A lot of people are afraid these days. The reasons are many and real.
Car jackers and road rage are just a few of the things people fear and for good reason. Not a day goes by that someone or maybe several folks are victims of these crimes.
Home Invasions are on the rise, burglars want to take your property bought with your hard earned money and the list goes on and on.
The economy is in the dumper and people are fearful of losing their jobs. Easy credit is now gone and thanks to some really greedy brokers/lenders and some really dumb folks who knew they couldn’t afford that expensive new house, the Nation is experiencing a mortgage meltdown and folks are losing their homes. The stock market is in yo yo mode and people are afraid of losing the value in their 401 k funds and other investments. (They have a right to be nervous.)
Health care and medical insurance is way too expensive. If you are lucky enough to have it and there are a lot of folks who don’t, your co-payments are higher and the cost of prescription drugs is out of sight.
Enter the fear mongers. Everyday my mailbox is full of this stuff. (Snail mail spam) These are the folks who advertise they can save you by preying on our irrational and sometimes justified fears! They can tell you how to protect your investments, how to play the stock market, which stocks to buy, how to beat the IRS, yada, yada, yada.
They can tell you how to beat cancer and other awful diseases. They can tell you the ’secrets’ that will keep you from growing old and keep you looking young.
They will tell you all of their secrets, but not for free. You can buy their expensive (and useless) books! Subscribe to their newsletters! (Not free!) When you receive the books and/or newsletters, read them very carefully. Do they deliver on their promise to give you all those secrets?
Right. The secrets are mostly stuff you should have learned a long time ago, or else the advice given is so ridiculous as to be downright scary!
Along with your paid newsletter subscription will come a lot of other ‘free’ advice. Just order this stuff and you will really be ’safe’. The only folks really benefiting from all of this extra stuff will be the fear mongers selling it.
The next time you see an offer from someone selling this stuff, read it with a skeptical eye. Do you see any of these phrases? Free Reports! (They aren’t free if you have to buy something else to get them.) Super Health Cures! Lose weight fast! Free Cash! Invest with no risk! On and on go the big headlines promising miracles for money, life and who knows what else.
If there really were cures for cancer and diabetes it would be wonderful. It would be all over the news, now wouldn’t it? I am rather skeptical about trusting the drug companies, but I don’t believe they are hiding cures because they are ‘free’. I don’t believe the oil companies hid, paid off, or killed to prevent the wonderful invention that got a hundred miles to the gallon from seeing the light of day.
If I were you, I’d throw that stuff where it belongs, in the recycle tub to place on the curb. Tell the fear mongers where to go.
Martha
I can remember when I was a kid (even though it was a long time ago!) I loved comic books. I don’t read comic books any more, but I do read the comics in the newspaper. I don’t read all of them though, because I just don’t find some of them very funny and some are just silly, not funny.
My newspaper is always trying changes with the comic strips, removing some and adding others. I just wish they would leave them alone. Most of the time they do a fair job, but sometimes they make changes I don’t like, such as when they stopped printing one of my very favorites, Cathy, along with others and added some strips I just don’t read because they are either not funny, just too silly or I can’t get ‘into’ them. They move the strips around too. Dilbert is now in the ‘Work & Money’ section. Mallard Filmore and Doonesbury are on the Editorial page. (They had to make room for some of the not so funny newcomers.)
I think my sense of humor is starting to warp. There is one new strip that is silly, not always funny and I don’t always ‘get it’, but I love it! It’s The Piranha Club.
I have several favorites, Pickles, Dilbert, the Pajama Diaries, but my very favorite is Better or Worse.
I discovered I can get most of my favorite daily comic strips on my Google Home page. Now I can read old favorites that disappeared from the local paper. I would have preferred to read them in the paper, but reading them online is pretty cool.
Martha
What’s going on here in Texas? Last fall I posted about a Strange Blob at one of the area lakes. Later there is a post about a Huge Spider Web is East Texas.
Now there are UFOs! Lots of people claim they have seen strange lights over Stephenville, a town west of Fort Worth. Some of the sightings include objects like ‘flying plates’ and objects as big as football fields. Nobody knows what they are, but there are UFO buffs from all over the world going to Stephenville!
Some of the folks in Stephenville are having lots of fun with all of the furor over ‘UFO sightings’. Alien masks, tinfoil hats to prevent mind control and other strange paraphernalia can be seen about the town. Others seem to think the sightings are signs the world is coming to an end.
So far I have yet to see a blob, a huge spider web (thank goodness!) or a strange thing in the sky. I sometimes think I might like to see a UFO, but I don’t think I would tell anyone. Everyone I know would just have confirmation ‘She’s nuts!’
