Duelin’ Deals Blog by Marlaine

Windows XP, Vista, Windows 7, formally called Vienna, Midori….. (I had ME on my first computer – 2000.) XP came out in 2003? Vista showed up in 2006. Windows 7 is scheduled for early January 2010. Midori is still way in development but whispered to be coming out in 2013. (Obviously a bit of planned obsolescence here!) Each update costs about $400. And each version has more spyware in it and greater and greater DRM – Digital Rights Management – included. (In otherwords, don’t count on downloading anything to your computer that MIGHT have a copyright infringement issue. Even copying your own paid-for CDs or DVDs to your computer as a backup, which is legally allowed, is being blocked by Microsoft software, citing DMCA and the RIAA rules which don’t allow you to bypass encryption – and can put you in jail!)

Microsoft is also in the process of trying to establish an internet based operating system that would store all your computer files on an internet data base and effectively will not allow you to have your own files on your computer – in the Midori Operating System. You will not have a choice once it comes out – you will have to let Microsoft have a copy of everything on your computer if you install Midori. In other words, your computer would not be in your control in your home if you do not have the internet or access to it. Even on the internet, Microsoft would have complete access to everything on your computer. And they say they are doing you a favor………………………. by storing your information on their servers.

Hmmmmmmmmmm………. if my bank buys that Operating System and uses it, I am going to close all my accounts with them.

If you had downloaded Ubuntu/Linux instead of XP – you would now and forever have free downloads to all the new operating systems and updates that are constantly coming out from Ubuntu – in effect, making your Operating System forever free, including the original installation. If you request it, Ubuntu will send you – completely free of charge – copies of their operating system on CD. Yes I said COPIES, as many as you want – completely free of shipping or handling or any charges! Hand them out to your friends, relatives, or students. The CDs are either for Desktop or Server (if you want to host databases, websites, and other internet business) systems. You can use them to install on your computer or to boot from the CD to just give Ubuntu a try.

Sigh – if that wasn’t enough, it comes with everything you need to get running fast. You choose what you want to install on your computer from an almost endless list of software. Most of it is on the CD but an internet connection is needed to upgrade to whatever the newest, coolest, fastest, best software is available. Allllllllllllllllll for FREE!

Here is a quote directly from the Ubuntu home page:

The Ubuntu promise

* Ubuntu will always be free of charge, including enterprise releases and security updates.
* Ubuntu comes with full commercial support from Canonical and hundreds of companies around the world.
* Ubuntu includes the very best translations and accessibility infrastructure that the free software community has to offer.
* Ubuntu CDs contain only free software applications; we encourage you to use free and open source software, improve it and pass it on.

I am putting up a much more detailed explanation of Ubuntu up on eHow because it is seriously a great Operating System. How to Get Ubuntu – A Totally Forever Free Operating System! With all this crazy stuff Microsoft is doing – including some of the lamest commercials I have ever seen – I welcome an alternative to Windows! We design websites and have two good computers. Brad has Ubuntu on his and I keep Windows XP on mine – no I do NOT want or will I ever get Vista!!!!!! My father-in-law, Norm, has told us that Vista is problematic over any software that is not genuine – including all those movies they buy from a local store that they want to save to their computer to watch. (DVDs do run hot on a computer while you are watching it and it’s easier on your DVD Rom to just save it to watch later.) Internet
Explorer will not install on Ubuntu which makes checking web page design a little pain in the rear. Browsershots.org is a very handy site that lets you test out all of your designs on all of the browsers out there to see what works or doesn’t – especially on Internet Explorer, which is usually the one that has major glitches because it is not W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) standards compliant.

I have just been writing writing writing lately. Mostly for eHow and Marlaine’s Musings blog. I’ve accomplished one of my goals – 75 articles written and posted on eHow! My next goal is to write and post 100! I see some people putting up 100 articles in their first month on eHow but their content is short and sometimes pointless. I have been trying to go the extra 10 miles to find out all I can about something – even if it is something I already know a lot about – and give extra tips and hints whenever I can. I do the same thing for Marlaine’s Musings quest guides and general guides for Runescape.

Someone on eHow said that they wished someone would write guides for WoW like the guides I have up for Runescape, making me tempted to go try World Of Warcraft out – but I’ve been told that it’s mostly a war game so not quite what I am looking for. I will probably look into it soon though.

I am working at putting together some kind of blog or site that I can start “managing” my eHow articles in a more logical and organized way. On eHow, they show what catagories you have articles in but……. you can’t go to that author’s articles on those subjects specifically. eHow sent a notice that they will be redesigning their tools and setup but it won’t be implemented until November. There is a lot of time between now and November. Even I am having a problem remembering all the articles. I need to store my eHow articles somehow…. So we’ve decided on a domain name of StoreHows.com. We haven’t got anything online yet but we did buy the domain name already. I’ll be working on the design for a couple of days and then we’ll start with a blog.

A friend on eHow recently lost her main account, losing over 500 articles! She has no idea how that happened but I can almost guess. If any of you have tried to earn money with AdSense – you might have experienced the “You have been banned for suspect clicks” syndrome with no other explanations or communication from AdSense once they “kicked” you. Brad and I experienced that and could never get an answer from them about why. We changed to AdBrite and they work with their clients a whole lot nicer! You can have suspect IP addresses blocked or even your own so you don’t accidentally click your own ads. I always put adblock on when I go to my articles on eHow, or when I work here or on Musings. I wish I didn’t have to use ads at all though…….

