Hi, I'm Rona...and I'm pretty random. I blurt out things that come to mind. Sometimes funny, sometimes serious. Tune in to find out what I mean. Drop me a line at rona@lite975.com!
NYPD Officer’s Kindness Sparks Online Sensation A photo of a New York City police officer giving new boots to a barefoot homeless man in Times Square has created an online sensation. The NYPD posted the photo of Officer Lawrence DePrimo kneeling to help the man put on the boots to the department’s Facebook page. By yesterday, the photo had been shared more than 140,000 times, “liked” more than 420,000 times and received 31,000 comments. Jennifer Foster of Florence, Arizona, was visiting Times Square with her boyfriend on November 14th when they saw a shoeless man asking for change. As she approached the man, she said a police officer came onto the scene. Foster, a civilian dispatch manager with the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office in Arizona, took a photo and forwarded it and a note to the NYPD. Officer DePrimo, 25, who joined the department in 2010, was shocked at the attention. “It was freezing out and you could see the blisters on the man’s feet,” DePrimo said in an interview. “I had two pairs of socks and I was still cold.” They started talking; he found out the man’s shoe size: 12. DePrimo went into a Skechers shoe store and – using his own money – bought a pair of all-weather boots and some socks. The store manager was so moved, he gave DePrimo his employee discount to cut the price of the $100 boots. DePrimo said keeps the receipt for the boots in his vest to remind him ‘‘that sometimes people have it worse.’’
HOLIDAY STUFFTODO THIS WEEKEND!!!!!
Olde Towne Hedgesville Christmas happens this weekend with traditional Christmas Carols, hot cocoa and the spirit of giving. Friday from 6pm-9pm there will be celebrations with the Hedgesville Middle School choir and the tree lighting ceremony.
Doors to Christmas 2012 happens through December 5th from 11am-4pm. Come see 24 beautiful wreaths designed by local Florist,Business, & Artisans. The wreaths will be auctioned off on Dec. 6th at 5pm. The event is held at the Old Shenandoah Hotel at 100 W. Main Street in Martinsburg.
The 18th annual South Berkeley Christmas Tree Lighting will be held on Saturday, December 1st at 6:00pm. The theme is "Christmas Lights the Heart in South Berkeley" and will begin with the lighting of the community Christmas tree on front of Musselman High School. For details call: 304-229-7271
Snowflake Festival Market happens once again this year on the square in Downtown Martinsburg. Saturday, December 1st from 12:00pm-5:00pm. There will be crafts, music and deliciious treats to enjoy all day long!
Friday Toy Memory:
A strange game that featured a head that rotated in the center of the game and you had to try and "feed" or put coins in the mouth of this creature that looked a lot like a 3D Pac Man. Remember this?
It's holiday season and time for holiday parties. Everyone loves a good time but there are a few things you should remember when it comes to your office party...you don't want to regret it the next day... (not admitting to anything, just sayin)
Here are some tips to keep your behavior under control, and still have a good time at your office party:
Dress modestly. If you want pizzazz, go for flashy jewelry. The office party is not the place to show off your new revealing outfit, especially if you care about your professional image.
Limit alcohol. You’ll be less likely to say and do things that you’ll later regret. If you tend to have “way too much fun” when you drink, stay dry at the office party.
Watch your mouth. Cursing and sexual innuendos may be taken the wrong way, even at parties. Play it safe by using language that won’t haunt you 6 months from now.
Keep your hands to yourself. Under the guise of “fun” some folks get a bit too touchy-feely at parties. Don’t risk sexual harassment charges. If hugging is the norm among your coworkers, hug them as you would your great aunt.
Assume that photos will be taken and posted online. These photos can stay online forever. Years from now, how would you like to be depicted?
