I’m thinking of checking out Cozi, a website that promises to get me organized. Well, no - they didn’t PROMISE really, but they sound good. Sounds more user friendly than my Outlook calendar - and Cozi apparently syncs with Outlook anyway - so my husband will be happy because my Outlook syncs with his Google which syncs with his Outlook (confused yet?). Makes it easier for us to keep track of our separate calendars.

Anything that will help me keep track of housework, playgroup functions, girls nights, school stuff, and maybe even all the “happy” and diet pills that I take daily. Like I said - anything to get me organized …

Wonder if I can add Flylady stuff to it? Maybe there is a plugin!

I’ve been doing some research on the best diet pill lately. I’ve been taking some Green Tea stuff, but I keep hearing about Acai Berry pills and hear they really work. The Acai Berry Diet is designed to give you the benefits of Acai berries (a supposed "super food") in pill form to help you lose weight. The pill also includes green tea extract. Not much publicity has followed this supplement, leaving consumers to speculate on actual results and capabilities.  After Acai berries were touted as being the #1 Superfood by Dr. Perricone on Oprah’s television show, more and more products are incorporating this supplement into their products.

There are a couple pills that are listed on a few websites as being "the BEST" - Anoretix and FentraPhen ..  While they both sound a little scary, not to mention expensive - they both are high rated for those who want to lose weight quickly.

Do you take diet pills? What ones would you recommend?

The Macintosh - the first Apple computer to bear the name - turns 25 on 24 January. The machine debuted in 1984 and kicked off a product line that were Apple’s flagship computers for many years. The Macintosh helped popularize the combination of graphical interface and mouse that is ubiquitous today. The machine was unveiled using a hugely expensive TV advert, directed by film maker Ridley Scott and shown during the US Superbowl on 22 January 1984.

We’ve got a MacMini here at our home. I love how easy it is to edit video on it, but, with it’s 80 gig harddrive it’s a little lacking in room. I’m a PC girl - what can I say? Even with Vista being the pain that it is.

So say you? Are you into Macs or PC’s?

It’s incredibly cold here in Virginia right now - in fact; I’ve heard that this is the coldest it’s been in about four years! Snow is coming and I’ve been looking for ways to "winterize" my car (since I drive out to school early-early in the morning). Each day I have to scrape ice off my windshield - so I purchased some window wash that had a de-icer built in. Maybe that will take care of the ice a little more.

I found some tips off eHow to share with you:

1. Don’t put off a 30,000-mile full service, if your car is due - some of the things they will check during this service will be the transmission, brakes and power steering rack along with a cooling system flush, tire check, oil check/change, and fluid level check. This is all incredibly important - you do NOT want to be without something like power steering while you are trying to drive in the snow and ice! (If you work on your own car check out the link I posted - they have a full warranty on their products and free shipping! They have the highest quality power steering boxes and racks - products that only dealers previously had.)
2. Replace the windshield wiper blades. Put windshield washer fluid in the windshield washer reservoir (plain water will freeze).
3. Have the battery serviced (clean the battery terminal ends and add water) and load-tested to check its ability to hold a charge. If the battery is more than 4 1/2 years old, replace it.
4. Use a tire gauge to check the tire pressure. Air contracts with cold, and the tires may become low as the temperature drops.
5. Make sure there is air in the spare tire and that all the proper tire-changing equipment is in the trunk.
6. Make sure the tires are in good condition. If you are not sure what this means, ask a mechanic (in a shop that doesn’t sell tires) for an opinion.
7. Check the lights, heater and defroster.
8. Keep the gas tank as full as possible to prevent moisture from freezing in the gas lines.
9. Get a brake check if you haven’t had one in the last six months.
10. Put together an emergency winter kit for the trunk of your car: blanket, extra boots and gloves, ice scraper, small snow shovel, flashlight and kitty litter (for traction when stuck in the snow).

Now is the time to winterize your car if you haven’t already - it’s not that difficult and it could save your life.

I watched a DVR’d Chelsea Lately last night - the one that featured an interview with Perez Hilton (my very favorite celebrity-bashing blogger!) He was talking up his new book - "Red Carpet Suicide: A Survival Guide on Keeping Up With the Hiltons" of course!

Crazy celebrities dominate news, fashion, and trends, influencing how we speak, what we wear, and who we hang out with. We’re obsessed! Our gossip-driven world has set the barometer of what’s in or out. So, who are we trying to become and how do we become them? Post a grainy sex video online, drive high and wasted against oncoming traffic, flash for the cameras, and if that doesn’t work, attempt suicide and you’re bound to become a “Hilton.” Now the man behind Hollywood’s most hated website—infamous for breaking raw superstar dish and jaw-dropping commentary—lends his fearless voice, notorious sense of humor, and outrageous sensibility to Red Carpet Suicide, the book celebrities have been looking forward to as much as their next DUI. Making sense of the madness and celebrity addiction that consumes us, Perez twists this irresistible and delicious guilty pleasure into a hysterically funny, shockingly true, and generation-defining survival guide.

