What, is there a sale on blog awards this month? Can you believe it?! It’s my third award in a week. :) *warm breezes wafting across room* Feel the linky love.  This time I got the Just Plain Fun to Read Award. Wow! This is a sweet one, from The Sustainable Backyard, a wonderful blog!

When I win an award, I try to pass it on to bloggers who have perhaps not received any awards yet. I have been passing on so many awards, that I may find my self repeating them. Please don’t feel obligated to continue the meme if you prefer not. Just know that you are loved! :D

Without further ado, here are the blogs I’d like to deem Just Plain Fun to Read!

Carole of Carole’s Thoughtful Spot! I love this blog. This lady is so expressive that I never know what I’ll find on any given day.

Ellen at All in a Day! Her daily chit-chat is very interesting, and I like it that she talks about her area, Texas. It is interesting to learn about other places.

Ana at Chica&Pumuckl! What a terrific blog! I never knew pet blogs could be so entertaining, and Ana is so creative!

Chilly at On the Bricks! This guy is so versatile that his blog posts are always a thrill. (I hope you don’t mind getting a somewhat feminine award. But you’re cool, man!)

Lynne at The Sewing Mom! I’m not into sewing (not anymore), but Lynne’s breezy narrative makes every post so interesting!

Buddy’s Fitness News! I’m no fan of dogs nor fitness, but this blog is amazingly interesting. And hilarious! What a great blog!

Those are the blogs that come first to my mind, but I know there are others. I may repeat this award, just to add more blogs. There are SO MANY interesting blogs!

Believe it or not, I got another award. It is so gratifying to see that people actually like me! :D This time I am awarded the Sweet Home Blogger Award by Backyard Buffet. Woooo! Thank you so very much, I am deeply honored.

I can pass this award on to one to five bloggers. I do try to pass awards on to bloggers who have not been awarded anything yet, but it is getting harder and harder, lol! Here are the winners. I wish I could award you some cool prizes like those amazing espresso machines… but instead I have a beautiful blog button and my sincerest appreciation for your blogs!

Daisy the Curly Cat! This is one of the sweetest and most creative blogs I know.

Kathy at The Junk Drawer! Great posts! This lady knows how to write!

The Mommy and Me Boutique! Truly a “down home” and sweet blog!

Karen at The Pond! I love reading her posts, they make me feel at home!

Robin at Heart at Home blog! A real Sweet Home blog!

Please don’t feel under any obligation to continue the meme if you prefer not. Just know that you are loved. :D

Thank you very much. Thank you, thank you!

This week, I received three — can you believe it?!- awards from some of my favorite blogs. I didn’t even know some of these folks read my blog! I am so honored. Thank you thank you! I’ll spare you the long speeches (I used to watch the Oscars.. snnnoooooore) and cut to the quick: passing on the loot!

The first award I won was the Arte y Pico Award. This was given to me by Mariz of Reflections of Mariz and Kathy at Is 8 Enough? This is a wonderful award. *wipes tear*

Here are the rules:

1. Pick five (5) blogs that you consider deserve this award for their creativity, design, interesting material, and also for contributing to the blogging community, no matter what language.
2. Each award has to have the name of the author and also a link to his or her blog to be visited by everyone.
3. Each award winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that has given her or him the award itself.
4. Award-winner and the one who has given the prize have to show the link of “Arte y Pico” blog, so everyone will know the origin of this award: http://arteypico.blogspot.com.

I would like to bestow this award on some bloggers who have not yet received it.
*drum roll*
*furiously opens envelope*
*squeals*

Fida of Fida Abbott! One of the most beautiful souls on the Internet!
Kathy at BrazoCowgirl! Her blog template is drop-dead gorgeous!
Anajz at The Sustainable Backyard! An incredibly thoughtful and interesting blog that leaves me breathless sometimes!
My Bug Life at Foodie and Travel Bug! She blogs about my two favorite things!
Flo of Flo’s Place! Has a great new template!

Thank you, ladies, for making the blogosphere a better place. Blog on, gals, blog on. :D

P.S. Please do not feel under any obligation from me to continue the meme. If you prefer not, that’s fine. Just know that you are loved. :D

I’ll write posts on my other two awards very soon.

Has anyone heard about any organization to help the folks who have been suffering through all that severe flooding? Whenever there is a typhoon or earthquake or tsunami halfway across the world, everyone jumps to help them. I haven’t heard anything about us helping our own countrymen. Have you?

If you know of an organization raising money or helping these flood victims, would you blog about it or leave a comment for me? I think we should help those people. They have lost everything. PLUS, that area of the country provides a lot of our food supply. It’s crazy that we wouldn’t rise up and help!!!!!

I’ve been seeing lots of blog posts about people considering vegetable oil or water for gas. I think in New York State, it is illegal to use anything except what Big Business and Big Government allow (taxable gasoline).

But why not water? I don’t think it’s too strange. The steamboats and railroads in this country were powered by steam, long ago. We could go back to the steam engine or something, right? Those machines burned coal to make steam, but we could use small bursts of electrical energy to heat water, or something like that. I even did a post a few months ago about a car that runs on air (made in Canada). It looks like the real thing!

I’s absolutely love a car that ran on water. Wouldn’t you?

P.S. Then again… governments would probably figure out a way to tax our water and make it scarce. Seeing we can’t live without water, hmmmm.

I’m having a blast with my new membership at the health club. It’s helping my back and abdominal muscles already! Even after five days, I feel healthier! I haven’t had to take any medication in a long time, so it’s helping on the medical bills, too. I used to be in such good shape– I took dancing in drama school– but after having four children and injuring my back, I’m a ball o’ skin. So I’m looking for every opportunity to muscle up again (and stay far, far away from those terrible pain medications, too). Every little bit of beneficial activity helps. You girls know what I mean.