Top 10 Worst Toys Of 2012
The consumer toy watchdog group, World Against Toys Causing Harm, Inc. (W.A.T.C.H.) has issued its annual “10 Worst Toys” list naming toys with the potential to cause childhood injuries or even death. This year’s list:
Magnetic Fishing Game, $1.77, by Kole Imports (choking hazard)
Inflatable Bongo Ball, $49.99, by Toys R Us (impact injuries)
Dart Zone Quick Fire 12 dart gun, $19.32, by Prime Time Toys Ltd. (eye injuries)
Spinner Shark 4-Wheel Kneeboard, $59.97, by FuzionNextsport (impact injuries)
Explore & Learn Helicopter, $15.99, by V Tech (strangulation hazard)
N-Force Vendetta Double Sword, $19.99, by Hasbro (impact injuries)
Water Balloon Launcher, $21.99, by Water Sports LLC (choking hazard, facial injuries)
Power Rangers Super Samurai Shogun Helmet, $29.99, by Bandai (puncture wound, impact injuries)
Playful Xylophone, $29.99, by P’Kolino (choking hazard)
The Avengers Gamma Green Smash Fists, $16.99, by Hasbro (impact injuries)
WATCH’s website,www.toysafety.org, includes a “report card” that documents some of the changes that have come about as a result of the organization’s concerns.
What are your favorite Holiday Movies?
Hans loves Love Actually, Elf, Christmas Story and others. I realized I don't have any of my own favorites during the holiday season. There is a new film "Elf Man" that will premiere this weekend at the Weinberg Center in Frederick. Here are all the details on this new family friendly movie!
Miss me? I've been holding off on posting on the blog as I realized that a lot of people aren't reading it. Here is a list compiled from GQ Magazine. Don't kill the messenger, I didn't make up the list... just sayin. Some of them here I can totally see, others...not so much!
Least Influential People Of 2012
Mitt Romney, Michelle Obama and Lance Armstrong are among the 25 men and women named to GQ’s list of the Least Influential People of 2012. While Romney was No. 1 on the list, the magazine declined to call him the least influential person of 2012, giving the disclaimer that “all zeros are created equal.” “The only successful thing he did this year was embody every black stand-up comedian’s impression of a white person,” GQ said of Romney. The list of the least influential people of the year described the cast of characters as “a collection of people so uninspiring that we should round them all up and stick them on an iceberg.” The full list:
We also talked about the Powerball jackpot. It's is INSANE to think that any of us could win the $500 million dollars. We have more chance of lots of things...
We played this hilarious call from a woman that has gone viral. She called a radio station (in Minnesota I think) to tell them that she believed that the government shouldn't place deer crossing signs near the highways. She was serious! Take a listen to the call. Also, read the article that's a follow-up.
So I hear we may get snow. According to our buds at Accuweather, it's probably going to happen tonight or in the overnight. Golden!
As you well know, today is Cyber Monday. That means that there are terrific deals online for shoppers. Beware if you plan on using your work computer to do the deed...
Using the internet to knock items off the holiday shopping list is likely to continue to be the trend. According to CareerBuilder’s “Cyber Monday” internet usage study, 49% of workers expect to spend some time in the office this holiday season shopping online, on par with past years. More than a quarter of workers planned to shop from work either on Black Friday (12%) or Cyber Monday (16%). Shopping from the office is most common in the weeks leading up to December 25th, with 30% saying they’re most likely to shop from work after December 7th. The study also revealed that a higher percentage of women (43%) have shopped online while at the office compared to men (36%). While most companies have an official internet use policy for their employees, workers often go online for non-work related reasons. Other findings:
25% of employers have fired someone for using the internet for non-work related activity.
7% of hiring managers have fired an employee for holiday shopping at work.
53% of employers block employees from accessing certain websites.
11% of hiring managers have fired an employee for something they posted on social media.
30% of employers monitor their employees’ email use.
11% of hiring managers have fired someone for sending non-work related emails.
Now that we are in the full swing of Holiday Season, officially, there are some scams that are out there I wanted to let you know about. Check this out...
‘Tis the season for online scammers. One security company is warning about ways people can be ripped off during the holidays. According to McAfee, a growing number of people are using mobile devices to shop. Among the scams to be aware of are those that require you to click on links, especially through social media sites. McAfee warns many scammers use Twitter and Facebook to lure people into clicking through on contests or fan pages that advertise hot selling items or discounts on popular products. Those links may actually be ways of installing malware on your mobile device and swiping your personal info. A survey for McAfee by Harris Interactive revealed:
1 in 4 Americans plan to shop online this Holiday season via smartphones and tablets.
13% of all Americans will use an app this holiday season to research or purchase holiday gifts.
Among those planning on using mobile devices to purchase gifts this holiday season, 54% expect to use apps for shopping and/or banking during that time.
