Updating

So trying to get things organized and set up again…yeah great fun. I was able to get the file folders renamed and the products reorganized on my Zazzle site http://www.zazzle.com/sandys5324*.

I love taking photos and I hate scrapbooking so I had to find something to do with it and this is a great place to create and sell excellent products. I am always stopping and taking pictures of things I see as I drive places. My fiance has gotten used to me being late getting to wherever I am going, he just calls and asks me where I am and why I’m not where I am supposed to be, well unless he says to hurry up and get home so we can get where we are supposed to be going to.

http://www.zazzle.com/utl/getpanel?zp=117981074627596737
Shop for a personalized gift at Zazzle.

I also found a place to be sure that I don’t have to worry about someone else stealing my images from me. I have been with Myows for awhile now https://myows.com/refer/3095/

and I don’t have to worry because all my images are dated for me to show that I have had them. Protect Your Copyrights with Myows. Using Myows is the best step you can take for protecting your copyrights.
Thankfully I have not had to test it out, but there are others who have and they have done very well with it so far, I feel pretty good about it. I have had the free account so far. I just upgraded to the 4GB $5/month account and I hope to get all my images uploaded this month….there are a lot.
Wish me luck.

Spring is coming!

It is going to be in the 40′ and 50′s this weekend! I am so excited! I think I may just go clean out all the junk my bf has been stuffing in it since it started getting cold. I have been going crazy because I normally don’t have anything but a few car items, a couple of big kites hanging and a bike. I seen an ad for Harbor Freight has a sale this weekend and the item I need to get is the bike hanger for $7 – thats a pretty good price.

So I haven’t been online all week, because of training for a new job. I’m not worried about knowing the information, the data is all in the database. The problem is using the 10 different programs on the computer fast enough during the incoming calls. I’ve worked in a call center before and it’s not all that great but, it isn’t difficult.

There is a final exam on Monday and all trainees must get at least 90% on it or no job. So I will be spending a bit of time studying for that too.

My son received his papers…He will be going to Iraq. He will be part of the 17,000 additional troops President Obama has ordered overseas. He leaves May 1, for the training they receive before going to Iraq. I just pray he comes home safe. Since he just joined last August he will probably go to Iraq & Afghanistan two or three times before he is done with his time in the Marines.

Well, lots to get done today. Have a great weekend.

Tattoo Taboos

In yesterday’s mail I received a small magazine called Remedy, Health and wellness for life. I skimmed it this morning and was surprised by this article: Tattoo Taboo. It isn’t about your usually permanent tattoos it is talking about the Henna tattoos. These are often available in resorts, cruise ships etc as well as many local tattoo shops. Henna in and of itself is not harmful. The problem according to this magazine is when PPD is used to shorten drying time. PPD (Phenylenediamine) lengthens the life of the tattoo and decreases drying time. Without PPD henna paste and the tattoo is brown-green or red. PPD can cause skin irritation – not nice but not serious. But it can also cause severe blistering, scarring and exposure to PPD can sensitize the immune system. This will increase the risk of a full body rash if exposed to PPD again. So even though we may want the henna tattoos for a bit of whimsy and fun, check with the person who is using the henna if they know if it has PPD in it. If they aren’t sure it is probably better not to take the risk than to regret it later.

First day at new job

Well I made it early enough, talked a bit with those I knew at the company. Made positive impressions and filled out lots of paperwork – which reminds me I brought some home I need to do yet. darn it.

So if you are looking for work they are still hiring and all you need to do is go to Convergys.com apply on line. You can use my name as a reference, if you like, I will get credit but it won’t guarantee an interview or hire.

Seeking Time saving features/widgets etc.

I start my new job tomorrow so my goal for today is to get all my sites and stuff caught up and organized so that anything that can update itself will do so and then I won’t have quite so much to do after working 8.5 hours and 1.5 hr commute total each day. I mean really that is only 10 hours out of my day so add another 6 for sleep and we are up to 16 which leaves me 8 hours each day to do Everything else I need to do in my life. lol.

Manually updating is not something I am willing to spend my time doing. I used feedburner.com to set up the update to one of my other blogs (http://sandys5324.blogspot.com/) and now I need to check out the rest of the stuff.

If anyone has suggestions for me to use to make my life here online easier, please let me know. What I currently try to do online is as follows:

1. Several Squidoo pages & 2 WIP, forum, groups

Parent of a Marine
Marine Graduation
USMC eagle, globe & anchor video showcase

Grandmas Don’t Rollerskate

Coupons Online – Cut grocery bills

2. Tagfoot

http://tagfoot.com/sign_up_wizard.sandys5324

http://rss.tagfoot.com/rss/sandys5324/latest/

3. Twitter

4. Digg:

5. Blogs: wordpress/blogger/yahoo 360

6. Photo image sites at

Hosted By Alkaspace.com

Imagekind at http://Sandys5324.imagekind.com/

6. Zazzle page at
Sandys5324

Flickr: sandys5324′s Photostream

Flickr: sandys5324′s Photostream.

