you know...
Chester Greenwood was born in Farmington, Maine in 1858. A grammar school dropout, he invented earmuffs at the age of 15 (1873). While testing a new pair of ice skates, he grew frustrated at trying to protect his ears from the bitter cold. After wrapping his head in a scarf, which was too bulky and itchy, he made two ear-shaped loops from wire and asked his grandmother to sew fur on them. He patented an improved model with a steel band which held them in place and with Greenwood's Champion Ear Protectors, he established Greenwood's Ear Protector Factory. He made a fortune supplying Ear Protectors to U.S. soldiers during World War I. He went on to patent more many other inventions. In 1977, Maine's legislature declared December 21 "Chester Greenwood Day" to honor a native son and his contribution to cold weather protection.
Farmington Maine is now the Earmuff Capital of the World. There is a parade that celebrates Chester's birthday the first Saturday in December, with local police cruisers in the parade decorated as giant earmuffs.
Another of Chester's inventions was the steel-tooth rake - U.S. patent #2066036, issued on December 29, 1936. Chester Greenwood accumulated over 100 patents in his lifetime.
______________________________
Your kids should file a tax return. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) doesn't care how old they are. If they earn more than $5,450 in a given year (in wages and/or interest income), they have to file--even if you claim them as dependents. And if they make less than that, they should still file because they'll get back all the money their employer withheld. Help them fill out the paperwork. It's a great learning experience that may earn them some extra cash.
_____________________________
Young love
The average age of a first marriage for German men is 32. For German women it's 29. But don't tell that to 6-year-old Mika and 7-year-old Anna-Lena of Hanover. The two sweethearts reportedly decided to elope to Africa early on New Year's Day and brought along Anna-Lena's 5-year-old sister as a witness. With their belongings packed and their parents asleep, the three children walked to a local tram stop, took a tram to the central train station, and waited for a train to the airport. Security guards at the station spotted them and heard their story, convinced them they wouldn't get far without money, and contacted their parents. But all is not lost for Mika and Anna-Lena, police spokesman Holger Jureczko told the AFP news service: "They can still put their plan into action at a later date."
____________________________
This site has the coolest stuff if you're looking for gifts for kids, teens or people like me that enjoy science stuff. I thought this terrarium was especially cool and a good deal. Lots and lots of other things besides the terrarium of course.
http://scientificsonline.com/product.asp_Q_pn_E_3082567
__________________________
Soon it will be Valentine's Day, which makes me think of candy, and wow here is a fantastic candy site that even has old time favorites! Check it out.
http://www.economycandy.com/
____________________________
Sue shares this joke with us:
A man was sick and tired of going to work every day while his wife stayed home. He wanted her to see what he went through so he prayed: Dear Lord,I go to work every day and put in 8 hours while my wife merely stays at home. I want her to know what I go through, so please allow her body to switch with mine for a day Amen.
God, in his infinite wisdom, granted the man's wish. The next morning,sure enough, the man awoke as a woman. He arose, cooked breakfast for his mate, awakened the kids, set out their school clothes, fed them breakfast packed their lunches, drove them to school, came home and picked up the dry cleaning, took it to the cleaners and stopped at the bank to make a deposit, went grocery shopping, then drove home to put away the groceries, paid the bills and balance the check book. He cleaned the cat's litter box and bathed the dog. Then it was already 1pm and he hurried to make the beds, do the laundry, vacuum, dust,and sweep and mop the kitchen floor. Ran to the school to pick up the kids and got into an argument with them on the way home. Set out cookies and milk and got the kids organized to do their homework, then set up the ironing board and watched TV while he did the ironing.
At 4:30 he began peeling potatoes and washing vegetables for salad, breaded the pork chops and snapped fresh beans for supper. After supper he cleaned the kitchen, ran the dishwasher, folded laundry, bathed the kids, and put them to bed. At 9 P. M. he was exhausted and, though his daily chores weren't finished, he went to bed where he was expected to make love which he managed to get through without complaint.
The next morning he awoke and immediately knelt by the bed and said, "Lord, I don't know what I was thinking. I was so wrong to envy my wife's being able to stay home all day. Please, oh please, let us trade back." The Lord, in his infinite wisdom, replied, "My son, I feel you have learned your lesson and I will be happy to change things back to the way they were.You'll just have to wait nine months, though. You got pregnant last night."
_______________________________
Last week's riddle Take a five-letter sign on certain doors, remove its first letter, and you'll have a word meaning sign. Remove the new word's first letter and it's a sign on nearby doors. Can you guess all three words? Answer: women, omen, men
____________________________
Here are two well-respected websites where you can find medical information:
http://www.medlineplus.gov/
http://www.mayoclinic.com/
_______________________________
If you've never tried Breathe Right Nasal Strips and have wondered do they work and are they worth the price, allow me to tell you that I love these things! I have a lot of nighttime congestion and these are just the perfect thing for that. John informs me that when I don't wear one at night I snore, although I can't imagine that is true. However there is no doubt that HE snores and I have tried for years to get him to use the strips. Finally he tried one and it was the most restful night of sleep I've had in years.
You can read more about them, and get coupons too, at their website.
http://www.breatheright.com/
____________________________
Travel, history, Old West, Route 66, ghost towns, treasure tales and more...
http://www.legendsofamerica.com/
_______________________
From Cheryl:
The difference between 'involvement' and 'commitment' is like an eggs-and-ham breakfast: the chicken was 'involved'--the pig was 'committed'.
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