I have a daughter turning 18 soon (I CANNOT BELIEVE THAT) and another who is a boot nut. lol. That came out funny. It means she loves boots. Not the uncomfortable, high-heeled, Mary Poppins boot that all the “in” girls are wearing (and mangling their feet in)– leather style Minnetonka boots! Isn’t this style absolutely GORGEOUS?! Where did I find such boots? InfinityShoes.com! They have tons and tons of the most beautiful styles, all at excellent prices (free shipping for orders over $59.95!). The Minnetonka is only a smidgen of examples of very classy shoes. I love the Seychelles shoes (check out the boot and sneakers in plaid! so cool!) and the eldest daughter would just love stuff from the Tsubo shoes collection (especially the “Paros” style– nice!). They also have Birkenstock, Keds, Timberland, and a large, eclectic collection of Miz Mooz styles. You have to see them to believe them. And can you believe they also have mukluks and rain galoshes?! lol!

InfinityShoes is located in New York City, but buying their shoes online is a breeze with their easy shopping cart at their website. They also have a size chart for your convenience. Everything is shipped UPS! Ladies, there’s no excuse for not having beautiful feet. InfinityShoes.com has a shoe for every lady, every style.

Good grief! Is it just me, or does it take horrendously long to upload a video to YouTube these days? I have noticed that it takes 2- 3x longer to upload a measly video! Maybe I should try out Flickr’s new video feature.

Anyway, the kids wanted me to take a video of their kooky cat, Fuzzy. He’s quite the clown. My husband says h acts so strangely because he was taken away from other kittens at such a young age (4 weeks).

My son, inspired by Daisy the Curly Cat, bought some Temptations and catnip. I have to admit, I’d had my doubts about how tempting Temptations really are. I thought it was just that Daisy was a well-trained cat. She is probably a well-trained cat, but WHOA HEY, Fuzzy loves those Temptations! Maybe we can even train him! I doubt he’ll acquiesce to wearing pink bed jackets… but we can always try.

Here’s a little video of Fuzzy testing out catnip for the first time. Weirdness, feline style.

I’ve been reading numerous blogs these days, thanks to Entrecard, and I have to say I am so green with envy that I want to pack my bags and find some cheap flights to Hong Kong right NOW! I can’t BELIEVE how many blogs are by Asians! And they make their food and countries look so wonderful. I would love to visit Hong Kong, which I hear is a very cosmopolitan city and friendly to green horn Westerners like me.

But look at that gorgeous skyline. Isn’t that beautiful?

I would just love to wander the city and soak in the culture there, visit the Museum of Art and other such places (especially the restaurants– mmmm!). Hong Kong is called the city where “east meets west,” so I think it would be a perfect city for a Westerner to immerse in Asian culture. What do you think?

I’ve seen this meme running around, but it hasn’t hit me yet. I thought I’d jump the gun and play now! It looks fun! I removed the references to family names, as lots of websites stupidly use family names for security codes. Sometimes I wonder if memes are just another data harvesting tool… why offer information unnecessarily? :D

1. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: (first pet & current car)
Thom Dodge

2.YOUR GANGSTA NAME: (favorite ice cream flavor, favorite cookie)
Vanilla Bean Choc Chip (now that sounds weird)

3. YOUR “FLY Guy/Girl” NAME: (first initial of first name, first three letters of your last name)
Rhan

4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal)
Purple Cardinal

6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first)
Rebhan

7. SUPERHERO NAME: (“The” plus 2nd favorite color, favorite drink)
The Green Coffee! (wooooo, sounds so majestic!)

8. TV WEATHER ANCHOR NAME: (Your 5th grade teacher’s last name, a major city that starts with the same letter)
I couldn’t think of a major city that begins with the letter, so I chose a different teacher:
Graves Guilderland (doesn’t that sound so cool?!)

9. SPY NAME: (your favorite season/holiday, flower)
Winter Tulip (how unsuspecting for a spy name, huh?)

10. CARTOON NAME: (favorite fruit, article of clothing you’re wearing right now + “ie” or “y”)
Strawberry Flannely (well, they asked for it!)

11. HIPPY NAME: (What you ate for breakfast, your favorite tree)
Coffee Red Oak (weird)

12. YOUR ROCKSTAR TOUR NAME: (”The” + Your favorite hobby/craft, favorite weather element + “Tour”)
The Blogging Tornado Tour (wooooooooooooo! love it! i should copyright that!)