87% of American smartphone and/or tablet owners are concerned that their personal information could be stolen while using an app on such devices, but say they’ll do it anyway.
A friend of mine posted this on Facebook. "...Received a text from Target this morning saying because of my entry last month, I won a free $1000 gift card. Since I haven't been to Target in a while I was a wee bit suspicious. It's the latest attempt at conning us from our money called Smishing (Phishing, but using the SMS text messages)."
He is so right! In fact, about 10 people commented on this and about 7 of them received the very same text that morning. Hmmm. Sounds Fishy. This article explains the new "SMISHING" phenomenon. It makes me sad that my cell phone is now being used to market to me!
Green bean casserole was my meal of the day today! Check out Paula Deen's recipe! Yum!
You going on vacation? Do you want to take your pet with you? How about this?
Holiday travelers wishing to take their pets along for the trip now have an easy way to find suitable accommodations at pet friendly hotels.Takeyourpet.comincludes an ever-expanding directory of more than 40,000 pet friendly bed and breakfasts, cabins, hotels, vacation rentals and resorts. In addition, the site provides a wealth of helpful articles on “best practices” for all stages of traveling with pets. These include recommendations for avoiding carsickness, reducing anxiety and ensuring that pets get adequate nutrition and hydration during the journey.Takeyourpet.com offers generous discounts to members on lodging and car rentals, whether or not their pet comes along for the ride. Members also have access to the pet travel forum, where they can share tips and tricks or ask questions of fellow pet owners. Some of the leading pet websites, including Petsmart and Petco, offer discount pricing for Takeyourpet.comsite visitors.
The Myth Of Black Friday
Attention Black Friday shoppers, you’re probably wasting your time. It turns out the best time to deal hunt almost never involves standing in the November cold all night. After crunching years of pricing data for a number of typical holiday gifts, Consumer price research firm Decide Inc. has turned up the best times to go deal hunting – and it isn’t Black Friday or Cyber Monday. It turns out that gifts from Barbie dolls to watches to blenders are often priced below Black Friday levels at various times throughout the year, even during the holiday season, and their prices follow different trajectories as the remaining shopping days tick down. The study found prices for some gifts are lowest early in the holiday season (like right now), before retailers start to gradually increase prices. So when is the best time to buy? A lot depends on what you are buying.
Jewelry And Watches
A Citizen men’s watch listed at $600 was tracked from 2008 through 2011. Early March was the best time to buy, at $350, compared to $379 on Black Friday.
Ugg Boots
September or October is clearly the best time to buy a pair of Ugg boots, which get more expensive as the shopping season drags on. The average price for a pair of women’s “Classic Cardy” Uggs during October and September was $85, down from the $159.95 list price. On Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the average price shot back up to $135 and $137.
TVs
The best holiday-season time to buy a flat-screen TV is in October, when a Samsung 46-inch LCD TV sells for $1,159, compared to $1,355 for the same model on Black Friday.
Toys
The price of a Sesame Street Elmo toy jumped 31% to $17.78 on Black Friday from its average price in September and October, and prices can get even more inflated as supplies dwindle and demand increases ahead of the holidays.
What To Wait For
The mid-December price of a KitchenAid Artisan Stand Mixer was reduced nearly 20% from November.
Other findings:
Kmart and Sears stores still reserve their lowest prices on some items for Black Friday – the so-called “door busters.”
Apple stores also offered a rare discount on the iPad last Black Friday – a $41 to $61 discount – depending on the model.
Videogame systems like Xbox also showed their biggest price drops during Black Friday and Cyber Monday, resulting in more than $100 in savings.
Do you fry your Thanksgiving turkey? Well William Shatner got together with State Farm last year and created a safety video with reminders for people who like to fry up their bird for Turkey day. See it below.
Then they did an auto tune remix...hilarity.
Most people love them some stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes etc for Thanksgiving. However, food companies wrack their brains for ways to come up with lots of different flavors for your favorite things like coffee, lip balm, ice cream, pringles, soda and more. See the list of wacky holiday flavors here!
There are tons of Black Friday online sites. Here is a compendium of the sites for you to save tons of moolah for Black Friday and Cyber Monday!
Here's our awesome recipe forCranberry, Apple, Stuffing.(from All Recipes). Listen all week for your chance to win "Movie Magic" aka movie passes to Berkeley Plaza Theatre.