The days of submitting an article or story to a publication and selling all copyrights are over now though with the way the net works! Even when I was submitting hard copy to magazines, I never submitted to places that bought All Rights….. Selling First Rights is fine – I’ve sold to Woman’s World, Star and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, among other places, and was paid fairly well but reprints rights are still mine! (I am trying to find the best ways to use my work and eHow so far has been the best for me.)

All that aside, I suggested to my friend that she should always make copies of her work for just-in-case. I do routine backup as I work through pieces I am working on but after giving her that tidbit of advise – I checked my “database” of articles. Raised eyebrow! I shall cut to the punchline here and save the sarcasm for later – I only had 24 of my 75 articles saved as posted on eHow! Tisk! Sure, I had lots and lots of saved drafts. I gather info, write up a brief draft and then tweak and fiddle with it, adding more research and whatever. Then I start working on the final draft on the eHow site, using their extended wizard. Rarely is the last draft I wrote in my word processing program the same as the one that ends up online! I spent most of yesterday copying and pasting the articles as they appear into a special file. I set up a document file much like the My Documents that is just for my writing! Now I am backing that up on a memory stick that my wonderful In-Laws in Australia sent to me! Mum and Dad – my writing files are over 900 MB now – Thanks again! (Lordy I would be so sick if I lost all that writing!) Eventually all that content (and more) will end up online somewhere – snickering! Geeeeeeeeeee – just finished the backup and it’s 1.01 GB now – see, I have been writing like a maniac!

I am starting to plan a cookbook, too….. Easy, Quick, Inexpensive, but don’t invite the Food Police to dinner!

One of the articles I have a draft of for this blog is how to make your computer run faster. You can find it on eHow but I will put it up in here soon. For now, I have more articles to write and designs to work on……

Have a great rest of the day!

As you may or may not have noticed, our main Duelin’ Deals website has gotten a complete re-design. It is now a lot more search engine attractive and visually attractive as well. I love it! Thanks to my adorable hub, Brad Floyd! I wanted the site to look like the blog – again thanks to Brad for some serious modifications to my blog as well!

I have been so dang busy writing articles for eHow on MarlaineMarie that I have a ton of stuff to add to Duelin’ Deals! I have things to add to the recipes and the Make Your Own Lists! I am deciding on how to list other things here, too, because I am getting so many articles up that it’s getting hard to search for specific topics.

Whenever I need to find something out, I do research, research, research. When I got my first “real” computer in 2000, I had so much trouble with it that I never did my work on it! (In fact, I had so much trouble with my first computer that Gateway replaced it after a year with a slightly bigger and better computer, telling me that I won the Stump The Tech contest!) I kept using my SmithCorona Word Processor and was forced to use floppys to save about 50 pages of text only per flop. (There are about 100 flops I can’t use because of different formatting that leaves ghost formatting even when you use conversion programs – drat!) And I wrote out my notes in long hand in spiral notebooks – in fact, I have cases of spirals full of all sorts of info.

I love doing research! When I researched the history of my parents’ house, I found 12 of the 13 names, birthdays and actual headstones (in three different grave yards!!!) of the first settlers’ children – and they first moved onto the property in 1838~! The Historical Society was flabbergasted because records were kept only from 1852 on for births in the old court house. (Oh Lordy, I wish that research was all on a cd-rw or ten instead of 20 or so spirals…) So when I put an article up on eHow, you can pretty much bet I did the research first!

If you ever go to an old court house to find records from the early settler times, if you love old wording or need old wording for a story, start with places that still have hand written records. They have huge, thick volumes written in a beautiful hand in the Racine County Court House in Wisconsin. The wording is obviously from a different age when the word “Greetings” was often written at the top of a legal document! Even as I was doing my research, the Court House was changing over to computer storage so those hand written things may disappear. Sigh……..

The latest eHow article I put up is about something so free and so perfect for this site that I am going to put it up in it’s entirety here!
That’s right – a real deal for anyone with a computer, a headset and/or mic & speaker combo, and a desire to talk to people for hours for free!

Skypee!

Here is the article:

Skype is your line to the world for free! You can call anyone from your computer to their computer – absolutely free anywhere in the world! You can run it all day and it really feels like you are in the same room with the person or people you called. My husband’s family lives in Australia and we are in Wisconsin. He calls them, they answer, and we leave the line open for hours on end! Relatives come by to say hi, too! His and mine! It’s incredible!

Go to the Skype link to find the download page and more info! There’s zero lag and the audio is crystal clear! You can use a webcam and upload videos. If the person you are calling is not on the net, just leave a message! The sound quality and stability is way beyond any of the instant messengers with almost no drop out!

The download page will automatically give you the correct type for your computer. (Skype is included in all Linux Operating Systems in the installation package managers.)
All of the following are compatible with Skype:
Windows
Windows (Business version)
Windows (Beta)
Mac OS X
Linux
Windows Mobile
WiFi phones
Cordless phones
3 Skypephone
Nokia N800/N810

Just download, install, set up an account, add others who have a Skype account, (or ask people you want to talk to to set up an account, too), click their user name, and wait for them to answer – just that easy because Skype’s simple auto detects set everything up for you.