I was surfing Entrecard blogs last night, and was paying close attention to the writing style of most of them. I came to realize that the common blog has certainly evolved. Have you noticed?

Initially, the blog was truly a “web log,” a public place to post expressions, personal thoughts and experiences. That was way back in the 90s (lol). Then the blog became more powerful, as more people “got connected” to the Internet. I remember considering the Internet as a luxury for very rich people or technical geeks, back in the 1990s. As more people got Internet service (because the personal computer became more affordable), bloggers discovered that they could have an effect on society and politics. Blogging about current events and social problems replaced the more personal “diary” kinds of blogs.

Then came the “how to” blogs that guided us through the enigmas of Windows ME, Windows XP, and Linux. Hobby blogs then came on the scene in full force. Hot-to blogs and hobby blogs are still extremely popular.

Today, things are evolving more. There are TONS of make money blogs now. And there are just as many “mixed bag” kinds of blogs that have no other purpose than to spread the latest gossip, celebrity news, or viral video. These are the two main kinds of blogs I see today.

The diary kinds of blogs are the least interesting to me. I find the “today, I went to the grocery store and then had a pedicure” kind of blog extremely mundane. But I also find the “make money without any work!” blogs mundane, too. I prefer the hobby blogs best of all. I also like discovering new places and learning about trends and cultures.

What about you? What kind of blogs do you run? What kinds do you prefer? Do you think the diary and make money blogs will soon go to the wayside? What kinds of blogs do you see cropping up next?

Trends are funny things. Like Yogi Berra said, “The future ain’t what it used to be.”

Chic Street-Fashion Forward is a simple, classy, sleek blog for the fashionistas of the world. I’m no fashionista, but I do admire good design when I see it. Chic Street uses a popular magazine-style Wordpress theme for the blog, which gives the blog a lot of content. I love the theme. My only complaint is that the theme (in gray and white) is a little dull. Some sprightly colors may perk up a sagging wardrobe malfunction (haha). The blogger is off to a good start with a bright blue background, but I wouldn’t stop there. I suggest adding more color for interest. The banner to the blog is wonderful. I love the mosaic look– it’s very unique and adds texture to a smooth-looking theme.

As for the content, there isn’t a great deal of variety on the front page that catches my eye. Again, I am no fashion fan, so maybe it’s me. Some of the front-page stories seem interesting (and I like the way the photos are set in the theme, like an online newspaper), but there is duplicate content (two or more of the same photos on the front page). The center column is much, much longer than the other columns. This gives the home page an unbalanced and awkward feel. I use this theme on one of my websites, so I know that you need a LOT of content to really fill in the blog. I suggest more diverse content. Go big on color, big on photos! Big!

The writing style is fun. I liked reading the posts, even though I’m not interested in Vogue, she made it interesting! I browsed through some of the archives and got lost in the world of fashion! I loved the articles on second-hand clothing and fun fashion from the 40s. Very interesting reading! There’s a ton of potential here, if the author is willing to take the leap. May I suggest a “best of” category or “popular” posts or something? Some of the archived articles are too good to be buried in the archives. The blog theme makes it possible to showcase the best posts.

Perhaps the blog could even be developed with a fashion theme of itself. Have a “catwalk” of showcased posts. Make a color theme depicting the author’s favorite vintage style. Who knows? There are so many fashion blogs out there, what could make this one stand out? If the author developed a specialized style all her own, this would flesh out the blog and give it a personality punch. The potential to knock the socks off the reader is here… it needs developing.

It’s a new blog (started in February but is already loaded with content), so it’s got some developing to do that will come with age. I think Chic Street is off to a fantastic start. I’m looking forward to watching this blog develop.

I saw this at That Grrl (a really witty and fun blog to read) and wanted to do it. I don’t know it if is part of a meme or not. Sometimes I see memes on other people’s blogs that I SO want to do, but no one invites me. :( So I’ll throw a party myself.

