Whimspiration

Visual Kei On a Budget: A Photo Tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:59:00 +0000

Okay, I know it is almost an oxy-moron. Visaul Kei and budget don't even belong in the same post, much less the same sentence!

If you are familiar with cosplay, the Final Fantasy games, J-pop, or anime at all, then you have an idea of what Visual Kei is.

But only the vaguest of ideas...

See, Visual Kei is a music genre that encompasses a bizarre combination of what happened when 80's hair bands, Jpop, and punk smashed together, and created something altogether new. Born in Japan, it mixes cosplay, metal, gothic and glam. Visual kei bands are very extravagant, and you can usually tell a Visual Kei band or artist by their elaborate costumes, crazy-impossible hairstyles, and bold, daring makeup, usually applied over some variety of lighteining foundation. Want an idea of what I'm talking about? A simple example:

"Dir En Grey" Get the idea? Of course, this is not our favorite Visual Kei band, but this promo shot has the most varied imagery on which to base a generalized idea of the genre. *smile*

So, two days before Halloween, Willamina tells me she would love to be Visual Kei for her costume. Being me, I tell her that's no problem, and I can make that happen. She protested, saying we had nothing that would work for a costume that elaborate, and I gave her a short list of things to acquire from our closets, and the costuming bucket while I went out shopping.

A little while later, I returned with a can of hairspray, some red lipliner (I needed some anyway), a small jar of ivory foundation, a tube of white clown makeup, and some black eyeliner (useful for both her and her sister's costume). Total cost; about $20

Yes, that's all we're working with here. Budget-minded enough for you yet?

No? Okay, I didn't really have to buy the $7 hairspray, and I couldn't find red lipliner at the dollar shop, so sue me. *wink* If I had, though, or we'd had some liquid foundation at the house, I could have gotten away with spending a mere $6, tax included. Better? *grin*

When I returned, she had gathered my little stretchy vest, a red scarf, some leftover red hairspray from some other event, her little sister's white dress shirt, a couple of punk lace-up arm warmers I got on clearance last year after Halloween, some gold chains she had lying around, her black exercise pants, a punky leather collar, black pleather boots, and a sleeveless little t-shirt-like overcoat that buttons in the front. You know the kind that proper young ladies wear over their plain, long-sleeved dresses in the winter?

So with all of these disparate items, I got to work.

First came the sketch. A working example of what I planned on creating. Not pretty, but functional, and it gave a decent idea to W as to what I intended for her. But still she couldn't fathom how, exactly, I was going to pull it off with the seemingly meager supplies we had brought together.

Then I dressed her partially and set her in the chair for hair and makeup.

Doesn't she look so very excited? This, my loves, is a picture of teen disbelief. She was willing to let me try, but didn't think it would turn out very well, despite the fact that I told her that her hair alone would take me nearly two hours to complete...

Somewhat more excited here, about 45 minutes into her hairstyling. Resting frequently to assuage the complaints of "yanking my hair out of my head", these sacrifices were necessary for "the look" she wanted. We still have not touched the colored hairspray in this shot, this is the (dyed) color of her hair.

Of course, after a lot more time, and application of the colored hairspray to the tips of her spikes only, we achieved this (spray drift caused the blended-color effect).

Makeup was quick by comparison, custom-mixing the shade of pale that I could easily blend with the natural shade of her neck, drawing on the bold lip design and eye makeup, and finishing off with kanji on her cheek just for spice; the Japanese character for "candy". Perfect for trick-or-treating!

Hoping to grab a cheap pair of ears for her sister's costume before our homeschool group's Halloween party, we dropped off at a local big box store. We didn't find any pink kitty ears, but we did find something perfect for W's costume!

A broken umbrella, and I knew just what to do with it, too!

Ah, sweet broken umbrella, discarded, unloved. The most overlooked piece of costuming potential to ever sit abandoned on the ground at my feet...

Oh yes, I had plans for that umbrella, and my plans involved a pair of scissors and some safety pins.

After that, it was simply a matter of finding a suitable backdrop for a photo of the finished product.

Costume bonus; every time the spikes were pushed down, they sprang back into place!

Halloween in an Economic Slump

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 05:17:00 +0000

Well, our Halloween was great. We went to the same neighborhood as every year. Our nearly mile-long walk netted the girls about 2.5lbs of candy each, and everyone loved Willamina's costume.

But it was nothing like last year. This year, it was obvious that the purse strings had been tightened in many households. Last year, the girls came home with about 3.5lbs of candy each, but that's not where it showed the most.

In the costuming department, very few folks had the outrageous and exciting costumes of previous years. There were lass home-made costumes, and less people out begging for candy, overall. The houses were also different. While our favorite neighborhood usually has every house open, and costumed adults and children handing out candy, this year, about 1/3 of the houses had their lights out. No candy, no celebration.

There are a couple of bright spots every year on our route; the

house that hands out fresh-made cotton candy, the house that gives away a single hot dog, grilled right there in their yard, mini play-dough, the haunted house garage, the family-friendly spooky movie carport, the spider in a tree that dropped on unsuspecting candy-hunters, adults posing as mannequins to surprise unsuspecting visitors, and all the garish decorations at every house, new designs and styles to enjoy each year. It's something to remember, and we look forward to it with giddy anticipation.

Well this year, there were no hot dogs, and no cotton candy. Only one house had real people posing still to scare the kids (and parents), the spider was suspiciously missing, and of the few houses that were actually decorated, many re-used last year's decor. What candy there was, ran out quicker than ever, and instead of the usual chocolate and rare goodies, there were several

houses that had been forced to resort to DumDum pops and tootsie rolls...

Yeah, it showed. Even the movie carport was gone, being reduced only to a small seating area with a creepy gauzy"doorway". Guess the cutting back included the utility bills too.

Not that is wasn't great. Far from it, in fact. All of the great celebratory feeling was still there, and people were happy. The weather was great, and everyone was as friendly as ever. We had a great time with our friends, and ended with our traditional dinner at a local pizza joint that we only ever visit on Halloween night.

