So Much To Buy, and So Little Time

While preparing myself for my next trip to Hawaii, I started reading up on old posts from years ago. I'd forgotten about them but really liked them, so I am re-posting them for your enjoyment.

Consumerism has reached a new level. Until now, I have been unfamiliar with the abundance of travel supplies and accessories available. While making my packing list, I've found a veritable bottomless pit of supplies that each company touts as "must haves" for the savvy traveler. Well, not wanting to be un-savvy I took a peek.

Armed with my debit card, I find I'm faced with the daunting decision of what to purchase. Should I get the "Disposable Tan Towel" that gives me a natural healthy looking tan without the harmful effects of the sun, or the "Soothing Sole Towelettes" that instantly refresh, cleanse, and deodorize? Begging for my hard-earned, but casually spent dollars, are the travelers first aid kit, the special "no-wrinkle" (yeah right) clothing, disposable underwear, travel lights, map readers, motion sickness wrist bands, travel fans, and the inevitable, but very stupid looking, "Cloud-Soft Inflatable Pillow" that "makes all the difference on long flights." (Speaking of those little inflatable pillows, I've seen those; they wrap around your neck like the yoke on an oxen. Though they do appear to be much lighter weight and can be purchased in a variety of colors, they still look pretty funny. My sister wore one when we traveled to Italy in 2001. It was a real struggle to keep my hilarity to myself so as to not to disturb her during her slumber. The pillow did work; she didn't kink her neck, but she did keel over and ended up reclining on the very nice Italian lady next to her. This kindly soul didn't shove Linda out into the aisle even once during the entire 4+ hour trip from Rome to Venice. Who says the locals aren't kind to Americans?

One item reminded me of a conversation some of us had regarding smells on long airline flights. It was the "Personal Air Supply" that "substantially reduces pollutants, dust, smoke...so fresh air is released towards your mouth, nose, and eyes." You get the picture. I think the $125 price tag means I'll be smelling whatever comes my way during the 9+ hour flight.

Here's a few other items that caught my eye (actual name and descriptions used):

* Boroleum - place a tiny dab at the base of each nostril for immediate relief from dry nasal membranes.

* Skeeter Defeater - portable free-standing insect tent that packs easily into its own carrying sack.

* Flipper - Suctions securely to any smooth surface and its unique springloaded hinge allows it to "flip" open and closed, preventing your toothbrush bristles from coming into contact with surface germs (the picture shows your toothbrush suctioned to the bathroom mirror)

* Restop - biodegradable blend of polymers breaks down waste into a sturdy zip top bag and turns it into gel (I'm not kidding)

* Tush Wipes - I'm not going to explain this one

All this has helped me make up my mind. I'm not buying anything, but I will make James sit at the back of the plane.

4/3/2009 Note: I'm not going on this next trip with James though.

Say What?

We've all heard 'em: popular over-used words, phrases, cliche's, weird pronunciations, or tidbits of nomenclature that we all wish would go away. Here are some that have caught my ear and made me go hmmm...?

1. Again - I've been in meetings day after day (that's my work-life, in a nutshell) and someone will begin a sentence with "Again, I'd like to point out that that database hosting solution requires that we..." and so on. Well, without fail I begin trying to figure out when they had said it before in order to verify the use of the word "again" in their statement. Most of the time they have not been redundant. Clearly the use of the word has become a strange way of starting off a statement.

2. Basically - same as above. In my Information Technology world (IT) I've found that there really are few things that are basic. But hey, maybe that's just me.

3. Monday - pronounced Mon-dee, or Fri-dee, not day. When did that happen? One of our local weathermen uses that pronunciation and it really bugs me. It really doesn't work well with some of the days of the week in particular; it just sound wrong. Try it. Say with me: Satur-dee. See what I mean?

4. In terms of - again, (notice I am using this correctly as the beginning of my statement) this is a case of people finding a not-so-unique way of making a comment. When one thinks about what the phrase really means, it really should go without saying if one has a well thought out statement to make.

5. Right? - I work with a strong contingent of people who regularly finish a sentence with a question by tacking on question "right?" at the end. Depending on the person it may be a result of a couple of things. It could be a not-so-clever way to trying to lead the listeners into agreeing with the tactic or decision. Or, it could simply be an insecure person seeking approval for their comments/statements. I suppose we should also consider that someone has just created the habit and really don't expect everyone to be constantly affirming every other sentence. Goodness knows I've been tempted to interrupt after the end of every such sentence with a loud "YES" or "RIGHT!". Somehow I don't think that would make me very popular, though the possibility exists that I would be invited to fewer meetings which wouldn't be a bad thing after all. I'll have to think on that one more.

In addition to the above more nonsensical words, it seems every year there are new business buzz words and cliches that become popular. I guess I'm a rebel at heart. I purposefully try to stay away from them if I can at all get away with it. I'll never forget a couple of years ago, I couldn't get through one meeting without hearing the phrase "low hanging fruit". I hear it once in a while now, but it is almost gone (good riddance). Hasn't anyone heard that the fruit that is the most available has usually been sprayed with insecticides? Don't eat it!

Is it Just Me?

OK I admit it. I'm a staunch conservative. I didn't used to be. Back in the mid-80's I fled a legalistic and extreme religious environment and spread my wings and swung over to a fairly liberal mind-set. That phase only last a few years. Once my rebellious anti-everything-I'd-ever-been-trained/taught mode waned, I began to pay attention and really examine the political world around me. I attended town-hall meetings held by my state legislator, I talked with candidates that went door-to-door and even started watching websites for current and wanna-be candidates. I started listening to talk radio and forsaking the typical news outlets which seemed very slanted to me. I worked hard to actually be informed. I didn't want to blindly follow anything anymore.