So I am enthralled with what I found online, something called Fitflops. Isn’t that just the coolest name?! Apparently these FitFlops are just that– they make you fit while you flop. LOL. Flip-flop shoes are very popular in the summer, so some smart person invented these Fit Flops. They are all the rage in the UK, because they give your legs and “bum” a terrific workout merely by walking. I think they are extremely stylish, don’t you? They look much, much more comfortable than those cheapo, flat flip-flops that I find at WalMart. Better still, get those legs toned up while you Fit Flop! This amazing footwear found at “SweatyBetty,” rofl!

[bump] This is a popular post, and I believe an important one. I bumped it to the top for today. You can see more new posts, below. :)

I saw this video and it blew me away. My husband got one of these cards recently– an American Express credit card with an RFID chip. All for your security, of course.

But the sneaky little deception is that it’s not for your security at all! Watch this little video of a “Hacker/Futurist” who swipes the credit card information with an $8 device he bought off eBay.

The thing that REALLY blew me away most was that the Hacker said that credit card companies are not at all interested in security for the consumer. They are interested in the appearance of security for the consumer. I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHY THIS IS!

I don’t for one second believe that any bank or company are unable to make electronic transactions secure. The big question is WHY won’t they?

Europeans are much more advanced that North America, when it comes to innovation in energy and home building. This is due to their scarcity of natural resources and geographic space. They just have to think smarter, and not bigger, as is the norm here in the U.S. Bigger does not necessarily mean better. In fact, bigger almost always means less efficient.

I saw this fascinating video of what the Danes call “The Wave Dragon.” With this new invention, they have discovered a way to use the energy of ocean waves to generate energy. The video (although a bit dry) is worth watching. I hope these innovators get success! This is a worthy endeavor.

New York Chica has an interesting post about the Top Ten Recession-Proof Cities. The list is interesting and not surprising (Texas, Utah, and North Carolina made the list). She summed up the sentiments of New Yorkers when she said she didn’t expect any NY city to make the list. The only Top Ten lists New York is making are the ones with highest taxation, lowest wages, and most poor. Worst education is coming onto the list, as well. Those recession-proof cities in TX, UT, and NC are because NYers are fleeing the state in droves and migrating to those states.

I live in Upstate New York– right smack-dab in the middle of the state. The rest of the country has been reeling with recession-style tremors, but here in NYS, we’ve been living this way for about 30 years now. Our troubles all started when the state changed some language in the state constitution to favor Downstate (New York City area). New York City has seen a huge boom in the last 20-25 years. However, it has been Upstate’s natural resources and jobs pool that has fueled the economy down there. So essentially, the NYS government has slit its own throat. The “good times” can only last so long because sooner or later, the leech runs dry. And that’s Upstate right now… pretty dry.

New York State loves to tout itself as the “Empire State,” claiming that this state is the trend-setter for the rest of the states. Well, maybe 200 years ago that was something we could brag about, but since the 1880s, the state is leading the nation as an example of how NOT to govern. Let’s hope the other states learn from NY’s idiotic mistakes. Don’t let labor unions and politicians micro-manage the affairs of the people; don’t accept high taxation as a way to become prosperous and assume political “clout”; don’t add taxes upon taxes upon taxes and call them “fees” and “surcharges,” hoping no one will notice; don’t brag about how unsinkable you are when everyone knows it’s just a matter of rearranging the deck chairs.

Unfortunately, however, for those southern and midwestern states is that they lack the natural resources to support large populations. Drought conditions and the home foreclosure crisis brought this to the forefront. Northeasterners who have migrated south and west complain of the lack of green grass, trees, and abundant water. Duh.

It’s like I always say, here in NY, we don’t have calamitous natural disasters like tornadoes, hurricanes, droughts, floods. Our natural disasters come in the form of politicians. I sometimes wonder that politicians are worse than weather disasters…. but no matter where you live, there will always be some price to pay. We’ll see how the nation fares, because we are seeing a monumental change in our American way of life.

Spring is here! We are rejoicing in the streets at last, lol! Girls, you know what this means– time to peel off and pack away the drab winter dregs of the old clothing and break out the new and beautiful spring clothing and accessories! If you are like me, you 1) need some new duds, 2) want a few very classy pieces to accent your wardrobe, and 3) are looking for good deals on beautiful things. Here’s a tip: check out the latest stuff at Shangby.com. They have a slew of gorgeous new products - including new cashmere line, called the Woo Scarf, that will knock your socks off! I am nuts about cashmere and I nearly flipped when I saw the new line of products. Isn’t this lavendar scarf exquisite?! It would be the perfect, classy accessory for a simple black dress. Noooice! The red scarf is beautiful, too. Choices, choices! Look at the detailed work on the scarf though. It is truly a masterpiece of design.

ShangBy is an amazing store. One of their goals is to bring U.S. shoppers to the retailers in China, for access to fabulous products and excellent prices. If you like cashmere and other products (jewelry, cashmere, bedding, apparel, etc) that are quality-produced, ShangBy is the place to go. They are going to be streaming live video online from Woo Cashmere on May 21st to introduce this spectacular new line of the best cashmere brand in Shanghai. Woo Cashmere is renowned for it’s beautiful and spectacular quality (created by Stephen Sun, influenced by the artist Yifei Chen). The Woo Scarf is a breathtakingly beautiful cashmere scarf. It would make an absolutely perfect gift, too!

If you go to the site, you can view videos on other products, too. And if you need an excuse to shop, here’s a coupon code to get you going: use the code simple luxury for $30 off good through May 31st!