But I noticed, and so did the other parents. The kids noticed things missing, but didn't seem to mind. It's sad when holidays and festivities have to suffer because of a bad economy, but I guess everything shrinks a little when things get tough. I guess I just didn't quite expect it. Not on Halloween, not in our favorite neighborhood.

Thinking we could maybe give the sugared-up kids a little more room to run after our initial fun, we dropped by a spot where we used to go. You know, the fabled neighborhood where they give out full-sized candy bars, and coupons for free Krispy Cream doughnuts? Well, usually, around 9pm, the houses there begin to close, but there are always a few stragglers with a bit of extra candy to give, waiting with their lights on for the later of the candy-gatherers.

Closed, lights off. All but one house in the entire neighborhood.

So, in a last-ditch effort to extend the fun, we drove around looking for college parties to crash. Always fun, a parent MUST go with the kids, but watching the newly-adult scramble in a frantic search for candy for the cute little kids that just appeared at their party is amusing to say the least.

We hit up a couple of parties successfully, and encountered a group of folks spinning fire behind a nearby coffee house before the kids (and parents) were simply too tired to carry on.

That's okay though, it was after midnight when we stopped our hunt for candy and amusement, and we would have been tired by then even if we hadn't had so much fun. *smile*

So that was the extent of our Halloween, and regardless of how hard the financial crisis effected us, and our community, we made the best of it, and had a lot of fun!

My little pink lion decided that her ruff was too itchy, and since we couldn't afford fake ears this year, and didn't have any leftover pink hairspray, this is how she went out trick-or treating. Everyone knew what she was though (some sort of pink kitty), and she still had loads of fun. *smile*

Blech

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 22:51:00 +0000

Well, the car I've had for only 4 months is now completely dead. I paid nearly 3k for it, it had a significant problem that required nearly $500 in repairs, and less than 3 days after I got it back from the mechanic, the transmission died completely.

No clue what I'm going to do about it either. I've already borrowed all that I can from my family, and I have no clue where I could go to find a reliable vehicle for the minuscule amount I could afford.

These things happen though, and we'll get through this the same way we've gotten through every other obstacle in our lives.

At least we have our health! :D

Public Slander on Craigslist

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 22:26:00 +0000

Interesting little note on Craigslist today, using my full name and everything.

Anyone know of a good slander/libel lawyer in Springfield?

Bizarre Foods Party

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:33:00 +0000

Well, it's coming up, this Sunday is the Bizarre foods party!

6:30pm, Downtown Springfield

A fantastic pre-Halloween adventure.

Call 631-2986 for more information and to RSVP.

Judicial System: Still A Fail

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 08:32:00 +0000

The court case went on, but I got a call about it the day after it happened, so I couldn't be there. Seems that the male registered a plea bargain, so instead of it being his sentencing hearing as i was told it was going to be, it was just him entering his plea officially.

At least I didn't miss much.

But his next court date is sometime in January. The entire holiday season, I get to worry about my kids seeing him out and about. If they do, it may ruin their holiday, and E's birthday too, depending on when/if they see him. It's something a mom worries about.

As of the 25th of this month, it will have been a year since his offense.

So much for justice being swift.

Automotive Nonconveyance

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 06:36:00 +0000

I drove up to Buffalo the other day on business, and on my way back, my car decided that it's get up & go had got up and left. Do you have any idea how hard it is to get up to 65 on the highway when your acceleration is nil?!? Yeah, not fun.

You know that sound that souped-up mega-cars make on the raceway? Yeah, that's the sound my car was making. Along with the lurching, it was quite an experience for myself and the girls!

So, the car is now in the shop, waiting to be checked thoroughly after they can get it to hold fluid sometime in the morning. *boggle* I don't know how it happened, but all of a sudden, it was all very seriously messed up and essentially undriveable.

I hope it's fixed really, really soon, because I have things I need to do, like buy more food for the bizarre foods party I'm holding this Sunday. It's been such a hit, so many people have RSVPd, that I have to go buy more foodstuffs to endure that everyone gets a taste of what I'm serving! *grin*

The party is open to the public, so if you're interested, drop me a line. (If you comment about your interest and leave your number, I won't post it for others to see, I promise.)

Judicial System Fail

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 20:20:00 +0000

We were supposed to go to court the other day.

we were supposed to see an accused child molester get his just sentencing.

We were going to rejoyce that our city's streets were once again a little safer...

But that wasn't to be the case.

In fact, nothing happened at all.

Why, you might ask?

Because the judge decided that he needed the day off at the last minute. Not that he called in sick or anything, he just decided not to go to work.

So we can conclude that because of the flighty nature of a single person, an unregestered sex offender that plead guilty on his case, is STILL wandering free on our streets, and none of our community's families can be duly warned via the normal routes of checking the sex offender databases online.

Lovely, huh?

You're invited! Theme Parties Open To The Public!

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 18:03:00 +0000

Want to learn something new, or have an exciting new experience?

How about a challenge for your bravery and your tastebuds?

Then I have some parties for you!

I am hosting a series of Themed Tupperware parties, and there is one to suit nearly everyone!

Tightwad Auction Party

Frugality & Free Tupperware

10/07/09, 6:30pm, Springfield, MO

For more information & to RSVP, click here.

~~~~~~~~~

Eco-Auction Party

Saving The Planet With Free Plastic!

October 15, 2009, 6:30pm, Springfield, MO

For more information & to RSVP, click here.

~~~~~~~~~

Fear Factor Party

Hauntings & Bizarre Foods!

October 25, 2009, 6:30pm, Springfield, MO

For more information & to RSVP, click here.

~~~~~~~~~

Holiday Gatherings Auction Party

Starting the season off right with free Tupperware!

October 29, 2009, 6:30pm, Springfield, MO

For more information & to RSVP, click here.

~~~~~~~~~

Also coming soon!

Drunk & Dirty

Fund Raiser Expose'

To host your own exciting custom-theme party, contact me today!

Tupperware parties no longer have to be held in your home! You can have your party at a park, at a restaurant, in a local community center, and more!

Upcoming Events

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 22:50:00 +0000

I have been having an absolute blast micro-blogging via Twitter, and been so busy that it's all I've had time for! *chuckle*

What has been keeping me so busy, you may ask?

