So, guys...If a study told you that choosing the proper scent for you would make a difference in your self-confidence, would you you believe that?  Or do you already know that?  And that having the right scent for you could increase your mood in such a positive way that it could attract the opposite sex? 

From the Economist -

THE very word “perfume” has feminine overtones to many male ears. Men can be sold “deodorant” and possibly “aftershave”, but the idea of all those dinky little bottles with their fussy paraphernalia is too much for the sensitive male ego. Yet no industry can afford to neglect half its potential market, and perfume-makers are ever keen to crack the shell of male reticence. Now they may know how to do so.

Craig Roberts of the University of Liverpool and his colleagues—working with a team from Unilever’s research laboratory at nearby Port Sunlight—have been investigating the problem. They already knew that appropriate scents can improve the mood of those who wear them. What they discovered, though, as they will describe in a forthcoming edition of the International Journal of Cosmetic Science, is that when a man changes his natural body odour it can alter his self-confidence to such an extent that it also changes how attractive women find him.

Click to Continue

 

 

Your House?

Possibly.

Piggy banks are one hot item.

So are safes.

I bet people who still use cookie jars are stashing a few bucks in them again, too.

And we all know there are people who really do hide money under their mattresses.

How about in the family Bible or other favorite books?

The point is, with the recession here, people are back to saving money, even if it is small change.

And some people are not going to trust putting it in a bank.

"WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Recession-wary Americans embraced the virtues of thrift this Christmas, with stores reporting a clear rise in the popularity of piggy banks.

"We have been selling coin banks really well," said Laura Kellner at Kikkerland Design Inc. in New York City, whose stylish chrome pig is priced at $31.

U.S. savings levels have increased markedly in recent months as households adjust to a yearlong recession and the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.

The downturn has shattered house prices and the value of retirement accounts which, in turn, has reinforced the necessity to systematically put funds aside for the future.

Retailers said this translated neatly into a gift that captured the spirit of the times.

"We definitely noticed a trend with the piggy banks," said Erin Mara at Homebody, a design store in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington, DC.

"People were very upfront about the need to save...the pig is very symbolic of that sentiment," she said."

 Click to Continue

Melanie had her heart in the right place back in 1969.  Most people are "beautiful," especially if you just give them a chance.  Sometimes you just have to reach out to them.  The trouble is, most often, we just don't take the time.

                               Beautiful People - Melanie Safka

Beautiful people
You live in the same world as I do
But somehow I never noticed
You before today
I'm ashamed to say

Beautiful people
We share the same back door
And it isn't right
We never met before
But then
We may never meet again
If I weren't afraid you'd laugh at me
I would run and take all your hands
And I'd gather everyone together for a day
And when we gather'd
I'll pass buttons out that say
Beautiful people
Then you'd never have to be alone
'Cause there'll always be someone
With the same button on as you
Include him in everything you do.

Beautiful people
You ride the same subway
As I do ev'ry morning
That's got to tell you something
We've got so much in common
I go the same direction that you do
So if you take care of me
Maybe I'll take care of you

Beautiful people
You look like friends of mine
And it's about time
That someone said it here and now
I make a vow that some time, somehow
I'll have a meeting
Invite ev'ryone you know
I'll pass out buttons to
The ones who come to show
Beautiful people
Never have to be alone
'Cause there'll always be someone
With the same button on as you
Include him in ev'rything you do
He may be sitting right next to you
He may be beautiful people too
And if you take care of him
Maybe I'll take care of you
And if you take care of him
Maybe I'll take care of you...

Those of you who read these blogs have probably had your fill of lists and links this past couple weeks.  I know I have.

My list is short, with one item on it. 

I'll call it the "F" list for FranklinNow.

My list:
 

1.  You, the readers of my blog (this one and my Righty Blog if you go there, too).

Thank you for reading in 2008 and I wish you all a very Happy and Healthy New Year!

 

And on that note, I want to know if anyone is celebrating tonight with one of these?

