June 2010 Archive

29Jun
0

Similac

I decided to stop and check my mail last night on my way up to my apartment. There was a tag on my box letting me know I had dry cleaning ready for pickup, which I expected. But then I also had a tag indicating I had a package for pick up. That’s odd – the only thing I ordered could definitely NOT be here yet.

So I hand the guy at the front desk my tags. He checks the package log, pauses for a second and says, “That’s odd. This package has your apartment number on it, but it’s for the Brooks family.”

What?

So we go to the back and scout it out. Sure enough, there’s a box (well 2 actually) with my apartment number written all over them. These are 2 small, blue boxes, that clearly came in packaging from a company. The company’s logo is all over it. What did I get?

A box of Similac.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Similac, it’s formula. Like the kind infants eat. Did I have a kid a few months ago, order some formula, and suddenly get amnesia about this whole ordeal? I don’t think so?

It gets even stranger. So the second box is addressed to the Brooks family. Who live in a different building than me. But the address has my apartment number on it. And the two boxes have different tracking numbers, so they were clearly shipped separately.

Here’s what happened:

A. As stated above, I had a kid, ordered formula, and forgot. Oops!

B. The Brooks family messed up and put in the wrong apartment #. But that doesn’t explain how the second box had MY name on it.

C. A third party ordered me Similac. Maybe the company sent me samples? I mean, I have been spending a lot of time in Baby Gap – maybe I signed up for some sort of mailing list by accident?

D. Something else?

I have no idea what else could have happened.

This still leaves me 100% confused about the baby formula that came to my house. SO WEIRD!

Posted by Caro in Baby, Random, weird
29Jun
3

Shoes!

With the Italy trip quickly approaching, I need to do some shopping….for my feet. I figure I’ll be on them at least 14 hours a day, and I know I need comfy shoes. Especially so since it seems Marla will be coming with me…

Clearly I’ll be bringing my running shoes. I plan to get new ones, but hadn’t had the funds to do so just yet. On the bright side my procrastination paid off – Asics just came out with the latest generation of the shoe I was planning to buy. So here it is: the Asics Nimbus 12!

The perfect cushion shoe for my over-pronating foot :)

So onto the other shoes. I have a pair of Puma’s that are perfectly fantastic, but it’s kind of challenging to keep my orthotics in them (yes, I am an old lady with orthotics! lol). I just bought these 4 with the intention of returning 3. If I hate all 4, I have like 20 other choices. So here’s the list of potential new sneakers for my collection:

1. Asics Gel-fieri

2. Onitsuka Tiger by Asics Ultimate 81

3. Onitsuka Tiger by Asics Mexico 66 (downside is that Zappos reviews say these have 0 arch support. Hopefully the orthotic will at least fit inside…)

4. Puma Street Kosmo (these also come in brown. I couldn’t decide. I can always change my mind!)

So there you have it. I can’t wait for this package to arrive in the mail so I can give a full review of these shoes!

Posted by Caro in Money, Shopping, Travel
29Jun
0

Random Wants

Here’s a list of miscellaneous things for my kitchen that would in some way improve my life. Or just make me happy :)

1. An air-popper popcorn maker. I had one of these growing up and I love it. Such good memories of making popcorn and sitting down as a family to watch a movie.

2 & 3. A pitcher and tray so I could serve drinks. You know, for those days that I might decide to BBQ :) Seriously, I really enjoy this All-Purpose Pitcher from Crate & Barrel. Simple, tasteful, and gets the job done.

And maybe this Bamboo Serving Tray. It strikes me as very “summer”

4. I like having people over for wine and game nights. Really who doesn’t? But then you end up with the inevitable “is this my drink or yours?” dilemma. A simple solution: Cute little wine charms!! These lantern ones from Crate & Barrel are really cute! Although, I would (obviously) enjoy a set of penguins. Or even a set that has ONE penguin charm. If someone finds this they will be my new best friend. Seriously.

5. A Mortar and Pestle. I make awesome guacamole. It’s delicious but let’s be honest: it’s a pain in the ass to make. I strongly feel that one of these gadgets would significant improve my life.

6. Cheese spreaders. Going back to the wine and games night, obviously there will be cheese at this event :)

7. Last but not least, a fancy wine opener. No, I don’t NEED this. But it would be awesome to have!!

Posted by Caro in Food, Shopping
28Jun
0

An eBay Machine

Yep that’s me!

I currently have 22 items listed and am making a small fortune (well like $47). I have several more things to list, but am going to put those off for about a week. Really, I’m just having a great time watching all the bids come in. I’ve never had such a great eBay experience, and it’s a pretty awesome feeling!!

So check me out and buy my shiz!!

Posted by Caro in Money, Shopping
28Jun
0

New Parts

I’m notoriously bad with computers. It never fails that I get viruses all over my computer, even with Norton and trying to be vigilant about these types of things. So I’m at a point where I want to just start over. I can’t afford a whole new computer, and truth be told my current machine isn’t really that old. I just can’t justify getting a new one right now.

Option B: wipe this computer and reinstall Windows. Start fresh. I mean this plan is free after all, so I can definitely get behind this one. Problem: I have TONS of music and a good amount of pics on this computer. I’m not about to try and back all this shiz up on a DVD. Not to mention that all of my computer-savvy friends have drilled it into my head that DVDs are basically stupid.

