[Vickie]

Rhonda, I hope you find the information. I'm interested!

Stacey, I understand! Jim and I used to work together for over 10 years. That was hard sometimes too. He was the Technical Advisor and I was a Manager. I used to have to hear my employees complaint that he over ruled them and made them do things his way. Sigh. If you agree with your Brother, you are family sticking together. If you disagree with your Brother, you're disloyal. You can't win. As far as baseball goes, I'm hoping we get the chance to play the Yanks. Things aren't looking really great right now. We'll take our chances then!

Kathy, nice journal covers! I never had the chance to go to that site. They were really free? I just don't get it. Will you let me know the next time they have it? You'll get the weight off. I know you!

[Katpo]

They still have the free stuff, it was extended and now ends Sept. 30. You just pay the shipping.

[Vickie]

Can I say again that I don't understand how they can make this offer? Momma always taught me that there's no such thing as free.

Where on earth is everyone?

Ok, I've decided to have an oatmeal/cottage cheese pancake. Jim is out hunting and gathering for dinner. We now know what we are having. I'm off to update my menu. My LONELY menu.

[Katpo]

I don't know! I also wondered, but have placed several orders, was charged the correct amount, got them and everything looked good. I have ordered from them for years and have never been disappointed. I imagine it has something to do with free advertising, or maybe they have a lot of stock that they need to get rid of toward the end of the year? Whichever it is, I've gotten these sets (notepads, note cards, return address labels, etc.) to add to Christmas gifts for the three nieces, two SILs, MIL, my mom, my girls, and some for myself of course. I even found some coordinating tote bags at Walgreens that will go with some of them.

Happy pancaking!

[Vickie]

Hey, Kath, I hate to be dumb but I've looked all over the site and don't see the special offer or a section with free stuff. Any hints on navigating the special on the website?

[Katpo]

There's a "specials" link at the top of the page. But here, try this one:

http://www.vistaprint.com/vp/free.aspx?xnav=marquee

[Froufy]

Here I am again sitting in my 'darkened' office waiting for the LONG WEEKEND TO BEGIN!! Finished up some contract work - procrastinating on another piece which requires me going to another computer for Adobe writer - wish me luck!

No good news on database yet so it's still down for the count.

Vickie - sounds like the Kosher was good (at the time?) but something sure upset your tummy - hope all is resolved by now! Water is definitely the answer so keep chugging.

Kathy - hope the 9 hour days are over soon? Love the journal cover by the way - very chic!

Rhonda - congrats on the fabulous 1.8 lb loss - I think you deserve more than one dancing carrot!!!

Stacey - yes I too am a glorified chauffeur - and I do sometimes say no if I am feeling abused (both kids have bus passes and most everything is very close by - altho I will drive dd if it's late/dark).

DD supposedly at home doing laundry and getting ready for weekend away -dd still begging for $$ from me or his dad so he can go along and buy something (he doesn't want to go with them unless he too can go shoppping - and he's a guy for goodness sake!). At least it's down to $100 from the original $300 request!!

Dh had a bad night and I have not heard from him which leads me to believe he has been napping most of the day? I assume little ds is having fun w/siblings or biking outside (which he loves!).

Vickie - we are heading to Nassau, St. Thomas and St. Maarten - and I am getting so excited I could burst.

In Nassau we are doing the thriller boat ride - take a look at this!: http://www.thrillerboat.com/bahamas/...oat_video.html

In St. Thomas - we are heading over by ferry to St. John where the beaches are even more beautiful ( http://www.vinow.com/stjohn/beaches_stj/) - for some great views and snorkelling. And on St. Martin we have hired a private tour guide (http://www.joyceprince.com/) who will drive us around - 3 hour tour with many stops then a 2 hour visit to Orient Beach (no, not the nude side!) for swimming/snorkelling and gf might go parasailing!

I am going to PM you over the weekend with some details - just in case we get stuck in Chicago either way!

I still need that black bra - and I am also thinking of getting a cheapie water resistant watch I can swim/snorkel with. I have a whole menagerie of watches I am bringing but if I go swimming I will have to leave watch in my bag on the beach and I don't like doing that (all my important stuff is in my beach safe around my neck!), so may look for something cute (and pink) to swim with!

And I am really panicked about packing and weight limitations - I am very known for overpacking and I know I can't fit everything into one suitcase - as it will definitely be over the 50 lb limit - so need to get two bags from basement and start working on my packing strategy!...then the carryon comes out and I start organizing that w/imp papers, gum, headphones, book, makeup, etc I get tired just thinking about it!