To be honest, I was just going to write about Skype because we use it frequently for hours at a time. It gives my husband a chance to talk to his parents and family on any whim or impulse. Since his parents’ time zone is so different, it’s usually “tomorrow” there – when it’s Friday night here, it’s Saturday morning there! The reception is so crisp and clear that you can hear them in other rooms of the house – like when they go answer the door or go to the kitchen! We use a microphone and the speakers so both my husband and I can hear everything. An added benefit to Skype is that we can send documents, links to great sites, or photos over the Skype interface while we talk – hands free. This service – computer to computer – is absolutely free! You can literally “call” another computer and then leave Skype open 24 hours a day without paying one extra penny!

But….
While looking at the download page, we discovered their great long distance and business rates! Primefalcon and I wish we had known about this when he was still in Australia – we used MSN at the time and it was so unpredictable that we never knew when we might get a good connection! So we ended up using the phone and paying a fortune!

Use Skype as your basic low rate long distance for $2.95 a month and you can call anywhere in the United States or Canada on landlines or cell phones for an unlimited time and unlimited calls at any time of the day using your computer to their telephone using the Skype Plan! Voice mail is included free! Just click the link above for more info on international long distance!

Their plan for business is terrific, too, and we will get it when we get enough business to justify it!

* The connection is so good you almost forget you are on an audio device!
* You can work on your computer while on Skype with no problems whatsoever!
* The connection is so good, the person you are talking to can hear you whisper! Be careful! Smiling!

Brad and I called Brad’s parents while I was working on the above article and it just made it so easy to remember the great things about Skype! We were chatting away and our girl, Gypsy, was squeakin’ and squirrlin’ her little Happy Toy (as we call it so she goes to find it specifically in her mountain of toys) and Brad’s Dad, Norm, asked if we had gotten a bird. Because we are just so used to our happy girl playing away on her own, we had to think about what Dad might have been referring to.

Gypsy is over 85 pounds and nearing 7 years old but she still plays alllllllllllllllllllllllllllll the time! I wouldn’t have it any other way! What is seriously unusual about her is that she still has her first toy from puppyhood – that little brown teddy bear! Sure it’s beat up but it’s still whole! When I had decided to get a pup, I also started cruising rummages and the Goodwill store for a few “sacrifice” toys. Things that I would let the pup have but take away the second any stuffing got pulled out. (Do not allow your pup to tear anything to shreds! The pup learns a bad lesson that way! They can also get very sick if they swallow too much of that stuffing! Get a toy or two that can withstand those little needle puppy teeth!) Since I was raised with German Shepherds in an AKC Kennel, (Yes one kennel run had my name on it and I had to spend time in there occasionally!), I also had a starter toy box of things that outlasted all the other puppy-hood beloveds before Gypsy.

Take a look at her happy toy……

Noodles, alias Gypsy, uses her noodle and puts her toy up on Brad’s or my chair the second we get up. This girl will stare at the toy as if it got up there by itself until we get back. She will even keep her nose pointed at it while sneaking a peek at either of us to see if we’ve noticed her delinquent toy! When my brother visits, she gives him a toy and he puts it next to him on a table or window sill – she will stare at it patiently for a good hour or more, waiting for him to throw it for her! While getting this pic, and about 15 others, she stared at it constantly as I got the camera out, set it up and took shot after shot. Her paw is in about 8 of the pics and all the rest show her staring at it. Shaking head – when she does something, I can pretty much be sure she will wait so I can get some pics! Wish everything waited like that!

We so love our girl!

I did the following article for eHow but today, when I actually noticed that it’s July 14, 2008 – I realized a stunning difference from last year. It’s going to get to 87 or 90 in a day or two and I’m not worried at all! We don’t even have our window air conditioners set up and don’t plan to either! Why? I guess I took my own advice! See the bottom of this article – Step 10 – for the answer!

How to Stay Cool In The Heat

By MarlaineMarie
I’m Melting! I’m Melting!

Summer’s coming. Northern mid-western people get used to being cold. I call it having Winter Blood. We kept the heat down under 60 degrees most for the winter and now it’s getting warmer. 75 is hot? – ha! – or so most of you say. Our tips to stay cool as we acclimate may just help the rest of you all summer! After all, during spring here in Wisconsin, we can have temperatures of below 40 degrees Fahrenheit one night and over 80 degrees the next day. It’s hard to adjust.

Things You’ll Need:

* Need to notice things that generate heat.
* Ice cubes in the freezer – make extra and store in a half gallon container of some kind.
* Blinds or shades on the sunny sides of your home.

Step1
First of all, pay attention to things in your home that generate heat. That satellite dish or cable box could be throwing an awful lot of heat. Light bulbs throw heat too – remember those easy bake ovens? They used just one light bulb to bake a cake! Even your scanner’s plug in point could be throwing a lot of heat. Check everything and if you aren’t using it, and it’s not inconvenient to unplug it – pull the plug! Turn off lights that you aren’t using. Get a good sun sensor night light that will only turn on when it’s dark if you need a bit of light somewhere. Definitely turn off the computers over night so they can cool down, along with the room they are in. This will also save on your energy bill!

