Hey Noreen » Home and Garden

Silk flowers

Noreen — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 20:41:22 +0000

I happen to like silk flowers. They are pretty, and they are very realistic looking. Better than that, they never need watering and if they get knocked over there is no mess of a pile of dirt you have to clean up! And even better, the cats don’t eat the silk flowers and then puke them up on the sofa twenty minutes later! A while ago I was watching a decorating show on HGTV and the designer was saying that no matter how pretty the silk flowers are, artificial flowers are always tacky. Well, I disagree completely! I think they are wonderful!

Truffles!

Noreen — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 23:11:56 +0000

Have you ever eaten a “real” truffle? By that I mean the fungus? I never have – I’ve just eaten the candy “truffles.” I understand the the “real” truffles are more expensive than I could ever even think of eating! So I guess that’s one of those foods I’ll probably never get to try. Oh well…..

Water filters

Noreen — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 14:10:00 +0000

I think we need to upgrade our water filter system. The water tastes too salty, and the water softener guy says there is nothing we can do about that. I don’t believe him, so I have to do some research on the issue.

Mosquitoes

Noreen — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 16:38:32 +0000

The mosquitoes have been particularly bad this season; I suspect it is a result of all of the rain we had a while back. We’ve been trying to avoid going out during the mosquito feeding hours (sunrise and sunset) but they seem to be bad all day long the past couple of weeks. One of my neighbors told me that she had heard that there was a new breed of mosquitoes that is smaller than the “usual” ones that has stripes on it that feeds around the clock! Oh, lucky us!

Shutters

Noreen — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 13:14:13 +0000

I think that exterior shutters give a house a “finished” look. Similar to a woman putting on a pair of earrings before she goes out of the house. A house just doesn’t look “done” without shutters. And the shutters have to be in good shape, or the whole house looks neglected. Our house needs new shutters. Larson Shutter Company sells a large variety of wood or vinyl shutters in large assortment of colors. They also sell some that are simply primed so that you can paint them the color of your choice. They also sell the hardware required to install them. They offer free shipping and ship nationwide.

Environmentally friendly gifts and gadgets

Noreen — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 23:06:50 +0000

My nephew sent me the link to a website, www.ecogeekliving.com, telling me that he thinks that I would really be interested in the shake flashlight that they sell from the site. He was right! The flashlight is an LED light that you shake for one minute, and then you get thirty minutes of light from the light. I saw the flashlight in the “O” magazine a little while ago, and thought it was a really cool concept. It has three white LED lights in the flashlight, and you can control how many lights are on; only one, two, or all three.

Toxic shower curtains

Noreen — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 23:00:59 +0000

I want to redecorate my spare bathroom. The redecorating would include buying new shower curtains. My sister was telling me that she read an article about how a lot of the new shower curtains give off a toxic gas for an entire month after they have been opened! She emailed me a link about the toxic shower curtains for me to read the article. I’ve bookmarked the link so I can read it again right before I go shopping so I can make sure to buy the kind that doesn’t give off the toxic emissions.

Used prices

Noreen — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 00:45:33 +0000

There is a website I’ve discovered that I can use to determine what the fair prices are of used items. The website is free and easy to use. If, for example, I need to know the used equipment value of some used power tools that we don’t use anymore, I just click on the power tools button and fill in the model number. Using their wizard, it will tell me how much the power tool is worth.

It gives values for a variety of items, such as computers, camera equipment, car stereos, guns, copiers, musical instruments, and several other categories.

Raising money

Noreen — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 00:44:46 +0000

With the tightening of our belts because of the horrible economy we are finding ourselves in, I have started to think about trying to sell off some of our used items that we have just taking up space in the basement and garage. One of the reasons I’ve been reluctant to do that in the past was that I really did not know the value or fair asking price of most of the items, and I did not want to pay an appraiser to come in to tell me that most of the stuff was of little or no value!

My baby sister’s hot tub

Noreen — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 18:16:38 +0000

My youngest sister has recently bought a used hot tub/spa. She and her hubby decided to buy it because he suffers from several painful disabilities, one of which is fibromyalgia. She herself has a lot of physical aches and pains and spends a lot of time soaking in hot water in their regular bath tub, trying to get some relief. They used to have a hot tub several years ago but it broke down and they decided not to repair that one. I don’t know if they had a price quote or what happened exactly, I just know that they said it wasn’t usable anymore. They ended up having their teenage daughter’s boyfriends dig a big hole in their back yard and the sunk it into the ground and turned it into a fish and water lily pond. So anyway, they have been missing having a usable hot tub/spa a lot because they used it all of the time, they said it brought a lot of relief to the pain that they both have been suffering.

She asked me if I knew of any place that sells replacement Hot Tub Covers or replacement spa covers. I told her that there is an Internet site by The Cover Guy that sells them. They sell high quality replacement covers for three different climates, mild, moderate, and harsh. Where my sister lives, she should consider buying the moderate climate cover. They guarantee the highest quality of materials and workmanship, and they are running a special during the month of June where they will provide free shipping.

The Cover Guy also sells a variety of cover lifters. I’d really like to see my sister buy a cover lifter for their tub so that they don’t hurt themselves trying to move the cover on and off of the tub.