A Porta-Party?

What's a Port-A-Party?

I'm glad you asked!   It's too late to rent one now if you haven't already for tonight.

But you can find out about it here

I'll don't think you'll be finding a Porta-Party at any of my parties.

 

Actually, do you find anything wrong with the family in the picture?



The Duggar Family, before the latest arrival Photo by: Beth Hall / AP




The photo is of the Duggar family of Arkansas.  This photo was taken after the birth of their 17th child.  This month the Duggars gave birth to their 18th child, Jordyn-Grace, by C-section.  You may view the current family photo here.

The children seem happy enough in the photo.  I wonder what mom is telling her son.  Perhaps that he is going to be in charge of his sister some day.  You see, that's how the Duggar's work.  How else could parents take care of 17-18 children on their own, while home schooling and running their own "church?"  The kids work on a sort of buddy system where each older child plays parent/teacher to a younger sibling.   According to their mom, Michelle, on a CNN American Morning interview in 2005,  "They help them with their little phonics lessons and games during the day and help them practice their music lessons. They will play with them or help them pick out the color of their outfit that they want to wear that day, and just all of those types of things."  

I thought being a parent and making the choice to have a family was the responsibility of the parent's?  This little army of children doesn't seem to ever get to be children in my book.  Of course, someday they will get to venture out.  And there are worse things that could be happening to these children.  But should that even be said? 

Who supports the family financially?  In part, their show on TLC.  Right...their family is a regular little television production.  There are a few other families like this on TLC, Little People, Big World with the Roloff's comes to mind.  I've never seen the Duggar's but I have seen the Roloff's.  Talk about one messed up, spoiled, dysfunctional family (in my view) from the way they are portrayed on their television show.  I can see why the families are tempted to sign on to these shows in the first place.  That income must be a great help when the families are in need.  See, you tune into a show like this out of curiosity to see what it must be like to go through life like the Roloff family, a family of part little people and part regular sized people.  But then TLC literally turns them into entertainment instead.  But when you start seeing the families now living in their mansions, taking out-of-this-world trips and doing all sorts of odd things after they were saying they were struggling, the shows are not "reality" anymore. "The Greatest Show On Earth" comes to mind instead.  Now is that what is wanted for these 18 children?


For those of you wondering, The Duggars are said to be conservative Baptists who endorse the Quiverfull movement.

H/T Teeny Manolo

 

You may have read by now that two teen-aged boys were arrested in Oak Creek for allegedly stealing 32 cans of Spam.

I'm guessing it was for a practical joke, but you never know.  As I mentioned in my blog on Spam back in November, Spam production is at a high due to the economy.

Spammy Sammy Yummy

Otherwise, I'm thinking the boys must not have ever tasted Spam before.

As I said in that November post, I will admit to have eaten Spam.  There are plenty of other foods I would much rather eat if I'm going to go shopping.  I will tell you this, there was a time when my baby sister lived here and was on strike at AT&T for such a long period of time that she was forced to go to a government food line where she was given a bag of groceries that included potatoes, butter, cheese and...Ham Dingers.  Please...if there is a choice between Spam and Ham Dingers...take the Spam.

Note...my sister was welcome to eat at my home while her Union was on strike. 

Guido Reni's archangel Michael -   The Yorck Project

Did you hear about the angel appearance last November in the hospital room of then 14 year-old Chelsea Banton?  Do you believe in angels?  Not that that makes any difference...because Chelsea and her family do.  And that does matter.  They told us about it on December 23rd.  It's not the first time we've seen pictures of what people tell us are angels.  It won't be the last time, either.  Do you believe in angels?

"On the afternoon of Nov. 5, as family and friends prayed about the decision, a nurse practitioner called Colleen's attention to a monitor showing the door to the pediatric intensive care unit.

“On the monitor, there was this bright light,” Colleen recalls. “And I looked at it and I said, ‘Oh my goodness! It looks like an angel!”