Step2
When you go to bed at night, pull the shades or blinds on the sides of your home that get hot in the morning. The sun comes up in the east and sets in the west – of course but as the seasons change, the sun may move a bit more north and south depending on where you live. Pull the shades down on other sides before the sun shifts to those sides. Keep the windows closed on the hot sides – hot air coming in doesn’t cool anything down. If you have a couple really hot windows, consider getting some white insulated poster board for crafting projects and just slip it between the glass and blinds before the hot hours – it reflects the suns rays and blocks incoming heat. Try to use light colored window treatments for the part closest to the windows. Think about planting a tree or high bushes, (far enough from the house so the roots don’t cause problems with the house’s foundation), that would shade the windows in a few years.

Step3
To keep the kitchen cooler, plan meals that can be microwaved or made the night before without using the oven. I will be putting up “Mom’s Tuna Salad” recipe soon and a variation I came up with because my husband doesn’t care for tuna. If you make enough of the whole meal salad for a couple of days, think of it as a day without either oven running (stove or micro) and a day off from cooking! If you want to make something you can’t microwave – try to make it on a burner instead of in the oven. The burner throws less heat and – saves on your energy bill, too!

Step4
One of the points that your blood constantly circulates through is at your wrists. It takes about 3 minutes for all your blood to pass through those points and putting some wrapped ice there will cool off your whole body by lowering your core temperature and the effect will last for an hour at least. You can also fix a bucket of ice water to put your hand in. Never use ice directly on your skin because it can cause damage. The relief is almost immediate. Use this technique if someone is suffering from heat stroke! You can also make yourself a cooling foot bath – it’s amazing how much cooler we feel when our feet are cool. If your tap water doesn’t come out cold, add some ice cubes to the foot bath. Not too cold or you may get the shivers!

Step5
Spray yourself with water! Take a quick, cool shower and don’t towel off. Let your clothes soak up the water and then let the damp clothes help keep you cool! Use a spritz bottle of clean water on your face and arms and let it dry naturally. Get your shirt wet before you put it on – at least the sleeves.

Step6
Drink lots of water even if you’re not thirsty! You have to replace what you lose from perspiration to prevent dehydration. Adding ice will also help cool you off but if it’s too cold, your body will use more energy bringing it up to your body temperature so it can be used which increased your core temp. Avoid lemonade, iced tea, and other sugary drinks but especially avoid alcohol if you are feeling over heated.

Step7
Your body releases a lot of it’s heat through the soles of your feet, the palms of your hands, and your scalp. Keeping these areas cool makes a surprising difference – so take off the hats unless you are in the sun. Go barefoot if you can. Hold a glass of iced something instead of setting it down on a table and let the condensation drip on your skin.

Step8
If it’s really bad, use a quart freezer bag of some kind and fill it with ice. Dampen a washcloth and wrap it around the bag. Use this on your face, forehead and neck, moving it around for a while and then hold it on your wrist for as long as you can stand it – up to three minutes. Then use it on your ankles and shins ——— ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh ——- you’ll feel much cooler soon. Repeat as often as you want and where it feels the best.

Step9
Extra note – June 2, 2008……… I had a “feeling” before we went to bed last night and closed all the windows in the house. When I took out our dog this morning, it was over 85 degrees outside. It was only 74 in the house with only one fan going. In the cooler hours of the night, we put a fan in the window to pull in the cool air and, now that I know it’s getting warmer, we close the windows before it starts getting hot out.

Step10
Extra Added Note! July 14, 2008. We had a flood early in summer and I’ve had one box fan running on medium constantly to help dry things up in the basement. I can not tell you how surprising the side benefit has been! With it running quietly in that big basement, the air has been pushed up the air ducts and into our living area. Any one with a basement knows it’s always cooler down there. It’s been acting like a central air conditioner! We’ve had 90 degree days but never uncomfortable enough – even at night – to turn on the air conditioner! We close the windows before we go to bed, especially if it’s going to be humid the next day, and run only a couple of fans. (You can feel when it’s starting to get humid!) One box fan is placed near a floor register and points to our computer room across the hall. It is amazing!

Here’s another extra great tip – half fill a saved bottled water bottle with water and freeze it. Later, fill the rest of the way for a great, long lasting bottle of ice water! Slip the bottle into a thermal cup when not sipping to keep it cooler longer!!!!!!

Tips & Warnings
* If you fill a tall glass with ice cubes and blow into it with it pointed toward your face, the forced air will cool you down like an air conditioner.
* It’s better to acclimatize yourself to the heat rather than staying in air conditioned rooms. Then it’s not as shocking to go outside when you have to go somewhere.
* Keep drinking lots of water or something with electrolytes in it to keep your body hydrated.
* Eat lighter and smaller amounts of food at one time.
* When it’s really hot, avoid heavy physical work if possible – try to do things later when it’s cooler.
* Putting a bowl of ice cubes in front of a fan really works!
* As the season changes, hold off any cooling techniques as long as possible to let your body start to acclimate.
* If your body temperature goes above 104 °F (40 °C), it is a life-threatening situation. If it goes up to 113 °F (45 °C), you definitely need to get help or call 911.
* If you can’t sweat but your temperature is high, call 911!
* Using a paper fan with your hand can actually raise your body heat – so don’t!.

Just like using humidity in the winter to allow your heater or furnace to work more efficiently, humidity in the summer increases the discomfort levels. Fans help dry the air when the humidity is high.