Well, here's the short list.

I have been really enjoying painting faces at birthday parties and MSU's Bearfest Village with ArtFoodFun.com.

Tupperware parties and fabulously fun meetings have held shining spots in my weekly calendar.

Unpacking and setting up the new apartment is coming along steadily.

The kids are adjusting to the new ways our household is run quite nicely, and they have decided that our more-rigid scheduling is a comfort in our daily lives instead of an inconvenience. *chuckle*

I've even managed to spend a bit more time with my friends than I was the previous couple of months!

Life is great, and getting better all the time!

Breaking News: Near Riot In Downtown Springfield

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 18:40:00 +0000

Downtown Springfield early yesterday morning was like a scene from an LA news report.

Large crowds, officers arresting a man with a gun, brawls breaking out in the middle of the intersection of Campbell avenue and St. Louis streets, a canister gun, police dogs, pepper spray, and billy clubs at the ready.

Before we got out our phones, we saw the police stop a car moving south down north Campbell street, and arrest him. At the time of the above images, he was in the third police car east of the intersection. We also saw them take a loaded gun from him and empty the bullets out of it, onto the street.

The Springfield Missouri interactive crime scene map has "weapon violation" and "notes" for the happenings, but nothing else.

Talk on the street, and basic conjecture based on what we saw with our own eyes leads us to believe that the following is as close to the full story as we are going to get.

The police raided a wild party that was happening at ERA, one of the local rental venues downtown. When one of the participants tried to run in his car, a short chase ensued, which led him to drive the wrong way down a one-way street. They headed him off at the pass, so to say, and blocked his passage, effectively trapping him in place. When they approached his car, he brandished a handgun, which they quickly removed from his possession and place in an officer's car, then removed him from his car, handcuffing and pushing him against his vehicle for a quick search before placing him into one of the nine attending police cars.

Not very many people were around for that part, just a few curious onlookers on their way to to and from the bars downtown, and us at the top of Rendevous coffee house, who had let our Tupperware fund-raising meeting screech to a halt in order to view the unfolding events.

As the crowd grew, however, things got rowdy. I can only assume that after busting the party, the police screened the attendees and let them go, which resulted in a huge amount of individuals and groups, headed straight for the parking areas around the square. Most of them walked straight up Campbell street, and the trouble began.

At first, it was just a few, seriously impaired (via drugs or alcohol) individuals in a small group, who approached the police, looking like they were trying to start a fight. More folks filtered in rather rapidly then, about 3/4 of which looked like they were under some pretty strong influence from some substance or another.

These new folks were alternately throwing things at the police cars, sitting on the hoods of the police cars, and attempting to start fights with either the police or one-another, that it was really hard to keep track of everything at once. We saw men removing their shirts to throw at the officers, and females appearing to try to seduce groups of officers at once.

Then the presiding officers called for more backup.

At a whopping eleven police cars and a paddy wagon, they brought out the pepper spray, several dogs, and, from reports, either a canister gun for tear gas or a rifle with rubber bullets. (our informer couldn't tell which it was) A female officer was called onto the scene, and all of the officers on location were brandishing their night sticks, seemingly as much for their own protection as for the intimidation of the growing crowds, which surrounded them on all sides.

The police were finally able to shoo nearly all of the crowds away and get people to move on to their proper destinations, but the whole shebang lasted over an hour, during which, we meeting attendees could not leave the coffee house with assurance that we would be safe, so we watched and took pictures from the upstairs windows.

A pretty okay shot of the dogs after the crowd dispersed for the most part.

These folks were told to move along, but they couldn't because the police cars had them trapped.

And the paddy wagon arrived for extra backup.

The police blocked off Campbell street for a while.

Putting away the canister gun and pepper spray canisters.

After it all calmed down, they were able to tow the perpetrator's car away to finish searching it.

Side note: See the little heart made of light on the trash can in the foreground? A sure sign of brighter days to come!

Pardon the quality of the photos, all I had was my mobile phone when this was going on.

Update 10/1/09: I just learned that the police's version of events was on a news report not long after I posted my report here. Unfortunately, there were no first-hand accounts of what happened, so they were unable to get the full story. While my data is rather incomplete without their report, their report is glaringly false on several points.

I have left the above post unedited to preserve the integrity of my blogging. What I learned from their report; The party was at Remington's, not ERA, as I had heard. There were fights inside the venue.

Where their report was wrong or misleading; A man went to his car and pulled out a gun, hiding it in his waistband, which the police saw and arrested him. (No mention of a car chase, and I'm sure he hadn't parked facing southbound on Campbell avenue with police cars behind and in front of his vehicle). The fights spilled out onto the street. (We observed several hundred people walking peacably, if drunk, north up Campbell avenue, only breaking into fights when they neared or arrived at the intersection of Campbell & St. Louis, where the police were concentrated, and the mass of the crowds were gathered.)

I have also learned from my daughter, who was there with me at my meeting, that she had counted 13 police cars from the safety of the upstairs window, not 11, while I was out gathering first-hand reports from others on the sidewalk after the crowds had cleared out.

[Where: 65802]

Three Little Words That Ensure Success

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 09:48:00 +0000

Ever had problems realizing your dreams?

There are three simple words that can nealry guarantee your success, both in business and in life. No matter what it is that you put your mind to, put your heart into... When you have weiged a plan, measured it's value to you, personally, and found it worthwhile, this one small phrase will make all the difference between failure and roaring success.

In every aspect of your life, from your family, to work, it works every time, for everything you are passionate about. From the minutest little goal to your most cherished dream, it's guaranteed to help make reality out of your desires.

Let It Happen

When opportunity knocks, are you too busy, too tired, or too distracted to answer the door?

Do you give yourself excuses as to why your life isn't better than it was yesterday?

The only thing standing in the way of your success is you.

Are you willing to move in a positive direction?

Are you ready for change?

Are you ready to allow success into your life?

If so, shed your old, hum-drum lifestyle.

Welcome your future with open arms.

Let it happen

Call toll free 1.888.693.6372 today!

Auction Party!

