And don't forget about shopping at farm markets which offer locally grown produce at reduced prices. Unfortunately, here in NJ, the season for fresh, locally grown is shorter than we would like. Still there are discount grocery and produce stores here as well as warehouse stores. Thanks for rebutting the belief that it costs more to eat healthy!
I've been giving this a try since it first made the rounds on the interwebs (March-ish)... I have to say, it does help to keep a pretty good edge for a while. Its not quite as nice as a brand new blade, but it is certainly doable. I've changed my blade once in that time, but only because it got damaged in a move.
in general; razor blades dull from corrosion. in the olden days, the strop (made of tanned hides) were lubricated with an oil and it was the presence of the oil that 'saved' the blades. (they do also lightly polish the surface of the blade).
drying the blade (blotting on towel) is a good first step. a light coating of mineral oil will be next. as i recall; someone is selling 'blade oil' made of sunflower or safflower oils (can't remember); if you've got the cash -- stimulate the economy!
or, you can be a real man (or woman); give your blade a shot of WD40 after each shave. your pain tolerance can be inversely scaled to the volume of your screams after your next 'nick.
:)
I still have readers at my blog try to tell me that it's impossible to find healthy food at reasonable prices. Thanks for giving out 50 great examples.
You could only have written this if you have never tasted organic milk. There is a huge range of milk flavor quality from region to region and from brand to brand. In many regions Organic milk tastes dramatically better. If you aren't picking food for the taste I'm really sorry for you.
Thanks so much for this! My partner was just told that she has to dramatically reduce her carbs as she is "almost" diabetic. We had been eating a lot of quinoa, but was told that even that was too much. I'm heading out to our specialty markets this weekend to see if I can find any of these noodles. Hoping Earthfare or Greenlife (organic stores) carry them...
Speaking as someone living in Montreal, QC, there are several pros and one con to living in this particular corner of La Belle Province.
1) Language. Pros: there is a high percentage of English speakers on the island of Montreal. Between 30 to 40% of Montrealers speak English as their mother tongue, and most Montrealers can speak some English. Cons: the French are very snooty towards the English about their inability to speak French well. The minimum wage is up to 9.50 but regular salaried jobs for non-French speakers are limited: you can forget working in retail or in an upscale office. Your work will likely be telephone surveys. We do, however, have bilingual hobos.
2) Lifestyle. Mostly pros: you'll find that Canada is almost identical in terms of lifestyle to our American cousins. You'll still find a Starbucks on every corner downtown.
3) Culture. Mostly pros: lots of new exciting music, a summer season jam-packed with festivals such as the Montreal International Jazz Festival and the Just for Laughs Festival
4) Cost: all pros. The rent is indeed cheap, the transportation (if you decide to live on the island is also cheap.
Camping is the best! I find it more fun then a stuffy hotel, and summer is a great time to be outside. I plan on camping nearly every night on a 3 week bike trip I have coming up.
I love camping. Whether I am hiking in for a few days, or driving up to a provincial campground, it's always a great experience. I won't go into why I love camping because other posters have and I couldn't possibly add anything more to that conversation.
Camping always leads to a less expensive weekend for me and my husband, which is somewhat counter-intuitive. When we stay home for the weekend, all we really need is food (we don't drive within the city or go to movies very often). When we go camping, we have the additional cost of gas, firewood, and the occasional park fee and we always buy a 6 pack and a tetrapack of wine. you'd think we spend more than staying at home, but we never do. This is most likely because we pay for everything we think we might need for the weekend up front instead of paying as we go, which means we stick more closely to our budget.. There also aren't extra spending opportunities. Nor are there restaurants, invitations to go out dancing with friends, or pubs. Really, it's the temptation to spend at home that kills us on weekends.
As for equipment, we invested all we needed a few years back. It was expensive, but considering that we start camping while there is still snow on the ground and go right up to when the rain starts in the fall, it was well worth it. For those who don't want to invest, there are some cheap rental services (through some outdoors stores such as MEC, and sometimes through universities).