So anyone doing anything more exciting this weekend??

Frouf

[Katpo]

Hehe! Frouf, nine hours is our minimum we have to do per day because of our 9/80 schedule. I usually work 10-11. Getting BACK to 9 would be an improvement!

And hey, be careful on those three-hour tours! (Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful trip. That started from this tropic port, aboard this tiny ship...)

[Froufy]

No kidding Kathy - there are some 'yahoos' who are actually talking about renting a dinghy and 'driving/floating' around the island of St. John! Talk about a 'fateful trip' - ya so there is some undertow - and you're in the middle of the ocean (what are people thinking???)

Vickie - here is the info Rhonda referred to (just got it thru on internal media updates):


Drinking juice lowers Alzheimer's risk: People who drink three or more servings each week have a higher level of beneficial antioxidant called polyphenols

OTTAWA -- People who drink three or more servings of juice each week have a 76-per-cent lower risk of developing Alzheimer's than those who only drink juice less than once a week, according to research released Thursday.

The study -- conducted by Dr. Qi Dai, assistant professor of medicine at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center and his colleagues -- will be published in the September issue of The American Journal of Medicine.

The team collected information on how much fruit and vegetable juice was consumed by 1,836 dementia-free people over the age of 65 in the Seattle area. They measured their cognitive functions every two years for about a decade.
All of the participants were Japanese in origin because of the low rate of the disease among the that population. However, Dai said Japanese people living in North America have a greater incidence of Alzheimer's than those still living in Japan because of changes to lifestyle and diet.

Dai said researchers first thought that high intakes of antioxidant vitamins such as vitamins C, E and carotene might help protect against the disease, but he sought to study the role that another type of antioxidant, called polyphenols play in reducing risk.

Polyphenols are found in teas, juices and wines and are rich in the skins and peels of fruit and vegetables. The levels of polyphenols were measured in blood samples taken from the participants of the study.

"In our daily diet, polyphenol is the major antioxidant. We wanted to see if it plays the role in reducing Alzheimer's disease, not antioxidant vitamins," he said.
The study does not determine what kinds of juices, or in what combinations, they benefit people the most. Dai said he and his colleagues want to study that next. The study would also look at the best way to prepare fruits and vegetables for optimal results.

"If you're peeling an apple the majority of polyphenol just goes away but as a juice it's rich in it," he said. "We want to study which compounds and which juice may be more important."

Factors such as smoking, activity levels and fat intake were also taken into account in the study. Although it is unknown which juices work best, Dai said he suspects that the juices from apples, grapes and onions work best.
Similar studies point to the polyphenol levels in red wine playing a significant role in reducing the risk of dementia, if consumed in moderate levels.
----------------------------------------

Is it time to go home yet???

Frouf

[septembersgoal]

Kathy, I see the stuff when I use your link, but when I try to order they're not free. Any ideas? Do I need a code or something? Thanks!!

[Tejas]

Hi All:

Well, I have to spend HOURS on the because I was very, very bad today at the new restaurant..and loved every morsel.

Thanks for posting the article about the juices. I heard from my colleague whom I asked about raw foods instead of the juices. He said he has the same question. We joked that maybe it's an effect that people who own blenders (for making juice) are just healthier people!

We have to go to a wedding tomorrow for some young people I know so I'll see what's the "in" thing to do at weddings. My, my, I hope we don't have to do the chicken dance or the limbo!! I'll have to be careful with the reception food because, believe me, I don't have one free point for anything this week that is not core.

I looked at the sites you posted Frouf....wow! Those beaches looked spectacular. The private tour sounds great too. I had the opportunity to have a private tour of Jamaica once and it was the best part of the entire trip. So, I hope yours is delightful. How about packing, then taking half the stuff out because you won't need it?
Take care all.

[septembersgoal]

Hi friends,
So sorry (again) that I am so behind. I'm really missing you guys.
Things are super busy for me between work, the new business, and getting this house in order. I'm having a "show" here next Thursday (it's not a real show, it's more like a practice show!) so I'm trying to get things done around here. That's what we'll be working on this weekend.
We have a few things planned with family this weekend (family reunion, dinner, etc.) but other than that we will probably just spend time working on the house. I'm looking forward to it.
It's so nice here right now we have the windows open. I think the high was in the low 70's here today, grey and dreary but almost chilly. I'm loving it (sorry Kathy).
I'll have to catch up with you all tomorrow. Kathy I'm going to call VistaPrint and ask them why the free products don't work for me. The only thing I can think of is that you are a preferred customer or something? I'll find out.