Related Books:
Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea
My Horizontal Life: A Collection of One-Night Stands

I worked on a new Squidoo Lens today and actually got far enough on it to publish it! The lens is called Wii 4 Kids and it’s all about cool games for the Nintendo Wii that are especially for the under 10 crowd. I am quite proud of it and hope to see activity on it from viewers! Right now I only have a few games reviewed on there - but I will be posting more as I get more reviews from friends (or write up some more myself).

I like making lenses on things that mean something to me. I probably won’t be making a lens about weight loss supplements any time soon, but maybe some good healthy foods that are cheap! Now that’s a great topic! Now is the time for "weight loss" information - and with the current economic state everyone is trying to save money (including eating inexpensively). Maybe I will research that one - frugal & healthy!

Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream is partnering up with the nonprofit Common Cause, a nonpartisan, nonprofit advocacy organization founded as a vehicle for citizens to make their voices heard in the political process. The Common Cause Education Fund conducts research, education, and outreach activities.

Common Cause and Ben & Jerry’s plan to activate consumers and fans through an on-line campaign to urge the general public to make its voice heard regarding critical policy decisions in the months ahead. “We partnered with Common Cause because we feel it is everyone’s duty to step up to the plate to help make a fundamental change for the good of our country,” said Ben & Jerry’s Chief Euphoria Officer, Walt Freese. “As we see it, it’s a good time and a fitting way for us to honor that change.”

Common Cause chief executive Bob Edgar said "Common Cause is excited to work with Ben & Jerry’s to spread a spirit of activism and optimism that we believe can make our government work for the common good as it tackles the big issues of the day. An engaged citizenry is crucial for a healthy democracy."

The ice cream is described as "YES PECAN! An Inspirational Blend! Amber Waves of Buttery Ice Cream With Roasted Non-Partisan Pecans."

Proceeds from the sale of Pecan" in the month of January will go to the Common Cause’s Education Fund.

And according to B&J’s website, "In addition to the flavor in Scoop Shops, for every person who joins Common Cause or donates $1 to the Common Cause Education Fund, Ben & Jerry’s will also donate $1."

I’ve been using Google Chrome lately just to test it out and I really like it. Not enough to switch to it from Firefox, but enough to use it often. I especially like to use Chrome while dropping Entrecards! Why? Because Chrome loads blogs extremely fast and doesn’t get bogged down when I load a bunch of sites at once. Plus, while sites are loading in Entrecard I can still have my Firefox open do work on other things.

I’ve set up up an "Entrecard" favorites list folder - in there I have three more folders "drops #1" through "drops #3" where I have about 20 sites in each folder. I load all 20 at once in Chrome and close windows as I drop (yes I do read while I drop!) Then I load the next folder. I know of a lot of EC users that use the folder method - it works and it’s quick. It’s a great way to keep track of your usual ‘drops.’

Other benefits of Chrome include: (from DrostDesigns.com - read more there)

• Built for Web applications rather than Web pages.
• Has its own JavaScript engine to power web applications.
• Uses browser tabs that get their own URL box making each tab a browser window.
• Good security. Chrome sandboxes Web pages, preventing drive-by downloads and installations.
• One box for everything - type in address bar and get suggestions for both search and web pages.
• Thumbnails of your top sites - access your favorite pages instantly from any new tab.
• Users less memory that competing browsers

It’s a pretty awesome browser if I do say so myself. I suggest you download it and try it out!

It’s supposed to get cold here - like, we’re talking possibly cold enough to snow. Right now it’s 43 degrees according to the weather channel site - and the forecast says tomorrow it will be a high of 62 degrees (which isn’t cold to me). But, I’ve heard that this weekend the temps will drop. I’m not sure what kind of "winterizing" I am supposed to do to my van - maybe some tire chains and some windshield wiper fluid that makes it easy to scrape ice? I don’t think it’s going to snow THAT much - but I just want to be prepared. I leave the house early in the morning and I don’t want to deal with an icy windshield or sliding down the highway when I don’t know how to drive in the snow.

If I were still a hermit I wouldn’t care - I love looking out the window at snow. But now I’m a high-falutin’ collage student who would like the roads to remain nice and ice-free.

Ya dig?

Finally (not that I am particularly happy about it) it’s cold here in Virginia! It’s been around 40 degrees consistently the last few days - so all I’ve wanted to do has been to curl up on the couch in flannel pj’s with my electric blanket and play on the laptop. Unfortunately, I’ve gotten little to no studying done! School starts up again on Monday (yes, this Monday!) and I’ve got a few quizzes to do and a report (or two) to begin! Ugh! Talk about not planning things correctly!

Hopefully, in addition to getting a few new links up and a new template for my other blog - I can find the time to do my homework. I am really trying to get an "A" average here and being a slacker when I have to do work is completely unacceptable. Time to get my butt in gear and get my homework done.

Ahh - being a Stay At Home Mama / Full time student / Work at home Mama is tiring.