Tuesday, July 31, 2007

LBC Freebie of the Day

Get a free sample of Listerine Whitening Strips.

LINK

Monday, July 30, 2007

Green Cleaning Products?

Gary has really bad asthma as does my mother. They are very sensitive to odors in candles, perfumes and cleaning products. This can make it difficult when cleaning the house. Also, Gary and I try to buy environmentally-friendly cleaning products as often as we can. I have read a few recommendations lately of Shaklee's line of green cleaning products. I've never been a big fan of Shaklee but I though I'd look into it since we saw a booth about it at our local county fair.

The company states that their products do not contain hazardous ingredients including:
No naphthalene
No kerosene
No formaldehyde
No phenol
No cresol
No lye
No hydrochloric acid
No sulfuric acid
No petroleum distillates
No benzene
No ammonia
No paradichlorobenzene
No sodium hydroxide
No butyl cellosolve
No phosphoric acid
No chlorine
No ingredients that are hazardous to humans.
No chemicals like phosphates, chlorine, and nitrates that are harmful to the
planet.
No volatile organic compounds, chemicals that produce noxious toxins and air
pollution.

So, I'll let you know how it goes. Maybe I'll change my opinion of Shaklee.

Weekend in Review

Even though I have three-day weekends all summer, they still seem to go by as quickly as two-day weekends.

Gary took me to see "Ratatouille" which was really cute. We both enjoyed it. We also got to have cocktails and hors d'oeuvres with our friends Laura and Yohannes. They are always delightful. I finished up items for two swaps and finished knitting another bunny. I need to knit at least two more to give as Christmas/baby shower gifts. I also started a new book called DEDICATION by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus. So far it is fairly entertaining.

Yesterday, Gary and I stopped by an open house on a whim. But here's the thing...we loved the house. It has so much potential. It needs a lot of cosmetic work, though. It's hard to afford a house in California much less have money for improvements. But it would be so great! I would love to stay in the house we are renting forever. I love it so much. But it's just not feasible. Someday, we may not be able to stay there anymore. So, I'd like to buy something eventually. This house we saw is SO tempting! But it is scary to think about making that leap.

Sunday, July 29, 2007

LBC Freebie of the Day

Get a free sample of John Freida Thermal Protection OR Flawless Finishing Creme.

LINK

Friday, July 27, 2007

Thursday, July 26, 2007

????????


My blog is worth $6,209.94.
How much is your blog worth?




Ellen's is worth $54,000. Vieve's is worth $9600. Wonder how they figure that?

Grim Reaper's Cat

Hey, animal lovers! Have you seen this? Amazing!!!

LINK

And while you are at it, check out this hilarious post over at Ellen's blog!

*DEAD* LBC Freebie of the Day

Fill out a survey and get a free 3-pack of No Nonsense socks!

This one is a little tricky. I recommend you go to the site and register FIRST before doing the survey. The site is a little slow with all the freebie addicts running over there!

LINK

Roll Out the Red Carpet

Wow, they let ANYONE have a blog these days!

My good friend Gary L. finally has a blog!

Drum roll please...

RABBIT FENCE!

Gary is a the head of a mountaineering library and he also happens to be a sometime crafter specializing in handmade cards. His lovely wife Erin makes everything from beaded jewelry to decoupaged boxes. They are the craftiest couple I know. Hopefully, Gary will post some of their creations on the new blog. Recently, I made Gary a crown since he didn't get to be a part of the recent Crown/Tiara Swap. I think a photo of him in the crown would make a nice post. Don't you?

Anyway, welcome to blogging, Gary!!!

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Goodbye Old Friend!

The lastest Harry Potter book was delivered to my home by owl on Saturday morning. It was there when I woke up! How lovely!

I read it every chance I got. I even lugged it with me to Starbucks for my weekend coffee breaks with my hubby. I finished it late Sunday.

I'm satisfied with how the series ended. It is really hard to believe that the first one was published in 1997. I had just graduated from college and had moved to Denver to go to graduate school. It was my first time living outside of Texas and far away from my parents.

In the time that Harry Potter has been around (and in my life):

1. I moved to Colorado.
2. My father was killed.
3. I graduated with a Master's degree in anthropology.
4. I bought my first house.
5. I got a cat.
6. I went through several boyfriends and several dating situations.
7. I gained some friends and lost others.
8. I bought a new car.
9. I went through several jobs.
10. I met Gary.
11.I quit my job, sold my house and moved to California.
11.I started a new job.
13.I got married.
14.I watched the Twin Towers fall and another Bush get us into another war.
15.I started blogging.