Colleen pointed her digital camera at the monitor to take a photo of the image, but the “first picture wouldn't take.”

She tried again and succeeded. The image gave her a peace that stayed with her when hospital staff removed Chelsea's oxygen mask.

And then, “when they took the mask off of her, her stats went as high as they've ever been.

“Her color was good, and the doctors and nurses were amazed,” Colleen said. “The nurse practitioner who saw the image in the monitor said, ‘I've worked here 15 years, and I've never seen anything like it.'”

Chelsea was removed from intensive care on Nov. 14 and went home three days later.

Her mother believes it was a miracle – attended by a very real angel bathed in light at the door to the pediatric intensive care unit.

“What was so ironic… is it was a rainy day,” Colleen said. “It had been overcast all day. And the sun only came out at that point.”

To those who doubt her story and photograph, Colleen Banton says: “If they doubt it, that's fine. … But I know what I saw, and the picture's untouched. I didn't make it up. That's just something that I believe."

Click for entire article

If you answered no to that question, are you absolutely positive?

In these harder economic times, someone you may know could very well be suffering hardship that you are not aware of when it comes to putting food on the table.  They may have a job loss, lay off, or high medical bills from an illness in the family or extended family.


No worries...You still have New Year's as a holiday to make a food donation to someone less fortunate or to invite someone to your home.  Or perhaps you have a creative idea of your own.

"With a big spike in the number of Americans heading to food banks, people who want to help are getting creative – from corporations to state governments to individuals.

Food pantries across the country have reported a 30 percent increase in how many people are coming in for a bag of groceries, many of them for the first time. That has prompted more corporate and individual donations, but not nearly enough to meet the sudden demand. And so antihunger advocates have put on their thinking caps.

Groups like City Harvest in New York are urging corporations such as BlackRock Inc. to skip their annual holiday party and donate the money to help the hungry instead.

Dozens of yoga centers like Riverdog in Old Saybrook, Conn., are holding "Yoga for Food" events: bring a bag of groceries and get a free class. "

Click to Continue

 

 

Every year we hear about them.  

New Year’s Resolutions. 

People might ask you whether you have made any yet.

Me?  I don't make New Year's Resolutions.  I figure, why should I wait until the new year to decide to do something that needs to be done?  If you want to change something about yourself, or if you need to do something, just do it.  That way you know it will get done.

In my case, I feel if you need to wait until the new year to make a point of completing something,  then you are probably headed for failure, or perhaps you are probably in for something that is a struggle.  But if you are a person that really needs a resolution to be motivated...then go for it.  A little motivation never hurt anyone.



USA.gov has a list of the most popular New Year's Resolutions:

Popular New Year's Resolutions

You have your children wear bike helmets because you know it's the right thing to do.  It can save their lives.  You don't like wearing one...you didn't wear one as a child.  It's hard to get used to and you don't like how it looks.

Well Wired found a solution for you

Check it out HERE

My son and daughter-in-law live in Boulder, Co.  They hike, bike, ski and snowshoe.  They are very healthy people.

They have great bikes.  Boulder's streets are lined with bike paths and bikes have the right-of way everywhere.  Most of the busses have bike racks on them.  People bike to work.  People bike for fun.  People bike to bars.  People bike all winter.   People are healthy in Boulder.

BOULDER, Co. – As real estate agent Matt Kolb recently toured several properties he wore a helmet. It wasn’t a hard-hat fit for a construction site but a bicycle helmet.  Kolb sells homes from the back of a two-wheeler.

"Boulder is in the top-five bicycle-friendly cities in the world," said Kolb. "On a bike, you can get anywhere in town in 20 minutes or less."

Real estate firm Pedal to Properties has teamed up with a non-profit called Community Cycles, which supplies low-cost bikes and maintenance to local businesses as a way to encourage emission-free transportation. 

