MAKE A NOTE!! -- April 7th, 2004
CIRCULATION - 40,453 (From Around the World! :-)
WEB SITE VISITORS - 84,404
A Free Twice Monthly (1st and 3d Wednesday of each month) Ezine with (Hopefully) Useful Info on a Wide Variety of Topics
NEXT ISSUE TO BE PUBLISHED ON/ABOUT APRIL 21ST, 2004
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NOTE: Each entry has a suggested "POST IT..." location at the end. We recommend that you print out the ezine, cut out each entry, & post it in these locations to make it easier for you to find when you need it. And if you like what you read, be sure to pass it on to someone else who can use it.
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My Favorite: Books
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The Couponizer
If you have been looking for the best coupon saving AND use system out there, look no further. "The Couponizer" is an amazing system that cleans up that messy coupon collection that most of us have laying around everywhere! First, it has the CoupStacker, sort of like a mat with 24 different categories to put your coupons on. So you cut them out and as you cut them, you put them in the proper stack. Categories include things like Bread & Bakery, Snacks, Frozen Foods, and Dairy. Then you take your nice little stacks and put them in the proper pocket of your Couponizer book. The book has sections for your shopping list, coupons expiring soon, coupons to use on your next trip and even a Check-out pocket for coupons to give to the cashier . It comes with a nice shopping list pad, a CoupTracker (to keep a record of your coupon savings...always motivating), and a pocket for the CoupStacker mat. Now if all that wasn't enough, there is a User Guide booklet that has lots of tips for using the system, and other helpful info like the best place to find coupons (including internet coupons). All these wonderfully helpful items in a nice little plastic pouch (with scissors even!) that you could attach to a belt. But there's more (at the risk of sounding like an infomercial :-), the company has agreed to give OUR readers a SUPER SPECIAL discount of 40% ($5) off, just by letting them know you are a Make a Note subscriber. If you order by the toll free line, they will give you the discount right away. If you order online, then you will get a $5 Rebate Check, once you identify yourself in their follow up (after you order) email. To get more information on the Couponizer, or to place an online order, go to... www.thecouponizer.com If you'd like to place an order by phone, call 1-866-425-4736. They also have a monthly newsletter, The Dotted Line, that you might want to sign up for with tips to save you even more. If you are a group (school, church, etc.) looking for a fundraising idea, they also have arrangements for groups like yours. For me personally, as a mom & wife, I'd be much more interested in purchasing something to save me money than candy bars or gift wrap. Even if you aren't into coupons yourself, why not try this suggestion from the creator of the Couponizer. Some moms have their children clip coupons, and give the kids a percentage of the coupon savings. So maybe you should buy a Couponizer for your KIDS! Talk about motivating, you'll probably see your kids checking out the newspaper, internet, and postal mailings like never before.
POST IT...near your computer and coupons, and in school/church group directories.
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EXTRA Credit Card Charges
Just in case you missed the (sparse) news reports about this computer glitch, if you used your Visa or MasterCard credit card on March 31st at Wal-Mart, check to make sure that your charges weren't doubled, or even tripled. A computer used by certain card companies and vendors decided to multiply charges. The companies are saying that all accounts have since been corrected, but it never hurts to double check. Read more about it at...
http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/ptech/04/05/walmart.overcharged.ap/index.html
POST IT...with your bills to be paid.
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Humor Doesn't Translate Well
As some of you world travelers may be able to confirm, humor doesn't always travel well. An article on CNN goes into more detail than I can here. Check out the article at...
http://www.cnn.com/2004/TRAVEL/04/04/bt.humor.trip.reut/index.html
The best thing to do is NOT try to joke around, and read up on the culture
before you go. Even some cultural things that the article didn't mention...it is
rude to leave a tip on the table in German restaurants (you should still tip,
but directly to the waitress when you pay your bill), it is rude to bring roses
to a hostess in Germany (this is considered a flower for those in love), it is
considered rude to pat children on the head in many Asian countries, among
others. Even within countries there are regional differences. For example, in
the southern USA it is common for children to refer to adults as Miss Emily (or
whatever their first name is) or Mr. Vern, but in the northeast it would not
usually be acceptable. So do your homework, and check up with any local sources
you can for what the current customs are. A good start would be to go to
Enter "cultural-differences (country you are interested in)". So if I wanted to
check out Mexico, then I would enter...cultural-differences Mexico. No hyphen
between differences & the country you enter. If you take a language class
designed for travelers, they can also focus more on customs & cultural
differences than a regular language class. Pen Pals are also a great source of
info. POST IT...under travel agents in the yellow pages, or with your foreign
language guides.
