America’s next top model

I am not a regular viewer of America’s Next Top Model because the phony world of modeling isn’t something I identify with much. I did just watch the show though on replay because it was the best available option on Sunday night. ABC has gone with an all drama lineup that promises to take things to such extremes that it is a soap opera, NBC is all Football (ewww), I don’t get CBS here and PBS is all war all the time now. So that left shopping at Old Navy with ANTM. I thought that the anti smoking initiative was a positive step for these models who usually smoke like chimneys. And I have always thought that Old Navy was a great place for basics like jeans, t-shirts and tanks. (although all of their clothing are made overseas and a lot are made in China) It was nice to see the models embrace it even though it was not a high fashion designer. I end up mixing old navy pieces with all kinds of stuff and it always works out. Anyway I just wanted to say that I wasn’t as turned off by watching models catfight as I thought I would be, but then again this week was low on catfights.

Recycle your old cell phone

I think everyone is aware of the fact that a lot of the modern convieniences we enjoy today are really bad for the planet. I don’t think anyone had any idea what we were destroying when industrialization took hold and we kept finding better ways to live and do things through technology. We just accepted that cars made it easy to get places quickly, plastic bottles kept things fresh without breaking when dropped and cell phones allowed you to call someone from anywhere. It was progress right? And we all enjoyed the dawn of the new technology era not knowing what we would leave behind or how it would affect the planet.

Cell phones for example. You might not think this is a problem because you don’t buy a ton of them and they’re really small right? The cell phone companies sell about 33 Million phones in the US per QUARTER. This leds us to a total of 132 Million cell phones every year. (And this grows every year) And every time they sell a new one an old one goes out of use. Where do they go? Because many are outdated or broken the majority end up in the garbage. This is bad news for our landfills. Cell phones are not biodegradeable in any way since they are made from plastic and metal. They just sit there for an eternity. Wouldn’t it be better to collect them and recycle them? Maybe at the store when you are buying a new one? To trade it in for 5 bucks off and then they make sure they are sent to a recycler? I think that would be a great idea and far more sustainable.

Wirefly offers cell phone recycling and they are the only cell phone selling company I have seen that does this. I have personally have had 4 cell phones since 1999. 3 Nokias and 1 Treo. I am still using the treo but when it wears out someday I will send it in to be recycled. It is far better than it laying around in my home or piling up in a landfill that is overflowing already.

Best New Salads I’ve had in a while…

I just wanted to say that Pot Belly Sandwich Works has great salads. I tried the Chicken Salad Salad this monday and it was so amazing I got it again today. It’s really great because of 2 things. 1 is the fat free balsalmic vinagrette salad dressing. It’s got that sweet vinegar punch I like a lot. The second thing is the croutons. They are seasoned really well and with that dressing the combination is fantastic. Go check them out it’s only like 6 bucks. It’s a totally reasonable price for lunch.

Car Shopping? Why do people buy?

Why do people choose the cars that they do? I always wondered how people came to completley different conclusions about what car to buy than I did. And how some people value different brands completley differently. There is a new report out today that sheds some light on why people make those decisions that they do. Why they buy foregin vs domestic cars.

It states that once someone has decided if they will buy Import or Domestic they are not likley to change their mind. I wonder if this is because they have such different images and perceptions or because their cars are very different? Is there such a gap between the two types?

They also state that 50% of new vehicles bought are imports and 80% of people limit their pool of car candidates to only imports or only domestics. (I was one that considered both for a while but I’m back in the Domestic only camp now) It is also dismaying that it states that within that 20% that shop both, they only pick the domestic car as a second choice when the import doesn’t work out. It’s never because of the domestic being the best choice from the get go. Ouch.

They also say that these decisions are mostly based on “perceived” deficiencies, such as concerns about reliability, gas mileage or poor resale value. The reliability thing is always percieved because no one knows how a car will perform or stand up to the test of time until they drive it for a while or unless they have driven that model or maker before. Gas mileage is a number based on data, so if you percieve that rather than look it up, you’re an idiot. Poor resale value is not percieved either. It is easy to see that Toyotas and Lexuses are in high demand as used cars and keep more of their value by picking up an issue of auto trader or any cars.com flyer. So if you percieve that and don’t look it up you’re also an idiot.