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 23:09:00 +0000

I have planned a special, super-fun Tupperware party for you!

At my party, you will see the new face of Tupperware, and earn play money called Tupperbucks, that you can use for the auction for real Tupperware at the end of the party!

Even better; You can start earning your Tupperbucks RIGHT NOW!

Here's how to start earning Tupperbucks immediately:

$1000 ~ Attend the party.

$1000 ~ Arrive on time.

$1000 ~ Print & bring this invitation with you.

$2000 ~ RSVP

$6000 ~ Triple Bonus! Bring an uninvited adult guest. (earn Tupperbucks for each extra adult guest you bring!)

$4000 ~ Bring an order other than your own. (full online catalog available at http://my.Tupperware.com/kryistina for pre-party browsing)

$5000 ~ Bring a completed guest list with you for the party that you will host.

You can earn even more Tupperware during the party itself, so bring yourself, bring a friend, and let the fun begin !

Phone:

1.888.693.6372

Going once…Going twice…Going three times…

See you there!!!

Accused Child Molester Loose in Springfield !

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 08:30:00 +0000

New to me news

*Unregistered, accused** child molester, Clifton Junkins is again loose on the streets in Springfield.

After the News-Leader's full-color front page article on Saturday, April 4th of 2009, stating that he had "reportedly" confessed, and his subsequent arrest, he was held in jail, in protective custody for his own safety.

He was released from jail early this month on his own reconnisance, with restrictions to not contact any person under the age of 17.

He has been out and about, including places where everyone knows there are regularly a large number of children and teens.

As this male has not finished his court proceedings, he is NOT regulated by ANY of the sex offender laws. This means that he can legally live near your child's school and all of the other things that are prohibited for registered sex offenders.

Since the time of this picture, and his release from jail, he may have shaved his beard and cut his hair short. He is 5'3, and looks very young when clean-shaven.

*Only the facts of the matter have been reported in this article. Opinions and personal beliefs have been edited out to ensure clarity and accuracy.

**As he has not legally been found guilty at this time, I must say that he is simply "accused". When he is found guilty of his crime(s), I will be allowed to say "CONVICTED".

Hidden Veggies for the Picky Eater

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 18:06:00 +0000

Do you have a picky eater in your house who hates vegetables? Is it a trial to make sure that your family gets all of their vitamins each day?

Well, there's been a lot of talk of hiding vegetables in other foods, but very few people actually talk about what vegetables and how.

That's what I'm doing today.

Okay, run and get your Tupperware Quick Chef. Take whatever veggies you want to serve your family and chop them into a nearly unrecognizable oblivion, then add them to the food.

Fresh veggies in small chunks in a specialty ranch dip is a delight to dip chicken fingers and other kid favorites in.

Add a mild-flavored veggie mash (carrots, sweet potatoes, turnips, parsnips, etc), into any baked goods (cakes, brownies, etc.).

Use your bolder flavors (bell peppers, cabbage, peas, green beans, dried beans, etc.) in meatloaf, and even numerous rice and pasta dishes.

I like to use bean paste and whole grains to make flavored patties with for the grill, and the kids love them with chopped onions and a little garlic powder. Of course, they don't have to know that I've snuck in some carrots, bell peppers, and sun dried tomatoes in there too.

Somehow, most picky eaters aren't even really that aware of how the vegetable tastes, so much as they have conditioned themselves to think "that thing that looks like that tastes bad" because they've lived so long thinking that after having tried it once. By hiding things in food, and/or serving an item without telling folks what it was, I have "cured" "allergies", and made people love things that they previously thought they had hated.

Healthy eating to you!

The Healing of America: A Look at Global Healthcare Plans

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 01:23:00 +0000

News and reporting you need!

There's been a lot of debate and argument about what Obama and the rest of the government is trying to do to "make health care affordable and available" to all Americans.

Let me start by saying that nobody knows exactly what they're doing behind closed doors, and we have no clue what type of plan they're hammering out up in Washington. Without that knowlege, we can neither approve of the Wasington plan, nor reject it.

That bit of reason injected into the debate, let us begin.

Many groups would have you beleive that long waits like those that exist in Canada are the only form of so-called "socialized healthcare" available. Fortunately, that's not accurate, as there are four large, wealthy countries just like ours that have a singular, overall government health care plan. Only one has a long wait for specialty doctors or physicians that cover acute conditions, and that's Canada.

But we don't have to pick and follow Canada's government health care plan.

Others talk about how expensive health care is in our country, and the drastic costs and tax increases that would be manditory to be able to pay for such an expansive plan.

And you know what, they're right.

But what they're not telling you is that the cost of a country's health care costs overall reduces drastically when there is only one main plan. That means one set of rules, one place to file insurance claims, and a mandatory period (usually just a few days) in which the fees are paid to the physicians. When a doctor or hospital doesn't have to stock up on money so they can stay open until the next insurance claim is paid, spend money on administration, and train & employ folks to handle the avalanche of paperwork that exists in our current system, the costs drop like a lead balloon. If that one plan covers everything but Botox and breast augmentation, then health and quality of life are assured, for less than we're spending right now on health care for the disabled and elderly alone! Of course, folks that want those unnecessary extras are allowed to purchase supplimental health insurance to cover those cosmetic procedures; We wouldn't want anyone going without what makes them happy...

You also don't hear about how we could adopt one country's special super-secured health card that carries your encrypted health information in a centralized database. Nope, we don't hear about a card that can keep each and every doctor we see informed about how we're doing, what meds we're taking, our allergies, recent appointments and the like. Of course that card would take the place of all of the medic alert bracelets out there, make sure we got the best treatment possible in the quickest amount of time with no risk of negative drug interaction because we forgot to report a pill we were taking, or our alzheimers parent or grandparent's chart is lost... Not needing to take an updated list of curent medications to the doctor every time you visit sure sounds handy to me. It's all on the card, keeping us healthy and safe, even when/if we can't speak for ourselves.

Imagine a land where no insurance carrier is allowed to be a for-profit, there's no price-gouging, doctors get paid right away for their services, costs are down, nobody can be denied health care for any reason, and you never have to drag yourself all over the place in order to get releases for your files from one physician to another...