Could it be a conspiracy? All those UFO folks coming to town will surely jump start the economy in Stephenville. I am just waiting for someone to start a UFO business. Of course some are probably already selling ‘I saw a UFO’ T-shirt.
I am still wondering what’s going on here in Texas.
Martha
I like omelets, but I can’t seem to make one without making a big mess when it’s time to flip it. I haven’t made one is a very long time for that reason. Besides, scrambled eggs are just as tasty with all of the omelet ingredients added.
Back to omelets, have you ever noticed how many people make omelets on TV and in the movies? It seems as though every guy dating a girl for the first (or second) time, takes her to his apartment for an omelet. He doesn’t have anything else to eat, but miraculously has everything needed for the omelet like cheese, onions, peppers,etc. Of course the omelet turns out wonderful. Occasionally the guy is all thumbs and the girl takes over the making the omelette. Sometimes it’s the other way, the girl can’t cook but the guy is a real genius at making an omelet.
Sometimes it’s the girl’s apartment and she is cooking the omelet to perfection. One thing leads to another and the first thing you know, well, you know! It is definitely because of the omelet! (it seems that way.)
So what is it about romance that inspires omelets? Or is it the omelet that inspires romance? (This reminds me of ‘which came first, the chicken or the egg?’)
More than likely the omelet has nothing to do with the romance, but it makes a nice addition to the story!
Martha
There is a business that actually buys ugly houses. You have probably seen billboards advertising ‘We Buy Ugly Houses’. A few years ago, they just seemed to pop up everywhere. Apparently a lot of people are selling their ugly houses and investors fix them up and sell them for a tidy profit.
I guess I have led a sheltered life, as I didn’t understand what they meant by ‘ugly’. I thought they meant old houses in need of repair. I didn’t realize they meant neglected, run-down, disgusting, dirty, trashed out houses!
They are having a contest right now about which house is the ugliest. Some of them are perfectly understandable judged ugly just by looking at the outside, but some of them surely qualify by just the inside! If you want to , you can vote on the ‘ugliest house of the year‘. (I voted!) After looking at these houses, I really appreciate mine!
While surfing around I found a site with a section on what the author considers ugly houses. I have to agree about the color choices and yard decorations. Some of them are quite ‘unusual’ to say the least. Butt ugly houses of the universe. There is also a saga of the author’s van, but that’s another story.
I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I cannot believe anyone ever thought Tacoma’s Deriugin house was beautiful. According to the site it has been torn down. I expect everyone in the immediate vacinity was relieved!
For some really unusual looking houses (and some really ugly houses), take a few minutes or an hour to explore Unusual houses (and other unusual items) on Unusual Life. It is astonishing to me what some people want to have in or around their domiciles.
I rather imagine every city of any size has some unusual houses and probably most of them are considered ugly. Take for example some of the unusual homes on Seattle Dream Homes. I always say, ‘To each his own’. I wouldn’t be interested in owning something like this, but obviously someone liked it.
Want to live in a ’space ship’? Just look on Strange Houses Around The World. Some really weird structures are pictured here and some of them, if not most, are somebody’s home, even the melting house! (How about that monster!)
Check out the Architecture From Another Planet - 25 Incredible (Real) Abodes Some of the listings here are on other pages listed above, but the strange houses listed here have neat descriptions that tell more about each house. Fun, but not for me!
Martha
Little is Good!
TumbleWeed Houses, an alternative to McMansions and a lot less expensive!
I saw an article about living in a tiny house a while back. I really can’t imagine living in one of these itsy bitsy dwellings, but then again, it would be a sure fire way to live back to basics!
They seem to have just about everything you really need (except closet space!) and they are really pretty complete. Cute too! The designer of these houses has even been on Oprah, so if you watch Oprah you may already know about these tiny palaces.
There are even some small house communities. The one in Geneva shows some really nice small houses, a little bigger than tiny, but certainly not big. A Tiny House Community
There is a website devoted to tiny houses of all sorts. A Tiny Houses Website. Some of these tiny houses are play houses or fishing shacks. Some are little garden houses and some are vacation houses, but they are all tiny. (And cute!)
You’ve probably heard at least once in your lifetime that everything is bigger in Texas. This is true even for tiny houses. Tiny Texas Houses look pretty nice and a bit more roomy that some of the other tiny houses I looked at on the ‘net. I could afford one of those and it looks like I could just pick it up and move it if I wanted to as well.
These folks built their tiny house for about $6000. A Boat Builders Little House I don’t think I am up to that, but if I had some help, maybe!
These little dwellings appeal to me, but somehow I don’t think I would really like to live in one all the time. However, I think it might be fun
to try, just for a little while!
Martha
My friends all call me a ‘geek’ because I am just a bit more computer literate than most folks. I don’t think of myself as a geek because I know there is so much I don’t know about computers. One thing, I am totally hardware challenged. Well not totally, but almost.