Have you ever had that time when you are sitting around the Thanksgiving table and you are trying to wrack your brain to come up with a good conversation topic? Yeah, that's always awkward. Here are a few ideas of icebreakers from Familyreunion.com. Would you use these? I think some of them are a little um, lame. I just can't imagine asking cousin George some of these questions.
Retailers open early on Black Friday, sometimes even on Thanksgiving evening as shoppers line up overnight to save hundreds on holiday items, especially electronics. With the best Black Friday apps for 2012, you can find the best deals, create shopping lists and plan for Black Friday shopping. The best Black Friday apps for 2012 include: Click here for all the apps.
Black Friday Dealnews App: Dealnews brings all of their Black Friday ads and Black Friday deals to the iPhone and Android with the free Black Friday app. This app offers leaked Black Friday ads by store and allows users to browse Black Friday deals by category.
BfAds Black Friday App: The Bfads.net iPhone and Android apps offer access to the latest Black Friday ads and deals, including many online deals already available from Amazon and other online retailers.
Fat Wallet Black Friday App: Fat Wallet’s Black Friday iPhone and iPad app allows users to browse through Black Friday ads by store and by category, and also includes an advanced search function that makes it easier to track down deals that are available at specific stores, those with Free Shipping and deals that are available only on Thanksgiving or black Friday.
Blackfriday.fm App: Like the rest of the Black Friday apps, Black Friday.fm’s app offers access to the latest Black Friday deals and ads, but it stands out with better categories.
Amazon App: This is the fastest way to check prices on Black Friday deals and find reviews for products. Most Black Friday deal sites post all deals and don’t say which are good or bad deals. After finding Black Friday deals with the other apps, shoppers can look up the current Amazon price; if it’s within a few dollars the Black Friday deal isn’t a good deal. The app also shows some of the best collected product reviews for a wide array of items.
Yesterday, I found the list of the 13 most unfortunate names their jobs. I read some of them and was driven to tears. Here's the link to it. Beware, some of them are pretty blue. I still found them hilarious!
A friend of mine sent me this e-mail of "vintage" advertisements. Many of them tout the benefits of drinking soda, smoking cigarettes, and if you're a woman, housework.
Wow! Just Wow! Click here to see all of them.
Taylor Swift did a spoof rap video with T-Pain a few years ago. I was explaining it to Hans. Here it is!
This company called Demeter Fragrance Company came out with a new fragrance...sushi. Wait, let me back up a minute. They make all kinds of ahem...interesting fragrances. I personally have or have smelled
Popcorn
Gingerale
Bonfire this is one of my faves, click the link to see what others say about it)
Birthday Cake
Play Doh
Laundromat
Dirt
So when they came out with Sushi, it's what I expect from these. Check out the site and some of the crazy scents they have for you! (like crayon and orange rim cleaner)
Today is Veteran's Day. Please read this and remember to thank a Veteran today.
I remember I shared this last year but I think it very fitting again today..
What is a Veteran?
Some veterans bear visible signs of their service: a missing limb, a jagged scar, a certain look in the eye.
Others may carry the evidence inside them: a pin holding a bone together, a piece of shrapnel in the leg - or perhaps another sort of inner steel: the soul's ally forged in the refinery of adversity.
Except in parades, however, the men and women who have kept America safe wear no badge or emblem.
You can't tell a vet just by looking.
He is the cop on the beat who spent six months in Saudi Arabia sweating two gallons a day making sure the armored personnel carriers didn't run out of fuel.
He is the barroom loudmouth, dumber than five wooden planks, whose overgrown frat-boy behavior is outweighed a hundred times in the cosmic scales by four hours of exquisite bravery near the 38th parallel.
She - or he - is the nurse who fought against futility and went to sleep sobbing every night for two solid years in Da Nang.
He is the POW who went away one person and came back another - or didn't come back AT ALL.
He is the Quantico drill instructor who has never seen combat - but has saved countless lives by turning slouchy, no-account rednecks and gang members into Marines, and teaching them to watch each other's backs.
He is the parade - riding Legionnaire who pins on his ribbons and medals with a prosthetic hand.
He is the career quartermaster who watches the ribbons and medals pass him by.
