MAKE A NOTE!! -- April 21st, 2004
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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 MAY 5TH, 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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Bella Cucina (For Mother's Day and More)
If you are looking for something different for your Mother's Day gift
selections, you couldn't go wrong with Bella Cucina products. For the same
amount of money you would spend on flowers or candy, you can send a nice
selection of food that truly does taste homemade. Alisa Barry, Chef and Creator
of Bella Cucina Artful Food, has produced an amazing line of Italian products
that I think would outdo any flowers or candy. They have pestos, pastas, pasta
sauces, fruit sauces/spreads, cookies, olives, vinegars, crackers, preserved
citrus, and even elegant Italian serving dishes. All of the jars the products
come in are wrapped beautifully, some include recipes, and the jars alone are
very pretty. If that is not enough, you can also request gift wrapping. My
personal favorites are the Olivada Olive Pesto, Artichoke Lemon Pesto, and the
Meyer Lemon Spread. The latter is wonderful on their Sweet Pastry Crostatas,
although it is so good that I could probably just eat it out of the jar with a
spoon. The Artichoke Lemon Pesto has a great recipe on the jar for a baked
artichoke dip that didn't last long after exiting our oven. The Sweet Pepper
Pesto was such a hit with our testers that they used it out of the jar with
crackers, and also over pasta. But I wouldn't just save Bella Cucina for special
occasions, they make for some wonderful every day meals as well. The shipping
prices are some of the best I have seen in any catalog, all done by weight. So
be sure to check them out at...
http://www.bellacucina.com
Please note that the phone number listed on the site (as this issue went to
distribution) had been changed. The new number is 1-800-671-3136. Please make
sure that this is the number you use to contact them. You can order online, by
phone, or use their catalog. And remember, Mother's AND Father's Day are coming
up.
POST IT...on your calendar before special days, and on your shopping list for yourself! :-)
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Magic Eraser for Walls & More
Another product alert...if you haven't tried this one yet, you don't know what you are missing. I don't know what these Mr. Clean Magic Erasers are made of (they start out looking like very lightweight sponges), but boy can they clean the marks off of walls, doors, and more EASILY. That's right, I said "easily." Now I will admit that I only used the Erasers on surfaces painted white, but I couldn't believe how easily all the marks came off. I even had some marks that a professional cleaning team tried to remove, but stopped because they were afraid it would mess up the paint...it took us about 5 seconds with the Magic Eraser to get the marks out. It does leave a slight residue behind, so I would recommend wiping the surface with a damp washcloth or paper towel after "erasing" any marks. There was still a slight wipe mark if you looked closely & at the right angle, but hardly noticeable really. If you are going to use it on a colored surface (or any surface), then take the manufacturer's advice and test it in an inconspicuous place. The sponges do wear down quickly, but also clean quickly. For more information, go to... http://www.mrclean.com, click on your country choice, then when you see the Magic Eraser on the next page, click on it for more info. But take my advice, buy at least 3 boxes (2 erasers per box), because once you see how easily the marks come off, you'll be working on them all over your house. Put your kids to work, after all, they probably made most of the marks, right? :-)
POST IT...on your shopping list.
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Flower Change
Okay, this doesn't happen very often, but the Make a Note is about to reverse
some advice. Back in our June 14th, 1997 issue, I had recommended calling a
florist directly, rather than going through 800 order numbers (i.e. FTD,
Proflowers, Teleflora, etc) for long distance ordering. At THAT time, it was
cheaper because if you called the florist directly, it was usually a smaller
delivery charge and lower mark up. However, over the years I have noticed that
even when I call the local florist, there is hardly any difference in delivery
and floral fees. In fact, it actually seems like it is MORE expensive to call a
florist directly in MOST areas. So the next time you order flowers, check out
the online sites. You can usually find the exact same item on all of them, so
you can find the site with the best deal. Pay close attention to things like
whether roses are described as long or medium stemmed and the number of flowers
in the arrangement (if given). It appears that most of the sites provide
dimensions of the arrangement, but not on every arrangement. If you're not sure
how large something will be, call the local florist that is part of that chain
and ask them. They may also be willing to give you a discount if you order with
them. You can check out the florists online below:
www.ftd.com
www.teleflora.com
www.proflowers.com
www.hallmark.com
Also look for special deals offered by your membership organizations, like USAA
or credit unions. Watch for those discounts. POST IT...on your calendar, and in
the yellow pages under "Florists".