[object HTMLImageElement]

If you like, you can now try the Flickr widget I blogged about a little while ago. This is the first time I’ve released something like this, but I’m pretty confident it’ll work. I’ve set up a page on this blog where you can enter your Flickr feed, along with some other details, and create your personalized version of the widget. It’s generates an HTML code snippet that you can copy-paste into your website. In fact I just used it to create the widget embedded on the left.

via [object HTMLImageElement].

DAREK CARTMAN

Photo Fun – ClubDUD.com

We had a dinner party last night for Darek’s home coming and I tried a new recipe that I saw on our local news station and revised it a bit. Pork Tenderloin with Cherry sauce.  I was scared of it not turning out and dinner being a disaster, but it was fabulous, everyone loved it!!  Really awesome meal. So I’ve told a few people about the meal and a few requested the recipe.  I know it sounds a little odd, and I wasn’t sure about the flavors, but really it is unbelievably good.  This would be an expensive meal at a 5 star restaurant. Give it a try.

To make this meal more affordable I bought most of the groceries at Aldi’s discount grocers and people were surprised and amazed when they asked where I bought the preparations from. So here goes the recipe.

Pork Tenderloin with Cherry Sauce

1 1/2 cups port wine                                     2 tablespoons olive or grapeseed oil

1 1/2 cups chicken broth                            1 1/2 lbs pork tenderloin, trimmed

1/2 cup canned tart, pitted cherries in water               1/2 cup flour

2 tablespoons cherry or raspberry preserves             sea salt & pepper

2 teaspoons bavarian mustard or dijon                         Fresh chopped parsley

4 tablespoons butter melted

In medium bowl combine wine, broth, cherries, mustard and preserves and set aside. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Set oven safe tray large enough for all meat to side.

Cut pork into thin 1/2 to 1″ thick slices – narrow width not long lengths. Dip the pork slices in butter then coat with flour. Heat oil in large frying skillet to med/med high.  Low enough to allow the meat to cook, yet high enough to brown and sear it. Cook for 4 minutes on each side.

Add oil to pan as needed and as meat finishes cooking place on tray in oven to keep warm.  (I had to cook 2 large roasts so this took a little while) Add salt and pepper to taste either in flour or as meat cooks.

When all meat is cooked and in the oven add wine mix to skillet, scraping to loosen browned bits into sauce. Increase heat to high and bring to boil. Cook until sauce reduces about 2-3 minutes.

I cooked about 5-7 minutes and it seemed too thin so I carefully added 1 tablespoon flour to boiling wine mix, stirring well to be sure it doesn’t clump. When sufficiently reduced to your desired consistency (not thick though) serve individually over meat.

I also made fresh calliflower, crescent rolls, green beans, corn bread stuffing (from box), and small dishes of black and green olives, pickles, sweet marichino cherries. One of my guests brought a great fresh spinach salad as well which really was great but I don’t have that recipe yet.  I will post it when I get it.

Give it a try, I am sure you will love it. We all did. Good luck.

Marine Man

He is not a superhero. He is not perfect and he still has a lot to learn about real life. Therefore, since he can’t fly home like superman, I purchased his flight home ticket on the 19th. My son called me 2 days before he is to fly home to tell me that the Marines bought him a ticket home and he will be here a day earlier now and won’t be going back in two weeks for the program he was going to be part of. I now have to get the airlines to give me a credit for $140.00 but there is a $150 change fee!

I explained that he was supposed to come home for two weeks then go back for 6 weeks again, but it has changed and now he is coming home and reporting to a local unit. The Marines wait until the last possible day to make changes. There is no change fee when there is a military order change that affects a flight. This is regarding American Airlines – I don’t know the policies of other airlines. I am told that I need the name of the commanding officer that signed the orders and the direct phone number for their office. I should be able to get this off the papers he has with him for reporting in to the local unit.

Darek left for boot camp end of August 2008. The Marines paid for this flight. We flew to CA for his graduation from boot camp and he flew home on a 10 day leave for Graduation & Thanksgiving. Then He returned to CA for SOI and a day after he arrived he called to say he was getting a 10 day leave again for Christmas. He would need to fly home in 10 days. Mind you this is not enough time to get an advanced purchase ticket through an airline! So I found the cheapest possible ticket at about $300. He came home for Christmas and returned to SOI on Jan 3. He has been there since and just flew back home on Feb 25. So since August we purchased 4 round trip tickets between CA and WI and a one-way ticket that we didn’t need.

This wouldn’t have been as bad if all 4 of the round trip tickets weren’t during high travel holidays. I could purchase a round trip flight with advance notice right now for under $200, but the tickets I bought ranged from $300 to $1,000 a piece with advanced notice, simply because of the holidays.

Personally I think it is outrageous that the airlines can charge this much for tickets. Regardless if it is 3 months from now or 2 days, summer or winter, tickets should be just a standard rate. Fluctuations for legitimate rate changes are fine. When a business only have a few items left they clearance out the items. When airlines only have a few seats left on a flight they jack up the rates. This doesn’t make any sense to me and irritates me.