MAKE A NOTE!! -- June 1st, 2005
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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 JUNE 15TH, 2005
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Recipe: Judy Mills's From-Scratch Baked Beans (from "Peace, Love, & Barbecue" Cookbook) |
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| Final Words (Joke, Quote, Contact Info) |
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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Windshield Cracks
Summer trips, and all those nasty rocks that the vehicles ahead of you toss up, can combine to give you that little chip in the glass that turns into a crack. But windshields are expensive to replace, so what should you do? First, if it is just a chip, keep an eye on it. But once you start to see those tiny lines beginning to snake out, get it taken care of. Most glass repair shops (depending on the area) will charge you about $50 to put some special glue into the crack to keep it from spreading any further, and it only takes about 15 min. Most shops will also offer to apply that same $50 to your bill, if you end up needing a replacement windshield later. Don't go to any old glass shop, check the Better Business Bureau site www.bbb.org And your insurance company for recommendations. Usually if you go to a store, it is a lot cheaper. If you do get it repaired and it starts to crack anyway (a lot depends on the depth of the crack), most police departments wouldn't give you a ticket until it was bigger than a quarter (but be sure to check your local laws to be safe).
POST IT...in the yellow pages under glass repair, and in your glove compartment.
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Electric Co. Surge Damage
Summer is also the time when those thunderstorms can hit in many parts of the world. You should have all of your expensive electronics on surge protectors (see our Bonus Section of the web site for the most Common Computer Mistakes people make); don't forget the TV, stereos, computers & more. But let's say you slipped up, didn't have them protected, and damage occurred. What do you do? First, try to unplug everything for 30 min and plug it back in; sometimes that will reset minor problems with equipment. If that doesn't work, you can still file a claim with your insurance company, although it could drive your insurance up. Special Circumstances: IF the surge was NOT weather related, note the time and day the surge occurred and try filing a claim with your electric company. It is rare, but in some cases, if there was any negligence involved in the surge, they might pay your claim. Be sure to staple the receipts for the new equipment to the inside cover of the manuals, keep the manuals in a drawer or bookcase near the equipment.
POST IT...with your electronics manuals, and your electric company's contact info.
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White Paint Touch Ups
You have company coming, and white walls that don't really need painting (after using the Magic Eraser...see our April 21st, 2004 Issue), but you do have a couple of nail pops or scuffs in the paint. You don't have time to get out the real paint, so what do you do? Buy a bottle of White-Out, the kind that you use to white out mistakes on papers you are writing or typing. Usually, if your walls are white, it will blend in well enough, will cover the spot easily, and dry fast. For those who haven't bought White-Out in quite a while, they now use a sponge tip applicator. A bit of trivia for you...did you know that Michael Nesmith's (The Monkees) mother invented Liquid Paper, which eventually became White-out? Read more about it at this link... http://www.snopes.com/music/artists/nesmith.htm
POST IT...with your Magic Eraser, or painting supplies.
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Party Planning Amounts
Once I attended a party at major hotel for a military unit. Apparently they had a new person at the hotel helping the unit representative figure food amounts. Sadly for the unit rep., the hotel person thought that 7 tables of "heavy appetizers" (without table restocking) would be enough for 200-300 Special Forces men and their dates...let's just say, things didn't go over well. Summer is here and you may be planning your own little get-togethers, so here's a little guide to help you have enough food to keep everyone happy, but not have a ton of leftovers. These estimates are for a standard 2-3 hour help-yourself party, longer parties would probably require about 1 1/2 times these amounts (people will get full & slow down on consumption). Sit down dinners might require slightly less. First, paper goods...figure about 3 napkins, 5 cups, (you could probably get by with less if you have a marker with the cups to write your names on them), 3 appetizer size OR 2 large size plates, and 2 utensils needed (try to stick to finger food), all per person. Beverages...figure about a pound of ice per 6 people, and a drink every hour per guest (less if alcoholic, more if non-alcoholic). Food...allow about 1/2C or 4 oz of most foods (chips, pretzels, fruit, veggies, salads) per person, 2-3 oz of sliced meat and/or cheese per person, 1 1/2 fancy dessert servings per person OR 3 average size cookie type desserts per person (more if there will be a lot of kids). Take your guests into consideration...a men's softball team will probably eat a lot more after a game, than a ladies' Bible study. Adults will be less likely to gorge themselves on finger sweets, than kids. To help limit the kids' intake a bit (if their parents don't monitor them), have a kids' table that has little dixie cups half filled with kid crackers (sugar stuff may have them bouncing off your party walls), pretzels, and watered down punch or water. If you have little snack & drink containers for the kids, they will also be less likely to dump a large paper plate onto your floor. Stick to your rib, or high fiber foods, will fill people up a little faster; so chili may go farther than hot dogs, pretzels more than chips. Consider potluck as well; most people love sharing their specialties & ask them to bring the recipe, in case anyone wants to copy it.