‘Outdoor deficit disorder’
Community Cycles, which was founded by a handful of Boulder bike-riders two years ago, has become a driving force in getting people out of cars and onto bikes. "We started out with a plan to distribute bikes," said Rich Points, Community Cycles’ executive director. "But now we want to address larger issues."

For Points, getting out of the office and onto a bike "combats ‘outdoor deficit disorder.’ You are more involved in the changes in the environment. You are more involved with your own community."  Even with the onset of winter, Points is not willing to give up the bicycling. He just shifts over to studded bike tires on snowy days.

Click to Continue

Some people just have too much time on their hands.  Others are making a statement.  Even if you aren't a Christian, or just don't celebrate Christmas, it doesn't mean you might not be interested in viewing a nativity scene.  It's just hard to believe that people, young or old, deface or even steal parts of nativity scenes. 

"Giving up on old-fashioned padlocks and trust, a number of churches, synagogues, governments and ordinary citizens are turning to technology to protect holiday displays from pranks or prejudice.

About 70 churches and synagogues eager to avoid the December police blotter jumped at a security company's offer of free use of GPS systems and hidden cameras this month to guard their mangers and menorahs."

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Too busy to blog today and even more busy tomorrow...

Hey, why are you reading?  

Don't you have a tree to decorate?  Shopping to do?  A relative to visit? A Christmas or holiday party to get ready for or to go to?

What about those Christmas cookies?  Finished yet?


Msnbc has a couple last minute gifts for you for under $50 .  If you can see through their banner and stand Ann Curry (it's from a couple days ago so you've got less days until Christmas).

I like the bath foam for kids. 


Gifts for Under $50




I'll be back Monday.  Have a good weekend!

istockphoto.com/boston.com


Getting together for Christmas and the holidays can be stressful when it's with your own family. 

It can be particularly hard on you if you are meeting new "relatives-to-be" for the first time. 

All eyes will be upon you.


Boston Globe has a holiday etiquette guide that might help you out.  It's got 16 tips. 

You can check that out HERE.

African and Asian Elephants





You have to wonder...

Does a captive elephant remember?  Does he remember his freedom? 

When I have ever visited a zoo, there are certain animals that it bothers me to see penned up more than others.  Elephants have always been one of those.  An elephant is meant to wander for food; not stay sedentary.

A debatable report has come out that states an elephant's lifespan is shortened by living in a zoo.  It's not surprising to me.

I enjoy looking at an elephant just as much as the next person, but maybe I should have to be the one who should have to travel to the elephants' environment rather than the elephant having to come to mine.  Born free...live free.

"Living in a zoo drastically shortens the lives of Asian and African elephants, possibly because of the effects of stress and obesity, researchers are reporting.

But their work provoked a sharp response from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

The researchers are not recommending that zoos abandon elephants, said Georgia J. Mason, a leader of the work and an expert on animal behavior at the University of Guelph, in Ontario. But she said their findings suggested that imports of elephants should be limited to zoos that can identify and treat their problems, that transfers between zoos be minimized and that breeding efforts be limited to zoos with a record of success. "

Click to Continue

But how will we show we love them back? 

It seems the first thing we had better do is start protecting them.

The World Health Organization (WHO) is reporting that accidents, not disease, ACCIDENTS, are causing 830,000 deaths of children worldwide a year.  And what's the top accident on the list?  That would be deaths from auto accidents.  8,000 U.S. children die annually from auto accidents.

Surprisingly to me, Africa has the most "accidental" deaths of children.  I suppose I would be interested in seeing what is classified as an accidental death; but it's just disturbing that there are so many, period.  It's just shocking.

Africa has the highest rate overall for accidental deaths. The incidence there is 10 times higher than in high-income countries such as Australia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden and the United Kingdom, which have the lowest rates of child injury, according to the report.

Around 95 percent of the deaths occurred in the developing world, mostly in Africa, but the problem is acute in richer nations as well where deaths from accidents disproportionately affect the poor.

