Oct
27
Sustainable Seafood
Filed Under Food | Leave a Comment
The Monterey Bay Aquarium has put together a guide for consumers to seafood that’s “abundant, well-managed, and caught or farmed in environmentally friendly ways.” Browse or download printable versions at http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/seafoodwatch.asp
Oct
27
Seeing Red
Filed Under Charity | Leave a Comment
Unless you avoid all media (including driving with a blindfold on so as to not see the associated billboard ads) then you’re probably aware of the recent campaign by Bono et al. to encourage the masses to buy “Red” products to eliminate AIDs through consumerism. Take a peek at their web site: http://www.joinred.com/
Oct
27
Amish Shopping
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Have you every wondered where the Amish go to shop? Living a lifestyle free of many of the modern technologies isn’t easy but shopping for it can be handled through the Lehman’s catalogue at http://www.lehmans.com/. The company markets itself as “Products for Simple, Self-sufficient Living”
Oct
23
Buy Stock in Ziplock
Filed Under Air Travel | Leave a Comment
Here’s a lesson I learned during my recent travels:
One 0.5oz bottle of $70 plus Estee Lauder eye cream alone in a plastic bin. Success of passing through security = 0%
One 0.5oz bottle of $70 plus Estee Lauder eye cream in zipped plastic baggie alone in a plastic bin, Success of passing through security = 100%
Thank you, kind soul, who provided said zipped plastic baggie.
Oct
23
United No More
Filed Under Air Travel | Leave a Comment
My recent flight this past weekend reminded me (once again) why I will never fly United Airlines again. Compared to other airlines that I fly reguarly, so many aspects of the flying experience with this airline are frustrating. Let’s start with the simple act of seat assignments. For some reason, the brilliant software programmers at United have yet to figure out the simple yet customer warm and fuzzy gesture of balancing the need to maximize the efficient seating of customers while keeping you with your actually travel partner. One the flight out, we each got a nifty piece of paper that entitles you to a fun filled visit to the boarding gate where you get to watch two frazzled employees try to figure out how to fit 30 irate passengers into 5 remaining seats. It’s always sooooo much fun not knowing until 5 minutes before your departure if you actually get to depart. On the way back, we again checked in - the machine teased us with the “select your seats” option which cluelessly didn’t actually render us seat assignments. It was until the fifth try that we noticed the teeny tiny little astrix and accompanying text “seats will be assigned at gates.” Arrg! Not again! At the seat, I was informed that if I wanted to sit with my actual travel partner I could pay $41 per person to purchase their “Economy Plus” seats. Yippeee! How did I get so lucky? $82 poorer, we boarded the flight.
I read an interesting article this past Sunday on the cleanliness of airlines. There was a table in the article that listed the cleanliness rating of airlines. Was I surprised to see United down the list toward the lowest rankings? Uhh…no. Was I surprised that my in-flight video didn’t have any sound at all. Uhh…no.
Oct
23
The Estee Lauder Upsell
Filed Under Beauty | Leave a Comment
My original exposure to Estee Lauder started back when I was an insecure and impressionable 14 year old. I joined in with the other like minded teeny boppers in rushing to purchase Estee Lauder products upon hearing that members of the Lauder family would be attending my school in Austria while their father served as the Ambassador. I fell off the Lauder bandwagon while a cash strapped college student. After years of hit and miss with the drug store foundation options, I was recently lured back to the Lauder fold. My eager beaver little self hopped up to the offered seat for my foundation selection. In the old days when I searched for “just the right” shade of foundation, the process entailed getting swabs of make applied to ones cheek and then pointing at the shade. Not this time. In no time flat, the sales person had stripped my entire face of make up. Slathering on layer after layer of product, she explained how essential each one was. Finally, she got to the strip test, which consisted of different varieties of foundation slapped all around my face. After I picked the right style of foundation, then it was off to the actually shade selection. I found the right type which she then applied with a make up brush, explaining that it provided better coverage using less foundation. She finished the application and when I looked in the mirror, gosh darn it, I did look dewy and fresh. I ended up getting the Futurist foundation. I did succumb to one up sell (I swear, my eyes need it!) and also got the Advanced Night Repair Eye Recovery Complex.