I wish more people bought cars based on data and less on commercials, perceptions and what the idiot sales person says. In fact I never go into a dealer without knowing what car I want excactly and what price I want for it. You don’t have to accept any deal that you don’t want and you can always walk away because there are always more cars out there.

But if you are an import buyer and think Domestics suck, you should check out Buick. They match Lexus in quality and reliabaility and I think they are less gaudy and overdone as well. A more tastefully elegant car. Give Buick a new look.

Puerto Rico Trip

One of my good friends is from Puerto Rico and travels there every year. He has always told great stories about going back to meet family and relatives and how interesting and different their life is there. Another one of my friends likes to get away to Puerto Rico for a little R&R every summer. She has written about how laid back and beautiful it is on her blog many times. I have seen their ads for years ion TV and online. It seems like a place you could go to experience a tropical place without needing a passport or spending a ton of money. I think they might do well to promote getting away durring the winter and plan an ad campaign for January – February. That way people who want to be snow birds but can’t afford the big deal places abroad could find a more affordable tropical warm vacation stateside.

Big Shots

I watched Big Shots on TV last night (ABC) and I was pleasantly suprised. I thought it was a funny way to turn the tables on men in the same relationship type drama that women usually have. I don’t know who the 4th guy is, the blonde one I don’t recognize from anywhere before. It is really good to see Michael Vartan back again and to see the guy from west wing. The 3rd guy I have seen somewhere before but I can’t remember where. There was also obviously some casting not set yet with the napoleons girl always showing the back of her head. I wonder who they will get for that role as the show moves on. All in all though I hope people watch because I  thought it was a great show.

Save money around your home

I got this in an email today and wanted to share it with all of you. I think these are some good tips. I previously blogged about saving money and spending wiser a few months ago. It is a topic I am paying more attention to since I am trying to build up some more savings so I can buy a better place in a few years. 

There are many simple ways to save money around your home. And some even help you save the environment, too. Here are some of our favorites:

1. Replacing an old dryer with a new, energy-saving model equipped with a moisture sensor can save you cash, up to 15% per load (after the cost of the dryer. this is only good if you already need one)

2. Use warm or cold water instead of hot when washing your clothes.

3. Turn the thermostat on your water heater down a few degrees, and add some insulation to the tank itself, to help it retain its heat. Insulating the tank costs about $20 and can save you $25 a year.

4. When the fireplace is not in use, don’t forget to close the flue damper. Chimneys are designed to let smoke escape, which means heated or conditioned air escapes, too.

5. Use linear fluorescent and energy-efficient fluorescent compact lamps. They last many times longer than old-fashioned incandescent bulbs and use much less energy.

6. Use solar pathway lights outside your home to eliminate the use of electricity for exterior lights.

7. If purchasing a new refrigerator, consider one with the freezer on the top—they’re more efficient

8. Cut out expensive directory assistance calls by using 1-800-free-411. This new service is made possible by thousands of national and local businesses whose brief audio advertisements are played to callers who request businesses in their yellow pages category.

9. Clean inexpensively, and with common household products. For kitchen counters, add four tablespoons of baking soda to one quart of warm water. It cleans and deodorizes. Add equal parts sudsy ammonia and water for another all-around cleaner. Use vinegar (white or apple cider) mixed with water to remove soap and hard-water buildup.

For more information, check out The American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy’s website, and ENERGY STAR’s website.

TV Premier Week update

I promised to review some of the new TV shows I have been able to catch this week on TV. I don’t have cable, so free TV is it for me. This stuff is what I have as an option or I am stuck with Netflix and the Internet. But then again sometimes my cat is the best entertainment ever. I don’t get much CBS coverage since the signal in Chicago is weak and I usually hate their shows anyway. I also rarely watch FOX because they go with lowest common denominator programming and a lot of sports and their signal is weak and fuzzy as well. If you are a TV exec or work for a network and are reading this, remember I am a 32 yr old single female yuppie professional. So these opinions are pretty related to that demo only.

Bionic Woman: Every critic has said this show either sucks or will not catch on. I don’t know why. I liked it. I got a very Alias feel from it and liked the discovery phase of not knowing what capabilites she has and the decision to embrace them. It feels very Alias to me. I hope people do watch it. It also has the whole action comic book thing going on too. Female heroines are very popular right now. Don’t count this one out.