As you must have noticed, I write a lot about recipes, especially on MarlaineMarie on eHow. What you don’t know is that when I worked in restaurants and supper clubs, I lost weight. Working constantly with food really takes the craving out of it! That same attitude really works when you try to diet but the opposite undermines every diet. The more you deny yourself certain foods, the more you want them. When on a diet, letting yourself have a favorite food now and then helps keep you on course!

Just an added note – I have quit worrying about my weight but want to lose some – it’s dropping nice and slow. My husband doesn’t care about his weight either but he isn’t trying to lose any weight. He is not exactly used to my cooking yet, poor dear, because even after two years he still loves every meal I make.

Here is the article I wrote for eHow:
How to Kick Your Appetite To The Curb

Don’t think of it as dieting or losing weight – just park your appetite and rev your attitude. Just like many things in life, you have to want to do this – no one can make you lose weight! Studies show that kids who are allowed to eat what and when they want, level out naturally in body weight – so don’t stomp on that brake! Put your weight on cruise control and enjoy the journey.

You need to make up your mind to just be reasonable about what you eat! That’s all!

First of all, stop worrying so much! Many of us eat because we are fidgety, bored or unhappy. Be aware of when and what you are eating but don’t obsess. Focus on things you like about yourself and forgive the stuff you don’t like. Don’t worry about the Food Police pulling your over to give you a ticket either!

Eating protein will slow down your hunger! Start your day with some protein or snack on protein and you’ll be less hungry! Hard boiled eggs or cottage cheese does work! Sugary cereal, donuts, or even English muffins, only revs up your energy and drives up your appetite!

Work on brain projects when you’re hungry! Give yourself something else to think about other than food. Play a computer game that you can’t drag yourself away from or get into a really good crafting or woodworking project – something that keeps your hands and brain busy!

Avoid the smells of yummy foods! Your brain reacts to the smells of your favorite foods just as it does to the taste in your mouth when you are eating! While at work, if someone is using the microwave and it smells too good, use air freshener or go outside if there isn’t a fast food place you can smell nearby.

Don’t have things close at hand that you can’t resist! If people around you insist on having things on your off limit list of foods, either get them to buy only what they will eat in a day or only buy enough for them if you have to buy the groceries. Make what tempts you hard to get by putting the most tempting foods or drinks way out of reach like in another room or another floor.

You heal while you sleep and that includes allowing your body to produce the optimal chemicals that you need for everything. Studies show that if you don’t get enough sleep, hormonal fluctuations occur that increase your appetite.

Every time you eat, make it a real meal – not a snack. Sit down, use a plate, look at the food as you eat it, and notice every bite you take. Don’t eat while you drive, while you read, or while you talk on the phone – pay attention to what you are eating!

Eat whatever you want to eat but don’t heap up your plate. Don’t get a second helping.

Eat when your stomach rumbles – not when your brain mumbles.

Tips & Warnings
* Tell yourself that every time you feel really hungry in between meals, you are probably losing weight!
* Imagine yourself 10 or 20 pounds lighter – even if you need to lose a lot more.
* Eat the things you love – denial leads to the need to make it up to yourself and probably a whole lot more of whatever it was you were denying yourself!
* Don’t beat yourself up when you overeat. That eating binge will run out of gas, especially if you allow yourself to have one once in a while! Just restart that engine and drive on until you get to where you want to go!

Good Luck and Great Life to All!

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh spring is here.
The birds are singing….
The grass is growing….
The air is fresher….
And Gypsy is dropping fur like a buffalo!
Sigh………… time to brush her out.

But here’s a tip. I try to brush her outside. Not only does it save me house work in the long run, the creatures outside use at least some of it, too! Rabbits and birds use it for nests. The rest of it ends up breaking down into the ground, fertilizing the grass.

When I used to live out in the country and we raised German Shepherds for show, the comb out jobs were a regular event and with quite a few dogs. We usually had two dogs in the house at a time, so those dogs were always the flag dogs that let us know when all the rest of the dogs would be shedding. Most of the top show dogs usually dropped the extra fur from the regular grooming they got. Giving a dog a bath triggers the shed response and regular baths keep them from building up so much at once. Unfortunately, Gypsy is a coated German Shepherd – meaning she has longer and thicker fur that the normal fur type of Shepherd. Even though my arms get exhausted from brushing her, I have gotten to like that fluffy fur and I wouldn’t give up my fur ball dog for anything!

We had 10 acres out there so it was no big deal to leave a mound of fur on the lawn. It is amazing how fast that mound of fur disappears though, even when there is no wind! More proof that nature is taking advantage of what it finds. After all – one person’s trash is another person’s …. what? (Talk about the times changing, I just though Identity Theft instead of Treasure!) I will admit to slinking out of sight now when I see our neighbors (who even sweep their glass clippings off their driveway to make things look perfect) outside, and I know it looks like a dead thing is laying out there – snicker!

But……
Why bag the hair up in a plastic bag so it can not decompose, can not be used by anything else and will be preserved for 50 years in a land fill? It will quickly blow away and be spread naturally. Yes, even if the mound of hair actually looks big enough to be a deer laying there. If you spread it around a little yourself, it will disappear even faster. If you cut the grass and run the lawn mover over it, it will get into the ground even faster and help improve the grass.

I have to add a warning here though, do not leave long hair out there for nests. I used to think that brushing my hair outside and then pulling the hair from the brush for the yard creatures was great for nest building. Noooooooooo! One of my indoor baby finches almost choke to death on one of my hair…… The mama bird used some of the comb out I put in the bottom of their cage. The poor baby was trying to fly but had that long hair around it’s neck. Good thing I watch my creatures all the time! The mama raised the alarm and I went to see what was wrong immediately and untangled the baby.

