Keep Cell Phone Dry with LokSak by TroutU

Guest Writer: Ruth Morse

HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM!

OK, 'fess up. How many of you looked at this photo and immediately knew what the problem was?

Yup. Jim's cell phone got wet last week. The dumb thing has been in a bag of rice for 6 days now, and, even now, this is all we see when we turn it on.

Not good! I have no idea if the rice is accomplishing anything. I like to pretend the little white lines showing up on the screen are getting longer.

Yeah, right.

Decided we could not function without 2 cell phones. Jim's phone was a baby--only 5 months old. No chance for a deal from Verizon. I found the same phone on Amazon cheaper than we could purchase it on Verizon. Ordered it. It came. Charged it. And then this morning, magic happened.

I was able to activate the phone all by myself without calling a kid, a kid-in-law or a grandchild! This is a first. Do I feel proud or what?

Even before the new phone arrived, I also ordered a handy dandy wonderful Loksak from TroutU. (only $7.79 click here to order yours!)

Chris Mann Roads CD Review

Release Date:  October 30, 2012

Genre:  Classical Pop

Roads, a crazy-good variety of songs, is being released tomorrow - October 30, 2012.  Roads is "classically based pop music" --  pop music with a dramatic, sophisticated, heart-melting sound.  Chris Mann performs familiar songs like Lady Antebellum's Need You Now, Willie Nelson's Always on My Mind, Paul Anka's My Way popularized by Frank Sinatra and Damien Rice's The Blowers' Daughter, on which Chris has Christina Aguilera performing backup vocals.  My favorite is Coldplay's Viva La Vida, I love Chris' sound on that, so different than Coldplay, the difference is remarkable.....

Upcoming CD Review ~ Best CD Ever

Oh, ya'll . . .

Guess who is releasing a new album on October 30th and has sent me an early copy to review right now?

My heart is melting.

This album is crazy good,

touching

soothing

piercing

breath-taking.

Pretty sure I'll shed a tear before it's over.

Stay close, I'll post a review soon.

Can you guess who it is?

Give up?

Click the picture.

Imagination Movers Fall Tour and Rock-O-Matic Review

Imagination Movers' Rock-O-Matic CD and DVD was released earlier this year by Razor & Tie.  They are in the middle of their Fall Tour right now and I was given a set to review and

a set to offer in a give-away.

So of course I brought in my seven year old granddaughter to help me out.

The Emmy award winning New Orleans based Imagination Movers has been on the scene since 2003.  The group consists of Rich Collins, Scott Durbin (my granddaughter's favorite), Dave Poche and Scott “Smitty”

Smith.  The guys are positive, upbeat and high-energy.  The songs - on this CD - are a combination of rap and old school rock.  The message is positive and educational.  The tunes are catchy and you'll find yourself humming or singing along. 

Black Friday 2012

Is it too early to start planning your Black Friday morning?    The ads are starting to come out and I think you should start talking strategy. Defense.  Offense.  Stuff like that.....

Sunday Satchel: The Puzzle Addict

I finally remembered to do a purse dump for a Sunday Satchel post!  The owner of this purse was reluctant to dump it.  But I don't see anything embarrassing.   Unusual items include the nasal spray, crystal light and completed newspaper puzzles.  Love the Wendy's frosty coupons!

What would I find if you dumped your purse for me right now?

Top 6 Tips From The Cheap Senior Citizen

Guest Writer:  The Cheap Sr. Citizen

My next, brightest, newest, brainiest, helpfulest, money savings......................

Free advice is usually worth ju$t what you paid for it. In $pite of that, I am going to pu$h on and give you oodle$ of free advice.

Pick and choose which ones you opt to believe and/or apply to your life to make it ever-so-wonderful.

• I say: forget the health food. I need all the preservatives I can get.
• Don't sneeze when someone is cutting your hair.
• Never hold a Dust Buster and a cat at the same time.
• Laughing is good exercise. It's like jogging on the inside.
• Some cause happiness wherever they go; others, whenever they go.
• The cardiologists' diet: if it tastes good, spit it out.

And last, but never least:

Always remember to forget the troubles that pass your way;
BUT NEVER forget the blessings that come each day. 

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...and one more thing......
uh, I'll get back to you when I remember it.
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The Cheap Senior Citizen is a Guest Writer who occasionally shares helpful hints she has learned through her experience.

   

Red Bull Stratos: Mission Accomplished!

He did it!

Felix Baumgartner supported by a team of experts and sponsored by Red Bull jumped 120,000 feet from a stratospheric balloon, a freefall jump at supersonic speed.

Read about the plan here.
About Felix.