Amazing. That's a lot of life changes. I think the SOPRANOS may have been with me through most of that as well. And now I have to say goodbye to both.

I hope that another children's book author (maybe even Rowling) will create another series that will spark people's imagination like this one has. It has been so wonderful to see kids get so excited about books!

I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Farewell, Harry.

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

LBC Freebie of the Day Part 2

Possible free Nestle Crunch bar. 2000 given away daily.

LINK

LBC Freebie of the Day

Get a free sample of Ziploc's new Zip 'n' Steam bags. These are really cool. I got to product test them through BzzAgent.

LINK

Saturday, July 21, 2007

Do Not Disturb

HARRY POTTER READING IN PROGRESS....

Thursday, July 19, 2007

Book Quiz




You're The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy!

by Douglas Adams

Considered by many to be one of the funniest people around, you are
quite an entertainer. You've also traveled to the far reaches of what you deem possible,
often confused and unsure of yourself. Life continues to jostle you around like a marble,
but it's shown you so much of the world that you don't care. Wacky adventures continue to
lie ahead. Your favorite number is 42.



Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

Updates

Sorry I haven't written a proper post in awhile. I think I may have Blogger's Block.

I went to Denver this past weekend to visit my friends. It has been a year since I have seen most of them. It was so good to see everyone and spend time with them. In many ways, it was as if I had never left. I went to several of my favorite restaurants and did some shopping. My friends Amy and Sara held a little get-together for me as well. It was really nice. But it also made me sad. Life goes on. New groups form, new inside jokes and stories develop, babies grow up. It's just different. And, of course, that is the nature of life. But I realized how I am not really a part of that group anymore. They will always be my friends but friendships are just different when you live next to each other as opposed to when you lives states apart. I'm hoping that maybe next year I can have a girls' weekend with some of them. That would be nice.

My next trip will be going home to Texas next month. I will be there for my friend Brandon's wedding which should be a lot of fun! He is just one of the sweetest guys I have ever known. We met while working at a bookstore together in college. I'm looking forward to the trip. And I always love going home.

Here is the latest Adam update for those who are interested. The little guy is still fighting for his life. The DA has been responsive to the letter-writing campaign and the two girls are being charged with felonies. In light of the recent dog-fighting charges against Vick, I think it is more important than ever that we as a country send swift, decisive messages about animal cruelty. For a full article on Adam and new photos, go here.

There has been a wonderful outpouring of support for Adam nationwide. If you would like to add your two cents to the letter-writing campaign to the Sonoma County DA, please let me know and I will give you the e-mail address.

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

LBC Freebie of the Day

I'm trying to make up for my lack of freebies lately....

Get a free sample of Tide Pure Essentials.

LINK

*NEW LINK* LBC Freebie of the Day Part 2

Get a coupon for a free 3 lb. bag of the new PURINA ONE for either cats or dogs.

LINK

LBC Freebie of the Day

Get a free sample of the new ALWAYS pads with better adhesive.

LINK

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

LBC Freebie of the Day

This is a POSSIBLE freebie. Familiar with the uber-comfy SOFFE shorts? Well, you can join their fan club. (mostly geared towards teenagers or those who wear smaller sizes) I have heard from A LOT of people who joined the fan club and received a box full of shorts, t-shirts and other goodies. Fingers crossed!!!



LINK

LBC Freebie of the Day

Get a free sample of Olay's Total Effects Foundation and lipcolor.

LINK

Thursday, July 12, 2007

Random Acts of Kindness/Pay It Forward Contest


You all know that I am big believer in the Random Act of Kindness/Pay it Forward concept. I regularly surprise people in the drive-thru at Starbucks by buying their coffee for them.

Well, Jennifer over at Wilson Six is having a contest to promote this kind of behavior. So, post about the contest at your blog and link it back to Jennifer and you could win a great prize! But, more importantly, go out and do something randomly kind and wonderful for somebody. Here are some suggestions:


*leave something for a neighbor

*Pay for the coffee of the car behind you at your local coffee shop

*Send a note to someone that you have not talked to in ages

*Buy the sweet Wal-mart greeter a soda as you leave the store

*Have your children get involved

*writing a thank you note to someone who would never expect it and maybe one you have been thinking in your head but have not taken the time to do it

*track down an former school teacher and let them know the great affect they had on you

*the next time you leave the store tell the manager something you enjoyed

*pick a family member and write tell them why you love being in their family

*send your spouse or friend a note at work

*buy lemonade from any kid selling it on the street


GET CREATIVE!!!