Even though I have a vacuum cleaner, I often sweep the house – and sweep the dirt and hair right out the side door. That’s another thing that can be better used outside rather than in a plastic garbage bag in a land fill for eternity! Yes, I pick out the pieces of whatevers that are not organic and put them in a garbage bag – but geezzzzzzz………. I also have cats that are shedding and the birds drop feathers… why not sweep that all outside? AND, of course, they say most of the dirt in our houses are sloughed off skin cells. What could be more organic?

So sweep it out into the open and let it blow away!
I wish you a breezy day!

Well here we go……….. care for your hair! I do have long, naturally blond hair. My mother kept telling me that by the time I was twenty, I would have to dye my hair because it would be so plain, like hers had been. She was a bit off on that prediction – I must say! Some kids called me albino in school but it wasn’t really that light! Never the less, I had a lovely shade of auburn all picked out and I really couldn’t wait ’til I needed it! I just love dark red hair!

I’ve devised a lot of tricks for my hair to make it as absolutely easy as possible to care for because I just am not the kind to fiddle with hair! I usually do something with it in the morning when I get up and that is about it. If it’s hot, I put it in a bun or a clip and if it’s cold, I use it like an extra scarf or tuck it around my neck in a hooded sweatshirt. When I don’t have the enthusiasm to brush it, I still use that hooded sweatshirt to get Gypsy out – and hide the mess! The rest of the time, I just let it hang.

I’ve done an article for eHow about this………..

How to Have Long, Healthy Hair!

I can’t help but think of Thing in the Adams family when I see my hair sometimes. I used to brush it all the time. It was always wavy but on the dry side. I stopped using a hair dryer for a few reasons.

First… I was with relatives for a month and forgot it. When I saw how much better my hair was, I decided not to use it unless it was an emergency.
Second…. I was in a car accident that chopped a lot of my hair off and left me with about 20 stitches in my head. My mom cut my hair short and I couldn’t even wash my hair for a while with those stitches in there.
Third…. I just don’t like fiddling with my hair.
Fourth… my best friend and I spent a lot of time going swimming one summer. I noticed that my hair went into ringlets when I didn’t brush it after it was wet!
Fifth…. It’s just so much easier!

But the main reason is that I don’t like fiddling with my hair.

Here are a few tips that I didn’t mention in the article:

While washing your hair, never use your fingernails on your scalp. The scratches cause wounds on your scalp, which leads to itching which leads to damaged follicles. Massage your scalp with your fingertips instead to promote growth.

Use a towel to blot out excess moisture from your hair rather than rubbing with the towel. The friction from rubbing can make your hair brittle. Or squeeze out the moisture with your hands without wringing it or pulling it.

When you wash long hair, don’t suds it up by piling it on top of your head and swirling it around. That only causes more tangles. Apply shampoo to your hands and then to your scalp. Lather by massaging small areas. You don’t need to suds up the entire length of hair – it’s mostly the scalp that needs the dirt and oils removed. The rest will rinse away with the soap.

Those anti frizz potions never worked in my hair and in fact, always made the problems worse. I have a specific spray bottle that I kept after using a coupon to get the hair care product for nearly free. It was good stuff – but not worth buying again for my hair. I pour in about three or four tablespoons of whatever conditioner I am using and fill it up the rest of the way with water.

Then I shake it up. I spritz my hair with it when it seems really dry or straight and use my hand to smooth it into my hair.

During the summer, I add about a tablespoon of baby oil to the bottle with conditioner and water. This formula is based on a show sheen product a horse breeder told me about. It makes your hair really shine without getting really greasy. It also makes my hair curl even more. The oil protects my hair from the drying sun a little bit, too.

Use hand lotion to tame those static days! Just use lotion as usual, except add a bit more. Run your hands over your hair to smooth it where you want it to go. It will add shine and keep your hair where it belongs. You can use your regular conditioner the same way.

Don’t wear those baseball caps! It wears your hair down like a dog collar that’s too tight. Have you ever seen a dog’s neck that’s been wearing one? The hair is rubbed very thin. A cap or bandanna does the same thing! Your hair needs air, too, to let the sweat evaporate.

To help encourage hair growth, here’s something that feels great especially when someone else does it for you. Combine an egg and about a quarter cup olive oil, whipping together with a fork. Warm the oil in the microwave first if you like but not too warm. Massage this into the scalp with your fingertips – never use the nails. Do this treatment once a week. The scalp massage facilitates healthy hair growth by stimulating the blood supply to your scalp. The egg adds protein and the olive oil adds moisture. An inch of an aloe leaf can be scraped off the skin, mashed, and added to the mixture. Wash hair about an hour later.

Here’s for fun…. dye your hair with Koolaide. Add a non-sugar packet to a cup and a half of water. Leave it in for 15 minutes. Rinse and then let it dry. Great for Halloween!

Ok – I have resisted this subject because I was raised in a dog kennel. Yes……… sigh. One of the actual dog runs had my name printed over the door. My mom had an AKC German Shepherd kennel and I was raised with them — litter – allie …… I knew what woof meant before I knew “Mama”. I am very attuned to dogs, even though I love all creatures. So house training a pup is pretty easy to me and I decided to try to put it into words for eHow. I wrote the following article…

How to House Train Your Puppy Quick and Easy!