Red Bull Stratos Live

Blog Review and Summary

I've been blogging 4 1/2 years, 1431 posts, 90,828 page views. Man, I wish I had said something useful in all that.  I thought you might enjoy some of the stats, maybe devise a trivia game to play around the dining room table tonight or something.

One thing the stats prove:  You guys really, really love my cupcake reviews. (speaking of which, I have one I haven't written yet:  strawberry waffle.  Hint:  I ate the whole thing without sharing)

The all-time most popular:  Dick's Last Resort
The other popular posts are organically listed on my front page.  Not listed, but a favorite among many was Astronaut Ron Garan's description of re-entry.  That one was a lot of fun to write.  Astronaut Doug Wheelock's Emergency on the ISS garnered a lot of attention, as well as that whole series on him.

The only post that elicited controversial comments.....

Women of Faith: Celebrate What Matters

In an unusual turn of events, I find myself going to the Women of Faith conference again this year.  I didn't think I was able to go this year, then they emailed me an extraordinary low price if I go just for Saturday and not Friday.  The venue is nearby, so I find that I am able to go and I'm very, very excited.

Last year, the Women of Faith team sponsored me to go as a blogger to the Tampa conference.  It was all that I expected and more.

This year I will attend the one in Charlotte next weekend.  Mandisa, Amy Grant, Chonda Pierce.  Yowza.

Women of Faith conferences always encourage and inspire me.  It is a time of refreshment and worship.  I keep my notes and look back on them throughout the year.  The ladies deliver several life-changing moments with God's perfect timing in the lives of individuals.  You can see it all around you at these events.

If you want to go.....

Foster Mom to Endangered Birds: What I Want to be When I Grow Up

Ask any ten year old what they want to be when they grow up and you'll get a lot of firemen, some policemen, a few teachers and a super-hero or two, but one profession I never heard anyone want to be is “Foster mom to endangered birds.”

The Northern Bald Ibis in Europe (which really isn't bald at all) was nearly extinct not that long ago. They were a favored bird among hunters until a couple of ladies decided to restore the Ibis to the Alps.....

Cupcake in Columbia SC, Cupcake Review

It's been far too long since I've done a cupcake review for you, my hungry, hungry reader.  All for you.

The flavors: 

Chocolate Monkey. Dark chocolate cake with white choc. chips and walnuts with peanut butter banana cream cheese icing.
Chai Tea.  Chai Tea vanilla cake topped with sweet cream cheese icing and dusted with cinnamon.
Caramel Macchiato.  Caramel cake with coffee icing, drizzled with caramel and a chocolate coffee bean.
Black and White.  Dark chocolate cake with vanilla bean buttercream icing and pink sprinkles on top for Breast Cancer Awareness support.  $1 on each cupcake sold is donated to breast cancer awareness and research.

Four locations, 8 samplers. So many reviews.  Still, only 4 cupcakes.  Man we made those things last.

And this is the first time I've had someone spit their sample out in the trash can.

Chocolate Monkey.  This is a powerful cupcake.  The Monkey is a love/hate thing - you either love it or hate it, no in-between.   It's very moist.  The peanut butter is subtle.  The walnuts are obnoxious - Pam loved them, Scott and Tommy ate around them.  Tommy said the Monkey tasted like grass, "something healthy."

Patti and Eva took one bite, gagged and spit it in the trash.

Marj bit into the Monkey,groaned curiously, bent into it, peered closely, dug around a little and tried it again.  "Nah," she sighed, "too many weird things going on." 

And the Monkey was sent to the corner.

Caramel Macchiato......

Mountain Cleaners as a Profession: THAT's What I Want to Be When I Grow Up

Ask any ten year old what they want to be when they grow up...

....and you'll get a lot of firemen, some policemen, a few teachers and a super-hero or two, but one profession I've never heard is “Mountain Cleaner.”

Now that I've seen a mountain cleaner,

I bet a lot of ten year olds would want to be one.

There's a mountainside in Salzburg where Tom and I once hiked that requires regular cleaning.  Guys in teams of two hang alongside the vertical rock face to break away loose stones and monitor cracks and crevices to prevent rubble from falling onto roofs or roads below.....

Blueberry Jello Salad

The days of jello salads are long past, but this recipe is worth pulling out once in awhile.

Take 2 3-oz. pkg. grape jello and dissolve it in only 2 c. boiling water.

Add 1 1-lb can of blueberry pie filling and 1 can crushed pineapple, undrained.  Stir, put in a shallow pan, congeal.

Topping:

1 8-oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. sugar, blended in
8oz sour cream
1 tsp. vanilla

Blend topping ingredients with a fork and spread on the thoroughly congealed jello salad.
Top with 1/2 c shopped nuts if desired.

Jello Molds
Aunt Edna's Top Secret Blueberry Muffin Recipe