Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Dubble Bubble

Why can't they make Dubble Bubble flavor last long?  After a few minutes of chewing it loses all its flavor.  Then it gets harder to chew and your jaw starts to hurt.  I have to spit it out because I feel like it's going to pull the cavities out of my teeth...

Is it a marketing ploy just get people to buy more Dubble Bubble?

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Cards vs Gifts

I'd rather get a thoughtful greeting card than a meaningless gift.

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Why are some people's immune system stronger than others?

Why are some people's immune system stronger than others?

My husband always seems to get sick before I do, if I even get sick.  I guess that means that my immune system is stronger than his.  I hardly ever get sick, even though I am highly allergic to everything.

One of his cousins and one of my friends are germophobes and are constantly sanitizing everything, yet their kids are always sick.

I was trying to research if there is a reason why some people have stronger immune systems than others or if there is a way to strengthen your own immune system.

I came across this page:
http://alisongraham.hubpages.com/hub/Top-Tips-To-Boost-Immune-System-And-Build-Up-Immune-System-Naturally which listed:

  • Learn how to deal with stress
  • Get the right amount of sleep
  • Drink plenty of water
  • Cut down on refined foods and eliminate food allergens
  • Eliminate toxins, chemicals and pesticides from your environment
  • Cut down on alcohol and caffeine
  • Eat plenty of Fruit and Vegetables
  • Eat fish
  • Take regular moderate exercise
  • Get plenty of fresh air and sunshine
  • Consider taking some supplements
  • Wash your hands regularly

Many of the sites I came across mentioned the same types of things.  I think they are all crock of crap.
  • I guess I deal with stress fairly well
  • I don't get enough sleep.  Usually 6-7 hours.  
  • I don't drink as much water as I should.
  • I have cut down on as much refined foods as possible.  I avoid the food allergens that I am aware of.
  • I drink alcohol moderately.  I drink caffeine all the time.
  • I don't eat enough fruit and vegetables.
  • I rarely eat fish.
  • I regularly exercise.
  • I try to get fresh air and sunshine when possible.
  • I take supplements, but not a multi-vitamins.
  • I wash my hands regularly, but not with soap, as the soap dries my hands.
Yet, I hardly get sick....

Perhaps there is no way to strengthen your immune system.  Maybe it's just one of those things that you are born with or not?

A pretty good lesson on the Immune System:
http://www.naturalhealthschool.com/10_1.html

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Eyes on You

Why does a person wake up when someone is staring at them?

Also, why can you sense if someone is staring at you and vice versa?

Monday, October 24, 2011

Why can't we wear white after Labor Day?

I've always heard the fashion rule: no white after Labor Day.  But why?

I was under the impression that white bottoms had something to do with it being summer time.  I only thought that it was white pants, skirts, shorts, etc.  Other people think that it includes white tops as well.

Here is an article that explains it all:
Why We Can't Wear White After Labor Day

Friday, October 21, 2011

Filipino Customs when burying the dead

9 day novena

30th day - tradition in Ilocos

40th day - when the soul goes to heaven

Wearing black (and/or white)

Giving atang (food offering) to the deceased

Cutting the rosary -  Meaning:  Since the bereaved will bring the rosary with him/her in the grave, it is believed that if the rosary is not broken, other family members will follow. It breaks the circle which symbolically represents eternity, so the soul will go to heaven 2

Placing  shoes next to the deceased' feet inside the coffin - Meaning: If the deceased were to visit you, you don't want to hear their shoes walking around in your house.

1 year anniversary

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Funeral_practices_and_burial_customs_in_the_Philippines

Monday, October 3, 2011

Losing grandparents when you're older

In the past month and a half, I have lost two grandparents: one on my mother's side and one on my father's side.  One was sick for a long time and I had time to prepare.  The other was sick for a short time and I hadn't even gotten to the acceptance stage.  In either situation, I don't think it is easy to let go.

I feel like it's harder to lose a grandparent when you're older.  When you're a kid, you see your grandparent as another disciplinarian.  They play a role as a parent, even though they probably let you get away with more things.  When you're a teenager, you see them as "old school", and get in your way.  You hear their stories of when they were younger and think it doesn't apply to you.  After you are grown and settled down, they take on a different role.  They are rich with stories and wisdom.  You understand where they come from, where you come from, where you get your personality traits and quirks.  You feel much closer to them.  And then when their time gets near, you feel like you haven't had enough time to enjoy them.  I look to the past and wish that I was more receptive, that I spent more time with them, that I showed them I loved them more.  But, now they've gone and I can only have one-way conversations with them.  I hope that I am able to hear and feel them again someday.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Songs get stuck in my head

I get songs stuck in my head a lot.  Sometimes it's because I have just heard them on the radio and then it will stay in my head the rest of the day or until a new song gets stuck in my head.

 http://health.howstuffworks.com/mental-health/human-nature/perception/songs-stuck-in-head.htm

Sometimes,  a song will just randomly pop in my head and then if I turn the radio on, that song will be on.  This happens with movies too.  I once heard that our brains can pick up on radio signals and that why we subconsiously get things in our head.  Not sure about that though.  Perhaps it's a coincidence that happens frequently.

