Dear Olive Garden God
March 10th, 2010Wednesday Wisdom’s by Steph is a sometimes weekly column brought to you by that crazy, lovable college-kid niece of mine. She loves comments so leave her one.
Everyone knows that it is not socially acceptable to talk loudly in nice restaurants, eat other peoples’ food, and be rude during the prayer over dinner. This is especially true when you have 30 people in the group rather than just 2 or 3 close family members.
This weekend my family and some of their friends went out to eat for my little cousin’s birthday. She just turned 12 years old and everyone wanted to get together to go somewhere nice for dinner. The place of choice was Olive Garden. I had already decided that for my social norm violation project for my Psychology class at school I was going to talk very loud and maybe release a few gases out of my mouth from time to time. Granted, I was still worried about what others might think of me since no one was aware of what I was doing this for.
As we all gathered at the table and picked where we would sit, the exciting night of socially UN-normal activity began. All night I talked very loud. I asked for bread loud, for salad loud, and even had conversations with people right next to me at an unnecessary volume level. As the night went on, I noticed everyone, especially my aunts and uncles, giving me looks like “Stop! You are embarrassing us and are being impolite!” They never said anything, just merely looked at me with disapproving eyes. On the inside I was laughing. My next task was to be rude when it came to table manners. My cousin was eating and my side of the table ran out of breadsticks. I casually reached over peoples’ plates and grabbed her breadstick and took a huge bite. Her response was a slap on my wrist. Then she took the initiative to move her plate and tell me to stop. She giggled a little but I could tell she thought it was weird and a little uncomfortable. I also felt uncomfortable because they faces around me were all very different. Once everyone had received their main entrée, my uncle (on the very opposite end of the long table) asked all 30 people to bow their heads for the blessing. Everyone joined hands around the table and closed their eyes. While my uncle was praying, I was saying a prayer of my own, not quite as loud as before but still louder than normal; “Dear Olive Garden God! I pray that my food will be yummy in my tummy! May you bless it and it be good. May my sweet tea nourish my thirst and may the food nourish my hunger. AMEN!!!” During my prayer to God I was raising the hands I was joined with in the air as if in a Pentecostal church. When the prayer was over and everyone looked up, everyone was staring at me in astonishment. Why in the world would someone do such a thing? If only they knew. Still, no one said anything, but by this point I was having fun with it and was proud of myself for not backing out of the experiment. Even the waiter standing behind me during prayer let out a slight laugh in the background. The hostess that stood around was giving me the evil eye all night though. She scared me a little so I tried not to make eye contact. She was one of those women with the 1970’s poof hair that was bright red, wore glasses, and her paints were high-waisted enough to give any good man a wedgie! When the night was over I could feel tension in the air. In the end, I told them why I acted so rudely during this dinner at a nice restaurant. Then everyone decided it was slightly amusing, but not at the time. Most people’s favorite was “Dear Olive Garden God!!” Needless to say, at first I was very uncomfortable because I have been taught that manners are very important and have an effect on the impression of everyone with you as well.
Seeds for Survival (GIVEAWAY)
March 9th, 2010Have you ever wondered what you would do in time of a catastrophic emergency? How would you feed your family? Where would you get water? What if there is a food shortage?
Disasters bring these thoughts to our minds that normally stay hidden away in the recesses. And honestly, more often that not we have the mentality that it won’t happen to us so why worry about it.
Hometown Seeds has made a Survival Seed Package that is water-tight sealed and will last, as is, for 5 years or in the freezer for 10 years. It comes with instructions and all the seeds that you need to get a good start on growing food during time of disaster. These kits are well thought out…I am very impressed.
Not only are these kits great to put up for a disaster, they would also make GREAT gifts for those in your life that are facing tough times due to the economy. By giving them the gift of one package they would be able to grow some of their own food and not have to worry so heavily about what they were going to put on the table.
Emergency Survival Seeds Package Contents:
* Know that your family will have food during a crisis.
* Includes an in-depth instruction booklet.
* Enough seeds to plant 3/4 of an acre!
* Non-Hybrid Survival Seeds produce true to variety seeds to replant for future harvests.
* Optimum water content to increase storage life.
* Double water tight packaging.
* 5yr. minimum shelf life, up to 10 yrs. if frozen.
* Hometown seeds is 100% GMO free!
* Makes a great addition to your long term food storage.
* Nearly 1 1/2 lbs. of premium seed.
Includes 16 Easy To Grow Non-Hybrid Varieties:
Lincoln Peas
Detroit Dark Red Beets
Kentucky Wonder Brown Pole Bean
Yolo Wonder Pepper
Champion Radish
Lucullus Swiss Chard
Black Beauty Zucchini
Waltham Butternut Winter Squash
Bloomsdale Longstanding Spinach
Scarlet Nantes Carrots
Long Green Improved Cucumber
Rutgers Tomato
Golden Acre Cabbage
Romaine Paris Island Cos Lettuce
Golden Bantem Sweet Corn
Yellow Sweet Spanish Onion
Hometown Seeds offers a huge variety of premium quality seed and supplies within a user friendly, secure online seed store. They not only offer the Survival Seeds but other gardening seeds, wildflower seeds, herb seeds, annuals and perennials for all your gardening needs.