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Protect Those Cars
This is another one of those free sites that provide a great service to save you time and money. You can go to this site, design your own email Has your car been attacked recently by a runaway shopping cart? Perhaps an overzealous child used their own car door to leave a lasting "impression" on yours? Here are some tips to avoid having to deal with those annoying little marks or broken lights, whether you bother to fix them or just fume. First, if you are adverse to walking a few extra steps to protect your car, or you get the shakes if you have to pass up the open space right next to the store entrance, then this article is not for you. Although a comedian once shared his amazement that someone who goes to the gym to workout every day will drive around a parking lot for 20 min trying to find a space close to the store. :-) So, now that I have just the true believers reading on...always try to leave at least 2 empty parking spaces between your car and others. Try to avoid parking downhill (where carts will roll if left unsecured). Along the same lines, avoid parking anywhere near shopping cart collection areas. Try to park with one side of your car next to a concrete planter or divider, so that at least one side is protected. Avoid parking under trees that drip sap or bird droppings. Try parking in the spaces with no parking spaces on one or both sides. Avoid parallel parking, because it seems that if you are parked along a sidewalk that many people feel it is okay to lean or sit on your car. If you can't avoid parking next to someone, then consider the following. Avoid parking next to commercial vans for safety reasons alone. Avoid parking next to cars that are in poor shape or have lots of scratched paint & dents; chances are if they don’t care about their own car, they aren't going to care about yours. Do park next to very nice, well kept up, expensive cars if possible. Avoid parking next to handicapped spaces, because if they are retrieving and using wheelchairs, walkers, or other equipment, they may need more room to maneuver. Avoid parking next to vehicles with a lot of kid stuff in the car; as a parent myself, I know that kids are often not careful enough when opening car doors. Avoid parking next to very large/wide vehicles that don't leave as much room to open doors. Avoid parking in spaces that are just around blind corners. If it is extremely windy, consider parking your vehicle with a few extra empty spaces, not only for others, but for yourself. I think we have all had that momentary panic when the wind catches our car door as we open it. Consider parking in the space farthest away from the store to give yourself a little extra exercise. If you must park in a tight space and are concerned about possible damage, write down the license plate and color of the cars parked next to you. If you come out & find damage, you will be able to track the person down if the color matches. Don't forget to check all around your vehicle to make sure it doesn't have any marks BEFORE leaving an area. Report it to the proper authorities WHERE the damage happened, not from home (unless you are instructed to do so). Be sure to get some touch up paint from the dealer (so it matches as closely as possible), and touch up little chips ASAP to keep it looking nice & avoid rusting. When parking at night, all of these suggestions need to be adjusted for security reasons. The best thing to do is to do your errands during the day as much as possible. If you must park at night, park under a light if possible, and not too far out from where people are.
POST IT...on your dashboard, and tell your teen drivers too.
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Recipe: Easter Story Cookies
We used to offer to send out this recipe by email, because it was too long to print in our ezine. But I'm thankful that someone has put it online for everyone to retrieve easily. This is a variation of meringue cookies, that has an Easter story and is a great activity for the kids. The nice thing is that you can do it on short notice, and almost everyone will have the ingredients on hand. Check it out at...
http://www.christmas-cookies.com/recipes/recipe.php?recid=326
The main web site where this recipe is found has quite a comprehensive
collection of Christmas Cookie recipes as well. POST IT...on your calendar, in
your recipe box, and with your Easter decorations.
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Back Issue Treasure: April 4th, 2001
Check out this back issue for another fun recipe to do for Easter (along the same lines as the cookies above), along with Easter Egg Hunt tips. Traveling for the holidays, check out our travel helps. How do you decide if you need a stand alone freezer?...we have the info in this back issue. Have a preschooler and looking for some easy ways to incorporate learning activities into their lives?...we have some advice on that as well.
To retrieve this back issue click HERE.
POST IT...by your computer.
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Missing Child Info: William Wilson
William Wilson (12-yr-old, white male, brown hair, blue eyes, 4'2", 120 lbs)
was abducted by his father, William Andrew Wilson III (33-yr-old, white male,
red hair, blue eyes, 6'2", 210 lbs) on March 16th, 2004 from Kaufman, TX, USA. A
felony warrant was issued for the abductor on March 17, 2004. They may be in the
company of an unknown White female. The abductor has a tattoo on his right hand
and multiple tattoos on his arms. Go to this link for photos of the mother and
child...
http://www.ncmec.org/missingkids/servlet/PubCaseSearchServlet?act=viewPoster&caseNum=984471&orgPrefix=NCMC&searchLang=en_US
OR go to
click on "More Search Options," then enter in "Wilson" under "Last Name" at the bottom of the page, and "William" under the first name and click enter. POST IT...in your businesses or in your car, esp. if you are in & around Texas.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Some of you have tried to access files of children featured in past issues without success. This usually means the children were found and the files were removed.
Final Words
JOKE
Pssst! Did you hear the one about the American
businessman whose tame joke drew a hilarious response from his Japanese
audience? The American, curious why they liked the joke so much, later asked his
official translator, who replied: "The joke was not appropriate, so I did not
translate it. I simply said: 'The gentleman has told a joke. Please laugh.'"
~~from the "Humor is no laughing matter overseas" article mentioned above. To
read the entire article go to...
http://www.cnn.com/2004/TRAVEL/04/04/bt.humor.trip.reut/index.html
QUOTE
"We may fancy ourselves alone on the side of good, [but] the King and Lord of men is nowhere without His witnesses, for in every society, however seemingly corrupt and godless, there are those who have not bowed the knee to Baal."
~~Thomas Hughes (1822-1896), British Lawyer, Politician, & Advocate for the Working Class
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Sponsorship Information
If you are interested in helping to sponsor our ezine, or others in the Dollar Stretcher family, drop an email requesting additional info to: mailto:marketing@stretcher.com?subject=MAN.
It may be more reasonable than you realize. And check out the other free helpful ezines offered at
http://www.stretcher.com/menu/subscrib.cfm
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AT&T's Community Port
AT&T has a site about WorldNet members, like us, who have created their own personal web pages. If you think our site deserves to be featured on AT&T's Community Port , send them an e-mail about it, at communities@att.net. Be sure to include the page's URL http://home.att.net/~make-a-note/index.htm and why you think our site is special.
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Thank you to Pastor Wilson & Gary Foreman for all they do for the Make a Note.
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