Camping by definition is significantly cheaper than most vacations since you are sleeping in your own tent and not in an expensive hotel. I like to stop at a grocery store and stock up on hot dogs and ingredients for smores and then roast them over a campfire. It's also fun to bring your own boardgames for entertainment.
My husband and I have been camping with our friends for 8 years at the same campgrounds and at the same time of year. We bought a no frills pop up camper ($100), invested in a compact freezer (no more buying ice or having spoiled meat), and bring most of our food from the pantry supplies and freezer. We go fishing, hiking, pick berries, watch DVD movies (when it rains) and play Yatzhee.
I enjoy camping. When I go, it's generally in a fairly big group and just a night or two. We go in together for the camp site and the food. As a group we either have all the equipment that we need or borrow it from other friends. That helps keep the equipment costs down (although my thermarest air mattress was expensive, but it's been worth every penny and also gets used on occasions when I'm traveling and sleeping on the floor).
We often camp at state or national parks, so the camp sites are pretty cheap. And there's lots of free hiking, swimming and such available. All in all, it makes for a pretty cheap weekend getaway.
I just wanted to let you know that if you use Diet Coke instead of regular coke in the brownie receipe you will get moist chewy brownies. You can also do the same thing with cake mixes, I use diet sprite with yellow cake mix and it is really good. Enjoy!
We went camping quite a bit when I was a kid, and I plan to take my own kids when they're a little older (my youngest is 1). It is affordable, but also I remember it being a lot of fun. We'd go hiking and climbing, swimming and building sandcastles. We roasted marshmallows and ate watermelon. My parents had a camping stove so they would make coffee and pancakes in the morning. As a little kid it seemed like a big adventure (even though we were just at some state parks in Indiana). I want to give my kids that kind of adventure.
Actually, I've got a two year old. When I was preggers with him, I looked up the march of dimes website to see what they recommend. as long as you stay under 200 milligrams of caffine, you can have caffine. in fact, it's actually a good thing while pregnant, according to my obgyn. it counteracts the exsaustion and fatique.
I haven't been camping since I was a Girl Scout. I don't care for roughing it. If I was in a cabin, with electricity, a flush toilet and hot showers, is that still camping? I'll pass on the tent, sleeping bag, bugs, bears, etc.
hi,
i have sony ericsson w 910i. i tried external antenna using a copper wire as shown. I tried once ance and removed it, now the phone has nil signal. can anybody help what might have happened and how do i retrieve. when i touch with some pin external antennal slot, signal comes for a fracion of a second.
-Ram
I use a can of coke to marinade steak tips. garlic/brown sugar/ginger/soy sauce/oil/pineapple juice/onion/and a can of coke. Makes the most tender, yummy steak tips
We use a camper, my husband won't sleep in a tent on the ground. Here around Michigan it cost usually about $23.00 per night, of course we try to find cheaper. Nothing beats being outside, the smell of camp fire, kids riding bikes, people walking about and it is just plain relaxing. Our favorite place to go is Grand Haven. We ride bikes, walk on the pier, play at the beach (all for free) or state park sticker $25.00 for the year. Even cooking in the camper is no big deal, plus we take the grill with us.
Our idea of camping is in well conditioned rvs:) But on the off chance of packing it old school we like to bring prepackaged food to make it easier on us "berry pickers" rather than hunters.
Yogurt, don't buy it ... make it! Using UHT milk, powdered milk and a cube of starter yogurt. One container of starter yogurt will do, then you can freeze the rest (and make more cubes from new batches you make).
In all it costs me about 50p to make a litre of yogurt (I live in the UK).
We camped a lot when I was a kid. Then a couple of years ago, my husband and I, my parents and my brother and his wife joined with 25 others to build a private campground. All good in theory. By the fourth year, each member of my family had sold their membership. Too much bickering and in-fighting between two other families which basically boiled down to a power thing. All of the other members were caught in the crossfire and it made camping there miserable. We sold our camper, but we've been looking at purchasing a tent so we can camp at the state parks.
And don't forget about shopping at farm markets which offer locally grown produce at reduced prices. Unfortunately, here in NJ, the season for fresh, locally grown is shorter than we would like. Still there are discount grocery and produce stores here as well as warehouse stores. Thanks for rebutting the belief that it costs more to eat healthy!