Well the news of late has really got me in a very defensive mode. I am starting to feel like I need to defend my personal property, my finances; my general way of life seems to be in jeopardy. The dollar is falling, rampant inflation is probably less than a year away (keep printing that money!). What now? What if I lose my up-to-now safe, well paying job? What would we do if our money became nearly worthless? How would we pay our bills? Buy food? Keep a roof over our heads? It seems that a lots of things I've taken as a given, may actually be in jeopardy. I'm turning 50 in about a month and retirement usually isn't far from my mind. Will I now have to work until I'm 70? Will I even have a job? Ah, so much to think about.

Should I buy gold? Silver? I most certainly want to pay off as much debt as possible, no question there. Debt is certainly a bad thing in our world's current situation. I don't' want to be beholden to anyone if I don't have to.

But man, do I still want to travel the world, spoil my grand kids, help out my kids as they start up their new families, be generous with my charitable giving. I really want that new computer monitor, new software, iPod Touch (thanks for the tip JD!), camera accouterments, and more. Oh and my tires need replacing, the yard is a disaster and needs new sod, and I need a new wardrobe. My house still has a lot of painting to be done and curtains to put up. I can see that I have a real struggle in front of me to curb my years of easy spending.

I've been very reticent about posting my thoughts on this; worried that some will see me as a conspiracy theorist or just plain batty with my concerns.

Too bad.

I am out in the open now.

Weird News Alert

Student kicked off of a school bus for farting - A Lakeland Florida teen is kicked off a bus for trying to make kids laugh by farting. The bus driver, according to www.theledger.com, when filling out his incident form, said ""Jonathan passes gas on the bus to make the other children laugh and it is so stink [sic] that you can't breathe after he does it."

Three men killed while trying to saw through a bomb - surely these men are candidates for the famous Darwin Awards. A policeman reports to the online news source, The Australian, that "The poor men wanted to sell the metal for money. They could not escape the sudden blast."

Vindictive man tries to get back at his neighbor ends up setting his own car on fire - Seattle's own King5news.com reports that the Florida man couldn't escape a shift in winds that blew the flames from his moltov coctail onto his own property. Authorities believe that alcohol was involved. No kidding.

What? Me Change?

Ah spring is here! With the start of Daylight Savings time, we are reminded by radio hosts and TV special service annoucements, to change our smoke alarm batteries. Well it got me thinking about all the other things we here at the Ochs house usually forget to change. I wonder if anyone else suffers from same.

1. Smoke Alarm Batteries - I suppose I should change them, but they're about 10 feet high and require a tall ladder. What a hassle! They're so obnoxious. If it weren't for that little thing called "safety", I'd be taking those little buggers out. I've boiled a pan dry or something dripped onto the bottom of the oven and my alarms are sent shrieking and our hearts racing. My poor doggy makes a quick bee-line out of the house (via the quickly opened door to waft smoke away) in order to save his keenly sensitive ears. The rest of us suffer while fanning near invisible smoke towards the windows and doors.

2. Soil - potted plants need regular re-potting with new soil to keep the plant happy with sweet soil. Apparently soil can go sour. Well, I don't change the soil and I rarely can keep a plant past a year or so. Go figure.

3. Furnace Filters - We firmly believe in letting the next owners of our house worry about any furnace problems.

4. Mascara - did you know that make-up can get old and breed bacteria and cause eye disease and even blindness? I actually don't forget to change out my mascara but am putting this in here to raise global awareness to the epidemic sure to threaten all females of the human species. CHANGE OUT YOUR MASCARA every three months! Save yourselves!

5. Loofahs (or other body brushes or scrubby-thingies) - ah just scrub off your dirt and old skin cells then set 'em in the shower and let 'em soak up the water week after week. There ain't nothing bad about that, right?

6. Refrigerator Water Filter - most of the newer refrigerators have great water filters that eliminate the need for us to purchase bottled water. Keep that filter changed and you can save yourself tons of money buying what you can get for free.

7. Passwords - please change your passwords regularly; particularly those linked with banking institutions or sites/applications that have personal information. The recommended norm is to change them every 90 days. Also, don't put yourself at risk by making all of them the same. Another tip: don't write them all down and post them by your computer.

8. Sachet - that 5 yr old lavender sachet that is in the lingerie drawer? I think it's time. I suppose you could always peel an orange and stuff the rind in there. They're sure to give off a nice citrus smell.

9. The vacuum cleaner bag - if you do that then it won't take 10 swipes to pick up the thread off the floor. You'll be able to do your vacuuming in 1/10th the time!

10. Glade scented plug-in - things will smell much better if you change out those old crusty cartridges. I hear they have lots of great scents out there.

11. Sunscreens - did you know that last year's sunscreens have lose their potency/strength? Don't kid yourself that your SPF 45 is still providing you with maximum protection. You might burn.


Other ideas on things you can change that help keep you fresh and relevant (and staying away from either being boring or being bored):

- Facebook profile picture
- Try new music preferences - step out of your box!
- Find a new hobby
- Your calendar; throw away the 2008 one with the great picture
- Get a new hairstyle
- The paint color in your favorite room
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