Life is simpler, healthier, and happier. The economy recovers, and we all live better for it.

But don't take my word for it.

As heard on National Public Radio, earlier today.

"Journalist and author T.R. Reid set out on a global tour of hospitals and doctors' offices, all in the hopes of understanding how other industrialized nations provide affordable, effective universal health care. The result: his book The Healing of America: A Global Quest for Better, Cheaper, and Fairer Health Care.

Reid is a foreign correspondent for The Washington Post — in whose pages he recently addressed five major myths about other countries' health-care systems — and the former chief of the paper's London and Tokyo bureaus.

Reid was the lead correspondent for the 2008 Frontline documentary Sick Around the World, which examined five other capitalist democracies, looking for lessons on health-care delivery."

Click here to listen to the full interview, and judge for yourself what America, and Americans, could do to create effecient, effective, and complete health care for all of it's citizens at a lowered cost, regardless of their health status or income level.

As a other, I tell my children to learn from the mistakes and successes of others. It makes life easier, and more enjoyable. What if we, as a country, did the same?

It's a real eye-opener!

As an addendum, let me mention this; Everyone pays taxes to keep the fire department running, but very few people ever have a fire. Somehow, nobody complains that we pay that tax. Do you know why? It's because we know that our taxes go to ensure that if our home or office catches fire, for whatever reason, someone will be there to put it out without pause.

No questions, no paperwork, no "can you pay your bill", just putting out the fire when it needs to be done.

Wouldn't it be nice if health care worked that way too?

Instead of figting over the if, let's join together and work out the best possible how.

Isn't it time we took some action to make sure the government does the right thing, the right way for once?

You're Invited!

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 10:27:00 +0000

You are cordially invited to my Tupperware Online Party!

I am hosting this Online Party to ~~tell you about all of the new great products Tupperware has to offer to simplify your kitchen, home, and life~~ GET FREE TUPPERWARE!

Tupperware is the only lifetime guaranteed, environmentally sound, green solution to saving food and money.

Please click this link to begin browsing through the geat products and special offers available only through my online party.

The best part of hosting or attending a party online is that you never have to leave your house, or even get dressed! Browse and order from home, and get your new Tupperware delivered right to your door, no matter where you live in the U.S.!

Press play on any of the videos below to learn more about the product from consultants worldwide and watch Tupperware in action!

Quick Chef, Spatula, Chef Series Knives, Measuring Spoons, & Southwest Chipotle Seasoning Blend; Let's make Mango-Pineapple Salsa!

Microfiber Cloths and Towels

With 111 items under $20, and the best space-saving colander in the universe (the Flat Out colander) at only $10, Tupperware is a great way to save time, space, and money in your kitchen, and your life!

Kids & Their Tupperware: Ice Prism Sparkly Bowl

Ergonomic Corkscrew - Never Pry a Cork out of the Bottle Again!

FlatOut Colander
~Flat Out colander unavailable after August 28th, so get it quick!~

Bored Brits & FlatOut Bowls - Lighthearted Fun

Blooming Teas, Loose Leaf Teas, Tea Infuser, & Scones
(White China items not available at this time, feel free to skip that portion of this video)

Fridge Storage

Kitchen Shears

Kids & Their Tupperware: Shape-O-Ball = Hours of Fun!

Modular Mates: Dry Goods Storage

Cake & Cupcake Transport & Storage. Works great for Jello shots too!

Twistable Peeler

How sturdy is Tupperware? They towed a car with it!

Be sure to click on the link above to ensure that you're participating in my Tupperware Online Party. My Party will last until Aug. 31, 2009 (EST). If you have any questions, please call this toll-free number: 1-888-693-6372.

Thanks for participating in my Tupperware Online Party!

Feel free to tell all your family and friends too, and let them in on the great goodies and special deals that you can only get at an online party! Everyone's invited!

Imagine life on your terms; more time for family, friends and fun, more flexibility and true financial freedom.

Stop asking yourself why you don't have the time, happiness, health, and money you desire. Instead, ask yourself; "Why not? Invest two minutes of your time; call toll free 1-866-376-7518 to hear about the Tupperware opportunity, then call a consultant toll free at 1-888-693-6372. They'll be happy to answer any questions you may have, and help you get started on the path to your dreams!

The lifestyle of Tupperware leaders is nothing less than wonderful! Trips, diamonds, cars and cash bonuses are just a few of the perks you can find in Tupperware.

* Consultants and/or websites advertised in some of the videos are not a part of my Tupperware party. Only the links provided here will let you join my party. Videos used with permission from their respective owners.

Cheap & Tasty!

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 04:43:00 +0000

TVP!

Soaked in hot broth of any type (mushroom, beef, vegetable, chicken, pork, or even lobster), it's less than 50 cents a pound reconstituted, takes flavor fabulously, and works great alone as a meat substitute, or in tandem with a meat to stretch the meat budget.

Cheap and tasty fun: Wonton wraps, cream cheese, a dab of olive oil, and lobster-broth soaked TVP. Makes for some seriously tasty crab rangoon wannabe for the side of that stir fry! *grin*

Some Old News About a Great Site

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 00:32:00 +0000

You may not have heard about it, but it's really, really cool.

At Where 2.0 in 2007, Steven Johnson showed off new features on his local news and blog start-up Outside.in. The site initially launched with a blog post driven look at neighborhoods, but now more map-centric features have been added that provide some informing views. It is a great demonstration of why bloggers (and blogging platforms) should start geotagging their content.

The site now has a map that shows the most recent locations that a blog has covered. The blogmap shown below is for BlogChelsea. When you hover over one of the circles a balloon shows what other bloggers and news sites have also covered that same location recently. The size of the circle reflects the number of articles and posts.

They have also created a data visualization for Brooklyn that shows seven months of news stories and posts in Brooklyn. In the time-lapse animation you can see bloggers sticking with a story much longer than traditional news sources. It's interesting to watch the mainstream press report on something and then never really come back to it, while the people who are there keep the topic going.