I've been giving this a try since it first made the rounds on the interwebs (March-ish)... I have to say, it does help to keep a pretty good edge for a while. Its not quite as nice as a brand new blade, but it is certainly doable. I've changed my blade once in that time, but only because it got damaged in a move.
I think the jeans trick works better. 8-10 strokes on a pair of jeans, both up and down works great for me.
in general; razor blades dull from corrosion. in the olden days, the strop (made of tanned hides) were lubricated with an oil and it was the presence of the oil that 'saved' the blades. (they do also lightly polish the surface of the blade).
drying the blade (blotting on towel) is a good first step. a light coating of mineral oil will be next. as i recall; someone is selling 'blade oil' made of sunflower or safflower oils (can't remember); if you've got the cash -- stimulate the economy!
or, you can be a real man (or woman); give your blade a shot of WD40 after each shave. your pain tolerance can be inversely scaled to the volume of your screams after your next 'nick.
:)
I still have readers at my blog try to tell me that it's impossible to find healthy food at reasonable prices. Thanks for giving out 50 great examples.
Dan
Casual Kitchen
You could only have written this if you have never tasted organic milk. There is a huge range of milk flavor quality from region to region and from brand to brand. In many regions Organic milk tastes dramatically better. If you aren't picking food for the taste I'm really sorry for you.
Thanks so much for this! My partner was just told that she has to dramatically reduce her carbs as she is "almost" diabetic. We had been eating a lot of quinoa, but was told that even that was too much. I'm heading out to our specialty markets this weekend to see if I can find any of these noodles. Hoping Earthfare or Greenlife (organic stores) carry them...
Speaking as someone living in Montreal, QC, there are several pros and one con to living in this particular corner of La Belle Province.
1) Language. Pros: there is a high percentage of English speakers on the island of Montreal. Between 30 to 40% of Montrealers speak English as their mother tongue, and most Montrealers can speak some English. Cons: the French are very snooty towards the English about their inability to speak French well. The minimum wage is up to 9.50 but regular salaried jobs for non-French speakers are limited: you can forget working in retail or in an upscale office. Your work will likely be telephone surveys. We do, however, have bilingual hobos.
2) Lifestyle. Mostly pros: you'll find that Canada is almost identical in terms of lifestyle to our American cousins. You'll still find a Starbucks on every corner downtown.
3) Culture. Mostly pros: lots of new exciting music, a summer season jam-packed with festivals such as the Montreal International Jazz Festival and the Just for Laughs Festival
4) Cost: all pros. The rent is indeed cheap, the transportation (if you decide to live on the island is also cheap.
Camping is the best! I find it more fun then a stuffy hotel, and summer is a great time to be outside. I plan on camping nearly every night on a 3 week bike trip I have coming up.
I love camping. Whether I am hiking in for a few days, or driving up to a provincial campground, it's always a great experience. I won't go into why I love camping because other posters have and I couldn't possibly add anything more to that conversation.
Camping always leads to a less expensive weekend for me and my husband, which is somewhat counter-intuitive. When we stay home for the weekend, all we really need is food (we don't drive within the city or go to movies very often). When we go camping, we have the additional cost of gas, firewood, and the occasional park fee and we always buy a 6 pack and a tetrapack of wine. you'd think we spend more than staying at home, but we never do. This is most likely because we pay for everything we think we might need for the weekend up front instead of paying as we go, which means we stick more closely to our budget.. There also aren't extra spending opportunities. Nor are there restaurants, invitations to go out dancing with friends, or pubs. Really, it's the temptation to spend at home that kills us on weekends.
As for equipment, we invested all we needed a few years back. It was expensive, but considering that we start camping while there is still snow on the ground and go right up to when the rain starts in the fall, it was well worth it. For those who don't want to invest, there are some cheap rental services (through some outdoors stores such as MEC, and sometimes through universities).
Camping by definition is significantly cheaper than most vacations since you are sleeping in your own tent and not in an expensive hotel. I like to stop at a grocery store and stock up on hot dogs and ingredients for smores and then roast them over a campfire. It's also fun to bring your own boardgames for entertainment.