I've heard different myths on how to get songs out of your head.  One was to hear the song in its entirety so that your brain will now the song is done.  Another was to start doing math.  Sometimes it works, sometimes not.

Here are some other entertaining suggestions on how to rid your mind of the earworms:
 http://www.wikihow.com/Get-a-Song-Out-of-Your-Head

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Movies always on TV

Why does Lethal Weapon # always seem to be on TV?
I'm going to start tracking every time I see it:
5/21/2011 TNT: Lethal Weapon 3
11/1 Reel: Lethal Weapon
11/16 WPXN: Lethal Weapon 4
6/17/12 Spike: Lethal Weapon 2
1/25/14  HBOCHD: Lethal Weapon 1 and 2
9/7/14 HBO: Lethal Weapon 2
10/9/14 HBO: Lethal Weapon
7/16/15 AMC: Lethal Weapon
7/26/15 AMC: Lethan Weapon 2
2/13/16 TNT: Lethal Weapon
2/14/16 WPXN: Lethal Weapon 2 & 3

Friday, May 20, 2011

Children's Songs

When my sister was a toddler, I used to make her sing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star", "Bah Bah Black Sheep" and "The ABC song" all in a row until she got confused and mixed up the words.  I thought it was amusing.

I was just doing the USA Today Crossword and the Clue was:
69 Across:  "Old Macdonald Had a Farm" refrain

So, I sing "Old Macdonald Had a Farm and Bingo was his name-o. B-I-N-G-O"
The answer must be "Bingo", right?

Nope.

It's "EIEIO"

I combined two children's songs into one!  "Old Macdonald Had a Farm" and "There Was a Farmer Who Had a Dog"

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Felicity

Every once in awhile I feel the need to watch the whole Felicity series on DVD.
It's one of those times again.  I don't know what it is about that show that I really loved: college, relationships, friendships... Whatever it is, I need to watch it.

They just don't make TV shows like they used to.  Either it's a reality show or it's all about sex and drugs.  This show was as close to real-life situations as you could get, in my opinion.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Act of Contrition

It's Holy Week and I haven't gone to confession in  over five years.  Not that I am avoiding it or making excuses, but  life's obligations have kept me busy or I forget.  Usually confessions are on the weekends, and we are hardly home on the weekend.  It's always someone's birthday or wedding, christening, shower, etc.

I am making a plan to go tomorrow after Holy Thursday mass.

I am pretty sure that I need to know the Act of Contrition and I looked it up and didn't realize that there were so many versions.  I am just going to stick to the one that I learned growing up.  It's weird how I still remember it.

Oh My God, I am sorry for my sins.
In choosing to sin and failing to do good, I have sinned against You and Your Church.
I firmly intend, with the help of Your Son, to make up for my sins and to love as I should.
Amen.

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Uses for Plastic Bags

There has been a movement to get people to get away from using grocery stores' plastics bag and using reusable totes to be more "green".  I have the reusable totes and have used them on occassion, but it was then that I found myself running out of the plastic bags and realized that I use them for a lot of things.

  • I use them to line the wastebaskets in my bathrooms/bedrooms.
  • I use them to line the wastebaskets at my work because the janitors never change my trashbag.  They just dump the trash.  This is especially gross (and possibly unsanitary) when I put in food or my yogurts cups in them.
  • My in-laws use them to line their kitchen trashbag and use those instead to fill up the larger trashcan outside, so that they use less trashbags.  I mean, you actually pay for the kitchen trashbags and the grocery store ones are free, right?
  • I use them to put old food or food preparation scraps and tie them up before I put them in the kitchen trashbag so that it doesn't smell as bad when I open up the trashcan.
  • I use them when I go on trips to separate my dirty clothes from my clean clothes.
  • I use them on ski trips to put my boots in so that I don't get mud and dirt all over the trunk of my car.
  • I don't have pets, but I know a lot of people who use them to pick up dog poop.
  • I use them to put my wet bathing suits in so that I don't dampen the rest of the things in my bag.  
 

Monday, February 7, 2011

Wachovia converted to Wells Fargo website

My Wachovia account was converted over to Wells Fargo over the weekend.  I logged into Wachovia today and it walked me through the account conversion process.  Afterwards, I was redirected to the Wells Fargo site. 


I took a few minutes to look through the site and familiarize myself with the new layout.  I already found it difficult to navigate and had a hard time locating information about my account.

The Wachovia site was very user friendly.  The information about my accounts seemed much easier to find.  Now, the Wells Fargo site has a lot of "white space".

The Bill Pay now has "Send on" and "Deliver By" dates which can be confusing.  I don't know why you need to have two dates.  Just give us the important one, which would be the "Deliver By" date.

The site is also much slower than the Wachovia site.

It's too bad that you can't choose a "Theme" for the site. I prefer the look and feel of the Wachovia website better.

2002 Honda CR-V Sunroof

The sunroof of my car shattered one day, either by something hitting it or it just spontaneously exploded.

The quote to replace it from an Auto Glass repair shop was $350!  I had my entired windshield replaced by them for only $225.


My husband found that part on East Park Auto Recyclers for $95 + $20 shipping.

He installed the new sunroof in less than 30 minutes.  He was even surprised at how easy it was.

That's $235 saved instead of going to someone else's labor cost.