This is the only map on the site like it; I hope that they find a way to automate it for all neighborhoods. Topix has been doing a lot of news coverage for neighborhoods. I wonder how their data would affect these maps; I think that the mainstream press would disappear and that there would be more stories on the map.

The stories seen on Outside.in come from about 2000 bloggers in 3255 neighborhoods in 59 cities (all of these numbers will be expanding in time). They recently just announced America's 10 "bloggiest" neighborhoods from these cities (the larger metropolitan areas of the US). The bloggier neighborhoods are disproportionally ones that are gentrified.

Steven also dived into some of the core methods for pulling in locations from a blog post. They try to be very loose on what they accept and strict with what they output. They accept many different location inputs, as Steven sent me in email:

The primary unit is the post. Posts are tagged by default with the zip codes associated with the blogger, but they will get routed to different neighborhoods (or specific addresses and places) based on a number of different criteria: internal where tags, zip code tags, GMAP links, GEORSS, our own taggers attaching it to a new location, users attaching it to a new location, etc.

Outside.in is among the many sites that now outputs GeoRSS. Sadly, these feeds do not show up in the geoindex yet (though they are in the yellow pages as reviews).

Even though the inputs and outputs are generally lat/long, the site is organized geographically by neighborhood. The neighborhoods were created by the Outside.in team. One of their guiding principles is that neighborhoods are human-scale.

Steven also spoke about his book The Ghost Map and how it inspired Outside.in. The book covers the infamous cholera outbreak of London in the 19th century. The outbreak was stopped by two men (Whitehead and Snow) who used their social network to create a map of the cholera deaths. Through this work they identified an infected water pump and saved many lives. If you want to learn more quickly here's a video of Steven talking about Ghost Map.

Snow and Whitehead would not have been able to actually solve the mystery if the following circumstances hadn't occurred:

Open data archives - They had access to the local death records and were able to create a "Victorian Mashup".
Density - London and its neighborhoods were dense. This density allowed the disease to spread. The density also allowed a pattern to emerge that ultimately led to stopping the pandemic.
Local Amateurs - Snow was a physician and an amateur cartographer. Whitehead was a local vicar, but he knew everyone. Many bloggers are today's local amateurs.
Pattern Recognition - Plotting the data on the map was obviously key. Without it they would not have been able to center in on that single pump.

Today neighborhoods are still dense and geodata is becoming available (see GeoCommons for an example), but it is difficult to know who else is talking in your area. This realization is what led to the creation of Outside.in, a place for local amateurs to connect and potentially enable future Snow's & Whitehead's.

Outside.in has a good start on this goal. They are building the framework of the site to fill out in the future with more data. As they start to aggregate more sources and expand to more cities they will start to become a valuable resource to locals and tourists.

---------

Outside.in puts neighborhood news on the map

June 7, 2007

Brady at O’Reilly Radar has a great post on Outside.in. The startup aggregates local blogs, organizes them by neighborhood and plots them on a map.

I’ve written before about the importance of being hyperlocal. If I were running a media outlet, every story, photo and video would have geographic metadata. Outside.in shows what’s possible once the data is in place.

Among the things you can do:

See where things are happening
Subscribe to a feed of your neighorhood
Discover blogs about your neighborhood
Discover and interact with your neighbors

Outside.in has a great visualization comparing blogger vs. mainstream media coverage of local stories. Not surprisingly, bloggers tend to stay on stories longer. While many stories start in MSM, a good number only exist in blogs.

Outside.in provides an interesting contrast to Topix, a local news site that focuses on “official” sources. So far, I’m finding that Outside.in has a much more local feel than Topix because of the wider range of sources. (One of my recommendations for Topix was to leverage local bloggers.)

Right now there’s a lot of clutter in the results, because there isn’t a lot of geo-tagged content in blogs. Outside.in is making guesses based on where the blogger is based, ZIP codes, links to maps and other indicators of location.

As GeoRSS gets more widely adopted, the results should be much cleaner. Platforms like WordPress don’t easily offer ways to geotag their content. Although I don’t often blog about local issues, it would be nice to have the ability to tag the posts that have a local component.

Weight Loss First steps

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 20:43:00 +0000

I had a friend express to me her dismay at her scale not moving, and her seeming inability to keep track of her foods eaten and calories taken in. She was having trouble finding time to exercise, take proper care of hwe household, two children, and still have time for her husband, and especially herself. She was really frustrated, and I know that's where a lot of us who view ourselves as overweight have felt at some point or another during our journey to where we feel comfortable with ourselves.

That said, I've decided to share some of what I told her, based on both my personal experiences, and those of others whom I have spoken with and helped to drop their excess pounds.

No worries, tracking your foods eaten isn't for everyone. I know it was only an interesting experiment for me when I first tried it, but I didn't stick with it either.

Start simply. Drink a glass of the Acai Mixed Berry V8 fusion first thing in the morning before breakfast, and another before lunch. It doesn't have be right before you eat, it can be anytime, as a snack, or whatever makes you happy, but before the meal, not after. The vitamins and minerals in the whole fruits & vegetables help to maintain your body, the sugars keep your blood glucose up, and the sweetness of the juice helps to curb that craving for sweets. In fact, you can drink as much of the juice you want, as long as you still eat a decent amount of other healthy foods, and the 8oz glass first thing in the morning and before lunch.

Drop soda, and drink water or juice (without High Fructose Corn Syrup) when thirsty.

Other than that, don't change a thing with your life. Don't restrict what or how much you eat, exercise more, or anything. Just relax, and know that the weight your body doesn't want is going to fall off.

See, a lot of folks talk about the "starvation mode" that your body goes into if you go on a restrictive diet for a long time. You know, the effect that after the weight is dropped, you go back to eating normally and gain all the weight back? Remember hearing that breakfast is the most important meal of the day? What isn't mentioned is that your body resets in a way each morning as well. When you don't take any nutrients in within the first 10-30 minutes after waking, your body thinks there isn't enough food, and you will tend to have more cravings and eat more throughout the day.