He is the three anonymous heroes in The Tomb Of The Unknowns, whose presence at the Arlington National Cemetery must forever preserve the memory of all the anonymous heroes whose valor dies unrecognized with them on the battlefield or in the ocean's sunless deep.
He is the old guy bagging groceries at the supermarket - palsied now and aggravatingly slow - who helped liberate a Nazi death camp and who wishes all day long that his wife were still alive to hold him when the nightmares come.
He is an ordinary and yet an extraordinary human being - a person who offered some of his life's most vital years in the service of his country, and who sacrificed his ambitions so others would not have to sacrifice theirs.
He is a soldier and a savior and a sword against the darkness, and he is nothing more than the finest, greatest testimony on behalf of the finest, greatest nation ever known.
So remember, each time you see someone who has served our country, just lean over and say Thank You. That's all most people need, and in most cases it will mean more than any medals they could have been awarded or were awarded.
Two little words that mean a lot, "THANK YOU".
"It is the soldier, not the reporter, Who has given us freedom of the press. It is the soldier, not the poet, Who has given us freedom of speech. It is the soldier, not the campus organizer, Who has given us the freedom to demonstrate.
It is the soldier, Who salutes the flag, Who serves beneath the flag, and whose coffin is draped by the flag, who allows the protestor to burn the flag."
Father Denis Edward O'Brien/USMC
So today, we discussed that experts think you need 6 different types of friends to enrich your life. A few of these types are:
A friend who is painfully honest and the friend who doesn't know any of your other friends. These sound like pretty sound tips to me. Check out the resthere.
Would you let someone else choose your flight destination for you? Okay, maybe that's boiling it down a little too much. There is a new website that will give you cheap flights, but they pick your final destination.
That’s the premise, more or less, of GetGoing.com, a new website now in beta and set for a consumer launch on Nov. 1. The site promises airfare discounts of up to 40 percent to users who are willing to let the website pick their final destination.
Here’s how it works: Users conduct a flight search, either by regional destination (Europe, Asia, U.S./Canada, etc.) or by interest (family fun, beaches and sun, history and culture, etc.) and are shown, on average, 10 possible destinations, along with a full selection of flight options for each one.
The site then asks you to narrow the options to two final choices and provide your booking and credit-card information. The good news is that only one of the two itineraries will be booked; the potentially nerve-wracking news is that you don’t find out which one until after you've clicked the "Complete this Purchase" button. Sign up/read more here.
What was your favorite cereal as a kid? I loved Cap'n Crunch and Hans loved Cocoa puffs. See the vintage commercials below.
Remember this?
Sunday is the official Veterans Day. Here are some great ways for Vets to take advantage of free food on Sunday and Monday. Friday Toy Memory: Solid Gold! YES!!!! Who didn't love plunking down on a Saturday night to watch the Solid Gold Dancers dramatically dance to the music of Juice Newton or whoever was tops on the charts? I always loved the very clearly lip synced performances. Here's what I mean. BTW, Hans has no idea what Solid Gold is
More than 24,000 businesses will offer discounts for vets and service members on and around this Veteran’s Day, according to the Military and Veterans Discount Center. Here are some of the national chains where the brave men and women who have served and still serve our country can get treated to some free food.
Olive Garden
Visit Olive Garden and show proof of service, and you can take your pick from a list of free restaurant favorites, like unlimited soup, salad and breadsticks and chicken parmigiana.
Applebee’s
Vets and active duty military can head to participating Applebee’s restaurants on Sunday, Nov. 11 for a free signature entrée, like the Fiesta Lime Chicken, Oriental Chicken Salad and Bacon Cheddar Cheeseburger.
Denny’s
Active, inactive and retired military personnel can stop by Denny’s between 6 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Monday for free all-you-can-eat pancakes.
Golden Corral
The chain’s free Military Appreciation Monday dinner will be held on Nov. 12 from 4 to 9 p.m. in all restaurants locations across the country.
Krispy Kreme
America’s service men and women past and present can swing by Krispy Kreme for a free doughnut of their choice on Nov. 11.
Hooters
Veterans and active duty military will receive 10 free boneless wings with a drink purchase and proof of service on Nov. 11.
Texas Roadhouse
Veterans can select a free lunch from Texas Roadhouse’s Veterans Day Menu on Nov. 12 with proof of military service.