About half of these deaths could be prevented by expanding the use of car seats, covering wells and pools of water in areas where children play, erecting barriers to keep young people from road construction and other proven measures, the joint report from the WHO and the United Nation's Children's Fund found.



Click to continue

Thursday Bram, at Stepcase Lifehack came up with a list of 50 Businesses You Can Start In Your Spare Time.

It's a great list...it seriously is.  The trouble is, I don't have any spare time to to any of them.  Okay, if I didn't spend my spare time sitting at this computer I would have some spare time.  But even before I spent my spare time here, I didn't have much spare time.  In the summer my spare time after work is spent taking care of the yard.  In the winter, if there isn't snow to help take care of, it's dark and gloomy at night and who feels like doing a business in their spare time anyway. 

Yes, there are the weekends, but that's the time needed to do the things you can't get done during the week because you work.  Maybe if I had a maid and personal shopper I could then have time to start a personal business in my spare time...to help pay for the maid and personal shopper.  That would work.

"Most people want a few more dollars in their wallets. But between an employer and family, the time most of us can devote to a second job is severely limited. Running a small side business can provide a few more options: you don’t have to show up at a set time and you can use skills you already have. Not all will be perfect for everyone, of course, and I’m sure that you’ll have a few ideas of your own after reading this list."

Click to continue and view the list

Also, Amazon.com has several books on how to start your own business in your spare time:

HERE

 

Felix Unger, Oscar Madison and friends from the Odd Couple






I am in awe of two people I know.  My sister's husband, John, and a new employee this year where I work named Katie.  They are happy, peppy, and bursting with love.  But they are genuine.

They do not come into your space and say "How are you,?" for the sake of it and walk away not caring.  They really do care.  They do not tell you to smile.  They don't have to, because just seeing them automatically puts a smile on your face.  You can't help it.  They are dripping with happiness from their souls and that makes you feel good. 

Some people are just that way and it radiates around them and flows out into the world.  Maybe that is the way life is meant to be.  I wish I was one of those people. 

"You may think your attentive spouse, your loving children, and your good friends are what make you happy. But something else may be going on: The people they're connected with are making you happy too.

So suggests a new study proposing that happiness is transmitted through social networks, almost like a germ is spread through personal contact. The research was published Thursday in BMJ, a British medical journal.

It's the latest in a growing body of work investigating how our social connections--neighbors, friends, family, co-workers, fellow congregants at church and other associates--affect us. The premise is that we live in a social environment that shapes what we do and how we think and feel."

Click to continue

So, don't worry....surround yourself with people who are truly happy. 

Be happy!

Well, we all could if we chose to move to a place such as Malibu or Paris, but we are living in Wisconsin right now.  We might choose to vacation in once of those places, though.  We've fowarded telephone calls before.  Why not mail? 

I suppose there are are some people that want people to believe they've already got "it" even when they don't.  So they might want to hand out cards with their well-to-do address on them; and then pray no one drops in on them unexpectedly.

"Earth Class Mail wants to manage your mail for you. Just have it sent to one of the addresses the Seattle company provides, and it will put electronic scans of the mail you receive online. Then you log on and see what mail you've gotten, and you can ask them to open it or send it to you (or shred it, as the case may be).

Today, Earth Class Mail opens a store in West Hollywood. That means all you jet-setters and jet-setter wannabes can have your mail sent to 8605 Santa Monica Blvd., and Earth Class Mail will do its job. Non-jet-setters and people who want to avoid the post office can also use the store to send and shred mail."

Click to continue article

 

Being a librarian isn't the most exciting job around, but librarians can be pretty intelligent.  Some end up becoming school teachers, and who know, they could become the First Lady of the United States, like Laura Bush. 

Some of them may even know a few things about saving money, like this librarian....

"A retired Virginia school teacher and librarian who died two years ago left more than $2 million to split between the universities she attended, the schools announced Tuesday.

Jane Iris Crutchfield's estate will donate $1.1 million each to the School of Information and Library Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia."

Continued HERE