Our carbon footprint

It's been quite a while since I blogged on ecology and the need to decrease the size of our carbon footprint. In simpler terms, we need to find new ways to lower the amount of energy we each use as well as the amount of "stuff" we dispose of too. Recycle is the name of this game.

There was a lady being interviewed on TV one day who claims to have cut her energy bill down by $100 a month by unplugging everything in her house that wasn't in use. I didn't know that our computers, televisions, clocks etc all use energy even when they're off. That boggles my mind.

One other thing that we're doing is replacing our light bulbs with led home lighting. As our bulbs burn out we replace them with something more energy efficient and longer lasting.

There is still so much we need to do before I'll begin to feel that we're doing our part in this matter. It's up to each of us to work towards the goal of reducing our carbon footprint. If you have any unique "go green" ideas, please comment on my post and share them with the rest of us. I thank you in advance.

Plumbing issues

Our daughter called her dad yesterday to tell him she was having plumbing problems in her kitchen. "What should I do, dad?" was her cry. Well, being the doting father that my husband is, he told her that he was on his way and she was not to worry.

Having worked on her kitchen plumbing before, he decided that it was time for her to have a new faucet so did some searching to find discount Danze faucets. Our daughter and her husband have an older home and try to preserve it's charm. When they replace something they try to find new accessories or fixtures that look old. Danze has some wonderful reproductions

Well, he ordered her new faucet and while we await it's delivery, he did a quick fix on her sink to hold it for the time being. She's going to love her new faucet!

A buzzworthy site

Anyone who reads my blogs on a regular basis knows that I shop and buy most everything online these days. This being so, I see a lot of websites and so am not easily impressed.

However, while shopping for Fossil watches I found www.kenmarwatches.com to be what I consider a buzzworthy site. I think you'll agree with me when you visit the site yourself. The wow factor is the way the items are immediately enlarged when you run your cursor over the picture. Not just enlarged, but you get a real closeup picture that enables you to see all of the detail of the watches as if you were looking right at them real time. I wish more sites would utilize this graphic feature rather than just offering an enlarged photo. I want to see all of the detail when I'm about to purchase something online. Do check this site out and see for yourself.

Mesothelioma, a form of cancer

I've been thinking a lot about my cousin who has Mesothelioma the past few weeks. He and his family live in Idaho and we're in Texas. We haven't seen them in way too many years and we've gotten out of touch.

Mesothelioma is the form of cancer that is caused by exposure to asbestos. A lot of progress has been made in treatment of this cancer, but I know little about it, it's symptoms or the prognosis for someone who has it.

If you or a family member has this disease, I would appreciate hearing from you so that I know what my cousin is up against.

Meanwhile, I'll keep trying to get in touch with him. He is so dear to us all, and he's always in my prayers.

Remembering the 8mm recorder

I wonder how many of my reader owned or even remember the old 8mm movie recorder. We have reels and reels of movies of us as newlyweds and of each of our children as they were growing up. We keep saying that one of these days we're going to get them all out, have the kids over and spend some time watching them. When our son comes for a visit next time that is going to be on top of our agenda of things to do.

Today capturing the important events in our lives is so much easier. We can buy a camcorder
that is so small it fits in the palm of my husband's hand. Easy to use and easy to put onto a cd. All we have to do is plug it into our computer and burn the recording onto a cd. We've come a long way, baby!

Great vacation ideas

It seems that my theme for all of my blogs these days is the economy and all that is involved with that.

Less I vary my posts or something, again I am reminded that our plans for a vacation are strongly affected by the economy. We'll be staying in the country this year for sure.

I've been doing some research to come up with some vacation ideas for us and have found that Orlando vacations offer some great package prices for all of their theme parks. They have Disney World there, Sea World and Universal Studios just to name a few. I think we're going to have to go there and spend several weeks in order to see it all.

Now to find some RV parks in the same area. I'm betting there are a bunch of them.

The "upside" of our "down" economy

Our struggling economy is a source of stress for most of us for a lot of reasons. The ripple effect has touched us all and is putting a strain on everyone.

On the flip side to these down times is that there are deals to be had in just about every area from housing to restaurants to travel. Most airlines and cruise lines are offering special packages as they try to fill their planes and ships. Argentina travel can be enjoyed for about $600. That's an amazing bargain. We've never been there, and there will never be a better time to take advantage of some great travel packages.

The up side of the economic recession

As stressful as the economic recession has been for most people, it's showing itself to have an upside as well. There are bargains to be had everywhere you look. This means that whatever it is that we need or want to buy, it is more than likely available at a cheaper than ever price somewhere.

My brother just bought a watch for his wife for their 50th wedding anniversary. She has always wanted one of the Patek Philippe watches for ladies, and he found a pre-owned one at an amazing savings. When purchasing a luxury item such as this, pre-owned is a great opportunity. Like new, still just as luxurious, valuable, and beautiful as when it was completely new, Patek Philippe watches never go out of style, and retain their value over the years. This is an investment as well as a wonderful gift. My brother has taught me a lot over the years about the value of buying quality.

Media rooms, the latest rage

During these difficult economic times we're all making lifestyle changes to cut back on our expenses. One of those ways is to cut out going to movies, but instead renting movies to watch at home. This has brought on a boom in home theaters, or media rooms as they are called these days. People will turn a room in their home into a mini movie theater complete with comfortable home theater furniture. These pieces are amazingly comfortable. Most recline, though some are made lounge like so that you can stretch out.

Add a popcorn machine, your favorite drink, a good movie and you're all set for a fun and affordable evening with family and friends.