Outback Steakhouse
Military personnel will receive a free Bloomin’ Onion appetizer and Coca-Cola product on Nov. 11 and 12 with proper identification.
Little Caesar’s Pizza
Receive a free order of Crazy Bread when you show proof of military status on Nov. 11.
Friday Toy Memory: Solid Gold! YES!!!! Who didn't love plunking down on a Saturday night to watch the Solid Gold Dancers dramatically dance to the music of Juice Newton or whoever was tops on the charts? I always loved the very clearly lip synced performances. Here's what I mean. BTW, Hans has no idea what Solid Gold is... :(
Sorry guys. It's just been a little difficult to blog lately. Stick with me, and this winter blah thing will pass. :)
Today on the show we talked about things that people will give up for a better work life balance. People who were surveyed staffing website www.momcorps.com said that they'd happily work from home to create a work life balance.
Here are some other key results that we will cover in more depth in subsequent posts:
Nearly one in two working adults (45%) are willing to give up some percentage of their salary for more flexibility at work; nearly 10% (8.6%) is the average proportion of their salary working adults are willing to relinquish—almostdouble the amount of last year’s survey (5.8%).
The 18-34 age group, on average, would be willing to give up almost 14 percent of their salary (13.9%), more so than working adults aged 35+.
More than three in five working adults (61%) strongly or somewhat agree that flexibility is one of the most important factors they consider when looking for a new job or deciding what company to work for, and one in five strongly agree (20%).
Sixty-seven percent of working adults agree that it is possible to “have it all” when it comes to work-life balance, and interestingly there is no significant difference here between women (68%) and men (66%).
Fifty-two percent of working adults would be interested in starting their own business in order to achieve a better work-life balance, led by men age 35-44 (75%).
More than half (53%) of working adults think they would get more work done if they had the ability to work from home occasionally. Nearly two in three (62%) 18-34 year olds agree.
We also talked about 15 Offbeat Holidays that happen during November from the uber awesome website mentalfloss.com.
Some of the great celebrations this month include:
Clean out your refrigerator day on November 15th
National Toilet Day on November 19th
King Tut Day on November 4th
finally we just missed National Tongue Twister Day on Nov 7th (it was election day, we have an excuse to miss it). Here are a lot of tongue twisters from all over the world.
Have you ever wanted to have an answer to a question? There is a website and a mobile service that allows you to text your question and a team of people will look up your answer and text it to you! Awesome! Here's the site. Check out all the questions and answers they get. You can see why they are so much more than a google.Chacha.com
I've never given this any thought but, who are the Best Fictional Presidents?
Barack Obama and Mitt Romney may have thought this election season has been tough, but a new survey by Thecredits.org reveals they might have had an even harder time had they been going toe to toe with Hollywood’s best fictional presidents. Harrison Ford’s tough “Air Force One” Commander in Chief James Marshall came out on top as the best Hollywood U.S. President, with 23% of the vote.
Behind Ford was Morgan Freeman as President Beck in “Deep Impact,” then Bill Pullman’s “Independence Day” President Whitmore.
Female candidates were put on the ballot, but they didn’t fare well, taking the three last places. They were Cherry Jones (Fox’s “24”), Geena Davis (ABC’s “Commander in Chief”) and Mary McDonnell in (SyFy’s “Battlestar Gallactica”).
The survey also opened up the voting to any actor, not just those who had played a president. Under that condition, Denzel Washington was number one, followed by Morgan Freeman and a two-way tie for third between Clint Eastwood and Harrison Ford. Both Eastwood and Ford were favored by Romney supporters, while women heavily favored Washington. Samuel L. Jackson from “Snakes on a Plane” is the preferred president elect if a zombie apocalyptic crises arises, with 19%. Obama supporters strongly favored Jackson, at 23%, while Milla Jovovich, from “Resident Evil” was a close second with 18%. She got more votes from registered Independents (22%) than any candidate. Tom Cruise, from “War of the Worlds,” was right behind her at 17%. Romney supporters and undecided voters opted for Cruise most, at 16% and 24% respectively.
So we normally throw away so much food in our country. We discussed a documentary film called "Dive" that follows some freegans. We also gave you 5 Tips To Stop Wasting Food. Read on...