My husband and I have been camping with our friends for 8 years at the same campgrounds and at the same time of year. We bought a no frills pop up camper ($100), invested in a compact freezer (no more buying ice or having spoiled meat), and bring most of our food from the pantry supplies and freezer. We go fishing, hiking, pick berries, watch DVD movies (when it rains) and play Yatzhee.
I enjoy camping. When I go, it's generally in a fairly big group and just a night or two. We go in together for the camp site and the food. As a group we either have all the equipment that we need or borrow it from other friends. That helps keep the equipment costs down (although my thermarest air mattress was expensive, but it's been worth every penny and also gets used on occasions when I'm traveling and sleeping on the floor).
We often camp at state or national parks, so the camp sites are pretty cheap. And there's lots of free hiking, swimming and such available. All in all, it makes for a pretty cheap weekend getaway.
I just wanted to let you know that if you use Diet Coke instead of regular coke in the brownie receipe you will get moist chewy brownies. You can also do the same thing with cake mixes, I use diet sprite with yellow cake mix and it is really good. Enjoy!
We went camping quite a bit when I was a kid, and I plan to take my own kids when they're a little older (my youngest is 1). It is affordable, but also I remember it being a lot of fun. We'd go hiking and climbing, swimming and building sandcastles. We roasted marshmallows and ate watermelon. My parents had a camping stove so they would make coffee and pancakes in the morning. As a little kid it seemed like a big adventure (even though we were just at some state parks in Indiana). I want to give my kids that kind of adventure.
Actually, I've got a two year old. When I was preggers with him, I looked up the march of dimes website to see what they recommend. as long as you stay under 200 milligrams of caffine, you can have caffine. in fact, it's actually a good thing while pregnant, according to my obgyn. it counteracts the exsaustion and fatique.
I haven't been camping since I was a Girl Scout. I don't care for roughing it. If I was in a cabin, with electricity, a flush toilet and hot showers, is that still camping? I'll pass on the tent, sleeping bag, bugs, bears, etc.
hi,
i have sony ericsson w 910i. i tried external antenna using a copper wire as shown. I tried once ance and removed it, now the phone has nil signal. can anybody help what might have happened and how do i retrieve. when i touch with some pin external antennal slot, signal comes for a fracion of a second.
-Ram
I use a can of coke to marinade steak tips. garlic/brown sugar/ginger/soy sauce/oil/pineapple juice/onion/and a can of coke. Makes the most tender, yummy steak tips
We use a camper, my husband won't sleep in a tent on the ground. Here around Michigan it cost usually about $23.00 per night, of course we try to find cheaper. Nothing beats being outside, the smell of camp fire, kids riding bikes, people walking about and it is just plain relaxing. Our favorite place to go is Grand Haven. We ride bikes, walk on the pier, play at the beach (all for free) or state park sticker $25.00 for the year. Even cooking in the camper is no big deal, plus we take the grill with us.
I haven't gone camping since I was a kid. I'm open to it, but I do love the non-outdoor comforts, so I'm not sure if it's my thing.
Our idea of camping is in well conditioned rvs:) But on the off chance of packing it old school we like to bring prepackaged food to make it easier on us "berry pickers" rather than hunters.
Yogurt, don't buy it ... make it! Using UHT milk, powdered milk and a cube of starter yogurt. One container of starter yogurt will do, then you can freeze the rest (and make more cubes from new batches you make).
In all it costs me about 50p to make a litre of yogurt (I live in the UK).
Nice tips there Paul. Driving safety should be taken seriously, especially these days, when everyone is out to make money off you.
We camped a lot when I was a kid. Then a couple of years ago, my husband and I, my parents and my brother and his wife joined with 25 others to build a private campground. All good in theory. By the fourth year, each member of my family had sold their membership. Too much bickering and in-fighting between two other families which basically boiled down to a power thing. All of the other members were caught in the crossfire and it made camping there miserable. We sold our camper, but we've been looking at purchasing a tent so we can camp at the state parks.