I do like a lot of geeky toys, although some of them are just a little too geeky for me. I found some really cool geeky stuff while ‘net surfing. A few of them are on my Christmas wish list, like LED Faucet lights. These are way too cool! And affordable as well!
I think this is kind of cool, but I don’t think I will add this to my list.
Turn Your CD Collection Into Workspace Art…
I would really like to have one of these! But since it’s a tad pricey I probably won’t get one. A Virtual Keyboard!
This could be handy, but I really don’t want one of these, I think it’s ugly!
Easy to see keyboard from X-Treme Geek.
How about a washable keyboard from Tiger Direct? Coffee drinkers should like this!
Everyone needs one of these, an any key!
Not a Rubik cube! It’s an ‘Irregular IQ Cube! Since I could never master the Rubik cube I’ll have to pass on this one.
Every blogger needs a geeky blog T-shirt!
Most geeks can be sleepy heads in the morning. A sleepy-headed geek needs ‘Clocky‘!
And then when money is no object:
Top 10 Toys for Geeks who have Everything (Part Two)
Martha
I thought about strings the other day. (I need to get a life!)
Have you ever noticed how many things seem to develop strings at the wrong time?
This can happen when dressing to go someplace, especially when you are in a hurry. You check yourself in a mirror and “Egads! There’s a string hanging from the hem of my skirt!” ( I imagine you’ll say something besides ‘egads’ but I want this to be kid friendly.)
Now you have to find the scissors to cut the string because if you pull it, chances are the entire hem will come undone!
Then there are the strings that suddenly show up on brand new towels, bath mats, etc. Funny, they didn’t show strings when I bought them. I don’t buy the most expensive of these, but I don’t buy the real ‘cheapies’ either.
‘Strings’ have more than one meaning too. If you aren’t really careful when talking about strings, someone may think you are talking about something other than what you mean.
Some musical instruments have strings, like violins, cellos, guitars, etc. If you mention ‘I cut a string’ to a violinist, he/she may think you are damaging a violin!
There is something called ’strings’ in computer language as well. My friends all know I don’t write computer programs so that is one confusion that doesn’t happen to me, but I suppose it could happen to some folks. There is something called ‘String functions‘ in web site pages as well.
There is something called String Theory. I haven’t the vaguest idea what that is, but there are web sites about String Theory. I think it has something to do with Physics which has never been one of my strengths. Since I’ve been reading that you should never stop learning new things, maybe I will check into this later. My older son has a degree in Physics, so maybe he can explain String Theory to me.
My younger son said that if you pull someone’s string they might fall apart!
Last night while playing with my dog, he got really wound up. My son said “Mom pulled his string!”
I imagine if I looked hard enough I would probably find more things named string or strings, but that is enough of stringing you along today.
Martha
(or stuff I don’t need, but think it would be fun to have)
You probably thought USB stuff was for computers, but you were wrong; I know I was. There are web sites that have almost anything you can think of for those USB ports on your computer.
Some of us still insist on keeping our favorite drinks handy while using our computers even though we know liquids are not good for keyboards. If you are like me, you may forget to drink your coke while it is cold and warm coke is ‘yucky’. What could be handier than a USB mini fridge to keep it cool!
Or how about a USB mini vacuum cleaner to get all the crumbs out of your keyboard? (Eating while sitting in front of the computer is really not a good idea)
Do you work in an office where the boss or whoever is in charge of the thermostat wants the temperature just slightly above freezing? You can get some USB gloves to warm your hands.
You can get a lava lamp or maybe some retro lamps. How about a motorized ashtray if you are a smoker?
A bigfoot cam, a pencil sharpener, FM radio and a host of other USB Toys are all available; just waiting to be plugged into one of your USB ports.
There is one thing that really might be handy, a CD destroyer! I have stacks of old CDs that were used to back up data. This could be the answer on how to get rid of them!
Martha
I used to think you couldn’t ruin chocolate. I was wrong.
There was an article in the newspaper recently describing this abomination!
How can anyone be so cruel as to cover bugs with perfectly good chocolate! What a terrible way to ruin chocolate!
Some so-called gourmet folks seem to think that it’s OK to waste perfectly good chocolate to cover ants, worms, roaches and other yucky things. I can’t imagine eating even one of those chocolate covered ickies! Even though I consider myself a chocoholic, I still draw the line someplace and that’s the line, no bugs!
Not only do these people who desecrate chocolate sell these so called treats, they even have recipes so you can make your own. Ewwwww! A Google search for ‘Chocolate Covered Insects‘ got over 800,000 hits!
Sometimes I think I really must quit reading the newspaper, but it’s such a good source of stuff to write about!
Martha
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