A documentary called “Dive!” followed a group of friends who went dumpster diving behind Los Angeles grocery stores to reveal the amount of waste in America. Entire families featured in the film lived off “wasted” food for weeks. But grocery stores aren’t the only ones wasting food. From farm to table, up to 40% of American food goes uneaten each year, at a cost of about $165 billion, according to a recent study by the national environmental group Natural Resources Defense Council. While there are numerous sources of waste, one of the biggest is the American family. We throw out approximately 25% of the food and beverages we buy, costing the average family of four $1,365 to $2,275 yearly. Here’s how to save cash, food, and time from Money Talks News:
1. Don’t buy something just because it’s there: A grocery store generally carries the same items every day. So unless you’re in a store you won’t be near again for weeks, buy enough to last you a few days knowing you’ll use everything. That’s better than buying enough for a few weeks, which increases the risk of food going bad before you can use it all. If it’s on sale, also consider whether you’ll use it before it expires. Buying something on sale isn’t a deal if half the food ends up in the trash.
2. Buy bulk with a friend: Wholesale shopping is great for larger families, but not necessary if you’re in a one- or two-person household. So if you want to buy in bulk but have a small household, consider splitting the difference with a friend or relative. For added savings, think about splitting the cost of membership too.
3. Divide and conquer: Instead of putting food away as it came packaged, divide it into smaller portions as soon as you get home. This helps prevent food from going bad in your fridge. For example, cut and portion meats, freeze what you won’t eat right away, and then remove what you need from the freezer the morning of the day you plan to cook it. Extra fruits, vegetables, and breads can also be frozen.
4. Make a meal plan: Spend half an hour a week making a list of meals for the next week. Include breakfast, lunch, and dinner, if all those meals apply to your household. When grocery shopping, stick to your meal plan by buying the ingredients you need for the next week’s meals.
5. Don’t shop hungry: You’re more likely to make impulse purchases when your stomach is empty. If you can’t help grocery shopping while hungry, make a list and stick to it – no wandering the aisles for the foods you’re craving.
Let's have some good news shall we? These two guys just decided to start hiding $20 bills all around their town. Too bad their town isn't in the Eastern Panhandle! :(. Still a good story though. Read ithere!
I love candy corn! I simply love it! In fact, there is a whole thing about why there is a love/hate relationship with candy corn. Check it outhere!
Speaking of Candy Corn. There is a new "Candy Corn" Oreo Cookie...why mess with perfection. But since I love candy corn so much, I'm thinking about trying them. I think Hans and I need to do another in-studio taste test! Here's onereview I read...haters. :)
We thought this was so appropes (slang for appropriate) since it's the day after Halloween...
What to say when you’re slow on Monday… Gosh, if only my morning cereal had more sugar in it, I wouldn’t need this third cup of coffee. The days of artificial morning cereal energy are coming to an end, now that Nestle has decided to cut sugar and salt in kids breakfast cereals it sells outside of North America. Healthy is in. According to Reuters, the cereals will be “reformulated” to boost wholegrains, calcium, and cut down on sugar and salt. In other words, a Cheerio will now just be a sad multi-grain hole crying Oooooo. Read morehere!
Summer movies are getting on a roll now! Two weeks ago we had Iron Man 3, last week The Great Gatsby debuted with success and now this week we have Star Trek Into Darkness! I saw it on Friday and I must say: BEST MOVIE OF THE YEAR so far! The 2009 reboot...
The Summer movie season is finally here, thanks to Robert Downey Jr. and Iron Man 3! This of course, is the third Iron Man movie, but is actually just as much a sequel to last year's blockbuster: The Avengers. If any of the Avengers (Captain America,...
Okay, normally I see movies right when they come out, but I waited a little while to see Oz: The Great and Powerful. I finally saw it and I loved everything about it! Great visuals, great 3D, great story, great cast, tons of family fun and magic! I am...
Happy Birthday to Jessica Biel (31), Julie Bowen (43), Buddy Valastro (36) and Santonio Holmes (29). And if your birthday is today: Happy Birthday to you too from 97.5 WLTF!
Christian Lopez is a friend of the West Virginia Morning Show and have stopped by to chat about AI (well, as much as he's allowed to say) and he played his new original song "As Far As I May Go". Gooood stuff. Check it out.
Thanks for tuning in!
. Here are some of the national chains where the brave men and women who have served and still serve our country can get treated to some free food.
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