Oh btw Sandra, I mailed your stuff today.

[septembersgoal]

OK, here's the scoop:
I called VistaPrint Customer Care and they were very, very helpful. They couldn't find the special you posted Kathy (who knows why) but they gave me another expired offer that is very similar. They were really nice and definitely have my business now. Thanks!

[Katpo]

There are several methods, but calling them was a good idea. I go thru UPromise, which is a site that you can add to a college account for a future student my linking your Kroger card, Mobil gas card, etc. They also have online shopping.

I also go thru MyPoints as sometimes I can get reward points for it. If you aren't a MyPoints member, you should sign up. They send emails and you get 5 points per, and also there is online shopping and if you go thru them for some deals, you can get hundreds and sometimes thousands of points. I redeem them for restaurant gift cards.

And finally, there are sites like Current Codes where if you shop thru their links, you can get the good deals. There are a whole lot of these sites. Here's the link you get when going thru current codes:

FREE STUFF

I hope this works for you. I placed a few more orders today.

And now for the day ... I went over to the restaurant/bar that is adjacent to our office after work as Judd and his friend (and a few more people) were there. We stayed for an hour or so ... now are home and he's mowing the yard because rain is predicted for the weekend and people are coming over Sunday. He wants to make sure it gets mowed in case he can't do it between now and then. Tomorrow he'll go bike riding in the morning; I'll go to Home Depot to buy flowers so I can replace all of them in the back patio pots. The killer heat just did them in thoroughly. The rest of the day I will be clearing some wayward grass out of the front flowerbeds, cleaning and getting ready for Sunday. Sunday will be grilling out with the friends coming over, and Monday will be resting up from it all. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday I will have to work 12 hour days in order to get 50 for the week. The 50 is because I have SO much work piled up with an upcoming deadline, and having the OT will also help with the trip to Chicago for Shaun's graduation.

And that's it for now. I hope everybody is doing well. Melissa, if you need any help with the Vistaprint, PM me with your phone number and I'll call you over the weekend. This is such a deal and I can't stop thinking of MORE and MORE people to buy for!

[ontarget]

whew!!! i just slide in here after a long long day. i promise you i will never whine and complain that i'm afraid i won't have a loss again. (well, not till next time, anyway.) today at wi i lost 1.8 lbs. rhonda, again we're alike. i'm a happy camper right now.

after ww i came home. curtis and i left soon afterwards and just got back a few minutes ago. i won't do any w a today. i'm pooped. i might do some biking here tonight and go do my own w a tomorrow by myself. not sure yet.

kathy, i read somewhere once that we shouldn't set goals like, "i want to lose x number of lbs." doing so trains our subconscious into thinking that we should be losing weight. then when we've lost x number of lbs, our sub causes us to regain so we can continue "losing x number of lbs." am i making any sense here? what the author said was that we need to make our goal to "weigh" a certain number instead of it's being to lose x lbs. (i'm talking in circles here, aren't i?) anyway, this may be what's happening. what do you think?

blue mesa? do you mean south of i-30 instead of i-20?

rhonda, i heard that report on alzheimer's on the radio yesterday. i didn't hear who made the study, though. i want to go to blue mesa, too, when we get to texas. okay, now i'm thinking of you and wedding cake tomorrow, and i want some cake, too.

vickie, thanks for the blinks. they worked!! we had a lot of extra folks at ww today for wi since there's no monday class here either. hardly anyone stayed for the meeting, though. i'm glad i did. i need those talks. are you feeling better now? i hope so. i have made enchiladas that are more ww friendly. i just didn't this time. it's really easy to do. i'll post the recipe if anyone would like. it's not core, though. thanks for posting your recipe. i'll print it out.

frouf, i hope you find your bra soon. kathy's right. you may wind up on gilligan's island if you're not careful. maybe you need to take extra clothes. ginger always had oodles of clothes with her.

melissa, i'll be watching for the mailman. sounds like you're super busy. i'll let you know when i get everything up and running.

i guess ya'll can tell i zipped through the posts and made replies super quick tonight. sorry. i'll do better next time.


have a great weekend, chickies. i'll be back tomorrow to see if anyone's here. till then--night night.