The very best way to house train your pup is to set aside the first few days to be with your pup. If you have a three day weekend or just take a couple of days vacation before or after a weekend, plan to pick up your pup ASAP on the way home when your time off starts!

Things You’ll Need:

* Patience
* A sharp eye
* Paper towels and disinfectant to clean up at first – if necessary!

Step 1:
Before taking your pup into the house for the very first time, take him or her for a walk in the area that they can use to do what they must! Play with them a bit until they go. Praise and pet them, saying, “Good *name*” or “Good boy/girl” after they are done. Think happy, too. They can read your body language and facial gestures well!

Step 2:
Understand that your pup will need to go at least every two hours. Even if they don’t have to, they need the chance to go! Whether they seem to need to or not, take them OUTSIDE – or wherever you want them to go. No matter when they nap, take them out immediately when they wake up! This is a major step in understanding when a pup needs to go. Cuddle them and carry them outside. Talk to them encouragingly until they relieve themselves. Praise them every time they finish going.

Step 3:
One of the keys to house training success is to watch your pup to know when they start looking around for a place to go. Don’t let their playing with a friend interfere with your “radar”. Know your pup and watch what they do before they go because it is THE signal that they need to go. Usually they will sniff and circle a little.

Step 4:
Take them outside before they eat! Give them about half an hour after they eat and take them out again. Watch when they drink water and know that water will have to come out relatively soon. You will soon know how long it takes for your specific pet in a day or two. If you just throw them into a kennel for a few hours or lay newspapers, they will take much longer to understand the difference between inside and outside relief areas.

Step 5:
Set an alarm to take the pup out at least once over night or keep the pup on the bed with you so you can feel him or her moving. (This might only be necessary the first couple of nights!) I have house trained all my dogs without using newspapers on the floor or on their butt. When I have a pup in the house, I am a very light sleeper.

Step 6:
The day I got Boo Boo, I sustained a severe leg injury and had to sleep on the couch. Even while on crutches, he was house trained within two weeks! He slept on my chest the first few days on my beautiful velvet couch – without incident! The house training usually takes about 2 weeks if you are “in tune” with your pup.

Step 7:
Just an added tip, if you have other pets, rub something of theirs on your pup and rub something with your pup’s scent on your other pets, in their areas, and on their things to let both sides “get to know each other” from a distance – at least in the beginning.

Step 8:
Don’t let your pup gnaw on your other pets until it is understood between all that it’s just play.

Tips & Warnings

* You don’t have to swat you pup when they have an accident. Put their nose close to the offense (if there is one) and say sharply, NO! Then take them outside – immediately. Either have someone else clean up the mess or put paper towels over the mess, quickly, stepping on the towels to soak up more but get the pup out ASAP. Do not let much time go between the no and the go outside.
* Even if you have to leave the mess longer than you like, if you get the pup out faster, there will be less incidents to clean up in the long run.
* Be consistent with your training – any training! Don’t let them chew one of your shoes one day and not let them chew another shoe a different day!
* If the pup is taking a long time to house train, remember it is up to you to notice or realize that the pup has cycles like you do. Most pups want to please you but if you don’t let them know what you want, they probably won’t be able to guess, even if they are more intuitive than we are.
* Puppies can not hold it very long – just like babies!

Some of the pics in the article are of dogs and times long gone and it saddened me, yet warmed my heart, to think of them and the wonderful times I had with them. My Mom bred German Shepherds for show and our highest count of dogs living with us at one time was 48. I was never impressed with the shows but understand that it is because of those devoted breeders that we have such beautiful creatures, no matter what breed is our favored type of dog. I and my brother both have German Shepherds ingrained into our psyche so strongly that neither of us want to own anything but German Shepherds. That’s what happens to the kennel kids of breeders – I guess. My day started out getting out to the kennels to give them a good clean and as soon as I got home from school, it was the same chore. In spite of allllllllllllllllllll that hard, heavy work, I loved the dogs with all my heart. Each and every one still has a special place in my memories, and each is able to pull a sad longing for their company.

I’ve also personally experienced how holding a cat can sooth a jittery mind and ease pain. I went through a tooth infection and the cat in the pic with Gypsy, Spank, somehow worked up a ritual or habit of getting me to let him sleep under my jaw at night. I call him my pillow pal. Even though that tooth ache hurt like the dickens, Spank’s quiet but constant purr under my jaw was like a gentle rub and I’d ease into sleep. I don’t know how many times that dear cat has sensed my sadness over a loved one or pains from my injuries – but he’s let me soak him with tears probably 100 times or more. (Not only that, I’ve spilled water on him from trying to get a drink of water over night and he patiently lets me wipe it up using one of the paper towels I keep nearby.) They say cat purring can heal bones – and I believe it. I broke my wedding ring finger and he pretty much slept on it every night since I hold him with that hand while he sleeps under my chin……….. smiling……….. the knuckle is only a bit bigger than it used to be now, three years later, but at first it was hugggggggge! Wish he could have slept on my big toe after I dropped a very old and very heavy fan on it – squashed my toe and cracked bones in my foot. That was 8 years ago and the toe is still weird!

Birds are also a wonder to own – if you get over the cleaning you have to do. When they give you their trust and love, you have truly earned something amazing!