I’m going to type in the first things that comes to mind for the following words:

Unconscious Mutterings

1. Questioning :: curious

2. Immunity :: vaccination

3. Online dating :: gross

4. Calcium :: tablets :-p

5. Dressing :: salad (mmm)

6. Bucket :: hole

7. Stain :: dress

8. Advanced :: guitar lessons

9. Dramatic :: theatre

10. Self-medication :: unconscious

Well, that was short and sweet! That’s how I like them. :) Play it if you want. And if you discover another fun one, remember that I like parties. :)

I’ve bought eyeglasses online. Yes I have! They’ve worked out very well. But I’m sick of wearing glasses. I’m dabbling– for the first time in my life after wearing glasses for 35 years!– into the liberating world of contact lenses! I’ve been shopping around and came across Acuvue Oasys at 1-800-GET-LENS. What a difference! Why pay full retail price when I could get them from a direct-to-consumer marketer for up to 70% less than my doctor’s office? I’ve been very displeased with the so-called “service” I’ve been getting from the eyeglass store in my optometrist’s office. :-p Time to shop around. The eyeglass store has told me they would charge me about $200 per contact per eye. Not including tax! Holy cow! I could buy a car with that money! Most of the cost comes from expensive middle-men and handling. No way.

I know I couldn’t just get any old contact lenses; plus, I’m more comfortable with a “name brand” familiar company who has been in the business for a while. I found out that the Acuvue Oasys are made by Johnson & Johnson, a long established company. And the lenses are slightly tinted so that they can detected when sitting in the solution. This makes it easy for blind-bats like me to find the lenses! And the contact lenses have something called “Hydraclear Plus technology” to keep eyes from drying out. So they seem very high-quality.

These lenses are tinted for ease of handling and will not change the color of your eye. The tint is simply designed to facilitate locating the contact lenses in solution. And I saw lenses as low as $17 a box! I’ve been seriously thinking about contact lenses, but it has always been the extremely high retail price that made me skittish. The lenses at 1-800-GET-LENS look spectacular.

Has anyone ever ordered contact lenses online? I’d love to know how it went!

“What a glorious morning this is!”

– Samuel Adams (to John Hancock at the Battle of Lexington, Massachusetts, 19 April 1775)

This day is the day Americans (well, citizens of the state of Massachusetts, anyway) STARTED the fight for American independence! Woohooo! I know, July 4, 1776, is THE day Congress officially declared it. But as with anything in America, the quest for independence began with the people themselves. What a wonderful way to wake up, realizing that!

If you want to know more about what happened this day, check out the History Place.

I came across this very interesting self-quiz on History is Elementary.

A few weeks ago as I was visiting many of the teacher blogs I have on one of my blogrolls at History Is Elementary I saw The Privilege Meme over at Confessions From the Couch. I thought it was interesting.

Miss A explains this meme is to help examine privileges/social class. The meme comes from What Privileges Do You Have?, based on an exercise about class and privilege developed by Will Barratt, Meagan Cahill, Angie Carlen, Minnette Huck, Drew Lurker, Stacy Ploskonka at Illinois State University.

If you participate in this blog game, they ask that you PLEASE acknowledge their copyright.
—> To participate, copy and paste…then unbold my responses to make your own.

Bold the items that apply to you:

1. Father went to college

2. Father finished college

3. Mother went to college (one year, secretary school).

4. Mother finished college

5. Have any relative who is an attorney, physician, or professor (English teacher)

6. Were the same or higher class than your high school teachers. (same)

7. Had more than 50 books in your childhood home. (most belonged to me, lol)

8. Had more than 500 books in your childhood home.

9. Were read children’s books by a parent. (up until my mother remarried, when I was 5).

10. Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18

11. Had more than two kinds of lessons before you turned 18.

12. The people in the media who dress and talk like me are portrayed positively.

13. Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18.

14. Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs.

15. Your parents (or a trust) paid for all of your college costs

16. Went to a private high school

17. Went to summer camp (flag corp)

18. Had a private tutor before you turned 18

19. Family vacations involved staying at hotels

20. Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18

21. Your parents bought you a car that was not a hand-me-down from them

22. There was original art in your house when you were a child

23. You and your family lived in a single-family house.

24. Your parent(s) owned their own house or apartment before you left home

25. You had your own room as a child

26. You had a phone in your room before you turned 18

27. Participated in a SAT/ACT prep course (I don’t think they existed in the olden days)

28. Had your own TV in your room in high school

29. Owned a mutual fund or IRA in high school or college

30. Flew anywhere on a commercial airline before you turned 16

31. Went on a cruise with your family

32. Went on more than one cruise with your family

33. Your parents took you to museums and art galleries as you grew up.

34. You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family.

I scored five. Wow. I guess I wasn’t privileged. However, I am raising my own children differently. I think I can give my kids a score of 14. So that’s better!

How did you do?