You may never hear that a glass of milk or whole fruit & veggie juice suffices just fine on those hectic mornings, but it does. Even a cup of that V8 I love so much, mixed with a cup of yogurt or milk and some ice in the blender before you rush out the door is an acceptable breakfast. Heck, sometimes I just drink a glass of V8 because I'm so busy. *blush* I don't seem any worse for it, and at least I've put something healthy into my body at the first of my day, right? I just try not to make a habit of it.

You are going to feel more energized, healthier, and will naturally become somewhat more physically active. It's a happy form of vicious cycle where you feel better, then become more active, then you feel better because you are more active, and become more active; all the time, dropping the pounds like that excess weight were somehow water trapped behind a dam, and the gate has finally been lifted.

We're all in this together!

Tupper-Tastic!

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 17:17:00 +0000

Hello, my name is Kryistina, and I'm a Tupperware addict.

One of my favorite toys as a child was my precious Tupperware rolling pin and pie-crust sizing mat. I used it all the time in my little toy kitchen that my mother had set up in the alcove just off of our real kitchen when I was five years old. I used that little set long after the toy kitchen was sold at a yard sale. Into my late childhood, I used that rolling pin, mat, my mother's orange peeler, and the adorable little cookie-cutters to augment my only piece of Play-Dough equipment, the creative press. You remember, that thing you could make real pasta in if you honestly wanted to? Yeah, I loved my sculpting tools, even at an early age.

I was also in love with my mother's Tupperware pitcher. A relatively ugly textured thing in some odd shade of powdered gold nearing to off-white, and a strange frilly design stamped in the side and painted that iconic color of the 1970's, harvest gold. Most people these days call that "baby poop yellow", but the rich brown, avacado green, harvest gold, and nearly neon orange were the shades of the era, and since Tupperware lasts forever... She had that pitcher for a long, long time. It never spilled when it was closed, it held your drinks fresh for what seemed like forever, and it was easy to spot in the fridge as always containing some treat that I was allowed to have without asking permission first.

I used that pitcher in my very first-ever business venture too. A Kool-Aide stand at the edge of the road. Now, my stand was different than everyone else's by far. Not just because I had more than one flavor of beverage, but because I had to pay for my own overhead like a real business. Now, my mom mixed the drinks for me and made the ice cubes, but I had to pay for the sugar and packet of fruity flavor out of my gross income. At 6 years old, I knew the basics of running a business, and at fifteen cents a glass, my profits were impressive. The income really soared, however, when I hired my best friend, a petite blonde girl, to wear her frilliest dress and stand by my little table curtsying at the passing cars. We had a profit-sharing deal, and she earned five cents for every cup of drink i sold while she was working with me... I've got business in my very genetic structure.

Which all explains why I am now your Tupperware lady. Not only do I get to make really good money having fun, meeting new people, and sharing my passion and love for Tupperware, I also get to give away FREE Tupperware and get great discounts on it myself for my own kitchen.

And boy how Tupperware has changed over the years! Just the other day, I had a party where we made mixed alcoholic drinks and cracked jokes. There are all sorts of Tupperware party formats these days, and if there isn't one that appeals to you personally, I can work with you to create something that is truly original and all your own.

Even joining our happy Tupperware family is customized! To start with, there are two kits you can pick from when joining the Tupperware family of independent consultants. One is a very basic set with some of the necessary goodies to get you started and a few pieces so you can have your first couple of parties, and the more executive set is much lovelier, containing about $500 in Tupperware alone (not counting the cost of all the promotional materials that come with the kit). And you can join the team for any reason, from wanting a discount on your own Tupperware, to being serious about building a thriving business of your own. it's fun,, easy, and the perfect fit for anyone who loves Tupperware! *grin*

Can you guess which kit I bought? Can you guess why?

It's probably not the reason you might think, knowing me as well as you do.

It wasn't because it is the better deal, or because it saves me money in the long run. Both are true, but not the real, deep-down reason I picked it.

Nope, the pure and simple fact is that the executive kit is the one that had the pitcher that I loved so dearly as a child.

And I just HAD to have that pitcher.

So go check out my Tupperware website, see how things have changed, and contact me to schedule a party so I can give you free Tupperware too!

Oh, and that lifetime guarantee? It's still in effect, and still covers everything that has ever been sold since the company started. If you have something broken, cracked, or melted due to over-love and constant use through generations contact me about that too, and I'll get you a free replacement.

And when you decide you want to join the Tupperware family and achieve your dreams with the Tupperware business opportunity.... Well I can help with that too. *smile*

Late Season Gardening: Beautiful Bountiful Containers

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 07:40:00 +0000

A commenter asked me about starting tomatoes in a container this late in the season.

Since we share similar interests, I thought I'd share my answer with you as well.

To get a tomato producing if you plant it now, you will have to pick an "early" type of tomato, and water the first three days with hydrogen peroxide to speed sprouting. You will still be able to get a good harvest, and if you fertilize weekly with vermicompost tea, and bi-weekly with organic fish emulsion, milk, Epsom salts, and randomly stick spent match heads around the root system, you will get a plentiful harvest.

As long as the tomato has 5 gallons of soil, it will be fine and produce well. I use 10-15 gallon planters, and plant a ring of herbs around mine.

I have frilled purple oregano, onions, and basil, planted alternately in a circle around each of my potted tomatoes. I am also starting flowering garlic chives for height and visual interest so the planters will be highly decorative as well as useful, and thus, not offensive to the neighbor's potentially delicate aesthetic sensibilities.

On the other hand, if you aren't particularly set on tomatoes, there are many other food plants that thrive in containers and produce very quickly, as well as the cooler-weather plants that it is already time to plant in time for fall production before the frost such as Brussels sprouts, lettuces, broccoli, cabbage, spinach, and cauliflower to name a few.

Among the many plants that can be grown in containers successfully, there are beets, peppers herbs of all sorts, potatoes, tomatoes, bunching onions (the tall ones), radishes, lettuce, rhubarb, celery, dwarf fruit trees, chard, zucchini, squash, corn, any vining fruit or vegetable, beans, peas, cucumbers, greens, gourds, turnips, lettuces, strawberries, and blueberries.