So I’m sucking it up and buying this: A 2 TB external hard drive. 2 TB should last me forever right? And I *promise* I’ll regularly back up my stuff so that if when I get another virus, I can just wipe the laptop clean and start fresh. I’m totally stoked about my new purchase!!

Posted by Caro in Blogging, Money, Shopping
28Jun
0

A Letter to FIFA

Dear FIFA:

I would like to thank you for tainting the 2010 World Cup. Because of your regulations, I have found myself yelling at my television set like a maniac. This is doing nothing for my stress level or my blood pressure. I know I’m not alone; your decisions have impacted teams from most continents.

What am I talking about? Goal-line technology. Or rather, a serious lack thereof. Any kind of replay would be useful really. But because you choose to remain in the stone age, we are left with referees having to rely on what they think they may have seen. And honestly, it’s just not working.

I’m not even writing as an angry American fan. Yes, you fucked over my team. Twice. TWO TIMES. Group play game 2: I’m still not sure what that penalty was. Offsides? A foul? You tell me. Then in game 3: Dempsey was perfectly even (or even a little back) with the last defender. That’s a goal.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ir8RPnLXmyU&feature=fvst[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXXHXwzMRE8[/youtube]

But again, I’m not trying to be an angry American. Let’s look at some of the other muffed calls:

  • Italy vs. New Zealand: Smeltz is clearly offsides. No goal. No tie. NZ shouldn’t have gotten that point. Sorry Kiwis!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADZn0GB-674[/youtube]

  • England vs. Germany: I’m sorry, but that ball was at least a full foot over the line. There is NO question that was a goal. When your tying goal is disallowed that really changes the mentality you have in the game. It’s just not OK. You tell me – how did this not count?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9brBl8Wzfc&hd=1

  • Mexico vs. Argentina: Mexico got FUCKED. This was clearly offsides. From here they self-destructed. I would like to at least dream that the game would have been much closer were it not for this terrible call by the referee AND line judge.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJ0nNsZ53aI&hd=1[/youtube]

So there you have it. 5 solid examples of game-changing, even tournament-changing calls that would have easily been correct if replay technology were allowed. As a true fan of soccer, I urge you to maintain the sanctity of the game by allowing such technology onto the pitch. The status-quo just isn’t cutting it anymore.

Sincerely,

Caro :)

Posted by Caro in Rants and raves, Sports, TV, Videos
28Jun
0

Changed Conditions Ahead

After dinner last night, Mario, Brett and I decided to walk off some of our food. We headed for a hilly residential area and immediately noticed this sign.

WTF? What are the changes? Is it hazardous? This sign tells me nothing, except of course “photograph me” :)

Posted by Caro in Discoveries, Funny Signs, Random
28Jun
0

Cranking It Out

I’m laying here on my loveseat, enjoying the Netherlands vs. Slovakia game (despite already knowing the outcome) pumping myself up to crank out some posts. I slept funny on my neck 2 nights ago and it hurts. Not just a little. The pain randomly radiates down my shoulder blade. So I’m propped up with pillows, a heating pad, and a glass of wine (alcohol: the oldest analgesic known to man. Or something. lol)

Let’s see how many I can do :)

Posted by Caro in Blogging, Health, Life, Things to do
28Jun
0

Mingle Monday, part 2

I’ve been slacking off the past few weeks, but I’m getting back into mingling mode today.Thanks to Meg at [Life of Meg], I’ve already discovered so many wonderful new sites. So check her out and get your site in the mix!

Happy mingling!

Posted by Caro in Discoveries
28Jun
0

Money Matters

Those who know me know I’m a bit crazy/OCD when it comes to certain things. Planning and organizing definitely fall into that category. Today I stumbled upon a pretty awesome post from a fellow 20-something who does the same.

The post was both refreshing and kind of saddening. I took the Schwab Financial Fitness Test, and like Michele, my score is definitely lower than I would have though or hoped it would be. I scored a 68.

It was definitely awesome to see all the things I’m doing correctly: have health insurance, contribute at least 12% of my income to my retirement account, etc. But seeing the things I don’t do well made me sad. Do I have enough money to cover me if I become unemployed for several months? Nope. I haven’t quite rebounded from my “I finished grad school but still can’t find a job and have to start paying back loans” blow to my savings account. I mean can I get partial credit for knowing that I should have something like that?? lol

But seriously, it’s never too early or too late to get started on managing your finances. These are some easy tips I can recommend:

  • Make a budget and stick to it. I was introduced to mint.com a while back and I LOVE it. It tracks your spending for you, reminds you of upcoming bill payments, and makes charts and graphs of your spending trends. And it lets you know instantly if you’ve overspent in any of your budget categories.
  • A book I really enjoy is Get a Financial Life by Beth Kobliner. My first boss gave me this as a graduation gift when I finished undergrad. It was truly eye-opening, especially since I was literally scraping by on the salary I was making at that job.
  • Contribute to your retirement account starting the day you get your first job. Even if you can only afford $100 a month, the amount that you’ll make off that is better than nothing!! And if your employer matches contributions, take full advantage of that. Seriously – it’s FREE MONEY. And it has your name on it. Take it!
  • Don’t carry a balance on your credit card. NEVER. You’re giving away money, and right now interest rates on those things are abysmal.

And that’s all. Thanks Michele for the awesome financial quiz!

Posted by Caro in Discoveries, Money, Work
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