Dirty Sexy Money: I thought this was good, but predictable. I think it is because it has been pretty heavily promoted and almost the entire pilot has been shown in bits on commericals and clips on the net. I think it will get better in the next few eps.

Dancing with the Stars: This is always interesting to me because I used to dance. I am always interested to see who is good and who sucks out of their element. I do think that the costumes are rediculous though.

Gossip Girl: A sometimes painfully obvious soap oera for teens. I think it will do well with the Teen Demo, but not much else.

Beauty and the Geek: I like this show even though apparently the ratings aren’t doing so well. I think they should keep going with it and I hope people keep watching.

Chuck: Again not much suprise when the entire plot of the pilot was in commericals but I think it has legs. A good combo of geekery and spy stuff. Comedy and Action drama stuff. And the word “nerd herd” is now part of the american vernacular.

Boston Legal: Always a pleasure to see. Always suprising and funny. This week’s closing arguement was a bit weak though. Need to keep good writers on this show that can feed James Spader good stuff.

Private Prctice: Ok show, although some shockingly awkward moments were so weird I had to change the channel. (guy dies while trying to submit sperm for artificial insemenation of girlfriend and exwife and girlfriend spend the entire show arguing over posession of dead guy’s sperm, while new doctor gets aclimated to practice with other Dr’s that didn’t know she was coming to work there) It’s a bit much over the top not believable sometimes. But than again that was the same problem I had with Grey’s Anatomy. But Kate Walsh is good. I like her a lot despite her not being able to dance really. (that was painfull too despite her being really pretty)

The Bachelor: Bad. Bad. Bad. This should have been canceled years ago. Please cut this show ASAP. Only the lowest intelligence women watch this show.

Heroes: I am not a fan of the premise of this show so I can’t really watch it. I am sure people will tune in though, people in my office were going home early to get ready to watch it, and talked about it the next day.

Cavemen: I am not giving this show the recognition of watching it.  It’s Stupid.

What did you think of all the shows you have watched in premier week? Any predictions on what will get cut?

New Cool Web 2.0 Sites

I am always running accross new sites that do neat things on the internet, check these out for some fun this weekend:

Kaneva – discover an engaging 3D world where your media, online entertainment and imagination come to life. Create a profile, unique 3D avatar, 3D home and teleport “in-world” to explore and connect with others.

MocoSpace – you can meet new friends and stay in touch with old friends anytime–anywhere, directly from your mobile phone. It’s a social community made up of more than a million registered users in the US and around the world. Sign-up is quick and best of all, it’s free. Stay connected while on-the-go, all the time.  It’s myspace for your phone.

Auction Pal – selling your “stuff” has never been so easy. Have an item you want to sell? Find out how much it’s worth with auctionPAL’s calculator. Don’t stop there! To help make selling easy, auctionPAL has three different services, each designed to meet the needs of a different type of seller. Just pick the one that’s right for you. Could this be the next Ebay?

GrayBoxx – search locally for the top neighbor-recommended businesses and services. Grayboxx’s innovative technology translates the everyday interactions people have with businesses into meaningful expressions of popularity and quality. This has been tried before, local search never works. But yet they want to try it again…good luck guys.

Budwiser out Coors in as NASCAR Beer Sponsor

This is a suprise…Coors is the official Beer of NASCAR? What will NASCAR be without Budwiser? What will families dress their kids in if not Budwiser jackets hats and t-shirts? It’s the future drink of many underachievers and NASCAR has always been happy to partner with them. Well AdAge is reporting that Coos got the 20 Million dollar contract for 5 years and it includes access to use the NASCAR logo on their products and marketing materials. What I don’t know is if media costs are seperate for the deal? If it does include media costs and the rights to logo and trademark use, that’s one cheap deal. 20 Million is nothing over 5 years for a big partnership if it includes media. I wonder if Budwiser walked away and didn’t want it anymore, and Coors was only interested in picking it up if it was cheap? Is NASCAR loosing it’s marketing Mojo?

SafeSax is what?