Thanks to Hometown Seeds you have the opportunity to win a Survival Seed Package for your families peace of mind.
To Enter: Visit Hometown Seeds and leave a comment here stating what your biggest disaster related fear is. Water? Food? Transportation? etc.
One lucky reader will win a survival seed package to help ease those fears. All entries must be received by March 20th at 5 PM EST. All entries must have a valid US mailing address. Winner will be selected at random and will have 3 days to respond to the verification e-mail.
Want Extra Entries:
Blog about this contest with a link back to here (leave link where the post can be found).
Subscribe to The Post-It Place (either by a reader or request in your comment to be added to the e-mail list for contests and giveaways).
Place my button on your blog (leave link it can be found at).
Follow me - Its_Jyl on Twitter and Tweet this contest making sure to use the @Its_Jyl (leave ID in a comment and I will follow you back).
Friend Me on Facebook.
Leave a comment on any non-giveaway post on The Post-It Place.
“I was provided with one survival seed package from Hometown Seeds as a tool to help facilitate this post. I was in no other way compensated and all opinions are those of my own.”
Automatic Watches by Orient (GIVEAWAY)
March 8th, 2010
Have you ever heard of Orient watches? Well, you have been missing out. Beautiful timepieces. Elegant , Sporty, Casual…they have it all covered. A staple among watch aficionados, Orient is known for its ability to deliver luxury features at 1/3 the price of comparable brands offering:
- In-house Movements
- Power reserve indicators
- Fully-automatic timepieces
- US-based service & maintenance
These watches have been widely cherished in Asia, Europe, and South America. And now Japan’s largest producer of automatic watches is finally available in the United States. With more than 50 years of history and an annual production of over 2 million timepieces, Orient could quite possibly be the largest watch company you never knew existed. You can watch some of the Orient watch reviews to see just how loved they are.
This is one of the watches from the Orient light powered line. You can harness the power of the sun using the CVDAE001B solar powered watch. Analogue Quartz Movement : caliber JE700 Quartz movement with solar cell (chargeable from any light source) Approx 6 months of running time at full charge. But you will want to check out all of the great selections that they offer to both Men and Women.
Look! They even have something designed especially for me! I wonder how they knew my favorite color was Orange.
They great folks at Orient Watch are offering you guys the chance to win an Orient Watch of your own! One lucky reader will receive a Ladies OR Man’s watch like or similar to one’s shown below (please be aware that substitution is a possibility depending on market demand):
To Enter: Visit Orient Watch and then leave a comment here stating which watch is your favorite or something that you learned about Orient Watch. All entries must be received by March 20th at 5 PM EST. All entries must have a valid U.S. Mailing address.Winner will be selected randomly and will have 3 days to respond to verification e-mail before another winner will be selected.
Want Extra Entries:
Blog about this contest with a link back to here (please leave link where the post can be found).
Subscribe to The Post-It Place (either by a reader or request in your comment to be added to the e-mail list for contests and giveaways).
Place my button on your blog (leave link it can be found at).
Follow me - Its_Jyl on Twitter and Tweet this contest making sure to use the @Its_Jyl (leave ID in a comment and I will follow you back).
Friend Me on Facebook.
Leave a comment on any non-giveaway post on The Post-It Place.
“I was in no way compensated for this post. Orient Watch is however supplying the product for the giveaway.”
Historically Speaking
March 7th, 2010Yesterday turned out to be a beautiful day! Apparently I was not the only one who thought so because when my niece called and said “I am bored, let’s go do something” I JUMPED at the chance. We started out by hanging around Hicktown, visiting some of the local historical sites and me telling her some of the stories about when I was young and some of the folklore I know about where we went. Over the course of the next few weeks you will get to see some of the places that we visited and hear some of those stories, but until then….let me introduce you to:
The Water Tower
What town doesn’t have one of these?
I remember one night when I was in High School a bunch of us got together to party hang out and ended up at the top of ours. The local police department was none to happy with us. They long ago took measures to make sure no more of the local yahoos could even attempt to get to the top. I was telling Steph the story and from the backseat comes many, many questions. I wish I would remember that when I drag Tate along on our adventures I must be more reserved in the telling of some of the stories of my youth. I must remember that little tidbit. I really, really must remember!
I was rather proud of this picture..it almost looks like one of those photo cards you would pick up in a souvenir shop. Ok, except for the power lines at the bottom. I am getting better though. Those of you that have been around awhile can attest to that. Remember how horrible my first pictures used to be? Yeah, ok…we really don’t want to go there.