Here is the link to Jennifer's site:

LINK

Now, go forth and be NICE!!!

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

The Latest on Adam the Kitten

yes, I'm still obsessed with this...

So, Adam is doing really well. The DA was deliquent in charging the two 15-year-old girls responsible for burning Adam but after a focused letter-writing campaign, the girls have been arrested. I'm really thankful for this. I hope that if nothing else, these girls will be forced to go into some pretty serious court-mandated counseling.

A video has been posted of Adam playing. If you are worried about his appearance, I can tell you that he looks pretty good. See Adam here.

There are also some really sweet photos of the little guy here.

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

LBC Freebie of the Day

Get a free trial-sized sample of Aquafresh Advanced!

LINK

Monday, July 09, 2007

SICKO

*WARNING* RELIGIOUS PROPAGANDA AHEAD!

So, I went to see "Sicko" on Friday. I try to never miss a Michael Moore film. This one was particuarly good and particularly eye-opening. I don't want to give too much away. I want you to go out and see it. Right away.

The film focused mostly on the those of us who have insurance and are still getting stung by the health system. I am a healthy white collar worker on an HMO and this film really got me worried. And I happen to think that it is really embarrassing that not only England, Canada and France take better care of their people than we do but also CUBA!!! (not that I really have anything against Cuba) When did we stop valuing our citizens? Did we ever?

I guess what bothered me the most about this film is that we are supposed to be a largely Christian nation but we don't invest in our people. Moore made a good point. We have free primary and secondary education, free libraries, free police and fire safety services...why not healthcare? Well, obviously we all know the answer to that. There is big money to be made in healthcare and insurance. I would be willing to bet that virtually every representative and senator on Capitol Hill has money in their pockets from some health interest.

I have always felt that it is not enough to be a Christian in name only. I think God wants us to go out and take care of one another. We cannot focus solely on the afterlife. We need to look around us and care for our fellow human beings. So, why aren't Christians up in arms demanding free healthcare for all? Wouldn't that be a real family value? Shouldn't Christians focus on investing in people rather than pharmaceutical companies? What the heck is wrong with us?

Maybe Moore just got me riled up. He has a habit of doing that. But I am honestly sick of all of this. I want to know that if I get cancer or some other major disease or health complication that I won't be dropped from my insurance or that I will have to go into debt just to pay for basic healthcare. Don't you?

Thursday, July 05, 2007

Dewey Diaries

If you haven't seen this blog, I recommend it. Especially for people who work in libraries or other customer-service related industries. It is written by a circulation clerk in a public library and proves that the truth is often much much stranger than fiction. Since this individual is not a blogger, I help maintain the blog. Plus, it helps for security reasons.

Dewey Diaries

One Down, ? to Go

...and a good time was had by all. Well, my first anniversary was really nice. We escaped to Sonoma for two nights and stayed at a beautiful hotel, had dinner at a lovely restaurant and had a delightful massage. All provided by my mom through an auction item that she won at an event. We braved 100 degree weather and watched the parade in the Square and then headed over to a big field last night to watch the wonderful fireworks.

I gave Gary the PLANET EARTH dvds and two small parchment pamphlets tied with ribbon that I found at Dave Eggers' Valencia writing workshop in San Francisco. I am still working on that "creative" gift idea. Gary is going to give me opera tickets and he made me the cutest framed document. It lists all of the years of our marriage and each year that goes by, I get to open up the frame and check off another year! It's really cute.

I can't believe it has been a year since all of our fun wedding festivities in Sonoma. It really seems like only yesterday. And I wish all of our family and friends could have been with us again this year.

My friend Gary (who will be debuting his blog ANY DAY NOW) sent us a lovely handmade card and we got calls and e-mails from several friends. It is really nice to have your special day remembered.

Now, on to year two!

Tuesday, July 03, 2007

Monday, July 02, 2007

LBC Freebie of the Day Part 2

Get a free sample of Aquafresh White and Shine Berry Fresh Toothpaste.

LINK

LBC Freebie of the Day

Get a free sample of SoyJoy Nutrition Bars!

Link