Hah! Safesax it’s a site that sells bags and accessories that promote the rules of Safe Sex. How interesting is that name for a site. What will I come across next? It is never moring scouring the internet… Check them out though for some entertaining stuff (made of condoms!!) and a wothwhile cause. As someone personally battling Cervical Cancer (early stages) I would recommend abstaining from Sex all together unless you have the HPV Vaccine already. Seriously! It isn’t preventable any other way and it can kill you with cancer. I think in the 1980′s people got used to the idea that condoms prevented AIDS and that was the only non-curable STD so if you use a condom you can fuck anything that moves. Well I didn’t do that, but I did have a healthy sex life in several relationships and even with the constant use of condoms, I have High Risk HPV and Early Stage Cervical Cancer. HPV is also thought to be a cause of colon, breast, head and neck, prostate and lung cancers. SO take this stuff seriously or it will come back to haunt you later in life when it isn’t cureable, and not in a good way.

Fight WalMart Killing America

I am pretty anti-walmart. I never shop there, and the few times I have been there I have been pretty dissapointed in the store. But what is more dissapointing is how they hurt the American Economy by putting small businesses out of business, killing the economy in small towns, underpaying and underinsuring their workers while over working them, and buying the vast majority of their goods from China. I realize now that this is not just a WalMart phenomenon. Even the well liked Target buys a lot from China. So does every store you can think of. If I tried to not buy anything from china, I wouldn’t have anything to buy. I have been looking at labels more and putting stuff back that has the made in China mark on it, but it is hard. Its cheap and affordable and WalMart knows that this is the drug that americans are addicted to; Cheap Stuff. So in favor of our own economy and job in the USA, we should try and buy less form China and reduce the urge to buy lots of stuff. And here is a good site about the walmart fight: http://www.wakeupwalmart.com/ Check it out and sign up on their email list for updates.

Bitch Magazine – New pop culture read

My friend Meg recommended Bitch Magazine as a good entertaining somewhat thoughtful and very angsty read. I have not subscribed yet, but I am curious about it. The thing is it has “feminism” written all over it.  And I am not a feminist. I am an equalist. So yes, I can be a bitch, but I don’t just live in that mode. It’s only when warranted. And I don’t hate the world and all the girly stuff that sometimes limits women into a male dominated situation or limits her own opportunity.

I enjoy being girly to a point and smart all the time. I don’t think that because I am smart that I can’t enjoy a good shopping magazine too once in a while. (in Style) although instead of buying stuff, I will most likley just look at it and then forget about it. I don’t think men are the enemy, I think giant corporations and ruthless CEOs are the enemy (and sometimes China’s economy). The second they make a magazine about how to fight back about that I am going to subscribe instantly.

Free site online to learn Languages – French, German, Spanish, Mango

I love all the cool sites that come up every day. Things were so boring before the internet. Here is a great site I was sent today by someone that has free language lessons on it. You can learn any one of several foregin languages, and they’re not all even taught from english. They have taken all different countries into account and provided lessons for people in other native languages to learn new languages too. How cool and courteous is that? Check out http://www.trymango.com/login.php Mango for language learning online.

Pontiac Logo Excitement

I have been really impressed latley with the pontiac G6 and even more so with the G6 coupe. It is one hot looking automobile. And it looks hot because it doesn’t look like a Pontiac. Honestly when people see it not knowing who made it, they will think it’s a Nissan, Honda or Infiniti. It has none of the trademark ugly design cues of Pontiacs in the last 20 years.

No excessive body clading, no ground effects with ridged stripes, no honecomb grills and honecomb sticker covered tail lights and no excessive scoops and wings. (seen at left) It is simple and elegant and very stylish. In fact I was saying the other day that maybe I would buy one if I could rip the Pontiac badges off, because right now they are what are ruining the car.

My brother laughed at that and today said that they are actually re-designing the pontiac logo. How cool is that? Apparently I am not the only one who thinks of teal pontiac body cladding on mid-90′s grand ams and the ugliest car ever, the pontiac Aztec when I see that logo. It’s enough to give someone nightmares and get laughed at by relatives and friends for buying a Pontiac. So maybe I will buy a G6 in a few years when they logo is changed, because the current logo doesn’t make me think of anything good and I’m not sure how to rip one off of a car without leaving damage. Hopefully they will stay with clean elegant designs for a while, so they don’t have to take this new grey logo back soon too.