After we got done gallivanting about the town we headed South to visit with my sister and her girls with a few stops to make before we all met up. I took Steph to one of our favorite places…
…because she hadn’t had the opportunity to go yet. And this is one stop that is required! She was amazed at all the different types of popcorn that they have. What did she walk away with? Loaded Baked Potato Popcorn. Mmm, Mmmm Good! Owned by twin brothers, you will want to stop in and visit for the atmosphere and experience as much as for the fabulous popcorn itself. You can visit the Popcorn Haven website and browse through some of the gourmet flavors that you can find when traveling through Georgia on I-75. It is a stop that you won’t regret making. I suggest that you try the White Chocolate Pretzel Popcorn. Or the Snickers. Or the Twix. Or the Bubblegum. Ok…maybe I like them all. Just plan to stay awhile, it is so hard to choose.
After we made all of our stops along the way we met up with The Clan McLeod at a local Mexican restaurant and had supper where we all just hung out and had a great time…and I got my nose unstopped from the hot sauce. Talk about relief! Then we went to my sisters house for an evening of family and fun. We played our regular go-to card game of Shanghai Rummy and then my brother-in-law taught us all to play Texas Hold-Em. I have been a hold out on learning to play but I gave in and succumbed to the worldly ways of poker. Please don’t tell, but I think I could really learn to like it.
I have to leave you with this picture…
…because it is the weirdness that is us.
I hope that your weekend has been filled with beautiful weather, good food, friends and family.
Today, I will be spending the day at home. Cooking a long over-due typical Southern-Style Sunday dinner.
What will you be doing?
Tropicana Juicy Rewards
March 5th, 2010
I am so excited to have been chosen to be a Tropicana Juicy Ambassador and have the opportunity to tell you about the Tropicana Juicy Rewards Program.
Thanks to the Tropicana Juicy Rewards program saving money is easier and more fun than ever, not to mention TASTY! You can explore 20,000 different ways to save on everything from golf and workout gear to waterpark and zoo admissions. There is something for everyone. One of the things that I am most excited about are all of the great family adventures from museums to theme parks that are offered to receive big savings. Talk about some great field trips that Tate and I will be taking. I can’t wait to share them all with you. The one we are most excited about?? Going to the Renaissance Fair! Can’t Wait!
You will be receiving some exclusive insights into the the Juicy Rewards program. Like right now you can go to the Juicy Rewards Page and register, then enter the following code to get your very first point: MOMCE-NTRAL. While you are there you can take a survey to receive an extra point and enter their Harrah’s Sweepstakes. The sweepstakes enters you to win a trip to one of the following for yourself and 3 guests:
* A birthday blowout in Las Vegas!
* A chance to win a Big Easy Getaway!
* A chance to Escape to Atlantic City
* A Getaway to Lake Tahoe
Then, you can go fan Tropicana on FaceBook for another point. And, Tropicana is also on Twitter.
To start saving your points just purchase any Tropicana, Tropicana Pure Premium, and Tropicana Trop50 products featuring the Tropicana Juicy Rewards Logo in a store near you. The products that feature the logo will have a 10 character code under the cap or on the packaging. Just visit the Tropicana Juicy Rewards page, login, and enter your code. The points will be automatically credited to your account and you can start saving today.
“I wrote this review while participating in the Tropicana Juicy Insiders Ambassador program by Mom Central on behalf of Tropicana. I received 12 free Juicy Rewards points and a $50 Visa gift card to use in redemption of the points and to facilitate my review.”
Sniff, Sniff
March 5th, 2010Sniffle, hack, cough, sneeze, moan, groan. That is what we are doing. It started last week with Erin. She wasn’t feeling well but constantly has sinus issues which is what we chaulked it up to. The early this week Tate started. Then I started but held it off. Then Bric got the sickest and then it hit me again. We officially have the Crud!
Sore throats, congestion, body aches, fever.
It has been miserable.
And the worst of it is that Bric is the worst person in the world to be sick. I am not even sure he can stand himself because it is hard for us to stand him. Of course the old saying that men are big babies…it is true. He moans and huffs and puffs at every move. Me, I have to get on up and do laundry and dishes and fix food. The dogs have to be taken out. The kids have to be checked on. I don’t have the luxury of staying n bed for 2 days straight.
So, I sit here and ache and sniff and sneeze and cough and hope like heck a lung isn’t the next thing to come flying out of my body and wishing like everything I was on a Costa Rica vacation with no kids, no dogs and no husband. Just me and a good book where I could lay in the sun and relish the fact that I had no one to take care of but myself.
The Wrong Assumption - A Southernism
March 5th, 2010
We all make wrong assumptions from time to time. It is inevitable, we are only human after all. I won’t ever forget the time that I called the new kid at school a boy. SHE ended up threatening to beat the crap outta me. I wasn’t scared of much, but I was scared of her. She was a major bully to many people. I think it had something to do with all the wrong assumptions made about her gender. Here in the South something we might say about making a wrong assumption is:
“Just cause a chicken has wings don’t mean it can fly”
Yep…sometimes it is easy to get it wrong. Just make sure it isn’t directed towards someone in the throws of a major identity crisis that was mentally unstable to begin with.
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