POST IT...with your party recipes, or on your calendar during frequent party months (summer months & December).
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Recipe: Judy Mills's From-Scratch Baked Beans (from "Peace, Love, & Barbecue" Cookbook)
Judy Mills is maried to my oldest brother, Landess. She always brings from-scratch baked beans to family picnics, and they are good. She goes on and on about how much better they are because she started with dried beans. When I started working on this book, I asked Landess to watch her make the beans and write out the recipe for me. He laughed and laughed. "She doesn't make those beans from scratch," he said, dashing the story I'd known to be true for more than 50 years. Judy wrote out the recipe for me, and I've altered it, using dried beans. The color will be lighter since you're starting with white beans, and the texture will be just a little firmer. You'll have to start a day early to soak the beans, but I guarantee the end result will be worth the extra time and effort.
1 pound dried great northern beans 4 to 6 slices bacon 1/2 cup chopped onion 1 clove garlic, minced 2 cups ketchup (I like Hunt's) 1/2 cup molasses 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce 1 tablespoon yellow mustard (I like French's) 1 teaspoon chili powder 2 tablespoons Magic Dust (recipe in 5/18/05 issue)
Place the beans in a large saucepan and cover with salted water by 2 to 3 inches. Soak the beans overnight. The next day, drain and rinse the beans. Return the beans to the saucepan and cover with fresh water by about 4 inches. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until the beans are tender but not bursting open. While the beans are cooking, mix the ketchup, molasses, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, chili powder, and Magic Dust together in a large bowl. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon. Drain the bacon on paper towels, crumble it, and set aside. Add the onion and garlic to the bacon drippings and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. The onion should still be a little crunchy. Drain the beans, reserving 2 cups of the bean water. Pour the beans and bean water into the bowl with the sauce. Add the bacon and onion and stir to combine well. Pour into a 13 x 9-inch baking dish and bake for 1 hour or until bubbly. Will keep, refrigerated, for up to 1 week. SERVES 8 TO 10.
To read more about "Peace, Love and Barbecue" go to... http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1594861099/makeanote
POST IT...in your recipe box.
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Back Issue Treasure: June 1st, 1999 Issue (Father's Day Games/Ideas, Protecting Your Children, Bridal Shower Games, Vacation Bible School Publicity, Overheating Car Solution, & More)
Check out this back issue if you are looking for ways to make Father's Day Special. Read the book we recommend in this issue to help protect your children from the predators out there, from the author of "The Gift of Fear." A bridal shower should be a hit, with our games in this back issue. It is Vacation Bible School time, find ways to publicize your event to get the most coverage. Have a car that gets a little hot under the collar (or hood)?...then use this tip to help cool it off faster...all this and more in this back issue.
To retrieve this back issue click HERE.
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Missing Adult: Meghan Powell
Meghan (7 yr old, white female, blonde hair, blue eyes, 4'3", 80 lbs)was abducted from Black Mountain, NC, by her non-custodial father, John Powell (29 yr old white male, balding, black hair, green eyes, 5'10", 155 lbs). A warrant was issued for the abductor on May 4, 2005. They may be traveling in the company of an adult female and two children. They may be traveling in a maroon and silver 1991 Chevrolet S10 Blazer with North Carolina license plates SPM6598. The child has scars on her right arm and hand. She also wears a Scooby Doo brace on her left leg. John is missing several of his front teeth. He has a tattoo of Tweety Bird on his arm and a tattoo of the Roadrunner and the Cat in the Hat on his back. For a poster to print out, especially if you are in the NC area, go to... http://www.ncmec.org/missingkids/servlet/PubCaseSearchServlet?act=viewPoster&caseNum=1013654&orgPrefix=NCMC&searchLang=en_US Or go to www.ncmec.org Click on "More Search Options", then enter her name in the search box. POST IT...in your car and business if you are in the area.
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 (Thanks to Thomas D.)
A couple was going out for the evening. The last thing they did was to put the cat out. The taxi arrived, and as the couple walked out of the house, the cat shoots back in. So the husband goes back inside to chase it out. The wife, not wanting it known that the house would be empty, explained to the taxi driver "He's just going upstairs to say goodbye to my mother." A few minutes later, the husband got into the taxi and said, "Sorry I took so long, the stupid thing was hiding under the bed and I had to poke her with a coat hanger to get her to come out!"
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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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