I want to buy a new pair of work boots

Noreen — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 16:05:43 +0000

I know what you’re thinking – why on earth would a woman even think about wearing a work boot? Well, because they are designed to be worn comfortably all day long and stand up to extreme conditions! Obviously I would not wear them to the office, but I do a lot of yard work at home, and do a lot of other strenuous things like help friends load/unload moving trucks, and I think it just might be appropriate for me to wear work boots to do those kinds of things! I am going to look at the website www.workbootsusa.com that my brother told me about and see if I can find a pair that fits me that don’t look too awful.

Bought a new cross cut shredder

Noreen — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 16:01:08 +0000

A short while ago I was reading an article about identity theft, and one of the recommendations to protect yourself was to buy a cross cut shredder. I already had a shredder, but it wasn’t cross cut. I really hated to buy a new shredder; there was nothing mechanically wrong with the one that I had. But the cross cut shredders were on sale at a great price; they were practically giving them away so I broke down and bought one. Now I have to figure out what to do with the old one! I don’t want to throw it away, but I don’t want it cluttering up the house either! Maybe I’ll offer it on Freecycle.

Art galleries

Noreen — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 15:55:56 +0000

I’ve always enjoyed going to art galleries. I have dabbled a little bit in trying to create things with my hands and have them come out looking decent, so I appreciate the skill and talent and dedication that “real artists” have put into their works. I’d like to someday go see the world’s largest collection of fine arts at the Park West Gallery. Their main location is in Southfield, Michigan, but they have affiliate locations in Miami, FL.

The Park West Gallery not only displays the collections of fine arts but also conducts fine art auctions throughout the United States and Canada.

Bring your own bag

Noreen — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 15:49:53 +0000

I was shopping at Wal-Mart last weekend and the cashier was telling me that they have to start accepting and helping customers that bring their own canvas reusable shopping bags. I liked hearing that because several years ago I bought a lot of canvas bags that I liked to use for that purpose, but the Wal-Mart cashiers were so snotty about using them that I finally stopped bringing them with me. The last time I took them in the cashier insisted that I bag my own groceries if I insisted on using them!

Anyway, this cashier said that sometime soon the store she works in will stop giving out any kind of shopping bag, that the customer will HAVE to bring their own bag. I’m glad to hear it, and I’ve dug out my canvas shopping bags and put them in my car to take with me on my next shopping trip!

Buying furniture online

Noreen — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 21:23:07 +0000

I was looking at the dining">furniturefromhome.com website, and was checking out the dining room furniture for sale page, the bedroom furniture page, and the Home office furniture page. Although the colors of the website are pretty, there is something about the color font against the background color that simply makes it hard to read the words that are there. It might be easier to read if the font was bigger. I’d also like the pages better if there were fewer, but larger pictures of the dining room furniture. It is a little overwhelming to see so many little pictures. I can’t see any of them well enough to be interested in clicking on any of them to learn more about the product. The difficulty I am having seeing the words and the pictures makes the entire website difficult to use.

Building a computer

Noreen — Mon, 26 May 2008 11:29:44 +0000

My kids want a new computer to play games on. We are constantly competing with each other for computer time on the one computer we have. I need to use it to do bookkeeping and pay bills, they want it to do schoolwork and play games. Money is pretty tight, so we are going to be buying a DIY computer kit. It includes easy to read instructions on How to Build a Computer, and all the parts we will need. All we need is a screwdriver to put it together. We will be able to upgrade it in the future if we decide we need to upgrade it. Buying a computer kit will save us hundreds of dollars compared to buying one at a retail store.

Retire in a RV

Noreen — Sat, 24 May 2008 18:00:32 +0000

I’ve met several couples who have retired, sold their “real” house, bought New RVs and spent their retirement years travelling the country in an RV. That sounds like the perfect retirement plan to me! I’d love to do exactly that same thing! I like to go to RV shows and check out all of the different RVs on the market. I especially like the ones that have the slide-out living room features. There are a lot of RVs out there that are nicer than my “real” house! I’ve been looking at the website www.rvs.com and checking out all of the new and used RVs and motorhomes that they have for sale. Just looking at all of the options makes me really want to sell my house and move into a RV so bad I can just taste it!

Home security

Noreen — Sat, 24 May 2008 00:51:27 +0000

I was talking to my sister about the increase in crime, and she was telling me about situations that happened near her house that frightened her recently. Then she told me about a website that she found that focuses on security issues and has some good home security tips. The entire website seems to be articles of advice on being as safe as possible at home in today’s society. It discusses whether or not burglar alarms might be a good idea, it encourages people to start neighborhood watch support groups. It reviews a lot of different types of security products. It seems like a good website to use as a resource in learning about security issues.

Gang activity

Noreen — Sat, 24 May 2008 00:46:21 +0000

It seems that every time I turn on the television, or pick up a newspaper, or read the local news on the Internet, I am hearing about the increase in gang activity across the country. I am hearing and reading a lot of stories about home invasions that just make my hair stand on end! As the economy worsens, crime is bound to increase because people are going to be more desperate and take measures they would not normally take during prosperous times. This is a frightening situation for us all.

Cell phones

Noreen — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 22:15:52 +0000

We are going to need new cell phones soon. We’ve had these phones for almost two years; and they are just about ready for retirement. I am going to be doing a lot of comparison shopping in the next few months to find the best deals in cellphones. I’d like to try to get some kind of offer that gives us free cell phones if it is at all possible. My sister told me about a website that she found that has great deals on cell phones. She said that she got free Sprint phones through the website. The website is www.bestincellphones.com. It is a comparison website that shows offers from all of the major cell phone providers, and you can order the best deal from them if you find something you like. So I’m going to go to the website and look for free cell phones for our next cell phone plan!