The Salad Caper

I noticed most restaurants these days have an outdoor dining area. I never knew that alfresco dining would be such a trend. Maybe because people these days want to be with nature when eating? Practically, it is because there has been a social awareness of the dangers of smoking so almost all restaurants have a smoking and non-smoking area. The outdoors usually have the smoking area, of course. The restaurants of course takes this as an opportunity to further beautify their place and gives most thought to what kind of Landscape Design they would employ. Most of them have patio umbrellas, lamp posts and beautifully landscaped walls. There was one restaurant though that I remember had a waterfall and pond with koi fishes – it was not only pleasing to the eyes but it was refreshing to be near water – it cooled the area!The pathways were curved and outlined with natural stones and bricks and it was such a quaint picture. Landscaping should be done by professionals, like the Landscape Design Agency which has architects and designers and reputable contractors. When an area is has a landscape design which has carefully well-thought of and its design thoroughly executed, one can guarantee that it can really transform the place into something so different!

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I have heard and personally experienced credit card stories that have turned into a living nightmare. It all started innocently enough, receiving the first credit card and deciding to take it on a trial swipe at one’s favorite store. One would not think of it as incurring debt, as you basically will pay for it before the next billing cycle. That is, IF you can pay it in full, which to some, isn’t almost always the case. Sooner or later, it spirals out of control and before one even realizes it, he is up to his neck on credit card debt that he cannot even pay the minimum amount due every month. This where a Collection Agency comes in – they are actually a third party hired by the credit card company to collect outstanding balances from delinquent accounts. They are very tenacious, and for me, have instincts of a bloodhound, because they can track you down and can be consistently relentless in reminding you to settle your debt. If you do not let them intimidate you and you are not antagonistic and defensive towards them, they are your closest bet to settle your debt. They can offer special payment plans to close the account or for you to be able to catch up on payments.
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Have you ever watched the movie the Fast and the Furious? It’s a movie that showcases good-looking cars, as I call it, cars for single guys. My husband doesn’t fail to notice these types of cars, one with lambo doors, everytime we go out. He would swoon and praise the car as if it’s a mighty piece of woman flesh! I guess we will never understand men’s affinity to cars as they will never understand our love for designer bags and shoes and shopping endlessly in general! I have seen a Honda car got beautified because they replaced the usual doors with lambo doors and the all the men who saw it was all praises.

A local library near our area is looking for a barcode scanner to use for their inventory once they open to the public. A public official donated a ls2208 scanner because it has a five year warranty and has had feedback of being great for use for educational applications. They need at least one because the library is just small but they will be expanding in a year or so so they will need more.

February is a popular month for weddings, owing to the great weather and the notion that it is love month. We have not been to a wedding in a year since most of our circle of friends are already married. The peak year for weddings for us was in 2005-2006, everybody we knew was getting married and I remember I collected a lot of wedding favors that year – from CDs to magnets to figurines to cakes and keyfobs!

I have a pre-schooler who now loves to imagine and role play. So now she wants to play with “real” toys . The other day, she was running a salon and had all her ties and ribbons out in front of the mirror. Each time she would brush my hair, she would tell me, “Tada! You look beautiful!” and then ask me to pay! But her real hobby these days is cooking. She loves to cook food for her animal toys and then sets plates along the floor and serves them spaghetti and egg, all formed from her Play-Doh collection. Now she is asking for a “real” kitchen!
Should I give in or wait until she celebrates her birthday?

If there is one thing I wouldn’t want the kids to take after me, that would be me being such a couch potato. I have no inclination towards sports and I hang my head in shame as I confess that I don’t know how to ride a bike nor swim properly! Woe is me.

That is why I think the husband being a sports buff is a great advantage to my kids. I want them to grow up being active and involved in sports. Unfortunately, my son is a complete bookworm and hasn’t displayed any interest in basketball yet. He likes to try taekwando though.

He just  finished watching Major League the movie and he has become quite interested in baseball. I know he is the type who doesn’t like body contact or rough playing so maybe that is the reason why baseball appealed to him.  I want to grab the opportunity and expose him right away because his interest might wane. Baseball Equipment, fortunately, is quite affordable. Kids Sports Inc. has the best baseball training gear for kids. They market sporting goods items that are geared to training kids ages 6 and up. Their brand of choice is Franklin Sports, a company that has been in business for over 50 years and one that offers a combination of great quality and value.

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My cousin has had the worst experience with acne during her teenage years – she was working with her dermatologist but they just couldn’t control her hormones so there were a lot of big ones that eventually became scars. Now that she is older and her hormones have subsided, she is trying an acne scar removal called diamond peeling, it not only lessens her scars, it whitens her skin and peels dead skin cells too!

So I have been looking for some home remedies for acne and it came up with interesting results!

• M. balsamea (peppermint) Peppermint is preferable to spearmint as a medicinal herb because it contains menthol.
• Oatmeal – The oatmeal cleanses pores by absorbing oil and exfoliating the skin. Honey eases application and serves as a skin toner.

Method

• Cook a single serving of plain oatmeal as you would for eating.
• Add approximately ¼ cup honey and mix thoroughly.
• Allow to cool.
• Apply to face, avoiding the eye area.
• Leave for 10-20 minutes. Do not leave it on too long or it will become difficult to remove.
• Lemon juice is a natural astringent and mild antibacterial agent. Rose petals, from which rose water is made, also have antibacterial properties. It is a also a skin toner and helps to mitigate the rather harsh, acidic quality of straight lemon juice.

My husband has been hitting the gym again at work. He sleeps in their sleeping room and when he wakes up, he eats and hits the gym so he can increase lean muscle mass I have been taking pictures of him every week and there has been remarkable improvement after 3 weeks only. It is true, once you have the muscle already it is so easy to lose weight and have cuts (definition) already.