Pretty much anything can be grown in a container if the soil area is large enough for the roots of the plant. That said, however, most plants can be planted twice as close to each other as the seed packet recommends for higher yields. Frequent natural fertilization and reliable watering practices can decrease the area needed even further, depending on the plant type.

Most herbs, short-rooted root vegetables, and vines with smaller (1lb or less) produce can be plated high in hanging containers, and simply trail their fruit downwards in a beautiful cascade of greenery, flowers and food. Some strawberries also trail quite nicely.

If you wish to hang a plant that has up to 3lb fruit, use a larger container, strong hooks, sturdy hanging material, and hang it just below shoulder-level, under smaller hanging plants to add visual interest. Bulky hanging plants should be part of a full living arrangement instead of stand-alone to avoid them looking clunky and unwieldy.

On hanging tomatoes; Cherry or smaller-sized tomatoes can do exceedingly well hanging upside-down as well to conserve even more space. A few tips; Mulch the top of the tomato's soil, or plant herbs at the top of the container to reduce evaporation and the need for constant watering. Be sure to hang tomatoes out of a breezeway, as they can spin in a wind, and too much spinning leads to a broken plant. Larger tomato varieties don't produce as well when hanging inverted, as the weight can easily become too much for the plant, which may sense it's difficulty and slow flowering, ripening, and potentially decrease your overall harvest.

A bonus: container gardens can be brought indoors when it begins to cool off in order to extend the harvest throughout the winter if desired.

There are a lot of great books out there on container gardening for food, and growing in cramped quarters. Visit Amazon.com and search for "Square Foot Gardening", "Container Gardening", and even "Worms Eat My Garbage". Be sure to also check the recommendations of similar books below the description to find precisely what you are looking for.

Happy Harvests!

FaceBook Ate My Brain

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 05:36:00 +0000

Several months back, I was merely being a bit sporadic with my blogging. I was working hard on getting back into my good habits...

Then FaceBook came along.

No, not really Facebook, more the evil, time-sucking, amusements known as FaceBook applications. You know the ones; cutesey little games with graded levels of success, bonuses, gifts for your friends and the like?

Well it all started out with Pet Society. A cute little custom pet that does stuff on your computer. Not so great by my description unless you think on the game's addictive qualities. The fact that you can buy really neat and cute things for your pet and to decorate your pet's personal little house, for example. Or that there are mini-games, gifting, gardening, Mystery boxes that harbor exclusive treats and goodies for your pet, and new, special, one-week-only items that are worth a lot on the trading forums....

Yeah, about that trading thing. See, You can trade goodies in Pet Society with other players. Different things have different values, depending on their perceived rarity. Like, say you want a black cat? That was put out Halloween of last year as a one-week-only item. Lots of people love and collect them. Very valuable, those. Likely you would have to trade two or three other, slightly ore new one-week-only or mystery box items for just one... If you are really lucky, AND the other trader is feeling exceedingly generous...

Of course, there is another way to go about it.

See, a lot of the folks who are addicted to one game on FaceBook are addicted to at least one or two other games... That means that you are likely to find folks looking to trade Fish Wrangler gold for a pink hearts rug in Pet Society, or Super Brie cheese from Mouse hunt for hammers in Egg Breaker, which you can then trade for pet food in Fluff Friends so you can barter for some Red Love Chum in Fish Wrangler, which you can then trade for gold, which you can then trade for that dad blamed pink rug you just HAD to have...

*sigh*

And you end up playing all of the games, just so you can get the best goodies for your little pretent pixellated internet pet, and each game takes a certain amount of devotion in the terms of time, and after a while...

Someone invites you to plant a garden or grow a farm, or run a virtual restaurant, and you start to play... "For just a couple of minutes" or "just a few days", you tell yourself. "Just to see what it's like and why your friends like it" you rationalize.

But it's already too late.

You are doomed!

Your fate was sealed as soon as you clicked on "accept" instead of "block this application", and you knew it before you hit that button, but you did it anyway.

Staying up until the wee hours of the morning every night, clicking your mouse, becoming a strange new type of being that gets barely anything valuable done each day, but has strong typing fingers, myopic computer-screen eyes, a constant migraine, and a broad talent for warming chairs.

So I've stopped paying so much attention to my silly little pet, all those eggs waiting to be cracked, and the little fluffy pet. From time to time, I still drop in to take a photo of some ghost or another, feed my pet in my quest for the elusive golden poo, plant and harvest some crops on my farm, or reel in an interestingly bizarre fish with a penchant for playing dress-up, but otherwise I'm done.

It was an interesting ~~addiction~~ diversion while it lasted, but now I have more important things to do. Hells, I had more important things to do then too, I just didn't do them.

I've managed to re-install a portion of my brain, and the synaptic repair process is well underway. I do warn you though, there may be times when the wires get crossed and the cranial server is down for a little bit, but please rest assured that we have our best techs working on rectifying the error. *wink*

Time to Get Back on

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 05:27:00 +0000

Yes, I know, no information and little to no posting makes for a truly boring blog-read, and despite the fact that I've made excuses in the past, there's no real excuse for not finding a few moments throughout the day to type a few words to you.

Honestly, regardless of how valid I may have felt my prior excuses were at the time, I was just kidding myself.

I just wanted to drop in and apologize.

Things are making a turn for the better in my life, and while I am often shy to post all of the sometimes numerous and compounding daily dramas, something other than a nearly complete absence from the blogosphere was in order.

Unfortunatley, that's what I had been doing.

And while you may be a bit skeptical, I have plans to blog at least once a week from now on, even if it is a mere blurb about minutiae.

Over the next few weeks, I'll fill you in on some of the goings-on that you've missed in my absence, and the current shape of tings. As soon as I can find my camera's battery charger, I'll get back to posting some photos as well.

Until later...

Squirrely Cricket-Legged Women

noreply@blogger.com (Whimspiration) — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 18:35:00 +0000

Hot summer days and dresses don't work well together. Actually, they work really well together, if you are trying to start a fire.

Bare legs rubbing together like a cricket during a 90 degree evening.

There seems to be something missing...

Oh yeah, the fun factor, that's what's missing.

Nothing fun about catching fire to one's nether-regions due to heat and friction.

Blah