All creatures can be great friends.
Returning love and loving is never a waste!

Below is my most missed old Moose, Lew.
Lowaka Of Rathman.
My protector.

Earth Day On March 29th!

Twenty six major cites and a growing number of towns and villages all around the world are committed to turning off their lights for one hour to bring global warming to the attention of the multitudes. The dark hour is set for 0900 GMT on March 29th. “Earth Hour” was founded by Andy Ridley one year ago. Cities in Australia, United States, Europe, and Canada, among others in 35 countries, have officially signed up to participate in this 2008 event.

Use the GMT clock link to synchronize your time with Greenwich Mean Time. I am posting this at about 1pm Central Standard Time in the United States on the 28th of March so there isn’t much time until the event! It’s about 6pm on the GMT clock.

Be sure nothing will be damaged or hurt by turning off your power. Refrigerators and freezers can withstand being off an hour if you leave the doors shut.

Help the environment by becoming more energy efficient in your daily activities. If you can avoid driving or riding in a fossil fuel using vehicle, do so, and reschedule any trips for before or after that hour. Or walk, use a bicycle, roller skate, errrmmmm – be creative, smiling!

Tell everyone you know about this event and possibly get some big businesses to participate as well. Every extinguished light bulb counts!

• This won’t save you much money on your energy bill and may not do a great deal of good this year but “Earth Hour” is destined to become an annual event because the global emissions that are damaging the ozone layer are getting increasingly worse every year.
• Approximately 2.2 million people participated in Sydney, Australia, last year and during that hour, cut their central business district’s energy usage by more than 10 percent.
• If you turn off your power for an hour, remember to reset your clocks!

We try to save energy every day. Even simple things like drying shirts on hangers adds up to a few dryer loads less a year and that adds savings to your pocket as well as keeping those shirts looking newer longer! (Clothes are literally beaten against the walls of the dryer, weakening threads every time they are mechanically dried!) I used to hang laundry outside but being in the same block with two gas stations, we get so much soot and gas smells clinging to it that I’ve stopped now.

We always combine our driving trips to get the most out of our outings… Library, Aldi’s, Pick & Save, and the post office are all a part of our usual circle and we usually hold off going anywhere until we have books in at the library!

To read other articles I’ve written, go to MarlaineMarie@eHow!

Though late for Easter, here is a way to make perfect hard boiled eggs every time! You can find this recipe and other articles on various topics on eHow by MarlaineMarie.

Sometimes those thick green yolks can be kind of unpleasant because it usually means the yolk is over cooked and dry. Avoid them with this easy method of cooking! While I can’t guarantee that there will be no green around the yolk, if you use this method, they will probably be lemon yellow and fully cooked! With the price of eggs being so high, don’t buy eggs on impulse – try to wait for a sale.

Refrigerated raw shell eggs will keep for about 4 to 5 weeks beyond the pack date. They really are best kept in the carton they came in but, yes, I put some in the egg tray I saved from two refrigerators ago because it takes less space and more convenient to grab an egg or two when I need them. When you know your eggs are getting on the old side time-wise, consider hard boiling them – they will keep at least another week.

How to Make A Perfect Hard Boiled Egg and Then Peel It

Step 1:
First of all, make sure the eggs weren’t bought the day before. Eggs that are too fresh are nearly impossible to peel and usually don’t leave much of the whites intact when pealed! Buy eggs at least a week ahead of time for easiest peeling.

Step 2:
No matter how many eggs you want to boil, put them into a pot that has enough room to completely cover them with cold water, plus an extra inch of water and three inches of boiling space. Do a maximum of 2 dozen at a time to insure even cooking.

Step 3:
Put the pot of water and eggs on the stove and turn the burner to high.

Step 4:
Watch the pot. Yes – it will boil even if you are watching! (Don’t look for the first two minutes -hehehe- will cut down your watching time!) When you see it in a full rolling boil – when the bubbles are nice and vigorous – turn off the burner. Leave the pot right where it is and do other things for half an hour or until the water is cool.

Step 5:
To peel… If you have older eggs, they will peel in one sheet most of the time. If they are new…… tisk…… don’t use them to boil unless you want spooned out eggs, like three minute breakfast eggs. Roll each egg gently on a counter top after a starting tap until most of the shell is cracked all over. Run cold water over the cracked egg after breaking through the membrane at the big end.

* New eggs sink to the bottom. Older eggs have more of an air pocket and will float. If they rise out of the water, they are probably too old to use.
* If you want to save a dozen or so eggs for hard boiling, keep them in the carton, mark with a sharpie pen and place low in the fridge, away from regular use eggs.
* Putting a tablespoon of salt in the water will keep those surprise cracked eggs from losing so much of the whites into the water.
* If you see that you have a “hard peeler”, use a teaspoon to scoop off the shell instead of massacring it in hopes of finding an easy peal spot.
* When using the timed boiling method for “breakfast” eggs, if you aren’t sure the eggs are done, lift an egg out of the boiling water with a spoon. The shell dries in five seconds or less if it’s hard boiled. If it takes longer than five seconds, your egg will be softer boiled.
* If the eggs boil too long, the green yolk will develop – so keep an eye on the pot near the point of boiling.
* Store raw and boiled eggs lower in the fridge. Sometimes they freeze when they are too close to the cooling element.