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GNC Corporate Store Discounts
For our readers who purchase vitamins/herbs or other nutritional products, this info may save you some money. GNC advises their stores to discount products starting about 8 months before the expiration date on the container. The corporate stores are required to do this, but the franchises are not and the ones in our area don't, according to the stores in our area (franchise AND corporate). So starting 8 months out, they discount the items 33%, going down gradually to a 75% discount when it is 2 months away from expiration. Now if you want your items super fresh, this may not be of interest to you, but for myself, and many others, I can't tell much difference in the results when I use the older products. I was able to find bottles of Echinacea for 99 cents/60 capsules, and White Willow for $2/100 capsules, among other good deals. Most stores that do this, will have a discount shelf. If you notice that something will be expiring within 8 months, but isn't marked down, ask for a discount at the register. But remember, this is only the corporate stores. In our area, the franchises outnumber the corporate stores about 3 to 1.
POST IT...with your supplements.
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Recipe: Easy Mother's Day Idea
If you dads out there are looking for an easy idea for letting the kids make a special dessert on Mother's Day, try this out. Have them make Mom's favorite cake(or buy a plain one at the store). Frost with her favorite frosting & let the frosted cake sit uncovered a bit so that the frosting isn't too sticky, then have the kids cut a heart out of cardboard. Run water over one side of the cardboard, shake off(so that any excess sprinkles stick), and gently place the heart damp side up on the cake. Let the kids sprinkle colored sprinkles over the heart. Very carefully lift the cardboard off the cake. If you are feeling really adventurous, you can even cut out words like "I love Mom" or "Best Mom".
POST IT...on the calendar & shopping list.
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Back Issue Treasure: June 14th, 1997 Issue
Okay, so you want to stick with the traditional Mother's Day gifts of flowers, or maybe balloons? Well, then be sure to check on this back issue to get the most for your money (but note the change in advice above as far as ordering). The weather is getting warm, and you can also read an article on avoiding heat injuries & how much water you should drink depending on how hot it is. Spring cleaning?...find a tip in this back issue to get that mildewed shower curtain clean as a whistle. Want to help your kids avoid the spring viruses?...check out the article on antibacterial soap.
To retrieve this back issue click HERE.
POST IT...by your computer.
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Missing Child Info: Adrianna Wix
Adrianna (2 yr old, white female, brown hair, blue eyes, 2', 25 lbs) was last
seen in Cross Plains, TN, USA on March 25, 2004. She may be in the company of
her mother, Jennifer Wix (21 yr old, white female, brown hair & eyes, 5'4", 130
lbs). They may still be in the local area. Adrianna has a birthmark on her right
thigh and she may go by the nickname Nina. Jennifer has a tattoo on her back.
Go to this link for photos of the mother and child...
http://www.ncmec.org/missingkids/servlet/PubCaseSearchServlet?act=viewPoster&caseNum=985513&orgPrefix=NCMC&searchLang=en_US
OR go to
http://www.ncmec.org, click on "More Search
Options," then enter in "Wix" under "Last Name" at the bottom of the page.
POST IT...in your businesses or in your car, esp. if you are in & around TN.
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
After spending 3-1/2 hours enduring the long lines, surly clerks, and insane regulations at our department of motor vehicles, I stopped at a toy store to pick up a gift for my son. I brought my selection - a baseball bat - to the cash register. "Cash or charge?" the clerk asked. "Cash," I snapped. Then, apologizing for my rudeness, I explained, "I've spent the afternoon at the motor-vehicle bureau." "Shall I gift-wrap the bat?" the clerk asked sweetly, "or are you going back there?"
EDITOR'S NOTE: Just want to say, for the record, that our DMV personnel are very nice.
QUOTE (for all you "Apprentice" fans)
"Based on Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth's two-year stint in the Clinton administration, it's no surprise that she got fired on NBC's 'The Apprentice,' reports the new edition of People magazine. She was 'banished' from four jobs during her run in government, the mag says. Omarosa had four jobs in two years in the Clinton administration, says People. (Rebecca D'Angelo - For The Washington Post) 'She was asked to leave as quickly as possible, she was so disruptive,' says Cheryl Shavers, former undersecretary for technology at the Commerce Department, where Manigault-Stallworth worked in 2000. 'One woman wanted to slug her.'"
--Washington Post
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